Interruptions!

Rod Serling spent his life trying to communicate messages. Some of you may know that he did more than just the Twilight Zone gig. He said one occasion, “It is truly difficult to produce a television documentary that is both incisive and probing when every twelve minutes one is interrupted by those dancing rabbits singing about toilet paper.”

I bet Jesus understands his frustration. You talk about someone trying to communicate a message – we call Jesus the Logos, the Word. He has a message! It is a message of love, justice, mercy, service, judgment and faithfulness. After he personified this message among our forefathers, he provided it in writing for future generations, including our generation. I wonder what he thinks about the interruptions.

A wise man wrote a song about a strong, righteous person: “But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night.” The courageous man wrote, “In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust….” The individual determined not to sin affirmed, “I have written your word in my heart.” The one who loved to obey proclaimed, “I will not neglect your word.”

How would your life be different if soccer was interrupted by study? Do you think you would benefit if you allowed making money to be interrupted by meditation? How honored do you think God would feel if you stopped hustling to the next appointment, and let him come into your heart to refresh and rebuild you? That’s Life at Work!

Price-paying Devotion

We have a Bible Study group early on Monday mornings. Right now, we are looking at Paul’s second letter to Timothy. That Paul was a devoted man. He was devoted to the people to whom he preached, to the gospel that he preached, and to the God who saved him to preach. He told Timothy that he would endure any suffering, even being treated like a criminal, though he had done nothing wrong, as long as people got to hear the story of Jesus and his resurrection. The gospel is worthy of that kind of devotion.
John Kennedy spoke of that kind of devotion in his inaugural address in January of 1961: “Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe to assure the survival and success of liberty.” Liberty is certainly a noble cause, worthy of that kind of devotion, too.
You’ve got other things in your life that, likewise, deserve that kind of devotion. Building a strong marriage, rearing children who are well taught and motivated, and personally growing to a Christ-like maturity all deserve a price-paying, burden-bearing, hardship-enduring fully involved devotion from you.
Our careers, hobbies, homes, and Hummers (or whatever else you drive) get way too much of our time and energy. Be devoted to the really important things. That’s Life at Work!

Let the Retaliation Stop

A wife screams and scratches at her husband, and the husband belligerently yells back and raises his hand like he would slap her. A teenager shouts, “I hate you! You never let me do anything!” Her mother bursts through the bedroom door and bellows her retort, “My whole day is ruined the minute you walk in that front door!” It happens in the home, on the road, at the work place, in school, on the church pew, in the check-out line, and at the neighborhood meeting. Anywhere that you have potential for conflict there is the potential for someone to return ugliness for ugliness. Responding to harsh words and abuse with more harsh words and abuse is the wrong response.
Martin Luther King tried to drive that point home in Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community. He wrote, “The ultimate weakness of violence is that it is a descending spiral, begetting the very thing it seeks to destroy. Instead of diminishing evil, it multiplies it…. Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate. Only love can do that.” He was right. You might temporarily subdue the yelling and abuse that others heap by topping what they are doing; but the bitterness will return soon. When the opportunity for retaliation arises, retaliation is likely to take place. Let the retaliation stop with you.
Jesus taught to turn the other cheek and pray for those who harm us. Peter used the Passion story to call us to refuse to return insult for insult. Paul instructed us to let the Lord take whatever vengeance might need to be taken, but we are to live at peace with everyone. He said to overcome evil with good.
Today, and this week, when your spouse or your teenager is harsh, respond with a kind word. When the maniac cuts you off as you are driving home, back off and let him have plenty of room. When someone lies about you to another, tell the truth gently, and don’t return the slander. Do these things because it is the best way to stop the descending spiral. Do these things because it reflects the kind of person you are and the Savior that you committed to imitate. That's Life at Work!

The Importance of Group

"Church" is the English word in religious context translated from a Greek word with a more general meaning. "Ecclesia," refers to an assembly - a group of people. Twice in Acts 2, Luke says that as people accepted the message, were baptized and were saved, they were "added to their number" by the Lord. "Ecclesia" is not found in Acts 2, though the idea of a group is obvious. We will find ecclesia and its English religious equivalent "church" for the first time in Acts in chapter 5.
From the beginning of the assembly of the saved, God intended that "group" should be a significant part of the Christians life. Our use of the accepted English words has played a part in our failure to understand the importance of group. For us, the assembly is the Sunday morning gathering. For us, the church is the building where we assemble.
These Christians were numbered together, as opposed to being numbered with the rejecters of the word, the unbaptized and the unsaved. These Christians who were numbered together experienced things together. They met, ate, learned, saw miracles occur, praised, grew, and gave their possessions together. Together, they enjoyed the favor of all the people. These Christians were afraid together, raised their voices in courage and thanks together, prayed together, were filled with the Spirit and spoke the Word boldly together.
Next year, Alcoholics Anonymous will celebrate 70 years of helping alcoholics stay sober. Their strength, above everything else that may be taught and emphasized, is their group. The greatest benefit of joining Alcoholics Anonymous is that the alcoholic becomes a part of a group whose purpose is to keep its members away from alcohol and its destructive consequences.
Research indicates that individual education and personal growth through individualized counseling may help an alcoholic stay away from his poison, but its not likely. For a real chance, you’ve got to have a group whose sole purpose is to help you quit drinking.
The church, the assembly, the group of the saved has a soul purpose. From the beginning of the group God has said, "This is not an ‘alone’ thing." You’ve been added to the number.

KEEP YOUR PRIZE!

They wanted him to give up his prize! After Hamm won the all-around competition in men’s gymnastics, a scoring error was found that would have given a South Korean gymnast the points needed for the gold. One editor I read implied that Hamm would be a goat if he didn’t offer to give up the gold medal.
All that fuss is about a “prize that won’t last.” We train for a “prize that will last forever.” Would you give that prize up? Paul thought he could give it up, in a sense. He knew how important self-control was in his training to get the prize. If he treated his training like it had no purpose, or if he lost control of himself, he knew he could become disqualified for the prize.
In another context, Paul spoke of his love for his countrymen. He knew that many of them were lost in their unbelief. He wrote regarding his love for them that he could wish that he was cut off from Christ for their sakes. For those Gentiles who thought that Paul had abandoned the Jews to preach to Gentiles, his words of sustained love had to be convincing.
The truth is, you can give up your award. You can disqualify yourself from your eternal prize by neglecting your training and turning from your decision to control yourself in holy ways. Don’t do that! Another truth is that you can’t give up your prize so that another can have it. Paul knew that forfeiture was not the way to bring his loved ones to faith. He understood that his own faith was one of his greatest tools in his efforts to bring them to Christ. Those things are true for you, too. Keep your prize! That’s Life at Work!

What Does this Mean?

They had heard that the Holy Spirit was going to come. They knew that they were supposed to wait in Jerusalem until it happened. He did come! “Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.” The reaction of those watching isn’t surprising to us. It’s the same reaction we would have had. We might have asked, “What’s going on here?” They asked, “What does this mean?”
The gift, the prophecy, and the promise shout out the same answer! The gift was the ability to speak on languages never learned. The prophecy was that God would pour out his Spirit on all people. The promise was, and is, that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.
God wants you to hear his message in your own language so that you can understand it and respond to him indescribable gift. God will give you, regardless of race, color, former religion, gender, national origin, or disability his Spirit. God will save you, regardless of who you are, when you call on his name.
He is the God of Equal Opportunity under His Grace. That’s Life at Work!

How Does Your Garden Grow?
 
     How does your garden grow?  Do you remember that question for Mary the Contrary?  If you asked Paul that question around 64 A.D.  he would have said just what he told the Colossian Christians, “All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God's grace in all its truth” (Colossians 1:6-7).
     Paul’s concern was not with tomatoes and watermelons.  He was concerned with people and their lives now and forever.  The people in Colossae heard the good news about Jesus and understood God’s amazing grace.  That good news, the seed of kingdom as Jesus called it, took root in their hearts, and grew.  It grew because as each believer of the good news submitted to a burial in Christ (baptism; cf. 2:12), one more individual was made complete in Jesus.  It also grew because the gospel blooms inside a person.  The response of the heart that has understood God’s grace is filled with stability, love, and gratitude.
     That good news should be heard by your ears regularly.  Your heart should be constantly exposed to the seed that brings eternal life? Are you cultivating that garden that really matters?  That’s Life at Work!

It Can’t Be Done?


Somebody said that it couldn’t be done,
But he with a chuckle replied
That “maybe it couldn’t,” but he would be one
Who wouldn’t say so till he’d tried.
So be buckled right in with the trace of a grin
On his face. If he worried he hid it.
He started to sing as he tackled the thing
That couldn’t be done, and he did it.

{Edgar A. Guest, “It Couldn’t Be Done,” stanza 1, Collected Verse of Edgar A. Guest, (1934).}

What do you say can’t be done? “My marriage can’t get better?” “I can’t break my addiction.” “I can’t teach my neighbor.” “My church can’t grow.” “I can’t do what I know I’m supposed to do.” “I can’t love him.” “I can’t make her behave.” “I can’t forgive them.” I can’t pay off my debt.” I can’t find peace.”
Would you be willing to try again? Before you say, “I can’t try again,” let me remind you of some powerful words:

I can do everything through him who gives me strength – (Phil 4:13)

Such confidence as this is ours through Christ before God. Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God – (2 Cor 3:4-5)

Confess your weakness to God. Praise him for his strength. Pray. Then try it again – and if you know it is God’s will, try it again. Your marriage can get better. You can break the addiction. God does want you to teach your neighbor, and he wants your church to grow. You can do what God desires. You can love, even your enemies. You can be a good parent. You can forgive. You can become a liberal giver. You can find peace.
You can because all of these are things that God has revealed he wants from you. He wants you to remember, though, that it’s not your power but his through which these godly things are accomplished. He also wants others to know that what they see in you is strength from Christ.
As Paul closed out the first half of his letter to the Ephesians, he spoke about his sufferings. He knows that these were the result of trying to convince a bunch of idol worshipers that there is one God who created everything; and trying to convince a bunch of Jewish isolationists that God is now saving those idolaters. He was trying to demonstrate that these two groups from opposite poles were now “one new man” in Christ Jesus. To top it off, Paul knew that he personally was not up to the task. After all, in his own words he was, “less than the least of all God’s people.” Yet, he said, “Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen” (Eph 3:20-21).

“It can’t be done,” we say. That’s garbage! He can do it! Will you try again?

So Little Done

Englishman Cecil John Rhodes immigrated to South Africa for health reasons and made a fortune from gold and diamond mining. He also became prime minister of the Cape Colony in 1890 and expanded Britain's territories. Under his will, part of his fortune was used to endow the Rhodes scholarships. He died from heart disease at low ebb in his fortunes. Lewis Mitchell, who was at his bedside while he was dying, heard him murmur, "So little done, so much to do." Whether a statesman or a beggar; whether, a South African or American. Whether you don't have enough to pay the electric bill or have enough to fund a scholarship; as far as this life is concerned we can all die with much to do and little done. Christians can say instead, "For me to live is Christ and to die is gain. I will depart to be with Jesus." To have accomplished anything that will last forever -- that will bring a peace of mind to a dying body -- you've got to have become a child of God. What do you need to do today?

Running When the Phone Rings

Edgar Degas was a French painter and sculptor who would be unknown to me unless I had appreciated an anecdote attributed to him that illustrates how unimportant things can gain control of our lives. Degas has a friend named Jean-Louis Forain who was a bit more progressive than Degas. Forain had recently installed a telephone, a new invention at the time, and he wanted to show it off. He invited Degas over for a meal, and then arranged for someone to call him during the meal. The phone rang, Forain rushed to answer it, then returned, beaming with pride. Degas was less amazed with the phone and more amazed with Forain's response to its ring. He observed critically, "That's the telephone? It rings and you run." Neither you nor I are likely to answer this question honestly at first, but meditate on this: "What trivial things have such impact on your life that you run to them, even ignoring your spiritual health, whenever they call?" Look at the frivolous things that waste your time. Let's all work on answering Christ's call to holiness faster than we answer the phone. Live for Jesus and rush to those things that will enrich His relationship with you and your family.

What's That Smoke?

William Tecumseh Sherman was a US General whose march to the sea in 1864 from Atlanta to Savannah were crucial to the success of the Union forces in the Civil War. During one of his engagements, Sherman was having difficulty breaking through the enemy front. He decided to send General Cox's division to attack the opposing left. Sherman positioned himself on a high hill to watch the operations and gave Cox his final orders for the circuitous march: "See here, Cox, burn a few barns occasionally as you go along. I can't understand those signal flags, but I know what smoke means." He knew what smoke means. I guess that Sherman had seen enough burning in war to know that smoke meant that his men were successfully destroying the enemy.
You and I have been around a little. We've witnessed some things in this life that enable us to identify what is going on. We need to be sure, though, that we let the smoke register with us. Here are some examples of smoke that means trouble.
Drinking is trouble. Robert Elliot reported that alcohol is used by a majority of the adult population and creates more problems than all other drugs combined. Broken marriages, brawls, neglected children, crashes on the roads, misspent money, uncontrolled passions all from alcohol. Everybody sees these things yet many still lift a beer to their lips and ask, "What is all that smoke?"
Gambling is trouble. Maybe some of us have seen this smoke a little more than others. I moved here from Mississippi. I still have many friends there, some of whom live along the Mississippi River and on the gulf coast. Gambling boats now line the shores at Vicksburg and Gulf Port. Families are broken and broke. Children are left in gambling boat day cares while their parents cash paychecks next to the roulette tables. The suicide rate is climbing because husbands can't face their wives or their creditors. Crime is on the increase. Don't forget what Jesus said in Matthew 6, "You can't serve God and money." He said later through Paul's pen, "People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs." Yet some in Tennessee would cast a vote for legalized gambling asking, "What is all that smoke?"
Bad companions are trouble. 1 Corinthians 15:33 warns, "Evil companions corrupt good morals." You see some kid trying to buy cigarette paper from the convenience store. You find out that a young person at your kid's school was caught vandalizing public property. That turns out to be the same kid. Then that kid comes to your house on Friday night, he opens the car door and a beer can falls to the street. He takes a long look at your daughter and says, "You ready to go?" You clear your eyes from the smoke, then say, "Have a good time, Sweetheart." "What is all that smoke," you ask. You know what it is. Stay clear.

Down and Out

Hall of Fame football star Bronko Nagurski was involved in some horseplay with a teammate that ended with Bronko falling out of a second story window. As he lay on the ground, okay but stunned, a policeman pushed through the crowd.
“What happened?” the office inquired.
Bronko responded, “I don’t know, I just got here myself.”
Sometimes when we are flat on our backs, we don’t know how we got in such horrible position. It was gradual, perhaps, and all we know is that we can’t get back on our feet alone. Other times, we know what happened. We are aware of the foolish choices, perhaps sinful choices that brought about our downfall. Still other times, we know exactly what happened and couldn’t prevent it though we tried. During his ministry, Jesus ran across the lonely like the woman Samaria, the sinful like the woman in John 8, and the sick whose stories are told throughout the gospels. Regardless of why they were “down and out,” Jesus was always willing and able to lift them up! We should be like that! That’s Life at Work!

In January I was given a ticket for running a stop sign as I came off a turnpike near our home. I went to court instead of mailing in the fine so that I could justify my action. Didn’t work.
When we think of justification, we tend to think of it in terms of actions, not people. If work is not done, we give our excuse. If I’ve mistreated you, I tell you why. If you’re late, you explain what detained you. The excuses, the “whys,” and the explanations are attempts to justify something done. Justification, as we seek it, is not a proclamation of innocence; it is acceptance that there was good reason to have made the mistake.
But when Paul wrote, “Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ…” he was not talking about reasonable excuses for having done wrong. When Paul used the word “justified” or something like it fifteen times in Romans, he was not indicating that God understands why we’ve sinned, and has accepted our explanation. Paul means that God has made us as though we had not done the wrong thing. Instead of seeing us as wrong, but excused; he forgives and credits us with righteousness. In God’s estimation, those who have faith in Christ, have no sin.
Since the faithful have no sin, they are not under the wrath of God. Since we have no sin, we will not be paid “death,” which sin earns. Since we have no sin, we have peace with God and there is no condemnation for us.
My fine for running the stop sign was eighty dollars. I know now that there is a stop sign there and that even if the light is green, I’ve got to stop. Good lesson learned. I was really irritated, though, that I had pay.
My wage for my sin is death (Romans 6:23). I’ve learned that my justification calls me to a life lived with a mindset on things of the Spirit. Good lesson learned. To have paid the fine for my sin would not have simply been irritating. It would have been devastating … for all eternity. Thanks be to God for the gift of righteousness.

Power of Anticipation

Anticipation really brings some spice to life, doesn’t it? Authors are aware of the selling power of anticipation. Do J. K. Rowling (Harry Potter) and Tim LaHaye (Left Behind) understand the importance of anticipation? Many of the works of Charles Dickens were first published in serial form. Part would be printed and sent out to sellers, and then readers would have to wait for the next section. One of his novels published in this manner was The Old Curiosity Shop. It was published in 1841 and was widely read in both Britain and the United States. Little Nell was the heroine of the story, and interest in the outcome was intense. In New York, six thousand people crowded the wharf at which the ship carrying the final installment was due to dock. As it came close, the crowd’s anticipation grew so that they cried out to the sailors, “Does Little Nell Die?”
The story of redemption is published in installments spread throughout the existence of mankind. From the story of a perfect creation, through the account of the fall, the flood, the faith of Abraham, the history of his sons and grandsons, the promises and mercy of God seen in the Exodus, the giving of the law, the gift of Canaan, the preaching of the prophets, the coming of God, the death and resurrection, and the preaching of the gospel, right up to the present time, the story of God’s love is written.
Anticipation has always been a part of the story. Peter wrote about those who told the story in the beginning. In regard to the salvation of our souls, he wrote:

Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you, when they spoke of the things that have now been told you by those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Even angels long to look into these things. (1 Peter 1:10-12)

Now, we wait in anticipation. Our situation is a little different from those six thousand who waited on the dock for Dicken’s book. Instead of knowing the arrival time and being ignorant of how the story ends; we know how the story ends, yet are ignorant of the arrival time.
A young man had been baptized into Christ and in his great zeal to be Christ’s disciple promised the preacher he would read as much of the Bible as he could every week. After the first week, the preacher asked, “What did you read?”
The young man smiled and said “I read Revelation!”
“Oh, no” the preacher thought to himself. “What kind of strange questions am I going to have to answer now?” Preparing for the worst, he asked the new Christian, “What did you think?”
The man responded, “We win! We win!”
Amen!
The end of the story is that God and his people are victorious over Satan, sin, and death. That’s not going to change. Though the final enemy is not yet defeated and the final battle not yet won, the end is published as fact. We Win!
We don’t know, though, when the end will be. We can’t go to the dock and wait for the coming of Christ. He may come today, he might not. He may come in the year 2004, he may not. He may come while we are alive, he may not. We must simply always be ready, anticipating his coming and our salvation. You know the end, are you ready for it?

Bearing Burdens

I got to spend last Friday and Friday night at the Teen Retreat. Dana divided the group into smaller groups of three, gave each group a burlap sack and told them to go find something heavy and put it in the sack. When they returned, they learned that someone in the group had to bear the burden (at meals, sleeping, bathing, playing, etc.). The groups figured out that they could share the burden among themselves, and most made a plan for who would bear the burden at a particular time.
Saturday morning, I was walking toward our van to put my stuff in it, when I saw one of the young ladies in our group bearing her burden. Her group had picked out what was at least the most awkward to carry burden if not the heaviest. This young lady was carrying a burlap sack weighted with a stump and a six-foot wooden fence post. Dana was walking by her the moment I spotted her, and he said, “Want some help?”
“Nope!” she quickly responded.
Dana’s lesson plan hit me instantly. I don’t know whether the young lady was embarrassed to allow someone to help her, or if she was determined to “do her duty” by carrying her burden, or if she thought at the moment that it wouldn’t be fair if someone else had to carry her burden. She declined the help that was genuinely offered.
After I loaded my stuff, I turned toward the kitchen for the great breakfast to come. The young lady was struggling more by now. She had reached the edge of the wooden swing bridge that is the hallmark of Lariat Creek. She looked pretty worried – and pretty tired.
I asked the same question Dana asked, “Want some help?”
Now her embarrassment was smaller than her burden. Now her sense of duty was outweighed by the burden in her bag. Now she wondered whether fairness was really all that urgent of an issue.
“Yeah,” she said.
She handed me her burden that I had the energy to carry. We walked across the bridge together, talking. When we got across the bridge, she said, “I can carry it now. I just needed some help getting across the bridge.”
I said, “OK. Are you sure?”
“Yes,” she responded. As I walked on ahead to the kitchen, she said, “Thanks.”

Lessons:

1. Some things are loads, others are burdens – you tell the difference by the weight of them on your heart.
2. Burdens are meant to be shared in the Christian Community. When someone is willing (and someone always is) share yours.
3. When you carry someone’s burden, usually you’ll carry it just long enough to get them over a hard spot. Don’t be afraid to offer help.
4. Jesus bore the heaviest of all burdens for us. Don’t turn down his offer to take your sins away.

Disarmed By Jesus

On Monday, August 9, 1993, a 31-year-old woman, Sopehia Mardress White, burst into the hospital nursery at USA Medical Center in Los Angeles, wielding a .38-caliber handgun. She had come gunning for Elizabeth Staten, a nurse whom she accused of stealing her husband. White fired six shots, hitting Staten in the wrist and stomach.
Staten fled, and White chased her into the emergency room, firing once more. There, with blood on her clothes and a hot pistol in her hand, the attacker was met by another nurse, Joan Black, who did the unthinkable. Black walked calmly to the gun-toting woman-and hugged her – and spoke comforting words to her.
The assailant said she didn't have anything to live for, that Staten had stolen her family.
"You're in pain," Black said. "I'm sorry, but everybody has pain in their life.... I understand, and we can work it out."
As they talked, the hospital invader kept her finger on the trigger. Once she began to lift the gun as though she would shoot herself. Nurse Black just pushed her arm down and continued to hold her. At last Sopehia White gave the gun to the nurse. She was disarmed by a hug, by understanding, by compassion.
Black later told an AP reporter, "I saw a sick person and had to take care of her."
Jesus stood outside the city of Jerusalem and sighing, said, “"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing.” He has urged us, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28).
Jesus sees in us what Nurse Black saw in Mrs. White. We are individuals who need help, wise yet comforting words, and a warm embrace. Paul wrote that the love of Christ compelled him. The embrace of the love of Christ compels us, too. It squeezes the pride out of our hearts, it makes us aware of our need for salvation, it prompts us to die to ourselves in humility, it urges us to follow him. . . it disarms us!
Jesus is calling to you through his word, the New Testament. He knows your heart, even better than you. He knows of your life lived in vain, even if you don’t. He knows of your potential for life abundant and life eternal. He knows and he cares. He cares so much, that he died so that it would be available to you. He cares so much that he died so that you be shocked into caring, too.
The sad truth is that Nurse Black could have been wrong in her assessment of what to do about Sopehia White. White could have seen her coming, heard her words, felt her warmth, and then blown her away. It would have been something like yelling, “Crucify him. Crucify him.” But that kind of reaction to that kind of compassion is not unheard of, is it?
How have you respond to the loving call of Christ? Bring your burdens, beginning with your burden of sin, to him. He can handle it. He has asked for it. He wants you know accept his help, heed his wise yet comforting words, and feel his warm embrace.

What Shall I Do With Jesus?

What shall I do then with Jesus which is called Christ?” That is the question of Pilate recorded in Matthew 27:22. It is a question for all of us to answer today.
What will you do with Jesus who is called the Christ? Some of you will ignore him. You’ve no doubt heard of Jesus. You probably know some things about him. Because of your busy life, however, you’ve never taken the time to know him.
Some of you think he’s a pretty interesting historical character like George Washington or Napoleon, but that’s about it. You like what he says about judging others but you wouldn’t turn the other cheek for him.
Some of you reject him. You’ve read the evidence, maybe had it preached at you, but you don’t believe it; or you’ve responded to it like you don’t believe it. You don’t see anything in him to cause you to change your life or respond in faithful obedience. He is not the Christ for you.
Others of you have convinced yourselves and others that you are his disciple, his follower, but you know your secrets and your heart. If it really came down to him or you, you would yell “Crucify him.”
There is a right answer. That answer is complete submission to Jesus of Nazareth, as both Lord and Christ. What will you do with Jesus?
“What shall I do then with Jesus which is called Christ?”

I watched Matt Lauer interview Sergei Ivanov, minister of defense, in Russia. The interview discussed things like U.S. presence around Russia and differences regarding the War in Iraq. With a sincere smile on his face, Ivanov said at the end of the interview, “We won’t get back to the situation of the Cold War. Never. I believe that.” Peace is a good thing.
Jesus said, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you.” Here are some things I believe I can assure you in regard to the peace Jesus wants you to have: God wants your home to be a home filled with peace. God wants you to have peace in your heart in concerning your relationship with him. God wants your relationships with your friends, extended family, church family, and neighbors to be characterized by peace that comes though Jesus himself.
Even if you’ve been in a cold war for years, you can get to a point where you will say, “We won’t go back. Never. I believe that.” Peace is a good thing. God can help you find that peace. That’s Life at Work!

Where do you find a dog with no legs? Right where you left him!
Paul told Timothy to “fan into flame” the gift of God that had been given to him. You’ve got a gift from God, too. You possess something - some quality, some talent, some vision, that God has given you to use for his glory. If fear keeps you from using it, or anything else restrains you, God will find you as a small flicker rather than a flame. He wants you to fan into flame what he has given you to use. Remember that God did not give a spirit of timidity. God has given you a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline” (2 Tim 1:7; NIV).
If you allow fear, misplaced priorities, indifference, or laziness to keep you from fanning the flame, God will find you right where he left you. If you fan into flame the gift God gave, he will find you blowing and going, bringing glory to him, and on that road that leads to life. That’s Life at Work!

In A Serious Call to a Devout and Holy Life, William Law wrote, “One man succeeds in everything, and so loses all; another meets with nothing but crosses and disappointments, and thereby gains more than all the world is worth.” We need to hear that message, that commentary on the words of Jesus, over and over again. Hearing them and believing them will help us deal with the frustrations, disappointments, and feelings that injustices reign in the present. It will also help us plan and prioritize our futures in a way that will lead us to long-term triumph rather than short-term satisfaction. Is your idea of safety and security in this world enough like Peter’s that Jesus would say to you, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it. What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?” That’s Life at Work!