We Have Bigger Problem Than Barak Obama

The election is over and many of us are disappointed to see this godless man elected back into office. I was stunned like many others that they were calling the election over so early in the night. But as I saw the totals come in it made me realize we have a much more bigger problem than Barak Obama. As this man pitted groups of people against one another and he won by a margin of 52% to 48% it made me realize how divided we are as a nation. Not only by political parties but by the way we think as people. Jesus said in the Matthew 12:25 "...Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand." We are already paying the price in society of homes that have been divided by divorce and selfishness. Cities that are divided by racism and poverty have cause so many problems to families who are too poor to do anything about it. Much of our nation no longer fears God and we're seeing the results. Reading this Scripture carefully shows me that division = desolation. I'm not sure how much longer we will survive as a nation, I'm a pastor, not a prophet. But God's Word is forever settled in heaven and He does not lie like us. We will fall. Our only hope is another great awakening.

Missions 2012

As we approach our mission's convention for 2012 it's amazing how many people in this world have never had a good presentation of the gospel message. There are so many people heading into eternity without a clue what is going to happen. The Apostle Paul was committed to reaching as many as possible and so should we. Even through economic difficulties missions and mission's giving should be a priority. Paul understood the importance of the 'grace of giving.' Paul told the Corinthian Church about the generosity of the Macedonian churches and how they gave during extreme poverty with joy. He encouraged the church to match their eager willingness to give. I hope all of us, even during tough times, continue to sow our seeds into missions. Let's support missions and be generous about it.

Young Blood

I am really encouraged by some of the young pastors and missionaries that are coming up through the ranks. They bring a freshness with them along with new ideas that stretch us older people. Their enthusiasm can be contagious if we allow it to be. Yes, some of their music is different and yes they may not always put on a suit and tie, but many of them are excited about Jesus. And many are open to all the possibilities in their Christian lives. We need to let them make their mistakes so we can encourage them to get up and keep going. What an opportunity we have not only to show them the love of Christ but to mentor them in the process. The Psalmist encourages us to proclaim God's goodness from generation to generation. So lets do it. Every generation should be filled with the anticipation of reaching their generation with the gospel. So as these younger ones look at their harvest fields lets give them all the encouragement we possibly can.

Faith's Value

In my morning devotions I read something from Billy Graham that caught my attention. His comment was this,"The Christian faith has become a cheap faith because we to often live as if it has no value." I had to think on how much value I do put on my faith in Christ. Has my 'saving faith' become a 'living faith' that others may see? If serving Jesus has become an inconvenience to me because of time demands in my busy schedule its little wonder that the world, my little world, the sphere of people I associate with, does not consider my faith relevant when I'm not even willing to give my time and energy to what I say I believe in. If I tell others that I would die for Christ am I willing to also live for Him? It is so hard for me to believe that there are places in the world where believers in Christ can still be jailed for sharing their faith or face the death penalty for leading lost souls to Christ. I have all this freedom of religion, freedom of press, freedom to assemble, and freedom of speech and use very little of it to promote the thing I value most, my relationship with the One who has saved me from my sinful ways and has shown nothing to me but His grace and mercy. So, here I am again reexamining my faith in Christ to see if it measures up to the consideration of what I think is valuable to me. Lord, please help me in what little time I may have to value you more than anything else.

Steadfastness

I recently read an article concerning the Scripture found in 1 Corinthians 15:58 using the word steadfast. In fact the Scripture tells to "be ye steadfast, unmovable" as we work for the Lord. Steadfast means that we will be totally reliable and stationary in the rolls God has called us to fulfill. In short the Lord wants us to become people He and others can depend on. Overcoming any instability in our lives and overcoming every weakness in our characters. Just like we look to others for stability we need to become stable people that others can come to when they need our help. Like many others I have a lot of room for development in my life, if I'm willing to be changed. I want to be taught and corrected so I can be taken to a higher level in my walk with the Lord. When people hear our name being mentioned they should think of someone on whom they can rely.

The Value of Man

I'm not to much of a collector of things but I have several ticket stubs to events I went to as a young man. Mostly sport events. Several of the stubs are from the Cleveland Brown's and Cleveland Indian's games. One of them is from the championship game of 1964 when the Browns shutout the Baltimore Colts. The last championship team in Cleveland. I also have the first Monday night game stub with the New York Jets when Joe Namath came into town. Monday night football started in Cleveland, Ohio. I now have a person who is interested in purchasing these old stubs and wanted to know what is their value to me. The actual value of any object is that which is placed on it by the owner or the buyer. But what value do you place on yourself? Esau sold his birthright for a mess of pottage. Some call it a bowl of soup, others call it a bowl of stew. Nevertheless his birthright was valued pretty low. In essence he was saying that he would rather have a bowl of soup than a relationship with God Almighty. Others have sold out cheap too. We hear it and see it all the time. Man puts very little value on his soul and often is willing to sell out for a very cheap price. However, God looks at things differently. In Proverbs the price of God's wisdom is more precious than rubies. A valuable gem. In 1 Peter the genuineness of our faith is much more precious than gold that perishes. But the soul of man is different. God has shown the value He placed on each of us by sending His Son to redeem us. Not redeemed with corruptible things like silver and gold, but with the precious blood of Christ. In the eyes of God we are so valuable to Him that He gave His very best to buy us back. God forbid that we will ever say again, "God doesn't love me." God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Every person in the world deserves to hear this. It's called "Good News." But it's never good news until it gets there on time. Lets share the love of God with others this New Year. I've challenged my church, and myself, to believe God for twelve divine appointments this year to share Jesus with others. 12 in 12, or 12 divine appointments in the year 2012. Please join us and lets see who the Lord brings into our pathways.