WEEKLY DEVOTIONAL
PREVIOUSLY ON THE DEVOTIONAL...
Monday, September 23rd
Many times as Christians, we think that once we accept Christ, everything will be perfect, rosey, and to our advantage no matter what. Nothing could be further from the truth!
When reading through the Old Testament, we see that the prophets of old CONSTANTLY battled this thought process by lamenting about how bad things were, how everyone hated them, and how they weren't making a difference. We also see that God always said the same thing..."You ain't seen nothin' yet!"
Look at Jeremiah, for example. He has become one of my favorite men of God because he feels as I do. Many of his doubts, observations, and prayers could be plopped right into our daily situations we all go through, and it has been almost 3,000 years since he walked the streets of Judah.
At the time of Jeremiah's call in the 1st book of Jeremiah, we see that the Southern kingdom, Judah, is much like today's world...The climate of the times held that Society was deteriorating economically, politically, and spiritually. Wars and captivity dominated the world scene, and God's Word was deemed "offensive". When he is called, Jeremiah is probably a young man in his late teens to early twenties and we know that his message lasts for about 50 years through 5 kings in Judah.
His feelings are much like Moses and other great speakers for God, "I'm too young", "I'm not a good speaker" and so on. God tells him the He will fill his mouth with words and does so abundantly. But does that make Jeremiah's days easier? Quite the contrary!
Jeremiah almost immediately calls Judah out on the carpet for its sins against God. Remeber, it wasn't that long ago that God delivered the Jews from captivity, and here they were praising gods of Baal and golden idols instead of the true God of Isreal.
Many of Jeremiah's laments were the same..."Why do the wicked thrive?", "Why do You allow the liars to profit?", "Where is Your judgement?". God answers all these cries (over 5 decades!) the same; "You ain't seen nothin' yet!".
I know, Iknow, "Where's the good stuff?" you ask! "Why even be a follower?". Here's why... God does make a profound promise to Jeremiah, and it is one we can look to today in our own lives. In Jer 3:22 we see that God beckons, "My wayward children, return to Me," says the Lord, "come back to Me and I will heal your hearts."
God makes an undeniable promise to us that if we believe in Him, we will be CARRIED through the hard times by His own loving arms and our weaknesses will be healed. Yes, bad things will and do happen all around us, but God's gift to us, His Son, is eternal and always.
In the coming weeks, we will look a little more at God's promises to Jeremiah and how Jeremiah's visions come to pass. As we become more familliar with Jeremiah, there is no doubt that we will see more of ourselves in him and more of God's work in our own life around us.
Check back Monday for Part Two of Jeremiah's journey and purification through sifting and trials. HAVE A GREAT WEEK!
Monday,September 30th
As we learned last week, Jeremiah's journey through God's will was a rocky one with many falls into self-pity, self-doubt, and SELFISHNESS in general. That didn't make Jeremiah wrong, it made him human! His selfishness came from him doing the will of God, but not seeing God's work in the situations around him. In the beginning of his prophesies, Jeremiah cried out because he was telling the people of Judah what God wanted them to hear, but the words were falling on "ears that would not hear".
He continued to see people in Judah ignoring God's Commandments and engaging in idolatry, adultary, hypocracy, and more. What's worse is that he saw even the leaders in the temple acting one way 6 days of the week and then acting very different on the sabbath. This enraged Jeremiah to the point where he challenged God's authority over the situations. He wanted God to act the way he thought He should without considering God's plan.
In fact, Jeremiah continuously challenged God to punish the wicked for their sins and to strike down those who gain unjustly. Naturally, after a while of this going on, Jeremiah became weary. At times, he even wondered what he was doing at all. But God was faithful and always assured Jeremiah that He would be at the core of the matter and was IN CONTROL!
Today we often think that if God isn't moving at our speed, He must not be moving at all. This is very narrow thinking indeed. God is always moving... around us, things are in motion moving toward His perfect will. In us He is moving us closer to what He would have us be for Him.
Next week, we'll look at a specific instance where Jeremiah was tested by an unlikely player...and what the result was!
SEE YOU NEXT WEEK!
Monday, October 7th
How would you feel if those you were supposed to trust most, turned on you? This week's devotional is a depiction of that kind of situation in Jeremiah's life. During his mission of prophesy, he said things a lot of people disagreed with because their eyes were clouded by guilt. No one was immune as he talked about political officials, church elders, and commoners. After so many years, one would expect that people would start to see the light, but there was a particularly disturbing situation that occurred. Don't worry, though...There is a point to this!
Jeremiah chapter 20 opens describing a scene with a certain priest in charge of the Temple of the Lord by the name of Pashhur son of Immer. He had heard what Jeremiah was saying and instead of taking his words to heart, he chose to have Jeremiah flogged and placed in stocks at the Judah crossroads known as the Benjamin Gate. This was particularly embarassing to any perpetrator deemed guilty enough to be placed here as this was a major throughway in Judah and was located very near the Temple of the Lord. There, Jeremiah was able to continuously pray and receive God's instruction.
Pashhur finally decided to release Jeremiah (for doing nothing in the first place) after the first day and when he did, boy did Jeremiah have an earfull for him! He wasn't speaking out of bitterness for what he had to endure, but simply relayed what God had revealed to him. Jer 20:3 opens Pashhur to his future as Jeremiah says, "From now on you are to be called 'The Man Who Lives in Terror', for this is what the Lord says: 'I will send terror upon you and all your friends, and you will watch as they are slaughtered by the swords of the enemy. I will hand the people of Judah over to the king of Babylon. He will take them captive or run them through with the sword.'" It then goes on in verse 6, "As for you, Pashhur, you and all your household will go as captives to Babylon. There you will die and be burried, you and all your friends to whom you promised everything would be alright."
Then starting in verse 7, we see that Jeremiah was still most likely conflicted in what he felt even after all the years of service to God. He cried, "O Lord, you persuaded me, and I allowed myself to be persuaded. You are stronger than I am and you overpowered me. Now I am mocked by everyone in the city. Whenever I speak, the words come out in a violent outburst. 'Violence and destruction!' I shout! So these messages from the Lord have made me a household joke!" Then it gets interesting... In verse 9, we see our answer as Jeremiah says, "And I can't stop! If I say I'll never mention the Lord or speak His name, His word burns in my heart like a fire. It's like a fire in my bones! I am weary of holding it in!"
We see Jeremiah's anguish many time in the books he wrote, but none were as heartfelt as in Jer 20:14 where after telling how good and just God is, he cries out, "Yet I curse the day I was born! May the Day of my birth not be blessed" and, "I curse the messenger that told my father, 'Good news, you have a son!'" Clearly he wavered in what he felt. today they would have labeled him manic-depressive or at least just plain psycho, but he always came back to that undeniable truth, GOD is in CONTROL!
We will most likely never see the completion of God's plan in the flesh, but our first and best plan is that of faith! Even in circumstances that look helpless, God is there moving pieces around to come to His final glory. All we can do is know this, and more importantly, TRUST this! How could we ever hope we would (or should) have it better than any of the Old Testament prophets or even the New Testament disciples? In fact, the 12 disciples walked with Christ from the time he began his recorded ministry and they didn't even fully understand what was going on most of the time! Faith in His plan is all we have, and we as falable humans will fall, and cry out many words similar to those of Jeremiah. But as long as we remember to run back and count the blessing the Lord always bestows, He will always take us back in His arms...And that's a wonderful promise!
NEXT WEEK we will look at a new topic for a while. The pastor of my church got my brain working about the differece between being changed and being transformed! These things are very different, and we'll delve a little deeper into Biblical examples and some personal ones... See you next week!
TRANSFORMED Series week one:
O.K., so you are saved and call Christ your savior! That is a life-changing event, but have you been transformed? I was faced with that question recently during a bible study with my pastor. We looked at Peter's life which was often a series of ups-and-downs spiritually and asked, "When, if at all, did Peter see the light and become transfored?" We agreed that there were many documented times when he was changed, but it seemed that he had not truly taken that next step and allowed himself to be transformed. There is a differrence, so bear with me...
You see, there is a definite difference between being changed and being transformed. Let's use a couple of comic characters to illustrate; Clark Kent is just an ordinary guy who works for the Daily Planet. When trouble pops up, he changes into his Superman costume and saves the world. That is a conscious act. He has to quickly take off his suit, shirt, and glasses, and reveal the crime-fighting tights he apparently always wears under his regular garments (hoping everytime that he remembers when to stop removing clothes!). He chooses to do this, right? HE makes the choice when Superman is needed and HE makes the decision to change from mild mannered reporter Clark Kent, into the strongest man on Earth. The amazing thing is that if the people of Metropolis looked at him and actually used their brains, they could tell that Superman was STILL Clark Kent! He just has his hair parted on the other side with an "S" curl and he has no glasses on! What a staggering disguise!!!
Now let's look at the Hulk. Everyone knows that story, right? Scientist Bruce Banner was bombarded with Gamma radiation which makes him become the Hulk. Does he choose when this happens? Unfortunately, NOT! When he experiences emotions such as fear, anger, or anxiety, he transforms into the Jade Juggernaut known as the Hulk. He can't choose when...It just happens to him. It's an outside force working on him and his body is transformed from a frail man into a seven-foot-tall, one ton behemoth! And try as you might, nothing about the Hulk (aside from his purple pants) will remotely remind you of Banner. He has completely been transformed, right?
This is exactly the same as our spiritual lives. We can choose to change when we are willing to accept Christ into our hearts. Things look different to us after that point in time, but it is up to God to transform us. Here's a biblical example... Peter probably first met Christ while fishing with his brother Andrew (Mat 4:18). He chose to obey Christ and to follow Him doing His will and Christ promised to make Peter a "fisher of men". He loved Peter very much and even said that Peter was "blessed among men" because it was God in Heaven that revealed who Christ really was to Peter (Mat 16:17). He also gave Peter great power over the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven. Did this alone transform Peter into the perfect man God wanted him to be?
Next week, we'll look at Some of Peter's epiphenies and see if anything truly transfromed him or if he was destined to experience life as a Christin in the baby-steps of mere changes. See you next week!!!
Monday, October 21st
Last week, (see below) we got into a secular difference between change and transformation. It was a little lighthearted, but I received alot of positive feedback from the interesting approach to the idea. This week, we'll take a little closer look at the real life experience of two very different people in God's service, Simon Peter and Saul of Tarsus.
Imagine yourself out fishing with your brother when a man walks up to you and begins talking with you in away no one else ever had. You've had a lousy day fishing and have little to show for all your labor. You share this with your visitor and he tells you to loose your nets and throw them in once more, just for giggles. You resist, but finally throw your nets in only to have such an abundant catch that the nets come to the point of bursting! That is how Simon Peter and his brother Andrew were introduced to the power of Christ's word according to Luke 5:1-5. So full were their nets that the boats almost sank! That surely had an impact on Peter and Andrew's life as follower's of Christ. So did the time when Peter later witnessed Christ walking on water. This alone was an awsome sight, especially in the days long befor CG computer special effects. Nothing like that was even imaginable and here a man was walking on the surface of a lake! Then it gets kicked up a notch...Peter asked Christ to call him out if it was truly Him (Mat 14:28) Christ did and Peter walked to Christ on the water! This, too, must have had a terrific impact on Peter's faith but did this yet transform him?
Later, Peter saw healings, resurections of the dead, coins in the mouths of fish, a couple of loaves of bread and a few fish feed thousands, The spirits of Elija and Moses (Luke 10:28). He was so amazed by what he saw that he blurted out that they should build a shrine as a covenant for them. Instantly the voice of God cut into their hearts saying, "This is My Son, My chosen one...Listen to Him.". So terror filled the witnesses were that they told no one for some time. And only eight days prior, Peter confirmed in Luke 9:20 that he knew the Jesus was the Messiah sent from God. Still, was he transformed?
What about Saul of Tarsus? He was a high member of the Jewish council who persecuted many Christians and thought more for dogs than believers in Christ. Saul was not mean for the sake of being mean; He honestly thought that all he knew proved that what he was doing was completely right according to the Law. In his knowlege, he was rigid and steadfast. No one could tell him he was wrong, much less performing acts against the very law he loved and upheld with violence if neccessary. One day, Saul was on the road to Damascus with two of his assistants. With a blinding light and Saul was thrown to the ground. Keep in mind, he was on his way to Damascus to order the arrest of Christians and request the cooperation of the synagogues there in this mission. Needless to say, he didn't make it there as he planned. In fact, after hearing the voice of Jesus , he was broken and blind having to start all over in a new life he knew nothing about. Still, he did all he was told and regained his sight only to throw himself fully in to service of Christians. This is probably one of the closest definition of spiritual transformation, but was it true transformation, or merely a great change?
Saul, from now on called Paul, always dispised his past and hated his weaknesses of the flesh. He recognized that no matter how many good things he did for Christ's sake, he still had all the demons from his past chasing him and reminding him of what a dispicable human he was. Can we truly have transformation while still hanging on the the doubt of our past sins?
The fact is that we should take the example of all the Christian role models in the Bible and realize that we are always in a state of change and always in the process of becoming. Transformation is something we can never attain... It must be given to us. One might say transformation comes from God upon our acceptance of Christ, and on one level it does. But our mortal flesh continues to hinder our full transformation into the being God wants us to be in His perfect will. Does that mean we should give up? NEVER!!! We should always excersize our faith and continue to grow spiritually. God became man in the form of Jesus to know our feelings and trials, so don't think for a moment that he doesn't know that we struggle everyday with issues of the flesh. The secret is to do our best to become more like Him, know our weaknesses and seek forgiveness for our sins, and then open ourselves to doing our part as Christians just as Jesus asked us to do. I don't know if I will personally ever feel fully transformed, but I feel everyday that God's hand is molding and shaping me into the man he wants me to be for my wife, my family, my friends, and ultimately, for Him. It gives me hope that there is always room for something better in myself and each time I feel Him moving pieces around, it make me feel closer to Him.
See you next week!
Monday, October 28th
The church I attend has begun a new tradition of hosting an annual pumpkin patch and I had the pleasure of sitting down there and meeting some very good people in our community. There were moms and grandmas, dads and grandfathers who brought by their kids to see the pumpkin patch, some of whom were seeing it for the first time. It was really wonderful to see the amazement of it all the the fresh, young eyes of those visiting children.
To them, pumpkins (and Halloween in general) were not a celebration of dark things, it was just plain fun! Their parents bragged about the costumes they would be sporting and many confirmed that they too were Christian and were happy to help out our fundraiser. The interesting fact was that in the Christian community there is still such debate over wheather it is right or wrong to do Halloween at all.
Well, I'm going to go out on a limb here and risk turning people off (and I do hope it won't tarnish my testimony) but I don't see anything wrong with Halloween! I know...I can feel the overwhelming click of deletions of my weblink from church directories as this is read, but hear me out. The fact is that if you want to get technical, ANYTHING that is not for God is against Him. That means that watching the Simpsons, seeing hot movies, playing miniature golf, and yes even collecting toys is against God's will of devotion in our lives. What does this mean for Christians?
I don't think our God of love is that rigid as to count us out for having fun in the world he gave us to enjoy! God gives us all things that we might richly enjoy them...That's biblical! What I would, however, challenge the readers to do is to invite God along in all these activities! That's right, invite Him along by keeping yourself ever mindful of His presence and desire to be in our thoughts and our hearts. By doing so, we will be able to discern what is good and acceptible to Him. Then if your spirit is telling you that something is not right, you can be more in tune with that feeling and fulfil your promise to God that you made at your salvation which was to love and obey Him.
Without getting too far off topic, Halloween (like many things) gets perverted and tainted by the world. Yes, there are people that commit themselves to the dark arts, yes, there are those who believe that it is a satanic holiday, and yes, God has given us the responsibility to make godly descisions for His kingdom. Check out Romans 12:2 which says, "Do not be conformed to this world any longer, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will BE ABLE TO TEST AND APPROVE GOD'S WILL FOR YOU; HIS GOOD, PLEASING AND PREFECT WILL." It's something we can apply to all things...See ya' next week!!!
Monday, November 4th
Everyone remembers that famous scene in Raiders of the Lost Ark where Indiana and Belloq are sitting in a grimy Cairo cantina and Belloq is attempting to convince Indy of the gravity of the situation...Belloq calls the Ark of the Covenant a "...radio, a transmitter for speaking to God.". Indy rebutts him by inviting him to meet God right then and there and the rest is history! Belloq didn't realize in all His zeal and excitement that he didn't need a famous relic to speak to God...only a prayerful heart!
It's not surprizing that even Christ's own disciples had questions about how to pray. They were used to the old ways, the old laws, and the old God as described by the religious teachers of the day. Christ changed all that by becoming God in the flesh. When His disciples asked Him how they should pray, Christ told them in the bible to enter into their closets and,
"Pray like this: Our Father in Heaven,
may your name be honored.
May your Kingdom come soon.
May your will be done here on earth,
just as it is in heaven.
Give us our food for today,
and forgive us our sins
just as we have forgiven those who have sinned against us.
And don't let us yield to temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one." He makes it a very special point to add in verse 14 of chapter 6 in Matthew that, "If you forgive those who sin against you, you heavenly Father will forgive you. But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins."
This is a very interesting model and this week, we'll look at its components. It is more that just a prayer to recite, but to truly understant and mean what it says.
"Our Father in Heaven, may your name be honored." It is important to realize God's soverignity as we pray. Remember He alone is in charge and try as we will, we will never be masters of our own destiny. We can fool ourselves, but we are the fools. Recognize that God is the Father of the universe and He deserves our honor.
"May your Kingdom come soon. May your will be done here on earth, just as it is in heaven." This is a confirmation to God that we want His return as the beginning of our eternity with Him again and that we seek His will here on earth just as it exsists in heaven. It is one thing to know that Christ is returning, but quite a different thing to want it to come soon. It is also a testimony that we know we can ask things of God, but that we also recognize that it is His will that matters, not ours.
"Give us our food for today, and forgive us our sins, just as we have forgiven those who sin against us." God understands we will have needs in our lives. He expects us to ask for things as children ask their parents for things. If a child asks their parent for a snack or a drink, what parent would deny that request? God is no different. He longs to provide us our needs and to fill our bellies when we hunger. It is important to ask God's blessing in our life and thank Him for always providing food to us daily. We could all be without a job tomorrow and hunger is a very real thing! Also, here again we see the forgiveness thing come up again! Remember when Christ is asked what of His commandments are the greatest? Christ said first is to Love God with all your heart and all your soul, and all your mind. Second, to love your neighbor as you love yourself. All the teachings are based on these two commandments. In the same sense, we need to forgive others as we wish to be forgiven by our heavenly Father. There are numerous parables to this end, but few as potent as the story of the servants whos loan is called. One servant owes thousands and one hundreds. Both go to the king and ask forgiveness and more time to pay the debt and the king has pity and allows them time. The servant who owed thousands retuned to a servant who owed him a few dollars and demanded the money right then and there. Of course the servant didn't have it, so the other servant had him thrown in jail until he could pay it. When this news got back to the King, he ordered the arrest of the forgiven servant and said, "I forgave you your debt of thousands, yet you would not forgive this man his debt of a few dollars!" This is indicative of Christ's forgiveness or payment for the debt of sin. If we would not forgive others of the dollar's worth of wrongs they do to us, how can we expect God to forgive us of all our wrongdoings?
"And don't let us yield to temptation, but deliver us from the evil one." This is our faith and request that God will keep us safe and far away from things that might harm us or keep us away from reaching for His perfect will.
God desires to grant us our deepest prayers, but it is important to remember to ask all things according to His will. In that, we can be assured that whatever God's answer is, it will be best for our lives. We can ask for a million dollars and most will never win that lotto, but if our desires are pure, when the time comes we will have more than enough to help his children in their time of need. A perfect example will be relayed next week, so check back! Have a great week!!!
Monday, November 11th
Money is no doubt the high priority on people's list of survival tools. Shows like "Survivor" and "Fear Factor" take people and make them do the wierdest things for the ol' green stuff. We gear our motivation toward it and try from our first job to get more of it. Money in and of itself in worthless. It is only what it can get for us that makes it valuable.
What would you do if you had an extra $50,000 today? Buy a sports car... add a room on your house... Oh, how about a world wide sightseeing tour? All these things are great ideas, but what does money really get you? The fact of the matter is that all we have is from God and we are merely stewards. That's right, we only invest it for God. Here's a story...The names will be changed to protect the innocent.
There was a guy named Miguel. Miguel worked in a mall phone kiosk and didn't have a lot of money. He did however have a wife and daughter... and diabetes. Real bad diabetes. Unfortunately, he didn't have insurance either! The first time he crashed, he went to the doctor to find out he was over 900 on his blood sugar. Doctors were amazed that he wasn't in a coma when the got the result of his bloodtest. They ran more tests which confirmed had had diabetes bad and he'd need medication to control it. By the time he left the hospital, he had his blood sugar down to 500 and made a promise that he'd go to a regular doctor to get himself taken care of.
He went to a doctor at a walk in clinic and that doctor had run blood test only to find that his blood sugar was climbing past 600 again. They ran $900 in tests between the emergency room and the walk in clinic follow up and Miguel was tapped.
Mark and Melanie had just bought phones from Miguel a few weeks earlier and had to go back for some bugs they had with their phones. By this time, Miguel had taken a turn for the worse. They could tell by the look of his face something was wrong. Who knows why they asked what was going on in his life. Well, Miguel opened up and told them about all the medical stuff in the last two weeks and how he couldn't see right, and that he was losing all kinds of weight. Going to the doctor was out of the questions as he was without medical insurance and all they had in their checking and savings was gone! He'd just have to wait and pray...
That's when God called in a favor.
Mark and Melanie had OK jobs. They weren't swimming in cash, but they had more than enough to make their bills, so how could they help this guy they just met a few weeks earlier? After brainstorming, they realized that Miguel needed help. They didn't know if all this was a con, but had faith in Miguel and believed him in their heart. After a few calls, they decided to offer the man a paid trip to their doctor which would be paid directly in the form of a check made payable to the doctor at the office. That way, if there was a true need, he would go. a hundred dollars was enough for initial visit and the doctor agreed to have the test results requested from the clinic. Miguel was overwhelmed, but accepted the offer and went in the next morning. The check was there for the doctor and, more importantly, the doctor was there for miguel.
Miguel went to his follow up two weeks later and was doing much better. The problem with his eyes was clearing up and after the prior visit, the doctor got him on medication for the diabetes and set him up on a diet plan he could follow. He had received his next paycheck and could handle the $60 exsisting patient office fee. All was going to be fine.
It could have been a lot different. What if Mark and Melanie viewed it as "their money" and not listened to God's call? What if they listened to Satan's doubt about helping someone they just met? What if they had squandered their money and didn't have an emergency cushion? Miguel's daughter could be fatherless. His wife could be a widow. The doctors said he should have been gone with blood sugar that high and it was a miracle he was able to walk in to their offices. We won't have to ponder those questions since good stewards of what God gave was there to answer the voice. It has been almost a year since Miguel went to the doctor appointment made by Mark and Melanie and he was doing fine when they last spoke. He is still selling phones, although at a different mall. He is still there for his daughter and his wife. And he is now there the continue the chain of love and pass on that same love to another. We are all vessels of God's love. God can't be here to hug His children physically...that's why he depends on us. We are His feet, His eyes, His arms, His ears, and His wallet. That is what money is best for!
Monday, December 9th
This week's devotionl comes as an object lesson for me. I have tried to be dilligent in preparing a devotional each week and have been fairly successful, but this isn't enough! In the past few weeks, I have let other "obligations" get in the way of doing what I feel God has laid on my heart. All have been important things, but I should not have let them get in the way of this devotional.
We do this in our daily walk all the time, so that's why I thought instead of beating myself up over this, I'd recognize the problem and put it into a practical example sharing it with you guys. The fact is, we let everyday things intrude on what God has in store for us. Work, traffic, recreation, T.V., sports, and a miriad of other distractions deviate us from our path of seeking Him. "I don't have time right now!" is uttered at least a dozen times in my day and I know I neglect to pray, read the bible, reflect on God's will for me way more than I should.
These past three weeks, I have been working on the set for a production of "The Christmas Shoes" at my church. This job involved set design layout, fabrication, painting, hanging of backdrops, and lots of other nit-picky stuff that goes into a theatrical production not to mention the choir rehearsals and solo practices and the last minute stuff that will fill this week. I enjoyed the process, but I felt busy the whole time and often was so tired at the end of the day, that I colapsed into bed before I could remember to pray. What's worse is I even fell asleep on more than one occasion in the MIDDLE of my prayers!!! That's like hanging up on God!!! There's no excuse for that.
The danger is, when we become too busy, even if it is doing things we think serve His Kingdom, we risk losing perspective on the greater need to spend real focus time for His will, word, and service. I am sorry for neglecting this devotional the pask weeks. Look at your own life and ask the question I was forced to reckon with this month: What is more important in our walk, being busy for God OR SERVING GOD? You really can't do both! Let's pray for each other that we not make the wrong decision! Make time for Him and His call.
"Dear God, please help us to separate being busy and serving. As we all go through our day, please help us to recognize your voice in our hearts and slow down enough to spend time with you. We all must work and take care of responsibilities, but we need to also balance that with our spiritual need to worship and seek your will. Grant us peace in all things, Amen."
Thank you guys for your understanding. SEE YOU NEXT WEEK...I promise!
Monday, December 16th
Hello, everyone and happy holidays in the 3rd week of the advent! This week, I'd like to share with you a story about servitude. My best friend relayed this to me a while back and when I read it for myself, I was very impressed by what this little-known bible character evolved into through the power and service to God.
His name was Obededem. We first see him mentioned in 2 Samuel 6:10 and 1 Chronicles 13:13, and we see he isn't a major player in the bible...yet. The story unfolds as King David is planing to bring the Ark of the Covenant home from Baalah. This was a joyous time and the returning party sang songs of praise, played instruments and rejoiced in the Lord.
Because of an incident during the transport of the Ark, King David was afraid to keep the Ark in his care. He then made an interesting decision: He would ask Obededom to keep the ark at his house for the month leading up to the celebration!
In the three months that Obededom kept the Ark of the Lord, their family was blessed exponentially! When David heard this, he hastened plans for a great reception and soon, the Ark was in its rightful place in the City of David.
We see his name again in 1 Chronicles 15:18 where he will be a gatekeeper, and in 15:21 he would be in the transport party of the ark and was to be a harp player in the celebration. In 15:24, he would be a guard of the Ark with Elkanah, and further in 1 Chronicles we see that even Obededom's family was so blessed that they, too, wanted more and more to serve the Lord.
The thing is, as Christians, we should want to serve the Lord as he commands and deserves. It is in this service that we are blessed. If we recognize those blessings, which are not neccesarily monitary (blessings of peace, health, joy, contentment, etc), we should want to serve Him more since because He is faithful, we should be faithful! It is a cycle that continues to grow more and more! I think we each would see, as Obededom did, that serving the Lord is contagious and infectious. Once you feel the Power of God in your "house", you want more and more to feel that as much as you can as often as you can! I can tell you it is exactly like that from personal experience..."As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord!" See you all next week!!!
Monday, December 23rd
This will be a short but friendly reminder of what the holiday season should mean for us; When we think of Christmas we should think about what happened 2000 years ago. A man and his wife trekked across the desert to return to Bethlehem for the census. A man and his VERY pregnant wife, Mary. Just nine months earlier, an Angel of the Lord appeared to her and told her of what would happen and who this child was that she would bare. Mary was probably all of 15 or 16 years old, (Some texts even say 13 or 14) and was terrified at the prospect of being a pregnant and unmarried woman! That same angel appeared to her future husband Joseph and told him to marry Mary and suppport her even with her child being of the Lord.
Mary and Joseph saw through the fear and anxiety of their situation and did as the Lord asked and raised their Son as God had instructed. They obeyed even with the threat of public scrutany, the law of man, and human nature and raised the one man that would bring us all out of sin and make intersession for us before His Father in heaven.
This is the miracle of Christmas: That even now as sinners, God sent His son to earth to save us...to be a gift for us on Christ-mas that we should never again fall into Satan's power in death, but should live to glorify Him in everlasting life! 2000 years after His birth, wise men STILL seek the face of the Son of God. This season, please reflect for even a moment on the magnatude of this blessing and remember to thank God for the gift we can open again and again each time we reveal out hearts to Jesus! Merry Christmas, one and all!!!
Monday, December 30th
Here we are on the cusp of another year! 2002 is at an end and 2003 is offering us the promise of a clean slate!
I'd like to share with you a great way to walk into the new year 20 pounds lighter: REFLECTION! Some of the greatest weights we bare are those of guilt and regret. By holding onto these, we bog ourselves down with all sorts of thoughts that we allow to separate us from God. He wants to accept us where we are, but He wants us to confess our sins and allow ourselves to be forgiven. We did it when we accepted Christ in salvation, right? Why not do it around this very important time of year? Whether you call it confession, attonement, or whatever, it is the release of the weight that crushes our spirit and binds our wings.
So how do we do it? The tradition I started a few years back involves deep introspection and prayer to the Lord for discernment. Once you begin, look at your choices for this year. See if you made choices God would be proud of: On the job, in your family, with your friends, and so forth. If there are areas you made bad desiscions, pray about them and ask for God to direct your path more clearly this new year. Choices are not good or bad, but the effect of those choices could be. Through prayer, we can commit ourselves to making Godly choices.
The second point of reflection is on our friends and family (and this includes co-workers and neighbors, too!!). Have you said anything that could hurt someone or tarnish your testimony? New Years Eve is a great time to reflect on the year and if you have done anything that might have hurt someone, write it down...Then call them and set it right! I can't tell you how good it will feel to release that burden and most likely deepen the connection you will have with that person now that he or she knows that you cared enough to think that much of them!
The last thing to look at is how you will allow yourself to be an instrument of God in the new year. There are many ways we can be used by God: volunteering, mentoring, Big Brother/Big Sister-ing, helping the less fortunate, and more! the best way to do this is through prayer. When we pray for God to lead us, He will reveal the path to us! The only catch is that we must follow through and continuously pray for His will in our life, then allow ourselves to be moved to that end.It is easy to ask for God to use us but then when the call comes, we're too busy, too poor, too tired, too inexperienced, etc...In EVERY case in the bible, when someone is called of God the way is etched out in stone before them. I don't mean to tell you it will be easy, but this is the truest sacrifice we can make to our Lord!
It is my sincerest prayer that we can all get ourselves right with God and each other this new year. We are human and will often fail, but with God on our side, we can confess and move on from those shortfalls to His honor and glory! PEACE AND JOY for you in the new year!!!
Monday, Jan 20th
Sorry for the brief absense...I got a heckuva cold and was out of things for a while. I am finally able to get back in the swing of things, so here I am! I hope you have all been well.
I would like to touch on an important topic this week I hope you will all take to heart. Perspective, as defined by Webster's New World Dictionary, is "...a specific point of view in understanding or judging things or events, esp. one that shows them in their true relations to one another." How we view things and events in life are as important as the elements themselves! I know we have all heard expressions like, "He must have gotten out of the wrong side of the bed" to describe when someone is in a bad mood. We have also heard people say in disgust of how their Monday is progressing, "What a DAY! Can't wait for the weekend!". Nobody ever says, "Boy, I can't wait for Monday!!!". To someone who is bedridden or incapacitated, they would probably value any day offered, Monday or Saturday.
I think the only thing that separates us from finding joy in all things is the lack of perspective on elements in everyday life. God wants us to see the blessings He freely gives in all things. Look out your windo and find the evidence of God's presence even now no matter where you are. Look at the painted sky and the wispy blades of grass and imagine the cool winter air refreshing your spirit. This is a one-of-a-kind painting from God to you and it will be gone in a second never to be repeated until His next masterpiece is unveiled. Now compare that moment to the possible negative things in your life right now...Bills, broken relationships, tax time, health issues, anything. Then think about someone that has no sight and will never view a sunset. They would probably give anything to witness one of God's paintings first hand.
It is exactly this kind of perspective that could change our outlook on life. No matter what we are going through, we should be thankful for the blessings we have and seek them out. Even in tough times we can choose to focus on the positive blessings instead of life's negative and fleeting moments. Through all things we can will ourselves to be happy and appreciative in everything God blesses us with, and more.
It is this perspective that will also create a chain of positive energy. It may not be evident at first, but it will start to change the attitude of people you encounter. By treating everyone you come in contact with with a positive attitude, they are more likely to spread the attitude along to those they meet. Conversely, by hitting someone with negative attitude, you give them the tool to spread that darkness to all they encounter that day. We can allow God to transform our hearts and remove the hurts and negativity and allow us to shine as He wants us to...and that starts with perspective!
So always remember to seek out the positive things in your life and push the negative away. Even better, place those negative things at Jesus' feet and leave then there. Then thank God for all the blessings in your life. As a good friend always tells me, before you set one foot on the floor in the morning, think of one thing to be thankful for. You will see a difference in your life in no time! See you soon!
Monday, Jan 27th
Everywhere I went today, I had people asking me the same thing; "Didja catch the game?"..."Of course I did!" was my response as was the response of everyone else I came in contact with. The Superbowl is an American institution and if you don't watch you get fined or caned or something. But the interesting thing is the zeal people have over the game! It is, in the end, an amusement and a recreation with entertaining commercials between plays.
So what would happen if people got together and listened to someone speak about the life of Christ or the Prophets of the Old Testament, or even the creation of the universe? There would surely be amazed gasps as the commentators talked about how the light came out of nowhere and illuminated the darkness. There would absolutely HAVE to be hollers and cheers as the hero is risen from the dead after being there for 48 hours and assumed out of the game. And what about the end-game predictions!?! Those prophets got it all right in the end down to the last detail!!! What an amazing event that would be! And it would take place not annually, but WEEKLY!
The fact of the matter is that it does happen on a weekly basis, and it is called CHURCH! This hour is the most exciting, turn-filled voyage through countless eons and no one seems to care! Where are the people Monday morning asking, "WOW, did you go to church yesterday? Our paster talked about..." No, people just aren't excited about "organized religion" anymore. OK, OK! So you don't believe in organized religion! That's fine; You prefer self-study, right? So when was the last time you picked up your bible? I BET you watched Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back a couple of times since the last time you picked up that 2000 year old text, right? So what's the deal?
The thing is that people often avoid church because it is a boring, hour long tirade of doom-and-gloom and stand-sits with segments of music people only mouth the lyrics to while thinking about what they're going to do afterward. And don't even bring up those offering plates! That's action figure money right down the drain, man! If that is the situation in your life, CHANGE CHURCHES! Find one that forces you to ask the tough questions and that opens its arms to you in acceptance and love! They are out there if you look with spiritual eyes!
I'll get personal with you now. Over ten years ago, I vowed I'd never step foot in a church again because of something a few members of the congregation said to me during the time my father passed away. All I could think about was how they were such hypocrites and instead of them reaching out, they chose to condemn and complain. I held that anger in my heart for a long time and it poisoned me long after those church members said those hurtful words or even thought about me for the last time. The problem was that I allowed the slip-ups of a few people turn me away and send me on an eleven-year detour from where God really wanted me to be. Yes, churches are filled with "accident prone" humans, but how we handle things is as much to blame as the things that people do to hurt us. Sometimes, the way we perceive something, isn't even how it was intended and prayer and introspection will solve many problems and reveal that to us. At least try to find a place of worship where you are comfortable and can learn God's will for your life. Bring your hurts, your fears, your heavy burdens and one by one, leave them at the alter. You will see a difference! It took some searching and listening, but I have found a church I call home. It is like a second family I can trust, lean on, and even contribute to and it's the best feeling I have ever known! When you feel you have something like that, you should want to share it with as many people as possible and I truly hope you find it! Get involved and allow God to fill your cup to overflowing!
See you next week!!!
Monday, Feb 24th
We are officially entering the Easter season! Everywhere you look (at least in the Southeast) you can see new blades of grass and blooms on flowers where just a couple of weeks ago, all they had to offer were dry, brown stalks. What a difference a few days make!
In all this newness, one thing really sticks out when pondering the Easter season: Fulfilled Promises! Christ came in the form of a servant even though He was a King for the sole purpose to fulfil the Law of Moses and to prove that God was truly speaking to Isaiah, Jeremiah, and a host of other prophets when He said that a savior was coming! Isaiah 53 tells us that a lowly servant will come as a lamb to the slaughter and by His stripes we will all be healed. It further shows how this Lamb, caring not for Himself will deliver those who dispise Him and ultimately destroy Him!
In spite of the pain, humiliation, and separation He would feel, Christ still came to fulfil prophecy. The story of Easter, however, is the true fulfilment of the Law where Christ when after 3 days in a borrowed tomb, He rose triumphantly to claim His place at the right hand of God. Intercession between God and man was made complete and we need not ever die alone in our sins. Because of Christ, we are heirs to the treasures we have in heaven. He died as a final washing away of original sin that exsisted since the garden and the fruit of knowlege of good and evil. Because of His sacrifice, we need not be separated from the God of David and Abraham who so desperately wants to love us!
We will be exploring some of Christ's characteristics over the next eight weeks in concert with an ongoing series at Ocoee Oaks United Methodist Church pastored by Ernest Post. Over those eight weeks, I'll post photos of the service, which will include the sculpting of a life-sized sculpture of the living Christ. Next week begins with the path Jesus walked and as the congregation hears the message, they will also see the sculpture taking shape. The message can also be heard starting next Sunday on 950am out of Orlando, Florida.
Please be in prayer for this warm and touching message! See you next week!!!
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