Do you know what Instant Messaging is? Unlike email, Instant Messaging (IM) software allows you to 'talk' to someone in real time by typing and receiving messages. It’s a text-based computer conference over the Internet between two or more people who must be online at the same time. When you send an IM, the receiver is instantly notified that he or she has a message. In November 2007, Windows Live Messenger, the world’s largest IM service, had 294 million active users worldwide. In January 2008, Yahoo IM had 248 million active registered global users. Here are some other stats to ponder:
- 74% of online teens use IM programs; in comparison, 44% of online adults have used these programs
- 69% of online teens use IM programs several times a week
- 70% of online teens say they use IM more often than email; in comparison, 24% of online adults use IM more often than email
- 55% of teen IM users have used IM to get help with their homework
- 22% of teen IM users have used IM to ask for or accept a date
- 43% of IM users have used IM to write something that they would not have said in person
In Luke 24:49, “what my Father has promised” that will bring “power from on high” refers to the outpouring of the Holy Spirit that began at Pentecost. The Holy Spirit is our Instant Messaging service. Jesus called the Holy Spirit a “Counselor” in John 14:16. Literally translated, this means He is the “one called alongside to help.” We don’t have to wait for Him to respond. He’s always on. He’s always there. It’s instant. He’s our Counselor, Strengthener, Comforter, Helper, Adviser, Advocate, Intercessor, Ally and Friend. The Holy Spirit continues what Christ himself did while on earth. While Jesus is our helper and intercessor in heaven, the Holy Spirit is our helper and intercessor on earth.
Sweat. If it looks like sweat, if it feels like sweat, it it smells like sweat, it's probably sweat. Oh, you may call it by a different name (after all, girls don't perspire, they glisten), but in the end, it's still sweat. Most think it's gross when it happens, and no one's fond of rubbing up against someone else who's covered in it, but like the kids book, Everyone Poops, by Taro Gomi, everyone sweats.
This is actually a pretty cool feature God gave our magnificent bodies. Sweat is a means of helping to regulate our body temperature. When the sweat evaporates from our skin, it provides a cooling effect. That's why, when it's hot, or when your muscles heat up from being worked, more sweat is produced. Sweat is sort of the proof that your body is overheating and needing to cool down.
This week in youth we talked about the Baptism in the Holy Spirit with the initial physical evidence of speaking in tongues. Just like sweat is the proof that your body is beginning to overheat, tongues is the proof that you've been filled with the Spirit. There had to be some sign. Tongues is it. If at Baptism you suddenly started sweating, you might think you were filled with the Holy Spirit while you were playing a sport. If being filled meant you suddenly got hungry for pizza, you might think you were filled with the Holy Spirit whenever you walked into a Pizza Hut. The filling of the Holy Spirit had to be something supernatural so that you would have no doubt. Speaking in tongues is that supernatural occurrence.
Take a moment to read Acts 4:31-35 and answer these questions:
- What were the affects of the Holy Spirit filling these people?
- How have you personally been affected by the Holy Spirit?
- How do you think that people can tell that you're filled with the Holy Spirit?
- In what specific ways listed in these verses can you display the infilling of the Holy Spirit to others?
Saturday, March 18, 2073. According to www.deathclock.com, based on my date of birth, height, weight, body type, general attitude on life, and the fact that I'm a non-smoker, that's the day I'll die. I don't give a lot of credence to it, but it is interesting to watch the seconds slowly tick away. Just over 2 billion seconds to go! What if that time was much shorter?
Sometimes, I'm not a good manager of my time. Traditionally, I've been a procrastinator, waiting to the last possible moment to do that big report, or finish that project or do what I need to do to meet the deadline. Sometimes that's worked, most of the time it hasn't. I've become acutely aware that if I don't manage my time, it will manage me. As we consider what we'd do differently with our lives if we found out we had ONE MONTH TO LIVE, I wonder how well I'd manage my time. In Sunday School yesterday, we talked through some things we'd like to do before we died and how much time we'd spend doing them. As it turned out, we came up six or eight things that we'd spend exactly 30 days doing; one month. The problem was, we all decided that those weren't the only things we'd want to do. In order to accomplish more, we would have to be better managers of our time.
I heard someone say recently that "what matters most must never be at the mercy of what matters least." It's been said that when faced with death, no one has ever wished they had spent more time at work and less time with family. In order to better manage our time, we may have to refocus our priorities. Consider Ephesians 5:15-17 (NLT) "So be careful how you live, not as fools but as those who are wise. Make the most of ever opportunity for doing good in these evil days. Don't act thoughtlessly, but try to understand what the Lord wants you to do."
What's most important to you in life? Does your time reflect that? What changes would you like to make before time runs out?
We started a new series in Youth last night called TREASURE HUNTERS. It’s Christmas; everyone wants gifts. Some are more important than others. Some are temporary. Some are long-lasting. We’re going to talk about the gifts of the Spirit, Baptism in the Holy Spirit, and the greatest gift of all, Jesus. This week…DISCOVERING YOUR GIFTS.
Three points:
1. We all have gifts. Mine aren't the same as yours. Just as an ear is no better than an eye, one gift or talent is no better than another. Romans 12:6-8 talks about spiritual gifts, but what other gifts and talents do you have? One of mine is playing the trumpet. God gave me that gift. Even with very little practice, I can play exceptionally well. With practice, I do even better. One of the things my parents stipulated in my learning to play an instrument was that if my ability to play was evident as a God-given gift, then I must use it for His glory. Over the years, I've played in a variety of venues and for countless people. But what I enjoy the most is playing on the worship team at church, with my eyes closed, strictly as an act of worship to God.
2. My gifts aren't any better than yours. From time to time, I've looked at other trumpet players and said, "I wish I could do that." I wish I was a good performer, or could play professionally, or play in a band or whatever. I thought was cool many years ago when an old friend of mine built and played his own bass guitar. Now, he's playing on a worship team for a major record label. It's sometimes easy to look at the gifts that others have and want their gifts. What it comes down to is that God gave us all a unique set of gifts, and if we use them as He has called us to, we work together to edify the entire Body of Christ. As such, I'm content to be a trumpet worshiper in the local church, hopefully creating a unique worship experience that will edify the local Body of Christ. Others are called to take their gifts and talents beyond these walls.
3. Use them or lose them. Whenever you receive a gift, there are three things that you must do with it. You must accept it, you must open it, and you must use it. If I had accepted the gift of trumpet playing, but chosen to play the sax instead, my gift would have been of no value. If I had accepted my, but never opened it and developed my gift, it would have been of no value. Several years ago, I received a rotary tool for Christmas. I thought it was really cool when I got it and opened it, but have never opened the package to use it. As such, it's been of no use to me. Several months ago, I received an iPod shuffle as a gift. I had intended to return it to the store and apply the credit to a "larger, better" iPod, but I never have, so it's been of no use to me; except to act as a paperweight on my desk. It's the same with our God-given gifts and talents. If I don't practice my trumpet, and use my gift, my ability to play well is greatly diminished. If we don't accept, open and use our gifts we'll lose them, and they'll be of no use to us or anyone else in the Body of Christ.
What gifts has God given you, and how are you using them?
A couple of months ago, a good friend of mine challenged me to read Psalm 103:2-5, paying particular attention to verse 2, where it says, "and forget not ALL his benefits."
For me, anytime I see the word ALL, I pay particularly close attention to the context in which it is being used. Especially when used in Biblical text. "ALL" allows for no exclusions or exceptions. It is whole. It is full. It encompasses the entire extent of subject it references. ALL is an extreme word.
Often, when you look for a new job, the benefits that come with it are just as important as the salary you receive: Paid Time Off, Health Insurance, Tuition Reimbursement, Matching Contributions to your 401K, Corporate Discounts, Housing Allowance, Company Car, Uniform Allowance. The list goes on.
As I thought about this, I thought about the ALL of the "benefits" I have as a Christ-follower. Some are mentioned in this passage of scripture: Christ forgives of ALL of my sins, He heals ALL my diseases, He redeems my life from the pit of Hell, He surrounds me with love and compassion, He fills my life with good things.
Here are some others:
- Grace - forgiveness, a past that's paid, a better-than-I-deserve-life
- Good health - instant access to the Great Physician
- The Holy Spirit - a whole extra dimension of God's power
- Eternal Life - call it "Long Term Care" or "Free Life Insurance"
- Love that never fails
- The joy of the Lord
- A wonderful spouse
- An amazing family and extended family
- A great job
- A voice to praise
- Rest
- Peace that passes all understanding
- Compassion for those less fortunate than I
- Provision
What are some of the "benefits" you have? Let's not forget them!
I know it may seem weird, but I really like walking through cemeteries and looking at headstones. In doing that, I often wonder, what did this person live for? What defined them? What made them famous? What were they passionate about? What were they afraid of? What mistakes did they make? Did a mistake lead to their being here?! What regrets did they have? What lives did they touch? What kind of legacy did they leave? Who attended their funeral? Whose tears have fallen on this grave?
All of the answers to those questions are summarized in a tiny mark between their date of birth and their expiration date; a hyphen - a dash.
You get to choose how to spend your dash. Your time is limited. Pope Paul VI once said, "Somebody should tell us, right at the start of our lives, that we are dying. Then we might live life to the limit, every minute of every day. Do it, I say! Whatever you want to do, do it now! There are only so many tomorrows." What are you doing with your dash? Are you living the dash, or dashing to live?
What would you do differently in your life today, if you suddenly found out you had One Month to Live? Would you take the opportunity to say, feel and do what you really want? What big things would you want to do? What small changes would you want to make in your daily schedule? Is there anyone you'd want to "make things right with"? What risks would you take? What keeps you from living that way now? Why can't we all live like we are dying?
Psalm 90:12 (TLB) says it best: "Teach us to number our days and recognize how few they are; help us to spend them as we should."
