Know the Mission

 

But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.” But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.”    Luke 10:40-42 (ESV) Satan does not seem to care how he distracts us. He just wants to distract us. If you send me to the store to pick up a gallon of milk, and while I am there, I get distracted by all the other goodies I see, and I come home without the milk, I failed my mission. It is not as if the other goodies are all bad, or even unnecessary. It is that I never achieved the goal that was set before me, which made me look and feel foolish. Life is the same. We were created to love God and each other, and there are many other nice things that on which we can focus, and in which we can be involved, so we need to be careful. We need to know the mission, stay focused on the mission, and enjoy the eventual results of the mission. For now, the choice is mine. .

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As Defined

 

Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side. So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion. He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him. And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.’ Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?” He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” And Jesus said to him, “You go, and do likewise.”   Luke 10:30-37 (ESV) So often we try to justify our actions by redefining words. This lawyer was attempting to foil Jesus’ words by pointing out the fuzzy definition of the word “neighbor.”  A change in the definition of a term, or the lack of clarity of the definition, does not justify sin. Jesus understood what the lawyer was doing and helped him define the word correctly. Making up terms or changing definitions of words/concepts to make our life look “good” is foolish. We seem to keep attempting to change the meaning of marriage, gender, and even when life is really life. We seem to be a nation trying to be wise, and in doing so, we demonstrate our foolishness. We need to define things as God defined things, or face a disappointing future.

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It is about God!

 

And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” He said to him, “What is written in the Law? How do you read it?” And he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.”   Luke 10:25-27 (ESV) Those of us who are continually looking for ways to impress God with our understanding of life and death should stop such foolish “efforts.” Being right with God is not about perfection. It is about His mercy and grace. Being cared for has little to do with our ability, and everything to do with His faithfulness. Somehow, we want to make all things about us, when all things are about God. When we work towards such an end, we become frustrated, and eventually enter the realm of the hopeless. Life is not about me.  It is about God. This is not a theory. It is a reality, and if I want to enjoy life, I need to live in the context of reality.

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Sunrises

 

Then turning to the disciples he said privately, “Blessed are the eyes that see what you see! For I tell you that many prophets and kings desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.”   Luke 10:23-24 (ESV) We all have unique experiences in life and we all will give an account to God for what we have known and what we did with what we knew.  As I write this thought I am witnessing a beautiful sunrise over the vast northern forest. The sky seems to be bursting forth a praise song for the beginning of a new day with a brilliance that artists wish they could capture. I can take a moment and enjoy God and what He is doing here, or I can ignore it and get on with my day. I do not know how many more sunrises God will allow me to see. I think I will pause from writing for a moment and enjoy His gift. Perhaps you can do the same sometime today

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Simple Truths Are Best

 

In that same hour he rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children; yes, Father, for such was your gracious will."   Luke 10:21 (ESV) Sometimes we lose the simple or common because it is simple and common. We often complicate the simple to make us look brilliant. Many look for something new and undiscovered in the Scriptures that they can teach in order to somehow show their superior understanding. However, the most profound thoughts are the simple thoughts. There is a God; I am not Him. I am sinful, separated from God, and helpless on my own. God gives me a choice, because He loves me. In the beginning God, not Dave, not ______. I do not need to dwell on the complicated when those who are truly wise are those who master the simple. Simple truths are best and the easiest to understand. I need to focus on understanding them and applying them, and all will be well.

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Focus

 

And he said to them, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you. Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”  Luke 10:18-20 (ESV) It seems easy to rejoice in the wrong thing. We might rejoice in the fact that we have money, yet not see that the money is actually causing us to lose our focus and our God-given purpose in life. We can rejoice in an abundance of food and not see that this abundance is causing to be gluttons and to have to battle obesity. Satan loves to get our focus off a couple of degrees, knowing that a small change in focus changes direction and controls the eventual destination. We must be careful to focus on what God intended us to focus.

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Perhaps there is time...

 

Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. But it will be more bearable in the judgment for Tyre and Sidon than for you. And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You shall be brought down to Hades. “The one who hears you hears me, and the one who rejects you rejects me, and the one who rejects me rejects him who sent me.”"  Luke 10:13-16 (ESV) What does God need to do to prove to man that He is God? Nothing. What has He done to prove that He is God? Everything. The Scriptures clearly tell us that He has made and sustains all things. Life and purpose come from Him. Yet, we tend to ignore the wonders of creation, how life is sustained, and we focus on what we are capable of understanding. For some reason, we want to keep challenging the miracles of God and force all information to fit into our ability to comprehend and control. When we do that, we reject God and one day will regret such foolishness. Perhaps there is still time to repent and enjoy life the way God wanted us to.