A Minute In It - Do As I Do

For the whole law can be summed up in this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”  Galatians 5:14 (NLT)

Question.  What does it look like to "Love your neighbor as yourself?"

Maybe it looks like this.

So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. John 13:34

Another question. What was it about the way Christ loved us that was so perfect?  If we modeled that, how would it change how we loved each other?

That's hard to do.  How do we accomplish this?

We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Hebrews 12:2

Please Don't Sit There

“The Lord directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives.” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭37:23‬ ‭(NLT‬‬)

As I boarded the plane and found my seat, I wanted so much to have some quiet time to myself. It had been a rough week. Work had been taxing and I needed to prepare for a sermon I was going to preach the following weekend. What I wanted was some time to think. 

I settled into my seat and realized there was no one in my row. WOOOHOOO! Thank you, God. I can stretch out and rest and think. They closed the doors to the plane and just as I was getting ready to spread out, the flight attendant walked up to my row with a man and said, “You’ll be able to stretch out more in this seat.” I’m not going to recount the thoughts that popped into my head at that moment.

Anyway, as we took off I heard “Ask him why he’s going to Dallas.”  My response? “Why would I do that?” Again. “Ask him why he’s going to Dallas.” I know the Voice and sometimes I listen to it. I wish I could say I always do but that would be lying.  This time I did.  I asked him. And I got to hear the best story about how he was going to meet his daughter who lived with her Mom. He was bringing her home to spend the summer with him. 

He told me her mom was afraid of flying so the only way she was allowed to come see him was if he actually picked her up at the airport in Dallas. His day started with an hour and a half drive to the airport where he got on a plane in Virginia, flew to Dallas, met his daughter at the airport and flew back to Virginia and then drove an hour and a half home.  I was dumbfounded at the taxing day this man had ahead of him.

We talked for a while and I asked him “What do you want your daughter to take away from these trips?” His response? “I want her to know that no matter where she is, I will come get her. I will go anywhere to be with her.”

Did I mention that my sermon that weekend was on Father’s Day? I wanted to think through how to portray the love of our Heavenly Father. Do you think God wrapped that up in this one conversation that I didn’t want to have with a man I didn’t want to sit next to?

Our encounters are never random. They are divinely appointed. Maybe, just maybe, we should embrace each encounter we have every day as if God were in it. Because he is.

What A Beautiful Name

There is a song called "What a Beautiful Name" by Hillsong Worship. There is one verse in it that makes me pause every time I hear it. It is

You didn't want heaven without us
So Jesus, You brought heaven down
My sin was great, Your love was greater
What could separate us now.

I especially get hung up on You didn't want heaven without us and My sin was great, your love was greater. Every single time I hear it I think about the love that Jesus has for us. A love so great that he left Heaven to live here because his love was greater than my sin.

There is a Bible verse that says the same thing.

Who, being in very nature God,
    did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;
rather, he made himself nothing
    by taking the very nature of a servant,
    being made in human likeness.
And being found in appearance as a man,
    he humbled himself
    by becoming obedient to death—
        even death on a cross!
Philippians 2:6-8 (NLT)

Truly, what a Beautiful Name is the Name of Jesus.

Right Where You Are Supposed To Be

Your road led through the sea,
    your pathway through the mighty waters—
    a pathway no one knew was there!
Psalm 77:19 (NLT)

Last night in the U.S. the Super Bowl was on. While I really like football, most of the times I don't find the game super exciting. But last night was different. It was a great game! There was something though that really impressed me.  It was the story of the Eagles' Quarterback, Nick Foles.

In his career he'd not always done so well as a quarterback. He was traded from regime to regime. At one point he was considering retirement because he was so discouraged. He decided it to give it one more try and ended up back with the Eagles (which is where he started in the first place). After an injury of the Eagles' starting quarterback, Foles was tapped. And the rest is history.

After the game, one of the first things he said was "To God be the glory." Amen.

We never know where our path will lead. Only God does. What we need to do is keep going. Don't give up. And watch as God unfolds his glory in our lives.

A Minute In It - Fighting Back

A minute in God's word will change your life. Take a minute to read the passages below and ask yourself the questions at the bottom of the post.

Be prepared. You’re up against far more than you can handle on your own. Take all the help you can get, every weapon God has issued, so that when it’s all over but the shouting you’ll still be on your feet. Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation are more than words. Learn how to apply them. You’ll need them throughout your life. God’s Word is an indispensable weapon. In the same way, prayer is essential in this ongoing warfare. Pray hard and long. Pray for your brothers and sisters. Keep your eyes open. Keep each other’s spirits up so that no one falls behind or drops out. Ephesians 6:13-18 (MSG)

What are some of the weapons in the arsenal of God?
Why do you need them?
Why is Truth important?
Why is Christ's righteousness important?
Peace? Faith and Salvation?
What do you do with God's Word?
And why is prayer essential?
What about encouraging one another? What does that have to do with the battle we face?

Praying for you that God will guide you and keep you as you serve him.

Imitate Me

This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: In those days ten men from different nations and languages of the world will clutch at the sleeve of one Jew. And they will say, ‘Please let us walk with you, for we have heard that God is with you.  Zechariah 8:23 (NLT)

WOW!! Can you imagine what the world would be like if we were all Christians like this? If we lived our life in such a way that people came up to us and said "I can see Jesus in you" or "Your life reflects God and I want to know him." Can you just imagine it?

This is what I want in my life. I want to live my life in such a way that even if I say nothing about him, people know who I follow.  One of my favorite sayings is:

Preach the Gospel to all the world and if necessary use words.

What would our world be like if we loved with our actions and didn't lead with our words? What about your world? How would your world change if people could see God in your life?

Father God, Holy Spirit, please change me so I live my life like this. Amen.

Refocus

For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.  Philippians 4:13 (NLT)

Lately, I’ve been repeating that verse a lot.  And it suddenly dawned on me that maybe I don’t fully grasp what it means. Is it possible that when we repeat that verse we are focusing more on the “I can do all things” part and not the “through Christ” part?

I’m pretty sure the intent of this verse isn’t that we pick something we want to do and because it says "I can do all things", that we can just do it.  For example, if I decided I wanted to be a famous singer I am pretty sure that wouldn’t happen. You’d agree if you ever heard me sing. It’s not about picking some amazing goal and then believing hard enough so it happens.

The focus is really on “through Christ.” In other words, learning to lean on him, turning my eyes to him every day to get through the “all things” that cloud my view.

Maybe a paraphrase will help.

I can handle whatever life throws at me; whether it be losing it all or gaining everything because each and every day I turn my focus on Jesus who provides the strength, courage and stick-to-it frame of mind I need to sort through my crazy days.

Now, I just need to focus more on Jesus and less on the “all things” part. Easier said than done......

Yes! Jesus Loves Me!

Jesus loves me! This I know,
For the Bible tells me so;
Little ones to Him belong;
They are weak, but He is strong.

Yes, Jesus loves me!
Yes, Jesus loves me!
Yes, Jesus loves me!
The Bible tells me so.

Jesus loves me still today,
Walking with me on my way,
Wanting as a friend to give
Light and love to all who live.

Yes, Jesus loves me!
Yes, Jesus loves me!
Yes, Jesus loves me!
The Bible tells me so.
--Lyrics by Anna Warner

Sometimes it's just good to remember that we are loved.