Tag: Joy

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Little Decisions

“What is always true is that the decisions we make today determine the stories we tell about our lives tomorrow” – Craig Groeschel, Divine Direction.

Proverbs 3:5-6, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.”

It is easy to point to the grand decisions in our life as having the most impact on our future. What we many times miss is that it was the many small decisions that proceeded the grand decision that set the stage. Decisions about marriage, jobs, or education start with the small decisions made innocuously in the past. Invisible decisions are so ingrained in our existence that we have long forgotten they were decisions.

James 4:17, “Therefore, to one who knows the right thing to do and does not do it, to him it is a sin.”

What story do you want others to tell about your life? We are not talking about the story you want to tell, but the story others will tell after you are gone. What things in your life will overshadow your service to Christ? What will be mentioned before they talk about your good works or dedication to Christ? What are all the small decisions you have made that will counterbalance the big decision?

“I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” ― Maya Angelou

2 Corinthians 1:17, “Was I fickle when I intended to do this? Or do I make my plans in a worldly manner so that in the same breath I say both “Yes, yes” and “No, no”? “

I’m sorry, folks, I can’t get over the waste in humanity. All of those people walking the face of the earth living substandard lives thinking they have made it. People whose greatness is shrouded by the perceptions of the world. We compromise, not knowing we are planting the seeds of an unfulfilled life.

Genesis 4:7, “If you do well, will not your countenance be lifted up? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door; and its desire is for you, but you must master it.”

There are countless examples of small decisions leading to mundane, soul-crushing vanilla lives that we count as blessings. We go along to get a long hoping that being part of someone else’s plan will prosper us. We long for more extraordinary things deep inside, but we picked the wrong road. We took what we thought was a shortcut to success and found ourselves in a cul-de-sac of unfulfilled dreams. These small decisions raised the price of success until it almost seemed unattainable.

Proverbs 16: 1-2, “To humans belong the plans of the heart, but from the Lord comes the proper answer of the tongue. All a person’s ways seem pure to them, but motives are weighed by the Lord.”

The great news is almost too good to be true. We have heard it a hundred times, but it always applied to others. Who God made you have never changed. Your past decision has not altered God’s plan for your life. It may have made its destination further away, but no less rewarding or attainable.

Romans 8:28, “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.”

If you start paying attention to the small decisions facing you daily, the big decision will take care of themselves. But if you focus only on big decisions, you will find few options. Your God is not just the God of the grandiose, but the God of the mundane. Call on Him in every situation.

2 Thessalonians 3:13, “But as for you, brethren, do not grow weary of doing good.”

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Is God With Us?

Matthew 20:17-19, “Now Jesus was going up to Jerusalem. On the way, he took the Twelve aside and said to them, “We are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death and will hand him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified. On the third day he will be raised to life!”

I hate stories about myself. I like to live in the shadows. When I’m in a position where I must “perform,” I get not just uneasy but irritated. I hate getting awards; I love achieving them, just not getting them. My social anxiety is paradoxical because I have run large organizations with hundreds of people. I’m fine when I can talk about a subject that does not include me. I don’t like the spotlight on me.

Today I’m going to suck it up and talk about myself. I think there is something in this story that might brighten your Easter. At Easter, we say, “He has Risen.” The response is, “He has Risen indeed.” But do we believe God is with us, or do we go along? Is God tangible?

Luke 24:6-7, “He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee: ‘The Son of Man must be delivered over to the hands of sinners, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.”

THE STORY

Over forty years ago, I was rising in my career and healthy. I ran ten miles every day. I later was informed that I ran every day because I had an addiction to endorphin, not because I had a fixation on my health. Stress filled my life. Because I had never experienced sustained success in my life, I thought stress was just part of the job. So, I ran to be sane. The endorphin kept me on an even keel so that I could cope. Although I must add that I still exercise and believe in exercise, I’m no longer addicted to it.

It was spring, so I wanted to step up my daily routine, but I had an odd problem. After about four or five miles, my vision would collapse into a small hole in the center of my eyesight; it’s called myopia. I would walk a couple of hundred yards, myopia would go away, and I would start running again. I felt great. There were no other symptoms. All I needed was a shot or a pill to make it go away, and I could increase my workouts. I had a friend, Charles, a doctor; he was a cardiologist. I didn’t have a regular doctor because I didn’t seem to need one, so I got an appointment with Charles. Here is where the story takes a twist. After just a few minutes in the examination room, Charles calls one of his partners in; they talk cryptically and then ask, “What are you doing this afternoon?”.

THE TWIST

I’ll try to make this less boring by getting to the part you want to hear as fast as possible. I spent a week in the hospital as they ran an encyclopedia of tests. The results were that they knew I had a severe problem but couldn’t isolate it. So, they demanded that I quit all forms of exercise until they knew what was causing the problem. This is the place in the story where I learned about endorphin addiction and withdrawal.

Months went by, and the problem progressed. I was sitting on the couch watching TV one night, and myopia struck. These episodes were becoming more frequent. I was instructed to call Charles every time I had one. Charles said stop what you are doing and come to his office a 7:30 in the morning before it opens. I told him that I couldn’t do less short of stopping breathing. It was the first time I was concerned; up to this point, I was mainly perturbed. It was an inconvenience in my life. So, I went to bed.

MY MOMENT

This night I was to understand what it meant to have Christ be with me, not figuratively but literally. At around two o’clock in the morning, I woke to see myself lying in bed. I was above the bed, looking down at myself, sleeping. It wasn’t a dream; I was hovering above myself. I slowly slid down the wall until I was back on the bed, eyes wide open, terrified.

Isaiah 41:10. “‘Do not fear, for I am with you; Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely, I will help you, surely, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’”

A thousand thoughts were racing through my brain. Everything I thought had significant risk. Then, all of a sudden, Christ reached down. His message was clear and concise, go to the emergency room across the street from Charles’s office and wait. I was calm and relaxed. It was only a couple of miles away, and there was no traffic in the early morning. I went inside and took a seat. I told the nurse that I was waiting for a doctor’s appointment across the street. I had this odd dialog inside my head, part prayer and part discussion; we talked about my future. The nurse interrupted this discussion to say either you’re in or out; this isn’t a waiting room. I guess I’m in was my reply.

1 Corinthians 15:20-21, “But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man.”

My heart stopped four times in the emergency room before Charles arrived. I apologized for getting him out of bed, and then the lights went out. The next thing I saw was a masked man looking down at me, saying it would be alright. God smiled and said, “I told you so.”

GOD IS TANGIBLE

I could have died that night at home alone, but God had other plans. It was His presence that calmed my soul and gave me clarity. It was His plan for my life that pulled me through. Christ was a presence as real as Charles.

Easter isn’t a feel-good story. Instead, it is the culmination of eons of compassion, love, and caring. If we don’t experience His presence in our lives, it is because we don’t believe He is truly with us. Christ paid an enormous price so that we could have a deep, personal relationship with Him. He is there in the room with you now. He will not desert you or grow tired of you.

Romans 10:9, “If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”

HE HAS RISEN INDEED

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Being in the Who’s Who of the Bible

The Bible is full of stories of ordinary people doing extraordinary things. The stories weren’t stories like many of the best sellers we read today, they are real people, leading real lives, during desperate times.  To get a mention in the Bible is itself extraordinary, but their acts were not supernatural or over-the-top; they were somewhat mundane. Let me give you a few examples.

Jochebed (Exodus 6:20), the mother of Moses, if she did not decide to put Moses in a reed basket to save his life, he would not have delivered Israel from the Egyptians. I’m sure that Jochebed did not contemplate God’s deliverance of the Jews from the Pharaohs at the time. Ruth (Ruth) pledged to follow Naomi and worship her God. From this act, she eventually married Boaz, giving birth to an ancestor of King David, whose descendant was Jesus Christ. Esther (Ester), having lost her parents, entrusted to an uncle, and banished to a pagan land, saved the Jewish people from destruction. Ananias (Acts 9:10-14) was directed by God to minister to the deadliest enemy of the Christian faith at that time; Saul.

There are more such people mentioned in the Bible. People who God gave a simple task that ultimately changed Christianity. Most of these people had no idea of the impact they would have. Most were doing what they thought was proper but not extraordinary.

I also think of others like Agur, who wrote a beautiful prayer in Psalms (Proverbs 30:7-9), or the famous prayer of Jabez, which is only 33 words long (1 Chronicles 4:10). None of these people were looking for notoriety or fame. None of them set out to make a mark in history. Instead, they all sought the pleasure of God.

How do we become a people of Biblical proportions? How do we live our life so that we will be known when the end of days comes? These people did not live extraordinary lives blessed by God. They were not the movers and shakers of their time. They did not measure the ramifications of their acts; they just obeyed.

FOLLOW HIS EXAMPLE

Ephesians 5:1-2, “Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.”

How do you live your life? Most of us become caught up in the day-to-day grind. We don’t think about its significance; life is a series of stimuli and responses. We are like Pavlov’s dog, reacting rather than living. Being proactive in life requires taking a risk.

Ephesians 3:17, “May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.”

We are filled with all the fullness of life and power of God. To be in the Who’s Who of the Bible, we need to follow Christ’s example. We need to take courageous and improvisational risks. We should consciously seek out those in need and courageously take the risk to love them. Our day planners and commitments need to take the second chair to look for and react to God working through us for others. You don’t have to author a worldwide revival; we need to show compassion where compassion is missing.

REDEEMING YOUR TIME

Ephesians 5:15-16, “Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, redeeming the time because the days are evil.”

I pray that your time is long and your joys are many, but we do not know until the end. We should live our lives as if this day was the last day we have to share the Gospel. This day may be the last chance to tell our family, friends, or neighbors how much God loves them and wants them as part of His family. Today we need to correct a wrong, forgive the past and show compassion to someone in need.

Job 9:25-26, “My days are swifter than a runner; they flee away; they see no good. They go by like skiffs of reed, like an eagle swooping on the prey.”

Many people I know wish they had one more moment with a loved one that has passed. They want to share one more conversation; they want to say I love you one more time. KiKi King, an instrumentalist, once said at a TEDTalk, (paraphrased) time goes on to eternity behind us, time goes on to eternity before us making this moment seem insignificant. But this moment is all I have. So, I will live this moment as if it was the most significant moment of my life at this time.

Matthew 6:34, “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.”

If you want to be in the Who’s Who of the Bible, you have to use each moment as if it was the last and most significant moment of your life.

ALWAYS GIVING THANKS

Ephesians 5:20-21, “Always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.”

Giving thanks is the frosting on the cake. Recognizing God is the difference between a good person and a righteous person. If we show loving, caring compassion toward everyone and do not credit the author of our story, then we have done nothing of value. God is the Alpha and the Omega; everything starts and ends with Him. Everyone we come in contact with must know this. Our life must center on and radiate out from Christ. The light in the darkness we shine is not our light but a reflection of His light. Our humility is genuine because we understand the power of the one who sent us. We accomplish all things through Christ.

Matthew 6:33, “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”

Our story is never going to be amended to the Bible. But there will come a time when we will have to face Jesus to account for our faith. So, while there is still time, please make the most of it. Take courageous impetuous risks, knowing God has your back.

1 Thessalonians 5:17, “Pray without ceasing.”

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God’s Insatiable Love for Us

Psalm 31:7, “I will be glad and rejoice in Your unfailing love, for You have seen my troubles, and You care about the anguish of my soul. “

Love is a tricky animal to tame. It can be the thrill of a lifetime while simultaneously being our greatest fear. Love is one of those things we crave to the point of distraction. We know, untamed, it will destroy us, and yet true love is a bond that can’t be broken. We have committed so many sins chasing after love. If we were ever the fool, it was because of love. But there is only one pure, deep, passionate, and powerful love; it comes from Christ.

The love that God lavishes on His people never operates apart from His holiness, mercy, omnipotence, justice, or other divine attributes. It is the glue that holds all of His attributes together.

PURE

1 John 4:18, “Such love has no fear because perfect love expels all fear. If we are afraid, it is for fear of punishment, and this shows that we have not fully experienced His perfect love. “

Pure love drives out fear. When we rest in the arms of the one who truly loves us, we are secure. Pure love is described in Corinthians. When we read this passage from a human perspective, we see a goal or an objective to which to aspire. To be all of these things for another seems impossible. But God is all of these things for us. Corinthians not only describes how we should approach love toward each other, but it also describes how God loves us. God did not create two standards, one for us and one for Himself. He created a single standard of how He loves us, then asks us to try to love others the same way. Reread this passage; this time, read it as God’s description of how He loves you.

1 Corinthians 13:4-7, love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud, or rude. It does not demand its way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance. “

How pure is this? He was scourged, humiliated, and hung on a cross to demonstrate His love for us. He did not do this because we deserved salvation. He did it to open the door to salvation for wicked, stubborn people. His love for us was not dependent on our love for Him.

Romans 5:8, “But God demonstrates his own love for us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

DEEP

Romans 8:38-39, “For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Several passages in the Bible help us understand that God’s love runs deeper than anything we have ever experienced. This last week, NASA reported to have observed a single star 28-billion light-years away; that’s 168 trillion miles. When God says that nothing in all of creation can separate us from His love, imagine 168 trillion miles in front of you, in back of you, above you, and below you. His love is greater than all of that. But more importantly, it is the depth of His love within your heart. It goes to the core of who you are; who you were created to be. You were created to be loved by the author of the universe.

Ephesians 3: 17-19, “that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, so that, because you have been rooted and grounded in love, you may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and thus to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God.”

PASSIONATE

John 11:35, “Jesus wept”

Jesus wept. I don’t know of a more provocative statement than this. The God of the universe, a perfect being in nature and existence, cried over one of His own. Knowing the nature of Christ and the nature of man, it is incredible that He would weep over us, but Christ does. He does because we are part of His family; we are errant, headstrong, wayward children, but we are His children.

1 John 3:1, “See how very much our Father loves us, for He calls us His children, and that is what we are!”

One of the more remarkable aspects of God’s passion for us is that He knew what we would become from creation. All of our pigheadedness still gives Him great pleasure to call us His own.

Ephesians 1:5, “God decided in advance to adopt us into His own family by bringing us to Himself through Jesus Christ. This is what He wanted to do, and it gave Him great pleasure.”

All humanity finds shelter in the shadow of His wings; His passion for us is unceasing. There is nothing we can do to make Him desert us. All we need to do is repent, and He is gracious to forgive.

Psalm 36:5-7, “Your unfailing love, O Lord, is as vast as the heavens; your faithfulness reaches beyond the clouds. Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains, Your justice like the ocean depths. You care for people and animals alike, O Lord. How precious is Your unfailing love, O God! All humanity finds shelter in the shadow of Your wings. “

God left us a guide and companion so that we would always know He is present in our lives. He understands that we cannot love as He does. He gave us a voice to reassure us when we feel alone or forgotten. The benefits of the love of God towards His children are blessings of joy for those who keep His Commandments.

Romans 5:5, “And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us because He has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with His love. “

POWERFUL

Job 36:22, “God’s power is unlimited. He needs no teachers.”

Job said it very succinctly; His power is unlimited. There is nothing He can’t do; no task is too small or too big. His power is beyond our ability to understand. The God that loves you, the God that wept over you, is the God of unlimited power that can make your life meaningful. He not only wraps you in His love, but He also has the power to protect you from evil. Here in Job, we read the definition of His power.

Job 26:7-14, “God stretches the northern sky over empty space and hangs the earth on nothing. He wraps the rain in his thick clouds, and the clouds don’t burst with the weight. He covers the face of the moon, shrouding it with his clouds. He created the horizon when he separated the waters: he set the boundary between day and night. The foundations of heaven tremble; they shudder at his rebuke. By his power, the sea grew calm. By his skill, he crushed the great sea monster. His Spirit made the heavens beautiful, and his power pierced the gliding serpent. These are just the beginning of all that he does, merely a whisper of his power. Who, then, can comprehend the thunder of his power?”

LASTLY

1 Corinthians 2:9, “But, as it is written, ‘What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love Him'”

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Kindness

Colossians 3:12, “Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.”

Kindness (noun): the quality of being friendly, generous, and considerate; a kind act. — English Oxford Living Dictionaries

We are wired to do acts of kindness; the longer we think about it, the less kind we become. We negate the natural tendency to be kind by overthinking the return on investment. Being kind is intuitive; it is the way God made us. It is part of the design specification from before the universe was formed.

FOR THE GEEK IN YOU

God designed us so that we would benefit from acts of kindness. Kindness produces a significant hormone, oxytocin, “the love hormone.” Oxytocin is associated with stress reduction; it achieves this by inhibiting sympathoadrenal and stress response activity, which includes preventing the release of adrenal corticoids. Oxytocin acts both on the psychological level, increasing bond formation, and on the physiological level, via inhibiting stress hormone release and producing opiate-like effects. (The Science of Kindness).

This explanation is science-speak for “Kindness makes you feel good,” both emotionally and physically. So, why did God create this natural reaction to acts of kindness, and what does God say we should do about it? How do we integrate this into our everyday lives so that they are not individual disconnected acts?

LEAD WITH COMPASSION, FOLLOW WITH KINDNESS

Ephesians 4:32, “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.”

Let’s start with the basics. We are, and always will be, sinners. God could hold that against us, but He has compassion for His creation. It is through this compassion that He expresses kindness toward us. Without compassion, there would be no foundation for kindness. We would be rebellious, wayward sinners unworthy of reconciliation. His compassion toward us paves the way for His kindness to us.

We are to mirror God to others. To do that, we need to build a foundation of compassion toward those we do not see as worthy of compassion before our acts of kindness start to looking like genuine kindness. We can be obedient without experiencing kindness. We can act out of obligation or submission without being kind.

Ephesians 4:29, “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.”

A place we might start is to heed Ephesians 4:29. If we focus our speech on building up those less fortunate, it leaves little room for criticism. Whenever we emphasize a fault or weakness, we should instead point out virtue or strength. Would we start to look at people differently? If we do, we start to see the gifts God gave them rather than their shortcomings? Once we recognize their unique value, we can more easily show kindness. Kindness no longer becomes an act of submission or obligation but becomes an act of gratitude.

Matthew 5:24, “leave your gift there in front of the altar. First, go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift.”

Matthew reminds us that we must first make our gift worthy before presenting it to Christ. So you make kindness a worthy gift by making its foundation, compassion.

GIVE TO GIVE, NOT TO RECEIVE

Luke 6:35, “But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked.”

The other trap we need to avoid is Quid Pro Quo. It is the natural inclination of all people to calculate, even subconsciously, the value of the act. If I extend this amount of effort, what happens? We do not expect a direct tit-for-tat; we expect that we have invested with future value. That value may not come from the person for which we have extended the effort, but it exists just the same. Have you ever thought, or said, why has this occurred with the good I have done? Is there some karma in the world that withholds kindness from those who do not practice it? If I show kindness, should it not benefit me?

Kindness is an act, in and of itself, that does not require external motivation. It is a gift you give to yourself. It is an attempt to be more like Jesus.

FINDING YOUR RHYTHM IN LIFE

Kindness is not an obligation or submission to a higher authority. It isn’t a habit to be performed mindlessly over and over. It does not reach out from your subconscious to grab the moment and steal away. Kindness is a conscious act of will that integrates you into the lives of those around you to share what God has given you. Kindness should be the heartbeat of who you are. God loves you unconditionally. Because of that love, He has compassion for what you are going through. That compassion is expressed in kindness toward you. He paid the total price.

Kindness should flow from you as a natural part of being. It should be like breathing, inseparable from life itself. When kindness becomes the music in your head that lightens your step and softens your outlook, you have started to live the life God created for you.

1 Peter 3:9, “Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult. On the contrary, repay evil with blessing because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing.”

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You are God’s Delight

Psalm 149:4, “For the Lord takes pleasure in His people; He will beautify the afflicted ones with salvation”

In his book “The Heart of Christ,” Thomas Goodwin states, “Christ’s joy, comfort, happiness, and glory are increased and enlarged by His showing grace and mercy, in pardoning, relieving and comforting His members on earth.”

Aside from the question of how can a God who is holy, eternal, almighty, and self-sufficient can increase in anything? How can this God that suffers no lack, knows no limitation, and experiences no deficiency be enlarged? Aside from that, we know that God delights in us asking Him for anything. The very act of asking means we have brought Him into the equation; we have thought of Him.

Zephaniah 3:17, “The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing.”

‘I cried because I had no shoes until I met a man who had no feet.’  From “The Rose Garden” (circa 1259) written by the Persian poet Sa’di.

I need to do what I can, and He will do what I can’t; I need to prioritize my requests. Some problems and needs are just too small for a mighty God. I should not whine and snivel; others have it worse than me. I need to get away from the concept that God is limited in His ability to answer prayer.

We are conditioned to optimize resources, and we see God as one of those resources, thus making God into our image. When we put constraints on God, we do not constrain Him but constrain what we ask of Him. We limit His impact on our lives by limiting His involvement.

God has unlimited wealth; we, the global eternal Christian community, can not exhaust His resources. His world works in infinite parallel processes that are not limited by the volume of requests; we don’t wait in line or queue up for help. He has no supply chain issues. 

FOUR REASONS WE DON’T APPROACH GOD

  • Believing sadness disappoints God
  • Our Sin Leaves Us Feeling Unworthy
  • The need to be in control
  • Hard seasons disqualify us from God’s promises

Believing Sadness Disappoints God

Hebrews uses the word “sunpathesai,” which means cosuffer. The implication is that once we are God’s children, he sympathizes with what we are going through. He is not disappointed in the muck and mire of our lives; He is sympathetic. I have said this more times than I care to count; we live in a fallen world, God knows this. God is compassionate that there are days when we feel we are drowning. What brings Him joy is when we turn to Him during those times. It is when we get comfort from laying our head on His chest to listen to His heartbeat; those are the moments He cherishes.

Our Sin Leaves Us Feeling Unworthy

John Piper made this statement, “The power by which you daily strive to overcome the imperfections in your life is the confidence that you are already perfect.” Because of Christ, we believe in Him and what He did on the cross and His perfect life. We believe in Him, and by faith, God unites us to Christ. His perfection is counted as ours. It is the devil who wants you to feel inadequate, not God.

We ask God from the desires of our hearts, and He gives us what we need. What we need may not be what we desire. You are the source of His joy, comfort, happiness, and glory. He created you to have communion with Him. So don’t start believing that just because you didn’t get what you prayed for, God treated you as unworthy. No, He gave you something better, and you didn’t recognize it.

John 6:37, “Whoever comes to me I will not cast out.”

Talk to God about everything. He loves to hear the sound of your voice. You can not exhaust Him or bore Him.

The Need to Be in Control

Ecclesiastes 3:11, “He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end.”

Whether you are willing to accept it or not, you are not and never have been in control. Even if you do not believe in Christ, you still are not in control. Believing is not a condition put on the creator of the universe.

We are His body, His body which He is concerned over; its health and wellbeing. He does not want His body to suffer needlessly. Pain is an indicator in the human body; we immediately want to understand it and relieve it when we feel pain. Sin indicates to the Spirit that something wrong in the Christian body that needs to be understood and fixed. That is God’s domain which no human can control.

1 John 4:10, “In this is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins.”

Hard Seasons Disqualify Us From God’s Promises

Webster’s New World College Dictionary defines relationship as “the quality or state of being related, a continuing attachment or association between persons.”

But what makes for a genuine, long-lasting friendship? If you’re fortunate, it is a mix of shared interests, shared values, commitment, loyalty, and kindred spirits. Would you consider a friend, indeed a friend, if they disappeared every time you found yourself in a bind? Would you abandon your friends in their time of need?

Philippians 4:6-7, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

Hard seasons are the very aspect of life that God most wants to share with you. The hard times are God’s forte. Therefore, we need to condition ourselves that when we feel insufficient, unworthy, or out of control, that is the best time to chat with God. He will surprise you with what He knows.

Jeremiah 9:24, “but let him who boasts boast of this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the Lord who exercises lovingkindness, justice, and righteousness on earth; for I delight in these things,” declares the Lord.”

Always remember this:

1 John 3:1-3, “See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. All who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure?”

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Godliness with Contentment

King Solomon was not only favored by God; he was considered one of the wisest men ever to walk the earth.  He made this statement:

Ecclesiastes 9:11, “I have seen something else under the sun: The race is not to the swift or the battle to the strong, nor does food come to the wise or wealth to the brilliant or favor to the learned; but time and chance happen to them all.”

We all struggle with insecurity.  That insecurity can be job security, basic provisions, self-worth, or purpose.  We live in a marketing-driven world that demands that we strive for perfection.  We are continually comparing ourselves to others.  It is not always vanity that drives us; sometimes, it is pure competition, the need to matter,  or the need to stand out in a noisy world.

Galatians 6:4, “Each one should test their own actions.  Then they can take pride in themselves alone, without comparing themselves to someone else.”

When I think about what Solomon said, I sometimes go to Hugh Heffner.  That is right, Mr. Playboy.  Hugh Heffner lived a bohemian lifestyle, devoid of a moral foundation by almost any standard.  He promoted a completely hedonistic lifestyle, not just for himself but also for everyone; He carried the banner for Godlessness, yet he was a multi-millionaire.  The Playboy Enterprise was called an Empire.  What killed his business model was their success.  Pornography has become so widespread and accessible; Playboy could no longer make money.

If the measure of Godliness is worldly wealth and fame, why do the Hugh Heffner’s exist?  Just as Job’s friends tried to explain, we should be able to look at the material value of a person and see their Godliness.  But it doesn’t work that way.

 1 Timothy 6:6-8, “But Godliness with contentment is great gain.  For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it.  But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that.”

King Solomon reminds us that we are not in control of our future.  We can do everything right, and it still can go wrong.  We can watch others do everything wrong and prosper.  Timothy tells us to be content with whatever happens.  He reminds us that we should seek Godliness with contentment.

Romans 14:17, “For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of what we eat or drink, but of living a life of goodness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.”

As Christians, our purpose in life is to know God and bring Him glory.  Therefore, we should first seek His glory and be content with the outcome in everything.  Larry Crabb talks about making the first things first.  He warns us about putting worldly issues in front of God’s glory.  He states, “The forces of darkness value blessings; they call them life, they feel entitled to them, and they’re willing to do whatever it takes to get them.”

Augustine said, “There can be only two basic loves, the love of God -unto the forgetfulness of self, or the love of self-unto the forgetfulness of God.”

Ephesians 2:10, “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”

Do our words and deeds glorify God, or do they glorify ourselves?  If we live a life focused on praising God, are we content with the outcome?  God knows what we need as aliens on the earth.  He understands the environment in which we live.  He wants us to live a life that is attractive to others so that we can share the Gospel.  Therefore, everything we have or experience should glorify His name to attract non-believers to the contentment within us.

We should use the gifts that God gave us in the environment that He has put us in to succeed in what He has set before us.  But we do this for His glory, not ours.  We are working for Him, not for our gratification.

Colossians 3:23, “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters.”

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Performance-Based Faith

I have just returned from a trip to Honduras, where we were vetting a potential future project to help locals create micro-businesses.  These trips present a cadre of potential conflicts.  First, we have the friction created by my obedience to God’s call.  It conflicts because I am responding to what I believe to be God’s vision for my life, but I am also judging my effectiveness; how much good am I doing.  The second has to do with what we are teaching.  We are teaching people to use Godly principles to create for-profit businesses.  Most of us see the potential conflict in that.  We must balance living in a performance-based world with grace-based salvation.  It is tough to keep the two separate.

Genesis 2:15, “The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it.”

Christ modeled our relationships here on earth after our relationship with Himself.  He wants us to learn from Him and grow closer to Him through involvement with Him. But, we are to honor the originator of all things in the process.

Ephesians 2:19, “Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household.  “

TRANSACTIONAL FAITH

In a performance-based world, we become obsessed with goal orientation.  We, through constant reinforcement, fixate on achievement.  Our parents remind us that results do matter.  So when we take on a task, we want to know why.  Is it the best use of our time?  Is it within our calling, aptitude, and gifts?  We somehow can’t take our hands off the wheel; if we can’t drive, we want to navigate; even when we don’t know the destination.   

Colossians 3: 23-24, “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward.  It is the Lord Christ you are serving.”

The key to this statement is “as working for the Lord.” God was very clear from the beginning that we needed to be active while living the life He has created for us.  That activity must have a purpose, and with it comes achievement.  Our part is to be obedient in doing the task before us, not the outcome.  The outcome is the exclusive domain of God, not us.  Whatever God puts before us is part of His plan for our lives.  We must do it with peace and joy.  God does not get His highest pleasure from our achievements; He gets it from our obedience.

Ephesians 3: 12-13, “I know that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to do good while they live.  That each of them may eat and drink and find satisfaction in all their toil—this is the gift of God.”

In The Purpose Driven Life, Rick Warren writes, “Work becomes worship when you dedicate it to God and perform it with an awareness of his presence.”

The implication here is not that we get satisfaction from what we accumulate or accomplish but from the tasks that God puts before us because it is a gift from God.  Being the person God has made you be isn’t about creating something; it is about discovering something.  The pursuit is progressed not by the honors that we accumulate but by our obedience to God’s plan for us.

BUT PERFORMANCE COUNTS

Work is one of the ways we demonstrate God to non-believers.  But, if non-believers cannot trust us with the worldly endeavors one can see, how can we be trusted with spiritual works that require faith?

1 Peter 2:12, “Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.”

So, we endeavor to meet a high level of performance not to please God but to glorify God to non-believers.  We are held responsible for our results; we need to take that seriously.  God created us to work; setting and meeting goals is part of the responsibility.  From a worldly perspective, this responsibility produces the most anxiety in our lives.  It not only affects the way we perceive the nature of our work, but it also affects other aspects of our worldly existence.  It affects our self-perception and self-image and our drive to have better material goods and living standards.  One of our obligations as Christians is to be a good team member, employer, parent, child, and spouse.

2 Thessalonians 3:12 “such people we command and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ to settle down and earn the bread they eat.”

BUT NOT TO GOD

Ephesians 2: 8-9, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.”

For most of us, it is hard to turn that switch off.  Somehow, we still try to do good works as if they are the keys to salvation; they aren’t.  That is not to say that we should not strive to do good works; it is just that those good works will not get us to heaven.

Matthew 7:16-20, ” By their fruit, you will recognize them.  Do people pick grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles?  Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit.  A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit.  Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.  Thus, by their fruit, you will recognize them.”

It is when we start to believe we can be good enough, fruitful enough, holy enough that we lose sight of the beautiful gift of God; eternal life with Him in heaven through grace.  The balance we need to strike is to understand that while the world requires performance as a means of measuring worth, God does not.  Spiritual performance is a by-product of grace, not a goal.

Philippians 4:19, “And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”

We need to get back to helping our Father with His business.  We are to be obedient to His will.  We cannot control the outcome or the timing; we can only enjoy working in His presence.

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What Is Godly Purpose?

Most Christians want to serve Christ. Once we admit that to ourselves, we immediately say, but. We want to help in our way, to the people we choose, using our disposable resources within our timetable. We do not wish to serve ungrateful people in a faraway land, using up our hard-earned vacation time. Thinking this is not the same as saying it, so we’re good. Right?

How often do we fit the Gospel into our situation; rather than fit our circumstances into the Gospel?

PURPOSE

Mother Teresa, in her book, The Joy in Loving: A Guide to Daily Living, wrote, “I am a little pencil in God’s hands. He does the thinking. He does the writing. He does everything, and sometimes it is really hard because it is a broken pencil, and He has to sharpen it a little more.”

Paul reminds us that if we genuinely pursue the will of God, no matter the outcome, we can count on it serving God’s purpose. It is not for us to determine the time or method God will choose to use us for His Kingdom.

Romans 8:28 “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”

God created us to do good works predestine for us to accomplish. Preparation does not mean just our time and money but also our gifts, passions, education, experiences, and even where we are. God will sometimes send you; mostly, He will use you exactly where you are.

Ephesians 1:11 “In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will.”

I have a purpose. I was created as a unique creature with specific skills and afforded specific resources to accomplish an individual task. But I have free will in choosing both if and how I will respond. So I can accept that I have this unique purpose without actually working to advance it.

Tom Shuler wrote an excellent book entitled “Metaporphyx.” He tries to clarify the process of both understanding and fulfilling God’s purpose in our lives. It looks at this purpose as not a thing or a single event but a continuous process that repeats itself, each cycle building on the last. A pivot point punctuates each cycle or season. A pivot point is a critical event that causes us to both reassess and redefine our direction. However, the redefinition of our direction does not alter our purpose. The purpose remains the same, but the direction constantly changes based on the seasons of our lives.

 So again, what is our purpose?

HINT

John 15:1-27,“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. “

Our purpose has to do with bearing fruit. So, what does the Bible say about fruit?

James 2:14-26, “What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also, faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. …”

First of all, the fruit we are looking for comes from the Spirit. Not every good work qualifies, just those that are created out of an abiding love and obedience to the Spirit. Second, it is active and not passive. We must do something. We can not just say, “God loves you, go in peace.” We must minister to their actual needs. “So also, faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.” Dead, as in entirely worthless.

To summarize up to this point, I have a unique and specific purpose for which I was created, and that purpose requires that I do something material. We also know.

Philippians 1:6 “And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.”

I end this thought knowing that whatever my purpose, I will be successful if I abide in Christ and diligently search. As I’m still working on the whole purpose, God has assured me that I will eventually succeed.

Psalm 67, “May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face shine on us— so that your ways may be known on earth, your salvation among all nations. May the peoples praise you, God; may all the peoples praise you. May the nations be glad and sing for joy, for you rule the peoples with equity and guide the nations of the earth. May the peoples praise you, God; may all the peoples praise you. The land yields its harvest; God, our God, blesses us. May God bless us still so that all the ends of the earth will fear him.”

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Why Spend Time with God?

There are three powerful reasons to create an intimate relationship with Christ. By intimate, I mean a daily personal ongoing dialog.

a. Relationships take time to build.

b. Strong relationships can be counted on during a crisis.

c. We were created to love and be loved.

Build a Relationship

All relationships take time. A relationship with God is unlike other relationships in many ways but still follows the rules of other relationships. We are important to God; He wants a strong relationship with us. But a relationship is a two-way street. He can not have a strong relationship with us if we do not encourage the same relationship with Him.

Luke 12:7, “Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Therefore don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.”

How often do you talk to your best friend? How important is it to you to know what they are doing? How strongly do you want to be involved in what they are doing? To whom do you share good news and bad news? Is that relationship any different from your relationship with God?

Matthew 5:6, “God blesses those who hunger and thirst for justice, for they will be satisfied.”

What would your friends feel like if you only spoke to them when you needed them to do something for you? How would you feel if someone treated you this way? Relationships are about understanding each other’s deepest desires of the heart. Relationships are about sharing the daily joys and triumphs of your life, along with the challenges. Take time to thank God for every moment of joy that happens in your life, as it happens. Acknowledge the challenges and ask for guidance.

Jesus made time to get away from His earthly calling to speak with His Father; He understood the need to keep the relationship centered on His life and constantly renewed.

Mark 1:35, “And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he went out and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed.”

Daily intimacy with God is vital in creating a lasting relationship that will weather any storm. The strength and depth of your relationship with Him is a barometer of your trust in Him.

Draw Strength to Fight the Daily Battles

It is essential to spend time alone with God because God is the source of our strength, and we need His strength to fight the spiritual battles of our lives.

John 15:4. “Remain in Me, and I will remain in you. Just as no branch can bear fruit by itself unless it remains in the vine, neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in Me.”

He goes on to say;

John 15:7-8, “If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. By this, my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.”

We live in a broken world. That has almost become a cliché. We all know this, but we somehow still believe we can navigate the turbulent waters of daily life without help. Somehow we come to think that we only need the sustenance of the vine for the more significant problems of our lives, not the daily grind.

In many cases, it is the daily grind that introduces problems because of the lack of fruit in our daily walk. Having a continuous intimate relationship with Christ will smooth out some of these challenges. His presence in our daily walk will remind us of how we should live. The constant dialog will nudge us back on track when we stray.

It will also give you the confidence to know that Christ is there in the tough times. These are when the pain is so great we forget to ask for help. Our mind is so occupied with the circumstance that we fail to look up. Sometimes, we even feel God has stepped away, and we are on our own.

Strong and solid relationships do not abandon each other in time of need; they bond closer together. So don’t wait until you need a friend to create a friend.

To Love and Be Loved

1 Corinthians 13:13, “And now these three remain faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love.”

We also spend time alone with God out of love. It is central to our nature to love and desire to be loved. We don’t all experience this similarly, but we all need love.

Ephesians 3:17-19, “so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God.”

Worldly love is challenging. People are not capable of unconditional love. As hard as we try, we fall short. God’s love is perfect. God’s love for us is unchanging. God’s love for us is steadfast.

Most of all, God loved us to the point that he sent His son to die for us that we may have eternal life.

John 15:13, “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”

TO DO’s

Spend some quality time with Christ every day and throughout the day

Matthew 4:4, “Jesus answered, ‘It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.'”

Let those truths permeate your mind and think about them throughout the day

Psalm 1:2, “But whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night. That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither— whatever they do prospers.”

Put away, or quit, things that aren’t pleasing to the Lord. Instead, let the Holy Spirit search your life and point out the things that God wants you to face and overcome.

 Colossians 3:8-9, “But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. Do not lie to each other since you have taken off your old self with its practices.”

“Spending time with God through prayer and His Word is a prerequisite for having a great life and fulfilling your purpose.” — Joyce Meyer

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