Proverbs 18:9-16
He who is slothful in his work is a brother to him who is a great destroyer. The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are safe. The rich man’s wealth is his strong city, and like a high wall in his own esteem. Before destruction the heart of a man is haughty, and before honor is humility. He who answers a matter before he hears it, it is folly and shame to him. The spirit of a man will sustain him in sickness, but who can bear a broken spirit? The heart of the prudent acquires knowledge, and the ear of the wise seeks knowledge. A man’s gift makes room for him, and brings him before great men.
Good morning. Please note the title of today’s sermon. It’s MINE Your Own Business, not Mind Your Own Business. Sounds similar, but the difference is huge.
In mining your business, I want to bring to your attention the great investment God has made in you. The Bible declares, For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us. We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed; Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body. 2 Corinthians 4:6-10.
In this passage we learn, and are reminded of why we were called in the first place. Everything but displaying the character of Christ is ancillary to our primary goal. Each of us are individually empowered to mimic the attributes of the Lord. If the Spirit of Christ lives within us, we have no excuse. We have the power of the Comforter residing within.
Sometimes, in our self assessments we conclude we’ve reached the limits of our calling and assignments from God. We figure what we’ve done these many days is about all we are ever going to do. So we get comfortable and complacent with the status quo. I know I did. But the reality is that many of us are just now being commissioned to actually engage in true service. It may have been years, decades, or your entire lifetime, but God waited until now to make this the time of fulfillment. And that’s hard to wrap you head around until you begin to MINE your business.
What am I talking about? Here’s a footnote. It’s reported that a Georgia mayor coined the statement “there’s gold in them thar hills” to keep residents from leaving Georgia to join the 1840’s gold rush in California. Whether that’s true or not, the phase became popular and prayerfully will get you rethinking your own value. Because no matter what it looks like, or what others are doing, or your age, race, sex, economic status and station in life, there’s gold in them thar hills. You have unparalleled value. And all you have to do to uncover it is think back over your life and see the many blessings that caused you to be here today.
For instance. As much as I love church, preaching, teaching, singing and fellowship, I’ve concluded that it wasn’t the sermons, songs, revivals, conventions or convocations that kept me rooted in church. It was the wonderful people that inspired me to keep holding on. It was those loving relations. I could have left church years ago. But I just couldn’t leave those folk I loved, and loved me so completely. I began noting the tremendous impact of all the men and women that poured into my life to make me who I am right now. And that’s what I have on the inside. I carry that love with me everywhere I go. It is the active love of Christ. And because I received it, I am uniquely qualified to share the same love with others.
So as we look at the scriptures this morning we clearly see the importance of handling our business with prudence, passion and commitment. The benefits are indeed golden!
I’ve made an acronym of MINE for our discussion. M is for manage. Manage the opportunities and personal time related to your Kingdom assignment. I is for invest. Invest in your ministry. Resource the vision and make it viable. N is for nurture. Nurture and take care of your gift. Grow it and strengthen it in your life and the life of those the Lord has entrusted in your care. And finally E. E stand for evaluate. And this is very important. All too often we go long periods of time without evaluating or measuring our effectiveness. If God is sponsoring our vision, it will come to pass. Yes, it might take years, but it will come. And little by little you ought to see incremental increases and positive results. That’s if Gods in it.
Dear people of God, never doubt your significance in the implementation of God’s plan of salvation. You were called on purpose, for a purpose, to work in your purpose to the glory of God. And remember, THERE’S GOLD IN THEM DAR HILLS!
God Bless
