Bit Parts

I have felt disappointed about the last few plays for which my kids have auditioned. They all got parts, but I felt that they were slighted because I thought that the characters they were to play were only “bit parts”, minor roles. After all, I know that my kids are a lot more talented than many of the others, and they certainly sing better than anyone else in Topeka! (Again, YES I am biased, and YES they get that from Mom!) Don’t get me wrong, I know that they need to start at the bottom and work their way up, pay their dues, and gain valuable experience from working with good directors and watching others as they hone their God given talents. But still, I was none to excited about paying 90 bucks apiece for them to merely “participate” in the play, especially if the directors simply wanted to fill the stage. But my children were thrilled at their parts and excited to be part of the cast, and rightly so, because it takes ALL of these players to make the show work!

Too frequently we act the same way in the Church. We feel that if we don’t get to be a “major player”, then what is the point? After all, our ideas are better and more efficient than the other proposals. If we could just do it our way, it would look better, sound better, be more efficient, and we could reach many more souls for our God. And why do some people think they can sing better, or teach better, or organize better, or are more trustworthy; and why aren’t we consulted more?

Some call this a “power struggle”...God calls this selfish! Paul, in 1 Corinthians 12, tells us that we all have different talents and spiritual gifts, and that we need to use them to God’s glory, not ours. He describes us Church members as a body, made up of many parts, all different – but all vital, and all arranged exactly where God wants us to be! Likewise, 1 Peter 2 describes us as “living stones”, joined together to form a spiritual house for God, where we can offer our spiritual sacrifices to God. So when we elevate ourselves (in our own minds) above our brothers and sisters, we tell our Creator that we know better than He does. This selfishness then causes hurt feelings among our members, distance and separation from our brothers, divisions in the Church, and then we quarrel and fight and gossip among ourselves. James calls this kind of behavior adulterous. (James 4:1-4)

Some of the best Christians I know hold what might be considered “bit parts”: the man who is uncomfortable in front of people, yet relishes being an usher, or behind the sound board, or grading correspondence courses; the woman who doesn’t want to teach women’s Bible study or a children’s class, yet is honored to prepare a meal for a shut-in or sick member, or to baby sit for the young mother of 3 (or 5 or 6) just to give her a break and let her relax; or the member who sees that the yard needs mowing or the door needs fixing or the walls need painting and just does it, without being asked and without being seen and not expecting, and rarely getting, a pat on the back. God has a word for these people too – SERVANT!

So next time we are asked to do something, we need to be thankful that God can use us. Next time we do something, we need to be excited that we can do this for God. Are you a hand? A foot? A heart? An eye? A liver or kidney? A tonsil or a sweat gland? Thank God for “bit parts”. Thank God for putting us all together to form a single body with all of the talents and abilities and gifts we need to perform all of the work He sets before us.

Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others...Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe (Phillipians 2:3,4,14,15)

More Than the Air I Breathe

While watching an infomercial the other day (I know, I know…”Get a life, buddy!”), the hostess made a statement that would not have been strange to anyone but me. While promoting an air purifier she stated, “Nothing is more important than the air you breathe.” My first thought was, “That is not necessarily true”, but the more I thought about it, the more I am convinced that this is ABSOLUTELY not true. I know that sounds like “crazy talk” and right about now you must be wondering when the nice men in the white coats will be here to take me away; after all, just ask those who live in Houston or California about the importance of their air quality.

But I was immediately reminded of a song written by Lindell Cooley and Bruce Haynes and sung by the Zoe Group, titled, “I Need You More”. Listen closely to the words:

I need You more, more than yesterday.
I need You more, more than words can say.
I need You more than ever before.
I need You, Lord. I need You, Lord.

More than the air I breathe,
More than the song I sing,
More than the next heartbeat,
More than anything,
And Lord, as time goes by,
I’ll be by Your side,
‘Cause I never want to go back
To my old life.

I need You more, more than yesterday.
I need You more, more than words can say.
I need You more than ever before.
I need You, Lord. I need You, Lord.

This should be the first song we sing each and every morning. While we have all sinned (Romans 3:23) resulting in death (Romans 6:23), God has breathed new life into us and made us an entirely new creature (Romans 6:3-4).

Take a deep breath of God’s grace and forgiveness and relish each moment that we are connected to the life support that is our God!

When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. Colossians 2:13

Is Anybody In There?

Another Halloween has come and gone and we were fortunate enough to spend it with our good friends, the Booths. I can tell you there is nothing better on Halloween than good friends, great chili (thanks Don), and a Halloween movie or two. This year we all sat down to watch the original “Ghostbusters”. It has been so long since we have seen it that the funny parts were just as much of a surprise this time and we laughed hard all over again. But the scene that stood out most to me was when Sigourney Weaver was possessed by some demon and Bill Murray was trying to talk to her. When he asked, “Is Dana in there? I want to talk to Dana.”, she answered, “there is no Dana, only Zul.”

Isn’t this exactly what God asks of us? Not to be possessed by some demon, but to be filled with His Spirit – to be completely void of ourselves and replaced by Jesus Christ! Paul expressed it best in Galatians 2:20, “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” (NKJV). Once we were plunged beneath the water of baptism, our spirit died and Christ took up residence and control of our lives. All too often we try to resurrect the old self and our sinful nature struggles for control. Satan keeps telling us that the old man must be in there somewhere and he wants to talk only to our former sinful self.

Our daily challenge is to completely let go of ourselves and let Christ, alone, live and work through our lives

Our response should ALWAYS be, “There is no me, THERE IS ONLY JESUS!”