How do You Keep Your Job From Becoming a Waste of Time?

People do a lot of things and hope for success. They use tools and formulas to measure the success or progress of their projects and work. Such metrics and algorithms are important but do they measure the one most essential qualifier of success?

Unless the LORD builds the house, the builders labor in vain. Unless the LORD watches over the city, the guards stand watch in vain. Psalm 127:1  

ONE SCRIPTURE WITH MULTIPLE MEANINGS

This scripture is poetry and metaphor and has more than one interpretation. People interpret this scripture to refer to the building of the temple and the Lord's watchfulness over Jerusalem. Other people thank this scripture refers to the building of His kingdom or of building up the church, and of watching over the morals of society. 

These are beautiful things to think about and talk about. Still, the problem for many of us is that it becomes academic and ethereal. Isn't it better to approach scripture by asking oneself how this verse applies to my life and my understanding of God and the universe, and how do I make it work for me?

Psalm 127:1

At the heart of this verse is the expression of faith and dependence on God. It is a realization of our limits and His sovereignty. 

WHY LABORERS AND GUARDS?

Is there something special about the builders and guards that the scripture singles them out? 

There are many things that the Lord has called people of faith to do. There are commands to obey and principles to follow. Things like sharing our faith, loving our neighbors, being good stewards, worshipping Him, and more. 

We must labor for the Lord. All work is worship (Colossians 3:23-24. Genesis 2:15, Adam was put in The Garden of Eden to serve as a gardener, which sanctifies work and makes it worship).   

We are all called to be laborers for God's kingdom. Not every one of us can be a missionary or a church leader, but wherever we are and whatever we do, we are called to live for him. 

DONT FIRE THE WORKERS OR DISMISS THE GUARDS

You are wrong to say, "Well, God is going to do it all so I can just go home and relax." Scripture assumes that there are workers and there will be workers. The verse takes it for granted that there are guards, and there will be guards. 

WHOSE HOUSE ARE YOU BUILDING? 

We need to be building up God's kingdom, not our own. We need to be building His house, not our own interest. 

• We need to be sure that the things we do are in line with His purposes. 
• We need to be diligent in examining our motives and desires. 
• We need the attitude of seeking God in what we do. 
• We need to pray and ask God to show us where He wants us to watch and work.
• We need to acknowledge that God is the one who makes the labor meaningful, successful, and righteous. 

SO, ARE YOU WORKING WITH GOD OR AGAINST GOD?

Since God is the Master Builder and the Captian of the guard, we need to see Him as the One who is over every task we do. You can say If God isn't the boss and giver of success, then my work is vain.

• What if we extended this verse and said, If God isn't the Chief Executive Officer, then our work is in vain. 
• If you are an engineer, you can say if God isn't doing the engineering, then my work is in vain. 
• If you are a janitor, you can say if God isn't the one doing the cleaning, then my work is in vain.
• If you are a dog walker, you can say, if God isn't the one walking this dog, then my work is in vain. 

When we, with the acknowledgment of His sufficiency and confession of our weakness, look to him in faith as the God of the work, then we will not be working in vain.

Blessings

(c) Adron Dozat 7/19/2021

To see some Psalm 127:1 art CLICK HERE. for a notebook or CLICK HERE for a print. 

Why Do So Many Christians Fail to Have a Life of Blessing? Matthew 4:19

In many of Christ's teachings are statements that his followers would be blessed and be a blessing to the world.  Why do so many people try to follow him but fail to live the same joyful and purposeful life of blessing?

Maybe we need to read a little between the lines of what he said.

"Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will send you out to fish for people." Matthew 4:19

COME

Jesus used the word "come" a lot. If you take a few minutes and look it up you will see he was always inviting people. Many people, however, get the wrong idea of what his invitation is about. He did not invite them to an organization, institution, religion, philosophy, movement, or any of the things we think of when we associate Jesus with the popular definitions. He said come but come to what? 

Matthew 4:19

FOLLOW ME

He invites us to himself. He calls us to know and experience him. But to know and experience him is empty without the following of him. We must know his teaching and his way, but more than that, we must be those who do what he taught. We must enact or practice the daily habit of putting him in our lives by obedience to him and knowing him. 

AND I WILL

The results or blessings of following him do not come from something we do but from something he does. We do not make our lives a blessing- he does. We don't make our own purpose; he does. Our religion does not fulfill us- he does. Our church does not give us meaning; he does. It is crazy, but it is all about him. 

SEND YOU OUT TO FISH FOR PEOPLE

This is a promise, but it is open-ended and not directly defined. It tells first, of God's activity in our lives, but this promise is not for a blessing but for labor. Fishing for others is not a self-focused activity: it is intensely other-centered. 

Fish for people is not specific. It may be a work among the poor or the marginalized people it may be reaching out to the sickly or refugees. It may be working among prisoners. It may be meals for the elderly. It may be the many traditional expressions of faith and service, such as preaching and teaching his Word. 

As there are many types of fish in the sea, so there are many answers to what fishing for people means. It is not even our determination because he said, "I will make you," so Jesus is the one who enables us to fish for men, and he is the one who defines for each of us what manner of fishing we do.

If we try to build or create our own blessing by following rules or some self-energized activity, we are going to be disappointed. If we give it all up and just focus on coming to Jesus every day and hour and focus on following him every day and every hour, then we will experience him in our lives. He will make us become a blessing to others. There is no guarantee that you will be blessed or fulfilled but you will have something greater; you will experience the works of Jesus in and through you. 

Blessings. 

A.E. Dozat © 11/10/20

What Should the Church be in These New Difficult Times?

Our world is changing and people are rethinking what the church is to be.  

When we think about the church we have many tools and resources available today to help us define it and give it expression and direction, but suppose we looked at what Jesus said instead? Shouldn't his words guide us?

Luke 19:46 says,

"It is written," he said to them, "'My house will be a house of prayer'; but you have made it 'a den of robbers.'" Luke 19:46. See also Matthew 21:13 and Mark 11:17, (The passage in Mark adds, "...prayer for all the nations...").

Every word of the Bible is sacred and to be dutifully obeyed, but how much more important is it to obey when something is repeated three times!  These are the things we really want to be careful about. 

The verse we are considering is from the account of the cleansing of the temple. Where Jesus turned over the tables of the money changers and used a whip of cords to drive the animals from the temple. 

WHAT WAS IT LIKE?

The worshipper traveled for days to the temple and offer sacrifices. But when he arrives he is told that the lamb he brought to offer is inadequate and he must buy a sheep from the temple merchants at an inflated price. He may have to sell the lamb he brought at less than its fair value. He may be told that the money he was bringing was not good enough for the temple and he had to exchange it for temple coin and to do so cost a percentage. This experience at the very least would distract him, it would very likely take the joy out of his worship, and maybe destroy the worship he was going to offer. 

DEN OF ROBBERS

Who were the robbers? Most people assume that Christ is talking about how the moneychangers were taking advantage of the worshippers that came to offer sacrifices and worship. Some people might argue that the robbers were the authorities who were allowing it to happen and they were profiting by it. Other people may say the leaders were the robbers by taking advantage of the people who came to serve God and worship and enriching themselves through religion. Those are valid interpretations but what if there is another?

Who was being robbed? What if the question about who is being robbed is answered by connecting the two statements together? For a moment let's connect the robbery statement to the statement of prayer like Jesus did.  This would mean that the robbery Jesus was talking about wasn't the swindling of the worshippers by the money changers but the robbery of prayer to the Almighty!

CAN GOD BE ROBBED?

It would be foolish to rob a cop, and more foolish to rob a prosecuting attorney and it would be even more foolish to rob the only judge in your town, but there is no greater foolishness than to rob God who is the judge of heaven and earth.

So, can God be robbed? YES! Malachi 3;8-9 says, Will a mere mortal rob God? Yet you rob me. “But you ask, ‘How are we robbing you?’ “In tithes and offerings. You are under a curse—your whole nation—because you are robbing me.

If God can be robbed because we fail to give Him the offerings and tithes, it is only a step away to rob Him by neglecting prayer.

Malachi 3:8-9

ARE WE THE ROBBERS?

When we fail to pray for others we may be keeping the Blessings of God from them. Perhaps we are robbing the nations when the church is no longer a place where they are prayed for. 

For all the hours we spend in church services, we only spend a few minutes in prayer and those minutes are often defined and consumed by prayer requests and little actual praying.

If there is one clear example from the teaching and actions of Jesus in this matter it is that the church is to be a community of prayer for the nations-our own and all others. (Of course not to neglect the other clear commands of scripture to love one another, assemble together, the lord's supper etc.)  

MY HOUSE WILL BE...

As we consider what the church is and does we should remember that it was Jesus who connected the idea of prayer for the nations and the statement about robbers. Sadly it is a statement of judgment and condemnation. His actions of cleansing the temple are actions of holy zeal for the temple and the purity of worship. We should take note of it or else we may see him do the same to the church 

today. 

If you want to rethink what church is start with reassessing the foundational place of prayer in church. Do not be surprised if from the foundation of prayer the other things that the church should be occurfes spontaneously.

 

(c)Adron Dozat 

What Should be a Christian's Political Point of View?

Is there a Biblical political point of view?

As a Christin, should I be a Republican, a Democrat, a Capitalists, a Socialist, or is there another that is closer to the Biblical point of view?

We Christians should live our lives in the sight of a loving God, yet one who is righteous and holy. When we try to put Him in our decisions, then we are often forced to ask ourselves difficult questions. But God's Word gives some direction, though not always clear answers. 

I know very little about what a Capitalist is, or a Socialist is, or any of those other political-economic ideals. But I know Jesus taught a lot about how to live life. And one of the things that stands out to me lately is the parable of the talents. Matthew 25:14-30.

Here is a link to where you can read it. I recommend that you do. 

In the parable, the ruler leaves on a journey and entrusts three servants with three different sums of money, and upon his return, he requires accounting for the management of those sums. The ones who respected him handled the sums well had doubled the amount. The third did not take responsibility and hid his in the ground and gave back the money to the ruler. The king rewarded the ones who were wise and punished the one that did nothing.

The story is about fearing God and being good stewards,  and it ends with the ruler judging all three and either rewarding or punishing the servants.  (I believe God is love- but you must remember He is holy and just).

The sums can represent anything, your material blessings, your wealth, your talents, your freedoms, your citizenship, and your vote.

I tried to read the Wikipedia article on capitalism, and it was long and complicated. So my limited understanding is that a capitalist says, "I earned it, it is mine, and I answer to no one for it." Of course, that is an oversimplified summary; but if it represents the foundation of the capitalist view, then I cannot be a capitalist because what I have is a gift from God and not the fruit of my own will. I must answer to God for it. That means tI should use the blessings He gives as He would have me use them, not as I would use them.  In short, I am to use these blessings that He has entrusted me with to obey God and to activity love my neighbor. 

I went to Wikipedia to try and learn about socialism. It is confusing,  Socialism seems to be many things and different groups have different interpretations of what socialism means. My basic understanding of the socialist view is, that no man lives unto himself, we are all one, so what is mine is yours and what is yours is mine. A Socialist should collectivity use his gifts for all. Again, this is oversimplified. But if it is a correct summary of the socialist's view then I cannot be a socialist because I personally must answer to God for how I use His gifts. I cannot surrender my responsibility to the collective. I admit I do not understand how Socialist and progressives get things done but it seems they must arrive at some common ground, but that ground may not agree with my understanding of God's command to love my neighbor. So I cannot be a socialist. I am mindful of the third servant in Jesus' parable I do not want to be judged like him. I must remember that I will answer to God for how I used the gift He gives me.  

I can make a long list of why I cannot be a member of this party or that, and no one would read it except to argue.  

The story of the ruler who entrusted his servants with different sums makes me think about fearing God and being a good steward. The parable ends with the ruler judging all three and either rewarding or punishing the servants.  (I believe God is love- but remember He is holy and just). 

When God gives these blessings, He still requires an accounting because we are stewards. If I may coin a phrase, we are DIVINE STEWARDS, because He who is divine has made us stewards.

I am responsible for the gifts God has given me. As a steward, I must become more educated and informed and use those gifts to further His cause of loving my brother. I cannot accept blindly what any party says because I am answerable to God- not to a group or a party. This responsibility of stewardship is not for the lazy of mind or weak of will. It means I have to work to know the truth about charities, institutions, people, and causes. I may, with a good conscience, support institutions, and non-profits that are either conservative or progressive. I can never say that there is a program that is supported by the conservative community (or progressive),  and I am a conservative (or progressive), so I will automatically give my support to it without researching it. In every case, as a steward, I must learn the answer to the question, "Is this the best use of God's blessings, and will it show His love to my brother?"

If anybody asks me if I am a Conservative or a Progressive, I say that I am neither. I have chosen the third view, and so I am a Divine Steward.  

(c)Adron Dozat 

Why We Must continue to Trust God Psalm 37:3

People say to trust the Lord but do those words still have meaning?

"Trust in the LORD and do what is good; dwell in the land and live securely." Psalm 37:3.

TRUST

We often hear that we should trust in the Lord, but maybe the frequent reminders have become a disservice to us because we have stopped thinking hard about it. We are self-reliant or reliant upon government or social structures like insurance or economics, so the trust in God that other generations practiced are foreign even humorous to us today.

We must renew our vision of God and of the practice of trusting in Him.

IN THE LORD

Trust in God Psalm 37:3

Your faith is only as good as the thing or person you have faith in. If you are driving a truck across an old bridge that is held up with rotting timbers you can have a lot of faith but the timbers are still rotting and the heavy truck will collapse the bridge because the bridge was not worth your faith. You can walk across a new iron and concrete bridge and be full of doubts and even though your faith in that bridge is weak if you have enough to go across it will be sufficient because the bridge is strong. You can trust the Lord, He is God, the creator, and sustainer of the universe, He has all power, all knowledge, and all wisdom. Trust in him is never misplaced.

DO WHAT IS GOOD

Faith and trust in God are not a nice feeling it is something that must be expressed in actions. The faith in the bridge is meaningless until you step onto the bridge. We express our faith in God by obedience to Him. Many agree that mankind, in general, should do what is good, and we all have many reasons, but God is honored when our good acts are expressions of faith in Him.

DWELL IN THE LAND
There is a promise associated with trusting God. This verse was written in a time when empires conquered and enslaved kingdoms then deported the best people to serve the empire. It was a common fear that a person would be separated by slavery and taken from family, country, and culture. The threat was real so this promise was great hope.

LIVE SECURELY
To live securely would be without fear of bandits, conquest, famine or oppression from your own king. Like ancient times we live in an uncertain world, but there is one thing we can be certain of and that is God, He never changes and He is forever good. When we trust in Him we make Him our security.

(c)Adron Dozat 4/6/2018

Can We Be Close to Jesus Like His Disciples Were? Matthew 12:49-50

Wouldn't it have been wonderful to walk with Jesus as he traveled over the Judean countryside, just to be intimate and close to the Lord and really know him? Too bad those days are gone, but according to the words of Christ it is possible to us today.

"And stretching out his hand toward his disciples, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers!  For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.” Matthew 12:49-50

CONTEXT
Jesus said this after being told his mother and brothers were waiting to see him but they were unable to approach because of the crowds.

You would have thought the response would be for Christ to jump up and go to his family since scripture teaches we are to care for our family. But it was more important that he use the moment for teaching to his greater family, about a greater extended family of greater intimacy.

AND STRETCHING OUT HIS HAND
A strange and small detail but this gesture is recorded for a reason. It shows many things.

• He was personable. That gesture is one any of us might make.
• It was a powerful communication to those he gestured to; imagine how they must have felt to see the Lord pointing to them as he declared they were his family.
• It is a detail that an observant journalist would report; this detail proves the account believable.
• The gesture makes his meaning unmistakable.

TOWARD HIS DISCIPLES
At first one would think Jesus meant the twelve but he gestured to all. His statement was inclusive and not just the twelve. If it included the crowded house of that day it must also include the crowded world of today.

HERE ARE MY MOTHER AND MY BROTHERS
Did you ever want to be one of Christ's disciples, what about being his brother or sister? In this statement, our Lord says, "Yes you are my brother my sister...."

FOR WHOEVER
The whoever in this verse is you and me. Not just some super saint, or priest, or seminary graduate but any guy on the street can by obedience to the Father become accounted as a brother or sister.

DOES THE WILL
We use the word, does, as an action word it is a word of work, doing and moving. Doing the will of the father is not about sitting in church on Sunday but more. We have to know His will and that means knowing His Word then we have to be obedient to its teaching.

INVITATION
To declare the possibility of kinship with Jesus by obeying the father is an invitation, it is saying the door to intimacy with Jesus is open.  But do we do God's will? The Bible offers many verses about God's will.  Here are just a few for you to start with.

• 1 Thessalonians 5:18, Give thanks.
• 1 Thessalonians 4:3, Be sanctified.
• 1 Peter 2:15, Do good.
• 2 Peter 3:9, For none to perish.
• Micah 6:8, Walk Humbly.

If you want to learn more about having the light of Jesus in your life follow THIS LINK.

(c) Adron 12/25/17

Is There Something Dangerous About Jesus' Teaching?

Is there something that is dangerous about the teaching of Jesus? He himself warns that there is in John 12:35.

"Then Jesus told them, “You are going to have the light just a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, before darkness overtakes you. Whoever walks in the dark does not know where they are going." John 12:35, NIV

JUST A LITTLE WHILE LONGER
This is a temporary world, and our lives here are temporary. Although the one who believes in Christ is eternally secure, which means that salvation cannot be lost, the opportunity to be the light in this world is only for a short time.

WALK WHILE YOU HAVE THE LIGHT
Jesus used the word walk to describe the totality of life. Walking is one of the most common activities of a healthy human being. It is a metaphor for the travel through our lives to the destination we all face at the end.

THE LIGHT
You may hear a powerful and convicting sermon, or go on a wonderful mountain-top retreat or participate in an eye-opening mission service but if the lessons you learned from God in those times are not lived out every day thereafter they will wither away inside you and instead of being a blessing become a weight holding you back in every area of your life.

The phrase, while you have the light, suggests these blessed truths will not always be there or that we are in danger of losing it at any time. In the context of John 12:35, the disciples must have thought that Jesus was referring to his death when His light would be taken then, but we must all take warning to live the truths we have been given.

WHOEVER WALKS IN THE DARK
Many people fail to be true to the light of Jesus' teaching. They have little understanding, mix it all up, and hurt people in the name of God. They wander in the dark and cause others to stumble after them.

Neglecting the teaching we have received is dangerous. If we fail to live out the light we have been given, that light will become darkness inside us. We must all be diligent about staying in the light of Christ's teaching and practically living that light.


If you want to learn more about having the light of Jesus in your life follow THIS LINK.

(c)Adron Dozat 8/31/17 

Can We Wear Out God's Love? Psalm 103:11

Is there a limit to God's love? 

A child may ask how much do you love me and it is cute but the question is a serious one when we become adults, especially regarding God.

"For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him;" Psalm 103:11.

HIGH

We are earthbound and any reference to height, no matter if it is the top of a ladder, a building, a mountain or the heavens makes us aware of our smallness.

High as a term of measurement is unique because most other measures have limits of some sort or they change at some point such as measuring light, sound, or heat, but if Earth is a starting point and you go up you keep on going up without changing the nature of going up.

HEAVENS

It is interesting that the word Heaven is used and not sky or universe. The idea of sky or universe suggests limits but the heavens are outside our limits and this extends the concept of something that is far beyond measure.

This makes the measurement to be measureless. The expanding universe has no bounds so the direction of up or high does not have a stopping point, so we understand that there are no boundaries to God's love it is infinite

SO GREAT
With the words, "so great," the verse moves to compare the infinite measure of "ultimate up" to God's love.

These two words suggest the equality of the next subject. The psalmist could have used some other comparative term like, just as, or is the same way, or just so measureless but to say "so great" not only gives the sense of equality but a value of importance, and awesome wonder.

HIS LOVE
God is a God of love, but since it is His love it is unlike anything we know, we really have nothing to compare it to and any attempts to find a similar experience of love in human experience will fall laughably short.

FOR THOSE WHO FEAR HIM
This verse speaks lastly about our relationship with God.

To fear God is not contradictory to loving God but it is the realization of His holiness that we start to understand when we come to know Him. If you know Him you begin to respect and reverence Him.

The proof of God's love is not in words but in actions. The Apostle Paul points out that "God demonstrates his love for us in this in that while we were sinners Christ died for us." Romans 5:8. God's love for us is more than a positive feeling toward us. It is a love that acts- God loved us and died to pay for our sins. Our sin is the only barrier to God's love and He took care of that at Calvary on the cross.

 The world is divided into those who know and fear God and those who do not know God. If you are not confident that you are one of those who know God then CLICK HERE to read my other post about salvation.

(c)Adron Dozat 7/1/17

What is the one thing people need to know about you? Galatians 6:14

If there was one thing that you wanted people to know about you what would it be?  You can tell by what you boast about.

"May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world." Galatians 6:14

We tend to boast either intentionally or unintentionally about those things that we think are important. They are the things that we feel others must know about us.  These things make us feel important. When we boast about something it usually is to communicate that this is a thing that we are particularly identified with and that we feel is important for others to know,

MAY

Galatians 6:14 Begins with the word May. Its use can be wishful thinking or resolve.  It can mean to let something happen as if to create the circumstances that allow something to occur, or it can be to intentionally remove the obstacles from the path of this happening. In the context, it appears that the Apostle is speaking in a resolute manner.

NEVER
Here, the word never gives the sense that he is resolved and committed to a course of action.  This is the idea of not giving any opportunity to boasting in the wrong thing.

BOAST

We generally look down on boasting as being a shallow and self-absorbed activity.  If the Apostle is boasting about himself that would be a correct conclusion; however, there is a sense of boasting that is not vain, when it is giving objective and correct information.

CROSS

We in our modern times have romanticized the cross but in the days of the Roman Empire, it was a shameful and torturous death for the worst offenders.  In Paul's day, no one would have worn a cross as a piece of jewelry- it was considered ugly.

CRUCIFIED

The past tense of this is that something has happened. The apostle is declaring that he is dead to the world and the world is dead to him.  Something that is dead has no ability to respond or react to its environment or to stimulation.

THE WORLD HAS BEEN
Another past tense statement, where the Apostle is saying, "It is over," he sees the world, the kingdoms of man, as dead to him.

Since he is dead to the world, there is nothing in the world that has or stimulates the apostle: nothing draws his affections or attention.

His boasting is not about anything he has done but about an event that occurred by the hand of God.  His message is that God has worked a marvel in his life to change him and his values; it was done through the death of Christ on the cross on his behalf.

If you are interested in knowing more about how you can have a new beginning in Christ follow this link to learn more.

(c) Adron 4/26/17

Why Is It Important To Believe That God Lives Forever? Psalm 102:27

What does it mean that God lives forever, and how is it important to me that He does?

"But you remain the same, and your years will never end." Psalm 102:27.

YOU
Who is this one we call God? He is the All-mighty, the Creator, the Lord Of All, He is the All-powerful-one, He is the one who saw us from the beginning of time and loved us.  He is God whom we can call on with confidence.

REMAIN
Something that remains is the thing that is left when all other things are taken away. If you took away all that was unimportant and all that was temporary, you would be left with God.

THE SAME
God does not change. He must remain the same, or else the hope of mankind for eternal redemption is lost.  If God could change then Satin, His enemy would be able to win, and evil would triumph. If God changed, then what is righteous and good today might be wicked tomorrow. His love for us today may be vindictive tomorrow.

If God was to change, there would be a supposition that He may intentionally or inadvertently change His mind about his love for us. If God was to change, perhaps His love for us, if it remains through such a change, might be different and not gracious. But God does not change, so His love for us will endure eternally.

YEARS WILL NEVER END
Notice the scripture quoted above does not say days but years, the longest measure of the celestial planet we live on. As the creator of time, God is outside of time, and He is not bound by it.  He is eternal, so there is no gradual slow change, no maturing or decaying.

IT IS A COMFORT
It is a great comfort that God does not change because we can count on Him to be the same loving God who sent His one and only Son to pay for our sins with his own death and blood. To think that God does not change from year to year or day to day reassures us that his love and grace toward us are the same. Therefore we can always trust in God.

It is a comfort that God lives forever because if He did not, then how could He give eternal life if He himself does not have it? Any type of salvation doctrine must begin with an all-powerful and eternal God.

EVERYTHING ELSE ENDS
This world will pass away, but God will not, and when we respond to His love and come to Him through the Gospel of His Christ, then we are in Him who will live forever. Therefore we can be assured of our own eternal life.


To learn more about how to have a relationship with God, CLICK HERE.

(c) Adron 4/2/17