A Hot Dog of Another Sort
I must give you praise today, Father, for Your sheltering arms and Your prevenient grace! You set things in motion so that we would be protected in our own home last night. A carbon monoxide detector woke us so that we were able to get out of the house with only headaches and a bit of nausea. Death could have prevailed…but not under Your watchful eye!
Luke 10:17-20 (<<click to read the passage)
My mom strives to be conscientious with regard to her health. For the most part, she works very hard at being as active as she can be with her physical limitations and choosing healthy alternatives whenever possible when she eats (much to Dad’s chagrin!) But…one of her favorite things to eat would not be considered healthy by most. She loves hotdogs! She doesn’t consume them regularly but enjoys them on occasion.
I like hotdogs, too, but another kind of hot dog can be very obnoxious!
Have you ever witnessed a “hot dog” on a sports team? Merriam-Webster defines a hot dog as someone who performs in a conspicuous or often ostentatious manner. Ostentatious? Now that is a fun word! It’s basically someone who is good at what they do but knows they are good and are not afraid to show off their talents, not necessarily for the good of their teams but to stoke their own egos! They are showoffs who are out to impress others and attract attention for themselves.
Hot dogs are not just limited to sports. Even in the Body of Christ, we have to be on our guard to not get so wrapped up in what we do that we forget what He has done for us. We have been given authority and power to accomplish much in God’s kingdom but Jesus makes it very clear that we aren’t to “rejoice” at what we can accomplish in His service, but we are to “rejoice that [our] names are recorded in heaven.”
There is no room for a hot dog in the Body of Christ. Humility is the goal for us all.
“God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” James 4:6 (NLT)
Every day we must endeavor to accomplish God’s will in the world around us. We are His ambassadors. We are His representatives. We are His hands and feet in a world that so desperately needs to see Him do what only He can do. But we must never forget that we are who we are because He is who He is. Amen.
May 21st, 2020, Thurs, 8:06 pm
The Choice Is Ours
Father, thank You for directing my thoughts and actions in and out of preparations for Sunday’s sermon, planning ahead for worship, and trying to get in a little exercise, as well. You are the guiding force in all I do! And I could not be in better hands!
Luke 10:8-16 (<<click to read the passage)
Several years ago, I worked in a Christian bookstore. One of the “perks”, for me at least, was that we were encouraged to read whatever we wanted – with the understanding that we take great care of the books we read. This would make us more valuable to our customers, in that we would be able to make good suggestions in their areas of interest.
I was a voracious reader and read like crazy! I really enjoyed Christian fiction, so I went through several of those. I regret not keeping track of what I read because from time to time I think of something regarding one of those books and for the life of me, I cannot remember titles or authors.
For example, a portion of one book I read dealt with two individuals – a murderer on death row and a woman who dedicated much of her time and resources to her church. They died and stood before God.
Before his execution, the murderer was visited by a minister. Through the course of their conversation, he realized the error of his ways and with true regret and sincerity of heart, he accepted Christ as his Savior. The vile man that he had been was no more. A new creation stood before his Creator and was welcomed into His loving arms…for eternity!
The woman who had so faithfully given of herself to the many needs of her church look into God’s eyes expecting the same reception. But her name did not appear in the Lamb’s Book of Life. Instead, she heard Him say,
“I never knew you; depart from Me [you are banished from My presence], you who act wickedly [disregarding My commands].” Matthew 7:23 (AMP)
She thought all of her actions would grant her entrance into eternal reward. But because she had never embraced a relationship with Jesus…because she had not accepted His offering of forgiveness, she was banished…for eternity…
She had had numerous opportunities to show true regret and in sincerity of heart accept Christ as her Savior but she chose to earn her own way instead.
In today’s passage, Jesus goes through a litany of cities with whom He had interacted. They all had a choice to make. They could have accepted Him but instead most rejected Him. He did not match what they thought the Messiah should be and chose instead to follow what they thought best…and their condemnation was sure.
Interestingly enough, in His litany, He held up cities of ill repute from times gone by, stating that if they had witnessed God’s hand at work amongst them “they would have repented and changed their minds long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes [to show deep regret for sin].” v13b
Despite the “enlightened” time in which we find ourselves, we – that is you and I – have the exact same choice to make as the cities in Jesus’ time…and as the woman who so dedicatedly gave what she thought would do the job.
The last statement that Jesus made to His disciples before they set out on their mission, we must take to heart, as well.
“The one who listens to you listens to Me; and the one who rejects you rejects Me; and the one who rejects Me rejects Him [My heavenly Father] who sent Me.” v16
The choice is ours.
May 20th, 2020, Wed, 8:15 pm
The Laborer Is Worthy
So many parts to this day, Father, and I am grateful that You were the glue that kept it all together.
Luke 10:7 (<<click to read the passage)
As many of you know, I am a pastor – a bi-vocational pastor – but that by no means makes me any less a pastor. In my lifetime I have served in a total of seven churches both in full- and part-time positions. I have worked in just about every area of church ministry – music, youth, children, and now I serve two congregations as the pastor. I’m not sure how else to label it, as I am the only paid ministerial staff at both.
I find great pleasure and satisfaction in serving as a bi-vocational pastor. In my very first “paid” position, I didn’t really have the title of pastor…I was in college at the time. But I was a youth leader and was blessed to serve under a wonderful, compassionate pastor. His name was Tom Lasley and he, himself, had served as a bi-vocational pastor for a good part of his life. He was an educator by trade and before retirement had served as a school superintendent – all the while pastoring in a local church. I remember him saying to me on more than one occasion that small churches deserved good pastors, too, not just the big ones. Following his example, I continue to be blessed.
I cannot tell you what my income has been at any church I have served – not even the churches I currently serve. I have been well provided for by them all. My needs have been met and I truly have wanted for nothing while under their care. I have been appreciated. I know that I have been loved. The people with whom I sojourned on this side of eternity were there for me and I have been there for them.
Oh, sure, there have been many challenges along the way, but I have no complaints. In their care to me, my churches – all seven of them – have taken excellent care of me and my family.
When Jesus sent forth his disciples, He was sending them into the unknown. They would minister in many ways and to a wide variety of people. Jesus himself encouraged them to not hesitate in accepting the hospitality of those caring for them. Yes, they had needs but those needs would be met because “the laborer is worthy of his wages.”
My congregations are not perfect…but then neither am I. We work together. We journey together, side by side. When one falls, the other extends a lifting hand. That is the Church.
Lord Jesus, help those who serve and those who serve them to both be all about serving You. Help us all to appreciate the best in each other and to readily forgive when we fail. Amen.
May 19th, 2020, Tue, 9:02 pm
Purveyor of Peace
The last few verses of Psalm 66 have so much to say!
16 Come and listen, all you who fear God,
……and I will tell you what he did for me.
17 For I cried out to him for help,
…..praising him as I spoke.
18 If I had not confessed the sin in my heart,
…..the Lord would not have listened.
19 But God did listen!
…..He paid attention to my prayer.
20 Praise God, who did not ignore my prayer
…..or withdraw his unfailing love from me.
Luke 10:4-7 (<<click to read the passage)
Before I settled down to write tonight, I took a look at Facebook. Earlier I had shared some pictures and videos of the aftereffects of the heavy rain we experienced earlier this evening and I was looking at the responses.
As I flipped through some other posts, it was just so disheartening… I enjoy interacting with friends and family via Facebook and of course that is one way I can share my writings from More than Useless. I strive daily to be a purveyor of peace. I do my best to be positive and caring and to show love and support to all. But seriously, on more than one occasion in the last couple of weeks, I have considered just not reading anymore…period! I don’t get very far before hate and division are screaming in my face.
Are you a purveyor of peace? That is, do you spread peace? It is becoming more and more of a challenge in our world to be an individual of peace but an even greater challenge is to be the kind of person that can get peace out into a world where peace is really in very short supply…but there seem to be so few takers…
We should be diligent in our peace purveying, but Jesus makes it clear that we can only do what we can do. It is not something we are to stress over.
“Whenever you enter someone’s home, first say, ‘May God’s peace be on this house.’ If those who live there are peaceful, the blessing will stand; if they are not, the blessing will return to you. vs.5,6 (NLT)
Give a generous portion of peace, and either they accept it and are blessed, or they reject it and our blessing returns to us.
A portion of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, found in Matthew’s Gospel, He shared what has become known as the Beatitudes. One of them has to do with peace.
“Blessed [spiritually calm with life-joy in God’s favor] are the makers and maintainers of peace, for they will [express His character and] be called the sons of God. Matthew 5:9 (AMP)
Once more Jesus admonishes the gift of peace and the blessing that accompanies it.
Lord Jesus, we are in a world divided…and we are divided on so many fronts. Those who may have been like-minded in the past all seem to be on multiple sides of the same fence. It is maddening! But you are the ultimate purveyor of peace. We seem to be so far away for the angelic proclamation at your birth, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.” Luke 2:14 (NIV)
May Your peace rest upon us once more. Amen.
May 18th, 2020, Mon, 9:01 pm
Peace
It is a psalm kind of day and I loved the verses from my sermon this morning!
1 Shout for joy to God, all the earth!
2 …Sing the glory of his name;
……make his praise glorious.
3 Say to God, “How awesome are your deeds! Psalm 66:1-3a (NIV)
Luke 10:4-7 (<<click to read the passage)
Whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace [that is, a blessing of well-being and prosperity, the favor of God] to this house.’ And if anyone of peace is there [someone who is sweet-spirited and hospitable], your [blessing of] peace will rest on him; but if not, it will return to you. vs.5,6 (AMP)
Just reading through these few verses, these are the ones that jumped out at me.
Peace seems to be a rare commodity today. Anger? There are tons of anger. Selfishness? It runs rampant. Division? Our entire culture seems to be split right down the middle! But peace? Oh, that it would we could be doused with a deluge of peace.
A little bit of reading from the Jesus Walk Bible Study Series helped my understanding.
The Greek word eirene “peace” is a translation of the rich Hebrew word shalom. It has a wide meaning, but the root idea is “well-being.” It can carry the concepts of bodily health, prosperity, a friendly relationship.” But it also carries a strong religious usage. Shalom is the gift of Yahweh, so the word moves into the concept of the gift of God’s salvation and wholeness.
One of the verses that were referenced for a better understanding of shalom being the gift of Yahweh (God’s formal name in Scripture) is Numbers 6:24-26 (NKJV).
“The Lord bless you and keep you;
The Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
The Lord lift up His countenance upon you,
And give you peace.”
And then of course, what did that make me think of? One of my favorite songs from my days in the Collegians choir at my alma mater, Mt. Vernon Nazarene College (now University).
The current conductor of that ensemble recently gathered the current choir and several alumni to join in a virtual choral presentation of this inspirational piece. It is wonderfully put together both musically and visually. The singing vocalist’s faces are set in the windows of their beautiful chapel.
Please take a moment and listen…and may you find peace settling in your spirit. …and don’t hesitate to pass that peace along.
May 17th, 2020, Sun, 7:26 pm