Are you running the race?

This weekend thousands of excited people will line up in front of the Conexus Arts Centre and run one of the races in the Queen City Marathon.  Are you running one of the races this weekend?

A few years I was one of those who lined up to run the QCM 1/2 marathon. I had run several 5k and 10k races and now I was ready to run a 1/2 marathon.  The starting gun was fired, my adrenalin surged, and I took that first step of my run. If you have ever run in a race with a thousand people around, you know that no one moves fast off the starting line.  Finally, after a few blocks of dodging strollers, kids,and people, the field of runners spread out enough and I could actually run. It was glorious!

A kilometre went by. I was smiling, filled with joy and delight as I ran.  Five kilometres went by and I was in my stride, feeling like nothing could stop me.  Ten kilometres went by and I started to feel some fatigue, but I pushed through it – I could do this.   At about the thirteen-kilometre mark, I started to slow down.  Then it happened! At the sixteen-kilometre mark I hit a wall, every part of my body hurt, and I wanted to stop.

The last leg of the race seemed to go on forever.  All I wanted to do was stop and do something, anything else. I just wanted to sit down on the curb, but if I did that I wouldn’t get the prize, a QCM medal, that was waiting for me at the end of the race.  I forced myself to keep running, I forced myself to take the next step, I pressed on to finish the race and get that medal.

Maybe you have run a race or been in a situation where you have experienced something similar?  Maybe you have felt like you couldn’t do it, but forced yourself to take that next step in order to finish and get the prize.

In the book of Hebrews, being a disciple of Jesus is compared to running a race.  The author writes, “…let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus…”  Sometimes, when we’ve been following Jesus for a while we can find ourselves giving up, slowing down or sitting down on the curb and watching the other racers go by. Sometimes, whether intentionally or unintentionally, we stop taking the next steps in our relationship with Jesus, we stop running the race.

Over the last number of weeks, we have been looking at the four stages or steps of spiritual development common to all of us. We have been talking about next steps you can take on our spiritual journey with Jesus.  In previous posts we’ve talked next steps for those who are Exploring, Discovering and Growing and this week we’ll wrap up this series by looking at the next step for those in the Surrendering stage of their race..

You are in the Surrendering stage of spiritual development if you are wrestling with questions like:

• How can I know and follow the promptings of the Holy Spirit more closely?
• What is God doing in the world and how can I be a part of it?
• How does God want me to invest my time, talents and treasure?
• How can I help the next generation discover and grow in their relationship with Jesus?
• What does it mean to be fully surrendered to God?

People in the Surrendering portion of spiritual development love God more than anything else. Relationship with God is the highest priority in their life.  Prayer is a constant conversation with God as they seek to follow the Holy Spirit’s direction in every area of their life.  God’s Word, the Bible, is key to hearing God’s voice and his authority in your life. Serving others and giving has become a way of life for them; they prioritize their time, talent and treasure towards advancing God’s mission.  Their faith and relationship with God is often a topic of conversation with others, including those far from God.

The Surrendering stage is not an endpoint on your spiritual journey.  There is still much for the Surrendering to know and experience as they grow even closer to Christ in this stage of their journey.  If you are in the Surrendering portion of your journey, here are some catalytic things that can help you move closer to Christ. Maybe one of these could be your next step?

1. Attend the Soul Care Conference – Part of moving closer to Christ is removing the roadblocks that keep us from him.  Even someone who has walked with Christ for a long time can have wounds, hurts and unforgiveness that keep them from experiencing the fullness of Christ in their life.  Our Soul Care Conference will help you experience a new level of intimacy with Christ and equip you to help others to do the same.  If you can’t make the Soul Care Conference this fall we will be offering Soul Care during MidWeek(Wednesday nights) from January to April.  Register today!
2. Explore a new Spiritual Discipline – There are many different ways to experience intimacy with God, but often we settle on only a couple.  Spiritual Disciplines are habits or practices that help us enter into God’s presence and hear his voice.   Exploring a different Spiritual Discipline can help you discover more about yourself and God.  A great way to begin exploring a new Spiritual Discipline is by reading the book Celebration of Discipline by Richard Foster.  In his book, Foster explores the “classic Disciplines,” to show how each of these areas contributes to intimacy and a balanced spiritual life.
3. Take the Kairos Course – Discover what God is doing in the world and how you can be a part of it.  Kairos is an interactive study of the unchanging purpose and plan of God from Genesis to the end of the age. Focusing on the biblical, historical, strategic, and cultural dimensions of God’s mission, this course creates space where you can realign with God’s purposes. Pastor Shauna will be facilitating the Kairos course at Living Hope from January 14 to 18, 2019.  Find out more at kairoscourse.ca
4. Become involved in Compassion and Mercy ministries – In one of Jesus’ first sermons (Luke 4:14-30), Jesus said that he came to bring real help to people in real needs.  When we serve by offering compassion and mercy to people in real need we draw closer to the heart and focus of Jesus’ work.  Why not consider being a part of our Compassion team which is focused on bringing real help to people in Regina who are in real need.  Email me if you’d like to talk more about this.
5. Become a Mentor – If you are wondering how to help the next generation know and follow Jesus, why not become a mentor?  Mentoring is not about being wise or knowing all the answers.  Mentoring is all about asking questions, listening and helping the mentee figure out the answer.  A couple of great books that have helped me have been The Power of Mentoring by Martin Sanders and Building a Discipleship Culture by Mike Breen (not on mentoring specifically, but provides tools that can help you mentor/disciple, someone).  We will also be offering a workshop later this fall on how to mentor/disciple someone.

Are you daily Surrendering to Jesus and experiencing a new level of intimacy with God? Are you still running the race with perseverance and your eyes fixed on Jesus? If you are still breathing, then you are still in the race!

We’d love to help you take your next step on your spiritual journey – just hit reply and let’s set up a time to talk.

This weekend we’ll be kicking off our new ministry year and beginning a new teaching series called ‘Deeper’.  Together we’ll be exploring a vision about a river that is found in Ezekiel 47:1-12.  I hope you’ll join us this Sunday as we ask the question, “Are you in the river or sitting on the shore?”

See you Sunday,

Pastor Kirk

Living Hope MidWeek Starts September 12!
Join us Wednesdays, beginning September 12, for MidWeek, an evening where the entire family can sit around a table for a great meal and then find activities that will help them take their next step in their relationship with Jesus.  Check out our Weekly News & Announcements for more information on MidWeek.  There is something for everyone.

Global Leadership Summit – October 18 & 19
Your influence matters. Learn how to maximize it!  Join us for this year’s Global Leadership Summit and get a unique blend of vision, inspiration and practical skills you can immediately apply.  The 2-day Global Leadership Summit will hone and improve your leadership skills with a fresh perspective from world-class leaders.  Register today for this world-class event featuring Simon Sinek, Juliett Funt, Sheila Heen, John Maxwell and many more.

Annual General Meeting 
Living Hope’s 2018 Annual General Meeting will be held on Sunday, September 30th at 1 pm.  A detailed financial meeting which reviews the audited financial statements will be held at 9:30 am on September 30th.  We hope you’ll join us as we talk about what God has done, is doing, and wants to do in our church family.

Coming Events