Today's Journey
Dec. 23, 2012
http://getmorestrength.org
“Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the
Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to
me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.” 2 Timothy 4:8
A
friend of mine, Bud Wood, founded Shepherds Home in Wisconsin for boys
and girls with developmental disabilities. The original ministry opened
its doors in 1964 to 36 children, providing them a loving residential
environment and a school that would focus on their unique needs, helping
them to reach their potential. Most importantly, this ministry started
with a primary goal of sharing God’s love with the residents and
encouraging them toward a personal and growing walk with Jesus. Many of
those original residents, now adults, still reside at Shepherds. The
home, now known as Shepherds Ministries, has grown to include vocational
training and a variety of other ministries all clustered around that
central passion for delivering and living out the gospel.
I remember Bud asking me one time, “Hey, Joe, do you know what our biggest maintenance problem at Shepherds is?”
“I have no idea,” I replied.
“Dirty
windows. Our kids press their hands and faces against the windows
because they’re looking to the sky to see if today might be the day that
Jesus will return for them and take them to His home where they will be
healed and complete.”
I love that! Talk about having your
priorities in the right place. One of the hallmarks of a committed
follower of Jesus is a longing for His return.
That’s what Paul
anticipates as he writes to Timothy in the waning days of his earthly
ministry. He acknowledges that he is “being poured out like a drink
offering” and humbly states, “I have fought the good fight, I have
finished the race, I have kept the faith” (2 Timothy 4:6-7).
But rather than spending his last days looking in the rearview mirror,
Paul continues to look forward to the “crown of righteousness, which the
Lord . . . will award to me on that day” (2 Timothy 4:8).
Notice
that the crown isn’t some merit award for Paul’s years of distinguished
service. It isn’t the “Church Planter of the Year” trophy. And it isn’t
exclusive to Paul. He makes that plainly clear when he adds, “and not
only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.” The
“crown of righteousness” is available to all followers of Christ who
live righteously because they have organized their lives around longing
for Him to return—with the expectation that it could be any minute now!
That
longing and expectation will change our priorities as well. It will
make us think a whole lot less about how to build our kingdom and a
whole lot more about His. It will pull our attention away from
materialism and the accumulation of earthbound possessions and point us
toward investment in that which is eternally significant. It will lift
us from our anxieties and even the weight of this life’s difficulties,
reminding us each day that something better awaits us. And 1 John 3:2-3
reminds us that our hope in the Lord’s return will motivate us toward
purity, so that we want to be righteously pure and ready when Jesus
comes for us.
You may have decorated your windows for Christmas,
but have you gone to them recently to see if the Jesus of Christmas is
coming back again for you? Go ahead, smudge up a window or two! Life
will be wonderfully different if you keep your eyes to the sky!
YOUR JOURNEY…
- How often do you spend time thinking about the return of Jesus?
- How would it change your plans for the next 24 hours if you genuinely believed that Jesus could arrive at any moment? How about the next week? What about the next year?
- What steps can you take to regularly remind yourself that Jesus could be returning at any moment? What would it look like to “smudge up some windows” as you watch for Christ’s return in your home?
No comments:
Post a Comment