Know What's Going On In Their Lives

This week we are looking at 2 Timothy 1:3-6 as we discuss reconnecting with the relationships that God has placed in our lives. Just a refresher, research indicates that people are most happy when they are in strong relationships with friends, co-workers, and family members. So how do we develop strong relationships?


Paul says in verses 3 - 4: “...as night and day I constantly remember you in my prayers. Recalling your tears...” Timothy was in tears. What was wrong? We don't know, but Paul did. He was close enough to Timothy that he, first of all, knew that Timothy was in tears; and, secondly, he prayed for Timothy because of his tears.

When I don't know what to pray for the people I love...that should be a red flag for me. When all I can say is, "Lord, bless..." but I can't add any more than that to my prayer request, that is an indicator that I am not paying enough attention to our relationship.

Do you know what's going on in the personal lives of those closest to you? There is an easy way to do it? Turn the TV off, set down for dinner or on the couch and talk! And if you will listen, you will hear more than enough to fill up your prayer time.

Unhappy? Check How Disconnected You Are

A study conducted by the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago, released in June of 2006, revealed that almost 25% of the people living in the US have zero close friends. Twenty years earlier the number was 10%. Isolation is a growing problem (reported in USAToday, June 22, 2006).

In the book, A Model-Free Approach to the Study of Subjective Well Being, psychologists Carolyn Murray and Jean Peacock identified four key factors for a happy life: the number of friends, the closeness of friends, the closeness of family, and the relationships with one's co-workers and neighbors. One expert from the National Opinion Research Center said, "By far, the biggest component of happiness is how connected you are."

It's no wonder that if 25% of Americans have no close friends (and the key component to a happy life is our relationships) so many people are unhappy with life. Let me bring it closer to home. In my observations as a pastor for the past 30 years, the more disconnected an individual or family becomes from their church family, the more unhappy they will be with their church. 

Jesus said that the second most important commandment is that you love others. He understood that people need people. We need each other.

This week, we are going to explore the question, "How close am I to the people God has placed in my life?" 

Illogical Love

I think it is safe to say, God's love's is illogical. As illustrated in the story of Hosea and Gomer, God shows his love to us, even though He fully knows we will not always be faithful to Him. That is illogical! But it is wonderful!

Can we honestly say, there is any good reason, based on our talents, abilities, pedigree, education, personality, or any other human factor, why God should love us? Why would God commit himself to us when He knew would not always be faithful to Him? Would you choose a mate, who, going in, you know will not be faithful to you, will betray your love, and leave you for others? Would you choose a mate who, going in, you know will not be thankful for what you do and give, the love and support you show?

Yet God loves us in such an amazing way. The only answer to any of the questions above is that God's love is illogical when contrasted to human love. But aren't you thankful that it is?

If You Knew Your Spouse Was Going To Be Unfaithful, Would You Marry Them?

Let me ask that question again, "If you knew your future spouse would have an affair (or worse yet, even multiple affairs) after you were married, would you still marry them?" I don't know many of us that would accept that deal.

But that is exactly what God told Hosea to do in Hosea 1:2-3: “When the Lord began to speak through Hosea, the Lord said to him, 'Go, take to yourself an adulterous wife and children of unfaithfulness, because the land is guilty of the vilest adultery in departing from the Lord.' So he married Gomer daughter of Diblaim, and she conceived and bore him a son.”

Don't you think that is asking a lot of Hosea? This wonderful love story begins in the verses we have just read but it takes an incredible turn in chapter three, where Gomer has returned to a life of prostitution, having left Hosea and their three children. In chapter three, she is now on an auction block, being sold my her pimp because he can no longer prostitute out her services as she grows older. He wants to get whatever he can out of her. So the bids begin. 

Suddenly from somewhere in the back of the crowd a voice strong and clear rings out, “I’ll give 15 shekels and ten 10 bushels of barley.” The auctioneer’s jaw drops. He can’t believe what he has just heard. She was not worth that much. The woman on the podium didn’t lift her head. As far as she was concerned this was just another stranger who would take her, use her, abuse her, and ultimately cast her away. 

The Hosea gently puts a cloth around her naked body, calls her by name, and takes her home as he tells her, “You are to live with me many days; you must not be a prostitute or be intimate with any man, and I will live with you.” (Hosea 3:3). Arm in arm they begin their journey home. 

Would you do what Hosea did? Probably not. But here's the thing about this story. Although it is a true story, it is really not a story about Hosea and Gomer. It is a story about us and God. The night you and I pledged ourselves to God and accepted Jesus as your Savior, He knew fully well that we would prostitute our loyalty to worldly attitudes and actions. He knew we would fail him. But He chose to love us anyway.

In fact, He made the same promise to us that He made to the nation of Israel in the book of Hosea: “I will heal their waywardness and love them freely, for my anger has turned away from them.” (Hosea 14:4). Don't miss it...he will heal our waywardness. Have we ever been wayward? Absolutely. He will love us freely...in spite of our waywardness.

This week we are going to explore three qualities of this amazing love that God extends to us.

Jesus Knows What Is Missing

We are looking at the first miracle of Jesus this week. In particular, how it relates to marriage in the 21st Century. But the principles we will look at this week will work in any relationship. The first principle is this: Jesus knows what is missing...in your marriage, in other relationships, in your life. But there is a caveat!

Jesus knew what missing at this couples wedding because He was there. He had been invited. And because He had been invited, He was able to do something about it.

Jesus knows what's missing from your marriage. If the wine is gone, if the feelings are gone, if resentments have built up, if communication has broken down...Jesus knows about it. And He knows what to do about it. But He won't do anything where He hasn't been invited. Invite Jesus to your marriage, your relationship, or whatever experience in your life is lacking, so that He can do what needs to be done.

He Is Still Working

Do you know what Jesus first miracle was? One of His most famous: turning water into wine, happened at the very beginning of his ministry, shortly after he had been baptized by John and called the first of his disciples. His mother was a guest at a wedding in Cana; Jesus and his followers were also invited.

Weddings in Cana were major events. According to tradition they were held on Wednesdays with a celebration following that often last a full week. People would come and go, eat and drink, dance, laugh, and celebrate the union of the bride and groom. It was their week; they were treated like royalty, the center of attention for the whole community.


Why did Jesus perform this miracle? Well, there are probably a lot of reasons. But John tells us one in particular near the end of this gospel, John 20:30-31: “Many other signs therefore Jesus also performed in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book; but these have been written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in his name.”

John says that he included this story in his gospel so that we could know something about Jesus works in our lives, even now. The Jesus who performed this miracle at the wedding in Cana is alive today and still working in the lives of his people. Especially in marriages. There are many people here today who are in need of a special touch of God in your life. 

Just like the bride and groom in Cana, there are many marriages that have run out of wine. That intoxication that you used to experience in each other's presence is no longer there. Your marriage has become empty and lifeless and dry. The period of intoxication is over and you're just stuck with a big hangover. What can you do about it? This week, we are going to look at  three things this story teaches us about the power of Jesus in our lives today.

The Holy Huddle

One day Jesus was standing around a group of people that were not exactly "church folks". They probably used language that He didn't approve of as well as participated in activities that were certainly questionable, at best. They were probably spiritual confused. They were the morally bankrupt of their community.

Off to the side was a group of religious people who were looking on in disgust. They couldn't believe that Jesus would affiliate with the first group, much less spend time in conversation with them.

There are several lessons that we can learn from this encounter. First of all, don't make the mistake of thinking that sinners automatically cleaned up their language and their lifestyles just because they came around Jesus. They probably didn't.

Secondly, Jesus knew exactly what the second group was thinking...and He didn't like it. Through three different parables in Luke 15, Jesus reminds religious people how important lost people are to Him. For those in the "holy huddle" He forcefully points out through the stories of the lost sheep, lost silver, and lost son, that lost things matter to Him.

The emphasis is clear...more than our buildings, our programs, and our vision, people matter the most to God! I have said it before, and I am guilty as charged, but I am sometimes embarrassed by how much we spend on buildings and programs to accommodate the sheep already in the fold, when Jesus clearly puts emphasis on the lost.

The Search For Love

When I was about seven years old, my parents took me to Six Flags Over Texas. Needless to say, coming from a small town of about 1,500 people with no traffic lights, the Dallas-Fort Worth area was overwhelming to me. And all the sights, sounds, and rides of Six Flags were almost more than my senses could comprehend.

On one particular occasion, we were standing for a few moments as my parents were checking out the park map to decide what we would do next. So I took opportunity to look around to see all those around me. And you know what happened, don't you? They took off, and I didn't.

I was lost. In a panic, I began to scan the faces and look around to see if there was anyone I knew. I was terrified. No matter how hard my seven-year-old brain tried to compute what to do next, I drew a blank. I was lost, I was searching, and I was terrified.

All of a sudden, from behind, my dad's hand grabbed my shoulder. A wave of relieve flooded my little spirit. But I noticed something about my dad. He was trembling as well. He even looked more relieved that me! As a parent, I now understand a truth that I could never grasp back then. As much as I was laboring to find my parents...they were working even harder to find me. And I also discovered that they were better at searching that I was.

You know the same is true about God. Other world religions are all about man's search for God. Christianity is all about God's search for man. This week we are exploring the search for love. And what we will discover is this: God is far better at searching for us than we are at searching for Him.