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I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown. Revelation 3:11
Few of us will ever experience the excitement of winning a gold medal in the Olympics or having a Super Bowl ring of our very own. For most of us, our recognitions come on a far smaller scale. We were hall monitor in fifth grade once. We received a blue ribbon at the county fair for having the cutest puppy. But for a vast majority of us, that’s about it in the rewards department.
To this day, somewhere in the boxes in the attic there’s a crumpled up ribbon or a tattered certificate acknowledging the fact that we were hall monitor. And of course there’s the picture of the puppy that you have long ago forgotten the name of! Nothing more now than memories. Someday, when you are gone, those who come after you may hold on to these trinkets for short time, but eventually they’ll be part of some landfill somewhere.
Tucked away in the corner of your mind there may be other things you did. Things that to you anyway, seemed like quite an accomplishment, but went unrewarded, even unnoticed. You put his/her clothes in the hamper again…this time without mentioning it. You started the car early this morning so she wouldn’t have to get into a cold car. Ever noticed how many times you’ve given the kids a ride without so much as a thank-you?
We all feel unappreciated at times. We can feel like we do all this…stuff for people and it goes completely unnoticed. It doesn’t. There’s one who sees every act of kindness. One who applauds your every act of kindness and knows the motives behind your actions. Someday, you will be rewarded for all the things you did. The things you thought went unnoticed.
Jesus says, persevere. Keep going. Keep doing the things you do for the good of those around you. The medals and ribbons and accolades and trophies of today will soon fade away. But the rewards he has for you will last for eternity.
Looking for rewards here on earth can lead to anger, resentment and disappointment. It can rob us of our feelings of self worth, steal our confidence, and put a strain on our relationships at home and work and with our friends. That’s when the joy of our relationship with Jesus is buried in a pile of hurt feelings and despair.
Remember to do the things you do for Jesus. Whether it be picking up the dirty socks, or the unappreciative teenager. Even if it’s yielding the right of way at a four-way stop when it’s obviously your turn. Let all the things you do be done for Jesus. He never misses a thing you do and someday you will be rewarded! And this time, the reward will last for eternity!
PRAYER: Father God, there are so many times when I do things for others and feel completely forgotten. I feel like I have gifts, talents and abilities that can benefit others, but no one sees them or appreciates them. I’ve even given up on doing things for others and given up on myself. I ask that you would empower me to do the things I do for you, knowing that you see and appreciate every one of them. In your name I pray, Amen.
“Shout and be glad, Daughter Zion. For I am coming, and I will live among you,” declares the LORD. Zechariah 2:10
Rejoice! He has come to live among us. That babe in a manger, whose birth we celebrate with decorated trees and brightly colored packages. That babe in the manger who shows us how to live in the midst of trials and tribulation. That babe in the manger who heals us with the gentle touch of his hand. That babe in the manger that came for no other reason than to die so that we might live.
Have you ever thought about this? If you were the only one who needed a savior, he’d have still come for you. He didn’t come to save ‘masses’ of people, he came for you. He came to provide a way for you to find freedom from the burden of your own stupid choices. He came to provide comfort for you in the midst of the evil and abusive acts of others. He came to empower you to live victoriously over addictions. He came to lift you up when you fail. He came for you!
Notice something else. He came to live among us. There are many fine organizations around the world that provide opportunities for people to assist those who are down and out. You can pick from any number of places to help the homeless, to help feed the starving, to offer medical, physical and spiritual assistance to those who are desperately in need.
That’s not the same as living ‘among us’. Jesus didn’t come to visit the homeless. He came to be one of the homeless. He didn’t come to offer a hand to the leper, the addict, the social outcast, the poor or the starving. He came to live ‘among’ them. It’s not a temporary position. He holds the hand of the severely sick child, whispers in the ear of the elderly person whose foot is on the threshold of eternity; has his arm gently on the shoulder of the parent who has lost a child…or the child (of any age) who just lost mom or dad.
He never leaves you. Why should he? He lives with you. Your home is his home. He doesn’t have the cubicle next to you at the office…he’s got the desk in your corner. There is no place he has not been with you. There is no feeling that you have had that he isn’t aware of. He’s seen every tear, heard every laugh, felt every fear. He is among you. That’s grace. Grace sent Jesus from heaven to earth to live among you in every situation. Rejoice!
PRAYER: Dear Jesus. Thank you for coming to earth for me. Thank you for showing me the way of life and forgiveness. Thank you for loving me and providing a way for me to escape my past and live for you. Most of all, I thank you for the promise that you don’t just live ‘with me’, you live ‘among me’ so that you see and feel everything I feel. Empower me with your Spirit to sense your presence in every place I go, word I speak and action I take. In your name I pray, Amen.
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. Romans 8:39
I saw a billboard once advertising a company that boasted that ‘We buy Ugly houses’. The company apparently bought up houses that weren’t in the best of shape and then either fixed them up or resold them.
In essence they took something that no one wanted and made it into something more presentable. They took the unusable and made it useable. They took something of little or no value and make it valuable. I think about that whenever I’m driving through the country side and see old, abandoned farm houses. Places that were once the pride and joy of the owners. Places that saw babies born and grandparents die. Places of celebration and sadness. But whatever the situation, those old ugly homes once had great value and sentiment.
This verse in Romans has always been one of my favorites for in it hold a promise that, at least in Jesus eyes, I’ll never become like one of those old, dilapidated eyesores that once were called ‘home’.
It’s easy to love a new home with fresh paint and warm carpet and shiny windows. It’s not so easy to love an old house that’s strewn with garbage and has holes in the walls, broken windows and signs of little four-legged inhabitants.
In the same way people are easy to love when they are kind, respectful, and show evidence of having had a shower sometime in the recent past. People who are talkative, intelligent and humble are a joy to be around. We all gravitate towards people who make feel comfortable and of great value.
But what about the ugly people? I’m not talking just about physical appearance. I’m talking about inner beauty as well. What about the person that cuts you off in traffic or the one that insists on driving 10 MPH below the posted speed limit? What about the wait-staff at the local restaurant who makes you feel like you are a huge disruption to their day? What about the foul-mouthed co-worker who knows how their language offends you and finds every opportunity to let you hear an earful whenever you are near.
Does Jesus love them? Yep. He does. Not only does he love them. He loves me too. He loves me when I’m angry. He loves me when I’m having a bad day and perfectly willing to share my disposition with all those around me. He loves me when I’m so sure that I’m right that I make you feel like an idiot for disagreeing.
A buyer of an ‘ugly house’ doesn’t see an eyesore, he sees an opportunity to make something useful out of something worthless; something charming out of something repulsive; of making a building into a home.
Jesus does the same for each of us. Jesus looks past our ugliness and sees a treasure, a diamond in the rough. He doesn’t care how you got into the situation you are in. He isn’t interested in your history as much as he is your future. And there is nothing, absolutely nothing you can do to change it.
PRAYER: Jesus, I thank you for your love. I thank you that even though I can be really ugly at times you love me and see me as a chosen vessel in your sight. You see me as a palace when everyone else sees me as an old, useless building. Forgive me for my ugliness. Empower me with your spirit to be one who shows your love through all I say and do. In your name I pray, Amen.
Yet you, LORD, are our Father. We are the clay, you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand. Isaiah 64:8
A master potter knows clay. He knows how to mix the clay to just the right consistency. A master potter never begins forming the piece of clay and thinking “Hm, I wonder how this will turn out? Will it be a large vase, or a plate, or a mug? Let’s just throw it out here and see what happens!” Nope. Not going to happen. Not for master potter.
The master potter sets out to make a clay vessel that is practical, beautiful and flawless. Yep, flawless. Because one small flaw in the vessel can make it weak and completely useless. The master potter goes into the project knowing exactly what the end result will be. He knows there will be flaws, but he’ll work them out. Flaws don’t bother him because they are expected and can be solved even if it means starting over again.
The master potter knows that a good vessel takes time and he’s willing to take all the time necessary to make sure this project before him turns out as planned. He’s not willing to leave the work undone or done poorly because his name is on the vessel. Everyone in town looks for his vessels because they know his time consuming work.
Our Heavenly Father is referred to as the potter and we as the clay. As master potter, our Father knows what he wants us to look like. He wants us to look exactly like Jesus. He knows it will take time. He knows there will be flaws that need to be worked out. Worry, addictions, guilt, rebellion, anger, hatred, judgmental attitudes…all flaws that can be worked out with time and the strong fingers of his mercy, grace and love.
People that don’t understand the art of molding clay into useful vessels don’t understand. They see imperfections in the clay and think it’s worthless and that it needs to be thrown out. Our Father knows that no clay is worthless. He knows that with time and passion he can work out any flaw. From the clays perspective it will be painful, but the potter knows that the end result will be worth his time and worth the clay’s pain.
One more thing about the master potter. His hands are on the work from start to finish. He never leaves a project to start another one. You are always in God’s hands. He is always forming you and shaping you. He is always using the events of your life to work out the flaws. He’s willing to take the time. He wants you to look just like Jesus.
PRAYER: Father God, I thank you for your great love. I thank you that your love is willing to take the time to work out the flaws in my life. I look at myself and can’t imagine these flaws ever being gone. Thank you for your patience with me. Thank you for your love and grace. Give me the strength to endure the working out of the flaws in my life. Help me to look more and more like Jesus every day. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.
Mike Fisk & Built with Grace 