Scripture:
"Beloved, you are acting faithfully in whatever you accomplish for the brethren…" 3 John 5
Observation:
John did not single out individual actions of Gaius to recognize them as being good. He says, "in WHATEVER you accomplish, you are ACTING FAITHFULLY. Through this passage I feel that God is reminding me that what I do is not nearly as important as how I do it. He wants me to act faithfully in what ever I do. What are some practical things I can do to ensure the faithfulness of my labor?
Application:
First, I need to make sure that I only imitate what is good. In verse 11, John speaks to the importance of this. There are so many examples to follow. So many books to be read. So much counsel to receive. There is no shortage of knowledge or information. The trouble is that it is not all good. I need to guard my heart and mind against following evil. It is so easy to get confused and in that substitute good advice for Holy wisdom or insight. I need to never settle.
Second, I need to make sure that I confront issues and not cover them up. In verse 9, John totally calls out some man named Diotrephes. He was setting an example for us in doing this. Confronting people is hard work. It is the one instance when turning the other cheek or a blind eye is the easiest path. Easiest must not take front seat to obedience to God. I am called to protect the flock. I am a shepherd for those that God has given to me. When their actions put them at risk or the actions of another threaten their safety; I must act.
Third, I need to celebrate success. John starts off this passage in verse 2 by celebrating the growth in the life of Gaius. I solve problems. That is the basis of most plans I create. In doing this, I have a tendency to look for things broken and blow right past things done well. I need to make sure that I slow down from time to time and celebrate the success God has brought both in my life and the life of others.
Prayer:
Father God, you made the earth by Your power. You established the earth by Your wisdom. By Your understanding, the heavens were stretched out. I am stupid before You. All the wisdom I can muster falls short of even making sense in Your presence. Your voice is the only thing in my life worthy of hearing. Your wisdom pouring out of me is all that is acceptable as good. I pray today for a movement of You. Help me seek and find only that which is good. Give me the courage to be a man of valor who does not shrink back from confronting tough issues. Create inside of me the confidence I need to call something a success and celebrate it with others. Above all, I ask that You ground me in Your great love. May all that I do be based on Your loving desire to be reconciled with this lost and dying world.
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Saturday, August 23, 2008
A Secure Base
Scripture:
"There is no fear in love but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love. 1 John 4:18
Observation:
What am I to base the security of my relationship with God upon? This question has tormented me over the years. I have tried everything. I have tried to base it on my ability to live good; that failed. I tried to base it on my ability to understand His word; that failed too. I tried to base it on my ability to take leaps of faith; another royal failure. So what do I do? How do I know if I am on the right path? John lays out a less than obvious choice in this letter; love.
Love is a tricky thing. We throw it around this day and time and it has become a very popular saying. It has almost crossed over and became an everyday salutation between almost any persons remotely connected to each other. God's definition of love is a little different. He says that no greater love has a man than this; that he lay down his life for another. That sets the definition of how I am to love and it also defines the firm base to build my faith upon. I sense tonight that there are a few levels of love to which I need to return.
Application:
The first level of love I need to return to is my love for God. Out of sight, out of mind is how the saying goes. One of the more frustrating things about God is that I never get to see Him face-to-face. Never have, never will. It drives my finite mind crazy. Conceptualizing God is beyond anything I can do. I just can't get my arms around Him. Loving something that I can't conceptualize or get my arms around is a challenge for me. Sometimes, it is easy to allow doubt to creep in and I often find myself standing at a distance from God. I need to allow Him to draw me to another level of love for Him. The creator of the heavens and earth calls me son. He loves me. He sits and waits on me. It is an amazing thought. My past has taught me a passionate pursuit of God leads to encounters with God that make Him as real in experience as He is in the beauty of His creation.
The second level of love I need to return to is my love for Jesus. Over the past month it has been fun reliving the life of Christ as recorded in the book of John. As I read about Him, it is hard not to love Him. He came and gave His life for me. He is my advocate. He sits at the right hand of God and defends me. What an amazing thought. I fail so many times to live according to His calling, yet He destroyed all guilt, condemnation, and fear. I am whole because of the work He did on the cross. I must never allow my love for Him to lessen.
The third level of love I need to return to is my love for those he has given to me. There are seasons of life in which it feels as though it is all that I can do to stay above water. I spend all my energy just trying to keep from drowning. The demands of life come upon me and sweep me away with their powerful currents. If I am not careful, I become a consumer in my relationships. I totally assess things based on the benefits delivered to me. I avoid things that draw from me. I am wrong in doing this. Just as Christ came not to save His life but to give it; so should I. My love for my family, my friends, my co-workers, and the many others associated with my life on earth should always call me to give.
The fourth level is really nasty. There is not a single fiber of my being that offers to accept it. I have to love my enemies and opposition. Man, the prior levels are things I can readily accept and work towards but this one kills me. God loved me, while I was still His enemy, enough to give His Son for my behalf. I can barely manage a smile towards someone when I am ticked at them. My pride is getting the best of me and I have allowed rage to build inside of me. Like a cancer, it has eaten away at my peace of mind and opened my life to torment. Returning to this level of love is the hardest, but it is critical to my life on earth.
Prayer:
I need to come to You tonight and ask for Your deliverance. My anger, pride and bitterness has created an impenetrable prison surrounding me. Offenses of others have piled up and sit as notes of debt I hold against them. It has driven me mad. Literally. It has separated me from fully walking in Your love, grace, forgiveness and blessing. I am done with it and ask to be changed. I release to You those I hold in contempt and forgive others for the hurt I harbor in my heart. I desire more than anything to have my love for You and Your Son to be renewed in my heart. Breath fresh fire and wind into me. Help me find purity, clarity and security in my walk with You. Allow my life to be broken and spilled over into the lives of others around me.
"There is no fear in love but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love. 1 John 4:18
Observation:
What am I to base the security of my relationship with God upon? This question has tormented me over the years. I have tried everything. I have tried to base it on my ability to live good; that failed. I tried to base it on my ability to understand His word; that failed too. I tried to base it on my ability to take leaps of faith; another royal failure. So what do I do? How do I know if I am on the right path? John lays out a less than obvious choice in this letter; love.
Love is a tricky thing. We throw it around this day and time and it has become a very popular saying. It has almost crossed over and became an everyday salutation between almost any persons remotely connected to each other. God's definition of love is a little different. He says that no greater love has a man than this; that he lay down his life for another. That sets the definition of how I am to love and it also defines the firm base to build my faith upon. I sense tonight that there are a few levels of love to which I need to return.
Application:
The first level of love I need to return to is my love for God. Out of sight, out of mind is how the saying goes. One of the more frustrating things about God is that I never get to see Him face-to-face. Never have, never will. It drives my finite mind crazy. Conceptualizing God is beyond anything I can do. I just can't get my arms around Him. Loving something that I can't conceptualize or get my arms around is a challenge for me. Sometimes, it is easy to allow doubt to creep in and I often find myself standing at a distance from God. I need to allow Him to draw me to another level of love for Him. The creator of the heavens and earth calls me son. He loves me. He sits and waits on me. It is an amazing thought. My past has taught me a passionate pursuit of God leads to encounters with God that make Him as real in experience as He is in the beauty of His creation.
The second level of love I need to return to is my love for Jesus. Over the past month it has been fun reliving the life of Christ as recorded in the book of John. As I read about Him, it is hard not to love Him. He came and gave His life for me. He is my advocate. He sits at the right hand of God and defends me. What an amazing thought. I fail so many times to live according to His calling, yet He destroyed all guilt, condemnation, and fear. I am whole because of the work He did on the cross. I must never allow my love for Him to lessen.
The third level of love I need to return to is my love for those he has given to me. There are seasons of life in which it feels as though it is all that I can do to stay above water. I spend all my energy just trying to keep from drowning. The demands of life come upon me and sweep me away with their powerful currents. If I am not careful, I become a consumer in my relationships. I totally assess things based on the benefits delivered to me. I avoid things that draw from me. I am wrong in doing this. Just as Christ came not to save His life but to give it; so should I. My love for my family, my friends, my co-workers, and the many others associated with my life on earth should always call me to give.
The fourth level is really nasty. There is not a single fiber of my being that offers to accept it. I have to love my enemies and opposition. Man, the prior levels are things I can readily accept and work towards but this one kills me. God loved me, while I was still His enemy, enough to give His Son for my behalf. I can barely manage a smile towards someone when I am ticked at them. My pride is getting the best of me and I have allowed rage to build inside of me. Like a cancer, it has eaten away at my peace of mind and opened my life to torment. Returning to this level of love is the hardest, but it is critical to my life on earth.
Prayer:
I need to come to You tonight and ask for Your deliverance. My anger, pride and bitterness has created an impenetrable prison surrounding me. Offenses of others have piled up and sit as notes of debt I hold against them. It has driven me mad. Literally. It has separated me from fully walking in Your love, grace, forgiveness and blessing. I am done with it and ask to be changed. I release to You those I hold in contempt and forgive others for the hurt I harbor in my heart. I desire more than anything to have my love for You and Your Son to be renewed in my heart. Breath fresh fire and wind into me. Help me find purity, clarity and security in my walk with You. Allow my life to be broken and spilled over into the lives of others around me.
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