Ever since I was a teenager, I've read books and heard talks that sought to inspire the recipients to reach for the stars, dream the big dreams, do the impossible. Those messages are appealing and inspirational indeed. And I am all for doing things excellently, not shabbily. But today, I'd like to examine these messages through the microscope of Scripture and see if perhaps we need to exercise caution in our reaching and dreaming and doing....
First, I concur that we should heed Colossian 3:23 Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men. Christians should be known for being the best workers, most cheerful attitudes, and of greatest service to the organization. The problem I have with some of these books and talks, though, is that the last phrase of this verse is often unheeded. They don't encourage us to do great work for the Lord's reputation, but rather to enhance our own. How to "get ahead", how to "succeed", how to "have a great career/marriage/kids" etc. Including "how to have a big church...." as opposed to how to advance HIS fame.
Next, on the "dream big" thing. Check out this verse and see if you think it is consistent with that mindset.....
I Thessalonians 4:11,12
11 and to make it your ambition to lead a quiet life and attend to your own business and work with your hands, just as we commanded you, 12 so that you will behave properly toward outsiders and not be in any need.
I know I am in unusual territory. I know it doesn't sound right for me to suggest to teens and young adults "Don't aspire to be great. Just aspire to lead a quiet life and work hard and treat people right" I now that doesn't make for great conference speeches or book titles or conversation fodder. But isn't that exactly what this passage teaches?
Work hard, yes. But not to advance your own interests. Be ambitious, yes. But let your ambitions be to lead a life that is not "grand" or "admirable" but rather one that treats others right. Sometimes grand things do indeed come but they should come from God's hand, not from our pursuit, for His fame, not our pleasure.
The world will probably not make note of our accomplishments if we obey these verses. Most likely, we won't be applauded or acclaimed or emulated very much. At least not here. But check out what God says in Malachi 3:16 Then those who feared the LORD spoke to one another, and the LORD gave attention and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before Him for those who fear the LORD and who esteem His name.
A book of remembrance written for the Lord Himself. Better than any earthly listing in Who's Who.
It's not your fault...but you can fix it
Are you in conflict with someone right now?
Maybe it's your teenager. Or your co-worker. Somebody at church or in the neighborhood.
Maybe it's your spouse.
Ask yourself some questions about that...
What bothers you about that person?
What is the source of the angst between you?
What would you like to change about this relationship/that person?
Do you think things can get better?
This isn't a post about changing the other person to make this better.
And it's not a post about changing yourself.
This is a post about the problem.
I continually surprise myself at how easily I get distracted from the real problem. How quickly I can slip into thinking that my relational concerns are the rooted in someone's quirks or issues or even their sin...or my own.
Those are not the root but rather the leaves and branches of the conflict.
Ephesians 6:12 spells out the problem clearly - For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.
The root of the conflict between you and your child, you and your neighbor, you and your spouse is not the other person. And it's not you. It's not any person - it's spiritual.
The spiritual forces of evil that wage war in the heavenly places against the saints.
It's not a sci-fi movie - it's real.
The unseen powers of wickedness that temporarily rule over this world are the cause for the problems in your relationship. The source for the conflicts that torment us. That's the enemy. That's who we need to battle...not the other person.
How easily we are deceived into blaming someone for the tension, the separation, the pain that exists in our relationships. We battle the pride and selfishness and anger and greed of our friend, our child, our spouse...and ourselves.
And we keep losing.
The conflict persists. Intensifies. Breaks us apart.
Because we're fighting the wrong combatant!
We don't have to lose this war. We don't have to experience the casualties of conflict. But we do have to fight.
The right hostile forces.
With the right weapons.
For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds.
2 Corinthians 10:4
Spiritual forces cannot be defeated with fleshly weapons.
Arguing, pleading, manipulating, even counseling are insufficient (sometimes even more destructive) in our struggle against them.
We need divine power.
The weapons God has divinely equipped us with are found in Ephesians 6. Verses 17, 18 - the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.
Two weapons. Divinely powered to destroy the real enemy in our relationships.
Prayer and God's Word.
No substitutes will effect the change we want, the peace we desire, the blessings we seek.
Take a moment. Ponder that relationship that is in such strife.
It's not their fault. Or yours.
But you can fix it.
Pray.
Pray God's Word over the problem. Into the conflict. Unto victory.
(Suggested resources - Stormie Omartian's books - The Power of a Praying Woman, The Power of a Praying Wife, The Power of a Praying Parent ; Beth Moore's Praying God's Word )
Being perfect - even just one thing
You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect. Matthew 5:48
Most of us would just as soon slide right over this command, wouldn't we? At the very least, we want to interpret it in a way that cuts us at least a bit of slack.
What does it mean - being perfect like God???
I don't know.
But let's unpack it together and see if we can gain some insight into what Jesus is saying.
Here are my thoughts....
1. Jesus is speaking; the disciple Mathew is transcribing.
2. The word used for "perfect" in the original Greek text is "teleio". It means perfect, complete. It is not used when describing sinlessness - that word is "anamartetos".
3. Although Jesus is not calling for perfection in the sense of no sin, He does set the standard "as your Heavenly Father is perfect".
4, What does the "therefore" refer to? Context, as always, is key. So let's look at the verses preceding this command to be perfect....
In verses 17-20 Jesus astonishes His listeners by throwing out their standard for religious perfection - the behavior of the Scribes and Pharisees. He says that such righteousness is not enough to gain entrance into God's Kingdom. Instead, He says, one must have righteousness that surpasses it.
Verses 21-47 set up a comparison of what that day's religious leaders proclaimed ("You have heard...") and what God requires ("But I say...")
21 “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’ 22 But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire. 23 So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, 24 leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. 25 Come to terms quickly with your accuser while you are going with him to court, lest your accuser hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you be put in prison. 26 Truly, I say to you, you will never get out until you have paid the last penny.
27 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ 28 But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29 If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body be thrown into hell. 30 And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body go into hell.31 “It was also said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.’ 32 But I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife, except on the ground of sexual immorality, makes her commit adultery, and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.33 “Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn.’ 34 But I say to you, Do not take an oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, 35 or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. 36 And do not take an oath by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black. 37 Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything more than this comes from evil.38 “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ 39 But I say to you, Do not resist the one who is evil. But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. 40 And if anyone would sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. 41 And if anyone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. 42 Give to the one who begs from you, and do not refuse the one who would borrow from you.
43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. 46 For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? 47 And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same?
Anger, retaliation, insults, adultery, marriage, integrity, restitution, how to treat enemies...Jesus sets the bar high - our standard is HIM.
He goes after our hearts, rather than our behavior. He displays the perfection of loving God and loving others in His own life, fulfilling perfectly every command of God's Law.
And He expects us to do the same.
How in the world can we do that?
Only by His life in us living out through us.
That's the only way.
When we pursue Christ, He will fulfill His law of love through us.
It's not mystical nor does it require nothing of us. We must cooperate with His grace that He makes available to work in us and through us. We must obey - by His power - what He shows us to do.
But make no mistake about it - He desires perfection in us, just as our Heavenly Father is perfect.
Suggestion - ask Him today to help us obey vs 47. Just look for opportunities to speak to more than just our friends. My original intent for today's post was just that verse but I couldn't write about that without the context of the whole message. So, in our pursuit of perfection today -- of the goal of being like our Heavenly Father -- let's try this one thing. When we are at Publix or the soccer field or at church today, let's make a point to greet and visit with and love on more than just our inner circle.
It might just make a really big difference in someone else's life.
It will definitely expand our hearts.
And I know our Heavenly Father will be pleased.
3 things to teach our kids
If I could only teach my children three things….
Read moreWhen you fall....
In a recent conversation with a close friend, we were grieving over several families dear to us that have been in or are still in painful situations. Most of these involved things with their children but others were marital or individual issues. As we teared up over their various heartaches, we marveled at how every one of these friends is hanging in there. Despite mistakes and failures, they haven't given up.
This verse came to mind -
for the righteous falls seven times and rises again,
but the wicked stumble in times of calamity
Proverbs 24:16
My friend grinned and said "you oughta do a post on that". I think she's right.
How are folks able to not only "survive" but in most cases "thrive" in the midst of wayward children, financial downturns, marital crises, parental rejection, even substance abuse? Especially if there's some fault of their own that made at least some of the mess????
To me, that's the most painful part - feeling like I own the blame of a mess, even just part of it. There's something actually noble about bearing up well under problems that happen "to us" ...but when we know deep down inside that this "calamity" is (at least in part) "by us", well, it's hard to bear.
This verse tells us that the righteous man falls seven times - I can certainly identify with that! Probably more the "seventy times seven"! Boy, can I relate to the falling. I have days weeks months where I feel, at best misunderstood, at worst, like I have offended every person in my path. I don't know how you react when you "fall" but I often hear the whisper of temptation to "give up". To just quit trying, because obviously, I can't get it right!
What does the righteous woman do, though? Yes, she falls, but she gets back up.
When calamity (aka - problems and failures) knocks us down, we have two options.
One is to stay in the stumble.
The other is to get back up and try again.
What does that look like?
Here's some thoughts for today -
1. Admit you fell.
If calamity knocks you down, you can't get up unless you realize you fell in the first place.
2. Accept the responsibility that belongs to you.
While we're not responsible for everything that happens, we need to own our own falling. No blaming others.
3. Figure out what tripped you up.
If #2 wasn't humbling enough, this should help!!!
Don't wallow in the failure with a pity party and don't figure all problems since the dawn of time are attributable to you - ask for input and insight and stick to the Truth.
4. Purpose to try anew - "rise again". Ask God what a "new try" looks like and then do it.
This verse tells us that the righteous and the wicked both fall....but the only mention of getting up belongs to the righteous.
I don't know what your "calamity" looks like today. But my prayer is that you'll rise again. Please don't quit. Take a breather for a minute if you need replenishing, but please don't quit. Don't give up on that child or that spouse or that friend...or yourself.