July 2011 – Page 2 – John Markum

What you CAN’T See

Posted on July 27, 2011 by johnmarkum

2 Kings 6 tells this fascinating story of Elisha being surrounded by the Aramean army. He had been relaying the details of their battle strategy to the king of Israel, and when the enemy found out they didn’t want to take chance by only sending a dozen troops. So they sent the likes of an entire battalion… for one man.

You ever felt the same way? Like you were being surrounded by seemingly impossible circumstances and the future was unclear, and there was no clear way of survival? Maybe for you it was a relational thing. Or college. Or your finances. Chances are, you can fill in the blank with your own example of an army surrounding you.

The best part of the story is when Elisha’s servant looks out the door to see the army surrounding them: No way of escape, no weapons, and outnumbered 1,000 to 2. Elisha prays for God to “open his eyes that he may see.” As God does so, the servant sees them being protected by an even greater army – an unseen army – made up of the hosts of Heaven.

Elisha does not pray for the army to be killed, he simply asks God to blind them. Then he leads the blinded battalion to the king of Israel, asks God to restore their sight, and then allows them to go back to their land unharmed. The Arameans leave Israel alone after that.

Funny, how something that looked so impossible was resolved, and without even a battle taking place. That’s how big our God is! Our God will take our overwhelming odds, and thwart their efforts to harm us.

Real faith is believing that there is something greater at work than what we can see with our eyes.

He never promised us bad stuff would never happen to us, He only promised that we’d never be alone, and that through Him we are more than conquerors. We will overcome by the power of our God. He is greater! He is with us! What can possibly stand in our way? Do not fear your circumstances. Look to our God, and expect great things from what you do not see.

Blessings,

John

How to treat a new follower of Christ

Posted on July 25, 2011 by johnmarkum

I find it interesting that many church people would cross mountain and sea to bring their friend or loved one to Christ. But afterwards many of these same people expect them to change over night. It just doesn’t happen that way. Here are a few things that every newer follower of Christ needs from the people in their life that are suppose to be more mature in the Lord:

Extra Grace: We’re suppose to be gracious to one another anyway, but especially to the person who has recently crossed the line of faith, we should understand that they need people to give them the benefit of the doubt and love them through some things. This often means patience as they identify themselves in the church family.
Accountability: Giving them more grace does not mean they get away with inappropriate behavior or sin. What it does mean, is that we help them see where they need growth, relate personally to their difficulties when possible, and encourage them that we’re all becoming more like Christ together.
Meaningful Friendships: The saying, “Nobody cares how much you know, until they know how much you care” applies to everyone. Personally, I choose to take my criticism from the people who love me. So newer followers of Jesus need people who genuinely care about them as a person and not just as a “prospect” to their church.
Opportunities to Grow: We all need new challenges to take us to higher levels. This is certainly true of a new believer. A baby wants to learn to roll over, then crawl, then walk, then run, then climb. New believers don’t want to sit in a crib forever either. They want a faith that is real, and we should encourage that. Help them find places to serve, share, learn, relate, and use their faith in practical ways.
Freedom: All of us need the ability to be who and what God created us for individually. There is plenty of room for us to be different and yet unified. Our goal is unity, not uniformity. There is a difference. We can all be ourselves in plenty of areas. We should encourage new believers to discover their uniqueness in Christ. This also means providing the safety for them to ask honest questions and get honest answers.

Whether you are a newer follower of Jesus or a veteran, we all have room to grow. And to the seasoned follower of Jesus, you’re missing a huge part of your own spiritual growth if you’re not willing to love a new brother or sister in Christ into your church family. Be like Jesus and be inclusive!

Blessings,

John

The High 5 for Hubands

Posted on July 24, 2011 by johnmarkum

“Husbands, love your wife as Christ loved the church and gave Himself for her… for a man who shows love for his wife, actually loves himself.” Ephesians 5 :25,28

The idea of the husband “loving” his wife here in Ephesians 5, is the idea “to cherish.” In other words, to make safe; worth protecting; to treat as precious. This means that she can allow herself to be vulnerable because she is safe with you.

Husbands, if you want a happy marriage, you must make your wife feel cherished in the following 5 areas. Wives, don’t be afraid to point your man to this post:

Physically: This one’s simple. Bottom line, she doesn’t have to be afraid that you’ll physically hurt her. This also includes providing a safe home, keeping “bad guys” away from your family, and getting up to chase odd “noises” out of the house at all hours of the night.
Emotionally: This is most often displayed best during a disagreement by what you say and don’t say, and how you say it. If you resort to verbally attacking your wife during an argument, she will not feel emotionally safe around you. But if you can find a way to speak life into her even though you’re upset, then you can actually gain from an argument, instead of simply enduring it.
Financially: Dude, you don’t have to make all the money in the house (although you could…). You don’t even have to make most of the money. Honestly, if you’re wife is some mega-millionaire author, I don’t even care if you work outside the home at all. But you are still responsible for making sure the financial needs of your family are met. You don’t have to make excessive amounts of revenue, but you must make her feel safe, financially.
Sexually: Sex is more than a physical interaction between a husband and wife. It is emotional and, I believe, even spiritual. Many women feel the most vulnerable in this area, and her husband must make her feel loved, cherished, precious, and worth protecting. Men, be very careful about criticizing your wife’s body or giving her a litany of the things about her physically that you wish were different. Choose to see her as the most beautiful women in your world. True love isn’t blind. It just wears blinders.
Spiritually: In too many homes, the wife is the one nagging everyone on the weekend to get ready for church. I’m just going to say it: Husbands, stand up and be a man. Take leadership in your home. YOU be the agent of spiritual growth for your family. Don’t make your wife have to take those reigns. Pray with your wife. Talk to her about spiritual things. If she knows more than you, it’s ok. Ask her questions. Initiate spiritual leadership in your home.

All these things are intertwined. They are connected and one affects another. This may seem like an over-simplification of how a husband should treat his wife, but if every husband (myself included) became masters at loving their wives in these 5 ways, we would all likely have better marriages.

Blessings,

John