My official blogspot related to ministry, counseling, and family matters. Also the home of my HeartPoint Podcast. I'm represented by Diana Flegal of Hartline Literary Agency.
Are you an encourager? Everyone needs a steady dose
of encouragement in what can often be a discouraging world. The stress of daily
living definitely takes its toll on people and can bring them down.
Acts 4:36 tell us about an early disciple
of Christ by the name of Joseph, whom the apostles affectionately called
Barnabas, meaning “son of encouragement.” He was a constant source of
encouragement to the apostle Paul during his difficult ministry among the
Gentiles. We need more Barnabases today!
So, here’s a simple idea. Why not send an
encouraging text, email, or Facebook message to someone today. You could
include an uplifting scripture or even a prayer for them. This is just one more
way to show Christ’s heart and be His hands.
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!
The last few weeks, we have been discussing the idea, “Ten
Ways to Demonstrate His Heart, My Hands.” The first week, we presented the
concept of performing random acts of
kindness. Last week, the idea presented was to write a handwritten note of
appreciation. What a difference that can make other's lives as well!
Here comes idea Number Three. The concept for this week is
to celebrate a coworker’s birthday. Now, you
may not even be working outside the home, but even through your connections through civic organizations you
can reach out to and maybe surprise people by finding out what their favorite
flavor birthday cake is and their birthdate. Those who don’t like cake may appreciate doughnuts or
other types of dessert.
At the University where I work, my department has a long
tradition of every year selecting a colleague in our department. When their
birthday comes along, around lunchtime we spend a few moments together to honor
them. They sure do appreciate it. You might know somebody who might be little
introverted and normally not the life party. So this is a great chance to reach
out to them to show Christ's love. You can decorate their office door or the
reception desk and find out what their favorite birthday cake is. Then invite
the folks on your hallway or in your department or, if you work at a small
businesses, all those that work there. They are gather together maybe at about
11:15am just to celebrate. Who doesn't like birthday cake! Get real!
It can be a lot of fun and it can mean a lot to somebody who
is perhaps a bit depressed. Not everybody likes to have birthdays and so this
might be one way to brighten their day. This ties into Roman 12:9-10 and 15. “Let love be genuine . . . Love one another
with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor . . . Rejoice with
those who rejoice.”
A great way this week to show honor or over the next month is
to show honor to somebody that is so coming up on another birthday. We tend to
get so wrapped up in our little world that we fail to see the needs of those
around us and make a difference in someone else's life. One way to do this is
to celebrate important days with them. Find out when their birthdays are.
Choose somebody to celebrate his or her birthday. Perhaps you can even throw a
surprise party. Have some fun with it see what a difference you can make!
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.
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).
