Daily Devotional for May 27, 2016

May 27 ~ Psalm 24:1   
The earth belongs to God! Everything in all the world is his!

The Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

A friend shared a video this morning of a woman talking about how she reached a point in her life where she felt quite sure she had become invisible.  She would go into a room and ask her children to turn down the television…and they would ignore her.  She walked up to her husband at a party (after they had been there for several hours) and signaled that she was ready to leave…and he kept talking to his friends.  She said it hit her…”I am invisible.” 

Then a friend gave her a beautiful book filled with photos of ancient cathedrals.  Picture after picture carried a note…”builder unknown.”  The friend had written a note inside the book that essentially said, “You are building important things that others may never acknowledge…but God knows.”  The mom realized that it didn’t matter if her kids brought their friends home to visit and bragged about all she did…as long as they came home and brought their friends.  It didn’t matter whether she was physically acknowledged…as long as God was glorified.

A lot of us want to ask, “What’s in it for me?”  The real question we should be asking is, “Am I being a good steward of what belongs to God?”…because truly, EVERYTHING belongs to Him.  He created ALL of us…He designed us to serve His purposes.  Our job is to make sure that GOD is seen…yet many of us turn this around and try to make it about us.  We scramble to make sure that WE are seen and heard…and that our efforts are recognized.

The message for today is that God sees you…He hears you…He knows your efforts to serve Him (and of the ones that fall short).  And He loves you…warts and all.  Stop trying so hard to be noticed and focus more on putting God – and the mission(s) He has given you - in the spotlight.  Take yourself a little less seriously and put the emphasis on seeking God’s will…and making it your own.  Let your ultimate recognition be God’s whisper of a “well done” – and the blessings that He is waiting to shower upon you.

Nobody ever said being a Christian disciple would be easy…or filled with accolades, wealth, or fame.  The earth – and everything in all the world – belongs to God.  Are you making a point – or making a difference?  What will you do as His earthly steward? 

©2016 Debbie Robus

Daily Devotional for October 28, 2013

Proverbs 25:6

Don’t demand an audience with the king or push for a place among the great.

 

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright ©1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

 

Greg and I took my mother-in-law, a.k.a. “Grandma E”, to a nearby city for a routine eye exam.  While the two of them went into an exam, I sat in the waiting area and read a book… or rather, I tried to read.  A little man came in - huffing and puffing - and practically collapsed in a chair near mine… as if he could not go a step farther.  He was short, with hunched shoulders and rather long, wildly flowing “salt-and-pepper” hair - and a full beard.  His khaki pants looked like they would fit a man six times his size, and he had them cinched with a belt that was equally large and swung from his waist as he shuffled along.  His oversized shirt further emphasized his slight frame…and his dirty fingernails underscored his rather unkempt – appearance. He looked like he might be on his last leg…yet when he stood at the receptionist’s window to sign in, he was jovial and bright as he eagerly signed in, saying…“You gave me two good eyes last time… how about a third one this time?”

 

Returning to sit near me, the man began to breath heavily – and steadily, as if he was asleep… and occasionally he groaned and grunted almost as if he were snoring – or talking in his sleep!  I tried to keep my eyes on my Kindle and continue reading.  When the nurse came to get another patient, we both looked up at the now-empty waiting room, and the man said, “I guess you and I are next!”  I explained that I was merely waiting for someone and that “You’re next!”  He replied, “Doesn’t matter… I’m 71 and retired… I don’t get in a hurry about anything!”  (This man looked every day of NINETY-one, if he looked a day!)  And then, he began to talk!

He told me that he had stayed up all night watching very good old movies… and now he was tired.  He asked where I live, and he told me he had moved to this city recently because he thought renting would be cheaper than owning his own home.  I listened politely to what he was saying… and soon he had picked up a magazine and settled in to read it (somewhat aloud and under his breath!).

 

When the nurse came for the man, she treated him especially kindly and with respect… as if he were the most important person to her at that moment.  And it struck me… shouldn’t we treat everyone this way?  Why do we reserve our best for those we feel are “royalty” or celebrities?  Why is it such a big deal to us to have our picture made with some people… or to get their autograph… when we might not give their family members…or most certainly their neighbors… the time of day?  What makes them so much more special?

 

For all I know, this man was a retired professor from the university in the city we were visiting.  He might have acquired his hunched appearance from bending over patients in a dental office or surgery table… or from assembling parts in a factory or shoveling garbage or soil.  He might have once had a wife and children and a lively family life…but from all accounts, he now appeared to be fairly alone in the world.  The point is… why would we desire his presence any less than that of a famous athlete, musician, movie star or politician?  Why would we treat him with any less importance or respect?  Why would we shy away from such a person in favor of someone we deem more “worthy”?

 

How would you feel if God treated you this way?  What if He said, “You’ve not done as much as So-and-So…you’re not as important as he/she is to me. What you do with your life doesn’t really matter to me, because it will never measure up or be as good.”  One of my dearest friends dropped out of college to start a family.  She reared two amazing sons and practically ran her father’s construction business for nearly 30 years.  She loved God and served Him in her home church and her community.  And one day she said to me, “I never did anything with my life.  I was just a mom.”  It nearly broke my heart.

 

You see, God doesn’t see who we are in the world or what we have accomplished… at least not in the way we see it. God sees us as His precious creations… each one with the potential He gave us to accomplish what He desires for us in this earthly lifetime.  He designed some of us to be Olympic athletes… and others to do incredible things without arms or legs.  He created moms and dads who stay home and rear children... and people who never have children of their own – but parent and mentor countless others along the way.  God made the well-dressed businessman sitting in the waiting area… and the disheveled, sleepy little man who sat beside me.  And none is better than the next.

 

So think about WHO you are… and who you think you are.  What are your aspirations?  Are you striving to be a celebrity or hang out with kings? Or are you focused on being who God wants you to be?  Are you treating others differently, according to who – or what – you think they are?  Isn’t it time you treated each person as you desire for God to treat you… with respect, kindness, grace and mercy?

 

There is a popular television show called “Who Do You Think You Are?” that features “celebrities” who trace their family’s ancestry.  They discover all sorts of things about their ancestors… some good, and some not so good.  The question I have for you today is, “Who do you think you are?”  We would all do well to consider this question as it relates to our own aspirations… and how we treat others in our midst.  Who do you think you are… and how are you behaving as a result?

 

©2013 Debbie Robus