Tag Archives: position

Round tables in the middle are better (Luke 14:8-11) November 30, 2016

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – Psalms 137-139

see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)

Today’s Devotional

Luke 14:8-11
Jesus: Whenever someone invites you to a wedding dinner, don’t sit at the head table. Someone more important than you might also have been invited, and your host will have to humiliate you publicly by telling you to give your seat to the other guest and to go find an open seat in the back of the room. Instead, go and sit in the back of the room. Then your host may find you and say, “My friend! Why are you sitting back here? Come up to this table near the front!” Then you will be publicly honored in front of everyone. Listen, if you lift yourself up, you’ll be put down, but if you humble yourself, you’ll be honored.

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

Being a colonel in the Army and particularly in my last assignment as Chief of Staff of the Army Medical Department’s training facility for medical personnel, I had to sit at a lot of head tables. Quite frankly, my wife and I hate it. A lot of people want to add another seat or two or five or ten so they can get to sit at the head table, but let me tell you, it’s not so great sitting up there. I’ve had to do it too many times and never volunteer.

Usually you and your wife are separated so you don’t even get to sit together. The host wants everyone to mix and mingle and everyone to have the opportunity to meet each other at the head table. So your best friend doesn’t get to talk to you. And then you’re limited to talking to the person on your right and left. That’s it. Bending around to talk to someone two or three seats down the line just isn’t too kosher. And if you’re hearing isn’t all that great, like mine, you can’t carry on a conversation with anyone farther than the person next to you anyway.

Then there is the problem of the food. Sure the head table gets served first, but the polite thing to do is wait until at least half of the crowd is also served before eating. So if the crowd is large enough to warrant a head table, by the time half the tables have been served, your food is cold. You have to pretend it tastes really good though because you’re the guest and that’s the polite thing to do.

Now you have your food and you know everyone is watching you eat. Do you eat fried chicken with your fingers or with a fork? And which of those six forks at your plate do you use first? Everyone is watching so you don’t want to make any mistakes, right? So there you are with a drawer full of silverware in front of you three or four glasses two or three plates and your sitting elbow to elbow. You don’t even know which set of dishes is yours to be honest. Great fun so far sitting at the head table.

Then you try to carry on a conversation with someone you barely know or might have met for the first time. If you’re a slammed against the wall introvert like me, this gets really awkward. I talk about my kids, the weather, the Spurs, but since I’m not that big a sports nut, that conversation lasts about two seconds. Where do you go from there. If I’m the guest speaker, I really don’t want to talk at all, because I want to concentrate on what I have to say in a few minutes, but that’s not going to happen either because the people on your right and left think they are also obligated to maintain a stream of awkward conversation.

So all this time, I stare out across the room at all the round tables with everyone else laughing and talking across the tables and enjoying group conversation with one or two introverts at the table just listening and this introvert is stuck between two other introverts trying to look like we’re having a great time sitting at the head table. What a blast! Nope. Don’t ever put me at a head table if you invite me to a party. Jesus was being really kind when he gave that advice to all those gathered around Him that day.

And besides, He’s right. If you sit at the head table and someone more important comes in, someone gets bumped. That’s just the way it is. Protocol puts the ranking people at the table. If you happen to be at the end of the table, guess what? You’re either sitting by the kitchen door or on the floor. All the other spaces are full and you get left out. That’s certainly no fun.

So the right answer? Remember that we all put our pants on the same way. The round tables in the middle really do have more fun at parties and banquets than the head table. Don’t ever envy those guys sitting up there that get their food first. I’ve been there too often and it’s not a good place to be. Trust me. 

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

Don’t catch the woes! (Matthew 23:13-22) May 26, 2016

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – Job 41-42

see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)

Today’s Devotional

Matthew 23:13-22
Jesus: Woe to you, you teachers of the law and Pharisees. There is such a gulf between what you say and what you do. You will stand before a crowd and lock the door of the kingdom of heaven right in front of everyone; you won’t enter the Kingdom yourselves, and you prevent others from doing so.

Woe to you, you teachers of the law and Pharisees. What you say is not what you do. You steal the homes from under the widows while you pretend to pray for them. You will suffer great condemnation for this.

Woe to you Pharisees, woe to you who teach the law, hypocrites! You traverse hills and mountains and seas to make one convert, and then when he does convert, you make him much more a son of hell than you are.

Woe to you who are blind but deign to lead others. You say, “Swearing by the temple means nothing, but he who swears by the gold in the temple is bound by his oath.” Are you fools? You must be blind! For which is greater: the gold or the temple that makes the gold sacred? You also say, “Swearing by the altar means nothing, but he who swears by the sacrifice on the altar is bound by his oath.” You must be blind! Which is greater: the sacrifice or the altar that makes it sacred? So anyone who swears by the altar swears by it and by the sacrifices and gifts laid upon it. And anyone who swears by the temple swears by it and by the God who sanctifies it. And when you swear by heaven, you are swearing by God’s throne and by Him who sits upon it.

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

These first woes Jesus gives to the leaders of the religion of His countrymen should give us warning about what God does not want to see in His church today. These were the elite according to those who went into the temple and synagogues. These were the teachers and preachers of the day. These were the ones you were told to emulate if you wanted to get on the right side of God’s grace. Yet Jesus had a lot of pretty harsh words for them as you hear this recollection from Matthew.

“What you say is not what you do. You steal the homes out from under widows. You are blind trying to lead others. You don’t understand what is really important in the temple or the rituals you use within the temple.”

How would you like to hear those words from Jesus? Would it make a difference in what you did or how you acted? It didn’t do much for the Pharisees. They just plotted to kill Him and then carried out their plan. Do we do that? I’m afraid sometimes we do. I’m afraid sometimes we get so caught up in what we think is right we refuse to listen to anything else. We won’t even listen to God. We refuse to listen to anything that might disrupt our comfortable position in the world. We want to be first or at least in the top ten and so we disregard any advice from anyone that would disagree with our position.

That’s what happened to the Pharisees. Jesus disagreed with them. He told them their interpretation of God’s word was wrong. He told those they tried to lead they were blind and not worthy of following because they only wanted glory for themselves and not glory for God. They could stand to share the limelight, even with God. As soon as Jesus began to challenge their position, the thing they coveted the most, they did everything they could to destroy Him.

Jesus saw through them, just like He can see through us when we seek glory for ourselves. We can talk a good game and maybe even do some good things for those around us. The Pharisees did. They prayed well. They took up offerings for the poor. It looked like they did great works for all those around them. But Jesus, and the Father knew better. God knew their hearts and the purpose behind their plans and actions. God knew the ego they worked to stroke with every action they took.

So Jesus told them like it is and hoped they would hear and repent. Those words remain for us today so that we can hear and understand and avoid the temptations to which the Pharisees fell. Woe to you Pharisees. Get it right. Do what you preach. If you know God’s word, then do it. Don’t just pray for the widows, but put feet to your prayers and help them. Don’t live a double standard. Be straight up with the people you lead and should be serving. Understand what’s really important. It’s not the rituals and programs you put in place to help you remember God and His grace. It’s His grace. It’s not the monuments we build to remind us about our journey with Him, it’s Him.

Until we recognize God for who He is and bow before Him as the Creator of all things, God, Commander of His Heavenly Armies and King of the universe and all it contains. Until we acknowledge He is God and we are nothing beside Him, we will try to be like those Pharisees, jockeying for position and power instead of giving our all to the King of kings, giving all glory to Him. Don’t be caught catching the woes the Pharisees caught from Jesus.

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

Learn to be a servant (Matthew 20:25-28) May 10, 2016

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – Exodus 21-24

see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)

Today’s Devotional

Matthew 20:25-28
Jesus: Do you want the Kingdom run like the Romans run their kingdom? Their rulers have great power over the people, but God the Father doesn’t play by the Romans’ rules. This is the Kingdom’s logic: whoever wants to become great must first make himself a servant; whoever wants to be first must bind himself as a slave—just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve and to give His life as the ransom for many.

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

Here’s another one of those speeches that got Jesus in so much trouble. “God the Father doesn’t play be the Romans’ rules.” Once again Jesus turned the world’s thought process upside down. Aren’t you supposed to work your way to the top? Aren’t you supposed to take your knowledge and wealth and power and find a position worthy of your experience as you get older? Aren’t you supposed to try to gain those seats of power in your workplace, in your home, at church, in your social circles?

That’s what the world tells us. There’s this caste system that’s alive and well around the globe. We make it easier to move between castes in this country. You might be born in poverty in the United States, but there are opportunities to break free from it through education and hard work. Your family caste in this country doesn’t lock you into generational bondage. Although sometimes we make it so by following in our parents footsteps.

In a lot of other countries, castes do determine your future. If you are lucky enough to be born into wealth and a higher caste, then you enjoy the privileges of the wealthy. If you are born into poverty, you are subject to remain there with no chance to break free from its strangle hold as long as you remain in that country. Most of the world, unfortunately, still operates under those ancient caste rules. But even in those rigid caste systems, there still remain glimmers of hope. One person in 50 or 100 might break through the bonds by the kindness of someone in the next caste above and be lifted up from the lower caste into the higher one. It doesn’t happen often, but it happens and so there is hope.

But now Jesus is saying it’s the servant, the slave, the people at the bottom of the caste system that will be held in highest esteem in God’s kingdom. How can that be? These people are the beggars on the streets. You don’t even see them. They are there, but if you keep your eyes up as you should, then they are the invisible vermin that populate the roads and ditches and sewers of the city. Why would Jesus insinuate that these people will be first in God’s kingdom?

The priests thought they should be first. They were the ones who entered into the Court of the Priests at the Temple and one of them each year, the high priest, actually went into the Holy of Holies once a year to make atonement for the whole nation. Shouldn’t they be given the seats of honor in God’s kingdom? Weren’t they closer to God that all the scum that littered the roadways?

Well, the world just doesn’t get it. Outward appearance has nothing to do with God’s kingdom. Our position and prestige don’t move God one iota. He is not impressed by the things that impress men. He made the world, so what can we do that impresses Him? We get impressed by the trappings people wear. Have you looked at the pictures from the Hubble telescope? You want to get impressed, take a look at those. God did that. Do you think anything you wear impresses Him?

But that’s not really it either. There are a lot of criminals, thugs, evil people sometimes found in every level of the castes. The poor have their share of evil just as much as the upper crust. The top tiers can often hide their evil a little better by doing so in the name of corporate investment, saving for future retirement, creating jobs by satisfying personal indulgences, and other such disguises.

But God sees our heart. Jesus talks about a servant heart. Do we serve self or do we serve others and in so doing serve God? That’s what real life is about. God created us to live in community and gave each of us different skill sets so we would be interdependent. We can get along with just a handful of people around us. But we thrive when we give our talents to others and let them give their talents in service to us. When we are interdependent, amazing things can happen. It’s like Proverbs says, a rope of three cords is not easily broken. We really do need each other.

So Jesus tells us it’s the servant’s heart in us that takes us to the top of God’s list. The problem with the wealthy, the power hungry, those seeking position more than anything else, they loose sight of what it means to have a servant’s heart and want to be served instead. Jesus turned it around and the leaders didn’t understand. It didn’t make sense to them because they bought into the world’s rhetoric.

Don’t let the world trap you into it’s idea of success. It doesn’t work. It won’t get you a seat on the bus to heaven. If you want to make it into God’s kingdom, learn to be a servant and practice every day. Practice makes perfect.

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

Top billing? Be careful what you ask for (Matthew 20:21-23) May 9, 2016

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – Exodus 21-24

see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)

Today’s Devotional

Matthew 20:21-23
Jesus: What do you want?
Zebedee’s Wife: When the kingdom of God is made manifest, I want one of my boys, James and John, to sit at Your right hand, and one to sit at Your left hand.
Jesus (to all three): You don’t understand what you are asking. Can you drink the cup I am going to drink? Can you be ritually washed in baptism just as I have been baptized?
Zebedee Brothers: Of course!
Jesus: Yes, you will drink from My cup, and yes, you will be baptized as I have been. But the thrones to My right and My left are not Mine to grant. My Father has already given those seats to those for whom they were created.

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

Do you ever crave that center of attention spot? When I got to my first assignment as a brand new Second Lieutenant, I thought, “It must be great to be a company commander and set your own schedule.” See, I had 27 additional duties in my first assignment along with the responsibilities of my real assignment of medical platoon leader in an infantry battalion. So my calendar seemed full. It seemed like I was going to someone else’s meeting two or three times a day. I never seemed to have enough time to do the training I wanted to do with my medical platoon.

Then I became a company commander. And I thought, “Boy, it must be great to be a battalion command and set your own schedule.” See, as a company commander, it seemed I was going to someone else’s meeting four or five times a day. I never had the time I wanted to spend with my company training them to do their mission on the battlefield.

Then I became a battalion commander. And I thought, "Boy, it must be great to be a Second Lieutenant blind to the fact that you have so much time of your own to spend with your soldiers teaching them to work as a team and do their job. I finally figured out (I’m a slow learner sometimes) the higher you go, the less time is your own. The more demands others make of you. The spot light is a pretty lonely place to be and you don’t have much control when you’re in that spot.

As a colonel, I’d come into a room full of my subordinates chatting away with each other about all sorts of things business and personal and as soon as I walked through the door, you could hear a pin drop. It’s not that I wasn’t approachable. Those that got to know me, knew I was pretty personable. But getting time on my calendar to get to know me was pretty hard sometimes. And people were afraid they might say the wrong thing and destroy their career because for many of them in the room, I was their senior rater. That meant changing a few descriptive words on an evaluation or a point or two difference in a rating could make the difference between getting promoted to the next grade. It’s an imperfect military and government system, but the one millions of employees, military and civilian are stuck with. So they were afraid to approach me and just chat.

I’ll have to admit, in my younger days, I wanted those power positions. Commander sounded so nice. But when in the position and you have the life of soldiers in your hand because of the decisions you make, it’s not so much fun. Some of those soldiers you send into battle never come home and those letters are really hard to write. They are tear-stained before they get into the envelop because those soldiers become your family.

I’m not sure James’ and John’s mother understood that about being in the limelight #1. And #2, the positions were not Jesus’ to give. As the Son of Man, He had no authority to name the people who sat on the seats around the Father’s throne. As the glorified Son of God He might, but He wasn’t in that position yet. Besides, He explained those positions were already promised. But then He talks about the difficulty of those top positions.

I’ve been in some of those top positions in the Army. Never as a general and I so very glad I stopped before I got there. I worked with lots of generals throughout my career and watched their lives, or lack thereof. I thought my calendars were full sometimes. They had no life. Sometimes people envied them all the travel, the special treatment they receive in meetings, the perks of being a general. I learned about those perks in some of my jobs. We put the right pen and the right paper and the right drink at the right place at the table. The temperature was just right and the right chair was at his or her spot. The lighting was just right and the screens had no glare from the general’s seat. But these were not perks. We did that because as soon as the general sat down, his total focus was on the work ahead for the next thirty or sixty or ninety minutes. We didn’t want anything to distract his thoughts because another meeting that needed his total focus was happening immediately after that one and that room had exactly the right pen and paper and drink and chair and light and… so as soon as he sat down his total focus was on the work at hand.

Perks? When you wake up in another motel room at 5:30 in the morning and don’t remember what city you’re in today because all the motel rooms start to look alike, travel is not fun. You know someone will be at your door thirty minutes later and whisk you off to breakfast, which will be a business breakfast and the day will run non-stop meeting after meeting until they plant you on another plane or in your motel room after your dinner business meeting at 8:30 that night. Then you get to answer the 300 emails in your inbox before you go to sleep. Perks at the top? Be careful what you ask for. You just might get it. 

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

God places people in power (Daniel 4:19-37), September 12, 2015

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Scriptures

Today’s Bible reading plans include:

Ready – Daniel 4:19-37

Set – Daniel 4; Psalms 81

Go! – Daniel 3-4; Psalms 81; Revelation 17

Daniel 4:19-37
19 As the interpretation of the king’s dream became clear, Daniel (who was also called Belteshazzar) became visibly upset for a while. His thoughts troubled him. The king noticed, and he spoke to Daniel.
Nebuchadnezzar: Belteshazzar, don’t let my dream or its meaning alarm you. Tell me what you know.
Belteshazzar: My lord, I wish the dream described those who hate you and its meaning concerned the fate of your enemies! 20 The tree you saw in your vision, the one which grew tall and strong so that its top reached up to the sky and could be seen from one end of the earth to the other, 21 the tree whose leaves were beautiful and fruit plentiful and provided sustenance for everyone, the tree under which the wild animals came to rest in the cool shade and in which the birds built their nests on its sturdy branches— 22 that tree is you, O king! You have become great and strong. Your greatness has grown tall and reached the sky; your authority and power extend to the end of the earth. 23 But that is just one part of your dream. The king saw the messenger, the holy watcher of heaven come down from heaven and declare, “Cut down the tree, and destroy it, but leave its stump intact, its roots in the ground, strapped down with iron and bronze, surrounded by the tender grass of the field; let the dew of heaven fall heavy on it every night and make it wet, and let him live among the wild animals off the plants of the earth, until seven times have come and gone.” 24 Here is the interpretation, O king. It is a decree the Most High God has issued against you, my lord and king. 25 You will be driven away from all that is human and live in the company of wild animals; you will be forced to eat grass like oxen, and night after night the dew of heaven will fall on you and make you soaking wet. Seven times will pass until you learn your lesson and acknowledge that it is the Most High God, and no other, who is the true sovereign over all kingdoms on earth, and He grants authority to anyone He wishes. 26 The watcher’s order to leave the stump and roots of the tree intact means that your kingdom will be restored to you when, and only when, you acknowledge that Heaven alone is sovereign over the earth. 27 So, O king, please accept my advice to you. Make a clean break with your sins and invest in what is right. Bring an end to your wicked deeds and show mercy to those you have beaten down. If you do, perhaps your future will be different and your prosperity will continue.
28 But King Nebuchadnezzar forgot Daniel’s advice, so everything Daniel had predicted happened. 29 Twelve months later, as the king was strolling across the roof of his royal palace in Babylon, 30 the king uttered foolish words:
Nebuchadnezzar: Isn’t Babylon a great city? I have built this royal residence from the ground up with my own might and ingenuity to honor my own majesty.
31 The words had scarcely left his lips when another voice thundered from heaven.
Voice: King Nebuchadnezzar, these solemn words are for you. The kingdom has been taken away from you. 32 You will be driven away from all that is human, and you will live in the company of wild animals. You will be forced to eat grass like oxen. Seven times will pass until you learn your lesson and acknowledge that it is the Most High God, and no other, who is the true sovereign over all kingdoms on earth, and He grants authority to anyone He wishes.
33 Instantly the heavenly decree against Nebuchadnezzar was fulfilled. He was driven away from all that is human and began to eat grass as oxen do. The dew of heaven fell and drenched his body. In time his hair grew as long as the feathers on an eagle and his nails grew long and curved back on his hand like the claws of a bird.
Message: 34 When these days of exile came to an end, I, Nebuchadnezzar, looked up toward heaven and came to my senses. I blessed the Most High God and praised and gave glory to the One who lives eternally:
“His reign will endure forever;
His kingdom will last from generation to generation.
35 Among all the people of the earth,
there are none who compare.
He does as He wishes with the armies of heaven
and those who live on earth.
No one can stop His hand from acting;
no one dares to ask, ‘What have You done?’”
36 It was in that moment that I came to my senses. Soon my honor and splendor were restored as Daniel predicted, and the former glory of my kingdom returned. Those who had served me before, my advisors and officials, sought me and returned me to the throne of Babylon. In time my kingdom and power grew even greater than it was before. 37 Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, acknowledge the true King of heaven. I praise, lift up, and glorify Him because all He does is true, all His ways are just, and He is able to cut down those who strut about in their pride.

Today’s Devotional

From today’s background scripture God might say:

Many like Nebuchadnezzar assume their power and position comes because of their own greatness. They couldn’t be further from the truth. Every leader has their place only because I allow it. I give promotions and I take them. I put people into power and I can remove them. Nebuchadnezzar forgot that most important piece of information even after Daniel reminded him as an interpretation of the dream I gave him.

Nebuchadnezzar found out quickly how dangerous taking credit for my work can become. He found himself living in the wild, eating grass, acting and looking more like an animal than a man. Those who refuse to acknowledge My handiwork in their lives often appear the same to Me because I look at your heart, not at your outward appearance. All of the rhetoric about giving in to your natural instincts and succumbing to your base desires makes you no better than Nebuchadnezzar when I banished him to the fields.

I made you to rise above the other animals of the fields, though. I made you with a moral choice. You do not need to lower yourself to the level of the animals of the field. You are human. My highest creation. You can live the way I want you to live…with My help. Choose to be the human I made you to be. Rise above the base wickedness Satan would pull you into with his lies.

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.