In Mark 9, there is a story about Jesus healing a boy with an unclean spirit. Vs. 22b-24—“The father said to Jesus, ‘If you are able to do anything, have pity on us and help us.’ Jesus said to him, ‘If you are able! All things can be done for the one who believes.’ Immediately the father of the child cried out, ‘I believe; help my unbelief!’” We live in a world of disappointment.
Everyone wants to make more money, live a better life or find the proverbial dream that makes everything right. Every January 1st we set goals for the year that we never reach. “I have to lose weight. I want to build my retirement up, I want to go fishing more.” There are myriads of wishes for this coming new year. I think why we become so distraught with each new year is that we think we disappoint God when we don’t accomplish all our goals for the coming year. The reason you are so discouraged sometimes is that you refuse to let God be God in your life.
You say, “I can’t seem to get anything out of church. Sunday school is not relevant, the preacher is a bore and puts me to sleep, the music is too loud, (of for some not loud enough), I don’t know any of the songs, I don’t want to put money in the plate because... (fill in the blank here.) Over the years, I have heard many unfaithful church members use these excuses for not coming to church or not spending time with God. Most, or all of the answers to these dilemmas are directly related to not spending time with God in a quiet few moments of the day. If you never have a personal, quiet prayer and bible reading time with God as much as possible, don’t expect this year to be any different from last year. Notice I said as much as possible.
I know there are times when stopping to read is impossible. But there are many times when you choose not to open “The Book” because you know it might tell you something you don’t want to hear. Listen now! God is not disappointed with you.
You learned from some poor sources that you think you have to do things for God to be pleasing to God. That’s not true. But you do need some quiet time with God to learn what it means to be a child of God. You are God’s “work of art.” You are not yet what you will become. Until you reach that perfection, (death) you are supposed to enjoy God.
That’s right; enjoy God. And one of the best ways to enjoy God is to find fellowship with yourself, with your family and with the church. I learned a long time ago; PBPGIFWMY. God is still working on your imperfection to grow you into a mature Christian who loves God with all your heart and soul and mind; and love your neighbor as yourself. God put into you an inextinguishable hope that you will one day reach heaven. Until that time, you are to be all you can be. Popeye the Sailor man always said, when frustrated with his actions or lack there of, “I yam what I yam, I can’t be no more.” Are you all you can be? If so, then thank God for God’s faithfulness in your life and ask for help in your prayer time and in reading God’s Word. Oh yeah, don’t forget to do what Hebrews 10:25; I Thessalonians 5:17, or I Corinthians 15:58 say to do.
If you are serious about doing what I ask you in this news letter, you’ll take time to look up these verses, commit them to memory and follow their requests. If you aren’t interested; well…. I will tell you what PBPGIFWMY means. Please Be Patient, God Isn’t Finished With Me Yet. Maybe it can be better said this way, “I believe, help my unbelief.” Dear God let us all learn these lessons of life. Allow us to be the kinds of children that don’t try to please you out of duty, but out of hope, peace, joy and love. We pray these things in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit; AMEN
kent
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Monday, March 2, 2009
II Corinthians 13:11-12
"Finally, brothers and sisters, farewell. Put things in order, listen to my appeal, agree with one another, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you. Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the saints greet you." Over the past 40 years of ministry I have seen it all; (I think). So allow me a small privilege for this March newsletter. Paul makes a statement that on the surface seems harmless and easy to grasp. But underneath it is full of self discipline because of Godly maturity in each Christian; not family, not couple but each individual believer in Jesus Christ. If there is any "self" left in a believer who reads this, it will be almost impossible to obey this request from Paul. But at the same time, Paul adds a condition to this request that MUST be obeyed in order to comply with his wish. Here it is and it comes in 3 parts. 1) Put things in order. That is; make sure the church is running smoothly. Have leaders in place who care for the flock. Have teachers prepared to teach out of love and not for vain glory. Make the Sunday morning church service as pleasant as possible flowing with God's love everywhere so that those who attend will find respite for an hour. This also refers to every person who comes to church. Is your life running on Godly gasoline? Are you tuned in to the Holy Spirit? Are you asking to serve out of selfish motives or do you do it out of love for God and others? 2) Agree with one another. Paul did not mean that agreement went with saying yes to everyone who made a request or wanted to have his/her own way. It meant to agree to disagree in Christ's love and to allow God to work through the rest. My boss at Sears was one of the toughest men I have ever worked for. He was demanding, controlling and detailed. I didn't agree with everything he said or did, but he gave me the freedom to tell him when I thought he was wrong. But when he was "off the clock," he was my best friend. We separted out our business from friendship. You should do that also. Okay, you disagree with someone, a person doesn't meet your expectations, but for God's sake don't leave the church or think it was done on purpose. Give some leeway to human erroe. I make mistakes, forget to mention things and so do you. So give everyone the chance to correct things or at least to apologize for unintentional mistakes. 3) Live in peace. Now this is the most difficult of all. When a person carries feelings around for all to see then "self" is walking tall. Christians cannot afford to cut off or isolate other Christians who love them just because of some mistake or assumed mistake. LIVE IN PEACE. That's not a request from Paul. That's a demand. Are you one that cannot seem to make peace for more than a week or two? If so, stop now and ask God to help you rid yourself of selfish desires, thoughts and wishes. Paul ends with "And the God of Peace will be with you. Listen to me here. If you harbor any of the negatives I have mentioned, it will be very hard for the God of Peace to help you from your own ways. God can do it but you will have to be willing to allow God to perform in you these life changing ways. "Greet one another with a holy kiss." You can do that no matter what if your life is in tune with God. Put things in order, agree with one another, live in peace. These are the rules for you and me.
kent
"Finally, brothers and sisters, farewell. Put things in order, listen to my appeal, agree with one another, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you. Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the saints greet you." Over the past 40 years of ministry I have seen it all; (I think). So allow me a small privilege for this March newsletter. Paul makes a statement that on the surface seems harmless and easy to grasp. But underneath it is full of self discipline because of Godly maturity in each Christian; not family, not couple but each individual believer in Jesus Christ. If there is any "self" left in a believer who reads this, it will be almost impossible to obey this request from Paul. But at the same time, Paul adds a condition to this request that MUST be obeyed in order to comply with his wish. Here it is and it comes in 3 parts. 1) Put things in order. That is; make sure the church is running smoothly. Have leaders in place who care for the flock. Have teachers prepared to teach out of love and not for vain glory. Make the Sunday morning church service as pleasant as possible flowing with God's love everywhere so that those who attend will find respite for an hour. This also refers to every person who comes to church. Is your life running on Godly gasoline? Are you tuned in to the Holy Spirit? Are you asking to serve out of selfish motives or do you do it out of love for God and others? 2) Agree with one another. Paul did not mean that agreement went with saying yes to everyone who made a request or wanted to have his/her own way. It meant to agree to disagree in Christ's love and to allow God to work through the rest. My boss at Sears was one of the toughest men I have ever worked for. He was demanding, controlling and detailed. I didn't agree with everything he said or did, but he gave me the freedom to tell him when I thought he was wrong. But when he was "off the clock," he was my best friend. We separted out our business from friendship. You should do that also. Okay, you disagree with someone, a person doesn't meet your expectations, but for God's sake don't leave the church or think it was done on purpose. Give some leeway to human erroe. I make mistakes, forget to mention things and so do you. So give everyone the chance to correct things or at least to apologize for unintentional mistakes. 3) Live in peace. Now this is the most difficult of all. When a person carries feelings around for all to see then "self" is walking tall. Christians cannot afford to cut off or isolate other Christians who love them just because of some mistake or assumed mistake. LIVE IN PEACE. That's not a request from Paul. That's a demand. Are you one that cannot seem to make peace for more than a week or two? If so, stop now and ask God to help you rid yourself of selfish desires, thoughts and wishes. Paul ends with "And the God of Peace will be with you. Listen to me here. If you harbor any of the negatives I have mentioned, it will be very hard for the God of Peace to help you from your own ways. God can do it but you will have to be willing to allow God to perform in you these life changing ways. "Greet one another with a holy kiss." You can do that no matter what if your life is in tune with God. Put things in order, agree with one another, live in peace. These are the rules for you and me.
kent
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
