Tag: eternity

Training for What Really Matters…The Rope!

Today’s reading is 2 Chronicles 5-7, Psalm 121, 1 Timothy 4.

1 Timothy 4:7-8 reads…

“Have nothing to do with irreverent, silly myths.  Rather train yourself for godliness; for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come.”

What is godliness? Dictionary.com states it is “the quality or practice of conforming to the laws and wishes of God, devoutness and moral uprightness.”

An article I read from http://ath.co written on December 16, 2022 said Americans spend $33 billion per year on weight loss programs alone with 45 million people in the US putting themselves on a diet yearly. Another article from http://blog.marketresearch written on August 2, 2021 stated the self-improvement market was over $11.6 billion in 2019 and is expected to be $14 billion in 2025.

There is a saying, “image is everything”…but is it? The Bible tells us the body is a temple in 1 Corinthians 6:19. So, it is wise to take care of our bodies which God created for His glory, but is that the motivation behind most of our workouts and weight loss programs or are we just worried about what other people think about us? And in my opinion, other self-help books, programs, and coaching which does not include God may lead to short term success and results but will eventually lead to emptiness because feeling good and earthly success is fleeting. One day you’re the regional sales leader and the next day your being let go due to down-sizing. This world is a “what have you done for me lately” place. Just ask future hall of famer Chris Paul who led the Phoenix Suns to their 1st NBA Championship appearance in 21 years in 2021 and this past year he averaged a solid 13.9 points, 8.9 assists, and 4.3 rebounds…only to likely be traded this week to the Washington Wizards for the younger Bradley Beal.

The Bible is clear here in 1 Timothy 4:7-8 that training for godliness so we act in a way to please God is much more important than training for our looks or earthly success because it has eternal value. We should only be worried about what God thinks and strive to please him.

Pastor Francis Chan gave a talk I saw once with a rope that seemed to go on forever representing eternity. He had a small black strip of tape around it in one little spot representing our life here on Earth. He illustrated how most all of us spend our time worrying and focusing on the little black piece of tape. What we really should be focused on and in this case training for is the rest of the rope…eternity!

What is one daily habit you can start or improve on to train for godliness and draw you closer to Jesus which is the only thing that really matters in this life and most importantly the next?

Justice

Today’s Reading: Psalm 58

Have you ever felt the pain of injustice? The hurt that can come when false judgment has been passed on you or someone else close?

As I reflected on David’s words, I thought of the pain I’ve personally experienced when I’ve had judgments passed based on passes mistakes. Unfortunately, I also thought about the pain that I have caused others through my same shortcomings.  Romans 3:23 reminds me that we have all fallen short at some time or another. Whatever side of injustice or judgment you have been on, you understand the pain and anger that can accompany these times.  We read the anger in David’s words as he seeks justice through the Lord.

6 Break the teeth in their mouths, O God;
Lord, tear out the fangs of those lions!
7 Let them vanish like water that flows away;
when they draw the bow, let their arrows fall short.

Yes, there is a harshness to these verese when you go through today’s reading. Psalm 58 is an “imprecatory” psalm that calls upon God to deal with enemies.

There have been times where I’ve struggled with anger,, and the words, decisions, and actions made by someone else made me turn around and make the same mistakes. I pray for continued spiritual growth to seek God’s wisdom and not fall back on the human reasoning that does things to make matters worse or slander others.  To not seek revenge based on the emotions I’m feeling at that particular moment. At this moment, I’m reminded of the many verses that point us back to God’s words about revenge.

Matthew 18:21 Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?” 22 Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.

1 Peter 2:21 To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps. 22 “He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.” 23 When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly.

Maybe you have faced a recent situation where you were judged wrongly, maybe some type of injustice.  I’m sorry, I wish there wasn’t the immediate pain we all feel when this happens. All I can say is seek God’s wisdom. Cry out and ask for our Lord’s peace in the middle of your pain.

Psalm 58:11 Then people will say,
“Surely the righteous still are rewarded;
surely there is a God who judges the earth.”

Lord,  We know you go before us and know everything that has happened and will happen in our lives. Help us to not doubt, dispute, or debate your plans. We will accept the trials we face even when they may seem injust or in false judgment knowing these trials humble us and will wean us away from this world.  These words and actions that temporarily hurt us will compare nothing to an eternity, give us comfort in these trials and help us always to turn to you.  Work in our hearts.  Amen

Quieter

He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters.

Psalm 23:2

The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness; He will quiet you by His love; He will exult over you with loud singing.

Zephaniah 3:17

We live in a world today with a lot of noise. When I say noise, I don’t necessarily mean audible sounds, although for many of us with young children that may very well be the case except before they get up and after they go to bed. When I say noise, I mean all the things that distract us causing us to focus on and think about the wrong things.

What do most of us do when we first wake up…we grab our phones. You don’t even have to go to your preferred news website to hear the noise. You just click on your preferred social media and not only will you see posts from news outlets there, but you’ll see the posts and banter back in forth from your “friends” or a celebrity you follow. Nearly immediately your blood pressure goes up and anxiety is heightened based on something they said you agree with or disagree with. Nearly everyone has an agenda these days and is speaking out against or in favor something. While yes, certain things need to be brought to light..the fact of the matter is nearly everything we read is focused on problems, and it’s not just from the clickbait negative headlines news outlets post. I’m already getting anxious, and we haven’t even looked at today’s long personal and professional to do list, opened our email with the unexpected fire to put out, or dug into our mail with the bill we didn’t see coming.

What do you do during these times to calm your self and get your mind back focused in the right way? Yes, I would recommend the centering breath Dr. Jason Selk taught me…breath in for 6 seconds, hold for 2 seconds, and out for 7 seconds. This simple method has helped some of the world’s greatest athletes calm their nerves in the midst of some of sports highest stress situations and perform at their best. However, this does not give us the peace that passes all understanding (Philippians 4:7).

Pastor and author Francis Chan said, “People who are obsessed with God have an intimate relationship with Him. They are nourished by God’s Word throughout the day because they know 40 minutes on Sunday is not enough to sustain them throughout the week, especially when they encounter so many distractions and alternative messages.”

We just started a new small group Bible study this week about the seven “I am..” statements from Jesus in the book of John. This first week we studied John 6 and specifically John 6:35 where Jesus says, “I am the bread of life.” Jesus had just fed 5,000 and the same people came back to Him looking for more food. He reminded them that no earthly food would sustain them eternally. Their fathers ate manna and still died. He was the only food that could give them eternal life and that is what they should be focused on…Him and eternal matters…not temporal matters.

If our stomach growls after just a couple hours without earthly food needing 3 meals per day and Jesus tells us He is more important as the bread of life, how many times are you eating His bread throughout the day? Based on His words, how many times do we really need it?

Be real and ask yourself the following questions…

  1. How many times am I in His Word each day..even once?
  2. How many times do I pray and talk with Him throughout the day?
  3. How many times do I even think about Him throughout the day?
  4. How many times do I mention His name to others throughout the day?

Are you eating His bread throughout the day so He can feed you and quiet your heart, mind, and soul? We are facing really challenging times of unrest right now, and although I’m not going to say they are the worst our world has ever faced, I will confidently say there has NEVER been a time with so many negative distractions and alternative ungodly messages being thrown at our brains because of the access to our minds through the amount of technology and media we use on an hourly basis each day. There is a slow trickle to normalizing and justifying what the Bible says is clearly wrong through the messaging we are constantly receiving and then even getting Christians to think they are in the wrong by disagreeing and following the Bible.

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.

Ephesians 6:12

We must find ways to lead us in the right direction and to quiet our hearts and minds through eating the bread of life every hour of every day, and even more importantly, we must teach our kids and grandkids the same. Their little fragile minds are like Play-Doh and are being shaped by whomever and whatever we let mold them. What foundation is being formed in their mind?

Let’s be fed by Him. Let’s go to His Word. Let’s go to Him in prayer and talk to Him throughout the day not just about the big things…but about the little things. Let’s tell others He is the only bread that will quiet our hearts and minds and satisfy our eternal hunger so they can be fed too by the only food that lasts.

Be still and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted In the Earth!

Psalm 46:10

Do Not Lose Heart

Good morning!

If you need some encouragement today, open right up to 2 Corinthians Chapter 4.
Paul opens and closes his letter with the message “Do not lose heart”, and I love the three message points he gives to support this message.
A third grade writing teacher would be proud of his intro, three supporting points, and a conclusion that restates his main message!
Paul gives us examples of how we may lose heart, specifically in ministry. Have you ever felt called to something and then when you are smack dab in the middle of it you start questioning the entire thing? How could this have been from God, it’s going terribly off track?  There are so many examples of this all around us.
  • Families fighting through government red tape to adopt a child.
  • Missionaries overseas who lose their funding unexpectedly.
  • A new college grad, eager and ready to serve but cannot find a job.
  • Parents everywhere who question their decisions and if they’re messing up their children!

Whatever ministry God has called you to, know that you are not alone in doubts, setbacks, feeling crushed from every side. (verse 9).  I love the encouragement Don’t Dig Up in Doubt What You Planted in Faith. 

The next point we are given is where our power comes from to overcome – the Holy Spirit! We are like jars of clay filled with an amazing power from God. The power is from Him, not from ourselves! If He calls you, He will equip you, even if in the moment you find yourself scratching your head and wondering how it will work out. You can’t do it alone – but He will do it through you!
Finally, Paul refocuses us on why we should not lose heart – because our glory is in eternity! All of the worries and afflictions of this life are nothing in comparison to eternity with Jesus! As our earthly bodies waste away, our hearts are being renewed and we are closer to eternity. If you’ve never seen this 4 minute video on eternity, click and watch Francis Chan as he shares this powerful visual.    https://youtu.be/86dsfBbZfWs
It’s so easy to focus on the small part of our lives that’s on earth, instead of the forever that will be with Jesus in heaven.