Doubt

“I just don’t believe it.” “That’s a likely story!” Have you ever secretly said to yourself or to God in prayer, “God … I have some doubts?”

Most of us are plagued with secret doubts at times. Calamities jar our courage. Past failures shake our confidence in our abilities to undertake new ventures. Failure to look beyond our natural abilities and resources breeds doubt.

After years in a given career some entertain second thoughts as to whether it is the right career for them. They fear they are never going to amount to much in their given field of endeavor.

John the Baptist had a moment like this. He spent his entire ministry preparing people for the coming of Christ. But when Herod imprisoned him, John entertained second thoughts about his life’s work.

Remember he was human.

Could it be that he had wasted his life? Had he given his life for a cause that wasn’t worth it? He sent his disciples to Christ to ask if He was really the Messiah (Matthew 11:3).

Christ, knowing John’s human emotions, answered him with an encouraging and uplifting report found in Matthew 11:4-12. All John’s doubts must have melted away after hearing that response.

People have doubts about God. They ask, “Could God love someone like me?” “Is the Bible really God’s Word?” “Can God help me with my problems?”

Satan is the one who plants those thoughts in our minds. He is a master at planting seeds of doubt (Genesis 3:1).

Unresolved doubts condemn us to a life of mediocrity. Doubt filled men and women never become great because their potential for greatness is sabotaged by their doubts.

The best way to come to gripe with doubts is to learn from one who has been there, doubting Thomas. An examination of the apostle Thomas’ experience (John 20:19-31) reveals four principles to help us escape the stronghold of doubt.

We must honestly admit our doubts. Thomas did this openly. After the resurrection 10 of the apostles were in the upper room when Christ made His first appearance. Thomas was absent. When he returned he found the 10 in an uproar with excitement.

“Thomas, guess what? We’ve seen the Lord. He was here in this very room while you were gone?”

Thomas was unimpressed. I can picture him as he said: “Men, my friends, I’ll be honest with you. Unless I see Him with my eyes and touch Him with my hands, I won’t believe you.”

If we ever hope to deal with doubts, we must be willing to honestly admit that we don’t believe. Thomas wasn’t willing to live out his life pretending to believe something he didn’t. He couldn’t smile and proclaim, “He is risen,” while not believing inside.

We must rely on the fellowship and association of other believers. Where was Thomas when Christ appeared to the 10? What he feared most happened – Christ had been crucified – but instead of remaining with the others, he apparently sought refuge in isolation.

We need the fellowship of other believers to strengthen our faith. Isolation breeds and nourishes doubt (Hebrews 10:25). The longer we remain in isolation, the greater our doubts become.

We need to daily remember God’s promises. Christ frequently spoke of His death but He always affirmed that He would rise again. In his personal grief, Thomas forgot the wonderful promise of the resurrection and was unable to believe when he heard of Christ’s resurrection.

Many doubts arise because we have either forgotten or haven’t understood God’s promises about our problems. We are instructed by God’ Word: “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13).

Bring our doubts directly to God. Thomas wanted a personal audience with Jesus. He heard the 10 declare the resurrection but he was a unwilling to accept their words without seeing Him.

For one long week Thomas wallowed in his doubts. Then Christ came again (read John 20:26-27).

Christ in His giving, loving way presented Himself to Thomas and invited his personal examination. We have no record of Thomas accepting the invitation but somehow I think he did. The next words recorded are those of a now believing disciple. Thomas cried out, “My Lord and my God!” (John 20:28). The visible presence of Christ was more than enough to dissolve Thomas’ doubts.

Christ dealt tenderly with Thomas. But He did not stop there. He added a special lesson: “Because you have seen Me, have you believed? Blessed are they who did not see and yet believed” (John 20:29).

We Christians today are the ones Christ was referring to. We must believe without a personal audience with Christ.

We all are at times plagued with doubts. But at the same time, we know God has provided a way to deal with them. We must take our doubts directly to God in prayer and seek counsel with the ministry. If we do this we won’t miss our own personal appointment with God in the future.

Compromise

Solomon had it all. What more could he have wanted?

Not only was he the riches and most honored king of the time (II Chronicles 1:12) but he was the wisest man ever, expect for Christ (I Kings 3:12).

As a shrewd political leader he advanced Israel’s social and military institutions and created one of the most effective and efficient governments in the ancient world. This, plus his position as middleman on the lucrative caravan route between Mesopotamia and Arabia, enabled him to build a great commercial empire that brought immeasurable wealth to Israel (I Kings 10:27).

His crowing achievement was, of course, construction of the Temple, which was probably the most beautiful and expensive structure of all time.

In addition to his wealth and physical achievements, God gave Solomon a greater gift: an intimate personal relationship with the Creator of the universe. God appeared before Solomon on at least two occasions (I Kings 3:5, 9:2, 11:9). Indeed, Solomon was “beloved of God” (Nehemiah 13:26).

Perhaps more than any other person who has ever lived, Solomon enjoyed the material comforts of life and contact with and the favor of God. Why, then, did he turn away from God?

Solomon’s example teaches us a lesson about how dangerous it is to compromise with God’s law, particularly in those areas we might view as small and unimportant. His apostasy late in life shows how little compromises can lead to big sins.

Solomon failed in his old age but the seeds of his failure were planted near the beginning of his reign.

Given the size and scope of the empire Solomon inherited from his father David, Solomon no doubt needed “horsepower” for transportation and trade. This he obtained from Egypt (I Kings 10:28). In so doing, he violated one of the “smaller” precepts of God’s law, first given to Israel half a millennium before.

As the children of Israel stood poised to cross the Jordan River and enter the promised land, Moses accurately predicted that Israel would eventually reject God’s divine leadership, preferring a human king like other nations (Deuteronomy 17:14-15). This Israel did (I Samuel 8:5). Tolerantly, God inspired Moses to tell Israel how to make the best of this mistake by giving them guidelines a godly king should follow.

Note what the first of these guidelines required that the king should do, read Deuteronomy 17:16. Yet, Solomon brought horses out of Egypt.

Was Solomon unaware of these instructions? Surely not. Deuteronomy 17:18-19 shows that the kings of Israel were not only to read all of the book of the law, they were to write it out by hand keeping it with them and reading it always. Solomon must have known it was wrong to import horses from Egypt. Apparently, he considered this infraction too minor, too small to inhibit him from such action.

After discussing Solomon’s trade in Egyptian horses, the author of I Kings introduces the matter of Solomon’s wives (I King 11:1). By the end of his reign he had 700 wives, not to mention an additional 300 mistresses or concubines (verse 3).

Again, God’s instructions through Moses, given some 500 years before, left little room for interpretation or doubt. Israel’s chief of state was not to “multiply wives to himself” (Deuteronomy 17:17). Might Solomon have reasoned, if importing horses from Egypt has brought no immediate penalty, what is the harm of taking a second wife, and a third, and a fourth and so on, with each new wife confirming in his mind his license to violate God’s precept?

God’s proscription of bigamy was one means of protecting the king from having his heart turned away from God. Solomon failed to heed, and even compounded this problems by marrying non-Israelite women. Moses, in Deuteronomy 7:3-4, predicted the deadly results of marrying foreign women. Such wives would lead their husbands to “serve other gods.” Solomon disregarded these warnings.

Solomon, the wisest man ever other than Jesus, fell victim to the same temptation that the rest of us so often face: to compromise on what we think are small concerns, to excuse ourselves for letting down in the “gray” areas, to do things our own way rather than God’s.

The danger in such reasoning is that small compromises weaken character and over time, lead to major sins. For Solomon, the results were devastating. For us, Solomon’s experience is a warning of what will befall us if we follow his example of compromise.

Solomon’s series of compromises gradually but inexorably distorted his understanding of God and His ways (Psalm 11:10), so that when he was old he allowed his foreign wives to turn his heart “after their gods” (I Kings 11:2).

From the minor infraction of importing horses from Egypt, he eventually condoned and at least was an accessory to the twin sins of idolatry and murders, sins he would not have contemplated seriously at the beginning of his reign.

Solomon not only went after the pagan goddess Ashtoreth (verse 5) but he also erected high places for worship of Chemosh and Molech, whose ritual involved the horrible rites of child sacrifice by fire.

Archeologists have found skeletal remains of infants at three sites where the brutal human sacrifice occurred. The high place for Chemosh stood for three centuries before Josiah finally destroyed it (II Kings 23:13). A number of Solomon’s successors to the throne caused their children to “pass through the fire” (Jeremiah 32:32, 35).

By giving his royal sanction to the worship of pagan deities, Solomon set a precedent that was followed by most of Judah’s kings after him and was retained by the 10 tribes of Israel both in Samaria and in their subsequent wanderings.

Was it all that bad for Solomon to compromise in little things? Yes and yes again.

But what about us? Are there areas in which we are tempted to compromise and live our lives the world’s way? Do we, like Solomon, ignore the laws, principles and statues we read of in God’s Word or do we heed and obey?

We lack the enormous resources, wealth and wisdom Solomon had. As we strive to live God’s way now how much more important it is that we resist the urge to use our human reasoning and compromise, particularly in what we perceive as smaller areas (Jeremiah 17:9, Proverbs 14:12). It is here that Satan so often makes his most effective inroads.

It is unlikely that Satan will fool God’s elect concerning the Ten Commandments or the major points of God’s law, so he often begins with something seemingly small.

Once one compromises, the process of sin has begun and the commodity in which God is supremely interested, holy, righteous character, begins to erode, opening the way for sin on a grand scale.

Solomon went from violation of a relatively obscure admonition to the flagrant breaking of at least two of the Ten Commandments. If it happened to Solomon, it can happen to anyone. We must learn from his example and avoid those little compromises, which lead to big sins.

Your Taproot

Nature provides outstanding illustrations of growth. The blue whale begins as a barely visible egg weighting only a fraction of an ounce. At birth it weight two to three tons. It averages about 200 pounds a day gain during this period.

By the time it reaches maturity, in about 13 years, the blue whale is in serous competition with many submarines. It weights more than 85 tons and exceeds 80 feet in length.

Another example: bamboo in Sir Lanka cane shoot up 120 feet in three months. The majestic sequoia in California starts out as a tiny seed. And yet, it can end up 270 feet tall and weight 6,200 tons.

But what about the bonsai tree? What keeps it from growing tall?

Japanese growers have become experts in the art of raising dwarf or bonsai trees. One thing they do is to cut the taproot. The tree must live on surface roots. So what otherwise could become a great oak or a great pine tree becomes a tree of 12, 18, 24 inches.

People are sometimes like the dwarf tree. Too many do not have their taproot in place, so they can be tied into the deep things that pertain to life and God. They try to grow just on the surface roots. God’s Spirit is the taproot. And it’s the Spirit of God that brings awesome growth for you and for me.

Now spiritual growth is not always outwardly prominent, like the growth of the sequoia or like the growth of the giant blue whale. Usually it’s not noisy growth. The Spirit of God can be associated with events. We think about Acts 2 and the rushing wind and the tongues of fire on that first Pentecost. But more often, the Spirit of God is associated with quite miracles.

This is the one of the deep lessons that Elijah the prophet had to learn. After he confounded the priests of Baal and fire came down from heaven and consumed the sacrifice, he fled from Jezebel for his life. And then went to Mt. Horeb for 40 days and nights. And there was a great fire and God was not in the fire. There was a great earthquake but God was not in the earthquake. And there was a great wind but God was not in the wind. And then there came a still, small voice and Elijah had to learn that God does not always work in noisy miracles. Some of the greatest miracles of God are quite miracles.

The miracle that occurs at our baptism is a quiet miracle. But it is a real miracle, enabling us to grow in spiritual character, to grow toward the spiritual stature of Christ.

The growth associated with God’s Family, now and in the future, can be compared to the incredible growth found in creation. The blue whale, bamboo in Sri Lanka and the sequoia exhibit incredible growth, yet our potential growth in the way of God can be even more awesome.

Look at Mark 4:30. Jesus was asking what the Kingdom of God can be compared to, in the future, and also now – the growth that’s associated with the Family of God and way of God.

Such is the growth associated with God’s Family. And what makes such dramatic spiritual growth possible? Well, it’s using the Spirit of God as one’s taproot. We need to think about this daily and reflect about the enormous potential growth in creation. We should be able to compare our spiritual growth not to plants or trees with the taproot cut but as Jesus said, to the grain of mustard seed; which, when it is sown is very small but grows and grows and grows.

And for us, we’ve had a quite miracle occur, at baptism, which has given us the Spirit of God. And it enables us to grow spiritually. And again what makes such dramatic spiritual growth possible? Using the Spirit of God as one’s taproot.

Don’t cut your taproot and dwarf your spiritual growth.

Attitude

Our attitude is how we think, act or feel toward something – God, a person or a thing.

Our lives are shaped by our attitudes. We translate into physical (or spiritual) reality the thoughts and attitudes we hold in our minds, no matter what they are.

If we have a good, positive attitude we will accomplish much. If we take the attitude that we cannot do something, we generally will not do it. With an attitude of failure you’re defeated, whipped before you start.

On the other hand, whenever you find a person doing an outstanding job you’ll find a person with a right attitude. These people take the attitude that they can accomplish whatever they set out to do.

Paul wrote about attitude in his letter to the Philippians (read Philippians 2:4-5).

I think it is safe to assume that the small group of brethren in Philippi had their share of conflicts; they fell short in vital spiritual growth at times. Paul’s letter was to help them catch up. One reason we need to study his letter is that we have some of the same problems they had, one of those being our attitude.

We might ask ourselves: What is my attitude toward other brethren in the Church or outside? Is it positive or negative? Does being a Christian give an optimistic outlook on life in general? Is God’s Spirit growing within me? Am I helping others to grow?

It’s seldom comfortable to answer such sticky questions, but it’s good to face the facts. If we’re right with God, we should be right with God’s people. We should even be right with ourselves.

Our actions can be motivated by pride. Our actions and attitudes can be prompted by personal ambition, greed vengeance or some other unworthy motive. These ungodly characteristics do creep in, and we must be on our guard against them.

That’s why Paul exhorts us to do a little self-study and check out our true motivations. How can we tell when we’re on Christ’s wavelength? The answer: When we consider others better than ourselves. (Read Philippians 2:3).

Paul doesn’t mean that we should become incapable of discerning others’ weaknesses or overlook our own strengths and abilities either. Paul’s next statement explain: (read Philippians 2:4).

He is saying we shouldn’t be so wrapped up in thinking how great we are that we have no time to be concerned about others. We should be other-centered, not self-centered. This is the right attitude of a true Christian.

That doesn’t come natural to human beings, does it? But it’s worth working at, and with God’s Spirit it can be done.

In verse 5 a word is used that gives us additional insight on our attitude.

“Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus.” Every time we read that scripture we should put our name in the place of you. It should make us stop and think before we act or react to any given situation.

The mind is where the whole personality is formed. Our decisions are made and our priorities are established in our mind. So to have the mind or attitude of Christ we need some input on what and how He thinks about things.

There’s plenty of input in the verses that follow (read verses 6 to 8).

Do we follow Christ’s example and attitude?

This is the kind of attitude we ought to have and need to be developing daily.

But it’s easier said than done, I know.

How do we succeed in putting ourselves last? Do we unusually consider the welfare of others more important than our own? Half the time? Twenty-five percent of the time? Ten percent of the time?

That’s why it is good for us to read and reread Paul’s letter to the Philippians.

Every day we face choices. In our choosing, our exercise of our will, we shape our character. We develop positive or negative attitudes. If we choose to follow Christ’s example, He will honor our efforts and with God’s Spirit help us become more and more like Him. It’s worth the effort.

Read how Peter explained our calling (read I Peter 3:8-9).

How is our attitude today?

Lessons From the Olympics

I recently saw a documentary on the 1984 Olympics Games in Los Angeles and it caused me to think about something I would like to discuss.

The eyes of the world focus on the Olympics every four years and it is truly one sporting event I have always enjoyed. As I watch the youthful, well trained athletes strive for perfection in their events, I am impressed by their dedication and self discipline. Maybe you are too. Their entire lives were modeled and shaped to conform around a dream that within a few hours, minutes, sometimes seconds, either would erupt into a star burst of reality or fade into oblivion.

What kind of discipline, what kind of motivation does it take to spend six to eight or more hours a day pushing your body to perform to perfection? Giving up the social life young people love, the food and drink – what drives them on?

Even the apostle Paul was inspired by the athletes in the ancient games of his day to write: (read I Corinthians 9:24-27).

Paul had the same dedication and discipline that we see in Olympic athletes but with a spiritual motivation, for a priceless, everlasting reward.

Perhaps he knew some of these athletes personally. He obviously understood their habits, their character. He knew they were temperate, careful not to eat or drink anything that would be harmful or to overindulge in food or drink. Nothing that slowed the mind or body was allowed.

To be the best you can be requires sacrifice of temporary pleasures. How well Paul knew that. Courage and confidence in the face of challenge don’t come from halfheartedly applying (or non-applying) yourself to the effort.

Paul realized that his body had to be kept under the control of his mind, which in turn had to be led by the power of God’s Spirit. A battle of a spiritually motivated mind over physically motivated matter.

Like the Olympic athletes, Paul knew that winning would take hours of hard work to accomplish. Hours of prayer, Bible study, occasional fasting and meditation on God’s laws to make sure he was being properly motivated by God’s Spirit.

And Paul knew, like the world class athletes, that inexorably tied in with properly preparing and disciplining his mind was the disciplining of his body. To endure the physical trails that Paul experienced took a healthy body – a strong heart and lungs, sturdy muscles that would carry him over miles of terrain.

And Paul practiced what he preached. He didn’t want to be eliminated from the race because he hadn’t daily put forth the effort in the training he knew was required to win.

Maybe you have seen a video clip from the 1984 Olympics of the women’s marathon.
Some 20 or 30minutes after the winner (Joan Benoit, USA) had finished the race a Swiss runner (Gaby Andersen-Scheiss) staggered into the stadium. The crowd and TV audience were shocked to see her careening unsteadily back and forth across the lanes. Suffering from dehydration and heat exhaustion, paralysis had set in and she leaned precariously to one side, her left arm hanging limply as she struggled around the track.

Why didn’t someone stop her, the commentators wondered. But, seeing her courageous determination to finish the race, no one intervened. The crowd began to cheer. Stumbling on, she finally, after what seemed like an eternity, crossed the finish line to collapse and to be carried off the track.

What kept her going? In interviews later, she said even though she was suffering from blackouts, she remembered entering the arena and thinking that she didn’t want to quit; she had to finish. And finish she did, by pure will and determination.

Even though the woman had trained her mind and body well, she had misjudged how much the southern California heat would affect her. We should be sure we are taking in enough water, God’s Spirit, to be able to endure and finish our race. It’s going to be a lot tougher than we think. There are going to be obstacles we don’t expect.

Let’s look at ourselves. How are we doing? Are we preparing for the really tough part of the race ahead of us – physically, mentally and especially spiritually? Ready or not, we’re going to have to run it. Read Hebrews 12:1.

Let’s be ready. Get rid of the wrong habits and sins that hold us back, be filled with God’s Spirit – and run to win.

Patience

I was in the grocery store near my office the other day and I noted a woman who was in a hurry. She had a few items in her hands and her whole manner radiated impatience – shifting her weight from foot to foot, casting sharp glances at the other checkout lines, shaking her head, mumbling in frustration, biting her lip, looking disgusted and annoyed.

This shopper was a living example of the dictionary definition of impatience: “uneasy, intolerant and unwilling to be kept waiting.”

Sometime, we are forced to wait, however and for many of us waiting is almost impossible. Few things annoy us more than traffic jams, bureaucratic red tape or when an important letter or decision does not arrive.

We all know that in traffic jams or airline ticket counters a line we’re not in is the line that moves fastest. Some people constantly dart back and forth from one line to another.

I know I have done this at times.

I’ve thought about that woman in the supermarket. Why was she so impatient? Was there a good reason for her to be in such a hurry? Did her impatience spill over into her manner of living when she left the store with her purchase? Was it her total life style?

The Bible mentions impatience frequently. God’s Word instructs us to wait and we are given exhortations to be patient.

But how do we do this? How do we handle our tendencies to be impatient?

We learn patience first by changing our attitudes and the way we look at life.

We admire punctuality, value good organization and time management, condemn ourselves when we procrastinate or are late and sometimes complain about wasting too much time.

We expect on the spot, up to date reports from the new media. College students try to hurry through school and are praised when they rise rapidly in the business world after graduation.

As Christians, we get impatient too. We admire growth in the Church, we like to hear of numerous baptisms and we get impatient when our spiritual growth is slow.

We must remember that quality and not quantity is more important in our Christian growth. Quality requires patience.

Here’s an example of striving to make quality time work the first time. On our bulletin board here at work is posted a sign that says “There’s never enough time to do it right but it seems there’s always time to do it over again.”

To create quality time in our live, we must change our thinking. And that isn’t easy, especially when we’ve spent a lifetime learning to be impatience. We really only learn patience by seeking and asking for God’s help (read James 5:7, 8).

We develop patience as God’s Holy Spirit works in our daily lives to bring peace and to make us more like Him.

Remember the verse, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace …” and what else? “Patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control” (Galatians 5:22, 23).

The ability to accept delay or disappointment. To smile at setbacks and respond with a pleasant, understanding spirit. To remain calm while others around are uneasy. This is godly patience.

We can ask God to help us develop the patience He desires and we can expect that He will answer. Remember, however, that this prayer may not be answered quickly.

A great biblical example of patience was Abraham.

Abraham believed that God would be true to His promise of giving him and his wife Sarah a son but the couple got impatient.

When Abraham was 86 and Sarah was in her mid-70s, well beyond menopause, they took matter into their own hands. Well, we know the rest of the story (read Genesis 16).

At first this seemed like an effective way to hurry God along and get things done. But his taking of Sarah’s handmaid, Hagar, was followed my marital friction and tension. The end result of Abraham’s impatience was stress, signs of immaturity and intolerance.

God helped the family straighten things out and He forgave Abraham for his impatience.

Then do we remember what happened?

Nothing.

For 14 years Abraham and Sarah waited, still without children. They might have been in a hurry but God was not. He showed the patience that Abraham lacked.

What about us when it comes to long overdue healing, that job promotion or the reconciliation with a loved one? Are we practicing godly patience?

Sometimes God give us patience by making us wait. We cannot expect to have everything easy in this life. “In this world you will have tribulation” (John 16:33). Paul exhorted us that “we must through many tribulations enter the Kingdom of God” (Acts 14:22).

We must patiently endure hardships and heartaches until Christ returns. Whether they be small frustrations or large, we need to do as James exhorted: “You also be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand” (James 5:8).

Teamwork That Counts

There was an anniversary of a special event recently that I would like to dwell on for a few moments and hopefully glean some valuable lessons from.

Fifty seven years ago at about 11:30 am, May 29, 1953, nearly six miles above sea level, in the remote reaches of Nepal, two men had done what no human beings had done before. They had climbed to the summit of Mt. Everest, at 29,028 feet the highest mountain peak in the world.

Sir Edmund Hillary, from New Zealand, and Tenzing Norgay, a Sherpa tribesman, had made history and they had done it as a team.

Norgay described what happened when the two men reached the top the world’s highest mountain: “What we did first was what all climbers do when they reach the top of their mountain. We shook hands. But this was not enough for Mt. Everest. I waved my arms in the air and threw them around Hillary and we thumped each other on the back until, even with the oxygen systems, we were almost breathless.”

Neither man wanted to claim credit for having been the first to set foot on the summit and for some time both refused to say. It had been a team effort. Tied to each other by a 30-foot rope, they literally had to rely on each other for their lives as they struggled up steep inclines, over icy-slick glaciers, up slippery gaps between walls of rock and ice and through bitter cold and thin air. They helped each other achieve what up until that time was history’s greatest mountaineering feat.

Hillary described Norgay in terms one would use to refer to a close friend and ally. Norgay was “always willing to do his share and more than his share if necessary,” said Hillary. Norgay “never let you down.” Strong words, when you consider that a false step could have sent both men plunging thousands of feet downward into an icy doom or started an avalanche that would have buried them both forever.

Norgay commented: “When two men are on the same rope they are together, and that is all there is to it. I was not thinking of ‘first’ and ‘second.’ I did not say to myself, ‘There is a golden apple. I will push Hillary aside and run for it.’ We went on slowly, steadily. And then we were there. Hillary stepped up first. And I stepped up after him. We were comrades in life and death.”

This is the story of two people, bound together not just by rope but by a common purpose, a great goal, expressing unselfishness, consideration for each other, enthusiasm, and willingness to help and sacrifice, enduring to the end. They worked together and achieved ultimate success in the truest sense of the world team.

One of the most important lesson we need to learn is the need for teamwork as this example illustrates. In the world of athletics, even the best players can’t win unless the entire team pulls together in harmony and total cooperation. That is why the ministry refers to us as members and co-workers.

The apostle Paul also taught the need for teamwork by saying the Church is one Body although composed of many members. Each of God’s begotten, truly converted members has their specific function in the Church, just as each part of the human body has its function.

Read I Corinthians 12: 18-21.

The Church is like a family, team or body. Every member is vital to the success of the team. Perhaps it appears that those who help through prayers, tithes, offerings and letter of encouragement are needed less than those who are preaching or writing. Not true. The work of God cannot function without every necessary part any more than a human body can.

“No, much rather, those members of the body which seem to be weaker are necessary” (verse 22). We must never underestimate the value of each member of God’s family team.

Satan knows that one the easiest methods of breaking up and destroying teamwork in the Church or family is to cause contention, strife, division and disagreement. Rivalries, quarrels and disputes are common human tendencies. This is why each of us must be on guard against our human nature.

We need to keep God’s armor in constant use and good working order. See Ephesians 6: 12-18. We must work hard to preserve harmony and teamwork in the spirit of Godly love.

Are we good team members? Whether in the home, church services, at school or on the job, we have an obligation to God to be the best team members.

Here are some ways in which teamwork can be developed:

Know what is to be achieved and completed by the team. This means we must daily study God’s word and stay up to date with the Church publications to keep informed of the game plan. Learn to listen closely when the ministry speaks.

Remember: When the mouth is open, the ears are closed. Poor communication is usually the root of all people problems.

Talk about God’s plan, His laws and how they apply to us. Be willing to inform other team members of the team’s goals if those members are in the dark. Encourage each other.

Always keep your eyes on the big goal. Goals are the internalized drives that make us all go. Our goal is qualifying for His family. The first step in setting our goals is to take a long look at the whole you. Perform an X-ray scan on your whole self. Look at your image, goals and motivation. Are they in line with God’s team?

Take time to write down your spiritual and personal goals in time sequence. List what must be done to achieve them. Then break the list down even further by setting goals for overcoming spiritual and physical problems.

Work on your goals every day, actively.

Respect your team members. We must be willing to trust the skills and talents of other team members and to become interdependent, forsaking any unwillingness we may have to do so.

With your example, inspire other team members to work toward our goal. Encourage cooperation with others. Be willing to go to bat for your spiritual brothers and sisters in times of need. Learn to recognize weaknesses and strengths in yourself and others. Turn every situation into a learning experience.

Share the glory and success with others on the team. We make a poor team member if we try to cop all glory for the ideas that work and backpedal on the team’s failures. A good team player shares the glory and rewards. Think and act like a winner, work at it, help others be winners. We are a winning team – God’s team – and we’re almost to the top of the mountain. We can make it if we all pull together as a team.



(Originally sent June 4, 2010)

True Success

One of the things I have been thinking about lately is the treasures that we have and how much we miss in life.

So often we are so concerned with details and worries about tomorrow that we miss what's happening today.

I am not saying that we shouldn't plan for the future; it's a must in the Christian life, but God intents for us to enjoy the good gifts He has given us now, too. If we are not careful we can overlook many treasures that we pass along the way through our lives.

Slow down and think. In my case, your mother, my wife. I did not value, treasure, her as I should have. I did not stop and savor her and our life together.

I did not dwell on the treasures stored away in my memory, the happy times, the closeness, the accomplishments, the tenderness.

Solomon knew about these treasures. I forgot his instruction concerning about living with my mate (Ecclesiastes 9:9-10). As well his insight from Ecclesiastes 3:22.

Marriage is one of the most central of life's relationship. I did not savor all the wonderful things about your mother.

And what about each of you? Once again Solomon was inspired to point out (Psalm 127:3) that each of you are a treasure that I am truly thankful for. One of my goals for the remainder of my life is to follow Deuteronomy 6:7 and to provide you with guidance and help.

There are so many treasures to discover in our lives if we'd just stop and see them.

Yesterday is gone. Tomorrow is not here yet. What God has given us is a valuable commodity called today.

In obedience to God's laws, and as you look to the ultimate future in God's Kingdom, enjoy today.

Tap every minute. Savor every moment.


(Originally sent April 10, 2010)