Categories
Serving Others

Something’s Got A Hold On Me

We hear ministers and missionaries talk about a calling –
“God called me into the ministry.”
“I sensed God calling me to missions.”
“The Lord called me into church work.”

There is truth to this, but there is also a danger here of misconstruing the truth – the danger of making those who are not church staff members feel that their occupation is somehow not on the same level in God’s eyes. And nothing could be further from the truth. God is calling you, too!close up picture of a phone symbolizing our calling from God

It is true that God calls some to be church staff ministers. But scripture indicates that every one of us is called to be a minister – and only a few will be on a church staff. However, there will be many School Teacher “ministers,” and many health care “ministers,” and many business-world “ministers.”

We church staff ministers developed a bad habit of calling our occupation a “vocation,” thereby implying that everyone else just has an occupation. But here is the truth – for every single believer, you have a vocation as minister. There is a difference between our occupation and our vocation. Our occupation is the job we do that gets us a paycheck this month. And that occupation can change, and probably will change, throughout your life. But our vocation as Christians is to be the same for each and every one of us – to be a minister no matter our occupation. We are to use our relationship with God to point others in the direction of Jesus Christ so that they can come to a right relationship with Him and grow in their spiritual maturity.

I don’t want your mindset to end at “I am a Christian and I should not be ashamed of that fact at work and should live out a Christian example at the office or the plant or the school.” That’s not a bad place to start, but I want us to go further. I am talking about an entire reprocessing of our understanding of life itself and why we are here.

According to the Bible, life is about being a minister of God’s gospel message. Period. Everything else in our lives is to be used to share this message with those around us.

So if your occupation is in the health care field as a doctor or nurse, your vocation should be a Christian minister sharing the message of God and His love to others and while you are at it be as good of a doctor as you can be and use that position to share Christ’s love with patients.

Life for a teacher is to be a Christian minister sharing the message of God and His love to others and while you are at it be as good of a teacher as you can and use that position to share Christ’s love with students and fellow teachers.

Life for a business person is to be a Christian minister sharing the message of God and His love to others and while you are at it be as good of a business person as you can and use that position to share Christ’s love with your clients and fellow workers.

Your vocation is as a minister of the gospel no matter where you are with your occupation. My vocation is to minister, presently through my church staff position. But what if my position changes? What if I go to work in another field? Well, my occupation would change, but my vocation would not. It remains the same – minister of the gospel.

Life for each of us is to be a Christian minister. You are to use the occupation that God presently has you in to fulfill your vocation of sharing Christ’s love with those you are in contact with every day. Start thinking in terms of being the minister for your workplace – for that is what you are. You have been placed by God in your specific field to minister to those around you. Are you lifting those around you up in prayer? As their minister, you should be. Are you sharing with them how to know Christ? As their minister, you should be. Are you helping believers around you know how to grow in spiritual maturity? As their minister, you should be.

As you go to your occupation today, consider how you will live out your vocation as a minister to those around you!

Categories
Christian Living

Wanting The Good Life

We all want a life of abundance. Jesus says He wants to provide it. But could we possibly have a wrong understanding of the promise? Have we looked at the promise through “American dream”–tinted glasses? Have we fallen prey to some trap of our own design?a mousetrap set with a piece of cheese, symbolizing the trap of equating the good life to the American dream

We often pray for safety and comfort. We pray for safe travels. We pray that everyone in our family would be healthy and whole. Our safety and comfort are issues that we feel we want & need. And when we read passages such as Romans 8:28 which states that God works all things together for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purposes, we interpret them to be saying: “God will be faithful in making my life good.”

But then sometimes our lives are not so “good” in our eyes. Tragedy comes, accidents happen, life takes a turn for the worse. And if we have banked on the “good life” as we have defined it, we get extremely rattled. We get angry with God. We might even seem to lose our faith for a season. But maybe we should remember that the end of that verse says “and are called according to His purposes.” If we understand that God will be faithful in making things good in relation to bringing glory to His name, then even our death (which seems to NOT be OUR GOOD) can be good when it is done in a way that glorifies His name (as martyrs have done).

Interestingly enough, Jesus didn’t pray for the safety & comfort of His disciples, but rather that His disciples would be kept from the evil one and would stand strong in the face of temptations. He knew that they would not have safety & comfort – in fact it is said that most of Jesus’ disciples died a martyr’s death. And so it wasn’t that he needed to pray for their safety and comfort, but rather to pray for them to be faithful to bring glory to God and advance His kingdom – not only through their lives but through their deaths. What if we began to change our prayers to ask for the things Jesus did for his disciples?

In the movie The End of the Spear, the missionaries were asked if they would use their guns if the tribe attacked them. The statement was – “Son, We can’t shoot them because they do not have Jesus, and we do. So it is OK if we die now, but not OK for them to die without Jesus.” That in no way is comfort or safety, but the deaths of these missionaries was definitely glorifying to God. The sacrifice that the men were willing to give (their lives) for the gospel paired with the love that was shown to the people by the spouses that were left behind – led the Waodani people to believe in Jesus.

If we fall into the trap of American thinking – life should always be pleasant with good things – we hinder ourselves from understanding how life that may be difficult can bring glory to God – and maybe that is the good that we need to understand that Romans 8:28 is discussing.

Paul spoke of his “thorn in the flesh” and asked that it would be removed, but when it wasn’t, Paul indicated that his comfort was less important than God gaining glory through Paul’s weaknesses which would make Paul rely more on God.

So the first thing we need to do is to start getting our minds around the glory of God and then to imitate Jesus’ prayer. We need to pray for God’s glory – even if that might mean the loss of our comfort & safety.

The second imitation we need to have is that we need to pray for one another to be kept from temptation. That is not a prayer we often pray, is it? We pray for each others’ comfort & safety, but very seldom do we pray for each other to be kept from the temptations of the evil one. What kind of difference would that make in our lives if we all began praying that for one another? We see the same statement in the model prayer – Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.

In our lives, let’s look for the good that brings God glory more than brings us comfort!

Categories
Serving Others

The Little Life-Saving Station

This parable is not one I created, but it is one of my favorites. I imagine you will quickly catch on to the meaning of the parable of this life-saving station. As you read it, I also hope you will consider where you would fit into the story…

a lighthouse that is a little life-saving station“On a dangerous seacoast where shipwrecks often occur there was once a crude little life-saving station. The building was just a hut, and there was only one boat, but the few devoted members kept a constant watch over the sea, and with no thought for themselves, they went out day or night tirelessly searching for those lost at sea.

Many lives were saved by this wonderful little station, so that it became famous. Some of those who were saved, as well as some from surrounding areas, wanted to become associated with the station and give their time and money and effort for the support of its work. New boats were bought and new crews were trained. The little life-saving station grew.

As time went by some of the new members of the life-saving station were unhappy that the building was so crude and so poorly equipped. They felt that a more comfortable place should be provided as the first refuge of those pulled from the dangerous sea. So they replaced the emergency cots with beds and put better furniture in an enlarged building. Now the life-saving station became a popular gathering place for its members, and they re-decorated it beautifully with comfortable furnishings.

Over time, Less & Less of the members were now interested in going to sea on life-saving missions, so they hired life boat crews to do this work. The mission of life-saving was still given lip-service but most were too busy or lacked the necessary commitment to take part in the life-saving activities personally.

About this time a large ship was wrecked off the coast, and the hired crews brought in boat loads of cold, wet, and half-drowned people. They were dirty and sick, and some of them looked different than most of the members, and some spoke a strange language, and the beautiful new club was considerably messed up. So the members immediately had a shower house built outside the main building where victims of shipwrecks could be cleaned up before coming inside.

At the next meeting of the members, there was a split in club membership. Most of the members wanted to stop the club’s life-saving activities as being too unpleasant and a hindrance to the normal day-to-day activities and patterns of the members who gathered there. But some members insisted that life-saving was their primary purpose and pointed out that they were still called a “life-saving station.” But these few were finally voted down and told that if they wanted to save the lives of all the various kinds of people who were shipwrecked in those waters, they could begin their own life-saving station further down the coast. So they did.

As the years went by, the new station experienced the same changes that had occurred in the old. In time, they also evolved into a club and yet another life-saving station had to be established. If you visit that seacoast today you will find a number of exclusive clubs along that shore. Shipwrecks are still frequent in those waters, but I understand that now most of the shipwrecked people drown.”

So it is easy enough to realize that this parable is about the state of the church today. Now certainly it isn’t truly that gloomy! But at the same time we can see the different types of mentalities that are taking place in this story. The mentality of the rescuers who are dedicated to saving lives, a second mentality of those willing to give finances so others could serve but not a willingness to personally get their hands dirty, and a third mentality of wanting comfort and leisure for self even though people around are needing rescue.

What mentality do you have – are you one of the rescuers striving for the primary purpose, or are you hoping that things can stay safe and comfortable inside the cozy station? There are still so many people around us that are without the love of Jesus Christ. Have you looked out into the “water” around you and heard people crying out for a Savior?

I thought this exchange from Superman Returns was interesting…
Lois Lane states: “The world doesn’t need a savior, & neither do I.”
Superman asks her: “Lois, will you fly with me. There’s something I want to show you.”
[he flies Lois high above the city where it seems peaceful & still. Lois Lane listens, but to her ears, it is silent and calm.]
He then says to her – “Listen. What do you hear?”
She says: “Nothing.”
[and then for just a moment you get to hear what Superman hears with his super-powered hearing]
Superman then tells her: “I hear everything. You wrote that the world doesn’t need a savior, but I hear them crying for one everyday.”

Too many times I find myself and others thinking (and listening) like Lois Lane. We think everyone is OK and that there isn’t anyone around you looking for a savior. So many people say (& write) that we don’t need a Savior and yet Jesus hears them crying for Him everyday. Do you hear (and see) “nothing” when you look at our community? or have you allowed God to open your eyes to a world that is “crying out for a Savior.” They don’t need Superman, but they do need Jesus. And He tells us that the fields are ready to be harvested – We have been called to point people to THE Savior. Let us help people find the Living Water and be rescued by Jesus – let’s continue striving to be part of an effective life-saving station.

Categories
Relationships

Repentance & Forgiveness – Two Great Needs

We have a desperate need for repentance & forgiveness. We have a great need for repentance of our own failures and a great need to forgive others of their mistakes against us.
the words "I am sorry and I forgive you" to express the ideas of repentance and forgiveness
We have a forgiving God — A God who knew of our great failures and great sins and yet loved us in spite of our unrighteousness because of who He is. Our great need for forgiveness required Jesus to serve as the atoning sacrifice for our failures. However, Jesus stated that He didn’t come for those who trusted in their own righteousness, but for those who were able to acknowledge their failures before a Holy & Righteous God. For us to receive forgiveness we must be people of repentance.

King David was called a man after God’s own heart. Was that because he was always a righteous man? No. David became involved in some pretty unsavory stuff – adultery, deceit, premeditated murder. But I like this statement about David’s heart from Jonathan & Lisa Moore:
“David was a man after God’s own heart not because he never failed, but because he never failed to repent.”

Repentance is not the only reason David was called a man after God’s heart, but I do believe it is a significant part of it. We need to be willing to do the same before our Holy God – never failing to repent. Our society disagrees and tells us that no one has a right to tell us that something we are doing is wrong. But God takes a different point of view. His character and His word provide us with a clear definition of right and wrong. And when we find ourselves on the wrong side of God-honoring behavior, we must never fail to repent if we want to remain in fellowship with God. And thankfully, graciously, God is always always ready to forgive and restore us back to a right relationship with Him.

That brings us to our second need. If we have a loving God who is so willing to forgive us, then why do we so often hold back forgiveness from others. We get angry and upset with others for so many different reasons, sometimes rightfully so. But it doesn’t change the fact that we are still called to offer forgiveness. God calls us to be people of love, but what is unforgiveness?

“When boiled down to its essence, unforgiveness is hatred” (John R. Rice).

‘But they hurt me so badly…’ ‘They angered me so much…’ ‘They talked behind my back…’ ‘They slapped me in the face…’ But whatever they did, it is in the past. And forgiveness isn’t so much about the past as it is the future. “When you forgive, you in no way change the past – but you sure do change the future” (Bernard Meltzer). By holding out forgiveness to those who have mistreated us, we open up the possibility of reconciliation and unity for the future. And the reconciling God of heaven has given us the ministry of reconciliation.

Never fail to repent. And always be willing to offer forgiveness.

Categories
Relationships

Judging the Wrong Thing

Yesterday I made the crazy argument that we actually should be judging the behavior of a sign that says 'don't even think of parking here' symbolizing our judging of othersChristians (which we often don’t do) and that we shouldn’t be attacking the behavior of unbelievers (which we often find ourselves doing). How can that be right? Well, let’s take a quick look at a few verses at the end of 1 Corinthians 5, where Paul tells us:

When I wrote to you before, I told you not to associate with people who indulge in sexual sin. But I wasn’t talking about unbelievers who indulge in sexual sin, or are greedy, or cheat people, or worship idols. You would have to leave this world to avoid people like that. I meant that you are not to associate with anyone who claims to be a believer yet indulges in sexual sin, or is greedy, or worships idols, or is abusive, or is a drunkard, or cheats people. Don’t even eat with such people. It isn’t my responsibility to judge outsiders, but it certainly is your responsibility to judge those inside the church who are sinning. God will judge those on the outside….

What? That’s in the Bible? Yep, God tells us in several places that we are to hold each other accountable as believers. We often don’t do this. One important point about this – it is to be done in love. And so often, when we actually do decide to hold someone accountable it is not done so in love, rather it is done in condemnation and arrogant pride. How is this possible when we are to be known as people who love each other as family and who should be quick to invite others into the love of our family?

So what we find is that instead of following the words of God, instead of holding each other accountable in love, we are becoming known as those who attack unbelievers. When Christian researchers at the Barna Group asked young adults in America what words best describe Christianity, the #1 response was “anti-homosexual.” And this was true of both non-Christians and church attenders. That blows me away – that if you ask a young adult in America to define Christianity, the definition you will likely get is a negative statement of what we are against, instead of what we are for. We seem to have strayed a long way from our model, Jesus. He wasn’t known as a hater of immoral people. In fact, He was attacked by the religious groups for being a friend of sinners! What happened that we are no longer called that?

Dr. Russell Moore indicates (regarding this one societal issue) – “I think it’s not so much that churches haven’t wanted to talk about it,” he said, “but they haven’t recognized how much the culture has changed around them.” The first step, said Moore, is learning to defend traditional marriage without demonizing homosexuals. “If we can’t empathize with what’s going on in their hearts and minds, we’re not going to be able to love and respect them.”

Dr. Moore’s statement just sheds light on the fact that many Christians do not hold out love to those who do not hold to Christian morality. By taking this stance, we are keeping people from ever coming to Christ and from the possibility of being transformed to have Christian morality.

So yes, we find non-Christians doing whatever they think is right in their own eyes. But instead of us loving them toward Christ. We find that we are doing the same – we have decided to do what is right in our own eyes – judging non-Christians and not reaching out to those without Him in love. At some point, we desperately need to return to letting God be the One that guides us, rather than our culture and our own desires. When we do that, maybe we will find that the words that best describe us are words that tell what we are for – love, unity, compassion – rather than words that tell what we are against.

Why do you think Jesus is known for the love He had (and the things He was for), while we Christians in America today are known for the things we are against? How do we fix this?

— brian rushing