Thought for June 1

 History:

• 1638: First earthquake recorded in U.S.--Plymouth
• 1660: Mary Dyer hung for being a Quaker in Massachusetts Bay Colony
• 1774: Boston Port Act--closes port to punish colonists
• 1796: Tennessee admitted as the 16th State
• 1813: Captain John Lawrence says "Don't give up the ship" which becomes the Navy motto
• 1881: Iroquois becomes 1st American bred horse to win the Epsom Derby--Iroquois Steeplechase is named for him. 
• 1917: Hank Gowdy of the Boston Braves is the first major leaguer to enlist to serve in WWI and the only player to serve in both WW's.
• 1924: Ji Wang is secretly baptized in Taiwan. She gets religious training and as a result over 5000 head-hunters are baptized over the next 20 years
• 1925: Lou Gehrig begins his streak of 2130 consecutive games
• 1946: Assault captures the Belmont to win the first Triple Crown
• 1958: De Gaulle elected premier of France
• 1974: Heimlich maneuver published in Emergency Medicine Journal
• 2009: GM files for bankruptcy
• Born: Brigham Young, Nelson Riddle, William Sloane Coffin, Andy Griffith, Marilyn Monroe, Alan Ameche, Pat Boone, Morgan Freeman, Cleavon Little, Jeffrey Hawkins [invented Palm Pilot], Heidi Klum, Amy Schumer
• Died: James Buchanan, Lizzie Borden, Leslie Howard, Adolph Eichmann, Curly Lambeau, Helen Keller, Reinhold Niebuhr [Serenity Prayer], Yves Saint Laurent, Pat Dye

Thought:

Have you ever wondered how people really thought of you? People treat you fine, are cordial, act like friends, but how do they really think about you? Do they laugh at you behind your back? Do they make jokes about you to others? Do they smile and say the right things, but dread to see you coming? You ask, "do you like my dress/suit," and they say yes it is beautiful/handsome--yet in their minds they are thinking "it makes you look fat." You show pictures of your children and grandchildren and they say, "how cute, so beautiful," but think you are bragging or that you showed them the same pictures last time you met. 

Look at what Paul says in 1 Corinthians 4:1-2. "Let man regard us as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God." Think about that. My goal, my hope, my desire is that other people regard me as a servant of Christ and steward of the mysteries of God. I don't care if they think I am smart, handsome, witty, strong, a good athlete, a good businessman--I want them to think about me as a servant of Christ and steward of God's mysteries. If that is my main goal, how would I change how I act, talk, interact? 

I think we all know what a servant of Christ looks like---Galatians 5 tells us that person is filled with love, joy, peace, gentleness, kindness, self-control, patience. We could add humble, sincere, honest, truthful, hard working. Maybe we should add forgiving, peaceful, hungry and thirsty for righteousness, pure in heart, merciful, gracious. 

What about a trustworthy steward of the mysteries of God? Maybe this means I know the mysteries of God that we wrote about earlier this week--God desires a relationship with sinners and made a way for that relationship through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. It also means I am a trustworthy steward--I share the full gospel, I don't change it for the times or the audience. I think it also means I demonstrate the full meaning of that mystery in my life--I am a walking advertisement for the gospel. 

So, today, Lord help me to live so that people think I am a servant of Jesus and trustworthy steward of God's mystery revealed in Christ.  You might look at 4:4 which reminds me that really what others think is not important or secondary--the one who examines me to see if I am that servant and steward is Jesus. 

Blessings

Larry