YOU Make Beautiful Things

Do you see your work as just a way to ‘make a living’ or do you see it as a way to show the grace of Jesus? The Bible tells us “If a man will not work, he shall not eat.” We hear that some among you are idle. They are not busy; they are busybodies. Such people we command and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ to settle down and earn the bread they eat.”  (2 Thessalonians 3:10)  The Lord’s general purpose for each of us is that we are productive – whatever our skills or occupation.  Laborer, homemaker, preacher, or poet – when we work with diligence, we honor Him.  And, our work can be a place of joyfulness! “Jerry are you in touch with reality? Work and joy don’t belong in the same sentence.”  Really?

Many allow themselves to slip into drudgery!  What is that? Here's how the dictionary defines it: dull, irksome, and fatiguing work. I take my takes responsibilities seriously and I have difficulty letting go.  But, during Bev’s long illness, in those months when she needed much care, I learned the value of another kind of work- just being present, loving, waiting on her.  Was it easy to change my focus from shepherding a congregation to being her care-giver? No. Often I felt conflicted – torn between my love for her and a sense that other ‘work’ was going undone. But, God and good friends counseled me through those long months, helping me to see that ‘work’ takes many forms, that my highest calling was to my wife in her time of greatest need.  I began to find great joy in the menial work that was part of caring for her each day. I also began to understand the flexibility allowed to me by the church as a great gift. God used that time to do His work in me, too.

Are you in a time or place where you are struggling to find joy in your ‘work’?  Do you feel that you have been sidelined? Do you wonder if what you do has any value, meaning, or purpose? 

Drudgery is – first and foremost- a mindset!  If we invite the Lord to go with us to ‘work,’ wherever and whatever that might be, His Presence will be a bright and joyful part of our life.  Jesus talked of the vine and branches  in a vineyard. He was pointing to the importance of keeping connected! The principle is clear:  No connection, no life!  “Remain intimately connected with Me,” He said, “and you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your joy will overflow!" (John 15:11, NLT)   A Christian who is long-faced, miserable, and overwhelmed with his duties, is missing the point somewhere and is failing to honor the Lord in his work.

Jesus was a joyful man. Have you painted a mental picture of Jesus using only of the truth about Him?  Jesus was "a man acquainted with grief, a man of sorrows." He did weep with those who were broken by disappointment, death, and disease.  But . . . He also was a man who ate dinner with those they considered low-lifes and sinners. He attracted people to Him everywhere He went.  I think we miss the humor buried in His words. When He told the story of a camel going through the eye of a needle to illustrate the impossibility of a self-sufficient rich person coming into the Kingdom of God, I believe the hearers laughed, seeing the absurdity of the image.  When He stopped to invite Himself to Zacchaeus’ home, the little man was eager to accept and I believe, in part, it was because Jesus was good company, enjoyable and pleasant.  I’m sure He knew how to laugh and lift people who were sorrowful from their darkness. Don't forget, His first public miracle was supplying wine for a wedding!   Somehow, for most of us, the only picture of the face of Jesus is the tear-stained one He wore on the night of Gethsemane's agony.  Let us not forget that kids loved Him, that crowds were drawn to Him, and that He spent a lot of time with so-called 'street people,' - a clue that He had to be a joyful man, too.

So, how do we live in His joy?

Worship! 

"You have made known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand." (Psalm 16:11, NIV)  If we live life, with our face to the ground, focusing only on the needs, the duties, the pressing responsibilities - we will be overcome with fatigue, if not outright depressed.  Worship, offering up the sacrifice of praise, lifts our face to Heaven and allows us to regain a view of God's glorious works.  No wonder the Scripture urges us to "Come, let us sing for joy to the LORD; let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation. Let us come before him with thanksgiving and extol him with music and song." (Psalm 95:1-2, NIV)

Serve!  
Stop, Jerry, didn't you just say we need to step away from duty?  Yes, I did, but if we give ourselves to vanity, to endless chasing of 'fun,' we will lose the joy of God's approval!  Jesus told a story about men who were entrusted with responsibility.   Two of the three were diligent and obedient in their service.  Note their commendation:  "Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful . . .  Enter into the joy of your Lord." (Matthew 25:23, NKJV)

Submit!  
Accepting God's grace for the road you will walk today is important.  Nothing that happens to you today surprises Him.   Those who are His beloved children can turn to Him and find help, strength, and resources. Sometimes He leads us through dark valleys, along ways we would not choose for ourselves. Even there, He will provide grace for the journey. In that grace, there is joy even in the trials of life.

Joy is a constant work of God's Spirit in us, not something we drum up, create, or paste into place. If you are a Christian drudge, a joyful dutiful person slogging through each day, face to the ground, without joy, pray for grace to change your heart first, even before you seek a change of circumstances. Let the Vine pour the Life of the Spirit into your mind and heart. Let JOY grow where sorrow was sown. We bring our Lord great honor Him in simple contentment and an authentic smile.

The word from the Word says "Celebrate God all day, every day. I mean, revel in him!" (Philippians 4:4, The Message) "Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life. Summing it all up, friends, I’d say you’ll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious—the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse. Put into practice what you learned from me, what you heard and saw and realized.

Do that, and God, who makes everything work together, will work you into his most excellent harmonies." (Philippians 4:6-9, The Message)

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Beautiful Things

All this pain-

I wonder if I'll ever find my way?

I wonder if my life could really change,

At all?

All this earth-

Could all that is lost ever be found?

Could a garden come up from this ground,

At all?

You make beautiful things,

You make beautiful things out of the dust!

You make beautiful things,

You make beautiful things out of us!

All around-

Hope is springing up from this old ground!

Out of chaos life is being found,

In You!

You make me new, You are making me new.

You make me new, You are making me new.

Lisa Gungor | Michael Gungor

© 2009 worshiptogether.com songs (Admin. by Capitol CMG Publishing)

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Thrive or Survive?

My Mom and Dad, after raising three natural born children, adopted 10 more! One of those children was a sickly infant- slow to gain weight, no appetite, fussy, and prone to injury. The doctors called his condition “failure to thrive.”  Mom refused to accept that there was something wrong with him and lavished attention on him, insisting that he live and grow.  He’s 6 feet tall now and shows no deficit physically. I wonder he would have even lived without the incredible amount of love he was given in those early years?

There are Christians that appear to have a kind of spiritual “failure to thrive” condition. After coming to faith in Christ, they stop growing in grace. Their lives exhibit little love or joy. They are given to despair, or rage, or lust, or greed.  They seem not to have any desire to worship or understand matters of the Spirit.  Did you know that our Heavenly Father lavishes love on us and desires that we thrive, that we live robust, energetic lives in His care? Look at what Paul tells us. We "always to thank God for you, brothers loved by the Lord, because from the beginning God chose you to be saved through the sanctifying work of the Spirit and through belief in the truth. He called you to this through our gospel, that you might share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. So then, brothers, stand firm and hold to the teachings we passed on to you, whether by word of mouth or by letter. May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope, encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word." (2 Thessalonians 2:13-17, NIV)

The Lord did not extend His salvation to us so that we could remain miserable, mean, and sorry! Those Christians who constantly moan of their trials, and who are just trying to hold on until Jesus returns or death delivers them from this world are missing the point. Our salvation begins NOW and through the Spirit we are invited to a quality of life that displays the goodness of God. Don’t confuse that high and holy calling with the shallow prosperity Gospel of this age.  Jesus did not leave His Glory to make us rich and to enable us to live without difficulties!  He came to liberate us from slavery, to give us hope, to make us loving, to fill our lives with a wealth that is more lasting than gold! Of Himself, He said: "Yes, I am the gate. Those who come in through me will be saved. Wherever they go, they will find green pastures. The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give life in all its fullness." (John 10:9-10, NLT)

Are you merely a survivor or are you drinking of the Spirit, feeding on the Word, and breathing the renewal of worship so you will thrive? Borrowing from Moses’ experience of the Presence of God at Mt. Sinai, this passage speaks of being filled with a beautiful, holy radiance. After 40 days with the Lord, Moses’ face had a supernatural glow that frightened the Israelites! He put a covering on his face to keep them from freaking out, but then he kept it on to conceal the fact that the glow was fading!  Paul says that Christians who are filled with the Spirit will have a kind of glory in their lives and  they will have no need of veils to hide its fading, because the Spirit keeps on shining in us! "But whenever anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit." (2 Corinthians 3:16-18, NIV)

Look up! Accept His grace for your need. Invite Him to change your sorrow into joy, to work in whatever situation you find yourself.  Take this ancient prophecy as a life statement and live it, by the power of the Lord.

“God sent me to announce the year of his grace—
a celebration of God’s destruction of our enemies—
 and to comfort all who mourn,

To care for the needs of all who mourn in Zion,
give them bouquets of roses instead of ashes,

Messages of joy instead of news of doom,
a praising heart instead of a languid spirit.

Rename them “Oaks of Righteousness”
planted by God to display his glory.”

Isaiah 61:2-3  the Message

________

Thrive

Here in this worn and weary land

Where many a dream has died

Like a tree planted by the water

We will never run dry

So living water flowing through

God we thirst for more of You

Fill our hearts and flood our souls

With one desire

Just to know You and to make You known

We lift Your name on high

Shine like the sun make darkness run and hide

We know we were made for so much more

Than ordinary lives

It's time for us to more than just survive

We were made to thrive

Into Your Word we're digging deep

To know our Father's heart

Into the world we're reaching out

To show them who You are

Joy unspeakable

Faith unsinkable

Love unstoppable

Anything is possible

We were made to thrive

Mark Hall | Matthew West

© 2014 Atlas Holdings (Admin. by Atlas Music Publishing)

Highly Combustible Music (Admin. by Atlas Music Publishing)

House of Story Music Publishing (Admin. by Atlas Music Publishing)

CCLI License # 810055

These tears will be wiped away

Monday I began to sort through the ‘stuff’ in her desk. The evidence of a life of love, prayer, diligence, and service lay scattered on the floor around me. There were cards sent to her that she held onto. There were notebooks full of her neat handwriting, thoughts she prepared to share with her beloved ladies. There were lesson plans and notecards for class projects from her years of teaching.  The journals that noted her prayers were profound in their simplicity. She prayed for what she loved – me, her kids, friends, church members. Seeing it all tore the hole in my soul open again. The ache has yet to subside. Carrying the treasures now worthless, to the dumpster led to silent tears. The evidence that she will not be coming home because she is Home cannot be ignored.  And I am asking the foolish question that has no answer this side of eternity – “Why, Lord, did you have to take her?”

Widening my vision from my own anguish, I do know enough theology to understand that sin and Satan visit suffering and pain on this planet. Death is ‘the last enemy’ the ultimate evidence of the ‘now and not yet’ nature of the Kingdom. We must not forget that in ways often beyond our understanding in the moment, our choices often contribute to the pain. And still, it is not all darkness. There is joy in knowing love, sweetness found in worship.  

 Not to be forgotten is the promise that waits for all those who know the Savior. I have returned to this passage many times in the last 21 days: "I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” (Revelation 21:3-5, NIV) 

When the struggle’s over, God draws us close. I like to imagine Him in fatherly fashion. Does He pull out a big handkerchief, and dry our tears like my Grandpa did when I skinned my knees all those years ago?  Well, maybe not exactly like that, but that is the mental picture that forms in my mind.

I feel sorry for people who live superficially, who love little, to avoid pain or disappointment. If you dig deep, love with abandon, and give yourself away – you become vulnerable and honestly – sometimes the result is that you hurt – terribly!  In that time, we need hope that will keep us from slipping into cynicism. Cynics are mostly ugly, mean people. With faith intact, we are lovers who hope for divine intervention - when all the tears are wiped away. Gordon Jensen’s song has this memorable line, “God weeps along with man and takes him by the hand, tears are a language God understands.”  

Are the tears ready to fall today? 

Has the disappointment, the pain, the unrelenting struggle with the curse of sin nearly broken you in two?

Go ahead and cry. Find a place alone with Him and let the tears that fall become a wordless prayer for renewal of hope, for healing, for forgiveness.  Then, give thanks for the grace to stand and the hope that He will, like the wonderful and loving Father He is, someday wipe every tear, and even the memory of those things which make you cry, from your eyes forever.

The word from the Word is a Psalm for the sorrowful.  Read these words as His Word to you, not just as beautiful poetry.

"You keep track of all my sorrows.
You have collected all my tears in your bottle.
You have recorded each one in your book.

My enemies will retreat when I call to you for help.
This I know: God is on my side!

I praise God for what he has promised;
Yes, I praise the Lord for what he has promised.

I trust in God, so why should I be afraid?

What can mere mortals do to me?

I will fulfill my vows to you, O God,

and will offer a sacrifice of thanks for your help.

For you have rescued me from death;

you have kept my feet from slipping.

So now I can walk in your presence,

O God, in your life-giving light." (Psalm 56:8-13, NLT)

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O Love That Wilt Not Let Me Go

O love that wilt not let me go,

I rest my weary soul in Thee.

I give Thee back the life I owe,

That in Thine ocean depths its flow

May richer fuller be.

O Joy that seekest me through pain,

I cannot close my heart to Thee.

I trace the rainbow through the rain

And feel the promise is not vain

That morn shall tearless be.

Albert Lister Peace | George Matheson

© Words: Public Domain