NOVEMBER 26 – COMMUNITY REQUIRES TRUTH

 You are truly blessed of the Lord God when you recognize your poverty, and you rely upon God for everything. With this understanding, you hold the keys to the kingdom. (Luke 6:20)

                  Are you poor? Does this verse make you uncomfortable? At what point do you have enough (money, intellect, power) relative to other people, so that you believe you are secure and self-sufficient? Do your words communicate arrogance or a humble heart that understands all you possess – except your relationship with God – is temporary?

                  Jesus may have been thinking of God’s word through Isaiah when He spoke these words. Isaiah had said, “Don’t you remember I made everything? I am looking for the person who knows his or her place; who hangs on my every word. (Isaiah 66:2). The fundamental truth; the “I AM” of history, is God. God is all-powerful, always present, all-knowing, both loving and just. He is the creator, sustainer, and the source of all truth. Compared to Him, no person has a reason for pride, apart from God’s involvement in his or her life. Nothing you have will give you security. You are not self-sufficient. Accepting this, and recognizing that only God is your security, is a fundamental truth for you if you will be effective.

                  Grow in the humility that sees God as the source of all strength and power. Embrace your role as a carrier of that gift through the Holy Spirit’s work in your life.

NOVEMBER 25 – A COMMUNITY RESPONDS

At every opportunity; whenever someone asks you for anything, offer what you have. And, even when they take something that is yours, don’t ask them to return it. Be creative – find ways to do for them what you dream others would do for you. (Luke 6:30-31)

                   Do your people treat the people around them like family? Do you give to one of your group as easily as you would give to a spouse, a parent, or a child when they have a need? Do other people trust that you will try to help when someone has a problem or a need?

                   Jesus is describing here the attitudes that His people should have. He describes the value of generosity that caused Him to explain at other times that giving rather than receiving is the way to real joy (Acts 20:35). Generosity, as Jesus taught and lived it, was not limited by self-preservation, nor what others would call wise restraint. The only limitation for Jesus was He would not give enough to hurt the other person. With genuine empathy He considered what was best for each situation, and then gave without limit.

                   Invest yourself generously. By this action you will grow a community of people who will also respond without reservation to the needs of the people around them.

NOVEMBER 24 – A COMMUNITY OF LEADERS

(Those who rejected Jesus failed yet again) But you – believers – followers – God picked you! You are Priests. As His own, favorite people, you can be Holy – part of His royal family. Show other people the way to this Jesus; the Christ who rescued you from a meaningless existence to give you His magnificent purposes. (1 Peter 2:9)

                   Is your group a community full of leaders? Are you working toward that end? Would you like to have more of your people growing to love and care about others?

                   Peter was serious about rocks. Maybe it was because Rock (Cephas) was the name Jesus gave to him as a replacement for Simon (God has heard) when Simon first identified Jesus as the Christ (Matthew 16:16). In a way, this was Jesus explaining to His followers the truth that Peter tells others here. Jesus is that rock on which prosperous lives must be based. When you are adopted into His Holy family, you begin to follow Him. As you grow in that relationship, you inherit His purpose of providing others help in restoring their relationship with God and with each other.

                   Help your people find their identity as a co-rock; a partner in God’s purposes. It will provide meaning in your life and in the lives of those whom you are called to lead.

NOVEMBER 23–DECEIVERS USE THEIR WISDOM

 The person who is sure his intellect and emotions will tell him the right thing to do – that person is stupid. But, the person who follows the Lord’s path finds wisdom, and that person will be rescued. (Proverbs 28:26)

                   How do you make decisions? Are you confident that your experience, intellect, and intuition are going to render sound decisions? The Bible repeatedly says that this state of self-reliance is foolish pride. The world tells you that it is the way to be wise. Who will you believe?

                   The statements in this passage assume that life is filled with challenges beyond the capacity of human intellect and rational thought. The passage argues for a relationship of dependence on God for your decisions each day. The greatest deception of Satan is found here; the one that we call “original sin” (Genesis 3:15) shows it clearly. The root decision of your personal life is, “will you trust in God or trust in yourself?” You cannot carve out segments of your life where you are in charge. You cannot give God the big issues, and you handle the details because that would imply you can determine which issues are big.

                   Don’t deceive yourself on this point. Then, help your people to see and live in truth with you. You nor your people are competent to live a prosperous life without God’s constant involvement. Give all your decisions to Him.

NOVEMBER 22 – DECEIVERS NEED A REASON

 (God’s plan to make us different) is so there will not be splits and battles among you; so that you will each be concerned about the other person because their contribution is so important to the group’s welfare. (1Corinthians 12:25)

                  Do you see others in your group as valuable, unique partners in pursuing God’s vision? Do you remind your people often that each person, you included, is dependent upon the others for the prosperity of the whole? Or, do you believe you, or another leader, are more important than the rest, and so foster fear and selfishness among your people? If you help your people see relationships from God’s perspective, you will prepare them to thrive as a group.

                  In Paul’s time, as today, the default attitude for everyday people was to see other people as rivals, competitors for vital resources, and as enemies. Paul’s explanation that the Lord designed us to be mutually dependent and cooperative was – and is – exactly the opposite of the world’s expert opinions. This world’s dog-eat-dog existence gives opportunity for a person to rationalize almost any behavior under a mistaken idea that their self-preservation demands an extraordinary action. That’s how thieves bring themselves to steal and murderers to kill. In God’s world, people see abundance, but here in this world there is never enough to go around.

                  Lead your people to embrace the unity and trust in God that dispels fear and prevents a selfish perspective.

NOVEMBER 21 – DECEIT NEEDS OPPORTUNITY

 The reason I wrote was to see if you are found to be trustworthy and are obeying all God requires of you. (2Corinthians 2:9)

                  A strong relationship of trust is not about benefitting and then abandoning the person while wishing them the best. Extending trust genuinely requires valuing a person enough to love them into a mutually accountable relationship. That investment of your time and energy to provide or plan for feedback and help to navigate uncertain, new paths is often the costliest action you can take. Will you pay that cost?

                  Paul knows that you can trust a person too much; so much that they will be harmed by your refusal to continue accepting the responsibility for your people’s welfare. The Corinthian people were part of Paul’s responsibility, and he continued to monitor and encourage them regularly. With constant temptation, and the cares of everyday life, your people need for you to love them enough to stay involved in their lives. As you grant them authority, they do become responsible for their part, but you continue to bear responsibility for obeying God’s command to love them. In the absence of accountability, your people will often deceive themselves as they are left to measure their own actions.

                   Love your people enough to help them avoid this deception. Give them the accountability they need to continue pursuing God’s vision for their lives.

NOVEMBER 20 – FRAUD PREVENTION

 Therefore (since we please God, and we find His peace and joy through obeying Him – v.17), let us seek peace and what helps one another. Don’t get in the way of what God is doing for personal gain. There are many things you can choose to do, but you choose what helps rather than hurts another person. (Romans 14:19-20)

                   It is one thing to accept that some pain may come your way, but to choose to deny yourself an indulgence – even when there’s nothing immoral or unethical about doing it – that is another issue altogether. Have you ever consciously chosen not to do something you really wanted to do, just because it may hurt someone else?

                   It seems that Paul is encouraging initiative here. “Do what the Lord tells you to do, and then look around for ways you can encourage others (and refrain from derailing them). Paul knows that you can’t make decisions for other people, but he is saying, “Even when you extend trust enough to love and care for other people, don’t trust them with things that may harm them.” You can often keep people from fooling themselves. That is the fraud that will hurt them the most.

                   Care for others like Jesus cares for you. Let their needs inform and motivate your actions.

NOVEMBER 19 – YOU WILL GET HURT

 Even though people are terrible, and they will lie about me, I’m going to obey what you tell me to do with all my heart. Even though others won’t understand, I will embrace this pain, and all that goes with it, if I can learn to live life your way. (Psalm 119:69-71)

                  Do you love God enough to obey Him when it hurts? Can you overcome your fear of pain or loss with your trust in Jesus and His promises? The difficulties are inevitable when your work requires extending trust to people. Are you willing to embrace this difficulty as a necessary part of the job?

                   Scholars have said that the basic principles of God; His values, are repeated often throughout Scripture. If this is true, there is suffering for each person who would live life on God’s terms. Jesus explained that suffering has long been a part of obeying God, and that such suffering is part of following Him (Matthew 5:11-12). Paul, Peter, and others explain that your willingness to accept personal loss is an important part of both showing God’s love to others, and of growing in understanding of His love for you. Just as physical pain can teach lessons to every person, the suffering you experience because you follow Jesus is part of bringing you to spiritual maturity.

                   Understand and trust that God’s love for you will be worth the costs of following His way.

NOVEMBER 18 – BUT TRUST IS GOOD, RIGHT?

 There’s nothing to trust about mere mortals. Men can’t save you. When a man dies, so do his plans. And, he returns to dust. Real help and blessing – that comes from God. The Lord of Jacob who made everything is the trusted judge who helps those who suffer. (Psalm 146:3-7)

                  Here again, you are advised by Scripture not to expect men and women to be trustworthy. How often have you wondered, “can I trust this person who needs my help?” Maybe you’re worried that, “they will just waste this opportunity. Why should I invest in them (again)?” If so, you are in luck. This passage gives both correct answers to your questions.

                  Absolutely, no! Men and women aren’t even capable of insuring that they will do what they say. They are not trustworthy. And, absolutely, yes! The Lord, God – who created them – loves them (and you). He provides real help and blessing. He can be trusted. Jesus came to find and rescue hopeless, helpless people who were otherwise headed for self-destruction (Luke 19:10). Paul recognized that this purpose becomes your purpose as you follow Christ. He said, “this love of Jesus compels us. (2 Corinthians 5:14)”

It compels you to extend trust to those who don’t deserve it – people just like you.

                   Place your trust in God alone. But, extend His love - in that trust – to other people each day as He leads you.

NOVEMBER 17 – MIXED SIGNALS

Do not look for support from a friend, nor place your trust in a companion. Careful even with one who sleeps in your arms. Even the son dishonors his father, and a daughter opposes her mother. (Micah 7:5-6)

                   Have you ever been betrayed? Have you been victimized by fraud? Have people you held in esteem ever shaped “facts” to influence or persuade you to agree with or to benefit themselves? If you have graduated from kindergarten, your answer is probably yes.

                   Micah concludes his prophetic word from the Lord with a few observations. His verdict on Israel was not flattering. He concluded that none of those people were trustworthy. So, you shouldn’t be surprised that you find those around you to be the same. People will let you down. There are frauds all around. In this world, you will even see that you can’t trust yourself! Fortunately, Micah’s conclusion brings hope for people as well. God can be trusted, and He is compassionate to His people.

                   Recognize that God alone is trustworthy. All others will ultimately fail to be a faithful friend to you at times. God should be at the top of your list of valued relationships. God alone is the person who will always bring value to your life.

NOVEMBER 16 – SIGNS: INVITE NOT FORCE

 For this reason (because Jesus has given us the work of bringing others to Him), we are His representatives. It’s like God Himself is inviting people through us as His way to communicate with them. So, we invite you, even beg earnestly and humbly that you, on Christ’s behalf. Please, please choose God. Let Him transform you! (2 Corinthians 5:20)

                  Do you ever rush about, trying to do the things that will accomplish God’s work of saving people? Do you think and plan and try to figure out what is the best way to reach them in a way they will respond? If so, where is your attention? Is it on your creativity and wits, or do you look for the things other people are doing? Or, are you paying attention to God, looking for Him to give you the plan, and waiting for Him to show you the person you are to invite?

                  Listen to Paul as he explains to the people at Corinth. He says it so well. “God is inviting people through us.” This much is clear, God is choosing the time, place, person, and the means of contact and invitation. It is as if Paul is saying, “all we have to do is deliver the invitation to you.” He does this as well as he can, with passion and love, but he does only what God leads him to do. He knows anything else would be to try and force God’s hand.

                  Trust that God loves you enough to include you. Believe that he will give you meaningful work. Wait expectantly for Jesus to show you whom to invite

NOVEMBER 15–SIGNS:UNDERSTAND NOT QUOTE

 “This is my promise to my people after those days” (when Jesus conquers sin by His atoning sacrifice allowing God’s people to relate to Him as He has always intended) says the Lord and Master God, “I am going to place within them – at their core and etched into their minds – My truth and what I want from them.” (Hebrews 10:16)

                  There is another choice to be made if you will be this sign for your people. Will you learn about God, memorize and quote His words and decide which of His written laws you will follow? Or, will you pay attention to Him, listen to the Holy Spirit as you read His word and live in His world, and seek to recognize Him and His works in the people around you?

                  The writer of Hebrews is quoting Jeremiah here, as he argues that a person can never know so much about God and what God wants, that He can determine what is important each moment. Without the Holy Spirit, active in your life, it is impossible to behave in a way that will please the Lord. Instead, Jeremiah argues that Jesus has created a new way (vv. 20-25) that requires only that you be attentive to the Lord in community with your people, so that you may encourage and help each other. God now takes the responsibility for your prosperity if you will lead your people to Him.

                   Point your people not to what you tell them about what God says, but to the Lord, God Himself.

NOVEMBER 14 – SIGNS: LIFE NOT DEATH

 All the world is witness today. I’m giving you a choice – right out in the open – life or death; prosperity or ruin. Choose life – live – love your Lord, God and do what He says. Hang on to Him because He is your very life! (Deuteronomy 30:19-20)

                   Do you concentrate on the after-life or the now life? Do you dwell on controlling the impulses to sin and doing the things that the someone else says that you’re supposed to do, or do you focus on Jesus and what He is doing right now? Is what He wants you to do most important to you? There is great value in Scripture, a church family is helpful, even critical to provide accountability and encouragement. You should oppose sin and your flesh, and the life to come will be ecstasy. All of this is true. But, God’s call is to relationship – and life in Him – today!!!

                   Moses is calling on his people to pursue prosperity rather than destruction and death (Deuteronomy 30:15). He poses a clear choice. He argues very forcefully. The way you and your people will find prosperity is the same way. Prosperity – from the time of creation up through today – is found in “loving the Lord your God, walking in obedience to Him, and keeping His commands to you.”

                   See life – live God’s prosperity by answering Him always, “yes, Lord.” Just, “yes!” Choose life!

NOVEMBER 13–SIGNS: TALKWITH, NOT TALK AT

 Even while I travel through the most difficult times of life I can’t be afraid, because you are right here next to me. Your power and provision allow me to relax. (Psalm 23:4)

                  Is it your way to tell your people what they must do, and how they must do it? Could they ever come to see you as someone who talks “at” them rather than with them? Everyone, whatever their circumstances or status, wants to be listened to; moreover, they want to be heard. From your position of relative strength or wisdom or resources, will you walk with them even when it means you must walk through their difficulty without solving or their problems or fixing them? Are you willing to let it cost you to be used as God’s sign for another?

                  King David had some very dark, difficult times. He trusted God to calm his fears and go with him through all those challenges. If you are to be God’s sign to your people, it is unlikely that He will change His nature to accommodate your desire to stay in your position of comfort and safety. And, by the way, your people do not want you to tell them what they should do from that lofty position. If you are going to talk with them, you must go to them – where they are.

                   It’s clear that God calls you to go down with your people to the valleys where their hardships beset them. There, in that valley, He will show you how to lead them to the safety of His love.

NOVEMBER 12 – SIGNS REQUIRE A RESPONSE

 But Mary; she added sign to sign. She brought it all together in her heart. It began forming at her core. The shepherds went home, and as they went they were praising God for everything He had done. God had not let them down. (Luke 2:19-20)

                  The shepherds saw the light. They returned to their place; changed. And, Mary – she had received many signs. The angel spoke to her. Surely Joseph told her of the sign given to him. She visited with her aunt. Now the stunned shepherds were sent by thousands of angels, affirming all the other signs. All these people were changed by the one thing – the baby that would be the way for a clueless world to find meaning and be restored to right relationship with God.

                   What about you? Do you ever take time to think about what God has done in your life? Have you ever taken the time to add up all the signs He has given you? That is what you must do if you will let Jesus become your life. If you settle that He is the answer for your life, and you focus on what He has said and done, and what He continues to say and do in your life today, you can be used to move your people toward Him too.

                   Today is the best day to determine that you will settle the issue in your heart. Add up the signs and act on God’s call to you.

NOVEMBER 11 – GOD’S SIGNS TRANSFORM

 After living through this amazing experience, they began to tell others about God’s great message concerning the child. Each person who heard was astonished. They all wondered about what all this meant to them. (Luke 2: 17-18)

                  God’s work is to communicate through signs and to provide for His people. Paul says you are what God makes; His work (Ephesians 2:10). So then, you are a sign, and a provision for God’s people. As you are affected, it is to affect others. As the anointed one, Jesus was created and gave His life for you. As God makes you with His transforming power, you – being transformed – will become an agent of His transforming work. As He has given you signs and experiences leading to that change, you will be made to be a sign for others. Your life will communicate God’s truth to your people.

                  Scripture tells that the shepherds went away from Bethlehem changed; prepared to work with, and to be the work of, God. And you see that, as a result, other people were changed too. They were astonished. They wondered. They understood this was not just a fabulous story told by deranged shepherds. Armed with God’s truth, their passionate communication led to transformation.

                   That is God’s plan for you as well. Your action, upon God’s call to you, prepares you to be a part of His work in others through your continued obedience to Him. You are His sign. You are His mission.

NOVEMBER 10 – SIGNS CAN BREED FEAR TOO

 So, right away they went to Bethlehem, and they discovered Mary and Joseph. There was the baby, lying in the manger just as God promised. (Luke 2:16)

                   In the relationship you have with the Lord, God, where He communicates His sign to you while anticipating you will accept His invitation to work together, you have two choices. Each time, you will have opportunity to answer, “yes!” joining with Him, and doing exactly what He is calling on you to do. Otherwise, you will create an alternative response that you will argue is, “enough.” No matter how risky and dangerous the way forward appears to be, when you consider God’s way, the alternative is much more perilous. God does not negotiate. He is God. The choice is His way, with His provision, or else you are choosing to go your way – alone. He will let you fail.

                   Right away, the shepherds went to Bethlehem. They found Jesus! They could have hidden under the rocks, hoping the sky full of angels would not return. If they worried about how risky it would be to leave the sheep, and how dangerous it is to travel at night, and had they not gone, they would have missed out on what God was doing.

                   Don’t let fear keep you from experiencing everything that God has prepared for you. Choose to do what He asks – right away!

NOVEMBER 9 – SIGNS CALL FOR ACTION

 After the angels returned to heaven, the shepherds talked among themselves. They decided, “God showed us this sign. We should go to Bethlehem to witness this great thing He has done.” (Luke 2:15)

                  God explained through Isaiah that He is not limited by the constraints of time. “I tell you from long ago things that will happen tomorrow” (Isaiah 46:10). God has an outcome that is fixed. He takes responsibility for that outcome (46:11). God IS integrity. What He says is what happens. He gives signs to encourage His people to move toward His purposes for each of them. How willing are you to be attentive to those messages? Are you ready to act upon them?

                   Given the logic that God expects to see a response to His signs, one who is attentive to God’s signs should interpret the communication in the same way as these shepherds did. Not only did they consider the meaning, but they also sought to determine their proper response to the message. What should they do? This is your relationship with God at its very best. He invites you to join in the work He is doing. You join Him because you love Him and want nothing more than to be part of that work with Him.

                   When God speaks, listen for the immediate, specific action He places in your heart. Understand that His signs call for your action.

NOVEMBER 8 - TAKEN IN CONTEXT

 Suddenly, surrounding the messenger, the sky filled with angels. All of them at once were praising God, announcing to the world, “Glory to God who reigns on high! He sends peace and prosperity to mankind; showing His great kindness and favor. (Luke 2: 13-14)

                   Signs don’t occur in a vacuum. Where and when a sign is given is part of the communication too. That is a reasonable, intuitive conclusion you may draw very quickly. But, how (how many times, how much, how loud, how…) is also a part of the context. God very often chose to communicate definition for the same signs to multiple people, multiple times, in striking and spectacular ways. Talking animals, pillars of salt, rising flood waters, and such gave added significance to God’s signs.

                   Only once in recorded history has the sky been “filled” with angels, all loudly proclaiming their praise to God, and announcing the birth of a special child. Possibly the shepherds may have questioned if the single angel were maybe a figment of their tired minds at the end of a challenging day. Thousands of angels in a dark sky, singing a deafening chorus would be very hard to dismiss.

                   Pray for the Lord to give you understanding of the time, the place, and the how of His messages to you.

NOVEMBER 7 – WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN?

 Today, in David’s hometown a deliverer has been born to you. This is the anointed one; the Christ! And this is the sign that will tell you it is Him. This baby will be wrapped in layers of fabric, and He will be laying in a feeding trough. (Luke 2:11-12)

                  Have you ever looked for signs in Scripture? One of the greatest God-signs in all of history is found in the story of Jesus’ birth. To bear significance, a sign must have meaning. Just as words must be defined for you to understand language, signs must also be defined if they are going to communicate a message.

                  Many would say that having an angel announce the birth of the anointed one would, alone, be enough to give meaning to the sign he explained. But, as is often the case with God’s signs, there was yet another layer of meaning. The shepherds no doubt would be very familiar with the practice of wrapping the first-born lamb with cloths and laying it in a manger, so it would not harm itself or become blemished. Hearing the angel’s words, while imagining the perfect sin sacrifice gave them greater understanding of God’s communication, and greater significance to this great event.

                   Scripture is filled with such definitions, giving you insight into events of your world. Read, and listen for the voice of the Holy Spirit as God defines His signs for you.

NOVEMBER 6 – GOD’S ENDS ARE SIGNIFICANT

 

So, don’t worry about what you’ll be eating and drinking, and the style of your stuff. People who don’t know God are consumed by these things. For your father, God, these are details – He knows your needs. Invest your attention on the Lord and His work. You’ll find that you have what you need. (Matthew 6:31-33)

 

                  Have you noticed that God has chosen to do things differently? In this world, negotiation is important. Therefore, most business communication is cloaked in and hindered by the pretense that masks selfish motives. Will you be like those people whose every word; every action is carefully calculated and crafted for personal advantage? Or will you focus your attention on the needs of others, trusting Christ to provide what you need?

 

                  Here, Jesus explains that in God’s Kingdom economy, there is provision rather than a need for constant negotiation. Real trust in a faithful God allows you to live freely. Your changed life will then become one of the Lord’s signs for others. You will become one of the living words of God’s sign language that speaks hope to the men and women you encounter.

 

                  Very few of the things of this world are significant. Each of those things is found in Christ. Focus on Him so you will always be about significant pursuits.

NOVEMBER 5 – EXPERTS OR GOD?

 But you, Daniel – keep all this secret – let the book be closed tightly until the time that will come after. Then, many will travel the earth and knowledge will become great. (Daniel 12:4)

                  Do you believe that you are living in the time about which Daniel speaks here? Jesus encouraged alertness (Matthew 24:44 and 25:13). Paul spoke often of anxiously waiting for Christ’s return (Titus 2:13). Certainly, since Jesus ascended, the story of mankind has been marked by people traveling more each year, and by human knowledge increasing day-by-day. These are those “times that will come after;” the time near the end of this age.

                   Daniel’s words bear further implications for today. Later in this discussion, Daniel is told that those who have been made clean; God’s people, will understand His signs. They will know what to do, while those who reject God will continue in ignorance. To lead your people effectively, it is God’s signs; His word, that you need. The words of others, who don’t follow your God, even if filled with sound, scientific observation, lack the significance and wisdom of the Lord’s simple, timeless truths.

                   Don’t be distracted by the experts of the world. Don’t concentrate on what the world says; where experts will tell you to focus. Find your way by watching and listening for the word from God. 

NOVEMBER 4 – (JUST) TALK IS EXPENSIVE

 Surely you’re acting! You know how to interpret the signs you see on the earth and in the sky. How is it you can’t see the signs of God around you? Why don’t you do what you know is right? (Luke 12:56)

                   Often people complain of not knowing what the Lord would have them to do. However, after honest, prayerful reflection, many will see that there is much that God has shown them. In many cases, He has made the next step abundantly clear. His word is more often a foot lamp (Psalm 119:105) than a beacon that will show the entire way forward for you. It is God’s intention to be with you moment-by-moment (Isaiah 41:10), revealing His truth for your life as you go (John 14:6).

                   In this passage, Jesus observes that people give their attention to the things that are important to them. He also exposes their hypocrisy; saying it was hard to believe they had professed faith in God, while ignoring all that He wanted them to do. As they talked constantly about God’s law, they oppressed everyone who was excluded from their privilege. They silenced and killed God’s prophets, and they behaved in other ways that ignored the law’s intent.

                   As you see and hear God’s signs, remember that He wants you to act rather than just talk about what He says to do (Jeremiah 7:23).

NOVEMBER 3 – JESUS KNEW THE KEY - SIGNS

 Say to those who cower in fear, “Don’t be afraid! Your God is coming! He is just, and He is coming to save you. Then, you’ll see the signs – blind will see, deaf will hear, those who can’t walk will leap, and the mute will speak God’s praises. Living water is coming to your wilderness; life to the desert!” (Isaiah 35:4)

                  God’s presence in this world, and His work of restoration and healing are signs He uses to communicate. He has chosen to use prophets to explain how people can see God in His actions. Those who look for God will have these signs that serve to encourage them and to affirm their hope in His love and provision. Through Isaiah, the Lord, God, gave Israel the meaning that makes the signs related to Jesus communicate clearly. God’s desire is for them to see Him present and working as Jesus healed and brought new life.

                  Do you know God’s signs? Do you look for them, so they can be affirmation for the work you pursue each day? Do these signs provide the map that guides your work? and your evaluation of its progress? Are the people with whom you work really the most important part of that work? If you are genuinely pursuing a God-given vision, people must be your focus. God’s signs; your work, have one purpose – to be living water to people in a desert.

                   Work for transformation today. Find what God is doing to change peoples lives around you, and then take your part in that work.

NOVEMBER 2 – THE PARADOX

 For our God so much wanted His people to return to His love that He put His Son – the only, unique Son of God – in their place. So, if they will invest all their trust in Him, they won’t be dead, but will be restored to life – real life. (John 3:16)

                  One of the problems associated with Jesus’ new way of accounting for life is that it is different; especially in a place of work. You are familiar with how to establish rules and penalties; use carrots and sticks. But, how do you “do relationship” in that world? In the work world, it is all about what you and other people do – how they perform. In this new economy of faith in Christ, it is about what you allow Christ to do through you. As you live the story He has written for your life, the vision and the values Jesus has given you become a story of your sacrifice for others. The less you do on your own, the more success.

                   That’s how Jesus lived thousands of years ago. He went to the people to whom the Father sent Him. The Son of God used each moment of His life to live out His story as the Father showed Him (John 5:19). If you will follow that path, giving your life, this scripture explains you will be raised to spiritual life just as Jesus was resurrected after giving His physical life.

                   Let your life be a daily invitation for others to find that real life too.

NOVEMBER 1 – LIFE ACCOUNTING 102

 (Love) can patiently, quietly continue no matter what happens. It extends trust, believing each promise and every promise. It hopes fully in every respect (in God’s promises), so it may endure anything. Love never fails! (I Corinthians 13:7)

                  The thing about investments is that you generally want to build for the long-term. What is the asset that you want to “quietly continue” to grow during your lifetime? Jesus said the new command is to “love one another (John 13:14).” If that’s the work, the related asset certainly is human relationships. So, the equation for building that long-term value would be:

Rich Relationships = My Love + My Trust + My Hope

                  Paul begins with love, but he is telling his people at Corinth that the enduring work comes down to faith (trust), hope, and love (I Corinthians 13:13). With the love that is motivated by God’s love, made bold by a firm trust, and centered on a secure hope, you will have courage to risk investment in other people. Only then, will you be able to extend love and trust in a way that the world can’t understand, and fix your focus on your hope for the other person’s future. That kind of love is what makes for a rich relationship with another.

                   Trust the Lord today. Endure; persevere when life gets hard. Love, even when others don’t love you back. Let God’s love that never fails work through your life.

OCTOBER 31 – LIFE ACCOUNTING 101

 Each one decides how to invest their own life… Those who just exist for their own purposes worry all the time about material things. But, those who really live, live according to the Holy Spirit of the Lord. (Romans 8:5-6)

                   When you read Paul’s self-descriptions, you never see him mention that he was an accountant. But in this letter, he talks about how to affect the value of a person’s investment. Maybe it’s because, as a businessman, he understands the profit and loss statement. His equation for how to profit was this:

The Work of the Spirit – Himself = God’s Prosperity

For him, the way to prosper was to stop going after what he wanted and his own prosperity. Interesting formula.

                   Can you use this as a rule of thumb for life? When you find that you are pursuing some selfish purpose or gain, might that prompt you to stop and consider if that behavior is in your best interests? If Paul’s equation is right, the word of God is to be valued as the source for a life that gives you the chance to really live. This must have been the abundant life about which Jesus spoke (John 10:10).

                   Decide today that you will invest your life only in the work that God gives you. Let God’s love that never fails work in you, and find His prosperous, abundant life.

OCTOBER 30 – RULE PROBLEMS – A BIG IDEA

 And after the great trembling, there was a great fire – God still was not in this. But, after the fire there came a still, small voice. When Elijah heard the voice, he wrapped his face and went out to the entrance. Suddenly the voice challenged him, “What are you doing, Elijah?” (I Kings 19:12-13)

                  Leaders often are attracted to BIG ideas. Often, this is even motivated by desire to have a big impact for the Lord. The world generally says, “bigger is better, stronger, and more important!” There are at least two big problems with this idea. First, strategic planning often requires looking long-term, and trying to predict the end from the beginning. That’s dangerous territory if you have only been given the first, or next, step by God. Also, God has a habit of acting in unexpected, and often small, ways.

                   This verse also presents two things to consider. Elijah waited to hear from God. He was not distracted by the big things going on around him. The fire, earthquake, nor any other major world events really got his attention. But, when God spoke, he was there. Second, Elijah must have been familiar with that voice. People used by the Lord in the stories of the Bible consistently shared these characteristics.

                   Look for God in everything big or small. Listen until you hear His voice, instead of being pulled to the things that others pursue as big or important.

OCTOBER 29 - RULE PROBLEMS – CONSENSUS?

 So, the Lord said, “This people, they speak honor with their mouths and call to Me with the words of their lips. But, their hearts are far from Me. That’s not worship. It’s just following human rules. (Isaiah 29:13)

                   Another challenge of presenting the vision and values God would have you and your people embody, is truly gaining consensus among your people. Your position of relative power will dictate that most of your people will say that they are with you. They may recite the vision and list the values, but if they haven’t applied these to their lives, you have been forcing lip service rather than leading them well. Using power to force fake agreement leads to hypocrisy. Leading others to real consensus around God-given vision and values leads to the formation of a community of people who can be unified.

                  Through Isaiah, God expressed His frustration with His people who didn’t understand this. Jesus also challenged the Pharisees (Matthew 15:1-14). He berated them for failing to understand and live by God’s true intent, and for leading others to follow confusing rules instead of God’s purposes. Leaders who fail to stay close to God’s intent will often try to reduce God to mere rules.

                  To pursue God’s purpose honestly, and to invest in helping others to relate to Him, is God’s model for your service to your people. That work will produce real consensus, and to a culture marked by God’s prosperity.

OCTOBER 28 – RULE PROBLEM – CONTROLS

But I would not have even thought about wanting and desiring so much, had it not been for the law saying, “don’t covet!” But, sin saw an opportunity in that commandment, and brought to my mind lusting after everything I could think about. (Romans7:7-8)

   Some people really like rules and regulations because they can set limits on how much abuse is allowed. Is your response to a rule ever, “How can I get around this?” In some ways, as compared to simple rules being applied with judgment, having a lot of detailed regulation can legitimize bad acts and bad actors if those actions are not too much or too bad. A regulated environment can encourage selective enforcement and punishment by you or by others.

                  As a Pharisee himself, Paul was familiar with all the bad ways to use laws and rules. Certainly, he saw the waste of time and needless oppression of people under a heavy load of rules. But, Paul also saw another aspect of the law. He observed that the sin remaining in his flesh seems to be drawn toward evil simply by knowing what is evil. Presenting the rules against actions, seemed to draw him to those very same prohibited actions as he thought about them.

                  Be cautious as you define your values to give definitions that are positive, and full of promise. Don’t engage in trying to control each detail. Let the Lord lead you to communicate in a clear and hopeful, yet simple and trusting way.

OCTOBER 27–RULE PROBLEM-FAKE OPENNESS

 (After the interaction with the Pharisees) as thousands had gathered around them, Jesus first told His disciples, “Watch out for the yeast of the Pharisees. It is deceit!” (Luke 12:1)

                  The Pharisees loved rules and regulations. Much of their power was exerted through the imposition, interpretation, and enforcement of Jewish law. They were masters at using law to exclude and manipulate, but Jesus had just challenged them for another cause. In fact, He told the Pharisees they were headed for judgment and doom (Luke 11:42-52). They were dishonest, and they lacked integrity as they applied the law, and their actions ignored the truth behind those laws. Apparently, this fake behavior is judged very harshly by God (vv. 50-51).

                   How about you? Do you ever engage in spinning a situation to present a customer or employee proposal in a more favorable light? Do you ever leave out important details or circumstances that would qualify for exceptions to rules or policies when those disclosures may change the hearer’s perception? Would you ever provide a thick document to someone under the guise of being transparent, when that document serves to hide negative parts?

                   Trust Jesus to lead you to decisions which are good decisions, and then be honest with people. There can be no trust unless there is open and honest communication in dealing with your people.    

OCTOBER 26 – RULE PROBLEM - MANIPULATION

 Don’t act in any way to advance your own, selfish ends, nor to build your ego. Rather, humbly think of other people as more important than you. Work for what they need, not what you want. (Philippians 2:3-4)

                   What part of you still desires success or significance? Which of the material, social, or psychological goals still capture your imagination? Unless you can put these personal wants aside, your actions will be impacted by them. Your rules for your people will serve those selfish interests. Unless you focus carefully on others, and what they need, your guidance and standards may become tyranny. Some rules are merely a convenient disguise for efforts to manipulate outcomes.

                   Paul drills down to the essence of what it means to follow Christ. Your entire life; every part of your attention and focus will be directed toward God’s answer for you and for other people. You see, people need relationship with the Lord, God. No other purpose, nor any other pursuit that you create will answer that need. Any desire that you imagine will ultimately serve your wish rather than the need of the person before you.

                   Focus on other people – all the time – and listen for God’s word to you for how you may serve their needs.

OCTOBER 25 – RULE PROBLEM – EXCLUSION

 Here’s a new rule for you. This will be your rule. Each one of you must love the others, just like I have loved you. Love one another! (John 13:34)

                  Is it practical to have simple rules and to be inclusive? In the real world, where you and your people do business, can you follow this command of Jesus? In this world, where the extension of trust is rare, rules are often used to limit risk. The costs of complying and of documenting that compliance are usually passed along to some faceless user downstream, and they’re justified as necessary to protect the public. In this world there is a material benefit (an incentive) to being part of the group that writes and follows all the rules because that group decides who will be excluded.

                   Jesus provides a different way for those who follow Him. He says, “love without limit.” (Just as I have loved you). He says, “love fully!” There is no condition in the encouragement to simply, inclusively, “love one another!” Following this regulation may mean that you must follow many of the world’s rules to be able to love that other person. Obeying Jesus may also mean you must break a rule sometimes.  But, the guidance you give your people – your rules should never be designed to exclude others from your love.

                   Your role – the new rule – is simply to love.

OCTOBER 24 – GOD CHOSE RELATIONSHIP

 Be found without any semblance of evil. The very God who desires your peace and prosperity; The Lord, will purify you – completely. He will finish you so that your whole Spirit, soul, and body will be guarded and kept blameless for our Lord Jesus Christ. You can believe and trust that He will do this! (I Thessalonians 5:22-24)

                  Do you believe that good, clear, and detailed rules and regulations are the keys to consistent performance and behavior? Do you think your people need to be guided by lists of dos and don’ts, and to be monitored closely for compliance if your group is to prosper? As you and your group grow, you will make a choice. You must select an organizing process. The choices really boil down to two; rules or relationships. Which will you choose?

                   Paul explains here that God chose relationship to accomplish His work of sanctification in you. The Lord, God sees you as His work. Completing you, and your progress toward His peace and His prosperity – by His working in, along-side, and through you – that is the work He reserved for Himself. God wants to bring about the transformation of His people through relationship, not rules.

                   Consider today whether He may be calling you to work through relationship to bring the vision He has given you to completion.

OCTOBER 23 – THE WHY IS SO IMPORTANT

 And everything – the whole body of all the work you do and all you say – Do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus. And, all the time, thank God the Father that He allows you this great gift. (Colossians 3:17)

                   No doubt that the early readers of this letter included many who had heard and understood the truth that love of work is key to performing with excellence and to enjoying that work. Do you love your work? Do you love the vision that drives it? Is that enough? Not according to Paul.

                  Paul tells the people at Colossi, “It is not enough to love your work, even if it is work that God has given you to do. The why is important. Paul says you and your people must love your work because God loves it; because you are pursuing the vision He has given you as an objective in the way He has told you to pursue. In a word, you must love most the relationship with God. When that happens, your work and your worship become one. When it is God you love and pursue – when He is the reason (the why) for all of it – the work can change and yet it will still be work that you will love.                 

                  Make sure your why is Jesus. Make sure your people know that all you lead them to do is part of your worship that wants to honor and represent Him.

OCTOBER 22 – DIFFICULT/COMPLEX WORK

 And so, the people who heard Jesus tell them how very difficult it is to live the life God requires asked Him, “then, who can possibly be rescued?” Jesus answered, “the things that are impossible with men; they are possible only with God.” (Luke 18:26)

                   So, what is the hard part of the new, better work that God has given you to do? The part men and women find hard is to be consistent in constant attention to the work God is doing; His story for their lives. It is difficult to make every small piece of your life be about pursuing that one purpose. Jesus’ message, explained further by Paul and others, is that living out God’s purposes requires true justice, real mercy, and a unity that exceeds anything men and women can create. Living out God’s will this way is hard.

                   In fact, here Jesus says it is impossible without constant relationship with God, allowing Him to shape your heart, transform its desires and make you ready to face the complex challenges of a world dominated by fallen people and failed ambitions. In a world that chooses sin, only God can remain faithful and true as He works in your life and the lives of your people.

                   Focus your people, and yourself, on the God who will make possible His prosperity, no matter how complex or difficult the work of following Him becomes.

OCTOBER 21 – BECOMING WHAT YOU LOVE

 Even though people knew God, they turned inward, foolishly claiming to know best for themselves instead of worshipping and glorifying the Lord, God. They gave up aspiring to God and His glory, choosing instead the common things He created. (Romans1:21)

                  Men and women are very good at achieving what they really want most in life. You are always living toward a future, a goal, an end. What is yours? You must be careful to choose this end with serious intent. Recognizing the truth of this passage; that your efforts are animated by your habits that in turn come from what you really want, you should focus intently on God’s vision for your life. You should also be careful to consistently focus your people on God and the work God has given you all to do together.

                 As Paul was describing the choices these folks made, he must have scratched his head. “They know better,” is his real observation here. As he wondered why others (and he, himself at times) would do such a foolish thing, he must have remembered Proverbs 23:7, “As a man thinks in his heart, so he is.” Against their own interests, these people chose to cling tightly to all the lesser things provided by the world; the latest shiny object, rather than pursuing God and His true worth and glory.

                   Be careful. Lead your people to a carefully considered decision to pursue God, so they will become the image bearers He wants them to be.