This title came to me as we were driving
home from Oklahoma City yesterday after we had taken Chris’ lease car to the
Honda Dealer to turn it in.
We have been talking with Chris via the
Internet and have been looking at rental houses they’re looking at in Germany,
by way of satellite.
You can do the same by going to Google Maps,
putting in an address and pushing Satellite. We even went to Kiel, Germany and
found an Evangelical Lutheran church.
http://maps.google.com/
Google Maps are as if you are flying very low
over a town or a house or even traveling down a highway. It’s incredible what
can be done with technology these days. We even “traveled” down Highway 33 and
turned at the Loyal turn-off, but just before we got to Loyal we lost the
satellite picture as it became blurry. The Lomega High School is on the map but
the town of Loyal is not on the map! I am constantly bragging on because of the
way you support and built assets in young people. The community of Loyal and the
churches of Loyal have so much to offer, why is it not on the map?
We often lose sight of some of the most
valuable resources we have.
When I placed rocks of varied sizes in the
hands of 9th graders at Cashion School, I asked them to place them in
order of importance. As you might expect the larger one was placed first with
others following in colors and designs and the smaller rock was placed last. I
then asked them how they would place the rocks if I told them that each of the
rocks contained the same amount of gold. They told me they had already picked
them by their looks, their color, their size, their shape and even what they
could do for them. We often do the same when we look at people without realizing
that each of us has gifts of great value that can be used for the Glory of God.
A very good PowerPoint presentation came to me
in an e-mail yesterday (at the top of this web page is the opening picture of
the Presentation). It had large pictures of areas around the world, with arrows
pointing out cities. As I looked at it I realized how great God is and how
much He loves us and the thought “What is God’s plan for me?” came to me.
Even though the world seems very big and each
of us very insignificant, God knows each of us by name and even knows the number
of hairs on our head. Let’s look at God’s Word to help us understand what His
plan is for us. Sometimes we get it backward and give God our plan for Him. In
Revelation Jesus says, “Behold I stand at the door and knock.” It doesn’t say
Go Knock on God’s door and see if it will open ‘cause His door is always
open to you. Queen Esther risked her life by going before the King but we have
everything to gain by going before the King of Glory.
| “Let Us make man in our own image, in our likeness, and let
them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over
the livestock, over all the creatures that move along the ground.”
So God created man in His own image, in the image of God, He created
him; male and female He created them. God blessed them and said to
them, “Be fruitful and increase in number. Fill the earth, and
subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air
and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”
Genesis 1:26 |
We know from this scripture as well as others
that God the Father was not alone when the earth was created. When He said
“Let us create man in Our image,” He was talking to God the Son and God the Holy
Spirit. Why would God want to create us in His image? It was only
because He created us in His image that man and woman could respond to and have
fellowship with God and uniquely reflect His love, glory and holiness. Adam and
Eve were to do this by knowing God and obeying Him. They possessed a moral
likeness to God, for they were sinless and holy, possessing wisdom, a heart of
love and the will to do the right. They lived in a personal fellowship with God
that involved moral obedience and intimate communion. When they sinned, their
moral likeness to God was corrupted. Because of what Jesus did for us when He
died on the Cross, He redeemed us and took the blame and punishment for our
sins.
When we accept that redemption and ask
forgiveness and invite Him to be the Lord of our life, we can have that same
relationship with God that Adam and Eve were created with. Even though we are
personal beings with spirit, mind, emotions, and self-consciousness, we have
something that will make us or break us as far as being all that we were created
for, and that is the power of choice.
We were created to worship and adore God, to have fellowship with Him and show
others His love, glory and holiness by obeying Him. The animals were not
created to worship God, although they sometimes do a better job of it, and man
often acts like a monkey, we were not evolved from such.
God’s plan for us is to take care of what He
has given us and lead others in the path of righteousness. A famous quote from
President John F. Kennedy was “Ask not what your county can do for you but what
you can do for your country.” We should be doing the same with the plan of God.
Ask not what God can do for you, but “What can I do for God?” Each of us has a
mission field. It may be the school, where I have personally found a
tremendous amount of work to be done. It may be in the office where you work,
or the café where you eat dinner or it may be in the cards you send or the calls
you make. Whatever and wherever God places you, the reason is the same.
We are to worship and adore God, fellowship
with Him and show others His love, glory and holiness by obeying His commands.
Choose you this day who you
will serve and do it with all your heart, mind, and soul.
