PARKS BROWN

“Believe in something. Even if it means sacrificing everything.” It’s hard to hear those words without adding a hearty ‘amen!’ Even if you don’t #JustDoIt, the idea and the sentiment behind the hashtag rings true. As with so much these days, it’s the message behind the words that reveal whether you are being led to the truth or fake news.

I encourage you to watch the Nike commercial featuring Colin Kaepernick and discern the message for yourself ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-hIc_epqfI0 ). As with most things of this world, there is a degree of truth but where it can lead you is not always clear. The message Nike is supporting is to believe in yourself because you are capable of greatness. Colin says faith in yourself, conviction and sacrifice is the path to follow. Kaepernick even labels those who doubt as ‘non-believers’. Almost sounds like the words you hear in a church service.

This message starts to take on a new meaning after a little due diligence and seeing what history has to say. What rings in your loins when you hear this commercial is what rang in the ears of Lucifer before time began; YOU CAN BE THE GREATEST, just do it! Kaepernick flat out says it, be the greatest, not just great.

We live in a world that battles for your eternal soul. The battle is fought in your mind with the message of achieving greatness and exalting yourself. The world tells you through sacrifice and suffering you can and should become great. Believing in yourself is fine, but believing in God first and foremost is critical. When you focus on being great, you can become your own god…especially when you achieve high levels of success. Don’t forget #havenoothergodsbeforeme.

The man named Jesus Christ knew greatness, but not the way Nike is describing it. No, he wasn’t the wealthiest guy to ever live and he doesn’t hold world records for points scored in a career, a game or championship rings won. But, He did heal the sick, raise the dead, make a way to eternal life and rise from the dead himself. Oh, yeah, and He did it in weakness according to the world’s standards.

Jesus’ biggest victories didn’t come after years of training to be the best, but they came when He was the weakest and relied on God not himself. In the wilderness all alone, Jesus defeated the strongest angel ever created after he went without food for more than a month. “After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry.” Matthew 4:2. The message of history is: God is great and there is no second place. The message of Christianity is to believe in God and His Son, not just something. The message of Jesus is that only when you sacrifice of yourself for where God leads you, can you be propelled to greatness, holiness and eternal life.

At the height of Mike Tyson’s reign as a boxer, Evander Holyfield defeated the champ with the same message of belief and conviction as the Nike commercial, but not belief in himself first. Evander pointed to his faith and belief in Jesus. The boxing gloves Holyfield wore were inscribed, “I can do everything through him who gives me strength.” Philippians 4:13.

These days it is easy to discern the lies referred to as fake news. It is more difficult to hear a degree of truth and know whether to give your heart to following it’s lead. The whole truth comes in God’s Word. Jesus knew a great man when he saw one. “Truly I tell you, among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater then John the Baptist; yet whoever is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.” Matthew 11:11. What was John the Baptists’ advice on greatness? “He must become greater, I must become less.” John 3:30. Not a grain of truth, but the whole truth. Pursue greatness by following the truth that when you become less and Jesus becomes more in your life, THAT is the sacrifice to deliver greatness.

Don’t just believe in something and sacrifice your life for it. Believe in the One who sacrificed his life for you. “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16. #believethis

The ‘dog days’ of summer bring to mind images of long, hot, sultry days where a dog lays around panting because of the heat and humidity. Actually, the phrase finds it’s origin in the dog star, Sirius and it’s position in the heavens. The phrase, ‘dog days’, is an example of how over time, the meaning of a thing can get lost but the phrase lives on. Another example is the phrase, ‘you work to live, you don’t live to work.’ It may sound good but nothing could be further from the truth.

If you believe we were created by God as opposed to evolving from the slime, you have to recognize we were created in a specific way for a specific purpose. 26 verses into the first book in the Bible there is a reminder we were created in the image of God, himself. ‘So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female, he created them.’ Genesis 1:27. A few verses later…’The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.’ Genesis 2:15. We were created to work and do good works. Work is not something to balance with life, it is at the core of why we were created.

Work is what God does and is His gift that reminds us we are created in his image (remember that on Monday morning.) Work is what God did to create the world. ‘By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing: …’ Genesis 2:2. Work reveals our heart and expresses who we are by what we do and how we do it. ‘Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving’ Colossians 3:23-24. So, our inheritance, our retirement, comes from God and not the balance in a 401K.

Understanding how work is such an integral part in our lives requires viewing our work not simply as a means to make money. Work is not a chore that enables us to live a lifestyle or reach retirement. Like God, we should never stop working. ‘In his defense Jesus said to them, “My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I too am working.” ‘John 5:17. Work is a lifetime endeavor, not something we do to live. We live to work, just like the Creator.

We have lost the meaning of work when it becomes a means to the end we know as retirement. Where in the Bible does it ever talk about retirement as part of God’s plan for our lives? This reveals a huge difference in how to choose your work. God’s plan for our work doesn’t center on dollars and cents. It’s a red flag when the driving force for your employment is strictly monetary and not the direction of the Holy Spirit. For a Christian, Jesus was the role model, right? His outlook on work is worth modeling. ‘ “My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work.” ‘ John 4:34. If your work is directed by God, deciding when to quit isn’t defined by the balance in a retirement account or when full Social Security benefits kick in.

Understanding work requires a deeper dive into how and why we are on planet Earth. Work is a divine gift that allows us to find personal satisfaction, connection to the Creator and fulfillment of purpose, not simply a paycheck. Work is so much a part of our core it is usually one of the first questions people ask each other. ‘What do you do?’ is best followed by “Why do you do what you do?” What you do is important, but HOW and WHY you do it is the revelation. The truth is that work is at the core of life itself.  Your work reveals what is in your heart. What you do and how you do it shows heaven and earth who and what you serve. 

‘Don’t let your work define you’ is another phrase that has become twisted. I believe your work does define you. Christ’s work revealed and defined him. ‘…The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work.’ 1st John 3:8. What He did everyday, His work, showed everyone His heart and purpose.  In turn, your work shows the world your heart and purpose as well.

If you don’t have a proper understanding of work, life can be long and sultry like the dog days of summer. And, like the dog days of summer, life WILL come to an end and then your life’s work will be judged and the balance in your account tabulated. “Since you call on a Father who judges each person’s work impartially, live out your time as foreigners here in reverent fear.’ 1st Peter 1:17.

Work reveals and rewards you. Work so that your life will reward you accordingly. Work as though there is a tomorrow and what you work on today defines that tomorrow.

 

 

Colleges and high schools have turned into a competitive breeding ground for getting a jump on their peers and that first job. Schools have become performance oriented enclaves for teachers and students alike. In the effort to keep God out of the school, educational systems can also exclude teachings that produce a balanced, well rounded individual. We need to address the importance of leisure and the role it plays in our lives and society. American society has denigrated leisure to the point it is in ingrained in our national consciousness that leisure is lazy….and nothing we hear these days could be further from the truth.

School can teach you many things. One of the best lessons you can ever learn and learn early is… you do NOT work to live, you live to work. This is backwards from the American ethos of make a lot of money and retire early. A lifetime of working is not a curse, but part of our original design. Go back to Genesis (3:16-19) for a refresher. Once man turned his back on God’s original design in the Garden, aka sinned, we were all assigned to work out our remaining days. Women were given childbearing (and a desire for a husband) and men were given the task of working the ground to provide. We were made to toil by the sweat of our brow and the enemy has been trying to use that against us ever since.

Leisure, like work, is a gift from God. Leisure is a means of learning more about Him and drawing closer to Him. In Greek, leisure is the word ‘skole’. In Latin, leisure is ‘scola’, the English word for ‘school’. The word used to designate the place we educate and learn is derived from a word meaning leisure. What are the schools teaching kids about leisure in 2018? Leisure is how and where we stop to contemplate more than compose tomorrow’s ‘to-do’ list. Leisure is when we take the time to hear and see God.

God set the example in Genesis 2:2. ‘..so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.’ God established mankind as an agrarian culture; basically we are farmers. If you aren’t a farmer or if you don’t know a farmer, take my word for it…your work is NEVER done. Therefore, God established a day of rest as a means to remind mankind; “STOP working all the time.” More succinctly, “He says, ‘Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.'” Psalm 46:10.

Many folks choose financial gain or selfish pleasures in their leisure rather than contemplation or communion with the Creator. What does that look like…how many weeks of vacation do you have banked? Also, it’s popular to encourage each other that what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas. This is a subtle way to say, work hard and crash hard…again, a huge lie. What happens in Vegas (or wherever you go on vacation) reflects what has been happening in your life and can reveal your spiritual state more than anything.

Leisure was originally designed by God as the Sabbath and a day off. “Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God…” Exodus 20: 9-10. No wonder the world wants you to think leisure is lazy. Leisure is a ticket to drawing closer to God in recognition of His establishing a time of rest. Again, so much of what our culture encourages is in opposition to God. Spiritual warfare folks.

Take the deeper dive and go back to your roots. The next time you meet someone don’t ask them what they do for a living, ask them what they do in their leisure time. Then, really listen. In YOUR leisure time, do you think about work or contemplate greater issues and questions? Do you drink it away or fill it with mindless conversation? Leisure is a mental and spiritual attitude more than it is time away from the daily grind.

The enemy tells a subtle lie that working too much will result in becoming a workaholic with less time for the family or less time for yourself. As always, the devil’s lies sound like a deeper truth but don’t point back to God. The deeper truth is that not having enough leisure time will separate you from God and establish a mindset of confidence and pride in yourself. Be careful not to teach this to your kids under the premise of ‘getting ahead in life’.

Leisure is the means to draw close to God. Therefore, your enemy will fight your leisure time tooth and nail. The enemy will say, ‘Work while you’re young, get ahead’…’you should work and save more for retirement and have your reward then’…’spend your leisure on your phone and keep up with the world’…’blow it out on vacation and get away from everything, you deserve it’. These activities will kill more than your body.

Jesus warned about listening to the devil and being so short sighted. “But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear him who, after your body has been killed, has authority to throw you into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him.” Luke 12:5. Spend some leisure time thinking about eternity and learning to differentiate between the voices you hear.

Memorial Day is the official kickoff for the season of leisure. Don’t spend your time simply getting refreshed from work or for work. Enjoy the true fruit of leisure which lies in worshiping the divine and communing with God. Learn from what your leisure time reveals.

People flock to hear the rich and famous. Wealth is like an altar where people come to listen, learn and worship. Right or wrong, wealth is thought to be a blessing from God that is accompanied by the wisdom needed to accumulate and control possessions. Wealth provides the ability to control many things, but not all things. Time cannot be controlled by any man or woman. Control of the clock is reserved for God and not influenced by dollars or yuan.

In his day, Solomon was the wisest and wealthiest man to ever live. Estimates put his wealth at $2.1 Trillion making him the wealthiest man to EVER live even by today’s standards. That alone would make him a keynote speaker at a Chik-Fil-A banquet or college graduation. With hindsight as his guide Solomon deduced, “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven.” Ecclesiastes 3:1. Solomon tried to control and possess all that he could with his wisdom and wealth, but he realized the elusive nature and power of time and controlling the clock.

Modern society is characterized by anger and frustrations that originate with the inability to control the timing of events. People don’t want to accept there is a place and time for Democrats and Republicans to be in charge. Sports teams rebuild their rosters to win today instead of building for the future. Facebook is sacrificing their customer base to make a profit today. Individuals buy into bitcoin not understanding cryptocurrencies because it looks like a get rich quick scheme. Millennials want it all and want it now because they are afraid time may not allow them to live a long and full life. It seems people have forgotten there IS a natural order in time and a season for everything. The devil is selling the lie that time is fleeting and can be controlled. FOMO is resulting in mayhem, disorder and separation from God.

Solomon pointed out God is the originator and architect of time. “I have seen the burden God has laid on men. He has made everything beautiful in it’s time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men: yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end.” Ecc. 3:10-11. We are hard wired to KNOW there is life after death, but we cannot fully comprehend the rhythm of time. Spiritual warfare targets our hearts and minds to not understand and accept God’s sovereignty. Our frustration with a lack of control in the timing of events in our lives leads us to seek council from men or play god ourselves.

The world wants us to spend our time and effort buying into the belief that education, intelligence and monetary success is the path to winning in life. Yet, the richest man to ever live said, “The race is not to the swift or the battle to the strong, nor does food come to the wise or wealth to the brilliant or favor to the learned: but time and chance happen to them all.” Ecc. 9:11. Time and chance??!! People and nations are risking their reputations and souls trying to effect and control outcomes. Accepting a lack of control over time and destiny is not an option encouraged in our society.

We seem more willing to accept the concept of a ‘time and season for everything’ as long as we know or control the timing. If we could know the time of a party or politicians tenure in office. If we could control when a sickness would end and a healthy life would resume. How long before I get a raise in my job? We try to control the timing in our lives but maybe we should submit and trust it to God. When we don’t, this leads to anxiety over the future, anger at people for their political choices, apathy towards God and disunity in society. This is spiritual warfare, folks.

The fact is, “…men are trapped by evil times that fall unexpectedly upon them.” Ecc 9:12. We want to avoid tough times and knowing they can fall on us unexpectedly results in our effort to control and minimize the timing. Maybe we should entertain Solomon’s conclusions. “Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.” Ecc 12:13. This would require recognition of God and submission to Him and His timing. This is the nature of life and the battle for your soul.

When we accept there is indeed a time and a season for everything it can lead to us trusting and loving God, or rebelling from Him. This is the heartbeat of spiritual warfare.

Allow GOD to play out every second and season in your life. Don’t try to control the clock.

Everything in and of this world comes and goes. Also known as, ‘the only constant is change.’ The dollar usurped the pound as the world currency. Stock and bond markets move in cycles. Religions move in and out of popularity over the centuries. Comedies and love stories gave way to action and adventure in the movies. A political progressive was once a Communist. Winter gives way to spring, youth to old age. Solomon put it more presciently. “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven:” Ecclesiastes 3:1.

Finding satisfaction in our lives and work is truly a gift from God, but God has an enemy. The enemy has perverted this truth by wanting people to believe everything should be tolerated in the attempt to find satisfaction. Tolerance has become the enemy’s mantra in place of God’s mantra, which is love. In the pursuit of individual freedoms tolerance is the gateway to acceptance. What one generation tolerates the next generation accepts. Not everything should be tolerated. Tolerance can be a gateway drug that steals the truth and replaces love in your heart.

Are mass school shootings to be tolerated the same as multi-sex bathrooms? Should the opioid crisis be tolerated the same as a college teaching there are 5 different sexes and not just male and female? One of the tactics used to steal your free will and your very soul, is getting you to tolerate and accept things that should not be tolerated. Spiritual warfare takes the shape of the devil spreading lies of tolerance that don’t sound bad, but choke out the truth. I can still love you but not tolerate your behavior.

Believers must pray for and cultivate a discerning spirit from God so as not to fall prey to the lies of the enemy. In Mark 4:10-25, Jesus told a parable of four different types of soils that represents what is happening TODAY. In this parable and in 2018, some people hear the truth, but “As soon as they hear it, Satan comes and takes away the word that was sown in them.” Other’s “hear it and receive it with joy. But since they have no root, they last only a short time.” Still others “hear the word; but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful.”

This is spiritual warfare folks. Yesterday we didn’t accept killing unborn babies under the argument a woman has the right to do whatever she wants with her body. Satan sowed the seed of tolerating a decision regardless of the moral consequences and now there are 40-50 million abortions in the world each year (World Health Organization). Politicians have been used to plant the tolerance that America is not known as a Judeo-Christian society and weakened the root of our beliefs. The devil has sown tolerance of divorce and torn down the nuclear family.

In the previous parable Jesus also tells about the soil that is good, hears and accepts the word of truth and produces a good crop. Let’s face it though, we can all be different soils in different seasons. 2018 is a season where our tolerances of yesterday are producing an acceptance today that is endangering the very soul of our nation. You can hear and know the truth but we have an enemy who wants to steal it from you and his name is Satan, the devil. You can’t defeat an enemy if you don’t know his name, his lies and his tactics.

The enemy of mankind is waging a battle for the soil and soul of your life through tolerance. The devil doesn’t deal in right and wrong; he deals in right and almost right by slightly perverting the truth. What Satan doesn’t mention is that through your tolerance of what is almost right comes acceptance of his lies. The result can be weeds and lies that grow into deeds and actions that effect your heart AND eternity. Soloman nailed it. “For God will bring every deed into judgement, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.” Ecc. 12:14.

We live in a world at war not in peace. The length of the battle is your lifetime. One lie the enemy tells is you should tolerate everything and live for today. God does not tolerate our sin. God forgives our sin when we repent and ask for forgiveness. If we tolerate and accept our own sin we are in for a rude awakening.

Learn to discern the truth through the Holy Spirit and the Word of God. Don’t let this season of tolerance make you accept the lies of the enemy and possibly have an incorrect view of yourself and others. What one generation tolerates the next generation accepts.