JACKS DAILY DEVOTIONAL THOUGHTS
(Romans 5:20) "God's law was given so that all people could see how sinful they were."
So have you ever wondered why God did away with the Old Testament law and instituted grace instead?
(Ephesians 2:8) "for by grace are ye saved thru faith"
It's because while the law had the power "to let people know" how far short they fell, it didn’t have the power "to make them" want to obey it or change their life style or nature.
Paul says for the “wisdom of men (or the nature of men) is at enmity with God. (Romans 8:7)
Jesus said “men love darkness and reject the light because their deeds are evil”(John 3:19)
Here’s an example that I hope will help you understand this whole, do's and don’ts thing, that we face each day as a child of God.
Let’s suppose you have a tendency to eat too much chocolate.
You want to be free from the habit, so you make a law for yourself: “I must not eat chocolate. I cannot eat chocolate. I will never eat chocolate again.”
You even convince yourself that for you, it’s a sin to eat chocolate.
But this self-made law doesn’t set you free from “the desire” for chocolate; it actually seems to increase your problem!
Now all you can think about is chocolate; it’s on your mind day and night.
Eventually you find yourself “sneaking around” to eat chocolate, because you told everybody you were never going to eat it again.
You can’t eat chocolate in front of people so you hide when you eat it, and end up feeling really guilty because now you’ve become a “sneaky” chocolate eater/sinner.
Now you understand the pain that comes from being “under the law” instead of being free in Christ.
You know you shouldn't but you can't help it.
There is something so freeing about coming to God and hiding in the shelter of His love.
New believers often focus their attention on God’s laws in order to control their passions, but it doesn’t work.
As they mature however, they learn to direct their attention to the leadership of the Holy Spirit, and discover that He can set you free from "the desire" to sin.
"Dwelling in the secret place of the Most High", (Psalms 91:1) is the greatest source of freedom that man can ever experience.
The law requires living by willpower!
Living by grace, requires drawing each day on the power of God’s Spirit.
Simply put, the "Old Testament Law", became a school teacher (Galatians 3:24), to point us to Christ and grace, which is Gods plan for freedom from the bondage and guilt of "rule keeping".
Jesus said “Him who m the Son sets free is free indeed” (John 8:36).
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me to set at liberty them that are held captive (Luke 4:18)
I have come that you might have life and that more abundantly (John 10:10)
Good Day!
(2nd Corinthians 7:2) "We have wronged no one"
Un like the Apostle Paul, not many of us can make the above claim.
Invariably in this life, we will all offend some one at some point in time and cause others some grief.
Especially when we hold to our core values!
And because we are all aware of this, sometimes we trade our value or belief system for "peace" or to satisfy the demands of others.
Life coach Douglas Woods says, “Each of us holds many values…
Some superficial, some transitory, some fitting solely into the moment in which we find ourselves.
Others are more fixed and stay with us through our life, these are our core values".
Paul could adapt to any culture in order to reach people for Christ.
In (1st Corinthians 9:19-23) The Apostle Paul said, “I have become all things to all people so that I might win some for Christ”… but when it came to his core values, he could say, “We have wronged no one.”
Your core values are:
(1) Your friends and lifelong companions.
Abraham Lincoln said, “When I lay down the reins of this administration, I want to have one friend left, and that friend is inside myself".
Lincoln new that he would have to make decisions that would not be comfortable or popular and that the decisions he made would effect the country and the populace around him.
He was a man that could sleep at night because he did not succumb to the pressures around him.
Every good leader makes it to the top with the help of people that believe in him.
However some times those people around him will make demands that sometimes challenge the leaders integrity.
A good leader never submits to the manipulation of those who think that they are "owed a favor".
Core value systems will not always win you a popularity vote… but they will help you live with yourself, and sleep at night.
(2) Core values are our compass.
Seasons, relationships, circumstances, and goals change… but core values remain.
Like a compass, they always point you in the right direction.
Is living this way easy?
No its not.
Doubters will think you’re foolish because you walk by faith.
People without family values won’t understand your devotion to your family.
The carnally minded won’t understand your dedication to Christ.
Those whose core values differ from yours, will try to convince you to follow them, or lower your standards.
But with integrity and a set of core values as a compass for life, you can walk through life in a straight line not easily led astray or off course.
(3) Core Values can be an anchor.
Addressing issues that come with age, one Christian psychologist says, “Midlife crisis is more a phenomenon of the wrong value system, than the age of the group in which it occurs”.
To many people come to midlife after climbing the ladder of success, to all of a sudden realize the ladder they’ve been climbing is leaning against the wrong wall.”
Without core values, you’re adrift.
Any storm can take you under; any current can carry you places you don’t want to go.
But with core values, you have an anchor that holds even when the weather gets nasty.
William Shakespeare left us a quote that is a challenge to all of us.
He said "to thyne own self be true".
Do you want to live with your self? Do you want to sleep at night?
Do you want to hear the words at the end of your race, "well done thou good and faithful servant". (Matthew 35:21)
Then heed the words of Solomon in (Proverbs 3:5-6) "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.…"
This the start of a core value system that will never fail you!
"Good Day"!
(John 3:16) “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son, that whosoever would believe on Him would not perish but would have everlasting life”
The concept of salvation is that of "deliverance from sin" and its consequences… believed by Christians to be brought about by "faith in Jesus Christ".
The word “salvation” concerns an eternal, "spiritual deliverance" brought about by an "act of God".
When asked by the Philippian jailer, "what must I do to be saved", Paul told him "believe on the Lord Jesus Christ" and he would be saved (Acts 16:30-31)
But what are we saved from?
In the Christian doctrine of salvation, we are saved from “wrath,” that is, from God’s judgment of sin (Romans 5:9) – (1st Thessalonians 5:9)
Our sin has separated us from God, and the consequence of sin is death (Romans 6:23).
Biblical salvation refers to our "deliverance from the consequence of sin" and its subsequent hold on the believer.
Salvation, is not something we earn!
Only God can remove sin and deliver us from sin’s penalty.
(2 Timothy 1:9) “He has saved us and called us to a holy life, not because of anything we have done, but because of his own purpose and grace. ?
This grace is given to us by God and activated thru faith in Christ Jesus... (Ephesians 2:8” “For by grace are ye saved thru faith and that not of yourselves but it is the gift of God”
How does God save?
?
In the Christian doctrine of salvation, God has rescued us through belief in Jesus Christ (John 3:17).
Specifically, it was Jesus’ death on the cross and His subsequent resurrection that achieved our salvation.
(Romans 5:9-10) "Therefore, since we have now been justified by His blood, how much more shall we be saved from wrath through Him!
For if, when we were enemies of God, we were reconciled to Him through the death of His Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through His life”!
Scripture is clear that salvation is the gracious, undeserved gift of God (Ephesians 2:5-8) "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God", and is only available through faith in Jesus Christ.
?
(Acts 4:12) "Salvation exists in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved".
So how do we receive salvation?
The answer? We are saved by faith!
First, we must hear the gospel… the good news of Jesus’ death and resurrection (Ephesians 1:13)
Secondly, we must believe… fully trust the Lord Jesus (Romans 1:16)
Thirdly we must repent or change our minds about sin and Christ.
(Acts 3:19), "Repent, then, and turn back, (or turn away from sinful practices and living)… and call on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
(Romans 10:9-10) "If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. ?For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved”.
Salvation is “deliverance", (by the grace of God), from eternal punishment for sin which is granted to those who accept (by faith) God’s "conditions of repentance" simply by faith in the Lord Jesus.”
Salvation is available in Jesus alone (John 14:6 - Acts 4:12) and is dependent on God alone for provision, assurance, and security.
Many religions in this world advocate all kinds of religious activity and legalistic traditions and sacrifices to attain a "salvation", or to earn it.
?
The common thought is “surely there must be something I have to do”?
But the truth is, if there was something we could do to earn our salvation, then Jesus Christ would not have had to die on the cross.
For those of you whom read this blog/devotional… know that there is nothing you have to do, to know or have "peace with God" and His "salvation"… other than that of “believing on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ”.
From there the rest is a journey of faith, where we work out our salvation with fear and trembling.
(Philippians 2:12-13), "Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure”.
The same man who wrote the verses above also wrote, “by grace you have been saved through faith. . . it is the gift of God, not a result of works.” (Ephesians 2:8)
So why do we need to "work out our salvation", when works do not save us?
Because though we are saved by God’s unconditional electing grace through the gift of faith, the works we do, prove that our faith is real.
“Good works” are evidence of our salvation.
(Ephesians 2:10) says “we have been saved unto good works”.
They are activities we get involved in because we have been saved, because we have been delivered, because we have been changed from the inside out!
(2nd Corinthians 5:17) says, “If any man be in Christ he is a new creature; old things pass away and behold all things become new”.
That’s why on one hand Jesus says, “No one can come to me unless the Father draws him” (that’s what is called election) (John 6:44),
And on the other hand he says, (John 14:15) “If you love me, you will keep my commandments" (evidence of election).
He ties both together when he says, “My sheep hear my voice (election) and I know them, and they follow me” that’s the evidence of salvation)." (John 10:27)
So my friend today, know that God has provided a way for you and Him to have sweet fellowship together through an act called
"salvation".
"Why" has He done that you ask?
(John 3:16) For God so loved the world…”
Need I say more?
Good day!
(Proverbs 29:18) "Where there is no vision, the people perish."
What do you “see” in your future?
What’s your “vision?”
Many people today live a fruitless life, because they have no vision, dream or purpose to motivate them.
Unfortunately they die without ever experiencing the satisfaction of experiencing a fulfilled life.
In 1863, Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation yet one hundred years later, African-Americans were still victims of segregation.
During a speech at the Lincoln Memorial in 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. expressed his vision, his dream, in these now famous words called “The I Have A Dream Speech".
Dr. King said “I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave-owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.
I have a dream that one day even the State of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice and oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.
I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.
I have a dream…of that day when all of God’s children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing the words of the old Negro spiritual, ‘Free at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty, we are free at last’!’”
The night before Dr. King was assassinated in Memphis, he told his audience he had “seen” the Promised Land, and even though they may not get there at the same time, they would surely one day enter it.
So here’s my question for you today.
Do you have a dream?
If you don’t have a vision for your life, you need to ask God for one.
Your life matters!
There are things that He has planned in your future that need your special touch and the gifts, the expertise that He has gifted you with.
Ask God to reveal it to you today.
And when He gives it to you, pour your life into it believing you’ll live to “see” it fulfilled!
Jesus said "Greater things than these shall ye do" (John 14:12)
Yes we face calamity on all sides and around us… but it cannot steal our hope, our trust, our faith in God, whom promises to meet all of our needs according to His riches in glory.
God wants each of us to feel significant and important in life and He has a plan for each of us.
“For I know the plans I have for you says the Lord. Plans to prosper you and give you a future, not plans for evil” (Jeremiah 29:11)
God encourages us to “trust in the Lord and do good, lean not on your own understanding but in all of your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths.” (Proverbs 3:5-6)
I know for some, life seems a little hopeless with little relief from the ongoing stressors we face each new day.
Sickness and disease escalating, the fires that are devastating our homes and communities, and the continued escalation of violence in our communities as never before and the economic upheaval that we all are facing
Every where we turn we see corruption and bureaucratic ineptness in our land.
But still God tells us to “pray for those in authority over us” (1st Timothy 2:2) and submit to His Word “as a lamp onto our feet and light unto our path” (Psalm 119:105)
The writer of the Psalms says “I have been young and now I am old yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or his seed begging for bread.” (Psalm 37:25)
The old hymn of faith declares, “God will take care of you”.
As God used Martin Luther King, and Abraham Lincoln, and many of the historic figures of Americas past that rose up out of mediocrity… He can still use you and I to make a difference today.
The key is, do we trust Him?
Jesus said “If you can believe, all things are possible to them that believe” (Mark 9:23)
So today, ask God what it is that He has prepared for you to accomplish in your life… in your home… in your community and possibly in this world.
(Daniel 11:32) says the people who know their God will do exploits”
You are significant. You are the apple of His eye. You have great favor with God and He has not forgotten you,
So today go out and make a difference in someone’s life around you as God has prepared for you to do!
Good Day!
(Luke 22:31-32) "Satan hath desired to have you... but I have prayed for thee."
As I watch our society and the people that make up our society, I am often bemused and perplexed, frustrated with and disgusted at the antics I see the youth of our nation engaging in.
As a young father, (though I had no experience raising kids and did not have an instruction manual to follow), I was acutely aware of my responsibility as a father and what the bible demanded of me as the father of my children.
That is to, "train my children up in the way that they should go when they are young and when they are old they won't depart from it" (Proverbs 22:6).
Do you realize your "problem child", could be the next "child of promise"!
God has a special destiny in mind for them… that’s why there’s often so much drama around them, him or her.
Satan has targeted them because he sees their potential.
He has discerned God’s plan for them and he’s out to stop it.
For example he used Pharaoh to get to Moses and King Herod to get to Jesus to destroy them before they were two years old.
Why?
Because one day they would grow into Gods plan for their lives as deliverers fulfilling God’s plan for humanity.
Likewise, Satan will attack your child of destiny.
Remember that all the great leaders of our world and history past were once children, whom grew to be leaders of influence.
Your child could be the next great leader or influence in our world.
Paul said, “It pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb and called me through His grace, to reveal His Son in me, that I might preach Him among the Gentiles” (Galatians 1:15-16).
But Paul spent the first thirty years of his life going the wrong way before he met Jesus and started going the right way.
So as the parent of a child of promise, what should you do?
The answer? Pray for them!
Know that Satan desires to have them, so we must pray for them… we must interceded for them…. We must stand in the gap for them.
“Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you”, (Luke 22:31-32)
While your children are young, lay your hands on them and speak God’s Word over their lives.
As they enter their teenage years, continue to pray and speak God’s blessing upon them.
As they enter adult hood, continue to bathe them in prayer and encouragement.
There is great potential in the life of your child… your grandchildren as well!
They too (like you) are fearfully and wonderfully made in the image of God.
God has a plan for them!
They are the future… don't let Satan have them!
Fight for them!
Pray for them!
Fight the good fight of faith through prayer for them continually.
Team up with God!
Team up with other parents and pray, pray, pray for your children!
Take them to church with you… do what ever it takes to get them involved… praise them and encourage them in their spiritual growth.
Help them realize that their spiritual growth is as important as brushing their teeth and bathing.
Now I know there are many of you that read this blog and your thinking, but Jack my children are all grown up what can I do now?
My friend you can pray.
Pray for them as parents and pray for them as grandparents!
You can pray for your grandchildren, and you can pray that the Holy Spirit would sovereignly move in their lives and the lives of their parents.
Pray that God will opening their eyes so that they will not be blinded by this worlds sin, acceptance of sin, and the unrighteous morals that our world is promoting as normal and common lifestyles.
Paul told young Timothy in Chapter 3 “But mark this… There will be terrible times in the last days.
People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited… lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God… having a form of godliness but denying its power”.
Folks the only way to ever over come this pandemic of sin that is attacking our families and our society, is to bath ourselves and our families in prayer trusting the Holy Spirit to deliver us and protect us with a spiritual covering that we cannot do on our own.
Jesus is still at the right hand of the Father interceding on our behalf and on behalf of our families… including as well those that we lift up and bath in prayer.
(Hebrews 4:13-15) “Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to what we profess.
For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, bit we have one was tempted in every way that we are… yet He was with out sin!
Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy, and find grace to help us in our time of need”.
Our families, our children and our grandchildren are in a time of spiritual need as never before.
What can we do about it?
We need to pray!
We need to pray in agreement with God, and pray for His intervention and His covering over our families.
Satan is desiring to have them, but as Jesus said to Peter, “I have prayed for you…”
As Jesus prayed for Peter and His disciples, He is still interceding for you and I and our Children as well.
So as the writer of (Hebrews 4:15) says “Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we… (and our children and our grandchildren)… may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
Good Day!
(Hebrews 10:25) “Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is”
“I Believe in God, but I don’t do church.”
So what your telling me is that you don’t need anybody… you can live this life with out any spiritual encouragement from a fellow believer or prayer support from a body of believers whom are willing to storm heavens gates on your behalf.
Your telling me that you can worship and give praise to Gpd with out the support of believers around you whom are lifting their voices to God building a platform of praise for the Holy Spirit to move amongst the body of Christ touching and strengthening as He wills.
You can do it all on your own.
As a reminder, the enemy has the ability and the power to use both “good and bad things” to keep you from “God things”… but only if you let him.
He uses distractions, such as hurt feelings, bitterness, hard-heartedness, pride, awkwardness, and even feel good/treat yourself days… (which we all have a right to and the freedom to experience) to his advantage.
C.S. Lewis said it perfectly: “The perfect church service would be the one we were almost unaware of… because our attention would have been on God.
The biggest problem or distraction about not finding the perfect church is in the fact that to many fix there attention on the service itself… rather than entering into worship and gleaning what can be received from the spoken word of God that is preached and the praise presented to God in worship.
It is mad idolatry that makes the service itself greater than the God it worships.”
Dear friends, God is the focus of the church.
Neither the church, the service, nor the people attending need to be perfect for you to hear His life-changing word and experience His presence when in a church service… or gathered together with the church the body of Christ”.
Remember Jesus said, “where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst” (Matthew 18:19-20)
The truth and the facts are this!
We grow and mature when “we connect” with every day people, pouring our lives into them and allow them to pour their lives into us.
The local church, led by Jesus and the Holy Spirit, is the light of the world… and its in God’s “plan and His way” to disciple the nations in preparation for His return.
(Matthew 16:18) says, “On this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.”
How can we despise or resent the church when Jesus not only said He was going to build it, but that He would use it to storm the gates of hell?
That’s something I want to be a part of, don’t you?
It’s true that there are religions in our world which have fallen into the trap of trying to accumulate numbers, followers focusing on building and “mega corporations”… rather than focusing on turning hearts toward God.
But not all church groups are guilty of this.
A bible-believing, bible-teaching church comes together as a reminder that we can only experience “fruitful mission” or “fulfilled purpose”, when we are fully “abiding in” and drawing strength from the true vine (John 15) and from one another.
His word is our daily bread. Our fellowship with one another is our strength.
And in a world offering countless different perspectives to experiencing life in all of its fullness… the church is one place that people can find truth.
The church is a lighthouse in an unethical and immoral fog.
Jesus taught in (Matthew 5:14–16) “You are the light of the world.
A town built on a hill cannot be hidden… neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl.
Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.
In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven”,
If you claim to know and love God, yet do not have a desire to be a part of His church,
I lovingly, passionately implore you to re evaluate your attitude toward the church.
Get in His word and read what He has to say about “His calling” for us, as part of the body, the bride, as the church.
There are a hundred or more things that can distract us from being part of His church, but it all comes down to our priorities.
If you’re hesitant, I challenge you to make an intentional choice to get involved and join in worshiping God with a local church in the days ahead!
I promise you that as many reasons as you might have not to go, there are even more reasons to trust God and pour your life and heart out for Him alongside His people.
Again Jesus said “where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I in the midst” (Matthew 18:19-20)
I love you all and pray for you all daily!
Good day!
(Hebrews 10:25) “Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is”
“I Believe in God, but I don’t do church.”
This is the beginning of a conversation that I have had countless times with people of all different ages, backgrounds and experiences.
This devotion today is an encouragement for all of us to be careful to consider why we or someone we know, would abstain from going to church.
If you are a child of God… a believer in Christ whom has believed and excepted the truth of the Gospel as the light and fulfillment of your salvation with God… then you are a part of the household of faith.
No doubt about it… it is a done deal… For by grace are ye saved thru faith and that not of yourselves but it is the gift of God” (Ephesians 2:8)
Our salvation is based "not on our works" or our church attendance.
But it is vitally important that as a human child matures and grows up become mature in life… it is just as vitally important that we grow up into maturity spiritually as well.
The writer of Hebrews encourages believers to “Press on to maturity” (Hebrews 6:1)
But my friend I have to stress you cannot press on to maturity in Christ with out help, with out teaching and coaching, with out the help of other believers around us.
That’s why we need to go to church… not only to worship, but to be taught in the things of God.
To be taught and fed the scriptures.
I can almost hear some of your thoughts as I type this:
“But I don’t like the worship music; the pastor isn’t friendly enough, I am too busy, having kids makes it too hard to get there, my husband/wife doesn’t want to go so I don’t go, people aren’t friendly and welcoming, it’s not the church that Jesus designed it to be”
And, of course, the most popular argument, “the Church is a corporation created by man for the consumption of money;
I’ve heard it all, and to be honest, many of these things I have thought myself.
Oh by the way the same things you are complaining about or finding fault with, some one else is complaining about and accusing you of as well.
But, let me ask you, “how will we fix what is broken in the church or help right the wrong, if we refuse to be a part of it”?
If you evaluate your life today, are you choosing “busyness and bitterness” over worship?
Ar you choosing spiritual entertainment over worship?
We can sit behind the scenes criticizing, or we can live out an active faith serving and getting involved…making real changes, loving on real people, living life alongside those in real pain.
The enemy of our soul is strategist.
Peter writes in (1st Peter 5:8) “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walks about, seeking whom he may devour”.
He comes to steal, kill and destroy our faith and our relationship with God as well as our relationship with other believers.
All the enemy of our soul had to do, was distract them.
And with that distraction, we are more susceptible to his attack and deception.
A predator seldom attacks the group; they always attack the outside of the fold or the group, looking for those targets that are alone or separate from the fold or the rest of the herd/group.
Unfortunately I’ve witnessed “church-hopping” where people treat church like Goldilocks treated beds.
People want that “just right” perfect church, but when they can’t find it, they walk away setting themselves up for the attack of the enemy.
There is strength in numbers!
Because we are all human and imperfect, and as long as we are housed in these imperfect bodies, we will never find, “the perfect church”.
We should not be looking at what we can get “from” the church… but our hearts should be set on “what can we give” to the church… what can I give to the Lord?
And if you can’t do that in a “big building church”, then there are lots of smaller community churches that would love to welcome you and get you involved in the “on going work” of reaching out to their community and being a light of Christ
Be intentional and be a part of the solution, not part of the problem!
It’s not “all about you”, but it’s about others and the world around us.
How bright is your light shining?
Again the writer of Hebrews encourages us (Hebrews 10:25)
(Hebrews 10:25) “Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is”
Lets talk some more about this tomorrow…
Good Day!
I can almost hear some of your thoughts as I type this:
“But I don’t like the worship music; the pastor isn’t friendly enough, I am too busy, having kids makes it too hard to get there, my husband/wife doesn’t want to go so I don’t go, people aren’t friendly and welcoming, it’s not the church that Jesus designed it to be”
And, of course, the most popular argument, “the Church is a corporation created by man for the consumption of money;
I’ve heard it all, and to be honest, many of these things I have thought myself.
Oh by the way the same things you are complaining about or finding fault with, some one else is complaining about and accusing you of as well.
But, let me ask you, “how will we fix what is broken in the church or help right the wrong, if we refuse to be a part of it”?
If you evaluate your life today, are you choosing “busyness and bitterness” over worship?
Ar you choosing spiritual entertainment over worship?
We can sit behind the scenes criticizing, or we can live out an active faith serving and getting involved…making real changes, loving on real people, living life alongside those in real pain.
The enemy of our soul is strategist.
Peter writes in (1st Peter 5:8) “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walks about, seeking whom he may devour”.
He comes to steal, kill and destroy our faith and our relationship with God as well as our relationship with other believers.
All the enemy of our soul had to do, was distract them.
And with that distraction, we are more susceptible to his attack and deception.
A predator seldom attacks the group; they always attack the outside of the fold or the group, looking for those targets that are alone or separate from the fold or the rest of the herd/group.
Unfortunately I’ve witnessed “church-hopping” where people treat church like Goldilocks treated beds.
People want that “just right” perfect church, but when they can’t find it, they walk away setting themselves up for the attack of the enemy.
There is strength in numbers!
Because we are all human and imperfect, and as long as we are housed in these imperfect bodies, we will never find, “the perfect church”.
We should not be looking at what we can get “from” the church… but our hearts should be set on “what can we give” to the church… what can I give to the Lord?
And if you can’t do that in a “big building church”, then there are lots of smaller community churches that would love to welcome you and get you involved in the “on going work” of reaching out to their community and being a light of Christ
Be intentional and be a part of the solution, not part of the problem!
It’s not “all about you”, but it’s about others and the world around us.
How bright is your light shining?
Again the writer of Hebrews encourages us (Hebrews 10:25)
(Hebrews 10:25) “Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is”
Lets talk some more about this tomorrow…
Good Day!