HOUSELESSNESS in the Lakes Region? TEAM CONNECTED’s Mission: of Peacemaking…
HOUSELESSNESS in the Lakes Region? TEAM CONNECTED’s Mission: Peacemaking | Restoring the Vineyard
TRUTH TELL: Many blog posts have been published by TEAM CONNECTED during the past few months. The underlying subject has been HOUSELESSNESS in the Lakes Region.
Meetings with stakeholders (public and private) attended by myself — have revealed folks disagree on causes and solutions — attempted over many years. There are evident internal conflicts over HOUSELESSNESS which inevitably grow into external conflicts over policy making.
Unless timeless wisdom and discernment from God remain a prime focus, it is easy to become distracted and drawn into those conflicts.
But becoming embroiled in conflicts and challenges to “pick a side” in any given solution offered — well — that is not TEAM CONNECTED’S Mission.
I was gently reminded of that this morning in a quiet time with the Lord — during a Bible Study on Isaiah Chapter 6. YouVersion LINK
“8. Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying:
“Whom shall I send?
Who will go for Us?”
And I said:
“Here am I. Send me!”
Yes, my calling with TEAM CONNECTED began and continues with peacemaking and restoring the vineyard — focused on HOUSELESSNESS.
The gentle reminder appeared this morning in this short portion of the Bible Study: “Here am I … Send Me”. YouVersion Link
“You’re going to do what?” is one of my favorite phrases from the original Top Gun movie. It is the cry of response from Merlin when Maverick says he’s bringing the enemy closer. It might also reflect how Isaiah felt after he received the message he was called to deliver from the Lord.
Isaiah would be delivering a message to people who would not listen, would not respond, and would be exiled from their land.
The messenger is not to be evaluated by the response to the message, only the accuracy of the transmission of it. Isaiah volunteered to go for God without knowing the content of the Lord’s message.
When he hears what is going to happen, he asks a serious question, “Until when?”. How long will this abandonment last?
The Lord’s answer is until only a holy seed remains! God’s refining work is never pleasant. But it was necessary for them, and it may be necessary for us as well.
The remnant of faith survived the tough days. It will again. Those who are true believers will continue to live out their faith even in the toughest of circumstances. The good news for followers of Jesus is that the Lord has promised that He will never leave us or forsake us until the end of the age.
There is a second part of these verses that needs to be explored before we close. Namely, the idea that God may be calling you to go share his message to a difficult audience. Like the prophets of old, not every messenger of the Lord, will have an audience that desires to follow the Lord.
Sometimes the sharing of the message will fall on deaf ears or hard ground. Do not mistake the lack of visible results with a mistaken call to go. The faithfulness of the messenger is measured in the accuracy of the transmission of the truth of the message, not the popular response to it.
We all want the masses to come to Jesus. We want them to be changed by an encounter with the Living God, just as we have been. Jesus said that few would find the road that leads to eternal life. More will find the broad way that leads to destruction.
We have an obligation to go. We are not responsible for the results. The call remains, “Who will go for us?” How will you respond?
NOW readers have been presented with the Mission and Calling of TEAM CONNECTED. For a description of HOW TEAM CONNECTED is offering individual and small group WORKSHOPS on Living Fearless in our day-to-day lives, please visit our main WEBPAGE.
Unless the LORD builds the house,
its builders labor in vain;
unless the LORD protects the city,
its watchmen stand guard in vain.
2. In vain you rise early
and stay up late,
toiling for bread to eat—
for He gives sleep to His beloved.
Psalm 127.1-2. (BSB)
