Written some 700 years before He was a twinkle in His mother’s eye, the birth and death of the Savior of the world was prophesied.
Category: Purpose
Stay Focused
“Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” Hebrews 12:1-2
God knows you’re not perfect. He knew that when He sent His Son to the cross, and Christ knew that when He died for you. Don’t let the enemy keep you focused on your past sins. Repent and keep moving forward.
Then determine to focus on Christ and keep putting your faith in Him every day, in every circumstance. He will work out the rest!
In His Good Grace,
The Secret of Contentment
“But godliness with contentment is great gain.” 1 Timothy 6:6
It’s a strange juxtaposition in which we believers find ourselves. We are filled with Spirit of God Himself, bringing heaven down to earth and all the godly riches available to us with such a glorious gift, and yet at the same time we are still on this earth, saddled with these fleshly bodies, so prone to temptation, walking among earthly riches, seeing, smelling, contemplating, desiring…
The flesh and the spirit are at war.
But Paul reminds us that while godliness is good, godliness with contentment is greater. It is gain.
Holidays are supposed to be a joyous time, but they can be especially rough on some who have suffered a loss of some kind. The days when seemingly everyone else is rejoicing can be a magnifier for those losses or unfulfilled expectations.
But a magnifying glass only magnifies that on which we are solely focused. And when we focus the magnifying glass on the world and its temptations, even on those things that aren’t necessarily bad, but God has simply, in His wisdom and grace and mercy, not given them to us, then our focus becomes lust and envy.
We become discontent.
Contentment means we have moved the magnifying glass to focus on our Lord and Savior. We’re focused on Christ and God’s Spirit working in our lives, even through those losses, and have found we have all we need, and even more, to live an abundant life right here and right now.
In Philippians 4:11-12 Paul declared “I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.”
And what is that secret to being content?
He doesn’t leave us wondering; in the next breath he tells us “I can do all this through him who gives me strength.”
No matter what our circumstances, and we are all in some kind of circumstances–don’t let the enemy tell you that everyone else’s life is perfect and yours isn’t—Jesus Christ gives us strength, not just to endure, but to thrive, to be spiritually well-fed and well-clothed, to have all our physical needs met to the glory of His Name, the magnification of His goodness and faithfulness.
In the world there is always something more to want, something more to chase after. Just like we can stuff ourselves silly on Thanksgiving only to be hungry again two hours later, the world will never satisfy. But the overflowing, never-ending, treasure of God will satisfy the soul because that’s what we’re created for.
“And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work.” 2 Cor. 9:8
The same word that is “contentment” in 1 Timothy 6:6 is used as “sufficiency” here in 2 Corinthians.
Contentment–magnifying Christ in our hearts and minds–knowing He is sufficient for all our needs and able to work through those difficult or even impossible situations, watching Him move every mound of dirt until our mountain is thrown into the sea, will bring us a satisfaction that no amount of earthly riches ever will.
Contentment means we don’t have to worry about our needs because God’s got it covered. We can come off the sidelines of dismay as we realize the eternal treasures that are ours in the Lord and the strength we receive frees us to carry on, faithfully doing the good work He has carved out for us to do.
In His Good Grace,
Want to be the Greatest?
“Then He (Jesus) placed a little child among them; and taking the child in His arms He said to them, ‘Anyone who welcomes a little child like this in my name is welcoming me, and anyone who welcomes me is welcoming my Father who sent me!’” Mark 9:36-37
Jesus and His apostles had just traveled through Galilee and had come to a house in Capernaum. I can just imagine all the things twelve men might discuss on a long, hot, dusty journey. Jesus found one discussion on this journey of particular interest. Once they were settled, Jesus asked them what they had been talking about along the way. Of course He already knew.
“But they were ashamed to answer, for they had been arguing about which of them was the greatest! He sat down and called them around Him and said, ‘Anyone wanting to be the greatest must be the least—the servant of all!’” Mark 9:34-35
And there it is. The answer to the question we all ask. We all long for a purpose in life. We all want to be great, to be important in some way, that is, to contribute, to leave our mark on the world. To know that our life has meaning.
Jesus says God’s way is different than the world’s way. It’s a 180 degrees opposite, in fact, than the way world seeks to find meaning. It’s not about being the richest or most famous or most influential or most good looking or hanging with those who are. It’s not about climbing the ladder, or being one of the elite so that others will serve us.
It’s about bending down. It’s about noticing the least of these. It’s about loving and serving and providing for those who are in need, for those who are most helpless and most dependent on the mercy of others. Jesus says lead by putting yourself last and being the greatest servant!
Only when we’ve humbled ourselves enough to serve the likes of a child—one who has no ability to give us anything in return–it is with this same humbled attitude that we can then truly submit ourselves to Christ and receive Him to ourselves. Then we will find meaning and purpose for our life.
And when we do feed the hungry, give water to the thirsty, clothe the naked, visit the sick and imprisoned, Jesus said in Matthew 25:40 “When you did it to these my brothers, you were doing it to me!”
Jesus says that when we serve others, we are serving Him.
And when we do serve these precious ones, like the one Jesus held in His arms, we are most like Christ. We are His arms and hands and feet.
Samaritan’s Purse, headed by Franklin Graham, the son of Billy Graham, gives us an opportunity to do just that through Operation Christmas Child. Every year they collect shoeboxes that people like you have filled with toys, school supplies, hygiene necessities, clothing, shoes, and all kinds of goodies, and then present them to children all over the world for Christmas, along with the good news of Jesus Christ.
And Christmas is right around the corner!
In order to have time to ship the shoeboxes to where they’re going, National Collection Week this year is November 17-24. That’s only 9 weeks from today! You can look on their website to find the collection location nearest to you. The cost for shipping is $7 per box, and you can even donate that online if you want to find out where your box(es) is going. You can find all the information on their website.
What a joy to serve these precious children and bless them in not only practical ways, but to help make a difference in their lives with the love and message of Christ.
Blessings!
The Fiercest Battle
Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to turn
“‘a man against his father,
a daughter against her mother,
a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law—
a man’s enemies will be the members of his own household.
Matthew 10:34-36
Whoa. That is some pretty inflammatory language Jesus is using here. Did not come to bring peace? A sword? Enemies?
What on earth could Jesus be talking about?
First, we need to understand who He’s talking to. Jesus is giving instruction to the twelve disciples as He sends them out, specifically to the Jews, as His witnesses to heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those with skin diseases and drive out demons.
But before they head out, they need to understand His message, and what they’ll be up against. Many, even the disciples, were under the impression that when the Messiah came He would set up His kingdom on earth and reign over all, bringing peace, ending famine and wars.
But Jesus makes it clear that is not His mission. Not yet, anyway.
As they went, they were to proclaim this message: the kingdom of heaven is near. The Messiah has come.
And He came to be the fulfillment of the law.
The law showed us we were sinners, and sin requires a payment of death. Jesus came to die in our place to pay for our sins. He came to make truth known, even as He Himself is truth. But not everyone wants to hear that they’re a sinner. And of those who know they’re a sinner, not everyone wants to be saved from it.
Jesus references the words of the prophet Micah in Micah 7:6. Micah lamented about the terrible times in which he lived when sin was rampant, and there were few who held onto faith and righteousness. And many of those who did found that their sons or daughters or other family members fell into the other camp—the one that reveled in immorality–and that caused strife, to say the least.
Centuries later, the disciples would find that, again, there would be relatively few who would choose faith and righteousness, even among the ancient sons and daughters of God. Few who would choose to align themselves with the truth—Jesus Christ. The disciples themselves would be among the few who stood in a world full of people who would rather deny the Christ and live in their own sinfulness. Even then the disciples were unaware that there was one among them, a friend, a fellow servant, who would choose sin over Christ.
And now, centuries later, the story is the same. Sin is rampant and there are few in this world who acknowledge their sin and put their faith in Christ. And even among those who call themselves Christians, there are fewer still who are willing to submit their whole lives to Him, leave the world behind, take up their crosses daily and live upright lives before their God.
And for those who do, for those who know that truth triumphs over sin and evil and destruction and death, for those who desire to live in that truth, we will, sooner or later, be called on to make a choice.
Someone we love, a close friend, a fellow servant, someone in our own family, someone who doesn’t adhere to the truth, will want to sin and drag us along with them. They won’t understand why we won’t do this or allow that. And a son will be against his father, a daughter against her mother, a fellow servant against another.
And a battle will ensue. This is the metaphoric sword Jesus speaks of.
The battle could get bloody. Sharp words may well be thrown our way. Wounds will be inflicted. Relationships could die. We could feel as though our heart is being ripped clean out of our chest. And all the while we’ll need to keep loving them and praying for them.
The inner struggle will be to not to let our flesh take over, to not retaliate with harsh words of our own, but to keep praying, remembering we don’t battle against flesh and blood but against an enemy we cannot see.
Prayer is the real battleground, and whether or not we choose to remain in prayer is where the battle will be won or lost.
Through it all we might have an inkling of the pain Christ suffered on the cross.
Are we willing to risk it all for Him? Is His cause our cause?
It’s at this moment when the foundation of our faith will be revealed. Is it sure? Do we stand on the Rock which does not move, is not shaken and does not compromise? Is our love for Him real?
Or will we falter? Will we choose sin over truth? Now is the time to choose, not when we’re in the heat of battle and the enemy is coming at us full force. Put on the spiritual armor and don’t take it off.
Satan comes to kill, steal and destroy. He will get at us any way he can, even through family members. Especially through family members. He will come and whisper “It’s just a little sin. Just a little compromise won’t hurt. And you love them, right? You don’t want them angry with you.”
If we listen and give in, before we know it we’re far from God, and so is the one we love.
Stand strong.
Love them enough not to compromise. This is not a battle for mere ground or castles or other earthly kingdoms. This is a battle for hearts and eternities.
And love Christ more. He saved us and He wants to save the other person in our lives whose ways are at odds with His, whose heart is far from Him and whose eternity will be a bitter one unless they have a lighthouse to show them the way.
Better than keeping a false, temporary peace, be a light shining the truth of God, so they can find their way to Him and experience real, lasting, eternal peace.
One day you may see a glimmer of hope. You’re gaining ground. Hearts are softening. Christ is winning.
“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” Galatians 6:9