Posted by: Jo | May 30, 2014

Seed for the Soul

“This is the meaning of the parable: The seed is the word of God.” (Luke 8:11)

image Last week I was searching through my book cases for a book I was sure I still had, but could not remember where I had placed it. This often can be a very time consuming occupation for me, because I keep coming across books I haven’t read for ages and cannot stop myself from delving into them one more time and of course forgetting the real reason I am here and the book I am searching for. As I was searching, a small book wedged behind another, tumbled out. This little book had been given to me years ago by a dear friend and I was delighted to find it again. It was called “THE WORD IS THE SEED” by George Appleton and was published 30 years ago. As I read these beautiful meditations I was touched all over again by the simplicity and the wisdom portrayed within the words. This is an example;

O God,

it is good to know

that there is a Sower

who brings the seed.

I have only to prepare the soil

for the seed he brings –

an honest and good heart

Give me that heart, O God.

Here in North America it is spring and gardening is very much a happening thing. Every serious gardener knows that before any planting takes place, preparing the soil is a most important step if one wants to reap that plentiful harvest. I feel the parable of the Sower was a wonderful example of gardening tips for the soul and Appleton recognizes this in his little prayer. The psalmists also knew that the place we have to start to receive and absorb God’s word is our heart.

“I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.” (Psalm 119:11)

image Preparing the heart to receive the seed of God’s word, is like any earthly planting. Any weeds or nettles or anything that may obstruct growth must first be eradicated from the soil, so too with our hearts. Even after planting, tender care of plants, watering/ fertilizing/ weeding is still needed to achieve healthy and abundant growth. So too with our hearts if we wish that precious seed, the word of God, to flourish. Firstly we have to examine carefully the condition of our hearts. Are there any obstacles quietly growing there, that might hinder God’s word firmly taking root in our souls; an unforgiving spirit / anger/ disobedience/ apathy. Secondly we have to ensure that once planted the seed needs to be cared for carefully, making sure that nourishment in the form of prayer/ time spent with the Lord/ reading God’s word/ worship/ is in plentiful supply. I love how George Appleton puts it;

O Divine Sower

the seed must have depth

firmly rooted against wind and storm

nourished in heat or dryness,

preserved in frost and cold,

drawing its nourishment

from the depths of being

Give me such a heart, O God

The wonderful reward of all this spiritual gardening, imageis knowing that our lives truly begin to reflect the love of our Lord to others and we are reminded to wait patiently for this to happen in this last stanza of Appleton’s poem and we will fulfill Jesus’ words;

“This is to my Father’s glory. That you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.” (John 15:8)

O Divine Sower

at the right time the seed will germinate,

the thin young blade will push its way

through the heart’s soil,

the ear will bud and fill,

the flower will open its face of beauty

at the moment of maturity

Give me a patient heart O, God.

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Posted in Comfort, Encourage, John, Luke, Psalms | Tags: , , , , ,

Posted by: Jo | May 23, 2014

Seeking Advice

“Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.” (Isaiah 30:21)

image A group of women with whom I was having coffee, were discussing as women often do, those odd quirky behaviours of our husbands that endear them to us, but can also drive us crazy. One lady was bemoaning the fact that her husband would never ask for directions even if they were lost in a strange neighbourhood and were already late for an appointment. (My younger readers will gasp and say G.P.S needed) Another chimed in to say that her husband never read instructions before beginning to assemble a newly bought piece of equipment. Yet another told us of the reckless way her husband would buy some exotic tool before checking to see if it was designed for the job in hand. Of course it is not only husbands who blindly plunge into all sorts of situations without seeking advice or asking for directions and perhaps it is often very evident in our own walk with Christ.

When serious decisions are confronting us it is very easy to take the route of the husbands in my story. Firstly some of us believe that it is up to us to solve the problem and to seek advice may be seen as a form of weakness.image Secondly some of us forget that solutions to every problem known to man can be found in the most comprehensive book of instructions ever written, “The Holy Bible” but it does need to be opened and read! Thirdly some of us believe that decision making can be helped by trying the many aids the world offers from self-awareness groups to positive thinking, but just like the third husband in my story, many exotic “tools” fail miserably to help.

David knew that some of the world’s choices in dealing with our decisions can even lead to sin so seeking advice in God’s word is a good place to start.

“Direct my footsteps according to your word; let no sin rule over me.” (Psalm 119:133)

God had to constantly tell the children of Israel that he is always the best source to turn to when we need guidance and Isaiah passes on this ancient wisdom; seek advice from the Lord God Almighty.

“This is what the Lord say – your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel; “I am the Lord your God, who teaches you what is best for you, who directs you in the way you should go.”” (Isaiah 48:17)

The book of Proverbs also gives wonderful advice when we are facing any sort of stressful decision making in our own personal lives. As well as seeking the Lord though prayer and reading his word, we read in Proverbs the wonderful help wise Christians can provide in helping sorting through options.

“Listen to advice and accept instruction, and in the end you will be wise.” (Proverbs 19:20)

imageOften when we have finally made an important decision after prayer and much thinking it is also wise to test the decision before following through with it, with others you trust.

“For lack of guidance a nation falls, but many advisers make victory sure.” (Proverbs 11:14)

Seeking advice is certainly not a sign of weakness. Seeking God’s advice is a wonderful way to start. Testing what you hear from God with very committed believers, is a good way to solidify any resolve and singing this song to your soul will certainly keep you on track;

Trust in the Lord with all your heart

And lean not on your own understanding

In all your ways acknowledge him,

And he will direct your paths.

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Posted in Challenge, Encourage, Isaiah, Proverbs, Psalms | Tags: , , , ,

Posted by: Jo | May 16, 2014

Boasting In The Lord

“My soul will boast in the Lord; let the afflicted hear and rejoice. Glorify the Lord with me; let us exalt his name together.” (Psalm 34:2 – 3)

image When I was young, Live Musicals were at their height of popularity and although we lived in Australia, anticipation and excitement ran high when we heard that one of these shows was to travel from America and we would be able to see on stage our favourite characters come to life. One of the shows that stands out for me was “Annie Get Your Gun” The main character, Annie Oakley, was outrageous and the music was equally loud and bombastic. One of the songs, “I can do anything better than you” was an instant favourite with my younger brother and me as it sounded quite like a lot of our conversations we had with each other. It was a boasting song. Claiming superiority over another by boasting of one’s own prowess. I was eighteen months older than my brother so I had the upper hand in the boasting until suddenly, it seemed to me, he grew taller and much stronger than me and I could no longer hang on to my superiority.

We usually associate boasting as something not to practice as it usually means promoting oneself, so I was intrigued when I came across this verse in Jeremiah that tells us in whom we should boast;

“This is what the Lord says; “Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom or the strong man boast of his strength or the rich man boast of his riches, but let him who boasts boast about this: that he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight, declares the Lord.” (Jeremiah 9:23 – 24)

Paul echoed these words in his letters to believers, warning Christ’s followers never to forget who it is who brings about any sort of victory. In fact he reminds them that God doesn’t follow the worlds’ view, but is often the complete opposite;

“But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things- and the things that are not- to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him.” (1 Corinthians 1:27 – 29)

That silly song about boasting would be better sung if God’s name was substituted for “I”. When we know who can really do anything better than us we can relax knowing he is in charge. I find it a liberating thought that to do God’s will does not depend on my great wisdom. I am grateful that to share his love does not depend on my strength. I am glad that I do not have to have a lofty position in the world to image spread the good news of Jesus Christ. It is even encouraging to know if others despise my beliefs that will not deter what God would want to do through me. It does of course depend on me being very close to the Lord and to be willing to use any gifts I have to glorify him and to further his kingdom.

So let us boast to our heart’s delight in the Lord!

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Posted in Challenge, Corinthians, Jeremiah, Psalms | Tags: , , ,

Posted by: Jo | May 9, 2014

Love One Another

“A new command I give you; Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.” (John 13:34)

image The last few weeks have seen our family struggling with the news of a serious health problem with one of our loved ones. It is so easy to be overcome with concern and worry and to allow those thoughts to pervade and to interfere with daily living and it is in the midst of anxiety that we most need the loving touch of a friend. I experienced this loving touch from a friend who lives thousands of miles away from me. She is unable to hug me physically, but she did the next best thing, she telephoned me. We have been friends since we were teenagers and because she lives in a remote part of Australia and I live in Canada, we usually communicate by e-mail, but she chose to telephone me in person. What a joy to hear her voice! What a joy to share with her my worry. I experienced another, loving me, just through a telephone call.

When Jesus gave this command to his disciples, he changed slightly the original command of loving one’s neighbour, by adding these words “as I have loved you”. Jesus is the supreme lover of all times and by adding those words he wanted us to use his example of love he displayed while on earth, in dealing with others.

The disciple, John, certainly experienced and observed this love and was anxious for all believers to understand the depth of Jesus’ words. His letters in particular are sprinkled with verses about love;

“Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.” (1 John 4:11 – 12)

Loving dear friends is easy, but Jesus added more startling words to this subject of loving when he spoke these words;

“But I tell you who hear me; Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.” (Luke 6:27 – 28)

This of course is the hard part of loving one another, the difficult ones! How do we put this into practice so outsiders will notice and want to find out who motivates this love which is so different from the world’s?image

Paul in his letter to the Corinthians, (1 Corinthians 13), devotes a chapter expounding on the importance of love. This chapter is often read at weddings where the emphasis is on the two getting married, but I feel it is a chapter for all of us to read constantly.

When we get to that point of exasperation with somebody let us hear these words come into our mind, “love is patient, love is kind”. When we are tired of listening to another’s great success in life; let us hear these words, “love does not envy” When we feel like letting those nasty words erupt from our mouths, let us hear these words, “it (love) is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered.” When we hang on to slights from others let us hear these words, “it (love) keeps no records of wrongs.”

I listened to a wonderful sermon on this love chapter where the pastor told us to substitute “Jesus” for the word “love” This for me made me read the chapter with a whole new insight and of course we will never be able to love others with the pure love of Jesus Christ, but we can certainly call on him to help us to love others in his name and perhaps there is somebody in our life who is needing to be shown that perfect love; the Lord is always willing to point them out to us.

“And now these three remain; faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.” (1 Corinthians 13:13)

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Posted in Challenge, Comfort, Corinthians, Inspiration, John, Luke | Tags: , , , ,

Posted by: Jo | May 2, 2014

Walking With God

“I will walk among you and be your God, and you will be my people.” (Leviticus 26:12)

imageI was having coffee with some friends the other day when one of them brought up the subject of walking. She was sharing with us the ambitious plan she and her walking companion had come up with, to improve their fitness and stamina in their weekly walk. They were close friends and loved not only the wonderful way exercise reduced stress and released those endorphins, but they also loved the chatting and sharing of their lives with each other as they walked. I was thinking about them when I came across this verse in our Home Group study of Genesis;

“Enoch walked with God; then he was no more, because God took him away.” (Genesis 5:24)

I started to delve into what exactly what “walked with God” might mean. The other person mentioned in Genesis, Noah, was also accredited with this beautiful description;

“…Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked with God.” (Genesis 6:9)

God told his people that he was very willing to walk with us (Leviticus 26:12) so what better walking companion could we choose?

How would our relationship benefit if we chose to walk with God on a regular basis?

imageFirst of all when companions are walking together, one does not run ahead of the other, there is a mutual agreement to walk side by side, to share thoughts, to listen to the other’s problems, to console, to encourage to sometimes offer guidance, to be that listening ear that we all need.

Secondly a walking companion can be a great source of wisdom when one is grappling with a problem and needs a wise head to sort through the maze of options.

Thirdly and perhaps the most important of all, a close companion can bring a deep feeling of acceptance and joy to a relationship.

When we put all these reasons together we get a beautiful picture of the perfect walking companion, our Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus was so emphatic about being close to us on a daily basis, and having a personal relationship with us, he described it as being yoked to him.

“Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11:29 – 30)

imageIf we deliberately choose to ask the Lord to walk with us first thing in the morning and to accompany us all day it is amazing how smooth our path becomes, knowing he is right beside us , listening to all we say, observing all we do, comforting, advising, certainly changes the outcome of all our endeavors. What an incredible honour to finish the day knowing “we walked with God’.

I love the old hymns we sang as children and this chorus sums up the joy of that close walk with him.

And he walks with me

And he talks with me

And he tells me I am his own

And the joy we share as we tarry there

No other has ever known

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Posted in Comfort, Encourage, Genesis, Leviticus | Tags: , , ,

Posted by: Jo | April 25, 2014

Do You Know God?

“From the lips of children and infants you have ordained praise…” (Psalm 8:2)

image When one of my granddaughters was four years old and had just started preschool, she met a new little girl there and they became good friends straight away. My granddaughter begged her mother to invite this new friend home for lunch after preschool, so they could have a play date. When the big day arrived both little girls were thrilled to be having lunch together. My daughter always said grace before meals and as she was explaining this to the new guest, that they were about to thank God for their food, the little girl suddenly exclaimed with joy to my granddaughter;

“Do you know God? So do I!”

The two little girls then proceeded with delight to share what they knew about God. My daughter listened with amazement, sometimes with tears filling her eyes, to two little girls discussing with great candor, what they knew about their Heavenly Father.

“You know he is bigger than a mountain”

“No he is bigger than the ocean”

“You know he made us”

“He made everything!”

“You know he loves everyone in the world”

“I know”

image The candor of children is so appealing and I find this story such an incredible example for us adults to follow. These two little ones were delighting in the fact they both knew the powerful Creator and were quite positive he loved them. Jesus himself told us that we can learn from children, as the Father is able to reveal truth to little ones who are more open to receive it.

“…I praise you Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise, and learned and revealed them to little children.” (Matthew 11:25)

Jesus also urges us to be more childlike in our approach to faith and the three synoptic gospels all have recorded these verses;

“He called a little child and had him stand among them. And he said, “I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 18:2 – 4; Mark 10:14 – 15; Luke 18:16 – 17)

So how do we become like little children in regards to our faith? We can take heed of the children in my story, rejoicing with other believers just in the fact we share a common Saviour. We can stop and just remember how mighty the God we serve is. We can image remember his great love for his children. We can accept in childlike trust that he is the one true God. We can humble ourselves and become like little children who never claim they know everything. When we emulate children our Lord is able to write his beautiful words on our hearts.

So….Do you know God? Share that wonderful news with another today. Rejoice with the Lord and delight in him like a little child. Tell him how much you love him. Enjoy him today!

2 Comments

Posted in Challenge, Encourage, Inspiration, Luke, Mark, Matthew, Psalms | Tags: , , ,

Posted by: Jo | April 18, 2014

From Darkness To Glorious Light

“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.” (1 Peter 2:9)

image As a little girl I was always afraid of the dark and in those days, of course, there were no night lights for children. Even now if I close my eyes I am transported back to my Grandmother’s house where I loved to stay, except for that long dark corridor that led from the bedroom where I slept, to the bathroom. What if I needed to go there in the middle of the night? What if I needed my Grandmother if I had a bad dream, as she also slept at the end of that scary corridor? I always thought of darkness as something very frightening.

Darkness in our lives is not just a scary, dark corridor. It can take on many forms in our lives. Depression/ broken relationships/addiction/ grief/ failure/ fear itself.

Fear of darkness is not unusual, but the darkness that swept over the land on that first Good Friday was unexpected and terrifying! Light was banished for three hours while our Saviour carried the sins of the whole world.image

“It was now about the sixth hour, and darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour, for the sun stopped shining…” (Luke 23:44 – 45)

Creation mourned!

But wait! Light was now streaming from a most unusual place… The heavy curtain dividing the Holy of Holies had been ripped in two.

“…And the curtain of the temple was torn in two.” (Luke 27:45)

Jesus’ death had given us access to the ear of the Father.

This first glimpse of light was just a fore runner of the glorious light yet to come. Death and darkness had been defeated.

Jesus had already told his disciples that he was “the Light of the world” and even the darkness of the crucifixion was unable to extinguish that light.image

The good news of Good Friday, midst the suffering / pain / and horror was that the chink of light streaming through the ripped curtain was to explode into glorious all-encompassing light, when darkness would be defeated by the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ.

“When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” (John 8:12)

When darkness brings shadows, whatever they may be, into our lives, we need to remember the promise, brought to fulfillment in the cross that we can banish the darkness by walking in the Saviour’s light. He is sufficient for all as this lovely song proclaims

You Are My All In All

You are my strength when I am weak

You are the treasure that I seek

You are my all in all

Lord to give up I’d be a fool

You are my all in all

Jesus, Lamb of God

Holy is your name

Jesus Lamb of God

You are my all in all

Taking my cross, my sin, my shame

You are my all in all

When I fall down you pick me up

When I run dry, you fill me up

You are my all in all.

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Posted in Comfort, Encourage, John, Luke, Peter | Tags: , , , ,

Posted by: Jo | April 11, 2014

Surely This Man Was The Son Of God

“And when the centurion, who stood there in front of Jesus, heard his cry and saw how he died, he said “Surely this man was the Son of God.”” (Mark 15:39)

image As we approach Holy Week, we begin to focus our thoughts exclusively on the most astounding occurrence, in all of history, the Son of God, willingly giving his life for our salvation. One of the witnesses to this incredible act of love was a Roman centurion who overcome with emotion, uttered these words. “Surely this man was the son of God.” I have always been touched by those words coming from that soldier, who belonged to the hated Roman occupying force and yet suddenly recognised the deity of Christ.

As I was reading this passage this week I was struck by the importance of witnesses in all areas of our lives. When there is an accident between vehicles, witnesses are crucial in establishing exactly what happened. Witnesses play an important place in solving crime. Witnessing beautiful acts of kindness spreads joy to others. We know that others beside the centurion were witnesses of Jesus act of devotion;

“Many women were there, watching from a distance. They had followed Jesus from Galilee to care for his needs. Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joses, and the mother of Zebedee’s sons.” (Matthew 27:55 – 56)

Jesus’ mother was there with the beloved disciple, John.

“When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple who he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, “Dear woman here is your son” and to the disciple, “Here is your mother…”” (John 19:26 – 27)

image Not everyone who stood at the foot of the cross that first Good Friday were convinced they were looking at the Son of God. Passersby hurled insults at him, demanding he save himself and come down from the cross. The Pharisees and the teachers of the law mocked him, perhaps others were bewildered at seeing the sweet teacher who had been curing their loved ones, now suffering a criminal’s death. Jesus’ response to the insults and the mockery sums up the complete divine reason for the heart wrenching spectacle of the Son of God paying the price for our sins;

“Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.”” (Luke 23:34)

Understanding the cross is difficult. When I was young we had a brilliant English teacher who helped us understand great literature, one of her pieces of advice was to choose a character in the story; identify with that person; see the story through their eyes; live the story through them. I find this helpful to do this week before Easter as we imagine that first Good Friday; perhaps choose one of the villagers who heard Jesus teaching, imagine what they would want to say to him to comfort him or perhaps choose one of those loving women, help them imageproject their love toward him silently; perhaps there were secret followers of Jesus who are now regretting they had not told him that they believe; John himself, what would have been racing through his mind? By living through these witnesses and feeling the emotions welling up in them is a beautiful way to prepare ourselves for Good Friday when we too must stand in front of the cross. This old hymn sums it up

Were you there when they crucified my Lord?

Were you there when they crucified my Lord?

Oh, sometimes it causes me to tremble, tremble

Were you there when they crucified my Lord?

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Posted in Comfort, Encourage, Inspiration, John, Mark, Matthew | Tags: , , , ,

Posted by: Jo | April 4, 2014

Whatever is a Selfie?

“Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.” (James 4:10)

imageAs I grow older I am having an increasing problem in keeping abreast with how vocabulary is constantly changing. I frequently hear words that I have never heard before and have no clue to what they mean. It was bad enough when we first bought our computer and then the problem was reversed. I knew the words that went with this new technology, but they certainly did not have the same meaning that I was familiar with. e. g. a “mouse” would have brought forth a shriek from me, but now a “mouse” sits beside my computer screen and certainly does not resemble the mental picture I have of the creature it is named after. Fortunately I have a tribe of granddaughters to turn to and they patiently explain and lead me through the maze of the ever changing spoken word. The latest one to arouse my curiosity is the new word “selfie” I now have discovered that if you have a smart phone ( that also needed to be explained at a previous granddaughter lesson) you can take photos of yourself wherever you are and send them to others or just admire yourself in all different locations or all different poses.

The explanation made me think of how this new word sums up what is happening in our present generation. We have become obsessed with ourselves. We may not be all taking photos of ourselves constantly, but “self” has become very dominant in our everyday life. I have also seen on a magazine rack a magazine entitled SELF. Other magazines feature copious articles on self-improvement, self-awareness, and self-beauty. What I haven’t seen are too many articles about being humble and meek, like this beautiful advice from our Lord;

“Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart and you will find rest for your souls.” (Matthew 11:29)

Jesus also stresses being meek in the Beatitudes;

“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.” (Matthew 5:5)

image These two powerful (yes these words are powerful when they relate to the Christian life) words have become very misunderstood in our society. We intend to think of meek as meaning weak; and humble has become to mean lowly or somehow inferior. It is startling then to read Jesus uses both these words to describe himself who was neither weak nor lowly. I decided to research these words and was surprised to see how many verses mentioned them. As I read them I grasped that both these words only have true meaning when they relate to our relationship with the Heavenly Father. Self takes second place. We become humble when we realise this. We become meek when we acknowledge that the Lord knows better than us in how to live our lives. This then overflows into our relationships with others and we are more willing to think of others more highly than ourselves. Self doesn’t become so important. Thomas a Kempis gives us a wonderful piece of advice on this subject;

“A humble knowledge of thyself is a surer way to God than a deep search after learning.”

One of my favourite verses on being humble is found in 2 Chronicles where God tells his people the wonderful outcome of humbly seeking him in prayer;

“If my people , who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” (2 Chronicles 7:14)

Imagine! By humbling ourselves in prayer we could become a part of bringing about an incredible blessing of forgiveness and healing. Self suddenly doesn’t feel to be that important.

Related Articles:

· Humility versus Humi liation (http://vulnerablechristian.wordpress.com/2014/03/15/humility-versus-humiliation/)

3 Comments

Posted in 2 Corinthians, Chronicles, Comfort, Encourage, James, Matthew | Tags: , ,

Posted by: Jo | March 28, 2014

What Is Your Job Description?

“There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men.” (1 Corinthians 12:5 – 6)

image When I was young there were very clear perceptions about types of jobs. You were never in doubt about what being a nurse meant. You certainly knew the role teachers played. Doctors of course were revered for their wisdom about the body, manual workers were admired because their muscles showed all too clearly their occupation, but today the perceptions become very blurred. My husband and his brother were discussing this problem in regard to the jobs their respective daughters were now participating in, one in a Global Marketing Company, one in overseeing managers in a High Technical Computer Company. Both my husband and his brother had to confess that neither of them had any idea of what their daughters actually did to earn their high salaries. I have shared this problem with friends of the same age as I am, and many confess they too are at a loss to describe what the very impressive job titles of their children mean.

I was thinking about this the other day when I was reading Paul’s letter to the Corinthians where he was reminding the church at Corinth that once we belong to the Lord we become part of his service. (1 Corinthians 12:5 – 6) In fact we all have jobs to do that will benefit the body of Christ and to bring others into the kingdom. So what are the jobs in the kingdom? Once we read the list Paul has recorded in Romans we are certainly not in doubt as to what is entailed when the Lord chooses us to join his workforce. image

“so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man’s gift is prophesying let him use it in proportion to his faith. If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching let him teach. If it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy let him do it cheerfully.” (Romans 12:5 – 8)

Faithfulness to the common cause is the common denominator for all the work listed here and a requisite for any task before we embark on serving the Lord. The wonderful news for these job situations is that the Master provides all the skills we will need to accomplish what the Lord has set before us. This is such a liberating thought.

“so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” (2 Timothy 3:17)

The other comforting thought lies in this promise that God is working along beside us.

“For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field; God’s building.” (1 Corinthians 3:9)

The fact that first he gives each one of us special gifts, and then works right beside us, gives us the confidence to exercise those gifts, to become more proficient at using them to bring him the glory. Finding just the right job description is available for all of us through his word and seeking his guidance through prayer. Some of us mistakenly think that we have no special gift or that our gift somehow does not match up to others, but we are assured that God has blessed each one of his children with exactly the right gift to fit our personality.

“All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines.” (1 Corinthians 12:11)

image We don’t need any impressive titles to signify that we are part of the Lord’s work force and the rewards outweigh any huge salary. A simple prayer, “Dear Lord, show me the gift you have given me to bring you glory.” will result in the highest reward of all when we hear this whisper;

“..Well done, good and faithful servant…” (Matthew 25:21)

Related Articles:

· Using our Gifts And Talents (http://inspirationalchristiansfortoday.com/2013/12/22/using-our-gifts-and-talents/)

5 Comments

Posted in Comfort, Corinthians, Encourage, Inspiration, Matthew, Romans, Timothy | Tags: , , , , ,

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