The Giving Tree

Proverbs 11:24-31

 

In the 1996 movie, Jerry Maguire, a slick sports agent has a crisis of conscience which results in him getting fired and starting his own agency. Desperate to salvage the only client/athlete that he has left, the agent shouts over the phone, “SHOW ME THE MONEY!” to show his client just how committed he is to him.

 

In the world, this is what it comes down to a lot of the time. Somebody somewhere is shouting, “SHOW ME THE MONEY!" As believers though, we’re to have a different view towards money; a different perspective for its use. Proverbs has this to say about it.

 

²⁸ A life devoted to things is a dead life, a stump;
    a God-shaped life is a flourishing tree.           Proverbs 11 MSG

 

This verse paints a picture that reminds me of the children’s book written by Shel Silverstein titled “The Giving Tree”. It’s a story about a boy and a tree.

 

During his childhood, the boy enjoyed playing with the tree; climbing her trunk, swinging from her branches, and eating her apples. However, as he gets older he begins to use the tree for his own selfish pleasure; selling her apples, building a house from her branches and cutting her trunk to make a boat.

 

The tree gave and gave and gave of herself until all that was left was “a stump”. This is an interesting twist on verse 28. In “The Giving Tree”, the stump actually became “a flourishing tree”.

 

Every time that the tree gave another part of herself to the boy, the narrative states, “And the tree was happy”. This is similar to what Proverbs has to tell us about giving.

 

²⁴ The world of the generous gets larger and larger;
    the world of the stingy gets smaller and smaller.

²⁵ The one who blesses others is abundantly blessed;
    those who help others are helped.       Proverbs 11 MSG

 

THE Giving Tree of the Bible, gave and gave and gave of Himself to the point of sacrificing His one and only son whom He loved. Likewise, God calls us to invest ourselves in the lives of those around us; not just with our treasure, but also with our time and talents. If we do this, the result will be “a flourishing tree”.

 

 

 

 

(If God has spoken to you, or touched your heart through this devotional, please feel free to share it with others.)

 

 

 

It’s a Home Going, not a Funeral

Revelation 21:1-8

 

While teaching in the Columbus City Schools, my wife was invited to attend a funeral service by one of her students. Only when my wife referred to it as a funeral she was corrected by her student. “It’s a home going, not a funeral”.

 

According to Wikipedia, “the history of the home going service can be traced back to the arrival of African slaves in America. Early during the slave trade, slaves believed death meant their soul would return home to their native Africa.”

 

“When slaves were introduced to Christianity, the Old Testament stories of God and Moses freeing a captive and enslaved race resonated with them. The New Testament stories of Jesus and promises of glory in heaven and a far better after-life allowed slaves to forge through the turmoil of mortal life and look forward to the day when they would return home to the Lord.”

 

^2 “And I, John, saw the Holy City, the New Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven. It was a glorious sight, beautiful as a bride at her wedding. ³ I heard a loud shout from the throne saying, “Look, the home of God is now among men, and he will live with them and they will be his people; yes, God himself will be among them. ⁴ He

will wipe away all tears from their eyes, and there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying, nor pain. All of that has gone forever.”            TLB

 

This is a beautiful picture of our final home going. John’s words are a message of hope for all of us. The group MercyMe has a song that articulates that hope and how we might feel on that day when we are in the New Jerusalem in the presence of our Lord and Savior Jesus.

 

I can only imagine what it will be like
When I walk by your side

Will I dance for you Jesus
Or in awe of you be still
Will I stand in your presence
Or to my knees will I fall
Will I sing hallelujah
Will I be able to speak at all
I can only imagine

 

What could be any better than to be in the presence of the One who created us and faithfully loves us?

 

 

 

That will truly be a home going.

 

 

 

 

 

What are Your Expectations?

Matthew 20:20-28

 

 

Ezekiel Elliott

There was a recent Columbus Dispatch article about all of the Ohio State football players that are expected to be drafted in the National Football League. There are a total of fourteen Buckeyes, with six of them expected to go in the first round, which would tie a record. Those are pretty lofty expectations.

 

When I asked Jesus into my life in the summer of 1970, I expected that life would be a spiritual mountaintop experience from

then on. In the fall of 1974 when I got married, I expected to have the perfect marriage. We all have expectations of our spouse, our children, our work and our life. And in reality, those expectations are what we expect from Jesus.

 

James and John also had lofty expectations. They wanted to sit by Jesus in his kingdom on his left and on his right. After all, they had given up the family fishing business when they responded to Jesus’ call to follow him. No doubt this was a huge economic, social and relationship sacrifice.

 

As a result, they expected something in return. I scratch your back, you scratch mine...

Expectations. What’s even more amazing is that they asked for this “favor” shortly after Jesus had announced his death and resurrection for the third time. Could Jesus’ closest followers actually be this dull, this ignorant?

 

“Listen to me carefully. We are on our way up to Jerusalem. When we get there, the Son of Man will be betrayed to the religious leaders and scholars. They will sentence him to death. They will then hand him over to the Romans for mockery and torture and crucifixion. On the third day he will be raised up alive.”      MSG

 

This statement seems pretty clear to me. The disciples heard what they wanted to hear; what they hoped to hear; what they expected to hear. Expectations and hope go hand in hand.

 

What are your expectations of Jesus? What do you hope to get from him? A job, a spouse or children without issues? A life without tragedies or without struggles? What can you realistically expect?

 

The Bible tells us that what you can expect from Jesus is that he will be faithful. He will be with you always, and never leave you no matter what you do or what is happening in your life. He will always love you and be at work in your life to draw you closer to him, and to use you in the lives of others.

 

That’s an expectation that you can count on.

 

 

 

 

 

Reach Higher

2 Corinthians 4:1-6

 

When does God speak to your heart? When do you see the light?

 
 

Last weekend I went to the Big Ten Championship football

game in Indianapolis. On Michigan State’s final drive, or some might call it the Championship Drive, they had the ball for 22 plays, 82 yards and 9 plus minutes. It was a drive for the ages.

 

In dramatic style, with 27 seconds left in the game, down by 4 on third down and goal, LJ Scott - a true freshman - was hit by no less than 6 Iowa Hawkeyes. But he still managed to stretch his right hand out while holding the ball to break the plane of the end zone and score the winning touchdown.

 

This was an amazing effort by the Spartans to endure, persevere and overcome. There were many roadblocks in the way of their victory. It would have been easy to give up; to say “I can’t do it”. There was a worthy adversary working extremely hard to keep them from
succeeding. But finally they crossed the line; they reached their goal.

 

There are many roadblocks that can get in the way of hearing God speak to you. Paul mentions some of them in 2 Corinthians. Losing heart, self-centered motivation, preaching something other than Christ and Satan blinding people from seeing: All of these can blind you; can keep you from seeing the light of Jesus.

 

But Paul also wrote, ^6 “It was God Who said, “The light will shine in darkness.” He is the One Who made His light shine in our hearts. This brings us the light of knowing God’s shining-greatness which is seen in Christ’s face.”                      NLV

 

God opens our eyes to His light when the time is right. Years ago, one of my sisters shared the Gospel with me without a positive response. I wasn’t ready. But God cultivated my heart, and when I was ready, He brought someone into my life to draw me closer to Him.

 

The Spartans have a tag line this year given to them by their coach… “Reach Higher”. It is supposed to help motivate them when adversity strikes; when the game seems to be over; when it seems like they will never score.

 

As Christians, we have more than a tag line. We have a God who loves us, is always at work in our lives, is constantly drawing us to Him, has given us gifts to be used for His purposes and has called us to ministry.

This is the God who will never leave you; who will help you reach the goal that is at the end of a 22 play drive.


This is the God who will help you… “Reach Higher”.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It's Friday..... but Sunday's Coming

John 19:31-42

 

 

Jesus died on the Day of Preparation. This was a special day because it was the day before the Passover Sabbath. “Because the Jewish leaders did not want the bodies left on the crosses during the Sabbath, they asked Pilate to have the legs broken and the bodies taken down”.

 

Heaven forbid that they leave the bodies hanging on the crosses on the Sabbath. After all, these are the same men who hated Jesus enough to have him murdered. Yet they wouldn’t want to do anything to break their precious rules - no bodies on the crosses on the Sabbath. God forbid you wouldn’t want to have that happen.

 

This whole passage is so matter-of-fact. The Jewish leaders ignoring their murderous deeds but upholding their religious rules. Like Jesus had said all along, they were hypocrites, and their actions proved it.

 

The Roman soldiers methodically broke the legs of the two men hanging next to Jesus. They pierced Jesus’ heart with a spear while his limp body hung on the cross - dead. It was methodical because they had probably done it countless times before.

 

Joseph was a covert disciple of Jesus. He and Nicodemus, who had met Jesus at night, took a public stand for him. With Pilate’s permission, they took Jesus’ body and prepared him for burial; placing him in a new tomb. The whole scene is surreal.

 

To think, that only a few days before, Jesus had been given a hero’s welcome to Jerusalem. Now he lay dead in a tomb; deserted by his closest disciples. All seemed lost. Their hopes died with Jesus on the cross.

 

Years ago I heard Tony Campolo speak at a conference and he told a story about a “preach-off” that he had participated in. One of the preachers stood and began slowly, “It’s Friday….. but Sunday’s coming. On Friday, Jesus died and was buried….. but Sunday’s coming”. It was a simple, but powerful message.

 

You can read the words and listen to the sermon at www.easyrew.com/friday-but-sundays-coming/.

 

If we took this message to heart every day, our lives would be changed. It doesn’t

matter what is happening on our Friday, because Sunday is coming. We may be going through the struggle of a lost job, a death in the family, an addiction, a mental illness - but there is hope. That hope comes from what happened on Sunday - the resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

 

It’s Friday….. but Sunday’s coming.