Friday, August 24, 2012
Grace and Vision
But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I but the grace of God that is with me. 1 Corinthians 15:10
Paul's ministry was driven by grace. He seemed always aware of how undeserving he was of God's gift of salvation - he knew so well "from whence he came." Paul's conversion turned him from a zealous persecutor of the followers of Christ to a man zealous to bring others to the Lord he had come to know. It was his mission from then on to follow and serve the Lord, to tell his story and to preach the good news of salvation to the Gentile world that they, too, may come to the knowledge of the love of Christ for, in and through them. Paul never seemed to take for granted the grace of God. His work was propelled by the knowledge of all God had done to bring him into this new life.
Can we say the same thing? Is the Good News burning in us, compelling us to share it? Speaking personally, I know how easy it is for me to get so caught up in the day-to-day busy-ness of my life that I forget how I got where I am. I stay busy doing the Lord's work but don't always pause to look back and see how far the Lord has brought me - that it's only by his grace and power that I do anything. Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received, freely give. (Matt. 10:8 NIV) In other words, all that we do in the name of Christ and for his kingdom is done out of all he has done and is doing in us.
Look around. Where has God placed you - what community, church, neighborhood? Who has he sent your way, what are the needs, where is the one who doesn't yet know the love of Jesus? Where is the one who is sick in soul, mind or body? Who is Jesus asking you to minister to today? We are not all called to stand on street corners and pass out tracts but we are called to give freely of the love we have so freely been given. Watch for opportunities and be willing to share your story, your heart, your time, or whatever the Lord might be asking of you.
Tuesday, August 7, 2012
Take Him at His Word
And my people shall be satisfied with my goodness declares the Lord. For I will satisfy the weary soul, and every languishing soul I will replenish. (Jeremiah 31:14b, 25)
How we strive to satisfy our soul's desires! We feel a need and try to fill that need or emptiness ourselves: go shopping, buy new "toys", work harder, gain more prestige, perhaps pursue a new relationship. When we become aware of an emptiness, we feel it must be filled and we run around trying many things or ways to satisfy. But the truth is we're looking in the wrong direction and we're missing the true reason for our emptiness. Temporary, earthly things can never satisfy the need that can only be filled by our eternal God. Everything else may feel like a quick fix but the depth of our need can only be addressed by God.
God placed within us our need for him. We may spend our life running after love, things, fame, prestige, money, etc, thinking that's all it will take to satisfy, only to find the emptiness still there. We see it all around us in people's lives spinning out of control, or in a desperate striving that never stops. When is enough enough?
Only the one who created us, our deepest innermost parts, can answer and fill our deepest needs. It's simple, really, and we can make it so complicated! Be still and know that I am God (Ps. 46:10). Or, as in the NASB version, Cease striving and know that I am God. Stop this endless rat race like the hamster on its little wheel. Cease striving. KNOW that he is God.
God's goodness is enough. HE is enough. He is the sufficiency for all our needs and it is enough. God's goodness is abundantly more than we can ever ask for or imagine (Eph. 3:19); there is no limit and no end to the love, mercy, grace and goodness of our God. The searching, running around, restlessness, striving, and constant reaching stops here, in the presence and fullness of our Lord. In Ephesians 1:3, we read that we have been blessed with every spiritual blessing in Christ Jesus. How astonishing that is! Every - not some - every spiritual blessing. Nothing is left out or held back. What an amazingly good and generous Father we have.
He promises to satisfy every weary, worn out, beaten-down soul and to replenish every languishing, weak, neglected, disheartened soul. Look around. These soul-weary people are everywhere. You can see it in their eyes, their posture, their very presence. You might even catch a glimpse when you look in the mirror. Our God is waiting, calling, reaching out to each one of us, saying: Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest (Matt. 11:28 NIV). He promises us his peace - not the peace the world can offer but the peace of God which passes all understanding (Philippians 4:7). He promises us love; not the weak, watered-down, conditional love of this world but the love that knows no limits, is tender, compassionate and the love that will never leave us or forsake us. His is the love that can never be taken away by anything: Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:35, 38-39)
God's promises are true, they are forever. Read these words again and take them to heart - take God at his word:
How we strive to satisfy our soul's desires! We feel a need and try to fill that need or emptiness ourselves: go shopping, buy new "toys", work harder, gain more prestige, perhaps pursue a new relationship. When we become aware of an emptiness, we feel it must be filled and we run around trying many things or ways to satisfy. But the truth is we're looking in the wrong direction and we're missing the true reason for our emptiness. Temporary, earthly things can never satisfy the need that can only be filled by our eternal God. Everything else may feel like a quick fix but the depth of our need can only be addressed by God.
God placed within us our need for him. We may spend our life running after love, things, fame, prestige, money, etc, thinking that's all it will take to satisfy, only to find the emptiness still there. We see it all around us in people's lives spinning out of control, or in a desperate striving that never stops. When is enough enough?
Only the one who created us, our deepest innermost parts, can answer and fill our deepest needs. It's simple, really, and we can make it so complicated! Be still and know that I am God (Ps. 46:10). Or, as in the NASB version, Cease striving and know that I am God. Stop this endless rat race like the hamster on its little wheel. Cease striving. KNOW that he is God.
God's goodness is enough. HE is enough. He is the sufficiency for all our needs and it is enough. God's goodness is abundantly more than we can ever ask for or imagine (Eph. 3:19); there is no limit and no end to the love, mercy, grace and goodness of our God. The searching, running around, restlessness, striving, and constant reaching stops here, in the presence and fullness of our Lord. In Ephesians 1:3, we read that we have been blessed with every spiritual blessing in Christ Jesus. How astonishing that is! Every - not some - every spiritual blessing. Nothing is left out or held back. What an amazingly good and generous Father we have.
He promises to satisfy every weary, worn out, beaten-down soul and to replenish every languishing, weak, neglected, disheartened soul. Look around. These soul-weary people are everywhere. You can see it in their eyes, their posture, their very presence. You might even catch a glimpse when you look in the mirror. Our God is waiting, calling, reaching out to each one of us, saying: Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest (Matt. 11:28 NIV). He promises us his peace - not the peace the world can offer but the peace of God which passes all understanding (Philippians 4:7). He promises us love; not the weak, watered-down, conditional love of this world but the love that knows no limits, is tender, compassionate and the love that will never leave us or forsake us. His is the love that can never be taken away by anything: Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:35, 38-39)
God's promises are true, they are forever. Read these words again and take them to heart - take God at his word:
And my people shall be satisfied with my goodness declares the Lord. For I will satisfy the weary soul, and every languishing soul I will replenish. (Jeremiah 31:14b, 25)
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