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Help Wanted

June 28, 2011 in Growth, Purpose with 2 Comments

We place a high value on experience in our culture.

Job postings inform the potential applicant just how much experience they must have in order to qualify for the position.

Political candidates talk about what they’ve achieved in the past to convince us that they are the right person to solve the problems of the future.

Friends seek advice from others who have “been there.”

We value experience because we believe that it offers a perspective that mere intellectual knowledge does not afford. We believe that we can trust someone who has successfully navigated the road that we wish to conquer.

Yet, in our pursuit of holiness, we often neglect to turn to the One who has the best experience. We turn to friends, and pastors, Christian “celebrities” and spiritual heroes rather than looking to Christ.

And while all of these may be able to offer some assistance, they can’t offer the most assistance. Christ is not only all-powerful and is therefore able to help us successfully conquer our sin, but Hebrews 4:15 tells us that He was tempted in every respect – demonstrating that there is no situation that we  face that He can not identify with. There is no struggle that He does not understand; no frustration of which He is unaware. While contending with all the temptations of this world, He still lived a life that was perfectly honoring to God. We may be inclined to think that this easy for Him – that Christ never fully experienced the weight of temptation, but Hebrews tells us this simply is not true. It says that He was tempted “as we are, yet without sin.”

Not only is this important to understand in our own struggle with sin, but it is also important as we seek to help other in their walk with God. Instead of relying on our own wisdom or insight, our counsel and advice must point to Christ. He must be the example to which we turn. He, and not us or our “experience”, must be the source of help.

Not only does Christ understand the struggle that we face, but He is able to help us conquer it. He knows the way. And the more we look to Him as our source of help, the more our lives will look like His.


Joining In

June 20, 2011 in Hope, Purpose with 5 Comments

When you’re a kid one of your worst fears is to be excluded from a group. We want desperately to be approved of, cared for, and connected with other human beings. We feel validated when we are asked to join in on whatever activity is going on, especially if it’s something that we want to be a part of.

 

It’s funny how not much changes when we get older. The stakes may be higher and the exclusions commenced under a greater pretense of politeness, but really, we still want to feel like we belong – like we are part of the “cool crowd.”  We want to feel like we are a part of something that’s important.

Yet for the Christian we know that the truly important things are not things of this world but things of Heaven. So we may feel that we can’t join in on what matters, that we have to wait until another time when we will be in our Heavenly home.

Except that we can. Because the business of heaven is worshiping God. However imperfect and faulted this world may be, we can still set our hearts and minds upon bringing Him praise. Not just through music (although that is certainly one great way to worship), but through how we live.

And perhaps this is even greater encouragement for those who have a loved one who has already gone to be with the Lord. Although it can feel like there is a great divide between us and them, we can participate in the same thing that they are doing- praising our King. We don’t have to wait until we are there with them – we can begin giving Him adoration and honor now.

So let us add our own voices to the heavenly chorus. Let our lives be focused on the same thing of those who are enjoying eternal life. Let us join in worshiping our Lord.

 

For a great song that touches on this, check out Sovereign Grace’s The Glories of Calvary [affiliate link].


(Almost) Everything I Need To Know

June 15, 2011 in Purpose with 4 Comments

A popular book claims that All I Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten. In it the author demonstrates that as kids we learned most of what we need to know about how we treat others and how we should act. The problem is applying these lessons as adults.


What I recently realized is that in a lot of ways, this is true for our Christian walk too. Specifically, I realized that many of the songs I learned as a kid still carried important truths that I sadly don’t regularly apply each and every day  So, although I’m sure this is not comprehensive, here’s a refresher of the truths we learned as kids:

  • This is the Day - Today is God’s day. Regardless of what happens in it, I need to “rejoice and be glad in Him.” Seemingly easy to do in preschool, but perhaps even more important to do as an adult. Recognizing that every day I live on this Earth is a day that God wants to accomplish something in my life makes every day a special day. Let’s celebrate and be thankful for God’s provision of today.

 

  • Deep and Wide – One of the reasons we have to celebrate regardless of what happens in our day – God’s immeasurable love. We can’t know the depths or the breadths of it, but we can rest in His love. If the day holds nothing else for us, it holds this truth – God’s love is flowing like a fountain and it is deeper and wider than we can ever day. Let us wash ourselves in His love today.

 

  • Beloved, Let us Love One Another - The best way to partake of God’s love – drink of His fountain and share it with others. Scripture specifically says that those who love God, will love others. Our ability to love others comes from our love of God. Therefore let us love God deeply and in doing so, love each other deeply too.

 

  • Rise and Shine – In all we do, whether in work or play, we have to get up, get going, and “give God the glory, glory.” Just as Noah built the ark at God’s command, even though he had never seen rain, so we must commit to doing what God has called us to do today, and in it honor Him. Our job is to put God’s goodness on display. We better get moving!

What truths about God did you learn as a kid?

 

 

[This post contains affiliate links.]


Expecting a Hit

June 7, 2011 in Purpose with 4 Comments

The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. -2 Peter 3:9

I’ve heard that one of the most difficult things to do in professional sports is to hit a baseball. The hand-eye coordination that is required to hit a ball that is speeding towards you is beyond what other sports ask of the human body. Sure, you may run more and be hit more in other sports, but purely from a getting all the synapses to fire in the right way so that your brain communicates quickly enough to your hands what your eyes are seeing, standing at home plate is a challenging place to be. Add on top of that that everyone else’s eyes are watching you to see how you will perform, it’s quite the pressure cooker.

It’s easy to feel the same way about sharing our faith.

We wonder if we’ll be able to recall just the right Scripture verse in order to answer the person’s question.

We ponder whether our mental acuity will be up to the rigorous questioning.

We’re fearful about what people who are watching us will think when we “strike out.”

So it’s tempting to want to call a time-out and to walk away from the plate.

But we need not feel this way.

After all, as Scripture tells us  and my pastor often reminds us the reason Jesus hasn’t returned is because there are still some who need to be saved.  So just as the baseball player must approach the plate fully expecting to accomplish what their coach wants, so when we share the Gospel we should do so expecting that it will be received. After all, God has promised that there are still some people out there who will receive it, and He has given us the privilege of being a part of bringing that work to fruition.

If a baseball player approached home plate concentrating on all the things that could go wrong, they likely wouldn’t be a very good batter. Instead, they must rely on their training and their God-given abilities, concentrating on what they know they should do, rather than the challenges inherent in doing so. They must walk to the plate expecting a hit. And so should we.


Privileged: Blessed to be a Blessing

May 18, 2011 in Purpose with 1 Comment

A friend once passed on some wisdom that was passed on to him:

“You were blessed to be a blessing.”

In other words, when we receive blessing, it is our job to pour out that blessing upon others.  As my friend described it, we were to see ourselves as a conduit for blessing those around us. God was gracious and generous to us, so that we in turn could be gracious to others.

It’s a Scriptural principle. The early followers of Christ were intent on “passing on” the truth that had been given to them (I Corinthians 15:3). They saw the possessions that they had been given as instruments of generosity to be shared with others (Acts 4:32-35). Jesus Himself told His disciples that others would recognize them as His followers based on how they loved each other. And what would prompt their love for one another – His love that He had first given them (John 13:34-35).

The saying, however, is true in another way as well.  Not only were we given good things in order to pass them on to others, but when Christ uses us to pass on His good gifts, that in itself if a blessing. In other words, we are blessed when we are a blessing. It is a privilege to be used in order to demonstrate Christ’s love and compassion to another.

Viewing service this way, changes your perspective on it. You no longer mind the late night phone calls, or the additional appointment at the end of an already busy day, because you realize that God is granting you favor by using you for His purposes. You realize that a lack of sleep is nothing in comparison to the gain in Heaven. You start recognizing all the benefits and experiences that God has given you, in order to equip you for this particular task. When faced with a difficult situation, your heart pleads “Lord, use this so that one day it might enable me to encourage or strengthen someone else,” rather than “Lord. please just end this!”

Not that I’m perfect at this. I still have days where I wonder how I’ll get things done. There are moments where I ponder whether I can really handle all the relationships and responsibilities that God has entrusted me with. But the more I see it as a privilege, the less I view it as a problem. The more I see it as a blessing, the more I realized how blessed I am.


Always Relevant

March 7, 2011 in Purpose with 3 Comments

Working with college students, it’s a struggle to stay relevant. After all, they use words that I’ve never heard of. They refer to bands whose names aren’t even familiar. They’re pop culture references are completely different than mine.

Yet even in this struggle to stay current, there is one way that we can all stay relevant. As Simone Weil said “To be always relevant, you have to say things which are eternal.” In other words, in order to be relevant, you have to say things which transcend this present time. You have to focus on the things that are always true, in order to never be out-of-touch. And what we know is always true is the One who is Truth. What we know is always prescient, is the Person who never changes. We know that when we focus on Him who was before the creation of the world, and Who will be long after it is gone, we are focused on that which remains current even when time is no more.

And so the question becomes, are we always relevant? Do we spend our time talking about the things that will matter in the next life, or are we focused on the things that only matter in this? Are we busy doing those things that will build up treasures in Heaven, or are we amassing a fortune that will only exist on Earth? Are we consumed with building relationships that will last for eternity by sharing the Gospel with those who don’t know, or is our aim to only pursue those relationships that will benefit us while we still reside here? If we are focused on what is considered to be relevant in this life, it’s almost a certainty that it won’t be relevant in the next. And if it’s not relevant there, than it’s not worthy of our attention here.

May we focus on staying relevant, not for now, but for eternity.


For Who’s Sake?

March 4, 2011 in Purpose with 4 Comments

“I want you to know, brothers,that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel, so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard and to all the rest that my imprisonment is for Christ” – Philippians 1:12-13*

There are a lot of things in life that prompt action:

  • Our feelings towards someone
  • Opportunities that we want to take advantage of
  • The directive of someone in authority
  • Bad circumstances we want to avoid.

And while we all understand that our actions are precipitated by these things, it’s important for the Christian to understand that “we” are not to be central consideration for the actions that we take. In fact, even when it’s the actions of others that are affecting us, our comfort, our convenience and our concerns are not of primary importance. Because as Paul so wonderful makes clear in Philippians 1:12-13, everything we have, and everything we do, should be for the sake of Christ.

After all, here was a man who is writing about being wrongly imprissioned, and what he is reflecting upon is how God has used his circumstances for eternity’s purposes. He considers even his chains to be “for Christ” because he recognizes that as a result the Gospel has spread. His life was focused on a single aim  – “how can what I do, what happens to me, be used for Christ?”

It’s the right focus for every Christian’s life – to see our circumstances not through the lens of “what does this mean for me?” but “what does this mean for Christ?” - because we want our lives to truly matter.

We want our lives to be used for Christ’s sake.
Now it’s your turn….

How will you let your life be used for Christ’s sake?

*Author’s Note – For a slightly different take on the same passage, check out my previous post here.


Beauty Obsessed

February 24, 2011 in Purpose with 4 Comments

There are girls who put make-up on in the middle of the day.

Really, there are.

Just like there are girls who change their hairstyles and their clothes multiple times throughout the day.

As you might imagine if you’ve read this far, I am not one of those girls.

But I’ve tried to be.

I’ve packed make-up into my purse, stored a hairbrush in my office, and try to get excited about changing into a different outfit at different times of the day, but I’m just not  motivated enough to stop whatever it is I’m working on to care about these things.

Yet I’m still obsessed with appearances.

As low-maintenance as I am, I still care about what people think of how I look, what I wear, and the manner I present myself.

When I should be obsessed with an entirely different type of beauty.

Instead of focusing on how I look, I should be focused on how I make Christ look.

Instead of being consumed with what I wear, I should be consumed with the fact that I’m covered in His blood.

Instead of caring about how I present myself, I should be concerned with how I’m presenting Him.

Because I shouldn’t be obsessed what making myself look good, I should be obsessed with displaying the beauty that already is – the beauty of Christ.

What do you think?……

How would life be different if you were more obsessed with God’s beauty?



The Un-Plan

February 22, 2011 in Purpose with 1 Comment

When I was younger we had this cool soda fountain glass that was inverted.

The wide part, which would normally be at the top, was at the bottom.

The skinny part, normally the base of the cup, was at the top.

On the cup was a 7-Up logo with their then tagline underneath “The Un-Cola.”

It was a pretty effective promotion. (After all, I still remember it and my parents kept the glass for years because it was so different.) The message was clear. Just like the cup was the opposite of what was expected, 7-Up was different from the expected dark cola soft drink.

Sometimes it feels like life is a lot like that glass.

It gets turn upside down, inside out, and every other which way.

Our expectations are scattered as life hands us the unexpected.

The familiar becomes foreign.

And just like 7-Up was “The Un-Cola,” we quickly realized that our carefully planned and organized lives are anything but.

Or are they?

Because although our plans may get inverted, God’s plans are still right side up.

If we’re honest with ourselves, we’d admit that we never really know what would happen anyways, so pretending that we are somehow able to plan for it was a delusion. What matters is whether our lives, as scattered or as jumbled as they may get, are being used by Him.

And as long as we are using our lives to be poured out for His purposes, we can be confident that our lives will be the real thing* – because our lives will reflect Him.

(*I suspect that my dad would have been one of the only people who would get this play on words. For many years, Coke’s slogan was “It’s The Real Thing.” I know my daddy would have loved that I knew that, and that I inserted it into this blog.)

Now it’s your turn….

How do you respond when God’s plans are different from yours?


Frustrating God’s Work

February 21, 2011 in Purpose with 3 Comments

It is a serious thought that the disobedience of the men he had set free from blindness and leprosy should be able to hamper him in his work for his father. But his best friends, his lovers did the same. That he should be crucified was a horror to them; they would have made him a king, and ruined his father’s work. He preferred the cruelty of his enemies to the kindness of his friends. The former with evil intent wrought his father’s will; the latter with good intent would have frustrated it. -  George MacDonald (1824-1905), “The Displeasure of Jesus”, in Unspoken Sermons, Third Series, London: Longmans, Green, 1889, p. 190


It’s amazing the ill that good intentions can bring about.

After all, it’s not a common situation to hear of somebody who has asked for prayers that they might have the courage to do what God has called them to, only to be told by well-meaning Christians that perhaps that’s now what God wants for them.

  • Becoming an overseas missionary.
  • Leaving a promising career to pursue an unfamiliar field.
  • Evangelizing a stranger.

All uncomfortable and challenging situations, and all situations that God has used to accomplish much for His kingdom.

And yet, often when we hear of someone we love wanting to do these things, and perhaps struggling with their human desires to abdicate this call, their fellow believers, their spiritual family, may attempt to dissuade them.

Not because they don’t agree that these are good things, but because they don’t want someone they love to have to pay the price that so often accompanies them.

They are willing to sacrifice their loved ones’ eternal rewards, for their temporal comforts.

And while we can’t expect our feelings to be a reliable indication of what God has called us to do, and therefore it is often helpful to get the wisdom of mature believers, we also shouldn’t expect that every believer will always be able to look past the cost to us, in order to see the cause of Christ.

After all, His own disciples weren’t able to do this.

  • They didn’t want to see a crucifixion, they wanted to see a King.
  • They weren’t looking to be free from sin, they wanted to be free from political oppression.
  • They wanted a revolution, they got a resurrection.

And just like Christ’s didn’t let His friends frustrate God’s purpose for their lives, we shouldn’t let our friends either.

No matter how good intentioned they might be.

*Let me echo what I said earlier, that godly counsel is not only wise, it is biblical (Prov. 15:22) We do, however, need to make sure that the counsel we receive is biblical too; that are counselors are focused on what God wants, not their own desires.

Now it’s your turn….

  • What do you do when friends try to discourage you from doing what God’s called you?

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