Things learned while circumnavigating the globe

Wow! What a blog from Julie Lortz. She just returned from the World Race this weekend and didn’t lose any time in processing her experience. Her list shows why I believe this is the best discipling experience for 20-somethings anywhere.

Too many young people graduate out into the world and fling themselves at some crazy career, feeling they they need to begin paying off school debts immediately. And once locked into a career merry-go-round, many never get off until they’re 50 and waking up with a spiritual hangover, asking, “What happened?”

Not Julie!

Instead of going to medical school, she followed a nudge inside that said, “There’s more for you in life. Go learn community and learn about this big, wide world and where you fit in it.”

And the rewards of a changed life and a deep connection with her Lord are beyond measure. You can read a list like this one, but until you’ve lived it, you can’t appropriate it as your own.

How do you measure a year in the life? Some would say in love, in miles, in laughs, in journeys, in truth learned, in tears cried. I have attempted to share what I have learned this year. Surely I haven’t covered everything. And some of this I probably knew before, but now I know at a deeper level – I know it in my core. And some of this I am still learning. Life is a process. But God is faithful to see that to completion. I hope this tells you a little about my year and maybe it sparks something in you. Perhaps you have already learned this, perhaps God is teaching you now, maybe it won’t make sense until you experience it yourself.

[TRUST] – Regardless of how things may seem to my limited view, God is in everything. Nothing happens outside of Him. God is completely sovereign. He has taught me a lot about trust this year.

[AUTHORITY] – We are sons and daughters of Christ and as such we have an authority that can move things; break strongholds, bring freedom, build things. We rarely take hold of the fullness of this authority. But when we do, we realize the power in Christ. (Luke 10:19)

[PRAYER] – God chooses to work through us. In a sense, He limits Himself to us. He listens to our prayers. He cares what we say. He has given us the power to unlock things and break strongholds through our prayers. We have to understand the power of our prayers and know that each of us is called to pray. (James 5:16, 1 Peter 3:12, 1 Timothy 2). And I have become a huge believer of praying the Word. I never really did that before. But speaking the Word and then praying it to God is powerful. And it is perfect, what better and easier to pray, than His Word.

[CONFRONTATION] – As much as I hate to admit it, the Lord is right when He tells us to work things out with one another. I do not like confrontation. It makes me uncomfortable, but I have learned that it usually makes things better and strengthens a relationship. It brings clarity to the things that are running through your head. You can’t expect a person to change, if they don’t know how they are hurting you. Honesty is key. But I also know not to go to someone about every little thing. And I do not approach someone without first taking it to God.

[TRUTH] – Truth and honesty are the only way to operate. I have to continually speak God’s truth over myself – what He says about me in His word and what He has spoken to me.

[COMMUNITY] – We are made for community. It is foundational to how God created us to live. I am not just talking about eating, living and sleeping together. I am talking about the kind of community that sharpens us, draws out the God inside us, pushes us, and accomplishes much for the Kingdom. I have realized the importance of these type of relationships. I have even become desperate for community as I now know it. I have to have people around me keeping me accountable and calling out the God inside of me.

[CHURCH] – Church is not a building or a place. Church is a body. Never have I seen church the way I have this year. It is a lot of the community I talk of above. It is simply sharing what Christ is doing in your life with others, being vulnerable and open, being available to others. Church is not a cultural hiding game, pretending we are perfect. It is not a social club. It is not two hours on Sunday morning. It is not one person doing everything, while the rest sit idle, it is a collective movement towards God. Church is life as we were created to live.

[MINISTRY] – It is not always what you think or expect. And it absolutely doesn’t mean having the title of a full-time missionary. It is about being kingdom-minded/aware and Christ-centered. Missions is not and event or a trip, it is a lifestyle. We are to build His Kingdom everywhere. And that doesn’t always mean by preaching. Most often it just means living and breathing with a consciousness of what God is doing. It is always asking the questions: “God, what are you doing in this place or in these lives? And how do I fit into that?” Obedient in the moment.

[LEADERSHIP] – You have to give people 2 things before they will follow you: 1)You must show them you are trustworthy and qualified, 2) You must give them a reason to follow you. Unfortunately a higher title/position does not guarantee that people will follow you.

[LOVE] – If it is not compelled by love, then you need to ask God to get you to that place. Things lose meaning when they are not compelled by love. We need love, in fact we are desperate for it, and we must give love. If we have loved well….that is what will bring satisfaction in the end. Love changes.

[GRACE] – Grace is the cornerstone of who Christ is. When we learn to see each other with Christ’s eyes – each made in the image of Christ and each a child of Christ, – and when we grasp at the smallest level the grace that God gives to us, then we will know grace, and be in a place to give and receive it.

[WARFARE] – We are spiritual beings. There is no question of that. We absolutely have an enemy whose every desire is to destroy us by removing our focus from God and lying to us about who God says we are (our true identity). We have to fight back and our weapons are not carnal, but they are prayer, worship, truth, the Word and community. That is what we must fight with and for. And at the same time, I can’t focus on warfare. I must watch for the enemy, but my focus must be worship. Love worship, not warfare, but when necessary, go to war.

[PERSPECTIVE] – Everything we do is at some level based on our perspective. We have to determine what perspective we want to live from.

[AMERICA] – I absolutely love America. Yes, we don’t get everything right. Yes, I can’t stand it at times and wish to escape to another place. Yes, I get frustrated with our priorities. But, truthfully, I love it and I know that we have been given much. I love that we have washers and dryers. I love that we have showers. I love that we have freedom. I love that there is toilet paper in every bathroom. America is truly a great place! I am grateful and proud to call it my country.

[FAMILY] – Everywhere I have gone this year, I have seen heartbreaking circumstances. And every time I look for the root, I see that people 1)Don’t have Christ and 2)Have incredibly dysfunctional families (which stems from number 1). Family is the most important thing. If we don’t value those intimate and unique relationships that God has given us then things get messed up. And I do believe that every family has it’s problems at some level. I know longer believe in normal. But there our children being sold by their parents. There our children who have never received a hug from their parents. There are children that are growing up without parents because AIDS and lack of responsibility. There are parents who raise their little boys as girls. There are parents who choose alcohol or drugs or money over their children. These may not be our primary problems in America, but we do choose careers over our children. We do teach them status. Divorce is happening everywhere. And our homes our falling apart. We have to learn to value the sacredness or the family and the importance of parenting. We have to invest in our children if we want to see the changes in the next generation that we desperately need. And Fathers have such a crucial role in this all. Fathers must be leaders. They must speak value and love into their children. We’ve got to get this family thing right.

[WORDS] – I never realized the importance of my words before this year. I sought to choose them carefully, so not to hurt those around me with harsh words. But I did not understand the spiritual importance and influence that my words have. As sons or daughters of Christ, we have been given authority. So when we declare something; when we say yes/no to something, the spiritual realm also says yes/no to that thing. (Proverbs 18:21, Matt 16:19)

[SPIRITUAL ATMOSPHERE]  – There is absolutely a spiritual atmosphere or climate, so to speak. As I have been in different countries I have experienced this. The enemy always lies, but he does not always use the same lies to deceive or distract. In some places there was a spirit of oppression, some places a spirit of lust, some places a spirit of lethargy, some places a spirit of evilness, some places a spirit of complacency. Everywhere is different. I have learned to ask God what I need to be prepared for as I go into a place. When I am not aware and when I don’t pray through it, those things begin to affect me and latch on to me. It is so important to be aware of what is going on in a certain area.

[MIRACLES] – God is a still God of miracles. He worked supernaturally this year – that is His character. He heals people. He desires healing and wholeness for all – spiritually, emotionally and physically. We have to be open to that, persistent and believe that He is still miraculous. In small things too, that don’t seem to matter that much to the Kingdom. But if it matters to us, it matters to Him.

[LISTENING] – God is a God who speaks (John 10:27). Just like any relationship, mine with God is not to be a monologue of constant requests. He longs to speak to me, as well. I’m not sure how much I realized this before this year. Think of your relationships with your best friends – that is the relationship that God longs for with each of us. But just like any relationship, it takes time, intention, and effort to learn how to discern and hear God’s voice. And He is not limited to speaking through the Bible, though He uses that often; He speaks through His Spirit inside of me, people, and situations. The important thing though is to always test what you perceive Him to be saying against scripture and other believers

[HIDING] – I have realized that I am unfortunately pretty good at this. But I have learned that if I attempt to hide from, or avoid, potential hurt, pain, rejection, difficulty, then I will inevitably miss out on the good things. I will miss out on incredible relationships, love, and beauty. Those are things I am not willing to miss. That is not living.

[AWARE] – Life is about living fully aware of and available to where and how God is moving, and how you can be a part of that. Living that way will turn life into an adventure with God anywhere you are, regardless of what you are doing. You do not have to be traveling around the world to be on an adventure with God. It is just about being available and obedient to what God is doing in your sphere of influence. And you always have influence in the spiritual realm.

[PEOPLE] – People everywhere have the same deep longings and basic needs. That is seen as you enter different cultures all over the world. But on the surface, in the words of Jane Kim, “People are different.” That is what you will learn living with 26 people day in and day out.

[PERSISTENCE] – I am still learning to be persistent in life and in prayer. God calls us to be persistent and life demands that of me. Yes, it is difficult and I will fall. But what a tragedy to stop when I am just short of spiritual breakthrough, an answered prayer, or reaching a dream. We must persevere in trusting God’s faithfulness.

[IDENTITY] – I am still learning to live from the identity that God gives me – daughter of the King, the bride of Christ – my true identity. It is a tension that I often find myself caught in – that I am not enough. I know more of who I am now, but I don’t always find myself living from that place. This is still in process and it may always be.

[HOLY SPIRIT] – The Holy Spirit is innate to the life of a Christ-follower. This part of the trinity is often ignored, thus causing us to live a faith based on religion rather on the movement of God. I think I was somewhat numb to this prior to this past year. The Holy Spirit is alive and present and inside each one of us. The Holy Spirit directs, convicts and brings forth life in power and healing. Life without the Spirit can be dead – I can’t neglect this part of Christ.

[ME and GOD]  – This one probably sounds ridiculous. But one day it just hit me – God is inside of me, literally, inside of ME! I have to continually profess that over myself, but it is truth.

[GOD ACTIVITIES]
– I don’t really know what to call this. But one day I was doing things for our ministry – running errands, taking care of things, etc. And God spoke simply and clearly to me. He said these are good things, but when they take precedence over me, they are no longer good. He’s got to be number one. He is jealous over you and your time.