Boldly Share the Greatest Message in the World!

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile.    Romans 1:16   NIV

    

    The Gospel is the greatest message in the world. The King of kings is making peace with his enemies.  The loving Heavenly Father is inviting his wayward children to come home.  The Savior of the World is rescuing the lost.  He who formed life is transforming lives. The Great Physician is healing the hurt and the broken.  The Giver of all gifts is generously sharing his extravagant goodness.  The All-Powerful One is overcoming evil and injustice.  The Judge of all mankind is granting forgiveness. The Creator of the universe is restoring his creation.  Through Jesus Christ we can have peace with God and live in his kingdom now and forever. Embrace this message and share it with joy!  

What will you do THIS week to live and share this message of infinite hope?  What will you do THIS week to represent your King and his kingdom?  Here’s some help.

1.Set aside some time to reflect on the first paragraph above.  As you do, consider how the Gospel has impacted your life.  Has God healed your hurt?  Have you felt the Father’s love?  Have you experienced God’s goodness?  Have you found peace?  Write a paragraph about how God has changed your life through the Gospel.

2.Ask God for an opportunity to share a 30 second story about his goodness and power in your life.  Ask God to make you ready for the opportunity and to help you speak with confidence.  Be bold!  This is a great AND powerful message.  The Gospel has the power to rescue everyone who puts their trust in Christ and restore them with the goodness of God.

A Helpful "Centering Prayer"

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.    

Romans 15:13  NIV

   From time to time it is good to be reminded of the practice of “centering prayer”.  A centering prayer is a prayer that brings trust in God back to the center of our heart.  When trust in God gets pushed out of our heart, anxiety or anger take its place.  If we “catch” ourselves being anxious or angry, we can use a centering prayer to reaffirm our trust in God, so that His joy, peace and hope can refill our hearts.   Below is a good example of a centering prayer.

      “Father in Heaven, I trust You.  I believe that You love me and that You are always working for my good.  I believe that You are working for my good right now and that You will ultimately make all things good for me and for all of your people.  Please give me grace to trust You and please fill me with Your joy, peace and hope.”

   Write this prayer down on an index card.  Carry it with you and pray it at various times of the day throughout this week, especially if you sense anxiety or anger rising in your heart.  In some situations, you may need to pray the prayer several times to help you focus your attention on God.  Keep in mind that these are not magic words.  Your prayer must be a sincere expression of your heart.  

Building and Sustaining Joy and Hope

Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you?  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.   John 14:1-3  NIV

   Sometimes the struggles of this world are all too real and the joy of our future home in Heaven does not seem real enough.   Problems in this life can feel big  and insurmountable, while the pleasures of the next life can seem distant and almost nonexistent.   It becomes very easy to complain when this life is not going the way we want it to go. 

   Jesus knows our struggle is real.  That’s why He spoke the words above.  There really will be a day when we will be physically with him.  We will be amazed at his glory and ride high on the eternal bandwagon of his victory.  We will never again feel pain or doubt or confusion.

   One of the best ways to be inspired with the kind of hope that gives us strength to persevere with joy is to fill our heart with the truth of God.  This is what we call meditation.  We actually meditate every day of our lives. Unfortunately, we don't always meditate on helpful ideas.  Sometimes our meditation takes the form of worry because we focus on what could go bad rather than focusing on the good that God wants to produce in us.

 This week, write down the above verses on an index card or some other piece of paper and review them for a few minutes each day.  As you do, ask God to fill you with confident hope in Christ’s return and to help you remember that Jesus is looking forward to taking you to where He is.

Find Joy in Contributing Instead of Consuming

“And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”  Luke 1:17  NIV

    Christmas is all about celebrating the contribution God has made by sending Immanuel into the world to be our Savior.  In a strange twist, we prepare to celebrate God’s generous contribution with the most busy consumer month of the year. Yes, we do give, but while we do, our culture continuously feeds our temptation to consume more than contribute. It becomes easy to slip into the temptation to evaluate our experience of the Christmas season by how much we get more than by how much we give in honor of the great gift of Christ.

   In sending Christ, God began redirecting the big ship of humanity from going with the tide of selfishness to riding the wave of the selfless gift of Christ.  Christ showed us that it is more blessed to give than to receive and , through his death and resurrection, he has made it possible for us to experience this blessing of sacrificial love.

   What about you?  How are you preparing to seek the Savior during the Advent season?  Are you seeking his joy through contributing or are you stuck in the cycle of trying to find happiness in consuming? 

   This week, take some time to prepare for the Christmas season by contributing the to the needs of others rather than consuming for yourself.   Ask God to show you a way to serve someone this week and then seize the opportunity when it comes.  It might mean making cookies or coffee for your trash collector or picking up a task at work that is the responsibility of someone else.  It might mean making extra soup to share with a neighbor or offering a ride to someone whose car is in the shop. Keep your eyes open and God will show you.  As you serve others, keep in mind how much Christ has served you.