You can be sure of this: whatever your conditions are today, they will certainly change. If you’re in the valley right now, there’s a mountaintop in your future. And if you’re on top of the pile right now, there’s a valley not far away. It’s the roller coaster nature of our existence. We go through ups and downs again and again.
If you can be happy only when you’re at the peak, then you’ll be happy only a small portion of your life.
Examine your life right now, and make a choice to say, “This is good enough. I can be happy right here.” Does that mean we forget about the idea bettering ourselves or bettering our situation? Of course not. We’re always pressing on toward the prize. But that’s the difference between complacency and contentment.
Look at your situation with the eyes of contentment. Recognize the presence of God in the details of your life. Accept each day with a sense of gratitude. Face each moment with a sense of assurance, knowing that whether this is easy or not, you can endure it through Christ who gives you strength.
Richard Carlson is a psychologist who worked for many years as a stress consultant. He wrote Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff (And It’s All Small Stuff). He said that one of the most destructive mental tendencies he has seen in people is that of focusing on what they want rather than what they have. Those who say, “I’ll be happy once this desire is met,” just find something new to want and delay their happiness a little longer.
Carlson says that there is a way to be happy. It is to stop focusing on what you want, and focus instead of what you have.
Decide to appreciate all that there is to appreciate in each and every moment of your life.
From TIME Magazine.
In the heart of the world’s most populous Muslim-majority nation, Christians held a Pentecostal revival, complete with faith healing and speaking in tongues.
As a tropical downpour fell, believers’ tears mixed with rain — and a line of sick and disabled took to the stage to claim they had been cured by a God they, like Indonesian Muslims, call Allah. “People think Indonesia is just a Muslim country, but look at all these people,” says pastor David Nugroho, whose Gesing church boasts a congregation of 400 worshippers today, up from 30 when it was founded in 1967. “We are not afraid to show our faith.” (Entire article here)
Some of you will remember former pro quarterback Kenny Stabler. He once said, “In the NFL, there are 25 guys who can throw better than I can. But I can make guys win.” I guess that’s what it comes down to, isn’t it? Being able to win.
In the NFL, as in life, content is more valuable than form.
Most real estate professionals will tell you that on a percentage basis, a new coat of paint will increase a home’s selling price far more than new plumbing will.
This is a trap we must refuse to be caught in. In the Old Testament, we are reminded that God’s priorities are different than ours. God said to Samuel…
“The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” (1 Samuel 16:7)
We may sometimes allow ourselves to be satisfied with good form—a great family, a nice car, a pretty house, a good job, a respectable religious affiliation, a dignified manner of worship—but God reminds us that the content of our lives is much more important than surface level appearances. Samuel said…
“To obey is better than sacrifice.” (1 Samuel 15:22)
Our ongoing challenge is to strive to improve the content of our lives, rather than merely settling for good form.
It means that we should make it our aim—in our family, in our career, in our relationship with God—to live life from the inside out.
A couple of years ago a woman filed a $1 million lawsuit against Dr Pepper. She had been chosen to participate in their halftime punt-catching promotion during a college football game. She didn’t win, but it was, according to her suit, Dr. Pepper’s fault.
She had been told she would receive three punts from a kick-simulation machine (catch one, $50,000; two, $250,000; all three, $1 million) and was told that the punts would come down in the general vicinity of the 50-yard line.
She missed all three because, she said, her they came down too far away: one landed on the 44, one landed on the 45, and one landed on the 42. Therefore, she argued, it was Dr. Pepper’s fault that she didn’t win $1 million!
Sometimes it’s difficult for us to admit it’s our fault. It’s difficult to admit the role we play in our failures, in our setbacks, and our sin. It’s not easy to say: “I had a chance, but I blew it.” Too often, instead of fixing the problem, we settle for fixing blame — on anyone other than ourselves.
Whether it’s in our relationships, our career, or our spiritual life, improvement (and, ultimately, mastery) begins with accepting responsibility for our own limitations, mistakes, and failures.
When you don’t perform up to par — professionally, personally, or spiritually — you’ve got two choices. You can fix the blame or you can fix the problem. The first step in problem solving — the first step toward wholeness — is taking responsibility. From there, we begin moving forward!
It’s no coincidence that so many books of the New Testament contain verses encouraging us to stay faithful in difficult times. Persistence is an essential characteristic for anyone who wants to succeed in the Christian life.
Rarely a month goes by that I don’t talk to someone who’s ready to throw in the towel on some aspect of their calling.
Sometimes it’s a volunteer weary of the extra work that comes with being a leader. Sometimes it’s a pastor weary of not seeing measurable results. Sometimes it’s a believer weary of the struggle to live a holy life.
This is what Paul referred to in Galatians 6:9: Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap of harvest if we do not give up.
The season between sowing and reaping can sometimes be long. It can also be hot, dry and difficult. There are times for each of us when saying, “I quit” seems like the most attractive option.
During these times, we’ve got to remember the words of Scripture.
Walt Disney once said, “If you’re going through hell, keep going.” That’s good business advice, and his life proves it. It’s even better spiritual advice. In this sense, the “hell” we go through is temporary; God’s abundant blessings are waiting on the other side. Keep going!
We look at our watches; God looks at the calendar.
One of the most difficult lessons for believers to learn is to wait on God. By nature we’re not patient, and our culture offers little encouragement to develop the habit. We want, we need, we think we deserve everything now.
Even Paul spent 17 years in preparation before he began the ministry that God called him to on the road to Damascus. But you can be sure that each of these saints would say it was worth the wait. It always is.
There are, no doubt, a number of things that you are waiting for, too: victory, healing, peace, growth, vindication, success.
Remember one thing: God is on his way.
Sometimes the night seems to last forever. Sometimes his silence seems permanent. That’s because we look at the clock while he looks at the calendar.
Solomon wrote, “God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end.” (Ecclesiastes 3:11)
We cannot see the whole scope of God’s work, but the scope exists. And we may not see the big picture, but there is one.
Today might be just another day of waiting for you, but here’s how you can make it better: Take your eyes off the clock and turn them toward Jesus. Spend this time waiting in expectation rather than desperation. God is at work in your work in life, making all things beautiful in their time.
Nehemiah teaches us three important truths about handling criticism:
Expect it.
When spectators watch a race, where do they focus their attention? On the front runners! Someone said, “Criticism is something you can avoid easily; by saying nothing, doing nothing, and being nothing.” But those three options don’t work. So Nehemiah answered his critics, “…I am doing a great work, so that I cannot come down…” (Nehemiah 6:3) Don’t step down to the level of your critics.
Evaluate it.
“…Sanballat… sent to me, saying, ‘Come, let us meet…‘ But they thought to do me harm.” (Nehemiah 6:2) When people say, “I’m going to tell you something for your own good,” often they’ve nothing good to tell you. When you’re criticized, ask yourself:
• Who criticized me? “Faithful are the wounds of a friend, but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful.” (Proverbs 27:6) Has this person earned the right to speak into your life?
• Why was this criticism given? Out of a personal hurt, or for my benefit?” Hurting people hurt people; so maintain the right attitude, looking for the grain of truth, making the necessary changes, and taking the high road.
Outlive it.
When Nehemiah’s friends told him to run and hide, he replied, “‘I will not‘ …So the wall was finished… in fifty-two days… when all our enemies heard of it… they perceived that this work was done by our God.” (Nehemiah 6:11-16)
Sometimes you’re in more danger from the counsel of your friends than you are from the criticism of your enemies. That’s when you must know who you are, know what God’s called you to do, and outlive the criticism!
Are you a baseball fan?
If so, you already know about Armando Galarraga’s near perfect game. You know about the bad call: The throw beat the runner. Galarraga deserves to be recognized as the 21st player in 135 years to pitch to perfection. His accomplishment deserves to memorialized in the Hall of Fame, as all perfect games are.
But it won’t be, because his perfect game was taken away with a bad call on the last out.
Instead, Galarraga will be remembered for something greater: his response to the injustice. Did you see it? Umpire James Joyce called the runner safe, and Galarraga smiled. [Here's the best video of the play]
We know how other players might have responded. We’ve seen entire teams collapse and championships lost in the aftermath of a bad call. But Galarraga just smiled and then he went back to the mound and got the last out. Even after the game, he refused to lash out at the umpire’s mistake.
Blown calls are a fact of life. They come at us in different ways: The boss who gives credit to the wrong guy, the teenager who blames everyone else for their own insolence, the church member who finds fault in everything the pastor does.
The result is that sometimes you get short-changed. You deserve credit, but credit doesn’t come your way, thanks to someone else’s bad judgment.
It’s happened to each of us before, and it will certainly happen again. In Galarraga, we see how to respond.
Galarraga didn’t get the perfect game he deserved. But he did show fans everywhere how a sportsman plays the game.
It reminds me of how Paul praised the believers in Thessalonica for their example in the face of suffering…
And so you became a model to all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia…your faith has become known everywhere. (1 Thessalonians 1:7-8)
Today, you have a chance to show your corner of the world how a believer responds … to setbacks, to struggles, to criticism, to conflict, to disappointment, to injustice.
You don’t lash out. You don’t lose your head. You smile and keep doing your job with excellence. Others will notice.
There are three considerations to bear in mind when making important decisions.
1. Beware of “people pressure.“ Facing 30,000 Philistine chariots, and Samuel the prophet not around to offer the required sacrifice to God ensuring their victory, King Saul decided to usurp the prophet’s office and offer his own sacrifice instead.
When Samuel showed up just as he was finishing and demanded an explanation, Saul said “The Philistines will now come down on me… I felt compelled…” (1 Samuel 13:12)
He gave in to “people pressure.” Samuel said to Saul, “You have done foolishly… now your kingdom shall not continue…” (1 Samuel 13:13-14) God’s will must be done God’s way, so wait for His instructions and don’t rush ahead of Him.
2. Make sure the timing is right. God says, “…I have set before you an open door, and no one can shut it…” (Revelation 3:8) When you open a door you have to work to keep it open, but when God opens it, “no one can shut it.” You don’t have to manipulate anybody or anything – you can just walk in.
3. Remember the “restraint and release” principle. Paul’s missionary team tried to go to two different cities, “…but the Spirit did not permit them.” (Acts 16:7)
Have you ever tried to teach a teenager to drive? What’s the first thing you teach them about – the accelerator or the brakes? The brakes! If they’re not interested, take your car keys back; they’re obviously not ready to drive.
As you get to know God better you’ll discover that He guides by the “restraint and release” principle: the brakes and the accelerator. That’s how it works when your steps are directed by the Lord.
Paul Dietzel, former head coach of LSU, said, “You learn more character on the 2 yard line than anywhere else in life.”
He’s got a point. When you’re on the 2 yard line you’re either about to score or the other team is about to score on you. That’s when it’s time to dig in.
At the 2 yard line you find out whether you have the fortitude to push the rest of the way through to the end zone and/or make a last minute stand against defeat.
Your life may be on the two yard line now — advancing toward success or staving off defeat. Or all of the above … because, unlike football, in life it’s possible to be both places at once.
Take a look at the challenges you’re facing today. What do you need to do? Push a little harder in one area? Stand a little stronger in another? Most importantly, we all need to persevere, to persist in doing good one more day, making one more effort to accomplish that to which we have been called.
“Let us not become weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.” (Galatians 6:10 KJV)