For Whom Are We Doing Our Acts of Kindness?

When we perform acts of kindness toward others for whom are we doing the act of kindness? What are we expecting to happen as a result of our act of kindness?

I ask these questions because we may find our acts of kindness are not received with a level of enthusiasm and appreciation we were expecting. This can be disappointing, especially if we were looking for the enthusiastic joy and gratitude of the recipient as a subtle form of reward for our kind action.

Many of us who have a bit of life experience under our belts have discovered there may be times when genuine acts of kindness are met with actual indifference or perhaps even scorn. Believe it or not this can happen. It is a strange and surprising response the first few times it is encountered. It can be very disappointing.

And it may cause us to think, “Well, that’s it! Forget it! I’m not helping anyone or being kind to anyone again! I do these nice things and no one even appreciates it. Phooey on everyone! You are all on your own from now on you ungrateful punks!!!”

[This is usually said while shaking a fist in the air.]

It is helpful for us to understand our acts of kindness to be a loving response to God’s goodness toward us. Let the kindness be an act of worship and service that honors God, doing it for His sake. Allow the obedience to God to be its own reward.

“Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.” Jesus – Matthew 6:1-4

Baptisms Today. Celebrating Spiritual Victory!

When people step forward to be baptized they are publicly proclaiming their faith in Christ and acting in obedience to Him. It is a spiritual victory and a time of great joy. We are celebrating that truth this morning as 14 people are being baptized here in Oak Lawn!

I’m so excited about the services that I’ve been up since 4:05 a.m. (no kidding)!

If you are in the area, please feel free to stop in and celebrate with us!

First Church of God

4600 W. 111^th Street

Oak Lawn, IL

Services times: 9am and 11am

I’m posting this at approx. 6:45am and the first service doesn’t begin until 9am, so, I think I’m going to go run around outside the building for a minute or two with a big smile on my face.

Respecting Those Who Came Before Us

There are people who have gone ahead of us who were faithful.  They weren’t perfect, but they persevered.  They worked, they built, they prayed, they lived responsibly, they did what was right, they tried to be obedient to God.  It is not right or necessary for us to idolize these people—again they were flawed and human—but it is right for us to thank them, to acknowledge their efforts and to honor them.

Striving For Success On God's Terms

When I became the pastor of the church in Oak Lawn, I (secretly) thought I would be the successful pastor of the successful church filled with successful people.  I was not anticipating the possibility that God had other plans in mind.  As time has gone by I’ve come to realize that a more accurate description of the situation would be that we are the church for hurting people.

That was not what I was expecting.

But God is helping me understand I can still be the successful pastor of the successful church filled with successful people.  It’s just that I need to have an accurate understanding of success as God defines it.

Success is this:  Faithful obedience to God.

Obedience To God, Not The Expecatations of Others

Sometimes we find that other people have scripts for our lives.  Their scripts may be good or bad; they may be well-meaning or they may be motivated by their own self-interest.  I’ve often been far too influenced by the expectations [or demands] of others.  But it’s helpful for us to remember that the point of our lives is not to live up to other people’s scripts, it is to be obedient to God’s call.

Is Christianity For Those Who Are Weak?

There is an impression among some people that living for Christ is the refuge of weak people who can’t make it on their own and need a crutch in order to get along adequately in life.  In a certain sense I understand how this impression could exist because the authentic follower of Christ will admit that he/she is dependent upon God for help, strength, understanding, forgiveness—in fact, dependent for all of life.  So a lack of adequate strength, on our own, is a reality that an honest Christian will admit.

However, two things should be considered:

1) Everyone is weak and dependent in some way and in some context in the course of life.  This is an inescapable fact and the person who is unwilling to admit it does not have the courage to face the facts honestly and admit the truth to himself/herself.  In other words, the person who accuses the Christian of needing a crutch has a crutch of some type, as well.  I wonder if the person can face that reality.

2) Authentically living the Christian life actually requires great strength and courage.  In fact, it requires more strength than any person possesses without God’s help.  For example, it requires incredible strength and courage to always speak the truth and to do so humbly and lovingly. 

It requires incredible strength and courage to say “no” to temptations that a part of you would love to indulge.

It requires incredible strength and courage to honestly and sincerely pray for those who wish you harm.

It requires incredible strength and courage to go against the consensus of a mocking culture.

It requires incredible strength and courage to pursue a mission to which God has called us—think of biblical examples like Noah, Moses, Gideon, Daniel, Jonah, Paul, etc.  In more modern times, think of Mother Teresa, Jim Elliot or Martin Luther King, Jr.

(*If you don’t know who Jim Elliot is, look him up on Google.)

It requires incredible strength and courage to give of yourself generously and graciously to others—in fact, to others who can never repay you; or to others who may not even appreciate what you have done for them.

I could go on, but you get the point.  It is unfair and, frankly, dishonest to laugh at Christians and call them weak.  The kind of life that Jesus lived is the kind of life to which Jesus calls His followers and it is a life of courage, honor, truth, trust, generosity, faith, obedience to God and love.  It is many things, but it is not weak.