It’s not what you do every once in a while: It’s what you do on a daily basis that makes the difference. (Zigler.com) 
            I want you to take the time to read this sentence several times.  I have recently been talking in kids worship about the above statement and diligence. I showed several pictures in the theater just to prove to them the above sentence was true.  First, we looked at a flower.  The flower was beautiful in color, the stem stood strong, and it gave off a wonderful fragrance.  The second flower had lost its color, it drooped in the vase, and had no fragrance.  Secondly, we looked at a swimming pool.  The water was crystal clear, the inside was spotless, and it was very inviting to us.  The  next pool was green, it had leaves floating in it, and smelled.  Thirdly, we looked at a beautiful smile.  The teeth were pearly white, and were very welcoming.  The next mouth the teeth were rotting, gums were swollen, and had horrible smell.  My point to all the pictures were there was hard work, diligent work,  involved in all the beautiful things.  The things that were ugly and smelly represented those things we only did every once in a while.  You see the beautiful flower needed someone to diligently water, feed, and weed it.  The crsystal clear pool needed someone to dilegently check the filter and to dip off the leaves.  The pearly white teeth needed somone to diligently brush, floss, and rinse them.

So lets take the priniciple and apply it to our spiritual life.
Luke 9:23 And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. 24 For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. 25 For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself? 26 For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when he comes in his glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels. 27 But I tell you truly, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God.”


Jesus says in this verse daily take up our cross.  He is saying, “I want you to commit (big word) everyday to be sold out for me.  I don’t want you to do it when it’s convenient, or when you feel like.  Even if you have to suffer, give up things, be ridiculed- follow me.”  Let me just say that those of great faith did not just happen upon it.  Just like in the pictures of the things that were beautiful it takes diligence.  It takes getting up every morning and praying, reading our bible, sharing our testimony and our faith, meeting others needs before our own, deny our selfishness, and the list goes on and on.  If we truly were to examine how God sees our life we might be surprised.  Recently in our community bible study (Westmeade 9:45-11:45 Thursday all ladies welcome) our commentary made this comment. "We think of God somewhat like a vending machine: insert a prayer, select a remedy, and the requested answer rolls down the chute. But God cannot be likened to a candy or drink dispenser; He is the bread of life. He does not exist to take the edge off our appetite but to satisfy those who hunger and thirst for righteousness (Mathew 5:6)." Bottom line he wants to be our everyday, not our sometimes.

I am so tired of hearing the statement "well I go to church". Well so what if go to church if all you ever do is sit inside those four walls and listen to preaching, but you never get up and GO! If you never take it outside the four walls then what has been the point.  This is not a statement to get you out of the church pew or going to church. If you are saved church is just to be a refueling station so you can go back out.  It’s a pit stop if you will- stop and GO!  However, sometimes we only stop and forget about the go. If you are following someone you are not sitting still you are moving. God has really stirred in me that the church has become like a stagnant pond.  We have all these programs, bible studies, events, but never take it outside our walls so it becomes still and stagnant.  Jesus never referred to anything associated with him as being still.
He that believeth on Me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. John 7:37-38

Jesus gives us Himself (John 14:6). He is this abundant life. It is God’s kind of life. “My cup overflows,” means it is not just full; it is “running over,’ filled to the brim and overflowing.

Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinks of this water shall thirst again: But whosoever drinks of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life. (John 4:13-14)

Can I be honest with you today reading our bible when we remember; going to church when we can work it in is just not going to cut it.  Imagine yourself needing surgery.  The first surgeon says, “I have performed this surgery everyday, at least 6 times a day for the past 20 years.  The second surgeon says, “I perform this surgery every once in a while when I feel like it.”  Which one will you choose?  Of course you will choose the first one with all the experience.  He could probably do it in his sleep.  The same is true with our Christian walk.  God wants to have those people who are diligent no matter what walking with him.  Many times people say, “I don’t know God’s will.”  When the truth is that we have not spent enough time with him to even begin to know him, much less know his will. 

Have you been diligent in your walk with God?  Have you truly picked up your cross daily and followed him?  Do you have the courage to get out of the pew, and take the gospel outside those walls not sometimes- every time?  Maybe God is simply calling you to the first step of being diligent- salvation.  Salvation you simply have to believe you are a sinner that needs forgiveness.  Jesus died on the cross for everyone to have the opportunity to be forgiven of their sins. Jesus shed his blood on the cross to be our sacrifice.  If we confess him with our mouth,  he will be faithful to save.  


Lord forgive us where we have been disobedient to you.  Forgive us when we put temporal things ahead of eternity's work.  I pray that you rekindle a fire that stirs in our heart for you.  So we may take your gospel to everyone.  Amen

James 1:12  Blessed is the man who remains diligent under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.

 

 

 

I am teaching an evangelism class this semester at Women at the Well.  What is evangelism anyway?  Evangelism can be described as spreading of the Christian gospel by public preaching or personal witness.  There is a big difference between talking about God in front of people, and being intentional about sharing the gospel.  Who do you feel most comfortable witnessing to about God?  Do you feel more comfortable with a complete stranger, your family, or a neighbor?  If I were a betting girl, I would say a complete stranger.  Have you ever wondered why this is the case?

Often times we want to witness to complete strangers because we know that we will more than likely never see them again.  There is no relationship between you and person M.  So now lets move to your inner circle.  Do you know statistics overwhelming support we would rather run the risk of our family going to hell, than to actually witness to them?  Take a moment and re-read that sentence. Allow this information to sink down to your core.  Why would we not be willing to witness to those we love the most?  The fact is we have a relationship with the people in our family.  When we are sharing with person M, they know nothing about us.  When we are sharing our faith with friends and family, they witness our actions on a daily basis.  They know all the times we have failed, or times we have not lived, as we should.  Our fear is that our family and friends will think our life is inadequate to be telling anyone about Jesus.

Evangelism is most effective when you establish a relationship with a person.  Please don’t take this out of context, but I believe Jesus gives us a direct call to share the gospel with those closest to us before we go to another country and do so.  I am not at all belittling the need for foreign mission of course there is a need. However in Acts the Bible says, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."  The instruction is to start with your closest circle of contact and work your way out. I am pretty sure that all missionaries, no matter where they serve at now, started off doing missions locally. The people that have a relationship with you deserve to hear the gospel from you.  Lets look at how Jesus used relationships to share his message.

·      Did Jesus just call the disciples, and without ever laying eyes on him, they left their jobs and followed him.  Absolutely not, he had built a relationship with them.  He had used their boats to preach a message.  He had them cast out their nets, when they had caught nothing, and they brought in a bountiful catch.  The point is by the time Jesus called them they knew who he was because of his actions.

·      Cornelius (gentile) Peter (Jew)- God gave both these men a relationship through a vision.  Cornelius was told to send for Peter in his, while Peter was instructed that nothing was unclean in his vision.  When Peter arrives at Cornelius he had invited his whole family and acquaintances to hear the Word of God.  Because Cornelius had a relationship with these people they trusted him to steer them in the right direction.  This ultimately led to his whole household being saved. Acts 10:45 And the believers from among the circumcised who had come with Peter were amazed, because the gift of the Holy Spirit was poured out even on the Gentiles. 46 For they were hearing them speaking in tongues and extolling God. Then Peter declared, 47 “Can anyone withhold water for baptizing these people, who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?”

·      The woman at the well. Jesus shared the gospel with the woman at the well.  She then went back into town and told all her neighbors what she had heard.  Because she had a relationship with people in her town they gathered at the well to hear what Jesus had to say.  John 4:39 Many Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman's testimony, “He told me all that I ever did.” 40 So when the Samaritans came to him, they asked him to stay with them, and he stayed there two days. 41 And many more believed because of his word. 42 They said to the woman, “It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is indeed the Savior of the world.” (NIV)

·      When Jesus meets Mathew he is a tax collector.  The Bible says he had dinner with him, and many other tax collectors and sinners came in to dine.  Mathew 9:11 And when the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” 12 But when he heard it, he said, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. 13 Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.”


In all these occasions Jesus meets the people where they are in their life.  He doesn’t brow beat them with the gospel, but confronts them with genuine compassion and love.  The problem with the average Christian today is they are in a bubble with only professed Christians.  Is there anything wrong with having Christian friends--of course not. We have to push our self to the edge however to make opportunities to share our faith.  We have to be intentional about the relationships we seek.  League softball has always been a great place for us to find ministry opportunities.  Every year we have prayed that God will give us a family on our team that needs someone to minister to them.  Every year he has provided us with the opportunity.

I challenge you today to think of someone that you have a relationship with that may not know the Lord.  As you are talking with them in the coming days be intentional in your conversations about the Lord.  Remember our everyday lives speak much louder than our words. Everyday we must faithfully commit ourselves to live for the Lord.  Although it can be nerve racking, if we have spent time in prayer God will surely give us the words.

 

Luke 12:11 do not be anxious about how you should defend yourself or what you should say, 12 for the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say.”

     Sometimes God puts choices in front of us.  For example, some of you have made New Year resolutions to eat healthier, maybe even diet.  Everyday there are choices to be made between the doughnut you love, and the better health you want.  You see desiring to be different, and doing so are two totally different things.  We can know we need to do something, but never do it.  Why?  The answer is because it is hard work.  It’s about more than making a decision; it’s following through with a commitment.  At some point we have to decide is the outcome we want worth the sacrifice.
     Recently I have been studying personalities.  I took a personality test and made Chad take it as well.  I will give you the highlights of our results- Lion and Turtle.  If you know anything about us you would know who is the lion (me), and who is the turtle (Chad).  There are some key differences in our personalities according to our test: driven/indecisive, impatient/slow speed, motivated/initiative challenged, just to name a few.  So there is obviously some work involved in getting along.  For instance, the simple act of hanging a picture together.  In my mind the project should take five minutes (impatience), and in reality it takes at least 30 if not more (turtle).  So for the sake of our marriage, I now only come in when the picture actually needs to be held on the wall for the nail.  The truth is we made a decision to get married, but we have made a commitment to stay together.  The decision was easy but the commitment can be exhausting. The commitment is all about the follow through when things are hard.  If we truly want to serve the Lord, we always have to be in the mindset of how others think and feel.  For example, because I love Chad I have to find a way to deal with all his details and his turtle speed.  In return because he loves me he has to learn to deal with impatience, and abruptness.  This all falls on the commitment we made.  Although we can drive each other insane, we know the outcome of being together is worth the work. 
Philippians 2:3 Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.
Romans 12:10 Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor.
     Sometimes the Lord challenges us to be different.  Maybe he is calling you to repair a relationship in your marriage, with a friend, at work, or in your family. It could be he is challenging you to share your faith more; to move outside your comfort zone, take on a leadership role, have a healthy lifestyle, to make a career change; the list could go on and on.  The point is whatever you are being called to do will require a decision, but even more than that a commitment.  Notice in the verse below the word daily.  Salvation is a decision; the daily walk is the commitment.
Mathew 9:23 Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up        their cross daily and follow me. 24 For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it. 25 What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit their very self?
     “For the most part, many do not see a big distinction between a decision and a commitment, but for the follower of Christ there is a significant difference. Those who make a decision about Jesus can say they believe that Jesus is God’s Son, that he died on the cross for their sins, and that he was raised on the 3rd day. They can say that Jesus is the only way to salvation, that Jesus is the Savior, and that they believe the Bible is true. They can know all of the right terminology, and know about God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit, BUT the issue is that it is possible to make all of these statements without actually living as a committed follower of God. Simply believing all of those things is of no value if our lives are not transformed by the gospel itself. Jesus calls us to follow him; this demands an action. There is a false distinction between what it means to believe in God and what it means to live for God, but the truth is that it is impossible to have one without the other. If we claim to know God as our Lord and Savior then our actions must match what we say we believe. Our commitment to God must be as unconditional as God’s love is for us.”—Not a Fan by Kyle Idleman

What decision does God need from you today?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

     When we talk about Grace people have many ideas of what it is or is not.  Grace is showing favor or kindness without cause, or to someone who is un-deserving.  Have you ever received something that you didn't deserve, maybe a complement, a gift, or even forgiveness? When someone extends grace to us it is so overwhelming because we think of all the reasons we don't deserve it.  
      Well God certainly always has a lesson for us in life if we are willing to learn.  Recently there has been a homeless man living in the woods behind our church.  At Christmas our pastor gave the children a gift card and told them to give it to someone in need.  My kids chose to give to the homeless man they noticed in the woods.  When we left there that day something just drew me back.  I bought some food, cooking utensils, and a couple Christmas presents for him.  When it was raining we took a tarp to try and protect his things. When the temperature was going to get so cold I took him some food, and left a note that the church would put him in a hotel for three nights.  This whole time I had an image of the man I was helping in my head.  So this week our secretary calls and asks me to come up front.  She says to me, "have you been helping (will call him) Kenny?"  I replied no. (Kenny is a man we have helped repeatedly with money, clothes, food, a job- with no end result).  She said, “well he is at the door for you.”  So in order to try to shorten the story the man I thought I was helping all along was really Kenny.  He holds up the note that states we will give him a hotel room.  My jaw hit the ground, and I was speechless.  Larry still approved the room since it was going to be so cold, but as I walked back to my office I was thinking really!  As I sat at my desk I said, “God I cannot believe you drew me to spend all this money on Kenny of all people.  You know he is never going to change. I could have helped someone where it would have made a difference.”  My spirit was prompted by this question.  So if you knew it was Kenny you would have never helped?  I could try to sound spiritual here, but the answer was no.  I had written Kenny off because in my mind he wasn’t willing to change, so why continue helping him.  The conviction was “how ironic because I have paid the highest price for you by allowing my son to die on a rugged across, and sometimes you are not willing to change either!”
            Ephesians 2:8 As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2 in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. 3 All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath. 4 But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5 made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions--it is by grace you have been saved.
            God was reminding me that we do not get to pick and choose who, or when we show grace.  We were given grace when we did not deserve it.  It is his commandment to show it to others whether they deserve it or not.
     Mathew 25:35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’40 “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me”
     We have just entered a new year.  I wonder if there is anything that needs your grace from 2014, in order to allow 2015 to be all it can be.  Is there anybody you have withheld grace, mercy, or forgiveness from because you felt they were hopeless, or un-deserving?  God has convicted me to clean up 2014 before it hinders my call in 2015. Romans 5:8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.  We cannot change things that have already happened, but we can change our perspective, and our response.