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Proverbs 22:17-19 (NIV)
17 Pay attention and listen to the sayings of the wise;
apply your heart to what I teach,

18 for it is pleasing when you keep them in your heart
and have all of them ready on your lips.

19 So that your trust may be in the LORD,

These verses could easily be put together into a three point sermon.  Here, let me do that for you . . . ;)

1. Apply

James 1:22 teaches us not to just listen to the Word, but apply it.  What’s the point of reading if we’re not going to apply it to our hearts?  Heck, I got issues!!!!  I need a band-aid and triple ointment sometimes.  That junk doesn’t work if you don’t apply it.

Let God work his mojo.  Filter what you read past your eyes and into the depths of your heart and its current condition.  It’s okay to be real with God.  Really, it is.

2. Keep

James goes on to say a man who _continues_ to read/apply the Word will be blessed (James 1:25).  Don’t be like the man who looks in the mirror and forgets what he looks like.  When you apply a verse to your heart, be sure to also keep it close. This is really when the essence of the verse (and God) will begin to soak into your life in a way that sticks.

3×5 note cards are dirt cheap.  Write the verse down.  Tape it to your steering wheel or something.  Figure out a place where you will be by yourself regularly for at least a few minutes a day.  That’s where you need to put the verse and marinate on it each day.

3. Be Ready

This is the fun part.  Be ready to share the verse with someone.  Or how God has used it to encourage you.  Seize any opportunity during the day or week. You will be amazed at the affects both in your life and in others.

God wants us to share the Good News!  So let’s have His Word “ready on our lips.”

This post is part of a series on a commentary I am reading on the book of James.  For a brief introduction, please read the first post in the series.

It would seem the academic type (e.g. scholars, theologians) aren’t super impressed with the book of James.  Martin Luther called it the “epistle of straw.” Others don’t think it represents “the essence” of the Christian faith.

More on this in a later post.

Despite those negative remarks, it turns out James is uber-popular among the general population and one of the most quoted New Testament books.

Do any of these verses ring a bell?

James 1:5 (NIV)
⁵ If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.

James 1:22 (NIV)
²² Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.

Here are the 3 big reasons why James is so popular.

1. James is practical

No other book in the NT has a higher percentage of direct commands, orders or instructions.  Sometimes you can read a book in the Bible and scratch your head wondering what you’re supposed to be getting out of it (e.g. Leviticus).

Not so with James.  He pretty much spells out exactly what you should be doing.  The two verses above are great examples of that.

2. James is concise.

Less is more.  That’s the way James rolls.  One sentence, one point, move on (kind of like the book of Proverbs).

3. James uses lots of metaphors and illustrations

That makes his teaching easy to understand and remember. Stuff like a man in a mirror (James 1:23) or a spark setting off a forest fire (James 3:5) help give a visual parallel to the teaching.

Easy to read, easy to understand. I can appreciate that.  ;)

This past week I decided to “bust up” a commentary on the book of James. Don’t ask me what “to bust up” means.  Ask Mike Doughty.  He’s the one who wrote “Busting Up A Starbucks.”

But anyway.

For however many posts it’ll take, I’m going to synthesize what I read into a series of digestible blog posts.

Both as an effort to make me learn the material better and also to increase your James IQ.  Each blog post can be viewed as a CliffsNotes (did you know it’s actually CliffsNotes and not Cliff Notes?) version of the section I’m reading.

The commentary I chose was written by my boy Douglas J. Moo.  I chose it because of the high number of positive reviews on Amazon.com and because I know Moo is a very well respected New Testament scholar.

That’s why he’s my boy.

DJ Moo and A-Tran tag-teaming to bring you the best of James.  ;)

There are plenty of stories in the Bible about people being patient. There’s no shortage of sermon’s illustrating the need to keep running the race and being faithful to the call of God. You have Noah, Samuel, Joseph, David, etc.

The “take home message” of all those stories is . . .

Matthew 25:21 (NIV)
²⁵ […] You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. […]

In other words, steward what God has placed before you and God’s promises will eventually come to pass.

That’s good stuff. Patience and perseverance are constantly encouraged in the Bible.

But …

What happens when patience becomes an excuse for passivity?

Matthew 11:12 (NIV)
¹² From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it.

The call of God requires “forceful men.”

A patient person on their death bed has accomplished nothing. At some point in time, patience requires action.

Maybe God hasn’t “promoted” you yet because He’s waiting for you to actually do something other than “being patient.”

Regardless if you get your recommended daily amount of sleep, you can still wake up refreshed, but feel tired and overwhelmed.

2 Kings 6:15-17 (NIV)
15 When the servant of the man of God got up and went out early the next morning, an army with horses and chariots had surrounded the city. “Oh, my lord, what shall we do?” the servant asked.

16 “Don’t be afraid,” the prophet answered. “Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.”

17 And Elisha prayed, “O LORD, open his eyes so he may see.” Then the LORD opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.

This is not a post about “you and God are always a majority.” This is a post of appreciation.

The past month of my life have been a roller coaster ride spiritually, relationally, professionally and everything in between. God has literally wrecked me, humbled me and broken me into millions of little pieces.  And believe it or not, those are all good things.  ;)

But I could not have survived the stress of this past month without certain people in my life.

Nate and Danielle who brilliantly led and executed a small group for the month of July.  A group I normally co-lead with someone else.

Dawn.  A willing and able servant who has freed me up to do what only I can do.  You have been an _amazing_ blessing.  You have no idea how much peace you bring me with the stuff you do.

Ferdie.  Without you, I would be dead.  Straight up.  Thank you for your creativity, passion for the end-user experience, flexibility, sacrifice and patience with crazy time lines.  You truly are an answer to prayer. By golly, we will have a rockin’ website one of these days . . .

Sarah.  My #1 draft pick.  ;)  Someone I would want on any team, regardless of what the team was for.  Thank you for eagerly coming alongside me and bearing some of the _my_ burdens on top of your own (e.g. a husband and a couple little rugrats).

When I read the above verses, these are the people I’m reminded of when Elisha says “those who are with us are more than those who are with them.”  When I wake up and am already tired, it’s these people who have allowed me to overcome the army surrounding me.

I look up and each person is surrounded by “horses and chariots.”  Each one has brought to the table way more than what can be seen in the natural.

To all of you guys, thank you!!  All of you guys/gals have significantly contributed to me surviving July.  ;)

Today’s challenge to greatness.  Tell someone how much you appreciate them.