Monday, August 20, 2012

Urge Students To Show Kindness

With what shall I come before you LORD and bow down before the exalted God?

Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old?

Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousand rivers of oil?

Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?

He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you?

To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.

-- Micah 6:6-8

Children all across our area are heading back to school today. Some are excited. Some are bummed out. Some are filled with anxiety.

At church Sunday, we had the traditional blessing of the backpacks. During the Children’s Moment, Pastor Danny asked if anyone was excited about going back to school. No response from the kids. Their parents were loudly applauding.

It can be an exciting time. It can also be an awful, traumatic time for those kids who are left out, ridiculed, bullied. I’d like to think we’re more sensitive about these things now but, truthfully, children can be especially cruel.

Each of the children today received a sticker for their backpacks with the word THINK written on it. Pastor Danny explained why. He urged the children to THINK about their words before they say them, to ask themselves if the comment is HELPFUL, to use words to INSPIRE, to ask themselves if the words are NECESSARY, and to be KIND at all times.

I pray all the adults listening in heard the message as well. Because we all could, and should, be more thoughtful in what we say. Words wound. And, no matter how many times we apologize, nothing can ever erase them.

Another friend, a retired teacher, shared a Facebook post urging students to be kind to others. Kindness is one of the best and greatest gifts we can give to anyone. Why does it sometimes seem so hard? A smile, a friendly word, an acknowledgement that the other person exists can mean so much.

In every school hallway today there likely will be at least one student who is new, one who feels embarrassed because he/she isn’t dressed in the “it” style, and one who is an outsider, no matter how long he’s been in that school system. So take a moment to remind your kids to be nice. To think. To smile. To be helpful. To be kind. Because kindness is a gift. It is a way we show others who Jesus is within us.

　

Tuesday, May 15, 2012

Your Only Boss Is God

The LORD has told you what is good, and this is what he requires of you: to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God. -- Micah 6:8

What do other people expect of you? What do you expect of yourself? And what does God expect of you?

Wow. When you look at it like that, it all just seems so overwhelming. How can anyone possibly be all things to all people and to God too? No wonder we’re so stressed out.

But wait a minute. We’re not called to meet the expectations of other people. We’re not even called to please them. Oh, we’re to love them. But we don’t have to make them happy.

As for ourselves, well, we’re to do what God calls us to do. Nothing more. Nothing less. Because the only boss we’ve got is God. And He loves us.

We spend our lives trying to please people who will never truly be pleased. Because we can never do enough for them. It’s sort of like laundry. It never ends. Just when you think you’ve got it conquered, there’s that pile again. And so it goes. That’s how it is with pleasing people. Endless.

The same is true when we expect too much from ourselves. We believe what others tell us. We buy into those lies of having it all. We fill each and every moment of our day with activities and call ourselves living. But our days are endless and our hearts are empty. It’s a roller coaster that never ends.

Maybe we don’t want it to end. Because if we face the stillness that remains we realize all that we’re not. We don’t measure up to who we always thought we should be. More pressure. More disappointment. More stress and disillusionment with ourselves.

And there is God. Waiting. Calling us softly to Himself. Telling us that we are enough. He created us to be the unique and wonderful individuals that we are. We are enough -- just as we are.

So where do all those expectations come from? A world focused on self rather than Savior. A world of endless drudgery and sin rather than a world filled with light and love. We’ve lost our focus. We’ve forgotten how to determine what’s important and what is not.

So stop worrying about what others expect from you. And ease up on yourself. God’s got a plan for your life and it’s good. Stay focused on Him and let someone else deal with all the rest.

Sunday, December 18, 2011

Follow God’s Call

But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, are only a small village in Judah. Yet a ruler of Israel will come from you, one whose origins are from the distant past. -- Micah 5:2

Mother Teresa was a small woman. Physically small. She was born in what is now the Republic of Macedonia. She became a Roman Catholic nun and she founded a charity. Perhaps you’ve heard of it. Missionaries of Charity in Calcutta, India. She had a passion for the poor and she dedicated her life to service. One life who touched many, many more.

I know. You’re not Mother Teresa. Neither am I. But we each have the capacity to touch lives just the same. We’re so focused sometimes on what we can’t do that we forget the power that lies behind what we can do.

This season, the Christmas season, is filled with possibilities. We remember a young couple welcoming their newborn son. We see the bright star that led the shepherds to the baby. We understand the wonder of a promise fulfilled.

So why do we doubt our own worth? Why do we question our own abilities to make a difference? Why do we push aside God’s call, telling ourselves there is someone better qualified, more worthy, better able? Because if God calls, surely He will provide the skills and the way. If God leads the charge, we can only imagine what could happen.

It all starts with obedience. I’ve heard so many people say they never hear God speak. Maybe that’s so. My question is always to ask them if they’re listening. We spend so much time telling God what we want from Him. How much time do we spend asking God what He wants from us?

A few months ago I began to hear God’s persistent voice telling me to teach Sunday school. I tried to ignore it. That didn’t work. I believed God was calling me to teach preschool children. It’s something I’ve done before. I enjoyed it and the children were great but all I could see was the need for energy I didn’t have. So I explained to God that I was just too tired.

God didn’t stop. He kept after me. So finally I offered a compromise. I would be a helper in the junior high class my friend taught. I thought I could handle that. It would likely even be fun. And I wouldn’t have to put out too much energy or effort.

Then one day the teacher in the adult class I attended said she wouldn’t be able to teach anymore. A family situation had forced a change. It appeared that this class I love so much was going to disband. I was horrified at the thought. And as I stood there talking with her, I heard God’s voice again.

I finally understood. God didn’t plan for me to teach small children again. At least not right now. Nor did He plan to let me slide into a class filled with almost teenagers. God’s plan was that I teach this adult class. I am so grateful and so thankful. In my blindness, I never saw it coming. But because He prepared the way, I was ready when it did.

What is God preparing you for today? What is He telling you? What is that gentle nudge you’ve tried to ignore? Pay attention. God plans great things for you. Listen and go forward. The blessings He has waiting will absolutely amaze you.

　

Thursday, June 30, 2011

Credit Belongs To God

No, O people, the LORD has already told you what is good, and this is what he requires: to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God. -- Micah 6:8

The discussion was pointed as we explored the difference between doing good in secret and announcing your good deeds publicly. Can a person ever truly do good without anyone else knowing? And should they? What is wrong with taking credit for the good you’ve done?

A man who does good things got quite upset. There’s nothing wrong with being prideful when you do good things, he said. I let it go. I understood where he was coming from. I did. He was wrong. The use of the word “prideful” said it all. But God doesn’t need me to tell him that. I know that at some point in time, God will let him know.

The dictionary defines pride as a feeling or satisfaction in one’s actions or possessions. The Bible defines pride as sin. The problem with pride is that it tends to negate God’s power and provisions, as the prideful person takes credit that doesn’t belong to them.

Think about it. You’re able to make a generous financial contribution to a homeless shelter. You want credit because you didn’t have to give your hard-earned money to anyone. But you’re forgetting that you had the ability to make that donation because God provided for you financially. Lots of people work just as hard as you do and don’t have that kind of money. Giving credit to God simply means you recognize that God provided you with the resources and gave you the heart to give.

We should feel good about ourselves when we’re walking in the path God set out for us. But we should also recognize that all we have comes from God. Everything. It is our responsibility as Christians to use all we have, everything He’s given us, for His glory. His glory. Not our own. His. That path has no room for pride in self, no matter how good the intentions or the deed.

Thursday, September 23, 2010

Look Forward To Peace

"He will judge between the nations and will settle disputes for many peoples. They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore." -- Isaiah 2:4

This is such a strong message of hope. Isaiah was a great prophet and I know one day his words will come true. God is so awesome. He didn't want us to miss this message so He had Micah repeat it too in Micah 4:3. It's almost verbatim. Hallelujah!

The newspaper USA Today each day lists the names of the soldiers killed. I make myself read it. I try to focus on the names, ages and hometowns. Somewhere, I know, someone is grieving for their loss. A mother and father, a spouse, children, siblings. On and on. I so look forward to the day when there is no more war, when we are all at peace, when Jesus reigns over God's world as he intended it to be.

That's what this prophesy tells us. The day will come when we will no longer need swords, or guns, or bombs. We'll be planters and gatherers. Believers will all live together as one people, with Jesus as our judge and ruler. Grief and suffering will vanish. Our tears will be no more.

In the meantime, we take comfort in the hope God has given us. We, like Paul, focus our eyes on the future and remember that this world is not our permanent home. We are but temporary residents in a fallen world that will one day be recreated as God originally intended it to be. Though pain is around us and within us, it is as temporary as our very lives in this place. Eternity awaits us. Joy abounds. We see the light and He is within us.