Psalm 32:11: "Rejoice in the Lord and be glad, you righteous; sing, all you who are upright in heart!"
Doesn't it seem that it is not always the righteous that are given the reward? Look at the sports pages of players in the NFL, NBA, and Major League baseball who have committed crimes of huge magnitude and yet have very small consequences by comparison to the secular world. Often in coffee shops and as I speak to men in various arenas, the topic of how the unrighteous are seeming to beat the system comes up. Well, good Christian friend, realize that you are not responsible for them, but only for your actions. And our God and Father says that He will reward righteousness. Carrolle Simcox said, "Today does not always belong to the righteous, but tomorrow always does, for the tomorrow may not be strictly by the calendar."
Meditate On This!
Continue to practice righteousness. Continue to practice righteousness. Continue to practice righteousness. Continue to practice righteousness. Continue to practice righteousness.
James 1:2-3: "Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance."
Do you consider yourself a "spiritual sprinter" or "distance man"? A "distance man" is one that has to do sprints but is able to keep up the stamina for a long time. Unfortunately, we often have become "sprinters", doing short spurts in the power of the Holy Spirit, and then moving on in our own strength. In the baseball world, a couple of players come to mind. How about Mike Easler, who played ten years in the Minor Leagues before getting his chance to be the "hit man from Cleveland"? Or Doug Flute, who played in the Canadian Football League and now has come back to the NFL many years later to lead the Buffalo Bills through a successful season?
Meditate On This!
Maybe you are a "sprinter" because you are afraid to face problems head on. Do you realize that God who is sovereign allows the trials in your life for a purpose? How you handle each trial and how you look to Him for guidance will develop the perseverance necessary to walk in the power of the Holy Spirit your entire time on earth. Don't complain about those tough times in your life, but rather get God's perspective.
This week, step back and look at what God might be teaching you in the midst of the trial through which you are going. The joy comes in knowing that He is sovereign - and you are saved. This trial is just a momentary "teaching tool" in His sovereign plan for your life.
James 1:4: "Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything."
Injuries are a part of professional sports. At the time they happen, we wonder how we are going to make it as a team, only to find out that younger talent is developed in the midst of the absence of the injured player. The skipper gets to test the team chemistry and find out if the "kid" can play the game.
How many successful teams are made up of all rookies? Not many . . . if any! However, how many successful teams are made up of players who have struggled with injury, with critical failure in game situations, as well as learned how to handle successes? Look at the New York Yankees of 1998, a team that was mature and complete, and as a result won 125 games.
Meditate On This!
In the midst of the trials you are going through, persevere . . . for the entire time! Put your trust in Christ, realizing this trial must "finish its work". Let it happen! Although it may seem tough in the midst of it, realize that God is trying to bring completeness to you so you are lacking nothing in your understanding of His grace, His sovereignty, and His love for you.
Oh, by the way, others will be encouraged along the way as they see you handle the hard times in a Christ-like way.
2 Peter 1:5-9: "For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith, goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But, if anyone does not have them he is near-sighted and blind, and has forgotten that he has been cleansed from his past sins."
In order for us to enjoy a Major League baseball game, it takes hundreds and hundreds of hours by hundreds and hundreds of people behind the scenes. One such person is the scout. As he goes to and fro across the face of this earth, he is looking for young men who can play the game of baseball. Typically, he is looking for "tools" - tools that will take this young man to the next level of baseball. Typically, those tools include: running, throwing, and hitting.
As we look at the verses above, we see some of the "tools" God is looking for to keep us productive in our knowledge of Christ. Notice that we need to possess them, and, also have them, in increasing measure. If we do not possess these qualities, in the long run, we will forget that we have been cleansed from our past sins.
Meditate On This!
It is a "grocery list", but let’s ask ourselves the question: On a scale of 1-10 (10 being the highest), what kind of grade would you give yourself in the following areas:
- Goodness
- Knowledge
- Self-control
- Perseverance
- Godliness
- Brotherly kindness
- Love
In those areas in which you scored low, what can you do to raise those scores? Are you satisfied with the level you have attained in all the areas? Ask God to help you continually improve the "tools" which He has given us.
Luke 9:62: "Jesus replied, "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God."
Nineteenth century preacher Henry Ward Beecher said, "We have passed through one more year. One more long stage in the journey of life, with its ascents and descents and dust and mud and rocks and thorns and burdens that wear the shoulders, is done. The old year is dead. Roll it away. Let it go. God, in His providence, has brought us out of it. It is gone; or rather its evil is gone; its good remains. The evil has perished, and the good survives. And now we stand on the beginning of the next, the new. By Gods grace we have been what we have been; and by His grace we shall have our experiences in days to come." –Taken from Info-Search
Meditate On This!
Are you becoming a Christian archeologist? Dont be sitting around digging up your past and living as if you are defeated. Or maybe you are digging up your past and liking it! You are polishing it off and setting it higher than it should be. "Today is the day the Lord has made, and we need to rejoice and be glad in it". This week meditate on how, by the grace of God, you could learn from your past, but also look at each day as a separate and very important part of the big picture of what God has for you this side of eternity.
