Crosswalk.com--The Devotional

[Judy Harder]

God and Treadmills
Ryan Duncan, Editor, TheFish.com

May the Lord direct your hearts into God's love and Christ's perseverance.
2 Thessalonians 3:5

Ever since I moved to Richmond I've acquired a taste for working out. There's just something addicting about going to the gym after a long day at the office and pounding a treadmill until you feel the moisture on your forehead. If I don't get my usual workouts, I tend to go stir crazy. That's why I can't stand January. After every New Year's celebration, like clockwork, the gyms become crowded with people who have resolved to become healthier.

Because of the crowds, it becomes harder to get equipment, find parking spaces, or do any of my usual exercises. Now don't get me wrong, I'm glad people are trying to get healthier and I encourage anyone who wants to start working out to give it a try, but I still get frustrated because I know that within a month most of these people will be gone. Exercise requires a lot of commitment and perseverance, and while a lot of people have resolved to live better, when the hard part comes they give up. You could say the same thing applies to faith. I cannot tell you how many times God has revealed himself in my life through his grace, his power, or even his sense of humor. But despite all these moments, it's still so easy for me to doubt, to get angry with God and wonder if he has a plan, or if he's even there at all.

The book of James is useful in moments like this, and even offers some encouragement for when we're tempted to doubt.   

"Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds,because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does." – James 1:2-8

Spiritual workouts are no different from our physical ones. If you want to run a marathon, you first have to run a mile, and if you want to become a tool for Christ, you have to trust him first. So don't be afraid of trials and challenges, but instead embrace them as opportunities to mature in your faith. It won't be easy, and odds are you'll probably have to endure some difficult and painful experiences, but in the end you'll look back and know you're stronger because of it.

Intersecting Faith and Life: Apply God to your daily life through the excercise of prayer and service.

Further Reading

Hebrews 12:1

[Judy Harder]

Are You Reciting the Gospel by Yourself?
by Alex Crain, Editor, Christianity.com

...with Him... Moses and Elijah, who, appearing in glory, were speaking of His departure which He was about to accomplish at Jerusalem.
Luke 9:30-31 NASB

It's good to see that the idea of 'preaching the gospel to yourself everyday' is becoming more popular. At least that's how it seems to me. Things that point to the gospel are popping up in all kinds of places and ways, not only in big and new movements but in short videos, articles and Twitter messages ("Gospel Tweets"). A caution in the way we think about the gospel was brought to my attention recently in chapter two of True Spirituality. If you're not following along in our weekly journey through this important and helpful work by Francis Schaeffer, I invite you to join us. 

In chapter two, Schaeffer mentions our Scripture passage today (above) where we see Moses and Elijah speaking with Jesus at the Mount of Transfiguration about His impending departure—His death.

It's subtle, but notice that they're not just making a passing mention of the fact. Rather, they were actively and continuously speaking about it. They were dwelling on the gospel; at least the substitutionary atonement part of it. And with the Object of their redemption (Christ) standing right there, no doubt there must have been more than just theological accuracy in their conversation. Probably more like amazement and deep gratitude. As they thought of all that Christ was about to endure for their sin, I'm sure they had correct thoughts about the gospel. But Christ's own presence energized their orthodox theology. 

At times, there can a detached, tearless way that we think about the gospel. When I have well-articulated and familiar facts about Christ's life/death/resurrection/ascension, and they are just empty echoes down the icy corridors of my thoughts, the diagnosis is simple: I have broken fellowship with Christ. It's evidence of unconfessed sin.

Schaeffer reminds us that when we rehearse the gospel, we must do so in the presence of the Living Christ; in humble worship of Him. He is not a distant figment of man's imagination. He is the God Who is there. Just as Moses and Elijah were "with Him"... in His presence, so we too must continuously rehearse the gospel while recognizing that we are in the presence of the God Who is there. The Christian life flows from the constant spring of dwelling on the gospel with the Redeemer Himself. 

Intersecting Faith & Life:     

Remember this paraphrase of John Piper: the gospel is like blood, it's supposed to course through your veins not be carried in a bucket.

John Owen, (a 1600s Puritan) often prayed, "Lord, may I commune with You in the doctrines I espouse." Make this your prayer and experience today. 

Further Reading

John 15

The Gospel in Six Minutes (John Piper, video)

"While all that borrows life from Thee is ever in Thy care;
And everywhere that man can be, Thou, God art present there."
From the hymn, "I Sing the Mighty Power of God" by Isaac Watts

[Judy Harder]

The Temporary Non-Path of Patience
by Shawn McEvoy, Crosswalk.com Managing Editor

Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. The farmer waits for the precious produce of the soil, being patient about it, until it gets the early and late rains. You too be patient; strengthen your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is near. James 5:7-8

We all know that patience isn't easy, or fun. What it is, though, is the path of the wise. Or, perhaps it's better to say the "non-path," since it usually involves a decision to do nothing for a while, to be still and know that you are not God, to reflect, or to strategize.

I recently gained new insight into the value of patience and the reason it's prized so highly in the Bible, from verses about "those who wait on the Lord" to "letting endurance have its perfect result."

In the first half of 2010 I raced through a blog of the TV show LOST. The series is replete with Christo-religious metaphors and parallels. One such area it studies in detail is patience. Early on, one of the characters tells another that "Patience, which you lack, is the quality of a leader." It almost flew right by me, like it did the first time. Patience? The quality of a leader? Does that sound right? Not really, not to today's ears. Don't we usually think of leaders as people who make immediate, command decisions, rush into action, tell others what to do, and make people feel safe (which is to say, how they think they need to feel)?

That's part of it; however, those are the very flaws about the concept that plagued most of the characters on LOST. They were so driven to do, fix, run, save, correct, fight, and prove that they often didn't take time to actually ponder the next step or, even better, wait for the next step to present itself. Their lack of wisdom in making rush decisions and actions was obvious to the audience, who kept wondering why they couldn't remember the miracles they'd already seen, why they couldn't reflect on what they'd already come through, the amazing ways they'd been granted second chances, the redemption they'd been given despite not deserving it, the way they kept longing for home while failing to realize they were building a new one (if they could have just slowed down and seen it).

As I watched it all unfold, I was reminded of the children of Israel. Granted, 40 years in a desert would be a long time to wait for anything, particularly a promised new home. So they grumbled. They longed for the old ways, even though those meant bondage and servitude. They failed to stop and understand that the miracles of manna and the Red Sea meant more were on the way - at the right time. They nagged their leadership, sought unproductive solutions, and just like the characters on LOST, were plagued by always feeling they had to do something, to take control.

The paradox is that control is indeed involved, but it's self-control instead of situational control. Relax. Quiet yourself. Let's remember where we came from and the amazing ways we passed through peril for a while. Let's reflect on the present - the fact we're here - and how amazing the Lord is. Let's ponder our future steps before rushing up them and tripping.

Patience - the "strengthening of the heart" James refers to - then is directly related to another fruit of the Spirit, self-control. Self-control thus leads to maturity, which is completeness, which is wisdom, which is leadership, which is purpose, which is ministry, which is being used of God, which is where we see miracles again. Full-circle we come, eventually, when we patiently wait on the Lord, who is never late and perpetually victorious.

Situational control may provide temporary satisfaction, but it also often makes a situation worse. Patience is a willing temporary dissatisfaction, but it puts your emotions under control and God in control. It might make a situation feel like it's not getting better, but the solution can only be miraculous with it as part of the equation. Patience prevents rash judgment, and judgmentalism. It secures a plan. It is a beautiful paradox of being a non-action and yet a conscious exercise of free will. It is the basis for the merciful ways the Lord deals with us. Patience provides the path in proper time, and promises that faith will be rewarded.

Intersecting Faith & Life: Practice patience this week by seeking not to pursue control in one particularly vexing portion of your life, and ponder whether it's indeed your problem to solve in the first place. Start by remembering the miracle of how God got your attention and delivered you, and his promise that the great work he began in you will not remain incomplete, no matter how long it takes. What miracle will be next? Wait and see. "You will know that I am the LORD; Those who hopefully wait for Me will not be put to shame (Isaiah 49:23)."

Further Reading

Galatians 5:22
Hebrews 6:12
1 Corinthians 4:5
Isaiah 40:31

[Judy Harder]

His Love Endures Forever
by Ryan Duncan, Editor, TheFish.com

Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever! -1 Chronicles 16:34

Last December I had the privilege to be part of a short-term mission's trip to Vladimir, Russia, where I worked alongside Russian Christians in the city's orphanage. The trip was incredibly challenging, but the opportunity did help me learn a lot about God and about myself. In particular, I remember the Sunday morning where our interpreters invited us to attend their Church. The building they met in was small, and as I took my seat with the rest of the team, I realized there couldn't be more than thirty people in the congregation.

I found that number rather depressing. My own Church here in the states wasn't what I'd call big, but it certainly had more than thirty people in it. A small voice in the dark part of my mind wondered if this was a sign of change in our world, that maybe Christianity was beginning to die out. I was still in this dismal frame of mind when the congregation stood for the first song, and it was at that point something extraordinary happened. The people of that small Church began to sing together, and I was amazed at the passion they displayed toward God as they worshiped.         

Afterward, my interpreter took me aside and began to tell me about the history of the Church. Apparently this little Church had been in the community for ten years, and it wasn't shrinking, it was growing. My interpreter told me how it was through this Church that he had first come to know Christ. He was the only Christian in his family, and was doing his best to witness to them, but in the meantime he considered the people here just as close as any brother or sister. Nearly everyone in the Church was involved in some kind of outreach, some even worked with the orphanages full time.

All of this from a Church of thirty people. Sometimes I lose sight of who God really is, and what he can do with the smallest of offerings. God will never be threatened or hindered by our world. He will always be there for us no matter how far we stray or how hard mankind tries to remove him. Through the rise and fall of countless empires, all the advancements of science, through war and pain, the spirit of God has endured.

I guess the writer of Psalms knew what he was talking about when he wrote,

"Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever. Give thanks to the God of gods, for his steadfast love endures forever. Give thanks to the Lord of lords, for his steadfast love endures forever; to him who alone does great wonders, for his steadfast love endures forever;" – Psalm136:1-4

Intersecting Faith and Life: Try to find ways to live your faith, consider getting involved in your Church outreach.

Further Reading

Psalm 100:5

[Judy Harder]

Be a Friend to Have a Friend
by Laura MacCorkle

A friend loves at all times. Proverbs 17:17, NIV

Christmas is just about three weeks past us, but the remnants remain on a bulletin board in my office.

There, I have thumb-tacked various holiday family pictures and newsletters that I received in the mail from all different friends and acquaintances.  I decided that that's how I would "handle" these materials this year, instead of putting them in a pile to collect dust and go forgotten.

As I look at the bulletin board each day, my heart is warmed as I see the faces of friends who have played different roles in my life:  comforter, truth-teller, listener, hugger, encourager, constructive criticizer, relationship decoder/investigator, and so forth.

I see so many ways of serving and giving from so many different types of friends.  And I am blessed as I am reminded of what they have done for me.  And then I am also convicted:  What am I doing for my friends?  How am I pouring into their lives as they are pouring into mine?  How is God moving me to be part of their worlds?  And am I responding to his instruction and guidance in my life?

Ralph Waldo Emerson famously said:  "The only way to have a friend is to be one."  And he was so right about that.  Friendships don't just happen.  They take time.  They take effort.  They take upkeep.  And that means we all have to do something if we want to cultivate, grow and nurture relationships with others.

When I look at my bulletin board of friends, if I am truly willing to be a friend "who loves at all times," I know that that means I have to always be ready to shelve or alter my plans in order to help meet the varied needs of others.

It's something God has been working on me for a while now.  Am I willing to lay down my plans and sacrifice my time and my desires for my friends?  Or is it more important that I get done today what is on my list and what I think is right for me?  Am I seeking the Lord for his direction?  Am I paying attention to the Holy Spirit for conviction?

Let me warn you, though.  Don't ask God to move in your life in this way unless you really mean it.  Because when you do ask him to help you be a better friend and to help you reach out to others, he will give you plenty of opportunities that may or may not be what you had in mind.

You might be asked to...

Offer your professional skills to someone else in need for free.
Forgo your after-work errands or agenda to just sit, listen and offer a warm hug
Give up your Saturday to help someone move, paint a house or run a garage sale.
Better yet, you might be moved to...

Give financially to someone you don't even know.
Befriend the "different" or "difficult" person whom no one else likes.
Not take careless words or confusing situations personally and instead choose to "cover" these minor offenses with love.
That's what a true friend does:  gets outside of themselves and gives.  And gives.  And gives!  Are you up to it?  I'm asking myself the same question.  For friends both new and old, how can we be a true friend to someone else today?

Intersecting Faith & Life: No doubt, at some point in your life you've known what it's like to be on the receiving end of someone who has been a good friend to you.  But what's it like to be your friend?  Do you take more than you give?  Are you ever around?  Do you take time to listen and care about others' concerns and life matters?  Take a friend inventory today and see what changes you might need to make in your outreach to those you call "friend."

Further Reading:

John 15:13
1 Corinthians 13:4-7

[Judy Harder]

Missing the Forest for the Trees
by Debbie Wright, Assistant Editor, Crosswalk.com

"Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" Jesus replied:"'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment.  And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments" (Matthew 22:36-40).

I just read an article about how being technically "overweight" might not actually, in and of itself, carry a higher mortality risk. It discussed how previously established governmental standards of healthy, "normal" weight might have sprung more from our society's visual obsession with thinness, than with any inherent physical dangers of weighing more than your neighbor.

As mind-blowing as this conclusion may seem, perhaps the real problem isn't a number on a scale. Perhaps it's when too much extra weight for a person's body brings on unnatural fatigue, immobility, illness, or discomfort. Perhaps the problem is eating too much, or too poorly, for our bodies to function correctly.

Perhaps we're missing the big picture of health and wellness and zooming in too close on the raw numbers of weight.

I would venture to say that we do that in our spiritual lives as well. Perhaps you've diagnosed a fellow believer as having a spiritual "illness" – let's say they don't attend church on Sunday morning. Knowing only this raw data can lead to a judgmental shake of the head, with a sigh of "Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing!"

But, if you were to ask this person about their health and habits, perhaps you might be surprised. But I do meet together with other believers regularly, they may say, citing a weeknight Bible study or regularly occurring night of intentional fellowship. I travel weekends for my job, so traditional church is pretty impossible, they might say. There are many things they might say, many things that might remind us that a single suspicious tree might not be representative of the forest of someone's life.

Jesus said that everything we learned from the Law and from the Prophets could be summed up like this:

Love God.
Love other people.

This is the Forest. Everything else is merely a Tree within it.

If there is something in your life causing the Forest to suffer, only then can a problem be properly diagnosed (and, rest assured, if we ignore things like fellowship, worship or prayer for long enough those things will suffer). However, sometimes we get a little too focused on smaller things and forget about the bigger picture. We forget about the Forest, so preoccupied have we been on individual Trees.

Intersecting Faith and Life: Perhaps your individual Trees line up. But how is your Forest looking these days? A little too much like a Christmas tree farm? Rather than focusing on the good-Christian-checklist of your day, ask a trusted friend or mentor whether your life truly could be described as loving God and loving people unselfishly.

Further Reading

Luke 11:37-54

[Judy Harder]

Are You in the Belly of a Big Fish?
by Fred Alberti, Salem Web Network Director of Social Media

But the Lord provided a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was inside the fish three days and three nights.
Jonah 1:17

Being a homeschool family we sometimes have some rather interesting experiments that we get to enjoy as a family. George is one such experiment. George is a goldfish whose bowl-mate sadly perished. My son's task was to teach the goldfish to come to the top of the bowl when he tapped on the glass. After several weeks of tapping and feeding and tapping and feeding the fish finally learned to come to the top of the bowl.

Big deal right? Right, that is until the fish started to do more. Anytime someone would walk by the bowl he would get all excited and start moving his mouth like he was yelling at whoever it was that was walking by the bowl. This became rather normal and we would just ignore him or comment that he was yelling at us in Spanish.

Then one day my kids were listening to an FFH song titled "Big Fish." It was then that George decided to really show off what he could do. When the song played George would begin to swim around like he was dancing in the water and would seemingly move his mouth to the words (move over Ashlee Simpson).

I particularly like the first verse of the song which goes like this:

Are you in the big fish
Are you sitting in the belly of a world gone mad
Have you turned your back in His wish
On His will for your life, have you made Him sad
Do you want to get out of the big fish
Listen to God and follow His plan
And you won't be part of the main dish
He'll spit you out on to dry land

I've sometimes felt like I was in the belly of a big fish. I had decided to do something my way instead of first seeking the Lord's guidance and leading.

You, whoever you are, God has a plan for your life. Maybe you feel like you are wasting your time at a dead-end job. Or perhaps you have no job but would desperately like one. Maybe you think you have the dream job but the Lord has been speaking to you in a still small voice to give it up for something else. Like Jonah, you may not particularly like the mission God has for you but He has the intention of making you ideally suited to carry that plan out.

Will you follow His plan or will your turn your back?

Maybe you've already chosen to turn your back and feel that there is no way out now. If that is the case I've got good news for you. The Bible has this to say about Jonah, "From inside the fish Jonah prayed to the Lord his God" (Jonah 2:1). God is the God of second, third, and fourth chances.

Commit your way to the Lord today.

Intersecting Faith & Life: Buy a goldfish if you don't have one already. As you feed it remember that the Lord has a purpose and a plan for your life. Ask Him to reveal it to you daily.

Further Reading

Jonah Runs From God
Jonah and Me
Hebrews 13:20 - 21

[Judy Harder]

Praying to the Heater God
by Laura MacCorkle

We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true. And we are in him who is true—even in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life. 1 John 5:20, NIV

A portable space heater comes in handy this time of year.

I've got one in my home office that I place right in front of my feet, while I'm paying bills or working on something at my desk. No sooner have I flipped the switch to "on," then my two cats suddenly "appear" and are sitting very close to it.

I don't know how their little noses don't get burned, but I guess they know their own heat tolerance better than I do. They will generally sit in front of the heater until I turn it off... meaning, they never tire from taking in the irresistible warmth that makes them feel so good.

They practically worship the heater. And so when they sit there, I say that they're "praying to the heater god." Because that's what it looks like:  down on all fours (almost prostrate), eyes closed (for better concentration and devotion), and focus directed toward the source of their (temporary) satisfaction.

This scenario got me to thinking one day about what I worship:What are the "heater gods" in my life? What things am I so dangerously close to that can burn me? And what's interfering with my devotion to the one, true God?

Well, I didn't have to think too long or look too far. I glanced around my office and saw some catalogs for department stores lying around. Then, I looked a little further and saw my jam-packed calendar. Just beyond that, my treadmill. And then there was my little television positioned strategically so I can see it while working out.

So, in that one little space in my home, I've got the false gods of materialism, achievement, appearance and entertainment all grouped together. But hey, my several Bibles and a couple of commentaries and Bible study books are there on my bookshelf, too. So just the very fact that I have these should help to cancel out the false gods, right?

I'd like to think so. But truth is they don't. Since I don't know my own "heat tolerance" as it were, I need to constantly gauge my levels in light of God's Word. And that means I need to constantly be exposing myself to the true God by reading those Bibles, books and commentaries, spending time in study, being in fellowship with other believers, using my spiritual gifts and so forth.

I think the fourth verse from the great hymn, "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing," details my constant struggle the best:

O to grace how great a debtor
Daily I'm constrained to be!
Let Thy goodness, like a fetter,
Bind my wandering heart to Thee.
Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it,
Prone to leave the God I love;
Here's my heart, O take and seal it,
Seal it for Thy courts above.

We're all prone to wander and to leave the God we should love. It is a daily battle, and it is only by his grace—his irresistible grace—that our minds can stay on him. May he continue to work in our hearts and draw us unto himself.

Intersecting Faith & Life: What are the false gods in your life? Ask God to help you resist anything that challenges your devotion to him.

Further Reading:

1 Chron. 16:11-12
Psa. 51:10

[Judy Harder]

Worry-phobia
by Meghan Kleppinger

For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, "Abba! Father!"
Romans 8:15

The word "phobia" comes from the Greek word for fear, phobos. One of my college psychology professors explained a phobia as an irrational fear of something that can potentially be harmful. Arachnophobia, the fear of spiders, for example, is an abnormal fear of spiders. Spider bites can be deadly, but most spiders are harmless and if a person gets bit by one, the chances of it being a lethal bite are minimal.

Still, a person who suffers from this phobia, like me, can't be told to "not worry" when they see one of those eight-legged monsters. When I see a spider, the blood drains from my face, I can't move... actually, all I can do is scream until someone comes to rescue me. I'm not kidding. I, a grown adult, have been known to stand on top of a table and scream until my mother, yes, my mother, comes and gets rid of the disgusting arachnid.

I am very, very, very afraid of spiders... but truthfully, my phobia issues don't end there. Everyone has their "issue." My issue, my vice, my weakness, and my greatest struggle, can all be summed up in one word: "fear."

Out of curiosity, I recently decided to see if there was a phobia for a generalized fear of everything. There is. It's called panphobia (or pantaphobia), and is simply defined as a fear of everything.

As I researched panphobia, I learned that this is more than the every day worrywart sort of fear. It's a medical condition that is persistent, debilitating, and very difficult to treat. It's related to the paranoia typically found in Schizophrenics. After discovering this, I quickly decided that I don't have panphobia.

I realized that I'm not necessarily afraid of everything, I just worry about everything – and in case you're wondering, the definition for the Greek word for worry (merimnao) has more to do with an anxious concern than a debilitating fear.

I'm one of those people who worry even more if there isn't anything to worry about. I guess that would be called something like "Worry-phobia" – a fear of having nothing to worry about. Yes, I worry about those people I love, but I also worry about the starving parentless children on other side of the globe that I will never meet. I get worried when it rains one day too many or if too many days pass without a drop.

Okay, I'm exaggerating... a bit, but you get my point. The thing is God doesn't call worry panphobia or worry-phobia, He calls it sin.

For me it is about control, and when I don't feel like I have control, I worry. It is certainly something God is continually and persistently working on in my life. He has been teaching me to trust Him through some painful and scary circumstances lately.

I know I'm not alone in the journey toward freedom from worry, so I'm going to share some helpful scripture with you. The following verses declare that His truth is greater than any worse-case-scenario or real-life-circumstance we can encounter.

"Do not be afraid of them; the LORD your God himself will fight for you." (Deuteronomy 3:22)

"The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged." (Deuteronomy 31:

"Are not two sparrows sold for a cent? And yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So do not fear; you are more valuable than many sparrows." (Matthew 10:29-31)

"Your Father knows what you need before you ask Him." (Matthew 6:8b)

"Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?" (Hebrews 13:6b)

"Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. I am the Living One; I was dead, and behold I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades." (Revelation 1: 17b, 18)

Isn't it great that God doesn't tell us to do something without equipping us to do it first! Through His Word, He encourages and prepares us to face the world, which is after all, can be pretty scary place... especially with all of those blasted spiders!

"Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has chosen gladly to give you the kingdom." (Luke 12:32)

Intersecting Faith & Life: Hudson Taylor, A British missionary to China in the late 1800s, gave this advice – "The branch of the vine does not worry, and toil, and rush here to seek for sunshine, and there to find rain. No; it rests in union and communion with the vine; and at the right time, and in the right way, is the right fruit found on it. Let us so abide in the Lord Jesus."

Further Reading

You Can Win Over Worry
A Worried Christian?
How to Stop Worrying and Start Living!

[Judy Harder]

Keeping the Best Things First
by Katherine Britton

And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best... Philippians 1:9-11 

How often do we resign ourselves to the "tyranny of the urgent"? If you're me, it's a daily struggle not to use that little phrase as an excuse for losing sight of the big picture. It's so much easier to take care of what's immediately in front of me instead of what should be first in my life.

I'm a task-oriented Martha, so concerned with getting the job done that I forget to focus on Him first. I can tell myself that I'm doing my work "as unto the Lord" as much as I want, but I don't serve anyone when I get harried. You probably know the feeling; you tell yourself that you're cooking a wholesome dinner as a supreme act of service and love for your family - if they only appreciated how many other things you have to do besides stand over a stove! - when little Anne asks if you'll help her find a favorite CD. Something boils over, and it's not the pot on the stove. In taking care of dinner, you've forgotten to feed a godly attitude of patience and love.

That's me to a fault. James makes it clear that faith is constantly looking for ways to serve; like Martha, however, we can get so busy that we forget why we're doing it. I often catch myself thinking that if I'm not busy, I'm not "doing enough" for God. But then the act becomes its own end, instead of an outworking of love. Imagine Martha in the kitchen, fluttering around and looking for that special recipe to serve Jesus, while Mary just sat, soaking up His words. Martha's response to this was probably well-intentioned - that is, from a human point of view. She was serving and wanted others to serve with her! But Jesus called her bluff. "Only one thing is needed," Christ said, "and Mary has chosen what is better" (Luke 10:42). Better? Lord, you mean that sitting at your feet and being quiet is better than my idea of being busy serving you? That's right.

I think I got a double-portion of Martha's spirit. Too often, I think that sitting and listening to Jesus is the same thing as sitting and doing nothing. I think it's laziness. Satan whispers that my time could be better spent doing than learning, and then the tyranny of the urgent takes over. But even Olympic acts of service are as nothing if not done in love (1 Corinthians 13), and only time at the feet of Jesus can teach me that.

Love leads to action, as Paul writes to the Philippian church, not the other way around. I can't "discern what is best" in my work and words unless I keep the very best in front of my eyes, like Mary. My prayer this week is that I will focus on Jesus and see how to love. Then the priorities will fall in line. Then I see what is best, because I see Jesus.

Intersection of Faith & Life: We have to preach the Gospel to ourselves daily, as Jerry Bridges writes, so we never lose sight of what is first and last in importance. Reevaluate your commitments and make sure that you've set aside time to sit at the feet of Jesus before anything else.

Further Reading:

1 Corinthians 13
The Authority of Intimacy