Tuesday, May 9, 2017

Your Reward

     “O LORD, You are the portion of my inheritance and my cup; You maintain my lot. The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places; Yes, I have a good inheritance. I will bless the LORD who has given me counsel; My heart also instructs me in the night seasons. I have set the LORD always before me; Because He is at my right hand I shall not be moved. Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoices; My flesh also will rest in hope.  Psalms 16:5-9 NKJV

     I remember when I first became a Christian being so excited about knowing Jesus and having my sins forgiven.  I was just so stoked reading the Bible and praying, just spending time with the Lord.  Over time I started setting goals, "Christian goals" of course.  I had in my mind what the Christian life should look like and I set out after those goals.  I sensed the call to the ministry, so pursued further education to that end.  Along the way, the Lord provided another one of the objectives, being married to an incredible Christian wife.  Ministry had its ups and downs, and in my mind I never achieved what I thought was the will of God for everyone in ministry.  After all, isn't God glorified more in larger successful ministries.  And seeing such examples at pastors' conferences, solidified that perspective in my mind.  I spent many years looking for the secret that I must be missing somewhere to guarantee what I thought was ministry success.  Isn't that the reward for faithfully serving the Lord for all these years.
     The Lord has an incredible way of teaching you the things that you cannot get from any other source.  We can even read the Scriptures in such a myopic fashion that we don't see what He has plainly written on the pages before us.  Then, the Spirit of God takes the Word of God and uses our circumstances to teach us the things that we could never really learn by academic means alone.  God had begun an incredible work in Abram's life.  He had called him out of Ur and brought him into the land that He had promised him.  He gave him victory over five kings, when he went to rescue his nephew Lot.  Abram refused the reward of the King of Sodom, not wanting credit for his blessing to go to a man.  The patriarch had to be wondering if those kings he had defeated in a surprise attack would now come for him.  There are many things that we can run through our minds as we look at our circumstances, and wonder what is next.  Knowing what was in Abram's heart, God came to him in a vision and said, "Do not be afraid, Abram, I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward" (Genesis 15:1).
     We can get so caught up in looking at evidence of temporary blessing, that we miss what God would give us above all else.  We look for things, but He would give us Himself.  I must grow in the understanding that, when I have Jesus, I have everything that really matters.  I really don't need anything else.  Anything else He may choose to bless me with is simply gracious gravy.  As I come to see Him as my inheritance I can actually enjoy whatever He chooses to give me more fully, because they are put in their proper perspective.
     Have you discovered your true reward?

Pastor Chris