Strategies For The Race

Do you see what this means—all these pioneers who blazed the way, all these veterans cheering us on? It means we’d better get on with it. Strip down, start running—and never quit! No extra spiritual fat, no parasitic sins. Keep your eyes on Jesus, who both began and finished this race we’re in. Study how he did it. Because he never lost sight of where he was headed—that exhilarating finish in and with God—he could put up with anything along the way: Cross, shame, whatever. And now he’s there, in the place of honor, right alongside God. When you find yourselves flagging in your faith, go over that story again, item by item, that long litany of hostility he plowed through. That will shoot adrenaline into your souls! Hebrews 12:1-3 (MSG)

I love this text and of course, God brought it to my reading just when I needed it. Sometimes, if I look at all that seems to be on my plate (which this week feels like a large turkey platter), I get overwhelmed. It’s too hard. I can’t get there from here.

This verse reminds me that my focus is myopic. I am looking at my list of things to be done and not looking at the big picture. Think about Jesus’ life. He intentionally mentored 3 people (Peter, James and John) and also coached the other 9. In addition to that, there were people he encountered that he also helped along the way. He had friendships that he maintained and there was a constant, demanding throng that were always taking from him. How did he do this?

Scripture tells us Jesus kept his eyes on the end game. He never lost sight of where he was headed. Were his days busy? Sure. Did he get tired? Yes, he did. But through all that, he stayed in touch with the Father and he stayed focused.

What drove him? We did. He knew he was headed to the cross. He knew what that looked like and the immense shame and pain that would bring but, he kept walking. He ran the race getting rid of anything that would prevent him from reaching his goal. He was looking forward to the joy he would experience when the task was finished.

Remember. Remember the love that drove him down the path of sacrifice. This will encourage you on your journey. This (He) is our example.

For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16 (NLT)

Not A Coincidence

When Haman told his wife, Zeresh, and all his friends what had happened, his wise advisers and his wife said, “Since Mordecai—this man who has humiliated you—is of Jewish birth, you will never succeed in your plans against him. It will be fatal to continue opposing him.” Esther 6:13 (NLT)

The book of Esther is a different book. It’s a story of a young girl, captured and placed in the king’s palace until she was brought before the king. If he liked her, she might become queen. If he didn’t she would like as his concubine for the rest of her life. Strange book to be in the Bible, huh? What’s even more unusual is that God is not mentioned in it at all.

As you follow the story, there are a series of events that happen.

1. Esther is captured and groomed for her night with the king.

2. The people helping Esther really liked her and went out of their way to help her succeed.

3. The king loved Esther more than any of the others and made her queen. (Esther 2)

4. Mordecai, her uncle, just happened to over hear a plot to kill the king and saved the king’s life by revealing it to the authorities.

5. The second in command, Haman, hated Mordecai and decided to have all the Jews killed. He did not know Esther was Jewish. (Esther 3)

6. Esther decides to reveal her identity and Haman’s plot but she is terrified that she will die. She and all the Jews pray. (Esther 4)

7. She goes before the king, invites him and Haman to a banquet, but does not yet reveal her purpose. (Esther 5)

8. That night, King Xerxes could not sleep so he asked his servants to read him the King’s chronicles. They just happened to read the part where Mordecai had saved his live and he discovered that Mordecai had never been rewarded. (Esther 6)

9. He forced Haman to honor Mordecai. This humiliated Haman.

There is turn of events after turn of events that move the story in favor of Esther and the Jews. Some people would call these coincidences. But, I would not and apparently, neither did Haman’s wife. She said “Since he is of Jewish birth, you will not succeed in your plans.” Had she heard of the God of the Jews who went before his people and protected them? Did she know of the stories where they miraculously triumphed over those seeking to destroy them? Obviously, she believed what she had heard before.

The story goes on and the Jews are saved. God was working in the background all along to work things out for his people. He is still doing this for us today. We are not left to chance. God is always at work. Even if things look coincidental, they are not. There is a Divine Plan in place. Trust in the One who is setting that plan into motion.

Look! What's In That Tree?

A minute in Gods' word will change your life.  Read through the Bible text and ask yourself the questions at the bottom of the post.

1 Jesus entered Jericho and made his way through the town. 2 There was a man there named Zacchaeus. He was the chief tax collector in the region, and he had become very rich. 3 He tried to get a look at Jesus, but he was too short to see over the crowd. 4 So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree beside the road, for Jesus was going to pass that way.

5 When Jesus came by, he looked up at Zacchaeus and called him by name. “Zacchaeus!” he said. “Quick, come down! I must be a guest in your home today.”

6 Zacchaeus quickly climbed down and took Jesus to his house in great excitement and joy. 7 But the people were displeased. “He has gone to be the guest of a notorious sinner,” they grumbled.

8 Meanwhile, Zacchaeus stood before the Lord and said, “I will give half my wealth to the poor, Lord, and if I have cheated people on their taxes, I will give them back four times as much!”

9 Jesus responded, “Salvation has come to this home today, for this man has shown himself to be a true son of Abraham. 10 For the Son of Man came to seek and save those who are lost.” Luke 19:1-10 (NLT)

Did the fact that Zacchaeus was a sinner stop Jesus from getting to know him?
Why do you think Jesus stopped to talk to Zacchaeus when there were throngs of people all around him?
Do you think Jesus knew Zacchaeus was going to be looking for him?
Why do you think Jesus went to Zacchaeus home and spent time with him instead of just giving him a talk right there on the street?
What happened when Zacchaeus spent time with Jesus?
What happens when you do?

Repairing Our Wall

Above the Horse Gate, the priests repaired the wall. Each one repaired the section immediately across from his own house. Nehemiah 3:28 (NLT)

Jerusalem was in ruins. The walls were broken down, the gates had been burned with fire. It was a mess. Nehemiah received permission from the king and went home to help rebuild. During that time he faced lots of opposition. There were people outside who didn’t want him to continue. There were people inside who grumbled. But, he stayed the course, rallied the people and they eventually completed the work.

As I read this story, particularly the Scripture above, I think about our world. There always seems to be fighting. There always seems to be discord. I don’t even like to watch the news anymore because honestly, it feels more like a soap opera than actual news.

It makes you wonder “What could I possibly do to help my world, my country, my town, my community?” How about do what Nehemiah did? He broke the work down into bite-sized pieces. “Each one repaired the section immediately across from his own house.” What if we did that? What if we looked around us and took care of the people in our immediate vicinity?

How about the neighbor next door whose daughter has cancer? How about the family member that just needs a helping hand on Sunday? How about the co-worker who needs someone to share a meal with and listen?

There is nothing wrong with knowing what’s happening in the world. But often we stop there. We watch it, comment on it and then do nothing to help it. There is more than enough to restore in our own backyard. Pick a part of your wall and start building.

Your Place In The Body

Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone.  In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord.  And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit. Ephesians 2:19-22 (NIV)

Recently, I’ve been thinking more about the Church. Not my physical church or any church I pass as I drive through town but, “the Church”. You know, US. The Bible says that the body of believers is the Church. It’s not about a building or a service, it’s about people.

Also in Scripture it says that we are God’s holy temple. (1 Cor 3:16) And here is what I find amazing. God designated each one of us individually as his holy temple. A place he comes to stay when we choose Jesus. What a mind blowing thought to know that the God of the Universe is that close; that intricately involved in our lives.

To top it all off, in today’s verses it says that he then takes each one of those holy temples and builds this massive Church! It started with the apostles and the prophets as the foundation. Then, Jesus was the cornerstone (that on which everything depends). Then, each one of us is added; one by one, cherished piece upon cherished piece being joined together through Jesus making a Holy Temple.

Imagine it! Every single person joining together to make a Church that functions as Jesus would. Every single person praising God, loving each other, caring for those in need and sharing the Good News. We were all intended to be part of this plan. This is the true function of the Church.

What I am awestruck over is that God took the very thing he cared about most (us) and he used it to build something that would reach more of us. His plans always has and always will be about loving us.

If you ever have a moment where you think the church is not relevant, maybe the reason is you have the wrong definition of church. It’s not the building, the service or even the Pastor. It’s about you. How are you going to redefine that?

Two Conversations At Once

The king asked, “Well, how can I help you?” With a prayer to the God of heaven, I replied. Nehemiah 2:4-5a (NLT)

Ever had to have a really difficult conversation with someone? Maybe it was your boss and you wanted to tell them you were quitting or maybe you needed to share some really difficult news with a friend. Maybe you are a supervisor and you were assigned to tell one of the employees that they need to shower (trust me, that’s a difficult conversation.) What about having to console someone who lost a loved one or having to ask for something huge….like Nehemiah.

Nehemiah was captive in Persia. He had gotten word from a visiting family member that things in Jerusalem weren’t going so well. Immediately, Nehemiah started praying and asking God for favor. This happened in late autumn.

Early the next spring (apparently, Nehemiah had been praying all this time) he was serving as the King’s cup bearer and the king noticed his sadness. He asked what was wrong. Nehemiah explained everything that was going on in his homeland. And the King said “How can I help?”

What did Nehemiah do next? He prayed. Before he answered, before he suggested anything, he sent up a quick prayer to God. What exactly that prayer was, we don’t know but I can imagine it was something like “Lord, give me the words.”, or “God, work this out.”, or “Father, help me not get killed.”

He was having a conversation with God while he had a conversation with the King. And God responded. King Artaxerxes granted his request to go home and helped.

In a quick Google search, we average 22-27 conversations a day. Think of all the impact we have each day on a life around us. We should be pulling a Nehemiah and praying as we go through each one. You never know how the God of Heaven will work in your life and in others’ lives if you let him lead.

A Minute In It - Turn Your Eyes To Jesus

A minute in Gods' word will change your life.  Read through the Bible text. No matter what we are going through, stay focused on Jesus and soon you will be praising again!

1-3 A white-tailed deer drinks
    from the creek;
I want to drink God,
    deep draughts of God.
I’m thirsty for God-alive.
I wonder, “Will I ever make it—
    arrive and drink in God’s presence?”
I’m on a diet of tears—
    tears for breakfast, tears for supper.
All day long
    people knock at my door,
Pestering,
    “Where is this God of yours?”

4 These are the things I go over and over,
    emptying out the pockets of my life.
I was always at the head of the worshiping crowd,
    right out in front,
Leading them all,
    eager to arrive and worship,
Shouting praises, singing thanksgiving—
    celebrating, all of us, God’s feast!

5 Why are you down in the dumps, dear soul?
    Why are you crying the blues?
Fix my eyes on God—
    soon I’ll be praising again.
He puts a smile on my face.
    He’s my God.

6-8 When my soul is in the dumps, I rehearse
    everything I know of you,
From Jordan depths to Hermon heights,
    including Mount Mizar.
Chaos calls to chaos,
    to the tune of whitewater rapids.
Your breaking surf, your thundering breakers
    crash and crush me.
Then God promises to love me all day,
    sing songs all through the night!
    My life is God’s prayer.

9-10 Sometimes I ask God, my rock-solid God,
    “Why did you let me down?
Why am I walking around in tears,
    harassed by enemies?”
They’re out for the kill, these
    tormentors with their obscenities,
Taunting day after day,
    “Where is this God of yours?”

11 Why are you down in the dumps, dear soul?
    Why are you crying the blues?
Fix my eyes on God—
    soon I’ll be praising again.
He puts a smile on my face.
    He’s my God.

Safe By The Fire

So they arrested him and led him to the high priest’s home. And Peter followed at a distance.  Luke 22:54 (NLT)

Peter had spent a lot of time with Jesus. Jesus spent more time with Peter, James and John than the rest of the twelve. Peter knew him and he knew him well. He’d seen him heal people. He’d seen him raise someone from the dead. He’d heard him talk about God and his mission and he knew the depth of the love that Jesus had for him.

Yet, when Jesus was arrested, Peter was afraid. The Bible says he followed at a distance. He joined a crowd by the fire and tried to blend in. He didn’t want to stand out. He didn’t want to be noticed. What he wanted was to be near enough to know what was going on but not engaged enough to be at risk.

When the people around the fire directly asked him questions about who he knew, he denied it. After all, admitting that he was a Christ follower could have consequences. There would be a ripple effect, fallout and possibly a sacrifice he was not willing to make.

Let me ask you. How often do we act like Peter? In our world of conforming and fitting in, do we shy away from being different? Do we try to walk the middle line and not stand out? Do we hide our convictions so as to not draw attention to ourselves?

God wants us to be all in. He wants us to take a stand and do what is right. He wants us to be so in love with him that we are willing to take a risk and say “Yes!” to his calling.

What about you? Are there areas in your life that you need to define more clearly? Are there areas where God is calling you to take a risk? Will you walk away from the crowd by the fire and be different?