SUM 11: Day 35

Romans 13:1-10

Lead those you have influence with! All authority is from God. When I was a kid, I went to church a lot. My dad was a pastor, so every time the door was open, we were there. Pretty much all that time. I hated Sunday School. If you don’t know what Sunday School is, allow me to explain it. Sunday School is a time when adults try to teach you about the Bible and why you should not be drinking, partying, watching Rated R movies or pretty much having any fun. Sunday mornings always seemed like such a drag.

My sophomore year, however, was a little different. That year, my Sunday School teacher was a guy named Eric. Eric was different than any of the teachers I had in the past. He was a young, single lawyer with a sweet pad and sweet wheels. He taught us the Bible in a way that made it come alive. Really, for the fi rst time, the Bible was more than a collection of memory verses. He taught me about historical context and that the Bible was not full of foolish, 1st Century weirdoes; instead, it was full of businessmen, athletes and blue collar workers. At times, it was as crazy as a Springer episode. Eric did not do this because he was being paid or to win applause.

Rather, he invested into the lives of eight sophomores because God had given him authority, and he wanted to be a good steward of it. Not only does God put others in positions of authority over us, but, also, at many times, He puts us in positions of authority over others. The Bible is clear we 1) Should respect those in authority over us and 2) We should be worthy of respect if we are in authority. Eric was worthy of respect, and we loved him. To this day, all of the guys in my class are serving the Lord in our respective fields and making a difference for the Kingdom.

Pray: God, help me to respect those in authority and to be worthy of respect
to those who I have authority over.

Do: Find someone who is in authority over you and tell them you appreciate them and
their efforts in leading.

SUM 11: Day 34

Proverbs 12:24 & Romans 12:8

How should I lead? Lead enthusiastically! When I was in seminary, I happened upon my dream job. For three years, I coached a high school basketball team at a small Christian high school. The fi rst day of practice, I was so excited. My team was small, weak, slow and without any athletic ability, but, man, we had heart. (That’s what a coach says when he knows his team isn’t good.) The school was so small that our varsity team was the only team, and we had four freshmen on it, including our starting point guard. We were doomed. As the season went on, I had so much fun getting to know my players and working with them; however, no matter how hard we practiced, we could not win. We were bad.

As the season was winding down, I had circled one specific game on my calendar. The team was almost as bad as we were. I thought if I scouted them hard and drilled a few
specifi c plays into the brains of my kids, we could pull off the upset. The day of the game, I gave the best pre-game speech ever. (Maybe an overstatement.) We went out there and played so hard but got our tails kicked by 15. My fi rst year as coach
gave us our record of 0-18. We stunk.

I still keep up with those kids and many of them have kids of their own. They have grown up to love Jesus. Awhile back, one of them contacted me and told me how my involvement in his life had helped him to become a Christian. Even though the immediate goal (winning) was never reached, the greater goal was. When we lead, we build into others with the goal of making them better. I tried to do that both on the court and in their lives. BTW, three years later we finished undefeated. Booyah!!!

Pray: God, is there some way I can use my gifts and abilities in
leadership to make Your name great?

Do: Find a place to use your gifts and passions and invest in someone else.

SUM 11: Day 18

Romans 5:1-11

Respect for God: He is worthy! Reconciliation is a big word, with an even bigger meaning and impact. According to the World English Dictionary, to reconcile is “to become friendly with.” Debtors “become friendly” with those they owe once they pay back the money they borrowed. We “become friendly” with God only through paying the price for our offense toward Him! The amazing news is that Christ pays the price for us. He offers to clear our debt once and for all through His sacrificial death. All we have to do is trust in Him.

He paid for you.

His great love for us is what changes us and causes us to worship Him. His Spirit within us propels us to desire Him, to pursue Him, to honor Him. True respect doesn’t come from duty or obligation, nor does it come based on something that someone has done; true respect comes from a reverence and honor for who a person is. And that comes through “being friendly” with God, which He makes possible.

Read: Romans 5:1-11. Read it again, this time looking for characteristics that describe who God is.

Pray: “God, You have come to give me new life. I don’t have to try and gain my way to You through things I do; but because of Christ’s death on the cross, now He lives within me. I have been chosen! Help me to live out who You have made me to be
– an ambassador for Christ. Show me how to live out a life of reconciliation just as You reconciled me to You.”

Do: Write or draw ways Christ has saved you from who you were to who you are today.

Challenge: Study the way Jesus walked on earth. He did some pretty crazy and challenging stuff, but, most of all, He just spent time with people. How can you spend time with those who you know are not reconciled with Christ?

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SUM 11: Day 17

Romans 5:1-11

Respect for Self: Who am I? Have you seen the Bourne trilogy? The series centers around the main character’s quest to find his identity after his memory is erased due to covert operations he navigated. The question of “Who am I?” drives us all at some level. Thankfully, unlike Jason Bourne, we don’t have to run for our lives as we discover our identity and worth.

God tells us plainly in Scripture who we are in Him. We are loved, desired, valued, fought for, paid for; the list continues. Because of who we are in Christ, we can value and respect ourselves. It’s not prideful or arrogant; it’s understanding your identity and living it as reality. Respecting yourself means living out who God says you are.

How do you show respect for others? Do you show the same respect for yourself?

Discover what Jesus says about you. Uncover the many reasons why you are valued and worth respecting yourself. Then, live it out. Start today.

Read: Romans 5:1-11. For a deeper look, check out Galatians 2:20, 2 Corinthians 5:17-20 and Ephesians 1:3-14. As you read, make a list of the characteristics that God says belong to you, thanks to Jesus’ sacrifice.

Pray: Pray that the Lord would use the repeat of these verses to let you know that you indeed are a treasure and dearly loved.

Do: Make a list of the things that are hard for you to believe about God, His love, your identity in Him or anything else on your heart.

Examples from people who are dear to my heart
: Believing God could really love me after all I have done.
: Trusting God is good when things are good and when things are really hard.
: Believing that I am chosen, not because of what I have done or the things I continue to do, but because of His great love.

SUM 11: Day 16

Ephesians 5:1-2; Romans 5:6-11; John 13:34

Respect for Others. Does anyone sing about it better than Aretha Franklin? Seriously. But does anyone actually know the words beyond,“R-E-S-P-E-C-T, find out what it means to me. R-E-S-P-E-C-T, take care ... watermelon, watermelon ... .” Talk about bad karaoke. Do you ever hear a song, try to decipher the words to no avail and then resolve to recreate the song, using your own words? This has happened to me more than once. Sometimes it’s embarrassing to discover the correct words and realize how off I was.

So many times, we tend to hear words like “respect” and react to them as we react to unknown song lyrics: I’ll make it up as I go. When it comes to respecting others, we don’t have to guess. Jesus shows us exactly what it means to love someone and to treat people with respect.

Read: John 13:1-35. Notice how Jesus shows His respect and love for His disciples. Read the passage again, this time keeping in mind how you treat those you love. How does your love and respect for others mimic Jesus?

Pray: God, You lived a life of love, but sometimes some of those around me just seem so hard to love. Show me how to love those who are hard to love. Help me to remember that You love the unlovely.

Do: Think of a person(s) in your life that could really use some extra love right now. Take some time to think of ways they could be loved this week. Maybe it’s inviting them over to your house for dinner, sitting next to them at lunch, sticking up for them when someone is bullying them or giving them a much needed hug.