From Meaningless to Greatness

He woke as he does every morning with his cat meowing for food. He slowly slipped out of bed and slipped on his house shoes and walked to the kitchen. Just another day that would end without meaning. Have you ever awaken with those thoughts? Have you looked back at the end of the day and thought what purpose was there in what you did that day?

I found the following story in the workbook, "One 2 Won" by Joe White and I hope it will help you see that even a day without meaning can be the stepping stone to a great achievement.

The winter of 1498 was memorable for its bitter cold. The city of Florence, Italy, was blanketed in snow, and Michelangelo Buonarroti's heart was as heavy as the gray clouds that dipped low and blocked out the sun.

The Grand Duke of Florence, Lorenzo de' Medici, had been the young artist's benefactor. It was this great supporter of the arts who had given Michelangelo the numerous slabs of marble he needed to refine his incredible talents. But before Michelangelo was able to create his masterpieces, the old duke died, and his son, Piero, had no use for a sculptor on the payroll. So the great artist's talents were put on the shelf, and Michelangelo sat and waited. That is, until a few days before a great party at the new duke's palace.

In what looked like an incredible answer to his prayers, Michelangelo was summoned before Piero. He'd never been to the palace, even when the grand duke had been alive, and he hurried down the streets, past the guards, and in to see Duke Piero.

While he was afraid to believe it, the rumor circulated by the servant who came to fetch Michelangelo was that he was being commissioned to carve a great statue! At last!

When Michelangelo arrived at the palace, he was ushered into a large room where not only Duke Piero de' Medici but also a crowd of the duke's friends awaited his arrival. He was indeed told that his services as a sculptor were needed by his new patron. All he had to do was to go down to the garden, and he'd find all the white marble he needed to make a masterpiece for the duke's party.

Can you guess by now what the duke was actually asking Michelangelo to do? All the white marble in the garden was... snow. Perhaps the greatest sculptor of all time had been brought tot he palace to create a snow sculpture for a royal dinner party!

Just imagine for a moment what was going through Michelangelo's mind as he walked from the room and down to the garden. If it had been me, I'd have been furious. What an embarrassment! What a colossal waste of time - to put all that effort into something that would melt as soon as the sun broke through the clouds!

Michelangelo could have stormed out or at least left the duke's presence with an angry, unwilling heart. Instead, he simply went to work. Hour after hour he gathered snow and packed it tightly into a great mound. Then, at last, he began to carve.

Working from top down a head appeared, and then the shoulders, limbs, torso, and legs. A figure was emerging from the white snow that would be viewed as a joke by the Duke Piero and his guests, and then melt away in no time.

Yet still, Michelangelo worked. That's because he had decided in his heart that even if all he could do was make Florence a more beautiful place for a few hours - he would put all his heart into carving that block of snow. And then it came time for Piero's party.

The guests arrived. The snow carving finally was unveiled... and instead of laughter came breathless silence. The duke and his guests were staring in awe and amazement at the figure in the snow that seemed able to breathe and walk and even sling a rock at a giant.

The Duke was silenced by the tireless efforts of the young artist who had created a masterpiece of the Biblical David made of snow.

Then, amazingly, that statue turned into marble. Not that hour, of course, for it wasn't magic. But in the days that followed, Michelangelo's David was replicated in marble - given to him by none other than Duke Piero himself. This priceless work has drawn millions of people to Florence since it was unveiled - all because Michelangelo was willing to carve something of beauty out of snow...

It is true you and I might be a great artist or we will never stand in front of a duke to be commissioned to do a great work of art. It is true that our work, our ministry might not appear to be accomplishing anything. This story about how Michelangelo took a similar situation and turned it into something that would last beyond his life can illustrate how what you and I are doing can be something that will last beyond our life time.

If you are a follower of Jesus you have been given a commission to share what He has done in your life. You never know what will happen as you sit with someone and share with them your faith in Christ. That person could be moved by the Holy Spirit to respond and then later become someone like Billy Graham and be used by God to reach millions.

One day, like the statue Michelangelo made of snow, our work will melt away and what is revealed will depend upon what we did with what God gave us when we received the Holy Spirit as we accepted Jesus as our savior. If we put our whole heart into using the gifts and talents that God has given us in serving Him then what seems to be unimportant and meaningless now will turn into a great work of art in His hands.

So what are you going to do with the snow God has placed in your life?

Dream! But Dream the Right Dream

A sermon I heard at Vineyard Church in Overland Park, KS given by Lead Pastor, Mark Warner sparked this post.

I live in a nation of Dreamers. Some dream of own a home, others of running their own business and still others dream of becoming rich. Dreaming of own a home, running a business or becoming wealthy in themselves are not necessarily wrong dreams to have. They become misguided when they become the focus of one's life. When the person wanting to obtaining them will do anything, even use other people, to make them happen.

Before I say anything else I want to say I believe God is not against us having a home, us having a business or us becoming wealthy. What He is against and is not in alignment with what He wants in our life if we are pursuing those things without including Him in the mix. 

By including God in the mix we allow Him to provide the opportunities for our achieving our dreams. We place our dreams under His control and when we have reached success of our dreams we have the opportunity to give Him the credit bringing glory to Him through our dream.

In the sermon Mark gave he gave the following five points, which came from the story in Genesis 39 about Joseph being in prison, about having your dream in it's proper place in your life.

1. God will be with you.

Genesis 39: 23 The head jailer gave Joseph free rein, never even checked on him, because God was with him; whatever he did God made sure it worked out for the best.

2. Do whatever God puts before you.

Genesis 39:20-23 When his master heard his wife's story, telling him, "These are the things your slave did to me," he was furious. Joseph's master took him and threw him into the jail where the king's prisoners were locked up. But there in jail God was still with Joseph: He reached out in kindness to him; he put him on good terms with the head jailer. The head jailer put Joseph in charge of all the prisoners—he ended up managing the whole operation. The head jailer gave Joseph free rein, never even checked on him, because God was with him; whatever he did God made sure it worked out for the best.

3. Put the needs of others above your own. 

Genesis 40: 4-7 After they had been in custody for a while, the king's cupbearer and baker, while being held in the jail, both had a dream on the same night, each dream having its own meaning. When Joseph arrived in the morning, he noticed that they were feeling low. So he asked them, the two officials of Pharaoh who had been thrown into jail with him, "What's wrong? Why the long faces?"

4. Press in and listen to God.

Genesis 40: 8 They said, "We dreamed dreams and there's no one to interpret them." Joseph said, "Don't interpretations come from God? Tell me the dreams."

5. Stop trying to play God.

Genesis 40: 12-15 Joseph said, "Here's the meaning. The three branches are three days. Within three days, Pharaoh will get you out of here and put you back to your old work—you'll be giving Pharaoh his cup just as you used to do when you were his cupbearer. Only remember me when things are going well with you again—tell Pharaoh about me and get me out of this place. I was kidnapped from the land of the Hebrews. And since I've been here, I've done nothing to deserve being put in this hole."

When these five things work together you will be freed up to focus on what God's call is in your life. I am telling you that your call is not a house, a business or being wealthy. Your call has to do with worshipping God through all of your life, your home, your work and your finances.

When you submit your dreams to God's hands you free up your life to receiving His blessings. My advice to you is to realize the five things above: Acknowledge that God is with you, then do your best at what He has placed before you by focusing on the needs of others which will require you to press in and listen to God and by doing so you will not play God by trying to make the dream that God gave you come true.

Priorities

With this post I am going to challenge married men to examine their work, recreational and married life.  I believe these three areas should have goals and priorities assigned to them.  

In 2 Thessalonians 2 we are told that we need to work: 2 Thessalonians 3: 10-13 Don't you remember the rule we had when we lived with you? "If you don't work, you don't eat." And now we're getting reports that a bunch of lazy good-for-nothings are taking advantage of you. This must not be tolerated. We command them to get to work immediately—no excuses, no arguments—and earn their own keep. Friends, don't slack off in doing your duty.

In 3 John we are told to be prosperous and in good heal: 3 John 1-4 The Pastor, to my good friend Gaius: How truly I love you! We're the best of friends, and I pray for good fortune in everything you do, and for your good health—that your everyday affairs prosper, as well as your soul! I was most happy when some friends arrived and brought the news that you persist in following the way of Truth. Nothing could make me happier than getting reports that my children continue diligently in the way of Truth!

In Ephesians 5: 33 we are told to love our wife: Ephesians 5: 33 And this provides a good picture of how each husband is to treat his wife, loving himself in loving her, and how each wife is to honor her husband.

For us men the big challenge is how do we keep these in balance and in the right priority.  Men tend to identify themselves in the work that they do.  Sometimes they find their importance in the amount of money they make or the power they have.  Because of the stresses of life men tend to seek release of that stress in their recreational activities.  They end up spending more time and energy at work and in recreation than they do in lving their wife.

I believe as a man I should be involved in working, spend time in recreation and to love my wife. 

Here are three questions for you to ask yourself:

How many hours per week do I spend at work and volunteer activities?

How many hours per week do I spend in recreation?

How many hours per week do I spend working on my relationship with my wife?

In a given week we have 168 hours to use.  Subtracting the hours per week we spend sleeping, taking a shower, and eating, we have about 98 hours to use on the things that are important to us.

I am going to use myself as an example and I know that you could be similar.

I spend 40 hours working and donate about 15 hours per week in church related activities.

I spend about 5 hours riding my mountain bike.

That leaves me about 30 hours I could be using to focus on my wife.  When I look at what I do with the rest of the time I come to realize I spend more time working and donating my time than I do focusing on the most important priotity in my physical life.

As a man I know that I can get caught in the trap of seeing my position so important I will not release some of the duties to others so that I can focus time on my wife.  I know of pastors who have destroyed their marriage in order to grow their church.  I have watched them spend qualtiy time with their congregation and spend little time building their relationship with their wife and family.

This post is just as important for me as it is for the one who reads it and is spending more time working and having fun than he is spending at home building his relationship with his wife.  The church and our jobs are important but our marriage trumps both.  

Men the bottom line is if we are not building our marriage we are failing as followers of Christ.  If you tell me that you are a pastor and it is your job to spend time building the church I would agree but state that building your relationship with your wife is more important.  The example you set will be repeated through the church and so if you ignore your wife and family by spending more quality time with the church than you do them you will have a church full of men who will have failing marriages.

I confess today that I have and that I am guilty of not spending the quality time I should in building my relationship with my wife.  My number one priority is to build my relationship with God and one of the biggest parts of that task is to build my relationship with my wife.  Jesus uses the marriage relationship to show us the relationship we will have with Him.  

The question is: If you are guilty of not spending time with your wife what are you going to do about it?  

The good news is you and I can make the changes necessary to build a strong marriage, perform in an excellent way at our work and enjoy good recreation and do so in a way that pleases God.  

Join me in making some changes over the next 30 days and let's come back and  share the results.

What does God expect of you?

I believe that some church leaders give a false impression to those who are not followers of Jesus. In some sermons we are told that we must conquer sin to be saved and that is true. What is often left out is how we will conquer sin. I believe that we are to battle against the desires of the flesh but realistically we are powerless to win that battle without the help of the Holy Spirit.

For years I believed what they told me and I would repent of sin then move forward a couple of days and then fall back into old habits. I was in a constant battle of repenting then sinning, repenting and then sinning. I would become frustrated and discouraged at my inability to win the battle. Then I realized the truth on our own we will always stumble. Only God can conquer sin and make you perfect.

What then does God want from us? He wants our very best in everything that we do. He wants us to not give up and to keep fighting but reply on the Holy Spirit for the strength to overcome.

Ecclesiastes 9: 10 Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might; for there is no activity or planning or knowledge or wisdom in Sheol where you are going.

Colossians 3: 23 Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men,

What we lack He will provide. He will encourage us to continue to fight against the desires of the flesh but in the end it is the power of His Holy Spirit that will win the battle.

You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you. - Acts1:8.

Blessed by the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort; 4 who comforts us in all our affliction so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. 5 For just as the sufferings of Christ are ours in abundance, so also our comfort is abundant through Christ. - 2 Corinthians 1: 3-5

Here is a clip from "Facing Giants" that will help to create the picture of how the Holy Spirit will encourage you as you battle sin and discouragement when you find yourself weary from the war.

In this short clip I see the coach as Jesus with me being carried on the back of the Holy Spirit or we can view it as the coach being God with us the boy doing the death crawl as we struggle with the sins, the doubts and the wounds we carry. No matter how you view the clip: The Holy Spirit will encourage you and provide what you do not have as you don't quit while you give your best! Philippians 4: 13 I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.