Are We Using or Losing Them? Part 2

Continuing our previous post, Are We Using or Losing Them? Part 1: Even in the secular workplace a new addition usually has immediate access to secured databases, protocols, and information tools necessary to doing his/her job. Why not the Church? Why must young people be required to wait to serve in the local church? What are we afraid of? Is it that the "newcomers" will show us up? Will that "new kid on the block" intimidate us older ones with a skill knowledge we can only dream of? Are we serving with a clean heart or to establish "job security?" When will the Church learn that if you can't be replaced, you can't be promoted?

Perhaps your church has it all together. The Church as a whole, however, is in desperate need of change. Many of the people coming to your church-especially your youth/young adults-want to be used now, not months or years down the road. If not used now they may not be around months or years from now. Serving on a regular basis is a biblical reason to keep coming.

People make mistakes; it would be a mistake to have someone who's tone deaf run your sound system . After 30+ years of ministry, however, the greater mistake I see is not using the people you have who are waiting to serve right now, especially our youth/young adults. Can the Church really afford to let more young people observe the waters of opportunity, without letting them drink (serve) responsibly? Can the Church really afford to not change? If we don't how many of our talented children will be lost to the devil (and they will) because we were too arrogant, too proud, to afraid, or too stuck to change?

Some say that today's youth are tomorrow's leaders,  the church of tomorrow. Using that line of thinking, what is the minimum age of today's church? At what age will tomorrow's church be eligible for admission into today's? With the church of tomorrow is there, of necessity, the church of yesterday? Who decides who's too young-or too old?

At what point does the next generation become the current generation?

Do the words above describe your church, or merely a perception of the Church at large? What do you see as the answer? Let us know what you have experienced along these lines.

What's Your Testimony?

In Revelation 12':11, we read  "And they overcome him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony;". The devil is overcome through a two-part application: The Blood of the lamb-Jesus-and the word of our testimony. God's part is not enough; it's takes both His and our parts to overcome the devil. Did you ever notice how often God's and our parts are necessary for us receiving the benefit of His provision and/or promises? For instance, in the sixth chapter of John's gospel, we read of Jesus feeding 5000 men, not to mention women and children. A boy's offering of 5 loaves and 2 fish supplied his part; the natural. After Jesus gave thanks for the food, the food was distributed. As this point God supplied His part: the miraculous multiplication of fish and bread.

It's the same when overcoming the devil, Satan, who is our adversary. God supplies His part-the redemptive Blood of Jesus. We, then, add our part, which is the word of our testimony. God's supernatural part unites with our natural part to bring about victory in every situation.

What is a testimony? A testimony is most often your sharing what God has done for you. In years gone by churches used to have testimony meetings. These services centered around people sharing what God had done for them in the last few days or weeks. Testimonies can encourage someone else's faith, for what God did for one, He'll do for another.

A testimony can also be your declaration of what God's says about you, in the situation you're now facing.

What's your testimony? What has God done for you? What is God's Word saying about you, in the situation you're facing? Are you daring to say what God's Word says, regardless of circumstance-as Caleb and Joshua did in Numbers , chapters 13 and 14?

I'd love to hear what God has done for you. Someone else may benefit from hearing what happened in your life. After all, what God dis for one, He'll do for another.

Ten Ways to Destroy a Church

Going through some boxes, I found the following article, with excerpts by George W. Knight. It's about ways to destroy a church. Perhaps you've observed these at one time or another in a church you visited or, perhaps, your own. Over the past 40+ years of being and serving in numerous churches, my wife and I have seen more than a few of these ways being present. My purpose for listing them is to show what the devil uses to destroy churches, and, being aware, use this as a self-checklist to better serve God through our own church.

I don't know when the original article was published, however the points are timeless, regardless of age. The article is entitled, Ten Ways to Destroy a Church:

1. Don't come

2. If you do come, always arrive late.

3. After every service let it be known, loud and clear, that you "didn't get anything out of the service."

4. Never accept a job or leadership position in the church. It's much better to stand on the sidelines and criticize.

5. Let it be known that you visit other churches about half the time, just to show your pastor and fellow church members that you don't need them.

6. Make all the leaders do all the work and blame them if it isn't done right.

7. Sit in the back of the church, talk with others, and never sing or participate.

8. Never give money.

9. Never encourage the pastor or leaders.

10. Be sure to point out any faults of your church to guests. They might never notice these faults without your help

If you see one or more of these where you attend, what can you do to change what is to what can be?

Are You a Thermometer or a Thermostat?

As a young boy living in Iowa our house did not have air conditioning, not even a window unit. As a result some summer nights could be warm, to put it mildly. Living in a two-bedroom house, I shared a small bedroom with my brother. In addition to any breeze from the open bedroom window my parents placed a small fan at the foot of our beds, to help circulate the night air where we slept. Although the fan didn't change the room temperature, it did help move the air some. Without an air conditioner, every little bit helps.

An outside thermometer would show the actual temperature in that location. In the absence of home air conditioning there was, of course, no inside thermostat available to initiate any changes in temperature. I hope whoever invented air conditioning did well.

A thermometer reflects actual temperature whereas a thermostat initiates changes in air temperature of a room or house, depending on what change in temperature is selected. A thermometer tells you what is.  A thermostat offers change, usually one that makes rooms cooler in summer, warmer in the winter.

As people of God, we choose to be a reflection of society as a whole (thermometer) or a reflection of what God is doing in the earth at any given point in time, including now (thermostat). It takes no real effort to be a thermometer, to be a part of what is. Being a thermostat, on the other hard, requires being changed to make a noticeable difference  to your world, starting with those around you.

Are you a thermometer or a thermostat? Are you a part of the status quo, flowing with those around you, or are you allowing God to bring change to your surroundings, to those within your sphere of influence? If a thermostat, how is God using your gifts and talents to bring help, healing, and life to a lost and dying world where you live, work, and play? If, at this moment, a thermometer, what event(s) would need to happen to influence you to want to become a thermostat?

Is tolerance acceptance?

Some things remain the same: the sun rises in the east, setting in the west. Roosters crow, babies cry, and too many potholes remain to be fixed. On the other hand, some things have changed in meaning. For instance, the word awful. Upon gazing at the famous Cathedral of Notre Dame, the king of France reportedly exclaimed, "My God, it's awful." When the Cathedral was completed in the 13th century the word awful meant full-of-awe, just as the word beautiful means full-of-beauty. Over the years the word awful has come to mean something bad; terrible-a far cry from full-of-awe. Unfortunately, the same is true concerning tolerance and acceptance. Once upon a time tolerance meant putting up with, without agreement, without acceptance of what's being tolerated. Not so now. Society, as a whole,  has shifted to holding tolerance and acceptance as synonymous terms. In other words, to tolerate means to accept; to be intolerant is to not accept. But, is this really true? Is tolerance acceptance?

According to the Bible we are to love the sinner, while hating the sin. Jesus did. He told the woman caught in the very act of adultery to go and sin no more (John 8:3-11). Jesus wasn't accepting what the woman did as alright-He called it sin. What Jesus did was not condemn the woman (verse 11)-and neither should we-when confronting sin. Like Jesus we tolerate the person, not the sin. We shouldn't tolerate sin in our own lives, either.

The world's view of tolerance is accept everything which they think is OK. If you don't, you're being intolerant. At the same time, those "preaching" tolerance are the most  intolerant of them all, for they are intolerant of Christians, those standing for Biblical principles of absolute truth. More and more, the world is growing increasingly intolerant and unaccepting of anyone who opposes what they believe.

Is tolerance acceptance? Not according to the Bible no, in reality, according to what the world shows towards those with differing views. Without agreeing,  I practice tolerance towards those with viewpoints contrary to the Bible. I don't agree with them, but I don't force my viewpoint on them. My manner of life speaks louder than my words. Does yours?

How about you? Is tolerance acceptance, in your life? How do you practice tolerance, without acceptance of that with which you disagree?

Where's your identification?

I flew on a few business trips last year. Each time I checked in I was required to present valid identification.  As I went through security I also had to show my ticket-proof that I was a passenger that day. Had I not already had my proof of identification out, ready to be shown, a valid question to me would have been, "Where's your identification?". Without it I wouldn't have flown. Identification. It's proof of who we are. Whether it's a driver's license, passport, student ID card, or other valid form, we live in a time where much emphasis is put on who we are. Things like opening up a bank account, obtaining a passport, or buying a house-in each case proof of identification is required. Renting a car? You'll be asked to show proof of identification.

Identification is even more important where spiritual things are concerned. As Christians we've been placed into Christ-into the family of God. We've been given new identification papers, so to speak. In 2 Corinthians 5:17 the Bible says that if any (person) be in Christ he is a new creature. Literally, this means that a new species of being has been created in you. If you're a Christan, there's a new "you" in you that wasn't there before. Your identification is now with Christ, not the devil and his crowd. You're under God's dominion, not Satan's.

Spiritually speaking we've been given new identities. We have new identification papers, so to speak, within the pages of the New Testament-specifically the Epistles, letters written to Christians. Examples are the books of Ephesians and Colossians. Each book paints a vivid picture of the believer's new identification with Christ, focusing on that person's  rights and privileges, in Christ.

It was some years after I became a Christan before I learned of my real identity, as a follower of Jesus Christ. I struggles to know who I was in life, my purpose, and my destiny. Having found my true identity I know who I really am. I move about in total security, without fear of detection. When the devil tries to bring up something from my life before Christ I show him my identification papers-God's Word-proving my identity in Christ. That's my true position-in Christ. Knowing my true identity affects my thinking, believing, words, and actions, on a daily basis.

Where's your identification? Is it in the natural things of this world, or in Christ? How important is it to be secure in who you really are, where your true identity lies?

Dry Water

Over the years I've been to a lot of swimming pools, spending many summer hours enjoying doing laps, or simply cooling off.  All of those pools had something in common: in each case the water was wet. In today's post I want to use the relationship between water and wet to make a point about our relationship with Jesus Christ.

When a person receives salvation through Jesus Christ (Romans 10:9,10) that person becomes a part of God's Church, which the Bible refers to as the Body of Christ (Ephesians 1:22,23; Colossians 1:18, 24). Another way to say this is we become in Christ. To be in Christ simply means that we now have in our spirits (hearts) God's very life, nature, and ability. This is good news!

Due to religious brainwashing rather than New Testament teaching, many believers have a hard time seeing themselves as being in Christ. They want Jesus without being in Christ; however you can't have one without the other. Conversely, you can't be a Christian without also being in Christ. To have one without the other is like wanting to go swimming without being in water.

There's no such thing as dry water. If something's dry, it's not water; if it's water, it's wet. Imagine someone going to a pool and asking the lifeguard, "Where's the dry end? I want to go swimming in the dry end." Silly as that may sound that's how some Christians are with the things of God-give me Jesus, without everything He is or has done for me.

In other words, give me dry water.

I know Christians who are extreme, like some swimming pools-either shallow or off in the deep-end. At the same time, too many Christians are trying to swim in proverbial wet suits. They're sincere about swimming (knowing Christ) but just aren't sure about all that wet stuff (being in Christ).

I've been there, having Christ without knowing that I'm also in Christ, in Him. It wasn't fulfilling swimming in dry water, so I started finding out about the water of who I am, in Christ, what I have, in Christ,  and what I can do through Him. What I've learned has revolutionized my life, family, and ministry. I'm enjoying swimming in life more than ever.

No more dry water.

How's your "pool"? Is your water wet or dry? Do you see yourself in Christ, as God does? If not, why not? If so, what steps are you taking-or will you take-to enjoy your "pool" even more today?

Error or Heir?

How do you see yourself? Not in the mirror, but before God. Are you constantly seeing your mistakes, faults, and shortcomings that you've come to see yourself as a mistake of God? On the other hand, have you taken the time to read the Bible for yourself, to find that you're one of God's children, precious in His sight? In your eyes, are you an error or heir of God?

An error is a mistake, failing, shortcoming-something that falls short of what's correct. An heir, on the other hand, is one who is legally entitled to the property of another, according to the terms of a will. There are many instances where someone was treated as an error, only to find out that that individual was, in reality, an heir to property and means beyond imagination. More often than not, simple ignorance of the truth prevented that dear person from partaking of what rightfully belonged to him/her.

So it is with our lives. We choose to see ourselves in light of our mistakes or in light of what God says about us. Will we live according to our experiences or dare to act like who we are in God's sight?

Error or heir? The Bible, in Romans 8:17, tells us that Christians are heirs of God. Not errors, but heirs. God said that about everyone who believes on Jesus Christ as Lord. Being an heir of God has nothing to do with gender, skin color, ethnic background, education, or social status. No, being an heir has everything to do with what Jesus did for us: paying the penalty for our sins with His Blood, then defeating Satan in Hell to liberate our lives from poverty, sickness, and sin forever.

We're now free to enjoy God's abundant goodness in our lives-spiritually, physically, financially, and materially. As heirs of God what He's provided for us is ours because Jesus isn't dead-He's alive!

How about you? Do you see yourself as an error or an heir? What are you doing with your inheritance? Have you dared to believe that you are, indeed, an heir of God?

Keep coming back to this site for more truths on who you are and what you have as a Christan. Let us know how these posts are being a blessing to you. We're here for you.