Where’s the Beef?

Hey guess what I tried today?  A new Chinese food ! Here in America we have a name for it, a chicken foot !  And no, I won’t ever plan on trying one again, unless of course I’m stranded on a desert island and a chicken is the only life there.  We’ve had some wonderful Chinese folks who have been attending our church and this was their first church dinner with us and so that was one of the specialities they brought.  Ahh, potluck, now I know why they truly call it that !  I’m glad they also brought other Chinese dishes though, quite tasty !!

   I admire many of the qualities in the Chinese I’ve met in my life.  One that has struck me is the intense respect they show to pastors. How much missing is respect for authority in general these days. And indeed as Paul wrote one of the signs of a decaying society, “This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy. . . lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God.”  (2Tim.3:1-4).   In this long, sordid list of spiritual maladies Paul initiates it with the basic problem from which all other the problems flow, namely when we choose to love self more than God ! This is  a reversal of the greatest commandment !!

I tell you what, I’d heard of the eating of the chicken’s foot several years ago from a pastor friend whose girls took a missions trip to China. My first thoughts – “That’s gross ! I’d never try that !”    Never say never, thats rarely accurate for humans, always so with God though when He says it !   My friend told me they tried them (and also didn’t like them, ha) out of courtesy for those they were ministering to in that country.  Mostly, that’s why I also gave it a shot.  So I guess i “ate my words along with some chicken’s feet” ! 

 We all made the decision to put aside self for not just a culinary adventure but to minister, believe it or not !   Does this mean I should try anything I perceive to be nasty in taste?  Am I in sin if I don’t?  – well the bottom line here is I must love God and others more than self.   Think of some ways this  Labor Day weekend that you can be better at that.  Could you speak better to others, showing them more respect?   Could you treat others more considerably?   How about saying thank you with more regularity, especially to those closest to you (those we often neglect to show our appreciation and gratitude to)?   Take some time and read Philemon or Romans 16 and see how appreciative and considerate Paul was towards others, its challenging !     So my advice, stay away from “certain” oriental delicacies, but strive to mimic those qualities they do practice that are scriptural !!   🙂