Reluctant Retiree

My granddaughter has a favorite Teddy Bear. She takes the bear everywhere and is not happy if the bear is not with her. She doesn’t always play with the bear, but the presence of the bear gives her comfort.

In Matthew 28:20 Jesus says, “And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” There is no place that you can go that Jesus will not be with you, whether it is a place you are now familiar with or someplace in the future that you do not know now. Because Jesus is human, He understands you. Because Jesus is divine, He can help you in everything. He is more than a companion, He is a constant help and comfort.

I am driving down the highway when someone passes me, pulls into my lane with less space than I am comfortable with, and then presses on their brakes. This is one of my pet peeves because of the danger that is involved. But I have a choice at this point. I can get angry and dry to exact revenge or I can simply pray for that person and try to find a way to do good. My natural impulse is to get revenge by passing them and doing a quick lane change in front of them. If I yield to that impulse, I am doing no good for me or for them, but rather I am escalating the danger.

Luke 6:27-28 says, “But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bess those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.” Oftentimes, Jesus’ teaching contradicted the current cultural values and we still consider His teachings as the opposite of normal human behavior. But when He says “love your enemies and to do good for them” He knows what is good for us. Anger and revenge on those who hurt us does not achieve good, but only escalates the problem. Instead, we should pray for those who hurt us and find a way to do good for them. In most cases their behavior and their attitudes will change. It is also likely that our behavior and attitudes will also change.

Love comes with some costs. We must sacrifice some things to demonstrate our love. Selfishness, pride, self-centeredness, and envy must be placed on the altar before we can truly love. Jesus demonstrated His love for us by giving His life that we might live forever in union with God. (Romans 5:8) While we may not have to sacrifice our physical life to demonstrate our love for God, we must give Him everything that we are in response to what He has given us and the love that He has for us.

John 21:15 says, “When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, ‘Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?’ He said to him, ‘Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.'” He said to him, ‘Feed my lambs.'” Jesus wants us to love Him more than our friends, school, sports, hobbies, achievements, or anything else. Is there anything that you value more highly than God’s love and is it keeping you from fully loving God? He showed that He loved us more than anything as He gave His life for us. How can you and I demonstrate that we love God in return for His great love for us?

We are living in a time when people do not care about, nor sometimes believe in, the consequences of our actions. Many people do what they know is wrong and expect to get away with it. They do not consider their impact upon others nor the potential negative consequences that they may incur themselves. People just seem to expect to get away freely from doing wrong.

Exodus 20:5-6 says, “You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments.” As we obey God, we open the door to His favor. Obedience leads to blessing. Disobedience leads to trouble, not just for the disobedient person but for many others impacted by their actions.

I am notoriously bad at finding things. It has gotten so bad that I rarely even try to find things that are missing. If I really need it, then I will ask my wife to find it for me. I can look straight at something that I need and not see it. What causes us to miss the most obvious things set before us?

Matthew 14:26-27 says, “But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, ‘It is a ghost!’ and they cried out in fear. But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, ‘Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.'” The disciples were focused on the storm which was threatening their lives. They did not initially believe that Jesus could and would help them, so when they saw Him walking on the water towards them, they did not recognize Him. Instead, their fear rose higher and they thought they were seeing a ghost.

God frequently does something that we don’t expect and we can miss these miracles if we don’t open our hearts to Him. If we let Him, He will calm the storms of our lives and give us courage. Don’t miss out on what God has for you by closing your heart and expecting Him to act in a certain way.