I started a conversation last week about being a servant (you can catch up here).
Serving should be a two-way street. Contrary to the way that some people look at servanthood, being a servant is not the same thing as being a doormat. Consider two key verses:
Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. (Philippians 2:4)
Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. (Ephesians 5:21)
We should look equally to others’ needs as well as our own needs. Zig Ziglar says it this way, “You can have everything in life you want, if you will just help other people get what they want.”
This can be manipulation if you’re simply looking to someone else’s interests as a form of flattery or as a quid pro quo. But if you are truly serving—if you truly have the other person’s best interests in mind—if you are willing to submit to them out of reverence for Christ, serving can be liberating.
Last week Rick Warren tweeted, “The more self-centered I am, the more unsatisfied I’ll be.” I retweeted with this addition, “So the more I serve, the more satisfied I’ll be.” I believe that.
We’re almost done unpacking. Just 10 days after moving into our new home in Cedar Springs, we’ve just about got the unpacking done. Notice I said, “almost done.”
We’re trying to find a place for everything that we brought with us. But the closets are a bit smaller, there aren’t quite as many cupboards in the kitchen, and there’s one less bedroom and one less bathroom than our previous home. That means we still have quite a few boxes that have been moved to the garage. These are the we’ll-hang-on-to-this-for-awhile-to-see-if-we-need-it things.
After 19 years of marriage and three kids, we’ve accumulated quite a bit of stuff. And do you know what I’ve found? I don’t need or use much of the stuff I so carefully packed up and moved with me.
So I have been thinking,
How much stuff do I have packed away in my heart and mind that I don’t really need?
How many unkind words do I continue to keep packed away in case I need to pull them out?
How many painful memories do I keep packaged up just in case I need to feel sorry for myself?
How many mistakes from my past do I keep pulling out and packing up again?”
Throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception (Ephesians 4:22).
Let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us (Hebrews 12:1).
I’m not saying that I have this all together, that I have it made. But I am well on my way, reaching out for Christ, who has so wondrously reached out for me. Friends, don’t get me wrong: By no means do I count myself an expert in all of this, but I’ve got my eye on the goal, where God is beckoning us onward—to Jesus. I’m off and running, and I’m not turning back (Philippians 3:12-14).
It feels really good to get rid of the old stuff. I’m enjoying not having so much cluttering up my life, so I think I’m going to make it a regular practice to clean out the unused stuff.
Do you have any stuff you need to clear out today? I promise you: It will feel so wonderful when you do!
When was the last time you thought something new for the first time? Atheist Bertrand Russell said something painful, but true, “Most men would rather die than think. Many do.”
I’ve written before about the most important and most lengthy conversation all of us have every day. It’s the conversation we have with ourselves—it’s called thinking. But for many people, their thinking is stuck in a rut.
I’ve often had conversations with people bucking against a new thought where I have asked them why they believe what they believe. Far too many times they tell me, “That’s just the way I was raised.” Okay, but what do you think about it? “I don’t know. That’s just the way I was raised.”
Two books that have really helped my thinking are As A Man Thinketh (James Allen) and Thinking For A Change (John Maxwell). Allen uses the analogy of our minds as gardens where we need to constantly pull out the weeds and plant the thoughts that will bear the fruit we desire. Maxwell challenges us to look differently at the way we think our thoughts.
The Apostle Paul tells us to take captive every thought and make it obedient to Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5). And then we can begin to change the way we think: Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise (Philippians 4:8).
“Rarely do we find men who willingly engage in hard solid thinking. There is an almost universal quest for easy answers and half-baked solutions. Nothing pains some people more than having to think.” —Martin Luther King, Jr.
If your thinking is ever going to go to a higher level it has to start with this: You have to be willing to think about what you’re thinking about.
In other words, why are you thinking what you’re thinking? Start capturing the thoughts running through your mind and ask them, “Why are you here?” Are you thinking what you’re thinking because you thought it, or because someone else thought it for you?
It is only by capturing the thoughts that are already in your head that you can sort out the healthy thoughts from the unhealthy thoughts.
Green. Black. White. Red. Bagged. Loose. Hot. Iced. Home-brewed. Starbucks. I really enjoy all sorts of tea. Every day my morning routine includes sitting down with a nice cup of fresh tea. Not only am I sipping a cup right now (in my Life Is Good mug), but I will probably have a few more cups throughout today.
In large part because of the British Empire’s presence for so long in so many places around the world, their love for tea is still prominent in most of the world. Outside of the USA the favorite household social drink is tea.
Big deal, right? For me, it is. I use tea as an important reminder.
It all started with some great friends who are missionaries to Africa. Jayne, a lovely British woman, sent me some tea from the country in which they were serving. So naturally every time I brewed a cup of tea from Mozambique I thought of my friends. And prayed for them.
Now tea and prayer are inseparably intertwined—
Malawi tea = prayer for missionary friends in Malawi
Tea in a Western Michigan University mug = prayer for a Chi Alpha pastor
Indian tea = prayer for a dear friend who pastors in India
Loose tea = prayer for my cousin who serves as a missionary in an Arabic country
Apricot tea = prayer for my Mom & Dad who gave me this tea
Tangawizi tea = prayer for some other special family members
Chinese green tea = prayer for a family in China who tell people there about Jesus
You get the idea.
Paul wrote to his dear friends at the church in Philippi, “I thank God for you every time I think of you.” The key is to use something we do as part of our regular routine as a reminder to pray. It’s not hard. It’s not even taking time to bow your head and close your eyes.
Whenever you think of someone, pray for them. Use pictures, a piece of jewelry, a cup of tea, a bookmarker, special coffee cups, or anything else you handle every day as a reminder to pray.
Mother Teresa said, “Prayer enlarges the heart.” If you want to love others the way God loves, pray for them. If you want to love someone more deeply, pray for them more often. Prayer is one of the best habits we can develop.
Now, I must get back to my tea and my remembrances. Oh, by the way, if you have any tea recommendations, I would love to hear them!
I was running from meeting to meeting, and when I got done I was hungry. So a quick stop into a gas station for a Diet Pepsi and… well, my first impulse was to grab candy or chips. It took no small amount of willpower to make myself grab a healthier alternative.
One of the top rules for healthy dieting: don’t let yourself get too hungry.
Seriously, I know it sounds backward but it works. If you eat three smaller meals with three healthy snacks in between meals you will lose weight. Why? Because keeping the good stuff in you makes the bad stuff less tempting. Try it and let me know how it works for you, but it’s been working well for me.
But what about “heart food” or “thought food”? The Bible says, “Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life” (Proverbs 4:23, New Living Translation).
If you don’t keep the good stuff in your heart and thoughts, the bad stuff becomes more tempting. And just like the junk food aisle in the convenience store is front-and-center, so are the “junk food headlines.” Swine flu … economic woes … earthquakes … war … these junk food headlines dominate and it’s so easy to snack on them unless you have some healthy stuff in your heart and thoughts.
Health experts say that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. What about some healthy heart/thought food each morning? How about some healthy conversation time with God: “In the morning, O LORD, You hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before You and wait in expectation” (Psalm 5:3).
Then you could make sure you have a healthy heart/thought diet throughout the day: “Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things” (Philippians 4:8).
And then how about a healthy bedtime snack: “I set Your instructions to music and sing them as I walk this pilgrim way. I meditate on Your name all night, God, treasuring your revelation, O God” (Psalm 119:54-55, The Message).
How’s your heart/thought diet doing? Are there any changes you need to make? Best of all, how about sharing with us some heart/thought diet tips that have worked for you.
I was reading the well-known story of the prophet Elijah this morning, while still thinking about a life in limbo. Elijah has the audacity to say to the king of Israel, “As the LORD, the God of Israel, lives, Whom I serve, there will be neither dew nor rain in the next few years except at my word” (1 Kings 17:1).
That’s it. We just sort of jump right into this story. We don’t read about God instructing Elijah to say this to King Ahab. And more importantly, we don’t see God saying, “Elijah, even though the land will go through a severe drought, here’s how I’m going to take care of you.” Elijah’s life was in limbo. But I’m struck by God’s ahead-of-time provision for Elijah.
At the time of this story, the land of Israel is now under its sixth evil king; each one getting more and more sinful than the one before him. The current king, Ahab is called the most evil of all the kings yet. Israel had lived under sinful kings—which the Bible says were causing all of the people to sin, too—for over 70 years! Yet at least one family still faithfully clung to their belief in Yahweh, the true God. These parents named their son Elijah, which means “Yahweh is the one true God.” Although it might have seemed everyone was sinning and turning their back on God, at least one set of parents raised their son in a counter-cultural way, at least one set of parents trained their son to rely only on God, at least one set of parents equipped their son to stand firm in the face of overwhelming evil.
The ahead-of-time God provided God-fearing parents for Elijah to train him to fear God too.
As the famine began, God directed Elijah to a brook that continued to flow. This was also the place ravens would bring him food.
The ahead-of-time God provided food and water for Elijah.
The drought eventually dried up the brook that Elijah was using for water, and the ravens eventually stopped coming to that dried-up creek bed with food. So God sent Elijah to a widow in Zarephath with this promise, “I have commanded a widow in that place to supply you with food” (1 Kings 17:9). After Elijah entered this widow’s home, her supply of oil and flour never ran out throughout the entire three years of drought, giving all of them food to eat.
The ahead-of-time God provided oil and flour for a widow so that she could make food for Elijah.
My life may be in limbo, but I am confident that my ahead-of-time God has already provided for me. You and I have this promise: “And my God will liberally supply (fill to the full) your every need according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:19).
This story is in the Bible to reassure you and me that God supplies for us.
Do everything without complaining and arguing, so that no one can criticize you. Live clean, innocent lives as children of God, shining like bright stars in a world full of crooked and perverse people. (Philippians 2:14-15)
Those who follow Jesus are supposed to be different.
The word holy means different; it means “set apart from everything else for a special purpose.” But holy shouldn’t be a repelling different, but a winsome, appealing, attractive different. Instead, our holy lives should shine like bright stars.
When we first had kids, people began to talk to Betsy and me about where our kids would go to school, and their first assumption was that we would send them to a “Christian” school. But we felt differently about this. We have been called by Jesus to let our light shine before men that they may see our good deeds and praise our Father in heaven. So our desire is that our kids may let their light shine in their public schools.
While I am grateful for the A’s and B’s on all of their third-quarter report cards, there are other statements on my kids’ report cards that make me even prouder—
“You are a pleasure to have in class.”
“I am so blessed to have him in class.”
“You have proven yourself to be a responsible, respectful, and hard working student.”
“She does a fantastic job of helping out other students in class.”
“He is extremely respectful towards others and a pleasure to have in class!”
“He is always willing to lend a helping hand to others if needed.”
“You are a joy to be around, and I look forward to your smile every morning!”
These comments reflect lifestyles that are different—a winsome, appealing, attractive different.
This light shining out from our kids has opened the door for us to share our faith in Jesus with both teachers and students. In fact, my daughter has been able to lead one of her classmates to faith in Christ, and she and her family are now attending our church!
My kids challenge me to do everything in a way that shines. I want to be different … I want to shine … I want to live in a way that attracts others to Jesus Christ. What about you?
God once said, “Let the light shine out of the darkness!” This is the same God who made His light shine in our hearts by letting us know the glory of God that is in the face of Christ. —2 Corinthians 4:6 (NCV)
Today I was at the Flint Institute of Arts with my kids. There was a really cool exhibit made of hundreds of pieces of glass that cast a rainbow of colors all over the wall. Yet all of these colors sprayed across the wall are generated by just two lights.
This made me think, “How am I reflecting God’s light? Is my life a prism that accurately transmits God’s light and love to others? Or does my lifestyle make it difficult for people to see God?”
Live clean, innocent lives as children of God, shining like bright lights. —Philippians 2:15 (NLT)
I want people to see the brilliance of God’s love through me.
Craig T. Owens 