Not As Easy As You Think!

Speedy Morris, Baseball coach for LaSalle University, was shaving when his wife told him he had a call from Sports Illustrated. He got so excited over the possibility of national recognition, that he hurriedly finished shaving and nicked himself in the process. Not wanting to delay the caller he ran out of the bathroom, lost his balance, and tumbled down the stairs. Limping, with blood and lather on his face, he finally got to the phone.

“Sports Illustrated?” he panted…

Imagine Morris’s disappointment when the voice on the other end of the phone droned on, “Yes it is, and for just seventy –five cents an issue you can have Sports Illustrated delivered to your door.”
Life is full of disappointments, but maybe the greatest disappointments come from those things that promise so much yet deliver so little. Each and every one of us has been on both sides of this situation. We have felt the disappointment of promises not fulfilled, and we have made promises in one way or another that have not been delivered.

As Matthew brings his account of Jesus Sermon on the Mount to a close he reminds us that it's easy to miss our way into life if we are chasing after things instead of Jesus. Things will disappoint! They will break, go out of style, wear out, or we will become disillusioned with them and want something new or better. What is worse if we are pursuing them, they will eventually lead us to the wide path and away from Jesus!

13 "You can enter God's Kingdom only through the narrow gate. The highway to hell is broad, and its gate is wide for the many who choose the easy way. 14 But the gateway to life is small, and the road is narrow, and only a few ever find it. Matthew 7: 13,14 (NLT)

For three days Jesus pointed out choices. Now as he ends this sermon He reminds us that we can enter the broad gate, plug into the wrong source, or build on an unstable foundation. And if we choose those paths we will end up being very disappointed, because none of them deliver what they promise. The other option is to enter the Gate of Life through Jesus, Plug into the source of hopefulness in Jesus, and build our lives on a foundation that will never fail…

History is littered with people who’ve trusted something else only to find disappointment: Jones Town, Waco, TX, New Orleans, and maybe your life or the life of those you know and love. if you’re just grazing from one thing to the next… let me encourage you to focus on Jesus come into Jesus’ fold and follow Him to Life.

Pressing On,
Dale

Big Things In Little Packages

When I started Boy Scouts I was in troop 61 and our troop made a point of spending at least one weekend each month camping. I was still young and had just earned my Tenderfoot badge and was going to get to go on my first Overnight camping trip. It was a great experience… setting up tents that were used by the Lewis and Clark expedition , eating food that tasted strangely like bug spray, standing around fires that were smoldering because of the wet wood we used. But the highlight of the trip came Saturday Night when I was introduced to a new way to play football. Troop 61 called it Night Football…We’d find an open field without too many trees, holes, or roots. We’d set the boundaries and make teams and play football in the dark. I was 13 and rather small but I loved the game of football and was willing to mix it up the 18 year olds in a game of night football. To this day I don’t know why but I ended up on the front line defensively and while I was giving away over 12” in height and more than 100 lbs to many of the older boys, I still tackled more people than anyone else… That night was the first time I had ever heard the phrase, “Big things come in small packages” and the funny thing is they were saying it about me!

Today I want to share with each of you a truth that has been growing in me since that night. The truth is that you can’t always tell by the outside the potential of a thing. It may look really good on the outside, but be empty and worthless on the inside, or it may look rather tiny and insignificant on the outside, but be filled with great power and value. As people we are trained from an early age to assess, judge, and assign value, but the truth of the Kingdom of God and those in it is that “Big things come in small packages”!

31 Here is another illustration Jesus used: "The Kingdom of Heaven is like a mustard seed planted in a field. 32 It is the smallest of all seeds, but it becomes the largest of garden plants and grows into a tree where birds can come and find shelter in its branches."
33 Jesus also used this illustration: "The Kingdom of Heaven is like yeast used by a woman making bread. Even though she used a large amount of flour, the yeast permeated every part of the dough." 34 Jesus always used stories and illustrations like these when speaking to the crowds. In fact, he never spoke to them without using such parables. 35 This fulfilled the prophecy that said, "I will speak to you in parables. I will explain mysteries hidden since the creation of the world."
  Matt 13:31-35 (NLT)

As you consdier the truth of this passage, my prayer is that you remember it's God inside of you that gives you strength, power, and the ability to accomplish great things not your size, education, or history. May amazing things happen for you, and through you as you allow God to do what only He can do... take a tiny seed and turn it into a tree, or take a person like you or me and change teh world.

Pressing On,
Dale