Posts Tagged: the ministry of noticing

“Whom Am I Imitating?”

On August 13, 2021 by Dteb With 0 Comments - down to earth believer

“Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are his dear children.” (Ephesians 5:1, (New Living Translation)

I am a chameleon. In order to please others, I try to blend in.

No, that’s not true. I am not trying to please others. I am trying to get them to please me.

But it is true that I am a chameleon. I try to fit in so well that I will stand out.

Contradictory? Yes. But unfortunately, it is true.

But I need to be careful as to whom I am imitating and in what ways I am imitating them.

Above all, since I am a Christ-follower—or at least, aspire to be one—I need to imitate Christ, who came to show us what God was like with human skin on. “Following Jesus” doesn’t simply mean hanging out with Him. Following means imitating him.

So, what was Jesus like? Well, he seems to have loved all kinds of people, he modeled humble service, he put God first, he taught wonderful things about the Kingdom of God. He also did miracles, howbeit often with great reluctance.

I don’t think that I have the gift of doing miracles, but who knows? However, those other things that Jesus did are things that I could do, at least, in theory. They are not easy, but they are possible.

One thing that Jesus did that I often refuse to notice is that Jesus noticed. He noticed when his disciples were arguing about who was the greatest. He noticed when his disciples were shooing away parents who were bringing their little ones to Jesus. (Jesus didn’t like that, even a little!) Jesus noticed a poor widow who had put a small coin in the offering box. (Jesus was very impressed with that!) Jesus noticed when his disciples needed their stinky feet washed.

Jesus noticed? He noticed that we were all lost and didn’t even have the sense to ask for directions. He noticed that we had all messed up our own lives and the lives of others. His ministry of noticing eventually took him to the cross.

Where is my imitative noticing taking me, I wonder?

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“THE MINISTRY OF NOTICING”

On January 26, 2018 by Dteb With 0 Comments - down to earth believer

Friday, January 26, 2018

I stopped in the middle of yesterday’s gratitude list.  My gratitude list was, in many ways a reflection of my day: truncated and inadequate.

Well, that is not quite the truth: It wasn’t the day that was truncated and inadequate. I was the one who felt truncated and inadequate.  There wasn’t a single thing wrong with the day itself.

I’ve had a bunch of days this week in which I have felt very inadequate.  I’m not getting much done of what I set out to do in the day.  Why is this?  I seemed to be doing pretty well earlier in the month.  Lazy?  Tired?  Who knows?!

However, our puppy is curled up in my lap drowsing, and I’m listening to smooth instrumental jazz on AccuRadio.  Perhaps that is what I am called by God to do right now.  The sun is up after a lovely rising.  I wasn’t too preoccupied to notice.  Perhaps “accomplishing things” is overrated.  Perhaps there is such a thing as the ministry of noticing.

. . .

And then a good friend called, and we had a good chat.  I always feel saner after a conversation with him.  I think that I am saner after I talk to him!

Checking my little thises and thats off my to-be-and-to-do list may not always be the way to go.  A list may be a good servant, but it makes a lousy master.  Perhaps I ought to remember that.

So, my main goal for today is to practice the fine art of noticing.  I will notice my wife, my dog, my house, my external environment.  I will notice when I’m hungry, and the texture and taste of food.  I will notice when I need to take a break, which is right now.

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