Rarely is the word “thanks” enough. In
fact, our gratitude must be expressed in something other than simply stating
the obvious. It must be expressed in a motion, an outflow of our emotion. Sometimes
all we can do is simply stand facing the creator God. Our hands raised in awe
of the one who made it all. Join me this Christmas season and stand, our hands
raised and our hearts abandoned. Praising the baby who gave it all.
For those of you (us) who need a little food for thought every so often, or if you could use some "virtual fellowship" to help fill those long weeks in between English services... here you go! A Glimpse of Hope is a great way to stay connected to the Hope English Service community, catch a few encouraging thoughts or uplifting Bible verses before you go to work, and stay current with Michael's messages. So please join us often on this blog and we hope to see you at Hope. God Bless!
Friday, November 30, 2012
Tuesday, November 20, 2012
When Humility Might Just Be Enough
What is your talent? Have you thought
about it? The Bible is clear that we all are gifted to some degree. In fact,
you don’t really need to go to the book in order to find the message. Modern
society has empowered the youngsters, encouraged them to pursue the
impossible. With Disney leading the flock, the messages of, “be all you can be”
has become almost a mantra. Although there are positive aspects to this, the
message has definitely overshadowed one of the most important aspects of
Christian living; humility.
I used to go back to the US for
basketball camp in my teenage years. One particular year, I was assigned to a
team that was relatively short. In basketball camp, your team is basically your
platoon. You eat, sleep and play together throughout the week as you get
accustomed to each other’s playing style. The assignment did not bode well for
me as I quickly realized I was one of the tallest on the team. As we
practiced, it became apparent that our height was going to be our biggest
roadblock to success. Fortunately, I had had quite a bit of training in jumping
and playing “post” (the center position) that we were not completely hopeless.
In fact, I was able to nab quite a few rebounds to keep us in the game. As I
felt my confidence building, I noticed one day that a short man was also
playing inside with me. I was slightly irritated as I felt his infringement to
what I figured was my position. However, as the week progressed, this man kept
gaining rebounds and soon flushed me out of my position. As I was internally
struggling with this, this man came over and gently gave me a suggestion. I
ignored his assistance and soon lost my bid for one of the better rebounders.
Afterwards, I asked what his “key” was. He simply stated, “I know I’m short and
not that good at basketball. I just thought I would simply use what I have, my
stocky body, to my advantage and gain ground. Especially, since I can’t jump.”
It made sense.
Empowerment is sometimes beneficial, but
how about your limitations? Knowing your limitations can be even more
beneficial. Consider the Parable of the Talents in Mathew 25:14-30. We learn in
the parable that each man was given a certain amount, and the amount differed.
The master eventually returned to find that two of the three invested them well
and one did not. The point hinges not on the fact that they had much talent,
but simply that they used it well. Each of them was also under no delusion that
they had more than they really had. They simply examined what they had and used
them. We must do the same. We are given a certain amount of talents/gifts. We
should be honest to ourselves to see what they are and what they are not. Once
we recognize our limitations, perhaps we will be more inclined to appreciate
others who have what you don’t. Perhaps we can set aside our pride in comparing
the amount of talent others have and work hard in investing what we have. We
can simply look forward to the day when the Lord to states, “Well done, good
and faithful servant.”
Modern society has a tendency to empower
each of us too much. We forget that we are limited beings. In fact God loves
using the humble to shame the wise (1 Corinth 1:27). In our sermon we learned
the pride of the people of Babel. Remember that we can avoid that fate by
simply acknowledging God’s work in us, rather than pride in our own talents.
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