Author: Brian Burdett

“Though if I should wish to boast, I would not be a fool, for I would be speaking the truth; but I refrain from it, so that no one may think more of me than he sees in me or hears from me.” – 2 Corinthians 12:6

Humility isn’t thinking less of yourself. It’s thinking of yourself less. It isn’t a fear of people seeing and hearing you, it’s a fear of people elevating you too high in their minds. The Apostle Paul did more, saw more, and experienced more than any of us probably ever will. But he didn’t let it go to his head. He knew not to let those things make him the center of people’s attention. He was just a man saved from his vile sins (and his past attention-seeking pride) by the extraordinary grace of Jesus Christ. Humbled by that, Paul never sought to make things about him. He worked hard to point all eyes and ears toward Jesus Christ. Despite tasting heaven itself, Paul didn’t want people looking at his awesome experiences for inspiration.

Instead, Paul taught us how to live in the extraordinary power of the Holy Spirit while keeping everyone’s eyes fixed on Jesus. He did this by consistently directing people to two things – his Christlike life and his Christ-centered words. Under the transformative power of the Spirit, Paul worked hard to live a life of humble, holy imitation of Jesus. He invited people to look at and imitate his example. Not because Paul was all that, but because through Christ, he’d become a fairly good imitation of Jesus. This is something for every Christian to aspire to – the humble, holy imitation of Jesus that invites others to imitate Him.

Likewise, Paul kept people’s ears on Jesus by only speaking the words of the Gospel, the words of Christ, and words about Him. Though trained in all sorts of rhetorical skills, Paul worked hard to keep his message simple and focused on Jesus Christ, His crucifixion, and His resurrection. He didn’t want cult-like followers of Paul. He wanted mature disciples of Jesus. That’s why Paul refused to let it be about him, denying himself the opportunity to indulge his ego. Paul didn’t like to tell good stories about himself. He like to live and speak only of Jesus. There’s a lot to learn from that! #FollowJesus

“This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory. And his disciples believed in him.” – John 2:11

Much is made of the sweet beauty and grace of Jesus’ first miracle, in which He turned water into wine. It’s certainly a model of discretion. A symbol of favor toward weddings. An example of kindness as He protected the dignity of a family caught in an embarrassing situation. However, this verse reveals His most important reason for transforming water, the symbol of never-ending ritual purification under the Old Covenant, into wine, the symbol of grace poured out at the cross of the New Covenant. It was to “manifest his glory” so His first few disciples would truly believe in Him.

What does that mean and why would it move them to such lasting faith? It means that Jesus revealed a tiny glimpse of His eternal power and glory as the Son of God. Jesus didn’t just turn one drinkable liquid into another. He didn’t just add flavor. He turned the simple mix of hydrogen and oxygen atoms into the complex stew of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and other elements that is wine. He added and completely rearranged atoms and molecules to make something altogether different. He used the power of Creation in a quiet, controlled, manner that only a handful of people could see.

Why? So that, unlike the ever-fickle crowds, those first few witnesses would follow Jesus everywhere. They’d seen the power of God close up and it kept them bound to Jesus. Through good times and bad. To the other side of the cross and the resurrection. To the other side of the world as they made disciples. To the other side of their own suffering for His name. It was His glory and it is enough. For them and for us. #FollowJesus

“He first found his own brother Simon and said to him, ‘We have found the Messiah’ (which means Christ).” – John 1:41

When you tell someone about Jesus, you never know how they will respond. Maybe they will believe, maybe they won’t. You also don’t know what sort of impact that possible new believer may go on to have for God’s Kingdom. For all that Andrew did in his life of service to Jesus, the most impactful thing might have been the first thing he ever did. He told his brother Simon (Peter) that Jesus was the Messiah and introduced him to the Lord.

Peter grew into the spokesmen for the Apostles, the closest follower of Jesus, the leader of the early church, and an author of Scripture. God used Peter to start the church in Jerusalem and to clearly welcome non-Jews into the faith. Peter paved the way for Paul’s missionary work. Andrew’s one simple act of sharing Christ with a loved one has rippled across countless generations and impacted eternity in ways beyond our comprehension. Of course, Andrew had a dynamic ministry of his own and introduced the faith to many in the ancient world. But introducing Peter to the Lord? That changed the course of the world!

What might God do through someone you introduce to Jesus? You simply don’t know, but it’s wonderful to imagine! Always believe that your faithfulness in telling people about Jesus might be used by God to raise up the next great evangelist, theologian, missionary, or church planter. Or to raise up the person who will quietly share Jesus with that person. Consider every person you share your faith with to have the potential of leading many to Christ, transforming families for generations, and leading nations to the Lord. Pray that this will be true. Then share your hope in Christ and tell people how to #FollowJesus

“And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work.” – 2 Corinthians 9:8

All grace…all sufficiency…all things…all times…every good work. What’s the point Paul’s making? God will enable you to do more and more good works for Him as you yield yourself in obedience to do those works. As you pour yourself out for Him, He will refill you faster than you can pour. As you let go of your limited thinking about what you “can” do, God will provide grace to do far more through you than you imagine possible. To bless more. To reach more. To save more.

God will abundantly bless you as you joyfully and sacrificially obey and bless Him. That blessing will encourage, inspire, and empower you to be even more emphatically, outrageously, even “dangerously” obedient and generous with the time, talent, and treasure God has given you. There is a virtuous cycle of blessing, a pouring out of grace, that God delights in when you yield yourself to become a delighted means of grace for others.

All that to say, give generously to the work of God’s Kingdom. Give more generously of your time than our culture of “balance” and “self-care” recommends. Find ways to give more outrageously of your talent than our culture of “getting paid” encourages. Give more joyfully of your earthly treasures (whether they be large or small) than “prudence” would dictate. Then see what God does next. He will bless you! He will cause grace to abound toward you. What that may look like can’t be predicted. But that it will happen is promised. Trust that when you give more than “you should” – of time, talent, and treasure – God will makes fools of those wise voices of restraint and pour out amazing grace upon you. #FollowJesus

“Then Moses told his father-in-law all that the Lord had done to Pharaoh and to the Egyptians for Israel’s sake, all the hardship that had come upon them in the way, and how the Lord had delivered them.” – Exodus 18:8

When Jethro came to visit his son-in-law, Moses caught him up on everything that had happened since they’d last been together. But Moses didn’t tell stories about himself. He told stories about God. What God did in Egypt. How God had helped them survive terrible dangers and overcome impossible obstacles. The word we use for a story like that is “testimony”. Moses shared testimonies about God’s goodness, faithfulness, and power with someone close to him who didn’t yet believe in God. This is a good example for all of us.

What’s your testimony? If Jesus has saved you from your sins then you definitely have a testimony, even if you don’t realize it. So, what stories are you eager to tell people about God? What obstacles has He helped you survive and overcome? How has God guided you out of terrible situations? How have you seen God working in your life and in the world? Take some time to carefully think about these questions. Then take a few minutes to practice saying one of these God stories out loud. Get your tongue and lips used to telling stories about God’s reality and power if they aren’t.

Now pray about who might benefit from hearing that testimony. Pray for them by name that they would be open to believing the truth about the God who loves them and would like to bless them as He has blessed you. Pray for the boldness to share your testimony with that person. Then share, just like Moses did. #FollowJesus