We Wait

Advent is the season of hopeful waiting.

Mary waited in expectation of her son.

Israel waited for their eternal King.

The Jews waited for their Messiah.

The angels waited to declare Jesus’ birth.

The world waited for their redeemer. 

Waiting does not come easy to any of us.

Waiting is something that must be taught.

Waiting is something that must be practiced.

Waiting is something that must be learned.

The promise of a gift gives us hope.

And yet we must still wait. 

We anticipate. 

We hope. 

We wait.

The Psalmist begins; “I waiting patiently for the Lord...”. This is a good reminder for us all - to wait and to wait patiently for the Lord. And yet, he concludes his Psalm; “...God, do not delay” (Psalm 40). 

What are you waiting on right now? 

Are you waiting in hopeful anticipation?

Are you waiting patiently for The Lord?

“Blessed are this who trusts - who hope - who wait - in The Lord” (Psalm 40:4).

Promised To Abram

Reading from Genesis 12 this morning I was reminded of Abram and the promises that God established with him. 

I will make you into a great nation.

I will bless you.

I will make your name great.

I will make you a blessing.

I will bless those who bless you.

I will curse those who curse you.

I will bless all people through you. 

So, Abram left, as the Lord had told him to. Abram followed the call and the command of God and he set off for the land that God had promised to him. 

But, due to a famine in the land, Abram and his wife Sarai stopped in Egypt. And, despite all the protection and provision that God had promised him, Abram was afraid and decided to take matters into his own hands. 

As he was about to enter Egypt, he said to his wife, Sarai, "I know what a beautiful woman you are. When Egyptians see you they will say, 'This is his wife.' Then they will kill me but will let you live. Say you are my sister, so that I would be treated well for your sake and my life will be spared because of you."

Just to be clear, Abram, knowing God's promise - His plan, His protection, and His provision - was afraid for his life. And, out of fear and lost faith. Abram then decided that it would be best to abandon God's promises and give up his wife to save his own skin. This is not just selfish, this is sinful. 

And yet, we find ourselves doing this daily. Perhaps we don't act to this degree, yet we often abandon what God has called and commanded us to and act in our own wisdom. Perhaps we don't act to this degree, yet we often treat our loved ones abusively - emotionally, verbally, or physically - out of selfishness. 

Let us consider this account of Abram's life as an example. Let us remember on what God has called and commanded us to. Let us focus on God's promises - His plan, His protection, and His provision - over us.

Encouragement for Believers

Are you looking for some encouragement?

Read the Apostle Paul's exhortation to the church in 1st Corinthians 1:1-9. The following at truths for every follower of Jesus Christ, who holds Him as their Lord and Savior.

You are sanctified in Christ Jesus
You have been set apart by Jesus for a special purpose.
You have been marked by the blood of Jesus to accomplish His distinct purpose.

You are called to be holy
You have been invited - urged - to be the most holy thing. You have been called to be a saint.

You have been enriched in every way
You have been made rich - given spiritual riches

You do not lack any spiritual gift
You have been given every gift you need
You are lacking nothing that is required

Jesus will keep you strong to the end
Jesus will confirm you to the final days - bringing you confidence and assurance in your faith

You have been called by God
This call that you have been given is a personal invitation, given to you by God, your heavenly Father.

God, who has called you into fellowship with His Son Jesus Christ, our Lord, is faithful.

Free Car Wash

As a local church family, we have the constant call and desire to serve the community and share the love of Christ in a practical way. Today we accomplished this through an "Absolutely FREE Car Wash"! We set out with the intent to wash as many cars as possible, to charge nothing for the car washes and to accept no money for our act of love and service. Several means of promotion were done weeks in advance and various signs were made up announcing that this car was was, in fact, "absolutely free".

What we were not expecting was how skeptical people are to anything that promises to be "free". Many cars drove right past because they felt like there must be a catch to this free car wash. Some pulled in with expectation that some donation would be asked for and they seemed to be amazed when we told them that this car wash was, in fact, absolutely free. Then there was the man that almost demanded that I take his money, reacted to my statement that we were not accepting money for this act of service, and peeled out of the parking lot without allowing us to wash his vehicle.

I was blessed through this event today but I was also confused by the reluctance of people to accept "free" and skepticism of people anytime the word "free" is mentioned. But, as I thought about everything this evening it struck me that perhaps this is how many unbelievers see the message of Jesus Christ, His love for them, and the grace and hope that He promises to anyone that places their trust in Him. He promises all of humankind these gifts and He offers them "absolutely free". And, the most amazing thing - the most awesome things - is that it is absolutely free - THERE ARE NO STRINGS ATTACHED!  

See, I have been a believer for more than 17 years now and I have been a pastor for more almost six years, and I don't understand all this. I don't understand why God loves me in the first place. I don't understand why He freely gives me the gifts of hope, forgiveness, and an eternal future with Him in glory. I don't understand it but I know that Jesus promises it. And because I know of Christ's promises, because He has assured me that it truly is "absolutely free" - that all I have to do is call on His offer, allow Him to wash me and make me clean, and accept His gifts - I place my faith and my trust in Him.

Press On Toward Perfection

The NBA Finals just finished days ago. LeBron James and the overly talented Miami Heat promised their fans and the city of Miami a championship but they fell short of their promise when the Dallas Mavericks proved to be more than they could handle. A lot of players in professional and college sports make promises that they fail to deliver on, perfection seems to elude so many these days.

A few years ago I had the privilege of attending the final regular season Ball State University football game. Ball State went undefeated during the regular season, a great accomplishment among today’s college football teams. After the game I watched as thousands of individuals ran onto the field to congratulate the football team and the coaching staff and to celebrate a season in which their team was perfect. Although I have never been a Ball State fan, I found myself caught up in the excitement and felt pride for this team that I had just observed. This got me thinking about perfection.

The Bible has much to say about perfection;

• Deuteronomy 32:4; God’s works are perfect,
• Psalm 18:30; God’s ways are perfect,
• Job 36:4; God’s knowledge is perfect,
• Psalm 19:7; God’s law is perfect,
• Psalm 50:2; God’s beauty is perfect,
• Isaiah 25:1; God’s faithfulness is perfect,
• James 1:17; God’s gifts are perfect,

What an awesome, perfect God we have the opportunity to worship and serve. But what is encouraging is that in Matthew 5:48 Jesus calls us to be perfect as well. So how can we achieve perfection? Jesus gave two steps toward achieving perfection in Matthew 19:16-30, this is the story of the rich young ruler who asked about eternal life. Jesus lays out for him the laws that he must follow and the ruler claims that he is following all of them. Then Jesus says to him, in verse 21, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” It comes down to two distinct things. If you want to be perfect as God is perfect, if you want to achieve all that God has intended for you to be you must love God and love people. Jesus states it like this in Luke 10:27; “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind; and, Love your neighbor as yourself.” Love God and love people!

Paul writes in Philippians 3:12-14; “Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” So I urge you to “press on toward the goal” that God has called you to.

What are you going to do?

These past few weeks this question has been running through my mind. As we approach Resurrection Sunday, or as some call it, Easter, we have been hitting the subject of evangelism head on at our church. I think that all too often we make it far too difficult.
Jesus has left us with the mission of sharing His message with the lost and the hurting. We are obligated by our Master to tell those who do not know and those that need to know about the hope and grace that He, and He alone brings.

Jesus has left us with the promise that He has gone to prepare a place for us to come and be with Him for all of eternity. As believers, this is where we find our hope, our drive, and our passion, to keep on keeping on.

Jesus has blessed us with gifts which we are to use to share the message of love and restoration with everyone that we come in contact with. Further, He has made these blessings known to us through the power of His Spirit and revelation.

Jesus has blessed us with relationships; people that we love and people and have a deep desire to help and offer assistance to.

Jesus has left us with the promise of His ever present guidance, assistance, and support, also known as

So, given all of these things; the obligation by Christ, the opportunity through Christ, and the omnipresence of Christ.....

...what are you going to do?

Let me give you some reasons to get up, get out, and get moving...

Do it for your sake; But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. (Matthew 6:20)

Do it for your loved one's sake; For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. (2 Corinthians 15:4)

Do it for Jesus' sake; eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body. (Philippians 1:20)