Sunday Blogvotional: Achieving Greatness

Greatness can be a double edge sword. To achieve it can be wonderful and damning at the same time.  To do or be something great and not let our pride get in the way can be a very difficult thing. In the book of Mark, Jesus does not criticize the apostles for wanting to be great; He’s human and understands our needs. Fortunately for us, He actually tells us how to achieve it.  In typical God fashion, the way to true greatness is a shift from our natural instincts. We want the fan fare and pats on the back but Jesus challenges us like in Mark chapter 9, “For he who is least among you all – he is the greatest.” It’s okay to strive for greatness in God’s eyes.  Do it the way God wants you to do it and great will be your reward.

Sitting down, Jesus call the Twelve and said, “If anyone want to be first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all.”  Mark 9:35

Encouragement for the week: What is your mission in life? Where do you feel like God really uses you? Whatever that is, become the greatest servant you can possibly be and you’ll achieve greatness in God’s eyes. 

**This week's Blogvotional was presented by James (the Hubs).  Thanks, dear, for your thoughts and HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!

The Daily Bonus

I wonder how I would live my life if I woke up differently.  If you’re old enough, you might remember the donut commercials where the alarm goes off and the still half-asleep guy stumbles out of bed saying “Time to make the donuts.”  That’s kind of what I do every morning only I say “Time to let the dog out, get breakfast going, make school lunches, etc., etc.”  Doesn’t exactly have aWoo Hoo!! factor, does it?

What if, instead of that, I woke up and said “WOW! I get to be a part of another day.  Thank you, God, for giving me this opportunity.  How can I make the most of this blessing?  How can I show others your amazing glory today?”  Truthfully – I’d love to wake up with a shout. WOW!! (Without giving my husband a heart attack, of course.)  

Okay so maybe hollering out “WOW!” isn’t the best idea for practical reasons.  But what about thinking it?  How do we train ourselves to be consciously aware that each day is a gift given to us by God?  Our days aren’t simply blobs of sand waiting to slide through a tiny hole in an hourglass.  They have purpose.

Ours days are presents and each day we get to open a brand new gift.  Sure – it looks like the one we opened yesterday but grace-fully (yep I said grace-fully not gratefully) we can mold and shape this new gift any way we want.  

By God’s grace - if we made some bad mistakes with yesterday’s gift, we have an opportunity to correct them with today’s gift.   If we got distracted and left God’s path yesterday, we can get back on the right path today.  

If you’re like me, you may find it hard to look past the daily to-do lists.  I think if I woke up with a different perspective, I’d live my life focused more on God and what I can do for Him rather than on how I can live the day for myself.  After all – isn’t that what I was created for? 

Sunday Blogvotional: God Loves A Flawed Person

It may be a shock to you but you're not perfect.  In fact nobody is perfect.  We look at some of the "greats" in the Bible and wonder how we can ever have faith like they did.  But if you look closely at them (Abraham, David, Solomon, Joseph, Paul, Peter) you will find they all had flaws.  Some of them more apparent than others.  This never once kept God from speaking to them, using them, or loving them.  God takes our flaws and either makes us stronger through them or uses them to bring Him glory.  God never looks at our flaws as limitations because He, and He alone, completes us.  

"God doesn't call the qualified - He qualifies the called."

(Famous Quote)

Encouragement for the week:  Look at your imperfections in a new light.  Give thanks to God that you're not perfect.  This means He can and will use you.

Blessings In The Detours

I’m not particularly crazy about detours.  They’re known for being lengthy and slow going.  I like taking the path I’ve planned out and the one I know will get me to my destination with the simplest ease.  Plus I’m usually on a time schedule and detours have a tendency to slow down my trip.  

The truth is we don’t have much control over whether we have to take a detour or not.  Things happen to the road. Repairs need to be made. Sometimes a new road has to be created altogether. 

This scenario is the same in our lives.  We have our lives planned out pretty much since we’re teenagers if not before.  But our lives are full of detours – those unexpected side trips.  Sometimes we encounter detours as a result of decisions we’ve made.  Sometimes we hit a detour through no fault of our own.  Either way they usually throw us for a loop.  

Detours can be muddy, uncomfortable and lengthy.  And unlike detours on a road our life detours tend to be poorly marked.  A lot of times we don’t even know if we’re going the right direction.  This leads to anxiety and stress.  (Unless you’re one of those people who can simply enjoy the ride.)

My own life plan has hit several detours along the way.  Once the initial panic wears off, I eventually remember God is in control and steering.  Like I said – I’m not particularly crazy about detours.  I like knowing my destination and exactly how I’m going to get there.  And I’m especially not big on delays.  But as I look back at all those detours I’ve encountered, I’m able to see the unexpected blessings that came through them.

The funny thing is – we think they are detours when maybe they’re actually the roads God intended for us to take all along.  The roads may not be pleasant that we need to travel but I fully believe they lead to a fuller, more blessed life.  God has an amazing way of turning a chaotic path into a beautiful blessing.

Sunday Blogvotional: Foundational Faith

Inevitably you will face storms in your life.  The heavy rains and strong winds can be overwhelming and extremely powerful.  They can knock you down, roll you over and flip you upside down.  And that's even when you think you're hanging on for dear life.  Everyone knows that if you want to face the storm, you find shelter - someplace with a solid foundation. 

Most of us are smart enough to stay away from straw huts because they are not fortified.  And yet, ironically, we don't take the same precautions with our faith (a more valuable commodity than our lives).  The type of foundation we build for our faith will determine the safety of our shelter when we face storms.  If you want to get through the pain and trials of life with your faith in tact, you have to make sure the foundation you've built your shelter on is strong and deep.

The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock.  Matthew 7:25

Encouragement for the week:  In can never be said enough how important it is to read the Word of God.  Think of it like re-bar fortifying our "faithcrete".  Strengthen your faith by memorizing some verses or passages that you never want to forget.

Growing Fruit

We, as Christians, are tremendously blessed with the gift of the Holy Spirit.  In Galatians chapter 5 we read that the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

For many years I assumed these characteristics (this fruit) would naturally and abundantly flow out of me simply because I carried the name of Christian.  I was puzzled by the lack of them at times.  Like most people I’m not always loving or patient or gentle, etc. etc.  I mean really, we all have our moments.  

I got to thinking about the word “fruit” and how fruit grows.  A tree will produce fruit if it’s watered, gets light, and has good soil.  If a tree doesn’t get these things – isn’t nurtured – then it will cease to produce good fruit and will eventually die.

What if we are like that tree?  We have been given a gift of a "starter" batch of Spiritual fruit (love, joy, peace…) and a purpose to bear more fruit.  But what happens if we don’t nurture our tree – if we don’t feed our fruit?  Will our fruit shrivel up?  Will it become tasteless and bitter?  Will our tree die? I think maybe it will.  Have you ever met Christians who seem completely void of any Spiritual fruit?  Maybe, just maybe, they've forgotten to nurture their fruit and now it no longer grows (or flows through them).

So how do we nurture our “fruit of the Spirit”?  We nurture by practicing or using them.  The more we practice the act of loving – the more love we grow.  The more we practice patience, gentleness, self-control and the others – the more these too will grow.  And the more of these fruit we have on our tree, the more we are filled with the Spirit and the fuller our lives will be.

Challenge:  Practice nurturing a fruit a week.  This week work on being more loving.  Next week work on being joyful and the next peace, etc.  Oftentimes our attitudes and actions just need a little focused attention and nurturing.

Sunday Blogvotional: Serving Even When It Hurts

I once heard it said "we don't have a problem serving until we're treated like a servant".   And even when we don't mind being a servant - we certainly think twice about whom we serve.  On the night of the passover feast Jesus washed the feet of the disciples.  He, the Son of God, humbled himself to show the importance of serving others.  But what may be one of the most striking things about this encounter is the fact that Jesus washed the feet of His betrayer, Judas.  The very man who was about to betray Him to the point of death.  Knowing full well what was about to happen to Him and the agony He felt - Jesus still washed - He still served.  Jesus shows us that despite whether or not we like someone or have been hurt by them, our hearts should always be willing to serve. 

The greatest among you will be your servant. For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.  Matthew 23: 11-12

Encouragement for the week:    One way to serve is to pray for others.  Think of someone who has hurt you and pray for God to bless them.  Do this every day for a week.