Worth All The Effort

I

t stood 363 feet tall and weighed 6.2 million pounds fully loaded and when it blasted off from its launch pad, it shook the ground for miles around.  This was the Saturn V launch vehicle, the most powerful rocket ever built.  As a small boy, I watched every single Saturn V that NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) launched into space.  One of my fondest memories as a five-year-old child was seeing Neil Armstrong place his foot on the surface of the moon.  That is something I will never forget. 

 

As I grew older and began to understand more about how rockets worked, I was amazed at the tremendous amount of energy required to place a rocket into orbit.  The vehicles that launched men to the moon began as 363-foot rockets but what returned was extremely small and would easily fit in the middle of your living room floor.  It took thousands of hours of planning time, thousands of hours of training time, thousands of hours of assembly time, and millions of hours of worry as people all over the world watched those rockets take off, headed for the moon. 

 

As the Saturn V launched, it relied on its booster stage to lift it into the upper atmosphere.  That stage was jettisoned, and the second stage placed it into earth orbit.  The third stage carried the men to the moon and finally the small command module splashed down in the Pacific Ocean.  All that effort to build this huge machine only to get a small capsule back; the larger stages worked so the smaller capsule could complete its mission.  At first, it seemed that all those pieces had been wasted but in the end, all of them were necessary to complete the lunar missions. 

 

In his letter to the Galatians, the Apostle Paul addressed this same idea of expending great effort in order to achieve an established goal.  Paul wasn’t interested in putting men on the moon.  His interest wasn’t outer space; his goal was inner space, the heart of man.  Paul knew what it was like to work long and hard in Christ’s service.  He knew what it was like to be misunderstood, persecuted, rejected, and hated.  He knew what it was like to work with his whole being to the point of physical, mental, and spiritual exhaustion.  Yet, Paul never gave up, he never lost sight of his goal, and he never wavered in his determination to preach the gospel to the world around him.

 

That is why he writes the following admonition in Galatians 6:9-10, “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.” Paul was encouraging his readers to show kindness and compassion to all those around them, especially their fellow believers.  He knew that when the going gets really tough, people often abandon the cause.  He did not want this to happen.  Paul knew that to love others with the love of Christ is always hard, but he also knew that it brought the greatest reward. 

 

Today you may feel like the first stage of the rocket mentioned earlier.  It may seem to you that you are giving all you have, and it appears you are making very little progress.  You feel as if no one appreciates you or loves you because no one is returning your love and kindness.  So often you just want to cave in and give up.    

 

Hold steady my fellow believer because Paul does not leave us without hope.  He says that we will reap a harvest and we will receive a reward if we do not give up and lose heart.  I want you to know that I am praying for all of you who read this today.  My prayer is that you will not give up, that you will not give in, and that you will not abandon the cause of Christ when the going gets tough.  It is just at such a time that winning the battle is within reach.  I pray today that our Heavenly Father will give you the strength you need to love those around you and to be a source of strength and encouragement, not only to them, but to the believers around you as well.  Hang in there because the effort we expend today will reap wonderful rewards for the kingdom of God! We have His word on it! 

Just Add Water

 

I

t hardly seems possible, but I have been living in my house for fifteen years now.  I was thinking about the moving process and all the wonderful people who helped me either by moving boxes, by carrying furniture, or by sending something to eat.  I was so blessed to have people willing to sacrifice their time, effort, and money to help me move. 

 

As I was unpacking the myriad boxes I used during my move, I came across a small gift bag that one of my students had given me at the end of the summer.  Inside were things to snack on, a bookmark, some neatly shaped paper clips, and a triangular box containing something really special. Inside this box was a foil pouch filled with enough ingredients to make a rather large pot of three-cheese mushroom soup.  I love mushrooms so I was eager to prepare the mix according to the directions and sit down to a piping hot bowl of soup. 

 

Everything was included in the pouch except water.  When I poured the contents into the pot, it didn’t look very appetizing.  All I could see was brown powder with bits, pieces, and chunks of dehydrated mushrooms.  It didn’t really make my mouth water as I looked at what was supposed to become a delicious and nutritious bowl of soup.  The process, however, was not complete because I had not supplied the most essential ingredient—water! 

 

I opened the cabinet, took down my measuring cup, held it underneath the faucet, and filled it with the required amount of water.  As soon as I added the water to the soup mixture, a wonderful metamorphosis took place.  The powder completely dissolved and the mushroom pieces grew to several times their size.  I put the pot on the stove and in just a few minutes I had my soup, all piping hot and very delicious. 

 

As I thought about this the story of the woman at the well came immediately to my mind.  Here was a woman whose life, like my soup mixture, was dry and unappetizing.  Her soul was all dried up, her life was filled with shriveled chunks of meaning, and she lacked the essential ingredient that would give her life purpose.   

 

Day after day, she went to the well to draw water for her needs and when the water was gone, she went back to do the same thing over again.  All her efforts and all the water in the well could not satisfy the longing thirst in her soul.  Society couldn’t fulfill her needs, her many relationships could not fill the void in her spirit, and every day was an endless search to slake the parching thirst of her soul. 

 

One day she met Jesus sitting beside a well.  He was thirst and asked her for a drink. She was surprised that Jesus, a Jew and a man, would speak to her.  Jesus, however, continued speaking with her and he offered her a drink of water.  The woman found it hard to accept water from Jesus because he had nothing with which to draw water.  However, Jesus was not speaking of well water, he was speaking of the water of life, the water that cools the thirst of the most parched soul and gives life from within.  Listen to what he told her as recorded in John 4:14, “but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” 

 

This was the water she had longed for, the water she had searched for all her life.  She took Jesus at his word and quenched her thirst forever.  One taste of living water and the dried recesses of her soul came alive, the shriveled areas of her life were filled with new meaning, and her life took on meaning and purpose. 

 

All of us are just like this woman at the well and the soup mix in the packet.  Without the water that Jesus offers, our lives are just powder, dry and useless.  There is nothing appealing, nothing nourishing, and nothing appetizing about them.  But when we add Jesus to the mix, life takes on a whole new outlook.  We have a purpose, and we can be used to refresh, nourish, and strengthen others.   

 

The ingredients on the back of the soup package said, “Just add water.”  That’s exactly what we must do spiritually as well in order to be all that God wants and intends for us to be. We are wrapped inside containers of dust, longing for the one thing that can bring us to life. What we need is Jesus Christ and the life-giving water her offers.  Have you added this living water to your life?  Don’t you think it’s about time you did? 

Burn It Into Your Memory

I

 remember the first personal computer (PC) I ever saw.  It was in 1985 during my senior year at college.  The college administration made a concerted effort to keep abreast of the newest forms of technology so that students could attain computer literacy by using the latest technology available.  A few of the guys on my hall purchased their own computers and the craze of owning one of those little boxes began. 

 

I finished college in May of 1985 and in January of 1986; I purchased my very own PC.  I was ecstatic as I pulled it out of the boxes, plugged in all the wires, threw the switch and waited for it to boot up.  The ability to write papers, letters, notes, and store them on a floppy disk was cutting-edge stuff.  My machine had two floppy drives, the kind with the large, black, flexible disks.  Each disk held a whopping 256K of information and I wondered how I would ever have enough information to fill one.  The hard drive was unheard of and CD-ROM storage would have sounded like something from a science fiction movie. 

 

Things sure have changed in the past twenty years.  Now we have computers that are extremely fast, we connect with computers all over the world via the Internet; we can listen to music, watch videos, and beam pictures of ourselves in real time over a phone line or cable modem.  We rarely store things on floppy disks anymore, opting for hard drives, CD-ROM’s, and DVD disks.   

 

My computer now has a CD-ROM drive that allows me to save my information onto CD’s designed to store information.  A laser beam “burns” the information onto the disk’s surface where it is permanently stored.  One CD holds the equivalent of over 2500 of the disks I used in my first computer!!!  What’s more is that the information I store on the CD is permanently burned into the disk, becoming an integral part of its structure. 

 

In Jeremiah 31:33, we read about a similar process.  In this passage, Jeremiah writes, “This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time," declares the LORD.  
I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.”  This beautiful passage of scripture looked forward to the day when the nation of Israel would be restored and brought back to the land God promised on oath to Abraham. 

 

Notice what God says about His relationship with His people.  No longer will the law be written on parchment or on scrolls.  Instead, God promises to write it in their minds and on their hearts so it will be a permanent fixture for them.  God’s word will no longer be external, but it will be internal, an integral part of His people. 

 

This is a wonderful promise to Israel and also one that we Christians can claim as well.  God’s law, His word, is an integral part of our lives.  According to Hebrews 12, “The word of God is living and active…” and Deuteronomy 32:46-48 tells us that all the words God spoke to Moses were “not just idle words but they are [our] life.”   In essence, God ensures us that His word will be burned into our minds so we always remember it and it will be burned into our hearts, so we always live according to it.  Have you made a permanent copy of God’s word in your heart today? 

Experience Required

 

A

 quick perusal of a newspaper provides insight into the worlds of international politics, business, sports, and entertainment.  You can find the latest information concerning the weather, you can read other people’s opinions in the editorial section, and you can even work a crossword puzzle or have your funny bone tickled by the comics section.  Finally, you will come to the classified section which can prove both informative and comical to the discerning reader. 

 

The classified section is always chock full of companies’ requests for employees.  It seems there are always jobs to be had in several businesses on a daily basis.  A survey of these advertisements will quickly show one common thread among them.  The words, “Experience required” figure prominently and either provide an incentive for someone to answer the ad or to move on to something else. 

 

Have you ever been frustrated by those two little words?  Have you ever read through the classifieds, diligently seeking an opportunity to change jobs only to be thwarted and disappointed by the need for experience?  This is the catch for most college graduates.  They have all this knowledge and training but lack the experience needed for many of the jobs in the “real world.” 

 

What are God’s requirements?   What kind of experience is he looking for?  It is a very different kind than that for which the world is searching.  This is seen very easily in the life of a familiar Old Testament character, David, the shepherd boy from Bethlehem. 

 

In the beginning of David’s story, his brothers have gone off to battle the Philistines.  His father, Jesse, sends him to check on his brothers to see how they are doing.  When David arrives, he is introduced to something very strange.  A giant, Goliath of Gath, is taunting the Israelite army, begging for a fight.  The soldiers, however, refuse to answer, refuse to take up their arms, and refuse to fight.  They have all this training in war and in the use of armor and weapons, but they have no experience with God. 

 

Enter David, the lowly shepherd.  He has no experience in battle, no experience in tactical warfare, and no experience with weapons.  However, he does have first-hand experience of God’s might and, based on this, David answers Saul’s ad for a champion.  But David isn’t exactly what Saul is searching for. 

 

In 1 Samuel 17:33-35, we find an exchange between these two men as they discuss David’s qualifications. “Saul replied, "You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a boy, and he has been a fighting man from his youth."  But David said to Saul, "Your servant has been keeping his father's sheep. When a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock, I went after it, struck it and rescued the sheep from its mouth. When it turned on me, I seized it by its hair, struck it and killed it.” 

 

Here we have a classic difference of opinion.  Saul believes David to be unqualified because he lacks the necessary training.  He has never studied war, he has never learned to throw a spear, and he has never faced an enemy like Goliath.  David begs to differ.  His enemies have been the lion and the bear that delighted in taunting his flock.  They attacked without warning, intent on killing as many of the sheep as possible, something David could not and did not allow. 

 

Although David’s experience is not exactly what Saul has in mind, it is more than adequate.  I mean, David stands head and shoulders above the rest of the applicant pool who have more knowledge and more training than he.  But they aren’t applying for the job!  David’s best response is found in verse 37, “The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine."  How do you say no to that? You can’t and Saul didn’t! 

 

Will you answer God’s classified ad today?  Do you have the experience of a personal relationship with him that equips you to face any of life’s circumstances?  When you read the words, “Experience required,” does this motivate you or dissuade you from answering God’s call?  Are you looking for a job today?  All you have to do is apply, that is, apply God’s word to your life and you will have the necessary experience to answer any of life’s challenges.

All The Way Through

 

S

aturday morning is undoubtedly one of the best things in life.  No alarm clocks, no busy schedule, and no running against the clock.  It’s a day of leisure, a nice pause at the end of the week, and a time to relax.   

 

 On Saturday mornings, I wake up later than usual and make my way to the kitchen.  I open the refrigerator and usually decide to cook myself a nice breakfast.  I pull out the eggs, the bagels, and the country sausage or bacon and get ready to have a good, old-fashioned southern breakfast. 

 

Over the years I have learned to cook pork sausage over medium heat.  It is necessary to cook the meat slow so that it gets done all the way through.  Most men believe that there is only one setting for cooking—high! The problem with this approach is that only the outside of the meat gets cooked.  It gives the appearance of doneness but in reality, the inside is uncooked and can lead to unwanted illness.  

 

Now, what in the world does under-done sausage have to do with today’s devotional?  Actually, it has quite a lot to do with it. Jesus understood the dangers of appearing to be something that one wasn’t.  He knew that if we are to be God’s followers and children, then we must be his all the way through.  Unfortunately, sometimes we do a good job of appearing to be Christians on the outside while underneath we are very much under-done. 

 

This was a lesson Jesus taught repeatedly to the Pharisees.  He chided them for their inconsistent lifestyle.  He exposed their hypocrisy and chastised them for failing to uphold their position as the religious leaders of the people. He had no tolerance for those who were religious on the outside but who in actuality were only half-cooked on the inside. 

 

In Matthew 23:27-28, Jesus has this to say about the teachers of the law and the Pharisees, “You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of dead men’s bones and everything unclean.  In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full hypocrisy and wickedness.” 

 

Needless to say, Jesus’ words were not very popular with the Pharisees and teachers but they were accurate. But Jesus wasn’t concerned about their reputations or their egos; he was concerned about their spiritual conditions and the witness they gave. He knew that if people followed their example, spiritual sickness and death would soon follow.  Outwardly they gave the appearance of total commitment to God but inwardly they were anything but godly.   

 

The message and truth of God’s love through his son, Jesus Christ, is a pure message.  It must be carried in pure vessels and shared from a pure heart. We cannot simply give lip service to being a Christian; we must back it up by the way we live.  Everything we do, say, and think, must give testimony to the fact that we belong to God. 

 

So, today, we must ask ourselves the following questions: Are we giving a pure and total witness for Jesus Christ in all aspects of our lives?  Are we done all the way through or are we merely half-baked? 

Air Freshener

 

E

arly one Saturday morning I was in the grocery store making my weekly purchases.  Not watching where I was going, I ended up on the aisle where the cleaning supplies were kept.  There were so many products to choose from.  There were different detergents for clothes, several brands of furniture polish, all kinds of bathroom and household cleaners, and air fresheners that could be placed throughout the house or used on the carpet with a vacuum cleaner.  I stood there for what seemed like hours just trying to take it all in. 

 

What caught my eye and mesmerized me the most was the display of products for cleaning the air.  These came in solids, liquids, aerosol sprays, candles, and powders.  Sitting there on those few shelves seemed to be every scent known to man.  As I stood there looking at the array of products, my attention focused on the powders destined to be spread over carpet and vacuumed up with the dirt.  The vacuum cleaner sucked up the dirt and the powder but left a wonderful aroma behind. In a home, that pleasant odor served as a reminder that the dirt has been removed and that everything in the house was clean. Isn’t it amazing what a small odor can tell you about a home and about the persons who live there? 

 

The same is true in the life of the Christian.  We are constantly giving off a fragrance to those around us.  What does the fragrance of our lives communicate to others?  Does the aroma of our witness testify to the cleansing power of Jesus’ blood in our lives?  When people encounter us at work, in the shops, or anywhere in between, can they tell that we’ve been with Jesus?  

 

The Apostle Paul in his second letter to the believers in Corinth addressed just this issue.  In 2 Corinthians 2:15, he writes, “For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing.”  Three quick truths glare out at us from this passage.  First, Paul states categorically and without reserve that our lives are a constant aroma before God.  The aroma our lives are to put forth is that of Christ.  We can only have his aroma if we follow him and spend time in his presence.  Yes, only in his presence can we ever hope to obtain his aroma in order to share it with all those around us. 

 

The second truth is that we share the aroma of Christ among our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.  Who among us has not been in need and been encouraged and strengthened by a fellow believer?  Who among us has not given thanks to God that one of our brothers or sisters in Christ prayed for us or visited us in times of great need or distress?  They shared with us the aroma of Christ and reminded us that our source of strength was in Christ alone. 

 

The last truth is that we spread the aroma of Christ among those who are not saved.  People may receive the odor of our lives long before we speak to them.  Through our actions and our attitudes, we demonstrate our faith and trust in Jesus Christ.  The way we lead our lives is in itself an aroma noticed by the world.  Paul is clear; we are to share the aroma of Christ with unbelievers, encouraging them by our actions and demonstrating the power and love of Christ in our daily lives. 

 

So, are you giving off a pleasant aroma today?  When people meet you do they see evidence of Jesus in your life?  Do your actions and your attitudes provide an inviting odor to those who are seeking Christ?  Is your life a source of strength and encouragement to those serving Christ?  Paul reminds us that our lives must give off the aroma of Christ.  What does the aroma of your life say about your relationship with Jesus today?