PEOPLE COUNT
II Tim. 1:3-5
INTRO.- ILL.- Ron was a fifteen-year-old teenager, a tenth-grade student at Granger High School. It was game day, and he was the only sophomore suiting up with the varsity team. Excitedly, he invited his mother to attend. It was her very first football game, and she promised to be there with several of her friends. The game finally ended, and she was waiting outside the locker room to drive Ron home.
"What did you think of the game, Mom? Did you see the three touchdown passes our team made and our tough defense, and the fumble on the kickoff return that we recovered?" he asked.
His mother replied, "Ron, you were magnificent. You have such presence, and I was proud of the pride you took in the way you looked. You pulled up your knee socks eleven times during the game, and I could tell you were perspiring in all those bulky pads because you got eight drinks and splashed water on your face twice. I really like how you went out of you way to pat number nineteen, number five and number ninety on the back every time they came off the field."
"Mom, how do you know all that? And how can you say I was magnificent? I didn’t even play in the game."
His mother smiled and hugged him. "Ron, I don’t know anything about football. I didn’t come here to watch the game. I came here to watch you!"
Brethren, the moral of this story is: PEOPLE COUNT MOST OF ALL! Football is fine. Football is fantastic for some people. But people are supreme! People are more important than football.
Here’s another way to look at it.
ILL.- One time the popular actress Sophia Loren sobbed to her Italian movie director, Vittorio De Sica, over the theft of some of her jewelry. And he said to her, “Listen to me, Sophia. I am much older than you and if there is one great truth I have learned about life, it is this: NEVER CRY OVER ANYTHING THAT CAN’T CRY OVER YOU!”
What a lesson! And have you learned that lesson in life? People are more important than things! People are more important than cars and computers. People are more important than houses and furniture. People are more important than all material things!
ILL.- In 1968 I ordered a new Pontiac Firebird. It’s the only new car I ever ordered from a dealership. Naturally, I was quite excited when the car came. It was a pretty dark blue color and was loaded with power. I washed that car every day and waxed it once every week. It was as though I worshipped that car, and in some ways, I did. I fell in love with that car. BUT I SHOULD HAVE FELL IN LOVE WITH PEOPLE! I should have valued people most of all. And I am in the process of trying to learn that lesson.
I think it is a life-long lesson. It is something that we continue to learn all our lives. And if we don’t learn that lesson, then we are the losers! FOR TO LOVE PEOPLE IS ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT LESSONS THAT ANYBODY CAN LEARN! If there is one thing that Jesus tried to teach us, it is to love others.
On this Memorial Day weekend I want to remind you that people count! People are more important than material things. People are more important than our own personal fun and pleasures. People are the most important thing that God has created.
In II Timothy 1:3-5 we see that Paul remembered his friend Timothy.
V. 3 - “I constantly remember you...in my prayers.”
V. 4 - “Recalling your tears....”
V. 5 - “I have been reminded of your sincere faith...”
Paul remembered Timothy in several ways. He remembered him enough to pray for him. He remembered Timothy’s pain in life. He recalled his tears. And remembered that he was a man of faith in the Lord.
Timothy was important to Paul. He was an important person in his life. He was a VIP. A very important person. And people should be very important to us.
PROP.- People count. Memorial Day weekend is about people, about remembering certain people. We should:
1- Look back and remember
2- Look out and love
3- Look up and honor
I. LOOK BACK AND REMEMBER
This Memorial Day weekend we should look back and remember people. We should remember the deceased: deceased veterans, deceased family members and friends.
Originally, Memorial Day was instituted to remember the Civil War dead, but over the years it has become a time to remember all deceased veterans and all our deceased loved ones.
This is one reason why it has long been called “Decoration Day.” Many people still go to the graves of their loved ones and decorate them as a sign they haven’t forgotten them. HOW COMMENDABLE THAT IS!
ILL.- I have read that on an average day about 750 people will visit the USS Arizona in Hawaii and on Memorial Day weekend about 4,600 people will visit that memorial. And on an average day some 3,000 people will visit the Vietnam War Memorial and on Memorial Day weekend 7,600 people will visit it.
God bless those who remember our deceased veterans. God bless those who remember any of their deceased loved ones! People count. People are what life is all about. People have contributed greatly to our lives and we need to remember them!
We need to look back and remember people. We need to remember the people who made an impact on our lives.
ILL.- I preached from 1969 to 1974 in a small church in Iowa. Otto and Elsie Murphy were in their 70’s when I preached there. Otto was a board member and both Otto and Elsie taught Sunday School classes. Otto and Elsie never missed church. They never missed anything the church did or had to offer: Sunday School, Sunday morning worship, Sunday night service, Midweek Bible study, gospel music concert, work day, and even calling night.
I remember one time when we had a calling night scheduled to go visit people. The only people who showed up were Otto and Elsie, other than me.
And if their grown, married kids showed up on Sunday morning, Otto and Elsie would say to them, “We are going to church. You can come with us if you want, otherwise we will back after it’s over.” THOSE WORDS SPOKE OF FAITHFULNESS TO ME. Those words spoke of love for their Lord. They loved the Lord most of all. And it was evident in their lives.
It wasn’t that they didn’t love their family. They loved their family for sure. And one of the best and greatest things they did for their family was to point them to the Lord.
The day Otto died was Sunday morning. Otto died of a heart attack standing beside his car. He had gone to pick up a blind man to bring him to church. I LOOK BACK AND REMEMBER. I look back and am nearly overwhelmed by his devotion and love for the Lord and for others.
ILL.- I look back and remember Maggie Keeth of Iberia, MO, who wanted to love others through her giving. Maggie was about 85 years old and had cancer. She knew she was going to die. She wanted to give to people while she still could. She said, “I believe in giving flowers to the living.”
I remember that she bought a brand new refrigerator for another elderly lady in our community. I remember that she gave money to that little Hispanic neighbor boy who picked up her mail for her every day. I remember that one Christmas she gave him the best bicycle Sears had. And he never forgot her either. He was the last person to leave her grave at the cemetery on the day of her funeral.
I LOOK BACK AND REMEMBER A LOVING WOMAN who wanted to bless people with what she had.
ILL.- I look back and remember my grandmother Alma Jones who loved me far more than I deserved. She was my mother’s mother. Grandma Muddy, as we called her, would let me drive her old 1953 Mercury when no one else would let me drive anything!
I remember Grandma Muddy taking me to boxing matches at the Memorial Hall in Joplin, MO, because she knew I liked boxing. I remember her taking me to a professional wrestling match one time to see the famous wrestler, Gorgeous George. WASN’T THAT GORGEOUS OF HER TO DO THAT?!
We all need to look back and remember our deceased loved ones. We need to remember the good, the godly and the good times. We need to rejoice, shed a tear, share a laugh, and give thanks!
ILL.- Someone has well said, “Say goodbye to me, but not to the thought of me.” Look back and remember.
II. LOOK OUT AND LOVE
I think that life is about people. People count. We need to look at the people around us and love those people. WE NEED TO LOVE PEOPLE WHILE WE STILL CAN. Every chance we get.
ILL.- Did you hear about the guy who fell in love with an opera singer? He hardly knew her, since his only view of the singer was through binoculars - from the third balcony. He was convinced he could live “happily ever after” married to a voice like that. He scarcely noticed that she was considerably older than he. Nor did he care that she walked with a limp. Her mezzo-soprano voice would take them through whatever might come.
After a whirlwind romance and a hurry-up ceremony, they were off for their honeymoon. She began to prepare for their first night together. As he watched, his chin dropped to his chest. She plucked out her glass eye and plopped it into a container on the night-stand. She pulled off her wig, ripped off her false eyelashes, yanked out her dentures, unstrapped her artificial leg, and smiled at him as she slipped off her glasses that hid her hearing aid. Stunned and horrified, he gasped, “For goodness sake, woman, sing, sing, SING!”
I could really do something with this story. I could make several applications but I won’t. IT’S HARD TO LOVE SOME PEOPLE, BUT LOVE THEM, WE MUST! It might require a song or two!
Eph. 5:1-2 “Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love.” LIVE A LIFE OF LOVE.
If there is one thing that Jesus taught us to do, it’s to love others. And He did it the best.
To love is to serve others. To love is to give. To love is to think more of others than yourself. To love is to do. To love is to be courteous. To be kind. To love is to work. To love is to share, to care, to listen to, to speak kindly to, to sympathize with, to rejoice with, to cry with, to hug, to look into the eyes of, to hold and behold, etc.
ILL.- Michael W. Smith is a very popular contemporary Christian soloist. Here is what he said about his father. “WHEN MY DAD COMES UP missing at a dinner party, I always know where to find him: in the kitchen. He’ll be in there, apron around his waist, washing dishes. That’s just one example of his servant’s heart. Serving seems to come naturally and effortlessly for my father. I remember one time he was working in the garage and he saw an elderly lady carrying a bag of groceries by our house. He immediately went out to help her. Time and again, I’ve watched him drop whatever he was doing to help someone carry a bag of groceries, fix a car or repair a broken appliance. I hope someday I’ll be as good at serving others as he is. If that happens, I’ll have to say, ‘I learned it from my dad.’”
I would say that Michael W. Smith is blessed. HE HAS A FATHER WHO KNOWS HOW TO LOVE OTHERS.
ILL.- Here’s another. A teenage girl wrote, “I was sprawled on my stomach on the church floor, concentrating on the picture forming beneath my hands. Should I add an extra tulip to the bouquet in my picture?
"’What should I draw?’ a young voice inquired. I leaned over to face 6-year-old Adrianna beside me. With tiny fingers she pushed her brown bangs back from her eyes and smiled a smile that would have stolen the heart of the crabbiest old crone. Her 8-year-old sister, Holly, was nearby, busily scribbling on her paper. They were among the seven kids who had come for Vacation Bible School that cloudy Monday morning.
"’Why don’t you draw your house?’ I asked Adrianna. She looked at me in bewilderment. ‘We don’t have a house,’ she said. ‘We live in a truck.’ My close friend Erin and I exchanged puzzled glances. Was this just the wild imagination of a 6-year-old, or was it true? A little investigation proved Adrianna’s claim. After talking with the church pianist, I discovered Adrianna and Holly’s family had appeared in town two weeks ago. They lived with their parents and their two dogs in an old, battered van. The church was paying for them to stay in the trailer park across town, while their father found work picking fruit in area orchards.
“Now I knew why Adrianna’s shoes were too small and why Holly wore only sandals even on chilly days. I could understand why their clothes were worn and shabby.
“As I talked with them during the week, I discovered their mother was teaching them to read. Always on the go, the girls had never attended school and had never formed any long-lasting friendships with other children. That explained their timidity during playtime. Rather than joining in the games, they preferred to sit on the sidelines and watch.
“On Friday night, the last evening of our VBS, I met Mr. and Mrs. Portz, Adrianna and Holly’s parents. Mr. Portz was friendly enough, but Mrs. Portz seemed distant and withdrawn. She didn’t talk much and sat in a corner with a plate of refreshments, eating as though it were her last meal. She laughed nervously and didn’t meet my eyes once. At the end of the meal time, Mr. Portz painstakingly saved some leftover cookies and cake in a plastic bag.
“After the night’s events, I walked with them over to their dirty, beat-up van. As I approached, a German shepherd stuck its head out the window and growled at me. Mr. Portz shouted a command and the animal disappeared. Before they drove off, Mr. Portz pressed a plastic bag into my hands.
“’They’re good plums,’ he told me. ‘I just got them this morning. Picked them myself. We’ll get more soon. Thank you for what you did this week. Thank you for loving my girls.’”
“I boosted the girls into the back of the van as Mr. Portz tried to get it started. The motor groaned and coughed, then finally turned over. As they drove out of the gravel driveway, I saw Adrianna and Holly waving with all their might through the side window.
“Tears stung my eyes. Tonight I would be warm and sleeping snugly, while those girls would cook over a fire and sleep in a cold van. Perhaps tomorrow they would leave this town and head for another, so their father could keep food in their mouths and clothes on their backs.
“I think of those girls every day. I pray they will be warm and dry, that they will not be hungry, and that they will be able to go to school. I pray they will meet others who will show them the love of Jesus, and that one day they will trust Jesus with their lives.”
THANK YOU FOR LOVING MY GIRLS!
All little girls need to be loved and so do all little boys. ALL PEOPLE NEED TO BE LOVED SOMEHOW. Look out and love. Never stop loving others. Live a life of love.
1- Look back and remember
2- Look out and love
III. LOOK UP AND HONOR
Eccl. 12:1 “Remember your Creator in the days of your youth, before the days of trouble come and the years approach....”
We should remember our Creator when we’re young so that we’ll remember Him when we’re old. And if we didn’t do it then we may not do it later on!
On this Memorial Day weekend we of all people need to remember the Lord. We need to look up and honor the Lord. WHY? Because if anybody needs to be remembered, He does! Because He has given us life and breath and everything else! Because He has blessed us! Because He has cared for us and provided for us! Because He has saved us in Jesus!
ILL.- A lady said, "When my mom was on a health-kick, she decided to push the limits with our family of picky eaters. She fixed a soup-like mixture of lentils and barley that none of us was eager to try. We dreaded dipping into the grayish goop. We looked at each other, hoping someone would have the courage to ask Mom if we could skip the dinner.
"Fortunately, it was four-year-old Katrina’s turn to say the blessing, and she summed up our sentiments perfectly when she prayed, ’DEAR LORD, PLEASE TAKE US TO A RESTAURANT.’"
Brethren, it doesn’t make any difference whether it’s lentils or a restaurant, we need to be thankful to God for His blessings!
James 1:17 "Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights..."
God gives us all kinds of good things, whether it’s lentil soup, a lavish meal, or just a simple roof over our heads. Here’s another way to look at God’s goodness to us.
ILL.- A preacher said, "At a prayer meeting one evening we were sharing matters for prayers and praise. One young man had recently been through some financial problems and had taken out a consolidation loan at his credit union. With great gratitude, he excitedly announced to the group, ’I WANT TO PRAISE THE LORD TONIGHT BECAUSE I WAS FINALLY ABLE TO BORROW ENOUGH MONEY TO GET OUT OF DEBT.’"
Well, he was thankful he could consolidate his debts. We need to be thankful to God for every blessing He gives us, both large and small. Significant and insignificant. And of course, our greatest blessing is probably our salvation in Christ. Without Christ there would be no salvation for any of us. None of us are good enough to get in the door.
Acts 20:7 says of the early Christians, “On the first day of the week we came together to break bread.”
Most Bible commentators agree that this text is talking about the early Christians gathering every first day of the week to remember Christ in His Supper; the Lord’s Supper.
And there is one thing I’m sure of: It didn’t make any difference when Memorial Day rolled around! They remembered and honored the Lord! Their memorial was the Lord’s Supper! HE IS ONE WHOM THEY REMEMBERED!
Here is a powerful Scripture to think about:
Isaiah 58:13-14 “If you keep your feet from breaking the Sabbath and from doing as you please on my holy day, if you call the Sabbath a delight and the Lord’s holy day honorable, and if you honor it by not going your own way and not doing as you please or speaking idle words, then you will find your joy in the Lord, and I will cause you to ride on the heights of the land...”
The people of Israel were admonished to remember and honor the Lord on the Sabbath day, which is Saturday. They were told that if they didn’t go doing their own thing, then He would remember them and bless them! Hmm, very interesting! I wonder. I just wonder if that thought could somehow be applied to the people of God and the Lord’s Day?!
Anyway you cut it, anyway you look at it, IT ALWAYS PAYS TO LOOK UP AND HONOR!
CONCLUSION---------------------------------------
Look back and remember. Look out and love. Look up and honor. People count. People always count the most. When we remember people and remember to love people that’s when the Lord will bless us!
Acts 20:35 “It is more blessed to give than to recieve.” And it is more blessed to remember than not to remember!
