"WHAT ABOUT ME?"

Continuation of the"Awake" devotional series

Who's Serving Who?

It is all too easy to say we agree with the scriptures concerning relationships and then keep moving ahead with our life centered  on our individual pleasures. That's not only a sign that we have fallen asleep at the wheel, but also a sign that we may be doing what little we do for our families with an indifferent attitude. As we continue into chapter three of Colossians, together we'll find out how we can check our attitudes as we read about servants.

Servants, obey in all things your masters according to the flesh; not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but in singleness of heart, fearing God: 23 And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as unto the Lord, and not unto men; ~ Colossians 3:22,23

You may be saying to yourself by now, wait a minute, "I'm not my spouses servant!", so how would this apply to me?  But think about this for a minute. Wasn't it Jesus who taught us to serve others? Why wouldn't that apply to our relationships at home too? Maybe that was one of the first things that God taught Adam and Eve while they were out walking together in the mornings of that very first week in the Garden of Eden. When the temperature was perfect and the sun's heat was just the right distance away that they could walk all morning and not even break a sweat. They were able to enjoy every minute of every day!

You know what else! I'm not a betting man, but I would be willing to bet that Eve was in total bliss on her honeymoon with Adam as he served her like he was suppose to as her husband. I would also bet that Adam was just as happy because Eve also served him with the right attitude as his wife? This was not only the first marriage on earth, but it was the perfect marriage designed and created by the God of all our universe!

Why then, when men and women attempt to serve each other, does something happen that creates friction between us? Well, we have to examine our motives and ask ourselves honestly ,"Am I attempting to serve the Lord or am I serving a person?". This can apply to parent/child as well.  As a servant in my home I must become humble and bring peace to my family. How? By reminding myself of the most important part of this passage. Take notice, it starts out with a command and then we learn how to live it out successfully in our relationships.

We are instructed that a servant is to obey their master. From a man's perspective I was thinking, "How would that apply to our relationship with our wife or children?".  But then it kind of sunk in slowly as I finished reading the rest of the passage. Who is my Master, I thought to myself? Who is your Master? Who do you serve in life? Then it hit me! Jesus talks all through the scriptures about how we can only serve one master, right? If you think that I am going to tell you to start calling each other "Master", I'm not. But, just imagine for a minute what a difference it would make if we treated each other as if they were the master and we were their servant? That's a radical thought now, isn't it?

Then it gets a little more confusing when we think about this passage that says, "Don't be a person pleaser using the eyes to please; but in singleness of heart fearing God".  How can I do the best I can with sincerity of heart? By fearing God alone because He alone is our only Master and we are to do it as if we are doing to Him. Wow! What kind of difference would it make if we would remember that it is God, our only Master, that we are serving every time we stop to do something for our mates, our family or anyone else?

I imagine Adam and Eve before the fall of sin, experiencing the perfect joy of serving God when they reached out to serve and care for each other. Try it! Serve God as you reach out to care for family and friends, I can guarantee that you will experience that perfect joy too! Shalom.

WHAT'S HOLDING YOUR HOME TOGETHER?

Continuation of the "Awake" devotions series.

WHAT DEFINES A CHRISTIAN HOME?

There are many who claim to be Christian and even have a real testimony of salvation to share publicly, but the genuine ingredients for a real Christian home according to the Word just aren't there yet. You may be thinking, how can that possibly be? Well, let's look at what the Word says and see if we have all of our materials to complete the project of building a strong, durable Christian home.


Let's start by taking a close look at the text in verses twelve through thirteen of chapter three in Colossians and we will discover the vital ingredients of a Christian home. In this passage, seven things are listed for us to have in our homes. Let's consider them carefully: "Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, long suffering; forbearing one another and forgiving one another..."

After giving us these seven ingredients to apply, the Lord covers them all up with something like a glue that holds all the other ingredients together. This is the bond of Christian love that is the most important ingredient to apply to our homes. We find this in verse fourteen,"And above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness."

Have you ever come across a home that was built with average materials and during construction of the home something went wrong and the house was never quite finished. You could see that the house was left there through the winter and summer without the final coatings applied. As those average materials that were used to build that home were exposed to the elements of nature, without the proper protection they began to curl and swell and fall apart. It wasn't too long before the walls began to crack inside and the ceilings began to stain from the leaks of an unprotected roof as well.

It is like that house that was built and then left unprotected without the final materials that may have seemed to be insignificant at the time; we also can find the value of protecting our homes. We must protect our home with the ingredient valued above all other ingredients if we want to build a Godly Christian home. What God has valued above all else is LOVE! We must ask ourselves; each and every one of us, "Do I have the love that God has placed so much value on? Is my home strong?". Are the materials (mercy, kindness, humbleness, meekness, long suffering, forgiveness) that my house is made of, going to be bond together when the difficult seasons of life arrive? Could it be that my house going to begin to curl and fall apart or show stains of leaking because of the lack of the one ingredient that God valued above all the others? We must ask ourselves, "Is my home protected by the covering of Love, which is the bond of perfectness?"