Looking In All The Wrong Places
I was inspired by a few paragraphs written by Tullian Tchividjian, pastor of Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. You can find his full article on page 96 of Leadership Journal, Spring 2014.
How many times do I put important things in a safe place, say to myself that ‘I will never forget this safe place’, and then promptly forget just a few hours later. How much energy is then subsequently wasted looking in all the wrong places?! This happens way too often. Pastor Tullian says that when he does this with his car keys he “frantically runs from room to room blaming someone” while he scours the house for the missing keys. You know exactly what I’m talking about. It happens in your home too. You blame while you look.
Then he says “and right about the time I’m ready to order mass executions I’ve put my hand in my pocket and found my keys. They’d been there the whole time.”
Two things resonate with me: The ‘blame game’ and the ‘not really missing thing’.
1. Ever since the Garden of Eden people have been quick to deny personal responsibility and just as quick to shift the blame to those close to them. It sounds like childish excuses. This dysfunctional behaviour is destructive. It can’t be overstated: our juvenile junk jeopardizes family unity and compromises our reputations.
2. In Christ nothing is missing. And the Bible talks about believers being “in Christ”. Therefore, logic tells us that we have everything. Psalm 23:1 “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want” (NIV) The Message puts it this way: “God, my shepherd! I don’t need a thing.” Tchividjian eloquently states that we typically live and lead “frantically searching for something we already have … because of Jesus we already have all of the justification, approval, significance, security, worth, validation, love, righteousness, rescue, and joy that we long for. Yet we keep looking for those in a thousand things infinitely smaller than Jesus.”
So, like John the Baptist, I say – BEHOLD [look at] JESUS, THE LAMB OF GOD. He is the one who delivers ABUNDANT LIFE! (John 10:10)
Rev. Doug Johns
For Sunday June 29, 2014
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