Most people listen for a reason. 

We listen because we hope to gain information that we did not possess before the talking started.  We lean in to hear words that we hope will transform our school grade, make us more productive, and better ourselves. 

Also, we listen to give a response.  This happens when we tune in while a friend is talking so that we know the proper advice to give.  We want to gather all the facts so that our wisdom will be informed as we try to help other people. 

Some people choose to hear and yet not really listen.  The words go through their ears but never make it to their brain.  If you are like me, you smile and occasionally nod your head in agreement, but your mind is on something completely different. 

The other day I came up with this definition of a true friend.  A friend is someone who listens for no reason.  They know your stories and are not looking to gain new or helpful information.  They understand they will probably not benefit from what you are telling them.  They do not listen to give advice unless specifically asked.  And they do not just hear; they actually listen to what you are saying. 

A friend is someone you can have a good conversation with, and there are no strings attached.  No one stands to gain anything other than human connection.  Friends listen, and that might be the greatest gift we can give one another.  

“Jehoram was thirty-two years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eight years. He passed away, to no one’s regret, and was buried in the City of David, but not in the tombs of the kings.” (2 Chronicles 21:20 NIV 2011)

The writer of the book of Second Chronicles has been walking through the lives of the kings.  He comes to Jehoram, one of the kings of Judah, and he tells about the end of his reign.  Then he adds one unmistakable line. He states that he passed away “to no one’s regret.” In other words, no one was sad to see him go. 

The Message Paraphrase of the Bible says, “There were no tears shed when he died – it was good riddance!” I love the imagery.  This man passed, and no one shed a tear. Instead, there were comments at his funeral of good riddance. 

What kind of a man must Jehoram have been?  Not even his family loved him enough to be sad when he died.  No friends.  No loved ones.  No one cared.  How tragic? 

This man was given a life on this earth.  He was given a position of prominence, and it came with wealth and power.  Apparently, he used none of it for good. So the final result was the no one was sad to see him die and be buried. 

Perhaps one of the signs of living a godly life is that people are sad to hear of your death.  My prayer for you and me is that there will be at least a handful of people who regret our passing when this life is over.  I want our lives to have touched others positively.  I hope that when we die, it will be with much regret. 

There are two sides to every situation.

There is always a downside. It’s a negative; glass is half empty viewpoint. This creates stress, worry, and despair. If you look closely, you can see how everything could go wrong, and this could be the worst situation ever.

Also, there is always an upside. It’s a positive; glass is half full perspective. This creates smiles, laughter, and joy. If you look closely, you can see how everything will work out for good, and this could be the experience that makes life better.

There are two sides to every situation.

YOU get to CHOOSE which viewpoint you are going to take. The situations are always the same, and the only difference is your perspective on it.

Evil exists in the world.  The darkness of evil is ever-present, attempting to corrupt God’s people and lead everyone into sin.  This darkness can be present in significant actions like murder and rape, but it is also seen in acts of anger, gossip, sexual immorality, and greed.  Evil has many forms, and all of them are destructive. 

Paul writes to the Church in the city of Ephesus, and in the fifth chapter, he is telling them about making changes in their lives for God.  There are activities to stop doing and other things to start doing.  He then says that we are to stop living in darkness and begin to live in the light of the Lord.  Next, he adds, “Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them.” (Ephesians 5:11 – NIV 2011)

One thing a believer is to do is avoid evil. It’s another thing to expose the corruption that others might be accepting as good. 

This is not a call for people to be mean-spirited toward others with judgmental eyes.  It is not an excuse to boycott people and things with signs and shouts.  Later in that same chapter, Paul states that “everything exposed by the light becomes visible.” I believe it is an appeal for Christians to shine the light of truth found in God’s word into the world.  How do they shine that light? When they elevate their standard of living to match Jesus, the world will see the failure of their choices.     

The more we try to live each day for Jesus and in the power of his Spirit, we move away from what Paul calls “the fruitless deeds of darkness.” We will also shine a light on those around us, showing them the failure of not walking the same path.  When a believer’s life is not different from an unbeliever’s, we are failing ourselves, and those around us will suffer from a lack of light.  In both cases, darkness prevails.  

All of us want to know what the Bible means for our lives.  Most don’t read it for trivial information about a world long past and customs long forgotten. Instead, we spend time on its pages because we believe it has something for our lives today.  Within its books and chapters are lines of instruction, encouragement, hope, help, advice, and the wisdom to let us know God and ourselves better.  It is not a dead book from an ancient world, but a living document meant for us today. 

The problem is that the Scriptures were not written specially to us.  They document the event of ages long past that the ancient reader would understand.  They contain historical events along with divine commentary.  Someone wrote the pages for someone else in history to receive.  So to understand them correctly requires the hard work of proper interpretation. 

A tension exists for anyone who wants to know God’s word. First, you must work to understand what the author originally meant before you can accurately apply it today. 

While writing this post, I took a quick scan of social media.  The good news is that I saw numerous verses of scripture shared by people of faith in various ways.  The bad news is that several of them were out of context and violated their intended meaning. 

I know we want to share our faith, but we need to be sure we are doing it the way God desires.  Our rush to apply it to our present circumstances may do more harm than good.  God wants us to know him, but there are rules to reading his word and understanding it properly for today. 

It happens to me regularly after a worship program where I have preached.  Someone will come up and say, “I enjoyed the message today.  I really wish (fill in the blank) would have been here.”  They tell me about their family member who is addicted or child who is straying from the faith, or a non-believer who needs a good dose of the truth. 

One natural response to hearing godly instruction is to think, “Who else should hear this?” If someone is challenged, inspired, and helped by a sermon, I think it is wonderful that they want other people to receive the same information. 

The problem occurs when we stop asking, “Who else should hear this?” and modify it to simply, “Who should hear this?”  While similar, it is an entirely different question. 

Some people come to Church not to change themselves but with the hope that others will change.  They think, “I hope my children will listen and not be so self-centered.”  Others contemplate how wonderful life would be if my spouse finally became godlier in their actions toward me.  We muse, “Work would be so much better if my coworker would finally stop being such a jerk.”  These people are no longer looking for anything in their life to change, yet they can clearly see where everyone else would benefit.

The first question of Bible reading, teaching, or preaching must always be, “How does this apply to me?”  Once you have put on your own oxygen mask, only then can you help the people around you. 

When I go to hotels, I don’t make the bed, clean the room, or care about how much water I use.  It is a one or two night dwelling that I do not own.  I am only a temporary user.  As a result, I don’t show any pride in my living space or sense of connection. 

My home is where I care about appearances.  I invest in keeping it nice with my time and energy.  It is my permanent dwelling. I take pride in how nice it looks and how well it is maintained. Home has emotional connections to the past and contains hopes for the future.  The old saying is that “Home is where the heart is.”    

The Bible teaches us that life here on earth is temporary, and our home is found in heaven.  Grasping that truth will radically change how we approach this life and the things here on earth. 

An old song states, “This world is not my home. I’m just passing through. My treasures are laid up somewhere beyond the blue.  The angels beckon me from heaven’s open door, and I can’t feel at home in this world anymore.”

You are a mess.  You sin and continue to choose sin.  This leaves you feeling guilt, shame, and remorse.  You are a failure who is flawed to your very core.  God laid out what he wanted from all of us, and everyone fell short.  All like sheep have gone astray.

You don’t need to be yourself.  Even the best version of you. It is terrible advice to tell someone, “Go be yourself,” or to say, “be true to yourself.”

You need to become like Jesus.  Christ living in you is the hope of glory.

The world doesn’t need you.  It doesn’t even need a better version of you.  People need to see Christ living through you.  He is the only human worth becoming.  He is what your life needs and the one for whom the world is searching.    

It is always easier to deal with the sin “out there” in the world than it is to deal with the evil “inside here.” The sins of others are easy to see, label, and offer suggestions for overcoming.

The difficulty of faith is to address the issues inside of our hearts.

Before you try to change someone else, take a long look in the mirror. The world needs fewer people trying to coach others into righteousness and more people trying to be righteous themselves.

Start making adjustments with the person in the mirror. That should keep you busy for a while.

People often mistake wishing to God as being the same as praying to God. 

A wish is defined as a desire to have something that will probably not happen.  Often, people dream of a particular outcome, so they wish upon God and hope it will happen.  They don’t expect it to occur, but it would be nice if it did. 

Prayer is a request presented to God that will further his work and worship here on earth.  A righteous person gives their needs to God and expects him to respond with power and grace. Therefore, prayer is rooted in trust and comes with a level of expectation. 

Save your wishes for birthdays and falling stars.  Believers are people who pray in faith.