Burning my Plows...

At Twin Oaks, we just finished a series centered on the fact that God is Greater Than... the series being loosely based on the fact that we have to recognize that our God that we serve is much greater than we give him credit.  So much of the time we spend thinking about how we are going to do this or what we are going to do can be washed away if we realize that our God is Greater.  

Out of this message from our senior pastor Randy Wheeler, came a discussion regarding the book "Greater" by Steven Furtick and most specifically the chapter in the book regarding Burning your plows.  The chapter is based on Elisha and how he was called to leave his old profession of leading oxen on plows to doing something greater.  The fact is that Elisha could have stored the plows or given them to someone for safe keeping or kept using them, but what he realized was that if he was truly going to follow the call he was given that was much Greater, then he had to purge his life of everything he used to be.  This meant taking his plows and burning them.  We began to discuss as a staff what this meant to us, what plows in our life was God calling us to burn in order to live a life Greater.  

Thinking about these plows can be a humbling experience because throughout the process you rationalize to yourself that this is not needed or that you can be fine with just storing the plows because who knows you may go back to them at some point and you don't want them to be gone.  But what God continues to say to us is that we have to be willing to sacrifice who we used to be in order to be something greater and if we are called to be again what we once were, the plows that are needed would again be provided.  

Personally I have a lot of plows that need to be burned before I am willing to do the something greater that God is calling me/us to.  I am currently in the process of lighting the matches and burning them myself, but even as I write this I am continuely reminded of the importance of this process.  We all are hoping to do something much greater than we can even imagine, but there has to be an element of sacrifice attached to this.  

If you haven't already pick up the book Greater by Steven Furtick and if you are looking for a church home in the Detroit area, join us at Twin Oaks CC in Woodhaven, MI.  What are the plows that God is telling you to burn?  How long are you willing to wait before becoming something GREATer. 

till another day, 

normallyINDIE

"Greater" by Steven Furtick, Book Review

If any of you have paid attention lately to the Ministry world, you have probably heard of the Elevation Church in North Carolina (if I am not mistaken).  He started that church after many years of dreaming, hoping, questioning, and trusting God.  Just 6 years later he is worshipping with 10,000 believers from the area, not to mention millions around the world through their digital footprint.  It is so exciting to see a guy that is committed to the call God has given him to do some amazing things including ministering to a church he attends as well as to the people that are listening, reading, and watching him speak.

A couple of years ago he released a book called, "Sun Stand Still" that challenged its' readers to believe like Joshua did when he asked the sun to literally stand still.  The amazing thing in that story is that God came through, supernaturally.  He challenged me to personally start challenging God to answer supernatural prayers that if they were answered could only be pointed back to him.  This book changed the way I thought about the idea of dreaming, prayer, and a passionate relationship with God.

Most recently, Steven Furtick released a second book entitled "Greater", this time challenging his readers to realize that their life is and will be greater than they could ever imagine if they merely obeyed, sacrificed, and faith in the fact that God has called them to do something.

Beside the fact that his writing style makes it easy for even a new believer to get engaged, it is a book that does not leave you thinking that you have it all figured out.  It does the exact opposite.  As you will see in the next two blog posts, this book challenged me to rethink what I am doing in my life.  It made me ask the question, "How am I leading my students that God has blessed me to minister to live a much greater life?"  This book challenged me to question how I am living my life today.  Am I really living the greater life God has called me to?  Where will I be in 50 years and at that point will I feel that I truly capitalized on all that God has given me?  Will Jesus say come join me in paradise good and faithful servant?

These are just a few of the questions that will surely come to mind as you read through this book and if you are someone who wants to take their life with God to another level, I strongly suggest getting a copy of both "Sun Stand Still" & "Greater" by Steven Furtick.  Allow the writings of a great man of God change the relationship that you have with Christ.


till another day,



normallyINDIE