Becoming a Refuge: What Has First Priority in Your Life?
Usually the things we are passionate about are pretty easy for others to see. For some, it may be hunting, or riding motorcycles, crafting or playing an instrument. It’s difficult to cover up what we are interested in and what brings us life and joy.
When we are invested and passionate about something, we talk about it! Many times, those hobbies and pursuits become a part of our identity.
While these things are not inherently bad, we sometimes get so caught up in the pursuits of this world that we bury Jesus under all this other “stuff”. In the grand scheme of eternity, those hobbies and passions will pass away, but Jesus and the pursuit of His kingdom—His words—will never pass away.
If you asked the people around you what was most important to you, would they name off a hobby or Jesus?
Out of Order
My family and I love to hunt, and our favorite hunting spot is about 6 hours away in the wilds of Oregon. A few years ago, we were able to take our kids for the first time, and the six-hour drive was no joke. It’s difficult to keep a four and five-year-old occupied for that long, especially when they refuse to sleep. Another hurdle is the constant potty stops. When we stopped in Christmas Valley during one of these dire emergencies (why is that four-year-olds have the innate ability to wait until the literal last second to tell you they have to go?) that we found ourselves in a situation. One of the bathrooms was out of order and the line for the only working potty was about a mile long. Thankfully, someone had pity on my daughter and let us move to the front of the line, but it always seems to happen! When you need that potty most, its always “Out of Order”.
This might be a humorous example, and one we have probably all found ourselves in at some point, but being spiritually out of order is detrimental. When people come into the church, will they find it in good working order, or out of order? Will they find factions, divisions and contention, or will they see what the world—despite their profession that they do not follow God—have come to expect of Christians? Are we unified? Are we welcoming others and showing God’s unconditional love? Are we a refuge?
You can be doing all the right things on the outside, but what does your heart look like? Actions that are not connected to the heart are simply religious duties.
I’ve recently been listening to a song on repeat called “Stand In Awe”. I encourage you to take a listen if you have a moment, but one of the lines stood out to me so strongly:
“I don’t want to grow familiar
Let my heart stay soft and tender…”
When we grow familiar with the things of God, we start to take them for granted. I’m speaking to myself here, too. It’s so easy to get distracted by all the things of this world—even the good things, and forget the best thing.
Just like Mary sitting at Jesus’ feet, I want to choose the best portion. Martha was not doing anything wrong by serving, but her heart was wrong. She allowed frustration with her sister get in the way of sitting at Jesus’ feet and listening to His voice. “There will always be opportunities to serve, but she has chosen the greater thing.” Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could serve out of the overflow of love for Jesus, instead of serving for His approval? When we serve out of love, we become a safe place, a haven, a refuge—just as Jesus is that place for us!
Psalm 91:1-4 NIV
1 Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High
will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust.”
3 Surely he will save you
from the fowler’s snare
and from the deadly pestilence.
4 He will cover you with his feathers,
and under his wings you will find refuge;
his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.
Called to Ministry
Contrary to what we may have been taught, it is not the paid full-time staff’s job to minister to everyone in our community. It is ALL of our job to minister.
Ephesians 4:11-13 NIV
11 So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, 12 to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up 13 until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
The five-fold ministry is set in place to equip the saints. We are all called to become a refuge for others, where they can meet Jesus!
2 Corinthians 5:16-21 NIV
16 So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! 18 All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: 19 that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. 20 We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. 21 God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
Jesus paid the ultimate price to reconcile us to God the Father, and then He gave us the same ministry! It is our honor and joy to bring others into the Kingdom of God. We become a bridge of hope, pointing the way to get back to their Father.
Today, let’s lay down works simply for the sake of working. Lay down religious duty, and pick up a heart that is truly connected to the work of becoming a refuge, in an overflow of love for Jesus—your First Love.
