Erma Bombeck was one of my favorite newspaper columnists. I do miss her! When writing on her favorite subject, "children and family life", she had the wonderful capacity of being able to combine profundity and playfulness. She had the amazing ability of being able to call our attention to serious matters without letting us take ourselves too seriously.
One of my esteemed clergy friends, Dr. Norman Neaves, once introduced a sermon by reading Erma Bombeck’s "Ten Rules to Live By." Since Mother’s Day is just a few days away, perhaps these Ten Rules would be worth reading.
Here they are. First, never have more children than you have car windows! Second, gravity always wins. Accept that. Science is trying to reverse the aging process and the kicker is that you look young on the outside, but on the inside you’re still aging. There’s no advantage to looking like Arnold Schwarzenegger on the beach if you can’t travel two feet from a restroom! And third, never loan your car to someone to whom you have given birth.
Here’s the fourth one: Pick your friends carefully. A "friend" never goes on a diet when you’re fat or tells you how lucky you are to have a husband who remembers Mother’s Day - when his gift to you was a smoke alarm! And the fifth one: Seize the moment. Remember all those women on the Titanic who waved off the dessert cart! And the sixth rule: given a choice between the man of your dreams and a plumber, choose the latter. Men who can fix your toilet on Sundays are hard to come by!
This is rule number seven: Know the difference between success and fame. Success is Mother Teresa. Fame is Madonna! Number eight: Never be in a hurry to terminate a marriage. Remember, you may need this man or woman someday to complete a sentence for you! And the ninth rule: There are no guarantees in marriage. If that’s what you’re looking for, go live with a Sears battery! And finally, here’s the last one, rule number ten: Never go to your class reunion pregnant. If you do, they’ll think that’s all you’ve been doing since you graduated!
Well, that ought to get us ready to consider the serious responsibility of child rearing. Now that I am well past the biblical statute of limitations of three score and ten years of age, and soon to be an octogenarian, and my children are married and live 100 miles away I have become an authority on the subject. I can explain the process, and dwell on the particulars with senile rapture! So listen up.
by Dr. Thomas Lane Butts, Pastor Emeritus, Monroeville First United Methodist Church
Monday, May 4, 2009
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
THE LAST LICK, by Dr. Thomas Lane Butts, Pastor Emeritus
A little girl came in from the playground at school one day sobbing as if her heart would break. The teacher went immediately to the child and asked if she were hurt. She said she was not hurt. "Then why in the world are you crying?" asked the teacher. Between sobs the little girl said, "Susan hit me and the bell rang before I could hit her back."
The need to "get even" with people who have hurt us is strong. We want to have the "last word" in an argument and the "last lick" in a fight. Nothing is more fragile than our pride. But anybody can get in the "last word", or the "last lick" and keep the battle going. Only the strongest and the most mature can absorb the "last lick" and end the battle.
If there is anything that the world and our community needs, it is people who are filled with enough love and grace to allow someone else to have the last word or the last lick. Having the strength not to strike back causes momentary pain, but after the initial blow to pride, that pain is transformed to strange strength. Conversely, those who have the last word feel very good initially about their conquest, but after the initial flush of pride, last words begin to turn to ashes in one’s mouth.
One of the notable achievements of Jesus, for which he is remembered as one of uncommon strength, was how he let the cruel world have the last lick. Even the Roman soldiers on the execution team that killed him looked up as he died and began to wonder who had really won. Today, there is no doubt as to who won. But what if Jesus had insisted on the last lick or the last word?
It takes maturity to deal with conflicts in such a way as to bring lasting victory and lasting peace. In addition to all the theological understanding of Jesus, he is also a noble and notable model for us in dealing with physical or verbal conflict.
Test the strength of your character today - let someone else have the "last word". If necessary, let someone else get in the "last lick."
by Dr. Thomas Lane Butts, Pastor Emeritus, Monroeville First United Methodist Church
The need to "get even" with people who have hurt us is strong. We want to have the "last word" in an argument and the "last lick" in a fight. Nothing is more fragile than our pride. But anybody can get in the "last word", or the "last lick" and keep the battle going. Only the strongest and the most mature can absorb the "last lick" and end the battle.
If there is anything that the world and our community needs, it is people who are filled with enough love and grace to allow someone else to have the last word or the last lick. Having the strength not to strike back causes momentary pain, but after the initial blow to pride, that pain is transformed to strange strength. Conversely, those who have the last word feel very good initially about their conquest, but after the initial flush of pride, last words begin to turn to ashes in one’s mouth.
One of the notable achievements of Jesus, for which he is remembered as one of uncommon strength, was how he let the cruel world have the last lick. Even the Roman soldiers on the execution team that killed him looked up as he died and began to wonder who had really won. Today, there is no doubt as to who won. But what if Jesus had insisted on the last lick or the last word?
It takes maturity to deal with conflicts in such a way as to bring lasting victory and lasting peace. In addition to all the theological understanding of Jesus, he is also a noble and notable model for us in dealing with physical or verbal conflict.
Test the strength of your character today - let someone else have the "last word". If necessary, let someone else get in the "last lick."
by Dr. Thomas Lane Butts, Pastor Emeritus, Monroeville First United Methodist Church
Monday, April 20, 2009
WALKING IN HOLINESS....FOCUSED by Dr. Jim Savage
"As we begin to Focus upon God, the things of the Spirit will take shape before our inner eyes." (A.W. Tozer, 1897-1963)
1 John
This epistle is a discourse upon the principles of Christianity, in doctrine and practice. The design appears to be to refute and guard against erroneous and unholy tenets, principles, and practices, especially such as would lower the Godhead of Christ, and the Reality and Power of His sufferings and death as an Atoning Sacrifice; and against the assertion that Believers being saved by Grace are not required to obey the Commandments.
This epistle also stirs up all who profess to know God, to have Communion with Him, and to Believe in Him, and that they Walk in Holiness, not in sin, showing that a mere outward profession is nothing without the Evidence of a Holy Life and Conduct.
It also helps forward and excites real Christians to Communion with God and the Lord Jesus Christ, to Constancy in the True Faith and the Purity of Life. (Preface to 1 John, Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on the Whole Bible)
"Give us Love, sweetest of all Gifts, which knows no enemy. Give us in our hearts pure Love, born of Your Love to us, that we may Love others as You Love us. O most Loving Father of Jesus Christ, from whom flows All Love, let our hearts, frozen in sin, cold to You and cold to others, be warmed by this Divine Fire. So help and bless us in Your Son. Amen." (St. Anselm, 1033-1109)
"These Things Are True of You" (1996, Tommy Walker)
Unshakable, immovable, Faithful and True; Full of Wisdom, Strength, and Beauty:
These things are True of You.
Fearless, Courageous, Righteousness shines Through in All You do;
Yet You're so humble, You laid down Your Life:
These things are True of You.
And as I turn my face to You, Oh Lord, I ask and pray, By the Power of Your Love and Grace,
Make these things True of me, too.
Make these things True of me, too.
"Eternal and Most Glorious God, You have stamped the soul of humanity with Your Image, received it into Your revenue, and made it part of Your Treasure; do not allow us so to undervalue ourselves, so to impoverish You, as to give away these souls for nothing, and all the world is nothing if the soul must be given for it. Do this, O God, for His sake who Knows our natural infirmities, for He had them, and Knows the weight of our sins, for He paid a dear Price for them; Your Son, our Savior Jesus Christ." (John Donne, 1572-1631)
"What does Love look like? It has hands to Help others. It has feet to Hasten to the poor and needy. It has eyes to See misery and want. It has ears to Hear the sighs and sorrow of others. That is what Love looks like." (Saint Augustine of Hippo, 354-430)
1 John
This epistle is a discourse upon the principles of Christianity, in doctrine and practice. The design appears to be to refute and guard against erroneous and unholy tenets, principles, and practices, especially such as would lower the Godhead of Christ, and the Reality and Power of His sufferings and death as an Atoning Sacrifice; and against the assertion that Believers being saved by Grace are not required to obey the Commandments.
This epistle also stirs up all who profess to know God, to have Communion with Him, and to Believe in Him, and that they Walk in Holiness, not in sin, showing that a mere outward profession is nothing without the Evidence of a Holy Life and Conduct.
It also helps forward and excites real Christians to Communion with God and the Lord Jesus Christ, to Constancy in the True Faith and the Purity of Life. (Preface to 1 John, Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on the Whole Bible)
"Give us Love, sweetest of all Gifts, which knows no enemy. Give us in our hearts pure Love, born of Your Love to us, that we may Love others as You Love us. O most Loving Father of Jesus Christ, from whom flows All Love, let our hearts, frozen in sin, cold to You and cold to others, be warmed by this Divine Fire. So help and bless us in Your Son. Amen." (St. Anselm, 1033-1109)
"These Things Are True of You" (1996, Tommy Walker)
Unshakable, immovable, Faithful and True; Full of Wisdom, Strength, and Beauty:
These things are True of You.
Fearless, Courageous, Righteousness shines Through in All You do;
Yet You're so humble, You laid down Your Life:
These things are True of You.
And as I turn my face to You, Oh Lord, I ask and pray, By the Power of Your Love and Grace,
Make these things True of me, too.
Make these things True of me, too.
"Eternal and Most Glorious God, You have stamped the soul of humanity with Your Image, received it into Your revenue, and made it part of Your Treasure; do not allow us so to undervalue ourselves, so to impoverish You, as to give away these souls for nothing, and all the world is nothing if the soul must be given for it. Do this, O God, for His sake who Knows our natural infirmities, for He had them, and Knows the weight of our sins, for He paid a dear Price for them; Your Son, our Savior Jesus Christ." (John Donne, 1572-1631)
"What does Love look like? It has hands to Help others. It has feet to Hasten to the poor and needy. It has eyes to See misery and want. It has ears to Hear the sighs and sorrow of others. That is what Love looks like." (Saint Augustine of Hippo, 354-430)
Monday, March 2, 2009
Mental Poverty
During my active years of sermon writing I used some short, anecdotal pieces about Hetty Green who was reputed to be the richest woman in America at the end of the 19th Century. I recently came across a biography of Hetty Green, written by Charles Slack. The anecdotal material I read had made it clear that she was eccentric, stingy, crafty, and thoughtless of everyone and everything except herself and her money. While the biography softened my view of her, it remains clear that she was a scheming, wealthy woman who in spite of her great wealth was a lonely and unhappy person. At the turn of the century her net worth was estimated to be between one and two hundred million dollars, which in today’s currency would push a billion. To say she was "frugal" would hardly reflect how much she loved her money.
John J. Cisco of the Cisco Bank loved to tell of the day he looked out the window of his office at 59 Wall Street and saw Hetty stepping off a public coach on Broadway, carrying a bulky parcel. When he greeted her at the door he learned that the parcel contained $200,000 in negotiable bonds. He asked if she did not think it risky to have brought these bonds downtown in a public stage. Cisco said: "You should have hired a carriage." Hetty arched her eyebrow and said: "Perhaps you can afford to ride in a carriage – I cannot!" Hetty Green was way beyond "frugal." Her whole life was about her money. She lived as if she were poor, and in spite of her immense wealth, I suppose she was "mentally poor."
Many people in our culture live in the fear that they will not have enough to last them to the end of the row, or that they will not be able to leave a respectable bequest to their heirs. Laboring under the fear that there will not be enough we tend to develop "mental poverty." This is a malady that is impervious to facts to the contrary. The nagging fear that there will not be enough begets a degree of anxiety which puts a shadow over all of life. There are many people with modest, but adequate, assets who suffer the "Hetty Green Syndrome." If you believe you are poor and live as if you are poor, then you are poor – no matter how much money you have.
My friend and colleague, Dr. Norman Neaves, once told a story that illustrates how we can be in the shadow of plenty and live as if we are poverty stricken.
Many years ago there was a man who lived in the Netherlands who wanted to immigrate to America. He finally saved enough money to buy a ticket to America in steerage. He had very little money left over, but he took what was left and bought all kinds of simple foods to eat on the trip.
During the voyage, when everyone else was going to the dining halls, he would slip away to his tiny room way down below and munch on whatever he could find in one of his suitcases. After awhile, it started to get to him. There were all of these sumptuous spreads of food in the dining halls from breakfast in the morning until dinner late at night, and all he had to eat were crackers and cookies and a few other imperishables. Each day his resentment grew as he watched all the other people go to the dining hall. He kept telling himself he was poor and that he did not have money like everyone else and that this was the very best he could do.
On next to the last day of the trip, he happened to be talking with another man who was also traveling all by himself. The man looked at his watch and said, "Oh my goodness, it’s almost noon. We better hurry or we’re not going to get any lunch." And the man had to say to him, "I’m sorry, but I will not be able to go. I do not have enough money to buy lunch today." The man said, "What do you mean you don’t have enough money to buy lunch? Do you not know it is included in the price of your ticket?" The fellow was absolutely dumbfounded because he did not know that. He had traveled all the way across the ocean eating crackers and cookies when he could have been eating at the table with everyone else.
There are people who live in poverty – actual poverty. Some of them are in our own city, county, and state. Some of them are on the other side of the world, and some of them are on the other side of town. They are the poor and oppressed about whom Jesus spoke in Matthew 25. But almost all of you who read this column are not poor; but some of you suffer "mental poverty" and live in fear that there is not enough. If you fit into that category, may you never actually become as poor as you imagine yourself to be. Learn to celebrate living in a land where there is enough. Use what you have. Don't sit on it. Spend it or give it away, but don"t fall in love with it, because you are not going to be able to take it with you when you leave on the "Long Journey."
John J. Cisco of the Cisco Bank loved to tell of the day he looked out the window of his office at 59 Wall Street and saw Hetty stepping off a public coach on Broadway, carrying a bulky parcel. When he greeted her at the door he learned that the parcel contained $200,000 in negotiable bonds. He asked if she did not think it risky to have brought these bonds downtown in a public stage. Cisco said: "You should have hired a carriage." Hetty arched her eyebrow and said: "Perhaps you can afford to ride in a carriage – I cannot!" Hetty Green was way beyond "frugal." Her whole life was about her money. She lived as if she were poor, and in spite of her immense wealth, I suppose she was "mentally poor."
Many people in our culture live in the fear that they will not have enough to last them to the end of the row, or that they will not be able to leave a respectable bequest to their heirs. Laboring under the fear that there will not be enough we tend to develop "mental poverty." This is a malady that is impervious to facts to the contrary. The nagging fear that there will not be enough begets a degree of anxiety which puts a shadow over all of life. There are many people with modest, but adequate, assets who suffer the "Hetty Green Syndrome." If you believe you are poor and live as if you are poor, then you are poor – no matter how much money you have.
My friend and colleague, Dr. Norman Neaves, once told a story that illustrates how we can be in the shadow of plenty and live as if we are poverty stricken.
Many years ago there was a man who lived in the Netherlands who wanted to immigrate to America. He finally saved enough money to buy a ticket to America in steerage. He had very little money left over, but he took what was left and bought all kinds of simple foods to eat on the trip.
During the voyage, when everyone else was going to the dining halls, he would slip away to his tiny room way down below and munch on whatever he could find in one of his suitcases. After awhile, it started to get to him. There were all of these sumptuous spreads of food in the dining halls from breakfast in the morning until dinner late at night, and all he had to eat were crackers and cookies and a few other imperishables. Each day his resentment grew as he watched all the other people go to the dining hall. He kept telling himself he was poor and that he did not have money like everyone else and that this was the very best he could do.
On next to the last day of the trip, he happened to be talking with another man who was also traveling all by himself. The man looked at his watch and said, "Oh my goodness, it’s almost noon. We better hurry or we’re not going to get any lunch." And the man had to say to him, "I’m sorry, but I will not be able to go. I do not have enough money to buy lunch today." The man said, "What do you mean you don’t have enough money to buy lunch? Do you not know it is included in the price of your ticket?" The fellow was absolutely dumbfounded because he did not know that. He had traveled all the way across the ocean eating crackers and cookies when he could have been eating at the table with everyone else.
There are people who live in poverty – actual poverty. Some of them are in our own city, county, and state. Some of them are on the other side of the world, and some of them are on the other side of town. They are the poor and oppressed about whom Jesus spoke in Matthew 25. But almost all of you who read this column are not poor; but some of you suffer "mental poverty" and live in fear that there is not enough. If you fit into that category, may you never actually become as poor as you imagine yourself to be. Learn to celebrate living in a land where there is enough. Use what you have. Don't sit on it. Spend it or give it away, but don"t fall in love with it, because you are not going to be able to take it with you when you leave on the "Long Journey."
Friday, February 27, 2009
WAITING TO RECEIVE INSTRUCTIONS by Dr. Jim Savage
Power / Companion
Lectionary: 1 Peter 5:8-9
Be Alert!
The greatest tactic a lion has is surprise. Once its prey realizes there is a lion in the thicket, there is a good chance the lion will go hungry that night.
Peter posts a warning sign right in front of every follower of Christ. There is a lion in the thicket! His warning resounds throughout history. Satan is still alive and active. His tactics have not changed. His intentions are still as evil and destructive as they have ever been. That's the bad news.
The Good News is that we have the Power to resist. We can stand strong against the enemy and be victorious. James puts it this way: "Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you" (Jas 4:7). John says it like this: "The One who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world" (1 Jn 4:4). There is a battle at hand----no question! But there is Power for Victory in Jesus Christ. (Women of Faith Study Bible)
REFLECTION:
When you consider Peter's life as a disciple of Jesus, would you say that you are serious in the same way he was about being taught by Christ? Dallas Willard in "Renovation of the Heart": "Disciples of Jesus are those who are with Him learning to be like Him. That is, they are learning to lead their life, their actual existence, as He would lead their life if He were they......They are learning how to walk with Jesus and learn from Him in every aspect of their individual lives."
What aspect of your life has Jesus been focusing on recently? What is He teaching you?
"By all means remember to pray earnestly for me.....Emulate each other in prayer with holy rivalry, with one heart, for you wrestle not against each other, but against the devil, who is the common enemy of all the saints......For your conscience is responsible to God; to each other owe nothing but mutual Love. May the Lord, who is able to do above what we ask or think, give ear to your prayers." (St. Augustine, "Letter 130---to Proba")
"So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in Him, rooted and built up in Him, strengthened in the Faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness." (Col 2:6-7)
Shalom, Jim
Lectionary: 1 Peter 5:8-9
Be Alert!
The greatest tactic a lion has is surprise. Once its prey realizes there is a lion in the thicket, there is a good chance the lion will go hungry that night.
Peter posts a warning sign right in front of every follower of Christ. There is a lion in the thicket! His warning resounds throughout history. Satan is still alive and active. His tactics have not changed. His intentions are still as evil and destructive as they have ever been. That's the bad news.
The Good News is that we have the Power to resist. We can stand strong against the enemy and be victorious. James puts it this way: "Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you" (Jas 4:7). John says it like this: "The One who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world" (1 Jn 4:4). There is a battle at hand----no question! But there is Power for Victory in Jesus Christ. (Women of Faith Study Bible)
REFLECTION:
When you consider Peter's life as a disciple of Jesus, would you say that you are serious in the same way he was about being taught by Christ? Dallas Willard in "Renovation of the Heart": "Disciples of Jesus are those who are with Him learning to be like Him. That is, they are learning to lead their life, their actual existence, as He would lead their life if He were they......They are learning how to walk with Jesus and learn from Him in every aspect of their individual lives."
What aspect of your life has Jesus been focusing on recently? What is He teaching you?
"By all means remember to pray earnestly for me.....Emulate each other in prayer with holy rivalry, with one heart, for you wrestle not against each other, but against the devil, who is the common enemy of all the saints......For your conscience is responsible to God; to each other owe nothing but mutual Love. May the Lord, who is able to do above what we ask or think, give ear to your prayers." (St. Augustine, "Letter 130---to Proba")
"So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in Him, rooted and built up in Him, strengthened in the Faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness." (Col 2:6-7)
Shalom, Jim
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Making Points With God by Jon Walker
“For no one can ever be made right in God's sight by doing what his law commands. For the more we know God's law, the clearer it becomes that we aren't obeying it. But now God has shown us a different way of being right in his sight—not by obeying the law but by the way promised in the Scriptures long ago.” (Romans 3:20-21 NLT)
Brett Favre, the lion-hearted quarterback for the Green Bay Packers, is one of my favorite players in the National Football League. He’s courageous and tough-minded, showing a rare grace under pressure, yet his boyish enthusiasm for the game is infectious as he celebrates each Packer success.
A couple of Sundays ago (Sept. 30), Brett threw a pass that set a new record: the most touchdown passes by an NFL quarterback – 421.
Although the Pack was playing in Minnesota, the officials temporarily stopped the game in order to honor Brett’s achievement. And Brett, in his customary humility, later said he was more interested in a team win than an individual record.
In surprising contrast, the very next week (Oct. 8) Brett tied another record: the most interceptions thrown by an NFL quarterback – 277. This game also was stopped after this record was achieved, but only because the interception ended the Packer’s last-second attempt to win the game.
The most touchdown passes and the most interceptions! It reminds me that there was a time when Babe Ruth, the baseball player who was one of the greatest hitters in the game, owned two records simultaneously: the most home runs hit in a career as well as the most strike-outs in a career.
Here’s the thing: We tend to think of life as a balance sheet that we’ll eventually present to God. As long as the number of our touchdown passes exceed the number of our interceptions, then we’re cool with God, right? To echo the Apostle Paul, God forbid this to be true!
“For no one can ever be made right in God's sight by doing what his law commands. For the more we know God's law, the clearer it becomes that we aren't obeying it.” (Romans 3:20 NLT)
In other words, we can never be made right by throwing touchdown passes – because the more we learn about the Law, the more obvious it is we can never throw enough touchdown passes to make things right with God.
“But now God has shown us a different way of being right in his sight—not by obeying the law but by the way promised in the Scriptures long ago.” (Romans 3:21 NLT)
In his own geek-Greek way, Paul is saying we should forget the balance sheet – ignore the scoreboard, give up on tracking good and bad statistics. Listen, there is good news! There’s another way to get right in God’s sight, and it has nothing to do with your own achievements. It’s based on a promise made by God long ago – a promise is fulfilled through Jesus Christ.
Can I get an amen?
We are saved by grace and not through faith. It is a gift from God, not by our own works, so that none of us can boast of the ability to tip the balance sheet in our own favor. (Ephesians 2:8-9)
No doubt you’ve heard this over and over again, including many times in these devotionals. Yet many of us still live as if we get right in God’s sight by what we do – by our works, our achievements, the records we set.
We do this because it is, as Paul says, an offense to think of the Gospel as so simple and, therefore, it becomes a stumbling block to our pride. Getting right in God’s sight by what we do appeals to our human pride, or as the poet-king James would say, it appeals to our “flesh.”
It makes us feel good, as if we’re doing something to earn our way into heaven. If we cling to the idea that we can, even in some small way, contribute toward our salvation, then we also can cling to the idea that maybe we’re not that bad – maybe we aren’t included in the “all” of “all have sinned and fall short of God’s glory.”
Put that behind you and get on with the truth: You, my friend, can never be made right in God's sight by doing what is right – because the closer you get to God, the more you’ll realize you’re not even close to getting it right (see Isaiah 6 and Romans 3:20).
The one thing you can do is to move in loving obedience to your gracious heavenly Father, doing and saying whatever he tells you to do and say; allowing your life to be energized by God’s Spirit within you.
What now?
· “Balance sheet” fear – Good news! You are free to follow the Father instead of living in “balance sheet” fear. You can be who you were meant to be and you can live how you were meant to live. You don’t have to be good enough – you just have to trust in the redemptive power of Christ’s resurrection from the dead. And you don’t have to fear if you hold both the record for most touchdown passes and the record for most interceptions – love God and live accordingly!
· Record of faith – A record of your faith in Jesus is more important than any record of your wrongs or resume of your achievements. If you haven’t already done this, set a spiritual marker as a reminder that you have received Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. Write it down – or establish some other kind of tangible memorial for this event – and every time the devil tells you you’ll never be good enough for God, or that you’re so good you can remain independent of God, take him to that marker and remind him that you are right in God’s sight because of Jesus.
· Big play – Next time you’re watching a sporting event and one of the players makes the big play, turn to the person next to you and say, “That was a great play, but it won’t make him right in God’s sight.”
· Huge error – Likewise, next time you’re watching a sporting event and one of the players makes a huge error, turn to the person next to you and say, “That was a huge error, but the good news is it won’t keep him from getting right in God’s sight.”
· Pray for others – Ask God to show you who to pray for, related to getting right in God’s sight. It may be a non-believer or someone who believes but struggles in this area. Pray that this person will know God’s “different way of being right in his sight—not by obeying the law but by the way promised in the Scriptures long ago (Romans 3:21 NLT) And pray that Brett Favre and his family will come to know this truth, so that when he retires from football he can spend the rest of his life preaching how to be right in God’s sight.
Brett Favre, the lion-hearted quarterback for the Green Bay Packers, is one of my favorite players in the National Football League. He’s courageous and tough-minded, showing a rare grace under pressure, yet his boyish enthusiasm for the game is infectious as he celebrates each Packer success.
A couple of Sundays ago (Sept. 30), Brett threw a pass that set a new record: the most touchdown passes by an NFL quarterback – 421.
Although the Pack was playing in Minnesota, the officials temporarily stopped the game in order to honor Brett’s achievement. And Brett, in his customary humility, later said he was more interested in a team win than an individual record.
In surprising contrast, the very next week (Oct. 8) Brett tied another record: the most interceptions thrown by an NFL quarterback – 277. This game also was stopped after this record was achieved, but only because the interception ended the Packer’s last-second attempt to win the game.
The most touchdown passes and the most interceptions! It reminds me that there was a time when Babe Ruth, the baseball player who was one of the greatest hitters in the game, owned two records simultaneously: the most home runs hit in a career as well as the most strike-outs in a career.
Here’s the thing: We tend to think of life as a balance sheet that we’ll eventually present to God. As long as the number of our touchdown passes exceed the number of our interceptions, then we’re cool with God, right? To echo the Apostle Paul, God forbid this to be true!
“For no one can ever be made right in God's sight by doing what his law commands. For the more we know God's law, the clearer it becomes that we aren't obeying it.” (Romans 3:20 NLT)
In other words, we can never be made right by throwing touchdown passes – because the more we learn about the Law, the more obvious it is we can never throw enough touchdown passes to make things right with God.
“But now God has shown us a different way of being right in his sight—not by obeying the law but by the way promised in the Scriptures long ago.” (Romans 3:21 NLT)
In his own geek-Greek way, Paul is saying we should forget the balance sheet – ignore the scoreboard, give up on tracking good and bad statistics. Listen, there is good news! There’s another way to get right in God’s sight, and it has nothing to do with your own achievements. It’s based on a promise made by God long ago – a promise is fulfilled through Jesus Christ.
Can I get an amen?
We are saved by grace and not through faith. It is a gift from God, not by our own works, so that none of us can boast of the ability to tip the balance sheet in our own favor. (Ephesians 2:8-9)
No doubt you’ve heard this over and over again, including many times in these devotionals. Yet many of us still live as if we get right in God’s sight by what we do – by our works, our achievements, the records we set.
We do this because it is, as Paul says, an offense to think of the Gospel as so simple and, therefore, it becomes a stumbling block to our pride. Getting right in God’s sight by what we do appeals to our human pride, or as the poet-king James would say, it appeals to our “flesh.”
It makes us feel good, as if we’re doing something to earn our way into heaven. If we cling to the idea that we can, even in some small way, contribute toward our salvation, then we also can cling to the idea that maybe we’re not that bad – maybe we aren’t included in the “all” of “all have sinned and fall short of God’s glory.”
Put that behind you and get on with the truth: You, my friend, can never be made right in God's sight by doing what is right – because the closer you get to God, the more you’ll realize you’re not even close to getting it right (see Isaiah 6 and Romans 3:20).
The one thing you can do is to move in loving obedience to your gracious heavenly Father, doing and saying whatever he tells you to do and say; allowing your life to be energized by God’s Spirit within you.
What now?
· “Balance sheet” fear – Good news! You are free to follow the Father instead of living in “balance sheet” fear. You can be who you were meant to be and you can live how you were meant to live. You don’t have to be good enough – you just have to trust in the redemptive power of Christ’s resurrection from the dead. And you don’t have to fear if you hold both the record for most touchdown passes and the record for most interceptions – love God and live accordingly!
· Record of faith – A record of your faith in Jesus is more important than any record of your wrongs or resume of your achievements. If you haven’t already done this, set a spiritual marker as a reminder that you have received Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. Write it down – or establish some other kind of tangible memorial for this event – and every time the devil tells you you’ll never be good enough for God, or that you’re so good you can remain independent of God, take him to that marker and remind him that you are right in God’s sight because of Jesus.
· Big play – Next time you’re watching a sporting event and one of the players makes the big play, turn to the person next to you and say, “That was a great play, but it won’t make him right in God’s sight.”
· Huge error – Likewise, next time you’re watching a sporting event and one of the players makes a huge error, turn to the person next to you and say, “That was a huge error, but the good news is it won’t keep him from getting right in God’s sight.”
· Pray for others – Ask God to show you who to pray for, related to getting right in God’s sight. It may be a non-believer or someone who believes but struggles in this area. Pray that this person will know God’s “different way of being right in his sight—not by obeying the law but by the way promised in the Scriptures long ago (Romans 3:21 NLT) And pray that Brett Favre and his family will come to know this truth, so that when he retires from football he can spend the rest of his life preaching how to be right in God’s sight.
Monday, February 23, 2009
Getting Practical With Love by Jon Walker
Getting Practical With Love
“Little children, let us stop saying we love people; let us really love them, and show it by our actions.” (1 John 3:18 LB)
The heart is the control center of all actions. How you act reflects what your heart trusts. Dallas Willard says, “You can live opposite of what you profess, but you cannot live opposite of what you believe.”
Eventually what you believe will show up in your actions. If you believe God loves you, then you’ll begin to love others. If you believe God forgives you, then you’ll begin to forgive others.
Your experience of God results in an overflow of his life into the lives of others.
As we allow the Holy Spirit to continually fill us, we become a spring of his love and life to all around us. John would say we have “rivers of living water flowing out of us.” We become a conduit for the life of Jesus.
The life of Jesus is a practical life. The disciples were expected to live out what they heard Jesus say. Jesus told his disciples they would be known by the way they treated others.
He gets specific in Matthew 25:35-36:
· You gave food to the hungry,
· You gave drink to the thirsty,
· You invited a stranger into your home,
· You gave clothes to the naked,
· You cared for the sick,
· You visited the prisoners,
And this isn’t an exhaustive list on the ways to offer practical help. Jesus constantly provides us with down-to-earth examples meant to get us started.
What now?
· Love language – Make a list of people you love and pray through it, asking God to show you what you can do that will speak love to each person.
· Take initiative – When someone is in crisis, we genuinely want to help, and we’ll say, “If there’s anything I can do, please, just let me know.” Start changing that to express a concrete form of love: “I’m going to do this for you.” Maybe you offer to bring over a meal or watch the children.
Perhaps you offer to cut the grass. Maybe you bring a roll of quarters to the hospital so the family can grab snacks and drinks from the vending machine. Be creative – and let the Holy Spirit guide.
· Fake it ‘til you make it – C.S. Lewis said, if you don’t love someone, then act like you do. Eventually the feelings will catch up with your actions.
· Pray – Be still and ask God to show you someone you know who is in need, and ask him how you should help your friend. Seek God about the timing of your help. Ask him to use your act of service to make his presence known to your friend.
by Jon Walker.
“Little children, let us stop saying we love people; let us really love them, and show it by our actions.” (1 John 3:18 LB)
The heart is the control center of all actions. How you act reflects what your heart trusts. Dallas Willard says, “You can live opposite of what you profess, but you cannot live opposite of what you believe.”
Eventually what you believe will show up in your actions. If you believe God loves you, then you’ll begin to love others. If you believe God forgives you, then you’ll begin to forgive others.
Your experience of God results in an overflow of his life into the lives of others.
As we allow the Holy Spirit to continually fill us, we become a spring of his love and life to all around us. John would say we have “rivers of living water flowing out of us.” We become a conduit for the life of Jesus.
The life of Jesus is a practical life. The disciples were expected to live out what they heard Jesus say. Jesus told his disciples they would be known by the way they treated others.
He gets specific in Matthew 25:35-36:
· You gave food to the hungry,
· You gave drink to the thirsty,
· You invited a stranger into your home,
· You gave clothes to the naked,
· You cared for the sick,
· You visited the prisoners,
And this isn’t an exhaustive list on the ways to offer practical help. Jesus constantly provides us with down-to-earth examples meant to get us started.
What now?
· Love language – Make a list of people you love and pray through it, asking God to show you what you can do that will speak love to each person.
· Take initiative – When someone is in crisis, we genuinely want to help, and we’ll say, “If there’s anything I can do, please, just let me know.” Start changing that to express a concrete form of love: “I’m going to do this for you.” Maybe you offer to bring over a meal or watch the children.
Perhaps you offer to cut the grass. Maybe you bring a roll of quarters to the hospital so the family can grab snacks and drinks from the vending machine. Be creative – and let the Holy Spirit guide.
· Fake it ‘til you make it – C.S. Lewis said, if you don’t love someone, then act like you do. Eventually the feelings will catch up with your actions.
· Pray – Be still and ask God to show you someone you know who is in need, and ask him how you should help your friend. Seek God about the timing of your help. Ask him to use your act of service to make his presence known to your friend.
by Jon Walker.
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