Sunday evenings we study Mere Christianity by CS Lewis in our Guys Bible Study. This week we covered three very important chapters. They were entitled Faith, Hope, and Charity. We spent most of our time discussing charity, and our discussion followed along these lines. I began by asking the guys what the word charity meant. The only answer I received was, giving to the poor or needy. While this may be the modern accepted definition of charity, it is not the sense in which CS Lewis used the term. He sees charity as the virtue of Christian love toward others.
What are God’s expectations toward us regarding love? We all know the golden rule, “do to others has you would have them do to you.” What’s interesting is that Jesus requires even more. He instructs us to love our enemies as well as our neighbors. Christ wants us to love people based upon their value as bearers of the image of God, not based upon their appeal to us. I can hear the murmuring begin, “that’s not easy to do, especially when some people are just unlovable.” For Lewis this excuse will not do. He makes it clear that we shouldn’t bother trying to conjure up fond feelings toward someone. That is a useless proposition and it doesn’t help us fulfill Jesus’ requirement. Instead we should ask ourselves “if I loved them, what would I do for them?” Then go about doing those things. Our love begins to compound, and soon you’ll find nothing but fond feelings toward the person.
This truth is vital for Christians to be able to live out the Gospel. Not only in dealing with casual acquaintances, but also with family members and even spouses. If you want to love someone, act like you do.
The same principle also applies to our feelings for God. Throughout your life you will have seasons when you don’t feel as though you love God. Concentrate, fast, pray, and plead with yourself to love God more and you will not obtain what you desire. Instead, think for a moment about what you would do for God if you loved Him. Start doing those things, and soon you’ll find yourself loving God more than you could have imagined.
Are you feeling distant from someone right now? What have you done for them lately? What would you do for them today if you loved them? Now get busy, but keep in mind the proper reason for doing this. It’s not to gain appreciation or praise from the person. God says love them because I loved you, don’t expect a pat on the back, or you’ll be disappointed when you don’t get one! Do it to please God and your reward is secure.
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Monday, April 19, 2010
First Blog Post Ever
Well I finally did it, I've fulfilled my childhood nightmare from fourth grade. I remember sitting in the assembly listening to an entertaining guest speaker. He was a children's author who had written an exciting book about two young kids who solve a mystery and hunt for lost treasure. I can't remember his name, but I still remember listening to him describe having to rewrite hundreds of pages and how much typing and reading he had to do in order to finish his book. I distinctly remember thinking that this guy had the worst job I could possibly imagine.
God's sense of humor is uncanny, because many years later I find myself employed to write (and speak) words for a living. Every week I have to prepare one to three messages relating God's Word to the lives of the students under my care. Today, I decided to start my first blog for two reasons.
First, the students are always asking me what my real job is during the week. Second, parents are always asking "do you guys really study the Bible, or just goof off!" The students are clueless, but the parents have a valid question. When they ask Little Johnny what we talked about in youth group, he probably says something like "Uh, I don't know." Ask him who caught the most interceptions in football before Bible Study began and he'll be ready with an answer.
For those reasons, I sentence myself to fulfill my worst nightmare. Now I will be writing as part of my job!
Just to give you and idea of what my posts will be like, check out something we talked about last week at Breakfast Club:
That's right, we had a devotion about a talking donkey. Puss in boots did not factor into our discussion. I asked the guys at Breakfast Club if they had ever heard of a talking donkey before the movie Shrek. One student said yes, but couldn't remember where, so I read them the story from Numbers 22, where Balaam's donkey saves him from the Angel of the Lord. Then the donkey looks up and says "why have you beaten me these three times?" It's a cool story, and they will probably remember it every time they see one of the Shrek movies.
What does it have to do with being a teenager in today's world? I think it's easy to relate if you think about it.
I picture the two people groups in Numbers 21-25 like the students at an old middle school dance (they still have dances, but I think they're online only now). Girls on one side, worried about what the guys are thinking and saying, and the mindless guys on the other side mustering up the courage to ask one of the girls to dance. You can almost cut the tension with a knife. That paints the picture of Israel and Moab. Israel is worried about what Moab will do to them for encroahing on their turf, and Moab is worried that Israel will boot them right out of their turf. It's interesting that the people of Israel didn't know about the talking donkey and the prophet who couldn't say a bad word toward the Jews. All they knew is that the Moabites never came rushing in to attack, and they were able to enter the promised land a short time later.
How many people in the camp of Israel were terrified and praying that God would do some sort of miracle to keep the Moabites at bay? How many of them worried about what would happen, or how God would allow them to enter the promised land? How many of them imagined that God would use a talking donkey to keep his children safe? What if God answered their prayers of safety by saying "Don't worry, I'll use my talking donkey to keep you safe?" I doubt they would have been comforted by that thought.
One of the toughest challenges in being a teenager is that God doesn't always show us the talking donkey that answers our prayers. Teenagers are worried about how they look, how the other kids look, what other students think, and what the future holds. They don't realize that God has amazing things happening in the background that they may never see. We need to help our students see that when God has their back, He will do whatever it takes to look after His children. Sometimes a talking donkey is just what it takes.
God's sense of humor is uncanny, because many years later I find myself employed to write (and speak) words for a living. Every week I have to prepare one to three messages relating God's Word to the lives of the students under my care. Today, I decided to start my first blog for two reasons.
First, the students are always asking me what my real job is during the week. Second, parents are always asking "do you guys really study the Bible, or just goof off!" The students are clueless, but the parents have a valid question. When they ask Little Johnny what we talked about in youth group, he probably says something like "Uh, I don't know." Ask him who caught the most interceptions in football before Bible Study began and he'll be ready with an answer.
For those reasons, I sentence myself to fulfill my worst nightmare. Now I will be writing as part of my job!
Just to give you and idea of what my posts will be like, check out something we talked about last week at Breakfast Club:
That's right, we had a devotion about a talking donkey. Puss in boots did not factor into our discussion. I asked the guys at Breakfast Club if they had ever heard of a talking donkey before the movie Shrek. One student said yes, but couldn't remember where, so I read them the story from Numbers 22, where Balaam's donkey saves him from the Angel of the Lord. Then the donkey looks up and says "why have you beaten me these three times?" It's a cool story, and they will probably remember it every time they see one of the Shrek movies.
What does it have to do with being a teenager in today's world? I think it's easy to relate if you think about it.
I picture the two people groups in Numbers 21-25 like the students at an old middle school dance (they still have dances, but I think they're online only now). Girls on one side, worried about what the guys are thinking and saying, and the mindless guys on the other side mustering up the courage to ask one of the girls to dance. You can almost cut the tension with a knife. That paints the picture of Israel and Moab. Israel is worried about what Moab will do to them for encroahing on their turf, and Moab is worried that Israel will boot them right out of their turf. It's interesting that the people of Israel didn't know about the talking donkey and the prophet who couldn't say a bad word toward the Jews. All they knew is that the Moabites never came rushing in to attack, and they were able to enter the promised land a short time later.
How many people in the camp of Israel were terrified and praying that God would do some sort of miracle to keep the Moabites at bay? How many of them worried about what would happen, or how God would allow them to enter the promised land? How many of them imagined that God would use a talking donkey to keep his children safe? What if God answered their prayers of safety by saying "Don't worry, I'll use my talking donkey to keep you safe?" I doubt they would have been comforted by that thought.
One of the toughest challenges in being a teenager is that God doesn't always show us the talking donkey that answers our prayers. Teenagers are worried about how they look, how the other kids look, what other students think, and what the future holds. They don't realize that God has amazing things happening in the background that they may never see. We need to help our students see that when God has their back, He will do whatever it takes to look after His children. Sometimes a talking donkey is just what it takes.
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