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LORD, SOMETIMES I JUST GET TIRED…
Let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. (Galatians 6: 9)
I came in last night from an intense session on finding and living your purpose in life with one of my favorite long-term clients, The DuBard School for Language Disorders. After the adrenaline subsided, I was exhausted. That’s not an unusual feeling for me because the hours of sleep are often a bit too short, and the work of the day requires a great deal of emotional investment.
Is that true for you as well? I have a feeling it might be.
Another translation of the Galatians scripture says, “Don’t grow weary in well-doing.” There’s a difference between growing weary IN well-doing and growing weary OF well-doing. Becoming tired while going about fulfilling your purpose and tackling divine assignments is one thing. Getting sick of trying when you aren’t seeing the immediate results you want is quite another. In the latter case, God tells us to take heart, because in His timing (in due season) the results will come.
Jesus Himself took breaks to rest and replenish Himself. He would get into that little boat and leave multitudes on the bank of the lake, genuine needs unmet. This is important to remember if your belief is that you have to be the Energizer Bunny so that the needs of everyone around you are satisfied before you can take a breath – much less all their wants! Jesus knew that taking the time to pull away from people and renew Himself was not selfish at all, but instead it was one of the most unselfish things He could do. If He burned out, others would also pay the price in the end.
You can’t run your vehicle forever on a tank of gasoline. No matter how big a hurry you’re in, you have to stop and pull into the gas station or else you’ll be stranded on the side of the road.
Jesus spoke to His disciples about this at a time of great ministry in their lives.
And he said unto them, Come ye yourselves apart into a desert place, and rest a while: for there were many coming and going, and they had no leisure so much as to eat. (Mark 6: 31, KJV)
Rest is a spiritual practice. Some feel guilty for doing it, assuming that it’s lazy or uncaring to others or that they simply have too much to do and can’t afford to stop. I would say (to myself as well, because I don’t do enough of it), “If Jesus needed it and did it, what makes me think I can thrive if I don’t?” The truth is, when you take time out to rejuvenate, you will actually accomplish more in the time you work.
As Vance Havner said, “If we don’t come apart, we will come apart!”
SPIRITUAL PROCRASTINATION
I was riding home from the Mississippi Gulf Coast a couple of days ago when a magnetic sign in front of a church caught my eye. SURELY I didn’t read what I thought I read. I pondered it as I drove on down the road. I wish I had gone back to check to see if I missed something. I’m still hoping that maybe I read it wrong. Here’s what this unbelievable sign said: “Pray that those who think they can turn to God at the 11th hour die at 10:30.” What??? What kind of prayer and spiritual attitude is that?? Any believer should pray fervently in agreement with God’s desire that all should come to repentance before it’s too late! My heavens!!
Despite the disturbing nature of that sign, it is also true that so, so many people procrastinate on coming to God, on yielding to the Lordship of Christ, on turning around from some destructive habit, on ridding themselves of personal poison by forgiving others, on saying yes to God’s call on their lives, and…the list goes on.
“I’ll do it when…”
“As soon as things settle down a little…” (When would that be?)
“I have plenty of time…”
The problem is, you have no idea how much time is left. It may, in fact, be 10:30 or even 10:59. The fantasy that there will be a better and more convenient time is just that. The time for decision is always now.
I remember the sad story recorded in Acts about Felix, the Governor with whom Paul shared the gospel message. Felix did not want to face his need for Jesus and told the Apostle Paul:
That’s enough for now! You may leave. When I find it convenient, I will send for you. (Acts 24:25)
We have no record that the “convenient time” ever came for Felix.
You can know you need it, talk about it, have good intentions about it. However, until you take action on it, it’s all in the world of imagination.
What are you procrastinating on today? Is it some aspect of your relationship with God? Is it His call to step out in faith on a dream in your heart? Is it letting go of something that you know is harming you, but you fear being without it?
Now is the accepted time. Today is the day of salvation. (II Corinthians 6: 2, KJV)
Or, as The Message Bible puts it:
Well, now is the right time to listen, the day to be helped. Don’t put it off; don’t frustrate God’s work by showing up late.
One of these days turns into none of these days.
And then…it’s too late.
“I’M JUST NOT FEELIN’ IT!”
“I’m just not feeling it!”
I’ve heard clients and others say that often when facing a task for which they feel little motivation. Heck, I’ve said it myself! It’s something that needs to be done in order to achieve something we really want in the future. Yet, the future seems far away, and surely there’s plenty of time. So right now, there’s something else we’d rather do – which is maybe nothing.
This feeling thing shows up most often in relationships. The “loss of feeling” – the failure spontaneously experiencing that tickly, tingly energy that was so motivating earlier – has provided many an excuse for bad behaviors or the neglect of positive, relationship-strengthening behaviors.
Maybe you’re just not feeling it because it’s Monday. Weekend’s over, and a tough week is hitting you in the face. You’d rather just hit the snooze, fluff your pillows, and roll back over.
Very often in life there are important things to be done, but you just don’t have the feelings that would spur you on and make the task easier. The mistake many make is to wait for the feeling before taking action. When you make a habit of this approach, not much of importance gets done. That’s because feelings most often follow actions rather than preceding them. The time to act is now!
NOW is the accepted time! (II Corinthians 6: 2)
You want health in the future, but you are under a lot of stress right now, and that junk food seems to help manage it. Healthy food just doesn’t seem to fill the bill. And with all that stress, you certainly don’t have the energy to exercise. Do healthy behaviors today anyway!
That person you live with or work with doesn’t make it easy for you to love or like them. However, love is a lot more than a feeling; it’s about action. Do loving actions anyway!
You really don’t enjoy picking up the phone and calling prospects who could potentially help your business to grow. What if they were annoyed or not interested? Make a call anyway!
Your to-do list is long, and you are feeling overwhelmed. Pick 3 of the most important items as your focus today, and do them anyway!
Those positive, energizing, motivating feelings are often a luxury we do not have in the moment. Yet we’ve been given today, this moment. We’ve received God’s undeserved love and provisions, and we’ve been given opportunities to give back from the abundance we have received.
Don’t feel like doing it today? It will feel so good when you do it anyway!
THE FOURTH QUARTER
In the personal testimony I shared with you earlier this week, I told you about the concept of fourth quarter, a most important part of a football game (and of life). I’ve been giving this more consideration and would like to explore those thoughts with you a little more deeply.
In the fourth quarter, you don’t dare give in to fatigue, discouragement, or self-pity and go to the sidelines. Neither do you rest on your achievements so far and engage in the laziness of self-satisfaction, as if the game were already won. No, in the fourth quarter you push as never before. As they say, you “leave it all on the field.” You search out and act on every opportunity for scoring, and you are vigilant about defending the ground already gained.
Games can easily be won or lost in the fourth quarter. Even if your first three quarters haven’t been so hot, you can come from behind and leave the game victorious!
It matters not so much how innately talented the players are or how they played in the previous games. Oh, sure, talent is helpful. A previous history of winning or losing can be indicative of certain helpful or destructive habits. However, what matters most is – what kind of effort will the team members put into this game, at this point in time? Will they keep their heads in the game, break through the obstacles, and keep scoring? What really counts is, what will they do with this hour?
And so it is with you and me. We’ve all been through some successes and some failures in life so far. Most of us have a ways to go in fully using the gifts and talents we’ve been given. But as long as breath is in us, the game is not over. When your calling and your life purpose is complete, you will be gone from this earth. Not before!
You can’t get too old or make enough mistakes for God to put out a recall on your purpose and your calling. He says so in His Word.
For God’s gifts and His call are irrevocable. (Romans 11:29)
God “knew you in your mother’s womb” (and before). He placed within you the talents, motivational tendencies, and gifts you would need to develop and fulfill all the opportunities and assignments you’d experience throughout your life. The powerful combination of what you have within you fueled by the Holy Spirit’s guidance and power will forever make it possible for you to keep on playing your best – all the way to the end of the fourth quarter!
One person asked me this week, “When is that fourth quarter?” Great question – and an unanswerable one from a human perspective. You could be 20 years old and be in your fourth quarter. We have no idea how many 24-hour periods of opportunity are left for us on this earth. Wise people make the very most of their time right now, for no additional days are guaranteed. Some of us may already be in an overtime.
Will you join me in the commitment to fully engage your spirit, mind, soul, and body – all that is you – in the pursuit of big God goals and a purpose that makes a lasting difference to others? Will you live each day with the focus and the fervor you would have if it you knew it were your very last?
GOD’S PERFECT TIMING
Many of you read my testimony yesterday about a miraculous series of events that have just occurred in my life. If you missed it, please go back and read it, for this morning’s devotional thoughts are inspired by this experience. The principles that were at work in this series of astounding happenings are not just for me; they are right on for each one of us who places our trust in the Lord.
When I think about God’s meticulous planning for this intervention in my life now, I stand in awe of our God. Back in the mid-50’s, as my daddy sat alone in his office at East Columbia Baptist Church, spending long hours praying and studying for his next message to the people he loved – God had a blessing up His sleeve that He planned to deliver to me on May 31, 2014. The Lord inspired my father to plan to say the words that would confirm His timely message to me in this “fourth quarter” of my life. I can remember my dad’s diligence in hearing from God. I wasn’t to bother him in the many hours when he was in “the study” (which is aptly what we called his office). Oh, he had time to play with me and spend time with me, but it wasn’t when He was studying. He knew (and I have finally learned) the critical importance of carving out non-negotiable, uninterrupted time to study and to listen to God.
So many questions are in my mind about how this sermon was recorded and preserved. It was not commonplace to record back then. There was a note in the reel-to-reel recording saying 1966. My cousin said that this was when his daddy had this recording copied by a man in the small town near the farm community where they lived. How did my uncle even know such a recording existed? He lived about 5 hours away from Columbia. My mother and I were living in Columbia. Why didn’t we get the recording? Then there’s the question of how on earth that tape survived in a trunk in a condition that it could be clearly heard almost 60 years later. God knows!
I will give you hidden treasures, riches stored in secret places, so that you may know that I am the LORD, the God of Israel, Who summons you by name. (Isaiah 45:3)
(This scripture has meaning me today that it did not have last week!)
So many unanswered questions. (And by the way, if by chance someone is reading this who was somehow involved, I’d appreciate any insight you could give.) However, the truth is, I will probably never have all those answers.
But that’s O.K. This one thing I know: God’s timing is absolutely perfect.
The same is true in your life. You may be waiting for a break-through or an insight or a restoration. You may not even know what you are waiting for, but you simply know that this place is not it.
Do not give up hope! In the same way that God was busy behind the scenes preparing both the circumstances and me for the reception of this miracle – He is at work behind the scenes in your own situation.
It may look like nothing is happening, but don’t believe it. All necessary things have to be moved into place so that those insights, opportunities, and answers arrive at just the right time for the maximum benefit of you and the others involved.
Like the seed planted in the ground, nothing is visible for a while as the roots form and dig into the soil. Without the root formation, a premature appearance of the plant would signal its doom. (The same is true for us!) Then one day, at just the right time, that little plant peeks through. Essential preparations for the harvest are not always visible to the eye!
But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. (Isaiah 40: 31)
BE STILL AND KNOW
“I have so much to do, and so little time to do it in!”
“When I walk in the house, I turn on the TV or some music. It just seems way too quiet if there’s not some noise.”
“I’m afraid if I slow down, I’ll think too much about things I’d rather not think about.”
“Be still? Are you kidding me? How can I be still with the type of crisis I have going on in my life?”
It’s the way we live: crazy schedules; people clamoring for our attention; noise surrounding us; unwelcome, unthinkable events. Yet God has a great strategy for us that can bring peace in the midst of the chaos.
Be still and know that I am God. (Psalm 46:10)
In quietness and confidence shall be your strength. (Isaiah 30:15)
God’s not talking about some superficial stillness in which you just manage not to talk or fidget. In order to really connect with God and to feel the infusion of His strength, you not only get quiet in a peaceful environment, you deliberately tune in to listen and to be alert and ready to receive whatever He wants to give you in that precious time.
But despite the beauty of such a time, oh, how difficult it can be to carve it out and to stay focused! I, for one, am so doggone distractible! My mind wanders. Facebook calls for just one little check-in. I have to go to the bathroom. I remember something I have to add to my to-do list before I forget it. And yet, what could possibly be more important than uninterrupted, quiet, private, intimate time with the King of Kings, Whose heart’s desire is to spend time with me (and you!)?
I think about the fact that Jesus brought silence to stormy winds and waves. Will He not bring silence and stillness to us if we sit in His presence and surrender to Him? Will He not honor the choice to open our Bibles and our hearts and say, “Speak, Lord. I’m listening!”
You may not get any booming messages right away. But don’t disregard those thoughts that come through your mind. I write in my prayer journal what I’m thinking, key points I’m reading, and questions I am asking. (This also helps to fight that infernal distraction!) After a while, you realize that some of those thoughts are inspired thoughts. You see the pieces coming together for your questions to be answered. And sometimes…you just wait…quietly.
It is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord. (Lamentations 3:26)
When He gives quietness, who can then make trouble? (Job 34:29)
If you really seek it, it is possible to learn stillness. Try turning off all external noise for a day or even a week. Who knows what the “still, small Voice” will say when you are actually able to hear it?
Well, sometimes God provides the teaching, then gives an exam. As I was writing this devotional, at this point my phone alert sounded: TORNADO WARNING. TAKE SHELTER NOW. I ran upstairs to awaken Scarlett, grabbed the kitties, phone, and computer, and am now writing from the basement of my home.
The truth is the truth! When the storms of life surround you, when your heart beats fast, when things are happening that are totally beyond your control – just BE STILL AND KNOW – HE IS GOD.
COME AWAY WITH HIM
It’s Monday morning, and the to-do list for the week screams insistently. When will all the items get checked off? (Never.) How will my schedule fit everything in? (It won’t.) Should I try to just get all the little things done so that I can really concentrate on the big things? (Then the most important things will never get done.)
Extreme busyness – it’s the reality of our lives, but the enemy of our souls. Our hearts hunger for the replenishment of being still, listening, and knowing the true realities. Beginning each day with an intimate time with God feeds that hunger as nothing else can.
In any love relationship, nothing substitutes for private time that provides the space for communicating, dreaming, and sharing who you really are with each other. Such a time fuels the energy needed to then just go and live, knowing that you are walking together. In that same way, you will come to know and recognize God’s voice and experience intimacy with Him when you carve out special time each day (I think morns are best) to talk and just be with Him. Then as you go out and tackle your day, you will experience a fresh awareness that you are not alone and that your Partner is inside doing life with you and through you.
I must confess that I have not always done this, and I grieve when I look back and see what I missed in those periods in which I just thought I was “too busy” or “too tired.” I cringe when I think about my silliness in thinking that I was too busy for the only One Who could give me the plans and the power for a truly successful life.
Other than making Christ the Lord of my life, establishing a consistent, non-negotiable morning quiet time with God is the single most important thing I’ve ever done in my spiritual life. In this morning time, I study the Word and other solid spiritual resources, I listen (a lot), and I write what I “hear” as well as my thoughts and prayers. Out of this intimate time with the Lord flows the encouragement and reassurance I need in my life, direction for my next steps, and insight about the problems I’m facing. At the end of that time, I write the devotional based on something I have heard or experienced. As the day goes on, I experience the benefits of the insight and encouragement I’ve gotten in the morning. The consistency I have come to experience in this is in no way an accolade to me; rather, it is a testament of God’s faithfulness. I return every day because I’ve come to realize, I really can’t do without it.
Think of it: the God of the Universe actually shows up for an appointment with little ole me every single morning. How amazing is that? He will absolutely do the same for anyone who will choose to “come away” with Him. Can you believe it??
Busyness – even preoccupation with “good things” – can be a tyrant that robs you of the best things. Luke illustrates this principle in his account of an incident between Jesus and the sisters, Mary and Martha. (Luke 10: 38-42)
Now as they were traveling along, He entered a certain village; and a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her home. And she had a sister called Mary, who moreover was listening to the Lord’s word and seated at His feet. But Martha was distracted with all her preparations, and she came up to Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to do all the serving alone? Then tell her to help me.” But the Lord answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things, but only a few things are necessary, really only one, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her.
SAVE YOURSELF SOME TIME AND TROUBLE – JUST DO IT
“There’s no future in trying to talk God out of something! When He asks, rather than prolonging things, just obey and say yes.” Tommy Barnett
The first application of this principle relates to unwise and sinful choices. Oh, my, have I gone on a few detours in my life, trying to avoid or explain away the things I knew God was saying to me! The problem was, He was contradicting what I WANTED for myself at that moment. So I persisted, telling myself that my case was an exception and God would forgive and work it all out as soon as I could work out the things I was trying to bring to pass. The blindness that comes when you are out of the will of God for your life and focused on the big I! God means what He says for a good reason.
Think of how kids respond to their parents’ sound admonitions. They often don’t like them. Their parents’ ideas don’t seem like very much fun. Parents’ instructions seem inconvenient (clean your room NOW!) or even nonsensical (you want me to do WHAT?) to a kid. However, good parents are looking toward developing that child for the long haul, preventing harm and building character that will sustain that little person for a very long time.
I have learned that God’s instructions are not for the purpose of depriving me of good things but for saving me from hurtful experiences. What comes from God is only good for me. Sometimes what God says contradicts our fleeting wants or our persistent unhealthy desires, but they are for our benefit.
But whatever is good and perfect comes to us from God, the Creator of all light, and he shines forever without change or shadow. James 1:17
Direct my footsteps according to your word; let no sin rule over me. (Psalm 199:133)
In addition to saying “yes” to God with respect to following His instructions in His written word, there are the personal Holy Spirit nudges or deeper calls on our lives that require a response. I had a conversation recently with a person renowned in his profession who acknowledged, “God has had a call on my life for the ministry for many years. I’ve known it, I’ve fought it. Though I’ve had ‘success’ pursuing other paths, God has just refused to release that call. I’m making some big changes now, and the new ministry is being birthed.”
For God’s gifts and His call are irrevocable. (Romans 11:29)
Maybe you have not been called to “ministry” in a formal way (though every Christian is called to ministry), but I am quite sure that there are calls on your life and mine that are not completely fulfilled. There are God-given dreams that have been gestating inside you for some time now.
Maybe you are afraid to take the risk and act on them, or maybe the enemy of your soul or negative people have pooh-poohed them and convinced you that you’re being silly. Maybe you are afraid to begin to let go of the familiar to reach for what can be. But if it’s a God dream, then it’s not going away until you begin to move toward it. As you take one step, then God will illuminate the next and the next and the next.
When you get to be my age, you will recognize more and more how important it is not to take those long detours. God’s ways are best. He has a wonderful plan for your life and mine. Save yourself some wasted time, some frustration, and some heartache.
Just say “YES, Lord!”
As I close this message, a chorus is ringng in my head: “Yes, Lord, Yes!”
I’ll say yes, Lord, yes
To Your will and to Your way.
I’ll say yes, Lord, yes,
I will trust You and obey.
When Your Spirit speaks to me
With my whole heart I’ll agree,
And my answer will be yes, Lord, yes.
What is God asking you to do? Will you say, “YES!?!”
MAKE THE MOST OF YOUR TIME
TIME. Minutes. Hours. Days. Weeks. Months. Years.
To manage the years, you have to manage the minutes and hours.
No matter what your age, time is not unlimited; it is finite. I’ve found as the years have passed that my time seems to be going in some kind of warp speed. I agree with the observations of the person who quipped, “Life is like toilet paper. The closer you get to the end, the faster it goes!” No matter how much time you have left, however, you have the responsibility and privilege of using your time in the very best ways.
When you are answering some request from another person or even God, you may respond, “I don’t have time.” Yes, you do. You have exactly the same amount of time as anyone else. We all are allotted this time – no more, no less. The question is not, do we have time? The question is, what are we doing with the time we have? It’s a matter of priorities.
When is the last time you took a good, hard look at how you are spending your time? If you are serious about the refusal to waste your time (AKA, your life), I recommend this revealing assignment. First, write an ordered list of priorities – the things that you would say are most important to you in your life. This may include categories like God, family, work, recreation, creative activities, health – whatever. Then for one week, keep a time log. Don’t change anything you would normally do; just record it. At the end of that week, compare your time log with your priority list. How congruent are your activities with what you claim as your priorities?
If you have been diligent in your recording, you will also see something startling: lots of time-wasters. What are yours? What kinds of little meaningless activities do you do when you are procrastinating on something that really needs to be accomplished? How much time do you spend on mindless television or just “fiddling around?” (OK, now I’m going to meddle!) How much time are you spending on Facebook and other social media – mindlessly scrolling through the posts and occasionally responding, telling yourself you are engaged in meaningful relationships? (Don’t throw eggs at me. I do this, too.) The participation in social media can be a fun way to spend a little time and to “relate with friends.”
However, I challenge you, as I am challenging myself, to take a good look at the amount of time you’re investing in social media and other questionable activities and ponder whether there’s something more important you could be doing with the inordinate amount of time you sometimes spend. For example, what about sitting down face-to-face with family or friends and having a conversation, having a visit or phone conversation with a person who is lonely or in need, or just having a quiet time of spiritual study and conversation with God?
I do need to add this word of clarification. I’m not suggesting in slave-driver fashion that you have to constantly be performing and producing. Rest and relaxation are important activities to include in your schedule, guilt-free. God did it, so I guess that makes it “O.K.” and necessary for us!
This message here is simply about being more intentional with your time. It’s about refusing to let your time and your life slip away unnoticed. It’s about not wasting this most precious of commodities on things that don’t really matter.
Live life, then, with a due sense of responsibility, not as men who do not know the meaning and purpose of life but as those who do. Make the best use of your time, despite all the difficulties of these days. Don’t be vague, but firmly grasp what you know to be the will of God. (Ephesians 5: 15-16, J.B. Phillips Translation)
MAKE TODAY COUNT
Stephen Covey wisely said, “Begin with the end in mind.”
Yesterday I shared with you two experiences in which I wondered if this were “my time.” Thankfully, it appears I have more. And yet, I believe it’s important for all of us to ask and dig down deep for the answers to the piercing questions we’d ask ourselves if we knew we did have only a day left to live.
Here are 5 soul-searching questions to ask yourself and to ask God about yourself now:
1. Have I understood my calling and fulfilled the unique opportunities I’ve been given to express my purpose on the earth?
2. Have I truly been WITH (in the strongest sense of that word) my family members and others important people in my life such that they feel loved, understood, and supported by me?
3. Are there assignments that God has given me that I’ve procrastinated on until it was too late?
4.Have I lived at peace with God, in true (not fake) peace with others, and at peace with myself?
5. At my final memorial service, what would I hope people would be consistently saying about me and the way I related with them and the way I lived on this earth?
When you answer those questions, you have your blueprint for how to live today. You know what you’d still want to be doing if you knew this were your last day. You have the plan for how to live out God’s will for your life and how to truly be who you were made to be.
When you live that way today, when your own “that time” comes, you would be able to personally affirm the end-of-life words Paul wrote to Timothy:
I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith. (II Timothy 4: 7)
Og Mandino in his best-selling inspirational book, The Greatest Salesman in the World, wrote about one of the 10 most important keys to success: “Live each day as if it were your last.”
I’ll leave you to ponder Og’s thoughts on this principle and their application in your own life, this day and every day.
I will live this day as if it is my last. I will waste not a moment mourning yesterday’s misfortunes, yesterday’s defeats, yesterday’s aches of the heart, for why should I throw good after bad? I will live this day as if it is my last. This day is all I have, and these hours are now my eternity. I greet this sunrise with cries of joy as a prisoner who is reprieved from death. I lift mine arms with thanks for this priceless gift of a new day. So too, I will beat upon my heart with gratitude as I consider all who greeted yesterday’s sunrise who are no longer with the living today. I am indeed a fortunate man, and today’s hours are but a bonus, undeserved. Why have I been allowed to live this extra day when others, far better than I, have departed? Is it that they have accomplished their purpose while mine is yet to be achieved? Is this another opportunity for me to become the person I know I can be?
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