Coffee With The Lord

I’ve got to watch out for materialism, greed and covetousness in my life!  So do you!  We live in the kind of culture that tends to emphasize those kinds of values!

Jesus warned against that kind of thing… He said, “Take care – be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions!”

Then He told this insightful story about a guy that was very successful in business and made a lot of money.  Wanting more, he decided to expand his business even more.  He wanted to be fabulously wealthy!  He desired to pile wealth up for himself and the personal satisfaction it would bring. But one day God spoke to him… God said, “You fool! Tonight you die! Then who will get all of the things you’ve piled up for yourself?” (personal paraphrase of Luke 12:20)

Good question!  That’s why the Bible makes this point in the very next verse… “So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God!”

I want my priorities to be right in light of eternity!  I don’t want to be a Scrooge McDuck with my finances and a pauper in my soul and my relationship with God and others!

A big challenge for our children (and grandchildren) today? … Remaining morally pure in a corrupt culture! And it’s not just a “youth” problem … it’s the challenge we all face. Things once thought unthinkable by “religious folk” are now approved in the name of tolerance. Media flaunts relaxed morals and things the Bible calls “perversions.” The ancient directives regarding sexual morality in Proverbs, the teaching of Jesus, and the epistles are explained away as the relics of another era. The burning question for committed Christians is, how to remain “pure in heart” and “blameless in behavior” in a permissive culture?

Well, there are several Biblical answers to that question that we could address. I encountered an important one in my Bible reading this morning that we dare not forget…

“How can a young man (or woman) keep their way pure? By guarding it according to Your word! With my whole heart I seek You! Let me no wander from Your commandments! I have stored up (some versions say ‘treasured up’) Your word in my heart that I might not sin against You… In the way of Your testimonies I delight as much as in all riches! I will meditate on Your precepts and fix my eyes on Your ways. I will delight in Your statutes; I will not forget Your word.” (from Psalm 119:9-16 ESV)

Anything that parents (and grandparents) can do to encourage Bible reading, Bible memorization, and/or Bible study by the youth in their family, it seems to me is a good idea (and as important as their kids taking their vitamins, eating healthy, getting the exercise they need and/or having the vaccinations they need). And for brand new, born again followers of Jesus (AND those of us who have been following the Lord for awhile)… we desperately need the Psalmist advice as well! Time spent internalizing God’s word is a healthy hedge against evil!

If I begin to neglect “coffee with the Lord” I can begin to tell it. I’m really glad for the time I spent with God’s word today!

Bad situations can have good results for Christ followers!

That’s the message the Apostle Paul conveyed to his dear friends, the Christians in Philippi, regarding his imprisonment in Rome! In fact, as unpleasant (and unfair) as the experience was for Paul, God used it to get the gospel into Caesar’s household! Paul actually began to view being in prison as “my imprisonment is for Christ.” He went on to say, “I am put here for the defense of the gospel” (actually terminology soldiers used to describe being “stationed”, “on duty”, or “under orders”). The point? Paul realized that, as unpleasant as his imprisonment was, God used it for His glory and the spread of the gospel! (Philippians 1:12-18)

Several years ago, a dear friend of mine made a terrible mistake and was led into a unwise (and illegal) business deal. He realized it after he had been entrapped, tried desperately to get out of the deal and attempted to make it right. However, a “pit bull prosecutor” pressed a lawsuit and my friend ended up in prison, much to his dismay and shame. He realized something however – God could use the situation for His glory! He determined to be a witness within the prison and was mightily used by God to lead many fellow prisoners to Christ and minister hope to their families. When I heard the stories of how God turned a terrible situation into good and the glory of God, my eyes flowed with tears and my heart was filled with praise!

Another story… I had a friend that was diagnosed with cancer. We all prayed for healing fervently… but it did not seem to come. My friend determined to be a witness for Christ and an agent of hope during his treatments and hospitalization. As a result of his loving witness and indomitable hope many came to know the Lord in a personal way. He walked the halls as an “ambassador for Christ” and a suffering chaplain. He lived for Christ (and died for Christ)! Which reminds me of Paul’s words in this passage… “It is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that will full courage – now as always – Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death. For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain!” (Philippians 1:20-21)

I want to live with that conviction… and when I die, I want to die with that conviction! Don’t you?