Good Measure

Good Measure

Luke 6:38 Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that you give everyone it shall be measured to you again.

A couple things pop into mind: “what goes around comes around” and “do unto others as you would have them do unto you”. But, we don’t always remember this verse do we when we are trying to behave well among others. The Old Testament was an eye for eye, but the New Testament, the New Covenant is Love one another as I have loved you. It is not revenge which motivates us, but grace.

1. God measures us, too. He measures our heart. Not how big it is, though, but how full it is and what it is full of. When our heart contains the love of God in Christ Jesus, our heart breaks apart. A broken heart is a perfect heart. It is only when we are broken before God, that God can use us best.

2.God measures our tongue. A calloused tongue speaks from a calloused heart. It shows wear and tear. Wearing away our self-righteousness and tearing down other people.

3. God measures our thoughts. An empty mind is not really empty when it is not focused on the things of God. Foolishness resides there and reveals itself whenever the tongue is loosed and the heart is hard.

4. God measures our steps. He knows when our feet lead us closer to Him and when our feet lead us farther away. But it is not our feet He measures: it is the steps we take with our feet.

5. God measures our works. It is His Kingdom we are working in and our labors are for His benefit. Have I done my best for Jesus? Or have I done my best for me?

And knowing God measures us should give us the impetus not to measure others against ourselves or against His Word. It is God’s place to judge, it is God’s place to deliver judgment. It is not our place to pass judgment on anyone, even God’s people.

How we treat the people in our lives has a direct and immediate impact on us, too. Pride breeds anger. Anger breeds resentment. Resentment breeds distrust, unforgiveness, gossip, envy, jealousy, greed, death. Our actions may not always take a life in the physical sense, but the spirit dies, the soul retreats and a heart breaks.

Be careful little eyes, little hands, little feet, and little tongue. God is watching and waiting and measuring us to see if we measure up.

Coffee, Tea or God?

Coffee, Tea or God?

In Exodus 20, God outlines the Ten Commandments which He had written for us. His first commandment to us is not to put any other gods before Him. So, I was thinking. Does this include coffee, too? If the first thing I need in the morning is a hot cup of coffee to get my juices flowing or my eyes popping, does that make coffee my god?

Isaiah 63:1 says “Early will I seek Thee”. Gee, I don’t see where it says “right after my first cup of coffee” or “when I’m awake enough” or “when I’m old enough”. Early must mean ‘early in my life or early in my day’. Perhaps, also, God means to seek Him out early before every decision so as not to bring added troubles onto ourselves. Not waiting until I absolutely have to turn to God, but turning to Him simply because He is the first person I want to see in the morning.

“Good Morning Jesus. Thank You Holy Spirit for guiding me and directing me to the place which God has prepared for me today. Thank You God for watching over me while I slept, for your protection on my family and myself.”

As Jeremy Camp sings, “In the morning when I rise give me Jesus”.

Now, I’ll have that cup of coffee.