Let us be Doers of the Word
James 1:22 "But be doers of the word, and not hearers
only, deceiving yourselves." NKJV
Last Sunday God talked to me in an amazing way. I had
ordered an audio CD about a terrific sermon two weeks
before, only to discover that instead of having just 1 sound
track, it had 16 of 2 to 3 minutes each. It wouldn't have
mattered if I had bought it for personal reasons, but I had
hoped to make this terrific sermon available on the Net.
There was no way I could make it available in 16 different
streaming audios of 2 to 3 minutes each! So last Sunday I
went to see someone who could possibly help me with this, 10 minutes before the service
started.
As I requested his help to my plight, he clearly told me he
had no time for me, as he had to get ready for the service.
I continued to intercede and asked him if I could talk to
him after the service. There again he told me that he had no
time, as he was planning to leave right after church for 2
days in Toronto. I requested if it was possible to meet with
him after his trip, but again his answer was negative. He
insisted that he didn't have time for this and that I
wouldn't be able to do anything about it anyway as I
probably did not even have the right equipment. I thanked him for his time and
wished him to enjoy the service.
However I was upset, quite upset. Aren't we here to help one
another? Shouldn't it be our goal to make God's message
available to anyone? What is our purpose in coming to church
if we don't help one another? I started the praise service
with a heavy heart, and instead of praising God with all my
soul, I was easily distracted by little things.
About 15 minutes into praise and worship, God talked to me
clearly:
"Why are you upset?"
"I am upset because I wanted to make this sermon available
on the Net and no one is available to help me..."
"Am I upset?"
"No, but..." It's then that I realized that I was upset for
selfish reasons. If God was not upset about the situation,
why should I?
"Have you forgiven him?"
"I am trying to, but it's sooooo hard!"
"Rely on me and you will be able to forgive."
It's amazing what relying on God can do. As soon as I did
it, the heavy weight on my heart was released and I was able
to start praising God with all my heart. I started to pray
in the spirit for my friend who had hurt me, praying that he
would enjoy the service. My anger was released and
instead I was filled with a deep love for the one who had
offended me. I released the matter to God. If it was God's
will, that sermon would appear on the Net without any of my
efforts. So why should I worry about it?
Then God asked me another question, that made my face turn
pale.
"Don't you treat others the same way sometimes?"
Immediately several incidents came to my mind, incidents
where I hadn't given the time of the day to some of my
students to help them or to answer their questions.
It was then that I realized this whole incident had happened
for me to learn an important lesson: "Be a doer of God's
Word and not a hearer only!" It wasn't about the one who had
offended me, it was about me offending (unknowingly you can
say) others! I repented and made the decision that from now
on I will make sure to make time for those who have
questions or need help, no matter how insignificant their
requests may seem. And if for some reason I don't have time
right at that moment, I will make sure to give them time
later on and let them know I will be there for them. My
whole being was filled with God's presence and I felt at
peace.
Then the preacher spoke. His text? James 1:22-25. The same
text God had brought to my mind earlier on. God had
confirmed His message to me right from the pulpit. You
should read this text, my friend. It will be quite revealing
to you. Are you a hearer or a doer of God's Word? Talk to
your Heavenly Father about it and be ready to be amazed of
His revelations about yourself.
Rob Chaffart