Evaluating our Priorities

There was a sense of relief as our plane landed in Lagos, Nigeria. After spending a day and a half on airplanes and in airports I was ready to start our pilgrimage across the Dark Continent.

I smiled as we waited on our luggage. There was a large sign hanging over the exit that read, "Nigeria: The happiest people on earth." My initial reaction was, "Yea Right." I had heard stories about Nigeria; the violence, corruption and poverty. How could these be the happiest people on earth?

The next two hours were spent in cramped vehicles traveling to Calabar. As we drove through the crowed streets of Lagos I was a bit overwhelmed by the overcrowding and poverty. Again, I thought about the sign in the airport "Nigeria: The Happiest People on Earth." The blind, crippled and destitute standing in the streets begging for their daily bread, raw sewage running through the streets - who were they trying to convince?

The next couple of weeks showed me a different side of Nigeria - the people living outside of the major cities. While there was still poverty and hardships I came to realize that many of the people working in the markets, or selling their wares on the streets lived life from day to day. They didn't have the luxury of worrying about tomorrow or next week, for as Jesus said, "tomorrow will bring its own anxieties" (Matthew 6:34).

Two weeks without the cell phone ringing, or the beckoning call of my internet browser was a welcome relief. I kept notes in a hand written journal and took daily walks on the campus or through the local villages. During that time I ate better, slept better and felt better about myself and about life. I realized how easy it is for my priorities to get completely out of balance.

I have returned home from mission trips before with a commitment to change my priorities, only to fall quickly back into old patterns of behavior. I pray this time that I can keep some of those promises I made to myself about simplifying life and taking pleasure in this day that God has given me.

I don't know if the Nigerian people are the happiest people on earth, but I found an inner peace and contentment during my short stay there. I pray that I can hold on to those feelings a little longer this time round.

Remember

I know at times I must really frustrate God. He has surrounded me with a 1,000 reasons to remember him daily. Whether it is all the memorials he has recorded throughout his word, or the granduer of his creation - somehow I still forget.

Like many of my peers I get busy with work, children and yes it is even possible to get too busy at church (if you are working without purpose). Trying to live life can quickly crowd out the the importance of "retaining God in our knowledge."

I am thankful that in addition to the encouragement I find God's word and the friends he has sent to hold me accountable, that God still works in my life. I can't always explain how God calls me to remembrance. Sometimes he uses a trial or hardship, at other times it is the pure joy that comes from a brother or sister stepping up and walking with me through life, but this I know - God is alive and active.

So next time you feel you are drifting, or alone, remember God because he never forgets you.

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Were there not ten?

In Luke 17, Jesus approaches a village when he meets ten lepers who stood afar off (17:12). They cried out to our Lord to have mercy on them. Jesus instructed them to go show themselves to the priests and once they obeyed they were cleansed.

Imagine the tremendous joy they must have felt. All of a sudden their entire lives where changed. No longer did they have to isolate themselves from social contact. They would never again have to walk through the streets crying, "unclean, unclean" as others approached. The dispair of waiting day by day as their bodies slowly withered away was a thing of the past.

What is more incredible is that only one of the ten turned back and glorified God. He fell down at the feet of Jesus and thanked Him. Even more amazing is the fact that the one who returned was a Samaritan.

I have often heard lessons from this passage emphasizing the importance of gratitude, but this morning another thought came to mind. I started thinking about all the people that Jesus helped and how few actually thanked him. He raised the dead, restored the lame, healed the sick, fed the hungry and ministered to the heartbroken - still through it all many took his good works for granted.

In this particular case Jesus recognized the fact that nine of the ten failed to return and glorify God, but in most cases Jesus simply went about doing good. In Acts 10:38 that is exactly what Peter says about our Lord, "God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him."

So, are you the kind of person who has to be thanked for everything you do? Do you think that the church should only help those who express gratitude, show penetence, or identify themselves with the local church? Our obligation is "to do good unto all men, especially those of the household of faith" (Galatians 6:10). There are times I feel as Jesus did - "Were there not ten cleansed? but where are the nine?" (Luke 17:17).

Lord, thank you for the one who returned and glorified God. Thank for setting an example of sacrificial service, even when it seems unappreciated. Thank you for reminding me that my duty to mankind is to sieze the opportunities to daily serve.

Our Pop Culture

This morning I changed my home page when I logged onto the Internet. For the longest time it simply defaulted to the Comcast website. I have tired of seeing the headlines concerning Brittany, Christina, Justin and the other "entertainers" who seem to get some twisted pleasure out of their dysfunctional behaviors.

Statistics show that the divorce rates continue to rise and that at any given time 25% of our children are raised in single-parent homes and that 50% of children in the U.S. will be raised by a single parent at some point in their lives.

I know there are lots of reason for all the relationship problems we face in our country, but one of them is the message we constantly recieve in the media. Our music, movies, television and even commercials send the message that relationships are disposable and that pleasure is more important that happiness.

It has always irritated me when we make excuses for bad behavior. It would be easy to blame or modern culture, how we were raised, or other external influences for our behavior; but the bottom line is that I am responsible for my actions and behaviors. God has given me his word to instruct me, Christian friends to support me, and the Holy Spirit to guide me.

While I am often disgusted by the moral behavior of many who live in the spotlight, I also feel for them. I don't believe they are truly happy and realize that God wants us to pray for all his children. So, as strange as it seems, when you are praying for friends who struggling and family members who are sick, try saying a prayer for the "cultural leaders" in our society that God may touch their hearts and bring them to an understanding of His will.