There was pounding on the door.
Seconds later, the authorities had broken into my home. They took our Bibles, and now we're left completely without God's word. What is more, all of our friends' Bibles are gone, too, so no one else can share a copy with us. We now have no way to read the Bible; no way to share it with others.
It's gone.
Even thinking about such an experience puts fear in my heart. Yet for much of the world, that nightmare has become a reality.
If you're like me, you take for granted the fact that we are able to read the Bible whenever we want. I mean, honestly, how awesome is that?!? I said, how awesome is that?!?
Seriously? Is that how I usually approach it?
Maybe sometimes. But most of the time, I'm guilty of this:
"Oh. Yah. I need to read my Bible today. That's what every good Christian does, every day. And a good Christian wouldn't ever, ever miss a day. So I have to do it, other wise I'm not giving God the kind of commitment He deserves." Sometimes this results in rummaging the house for my Bible before bed when I left it in a different room earlier that day; or trying to remember if I had read the Bible for "long" enough earlier that day; or reading the Bible when my eyes are closing before bed and checking the clock every minute and eight seconds to see how long I've been reading.
Oh, yah, that's definitely giving God the devotion He deserves.
I kid.
Seriously?!? As I read back over this I cringe at the truth of it. Do I really think that the almighty, sovereign, loving, holy Lord of the universe wants that from me? Is that how I should approach His word-- as an obligation? No. Never.
Seriously? I mean, what on earth is wrong with me?
Of course, I'll admit, as Christians we do have a sense of 'duty' or 'responsiblity' to reading the Word. I'm not one to say, "Well, if you don't feel like reading your Bible, don't!" We should read the Bible every day, whether or not we "feel" like it. But there should be a sense of longing, yearning, and urgency that accompanies that "duty." It should be our highest and first goal to pursue Christ with reckless abandon! Reading Scripture is the first step in glorifying God.
So, I'll go back to the opening. What if that happened to me-- today? Or tomorrow? Or next week? Would I be ready? Would I have His word in my heart so that I might not sin against Him? Or would I simply quote one or two verses that I vaguely remembered off the top of my head? I hate to say it, but I wouldn't be nearly prepared.
So, here lies the bigger question: am I doing anything to change that? I am pleased to announce that as of the day before yesterday, I have a large goal for myself: to memorize all the epistles besides Romans and 1&2 Corinthians before I turn nineteen. Before June 28, 2013, I want to have everything from Galatians to Jude memorized.
Is anyone with me? I could really use some accountability. Please leave a comment if you're in! And then, at least if we fail we fail together!! :) No, but seriously. I think the rewards will be infinitely greater than anything you can imagine.
Behold the greatness of God!
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Something Significant
This weekend was amazing. We had a missionary conference at our church, East Cooper Baptist Church, and it was amazing.
During this conference I had the privilege of helping in the children's ministry program where kids ages Kindergarten to 5th grade learned about missions in Thailand. It was a huge blessing to me for a number of reasons, but one in particular. Saturday morning, the second day of the festival, all of us workers for the children's ministry showed up outside the sanctuary. There weren't very many of us; 10 adults or so and a handful of teenagers. I felt minorly excited, but mostly just underwhelmed. For those of you who have seen me on a Backyard VBS high-- trust me, it was nothing like that. During that time I'm enthusiastic, excited, and passionate and ready to tell the children about God. But on Saturday I felt just... normal. I was happy to help out, but that was about it. The night before had been fun, but different than I had expeceted. I guess I felt as if my being there was pointless.
Then Pastor Steve, the children's pastor, said something that shook me. He thanked us all for helping and then remarked about a little girl who had asked him a question; not about Thailand, but about China. She said that she had heard that people in China could only have one child, and she was curious what would happen to the other children. He didn't say how they had answered, but he did say that this little girl was really concerned about that. Who knows how God will use that. He continued on, saying that some of these children may really be impacted by this weekend. Maybe through a craft a child really liked, or through the testimonies, or anything. And maybe the impact might be significant enough to change their lives. And maybe their changed lives will result in the changing of other lives.
That really stuck with me. Later in the day, we were reading 1 Corinthians 15:58, "Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain."
Don't you love it when God just hits you right in the face with something you needed to hear? No one else would know that's how I was feeling. I didn't tell anyone that I felt useless. But God knew. And so, just at the right time, He told me that my labor in Him is not in vain. NOTHING! Nothing I do for Him in vain. It doesn't say 'only the really big things' it says 'your labor in the Lord is not in vain'! Jesus also said, "And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is my disciple, I tell you the truth, he will certainly not lose his reward."
Even the littlest, day to day things, if done in Christ's name, are not done in vain. I think there's something really significant about that. I think it's significant enough that it should change how I live my day-to-day life. Do I seek to do even the smallest tasks for God's glory? Do I desire to point to God's grace when I wash the dishes, do my Chemistry homework, play with my younger siblings, and make lunch? It's one thing to say I'm a Christian. But do I shine with the radiance of Christ, first for Him, and only because of Him-- no matter how small or menial the task before me seems?
You will never know the impact that you will have on someone's life unless you let Christ rule your life.
And I think that's pretty significant.
During this conference I had the privilege of helping in the children's ministry program where kids ages Kindergarten to 5th grade learned about missions in Thailand. It was a huge blessing to me for a number of reasons, but one in particular. Saturday morning, the second day of the festival, all of us workers for the children's ministry showed up outside the sanctuary. There weren't very many of us; 10 adults or so and a handful of teenagers. I felt minorly excited, but mostly just underwhelmed. For those of you who have seen me on a Backyard VBS high-- trust me, it was nothing like that. During that time I'm enthusiastic, excited, and passionate and ready to tell the children about God. But on Saturday I felt just... normal. I was happy to help out, but that was about it. The night before had been fun, but different than I had expeceted. I guess I felt as if my being there was pointless.
Then Pastor Steve, the children's pastor, said something that shook me. He thanked us all for helping and then remarked about a little girl who had asked him a question; not about Thailand, but about China. She said that she had heard that people in China could only have one child, and she was curious what would happen to the other children. He didn't say how they had answered, but he did say that this little girl was really concerned about that. Who knows how God will use that. He continued on, saying that some of these children may really be impacted by this weekend. Maybe through a craft a child really liked, or through the testimonies, or anything. And maybe the impact might be significant enough to change their lives. And maybe their changed lives will result in the changing of other lives.
That really stuck with me. Later in the day, we were reading 1 Corinthians 15:58, "Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain."
Don't you love it when God just hits you right in the face with something you needed to hear? No one else would know that's how I was feeling. I didn't tell anyone that I felt useless. But God knew. And so, just at the right time, He told me that my labor in Him is not in vain. NOTHING! Nothing I do for Him in vain. It doesn't say 'only the really big things' it says 'your labor in the Lord is not in vain'! Jesus also said, "And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is my disciple, I tell you the truth, he will certainly not lose his reward."
Even the littlest, day to day things, if done in Christ's name, are not done in vain. I think there's something really significant about that. I think it's significant enough that it should change how I live my day-to-day life. Do I seek to do even the smallest tasks for God's glory? Do I desire to point to God's grace when I wash the dishes, do my Chemistry homework, play with my younger siblings, and make lunch? It's one thing to say I'm a Christian. But do I shine with the radiance of Christ, first for Him, and only because of Him-- no matter how small or menial the task before me seems?
You will never know the impact that you will have on someone's life unless you let Christ rule your life.
And I think that's pretty significant.
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