Tyranny of the urgent describes a life that is unjustly run by pressing issues that require immediate attention. It is constantly being bogged down with situations and circumstances that pull for your TIME, and ENERGY. When living under “the tyranny of the urgent” life is a “Rat Race” and we are always behind. Our problem is not one of “time” but one of “priorities.”
•    We let other people’s demands drive us to a point of frustration, when quite simple we need to learn to “just say no.”
•    We let urgent things crowd out important things.

The urgent things that call for immediate action put extreme pressure on us every hour of every day. The important things like prayer, studying the Word, encouraging others in the Lord…these are the things that wait.

Is there any escape from “the tyranny of the urgent?” Let’s look at the life of Jesus for that answer. The night before He died He made a claim in John 17:4 “I have finished the work which You have given Me to do.” Keep in mind that His ministry was only three years old. There was much to be done yet, teaching, preaching, and miracles of salvation, healing and deliverance. Yet, with confidence and peace He could say, “I have finished the work.”

When we look at the life of Jesus we see a life of:
1. Perfect Timing
2. Wonderful Balance
3. Being in tune with God

Why were those things present in His life? I believe the answer can be found in Mark 1:35 which says, “In the morning, a great while before day, He rose and went out to a lonely place, and there He prayed.” He talked with His Father.
•    He prayerfully waited for instructions and strength
•    He discerned the Father’s will for His life, day by day

As a result He was able to ward off the urgent and accomplish the important. A perfect case point is that of Lazarus. Jesus received the message that His friend was close to death and that He should go to him. Yet we see in John 11:6 that He stayed “two more days in the place where He was.” By the time He got to Bethany, Lazarus had been in the tomb four days. The urgent thing was the demand for Jesus to go at once and heal Lazarus. The important thing was the thing that would have the most lasting impact: RAISING HIM FROM THE DEAD.

There is a big difference in doing a “good thing” and doing the “right thing.” And, there is a price to be paid in order to do the right thing, but the reward will be so sweet if only we do not give in to the pull of the “urgent.” God has promised that if we abide (hold and maintain fellowship, remain) in His Word, then He will instruct us concerning the truth. We will know the truth about:
1. What He desires   2. What He expects   3. What He accepts

We cannot be effective in our lives and ministries if we do not stay plugged in to The Source not only of the The One Who has all the answers but also The One Who has the ability to perform what needs to be performed in people’s lives.
(MELINDA LANCASTER)

To be a Christian means to forgive the inexcusable
because God has forgiven the inexcusable in you.

Eveyone says forgiveness is a lovely idea, until they
have something to forgive.                         (C.S. LEWIS)

You will begin to heal when you let go of past
hurts, forgive those who have wronged you,
and learn to forgive yourself for your mistakes.

FORGIVE others, not because they deserve  forgiveness, but because you deserve PEACE.

It takes  a strong person to say SORRY, and an even stronger person to FORGIVE.

We must develop and maintain the capacity to forgive. He
who is devoid of the power to forgive is devoid of the power
to love. There is some good in the worst of us and some evil
in the best of us. When we discover this, we are less prone
hate our enemies.                                    (MARTIN LUTHER KING JR.)

To be forgiven is such sweetness that honey is tasteless in comparison. But yet there is one thing sweeter still, and that is to forgive.            (CHARLES SPURGEON)

The practice of forgiveness is our most important contribution to the healing of the world.   (MARIANNE WILLIAMSON

You have to learn to forgive
because EVERYBODY
makes mistakes.

Forgiveness is the fragrance the
violet sheds on the heel that
has crushed it.  (MARK TWAIN)

God has opened the door for me to ____.
I was pursuing something I really felt called to, but God closed the door.

That’s not in the Bible folks. It is a non-biblical, non-Christian philosophy called fatalism. I believe this little phrase, God opens and closes doors, has led to people falsely blaming God for missed opportunities. We put this philosophy of open and closed doors above biblical concepts like perseverance, patience, and long-suffering. Instead, many have bought into a mentality that it’s meant to be, God will open doors. If it isn’t meant to be, God will close doors. Again, that’s fatalism. That isn’t how God works. Nor is it how God’s people are asked to look at the world.

This is what God says about opening doors:
Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me. Revelation 3:20

 Did David tell his friends, “Yeah, I was anointed as the next king, I don’t know though. Clearly, Saul doesn’t like me so I think God is closing that door?“
 I don’t think God cared too much about Jonah’s “closing the door” on going to Ninevah.
 And a ship-wreck was clearly a “closed door” if I’ve ever seen one. But did that stop Paul?
 Persecutions of the first apostles weren’t seen as God closing doors. The only door that ended their ministry typically involved lions.
 Pharaoh refusing to release the Jews for the first 9 plagues wasn’t God closing a door.
 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego had an open door to a fiery furnace. But that didn’t stop them, did it?
 Seems like the doors were closed around old Jericho, weren’t they? Did that stop God’s people from taking action?

On and on we see that Scripture is not fatalistic about vocation, doing good, doing right, or fulfilling our call! But God does work in us and through us when we persevere, when we are patient in affliction, when we long-suffer for doing right

God rewards the righteous. God smiles on those who seek justice. God hears and answers prayer. God wants us to seek wise-council. God’s calling is true. God can move literal and figurative mountains for the faithful. God calls us and asks us to depend on Him and Him alone. He could care less about our education. (Paul) He could care less about our abilities. (Moses) He could care less about our lack of faith. (Jonah) He could care less about our past failures. (David).

If He is asking you to do something He will make a way. Rather than worrying about if the door is open or closed we are asked to open the door. We may have to kick it in. And we may need to buy a sledge-hammer to make a way where there is no way. But waiting for doors to open or doors to close is meaningless, dangerous, and destructive. The only door you should be closing is on fatalism. The only door you should be opening is to Jesus, “Here I am, use me how you want. I am yours. You are my Savior and Lord.”                              (ADAM MCLANE)

Once, when the people of God had become careless in their relationship with Him, the Lord rebuked them through the prophet Haggai. “Consider your ways!” (Haggai 1:5) he declared, urging them to reflect on some of the things happening to them, and to evaluate their slipshod spirituality in light of what God had told them.

Even those most faithful to God occasionally need to pause and think about the direction of their lives. It’s so easy to bump along from one busy week to another without ever stopping to ponder where we’re going and where we should be going.

The beginning of a new year is an ideal time to stop, look up, and get our bearings. To that end, here are some questions to ask prayerfully in the presence of God.

1.     What’s one thing you could do this year to increase your enjoyment of God?

2.     What’s one thing you could do this year to enrich the spiritual legacy you will  leave to your    children and grandchildren?

3.     What’s the single most important thing you could do to improve the quality of your family life this           year?

4.    In which spiritual discipline do you most want to make progress this year, and what will you do about         it?

5.    What is the single biggest time-waster in your life, and what will you do about it this year?

6.    What is the most helpful new way you could strengthen your church?

7.    For whose salvation will you pray most fervently this year?

8.    What’s the most important way you will, by God’s grace, try to make this year       different   from last year?

9.    What one thing could you do to improve your prayer life this year?

10.   What single thing that you plan to do this year will matter most in 10 years? In eternity?
(DON WHITNEY)

Often, Jesus gets shut out during Christmas. Imagine I planned a party for you and invited many  people.  Everyone  brings lots  of  gifts,
and the invitees trade presents with one another — and you get nothing.

That’s Christmas. We give gifts to everyone but Jesus. But let’s be honest, what do you give the God who has everything?

Actually, Jesus doesn’t have everything. There are four things He doesn’t have unless you give them to Him this Christmas:

Give him your trust. Faith is a voluntary matter. Jesus doesn’t have your trust unless you give it to Him. He will never force it.

Make Jesus first place in your life. If anything or anyone other than Jesus holds first place in your life, it’s an idol. This Christmas, choose to make Jesus first in your finances, interests, relationships, and schedule — and even in your troubles.

Give Jesus your heart. Your heart is what you love, what you value, and what you care about most. Jesus says, “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Luke 12:34). One important way you give Jesus your heart this Christmas is by giving your resources to His work. Jesus doesn’t need your money, but He wants what it represents — your heart.

Bring other people to Jesus. God wants a family more than anything else this Christmas. He wants children who choose to love and trust Him. It is the reason we celebrate Christmas. Invite someone to Jesus this Christmas. Tell someone about what Jesus has done in your life.

The Bible tells us that the Wise Men didn’t give Jesus their leftovers when they visited Him on the first Christmas but instead gave three very significant and valuable gifts: “They bowed down and worshiped him. They opened their gifts and gave him treasures of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.” (Matthew 2:11)

As you give Jesus your trust, make Him first in your life, give what you value to His work, and bring other people to Him, you’re giving Him gifts far more valuable than the ones the Wise Men brought. So tell Jesus “happy birthday” this Christmas. Give Him your best.

For your Reflection
•    Why do you think giving a gift to Jesus is thought of so little during the Christmas season?
•    What do you think it means to put Jesus first in your troubles?
•    Which of the gifts mentioned in the reflection do you want to commit to giving to Jesus this Christmas?          (RICK WARREN)

Week  4

Waiting in Servanthood with Mary…
Luke 1.26-40

A young woman, Mary, who lived in the village of Nazareth was engaged to a carpenter. He was not wealthy or well known, but Joseph was a good man. She was preparing for the wedding—and was engaged in hopes for home, family, security . . . until the angel Gabriel knocked at her door.

“Peace be with you!” he says.
(What is God’s peace like, she wonders. Why is my heart pounding so?)

“The Lord is with you and has greatly blessed you. Don’t be afraid! You will conceive and bear a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus.”
(Jesus? in me? how?)

“The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you,”  And Mary replies:
“Yes, I am the Lord’s servant . . .

Her engagement to the carpenter and her hopes are all at risk as she journeys into the hills of Judah, to calm the pounding of her spirit in the house of Elizabeth. When we say, “Yes, Lord; I am your servant,” our lives will never be the same again. For Jesus will be born in us, His Spirit will overshadow us, and we will give birth to God’s Kingdom in the stable of this world.

Reflection
As you look back on your life, reflect on the Gabriel moments. What word did God speak to you? Who are the persons who have created safe space for you to speak and to explore the Word, the birthing? Where is saying “Yes, Lord” taking you?

Lord,
I believe my life is touched by You,
that You want something for me and of me.
Give me ears to hear You, eyes to see the
tracing of Your finger, and
a heart quickened by the motions of Your Spirit.