Monday Memo

by Steve May

I saw a report recently on Brasilian TV that was filmed on a lake in the western state of Rondonia. The report featured a type of fish that jumps out of the water, something like dolphins do. What made the video interesting is that a number of fish ended up jumping into the boat. [see below]

It’s a unique concept in fishing: take a boat out in the water and wait for the fish to jump in. It beats spending the morning cutting bait, I suppose.

I think this is the strategy that many churches use. They know that Jesus said he would make us fishers of men, but they prefer to catch people who are like the flying carp in the Amazon.

Fish that just jump in the boat unbidden are phenomenally uncommon; so are people who show up at church without having been reached in some way.

If you want to fill the seats of your church with changed lives, you need to cast your net into the city you serve. Cast it deep and cast it deep wide. Cast it one side of the boat and then the other, until it comes up full. “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.” (Mark 1:17) The lost aren’t coming to us. We need to go to them. — SM

[In researching this, I found an edited version of the same video that I saw on TV. It's about two and half minutes long,  but you get the point after about a minute.]

What would you do if you knew you had only week to live? Would you go away? Would you go home? Would you do some last minute sinning, or some last minute repenting? Would you be sad? Angry? Hopeful? Afraid? How would you spend those final hours?

Jesus knew that the time had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he now showed them the full extent of his love. (John 13:1)

When Jesus had one week to live, he chose to wash his disciples’ feet. He did the work of a common slave, ministering to those who were closest to him. He washed their feet (John 13), he comforted them (John 14), he encouraged them (John 15-16), prayed for them (John 17), and then he died for them. He spent the last week of his life fulfilling his purpose; he spent the last week of his life being a servant.

…the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many. (Matthew 20:28)

You and me, we have a week to live: this week — and probably hundreds more. I want to spend this week fulfilling my purpose, doing that which is most important in terms of eternity: serving Christ by serving others.  — SM

Truett Cathy (founder of Chic-fil-A) once said, “How do you identify someone who needs encouragement? Answer: That person is breathing.”

You can be sure that every person you encounter today will benefit from a good word. You may not be able to solve their problems, but you can give them a little extra fuel for their journey.

How do you offer encouragement? Here are a handful of suggestions.

Remember that you can’t give encouragement when you’re talking about yourself. Especially when you’re talking about your problems. Sometimes we try to give others a little perspective on their problems by telling them how bad ours are. It doesn’t help.

Point out what they’re doing right. They probably already know what isn’t working, and they probably already know what they’re doing wrong. Tell them what is working. Tell them something good about themselves. Don’t worry, they won’t get big-headed about it.

Tell them what you see for them in the future. Tell them how things can be. Remind them of what God can do, how he can transform any situation for his glory, how he can transform any person into the image of Christ, how he can use anyone to accomplish his purpose.

Give them an example. An example other than yourself, that is. Tell them about a friend who had a similar problem and was able to overcome it. Or how a business leader dealt with adversity. Or how another Christian’s perseverance ultimately paid off. Tell them a story that will give them hope.

Offer to help them fine-tune their strategy. When you say, “If you ever want feedback on anything, I’m here to give it,” they will probably come to you for feedback — if they sense your sincerity. It is then that you can ever-so-gently point out the things they’re doing wrong. It is then that you can help them improve their approach and correct their mistakes.

Just remember, first they need encouragement.

Isaiah said, “Encourage the exhausted, and strengthen the feeble. Say to those with an anxious heart, ‘Take courage, fear not. Behold your God will come with vengeance; the recompense of God will come, but he will save you.’” (Isaiah 35:3-4)

— SM

In the gospel of John Jesus said, “All those who want to be my disciples must come and follow me, because my servants must be where I am.”

This phrase caught my attention: “My servants must be where I am.”

I realize that most of the time I’m asking Jesus to be where I am. Here, he’s asking me to be where he is … that is, to go where he goes.

Where does Jesus go? We learn from the gospels that he goes to the lonely, the hurt, and the oppressed. He’s with those struggling with defeat and yearning for victory. He’s with those who have nowhere else to turn.

And that’s where he wants us to be.

We are “where he is” when we encourage the discouraged. We go where he goes when we reach out to the disenchanted and the disenfranchised, when we express love, mercy and compassion to others. This is what Mother Teresa referred to as reaching out to Christ “in all his distressing disguises.”

Jesus reminded us, “I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.” (Matthew 25:40)

He is waiting to meet you today, sometimes in a distressing disguise. Look for opportunities today to express his love and to reveal his grace. — SM