Connecting Points

Monday, January 13, 2014

Today’s Topic: Confidence

Today’s Text:

2 Chronicles 32:7-8 (ESV)  ⁷ “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or dismayed before the king of Assyria and all the horde that is with him, for there are more with us than with him. ⁸ With him is an arm of flesh, but with us is the LORD our God, to help us and to fight our battles.” And the people took confidence from the words of Hezekiah king of Judah.

2 Chronicles 32:22 (ESV)  ²² So the LORD saved Hezekiah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem from the hand of Sennacherib king of Assyria and from the hand of all his enemies, and he provided for them on every side.

Monday mornings test my character, especially if Sunday has been filled with more ministry demands than normal. Yesterday was such a day.

There was not one part of the day that I would have missed, as every event was an incredible blessing and affirmation of what God is doing in the ministry of Calvary Baptist Church. But it was a long day and I was tired when I got home at 8:30 last night. When that happens, I feel drained on Monday, and my Monday is equally as busy every week. I can handle being tired, but what I don’t like are the attacks that come when I am tired, and the area where my character gets attacked first is in my confidence level.

Generally I’m a pretty confident guy – except on Monday mornings. That’s when I begin to doubt my abilities and question my value. I dare to believe that you do the same thing when you are tired or stressed. I’m right, aren’t I?

Well, this morning I was reminded about confidence when I opened my devotionals and the first one I read said this – “Jesus gives me confidence to be a minister of a new covenant.” It was followed by these verses in 2 Corinthians 3:4-6. Such is the confidence that we have through Christ toward God. Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God, who has made us competent to be ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit.

So I began to do a word search for the places in Scripture that talk about confidence. I found a story that went straight to my heart in Second Chronicles. Briefly, the people of Judah were in a predicament. King Sennacherib of Assyria had come to overthrow King Hezekiah of Judah and laid siege to their territory. This massive barbaric army was striking fear into the residents of Judah.

King Hezekiah puts their fears into perspective. “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or dismayed before the king of Assyria and all the horde that is with him, for there are more with us than with him. With him is an arm of flesh, but with us is the LORD our God, to help us and to fight our battles.” And the people took confidence from the words of Hezekiah king of Judah.

I love that line – with him is an arm of flesh, but with us is the LORD our God. I am challenged by the people’s response – the people took confidence from the words. I tend to let words of people destroy my confidence, when Words of God have already been spoken that solidify my confidence. I am responsible for the words I choose to listen to. I alone choose what value I assign to what people say. I am solely accountable for my confidence level based on what words I have chosen to believe.

I have decided that the following words will be the foundation of my confidence level.

Psalm 27:3 (ESV) Though an army encamp against me, my heart shall not fear; though war arise against me, yet I will be confident.

Proverbs 3:26 (ESV) for the LORD will be your confidence and will keep your foot from being caught.

Hebrews 4:15-16 (ESV) For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

Hebrews 13:5-6 (ESV)  Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” So we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?”

1 John 5:14 (ESV)  And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us.

Check your confidence level against God’s words, not man’s. It will make a difference in your Monday…and every day.

Connecting Points

Friday, January 10, 2014

Today’s Topic: Character Can Be Corrupted

Today’s Text:  2 Corinthians 7:1   “Since we have these promises dear friend, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit; perfecting holiness out of reverence for God.”

I want to share with you this morning a devotional from Ron Hutchcraft that I heard on the radio this morning. It challenged me, as I pray it will you. It’s called “The Stink Takes Over.”

I checked the bread drawer and it was still there, but there was a smell! Our daughter was visiting and she put in a bagel order with her aunt. She said, “I want an onion bagel.” Well, somehow that onion bagel spent a few days in that bread drawer before it finally disappeared. Oh, the bagel was gone, but the smell remained. Well, that’s not correct. Oh, no! In fact, the taste wasn’t even gone. That little round stinker flavored every bagel in the drawer. So they all tasted like onion bagels now. I even had a bag of Starburst candies in the bread drawer, (Don’t ask me why.) and guess what? You should try those with a little onion flavor! Yum, yum! Who would have guessed that one thing could stink up and flavor everything?

Our word for today from the Word of God comes from 2 Corinthians 7:1 . God says here, “Since we have these promises dear friend, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit; perfecting holiness out of reverence for God.” Now, God gives here a pretty interesting standard for deciding what you will allow your body to do; what you will allow your mind to take in. Will it contaminate you?

Contaminate makes me think of a germ or a bacteria. It only takes this little guy to bring down a much larger body. Or, for some reason, I also think of an onion bagel. There’s no way to let it into that drawer without it infecting everything around it. That’s why it really matters what you watch, what you listen to, what you read, who you spend time with, what you do for entertainment, what you laugh at.

Oh, you may think you can contain the trash they carry. You say, “Oh, it’s no big deal. I can handle it.” But sin is highly infectious. What began as just a passing thought ultimately becomes a desire, and desire ultimately becomes a sin you never thought you’d do. That’s why the Bible says, “Don’t give the devil a foothold.” The devil just wants you to think about it, then want it, then do it, and then pay for it.

Maybe you’re underestimating the corrupting, contaminating power of a little compromise. You can’t afford that dirty joke, that dirty picture, a powerful video image or something on the Internet, a rumor about someone, a strong song about something that’s wrong. See, you can’t afford to let the stink in. You may feel a little defensive about some of the input that you’re letting in, but ask yourself a few questions about what you watch, what you listen to, what you read, what you laugh at, who you hang around with.

We don’t like to be challenged on these things, but ask these kinds of questions, “Is it making me a little harder than I was before? Am I becoming a little more tolerant of sinful things that I never used to put up with? Am I flirting mentally with some things I know are wrong? Am I finding the good things less interesting and more boring? Is my heart getting a little colder toward Jesus?” That’s the power of contamination.

You know why? Because in the verses proceeding what we read today, in chapter 6, verses 16-18, God says, “I live in you. You are my people. You are my sons and daughters. Therefore, don’t touch any unclean thing.” In other words, do you know who you are? Then purify yourself from everything that contaminates. You’re too good for this. You’re too special for this. You were too expensive to God for this.

So, back to my smelly bread drawer, some onion-tasting candies to prove that a little bad influence can spread very quickly. It can spoil everything. Look, if you’re letting into your body or into your mind anything that smells spiritually, get rid of it now. It could ruin what you never meant for it to touch.

Thanks Ron, for the challenge to not let Christ’s character be exposed to corruption.

Connecting Points

Thursday, January 09, 2014

Today’s Topic: Clear Communication

Today’s Text:  Psalm 46:10 (ESV)  “Be still, and know that I am God.

There is a word that rarely described my life until recent years. That word is rest. When I was a child and young adult, life was constantly active. Sitting and relaxing was for old folks, and now that I am one I understand it. But for over 50 years of my life there was no such thing as rest until my head hit the pillow at night.

The other day I heard a radio devotional from Max Lucado about taking piano lessons as a child. I instantly related to what he was saying. I too took lessons, and learned all the musical terminology and techniques. But Pastor Lucado said there was one thing he never understood – the squiggly vertical mark on the page indicating a one beat rest.

He too hated resting. Keep the music playing was the theory by which he and I both lived. But the response of his piano teacher to the question of why rests were important really struck me. She said, “Because it makes the music after the rest that much sweeter.”

I think I miss a lot of life’s sweetness because I enter the activity unrested. God is prepared to reveal His abundance to me, and because I am tired I am only capable of receiving a little. It is never God who limits the giving of every spiritual blessing from on high (Ephesians 1:3). God never restricts the availability of strength (Philippians 4:13). His supply of grace is always sufficient no matter how great our weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9). God cannot and will not withhold anything from those who love Him (Psalm 84:11)

Our God, the source of all good, communicates Himself to the soul that longs to partake of Him.(William Law) It is in the place of rest that our souls are prepared to receive what He is offering. Theologian and author T.C. Upham said it this way – If we stand in the openings of the present moment, with all the length and breadth of our faculties unselfishly adjusted to what it reveals, we are in the best condition to receive what God is always ready to communicate.

Stand in the squiggly-lined opening of the present moment and rest, and you will hear God, for He is constantly speaking.

Connecting Points

Tuesday, January 07, 2014

Today’s Topic: Character’s Compass

Today’s Text:  Proverbs 11:3 (ESV)  The integrity of the upright guides them, but the crookedness of the treacherous destroys them.

This morning I was cleaning up my inbox in my email account. I was shocked to discover that in all of my email folders that help me manage information I have over 500 megabytes of emails. That is a literal ocean of information. How in the world do I intend to ever navigate my way through it all? I know I filed every email into a specific folder for a reason, but I wonder what the reason was. How will I ever get through it all?

As I was sorting through just the inbox, I found an email that I saved from November 11, 2013. It’s only two months old, but I chose to leave it in my inbox because I knew that would guarantee me to look at it again. As I read it again I knew that today was the day for which it was intended.

Every Sunday morning, Calvary’s Pastor of Worship and Media, James Alan Hall, leads a Bible Study for all members of his worship and technical ministries. They meet in the Upper Room, a room chosen for them in our new facility because of its significance for their Levitical ministry. On Sunday, November 10^th, 2013, they read the following paragraph from the book they are studying:

When men first learned to navigate the open seas using the stars as their “road map” a whole new world opened up to them.  Until the development of state-of-the-art Satellite positioning technology, the compass was the primary instrument of navigation at sea.  It was said, “He who is a slave to the compass enjoys the freedom of the open sea”.

One of the members of the Bible Study wrote this email to me the next day.

The last line really hit me and has stuck with me (which is rare).  I started thinking about the freedoms that we have in Christ.  What we watch, say, drink, eat, do, etc.  Often times Christians will argue or judge what is right and wrong…..which is a form of legalism.  We do have freedoms but if we are just roaming about at sea going wherever the wind takes us, looking for the next big thing and paying no attention to the compass we are bound to get hurt and find ourselves in a storm not knowing which way to turn.

But if we are a slave to the compass, we can truly enjoy the freedom of the open sea, but with direction and purpose.  This does not mean there will not be storms because a compass cannot predict that, but when we are in a storm we will have a clear direction to go for safety.  If we are truly focused on the compass I would think that a lot of the areas of the sea that we are free to roam around in just will not seem that appealing because all they will do is take us off course and slow us down from getting to our purpose and destination.

Purpose = share the Good News

Destination = Heaven

Compass = Holy Spirit

The world is a sea of opportunity which we are trying to navigate. The only way to stay on course – to maintain integrity of character – is to trust the Compass provided to us by Jesus Christ when He sent the Holy Spirit to dwell in us. We who are in Christ have a resident Compass; a Guide to show us the way through the ocean of life. Whether or not we are on course is totally our responsibility – we are either gazing at the Compass and staying true to God’s course or we are peering over the railing at the ocean of potential piers that appear to be desirable ports in which dock the ship of our life.

As we sail across the sea of life, it is tempting to look around at all the beautiful islands where we could stop for a while. There is an Island of Pleasure, and an Island of Prosperity. There are Islands of Power and a Port of Prestige. But none of these places is worthy of our consideration – never once should we shift the rudder to steer towards them unless the Compass directs us and the Wind of the Holy Spirit shifts to move us there. Resist the allure of the tropical islands when the Compass is pointing towards the eternal shore.

Stay on course. Let integrity be your guide. Character never cuts corners nor does it change direction.

Connecting Points

Monday, January 06, 2014

Today’s Topic: Character

Today’s Text:  Romans 5:3-5  More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance,   ⁴and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.  

Recently I was challenged in a leadership blog I read to choose one word to describe my goals for the New Year. That one word would encompass and simplify all of the traditional resolutions I would normally make. Well, I have chosen my word – CHARACTER.

I thought about a lot of different words, but one event that happened in my life before Christmas has remained embossed in my mind for over three weeks now. I have been waiting to write about it, but was delayed until the Holy Spirit made the applications to my life first. I’m finally ready.

I was driving into town early one morning and pulled up to the corner of Highway 93 and Golf Road intending to turn left. I planned ahead and knew that I wanted to stop and see my son at Great Harvest Bread, so I was in the right hand left turn lane. (In case that doesn’t make sense to you, it is a double left turn lane at that intersection.) That way I could turn right at the first corner on Golf Road.

Next to me in the left hand left turn lane was another car but I did not notice the age or gender of the driver, and it doesn’t matter, because what was about to happen applies to all of us. The left turn arrow turned green, and we both proceeded around the corner. I moved straight ahead until I could turn perpendicularly to the left, thus giving the second car plenty of room to do the same, just like they teach in driver’s training.

Suddenly I noticed that the second car had no desire to conform to proper driving technique. It was already around the corner and two car lengths ahead of me because it had made a straight diagonal cut across the intersection and pulled in front of me into my lane. In the process, the car had crossed two empty lanes of opposing traffic. Because it was early enough in the day those lanes were empty, but if that car had done that thirty minutes later during the beginning of rush hour it would have collided with other vehicles in those lanes.

The first words out of my mouth were, “Wow! He really cut that corner!” Instantly my heart was cut as the Holy Spirit spoke to me and asked, “How many corners do you cut every day?”

My mind searched for a self-justifying response. “I’m sure that if there had been cars in those traffic lanes the driver of the car next to me would have swung out wider to make the turn,” I thought, “just like I do what is right when I need to”.

“Exactly my point,” said the Holy Spirit. “You see, character never cuts corners.”

So now you know why I have chosen the word CHARACTER for the New Year. I want to avoid and eliminate all corner-cutting in my life. There are no shortcuts to holiness. Every shortcut is a selfish attempt to immediately gratify a personal need. Any and all compromise proves the lack of character. Corner-cutting is motivated by a belief that we deserve an advantage, which is pride, which is absolutely contrary to Christ’s character.

So as my first step in acknowledging Christ’s character in me, I refuse to cut corners. I will not look for shortcuts in my personal life, in my relationships, and in my ministry. I will not look to cut corners to avoid the traffic of trials in my life, but instead will stay in the lane God has designed for me. That way I will learn endurance, which leads to character, which produces hope that will not disappoint me.

Cutting corners provides nothing more than momentary satisfaction leading to a need for further gratification. Character brings lasting hope that satisfies eternally through the abiding love of God poured into our hearts through the indwelling Holy Spirit.

Character NEVER cuts corners!

Connecting Points

Tuesday, December 17, 2013

Today’s Topic: Redeemed!

Today’s Text:  Luke 1:68 (ESV) “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he has visited and redeemed his people…”

Titus 2:14 (ESV)  [Jesus] gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.

Job 19:25 (ESV)  For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth.

Bought back and set free – that’s what it means to be redeemed. It is the theme of Zechariah’s praise when his son John is born. Of all the things he could have said after 9 months of muteness, he burst forth in a song of redemption. God has visited the earth with one purpose in mind – to buy back his people who had been sold into slavery to sin and set them free.

A.J. Gordon was the great Baptist pastor of the Clarendon Church in Boston, Massachusetts. One day he met a young boy in front of the sanctuary carrying a rusty cage in which several birds fluttered nervously.

Gordon inquired, “Son, where did you get those birds?”

The boy replied, “I trapped them out in the field.”

“What are you going to do with them?”

“I’m going to play with them, and then I guess I’ll just feed them to an old cat we have at home.”

When Gordon offered to buy them, the lad exclaimed, “Mister, you don’t want them, they’re just little old wild birds and can’t sing very well.”

Gordon replied, “I’ll give you $2 for the cage and the birds.”

“Okay, it’s a deal, but you’re making a bad bargain.”

The exchange was made and the boy went away whistling, happy with his shiny coins. Gordon walked around to the back of the church property, opened the door of the small wire coop, and let the struggling creatures soar into the blue.

The next Sunday he took the empty cage into the pulpit and used it to illustrate his sermon about Christ’s coming to seek and to save the lost — paying for them with His own precious blood. “That boy told me the birds were not songsters,” said Gordon, “but when I released them and they winged their way heavenward, it seemed to me they were singing, ‘Redeemed, redeemed, redeemed!'”

This is Christmas. And the message of these times is the song of those wild birds.

It’s the meaning behind every gift given under the tree: Redeemed!

It’s the Word the shepherds heard: Redeemed!

It’s the assurance Mary received: Redeemed!

It’s the star the Wisemen followed: Redeemed!

You and I have been trapped by sin, but Christ has purchased our pardon with His death on the cross. He has guaranteed our freedom by His resurrection from the dead.

We have been redeemed!

May our lips never cease to praise the One who redeemed us.

Connecting Points

Monday, December 16, 2013

Today’s Topic: Be Content

Today’s Text:  Luke 2:11 (ESV)  For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.

In 1994, two Americans answered an invitation from the Russian Department of Education to teach morals and ethics (based on biblical principles) in the public schools. They were invited to teach at prisons, businesses, the fire and police departments and a large orphanage. About 100 boys and girls who had been abandoned, abused, and left in the care of a government-run program were in the orphanage. They relate the following story in their own words:

It was nearing the holiday season, 1994, time for our orphans to hear, for the first time, the traditional story of Christmas. We told them about Mary and Joseph arriving in Bethlehem. Finding no room in the inn, the couple went to a stable, where the baby Jesus was born and placed in a manger.

Throughout the story, the children and orphanage staff sat in amazement as they listened. Some sat on the edges of their stools, trying to grasp every word. Completing the story, we gave the children three small pieces of cardboard to make a crude manger. Each child was given a small paper square, cut from yellow napkins I had brought with me. No colored paper was available in the city.

Following instructions, the children tore the paper and carefully laid strips in the manger for straw. Small squares of flannel, cut from a worn-out nightgown an American lady was throwing away as she left Russia, were used for the baby’s blanket. A doll-like baby was cut from tan felt we had brought from the United States.

The orphans were busy assembling their manger as I walked among them to see if they needed any help. All went well until I got to one table where little Misha sat. He looked to be about 6 years old and had finished his project. As I looked at the little boy’s manger, I was startled to see not one, but two babies in the manger. Quickly, I called for the translator to ask the lad why there were two babies in the manger.

Crossing his arms in front of him and looking at this completed manger scene, the child began to repeat the story very seriously. For such a young boy, who had only heard the Christmas story once, he related the happenings accurately – until he came to the part where Mary put the baby Jesus in the manger. Then Misha started to ad-lib. He made up his own ending to the story as he said, “And when Maria laid the baby in the manger, Jesus looked at me and asked me if I had a place to stay. I told him I have no mamma and I have no papa, so I don’t have any place to stay. Then Jesus told me I could stay with him. But I told him I couldn’t, because I didn’t have a gift to give him like everybody else did. But I wanted to stay with Jesus so much, so I thought about what I had that maybe I could use for a gift. I thought maybe if I kept him warm, that would be a good gift.

So I asked Jesus, “If I keep you warm, will that be a good enough gift?” And Jesus told me, “If you keep me warm, that will be the best gift anybody ever gave me.” “So I got into the manger, and then Jesus looked at me and he told me I could stay with him—for always.”

As little Misha finished his story, his eyes brimmed full of tears that splashed down his little cheeks. Putting his hand over his face, his head dropped to the table and his shoulders shook as he sobbed and sobbed.

The little orphan had found someone who would never abandon nor abuse him, someone who would stay with him – FOR ALWAYS.

Have you truly found the Christ of Christmas?

Connecting Points

Tuesday, December 10, 2013

Today’s Topic: Be Content

Today’s Text:  Luke 2:36-37 (ESV)
³⁶ And there was a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, having lived with her husband seven years from when she was a virgin, ³⁷ and then as a widow until she was eighty-four. She did not depart from the temple, worshiping with fasting and prayer night and day.

We are easily bored. We even have statements that validate our boredom. I have a friend who when asked how he is always responds with the statement, “You know…same old same old.”

We have a hard time with things staying status quo. Even though we find it hard to change, we demand it. We don’t like permanent routine. Some persevere longer than others when sameness reigns, but ultimately they surrender to the discontented spirit that lives in each of us that wants things new and better.

I speak as the king of discontent. I love new things. I love change. I love risk. I want more and better. I have never truly learned to be content. That’s why the story of Anna from the Christmas narrative in Luke 2 fascinates me.

Anna was an ordinary woman with a tragic life story. She had been married at a young age, probably around sixteen as was customary. After seven years of marriage her husband died and left her a widow. She was left with nothing. Jewish law forbids women from owning property. If her husband had any wealth it would have been given to the first-born son, but there is no indication that they had any children. She was alone with nowhere to turn.

She went to the temple in an act of humble submission to whatever God would provide for her, and a willingness to be content with it. The priests took her in and opened up one of the living quarters in the courtyard to her, where she lived for the next sixty-eight years. Every day and every night she did the very same thing – she prayed and fasted before the Lord.

There is no way of knowing how many people were touched by her faithful service in the temple and her patient endurance of a sub-par lifestyle when compared to others. Other widows, like Ruth of the Old Testament, were rescued from their predicament by a kinsman redeemer who brought them hope and security. But it was not so for Anna. No relative came forward to provide her a home and a family. She was alone.

But Anna never felt alone because she knew she wasn’t really alone. She had God, and He was sufficient. She was content with God’s presence and His provision for her life. Nothing ever changed. Nothing ever got better. She was never offered more. Day after day the status quo ruled, and yet the same old same old never really got old, because she lived her life with the assurance and hope of the coming Messiah who would redeem Jerusalem.

Then one day, in a powerful affirmation of her contentment, God arranged her life and His Son’s life to intersect. My imagination turns to the scene in heaven, where God points to what is taking place in the temple and enthusiastically exclaims to His angels, “Watch this!”

Anna is walking across the temple courtyard, worshipping the Lord and looking for an opportunity to minister to someone. She sees a commotion in the area where little Jewish boys are brought for their circumcision. A man who was not a priest is holding a baby and loudly proclaiming words of prophecy about the Messiah. She immediately walks over to investigate, and is instantly overwhelmed with the reality that she is looking at the Redeemer of Jerusalem.

God claps.

Heaven explodes with cheers of Hallelujah.

Anna gives thanks to God and begins a new phase of life in which she will proclaim redemption to anyone who wants to hear it.

God rewards contentment with His presence. I wonder if Anna felt it was worth the wait.

But I also wonder if our lack of contentment is keeping us from fully experiencing His presence.

Connecting Points

Friday, December 06, 2013

 Today’s Topic: Stay Inside the Lines

Today’s Text:  Luke 2:25 (ESV)
²⁵ Now there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was righteous and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him.

Yesterday was the first Thursday of the month. That’s significant because on that specific day there is an event I attend. It’s nothing fancy or elaborate, but it is important because it involves connecting with other men my age (sorry James Alan). We simply call it The Old Men’s Luncheon, and appropriately we meet at the Old Country Buffet.

When I arrived at the luncheon yesterday and pulled into the parking area that parallels Clairemont Avenue, I noticed something was wrong. All of the cars that were parked along the frontage road were angled the wrong way. Someone had pulled into the first parking space headed in the wrong direction. Every car after that had ignored the normal parking pattern and had followed the lead of the first car. So I had a choice between following the new pattern and parking correctly so that every car after me would also park correctly.

Now the problem really started when the ice and snow covered up all the parking space lines so they were not visible. When that first car pulled in, several possibilities came into play. Maybe they were new to town and had never parked there before so they had no point of reference when choosing how to position their vehicle. Maybe they did know the lines were there, but for convenience sake they simply pulled in, knowing that if questioned they could claim ignorance because the lines weren’t visible. But the motive of the first car’s driver is not my main focus. Rather, I want to address the heart of all subsequent drivers, including me, who followed the wrong pattern after it had been established.

The real issue is not this parking lot. Whether the cars angle one way or the other is not really significant. But the behavior of all the drivers illustrates a deep spiritual principle: the coldness of our hearts that covers the moral lines by which we are guided to make decisions.

We all have a moral code written into our minds. We have been taught where the lines are. Thou shalt not commit murder. Thou shalt not steal. Thou shalt not bear false witness (lie). Thou shalt not commit adultery. Thou shalt have no other gods before YHWH (Jehovah). There are a total of ten boundary lines on the parking lot of life. We can park ourselves anywhere inside those lines, but the Owner of the lot commands us not to cross the lines.

The reality is that our sinful human nature loves to cross lines. Even when the lines are visible we still cross them, somehow thinking that we are immune to the consequences. This is intentional rebellion.  But an even bigger issue is when we choose to cross lines that are not visible even though we know they are there. For a variety of reasons, the moral lines God painted have been covered up by man’s progressive thinking. As a result, we have started parking outside the lines because someone else did. As we observe how they parked, all of the following things flash through our mind:

• They parked wrong
• They are getting away with it – there’s no ticket on their windshield
• It sure makes sense to park that way
• It’s a lot more convenient to just follow the pattern
• It be a mess to park correctly now and mess up the next guy
• I will actually be helping others by parking the way everyone else does
• I wouldn’t want to park correctly and make the guy who parked wrong feel bad.

I know these thoughts, because I followed the pattern too. Again, I’m not really talking about the parking lot; I’m talking about everyday life choices to stay inside God’s lines or follow the pattern of the world.

The lines are almost invisible. The only way the world can still see them is by following the pattern of someone who knows they are there.

That’s me.

That’s you.

Connecting Points

Thursday, December 05, 2013

Today’s Topic: Devout

Today’s Text:  Luke 2:25-27 (ESV)
²⁵ Now there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was righteous and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. ²⁶ And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. ²⁷ And he came in the Spirit into the temple…

He was just a common citizen of his community. We know nothing noteworthy that he had ever done. He was not a sports hero nor was he an entertainer. He had not attained a position of prestige as a person of public prominence. We don’t know his family history or heritage. We don’t even know his profession, yet we know clearly what he professed. He is singled out from the ordinary as a man who was righteous and devout, and lived his life under the direction and influence of the Holy Spirit of God.

Simeon reminds us all that no one is obscure or insignificant to God.  God recognizes us, and rewards faithfulness with public and eternal acclaim. But we must not let the reward be our motivation or it will never come. Seeking personal gain is contradictory to righteous and devout living.

Simeon was living daily in the hope that each day would be THE day that the Lord would fulfill His promise to him. The word devout means to take well. In other words, it means to believe what has been promised and then live according to that promise. For Simeon it meant that every step of every day was directed by his belief that he was being led closer to the realization of what God had told him. Imagine waking every morning and having every thought, every idea, and every plan completely immersed in the hope of what God has promised. That was the devout life of Simeon. That is the life we all desire.

On this specific day, Simeon knew the Holy Spirit was directing him to go to the temple. He obeyed. He would have missed everything promised if he had not listened and obeyed. But he did listen, and he did obey, because he truly believed what God had said. And because he believed, he saw the Savior!

Simeon’s life is now eternally on display as an example of God’s recognition and reward of righteous people who live not for self but devoutly believe the Word of the Lord. In one step of obedience Simeon went from obscure to obvious; from insignificant to illustrious.

He saw the Savior.  He held the Savior in his arms. He spoke God’s truth about the Savior. He blessed the parents with preparatory prophecy about God’s purpose for the Savior’s pain and their own.  He played a pivotal role in the declaration of God’s redemptive plan for all people.

No one is obscure or insignificant to God. Take time today to be still and listen. Simeon’s God knows you. The Savior defines your worth. He is waiting for you to believe what He is saying to you. He is longing for you to act upon it so He can declare your significance publicly and rejoice over you with song!

Pastor John