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My wife is a coupon guru. Whenever we go shopping it’s always exciting to look at the receipt and take note of the “how much you saved” line. I’ll be honest. She impresses me. I’m not patient enough to do what she does, nor do I think about looking for deals like she does. Occasionally, because she is human, she’ll miss a deal and is truly disappointed about the lost opportunity. I’ll admit, she’s having a positive effect on me. Now, when I shop I use coupons and hunt for the best deal because once a deal is gone it may never return.
In eternities scheme of things, coupons and deals aren’t the most important thing, to be honest. But they give us a simple idea of our life with God. Each of us is created with, as one writer states it, a God-shaped hole in our lives. We can seek to fill it with lots of things. Relationships, toys, a big home and/or bank account, status, and the list goes on. But nothing satisfies that space. Nothing. Nothing that is except God through faith in Jesus Christ.
Two things you can be sure of. Life is uncertain, and God desires a relationship with you. He puts people and circumstances along the path we call life. When we encounter them, we have two choices. One is to ignore them and go on seeking ways to fill the God Space. The other is to respond to his calling and experience all he has for you.
The choice is yours but be aware that at some point it will be to late to cash in on the deal he has for you. Don’t delay. Nothing else satisfies like Jesus. Life won’t get easier by following him, but you’ll find his presence refreshing regardless of your circumstances.
I’ve been thinking a lot lately about love and hate. It seems in many ways lately we have far more examples of hate than love. Love seems to be defined in some circles as a weak emotion, or as measured by what the object of our love can do for us. “How can you fill my desires?” “What will you do for me?” Far too often ‘love’ ends when needs aren’t met; opinions aren’t valued; desires fall short; dreams are shattered.
Especially for us who claim to be followers of Jesus Christ, love must always be defined by the perfect example of love, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, the Messiah, the Son of the living God.
One of the most popular verses in the Bible is John 3:16, ““For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.”
But we often overlook the very next verse, and to me this verse sets the stage for the previous verse and life in general. “God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him.” (John 3:17) Imagine that! NO condemnation! Paul writes the same thing in Romans, “So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus.” (Romans 8:1)
That’s love! Being passionate about a relationship with someone who is, in every way, shape and form different than you with absolutely no chance to measure up to your standards.
Jesus calls us to love! Especially to love those who are brothers and sisters in the faith. “So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other.” (John 13:34)
So how can we, as believers in Jesus do anything other than love? Recently I’ve seen so much hatred expressed on social media. Some has been by non-believers and that’s to be expected. But much Seems to be directed towards professing Christians who may read a different version of the Bible, attend a different denomination, or hold to different opinions on doctrine or theology.
Brothers and sisters. Let us not forget we are to shine the light and love of Jesus wherever we go! John puts it bluntly. If you don’t love, question who your God is.
President John F Kennedy is credited with saying “Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country”. In essence he borrowed heavily from a principle taken from the Holy Bible. The apostle Paul has that same principle in mind when writing to the church located in Corinth. That principle can be stated in many ways but in its simplest terms, what we get out of something is directly proportionate to what we put into it. When we stop contributing to the emotional and physical needs of personal relationships, we stop feeling fulfilled by them; when we stop putting forth our best effort at the workplace, our jobs become mundane and redundant; when we develop a consumer mentality in our churches, we “no longer feel fed/get anything out of it.” It carries over in our spiritual lives as well. When we fail to plant the seeds of prayer, scripture and corporate fellowship, we stop growing spiritually. Then we wither under the weeds of this worlds concerns and wonder where God is. A neglected field offers no crops regardless of the weather. We can’t expect God to provide fruit when we haven’t cultivated the seed. Here’s the good news. He doesn’t expect perfection, he only seeks progress. Step out. Step up. Watch him work!
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