A mark doesn’t need to be seen or understood by the whole
world. For all their lofty exposure in
this country and in Europe, many famous actors or entertainers are either
unknown or unwanted in many countries.
Fame is fleeting and of little use if you have no vision beyond being
known. Our television sets are inundated
by men and women whose sole claim to fame is that somebody knows their
name. They produce no useful product and
in many cases their only marketable skill is gossip, slander and innuendo which
brings those with itching ears back for more.
They are wealthy, well known and for the most part, useless.
Even actors who have made hugely successful movies are
wealthy because they entertain others whose lives are not interesting enough
and feel the need to spice them up. Does
your life add to the ETERNAL benefit of others?
This question is rarely asked these days and for us in the body of
Christ ought to be right at the top.
Saints of God should be passionate about their faith. It needs to be a motivating force in your
life. If you are always looking for a
new movie or play or game to amuse yourself it may be time to take stock of
your spiritual disciplines. Television
and movies remove your imagination from the equation. They do all the imagining for you and while
it might be restful, it also contributes to a distinct lack of mental acuity in
the long run. When you read books your
mind must fill in the blanks where there are no pictures to spell it all
out. When you read the Bible your mind
AND spirit are involved. Prayer is
doubly so since you must consider what God is causing or allowing in and around
your life to motivate you as well as actually hearing God directly and knowing
His voice.
We are born and grow up into adults. If we are truly blessed we marry someone we
love and bear children who we raise up in ‘some’ image. What will that image be? The bible says to raise our children up in
the nurture and admonition of the Lord.
To do that takes patience, love and discipline. Your children will understand what is
important in life by what is important to their parents. What are the passionate conversations going
on in the household; discussing the latest blockbuster from Hollywood or how
God came through just in time and made an amazing transformation in your
life. Your children are listening you
know.
If you spend a significant time in the church building, what
do others hear from you? Are you always
bemoaning the hassles at work or how terrible traffic was today? Is your conversation about the grace and
mercy of God? Of what do you speak?
Romans chapter five says, “2 By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we
stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. 3 And not only so, but we glory
in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; 4 And
patience, experience; and experience, hope: 5 And hope maketh not ashamed;
because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is
given unto us.”
Think about it. Most
of what we do in Christ is by future expectation. I don’t see it right now but I will. Most of our life in Him is a challenge and God
manages these challenges. We are
supposed to rejoice in these ‘tribulations’ because they are there to provide
opportunities for our faith to be exercised.
God doesn’t move instantly because we need to learn to trust in Him no
matter how long the wait might be.
Eventually (in His time) God will come and save the day. This gives us experience that God NEVER lets
us down or fails us. This experience
gives us hope that no future tribulations will remain unanswered for too long.
The next part is wonderful.
Because we have the experience of hope and have seen God come through
time and time again we cannot be ashamed by mocking words of the unsaved or our
circumstances. The reason for this is
that God ALWAYS comes through. I can be
sitting in a jail cell accused of a terrible crime that I know I am innocent of
and know that He will work it out. Yes…this
level of faith takes time and effort to develop and for this reason we ought to
spend less time focusing on entertainment in life and more on eternal things.
I’m not afraid of dying.
Even now the doctors are checking out something in my heart that bothers
them…and me, but my concern is not that I could die but that I might go home to
be with the Lord before I have accomplished the goals HE set for me. It is a small concern because God has
promised me a long life to accomplish His goals in my ministry. The point is that I would hate to leave this
place without accomplishing what He has purposed for me. I would hate to overhear some angels say,
“It’s a shame he was too busy at the theater to finish the race.”
I want my life to matter and the mark I have made in the
lives of others to be eternal and not infernal.
Like most of us I have failed to rise to that level before and have no
desire to see it become a pattern.
Beloved, rise up in your most holy faith and let’s
accomplish great things for the kingdom.
You will be despised and hated by many and adored by a few but those few
will be the ones who will reap eternal blessings from your life.
Join me as I raise my mark to a higher level.
Bishop J
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