written by Stephan Joubert
King Hezekiah got a second chance. When the prophet Isaiah gave him the bad news that he would soon die (Isaiah 38), he fell down and begged with God for mercy. God heard his cry for help. Right there, the king got a handful of extra life at the end of his life — a full 15 years. Instead of allowing God’s mercy to make him humble, he later openly bragged about his riches and power to a foreign delegation. He even took this delegation on a sight-seeing tour, showing off his weapons and the riches of his palace to make them understand just how large and glorious his kingdom was.
Hezekiah’s arrogant behavior upset the Lord to the extent that He announced that his rule would come to an end, and that his sons would not rule in his place. Then followed Hezekiah’s shocking reaction: “As long as it doesn’t happen in my lifetime.” Talk about selfishness! When others are suffering, then it’s their problem, just as long as I can live in the sunshine! Please don’t be like Hezekiah. Make more than sufficient room for others, even for the generation that follows you. Don’t always want the best part for yourself. Don’t live arrogantly. Everything you have and everything you are is finally a gift of grace from the hand of the Living God. Give Him alone the honor for this, and live humbly.
written by Stephan Joubert
“And you can be sure that wherever in the whole world the Message is preached, what she just did is going to be talked about admiringly.” That was Jesus’ words about that remarkable woman who poured a bottle of very expensive perfume over his head at a dinner in Bethany (Mark 14). It was more than a year’s income for the average person in Palestine that she “wasted” on Jesus. But it was exactly the right kind of wasting! It was the right kind of thing to do since Jesus was the Recipient thereof.
To pour out your life on the Lord, by giving your money, talents, time and energy to Him in an overly generous way, might seem like a useless waste in the eyes of those around you. However, that’s not the case when the Lord is the Recipient. In this festive season, learn from this woman where unnecessary wasting of earthly things is in order. Learn from the Lord’s contemporary heroes who are wasting to perfection in the proper way. Go and practice the art of over-the-top wastefulness in such a way that heaven and earth will start noticing.
written by Stephan Joubert
The Rapampam pam of “Little drummer boy” can be heard almost everywhere at the moment. It tells the story of a boy who wants to play the drums at his best for the Child in the manger. The arrival of Jesus indeed calls for festivity. That’s also what the wise men realized when they saw his star. Their gold, incense, and myrrh tells of the arrival of the Child of Peace amongst us. But the coming of Jesus is about more than just presents. It’s about us becoming living presents. Just as Jesus came to give Himself away without any preconditions, He’s turned us into presents to everyone around us.
But there’s more about the coming of Jesus that we need to realize… if we only stand in awe at his manger, we haven’t yet walked far enough. Gordon Wakefield writes that there can never be a hint of Christianity without a cross — the cross of Christ that we bear, and each of us bearing our own cross! From the manger to the cross, from Bethlehem to Calvary, and from there all the way to my own life — that’s the nutshell story of faith. If I become part of Jesus’ story in faith, then it turns me into someone crucified and cross-bearing in the same instant. The story of Jesus tells that my life starts over from square one. At the manger, the cross ánd the empty grave I find my new identity. From there I find daily direction for my life. Jesus is my only Compass. His arrival is the main reason for my existence. That’s why I can tap my drum for Him today, even while there’s a heavy cross resting on my shoulder.
[read more…]
written by Stephan Joubert
Think with me about the following question: Where do you discern God’s will the clearest — in the harbor, or in the storm? Let me explain — with the harbor I mean the well-known religious terrain, in between fellow-believers, or where you have your quiet time. Or those weekly gatherings of cell groups or bible studies. The storm represents the everyday world with all its unpredictability, dangers, unbelievers, and challenges. Listen to that question again:
Where do you discern God’s will the clearest — in the harbor, or in the storm?
[read more…]
written by Stephan Joubert
In the film “Amen”, two German priests asked their cardinal during the Second World War: “Wouldn’t it help if all German Christians adopted the Jewish religion so that it could force the Nazis to stop their cruelty and inhuman deeds against the Jews?” When their suggestion was dismissed as foolish, one priest decided to become a Jew for the same Jesus that he loved with his whole heart. Eventually he was executed in Auschwitz. Perhaps the greatest sacrifice isn’t to give up your life for the Lord. Perhaps, it’s rather putting your faith in Him on the table. Actually, it’s more than that… It’s what Paul did — putting his place in eternity on the table to contribute to the salvation of other believers. It’s so easy to sing about everything we’re prepared to offer to the Lord. Isn’t this sometimes just pious church talk?
written by Stephan Joubert
Maybe you’ve heard of Maximilian Kolbe. He was a Franciscan Priest that ended up in Auswitch, the notorious German concentration camp, during WWII. Then a fellow prisoner from his block escaped… When someone escaped from Auswitch it was protocol that 10 prisoners be chosen at random to be gruesomely killed. In short, you knew that if you escaped 10 others would die in your place.
When Kolbe heard that one of the men chosen to die had a wife and children, he immediately offered to take this guy’s place. Following two weeks of torture, Kolbe died after being injected by a deadly acid. Kolbe’s sacrifice reminds me of Jesus’ words that there’s no greater love than when someone sacrifices his life for his friends! What do we ever sacrifice for each other? Which of the people around us have fuller and richer lives because of us? Who knows, maybe our faith is way too safe and boring.
