(I have been thinking about how i should start this blog....so I am just going to jump right in).
Six years ago today was my Dad's funeral. It is true, time does help....but it ABSOLUTELY does not heal. This year has been hard for me. I have so many things I want to share with him and ask him about. I think one reason it has been tough is because I have no distractions this year. So instead of finishing off the rest of the brownies, I decided to let my Dad do what he did best....teach me! I pulled the envelope that holds all of his sermons out of my bedside table and started reading. This is the one I pulled out......and of course, it is exactly what I needed.
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"I offer you a role model, who at an early age determined the path he wanted to follow.
What God can do with just one personJosiah became king of the nation of Judah when he was eight years old. A pretty intimidating place for a young boy. But young Josiah set a direction for his life that would change a nation.
it says that as a child "He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord and walking the ways of his father David." He chose to follow the example of his godly ancestor.
When he was sixteen years old, "he began to seek the God of his father David." This seems to indicate that he was seeking a personal relationship with God.
At the age of twenty he put his faith into practice. He purged the nation of the idols and pagan images which had polluted its soul. This was not a real popular thing to do, but the resolve of this young king was unshaken.
God wasn't finished with Josiah just yet.
At the age of 26, Josiah commissioned a massive restoration of the Temple in Jerusalem. During this work a priest found the book of Deuteronomy. When Josiah read this book he torn his robe in personal repentance.
He pledged his personal obedience by saying he would "follow the Lord and keep his commands, regulations and decrees with all his heart and all his soul". "As long as he lived, they did not fail to follow the Lord".
If this young king could be here today I think he would challenge our young people and the rest of us to take these three actions.
First: ask God to make your life significant, no matter your age.Josiah was only eight when he became king of Judah. Bill Gates wrote his computer program when he was 13. On the other hand Moses was 80 when he led Israel out of Egypt, and Joshua was 80 when he led the people into the Promise Land. It is never too soon or too late to ask God to use your life for something significant.
Second: ask God to make your life significant, no matter your circumstances.Josiah's father had just been assassinated and he finds himself in charge of a nation on the edge of extinction, but this young man saved his nation by the power and grace of God.
Nearly half of our nation's 20.7 million middle and high school students drink alcohol every week. Alcohol-related car crashes kill nine teenagers everyday. 2,000 teenagers commit suicide every year. And for every suicide, there are 350 failed attempts (700,000).
But, young people, you don't have to become what your world is. Like Josiah, you have a choice. you can ask God to make your life significant, no matter how much pressure our society puts on you, no matter how unpopular righteousness is.
To lead the orchestra, you must turn your back on the crowd. Make that choice.
Third, ask God to make your life significant, until it is done.You are not finished serving God until he calls you home.
Bill Graham was asked what about heaven he looked forward to the most. Dr. Grahams answer was that he looked forward to sitting down and talking to Jesus. He was then asked, what do you think he will say to you? His reply was that Jesus would say to him, You should have done more."
If Billy Graham should be doing more, I'm in serious trouble. But as long as he has this attitude he will never stop trying to do the job that God has set before him.
My prayer today is that God would raise up another Josiah among us today."
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I am so grateful that my Dad was able to make his life significant. He said that it use to be a "Leave it to Beaver" world and now it is a "
Beavis kind of world" (ya know...
beavis and ....). I can only imagine what he would think 6 short years later. He constantly showed me how to not get sucked into this "
Beavis world". How to be significant by turning your back on the crowd. All of his lessons were taught by example.
I didn't really get it until this day 6 years ago. To hear all the stories and see all the people that he changed......just by being a small town man that followed God. He never stopped doing the job that God set before him.
The path that my Dad followed has shaped me into the mother, sister, daughter, wife and friend that I am today. Most importantly, his path as made me the "starting to try harder" Christian that I am today.
God knew that I would listen to my Dad......I really needed to read this tonight!
There has been so much good come out of my Dad's death. I am sincerely grateful that God allows me to see those things.
I am still learning from my Dad's words, actions and spirit.
I hope I didn't cut the sermon too short. :) I just really wanted to share this.
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