A few years back the phrase, It's All About Me, became extremely popular. Women who had sacrificed everything they had for family and friends decided that now it was their turn. Men who had spent all their time working eighty hours a week to provide for their families only to come home and feel unappreciated by their wives and children decided not anymore. I'm going to spend time with someone who appreciates me. Women and men alike began to do the things they wanted to do. The things that brought them the most enjoyment. After all, they deserved it, didn't they?
Continuing in the book of Hebrews, read verses 12 - 17 of Chapter 12. Now remember we have already discussed our wall of fame in Chapter 11 and what faith looks like and how it behaves. And then we went on to say Therefore, since we have this wall to look at and learn from then this should be the result. I want to continue on in that same area. Although there will never be another Bible because the one we have is living and powerful and doesn't grow old or stale, my question to you is what is our responsibility for those who come along after us. You see, Jacob had to learn from Isaac and Isaac had to learn from Abraham. Moses had to learn from his mother and so on and so forth. Which lets me know as Christians we have a responsibility as well. For those of you who are parents I know you know what I mean. Our children are our responsibility. They look to us for guidance and to be their example. But even for those of you who do not have children, these verses tell us that we all have a responsibility.
Now that we have knowledge of those who received God's stamp of approval by living a life of faith, we should have hope. Some of you reading this right now may be suffering from spiritual exhaustion. Your mind, body and spirit are tired. Today I encourage you to stand up straight and tall. Set your eyes on the target. Continue to fight the good fight of faith because there are unbelievers and believers alike who are watching you. They are waiting to see what your reaction to what you are facing will be. They are saying if Sister ___________ (fill in your name) can make it or Brother _____________ (fill in your name) is still praising him and I know what is going on in his life than I can too. We are supposed to be holding one another up and truly trying to get along with everyone. You see the phrase should read 'I'm accountable for me' instead of 'It's all about me'. We cannot control another person's actions but we can control how we respond to it. And when we give up our life to reflect that of our Lord and Savior then it 's no longer about us. It is about letting our light shine in a very dark world. Unfortunately, everyone is not going to like everyone but just because someone does not like you, doesn't mean you have to be mean and hateful towards them. From my experience, you can plant seeds of kindness and peace all day long but that one bitter root (or weed) pops up and it grows and spreads like crazy. But if you get our their in that garden and pull the weed up by the root then it doesn't have a chance to grow. How do we remove those roots? By growing the fruits of the spirit, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,gentleness and self-control. I have been guilty of letting my emotions get the best of me and reacting in a way that was not Christ-like and others were watching. I did not do my part in stopping that bitter root from growing. It was definitely all about me that day. But through the Word and prayer and God's discipline I am learning to model the behavior of Christ. Never would I want to be a stumbling block for anyone.
That is my challenge for you today. You have a decision to make. Today, do I stand up straight and tall and get a firm grip on God so that I can run my race, planting seeds of kindness and peace all along my path? Or do I choose to grow bitter roots of selfishness, gossip, hatred, lack of self-control? My prayer is that you choose the first choice. While you are thinking about this I will tell you one thing that I have learned and it was even true for Jesus, the first shall be last and the last will be first. We are on this earth to serve others and bear one another's burdens. Living a clean and holy life will definitely have its reward.
Dear Lord,
Are you really trying to teach me that it's not all about me and that when someone mistreats me or does mean things to me I am supposed to respond in peace? Why does everyone have to be looking at me, after all, I'm human just like them. This is going to be tough for me Father. Please help me. I know that I cannot do this by myself. Thank you for showing me the right way to behave and I reaffirm my commitment to your way. I'm going to stand strong and firm and continue to run my race with my eyes fixed on you. In Jesus' Wonderful Name Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment