Then he said to them all: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me." Luke 9:23
You have probably heard this verse many times in your life, and never really thought anything of it. Or, if you have thought about it, you're not really sure what it looks like to "take up your cross" and follow Jesus.
As Americans, we are among the richest people in the world. Sure, there are times when we don't feel rich, but trust me, we are. Most of us have a house to live in, at least one TV in that house, at least one computer, maybe a video game console or two, cell phones, one or two cars per household...you get the idea. We have it all. We live in a society which tells us, "He who dies with the most toys, wins." But think about that statement for a moment. When you die, are you taking your toys with you? Will your toys even matter to you once you're dead? Sure, it will give people some nice things to say at your funeral, and you may be remembered well, but what does it all really count for? So what's more important to you - how many "toys" you have, or where you will be going when you die?
Friends, there is no "toy" on this earth that is greater than what God has to offer us. God is offering us an eternity in heaven with him, and salvation from the fires of hell. So, I ask you, what are you willing to give up to follow him?
If I were to ask some of my youth group students, I might ask if they are willing to give up their cell phones, or maybe their Facebook account. I have a feeling that most of them would be hesitant to give those up. Are you willing to give up watching TV, or watching movies? Are you willing to give up the things that other people in the world would consider luxuries? Making the decision to follow God is probably the most important decision you could ever make, and if you haven't made it yet, I encourage you to do so.
Matthew 13:44-46 talks about the Kingdom of Heaven being like a hidden treasure, or a valuable pearl. When the person in the story found it, he sold everything he had just so he could have the treasure, or the pearl. That is because the treasure is so valuable, so precious, that there is nothing on earth that could compare to it. As I mentioned in my previous blog post, there are many things that take our time away from God. But God is saying that we must give up those things in order to follow him. Are you willing to do whatever it takes to follow God, even if it meant giving up some or all of things you love?
I know I have a hard time committing to that. We are creatures of habit and comfort. We don't like to do things that are outside of our comfort zone. But God wants us to step out of our comfort zone. He wants us to take up our crosses daily and follow him. Are you willing to do that? Do you believe today that the Kingdom of Heaven is like the greatest and most valuable treasure you could ever find, and are you willing to sacrifice everything to have it? You can't take anything with you when you die except your soul. So, is your soul destined to spend eternity with God in heaven, or are you doomed to spend eternity in hell, forever separated from God?
Monday, July 26, 2010
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Can't Talk Now, Too Busy
I have heard it said once that BUSY can stand for Being Under Satan's Yoke. What does that mean to you?
When someone asks me what I have been up to lately, I find myself telling them often that I am "busy," or that I am "too busy" to do something. That something is usually spending time with God. I make excuses. "I can't read my bible/pray right now, I have to make dinner (or fill in some other activity that could most likely wait.)" I think about all the things I do during the day: work, check e-mail, check Facebook, check the weather, check other websites, etc. Once you add up all that stuff, there seems to be very little time left for God.
I heard a quote today from Pastor John Piper - "One of the great uses of Twitter and Facebook will be to prove on the last day that prayerlessness was not from lack of time." Reread that statement. I don't spend a ton of time on Facebook, but I probably spend more time on it than I do with God.
I am a creature of habit and routine. A typical day for me looks like this:
7:15am - wake up and get ready for work
7:45am - leave for work
8am - arrive at work
8am-8:15am - check various e-mail accounts, Facebook, weather, etc.
9am - eat breakfast
9:15ish-1pm - work stuff, occasionally taking breaks to check e-mail Facebook and other stuff
1pm-2pm - lunch (most days)
2pm-4pm - more work stuff
4pm - leave work and head home
4:15pm - arrive at home
4:15pm-anywhere between 4:30 and 5:30 - veg out, watch TV, talk to Evan
5:30ish - start dinner
6 or 6:30pm - eat dinner
7pm - watch Jeopardy with Evan
7:30pm and onward - watch TV, possibly go somewhere, talk to Evan, go on the computer to check e-mails, Facebook, etc.
Sometime during the evening - take a shower
11pm - go to bed
1am - lights out
That is the routine I am used to, and it has been that way for a little more than 3 years. Of course, weekends are different, but this is the usual M-F routine for me. Doesn't seem like there would be too much room for God in there does it? (You may also notice, there isn't much time for exercise either). Well, in a way, I have purposely made it that way. I get thrown off when I do something "outside" of my normal routine. If I tried to spend time with God before work, that may mean I have to wake up earlier that 7:15. My lunch hour is never consistent, so it wouldn't be the best time to spend with God. When I get home I am tired, and I want to relax and unwind by watching TV or talking to Evan. Then we need to eat, so I have to cook dinner - no time there. After that, I have to take a shower and watch all my shows. No time for God there either. Once that's all done, it's time for bed and I am too tired to talk to God at all. I'm just too busy!
Does any of this sound familiar? Do you say the same things to yourself? Are you "too busy" for God?
Back in May, I put myself on a bible reading plan that would take me through the bible in one year. It helps me to have daily reminders that I have to read the bible. They say it takes doing something 20 times to make it into a habit. I have officially made this a habit, and I love it. The actual time of day I spend reading my bible varies from day to day. Sometimes I have a few minutes before work to read a few chapters, sometimes I read during work or on my lunch break, sometimes I read after dinner. But the point is, I do it. I have even gotten so excited about it, that I am going beyond what the daily reading might be because I just want to be immersed in the Word. Proverbs 2 says: If you accept my words and store up my commands within you, turning your ear to wisdom and applying your heart to understanding, and if you call out for insight and cry aloud for understanding, and if you look for it as for silver and search for it as for hidden treasure, then you will understand the fear of the LORD and find the knowledge of God. For the LORD gives wisdom, and from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.
The only way to come closer to God is to read His Word for yourself and ask him for wisdom and understanding. You must also pray.
My prayer life is another thing that I claim to be "too busy" for. Bill Hybels, pastor of Willow Creek church says that prayer is unnatural for us. It's not something we as humans are used to doing. We are accustomed to talking to people whom we can see and hear. For me, prayer also doesn't fit in my daily routine. There's no time. The bible says that when we pray, we are to go in a room, shut the door, and pray alone with nothing to distract us. Who has time for that? I've got to get to work! I've got to go to bed! I've got to...you get the idea. Occasionally, I will pray if I'm concerned about something, or if I've got a big meeting coming up, or something like that. So, I generally feel like I only talk to God when I need something. That's not the relationship we are supposed to have with God. I try to think of my relationship with God the way my relationship is with Evan, (Or at least, that's how I want it to be). I can talk to Evan about anything, I feel comfortable with him, I love spending time with him, in fact there is no one in the world I would rather be with than Evan. That's where I want my relationship with God to be. Right now, God is more of an acquaintance to me. He's like a relative that I only see a few times a year. I love him, but we don't talk all that much.
Gosh, the time I have spent writing this blog could have been time spent in the Word and in prayer. But we are constantly filling our lives with "busy work" and we are not leaving any time for God. Take stock of your own life. Seriously, write it out and add up the numbers. How many hours (or minutes) do you spend on your computer every day? How much time do you spend at work? How many hours of TV do you watch everyday? How many hours do you spend sleeping typically? Now how much time do you spend reading the bible? Praying?
Is God getting the lesser of your time? I am not saying that doing other things is bad, but I am saying that the less time you spend with God, the less of a relationship you will have with him. What can you cut out today? What can you do to make God the #1 priority in your life? Or are you too busy to think about it...
When someone asks me what I have been up to lately, I find myself telling them often that I am "busy," or that I am "too busy" to do something. That something is usually spending time with God. I make excuses. "I can't read my bible/pray right now, I have to make dinner (or fill in some other activity that could most likely wait.)" I think about all the things I do during the day: work, check e-mail, check Facebook, check the weather, check other websites, etc. Once you add up all that stuff, there seems to be very little time left for God.
I heard a quote today from Pastor John Piper - "One of the great uses of Twitter and Facebook will be to prove on the last day that prayerlessness was not from lack of time." Reread that statement. I don't spend a ton of time on Facebook, but I probably spend more time on it than I do with God.
I am a creature of habit and routine. A typical day for me looks like this:
7:15am - wake up and get ready for work
7:45am - leave for work
8am - arrive at work
8am-8:15am - check various e-mail accounts, Facebook, weather, etc.
9am - eat breakfast
9:15ish-1pm - work stuff, occasionally taking breaks to check e-mail Facebook and other stuff
1pm-2pm - lunch (most days)
2pm-4pm - more work stuff
4pm - leave work and head home
4:15pm - arrive at home
4:15pm-anywhere between 4:30 and 5:30 - veg out, watch TV, talk to Evan
5:30ish - start dinner
6 or 6:30pm - eat dinner
7pm - watch Jeopardy with Evan
7:30pm and onward - watch TV, possibly go somewhere, talk to Evan, go on the computer to check e-mails, Facebook, etc.
Sometime during the evening - take a shower
11pm - go to bed
1am - lights out
That is the routine I am used to, and it has been that way for a little more than 3 years. Of course, weekends are different, but this is the usual M-F routine for me. Doesn't seem like there would be too much room for God in there does it? (You may also notice, there isn't much time for exercise either). Well, in a way, I have purposely made it that way. I get thrown off when I do something "outside" of my normal routine. If I tried to spend time with God before work, that may mean I have to wake up earlier that 7:15. My lunch hour is never consistent, so it wouldn't be the best time to spend with God. When I get home I am tired, and I want to relax and unwind by watching TV or talking to Evan. Then we need to eat, so I have to cook dinner - no time there. After that, I have to take a shower and watch all my shows. No time for God there either. Once that's all done, it's time for bed and I am too tired to talk to God at all. I'm just too busy!
Does any of this sound familiar? Do you say the same things to yourself? Are you "too busy" for God?
Back in May, I put myself on a bible reading plan that would take me through the bible in one year. It helps me to have daily reminders that I have to read the bible. They say it takes doing something 20 times to make it into a habit. I have officially made this a habit, and I love it. The actual time of day I spend reading my bible varies from day to day. Sometimes I have a few minutes before work to read a few chapters, sometimes I read during work or on my lunch break, sometimes I read after dinner. But the point is, I do it. I have even gotten so excited about it, that I am going beyond what the daily reading might be because I just want to be immersed in the Word. Proverbs 2 says: If you accept my words and store up my commands within you, turning your ear to wisdom and applying your heart to understanding, and if you call out for insight and cry aloud for understanding, and if you look for it as for silver and search for it as for hidden treasure, then you will understand the fear of the LORD and find the knowledge of God. For the LORD gives wisdom, and from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.
The only way to come closer to God is to read His Word for yourself and ask him for wisdom and understanding. You must also pray.
My prayer life is another thing that I claim to be "too busy" for. Bill Hybels, pastor of Willow Creek church says that prayer is unnatural for us. It's not something we as humans are used to doing. We are accustomed to talking to people whom we can see and hear. For me, prayer also doesn't fit in my daily routine. There's no time. The bible says that when we pray, we are to go in a room, shut the door, and pray alone with nothing to distract us. Who has time for that? I've got to get to work! I've got to go to bed! I've got to...you get the idea. Occasionally, I will pray if I'm concerned about something, or if I've got a big meeting coming up, or something like that. So, I generally feel like I only talk to God when I need something. That's not the relationship we are supposed to have with God. I try to think of my relationship with God the way my relationship is with Evan, (Or at least, that's how I want it to be). I can talk to Evan about anything, I feel comfortable with him, I love spending time with him, in fact there is no one in the world I would rather be with than Evan. That's where I want my relationship with God to be. Right now, God is more of an acquaintance to me. He's like a relative that I only see a few times a year. I love him, but we don't talk all that much.
Gosh, the time I have spent writing this blog could have been time spent in the Word and in prayer. But we are constantly filling our lives with "busy work" and we are not leaving any time for God. Take stock of your own life. Seriously, write it out and add up the numbers. How many hours (or minutes) do you spend on your computer every day? How much time do you spend at work? How many hours of TV do you watch everyday? How many hours do you spend sleeping typically? Now how much time do you spend reading the bible? Praying?
Is God getting the lesser of your time? I am not saying that doing other things is bad, but I am saying that the less time you spend with God, the less of a relationship you will have with him. What can you cut out today? What can you do to make God the #1 priority in your life? Or are you too busy to think about it...
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