Your Pieces

John 6:1–15 NIV

1 Some time after this, Jesus crossed to the far shore of the Sea of Galilee (that is, the Sea of Tiberias), 2 and a great crowd of people followed him because they saw the signs he had performed by healing the sick. 3 Then Jesus went up on a mountainside and sat down with his disciples. 4 The Jewish Passover Festival was near. 5 When Jesus looked up and saw a great crowd coming toward him, he said to Philip, “Where shall we buy bread for these people to eat?” 6 He asked this only to test him, for he already had in mind what he was going to do. 7 Philip answered him, “It would take more than half a year’s wages to buy enough bread for each one to have a bite!” 8 Another of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, spoke up, 9 “Here is a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish, but how far will they go among so many?” 10 Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.” There was plenty of grass in that place, and they sat down (about five thousand men were there). 11 Jesus then took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed to those who were seated as much as they wanted. He did the same with the fish. 12 When they had all had enough to eat, he said to his disciples, “Gather the pieces that are left over. Let nothing be wasted.” 13 So they gathered them and filled twelve baskets with the pieces of the five barley loaves left over by those who had eaten. 14 After the people saw the sign Jesus performed, they began to say, “Surely this is the Prophet who is to come into the world.” 15 Jesus, knowing that they intended to come and make him king by force, withdrew again to a mountain by himself.

Leviticus 1:1–9 NIV

1 The Lord called to Moses and spoke to him from the tent of meeting. He said, 2 “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘When anyone among you brings an offering to the Lord, bring as your offering an animal from either the herd or the flock. 3 “ ‘If the offering is a burnt offering from the herd, you are to offer a male without defect. You must present it at the entrance to the tent of meeting so that it will be acceptable to the Lord. 4 You are to lay your hand on the head of the burnt offering, and it will be accepted on your behalf to make atonement for you. 5 You are to slaughter the young bull before the Lord, and then Aaron’s sons the priests shall bring the blood and splash it against the sides of the altar at the entrance to the tent of meeting. 6 You are to skin the burnt offering and cut it into pieces. 7 The sons of Aaron the priest are to put fire on the altar and arrange wood on the fire. 8 Then Aaron’s sons the priests shall arrange the pieces, including the head and the fat, on the wood that is burning on the altar. 9 You are to wash the internal organs and the legs with water, and the priest is to burn all of it on the altar. It is a burnt offering, a food offering, an aroma pleasing to the Lord.

1 Kings 18:30–40 NIV

30 Then Elijah said to all the people, “Come here to me.” They came to him, and he repaired the altar of the Lord, which had been torn down. 31 Elijah took twelve stones, one for each of the tribes descended from Jacob, to whom the word of the Lord had come, saying, “Your name shall be Israel.” 32 With the stones he built an altar in the name of the Lord, and he dug a trench around it large enough to hold two seahs of seed. 33 He arranged the wood, cut the bull into pieces and laid it on the wood. Then he said to them, “Fill four large jars with water and pour it on the offering and on the wood.” 34 “Do it again,” he said, and they did it again. “Do it a third time,” he ordered, and they did it the third time. 35 The water ran down around the altar and even filled the trench. 36 At the time of sacrifice, the prophet Elijah stepped forward and prayed: “Lord, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, let it be known today that you are God in Israel and that I am your servant and have done all these things at your command. 37 Answer me, Lord, answer me, so these people will know that you, Lord, are God, and that you are turning their hearts back again.” 38 Then the fire of the Lord fell and burned up the sacrifice, the wood, the stones and the soil, and also licked up the water in the trench. 39 When all the people saw this, they fell prostrate and cried, “The Lord—he is God! The Lord—he is God!” 40 Then Elijah commanded them, “Seize the prophets of Baal. Don’t let anyone get away!” They seized them, and Elijah had them brought down to the Kishon Valley and slaughtered there.

And HOW

Repair the Alter

Where is your faith? Where is your confidence in God? Are you looking to your past successes or are you willing to look to the possible new and unknown things that God wants to do?

Are you and everything you have His for the taking and using?

Write down 1 way you will strengthen your faith this week _____________________________________________________________________________

Dig the Trench

Make space for something more.

When we allow the emotional and Spiritual clutter to fill our hearts and minds we will not be ready to be filled with the miracles of God.

When we allow the physical clutter to fill our homes and lives we again are not allowing our homes and families to see the miracles of God.

Write down 1 thing that is cluttering your life_____________________________________________________________

Arrange the wood

Have you ever tried to start a campfire?

How easy is it to light if it is not arranged well?

Matthew 6:21 NIV

21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Like the alter and the trench we must be ready to become arranged or aliened with His plan before we can see the fire fall.

Where is your treasure?

Become pieces

The bull was cut into pieces, but we are all broken pieces.

Many times we want to hind some of our pieces from God.

Whether it is shame or mistrust, He will not send fire to ignite your life and the lives of those in the field unless we all recognize that Jesus says “let nothing be wasted”.

What in your heart do you hide from everyone? What in your life do you hold onto too strongly?

Be washed by the water

“Do it again!”

The water washed the offering so that it was pleasing to God

If we do all the other things, but don’t allow Christ to do the washing we are a like the rich young ruler.

Matthew 19:16–22 NIV

16 Just then a man came up to Jesus and asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?” 17 “Why do you ask me about what is good?” Jesus replied. “There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, keep the commandments.” 18 “Which ones?” he inquired. Jesus replied, “ ‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, 19 honor your father and mother,’ and ‘love your neighbor as yourself.’” 20 “All these I have kept,” the young man said. “What do I still lack?” 21 Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” 22 When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth.

We become people who have gotten so focused on the works of cleaning out organizing toward God we have missed that it is only through letting God of it all and allowing Him to wash us and be our everything

If we want to see the Fire in our lives and the ministers of the gospel around the world it will take hard work to become the man and woman God can use, but then we must let go of all our hard work and allow Him to wash it or sell it.

This may feel like all your hard work was in vain, but the POWER is not in your work its in the washing of Christ!

Write down a prayer asking Christ to wash you and your efforts ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Believe

Once you have Emptied yourself and been washed by Christ

Believe that you will see the fire fall

In your life and in the lives of the missionaries you are believing for and supporting.

Write down 1 word that describes what Fire in your life would look like________________________

ACT

Once the Fire falls it is time to act.

What are you willing to do to see the fire of the Holy Spirit fall in this place, in your life, in the ministries we support around the world?

Will you start this process of allowing Christ to fill your life by bringing shoes and inviting others to give shoes to support our youth and those in need around the world?