Skip to main content

think outside the box


Matthew 25:40 nlt
"And the King will say, 'I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!'

I cannot tell you the impact that a change in direction has done to my heart and even to the way I prepare messages.  It is exciting, an adventure and even a bit scary.  At least it is an area that we are not used to.

But what I want to encourage you to do is to THINK, ACT and LIVE outside of the box for JESUS.  That is not easy.  But what an awesome place it is to be and to see God work.

Here are some quotes:

Dallas Willard --- "We should not have any regard for the survival of the local church." It's God's church, not ours.

Dave Gibbons --- "Maybe Jesus was right: focus on the marginalized"

Mother Theresa --- "Words which do not give the light of Christ increase the darkness."

The last quote, from Mother Theresa, gets to my heart stirring it about how I look at people.  I stop to think about something.  Actually it is people.  People who are on the edge of being homeless.  We see these people, but we might not know their situation or need.  What goes through my head is different than what I have thought in the past.  My heart's desire is to help these people while God's love just totally overtakes people.

What does outside of the box look like and taste like?  For you it might be far different than where God has me right now.  Ask God to open your eyes and mine to how we can really live outside of the box for Him.

Ecclesiastes 4:10 nlt
If one person falls, the other can reach out and help. But someone who falls alone is in real trouble.

Proverbs 19:17 nlt
If you help the poor, you are lending to the Lord—and he will repay you!

NOTE: much of this post was first shared with readers of e-devotion in February 2009
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Catalyst ticket arrived

My ticket to the Catalyst Conference, in Atlanta Oct 8-10, just arrived. I'm excited!
10 comments
Read more

Have you heard of EDITH BURNS?

Edith Burns was a wonderful Christian who lived in San Antonio, Texas . She was the patient of a doctor by the name of Will Phillips. Dr. Phillips was a gentle doctor who saw patients as people. His favorite patient was Edith Burns.  One morning he went to his office with a heavy heart and it was because of Edith Burns.  When he walked into that waiting room, there sat Edith with her big black Bible in her lap earnestly talking to a young mother sitting beside her.  Edith Burns had a habit of introducing herself in this way: "Hello, my name is Edith Burns.  Do you believe in Easter?" Then she would explain the meaning of Easter, and many times people would be saved.  Dr. Phillips walked into that office and there he saw the head nurse, Beverly. Beverly had first met Edith when she was taking her blood pressure. Edith began by saying,"My name is Edith Burns. Do you believe in Easter?"  Beverly said, "Why yes I do."  Edith said, "Well, what do you ...
Post a Comment
Read more

wash feet, sharing hope

  John 13:4-5,14 NLT  So he got up from the table, took off his robe, wrapped a towel around his waist, 5 and poured water into a basin. Then he began to wash the disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel he had around him… 14 And since I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash each other’s feet. Jesus set the example we follow.  He served.  He valued and gave value to others.  That is why we choose to serve. For 18 years our church has shared an outreach called back2school, and for 16 of those years we have chosen to give students brand new shoes and socks as well as washing their feet.  It is one of the most important parts of this event. Washing feet is a humbling experience where both the give and the receiver learn how to share some moments that might change their lives.  Jesus said we should do this.  See the verse above.  Follow His example, do what He did, and give far more than you will ever know....
Post a Comment
Read more