Merry Christmas!

"Immanuel, God with us in our nature, in our sorrow, in our lifework, in our punishment, in our grave, and now with us, or rather we with Him, in resurrection, ascension, triumph, and Second Advent splendor."
 - Charles Spurgeon

"He was created of a mother whom He created. He was carried by hands that He formed. He cried in the manger in wordless infancy, He the Word, without whom all human eloquence is mute."

 - Augustine

Joy to the world, the Lord is come!

Let earth receive her King;

Let every heart prepare Him room,

And Heaven and nature sing,

And Heaven and nature sing,

And Heaven, and Heaven, and nature sing.

Joy to the earth, the Savior reigns!

Let men their songs employ;

While fields and floods, rocks, hills and plains

Repeat the sounding joy,

Repeat the sounding joy,

Repeat, repeat, the sounding joy.

No more let sins and sorrows grow,

Nor thorns infest the ground;

He comes to make His blessings flow

Far as the curse is found,

Far as the curse is found,

Far as, far as, the curse is found.

He rules the world with truth and grace,

And makes the nations prove

The glories of His righteousness,

And wonders of His love,

And wonders of His love,

And wonders, wonders, of His love.

 - Isaac Watts

photo credit

Not My Ways

About a year ago, my family and I were planning to take a much-anticipated out-of-state trip.  A few days before we were supposed to leave, my toddler brother started throwing up.  As the bug slowly went through the rest of the family, we hoped that this would not change our plans.  Eventually, however, it was clear that some of us were not going to be able to make the trip.


Needless to say, this was not what we had planned.


This was not what I had planned.


For centuries, the Jewish people had waited for the promised Messiah.  Ideas and expectations abounded as the conquered people hoped for a majestic Jewish ruler to restore greatness to their nation.  Many, especially the zealots, expected a great and mighty man to come in the greatness of physical power, and he would show the world that the Jews were God's people - invincible conquerors.  The zealots were looking for the Messiah in high and powerful places.


They weren't looking in a manger.


Mary and Joseph were a devout couple with godly plans for the future - their future.  As a God-fearing couple, their plans for their future together were good plans: they desired to bring glory to God with their lives.  But it only took one verse, and all those good plans and dreams came crashing down.


Mary and Joseph didn't expect to be making the arduous journey to Bethlehem.  Mary didn't expect to place her firstborn in a cattle trough.  As poor citizens in an occupied land, Mary and Joseph didn't expect to have to flee to Egypt when the king of the land pursued them.  Mary and Joseph didn't expect to be told, "'And a sword will pierce your own soul, too'" (Luke 2:35).


"Christmas" didn't meet Mary and Joseph's or the zealots' expectations.  Christmas really didn't meet any human's expectations.  But God never consults man about His eternal plan; God writes our stories, not us.


I may never know why God kept us home that week.  Mary and Joseph may not have understood some aspects of God's plan for their lives until they reached heaven.  Many of the zealots probably never figured it out, either.  God's plans are always way above our plans, and it's His plans that are best.


Merry Christmas.

A World of Instant, A Culture of Hurry

As the song says, this really is "The Most Wonderful Time of the Year."  With carols playing, lights twinkling, and the weather turning crisp, everyone is constantly busy.  It all points to a day still three weeks away - Christmas.  For an entire month, we wait for this day.  For the rest of the year, we look back with fondness on the last Christmas and look forward to the next.


As Christians, we celebrate the season of Advent, a month-long anticipation of Christmas Day.  It's a strange time for the culture we live in.  In this world of instant, with fast food and instant video streaming,  it's hard for us to slow down and wait for any amount of time - let alone an entire month.


The word "Advent" is Latin, meaning "arrival" or "coming."  Advent, typically the three to four weeks before Christmas Day, is a time of preparation before the celebration of Christ's coming.  With Advent, churches and families celebrate Christmas as an entire season, not just a day.  While it reminds us of Christ's first coming, Advent also points to the time of waiting for Christ's second coming.


Promises were given by God long ago.  The fulfillment of those prophecies came to pass, sometimes hundreds, sometimes thousands, of years after the prophecies were made.


More promises have been made - Christ will come again!  Just as certainly as God kept the promises of Christ's first coming, He will keep the promises of His second coming.

During Advent, we celebrate the Faithful God who always keeps His promises.


During Advent, we remember those who waited a lifetime for the fulfillment of those promises - and those who never saw the fulfillment, but trusted it would come just the same.


During Advent, we celebrate Immanuel, "God With Us," when God entered His creation as a baby.


During Advent, we realize - even in our culture of instant - that it was worth the wait.

Surprises in the Hall of Faith

By faith.  By faith.  By faith.  By FAITH.


So reads the famous "Hall of Faith" chapter in the New Testament - Hebrews 11.  As I read this chapter the other day, most of the names fit comfortably in my idea of "faith."  There was Abraham.  Noah.  Moses.  Easy - they all had much faith.


But then my eyes stopped at a name I didn't expect to see in Hebrews 11: Samson.


Samson?


Is this the same Samson who blatantly defied his parents - and God?  Is this the same Samson who chose a bride among the "uncircumcised Philistines" (Judges 14:3)?  Is this the same Samson who left his God-given purpose for a woman?  Is this the same Samson who foolishly gave away his 'secret' to the same woman who had betrayed him not once, not twice, but THREE times before?  Is this the same Samson?


Yeah - that's the one.


Samson chose a wife, not by his parents' guidance or God's precepts, but because "she was right in Samson's eyes" (Judges 14:7).


Eventually, Samson's self-centered foolishness led to his downfall.  His enemies, paid by his girlfriend, captured him, enslaved him, and blinded him by putting out his eyes.  For some time Samson performed servile tasks for his captors.


But little by little, Samson's hair grew back.  Day after monotonous day, it grew longer.  Matthew Henry points out that the growth of Samson's hair was not so much a sign of his strength as it was a sign of God once again working through him.  Samson was penitent of his past sins, and turned to the God who had orchestrated his entire life.


Then one day, the Philistines brought Samson out to gloat over him.  At long last, they had captured the elusive and legendary Samson of the neighboring Israelites.  Samson came out, led by the hand as his own eyes were no longer any good for him.  At Samson's request, the young man leading him placed Samson's hands on the pillars that were upholding the building.  Samson prayed to his God: and pushed hard on the pillars.


Thousands of Philistines died that day as they were having a good time and praising their god for delivering Samson to them.


I guess God had the last word.


Samson is only mentioned one more time in the Bible after his death in Judges 16.  That one time is in Hebrews 11, the Hall of Faith.


Who would have thought that a stubborn and rebellious young man would be named as a man of great faith?  God changed Samson's heart.  Once Samson turned to God, he put his faith in the only One deserving of his trust. Once Samson's own eyes were out of the question, he saw what was right in God's eyes - and acted on it.


God can redeem the lowest sinner.  And Samson could still follow God after refusing His leading for so long.


Just like Jonah still preached to Nineveh - after literally running away from God.  Peter still led the disciples - after denying Christ three times.  And who can forget Saul, who changed his name to Paul?  He wrote nearly half of the books in the New Testament - after agreeing to the stoning of the first Christian martyr.


Every great man or woman of God is also a great sinner.  "For all have sinned," Paul wrote under the guidance of the Holy Spirit.  But God is a God of redemption, of saving that great sinner and making him or her a great servant of God.  All of history shows God's redemption.  All of our lives showcase His faithfulness.


Great men or women of faith are not great in and of themselves.  They are great because they have placed their faith in a faithful God - and they know that He is worthy of that faith.

"Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God..."

Hebrews 11:16

Risky Responsibility

Hans and Sophie with
a fellow collaborator

Hans and Sophie Scholl were a brother and sister living in Nazi Germany.  Unlike most of their peers, the two were not taken in by Nazi lies, and they refused to stand by and watch their countrymen blindly believe the Nazi propaganda.  Secretly, at the possible risk of their lives, they began distributing anti-Nazi literature, exposing the lies of the Nazi regime...and one day they were caught.


It seems that modern Christians don't always know what to do with their culture.  Some want to hide from it (the Amish come to mind).  Others see nothing wrong with living just as those around them live - and their similarities show.  The divorce rate among Christians looks more like the culture than the Scriptures.  Young adults are walking away from the church in droves; why stay when nothing is different?


John Stonestreet, of Summit Ministries and Breakpoint Radio, in a lecture titled "Christianity and Culture," reminds Christians that we are supposed to be in the world, but not of the world.  Christians can have one of three responses to our culture, Stonestreet says.  We can be offended by our culture and withdraw from it, but then we wouldn't be in or of the world.  Or, as many other Christians are, we could be distracted by our culture and assimilate it.  However, then we would not only be in the world, but we would also be of it - living just like everybody else in a culture of darkness where we are called to be light.  The final approach Christians can take to culture is to be engaged in the culture and faithful to the gospel.  In the world, but not of it.  Sometimes we find ourselves asking, "How far is too far?"  Instead, Stonestreet teaches that we should be asking, "'For what am I responsible?'"


Hans and Sophie Scholl didn't have to do what they did.  In fact, Hans wrote to a friend that it was tempting to just retreat to a serene haven outside of the hubbub of Nazi activity, ignore what was going on, and live as if everything was fine.  But he - and Sophie - chose a different path.  "Isn't seclusion a form of treachery - of desertion?" Hans wrote.  The decision was made.

"It's high time that Christians made up their minds to do something . . . What are we going to show in the way of resistance-as compared to the Communists, for instance-when all this terror is over? We will be standing empty-handed. We will have no answer when we are asked: What did you do about it?"

Hans Scholl

The brother and sister duo distributed pamphlets that counter-argued the Nazi propaganda and exposed their lies.  Eventually, they were caught and, ultimately, executed by the Nazis.

If they had seen what was coming, would they have still acted?  Probably.  They knew that some things are worth anything.

"How can we expect fate to let a righteous cause prevail when there is hardly anyone who will give himself up undividedly to a righteous cause?"

Sophie Scholl

Hans and Sophie Scholl have left an indelible legacy behind for all who would stand up for the truth in a culture that is falling for lies.  What will we be willing to risk?  How far are we willing to go?  For what are we responsible?

"The real damage is done by those millions who want to 'survive.' The honest men who just want to be left in peace. Those who don’t want their little lives disturbed by anything bigger than themselves. Those with no sides and no causes. Those who won’t take measure of their own strength, for fear of antagonizing their own weakness. Those who don’t like to make waves—or enemies. Those for whom freedom, honour, truth, and principles are only literature. Those who live small, mate small, die small. It’s the reductionist approach to life: if you keep it small, you’ll keep it under control. If you don’t make any noise, the bogeyman won’t find you. But it’s all an illusion, because they die too, those people who roll up their spirits into tiny little balls so as to be safe. Safe?! From what? Life is always on the edge of death; narrow streets lead to the same place as wide avenues, and a little candle burns itself out just like a flaming torch does. I choose my own way to burn."

Sophie Scholl

Photo Credit

The Warrior Life

"The issue is now clear. It is between light and darkness and everyone must choose his side."

G.K. Chesterton

As a culture, we don't seem to like choosing sides.  "It's not that simple," many contend about moral and ethical situations.  "It's not black and white."  In other words, "Do what feels right to you; there isn't a right way and a wrong way.  This life is meant for us to get along, take it easy, and have fun - stop stressing over such divisive issues."

That sounds easy enough.

In reality, Christians have never been called to an easy life.  In fact, Jesus promised the opposite: "'I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world'" (John 16:33, emphasis added).

Christ never called us to take the easy way out.  Christians are called to battle.  The New Testament tells us what armor to wear (Ephesians 6:10-18) as we "wage war" (2 Corinthians 10:3-5) and to not let anyone take us captive (Colossians 2:8).  Sounds like the military.

"China is not to be won for Christ by quiet, ease-loving men and women … The stamp of men and women we need is such as will put Jesus, China, [and] souls first and foremost in everything and at every time—even life itself must be secondary."

Hudson Taylor

Once Hudson Taylor knew that God had called him to be a missionary to China, he immediately took measures to prepare.  To toughen himself up for a harder physical life, he began exercising outdoors and sleeping on a hard mattress instead of a feather bed.  In those days, there were no Mandarin Chinese textbooks or teachers available to the aspiring missionary.  Instead, Taylor found a copy of the Gospel of Luke in Mandarin Chinese and laboriously taught himself Chinese.  Convinced that he couldn't be a soulwinner in China if he wasn't one in England, Taylor exerted his efforts to preach to Englanders on a regular basis.  Never a restful moment.

Once in China, Taylor threw himself into his work.  Refusing to accept the status quo of other missionaries in China, Taylor challenged conventional practices and began wearing traditional Chinese dress.  Why cling to his English lifestyle when he was intent on reaching China for Christ?  Taylor also began the gargantuan task of translating the Bible into Chinese.  Never a restful moment.

Even when Taylor had to return to England for medical reasons, he continued to labor for China.  There Hudson spent his time writing a book, learning midwifery skills, recruiting missionaries, and continuing to translate the Bible into Chinese.  Never a restful moment.

Taylor knew that life is short.  Never one for living the way of the common culture, Taylor challenged the accepted forms of mission work, blazing new trails for those who would follow in his steps.  There was no time for entertainment or relaxation for Taylor.  All of his waking hours were spent in preparing for and accomplishing his God-given purpose.

"The Great Commission is not an option to be considered; it is a command to be obeyed," Taylor asserted.  For Taylor it was black and white.  Instead of being swept along in the cultural sea of mediocrity and self-pleasure, Taylor swam against the currents that advocated the easy life.

Hudson Taylor was at war.

"No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him" (2 Timothy 2:4).

Hudson Taylor knew that the Christian life is the warrior life.  We have a cause, a Commander, and a calling.  Time is short.  So much is at stake!

"Everywhere there is the persistent and insane attempt to obtain pleasure without paying for it....'Let us have the pleasure of conquerors without the pains of soldiers; let us sit on sofas and be a hardy race.' ...All around us is the city of small sins, abounding in backways and retreats, but surely, sooner or later, the towering flame will rise from the harbor announcing that the reign of the cowards is over and a man is burning his ships."

G.K. Chesterton

Photo credits

Am I a Soldier of the Cross?

by Isaac Watts

Am I a soldier of the cross,
A follower of the Lamb,
And shall I fear to own His cause,
Or blush to speak His Name?

Must I be carried to the skies
On flowery beds of ease,
While others fought to win the prize,
And sailed through bloody seas?

Are there no foes for me to face?
Must I not stem the flood?
Is this vile world a friend to grace,
To help me on to God?

Sure I must fight if I would reign;
Increase my courage, Lord.
I’ll bear the toil, endure the pain,
Supported by Thy Word.

Thy saints in all this glorious war
Shall conquer, though they die;
They see the triumph from afar,
By faith’s discerning eye.

When that illustrious day shall rise,
And all Thy armies shine
In robes of victory through the skies,
The glory shall be Thine.

Promises, Promises

"Jesus promised the disciples three things---that they would be

completely fearless,

absurdly happy

and in constant trouble."

G.K. Chesterton

Two Church Leaders on the Church

"The Bible knows nothing of solitary religion."

John Wesley

"Has it ever occurred to you that one hundred pianos all tuned to the same fork are automatically tuned to each other? They are of one accord by being tuned, not to each other, but to another standard to which each one must individually bow. So one hundred worshippers meeting together, each one looking away to Christ, are in heart nearer to each other than they could possibly be were they to become unity conscious and turn their eyes away from God to strive for closer fellowship."

A.W. Tozer

Stand Firm

In Old Testament Israel, as in most nations of that era, the king had great authority.  By a word from the king, the life of a anyone in the land could be ended.  In spite of this great risk, a lone prophet dared to stand before the King of Israel, the corrupt Ahab.  "'As the LORD, the God of Israel, lives, before whom I stand, there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word'" (1 Kings 17:1), the prophet asserted.  The God "before whom I stand."  Even though the prophet Elijah was standing before the most powerful man in the country, he made it clear that he really stood before God.  Ultimately, Elijah reported to God alone.

On February 4, 1906, twins were born to a couple in Germany.  Dietrich and his sister, Sabine, were born into a large, privileged family with a close and loving family life.  Little did the family guess the role Dietrich Bonhoeffer would play in his country's future.

Adolf Hitler quickly became an increasingly prominent figure in German politics.  In response to the state takeover of the church in Germany, Bonhoeffer began working in the Confessing Church, which had been organized in opposition to the state-run church.  He also began helping with seminary for the Confessing Church.

Bit by bit, the Nazi chokehold tightened on religious freedom in Germany.  The infamous Himmler declared the members of the Confessing Church liable to arrest.  Bonhoeffer was stripped of his teaching position at the Berlin University.  The seminary Bonhoeffer helped to start was shut down.  In November of 1937, over twenty of the pastors and former students of the seminary were arrested.  Later that month, Bonhoeffer wrote The Cost of Discipleship, calling Christians to a life of sacrifice.  Bonhoeffer certainly understood the possible cost in a way most others could not.  Silently, the Nazis continued to take away the rights of Bonhoeffer and other Christians in Germany's Third Reich.  Despite the risks, Bonhoeffer refused to be silent.  Working to undermine the Nazis, he persistently wrote truth and assisted the Resistance.  Even after his arrest in 1943, Bonhoeffer continued to write, refusing to back down in the face of adversity.  Ultimately, his boldness cost him his life.

Like Bonhoeffer, Elijah knew that he stood before the God of heaven and not a man on earth.  As human beings created by God, we are responsible to God alone.  No matter what threats we may face on this earth - be they unpopularity, embarrassment, danger, or even death - we have nothing to fear.  God is on our side.

"But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.  Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain" (1 Corinthians 15:57-58).

According to Noah Webster, "boldness" means "confident trust" or "assurance."  We have victory through Jesus Christ!  Because of this assurance of victory, we can stand steadfast on earth and boldly work for the Lord.  He is the One for whom we work; He will reward us.


"Courage is contagious," noted Billy Graham.  "When a brave man takes a stand, the spines of others are stiffened."  Because of Bonhoeffer's example, we are encouraged to take a stand for the truth of God as well.  Who are we to fear man who dies (Isaiah 51:12-13)?  We are servants of the Most High God - we are called to boldness.

"We fear men so much, because we fear God so little.  One fear cures another." - William Gurnall

"Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.  Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.  For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.  Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm."

Ephesians 6:10-13, emphasis added

Photo Credit: Wikipedia

Daring Few

Standing by a purpose true,
Heeding God’s command,
Honor them, the faithful few!
All hail to Daniel’s band!

Dare to be a Daniel,
Dare to stand alone!
Dare to have a purpose firm!
Dare to make it known. 

Many mighty men are lost
Daring not to stand,
Who for God had been a host
By joining Daniel’s band. 

Many giants, great and tall,
Stalking through the land,
Headlong to the earth would fall,
If met by Daniel’s band. 

Hold the Gospel banner high!
On to vict’ry grand!
Satan and his hosts defy,
And shout for Daniel’s band.

Faith in the Midst of...Fireworks?

I'm not really a big fan of fireworks.  Sure, they're spectacular to watch, but I prefer to keep the decibels in a comfortable range for my eardrums.  I guess my two-year-old brother has similar preferences.  Once the first few pops of the next-door-neighbors' fireworks went off, my little brother refused to take his hands off his ears - even though he was inside our house the whole time.  No matter how we reassured him or how we tried to distract him, his hands stayed firmly planted over his ears.  He would have none of it.

I wonder what Noah thought as he watched the waters rise.  It mist have been tempting to just close his eyes and plug his ears as the biggest storm earth had ever seen washed away everything Noah had ever known.  But faith triumphs over fear, and Noah "did everything just as God commanded him" (Genesis 6:22).  God kept Noah and his family, as the song says, "safe and secure from all alarms."  I wonder what their prayers were as they offered the first sacrifices in the newly-washed world.  I wonder how bold and vibrant the first rainbow was.  Now that was a spectacular sight.

After Jesus' death, His disciples were understandably terrified.  Their Leader was going to save the world, but now that world had killed Him.  What must have been going through their minds as they grieved?  Locking themselves in a room, they hid from those who had killed their Master.  Essentially, they were closing their eyes and plugging their ears, hoping to wake up from their nightmare.  As a result, they were still in hiding when the women discovered the rest of the story God had written.  While the women going to the tomb were the first to know that their King had returned to life, the disciples had to hear the good news second-hand.  Their fear overcame their faith.

It's easy to let fear overrun faith.  It's hard to trust God's plan when ours is unraveling.

It's so easy to walk by sight and not by faith.  It's so hard to keep walking by faith when you can't see the next step.

It's hard to trust God when every fiber of your being tells you not to.

It's hard to take your hands off your ears when all your senses tell you to hide.

My little brother just couldn't find the faith to take his hands off his ears.  When we tried to talk to him, he couldn't hear us.  He wasn't able to listen very well to his movie that we hoped would distract him or to the soothing music we turned on in his room.  Eventually, long after all the pops and kabooms had subsided, he fell asleep with one hand still covering his ear.  We miss out on a lot when we choose to listen to our fears rather than have faith in our King.  You just never know what blessings we may receive from boldly opening our eyes and uncovering our ears.

After the Spirit came to Jesus' followers, the disciples were given a new-found boldness.  Not long after Christ's resurrection, Peter and John found themselves standing before the same council that had condemned Jesus to death.  Last time, the council made the disciples so afraid that they hid in a locked room for days!  This time, however, Peter and John boldly announced to the council that the followers of Christ answer to God and not to men.  When commanded not to speak in the name of Christ, they responded, "'Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge, for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard'" (Acts 4:19-20).  The once fearful disciples had been changed by the God of the universe.  No matter what happened in their futures, they knew that they could trust their foundation.  There is no need for a Christian to fear!  As Peter said,

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ."

1 Peter 1:3-7

photo credit: Liz Noffsinger 

Yes

"For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, whom we proclaimed among you...was not Yes and No, but in him it is always Yes.  For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory."

2 Corinthians 1:19-20

Your Own Little Corner

Several years ago, I had the privilege of working with a group of elementary-age children.  There was a young boy named Jonathan who was very easy to work with but not very talkative.  At one point, however, Jonathan came up to me with sparkling eyes and a smile from ear to ear.  "Guess what?" he asked me.  Jonathan didn't usually initiate conversation with me, so I was curious to hear what was so exciting to him.  "What?" I asked him.  "I walked by the Boy Scouts," he said.  "And one of them said 'Hi' to me!"

"Be imitators of me," Paul admonished the Corinthians, "as I am of Christ," (1 Corinthians 11:1).  In his next letter to the Corinthians, Paul spoke of the "area of influence God assigned to us" (2 Corinthians 10:13).  It's clear that Paul felt the Corinthians were in his area of influence, and he felt the responsibility to set a good example for them.  Not only did Paul set an example, but he also spent countless hours counseling, teaching, and praying for the Corinthian Christians.

In his 1828 dictionary, Noah Webster defined "influence" as: "Literally, a flowing in, into or on, and referring to substances spiritual or too [subtle] to be visible, like inspiration."

In 1913, a young woman named Ina Ogdon dreamed of carrying the Gospel to the unreached people of Chautauqua.  Despite Ina's intentions, her father's ill health compelled her to stay at home and serve her family there.  As she quieted her dreams of great missionary work, she learned to be content in the area of influence where God had placed her.  As a result, she penned the hymn "Brighten the Corner Where You Are":

"Do not wait until some deed of greatness you may do,

Do not wait to shed your light afar,
To the many duties ever near you now be true,

Brighten the corner where you are."

Brighten the corner where you are - no matter how small that corner may be.  God has placed us in these corners for a reason.  It is our responsibility to follow His will and impact those in our area of influence, no matter how small or great that area is.  We must pour ourselves - flow - into the areas God has given us.

As you look around you, who is in your area of influence?  Who looks up to you?  Who enjoys spending time with you?  There are more watching your life than you may realize.  A cartoonist once said, "You don't have to be a 'person of influence' to be influential.  In fact, the most influential people in my life are probably not even aware of the things they've taught me."

Whether you realize it or not, there are people watching you every day.  It may be neighbors or younger siblings.  Perhaps there are people in your church who look up to you.  Are you showing those around you a picture of a faithful walk with God?  Notice that Paul said, "Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ."  Paul didn't want the Corinthians to pick up on his sinful habits or problems.  Striving to be first and foremost a follower of God, Paul sought to set a good example for those in his area of influence (see Philippians 3:12-14).  Jesus gave a very stern warning to those who misused their influence (Mark 9:42).

We all go through times where we feel wistful to be at another point, another place.  Maybe we wish for a greater audience or greater responsibility.  But you and I have been placed where we are by God.  Isn't that incredible?  The God of the universe fashioned you to be right where you are today.

I don't know if that particular Boy Scout realized the impact his simple greeting had on a little boy.  Whether the Boy Scout knew it or not, Jonathan was in his area of influence.  It didn't take much to make Jonathan's day.  If he could, Jonathan would hang on that young man's every word, and watch his every move.

We have all been given our own little corner - our own area of influence - in which to glorify God.  Who might be in your corner today?

"Here for all your talent you may surely find a need,

Here reflect the bright and Morning Star;

Even from your humble hand the Bread of Life may feed,

Brighten the corner where you are."

Ina Ogdon

Photo Credit: Norman Rockwell, The Daily Flag