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Dear Friends:  This week's Digest focuses on the important issue of character. Who we are is much more important than what we may accomplish within our lifetime. Two football Hall of Famers and a morning walk with the dog serve to remind us of the importance in HOW we live our lives.
It is not too late to join us in our summer study in Colossians! Check out the opportunity at the bottom of this newsletter to work your way through this book with me by the end of August!
Please use the link at the very bottom of this email and forward it on to a friend who could use some encouragement! Thanks!
Love, Julie |
| The Importance of the Process |
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 When my son Daniel was in third grade, he wrote a fan letter to Darrell Green, talented cornerback of the Washington Redskins. In his letter Daniel invited Mr. Green to dinner at our home. He also included a piece of artwork. It was a picture of Reggie White, defensive end of the Philadelphia Eagles. "He is really my favorite player," Daniel explained, under the picture he had drawn. "But he lives too far away to come to dinner. So I wrote to you instead." Strangely enough, Mr. Green never responded to this less-than-enthusiastic tribute.
These many years later, Darrell Green was once again at the forefront of Redskins news this weekend. He and former teammate Art Monk were inducted into the Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. Being the die-hard Redskins fans that we are, the whole family settled in to watch the ceremony, which included tributes to the six inductees and their acceptance speeches. Both Mr. Green and Mr. Monk are men who are serious about their personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Both men had chosen their sons to introduce them to the stadium packed with fans and supporters.
There have been scores of talented players and coaches over the NFL's long history. Only a handful are chosen each year to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. These men are the best of the best. They have shattered records and thrilled fans with their dedication to the sport and their unsurpassed athleticism.
Therefore it was striking that as the two sons spoke of their fathers, their dads' remarkable careers in football were barely mentioned. No amazing statistics were quoted, nor the records that they held. Instead, what the young men heralded as their fathers' greatest achievements were matters of character.
Art Monk's son began his speech by quoting a frequent question he was asked during his childhood: "Do you want to be another Art Monk when you grow up?" After expressing his appreciation for his father's great character and dedication to the Lord, he concluded by answering that question. "My dad's greatness did not come from his talent at football. It came from his desire to bring glory to God. . . Do I want to be another Art Monk? I would rather be like my Dad."
Paul wrote about the importance of how we conduct each part of our lives. "Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father" (Colossians 3:17, italics added). In God's eyes, our accomplishments take a back seat in relation to how we go about getting them done. Vitally important is the character we display during the process.
I was once on a music team that had excellence as its primary goal. There were many talented musicians in the group. Eventually it was felt that allowing less than proficient members to be on the team meant sacrificing excellence. This would not do, since after all, our efforts were for the Lord! So over the course of a year, members who did not reach a certain musical standard were asked to step down from the team. The end result was a talented, elite music team. Unfortunately, a second by-product was the people left bruised and bleeding in the wake of the destruction our quest for "excellence" had wrought. Looking back on that time, I cringe with shame at my part in the hurt that was caused. We were dead wrong. Our priority had become all about the end product. Yet the process, how well we loved and remained humble in our dealings with others, was more important to God. We had missed the point.
The two godly men that were inducted this weekend stand as examples to us of the importance of character in every part of our lives. In the end, it will not matter what we have done. Rather it will be who we were when we did it.
Whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.
1 Corinthians 10:31
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| From My Blog Archives |
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Wednesday, May 28, 2008
A Sweet Aroma
"But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and manifests through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place. For we are a fragrance of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing." 2 Corinthians 2:14-15
Sasha the dog and I love our morning walks. This morning was especially beautiful. After an oppressively hot and humid day yesterday, Canada sent us a shot of cool, crisp air overnight. The air is refreshingly clear and clean. As we walked along, Sasha sniffing the ground and me sniffing the air, we came upon a honeysuckle bush in full bloom. The sweet scent of the blossoms made me stop in my tracks. The aroma was absolutely delicious.
One of my childhood memories is of the many bus trips we took into Hartford to go shopping for the day. Each time as we neared the Connecticut River, I would press my nose to the window in anticipation of what was coming. The Wonder Bread factory stood by the side of the road, and a delicious aroma always came wafting in as we drove by its doors. Every passenger on the bus breathed deeply as the bus lumbered on.
Smells can trigger happy memories. When my mother died, I took her perfume bottle home with me. It may sound silly, but sometimes, these many years later, I open the bottle and just sniff. It makes me remember the fun times we had together and how much she loved me. Just the scent triggers a happy emotion in my heart.
Paul spoke of himself and his fellow workers as an aroma. Two things would have come to mind for his original readers when hearing this comparison. First, the Roman army had a custom of holding a triumphal procession to honor a conquering general returning from a military campaign, who marched along with his recent captives trailing behind. Fragrant incense was customarily burned in this type of parade. The second thing that might have come to mind, at least for his Jewish readers, would have been the number of times in the Law that God described the smoke of a burning sacrifice for sin as a "soothing aroma."
When Mary broke the neck of precious oil to anoint Jesus in the days before his crucifixion, John tells us that the aroma spread throughout the house (John 12:3). Paul speaks of Christ's sacrifice and physical suffering as a fragrant aroma (Ephesians 5:2). Paul again uses the term aroma to describe the sacrificial giving on the part of the Philippian church (Philippians 4:18). As I looked through all the uses of this term in the New Testament, it jumped out at me: all of the aromas mentioned involved some type of sacrifice. It is costly to produce an aroma.
Paul could use the term about himself because he had indeed suffered and sacrificed much in his service to God. He wrote the Colossians: "I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I do my share on behalf of His body, which is the church, in filling up what is lacking in Christ's afflictions." (Colossians 1:24) What Paul suffered for the sake of Christ was a pleasing aroma to God.
God, the conquering hero, leads those he set free in His victory in His own triumphal "procession." But rather than burning incense, He presents his people as the aroma, to make known to all the knowledge of Himself. In other words, God uses what we who know Him have shown with our lives to bring people to Himself. I don't know about you, but I find that thought pretty scary.
Paul urges the Romans to present their bodies a "living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God." (Romans 12:1) How much do I allow Jesus Christ to impact my life? What sacrifices do I make for the cause of Christ? How often do I remove myself from the center of my universe? How do you rate in these things? Before you throw up your hands in despair with me, know that Paul himself knew he was insufficient in ability for the task. He cries, "Who is adequate for these things?" (2 Corinthians 2:16) None of us are. We are faulty, self-centered, wayward people. Left to our own devices, we will fail every time.
Fortunately, later in chapter 3, Paul gives the solution to our problem. "Not that we are adequate in ourselves to consider anything as coming from ourselves, but our adequacy is from God, who also made us adequate as servants of a new covenant." (2 Corinthians 3:4-6) We can't do it. But God can do it through us. He chose to use the imperfect to display His perfect glory. It is a mystery as to how He can accomplish this. But we can rest in the fact that He has promised it is His way.
Like the honeysuckle blossoms that stopped me in my tracks this morning, our lives will cause others to pause and inhale when we are surrendered to Him. That's all. No big accomplishments needed. Just yielding to the One who has done it all for us.
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| Summer Study in Colossians |
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Summer is a busy time, and we can often allow our many activities to force our time in God's Word to the back burner. It's not too late to change all that! Each week day, I am posting a section of Colossians for us to ponder, systematically working our way through this remarkable letter by the apostle Paul.
Please join me by clicking on this link: juliecoleman.blogspot.com and begin a month of short studies together! Today is day ten, but it is not too late to start; if you are just beginning, scroll down to day one and work your way up.
Be sure to pass the link on to others who might enjoy a month-long study this summer! | |
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