What Are Your Expectations?

     I was reflecting this morning on my expectations in life.  Ever since I was a little girl, I have had high expectations about people, the holidays and life in general.  I am certain many of you can relate.
     I would discover something outside that I thought was absolutely wonderful, and I would run inside all excited to tell my mother.  However, her response was always disappointing because she didn't get as excited as I was.  Or, I would anticipate a certain gift at Christmas time only to discover that no one had purchased that for me.  Finally, I might expect someone to do a certain thing for me only to be disheartened that they never thought about doing it.
     Our expectations can let us down, and the holidays can be a depressing time if our expectations are on the wrong things.  All we have to do is watch the T.V. ads which show the idyllic family gathering, happy faces all around and an abundance of food and gifts.  These ads paint an often false picture of real life.  It represents the world's concept of perfection not what God wants us to focus on.
     In Luke 2:25-38, we read about two faithful servants of the Lord who lived near the Temple and served Him all the time.  One named Simeon asked the Lord to allow him to live till He could see the Messiah.  The other servant was Anna who stayed in the Temple constantly worshipping the Lord.  These two saints were living to see God's salvation.  Their expectations were fastened to the right thing.  When Simeon saw Jesus, he said:  "Lord now You are letting Your servant depart in peace, according to Your Word; for my eyes have seen Your salvation which You have prepared before the face of all peoples, a light to bring revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of Your people Israel."  Simeon went on to prophesy over Jesus.  Anna, a widow who lived near the Temple, blessed the baby Jesus when she saw Him.
     Oh, to be like both Anna and Simeon!  Their expectations were on the right things.  We know that Jesus will never disappoint us!  He is the best gift that God could ever bring into our lives, and the best friend we could ever have.
     As the holidays approach, we need to check out our expectations.  Are we setting ourselves up for disappointment by putting our expectations on the wrong things or are we looking to the Lord this year?  He will never leave us nor forsake us.  This Thanksgiving and Christmas, let us put Christ at the center of all we say and do.  Then, we will never be disappointed!  Selah!

   

I welcome your thoughts and insights.  May the Lord bless you for stopping by!

Am I Serving God at Work?

     Have you ever thought about your vocation?  I don't think I have ever really given my life's work much attention in terms of how it relates to my spiritual life, but in a recent edition of "Modern Reformation" magazine, I read an excellent article by Gene Edward Veith entitled:  "The Doctrine of Vocation, How God Hides Himself in Human Work."  This article opened my eyes to the misconceptions that many of us carry concerning our every day work whether in the home or outside of it.

Grandson Aiden hard at work with his Daddy Aaron

     For the medieval church, the term vocation meant belonging to a religious order.  Only those in full-time ministry were considered to be on the inside track to heaven.  Their work was looked upon as being sacred and fulfilling.  All other work was mundane and unimportant.  However, Martin Luther broke through that understanding of vocation as well as interpretation of Scripture when he nailed his ninety-five theses on the cathedral door.  He believed that vocation included the office of husband and wife through whom God works to bring up children.  In fact, according to Gene Edward Veith, Luther believed that God gave gifts through His means thereby being able to meet the needs of His people in community.  We have daily bread because there are bakers, retailers and truck drivers who bring the baked goods to the store.  It is through our economic system that God provides for our daily bread.  Likewise, while a person can receive a miraculous healing, God has ordained the vocation of doctor, nurses and other health care providers who can bring about His healing work.  All of this is God's providential working to provide for our needs.  He is behind it all....soli deo gloria!

     God is graciously at work behind the scenes, as it were, to benefit both believers and unbelievers in this world.  His care for us extends through the work of other human beings to His great glory.  Behind the work of our parents who raised us, our teachers who have educated us, our spouses who provide care for us, our employers, and yes, even our government stands the Lord Himself who bestows His many blessings.  When we look at things this way, no job or vocation seems unimportant does it?

     Our purpose behind our vocation is in serving others and this is especially true for Christians.  Jesus told us in Matthew 20:26-28:  "It shall not be so among you.  But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many."  He spoke these words to his disciples who were arguing about who would get the place of prominence next to Jesus when He came into His kingdom.    They had their thinking out of line with God's purposes.  For His disciples as well as for us today, we are meant to serve one another and not to be served.  Believers in Jesus Christ are not a part of our entitlement society.  We are born again to be servants of the most High God for the benefit of our fellow man whether they are part of the covenant community or not.  This is how we will attract and win people to the Lord...by our love for one another and for those outside the household of faith.

     Furthermore, while we may think that we choose our own vocation, in reality, it is God who calls us to a certain work and equips us with the talents, skills and inclination to accomplish the work.  Again, God is behind the scenes working to direct us through others to the vocation for which He has made us.  The job interview, college scholarship, internship or job offer are all clues to the direction the Lord wants us to take in our lives.  Let me also state emphatically that we are called to multiple vocations in our lives....not just one.  Perhaps the most important calling we have is to our home and family.  Being a homemaker, parent and spouse are all offices that are sacred in the eyes of God.  Working outside the home is merely one avenue of fulfilling God's call on our life.  However, it is not the only one.

     Perhaps the most poignant comment that Mr. Veith makes in his article comes in his discussion of those menial jobs that people tend to think God could never call us to.  He writes:  "Essentially, one's vocation is to be found in the place one occupies in the present.  A person stuck in a dead-end job may have higher ambitions, but for the moment that job, however humble, is one's vocation.  Flipping hamburgers, cleaning hotel rooms, emptying bedpans all have dignity as vocations, spheres of expressing love of neighbor through selfless service in which God is masked.  Perhaps later, another vocation will present itself.  Vocation is to be found not simply in future career decisions, but in the here and now."  If only we could grasp how important this point is for us!  What a difference it would make in how we do our daily tasks!  No job is too small especially if we see it as an opportunity to serve others and share the good news of the Gospel.

     Our faulty thinking has often been the culprit in our poor attitude about our calling in this life.  We tend to think that unless we are preaching the Bible, writing a book or doing some other GREAT work of ministry we are "less than" when it comes to serving the Lord.  Yet, we forget that in our current vocation, whatever that may be, we are reaching people that our pastor cannot reach.  God's plans and way of thinking are far removed from ours.  His design for us is to bring us to maturity and conformity to Christ.  He will do all that He has said He will do and the good work which He has begun in us will be completed.  Isn't that wonderful to know?  Therefore, we do not need to stress about vocation.  We only need to know that the work we do and the talent we share should be done for the Lord's glory.  He is using us to serve others.  As Jesus clearly taught, the greatest commandment is this:  (Matthew 22:37-40) "And He said to him, 'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.  This is the great and first commandment.  And a second is like it:  You shall love your neighbor as yourself.  On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.'"

This is our goal as a believer when it comes to serving God through vocation.  May this inspire us to be all we can be on a daily basis and give us some new ways of looking at our vocation.  Selah!

References:

Modern Reformation, Vol. 21, No. 6, November-December 2012, pgs 30-33, Gene Edward Veith, "The Doctrine of Vocation How God Hides Himself in Human Work."

Near to the Heart of God

     Thirty-three and a half years ago, my husband and I moved to the small rural town of Lake Placid, Florida.  Having grown up in the quiet farming community of Napoleon, Ohio, I loved the peace and friendliness that comes from a small town.  While my husband's hometown was larger (Defiance, Ohio), there was still the congenial atmosphere that comes from knowing your neighbors and sharing life together.  When he went off to professional school, we were both exposed to large city living.
     After spending four years in the  city of Columbus, Ohio,  where my husband attended the College of Optometry, we were both ready for a slower pace of living.  Large cities are great to visit or shop in, but this "country mouse" enjoys freedom from "rush hour" traffic, lower crime rates,
less noise, and the opportunity to know your neighbors.  As a result, our choice of small town Florida was a "no brainer" for us.  We had a chance to breathe, slow down, and enjoy family.
     Even in our spiritual lives, we have a deep need to find that quiet place where we can retreat with God.  The fast pace of every day living drains us of all our reserves both physically and spiritually.  No matter where we live, all of us need to be able to find that soul reviving spot where we can be near to the heart of God.
     Our first invitation to find rest comes from our Lord Jesus Christ in Matthew 11:28-30:  "Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."  At first glance, this appears to be a sweet call to lay down our burdens.  Indeed it is but we need to understand the context.  The religious Pharisees at the time our Lord walked the earth had made people believe that following the Law brought salvation.  However, because man is sinful and incapable of obedience to God's Law, this job was impossible.  All fall short in this area.  None of us is capable of keeping the Law.  Jesus' invitation to come to Him brought freedom from the bondage of sin.  His yoke brings rest.  Unfortunately, as believers, we can pick those nasty, heavy burdens up again when we begin to think that we can do this "Christian life" in our own strength.  This is when we need a prayer retreat right where we live.  Coming to Jesus, laying the burdens down (especially things we have no control over) and putting on His yoke through prayer brings rest to our soul and rejuvenation.
     A second place we need to visit is the valley where we find rest and where our "Good Shepherd" leads us beside the still waters.  Psalm 23, while short, offers us a picture of what it means to be a sheep of God's fold.  In verse 1 and 2, we see the Lord as our shepherd who makes a place for us to rest and drink deeply of His refreshing water.  We know from the conversation that Jesus had with the Samaritan woman that He is the living water that satisfies our thirst forever.   So where can we find this living water?  According to Ephesians 5:26-27, we find it in the Word of God:  "...that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the Word, so that He might present the church to Himself in splendor without spot or wrinkle or any such thing that she might be holy and without blemish."  This is where we find "living" water daily.  It is to be our food.
     As the Psalm goes on, we see our Shepherd leading us in paths of righteousness and even guiding us through the "valley of the shadow of death".  He is there to comfort us, console us and protect us.  The concluding verses teach us that God has prepared a table for us and a cup of oil with which to anoint us.  This means we are set apart, chosen, elect.  However, the key thing to remember is that to be near to the heart of God is to be in His Word.  This is the valley of rest, the stream of "living" water, and the cup of anointing for us.  If we need refreshment, quiet and peace, we will find it in the Holy Bible.
     Finally, when we really want that feeling of drawing near to God's heart, we will find it in corporate worship with other believers.  While prayer and Bible reading can be done alone in retreat mode, fellowship provides rest from the assaults of the world upon our thinking.  Here we are surrounded by other saints of like mind who can encourage, exhort, lift up, and hold us accountable.  God wants us to draw near to Him, but He does not ask us to go to a monastery to accomplish this.  We were made for community because there is strength in numbers.  In addition, we have others to pray for us and hold us up when we think we cannot go on.  Hebrews 10:23-25 reads:  "Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.  And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together as is the habit of some but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near."  This is not unlike a small hometown.  We know each other, love each other and help one another.
     When we seek to draw near to God, He draws near to us.  We have a perfect formula for finding rest, peace and joy in this busy, hectic world.  Simply come to Jesus and lay down our burdens in prayer.  Then rest in the valley of our Shepherd and find "living" water in His Word which cleanses us and renews our mind and finally, we can enjoy the fellowship of the saints.  Worshipping together brings encouragement to go on through our busy weeks.   As the holidays approach, we have even more need to escape the hustle and bustle and find time to come near the heart of God.  So whether you live in a city or are a country mouse like me, we must remember to take time to draw near to God's heart.  As we do, we will find the rest and quiet that will calm our hearts and give us strength for tomorrow.  Selah!

I welcome, as always, your thoughts.  Where do you find pleasant refreshment in the Lord?