Yesterday in our Staff Team Meeting God was really moving as we studied together from Judges “4 Things that can Derail Us Spiritually”. I got such good feedback from our team that I wanted to throw it out to you all:
1. “Forgetting” – Judges 2:10
This is pretty simple – when you “forget” all that God has done for you in the past, it’s easy to go astray in both the present and the future. “Remembering” is a great spiritual exercise, as is “Building Memorials” for the great moves of God in your life.
2. “Difficulty” – Judges 3:1-4
Difficulties in our lives are meant to be “tests that teach”, not “tidal waves that destroy”. If we will embrace our difficulties as training for future ministry and future moments of “faith”, we won’t get derailed spiritually when they come.
3. “Arrogance” – Judges 12
Even the most loyal of followers, our own countrymen, will refuse to follow us when they sense extreme arrogance in our lives and ministry, even when arrogance follows success. Instead, our greatest ministry should be followed by our greatest “humility”, as Gideon showed to the men of Ephraim in Judges 8:2. Arrogance breeds division, and derails God’s plan for leadership in our lives.
4. “Ministry Idolization” – Judges 8:22-27
When we worship the accomplishments and “position” that ministry provides, rather than the God that accomplished the ministry, we can be “trapped” [Jdg. 8:27/NLT]. Don’t let your ministry, or ministry accomplishments or position “trap” you so that you and your family all fall spiritually. When you begin to idolize the product of ministry rather than the “PERSON” (GOD, JESUS, THE HOLY SPIRIT) behind it, you’ll get derailed spiritually.
Good stuff from the book of Judges!