We also shared encouragement from Revelation 3 about ‘waking up’ when we get lazy or fall asleep. Joe’s pastor recently talked about a ‘revival’ of the heart where we wake up spiritually. The keys to this include:
breaking complacency
killing laziness
feeding what you want to grow – focusing on getting fed by the things of God
obeying, repenting, and repeating as needed: “God, help me to be obedient and approach you with a humble and repentant heart…”
guarding your heart – if the heart is our wellspring and where we hold everything, then allow God His rightful place on the throne of your heart
Verses that help with this process include: Matthew 8:35 and 23:37, Ephesians 5:14, Isaiah 26:19 and 52:1, Psalms 3:5 and 57:8, Proverbs 4:23 and Philippians 4:7.
Come on in. You’re welcome to join us here in the garden of Gethsemane. Believe it or not, I’m one of the oldest trees in the grove. I’m 750 years old, give or take a decade. But I’m still going…and growing…even though my trunk is all twisted and knobby.
I come from a long line of olive trees. In fact, I’m sure some of my ancestors even grew in the garden of Eden. God made us not only beautiful, but useful too. Our silvery leaves provide shade. Our wood can be used to build chairs or cook meals. Did you know the trees like me even help create the air you breathe? God created us trees for all kinds of amazing purposes. Another unique feature we treat possess is we’re quiet…which makes us really good listeners.
Tonight, a young man was here asking God for help. Of course I listened, not because I’m nosy, but because the man was crying and praying with such urgency. I wanted to help. His friends called him Jesus. He was praying right beneath my branches. Do you know what his friends did? They fell asleep. Even after he’d ask them to pray with him. This must have made him feel completely alone.
Later in the night, another man arrived and greeted Jesus with a kiss on the cheek. Immediately, a noisy group of soldiers showed up and roughly took Jesus away. Those friends who came with Jesus were fully awake then! They scattered like the little creatures that run around the grove at night. I wanted to do something, but the roots that keep me growing also keep me in one place.
I’m sure his friends are praying now wherever they went. You know, 700 years ago when I was just a sapling, I heard another man named Isaiah talk to God in this garden. I think he was praying about Jesus – the very same man here tonight.
God has a plan. And having known God for as long as I have I bet it’s a good one.
Today’s book winner – Jackie from Mount Vernon – congratulations!
Today we honor the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. by sharing a devotional from Pastor Victoria Curtiss, written as a tribute to him.
Matthew 5:43–48
“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers and sisters, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect. (NRSV)
Jesus said that anyone can love those who love them in return. What distinguishes people of God is the way we treat those who oppose us—our enemies. Just as God shows love to everyone, so are we to show love to everyone. This inclusivity is the meaning of “be perfect” as God is perfect.
What a fitting scripture for the day we honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The key to the life of Dr. King is found in his Christian faith. He responded to violence with nonviolence, to hate with love. Dr. King was always looking toward reconciliation after the battle, because his approach was grounded in the gospel. He wrote, “It was the Sermon on the Mount, not a doctrine of passive resistance, that inspired the Negroes of Montgomery to social action. It was Jesus of Nazareth that stirred [them] with the creative weapon of love.”
Martin Luther King recognized that the heart of the gospel proclaims that love can really change a situation of conflict and enmity: love reaching out toward the oppressor, love pushing negotiation, love offering forgiveness and newness. It wasn’t that he lacked an appreciation for the persistence and power of evil. It was rather his evangelist’s faith. He really believed that the intolerant and prejudiced sheriffs and politicians were sheep who had strayed from the fold, who had the potential to be converted. However powerful evil is, love is more powerful still. “Remember him,” said Coretta Scott King, “as a man who refused to lose faith in the ultimate redemption of [humanity].”
Prayer
Thank you, God, for the witness of Martin Luther King Jr. Guide me as Christ’s follower to love as you love—everyone without exception. I lift up my enemies to you and pray for their well-being. Amen.
How are you building your house? As we approach this week, Xochtil Dixon reminds us of how we can struggle if we build our house on anything other than the solid rock:
“Jesus knew the futility of building a house on sand. After warning the disciples to be wary of false prophets, He assured them that loving obedience demonstrates wisdom (Matthew 7:15–23). He said that everyone who hears His words and “puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock” (v. 24). The one who hears God’s words and chooses not to put them into practice, however, is “like a foolish man who built his house on sand” (v. 26).
When circumstances feel like shifting sands burying us under the weight of affliction or worries, we can place our hope in Christ, our Rock. He will help us develop resilient faith built on the unshakable foundation of His unchanging character.”
Author Mike Wittmer also encourages us to choose joy when we think from an ‘eternal’ perspective. Read more here.
Name something kids just love to jump on:
1 – the bed (71 votes) 2 – trampoline (20) 3 – couch (5) 4 – pile of leaves (4)
Congratulations to Heather from Howard, who won the Austin French CD ‘Wide Open.’
Driving Notes 