Golf is the hardest game on the planet.  Although I like to play, I am a card carrying member of the BGA – Bad Golfers Association.  I think I might do better if the ball moved, and I had to chase it down in order to hit it.    

As bad as I am at golf, one thing has helped me: Tips from the Tour.  These are little nuggets of assistance from someone who has excelled at the game on the professional level.  These guys from the PGA tour share a tip about a particular shot.  This tip does not try to revamp your whole game, but rather give you something you can easily understand and immediately put into practice in order to lower your score.  I have improved my game by following the “tips from the tour.”

CHRISTIAN LIFE TIPS

Wouldn’t be great to get a tip from a hero of the faith… a tip that you could easily understand and immediately put into practice?  John the Baptist the great prophet of God and forerunner of the Lord Jesus Christ said this,
“He must increase, and I must decrease” (John 3:30). 

For John, once Jesus came on the scene, he needed to move from center stage to behind the scenes.  Jesus and His ministry must increase… and John and his ministry of preparing the way for Christ must decrease.  Once the announcer introduces the main event, his job is done… and he needs to get off the stage.

HOW ABOUT FOR YOU?

The Christian life is ALL about Jesus increasing and you decreasing.  No one ever arrives in this life.  We all have room to grow… and growing in the Lord simply means that you are becoming more and more like Jesus Christ in two critical areas:

1. The Way You Act – Your actions and habits begin to change when you are yielding control of your life to Christ.  You begin to turn from sin and start walking in the path He has for you.  When I started to walk with Christ as a senior in high school, my life began to change in the areas of speech (I quit cussing and talking His name in vain), weekend activities (I quit drinking and partying), and habits (I started to spend time in prayer, Bible study and church activities).  My actions started to change.

2. The Way You React – This one is much more telling.  You and I can more easily control our actions (what we do and where we go)… but our reactions are a different story and truly reveal if He is increasing, and you are decreasing. 

Think of your life as if it were a tube of toothpaste.  When the pressure comes and life begins to put the squeeze on you, what comes out… you or Jesus?  Do you go ballistic when you are stressed and things do not go your way… or do you respond the way He would with grace and love and patience and kindness?  If your life is filled with Jesus, and He is truly increasing in you and taking over more and more territory in your heart and life, your reactions will be so different than they were before.  People notice your actions… but they seriously evaluate the reality of your relationship with Christ based on your reactions.

WHAT CAN YOU DO?

Begin today to ask the Lord to increase in you so that people would see Jesus and not you.  Spend time with Him so that His wisdom and His ways penetrate your daily thoughts and activities.  Remind yourself that the moment you gave your life to Jesus, you died (Col. 3:3).  A dead man has no rights and no agendas, and he controls nothing.    

Remember, my friend, the Lord wants to manifest through you the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Himself in every place you go (2 Cor. 2:14).  Let Him start that today in you!  People in your sphere of influence will take note, and Jesus will be glorified!

Love,

Jeff Schreve

Pastor
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