I've Got Things to Do; Why Would I Need Margin in My Life?

"Let's open up your Bibles to Luke 10...How many of you would say that you occasionally or always feel stressed?  How many people feel financial tension?  How many of you would say I wish I had more time to spend with my self of my family?"  Craig Groeschel of lifechurch.tv opens his series "Margin" with a message on the need for margin.  We live in a culture that pushes us to the limits.  Buy more.  Do more.  Accomplish more.   Conquer more.  Most of us are living at an unbiblical and unsustainable pace. Its insane what "normal" is today.  Even our kids will go out four or five nights a week doing their activities and we call that normal!  Our schedules are stressing us and our kids out!  Virtually everyone has little margin for error in the main areas of life.  Andy Stanley taught a series a called "Take It to the Limit" where he defined margin. 

Margin is the amount available beyond what is necessary. Andy Stanley

Margin is the difference between what you have and what you need. Craig Groeschel

How does margin lay out in life?  There's money left over at the end of the month.  It's leaving a few minutes early to be early for a meeting.  Margin is leaving more distance between you and temptation.  Margin is having the emotional capacity to deal with struggle.  Margin could be having 3 or 4 nights a week with nothing on your schedule.  Margin could be having extra time or money to invest or give to ministries.  Margin could be having time to reflect, think and meditate.  Margin could mean having significant time with God meditating on His Word  Simply put, margin is what most of us do not have.  "I am convinced that the best things in life happen in margin," says Craig.

Luke 10:38-42 is a great story about two different woman who dealt differently on the subject of margin.  As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, He came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet listening to what He said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made.

It's interesting.  We have two women with the exact same opportunity.  Despite what she may have had to do, Mary took an opportunity to sit at Jesus' (the son of God's) feet.  But Martha created things to do.  She chose to be busy and to find things to do that were a distraction from Jesus. She may have been distracted by good things to do, but she was distracted from the best things. 

If Satan cannot make us really, really bad, he'll make us really, really busy.  Unknown

Recently, Craig went on a "staycation" or a vacation where he stayed home.  On the first day, Craig thought of things he needed to do at the church.  So, he went into his home office and began working.  "Bukie", his youngest son, came into his office and asked Craig if he would wrestle.  Craig dismissed Bukie, but then God whispered, "Bukie is not the distraction Craig, your work is." 

In verse 40, Martha asks Jesus is he doesn't care that her sister has left her with all the work.  The irony here is that Martha was absolutely convinced that she was doing the right thing!  Don't many of us believe the same?  We believe we have to live this way.  Business is success and more is right.  Everyone is doing it, right?  But broad is the road and wide is the path to distruction.  Small is the gate and narrow is the road to life and very few people find it. 

"Do not be conformed to the patterns of this world", says Paul.  "Be transformed by the renewing of your mind."  Then you'll be able to test and prove what the will of God is.  If minor changes could have made a difference we would have done that a long time ago.  What we are talking about in this message are large, life changing habits.  Production mindsets miss the moments.  "Martha, Martha," the Lord answered, "you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her."  Choose what is right and it will never be taken away from you. 

What happens when we have no margin? 

1)  As margin decreases, your stress increases.  When you're running late, stress increases.  It makes you say bad things on the way in church.  You can't enjoy the worship sometimes and you might have ill will to those you think are to blame.  Financial margin is a big one.  When something breaks, you have no room to fix it. 

2) Your relational intimacy decreases.  Your mind runs, but you are disconnected.  Recently, Craig's family went out to eat and they saw four people together but ALL FOUR people were on their phones twitter and emailing.  "Quit playing with your little twitter!"  Relational intimacy decreases not only with others but with God.  "I used to be close, but I just got BUSY (Too busy for people and too busy for God)." 

Why is it that so many of us live marginless lives? Why do people not downsize?  Most of us do not wholly trust God.  We don't have enough faith to believe that God is really on the throne.  We think that we are working to get something.  Most of us make more money than we ever have, but we are more stressed and more unhappy.  Why?  Because of idolatry! We are eleveating good things to be supreme things.  We gotta have the bigger house, a nicer car, a promotion...  We gotta be at the meeing so they will think more of us. We gotta have our kids involved in the best programs because, God forbid, we spend spiritual time with them when they "could be better flute players."

In the next few weeks, Craig says that he and those listening are going to have a "come to Jesus meeting".  He is going to challenge his listeners and push them.  Sadly, most people will not change, but some of you will begin to live, not according to the patterns of this world, but according to the rhythms of God's grace.  You will not give too much time to things that do not last.  Matthew 11:28-29 says, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls."   Let that sink in...rest for your souls...peace...assurance...tranquility.  Rest for your souls... Sometimes people go on vacation and then they have to recover from all the things they did on their vacation!  Some peole think, if nothing is on their schedule, they are insignificant.  This is insane!  Men think they have to make more, conquer more and achieve more.  It's idolatry.  Psalm 46:10 says this; "Be still and know that I am God."

One of Craig's counselors once said, "Take 5 minutes a day and do nothing."  So, this week, your assignment is to do nothing every day for 5 minutes.  Don't do anything. Don't think about anything.  Don't pray.  Just be.  It is the first significant step in creating margin.  The coming series outline for "Margin" is:

Week 1.  Why

Week 2. Scheduling margin. 

Week 3.  Financial margin

Week 4. Moral Margin

 

We are gong to stop finding meaning in the things of this world and start finding meaning in the things of God. 

Isaiah 58:11 says; "The Lord will guide you always; He will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame."

 You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail. Isaiah 58:11

What Were the Disciple's Darkest Hours?

In the "One Prayer" series sponsored by some of the largest churches in the nation, Andy Stanly talks about our darkest hours and God's presence during these times. One of the most dramatic moments in all of human history took place in an environment... we've come to know as "Upper room" The disciples and Jesus were coming to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover. This was a time when the Jewish people would come and celebrate the memory of the time when their people were finally delivered from Egypt after 400 years of slavery. Their ancestors were told by Moses to paint the blood of a lamb over their doorways which would mark their homes to be "passed over" by the angel of death when all the first born children of Egypt were to die because the Egyptian Pharaoh refused to let the Israelites go despite warnings from Moses.

The disciples and Jesus had been through so much and they had had Passover several times together. But at this moment in the Upper Room, things seemed to have spiraled downward. People were trying to get Jesus alone so they could arrest Him. More and more, they were experiencing rejection and persecution. Jesus was, even now, talking about His own death. "Things are going to be bad in Jerusalem." He would say, which left the disciples wondering why He wanted to go to Jerusalem in the first place. Not only was it dangerous, but they had to sneak into the city under the cover of darkness to avoid being seen. It was a time when there were no shouts of joy or shouts saying, "Hosanna!" No one could even know they were in the Upper Room.

Mark 14:17 talks about this event; "When evening came, Jesus arrived with the Twelve. While they were reclining at the table eating, he said, "I tell you the truth, one of you will betray me—one who is eating with me." So, here they are in one of the most intimate settings of their culture, at a dinner table, and even as the disciples were in their darkest hours, Jesus now is telling them that one of them will betray Him! What's worse, they knew who this person would betray Jesus to because things had gotten so bad and they now knew His enemies.

"They were saddened, and one by one they said to him, "Surely not I?" "It is one of the Twelve," he replied, "one who dips bread into the bowl with me. The Son of Man will go just as it is written about him. But woe to that man who betrays the Son of Man! It would be better for him if he had not been born."

As we look at our Bible, it is not a book about great times and wonderful living. It is a book about the troubled times from the lives of people who discovered that in the midst of uncertainty, God was still trustworthy. This is a book where we read about Joseph, who was hated by and sold into slavery by his brothers. But we go on to know that God was with Joseph all along. We read about King David, who found out his son had raised up an army to kill him, but we later find out that God was with David throughout his ordeal. We read about the first-born children, in Egypt, who were ordered to be killed, but we found the God was there! We read about the how the all the babies in Bethlehem were killed, an entire generation, but we know know that God had the world in His hands through the birth of Jesus. We read about the times when it seemed like evil had won and the bad guys were successful, but then we see that God was there.

Now, in the Upper Room, Jesus begins breaking bread and pouring the wine, saying that the bread is His Body and the wine is His Blood. It was more death talk to an already somber group. What's worse, in the garden of Gethsemane, Jesus tells the disciples that all of them would fall away. He tells Peter that he would deny Jesus.



"Here's my question for you...as we continue to experience extraordinary uncertainty in our families, in our jobs, with our children, with our culture, with our leadership, with our Congress, with our Senate...with our economy...with our scholarships. Can you trust God...when there's absolutely no evidence of His activity in your life, in your culture, in our country and seemingly at times, in our world? Our answer to that question will determine our response to the uncertainty in our lives right now." The dilemma right now is that we sometimes equate God and God's presence with physical blessings.

But, if you had gone to the disciples back in time and asked them, "When were the darkest moments in your ministry?" They would probably say it all began in the Upper Room. These were likely the darkest because it probably seemed like they had wasted all this time with Jesus. But then, if you asked the disciples, when did God do His greatest work in each of them, they would likely say that it was during those darkest hours!

"That's a difficult message for American Christians...But this is not only our story because it is reflected in the Gospel...but this is our own experience....The greatest things begin in the biggest messes...This is what God does...Will we maintain faith when we cannot see His hand? As our faith begins to waiver as we look to the left and the right, now more than ever, (the Bible) is the place we need to go." We might hear this message and say this is all fine, but this won't change our circumstances. It won't get us a job or put our kids back in school or heal our land. But although this doesn't promise a cure for the storms, it allows us to embrace our circumstances with the knowledge that God is still in charge.

"When Sandra and I were in the Washington for the Inauguration...they took us to this giant hall to wait for President Obama...we weren't standing in line, we were just spread out...the President was going to be coming out...I was standing behind...Reverend Otis Moss. He was born in middle Georgia in 1835...he was an orphan...as a 16 year old, he saw the worst that this country had to offer...at 19, he decided to be a preacher...he became a part of the core group of friends with Martin Luther King...He experienced racism and hatred that many of us never will...but he kept his faith...As he shared with Coretta Scott King right in front of me, he drifted off and said, "And we know that in all things, God works for the good of those who love Him...Now, (Rev Otis Moss's) "all things" were so different from the "all things" that many of us have experienced..."But Pastor Stanley, sometimes it takes him a while"...I was about to meet the President, but I realized I had just met a saint...God will not stop working. He still has your world and your family in His hands. I just met a man who maintained faith through horrible circumstances.." The end of the verse, Pastor Moss did not quote is "and for all who are called according to His purposes."


Our faith often rests in our knowing that God still has our whole world in His hands.