Doing The Least Bad

"Jesus, I’m not as bad as that person..."

Maybe not in those words, but this just might be the phrase spoken around the world. How often do we compare ourselves to others? As a kid in Newark (Best city in the whole wide world!), there wasn't a basketball court you could go to that didn’t have someone shooting a basketball and exclaiming, "KOBE!" as they shot the ball. He was my generation's Michael Jordan and, therefore, was the standard of basketball supremacy. We all compared ourselves to him, and he was the standard upon which we judged skill.

Somewhere, between childhood and becoming an adult, we changed our comparative focuses. They went from desiring to be as good as Kobe, to not wanting to be as bad as the worse player. No longer did we compare ourselves to the best, rather we judged ourselves based on the worse.

Instead of doing the most good, we've settled for doing the least bad.
 
"Jesus I may not be the best, but I’m not the worse..."

That's got to count for something, right? Right? In the words of the old lady explaining Facebook to another old lady, "That's not how this works. That's not how any of this works."

Not that we dare to classify or compare ourselves with some of those who are commending themselves. But when they measure themselves by one another and compare themselves with one another, they are without understanding. - 2 Corinthians 10:12

When Paul wrote his letter to the Corinthians, there were several false teachers spewing their poison into any set of ears that would hear them. Paul needed the people to be weary of these people, because foolishness can be contagious. To prevent the spread of this ignorance, Paul knew the first step in prevention is identification. He was telling the people of Corinth that they will know the truth by the standard it's compared to. Paul boasted in Jesus, whereas these teachings set themselves as the standards by which all things are measured.

Like them, we compare ourselves to the wrong thing. In our minds, "If I’m not the poorest, then I'm not poor." When in reality, we are. In the same way, "If I'm not the worse, then I'm not bad at all." Even though we do a fantastic job of convincing ourselves of this, we know it isn't true.

So what then should we do?

Instead of straddling mediocrity, let us strive for excellence! Easier said than done, right? I know because #TheStruggleIsReal. Well, since we are changing perspectives, why stop now? We fear failure and disappointment. These fears make the decision to avoid striving for the standard of Jesus easier. Perhaps we should change our perspective on what we are afraid of failing to reach.

Perfection.

It's out of our reach. A place we can't get to. This is true for our earthly selves. Luckily for us, perfection isn't a destination or the last stop on a train. It's a moment-by-moment opportunity. Each of these moments is a chance to see how our actions compare to that of the one true standard, Jesus Christ!

Ecclesiastes 7:20 says, "Surely there is not a righteous man on earth who does good and never sins." because all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). However, we are commanded to try because our heavenly Father is perfect (Matt. 5:48). 

Paul reminds us in Philippians 3:12-15 that this goal is worth striving for, "Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Let those of us who are mature think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you."

A wise man once said, "If you're not first, you're last." Although he may have been a bit misguided, he still pointed out the truth that we should always strive to be the best version of ourselves that we can be. That's only possible if we dare to be like Jesus.

To be like Jesus, this hope possesses me.
In every thought and deed, this is my aim, my creed.
To be like Jesus, this hope possesses me.
His Spirit helping me, like Him I'll be.

Written by Lt. Darell Houseton
Newark Ironbound Corps

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Satisfaction (or Why can't I just be happy with what I have?)

I am a bit of a techie, and some, my family, would say I love gadgets. Last month, Apple made a valiant effort to make me want a new gadget - the iPad Air 2. I currently have an iPad 3, and it does what I need it to do, but after watching Apple's announcement, I seem to have trouble being satisfied with a working iPad 3. As a matter of fact, I have spent a significant amount of time trying to justify purchasing it. My latest internal rationale is that my wife's iPad 2 is having trouble maintaining adequate battery life, so I should give her my iPad 3 and buy a new one as a gesture of sacrifice and love. Now that I've written it down, it seems like an absurd and silly argument. If I was truly sacrificial I would buy her the new iPad, right? It's sad, but it seems that I let myself get bombarded with such temptations on a daily basis as there is always something new or improved that people tell me I just have to have. Will I buy a new iPad? Well, that's really a discussion I have to have with my wife, not the Internet.

Maybe you're struggling with the same issue that I am - being satisfied. When is enough, enough? When does what we need become the measure of our life as opposed to what we want? As we head into the retail sales frenzy of the holidays, perhaps it's time to look at the bigger issue of satisfaction.

The dictionary (www.dictionary.com) defines satisfaction as "an act of satisfying; fulfillment; gratification.; the state of being satisfied; contentment. and the cause or means of being satisfied."

In Matthew 6:25-34, Jesus gives us some insight as to how we can be satisfied. In talking to his disciples about worry, he also gives them a nugget about satisfaction when He says, "For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you." Matthew 6:32-33 NASB. The "these things" that Jesus is speaking of are life's basics - clothes, food and shelter. Note that Jesus tells us if we seek first God's kingdom and righteousness, God will take care of these things. I think this is really the key to our satisfaction - seek God's kingdom and righteousness first!

Perhaps you'll join me in comparing wants to God's kingdom and righteousness. Apple (and every other company) may be trying to tell me I need better stuff, but what does it do for God's kingdom? When I look at it from that angle, my perspective begins to change, and I  start feeling satisfied with what I have. What about you? Does a change of perspective help you start to feel satisfied?

The Apostle Paul wrote the following to the church at Philippi - "But I rejoiced in the Lord greatly, that now at last you have revived your concern for me; indeed, you were concerned before, but you lacked opportunity. Not that I speak from want, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me." Philippians 4:10-13 NASB.

Will you join me in echoing Paul's testimony of satisfaction?

Written by Richard Pease
Divisional Controller

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