By Jennifer Davis Rash
The Alabama Baptist
Justification is an interesting action. Have you ever noticed how much you justify to yourself or others why you did or didn’t do something?
My moments of justification tend to focus on why I failed to follow through with a commitment I made. It might be a commitment to myself to exercise routinely or get more rest. It might be a commitment to someone else that I would take care of a project or task by a certain time frame.
Because I’m extremely skilled at justifying my own actions, I always notice when others are justifying their actions as well.
Recently I heard a friend note that he knew he wasn’t giving a client his best work but because he had agreed to do the work at a reduced price he felt justified in delivering less than his best.
The more I thought about his reasoning, the more it bothered me.
The saying “you get what you pay for” is true in many cases, but I would hope that we as believers would always give our absolute best in all that we do, even when we aren’t getting paid what we think we might be worth.
‘With all your heart’
Scripture is clear about doing our best in all that we do.
Colossians 3:23–24 says, “Whatever you do work at it with all your heart. … It is the Lord Christ you are serving.”
First Corinthians 10:31 says, “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.”
Romans 12:11 says, “Never be lazy in your work but serve the Lord enthusiastically.”
Galatians 6:9 says to never tire of doing good.
Second Timothy 2:15 reminds us to present ourselves to God “as one approved, a worker who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.”
And Ecclesiastes 9:10 says, “Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might.”
Keeping our focus on Christ and seeking to be more like Him would demand a pursuit of excellence on our part, especially excellence of character and how we behave.
Soul searching
Representing Christ as a believer should mean we are aware if our lives are truly mirroring Him or not. We should always work to show grace and love while standing on truth.
If we are not able to give our best to all that we do as we journey through this life representing our Lord and Savior, then we really should do some soul searching and self-evaluation — eh hem, talking to myself here.
Certainly there are seasons and times when we have no choice but to give second best — and even to fail — but those moments should be because of situations out of our control not because we don’t care. And they shouldn’t happen because we are selfishly leaving the work for someone else to do.
We must find ways to reduce the demands on our lives so we can be in top form for those depending on us, and we must help each other in the process.
What does it say about our relationship with Christ and the condition of our heart if we purposefully agree to a job or task knowing we never intend to provide quality results or service? How do we justify such actions?
And how easy will it be to make a similar choice next time once we lower our standards and expectations of ourselves?
How far could we go down this path before we don’t even remember what our best looks like?
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Rashional Extras – Nothing Loved Is Ever Lost
By Faye Harris
Hamilton, Ala.
No one lives in what is left of the once proud house that sits in ruin down the old country road.
The wild vines are threatening to take it over completely and one is left to wonder about the people who had spent their lives within its walls — when it was new and alive.
The same spring still bubbles nearby where it came forth a hundred years ago when children played in the yard of the house then grew to move on to another home and have children of their own.
Even though there were still visitors to what was by now considered to be the old homestead, as the house’s aging inhabitants grew more frail, the visitors came less and less often.
Weeds now fill the banks on one side of the stream. One is left to only imagine little boys standing nearby watching the minnows play in the water, waiting for them to grow into large fish where, just like daddy, they will catch them, put them into their rusty pail and take them home for supper.
Through what is left of the windows creep wildflowers that in their day had been planted and contained by the young woman for whom the house was built.
As we stand by the side of the road observing this sentinel of another time, we note it is still trying its best to stand guard over the dreams of its original owners.
There’s a sadness we feel as our hearts connect with those so long ago because we understand a bit how these gallant soldiers of yesterday worked as we do today to provide for their families.
It’s as if nature itself is telling us there will always be memories left even after we too travel the road to immortality.
Our value will be firmly in the minds and hearts of those we leave behind because nothing loved is ever lost — it’s just passed on in beloved memory.
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“If you want to get better at discerning God’s voice, you must orient your thinking toward His perspective. As Romans 12:2 says, ‘Do not conform to the pattern of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is — His good, pleasing and perfect will.’
“The transformations of our minds includes the willingness to sacrifice our limited ideas about the way we think things should be done, to give up our pride and to let go of our money and time. If you have offered yourself and anything you cling to as a sacrifice to God and have refused to be swayed by what the world tells you is the norm, then you are in a position to truly discover God’s will in a given situation.”
Joe Greene
“Dare To Succeed: Experience the Satisfaction of Doing Business by the Book”
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Every Christian can help someone: Either to find Christ or to not slip away from Him.
Bravely ask, “Are you saved?”
Start the conversation.
R.A. Matthews
Author of “Reaching to God”
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“Resentment is taking poison and expecting someone else to get sick. Forgive.”
From “The Sender: A story about when right words make all the difference” by Kevin Elko and Bill Beausay
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“Blessing comes when our hearts are tuned to God’s will and our hands are placed to God’s work.”
Kyle Beshears
University of Mobile
Excerpt from “Explore the Bible” Sunday School Lesson in the Oct. 26 issue of The Alabama Baptist
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