Rising above
As the pastor of a church, I see many needy souls of varying degree. And as I ponder the overall condition of mankind it occurs to me that there are some basic ingredients that drastically change the inner character of a person. What baffles me is the reluctance I see in many people to do anything to relieve their own misery, and their lack of concern for the heartache they inflict on those around them. I must admit that there is a certain boldness welling up within me as I hide behind this computer; So, I am apt to say a few things here that normally I would only think to myself. But, if people refuse to wake up and see the truth about themselves and the impact they are having on others, how can life ever get any better? Inner turmoil filled with negative ambitions are depressing to everyone, and relationships cannot flourish in that type of environment. So here is the deal, the very first step to anything is awareness of the need. In other words we must first admit there is a problem, before we can fix the problem. I guess we could say a personal checkup every now and then is a good thing; So let’s just ask a couple of quick questions… Who are you? I mean really, what do other people see when they look at you? Now don’t answer to quickly, take a day or so to analyze yourself, and no cheating!! We need to see the real you; what is your attitude towards yourself and others; what is your personal character like? Let me give you a list of things to consider:
First, the negative traits (hateful, snappy, uncaring, judgmental, condemning, hurtful, arrogant, gloomy, angry, boastful, prideful, mean, untruthful, sneaky, unforgiving, unfeeling, inpatient, or self centered)
Now stop right here!
You probably didn’t even read the whole list did you? Or you just glazed right threw it because it is uncomfortable.
Take time to ponder each item and see if there is any seed of bitterness within you. And I caution you again to be truthful; because if you lie to yourself then there is no hope to ever find contentment. We must first see our own faults and shortcomings; also to recognize our own need before we will ever seek truth. Besides that, we will be useless at helping others if we don’t help our self first. Which reminds me, that Jesus once said, “pull the beam out of your own eye before you try to pick a splinter out of your brothers eye.”
I want to pause for just a moment here, and let’s use common sense around the next issue, because I am sure that nearly everyone who honestly pondered the above list has found out that in some point of their life they have a problem. In effect, we are a broken people who have all sinned and come short of the glory of God. The truth is; we were made in the image of God to be true and honest souls and this negative junk shouldn’t be controlling our lives.
Now if something is broken, the best place for repair is the manufacturer right? So what is the hold up? Let’s take this issue to the creator and ask Him for some insight; quite frankly folk’s, life is too short to waste it in the sewers, when all it takes is a little desire and honesty to rise above the stench and live with some dignity. So before you go any further you must ask yourself, and answer this question; are you seriously ready for a new you?
While you ponder that question, please allow me to share some insight from a Pastors heart. From the broken hearted to the overjoyed and the broken spirited to the new life, I see it all; so to some degree I have to get involved with it all. Yes, I cry with those who cry, rejoice with those who rejoice, but at the end of the day I still have a family who needs me and I cannot drag home all the worlds’ burdens to them. So in effect, I also need some way to wash off all the bad stuff; and of course hang on to the good stuff. Preachers are no exception to the rule; we also must guard ourselves daily to avoid contamination of the spirit, and diligently strive for a better quality of life. How do we do it? I personally have found peace with the Sovereignty of God, that is to say God is in complete control of all things. He grants me the wisdom and power to change what I can, and the grace to except His will on the things I can’t. and just like you I must deal with impossible people who often times hurt me in my spirit, and yes I have to face them day after day without so much as a hint of anger or discouragement on my part. What is the secret?
Simply pray for them, have pity on them; and place the burden on Christ; He said “I will make your burden light,” and so he does. It is when you grasp the concept that you aren’t capable of solving every problem and learn to be obedient to God’s command (1peter 5:7) and just “cast all your cares upon Jesus for He cares for you” only then will you find release from the burden and hurt of this world.
Now back to our earlier question, “Are you ready for a new you?” Is it time to set a new path and try living above your problems instead of under them?
First step
Recognize that there is a problem, be honest with yourself, and be ready to do something about it.
Step two
Go to the manufacturer (that would be God) tell Him you’re broken, and that you are ready for a change. Let me forewarn you, do not go to the creator of the universe and ask for help if you don’t really mean it! Understand something, you might have some control over your life, but God has complete control over eternity. Sooner or later we will all stand before Him in shame… All of Us! So for crying out loud folks, don’t play games with God.
Now right here I want to let you in on a little secret… (God already knows everything about you) in fact in (Matthew 12:36) it states, “for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment.” It seems to me that someone is taking notes; anyway the point is this, you have nothing to hide here, just be honest as we approach the throne okay.
Step three
It is time to make the most important decision of your life! It is time to do something positive for you! Yes, today is about to be the first day of the rest of your New Life. Funny how right here at this moment of decision, most people freak out, and start to question their ability to maintain or even make a decision to follow Christ; Mainly because in your heart you know this is a big deal, and that is good. Fact is, it is a big deal, and yes it does change your life; But who are you now? It just might be a good time to break it off, go for broke and start all over with a fresh new you.
Now before the panic sets in, allow me to assure you that there is really only one thing God wants from you, “Your faith in Him” (John 3:16) “God so loved the world” which means that God already loves you before you ever even thought about loving Him. Think about that for a second, we were created by Him and made in His own image as His children, Of Course he loves us! “Gave His only begotten son” The term “Gave” again states his love for us because He did it of His own free will…”that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have ever lasting life” here you go! ”that whosoever believes in Him” this qualifies who is eligible and what they have to do, in effect everyone is eligible and the only requirement is to put your faith and trust in Christ. Now every good leader knows that if his team puts their faith and trust in him that they will also be obedient to him. Same thing applies as a parent, your child will obey your law even if you are not there as long as they have faith and trust in you. Now sooner or later they will think that they know more than you and then what happens… you forgive them right? That is exactly how God works with us… disappointed, (yes) forgiving, (yes) Loving, (always). So if you find yourself looking for the right words to say, here they are this… (Father forgive me for I have sinned against you, please come into my life and guide me unto all your truths, and from this day forward I proclaim Jesus Christ as my Lord and savior, and do promise to faithfully serve Him to the best of my ability all the days of my life).
Now the whole purpose of this article is to improve our personal character and we will get back to that little chore in just a bit, but let me first explain one important fact. True salvation only comes when we dump the pride, and come to terms with the fact that we need help. Ironically we must be in the same place when it comes to our personal character. Think of yourself as a computer that has been contaminated, you’re testy, you’re sluggish, you have erratic function, the best thing to do is just dump the system and reboot with new software right? Well that is what we are doing, just dumping the old you and rebooting with Jesus Christ, that’s our plan. Then we will input Biblical data to keep us running smoothly for the rest of our life.
First thing we want to put in place is our personal profile info. and it is vitally important that we get this right because it will outline our character traits. And it is our character traits that define how we interact with each other. So let me give you another list of traits recommended by God…
Galatians 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 23Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
How about that for a new you? I’m sure everyone around you will appreciate it, and the good news is that Christ will help you achieve it. Now like anything worthwhile it will take some effort on your part to stay on top of the situation. Trust me, these are the kind of things we Christians pray about all the time… “Lord please give me patience” or “Lord help me find the love I need to deal with this person” Really! It is a constant thing for me to request help from God to cope with daily life. Here is a good rule of thumb, just treat others like you want to be treated. I find it very annoying when I bump into one of those people who treat everyone in a harsh and uncaring manor, but expect everybody to be nice to them. Walking on egg shells has never been one of my strong traits, so yes it takes some prayer from time to time.
Here is another hint to improve the new you, in fact it is the greatest commandment in the Bible. “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbor as thyself.” Self centered I only love me type of people are never any fun to be around. If we can learn to Love God with all our heart first and then Love others second then we can Love ourselves a close third. Believe it or not this will improve the quality of your life in many ways. Number one is that you will be in the favor of God and enjoy His blessings when you give Him first place in your life. Number two is that you will improve the relationships you have with people when they can see that you are genuinely concerned for them and their feelings. (By the way this really helps a marriage when each one cares about the other more than themselves.) Folks we live in a world filled with MEisms… I know that is not a word, but you get the point right? Everyone seems to only care about their own personal agenda and that’s it. Folks this type of thinking will do a lot of damage to relationships of every kind.
One last thing that might make the biggest difference to you personally, is to learn how to forgive. Yes I know it is hard to do, but God forgives you so you need to forgive others. In fact it is part of the Lord’s Prayer…”forgive us as we forgive others who trespass against us”
Think of it this way, if you get a splinter in your finger it hurts and it won’t heal until you pull it out and get rid of it. In fact it may well fester and create bigger problems if you don’t remove it from your flesh. So the same thing is true with anger, hate, spite, all that stuff that eats you up on the inside. But the only way to pull those splinters out is with forgiveness. Leave that junk inside yourself and it too will fester into bitterness and wreck your life, not to mention the overflow into your loved ones life.
Being somewhat of an expert on forgiveness because I seem to do a lot of that, let me give you some thoughts that might make it essayer for you. Number one, My life is too valuable and short to be bogged down with bitterness. Number two, Only God has the right to control my life, and I refuse to let anyone’s issues control me and rob me of happiness. Number three, as I look at those who only want to hurt others, I pity them, knowing that they must lead miserable lives. And my desire is to help them, but I will not be bogged down in their issues. I can love them, pray for them, and even help them, but I do not have to be a part of them. Often times it is just better for me to forgive and move on, than to get entangled with negative things that will impact in any way the relationships that I hold so dear to myself.
I guess what I am trying to tell you is this; You alone, choose what you will allow into your life, and to what degree it will affect you. (A little spice in the soup might be a good thing, but too much will ruin it for everyone.) Everything in our life needs to balance in order to keep our sanity, and savor, so as the master chef, you must consider every ingredient. We start with a base stock of God, family, and you; Now go build a life that will add a good flavor to the world, and bless everyone who samples it.
Have a great new life!!
Pastor Mizell
