Service from the Heart

As I continue to read through the book I mentioned in my last entry, "Fresh Power", I find more and more to equip me for my new service in church leadership. We have recently started attending a very small, very intriguing church. My husband and I felt a definite call to leave our comfort zone of a large, well-established church with all the programs and activities one could ever want. We felt God was calling us to a place with very little to offer us. Instead of seeking to have our needs met, we are seeking to fill empty places in a church that needs us . . . desperately.

God called every believer to service. We are all to find a place within our churches, buckle down, and serve. Period. Regardless of whether our needs are met (only God truly knows what we actually need anyway), our feelings get hurt, or we "feel like it." (Which can entail a myriad of objections in itself). So why is it the modern western culture (read: United States) attitude to seek out a church for what it can do for me? I wonder how many of us are actually reading our Bibles? Because if we were, we would know that Jesus came to serve not to be served (Mark Chapter 10). Aren't we then, as followers of Christ, supposed to follow in His footsteps and serve? How can we justify such selfishness?

Allow me to share a few excerpts from this incredible book I am studying: "But just as there are people who watch from the bleachers and never know the challenge on the court, we have millions of churchgoers who sit in pews every week without entering the game." Later in the chapter, Pastor Cymbala goes on to say of the leaders of the Antioch church "These men were not sitting in a boardroom making strategic charts on a whiteboard. They were not huddled around their computers working on spreadsheets. Instead, they were having a time of worship, praise and prayer, all intensified by periods of fasting." Then he goes on to describe what I heard a good friend recently call a "Martha" type church (compared to a "Mary" type). "... if we are always busy working, doing, talking, handing out materials, and fielding phone calls, we miss the chances to listen and get our ears tuned to his voice. These men in Antioch quieted down enough to hear something from heaven. Samuel Chadwick said in the early 1900s, 'The church that multiplies committees and neglects prayer may be fussy, noisy, enterprising, but it labors in vain and spends its strength for naught. It is possible to excel in mechanics and fail in dynamics. There is an abundance of machinery; what is wanting is power.' "

Where has the power gone in our churches today? May I suggest to you that the power is within the people. It is called the Holy Spirit. But we're too busy, prideful and selfish to even realize our power source is completely cut off by our slothfulness and selfishness. I'm not sure about you, but I'm weary of the "me first" mentality in today's Christian culture. What happened to "God first" ? Brothers and sisters, I'm certain, based on authority of Scripture, that when our priority comes back to balance - God first - we will see revival in our nation. But it has to start within each believer's heart.

Saint, please know, that when I ask you this, I am including myself - where is God in your heart? This is a question I must ask myself daily. I hope you will too.

Unity = Effective Christianity

Over the past few years, I have been so burdened for unity in the Body of Christ that I can hardly contain it. I'm reading an excellent book right now that, coupled with my personal Bible reading, is making me even more jealous for the unity to which we are called. The book is "Fresh Power" by Jim Cymbala. This is the fourth book I've read by this particular author and each one has challenged me and encouraged me in ways I never imagined a book could.

Yesterday, as I studied Colossians, it paralleled and magnified some things I was reading in the book. In an effort to bring this subject to light in the name of Jesus, I want to share with you what I am learning.

In Colossians 3:13, we read "Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as memebers of one body you were called to peace. " A little earlier, in verse 11, Paul states "Here there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all." (emphasis added in both quotes). The Lord is clearly telling us to leave all pretenses, prejudices and preferences in the Name of Jesus to work together as one body for His Kingdom. God is not concerned with the name on the door of your church building or the number of people attending. He is concerned with the Holy Spirit filling each person in His body across the nations so we have the Power to do His work, unified, with one goal - to reach people - both the lost and believers in need of restoration and encouragement - and change their lives in Jesus' name!

Brothers and Sisters, unify, for Christ's sake!! Have a loving attitude and a heart for people. See them through Jesus' eyes. Status, race, denomination, wealth, poverty, talent - God is the giver of those gifts and He only sees a heart - not a color, pocketbook or skill. We will never be blessed with the fullness of the Holy Spirit in our corporate gatherings with division and strife. In the aforementioned book, Pastor Cymbala says it this way "We are busy expending energy to move ahead, but we go nowhere in the end. At the same time that we beckon the Spirit to 'come' through our praying and preaching, our slander, backbiting and division yell at him to 'go away'. "

Do we want to be effective for Christ or do we want to merely plod along in the same mediocre existence we are currently experiencing? I'm not sure about you, but I want to hold hands with my Brothers and Sisters and kick Satan not only to the curb, but to the darkness in which he belongs. In order to bind him up and start becoming more effective as a Body, we must unify. Satan's first attempt to destroy us is to keep us from becoming a child of the King. When that fails, he uses every force of darkness he can to create ineffective witness for Christ so that no one else is influenced positively enough by us to want what we have. This is the current climate of Christianity today. Such ineffectiveness that the world looks at us and says "why do I want that - they're no different than me?" Is that really the impression of Christianity we want displayed?

Not me! Arm yourself with the full armor of God with me. Put your work boots on and let's get a little dirty for the Kingdom's sake! Look at your fellow believers regardless of denomination, race or status - regardless of how they look, smell or speak - and say "Let's do this thing for Jesus' sake!!" That's effective Christianity. And it's a pleasing offering to our Lord and King.

The Greatest Power

I'm on vacation right now and there's really no better time to take a few minutes to write than when you're in the presence of the Almighty and His creation like I am today. I am at the beach and I never feel more close to God than I do when I'm looking at His ocean. What a magnificent display of His glory and power! The ocean is a complex machine. It holds the potential to ignite romance, inspire worship and soothe. But the same ocean has the power to smooth hard surfaces, erode beaches and destroy entire cities. But aren't we thankful that the ocean can do nothing without the direct consent of its Creator? Much like us. And, Praise God, very much like our enemy the Devil!!

Think about it! For all your struggles with Satan, remember, he is not allowed to touch one hair on your precious head without the direct consent of God. NOTHING happens without God allowing it!! If you are struggling in a battle with the greatest enemy, remember this. God has a work to do in you, precious one. And Satan is being used of God to complete that work. Wonder what the "father of all lies" would think of that one? Believer, he knows! Rest assured, Satan might have a big head, but even he knows that God is God and there is none like him. His agenda is to take as many humans down with him as possible.

Be encouraged, saint! Stand up and fight the fight on the winning side, then rejoice with your Commander - God Himself. There is no greater power.