Category: From Pastor

Today’s devotion is based on Week 2 of “Tough Love”: Challenges Perspective! (WATCH HERE)

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Over the last two basketball seasons, I have enjoyed officiating basketball.  There are two things that are emphasized to officials.  1. Be in your rule book…so you know the rules.  2. Be in position on the court to have a good look at the call you make.

The rule book provides the content.  The positioning gives the context.

It has been a benefit to work with and talk with officials who have had much experience seeing the game through the lens of the rule book and making calls and interpretations to the best of their ability.

In life we are constantly confronting situations that need decisions and action.

The question is, what will be the perspective with which we evaluate those situations?

The options?

My own experiences and personal conclusions.

What I have been taught in schools or experienced at home.

What is popular in culture and promoted by the majority.

Is this a safe way to interpret and see life?

What if I called a basketball game based on my experience playing it?  Or watching the NBA or what the fans would like?

It would be a mess.

What if I called a basketball game based on the rules for a debate team or a football game.

Disaster.

The point is I want to view the game through the rules of the game.

The same is true of life.  There are many different philosophies and perspectives on life.  They may work at times or seem right at others.

But would it not be best to see and “call” the realities of life through the lens of the One who created life?

Seems like that would be best.

Jesus felt the same.  He spent much time teaching people the Word of God.  They wanted to hear his insights, his authority, his truth so much that they would crowd around him.  Jesus knew that the best way to view the world, was not through the world, but through his Word. So he taught the people.

Luke 5:1-3: One day as Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret, with the people crowding around him and listening to the word of God, 2 he saw at the water’s edge two boats, left there by the fishermen, who were washing their nets. 3 He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from shore. Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat. 

The best way to navigate all aspects of life is viewing it through the Word of God.  Jesus himself said, (Matthew 7:24) “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. 

Jesus’ advice to us today?

1. Be in the Word and 2) view every aspect of life through it!

Apply: How can you find more time to be in the Word.  Think of a situation you are addressing currently in your life.  Does your approach change as you view it and seek to understand and make a decision when you see it through the perspective of God’s Word?

Prayer: Lord, open my eyes to always see life through your word!  AMEN.

Today’s devotion is based on Week 2 of “Tough Love”: Challenges Perspective! (WATCH HERE)

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“That’s your perspective.”

This phrase is often at the conclusion of a conversation in which two individuals are discussing a matter and finding no agreement.  They see the situation differently.  They have different conclusions and the only alignment they can find is to agree they have different perspectives.

This could be in the area of politics.

This could be a relationship dispute or difference.

This could be a child’s behavior or performance in school.

Perspective.

It’s the way we view not just a situation in life, but actually the way we view all of life.

Perspective.

It’s been fashioned by our life experiences, the inputs of people we trust, and what our mind has concluded is correct.

Perspective.

It’s hard to change.  Especially if it has been a perspective you have held for years.

Perspective.

It’s hard to challenge.  Especially if the topic will create conflict or uncomfortable conversations.

Perspective.

Sometimes we have to challenge them.

And that’s tough.

But that’s what tough love does.

Does a parent challenge the perspective that a young daughter has on a young man that is taking advantage of her?  Of course.  You love her too much not to.

Does an employer challenge the perspective of an employee that is underperforming due to drug and alcohol abuse.  Of course.  You care about the person and the work of the company not to.

Does God challenge our perspectives that come naturally and are skewed by our sinful nature?  Of course.  He loves us too much to live in our sin and find the eternal destruction an ungodly perspective has.

That’s what tough love does.  It challenges our perspectives…especially the ones that are not seeing the world through the lens of God’s truth.

This week God will do just that.

Why?  Because he loves us enough to show us tough love and challenge the perspectives that are not spiritually beneficial, biblically correct, or eternally lasting.

This is God’s heart for every person of every generation.  Since sin entered the world, he has been willing to confront perspectives that are fashioned from our heart of sin and replace them with the perspectives of a heart of his Spirit.

Here’s one example to reflect on today from the prophet Ezekiel:

Ezekiel 36:22 “Therefore say to the Israelites, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: It is not for your sake, people of Israel, that I am going to do these things, but for the sake of my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations where you have gone. 23 I will show the holiness of my great name, which has been profaned among the nations, the name you have profaned among them. Then the nations will know that I am the Lord, declares the Sovereign Lord, when I am proved holy through you before their eyes.

24 “‘For I will take you out of the nations; I will gather you from all the countries and bring you back into your own land. 25 I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. 26 I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. 27 And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. 28 Then you will live in the land I gave your ancestors; you will be my people, and I will be your God.

 

Apply: What perspective are you holding on to that you know God is wanting to change in you?

Prayer: Lord, again thank you for your heart of love that is willing to challenge our perspectives and align them to your heart, your word, your truth.  Keep my heart willing to conform to your heart and my perspectives to your perspective.  AMEN.

Today’s devotion is based on Week 1 of “Tough Love”: Sets boundaries! (WATCH HERE)

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Perhaps one of the toughest things to do is to say “No” to someone you love and care about.  Perhaps some situations are easy.  To the teenager who wants to go to a party with lots of drinking and drugs, “No.  No you can’t.”  To a job that will pay less and move you to a part of the country you have no desire to live?  “No, sorry I will not accept that offer.”  

But often times saying “No” is hard.

To the toddler having a fit in the middle of a busy store.  Do you give in or say “No”?

To the impulse to stop at Sonic and buy a milkshake in the middle of a diet plan?  Do you say “No” to yourself?

Sometimes the implications are minor for not saying “No.”  However sometimes the in ability to say “No” somethings prevents us from saying “Yes” to important things.

Here’s Jesus teaching in Matthew 6:

Matthew 6:31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

It is hard to say “No” to worry because it’s hard to say “No” to all the material, worldly things we focus on, spend our time on, and expend our finances on.  It is hard to say “Yes” to the things that matter most and focus on our eternity because the tangible, the urgent, and the world around us clamor for our attention.

It’s hard to say “No” to things in our ability to buy to say “Yes” to giving generously to the Lord’s work.

It’s hard to say “No” to the extra sleep to say “Yes” to regular time in the morning with the Word of God.

It’s hard to say, “No” to a job that pays more to say “Yes” to the importance of being in worship and Bible study on a weekly basis.

It’s hard to say, “No,” to the agenda that we had planned to say “Yes” to a friend that needs a listening ear and godly counsel.

It just is.

It’s why Jesus had to remind us that the eternal things matter more and much longer than the temporal.  We can’t take material things with us to heaven, but we can take our faith in the Lord Jesus.  We won’t get to the end of our life and wish we had worked more, but rather we wish we would have spent more time in prayer, in worship, and in the Word with the people and family we love.  

Fortunately we have a Savior who perfectly said, “No” to the things that he had to in order to say “Yes” to the mission he was on to “seek and to save the lost” of which I am one.  What a gift of God’s grace that in essence Jesus said, “Yes” to me in the process of saying “No” to all that would have kept him from securing my salvation.

Now that’s tough love.  Love that prioritizes the eternal over the temporal and does all to ensure us that we are loved, forgiven, gifted children of God.

Don’t worry.  Jesus has promised that when we say “Yes” to the eternal, kingdom of God things, the things we have to say “No” to will pale and fade in the background because chances are they are all temporal anyway.

 

Apply: What is one thing you need to say “No” to in order to say “Yes” to something that advances the kingdom of God in your own life or the life of another?

Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank you for knowing perfectly what to say “No” and “Yes” to.  We thank you for putting our salvation first and doing ALL that was necessary to secure our trip from the temporal to the eternal.  AMEN>

Today’s devotion is based on Week 1 of “Tough Love”: Sets boundaries! (WATCH HERE)

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Steven Covey is known for his books on productivity and ensuring that a person does things that don’t just keep a person busy, but effective.  His book Seven Habits of Highly Effective People is one that has been a best seller for years.  In this book, he outlines four quadrants of productivity and how to determine what we should be doing, but what often gets a majority of our time.  In reverse order…

Quadrant 4: Not Important/Not Urgent

Quadrant 3: Not Important/Urgent

Quadrant 2: Important/Not Urgent

Quadrant 1: Important/Urgent

Covey’s advice for these quadrants is this:

Quadrant 4: “Quadrant of waste; avoid escaping here (spending time here)”

Quadrant 3: “Try to reject or avoid these things.  Delegate to someone else.”

Quadrant 2: Plan to get done, allow time for these.

Quadrant 1: Quadrant of necessity…Do first or else!

In order to spend time on Quadrant 1 priorities, one has to say no to activities that fall into the other three quadrants. 

How do you determine what is in your Quadrant 1? Quadrant 1 are those things which help to advance your mission, your purpose. Other things, while they might be important or benefit others might have to be let go.

Jesus understood this well.  His purpose?

As he said to Zacchaeus, Luke 10:9 Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. 10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”

Jesus’ mission was to bring the good news to the hearts of people so they would believe he was the Savior and secure their salvation.

So…at times he had to say no to other good things he was able to do.  

After the day of teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum, healing Simon’s mother-in-law, and healing many more and driving out demons, the next morning he did this:

Luke 4:42 At daybreak, Jesus went out to a solitary place. The people were looking for him and when they came to where he was, they tried to keep him from leaving them. 43 But he said, “I must proclaim the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns also, because that is why I was sent.” 44 And he kept on preaching in the synagogues of Judea.

Healing people was important and one might say “urgent.”  But it was secondary to proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God to more people.

What if Jesus spent all his time healing people and driving out demons?  He could have said, “Healing people and taking care of their physical needs is important.  I just didn’t get time to proclaim the good news to others because there were so many sick people that needed my attention.”

He could have.  But tough love prioritizes the mission.  So Jesus set a boundary to ensure the most important and urgent thing got done: Proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God.

Perhaps there are opportunities for us to do the same.

 

Apply: Evaluate the things you do in your day/week.  Is there opportunity to prioritize the bringing good news to the people around you?  Your family?  Your friends? Coworkers?  Maybe you have to say “No” to something to be part of Jesus’ mission.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank your for doing so many important things, but especially prioritizing the spread of the good news to the hearts of people…including me.  AMEN.

Today’s devotion is based on Week 1 of “Tough Love”: Sets boundaries! (WATCH HERE)

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As I write this, there are nominees from President Trump that are working their way through Senate hearings and confirmation process to head large departments of the executive branch.  In these hearings senators are given opportunity to ask questions or make statements to the candidate and the candidate is given (usually) an opportunity to respond.  What is trying to be determined is both does the person have the ability to lead the department and do they have the credibility to be trusted in that role.

Both ability and credibility are important to put confidence in someone to lead.

If a person has the abilities to carry out a role, but no credibility, you don’t want them in that role.

If a person has the credibility, but not the abilities, they too shouldn’t be in the role.

You want both.

When Jesus was in Capernaum, people brought to him people who were demon possessed.  With Jesus having the ultimate power over Satan and his fallen angels (as he proved earlier in Luke 4 by defeating Satan’s temptations in the desert), the demons had to listen to what Jesus said.

Jesus had both the ability and credibility to drive out the demons.

Luke 4:41 Moreover, demons came out of many people, shouting, “You are the Son of God!” But he rebuked them and would not allow them to speak, because they knew he was the Messiah.

What is interesting about this encounter is this.  The demons KNEW who Jesus was.  They knew his power and position were greater than theirs and they had to listen and obey his command.  They were ready and able to tell those around that Jesus was the Messiah.

But Jesus didn’t want their witness.

Why?

They weren’t credible.

They had the ability to say, “Jesus is the Son of God, the Messiah.” But as demons and associated with the Father of Lies, they had no credibility.  If Jesus allowed them to be a witness for him, eventually people, who understood Jesus as one who taught truth with authority, would believe the demons had equal credibility to Jesus.

Of course they didn’t and they don’t.

So Jesus told them to not speak.

He did not want a witness from one who was able, but not credible.

Why?
Because tough love prioritizes the truth and the truth from a credible source.

Jesus wanted people to understand, believe and live the truth.  The truth wasn’t just spoken words but was backed by the credible source of truth: Jesus.

John 14:6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. 

This is why it is so important first for us as followers of Jesus to be people of high integrity and credibility.  Our witness must be supported by our walk.  If you proclaimed faith in Jesus, yet intentionally were cheating, lying, and stealing from your employer, that witness would be unclear.  The truth from a source without credibility damages the truth.

This is why when we determine whom we allow to speak into our heart the word of God and build up our faith, we want them to be lovers of God’s truth…all of it.  We want to, the best we can on this side of heaven, have people in our lives who are willing to stand with the truth, even when it’s tough and not popular.

Why? Because tough love loves someone and the truth enough to never compromise it or its source.

 

Apply: Consider your ability and credibility to witness for Jesus.  While we are all imperfect, is there an area of your life that, with God’s help, you could work to improve so it gives a more clear witness to the truth?  Ask God to show it to you and help you become better at it!

Prayer: Lord, Jesus thank you for your tough love that passionately stands for the truth.  Help us to be both a clear and credible witness for your truth.  AMEN.