What we have

How many times in our lives and in our churches do we focus on what we lack instead of what we have been given? I read this article in Ministry Today Magazine and God really spoke to me through it, so I wanted to pass it on to you.

Stories abound these days of leaders attempting to do

more with less. Whether it’s facing shrinking teams or dealing with dwindling budgets, we can either run from the challenge or to it. Ernie Schenck is no stranger to adversity. The author of The Houdini Solution challenges us to think inside the box, not outside the box, when it comes to doing more with less: “The legendary magician did his best work shackled, and cuffed and chained inside the smallest of boxes—and yet he managed to find his way out every time.”

Lately I’ve found myself retelling a story from the famous Apollo 13 mission about doing more with less. There’s a scene in the 1995 movie starring Ed Harris when the crew on the ground in Houston has to build an air filter that will allow the crew stuck in space to increase their oxygen supply. With limited resources (only what was onboard the spaceship), the crew on the ground had to figure out how to fit a square peg in a round hole. It was a critical point in the story because it forced people to find solutions for problems with less-than ideal resources to achieve success.

I’m inspired by moments like these as many Christians today find themselves in a similar spot. It’s not time to complain about what we don’t have or dream about better scenarios. It’s time to for Christians to get on the same page with the same urgency for the same mission. Anything less could be catastrophic.

www.ministrytodaymag.com

Snow Day

I guess Friday was a memorable day for most of us, anytime that it snows in Alabama is a day to remember. Friday morning as I worked in the snow, I noticed a transformation on my route, something that I have never noticed before. After the snow started sticking I realized that everything was pretty, even the yards that could use some work were pretty because they were blanketed in snow. I do understand this principle, I had tried to apply it to my room when I was younger; it was much easier to hide the mess with a blanket than it was to actually clean it like I was supposed to. This approach never worked for me as a child with my parents and it still doesn’t work for me with Bridget (Yes, I have tried.)

Sadly, I think that there are many people who have tried to hide their flaws with a blanket of good works. As much as we hate to admit it, somewhere deep down we all know that we have messed up. Romans 3:23 says “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” The natural reaction to the realization that we have done wrong is to try to make up for it; that is where the blanket comes in. In an effort to cover up our bad works (sin) we try to do good works, in the hopes that, like snowflakes covering the ground, our good works will somehow cover up our bad works.

There is a problem with snow though, it melts away and reveals a muddy mess. Our good works may hide our sin from the people who look at the outside, but they can’t hide our sin from the One who sees our heart. God looks past the outside and sees our sinful hearts. In the Old Testament, the sacrifices that were offered atoned (covered) the sins of the offerer, but there was no forgiveness of sin. Forgiveness came when the perfect sacrifice was offered (Jesus Christ).

So, I challenge you to take an honest look at your life today, are you just trying to cover your sin with a blanket? The good news is that there is real forgiveness, you can find acceptance by accepting the gift of salvation offered by Jesus. Don’t hesitate, just believe. You can try to escape the bondage of sin on your own and fail, you can try to cover your sin with a temporary blanket and slowly watch it melt away, or you can trust Jesus and be set free. I hope that you will choose Christ.

A Big "But"

Romans 5:8-9

8 But God proves His own love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us! (HCSB)

I’ve never tried to hide the fact that when I was younger I made some mistakes and bad choices; one example of a bad choice that I made was in the type of music that I listened to. Every time I read this verse I think about a very popular song from my teenage years. The song was by a “poet” named Sir. Mix A. Lot. You may already know the title of the song, “I like Big Butts.” While I don’t suggest you go try to find this song for your personal library, I do have to agree with Sir Mix A Lot when I say that I like a different kind of big “but”, the kind we find here in Romans.

Paul began this section of Scripture reminding us that it is hard to find someone who would sacrifice for us, even for the best man, it is hard to find someone who would be willing to give his life for ours. This leaves us in pretty bad shape: lost, lonely, hopeless, desperate, searching, empty and, because of our sin, falling way short of the perfection demanded by the law.

“But God,” What an amazing statement! We were lost and lonely in our sin, we had broken God’s laws and alienated ourselves from Him, we were doomed to spend eternity suffering for our disobedience, but God stepped in because of His love. God’s love compelled Him to send His Son to pay the price that we could not pay so that we could be reconciled to Him. Mankind may have messed up, but God gets the last move.

You may think that you have messed up your life, maybe you are haunted by the ghosts and guilt of past mistakes, but I want you to know that the story does not have to end sadly. Your life story can also have a big but in it. God loves you and there is nothing that you can do to change that. You may not be able to change your life but God can.

I do not know of another preacher who has ever said this, but I have good news for you: You can have a big but! I know that this play on words is a little immature and I hope that you will forgive me. My prayer for you is that you will realize the transforming power of God. God wants to be a part of your life and many times His power is demonstrated after a “but.” So do not be afraid to trust God with your problems, maybe your life story can have a big “but” in it too.

My marriage was in trouble, but God…. My child had strayed, but God…. My life was spiraling out of control, but God… I was addicted, but God…

Praise God for big “buts!”

Tear-Stained Savior

Perhaps you have this little verse tucked away in your treasury of Bible trivia as the shortest verse in the Bible:

John 11:35 – Jesus wept.

This is probably the simplest verse in the entire Bible, just two little words. But these two little words give us much more than Bible trivia or a good verse to memorize. In these two words John reveals something special about our Savior.

John’s Gospel begins by laying the foundation that Jesus was there with God in the beginning and that Jesus was and is completely God. Everything was created by Him and for Him. But there was a problem: sin. Man disobeyed God, and with that act he opened the door to all sorts of pain and suffering, including death and eternal punishment in a very real hell. Mankind was doomed to suffer the consequences of his sin and things looked bleak.

Until one night in Bethlehem, when a boy was born: Immanuel, God with us, Jesus Christ. Jesus was completely God and completely man, he never sinned, but He saw the consequences of sin and felt the pain of death and loss firsthand. That is where we find ourselves in John 11:35. Jesus’ friend had died and it hurt. Remember, Jesus was completely man. He was tempted, abandoned, mocked and abused. He felt pain, disgust, joy and sorrow. But today we have hope because of Him. He conquered death and paid the price for our sin.

So if you are hurting, if you have wept, if you are carrying a burden or if you have known pain. I want you to know that you are not alone. Jesus knows exactly how you feel, not through some distant sympathy, but through personal experience. Jesus is a personal Savior and He is there for you, just reach out to Him. He sees your tears, He knows your pain and He loves you more than you will ever realize. And perhaps if you let Him close enough, you will see that His cheeks are tear-stained just like yours.

Questions

In a house with a three year old boy, the question that you would expect to hear all the time is, “Why?” But lately it seems that the question that I hear all of the time is, “Who gave me this?” Riley wants to know who gave him everything that is in his room. We have tried to figure out his motive for this odd question, and the optimist in me wants to say that he asks this question because he is grateful for all of these things. But the thought has crossed my mind that he may be trying to figure out who loves him the most by who has given him the most. I may never know the truth, but it did make me think.

When we look at life and all of the pain that comes with living in a fallen world why is it that the question that we ask most is, “Why?” Don’t we tend to overlook the good things in life, taking them for granted while we concentrate on the bad things? We overlook 10 miles of smooth pavement to complain about one pothole. Now I am not suggesting that we should overlook the bad times, but maybe we should be more grateful for the good times.

When we start asking, “God who gave me this: day, breath, house, job, health, spouse, child…” don’t we start to realize who loves us the most? God, who gave me this hope? God, who gave me forgiveness? God, who gave me salvation? God, who gave me purpose? God gave us everything, how can we doubt that He loves us?

I can’t understand why God loves us and I sure can’t explain it, but I can testify to His love. No matter how bad we are, no matter how good we are, if we are in church every day or wandering away. God loves us; He loves us as much as he can in spite of us. Even when we reject Him, He still loves us. And we know that He loves us because He proved it.

God loves us more that we can comprehend. On this journey of life maybe we should try to ask “Why?” less and “Who gave me this?” more.

My Jesus I Love Thee

By: William Featherston

My Jesus, I love Thee, I know Thou art mine;
For Thee all the follies of sin I resign.
My gracious Redeemer, my Savior art Thou;
If ever I loved Thee, my Jesus, ’tis now.

I love Thee because Thou has first loved me,
And purchased my pardon on Calvary’s tree.
I love Thee for wearing the thorns on Thy brow;
If ever I loved Thee, my Jesus, ’tis now

Treasure Hunters

Before parenthood, everyone tells you about how huge the change will be in your life and how great parenthood will be. But nobody tells you just how badly your 12-pound angel’s dirty diaper can make your stomach feel. They don’t really explain how frustrating it is to get up every two hours at night to feed a crying baby. They don’t give you the words to say to that stranger in the store who is offended because your toddler has learned the word “monkey” and is screaming it to everyone who walks by. No one can explain the love and worry that a mother goes through at 3am when the fever has not broken. Every year at Mother’s Day we all have something to be grateful for: our moms who were much cooler before we came along and who put up with much more than they should have.

The Bible tells us that Mary treasured the memories of raising Jesus in her heart. It is easy to forget that Jesus was a real baby, a real toddler and a real child. Mary changed the Creator of the Universe’s dirty diapers; she taught the Messiah how to blow His nose and all of those other wonderful things that we teach our children. I imagine that there was a special glow that came over Mary when someone would ask her a question about her son, Jesus. I’m sure she smiled when she recalled the day that 12 year-old Jesus got lost in the city during Passover. And after years had passed by, that day of terror became a treasure to Mary. Memories are the treasures that nobody can take away and cannot rot or decay.

Maybe this weekend was a treasure for you. Twenty years from now, the big promotion you were hoping for or the new car you’ve been wanting will probably mean nothing to you. But that stressful Sunday morning when your daughter, in her beautiful new Sunday dress, fell in the toilet 5 minutes before you were supposed to leave for church. The stress from that morning will soon transform into a beautiful gem, a treasure that you can add to your treasure chest of precious memories.

My challenge for you is this: be a treasure hunter, value every moment that you have with your loved ones and try to never miss a memory.

Shiny Plastic Couches

Sometimes a smell can take you to a faraway place. The other day I smelled a familiar smell and in an instant my mind was transported to my grandparent’s house. I could almost feel the carpet as I watched wrestling, with Grandma in her chair and Granddad in his.

I can still remember just about every detail of their house, I can tell you where every piece of furniture should be. I spent many hours exploring every inch of their house, and I’m sure that I have seen everything from every possible angle. Well, there was one room that I can’t say that about, The Parlor. I can only remember going in that room one time and I was quickly drug out by my ear.

It was a beautiful room; it was not the living room, because there was no life in the parlor. I know that there was an organ in there, a giant wooden record player, and couches covered in shiny plastic. The plastic was there to protect the couches, but I’m sure they were no fun to sit on. Now, I’m not anti-plastic slip cover, so don’t get mad if you have shiny plastic couches.

Remembering Grandma’s parlor made me wonder: How many Christians have parlors in their lives? Sure, we gave our lives to Jesus, but did we really turn it all over to Him? Maybe we have collected some sins that we like, that aren’t “that bad” that we have wrapped in plastic and told Jesus to stay away from. Jesus wants full access to our lives and we cannot experience life to the fullest unless we allow Him into our “parlors” and let Him clean those out too.
So come on in Jesus, we kind of like our shiny couches but we love You more.