As I meditate in wonder of the LORDS holiness, I wonder if that is what I’m doing for the sake of the Gospel…Am I really serving, sacrificing, suffering for the sake of CHRIST?
A friend of mine shared this amazing read about Pastor Francis Chan…Here is the link for those of you who want to be astonished by someone who is really sacrificing for Christ!
After sharing Chan's story with some friends, I kept thinking about the scripture verse that was quoted….At first, I just quoted it because he quoted it and because I was prideful in the fact that I remembered the verse…Dumb, I know…But I did read it over and finally meditated on it, and it says “For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for Him.” Philippians 1:29 Granted? Wow, Really? I pondered this verse to the point of falling into Satan’s trap, questioning my faith in Christ, my walk, AND asking myself, what the heck am I really doing to serve, sacrifice and suffer for HIM…
For the past couple of months the LORD has been showing me to serve and love HIS people…Not only the people in MY Christian bubble, but HIS broken and afflicted ones as well…Trust me, since I’ve taken myself out of my “comfort zone”, and actually do the “work” HE has commanded of me, I soon found out what blessings really are!! Whether you just started a relationship, want to grow closer, feel closer, understand HIS characteristics, be like HIM, or maybe your just in a funk, take the opportunities to serve & sacrifice in HIS name…If I didn’t take the opportunities that came my way in the 6 years I’ve known CHRIST, I don’t think I would have grown as much…My growth, I think, has come from really seeing the afflicted, and feeling compassion for them…If I continued to stay in my bubble, I KNOW, the compassion in my heart for the broken, would not grieve my heart as it does today…I’ve passed by so many broken people in the past, and didn’t feel a thing for them…I just walk by not giving it a second thought…Actually that's a lie…I would judge them in my head thinking, their different, their dirty, their smelly, and those pants don’t match that shirt…But knowing, and putting myself out there to visually see their brokenness, increased the compassion inside of me…More of CHRIST and less of me…That is what my life needs to reflect…
The LORD gave me this verse in my quiet time…Appropriate…I love it...I love HIM!!!
“You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot. “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven. Matthew 5:13-16
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