Leaving the Harbor

U.S. Navy Rear Admiral Grace Hopper once said, “A ship in port is safe, but that is not what ships are built for.”                                                                    

One of the single greatest tragedies in the world today is unused talent.  God-given ability sitting in port doing nothing.  Wasting away beneath the excuses of “no time”, and “no opportunity”.  This is especially true in the church.  Many don’t get involved because they feel that their skill set doesn’t match the needs of the family of God. Not so.  Paul addresses this in Romans 12.  He tells us to get out and use what we’ve been given!  Pull up anchor and get involved!   Take what we know how to do and help others find Christ!  No matter what our profession.. God wants us to use the gifts He gave us for His Kingdom!   We were built to change the world for Christ... but it won’t come to us.  Let’s leave safe harbor and do what we’ve been called to do...with every talent we have.

Serve Them

Others.  Our neighbors.  Those God has placed in our path.  Life is all about them.  The Bible tells us that we are put on this earth to serve them… to love them… to forgive them.   

But the gravity of the flesh pulls us in the opposite direction doesn’t it?  

We make decisions based on how it ultimately affects us.  What we wear… what we lend… what time we give… all skewed by how that decision is beneficial to our own agenda.  Why is living for others so difficult?  Does God really tell us that our whole purpose in life is to abandon self and embrace serving those around us?

Let’s take a look…

“For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.”  Galatians 5:13

We are here with a purpose.

We all have gifts.

Our gifts are not for us.

They are to serve others.  

Serving His people is what we were created to do.  Loving on the lonely... reaching out to the hurting... serving those that are seeking Christ.   

The road to our God potential leads us through the valley of selflessness... putting others first... sacrificing so that people we may not even know can come face-to-face with a Savior who sacrificed everything on their behalf.

And we get to do that.  

We get to be servants.

Notice what I said there… we GET to be servants.  God allows us to care for His people.  Those you encounter today are no accident.  Even the challenging ones…  Every single person you meet today is intentional.  

Serve them.  Not with selfish motives…. but with a heart filled with Christ’s love.  

I can hear you saying to your computer… but Pastor… who’s loving me?  Who’s taking care of me?  If I don’t look out for myself nobody will!   I hear you.  But I also know that even when the world seems to turn its back on you, Christ doesn’t.   HE will take care of you.  HE will provide for your needs.  HE will never let you break under the strain or buckle under the weight.  HE is always there always.  Even when you don’t feel Him, sense Him, or even believe He’s there.  He IS there.  He is determined to provide for and love on you.  It’s His heart.  It is why He came to begin with.  Let Him take care of you while you take care of those He has put in your path.  

If you are a Christ-follower… it’s part of your calling.  

Resist the urge to dismiss today’s devotional as wishful thinking.  It wasn’t written for someone else.  It’s for you.  And it’s for me.  Remember, putting ourselves behind others and serving them may be perceived by the world as weakness… but it is a strength in the eyes of Jesus.  And He’s the only one that matters.  

Our Gifts

“For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.”  Galatians 5:13

“And Jesus called them to him and said to them, “You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”  Mark 10:42-45

“This is how one should regard us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. Moreover, it is required of stewards that they be found trustworthy.”  1 Cor. 4:1-2

“And the master said to the servant, ‘Go out to the highways and hedges and compel people to come in, that my house may be filled.”  Luke 14:23

“It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant,”  Matthew 20:26

“So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, ...” Philippians 2:1-30

“If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.”  John 12:26

“Jesus replied, ‘The most important commandment is this: ‘Listen, O Israel! The Lord our God is the one and only Lord. And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.’ The second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ No other commandment is greater than these.’”  Mark 12: 29-31

We are here with a purpose.

We all have gifts.

Our gifts are not for us.

They are to serve others.  

Serving His people is what we were created to do.  Loving on the lonely... reaching out to the hurting... serving those that are seeking Christ.   

The road to our God potential leads us through the valley of selflessness... putting others first... sacrificing so that people we may not even know can come face-to-face with a Savior who sacrificed everything on their behalf.

And we get to do that.  

We get to be servants.

Let’s make today a time of using our God-given gifts to care for those that He brings our way.

Lives will change and God will get the glory.  

The Key Is There

A young man was getting ready to graduate from college. For many months he had admired a beautiful sports car in a dealers showroom, and knowing that his father could well afford it, he told him that was all he wanted. As Graduation Day approached, the young man awaited signs that his father had purchased the car. Finally, on the morning of his graduation, his father called him into his private study.   His father told him how proud he was to have such a fine son, and told him how much he loved him. He handed his son a beautiful wrapped gift box. Curious, but somewhat disappointed, the young man opened the box and found a lovely, leather bound Bible, with the young man’s name embossed in gold.  Angrily, he raised his voice to his father and said, "With all your money you give me a BIble?" and stormed out of the house, leaving the Bible. 

Many years passed and the young man was very successful in business. He had a beautiful home and wonderful family, but realized his father was very old and thought perhaps he should go to him. He had not seen him since that graduation day. But before he could make arrangements, he received a telegram telling him his father had passed away, and willed all of his possessions to his son. He needed to come home immediately and take care of things. When he arrived at his father’s house, sudden sadness and regret filled his heart. He began to search through his father’s important papers and saw the still new Bible, just as he had left it years ago. With tears, he opened the Bible and began to turn the pages. 

His father has carefully underlined a verse, Matthew 7:11, "And if ye, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your Heavenly Father which is in heaven, give to those who ask Him?" 

As he read those words, a car key dropped from the back of the Bible. It had a tag with the dealers name, the same dealer who had the sports car he had desired. On the tag was the date of his graduation, and the words....PAID IN FULL.  

Sometimes we miss God’s blessings because they are not packaged like we expect them to be.  

You may have been praying for awhile...We want a promotion... and get fired.  We pray for a clean bill of health... the doctor “finds something.”  We become convinced he’s the “one”.... and he walks out. We ask God for peace... our week gets more stressful.  So many times we feel short-changed by God because what we face sure doesn’t look like a blessing.  We didn’t ask for it.  We don’t want it.  We think we deserve better.

But you know… sometimes God IS blessing us and we don’t even realize it.  

We want a promotion... and get fired... to get a much more fulfilling job!

We pray for a clean bill of health... the doctor “finds something”... but it is still early enough to treat for a full recovery!

We become convinced he’s the “one”.... and he walks out... to make room for the Godly man that values us for who we are in Christ.

We ask God for peace... our week gets more stressful... so that Christ can strengthen our faith by allowing us to depend on Him to get through.

We want success... we fail... but in that failure, we learn and grow in ways that immediate success would prevent from happening.  

Today, I dare you to think differently.  I don’t know what you are asking God to do in your life... but I wonder if He hasn’t already answered the request.  Look closer.  Have you rejected what you see in front of you... dismissing it as God not understanding ... 

God understands.  We’re the ones that don’t get it. 

"My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts," says the LORD. "And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine.”  Isaiah 55:8

Maybe the key is there... tucked behind what appears to be a “no” to what we’re asking for. 

Count on God to bless us in the best way possible... His way... even if at first we don’t realize He’s doing it.  

Here With a Purpose

“For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.”  Galatians 5:13

“And Jesus called them to him and said to them, “You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”  Mark 10:42-45

“This is how one should regard us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. Moreover, it is required of stewards that they be found trustworthy.”  1 Cor. 4:1-2

“And the master said to the servant, ‘Go out to the highways and hedges and compel people to come in, that my house may be filled.”  Luke 14:23

“It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant,”  Matthew 20:26

“So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, ...” Philippians 2:1-30

“If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.”  John 12:26

“Jesus replied, ‘The most important commandment is this: ‘Listen, O Israel! The Lord our God is the one and only Lord. And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.’ The second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ No other commandment is greater than these.’”  Mark 12: 29-31

We are here with a purpose.

We all have gifts.

Our gifts are not for us.

They are to serve others.  

Serving His people is what we were created to do.  Loving on the lonely... reaching out to the hurting... serving those that are seeking Christ.   

The road to our God potential leads us through the valley of selflessness... putting others first... sacrificing so that people we may not even know can come face-to-face with a Savior who sacrificed everything on their behalf.

And we get to do that.  

We get to be servants.

Let’s make today a time of using our God-given gifts to care for those that He brings our way.

Lives will change and God will get the glory.  

The Gift of You

“For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.”  Galatians 5:13

“This is how one should regard us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. Moreover, it is required of stewards that they be found trustworthy.”  1 Cor. 4:1-2

“It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant,”  Matthew 20:26

“So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, ...” Philippians 2:1-30

“If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.”  John 12:26

“Jesus replied, ‘The most important commandment is this: ‘Listen, O Israel! The Lord our God is the one and only Lord. And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.’ The second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ No other commandment is greater than these.’”  Mark 12: 29-31

We are here with a purpose.
We all have gifts.

Our gifts are not for us.
They are to serve others.

Serving His people is what we were created to do.  Loving on the lonely... reaching out to the hurting... serving those that are seeking Christ.  

The road to our God potential leads us through the valley of selflessness... putting others first... sacrificing so that people we may not even know can come face-to-face with a Savior who sacrificed everything on their behalf.

And we get to do that.

We get to be servants.

Let’s make today a time of using our God-given gifts to care for those that He brings our way.

Lives will change and God will get the glory.