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I have a confession to make.

I’m “that” guy.

I’m a charismatic, a pentecostal.

From my point of view, the gifts of the Spirit and the miracles of God are for today.

Yes, I believe God still heals. I believe God does supernatural things.

And yes, I speak in tongues…

A lot actually.

I prefer to call it “praying with the Spirit.”

I do this when words fail me and I don’t know what to pray for or how to pray about a particular situation.

I do this when I’m worshiping. I even pray with the Spirit while driving in my car (alone of course).

Maybe you think I’m weird. I can’t blame you if you do.

For me, praying with the Spirit isn’t about being weird.

I’m not doing it to prove something or put on a show.

Most people won’t ever hear me pray with the Spirit.

But God does.

He knows what I’m saying. In fact, it’s Him who is prompting me to say it.

My attitude about praying with the Spirit in public settings (like church services) is the same as the Apostle Paul’s: I’d rather have a few intelligible words spoken that benefit everyone than 10,000 words in an unknown language.

“I’m grateful to God for the gift of praying in tongues that he gives us for praising him… I enter into this as much or more than any of you. But when I’m in a church assembled for worship, I’d rather say five words that everyone can understand and learn from than say ten thousand that sound to others like gibberish.” (1 Corinthians 14.18, 19 MSG)

So, I guess I’m kinda weird and extremely practical.

As far as church services and other public gatherings go, I want people to understand and “get it.”

How about you?

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TO DO

—Read: 1 Corinthians 12, 14 in the Message Bible.

Shari was asking me about replacing some broken CD players the other day.

I shook my head and said, “Use your iPhone.”

She looked confused. Then she asked, “There’s an iPod in there?”

Yup.

The funny (or sad) thing is—she’s had an iPhone for a few years now, and there has always been an iPod in there.

For whatever reason, the iPod has been a “hidden” feature to her…

It was always there, but she didn’t realize it.

Her iPhone is more powerful than a really nice computer from 1999.

My wife has been carrying around untapped potential.

This makes me wonder…

As Christians, how many of us are walking around with hidden features and untapped potential?

Do we realize what we have? The Spirit of God lives in us!

“The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you.” (Romans 8.11 NLT)

Sometimes, we’re like my wife with her iPhone—unaware of what we’re carrying with us.

Paul wrote to the Corinthians about the “spiritual gifts” God’s Spirit empowers us with: “This is complex and often mis-understood, but I want you to be informed and knowledgeable.” (1 Corinthians 12.1 MSG)

I don’t want my spiritual life to be full of hidden features.

How about you?

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TO DO

—Read: 1 Corinthians 12, 13, and 14.
—Ask yourself: “Has God given me any of these features?”
—Pray: “God, I’m open and willing to be used by you.”

I haven’t kept this a secret: I like to shop.

I don’t play video games, golf, fish, hunt, ski, ride motorcycles, play fantasy football, gamble, or go camping.

So, as far as guys go—I’m pretty low-cost.

There are just two things my wife complains about me spending money on: Starbucks and clothing.

This is rather embarrassing… my clothes take up the bigger section of our closet.

There’s only so much space.

If I don’t ever clean out my closet, there’s no room for new items.

That’s why I like cleaning out my closet.

It makes space for something better.

I think this is true in life.

We have limits.

Cognitive psychologist George A. Miller, in his paper “The Magic Number Seven, Plus or Minus Two: Some Limits on Our Capacity for Processing Information” asserts that the number of objects the average human can hold in working memory is approximately seven.

Recent research has shown that without using “clustering,” the number is more likely three or four.

What’s the point? We have limits.

The average Supermarket carries approximately 45,000 unique items.

Have you ever had a difficult time finding something there?

Yup, we have limits.

How about friends? How many friendships can we actually maintain?

British anthropologist Robin Dunbar—in his book “How Many Friends Does One Person Need,” says we can only keep friendships with 150 people at any given time.

We have limits… and those limits require us to let go of one thing in order to make room for another.

Sometimes we have to unlearn something in order to learn something new.

Sometimes we have to stop one activity in order to make time for another.

Sometimes we have to remove a thing to make space for something better.

Jesus told the following story about limits and taking up space…

“A man planted a fig tree in his garden and came again and again to see if there was any fruit on it, but he was always disappointed. Finally, he said to his gardener, ‘I’ve waited three years, and there hasn’t been a single fig! Cut it down. It’s just taking up space in the garden.’

The gardener answered, ‘Sir, give it one more chance. Leave it another year, and I’ll give it special attention and plenty of fertilizer. If we get figs next year, fine. If not, then you can cut it down.’” (Luke 13.6-9 NLT)

Notice what the land owner said about the tree: “It’s just taking up space in the garden.”

In our lives, things take up space—and there is limited space.

Consider…

Is the stuff taking up space in my life fruitful or is it just wasting space?

Maybe it’s time to clean out my closet and make room for something new.

Maybe it’s time let go of some lower things so that I am able to embrace higher things.

Sometimes we give up something for a period of time…

Things like certain foods, a specific meal, TV, Facebook, coffee, sugar, etc.

I think the real point isn’t so much about “giving up” but “trading up.”

It’s not just about going without—it’s about using that time for something of greater eternal significance.

Even Jesus fasted. He went out into the desert to go without food and other distractions.

He was tempted. The devil said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become loaves of bread.”

But Jesus answered him by quoting Scripture: “People do not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.” (Matthew 4.3, 4 NLT).

Jesus went without food and other distractions in order to concentrate fully on hearing from his Heavenly Father.

He was trading up.

In the month of October, I will be fasting Facebook and Twitter.

What a great trade! The time I’ve been wasting with online drivel will be invested in my relationship with God.

It’s a trade up.

As you consider what to fast (give up), be sure to also make a plan for how to invest that time for something of greater eternal significance (trade up).

It’s not just about giving up—it’s about trading up.

Every day I go on a treasure hunt…

And every day I find something.

When I crack open my Bible and dig in to the day’s Bible Reading Plan, the hunt begins.

My approach is simple: I have a goal to find ONE thing. I’m asking God to show me something. I’m looking for a verse that really speaks to me—one that jumps up, points its finger and says, “I’m talking to you!”

Maybe this sounds a little simple and underachieving.

But to me, it’s pretty incredible.

I find treasure every day.

“I rejoice in your Word like one who discovers great treasure.” —Proverbs 119.162 (NLT)

I haven’t done this in a while.

So here I go… this is a list of books I recently read and enjoyed:

Weird: Because Normal Isn’t Working by Craig Groeschel

Lead Vertically: Inspire People to Volunteer by Craig Johnson

The 21 Indispensable Qualities of a Leader by John Maxwell

Ordained Irreverence by McMillian Moody

Read This Before Our Next Meeting by Al Pittampalli

Mentor Like Jesus by Regi Campbell

The Accidental Creative: How to be Brilliant at a Moment’s Notice by Todd Henry

Karlology by Karl Pilkington

Happyslapped by a Jellyfish by Karl Pilkington

An Idiot Abroad by Karl Pilkington

And Here’s the Kicker by Mike Sacks

Do the Work by Steven Pressfield

Anything You Want by Derek Sivers

The Heart Revolution by Sergio De La Mora

Your Jesus Is Too Safe: Outgrowing a Drive-Thru, Feel-Good Savior by Jared Wilson

Misfit: Dealing with our God-Given Discomfort by Chris Durso

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Books I’m currently reading:

We Are All Weird by Seth Godin

Church Diversity: Sunday the Most Segregated Day of the Week by Scott Williams

The Ragamuffin Gospel: Good News for the Bedraggled, Beat-Up, and Burnt Out by Brennan Manning

NOTE: my website has Amazon links to these books in the Bookidy Book Book post http://www.briandolleman.com/

Open my eyes to see the wonderful things in your Word. —Psalm 119.18

I rejoice at your Word as one who finds great treasure. —Psalm 119.162

Your Word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. —Psalm 119.105

Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every Word that proceeds from the mouth of God. —Matthew 4.4

The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life. —John 6.63

So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God. —Romans 10.17

You are already clean because of the Word which I have spoken to you. —John 15.3

You have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring Word of God. —1 Peter 1.23

You like it. You want it. You need some more of it.

There’s more where that came from—lots more.

God’s Word will encourage, build, and strengthen your faith every day.

So dig in… and keep going back for more.

“Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heart through the Word about Christ.” —Romans 10.17 (NIV)

Make it known that you were there…

Leave some residue, make a mark, and leave a stain.

The goal isn’t to keep it in perfect condition—the goal is to dig in, excavate, and extract something from it!

A perfectly clean Bible is an unused Bible.

Think about your luggage.

The only luggage in perfect condition is luggage that’s never been used—never been anywhere.

If you’ve gone anywhere with your luggage, it quickly gets tagged, labeled, scuffed, marked, stained, worn, and torn.

How about your Bible…

Are you going somewhere with your Bible?

Leave a stain. Highlight. Underline. Write notes. Make marks.

Let some tears drop in there once in a while.

Some crumbs will probably fall in there too.

I really like the wide-margin Bibles and the note taker versions because they give you lots of room for notations.

Get yourself a great Bible and some colorful pens or highlighters.

Dig in and leave a stain!

PS—

I use my own invented “code” to notate key verses when I’m studying the Bible… it’s my way of leaving a stain so that I can find my way back to those verses easily. For example, I draw a heart by verses that talk about the heart. I also draw a star by verses I want to memorize. Here are a few others that I use:

S—salvation
R—relationships
M—mouth/words
W—wisdom
B—Bible/Word of God
U—understanding
G—giving/generous
GR—grace
CH—church
PR—prayer
PU—purity
LV—love
BL—blessing(s)
HS—Holy Spirit
TH—thoughts
TE—teachable
FG—forgiveness
FR—freedom
RT—righteousness
TR—trials
WO—worship
$—money
P—provision
K—knowledge
O—obedience
F—faith
A—attitude
E—encouragement
D—discipline
J—joy
L—leadership

This works for me. The letters/symbols that I use might not make sense for you… but I’m sharing it with you to inspire you to invent your own.

It was written with you in mind.

It is FOR you and TO you.

It has your name all over it.

The Bible has one central message: God loves you.

The Bible is God’s love letter to humanity.

If we could know God—his love and his plan for our lives apart from Scripture, he wouldn’t have bothered giving it to us… but he did.

God is not hiding from you. He’s all about revealing himself to you (1 Corinthians 2.10).

If you want to get to know God, get to know his Word.

You don’t need a PhD, doctorate, Bachelor’s Degree or even a high school diploma to read and understand God’s Word. Honest!

Jesus spoke in common, everyday language. He used real-life examples to illustrate his teaching.

The Bible was written to be read and understood.

If the language in your Bible is confusing or too difficult to understand—get an easier translation. I suggest the New Living Translation (NLT).

God’s Word is living and powerful. It is truth and life. It is our source of instruction, direction and purpose.

The Bible is more than a book you bring with you to church like a textbook in school and it’s more than a decoration for your coffee table…

It is God’s Word to YOU!

The Word of God is alive and powerful (Hebrews 4.12).

Growing spiritually means growing in the Word (Romans 10.17).

How to dig in to the Word:

• Get a Bible!

• Set an appointment (make time) with God and keep it.

• Have a plan (and use it) so that you’re not all over the place and you actually get somewhere in reading through the Bible. Here’s the Fairwood Church reading plan: http://www.fwchurch.com/resources/brp.php

• Get the Fairwood Church app. Through the app, you can access the Bible reading plan and read it on your phone. Here’s the link: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/fairwood-church/id437044966?mt=8

• Get the YouVersion Bible app. It gives you access to tons of translations and other great resources. Oh yeah, it’s free. Here’s the link: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/bible/id282935706?mt=8

• Start in the New Testament. Don’t even worry about the Old Testament until you understand the New Testament.

• Dig in deeper. Go beyond just reading—use the SOAP journaling method: Scripture, Observation, Application, and Prayer.

• Got a verse that significantly impacts your life? Write it down on a note card and memorize it.

I make you this promise: if you read God’s Word, he will speak to you and you will grow.

Remember: it was written with you in mind. It is FOR you and TO you. It has your name all over it…

So dig in!