Pinnacle of Success

       

       It seems every year I set new goals.  Through the year I accomplish some of my goals, but rarely all of them and even the ones accomplished, sometimes are altered by the time “completion” has occurred.  I’d like to be a success.  I expect most of us do or at least have had these kinds of dreams.  

The definition of success changes from person to person, but with success usually comes, at least a certain amount of satisfaction, monetary rewards or other kind of compensation for a job well done at whatever we are working toward.  Personally, I just want to see my work “out there” making a difference in people’s lives.  Fame?  Not likely, I’m just an ordinary person, doing what I consider an ordinary job.  Money?  Well, sure, that is certainly a welcome reward for a job well done, but it’s more than that.  It’s about leaving something worthwhile, and helping to make someone’s life just a little better.  

The greatest success story is the story of Christ, the Messiah.  Jesus had been on the earth 33 years and at the pinnacle of his popularity, people had to make a choice.  He had performed many healing miracles, rebuked demons and even brought Lazarus back to life.  The common people thought he was wonderful, while the Religious leaders of the time felt horribly threatened.    

There comes a time when we need to meet with Jesus, one on one, and make a decision to allow Him to control our lives.  This should be the most important decision in our entire lives.  It doesn’t matter what we do on a daily basis.  It doesn’t even matter what legacy we leave!  What does matter is where we choose to spend eternity; that we have total confidence of our eternal destiny.

Once we meet with Jesus, we place our souls into his complete trust, yet how often do we not trust him with our finances, our kids, our health or other decisions?  Do we even approach him when things are turned upside down because we feel we have the need and power to do it ourselves?  Do we forget it is He who has the power to make things right?  

Is it possible we are afraid to allow God to “control” our lives?  God has a way of using our abilities or talents to place in uncomfortable arenas, out of our comfort zone.  What He sometimes asks, goes against what seems naturally possible in the physical world, as we know it.  Consider even the belief of Mary and Martha as God calls Lazarus out of the tomb.  What is He asking of you that seems unnatural to your normal way of thinking?  Is it forcing you to trust him?

Our pinnacle of success is best measured by what we do for Christ during this life.  It is after all the only thing we can take with us when we depart this life.  All other rewards will be of absolutely no value.  So I ask you, where do you see your pinnacle of success?  Is it for Christ or something (or someone) else?

Photo credit: pictures of being successful

In His Presence

 

         A friend shared the story about how he and his wife, before she passed away, would go for walks in the park, long drives, or even just sit together on the front porch swing, discussing any variety of subjects from their children, future plans and even daily activities.  And then other times in the same scenarios, be together without ever saying a word.  He said even in silence, there was a connection neither one could likely describe, but it was comfortable and filled with a peace and unity that only comes from love.

My friend's story makes me think about how Mary sat down and listened to Jesus while Martha fretted about getting things done.  I must admit I’m more like Martha than Mary in the scripture from Luke 10:41-42.  I am a terrible ‘sitter’!  I’m one who is up and down, over and around, always seemingly doing something.  I fret when there are dishes in the sink, when the floor isn’t swept or laundry folded and refuse to leave my bed unmade.  These things drive me to keep at it, until the task is finished, regardless of the time or how tired I am.

Years ago, when my husband worked night shift, he would miss dinner with the children and me.  This was before the magical microwave invention!  So, at night when he’d arrive home, whether it be 10 p.m. or 1 a.m. I would get up, fix his food and then do dishes—without the added convenience of a dishwasher!  There were mornings I would wake, go to the kitchen, see the clean dishes in the sink, know that I’d washed them, but have no memory of having done it.  

I’m not sure what that says about my personality, except that, I’m somewhat of stressor, which is why I feel more like Martha.   But the idea of sitting at Jesus' feet and ‘just being’ gives such an image of rest and peace.  

We don’t all have someone in our lives with whom we can share the kind of connection, my friend described.  And to complicate this in today’s world, are those devices that are designed to keep us ‘connected’ yet seem to be, on some levels, breaking us apart.

It's interesting; I watch my own children grow in their families, and how quickly they reach for their phones for games or email, messages, etc when even a moment goes by without conversation. (And sometimes even during a conversation!)   It makes me wonder if they are afraid of their own thoughts.  I don't know, but it causes me pause.       

Peace and contentment are amazing gifts and sometimes we forfeit them for the most recent television show, movie, video game or other activity (even cleaning?).  Sitting still and ‘just being’ in God’s presence is amazing.

I’ve found the only way I can accomplish ‘being still’ for more than a moment is to have a planned time for God in my day.  This works best for me early in the morning (and/or just before going to sleep at night) and some days it’s a real effort to get up early enough before the ‘busy-ness’ of the day overtakes me!  Yet, I find if I don’t do this, my day seems ‘off.’  It’s clear I’ve missed a valuable component of the day that sets my mind, my heart, desires ---my comfort, peace and contentment levels—where they need to be!

Photo Credit:  https://www.pinterest.com/pin/811210951634583638/ 

In Small Doses

       

      I started a new Bible Study recently and I loved the introduction on why and how we should study God’s Word.  The obvious why, is God’s desire for salvation for all mankind.  The ‘how’ however, is what really intrigued me.

When we think about food, we understand it’s best to only eat until we are full.  Overeating will usually cause stomach upset or other unpleasant issues we’ll have to deal with later.  And in truth, a single person isn't usually  interested in eating an entire six-servings of pasta, six-servings of vegetable and six-servings of meat all at one time.  We each take a single (sometimes double) portion of what we feel our stomachs can hold, and eat until we are finished.

Eating until we are full, with a single serving at a time, (as long as it's healthy food!) is a diet that can keep us healthy.  The same is true for our spiritual health.  We need to daily reach for the ‘food’ we find for our souls.  When God fed the Israelites in the Wilderness, he sent them Manna.  They couldn’t take extra portions, only what each person needed.  Any extra would rot!  

What intrigued me, is the idea that God places commands throughout his Word.  They aren’t found in one single place.  He scatters lessons to be learned all over the place, if we look for them.  But again, they aren’t localized to one area!  His Word is filled with promises, but again not on a single page, but all the way through his messages.  

This means we get small doses at a time.  If we prayerfully read his Word, and search the scripture for what he wants us to know on any given day, he will show us.  The Holy Spirit was promised for this reason; to teach us and give us understanding!  We don’t have to be a professor of Biblical knowledge to understand the Bible!  But we do have to be diligent students who love the Lord!

I heard the story about a little girl who came home after her first day of school.  When asked what she learned that day, her reply was, “Apparently not enough.  I have to come back tomorrow, the next day, and the next day after that!”  She couldn’t have known, there was no way she could learn everything she needed to learn in a single day!  Learning comes in small pieces, all through our lives.

But we won’t learn if we don’t attempt.  When we are ill and go to the doctor, he often prescribes some kind of medicine.  There are directions on the container the medicine comes in and needs to be followed carefully.  But they are useless if we don’t take them! The same is true of God’s Word!  It is filled with medicine for our souls, our lives, our emotional health, relationships, recovery, and overall health.  But if we don’t open those covers, and read the directions, and then follow the leading, we’ve not opened ourselves to healing!  

I encourage you over the next week to dig deep into God’s Word to find what he wants you to know.  Revel in his reassurances of peace and love.  Acquire an understanding of his commands and desirers for your life.  Learn the promises he’s given his children and any ‘contingencies’ associated with them.  Be fed daily, in small doses from the Word given by  the Great Creator.  If you are diligent, you won’t be disappointed. 

photo credit:  https://www.sweetlife.com.au/sugar-free-diet/food-list/ 

Giants In My Life

 

  It’s out there, all around us, and everyone is borderline paranoid.  Some are even panicked.  Yet, there isn’t a lot we can do, except wait and use good common sense.  It’s amazing how a flu type virus can up-end an entire country, yet, here we are.  It’s got a huge grip on all our lives and it’s still squeezing.

More than a year later, there are still cases of the virus across the world and the statistics tell us it’s getting worse via a brand new strain, but of course, that totally depends on who you talk to.  There are precautions we are still needing to take, and talk of making more mandates about masks and the vaccine.  

The encounters of giants are all through the Bible.  In Deuteronomy, it was the descendants of Anak, and then there was Goliath, and Daniel in the Lion’s den, and even the enemies of Meshach, Shadrach, and Abednego when they refused to kneel before the statue. 

Giants don’t have to be big and mighty, like Goliath, lions or even the ‘giant’ descendants of Anak.  Today, it’s the Coronavirus.  It’s so small, the naked eye can’t even see it, yet the fierceness has many people in knots, filled with despair and dread.  It's disrupting lives everywhere across the globe.  Even now doctors will weigh the urgency of surgery so as not to put a patient at even greater risk of infection, with all the germs from the virus.

Giants come in so many forms, although they seem to network together, making them seem even larger, and thus more threatening. There are monsters like loneliness, worry, doubt, failure, jealousy, anger and resentment, along with fear and discouragement just to name a few.  They link arms and twist themselves through our being so tight, we can barely breathe!

Our first instincts are to run and hide because the champions just seem too large for us to master.  The second might be to surrender, because no matter what precautions we take, the giant, whatever form it takes, is going to overtake us and win anyway.  These kinds of thoughts are exactly what Satan wants.  

The evil one loves it when we cave!  He jumps with glee when he sees our knees begin to weaken and knuckle under the stress.  Stress.  It keeps dumping on us until we don’t know which way to turn.  In some ways, the stress in our lives can be a giant unto itself!  And managing that beast can be difficult!  I know.  I’ve been there!

But God has other plans for our lives.  When we run and hide, or even cave to those ogres, we are saying God is not a conqueror!  We are not believing he has the capability of performing a miracle or working things out for our good, because the odds don’t look in our favor.  When we react this way, we are projecting a huge lack of faith!

Regardless of the giants we face, as Believers, we serve a Mighty God who will fight for us!  We need to stand tall and face the giant just as David did, even if all we have are small stones!  The challenge before us is great, but with God’s strength, we can be conquerors!  He is greater than any, and all, foes before us.  Let’s join together, and trust the God ‘who can!’