Mind blank. Darkness around. Breathe in, breathe out. BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP. Ugh, you groan as you roll over to stop your alarm. Maybe you continue to lay there for a bit. Then eventually you sit up. Grabbing your Bible and devotional book, you spend time with your Lord. After that's done you sit.
Your bed is warm and soft. The blankets provide comfort. It's hard to leave. It's especially hard because you know, once you leave that bed, the crazy kicks in. You need to make breakfast, prepare your bag for work, maybe wake your kids if you have them, etc. It seems like a better idea to just stay in the comfort of your bed.
In Matthew 14:22-33 we see the event of Jesus walking on water. Though there was a storm, Peter chose to leave the boat, which was safe and more comfortable than the deep raging ocean and walk on water. Had Peter chosen to stay in comfort, we would not have an amazing example of faith and what happens when we take our eyes off God to focus on our problems.
Yes, it's nice to stay in comfort. But if we don't leave the bed, the boat, our house, etc. Then we are not going to live out our purpose. We will not be following Jesus' command to go into the world and make disciples. We will not be reflecting his glory.
So, are you staying in comfort too much? How can you leave your comfort zone knowing God is with you?
One day I was outside on a very nice day with my students. A newer teacher was with me. I heard the tweet of a bird. Looking on my right, I saw a female cardinal. I pointed it out to my co-teacher. Then I saw a male one and pointed it out as well. The next thing I said elicited an interesting response from the new teacher I said, "they are twitterpated."
Her mouth dropped and then she laughed. I said, "what? They (the kids) don't know what that means. I'm shocked you even know what that means!" The only reason I knew was because of Bambi.
This got me thinking about how we don't know things unless they are explained to us. It is the same way as with the gospel. We don't know about it until someone tells us it.
We are called to spread the good news with others. Matthew 28:19 says, "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." We are to make sure that others know about Christ and understand who he is and what he did for us.
So, do you know who Christ is? How can you spread the Gospel each day?
Love: it is a simple word and yet it is so powerful. We
use the word almost every day and yet, so many people don’t know what it means.
I already discussed that in last year’s Valentine’s Day post so I won’t bore
you with that again.
But, I do want to point out that love is very powerful.
There are many forces in the world: gravity, inertia, The Force (Star Wars), and
so many more. But, though all of these are important forces, I think the most
powerful is love. Merlin and King Arthur put it best in the Disney movie The Sword and the Stone: “Merlin: ‘ah,
you know, lad, that love business is a powerful thing.’ Arthur: ‘greater than
gravity?’ Merlin: ‘well, yes, boy. In its way, I’d, uh… Yes, I’d say it’s the
greatest force on earth.’”
Honestly, in my opinion, love makes the world go round,
literally. Think about it: why did God create everything? He created us, water,
food, earth, life because he loved us before we were even created. Without God,
there would be no earth. Thus, love makes the world go round. And, it is still
very powerful today. God sent his Son to save us because he loves us. God’s
love is unconditional. It is him showing compassion and grace even when we don’t
deserve it.
God asks nothing in return; but he wants to have a relationship
with us. Because he loves us, we should love him and his creation. We need to
show others love no matter how difficult it may be. Remembering that, as stated
in last year’s Valentine’s Day post, love is not just a powerful emotion. It is
respecting others and caring for them even when they don’t love you back. God
has enemies, I have enemies, you have enemies, everyone has enemies at some
point in their life; but if God can love his enemies so can we. We must forgive
and love our enemies.
I encourage you on this Valentine’s Day to think about
what love is to you. Have you been loving others, or do you hate them? Do you
want God to forgive you when you mess up? If so, you need to take a long look
in the mirror and figure out if you are forgiving those who wrong you.
Happy Valentine’s Day
1 Corinthians 13:4-8, 1 John 4:8, 1 Corinthians 16:14
The sun has just risen over the African plain. Animals tread across the ground all headed toward one particular rock. They stand waiting to see something special happen. Suddenly a baboon walks up to the top of the rock. He lifts up… a lion cub! The next king of the pride lands has been born!
If you did not guess, I was describing the beginning of an amazing movie: The Lion King. In the beginning of the movie, Simba, the next king, is born. After he is born, he is presented to his people. The way he is presented is by Rafiki lifting him up before them. It is a surreal moment. These animals are looking at the one who will lead them next.
What does that have to do with Christianity? Well, we are born common. We are born sinners, unholy. God cannot be with anything unholy. Thus, we have a conundrum. Or we did, that is until Jesus died for our sins.
Jesus became the perfect sacrifice. He died on the cross to take away our sins. In doing that he gave us a choice. We can choose to follow ourselves and keep sinning, or we can ask for forgiveness. We can trust in Jesus as our personal savior.
If we do that, he lifts us up just as Rafiki lifted Simba up when he was born. When we are born again, Jesus lifts us up. We are now royalty. Wait, where did that come from? Romans 8:16-17 says, “The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.” When we become born again, we become children of God. Thus, we are royalty. We are heirs with Jesus. Now that brings about good things and some challenges but that’s a blog for another time.
The point is, we are saved. We are royalty. We are in God’s family just by choosing to accept Christ as our savior. It’s mind boggling!
So, are you a part of God’s family? How can you spread the gospel today?
Dirt crunches under your feet. The breeze blows across
your face as the ocean waves crash in time. Looking to your right, you shield
your eyes from the sun as you look into your father's eyes.
He smiles at you gently then stops, "wait here, my
child, I will be back."
A slice of fear hits your heart. Where is he going?
Before you ask, your father says, "you made a
request earlier. I am going to give you what you asked for, but you must wait
here."
You nod reluctantly. He puts his hand on your shoulder,
half smiles, and for an instant you think you see pain in his eyes, but it
disappears as soon as you blink.
Father leaves. Where to? You do not know. You just know
what you were asked to do. Looking around, you see just how beautiful nature
is. Taking a deep breath, you take in the peace you have found here.
"What are you doing?" A voice asks. Beside you
is a man with friends surrounding him. "I am waiting for my father,"
you reply. He gives you a strange look, "why?" "He told me to
wait for him here." The man laughs, "okay, well, do you want to come
into the water with us while you are waiting?" That sounds love more fun
than just waiting here but your father told you to stay. "I'm okay, I'll
just wait for him, thanks." The group leaves and you take a deep breath as
peace washes over you again. Waiting.
"Are you lost?" A woman asks. "No, I am
waiting for my father." The woman looks concerned. "Honey, there is
no one else here. You are the first person I have seen here all day." You
shake your head and begin to point to the direction the group who came earlier
went; but when you look, you realize they are not there. "Do you want to
come with me? I can help you find your dad and take care of you until we find
him." The woman smiles. Did your father leave you? No, he wouldn't do
that, would he? "I... I'm okay, I'll stay here." "Suit
yourself," she shrugged and walks away. Waiting...
Before you can let peace wash over you again, an older
voice shouts, "a storm is coming! If I were you, I would leave!" No
one is there when you look around for a person. Sure enough, when you look in the
sky, you see dark clouds. There is a rumble in the distance and a flash of
light strikes. Wind begins to blow sand into your eyes. WAITING....
This is getting dangerous. Where is your father? He would
never have left you here if he knew what you were going to go through. You
should leave to seek shelter, but your father told you to wait. But if he knew
there was a storm, he wouldn't want you to be in it, right? What if he came
back and you were not here, would he know where to find you? Should you leave,
or wait? WAITING?
What you don't know, what you can't see, is your father
is watching you during the storm. He wants to see if you will trust him and
wait. It may not seem like he is there with you, but he never left. No thing
that came to you or against you while you were waiting would be able to
separate you from your father and his love. He is watching over you and
protecting you. So, do you go your own way, or trust him and wait?
