NEW PURPOSE, RENEWED PURPOSE
Part 1—My Personal Mission
Philippians 3:10-20
Sunday, January 4, 2009
Pastor Brian Matherlee
Cowboy wisdom for a new year:
• Never kick a cow chip on a hot day.
• There’s two theories to arguin’ with a woman. Neither one works.
• If you find yourself in a hole, the first thing to do is stop diggin’.
• Never slap a man who’s chewin’ tobacco.
• Always drink upstream from the herd.
• Don’t kick a sleeping dog.
• The quickest way to double your money is to fold it over and put it back in your pocket.
Most common New Year’s Resolutions according to usa.gov
• Lose Weight
• Gain Weight
• Get out of Debt
• Save Money
• Get a Better Job
• Get Fit
• Eat Right
• Get a Better Education
• Drink less Alcohol
• Quit Smoking
• Reduce Stress
• Take a Trip
• Volunteer to Help Others
• Be Less Grumpy
• Be more independent
• Watch less violence
• Learn something new
Recent research shows that while 52% of participants in a resolution study were confident of success with their goals, only 12% actually achieved their goals. Men achieved their goal 22% more often when they engaged in goal setting, a system where small measurable goals are used (lose a pound a week, instead of saying "lose weight"), while women succeeded 10% more when they made their goals public and got support from their friends. (source: quirkology.com study)
5 GODLY GOALS
1. Know Christ (3:10)
a. Resurrection power-something done by God that is against human desire or ability.
b. Fellowship of His suffering-it is to be expected in a world opposed to God that we will suffer. Paul is speaking of embracing the suffering as a privilege in light of the fact that Jesus Christ suffered and died for him.
c. Like Him in His death-die to my self and live by God’s power
2. Press On (3:12)
a. In spite of obstacles
b. In spite of pain
c. In spite of opposition
d. Do this by sowing good practices
3. Forget the Past (3:13)
a. An 80 year old couple was having problems remembering things, so they decided to go to their doctor to get checked out to make sure nothing was wrong with them. When they arrived at the doctor’s, they explained to the doctor about the problems they were having with their memory. After checking the couple out, the doctor tells them that they were physically okay but might want to start writing things down and make notes to help them remember things. The couple thanked the doctor and left. Later that night while watching TV, the old man got up from his chair and his wife asks, "Where are you going?" He replies, "To the kitchen." She asks, "Will you get me a bowl of ice cream?" He replies, "Sure." She then asks him, "Don’t you think you should write it down so you can remember it?" He says, "No, I can remember that." She then says, "Well I also would like some strawberries on top. You had better write that down cause I know you’ll forget that." He says, "I can remember that, you want a bowl of ice cream with strawberries." She replies, "Well I also would like whip cream on top. I know you will forget that so you better write it down." With irritation in his voice, he says, "I don’t need to write that down I can remember that." He then fumes into the kitchen. After about 20 minutes he returns from the kitchen and hands her a plate of bacon and eggs. She stares at the plate for a moment and says, "I knew you were going to mess it up - You forgot my toast."
b. Don’t take it into account
i. Things I’ve been forgiven for
ii. Times I’ve tried and failed
iii. Good that I’ve already done
c. Consciously choose release
i. Grudges
ii. Habits
4. Secure a Hold (3:16)
a. In rock climbing there are all kinds of safety precautions that are taken to prevent disaster and keep you from losing too much ground.
i. One safety technique is the belay where a stationary climber provides protection by means of ropes, anchors and braking devices or techniques, to an ascending or descending partner. A static belay is when a fall is held fast. A dynamic belay is when a fall is brought to a gradual stop by allowing the rope to slide somewhat to not overload the anchor with the force of the fall.
ii. Another device is the Carabiner (Biner): Forged aluminum devices of various shapes (oval, D, etc.) with a spring-loaded gate through which a climbing rope can be threaded. Used to connect to protection or to provide connections in an anchor. The gate of a locking carabiner can be screwed or locked tight for increased security
b. Our security in the Christian life is not based upon our effort but upon the work of Jesus Christ and the guidance measures He instituted and proclaimed.
c. We give up so much ground unnecessarily. There are certain things we should commit too that God wants to use as protections this year:
i. The church fellowship
ii. Daily prayer & Bible reading
iii. Habits of confession, repentance & restitution
iv. Service
5. Choose your influencers (3:17-20)
a. People who live godly lives
i. Many years ago a small Jewish boy asked his father, "Why must we surrender our Jewish faith and start to attend Lutheran services here in Germany? The father replied, "Son, we must abandon our faith so that people will accept us and support our business adventures!" The young lad never got over his disappointment and bitterness. His faith in his father and in his religion were crushed. When the lad left Germany he went to England to study at the British Museum where he formed his philosophies for life. From those intensive investigations he wrote a book that changed the world called, "The Communist Manifesto. From that book one-third of the world fell under the spell of his ideology. The name of that little boy was Karl Marx. He influenced billions into a stream that for 70 years ruined, imprisoned and confused many lives. Today, that system of thinking has crumbled to a great deal but only after people got a good look at its tragic consequences. The influence of this father’s hypocrisy multiplied in infamy.
ii. Who has influence in your life? Whose life do you influence….and is it good?
b. Long for heavenly things, not earthly
c. Let God use circumstances for good
i. One man’s life provides a dramatic answer to the question, can God indeed bring positives out of troubled times? This young man’s name is David, and he is an awesome picture of God’s using difficulties for good. For years he viewed trials as something that affected only his external world, and any blow to what he owned or how he looked would discourage him and leave him feeling cheated. Today, David travels around the world, talking with people about how he discovered that no matter what happens to the outside, it’s the internal life that trials really touch. The bigger the trial, the more potential to see God’s power and peace at work in the inner person. During the Vietnam War, David went through rigorous training to become part of the ultra elite special forces team the Navy used on dangerous search-and-destroy missions. During a nighttime raid on an enemy stronghold, David experienced the greatest trial of his life. When he and his men were pinned down by enemy machine-gun fire, he pulled a phosphorus grenade from his belt and stood up to throw it. But as he pulled back his arm, a bullet hit the grenade, and it exploded next to his ear. Lying on his side on the bank of a muddy river, he watched part of his face float by. His entire face and shoulder alternately smoldered and caught on fire as the phosphorus that had embedded itself in his body came into contact with the air. David thought he was going to die, yet miraculously he didn’t. He was pulled from the water by his fellow soldiers, flown directly to Saigon, and then taken to a waiting plane bound for Hawaii. But David’s problems were just beginning. When he first went into surgery -- the first of what would become dozens of operations -- the surgical team had a major problem during the operation. As they cut away tissue that had been burned or torn by the grenade, the phosphorus would hit the oxygen in the operating room and begin to ignite again! Several times the doctors and nurses ran out of the room, leaving him alone because they were afraid the oxygen used in surgery would explode! Incredibly, David survived the operation and was taken to a ward that held the most severe burn and injury cases from the war. Lying on his bed, his head the size of a basketball, David knew he presented a grotesque picture. Although he had once been a handsome man, he knew he had nothing to offer his wife or anyone else because of his appearance. He felt more alone and more worthless than he had ever felt in his life. But David wasn’t alone in his room. There was another man who had been wounded in Vietnam and was also a nightmarish sight. He had lost an arm and a leg, and his face was badly torn and scarred. As David was recovering from surgery, this man’s wife arrived from the States. When she walked into the room and took one look at her husband, she became nauseated. She took off her wedding ring, put it on the nightstand next to him, and said, "I’m so sorry, but there’s no way I could live with you looking like that." And with that, she walked out the door. He could barely make any sounds through his torn throat and mouth, but the soldier wept and shook for hours. Two days later, he died. That woman’s attitude represents in many respects the way the world views a victim of accident or injury. If a trial emotionally or physically scars someone or causes him to lose his attractiveness, the world says "Ugly is bad," and consequently, any value that person feels he has to others is drained away. For this poor wounded soldier, knowing that his wife saw no value in him was more terrible than the wounds he suffered. It blew away his last hope that someone, somewhere, could find worth in him because he knew how the world would perceive him. Three days later, David’s wife arrived. After watching what had happened with the other soldier, he had no idea what kind of reaction she would have toward him, and he dreaded her coming. His wife, a strong Christian, took one look at him, came over, and kissed him on the only place on his face that wasn’t bandaged. In a gentle voice she said, "Honey, I love you. I’ll always love you. And I want you to know that whatever it takes, whatever the odds, we can make it together." She hugged him where she could to avoid disturbing his injuries and stayed with him for the next several days. Watching what had happened with the other man’s wife and seeing his own wife’s love for him gave David tremendous strength. More than that, her understanding and accepting him greatly reinforced his own relationship with the Lord. In the weeks and months that followed, David’s wounds slowly but steadily healed. It took dozens of operations and months of agonizing recovery, but today, miraculously, David can see and hear. On national television, we heard David make an incredible statement. "I am twice the person I was before I went to Vietnam. For one thing, God has used my suffering to help me feel other people’s pain and to have an incredible burden to reach people for Him. The Lord has let me have a worldwide, positive effect on people’s lives because of what I went through. I wouldn’t trade anything I’ve gone through for the benefits my trials have had in my life, on my family’s life and on countless teenagers and adults I’ve had the opportunity to influence over the years. David experienced a trial that no parents would wish on their children. Yet in spite of all the tragedy that surrounded him, God turned his troubled times into fruitful ones. Gary Smalley and John Trent, Ph.D., The Gift of Honor, pp. 56-58.
Conclusion
Do you need a new purpose for 2009? Do you need renewed purpose? Follow Paul’s list and you’ll close out the year looking more like Jesus than you ever imagined.
3 Keys to making it happen:
1. Prayer-ask God to guide and empower
2. Planning-set goals and know how you’ll see it happen
3. Publicity-tell someone and make yourself accountable
