Value Added

It feels good to know you are appreciated. Just to be aware that someone values the things you do, or don't do in some cases, is often enough motivation to elicit positive behavior. The problem arises when the feeling is the only motivation. Then you are not adding value to someone else's life, you are stoking your own fires.

In the movie The Blind Side Leanne, played by Sandra Bullock, poses the question, "Am I a good person?" She was questioning her motives for nurturing Michael Oher from an alone young teen to a high school graduate attempting to get into college on an athletic scholarship. Her question did not surface until a crisis occurred which caused her to look critically at her circumstance.

Introspection is a good thing. The Apostle Paul urges the Corinthians to examine themselves. The psalmist writes, "Exam me, O Lord, and test me; try my mind and my heart" (Psalm 26:2). If we examine our heart and allow the Lord to lead in that examination, we will be operating with the correct motives.

To complicate matters, Satan also wants you to examine yourself in an attempt to demoralize you and keep you from performing anything good. So how does one know if the actions taken are motivated by positive or negative senses? The answer is simple yet profound, "Ask the Lord." He will move within your spirit to convict you of good or ill. Don't try and fool yourself or convince yourself one way or the other. Just listen for that small still voice. He will lead you in the right way.    

In Whom or in What Do You Trust?

Genesis 3 is a very familiar passage in Scripture. It is the account of the serpent and the woman (a name had not yet been given to her see verse 20). The serpent is said to be more cunning than any beast of the field. Did the woman know this about the serpent? The passage does not say but she does seem to be a bit defensive when answering the serpent's question.

The serpent asked, "Has God indeed said you shall not eat of every tree of the garden?" His question was stated in a negative tone quite opposite of the actual command God gave. In Genesis 2:16-17 God said, "Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day you eat of it you shall surely die." God gave them permission to eat of every tree except one.

The woman answered, "We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, 'You shall not eat of it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.'" The woman demonstrated a certain apprehension in answering the serpent's question. She added to the command which was given to Adam before the woman was created. God did not add the condition , nor shall you touch it." Adam may have told her that but God did not.

The serpent called God a liar (You will not surely die) and placed doubt in the mind of the woman concerning God's motives (God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God knowing good and evil). The serpent questioned God's veracity and motives. Suddenly the fruit of the tree looked better than it had previously. The text doesn't relate how many times the woman saw the tree and the fruit, but it is safe to speculate this was not the first time. The fruit looked so good, the woman placed her hand on the fruit, plucked it from the tree, and took a bite from it. Not only did it look good, it tasted good as well. She offered a bite to Adam who also took a bite from the fruit.

Nothing happened. They did not die. But they did notice they were naked and made provisions for themselves to hide their nakedness. They chose to believe the serpent over God. They chose to place their trust in the serpent's words over God's Word. They chose the serpent whose goal in life is to "prowl around the earth like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour" rather than the one who has a plan to prosper them.   

What a dumb decision! Aren't you glad you don't make that same mistake? Unfortunately, we do. Every time we sin we choose to believe Satan over God. Adam and the woman trusted the word of serpent. Jesus said, "Heaven and earth will pass away, but My word will never pass away" Isaiah writes "The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God stands forever" (Isaiah 40:8). God cannot lie (Titus 1:2). Why would anyone trust in anything or anyone else?

Remember - If it is not the Word of God, it is the word of Satan.

Teaching the Teacher

Preparing to teach a new class or delving into a new subject is always a learning experience even if you have taught the subject in the past. It is uncanny how the same text of Scripture has layers of meaning that are further explored each time a detailed examination takes place. Most people think the teacher possesses the information they try to disseminate in a classroom setting. Little do they realize that thoughts the teacher never imagined are brought to mind as the teacher goes about the task of lecturing. The questions students ask, the emphasis placed on participation, and the openness to listening all contribute to a new perspective or deeper understanding.

Teachers have the responsibility of sharing what they have observed about a particular subject. But many teachers never come to the realization that the purpose of teaching is learning. It is not about the teacher. It is about the student and their understanding of the subject matter. If the students are not learning, the teacher is not teaching. This includes all the students from the least informed of them to the best informed of them.

Attitude and motivation are as important as the actual instruction. When the teacher approaches the classroom with the expectation of making a difference in the life of the student and learning something along the way, real learning will take place. Going through the motions is not acceptable for either student or teacher. Excitement, anticipation, and a sense of wonderment are all ingredients in the teaching process. That means the teacher is not just interested in the subject but desirous of having a deeper understanding of how the subject matter will impact the life of both student and teacher.

A teacher is a student first and an instructor second. The moment the teacher thinks they have it all is the moment teaching stops and dissemination of information begins. Anyone can repeat information, but only a teacher can take that same information and touch lives in the process. Teaching is not a task to perform. It is a ministry conducted through the power of the Holy Spirit. A successful class is one in which learning takes place for both student and teacher.      

I Know You Won't Believe Me

I know you won't believe me
But what I say is true.
Its about the way your living
And the things you say and do.

The treasures that you search for
Will quickly fade away
And you'll still be searching
Come that judgment day.

Life is not worth living
When you live it all alone.
No where to lay your head
No place to call your home.

A stranger in a foreign land
Is how you act and feel,
Saying things and causing pain
That oftentimes won't heal.

Do you want to shed all your troubles?
Get rid of all your woes?
Then tell them to the only One
Your heart cares to know.

You've got to tell them to Jesus
If you want to right your wrongs
Then you can join in singing
The chorus of this song.

Praise to God the Father
Through Jesus Christ the Son
Who came to earth and died
Just to make us one.
Praise to God the Father
Through the Spirit here on earth
Whose guidance and divine advice
Give to our life its worth.
Praise to all three persons
Of the Trinity,
Praise them for their goodness
And what they've done for me.

My life was so empty
Void of happiness.
All it seemed that I did
Was rearrange my mess.

Time kept going day by day
Endlessly prolonged.
Nothing seemed to matter
When everything was wrong.

Depression overtook me
As I saw what was ahead;
Till I read the Book of Life
And listened to what it said.

I'm sure you are familiar
With that one important line,
"Ask and you'll receive
Seek and you will find."
 

Depression is for Real

Recently a statement was made about worry. It came from someone in a position of spiritual authority. Essentially it said for a Christian to worry is sin. Someone taking that position usually includes the statement, "If a Christian just had enough faith, they would not worry." The same people also hold that if the Christian just had enough faith, they would be healed of disease and illness."

Given that mentality, one could easily derive that the Apostle Paul just didn't have enough faith. Several times in Scripture Paul had to be reassured by the Lord that everything would work out in just the right way. At least twice the Lord or an angel sent from the Lord appeared to Paul saying, "Do not be afraid!"  On one occasion Paul feared physical harm from the people of Corinth and once Luke wrote that all hope was lost of surviving the ship wreck that was surely coming in Acts 27. It is interesting to note that the Lord appeared to Paul informing him that he must testify in Rome. Paul was in protective custody in Jerusalem at the time. Even though he was told he would go to Rome and in fact was on his way there, Paul lost all hope of arriving there. Additionally, Paul wrote to the Corinthians informing them that things were so bad he despaired even of life.

The Apostle Paul was arguably one of the greatest Christians who ever lived. If he lost hope, despaired , and became depressed what chance does a Christian with less faith have to hope for?

Why would the Holy Spirit inspire Paul to share his depression, Luke to share hopelessness, and John the Baptist to share doubt? The answer is because we are human and every one of those conditions are part of our humanness. If the Apostle Paul suffered from these conditions (he is not the only one), there is hope for me to cling to when I fall prey to those same human frailties.

The Lord rescued Paul from his frailties and He will rescue you. His timing might not coincide with yours just as it did not coincide with Paul's but He will make a way. Don't let anyone tell you that you don't have enough faith. If you are a child of God you have enough faith, but sometimes it takes a little longer to realize it.