Who's Your Hero?

When I was a boy growing up my heroes were either sports figures or historical legends. I would follow the accomplishments of Willie Mays and Jack Nicklaus or read about Daniel Boone and Davy Crockett. I wanted to be like these men in one way or another. I was motivated by their example.

In college I came to know Christ as my Savior and my perspective on life was radically altered. While I still admired the exploits of heroic men, my focus now was more on spiritual characteristics and following the example of men who exhibited these qualities. I believe that we have a built in desire to emulate someone, its just a matter of who that someone will be.

Ultimately, for the Christian, that Someone is the Lord Jesus Christ. We are called to follow Him and to be like Him. As we strive to follow Him, however, it is helpful to have the example of others to encourage us. When I graduated from college I entered into the business world. I wanted to know how to represent the Lord in this arena without sacrificing other areas of my life. There were two Biblical examples that were most helpful to me in this way.

I was reminded of this yesterday morning at our men's breakfast. The speaker highlighted some principles from the book of Daniel. Daniel was and is an encouraging example to me. Along with Daniel I was also encouraged by Joseph. Both of these men rose to positions of governmental importance in ungodly countries (Joseph in Egypt and Daniel in Babylon). Yet both of these men were able to perform their duties in an excellent manner without sacrificing their walk with the Lord. The example of these men encouraged me to perform my business responsibilites with excellence yet without compromising my beliefs. There were difficulties along the way just as there were for Joseph and Daniel. There were temptations and stress, but there were also great blessings even, at times, blessings beyond what I could imagine.

I am thankful for these men, these heroes, who helped me to follow the Lord and serve Him. Who are your heroes?

Above All Put On Love

In Colossians 3:12-17 Paul is listing virtues that a believer must put on. But in verse 14 Paul lists one that is chief or best of all. He says, "And beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity." Love is to be the priority in the life of the believer. Love is the crowning grace. Love is above all the rest because it binds all the rest together. Love is the glue that produces unity in the church and testimony to the community.

In chapter three of Colossians Paul is instructing believers to put off the clothes of the old man and put on the garments of the new man. Love is the belt that holds those new garments together. None of the other virtues works apart from love. That is why love is the priority. For a Christian to try and practice the other virtues apart from love would be empty and futile. One writer said, "Love is the lubricant that enables the other virtues to function smoothly."

Love is the preeminent grace. The love that Paul is talking about is that intelligent and purposeful self-giving. It is sacrificing of self for the sake of another's good. This love is seen in the Father (John 3:16) and the Son (Galatians 2:20). Selfishness in all of its forms must be fully put down and replaced by love if we are to experience the perfect bond of unity. Love truly is the beauty of the believer, dispelling the ugly sins of the flesh that destroy unity and testimony.

Clearly the Bible states that love is the priority because love can do what nothing else can do by itself. Love is the fulfillment of the Law (Galatians 5:14; Romans 13:8-10). Love fulfills the law because love does a neighbor nothing but good even if the neighbor is an enemy. That explains the supremacy of love. That is why it is above all others and binds all others together.

Love must be the priority of the believer. The supremacy of love must be understood and practiced.

How? How do we keep love supreme in our thinking and living? As I pondered this I looked back to Colossians 3:12 which starts off by saying, "And so, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved." Paul is telling us to practice these virtues, including love, bearing in mind who we are. Who are we? We are chosen by God, holy and beloved! There is a lot we could say about this but let's just focus on the beloved part. As a Christian you are the object of God's special, saving love. You have been set apart by God and made the object of a love God has reserved for His children. So, knowing that I am loved by God and that nothing can separate me from God's love (Romans 8:38-39) helps me to relax, rejoice, and to love other people. I'm not hung up by whether or not others are loving me like they should because I am enjoying the perfect, eternal love of my Savior. This frees me up to put off a desire to get and put on the desire to give.

What a difference it makes when we cut it straight and think according to the Bible rather than the world. Ephesians 5:1-2a is powerful and practical when it says, "Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children: and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you." So let us exult in God's love for us by practically putting on love beyond all else.

A Mangled Mess

Well, this first week of the New Year has brought some interesting experiences our way.

It began on Sunday evening as we were going to church. It was raining and ahead of us on the freeway there was a 10 car accident. Needless to say, this caused quite a traffic problem and delayed our arrival at church. A 10 car accident is a mangled mess all by itself but it also creates a mangled mess of the freeway traffic.

Later that same night the rain got worse and the wind began to howl. I learned later that the wind gusts in our area got as high as 60 mph. At 5:00 the next morning I was awakened by an unwelcomed sound. It was the sound of our patio canopy being pushed around by the wind. This canopy is free standing but it is made of sturdy metal and it was weighted down by heavy concrete blocks. Apparently not sturdy or heavy enough though. I went downstairs and peered out into the darkness. I couldn't see really clearly but well enough to know that our canopy was halfway over our neighbor's fence. By now I am wide awake. I decided to wait until there was more light before I went out to see what I could do. While I waited I watched the news and heard them talk about how the rain would affect the Rose Parade later that morning. Also, while I was waiting, I was hoping that the wind and rain would die down a little. Well, the rain and wind did not let up so at 6:30 I bundled up (I wish I had a picture of this) and ventured out into the storm. What I encountered was a mangled mess of metal. The wind had torn the frame apart. Some of the poles were bent as if Superman had used them to demonstrate his strength. Fortunately I only had to disconnect 2 parts of the frame in order to get the part over the fence back on our side. Actually, there was one pole that was stuck up in our neighbors tree which they came out and fetched for me. So there it lies on our patio, a mangled mess of metal ready to be hauled off as useless junk. Strangely, just a few days earlier we had sat out on our patio, under our canopy , eating lunch on a beautiful day. But things changed in a hurry. That Monday we sat in our house and as we looked out into the stormy weather I'm sure that I saw white-caps on our pool. That storm turned a nice canopy into a mangled mess.

Last night we witnessed the end of USC's 34 game win streak as they lost to Texas in the Rose Bowl. It was a great game. The game lived up to all the hype. But many a USC fan found their nerves in a mangled mess during the game and even after the game. Some of them may even find their nerves still mangled today. I am sure that many Texas fans experienced the same mangling during the course of the game but they should be over it by now. But this kind of game can do a major mangling mess to a person's emotions.

We all face disappointments in life. It may be with the traffic, a canopy, or a football team. Obviously we can face disappoints that are more serious than these. We can't avoid disappointments. But the Lord never disappoints. As I thought about these current events my thoughts were drawn to Psalm 118:8-9. "It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in man. It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in princes" (Trojans). It is better because the Lord never changes and the Lord always does just what He says He will do. I have walked with the Lord for many years now and there is one thing I have learned for sure and that is, "Whoever believes in Him will not be disappointed (Romans 10:11)." So, we can either allow ourselves to be blow around by the circumstances of life and wind up in a mangled mess or we can take safe refuge in the Lord.