The Unforgotten

Our church’s annual meeting convened last night.  We receive reports from the various ministries of the church, read the financial reports, and note the worthy endeavors of those who serve. It’s good to note the progress made and recognize those who are working hard.  Missing from that room were so many people from the church’s 80 year long history, whose giving and serving laid the foundation for what happened in Fiscal Year 2012-2013 yet the evidence of what they’ve done is unmistakable. 

Some are known, their names prominent in our memories. Some, numbering in the hundreds, are unknown participants, people who prayed, people who gave sacrificially, but anonymously.  As I turned off the lights and walked through the building, I felt the presence of  the "great a cloud of witnesses." (Hebrews 12:1, NKJV)

As much as I long to thank each person who helps us fulfill God’s calling for the congregation I am privileged to lead, I cannot.  Their service is hidden from my observation, outside of my attention, or even overlooked.  Every disciple who is doing what the Spirit calls and equips him to do, will serve and go unrecognized, by some of those he serves. Our God will not forget and He plans a rich reward!  There is a sobering part of this promise. God sees what we do, how we do it, and why we do it!  

"The one who plants and the one who waters work as a team with the same purpose. Yet they will be rewarded individually, according to their own hard work. We work together as partners who belong to God. You are God’s field, God’s building—not ours.
Because of God’s special favor to me, I have laid the foundation like an expert builder. Now others are building on it. But whoever is building on this foundation must be very careful. For no one can lay any other foundation than the one we already have—Jesus Christ. Now anyone who builds on that foundation may use gold, silver, jewels, wood, hay, or straw. But there is going to come a time of testing at the judgment day to see what kind of work each builder has done.

Everyone’s work will be put through the fire to see whether or not it keeps its value. If the work survives the fire, that builder will receive a reward. But if the work is burned up, the builder will suffer great loss. The builders themselves will be saved, but like someone escaping through a wall of flames. Don’t you realize that all of you together are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God lives in you? God will bring ruin upon anyone who ruins this temple. For God’s temple is holy, and you Christians are that temple." (1 Corinthians 3:8-17, NLT)

That passage is of tremendous encouragement to me and should be to every follower of Jesus.  Many things I do are not seen by others.  Sometimes the work is hard and occasionally thankless. Often it is even hard to connect effort with results.  I cannot begin to know how my life is affecting those who will follow after.  Who will stand in the place I presently occupy even 50 years from now is beyond my ability to know.  Will he or she even know I existed?  If they know at all, it will most likely be only from reading some old report in a file stored on a computer drive, if at all.  But, my work is never forgotten by the Lord of Glory.  Nor is yours!  This causes me to want to serve with excellence, regardless of recognition or compensation. The far more important reward will be handed out by One who knows it all.

So, here’s a word from the Word.  Let it encourage you as you serve the Lord, wherever, however, whenever.  You are not forgotten. "My conscience is clear, but that isn’t what matters. It is the Lord himself who will examine me and decide. So be careful not to jump to conclusions before the Lord returns as to whether or not someone is faithful. When the Lord comes, he will bring our deepest secrets to light and will reveal our private motives. And then God will give to everyone whatever praise is due." (1 Corinthians 4:4-5, NLT)
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Blessed Assurance

Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine!

O what a foretaste of glory divine!

Heir of salvation, purchase of God,

Born of His Spirit, washed in His blood!

   This is my story, this is my song,

   Praising my Saviour all the day long.

Perfect submission, all is at rest,

I in my Saviour am happy and blest,—  

Watching and waiting, looking above,

Filled with His goodness, lost in His love.

- By Frances Jane Crosby Van Alstyne

Are you a NORMAL Christian?

There is a book in my library with this intriguing title: The Normal Christian Life.  Watchman Nee’s explanation of the way of Christ is straightforward, but it is the title of his book that arrests my attention. Nee’s description of a faith-filled life, one focused on the Person of Christ, lived in the light of eternity’s promise, is anything but the ‘norm’ for many 21^st century Christians.  Is there a normal Christian life?  The answer is yes and no. 

Are there characteristics of Christianity we all share? Absolutely! The fruit of the Spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control- Galatians 5:22-23) is universally a standard for disciples of Jesus.  The Gifts of the Spirit (wise counsel, clear understanding, simple trust, healing the sick, miraculous acts, proclamation, distinguishing between spirits, tongues, interpretation of tongues- Corinthians 12:8-11, The Message) that equip us to serve Him effectively are given uniquely to each us. The expressions of our faith will follow our personality, too.

The godly people whose stories are told in the Scripture were as different from one another as we are today.

Peter, was bold, often spoke without thinking, impulsive.

Paul, was introspective and provoked many with his teaching.

Luke was inquisitive, researching and writing our most  comprehensive Gospel.

Timothy was sensitive, prone to fear that crippled his pastoral leadership.

Mary was an intent listener.

Martha was a busy bee, driven by responsibility.

John was visionary, gaining God’s message in apocalyptic dreams.

So, who among us is normal? That’s really not the right question.  Christians aren't called to become carbon copies of some leader or teacher.  God wants us to have the likeness of Jesus. “Too hard,” you say? Don't be so sure! He, tho' the Son of God, was also a real man and thus knows what our 'norms' of experience are. Jesus' loving grace reaches across a wide range of human personalities... to you - to me!  He understands us. "This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same temptations we do, yet he did not sin. So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it." (Hebrews 4:15-16, NLT)

If we adopt some person, no matter how stellar their discipleship may be, as the standard for our faith, we make a BIG mistake. It is impossible to be just like another. Their gifts, their experience, their personality makes them (and YOU) an original.  God is not interested in copies. Jerry Scott will never be Andy Stanley or Franklin Graham. If I adopt one of those men, or any admired leader, as the measure of 'normal' and attempt to replicate his life in my own, I'm setup for discouragement and ultimately, for failure.

We can learn from those who walk with us and those who have gone before us. We can observe their lives and emulate their desire to please God; and we should.  All the while we remember that He calls us to be ALL that HE purposes for us to be, to fully use and develop those gifts and abilities He invested in us without comparing our relative worth or success against other Believers. In Galatians 6:4-5 we are instructed to “Be sure to do what you should, for then you will enjoy the personal satisfaction of having done your work well, and you won't need to compare yourself to anyone else. For we are each  responsible for our own conduct.”

Are you spending too much time looking for 'normal?'

Are you wasting effort comparing your life with that of another?

LOOK UP! Commit yourself to be LIKE JESUS, the author and finisher of our faith.

He knows -- EXACTLY -- what you're capable of, what His will is for you, and how to bring you to that place of effective and satisfying service in His kingdom.

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Take My Life

Holiness, holiness,

Is what I long for.

Holiness is what I need.

Holiness, holiness,

Is what You want from me.

Faithfulness, faithfulness,

Is what I long for.

Faithfulness, is what I need.

Faithfulness, faithfulness,

Is what You want from me.

So take my heart and form it!

Take my mind, transform it!

Take my will, conform it-

To Yours, to Yours, Oh Lord!

Scott Underwood

© 1995 Mercy / Vineyard Publishing (Admin. by Vineyard Music USA)

CCLI License # 810055

The Grim Reaper?

I live by my Outlook calendar.  Meetings and appointments are duly entered so that I will show up in the right place at the right time.  But, there is an entry in the calendar I have not made; when I will leave this world.  That appointment is inevitable, entered by God, Who alone knows the span of my days on this globe. The Bible says that " it is destined that each person dies only once and after that comes judgment." (Hebrews 9:27, NLT)  Death is for many a grim reality, a thought to be avoided as much as possible. Some refuse to prepare a will, unwilling to consciously acknowledge that they will die. Some refuse to go to funerals, not just because of the grief they will encounter, but because of the reminder that death will come.  Christian, you can be freed from that fear!

In my pastoral ministry I am often in the presence of death.  I have sat at the side of the dying, walked through grief with hundreds of families, had my own heartbreak when my parents died in recent years.  The sorrow is real. But, Christian, we need to remember that we need not "grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope." (1 Thessalonians 4:13, NIV)  The moment of death while final in terms of time and our present understanding, is not the end; it is a beginning.  We do not meet the Grim Reaper, we are met by the Glorious Liberator!  Those who die in the Lord do not slip away into the grave; they are drawn into the Presence of their Father in Heaven! The Bible says that God "will remove the cloud of gloom, the shadow of death that hangs over the earth. He will swallow up death forever! The Sovereign Lord will wipe away all tears. … In that day the people will proclaim, “This is our God. We trusted in him, and he saved us. This is the Lord, in whom we trusted. Let us rejoice in the salvation he brings!” (Isaiah 25:6-9, NLT)  Note the phrase – ‘swallow up death.’  Isn’t that a wonderful thought?  Death does not overtake God, He envelopes the Last Enemy with His eternal Presence.

Christians are not just people of the Cross, though we rejoice in the forgiveness of sin and the peace with God obtained by the sacrifice of Christ Jesus at Calvary.  We are people of the Resurrection! The early church was much less focused on the Cross than we are.  They met on the “Lord’s Day” celebrating the day of Jesus’ triumph over death. They constantly reminded one another that life did not end with the final breath, but that the best life began when the body perished.  Paul, with the inspiration of the Spirit, reminds us that Christ is the first-fruits (the evidence) of immortality. Our Gospel, he says, is not just a bit of hope for now, it is glorious assurance of eternal life! "Now let me remind you, dear brothers and sisters, of the Good News I preached to you before. … It is this Good News that saves you if you firmly believe it—…  I passed on to you what was most important and what had also been passed on to me—that Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said. He was buried, and he was raised from the dead on the third day, as the Scriptures said. He was seen by Peter and then by the twelve apostles." (1 Corinthians 1 5:1-5, NLT)

He builds on that truth and tells us that death is not victorious over us. "Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep." (1 Corinthians 15:20, NIV)  "For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality. When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: “Death has been swallowed up in victory.” “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” (1 Corinthians 15:53-55, NIV)

As grim as it may seem to some, when I stand alongside the coffins of the dead, I consciously remember that not many years from now, my own kin will stand in that place for me.  The body in which I live is not immortal, the evidence of that grows stronger with each passing year.  But, I do not fear death.  Oh, yes, the process of dying, is something I dread.  One cannot make the ravages of cancer, the forgetfulness of Alzheimers, or the tremors of Parkinsons pretty by any stretch of imagination.  But, the moment of our dying need not be grim at all!  It is a departure from this present world, an arrival in our eternal home. 

Christ is our assurance of life. So, we say, with Paul, "Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but
also to all who have longed for his appearing." (2 Timothy 4:8, NIV)

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Sing the wondrous love of Jesus,

Sing His mercy and His grace.

In the mansions, bright and blessed,

He'll prepare for us a place.

While we walk the pilgrim pathway

Clouds will overspread the sky.

But, when trav'ling days are over

Not a shadow not a sigh.

Let us then be true and faithful

Trusting, serving, ev'ry day.

Just one glimpse of Him in glory

Will the toils of life repay.

Onward to the prize before us,

Soon His beauty we'll behold.

Soon the pearly gates will open

We shall tread the streets of gold.

When we all get to heaven,

What a day of rejoicing that will be!

When we all see Jesus,

We'll sing and shout the victory!

Eliza Edmunds Hewitt | Emily D. Wilson

Public Domain

If I don’t take of myself, who will?

After our lunch at Cracker Barrel, the waitress brought the check. I reached into my pocket and pulled out $5 to leave on the table as a tip.  Ed, our 13 year old, looked at it and asked, “Why don’t you give her more? She was nice to us.” After explaining to him that usually the tip is a percentage of the check, I said that I liked his generous impulse.  My suggestion was that he use some of his own money to add to the tip. But, like so many of us, he did not feel so liberal when it involved his own resources.

My heart jumps for joy when I interact with a person who has a generous spirit. They are positive towards others, speaking encouragement, hope for the best, and give of their resources and themselves. They make the world a richer place. Then, there are those who keep score in every relationship and make certain that they get what they think is rightly coming to them.  Like my Ed, they might feel a generous impulse, but not if costs them personally.  It appears that their motto is, “Let someone else give and serve, I have to take care of ME.”

Jesus told a story about a man who failed the generosity test at the point where it is most important. “The ground of a certain rich man produced a good crop. He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’ “Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.”’ “But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’ “This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God.” (Luke 12:16-21, NIV)

That phrase, ‘rich toward God,’ begs for our attention. Are we generous in serving Him? Is our worship lavish? Do we serve with an eye towards minimal expectations or in a way that reflects deep devotion?  There were some religious professionals that Jesus observed who were not ‘rich toward God.’  They carefully calculated the tithe (10%) on even the herbs from their garden, but did not practice justice towards others.  Jesus’ words with regard to them are scathing: “How terrible it will be for you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are careful to tithe even the tiniest part of your income, but you ignore the important things of the law—justice, mercy, and faith. You should tithe, yes, but you should not leave undone the more important things." (Matthew 23:23, NLT)  

Love does not calculate returns. It overflows! If we are carefully keeping record of what we think God owes us, if we are clinging to our time, our money; yes, to our Self – we are not ‘rich toward God.’ Jesus said that the man who took such good care of himself was a ‘fool!’ Strong word, isn’t it?  He failed to understand that eternity waited and those things he had carefully laid aside for his own comfort would be spent by another.  He was not truly rich.  Are you a fool?  Are you playing hard at life while doing the minimal things for God that your conscience demands? Like the Pharisees, are you calculating your tithe right down to the penny, but missing the joy of a life given fully to the purposes of the Lord?

Take these words from the Word to heart.
"Walk out into the fields and look at the wildflowers. They never primp or shop, but have you ever seen color and design quite like it? The ten best-dressed men and women in the country look shabby alongside them. “If God gives such attention to the appearance of wildflowers—most of which are never even seen—don’t you think he’ll attend to you, take pride in you, do his best for you?

What I’m trying to do here is to get you to relax, to not be so preoccupied with getting, so you can respond to God’s giving. People who don’t know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don’t worry about missing out. You’ll find all your everyday human concerns will be met."
 (Matthew 6:28-33, The Message)