temptation

What’s your Yeast?

Daily prayer is for obedience. We keep an index card with Romans 12:2 written on it from a small group activity years ago. The world has so much to offer. An achievement-focused lifestyle can pridefully lift you to where you feel like nothing else matters. In this breath of life until you realize our eternity.

Today’s Reading: Mark 8 (verse 15 & 34-37)

15 “Be careful,” Jesus warned them. “Watch out for the yeast of the Pharisees and that of Herod.”

The world can infect and change your heart and mind. The same pridefulness that the Pharisees and Herod held can be seen in our world today. So I ask myself, do I provide lip service and merely admiring the truth? Or am I singing praises and obeying the truth? Pastor Charlie Welke rechallenged me this weekend as he talked about our “Domesticated Faith.” I reflected on the finite nature of our world and the infinite power of God. Am I allowing any yeast of the world to enter into my life? I prayerfully ask the Lord to search my heart, see if there is any offensive way, and lead me. Psalm 139:23-24

Author MaryLu Tyndall writes about the World system vs. God’s Truth.

The world says it’s all about you. God says it’s all about Him.

The world says elevate yourself. God says to put others ahead of yourself.

The world says grab as much power as you can. God says to be a servant.

The world says to eat, drink, and be merry, for this is all there is. God says you are an eternal being, so be wise with your time.

The world says the ends justify the means. God says the means will be judged in the end.

The world says outward beauty is everything. God says those with inner beauty will shine at the end.

The world says gather as many things as you can. God says only your treasure in Heaven will last.

The world says truth is relative. God says I am the truth.

The world says to be tolerant. God says to call evil, evil.

The world says it’s all about personal happiness. God says it’s all about personal sacrifice.

The world says death is the end. God says death is only the beginning.

Just as Jesus will warn us what to stay away from, he points us to the truth.

34 Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. 35 For whoever wants to save their life[b] will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it.

God Bless your day!

The last temptation

Happy Tuesday June 4, 2019

Today’s Reading Mark 15

Mark 15: 29-32

29 Those who passed by hurled insults at him, shaking their heads and saying, “So! You who are going to destroy the temple and build it in three days, 30 come down from the cross and save yourself!” 31 In the same way the chief priests and the teachers of the law mocked him among themselves. “He saved others,” they said, “but he can’t save himself!

The last temptation. I know that at any point Jesus could of taken himself off the cross that day. But He didn’t. He was obeying His father, and following through with the plan had set since His humble birth. As a human, Jesus was tempted many times by Satan. Look back at Matthew 4: 1-11 after He was just baptized. Jesus never gives into the temptation. He understands how we are all tempted by the world daily. Temptation from Satan was coming in in the moments when Jesus hung on the cross, still, in this last attempt from Satan, Jesus kept himself on the cross for the sins of those present then and for everyone since then. Amen!

How is Satan tempting you today? For me, is it by the way I’ve been responding to my children 1 week into summer break? Is it the times I take my wife for granite daily instead of loving her like the church? Is it in my thoughts as I judge others in their various circumstances? Is it in my workload and my selfish ambitions to attain and do more? Is it the entertainment factor from a TV or phone that keeps me mindlessly engaged in time that has no eternal impact… for anyone? The list can go on and on. We see, feel and are tempted. We have been tempted since Adam and Eve and have failed just like them in Genesis 3. We are broken. Still, Jesus knows this, says in these temptations, turn to Me. Am I doing that? Are you doing that? Through all the temptations Jesus went through, He turned to His Father. Does someone you know right now going through some circumstance where temptation is staring them in the face? Maybe its you today?

Turn to God’s words. Turn to Him in prayer. The world is full of worldly things that tempt us daily. On this day in Mark 15 the temptation to take Himself off the cross was there. Soldiers, onlookers, priests saying hurtful mocking words and acting out in violence towards Him. Telling Jesus, Take yourself down from the cross if you are the Son of God. The human side of me would of pulled myself down and shown them, maybe even in my moments of displaced anger I would of did something to these mockers just to set an example. Yet,this final mockery of Jesus on the cross to abandon His sacrificial death didn’t succeed. Jesus stayed on the cross to pay for our sins. Revelation 2:10 reminds me how Satan is always putting us to the test and Jesus wants us to remain faithful.

We are wrestling with various sins and temptations? Go to battle against them, let others know. Know that we have a Father who has already declared victory when we turn our life over to Him.

Dear Jesus this fleeting pleasure pales in comparison to the joy and satisfaction we have in you. Today, I choose an obedience to you then this temptation put before me. Better is one day in your courts, then thousands elsewhere. We long for this day, please remind us in our struggles of this hope, strength, grace, and love you have for us always. Thank you for your Son Jesus to be our perfect example of how in the flesh He resisted the temptations. I pray to draw closer and closer to His presence daily. We love you! Amen

I love this song by Matt Maher because it reminds me of how much I need Jesus every day!

Missing The Mark

Today’s reading is Matthew 18.

We will keep our focus specifically on Matthew 18:7-9. In these powerful verses, Jesus tells us that is better if we remove certain body parts that cause us to sin than to keep them and continue to sin. This is a powerful and direct message that tells us how terrible sin is in God’s eyes and how important He feels refraining from it is. He begins in Matthew 18:17 by saying….“woe to the one whom the temptation to comes.” Although He did not sin, we have a Savior that understands because like us, He too was tempted. Jesus realizes how hard it is to not sin. Hebrews 4:15 says, “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weakness, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.”

We must first examine ourselves closely to acknowledge our sin. I read a quote today that said, “Wrong is wrong, even if everyone is doing it. Right is right, even if no one is doing it.” I know I’m guilty of justifying sins by telling myself it’s not that bad and everyone is doing it. However, our standard for determining what is a sin should be comparing to no one except Jesus and what the Bible says about that sin. The question isn’t what does the world think about it, but what does God think about it?

The Bible tells us that our sin is erased when believe in Jesus’ forgiveness through the cross and ask Him to do so. However, it also tells us to repent of sin. Merriam-Webster defines repent as “to turn from sin and dedicate oneself to the amendment of one’s life.” God knows that we will trip up and not only make mistakes but will make the same mistakes over. But, we can not continue to commit the same sin knowingly and willingly because of His forgiveness. Our intention in our heart when we have a relationship with Jesus should be to not sin and to do all we can to refrain from it. Christian musical artist Toby Mac posted a quote on his social media this week which said, “an apology without change is manipulation.” We may be able to manipulate others, but we can’t manipulate God. He knows our hearts and actions.

Whether removing body parts is a metaphor or literal (I’m hoping it’s a metaphor!), Jesus is underscoring that it so difficult to not sin that we must take some extreme measures to protect ourselves. In my nearly 15 years in a sales-based career, I’ve learned from my personal coaches and those that I coach, as well as reading about successful business people and athletes, that even when we have a goal that’s really important to us and our family, we can’t just say we are going to do something and expect to do it. Even the highest performers set up their environment and calendars in a way to help them do that which they know they should and truly want to do. One quick, simple example is that if you want to get up earlier to work out to get in shape or because you know doing so effects how you feel and your performance that day, but you can’t keep from rolling over and hitting the snooze button, you can set your alarm across the room or even buy an alarm clock that moves to a different part of the room in the night so you have to get up and search for it. It’s no surprise that Jesus, the greatest teacher and coach of all time, is telling us here to set up or environment to not sin. In Matthew 26:41 when He asks His disciples to keep watch in the garden but yet finds them sleeping He states, “The spirit is indeed willing, but the flesh is weak.” My father shared with me once that the late, infamous Rev. Billy Graham once said that he would never put himself in a position to have an extra-marital affair because he would never be alone in any personal or professional situattion with any woman other than his wife. The word sin in the Bible comes from the translation of Greek word hamartia which means to miss the mark. You would be hard pressed to find too many people who lived a more Christ-like life who could likely withstand more temptation than Rev. Billy Graham. Yet, he knew he must set up his environment to not be tempted because even he could subject making a mistake and missing the mark.

Another observation is that the top performers in the business world and in athletics typically pay someone to be a personal coach for them and are also typically are a part of another group of peers who help them with ideas and hold them accountable to staying on track for what they want to accomplish. Even the best need support and accountability partners. Are we doing this as it relates to living a Christ-following life and refraining from sin? I recently read in another devotional where a leader of a high school boys small group was asking them about pornography. Nearly every single one of them admitted to their problem with it. The leader made them aware of a monitoring subscription they could put on their phone and computers that would alert an accountability partner, which he offered to be for them, when they went to certain types of websites. Nearly all agreed and within the first few days he got an alert for one of the boys, and he was able to talk with him and help him. Kudos to this group of young men for acknowledging their sin and seeking help and accountability!

Let us ask ourselves the following…

What sin do I need to acknowledge?
Am I truly sorry and turning away from that sin or instead justifying it?
What can I do to set up my environment to not be tempted and refrain from my sin?
Who can I ask to be a trusted accountability partner?

Ask for God’s wisdom in answering these questions and then not only for forgiveness, but to help you truly repent and turn away from those sins.

Consider the following prayer…

Dear Heavenly Father, I acknowledge that I am a sinner. I’m sorry that I justify my sin by the world’s standards and not yours. Please forgive me and not only change my heart but give me the wisdom to figure out how to truly repent and turn away from my sin. Thank you for loving me when I’m unlovable and for forgiveness through giving your life on the cross for me which you did not have to do. I love you. Amen

David and Bathsheba

The past week and a half we have been following King David, great great great…. grandpa to Jesus. He was victorious in battle, courageous yet meek. He showed loyalty and mercy to King Saul when he had the opportunity and motive to kill him. He displayed a deep love and friendship with Jonathon. He seems to truly seek the Lord and have a heart to follow. He’s a master of poetry and song, able to put words to his swirling thoughts and emotions.

As we come into 2 Samuel 11, we hit a major turning point. How does this “man after God’s own heart” fall into such sin? It appears to happen slowly over time and also all at once. Just. Like. Us.

Before Bathsheba, David had married six different women over a period of time – and while this was becoming more acceptable of the time, God did not approve (Deut 17:17). This wasn’t God’s design – He always guides us in ways to help us. His laws are never to limit us, but to save us from separation from him, as well as the the pain and heartache the sin brings. In this case, the sin of polygamy and adultery.

As you read through the story of David and Bathsheba this morning, you can see the opportunities David had to avoid this temptation to sin:

He watched her bathing – STOP LOOKING (vs 2)
He asked his people to find out who she is – MIND YOUR OWN BUSINESS (vs 3)
He sent for her to come to him – BACK OFF, YOU KNOW SHE IS MARRIED (vs. 4)
He has her in his house – DON’T DO IT! SHE’S NOT YOUR WIFE! (vs 4)

Lust. This self-focused sin is committed by the young and the old, the rich and the poor, male and female.

Once David and Bathsheba commit adultery, it goes downhill from there pretty quickly. Scheming, Lies, Betrayal, Murder. It started with a glance that lasted too long… and ends with how all of sin ends: Displeasing the Lord (verse 27) and consequences (I won’t spoil next week’s journal entries).

Just like David, being a follower of God doesn’t make me sinless – but it should lead me to sin less. It’s hard to understand how we can walk so closely with the Lord, see fruit of the Spirit in our lives, and then also fall so quickly into sin with big consequences.

David’s adultery had to break God’s heart – just like it breaks his heart when we sin. And as a parent, how we feel when our own kids struggle with sin.

What sin patterns can you see in your life? Can you identify what leads up to your sin? For me, it almost always starts with my thoughts. In each season of life, from childhood to now, I can see patterns of sin and how I struggled with different areas. There were seasons of dishonesty, seasons of greed, seasons of lust, seasons of pride, seasons of control.

Sin is really yuck. My sin. David’s sin. Your sin. But we can be more than conquerors through Him that loves us! Whatever sins you are struggling with today, will you join me in:

Confessing them to God and ask for forgiveness from him
Seek out what the Word of God says about that sin
Write down your trouble/temptation spots and an action plan to avoid them
Talk to another believer and build accountability and check points
Make restitution or seek forgiveness from others impacted by your sin
Leverage the power of the Holy Spirit and put on the armor of God through prayer
Share your testimony of working through sin! Don’t keep your struggles in darkness.

As I look back on 38 years, it’s easy to feel like a professional sinner. I’m so thankful for the grace of the most perfect Forgiver.

Jesus is Tempted

In today’s scripture covering the words of Jesus, we look at Luke 4. This is a continuation from yesterday’s message in Luke 3, where John the Baptist taught about repentance, turning from sin, and being baptized. Luke 4 picks up after Jesus’ baptism and goes right into Jesus being tempted by Satan in the dessert. I love this picture of the human side of Jesus, and I’m going to look across the other gospels to show this full picture, because I love everything about this passage!

Matthew, Mark, and Luke each record different aspects of the temptation. Most bible scholars agree that Jesus was fasting in the wilderness for 40 days, during which time Satan was tempting him. At the end of the 40 days, Satan tempted him with three specific things that are recorded in detail (Matthew 4:1-11, Mark 1:12-13, Luke 4:1-18).

The situation is intriguing from the very beginning. The Holy Spirit directs Jesus to go to the wilderness to be tempted. Jesus was sent there for a purpose! A lot of times I think we create and walk right into our own messes – we made choices that lead to the storm we find ourselves smack dab in the middle of… But there are other situations that truly pop up out of the blue, and we are left scratching our heads with questions like… Why am I here? How did this happen? What am I supposed to make of all of this? Just maybe we are led there for a reason. Jesus was led by the Holy Spirit into this temptation for a purpose. And we shouldn’t underestimate the power of the Holy Spirit to lead us to places that have tempting situations. Why? Why would He do that? God uses victory over temptation as an example for others. What example is God using in your life for others? Is there an area you need to take a more black and white stand, as an example for others? Are you tempted to stay silent when you need to speak truth into a situation?

Next, we look at how Jesus was tempted. Sounds pretty familiar to the same types of things we are tempted by… physical needs and desires (bread), power (the world), and lastly, He was tempted to test God (throw Himself off the mountain). Jesus was tempted in the same ways that Satan tries to tempt us today. It’s pretty cool that Jesus walked before us and showed us exactly what to watch for! When you think of these three areas of temptation, is there one you need to take hold of today and claim victory?

How? How can we overcome? BAM – Jesus shows us! He responds to each temptation by reciting scripture (we find it in Deuteronomy) back to Satan. What an awesome example for us to keep the Word of God in our hearts and overcome Satan. Do you have some go-to scriptures that you can use when you’re feeling tempted? Here are a few of mine:

Keep thy tongue from evil. Psalm 34:13

Vengeance is mine sayeth the Lord. Romans 12:19

Whatsoever things are good, whatsoever things are lovely, think on THOSE things. Phil 4:8

Fear not, I am with thee. Isaiah 41:10

Depart from evil and do good. Psalm 34:14

My God will supply all your needs. Phil 4:19

Love your enemies, bless them that curse you. Luke 6:27

As cheesy as it sounds, I like to say them out loud. There’s power in verbally declaring victory over the enemy!

The last piece of Jesus’ temptation is His Father’s care and compassion. After Jesus endured the temptation, God sent help (His angels) to comfort and minister to Jesus. I really don’t know exactly what this means (not much is explained), but I’ve always envisioned some sort of angel cheerleading situation. V-I-C-T-O-R-Y, GOOOOOO JESUS! Oh, and I also picture them carrying lots of bread. All the bread. As a grain-a-holic myself, my version of this story is with a satchel full of naan, baguettes, bagels, all of it. I mean, Jesus was fasting for awhile!! In all seriousness, when we are in the middle of a temptation, we can look forward to being replenished by our Father. God will restore our weary souls. Can you look back and see this provision in your life?

God is so gracious to give us this fully-man Jesus to walk before us and show us how to do life on earth. It’s no coincidence that this temptation by Satan occurred right after Jesus’ baptism. The enemy doesn’t want us to gain any ground in our faith walk. When we declare our commitment and belief in God, the enemy will work to shake us. Let’s follow Jesus’ example and be ready, armed with the Word of God!

The Tempter

Today’s reading is Matthew 4.

As I mentioned in my previous writing 2 weeks ago, one of the big “ah-ha’s” for me as I became an adult was when it really hit me that Jesus was tempted, just like us and as we see in this writing, but was the only human to live without sin, yet died on the cross to take our place. As new small group members some years ago, there was a couple in our group who seemed to talk constantly about Satan and his temptations in their lives and the lives of others around them. They talked about it so much that it my wife and I found it awkward and thought they were really kind of out there. Not that we didn’t acknowledge Satan is real because if you acknowledge God is real you have to acknowledge Satan is real, but we just felt they were a little over the top about how much Satan interjects and they talked about it. However, as we have matured in our faith, we completely understand it now.

A few weeks ago, I was in a restaurant speaking with a friend who is really struggling to believe God is real and is struggling with other things in his life. We had been talking for over an hour and although there was much activity in the restaurant he was locked in on me, keeping eye contact the entire time. As I began to make a very strong and direct witness to him to the point that you could feel the intensity building in the conversation and I began to tell him we all have a God-shaped hole in our hearts only He can fill, “BAM!!” a worker dropped a trash can right in the middle of my sentence and he lost all focus on what I was saying. A few years ago, I would have said that’s crazy and this was just coincidence, but I now believe that was Satan interjecting. You’ll hear similar stories during conversions from other believers and pastors if you ask them.

I find it very interesting in Matthew 4:3 Satan is called “the tempter.” God did not have to use this terminology. This was very intentional. That’s what Satan does. He tempts. That’s who he is. 1 Peter 5:8 says, “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” If he tried to tempt Jesus 3 times here in a short period of time, you can bet he’s going to be tempting us. In fact, it is my humble opinion that he tries to tempt those of outspoken faith and belief the most because that is a huge win for him if he gets us to sin, especially when others find out about it about it. It does a lot of damage when a pastor, elder, small group leader, or strong believer sins and it becomes known by many. He loves this. People expect a known and public repeat sinner to sin so that is not a big win to Satan when they sin again.

How do we avoid falling into Satan’s traps and temptations?

Acknowledge he’s real and tempting us daily..even by the hour and the minute.
Stay in prayer and the Word. Expectancy theory says that which you think about expands. If you spend more time with God, you’ll stay close to and be thinking about Him keeping you insulated. Satan knows the Scriptures as we see her, but so did Jesus as we see here in Matthew 4:4, Matthew 4:7, and Matthew 4:10.
Stay in close community with other believers through church and small group to keep you accountable (Ecclesiastes 4:9-12). Consider reading The Resolution for Men and The Resolution for Women with other male or female believers…committing to the Resolution at the end.
Stay humble and on watch…even as we mature in our faith. If he tried to tempt Jesus, he will tempt us!

Even the Lord’s Prayer tells us to pray “Lead us not into temptation” in Matthew 6:13. Let us put on the armor of God and answer the call today and everyday Timothy gives us in 1 Timothy 6:11-12.

“But as for you, O man of God, flee these things. Pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness. Fight the good fight of faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.”

Today’s Reading: Matthew 6:13 and Psalm 76

“And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.”

Matthew 6:13

Good morning Monday readers. As the temps finally begin to rise and we are seeing God’s work in the blooming tulips we have the opportunity to dive deep into the next verse of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. Today, we’re focusing on temptation. As soon as I hear that word, I start thinking about tasty chocolates and expensive purses! Our family is moving to a new home this week and I’ve been forced to face the reality of my sin when it comes to materialism. I’ve given away and yet it still seems as if we have so much. It’s taken so much discipline to avoid purchasing more things! How many of us are filled with wordly desire when we walk into the store? This may lead us to ask, why did God bring temptation to our lives? The Bible teaches that God doesn’t lead us to temptations but he does allow us to be tested by them. Of course, we’re not alone in it. All Christians struggle with temptation. The enemy often chooses to tempt us when we are vulnerable. When we are under physical or emotional stress he uses that opportunity to convince us that we can get reassurance and comfort from things other than God. When we are lonely, tired or faced with a difficult decision it can be easy to look to food, shopping, the computer or phone for comfort. As we meditate and pray on the role of temptation in our life, I invite you to spend some time writing and reflecting on the three areas in which the enemy tempts us:

Physical Needs and Desires
Possessions and Power
Pride

Take some time to write down the ways in which you are personally tempted in these three areas. Ask God to forgive you for the times you’ve given in to temptation. By making ourselves aware of how subtle temptations start us down the path of sin, we can begin to change.

Make your vows to the Lord your God and perform them;
let all around him bring gifts to him who is to be feared,who cuts off the spirit of princes, who is to be feared by the kings of the earth. Psalm 76:11-12

Suit Up

Today’s reading is John 19 and Psalm 121.

John 19:7-8 reads, “The Jews answered him, ‘We have a law and according to that law he out to die because he has made himself the Son of God.’ When Pilate heard this statement, he was even more afraid.” Prior to this in John 19:6, Pilate said he found no guilt in Him, yet we know in John 19:16 he delivered Him to be crucified. Why was Pilate afraid, and why did He deliver him to be crucified, even though he found no guilt in Him? He could have been fearful of Jesus being who He said He was, but most likely he was afraid of a riot, and he did not want the word to get back to Caesar that he could not effectively govern his region. A riot during Passover would be even worse and the word surely would get back to him and may cost him his position.

How many times in our lives do we cave to the demands and temptations of this world because we are trying to please others for our own good and don’t want to stir the pot and start a riot? We either commit a sin of commission ourselves or don’t speak out about something that’s not in line with the Word and commit a sin of omission. We fear not fitting in or being ostracized by friends or co-workers, or maybe even fear of losing our job. Sometimes though, it’s just apathy. Every day we see things the world tells us is ok and normal that we know the Word tells us is not. Yet, how often do we stand up God and His truth from His Word? I know I often cave just like Pilot. James 4:17 says, “Therefore, to one who knows the right thing to do and does not do it, to him it is sin.” Thankfully, we know we are not condemned by these sins. Romans 8:1 tells us, “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” We know from reading later in John that His death, burial, and resurrection make us right, whole, and one again with God. As Psalm 121:1-2 reads, “I lift my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? My help comes from the Lord who made Heaven and Earth.”

As we move forward and think about future tests, battles and temptations to heed to the demands of this world let us look to Ephesians 6:13 and pray we do as it instructs us to. “Therefore, take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm.”

How the Bible Teaches Us to Handle Temptation

Matthew 4

What can we learn from Jesus? Chapter 4 of Matthew has four subheads, titled “The Temptation of Jesus,” “Jesus Begins His Ministry,” “Jesus Calls the First Disciples,” and “Jesus Ministers to Great Crowds.” If we just look at those titles, we can see Jesus throughout this chapter in Matthew.

In this post I will be focusing of two things: how Jesus dealt with temptation and how Jesus began his ministry.

Everyone has heard the story of how Jesus fasted for 40 days and 40 nights, then was tempted. I try to picture myself in those situations to make the Bible more real. I think of a time where I was so hungry I couldn’t think of anything else. I had just run a Tough Mudder. If you haven’t heard of one of it before, just imagine a 12 mile forrest, hill, and sand run filled with military style obstacles. After finishing that, I was exhausted and needed food more than I think I ever did. Luckily, McDonalds was only about 15 minutes away, so I was able to fill my belly with a large amount of fried food. Anyways, I’m sure you have your own stories also. So Jesus is in the wilderness, starving, only to visited by Satan to try to tempt him at his weakest points. Satan tries this three times before actually leaving, but each time he tries to tempt Jesus, Jesus speaks truth through Scripture. What does that tell us?

there is power in scripture

When temptation hits, remember that you have power over that temptation with God’s word. None of us lack temptation. We are tempted on a daily basis, but the best question to ask yourself is how you handle temptation.

As I was finishing the chapter, one part really caught my eye. It was the part of the chapter where Jesus started calling his first disciples. The part that really caught my eye was how these men dropped everything to follow Jesus IMMEDIATELY. Scripture says it this way:

Immediately they left their nets and followed him. 21 And going on from there he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets, and he called them. 22 Immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.

I try to imagine Jesus coming up to me today at work and saying “follow me.” Would I truly stop what I was doing and go? To be totally honest, I would probably have a thousand things cross my mind first, from “What about my wife?” to “I have a great job here, and I love what I do, so why should I leave?” I think this passage helps us realize that Jesus will call us at some point. The only questions is, are we ready to take the call?

Think about that today.

There are a lot of things that tempt us in this world and make us think this is the best thing since sliced bread. But what we really need to do is remember that we are in this world and not of this world; our citizenship is in heaven, so we need to be ready to answer the call. Reflect on whether you would answer that call, cheerfully, today.

The Lost (and found) iPod

Today’s Reading: 2 Chronicles 1; 1 John 1; Micah 7; Luke 16

In last week’s post, I briefly mentioned being thankful for the person who found and turned in Preston’s iPod. This was no small event; we were in a foreign country at a large resort where there were literally thousands of employees and thousands of guests from around the globe. Preston’s iPod isn’t extremely valuable financially, but it is worth a lot to him. He can’t afford to buy a replacement, and Amy and I would have needed to let him learn his lesson in being responsible.

One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much, and one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much. (Luke 16:10)

Preston gave his new hero (Fermin) a small token of his appreciation, a hug, and verbal thanks. Based on Luke 16 I wonder if perhaps Fermin was being tested with very little and reaped Heavenly rewards for his decision. Fermin was beaming with a huge smile when Preston found him to say thank you. I think that Fermin experienced as much, or more joy than Preston through this experience.

While this exact situation isn’t something that occurs daily for any of us, it does make me think about what we are entrusted with each day:

Showing up late for work and not making up for it or logging the time inaccurately is stealing. Even if it was just 15 minutes and the employer may never find out, God knows.
How we spend our money. If I look at my accounts, what do they reflect? Should I be entrusted with more or less money based on how I’ve allocated the resources entrusted to me?
Time; our only non-renewable resource. What did I do in my free-time, and what does my calendar say about how I’m choosing to spend this precious gift?

This section of Luke closes with a blunt statement in Luke 16:13 that should challenge us to our core. Do we serve God or do we serve money? The choice is ours to make, and only God knows our true intentions; he knows how we spend our time, money, and energy. Coming from a wonderful week of vacation with my family, I’m exceedingly thankful for the rest, relaxation, and special days and nights with my favorite people on Earth. In reflection, did I make the most of this time, and did I behave as one who loves money or one who loves God?

Think about what Jesus was entrusted with. He came to Earth as a human baby, but with authority over Heaven and Earth. If I could turn water into wine like Jesus did, it is shameful what I’d do… God knows how much (or little) I can be entrusted with! In Matthew 4:1-11 Jesus is tempted by the devil. This includes significant examples of how much Jesus was entrusted with. Also consider that since the devil was trying to temp Jesus, he knew Jesus had the power to do those things, which is further proof of the deity of Jesus Christ.

Father God, may my checkbook, calendar, and heart be filled with more of you and less of me each day. Thank you for giving me such a multitude of second chances. Amen.