Today I was reviewing some Scriptures pertaining to salvation because I am preparing a class for the kids at my church in which they will learn about faith in God, salvation, baptism, and get answers to their questions about faith and God. One of the passages I came across was 1 Timothy 2:1-6. It reads as follows:
"I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone—for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. For there is one God and one mediator between God and human beings, Christ Jesus, himself human, who gave himself as a ransom for all people. This has now been witnessed to at the proper time." (TNIV)
I've been told before by others that we should pray for our leaders, especially the President and Congress. In response, I usually say a quick prayer for them and move on with my day. Today, when I came across these verses in First Timothy, I realized that I should pray regularly for the leaders of our country, rather than making it a one-time or once in a while thing. What is the benefit of praying for our leaders? Paul (the writer of First Timothy) tells us that it is for the purpose of living peaceful lives as well as being a witness for Christ. God wants ALL to be saved and come to a knowledge of the truth. I know that we all do not have the privilege of rubbing elbows with our nation's leaders everyday; however, prayer is one of the most powerful, effective tools we have for bringing about change in the situations that are out of our control. God is a very good listener!
My challenge to you and myself is to pray for our nation's leaders at least once a week. If they are Christians in leadership positions, we should pray that God will strengthen them in their faith and protect them from personal corruption. If they are not Christians, we should pray that God would work on their hearts and help them "come to a knowledge of the truth" as Paul states in verse four. Our nation does have a lot of issues, but if we pray for the ones who are in power, we have the opportunity to watch God work in great and mysterious ways against these various issues. Please join me in my challenge to pray for our leaders.
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
"Life on Earth is Preparation for Eternity"
My church is currently going through the 40 Days of Purpose series, and Thursday night we had our first session in small group. In the video, Rick Warren said, "Life on Earth is preparation for eternity." He then included Ecclesiastes 3:11 and Psalm 33:11 as references to support this statement. After checking out these verses, they didn't really seem to fit with what he was saying.
Over the past several days I have had mixed feelings on Rick Warren's statement, but as I've discussed it with several people including chat, small group, my sister, and through discussion board, I think I've been able to figure out my thoughts. Here goes:
For the person who is not a Christian, it is very clear that life on earth is preparation for eternity because their decision of whether or not they accept Christ as Lord will determine where they end up in eternity. We can see this truth in Matthew 6:19-21, which talks about treasures on earth vs. treasures in heaven.
The part I wrestled with originally was the relevance of this statement in the life of a Christian. I thought to myself, what in life would prepare me for eternity if I'm already a Christian? A man in my small group mentioned that the hardships we face in life prepare us for eternity. I thought about that, but I disagreed because the book of Revelation tells us that when we get to heaven, we will forget the pain, heartache, and hardships of our former life (life on earth) and will partake in the joy of heaven. So, how could our hardships prepare us if they will serve no consequence in eternity?
Another person in my small group said that the good things we do in this life will determine how much of a reward we will receive in heaven. I disagreed with her on this statement because I do not know of anywhere in Scripture where this viewpoint is supported. In fact, I learn something very different when I check out what Scripture says.
There is a parable in Matthew 20:1-16 in which Jesus describes a man who buys a plot of land and hires out help to get his work done. He hires people all day long starting in the morning and ending in the evening, and he promised everyone who worked the same sum of money. Let's say $100 for the sake of the story. So, at the end of the day, the workers come to collect their dues, and the ones who have been working since the morning think they're going to get paid really well because they've been working all day and some people only worked for an hour. However, the owner paid each worker $100. The ones who had been working all day were outraged, but the owner told them he gave them what he promised, and he has the right to give his workers whatever he wants.
This parable is comparable to heaven. As Christians, we are continually working toward pleasing God and joining Him in heaven. This is not to say that our salvation is based on works. Rather, the good things we do should be our response to God's love for us. Regardless of whether we accept Christ as savior in our childhood or at the end of life, we have still accepted His grace and will join Him in heaven. Through this parable we can see that God does not choose favorites with those who worked the hardest, but He treats everyone equally.
I later spoke with my sister on the topic of the statement "Life on Earth is preparation for eternity" and asked her what she thought. I felt she shared some good insight, and after sharing this topic with several Christians, I feel I have a good understanding of things. Here's a combination of what they shared. The life we spend on Earth is preparation for eternity because as Christians we are doing our best to tell others about Christ so that we can see them in heaven. We are preparing now for who we hope to see in the future. Also, it is in this present life that we are learning about God's love, joy, and service and how to have/do it more fully. This is preparation for how we will live it out when we are in heaven loving and serving each other.
After wrestling with this statement for a few days and getting feedback from several people, I've come to the conclusion that I do agree with Rick Warren's statement that "Life on Earth is preparation for eternity." I'd never really perceived life on Earth in this way before, and I think that's why these words stuck out like a sore thumb to me when I first heard them.
I guess now the question I need to answer for myself is, now that I realize my present life is preparation for what's to come, what am I going to do about it? What in my life do I need to start/stop doing?
Over the past several days I have had mixed feelings on Rick Warren's statement, but as I've discussed it with several people including chat, small group, my sister, and through discussion board, I think I've been able to figure out my thoughts. Here goes:
For the person who is not a Christian, it is very clear that life on earth is preparation for eternity because their decision of whether or not they accept Christ as Lord will determine where they end up in eternity. We can see this truth in Matthew 6:19-21, which talks about treasures on earth vs. treasures in heaven.
The part I wrestled with originally was the relevance of this statement in the life of a Christian. I thought to myself, what in life would prepare me for eternity if I'm already a Christian? A man in my small group mentioned that the hardships we face in life prepare us for eternity. I thought about that, but I disagreed because the book of Revelation tells us that when we get to heaven, we will forget the pain, heartache, and hardships of our former life (life on earth) and will partake in the joy of heaven. So, how could our hardships prepare us if they will serve no consequence in eternity?
Another person in my small group said that the good things we do in this life will determine how much of a reward we will receive in heaven. I disagreed with her on this statement because I do not know of anywhere in Scripture where this viewpoint is supported. In fact, I learn something very different when I check out what Scripture says.
There is a parable in Matthew 20:1-16 in which Jesus describes a man who buys a plot of land and hires out help to get his work done. He hires people all day long starting in the morning and ending in the evening, and he promised everyone who worked the same sum of money. Let's say $100 for the sake of the story. So, at the end of the day, the workers come to collect their dues, and the ones who have been working since the morning think they're going to get paid really well because they've been working all day and some people only worked for an hour. However, the owner paid each worker $100. The ones who had been working all day were outraged, but the owner told them he gave them what he promised, and he has the right to give his workers whatever he wants.
This parable is comparable to heaven. As Christians, we are continually working toward pleasing God and joining Him in heaven. This is not to say that our salvation is based on works. Rather, the good things we do should be our response to God's love for us. Regardless of whether we accept Christ as savior in our childhood or at the end of life, we have still accepted His grace and will join Him in heaven. Through this parable we can see that God does not choose favorites with those who worked the hardest, but He treats everyone equally.
I later spoke with my sister on the topic of the statement "Life on Earth is preparation for eternity" and asked her what she thought. I felt she shared some good insight, and after sharing this topic with several Christians, I feel I have a good understanding of things. Here's a combination of what they shared. The life we spend on Earth is preparation for eternity because as Christians we are doing our best to tell others about Christ so that we can see them in heaven. We are preparing now for who we hope to see in the future. Also, it is in this present life that we are learning about God's love, joy, and service and how to have/do it more fully. This is preparation for how we will live it out when we are in heaven loving and serving each other.
After wrestling with this statement for a few days and getting feedback from several people, I've come to the conclusion that I do agree with Rick Warren's statement that "Life on Earth is preparation for eternity." I'd never really perceived life on Earth in this way before, and I think that's why these words stuck out like a sore thumb to me when I first heard them.
I guess now the question I need to answer for myself is, now that I realize my present life is preparation for what's to come, what am I going to do about it? What in my life do I need to start/stop doing?
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
Unexpected Blessings
I'll just start by saying, it's been a rough week. My car broke down, I have had too much work to get done and not enough time to accomplish it, I've had to sit through at least seven hours of meetings, I haven't had a true day off for about two weeks, and personally I've been kind of off the past few days. It's just been rough.
Today, I had two unexpected blessings. First, I forgot my money at home and didn't realize it until I was halfway through ordering lunch at Panera. I told the cashier nevermind since I forgot my money, and I prepared to turn around and walk away when she told me not to worry about it and that I was covered. I asked her if she was sure, and she said yes. I don't know if they had food they wanted to get rid of or if she paid for it herself, but :I got a free meal today! And with the way things have been going, that really brightened my day!
Second, this afternoon I got a call from the auto shop telling me my car was ready to pick up. And then the mechanic made sure to tell me my bill was paid in full. He told me I have a guardian angel and that legally he's not allowed to tell me who paid the bill. It's simply paid in full. At first I tried to figure it out, not to pay them back but to say thank you, but then I decided to quit trying to figure it out and simply be thankful, whoever it was. That right there brightened my entire week! In fact, it turned my entire week around!
My week was rough, but it has suddenly taken a turn for the better! And the only explanation I can think of is that God decided to use other people to bring me His blessings. The other night I asked in all my frustration for God to help me. I couldn't even specify what I needed help for, I just asked Him several times over to help me. Today, I had two very unexpected but very needed blessings. My conclusion is God did it. And I'm grateful.
Today, I had two unexpected blessings. First, I forgot my money at home and didn't realize it until I was halfway through ordering lunch at Panera. I told the cashier nevermind since I forgot my money, and I prepared to turn around and walk away when she told me not to worry about it and that I was covered. I asked her if she was sure, and she said yes. I don't know if they had food they wanted to get rid of or if she paid for it herself, but :I got a free meal today! And with the way things have been going, that really brightened my day!
Second, this afternoon I got a call from the auto shop telling me my car was ready to pick up. And then the mechanic made sure to tell me my bill was paid in full. He told me I have a guardian angel and that legally he's not allowed to tell me who paid the bill. It's simply paid in full. At first I tried to figure it out, not to pay them back but to say thank you, but then I decided to quit trying to figure it out and simply be thankful, whoever it was. That right there brightened my entire week! In fact, it turned my entire week around!
My week was rough, but it has suddenly taken a turn for the better! And the only explanation I can think of is that God decided to use other people to bring me His blessings. The other night I asked in all my frustration for God to help me. I couldn't even specify what I needed help for, I just asked Him several times over to help me. Today, I had two very unexpected but very needed blessings. My conclusion is God did it. And I'm grateful.
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