E=MC^2_
Energy = (Mass times The Speed of Light) Squared
Or in other words… 1 gram of water, can store enough energy so that when released, it equals 20,000 tons of TNT (according to google, that is 😉) … Can you fathom the effect?
The last few weeks has been strange. God has been speaking to me about Identity, and then just earlier this week, I walk into a group of Christian men and the topic comes up again… God has a way of driving home a point without you realising it!
I think we do not really speak about Identity in the church because the assumption is that if we are in church, then we are already saved, and already know who we are in Christ…
But I think that is wrong. I don’t think we know in this post-modern world who we are or who we are supposed to be according to the worldly gauges we tend to fall back on…
So I was trying to put it into a structure that makes sense to me…
- Identity = Who we are in Christ, and who we are created to be
- Purpose = To Glorify God or to bring Glory to God through our actions
- Calling = How we use our Skills + Personality to bring Glory to God and others into his presence (or how we do #2 because of #1)
In theory… that is simple and straightforward, (like the basic theory of relativity 😉)
But how does that work in real life? We wake up at 4 or 5 in the morning, get ourselves ready and chase to work, where we try and squeeze every part out of every day until the sun goes down… then back home and give what is left to our families…?
How do we transfer our Identity, Purpose and Calling into something tangible, every day?
God reminded me of Tithing, and the principles surrounding the laws that governed the Israelite nation in the time of Moses. If you spend some time on them, you realise that the laws of God is not just an arbitrary set of laws to catch you out at being “bad” – Its a guide for type of lifestyle. It shows God’s character and what He would want you to develop into…
I’ve drawn the lines… Let me colour in the picture 😃!
God required a tithe from the best part of your harvest, from the best part of your field. The surrounding harvest was yours to do with as you please, but God’s law was: Harvest Once… you could not go back and harvest what you have missed. Everything skipped was left for the poor, the widows and orphans and the foreigners in the land.
”When you are harvesting in your field and you overlook a sheaf, do not go back to get it. Leave it for the foreigner, the fatherless and the widow, so that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work of your hands. When you beat the olives from your trees, do not go over the branches a second time. Leave what remains for the foreigner, the fatherless and the widow. When you harvest the grapes in your vineyard, do not go over the vines again. Leave what remains for the foreigner, the fatherless and the widow.”
(Deuteronomy 24:19-21 NIV *and* Leviticus 19:9-10 NIV)
This meant that often the edges and corners were also not harvested. Sometimes purposely.
If you think about it, it is such an amazing thing. It was taking care of those less fortunate than yourself, but in a way that they still “worked” and could take care of themselves. It gave dignity at basically no cost to the landowner. (Do yourself a favour and read Ruth chapter 2 again. You will instantly understand how this “law” of God worked!)
I knew this concept, but now… how to implement it?
I don’t have a field… or do I?
Does my “field” not just look different? Can I imagine my field, my block of agricultural land, rather as a block on the calendar?
…and instead of back-to-back meetings, I maybe schedule my meetings or work sessions, with 15 minutes in between, that I purposefully leave open for someone to freely use my knowledge and skills?
For example. Where I work is a lady who dreams of becoming a Vlogger. So during my workday, she will visit and ask me about editing, and microphones, and lighting. It takes nothing away from me to share 3-point lighting with her on a piece of paper, or help her connect her Temu microphone to her mobile phone. It maybe costs me a few minutes of my day…
It takes nothing from me to help another co-worker who wants to study to look up financial aid options for a few minutes after her shift. Or help her register.
Or the co-worker starting an equipment rental company with two speakers and a karaoke mic.
If we start looking at the Edges and Corners of our “fields”, not as ours. If we see the Margins of our Skills, Knowledge and time as God saw the fields of the Israelites… with a remnant that does not belong to you.
A remnant to invest into someone… not choose to but have to Invest into someone… every day. Not a big gesture (although those definitely help!) but just as a habit, try and find at least 1 person every day, that you can help…
1 gram of water… 20,000 tonnes of TNT that is how God made the universe. What can your 5 minutes end up becoming!?
God says:
”Remember that you were slaves in Egypt. That is why I command you to do this.”(Deuteronomy 24:22 NIV)
There was a time when you needed the push, the lift, just someone to open a door for you…
… and now, to you, it is not a fraction of your knowledge, not even a blip on your time radar. But to them it may very well have been an unsurmountable obstacle because they simple do not have your knowledge or skill or understanding.
Do this, and without even stepping into the 5-fold ministry of the church, you have touched on your Calling and your Purpose because of your Identity. You have lived the way of Christ.
Be a blessing to someone today and every day…
Be the other side of someone’s prayer!
