'Total Commitment'
'...Then you will receive praise, honor and renown"Deuteronomy 26:19 NLT

As I was praying this morning, I began to think about what commitment would look like for the believer. The words in Deuteronomy struck my heart hard. When we are faithful does God then reward us with "praise, honor, and renown." Jesus said God "rewards those who dilegently seek Him." Imagine how honored you would feel if the president decided to visit you and spend the night at your house. You wouldn't leave dirty dishes piled up in the sink, clothes strewn across the floor and a ring around the bathtub. No, you'd give the place a radical makeover! And you wouldn't make them sleep in the garage, the mud room or the attic; you'd vacate the master bedroom and give it to them. Your goal would be to honor them in every way because their presence had honored you. Now read this: 'You have declared today that the Lord is your God. And you have promised to walk in His ways, and...do everything He tells you. The Lord has declared today that you are His people, His own special treasure, just as He promised, and that you must obey all His commands. And if you do, He will set you high above all the other nations He has made. Then you will receive praise, honour, and renown...' (Deuteronomy 26:17-19 NLT) Let's take this a step further. When Old Testament priests entered the ministry they went through a rite called 'consecration'. From that moment on they belonged exclusively to God and were committed to obey Him in all things. You say, 'What does any of this have to do with me?' A lot: if you want God to use you, to honor and promote you, you can't marginalise or compartmentalise Him. You must commit yourself to doing His will! And that includes your time, your talent, your treasure, your body, your mind, your spirit, and your all. God wants 'total commitment'.

You Are the Church (2)

 

   

'...Their nobles would not put their shoulders to the work' Nehemiah 3:5 NIV

The story's told of a football team that was losing badly. Pointing to the captain, their coach on the sidelines kept shouting, 'Give the ball to Calhoun! Give the ball to Calhoun!' Fed up and frustrated, the captain finally shouted back, 'Coach, Calhoun doesn't want the ball!' Yesterday we talked about those who would rather be a spectator than a player. Today let's talk about those who are on the team but don't want to put their heart into it. While rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem, Nehemiah wrote, 'The next section was repaired by the men of Tekoa, but their nobles would not put their shoulders to the work.' These guys suffered from two common diseases known as 'convenient commitment' and 'limited involvement'. For every person who fulfils their dream, you will find a hundred others who only talk about it. You say, 'Let somebody else do the giving for a change.' If somebody else sows, somebody else will reap the harvest you were meant to reap. Is that ok with you? The Bible says, 'God will generously provide all you need. Then you will always have everything you need and plenty left over to share with others.' (2 Corinthians 9:8 NLT) When God's blessing stops flowing through you, it stops flowing to you. Think long term. Treasure in Heaven is laid up, only as treasure on earth is laid down. Paul speaks of '...the Son of God, who loved me, and gave Himself for me.' (Galatians 2:20 NLT) Every time God asks you for time, money or talent, remember what Christ gave up for you. You are loved!

You are the Church!

 

    

'...To equip God's people to do His work' Ephesians 4:12 NLT

As I was praying yesterday after service, and it was a good one if you weren't there. God just spoke to me and reassured me that we are His church! You and me together making a difference in peoples lives. But there is a lot of work that needs to be done and we need everyone, all of us working towards one vision, one goal; reaching our community for Christ! The unemployment rates came out after the debates last week showing a 8% unemployment rate. The unemployment statistics in the country are bad, but take a look at the church. Twenty percent of its members give eighty percent of its income, and do eighty percent of its work. The rest are happy just to be spectators. It's easy to sit back, criticise and say, 'Why doesn't the church do something about the problem?' Hold on there: You are the church; you do something about it! You say, 'But I left my church because I don't like the way they do things.' You didn't leave God's church, which is the body of Christ, did you? So, instead of talking about what your church doesn't do, look in the mirror and ask yourself, 'What am I doing for the Lord?' Do you know what an Armchair Manager is? It's someone who analyses the game when it's over, criticises the players, complains about the referee's calls, and is content to sit in the stadium and be a spectator rather than a player. Hello! It takes commitment to spend hours in practice knowing you'll be booed by the crowd, tackled by opponents, and will leave the field beat up and covered in dirt. The Bible says that the job of your pastor is: '...to equip God's people to do His work and build up the church...This will continue until we all come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God's Son that we will be mature in the Lord, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ. Then we will no longer be immature like children...' (Ephesians 4:12-14 NLT) I hope you'll think about it! We need you. This outreach on Halloween and many future ones will take all of us working together sharing the love of Jesus Christ to the lost. Always remember, you are loved...

Living in the Flow of God's Blessing

 

 

'...Take over the land...flowing with milk and honey.' Deuteronomy 11:89 NIV

How many times have you thought it must get easier at some point? When they were slaves in Egypt, the Israelites had to pump water from the Nile River to irrigate their crops and put food on their table. Can you imagine slaving every day on an old foot pump just to get by? I know what your thinking, nothing much has changed. One of the first things I had to learn as a believer was to allow my thought process to change. When the Isrealites began to trust God again things changed for the better. God told them, '...Go in and take over the land...flowing with milk and honey...not like the land of Egypt...where you planted your seed and irrigated it by foot...' (Deuteronomy 11:8-10 NIV)
There's a lesson here if you are willing to listen. You can reach a place in your walk with God where you get 'off the pump and into the flow'; where you stop 'sweating it', because God's goodness flows into every area of your life. But this promise is conditional-it's for those who obey God: 'Observe therefore all the commands I am giving you today, so that you may have the strength to go in and take over the land...' (Deuteronomy 11:8 NIV) Obedience is like having the right access code. It enables you to make withdrawals on God's blessing because you are walking in His will. We all want to live in the flow of God's blessing, right? Yet too few of us do. Who are these 'blessed' people? (1) Those who act on God's instructions. (2) Those who confront the giants of fear in their life. (3) Those that refuse to be swayed by the 'wilderness mentality' of others. (4) Those with the faith to say, 'The Lord...will lead us into that land...and will give it to us...do not be afraid...' (Numbers 14:8-9 NIV) And you can be one of those people. You are loved!

Secure in God's Love

 

     

'I will be faithful to you and make you Mine' Hosea 2:20 NLT

As we continue with our series on "Another Kind of Love." Jesus told us to "Love God and Love others as ourselves." Its hard to love others or feel loved when you don't love yourself. You can even be loved by many, but deep down you'll feel needy and insecure until you understand how God feels about you. The Bible says:
(1) God wants you to be happy. '...I have loved you, My people, with an everlasting love. With unfailing love I have drawn you to Myself. I will rebuild you...You will again be happy...' (Jeremiah 31:3-4 NLT) ( 2) God will never walk out on you. '...He Himself has said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you."' (Hebrews 13:5 NKJV) You say, 'But what about my failures and shortcomings?' Nothing about you surprises God or changes His mind about you. He's totally committed to you. 'If we are unfaithful, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny who He is.' (2 Timothy 2:13 NLT) (3) God thinks you are valuable. '...Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you. I have called you by name; you are Mine. When you go through deep waters I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown. When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you. For I am the Lord, your God...you are precious to Me. You are honoured, and I love you. Do not be afraid, for I am with you...' (Isaiah 43:1-5 NLT) (4) God never takes His eye off you. 'There is no one like the God of Israel. He rides across the Heavens to help you...The eternal God is your refuge, and His everlasting arms are under you. He drives out the enemy before you...' (Deuteronomy 33:26-27 NLT) So live in God's love. It's the most secure place on earth! You are loved....

Lasting Success

 

 

'...He who abides in Me...bears much fruit' John 15:5 NKJV

It is coffee time! Man I need it. It's been a rough couple days as Amy hasn't been feeling very well and could use your prayers. So here we go...What is lasting success? I was thinking this morning about what success should look like in our lives according to Gods word. Jesus said, '...I chose you and appointed you that you should...bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain...' (John 15:16 NKJV) God has two goals for us: First, greater success; secondly, a legacy of success. Just so you know, He will do whatever it takes to accomplish it. Just when we are comfortable at a certain level of success, He takes His shears and starts pruning some of the stuff we'd like to hold on to. The problem is, we settle for less than what God wants. When Jesus said, 'Without Me you can do nothing,' He was teaching us that when we're surrounded by the demands, needs and agendas of others we can get spiritually depleted. And when that happens we begin operating in the energy of the flesh. Andrew Murray wrote: 'Do not confuse work and fruit. There may be a good deal of work for Christ that is not the fruit of the Heavenly vine.' Jesus wants '...fruit that will last.' (John 15:16 NIV) Lasting success! Parent, God didn't give you children so that you could lose them to the enemy. Paul said that the faith he saw in Timothy, he first observed in his mother and his grandmother, both of whom were apparently married to unbelievers. How did they do it? They stayed connected to the vine and thrived in a hostile environment. Business person, God doesn't want you settling for temporal success; His purpose in blessing you is so you can help to extend His Kingdom. There's no shortage of resources; God just needs people He can entrust them to. So pray, 'Lord, make me successful, and give me success that lasts.' You are loved...

Give Your Entire Life to Christ

 

   

'If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation' 2 Corinthians 5:17 NIV

 What an amazing day yesterday with Pieter & Joann. The seats were full with people worshipping and the anticipation of what God was about to do and did; filled the sanctuary. I hope those who God ministered to will share their stories, because I was blown away with the response and what he did in our midst. Thanks again to everyone who helped in this weekend's services, Lois's memorial and our biker Sunday. That leads me to today. What is keeping you from giving your entire life to Christ? The story is told of a man reading a newspaper when he came across a map of the world. So he clipped it out, cut it into pieces and told his little boy to put it back together again. After a while the boy said to him, 'I've done it!' His father marvelled, 'As quick as that? How did you do it?' His son said: 'I turned it over and on the back was a picture of a man. I put the man together-and the world came together!' You can't change the world, but Christ can change you, and when that happens, your world will start coming together. The Bible says, 'If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!' But don't just give Jesus your heart; give Him your entire life. Yes, the thief on the cross found redemption in his dying moments, so there's no age limit when it comes to salvation. But think about this: 'Suppose that Paul had been converted at seventy instead of twenty-five. There would have been no Paul in history. There was a Matthew Henry because he was converted at eleven and not at seventy...A Jonathan Edwards because he was converted at eight and not eighty; a Richard Baxter because he was converted at six and not sixty. How much more a soul is worth that has a lifetime of opportunity before it, than the soul which has nothing! Lambs are of more worth than sheep in the realm of souls, as well as in the marketplace.' Think about it? You are loved...