MAX ON LIFE

27. Is God willing to use anyone to change the world? Even people who've lived ungodly lives?

I hope so. If God chose only righteous people to change the world, you could count them all on one finger - Jesus. Instead, he included others in his plan - the sinners, the ungodly, the imperfect, the fearful, the prideful, the truth twisters. There's a lot more of us to choose from.

People like

• Abraham - liar
• Jacob - deceiver
• Moses - murderer, excuse maker
• David - adulterer, murderer
• Solomon - worldly, adulterer
• Elijah - pouting prophet
• Gomer and Rahab - prostitutes
• Matthew - tax collector
• Peter - denier with angry issues

The reassuring lesson is clear. God used (and uses!) people to change the world. People! Not saints or superhumans or geniuses but people. Crooks, creeps, lovers, and liars - he uses them all. And what they lack in perfection, God makes up for in love.

If you ever wonder how God can use you to make a difference in your world, just look at those he has already used, and take heart. No matter who you are or what you've done, God can use you.

Because you're imperfect, you can speak of making mistakes.

Because you're a sinner, you can speak of forgiveness.

God restores the broken and the brittle, then parades them before the world as trophies of his love and strength. The world sees the ungodly turn godly, and they know God must love them too.

By: Max Lucado

Our Christian Walk This Side of Heaven

Take courage, my sisters, God has overcome the world!!!!

We are not of this world, we are just passing through, we are here on a temporary assignment and even though the task may be difficult and there are many obstacles, we set our eyes on our heavenly home, our eternal dwelling place with our Maker and Creator. Truly, in this world, the devil schemes against us, and Scripture (our very own Manual for Godly Living) tells us:

"Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings. And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast." (1 Peter 5:8-10)

And also, we are told that the Devil not only schemes against us in our physical world, but also in the spiritual world:

"Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms." (Ephesians 6:10-12)

So, what are we to do? Our Manual for Godly Living tells us how to guard ourselves:

"Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints." (Ephesians 6:13-18)

And we know that, as a father disciplines his children, our Lord puts us to the test, molds us and refines us through fire:

"But we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance: perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us." (Romans 5:3-5)

And through that same Spirit, we develop:

"The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control." (Galatians 5:22-23)

And, though at times we feel we cannot make it, Scripture again tells us:

"The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles. The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit." (Psalm 34:17-18)

And we lift up our countenance to the Lord:

"Praise the Lord. How good it is to sing praises to our God, how pleasant and fitting to praise him! The Lord builds up Jerusalem. He gathers the exiles of Israel. He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. He determines the number of the stars and calls them each by name. Great is our Lord and mighty in power. The Lord sustains the humble but casts the wicked to the ground." (Psalm 147:1-6)

And we continue in the race to win the prize for which we have been called according to his purpose:

"Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary and what is unseen is eternal." (2 Corinthians 4:16-18)

And we lift each other up, we encourage each other, we fellowship with each other to strengthen our sisterly bond:

"Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves. Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Share with God's people who are in need. Practice hospitality." (Romans 12:9-12)

And finally, we cling to the promise of what is to come:

"Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, 'Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away." (Revelation 21: 1-4)

Take courage, my sisters, God has overcome the world!!

MAX ON LIFE

26. I want to become a doctor and work with the poor, but this seems like an impossible dream. My heart tells me this dream is from God, but my parents think I'm being foolish. How do I keep their doubts from destroying my dream?

Let's be honest - there's a lot in life that doesn't make sense.

School. Friends. The news. Politics. Wall Street. Even God's track record in the Bible doesn't make a lot of sense:

• Transporting a million or so people across the desert for forty years to a mysterious promised land (Exodus - Deuteronomy)
• Whittling a thirty-two-thousand-man army down to the three hundred in order to attack the most feared warriors in the land, then arming the tree hundred men with trumpets, jars, and torches (Judg 7:1-16)
• Saving the world through a baby born in a barn (Luke 2:1-7)
• Spreading the gospel to the world with twelve imperfect men - a treasurer who took bribes, a confidant who denied Jesus, and another who preferred to run away naked than get captured (Matt 26:14-16; John 12:4-6; Matt 26:69-75; Mark 14:51-52)

So if someone has a dream that makes perfect sense, it really couldn't be from God. That's not how he dreams!

We forget that impossible is one of God's favorite words. He dreams impossible dreams. Why?

If you accomplish a possible dream, then you get all the glory.

But if you accomplish an impossible dream, then God gets all the glory.

The purpose of impossible dreams is to show the world that an incredible, unbelievable God still exists, and he works in the lives of people.

And it all begins with dreams like yours of reaching the poor and destitute.

While it may seem your parents are dousing your passion with doubt, they could be injecting some much-needed wisdom into your plans for fulfilling your dream. Your parents do love you and want to ensure you make the best decision. So listen to them. Practicality and logic aren't all bad. Doubt may be caution in disguise.

In the end, you must ask yourself whose dream am I going to follow: mine, my parent's or God's? God's dreams are always bigger and better and more unbelievable. His dreams look like these:

• Your neighbors.... your community.... your school coming to Christ
• Churches in your zip code coming together to pray for revival
• An end to hunger and disease in just one country
• Peace on earth

Dare to dream like God.

By: Max Lucado

MAX ON LIFE

24. I suffer from unanswered prayers. What I ask God to do and what He does are two different things.

Think for a moment about God's priority. God exists to showcase God.

Why do the heavens exist? The heavens exist to "declare the glory of God" (Ps. 19:1).

Why did God choose the Israelites? Through Isaiah he summoned "everyone who is called by My name, whom I have created for My glory" (Isa 43:7).

Why do people struggle? God answers, "I have tested you in the furnace of affliction. For My own sake, for My own sake, I will act" (Isa 48:10-11)

"Call on me when you are in trouble, and I will rescue you, and you will give me glory" (Ps 50"15).

God has one goal: God. To proclaim his glory.

God has no ego problem. He does not reveal his glory for his good. We need to witness it for our good.

He responds to our prayers with this goal in mind. If he says no to our requests, it is because his glory matters more than our preferences.

By: Max Lucado

MAX ON LIFE

23. Can our lives count for Christ if we don't have the calling to be a minister? I try to be faithful in telling others about salvation, especially my grandchildren. Do you think this matters in the long run?

Sounds as if you are doing exactly what a minister does. Paul says in Romans 15:15-20:
"...... because of the grace God gave me to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles with the priestly duty of proclaiming the gospel of God, so that the Gentiles might become an offering acceptable to God, sanctified by the Holy Spirit.
Therefore I glory in Christ Jesus in my service to God. I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me in leading the Gentiles to obey God by what I have said and done - by the power of signs and miracles, through the power of the Spirit. So from Jerusalem all the way around to Illyricum, I have fully proclaimed the gospel of Christ. It has always been my ambition to preach the gospel where Christ was not known."
You don't have to put a collar around your neck, eat at every potluck dinner that comes around, or preach long, boring sermons to be a minister.
According to Paul, ministers
- proclaim the gospel everywhere they go, and
- testify to God's work in their lives.
Paul made a difference. Sounds as if you do too.
Will it matter?
When you arrive in heaven, I wonder if Christ might say these words to you: "I'm so proud that you let me use you. Because of you, others are here today. Would you like to meet them?"
Neighbors, coworkers, friends, strangers, and family members (parents, spouse, children, grandchildren) all step forward.
Even great-grandchildren, whom you never met, are there because your ministered to your kids and to your grandchildren.
Does ministering make a difference? Yes.
Are you a minister? You bet.
Are you making a difference? Absolutely.
And while you're at it, eat at every potluck you can.

By: Max Lucado

Reaching Out

I hope you all are getting familiar with our blogspot and know that we are not in fellowship this is a perfect way to continue staying connecting.  As we get busy with our summer stuff please remember the following prayer:

Dear Lord, help me to put all my busyness aside to spend time with you each day.  I pray that my love for you will supercede any other activity that Ihave planned on any given day.  Thank you for wnating to spend time with me, in Jesus name, Amen.

MAX ON LIFE

22. I have to admit I'm not looking forward to growing old. I've worked in a nursing home for years, and this has only made me dread old age. This attitude doesn't seem to be rational, but I can't seem to accept the inevitable.

"Altogether, Abraham lived a hundred and seventy-five years. Then Abraham breathed his last and died at a good old age, an old man and full of years; and he was gathered to his people." (Gen 25:7-8)

There's an expression in the Bible that has always fascinated me. When referring to someone's death, it says he died "full of years".

It's used to describe Abraham, Isaac and Job.

"Full of years" could mean lots of years. Abraham and Isaac lived tow of our lifetimes. That's a lot of years.

It could also express the idea that the years of their lives were full, busy with God's packed agenda. Maybe it means they died fulfilling all they set out to accomplish.

I don't know if I would want to live 180 years, but I know I want to live all the years of my life as if they were the last, and do everything I can to make sure they fulfill all God wants me to do.

I want to die fulfilled, having done everything I could with the time I had. If I'm in a nursing home, I want to lead Bible studies, Beatles sing-alongs, and square dances and make sure every resident there has a personal relationship with Christ while the synapses in my brain are still sparking and my hip bones are strong.

Getting old is inevitable. But are you going to hobble and groan your way to the grave or race your rickety old wheelchair downhill to your funeral? We're all going to end up the same way, but we can have fun getting there!

By: Max Lucado