I was listening to sports radio with the Hunky Hubby the other day (yeah I know...true love if you ever saw it right) and the announcer asked his guest if he though the two top quarterbacks in the draft this year would be able to make it in the NFL.

His answer was very interesting. He said that yes he felt they would succeed because: they came from solid families and had an excellent work ethic.

That got me thinking. This is the NFL, and no one is even pretending that they are about anything but winning and money. But what do they look for in the young men who they hope will bring them victory and loads of cash. They look for integrity. They want solid kids who know who they are and are willing to work hard and give of themselves to help everyone succeed.

Even out beneath the bright lights of the world, people are searching for individuals who display the qualities that Christ has asked us to showcase in His name. They are waiting for us to be like Him.

Lord, give me your power to become what everyone so desperately needs in their lives. Someone just like you.

I like to think that I'm an organized person. I know what I need to get done and I'm usually pretty good about doing it.

Laundry - check

Grocery shopping - check

Clean the house - check

I actually enjoy those things. Well, not those mundane tasks specifically. But I love the results. There's nothing like a full fridge, empty laundry baskets, and floors smelling of Lysol to make me feel good.

But do you ever struggle to get things done where the results aren't quite so visible and immediate?

I always make time for laundry. I always make time for cooking dinner. But I don't always make time for my Bible. I put it off, reasoning that I'll be able to concentrate better when my other tasks are done. Then evening rolls around and I reason that I should just wait till tomorrow, knowing that I can't really concentrate when I'm tired.


Why are we so prone to putting off the things that will grow us spiritually? Sure, it feels like a chore sometimes. But so do so many of the other things we do - and yet we never fail to make time for them.

Is it because the results aren't always obvious? I don't know about you, but even though I don't always see a difference when I read my Bible, I always see a difference when I don't.

Discipline is an ugly word because it sounds like work. But it's more like training. Building muscle. It is slow, the results aren't quick, but it the long run - it is totally worth it.


Where does quiet time land on your to do list? Is it just something to get done because you know you have to, or is it a precious time you wouldn't dare miss? How have you disciplined yourself to grow spiritually day by day?

-Crystal

I am a great cook. As my husband! Ask my kids! I am a lean, mean, gourmet machine. My menu is planned with the precise calculations of an organic chemist, the passion of a tortured artist, and the budget savvy-ness of...well, of a stay-at-home mom. I love to cook - period.

But I hate cooking for other people. You know when those announcements come at church and clubs that so-and-so just had a baby or that one guy is having surgery and people are bringing them meals and could you please sign up and this is loving people and serving the way Jesus would?

Yeah...no. Not me. Uh-uh. Never ever ever. I will have coffee with people till my pee turns brown, but don't ever expect me to make a meal.

I think we all have tendencies like that. We have things we're good at and things we're not. So we draw the line, step back, throw up our hands and say, "That's not my thing."

"Not my talent."

"Not my gift."

But is that Biblical?

"And all who believed were together and had all things in common. And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. And day by day attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved." - Acts 2:44-47

That's church. That's fellowship. That's the body of Christ. You have to imagine that not everyone was good at everything, but their generous hearts seemed to have no limits. Maybe Susie wasn't great a big group meals, but I'm betting she found something she was good at and found a way to be involved. Maybe she offered to clean up after everyone was done. Or maybe she made cute little encouragement parchments for people to put in their bathrooms. Whatever the case, she stopped being picky and started being involved.

Okay, I'm still not going to make a meal. But can I offer to clean? Buy groceries? Can I send encouraging notes? Can I bring Starbucks? Just as long as I do something.

Just as long as we all do something.

Just as long as you do something.

Where have you used, "That's not my thing," as an excuse to not be involved in something? Where might God be stretching you and your talents to serve and help in an area you never have before? 

-Crystal

Revelation 2:26--"To him who overcomes and does my will to the end, I will give authority over the nations."

I can learn a lesson in faithfulness from our old dog. He limps painfully on one of his shoulders due to shoulder displecia and gets super hot on hikes with his thick shiny fur. His musel is silver with age but his eyes are always on us and whatever adventure we might be about to embark upon. Our family recently went on a two mile scramble up a rocky hillside near our home, and Shamu our old dog was game for the adventure. He panted and got highcentered on logs that he tried to hop over and limped over to every stray pile of snow we came across for a quick nap now and then, but he kept going.

As he gets older he becomes more and more faithful. We have become his whole world. Sure he still loves to bark at coyotes and chase a squirrel now and then, but what is really important is hobbling up our stairs and taking long naps close to my husband as he works in his office. Shamu is an overcomer, he is faithful to the end.

Dear Lord, grant me the strength of this sweet beast. I want to be an overcomer, help me to be faithful to the very end.

1 John 5:5--"Who is it that overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the son of God."