Greg Atkinson

I’m in a season of life where I’m praying through some huge decisions for me and my family and will probably have some news to announce soon. Whenever I’m trying to discern God’s will for my life, I always go back to what Henry Blackaby taught in his study Experiencing God.

Experiencing God was foundation in my spiritual life and is a study I’ve been through numerous times. In it, Blackaby says that there are ways to know God’s will for a situation in your life. He teaches that God uses Scripture, prayer, the Holy Spirit, people and circumstances. Whenever I’m praying about big things, I look at all 5 ways that God speaks to us.

Scripture

God never contradicts His Word. If what we are praying about doing lines up with Scripture, then it’s in good company. God also speaks to us through His Word and can open our eyes and hearts to new things through reading His Living Word.

Prayer

Prayer is a two-way conversation. Having the discipline to pray is one thing. Having the discipline and sensitivity to stop and listen to God speak is another thing entirely. When we be still and know that He is God and stop talking long enough to hear from Him, great things happen. God can impress a thought, idea or dream in your heart in times of dedicated prayer.

Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit has guided me countless times in my life. I can’t tell you how many times the Holy Spirit has woke me up in the middle of the night to speak to my heart OR the Holy Spirit won’t let me fall asleep and I lie awake communing with God. When we stop to listen to that still, small voice – God can lead, guide and direct our steps.

People

Simply put: God speaks through people. Many will say God speaks through His Church. I believe that’s true, but I’ve also seen God speak through lost people, troubled people, hurting people, music and movies. God speaks to me in a number of ways. I have had many life-changing conversations with people that God used to lead me.

Circumstances

It’s important that we take our circumstances into consideration when trying to discern God’s will in a given situation. Many times our circumstance can be God’s way of saying, “This is what you need to do.” I’m praying through something big right now and our circumstance is a big part of why I believe God is leading me to something new and different. ]

My prayer for you all is that you will consider these five things when you’re praying about God’s will in your life.

This past weekend we went on a family mini-vacation to Charleston, SC. We got to do a ton of fun things and I loved every minute of it. We went through the market in downtown Charleston and I gave each of my kids money to shop for something special. I loved seeing their faces light up. They also had fun exploring downtown and spending a day at the beach.

I started thinking of the Scripture that talks about if I, as an earthly father, love giving good gifts to my children… Wow. I was struck by my Heavenly Father’s love for me and for my family. Read the following verse and reflect on God’s love for you. He truly loves each and every one of you.

If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! - Matthew 7:11

Lately, there’s been a ton of controversy over Rob Bell and his new book Love Wins. I’ve read several book reviews of the book and as I stated on Twitter and Facebook, it gives me great cause for concern. Let me first say that I love Rob Bell, respect him and think he’s a great communicator. I’ll talk more about that in a future blog post. What I disagree with him is in the area of theology, our view of Hell and what seems to be a universalist view (even though I know he doesn’t like that label).

I’d like to point to two great blog posts by people much smarter than I that express what I’ve been feeling for weeks and haven’t put into words, yet. It’s only after much thought and debate that I even write this blog post because I don’t want to be labeled as a hater or critic. Again, let me state: I love and respect Rob Bell. I just hold high the teaching of sound doctrine and feel I need to speak up if someone with a large following leads people astray.

First, on Rob Bell – I’d like to suggest that you read THIS blog post and book review that was posted on ChurchLeaders.com. I thought it was very well done and expressed my concern and a warning about what he writes in his book. I’ll let you read the review yourself and come to your own conclusion.

Second, on Hell – I believe there is an actual Hell and believe the Bible supports that belief. Pastor Mark Driscoll wrote an excellent blog post on Hell and he sums up the Scripture’s teaching on Hell much better than I could. I really respect when a pastor is clear, definite and straightforward. It’s the vagueness of Bell that concerns me. Read Driscoll’s thoughts on Hell HERE and see what you think.

Third, on why I’m not a Universalist – let me share with you three Scriptures that mean the world to me and that I simply can not shake or ignore.

For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus… – 1 Timothy 2:5

Jesus is ”‘the stone you builders rejected, which has become the cornerstone.’ Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.” – Acts 4:11-12

For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. – John 3:16

Watch the intro of this interview with Rob Bell on MSNBC and listen carefully to how the reporter explains Bell’s book. He says that all people will go to Heaven and that people can change their mind post-mortem. From the questions that the reporter asks, he is clearly puzzled by Bell’s mixed message of  ”No, I’m not a Universalist”, but “In the end God wins and everyone goes to Heaven.” This is dangerous stuff in my humble opinion. Watch and see for yourself.

This is my humble attempt at not bashing on anyone, but explaining my position and belief on this recent controversy and the issues of Rob Bell’s new book, teachings on Hell and Universalism. My only encouragement to you, my friends, is to search the Scriptures and teach sound doctrine.

“Jesus is not one of many ways to approach God, nor is He the best of several ways; He is the only way.” ~ A. W. Tozer

I was having lunch with some pastor friends of mine last week and we were discussing how the word “winning” has been taken over and probably changed for the worse by Charlie Sheen in recent days. We wondered aloud if winning will forever have a negative use and not be used by people as it once was.

Today, I’d like to raise the question: How do you define winning? Obviously, Charlie Sheen and many others throughout history have messed up ways of defining winning, but for those of us that follow Christ and His teachings – how do you define winning?

My gut reaction is that winning equals obedience OR obedience defines winning for me. Because I love Christ and hold His Word and His teachings in the highest regard, obedience to Him, His Word and the leading of His Holy Spirit are of paramount importance to me.

I’m currently going through a season in my life where my obedience is being tested and God is asking me if I will follow where He leads. I’m seeking to trust and obey and will share more about my journey with you in the future.

For now, I just want to reflect on what winning or success looks like for the Christian and especially a leader in the Church. How do you define winning?

Greetings friends and readers of this blog. You may or may not have realized (depending on if you follow me on Twitter or Facebook) that I took the last 2 weeks off from technology. I haven’t blogged, done Twitter, Facebook, any social media or even really used my laptop for the last 2 weeks straight. It’s been wonderful.

The past 2 weeks of blog posts were done way in advance and set to post automatically. The next 2 blog posts this week are guest blog posts, too. I’ve been trying to free my mind and heart up to focus on God and hear from him. I’ve blogged about this numerous times over the years and even wrote an article for Relevant Magazine entitled “Noise” where I reflected on how nice a break or fast from technology can be.

A friend and I decided to fast and pray for an extended period of time and I told him that for me to totally focus on God and hear from him, I needed to fast from social media, too. This proved to be a pleasant experiment. I was more present with my family, more productive throughout my day and more prone to hear from my Creator.

One of the things I’ve talked about all over the country when I talk about social media is setting up boundaries and having a dark day. You may not need to take a long break from social media (maybe you do), but all of us could use one Sabbath or dark day a week. For me, sometimes it’s Saturday – sometimes it’s Sunday.

So, friends – when was the last time you took a break from social media? How did it help you hear from God? If you’ve never tried a break from technology, I encourage you to give it a shot. You won’t regret it!

If you could only grab five items from your house before you had to leave it behind what would they be? (I’m hoping everyone would grab their family – so for this list don’t count them.)

Today we have so much “stuff” that if we had to pick up and move quickly it would be very difficult to do. I wonder it “stuff” sometimes holds us back from moving forward to where God wants us to be? I was challenged by the instructions of Joshua to the Israelites when it was time to crossover to the promised land.

“Go through the camp and tell the people to get their provisions ready. In THREE DAYS you will cross the Jordan River and take possession of the land the Lord your God is giving you.” (Joshua 1:11 NLT)

I think the lesson we need to learn is to travel light in this life. We need to be willing to let go things we don’t need. What are some of the things that we need let go of in our lives so that we can move forward when God calls?

• personal control … (Galatians 2:20)

It’s easy to say Jesus is Lord of my life, but it is hard to let go of that control. I think this is something I have to continue to learn on a daily basis.

• mistakes in my past … (Psalms 51:3, 17)

It is easy to let my past rob my future. I need to remember that if a perfect, righteous, holy God can forgive me, then I (rotten, no good, sinner) should forgive myself as well.

• hurts and disappointments … (Luke 6:35-38)

When I’m holding on to a grudge, I can’t hold on to the things Jesus wants me to.

Travel light and cross your Jordan River into the promised land!

***The following was  a guest post by Jay Thompson, Pastor of Community and Connections at Lakeside Church in Greensboro, GA.

Survivor, Survivorman, Man vs Wild, Dual Survival, Man Woman Wild … the list of survival shows today goes on and on. I love every one of them. If you watch any of these shows, they all agree on the basic needs of a person in a survival situation … FOOD, WATER, SHELTER, FIRE.

Lately I have been reading in the book of Joshua. The Israelites have wondered in the wilderness for 40 years and now it is finally time to go into the promised land. Before they cross over the Jordan, Joshua says to only pack the necessities.

“Go through the camp and tell the people to get their PROVISIONS ready. In three days you will cross the Jordan River and take possession of the land the Lord your God is giving you.” (Joshua 1:11 NLT)

As I read this passage I asked myself, “What are the provisions I need as I follow Jesus?” (Alright I know this list is not going to surprise anyone, but the know the things to do and doing them are extremely different.)

• time alone … (Psalms 46:10, Mark 1:35, 6:45-46, Luke 4:42, 5:16))

Life can get so busy that we never have time to sit, think, or rest. Jesus took time to be alone. I need to slow down.

• time alone with God’s word … (Ephesians 3:14-19, 1 Timothy 4:6-7, Hebrews 5:11-14, 2 Peter 1:2)

Reading, studying, journaling God’s word for ourselves is what enables us to live out God’s word in our lives. I need to make sure I take time to fill up.

• time with God’s people … (Acts 2:44-47, Ephesians 2:19-22, Philippians 1:27,  Hebrews 10:24-25)

Accepting Jesus is a personal decision that was never intended to be lived alone. God wants to use others to encourage and challenge me and wants  me to encourage and challenge others.

Life … it’s a jungle out there. Make sure you have your survival provisions.

*** The following was  a guest post by Jay Thompson, Pastor of Community and Connections at Lakeside Church in Greensboro, GA.

“Even now,” declares the LORD, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning.” – Joel 2:12 (NIV)

This past Sunday at my church, the message was on worship and people were encouraged to text in questions at the end of the sermon for discussion. Here’s my question I texted in:

If worship is a lifestyle and the Bible encourages us to fast and pray, then why don’t we hear more about fasting in the American Church?

The answer I got didn’t satisfy. It was a “safe” answer and basically said that fasting was only something personal and not something that the church should talk about or do together. This disturbed me as I know some of the greatest churches in the country take fasting very seriously and have times of corporate prayer and fasting.

As a matter of fact, the last 2 churches listed as Outreach magazine’s “Fastest-growing Church in the US” (Church of the Highlands in Birmingham, AL and New Life in Conway, AR) both have annual times of fasting and prayer as a congregation.

I worked for a season with ARC (Association of Related Churches) and know how important prayer is to the foundation of a church planter. Prayer and fasting are drilled into the ARC church planters in their basic training and ARC (by no coincidence) has some of the fastest-growing churches in the country – including the two I listed above.

Throughout Scripture fasting plays a critical role in many God ordained events:

- Moses fasted for intimate fellowship with God (Exodus 34:28)
- David fasted for his sick child (2 Samuel 12:16)
- Ezra called a fast for humility and to ask for God’s provisions (Ezra 8:21-23)
- Daniel fasted to discern God’s will & seek God’s counsel (Daniel 10:2-3)
- Jesus fasted before beginning his public ministry (Matthew 4:2)
- Church leaders in Antioch fasted for God’s divine help (Acts 13:3)
- Paul fasted as servant of God for those he served (2 Corinthians 6:5)

If you’re interested in fasting, here are some resources I use HERE.

I believe the power of fasting as it relates to prayer is the spiritual atomic bomb that our Lord has given us to destroy the strongholds of evil and usher in a great revival and spiritual harvest around the world. —Bill Bright

So, if you invited your church to text in questions and I texted in my question you see above, how would you respond? Should the church as a whole fast and pray? Does your church participate in any kid of annual fast? Do you personally fast? Is this as one worship pastor friend of mine called a “lost art” in the Church?

The following story was shared in my small group last night. I thought it was worth sharing: Paderewski was one of Poland’s world renowned pianists and composers during the early 1900′s. Here is a story about one of his concerts.

A mom wishing to encourage her young son’s progress on the piano took her boy to a Paderewski concert. After they were seated, the mother spotted a friend in the audience and walked down the aisle to greet her. Seizing the opportunity to explore the wonders of the concert hall, the little boy rose and eventually explored his way through a door marked “No Admittance.”

When the house lights dimmed and the concert was about to begin, the mother returned to her seat and discovered that the child was missing. Suddenly, the curtains parted and spotlights focused on the impressive Steinway on stage. In horror, the mother saw her little boy was sitting at the keyboard, innocently picking out “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star.” At that moment, the great piano master made his entrance, quickly moved to the piano, and whispered in the boy’s ear, “Don’t quit. Keep playing.”

Then, leaning over, Paderewski reached down with his left hand and began filling in a bass part. Soon his right arm reached around to the other side of the child and he added a running obbligato. Together, the old master and the young novice transformed a frightening situation into a wonderfully creative experience. The audience was so mesmerized they couldn’t recall what else the great master played. Only the classic “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star” remained burned in their brain and on their hearts.

From my friend, Jay Thompson: That’s the way it is with God. What we can accomplish on our own is hardly noteworthy. We try our best, but the results aren’t exactly graceful, flowing music. But with the hand of the Master, our life’s work truly can be beautiful. Next time you set out to accomplish great feats, listen carefully. You might just hear the voice of the Master whispering in your ear, “Don’t quit. Keep playing.”

My prayer for you who serve in ministry is that you will take this story to heart and reflect on Philippians 4:13 (“I can do all things through Christ Who gives me strength.”). And as it says all throughout the Old Testament, “Be strong and take courage.”

Last week I came across this quote on Twitter and it shook me. It stirred something deep within me and stopped me in my tracks. Do you ever have something that hits you like that? Here’s what I read:

“Our absence of fasting is a measure of our contentment with the absence of Christ.”  -John Piper

A simple statement, but one that resonated deep within me. I’m not announcing a fast or anything like that – I think that should be private. I just thought I’d share this quote and see if you have come across something recently that stirred you. If so, please share it with us.