Tag Archives: Max Lucado

Max Lucado – 100 Happy People

February 5, 2015 broboinhawaii Leave a comment

You might not find the cure for cancer. You might not crack the code on global warming, world hunger, or tainted water. But you can do this. You can make people happy. This mission requires no Ph.D. or M.D. It demands no funding or travel. Age, ethnicity, and gender are not factors. You don’t have to change jobs or change cities or change neighborhoods.

But you can change the world.

You can do this: make a hundred people happy. Intentionally. Purposefully. Practically. You can increase the number of smiles on our planet. You can lower the anger level in your city. You, yes you, can cause a hundred people to sleep better, laugh more, hum instead of grumble, walk instead of stumble. You can lighten the load and brighten the day of one hundred human beings.

You can do that.

What if you did? Suppose you took the “Happy People Challenge.” Make one hundred people happy over a 40-day period. Here is how it works.

Set out to create “100 extra mile moments” between February 9 and March 20 in which you intentionally seek to make someone happy by doing something more than you would typically do.
Share your experience in your neighborhood group, class or family, and on social media at #100happypeople.
Keep a journal in which you list the names of people and ways you tried to brighten their day. Make note of the moment. What did you do? What did you learn? What was the setting?

At the end of forty days, would your world be different?

Would you be different? I think you would be.

Would you join me in the challenge? Happiness-givers are made, not born. The inertia of self-centeredness has a strong pull. That is why the Bible has so much to say about sharing joy. Heaven knows, we need all the help we can get. And God gives it! His word gives practical, applicable ways to make people happy. They are called the “one another” statements. There are 59 of them in the New Testament. It seems to me that they can be condensed into a list of nine statements. Each weekend, at the Oak Hills Church, I will be teaching on the One Another passages in the New Testament. You can join us, in person or online at http://www.oakhillschurch.com.

You can develop this wonderful skill of sharing joy. You can discover the adventure of making people happy!

Max Lucado – What is Worship?

February 4, 2015 broboinhawaii Leave a comment

When you think of worship, what do you think of? Outdated songs poorly sung? Dramatic prayers egotistically offered? Irrelevant sermons carelessly delivered? What is worship? The essence of worship is simply this: giving God the honor he deserves; applauding the greatness of God! The definition in the book of Psalms 29:1-2 is this:

Honor the Lord, you heavenly beings;

Honor the Lord for his glory and strength.

Honor the Lord for the glory of his name.

Worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness.

As Paul said in Colossians 3:17, “Whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”

Worship–it’s a lifestyle. It’s an Action. It’s an attitude. It’s everything!

From Max on Life

Max Lucado – God’s No-Tolerance Policy

February 3, 2015 broboinhawaii Leave a comment

Hypocrisy turns people against God, so he has a no-tolerance policy. Let’s take hypocrisy as seriously as God does. For starters, expect no credit for good deeds. None! If no one notices, you aren’t disappointed. If someone does, you give the credit to God. If no one knew of the good you do, would you still do it? If not, you’re doing it to be seen by people.

Give financial gifts in secret. We like to be seen earning money. And we like to be seen giving it. Matthew 6:3 says, “So when you give to someone in need, don’t let your left hand know what your right hand is doing.”

Don’t fake spirituality. Nothing nauseates more than a fake, “Praise the Lord,” or a shallow “Hallelujah” or an insincere “Glory be to God.”

Bottom line: Don’t make a theater production out of your faith!

From Max on Life

Max Lucado – Appeal to the Heart

February 2, 2015 broboinhawaii Leave a comment

Remember the church at Corinth? A problem on every pew? Territorially selfish. Morally shameless. Theologically reckless. How do you help a congregation like that? You can correct them. Paul did. You can instruct them, which Paul did. You can reason with them; Paul did. But at some point you stop talking to the head and start appealing to the heart. And Paul did that.

I Corinthians 13:4-7 says, “Love. . .bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.”

He saw only one solution—love! Don’t we need the same prescription today? Someday there will be a community where everyone behaves and no one complains. But it won’t be this side of heaven. So what do we do? We reason. We confront. We teach. But most of all, we love.

From Max on Life

Max Lucado – Better to be Quiet

January 30, 2015 broboinhawaii Leave a comment

When you sense the volume increasing and the heat rising, close your mouth. It’s better to be quiet and keep a brother than be loud and lose one. Romans 14:4 makes it clear… “they are God’s servants, not yours. They are responsible to him, not to you. Let him tell them whether they are right or wrong.”

We judge others when we stop addressing the controversy and start attacking the character. Example? “You’d expect such an opinion out of a person who never studies the Bible!” If we disagree, let us disagree agreeably. Unity demands that we discuss the issues, not the person. Paul said, “Let us try to do what makes peace and helps one another” (Rom. 14:19).

1 Peter 4:8 says, “Love shall cover the multitude of sins.” So, if love covers a multitude of sins, can it not cover a multitude of opinions?

From Max on Life

Max Lucado – Be Careful

January 29, 2015 broboinhawaii Leave a comment

Be careful with the phrase, “God led me. . .” Don’t banter it about. People have been known to justify stupidity based on a feeling! God will not lead you to lie, cheat, or hurt.

When Luke justified the writing of his gospel to Theophilus, he said, “Since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, it seemed good also to me to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus” (Lk. 1:3). Did you note his phrase, “it seemed good also to me”? These words reflect a person at the crossroads. Luke pondered his options and selected the path that “seemed good.”

God creates the ‘want to” within us. But He will never lead you to violate His Word. He will not contradict his teaching. But he will faithfully lead you through the words of his Scripture and the advice of his faithful.

From Max on Life

Max Lucado – Unceasing Prayer

January 28, 2015 broboinhawaii Leave a comment

Unceasing prayer may sound complicated, but it needn’t be that way. Do this. Think of prayer less as an activity for God and more as an awareness of God. Seek to live in uninterrupted awareness. As you stand in line to register your car, think, “Thank you, Lord, for being here.” In the grocery store as you shop, think, “Your presence, my King, I welcome.” As you wash the dishes, worship your Maker.

Brother Lawrence called himself the “lord of all pots and pans.” He wrote, “The time of busy-ness does not with me differ from the time of prayer; and in the clatter of my kitchen, while several persons are calling for different things, I possess God in as great tranquility as if I were upon knees at the blessed sacrament.”

So talk to God, always. Besides, it makes more sense to talk to God than mumble to yourself!

From Max on Life

Max Lucado – God Heals, Not Prayer

January 27, 2015 broboinhawaii Leave a comment

God heals, not prayer. A matter of semantics? No. If you think the power is in the prayer and not the One who hears the prayer, you fault the pray-er for unanswered prayer. “If I had prayed more, better, differently. . .”

The power of prayer is in the One who hears it, not the one who makes it. So if you are waiting on God to answer your prayer, don’t despair. We need to remember that many of God’s saints endured a time of unanswered prayer. Peter was in a storm before he walked on water. Lazarus was in a grave before he came out of it, the demoniac was possessed before he was a preacher, and the paralytic was on a stretcher before he was in your Bible.

We know that in everything God works for the good of those who love him. Please don’t interpret the presence of your disease as the absence of God’s love. I pray he heals you. And he will—ultimately! Till then— keep praying.

From Max on Life

Max Lucado – A Reminder of Who is in Charge

January 26, 2015 broboinhawaii 1 Comment

Prayer reminds us of who is in charge. You don’t take your requests to someone with less authority. You take them to someone who outranks you in the solutions department.

The same is true in prayer. You don’t pray just to let God know what’s going on. He’s way ahead of you on that one. You pray to transfer “my will be done” to “God’s will be done.” And, since he’s in charge, he knows the best solution. Prayer transfers the burden to God and He lightens your load. Prayer pushes us through life’s slumps, propels us over the humps, and pulls us out of the dumps. Prayer is the oomph we need to get the answers we seek. So, pray…today!

From Max on Life

Max Lucado – A Special Date

January 23, 2015 broboinhawaii Leave a comment

A quiet time with God is very similar to a special date. Denalyn and I like to go to the same restaurants over and over again. When we’re there we remember special moments we’ve shared before. Our hearts open up. We talk to each other. We listen, we laugh, and sometimes we cry. I love those times!

So does God. A quiet time with God is very similar to a special date. Here are some tools to help you keep your date with Him special. Select a slot in your schedule and claim it for God. Take as much time as you need. Your time with God should last long enough for you to say what you want and for God to say what he wants.

Bring an open Bible—God’s Word, his love letter to you. Bring a listening heart and listen to the lover of your soul. Make sure your date with God is on the calendar, and do everything in your power to keep it special!

From Max on Life

Max Lucado – Don’t Count Sheep

January 22, 2015 broboinhawaii Leave a comment

Fretting over tomorrow’s problems siphons the strength you need for today, leaving you anemic and weak. So, when you can’t sleep—don’t count sheep. Read Scripture.

Worry takes a look at catastrophes and groans, “It’s all coming unraveled.” But God says in Romans 8:28 that “every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good.”

Worry claims, “The world has gone crazy.” God’s Word disagrees. Mark 7:37 says, “He has done it all and done it well.”

Worry wonders if anyone is in control. Yet God’s Word calls Him “the blessed controller of all things.” (1 Tim. 6:14-15 Phillips)

Worry whispers this lie: “God doesn’t know what I need.” But God’s Word declares in Philippians 4:19, “God will take care of everything you need.”

Worry never sleeps. But God’s children do!

From Max on Life

Max Lucado – Love is a Decision

January 21, 2015 broboinhawaii Leave a comment

When we look at the love of Christ, we make a wonderful discovery. Love is more a decision than an emotion! Christ-like love applauds good behavior. At the same time Christ-like love refuses to endorse misbehavior. Jesus loved his apostles, but he wasn’t silent when they were faithless. Jesus loved the people in the temple, but he didn’t sit still when they were hypocritical.

Love does whatever is in the best interest of a person. The cheating husband says to his wife, “If you loved me, you’d forget what has happened and let me come home.” That may not be true. Love does what’s in the best interest of a person. Love sets boundaries and seeks counsel.

The love of Christ is no sweet sentiment—but rather a heartfelt resolve to do what’s in the best interest of another person. Sometimes that means dying on a cross!

From Max on Life

Max Lucado – Don’t Replace God

January 20, 2015 broboinhawaii Leave a comment

Vengeance fixes your attention on life’s ugliest moments. Score settling freezes your stare at cruel events in your past. Is that where you want to look? Will rehearsing and reliving your hurts make you a better person? By no means. It will destroy you. Revenge moves God away from the equation. It replaces God.

“I’m not sure you can handle this one, Lord. You may punish too little or too slowly. I’ll take this matter into my hands.”

So, God reminds us in Romans 12:19, “I’ll do the judging. I’ll take care of it.” [My paraphrase] Only God assesses accurate judgments. Vengeance is His job. Leave your enemies in God’s hands. Forgiveness is not endorsement of misbehavior. You can hate what someone did without letting hatred consume you. Remember, God occupies the only seat on the supreme court of heaven!

From Max on Life

Max Lucado – Getting Over It

January 19, 2015 broboinhawaii Leave a comment

You’ve been hurt! Part of you is broken, and the other part is bitter. Part of you wants to cry, and part of you wants to fight. And you’re left with a decision. Do I get over it or get even? Do I release it or resent it?

Resentment is when you allow what’s eating you to eat you up. Revenge is the raging fire that consumes the arsonist. Bitterness is the trap that snares the hunter. And mercy is the choice that can set them all free.

“Blessed are the merciful,” Jesus said on the mountain. “They shall be shown mercy.” (Mt. 5:7)

Forgiving others allows us to see how God has forgiven us. The dynamic of giving grace is the key to understanding grace. For it is when we forgive others that we begin to feel what God feels. Set your enemy—and yourself—free!

From Max on Life

Max Lucado – Don’t Allow Fear to Win

January 16, 2015 broboinhawaii Leave a comment

The fear-filled cannot love deeply. They cannot give to the poor. Benevolence has no guarantee of return. They cannot dream wildly. What if their dreams sputter and fall from the sky? Fear paralyzes people. Are you afraid? Afraid of job loss? Afraid of what people are saying about you?

Jesus wages a war against fear. In Matthew 10:28 He says, “Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul.” In John 14:27 Jesus says, “Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”

Fear’s main goal is to keep you from God’s plan for your life. Don’t allow it to win! Punch fear in the face! If anything should be afraid, it should be fear itself.

From Max on Life

Max Lucado – Go After the Small Drips

January 15, 2015 broboinhawaii Leave a comment

I wonder what formed the Grand Canyon? Maybe a few drips here and there. Slowly more and more water built up. Thunderstorms and lightning… angry expressions from the sky spilling out in the raging river of the Colorado. A once innocent stream now full of power and purpose. As years go by, the crevasse is dug.

Our anger builds like the Colorado. Slowly, small things drip, drip, drip down, annoying, irritating, finally enraging. That was mine! Drip. Get out of my way! Drip. Don’t tell me what to do! Drip. The pressure and the buildup unleashing a frenzy of anger, pouring out in our words, sweeping away our loved ones, our homes, and our peace.

Don’t wait until you have a gushing fire hydrant. Go after the small drips. Address every little irritant with forgiveness and prayer. Do it before your anger digs a canyon in your life!

From Max on Life

Max Lucado – Romans 8:28 · January 14

January 14, 2015 broboinhawaii Leave a comment

Romans 8:28 reminds us, “We know that in everything God works for the good of those love Him.” This is one of the most helpful, comforting verses of the entire Bible, announcing God’s sovereignty in any painful, tragic situation we face.

God works. Paul’s word for this is sunergeo—the great-great-grandfather of the term synergy. Paul is saying that God can make all things sunergeo for the good. Blending faith with the failings, triumphs with the tears.

James makes the same point in James 1:2 when he says, “Count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.”

So what do we do in the meantime? We trust. We trust totally, and remember God is working for the good!

From Max on Life

Max Lucado – A Season of Suffering

January 13, 2015 broboinhawaii Leave a comment

God uses our struggles for His glory! The last three years of my dad’s life were scarred by ALS. The disease took him from being a healthy mechanic to being a bed-bound paralytic. He lost his voice and his muscles, but he never lost his faith. Visitors noticed. Not so much in what he said, but more in what he didn’t say. Never outwardly angry or bitter, Jack Lucado suffered with dignity.

His faith led one man to seek a like faith. This man sought me out and told me because of my dad’s example, he became a Jesus follower. Did God orchestrate my father’s illness for that very reason? Knowing the value God places on one soul, I wouldn’t be surprised. And imagining the splendor of heaven, I know my father is not complaining. A season of suffering is a small assignment when compared to the great reward!

From Max on Life

Max Lucado – Regular Repentance

January 12, 2015 broboinhawaii Leave a comment

My college roommate, Steve, was neat. Not just neat in the sense of a lot of fun but neat in the sense of not sloppy. I on the other hand, tend to be sloppy. Why make up a bed you’re going to sleep in that night? Steve was very gracious. Little by little he helped me change. I learned the purpose of hangers. The reason for toothpaste lids. Our four years of rooming together were four years of regular repentance. Then he turned me over to Denalyn and she’s still working on me.

The same thing happens to Christians. As Christ moves in and takes up residence in his life, the Christian sees how sloppy he is. Over time, his language changes. His habits change. He lives a lifestyle of repentance. The longer we hang out with Jesus, the more we see what needs to change. Repentance becomes a lifestyle!

From Max on Life

Max Lucado – God Can Use You

January 9, 2015 broboinhawaii Leave a comment

If God chose only righteous people to change the world, you could count them all on one finger—Jesus! Instead he included others in his plan—sinners, the ungodly, the imperfect. God used and uses people to change the world. People! Crooks, creeps, lovers, and liars—he uses them all!

If you ever wonder how God can use you to make a difference in your world, just look at those he has already used, and take heart. No matter who you are or what you’ve done, God can use you. Because you’re imperfect, you can speak of making mistakes. Because you’re a sinner, you can speak of forgiveness. God restores the broken and the brittle, then parades them before the world as trophies of his love and strength. And when the world sees the ungodly turn godly, they know God must love them too.

God can use you, my friend!

From Max on Life

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