NOT JUST A NUMBER

"And he [Jesus] called his disciples to him and said to them, “Truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box.  For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on."

Mark 12:43-44

I read a quote today that has been gnawing at me ever since.  It was by the well known French existentialist, Jean-Paul Sartre.  The quote is along the lines of the following:

"The poor don't know that their function in life is to exercise our generosity."

Straight off the bat, I want to strongly state that I totally disagree with this statement.  I guess it's bothered me because it boxes 'poor' people into a stereotype; saying that they exist subservient to the proverbial 'us'.  Who is this 'us'?  Who is Sartre talking about here?

Is it you and me?  Because if it isn't, we must be here to exercise everyone else's generosity!

Which, actually, I believe we are.

WHY DO I HAVE TO STRUGGLE, EVEN WHEN I'M DOING GOOD?

"If with heart and soul you’re doing good, do you think you can be stopped? Even if you suffer for it, you’re still better off. Don’t give the opposition a second thought. Through thick and thin, keep your hearts at attention, in adoration before Christ, your Master."

1 Peter 3:13-14 (MSG)

Life never operates according to the calendar.  We try to plan and hope that things will happen according to the time-frames that we envisage - but that seldom ever happens. Ever.  The reason for this is because we cannot completely control what happens, that's GOD's job.

Regardless of this fact, we still try.

What we read above tells us that even if we do good stuff, life may not proceed according to our plans.  There is an incorrect world philosophy that says "if you do good things, good things will happen to you".  The problem with this egocentric take is that it puts the perception of absolute control into our hands... and we know that we can never have absolute control, again, that's GOD's responsibility.

Here's an awesome quote to chew on...

"The purpose of {Christianity} is not to avoid difficulty, but to produce a character adequate to meet it when it comes.  It does not make life easy; rather it tries to make us great enough for life."

James Christensen

So, what does doing good do?

WORSHIP OUTSHINES WORRY

"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."

 Phil 4:6-7 (MSG)

What was the climax of your day/week/month?  I know that if I'm honest with myself (which is not always easy!!) my mind tries to highlight the trials, challenges and worries.  I think things like "Well, I lost a client, but I'm working really hard to get another one", or "I still haven't forgiven myself for..., but I know that I must."

We're programmed to overcome, we're wired in such a way that we naturally need to fix and triumph in difficulties and hardships.  Our natural inclination is not to just sit back and relax - even if we are from Cape Town... it's just not natural.

WORSHIP BIGGER!

As we move forward in our life, one of two things happen; either our passion for Jesus grows or we find that it fizzles out!  Unfortunately, the latter is true for many of us.  I believe that the key to keeping our relationship with our GOD full of passion and challenge lies in worship: daily, true, heartfelt encounters with our Creator. (John 4:24)

Jesus had this to say about devotion...

"No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other."

So - part of our devotion (or worship) is shown through our service.

In the Greek translation of the New Testament, the word latreuo is sometimes used for worship.  It means "to serve" and is similar to the root word for liturgy (order of worship).  This word is found in Rom 12:1b "...offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship."  True worship happens when we serve!

In the Old Testament, we find the word abad is used for worship.  In Deut 6:13 - "Serve  and worship (abad) him [your GOD] exclusively."  Jesus quoted this when the devil was tempting Him to forsake His worship of GOD and bow down to him.

Victim to Victory

Today's post is one of significant personal battle.  It's easy to encourage others to forgive and not hold onto hurts.  But when it happened to me, of such deep and overwhelming hurt, I had to go on a journey with GOD where I couldn't do anything for myself.  I relied on Him completely and worshipped Him in the heart of my pain; in the middle of being a victim GOD was my rock and my salvation.  He was my song.  Or so I thought.

The truth was that He was 'most of' my song.  Deep inside my heart was a hardened spot where I'd been hurt.  I thought it was small enough to be left alone, but it was not.

GOD spoke to me very profoundly and challenged me with this scripture from Jesus in Matthew 5:

"But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you," (v44)

LESSONS FROM NOAH'S ARK

I was recently sent this email - there's nothing to add to it.  It's a fantastic list of Sunday School lessons for adults.

Noah's Ark : Everything I need to know, I learned from Noah's Ark .

1. Don't miss the boat.
2. Remember that we are all in the same boat!
3. Plan ahead. It wasn't raining when Noah built the Ark.
4. Stay fit. When you're 60 years old, someone may ask you to do something really big.
5. Don't listen to critics; just get on with the job that needs to be done.
6. Build your future on high ground.
7. For safety's sake, travel in pairs.
8. Speed isn't always an advantage. The snails were on board with the cheetahs.
9. When you're stressed, float awhile.
10. Remember, the Ark was built by amateurs; the Titanic by professionals.
11. No matter the storm, when you are with God, there's always a rainbow waiting.

Have a blessed weekend and rest in the Grace of Jesus!

The Guilt Conversation

A walk through the halls of the Bank of Evil... with Gru. (Despicable Me)

Most of the time, we miss out on the abundance of GOD because we spend our energy in the guilt conversation.  We become our own joy-stealer, engaging in an internal mental debate that only brings us more hurt, discouragement and diminished self-worth. It weighs down heavily on us and is a burden that we were never meant to carry.

Why? Because guilt is not of GOD. Guilt is not productive and it does not bring about peace.

"God didn't go to all the trouble of sending his Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He came to help, to put the world right again."

John 3:17

It starts when we try to rationalise the choices that we make that we know are not of GOD (aka sin). When we know something is not right, we are being convicted. When we start to argue against it, we enter the guilt conversation and we begin to feel guilty.  We become susceptible to feelings of worry, our patience wears thin and this is where we lose our joy!

10 COMMANDMENTS OR 2?

 

Jesus said, "'Love the Lord your God with all your passion and prayer and intelligence.' This is the most important, the first on any list. But there is a second to set alongside it: 'Love others as well as you love yourself.' These two commands are pegs; everything in God's Law and the Prophets hangs from them."

Mat 22:37-40

Critics love to poke holes at the congruency of the Bible, saying that it contradicts itself.  Here is a prime example of the Bible saying one thing in the Old Testament and then something else in the New Testament!

To better understand this, it helps to go back to Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy...  too much?  Indeed, there’s a lot in there.  But this was ‘The Law’.  It contains the 613 mitzvah (rules/commandments/law/words) that every Jewish child needs to learn when they become sons and daughters of the law (bar/bat mitzvah) and take on the responsibility of following GOD.  The 10 Mitzvah in Exodus 20 are known as The Ten Words.

As a Christian, I was only taught ten commandments at Sunday School, not six hundred!  And right there, under the guise of sweet innocence, our foundational teachings in the Christian faith skew our perceptions and understanding of our relationship with GOD.  Instead of us viewing these commandments (10 or 613, doesn’t actually matter) as a checklist to chastity, we should see them as a profile for what life should look like when we love our GOD with all our heart, mind and soul.  

However, instead, we draw pictures and learn the 10 off by-heart, believing that we are now better, somehow closer to GOD.  The flip side is that we feel terrible and worthless when we can't keep them.  The problem:  we will never be able to keep them all.  The solution: Jesus Christ - Grace.

A Leadership Challenge

“Humble yourselves, therefore, under GOD’s mighty hand, that He may lift you up in due time.  Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you.”

1 Pet 5:6-7

In my time in GOD’s beautiful church, I have found that all too often people step out of the boat because they’re sick and tired of the other disciples… not because their eyes are fixed on Jesus… and they land up sinking in the waves.  This awesome scripture from Peter’s first epistle speaks to a few aspects of leadership and worship, leadership traits that are fundamental to solid, long-term growth and maturity, not only for ourselves, but also for the Church!

Peter reminds us of the importance of humility in response to GOD’s might.  When we worship, we sometimes fall into the trap of equating ourselves to GOD.  This happens when the balance is interrupted by the bias of our friend and brother in Christ.  We must never forget the reverence and awe that makes worship necessary.  We have access to worship because of our joint-heirship with Christ, but worship is required because of the Majesty, Mercy and Grace of GOD, through Jesus Christ.  This humility also reminds us that what we have and where we are is only because of GOD’s Grace, and not because of the Law or our own abilities and works.

We then read that GOD is the one who lifts us up.  GOD is the one that calls to us, from the waves, and invites us to step out.  If we decide that the boat is too crowded, too smelly or too opinionated, we’ll step out before the time is right for growth and maturity.  Sometimes this means waiting a few weeks; sometimes it means waiting a few years.  GOD first spoke to me through this scripture three years ago… and only recently have I felt His promotion (the Message says “He’ll promote you at the right time”).  It’s like GOD wants to make sure we’re in it for the long haul!

Excellence: an act of Jesus

Joseph Prince

"Blessed shall be the fruit of your body, the produce of your ground and the increase of your herds, the increase of your cattle and the offspring of your flocks."

Deut 28:4

Would you want to buy a chair that Jesus made? I would, even if it cost US$1,000 because it would be of superb quality. Whatever Jesus did, He did it with perfect excellence.

And because Christ is in you, the things which you produce will be of exceptional quality too. That includes your children, who will be champions. Deuteronomy 28:4 says, “Blessed shall be the fruit of your body, the produce of your ground and the increase of your herds, the increase of your cattle and the offspring of your flocks”.

God was using terms that the Israelites understood since they were farmers and shepherds. Today, “your ground” is the place of your work. This means that “the produce” of your work shall be of excellent quality.

That is not all. God promises that quantity will always follow quality because Deuteronomy 28:11 says that the Lord will “grant you plenty of goods, in the fruit of your body,” which means that you will have plenty of children, “in the increase of your livestock, and in the produce of your ground,” which means that your business will flourish and you will be a leading producer in the area of your specialty.

My friend, your excellence and plenty do not come by your efforts. They come by the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, who paid for your prosperity — “though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich”. (2 Corinthians 8:9)

Jesus was made destitute of all material things at the cross. He had nothing! As He hung on the cross, He watched the Roman soldiers gamble for His robe. His last possession on earth was gambled away. He became poor, so that you could be blessed with the excellent and the plenty!

<<Joseph Prince.org>>

GOD wants to know YOU

  

Jesus answered: “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?

John 14:9

Vicar.  A word you know; a word that I know.  But, do we actually know what it means?  Many may answer that vicar means priest or minister - as in the leader of a church.  The sobering truth is that it actually means something quite different...

Priest is fairly close, but in the sense of "one who stands between".  Vicar is a shortened version of the word vicarious, which means "serving instead of someone or something else".  It can be argued that vicar is a good word since we often experience GOD through our church leaders, we experience worship and teaching through their gifting.

I WILL ANSWER

'Call to me and I will answer you.  I'll tell you marvelous and wondrous things that you could never figure out on your own.'

Jer 33:3

I love this verse for two reasons:


Firstly - the assurance that GOD will answer us.  As Christians we often find it hard to believe that GOD will answer our every call - especially when we haven't quite lived up to our end of the 'bargain'.  It's this mindset that limits what GOD is able to do through us because we live with a 'law' mindset.  In the Old Testament you had to pay a price in order to have your transgressions absolved and be able to plead with GOD.

Jesus' death and resurrection changed all of that - so why, then, do we still think in the same way?  I believe that it's because we listen to the Devil when he tells us that we're not good enough.  It takes very little for us to believe that GOD won't take note of our call because we don't deserve His attention.

Light armour

Copyright Protected. Kelvin Joseph.

"The night is nearly over; the day is almost here.  So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armour of light."

Rom 13:12

Jesus calls us to be a light to the world by doing good so that people will give GOD the glory for what they are seeing. Then, in John 18:12 Jesus says that He is the Light of the world and that those who choose to follow Him will never walk in darkness.  Why would Jesus say that we are to be the light of the world and then later say that He is the light of the world?

It's because He is giving us a portrait of worship - doing as He did in order to bring Glory to GOD!  One of the most attractive characteristics of Jesus is that He never asks us to do or endure anything that He Himself has not already experienced.

Jesus wanted to show the Jews that worship wasn't about meeting at the temple, it's not about paying the right tax - it's about walking in worship.  It's about embracing our redeemed identity in Christ in order to wear the armour of light.

Why then, do we find ourselves walking in darkness?

Strength to my hands

"Energize the limp hands, strengthen the rubbery knees.
Tell fearful souls, "Courage! Take heart! God is here, right here, on His way to put things right And redress all wrongs.  He's on his way! He'll save you!"

Is 35:4

As we near the end of the year, it's a time when we start to feel drained and hardpressed (2 Cor 4:8) and start to wonder why life can be so difficult.  Why do we have to be surrounded by so many difficult people when we feel like we have so little strength left to make it through?

Persist. Persevere. Prevail.

"Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything."

James 1:4

I HAVE A NAME

(c) www.visualphotos.com

(This is part 4 - click here for part 1, part 2, part 3) 

How do you feel when you are called by your name?  Does it matter who calls it?  Your mother?  Your boss?  The doctor?  Your partner?  When you hear other names, do you think of specific people?

I have two kids and my wife and I thought long and hard about their names… we wanted a biblical name and a family name because we wanted their identities to be routed in GOD and routed in their family.  Although your name is not your whole identity, it is a part of it, and GOD knows it!

“Fear not, for I have redeemed you;
I have called you by your name;
You are mine."

Isaiah 43:1 (NKJV)

Imagine being alone, nobody around; you’re walking on a deserted salt-pan.  The ground is cracked and you can see the large honeycomb-type patterns in the hard earth beneath your feet.  It’s the kind of place where the guys from Myth Busters blow things up – but they’re not here right now.  There is no wind.  Not a single sound except for the rushing of blood in your ears, that’s the ringing sound that you can hear.

Then, out of nowhere, you hear your name being called from the heavens.  A booming yet gentle voice, so gentle it gives you chills right to your marrow.  GOD has called your name.  Yours, not someone else’s, yours.  You feel comforted, yet convicted; peaceful, yet uncomfortable with the way things are.  And all that GOD has done is say YOUR NAME.

All of a sudden, you are important, you are no longer an insignificant nomad in a desert wasteland.  Finding your purpose in GOD is intrinsically linked to Him calling you by name.  When we worship, we call GOD by the names that we know Him by, when we pray, we do so in the name of Jesus – that’s because there’s power and purpose in the Name.

There is power and purpose in your name too, power and purpose that can only be recognised and activated by the presence of GOD; the presence of the Holy Spirit, in your life.

Be encouraged that GOD has called out across the universe and He has called your name.  When He called, a life began and creation was different.  When we worship our GOD, it's not as a face in the crowd - it's face to face with the One!

STEP INTO THE LIGHT

(Part 4 of "Don't be a pharisee...") 

For we maintain that [we are] justified by faith apart from the works of the law. 

Romans 3:28

(This is the fourth part in a series on looking at Christ through faith or through the law.)

Lastly, as we progress from right and wrong, through rules and regulations, we arrive at the stark truth that the leaders of this particular synagogue, and ourselves,  lacked faith (see scripture).  Faith separates the believer from the non-believer.  Faith doesn’t need rules and regulations, it doesn’t need right or wrong.  It’s content to accept.  And what's of great encouragement - we are justified by our faith:  not the law: not the regulations.

Jesus said that we should have childlike faith, not childish faith.  I think the difference has to do with the heart of where our faith stems from.  Childish faith needs constant affirmation, as if it's not quite enough.  Childlike faith is content in a place of trust.  Hebrews tells us that it is confident and assured.  A child cannot do anything to earn their parent's love - it's available to them freely!  When we get this, we get that it's not about what I do, but about what Jesus did!

Excellence in what I do....

I believe that many people misunderstand 'excellence' when it comes to church. We think:"There's no way I can play guitar like them, they're excellent!" "There's no chance I could teach like that, that was an excellent message!"

What we do is we attach someone else's 'excellence' to our own abilities - and that's where we go wrong!

Check this passage out...

Gen 4:2-7

"Abel was a herdsman and Cain a farmer. Time passed. Cain brought an offering to God from the produce of his farm. Abel also brought an offering, but from the firstborn animals of his herd, choice cuts of meat. God liked Abel and his offering, but Cain and his offering didn't get his approval. Cain lost his temper and went into a sulk. God spoke to Cain: "Why this tantrum? Why the sulking? If you do well, won't you be accepted? And if you don't do well, sin is lying in wait for you, ready to pounce; it's out to get you, you've got to master it." 


We want so much to be accepted and loved by others. We see from this story that Cain missed out on that acceptance because he didn't bring his best, the best of the gifts that GOD had given him. He went into a rage of jealousy for his brother because he thought that his gift had some relation to Abel's, which it didn't!

It had to do with bringing the best of what GOD had equipped them with. It had nothing to do with being 'better' than others... Jesus was clear that we are all equal, we can never out-give someone else because each of us should give as we have decided in our hearts (2 Cor 9:7). The gifts that we bring show GOD our hearts.



The New Testament Epistle writer, Paul, spent much of his time reminding his readers that all of us have gifts that GOD has given us. I want to encourage you to bring the very best of those gifts to GOD.

 

All these gifts have been given to us so that we can meet the needs of others in GOD's strength. Our ministry (meeting the needs of others) is threefold;

• to the Lord
• to believers
• to non-believers

The gifts that we bring (talents, treasures, time, nature, body) need to be better than our previous gifts if we want them to be excellent. If we keep doing the same thing over and over again, then our best becomes our average.

Abel brought his best and found favour with the King. He showed GOD his heart for excellence, a heart to give GOD his best! We will expand on this concept over the next few posts and encourage you to always, always bring GOD the best that you have!

Anger - Loving or Not Loving??

Anger is a heightened emotion that leads us act against someone or something. It can either be a right action, or a wrong action. I think the defining quality in our actions must be love. Are we acting out of love or not?

I think there are two main ways in which we can get angry and still love...

When we get angry because of injustice, we need to respond in a way that restores relationship and show GOD's love. Our actions need to remind others of GOD's promises and purposes for His people. We need to encourage them and show them His love.

Anger is also a necessary step in dealing with grief or trauma, if the heightened emotion leads us to growth and renewal, then our anger has been righteous! I believe that if we are led to stand up for GOD AND encourage others, then we are learning more about how Jesus lived.

Does anger make me a bad person?

Before we explore anger any further, I have really been feeling a sense of 'let's get our minds right' first. It's easy to analyze and write nice things about anger, but what about when it really effects me and I am so hurt that I respond in a way that is influenced by my anger?

The main reason that we are looking at anger, in the context of being an encourager for Christ, is to encourage us that anger itself is not wrong, it's our response that counts! In Eph 4:26 we are told 'In your anger, do not sin.' So, it is not our anger that is the sin, but our unmeasured response to the deep emotions that we know as anger.

As I said in our previous post, it is often difficult to encourage others when we are angry, but it is actually our enemies that we really need to be loving and encouraging (Matt 5:44). So, if we can get our minds right, and our hearts aligned with Christ, then hopefully, we'll be able to be angry and not sin. Wouldn't that be awesome!! To have such self control that we can manage our anger and not let it manage us? I believe that it's not only possible, but that it is part of GOD's plan for your life!

So, if you're still asking 'Does anger make me a bad person', then let me encourage you with this breif concluding thought. In God's eyes, He loves you no matter what. His love is unconditional, so whether you're a super positive person or a grumpy old pile of misery - GOD LOVES YOU!

It's not conditional on you being good or bad, it's not conditional on you getting things right and always having a smile on your face. So, to GOD, I believe that it's not about good or bad, because we'll always mess up somewhere along the line, it's about being saved. It's about being in a relationship with Him and constantly working on that relationship. (If you want to know more about this relationship - please mail us!).

Keep an eye out for our next post as we start to look at three types of anger in our lives, until then - BE BLESSED!