Opportunity to Go and Do the Same

In the LA Times back in 2004 there was a story about a man who risked his life to protect someone else.  In the article it said, “The night Studio City resident Rene Navarro went to the aid of his neighbor, actress Anna Nicole Smith, he had hoped to persuade the man trying to enter her house to leave. Instead, Smith’s 6-foot-5, 230-pound former boyfriend turned stalker punched, kicked and threatened to kill Navarro. Though the assault left Navarro, 59, with broken fingers, head injuries and other wounds, his willingness to intervene convinced L.A. County Dist. Atty. Steve Cooley to make him one of three recipients of the Courageous Citizen Awards in a ceremony Wednesday at the Pasadena Hilton.”  When Navarro went in to the situation he knew that he would be at risk for interfering.  It did not stop him.  He showed compassion and care for his neighbor.  However, later Navarro was recognized for his courageous act.  Although recognition for compassionate acts does not always occur, it is a great encouragement when they do.  Jesus told the parable of the good Samaritan to give recognition to the fact that God appreciates and recognizes self-sacrificing acts of compassion to others.  Read Luke 10: 30 – 37.

30 Jesus took up [the question] and said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho and fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him, beat him up, and fled, leaving him half dead. 31 A priest happened to be going down that road. When he saw him, he passed by on the other side. 32 In the same way, a Levite, when he arrived at the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33 But a Samaritan on his journey came up to him, and when he saw [the man], he had compassion. 34 He went over to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. 35 The next day he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said, ‘Take care of him. When I come back I’ll reimburse you for whatever extra you spend.’ 36 “Which of these three do you think proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?” 37 “The one who showed mercy to him,” he said. Then Jesus told him, “Go and do the same.”

Jesus told the expert in the law and the others who were listening that they needed to go and do the same.  Although the good Samaritan sacrificed time and money and was not publicly recognized for his good deed, Jesus shows us that God is pleased when we respond to opportunity to help others.  What an encouragement to know that God is watching and is pleased by our choice to respond to these type of opportunities to help others.

 

Never Pass Up God’s Opportunity

There are several shows on TV that deal with buying storage units and then going through them hoping to find something of value buried in them.  It’s a risky proposition.  You can spend money on something that just holds junk that you need to get rid of.  It’s also a lot of work.  You have to lift, dig, shove, move, re-pack, refinish, research, find buyers and sell it all.  So the question is, “Is it worth the effort and money?”  Or should you pass up the opportunity?  One time according to Trutv.com “In 2000, the actor Nicholas Cage filed a police report claiming that an extremely rare comic book, Action Comics #1, (valued at more than a million dollars) had been stolen from his Los Angeles home. More than 10 years later, a collectibles expert was contacted by an anonymous man who found the book after discovering it in a purchased storage locker. The collectibles expert contacted a comic book expert who happened to be the same man who had originally sold the book to Cage in 1994. Despite having received insurance money for the comic, the actor was eager to settle up with the insurance company and retrieve his property.”  This is just one of many examples where the work was worth the effort.  This was definitely an opportunity that shouldn’t have been passed up.  Jesus tells a parable that teaches this concept in Luke 10: 30 – 35.

30 Jesus took up [the question] and said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho and fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him, beat him up, and fled, leaving him half dead. 31 A priest happened to be going down that road. When he saw him, he passed by on the other side. 32 In the same way, a Levite, when he arrived at the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33 But a Samaritan on his journey came up to him, and when he saw [the man], he had compassion. 34 He went over to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. 35 The next day he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said, ‘Take care of him. When I come back I’ll reimburse you for whatever extra you spend.’

We don’t really know why the two religious men passed up the man who had been robbed.  Perhaps they didn’t want to be inconvenienced or they knew it would cost them time and money.  Whatever the case the Samaritan stopped and took care of the man.  He gave up time and money to help.  It may not seem like an opportunity to help someone in need, but God sees it as an opportunity to share Him with others.  He gives us everything we have.  He gives us health, time, and money.  He expects to give of what we have to serve Him and others.   Every time to serve God is a great opportunity.  It’s opportunity that should not be passed up for our own selfish reasons.  If God shows us the opportunity and we know it is from Him, then we need to respond to the opportunity.  It is just common sense to not pass up God’s opportunities.  He will bless us for honoring Him and representing Him to others.  What we might spend in time and money will not compare to what we gain from God.  It’s like the great reward these storage unit buyers find.  

Here are some great opportunity quotes by some successful men:

“Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.” Thomas Edison

“We are all faced with a series of great opportunities brilliantly disguised as impossible situations.” Charles Swindoll

“Sometimes we stare so long at a door that is closing that we see too late the one that is open.” Alexander Graham Bell

 

 

Encouragement in the Storm

You see several types of responses out of those who have come through a severe storm.  Some are shaken and fearful.  Some are angry.  Some are thankful.  Some come out with a new compassion for others and view on life.  I recently watched an interview with Gary Hunley, Missouri Southern Baptist Disaster Relief Unit Leader, who lost his home in the Joplin Tornado.  He lost his home, but he found an answer from God on a previous prayer.  He received a new found compassion for victims of disasters and now new he could relate better to what they go through.  He felt he would be able to minister to them with much more understanding.  God increased his faith and gave him purpose in the storm.  He knew even after this tragedy in his own life that he could still serve God and others.  The disciples grew in their faith, as well, when they were placed in to the middle of a storm in Luke 8: 22-25.

22 One day Jesus said to his disciples, “Let’s go over to the other side of the lake.” So they got into a boat and set out. 23 As they sailed, he fell asleep. A squall came down on the lake, so that the boat was being swamped, and they were in great danger. 24 The disciples went and woke him, saying, “Master, Master, we’re going to drown!” He got up and rebuked the wind and the raging waters; the storm subsided, and all was calm. 25 “Where is your faith?” he asked his disciples. In fear and amazement they asked one another, “Who is this? He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey him.”

The disciples saw their Master calm the storm.  They learned from Jesus that they just needed to have faith.  They learned that Jesus cares for them and would protect them.  They learned that Jesus would get them through the storm and help them to make it to their destination.

Encouragement comes from going through the storm and seeing God work.  It will grow our faith.  We may have had little faith at the beginning of the storm, but once we see God take care of it, we will be stronger in faith.  It may sound strange, but look at the storm hitting in your life as an opportunity to see God work, an opportunity to grow in faith, and an opportunity to witness to others.  This might help encourage you as you enter the storm with a new purpose in mind.

 

Who You Gonna Call?

I think whether you have watched the movie or not you remember the theme song from Ghostbusters “Who You Gonna Call?”.  Seem to be one of those catchy sayings that everybody still is saying 27 years later.  The beginning of the song goes, “If there’s something strange in your neighborhood, Who ya gonna call? GHOSTBUSTERS. If there’s something weird and it don’t look good, Who ya gonna call? GHOSTBUSTERS.”  We have something better than 3 weird Ghostbuster guys to take care of protecting us when things look strange, weird or scary in our lives.  We have Jesus.  Sometimes we seem to forget He is right there in our lives waiting to help.  We start to panic and worry and try to figure things out on our own.  God doesn’t want us independent and trying to take care of everything ourselves.  He wants us to remember who He is and call on Him.  Read Luke 8: 22-25.

22 One day Jesus said to his disciples, “Let’s go over to the other side of the lake.” So they got into a boat and set out. 23 As they sailed, he fell asleep. A squall came down on the lake, so that the boat was being swamped, and they were in great danger. 24 The disciples went and woke him, saying, “Master, Master, we’re going to drown!” He got up and rebuked the wind and the raging waters; the storm subsided, and all was calm. 25 “Where is your faith?” he asked his disciples. In fear and amazement they asked one another, “Who is this? He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey him.”

The disciples entered a storm that scared them so much they began to panic and fear for their lives.  Some of them were experienced fisherman and knew what a storm could do at sea.  They probably had good reason to fear.  Can you imagine how the tax collector felt out there in the boat?  Talk about unsure territory for him.  Jesus was asleep and why shouldn’t He be.  After all He is God.  He knows about everything and has control of everything.  Nothing is a problem for Him.  Thankfully the disciples had enough belief in who Jesus was to call on Him and wake Him up and let Him know about their fears.  Maybe they shouldn’t have been afraid in the first place with Jesus in the boat, but they seem to instinctively know He was the answer to their problem.

For us we too should have enough common sense is to call on the Master when we are in the storm.  Wait for Him to take care of it.  Remember who He is and that He will protect us.  If Jesus should choose not to answer the way we would like Him to, we still shouldn’t be afraid and unhappy.  After all He is going to do what is best for us, even if it means physically dying.  What could be better than to go to Heaven anyway?  What are we afraid of?  So who you gonna call?

What’s the Master Doing?

We spend years going to school and spend that time learning from our teachers.  We look to them as knowledgeable and experienced.  We trust their opinion.  We may go to a trade school to learn a special skill.  We expect that our trainer will teach the tricks of the trade.  We want to walk away from any learning experience prepared to be able to do a job or handle life better.  It should be the same thing in our spiritual life.  We should go to “school” at Sunday School, Worship Services, Bible Studies, Discipleship classes, time with fellow Christians expecting to grow and learn and become better prepared for our lives and our walk with the Lord.  The disciples spent 3 years with the greatest teacher there ever was.  As a matter of fact, they called him the “Master”.  They were learning from Him so that they could reach and teach others about God.  Jesus could use anything to teach.  He taught several lessons in Luke 8: 22-25.

22 One day Jesus said to his disciples, “Let’s go over to the other side of the lake.” So they got into a boat and set out. 23 As they sailed, he fell asleep. A squall came down on the lake, so that the boat was being swamped, and they were in great danger. 24 The disciples went and woke him, saying, “Master, Master, we’re going to drown!” He got up and rebuked the wind and the raging waters; the storm subsided, and all was calm. 25 “Where is your faith?” he asked his disciples. In fear and amazement they asked one another, “Who is this? He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey him.”

I want to focus on just one of the lessons He taught while He was in this boat with the disciples.  You might say they were silent instructions.  Pay attention to what our master is doing when the storm hits.  He is at peace and rest.  He does not let the storm bother Him.  He knows He can take care of it. The disciples on the other hand are beginning to panic.  They know the storm is bad and they begin to fear they are going to drown.  They seem to have forgotten who they were with.  After all they were following Jesus, because they thought He was the Messiah.  Yet here He was asleep.  If they really believed that He was who they thought He was, they should have realized that the Messiah was asleep and not even bothered by the storm.  That fact was a pretty big hint that it was probably all going to be ok.

This silent instruction from our Master is a pretty good one for us to pay attention to, as well.  If we believe that we are now heirs of God and children of the King, then we should be confident that God will take care of us.  We need not be afraid even when the worst storms roll in to our lives.  God will calm the storm when it is time.  We just have to have faith to ride the waves with Jesus.

Just Get in the Boat!

Have you ever wondered why God asks you to do some things in your life?  They don’t always seem to make sense or seem to have a purpose.  They may seem out of place or not at the right time.  They may cost you time or money.  They may cause you to make major life adjustments.  They may come at a bad time.  The action God asks you to do may actually bring on hardship, yet for some unknown reason God wants you to do as He asks.  After reading a couple different versions of this particular Bible story, I wonder if the disciples wondered what Jesus was up to, when He asked them to go across the lake.  Neither story seemed to say why Jesus asked the disciples to get in the boat and go.  Read Luke 8:22-25.

22 One day Jesus said to his disciples, “Let’s go over to the other side of the lake.” So they got into a boat and set out. 23 As they sailed, he fell asleep. A squall came down on the lake, so that the boat was being swamped, and they were in great danger. 24 The disciples went and woke him, saying, “Master, Master, we’re going to drown!” He got up and rebuked the wind and the raging waters; the storm subsided, and all was calm. 25 “Where is your faith?” he asked his disciples. In fear and amazement they asked one another, “Who is this? He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey him.”

Even though the disciples don’t appear to know why they were asked to go to the other side of the lake, they seem to just cooperate and do it.  As you can see by the story, things got a bit rough and scary, but ended safely.  You have to ask yourself “What made them get in the boat?” If you were friends with Jesus would you just get in the boat because He asked?  It was probably their relationship with Jesus that allowed them to just trust and get in the boat.  They didn’t stop to worry about the future.  They didn’t have to know what lay ahead of them in the lake or on the other side.  They simply heard the request and started out after the goal of reaching the other side.

Wisdom is to hear God speaking to you and to respond without question.  Wisdom is just to get in the boat.  What we learn and experience along the way is secondary.  What is on the other side is secondary.  What is primary and foremost in God’s eyes is that we just get in the boat and obey.