actual, real, lasting substance

Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain. - 1 Cor. 15:58

Bryan Chapell (Holiness by Grace):
This side of heaven we will not see how most of our small acts of kindness, or even our great acts of courage that are unnoticed or misunderstood, fit into God’s eternal plan. But we walk and act in... the faith that such actions are eternal, because God promises this is so.…
Knowing the eternal implications of our actions enables us more and more to live for heaven’s effects rather than for earth’s approval.
A gentle touch offered to a crying child on the street, an angry word withheld, the willingness to lose a business deal for integrity’s sake, uncomplaining participation in the dreary routine of dishes and diapers, a smile offered to a harried clerk who has rung up the wrong bill – each unnoticed act of righteousness remains eternal and, as a result, is worthy of our efforts.
The Christian walks through the world with a hidden smile, knowing that by God’s grace each act of love and sacrifice is eternal though the world cannot see it. As we see our world through the eyes of Scripture we know that each day and every moment is lived for eternity and, thus, that no righteous act is fruitless and no sacrifice is vain. 

So good! There is actual, real, lasting substance behind that "hidden smile" experience of depending on the Lord & walking in the good works he has prepared for each day, even in the dreary unnoticed ones. This motivates me to keep looking up to Christ and pressing on with both contentment and anticipation. Sweetness here.

Thank you, dear Father, for how you continue to fill out more of the picture of what is meant by the here and now. Thank you for showing me more of the answer to why you delay our entrance into heaven, that there is actual purpose for life on earth now - the greatest of which is to get started on our quest of knowing and loving you even before we get to do so for eternity in heaven. Eternity starts now. This time does count. Love you, Lord. You are good. 
 

Look to God: Rich Provision for Empowered Service

Bryan Chapell, Holiness by Grace:

     God does not want us to be caught in the paralysis of spiritual poverty. Through the doxology that Paul uses to prepare us for the requirements of this passage, God tells us of the richness of his provision so that we will serve him with courage and vigor:

Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God!
How unsearchable his judgments,
     and his paths beyond tracing out!
"Who has known the mind of the Lord?
     Or who has been his counselor?"
"Who has ever give to God,
     that God should repay him?"
For from him and through him and to him are all things.
     To him be the glory forever! Amen (Rom. 11:33-36)

     God says in essence, "I have already declared to you that by the work of Jesus Christ you are rich in mercy. Now build my kingdom with the energy and effort that befits those with unlimited resources. Be done with the self-doubt and fear of loss that cripples those poor in faith. I have declared you holy. Be about the business of building my kingdom. Stop saying that because you are not a Moses, or were not raised in the right environment, or wandered to other priorities, or made some mistakes, you cannot serve God. Yes, you can."
     We who are rich in mercy have God's business to do, and no one can say that we are underfinanced. God's gracious provision empowers us for his service.

God, Our Merciful Boxing Coach

Bryan Chapell, Holiness by Grace:
     Mercy is the good news that God is for us (Rom 8:31). He is on our side. He is in our corner. The mercy of God's continuous support is a powerful source of the believer's strength in the face of our own faults and frailties. Think of the strength that another's support can provide in the context of Olympic competition. Our town has become a magnet for young boxers, and we follow the Olympic boxing competition closely. Despite their great talents, the youthfulness of most of the fighters makes them particularly prone to mistakes. Yet, even when an immature boxer's own "showboating" sets him up for a sucker punch, I have never seen a coach walk out on his athlete. No matter what the fault, the coaches stay in their fighter's corner. God's grace reminds us that he always remains in our corner, too.
     Even when we, like some of the young Olympians, have taken a blow to the chin due to our own mistakes and pride, God never turns his back on us. When we have boxed with sin, failed, and fallen, God is still for us. He does not wait for us to lift ourselves off the mat before encouraging us. God shouts from our corner, "Get up, child. Yes, you forgot what I told you, but I'm still here for you." Were God to walk away when we go down, leaving us alone and ashamed, then we would have no reason to get up again. But our God promises never to leave or forsake us (Heb. 13:5). His encouragement lifts us from the paralysis that our own guilt would impose and makes us the vital warriors he desire for the kingdom's battles.

An Eager Meeting

     She took her children to the park to break the monotony of schoolchildren now homebound for the summer, and instead she broke her own heart. She had watched her children run to the playground equipment as another car drove into the parking lot. The new car ground to a quick stop in the gravel. A young, attractive woman with a beaming smile leaped out of the driver's seat and virtually skipped to a secluded picnic table near an adjoining lake.
     The mother's imagination began to race. Who could this attractive young woman be meeting in such a secluded spot with so much enthusiasm? Was this a long-awaited and carefully planned rendezvous with an over-busy husband, a lunch date with a best friend, or a tryst between secret lovers? She determined to stay on the lookout for whoever got out of the next car that parked.
     No one else came immediately. The mother soon grew preoccupied with her children, and forgot to watch for whomever the young woman was meeting. When she did finally glance again at the secluded woman, what the mother saw made her own heart hurt. The attractive, young woman was reading a Bible. The person she had leapt from the car to meet with such enthusiasm was the Lord.

- Bryan Chapell, Holiness by Grace

This beautiful scene makes my heart smile and think of Psalm 34:5&8: "Those who look to him are radiant, and their faces shall never be ashamed....Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!"

photo: hunting cabin, Tioga County, PA 2011