Do a Family Service Project

Have you noticed just how self-centered and shallow our society is becoming?

Indeed, we live in a culture that seems to constantly crave entertainment while eschewing service. Sometimes, Christian families can carelessly fall into this trap, one that promises personal fulfillment and satisfaction in life, but comes up empty in the end. The Christian life, at its very core, is all about serving others. Jesus, of course, is our ultimate model of self-sacrifice and service. Matthew 20:28 says, “the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and give his life as a ransom for many.”

One of the key ways that we can demonstrate His Heart with our hands is through compassionate, meaningful service of others. This can be done as congregations, individuals, and as families. Galatians 5:13-14 states, “For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself’.”

Families can become so inwardly focused that we forget our purpose and mission to glorify God through our good works. So how about it? Why not come up with a family service project that everyone can be a part of not matter their age. Perhaps the project could be to serve together in a soup kitchen, help out with some good cause, like “Relay for Life” or a fund-raiser for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Or maybe you could plan to clean an elderly person’s home, work in their yard, or wash their car. Another possibility is to provide respite to a young family who needs a date night and watch their children free-of-charge.

There are tons of ways that our families can mobilize and work together to serve others in a special way. And believe me . . . when we serve side-by-side we will naturally draw closer to each other and enjoy some great conversation and make meaningful memories.

Take Time for the Elderly

Have you ever noticed how that in American culture the elderly often seem forgotten? Indeed, we have a culture that seems to worship youthfulness to our own loss and detriment. But, the truth is, the elderly have much wisdom and experience to offer those of us who are younger. Today’s challenge in my series on Ten Ways to Demonstrate His Heart, My Hands is this: “Take time for the elderly.”

Leviticus 19:32 (ESV) says, “You shall stand up before the gray head and honor the face of an old man, and you shall fear your God: I am the LORD.”

Proverbs 16:31 exclaims, “Gray hair is a crown of glory; it is gained in a righteous life.”

Proverbs 20:29 states, “The glory of young men is their strength, but the splendor of old men is their gray hair.”

1 Timothy 5:1-2 says, “Do not rebuke an older man but encourage him as you would a father . . . older women as mothers.”

The elderly are deserving of our respect, attention and time. Many times they are abandoned and ignored by family members after being placed in a nursing home. Elderly persons typically enjoy visiting with those from younger generations. They like to tell stories about their own youth, upbringing, and reminisce regarding their rich, and often colorful, life experiences.

All it takes on our part is the willingness to make some time for the elderly and lend a listening ear. Seek out opportunities to visit with elderly persons from your community, congregation, and extended family. This is just one more way to demonstrate Christ’s heart and be his hands in this world. And, remember, we reap what we sow! If we wish to be visited one day when we are old, frail, and lonely, we need to be proactive in visiting the elderly ourselves now!

Visit the Sick and Lonely

Hello everyone!

Today's vlog addresses the approach to compassion that may be called a ministry of presence. I particularly focus on the idea of visiting the sick and lonely, or anyone who is in need. Jesus's style of caring was very hands on and by nature, incarnational. For us to emulate him, we need to also be people who "show up" when people need encouragement and support.

In my vlog, I use James 1:27 and Matthew 25:31-40 as Scriptures to give us a more accurate understanding and proper bearings regarding the meaning of true religion--which is relational. The way Christ will someday judge us will hinge on the degree to which we extended ourselve to reach out with his love and compassion to those around us.

One way for us to do this is to visit the sick and lonely in their time of distress in order to bring hope and comfort to them, and thereby be Christ's loving hands.

Pray in Secret for Someone You Know

A powerful way in which we can demonstrate Christ's love in our lives is to pray for someone we know in secret. There are friends, family members, and acquaintances we know who are going through tough times in their lives. Perhaps they are enduring a prolonged illness (or have a spouse, child, or parent who is). Maybe they have recently come on hard times, having lost their job and now struggling with unemployment. Or, what if they have gone through a recent divorce or another loss in their life? Possibly, they are struggling with depression or loneliness.

We can pray for such individuals consistently and faithfully, asking God to bless them and be with them. Then, we can sit back and see how God moves in their life. This could be a tremendous way to strengthen our own faith as we watch God's power at work. Romans 12:12 says, “Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.” We are called to be prayerful in our lives!

The apostle Paul also says in Eph. 1:16-18, “I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints.” Let's be praying for God to open the minds and hearts of those we know are suffering to his love and spiritual healing. Prayer works! Prayer changes things because God hears and responds.

Let's have Christ's heart and be his hands in our secret prayer life!

Random Acts of Kindness

Who is the kindest person you know? And what makes them so kind?

Over the course of the next few weeks I will be focusing on the theme, "Ten Ways to Demonstrate His Heart, My Hands." Each post will focus on a hands-on, practical idea for you to put into practice.

My present challenge to you is to perform a random act of kindness this week. 

In Micah 6:8 the prophet said, “He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”

Some potential things you may try to do along these lines include the following:

• Pay for someone’s drive-through meal (the stranger in the car behind you. It is contagious).
• Be a courteous driver and let people merge in front of you.
• Take a bag of groceries to needy person or family.
• Do something thoughtful for your parents (wash their vehicles, wash their windows, mow their grass, do their dishes, take them out to lunch once-a-month and check up on them—you don’t have to be the center of attention, take time to spend just with them.)
• Do something thoughtful for your spouse (prepare favorite meal; clean the kitchen; fold the laundry; put a positive “Post-It” note on the bathroom mirror or bedside, or car rear-view mirror with something encouraging or complimentary).

Being kind doesn't have to cost you very much monetarily. It just requires your having a heart for others and the desire to make a difference.

Why not try to become the kindest person you know? And I'll do the same.

Beginning the Journey

What are you truly passionate about?

Hi, I’m Dr. Ryan Fraser and this is HeartPoint.

Welcome to my new podcast. I look forward to sharing encouraging and uplifting ideas with you each week and also receiving your personal feedback.

When I think about some of the things that I am passionate about, I think of ministry, pastoral counseling, Christian care and service, and marriage and family issues.

I also think about Jesus Christ and his powerful, unparalleled approach to ministry. His style was unique, countercultural, and extraordinary. Jesus cut through the complexity of the outer layers of problems to get to the very heart of the matter. The Son of Man loved people with an eternal, uncompromising love—one that traversed gender, race, nationality, and socio-economic status. He felt deeply for others, caring for their souls, and reached out to them with his Father’s unconditional love to touch and transform their lives.

Matthew 9:35-36 says, “And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.”

Like Christ, we are also called to swim upstream and make a difference in this world. We are challenged to step out with courage and faith with the purpose of loving as Jesus loved, serving as He served, and caring as He cared. Yes, we are told to have His Heart and use Our Hands to be his tangible presence on earth, while we eagerly await his return.

There are many creative ways in which we can provide effective care and empathetic support to the hurting, the lonely, and the struggling.

HeartPoint is a podcast that is dedicated to honing our skills and motivating us to step out of our comfort zones and make a positive impact.

What have you done today to show Christ’s heart to those around you? I invite you to join me on this journey of self discovery as we talk about tangible ways to show Christ’s compassion to others. Thanks for tuning in.

My First Blog Article

Well, greetings kind readers. I wish to extend a warm welcome to you as you check out my brand new blog. Thanks so much for taking the time and effort to do so. I recognize how busy you are and how many other voices out there are vying for your attention. This is hopefully the start of something worthwhile for both you and me. Please know I am humbled and honored to have your initial interest. It is my heartfelt prayer that I will earn your ongoing subscription to my blog.

The concept of blogging is actually quite new to me, so I am pretty nervous about it to be completely honest with you! I have been thinking for some time now about what my unique contribution might be through this online platform or medium for sharing concepts and ideas. On a personal level, it is important to me that I remain true to myself in this novel and exciting endeavor. What would be the point of writing about things that hold little importance in my own life? That would certainly constitute a waste a time and energy. While there are many specific types of conversations I could initiate, there are no doubt certain topics that are more worthy of my attention and your consideration than others. So what are the types of things that I am truly passionate about?

My particular interests lie in areas of Christian living, pastoral theology, practical biblical studies, ministry concerns, pastoral care and counseling, and marriage and family issues. As a preacher, counseling professor, pastoral counselor, husband and father, my interest undoubtedly gravitates to certain related areas. By the way, I also have a great appreciation for the outdoors and especially hiking and camping, which is something I am blessed to do on a regular basis with a number of great male, Christian friends.

So rather than limiting myself in this blog to only one or two topical areas or fields, I want to allow myself the luxury of having sufficient latitude to draw from a variety of thematic interests. However, at the heart of my musings will generally be ideas connected in some tangible way to God's heart and to matters of Christian faith, ministry, and service. As someone who was raised on the mission field in South Africa and who has spent the majority of his adult life in fulltime ministry, I have a deeply ingrained pastoral identity. It is unquestionably a big part of who I am. I find great fulfillment in helping people discover spiritual meaning in their lives and develop (or hone) skills for better serving their fellow human beings in the name of Jesus Christ.

I hope you will find something of spiritual and practical value in my ongoing blog entries that resonates with your own areas of interest, passion, and personal concern. At the bare minimum, I recognize the need for my offerings to remain relevant to our collective contemporary experiences as we strive to live out our faith in a post-modern world, one that is antithetical to Christian values. It is my prayer that you will choose to join me on this great adventure as a fellow sojourner. I also look forward to receiving your honest feedback and personal insights along the way as we strive to sharpen one another.

Let's commit to grow together in knowledge, compassion, and faithful dedication to Christ. Thanks for joining me for this important dialogue. I look very forward to our future conversations together!

Ryan N. Fraser, Ph.D.

Note: This article was originally posted on my former blogsite (www.ryanfraser.org).