Cricket Mentalities

By:  D. Delay

I recently heard a story that may help us. A young boy had caught a handful of crickets and put them in a wide-mouth jar. He placed inside the jar your typical supplies: grass, flies, berries, etc. Then he put the lid on the jar with several holes punched in it so the crickets could breathe. Immediately, they began jumping hysterically trying to get out of the jar only to hit the lid and bounce back down. This behavior went on for a couple of days and then suddenly stopped. The crickets became content with their jar, moving about inside it, eating and adapting to their new surroundings. But when the boy decided to take the lid off, the crickets didn't notice. Wanting to see what would happen, he left the lid off the jar – but the crickets never tried to escape. Before, they had tried to get out only to be beaten down. Now that they could leave, they contently stayed. Why? Because in the process of time, they had programmed themselves to believe their fate was sealed.

Unfortunately, many Christian are like these crickets.

Proverbs 4:23 says, "Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life." In other words, be careful what you believe. If you believe you are a failure, an outcast, or unworthy, you will believe your “jar" is your fate, when in reality it is nothing but a barrier to the truth. "Keep (or guard) your heart with all diligence, for OUT OF IT spring the issues of life." Whatever belief system you put in your heart is what will come out. And whatever comes out of your heart is the picture you believe. This can be a very unhealthy cycle. Others can tell you the truth and even point to the exit, but if you don't believe it, you will never attempt it – no matter how good it sounds. "For as a man thinks in his heart, so is he" (Proverbs 23:7). When the crickets no longer believed there was an escape, they stopped trying to find one.

The Hebrew word for issues in Proverbs 4:23 is literally translated as boundaries or controlling factors. So the Psalmist is saying: "Keep (or guard) your heart with all diligence, for out it spring the (boundaries or controlling factors) of life." Maybe someone beat us down with their words or treated us with contempt or prejudice. We may have fought back at first, but over time, the fight got tiresome and little by little we adjusted our whole life to fit within the lie. Therefore, (often unknowingly) the words and actions of others, and then our own words and actions built an invisible prison.

Thankfully, there are two sides to every coin. When we learn the truth of who we are in Christ Jesus and the righteousness we have received through faith in Him, the lid is removed. Then as we guard our heart, allowing only the truth of God’s Word to reside there, out of the self-same heart good boundaries and controlling factors will spring up.

The Apostle Paul said, “Having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness” (Romans 6:18). Sin caged us in. But righteousness, and our understanding of it, set us free. So guard your heart!


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Keeping Time

By:  K. Anderson

The music twirled and lifted under the spotlighted gaze of the audience in the twilight hall. Beside me, little Anne resonated, feet swinging gently, fingers twiddling tiny conductor’s patterns. Baby Winston bounced in time on my knee. Three rows down, a child who was big enough to know better set up a fuss, “It’s mine!” she whined.

God conducts the music of unfolding history every day for us. Will we pay attention? Will we resonate, keeping time to His patterns? Or will we with our own agendas and our beeper watches set up some other measure?

God’s Creation is set up especially to speak of Him, and the rhythms of time are no exception. The week is explicitly established as a pattern of seven with the cadences of work danced in demonstration by God Himself. Ever wonder who came up with a seven-day week? Why not a neat ten? Genesis 1 and 2. The first work week in history.

When God established a Sabbath day one day out of seven, He explained that this was intended to be the pattern for our imitation of Him.

“Six days shalt thou labor and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the Sabbath of the LORD thy God; in it thou shalt not do any work,…For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day; wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hollowed it.” (Ex 20:9-11)

And in so doing, He invites us to look carefully at the rest of His work week to discern other patterns of work that we should imitate in order to be effective.

Can we arrange our time so that our schedules reverberate with God’s messages to us? So that our work patterns remind us that there is a greater Work that we imitate? So that even washing dishes takes on a beautiful dignity? Oh yes!

James B. Jordan, in his book, Primeval Saints, has a wonderful study of the manner in which worship transforms our work and enables us in turn to transform the broken, ugly and unformed into something more and more glorious.

Jordan points out that God models for us again and again the six-fold pattern for our work.

We lay hold on the world.

We give thanks.

We break it up and restructure it.

We distribute it to others.

We evaluate it.

We enjoy it.

Does this look familiar? When Jesus was demonstrating how we are to remember His work,

“Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to his disciples saying, ‘Take and eat.  This is my body.’ Then he took the cup, gave thanks and offered it to them saying, ‘Drink from it all of you.  This is my blood of the covenant which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins…’ When they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mt of Olives.” (Matt 26:26)

It is the pattern of the Creation Week, of the Old Testament sacrificial system, of the Communion service, and (except for the thanksgiving part) it is a pattern that we cannot help but follow. Jordan maintains that if we, as believers, discipline ourselves to give thanks, it is the pattern for dominion and for cultural revitalization. 

This can be the pattern for daily life. As you sit down on a Sunday to imitate God in the arranging of your coming week,

-          Lay hold of your lists and calendars.

-          Give thanks for the time you have been given and for the help you have in your children (or co-workers)

-          Divide your work into manageable tasks.

-          Distribute them to the days and hours at your disposal, and, if you have children, to those small helpers at your knee.

-          Consider whether you can really do all that. Does something need to move or be re-assigned to another worker? Or maybe it just needs to be ditched. Leave room to be interrupted. Leave room for God to re-assign His work to you in the measure of the dance.

-          Enjoy the rest brought by knowing your work will be done decently and in order.

Your life will never be the same. This week, I hope you dance!


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Got Time for Patience?

By.  L. Kibler

I sat there, reading my Bible, and tried to still my jumpy legs. The day ahead filled my thoughts and I hurriedly read. I peeked forward to see how long the chapter was. I have 35 more verses? Ugh. I have so much to do, and I have to read another chapter after this. My morning devotions come first thing (after I have made a cup of tea and peeled a banana). I read through the Bible each year and on the morning I read Exodus 31-33, I rushed to finish. I had to hit the treadmill, do laundry, run to the store, meet my accountability partner for lunch, figure out what to have for dinner and get all the ingredients and then cook it. On and on my plans went.

In the chapters I read, the account of the grumbling Israelites at Mt. Sinai convicted me.

"When the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mountain, the people gathered themselves together to Aaron and said to him, '"Up, make us gods who shall go before us. As for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him."' (Exodus 32:1 ESV)

Then it hit me, the impatience of the people at Mt. Sinai was mine. I too sat before the Lord grumbling and stiff-necked. My daily idol of checking things off my list spoiled my precious time with Him. At that realization, I paused to confess my sin and ask the Lord's forgiveness for my hurried attitude. And I asked Him to open my eyes to all that He wanted to tell me and teach me through His Word.

It does no good to be impatient with God. Every time we try to hurry His actions or our reactions, we chase after other gods, other idols to make ourselves feel better about who we are. So, even knowing what we know about God, sometimes we remain stiff-necked, just as the Israelites were during their days in the wilderness. Yet the Lord answered the entreaties of their intercessor, Moses, and did not blot all of them out. He preserved some. His glory and promises shown, even through their sin of unfaithfulness.

That morning, I made myself slow down and look carefully at how the Lord exposed the great sin of the Israelites. The people supposed that Moses had forgotten them, and that his delay was cause for them to create their own idols to worship. They knew he was with the Lord on the mountain, but they wanted Moses, their visible leader, and they wanted him immediately. Did they so soon forget what God had done? Had they made Moses their idol?

God rescued them from their Egyptian yoke of slavery, and after only three months in the wilderness (safe from their oppressors), they had already groused to Moses about leaving Egypt and its resources ("We remember the fish we ate in Egypt that cost nothing, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic." Numbers 11:5 ESV). God had just given them His commandments in precise detail and promised them their future conquest over Canaan, the Promised Land. They did not know or come to understand their test of faithfulness. They did not know that their time of wandering would be 40 years—40 years of impatient grumbling.

Thank God Moses interceded for them, although not all of them were saved. Actually, all who left Egypt 20-years-old and upward, except Joshua and Caleb, perished before reaching the Promised Land. Joshua and Caleb showed faith in the Lord and trusted His promises to lead them in overtaking the inhabitants of the land they were to inhabit. God rewarded Joshua and Caleb's patient faithfulness, but as for the faithless remainder, He "let their carcasses fall in the wilderness" (Numbers 14:32).

As I reread those passages, I thanked God for slowing my pace. He gave me the opportunity to reflect and learn. If Joshua and Caleb gained such a reward for their patience during the time of Israel's 40-year test in the wilderness, how could 40 minutes of reading not benefit me? 


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Why Do Christians Suffer?

By:  J. Meyer

As Christians, we like the thought of sharing in Christ's glory, but what about sharing in His suffering? Jesus took care of the death penalty once and for all so we don't ever have to worry about that again. But the Bible teaches that we must suffer times of trial if we are to share in the glory. Is it worth it? Read what Paul says in Romans 8:18: ...For I consider that the sufferings of this present time (this present life) are not worth being compared with the glory that is about to be revealed to us and in us and for us and conferred on us!

Acting Right When Things Are Wrong

Many of us think we suffer because of our circumstances. We believe that if our circumstances would change, we'd be able to act right. But God wants us to become so mature and stable that we act right even when none of our circumstances are good. There are different levels of faith, and most of the time we want to use our faith to get rid of a problem. But sometimes God's plan is for us to exercise a higher level of faith that will carry us through life's challenges. This requires even greater faith than being delivered from a situation.

Too often we marvel at the delivering power of God and overlook His keeping, strengthening and enabling power. Although there are many reasons why Christians suffer, I would like to address what I believe are eight of the most common reasons why there is suffering in our lives.

#1: A Lack of Word Knowledge

Many Christians suffer because they're too busy seeking carnal knowledge instead of the Word of God. The Lord Himself said, My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge... (Hosea 4:6). Paul was an educated man, with a wealth of carnal knowledge. When he realized the importance of spiritual knowledge, he said, ...I resolved to know nothing (to be acquainted with nothing, to make a display of the knowledge of nothing, and to be conscious of nothing) among you except Jesus Christ (the Messiah) and Him crucified (1 Corinthians 2:2).

Like Paul, we need to realize the importance of learning spiritual things, for Galatians 6:8 says, ...he who sows to his own flesh (lower nature, sensuality) will from the flesh reap decay and ruin and destruction, but he who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life.

#2: Disobedience

Once we know the Word of God, we have a responsibility to be obedient to it. Too many of us intend to be obedient, but put it off. Even procrastination is disobedience, and it can cause us to suffer. James 4:7 gives us good advice: Submit yourselves therefore to God... . When God tells me to do something, I find it helpful to write it down. This serves as a reminder that I must be obedient if I want God's blessings. If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land (Isaiah 1:19).

#3: To Purify and Test Your Faith

Sometimes people seem surprised that they must go through a time of trial or suffering. Perhaps they’ve been faithful to learn and obey the Word, and the trials still come. Sometimes trials come simply to test and purify our faith. [You should] be exceedingly glad on this account, though now for a little while you may be distressed by trials and suffer temptations, so that [the genuineness] of your faith may be tested, [your faith] which is infinitely more precious than the perishable gold which is tested and purified by fire. [This proving of your faith is intended] to redound to [your] praise and glory and honor when Jesus Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One) is revealed(1 Peter 1:6-7).

#4: A Need for Brokenness

The word brokenness may strike fear in some people, but it's really not a bad word. God doesn’t desire to break our spirits, but He wants to break that outer shell, the flesh that prevents Him from being all He wants to be in and through us. He wants to break off things like pride, rebellion, selfishness and independence. God wants us to be totally dependent on Him, and suffering seems to bring us to that point.

However, having to depend on God shouldn't cause us to feel sorry for ourselves. I once said, “Oh, God, I'm so lonely, and I don't have anybody but You.” And the Holy Spirit said, "Poor Joyce, you're just stuck with God." I've discovered that having only God is a good position to be in.

#5: To Build Compassion

Compassion is born out of experiencing similar problems. The Bible says, ...we do not have a High Priest Who is unable to understand and sympathize and have a shared feeling with our weaknesses and infirmities and liability to the assaults of temptation, but One Who has been tempted in every respect as we are, yet without sinning (Hebrews 4:15). It comforts me to know that Jesus understands me and has compassion.

Going through trials and experiencing God's deliverance better equips us to minister to others. Our pain is never wasted; it brings about compassion that reaches out to other hurting people by saying, "I've been there, and God brought me through it, and He'll do the same for you."

#6: To Encourage Others

The apostle Paul said there were many things that God allowed him to go through simply as object lessons for other people. ...I want you to know and continue to rest assured, brethren, that what [has happened] to me [this imprisonment] has actually only served to advance and give a renewed impetus to the [spreading of the] good news (the Gospel).... most of the brethren have derived fresh confidence in the Lord because of my chains and are much more bold to speak and publish fearlessly the Word of God... (Philippians 1:12-14). Even in Paul's imprisonment, his stability and ability to be used of God was evident.

If we’re to minister to others, we too must face some adverse circumstances. But if we stand in faith and confidence, God will bring us through to victory, and we'll be a great encouragement to others in the process.

#7: Because of the Word

Sometimes we suffer attacks from the enemy simply because of our involvement with the Word of God.Mark 4:17 speaks of those who hear the Word and endure it for a while, ...then when trouble or persecution arises on account of the Word, they immediately are offended (become displeased, indignant, resentful) and they stumble and fall away. When someone receives the Word of God, Satan delights in coming immediately to try to steal what’s been sown in their heart. He knows the Word will strengthen us and help us live a victorious Christian life, and he wants to stop it if he can. So it’s imperative to guard the Word in your heart and resist the devil from stealing it away from you.

#8: Because of Living in the World

Christians may also face trials and suffer simply because we live in a world full of sin. But Jesus said, “I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have [perfect] peace and confidence. In the world you have tribulation and trials and distress and frustration; but be of good cheer [take courage; be confident, certain, undaunted]! For I have overcome the world. [I have deprived it of power to harm you and have conquered it for you]” (John 16:33).

What a promise! Understanding the reason for our suffering and having the assurance of the final glory we'll share should make it a little easier to enjoy our lives...even during the times of sharing in suffering.

And if we are [His] children, then we are [His] heirs also: heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ [sharing His inheritance with Him]; only we must share His suffering if we are to share His glory(Romans 8:17).


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How To Find Your Niche (Purpose) In Life?

By:  B. Sanchez

People ask all the time, “I don’t know God’s purpose for my life.” But it’s really easy.

Let me help you.

I tell them, “The easiest way for you to know God’s purpose is to look for the intersection between your passion and your potential.” In other words, find alignment.

Fulfilling your purpose may or may not to earn you money. And that’s okay. Life is not about earning money. This was my experience. For 20 years, I didn’t earn from the intersection of my passion and potential—which was speaking. It was pure ministry. I would speak anywhere and everywhere for free. I was very happy but very poor. With my finances, I could never raise my family or give more to the ministry.

So one day, I decided to go into business. To earn money, I sold hotdogs, squid balls, ice cream, memorial plans, and even engine oil. All those businesses failed. Why? Because I went out of my two circles of passion and potential…

To earn money, I had to go back to my core—the intersection of my passion and potential. But I had to do something else. If I wanted to prosper financially, I had to add one more circle. (I borrowed this idea from Jim Collins’ book, Good To Great—just changed the terms). The “Peso” circle consists of the various ways I could earn. I asked myself, “Where can I earn the most?” 

      

I realized that I could earn the most at that sweet spot where these three circles intersect. That sweet spot for me was still communication, but this time, I needed to find a way to monetize it. Obviously, even to this day, MOST of my speaking is still for free. I speak at the Feast each week without pay. But once a month, I’m invited by companies to speak and they pay me more than what I used to earn in a year.

Let me end with one last story…

Know What You Want

There’s this one very special restaurant in Singapore that my friends loved. In fact, its Hainanese chicken is so over-the-top and out-of-this-world, the restaurant has become a minor tourist attraction. If you visit Singapore, you have to visit this simple restaurant. 

And my two friends loved this restaurant so much, they had this crazy idea. They wanted to be the franchisee of this restaurant here in the Philippines.

 So they flew to Singapore to talk to the owner. And that was when they learned that they weren’t the first people to think of the crazy idea. They were last in a long line of people. The owner mentioned some very wealthy Filipinos who already visited him, wanting to buy the franchise. These Filipinos were huge institutions in the restaurant industry, the best of the best.

But for some reason, the owner turned all of them down.

Obviously, my friends were shaken. “If he turned down these gigantic Philippine restaurants, he’s going to turn us down too!”

But that’s when they received the shock of their life. After their long conversation with the owner, he looked at my two friends and announced, “I’ll give you the franchise for the Philippines.”

Later on, they learned why.

The owner used one big question to decide. He asked every applicant, “If I give you the franchise, who will come here to Singapore—to get trained in my kitchen—for 4 straight months?”

The other applicants—very wealthy business people—said, “We will send our best chefs for your training program.”

KBZZZZZZT! Wrong answer.

But when my friends were asked the same question, they raised their hands and said, “We’ll go!” In other words, they said, “We’ll forget whatever we’re doing in the Philippines and focus only on one thing—your restaurant.”

Are You Willing To Give Up Everything?

The restaurant owner was a very wise man. He was looking for people who know what they wanted.

I believe God is like that restaurant owner. He wants you to franchise his love in this world. He’s looking for His representatives. And He too is looking for an alignment between passion, potential, and purpose!

Passion means knowing what you want and giving everything you’ve got to get it. Passion is saying to yourself and to the universe, “This is what I want, and I’m betting my entire life on this. I’m putting my time, my future, and my comfort at stake here. I’m unloading all my guns. I’m holding nothing back. I’m sacrificing everything on the altar!”

That restaurant is now in the Philippines—and they’re full every single day.   They’re so full, you can’t get in without a reservation. It’s a smashing success. Why? 

Because there was alignment.

Let me ask you today… 

Do you know what you want?

Do you want it bad enough?

God waits for your answer.

I love saying this: When you want something bad enough, nothing much can stop you. As the Bible says, If you are unable to make up your mind and are undecided in all you do, you must not think that you will receive anything from the Lord. (James 1:7-8)

Orig Title -  (DO YOU KNOW WHAT YOU REALLY WANT?)


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The Good Sense of Wisdom

By:  L. Adams

“If you really want to gain knowledge, you have to begin by having respect for the Lord. But foolish people hate wisdom and training.” (Proverbs 1:7, NIRV)

The Hebrew word used here for fear suggests reverence and awe. A person seeking wisdom is willing to bow down to God simply because of the awe and respect they feel for Him. This phrase also suggests total dependence on God.

I am reminded of my relationship with my earthly father. My Daddy was a wonderful man whom I loved with all my heart and respected so much. He was the perfect example of a godly father. Highly respected in our community, he was a fair and wise man. Yet I knew my boundaries with him. I had a proper fear of him. Not the kind born of bad experience (unless you would call the holy discipline of spanking ‘bad’), but rather awe and respect for him. I loved him with all my heart and desired to please him. This is the ‘fear’ of which the Bible speaks.

Our culture does not teach this kind of fear or respect, therefore, it is a concept many people do not fully understand. Respect means that I trust the other person and esteem them, or hold them in high regard. It also means that I am willing to be submissive to another person. Oh yes, the 'S' word--submit. To respect another causes one to desire to please that person and perhaps even emulate them.

As Proverbs 1:7 tells us, a fool does not feel the need to respect God and therefore lacks the wisdom and knowledge that comes only from God. In fact, the fool chooses to go the opposite direction from wisdom.

I like this quote from Walter Lippman:

"It requires wisdom to understand wisdom: the music is nothing if the audience is deaf."

The fool is like a deaf audience. He has no way to gain wisdom because he doesn’t understand or respect the way to wisdom, which is the Lord. The fool refuses to submit to God because he doesn't trust God.

When I fear the Lord and walk before Him in respect, He makes me so much wiser than I should be. Really, I am a blonde underneath the Miss Clairol on my head, so sometimes I am stunned by the wisdom that God gives me.

I don’t want to be a fool!

How about you?

Let’s learn to respect, trust and submit to God in order to get a dose of WISDOM.

Orig Title -  A Dose of Wisdom


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We Can’t Afford Not To forgive

By:  M. Noebel

Have you ever heard those words before? Forgiveness is hard to do, but with God's help, we can forgive. The definition of forgive is to pardon or excuse. It means that we no longer blame others or are angry at those who did us wrong.

"For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins Matthew 6:14, 15

God tells us that forgiveness is not an option if we want God to forgive us. We are not perfect; we all make mistakes. We will not all agree on everything all the time. We must understand that and learn to forgive those who intentionally or unintentionally hurt us. Yes, we may have a moment of anger, but we must not become slaves to anger. We need to repent for harboring bad feelings against others so that we can be set free.

The Bible tells us in 1 Samuel 16:7 that the Lord looks at the heart. What does He see when He looks at our hearts? We want to have clean hearts and hands when we stand before God. Look at what the psalmist David said:

"Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a right spirit within me"Psalm 51:10

"Who may climb the mountain of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place? Only those whose hands and hearts are pure…"(Psalm 24: 3, 4a, The Book).

We want to stand before God and know that He is pleased with us. We don't want to carry the sin of unforgiveness in our hearts. When we pray, we want to know that God will answer our prayers. We certainly don't want this willful act to hinder our prayers.

"And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins" Mark 11:25

If we continue to have bitterness in our hearts and lives, we do not show the love of God. The Word of God tells us that we cannot even say we love God if we have hate toward someone else - 1 John 4:20 so what must we do? Colossians 3:12 tells us to "clothe yourselves with compassion." Philippians 2:4 says to "look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others." Galatians 6:2 instructs us to "carry each other's burdens." Ephesians 4:32declares, "Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other just as in Christ God forgave you."

The lines are drawn. The Word is clear. We must forgive! No matter the offense, no matter how much pain we feel, we must forgive. We can't take revenge or even gloat when our enemy falls (Romans 12:19-21; Proverbs 24:17

Let's ask God to fill us with His love for those who have offended us. Let’s learn to walk in love and peace. We will be glad we did.

Orig Title -  Forgive - Can We Afford Not To?


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