Pray not Prey!

Philippians 4: 2

I plead with Euodia and I plead with Syntyche to agree with each other in the Lord.

Everything in the early church, was really less than perfect.

There were spats going on with church members then, just like there are today.

It has been said, that disputes in the church, are some of the worse conflicts that ever take place.

If you don’t believe me—then look no further than the conflicts that exist in the Middle East.

I wonder what would happen in the church, if we were to agree with each other, in the Lord?

The problem is, is that some people in the church, are not in the Lord—it’s as simple as that.

It seems today, that some people have an agenda, that has nothing to do with honoring the Lord.

Many just want their way, and I can’t explain it any better than that.

The voice that rings out in those cases, shouts…. “It’s all about me!”

Let me be clear of this…. “It has nothing to do with you/me!” – Amen?

Paul didn’t leave these two mentioned people, just to duke it out, no he encouraged resolution.

He wanted these two combative characters, to be of the same mind.

I’ll bet we’d have a lot fewer conflicts in the church today, if we all sought the mind of the Lord Jesus.

Fractured relationships in the body of Christ, somehow seem to be the rule now days.

I wonder what might happen, that instead of shooting our mouths off, we’d come together in prayer?

That’s a novel idea.

Maybe church life would work much better, if we spent more time praying—and less time preying….. 

Stubborn Inclinations

Jeremiah 7: 24

But they did not listen or pay attention; instead, they followed the stubborn inclinations of their evil hearts. They went backward and not forward.

Do you know this kind of person….The kind that won’t budge for anything, unless it’s their idea or their way?

It reminds me of a time when we had horses back in our Pickett days.

You’d put the lead rope on the horse—and you’d want to walk one way—and the horse wanted to go another.

The horse pretty much had a mind of its own, and by their sheer size, they pretty much won out.

People in the church can be stubborn like that too.

Would you say that you can be at times, obstinate, unyielding and uncompromising as you interact with other people?

If we are truly seeking to honor God in all that we do, then we will not stand in the way of His powerful movement—whatever the reason.

If you’re acting like a mule (and we all know the other name for mule), maybe you should give more thought as to why you insist on doing things your way.

How many time do we do that with our God?

He wants us to go in one direction, and we think we know a better way.

We sometimes  pull and toss and turn and rear our prideful heads—but just be sure of this—God wins out, we don’t.

Identify a prideful area of your life this morning, and confess it right on the spot.

Better yet, once you’ve confessed it, repent of that stubborn streak right on the spot too!

Maybe we’d make more progress, if we went forward, instead of always taking the backwards approach…. 

What are you a lover of?

2 Timothy 3: 1 – 5

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….

Every time I read this verse, it actually reminds me of the time we live in now.

As much as we wouldn’t want to admit it, these 5 verses seem to describe many people in America.

We are lovers of pleasure, that’s for sure!

I wonder if we’re really better off with the internet, and i-phones, and Facebook?

I thought only the things of God, were supposed to bring us pleasure?

That sure doesn’t seem to be the case anymore.

I’m not sure about you, but I’ve been watching the events of the George Zimmerman trial unfold.

Both sides have asked many questions, but no one has asked this one; “Why wasn’t this kid in church on a Sunday night, instead of walking the dark streets in the dark of the night?”

One thing’s for sure—if he had been in church—he’d probably still be alive today.

Maybe if his parents were still married, and his dad was still at home—maybe he’d still be alive.

The fact is, our culture as a whole, prefers pleasure, more than they do the things of God.

Trayvon Martin has stood before his God—and so will George Zimmerman—regardless of how the trial turns out.

And then again, so will all of us.

We will find out the pleasure we could have had, by just spending some good down time, with the God of the universe—instead of seeking our own pleasure….

Immediate response!

Matthew 14: 31

Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. "You of little faith," he said, "why did you doubt?"

Peter tried to do something, that none of the other disciples tried to do.

He actually stepped out of the boat.

I can honestly say, that there are days when I am filled with lots of self doubt.

There are times—and these days they are many—I really wonder why on the earth I chose this occupation.

Actually, if I had to choose it for myself, I’m not real certain I would—but I guess God chose it for me.

I guess you could say, that I’ve tried to do something over the course of the last 11 years of ministry—that not many other people would try.

I also have the wounds to show for it—mostly in my pride.

Peter probably felt a little wounded in his pride—when he failed to stay buoyant.

When doubt creeps in, I often forget to respond to His still small voice, and reach out to His powerful hand outstretched to catch me.

Do you ever feel that way?

This verse says that when Peter was going down, that the Lord “IMMEDIATLEY” reached out His hand.

I sure wished I’d call out to Him, “IMMEDIATELY”, when I needed Him.

I must confess, that there are days when my faith is “little” as Jesus says.

I think I need to keep my focus on Jesus—and not on my woes and problems…

Stop and Notice!

Psalm 72: 5

He will endure as long as the sun, as long as the moon, through all generations.

Did you know that the sun is the closest star to the earth?

It’s 870,000 miles wide—it’s 109 times larger than planet earth—the core temperature of the sun is 10,000 degrees Fahrenheit.

Yet without the sun, the earth could not support life.

And yet when we think about Who hung the sun in the balance of the solar system, we still walk around like a bunch of frightened school children sometimes.

The God that loves you and me, knew a long time before we even entered the scene, that we’d needed the sun to survive.

The sun is not God’s greatest achievement by far—we are!

So the next time you begin to fret about what’s in your refrigerator to eat—or wonder where the next dollar is going to come from—maybe you need to look up.

I wonder how many times out of a given day, do we look up at the sun, and then give God thanks and praise?

I’ll be willing to bet, hardly ever.

Stop and notice God’s love for you.

Gaze upon that big yellow ball in the sky, and then wonder what it must have been like, when God spoke it into existence.

I know—I know—don’t look too long at the sun, or you’ll go blind….

But then maybe we have been blinded by the things of this dead and dying world—that we hardly even notice the great things of God anymore.

Maybe it’s time to ponder the great creation of our God, and His great love for us.

Maybe it’s time to stand still and reflect—and then truly be warmed by the Son….

True prosperity!

Joshua 1: 8

Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it.

Then you will be prosperous and successful.

I recently came in contact with a grade school friend of mine.

He came from a simple home, with good parents and brothers and sisters.

This simple boy now lives out in Kirkland, Washington, and is also now a multi-millionaire.

What I have in comparison in worldly wealth, is not a drop in the bucket compared to his.

He drives an Italian car called a Buggatti, and I drive a 2003 Chevy Trailblazer.

His car is worth about $100,000.00, and mine is worth about $6 grand.

But I have something I’m pretty sure he does not have, and that’s prosperity within the economy of the living God.

Did you know that true prosperity, is achieving the will of God?

It reminds me that some of the richest people I know, are also some of the poorest, but some of the poorest, are also the richest.

Maybe what you have in worldly wealth, is not a drop in the bucket either.

When you serve the Lord’s cause with sincerity and purpose, there’s not a richer feeling in the world.

Sad to say, that so many people have taken their eyes off of Jesus, just to make money, and build wealth.

If it’s all the same to you, I’m going to continue going about achieving the will of God.

I just realized it, just this minute….WOW, am I a rich man, and I’m as successful as they come…..

Submit!

Ephesians 5: 21

Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.

 

Paul the Apostle in this verse, was speaking about the many conflicts of our day.

This was the remedy for conflict…..submission out reverence to Jesus, toward one another.

 

If we want to be a part of the solution for the everyday conflict, we must follow what God has revealed about the problem.

When we insist on our own rights, then we have missed being a part of the solution.

Someone has to give when conflict abounds, and it might has well be me/you.

 

I think we sometimes forget, that when we press to have our own way, we forget about the third person that’s present in the midst of conflict.

That would be the person of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Those who try to satisfy their own needs in the midst of conflict, are the ones who will end up feeling empty inside.

It might not happen right away, but somewhere along the line, there will be regret.

 

There are people and situations, where you just can’t win. Do you know those kinds of people?

Love them anyway, but don’t stay too long, or they will tap you of every morsel of strength.

You’ll know when you’re making progress in the area of conflict, and when you’re not.

Some people, and some situations are not worth the effort. Sometimes you just can win for losing.

 

It is important though, that we approach conflict like Jesus did.

Matthew 16: 25… “For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.”

 

I’ll bet if we lived more like Jesus, we’d have less conflict.

I’ll be if we lived more like Jesus, we wouldn’t spend so much time trying to win the argument, as we often do….