Thankful Enough To Share

Mrs. Max and I had the privilege of buying our first home in March of 1999. (We would have had it paid for on my 65th birthday, but we moved to Arizona!) We thanked God for His marvelous provision. The house and yard were beautiful and in excellent shape.  The boys enjoyed the room to run, the extra bedroom, the yard, the basketball hoop, and, especially, the pool.
  
We spent many hours planting, pruning, and doing general yard work. We completed several in-door projects: hanging ceiling fans, painting, stenciling, and wallpapering. I especially enjoyed puttering around in the garage ~ it’s a guy thing. It was a great house.
  
Hunting for a new home was sometimes fun but was often frustrating: big house--small yard, big yard--small house, nice living room--small bedrooms, nice everything--too expensive, inexpensive--bad neighborhood, or bad everything. When we think back on all of the homes that we considered purchasing, none compared to the one that we bought. We loved that new house and were proud of it.
  
Some might not have found our new home to be that great, others might have thought it average, while still others might have found it to be an excellent house. But even if others had really liked our house, they wouldn’t have appreciated it like we did. We spent nine years with three boys in a two-bedroom condo with one, just one, bathroom. We were happy there, but we really appreciated the new, bigger space. We thanked God for His provision. We appreciated what we had, and even more so because of what we didn’t have before.

  
Proverbs 17:22 tells us that a merry (joyful) heart is good like a medicine but a broken (crushed) spirit dries the bones. Joyful people are thankful people who like to share their joy. Complaining people are unthankful people who like to share their misery. A thankful person who finds a dollar might excitedly say, “Can you believe it? I found a dollar - way cool!” An unthankful person might sarcastically say, “Look at me. I found  a whole dollar.” Same find - completely different responses. You’ve probably already thought of people who might react in these same ways.     

  
When something special or exciting happens to us, we want to share it with others. Sharing the blessings of God can work like a medicine to a discouraged heart. That’s what caring and sharing is all about.
  
Do you remember what you didn’t have before (salvation), how lost you were, and what God did for you? Are you thankful for God’s great provision of grace? “Why should I care?” Because God cared enough to send His Son to rescue me from my sin and its punishment. Care enough to share your faith.  
    

Read the following verses. Take note of God’s provisions for which we should be thankful.

Romans 5:1-8

Matthew 6:25-33

John 14:1-3

In Your Eye

Think of a time when you got a speck of something in your eye!  It might have been tiny, but do remember the irritation and the pain? Ouch! Until it was removed you were distracted, blurred, and somewhat helpless.  Ever seen someone else with the same sort of problem?  What was your response to that person's need?

Read Matthew 7:1-5

 1) Judge not, that ye be not judged.  2) For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.  3) And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?  4) Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye?  5) Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye.

This passage is about

    1. marred vision and hindered blessings

    2. restoring vision and blessing

So which is the mote and which is a beam?

_______________ - a great length of timber, a log, a rafter

_______________ - a tiny speck (like sawdust), a splinter

                 Hint: alphabetical order

According to Matthew 7

Who is called a hypocrite?

Which must be removed first, the mote or the beam? Why?

Hint: Which is more easily spotted, accessed, and personal? Which is not?

The mote is some fault that I see in another (real or imagined).

- It's hard to tell with that log in the way; isn't it!

The beam may simply be my unloving response to one who has the mote.

Feelings of resentment, coldness, and criticism are signs of an unloving spirit.

The first flicker of an unkind thought or criticism is the beginning of this un-love.

Key: I choose to love or to un-love.

If I choose to love -  I will admonish and exhort, and provoke.

admonish - caution, reprove, rebuke (Col. 3:16)  Admonishing whom? _____________

exhort - encourage, urge (Heb.3:13)  Exhort when? _______________

provoke - incite (Heb. 10:24)  Provoke to what?     _______________

Bottom line: The love of Jesus poured into me will make me want to help my brother.

Where does love for Jesus begin?  (Phil. 1:21, I Cor.15:31)  Hint: ide to elfs

IF I die to myself - to my gifts, to my rights, to my power, to my goodness, to my ambition;

THEN and only then will I understand the cross and have the power of God in my life.

What makes for a successful removal? (verse 5)

I must first cast sin from my own heart, so I may be clean to help my brother

- before it's too late, for either or both of us!

Ask God to reveal the timber of sin that is in your heart.  Then ask forgiveness and repent. 
PM