WATCH TODAY’S EPISODE ON YOUTUBE.
CONSECRATION
Wake up, sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.
Jesus, I belong to you.
I lift up my heart to you.
I set my mind on you.
I fix my eyes on you.
I offer my body to you as a living sacrifice.
Jesus, we belong to you.
Praying in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, amen.
THE WORD OF THE LORD
Matthew 6:5–8 NIV
“And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.”
CONSIDER THIS . . .
One of the slogans that kept me on the spiritual rails over the years is the phrase “naturally supernatural.”
In other words, let’s keep it real when it comes to the ministry of the Holy Spirit through you and me. We don’t need to put on a special spiritual voice or use thee and thou in a moment of revelation for someone. We can relax, be ourselves, and naturally participate in what the Father is doing in someone’s life in ways that are beyond our natural abilities.
Being naturally supernatural is a posture that stands in contrast to that of “the hypocrites” in Matthew 6:5–8, who make a show out of their spiritual lives to draw attention to themselves. I’m thinking back over the past few decades of famous and visible Christian leaders who seemed to put public performance ahead of private faithfulness.
We should all be slow to judge and quick to forgive, but we do have the ability to examine the fruit of a ministry and to bring words of guidance and correction in love.
When a word comes to you for someone or God heals someone through you, celebrate! Jesus did something, not you. Give thanks and move on. I’m still learning this, but it’s so important we do not begin to believe our own reviews!
If we start to believe that we are the source of a gift and start putting spiritual gifts under our name on our business card, we will lose the “gentle and humble in heart” part of Jesus’s character (Matt. 11:29). An apprentice is like their Master.
Jesus was not a show-off—he was a show-up-and-obey kind of leader.
Ministering to people when no one is watching is so beautiful. As with prayer, you and the Father know what happened; no one else needs to know. This keeps our hearts in the right place for when God wants to do something more public through us.
Could you be naturally supernatural today by the power of the Holy Spirit within you?
PRAYER
Lord Jesus, I want to learn to expect you to move as I faithfully remain who I am in you. Keep my eyes fixed on the prize of you being glorified as I minister to others. In the name of Jesus I pray, amen.
JOURNAL PROMPTS
Write down what moved you in this entry today. How can you become a more naturally supernatural Christian at work, at home, and with your friends and neighbors?
ACTIVATION
Today, do something that ministers to someone that no one else sees. Let it be hidden, unseen, and faithful to Jesus. Then, when you have finished, meet with Jesus and give him the glory for what happened. Ask him to give you more opportunities to be naturally supernatural as a child of God.
SING
Today, we will sing “O the Deep, Deep Love of Jesus” (hymn 121) from our Seedbed hymnal, Our Great Redeemer’s Praise.
For the Awakening,
Dan Wilt
Dan Wilt is an author, communicator, pastor, and practitioner. With roots in the Vineyard stream of churches, Dan has served the development of followers of Jesus internationally and is part of the Seedbed Farm Team.
One Response
Keeping It Real
Nature is full of the supernatural. It’s built on the tree of life. Life is a mystery that inhabits physical matter but originates and flows from beyond it. Scientists can explain how living organisms function, but not what life is or how it came to exist.
To ignore the supernatural nature of life is to deny the astonishing differences between organic and inorganic matter. It is to pretend that all life, including human life, consists merely of mechanical mechanisms and digital processors. It is to believe that both basic and brilliant brains are nothing but bots, and that human consciousness is only a matter-made mirage.
If nothing exists but energy and matter, then nothing truly matters. Human understanding, consciousness, ideals, inspirations, and insights are just illusions. However, if there isn’t anything outside of nature to animate it, how can I be writing this, and you be reading it?
Listen to the loudness of life! Look at its luscious beauty. Let it launch you into a lifestyle of awe, amazement, and appreciation. Open up and begin to experience the astounding reality of compassion, kindness, and heart-connection. Step boldly beyond any bias that perhaps is blocking your perception of the supernatural.