from Pastor Ron Hutchcraft
One Christmas our kids gave my wife and me a pretty great compliment. They let us know they wanted us to live longer. Isn't that nice? The way they made their point was to chip in and buy us a treadmill. They put Hebrew words on there, "L'chaim - to life!" They figured it was good for our longevity to have a means of exercise that was convenient, all weather, and time-efficient. So since then I've been trying to put in my time on that old treadmill. I know it's doing some good, but it is frustrating for a man like me. I'm a man of action! I like progress. There's lots of motion, a lot of energy exerted, a lot of sweat, but after all that, you're in the same spot you were before all that. It just seems like you're not going anywhere!
I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Treadmill Syndrome."
Treadmill might be a good way to describe how you feel about your life right now. There's a lot of motion, a lot of energy expended, plenty of sweat, but maybe it doesn't feel like you're getting anywhere!
The reason might be in our word for today from the Word of God. The book of Haggai is probably not a book of the Bible you were discussing over breakfast. But it's a book for people like us, even though it was originally about God's ancient people. They had returned to Israel from years of forced exile. And in Jerusalem they found the great temple of God in ruins. God wanted them to rebuild it. They started, then they stopped. He sends the prophet Haggai to wake them up.
He describes the frustrations they've been experiencing in words that sounded a little like the treadmill syndrome. Haggai 1:5,
"Now this is what the Lord Almighty says: 'Give careful thought to your ways. You have planted much, but have harvested little. You eat, but never have enough. You drink, but never have your fill. You put on clothes, but are not warm. You earn wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in it."
Much activity - not much progress. Sound familiar? It's that feeling of knowing your life is very full but not very fulfilled.
Listen to God's diagnosis now in verse 9,
"You expected much, but see it turned out to be little. What you brought home, I blew away. Why?' declares the Lord Almighty. 'Because of My house, which remains a ruin, while each of you is busy with his own house."
Their lives were so full of their agenda they didn't have much left for God's agenda. Their stuff was doing fine, but the work and priorities of God were in shambles.
In verse 3, God asks a convicting question [color]"Is it a time for you yourselves to be living in your paneled houses, while this house remains a ruin?"[/color] Why all this activity and yet the feeling they're not going anywhere? Why were their lives full but not fulfilled? Priorities. It's what happens when our life is mostly self-focused when it comes to the things that really matter. It happens to really busy people like you and me, stressed people, successful people. It happens to people with a lot of pain. You start focusing on building your own kingdom or protecting your kingdom instead of building Jesus' kingdom.
Today God isn't building a temple. He's building a family.
Jesus said, "I will build My Church." And He was talking about rescuing lost people and developing them into His followers. That's what the number one priority is supposed to be for our time, our money, and our energy. But throughout God's kingdom, much of His work is hurting because "each of you is busy with his own house."
Jesus promised that all these other things would be added to you if you "seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness" (Matthew 6:33)
. It's time to make the things that matter most to Jesus the things that matter most to you.
In Haggai's day, when these people finally got the message; when they got busy on God's thing, He said, "From this day on I will bless you" (Haggai 2:19). I believe He'll do the same for you.
And you can finally trade that treadmill for a walk that's really going somewhere!
What wonderful truth and teaching from such an old book as Haggai. Still relevant to us today is it not?
Are you who are in churches more concerned about being seen and working on your own exalted position in the church instead of working on the project and directive GOD has already given US, HIS CHURCH to do, which is telling those who have not heard about the GREAT NEWS of ETERNAL LIFE through HIS SON JESUS???
We commonly call this the great commission, which in short says "go ye into all the world and preach the gospel".
We are COMMANDED by none other that JESUS CHRIST to go and share the glorious WORD that HE has come and given HIMSELF for them and paid the price for their sins if they will simply trust HIM as Savior.
We had a missionary at our Church Sunday. He spoke Sunday night and his presentation was riveting. I was convicted of being sometimes "dead" to the needs of people at other places here on earth but this man showed us all how much of what was the former Iron Curtain countries in Europe have never even had so much as a BIBLE to read or learn about GOD's love for them. An entire mass of human life who are curious but have no one to tell them or share the blessed truth that Jesus is the WAY, The Truth, and The Life!
Folks, we are here on earth to do one thing. That is to take the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the entire World. Will we by ourselves accomplish that? No.
But if believers from everywhere will get a fire and zeal in their hearts and ACT on that, then we can do great things for Christ.
I confess I am convicted inside and strongly contemplating whether I can go to help that Missionary over in Romania and in Prague next year for two weeks. To hand out invitations on a street corner to all who pass by to come to a meeting and receive your very own WHOLE Leather bound Bible in YOUR OWN language. But you have to come to claim it.
A large HALL is rented and hundreds come to listen to the missionary speak in their language and tell them of the Salvation of GOD through HIS DEAR SON JESUS CHRIST, who Loves them and gave HIMSELF for them.
Afterward, many have lots of questions about the BIBLE and want to be SHOWN in the BIBLE answers to their questions. hundreds accept CHRIST as Savior and their names written down in the Lamb's BOOK of LIFE.
OUR duty is to give out the WORD and POINT them to JESUS. The HOLY SPIRIT will draw them to CHRIST.
Pray about what more could YOU possibly do to tell others in the city or community you live in about a Savior who loves them and died for them so that they too may live with HIM forever in a place we call Heaven, and the Bible calls the city of New Jerusalem!
May God bless you as you labor for Jesus wherever you may be!
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