A Year Through God's Eyes
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Love is All You Need
When I became a man, I put away childish things. 1 Cor. 13:11b
This is a chapter of the Bible that people love to ( no pun intended) put on bumper stickers, or plaques in their houses, in bathrooms, in kitchens, in dining rooms, and on and on and on. But for me, any time I stop and truly analyze it, al it does is puts me to shame. It does exactly what Scripture is supposed to do, which is convict me when I'm not lining up with God's standards. And boy, do I ever botch this one more times than I get it right. It shows me how incredibly selfish I am. How when given the opportunity to show love to those around me or to do things my way, more often than not, I will choose my own way and worry about myself before others. This is a definite "change my heart" chapter for me.
When we were in Africa, and I was working with Ezekiel our interpreter, he put me to shame, simply because of the verse at the beginning of this post. Here is a man who walks for 3 hours to serve a village that God has called Him to by proclaiming the name of Christ. After he works for several hours, he then walks the three hours back home and on most nights helps lead another Bible study at the mission station. He's someone who takes care of the business at hand as soon as it needs to be taken care of, and he's the same age as me. There are so many times around the house or working at my job when I get so childish, that I don't serve my family, I don't plan out my day at work so everything goes smoothly, I simply go on the natural abilities God has granted me and hope for the best. I know this is not the way to live, but I also know that God's grace is big enough to forgive me, His Word is enough to convict me, and His Spirit is strong enough to change my heart to the point that I "put away childish things (my way), and become a man.
Prayer Requests:
1) That I would love my wife any way that I can, particularly through service to her.
2) That Brenna would be prepared for Kindergarten, and we would all adjust to "new normal" well.
3) That as I begin a new school year, the organization that I implement at the beginning of the year would carry longer than just the first month or two, but would extend throughout the year.
4) That I would see the best way to proceed with the Raeleng partnership as well as how to best begin FCM.
5) Our church: Youth Minister Selection Committee (and leader), renovation, church start, being missional.
6) My band kids (Mercedes, Denay, Trent, Hana, Jamie, Alyssa, Mark, Andrea and Andrew)
7) My fellow teachers (Underbrink, Clark, DeRocher)
8) Church members (Alton, Jean, Kunschiks, Dzuiks, Griffins)
9) The people we met in Jan's ministry (Jan, Erika, Nate and family, Ezekiel, Daniel, Aaron, Joanna, Maria, Wennie, Nonsa, Jacob)
10) That I would be uncomfortable with being comfortable.
11) That I would continually put aside childish things, turn my eyes from worthless things, and love with a selfless love.
This is a chapter of the Bible that people love to ( no pun intended) put on bumper stickers, or plaques in their houses, in bathrooms, in kitchens, in dining rooms, and on and on and on. But for me, any time I stop and truly analyze it, al it does is puts me to shame. It does exactly what Scripture is supposed to do, which is convict me when I'm not lining up with God's standards. And boy, do I ever botch this one more times than I get it right. It shows me how incredibly selfish I am. How when given the opportunity to show love to those around me or to do things my way, more often than not, I will choose my own way and worry about myself before others. This is a definite "change my heart" chapter for me.
When we were in Africa, and I was working with Ezekiel our interpreter, he put me to shame, simply because of the verse at the beginning of this post. Here is a man who walks for 3 hours to serve a village that God has called Him to by proclaiming the name of Christ. After he works for several hours, he then walks the three hours back home and on most nights helps lead another Bible study at the mission station. He's someone who takes care of the business at hand as soon as it needs to be taken care of, and he's the same age as me. There are so many times around the house or working at my job when I get so childish, that I don't serve my family, I don't plan out my day at work so everything goes smoothly, I simply go on the natural abilities God has granted me and hope for the best. I know this is not the way to live, but I also know that God's grace is big enough to forgive me, His Word is enough to convict me, and His Spirit is strong enough to change my heart to the point that I "put away childish things (my way), and become a man.
Prayer Requests:
1) That I would love my wife any way that I can, particularly through service to her.
2) That Brenna would be prepared for Kindergarten, and we would all adjust to "new normal" well.
3) That as I begin a new school year, the organization that I implement at the beginning of the year would carry longer than just the first month or two, but would extend throughout the year.
4) That I would see the best way to proceed with the Raeleng partnership as well as how to best begin FCM.
5) Our church: Youth Minister Selection Committee (and leader), renovation, church start, being missional.
6) My band kids (Mercedes, Denay, Trent, Hana, Jamie, Alyssa, Mark, Andrea and Andrew)
7) My fellow teachers (Underbrink, Clark, DeRocher)
8) Church members (Alton, Jean, Kunschiks, Dzuiks, Griffins)
9) The people we met in Jan's ministry (Jan, Erika, Nate and family, Ezekiel, Daniel, Aaron, Joanna, Maria, Wennie, Nonsa, Jacob)
10) That I would be uncomfortable with being comfortable.
11) That I would continually put aside childish things, turn my eyes from worthless things, and love with a selfless love.
posted by Nathan at 5:16 AM
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