The Strait Gate

“Reverence for the Lord gives a man deep strength; his children have a place of refuge and security.” - Proverbs 14:26

What’s a family for? Here’s a picture to consider: a family is a shelter in storms. A couple of months ago I was out golfing with some friends. While the weather was beautiful when we started, by the middle of the round storm clouds had gathered all around us. Suddenly an employee of the golf course came in a golf cart and told us a nasty storm was coming. He picked us up and quickly drove us to a shelter house. Just as we arrived the skies opened up and we experienced one of the most intense thunderstorms I have ever been in. The rain was torrential. The lightening was constant, with close strikes all around us. I love a good storm, but this one was frightening. I was awfully grateful to be in that little shelter house.

Life is tough. Jesus said, “In this world you will have many troubles,” and like in everything else, he was absolutely right. While some days are 72 degrees and sunny, most of us experience some pretty severe storms in life, storms that threaten to wash us away. Things don’t always go as planned. And in those tough times we need a place of shelter. We need a place of protection, stability, security.

Proverbs 14:26 says it well: “Reverence for the Lord gives a man deep strength; his children have a place of refuge and security.” Refuge and security – that’s what a family is supposed to provide. Our families can’t prevent every storm, but they can provide us shelter – refuge and security in tumultuous times.

Whenever I’ve had a tough day, I know that I can go home and ask my wife, Nancy, to sit on the back porch swing, or take a walk with me, and just let me dump. No matter how hard the day has been, no matter how wet I’ve gotten in the storms of life throughout the day, my family is a shelter, a place of refuge, a place of safety where I can dry off, regain perspective, and find comfort.

The family of God, the Church of Jesus Christ, is meant to serve the same function. The body of Christ is meant to be a shelter in the storms of life as well.

A little over a year ago, a storm of epic proportions tore through the lives of thousands of people in the Gulf region. Thousands of homes were destroyed. And while government infrastructure has struggled to respond, the family of God, brothers and sisters in Christ just like you and me, have become a very real shelter - a point of hope in a seemingly hopeless situation. Many of you have made a phenomenal difference in the lives of broken, hurting and frightened people through your generosity. What an awesome witness to the love the God.

The nuclear family - and the family of faith - are designed to be a shelter in the storms of life.

Bringing It Home
1. Whenever the family of God serves as a shelter in the storms of life it brings glory to God. Who can you reach out to this week?
2. Who in your family or church has served as a shelter in a storm? Send them a note of thanks today.

Prayer:
Lord Jesus, ultimately you are our shelter and our strength in difficult times, but you have chosen to extend your love and grace through the lives of those who belong to you. Thank you for those who have held us fast and provided a refuge during the storms of life. Help us to extend that same gift of grace to others who are barely holding their heads above water. Amen.

Jeff Marian
Prince of Peace Lutheran Church, Burnsville, MN
www.princeofpeaceonline.org

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Tags: Christ, church, faith, family, God, Jesus

“Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, `Look, half of my possessions, Lord, I will give to the poor; and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will pay back four times as much.’ Then Jesus said to him, `Today salvation has come to this house, because he too is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek out and to save the lost.’” – Luke 19: 8-10 (NRSV)

From the story of the generous widow we learned that genuine giving is proportionate. How much we give matters only in proportion to how much we keep. From the story of Zacchaeus we learn the second principle of genuine giving: genuine giving is sacrificial. Giving out of our excess is not genuine giving. The sacrificial giving of a sinner moved Jesus heart and spirit. I’m not saying you shouldn’t give if you’re not doing it sacrificially; what I am saying is that I don’t believe that kind of giving srengthens your faith, the kind of faith that brings you salvation and eternal life.

Let me give you an illustration from the physical world. If you want to strengthen your muscles you must work them beyond their current ability. In other words, you must lift a weight that is heavy enough to exhaust you by lifting it 5-7 times. Lifting a very light weight many times will not strengthen your muscles.

One of the reasons I believe God calls us to give sacrificially is that it strengthens our faith and helps us grow spiritually. If we merely give out of our excess we don’t give God the opportunity to prove his faithfulness. That’s like lifting a very light weight. It won’t strengthen your muscles. But when we give sacrificially, when we give to the point of it hurting a bit, we exercise our faith…we learn to trust in God by giving him a chance to prove himself trustworthy.

This is at the heart of this whole stewardship conversation…the issue of trust. Every piece of money minted in this country has the same four words printed on it, “In God we trust.” That’s the biggest
lie in America. If we’re honest we’ll admit that most of us put a lot more trust in the security of money than we do in the security of God’s promises. There’s a word for that; it’s called idolatry. I believe that money is the greatest idol in our culture. And nothing breaks the spell of material idolatry like proportionate, sacrificial stewardship. Let me be clear: giving isn’t for God’s benefit. It isn’t for the church’s benefit. Genuine giving benefits us. It strengthens our faith and protects us from idolatry.

Bringing It Home
1. Be honest…is your current giving sacrificial, or are you giving out of your excess? In what ways does your giving impact the way that you live?
2. Spend some time in prayer and let the Holy Spirit search your heart for any hint of idolatry in relationship to your finances. Your checkbook and credit card statements might just help your meditation!

Prayer:
Father, it’s so easy to say that we trust in you and in your provision for us and yet we so often find our deepest security in what we own or in our savings. Help us to distinguish between our wants and our needs. Teach us to simplify the former and trust you for the latter. Set us free from any financial bondage that we may suffer from, that we might be free to give as you graciously provide. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.

Jeff Marian
Prince of Peace Lutheran Church, Burnsville, MN
www.princeofpeaceonline.org

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Tags: Christian, faith, giving, God, Jesus

As he looked up, Jesus saw the rich putting their gifts into the temple treasury. He also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins. “I tell you the truth,” he said, “this poor widow has put in more than all the others. All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.” – Luke 21:1-4

While many people wish the church wouldn’t talk about money, the truth is Jesus had lots to say on the subject. In this series of devotions we’re exploring what Jesus teaches about genuine giving.

First, genuine giving is proportionate. How much we give only matters in proportion to how much we keep. That’s why Jesus made a big deal out of the widow’s offering in today’s bible reading. The widow didn’t give much, but she gave all she had, and that’s why Jesus said that the widow had given more than anyone else. The amount given was small, but the proportion was huge. Why does the proportion matter? Because it’s a commentary on the status of our heart. The proportion of our giving speaks to the status of our heart before God, the openness of our spirit and the depth of our gratitude.

Far too many Christians imagine that they’ll be more generous if and when they become rich, but the amount of money we have doesn’t matter. Generosity has more to do with the proportion we give than it does with the actual amount we give…no matter how much we actually own. Lots or wealthy people were giving offerings at the same time that the widow was giving her offering, but they were giving out of their excess. Their proportion was small and Jesus was unimpressed.

Consider this: a philanthropy study a few years ago found that those who earned under $10,000 gave an average of 5.2% of their income to charity. Those who earned between $10,000 and $19,999 gave an average of 3.3% of their income. And those who earned between $75,000 and $99,999 gave only 1.6%. I’ll say it again: how much you give only matters in proportion to how much you keep. Genuine giving is proportionate.

Do you know what proportion of your wealth you are giving to God? Let me challenge you to calculate it. Most of us think little of tipping a waiter or waitress 15% for good service at a restaurant, and yet we balk at giving even 10% to the Lord. What does the proportion of your giving say about your heart? Does it reflect your gratitude for all that God has given you? Genuine giving does!

Bringing It Home
1. Take a few moments to calculate the percentage of your giving relative to your income. You decide if you want to count just your giving to your church or all your charitable giving. You can also decide whether you wish to calculate from your gross or net income.
2. Honestly ask yourself, “Does my giving reflect my gratitude?” If you don’t like your answer, check your heart and change your behavior.

Prayer:
Lord, you said that where my treasure is, there my heart will be also. I want my heart to be with you. Grant me grace to be a genuine giver, not because you demand it but because you called me to live in generosity. Soften my heart where it is hard; open my hand when it is clenched. Thank you for freeing me to give. Amen.

Jeff Marian
Prince of Peace Lutheran Church, Burnsville, MN
www.princeofpeaceonline.org

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Tags: Christian, giving, God, Jesus