By Joyce Meyer
Jesus began His public ministry in Nazareth. It was the town where He grew up, where all His close friends and family lived - a place where he should have received plenty of hugs and hand clasps of encouragement. But for Jesus, it was not a good experience.
The crowd was happy with Jesus' teachings to a point, but when His words became a little more direct and corrective, the Bible says they became so enraged that they actually tried to kill him (see Luke 4:28, 29) Jesus didn't even try to defend the validity of His ministry. Verse 30 says, But passing through their midst, He went on His way.
Now, the next place He went was Capernaum, where He preached to large crowds, performed miracles and cast out devils from among the people. And they were just so happy. They said, "Stay with us, Jesus. This is your spot!' Well, who wouldn't want to stay where everybody loves and appreciates you? But Jesus did not hang around there either because He knew there were others who needed to hear His message.
There's a major lesson to be learned here. See, Jesus wasn't moved by people's rejection nor was He moved by their acceptance. He was moved by the spirit of God.
If you can learn how to follow God whether you're accepted or rejected, you're well on you way to fulfilling the call of God on your life.
What to Do When Others Reject You
Have you ever tried to help someone who didn't really want to be helped out of their situations? You know we tend to think that if we could just explain things a little more clearly or be a little bit better witness, they could be helped. But honestly and truly, we've got to know when to break free from the burden of false responsibility.
In Matthew 10, Jesus was sending out His disciples and He told them that if they went to a town and the people didn't accept them, they should shake the dust off their feet and go to the next town. What does that mean for Christians today? It means if someone doesn't want to be helped, we are not obligated to try and change them.
The world is full of hungry, hurting, needy people who would love to get any little bit of love and encouragement you have to give them. So when one person rejects you, don't let that stop you. Just do what Jesus did. Move on to the next person and the next person until somebody wants what you've got.
What to Do When Others Ask Too Much
Now, there are going to be others in your life who love and appreciate you and won't ever want you to leave their side because of who you are and what you do for them. And it's tempting to stay around people like that because they genuinely care about you. But if you choose to stay in that same small circle, you won't be able to reach out to others in need.
Let me ask you this: Do you think enough Christians today are reaching out to people in need? I think the truth is that some of us have been in church long enough to be mature Christians but we're still going to church to take in instead of give out. And what we really need to do is say, "Okay, I've been fed the Word for a long time now, and it's time for me to grow up and start giving out what God's given to me."
I think it would absolutely set the church on fire if everyone who knows God's Word well enough to enjoy some degree of spiritual stability, would simply realize they have what it takes to make a difference in the lives of others.
Practical Advice for Loving Others
When you go to church, don't just go to get a blessing - go to be a blessing. Purposefully say, "God I'm going to church today, and I want You to show me someone who needs a blessing. Show me a widow I can take to lunch or a single mom who's got a few kids and needs some extra ones. Show me someone I can help, because that's what I'm here to do."
See, I've come to understand in my life that selfishness is weakness. But loving and caring for others is a position of power beyond anything that we can possibly imagine We need to pay more attention to others and what they need and what we can do for them. Think about how you can help others and lift them up. Then go out armed and ready, prayed up and looking for someone to bless.
Pursuing God's Wonderful Plan for You
I'm going to let you in on a wonderful little secret: Serving God is absolutely the most exciting, unbelievabley awesome thing you can do. The more you fill your life with God and reach out to other people, the more God's going to meet your needs, and the happier you're going to be.
I'm not suggesting that you shouldn't take care of yourself. I'm just talking about getting rid of that "What about me?" mindset. I don't even like to go a single day now without doing at least one good thing for someone else. I just don't like to live that way. And I've found out that sometimes I have to purposefully go out looking for people in need. If you don't know anybody who needs help, then go find someone. You won't have to look too hard to find someone you can reach out to.
Romans 8:29 sas we're destined to be molded into the image of Jesus Christ. That is our destiny! It means that everything God does for us He expects to flow through us. Just as God said to Abraham, "I will bless you and I will make you a blessing, causing you to dispense good to others," He will also do the same through us (see Genesis 12:2) And that's what this life is supposed to be about.
The truth is if you will regularly reach out to help people, edify them, encourage them, and treat them the way you want to be treated, then you will be one of the happiest people in the world today.
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from Enjoying Everyday Life, A Joyce Meyer Ministries (JMM) magazine November 2011 issue
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