This Is Not A Drill

Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, 

you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, 

considering yourself lest you also be tempted.  

Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.

Galatians: 6:1, 2

If you've never been on a hospital ship before then let me tell you there are some very interesting things that make the whole thing work efficiently. Just like in any other mainland office building, regular fire drills must be conducted to ensure that all crew are ready and able to handle it should a blaze ignite on board. Every crew member must evacuate the ship and congregate at a designated "muster station" where their names are checked against the master list of people on board. 

As you exit and head towards your muster station (arranged by last name alphabetical groupings), you pass a group of people holding a sign and soliciting for STRETCHER BEARERS. You check in at your muster station and then, if you're feeling so inclined, you head back to said sign and exchange your ID badge for one that marks you as a stretcher bearer on a particular team. In the event of a true emergency, teams of people bearing stretchers will re-enter the ship and head to the hospital where they will be directed in helping to get hospital patients out to safety. Needless to say, like so many other roles on the front line, the role of the stretcher bearer is important and cannot be neglected.

Similarly in life, the Lord has directed us to be Stretcher Bearers to one another. It is a role in this life that is important and cannot be neglected. In today's society it is easy to get into a rhythm and focus on what pertains only to self, but God challenges us in His Word to do different, better and more. Galatians 6 tells us to "restore" and "bear burdens" for others. We are indeed directed to be our brother's/sister's keepers. You may have been asking yourself recently if you should even bother to invest in this person or that. Or perhaps you've felt a bit annoyed by a coworker or friend's constant "dumping" of their problems at your doorstep. The thing is that they see something you forgot you had--your new ID badge. The Lord sent this note your way today to remind you that when you decided to follow him, you turned in your own ID and you now bear HIS identification--making you a key player in His team of Divine Stretcher Bearers.

This is not a drill. There are people all around you that need your light to shine and need your shoulder to lean on or that simply need a lift. This week, your challenge is to take your eyes off of your problems and see where you can be that touch of a gentle spirit that someone else needs. And, though you don't do it for this reason, just know that as you pour out that gentleness of spirit on others, the Lord is faithful and just to return that same spirit unto you. Other Stretcher Bearers will be sent your way and have a mission of helping to bear your burdens and put salve on your wounds. So be encouraged...help is on the way...

Blessings,
PastorA

P.S. If this spoke to you...don't forget to "pay it forward" and pass it along to another friend in need of a "lift"...

There's A Point

But I want you to know, brethren, that the things which happened to me have actually turned out for the furtherance of the gospel...and most of the brethren in the Lord, having become confident by my chains, are much more bold to speak the word without fear.

Philippians 1:12, 14

Sometimes I think that we miss it. We forget that there's an ultimate point to our presence on this earth. There's a reason why we are here that goes far beyond our personal desires and grievances. In the end, it should be our desire that the gospel moves forward. It should be our desire that the "chains" of our life are mere tools God is using to make others confident and bold. We lose sight of the fact that, it's not about us. And so, today's prayer point is pretty simple and to the point. As you go through this day in meditation and prayer, silence the complaints for your suffering and elevate the praise--knowing that there IS a point to all you are going through and that God will get the glory in the end.

Hang in there and be encouraged!
Blessings,
MinD

Day 25: Choose Your Weapons Wisely

I often find when speaking to fellow adult Christians that we sound like children in some ways when it comes to how we deal with conflict. Our sense of entitlement to lash out supersedes any desire to be a good witness. Our spiritual reasoning goes out the window when we feel we've been wronged. We operate with that "he hit me first" type of mentality that says it's o.k. to gain vengeance when the recipient of said response is "deserving". Somehow it makes us feel better if the person is mean or rude or annoying or simply just so different from us, but the truth is we know better than that. Being a Christian, an ambassador for Christ, means we've made a conscious decision not to live tit for tat. Specifically, we are called to take the higher road and not even boast about it. Proverbs 25:21 tells us, "If your enemy is hungry, give him bread to eat; And if he is thirsty, give him water to drink;". Instead of getting someone who got you, this Christian journey is about getting them with a different tool than the one they used on you--repaying evil with kindness and stinginess with generosity. It's easier said than done in the heat of the moment. But it's possible when you have the Holy Spirit guiding your every move. When you've decided to place no other god before The God (not even self-righteous indignation) then you allow God to get the glory. It's as simple as that.

I know you know this. I'm not saying anything earth-shattering or ground-breaking. It's the A-B-C's of The Golden Rule (Do unto others...), but sometimes you need a reminder. So today, as you encounter people along your way, tests will come but be encouraged to choose to use joy and peace as your weapons of choice even when they "hit you first" with evil and disruption.

Blessings,
MinD

Day 23: Don't Waste Your Breath

I have a teenage friend who knows just about everything there is to know...or so she thinks. Talking to them can be frustrating at times because you can't tell them anything. I'm sure I was like that at their age (and much like that even today). "Stubborn" is a characteristic that I've been marked with, and so I recognize it so easily in others. Stubbornness aside, I do not like to debate. So, as I have interacted with my teenage friend, I have to admit that I've found them to be a good example of using wisdom in knowing when to argue and when to simply let it go. You see, knowing that a conversation will likely be an uphill battle with them, I rarely spend a lot of energy trying to convince them. You know what I'm talking about. We've all got a few people in our lives who simply like to debate and like to push our buttons while doing it. At the end of the conversation, you leave worse for the wear and on the border of having a stroke. It's simply not worth it! So it's nice to affirm that that tiny piece of wisdom is not just made up in my brain but also something that was written into the Bible. Proverbs 23:9 says, "Do not speak in the hearing of a fool, For he will despise the wisdom of your words." Stop allowing your blood pressure to skyrocket as you must make your point. Sometimes we have to allow people to make their own mistakes (even our children). Sometimes people need to come to the same conclusions we have through a journey of their own trials and tribulations. Even sharing the Gospel should never become a battle of wills. The New Testament phrases it sweetly telling us not to "throw our pearls before swine" (Matt 7:6)--not to put what is most precious to us in the mud to be stomped on by others. We present the Gospel. We present what's important to us. Then we let it go and leave the rest up to God.

Today, be encouraged to practice letting go. Don't spin your wheels in conversations that are going nowhere.

Blessings,
MinD

Day 20: Kindness...What A Novel Idea

They say that everyone will get their 15 minutes of fame. In today's media, it seems that so many people are getting more than their fair 15 though they seem to be doing nothing noteworthy. Do you know who I'm talking about? I'm talking about the lovely men and women (and now toddlers) of reality television. Now let me preface this by admitting that I'm a bit of a reality junkie and actually watch many shows. However, I do have a line. You see there are some shows where the people getting all the air-time and exposure are simply a hot mess. They do everything except honor God and manage to get paid to do it.

But as I began to meditate on the life of a reality star, I realized that many of them are here today and gone tomorrow. You see, they can't seem to sustain. They have no staying power--a fact that, in part, could probably be attributed to a simple lack of one character ingredient, lovingkindness. The Bible tells us in Proverbs 20:28 that "Mercy and truth preserve the king, And by lovingkindness he upholds his throne." So many of us are looking for that staying power and can't seem to get it. We try one thing and it seems to fizzle. We try another and just can't get things to flow for us. Our fuses seem to get shorter and shorter as the trials in our lives seem to get longer and longer.

What we know is that as Christians we are called to exhibit the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22) and kindness is a part thereof. And while we watch those who are the most negative or least benevolent in our lives get this or that earthly reward, what we can rest in is that our eternal reward is much greater and that our ultimate staying power far exceeds theirs.As we are tested in life, it is up to us to decide to make the wise decision to choose kindness over being rushed or rude. It is up to us to look beyond our schedules and schemes to find God's ultimate plan for our continued success. It's so simple (and certainly not a novel idea) that I'm almost ashamed to write about this but I feel as though someone out there needs a reminder about the extreme power of kindness.

Be encouraged as those tests come think on that old saying, "you catch more bees with honey," and make kindness a priority in your walk.

Blessings,
MinD

Day 11: Influence Now

I was listening to a preacher doing a series on boldness and he was speaking specifically about prayer today. He asked a poignant question: "What would be changed in the world if the prayers you prayed last week were answered?" For most of us, that answer would be pretty self-centered and/or would affect someone who we knew directly. His point was that we need to be bolder in our prayers. So it seemed like further confirmation as I was re-reading today's proverb to see the following:

"By the blessing of the influence of the 

upright and God's favor [because of them] 

the city is exalted..."

Proverbs 11:11a (AMP)

For years, I've heard people preach about Christians being the salt of the earth and talking about the scripture that challenges us to "flavor" up the world around us (Matthew 5:13). But, even in that, I know that I have thought small. Today, my prayer changed to a bolder prayer in which I want hundreds and thousands of lives to be influenced because of little 'ole me! I want to look back on my life and see that my impact was for cities upon cities and not just my own family and friends. I want to hear God say "well done." I want to see that God's glory extended beyond the four walls I call home to the four ends of the earth. I have taken very seriously the idea that we are to BE the church and that Acts 1:8 calls us to affect people on various levels of life--from those nearest to us and like us to those farthest away and different. But that starts with each day. That starts with even changing my prayers. Today, what are YOU praying for that will influence the world when God answers it? I challenge you to make a shift in your thinking. You are your brother's keeper...even if that brother is around the world.

Selah...and be encouraged!
Blessings,
MinD