Executive Insights

No, that’s not a typo in the subject line.  We’re all likely familiar with the hymn line, “prone to wander, Lord I feel it” but aren’t we just as prone to wonder?

I find myself often wondering.  As I look out my back window I wonder at the beauty that God has created.  But in a different sense of the word, I also find myself wondering things like:

• How can I repair a broken relationship?
• How is God going to provide? In our case, provide for our personal support.
• How can I lead more effectively?
• How can I have a greater impact on my grandkids?
• I even wonder what can I get my wife for her birthday?  (Now that’s a practical wonder!)

In the context of ministry in Europe, I wonder when the day will come that the answer to our prayers for a spiritual awakening across the continent will come pouring out of heaven.

This past week a good number of us gathered each day over the noon hour to pray such prayers for Europe.  We prayed with power and purpose and there is no doubt that our prayers were both heard and were pleasing to the Lord.  But when will we see the answers to such gigantic prayers?  I wonder.  Will I live long enough to see the answers to such prayers?  I wonder.

If I may paraphrase Andrew Murray from his book, With Christ in the School of Prayer, he provides an answer to my wondering.  As he writes, “Just as water in a stream, to exercise its full force must be gathered up and then released, so too with prayer… there must be a “heaping up” of prayer until God sees the measure is full and the answer comes.”  Ah, ha.  I now have my answer.  God’s response to our prayers for Europe will come at the exact moment enough prayers have been “heaped up”.

While we are naturally prone to wonder we can also be confident of God’s answer.  I don’t need to wonder if my prayers will be heard or are making a difference.  I just need to continue to heap up prayers such as those for the spiritual awakening of Europe.  More and more prayers until the dam breaks and awakening comes.

I hope the Lord will lead you to add to the heaping up of prayers for Europe.  No need to wonder if it makes a difference.  Assuredly it does and it will.

My life as a baseball fan is much more devoted to the major leagues (SF Giants specifically)…. and the minor leagues, not so much.

However, when it comes to my devotional life I prefer the minors to the majors.  Of course I’m referring to the Old Testament prophets divided into sections of 5 “major” prophets and 12 “minor” ones.   During Momentum Europe’s recent Board meeting I found myself leading some devotional thoughts from the book of Joel, one of the shorter “minor” prophets.

Joel is first of all a story about locusts of all kinds (swarms of locusts, young locusts, old locusts and plain old “other” locusts).  The applications are many.  There’s the locusts that have eaten away at the Christian heritage of Europe.  There’s the locusts that have from time to time eroded the impact of this ministry.  And of course there’s the personal locusts of life where I need to regularly repent and claim God’s grace and forgiveness.

But beyond the locust story, this minor prophet also majors in the story of those who care about the Lord.  Those who suffer in the midst of a fallen world but yet continue to intercede on behalf of the world around them.  This is the context of the famous passage from Joel 2:28, 29:

“And afterward, I will pour out my Spirit on all people.  Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions.  Even on my servants, both men and women I will pour out my Spirit in these days.”

It’s important to note that the “afterward” in the above passage takes into account what God has already done in replenishing the storehouses and refreshing the pastures of His people.

The recently completed Momentum Europe Partners retreat was a time of replenishing and refreshing.  Approximately 35 ME Partners, Friends and Staff met over 3 days to encourage one another and to be refreshed in our vision for reaching Europeans.  We came away seeing that our storehouses had been restocked and our fields of ministry were sprouting new growth.

So now from the above passage, we can anticipate the wonderful touch of God’s Spirit.  Our dreams for this ministry will be bigger.  Our vision will be clearer.  And the anticipation of His Spirit to work among us already is stronger than ever.

Thus, a “minor” prophet brings us major encouragement.  Whether the locusts have taken their toll on Europe generally or in Momentum Europe corporately or within our lives individually, God stands ready to replenish and refresh and empower anew.  That will lead us to greater impact.  Awesome!

I’m excited about the major things God yet plans to do in Europe.  Are you?