Jim Benfer

Living Abundantly

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Jim Benfer<= /p>

Sermo446 Fo= r 10-21-07

Scripture <= st1:place w:st=3D"on">Reading: John 10:1= -10

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Studies suggest that we’re in the midst of a “boredom boom,” as t= he Yankelovich Monitor, an annual consumer survey, concluded in 2000. The Moni= tor reported that 61% of 2,500 respondents craved more novelty in their lives, = up from fifty-four percent in 1995. Sixty-nine percent agreed that “even though I have so much to do, I’m always looking for something new and exciting to do.” Eighty-four percent said they found television “boring,” and 88% claimed they were bored with the Internet.

“= ;The brain is always adjusting to new stimuli,” says Augustin de la Peña, a psychophysiologist who has studied boredom for 30 years. “Once the brain has seen something new a few times,it no longer finds= it interesting. The brain’s ante for stimulation is always being upped, = just as a drug addict needs larger and larger doses to get high.” [1]

We are victims of a society that is immersed in every possible distraction, from v= ideo games, video gambling, video gossip, and innumerable television and sporting events—we are a people who are just looking for the next experiential high in an entertainment-crazed world.&nbs= p; And Christians have by-in-large become “couch potato” Ch= ristians who live vicariously from their pews each Sunday, thinking that watching and hearing about Jesus is the same thing as living for him. Where did real life go? Or, are we so video-affected that = we have forgotten what real life is supposed to be?

The an= swer, of course, is not more entertainment, but to find purpose and fulfillment in lives that we have judged boring and incapable of exciting us. Our scripture verse today gets at = the crux of the situation. Jesus = said, “I have come that you might have= life, and have it to the full.”

Napoleon Dynamite is a = recent movie about a group of people in search of significance and acceptance. The main character, Napoleon Dynam= ite is a geek who doesn’t really have a clue about living, but he is positiv= e that he is tired of just existing from day to day. In his search for abundant life he= tries martial arts, dating, time travel, and helping his friend Pedro run for cla= ss president. In the end, Napole= on and his friends all find significance for their lives in new relationships. It’s not hard to springboard= from significance in relationships with others to the more full life found in relationship with God.

Abunda= nt, full life—that is what we really want when we switch on the computer = or television so often. We crave= after what we don’t really know how to acquire. So how does being a Christian real= ly make a difference between just existing and really living? I think it does in several ways.

The first is that living in relationship with Jesus is exciting! If wha= t you want is something more exciting than what videos can give you, Jesus can help. Think about this scenar= io from the ninth chapter of Luke’s gospel account: Then Jesus called the twelve together and gave them power and autho= rity over all demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them out to proclaim the = kingdom of God and to heal. He said to them, “Take nothi= ng for your journey, no staff, nor bag, nor bread, nor money—not even an ext= ra tunic.” [2]

What is Jesus saying to these new disciples? He is saying that they need to depend on God, and that God will prove himself worthy of following. Wouldn’t that be great! Wouldn’t that be exciting!&nb= sp; It’s certainly better than a reality TV show, because God is asking you to step out in faith. You might even find out that God really is—the most exciting discovery of all.

I hadn’t been doing Bible study very long when our men’s study re= ad from Matthew 25:35 where it says, &= #8220;for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something = to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me cl= othing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.R= 21; All at once the class leader said, “Hey, I know the sheriff, and I’ll bet he would let us witness = down at the jail.” To my hor= ror, right then and there he called the sheriff, got permission, and ten minutes later we were headed for the jail. Talk about a reality check! We were supposed to witness to men in trouble about how Jesus was at work in our lives. Was he really? I wasn’t to sur= e, but there was enough peer pressure going on that I would have to try. You know what the really funny par= t of it was? When I did witness, I= could feel the Holy Spirit at work telling me the truth about what I was saying.<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> Some of it rang true, and some of = it didn’t. I became convin= ced that I needed to continue so that I could correct the parts of my witness t= hat didn’t ring true.

What d= id I learn in doing this? I learne= d more than the men I witnessed to about my faith. I found out God really was with us = in that jail. I found out how ex= citing it was to share about God, who does love and care for us! Living in relationship with Jesus = is always exciting when we are willing to let God lead us.
Secondly, we find purpose for living in relationship with God. Jesus = talked about us being the sheep who hear his voice. When we enter into a relationship = with God we are becoming a part of God’s kingdom, we have entered into his sheepfold. There we experienc= e his protection and care. We are protected from the evil one who only comes to kill and destroy.<= /span>

How do= es Satan come to kill and destroy? One of the main ways that we are scattered and destroyed is by living a lie. We begin by listening to the voice= of the stranger that seeks to divide the flock. We buy into the idea that signific= ance comes from attainment. If we = earn more, if we are recognized more, if we have more—Do you get the picture? When we buy into the= se ideas and found our lives on them we have created idols that are more impor= tant to us than God or others. We = can tell ourselves it isn’t so, but if we still answer the call while ignoring the needs of those around us, it is so. We are doomed with this mentality = to live lives like puppets on strings who dance to the tune of the gods of our making.

Once u= pon a time, not too long ago, I thought that being the best fish farmer in Mississippi woul= d make me happy. I was doing what I = always wanted wasn’t I? But on= e day I realized that it wasn’t really making me happy, nor was it making my family happy. Why was my ego = in the driver’s seat of my life? Was purpose going to come just because I had been a successful fish farmer? My friends were saying “yes,” but God was saying “no!”
God ma= y have gifted me so that I could be successful in that arena, but if it expended my life in a futile search for meaning, it= was pointless! I had to repriorit= ize my living so that God and family came first.&= nbsp; When those things came back into their rightful place; when I began heeding the call of the Shepherd’s voice, only then could I find mean= ing and purpose that satisfied.

Lastly, we find true fulfillment in relation= ship with God and others. <= /b>Purpos= e is necessary for right living, but we also need fulfillment in it. When Jesus spoke the Beatitudes, he began each with the words, “B= lessed are the.” [3] That word blessed is translated fr= om the Greek word makarios. Those statements could be tran= slated as “Happy are the.” Fulfillment isn’t connected with happy occasions per se, but fulfillment is associated with a life in relationship with God. That fulfillment works itself out = in three ways. The first is in t= he present. Living in relationsh= ip with God and having the knowledge of God’s love and forgiveness. This makes a difference in how we = view our lives and purpose. This is where many Christians stop, but we need to continue further.

Second= ly, it means future fulfillment. In eschatological thinking, it means that we have future glory with God that w= ill in no way be diluted by circumstances we face today. That simply means making hope a li= ving part of our circumstances. Je= sus said that he was going to prepare a place for us, a heavenly home, where all that is not right with this world will be done away with. Our hope isn’t in this world= or its possessions, but in God.

Lastly= , it means full life, abundant life in relation with God. A God directed life begins to get = its priorities in order. Those th= ings that have broken fellowship with God and with other people begin to regain their proper places when we turn our lives over to God’s will. Perhaps, for the first time, a Chr= istian realizes that being a child of God is something more than just a name, it i= s a profound condition. We receiv= e a peace that passes all understanding.

John W. = Gardner, founding chairman of Common Cause, said it's a rare and high privilege to h= elp people understand the difference they can make -- not only in their own liv= es, but also in the lives of others, simply by giving of themselves.

Gardner tells of a= cheerful old man who asked the same question of just about every new acquaintance he fell into conversation with: "What have you done that you believe in a= nd you are proud of?"

He never= asked conventional questions such as "What do you do for a living?" It = was always, "What have you done that you believe in and are proud of?"= ;

It was an unsettling question for people who had built their self-esteem on their wea= lth or their family name or their exalted job title.

Not that= the old man was a fierce interrogator. He was delighted by a woman who answered, "I'm doing a good job raising three children;" and by a cabinetma= ker who said, "I believe in good workmanship and practice it;" and by= a woman who said, "I started a bookstore and it's the best bookstore for miles around."

"I = don't really care how they answer," said the old man. "I just want to p= ut the thought into their minds.

"They should live th= eir lives in such a way that they can have a good answer. Not a good answer for= me, but for themselves. That's what' s important."[4]

So, let = me re-phrase John Gardners question to leave with you today: Are you living wh= at you believe in and are you fulfilled in it? It’s never to late to re-eva= luate what you are doing and find abundant, significant, fulfilling life. It’s found in relationship w= ith God and others, and it’s the only life worth living. In the name of the Father, and the= Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen!

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