Even If i Walk Alone

Instructing and encouraging you to live your life as a disciple of Jesus

Faith

Haiti: What’s Our Response?

by

I try and steer away from tying in a blog post to a current event. My thinking is this gives the posts a more timeless element so that they can be applicable regardless of when you read them. The recent earthquake in Haiti (and subsequent aftershocks) has given me reason to break my unwritten rule. Looking at the pictures of devastation is heartbreaking. There is a great outpouring of support from the world at large which is heartening. At least we have not totally lost our soul; not yet anyway. As followers of Christ we must ask, “What is our response to the tragedy in Haiti?”

The most basic tenet of Christianity is to care for the poor and needy. Haiti is a poor country. They were before the earthquake; they are even more so now. As Christians it is our duty to serve them. We should have been serving them all along, but perhaps this tragedy will awaken our slumbering hearts. In mere moments, tens of thousands found themselves homeless, hungry and without basic sanitation. Tens of thousands more are no longer among the living. In the blink of an eye their lives ended and we lost the opportunity to serve them and to share the love of Jesus with them. It’s too late. We waited too long. We waited because missionary work was always someone else’s job. We waited because we were too afraid to give of our time or our money or ourselves. We waited because we were simply indifferent to the plight of a poor nation thousands of miles from our front door. While we waited, Jesus wept. He gave all He had for us. He died for us. He set the perfect example for our response to those in need. We ignored it.

Now, we are awake. Our eyes are open to the plight of these dear people. Each one of them is created in the image of God. Each one of them is loved unconditionally by the same Savior we call Lord. Do we love them? Are we willing to give everything we have to serve them? Will we open our checkbooks, our cupboards or our life to them? They are our brothers and sisters. Richard Stearns, President of World Vision, in his terrific “The Hole in Our Gospel”, writes “Authentic faith, rooted in the heart of God, is expressed in deeds done to ease the pain of others; it is imbued with personal sacrifice, and it comes with a cost.”

This is our opportunity; this is our time of great decision. We can rise up and stand with people of Haiti, or we can turn our back on Jesus and all we profess to believe. In a couple of weeks, Haiti will be off the front page, but the need will remain for years to come. So I ask again, what is our response to Haiti? Will we be unchanged by the tragic events or will we use it to open our eyes to the poor and suffering all over the world? Haiti needed us before the earthquake, and few of us did anything. Are we awake now? Do we now see the need that has been there all along and is far greater now? What will our response be to Haiti and the rest of the world in need? Whatever we do for them, we do for Jesus; if we turn away, we turn away from Jesus. How will you respond?

Goals for the New Year

by

I can think of few greater disappointments than to live the next year exactly as we have lived this one. To think of living next year as a year of maintaining the status quo, or worse yet to live it in a way that would see us move backwards in our spiritual lives, is a tragedy of profound proportions. Following Christ is not a call to a level of comfort or to a relaxed plateau. We are called to excellence in all areas of our lives and that will simply not be possible unless we are truly living a life in endless pursuit of Jesus.

If last year was a breakthrough year for you spiritually, that’s tremendous, and you should use it as a spring board to do bigger and better things for God this year. If last year was a veritable disaster, be encouraged, because a new year brings new opportunities. The past is over and done. Start with a clean slate, determined to make this year the best of your life as you seek to live a life of justice, faithfulness and humility before our Savior. If you fall somewhere in the middle of these two extremes, don’t let that happen again in the upcoming year. Cast off your mediocrity and determine that you will excel in everything you do this year. Commit your heart anew to living as Jesus lived, walking in His footsteps and demonstrating love to everyone you encounter.

Over the next couple of posts we will dig into some specifics of how to ensure that this year will be a year defined by great accomplishments in your spiritual life. It is our duty and responsibility as followers of Jesus that we do the good works that He intends for us to do (Ephesians 2:10). These good works are to act justly, without prejudice, to every soul we happen to meet throughout the year. These works are to not only act justly to everyone but to also respond to their needs in love. Sometimes this may cost you a few dollars, but more often it will simply cost you a few minutes. Doing these things allows us to walk faithfully before our Lord. Finally, remember to demonstrate great humility in everything you do and say. Christ is greater than all, and He loves all people equally. We have nothing to boast about, we are nothing without Christ.

Prepare now to have an amazing 2010. Begin praying, asking that God would show you the areas of your life that need improvement. Resolve that you will do whatever it takes to excel in the good works He has planned for you to do. Whatever your circumstances, you can choose to follow God in faithfulness, to live in humility and justice, and ultimately to love everyone with whom you come into contact. The upcoming year can be your best yet if you simply yield all that you have and all that you are to the Creator of the universe, the Lover of your soul.

Faith vs. Fear

by

Denis Waitley said, “Success is a process that continues, not a status that you reach. If you are alive, there are lessons to be learned.”  I find this very applicable to the Christian life as well.  Living out our faith is a continual learning process.  We will never achieve a life lived perfectly.  While some might see that as a discouraging statement, I would say that if you do you are missing the point.  The whole point of the journey is not to arrive, but rather to walk, to strive, to live more like Jesus.

To be certain, we will fail, and we will fail often; but failure is a good thing!  Nothing has ever been accomplished without a good deal of failure preceding the accomplishment.  No one gets it right the first time, and every failure is simply an opportunity to learn something and be better for it.  Life is one long cycle of fall down, get up.  It’s our desire to get up over and over again that builds our character and strengthens our faith.  If we never fell, we would never need Christ.

Often we hold back from doing Kingdom work because we are afraid of failure.  The Bible says that if God is for us, who can be against us?  No matter what trial we face, God is bigger, stronger and more powerful.  What is there to fear?  Fear is evidence that Satan is alive and well, because it is he who whispers fear into our hearts.  We need to always press forward.  Life will come at us full force, but it is up to us to determine whether we simply will wait for it to hit us, or if we will rush headlong into whatever may come.

Life lived intentionally, a life where we race into the fray regardless of the outcome, is a life of adventure and excitement.  Living the Christian life in a purely reactive manner is not only ineffective but it is dull and ultimately life-less!  We need to engage our world, the people around us and those far away.  We need to demonstrate the love of Christ to everyone at all times.  When doing so results in our getting knocked down, we must have only one reaction:  get up and lean into life again; unbeaten, undeterred and unafraid.  Lean into life with the power of Christ and dare it to knock you down.  Faith and courage are built through enduring the storms.