15 minutes in the spotlight…is ONLY 15 minutes!

Judges 10:1-6 Now after Abimelech died, Tola the son of Puah, the son of Dodo, a man of Issachar, arose to save Israel; and he lived in Shamir in the hill country of Ephraim. He judged Israel twenty-three years. Then he died and was buried in Shamir. After him, Jair the Gileadite arose and judged Israel twenty-two years. He had thirty sons who rode on thirty donkeys, and they had thirty cities in the land of Gilead that are called Havvoth-jair to this day. And Jair died and was buried in Kamon. Then the sons of Israel again did evil in the sight of the Lord, served the Baals and the Ashtaroth, the gods of Aram, the gods of Sidon, the gods of Moab, the gods of the sons of Ammon, and the gods of the Philistines; thus they forsook the Lord and did not serve Him.

One more look at this passage before we move on. We looked at the fact that there was no mention of repentance and cleansing from idols last time. There is another silent truth communicated, and in this day and age it is very important. Here in a record of the judges, where the works of each judge is described in detail, there is almost no information about these men here…which is a great lesson for us, because we live in a society where everyone wants their 15 minutes in the spotlight. 

I am a trained teacher of a seminar called “Cat and Dog” theology. The point of the seminar is to challenge Christians to evaluate how they approach their relationship with God. The “cat” thinks: You feed me; you groom me; you pet me; you love me = “I must be God!” The “dog” thinks: You feed me; you groom me; you pet me; you love me = “You must be God!” We have far to many “cat” believers out there! They think it’s all about them. So how does this passage help us understand that? It makes us ask the question “could I be the judge that is just mentioned, but not highlighted?” Another example is the Exodus:

Deuteronomy 24:18 “But you shall remember that you were a slave in Egypt, and that the Lord your God redeemed you from there; therefore I am commanding you to do this thing.

If we were told that we had to be a slave in Egypt, we would deal with it…because we know that Moses is coming and we will be delivered! But wait! What if God chose to make you one of the slaves that were in the previous NINE generations before the exodus? How would you feel about knowing the will of God for your life was to be born a slave, live a slave and die a slave? That does not resonate with the prosperity preachers of our day! Preaching a message that makes it clear that what should really matter to every believer is to be in God’s will…even if that means being a slave your whole life, will not fill any football stadium churches! I admit I find it uncomfortable to imagine my life that way. Yet, there were faithful, God loving and God honoring Jewish slaves for NINE generations in Egypt!

If I am honest I must admit that I desire to be recognized, feel important and remembered for contributing to something substantial. This is a normal human desire. The question is – do I allow this to control me, or do I yield to a greater Truth? Even as a slave in the 7^th generation, if I live my life for God, I will be recognized…by God! I am important…in God’s eyes, even if I, myself do not see it. In eternity I will be remembered by my Lord as one that was faithful to Him…the pyramids will all be dust…but I will be written in the book of my God as Faithful! Will anything this world can offer now, matter then?  Seek His spotlight – His bulb NEVER burns out!

Meditation Questions: What do you feel when people do not notice what you have done? Is it wrong to enjoy applause when you have done something good? If so, why? If not, why? What’s the balance? What is the difference in these thoughts: “You are given credit for what you did?” “You are honored for how you lived?” “You get the glory?” What do you want to be remembered for? What would your epitaph say?