More questions than answers?

I came home from our church's Leadership Team meeting last night with questions running through my mind -
How do we fire up the enthusiasm of our volunteers? Where can we find another $120,000 for that project that needs attention? How do we stay relevant and effective in God's work here?
What must we do to help the newer people in our congregation to feel 'connected?'
Are the needs of the elderly members being addressed?

There was more than a small amount of fear fighting for traction. I could hear the whispers of doubt at the doorway of my mind telling me that "You're just not up to this challenge. You need to let somebody with a better set of skills take over." Am I the first person who is pressed by his responsibilities? Of course not. Anyone who attempts much of anything in this world - from a Little League coach to the President of the USA- will come up against barriers that look formidable!

In my Scripture reading I was in the book of Zechariah, not exactly one of my favorite texts. But the Lord brought this passage to memory in the middle of my musings and prayers last night: "This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel: ‘Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the LORD Almighty. "What are you, O mighty mountain? Before Zerubbabel you will become level ground. Then he will bring out the capstone to shouts of ‘God bless it! God bless it!’" Then the word of the LORD came to me: "The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this temple; his hands will also complete it. Then you will know that the LORD Almighty has sent me to you. "Who despises the day of small things? Men will rejoice when they see the plumb line in the hand of Zerubbabel. " (Zechariah 4:6-10, NIV)

Zerubbabel was one of the men who returned to Jerusalem some 70 years after the Babylonians had destroyed the city. His mission was to rebuild the Temple for worship. The obstacles he faced were multiple - the difficulty of clearing the rubble, the threats from the nations that surrounded Jerusalem, and the despair that fell on his work force when the job dragged on and on. Zerubbabel was trying to do something BIG, with limited resources. God sent him a word to encourage his efforts, reminding him that his greatest resource was the Spirit of God and that when he finished the task, everyone would realize that it was God, not Zerubbabel who made it happen.


Every Believer is a temple builder. We are not building a physical place of worship, a church. We are building a life to honor God, where His majestic Presence dwells. To be holy and to live a life worthy of Him- now that is one huge challenge, . Given that we are flawed by a sinful nature, the idea of being God's temple seems ridiculous - except that it is "not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit." In Ephesians God's promise to empower us is clear. Paul writes, "God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago." (Ephesians 2:8-10, NLT)

Are problems multiplying around you like rabbits in the springtime? Are there more questions than answers in your life today?

Take the Word to heart. Look up with faith. Don't ask for release or reassignment. Instead, ask for more faith to stay steady, for greater wisdom to see the solutions, and for release of Divine resources so that anyone who sees your victory will say, "Look what God has done!" And, in that, you will have accomplished the calling we each share - to glorify the God who saved us.
"We felt sure that we were going to die. But this made us stop trusting in ourselves and start trusting God, who raises the dead to life. God saved us from the threat of death, and we are sure that he will do it again and again." (2 Corinthians 1:9-10, CEV) Amen.