Seeking the Fringe

This path I've been on for the past several months has revealed a lot to me. I have had to deal with folks who have it within their power to help in a good way, but have either chosen otherwise, or just sort of helped but certainly not all that they could have ... all because they don't have "time." They're just too busy ... or ... their definition of ethics and integrity is framed by their "career," which is NOT true integrity as defined by the Word of God. It's the world's ethics or integrity.

Folks, we live in a world with many, many hardened hearts. The only thing that will soften a hardened heart is the love of God found in Christ Jesus ... the ONLY way to our Papa God.

We need to show the love of God to these people whenever we can. More importantly, we need to pray for the salvation of those who are lost and don't know Jesus as their Savior. If we, as the body of Christ CHOOSE not to show the love of Christ and pray for those who are lost, then who will??

Are you a true disciple of Christ who is willing to go to the fringes to seek that one who is lost? Or ... are you a consumer only ... one who attends church, warms a church pew every week, but does very little to reach the lost? Church is not about being entertained.

There is a difference.

One day those of us who are true followers of Christ will live eternally with God. But myself, I don't want to get to Heaven and realize that I missed someone because I didn't want to be disturbed ... or because I chose the easy path. ~ Selah

angie

Money, Time, or Relationship?

 So, today I went to see the movie, “Million Dollar Arm.”  I was pleasantly surprised…pretty good stuff!  I don’t want to spoil it for anyone who hasn’t seen it, so I won’t go into great detail about it.  What I did like about it was that they filmed part of it in India and the rest of it in the US.  India is a place that I hope to visit one day so this movie really touched my heart.

The point of the movie was to get a couple of cricket players from India, convert them to Major League Ball Players and make a ton of money in the process.  Now, everything was based on a business plan…they had X amount of dollars and X amount of time to make this whole thing work.  All was going well until the big day for a Major League tryout for the 2 Indian fellows.  Unfortunately, they failed at attaining positions in the Major League.  Now it’s not because they didn’t have the ability, it was because of the way everything was handled.  The young men were basically handled like a commodity instead of human beings.  It was business for the Americans, just business!  Luckily, someone spoke up and informed the main guy that he handled the entire situation in the wrong way.  At that point, he corrected himself and truly took the time to get to know the players and so on.

I see so much of this that goes on everywhere here in the US.  Everything is about money and numbers.  How often do we actually stop and take the time to get to know somebody we come into contact with on a regular basis?  So often, whether it’s in business, our neighborhoods, schools, or even in church, we are in such a big hurry that we get “whatever it is we need,” and move on.  The quicker the better because you know, time is money and money is time…and heaven forbid that someone be seen speaking to someone “outside of their social status!!”  I’m SO tired of this way of life!!  We’re all human.  We all have struggles. We all have only 24 hours a day.  We all have to breathe the same air.  We all will exit this earth some day. 

How many people do you come in contact with on a regular basis that you can truly say you don’t even know their names, let alone whether or not they’re married, single, have children or other details of their lives? 

As followers of Christ, we should strive to know and care more about others.  It’s those interpersonal relationships that are so very important.  It let’s folks know that we truly care about them.  It would be easy for me to go to Wal-Mart, Starbucks or any place for that matter, go in get what I need, and not speak a word to anyone.  Get my business done and get out of there…after all…we’re all in a big hurry to get nowhere…right?  I wonder though…is that how Jesus handled things in His day?  No, I don’t believe it was. There are times when Jesus was headed from point A to point B and someone would cry out to Him.  Many of the miracles He did were in those times where He stopped on His way from A to B.  He took time out for people. As Christ followers, we should too!

A Christ follower = Love God, love people.  Take the time to get to know others.  If you’re a follower of Christ and you’re not sharing the love of God, what good are you to the Kingdom?  That doesn’t necessarily mean preaching Jesus everywhere you go.  It does mean to let the light and love of Jesus flow through you to others.  Jesus didn’t have a second thought about giving up His life on the cross for each and every one of us.  The least we could do is slow down a bit and take the time to get to know the people who cross our paths on a regular basis.  You never know, you may be the only way someone will ever get to experience the love of Christ.

Be led by the Spirit.  He is with us always, but do we always listen to what He’s guiding us to do?  I assure you, if you take to the time to get to know others by the guiding of the Holy Spirit, life will never be boring!  Just last week a woman approached me in Starbucks.  Apparently she recognized me because I’m a regular there.  She was drawn to me…or I should say, she was drawn to Jesus in me…whether she realizes this or not. J  She invited me to sit and visit with her and her friends any time.  Instantly I thought, “there’s no better time than now.”  So, I joined her and her friends.  Sure there was a little awkwardness, but I just pretended that I was comfortable until I was comfortable.  Now, none of us will ever have a second thought about visiting and getting to know each other when we see one another.  It would have been easy for me to brush off the invite.  I didn’t know this woman from Adam!  But…what if that moment was the only chance I had for the door to be open to them?  To me, eternity in heaven is too important to have turned down a moment like this.  God is all about people, and we should be, too!  

Take the time to get to know those in your world no matter how big or small your world is.  You won’t regret it!  Hopefully, when we get to heaven, we’ll be surprised at the folks who are there because we took the time for relationship here.    

Have a heart for...

Today, my heart cries out for those who do not know the Lord.  Everyday, I see folks who don’t know Him…some assume that they are so smart that they have life figured out, but don’t realize that He is the center, some choose not to know the Creator at all, some…many…have been introduced, but have refused a relationship with Him, etc. 

Whether these folks ever get in a relationship with God or not, the fact remains that they have made the choice to reject the Creator of the Universe…God Almighty.

At times, while crossing paths with non-believers, it could be so easy to just walk away and not have anything to do with them, mainly because so many are mean and arrogant, etc.  But what I choose to remember is that they have no reason to be joyous.  They have no reason to be nice.  They have no reason to be meek or humble.  You see Jesus is the reason that we choose to have those characteristics as a follower of Christ. (And let’s hope that as a follower of Christ, we are choosing to be like Him!  We are His ambassadors here on this earth!)  If they don’t have Jesus, there is a huge hole in their life and Jesus is needed to fill it to make them whole.  Instead they fill it with whatever suits them at the moment…until they figure out that it’s not working and then they move on to something else.  That cycle will continue until, hopefully, they choose a relationship with Jesus…the same way that you and I discovered that we need Him!  Have a heart for the lost!

When dealing with folks like this, choose to take the high road.  Be kind, be considerate, be loving...be Jesus to them.  You never know, you may be the only person who will ever be Jesus to them.  Remember Heaven and Hell are real and we are all going to end up in one place or the other by our own choice.  Look at things eternally instead of momentarily.  Winning souls to our Lord, saving souls from eternal damnation is the goal.  Choose eyes, ears and a heart of compassion because that’s how Jesus chooses to care for us.  Keep praying and never give up hope of salvation for the lost.     

Are you living life for...

You know…it would be so easy to live life just for the moment without any cares or worries of consequences…at least for a while.  The trouble with that is that sooner or later, we will reap what we have sown…good or bad!

Of course God wants us to enjoy our lives, but He also wants us to live with purpose and self control.  Living without any regard to consequences is actually very dangerous.  You never know when the breath that you take may be your last.  That’s why we should live eternally minded.  Heaven and Hell!  Yes, they both exist.  Which place are you planning to take up residency for eternity?

James 4:14-15 talks about how our lives here on earth are but a vapor that’s here only for a little while and then vanishes.  It also says that because we don’t know how long we’ll be here, we should say “If the Lord wills, we’ll do this or that.”  Just think about it.  If this life is as a vapor compared to eternity…eternity is a crazy long time!  I know that I know that I know that I’m spending eternity in Heaven.  And…although I still make mistakes, my goal is to be in the Lord’s will for my life…living a life led by the Holy Spirit. 

It is the Lord’s will that none would perish, and come to repentance.  2 Peter 3:9  The trouble is that so many don’t know or maybe don’t want to know who Jesus is. There could be a million reasons why people don’t want to know Jesus.  But even though they choose not to know Him, He still loves them and wants them to come to repentance and be saved.  However, your choice is your choice.

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

Are you living life for the pleasure of the moment or are you living it eternally minded?

Do live your life as if there’s no tomorrow, but don’t live it carelessly.  Choose to know Jesus.  Choose Heaven for eternity.  Choose to live a Spirit led life.  I assure you it will not be boring!   

Don't let others fit you into their...

No one but you knows what you are called to do.  Don’t let others fit you into their mold of what they think you should do.  Be the you that God created you to be.

Several years ago, I was a pretty insecure person.  I worried about what others said and thought about me…I was a people pleaser.  That behavior is all that I knew…from childhood well into my adult life as well!   

Anyway, years ago when I was a kid, I remember that I loved to sing and even tryed to write songs…music has always done it for me!  One day I heard a couple of girls singing and I said to a close relative that I could sing as well as them.  This person laughed and said, “Oh no you can’t.”  I cannot begin to tell you how many years those words affected me…because I believed them!  After that, I never even considered singing aloud for others until I was well into my twenties.  It’s true!

One day, I remembered that situation.  I realized then, just how much I had let those four little words affect my life.  I made a decision that I would no longer let someone fit me into their mold of what they thought I was capable of doing.  NO MORE!  No one but God and myself know what He has called me to do.  (Of course I only know the details on a “need to know” basis.)  I will not let the opinions of others rule my life.  That was one of the best decisions that I could have ever made.

If we aren’t secure in who God has created us to be, how can we ever be fully effective within the Body o f Christ?  When you’re on a mission, so to speak, and you know that God has called you to do it, don’t let anyone stop you.  Keep your eyes on the Lord.  Don’t look to the right or the left.  God will see you through to the end!