Rich in Good Deeds

Of all the Bible characters, I think my favorite is Mary of Bethany. I love the way she comes with her jar of costly perfume and pours it on Jesus’ feet, until the whole house is fragranced by her offering.

There are two reactions to Mary’s extravagance. One came from Judas and other disciples: “What a waste of good money… Why, she could have sold it for a fortune and given it to the poor” (Mt. 26:8-9 TLB). The other came from Jesus: “Let her alone… she has done a beautiful thing…”

Pastor Rick has challenged us to be rich in good deeds, and this story of Mary reminds me that as we set about doing so, there will be varying opinions about our choices and methods.

If we prayerfully let the Holy Spirit guide us in our giving and good deeds, He may lead us to do things that, like Mary’s anointing of Christ, aren’t easily explainable. That don’t make sense to the worldly-wise. That sometimes make even our Christian brothers and sisters lift their eyebrows. We may hear them say, “What a waste of good money… What a poor use of time and abilities… They could have made a real impact, that money could have been used in a big way… but look how they’re blowing it.”

Such opinions should drive us to our knees, listening for one Voice, and one alone. Is it a beautiful thing to Christ? Is He pleased? Then we mustn’t let the world squeeze us into its mold. We must do the thing He lays on our heart and be rich in the good deeds that matter to Him, working for His opinion alone.

He may call us to do something so small, so obscure, that we are embarrassed to have our efforts exposed. But nothing is insignificant to Christ. He valued individuals, cups of cold water, and two widow’s coins. He does not “despise the day of small things.”

And, as we were reminded Sunday, nothing is unrewarded. Jesus said that Mary’s kind deed would be told wherever the gospel was preached throughout the world. Yours will be made known in another world, to a larger audience, and with eternal rewards.

Godliness with Contentment

This world has rules to live by, and one of them is:

No Contentment Allowed.

Okay, maybe temporarily. We’re expected to savor the first paycheck, the first couple weeks on the new job, and the first month with the new car… and then we are off, angling toward a promotion, anticipating the accompanying compensation, and salivating over the new SUV’s. The only thing is this world that is allowed to live a contented life is… a cow.

I like cows. I like their great, calm eyes and their ambling gait and their generally non-aggressive personalities. But I think most of us cannot relate to them very well. We resonate better with… squirrels. Nervous, jerky, expending tremendous amounts of energy scuffling about in rotten leaves, taking hair-raising leaps in the treetops, and generally creating quite a flurry wherever they go. The only contented squirrels I’ve seen are the stuffed ones that decorate our house.

And too many of us Christians assume that that’s life. We are destined to race about like crazy amassing all the “acorns” we can (for God’s glory, of course), until one day it’s lights out and we can finally rest in contentment forever.

No, Paul says. Godliness with contentment here and now is great gain (1 Tim. 6:6). The Greek word for contentment means “inner sufficiency.” The Christian who is contented with what God has given him is not lazy, unmotivated, or a disgrace to society. He’s not living below his privileges or possibilities. He’s obeying Scripture, demonstrating faith in God as his Supplier, and standing firm in a powerful crosscurrent of worldly temptation.

Try it tonight when you go to bed. Close your eyes and tell the Lord, “Enough. I’m not asking You for anything right now. I thank you for supplying my needs today; I trust You to supply my needs tomorrow. I am contented in You.”

If there were tears in heaven, I think God might shed a few out of sheer happiness. Somebody acknowledges that He’s the Source. Somebody is satisfied with what He’s doing! Somebody actually gets it!

Somebody wants to be a cow, not a squirrel. That “somebody” will sleep contented tonight.

Standing our Ground

Pick a problem, any problem. In fact, pick the worst one you have right now. The biggest, the nastiest, the one that will not shut up and will not go away, the one that haunts your thoughts and weights your spirits. That one.

Consider its dimensions. Estimate its size. Test its weight. Does it seem a monster big enough to eat you alive? Is it towering over you, breathing out dire consequences? Are you reduced to a mass of quivering jelly by its hot breath?

I have to confess that I have received great spiritual encouragement in this area from an unlikely source… the movie The Grinch that Stole Christmas! Don’t you, too, sometimes feel like little Cindy Lou?

She just wanted to be good, to show some compassion for an unloved creature. So she made her way to the Grinch's mountaintop lair where she encountered a bizarre brand of frightening hostility. What I love most, the picture that sticks in my mind, is her response. As the Grinch circles her threateningly, towering over her, making horrible faces (it isn’t hard), saying horrible things, little Cindy Lou gazes up at him in wide-eyed fearlessness. It baffles the Grinch, even as it astounds the viewer. Why doesn’t she run or at least scream and faint? It isn’t natural to stand up to a Grinch!

Well, I guess the answer to that question is that Dr. Seuss decided Cindy Lou should stand her ground. And no matter how big the monster in the story, the author wins. He’s invisible, but he’s sovereign.

So with the problems – the ones that circle around us breathing out threats and looking scarier by the minute. We feel like dead meat. We pray that we’ll faint and get it over with. Until we recognize that as believers we have an Author behind us Who has promised that we’ll come out okay if we don’t break and run. Who has even stepped (unseen) into that dark cave with us and promised to stay with us til story’s end.

The youth sang a powerful song on Sunday: “Never Underestimate My Jesus.” Never forget Who He is and what He’s capable of and what He’s promised and how near He is and how attentive and compassionate and sovereign and wise…

How spine-stiffening it is to recognize that this Jesus is the Author of our story and He’s decided we should stand our ground. So He’s writing our problem out with a beginning and a climax and (thankfully!) a resolution and an ending. We needn’t bat an eye at its size or its fury today. The Author wins… and that knowledge will help to turn us all into Cindy Lou’s.

The Only Thing I Need

Is there a more widespread fear in America today than the fear of insufficiency?

From the minor to the major, it’s constant. Is there enough milk left in the fridge? Enough gas in the car for the day’s travels? Enough money in the bank for this month’s bills? Enough time to finish the current work project? Enough hands to finish it? (My mother used to lament, “If I just had one more hand…”).

The Apostle Paul addressed such fear in Hebrews 13:5. Here’s the Amplified Version – a bit cumbersome to read but the best for understanding exactly what the Greek was saying:

Let your character or moral disposition be free from love of money [including greed, avarice, lust, and carving for earthly possessions] and be satisfied in your present [circumstances and with what you have]; for He [God] Himself has said, I will not in any way fail you nor give you up nor leave you without support. [I will] not, [I will] not, [I will] not in any degree leave you helpless nor forsake nor let [you] down (relax My hold on you)! [Assuredly not!]

In Word Studies, Bible scholar Kenneth West states that three negatives precede the verb “leave.” God will not, not, not leave me helpless or forsake me. It’s utterly unthinkable!

The question is, Whose agenda am I following – who decides what my needs are? If God is in charge, He might take away something it seems I need. Will I trust Him then? Will I trust Him now?

The Christian group 4Him sings a wonderful song with this line in the chorus: The only thing I need I already have.” (View the song)

“The only thing I need I already have.” Tell the Lord that today – and mean it! Repeat it to yourself when the fear of insufficiency arises. Post it at your workplace. Have it written on your checks! Just having Him is enough to make each of us rich beyond calculation.