Just a Thought: What the Lord Does with Mud

As is my typical morning "habit" (albeit, as cold as it has been that habit has moved more into early afternoon), I go for a brisk walk.

Sometimes I'll listen to a sermon, sometimes I listen to Scripture, or an audio-book, but most times I am just quiet and my prayer is "Spirit of the Living God, open my eyes to see what you'd have me see today."

This is my pilgrimage-of-sorts.

It isn't always the physical sight for which I'm asking, most of the time it is the spiritual sight to see what the Lord has for me on this particular day.

So it was day before yesterday.

I just walked, breathing in, breathing out, and wondering what might be mine from the Lord for this day.

To be honest, I'm feeling stuck.

I'm loving my study in Nehemiah.

It has been eye-opening in many, many ways.

There is so much relevance to what is happening among believers in the church today.

The rebuilding of Jerusalem's wall is synonymous with revival.

Each laying of the bricks is the re-establishing of foundational truths that need to be replaced around the corporate church, God's temple, as well as the individual church, each follower of Jesus.

As in Nehemiah's day, there will certainly arise opposition: from without and from within.

It won't always be obvious.

It will even "sound" spiritual.

It will "look" loving.

It will appear like healthy "compromise" leading to unity.

It will SEEM GOOD (but remember: Good is often enemy of the best.)

No matter how it appears, it is quite possibly DISTRACTION...

The enemy will use anything, even seemingly good and spiritual "stuff," to distract from seeing God glorified and His Name (character) elevated.

We are each falling prey to the enemy's tactics from time to time and don't even realize it.

But, as I said, I'm STUCK!

I began to study the book, just for me, for my own personal deepening growth.

So, maybe, just maybe, what I am learning isn't meant to be purposed for this blog-space.

I may still need to chew on it with the teeth of my heart a little longer.

All this to say, revival, which is desperately needed in the American church, will only occur if we put into place a Nehemiah plan on an individual basis.

Revival will start with me.

Revival will start with each one of us....

It will begin, when we pick up the stones of TRUTH from GOD'S WORD that lay on the ground in rubble that has long been forgotten.

It will begin with setting aside opinion, politics, and even theology, and get back to the basics of the GOSPEL MESSAGE.

But, I digress.

Back to my walk.

What the Lord focused my eyes on is the ONE-THING I think He wants me to say today in this blog.

As I prayed, "Open my eyes," I got a sense that I was to respond to the question, "What are you seeing?"

Me: "Mud, Lord. I just see mud. Mucky, silky, rivers of velvet brown mud."

The Lord: "What can I do with mud?"

Me: "Much! You placed it on the blind man's eyes and healed his sight. You created man from the muddy clay. You used it in Egypt with the Israelites in bondage as they made bricks day after day, in preparation for leading them out. You've used mud throughout Scripture...even in Nehemiah to rebuild the wall. AND, You are remarkably adept at washing away the mud of sin, leaving hearts white as snow."

And, my mind began bouncing from thing-to-thing like the ball in a pin-ball machine (remember those?).

Here's where that little ball landed...

When I describe the Bride of Christ (the Church), it is frequently with these words:

Jesus' bride is dirty; unprepared for her bride-groom. Her wedding dress is in dis-repair; it is tattered, torn, and stained with mud.

Gently and quietly, the Lord replied. "She is, indeed, all that and more. BUT, I can take care of her muddy dress. I can do something with dirty, unprepared, and torn. What YOU need to remember is that she is still my bride, and I LOVE her."

That is the Gospel.

That is what we need to remember - all of us - from those who are "done" with the church ("Doners"); those walking away, deconstructing, and, most of all, critical.

The Church is Jesus' BRIDE.

And, JESUS LOVES HER.