New Hope Christian Fellowship

I once heard it said that 10 percent of the people do 90 percent of the work. Have you ever noticed how sometimes it is the same people you always see doing things in the church? Does that mean they are super talented people who can do wonderful things for God? Do they want nothing less than to always be in charge of church activities? The answer to both is “No!” Quite often, it simply because no one else will step up and do it.

I was reading in James a bit ago for my daily devotions. In James 2:17, it says “In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.” We may live a good life and we may be good moral people who pray before meals and attend church. Is that all God wants? I don’t think so. Are we doing things that bring forth fruit in the kingdom? There are many places and many ways this can be done. However, I think this has to be something that we step out and do. It may possibly be outside of our comfort zones. So, maybe the next time you think something should be done, rather than asking who will do it, maybe the question is “Should I do it?” And the answer is probably “Yes!”

With apologies to John F. Kennedy, Jr: “Ask not what you church can do for you, but ask what you can do for your church.”

Right now, life in the public school system is filled with uncertainty. Due to the state’s budget issues, the financial future of the California school districts is very uncertain. What makes this worse is the fact that the districts can’t make any firm plans because the state hasn’t finalized its budget. What this means, on a personal level, is that what will happen next is very uncertain. There is a list with every possible way of cutting money out of the budget, and all of them will hurt the people who work at the school district and the students who attend there. We don’t know which items on that list will happen, as we don’t know how much money to cut. Either way, it will be rough. I hate the uncertainty. I hate not knowing if next year I will have 32 or 34 or 35 students (I usually have 30) or if I will lose my preparation time during the day or whether I might, in an extreme case, get bumped and have to go to another school. It is even worse for the younger teachers as all the first year teachers have been told they will not be able to be back next year. There are also many different staff positions being eliminated all over the district. We just don’t know.

The uncertainty is driving many people nuts. Being the pre-planner that I am, I hate not knowing. However, in all the craziness, in all the uncertainty, I do have one anchor. God is certain. He will provide. When all the world is filled with confusion, He is consistent. He has always taken care of me and my family and He will always do so. Of that, I can be certain.

“But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.” James 1:6

I am a pre-planner. I plan for everything. I drive my wife nuts when I spell out our plans or when I ask about all sorts of details. It can be a bit of challenge for me to be spontaneous. When things don’t go according to my plan, sometimes it makes me. . . cranky. Now, being a pre-planner is not all bad. I tend to be a detail orientated person. I figure things out to make the big picture work. There are certain components of my job that require a fine eye to detail and I tend to do pretty well at that.

However, there is one area in which being a pre-planner doesn’t work well. It comes to faith. As a man, I worry about my family. Nothing wrong there. However, I also tend to worry about things way in the future. Right now, the world is full of worry. Things are getting more expensive and the future is scary.

God has provided for me and my family for years, yet I still worry. Now, we should be prepared and plan for the future; but it is too easy to be concerned with the future. I sometimes have to simply remind myself that all my bills are paid, my kids are fed, and we are ok.

Regardless of where we are, we need to deal with the now, and let God take care of the future, particularly as He is the only One to know what it entails.

“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” (Matthew 6:34)