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2010 - HIS GLORY REIGNS
| LIFE IN JESUS-MINISTRIES |
| CAN ONE PERSON MAKE A DIFFERENCE? Charles H. Dyer I AM REVEALED B. Childress Feb 17 2013 WHAT DIFFERENCE DOES ONE LIFE MAKE? Can one person make a difference? Yes, if that individual is a man or woman of integrity. If that individual shines as a light in a dark world. If that individual displays the character of Jesus Christ in word…and deed. God specializes in changing the world one person at a time. The prophet Micah lived in dark days. Corruption and compromise marked the nation of Judah. “Her leaders judge for a bribe, her priests teach for a price, and her prophets tell fortunes for money” (Micah 3:11). The nation careened out of control, plunging down a treacherous path that could end only in catastrophe. “Therefore because of you, Zion will be plowed like a field, Jerusalem will become a heap of rubble, the temple hill a mound overgrown with thickets” (Micah 3: 12). Yet God called Micah to be different…to stand as a model of integrity and righteousness. After describing society’s moral cesspool, Micah announced his willingness to stand alone for the truth. “But as for me, I am filled with power, with the Spirit of the Lord, and with justice and might, to declare to Jacob his transgression, to Israel his sin” (Micah 3:8). But what can one person do alone? How can one individual make a difference? Micah doesn’t provide the answer, but another prophet does. A century after Micah, Jeremiah the prophet also stood alone to face a nation collectively spitting in the face of God. On one particular occasion Jeremiah delivered an impassioned message to those gathered in the temple in Jerusalem. When he finished, a crowd seized him and screamed, “You must die!” (Jeremiah 26:8). Many expected a swift trial…and certain death. But some of the elders stepped forward to defend Jeremiah. They compared his words to those spoken a century earlier by Micah. “Some of the elders of the land stepped forward and said to the entire assembly of people, ‘Micah of Moresheth prophesied in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah. He told all the people of Judah, “This is what the Lord Almighty says”’” (Jeremiah 26:17-18). Micah’s words stood the test of time. People remembered the message long after Micah was gone. But Micah’s prophecies had done more than merely fill heads with knowledge. Micah single-handedly changed an entire generation! After quoting Micah’s prophecy of judgment (Micah 3:12), the elders reminded the mob of the impact Micah’s message had made on the people to whom he spoke. “Did Hezekiah king of Judah or anyone else in Judah put him to death? Did not Hezekiah fear the Lord and seek his favor? And did not the Lord relent, so that he did not bring the disaster he pronounced against them? We are about to bring a terrible disaster on ourselves!” (Jeremiah 26:19). Micah may have stood alone, but his message had an impact on his nation! Micah’s willingness to stand for what was right…to swim against the current…changed an entire generation. God held back His judgment because a nation repented in response to Micah’s words and deeds. One man made a difference! WHERE DO I GO FROM HERE? Life brings change. Where you live. Where you work. How you dress. All these can, and often do, change over time. Flexibility and adaptability are two traits that can help us respond to the accelerating rate of change taking place all around us. But some things must never change. Integrity should never go out of style. Christlike character remains God’s standard for those who claim His Son as their Savior. Your commitment to a lifestyle patterned after Jesus Christ must never waver. The world offers “the good life,” God gives eternal life. The world emphasizes “doing,” God emphasizes “being.” The world stresses achievement, God stresses integrity. The world pressures to conform, God seeks to transform. The world focuses on the outward signs of “success,” God focuses on the inner qualities of the heart. Like a skilled physician, Chuck Swindoll looked past the symptoms to diagnose the true problem.
self – how smart I can appear, what a good impression I can make, how much I can own or how totally I can control or how fast I can be promoted or…or…or. Nothing I read – and I mean nothing – places emphasis on the heart, the inner being, the seed plot of our thoughts, motives, decisions. Nothing, that is, except Scripture.
Think of this book as a spiritual “stress test.” Throughout the book you have been experiencing God’s treadmill of integrity. God has been monitoring all your spiritual vital signs, checking for any irregularities. Back in the Great Physician’s office, you hear the diagnosis…and prognosis. The Great Physician notes areas of strength…and weakness. Some lifestyle changes are necessary for complete spiritual health. But now the book is finished…the examination is over. As you walk from the office, you know that the decision to change, or not to change, is one that only you can make. William Longstaff, an English businessman, made a decision to live a life of integrity and holiness. He wrote down on paper a simple poem explaining what living such a life meant to him…and years later his poem, “Take time to Be Holy,” was set to music. As William and Randy Petersen discovered, this simple poem “may have been the only poem he ever wrote. …A businessman at heart, Longstaff wrote no flowery or pious-sounding verses, but these down-to-earth thoughts.” Read Longstaff’s words carefully…and make them your own as you decide now to live a life of integrity.
Abide in Him always, and feed on His Word. Make friends of God’s children; help those who are weak; Forgetting in nothing His blessing to seek.
Much time spend in secret with Jesus alone; By looking to Jesus, like Him thou shalt be; Thy friends in thy conduct His likeness shall see.
And run not before Him whatever betide; In joy or in sorrow still follow thy Lord, And, looking to Jesus, still trust in His Word. Take time to be holy, be calm in thy soul; Each thought and each motive beneath His control; Thus led by His Spirit to fountains of love, Thou soon shalt be fitted for service above. Source: CHARACTER COUNTS, by Charles H. Dyer, Copyright 2010, Moody Publishers. |