Week 10 IBS

Monday: 1 Cor. 9:22-23

To the weak I became weak that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all people that by any means I might save some. I do it all for the sake of the Gospel that I may share with them in its blessing.

When Paul referred to becoming weak I don’t think he literally meant that he gave up his strength. This verse instructs us that we should be conscientious of the manner in which we act.

We need to show that we are willing to become like the people in the countries that we will be deployed to. Not only so that we can fit in there but also so we can demonstrate the love of Christ by our actions there. We have to resolve not to judge the cultural differences of the people that we will be working with and because of the American attitude a lot of us possess is a reflection of Christ and if we only come in as someone who wants to change what the people do then we are only affecting their behavior not their world view. Paul also mentions how he will only save some. Unfortunely this is true that there will be people that will reject the Gospel, and therefore be damned. But if we are even able to bring one extra person then all of our efforts are worth it.

My application is that I would strive to be all things to all men, and tonight to pray for 10 minutes about doing this in Uganda.

Tuesday: 1 Cor. 9:24

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it.

Paul exhorts each of us that we should run the race that each of us have before us with all of our might. He also encourages us to run so that we might attain the prize, the prize being Christ Jesus. The analogy of the Christian life being a race is very interesting because 100 meter runners are to run with all their might for the 10 seconds that they compete. Short distance runners also should never look to the right or the left because the distraction of the other runners will slow them down; they also want to keep their head fixed straight ahead and not wavering this is so the runner won’t take extra time to take large breaths.

There are plenty of parallels between these two. Christians are to keep their gaze fixed on Christ and not allow their eyes look to the left or the right. All to often I look to other runners (Christians) and set my pace based on how fast others are running, but Paul at the end of this versed tells us that we should run like a 100 meter runner with all our might for the small amount of time that we compete.

My application: tonight I will reflect and pray about the areas of my life that I am not running my hardest in.

Wednesday: 1 Cor. 9:25

Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wealth, but we an imperishable.

As Paul stays with the race theme in this verse; he speaks of how every athlete exercises self-control in what he eats and how he trains and in all of the practice. We also should take our Christian “race” just as serious but all too often we will get lazy and complacent with our Christian walk.

Thursday: 1 Cor. 9:26

So do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air.

We can’t run aimlessly, if you run aimlessly then you usually won’t receive as much benefit from that training as if you were running to a set point and back. It is better to have a set point because then you know what direction you want/need to go and you can figure the best route for you to take so you get there. This verse reminds me an experience I had: often times when I get upset or frustrated I will go on a run to blow off some steam. I would just run aimlessly and so I would often lose track of time, and end up running for several hours. It wasn’t ever a bad thing that I ran for several hours but I usually would tire myself out on the first half of the run that when I had to turn around and run all the way back home I would just have to jog or walk the second half because I didn’t have any more strength. Thankfully all of us can renew our strength in the Lord. So we can run our hardest because every day we can come back before the Lord and then he can refill us as long as we are willing to be filled.

 We are not in a practice match after we are saved Satan wants to do everything he can do to distract and destroy us. So I need to train and perform like this is a live battle.

My Application: Tonight I will pray for five minutes seeking the Lord to renew my strength and be able to finish the weeks strong!

Friday: 1 Cor. 9:27

But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.

            Paul refers to disciplining his body I believe he means as in a physical way as well as a spiritual manor this way he could be a man who was studying and knew the Word (because of his Jewish background) and someone who wasn’t going to offend anybody because of his body stature. This may seem trivial but in those times people did not seem to be very lenient so Paul went the extra mile to present himself properly.

Do I go through extra measures as Paul did? No, I can see that I am far more selfish than Paul. We (Christians) all should be willing to go the extra mile but, we make excuse such as well they just need to adapt to the culture or they can get over it. These excuses are unacceptable for me to make when I am referring to anyone let alone the nonbelievers.

My application: to reflect on what I will need to do so that I can effectively and properly share the gospel with the people I will we coming into contact with here, in Uganda as well as in my home town of Jacksonville, Florida.