A Lesson in Responsibility
As I was reading a book called "Character Sketches," I learned a lesson in responsibility and loyalty illustrated by the common crow. The crows fly together... sometimes in packs as big as 40,000! They are very loyal to one another. As they fly to a field to pick the left over corn after the harvest, two birds at any moment somehow are given the task to stand post to watch for any possible danger. If they see an enemy approaching, they warn the flock with a certain caw so that the entire flock can take flight for protection. Most of the time, these two guard birds are very responsible and realize the importance of the task given them. The book records a story that on one particular occasion, the two guard crows became inattentive and lost their focus. When one crow on the ground picking corn saw the enemy approaching, he immediately gave the signal to the flock that danger was near. As the rest of the flock took flight, they headed straight for the guard crows (whom did not give the signal) and killed them for their irresponsible actions.
Now the thought today WILL NOT be to kill those that are irresponsible!!! I share this story to help us to think about all the different tasks God has given to us. Are there areas in our own lives where we need to refocus and realize the importance of each "job" God has entrusted to us. The crows did not put up with the individual crows that were not "doing their part." Praise God that He is soooooooooooo full of grace and continues to convict and challenge us to continue to become more like Him. If we have made a commitment to the Lord, are we making EVERY EFFORT to fulfill our commitment to Him?
Are we spending time with Jesus, priority #1, on a daily basis? Are we committed to our spouse NO MATTER WHAT as we said we would be on our wedding day? Are we acting responsibly in our jobs as we should to represent Christ correctly? Are we committed to being patient in waiting on God's perfect timing for the strongest desire of our heart? These are some questions we all need to prayerfully consider as we press on to our finish line.
Let us also be reminded today of how important our roles are in the Children's ministry. This is one way we have all committed to serve our Lord. If we do not realize the importance of what we are doing, then we might begin losing our focus. Be reminded that each and every week you come to serve the Lord in a classroom, you are "washing the feet" of 25 (sometimes more!) children. You are allowing AT LEAST 25 (probably closer to 50) adults hear the Word of God and be challenged by the truths in it. You are teaching young, eager minds TRUTH that many of them do not hear on a regular basis. Most importantly, you are being obedient to what God has called you to do for this season of your life.
Let us be challenged to be responsible, realize the importance of our task, and take action to do what God has called us to do as a body of believers. We ought to be MORE responsible and loyal than the crows! Remember 2 Chronicles 16:9 states, "For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him..."
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A Prayer for Ministry
In Ephesians 3:14-21, Paul writes down his prayer for the Ephesian church. We pray that this can become a prayer for all of us that serve together in the Children's Ministry. It states, "For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height- to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen."
The first thing Paul desires for the church is "to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man." "Strengthened" means "to empower, to increase in vigor, and to be strong" in the original Greek. "Might" means "ability, abundance, meaning, and power." So, how do we increase in vigor with ability, abundance, meaning, and power? Through God's Spirit. The first thing Paul realizes the church NEEDS to be able to excel is the Holy Spirit. We too, need God's Spirit on a moment-by-moment basis. Without Him we will surely become weak. Let us remember when we are tired and feel that we cannot go on, that there is SUPERNATURAL strength available to us "THROUGH HIS SPIRIT."
The next thing Paul prays for the Ephesian church is "that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith." The word "dwell" indicates Christ is housed permanently or resides in our hearts through faith. When our faith gets weak, we may feel that Christ has left us. Let us remember that faith comes by hearing the Word of God. May we continue to renew our faith by reading the Word so that we will never doubt that Christ resides in our hearts.
So far, Paul has basically prayed for the Ephesians to remember to always be filled with God's Spirit and to stay in the Word. What will be the result of doing these two vital things?
1. We will be "rooted and grounded in love." "Rooted" means "to root or to become stable." "Grounded" means "to lay a basis for, to lay the foundation, to settle." This means the foundation of our entire being will be LOVE. This will give us STABILITY while we are on this earth doing our best to love in this unstable world.
2. We will "be able to comprehend... to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge." "Comprehend" means in the original Greek "to take eagerly, seize, possess, apprehend, attain, come upon, find, obtain, or perceive." "Know" means "to allow, be aware (of), feel, be sure, or understand." So, we will be able to possess, attain, find, be aware of, be sure about and understand the LOVE of Christ that "passes knowledge." Yes, the love of Christ does "pass knowledge" of most. BUT... this love that is so UNSEARCHABLE and beyond human reason becomes KNOWLEDGE for those of us that are His. WOW!!! This is such a gift. Let us be thankful and take advantage of this wonderful gift. Read the Word and be filled with the Spirit so that we MAY KNOW the LOVE OF CHRIST!!!!
3. We will "be filled with all the fulness of God." This word "filled" means "to cram, to furnish, to satisfy, to be complete, or to fulfill." So, we could say we will be crammed with all the fulness of God, we will be satisfied with all the fulness of God OR we will be complete with all the fulness of God. I WANT THAT!!!
So, two simple things we must remember to do to be able to enjoy these GIFTS and BLESSINGS from God:
1. Be filled with the Spirit and
2. Read the Word!
God is TRULY "able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen."
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Be Determined
1 Corinthians 9:24-27 states, "Remember that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the prize. You also must run in such a way that you will win. All athletes practice strict self-control. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize. So I run straight to the goal with purpose in every step. I am not like a boxer who misses his punches. I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified."
I remember very well the discipline, the self-control, and the determination I had as a high school girl that desired so much to be the best I could be in volleyball and basketball. All the many hours I put into going to camps, leagues, workouts, and practices was due to the determination I had to succeed and help my team win. I personally did not have the "natural" athletic ability that some of my friends had. I had to work very hard to be able to become a contributor to the team. Many of my personal goals were met as an athlete in high school although the reward of such hard work was so very temporal.
As Christians, none of us are very "natural" at being Christ-like. We all must realize that it takes discipline, self-control, and determination to achieve this goal. This could mean a number of things for any of us. Our devotion/prayer time is one discipline that all of us need to be able to obtain this deep desire in all of us to look more like Christ from one day to the next. Some of us need to work harder at self-control whether it means less sugar, less T.V., or even less time spent at work and more time with family. The essential characteristic for each of us, I believe, is determination. If we are not determined, then we will lack discipline and self-control. We will not receive ALL that God has for us. Some of us are more determined in our earthly pursuits than we are to follow through with our commitments to the Lord.
Fellow servants, if we are lacking determination let us pray it back DAILY. Let us "run straight to the goal with purpose in every step."
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Be Quick to Listen
James 1:19 (NLT) states, "My dear brothers and sisters, be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry."
Why would God want us to be "quick to listen?"
As I practically think of the importance of listening, I can think of a few reasons why I want my children to listen to me. First and foremost, IF THEY DON'T LISTEN TO ME, THEY COULD GET HURT. For instance, if the family is walking to the back of our condo building towards the pool and I see that my daughter is about to step on an anthill, I would probably say, "Stop!" If my daughter does not listen to me, then she might get attacked by ants! That would definitely hurt! In the same way, when God speaks to us, He desires to protect us from harm. Proverbs 1:33 states, "But whoever listens to me will dwell safely, and will be secure, without fear of evil."
Another reason I like my children to listen is so that THEY CAN GAIN WISDOM AND KNOWLEDGE. I desire my children to be as smart as they are capable. If they don't listen to the stories I read, the Bible lessons I teach, the academic lessons I teach them, then they may not be able to know what they need to know when something takes place where they need that knowledge. If they don't listen to me tell them how to find 2 + 2, then they will never learn 2 ÷ 2. In the same way, God desires us to gain knowledge and wisdom. Proverbs 2: 1-2, & 5-6 state, "My son, if you receive my words, and treasure my commands within you, so that you incline your ear to wisdom, and apply your heart to understanding; then you will understand the fear of the Lord, and find the knowledge of God. For the Lord gives wisdom; From His mouth come knowledge and understanding."
I also like my children to listen so that they can be obedient. Obedience is one way to show respect. When my children are obedient, my desire is to reward them. So... LISTENING EQUALS REWARD. Who doesn't like to be rewarded? Proverbs 8:32 states, "Now therefore, listen to me, my children, For blessed are those who keep my ways." Revelation 22:12 states, "And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work."
As we can see, listening is a skill that will benefit us in many ways. The first question to ask is... Am I listening to God? The answer cannot possibly be “yes” if we do not take the time to read what He has to say in the Bible. So... the first step is making Him a priority in our lives by taking the time to read His Word. If we do take the time to read His Word... is it going in one ear and out the other, or are we listening to what He is saying to us on a daily basis? If not, maybe we can take a step in the right direction and write down one thing He says to us each day. Then carry it around with us all day so that we can be reminded to practice it! By doing this, we WILL gain wisdom and knowledge. Finally, when the Lord asks us to do something, we can "obey right away, without delay!" This will surely bring us blessing upon blessing and promised rewards from our loving Father!
These verses sum it up pretty well...
Psalm 81:10-16 states, "I am the Lord your God, Who brought you out of the land of Egypt; Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it. But My people would not heed My voice, And Israel would have none of Me. So I gave them over to their own stubborn heart, to walk in their own counsels. Oh, that My people would listen to Me, that Israel would walk in My ways! I would soon subdue their enemies... He would have fed them also with the finest of wheat; and with honey from the rock I would have satisfied you."
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Be Still and Know
Psalm 46:10-11 states, "Be still and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth. The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah."
The word "still" in the original Hebrew has many meanings. The definitions include "to slacken, cease, (be) faint, be feeble, forsake, idle, leave, let alone, (be) slack, stay, be slothful, (be) weak." So, is this verse telling us to cease, forsake, be slack, weak, and slothful?? No!!!! We must read the rest of the sentence. "Be still AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD..."
In our busy lives God knew that He would need to remind us to "stop and look at the roses." Cease long enough to "know" that He is God. Some definitions of "know" in the original Hebrew are "observation, recognition, be aware, comprehend, consider, discover, and understand." Have you stopped long enough to OBSERVE that God is God by looking at the clouds, flowers, and trees this past month? Have you been idle long enough to RECOGNIZE that God is God by recalling how He has worked in your life this past week? Have you stayed still long enough to BE AWARE that God is God by seeing His fingerprints in your life even this day? If not, may we all be encouraged to be still and know that our God is the God of all. For this same God is with each of us and is our refuge each and every moment.
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Be Ye Holy
1 Peter 1:15-16 states, "but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, 'Be holy, for I am holy.'"
The question that comes to my mind after reading these verses is, "How can I be holy like God?" This seems to be such an impossible thing for anyone. Rev. 15:4 states that God ALONE is holy. The Greek definition of "holy" is "sacred (physically, pure, morally blameless or religious, ceremonially, consecrated):--saint."
This definition makes me feel no better because I am not morally blameless.
So, how could God possibly expect us to be holy as He is holy... especially if He alone is holy? Well, what helped me was 1 Corinthians 3:16-17. It states, "Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are."
We see here that we are "housing" the Holy Spirit. When the Holy Spirit lives in us, we are proclaimed holy by grace. No, we are not perfect... but by His grace... He makes us holy. 2 Timothy 1:9 states, "who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began," Notice it is not our works (good or bad) that can make us holy. It is by His grace and by His Spirit that He expects us to live up to this holy calling.
So when we meditate on the truth that God wants us to be holy, don't bum out and believe that you are not "worthy" enough to live a holy life. Don't believe the whispers of the enemy when he tells you that you cannot be holy. Remember who is in us... the HOLY Spirit!!! Because of this grace, you are holy and we can accomplish holy things for the glory of God.