Simply Obey
By Os Hillman  
"But Naaman went away angry and said, 'I thought that he would surely come out to me and stand and call on the name of the LORD his God, wave his hand over the spot and cure me of my leprosy'" (2 Kings 5:11-12).
Naaman was an army general who needed healing from Leprosy. A young servant girl of the king's house suggested that the prophet Elisha could heal him. He followed her advice and Elisha sent a message to him to do the following: "Go, wash yourself seven times in the Jordan, and your flesh will be restored and you will be cleansed" (2 Kings 5:10). However, when the instruction came as to what he was to do, it seemed ridiculous to him.
Like many of us, Naaman expected God to perform his miracle through Elisha in a dramatic and "religious" way. Sometimes we fail to recognize that God can work through a simple act of obedience that seems unrelated to the problem. God told Joshua to walk around Jericho seven times to win the battle. He told a man to put mud on his eyes to be healed. He told Peter to catch a fish to get a coin to pay his taxes.
There are other times God calls us to use the natural to receive a breakthrough. Sometimes we simply need to change our diet or go see a doctor to see a breakthrough in our health. Sometimes we need to change the way we are doing our work to get a breakthrough in our careers.
Samuel the prophet told King Saul that obedience is better than sacrifice. Learning to listen to the Lord and following His instruction is the key to success in God. Sometimes God chooses the dramatic and sometimes He chooses the ordinary. In either case, both are miracles because God is the God over all creation.

Ask Him what steps you are to take for your breakthrough.

 

My Life is too Small

Dan Miller

This week a 36-year-old MBA in an executive position in an exciting industry shared this concern in her coaching profile: "I have a vague sense that my life is too small."

Living large does not necessarily mean a bigger salary, house, cars or retirement fund. It has nothing to do with fancy vacations or the latest fashions. Rather, it means having a life that is full of meaning and purpose. And that can occur -- or be absent -- at any place on the continuum of the traditional parameters of "success." I've seen millionaires who are living life "small" and those with scarce financial resources who are living "large."

Let me ask you this: What is your life saying to the world? Are you living your life too small? Is it so full of meaningless tasks that there's no room left for the things that make your heart sing? Are you pushing so hard in doing more that you've lost the sense of being more? Does more activity really equal greater accomplishment, or does it at some point tip the scale and begin to diminish the meaning of your life? Are you creating the legacy you want to leave for your loved ones?

Reflect back on last month -- yes, just this last month. What did you do to keep your life from being too small?

Can you identify:

• 4-5 ideas you had for a better job or starting your own business?
• 3 things that you did just to help someone out with no expectation of payback?
• The books you read or listened to that enlightened your spirit, confidence, knowledge and wisdom?
• The number of hours you spent in quiet contemplation?
• The 2 or 3 things you did that you had never done before?
• The concerts, art shows, seminars, workshops or other enriching experiences you had?
• 2 or 3 specific things you did to strengthen the relationships that mean the most to you?
• If you have no responses to these seven questions, chances are strong that you are living your life too small.

Make it a regular practice to embrace living large times in your life. Wisdom, peace, contentment, and insight about investing your life in fulfilling work will grow in those times. Take a walk, give thanks for simple things, take a bath with music playing and candles burning, turn off the telephones, TV, and computer. Carve out those times for restoration and spiritual breathing. Don't confuse activity with accomplishment. Even Jesus got away from the crowds periodically. Don't let your life be too small.

Shamgar's Secret

...Shamgar...killed six hundred...Philistines with an ox goad... Judges 3:31

Shamgar lived in dangerous times. Philistine gangs roamed the countryside, robbing people: 'In the days of Shamgar... people avoided the main roads; and travellers stayed on...pathroads' (Judges 5:6 NLT). Shamgar's only weapon was an ox goad, a long wooden staff with a steel tip used to prod oxen. But it wasn't until he came under attack that he discovered its full potential. Understand this: God has given you an 'ox goad', something you can use to win in the situation you're facing. If you seek Him, He'll show you what it is. Like the boy with the five loaves and two fishes, God will take something small, bless it, then multiply it to bless others. The Bible says we are to '...be instant in season, out of season...' (2 Timothy 4:2KJV). The Greek words for 'be instant' could be translated 'be prepared'. The Greek word for 'season' means 'opportunity'. You need to be preparing yourself now, when it looks like nothing is happening, because your season will change and the opportunity to act will suddenly present itself. When it does, you must be ready. In life, opportunities are either coming towards you, or passing you by. In college, a professor told Dr Martin Luther King Jr that if he kept using such lofty words, he would never be a very effective public speaker. You have to wonder what that professor thought as he listened to Dr King's 'I have a dream' speech, and watched him go on to champion civil rights. What's your ox goad? Use it, and God will bless it!

Walking in Purity

...he will purify... and refine them like gold... Malachi 3:3

When gold is refined over extreme heat the first thing to come to the surface is dross. The next thing to be separated from it is silver, a less precious metal that blends with the raw gold ore. There's an important lesson here. Most of us are unable to separate the good from the best, so Malachi writes, 'He will purify... and refine them like gold'. God does it, because we don't know how! After committing adultery with Bathsheba, David writes, 'Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me' (Psalm 51:10 NKJV). David prays for two things: a clean heart and a steadfast desire to walk in purity. Personal failure is usually the result of a slow, steady build-up, rather than a single act of disobedience. It happens when we focus on the wrong things and neglect our spiritual life. So God calls us to the place of solitude, a place with no distractions, in order to probe our deepest thoughts and open our eyes to certain issues that need attention. It is here He makes us aware of what we excuse, or try to hide from others. It's here the junk we've collected during the busy hours of our day gets filtered out. With the debris out of the way, we're able to see things more clearly and respond to God's nudgings. There's no way to have a deeper, more intimate relationship with God without the discipline James talks about: 'Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands... and purify your hearts...' (James 4:8 NKJV).

Marriage Rights

Live joyfully with the wife whom you love... Ecclesiastes 9:9

What if you're single, looking for a mate and haven't found one yet? God created Eve specifically for Adam. 'Then...He brought her to the man. And Adam said: "This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh..."' (Genesis 2:22-23 NKJV). When God brings you the right person, a spiritual and emotional bonding will take place. When you try to get ahead of Him you end up with regrets and recriminations. Peter de Vries explains it this way, 'The difficulty with marriage is that we fall in love with a personality, but must live with a character.' So, wait on God! When God looked across eternity He saw you. He gave you certain traits and abilities that make you unique. He knew exactly who you would need to help fulfil His purposes and develop the gifts He's given you. Until that happens, remember, He is your spiritual partner! He's been caring for you all along: protecting you, providing for you and directing your steps, right? So be careful how you treat Him. If you can't keep your vow to the Lord, it's doubtful you'll keep it to anybody else. Speaking to those who are single, Paul writes, 'Let each one remain in the same calling in which he was called...Do not be concerned about it...rather use it' (1 Corinthians 7:20-21 NKJV). Stop wrestling with your singleness and use this time to develop your relationship with God. Never forget that one of the greatest visitations of the Holy Spirit happened to a single, small-town girl named Mary, proving that when you trust God's timing He always sends you the best!

Keep the Torch Burning!

...The race is not to the swift... Ecclesiastes 9:11

In Ancient Greek marathons a torch was handed to each runner at the starting line. To win, they had to cross the finishing line with their torch still burning. What a picture! '...unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required...' (Luke 12:48 KJV). In God's kingdom you are called to run your best race and cross the finishing line with the fire in your heart still burning. The torch race was a tough one that led through mountains and valleys. Doubtless there were times when others would pass you by, when your strength would fail, when you lost your way and had to get back on track, or stumbled and had to get back up. What counted in this race was not style, but staying power! The Bible says, 'Run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus... lest you become weary and discouraged...' (Hebrews 12:1-3 NKJV). How did Jesus run His race? As a boy of 12 He told His parents, '...I must be about my Father's business"' (Luke 2:49NKJV). Later, when the crowd tried to take Him in a different direction and impose their agenda on Him, He said, 'I must work the works of Him that sent Me...' (John 9:4 NKJV). Facing the cross, He announced, '...For this cause I was born...' (John 18:37 NKJV). On the cross, He announced, '..."It is finished!"...' (John 19:30NKJV). In Revelation we see one of our last recorded glimpses of Christ, and '...His eyes [are] like a flame of fire' (Revelation 1:14 NKJV). He crossed the finishing line with the torch still burning. And He is your example!

Strive for Integrity, Not Popularity

The integrity of the honest keeps them on track... Proverbs 11:3

Joseph refused the advances of Potiphar's wife, not because he thought he couldn't get away with it, but because he knew he couldn't live with himself if he accepted them. Ted Engstrom writes, 'The world needs people who cannot be bought; whose word is their bond; who put character above wealth; who possess opinions and a will; who are larger than their vocations; who don't hesitate to take chances; who won't lose their individuality in a crowd; who will be as honest in small things as they are in great things; who will make no compromise with wrong; whose ambitions are not confined to their own selfish desires; who will not say they do it "because everybody else does it"; who are true to their friends through good report and evil report, in adversity as well as in prosperity; who do not believe that shrewdness, cunning and hard-heartedness are the best qualities for winning success; who are not afraid to stand for the truth even when it's unpopular; who say "no" with emphasis, even though the rest of the world says "'yes".' In what he calls a compromise of integrity, psychiatrist Leo Randall analyses the relationship between former President Nixon and some of his closest confidants in the Watergate scandal. He records a conversation between Senator Howard Baker and Nixon aide Herbert Porter. Baker: 'Did you ever have qualms about what you were doing?' Porter: 'No!' Baker: 'Why?' Porter: 'Group pressure. I was afraid of not being considered a team player.' So strive for integrity, not popularity!