Life is a continuum we must traverse from our beginning until our end. We experience many stages during this journey, and they are all a part of the process of enhancing our development and allow us to experience our destiny and purpose. Despite life's ups and downs, ins and outs, and good and bad, we must learn to hear and understand our purpose and remain steadfast until the end. In Finished Th ings: Th e Promise of Completion¸ author and pastor DeBorah Coleman uses Philippians 1:6 to provide encouragement to stay on the path that God has set out for us. She interweaves Scripture and biblical figures and ideas with her own insights, personal stories, and modern-day elements to show the importance of persevering, despite the obstacles, to reach the pinnacle of our faith. Coleman communicates the importance of concentrating on our goals and staying in the game to fi nish the course. Get ready for some things to change. Get ready for people to change. Get ready for our own change. We are on the course that leads to completion. God promised to complete what he began in us.

FINISHED THINGS

The Promise Of CompletionBy DeBorah Coleman

iUniverse, Inc.

Copyright © 2012 Rev. DeBorah Coleman
All right reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-4620-7340-5

Contents

Acknowledgements....................................................viiPreface.............................................................ixIntroduction........................................................xiChapter 1 Where to Begin............................................3Chapter 2 The Architect.............................................7Chapter 3 Deliberate................................................11Chapter 4 Distractions..............................................15Chapter 5 Direction.................................................27Chapter 6 A Sure Word...............................................29Chapter 7 En Route..................................................35Chapter 8 Performance Art...........................................39Chapter 9 Surviving the Pitfalls....................................45Chapter 10 Trust God's Process......................................49Chapter 11 Time for a Change........................................55Chapter 12 No Time Warp.............................................59Chapter 13 Surround Yourself With Possibilities.....................65Chapter 14 Press Past...............................................73Chapter 15 Aesthetically Dangerous..................................77Chapter 16 Traveling Time...........................................81Chapter 17 Level Complete...........................................85

Chapter One

Where to Begin

For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them. Ephesians 2:10

My grandfather, Leona B. Owens was born before the turn of the twentieth century in rural Missouri. Though never a slave, he did experience the shameful system of segregation that plagued our country. That also meant he was subject to the demeaning, debasing and humiliating events that were considered the norm of that era. With the loss of his mother at a very early age and a father who himself barely escaped slavery, he was encouraged to work to prove his manhood and establish his place in the severely impoverished community in which they resided in central Missouri. As a result of all the contributing factors, my grandfather never learned to properly read and write.

I am always bewildered by the fact that grandpa could not read or write because he had such an amazing memory. I realized in later years that he used that memory to make a living. He gambled. Mostly he played cards, but he also shot dice. As I was growing up as a little girl my grandfather was out most nights plying his trade and making money for our family. It was that same memory he put into use when he gave his life to the Lord.

I was eight and a half when my grandfather was saved. Now instead of my grandmother taking us to church, my grandfather gathered all of his grandchildren and walked us to church each Sunday. When I look back over that time, we must have seemed a strange looking group. Much like the Pied Piper, there we were my mother's five children and my uncle's ten at the time, all trailing behind this old man who walked like Fred Sanford, from the 1970's television series, in the old man shuffle from side to side. Every Sunday and several days during the week, you could find us, some reluctantly, following behind as my grandfather led the way to church.

Grandpa's thirst and desire for the Word was insatiable. It was like he was trying to catch up on all the years he had missed out. He was at every Bible study and prayer meeting, but it never seemed to be enough. With less than a second grade education, that desire was temporarily impeded, until he discovered my love for reading. Grandpa had many grandchildren to choose from, but I had the willingness and I shared in the desire for the Word. How I loved that old man! It became my job to sit at his feet nightly and read the Word to my grandfather. As I dusted off the cobwebs of my memory I could see my grandpa sitting in his comfortable old overstuffed chair intently focused on hearing what I read. Remarkably, he never asked many questions. It was as if he had an innate ability to know. I simply gave him the knowledge of the words, the understanding was already there.

Night after night I sat there nestled against my grandfather's leg reading the scriptures to him. Then one day at church as I listened to my grandfather sharing during a testimony service, repeating scriptures verbatim giving the location, chapter and verse, I realized he had memorized the scriptures I had been reading to him. Now all these years later I have come to understand that, as a part of the vast and awesome plan of God, my grandfather was unable to read so that I would absorb the Word at an early age. Though I never quite had my grandfather's ability to memorize, I was always an advanced reader and my gift was to be able extend the word God has so freely given me to others with clarity.

The insight for me that God's plan from the beginning of time included me is most incredible. But the fact that my grandfather as brilliant as he was could not read and write because it was a part of God's ultimate plan for me, is evidence that He had already mapped out His strategy for my life from the very beginning.

I am very much reminded of the story of Joseph, Jacob's beloved son, as he said to his brothers, "Now therefore be not grieved, nor angry with yourselves, that ye sold me here; for God did send me before you to preserve life." (Gen. 45:5) Joseph spent over 20 years away from his family living in a foreign land. Most of his time was spent imprisoned for wrongs he didn't commit. Yet he assures his brothers that as much as they may blame themselves for their act, it was God's ultimate plan to have him in the proper position to preserve His people during the time of famine.

Joseph sees the big picture and God's purpose completed in his life. He was propelled by a vision at the age of 17 years old. But he trusted the God he served to be able to perform that which He had proclaimed for his life. God in turn always lifted Joseph up no matter what the situation or condition.

This is a reminder that everything that looks bad or negative may not necessarily be so. God uses the peaks and the valleys to strengthen and define our character to be used by Him. Romans 8:28 tells us, "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose." I always emphasize to my congregation the all. Not just the good things are used, but all things; the good, the bad and the ugly are used together to affect the purpose. What more can you ask but for the assurance that no matter what happens, He will make it work out for your good, He will make it benefit you.

Sometimes the vision is clear as in Joseph's case. Even though he didn't have the particulars, he had the essence. He knew that he would have a position of authority over his brothers and father. He knew that God had plans to elevate him and his family would be under his rule. It may have seemed presumptuous of Joseph as next to the youngest of Jacob's twelve sons to boast of his rule over his family but Joseph was convinced of God's desire to use him in an extraordinary way. By the way Joseph's dream was but the tip of the iceberg. He dreamed of ruling over his family; God's plan included him ruling over a nation. He will do exceedingly and abundantly above all that we can ask or think.

Other times the vision may be clouded and you may spend years wandering and wondering what God intends to do with you when you seem to stumble into a pathway that propels you into your purpose. However it happens, God is still the one in control. He has always known you and the purpose for which you were created.

The Architect

When I consider the heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou has ordained; what is man, that thou art mindful of him? And the son of man that thou visitest him? Psalm 8:3-4

I have always been amazed by the abilities God places in individuals. The talent or ability that I liken most to God is that of the architect. To visualize a structure in the abstract and translate that visualization into concrete reality, from what to the untrained eye appears to be a mass of lines on paper, requires special skill. The Psalmist says, "When I consider the heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou has ordained; what is man, that thou art mindful of him? And the son of man that thou visitest him?" Psalm 8:3-4.

The Psalmist recognizes the creative ability of God to see possibility where nothing exists, to bring forth order and beauty out of a mass of confusion. The awesomeness of the heavens, the galaxies, the seen and the unseen, the known and the unknown all proclaim a design that perfectly fit together. The eye of the architect sees the structure he desires and the purpose it is to perform and designs it so that its intended purpose can be achieved. As I look at the myriad of building structures, the skyscrapers, the one story building, round, oblong, geometrically stacked, decadent, simple, commercial, residential, it is evident that they are birthed from different concepts for varied purposes.

Imagine that you are in the mind of God. That shouldn't be too difficult because He said he thinks about you. But imagine that you are a work in progress. The blueprints have been drawn up but no one seems to be able to understand them to execute the plan. Many times there is a scaled downed model of the project so it can be seen in its completed state. It also allows you to know what you are working toward, and how close you are to completion. But it requires the sharp eye of the contractor to instruct and guide you to all of the intricacies of the blueprint so what the architect visualized will be the finished product. That is the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives; to watch closely to make sure what the architect, our Father, designed is the finished product. What we think and are striving toward many times is the scaled down version of what God desires for us.

I love to watch houses being built. There are times that I will go by a construction site several times a week to view the process. Watching the builders put together in months what use to take years. Being from the Midwest, basements are very common. When living in other parts of the country I have missed and longed for a basement. Years ago as buildings were started people would put in the basement and live in it for a year or more while it settled before building on it. If there were any flaws or needed repairs it was all done before the house was built on top of it. That assured a solid foundation without leaks or cracks. When they did begin to build on it, it was settled so they didn't experience the shifts many houses experience today.

Now buildings are constructed quickly. That old craft is all but gone, with very few people even remembering basement living quarters. However, if you have ever lived in a home built during that time you know the difference. You don't hear creaks and cracks and they are so solid you feel secure in the worst of storms. We are too often willing to accept lives that are hastily built facades when God wants to take the time to develop inner strength and fortitude of character. God wants us to be able to weather the storms. Consider Matthew 7:24-27, Jesus relates the parable of a house built on a rock and a house built on sand. He so constructs us that whatever life sends our way we are able to remain as long as we are secured in Him. That's because His plan is fail-proof.

For me personally, I have never been able to match God's plan and desire for my life. I have never allowed myself to want more than what was readily available, what I could work out, or what I could figure out. It took God talking to me about the possibilities of extending my plans to things I couldn't conceive or contrive, that caused me to begin to readjust my thinking. When God begins to speak outside of your perimeters into other realms you have not previously considered you then can understand what God is saying when He says, "your ways are not my ways and your thoughts are not my thoughts."

This architect who knows His design wants it to reflect all that he intended. Though there may be a shell that looks like the model it is not necessarily complete. Many of us have lived through ministry and life incomplete, recognizing that something is missing. When you are going through the motions, being obedient to tradition but not fulfilling an inner drive for more you limit God's desire for you. So many are confined to the idea of what someone else deems to be your purpose or your design. Many are locked into systems that make decisions for them and because they have been there so long they don't know how to break out or start over. I am reminded of a conversation with a former colleague some years ago that I will not name, who shared with me the call on his life was to be an evangelist. At the time we were talking he was just a few years from retirement as a pastor. As our conversation continued he said his burning desire was for the work of an evangelist but there was no place in the system for him to be successful in that capacity. Now, even though he was considered moderately successful as a pastor, how much did that mean to him in the end? He attempted to do God's work his own way and had consequently lived through his ministry with emptiness still reflecting on what he could have been. It is the architect's demand that what He conceived you to be you will be. We are the project; much like Jeremiah describes in the hand of the potter. To be completely yielded to his will gives us the assurance that the finished vessel he what desires. Isaiah draws an interesting analogy; "shall the work say of him that made it, He made me not? Or shall the thing framed say of him that framed it, He has no understanding?" (29:16)

How often we have tried to manipulate God into our plan or agenda. Telling Him what is best for us without asking Him about his plan or desire. Most times what we want is based on our independent comparative study of what family, friends or neighbors may have; talent, education, things, relationships, jobs, etc. We look around at the jobs, professions, talents and abilities of others and say that's what I want. This then becomes our determining standard of desire. What you may not know is the cost paid to obtain, and the sacrifice made to maintain what you envy.

Isaiah says it with a sense of the ridiculous. How can the made thing tell the maker of its purpose or best use or even say you don't understand me? Having your way is denying His creative power in your life. It would be equated to an inanimate object saying to its creator, "That's not right, you've got me all wrong." The only time we are truly effective is when we are operating under the power of the hand that carved us. When we are totally yielded, His will is the determining factor and His desire is made known. It is then we can experience completeness.

Deliberate

For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you and expected end. Jeremiah 29:11

A very loose definition of the word deliberateness means to carefully consider a matter and intentionally act after weighing all the options. Let's look at Psalm 8:3-4 again. The Psalmist says when he considers what God considered he could not understand why God weighed his decision so heavily on our side. How can insignificant man merit so much attention from the Almighty God? The Psalmist looks at the nocturnal creation and draws a comparison to the finite being of man and questions God, "what is man that thou art mindful of him?"

If we were honest with ourselves we too would wonder "What were you thinking God?" Why would you entertain the notion of ever-failing man? My own mistakes and errors send my head in a spin from time to time. Sometimes it is the simplicity of wasted precious time that would cause me wonder, "Why would you want me?" But God thought this plan through.

Ephesians 1:4-5 makes me shout! "According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ, to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will." Deliberate! He predetermined that we would be, and that we would be blessed in Him. Holy and blameless before Him we enter into divine relationship as children of the Most High God by Jesus Christ, our elder brother. He made this choice before the foundation of the world.

How much more wanted, desired and planned for could you possibly want? Before God called together a single grain of sand or set the tiniest star in the sky he made plans for you and me. Before he set the stage for the introduction of man, God had already predetermined our relationship with Him. He had already ascribed to us son-ship and daughter-ship. Thus an intimate love has declared us holy and blameless through His will and desire.

My first child was totally unexpected. Of course when we found out my husband and I did everything we were able to do to make sure our child would be loved and cared for. We had the wonderful fat healthy baby boy I prayed for. And at that point I really didn't want to go through that experience again. As far as I was concerned we were through. But a few years later my husband started discussing the possibilities of another child. I was completely closed to that idea, but he kept talking and rationalizing and convincing me that we should at least try for a girl. We finally agreed that this would be it. Girl or no girl this would be our last effort (we did have another girl, again completely unexpected). Once we decided that we would try to have another child we began making preparations. I started to pray Lord please let us have a girl. I don't want to go through this again, but I'm afraid that if we have another boy my husband will want to try again. My husband on the other hand began to make preparations even before I was pregnant.

(Continues...)

Excerpted from FINISHED THINGSby DeBorah Coleman Copyright © 2012 by Rev. DeBorah Coleman. Excerpted by permission of iUniverse, Inc.. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
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