As we start off the year I’ve been doing a little self review, a little grade report on where I feel my walk with God is in comparison to where I would like it to be. In doing so, I’ve sat back to think where I was two years ago when I made my covenant with God. I asked myself, “Am I stronger then where I was two years ago? Can I say have grown, and have had a greater impact on where I was before”. Then came the hard question, have I plateaued in my walk from where I began? As I thought about this, I would have to agree; I was a little more disciplined and driven in my walk with God two years ago. In the last two years I have become comfortable in my place with God, and in turn, I believe I have hindered the work God could truly do in my life.
I find myself often praying and asking for opportunities to serve God, asking him guide me to people who I could offer prayer for, or people who I could help draw closer to him. As I review this last year, I didn’t find myself to active in these areas; often this blog was the only work I put in for God. Last Sunday one of our Pastor’s gave a talk about God the provider. It was in this talk that he asked the question, “do you eat your lunch or do you share it”. The whole basis of his talk was touching on the example of Jesus feeding 5,000+ people because of two fish and a couple loaves of bread a little boy gave to his apostles, which Jesus was able to multiply. It was about living life for others instead of living life for ones self. I must admit I left that sermon with a whole new look at my year, convicted you can say.
As I ended my night reading in the Book of Luke, I would find God’s word complimenting the very sermon I heard, as Jesus gave the parable of The Good Samaritan in Luke 10:25-37. There was a theme I began to see in Jesus’ desires for mankind. In the parable a expert in the law asks Jesus, “what must I do to inherit eternal life” (a question I am always looking to answer). Jesus asks him, “What is written the law?” The answer was, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’[c]; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself”. It was the last the five words that stuck out to me and ties into that Sunday’s sermon. In fact, this is the theme that Jesus shows by example and continuously teaches to anyone who will listen; to love others more then you love yourself.
As a Christian I know there is so much more then putting money in an envelop that I can do to help bless others in the way I ask God to bless me and my family on a daily basis. I know there are people in my demographic who hurt, and have it far worse then I have ever experienced. I know there are people who have never been served, but lived life as the servant. I know there are people sitting in hospitals with no one to sit next to them, or families who could use a little tender loving care. What if for once I lived life outside of my world and choose to focus my time on the needs of others. I no longer have the excuse of saying, “I could do more if I had the money”. What if everyone reading this took one day of the month and dedicated it to someone else’s needs? What if everyone reading this looked into their excess and decided one day to look for someone else to bless, maybe it’s digging into the closet and blessing someone with some clothes we take for granted.
I see now why even though I have prayed for opportunities none have come, it’s because I have never gone out and looked. All these days of prayer thinking it was up to God to bring the people to me, instead, I should have been going out and letting God bring me to the people. People….we are so blessed as a nation We take it for granted the roof we have over our heads, clothes on our backs, and food in our stomach. Sure we may not be making the money we want, or drive the care we would like……but you have a car, something half of this world lacks. I truly feel as if God has shaken me down for my heart has never been so inflamed while my body is buzzing at the thought of how I can finally take the scriptures I read every night and actually put them to use. How I can finally help bring the love of God to life.
People are always saying how they would like to change the world, Christians are always saying how they would like to help people see and experience the love of God. Here is how we can, by sacrificing our time and going out and looking at where we can give back to others what we have been so blessed to take. This weekend I looked in my closet and was able to fill an entire hefty bag to it limits with clothes I no longer where. In my closet I found multiple pairs of in good shape shoes I no longer where. As I drive to work I always see the homeless, and those that you can see are entrenched in poverty. I plan on passing on some blessings. This year we should be doing okay in the tax return area, I think I’m going to walk around and look for someone to treat to a nice warm meal.
Every second Saturday their is a ministry called City on the Hill that caters to those homeless and in financial distress. I think my wife and I are going to be a servant for them and help make them feel VIP for a day. There is a cancer ward in our local hospital; I think my wife and I are going to help bring a smile to some children who haven’t smiled for a while. I get it now, I understand what Jesus was showing as he traveled healing the sick, feeding those who were hungry, and showing love to those whose communities outcasted them. What if every Christian put down their own agenda once a month, and served their community or lived each day looking for the chance to bless someone…..do you think communities would begin to see God in a different light? Could we possibly even change the way a community looked? Change your world, you can make a difference, and it doesn’t cost a thing.
I find myself often praying and asking for opportunities to serve God, asking him guide me to people who I could offer prayer for, or people who I could help draw closer to him. As I review this last year, I didn’t find myself to active in these areas; often this blog was the only work I put in for God. Last Sunday one of our Pastor’s gave a talk about God the provider. It was in this talk that he asked the question, “do you eat your lunch or do you share it”. The whole basis of his talk was touching on the example of Jesus feeding 5,000+ people because of two fish and a couple loaves of bread a little boy gave to his apostles, which Jesus was able to multiply. It was about living life for others instead of living life for ones self. I must admit I left that sermon with a whole new look at my year, convicted you can say.
As I ended my night reading in the Book of Luke, I would find God’s word complimenting the very sermon I heard, as Jesus gave the parable of The Good Samaritan in Luke 10:25-37. There was a theme I began to see in Jesus’ desires for mankind. In the parable a expert in the law asks Jesus, “what must I do to inherit eternal life” (a question I am always looking to answer). Jesus asks him, “What is written the law?” The answer was, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’[c]; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself”. It was the last the five words that stuck out to me and ties into that Sunday’s sermon. In fact, this is the theme that Jesus shows by example and continuously teaches to anyone who will listen; to love others more then you love yourself.
As a Christian I know there is so much more then putting money in an envelop that I can do to help bless others in the way I ask God to bless me and my family on a daily basis. I know there are people in my demographic who hurt, and have it far worse then I have ever experienced. I know there are people who have never been served, but lived life as the servant. I know there are people sitting in hospitals with no one to sit next to them, or families who could use a little tender loving care. What if for once I lived life outside of my world and choose to focus my time on the needs of others. I no longer have the excuse of saying, “I could do more if I had the money”. What if everyone reading this took one day of the month and dedicated it to someone else’s needs? What if everyone reading this looked into their excess and decided one day to look for someone else to bless, maybe it’s digging into the closet and blessing someone with some clothes we take for granted.
I see now why even though I have prayed for opportunities none have come, it’s because I have never gone out and looked. All these days of prayer thinking it was up to God to bring the people to me, instead, I should have been going out and letting God bring me to the people. People….we are so blessed as a nation We take it for granted the roof we have over our heads, clothes on our backs, and food in our stomach. Sure we may not be making the money we want, or drive the care we would like……but you have a car, something half of this world lacks. I truly feel as if God has shaken me down for my heart has never been so inflamed while my body is buzzing at the thought of how I can finally take the scriptures I read every night and actually put them to use. How I can finally help bring the love of God to life.
People are always saying how they would like to change the world, Christians are always saying how they would like to help people see and experience the love of God. Here is how we can, by sacrificing our time and going out and looking at where we can give back to others what we have been so blessed to take. This weekend I looked in my closet and was able to fill an entire hefty bag to it limits with clothes I no longer where. In my closet I found multiple pairs of in good shape shoes I no longer where. As I drive to work I always see the homeless, and those that you can see are entrenched in poverty. I plan on passing on some blessings. This year we should be doing okay in the tax return area, I think I’m going to walk around and look for someone to treat to a nice warm meal.
Every second Saturday their is a ministry called City on the Hill that caters to those homeless and in financial distress. I think my wife and I are going to be a servant for them and help make them feel VIP for a day. There is a cancer ward in our local hospital; I think my wife and I are going to help bring a smile to some children who haven’t smiled for a while. I get it now, I understand what Jesus was showing as he traveled healing the sick, feeding those who were hungry, and showing love to those whose communities outcasted them. What if every Christian put down their own agenda once a month, and served their community or lived each day looking for the chance to bless someone…..do you think communities would begin to see God in a different light? Could we possibly even change the way a community looked? Change your world, you can make a difference, and it doesn’t cost a thing.
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