Extraordinary in the Ordinary

“When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus.”
Acts 4:13

I saw an interesting news story on the internet the other day. In the story a seemingly normal guy set out to make a documentary about getting rejected… go figure - don’t we face enough rejection in this world without having to intentionally go look for it? One day he walked into a Krispy Kreme donut shop and made an unusual request - he wanted a donut in the shape of the Olympic rings, and colored correctly. Now of course he expected to be told no, instead he found himself in an extraordinary situation. The manager of the shop was up to the challenge, did her best to meet the gentleman’s request, even googling the symbol to make sure she got the colors right. When she presented the donuts to him, he was thrilled and then it got even better. She gave him the donuts - no charge. He said he had failed in his attempt to get rejected but that the actions of the Krispy Kreme manager was extraordinary and made his heart feel good. 

In today’s passage it is not that Peter and John were courageous as they preached the Good News of Jesus, it is the fact that they were ordinary men, doing something extraordinary because they had been with Jesus. For some of those they touched with their message powered by the Holy Spirit - hearts where changed, fear was driven out and healing took place. But for others, the effect was the opposite - they were afraid because two ordinary men were doing extraordinary things in the name of Jesus.

I am fairly certain that most of us get that we are just ordinary people, but I am also sure that every once in a while I catch a glimpse of the extraordinary in others and sometimes myself. What about you? Has your heart been changed by an extraordinary act of an ordinary person? Have you been the extraordinary answer to the prayer of an ordinary friend or stranger?

As we clear away the leftovers of our Thanksgiving feasts and approach the season of Advent may we experience the extraordinary in the ordinary and be made better for it.

A Prayer
Father - Thank you, for using ordinary people and circumstances to do extraordinary things in this world. Help us to be on the lookout for those extraordinary moments that will fill our hearts to over flowing and bring You glory and honor. In the name of Jesus - Amen.

Always Thankful

“I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”
Philippians 1:3-6

I really like that in almost all of his letters Paul at some point - almost always by way of his greeting - says that he is thankful for the people to whom he is writing. The four verses above speak volumes about being thankful.

Like Paul each week as I write this simple devotion, hoping that it will be used by the Lord to encourage someone, I think of you, pray and thank God for each of you. Some of you reading this have been a part of my life for a long time and have been an encouragement to me throughout the years - for you I give God thanks. Some of you I don’t know as well but you have touched my life in some way, so for you I also give thanks to God. Some of you I am just getting to know and have already been encouraged and am excited to see what happens next as we journey together - I am thanking God for you too. 

None of us are perfect; no relationship is without its occasional drama - that’s part of life and something to be thankful for. We are being made over, by a God who loves us and perhaps one of the greatest things we have to be thankful for is that He is not finished with us yet, but He will keep working until we are radiant and perfect. Then we will see each other, the way He sees each of us - as amazing masterpieces, one-of-a-kinds that together form an even greater masterpiece. I wonder what the portrait of the Family of God will look like then, when it is already so spectacular.

This week as you gather to feast with friends and family remember you are loved by God and so are they (even the difficult ones). I thank God every time I remember you. 

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

A Prayer
Father - Thank you, that you remember us and will not leave us unfinished. Thank you for the people you place in our lives to help us, to encourage us and to journey with us, they are all part of your plan. May we all give thanks every time we remember one another and especially as we remember all that You have done for us. In the name of Jesus - Amen.

Thankful for Freedom

“So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.”
Colossians 2:6-7

This is the day when we pause to recognize the members of our armed services and since 9/11 our first responders. All of these men and women who daily place their lives in harm’s way to protect our freedom and the many that have made the ultimate sacrifice for that same cause. For this we must be ever thankful. For this we must never take our freedom for granted.

As I was thinking about the great privilege anyone living in a free country has, I realized that in this world there are some who fight against freedom and I wonder why anyone do that? Why would anyone fight to protect a tyrant or slavery? Is it fear, is it ignorance, is it miss placed faith that drive some to surrender their lives in order to hold freedom at bay?

But there is a greater freedom available to everyone no matter the government they live under. It is a freedom paid for by the blood of Jesus. For those of us who call Jesus Lord, who have accepted his grace and his mercy, whose debt has been paid - Paul reminds us that we should live lives of abundant thanksgiving.

Because we are free in more than one way we have a responsibility to live free and to pray for those who live in captivity, both on this planet and spiritually. We have a responsibility to pray for those who have found freedom in Christ but are not free to worship Him. We also need to heed the example of those who risk their lives to worship Him in a captive land - for they are abundantly thankful for His sacrifice - they do not take it for granted.

For those who fight that we may be free - give thanks. For the freedom we have in Christ - give thanks.

A Prayer

Father - Thank you, that we live in lands where we have the freedom to worship you. Thank you for the men and women who fought for that freedom and who have died for it. Thank you for those to fight to protect our freedom still. Thank that your Son has set us free from sin and death. Help us to be abundantly thankful for all of the freedoms we enjoy. In the name of Jesus - Amen.

Tis the Season...

“I will praise God’s name in song and glorify him with thanksgiving.”
Psalm 69:30

The season of thanksgiving that is. As I was looking for today’s verse I was struck by the idea that God has to remind his people that they need to be thankful. How well the Father knows His children, He knew that they would take the many blessings He provides either for granted or that like a spoiled child they would develop an attitude of entitlement. How easy is it for us to take our many blessings for granted or at times to feel entitled to the good things God has for us? I suspect it happens more often than we would like, I know that is the case with me. 

The Hebrew word translated as thanksgiving in the Old Testament is toda and the Greek word used in the New Testament is eucharistia. Both of these words have similar meanings but something in the definition of toda really caught my eye it said: “Thanks is the speaking of the excellence of a person or object, with a focus on the personal gratitude of the speaker.” Did you catch that? When we give thanks for the people and things in our lives the attitude of how we express our gratitude is important. Do you say thank you because you are just being polite or do you give thanks from a place of sincere gratitude?

As we race toward the next “Tis the Season” may we slow down enough to truly enjoy the season of Thanksgiving and may we give thanks for the amazing God we serve, for the people in our lives who are walking on this journey with us - no matter how rough the road may get, and for the many things we have and may we give that thanks out of hearts overflowing with gratitude.

What are you thankful for? Today, as I have written this, the list of things I have to be thankful for is growing longer by the second. In fact that list is so long that I think today I am even thankful for the not so good things in life.

Tis the season for giving thanks - do so with an attitude of extreme gratitude. 

A Prayer
Father - Thank you, thank you for every good thing You have given to us. Thank you for the people who have given us to share life with. Thank you for the struggles and hard times that make us stronger and make us turn to You. Thank you that you hear our prayers and long to give us good things. Thank you that You loved us so much that you sent Your Son to take away our sins and restore our relationship with you. Help us to live from a place of gratitude all year long. In the name of Jesus, who gives us a reason to be thankful we pray - Amen