Jealousy vs. Celebration
A few weeks ago I lost my wallet. Once I gave in and resigned myself to the fact it was not to be found, I decided to go get a new license. Unfortunately that meant going to the DMV during quarantine. Ugh, I don’t like the DMV during normal times! Naturally I looked for a way to avoid going. I filled out the paperwork online thinking they would just send me a new license, but, no, I still had to go in. The line wrapped around the entire building! People in line were friendly, but unhappy! (It was a loooong line.)
Then when a staff member came out and announced the wait time would be two to three times longer than expected, I decided I did not need a license after all. I asked the staff member what days/times were best to come and she unexpectedly said to come with her. She walked me to the front of the line, gave me a number and directed me inside! I was shocked, excited, and I felt a little guilty. I waited a fraction of the time as the people in line in front of me and they all knew it! I did not get the friendliest looks after that! In fact people were jealous and upset. However, the nicest DMV employee in the world saved me a few hours and gave me hope in humanity!
Here is the point: We come into every situation of life with bias, baggage, and expectation. I sometimes think that life isn’t fair and God isn’t taking care of me. That type of thinking is far from the truth. He blessed me at the DMV to show me not to believe the lies of the enemy, faulty thinking, or my doubts. God showed me that jealousy and envy have no place in my heart or in his kingdom (James 3:14-15).
The funny part is, a few days after getting my new license, a police officer dropped off my wallet that someone had found and turned in. I made an unnecessary trip to the DMV, but God knew how I needed to experience him that day and remind me of his faithfulness (Psalm 86:15).
Think of a time where God took care of you in a normal way, but it made a huge impact. In prayer, tell God what he did for you and thank him for how he took care of you.
Pastor Jeremy Johnson
Men’s Ministry
Comparison Kills Contentment
When I was a newly dubbed “adult,” I developed a misguided idea that I was supposed to be good at everything. But in my quest to do everything—and to do it all perfectly—I lost any semblance of balance in my life. While I had become very efficient with my time, my body started screaming that it needed rest and, of course, more than the four hours of sleep I was allowing myself.
It wasn’t until I fully grasped the grace and beauty of Ephesians 2:8-10 that I realized getting caught up in the comparison game of being “better” and “perfect” was a no-win situation. Instead, I needed to be content with the strengths — and weaknesses — in how God created me.
Ephesians 2:8-10 says, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”
We can’t do anything to earn our salvation. God’s grace is a free gift. Yet, he still chose to create each one of us as his handiwork — his “masterpiece” as the New Living Translation says — uniquely imbued with strengths and, yes, weaknesses aligned to help us live out the good purpose for which we were created.
What I discovered was when I was focused on what others were doing and how I measured up, it robbed me of my peace. Instead, if I shifted my eyes from comparing myself to others onto the One who created me and the purpose he had for me, then Christ blessed me with the previously illusive contentment.
When we “keep our eyes always on the Lord,” as Psalm 16:8 says, then the Holy Spirit will lead us to the good purpose for which we were created, including the little things we do each day to encourage those around us. Shifting our eyes from comparison with others to focusing on Christ results in contentment and a balanced life, knowing that the Holy Spirit empowers us to do the “good works” He has prepared in advance.
By Cyndie de Neve
Senior Creative Director
Not Our Referee
Grandma and Grandpa couldn’t believe what they’d witnessed. Their twin granddaughters’ soccer team had made it to the finals. In the first half of this back and forth game, Sadie, twin number one had scored a goal and the girls kept the other team scoreless. In the second half, with less than five minutes to play, the other team tied it up. Nerves flared for the twins’ team and the confidence they felt moments before seemed to deflate. Then, not two minutes after the following kickoff, Bree, twin number two, trapped a ball perfectly with her inner foot just after the other team’s goalie tried to clear the ball and send it deep. The goalie mis-kicked it somewhat and Bree was in the clear. She sent the ball forward just a few steps, followed after it and just before the closest defender arrived she kicked it over all the defenders, including the goalie, straight into the top of the goal!
Everyone celebrated the score and it was a great moment for their family. Not only was this the championship game, but it was the first time Sadie and Bree had both scored a goal in the same game. Moments later, the referee blew three long blows on his whistle and everyone on the twin’s team and on the sidelines celebrated again. The unbelievable part of the story is what happened next. The referee declared the game a tie at two to two, announced that the game was over and both teams would be the champions of the league. The twins and their team were shocked. They didn’t understand, the coaches were mad, and Grandma was fearful they might start a brawl with the referee or the other team’s coaches, with Grandpa leading the charge.
Something happens in our souls and can happen in our society when unfairness is clear. It rubs us wrong to say the least. This can be a problem when we start to see God as our heavenly referee. Fairness is not his goal for this life, is not the same thing as justice and is nowhere near close to mercy, grace, generosity or compassion. We often look for what we think will be fairness and then find it hard to understand when God’s generosity blesses those who clearly haven’t earned the love and acceptance he bestows. Never forget, none of us earned it.
In the parable of the generous landowner, it is easy to put ourselves in the shoes of the workers who worked all day for their agreed upon wage only to see workers who only did one hour’s work get the same pay. God isn’t our cosmic referee, making sure everything feels fair. Jesus says that this is what the kingdom of God is like.
“He answered one of them, ‘Friend, I haven’t been unfair! Didn’t you agree to work all day for the usual wage? Take your money and go. I wanted to pay this last worker the same as you. Is it against the law for me to do what I want with my money? Should you be jealous because I am kind to others?’" Matthew 20:13-15
Jesus is generous with his grace and mercy and it is good for us to follow in those footsteps. How can we bless others this week with our time, talent, and treasure on this earth?
Pastor John Riley
Junior High Ministry
Earning vs. Receiving
My uncle was a kind and generous man. He loved people, went to church, and shared his resources; but to him, Jesus was just a good man, not his Savior. As a child I prayed for him every night and my own kids did the same. Even my students prayed for Uncle Carl to come to know Jesus.
At the age of 94, Uncle Carl’s health started failing. After years of so many people praying, was he really going to leave this earth still denying Christ? One day my aunt called and asked us to come visit; she had a surprise! We walked into their house and something was different. A new sense of life and joy permeated the home. As we walked towards Uncle Carl’s hospital bed in the living room, he looked up at us and declared, “I’m a new man! I have the Lord!” We looked at each other in disbelief and then back at Uncle Carl to see a huge grin spread across his face that suddenly appeared to be decades younger. Our 12-year-old son excitedly said to him, “Uncle Carl, you are going to get to see Jesus soon! And you won’t feel anymore pain!” He responded with a big smile and, “That sounds just fine.” We were all overjoyed! Our faith had increased.
The following Monday I gathered all 52 of my 6th grade Bible students and shared with them the big news, “Uncle Carl put his faith in Jesus as his Savior!” They all cheered! They had been praying for him for almost two years. At that moment God gave me a new glimpse into his sovereignty. I had questioned for many years why God was not using Uncle Carl, a kind and generous man, as a testimony of a follower of Christ. Now, at the end of his life, I saw God glorified as my own kids, my students and so many others who had prayed for him, had their faith increased. It brought me to a new understanding of Isaiah 55:8, “‘My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,’ says the Lord. ‘And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine.’” Could God have been glorified had Uncle Carl come to know him at a young age? Of course! Yet God was showing us a different kind of testimony. Ten days later, Uncle Carl got to see Jesus face to face.
Uncle Carl had spent his entire life trying to earn favor, and in his final days, he finally saw that the reward of life with Jesus was there waiting for him; not to be earned, but to be received. I’ll admit, there were times when my prayers for him lacked faith. Who are you praying for today? Do you ever feel like giving up? Try recommitting the process, and not just the result, to God. The outcome may not be exactly what you are praying for, but in relinquishing your will to God, your faith will increase and God will be glorified.
Lynette Fuson
Women’s Ministry Director
What’s in It for Me?
Recently, I asked one of my children if they wanted to run an errand with me. After hearing my question, the first words out of their mouth were, “Are you going to buy me something?” The first words out of my mouth in response to that was, “No.” The next words out of their mouth in response to my response was, “Then I don’t want to go.” And so you have it. I got to spend some quality time with myself.
This notion of wanting to know “What’s in it for me?” is very human and something we can all relate to, is it not? “If I do this, what will I get for it?” “If I don’t do that, what will I lose because of it?” I’m not here to criticize this way of thinking. Rather, what I’d like to point out is that maybe ... sometimes ... that’s the wrong question (or that at least we should consider asking another one as well). Let me suggest that the other question we should ask is, “Who will I get out of this?”
Jesus starts his parable about the workers in the vineyard with the phrase, "The kingdom of heaven is like …" He's painting a picture, giving an illustration, but certainly not trying at all to be comprehensive in his description. In explaining that the landlord (aka King) is generous and can do whatever he wants, he draws attention to the fact that the guys hired first were ticked off because they didn’t feel they were being treated fairly. (Now, there’s nothing wrong with being concerned about fairness, I’m not saying that.)
As I read this parable, it dawned on me that the laborers were thinking transactionally rather than relationally. I don’t want to read too much into these verses and thereby arrive at things that aren’t there, but one thing that is there is the reality that the first group of guys hired had the opportunity and privilege to work with and for the landowner longer than anyone else. What they got, more than all the rest, was more of the “who.” But oddly enough, they complained that they felt short-changed because they didn’t get enough of the “what.” I wonder -- had they been thinking relationally rather than transactionally -- if they would have complained, or even been concerned at all about what they did or didn’t get in comparison to the others? And would they have actually felt bad for the others who didn’t get as much of the “who” as they did? Just some things to chew on.
Here’s the point for today: Let’s not let our preoccupation with the “what” keep us from fully enjoying the “who.” I only wish one of my kids felt the same way.
Scott Smith
Pastor of Discipleship Ministries
The Journey to Joy
Years ago I found myself in the middle of a difficult situation. Multiple people had been hurt, lies were flying every which way and there was nothing I could do to bring about resolve. I realized that I resented the offenders and just felt stuck. I could hear God quietly saying, “Forgive,” but forgive was the last thing that I wanted to do.
One day, I went for a run on the beach. This is my favorite place to pray, cry out to God, marvel at his creation and revel in his love. On this particular day though, I was angry, frustrated, and running hard, as if to escape the pain of my circumstances. I had run over three miles when I suddenly realized that I had not once looked at the ocean! Here, was the water's edge, just feet away from me, but my focus was instead on my pain. I stopped right there, sat down on the sand, and had it out with God. I told him about my anger, disappointment and frustration. I cried and yelled and finally asked for help. Yet again I heard his quiet voice, “Forgive.” This time I listened. I pondered with God what forgiveness could look like. Did it mean that I had to trust? I heard him say that forgiveness did not equal trust; forgiveness was at this moment, more about my own healing than it was about that of the offender. I thought about the degree to which God had forgiven me and I started to notice my heart softening. As I relinquished my bitterness and asked God to help me forgive, I felt the anger subside and instead be replaced with peace and even joy. It was such a relief! Forgiveness takes time; but it also takes a first step.
Hebrews 12:15 says, "Look after each other so that none of you fails to receive the grace of God. Watch out that no poisonous root of bitterness grows up to trouble you, corrupting many."
In the Parable of the Prodigal Son, we read about how the father forgave his wayward son, and yet the older brother did not. The father ran to his son, full of love and compassion; not harboring bitterness. Just imagine that joyful embrace! Yet the older brother wouldn’t join in the welcome home party and instead pouted. A root of bitterness was growing in his heart, causing him trouble, and stealing his joy. The older son provides us a picture of how anger and resentment can prevent us from receiving the gift of joy that comes with forgiving. The father though, reminds us that only a heart that forgives can have space to rejoice.
Have you ever had the experience of joy that comes from forgiving? Have you experienced the joy that comes from being forgiven? Meditate on Psalm 32:1-7. Thank God for the forgiveness that he has offered you and ask him to help you lay aside all bitterness and renew your heart to forgive others.
Lynette Fuson
Women’s Ministry Director
A Spirit-Empowered Journey
Have you struggled to forgive someone, not for a single offense, but for many, over a long period of time? Or have you wrestled with forgiving only to have feelings of bitterness or resentment return, and along with those feelings the sense of guilt that you are just not able to obey the command to forgive as you’ve been forgiven.
In this life there will always be hurts and brokenness of relationships that call for a forgiveness that we feel powerless to give. The more that we try, the more we realize that the ability to forgive someone whose offenses are along the lines of the “seventy times seven” is something that we cannot muscle through on our own.
There’s an old story of a traveler in Burma, who after crossing a river, found himself covered with leeches. His first panicked thought was to begin tearing them from his body, but his guide warned him that pulling them off forcefully would put his life in danger. Instead, the guide prepared an herbal bath and had the traveler lie down to soak in it. Before long, the leeches began to fall off.
Sometimes I am like the man trying to pull the life-sucking leeches from my body. I know that I’m called to forgive, so I work to let the hurt go, but the feelings of bitterness return and I struggle all over again. And the unforgiveness, like the leeches, drains me of the strength and life that would be waiting for me if I could be free of it.
Years ago, I found myself in that place, faced with the reality that Jesus really meant what he said in commanding that we forgive those who have sinned against us in the same way that our heavenly Father forgives us. There had been yet another fresh wound and I felt depleted in having to continue to fight against the feelings of anger and bitterness that were welling up inside me again.
In time I sensed the Holy Spirit reminding me of the immense love and mercy that had been poured out on me through Jesus. During this season, as I began meditating on all his goodness and kindness to me, there was a change taking place within me. And then one day, I made a phone call to offer forgiveness. Unsolicited forgiveness. We cried together. When I hung up the phone I realized that I was free. The “leeches” of unforgiveness and the weight of bitterness were gone.
That phone call was something that my Father used to show me something life changing. It wasn’t about my trying harder to keep his commands. It was about lying down to soak in his presence and in his mercy. And it was about the work of the Holy Spirit enabling me to do what I could not. In Christ’s command to forgive, we are met by the Spirit’s provision, enabling us to obey.
Spend some time today meditating on these encouraging words:
Christ does not ask us to make bricks without straw. Everything that we need for the fulfilment of the command is provided. The Holy Spirit is given to mould us to the form of mercy which is in Him. (W. Arnot)
Nicole Jiles
Director of Children’s Ministry
The Incremental Journey
If you live long enough, someone close to you may hurt or betray you. None of us are perfect, and at times, we can be quite self-centered. I had a friend when I was pastoring in the Pacific Northwest, who betrayed me and hurt me deeply. It took me quite a long time to fully forgive him. Our friendship was lost over the offense. I thought of him from time to time, and when I did, I was reminded that my forgiveness of him was not complete, I was still holding onto resentment. I knew this because as I pictured his face or thought of him, I still became tense and could feel the old anger rising.
I eventually moved back to Southern California and worked as a Bereavement Specialist in San Juan Capistrano. I felt I had forgiven my former friend completely. But the strength of that forgiveness had not been tested.
One day as I was driving to my office, I was listening to James Dobson on Focus on the Family. He mentioned a friend of his who had written a book on recovery ministries. Then he gave the author’s name. I nearly drove off the freeway! The author was the same man I thought I had forgiven years before. I pulled off the freeway onto a side street near my office. I was trembling. My emotions were a surprise to even me. I had my sunroof open and as I was parked on the street I looked up to the sky, tears streaming down my face. "What’s going on, Lord?" I asked. His response was surprising to me -- “Have you really forgiven your friend?” He said. “You have the option to either bless him or curse him right now. The choice is yours. What are you going to do?”
I sat very still for a while, and finally, looking up toward the heavens, I prayed that my former friend would be blessed in all of his life, that his book would sell and that he would be blessed. Then I breathed a huge sigh of relief. All the while I thought I had forgiven him, but it had never been tested. When I drove away to my office, I was filled with joy. I have not ever seen him, nor heard from him, but if I do, I know the blessing still stands, and I could greet him warmly (current COVID-19 rules permitting).
As you search your heart before the Lord, is there anyone you haven’t forgiven?
Chip Whitman
Pastor, Care & Counseling
The Internal Journey
All of the parables we’ve been studying have the purpose of showing us God’s heart and the magnitude of his love for us. In this one Jesus wants us to understand the importance of his forgiveness in our lives and our forgiveness for others.
We could never repay the debt he paid for us on the cross, nor could the first servant in this story. He and the King both knew his debt was too huge to ever be repaid, but the King showed great compassion and completely forgave his debt. Having received that gift of grace from the King, the servant went on to forgive everyone who owed him and was an example to all of the same mercy he had received. Wait, no! That’s not how the story goes. The forgiven servant did just the opposite. One of his fellow servants owed him money (much less) but he showed him no mercy and had him thrown in prison. He didn’t understand grace.
Sometimes we forget the price that Jesus paid for our debt of sin. When the Holy Spirit reveals what’s been hidden in the darkness of our souls and the unloving, unkind, disobedient parts of our hearts, it is the defining moment when we cry out please forgive me Father. In that moment he takes pity on us, or in the Greek, has compassion for us and wipes the slate clean. When we experience that forgiveness and compassion from the Lord, do we automatically become always forgiving, compassionate people?
Have you ever assumed something about someone, or judged them based on a past situation? Guilty. Have you said the words I forgive him/her in your mind/prayer in obedience, only to find your heart was never fully in it, because when the bandaid gets torn off, you start feeling the pain, and old feelings of resentment rise to the surface? Guilty. It was temporarily covered, never really healed, and has been affecting other relationships in your life. Or maybe you’ve not forgiven yourself for something you’ve confessed but held onto. Repentance and forgiveness is an ongoing need in our lives, so that bitterness doesn’t take root.
The forgiven servant’s testimony of grace was rendered ineffective the moment he didn’t offer compassion. Other servants observing were “greatly distressed” and reported him to the King. (People are watching us to see if we practice what we preach) Are we happy that finally “justice” will be served and that scoundrel will get punished? If so, maybe even that reveals how we judge others. "For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins." (Matthew 6:14-15)
Refusal to forgive makes it impossible for us to understand and experience the forgiveness of God for us. Ultimately, God is the judge, not us. Matthew 5:45 tells us he "causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous."
Pray with me Psalm 139:23-24 today ...
Search me, O God, and know my heart!
Try me and know my thoughts!
And see if there be any grievous way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting!
Deb Hill
Executive Admin. Assistant
The Start of the Journey
Just before Jesus tells the story of the unforgiving servant, we have a prime example of someone asking the wrong question. As Peter asks Jesus, “How many times must I forgive my brother?” Jesus is going to tell this story to say to him, “Pete, you’re asking the wrong question!” Well, in the story itself, we actually see another case of asking the wrong question. Have you ever gotten the right answer to the wrong question? Here’s the reality, the right answer to the wrong question is still the wrong answer!
As we see in the story, the servant stands in front of the king with an insurmountable debt and begs for a little more time to pay it off. “Can I have a little more time?” Can you have a little more time for what? Not pay off your debt? This isn’t that different from us. How many times have I told God, “I won’t do that again.” Or, “I’m going to start following Jesus more seriously, once…” you fill in the blank. “God, can I have a little more time?” The servant asks for patience, but he needs pardon. He asks for forbearance, but he needs forgiveness. Do you see the problem? He’s asking for the wrong thing because he thinks that he can surmount the insurmountable. What’s the question you’re asking? Are you bargaining for patience or are you begging for pardon? One approach begins the journey of faith, the other just delays the inevitable.
The amazing thing in this story and to Peter asking the question of “How much do I need to forgive?” is that the king extends unbelievable generosity to his people. Jesus takes his question and says the question you really need to ask is “How can I be a person of forgiveness?” The answer Jesus gives to that question is to consider the generosity of the king who has forgiven you. The depths of God’s forgiveness frees us to forgive others. When we begin to understand no amount of “patience” will suffice, we humbly approach the throne of grace and beg forgiveness. The good news for us is, our debt? Jesus paid it all. We need forgiveness, not forbearance. As we’ll see throughout this week, asking the right question is just the start of the journey, how we’re transformed by the King’s amazing grace tells the rest.
Seth Redden
High School Pastor
