Giving vs Getting

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Have you ever noticed the two opposing ideologies of giving versus getting?  There are people whose main focus is on what they can get.  Every deal they negotiate is a must win situation for them.  Every desire they must experience.  Every situation is evaluated by what is in it for them.  They only give to get.  Their desire is to accumulate as much monetary toys as they can.  It is never enough.  On the other hand, believe it or not, there are people whose focus is on what they can give.  They donate a portion of their income faithfully to serve those less fortunate.  They negotiate every deal willing to give value to the other side.  They realize everything they own is something that will eventually be given away so why not give it away while they can enjoy the process. Both are a way of life: Giving vs. Getting.

Jesus even discussed this philosophy and summarized it by saying “it is more blessed to give than to receive.”  More blessed meaning it will bring us more happiness, joy, and fulfillment in our life. God is a Giver. God loves to give.  Whatever God owns He shares with others.  He constantly gives from His treasurers so we may enjoy life more abundantly.  We believe there isn’t anything He will refrain from giving to us as long as it wouldn’t destroy our eternal salvation.

As a disciple of His, we are learning to give as we see the need.  Giving is becoming a more natural process of thinking and relating with others.  It doesn’t always come easy.  Sometimes our carnal desire appears and needs to be confronted.  We are all probably a long way off from being like our Eternal Dad who gives sometimes what seems to be recklessly (from our human perspective).  But the process is in gear and the Holy Spirit leads us, confronts us, and gently massages us towards living life like God.

As a disciple of His, we hope to keep on giving until our last breath.  Jesus set the example while on the cross.  His focus was still on those around Him and not on Himself.  He made sure His mother was taken care for.  He prayed to God asking for forgiveness on those who physically carried through the hanging.  His heart and mind was on those around Him more than on Himself and His situation.  We hope when our time comes that we likewise follow our Lord’s example and bring smiles to the angels in Heaven and to our Heavenly Dad.  Only time will tell.

OUR PRAYER

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Our Generous Dad, thank you for revealing a blessed way of life.  Thank you for teaching us the joy in true giving expecting nothing in return.  Thank you for your involvement and gifts that you have bestowed upon us.

You are truly awesome.  Help us to continue learning how to give, to share, and to sacrifice when necessary.  Help us to see the opportunities to be of service for others.  Help us to give of what we have of value.  Help us to give our money, time, and attention for others in need.  You know how we can be of service.  You know who needs what.  You know what we have to give.  Help us live life like you do!  Amen.

Yours In Christ,

Dr. Mike

Coach, Consultant, and Encourager

Author of Great Business Emulates a Good God

 

He is Always On Time

 

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Time is of the essence.  This phrase is found in many legal proposals to move the party  to realize the importance of a quick decision and completion of the bidding process.  If the matter is important, don’t delay because someone else is going to move ahead of you and win the proposal.

Likewise, being a disciple of His means that time is of the essence.  When an assignment is giving to us by our Lord, it is important to handle it quickly and expediently.  We see what happened to Jonah who delayed and ran away from his calling.  He didn’t want any part of the ministry to preach repentance to the people of Nineveh.  Instead, he jumped unto a boat going in the opposite direction.  When the ocean became angry, he went down to sleep while the rest of the crew petitioned their gods for help.  When they ask him to petition his God, Jonah went to sleep rather than have God interfere in his life’s priorities.  But he eventually learned an important lesson and completed the assignment given to him.  But even after which, he had an attitude problem with God’s mercy.

The point being that God’s plan will be completed.  We either choose to participate or not.  If a plan is God’s Will, nothing is going to prevent it from being accomplished.  There is no obstacle large enough to prevent it.  There is no person who will prevent it.  There is no time delay that will prevent it.  The time delay only affects us as people because of our physical limitations.

We are instructed to redeem the time.  We are not to waste the time, but to put it to good use.  And good is a relative term.  One person’s treasure is another person’s junk.  For example, if we are waiting on the Lord for an answer to our prayer, we may wait while resting, while visiting with friends, while walking through the park, or while reading a new book.  Other people may look at us and disagree with our approach.  They can’t seem to understand that approach.  They believe we should be diligently working and busy in some ”productive activity” in seeking the Lord’s answer.  The fact is we have a different approaches to solving the problems in our lives.  Either one is acceptable to our God depending on our attitude and faith.

No, God doesn’t delay.  God’s timetable is right on schedule.  And we’ve learned over time to follow His timetable.  Since He is always on time, our faith waits on Him.

OUR PRAYER

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Our Eternal Dad, it is good to know that you are always with us and in us and for us as we live in Christ.  It is reassuring that you have a plan and timetable for all of us.  We thank you that you are eternal and not limited by time.  You control it and direct its course.

Help us to learn to live with the time we have each day.  Let us learn to redeem the time and invest in it wisely.  Let our time be dedicated to serving you and discovering more of you and your ways.  Help us to redeem the time through service for others.  Let us learn to manage our time for your glory and honor.  Thank you Jesus. we pray. Amen.

Yours In Christ,

Dr. Mike

Coach, Consultant, and Encourager

Author of Great Business Emulates a Good God
Portal: Be Radical…EnjoyLifeInChrist.com

 

Investing in Spiritual Treasures

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Do we have a spiritual rainy day fund?  Today’s experts suggest that we keep at least six months of income in reserve for physically emergency purposes. Spiritually speaking, Jesus gave the parable of the man who demolished his barn and built a larger one to store all his possessions. The problem was not building a larger barn, but not also being rich to God.

Our heart and attitude determines our motive. If our motive is pure and holy with God, almost anything is possible. If we have no care or concern of what matters to God, how do you think He will relate to us?

How does one store up a spiritual, rainy day fund?  Is it even possible? We could probably invest more time in prayer, Bible study, fasting, serving, and in the other disciplines of a Christ-follower, but is that enough? We could invest our time to serving the Lord in full time vocational ministry, but is that enough? We could do more of whatever, but is that enough? Most probably, it is not.  The important thing is to have our physical house in order where it doesn’t become the number one priority in our life. Didn’t David write in the psalms that he didn’t want to be rich, nor poor. The middle of the road is the most balanced. We all need emergency reserves to help us in our physical life. It also allows us to give to others who are less fortunate. And it also gives us the luxury to focus on the more important aspects of life.

Likewise, when our Lord is the number one passion in our life, everything else seems to fall into place. By walking with Him on a continual daily basis, we don’t have to have an emergency supply around when He seems to disappear from us. The reason is that He doesn’t leave us. We leave Him. He is always close to us. We sometimes build walls to keep Him away from us because we do not want to deal with an issue or sin in our life. But He is faithful. He has called us to a life transforming process that doesn’t happen overnight. He works daily with us, leading us to follow Him and depend on Him in everything we do. It’s only when we become independent of Him that our trouble begins to follow us.

The best way to store up spiritual reserves is not too. It’s to have your meal and walk with our Lord every day. It’s to live our life in His presence every, single minute. It is to remember that our citizenship is in heaven. Likewise, we need to remember that our treasure is kept in heaven. We do not have to worry about our return on investment or worry about robbers. Our crown is being kept in preparation for our wedding. Everything we do for the Lord is in heaven. Our reward awaits us.

As a disciple of His our calling and election is sure. Our faith is being built-up in hope and love for eternity. Everything we have learned in this life is ours to keep. Everything we have experienced is ours to keep. Everything is ours and will be kept in heaven until our resurrection. That is what we are storing up.  We are not accumulating physical wealth, but instead, spiritual treasures. Invest wisely.

OUR PRAYERPRAY 21

Our Faithful Dad, thank you for always being with us. Thank you for caring about each one of us each and every minute. Thank you for being concerned about our health and welfare. But help us when our unbelief confronts us.

Remove all doubt and hopelessness from our life. Always, always, help us to keep you as the center of our life. Let nothing come between us. You know our service, our heart, and mind. You know who we are and what we do each and every minute. Let us not fool our self in believing anything that is not true. Let your presence always be with us. Help us to trust you and invest in your Kingdom each and every day.  Your way is the passion that drives us each and every day. Let that passion always be channeled towards you in service and in the relationships in our life.  Help us to invest the time and opportunities in this life for the greater good of all.  Amen.

Yours In Christ,

Dr. Mike

Coach, Consultant, and Encourager

Author of Great Business Emulates a Good God