“Love always involves responsibility, and love always involves sacrifice. And we do not really love Christ unless we are prepared to face His task and to take up His cross.” - William Barclay Today is Veterans Day. It is a well deserved (more than a couple of times a year) day to honor those who do not simply talk about sacrifice but live it out every day. Most in this country talk and complain, there are so few that actually do. These men and women put their lives on the line every day, and are ready to give the last full measure for their country. It is an interesting albeit not unusual parallel for us in the church. There are a majority who like to whine and moan about the world at large, but few who are ready to do what is necessary to make that world come to fruition. We live in a culture in and out of the church that uses John Mayers anthem Waiting on the World to Change. True Christ following is not a wait and see operation, it is a pray and serve movement. We constantly underestimate the power of prayer, and we downplay doing the tasks in life that we detest. We are great with loving people...until that person is our enemy. We have no problem expending our money to help those in need...as long as it is not the shirt off of our backs. Sometimes we are even good enough to pray...assuming we dont have to really be involved. What is dedication and sacrifice today? I think our military personnel show this effectively. They leave the comforts of home and their families to go places no one really wants to go, and they lay it all on the line. I dont think people have grasped the idea the Jesus laid forth...if you live your life for others the world will change. Sure it is hard...sure people will take advantage of you...sure you will endure pain and struggle, but dont we all experience that anyway? What if Jesus was right? What if you lived just enough within your means to give and help others...enough to stretch you and bring you back to a reliance on God? What if you did forgive all...serve all...love all? What if everything that you sing about on Sundays, everything you say you believe in, actually became your reality? Thomas Edison understood sacrifice and failure and he said, “Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.” George Washington Carver put it this way, “99% of the failures come from people who have the habit of making excuses.” There are no excuses that merit sitting back, doing nothing, and claiming to love. The cross represented everything bad about the culture of the day. It was feared, it was grotesque, and it was essentially the last thing you would ever wish on someone. Yet, this is precisely what Jesus asks us to take. It is not about dying...it is about really living. We honor the men and women of our Armed Forces this day for their sacrifice. Let us emulate them in our own lives and in our walks with Christ to do the same...Sacrifice.
Posted on: Mon, 11 Nov 2013 16:34:26 +0000
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