I'm Jealous!

Psalm 37 (New International Version, ©2010)

⁴ Take delight in the LORD,
   and he will give you the desires of your heart.
 ⁵ Commit your way to the LORD;
   trust in him and he will do this:
⁶ He will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn,
   your vindication like the noonday sun.
 ⁷ Be still before the LORD
   and wait patiently for him;
do not fret when people succeed in their ways,
   when they carry out their wicked schemes.
 ⁸ Refrain from anger and turn from wrath;
   do not fret—it leads only to evil. ⁹ For those who are evil will be destroyed,
   but those who hope in the LORD will inherit the land.


Maybe it's wrong to say, if it is, forgive me. Sometimes I am jealous of the Non-Christian. Is it just me, or does it seem they are the ones getting the rewards. I see people who openly defy our Lord and yet, they appear to win all the battles. I see so much suffering for those that serve the Lord and those who don't care seem like they are never affected. So, when I read these verses, I could hear God speaking straight to me.

I have to trust that God WILL reward me in amazing and wonderful ways. I just have to sit quietly and wait. (I'm not good at that!) I can't get all bent out of shape when it looks like they are winning. I can't get angry. If I give in to anger and wrath, I will be no better than them. I can't forget the promise of these verses. Our rewards are promised for Eternity, not just for this temporary moment. Trust in the Lord always!

It's so easy for me to forget the battle has already been won. Our victory is guaranteed. The appearance of Evil winning is just an illusion. Gods promises are perfect, his blessings are beyond what we can imagine, his righteous rewards will be brighter than the noon day sun. Nothing can take those ETERNAL rewards away from us. So I have to tell myself, stop with the jealousy, stop with the envy, TRUST in the LORD. We are victorious through him!

10% of the people = 90% of the work!

1 Thessalonians 5 (The Message)

 ^13-15Get along among yourselves, each of you doing your part. Our counsel is that you warn the freeloaders to get a move on. Gently encourage the stragglers, and reach out for the exhausted, pulling them to their feet. Be patient with each person, attentive to individual needs. 


Schools are no different than churches. 10% of the people do 90% of the work. I guess we can call the rest "freeloaders".  Our school athletic department is in the middle of our largest fundraiser of the year.  We have to staff over 2500 hours of workers for parking cars at our local Labor Day Auto Auction.  I have so many people who would do anything to help out.  I even have some that take vacation to work Thursday and Friday.  They volunteer their time, stand out in the hot sun all day, and get yelled at by a bunch of rich people.  The job doesn't include a lot of rewards.  Yet, they are always the ones to work all 5 days, multiple shifts, and never complain. Some people never work one second of the five days. By the end of the weekend all the "workers" are exhausted.  I am SO thankful for the people who contribute their time. I try to do whatever I can to help them survive the weekend.  If their out in the hot sun, so am I.  I work every shift, not because it's required, but because a lot of people are giving up a lot more than me to work.


Like I said, churches are the same way.  It is always a small minority that will do a majority of the work.  I appreciate these people. We should all appreciate them. Sometimes we can't do much to reward them.  But, at the very least, we can praise them and make sure they are aware of our appreciation. They don't get much reward.  Whatever we can do for them, we should. They too, get exhausted. We need to pull them to their feet! When they get exhausted, they need a break.  We need to make sure we aren't one of the freeloaders and we are doing whatever we can for those "Church Giants" , helping them wherever we can.  We need to love them, appreciate them, and reward them.


Dear Lord, Thank you for sending tireless workers to spread your message.  Give them special strength to complete your plan.  Provide relief when they need it and rewards beyond what this Earth can provide. In you great and holy name, we pray.  Amen!