Proud Father

Posted on February 24, 2014 by jesustrek

lion kingI attend a lot of high school basketball games, and I know some of the parents of the players on the local team. It’s fun to watch how those parents beam with pride when their son or daughter does well.

At least three times in the past couple of years, our boys have made last second shots that have tied or won the game. Each time this happened, I waited for the initial electricity of the moment to fade a bit, then I turned in the direction of the father of the player who hit the big shot and yelled, “Whose boy was that!?” A couple of fathers just looked at me and grinned. The third shouted back, “That was my boy!”

Just as we are proud of our children when they do well, God is pleased with his Son Jesus. When Jesus was transfigured on the mountain, God said, “…This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!” (Matthew 17:5).

If we accept the fact that Jesus is God’s Son, we too must love him. We also must be pleased with him. And we must listen to him and obey what he says.

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Reluctant Leaders

Posted on February 21, 2014 by jesustrek

basketball playerWhen I played junior varsity basketball in high school, my teammates and I often clowned around way too much. This was reflected in our won/loss record. If we had put as much energy into practice as we did our pranks, we might have won a few more games.

For instance, we typically would designate one player to lead us out of the locker room before the game. We would get all fired up, and our leader would take the ball and charge onto the floor, with his enthusiastic teammates right behind him.

Once, we schemed to stay back and laugh as an unsuspecting “leader” stormed onto the court all by himself. Of course, this was hilarious. However, after pulling this prank a couple of times, it was difficult to find anyone willing to lead us out of the locker room. No one trusted the others to follow his lead.

Unfortunately, this sometimes happens in the church. The leaders move out ahead of the flock, excited about the new and exciting experiences that the Lord has in store for the church, only to look back and see that no one is following. After a couple of such episodes, the leaders become reluctant to take any bold new initiatives, and the church becomes stagnant.

It’s no wonder the Bible tells us: “Obey your leaders and submit to their authority. They keep watch over you as men who must give an account. Obey them so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no advantage to you.”—Hebrews 13:17.

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Buried Treasure

Posted on February 20, 2014 by jesustrek
That will probably buff right out.

That will probably buff right out.

On Wednesday, February 12, a sinkhole swallowed up eight cars that were on display at the National Corvette Museum in Bowling Green, Kentucky. Among those vehicles was a Corvette that was donated by Kevin and Linda Helmintoller of Tampa, Florida. The couple visited the museum a few days after the sinkhole occurred. Kevin said that their car appeared to be underneath the others at the bottom of the hole. He stated, “It definitely hurts, and I’ve cried. There’s no question I’m definitely upset, but there’s no way to conceive of anything like this.”

It was indeed an unlikely way to lose a valuable possession.

Jesus points out that we shouldn’t get too attached to earthly possessions because they are only temporary. Instead, he teaches, “But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.”—Matthew 6:20.

Not to mention sinkholes.

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Singing Together

Posted on February 18, 2014 by jesustrek

Snoopy singingLast Sunday I suddenly found myself singing the wrong words of a song in the worship service. I started singing the chorus, while everyone else went to the second verse. If I had been paying attention to the worship leaders, I would have avoided that mistake. Instead, I was in my own little world, and it took me a couple of seconds to realize that I wasn’t with everybody else. My wife noticed that I had gotten off track, and she smiled at me as I found my place in the song again.

Sometimes we get off track spiritually because we aren’t following the lead of those who have the responsibility of guiding us along through life. Scripture often encourages us to model our actions after those who have gone ahead of us in the faith. In order to do that, we have to pay attention to our leaders so that we don’t start saying the wrong words or doing the wrong things. Church members should be on the same page, singing the same song—or, in my case, the same verse. Any time we diverge from this, it just doesn’t sound right.

“Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.”—1 Corinthians 11:1.

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Don’t Test the Lord

Posted on February 17, 2014 by jesustrek
Jamie Coots

Jamie Coots

Jamie Coots was a snake-handling preacher in Middlesboro, Kentucky. Coots had appeared on an episode of Snake Salvation, a television series that aired on National Geographic last fall. Snake-handlers are a small group of churches who think that those who believe in Jesus are commanded to pick up snakes. This belief is based on Mark 16:18. However, that sentence is a statement of fact, not a commandment to obey. The Bible does not tell us to pick up snakes on purpose. In Acts 28, Paul, the apostle, accidentally picked up a poisonous snake while collecting firewood. People were sure that he would die when the snake bit him, but were surprised to see that he had no ill effects from the snakebite.

Coots, on the other hand, intentionally picked up snakes on a regular basis. This practice led to his undoing Saturday night when a rattlesnake he was handling bit him on the right hand. He died two hours later.

Some people will continue to believe that God wants us to intentionally pick up poisonous snakes.

I disagree.

“We should not test the Lord, as some of them did—and were killed by snakes.”—1 Corinthians 10:9.

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Winner After All

Posted on February 15, 2014 by jesustrek
Yuzuru Hanyu

Yuzuru Hanyu

After falling twice during his performance in Friday’s free skate program, Japan’s Yuzuru Hanyu thought that he had blown his chance at winning an Olympic gold medal in men’s figure skating. He later confided, “I thought the gold medal was not in my hands.”

However, it turned out that Hanyu’s effort was good enough for first place in the Sochi Olympics. Other competitors failed to take advantage of the opportunity to move up in the standings, and Hanyu became the first Japanese man to ever win the Olympic gold medal in this event.

Some people think that they are losers in God’s eyes because they have taken a bad fall or two. They worry that they have been disqualified from winning the prize of salvation. Good news! Our God is a God of second chances. The Bible is filled with people who messed up badly—Moses, Rahab, David, Peter, and Paul, to name a few—yet ended up being winners for God.

Don’t let your mistakes keep you down. Get back up and keep going. God’s mercies are new every day. And the award podium in heaven will be a much more rewarding experience than anyone has ever felt on Earth!

“But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”—1 Corinthians 15:57.

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Unbelievably Good Deal!

Posted on February 14, 2014 by jesustrek

cars lined upLast Sunday evening, an error at a Shell station in Woodstock, Illinois allowed customers to purchase gasoline at the pump for a penny a gallon. Word spread, and cars were soon lined up to get in on this unbelievably good deal. After about two hours, the gas station closed so it could reset the pumps to the proper prices. It’s not known how much gas was sold during those two hours.

Another unbelievably good deal is the free gift of salvation God offers us through his Son, Jesus Christ. Ephesians 2:8 says, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God.”

People should be lined up for miles to get in on that deal, right?

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Observation Deck

Posted on February 13, 2014 by jesustrek

ship deckWhen my wife and I go on a cruise, we like to spend a lot of time on the deck of the ship. We find a couple of chairs where we can read and relax. Occasionally, we will observe some interesting things from our vantage point on the deck.

Once we noticed that the spray from the wake of the ship was causing numerous mini-rainbows in the sunlight. Every few seconds, another flash of colorful light would catch our eye. As we watched the fascinating display below us, I was reminded of the fact that we followers of Jesus are the light of the world. We not only light the way in this dark world, we bless others by bringing out the color in life. We help people see the beauty of God as we shine for him.

Another time, the ocean spray was coming up on the deck in such volume that it made it impossible for us to stay there and read. Before we left, however, we felt the mist in our faces and tasted the salt on our lips. This made me think of how we are the salt of the earth. Christians permeate the culture and bring seasoning and flavor to lives that are hungry for God.

Salt and light—let’s keep on making a difference!

“You are the salt of the earth…You are the light of the world…”—Matthew 5:13-16.

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The Look of Love (Part 2)

Posted on February 11, 2014 by jesustrek

Jesus once had an encounter with a rich young man who had come to him for advice (Mark 10:17-22). During the course of the conversation, verse 21 says, “Jesus looked at him and loved him.”

look of loveEven though Jesus knew that this young man was struggling with pride and greed, he loved him. Even though Jesus knew that the young man would soon ignore his advice and walk away from him, he showed great compassion for him.

We are to follow the example of Jesus. We must strive to love those who make it difficult for us to do so. Some people in our lives are struggling with ugly sins. Others will continue to disappoint us and frustrate us with their poor decisions. These people have a lot of needs: guidance, advice, or perhaps even a word of correction. But what they need most of all is our continuing love.

Let’s always be practicing our look of love.

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The Look of Love

Posted on February 10, 2014 by jesustrek

JesusMark 10:17-22 records an interesting encounter Jesus had with a rich young man. The man wanted to know what he must do to inherit eternal life. Jesus told him to keep God’s commandments. When he responded that he had done that, Jesus then told him that all he needed to do was to sell everything he had and give it to the poor. The young man sadly walked away from Jesus; he would not give up his great wealth, not even for eternal life.

There is a fascinating sentence in verse 21 of this passage of Scripture. It says, “Jesus looked at him and loved him.” Even though this young man had an inflated opinion of himself, Jesus loved him. In spite of the fact that the fellow was greedy, Jesus looked at him with compassion. Even though he would soon turn and walk away from Jesus, the Lord viewed him with loving eyes.

That’s how Jesus sees us too. In spite of our sins and shortcomings, Jesus looks at us and loves us. That’s amazing!

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