Good Times - Hard Times

April 28

(Acts 9:31 NIV) “Then the church throughout Judea, Galilee and Samaria enjoyed a time of peace. It was strengthened; and encouraged by the Holy Spirit, it grew in numbers, living in the fear of the Lord.”

(Matthew 13:19-23 NIV) “When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is the seed sown along the path. {20} The one who received the seed that fell on rocky places is the man who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. {21} But since he has no root, he lasts only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, he quickly falls away. {22} The one who received the seed that fell among the thorns is the man who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke it, making it unfruitful. {23} But the one who received the seed that fell on good soil is the man who hears the word and understands it. He produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.”

(Hebrews 10:32-39 NIV) ““Remember those earlier days after you had received the light, when you stood your ground in a great contest in the face of suffering. {33} Sometimes you were publicly exposed to insult and persecution; at other times you stood side by side with those who were so treated. {34} You sympathized with those in prison and joyfully accepted the confiscation of your property, because you knew that you yourselves had better and lasting possessions. {35} So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. {36} You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised. {37} For in just a very little while, "He who is coming will come and will not delay. {38} But my righteous one will live by faith. And if he shrinks back, I will not be pleased with him." {39} But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who believe and are saved.””

Saul was converted and started preaching. His life was threatened and he fled. And the church grew stronger. Church growth does not always happen just during good times. Hard times can grow us as much as the good times. Life is seldom all good, or all bad. It is mixed together like a stew. We’ve been led to believe by our ancient foe that hard times mean we are losing. That’s not true. If we fold up and bail out every time things get tough, we will never win. Winning armies, winning teams, and winning churches, will endure losses on their pathway to victory. Good times and hard times come together in a package. Persecution is the norm for the faithful church, but so is winning souls in the midst of adversity. Anyone who lives as Christ’s disciple will suffer losses. Get over it, and get on with it. We are on our way to winning. The early church thrived in times of great testing -- so can we! -- Friar Tuck’s Word of the Day

Fight or Flee

April 27

(Acts 9:23-25 NIV) “After many days had gone by, the Jews conspired to kill him, {24} but Saul learned of their plan. Day and night they kept close watch on the city gates in order to kill him. {25} But his followers took him by night and lowered him in a basket through an opening in the wall.”

(Acts 9:29-30 NIV) “He talked and debated with the Grecian Jews, but they tried to kill him. {30} When the brothers learned of this, they took him down to Caesarea and sent him off to Tarsus.”

(1 Samuel 19:8-12 NIV) ““Once more war broke out, and David went out and fought the Philistines. He struck them with such force that they fled before him. {9} But an evil spirit from the LORD came upon Saul as he was sitting in his house with his spear in his hand. While David was playing the harp, {10} Saul tried to pin him to the wall with his spear, but David eluded him as Saul drove the spear into the wall. That night David made good his escape. {11} Saul sent men to David's house to watch it and to kill him in the morning. But Michal, David's wife, warned him, "If you don't run for your life tonight, tomorrow you'll be killed." {12} So Michal let David down through a window, and he fled and escaped.””

Sometimes you fight -- sometimes you flee. At times Saul stood his ground… other times he ran for his life. King David did the same. Those with wisdom know whether to fight, or to flee. Only a fool does one or the other, all of the time. Those who flee from every battle, never finding a hill worth dying on, seldom make an impact on this world. But those who never back down, who make every molehill into a mountain worth dying on, seldom last long. Being courageous in the face of overwhelming odds is sometimes the right choice. Retreating so that we can live to fight another day is sometimes an even better choice. Saul fled, because Damascus and Jerusalem were not the hills he was destined to die on. One day he would stand toe to toe with kings and emperors, but not yet. Sometimes you fight -- sometimes you flee. Choose your battles wisely. It’s a sign of wisdom. -- Friar Tuck’s Word of the Day

Truth That Attracts and Angers

April 26

(Acts 9:22-23 NIV) “Yet Saul grew more and more powerful and baffled the Jews living in Damascus by proving that Jesus is the Christ. {23} After many days had gone by, the Jews conspired to kill him…”

(Acts 9:29 NIV) “He talked and debated with the Grecian Jews, but they tried to kill him.”

(John 8:31-40 NIV) ““To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. {32} Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." {33} They answered him, "We are Abraham's descendants and have never been slaves of anyone. How can you say that we shall be set free?" {34} Jesus replied, "I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. {35} Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. {36} So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. {37} I know you are Abraham's descendants. Yet you are ready to kill me, because you have no room for my word. {38} I am telling you what I have seen in the Father's presence, and you do what you have heard from your father." {39} "Abraham is our father," they answered. "If you were Abraham's children," said Jesus, "then you would do the things Abraham did. {40} As it is, you are determined to kill me, a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God. Abraham did not do such things.””

The truth about God’s grace and mercy began to flow out of Saul, and many were attracted to his message. His passion was contagious, and as his credibility and influence grew, his following increased. Truth is attractive to many people, and yet it angers so many others. There were those who hated Saul and his message enough to try to kill him. Some will just never love the truth. The same thing happened to Jesus, and it can happen to us. When we tell the truth about Christ and His influence in our lives, some will appreciate our words and be drawn to the Lord; but others will despise us and the truth of the gospel. Some will be inspired -- others will conspire. Some will work alongside us -- others will work against us. We have no say in what response we get. It’s really none of our business who listens and who doesn’t. God will sort that out. Just keep telling the truth. -- Friar Tuck’s Word of the Day

Living It Down

April 25

(Acts 9:21 NIV)  "All those who heard him were astonished and asked, "Isn't he the man who raised havoc in Jerusalem among those who call on this name? And hasn't he come here to take them as prisoners to the chief priests?"

(Acts 9:26 NIV) “When he came to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples, but they were all afraid of him, not believing that he really was a disciple.”

(Proverbs 22:1 NIV “A good name is more desirable than great riches; to be esteemed is better than silver or gold.”

A bad reputation is hard to live down. Saul’s reputation caused fear instead of faith in the people he went to share his story with. You can’t blame them. He had done them harm. It took him a while to live that reputation down. The phrase “live it down”, is instructive. We speak about someone “living down” a reputation. The irony is that the reputation we must “live down” was usually obtained from what culture calls “living it up”. It can take years to “live it down” after some time of “living it up”. We end up being shackled by what we thought was freedom. What we thought would bring happiness, causes despair. Saul had a hard time living down his reputation -- so will we. Be careful about the reputation you are constructing through daily choices. One brick at a time, one day at a time, your reputation is being built. Work at building a reputation you won’t have to live down. -- Friar Tuck’s Word of the Day