Torn Between the Two

Two Kentucky horse racing stable owners had developed a keen rivalry. Each spring they both entered a horse in a local race. One of them thought that having a professional rider might give his horse an edge in the race, so he hired a hot-shot jockey. Well, the day of the race finally came, and as usual, their two horses were leading the race right down to the last fence. But that final fence was too much for both of the horses. Both of them fell, and both riders were thrown. But that didn’t stop the professional jockey. He remounted quickly and easily won the race. When he got back to the stable, he found the horse owner fuming with rage. He really didn’t understand his behavior, because he had won the race. So the jockey asked, “What’s the matter with you? I won the race, didn’t I?” The red-faced owner nodded, “Oh, yes, you won the race. But you won it on the wrong horse!”

That jockey had the best of intentions. He intended to win the race. But he became distracted from the task. He made a bad decision. Ultimately, he failed in what he was trying to do. You know, often times we wind up doing the same thing in our walk with Jesus. We start out strong with the best of intentions. However, at some point we become distracted and loose our way. At times like this it is important to go back to the beginning and remember how you came to faith and what Jesus has called you to. This was true of Peter:

When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, "Simon son of John, do you truly love me more than these?" "Yes, Lord," he said, "you know that I love you." Jesus said, "Feed my lambs ." 16 Again Jesus said, "Simon son of John, do you truly love me?" He answered, "Yes, Lord, you know that I love you." Jesus said, "Take care of my sheep." 17 The third time he said to him, "Simon son of John, do you love me?" Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, "Do you love me?" He said, "Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you." Jesus said, "Feed my sheep. 18 I tell you the truth, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go." 19 Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. Then he said to him, "Follow me!"

Over the next four weeks, we’ll look at the tiny New Testament book of Philippians. It’s actually a letter the Apostle Paul wrote around 61 AD to the church in Philippi.

Over the next four weeks, we’ll look at the tiny New Testament book of Philippians. It’s actually a letter the Apostle Paul wrote around 61 AD to the church in Philippi. Paul wrote from prison in Rome, probably during his first imprisonment, which was more like a house arrest. He was detained simply for sharing his faith. He was writing to a church that he started on an earlier trip to Philippi. The story is found in Acts chapter 16. There weren’t enough Jewish men in this city to form a synagogue, so Paul met with a group gathered in prayer on the banks of the river. One of the members of the group was Lydia, a smart business woman, who volunteered to host a church in her home. This church became the first Christian church on European soil!

1. REVIEWING Your Calling – vs. 1-6

Paul wrote from prison in Rome, probably during his first imprisonment. He was detained simply for sharing his faith.

We can identify with the city of Philippi because, like San Antonio, it was “Military City USA.” (Well, not the USA part!) It was an outlying province of Rome, and a place where many Roman soldiers went to live out their retirement.

It is important to every so often remind yourself of your calling. This means going back in your mind to the point when God saved you and called you to follow and serve Him. Peter and the other disciples were discouraged. They were waiting for Jesus to appear and they were growing impatient. They began to look back on the good old days of their lives before things became so complicated and frankly who can blame them. The days when there was a daily routine that could be counted on, were there was security of knowing what was next and the satisfaction of running their own lives.

He was writing to a church that he started on an earlier trip to Philippi. The story is found in Acts chapter 16. There weren’t enough Jewish men in this city to form a synagogue, so Paul met with a group gathered in prayer on the banks of the river. One of the members of the group was Lydia, a smart business woman, who volunteered to host a church in her home. This church became the first Christian church on European soil!

Afterward Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Tiberias. It happened this way: 2 Simon Peter, Thomas (called Didymus), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. 3 "I'm going out to fish," Simon Peter told them, and they said, "We'll go with you." So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing. 4 Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus. 5 He called out to them, "Friends, haven't you any fish?" "No," they answered. 6 He said, "Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some." When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish.

Paul’s primary reason for writing the Philippian church was to say thanks for their gift to him during his two-year arrest in Rome. Despite writing from prison, Paul emphasizes the theme of JOY, regardless of your circumstances.

During these four weeks, I urge you to read the book in its entirety. Use your Bible’s Table of Contents, look it up, and read it. You can do it easily in one sitting. Or you can read a chapter a week if you prefer. If you have never actually read the Bible on your own, this is a good place to start, as we trek through Philippians together.

Peter was having one of those days and he says in verse 3 “ I’m going out to fish.” The Greek word used here is HUPAGO and can be used to mean I RETIRE. Some authors feel that these words were an indication that Peter was ready to quit preaching and go back to what he knew best, fishing.

Today we’ll focus on the tension between yearning for heaven and living this life to the full. Thus the reason I have entitled today's message “Torn between the Two”

Paul puts it well in his famous “to be or not to be” discourse in verse 21:

Philippians 1:21 NKJV

21 For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.

In the original Greek, it becomes even briefer: “For me...to live Christ, to die gain.”

Paul puts it well in his famous “to be or not to be” soliloquy in verse 21: “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.” In the original Greek, it becomes even briefer: “For me...to live Christ, to die gain.” What is Paul saying here? What kind of priority system does he have? And how does this help him live with one foot on earth and one foot in heaven? Consider these three points:

“For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.” In the original Greek, it becomes even briefer: “For me...to live Christ, to die gain.” What is Paul saying here? What kind of priority system does he have? And how does this help him live with one foot on earth and one foot in heaven? Consider these three points:

What is Paul saying here? What kind of priority system does he have? And how does this make him torn between the two - to live or to die? Let us consider these two points:

1. Christ is our life.

The details of what happened next are very similar to when Peter was first called into ministry. Both occurred on the Sea of Galilee, both times Peter couldn’t catch a thing, both times Jesus told him to throw his nets into the water and both times there is a miraculous catch. As we go through life it is important to take time regularly and go back to where it all began.

“For me, to live is Christ” (verse 21). Notice what Paul DOESN’T say. He doesn’t say, “To live is to follow Christ,” or “To live is to act like Christ,” or “To live is to ask yourself, ‘What would Jesus do?’” Those things are good, but this is even more.

When a couple is having difficulty in their marriage they often return to where they spent their honeymoon to remind them of what they had and to act as a starting point once more. It is a reminder of what you have and where you have come from.

Paul is say, as long as I am alive in the flesh I will be consumed with Christ’s concerns, values and mission.

Paul’s life is not just oriented TOWARDS Christ; it is wrapped up IN Christ. His Lord is his all-in-all, the center of his world, his meaning and purpose, his most precious possession, and the absolute definition of his being.

Paul’s main purpose in living was to glorify Christ. Christ was the essence of his life.

I had the opportunity to do that a few years ago. I was a speaker at Camp Hermosa – a Baptist church camp near Goderich ON. That is the camp I was saved at 40 years ago. I have not had the chance to visit in many years. It was great to be able to go back to my beginnings and visit the exact spot and remember that moment that changed my life so many years ago.

Now this is a drastic change from who Paul used to be. Before he was Paul, he was Saul, a radical persecutor of Christians.

He hunted down and imprisoned Christians with zeal; sometimes he even supervised their execution. That is, until Jesus blinded him on the Damascus Road and asked, “Why are you persecuting me, Saul?” For the first time, Saul knew that Jesus was real. Jesus wasn’t just a myth that was causing Jews to go down the wrong path. Jesus was truly risen from the dead. Jesus was the long-awaited Messiah.

Before he was Paul, he was Saul, a radical persecutor of Christians. He hunted down and imprisoned Christians with zeal; sometimes he even supervised their execution. That is, until Jesus blinded him on the Damascus Road and asked, “Why are you persecuting me, Saul?” For the first time, Saul knew that Jesus was real. Jesus wasn’t just a myth that was causing Jews to go down the wrong path. Jesus was truly risen from the dead. Jesus was the long-awaited Messiah. As Christ restored Saul’s sight and gave him a new name, Paul became a radical follower of the Lord. He studied the scriptures with Christians for years and then became the most fervent missionary of the Bible, setting up churches all over the Middle East and then Europe. He first went to the Jews, but when he found mostly rejection there, he went to the non-Jews, the Gentiles. In many towns, certain Jews set out to discredit him, to get him into trouble with the Roman authorities of the time. Paul suffered beatings and imprisonments on trumped-up charges. He was shipwrecked once on a prison ship. He was bitten by a poison snake. He was run out of town for his faith. He was discredited and cast out by his fellow Jews. And yet he could still say, “To live is Christ!” Nothing would deter him from his faith.

As Christ restored Saul’s sight and gave him a new name, Paul became a radical follower of the Lord.

He studied the scriptures with Christians for years and then became the most fervent missionary of the Bible, setting up churches all over the Middle East and then Europe.

He first went to the Jews, but when he found mostly rejection there, he went to the non-Jews, the Gentiles.

In many towns, certain Jews set out to discredit him, to get him into trouble with the Roman authorities of the time.

Paul suffered beatings and imprisonments on trumped-up charges. He was shipwrecked once on a prison ship. He was bitten by a poison snake. He was run out of town for his faith. He was discredited and cast out by his fellow Jews. And yet he could still say, “To live is Christ!” Nothing would deter him from his faith. Christ had changed Him from the inside out. In fact, Paul describes the conversion to Christ like this.

Galatians 2:20 NKJV

20 I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.

What about you? Most of us could say, “To live is Christ...PLUS a few other things.” Maybe the plus is work, leisure, accumulating wealth, relationships, etc. And sometimes the plus part becomes the primary part.

What about you? Most of us could say, “To live is Christ...PLUS a few other things.” Maybe the plus is work, leisure, accumulating wealth, relationships, etc. And sometimes the plus part becomes the primary part. “For me, to live is work.” Or, “To live is golf.” Or, “To live is food.” And sometimes we are fair-weather Christians.

Where is that place for you? Where is it that you go to in your own mind when things get tough and you feel like quitting? Maybe for some you cannot identify a specific place and time where you felt the Lord’s calling. Often we fail in our calling because we do not understand the significance and importance of what Christ has called us to. We forget what really matters. Do you understand that God has a plan for your life? Do you understand your calling and can you see how God wants to change the world through you?

“For me, to live is work.” Or, “To live is golf.” Or, “To live is food.”

Only when we find our life in Christ will we be fulfilled and unruffled by the various ups and downs of life in this fallen world.

Our lives will be centered on Christ as long as everything is going smoothly. But then we recall the words of Job after he lost it all, “Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?” (). And his summary, “The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord” ().

Here Paul is writing a letter to a small group of Christians in a town called Phillipi filled with so much joy in his heart for them that he can not contain himself.

Only when we find our life in Christ will we be fulfilled and unruffled by the various ups and downs of life in this fallen world. When we love Jesus most, everything else falls into place: relationships, purpose, even death, which is our next consideration. If Christ is our life, then #2,

In 1973 Gary Kildall wrote the first popular operating system for personal computers, named CP/M. IBM approached Kildall in 1980 about developing the operating system for IBM PCs. But Kildall snubbed IBM officials at a crucial meeting. The day IBM came calling, he chose to fly his new airplane. The frustrated IBM executives turned instead to Bill Gates, founder of a small company named Microsoft, and his operating system named MS-DOS. Fourteen years later Bill Gates was worth more than eight billion dollars. An author called Paul Carroll once said of Kildall, “He was a smart guy who didn’t realize how big the operating system would become”. In a similar way, people don’t often realize how big God’s kingdom will someday become. God comes calling with the offer of a lifetime, and we miss the opportunity and find other things to do.

So Paul tells them, To live is Christ, If he carried on living, every aspect of Paul’s life would continue to reveal Christ, which would make his life fruitful and worthwhile. Likewise, his death would be gain since it would usher him into Christ’s presence. Paul felt torn between the two, (lit “in a dilemma), and so he acknowledges the benefits of both outcomes.

When we love Jesus most, everything else falls into place: relationships, purpose, even death, which is our next consideration. If Christ is our life, then #2,

If Christ is our life, then #2,

2. RENEWING Your Calling – vs. 15-17

2. No Fear in Death.

There are times in life when we will fail and fall. At those times we need to not only review but also renew our calling. No matter how badly you have blown it, Jesus wants to restore you. He still wants to be your very best friend and still can use you to build His kingdom. To do this there are some steps that you have to take. You need to confront your sin, admit it and confess. Once you resolve that, God can and will restore you and return you to fruitful service.

Sometimes when you ask people how they’re doing, they reply, “Well, I’m vertical instead of horizontal. That’s saying something!” Or, “At least I’m not six feet under!” I’ve even told people, “Sure is good to see you and then they respond, “Better to be seen than to viewed.” And I have heard someone say once, “Everybody wants to go to heaven but nobody wants to die!”

But Paul had a different take. Because he could say, “For me, to live is Christ,”he could also say, “To die is gain.” Paul knew that death would actually be profitable for him.

Philippians 1:23 NKJV

23 For I am hard-pressed between the two, having a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better.

Phil 1:

In verse 23 he says, “I desire to depart and be with Christ.” That word “depart” is a beautiful image in the Greek: it evokes pulling up your tent stakes, or the anchor of your ship. Paul saw death as simply setting off on a new adventure a new horizon, or a new destination.

In verse 23 he says, “I desire to depart and be with Christ.” That word “depart” is a beautiful image in the Greek: it evokes pulling up your tent stakes, or the anchor of your ship. Paul saw death as simply setting off on a new adventure.

Jesus starts here by addressing Peter by his real name Simon. As Peter had not been much of a rock Jesus goes back to the name he had when they first met. There are many questions Jesus might have asked Peter that day. He might have asked, “Why did you deny me? What do you have to say for yourself?” Instead He asks Peter a simple question; “do you love me?”

So did Paul have a death wish? Was this a suicidal statement? Not at all. Paul knew that we love Christ on faith here. We see him “as through a glass dimly,” but following death, the believer will see him “face-to-face” ().

1 Corinthians 13:12 NKJV

12 For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known.

One thing you won’t need in heaven is “faith,” because you won’t have to believe without seeing. You will be with your Lord forever.

One thing you won’t need in heaven is “faith,” because you won’t have to believe without seeing. You will be with your Lord forever. Paul wrote elsewhere, to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord (). The moment we die, our next conscious awareness will be seeing our Lord and Savior!

Paul wrote elsewhere, to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord ().

2 Corinthians 5:8 NKJV

8 We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord.

You kinda have to die to have that promise don’t you. The moment we die, our next conscious awareness will be seeing our Lord and Savior!

The moment we die, our next conscious awareness will be seeing our Lord and Savior!

Jesus is not implying that Peter doesn’t love Him. He is bringing Peter to the bedrock of what makes him tick. He is taking him to the prerequisite of all ministry. “Do you love me?” Nothing is more fundamental to who we really are than that. No question is more important or more basic. He does not ask him if he is a great speaker or a great people person. He does not inquire about his seminary training or Bible knowledge. He does not analyze his personality to see whether he has the people skills to do the job. All those factors are important but the starting point is love.

Paul in his letter said he was “torn” between living and dying. It’s not as if he was deciding whether to commit suicide or not. He was just saying, “If I had the choice, would I keep living or would I prefer to die?”

Paul said for him, death would be far better, because then he would be with the Lord face-to-face forever.

Paul said for him, death would be far better, because then he would be with the Lord face-to-face forever. When you consider all the trials he had been through, we can hardly fault him for wanting some peace for a change, in the presence of his Lord. Yet, on the other hand, Paul knew there was still work to be done. He knew people still needed to come into a relationship with Christ. And churches like the one in Philippi still could benefit from his guidance. Paul had a sense that God was not done with him yet on this earth.

The one basic qualification for ministry is found in this most probing question from Jesus, “Do you love me?” That is the only motive for ministry that will endure the test. He doesn’t even ask, “Do you love people?” Ministry does not begin with a love for people. It begins with a love for God and that love overflows to people. If we minister only out of a humanistic love for people we will be people-pleasers rather than a God-pleasers. Everything begins with a holy love toward the Lord. Nothing will keep ministry on course like a deep love for the Lord.

When you consider all the trials he had been through, we can hardly fault him for wanting some peace for a change, in the presence of his Lord.

Yet, on the other hand, Paul knew there was still work to be done. He knew people still needed to come into a relationship with Christ. And churches like the one in Philippi still could benefit from his guidance. Paul had a sense that God was not done with him yet on this earth.

On December 14, 1996, the grain freighter Bright Field was heading down the Mississippi River at New Orleans, Louisiana, when it lost control and veered toward the shore. The boat struck a riverside shopping mall. 116 people were injured. The impact demolished parts of the wharf that housed over two hundred shops and restaurants and the Hilton hotel. After a year-long investigation, the Coast Guard reported that the freighter lost control because the engine shut down. The engine shut down because of low oil pressure. The pressure was low because of a clogged oil filter. The oil filter was clogged because the mechanic had failed to maintain the ship properly. So, failing to change a small oil filter wiped out a mall and injured 116 people.

And in this tension, Paul found peace. If death is just as appealing as life, then death is nothing to fear.

Christians of all people should not fear death!

In fact, when we lose someone close to us, the Bible says we grieve as those with hope (), because we know our separation is only temporary for those who belong to the Lord.

Thus, death has lost its sting ().

1 Corinthians 15:55 NKJV

55 “O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?”

Sometimes I ask myself: What is the worst thing that could happen to me? OK, I could die. And then I’m with Jesus. Not a bad deal, huh?

The same is true of love. Everything we are depends on it. With love God can use us but without love we are nothing. Paul put it this way:

Living

To live is Christ, to die is...gain!

3. helps us to live far better lives here.

If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3 If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing.

With this attitude, we are able to live with one foot on earth and one in eternity. YYet just as Paul “Torn between the two.”

You might think it would make us so heavenly minded that we are no earthly good. But actually, the opposite is true.

We are all here for a purpose, its not our purpose but its God’s sovereign design. For we are all His workmanship...

Ephesians 2:10 NKJV

10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.

As long as we are occupying this space in which God has placed us…we are to continue in ministry just as Paul did…Christ living His life in and through us. For to live is Christ…It’s all about Him, Its all for His glory…as we shine His grace to the world that is around us.

Let’s pray:

Look at Paul’s example: His only “choice” in his mind was between two good things: he could either go to Jesus soon, or tarry longer here on earth and help more people follow Christ. Once he put it into words, it became evident to him that God would leave him here for a while longer. Perhaps he sensed that the charges against him would dissolve. Because he had no fear of death, he was able to serve the Lord without fear of the consequences. And he saw how the Lord intended to use him to assist with the progress of the Philippians, as they continued to grow in their faith. With eternity in mind, Paul was able to focus on what was truly important. Commentator Gordon Fee notes, “Such singular focus does not make Paul otherworldly; rather, it gives heart and meaning to everything he is and does as a citizen of two worlds, his heavenly citizenship determining his earthly.” [Gordon D. Fee: “Philippians,” in “IVP New Testament Commentary”]

This passage says that love is everything. Without love you ARE Nothing (vs. 1). Without love you ACHIEVE Nothing (vs. 2). Without love you ACQUIRE Nothing (vs. 3).

You know what I find very encouraging about Jesus’ question? Anybody can love the Lord. You don’t have to have a great, charismatic personality. You don’t have to have a high IQ or be athletic or even be good looking. Everybody in this room can qualify on this most important issue of all. Love comes first.

Paul highlights the tension that we experience: we naturally yearn for our heavenly home, yet we also want to live in the present so as to not miss any opportunities God has for us here. Once you’ve settled where you’re heading, you don’t have to worry so much about when you’re getting there. You are free to devote all of yourself to God’s work now, knowing that he’ll bring you home in the right time. Let’s pray:

Lord, help us to wake up each day, not worrying a bit about when or how we’ll die, but instead yielding our lives to you, watching for ways to be used by you to grow your kingdom as we share our faith with others. We pray in Jesus’ name, amen.

Years ago there was an elderly woman in New Jersey named Dorthea Clapp who lived across the road from a local high school. She would sit at her window every day and pray for the students. There was one student in particular she prayed for, a boy who lived next door. She put him on her Holy Ghost hit list and would pray daily that he would be saved. At one point she gave him a Gospel of John. After praying for him for years one day God moved him to attend a Billy Graham meeting at Madison Square Gardens in New York and he became a Christian. Within a year over 200 of his classmates had also come to faith. That boy’s name was George Verwer. He went on to form Operation Mobilization - one of the largest missionary movements in the world today. Only God knows the number of people that have been impacted globally by that ministry today. It all started with an ordinary woman who loved God and used what she had for His kingdom.

For those who understand the Greek language there is in this passage a difference between Jesus’ use of the word AGAPAO and Peter’s use of the word PHILEO. I am not sure if this is really the main point. I don’t think Jesus was playing a word game. He is probing the center of Peter’s heart and calling forth the highest motive for sacrificial service unto God.

The night before Jesus crucifixion Peter had claimed a higher devotion to the Lord than all the other disciples. He had said:

Peter replied, "Even if all fall away on account of you, I never will." 34 "I tell you the truth," Jesus answered, "this very night, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times."

This time Peter makes no boasts and no comparisons. He doesn’t claim to be better than anyone else. His previous failure was still too close. Peter simply submits his answer to Christ’s omniscience “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.” There is brokenness in his voice. The tone is completely different.

Why did Jesus press the question three times? Perhaps he was giving Peter a chance to affirm for each time he had denied. Perhaps He is simply emphasizing the importance of the issue. Jesus does not focus on past failures or even upon past successes but upon current realities. My qualifications for ministry today is the love I have for the Lord in my heart now. If I do not love Him I will not serve Him with all my heart.

3. RESTING in Your Calling – vs. 18-19

After restoring Peter, Jesus goes for a walk with him and Peter notices John following them. Full of what has just been spoken into his heart Peter asks about John:

Peter turned and saw that the disciple whom Jesus loved was following them. (This was the one who had leaned back against Jesus at the supper and had said, "Lord, who is going to betray you?") 21 When Peter saw him, he asked, "Lord, what about him?" 22 Jesus answered, "If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? You must follow me."

Have you ever caught yourself looking at someone else life and wondering why they have it so easy and you have it so hard? Everyone around you seems to just dance through life but you find yourself constantly struggling just to make it through another week. God has not called us to compare ourselves with other people, He has called us to obey.

In Hebrews 21:1 it says that we are to “run with perseverance the race MARKED OUT for us.” Notice that God marks out the course, not us. He chooses the route and for each one of us it is different. He also chooses the talents, temperament, trials and tests that we will have and face. You cannot compare yourself to another person because you are not that person. They have their course, you have yours.

You cannot choose your calling. Your calling chooses you. You have been blessed with special skills that are yours alone. Use them, whatever they may be, and forget about wearing another's hat. A talented chariot driver can win gold and renown with his skills. Let him pick figs and he would starve. -- Og Mandino

Jesus here essentially says to Peter, “Mind your own business and I’ll do whatever I decide to do with him without reporting to you.”

Parents, it is important to remember that your kids are different that you. We must explain to them that while we love them and want what is best for them, ultimately it is God’s calling on their life that is most important. Our plans for them must line up with God’s plans for them. We can help them by modeling what love for God looks like but ultimately they must learn to love God personally and that may look a little different for them than for us, and that is OK.

Every person here has some kind of ministry calling on his or her life. We have a mission: a mandate that we were made for. God has called us to follow Him and given us the privilege of investing our lives in His sheep. Perhaps today Jesus wants to remind you of his call on your life. His calling is perfect, but it is also very costly.

A chicken and a pig walked past a church building one day when they noticed the Sunday morning sermon title posted on the outside bulletin board, "Helping the Poor." They walked a ways when the chicken suddenly came up with a suggestion. "Say, Brother Hog, why don’t we give all the poor people a nice breakfast of ham and eggs?" The hog thought a moment and replied, "Sister Chicken, That’s all right for you to say because for you it is only a contribution. For me, it’s total commitment!"

What is your calling? God wants to build something with your life if you will let him. Let me encourage you today to review that calling. If you have failed and fallen let Jesus renew that calling in your life and rest in the fact that God wants to do something amazing in this world in and through you.

John Hyde was a missionary who went to India a little over a hundred years ago. He took many years to prepare for his ministry including hours spent trying to learn the local language. In 1892 he boarded a steamer in New York bound for India. On the Ship, John received a telegram from a close family friend. He opened it hurriedly on the deck of the ship. The only words of the telegram were, "John Hyde, are you filled with the Holy Spirit?" John’s response was one of heated anger. He crumpled the paper, put it into his pocket and went to bed.

Unable to sleep, he tossed and turned all night. He arose from bed in the early morning hours and read the message on that piece of paper again. He thought, “The audacity of somebody to ask me that question, ‘Am I filled with the Holy Spirit?’ I have given myself to become a missionary. I have dedicated my life to this. I am leaving my home and going to another country. How dare they ask me if I am filled with the Holy Spirit?” Did they not understand all he had done to equip himself for this call? He had received a B.A. degree, studied the language, and was now on the way and was determined to pursue his destiny.

Yes, he was on his way, but Hyde’s spirit was challenged by the note. After much soul searching, he fell to his knees before the Father. “O God,” he cried out, “the audacity of me thinking that I could pray or preach or witness or live or serve or do anything else in my own strength and power. Fill me with your strength. Fill me with Your power.”

John Hyde went on to become one of the great missionary statesmen of all time. Why? Because of the Spirit which enabled him to face the challenges of his life in the power of God. The work was very difficult and initially no one came to Christ. John was driven to prayer. Indeed, he would come to be known as “Praying Hyde.” Over the years God used him to touch the nation of India and changed the lives of many people forever.

What is your calling? It all starts with loving God. May the Lord remind, renew and release that love in us today as we seek to share it with a hurting world.