I have been a fan of the Cubs since I have been old enough to say Ernie Banks! Tonight the Chicago Cubs play in the National League Wild Card game in Pittsburgh to see who moves on to play the Cardinals in the Championship Series.
People have told me I am dedicated to my team.
What do we mean when we say dedication? To one person it may mean giving up a part of a football game to come to church on Sunday mornings, to another it may point to a decision to begin giving some of their money to the Lord's work, while to another it may add up to leaving all that they know to serve the Lord as a missionary in a foreign country. What does it mean to dedicate a temple, a church, a child... a life - to dedicate them to the Lord.
“So the king and all the Israelites dedicated the temple of the LORD."
1 Kings 8:63 (NIV)
In I Kings 8 Solomon dedicates the great Jerusalem Temple to the Lord, and in so doing teaches us some important lessons about the character of dedication.
Dedication means Open Declaration
Dedication is a public announcement of your intentions and commitments. Many see dedication as some inner commitment that no one can really see or understand. Not true... it is expressed in public commitments and public actions. Do you know when dedication begins to happen? When you begin to place your faith on the line in terms of public commitments. It's that willingness to declare to others that adds up to dedication.
- When our forefathers penned the Declaration of Independence they turned a philosophy into a dedication to freedom.
When John Kennedy said, "We will put a man on the moon before the end of the decade." He transformed a scientist’s dream into a country’s dedication.
- When I sing “Go Cubs Go” tonight whether they win or lose tonight…That’s dedication!
Family Discussion Question: When others look at your life, what do you think they would say you are “dedicated” to?
Your pastor and partner in ministry,
Kyle
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