God is working in the mess

Whether it's at home, in my office, or here at church... messes stress me out. Ironically, I also create them quite frequently much to my wife and staff's frustration! Undeniably, I can be a walking contradiction in that regard. But hey... nobody's perfect right?

 

If I'm honest, my message this past Sunday felt like a bit of a mess. Even before church started, I felt a bit off and tired from Easter. As first service got going, my mic started cutting out. We thought we had the issue fixed and then it acted up again. Second service, the ENTIRE SOUND system just completely shut off. That was definitely a new one! Things beyond our control that normally work fine... didn't work. Also, praise God that none of this happened on Easter!

 

At the same time, I know God is working in every mess. As these seemingly small, disconnected things added up, I heard a little whisper remind me that God was working. I realized at that trying to motor through my sermon was not going to solve the problems. We stopped and prayed together with no amplification. I spoke against a spirit of distraction that was rising up in the room and right when I said the words "grace" (someone told me) the sound system came back on! You can't make this stuff up people!

 

Ephesians 6:12 reminds us: "For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places."

 

Translation: the real mess you are fighting is not the real mess you are really fighting. The real mess is a spiritual battle between Heaven and Hell for your sanctification in Christ. We have to learn to recognize it, to speak to it as it is happening, and to make necessary changes in real time. When we handle a situation with the right spiritual glasses, the outcome is better than anything we could have planned.

 

So I just want to remind you...

God. Is. Working. In. Your. Mess.

 

It may not feel like it. It might be hard to recognize it. But if you pay attention... there is a greater work God may want to do than you could have planned. What are you doing right now that isn't working? Maybe instead of trying harder, try stopping and listening for a divine whisper.

 

Pastor Kyle