Being Full

Live beyond the boxes by being full.

Emptiness seems to abound. It is no mistake that we are known as a ‘consumer society’ because it seems that as much as we consume, we still never seem to have enough. We earn, we spend, we shop, we eat, we drink, we party, we holiday, all in a futile attempt to try and fill up our empty feelings.

Jesus emphatically challenged us to live beyond societies boxes in this quest for fullness. That instead of turning to money, or food, or anything else on this earth, we should instead turn to God alone to fill us.

Jesus said that he was the Bread of Life, and that by trusting in Him we would experience not only eternal life, but also a life that was abundantly full.

We need to consider carefully what we trust in to give our life meaning. However, this is easier said than done because so many of the things we trust in to give us fulFILLment are very subtle and hard to recognise.

It is not always something as obvious as money, shopping or food. It could be anything from success to popularity to our looks. It is extremely important though that we work on recognising these futile attempts at fulfilment for what they really are. This is so we might begin to give them up to God and learn to trust in Him alone to give our lives meaning and purpose.

If you had to give thought to it … what would be the kind of things you may be trusting in to fill your life? Perhaps it is time that you began to challenge those issues within yourself and hand them over to God.

Hear the call of Jesus offering you fullness of life and put all of your trust in him.

PRAY AS YOU GO

Lord God, giver of life and all good things, we confess to you how often we search and scrabble for our life’s fulfilment in all the wrong places. We look for it in money, possessions, success, popularity, work, sex, family, food and drink. Help us to recognise that trusting in these things only leads to an increased emptiness. We ask that Jesus would instead become the centre and circumference of our lives and that he would be our food and drink. Help us to make our relationship with you our life’s highest and truest priority.
In Christ’s name we pray. Amen.

FOCUS READING
John 10:7-18 (NIV)
Therefore Jesus said again, "I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep. All who ever came before me were thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. He will come in and go out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”

Openness

Live beyond the boxes by being open.

Work and responsibilities are part and parcel of everyday life for many of us. However, sometimes because of our endless busyness and responsibilities we can forget what is truly important in life. For example, we can be so busy rushing about earning our daily bread that we forget God has also called us to share our daily bread with others.

Being open to giving generously to others is a call that includes but also surpasses the sharing of actual physical food. It means opening our lives to others through the giving of our time, energy, emotions and friendship.

One noticeable thing about Jesus is how much time he took out from the busyness of his life and ministry just to develop relationships with others. This is powerfully seen in the story of Mary and Martha (see today’s focus reading).

Martha reacts to Jesus’ visit very responsibly and sets about getting everything in order. She becomes annoyed with her sister Mary for sitting back and enjoying Jesus’ company rather than helping her out. So she asks Jesus to speak to Mary and send her to work.

Many of us who are responsible and hard working find ourselves naturally siding with Martha. However, in this case Jesus speaks out for Mary, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”

As we head into another busy year, live beyond the boxes by slowing down and taking time out to spend working on relationships. Not only relationships with existing family and friends but also to be open to totally new connections.

After all the general busyness of life leads many to feeling very lonely and isolated, so perhaps the greatest gift you could give another is just to develop a friendship with them. Look out for those in around us who most often are left alone, like the elderly or poor.

Live beyond the boxes by not blindly following the rush of society and instead be open enough to slow down and reach out.

PRAY AS YOU GO
Lord, we confess that we often allow important relationships and other priorities to slip up in our rush to get everything done. Help us to be open to others always and everywhere. Help us to take the time out for family and loved ones. Help us to also take the time to connect with those we don’t normally even notice – strangers, the elderly, and the poor. In the name of Jesus who always made time even for the very least in his society. Amen.

FOCUS READING
Luke 10:38-42 (NIV)
As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, "Lord, don't you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!"
"Martha, Martha," the Lord answered, "You are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her."

Being Accountable

Live beyond the boxes by being accountable.

Everyone needs help. No exceptions. While Christianity most certainly is a personal faith, it most definitely is not a private one. In fact one of the best parts about Christianity is that it brings us into a community, a family - the church.

One of society’s favourite boxes is that of individualism. We are encouraged to believe that ‘going it alone’ is somehow heroic and that to show need is nothing more than weakness.

In stark contrast to this the Bible teaches us that there is more to life than just us and that being part of a wide and diverse community called the church is extremely important. Living beyond boxes in this case is a call to turn away from selfishness and individualism, and to embrace being involved in community.

One of the many, many reasons God invented the church is because as I have already said – everyone needs help. We need each other. As the author of Ecclesiastes suggests we are stronger when we stand together. Furthermore, if we fall down we need the help of others to gently lift us up.

Our togetherness can also result in tremendous personal growth. Belonging to a community like the church that is made of many wonderfully diverse colours, cultures and languages will almost certainly challenge us to learn from others and to deal with our prejudices.

So for all these reasons and more besides it is very important that we belong to a church, and in this way make ourselves accountable to other Christians. Letting others know our strengths and weaknesses and humbly listening to encouragement or challenge will both enrich and grow us.

Being accountable to others is also a way of living beyond the boxes in our sometimes quite selfish and individualistic society.

PRAY AS YOU GO

Lord God we give thanks to you for our communities. We recognise that as much as we ourselves are not perfect, so no community or church can be either. Forgive us for the times we harshly judge others or belittle them for their weaknesses and mistakes. Help us to be humble and to become accountable to others in a way that will challenge and grow us. Help us to accept that we all need each other in this way. In Jesus name we pray. Amen.

FOCUS READING
Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 (NIV)
Two are better than one, 
       because they have a good return for their work:
 If one falls down, 
       their friend can help him up. 
       But pity the person who falls 
       and has no one to help them up!
 Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. 
       But how can one keep warm alone?
 Though one may be overpowered, 
       two can defend themselves. 
       A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.

Being Real

Live beyond the boxes by being real.

One of the legendary Peanuts comic strips was set on the first day of a brand new school year. The students had been asked to write an essay about their feelings on returning to class. In her essay, Lucy wrote, “Vacations are nice, but it’s good to get back to school. There is nothing more satisfying or challenging than education, and I look forward to a year of expanding knowledge.”

The teacher was pleased with Lucy and publicly complimented her on a fine essay. In the final frame of the cartoon, Lucy leans over her desk and whispers to Charlie Brown, “After a while you learn what sells.”

In our society today there can be huge pressure to “learn what sells” and to adapt our lives accordingly. To say what others want us to say, to do what others want us to do - in other words to fit neatly into a box.

The major problem with this of course is that we become afraid to truly be ourselves in case that does not “sell”. We put up masks and pretend to be what we are not in an effort to fit in and please others. In the process we lose ourselves and also “sell” out on the integrity of our own souls.

Strangely enough, Christ-followers can be the absolute worst at this failure in authenticity. We feel a tension between the way we should live to honour God and the way we actually do live. So we pretend to ourselves and others that we are something we are not. In the process we risk putting many people off Christianity as a result. I say “strangely enough” because Jesus so firmly challenged us towards authenticity in all things – to be real. To be honest and vulnerable about our weaknesses, fears and mistakes.

In today’s focus verse Jesus warns us against pretending to be what we are not in the strongest possible terms.

Don’t fear being real because although others may reject us for it, the Bible promises that God has love enough to accept us as we are and power enough to transform and heal us!

However, for this to happen we have to be real before God.

PRAY AS YOU GO
Thomas a Kempis said, “Be not angry that you cannot make others as you wish them to be, since you cannot make yourself as you wish to be.”

O’ Lord we recognise that the process of personal change becomes so much clearer when we ask you to do it within us. Forgive us of the times we pretend to be what we are not. We ask that you would give us the courage to come before you and others simply as we are. Give us strength enough to be real about even our worst weaknesses and mistakes. Give us compassion enough to learn to accept and love others as they really are. For we know that it is in this way that your Spirit can heal and transform us all. Amen.

FOCUS VERSE
Matthew 7:15-23 (NIV)
Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thorn-bushes, or figs from thistles? Likewise every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.

Boxes

People like us to live in boxes.

No, of course I am not talking about cardboard boxes but rather socially constructed ones. Fitting people neatly into different types of boxes makes it easier to define them. Knowing exactly what kind of box you fit into makes others feel safer around you.

What we often forget is that Jesus refused to be fitted into any of the boxes of his day. Jesus actively challenged his societies many rules of what it meant to be a good and devoted God-follower. In fact Jesus loved to turn popular ideas of how society should be right upside down!

Just one such example is how Jesus challenged our notions of leadership when he said things like ‘if you want to be great you must be a servant’, or the ‘first shall be last, and the last first’ (see Mark 10.44 & 10.31). Jesus often proposed upside down ways of thinking like this.

Jesus challenged the hierarchies that every society seems to have where a small number of people live comfortably on top whilst many others are left to languish on the bottom. He spoke against religious tendencies to exclude certain people from our relationships because they don’t fit into our narrow definitions of acceptability.

In many ways boxes can limit and confine us. Jesus lived beyond the boxes of his day because he taught that God passionately loved all people, and not just those who place themselves at the top of hierarchies. Anyone who feels uncomfortable with their particular box, or who feels left out and on the outside of society should feel recognised and loved by Jesus.

In the same way we are called to live beyond boxes.

We are called to resist many of society’s rules and regulations of what it means to be ‘normal’ and ‘acceptable’. Some examples of how we might live out of boxes is by not living as if money is the be all and end all of life; or by embracing and not rejecting societal outcasts such as the poor; or by loving and lifting others up rather than pushing them down in the race to get ahead.

Over the next four days we will be looking more closely at four different ways that we can actively seek to live ‘beyond the boxes’ and follow Jesus in his way of radical life and love.

But to do that effectively we first need to be prepared to hear Jesus’ words of challenge and to move ourselves out into totally new ways of life and being.

Are you ready to follow Jesus into a life beyond boxes?

PRAY AS YOU GO

Almighty and Holy God, as we sit back and think about life today, we admit how many boxes do exist in our society. Boxes of what it means to be successful (wealthy), of what it means to be meaningful (popular), of what it means to be important (powerful). Forgive us for those times we allow others to squeeze us into neat little boxes and forgive us for when we reduce others in the same way. We ask O’ God that throughout this week, you would give us the strength to follow you in living life beyond the boxes. Amen.

FOCUS READING
Mark 10:42-45 (NIV)
Jesus called them together and said, "You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."

When is Christmas Finished?

The day after Christmas can be mildly depressing.

After the long build up to Christmas, and all the excitement beforehand, once all the presents are unwrapped, the family have gone home and the last of the Christmas meal is packed into Tupperware for leftovers; everything afterwards seems so blasé.

The day after Christmas, everything goes back to normal all too quickly.

But the promise of Christmas is NOT just for one day a year, or even the month preceding it. The promise of Christmas in NOT just for happy days filled with friends and presents, laughter and feasts.

No, the promise of Christmas is for everyday and that includes sad and difficult times.

Zephaniah’s prophesy encompasses this by promising that although troubles will come, they will not overwhelm us. Because of Christmas, Zephaniah is saying, everything that oppresses us will be dealt with, the lame will be rescued and the scattered will be gathered.

This is not to say that we won’t ever face troubles because no literature on earth is more realistic about the harsh facts of life than the Bible. Scripture never says life will be perfect, but does promise that God will make sense out of the imperfections.

The story is told of a church in the USA where for many years the children’s Christmas pageant had run like clockwork. The director was highly efficient, demanded perfection, and insisted that only the very best children got roles.

One year, a new minister at the church insisted that all children who wanted to be a part of the pageant could do so – parts would be found for them. The Director resigned in a huff. Now the pageant didn’t fall flat without her, but it certainly was different.

Firstly, there were far too many children cluttering the stage – about 20 angels, dozens of shepherds and even more sheep. About half-way through the play the sheep decided they would have a much better view from the seats, and so bleated their way down into some empty seats in the front. But the real climax of imprecision came when Mary and Joseph entered. The narrator was to read how Joseph was going to Bethlehem with Mary ‘his espoused wife, being great with child.’

One of the mothers had realised the children didn’t really understand the Elizabethan English of the King James Version and so changed it to the Good News Version at the last minute. So as Mary and Joseph entered, the narrator read: ‘Mary was promised in marriage to Joseph. She was pregnant’.

As the last word echoed through the P.A., little Joseph froze in his tracks. This was not how he had heard it at rehearsal! He gave Mary an incredulous look, then looked out at the congregation and said, ‘Pregnant? What do you mean pregnant?’

Needless to say, this brought this house down. The pastor’s wife, wiping the tears from her eyes, said: ‘You know, that may be exactly what Joseph actually said.” Afterwards, everyone agreed that the pageant was the best it had been in years. Not perfect of course, the way it had been previously. In fact, it was a mess, but a wonderful mess filled with laughter and joy.

You see, it was perfect in another sense. Perfect in the way God makes things perfect – for sometimes life gets messy and troublesome, mistakes get made, people get it wrong, and yet God can still bring sense to it all.

God takes meaningless, tough situations and somehow presses divine meaning into them.

PRAY AS YOU GO

Lord God, we commit into your hands every tough and difficult situation we may be facing. We trust that you would be able to press divine meaning even into our messy and disordered situations. Amen.

FOCUS VERSE
Zephaniah 3. 19-20 (NIV)

At that time I will deal 
       with all who oppressed you; 
       I will rescue the lame 
       and gather those who have been scattered. 
       I will give them praise and honour 
       in every land where they were put to shame.
 At that time I will gather you; 
       at that time I will bring you home.

The Christmas ‘Yes’!

When our elder daughter first started to speak, her very first word was ‘No.’ I’m not sure whether it had anything to do with the fact that I was sneaking a swig of her Liqui-Fruit straight out of the carton at the time. But whatever the reason, that was her first word. Which evidently is not that unusual. Linguistically, a ‘no’ is easier to pronounce than ‘yes’ and usually comes pretty early in a child’s vocabulary.

But I wonder if there’s more to that early ‘no’ than linguistics. I wonder if, at even an early age, there is something within us that leans toward saying, ‘No!’ Maybe it’s something we inherit, or perhaps it’s something we learn. But certainly, as we grow older and experience a little more of the world and its ways, so this word can easily become our first response to what life presents to us.

Jim Harnish writes, “Saying ‘no’ is a form of self-protection. It wards off the risk of commitment; it protects us from involvement; it shields us from intimate relationships. An unqualified ‘yes’ is a much harder sell. To say ‘yes’ is to make a leap of faith, to risk oneself in a new and often scary relationship.”

Saying no protects us from being taken for a ride. And it’s often appropriate in a world of scams and abuse. But when it’s our default response in life, we WILL end up missing out on much of the richness that life has to offer.

Which brings us to the whole point of today.

Christmas is God’s unqualified ‘Yes’ to the world. Christmas is God declaring that He will risk sharing life with us. That He is open to us. That He is passionately committed to being in relationship with us. Christmas is God taking the monumental risk of having His life bound up with ours.

Listen carefully to the vulnerable cry from the manger and you will know it’s true. Listen carefully to Joseph giving this child his name and you will hear an echo of God’s yes. YESu. ‘His name will be called YESu, for he will save his people from their sins.’

Today, may you hear God’s great ‘YES’ spoken over your life, and may you in turn say ‘Yes’ to God.

Happy Christmas!

Focus Scripture

Matthew 1. 20-21

An angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.