Are You Serious?                                                                       06-06-14

1 Corinthians 13:1-3 (NASB) ¹  If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.
²  If I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing.
³  And if I give all my possessions to feed the poor, and if I surrender my body to be burned, but do not have love, it profits me nothing.

Let me share with you today. I'll try and not get too personal or be too transparent today, but if I do please forgive me. I try and send these blogs out around 4-6 P.M. on Friday and up until a couple weeks had been pretty successful. I came in this morning from work about 4:30 and
laid around a bit until I heard Memaw(my mother) calling me from her bedroom. When I got to her she was in a very uncomfortable state. Without going into detail , we spent the next couple of hours trying to get her squared away. When we got her calmed down and comfortable, I went back to go to bed and could not fall asleep. I laid there tossing and turning and it was well past sunup when I finally dozed off; only to be awoken some time later by people out front. So, I laid  vainly trying to fall back asleep. I finally gave up and got up, a little tired and a lot grumpy. After my morning(afternoon) ration of coffee, I realized that I would not be able to meet my self imposed deadline for this message. It was at this point that in my spirit I got my backside on my shoulders to put it delicately. I started grumbling under my breath about never being able to sleep, about having to deal with Memaw, especially on a Friday, and on and on. I ended my rant with something like I'll never get my message out. Then I started about the importance of meeting the deadline and whatnot. Just about the time that I spit the word importance out of my piehole, I was checked in my spirit. Immediately I was reminded of a church marquee that I see every night on the way out to my route. On that marquee they have a statement that reads something like this.
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"We take Jesus seriously, we just don't take ourselves too seriously."

The Lord then took me aside and spoke to my heart the above scripture. Then He very gently chided me about what it meant to be a "real" Christian. (smile) He spoke to my heart very gently and said "Ronnie, I have uncounted numbers of gifted people that worship and praise me; myriads of preachers, teachers, and blog writers more eloquent and well versed than you to proclaim My Word; thousands upon thousands with much deeper financial pockets who are willing to give if I ask them... and then it dropped. But, you(and my sister Betty) are all I have to help your mother get out of bed when she needs to go to the bathroom. Your the only ones I have to watch her as she tries to walk to the dinner table or to give her a hug or a good night kiss; to tell her that you love her. You are the ones that I have chosen to show her my love."

As I thought about all my  supposed "good works" and what I was "doing for the Lord," my attention was drawn to those words in those verses. "But do not have love." It's easy to get puffed up isn't it? To take ourselves and our lives a little too seriously. We become legends in our own minds. You feelin' me? The Apostle Paul said it this way.

1 Corinthians 8:1 (NASB) ¹  Now concerning things sacrificed to idols, we know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge makes arrogant, but love edifies.
Knowledge makes arrogant. The KJV says it "puffeth up." I'll finish with a last thought. My blog can wait another day. If the truth were known it can wait throughout all eternity. Those works and blogs are still filthy rags aren't they? But, the opportunity to minister to my mom or anyone for that matter; to display the love of Christ to another human being is really where it's at isn't it? Isn't that what being a "real" Christian is all about?

I can set the world on fire. I can turn it upside down. I can even die for it. But, if I don't have love one for the other......it is worthless, vain and futile.

1 Corinthians 13:13 (NASB) ¹³  But now faith, hope, love, abide these three; but the greatest of these is love.

Psalm 139:23-24 (NASB) ²³  Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me and know my anxious thoughts;
²⁴  And see if there be any hurtful way in me, And lead me in the everlasting way.

God Bless