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IS YOUR LIFE JESUS-PROOFED?
Luke 10:38-41 -- As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!” “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”
Dear Saints, We closed the last school year talking about the truth that God put us here “for such a time as this.” We were reminded that, as we carry out this ministry here in southern California, we should always keep the main thing the main thing: staying true to the Word and keeping Jesus front and center always. As an institution, that’s our mission; as an individual, that’s our commission.
How are we doing on that individual commission thing? Is our life “Jesus-proofed?” We are about to embark on a journey on the good ship Crean Lutheran for another school year. That journey will take us up some high mountains and through some low valleys. We might as well realize right now that we can’t get there from here…by ourselves. The journey is too much for us; we can’t go it alone. We aren’t up to the task. Our theme verse for this school year reminds us that it’s not about us, and it’s not up to us to take this journey alone. We need the Lord to teach us the way to go. Teach me your way, O LORD, that I may walk in Your truth; (Ps. 86:11). As we learn the Lord’s way, we soon conclude that the Lord’s way is likely not our way by nature. When we walk the Lord’s way, we can weather the storms of life and traverse the trails on this trek. Only Jesus can provide joy for the journey. So again, I will ask: “Is our life Jesus-proofed?”
Here at Crean Lutheran, we try to “Jesus-proof” everything we do. We want to ensure that Jesus is front and center in every situation. From the moment we turn into the campus onto Saints Way, we see the cross front and center. Then as we walk in the front door, once again we see the cross and the HIS-story wall. There is no mistaking that Jesus is what makes CLHS tick. He is our Reason for being as a school. He is our reason for being at this school.
By far, the most important function of the Campus Ministry Team and the Leadership Team is to ensure that there is absolutely no Mission Drift. As the years go by and the school busies itself with growing, building, competing, and evolving, it is easy to lose sight of the real mission of the school. It is easy to be sidetracked by peripheral piffle. Let me remind you once again at the outset that we are here to Proclaim Jesus Christ and keep Him front and center at all times. Everything else comes in a distant second. How do we do that at CLHS?
Every day we begin our day with devotions. Why is that, do you suppose? You may have heard the old Coke jingle: “Things go better with Coke.” Well, we begin each day with a few moments of quiet time with Jesus because “things go better with Christ.” They just do. Even if they don’t. Even if everything is mixed up, upside down, inside out, and backward in our lives or in our classes, we know that Jesus is there. We know that Jesus cares. We know that all things will work out for our spiritual good. We know that this life and its problems are momentary; they won’t last forever. We know that the here and the now are nothing like the there and the then. Heaven is our real home. We are just passing through time on our way to eternity. But in the meantime, we’ve got a job to do; we are on a mission from God.
Each of us receives a daily Bible reading in our email every morning at 6:00 a.m. Again why? The only way to keep Jesus front and center is to be in the Word daily. We need to be in the Word daily to learn the Word and ultimately to be able to share the Word. You can’t share what’s not your own, what you don’t own. I encourage you not to hit delete when you get that email but rather take a moment to read and meditate on that Bible portion every morning. It takes a max of five minutes. In three years, you will have read the entire Bible. Make it a habit every day. You’ll be glad you did.
Every school day begins with a short student-led devotion, Bible verse, and prayer over the intercom during our Meditation Moment. Again what’s the rationale? It’s not just the staff and faculty that need to bring their day into focus. Students need to be reminded why they are here too. Students need to form habits for their lifetime while they are here. Students need the Lord at their side throughout the day. Can you think of a better way to begin the day?
Prayer and worship are part of every day. Every class begins with a prayer. Athletic teams pray before and after games – even after practices. Every student is enrolled in a class that studies the Bible two or three blocks each week. We have corporate chapel two times a week, Saints Way on Monday, and Life Groups on Wednesday. Prayer and worship are woven into the fabric of the Crean culture—all with good reason. The time will come for our students when they won’t have God’s Word in such great abundance. We have the opportunity right now to fill their spiritual arsenals so they can wage war with the world and stand a fighting chance.
Every week ends with a faculty Bible study early Friday morning. This is an outstanding opportunity to participate in mining the treasures of God’s Word. I hope each of you would consider setting aside that time for some quality time with the Lord and with your brothers and sisters in Christ, digging deeply into His Word and growing together in the fellowship of faith. Do yourself a favor and give this half hour to the Lord so that He can enrich you and grow your faith. It will be an excellent investment of your time.
Even your Canvas pages are Jesus-proofed. Your emails and correspondence all remind each other and our students that we are at a school where Jesus comes first. T-shirts and posters all give evidence of Crean’s commitment to Christ. Here at school, Jesus is before us, behind us, and beside us every minute of every day, every step of the way.
But what about when we leave here? Did we have enough “Jesus” for one day? Does Jesus get left behind in our classrooms? Or is His presence felt in our homes as well? Jesus wants to be part of every part of our lives. Not just the school part or the church part. He’s not big on pigeonholes. He wants to be Lord of our lives, and that means He wants to be Lord in our homes as well. Did you catch that first verse of our Bible reading? As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. Jesus was always a welcomed and honored Guest in Mary and Martha’s home. To Him, their home was always open. Is ours? Is our home open to Jesus? Is He welcome any time? Give some thought to this little verse:
If Jesus came to your house to spend a day or two –
If He came unexpectedly, I wonder what you’d do.
Oh, I know you’d give your nicest room to such an honored Guest,
And all the food you’d serve to Him would be the very best,
And you would keep assuring Him You’re glad to have Him there –
That serving Him in your own home is joy beyond compare.
BUT– when you saw Him coming, would you meet Him at the door
With arms outstretched in welcome to your heavenly Visitor?
Or would you have to change your clothes before you let Him in?
Or hide some magazines and put the Bible where they’d been?
Would you turn off the radio and hope He hadn’t heard?
And wish you hadn’t uttered that last, loud, hasty word?
Would you hide your worldly music and put some hymn books out?
Could you let Jesus walk right in, or would you rush about?
And I wonder – if the Savior spent a day or two with you,
Would you go right on doing the things you always do?
Would you go right on saying the things you always say?
Would life for you continue as it does from day to day?
Would your family conversation keep up its usual pace?
And would you find it hard each meal to say a table grace?
Would you sing the songs you always sing and read the books you read?
Would you take Jesus with you everywhere you’d planned to go?
Or would you, maybe, change your plans for just a day or so?
Would you be glad to have Him meet your very closest friends?
Or would you hope they’d stay away until His visit ends?
Would you be glad to have Him stay forever on and on?
Or would you sigh with great relief when He, at last, was gone?
It might be interesting to know the things that you would do
If Jesus Christ in person came to spend some time with you.
Saints, in the words of Jesus, ‘only one thing is needed.’ God has blessed us by calling us to this special place at this critical time in the battle for the souls of our youth. Each day we have the privilege of mining the treasures in God’s Word. Each day we have multiple opportunities to have our faith fed; we have a veritable spiritual smorgasbord spread out before us every single day. We will spend time with Jesus here at school for sure. Even better, let’s not leave Him here at day’s end. Let’s invite Him to drive home with us and spend our evening with us, ultimately asking Him to watch over us while we sleep to keep us safe from all harm and danger.
I can’t think of a better way to “Jesus-proof” our lives than to walk with Jesus every step of the way, every moment of every day…can you? Amen.
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