Canyon Ministries
[Originally published in 2015 as The Currency of God]
Kathleen and I just spent a wonderful week in California encouraging as many as possible to trust God and His Word from the very first verse. We are very grateful to our wonderful hosts, Paul and Eileen Rosenow. Their graciousness and generosity are a true reflection of the heart of God.
We returned late Friday night in time for me to help guide a group of 81 people from Phoenix, AZ on a tour of the South Rim of Grand Canyon. Tom Vail, Nate Loper, and I teamed up to present a brief overview of the canyon and related Genesis issues. The group was a delight and our conversation was rich.
Both of these experiences provided a powerful reminder of what is most significant in the kingdom. God has revealed Himself to us as a relational being. This places relationships in a place of extreme priority. This emphasis was reflected in the prayer Jesus spoke the night that He was betrayed. We see in John 17 that He prayed the saints would be one just as He and His Father were one. He expressed that the power of our unity would loudly proclaim the truth of who He is and why He had come. God knit us together in His image. Therefore, we are fundamentally relational beings. This foundational truth compels God to work primarily through relationships.
Our time in California and with the group from Phoenix was an abundant outpouring of the riches of God into our hearts and minds. It reminds us of how wealthy we are in the things that actually matter. It is true that Canyon Ministries requires money to function. The revenue that God provides through the services we provide and the generous gifts that are given are extremely important. However, our level of success is not measured in the balance of our bank accounts. Rather, the depth and breadth of relationships God blesses us with is the true measure of effectiveness and success. We treasure every person we meet and with every opportunity we are entrusted to encourage and serve.
I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave Himself for me. (Galatians 2:20)
“Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scouring its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” Hebrews 12:2
For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And He died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died for them and was raised again. (2 Corinthians 5:14–15)
This world operates under the currency and burden of money. The kingdom of God operates under the currency of relationships.
PRAISEALLUJIAH! ~Jon
