Lose to Win

Are you willing to lose to win? Does that sound like an oxymoron to you? Do you think it is a contradictory statement? What if it is true? What if you need to lose, let go, give up, so you can ultimately win? Will you? Will you do what Jesus has told all of us to do?

Losing goes against our competitive culture. We want to win in sports. We want to win in our jobs. Our corporations are continually seeking to win as they compete against one another. We have been taught to compete to win. But winning can also cause us to lose.

I remember being in a guided tour of the Chancellorsville battlefield a few miles from Fredericksburg, VA many years ago. The park ranger who was conducting the tour, and who had studied the civil war extensively, stated his belief was that by winning the battle at Chancellorsville, Lee was ultimately defeated. His reasoning is that Lee became bloodthirsty and chased the Union army to Gettysburg in which Lee lost and ultimately lost the war.

Jesus tells us that we must lose to win. We must lose our life, meaning we give up our preferences, desires, and selfishness. By doing so, we gain our life. Not just a mundane life on this earth but the abundant life Jesus promises. We also gain eternal life. To become who God intends for us to be, we must give up our selfish ways and choose to follow Jesus. It is only by giving up and allowing Jesus to lead the way that we find our true life.

I pray we all choose to lose our lives. I pray we give up our selfish desires. I pray each one of us choose to accept the abundant life Jesus has promised and the eternal life He offers us. Lose your life. Give up your selfish desires. Accept the abundant life. Accept eternal life.

Matthew 10:39 “Those who find their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it.”

Panic or Trust

What do you fear? Do you have a fear of heights? Are you afraid of losing your job? Are you afraid of losing your spouse? Do you fear certain animals? Are there people who strike fear in your heart? Do you know you do not need to fear? Are you willing to be courageous?

We wrestle with many fears. There is a name for every type of fear known to humankind. Often, what we are afraid of the most is the unknown or what we do not understand. But we do not have to fear anything or anyone other than God.

Fear is a tool Satan uses to drive a wedge between us and God. He especially uses it when it comes to fearing someone else. Being afraid of someone can cause us to do things we know we shouldn’t. Fear can drive us into a panic and cause us to be irrational. We can lose our sense of judgment and common sense. Logical thinking disappears.

Jesus tells us that we are not to fear anyone. He doesn’t mean we are to be so bold as to be foolish. He means that we are not to allow fear to control us. We are to maintain our wits, think logical, and realize that no one can take away His promise of eternal life. Our fear of Him is to be reverence, respect, and worship.

We have a choice to make. We can allow fear to control us, or we can believe Jesus is in control. Overcoming fear is not easy and can only be done as our faith in Jesus grows deeper. The more we experience Him working in our lives, the deeper our faith will grow. Therefore, we need to open our minds, accept Jesus is in control, and trust Him to do what is best for us.

I pray we all seek to overcome fear. I pray we build our faith by experiencing Jesus. I pray each one of us trust that Jesus is in control, rather than Satan, and know that Jesus will do what is best. Overcome your fear. Experience Jesus. Trust Jesus. Know that Jesus will do what is best.

Matthew 10:28 “Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather, fear the one who can destroy both soul and body in hell.”

Free in Jesus

Are you seeking to leave behind your past? Do you want to be a new person? Are you striving to put your history behind you? Are you struggling with old, bad habits or behaviors? Would you like to pursue a new path for your life? Do you know you can?

Many of us have a colorful history full of mistakes, bad decisions, and bad behavior. We may have been negatively influenced by people with bad motives. We may have simply chosen unwisely for ourselves. We may struggle with controlling our emotions or anger.

But we don’t have to continue to live that way. It starts with believing that Jesus died for our sins. It grows with our faith in Him. As our knowledge and belief in Him grows, we commit more fully to Him. The deeper our commitment, the more we allow Him to change us, the further He removes us from our past. We come to realize we no longer need to be enslaved by our old habits and behaviors.

Jesus died on a cross so that we would be set free. That freedom is available to us, if we are willing to give up our old self. We give up our old self as we put our lives into His hands. When we are willing to die to our old selves, we can live in the new life Jesus has provided for us. Though it is a simple decision, it is also a challenging one. Too often we want to hang on to our old habits and behaviors because they are known and comfortable. But Jesus wants us to give them up to start new in Him.

I pray we all know we can walk away from our old life. I pray we know we can start new in Jesus. I pray each one of us will choose to die to our old selves and live in the freedom Jesus provides. Walk away from your old life. Live a new life in Jesus. Live free in Jesus.

Romans 6:6-8 We know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be destroyed, so we might no longer be enslaved to sin. For whoever has died is freed from sin. But if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him.

Addiction and Sin

How many of you have tried to break an addiction on your own? How successful were you? Are you still battling an addiction? Have you considered that something as simple as having one soda a day is an addiction? What about your morning coffee? How can you kick them?

We have more addictions than we think we do. Having a morning cup (or more) of coffee is a widespread addiction. Drinking only bottled water is an addiction, despite claims made otherwise. Even going to bed at a specific time can be an addiction.

Not all addictions are bad. However, we need to acknowledge addictions rather than pawning them off as routines, if we are negatively impacted when we can no longer have our addiction. On the other hand, there are bad addictions that have a negative, or extremely negative, impact on our lives. Drugs. Alcohol. Pornography. Lying. Cheating. Hoarding. Gluttony. All are harmful addictions and we typically cannot overcome them on our own. We need help!

The Apostle Paul writes to all of these when he asks if we should continue to sin. His question includes the grace of God. He has just explained that God’s grace is boundless and asks if we should continue in our sin so grace abounds even more. The answer is: of course not! Yet, we too often continue in our sin. We continue to choose to do what we want rather than what God wants.

We cannot break the hold sin has on us on our own. We need Jesus. We need God’s Spirit working inside us. We need to be on our knees asking God to remove our desire to sin from us. Why? Our nature is to sin. Eliminating sin from our lives can only occur when we fully submit to God and ask him to remove for us.

I pray we all know we cannot break addiction on our own. I pray we recognize addiction for what it is. I pray each one of us recognize the sin in our lives and ask God to remove our desire to sin. Recognize addiction. Ask for help. Recognize sin. Ask God to remove your desire for sin.

Romans 6:1-2 What then are we to say? Should we continue in sin in order that grace may increase? By no means! How can we who died to sin go on living in it?

Ready to Give Up

Have you been at the end of your rope? Have you been at the point of barely hanging on? Have you been ready to give up only to have something change your mind at the last minute? What caused you to hold on for a bit longer. Where did your reversal of fortune come from?

We all struggle through a variety of challenging situations throughout our lives. We may even go through a very difficult time, a situation that has us believing everything is about to come crashing down around our heads. We may believe we cannot continue to carry on.

Hagar believed she had come to the end. She had been sent away by Abraham at Sarah’s demand with nothing but a container of water and the clothes on her back. When the water ran out, she had Ishmael set under some bushes to protect him from the sun, then she sat several yards away, so she didn’t have to watch him die. She was desperate and saw no way to save herself or her son. That’s when God appeared and provided an answer.

We can find ourselves in desperate situations. When we do, we need to reach to God. He will hear our cry. But we cannot wait until things are desperate to start a relationship with God. We must start that relationship and build upon it beforehand. Hagar would have had a relationship with God, having lived with Abraham and Sarah. She likely knew to pray and believed God was all-powerful. The deeper we can grow our relationship with God and the more we depend on him during good times, the better prepared we are to depend on him with difficulties come.

I pray we all grow our relationship with God. I pray we seek to know God better. I pray each one of us recognize our experiences with God and learn to trust him more each day. Grow your relationship with God. Get to know God better. Recognize your experiences with God. Trust God more each day.

Genesis 21:19-21 Then God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water. She went and filled the skin with water and gave the boy a drink. God was with the boy, and he grew up; he lived in the wilderness and became an expert with the bow. He lived in the wilderness of Paran, and his mother got a wife for him from the land of Egypt.

Impatient for God

How many times do you take matters into your own hands? How often do you do what you think is best or perhaps what you want to? Have you done it after asking God for guidance and felt like he provided none? How did it work out for you? Were you better than before?

We are often impatient. When God doesn’t answer are request immediately, we take matters into our own hands. We determine what we think is best, or at least the least bad choice, and go with that. It may or may not work out for us, and we may never know what God intended.

Abraham and Sarah made a choice they thought they needed to make. However, they did not need to do what they did. Abraham and Sarah were growing older. Thinking they were nearing the end of their childbearing years and having no child, Sarah told Abraham to go to her slave to attempt to have a child. Hagar, Sarah’s slave, became pregnant and gave birth to Ishmael.

Several years later, God told Abraham that Sarah would give birth to a son. Sarah laughed, for she was eighty-nine years old. She gave birth to Isaac a year later. A few years after that, Sarah became jealous of Ishmael. She wanted Abraham to send Hagar and Ishamel away. Things had not turned out as Sarah thought they would.

We can become impatient or think we must make a decision before we really need to make it. That decision may be made out of fear or anxiety, rather than relying and waiting on God. As often as we may say that God works in his time, we don’t always want to wait for him. However, it is best if we wait for God to provide clear direction to make our decision.

I pray we all choose to trust and wait for God. I pray we do not allow fear nor anxiety to force our decision. I pray each one of us seek God’s guidance and know he will do what’s best for us. Trust God. Wait for God. Seek God’s guidance. God will do what’s best for you.

Genesis 21:9-10 But Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, whom she had borne to Abraham, playing with her son Isaac. So she said to Abraham, “Cast out this slave woman with her son, for the son of this slave woman shall not inherit along with my son Isaac.”

Wisdom and Instruction

Many people pursue knowledge. They believe the more they know the better they will be. There is a false sense of security in knowledge. Let’s make no mistake. Knowledge is important. But spouting statistics or dates or locations or names of people randomly doesn’t do much good. For knowledge to do good, there needs to be context and a point of use for it.

Now, wisdom is the ability to take bits of knowledge and understand how to apply them in a specific context or situation. It is understanding that the best information relayed during a baseball game revolves around a player’s statistics or team trends in a specific situation. Or, when working in healthcare, provide the patient’s vital signs or medications they are prescribed.

But that is only one example of wisdom. True wisdom begins with our awe and respect for God. It includes understanding that all knowledge and wisdom come from God. Without God, we would have no knowledge, for God is the giver of knowledge. Applying that knowledge in useful ways in a specific situation is wisdom, which is also a gift from God.

Our pursuit of knowledge and wisdom is a continual process. We should never stop learning. That learning often comes by instruction from people with more experience and education than we have. Instruction does not happen solely in a classroom but can occur around our dinner table, working in the yard, at work, and while attending worship services. We all encounter people who have more knowledge about certain things than we do, and we have more knowledge than others in certain things.

Wisdom is knowing which situation we are in. Are we the one with knowledge or are we the one who needs to listen? Honoring God and following his instruction aids us in better understanding when to speak and when to listen. Rather than being a fool, we should all strive to be the wise servant of God who is open to instruction and asking God for wisdom.

Proverbs 1:7

The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; 

fools despise wisdom and instruction.

Commander’s Intent

How well do you receive commands? Are you able to receive a command and understand what is implied with it? If you are given a general goal, can you determine the steps to achieve the goal? Or do you prefer every step is relayed with the command?

Most people, at least early in life, need more detailed instruction when given a command. With experience, we learn how to determine the steps needed to complete the mission given to us. It’s called growing in maturity and discernment. Something all of us should be doing.

As a Marine, we called those high-level commands, commander’s intent. A battalion commander might give a company commander a command to secure a specific location. The company commander then had to discern the best means to secure the location but also had the latitude to adjust his plan as needed to fit the situation.

Jesus gave the disciples a command to proclaim the good news and the kingdom of heaven had come near when he sent them out. He didn’t give them any instruction on what to say or how to quantify the message. He left it entirely up to them. They could use what they had heard Jesus say or speak about their experiences with Him.

We have the same latitude today. As we tell others the good news, we can repeat what Jesus said, the miracles He performed, Him going to the cross and being resurrected, or how our lives have changed since we accepted Him as Lord and Savior. Much like the company commander, we must learn to adapt to the situation, recognizing what will be most effective for the person we are speaking to. Jesus understood that need, which is why He did not provide detailed instructions for carrying out His command.

I pray we all learn to execute commander’s intent commands. I pray we obey Jesus’ command. I pray each one of us proclaim the good news and discern the most effective method for the situation. Obey Jesus’ command. Proclaim the good news. Use the most effective method.

Matthew 10:7 “As you go, proclaim the good news, ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’”

Harvesters Needed

What do you ask for regularly? What is it you continually go to God for? Is it something you want? Is it a deficiency you are seeking to overcome? Is it a need? Is it financial? Is it a relationship? Is it a job? How would it change if you asked God for what God wants?

We are told pray regularly. We may even feel guilty if we do not pray regularly. Often our prayers include asking for healing, successful surgeries, quick rehabilitation, financial stability, relationship reconciliation, a new job, a new house, a new car, and many others.

Jesus tells us we should also pray for laborers to harvest. Harvest what? Disciples! There are many people who are seeking answers and seeking truth. We know there is one source that is always true and that is God. Just as the fields of grain ripen and need to be harvested, so the human population ripens and needs to be harvested.

As we look across history, there is a rhythm to this harvest. We can see times when people turned to God in multitudes and other times when they turned away. We have been through a time of turning away for the past few decades, but we are now entering a time when people are turning to God. Jesus’ statement to ask for laborers to go into the harvest is very appropriate for us today.

Laboring in the fields is hard. It requires us to stretch ourselves. We must get outside our comfort zones. We must tell people about Jesus and invite them to join us for worship. Once we have convinced them they need to accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior, our work is not done. We must continue to grow them into the disciples God desires. Being a laborer is a continual planting, watering, harvesting, and discipling.

I pray we all pray that God sends laborers into the harvest. I pray we are willing to be a laborer in the harvest. I pray each one of us will plant, water, harvest, and disciple others for Jesus. Pray for laborers in God’s harvest. Be a laborer. Be a planter. Be a waterer. Be a harvester. Be a disciple.

Matthew 9:37-38 Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”

Perfect Timing

Have you ever been in the wrong place at the wrong time? Have you been in the right place at the right time? Do you believe timing is very important? Can you think of times when your timing was off? Do you know that God always does everything at exactly the right time?

We all have like experienced being in the wrong place at the wrong time. We have also likely experienced being in the right place at the right time. Timing can be critical for some situations and not very important for others. We all likely live by a schedule in one form or another.

God’s timing is perfect. He knows the exact time to act to produce the result he desires. He sent Christ into this world to teach, perform miracles, to die on a cross, and to be resurrected exactly when he intended and to have the impact he desired. This is one of many instances of God acting in the right place at the right time. We can list the exodus from Egypt, the parting of the Red Sea, David striking Goliath, Mary arriving at the empty tomb, and more.

God continues to act in the right place at the right time. We may not always think so, just like the Israelites thought God had led them to the edge of the Red Sea to destroy them. However, when God leads us, he leads us to success, not destruction. Christ came so that we might have eternal life. He came to rescue us, since we cannot rescue ourselves. We all fall short and only through Christ’s sacrifice are we lifted out of our deprivation.

I pray we all trust that God’s timing is perfect. I pray we know that Christ came at the right time. I pray each one of us know that we cannot rescue ourselves and that Christ came to rescue us. God’s timing is perfect. Christ came at the right time. Christ came to rescue us. Christ came so we might have eternal life.

Romans 5:6 For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly.