the sacred need to matter
I was ministered by this from Beth Moore's Beloved Disciple bible study, as she studies the church of Philadelphia and the passage "I know that you have little strength." Revelation 3:8
"Bible commentators believe that Christ's reference to the little strength of Philadelphia's church referred to its diminutive size and small visible impact. Poorer, less influential people composed that church; yet they endured patiently (Rev. 3:10). In our numbers-oriented society, we can hardly overestimate the discouragement that comes from perceived ineffectiveness. Don't think for a moment the enemy won't do everything he can to convince you that your efforts in Christ's name are in vain. He preys on feelings of uselessness and worthlessness. That's precisely why the enemy seeks every avenue to fuel and perpetuate them. We all have a God-given need to matter.
Needing to matter does not mean you are self-centered and vain. It means that you are human. What you and I do with the need can become extremely vain and self-centered, but the need itself is sacred. Fragrant flowers don't need someone to smell them or keep them blooming. Lions don't kill their prey for significance. They're simply hungry. Only humans yearn to matter. ...God formed us to seek lives of purpose and, for those who follow His lead, to find them ultimately in Him alone.
Christ alone is the judge of what matters. The small, seemingly insignificant band of believers in Philadelphia may have been blind to the fruit of their own efforts, but Christ found them beyond rebuke. I think the key word in His commendation is the description He used for the way they endured: patiently....
One of the meanest tricks Satan ever plays is to try to convince us that God doesn't love us and that we're exerting all this energy and exercising all this faith for nothing. ....
We are not to be motivated by spite, but Jesus wants you to know that one day everyone will know how much He loves you. You have been unashamed of Him, and He most assuredly will prove unashamed of you."
I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown. Him who overcomes I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Revelation 3:11-12a (NIV)
"Bible commentators believe that Christ's reference to the little strength of Philadelphia's church referred to its diminutive size and small visible impact. Poorer, less influential people composed that church; yet they endured patiently (Rev. 3:10). In our numbers-oriented society, we can hardly overestimate the discouragement that comes from perceived ineffectiveness. Don't think for a moment the enemy won't do everything he can to convince you that your efforts in Christ's name are in vain. He preys on feelings of uselessness and worthlessness. That's precisely why the enemy seeks every avenue to fuel and perpetuate them. We all have a God-given need to matter.
Needing to matter does not mean you are self-centered and vain. It means that you are human. What you and I do with the need can become extremely vain and self-centered, but the need itself is sacred. Fragrant flowers don't need someone to smell them or keep them blooming. Lions don't kill their prey for significance. They're simply hungry. Only humans yearn to matter. ...God formed us to seek lives of purpose and, for those who follow His lead, to find them ultimately in Him alone.
Christ alone is the judge of what matters. The small, seemingly insignificant band of believers in Philadelphia may have been blind to the fruit of their own efforts, but Christ found them beyond rebuke. I think the key word in His commendation is the description He used for the way they endured: patiently....
One of the meanest tricks Satan ever plays is to try to convince us that God doesn't love us and that we're exerting all this energy and exercising all this faith for nothing. ....
We are not to be motivated by spite, but Jesus wants you to know that one day everyone will know how much He loves you. You have been unashamed of Him, and He most assuredly will prove unashamed of you."
I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown. Him who overcomes I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Revelation 3:11-12a (NIV)