Jesus is on the throne

This morning, one of the leaders of our church made a significant point. It was reasonably brief, but carried tremendous weight, and is a part of who we are that I don't want to lose.

I will try to paraphrase her comments here:

"This has been a big week in the news in this country, with the  convictions in Baltimore, the ruling on same-sex marriage, and the issues surrounding the Confederate flag. We need to remember that we are a body with a variety of perspectives:
Some are rejoicing
Some are lamenting
Some are relieved
Some are fearful
We have a variety of perspectives here, but we must focus on, and remember that Jesus is on the throne. We worship HIM, he is in charge."

I am so glad to be going to a church with those core values. We need to be inclusive and appreciative of those with differing views. The work Christ did on the cross is central. His Lordship over every issue in our lives is central. But there are many peripheral issues that many churches get hung up on, and have divided churches. 

Our primary identity should not be Democrat or Republican, or any other label we might put on ourselves except Christ follower. If you and I both claim to follow Jesus, and I am on the opposite side of a political issue than you, as difficult as it may be, I need to focus primarily on the fact that we are brothers/sisters in Christ, and love you.

Christ's own desperate prayer, prayed while anticipating his imminent arrest, was "that we would all be one."

I pray that they will all be one, just as you and I are one—as you are in me, Father, and I am in you. And may they be in us so that the world will believe you sent me. (John 17:21 NLT)

All too often, Christians in our country of various political factions seem to put too much weight, hope, and allegiance in our country's government and political system. It is so easy to focus on our position, rather than the One who deserves primacy in our lives. 

This reminds me of what David prayed when all the gifts had been given for the building of the temple. This could have been a time to turn the focus on what a significant social/economic/political feat this was, but instead he began his prayer like this:

Yours, O LORD, is the greatness, the power, the glory, the victory, and the majesty. Everything in the heavens and on earth is yours, O LORD, and this is your kingdom. We adore you as the one who is over all things. Wealth and honor come from you alone, for you rule over everything. Power and might are in your hand, and at your discretion people are made great and given strength. (1 Chronicles 29:11-12 NLT)

Go to a [PLN] that I will show you

I teach a class through Fresno Pacific University called ET 735-Creating on the Web. This is one of the weekly devotional thoughts for that class.

Week 1: Go to a land I will show you

Genesis 12:1-7

Textbook section: Platform, page 38 / Location 912

The following is some key parts from Genesis 12:1-7

The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. ... all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.So he built an altar there to the Lord, who had appeared to him.

At this point, you don't know what your PLN is going to look like:
    Who you will connect to online
    What resources you will give and receive
    What relationships will come out of your work on your platform
    How much work it will take (both initially, and ongoing), etc.

I encourage you with the idea that God will do something significant in your lives, and in fact He has already begun. The end result will be good, and you will be a blessing to others in our profession.

We are moving to where God is working, and joining him in his work.

A word of caution, though... At every stage of working on our platform, if we are motivated purely by selfish ambition, without a significant ingredient of a desire to serve our students and colleagues better and more deeply, then we are missing something of what God has for us. We need to be motivated by the godly desire to be a blessing, and then we will experience a blessing ourselves as we bless and serve others.