Romans 6:22-23
But now that you’ve found you don’t have to listen to sin tell you what to do, and have discovered the delight of listening to God telling you, what a surprise! A whole, healed, put-together life right now, with more and more of life on the way! Work hard for sin your whole life and your pension is death. But God’s gift is real life, eternal life, delivered by Jesus, our Master.
Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved.
Someone posted a link on Facebook to a short video by Phil Robertson, creator of Duck Commander – now known by most via A&E’s television show, “Duck Dynasty”. If you have a chance, go to http://vimeo.com/75972095 and view this video for yourself. Robertson tells of the day when he answered his own phone, and the caller said he wanted to order a duck call. The conversation went something like this…
The customer said he needed to order a duck call. Robertson asked the guy, “Okay...What do you need?” Phil says, “In process of guy ordering the duck call, he used God's name in vain about five times... just while ordering a duck call.” He asked the man…”Why would you keep using God's name to curse this, that and the other... He's the only one who can save you from death... why invoke His name like that?” There was silence.
The man ordered his duck call and hung up… then about 10 minutes later, he called back and told Robertson that he had never considered this question before… and he asked if he could come over and visit. A week later, Robertson received a visit from this man and a friend, and the conversation continued. Robertson implies that the visit ended with an impromptu baptism in a nearby river. Several years later, Robertson was speaking at an event in Alabama, where he discovered that this customer was now a leader in the church that was serving as hosts.
The point of the video is that Robertson used his marketplace as a ministry. If you know anything at all about the Robertson family and “Duck Dynasty”, you know that they truly have built an empire. They have catapulted a simple idea into a multi-million-dollar enterprise, and the “Duck Dynasty” brand is now on everything from books, videos, clothing and fleece throws… to jewelry and yes - duck calls! There is even a “Duck Dynasty” department at Wal-Mart! Still, the Robertsons make frequent appearances across the country to share the gospel of Jesus Christ. From all accounts, they are the “real deal” for Jesus…and their “wealth” in Him far outweighs any monetary gain or fame they might have acquired.
“But I won’t ever be rich and famous like the Robertsons,” you may be thinking. “I won’t ever have the kind of national platform that they have… much less their wealth.” And you might be right! But don’t miss this… you are every bit as affluent as any one of the Robertsons when it comes to the riches of salvation! You can share in God’s gift equally with anybody else on the planet! And as someone who enjoys the “put-together life” in Christ, you have the ability to accomplish as much – or more - for the Kingdom of heaven as Phil Robertson and his family members!
But here’s the kicker… you have to choose to work hard for God’s real life instead of the life of sin… AND… you have to make a conscious effort to “share the wealth” with others. If you do this, you will be as “rich and famous” in God’s eyes as any of the “Duck Dynasty” clan ever thought about being. You will be wealthy and influential in a way that truly matters. If you turn every aspect of your life into a mission field, you won’t be able to spend all that God gives you! But the choice is totally yours. In the words of Phil Robertson, will you choose to be “Happy! Happy! Happy!” for Jesus? Or will you end up being just another “dead duck”?
©2013 Debbie Robus
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