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Luke 10:40-41 - But Martha was distracted with all her preparations; and she came up to Him and said, "Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to do all the serving alone? Then tell her to help me." 41 But the Lord answered and said to her, "Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things…
There are all types of distractions that can come into a person's life.
Mary was listening to the words of Jesus and Martha was preparing a meal for Jesus. Let me say it another way, Mary was focused on what Jesus was saying and Martha was focused on the fact that her sister was not helping her prepare the meal.
Mary was focused on what Jesus was teaching. Mary wasn't the least bit interested in eating, least ways not physical food. She was focused on what Jesus was saying. Here are two noticeable signs someone has lost their focus. First, Martha was focused on what someone else was not doing. Second, Martha was irritable because her focus was in the wrong place. If you are working with or coaching someone and you notice these two signs (loss of focus & irritability) in them. You need to speak with them like Jesus did with Martha. He told her she was worried and bothered about too many things. In other words she was not focused on the right thing. You want to help that person focus on what is important. What is important is helping them improve themselves. Ask them some questions like: What are you trying to accomplish today, next week, month or year? How are you planning on accomplishing your goals? How successful is your plan right now? You want the person to focus on what he is doing not what others are not doing.
Life is about PRIORITIES. If you don't prioritize you will only make your life harder. Martha hadn't chosen the one necessary thing. She chose to be distracted about something that would not really be beneficial to her. Her priorities were incorrect. As Steven Covey said, "The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing." That is all we have to do to overcome distractions "Keep the main thing the main thing." Think on This: What chance can a man have to control his destiny when he can't control himself? Stay Pumped, Gary A. Serago Minister of God's Word
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1 Chron. 16:8-10 - Oh give thanks to the LORD, call upon His name; Make known His deeds among the peoples. 9 Sing to Him, sing praises to Him; Speak of all His wonders.
10 Glory in His holy name; Let the heart of those who seek the LORD be glad. As we in the United States get ready to celebrate Thanksgiving tomorrow I hope we have made giving "Thanks" to God a part of our everyday life because when we "give thanks" to God we please Him. I would like to "Thank Him" for getting me over to and back home from Africa this past Sunday. I once again was honored and humbled teaching at the Messiah Theological Institute in Mbale, Uganda last week. A great big heartfelt thanks goes out to JP and Jill Robinson for allowing me to stay in their home and Dennis Okoth for allowing me to teach at MTI.
God had given this information to Moses 400+ years earlier and He had not changed His mind on how He wanted the Ark to be moved. The Ark of the Covenant was now moved back into Jerusalem and King David is one happy Israelite and so is God.
There are two different Hebrew words being used for "sing." The first word "sing" means to "extend the hands" as you are praising Him and the second word "sing" means to "strike with the fingers." This would be done as you touch the strings of a musical instrument. One would celebrate in song with a musical instrument being played. In other words some will be singing with outstretched arms while others are playing musical instruments. While you are singing to Him you would speak of all His wonders and to "Glory in His Name" means "to boast about God and His accomplishments" and your heart would be glad. I am sure we have all bragged about something our children or grandchildren have done in their life. With smiles on our faces and joy in our hearts we let others know of their accomplishments. This is how Christians are to praise God with smiles on our faces and joy in our hearts. We can't wait to inform others of God's deeds.
Has God healed you from a disease? Has God blessed your family with the birth of a child? Has God given you a new job? Have you led someone to Christ this year?
Sins can be forgiven because Jesus lived a perfect life, offered His blood to atone for our sins and was resurrected from the grave. Hallelujah! We really have something to be Thankful for this year and every year if we have given our lives to Christ. If you haven't given your life to Christ don't you believe it is about time? All you have to do is confess Christ to be your Lord and Savior (Rom.10:9) and be baptized for the forgiveness of your sins and to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38). Have a Happy Thanksgiving! Be a Blessing in someone's life today. Think on This: Hem your blessings with Thankfulness so they don't unravel. Stay Pumped, Gary A. Serago Minister of God's Word ********PODCASTING OF SERAGO'S PUMP UPS STARTED SEPT. 20TH******** Acts 20:35 - “...Remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He Himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ ”
We always hear about what it is that someone wants. Some want a new car, a bigger house, a student loan paid off, and the list could go on forever. Would you like a dollar for every time you heard someone say they wanted to win the lottery?
If you say, "No" then guess what? I don’t believe you will give to them if you win the lottery. Why do I say that? It is because we are creatures of habit. We will do what we have always been doing. If you don’t help people out with the little bit that you possess now you are not going to help them if you possess more.
We are to give from what we already have. God has blessed us all. If you don’t believe you are rich right now I suggest that you travel to a third world country and see for yourself. Do you have running water or electricity in your house? I stayed at a missionary's house in Uganda and they only received electricity every other day.
I always carried under clothes and socks in my computer backpack in case my luggage was lost on a trip. If you have travelled much you will learn this lesson quickly. Always carry extra under clothes with you when you travel and especially if you are going overseas. I pulled out a pair of boxer shorts and a T-shirt from my bag. I approached the man holding out the clothes and he accepted them. I thanked God for allowing me to keep my promise that I made six years earlier.
Certainly you have something to give to others. Certainly you have something in your home that you are not using that could be a blessing in someone else's life. So, why not give it and receive a blessing that comes with giving it away? If you are a coach can you find one thing your athletes did to receive a compliment from you today? If you are a boss can you find one thing your employee did to receive a compliment from you today? Do you realize how far an "at a boy, way to hustle or good job" can go? Believe this passage of scripture, "It is more blessed to give than to receive." So start being a giver today, which in turn will make you a receiver. You definitely will not regret it. Think on This: Some of the greatest gifts are not monetary ones. If you have lost a loved one how much money would you give to have 10 minutes with them? Time we all have time and there are others that could use some of our time. Stay Pumped, Gary A. Serago Minister of God's Word Exo. 18:13-14 - It came about the next day that Moses sat to judge the people, and the people stood about Moses from the morning until the evening. 14 Now when Moses' father-in-law saw all that he was doing for the people, he said, "What is this thing that you are doing for the people? Why do you alone sit as judge and all the people stand about you from morning until evening?"
Exo. 18:17-18 - Moses' father-in-law said to him, "The thing that you are doing is not good. 18"You will surely wear out, both yourself and these people who are with you, for the task is too heavy for you; you cannot do it alone…"
Moses had to be a humble man because he accepted the advice of his father-in-law. What about us today? Is our system geared for failure? Are we trying to be like Moses in control of everything? If you have not learned to surround yourself with people you can trust you have already failed as a leader. Your team will know if you trust them. You cannot build a successful team without trust. A leader doesn't try to do it all. A leader is one who enlists the help of others. They will accomplish each task as a team. The "Bottom Line" is they trust each other. They work together to accomplish the goal.
They passed the ball 40 times and ran the ball 36 times. This looks pretty even to me. They had a good plan and they worked their plan. Manning used five different receivers and two different ball carriers. This is what you call spreading the wealth around or showing your teammates you trust them in the heat of the battle. Are you a leader? Are you spreading the wealth around?
Moses had a plan but it was horrible one. It wasn't even close to a good plan. Moses plan was simply get up early and work all day while everyone else watches you work. Make people stand in long lines in the heat of the day. I don't even like to stand in line at an air-conditioned grocery store. I would rather go and ring up the items myself then wait in a line. Here was Moses' plan. You can bring me your problems and wait your turn in this really long line in the heat of the day. Jethro had a good plan for Moses and it was enlist men who can judge over a 1,000 people, 100 people, 50 people and 10 people. If a person brings a case and the judges can't answer it then they will bring this case to Moses. They will bring the hard cases to him. Jethro has a great plan for Moses and Moses is wise enough to implement it. As soon as he found some qualified men. (If you choose someone and they don't workout a leader knows how to replace them immediately.)
Then use these same qualifications for your future teammates, or employees. A Leader will have some one that will speak the truth to him. A Leader will listen to the one who speaks the truth to him. Moses had Jethro, a leader in his own right. He was able to read the situation and determine correctly the outcome. A man like Jethro is extremely valuable to the team or company. Think on This: Management is doing things right; leadership is doing the right things. by Peter F. Drucker Stay Pumped, Gary A. Serago John 3:16 - "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son,..."
God loved and He gave. If you are in love with someone you will give. You will give compliments, you will give your time, you will give affection, you will give your commitment, and you will give all kinds of gifts. These gifts might be made by you personally or they might be bought. These gifts can be inexpensive or very expensive it doesn't really matter.
Why, because I loved my mom. Just like other sons have loved their moms. If you are in Love you will Give. Can you remember when you first fell in love?
So my question was this, "When did you stop giving or Why did you stop giving?" When you answer either one or both of those two questions you will know why you are not in love with that person any longer. Some have stopped giving to the one they were married to and started giving to someone else. This union is on its way to an end if it continues down this path. You can't give gifts to one and be in love with another. The one who receives the gifts is the one you love. When you stop giving to someone you stop loving them. John says, "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son…." God gave us a pattern of how to tell others you love them and it is by giving to them. God loves you and me because His gift is amazing. He continues to give to us exactly what we need. How can you tell you are in love? You will give gifts to them. When you are in love you will give. It is up to you what the gift is going to be. (Guys, I wouldn't try giving dandelions to your wife or girlfriend. Just Saying!) Think On This: Where there is no interest, there is no investment. Stay Pumped, Gary A. Serago Minister of God's Word |
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