This week, I am again drawing on the writings of my friend, Brother Lee Vail, which he has graciously shared with me to share with you. He entitles this piece, quoted below, "Walking Dead Men". It contains a good insight into the fullness of life which we can gain by a full and meaningful relationship with our Lord, Jesus Christ.          Yours in Christ,     Tom Woodard
  

"Imagine that you are part of a military unit stationed on the edge of enemy territory. To make matters worse, the enemy is headed your way--fast.

You await orders to retreat, but instead you hear your commanding officer give these orders:  "Men, you are to stay right where you are and fight as hard as you can, as long as you can, until you are killed or captured."

How would you feel about such an assignment?  It's definitely not a role for the fainthearted.  But those willing to look death in the face and become "walking dead men" can wreck havoc on the enemy.  Why?  Because death holds no say over them.  They are fearless and focused.  They have nothing to lose and everything to gain.  They have already counted the cost of service.  In short, they are a dangerous foe because they are expendable.

The apostles and disciples in the book of Acts saw themselves as expendable in the service of their Lord.  Self-preservation was the last thought on their minds.  They were totally, unreservedly available to their Lord.

You can see that attitude in a number of verses from Paul's letters:

"I myself no longer live, but Christ lives in me.  So I live my life in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God Who loved me and gave Himself for me."  Gal. 2:20

"For me, living is for Christ, and dying is even better."  Phil. 1:21

If self-promotion or self-preservation is your goal in life, you have yet to discover the liberating power of expendability.  But once you see your time, talents, and treasure as 100 percent available in the service of your Lord, then you'll be able to say with Paul, "But my life is worth nothing unless I use it for doing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus--the work of telling others the Good news about God's wonderful kindness and love."  Acts 20:24"