Grace and Truth in Action

Chick-fil-A-logo-vecAn Orlando Chick-fil-A ignored a long-standing company policy last week in order to help people in need. The  fast food chain has become quite successful even though they are not open on Sunday. They remain closed on the first day of the week so that their employees can spend the day worshiping God and being with their family.

However, last week was not just another Sunday in Orlando. A gunman terrorized a local nightclub for hours Saturday night, killing dozens and wounding dozens more. First responders were at the scene of the crime for a long time. So were frightened relatives of people who had been at the club that night. The former had come to help. The latter had arrived to see if by any chance their loved one had made it through the horrific ordeal alive.

So the managers of the local Chick-fil-A opened up their business on Sunday so they could prepare food and drink and take it to those at the scene.

Some people were surprised that Chick-fil-A would perform such a loving act of mercy, since their Christian owners had long been on record as being supporters of biblical morality, and the shooting had occurred at a gay night club. Weren’t the employees at Chick-fil-A ignorant, hateful homophobes who wanted nothing but judgment for the people who were hurting?

No, not at all.

The world can’t understand that it is possible to be graceful to others without compromising the truth. Chick-fil-A’s management still upholds biblical principles of morality. They also want to reach out in love to people who strongly disagree with them and call them derisive names that they do not deserve to be called.

What Chick-fil-A did was a great example of grace and truth in action. This is the kind of life that Jesus lived as an example for his followers to imitate.

“The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.”—John 1:14.

 

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High Expectations

backyard-baseball-2aWhen a little boy expressed that he was looking forward to the day when he would be old enough to play baseball, his mother cautioned him, “You won’t be able to run very fast because of the operations you have had on your legs.”

He replied, “That’s OK. I’m going to hit the ball out of the park. Then I can walk around the bases!”

If only we had such optimism for what we Christians can do!

“Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.”—Ephesians 3:20-21.

 

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Message of Love

Rubel Shelly

Rubel Shelly

Rubel Shelly tells this story:

Jason Tuskes was a 17-year-old high school honor student. He was close to his mother, his wheelchair-bound father, and his younger brother. Jason was an expert swimmer who loved to scuba dive.

He left home on a Tuesday morning to explore a spring and underwater cave near his home in west central Florida. His plan was to be home in time to celebrate his mother’s birthday by going out to dinner with his family that night.

Jason became lost in the cave. Then, in his panic, he apparently got wedged into a narrow passageway. When he realized he was trapped, he shed his yellow metal air tank and unsheathed his diver’s knife. With the tank as a tablet and the knife as a pen, he wrote one last message to his family: I LOVE YOU MOM, DAD, AND CHRISTIAN. Then he ran out of air and drowned.

A dying message—something communicated in the last few seconds of life—is something we can’t ignore. God’s final words to us are etched on a Roman cross. They are blood red. They scream to be heard. They, too, say, “I love you.”

 

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Incremental Sacrifice

Fred Craddock once spoke to a group of ministers about an observation he had made about the subject of sacrifice. Here is what he said:

“To give my life for Christ appears glorious. To pour myself out for others…to pay the ultimate price of martyrdom—I’ll do it. I’m ready, Lord, to go out in a blaze of glory.

We think giving our all to the Lord is like taking a $1,000 bill and laying it on the table—‘Here’s my life, Lord. I’m giving it all.’

But the reality for most of us is that he sends us to the bank and has us cash in the $1,000 for quarters. We go through life putting out 25 cents here and 50 cents there. Listen to the neighbor kid’s trouble instead of saying, ‘Get lost.’ Go to a committee meeting. Give a cup of water to a shaky old man in a nursing home.

Usually giving our life to Christ isn’t glorious. It’s done in all those little acts of love, 25 cents at a time. It would be easy to go out in a flash of glory; it’s harder to live the Christian life little by little over the long haul.”

“Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.”—Romans 12:1.

 

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Powerful Tool

Vince Lombardi

Vince Lombardi

Jerry Kramer was a star player on the Green Bay Packer championship teams coached by the great Vince Lombardi. Lombardi, considered one of the top coaches of all time, could be tough on his players, but he also knew how to build them up. Kramer recalls this story:

“One day during the first year I played for him, he rode me unmercifully, pointing out how slow I was, how weak I was, how stupid I was. He convinced me. By the time I dragged myself into the locker room, I suspected I was the worst guard in league history. I sat in front of my locker, head down, contemplating quitting, when Lombardi came up behind me, mussed up my hair and said, ‘Son, one of these days you’re gonna be the greatest guard in the league.’ Suddenly I was 10 feet tall, ready to do anything for him.”

The tongue has awesome power. It can whittle people down, or it can build them up.

How do you intend to use your tongue?

“Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless.”—James 1:26.

 

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Higher Vision

eye chartIn the book A Saviour for All Seasons, William Barker tells about a bishop who once stayed at the home of a college president who also served as professor of physics and chemistry. The bishop expressed his belief that just about everything in nature had been discovered and all inventions had already been conceived.

His host politely disagreed and said that he felt that there would be many more discoveries. The bishop got angry and challenged the professor to name one such invention. He replied that he was certain that within 50 years people would be able to fly.

“Nonsense!” sputtered the outraged bishop. “Only angels are intended to fly.”

The bishop’s name was Wright, and he had two boys at home who would prove to have greater vision than their father. Their names: Orville and Wilbur.

“Where there is no vision, the people perish…”—Proverbs 29:18.

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National Donut Day

Homer SimpsonI just heard that today is National Donut Day. Various establishments known primarily for their donuts are advertising all kinds of special deals. Did you indulge in your favorite variety of this sweet, circle-shaped treat? If you are like me, you don’t need a special day to enjoy something tasty! Any little excuse will do!

Many consider donuts to be the poster child for unhealthy foods, but most people can splurge occasionally, in moderation, of course. So, if you celebrated National Donut Day, I hope that you didn’t go overboard.

“So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.”—1 Corinthians 10:31.

 

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Need Anything?

moving vanA man who had chosen a minimalist lifestyle watched with interest as his new neighbor unloaded a truckload of furniture, decorative items, electronic devices and numerous other possessions. When he went over to introduce himself, he said, “If you ever find yourself needing anything, come over and see me and I can tell you how to do without it.”

We are constantly bombarded with advertisements proclaiming that we simply can’t do without certain products. We must not give in to the temptation to fall head over heels into consumerism. While there is nothing wrong with acquiring things, we have to be careful that our possessions don’t own us!

“But remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth…”—Deuteronomy 8:18.

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Basking In the Light

plantsI don’t know a whole lot about house plants, but I do know that they need to be in the sunlight. As a matter of fact, sometimes plants will lean toward the sun. They are designed to seek the source of light that gives them growth and life.

Too many people shy away from the Light that gives them life. In order to truly thrive, we must seek the Son.

“But for you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings…”—Malachi 4:2.

“When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”—John 8:12.

 

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Avoid the Traffic

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A few years ago, when my wife and I were living in Indiana, we decided to take a few days off and drive south. As we left the Kokomo area and headed toward Indianapolis, it suddenly occurred to us that the Indy 500 was taking place that day, and that over a quarter of a million racing fans would be trying to get out of Indianapolis about the same time we had planned to drive through that city. We made a spur of the moment change of plans and took some side roads. It took us a while longer to get to our destination, but it was well worth it to avoid the traffic that jammed the highways that day.

Jesus warns us about taking the heavily travelled highway of life. In the Sermon on the Mount, he says, “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” (Matthew 7:13-14).

There certainly are a lot of people on the highway to destruction. Let’s make sure we avoid that kind of traffic!

 

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