Archive for Anne’s Posts
The King of the Cowboys – and God’s Faithful Servant
Posted by: | CommentsNext week I am going to write a little more about the rich young ruler and God’s economy, but I wanted to take a moment out to tip my hat to the King of the Cowboys, Roy Rogers. You may have seen this week that lots of Roy Rogers memorabilia was auctioned off at Christie’s because the museum that had been in the family’s hands in Branson, Missouri, closed last year. You may not be aware who Roy Rogers and his wife, Dale Evans, were, both as celebrities and as people.
I found out because when my son was about 2 years old, my husband videotaped a documentary about Roy Rogers for him, thinking he’d like seeing Trigger. My son fell in love with the tape, but what drew him was Roy himself. All I could think of was, kids know who loves them, and my son was fascinated with this man as were boys and girls decades before.
Roy Rogers made musical cowboy movies with his exceptional trained horse, Trigger, and the singing group, the Sons of the Pioneers, during the mid-20th century. He stood for fair and honest values and the kids loved him. He made countless appearances everywhere for his young fans, including Madison Square Garden. Dale Evans was cast in his movies and they fell in love and married, continuing to work together in movies, later in TV, and in public appearances.
The story of Roy’s own children was marked with heartache. He and his first wife, Arlene, adopted two girls. Then Arlene died within days of giving birth to his son, Roy Jr. Later, when Roy married Dale Evans, they had one child, a girl with Down syndrome who only lived a year. Dale wrote the famous book, Angel Unaware, about her life. They adopted many more children, but two of them were also killed in accidents.
Their strength came from their deep faith in God. Roy was more quiet about his faith, but it was he who encouraged Dale’s faith in the beginning, and she was more outspoken. Behind the pleasant scenes of their public life, they had to put real trust in the God of the Bible to keep going. They truly believed in the values they were imparting to their young audience, teaching kids right from wrong, to brush their teeth and say their prayers.
I think there was a little concern before the auction whether that many people would still remember and care. Would the collection be forgotten as it became split up? No one should have worried. Everything sold, and well above the prices estimated before the auction. When a museum bought a piece, which meant that the item would be publicly displayed once again, the audience cheered. At the end of the auction, the crowd broke out in the song “Happy Trails to You,” the Roy Rogers theme song.
Of great interest to all concerned was the fate of Trigger, who had been stuffed and mounted after his death. The man who bought Trigger owns a TV station. He says that Trigger will be on public display at the station; moreover, he plans to show Roy Rogers movies on his station with new introductions from Roy’s son so that a new generation will be exposed to these values.
At that news, a smile crept on my face. I was imagining the Lord having a talk with Roy and Dale in heaven. “This generation of children is not hearing the kind of messages with good values. Through the wonder of video, you can come back and tell kids again. Now, this isn’t without cost. Your prized possessions from your museum will be sent to the four winds. They will leave your family’s hands. But you can tell thousands and thousands of children that My values are strong and solid and the ones they can really trust.”
Without a moment’s concern, God’s two choice servants who were faithful in the good and bad times during their long years on earth answer, “Do it, Lord, at any cost.” And they saddle up their horses once again.
Were God’s purposes in the auction? I’d like to think so. But take a moment this weekend to dwell not on the memorabilia of celebrity but on the memorable lives of these two saints.
Goodness and the Heart
Posted by: | CommentsToday I noticed that two portions of the Word, the story of the rich young ruler and the parable of the workers, Matthew 19:16 – 30 and Matthew 20: 1 – 16 respectively, are meant to go together. Perhaps you have had an astute pastor who has pointed that out to you along the way, but I’d never realized it. Today I’m looking at the account of the young ruler.
The young ruler starts off by asking Jesus what good thing will earn him eternal life, but Jesus asks him,
“Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only One who is good.” – Matthew 19:17a
In the accounts of this story in Mark and Luke, the ruler calls Jesus “Good Teacher,” and Jesus replies to that also that only God is good. Jesus is the Son of God, but He knows that “Ruler” isn’t going to take Him that seriously as the story unfolds. It tells us, too, that the fruit of goodness is definitely not innately in ourselves. It is only gained by reflecting the goodness of God.
“For the Lord is good and His love endures forever; His faithfulness continues through all generations.” – Psalm 100:5
God’s goodness is rock solid and steadfast. Ruler is just about to start thinking that Jesus’ words are not so good.
Ruler wants to know how to be saved, and Jesus mentions several of the Ten Commandments which deal with how you treat others, and adds “Love your neighbor as yourself,” which appears later on in Leviticus. He does not confront Ruler with the commandments dealing more with our relationship to God. Why? Maybe because loving God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength is one commandment no one could have possibly kept fully. Maybe because Jesus knew Ruler was looking for something to do, or to avoid, and he wasn’t thinking of a deep love of God.
As it is, Ruler seems to feel assured that he has always treated others well, and tells Jesus that he has kept them all. But there is more. Jesus tells him that one thing is lacking.
Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow Me. – Matthew 19:21
Jesus speaks to what Ruler is interested in, his unblemished record. But to do something as difficult as leave his life as a rich man, Ruler will have to surrender his heart to God.
Jesus wants Ruler to change his ideas radically. His earthly treasure needs to be shared, even to the point that he would be wealthy no more. The new treasure his heart will be set upon will be in heaven. What he can see and hold here, and the security and enjoyment it brings, will go for good. What kind of treasure awaits him in heaven? He will have to trust that Jesus, as the Son of God, knows about that.
Moreover, I think the challenge Jesus sets before Ruler gives us a further clue about goodness. God is good, not just nice. Reflecting God’s goodness is not a show of good manners. Ruler has controlled his behavior toward others, but it takes a complete change of heart and a trust in the goodness and protection of God to give away his possessions to the point that he gives away his way of life.
In Ruler’s case this involves money and a privileged lifestyle. But the “riches” that hold us back may be our families, our relationships, our physical beauty or strength, our standing in our community, our advanced education. Anything that makes us feel superior and comfortable could be our riches. Jesus could be calling us today to put it at His feet, or if applicable, use our talents for those who have not, instead of building up ourselves.
When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth. – Matthew 19:22
This sad result is the reason I wondered at the beginning if Ruler understood that he was not talking to a good teacher but to the Lord Himself. A good teacher could give bad advice, but if he knew the advice was from God, would he have been so quick to back away?
Jesus tells his disciples that parting with riches is no small thing, and they make it difficult for the rich to enter the kingdom of God – but not impossible.
Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” – Matthew 19:26
Did Ruler realize that had he been willing, God would have given him the strength to make it possible? Do we realize it in what we’re facing today?
“Let goods and kindred go, This mortal life also
The body they may kill, God’s truth abideth still:
His kingdom is forever.”
– Martin Luther, from “A Mighty Fortress is Our God
A Personal Inventory
Posted by: | CommentsGod’s been giving me some personal inventory-taking time. I feel as if I stepped out of a private meeting to talk to you. In his epistle, James talked about the danger of stepping before a mirror and then looking away, forgetting your own image. My last two days have been one, long look.
Where can I turn when what I see in the mirror of God's Word reminds me of my sin?
This has involved some crying and regretting, facing loneliness and lost time and opportunities. It also calls for the application of Scripture, because without it, we feel even more guilty and blame filled. We tend to forget that where we stand,
there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death. – Romans 8:1 & 2
The things we’ve done wrong seem so, well, intractable.
Very little has gone well for me in a long time. It is easy to wonder if I am cursed, if blessings and success will ever come. My run of sorry events has its roots in my marriage and divorce twenty years later. While I don’t want to encourage undue superstition about opening the Bible randomly, yesterday I opened to the exact page of 1 Corinthians that concerns marriage, chapter 7. The verses that describe my situation are :
A wife must not separate from her husband. But if she does, she must remain unmarried or else be reconciled to her husband. – 1 Corinthians 7:10b – 11a
It does not say, “and she will live a cursed life,” or “and the Lord will punish her forever.” The natural consequences of pulling apart a 20 year marriage with 2 children are heavy, whether or not you are a Christian. My husband has remarried, so there is only one option for me, and it comes with its own burdens. I believe God had me read that passage again to show me He is not laying on top of this that I must live in continued guilt and sadness, or that He then ceased to love me, or that nothing will go right for me anymore.
I have the tendency to remember my bad decisions, my reversals of fortune, the friendships that withered from close fellowship to becoming odd and strained. I have to remember that some things have in fact gone well. My son nearly died on June 8, but we were able to get him back from (literally) the brink. (I’m going to be writing about that later.) I’m still in my house. I have met some people who have helped me immensely to do what I needed to have done. My church has been greatly supportive. My daughter has done fabulously at school. In crucial ways God has met my needs. Just because I haven’t experienced solutions in some areas that greatly concern me, mainly financial, doesn’t mean God abandoned me in all my ways.
These days are like a retreat, where I am taking time to pray and systematically put my sins under Jesus’ blood and my prayer requests in God’s hands. I’m just making sure that’s where they are, because that’s where they belong.
Then I acknowledged my sin to You and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord” –
And You forgave the guilt of my sin.
The Fruit of the Spirit: The Bigger Picture
Posted by: | CommentsYesterday Michelle was kind enough to post for me on “my” day. I got up this morning and found that she had posted for me in more ways than one. Her message about freedom was very nearly the post I intended to write today. I’m going ahead because I am going to look at it from a slightly different angle, and because when God says something important in Scripture you find He has said it again, even a number of times. Maybe we need to hear this more than once because it’s so important to us right now. I know I do.
I started looking at the whole passage of Galatians where you find the verse about the fruit of the Spirit, Galatians 5:16 – 26. I’ve been blogging about some individual fruits of the Spirit without looking at the bigger picture.
First, Paul has laid out the reason why his instructions are so important: we are fighting a war.
For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want. – Galatians 5:17
"Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves." Where can I turn when what I see in the mirror of God's Word seems to condemn me?
The war is not overseas, it is right here in front of us. Worse, in this conflict between the Spirit and the sin nature, we feel drawn to the enemy side. We find the list of sins nauseating when we read them, but they don’t always seem so bad when the opportunity presents itself.
The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. – Galatians 5:19 – 21a
Sounds awful, doesn’t it, at the moment? Paul even trails off from naming them all. Our enemy has plenty of temptations and enticements. Following along with them brings dire consequences:
I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. – Galatians 5:21b
Why would anybody who lives like this be interested in inheriting the kingdom of God, I wondered. Then I remembered those many who hear, and like what they hear, and do what they want anyway.
Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. – James 1:22 – 24
Have we walked away from personal inventory and forgotten what our own soul looks like? It is an inward act of the sinful nature that is potentially more dangerous than the ones in the list above. In this war, as a soldier on the Kingdom side, I do have my orders: stay away; flee; cast them off; push them away because they no longer have a part of you.
And we have help: God knows the battle we fight between our spirits and the sinful nature. “They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want.”
Thank God for the hope in these next verses. Paul proclaims decisively,
So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. – Galatians 5:16
It doesn’t say, “With great and sad longing for your sinful ways, you can just eke out a victory, or a draw.” “You won’t feel freed up, but you can pull it off.” It says, “You will not gratify.” You can step forward and win the battle and be free, and get away from the law. After listing the results of living by the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control, Paul adds, “Against such there is no law.” – see Galatians 5:22 -24
Now both Michelle and I want always to stress that any command to do something outwardly flows from something inward. You can’t just take these lists and say, “Okay, don’t do this, do that, and I’ll go to heaven.” It leaves you still under the law, and you won’t win. Oh, you may think you win, but there will still be sin balanced against the good works, and the good works may not be as pure in motivation as they seemed, and you need to be cleaned from all sin. What will wipe clean the sin side of the scales once and for all?
The thing that has cleansed us, given us a second spiritual birth, and given us the power to do good things and feel free in doing them is our belief in Jesus – a belief that is so strong that we have given our lives over to Him. When we heard His words, when we saw our sinful souls in the mirror, we did not absentmindedly walk away. Inwardly we have made the decision to serve God. Look at the power that God gives us in this next verse:
Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. – Galatians 5:24
We crucify the sinful nature. We admit our sins and call our sins a part of all the sins Christ paid for when He was on the cross. Now, because Jesus Christ is triumphant, we can win our battles.
The last verse in the passage is a warning:
Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other. – Galatians 5:26
In other words, avoid the trap of now weighing on the scales your success at producing fruit against that of others, or concerning yourself with the size and scope of the work you are called to in comparison to others. You just don’t know the way God is working in someone else’s life. Throw away the scales and let God prune His fruit trees as only He knows best.
Forth of July
Posted by: | CommentsToday’s blog is lighter than normal, in keeping with the celebratory weekend and the fact that many of us may not be revving up for work but for our vacation week. Michelle’s had a busy weekend with friends and some fireworks that were so close they rained down ashes on her and her family. I caught up with her this morning after the famous cup of coffee that her husband prepares. I’ve got to find out what’s in that coffee some day. Does it taste better if he makes it? Seriously, I know it’s the love with which he brings it to her that makes her day.
My Third, and Fourth, and Fifth, were more quiet. I started with some cleanup of my very needy backyard. Ryan, one of the young men from church, is volunteering to take on the dirty work. In exchange, he gets to throw a pool party here when the yard is presentable. On Sunday, I substituted as the organist at a Baptist church in a village called Georgiaville. I didn’t know there was a “Georgia” in my New England state, but we have villages called Phoenix, Arctic, and Wyoming, too. Don’t ask me why. Anyway, the Georgiaville folks had never met me before, and we had a wonderful time getting acquainted in the Lord.
Maybe it doesn’t sound like an exciting, patriotic weekend with parades, potato salad, etc. But in church the pastor and others spoke about America being the greatest nation in the world, and we thanked God for her in prayer and in song. I am impressed that at this time when I’m overwhelmed with my property, Ryan is willing to come help me out. Giving one’s neighbor a hand is an American idea that is alive and well.
Late yesterday evening my daughter found the movie “Oklahoma!” on TV and we sat and watched. I saw something different, something really current in the old film. At the end of the movie Curly marries Laurie and changes careers from a cowboy to a farmer. Curly’s moving on and adapting because he sees Oklahoma going up for statehood and his way of life yielding to farming. I did have to fight an urge to shout at the TV, “No, Curly, tearing up the prairie will lead to the American dustbowl!” Nonetheless, it has been so much of American culture to change careers and go forward, and I’m right now in the cross hairs of it. My “cowboy” past is free lancing music, but to make a living in today’s world, I’m learning to write, blog, sell, and soon, moderate a website. Now, as I think about it, this is how America always has been. The aristocrat learned to plow the colonies’ lands. The homebody became the pioneer trekking across the frontier. Thirteen colonies with no “soldier class” in their social strata cobbled together an army to win their freedom.
We accept unquestionably that God had His hand on American adaptability, courage, endurance, ingenuity. Does God have His hand on my life to do greater things with me after I scramble past the roadblocks? We’ll have to wait and see.
So I have had a holiday that a parade or some fireworks (much as I love them) could not have given me. I hope you’re feeling American today. It’s our Christian outlook to yield and adapt to God’s ways. It’s our American culture to change our ideas, or the way we earn our living, and try something new. I hope you’re feeling it as we go on to July 6.
Peace from the God of Peace
Posted by: | CommentsAs I came to the end of Philippians, I noticed Paul spoke about peace twice. He started his letter wishing them God’s peace, too. With all the previous talk of joy, wouldn’t you think joy could buoy you through anything? But no, and even in my own quiet time I found a verse where joy and peace in particular are working together:
You will go out in joy and be led forth in peace – Isaiah 55:12a
Paul is giving his final instructions and he tells the Philippians that they don’t have to be anxious about the things that concern them:
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. – Philippians 4:6
God is ready to hear. But look at the promised result. It’s not, “Your prayer will be answered in the order in which it was received,” although sometimes we might like to hear that! The promise that comes in response to our requests is something very different:
And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. – Philippians 4:7
We are promised God’s peace. It’s not the peace we understand here, the absence of war, a quiet night, a unity between us and others. The peace of God is a deeper assurance than anything else we know of that God sees all, and all is at the right place at the right time. This is as best as I can do to explain it.
Not long ago I realized I didn’t have peace inside me, and I realized I’d never asked, either. When I asked God for peace I can only tell you what I received in my own human terms, which is ridiculous because God’s peace is not like the human version at all. For me, it felt as if He were showing me that He knew all my problems, all the discouraging details, and He had His hand on it all, so I could completely relax.
The last part of the sentence promises what this peace will do: guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Peace will guard us from the anxiety that so wants to return. When Jesus explains the parable of the sower, He tells us that some hear the gospel with joy and then wither in the face of trouble or persecution. Others believe but don’t see the fruits of the Spirit show up in their lives because of the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth (see Matthew 13:20 – 23). We can refocus on past worries, or become worried about something new. But we have a guard to protect us: the peace of God in Christ Jesus.
Paul goes on to remind us how to keep our minds focused on Jesus and not the former, or potential future, problems.
Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about such things. – Philippians 4:8
And then Paul gives himself as an example of one who has focused on Jesus. It sounds nervy. He’s not giving one example where his faith in Christ prevails. He says,
Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me – put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you. – Philippians 4:9
He offers the Philippians to look at his whole record, in person and in the letter. I think only someone who has really put his whole life in God’s hands and experienced His peace in an ongoing way could dare to do that. Notice that the promise for focusing on Jesus has changed: not God’s peace, but the God of peace will be with you. Focusing on Jesus brings us to see and know: God is present with us.
I shared this verse with a friend of mine this week. In Philippians, Paul explained how to give our problems and focus our minds on God. It’s a principle that Paul would have been familiar with from this wonderful verse in Isaiah:
God will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on Thee: because He trusts in Thee. – Isaiah 26:3, KJV
Joy in Serving Jesus – Song
Posted by: | CommentsToday’s blog is a companion piece to “Where is the Joy Part 3,” which I wrote last week.
When I wrote my blog about the joy in serving, I had an old hymn in mind. So old, in fact, that I went through four hymnals before finding it! Evidently this one, written in the early 1930’s, has been passed by over time.
The lyricist, Oswald J. Smith, found the secret that finding what Jesus would have you do lifts your own burdens and brings great joy. He writes about that secret in the fourth verse. He knows, too, that the joy that Jesus gives never fades. The last line of the chorus says, “There is joy, joy, joy that never shall depart.”
Mr. Smith had a real experience. He was not writing about doctrine he’d picked up somewhere. “Joy that throbs within my heart” doesn’t come from what he knows, it comes from what he’s lived. That’s what I love about this hymn. This heartfelt testimony about lasting joy is still true 80 years later, and we can still have that joy.
Joy in Serving Jesus
There is Joy in serving Jesus,
As I journey on my way,
Joy that fills the heart with praises,
Every hour and every day.
Chorus: There is joy, joy,
Joy in serving Jesus
Joy that throbs within my heart;
Every moment, every hour,
As I draw upon His power,
There is joy, joy,
Joy that never shall depart.
There is joy in serving Jesus,
Joy that triumphs over pain;
Fills my soul with heaven’s music,
Till I join the glad refrain.
There is joy in serving Jesus,
As I walk alone with God;
“Tis the joy of Christ, my Saviour,
Who the path of suffering trod.
There is joy in serving Jesus,
Joy amid the darkest night,
For I’ve learned the wondrous secret,
And I’m walking in the light.
Since I’ve come to realize this hymn is well known to me but probably not to others, I searched for a YouTube video so you can hear the song, composed by Bentley D. Ackley. This is definitely a home grown church video, but you’ll be able to hear the music and these words together.
I hope you enjoy this song and that it will encourage you all the more to draw on Jesus’ power and find the “Joy that never shall depart.”
Gentleness Evident to All
Posted by: | CommentsLately I’ve been looking at Philippians to learn about joy. Today I want to examine another fruit of the Spirit that Paul mentions in Philippians that we don’t often talk about.
Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. – Philippians 4:5
All of us who have felt the Holy Spirit was impressing something upon us, especially with words of correction, know that He is incredibly gentle. He doesn’t deal with us harshly.
“Come now, let us reason together,” says the Lord. – Isaiah 1:18a
The God of the universe is under no obligation to reason with us! He could simply proclaim His will and order us to do it. But God is love (1John 4:16b) and He lovingly chooses the way of gentleness.
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
This is Jesus describing Himself – gentle and humble – as He makes this offer of fellowship with Him. In contrast, some people have been taught that God is completely unknowable, or distant, or harshly judgmental. The gentleness and non-manipulative nature of Jesus is a distinctive of Christianity. It should, then, be a distinctive trait of His believers.
I used to think of the phrase “the Lord is near” as if it were saying, “Uh-oh, He’s watching us.” I’m changing my mind about that in this way: as we interact with others, the Lord is near us, as He always is. Our gentle words and actions should remind the believer, and show the unbeliever, that God is here with us.
Now the apostle Peter certainly did not cushion his evangelism by hiding any difficult truths. In the first sermon on the day of Pentecost, people were “cut to the heart” by his message and asked what they needed to do.
Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins.” – Acts 2:38a
There was no dancing around the sin issue here. But in his epistle Peter counsels us to remember gentleness when sharing the gospel:
Always be prepared to give and answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander. – 1Peter 3:15 & 16
“But do this with gentleness and respect.” That should end the sharp reply, the clever put-down, the criticism of something we have barely heard out. Sometimes as we “set someone straight” we deliver a harsh and embarrassing rebuke to the other person. Moreover, the self righteous or “cute” answer is not limited to religious one-liners. If we are joining in making degrading “jokes” about someone’s clothes, demeanor, or activities, our gentleness is not evident to all – at all. If we have a family member or a co-worker that everyone seems to feel free to insult, the persecution (for that is what it is) needs to stop with us. God is calling us to gentleness, to see beyond the group mentality.
For those of us who are parents, sometimes we struggle to be gentle to an errant son or daughter. We become so concerned with the firmness they need that we forget to express our love and gentleness toward them. I have learned, and am still learning, that the firmness is necessary for his protection but the gentleness draws him home. He needs to see in me that I am disciplining one I love:
My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline,
and do not lose heart when He rebukes you,
because the Lord disciplines those He loves,
and He punishes everyone He accepts as a son.
- Hebrews 5b & 6
Gentleness, like every gift of the Spirit, makes me more aware of Jesus and of the way others need my gentleness in their lives. Now the Scripture I started with means so much more to me:
Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near.
Where is the Joy? Part 3
Posted by: | CommentsWhere is the Joy – Part 3
Paul mentions that the Philippians’ help to him and their service in response to the gospel is a great comfort to him.
But even if I am being poured out like a drink offering on the sacrifice and service coming from your faith, I am glad and rejoice with all of you.
For even when I was in Thessalonica, you sent me aid again and again when I was in need. – Philippians 4:16
I have long known that especially when I’m feeling down, giving help to others can be a great source of joy.
By service I am not talking about anything that you might have joined because you were urged to join a “ministry” and you were instructed that it was a necessary part of your Christian walk you needed to make sure you were doing. I am not talking about working for your local body because “everyone should”, although you may find the place God draws you to is a role in the local church. I hope, as you read this, you don’t find yourself in a situation doing work that does not bless you that you got into “because” of someone or some unspoken group pressure. You may have already found that it gives you more of a sense of obligation than of joy. The joy I’m thinking about, the joy that makes your heart light, is not that kind of service.
As you pray and look at Jesus as both your Savior and example, and as you come to love others while looking through His eyes, a change happens in your desire to reach out to other people’s needs. You start to hear the voice of the Holy Spirit nudging you to get involved in some way. You might meet someone who needs basics, like clothes or food. You might meet someone who needs help in an area you have a talent for, like cooking or carpentry. But you might meet someone who needs a friend, or just needs someone to be there with a hand to hold and a kind heart. And as you give that kind of help, He gives you an indescribably beautiful joy. It’s unforgettable.
Some believers pray that God gives them opportunities and expect He will ask them to be an outreach of Jesus’ love during the day. But even if you didn’t pray, sometimes when you least expect it, you can just feel the Holy Spirit asking you to do more for the person in front of you.
My friend Christa recently had just such an experience. She and her mom (Michelle, who writes the blog posts with me) were leaving the grocery store when an elderly woman asked them if they had a cell phone. Her car wouldn’t start and she needed to call AAA. Christa didn’t just hand her the phone. She called AAA for her, navigating through all the prompts and questions that can be difficult for older people who didn’t grow up in an automated world. Christa and her mom waited for the truck to arrive. They brought the woman and her groceries home. They learned that the woman lived alone and had no one. They left their phone number and made a friend that day.
You may be wondering why I haven’t mentioned giving people the salvation message. Many, many people emphasize that vital part of service, to “always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.”(1 Peter 3:15b) I am just speaking today of the joy we have doing the quiet promptings Jesus gives us as we go about our lives to do something for others.
Jesus says unbelievers will recognize us by the way we love each other.
By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another. – John 13:35
One way this love becomes evident is in our serving each other, meeting the needs that are in the body of believers.
Share with God’s people who are in need. – Romans 12:13a
Some churches march out the door to reach the lost without realizing they’ve left the needy and broken of their body behind them. Those moments of salvation ministry will come, too, and the Holy Spirit is the one to direct us to them. But are we listening to the Holy Spirit to direct us to the needs of our brothers and sisters? Paul and others encourage us to see to the needs of believers. As we come to know, love and rejoice more in each other, we will learn how we can serve our brothers and sisters in love.
Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. – Romans 12:10b
When I was a little girl, I was taught to call the next-door neighbors Grandma and Grandpa. Grandma had several life threatening illnesses in the last years of her life, but she didn’t give a second of time to self pity. She spent her days making crafts for others. When I was sixteen, my sister lost her husband and daughter and came to live with us for a while. Grandma came to visit her every day, and never empty handed. She just brought little gifts, flowers from her garden, a cup custard from her cooking. I can just imagine her asking the Lord what she could do to bless my sister each day, and the joy she must have had in doing it. One day she brought my sister a book to read. Paula thought it was the last thing she wanted to do, but she started reading it. The book had an engaging plot and she found Grandma was right – it did help take her mind off things. Grandma was a shining example of doing what Jesus would do, and that humble service glows with joy 35 years later.
I don’t mean to disparage the kind of service where God leads you into a disciplined role. I have served in that kind of service extensively. One of my talents is music, and at times I have committed to being available week in and week out to a church because I knew God was encouraging me and blessing me in sharing both this talent and my faith in this way. I was contacted a couple of weeks ago about playing next weekend. I didn’t really want to, but I know that God has blessed me in this area. I am good at going to a church I don’t know and filling in. And these are God’s people asking me for help. As I’ve been conversing with these people, I can tell they are so grateful that they found an organist for the holiday weekend that I can already sense the joy. I am busy, and it will be a challenge to make the time to prepare for them, but I already sense that the coming Sunday will be great.
So while God may speak to you about a major role in Christian service, He will definitely speak to you about the little things you can do to ease someone’s way and show them His love. Be looking forward to what He will say to you and me!
Where is the Joy? Part 2
Posted by: | CommentsI’ve been examining Philippians searching for the source of Paul’s joy. Joy doesn’t come easily to my personality. I wanted to know where Paul found joy in the midst of his difficult travels. In the first part, we looked at what Paul had found in Jesus that caused him to “rejoice in the Lord.” Part 2 is a second source of joy that I discovered Paul had.
Rejoicing in Fellowship
Paul makes many references in his letter to the Philippians that they themselves cause him to rejoice. Paul shares a special bond with these believers because they’ve accepted the gospel of Jesus that Paul himself taught them, and now they have their own faith in Jesus. The opening of his letter is so heartwarming:
One of the greatest sources of joy is found in the relationships we have with our brothers and sisters in Christ.
I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now …. – Philippians 1:3-4
But the Philippians are more than converts and partners; Paul considers them his friends and brothers in Christ:
Therefore, my brothers, you whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, that is how you should stand firm in the Lord, dear friends! - Philippians 4:1
Paul cares for them and rejoices not just in their salvation but in every step of growth they make in unity.
If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from His love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose. – Philippians 2:1-2
He is so concerned about disharmony that he even mentions a personal disagreement between two women:
I plead with Euodia and I plead with Syntyche to agree with each other in the Lord. - Philippians 4:2
About their growth in Christ likeness, he gives many instructions of the joy, gentleness, peace, renewed thinking and many other qualities that should characterize their new lives in Christ. An especially loved section of this letter is the teachings in Philippians 4:4-9. Again, Paul encourages unity with God and among believers in striving toward a Christ-like lifestyle.
All of us who are mature should take such a view of things. And if on some point you think differently, that too God will make clear to you. Only let us live up to what we have already attained. – Philippians 3:15-16
Paul mentions how deeply we should care for others, and his joy when the Philippians show this concern, in these verses:
Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. - Philippians 2:4
I have no one else like [Paul’s co-worker, Timothy], who takes a genuine interest in your welfare. For everyone looks out for his own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. - Philippians 2:20-21
I rejoice greatly in the Lord that at last you have renewed your concern for me. – Philippians 4:10a
That depth of caring comes from considering the attitude of Christ:
Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made Himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, and being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to death – even death on a cross! – Philippians 2:6-8
Paul is building on the “joy in the Lord” that we looked at in Part 1. The sacrifice of Christ brings ever deeper joy the better we understand it. Now that joy is teaching us to have love and concern for others as we do for ourselves – and experience even more joy in the process.
Paul encourages the Philippians in their giving and in the help it has brought him. He also makes them aware of God’s response to their generosity. This passage does not specifically have the word “joy” in it, but if you have ever been privileged to give to someone in need, you know the joy that comes with giving.
I have received full payment and even more; I am amply supplied, now that I have received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent. They are a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice, pleasing to God. – Philippians 4:18
Before looking into Philippians in these last weeks, I had never noticed how the Bible mentions the joy that God gives us in each other. Many of my friends, I notice, have found this source of joy. But I am thinking I could do more to take joy in all the brothers and sisters around me (not just my close friends), their faith, their prayers, their sharing of time and talents, and how they fill a role in the local church, whether they worship where I do or elsewhere. The joy of appreciating my fellow Christians and encouraging them in their walk is out there for the taking.
