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Philippians 4:5-7

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Pinkies are particularly powerful parts of your person. Try saying that seven times! I recently had my very first surgery. My pinkie was injured a few months ago while playing basketball. I thought it was a serious finger jam, but two months later I was still in pain. An x-ray revealed the problem, a serious dislocation. Since it had been dislocated for over two months, it was beyond normal repair. They knocked me out, fused some joints together, and put a pin into the end of my pinkie. What fun!

     This whole ordeal made me realize the power of the pinkie. A pinkie is an important part of the hand. It is hard to imagine having a hand with only four fingers. The pinkie helps you make a fist, throw a ball, and write, for instance. Though it is important, we tend to take it for granted. When is the last time you looked at your pinkie and thought, “Wow I am so glad I have a pinkie?” You never think about it until it is injured. It is small and way under appreciated. I now appreciate my precious pinkies.

     Life is full of spiritual lessons, even pinkie surgeries. What can we learn from these tiny digits? The apostle Paul describes the church as a body. He writes, in 1 Corinthians 12:12, “For even as the body is one and yet has many members, and all the members of the body, though they are many, are one body, so also is Christ.” Just like a human body, a church is made up of different parts. Like a body, we rely upon one another and must stay united as one.

     Some  in the church are heads, shoulders, knee caps, and elbows. Some are pinkies. You may seem small or weak. Your service to the Lord may not be visible to all. You may not have a title or serve on a committee. People may overlook you and even take you for granted. You are needed. You are an important part in your church. You play a larger role than you realize. Sorry you have been taken for granted. Thanks for all you do. Here’s to “Pinkie Power!”

Painting is no fun, not to me anyway. However, painting is full of life lessons. I had to do a little drywall patchwork in a room at my house recently. I did the patchwork and put on a coat of paint. It looked awful. You could see all the blemishes and imperfections of my patchwork. I thought, “Goodness I need to improve my drywall skills!” I put another coat on, and the wall looked much better. Then I put on a third coat. The more paint I added, the better the wall looked. You could hardly see any of the wall’s imperfections.

All of a sudden God reminded me of something. Our lives are like that wall. We are full of blemishes and imperfections, especially when we first come to know Christ. When people first get saved we expect them to be mature in the faith, but they are still babes in Christ. God has just put on the first coat of paint. It takes time to grow in the faith. It takes time to be like Christ. It takes time to work out our salvation with fear and trembling. In time, a second coat of paint is added, then a third and fourth. Before you know it, the person looks more and more like Christ.

God is actively at work in our lives. He uses trials, tribulations, people, and the spiritual disciplines to add more and more coats of paint. No one will ever be perfect. We will never be without imperfections, but the more we grow in the faith, the more our lives will shine for Jesus. God is creating a masterpiece, but it takes time. I am reminded of a song I sang as a child, “It took Him just week to make the moon and the stars, the sun and the earth, and Jupiter and Mars. How loving and patient He must be, He’s still working on me.” We could add, “He’s still painting on me!” Let’s all strive to be like Jesus, but let’s also be patient with one another. We are all still a work in progress.

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Lori and I have been married for 20 years! We celebrated this achievement on July 8. I want to share 20 Observations from 20 years of marriage:

1. We didn’t really understand marriage until after we got married.
2. God is the glue that has kept us together.
3. We have enjoyed far more blessings than we have imagined.
4. We have endured far more trials than we have imagined.
5. Love grows deeper with time and experience.
6. Good communication is important, but not easy.
7. The hard times have drawn us closer to one another and to Christ.
8. Divorce has never been a part of our vocabulary.
9. Life is full of surprises, good and bad.
10. Praying together is a blessing, but not easy.
11. A good marriage is hard work.
12. A good fight/disagreement every now and then is a healthy thing.
13. We still go out on dates, hold hands, and are truly in love.
14. We are blessed to be one another’s best friend.
15. Neither one of us has spent a night on the couch because we were mad at each other.
16. A good sense of humor makes life a lot easier.
17. People are inspired and encouraged by healthy and long-lasting marriages.
18. Love is more than a feeling, it is sacrificing yourself for the betterment of your spouse.
19. It is good to know your spouse is always there for you no matter what.
20. God was so right when He said it is not good for man to be alone!

What lessons have you learned from your marriage? What lessons do you need to pass on to your children and grandchildren? I hope and pray Lori and I enjoy 20 more years of marriage. It is truly a gift from God.

I love Diet Cokes. I don’t drink them every day, but I enjoy them often. Diet Cokes are a substitute for the real deal, Coke Classic. They taste somewhat like Coke, but are not really Coke. Some are okay with that, just enough to quench their thirsts. Diet Coke, though it tastes good and seems good, is not good for you at all. Some studies show they cause more weight gain than regular Cokes.

Have you ever noticed how some people justify their bad eating habits because they drink Diet Coke? They reason, “I am drinking a Diet Coke, so I can eat two cheeseburgers instead of one. I can eat a large fry and a shake now.” “I didn’t get a real Coke, so I can eat those donuts.” Diet Coke, though it appears to be a good thing, is actually not that good at all.

People treat God like Diet Coke. Some people have substituted God for something else. Instead of the real God of the Bible, they fashion God into their personal whims and wishes. They “diet” Him down. Their idea of God is somewhat like God, but not the real thing. For some, they are satisfied with just a taste of God. If they get God on Sunday, that is all they need. They are fine the rest of the week, or so they think.

Then you have some that justify their lifestyle based on their “relationship” with God. They reason, “I can sin because I know God will forgive me.” “I go to church on Sunday, so I can live however I want to the rest of the week.” All of these are lies of course. There is only one God. You cannot substitute Him for something else. You cannot live on just a taste of God. You cannot live anyway you want just because you come to church or are somehow connected to God and religion.

A Diet God is no God at all. A Diet God doesn’t satisfy, nor is it good for you. Go to the real God. Seek Him. Enjoy Him. Make Him known.

Philippians 1:3-8

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You can make a difference in someone’s life. Just remember the power of one. One vote can change an election. One Bible verse can change a life. One smile can change an attitude. One dollar can help the impoverished in Africa. Sometimes we think we can’t make a real difference in the world. We are just one person. We are a mom, or a dad, or a child. We don’t have the time or resources to do much. God can make much of what seems so little. You may not have time to do a lot, but you can muster the energy to do one thing. Here are a few examples:

• Send your friend one e-mail to encourage her
• Start giving one dollar to those in need
• Smile to at least one person a day
• Go on at least one mission trip in your life
• Be a part of at least one ministry in our church
• Care for at least one widow or orphan
• Encourage at least one person at work today
• Pray for at least one person in need
• Invite one person to church next Sunday
• Meditate on at least one Bible verse a day
• Pray with your family for one minute per day
• Send a thank you card to one person today

I thought of the power of one recently. Someone was in need. I sent a brief e-mail with a prayer. It took me all of one minute to do. It was a great encouragement to the person and to myself. I thought, “I can do more of this. I can do one small act that yields big rewards.” You can do the same. This does not excuse us from doing more than one thing. It does; however, encourage us to make a real difference in the world, one small act at a time. Put aside your excuses. Put aside your fears. Put together an action plan. What is one thing you can do? Who is the one person you want to help? How can God utilize the power of one in your life?