This past year has been a rollercoaster ride. The global pandemic caused by COVID-19, the loss of loved ones due to the virus, government regulations, on top of racial tensions that were spurned from the public execution of George Floyd, have all contributed to the chaotic year of 2020.
Though 2020 was a chaotic year, if we sit, reflect and review some of the lessons that God has allowed us to learn, we can see the many opportunities that He has given His Church particularly in the west, to grow spiritually, as well as to expand His Kingdom. Lessons Learned: (1) The Church Building is not necessary in order for us to function as the Church. (2) The Body of Christ is more effective at building the Kingdom when its dispersed on a consistent basis rather than spending the majority of time inside the walls of the Building. (3) The convenience of Zoom has made life easier for Church Leaders with Children. It takes a lot getting children packed up and taken to babysitters or leaving a spouse home with multiple children while one spouse attends a meeting. (4) Social media platforms used correctly, expand the reach of the local Church. What was once a local ministry can be transformed into a global ministry. (5) People need each other. If COVID-19 showed us anything, it showed us that human beings need each other. A hug, a face to face conversation, laughter, we were created by God to be in community with each other. (6) The gospel is relevant and still needed. With all of the political, racial, and socio-economic chaos that's going on in the world, the world needs saving. Jesus is still in the saving business. (7) The Church is God's vehicle to impact the world and grow His Kingdom. This doesn't always look like we think it should, but that doesn't mean it's less effective. (8) If a local church doesn't change its METHOD, as life happens (COVID-19 restrictions, etc.), there is a greater risk of a local church dying. (9) We need God's WORD!!! We don't know everything and we desperately need God's direction. (10) When we do what God tells us to do, when He says it, and how He says it, we will be successful no matter the obstacle we are facing. With restrictions being lifted, there is a temptation to go back to what we deem as normal. I want to encourage every Church leader, and lay member. Apply the lessons learned and don't be afraid to continue to venture outside of what we used to refer to as normal.
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We are living in uncertain times. Many are dealing with the anxiety of not knowing what's coming next. Some have lost employment, some have lost their savings accounts, some have lost relatives, and some have even lost their lives due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Many are left with the question of why? Believers and unbelievers alike are asking the question, "where is God and why is He letting this happen? I'll be honest there were moments as this virus spread across the world and the US, similar questions came to mind. As I reflect on the Scriptures, I am reminded that God often allowed trouble to occur in order to get our attention.
Could it be that we were so focused on other things in our lives that they had become idols? Could it be that sports, entertainment, careers, and shopping for material possessions had become idols to us that we worshiped more than we worshiped the creator of the universe, God Himself? God declares in His Word as He was speaking to Moses, "for you shall worship no other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God..."(Exodus 34:14) Could it be that God is allowing such a pandemic on a Biblical scale to occur in order to get our attention? I believe so. It's not all terrible. God has given us an opportunity to refocus our attention on Him. When we do that, God makes a promise. In 2 Chronicles 7:14 God reminds His people, "If my people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land." Lets take the opportunity that God has given us. Let's humble ourselves, let's acknowledge that God is bigger than we are and had total control. Let's pray and seek His face, let's cry out to God and ask for His help in the midst of this pandemic, let's turn from our wicked ways and repent. Let's agree with God about our sin, let's be honest with Him about the things that we allowed to take His place and become the focus of our worship. Let's turn our focus to Him and place Him in His proper place in life. Let's begin to worship Him not only with our mouths in speech, but also in our day to day lives in how we live. As we do that, God promises that He will hear from Heaven and heal our land. I recently was reading a biography of John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist movement as well as some writings of others such as Jonathan Edwards. Lately I’ve taken interest in some of the earlier Reformers. As I’ve been reading about them, I’ve noticed their tone and the seriousness of their perspective of the wrath of God. It seems that their tone is a lot different from our current generation. Their preaching was filled with the reality of the Wrath of God and the impending judgment for those who do not make Jesus the Lord of their lives. What I’ve noticed about some of the preaching of the day is that it’s a diet or watered-down version of the Gospel. The preaching today tends to lean more towards the love of God. Don’t get me wrong, God does love us and that truth is evident in the scriptures. In Jeremiah 31:3 the scriptures declare, “The Lord has appeared of old to me, saying, “Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love; Therefore with lovingkindness, I have drawn you.” Again, in John 3:16 Jesus Himself says, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” It’s clear, God loves us.
It is also clear in the scriptures that there is a penalty for those who reject the free gift of salvation through the Lord Jesus Christ after receiving knowledge of the Truth. Hebrews 10:26&27 says, “For if we go on sinning willfully after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a terrifying expectation of judgement and THE FURY OF A FIRE WHICH WILL CONSUME THE ADVESARIES.” (NASB) It seems that there is very little preaching on the judgment and penalty of Sin. I’m not saying that preaching must be filled with total fire and brimstone. What I am suggesting is that our preaching be a balance of Truth, a balance of Love and Judgment. Could it be that the society that we live in and the culture that we are so engulfed in, is in the shape that it's in because of the lack of balanced preaching? What are the consequences of unbalanced preaching? Preaching that only includes the love of God, presents an incomplete picture of God. It presents a picture of God that implies that there is no consequence for sin. It can possibly lead people down a path that is laced with comfort, and self-gratification that ultimately ends in an eternity separated from the God that they desire love. It neglects to inform people their dire need to be saved from their sin. On the other hand, if all that is preached is hell fire and brimstone, it’s possible to push people away from a Holy and Righteous God who desires an intimate relationship with a sinful people, so much so that His love has compelled Him to make a way for their sin to be paid for. God has called us to impact the world that we are in and not of. This impact comes through the proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and Discipleship through the learning and obedience to the totality of Holy Scripture. If we’re going to be effective and accomplish what God has called all of us to do, there must be a balance. We must present the authentic and pure Word of God in its totality, so men and women, boys and girls will know that we are all in need of a Savior, and God has loved us so much so that He’s provided us Salvation through His only begotten, the LORD Jesus Christ (John 3:16). What are your thoughts? Comment below. A loving relationship takes being intentional about cultivating the relationship and making adjustments. Many relationships fail because of these two important factors. Some marriages fail simply because couples neglect to make the necessary adjustments needed for the relationship to prosper.
If we really love God, it's necessary for us to make some adjustments. Because God has loved us in such an extraordinary way (Romans 5:8), and the Biblical response to that love He has expressed is to love Him with our obedience, often we need to make adjustments in our lives so that we are in line with His Word. What does that look like you might ask? This looks like each of us spending quality time in the Scriptures daily, getting to know the God that we love more and more each day. As we get to know Him, and we begin to really learn the standards that He has for us to live by, then we apply those standards to our lives. I've been married for a few years now. What I've learned is that in order for my Wife and I's relationship to continue to be successful and to continue to grow it takes both of us being intentional about getting to know each others needs and desires. That takes making the relationship a priority. That means we are intentional about talking to each other, and spending time with each other. We often ask each other our likes and dislikes. Our desire is that as we learn more about each other we can be better spouses toward one another. We as the the Church are the bride of Christ (Ephesians 5:22-32). If we really love God and we want to live lives that please Him, we need to be intentional about pursuing Him in His Word. As our knowledge of Him grows, we can be a better bride for Him. I want to encourage you today to dig into the Scriptures and be intentional about it. Get to know the God that we love so much and apply His standards to your life. Blessings. "I love God" Many people say this statement on a daily basis. How many of those people, if you look at their lives, could you truly see the love that they claim that they have for God? Loving God takes more than just saying it, it takes living it. If you were in a relationship with someone and they said. "I love you", you would expect there to be some action to back up those words wouldn't you? If someone said that they loved you, but didn't talk to you or never spent time with you, or even did things that they knew you didn't like, would there actions prove that they loved you? Of course not! In fact if someone said they loved us and treated us this way we would probably end the relationship.
Many people who claim that they love God, treat Him this way on a daily basis. Some people don't talk to Him (prayer), some don't spend time with Him (Bible Study) and some enjoy habits that they know He doesn't approve of (sin), all the while claiming that they love Him. Thank God He's not like us and doesn't end our relationship. Instead He loves us unconditionally and is willing to forgive us for our short comings and welcomes us into right relationship with Him through Jesus. If we really love God, we have to love Him with all of our lives. Jesus tells us in Matthew 22:37b that we must "Love the LORD your God... with all your soul." The original word for soul in the verse means breath. If we're breathing we're alive. If we claim to love God, it should be evident in how we live. Our love for Him should be expressed in our every day lives. God loves us so much that He sacrificed His only Son for us so that we could have relationship with Him. Our response to His love is submission in obedience. 2 Corinthians 5:15 says, "And He died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for Him who died for them and was raised again." What does it look like when our lives are in submission to God? When we do what God says our lives actually look like Jesus's life. We live lives of prayer, we read the scriptures consistently, we spend time in worship and gather with others doing the same. Not only that, but we also live lives of love and service to one another. Loving God isn't something we can say and mean, without demonstration, if we love God we have to prove it with our lives. He's truly worth living for. Blessings. Do you really love God? If you ask the right person this question they could get really offended. They may give you the side eye or catch an attitude. There are many Christians who even though they may catch an attitude if asked this question, if you take a deeper look at their life, they don't really love God they way He wants them too.
Unfortunately there are a lot of people who claim to be Christian, that are just Christian in name only. Many have not surrendered to the commitment of loving relationship with the Heavenly Father. In a successful relationship there is a reciprocated love from one person to another. A good Husband loves his Wife, and as a result of his expressed love toward her, a good Wife in turns, reciprocates that love back to her Husband. Many who claim to be Christian don't reciprocate the love that God has shown us and continues to show us daily. God has expressed His love toward us in the most extraordinary way. Scripture declares in Romans 5:8 "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." What an expression of love. Those who claim to belong to Him, Christians have a Biblical response to God's demonstration of love towards us. 1 John 4:19 says, "We love Him because He first loved us." Our response to God's love is simply to love Him back. How do we do that? Jesus reveals to us how we love God in the great commandment as He's responding to a Lawyer who's trying to test Him in Matthew 22:34-40. "But when the Pharisees heard that He had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together. Then one of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, and saying, 'Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?' Jesus said to him, 'You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.' This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' On these two commandments hand all the Law and the Prophets." Matthew 22:34-40 NKJV Jesus statement is to powerful and important to cover in one post but we'll focus on the first portion of His statement. 'You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart'. Jesus says that we must love God with all of our heart. It appears that if we really love God, He will be our number one desire above all else. Many of us desire a lot of things, good jobs, wealth, nice materials things. Because of our desire we sometimes neglect our pursuit of God. Many times the pursuit of wealth and other aspirations and dreams hinder us from pursuing the one we say we love so much. There’s nothing wrong with blessings, the problem comes when the blessings cause neglect of the "Blesser". If we’re going to love God His way, we’ve got to live in such a way that God is our top priority. As we put God in His rightful place, He blesses those who live in such a way that please Him-Psalm 84:11, Matthew 6:33. I want to encourage you today, make God the number one priority of your life and begin to love Him His way. Let me know your thoughts below. Blessings Wow!!! that year went quick. 2017 is gone, we now are entering the year of our LORD 2018. If you're like me, you've experienced some ups and downs. Some moments that caught you off guard and caused you pain, you may have lost a loved one or had a relationship to end. Hopefully you've had some joyful experiences as well. My Wife and I had the privilege of welcoming our son into our family in 2017. God has blessed us tremendously.
2017 wasn't all a bed of roses, we faced some surprising difficulty, we had financial issues, parenting issues and unexpected bills to name of few. Through the grace of God and through the Godly advice of others we were able to overcome most of those obstacles. As I look back over the year there are some things that I wish I would have done better and am being intentional about doing this year. Last year like a lot of people when I faced difficulty my initial response was to try to handle it on my own. This is natural for me. As a man, a tend to want to handle things on my own. I feel like it's my responsibility to handle everything difficult that comes our family's way. You may feel this way as well, you feel like you need to bare the burden of hardship that comes your family's way. There's nothing wrong with this except for one thing. We are often ignorant to the ways we can solve some of the difficulty we face. This year I'm making it a priority to ask for help when I don't know how or understand how to overcome difficult situations. Now I'll be real, I'm not just going to ask any ole body to help me with difficult situations. The first person I plan on taking my problems to is God. Yeah that's right God. Transparent moment, even as a Christian and a Minister, God is not always the first person I turn to. The person I usually turn to is me. That's changing this year. Here's the beauty of it. God promises that if we call out to Him He will answer us. Jeremiah 33:3 says, "Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know." If we call out to God, the Creator of the universe, listens and responds. That's amazing! I love the beginning of a new year. It's a fresh start. I want to encourage you to get organized, to be intentional about living your life this year. Let prayer be a new focus for you. Make it a lifestyle. When you face difficult situations, train yourself to go to God first in order to deal with the difficult circumstances. What's one thing that you are going to be intentional about this year to help you be more effective in life and in the Kingdom? I'd love to hear from you, comment below. God Bless & Choose Life! "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. John 3:16 &17 NASB
Every person on the planet deserves to be separated from God for all eternity. We deserve it simply because we are all sinners. Romans 3:23 tells us, "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." (NASB) The hard reality is that there will be those who choose to spend eternity in eternal separation. Each one of us, when our time here on Earth is over, will have to stand before God. Some will receive judgement and others will receive a reward (Revelation 20:11-15 NKJV) Before Christ, Hell and the Lake of Fire were our only options. Now because of God's love for us and Him giving His Son, we can now be in right relationship with Him, and spend eternity with Him in His presence. Because of what Christ has done on the cross, we can avoid eternal fire and separation from God. Instead of Hell, we can have Heaven. Many of us live our lives as if this is it. We live like all we have to worry about is our time here on Earth. Let me let you in on a little secret. This isn't it. Every one of us, after we leave our present world will live eternally. Some will live with God, others will live in eternal torment (Daniel 12:2 NKJV). I want to suggest to you that it's time for us to start living for eternity. How do we do that? We live for eternity by not living for ourselves but living for Christ. 2 Corinthians 5:15 says, "and He died for all so that they who live might no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and rose again on their behalf." (NASB) Make Jesus the LORD of your life, live according to His Word, focus your life on pleasing Him and being a blessing to others. Of course this not an extensive list, but it's a start. Each of us have a decision to make. God wants us to be in His presence permanently. He's made a way for that to happen through the gift of His Son. Jesus purchases the forgiveness of Sin and everlasting life in Heaven on the cross. Jesus shed His blood for the sin of the world, He died and was resurrected on the third day. He now sits as the right hand of God making intercessions for all of us. He offers us the free gift of Salvation. The Gift of God is produced our of love, It's a very precious gift and because of this gift we can spend all eternity with the Father in Heaven. I want to leave you with this question, what will you choose? Will you choose to accept this free gift? "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him." John 3:16&17 NIV
When you really love someone you express that love in certain ways. It may be with words, it may be with physical touch like a hug or holding hands. It may even be expressed with a gift. My Wife and I have been married a little over 7 years. When we first started dating I would express my feelings for her through the giving of gifts. I would buy flowers, I would buy stuffed animals, I would give her things of value so that she knew she was valued, cared for and loved. It's the Christmas season and many people have spent money on their loved ones to express how cared for and valuable they are. This isn't something that's new, it's something that was expressed over two thousand years ago. God has so much love for us that He has also expressed His love for us in the gift of His Son Jesus who is the Christ. God has given us a very precious gift in Jesus. The Bible tells us that "God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:8 NKJV God expressed His love for us while we were at our lowest point. "While we were yet sinners" that means while we were unworthy, while we were doing things that God didn't approve of, while we were crossing the line, God sent His Son to die for us and ultimately pay the price for all the things that we have done wrong, past present and future. As you receive gifts this Christmas season, remember the reason we're celebrating. We're celebrating not a material gift that will fade away, but an eternal gift, the gift of eternal life that was delivered by the Son of God Himself, Jesus Christ. God Bless & Choose Life. "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved." John 3:16&17 NKJV
Its that time of year again where we prepare for Christmas. I'll admit this is probably my favorite part of the year. I love just about every part of the holidays. The colors, the smells, the snow, and especially the food. I really enjoy how people's spirits always seem to be a bit more joyous during this time of year. Of course you will run into a person or two that are mean just because. You know those people who are upset because its sunny outside or just because it's Monday. There is one thing that I don't like though. Over the past few years it seems like Christmas has become more and more commercialized. Every year there is more and more "stuff" that is advertised to purchase. From Cell phones to laptops to tablets to clothes, we're always pushed to buy something else. The truth is within a year whatever we've bought and were excited about at first, we will no longer have a use for when the next holiday comes around. We'll take it and through it on a shelf where it will collect dust. Am I the only one who does this or can you relate? There is one gift that never loses it's value or it's purpose, and that's the Gift of God. God has given us a Gift in His Son Jesus. Jesus will never lose His value or the purpose in the lives of those who receive Him. John 3:16 is probably one of, if not the most memorized Scripture in the Bible. In this one verse Jesus Himself talks about God's love for the world and the gift that He has given. This verse paints a picture of God's love for the world. In fact it shows us how the gift of God was produced from love. God loved us even when we didn't deserve it. Many of us have lived lives that totally reject God. We may not say it out right, but by our actions we prove it. Have you ever heard the saying, "actions speak louder than words?" Many of us reject God through our actions on a daily basis, through how we treat people, through how we think, through the words that we use, and through the general neglect of God in our lives. But even though we reject Him, He still loves us. In Jeremiah 31:3a He tells us, "Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love." There are many meanings to the original word in the text for everlasting. What it boils down to is that God has loved us from the beginning and His love for us will last through eternity. Isn't that amazing? Many people say that they love us, some really mean it. Sometimes though when we hit a rough spot or we get into trouble, those same people who say they love us are no where to be found. The love that God has for us isn't like that. It's an unconditional love that never goes away. In fact, there is nothing that you or I can do to make God stop loving us. The Apostle Paul speaks to this in Romans 8:38&39. He says, "For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things, present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." God loves us and there's nothing we can do about it. I want to encourage you today with this, when you feel alone, realize that God loves you. Even if friends and family say they love you but are no where to be found when you need them, know that God has loved you with an everlasting love and He's promised to never leave you nor forsake. First and foremost, know that God loves you and His love never goes away. He's proven His love for us by giving us the gift of His Son Jesus Christ. Remember that there is nothing that you or I can do to stop Him from loving us. Secondly, If you're in a place of Sin, He desires for you to come back to Him in repentance. 1 John 1:9 tells us, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." Thirdly, spend some time with God today, just you and Him. Talk to Him about the love He has for you, and ask Him is there anything that you need to get right with Him. What are some ways that you remember the love that God has for you? Comment below. God Bless and Choose Life. |
AuthorHusband, Father, Red-Letter Christian, Preacher of the Gospel. Archives
June 2021
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