Maximum Impact - Living to Make a Difference # 3
Planning to Succeed!
While Bev and I were in Maine this summer, I drove down a gravel road and miles from any town, was surprised to see an old cemetery off in the woods. I stopped my car and pushed through the weeds to have a closer look at the old headstones. I enjoy reading the one line summaries of life that are etched on those old stones. Morbid, eh? But I find that a generation ago they were more creative than we are today in writing the phrases to capture the essence of the life of the person lying in the grave.
Here are few real epitaphs gleaned from old headstones....
Here lies an Atheist
All dressed up
And no place to go.
From Burlington Vt.–
She lived with her husband fifty years
And died in the confident hope of a better life. (I wonder if the writer really intended the implication?)
This man isn’t even subtle! Here lies my wife: Here let her lie!
Now she's at rest And so am I.
The best one I believe is this... cleverly written slam of the deceased!
In Memory of Beza Wood
Departed this life, Nov. 2, 1837
Aged 45 yrs.
Here lies one Wood
Enclosed in wood
One Wood - Within another.
The outer wood is very good:
We cannot praise the other.
Pastor Bill Hybels, in his recent book, Courageous Leadership, tells of gathering his staff together for a team-building exercise. He had cardboard cut-outs made into the shape of a simple headstone. At the meeting, one by one, the people were sent from the room and those remaining crafted an ‘epitaph’ for their colleague. Hybels reports that the exercise created such a bond and was so affirming, that the headstones still hang in the offices of those on the staff!
Why all this talk about headstones and epitaphs?
The Bible is frankly honest about a topic most of us avoid as much as we are able: mortality!
"Lord, you have been our dwelling place throughout all generations.
Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the earth and the world,
from everlasting to everlasting you are God.
You turn men back to dust, saying, “Return to dust, O sons of men.”
For a thousand years in your sight are like a day that has just gone by, or like a watch in the night.
You sweep men away in the sleep of death; they are like the new grass of the morning—
though in the morning it springs up new, by evening it is dry and withered. ...
The length of our days is seventy years— or eighty, if we have the strength;
yet their span is but trouble and sorrow, for they quickly pass, and we fly away. ...
Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom. ...
May the favor of the Lord our God rest upon us; establish the work of our hands for us—
yes, establish the work of our hands." (Psalm 90, NIV)
That Psalm is attributed to Moses. He reminds us of two important facts:
1. God has fixed a lifespan for us and we won’t live forever here on this earth.
2. Only a life well-lived in the wise ways of the Lord will lead to the favor of the Lord.
Only those who plan to live well, do! Goals guide us, therefore, the goals we choose must be carefully considered, worthy of the dreams that God would have us dream. We need to plan to succeed!
Many people let life happen to them. Their life is a zig-zag course, a reaction to one thing or another. The need for purpose and direction in that kind of life is obvious!
There is another issue that is less obvious. Some people live with purpose, but not a focused purpose of accomplishment for the glory of God. Instead they spend inordinate amounts of time and energy building defenses against people, situations, diseases, and things that might have a negative effect on their lives.
For example: I applaud saving and preparing for the time in life when a person no longer will be able to produce an income. But, I do not understand a person who lives a pinched, miserly life while sitting on abundant resources that they won’t touch or spend ‘just in case.’
A life that is guided simply by risk avoidance will be a life that misses on many opportunities to do good, to find joy, and to live to full!
I have found the writings of Stephen Covey most helpful. His best known book made an especially deep impression on me; 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. The one thing that I took from reading it that we can choose to live ‘on purpose.’ Just about every year since then, early in the year, I take time to reflect on what I am doing with my life, who I am serving, how I am relating to others, and the way I am using resources.
I write a personal mission statement as a reminder of who I am and what I believe God has called me to be and to do in this world. From that mission statement, which does not shift all that much by this time in my life, there are goals that are made clear – some long term, some short term. They become markers that help me to pace my life and to evaluate my effectiveness as a Christian, as a husband, as a father, and as a church leader.
Covey calls that ‘beginning with the end in mind.’
In Luke 14:27-30 Jesus speaks to the importance of planning and goals with a little story. Take a look.
In the Pew Bible you can find the text on page 1623. He said, Luke 14:27-30
And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. “Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Will he not first sit down and estimate the cost to see if he has enough money to complete it? For if he lays the foundation and is not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule him, saying, ‘This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.’
Planning to succeed as a disciple of Christ requires the two things we’ve already considered in this series of messages:
1. We need to hear God, the Holy Spirit, speaking to us, calling us to a new life, telling us of the
new identity available to us through Christ. Like Gideon, He wants to call us to become
mighty in His service, and begins by creating a new heart in us.
2. We must learn to walk with God, responsive to His directions, as He leads us like He led Abraham.
As we consider the importance of purpose and planning, I want us to consider the example of Judas. That’s right, Judas, the disciple who betrayed Jesus! His example is a negative lesson in goal-setting and from him we can learn about the necessity of keeping our dreams in sync with God’s dreams for us!
We don’t know for certain how Judas Iscariot became one of the Twelve. He wasn’t a Galilean, so he didn’t have ‘connections’ with Peter, James, or John! He was from the sophisticated province of Judea. Likely, he had grown angry with the injustice and cruelty of the Romans who occupied his country. Meeting Jesus, he sensed a power, a Person who could really make a difference. He signed on to be one of those who would help this man change the world.
Judas had a lot to offer. Somehow I find most portrayals of Judas as a creepy gangster type wide of the mark. The group of disciples made him their treasurer! When a group chooses someone to handle their money, they don’t choose an obvious crook! John tells us that Judas was a thief, but remember he was writing some 60 years after the facts and with the benefit of hindsight. Reading between the lines, we can safely assume that Judas impressed them as a good manager, a trustworthy person who was noted for having his eye on the ‘big picture.’ So what happened?
How did the trusted treasurer of the Jesus Band become the betrayer, the one cutting a secret deal with Jesus’ enemies?
Let me suggest this as a possible understanding of this man and his motives.
Judas had big dreams about who Jesus was and what Jesus’ mission would be. Over time, he grasped all too clearly that his plans and those of Jesus were different. He came to understand, maybe better than most of the disciples, the true identity and mission of the Lord.
When Judas joined the disciples, it was with the dream of seeing his fellow Jews free of the tyranny. Just maybe, too, he dreamed of being in the inner circle of the new kingdom. But as time went on and he listened to Jesus, unlike the other disciples who still didn’t get ‘it,’ Judas saw only too well where Jesus was going. Jesus wasn’t going to spark a political revolution. He wasn’t going to become the new king in Jerusalem. Judas heard Jesus teach and increasingly understood that His mission was a spiritual one, about bringing freedom from sin, not from Rome!
Judas’ dreams of glory and revolution were dying with each passing day. We don’t know if it was desperation or bitterness that drove Judas to make his deal for 30 pieces of silver. The Bible uses this powerful language to describe the spiritual change in him- "Then Satan entered into Judas Iscariot, who was one of the twelve disciples, and he went to the leading priests and captains of the Temple guard to discuss the best way to betray Jesus to them." (Luke 22:3-4, NLT) Whatever his disobedience, he allowed an opening that the Evil One exploited!
Many Bible scholars think that Judas was trying to force Jesus’ hand, to make Him declare His kingdom, and start the revolution! Others think that Judas was frustrated by Jesus humility and deluded by his own dreams of grandeur. No matter.
His dreams and the plans of God were very different!
· Ever been frustrated by God, when your dreams and His plans went in opposite directions?
Sometimes our dreams must be shattered so we can find God's dreams for us. Sometimes we are unable to dream what God dreams because our heads is stuffed full of our own ideas, our own plans about what tomorrow must be. When God doesn't automatically make OUR dreams come true, we are faced with a huge choice: do we trust Him and wait for a new dream to replace the shattered one OR do we descend into bitterness and unbelief?
Bitterness and/or unbelief will lead us onto the road that Judas walked. We will end up betraying our Lord. Bitterness is, we read in the book of Hebrews, a root from which grows much evil and it corrupts not only us, but those we touch! I only hope that if you’re starting down that road, you’ll stop and bend your will to His, surrendering your plans and letting Him guide you to worthy goals before you self-destruct!
The ultimate sadness of Judas’ story is found in Matthew 27:3-5. There we read:
"When Judas, who had betrayed him, saw that Jesus was condemned, he was seized with remorse and returned the thirty silver coins to the chief priests and the elders. “I have sinned,” he said, “for I have betrayed innocent blood.” “What is that to us?” they replied. “That’s your responsibility.” So Judas threw the money into the temple and left. Then he went away and hanged himself."
Embracing Godly goals will call us to take up a cross of self-denial and, yes, death to SELF!
Jesus spoke to his disciples about counting the cost, about starting with the ending in mind. How did He introduce that little story? Luke 14:26-27
“If you want to be my follower you must love me more than your own father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, more than your own life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple. And you cannot be my disciple if you do not carry your own cross and follow me.”
Don’t be dismayed if you find that your goals and God’s plans are sometimes divergent.
Even Jesus wrestled with the will of His Father! On that terrible night before He went to the cross, He was in awful stress. His anguished prayer was, “If there is a way around the Cross, another way to satisfy the mission, show me.” Then, he prayed the prayer that guides us in those times, “Not my will, but yours be done.”
As His example shows us, living in line with Godly goals is not a walk in the park on a sunny day! It is a life that requires surrender and submission. Honestly, some of our dreams die hard before the throne of God!
BUT.... we truly plan to succeed when our goals are formed by God’s dreams and plans and we submit ourselves to Him, living not only for the NOW but for eternity. Our lives take on meaning, in ways we could not even imagine apart from God!
Jesus’ challenge and promise is this:
Matthew 10:37-39
“Anyone who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and anyone who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.
In The Message it reads like this:
Don’t think I’ve come to make life cozy. I’ve come to cut—make a sharp knife-cut between son and father, daughter and mother, bride and mother-in-law—cut through these cozy domestic arrangements and free you for God. Well-meaning family members can be your worst enemies. If you prefer father or mother over me, you don’t deserve me. If you prefer son or daughter over me, you don’t deserve me.
“If you don’t go all the way with me, through thick and thin, you don’t deserve me. If your first concern is to look after yourself, you’ll never find yourself. But if you forget about yourself and look to me, you’ll find both yourself and me.
What’s your measure of success?
Accumulated wealth?
An impressive resume’ filled with mountains climbed and titles earned?
Gathered power and prestige?
If you desire those things enough, you may well gain them. What then?
· Or is your measure of success simply this: “to do the will of the Father?”
Actually, that is not all that simple.
For each one of us, He has a plan; a plan that fits our personality, that maximizes our life experience; one for which His Spirit will equip us. When we are centered in His plan, we will make a maximum impact and live to make a difference, for ‘He will establish the work of our hands!’
Find those goals. Make them your own and you’re on your way to the best commendation that will ever be uttered:
Matthew 25:34 “Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world.”
And His commendation is even better than a great epitaph on the headstone that will stand over your grave.
What’s on your list of life goals?
Do you have such a list?
Are they self-centered or God-given?
Are you ‘in sync’ with God’s purposes, as best you understand, or are you at risk of bitterness because you continue to live in the land of disappointment, ‘what-if’ and ‘if only’?
Live for Maximum Impact!
I want again, to go to that text that I’ve read to you in each of these messages.
Jeremiah 29:11-14
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you,” declares the LORD, “and will bring you back from captivity. I will gather you from all the nations and places where I have banished you,” declares the LORD, “and will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into exile.”
Now walk with Him - boldly, fearlessly, joyfully, obediently - and live a life that makes a difference!
Amen.
