Don't Play Fair

Don’t Play Fair

“But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies,

do good to those who hate you, bless those who

curse you, and pray for those who mistreat you.”

                                          Luke 6:27

The title of the chapter did its job, catching my attention and peaking my interest. After all, from the youngest age we had been taught, in everything we did, to play fair. Choose teams that were even, no changing the rules in the middle of a game, no dealing from the bottom of the deck, no hiding outside the boundaries of “hide and seek”, etc, etc, etc. The author of the book was Henry Cloud and his perspective on playing fair is one we could all benefit from.

We all know what fair looks like: you’re nice to someone, fair is that they’re nice to you in return. Someone says something not so nice, even downright cruel about you, fair gets to say something equally cruel about them, I mean “it’s only fair.” And we all know what unfair looks like too; it’s when the scales are apparently tipped in someone else’s favor and they seem to either be getting away with something or being blessed in a way they don’t deserve.

“Don’t play fair” certainly fits with what Jesus taught us. His challenge to bless those who curse us runs totally counter to the culture we live in as does the call to pray for those who mistreat us. The same is true for loving our enemies. We just have to think for a minute what an enemy tries to do and how an enemy acts towards a person in realizing that asking us to love our enemies, to love those who do wrong toward us and who are out to do us harm is certainly not fair. But it certainly is right and here’s why!

We often forget that thoughts become actions, actions turn into habits and habits form our character. So if an enemy, or the enemy, can get us to react in a certain way in the interest of fairness, we end up hurting ourselves and becoming someone we don’t want to be. If we stoop to the level of another in being cruel with our words and vindictive in our desires, the loser will always be us. God has called us to live a life of love and kindness and he is looking for men and women of Christ-like character. And the surest way to get there is “don’t play fair.” Just as Jesus demonstrated on the cross, look to give more than you receive in every situation and in every relationship. Learning to not play fair is a giant step on the road to success in life.

God Bless
Pastor Joe
Gateway Church

Extrapolate

Extrapolate

“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper
 time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”
                                                    Galatians 6:9

Have you ever had a word get stuck in your head? Did you ever have a thought that is confirmed over and over again by a variety of people?  That is what has been happening to me for quite a while now with the word “extrapolate.” The definitions of the word extrapolate are:

·         To use existing information to discover what is likely to happen in the future

·         To project into the future based on what is known

·         To extend to a greater length

In a day when we all tend to live in the moment, saying what we want and doing what feels good, the message of the word extrapolate is to think out the end result  and ultimate consequence of our actions before we do them. A decision on buying something might need to take into account whether the debt being incurred is worth the enjoyment of what is being bought. An action might be enjoyable but considering how it would affect our relationship with the Lord or our testimony to other believers might save us from a whole lot of trouble. At the same time, an action that we might be leery about might have real potential for good and for changing a life. And just a little thought might convince us that the hard thing we weren’t going to do would really pay off down the road and is the right choice for our future. Taking time to extrapolate will both prevent the bad and encourage the good in our lives.

With our words, the challenge is to consider what response and reaction our words will produce before uttering them. James warned us to be slow to speak, encouraging us to take a minute to consider if our words will bring life or death. A short look at what our words might produce will often make us decide to hold a thought and to just be quiet. At other times, we might realize the positive impact an encouraging word would make in another person’s life and decide to go out of our way to contact them and sow something good at a time of need.

Henry Cloud called this practice “Play the Movie,” seeing our actions as one scene in a movie and, only after viewing the movie, deciding if we want that scene to be a part of the movie of our lives. At times we will like what we see and at other times we won’t. But the key is we get to decide how the movie of our lives will play out. Take time to extrapolate; you’ll find it well worth the time and effort!

God Bless
Pastor Joe
Gateway Church

God at Work

God at Work

“For it  is God who works in you to will and
 to act according to his good purpose.”
                                     Philippians 2:13

Looking back on the events in my life that set the stage for my giving my life to the Lord, it is pretty clear that I failed to recognize the Lord at work in my life. A look at just a portion of what happened back then might help each of us learn to recognize that the Lord is daily at work in our lives to accomplish His plans and purposes.

It was the mid 70’s and the real estate developer who owned the 188 acre farm that we were renting in Lima, New York had given us notice that he was selling the property and that we would have to move. Despite not having running water (a well and a pump were our source of water), we were very fond of the farmhouse and the peace and relaxation of living in the country. To say that the news of having to move was not well received would be an understatement. But soon after, three of us who lived there responded to a simple ad, “country estate for rent, $350” and found ourselves in a far better place. And it was at that place that I found Christ and received His salvation.

What I now realize, many years later, is that in answer to prayer, God had moved on the heart of that developer to sell his property. His actions were neither random nor coincidental. God was at work; I just didn’t recognize it. God had also coordinated the timing of his notice to us so that it perfectly coincided with the ad being placed in the paper.  And that meant that the Lord also had to move on the heart of our new landlord to rent out half of his house now that his children had moved away. Wow, was God busy and all in answer to prayer, and all for my good, leading and guiding without me having a single clue.

One translation of John 14:7 begins with Jesus saying, “If you had learned to recognize me…” We are to learn to see the Lord in every situation we face and in the people He brings into our lives. What we consider ordeals are most often opportunities. What we see as obstacles to our success are the very means of our preparation for God’s next step. Trials and difficulties in life are to be opportunities for us to trust the Lord and for our faith to grow as we exercise it.  When we see a problem as an ordeal or an obstacle, we fail to see the Lord in the situation and we miss an opportunity to grow and to be strengthened. Let’s stop giving in to frustration and discouragement at the first sign of difficulty and trust that the Lord, out of a heart of pure love, is at work in each of our lives.

God Bless,
Pastor Joe
Gateway Church

The Welfare of Others

The Welfare of Others

“I have no one else like him, who takes
a genuine interest in your welfare.”
                       Philippians 2:20

The story is one familiar to most Christians: Paul and Silas were in jail, having been severely beaten for delivering a slave girl from a demonic spirit. Around midnight they were praying and singing hymns to God when an earthquake struck. The shaking from the earthquake was so violent that it caused the prison doors to fly open and everyone’s chains to fall off. Now I don’t know too many people who, at that moment of seemingly being set free, wouldn’t have encouraged Paul and Silas to run for the hills. Yet, despite their wounds, and despite the open doors, that is not at all what those two godly men did.

Years later, Paul wrote back to the believers in the city where those events occurred and commended the character of young Timothy, pointing out traits that made Timothy stand out from the crowd of believers in his day. Paul wrote, “I have no one else who takes a genuine interest in your welfare. For everyone looks out for his own interests, not those of Jesus Christ.” Maybe living in a “me first” generation as we do is not so original after all. But, hopefully, there are still Timothy’s to be found in the church, men and women who will put others’ needs before their own.

But I want to get back to what happened that day in the jail when the earthquake struck because Paul had lived out the very traits he was noting in Timothy’s life. Taking advantage of the open doors in the jail that night would have meant the certain death of the jailer whose responsibility it was to guard them. Misinterpreting the open doors as a sign to flee would have had disastrous results for not just the jailer but his entire family. No, Paul and Silas were found sitting in their cell, and the result was that the jailer and his entire family became believers that night.  The choice to “not seek their own good but the good of many” bore incredible fruit not only that night for that family but it resulted in a strong church being raised up in that city.

Putting the welfare of others first so goes against the grain of our society that it has to become a trait we purposefully embrace. Certainly the Lord demonstrated it for us on the cross, when He gave up His life for ours.  And Paul and Silas provided another stirring example in their response to cell doors flying open and chains falling off. Now it’s our turn. Let’s each look for opportunities to help others through life, even in situations where our own interests have to take a back seat to those of others.

God Bless
Pastor Joe
Gateway Church

Into The Night

Into the Night

“He saw the disciples straining at the oars and about the fourth

watch of the night, He went out to them, walking on the water.

                                                        Mark 6:48

Leaving Baltimore at 2:30 in the morning on Thursday to be back home for a high school graduation, I spent the next few hours sharing the roads with hundreds of truck drivers who make their living delivering the food and other goods we rely on to stores throughout the country. The night drive left me with a healthy appreciation of the job they do and with absolutely no desire to ever join them again at such a ridiculous hour. But it did remind me of a story in the Bible that occurred at just about the same time of the night.

The disciples had gone ahead of Jesus and ran into some rough conditions on the lake, rowing against the winds and making little progress. Though He was alone on the land, Jesus saw them struggling in the night to make headway. What a perfect picture of Jesus that story paints. He saw them struggling as He sees us in our struggles and difficulties. In the darkest hours of the night, Jesus had His eyes on his disciples making sure that the waves did not overwhelm them. Two thousand years later, Jesus still keeps His faithful eye on His people as they go through the storms of life. David wrote in Psalm 33:18 that “the eyes of the Lord are on those who fear Him, on those whose hope is in His unfailing love.”

And it was into the night of their lives, the fourth watch of the night that began at 3:00 am, during the darkest hours, that Jesus walked on the water to come to their rescue. It is in those darkest times of our lives that we too can expect to see Jesus coming to us to help in our time of need. His words to them, “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid,” still ring true today. In the storms of life, knowing that Jesus is always with us is to be our source of strength and courage to face life’s challenges and troubles with faith and determination.

But the story has an interesting twist, as if written by a modern mystery writer. The Bible records that Jesus, who came out to help them, was “about to pass them by.” That saying has always puzzled me. Why would Jesus pass by the very disciples who needed Him? Wiersbe explains it this way: “Jesus wanted them to recognize Him, trust Him, and invite Him into the ship.” So often we face our problems knowing that Jesus loves us but without ever inviting Him in to the difficult times we are going through. Finding peace in the midst of our storms may be as simple as taking our eyes off the waves and humbly inviting Jesus to come in. He calmed the winds that night and He will do the same for you and I if we invite Him in and trust Him afresh.

God Bless
Pastor Joe
Gateway Church

For People

For People

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me because He has

 anointed me to preach good news to the poor.”

                                                Isaiah 61:1

Some statements and quotes not only stick with us, but they open up a train of thought that leads to a fresh understanding of the heart of God. That happened to me recently when I read this quote from Lloyd Ogilvie, “The power of Pentecost is for people.” My first thought went to the verse above that Jesus quoted in the synagogue at Nazareth. Breaking it down brought out a common thread that runs though Isaiah’s prophecy:

·         “…to preach good news to the poor”
·         “…to bind up the brokenhearted”
·         “…to proclaim freedom to the captives”
·         “…to release from darkness the prisoners”
·         “…to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor”
·         “…to comfort all who mourn”
·         “…to provide for those who grieve”
·         “…to bestow beauty for ashes”
·         “…to give the oil of joy instead of mourning”
·         “…to give a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair”

What was so abundantly clear was that the heart of God beats with a passion, not for programs or buildings, but for people. God sends the anointing and gives wisdom to see people just like you and I, our family, friends and neighbors, comforted, delivered, healed, strengthened, and given hope and purpose. God sent His only Son into the world to die for people, to give men and women the hope of salvation and the promise of eternal life.

What we can expect in our own lives, as God molds us into the image of His Son, is that more and more our hearts will be re-focused from possessions to people; that we will be filled with a desire to see their burdens lifted and hurts healed, their needs met and fears released, and, most importantly, their salvation assured. “The power of Pentecost is for people” is just a reflection of a God of love, One who calls His people to love one another as He has loved us.

God Bless,
Pastor Joe
Gateway Church

A Substance

“A Substance”

“Now faith is the substance of things hoped

for, the evidence of things not seen.”

                                             Hebrews 11:1

If, as the writer of the Book of Hebrews asserts, faith is a substance, something tangible and real, then we should be able to visibly identify it in the lives of those who live by it. Here is an attempt, taken from various works, to give an admittedly incomplete description of what faith looks like in the life of a believer:

·         Faith inspires action.
·         Faith endures trials.
·         Faith obeys the Word.
·         Faith stifles complaining.
·         Faith waits patiently.
·         Faith controls the tongue.
·         Faith produces fruit.
·         Faith responds to the promises of God.
·         Faith produces separation from the world.
·         Faith is undeterred by circumstances.
·         Faith is willing to sacrifice.
·         Faith boldly asks.
·         Faith perseveres.
·         Faith believes.
·         Faith gives.
·         Faith works.
·         Faith never gives up.
·         Faith secures the victory.

James uses the natural example of someone looking in a mirror to explain the introspection that studying God’s Word is to cause in our lives. In much the same way, we can look at the characteristics of true faith found in the scriptures and use them to evaluate the quality of faith that we are experiencing in our own lives. To the degree that such self-examination produces real and lasting changes in our conduct and character, we will truly be blessed.

God Bless,
Pastor Joe
Gateway Church