Sour Apples Why

I’m still hung up on something kind of weird/crazy that happened today.  I’ll get there in a couple paragraphs probably… First though, I would like to wish everyone a happy election day.  I feel like a lot of people I know are scared right now about the projected outcome of the election.  …the fear is supposedly due to ‘what the outcome of the election will mean for our country’.  I don’t know what will happen at the end of the day today, but I don’t really feel scared.  I told someone a couple days ago that I’m not really worried about things, and at first, he thought I must have changed all of my “political” views (seriously).

Right now, I feel less interested in politics than I ever have before in my life.  At the same time, I feel more interested in our nation than ever before.  I was thinking a couple nights ago why it is that Jesus says, “Go and make disciples of all nations.”  Could this mean that when we don’t have a vision or a desire that stirs us to pray ‘national’ prayers for the transformation of a nation… we haven’t arrived at God’s heart behind the commission He gave?  I honestly don’t know, and I hope that made sense.  The discipling of nations starts with individuals without a doubt.  Having vision for smaller things is absolutely necessary when we’re talking about advancing the Kingdom of God, but is there something to being concerned nationally about things?

For those of you that pray… Do we believe heaven responds to our prayers?  Do we care about the state of our nation, our state, our city, our relatives?  If the answers are yes, how can we not pray?  These questions I’ve asked myself have made an embarrassment out of my prayer life when I think back upon it.  It’s not that I haven’t been praying or anything like that.  …I’ve typed a lot of things after that sentence, but I’ve deleted it repeatedly.  I’ll say this and then wrap things up here:  Paul says “Pray continually.”  I’ve heard sermons and have believed beliefs that could’ve just been manufactured reasons to excuse myself from the floor.  I want to see how deep I can go and see what happens.  The fruit can teach me the message if there is one.

We can name a crab-apple tree God’s Will, but the apples will still suck… as a result those who taste the fruit will think God must be sour, or this isn’t really His tree.

Brad, Mark, and me were in this really old church today.  It’s over a hundred years old.  It was originally a Jewish synagogue that then became a church where some sweet revival happened a while ago.  It’s a small building in a residential area that hasn’t been used in a few years.  It could use some work, but it’s kind of sweet.  We went there to pray (just the 3 of us) and have some communion this morning.  We had some communion elements for the American on the go.  They’re those little plastic cups with juice in them that have a foil seal over the juice so they’re portable… and then there’s a little wafer on top of the foil with clear plastic over it so it’s a neat little package.  So we were in there praying for a little while, and at the end of our time praying, we all heard a shofar blast.  It was definitely audible, and we all definitely heard it.  A shofar is a ram’s horn that they’d blow to signify certain God-things in the Old Testament.  Now, I’ve never been a huge shofar-loving person.  I’ve never had a problem with them at all, and I’ve always thought they were neat… but I’ve never been really into them or knew much about them at all.

This morning, though… it was kind of astounding to hear, and we’re still not altogether sure what it was about.  It was a perfect shofar blast by someone who knew what they were doing, and it was undoubtedly a shofar.  We were in a residential area.  There was only one blast and then nothing else.  I’m not trying to jump to conclusions about a heavenly shofar blast or anything.  We have no idea where it came from.  I’m also not about to get really hung up on it, but this is my blog, and it was a pretty crazy life-event all things considered.  Anyone have any thoughts/insights?

So I’m going to vote now.  One issue is deciding my votes this year.  That might seem crazy or stupid… and a few months ago, I would’ve probably thought that a one-issue decision was a little weird myself.  Something has changed in me in the past couple months.  I can’t ignore it, and the change in me didn’t happen for any non-spiritual reason as far as I can see.  I don’t see it as a moral battleground topic like I used to, and for me this election… nothing matters more.  It’s about unrighteousness in the land, the spiritual atmosphere of our nation, and letting our hearts be vulnerable to what should break our hearts.  Read the new quote to the right about the ‘correct’ side.

Life08 (and forever).  It needs to still matter tomorrow when the election is over.

Joel 2:13.

~ by leemyers on November 4, 2008.