Work may be defined as a spiritual, physical, or mental activity directed toward the accomplishment of something. Many people work for money. They run around literarily until they drop dead or their health fails them. Such persons treat life as a rat race. The comedian, Lily Tomlin said, “The problem with the rat race is that even if you win, you’re still a rat.”
Why do you work? Is it for money, bill payments, punishment for the sin of Adam or provide for family and others? There is a biblical point of view for why we work. God requires us to work because it enables self-sustenance. It empowers us to provide for our families. Acts 20:33-35, 2 Thessalonians 3:10, 1 Timothy 5:8. When we do our work well, it brings glory to God. It enables us to give to others Ephesians 4:28. Finally, the outside world respects you for your work. 1 Thessalonians 4:11-12.
Who is your Employment Officer? God was man’s first employer. Genesis 2:15. He remains your ultimate employer regardless of who comes between you and Him. (Psalms 75:6). Work is not an end in itself but a means to an end. The ultimate goal for work is to sustain life to serve the Lord. Acts 20:18-24. You are better than animals. They hunt for food to sustain life as an end in itself.
Humans work to become, not to acquire. Your work tests your character, faith, obedience, love, integrity, and loyalty. Every day at work is an opportunity to deepen character. Romans 8:28.
Secular versus Spiritual Work
One of the common misconceptions regarding work is the notion that certain jobs are spiritual while others are secular. The idea behind this categorization is that spiritual work is by divine appointment, while physical work is not. Due to this understanding, some are waiting to really serve the Lord when they become full time ministers. You see a different picture however, when you considered the lifestyle of Apostle Paul.
“After Athens, Paul went to Corinth. That is where he discovered Aquila, a Jew born in Pontus, and his wife, Priscilla. They had just arrived from Italy, part of the general expulsion of Jews from Rome ordered by Claudius. Paul moved in with them, and they worked together at their common trade of tent making. But every Sabbath he was at the meeting place, doing his best to convince both Jews and Greeks about Jesus.” Acts 18:1-4.
The Apostle continued to work as a tentmaker during the week while he served at the temple on the Sabbath day. He may have touched other lives during the week if the opportunity came up while he made tents. There was no demarcation between when he carried out spiritual and secular work. Assuming the tent making was done unto the Lord, he had no secular job at this point in his life. The idea of spiritual and secular jobs is recent and unbiblical.
Which of the following is a secular job?
A security man does his work as unto the Lord.
A preacher with 20 years of experience preaches from 10-year-old notes without praying or any other form of preparation.
A pizza delivery person carries out all deliveries as unto the Lord.
A Sunday School Teacher resigns “to spend more time with his family” because he did not get recognition for her efforts.
It is not the nature of a job that makes it spiritual or secular but whether it is done unto the Lord or not. Any job carried out as unto the Lord is not secular. The following 2 bible passages reveal fundamental truths that should shape our attitude to our work:
“Servants, do what you're told by your earthly masters. And don't just do the minimum that will get you by. Do your best. Work from the heart for your real Master, for God, confident that you'll get paid in full when you come into your inheritance. Keep in mind always that the ultimate Master you're serving is Christ. The sullen servant who does shoddy work will be held responsible. Being a follower of Jesus doesn't cover up bad work.” Colossians 3:22-25.
“Servants, respectfully obey your earthly masters but always with an eye to obeying the real master, Christ. Don't just do what you have to do to get by, but work heartily, as Christ's servants doing what God wants you to do. And work with a smile on your face, always keeping in mind that no matter who happens to be giving the orders, you're really serving God. Good work will get you good pay from the Master, regardless of whether you are slave or free.” Ephesians 6:5-8.
The following important facts can be gleaned from this passage:
We must approach every work as a God-given job.
There is a reward from God for every work beyond the earthly compensation.
Our real Boss, Supervisor or Manager is God Himself. Our earthly boss is just a representative.
Give your best at your job.
There are several examples of good works in the Scriptures. In 1 Timothy 5:10, we read, “well reported for good works: if she has brought up children (child rearing), if she has lodged strangers (hospitality, hotels, nursing homes), if she has washed the saints’ feet (all church-based ministries), if she has relieved the afflicted (medical, nursing, social work, public service, prison), if she has diligently followed every good work.
Summary:
No job is secular if it is done unto the Lord. Do your work as someone attempting to please God. If the nature of your job is such that it cannot be done unto the Lord, you need a different job.
Recognize God as your ultimate Employer. Ask Him to lead you to a job that you really enjoy and that will be an expression of your natural and acquired abilities. The more a job utilizes your areas of strength, the more fulfilled you will be at doing it.
Have a positive attitude at your workplace. Your job provides opportunities for character development. Don’t complain about everything, backbite with others and get involved in activities that do not glorify God.
Aim to be the best at what you do. God deserves and demands it.
You work on earth carries rewards that are both temporal and eternal.
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Sunday, December 19, 2010
Gratitude
Gratitude is having a great attitude in all circumstances. It is refusing to be small when the times are hard. It is the ability to see the cup half full rather than half empty. It is giving God praise when your flesh says otherwise. It is magnifying God and minimizing problems. After all, God is eternal, challenges are not. Luke 17:12-19.
Many of us see the need to pray but don’t see the need to praise. We do not understand the importance of praise in the spiritual world. Life is controlled by a gate. “But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life and only a few find it”. Matthew 7:13-14. This life gate opens to praise because praise is a gate opener. You “enter into His gates with thanksgiving and a thank offering and into His courts with praise! ….” Psalm 100:4a. Anytime you want to approach God, remember that praise is a gate lifter to God’s presence.
There is an important secret the Devil does not want believers to understand. In the Old Testament times, whoever controls the gate controls the city. This is because the gate of the enemy is its control center. Just as praise is a gate lifter into God’s presence, you can use praise to control the gates of your enemies. Genesis 24:60. When you gain access to the Lord by praise the same can bring God down to your situation. Such was the case with Paul and Silas who worshipped God at midnight and experienced a great deliverance.
Contentment
One of the reasons we are often ungrateful is discontentment. If you are not content with less you will never be content with more. There are many who live in a world of “If onlys.” If only I had this.... If only this were different.... If only I could do that.... If only this had not happened in my life....Apostle Paul said, “I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances” (Philippians 4:11).
Don’t postpone joyfulness until your situation changes, or you have acquired a certain thing. If you cannot be joyful now you will not be joyful then, for joy is not a matter of what you have, or what situation you are in. It is a matter of who you are and how you respond to life.
I am really content — until I start looking through the Costco catalogue. I liked my car — until I saw the new Mercedes Benz. I am satisfied with my clothes — until I stroll through Macy’s. I love our home — until I think of what it would be like to own a log cabin on the shore of some remote lake. I am satisfied with every area of my life — until I start comparing with someone else’s life. I feel like I have enough of everything — until I see someone who has more.
Contentment comes from God. “Godliness with contentment is great gain.” Notice that it does not say “Prosperity with contentment is great gain.” Contentment comes from seeking God, not things. Jesus said, “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well” (Matthew 6:33). If you are not happy with what you have, why do you want more of that which cannot satisfy? “Keep your lives free from the love of money and are content with what you have, because God has said, ‘Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you’” (Hebrews 13:5). Your contentment comes from God, not things.
If we seek God the way we seek after other things many of our problems would disappear. It is our relationship with God which is the source of contentment, and nothing else can take his place. The Bible says, “Whoever loves money never has money enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income” (Ecclesiastes 5:10).
One of the secrets of contentment is to seek God’s face, not just His Hands. Seek Him, not His gifts. Run after God, not just His goodies. The Psalmist, when thinking of heaven, said, “I will see your face; when I awake, I will be satisfied with seeing your likeness” (Psalm 17:15).
I really appreciated how much I’m blessed the other day when I listed what I have. Below are my assets:
A gracious God
A wonderful wife
A flourishing family
Abundant life (Eternally and materially I am filthy rich compared to the rest of the world.)
A meaningful vocation
Friends
Today (Ps 118:24).
Opportunities to grow in grace, knowledge, and experience
An attitude of gratitude is an act of faith. It means you are unafraid to live and be happy because you have faith in a God who cares for you and provides for you. He is faithful and his promises are true. He never fails. Dare to be grateful at all times.
Many of us see the need to pray but don’t see the need to praise. We do not understand the importance of praise in the spiritual world. Life is controlled by a gate. “But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life and only a few find it”. Matthew 7:13-14. This life gate opens to praise because praise is a gate opener. You “enter into His gates with thanksgiving and a thank offering and into His courts with praise! ….” Psalm 100:4a. Anytime you want to approach God, remember that praise is a gate lifter to God’s presence.
There is an important secret the Devil does not want believers to understand. In the Old Testament times, whoever controls the gate controls the city. This is because the gate of the enemy is its control center. Just as praise is a gate lifter into God’s presence, you can use praise to control the gates of your enemies. Genesis 24:60. When you gain access to the Lord by praise the same can bring God down to your situation. Such was the case with Paul and Silas who worshipped God at midnight and experienced a great deliverance.
Contentment
One of the reasons we are often ungrateful is discontentment. If you are not content with less you will never be content with more. There are many who live in a world of “If onlys.” If only I had this.... If only this were different.... If only I could do that.... If only this had not happened in my life....Apostle Paul said, “I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances” (Philippians 4:11).
Don’t postpone joyfulness until your situation changes, or you have acquired a certain thing. If you cannot be joyful now you will not be joyful then, for joy is not a matter of what you have, or what situation you are in. It is a matter of who you are and how you respond to life.
I am really content — until I start looking through the Costco catalogue. I liked my car — until I saw the new Mercedes Benz. I am satisfied with my clothes — until I stroll through Macy’s. I love our home — until I think of what it would be like to own a log cabin on the shore of some remote lake. I am satisfied with every area of my life — until I start comparing with someone else’s life. I feel like I have enough of everything — until I see someone who has more.
Contentment comes from God. “Godliness with contentment is great gain.” Notice that it does not say “Prosperity with contentment is great gain.” Contentment comes from seeking God, not things. Jesus said, “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well” (Matthew 6:33). If you are not happy with what you have, why do you want more of that which cannot satisfy? “Keep your lives free from the love of money and are content with what you have, because God has said, ‘Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you’” (Hebrews 13:5). Your contentment comes from God, not things.
If we seek God the way we seek after other things many of our problems would disappear. It is our relationship with God which is the source of contentment, and nothing else can take his place. The Bible says, “Whoever loves money never has money enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income” (Ecclesiastes 5:10).
One of the secrets of contentment is to seek God’s face, not just His Hands. Seek Him, not His gifts. Run after God, not just His goodies. The Psalmist, when thinking of heaven, said, “I will see your face; when I awake, I will be satisfied with seeing your likeness” (Psalm 17:15).
I really appreciated how much I’m blessed the other day when I listed what I have. Below are my assets:
A gracious God
A wonderful wife
A flourishing family
Abundant life (Eternally and materially I am filthy rich compared to the rest of the world.)
A meaningful vocation
Friends
Today (Ps 118:24).
Opportunities to grow in grace, knowledge, and experience
An attitude of gratitude is an act of faith. It means you are unafraid to live and be happy because you have faith in a God who cares for you and provides for you. He is faithful and his promises are true. He never fails. Dare to be grateful at all times.
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
Depression
A teacher said to her students, "Boys and girls, there is a wonderful example in the life of the ant. Every day the ant goes to work and works all day. Every day the ant is busy. And in the end, what happens?
Little Johnny said, "Someone steps on Him."
Depression is a hopelessness that’s not consistent with reality. It’s a temporary condition, an emotional state with exaggerated feelings of sadness. It is more than discouragement. It can make negative circumstances overwhelm a person’s life.
Recent studies of more than 11,000 individuals found depression to be more physically and socially disabling that arthritis, diabetes, lung disease, chronic back problems, hypertension, and gastrointestinal illnesses. 19 million American adults or about 9.5 percent of the U.S. population age 18 and older suffer from depression every year. Twice as many women as men are affected. These figures translate to 12.4 million women and 6.4 million men in the U.S.
Women between the ages of 25-44 are most often affected by depression with a major cause of depression in women being the inability to express or handle anger.
Symptoms of depression
1. Weight loss or weight gain.
2. Loss of sleep and energy.
3. Lose interest in most or all pleasurable activities.
4. Reduced ability to concentrate.
5. Overcome with feelings of hopelessness or uselessness.
Causes
Death or serious illness of a friend or family member
Loss of love or attention from a friend or family member
Breakup of a romantic relationship
Family problems, especially parents’ divorce
Isolation/loneliness/rejection
Physical, verbal, and/or sexual abuse
Genetic vulnerability, particularly if a parent is/was depressed.
Background to depression
77% of everything we think is negative and counterproductive and works against us. People who grow up in an average household hear "No" or are told what they can’t do more than 148,000 times by the time they reach age 18. This results in unintentional negative programming. Negative parents breed negative children. 1 Corinthian 15:33.
It is not uncommon for servants of God to suffer from depression. Listen to Moses in Numbers 11:15, “If this is how you intend to treat me, do me a favor and kill me. I've seen enough; I've had enough. Let me out of here.” Elijah made a similar request for God to take his life. 1Kings 19:4. Job cried out, “Obliterate the day I was born. Blank out the night I was conceived!” Job 3:3. Therefore if you are a Christian and you are depressed, you are not alone.
One of England’s finest preachers was C.H. Spurgeon. Frequently during his ministry he was plunged into severe depression, due in part to gout but also for other reasons. Sometimes he would be out of the pulpit for two to three months at a time.
Many years ago a young Midwestern lawyer suffered from such deep depression that his friends thought it best to keep all knives and razors out of his reach. He questioned his life’s calling and the wisdom of even attempting to follow it through. During this time he wrote, "I am now the most miserable man living. Whether I shall ever be better, I cannot tell." That lawyer was Abraham Lincoln who became the 16th President of the United States of America.
Timing of Depression
1. Depression may come after a time of intense ministry output. Elijah became depressed after defeating the prophets of Baal. 1 Kings 19:1-18. More pastors resign on Monday than any other day of the week. Don’t be surprised therefore if you experience depression after a very success program or event. Pastors wonder why they feel so low after moving into a new church building. Athletes wonder why they feel so empty with the trophy in their hands; students wonder why they feel so unfulfilled with the diploma in their hands. Mothers wonder why they can’t stop the tears after giving birth to a healthy baby.
2. Relational conflict is a common cause of depression. Problem with your boss, breaking up with boyfriend, argument with wife are not uncommon.
3. After physical exhaustion. Elijah killed 450 false prophets, prayed intensely for rain, and then in the power of the Holy Spirit ran for over 20 miles just before he became depressed. Sometimes, overscheduling and overloading ourselves may make us susceptible to emotional letdown. Inability to balance the demands of work, family, church and recreation can tilt us over. While you can do anything, you cannot do everything. When you are tired you are really vulnerable to the discouragement that leads to depression.
How to get depressed
1. Be alone. Most depressed people are lonely or act as if they are alone. Elijah wasn’t all alone, what about Obadiah that brought him the news of hiding prophet of God? 1 Kings 18:13. Depression shuts out the thing we need most: people. When we gather in Sunday school class of caring people, when we come into a church service with Christian friends we draw strength for life’s battles. So when you are struggling with depression don’t go somewhere alone, find Christian friends to be with so they can minister to you. Remember Galatians 6:2 says "Bear one another’s burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ.”
2. Focus on the negative. We all have negative times in our lives, but when we make little things into big things and let them overwhelm us, we become downcast. This enhances our loneness. There is a silver lining in every cloud. Today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday.
3. Leave God out. God provided for Elijah through a widow who had nothing. This man of God called down fire from heaven and caused rain to cease for more than 3 years. God had never failed him. Has He ever failed you? In times of crisis, it is easy to forget the faithfulness of God in our lives and focus on the immediate challenges in isolation.
The Best Anti-Depressants
God.
He cured Elijah and He will cure you too. There is no problem He cannot solve, no challenge He cannot overcome for you. No other anti-depressant works as well. If there is any one principle that can help all depressed people, this is it. James 4:8, Psalms 40:1-2. During the 1st part of the 20th century, J. C. Penney presided over a successful business of over 1,700 stores. At the time he had the country’s largest chain of department stores, each one bearing his name. But, although his enterprise made him incredibly wealthy, J.C. Penney’s life was not devoid of setbacks and troubles.
When the Great Depression struck the country, it came at a time of great financial vulnerability for Penney. In the good times, before the Depression, Penney had overextended himself and had borrowed heavily to finance many of his ventures. But when the Depression hit, banks began to request repayment of his loans sooner than anticipated. Suddenly cash flow was tight, and Penney was finding it difficult to meet payment schedules. Constant and unrelenting worry began to take its toll. "I was so harassed with worries that I couldn’t sleep, and developed an extremely painful ailment," he said.
Concerned about his deteriorating health, Penney checked himself into the Kellogg sanitarium at Battle Creek, Michigan.
"I got weaker day by day. I was broken nervously and physically, filled with despair, unable to see even a ray of hope. I had nothing to live for; I felt that I hadn’t a friend left in the world, that even my family had turned against me."
Alarmed by his rapidly deteriorating condition, Dr. Eggleston gave Penney a sedative. However, the effect quickly wore off, and Penney awakened with the conviction that he was living the last night of his life. "Getting out of bed, I wrote farewell letters to my wife and to my son, saying that I did not expect to live to see the dawn."
Penney awakened the next morning, surprised to find himself alive. Making his way down the hallway of the hospital, he could hear singing coming from the little chapel where devotional exercises were held each morning. The words of the hymn he heard being sung spoke deeply to him. Going into the chapel, he listened to the singing, the reading of the Scripture lesson, and the prayer.
"Suddenly something happened," he said. "I can’t explain it. I can only call it a miracle. I felt as if I had been instantly lifted out of the darkness of a dungeon into a warm, brilliant sunlight. I felt as if I had been transported from hell to Paradise. I felt the power of God as I had never felt it before." In a life-transforming instant Penney knew that God, with His love, was there to help. "From that day to this, my life has been free from worry," he declared. "The most dramatic and glorious 20 minutes of my life were those I spent in that chapel that morning." Here are the words of the hymn he heard that morning:
Be not dismayed whate’er betide, God will take care of you;
Beneath His wings of love abide, God will take care of you.
God will take care of you, through every day, o’er all the way;
He will take care of you, God will take care of you.
Change your thinking.
There is nothing new under heaven, including all your problems. Problems are in 2 categories: the ones you can do something about and the ones you cannot. No amount of worry will resolve issues that are beyond you. The Bible contains many promises that will uplift even the most depressed individual. Get acquainted with them. Read them aloud several times a day. Check your thoughts. The Bible says we should take every thought captive. What am I thinking? Am I seeing things in a healthy way, or am I seeing everything as the end of the world? Continuing to live a life that is hypocritical is a huge cause of depression.
Share your problems with others believers. Problem shared is problem halved.
Help others
During a lecture on mental health someone once asked Dr. Carl Menninger: "What would you advise a person to do if that person felt a nervous breakdown coming on?" Most people thought he would say, “Go see a psychiatrist immediately," but he didn’t. Much to everyone’s astonishment, Dr. Menninger replied, "Lock up your house, go across the railroad tracks, find somebody in need, and help that person." To overcome discouragement, "Don’t focus on yourself; get involved in the lives of other people”. Proverbs 11:25
Exercise
Regular exercise toughens the mind as well as the body. After working out three times a week for six months, one group was found to be 20% fitter. Bonus: they also scored 70% better in a test of complex decision-making.
Not only does exercise improve the body and mind, it also improves the spirit of a person. It can help to relieve some of the effects of depression.
Let God, not problems be your Director.
Depression may be a signal to warn us that we need to deal with something. Is there some past trauma that we have not dealt with – loss, anger, abuse, poor decisions of the past, is there sin in my life? Norman Wright describes depression as being like a person in a deep pool of water, holding on to a large, heavy rock. The rock will pull us down. If we refuse to let it go, it will destroy us. It is not the rock that will destroy – it is our decision.
Little Johnny said, "Someone steps on Him."
Depression is a hopelessness that’s not consistent with reality. It’s a temporary condition, an emotional state with exaggerated feelings of sadness. It is more than discouragement. It can make negative circumstances overwhelm a person’s life.
Recent studies of more than 11,000 individuals found depression to be more physically and socially disabling that arthritis, diabetes, lung disease, chronic back problems, hypertension, and gastrointestinal illnesses. 19 million American adults or about 9.5 percent of the U.S. population age 18 and older suffer from depression every year. Twice as many women as men are affected. These figures translate to 12.4 million women and 6.4 million men in the U.S.
Women between the ages of 25-44 are most often affected by depression with a major cause of depression in women being the inability to express or handle anger.
Symptoms of depression
1. Weight loss or weight gain.
2. Loss of sleep and energy.
3. Lose interest in most or all pleasurable activities.
4. Reduced ability to concentrate.
5. Overcome with feelings of hopelessness or uselessness.
Causes
Death or serious illness of a friend or family member
Loss of love or attention from a friend or family member
Breakup of a romantic relationship
Family problems, especially parents’ divorce
Isolation/loneliness/rejection
Physical, verbal, and/or sexual abuse
Genetic vulnerability, particularly if a parent is/was depressed.
Background to depression
77% of everything we think is negative and counterproductive and works against us. People who grow up in an average household hear "No" or are told what they can’t do more than 148,000 times by the time they reach age 18. This results in unintentional negative programming. Negative parents breed negative children. 1 Corinthian 15:33.
It is not uncommon for servants of God to suffer from depression. Listen to Moses in Numbers 11:15, “If this is how you intend to treat me, do me a favor and kill me. I've seen enough; I've had enough. Let me out of here.” Elijah made a similar request for God to take his life. 1Kings 19:4. Job cried out, “Obliterate the day I was born. Blank out the night I was conceived!” Job 3:3. Therefore if you are a Christian and you are depressed, you are not alone.
One of England’s finest preachers was C.H. Spurgeon. Frequently during his ministry he was plunged into severe depression, due in part to gout but also for other reasons. Sometimes he would be out of the pulpit for two to three months at a time.
Many years ago a young Midwestern lawyer suffered from such deep depression that his friends thought it best to keep all knives and razors out of his reach. He questioned his life’s calling and the wisdom of even attempting to follow it through. During this time he wrote, "I am now the most miserable man living. Whether I shall ever be better, I cannot tell." That lawyer was Abraham Lincoln who became the 16th President of the United States of America.
Timing of Depression
1. Depression may come after a time of intense ministry output. Elijah became depressed after defeating the prophets of Baal. 1 Kings 19:1-18. More pastors resign on Monday than any other day of the week. Don’t be surprised therefore if you experience depression after a very success program or event. Pastors wonder why they feel so low after moving into a new church building. Athletes wonder why they feel so empty with the trophy in their hands; students wonder why they feel so unfulfilled with the diploma in their hands. Mothers wonder why they can’t stop the tears after giving birth to a healthy baby.
2. Relational conflict is a common cause of depression. Problem with your boss, breaking up with boyfriend, argument with wife are not uncommon.
3. After physical exhaustion. Elijah killed 450 false prophets, prayed intensely for rain, and then in the power of the Holy Spirit ran for over 20 miles just before he became depressed. Sometimes, overscheduling and overloading ourselves may make us susceptible to emotional letdown. Inability to balance the demands of work, family, church and recreation can tilt us over. While you can do anything, you cannot do everything. When you are tired you are really vulnerable to the discouragement that leads to depression.
How to get depressed
1. Be alone. Most depressed people are lonely or act as if they are alone. Elijah wasn’t all alone, what about Obadiah that brought him the news of hiding prophet of God? 1 Kings 18:13. Depression shuts out the thing we need most: people. When we gather in Sunday school class of caring people, when we come into a church service with Christian friends we draw strength for life’s battles. So when you are struggling with depression don’t go somewhere alone, find Christian friends to be with so they can minister to you. Remember Galatians 6:2 says "Bear one another’s burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ.”
2. Focus on the negative. We all have negative times in our lives, but when we make little things into big things and let them overwhelm us, we become downcast. This enhances our loneness. There is a silver lining in every cloud. Today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday.
3. Leave God out. God provided for Elijah through a widow who had nothing. This man of God called down fire from heaven and caused rain to cease for more than 3 years. God had never failed him. Has He ever failed you? In times of crisis, it is easy to forget the faithfulness of God in our lives and focus on the immediate challenges in isolation.
The Best Anti-Depressants
God.
He cured Elijah and He will cure you too. There is no problem He cannot solve, no challenge He cannot overcome for you. No other anti-depressant works as well. If there is any one principle that can help all depressed people, this is it. James 4:8, Psalms 40:1-2. During the 1st part of the 20th century, J. C. Penney presided over a successful business of over 1,700 stores. At the time he had the country’s largest chain of department stores, each one bearing his name. But, although his enterprise made him incredibly wealthy, J.C. Penney’s life was not devoid of setbacks and troubles.
When the Great Depression struck the country, it came at a time of great financial vulnerability for Penney. In the good times, before the Depression, Penney had overextended himself and had borrowed heavily to finance many of his ventures. But when the Depression hit, banks began to request repayment of his loans sooner than anticipated. Suddenly cash flow was tight, and Penney was finding it difficult to meet payment schedules. Constant and unrelenting worry began to take its toll. "I was so harassed with worries that I couldn’t sleep, and developed an extremely painful ailment," he said.
Concerned about his deteriorating health, Penney checked himself into the Kellogg sanitarium at Battle Creek, Michigan.
"I got weaker day by day. I was broken nervously and physically, filled with despair, unable to see even a ray of hope. I had nothing to live for; I felt that I hadn’t a friend left in the world, that even my family had turned against me."
Alarmed by his rapidly deteriorating condition, Dr. Eggleston gave Penney a sedative. However, the effect quickly wore off, and Penney awakened with the conviction that he was living the last night of his life. "Getting out of bed, I wrote farewell letters to my wife and to my son, saying that I did not expect to live to see the dawn."
Penney awakened the next morning, surprised to find himself alive. Making his way down the hallway of the hospital, he could hear singing coming from the little chapel where devotional exercises were held each morning. The words of the hymn he heard being sung spoke deeply to him. Going into the chapel, he listened to the singing, the reading of the Scripture lesson, and the prayer.
"Suddenly something happened," he said. "I can’t explain it. I can only call it a miracle. I felt as if I had been instantly lifted out of the darkness of a dungeon into a warm, brilliant sunlight. I felt as if I had been transported from hell to Paradise. I felt the power of God as I had never felt it before." In a life-transforming instant Penney knew that God, with His love, was there to help. "From that day to this, my life has been free from worry," he declared. "The most dramatic and glorious 20 minutes of my life were those I spent in that chapel that morning." Here are the words of the hymn he heard that morning:
Be not dismayed whate’er betide, God will take care of you;
Beneath His wings of love abide, God will take care of you.
God will take care of you, through every day, o’er all the way;
He will take care of you, God will take care of you.
Change your thinking.
There is nothing new under heaven, including all your problems. Problems are in 2 categories: the ones you can do something about and the ones you cannot. No amount of worry will resolve issues that are beyond you. The Bible contains many promises that will uplift even the most depressed individual. Get acquainted with them. Read them aloud several times a day. Check your thoughts. The Bible says we should take every thought captive. What am I thinking? Am I seeing things in a healthy way, or am I seeing everything as the end of the world? Continuing to live a life that is hypocritical is a huge cause of depression.
Share your problems with others believers. Problem shared is problem halved.
Help others
During a lecture on mental health someone once asked Dr. Carl Menninger: "What would you advise a person to do if that person felt a nervous breakdown coming on?" Most people thought he would say, “Go see a psychiatrist immediately," but he didn’t. Much to everyone’s astonishment, Dr. Menninger replied, "Lock up your house, go across the railroad tracks, find somebody in need, and help that person." To overcome discouragement, "Don’t focus on yourself; get involved in the lives of other people”. Proverbs 11:25
Exercise
Regular exercise toughens the mind as well as the body. After working out three times a week for six months, one group was found to be 20% fitter. Bonus: they also scored 70% better in a test of complex decision-making.
Not only does exercise improve the body and mind, it also improves the spirit of a person. It can help to relieve some of the effects of depression.
Let God, not problems be your Director.
Depression may be a signal to warn us that we need to deal with something. Is there some past trauma that we have not dealt with – loss, anger, abuse, poor decisions of the past, is there sin in my life? Norman Wright describes depression as being like a person in a deep pool of water, holding on to a large, heavy rock. The rock will pull us down. If we refuse to let it go, it will destroy us. It is not the rock that will destroy – it is our decision.
Understanding the Body of Christ
If you are born-again, you are automatically a member of the body of Christ. It is important that every member of the Body of Christ has some understanding of the significance, benefits, privileges and responsibilities of this most important membership. Our lack of discernment leads to certain patterns of behavior. This in turn may lead to weakness, sickness and death. 1 Corinthians 11:30 (Amplified Bible).
Advantages of discerning the body
The book of the Acts of Apostles provides insights into the unique benefits of discerning the body. This was the time when “all the believers lived in a wonderful harmony, holding everything in common. They sold whatever they owned and pooled their resources so that each person’s need was met” Acts 2: 44-45. In other words, no one lacked. If we practice this in our local churches, no one will go to bed hungry while another church member has food at home. No one will be homeless while another member has a spare room.
“The whole congregation of believers was united as one—one heart, one mind! They didn't even claim ownership of their own possessions. No one said, "That's mine; you can't have it." Acts 4:32, 34-35. Not surprisingly, when such believers pray, venues shake. Oneness of the pew impacts the power of the pulpit. “They even carried the sick out into the streets and laid them on stretchers and bedrolls, hoping they would be touched by Peter's shadow when he walked by. They came from the villages surrounding Jerusalem, throngs of them, bringing the sick and bedeviled. And they all were healed” Acts 5:15-16. When members of a local church are in unity, signs and wonders will be commonplace. When they are not, weakness, sickness and death prevail. This principle is so important the devil used it in getting enraged people to stone Steven.
The modern day church is weak because it does not practice love as described in the Bible. We barely tolerate each other. This attitude is hurting us more than any other. Compare your life with the following counsel: “Help needy Christians; be inventive in hospitality. Don't hit back; discover beauty in everyone. If you've got it in you, get along with everybody. Romans 12:13, 17-18.
The Biblical standard of oneness among brethren is so high we are not encouraged to take another member to court for any reason! 1 Corinthians 6:1. A believer is admonished to love his enemies; how much more fellow believers. My beloved Christian, I am not advocating some mysterious doctrine. “If you've gotten anything at all out of following Christ, if his love has made any difference in your life, if being in a community of the Spirit means anything to you, if you have a heart, if you care— then do me a favor: Agree with each other, love each other, be deep-spirited friends. Philippians 2:1-2.
The Strategy of Satan
When there is division, plans cannot succeed. Dreams do not come through. Visions are lost. Power dissipates. The enemy gains a foothold. Our fellowship is powerless and routine. There is no evidence of divine presence. This is the reason Satan does everything he can to cause division among Christians. Luke 11:17, 18. When Christians are united, nothing can prevail against them. You can build anything with unity; you can destroy anything without it. When mankind came together to build the Tower of Babel, listen to what God said, “Indeed the people are one and they all have one language…now nothing that they propose to do will be withheld from them” (Gen 11:6). This is God’s assessment of mankind in unity. May it become His assessment of our gatherings in Jesus' name. Amen.
Caveats
You are not called to be clones of each other. That is uniformity which means to look alike, talk alike, and behave alike. You lose your identity and personality. This is not what the Bible advocates. The Apostles were all different personalities which impacted on the way they carried out their ministries. You are called to be unified with other believers. Unification means you share a common purpose and a set of objectives while maintaining your unique personality and identity.
The Greatest Sign of a Disciple
Disciples behave like their master. A disciple of Prophet Mohammed will exhibit violence just as his master did. How are the disciples of Christ identified? Is it by their wealth? Boldness? Speaking in tongues? Great miracles and healings? No. The Lord Jesus said, “This is how everyone will recognize that you are my disciples—when they see the love you have for each other” John 13:35. The more we act in love, the more like Jesus we become. The closest disciple to Jesus was John the Apostle. He wrote extensively about love in 1st John. If you do not love the brethren, you are either not born again or you are a very poor reflection of your Master.
“The way we know we've been transferred from death to life is that we love our brothers and sisters. Anyone who doesn't love is as good as dead. This is how we've come to understand and experience love: Christ sacrificed his life for us. This is why we ought to live sacrificially for our fellow believers, and not just be out for ourselves. If you see some brother or sister in need and have the means to do something about it but turn a cold shoulder and do nothing, what happens to God's love? It disappears. And you made it disappear. 1 John 3:14, 16-17.
“The person who refuses to love doesn't know the first thing about God, because God is love—so you can't know him if you don't love. 1 John 4:8
Love as Jesus loved
Jesus said: "This is my commandment, that you love one another, as I have loved you.”(John 15:9-12). This is not natural love. You can’t will it. It is unconditional. It is supernatural. God has deposited this agape love into our hearts through the Holy Spirit. We yield to the Holy Spirit in order to release this love into the world around us. In other words, you love by faith. Many of us are unlovable in the natural. Loving the lovable is easy. Loving the unlovable is challenging. Our imperfections, faults and weaknesses rub off on others negatively. Without God’s help, it is impossible to love others as you should.
Note that faith and love are intertwined. You cannot love as Jesus loves without faith. However, without love, you cannot practice faith because faith works by love. Galatians 5:6. When you come across difficult believers, ask the Holy Spirit to love them through you by faith. As you do this your faith will grow in leaps and bounds.
Practical Issues
No believer should have an unmet need when there’s another believer who can meet that need. No believer should starve when you have food. No believer should be homeless when you have a house. No believer should have difficulty getting around when other brethren have cars. No believer should be lonely in the presence church members.
In 1765 John Fawsett was called to pastor a very small congregation in England. He labored there diligently for 7 years, but his salary was so meager that he and his wife could scarcely obtain the necessities of life. Though the people were poor, they compensated for this lack by their faithfulness and warm fellowship. Then Dr. Fawcett received an offer from a much larger church in London. As his few possessions were being placed in a wagon for moving, many of his parishioners came to say good-bye and pleaded with him to reconsider. Touched by this great outpouring of love, he and his wife began to weep. Finally Mrs. Fawcett exclaimed, "O John, I just can’t bear this. They need us so badly here." "God has spoken to my heart, too!" he said. "Tell them to unload the wagon! We cannot break these wonderful ties of fellowship." This experience inspired Fawsett to write the hymn, “Blessed be the tie that binds”.
The Great Mystery
God presented Eve to the first Adam. When Adam saw her, he exclaimed:
“This is now bone of my bones
And flesh of my flesh;
She shall be called Woman,
Because she was taken out of Man.” Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. Genesis 2:23-24.
Sometime in the future, God will present a bride to the last Adam, Jesus Christ. “For we are members of His body, of His flesh and of His bones. For this reason a man (Christ) shall leave his father (God the Father) and mother (God the Spirit) and be joined to his wife (Church), and the two (Christ+Church) shall become one flesh (Bride). This is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the church. Ephesians 5:30-31.
The Godhead is made up of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. These three are one. They created man in Genesis 1:26 “in our image, after our likeness”. This means that from the beginning, the Godhead had plans to bring man into oneness with the Trinity. On the last day, the body of Christ (Church) shall become one with the Head thereby fulfilling the original goal set forth in Genesis 1:26.
God spoke in the Old Testament mainly through the prophets. He is speaking in the last days through the Son. However, in the last chapter of the Bible, God shall speak through the Spirit and the Church. Why? Because the Bride has become one with her husband, the Lord Jesus. “The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let the one who hears say, “Come!” Let the one who is thirsty come; and let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life. Revelation 22:17. This is man in God’s image, after His likeness.
This is an answer to the prayer of Jesus in John 17:21, “That they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me”.
This is what the Bible means when it says that “that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. Ephesians 2:7. God is Love. He is Grace personified. He wants to show the limitless boundary of His grace by lifting man from the depths of depravity to oneness with Him.
Prayer:
For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height— to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Ephesians 5:14-19.
Advantages of discerning the body
The book of the Acts of Apostles provides insights into the unique benefits of discerning the body. This was the time when “all the believers lived in a wonderful harmony, holding everything in common. They sold whatever they owned and pooled their resources so that each person’s need was met” Acts 2: 44-45. In other words, no one lacked. If we practice this in our local churches, no one will go to bed hungry while another church member has food at home. No one will be homeless while another member has a spare room.
“The whole congregation of believers was united as one—one heart, one mind! They didn't even claim ownership of their own possessions. No one said, "That's mine; you can't have it." Acts 4:32, 34-35. Not surprisingly, when such believers pray, venues shake. Oneness of the pew impacts the power of the pulpit. “They even carried the sick out into the streets and laid them on stretchers and bedrolls, hoping they would be touched by Peter's shadow when he walked by. They came from the villages surrounding Jerusalem, throngs of them, bringing the sick and bedeviled. And they all were healed” Acts 5:15-16. When members of a local church are in unity, signs and wonders will be commonplace. When they are not, weakness, sickness and death prevail. This principle is so important the devil used it in getting enraged people to stone Steven.
The modern day church is weak because it does not practice love as described in the Bible. We barely tolerate each other. This attitude is hurting us more than any other. Compare your life with the following counsel: “Help needy Christians; be inventive in hospitality. Don't hit back; discover beauty in everyone. If you've got it in you, get along with everybody. Romans 12:13, 17-18.
The Biblical standard of oneness among brethren is so high we are not encouraged to take another member to court for any reason! 1 Corinthians 6:1. A believer is admonished to love his enemies; how much more fellow believers. My beloved Christian, I am not advocating some mysterious doctrine. “If you've gotten anything at all out of following Christ, if his love has made any difference in your life, if being in a community of the Spirit means anything to you, if you have a heart, if you care— then do me a favor: Agree with each other, love each other, be deep-spirited friends. Philippians 2:1-2.
The Strategy of Satan
When there is division, plans cannot succeed. Dreams do not come through. Visions are lost. Power dissipates. The enemy gains a foothold. Our fellowship is powerless and routine. There is no evidence of divine presence. This is the reason Satan does everything he can to cause division among Christians. Luke 11:17, 18. When Christians are united, nothing can prevail against them. You can build anything with unity; you can destroy anything without it. When mankind came together to build the Tower of Babel, listen to what God said, “Indeed the people are one and they all have one language…now nothing that they propose to do will be withheld from them” (Gen 11:6). This is God’s assessment of mankind in unity. May it become His assessment of our gatherings in Jesus' name. Amen.
Caveats
You are not called to be clones of each other. That is uniformity which means to look alike, talk alike, and behave alike. You lose your identity and personality. This is not what the Bible advocates. The Apostles were all different personalities which impacted on the way they carried out their ministries. You are called to be unified with other believers. Unification means you share a common purpose and a set of objectives while maintaining your unique personality and identity.
The Greatest Sign of a Disciple
Disciples behave like their master. A disciple of Prophet Mohammed will exhibit violence just as his master did. How are the disciples of Christ identified? Is it by their wealth? Boldness? Speaking in tongues? Great miracles and healings? No. The Lord Jesus said, “This is how everyone will recognize that you are my disciples—when they see the love you have for each other” John 13:35. The more we act in love, the more like Jesus we become. The closest disciple to Jesus was John the Apostle. He wrote extensively about love in 1st John. If you do not love the brethren, you are either not born again or you are a very poor reflection of your Master.
“The way we know we've been transferred from death to life is that we love our brothers and sisters. Anyone who doesn't love is as good as dead. This is how we've come to understand and experience love: Christ sacrificed his life for us. This is why we ought to live sacrificially for our fellow believers, and not just be out for ourselves. If you see some brother or sister in need and have the means to do something about it but turn a cold shoulder and do nothing, what happens to God's love? It disappears. And you made it disappear. 1 John 3:14, 16-17.
“The person who refuses to love doesn't know the first thing about God, because God is love—so you can't know him if you don't love. 1 John 4:8
Love as Jesus loved
Jesus said: "This is my commandment, that you love one another, as I have loved you.”(John 15:9-12). This is not natural love. You can’t will it. It is unconditional. It is supernatural. God has deposited this agape love into our hearts through the Holy Spirit. We yield to the Holy Spirit in order to release this love into the world around us. In other words, you love by faith. Many of us are unlovable in the natural. Loving the lovable is easy. Loving the unlovable is challenging. Our imperfections, faults and weaknesses rub off on others negatively. Without God’s help, it is impossible to love others as you should.
Note that faith and love are intertwined. You cannot love as Jesus loves without faith. However, without love, you cannot practice faith because faith works by love. Galatians 5:6. When you come across difficult believers, ask the Holy Spirit to love them through you by faith. As you do this your faith will grow in leaps and bounds.
Practical Issues
No believer should have an unmet need when there’s another believer who can meet that need. No believer should starve when you have food. No believer should be homeless when you have a house. No believer should have difficulty getting around when other brethren have cars. No believer should be lonely in the presence church members.
In 1765 John Fawsett was called to pastor a very small congregation in England. He labored there diligently for 7 years, but his salary was so meager that he and his wife could scarcely obtain the necessities of life. Though the people were poor, they compensated for this lack by their faithfulness and warm fellowship. Then Dr. Fawcett received an offer from a much larger church in London. As his few possessions were being placed in a wagon for moving, many of his parishioners came to say good-bye and pleaded with him to reconsider. Touched by this great outpouring of love, he and his wife began to weep. Finally Mrs. Fawcett exclaimed, "O John, I just can’t bear this. They need us so badly here." "God has spoken to my heart, too!" he said. "Tell them to unload the wagon! We cannot break these wonderful ties of fellowship." This experience inspired Fawsett to write the hymn, “Blessed be the tie that binds”.
The Great Mystery
God presented Eve to the first Adam. When Adam saw her, he exclaimed:
“This is now bone of my bones
And flesh of my flesh;
She shall be called Woman,
Because she was taken out of Man.” Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. Genesis 2:23-24.
Sometime in the future, God will present a bride to the last Adam, Jesus Christ. “For we are members of His body, of His flesh and of His bones. For this reason a man (Christ) shall leave his father (God the Father) and mother (God the Spirit) and be joined to his wife (Church), and the two (Christ+Church) shall become one flesh (Bride). This is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the church. Ephesians 5:30-31.
The Godhead is made up of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. These three are one. They created man in Genesis 1:26 “in our image, after our likeness”. This means that from the beginning, the Godhead had plans to bring man into oneness with the Trinity. On the last day, the body of Christ (Church) shall become one with the Head thereby fulfilling the original goal set forth in Genesis 1:26.
God spoke in the Old Testament mainly through the prophets. He is speaking in the last days through the Son. However, in the last chapter of the Bible, God shall speak through the Spirit and the Church. Why? Because the Bride has become one with her husband, the Lord Jesus. “The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let the one who hears say, “Come!” Let the one who is thirsty come; and let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life. Revelation 22:17. This is man in God’s image, after His likeness.
This is an answer to the prayer of Jesus in John 17:21, “That they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me”.
This is what the Bible means when it says that “that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. Ephesians 2:7. God is Love. He is Grace personified. He wants to show the limitless boundary of His grace by lifting man from the depths of depravity to oneness with Him.
Prayer:
For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height— to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Ephesians 5:14-19.
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Life Management
A lifetime is the period between date of birth and date of death. We all know our date of birth but don’t know the later. Compared to eternity however, life is too short. Time is a unit of life. It is life’s currency. “Time is a resource that is nonrenewable and nontransferable. You cannot store it, slow it up, hold it up, divide it up or give it up. You can’t hoard it up or save it for a rainy day–when it’s lost it’s unrecoverable. When you kill time, remember that it has no resurrection.”(A.W. Tozer).
Stephen Covey writes: “Time management is a misleading concept. You can’t really manage time. You can’t delay it, speed it up, save it or lose it. No matter what you do time keeps moving forward at the same rate. The challenge is not to manage time, but to manage ourselves.” This is why the topic of this article is life management, rather than time management.
The Unwelcome Realities
In a lifetime the average North American will spend:
6 months sitting at stoplights
8 months opening junk mail
1 year looking for misplaced objects
2 years unsuccessfully returning phone calls
5 years waiting in line/waiting for latecomers
6 years eating
21 years watching television.
Number your Days
No one has all the time in the world to do everything he wants to do. We all have the same 24 hours in a day. It is therefore critical that you know what you’re doing with your time.
“Our days may come to seventy years, or eighty, if our strength endures; yet the best of them are but trouble and sorrow, for they quickly pass, and we fly away. So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom” Psalms 90:10, 12.
Your available total time = the time between the date of birth and date of death/rapture. This time is our allotted time. Job 7:1, Job 14:14, Acts 17:26.
Assuming you have 81 years to live, you’ll spend;
8 hours per day sleeping = 21 years.
8 hours per day working or studying = 21 years.
8 hours per day grooming/miscellaneous = 21 years.
The first 2 sets of 8 hours are fixed, the third one is variable. This means that you don’t have a lot of control over two-thirds of every day of your life. However, there is a lot you can do within the more flexible time. How much time do you have left? Assuming a lifespan of 80 years, you can calculate the number of days you have left by using the following formula:
80 – Age X 365 = number of days left to live.
For a 40-year-old man, the answer is 14,600 days. This translates to:
4866 days sleeping
4866 days working
4866 days to cleanup, shop, eat, exercise, pay bills etc.
The average individual only has 5 hours a day of discretionary time. In the case of this 40-year-old man, he has 1014 days in total of discretionary time. The difference between a fulfilled life and an empty one is often dependent on how this discretionary time is used. Where are you investing those 5 hours a day of your life?
The true cost of things
Our lives are measured in terms of time. Whenever you want to make a major purchase, think of the true cost of the purchase in terms of time. Anything you want to spend money on that demands you spend more time working extra hours to pay for it requires critical thinking. Few things in life are worth the enormous sacrifice of longer hours at work. “You don’t really pay for things with money. You pay for them with time. “In 5 years, I’ll have put enough away to buy that new house. Then I’ll slow down or get out of this business altogether.” That means the house will cost you five years---five out of eighty, maybe. That’s one sixteen of your whole life; one twelfth of your adult life; one quarter of the time you’ll spend living with any one of your children.” Charles Spezzano.
Very few things are worth the extra hours of money-making. Vacation, second home, recreational gadgets, jewelry etc. are usually not worth it. An additional qualification which may eventually increase your hourly rate may be.
Make the most of opportunity
The Bible admonishes us to redeem the time. The word “redeeming” can be translated buying up or purchasing. The word “time” is not the Greek word “chronos" which means clock time that is measured in hours, minutes and seconds, but it is the Greek word "kairos" which refers to quality of time or season. We are not called to be good time managers; we are called to be good opportunity managers. It is not just counting the days, months and years, but making the days, months and years count. Tomorrow you will be given another 24 hours, but you may never have the same opportunity again.
Successful management of life depends on how you manage every 24 hours. The most crucial part of your 24 hours is time spent in dialogue with God. Therefore make sure that part of your 5 hours of discretionary time is spent in activities that have eternal value. Remember that regardless of how you mismanage a particular day another day is a new opportunity for improvement. The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; His mercies never come to an end. They are new every morning.
Busyness
One excuse many of us have for not giving God our time is that we are very busy. “If you have so much business to attend to that you have no time to pray, you have more business on hand than God ever intended you should have” (DL Moody). “The management of time is the management of self; therefore, if you manage time with God, He will begin to manage you.” (Jill Briscoe). "The moment you wake up each morning, all your wishes & hopes for the day rush at you like wild animals. And the first job each morning consists in shoving it all back; in listening to that other voice, taking that other point of view, letting that other, larger, stronger, quieter life come flowing in." (C.S. Lewis)
In making the most of every opportunity, take note that relationships are the best use of our time. The order is as follows:
Our relationship with God
Relationship with spouse (if any)
Relationship with children (if any)
Relationship with brethren
Relationship with others (neighbors, coworkers, extended family members).
Life is too short to bear grudges, gossip, backbite, harbor hate, plot revenge, and watch TV endlessly. Gain a new perspective. Focus on the eternal. Minimize the temporal. After all, 80 years is a very short time compared to endless life. Our current life is a preparation for the next. Avoid distractions. “You can either pay now and play later or play now and pay later. But either way, you’re going to pay”.
Forget yesterday Phil 3:13-14. Manage your life by managing your day. Stop worrying. “Today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday”. There is only one of you for all time. Fearlessly be yourself (Anthony Rapp). And in the end, it's not the years in your life that count. It's the life in your years. (Abraham Lincoln).
Treasure every moment that you have! Yesterday is history. Tomorrow is a mystery. Today is a gift...That’s why it’s called the “present!”
A colleague told me this story about a time management expert who was teaching a seminar for executives. He placed a large jar in front of the group. Next, he put seven or eight large rocks into the jar until it was full. “Is the jar full?” He asked. Everyone nodded. Then he took pebbles and filled up the jar with the small rocks until they reached the rim. “Is the jar full?” By now, they didn’t answer. So, he poured fine sand in. “Is the jar full?” Some nodded. He proceeded to take a pitcher of water and filled up the jar again. “What’s the lesson about time management?” he asked. Hands shot up, and everyone agreed “No matter how busy you are you can always fit more things into your schedule.” “Wrong.” he replied. “The lesson is: unless you put the big rocks in first, they never will fit in. You must figure out what the big rocks are for you.
The biggest rock in my life is the Rock of Ages. In Him I live and move and have my being. I must carve out time with Him on a daily basis or I am not making adequate preparation for my next life. If I am not going to spend eternity working, shopping or playing golf, it makes sense for me to train myself to spend time with God on earth. My next big rock is my marriage followed by my children. I must also live a love-filled life for the rest of my days.
Terry Muck tells of a letter he received from a man who used to have absolutely no interest in spiritual things. He lived next door to a Christian, and they had a casual relationship. Then the non-Christian’s wife died of cancer within a short time. “I was in total despair. I went through the funeral preparations and the service like I was in a trance. And after the service I went to the path along the river and walked all night. But I did not walk alone. My neighbor - afraid for me, I guess - stayed with me all night. He did not speak; he did not even walk beside me. He just followed me. When the sun finally came up over the river he came over to me and said, "Let’s go get some breakfast."
I go to church now. My neighbor’s church. A religion that can produce the kind of caring and love my neighbor showed me is something I want to find out more about. I want to be like that. I want to love and be loved like that for the rest of my life.”
The Christian saw an opportunity to reveal Christ to his friend. He had learned how to redeem the time.
Stephen Covey writes: “Time management is a misleading concept. You can’t really manage time. You can’t delay it, speed it up, save it or lose it. No matter what you do time keeps moving forward at the same rate. The challenge is not to manage time, but to manage ourselves.” This is why the topic of this article is life management, rather than time management.
The Unwelcome Realities
In a lifetime the average North American will spend:
6 months sitting at stoplights
8 months opening junk mail
1 year looking for misplaced objects
2 years unsuccessfully returning phone calls
5 years waiting in line/waiting for latecomers
6 years eating
21 years watching television.
Number your Days
No one has all the time in the world to do everything he wants to do. We all have the same 24 hours in a day. It is therefore critical that you know what you’re doing with your time.
“Our days may come to seventy years, or eighty, if our strength endures; yet the best of them are but trouble and sorrow, for they quickly pass, and we fly away. So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom” Psalms 90:10, 12.
Your available total time = the time between the date of birth and date of death/rapture. This time is our allotted time. Job 7:1, Job 14:14, Acts 17:26.
Assuming you have 81 years to live, you’ll spend;
8 hours per day sleeping = 21 years.
8 hours per day working or studying = 21 years.
8 hours per day grooming/miscellaneous = 21 years.
The first 2 sets of 8 hours are fixed, the third one is variable. This means that you don’t have a lot of control over two-thirds of every day of your life. However, there is a lot you can do within the more flexible time. How much time do you have left? Assuming a lifespan of 80 years, you can calculate the number of days you have left by using the following formula:
80 – Age X 365 = number of days left to live.
For a 40-year-old man, the answer is 14,600 days. This translates to:
4866 days sleeping
4866 days working
4866 days to cleanup, shop, eat, exercise, pay bills etc.
The average individual only has 5 hours a day of discretionary time. In the case of this 40-year-old man, he has 1014 days in total of discretionary time. The difference between a fulfilled life and an empty one is often dependent on how this discretionary time is used. Where are you investing those 5 hours a day of your life?
The true cost of things
Our lives are measured in terms of time. Whenever you want to make a major purchase, think of the true cost of the purchase in terms of time. Anything you want to spend money on that demands you spend more time working extra hours to pay for it requires critical thinking. Few things in life are worth the enormous sacrifice of longer hours at work. “You don’t really pay for things with money. You pay for them with time. “In 5 years, I’ll have put enough away to buy that new house. Then I’ll slow down or get out of this business altogether.” That means the house will cost you five years---five out of eighty, maybe. That’s one sixteen of your whole life; one twelfth of your adult life; one quarter of the time you’ll spend living with any one of your children.” Charles Spezzano.
Very few things are worth the extra hours of money-making. Vacation, second home, recreational gadgets, jewelry etc. are usually not worth it. An additional qualification which may eventually increase your hourly rate may be.
Make the most of opportunity
The Bible admonishes us to redeem the time. The word “redeeming” can be translated buying up or purchasing. The word “time” is not the Greek word “chronos" which means clock time that is measured in hours, minutes and seconds, but it is the Greek word "kairos" which refers to quality of time or season. We are not called to be good time managers; we are called to be good opportunity managers. It is not just counting the days, months and years, but making the days, months and years count. Tomorrow you will be given another 24 hours, but you may never have the same opportunity again.
Successful management of life depends on how you manage every 24 hours. The most crucial part of your 24 hours is time spent in dialogue with God. Therefore make sure that part of your 5 hours of discretionary time is spent in activities that have eternal value. Remember that regardless of how you mismanage a particular day another day is a new opportunity for improvement. The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; His mercies never come to an end. They are new every morning.
Busyness
One excuse many of us have for not giving God our time is that we are very busy. “If you have so much business to attend to that you have no time to pray, you have more business on hand than God ever intended you should have” (DL Moody). “The management of time is the management of self; therefore, if you manage time with God, He will begin to manage you.” (Jill Briscoe). "The moment you wake up each morning, all your wishes & hopes for the day rush at you like wild animals. And the first job each morning consists in shoving it all back; in listening to that other voice, taking that other point of view, letting that other, larger, stronger, quieter life come flowing in." (C.S. Lewis)
In making the most of every opportunity, take note that relationships are the best use of our time. The order is as follows:
Our relationship with God
Relationship with spouse (if any)
Relationship with children (if any)
Relationship with brethren
Relationship with others (neighbors, coworkers, extended family members).
Life is too short to bear grudges, gossip, backbite, harbor hate, plot revenge, and watch TV endlessly. Gain a new perspective. Focus on the eternal. Minimize the temporal. After all, 80 years is a very short time compared to endless life. Our current life is a preparation for the next. Avoid distractions. “You can either pay now and play later or play now and pay later. But either way, you’re going to pay”.
Forget yesterday Phil 3:13-14. Manage your life by managing your day. Stop worrying. “Today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday”. There is only one of you for all time. Fearlessly be yourself (Anthony Rapp). And in the end, it's not the years in your life that count. It's the life in your years. (Abraham Lincoln).
Treasure every moment that you have! Yesterday is history. Tomorrow is a mystery. Today is a gift...That’s why it’s called the “present!”
A colleague told me this story about a time management expert who was teaching a seminar for executives. He placed a large jar in front of the group. Next, he put seven or eight large rocks into the jar until it was full. “Is the jar full?” He asked. Everyone nodded. Then he took pebbles and filled up the jar with the small rocks until they reached the rim. “Is the jar full?” By now, they didn’t answer. So, he poured fine sand in. “Is the jar full?” Some nodded. He proceeded to take a pitcher of water and filled up the jar again. “What’s the lesson about time management?” he asked. Hands shot up, and everyone agreed “No matter how busy you are you can always fit more things into your schedule.” “Wrong.” he replied. “The lesson is: unless you put the big rocks in first, they never will fit in. You must figure out what the big rocks are for you.
The biggest rock in my life is the Rock of Ages. In Him I live and move and have my being. I must carve out time with Him on a daily basis or I am not making adequate preparation for my next life. If I am not going to spend eternity working, shopping or playing golf, it makes sense for me to train myself to spend time with God on earth. My next big rock is my marriage followed by my children. I must also live a love-filled life for the rest of my days.
Terry Muck tells of a letter he received from a man who used to have absolutely no interest in spiritual things. He lived next door to a Christian, and they had a casual relationship. Then the non-Christian’s wife died of cancer within a short time. “I was in total despair. I went through the funeral preparations and the service like I was in a trance. And after the service I went to the path along the river and walked all night. But I did not walk alone. My neighbor - afraid for me, I guess - stayed with me all night. He did not speak; he did not even walk beside me. He just followed me. When the sun finally came up over the river he came over to me and said, "Let’s go get some breakfast."
I go to church now. My neighbor’s church. A religion that can produce the kind of caring and love my neighbor showed me is something I want to find out more about. I want to be like that. I want to love and be loved like that for the rest of my life.”
The Christian saw an opportunity to reveal Christ to his friend. He had learned how to redeem the time.
Wanted: Christ Copiers.
Whose copy are you?
Recent polls show that professing Christians are just as likely as non-Christians to have been divorced, bought a lottery ticket, watch MTV or have subscribed to cable television like HBO and watch R, and even X rated movies as non-Christians. Whose copy are you?
A Christ Copier is a disciple of Christ. He is a “decent example” of Jesus. A disciple is a Christian. The disciples were called Christians (Christ-copy) for the first in Antioch. (Acts 11:26) There are 3 hallmarks of a disciple of Christ: born again, learner, a member of a small group of disciples.
Born again
Discipleship is a journey that starts when an individual surrenders to the Lord, receiving forgiveness of sin in the process. It is a defining moment that starts a relationship between man and God. It cannot be substituted with regular church attendance, church membership, ministry work, charitable works etc. have you invited Jesus who died for you into your heart? If not, it is not too late.
Learner
When anyone becomes born-again, he is a baby in Christ and needs to grow into a mature Christian. There are many who claim to be born again but are not growing. They have lost or never got a Learner’s Permit. This permit is for a lifetime. “As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby”. 1 Peter 2:2. It is tragedy to start as a babe, and remain so after many years in the faith. Someone with a lower opinion of babies once described them this way: “A baby is a digestive apparatus with a loud noise at one end and no responsibility on the other.” Is your life marked by a desire to know God and become like Him?
Certain characteristics are essential for growth: Food, shelter, clothing, love/affection, ability to hear, speak, think, ability to sit, stand and walk and, ability to read and write. Which of these essentials is most important for growth? Food. Without food, the baby will die and will never have the opportunity to acquire other abilities. Babies need milk, natural or artificial, to survive. They also need to gradually grow to tolerate adult meals in order for their development not to be stunted.
Man is made up or body, soul and spirit. As physical food is to your body, so is the Word of God to your spirit. On average, we eat 3 times daily. How often do we feed our spirits with the Word in a 24-hour period? Stop starving your spirit. Feed your spirit by: Meditating on the Word daily and talking to God for at least 15 minutes daily. God came to Adam in the cool of the evening to chat with him daily. It is one of the reasons we exist. Face-book and twitter God on a daily basis and you will never be the same again.
Member of a small group
There are many lonely people in this world. These loners are in 2 categories: The Ignorant and the Arrogant. The ignorant loner does not know he needs others. The arrogant thinks he is self-sufficient. There is a reason none of us dropped from the sky or shot out of the ground like a plant. Regardless of whether your parents are together or not, everyone was born to a small group called family. It is not good for man to be alone as he goes through life’s journey.
The Almighty God exists as a small group of Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Before the God-family made man, man was referred to in the plural. God said, “Let Us make man in our image, according to our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth. Genesis 1:26.
Soon after Adam was made, God formed a family for him by creating Eve. Genesis 2:24. Noah was found righteous in God’s sight but he did not go into the Ark alone; he went with his household. Genesis 7:1. What do all these have to do with being a disciple of Christ? Jesus had 12 of them; none walked alone. There is no such thing as lonely disciple.
When a child is born, he becomes part of a family of parents and siblings. In the same was, as soon as a man gets born again, he becomes a member of the family of Christ, the Body of Christ, the Church. The local church is a microcosm of the Church Universal. Christ is the Head. Church leaders are the neck. Other parts are made up of all other believers and may play roles that are visible or invisible.
The Body of Christ has all it takes to take care of its own.
Healthcare Department
Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven. James 5:14-15, Mark 16:18.
Education Department
“Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to teach what is good. Then they can urge the younger women to love their husbands and children” Titus 2:3-4 (NIV), Hebrews 5:12, Ephesians 4:11-13. Older believers (assuming they have grown in the Lord as they should) have a responsibility to teach the babies in the faith.
Bank of Heaven
"Don't hoard treasure down here where it gets eaten by moths and corroded by rust or worse, stolen by burglars. Stockpile treasure in heaven, where it's safe from moth and rust and burglars. It's obvious, isn't it? The place where your treasure is, is the place you will most want to be, and end up being”. Matthew 6:19-20 (The Message), Matthew 19:21, Philippians 4:19. Giving lays up treasure in heaven. A disciple must be a giver.
Social Security Department
And all the believers lived in a wonderful harmony, holding everything in common. They sold whatever they owned and pooled their resources so that each person's need was met. Acts 2:44-45 (The Message)
Electricity
The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. John 1:9.
But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin. 1 John 1:7.
Water Department
Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. Ephesians 5:25-27 (NIV)
Waste Management System
Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. Ephesians 4:31-32 (NIV)
Social Services
Live creatively, friends. If someone falls into sin, forgivingly restore him, saving your critical comments for yourself. You might be needing forgiveness before the day's out. Stoop down and reach out to those who are oppressed. Share their burdens, and so complete Christ's law. If you think you are too good for that, you are badly deceived. Galatians 6:1-3 (The Message)
Housing Department
……God is building a home. He's using us all—irrespective of how we got here—in what he is building. He used the apostles and prophets for the foundation. Now he's using you, fitting you in brick by brick, stone by stone, with Christ Jesus as the cornerstone that holds all the parts together. We see it taking shape day after day—a holy temple built by God, all of us built into it, a temple in which God is quite at home. Ephesians 2:20-22 (The Message).
Diversity of the Body of Christ
Aren’t we happy that our human body is not made up of one huge hand or even a collection of hands? When it comes to our local church, our appreciation of the differences that exist between members is not automatic. It takes work, persistence, commitment, patience, perseverance. Concerning marriage, a man and a woman become one on their wedding day. However, that unity must be nurtured, strengthened and defended throughout their life together. Everyone comes to marriage with a baggage which if not attended to, becomes a source of conflict and eventual separation.
If marriage is challenging, imagine the potential for division in a church with many more members than an average family! We all have issues and baggage that we have brought into our relationship as members. But we must win one another’s trust with unconditional love.
Don’t be a leech. The human body does not exist to meet the needs of the hand. The hand exists to meet the needs of the body and in doing so gets its own needs met. The Church does not exist to meet our needs. We exist to carry out the work of the Body and in doing so our own needs are met.
Every member is a minister.
As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. 1 Peter 4:10 (NKJV)
But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: 1 Corinthians 12:7 (NKJV)
But that doesn't mean you should all look and speak and act the same. Out of the generosity of Christ, each of us is given his own gift. Ephesians 4:7 (Message)
Nobody is a nobody in the body of Christ. We all have a distinct role to play.
From him (Christ) the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work. Ephesians 4:16.
The church will not grow if each part doesn’t do its work. Everyone is essential. No one is useless. This is illustrated in the fictional story below:
A man broke his left arm.
One night when he couldn’t sleep, he imagined a dialogue between his right and left hands.
Right Hand said, “Left Hand, you are not missed. Everybody’s glad it was you that was broken and not me. You are not very important.”
Left Hand asked, “How are you superior?”
Right Hand replied, “Why, my owner cannot write a letter without me.”
Left Hand: “But who holds the paper on which he writes?”
Right Hand: “Who swings the hammer?”
Left Hand: “Who holds the nail?”
Right Hand: “Who guides the plane when the carpenter smoothens a board?”
Left Hand: “Who steadies the board?”
Right Hand: “When our owner walks down the street and lifts his hat to greet someone, which of us does it?”
Left Hand: “Who holds the briefcase while he does it?”
Then he continued, “Let me ask you a question. When our owner shaved yesterday, you held the razor, but his face is cut because I wasn’t there to help. Also, our owner’s watch has stopped. Why? You may do the winding, but if I’m not there to hold it, the watch won’t get wound. You can’t take money out of his wallet to pay for something because I’m not there to hold it. The master can do very few things without me.”
In summary, a Christ-copier must be born again, eager to learn by meditating on the Word and praying daily, and be an active part of a local church where he or she is located.
Recent polls show that professing Christians are just as likely as non-Christians to have been divorced, bought a lottery ticket, watch MTV or have subscribed to cable television like HBO and watch R, and even X rated movies as non-Christians. Whose copy are you?
A Christ Copier is a disciple of Christ. He is a “decent example” of Jesus. A disciple is a Christian. The disciples were called Christians (Christ-copy) for the first in Antioch. (Acts 11:26) There are 3 hallmarks of a disciple of Christ: born again, learner, a member of a small group of disciples.
Born again
Discipleship is a journey that starts when an individual surrenders to the Lord, receiving forgiveness of sin in the process. It is a defining moment that starts a relationship between man and God. It cannot be substituted with regular church attendance, church membership, ministry work, charitable works etc. have you invited Jesus who died for you into your heart? If not, it is not too late.
Learner
When anyone becomes born-again, he is a baby in Christ and needs to grow into a mature Christian. There are many who claim to be born again but are not growing. They have lost or never got a Learner’s Permit. This permit is for a lifetime. “As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby”. 1 Peter 2:2. It is tragedy to start as a babe, and remain so after many years in the faith. Someone with a lower opinion of babies once described them this way: “A baby is a digestive apparatus with a loud noise at one end and no responsibility on the other.” Is your life marked by a desire to know God and become like Him?
Certain characteristics are essential for growth: Food, shelter, clothing, love/affection, ability to hear, speak, think, ability to sit, stand and walk and, ability to read and write. Which of these essentials is most important for growth? Food. Without food, the baby will die and will never have the opportunity to acquire other abilities. Babies need milk, natural or artificial, to survive. They also need to gradually grow to tolerate adult meals in order for their development not to be stunted.
Man is made up or body, soul and spirit. As physical food is to your body, so is the Word of God to your spirit. On average, we eat 3 times daily. How often do we feed our spirits with the Word in a 24-hour period? Stop starving your spirit. Feed your spirit by: Meditating on the Word daily and talking to God for at least 15 minutes daily. God came to Adam in the cool of the evening to chat with him daily. It is one of the reasons we exist. Face-book and twitter God on a daily basis and you will never be the same again.
Member of a small group
There are many lonely people in this world. These loners are in 2 categories: The Ignorant and the Arrogant. The ignorant loner does not know he needs others. The arrogant thinks he is self-sufficient. There is a reason none of us dropped from the sky or shot out of the ground like a plant. Regardless of whether your parents are together or not, everyone was born to a small group called family. It is not good for man to be alone as he goes through life’s journey.
The Almighty God exists as a small group of Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Before the God-family made man, man was referred to in the plural. God said, “Let Us make man in our image, according to our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth. Genesis 1:26.
Soon after Adam was made, God formed a family for him by creating Eve. Genesis 2:24. Noah was found righteous in God’s sight but he did not go into the Ark alone; he went with his household. Genesis 7:1. What do all these have to do with being a disciple of Christ? Jesus had 12 of them; none walked alone. There is no such thing as lonely disciple.
When a child is born, he becomes part of a family of parents and siblings. In the same was, as soon as a man gets born again, he becomes a member of the family of Christ, the Body of Christ, the Church. The local church is a microcosm of the Church Universal. Christ is the Head. Church leaders are the neck. Other parts are made up of all other believers and may play roles that are visible or invisible.
The Body of Christ has all it takes to take care of its own.
Healthcare Department
Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven. James 5:14-15, Mark 16:18.
Education Department
“Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to teach what is good. Then they can urge the younger women to love their husbands and children” Titus 2:3-4 (NIV), Hebrews 5:12, Ephesians 4:11-13. Older believers (assuming they have grown in the Lord as they should) have a responsibility to teach the babies in the faith.
Bank of Heaven
"Don't hoard treasure down here where it gets eaten by moths and corroded by rust or worse, stolen by burglars. Stockpile treasure in heaven, where it's safe from moth and rust and burglars. It's obvious, isn't it? The place where your treasure is, is the place you will most want to be, and end up being”. Matthew 6:19-20 (The Message), Matthew 19:21, Philippians 4:19. Giving lays up treasure in heaven. A disciple must be a giver.
Social Security Department
And all the believers lived in a wonderful harmony, holding everything in common. They sold whatever they owned and pooled their resources so that each person's need was met. Acts 2:44-45 (The Message)
Electricity
The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. John 1:9.
But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin. 1 John 1:7.
Water Department
Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. Ephesians 5:25-27 (NIV)
Waste Management System
Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. Ephesians 4:31-32 (NIV)
Social Services
Live creatively, friends. If someone falls into sin, forgivingly restore him, saving your critical comments for yourself. You might be needing forgiveness before the day's out. Stoop down and reach out to those who are oppressed. Share their burdens, and so complete Christ's law. If you think you are too good for that, you are badly deceived. Galatians 6:1-3 (The Message)
Housing Department
……God is building a home. He's using us all—irrespective of how we got here—in what he is building. He used the apostles and prophets for the foundation. Now he's using you, fitting you in brick by brick, stone by stone, with Christ Jesus as the cornerstone that holds all the parts together. We see it taking shape day after day—a holy temple built by God, all of us built into it, a temple in which God is quite at home. Ephesians 2:20-22 (The Message).
Diversity of the Body of Christ
Aren’t we happy that our human body is not made up of one huge hand or even a collection of hands? When it comes to our local church, our appreciation of the differences that exist between members is not automatic. It takes work, persistence, commitment, patience, perseverance. Concerning marriage, a man and a woman become one on their wedding day. However, that unity must be nurtured, strengthened and defended throughout their life together. Everyone comes to marriage with a baggage which if not attended to, becomes a source of conflict and eventual separation.
If marriage is challenging, imagine the potential for division in a church with many more members than an average family! We all have issues and baggage that we have brought into our relationship as members. But we must win one another’s trust with unconditional love.
Don’t be a leech. The human body does not exist to meet the needs of the hand. The hand exists to meet the needs of the body and in doing so gets its own needs met. The Church does not exist to meet our needs. We exist to carry out the work of the Body and in doing so our own needs are met.
Every member is a minister.
As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. 1 Peter 4:10 (NKJV)
But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: 1 Corinthians 12:7 (NKJV)
But that doesn't mean you should all look and speak and act the same. Out of the generosity of Christ, each of us is given his own gift. Ephesians 4:7 (Message)
Nobody is a nobody in the body of Christ. We all have a distinct role to play.
From him (Christ) the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work. Ephesians 4:16.
The church will not grow if each part doesn’t do its work. Everyone is essential. No one is useless. This is illustrated in the fictional story below:
A man broke his left arm.
One night when he couldn’t sleep, he imagined a dialogue between his right and left hands.
Right Hand said, “Left Hand, you are not missed. Everybody’s glad it was you that was broken and not me. You are not very important.”
Left Hand asked, “How are you superior?”
Right Hand replied, “Why, my owner cannot write a letter without me.”
Left Hand: “But who holds the paper on which he writes?”
Right Hand: “Who swings the hammer?”
Left Hand: “Who holds the nail?”
Right Hand: “Who guides the plane when the carpenter smoothens a board?”
Left Hand: “Who steadies the board?”
Right Hand: “When our owner walks down the street and lifts his hat to greet someone, which of us does it?”
Left Hand: “Who holds the briefcase while he does it?”
Then he continued, “Let me ask you a question. When our owner shaved yesterday, you held the razor, but his face is cut because I wasn’t there to help. Also, our owner’s watch has stopped. Why? You may do the winding, but if I’m not there to hold it, the watch won’t get wound. You can’t take money out of his wallet to pay for something because I’m not there to hold it. The master can do very few things without me.”
In summary, a Christ-copier must be born again, eager to learn by meditating on the Word and praying daily, and be an active part of a local church where he or she is located.
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