I Surrender

 

There are many objects that have a universal understanding. During WWII when an enemy wished to surrender, they waved a white flag. No matter if it was a German soldier or a Japanese soldier, a white flag meant surrender. 

But the concept of surrender is not confined to wartime. For the Christ-follower, surrender should be the lifestyle for the Christ-follower.  When a person accepts Jesus Christ as their Savior, they also accept Him as Lord. Which means they yield control over their lives. Mark 16:24-26 Taking up your cross means you deny sovereignty over your life. (Remember the cross was an instrument of death)   James 4:7 Submit Yourself to God...  Romans 12:2

But we not only surrender our lives to Christ but we often have to surrender our rights to others. Philippians 2:3-4    Every decision must be filtered through God - me- or others. Every desire must be surrendered to the Lordship of Christ. 

Have you totally surrendered every aspect of your life? Your money of His money? Your time or His time? Your reputation or His? 

A song I Surrender All   

Care Central

 Be kindly affectionate to one another...distributing to the needs of the saints, given to hospitality. Romans 12;10, 13

From 1986 to 1990, Frank Reed was hostage by Lebanese terrorists. He was beaten and tormented and kept in total darkness but the worst thing was the feeling that no one cared. In Time magazine he said, "I began to realize how withering it s to exist with not a single expression of caring around me...I learned one overruling fact; caring is a powerful force. If no cares, you are truly alone."

God instituted two social systems so that no one would ever feel alone: the family and the church. In a day when even Christian families are failing to care for their own, the church must step in be a community of care - a place where love, healing and acceptance can be found. The New Testament is filled with the command to care for those in need, both within the church and those without. Proverbs 3:27 Ephesians 4:28

If you are in need of care, begin by caring for others. If you are "healthy' to see whom God has put in your path that needs His love.

--taken from Pathways-- David Jeremiah

Theodore Roosevelt, 26th President of the United States said , ""People do not care how much of know until they know how much you care."

Who Cares

 Nobody cares how much you know, until they know how much you care. --- Theodore Roosevelt 

Working For God

 

Years ago  people took pride in their work. We called it the work ethic. Companies boasted in their craftmanship and excellence. They even had a department devoted to quality control. These companies had a minimum standard for their products. 

But how things have changed. Workers no longer strive for excellence but rather doing just enough to get by. They are not interested in giving their employer an hours' work for a hours' pay. Their goal is to get the most pay for the least amount of work. 

But the Christ-follower should have a totally different mind set. Romans 12:2 They should realize that God is their ultimate employer. Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters... It is the Lord you are serving Colossians 3:23-2

The Christ-follower's work should honor the Lord. "When you eat or drink or do anything else, always do it to honor God."  1 Corinthians 10:31

When you go to work tomorrow, strive to have a God-honoring work ethic.  

Work Is Not A Four-letter Word

Very few people look at work positively. Work to most people is something they endure so they can endure the weekend. There has been numerous cartoons and jokes about Monday morning but is there a positive side to work? What does God think about work?

Did Adam and Eve have  life of luxury? Was everything provided for them? The foundation for our work ethic come from the book of Genesis.

Evidently work itself is not bad, for Adam was told to work even before he sinned. And the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to 'dress it and to keep it' (Genesis 2:15). God knew that idleness was not good for mankind, so He assigned to Adam the responsibility of "dressing" the garden, perhaps to keep the plants from overrunning everything. This was not difficult work, but enjoyable. 

You may have heard the saying, "If you love what you do, you'll never work a day in your life." (Unknown) I told my children that it really did not matter how much money you earn if you dislike your job. Who wants to work 20-30  years in a job they dislike just it paid well?

The Bible has much to say about work and the work ethic. I will share those thoughts in upcoming blogs.  

It's Horrible

 Four and one-half weeks I had cardio bypass surgery. Many people who had or knew people who had the surgery all said the worst part of the surgery was the recovery process. Words like "horrible," terrible" "tough" were frequently used to describe the recovery.

But like many words they can have relative meaning. I wasn't sure what I was going to experience and to what degree. Though I "knew" the words, it was only while experiencing the words did I fully understand them. I now have a new empathy for those who have experienced the recovery process. I understand their depression, depths of emotions and pain.

You can only truly say, "I know how you feel" when you have experienced the experience. We should not make glib statements unless we have walked a "mile in their moccasins." (Indian proverb.)

Passing The Test

 Recently, our local Lowe's store hosted a job fair. Three hundred people filled out job applications of which one hundred people were selected for the interview process. Part of the interview process was the mandatory drug test.

Of the one hundred people selected only 25 passed the drug test! Shocking but not surprising! I guess people think companies to lower their standards to accommodate their life style.