You Want the Keys?

One of the side-splitting scenes in the film, Meet the Parents, occurs when the father of the bride, a former CIA agent, explains his concept of the 'circle of trust' to his future son-in-law, Greg Focker.  The paranoia of that father drove him to constant surveillance of the poor guy who was joining his family. We laugh as we watch because intuitively we know that trust comes from character, not from enforcement! The true test of our values comes when nobody’s watching us. What choices do we make then?

Parents teach their children -"Trust is built over time, destroyed in a moment."  Are any of us perfect?  Of course not. We are prone to failure, liable to make some stupid choices, and likely to succumb to peer pressure at least occasionally.  Trust isn’t a flawless record. It is shaped by honesty about the good, the bad, and the ugly of our lives.

Every relationship in our life depends on trust! As we interact with others - be they family members, co-workers, or business partners - we are measuring trustworthiness. Love, alone, is not enough to make us ‘hand over the keys’. There are people in my life that I love wholeheartedly that I would not even let drive my car!

How do we build trust?

1. - We live with integrity.
Trustworthy people get rid of hidden agendas and secret motives. They refuse to shade the truth to favor themselves. Being around people who are deceptive and manipulative is exhausting because we always have to wonder, "What their angle? What are they really trying to do here?" Integrity - that is, being the same inside and out, in reality and appearance, is basic to gaining and keeping the trust of others.

2. - We are humble.
Humility has nothing to do with being a self-hating worm.  It’s about a real grasp of our strengths and weaknesses, knowing when we need help and being willing to ask for it. If we try to do something that is beyond our training or capability, pretending competence- the subsequent failure erodes trust. The next time, the question hangs in the air - "Can he, or will he mess this task up, too?"

3. - We keep our promises.

It is so easy to make a promise. When somebody presses us to do something, even relatively simple, the best way to make them happy is to say, "Oh, sure, I'll do it." So, we are often likely to over-promise and under-deliver. My experience has taught me to generally expect much less from people than they say. It's not because they are morally deficient! It is because in their eagerness to please they over-promise. It is far better to say up-front, "I would like to help you with that, but I don't have the interest to follow through." We trust people who, in Jesus' words, "Just say a simple, ‘Yes, I will,’ or ‘No, I won’t.’ (Matthew 5:37, NLT)

4. - We are 'other-centered.'
Nobody should trust a person who is selfish. The moment we sense that another is out for his own reputation, serving his own interest, or feathering her own nest- we withdraw our confidence and start to build walls to protect. Only the person who shows real empathy and the capacity to transcend her own interests is trustworthy.

Take a look at your own 'circle of trust' today. Are you trusting people who are trustworthy? Are you a person worthy of trust?

God is seeking faithful people in whom He can invest eternal riches, people to whom He can hand the keys to His Kingdom!
 How does He know those He can trust?  This word from the Word tells us: "Anyone who can be trusted in little matters can also be trusted in important matters. But anyone who is dishonest in little matters will be dishonest in important matters. If you cannot be trusted with this wicked wealth, who will trust you with true wealth?

And if you cannot be trusted with what belongs to someone else, who will give you something that will be your own? You cannot be the slave of two masters. You will like one more than the other or be more loyal to one than to the other. You cannot serve God and money." (Luke 16:10-13, CEV)

It WILL Change Your Life!

“It will change your life!”  This is the implied statement behind all kinds of advertising. The right car will make you a success and bring you respect.  A splash of cologne will make you irresistible. This pill will extend your youth.  We learn to ignore the hyperbole after a while, discounting the claims, explicit and implicit, in the ads. Please don’t discount what you’re about to read. It really is a Truth that will change your life.

In the 3^rd chapter of Peter’s second letter, we are told about the “day of the Lord.”  When Jesus ended his ministry here on earth, He promised to return. Human history will be brought to a close,  perfect justice will be handed down, and the present order will be destroyed before the emergence of a ‘new heaven and new earth.’  Peter writes all this not as a feared threat, but as a promise to be eagerly anticipated by Christians. Paul calls the return of Christ our ‘blessed hope.’ (Titus 2:13)  In my estimation, this doctrine is largely off the radar of most Christians today.  Taken up with life, we lose sight of the fact that all this is destined to pass away, that our real home is not here, but with our Father.

If we look forward, consciously and eagerly, to the coming of the Lord, that truth will change our lives. How? Take a look. "Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives" (2 Peter 3:11, NIV)  "… since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him." (2 Peter 3:14, NIV) "… since you already know this, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of lawless men and fall from your secure position. But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen." (2 Peter 3:17-18, NIV)

Peter’s appeal is not to fear or dread. It is a tragedy when the Lord’s return is used in that way to manipulate Christians into giving money or serving in ministry.  If we only fear His coming, we will act like kids in December, won’t we?  Every little kid who believes in Santa Claus suddenly starts to think about reforming himself so that the jolly old man will bring the presents! But the effort is short-lived.  The Christian who understands that Christ’s return is still on schedule (God’s time, not ours!) will not reform himself for a few days or weeks. He will reorient his entire life, looking away from trinkets destined to perish to treasure set aside in Heaven that will survive the destruction of this present world.

There is a little phrase tucked into Peter’s writing that urges us to live “at peace with Him.”  We tend to think of peace as being the absence of conflict but that is not what the Spirit is offering to us. When our hope is settled on our eternal inheritance, on the promise of God’s just rewards,  we gain a life that is whole, complete, and ‘settled’ rather than fragmented and/or confused.  This true Peace is a quality of life that flows from the Spirit and choices that look past economic woes, present illness, and disappointment.

Christ return, though often mocked as a pie in sky illusion, is a truth that changes our lives! Here’s the word from the Word. "This is my second letter to you, dear friends, and in both of them I have tried to stimulate your wholesome thinking and refresh your memory. I want you to remember and understand what the holy prophets said long ago and what our Lord and Savior commanded through your apostles. First, I want to remind you that in the last days there will be scoffers who will laugh at the truth and do every evil thing they desire." (2 Peter 3:1-3, NLT)  "But you must not forget, dear friends, that a day is like a thousand years to the Lord, and a thousand years is like a day. The Lord isn’t really being slow about his promise to return, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to perish, so he is giving more time for everyone to repent." (2 Peter 3:8-9, NLT)  "But grow in the special favor and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be all glory and honor, both now and forevermore. Amen." (2 Peter 3:18, NLT)

Lord, settle it deep into our hearts and minds, lifting our goals higher, settling us on a solid foundation of unshakeable hope. Amen.

Don't Tell Me What To Do

In the months prior to D-Day, that pivotal moment when the Allies would send thousands of men across the English Channel to face the Axis powers, Dwight Eisenhower was appointed the Supreme Commander of all the forces! The massive invasion effort would require the coordinated efforts of military units from several nations commanded by generals who were accustomed to being in charge.  In addition to working out the strategy of the expedition, Eisenhower found himself faced with a huge challenge in overcoming the towering egos of generals who believed themselves his equal. With quiet determination, Ike led, ignoring the critics, listening to advice, making decisions using the authority invested in him, all the while keeping his own ego in check. Like a petulant children some of those other generals whined, argued, and resisted. But the effort needed a leader. History shows that Ike served well. Many of those same generals who were so offended by his appointment came to appreciate the man and his service.

Leaders are important – in families, in society; and yes, in the church.  Some imagine the church to be above the need for leaders. That ignores the Scripture that refers often to pastors and elders who are called to serve in leadership.   Jesus, the Head of the Church, “is the one who gave these gifts to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ, until we come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be mature and full grown in the Lord, measuring up to the full stature of Christ." (Ephesians 4:13, NLT)  I see two critical principles here:  the church has leaders and those leaders are not charged to do ‘all the work,’ but rather to coordinate those in the church for maximum Kingdom effectiveness.

One of the major difficulties of the church in America is a failure of leadership. Some pastors are cowed into silence by multiple critics, others choose to use their holy calling for personal gain. Let me ask you to think carefully about these questions which I ask myself as I participate with those who lead me.

Are you one of those Christians who is stealing a blessing from yourself by being a critic, resisting the efforts of those who are your leaders?
Are you buying into the anti-authority sentiments of the culture and bringing it to church? 

Have you learned the theme of the New Testament, unity and cooperation?

The Bible says "Obey those who rule over you, and be submissive, for they watch out for your souls, as those who must give account. Let them do so with joy and not with grief, for that would be unprofitable for you." (Hebrews 13:17, NKJV)  “Obey” and “submit” are two words that are hard to accept.  There is a real spiritual issue involved.  The humility that motivates a person to support leaders bring a double blessing – one for those who lead and another for those who come into a deeper unity of purpose and work in the church.  

Miserable Ingrates!

Just about any parent of a child, particularly a teen, knows what it is to deal with a lack of appreciation.  After scarfing down dinner, that boy whose just eaten his fill, walks away apparently without any idea of the effort that put the food in front of him. That same 15 year old fails to grasp that his  clothing does not just magically move from hamper to closet, becoming clean along the way. “I need,” is a common refrain, with no thought about how much that new pair of shoes costs Dad. The cell phone in her pocket? She feels entitled to it, offended if the suggestion is made that perhaps it’s time to start paying for her own.  Many outgrow their narcissism and come to realize the love that caused Mom and Dad to invest so much time and treasure in them. Some, tragically, never do; and they carry their ingratitude into adulthood. Ingrates spread their misery like a virus!

Do you recognize the goodness of God and give sincere thanks?

Ingratitude, believe it or not, is a fertile soil that nourishes spiritual rebellion!  In the first chapter of Romans, the desperate state of depraved humanity is outlined with an ugly recital of the worst kinds of behaviors. The beginning of it all?  "For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened." (Romans 1:21, NIV)  If we act like spoiled kids, demanding more and failing to give thanks, we will increasingly become Self-centered, full of doubt, and eventually bitter – far from the fellowship of the Spirit.

This is more than a nice saying, it’s a life principle: "In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you." (1 Thessalonians 5:18, NKJV)  Real gratitude goes beyond a flip, “thanks.”  It appreciates the effort and cost.  Thankfulness expands our capacity to love – both God and others.  Thankfulness is an expression of a loving heart. One feeds the other.  When I deal with a person who lacks gratitude, whose attitude implies that they think I owe them something, I am much less inclined to want to be generous. You, too?   God resists our selfishness, too.  He is not, however, offended in the same way that we are by unthankful people. Our Father desires our worshipful gratitude, not because He craves our appreciation, but because it reveals a heart in which Self is dethroned.

Here’s what the Word says. It’s simple, often quoted, and ignored just as often: "Be filled with the Spirit. Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ." (Ephesians 5:18-20, NIV) Let’s cultivate thankfulness.  If we wait for it to just ‘show up’ in our lives, we will die feeling God and the world owes us more!  But, if we humble ourselves, take note of His faithfulness often as well as the goodness of others, we will become more and more thankful; able to receive and give from a great heart.

"Thank God for his marvelous love, for his miracle mercy to the children he loves. He poured great draughts of water down parched throats; the starved and hungry got plenty to eat. " (Psalm 107:8-9, The Message)

__________________

Give thanks

With a grateful heart

Give thanks to the Holy One

Give thanks because He's given

Jesus Christ His Son

And now let the weak say

I am strong

Let the poor say

I am rich

Because of what

The Lord has done for us

Give thanks

Henry Smith

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