Don’t you love it when someone says that to you?  Here’s an even worse version: “Maybe God is trying to teach you something.”  Ouch.

Over the years I’ve had people say that to me.  They never say it when things are going your way.  They only say it when circumstances have worked out against you, or when you’ve failed at something, or when you’re generally in a bad place.

What do you say to someone when they say that to you?

Here’s my suggestion. You tell them,

I know exactly what God is trying to tell me:  He loves me.

You would be correct,  of course.

You could also use variations like “I’m forgiven”, “He died for me”, “He hasn’t given up on me”, “It’s not over yet.”  God’s final word to us (in this season) is not a word of judgment.  It’s a word of forgiveness, hope, grace and kindness.

In fact as long as you are still breathing, you can be sure of that.  Judgment day is a different story, but that is not today. As long as you are breathing, judgment does not need to be the final word.  There’s hope for those who seek God.

Does that mean we can’t learn from our circumstances?  Of course not.  But I’m not sure that people in the ditch need a “teacher” like the one who appears with all the answers and no compassion.  God isn’t like that.

Maybe God is trying to tell you something; something good.

Serving others is what we do in our culture.  If you run a business, you serve customers or clients.  If you are a Christian, you serve people.

We had a problem this week at our home that resulted in no water.  I needed to get a repair man in as soon as possible.

I called to a number of places and was surprised by the range in customer service experiences.  The responses I got to my 7:30 – 8:00 a.m. phone calls to get a service person in the same business day broke down into four categories:

1. No, I’m sorry we can’t help you.  We’re way too busy.
2. No, I’m sorry we can’t help you today, but maybe later.
3. No, I’m sorry we can’t help you but let me give you the number of a couple of other people who might be able to.  (They then gave me names and phone numbers for several competitors.)
4. I can’t give you a definite answer right now, but I have a specialist for your problem.  I believe he can come this afternoon and I’ll have him call you as soon as possible.  (He called back within 5 minutes.)

Guess who got the job?  Of course, the fourth company.  But I was really impressed with #3 as well.  In my books, that was almost as good as #4.

Why would every organization or company not offer alternatives if they couldn’t help?  To direct someone to your competitors might seem strange, but it’s such a great move in the eyes of a customer.

Response #1, by contrast, is not about serving the customer.  It sounds like an organization serving itself.

What about you and your organization?  If you can’t help someone, why not send them to someone else?

You can compete with other churches and organizations, or let them complement what what you are doing. Especially in church world,  you are not the Kingdom of God.  You are only a small part of it.  It takes all of us to make up the Kingdom.  So you shouldn’t think of other churches as competition, but as a complement to what you’re doing.

Ironically, when you send people down the street, it won’t leave the person thinking less of you.  It will leave them thinking more of you.

We are three days into the second half of 2012.  How are your priorities for the year coming along?

If you’re like most of us, you’ve got a mixed record of accomplishment.  You’ve probably hit a few goals but missed some others.

The question is why?  Why is it that what we say is important often ends up not being realized?  One clear answer to that question is simple:  you didn’t make it a priority.

Something inside you might push back and say “No, that’s not it at all.  It is a priority.  It just didn’t happen yet.”  Sometimes we can fool ourselves into thinking something is a priority when it wasn’t.  And other times we think something isn’t a priority only to discover that it is.

Here’s a way to think about priorities that has helped me a lot.

A priority is something you commit time and money toward.

Those things that we spend the most time and money on are our actual priorities.  And despite what we think or try to convince ourselves, if we spend no time and no money on something, it isn’t a priority.

So, do you want to know where your real priorities were for the first six months of 2012? Not where you thought they were, wanted them to be, or imagined them to be, but where they actually were?  It’s quite easy.

Just look back at your calendar and your bank statements and you will see where your priorities actually were.  Whatever you spent the most time and money on was your biggest priority. (I realize it was probably your house or food, but that says something.  Beyond that, look at where your discretionary money went.  It will lead you directly to your actual priorities, not to mention toward your idols.)

If you don’t like where that lands, then rethink how you spend your time and money moving forward. Here’s how:

• Spend time on it.  Budget an hour a day to accomplish something that’s a priority for you.  Seriously, budget an hour a day toward it. More if you need to.

• Spend money on it.  Whether that’s an investment in a course, some new relationships (taking colleagues out to Starbucks or to dinner), or start up capital, spend money on it.  Don’t waste money on it, but do think of it as an investment. Over time, if you have spent zero dollars on what you think is a priority, it’s not a priority. Even friendship, over time, takes an investment of some money.

I realize you only have so much time and money, so here’s what you do.  As you review where you spent your time and money earlier in past months, you’ll discover that you spent both on things that aren’t really important.  Cut them.  Stop spending time on them.  Stop wasting money on them.  Free up your resources to go toward your priorities.

(By the way, this can also explain why you might be spiritually stagnant.  Someone who spends very little time and very little money on the Kingdom of God doesn’t grow.)

Do you agree?  Are time and money reliable indicators of priorities?  What are you learning about how you spend your time and money?