Giving Away the Monotony of Life
“I have no silver or gold, but what I have I give you; in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, stand up and walk.”
—Acts 3:6
Observation:
Jesus has gone to the right hand of the Father. The Holy Spirit has come. The disciples are walking in the power and authority given to them by Jesus to make disciples.
Life continued in Jerusalem just as it had before. People were going to the temple for prayer. A lame man lay at the gate called beautiful in order to beg. Nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary. People came to the temple and passed through the gate called beautiful, as they had done during the hour of prayer for as long as they could remember. Nothing disrupted the monotony of their daily lives. The lame man, whom everybody knew as the one who begged at the gate called beautiful, cried out for alms just as he had done the day before and people passed by him just as they had done the day before. But today he looked expectantly at Peter and John hoping that they would give him something. Now this is the point of the story where Jesus’ departure, the coming of the Holy Spirit, and the disciples walking in power and authority changes the monotony of everyday life in Jerusalem. Everything this day would be different. Nothing would be the same for this man, who all his life had been defined by his circumstances, because things were about to change on this day. This man would no longer be defined as the lame man who begged at the gate called beautiful. No, from this day forth he would be known as the man who was healed at the gate called beautiful. This day would be different. This day would change his life. This day somebody stopped and gave him what they had. This day somebody incarnated Jesus to this man and changed everything.
Application:
Too often we get stuck in the monotony of everyday life and just pass by the lame man who lays at the gate called beautiful as we go about our religious ordinances. Life doesn’t change too often for most of us. Life doesn’t change too often for the people we encounter daily. Life just seems to happen around us day in and day out.
Most people complain about the monotony of everyday life. Most people daydream of exotic getaways and new adventures that they never really plan to attempt. Most people go about their daily lives undisrupted.
The reality is that life is happening all around us. There is nothing monotonous about life except the fact that we just allow the days to slip away without ever realizing the potential of that given day. What would happen if you stopped for a moment from your daily rituals, just long enough to do something different, just long enough to change the monotony? Everyday we pass by opportunities to change everything or least everything in someone’s world. But that requires that we be open to give what we have away. It requires us to make ourselves available for God to use us in divine encounters.
Last night I was walking into the cafeteria at Fuller Theological Seminary to grab dinner before class. I passed by a woman who by all appearances was homeless. She asked me for a dollar, but I politely told her that I had no cash and kept walking. As I walked inside the cafeteria a small voice told me to go back and talk to her. I turned around and headed back over to where she was seated. “Sorry I don’t have any cash on me but I could grab you a meal if you want” I said. She declined and told me that someone else was already bringing her some food. I bid her goodbye and told her to have a goodnight. I do not tell this story because I actually did anything. No, I tell the story because like everyone else I merely pacified this woman and did what was minimally required to pass her by. But what was the reason that God asked me to go back and talk to her? I stopped for a moment but quickly reverted back to the monotony of the day. What could the reason possibly have been?
A person’s real need is not “silver and gold,” but rather the incarnation of Jesus in their lives. But it is easier to give someone a dollar and keep moving than to stop and incarnate Jesus in their lives. Life is full of opportunities to change the world. Unfortunately most of us are to busy with the monotony of our day to day lives to stop and allow the miraculous to happen by incarnating Jesus in the lives of those we encounter daily. A person’s real need is not “silver and gold,” but rather a tangible expression of the love of God. How can you incarnate Jesus in life of one person you encounter today? When you answer that question you will figure out the key to breaking the monotony of just doing life and realize what it means to live life and live life abundantly.
Prayer:
Lord, open my eyes to the divine encounters you would have me incarnate your love in. Remind me to stop and take a moment to break away from the monotony of life so that I might actually live life and live life abundantly. In Jesus name I pray Amen…
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