The need to be right is different than the desire to be right. Desiring to be right is scriptural, however, the need to be right breeds destruction. Throughout history the reputation of the church and the gospel has been stained by ‘well meaning’ people who needed to be right. People have been killed, persecuted, and condemned in the name of being right. Churches have split, and friendships forever broken by people who believed they were absolutely right.
If so much damage has been created by people trying to be right, then what should we do? Should we throw away the truth, forget pursuing it and adopt the philosophy, “you have your truth and I have mine”? Absolutely not! Jesus, our example, always told the truth. He uncompromisingly said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life, no man comes to the father except through me.” Yet, Jesus never used the truth or being right as an excuse to hurt people.
Jesus would have been ‘right’ to have stoned the woman accused of adultery, but he chose instead to extend mercy! He did not approve of her wrongful actions, but went against the common religious thinking of the day in order to show the heart of our Father God and extend mercy to this woman.
John 13:35 does not say all men will know we are his disciples because we are right. It says all men will know we are his disciples by our love. Love does not oppose truth, rather it makes truth effective. 1 Cor 13:2 “And if I understand all the secret truths and mysteries and possess all knowledge, and if I have sufficient faith so that I can remove mountains, but have not love (God's love in me) I am nothing. (Amp)
Truth is important…it’s from God. However, as Wayne Dyer once said, “When given the choice between being right and being kind, always choose being kind.”
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Thursday, August 19, 2010
“I Want It”
It happened just a few days ago in the grocery store. I had what I needed and was only a few steps away from the check out line. That’s when I saw it. Seeing it created a mental picture, and sparked a desire. Next, my desire spoke to me. Not an audible voice, but an inward voice saying: “I want it.” It was like I was back in the Garden of Eden: It was good… pleasing to the eye… and also desirable… (See Genesis 3:6 NIV) Getting it would alter my course, delay my progress, and increase my grocery bill. However, to be honest, at that moment I did not consider any of the above. I immediately stopped and picked it up. Not only did I pick it up, but I immediately proceeded to another isle to get something to compliment it. It was not on a list, or in my plans, but it went home with me. In some small way, it became a part of my life.
What was this life-altering, all encompassing thing? A moon pie. The vision my desire created was not just a moon pie but a microwave heated moon pie with ice cream on it. Therefore, the second place it led me was to the ice cream isle. I don’t really feel bad about getting it, because one moon pie with a little bit of ice cream (okay a big scoop of ice cream) never killed anyone. I’m not a diabetic, I exercise almost every day, and I’m not overweight. So, I guess I deserved it. That’s right, I deserved it!
The process just described was a process we all go through every day of our lives. It may not be a moon pie in a grocery store, but another it grabs our attention, creates a mental picture and sparks a desire that speaks to us. Sometimes when we see it, we immediately realize we don’t have enough time for it so we forget it. Sometimes pursuing it would alter our current course too much or is too expensive so we forget it. Sometimes, we resist pursuing it now, but the desire remains, so later on we pursue it.
It may be good or bad, right or wrong, healthy or unhealthy. It may be such a small thing (like my moon pie) it has no life altering consequences. The important thing to recognize is this: Every moment of the day something is after our attention. Advertisers make a living trying to get our attention. We must realize that what we give our attention to will ultimately determine our direction in life. If we give too much attention not only to wrong things, but also to unimportant things, we will sooner or later end up at an undesirable destination. This principle is true in every arena of life: personal goals, relational goals, professional goals, spiritual goals.
Our attention determines our destination.
Desire is part of the process, but just wanting something is not good enough. This is what Jesus was talking about when he said: “But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life…” (Luke 21:34 NKJV) Take heed means to pay attention to. If we don’t pay attention to what we are paying attention to, we will become weighed down with the things that at best add no value to our life and at worst take away from or destroy our life.
The scriptures tell us where there is no insight, dream, or revelation we lose restraint (Prov. 29:18). When we lose sight of the prize (our desired destination), we follow whatever catches our attention at the moment. I once heard a Pastor say he had never heard someone on their deathbed say they wish they had spent more time at the office. He went on to say that he had heard many regret filled stories of people wishing they had spent more time with their family or friends. Some of these people were popular, respected by peers, and even wealthy. Yet, at the end of their lives they found themselves at an undesired destination.
Even if we don’t consciously choose, our attention goes somewhere. Almost everyday, I hear people saying, “I don’t have enough time for…, or “I wish I could…” These people often complain about their circumstances and feel they have no choice. Because they have lost sight of the prize, they live an undisciplined life. They do, however, have a choice. We all have a choice. We can finish our course with joy. We, like Paul, can choose to give our attention to things that give us life. … “I press on to lay hold of (grasp) and make my own, that for which Christ Jesus has laid hold of me and made me His own.” Phil 3:12
We all enjoy receiving a prize (or the end result) of things strived for or highly valued. However, often we give our attention to things we don’t want. Therefore, I want to ask you two very important questions: #1. What it are you giving your attention to today? #2. Do you really want what that it will bring into your life tomorrow? If your answer is no, then it’s time to drop the excuses and choose some new its to give your attention to. How joyful it is when our inner voice says, “I want it" and leads us to the finish line we truly want.
Find out more
It happened just a few days ago in the grocery store. I had what I needed and was only a few steps away from the check out line. That’s when I saw it. Seeing it created a mental picture, and sparked a desire. Next, my desire spoke to me. Not an audible voice, but an inward voice saying: “I want it.” It was like I was back in the Garden of Eden: It was good… pleasing to the eye… and also desirable… (See Genesis 3:6 NIV) Getting it would alter my course, delay my progress, and increase my grocery bill. However, to be honest, at that moment I did not consider any of the above. I immediately stopped and picked it up. Not only did I pick it up, but I immediately proceeded to another isle to get something to compliment it. It was not on a list, or in my plans, but it went home with me. In some small way, it became a part of my life.
What was this life-altering, all encompassing thing? A moon pie. The vision my desire created was not just a moon pie but a microwave heated moon pie with ice cream on it. Therefore, the second place it led me was to the ice cream isle. I don’t really feel bad about getting it, because one moon pie with a little bit of ice cream (okay a big scoop of ice cream) never killed anyone. I’m not a diabetic, I exercise almost every day, and I’m not overweight. So, I guess I deserved it. That’s right, I deserved it!
The process just described was a process we all go through every day of our lives. It may not be a moon pie in a grocery store, but another it grabs our attention, creates a mental picture and sparks a desire that speaks to us. Sometimes when we see it, we immediately realize we don’t have enough time for it so we forget it. Sometimes pursuing it would alter our current course too much or is too expensive so we forget it. Sometimes, we resist pursuing it now, but the desire remains, so later on we pursue it.
It may be good or bad, right or wrong, healthy or unhealthy. It may be such a small thing (like my moon pie) it has no life altering consequences. The important thing to recognize is this: Every moment of the day something is after our attention. Advertisers make a living trying to get our attention. We must realize that what we give our attention to will ultimately determine our direction in life. If we give too much attention not only to wrong things, but also to unimportant things, we will sooner or later end up at an undesirable destination. This principle is true in every arena of life: personal goals, relational goals, professional goals, spiritual goals.
Our attention determines our destination.
Desire is part of the process, but just wanting something is not good enough. This is what Jesus was talking about when he said: “But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life…” (Luke 21:34 NKJV) Take heed means to pay attention to. If we don’t pay attention to what we are paying attention to, we will become weighed down with the things that at best add no value to our life and at worst take away from or destroy our life.
The scriptures tell us where there is no insight, dream, or revelation we lose restraint (Prov. 29:18). When we lose sight of the prize (our desired destination), we follow whatever catches our attention at the moment. I once heard a Pastor say he had never heard someone on their deathbed say they wish they had spent more time at the office. He went on to say that he had heard many regret filled stories of people wishing they had spent more time with their family or friends. Some of these people were popular, respected by peers, and even wealthy. Yet, at the end of their lives they found themselves at an undesired destination.
Even if we don’t consciously choose, our attention goes somewhere. Almost everyday, I hear people saying, “I don’t have enough time for…, or “I wish I could…” These people often complain about their circumstances and feel they have no choice. Because they have lost sight of the prize, they live an undisciplined life. They do, however, have a choice. We all have a choice. We can finish our course with joy. We, like Paul, can choose to give our attention to things that give us life. … “I press on to lay hold of (grasp) and make my own, that for which Christ Jesus has laid hold of me and made me His own.” Phil 3:12
We all enjoy receiving a prize (or the end result) of things strived for or highly valued. However, often we give our attention to things we don’t want. Therefore, I want to ask you two very important questions: #1. What it are you giving your attention to today? #2. Do you really want what that it will bring into your life tomorrow? If your answer is no, then it’s time to drop the excuses and choose some new its to give your attention to. How joyful it is when our inner voice says, “I want it" and leads us to the finish line we truly want.
Find out more
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