It's getting late and I am tired

In Luke 9:10-11 Jesus decides to take his men somewhere, they are glad to get some time with him about the last trip they took. But as what usually happens, people get word that Jesus is going somewhere and they follow him. In their minds, it doesn't matter where he is going they just want to be with him. But I bet the disciples wanted Jesus by himself and this was not turning out like they wanted.

Jesus graciously welcomed the people and spoke to them about the kingdom of God (critical issues of life), and as they revealed needs, he met them. It is likely that Jesus was tired from being involved with people before this trip but he loved people so his life invited them to come along. He did not talk about the weather or who was going to be in the world series but talked about the issues that really mattered. He met their needs-in this case it was to heal people with various illnesses.

What about you and I? Are we letting Jesus love people through us? Is our life inviting? People can tell if we want them to hang out with us. When you and I really love people, no one is ever interrupting. We must also not be so busy with life that we do not have time to allow them into our life. Then, what do we talk about? It is amazing how long a conversation can go without any substance. It is like a trip where the kids ask "are we there yet?" Sometimes the conversation goes on and on and we never get to the critical issues that matter. Too much is at stake to only observe the scenery on our trip with others. What sometimes happens then is that people begin to let us in on their life and reveal a need. It is easy to brush it off and tell them "that is interesting" or "I will pray with you about it."

FOCUS What can you do this week to let someone into your life?
Make it a point to listen and then ask a question that gets to issues that matter.
Meeting practical needs is as spiritual as it gets-Matthew 10:42.

Going through the closet

Occasionally we decide it is time to go through our closet and get rid of some of the clothes we have not worn for a while and give them to the Salvation Army or Goodwill. This makes us feel generous because we are sharing some of our stuff with someone else. There are a lot of clothes left in our closet however after we have made such a generous donation. And, we usually get rid of those clothes we really do not like or believe we are going to wear much anymore.

Sort of reminds me of how we give out some of the good news about Jesus but keep back most of it. We feel good because we used the word "church" in our conversation with someone who does not follow Jesus but they are left wondering what the spank we mentioned that for.

In Luke 8:16-18 Jesus talks about this kind of generosity with an interesting application. We have information about how to live and what Monday-Sunday is all about. People we know need to learn how to see their way through this difficult financial time or whatever deal satan is throwing at them. The Message translation is great here-"We're not keeping secrets, we're telling them. We're not hiding things;we're bringing everything out into the open."

Could it be that we are not convinced about the gospel really relating to every part of life and that is why we keep back the really good stuff about how Jesus can change a life? What is it that keeps you from being generous with the truth?

When we are really generous, God opens up things for us we could never imagine. If we are stingy with the truth, we are going to sink deep into poverty-poverty of the soul where we can't put our finger on why we are feeling so down.

Focus Give away something from your closet you really like...and share something with someone who does not know Jesus that you have thought about but for whatever reason you have never brought up. Your relationship with them will go to another level.