ZIGGING WHEN OTHERS ZAG

Therefore the Pharisees also asked him how he had received his sight. "He put mud on my eyes," the man replied, "and I washed, and now I see" (John 9:14-15).
 Os Hillman shared, "Before I owned my own advertising agency, I worked for another ad agency. The owner was a man who was very creative and taught me that if you want to be remembered and want to stand out among the crowd, you must "zig" when others are "zagging." This was a another way of saying, "Do something very different so that your work will stand out among the crowded marketplace." When I owned my own firm, we created several award-winning ad campaigns. One ad we created won international marketing awards. It was promoting a new brand of plush carpet. It's still on my wall in my office. In our ad we featured a white Persian cat in the ad. However, it looked like the body of the cat was submerged. You could only see the head of the cat as if the plush carpet made him sink. People wrote us and thought we had killed a cat to make our point. It was all trick photography. It became a memorable ad. Jesus did things that caused people to talk. Today, we would call this "creating a buzz." One such miracle Jesus did that caused a buzz was when a man wanted Jesus to heal him. Instead of saying a religious prayer, He reached down and grabbed some mud and put it on his eyes. I can only wonder what the man must have thought. When he washed off the mud he could see. When the Pharisees asked how he was healed, the man told him. The Pharisees must been totally confused. Jesus did this to confront the religious spirit among the Pharisees and keep things focused on the source of the miracle, not the way it was done. Be aware when God does things outside your paradigm of experience. Don't jump to conclusions about the ways of God if they don't fit your paradigm. Jesus rarely does things the same way every time. This is intentional in order to keep us trusting in His power, not His ways.

CONSIDERING YOUR INVESTMENTS

"Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others" (Phil 2:4).
 It's rewarding to get a good return on an investment. In business we invest money, time, and people resources into promoting a product and service in hopes of a return. We make financial investments in hopes we can gain a return on our money invested. The apostle Paul understood another kind of investment. It was an investment in the spiritual lives of people. He invested his life in a man named Epaphras, who was a man deeply impacted by Paul's investment in him. Paul makes reference to Epaphras when writing to the Colossians: "You learned it from Epaphras, our dear fellow servant, who is a faithful minister of Christ on our behalf, and who also told us of your love in the Spirit" (Col 1:7-8). It can be rewarding to invest in other people's lives. One day I received this note from a friend into whom I had made an investment: "You have had a tremendous influence on my life. For that, I will be forever grateful and love you as well." Sometimes we don't realize the difference we can make in another life. For us, it can seem a natural way of operating. We may not even think we are doing anything unusual. Until one day, you receive a note like this one. In the marketplace we can often get very focused on the projects we are called to promote and gain a return on. However, we each need to be making an investment in other people as well. Are you investing in lives that may be in your sphere of influence through your workplace call? The returns on this investment are considerable.

DESERT PREPARATION

Nor did I go up to Jerusalem to see those who were apostles before I was, but I went immediately into Arabia and later returned to Damascus. - Galatians 1:17

The apostle Paul tells us in the first chapter of Galatians some of the facts surrounding his own conversion. He tells us that he clearly understood the call Jesus placed on his life. He did not have to consult other men about this calling. But before he was released to begin his own mission, He went to Arabia for three years. Why did Paul have to go to Arabia for three years before he ever met another disciple of Jesus Christ?
The Scripture does not tell us plainly why Paul spent three years in Arabia. However, based upon many examples of God placing special calls on people's lives, we know it often requires a time of separation between the old life and the new life. No doubt, Paul had plenty of time to consider what had taken place in his life and time to develop an intimate knowledge and relationship with the newfound Savior. His life was about to change dramatically.
So often, when God places a call on one of His children, it requires a separation between the old life and the new life. There is a time of being away from the old in order to prepare the heart for what is coming. It can be a painful and difficult separation. Joseph was separated from his family. Jacob was sent to live with his uncle Laban. Moses was sent to the desert.
When God began a deeper work in my own life, it required a separation from all I had known before. He removed all that I had placed confidence in up to that point. It was very painful and very scary since I was in my mid-40's. In my mind, it was not the time to start life over. I had been making plans for early retirement. God had a different idea. He removed all my comforts and security in order to accomplish a much greater work than what I could see at the time. The picture is clear now. I understand why it was necessary, but I didn't at the time.
Perhaps God has placed you in your own desert period. Perhaps you cannot make sense of the situation in which you find yourself. If you press into God during this time, He will reveal the purposes He has for you. The key is pressing into Him. Seek Him with a whole heart and He will be found. God may have a special calling and message He is building in your life right now. Trust in His love for you that He will fully complete the work He has started in you.

ANEMIC FAITH

"For we also have had the gospel preached to us, just as they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, because those who heard did not combine it with faith" (Heb 4:2-3).
 I run into anemic Christians everyday. They have a form of religion but fail to mix their belief with faith and obedience. The apostle Paul described them when he said "these people have a form of godliness but deny its power." What are the telltale signs of anemic faith? When you no longer pray about decisions, you have anemic faith. When you fail to speak to others about their relationship with God, you have anemic faith. When you're unwilling to spend time with God everyday, your faith has become anemic. You no longer have a living faith. God spoke to John, the apostle, through a vision and told him about some Christians who were part of the church in Laodicea: "To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God's creation. I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm-neither hot nor cold-I am about to spit you out of my mouth. You say, 'I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.' But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see" (Rev 3:14-18). These are strong words from our Lord. We are all susceptible to growing cold and anemic in our faith. Today, ask God to revive your heart and to restore the fire of your faith so that you will experience a vibrant and active faith that impacts the kingdom of darkness.

NO MANNA STORES

Then the Lord said to Moses, "I will rain down bread from heaven for you. The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day. In this way I will test them and see whether they will follow My instructions." - Exodus 16:4

When God took the nation of Israel through the desert, there was one thing the people simply could not do outside of God alone: They could not provide for themselves. They could not plant. They could not harvest. They could not manufacture. It was a place and time where nothing but complete dependence was the rule. God gave manna one day at a time. The manna spoiled the day after, so they could never store it. They could not go to the manna store to get more. They couldn't start a manna business to capitalize on all the free manna. I can tell you from personal experience that when God takes you to the desert, there is nothing you can do to change it until He wants to change it, so do not strive against God in the desert place.
Has God taken you into the desert? Is He forcing you to depend wholly on His provision? Pray that you will learn the lessons God desires you to learn in the desert place. He will bring you out when He has accomplished all He wants to build in your life. Remember that it is a season; you will not be there forever. He understands that no one can stay in a desolate place forever.

LABOR ALONE WILL NOT SATISFY

"All the labor of man is for his mouth, and yet the soul is not satisfied" (Eccl. 6:7 NKJV).

How would you feel about yourself if your job was removed from you tomorrow? Let's imagine that your income wouldn't change, just what you did everyday. One of the schemes that Satan uses in the life of the Christian worker is to get him/her to view their value solely based on the type of work they do and how well they do it. We call this performance-based acceptance. It says "As long as I have a good job and I do it well, I have self-esteem." This is a "slippery slope" and can be used by Satan to keep our focus on our performance versus Christ. We are never to find our value in what we do. Instead, our value is solely based on who we are in Christ. The apostle Paul wrestled with this after he came to faith in Christ. He had grown to the top of his field as a Jewish leader. "If anyone else thinks he has reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more: circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for legalistic righteousness, faultless. "But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ-the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith" (Phil 3:4-9). You'll never really know to the degree that your self-esteem is rooted in your work until your work is removed. Unemployment, illness, or a financial crisis can lead to job loss. Why not evaluate where you are in this area of your life. Affirm with God your desire to be known by Who you know versus what you do.

OBEDIENCE-BASED DECISIONS

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"We are witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey Him." - Acts 5:32

"We are witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey Him." - Acts 5:32

 

So often we as a society equate numbers with success. The larger the conference, the more successful we deem it. The larger a church, the more we believe that God is blessing. And so on. I recall planning a conference one time. Registrations were not where I felt they needed to be a few weeks before the date of the event. It wasn't long before I began to get "under the pile" about the level of attendance. My friend, who was organizing this conference with me, called and asked how I was doing. I had to confess where I was. He immediately reminded me of my own teaching in this area. We are all called to be led by the Spirit, not by outcomes. "If God called us to put on this conference, then the outcome is up to Him if we have done our part." He went on to explain how he learned this lesson in a similar way a few years earlier.

He and a friend were led to host a Bible study group. His friend was to speak. It was nine o'clock and they were the only two people there. His friend was discouraged and was ready to leave.

"No," said my friend. "We have done what the Holy Spirit directed." He then stood up and began to welcome people as though there were many in the room. (No one was in the room.) He introduced his friend and they began the meeting. A few minutes later, people began to straggle in. By the time the meeting was over, ten had shown up, and one man in particular was impacted by the meeting.

Being led by the Spirit often means we must not use the world's standard for success as our measuring stick. You never know what an act of obedience will yield at the time. We must leave results to God. Our role is to obey. His role is to bring results from our obedience.

Do you make decisions based on the potential outcome or by the direction of the Holy Spirit in your life? Do you overly evaluate the pros and cons without consideration to what the Holy Spirit might be saying deep inside? We are all prone to make decisions based on reasoning alone. Ask God to give you a willingness and ability to hear the Holy Spirit and to obey His promptings.