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In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven. Matthew 5:16
What is God like? Is he an old man who’s completely lost touch with the new things of the world? Is he some irrelevant being or concept that has no real bearing on life in the twenty-first century? Perhaps he’s an angry, vindictive being set on making our lives fearful, miserable and guilt-ridden? Or a God of feeble love, making demands and then changing his mind because he wants everyone to be happy. Maybe, as some think, he’s dead!
There have been many scholars, smart men and women, who have devoted the better part of their lives to proving God’s existence, or his demise; who’ve tried to prove he’s involved in everything, or in nothing at all. But when Jesus walked on earth, he never spent any of his time trying to prove his Father’s existence. Instead his whole life on earth was filled with proving what God is like.
How did Jesus do that? By giving the blind man sight; telling the woman guilty of adultery she was forgiven and not condemned; by pleading with those who were set in their sinful ways or depending on religion to get them through, to come to a relationship of love with God. The list goes on. Healing of the little girl; the raising of his best friend from the dead; reaching out to the homeless; showing kindness to the leper and the widow. Jesus didn’t prove the existence of God, he lived it.
As Christ-followers we shouldn’t waste our time in silly arguments over the existence of God or what he is like. Stop telling the people around you what God likes or dislikes; hates or loves or accepts or rejects. Instead show them what God is like.
Show kindness and acceptance of the person who is of a different sexual orientation. Spend some time in jail (your choice, not the judicial departments!) sharing the love of Christ with those who are there; be kind and polite to the server at the restraint who still hasn’t brought your coffee; be faithful to your spouse; speak without criticism or cussing and swearing; act in love when others react in hate; accept those who reject you; pray for the person you hate more than anyone in the world; stay away from ‘questionable jokes’ and the porn sites.
We weren’t sent here to prove that God exists. He doesn’t need our help in that regard. We were sent here to make such a difference in our world that even the atheist will praise God for our existence!
PRAYER: Father God, Thank you for the example Jesus left us of your love, acceptance and character. As I walk my way today, I ask that the actions I take and the interactions I have with people would leave them in an attitude that says “He/she is what God is like!” And when I get opportunity, empower me to speak your words of love and acceptance when I’d rather spew judgment and criticism. Amen.
However, as it is written: “What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived”— the things God has prepared for those who love him— 1 Corinthians 2:9
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to win the lottery? I think about that every time the lottery gets to be up in the hundreds of millions. Even the thought of that is astronomical. Can’t even fathom what that would be like.
We have many reasons for wanting to win the ‘big one’. For some it may be to get out of debt and be able to provide comfortably for our families now and in the future. Some may have more noble aspirations. To build a hospital for example, or to give money towards medical research or solving some social issue that we are passionate about, or to missions. All very good reasons and worthwhile causes to be sure.
Whatever reason we have for winning the lottery, there is one glaring problem we each must admit too. No matter how much we win, or what we spend it on, the results will be temporary. The words of King Solomon ring loudly. There he was, the great King of Israel. He was wealthy, wise and powerful. Anything he wanted was at his fingertips. Yet in all his glory, this great man of God wrote (and I paraphrase) “I could have anything I wanted but soon found out everything in life is really useless. I gave myself everything a man could possibly want. Women, palaces, vacations. You name it. If I wanted it, I went and got it. And what I learned is this. The really important thing is to love and obey God. Nothing else will bring us joy.”
The truth is, it’s not what we have on earth that really counts but what we are building in eternity. Paul writes, (again, my paraphrase) “God loves you so much that the things he’s prepared for you will blow your mind. You can’t even imagine the great things he has for you. It’s astounding!”
Our finite minds can only understand and fathom what we see here and now. We can’t see even one second into the future. Each of us should live to build our treasures in heaven. Treasures that are eternal. Imagine what it will be like in heaven when we see how our lives have affected people. I want to be surrounded by lives that have been touched by my love, my mercy and God’s grace. Those are the things I want to strive for so that someday, I’ll see Jesus and He’ll say, ‘Well done thou good and faithful servant. Look at the crowds of people that are here because of your kindness.’ Sound outlandish? I don’t think so. With God’s help that is my desire.
I know I’ll fail some and hurt others unintentionally. But my failures will not allow me to give up. I’m off to win eternal rewards!
PRAYER: Father God. My mind is spinning as I try to comprehend the things you have in store for me. It’s so easy to get bogged down here on earth with worries and concerns. Help me to remember that you have awesome things I can’t even imagine waiting for me. Help me to build my wealth in heaven by living for you here on earth. In Jesus name, Amen.
When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us; he has taken it away, nailing it to the cross. And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross. Colossians 2:13-15
In his novel, Roots, Alex Haley traces the story of his family through several generations to find where he came from. Although the book’s validity was later questioned, it began a huge movement by people to search their ancestry to gain a picture of where they came from and, in a sense, what some of the things were that made them what and who they were ‘today’.
While revisiting our ancestors can be interesting and help us to gain insight into what went into making us what we are today, it’s far more important to realize who we were in the spiritual realm.
Read Colossians 2:13-15 on more time carefully and thoughtfully. “You were dead.” There isn’t a lot of good about dead people. Dead people don’t accomplish much. They don’t hold much value. Dead people are…well…dead. Dead athletes and dead politicians and dead homeless people are all pretty much the same…dead. The playing field is pretty level among dead people.
Read on. “God made you alive.” Mull that over in your mind. You were dead. God made you alive. Notice there are no qualifiers here. Nothing that says “Some of you helped God make you alive.” No hints that God made some of us ‘more alive’ than others. You were dead and God made you alive. Period.
What would your world be like if you treated everyone around you with the attitude that says “You were dead. I was dead. God made us alive. Therefore we are completely equal.” How would you respond to the person with a different political agenda or a different family background or different worship preferences or different sexual orientations?
Would people be more likely to listen to you if they knew that you accepted them as equals? Would you be more patient, more forgiving, more accepting of others if you kept in mind that they are no better or no worse than you are in God’s eyes?
When your path crosses the life of a person who is struggling with life remember your roots. It doesn’t matter if you grew up in a nice, safe, respected ‘Christian family’ or if you were the victim of abuse and dysfunction. In God’s eyes we all have the same past. Dead. Dead but made alive by Him through Jesus Christ.
The best news of all is, that even though you were dead, not only are you alive now, but your spiritual enemies have be completely disarmed! They are helpless and powerless beings whose only hope is that you will forget that you have the power, through Jesus, to defeat them.
Remember where you came from. Live in the power you have now because of Jesus!
PRAYER: Father God. I thank you for your great love and forgiveness. I ask that as I rub shoulders with the people in my world I would remember that I am no better or no worse that they are. I have all I have and am all I am because of Jesus alone. Empower me to live with that in mind. In Jesus name. Amen.
Rich and poor have this in common: The LORD is the Maker of them all. Proverbs 22:2
Try as we might to avoid it, we put labels on people. We judge them by the way they dress; the work they do; the church they go to; whether they go to church; their sexual orientation; their marital status and a whole list of other things. We don’t even realize it half the time!
I wonder how much anger would be removed from the world if we could just grasp the truth of Proverbs 22:2.
“The Lord is maker of us all.” It’s not our education that makes us. It’s not the government or unions or social status that makes us what we are. It’s the Lord God of heaven that determines the important things about us. I don’t buy into the idea that we are ‘all God’s children’ in the spiritual sense. Spiritually speaking there are plenty of passages in the Bible that tell us that a child of God is one who has accepted Christ as Savior and repented of their sin and called Jesus Lord.
But the Bible also says we are all made in God’s image, male and female, rich and poor, Christian or non-Christian. We don’t always understand the big ‘why’ questions. For example, why are some people rich and some poor? Is it because rich people are smarter? No. Is it because they try harder? Sometimes, but certainly not always. Is it because they were born into a situation that gave them their wealth? Again, sometimes but there are many people who have risen from poverty to wealth.
What is it then that makes us rich? The answer is really two-fold. First of all we need to re-define wealth. Wealth isn’t determined by what you have in your bank account, the size of your pension plan or your social standing. True wealth comes from within. It’s an attitude. So, in one sense we can all be wealthy in the things of the heart.
Secondly, anything we consider of value: money, talents, spiritual gifts, etc. comes directly from God. True wealth is not a government option. True wealth is not a result of unions or political action. God determines, for whatever reason, who is wealthy. Period.
Seek to grow wealthy in the important areas of your life. Seek to show mercy. Sow love. Cultivate compassion. Grow in the riches of Godliness through reading God’s Word, prayer and fellowshipping with others. Stop looking at what other people make or do or have. Focus on what God has given you. He is the true source of all wealth and His wealth lasts for eternity.
PRAYER: Another day Father where your word has cut me to the bone. So much of my anger, frustration and anxiety comes from what I have physically or what I want. I so often forget that anything I have or others have is directly a result of you. Forgive me for judging what others have as though it’s unfair or greedy. Empower me to seek True Wealth through you. In Jesus name, Amen.
He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” Psalm 46:10
A storm moves through in the middle of the night. The windows shake from the wind. The yard is as light as mid-day from frequent lightning. On one particular crash of thunder small feet are heard running down the hall. As if with one motion she snuggles in securely between her mom and dad. ‘Safe from the storm’ she soon falls back asleep completely oblivious to the raging storm outside.
What was it that drove the little one to the arms of her father and mother? Were they able to save her from the storm? Should a tornado have wiped out the neighborhood would she have been spared because she was in their arms? The storm certainly didn’t let up. It wasn’t any quieter in their room.
What drove her to the arms of her parents was the calm assurance in her mind that safety rested there. In the arms of her father the lightning became a nothing more than a light show. The sounds of the wind, rain and thunder became music to lull her to sleep. The storm could be weathered just fine when she was in the arms of her father.
When we rest in the arms of our Heavenly Father there is calmness in the storm. He is God. He is holy. The word ‘Holy’ is a word that means set a part. One notch above the rest of the world. Unaffected by circumstances.
Because he is a holy God, the things that frighten me have no effect on him. The things that pull me down won’t contain him or change his focus or actions.
When I fail it affects how I view myself. It affects how I react to other people. It changes my outlook on life. Small problems seem bigger. Mole hills become mountains. But when I fail it doesn’t affect how God views me. Not with Jesus by my side.
When I struggle with sin I feel hopeless and defeated. But with God there is no such thing as hopeless. Defeat isn’t in his vocabulary. When life takes different turns for me and I don’t understand how I got in the situation I’m in, I get confused and discouraged. God never gets discouraged, never gets sidetracked, never gets distracted by simple, mortal earthly things. He is on a higher plain which is unaffected by humans.
I can’t control everything that comes my way. I can’t change decisions that I’ve made in the past that haunt me now. I can’t see the future so that my choices today will guarantee my comfort or safety. I can’t control everything that comes my way…but my God can.
PRAYER: Holy Father. As the storms of life swirl around me today there will be times when fear grips me like an iron fist. Times when confusion clouds my ability to choose wisely. Times when I want to lash out rather than listen. Empower me by your Spirit during these times to be still. Even though life may be loud around me, help me to be still in your arms of safety and love. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.
Mike Fisk & Built with Grace 