Tag: encouragement

31 Days Cut & Paste Edition: God is the Hero of Golden Rule Living

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Day 30, CUT

There are A LOT of blogs out in this world, and I’ve read a whole bunch of them. I see a common thread in the Christian blogging world- GRACE. Grace is good, and it is the heart of the gospel, but I often see something missing: how that GRACE moves us.  It doesn’t just tell us we’re doing a good job and to continue on as we were. The only reasonable response to the grace we’ve been given is sold-out devotion to Christ. Our devotion is often called to manifestation in service to others- in living the Golden Rule.

The reasonable response to the grace we’ve been given is sold-out devotion to Christ.

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We can’t make it through the day without His grace, and we certainly can’t do good unto others apart from it. God is the hero of every single act of kindness story we have to tell. All glory goes to God.

I’ve cut and collected a few clippings from the last 28 days of posts to show this common thread throughout the series I have put together here. I would hate to have any reader walk away thinking that my daily life is glittered by the Golden Rule, and I’ve somehow mastered selfless living. SPOILER ALERT: I haven’t, and I won’t until my days are 100% consumed with singing of God’s goodness in glory.

God is the hero of Golden Rule living.

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God as the Hero in Golden Rule Living

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In the Mundane…

Living the Golden Rule means getting down to the nitty-gritty with God and dealing with it all before anyone is close enough to be affected by the bomb blast- Defusing the Time-Bomb of an Overstuffed Heart

As I silently seek Him through the Word written long ago, and as I sit under the instruction of faithful servants, I move forward to do unto others. But first I just have to BE. From Stir-Crazy to Strengthened by Stillness

Grace looked at us in all our filthiness and died to make us its own. That redemptive act moves us to say, “I will lay down my life for the least of these because I know Whom I serve.” The You of the Golden Rule

In Marriage…

God’s love for me has been tested and found to be 100% true. While my husband will never earn perfect marks, I can give him a break because I don’t need proof that I am loved. –The Test He’s Sure to Fail: Does He Really Love Me?

Humility is so rarely my first move in marriage. Remembering Christ who moved towards me in complete disregard of Himself, I am convinced it needs to be. –Humility: My First Move in the Fight for my Marriage

If I expect my husband to submit to the Lord, living the Golden Rule, I must also submit to the Lord’s work in my family. I must trust that, ultimately, He is the one who leads the way and that He will direct us as we strive to do His will. Post-It-Note Your Feelings, Please

Though he knows me better than anyone else, my husband really doesn’t know me at all. Not in comparison to the One who knows the numbers of hairs on my head and the number of breaths I have left in my body. –My Husband Doesn’t Know Me

My heart is so frail, and I think it might burst from the burden of this work. I surrender it to the only One who proved on the Cross his ability to carry it. –Shouldering the Weight of God-Sized Dreams

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In Motherhood…

Just like me, my children want to be known but may not always be able to express complicated emotions. The responsibility falls on me to study them and surrender their needs to Jesus. –The Learned Art of Awareness in Parenting

It’s tempting to act like I have a monopoly on molding the hearts of my children… It’s true God gave them to me, but being uniquely made by Him, they can benefit from all sorts of people who aren’t just like me. –Mail and the Mama Bear: Am I Monopolizing My Kids’ Upbringing?

God wants their hearts and every facet of their lives. And I want them to give it all to Him when they fully understand the life-wrecking, beautiful mess they’re getting themselves into. Two Tender Hearts and One Untrained Teacher

In the fear of all the ways humility will hurt my children, I am certain the love of Jesus will cover the multitudes of sins against them. Why Can’t We Live in Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood?

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In Missional Living…

It is God who judges hearts and opens the doors to heaven. The only job I am given is to love others and faithfully tell of the gospel of His sacrificial death and the Good News of His resurrection. –Kicking the Hypocritical Habit

Sometimes God asks me to wait. Sometimes He parks me in the lane that’s not moving. Sometimes He asks me to follow him inch by painful inch performing small acts of service to Him. I have to trust that God will use me where I am in all the little ways I’m able. –Finding the Mission Field Outside my Front Door

But the best I can live the Golden Rule unto others is by introducing them to Jesus, encouraging and reminding them of the steadfast love that completely wrecked my life in the best way possible. The Golden Rule for the Global Good

In times of transition, the criticism cuts the gospel worker like the sharpest of knives, but words of encouragement put the sharp knife to better work. The kind that crafts into tools fit for kingdom work and builds confidence in the Hands at work in their lives and ministry. The Knife that Cuts and the Knife that Sharpens

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In Moving Forward…

I deal graciously with others when I confront my nothingness and my inability to do good apart from the transformative work of Christ in my life. My Life as a Living Sacrifice: Confronting my Nothingness

Thriving in our Provider’s care, we worry less about surviving and more about serving.  Everything we are commanded to do is within our reach because we are connected to the boundless Vine. The Simple Secret to Being Super Fruitful

We will strive and struggle. It’s all part of this thing called sanctification. We need heaping spoonfuls of grace and answered prayers for the strength to do more. We make right the things we can make right, and we ask God to take care of the rest. Heaping Spoonfuls of Grace for When We Goof It All Up

Each person we encounter comes from a culture all their own influenced by their family dynamics, education, and peers. Sometimes, we will treat others the way we want to be treated and we will just fall flat. We have to rely on the truths of God’s word that apply to all people- Scriptural Social Etiquette Crosses Culture Seamlessly

What truths about God the hero of the Golden Rule especially touched you?
What would you add to this series on Living the Golden Rule?

Talk to me in the comment section!

 linking up:

Crystal Twaddell

Scriptural Social Etiquette Crosses Culture Seamlessly

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Day 29, DATE

Where I live the date today is Karthik 13, 2073. So, I guess you could say I’m a time-traveler. Operating on a totally different calendar system certainly poses its challenges. Honestly, I hardly EVER know what the local date is unless I owe someone money. Even then, they usually have to remind me.

For convenience sake, the English standard calendar is used as well, but if I ask a friend what the date is, they can rarely tell me the one I’m hoping to hear. Head scratches and lots of thinking later, we usually come up with the wrong date.

I miss birthdays and special events because I’m stuck in my American ways of measuring time. It’s always on my to-do list to learn all the names of the months and hang up the calendar and actually reference it (not just let my kids take it down and color on it). It grieves me that such an important piece of their culture is totally lost on me just like so many other things.

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Proof that I try!

In culture, there are TONS of obstacles to living the Golden Rule because the people I wish to serve come from totally different backgrounds than me. They use a different calendar, celebrate different holidays, eat different food, and are offended by things I seem to just do naturally. I try to treat others the way I want to be treated and find out they don’t want to be treated like I do at all!

This isn’t totally specific to the foreign field, but it is certainly amplified here. Each person we encounter comes from a culture all their own influenced by their family dynamics, education, peers, etc. Sometimes, we will treat others the way we want to be treated and we will just fall flat. For instance, “Hey, happy birthday” (according to the English calendar) is met with “Gee, thanks, it was two weeks ago.”

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Because these kinds of things frustrate me to no end, I have to remind myself of the ways I am instructed to treat others with no clause for cultural differences.

  • And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you (Ephesians 4:32).
  •  Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honour preferring one another; (Romans 12:10).
  •  If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men (Romans 12:18).
  • Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves (Philippians 2:3).
  • Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath: (James 1:19).

You and I both know that there are MANY more Scriptures about how to live for the benefit of others and the glory of God. But it’s day 29, and I am running out of steam, friends! I hope you’ll share some below.

And if you need me, I’ll be living in the year 2073.

What cultural obstacles have you run into while living the Golden Rule?
What Scriptures speak to you about how to love others well?

Talk to me in the comment section!

The Knife that Cuts and the Knife that Sharpens

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Day 25, SIGN

We hung our sign in front of our soon-to-be church-plant this week. We knew this would make us vulnerable to questions and criticism around town. It also made us vulnerable to both the judgment and encouragement of others in our city and all around the world thanks to modern technology.

Those who have partnered with us back in America were thrilled to see the work moving forward and eager to encourage us in it. The simple photo my husband published on social media got quite a lot of love for someone who rarely uses any Facebook features.

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One of the greatest ways we can live the Golden Rule in missional living is to affirm and encourage other light-bearers in their respective ministries. Missionaries on the foreign field. Moms in the trenches of toddlerhood or teenage years. Our pastors and their families. Your children’s Sunday School teacher and prayer-warrior Great Aunt.

One of the greatest ways to live the Golden Rule is to encourage others in ministry.

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Learn about their ministries and remember the names and faces of their mission field. Find ways to encourage them and get involved in their gospel work. You may be swamped in your own service, but it just takes a moment to share a word of encouragement or lend a helping hand.

Set aside differences and choose to see the potential of the mission and the heart of the kingdom worker who toils. Remember that mission work looks different to different people in each stage of life and set of circumstances. Everyone may not do ministry like we would do it, but we must trust they will follow as the Lord leads and be faithful to cheer them on as they do.

Not everyone does ministry like us, but we can choose to encourage their unique efforts.

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Consider the current issues, transitions, and decisions of the gospel worker. At these times, the criticism cuts the flesh like the sharpest of knives, but words of encouragement put the sharp knife to better work. The kind that crafts into tools fit for kingdom work and builds confidence in the Hands at work in their lives and ministry.

I want to be that kind of sharpening tool for those who work for the Lord. We need each other to get it done.

Who can you encourage in their gospel work today?
I want to hear about your people and your ideas.

Talk to me in the comment section!

 

 

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