Month: December 2019

Re-Gifting

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They said to him, “We have only five loaves here and two fish.” And he said, “Bring them here to me.”          Matthew 14:17 ESV

At Christmas-time probably more of us than would like to admit practice the art of re-gifting. We feel mildly guilty because the practice is usually associated with someone who is either a cheap-skate or an ingrate. However, in the Bible Jesus often practiced re-gifting. When we look at the story of Jesus multiplying the bread we see that He took the five loaves from the disciples, who in turn got them from a small boy and then gave them to five thousand hungry people.

Imported from phone 796

In our lives we are all “gifted” with time, talent and treasure. None of these things belong to us; they only pass through our hands. God is watching to see how we will re-gift what we have received. Will we feed the hungry; and bring comfort, shelter and friendship to those in need around us? What will we re-gift to someone today? And when we do remember the great re-gifting when Jesus took the life that the Father had given Him and gave it to us on the cross.

Christmas Cross

Prayer: Father, help me not to cling so tightly to the things you have given me. Give me the heart of Jesus Christ who loved me and gave himself for me!

Foot Washing Lessons

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Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel that was wrapped around him. John 13:5 ESV

If you search for leadership training programs you can find 389 millions results in under a second; but not so many on learning to be a servant. But looking at the teachings of Jesus; we see Him stressing the exact opposite.  Most stunning among His lessons was the night Jesus became the foot washer for His disciples. On the evening that Jesus instituted what we celebrate as communion, He concluded the supper with a simple act of service and left us an example to follow.

close up photography of hands and feet

Photo by Min An on Pexels.com

First Jesus did some planning. His foot washing wasn’t just some spur of the moment action. Jesus had everything prepared ahead of time so that when the moment came He was ready. For us to be a good servant we need to invest time and effort and do so with excellence. Secondly, Jesus shows us is that He served unexpectedly. When He stepped out to get the basin and the towel and then reentered the room His disciples were shocked. Most of us treat service as if it were just an option that we might consider until our pastor or some other church leader asks us repeatedly to help out. Last; Jesus chose the lowest job of all to express His love. As He began to wash and dry their dirty feet he was showing us that there was nothing He would not do to wash us and prepare us to follow Him. Then God asks us three questions. How can we get ready to serve: What unexpected blessing could we give: And what job is needed that no one else wants to do?

Man of Sorrows – God of Comfort

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He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.          Isaiah 53:3 KJV

“Man of Sorrows what a name?” begins the hymn by Phillip Bliss, that points us to Jesus, who understands our grief because He has walked in our shoes. And if even Jesus, the Son of God, could not escape sorrows; how much more can we think that they will not invade ours without warning? The Sunday before my mother died I was leaving church when my friend Jerry stopped me to ask how she was doing. For a moment I stumbled over a few words trying to explain and then the dam of my emotions broke. “Not good Jerry; not good at all!” I choked out and then I sat down in the closest pew and began to weep. Suddenly I was surrounded not only by Jerry but by my wife and several of our friends as a tidal wave of memories, regrets and grief swept over me.

I am still so thankful for their love and quiet comfort that day because it helped prepare me for the phone call from the hospice just a few days later telling me that she was gone. Really tough times are impossible to plan for. For every one of us there will come a point where we have nothing left and there only grace remains. There Jesus; who was called a man of sorrows, comes with comfort. Sometimes He gives us a sense of His presence; sometimes He reminds us of His promises and at others He uses the arms of family and friends to hold us close to His heart.

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