Monday, March 22, 2021

Life In The Fast Lane

 For two weeks I have lived life in the fast lane. I did not have much time with my family as I dashed from one project to another. In between all of that, I squeezed in a preaching trip to west Texas and returned hitting the ground running. Everything felt rushed. Including devotion times. My mind kept spinning with all that needed to be done. 

I did not go to bed one time during that season accomplishing everything I wanted to get done. I simply ran out of time and energy. Today has been much different. A day of rest. A day to recalibrate. A day to intentionally slow down. To take a sabbath. To refresh and enjoy renewal before hitting the ground running again. 

Many are overworked, over stressed, and over fatigued. They keep going. Some do not have a choice. Others do it purposefully. They cannot slow themselves down. God has a way of doing it. He can slow us down with set backs like winter storms or health crisis. I would prefer to have the wisdom to listen and do what He commands. To remember the Sabbath and keep it holy. A day devoted to worship and rest. 

The Sabbath has become just like any other day. A day to work. A day to play ball. A day not to rest. A day to catch up on chores. It is not supposed to be that way. It will catch up with people sooner or later. In the forms of burn out, stress, ulcers, and spiritual dryness. Some hearts look more like a desert than an oasis of flowing living water. 

I am not against living in the fast lane. I am against burning ourselves out because we give and give never stopping to get replenished. I hope you will do that soon. Stop. Replenish with the Lord. Pause. Rest. Take Sabbath. Living what I am preaching today. I hope you will do the same. 

It Takes A Team

 I spent many years participating in organized sports from the youth leagues all the way through college. I understand the value of team. Each person on a team plays an important part. Some help out in practices. Some play key roles during the games. Some get noticed more. Others do the dirty work without the spotlight shining on them. Team is more important than the individual. 

The relay track team is only as good as each member of the team is able to carry and transfer the baton to the other members and across the finish line. One person could not do it all themselves. The quarterback succeeds when the offensive line blocks. The basketball player scores when teammates do their job to get the scorers in scoring position. The pitcher in baseball is only as good as his defense and hitters. It takes a team. 

In recent days, I have seen team come to a whole new meaning. The grand people at Spring Creek Baptist Church continue to amaze me. They give, sacrifice, serve, and then do it all over again. I have seen them working into the wee hours of the morning. I mean that literally as several volunteers helped to put on a successful lock in. I saw people stay up way past their bed times to cook a midnight breakfast buffet,, and then clean up afterwards for those students. Several work feverishly to remodel our facilities, update wings in our education facilities with fresh coats of paint, transform entry points, and then come to worship enthusiastically and joyfully on very little sleep. It is amazing to watch so many people serving joyfully and without grumbling. 

I cannot keep up with this bunch and I am much younger than some of them. They are like energizer bunnies. 

In the church, or the body of Christ, each person has a role. Some roles are more visible. Some are more behind the scenes. Each role is vitally important to the overall function of the body. No one person can do it all. It takes teamwork to make the dream work. 

God chooses the roles a person plays in the body of Christ. Each has a different function but are part of the same church body. When the body functions as God designs, it is a beautiful thing to behold. I am seeing it. People with artistic skills are putting them to use for the Lord. Administrators are organizing events. Exhorters are encouraging others. Evangelists are sharing the good news of Jesus. Deacons serve behind the scenes without anyone noticing and those deacons prefer it that way. People with computer skills use them to design and produce visually appealing material. Musicians play music for the rest of the body to enjoy. 

It is like watching a conductor of an orchestra getting everyone to play their notes in harmony to produce pleasant music. When everyone plays the part assigned to them, the end result benefits many. The church is so much bigger than one or two personalities. It is the members. It's the called out ones. It is the body of Christ functioning in harmony for a worthwhile cause. 

I type this with several parts of my body working in unison. My eyes see the screen and the letters formed there. My brain thinks the next thoughts that become sentences. My hands tap the keys translating those thoughts into words on the printed screen. Each part of my body plays a valuable role in the process. I did not even mention my heart pumping blood through my body and my veins carrying that blood, nor the lungs that breathe in oxygen keeping me alert. It is all a coordinated effort. 

Showing me a church where one or two people run the show and I will show you an unhealthy and dysfunctional body. It takes a team to achieve the dream. 

Paul addresses this in I Corinthians 12. I suggest you read that passage as a reminder. I ask are you playing your role in your local assembly? Do you contribute to body life? Can you even identify your role. Many prefer the mega church so they can worship anonymously. It escapes their notice that God will hold each of us accountable with the gifting He gave us and the roles He assigned to us within a local assembly. May we all find our place on the team and serve others by playing our part. 

Wednesday, March 10, 2021

Noah Walked With God

 Noah walked with God. Such a simple truth. One with profound implications. Consider the backdrop of that statement. It was written in the context of the complete wickedness of society found in Genesis 6:1-9. . Every imagination and intent of the thoughts of those who lived in Noah's day was only on evil continually. 

Nobody thought a righteous thought. Nobody planned or prayed for a God encounter. In fact, violence filled the whole earth. So much so God pronounced judgment to destroy all mankind by flood except for Noah and his family. 

Even with all the wickedness around him, Noah still walked with God. He followed God. He conversed with God. He pursued God. He refused to be distracted by all the evil and temptation around him. 

Did Noah face temptation? I am sure he did. He still walked blamelessly. Did Noah feel the peer pressure to compromise and conform to wickedness? I believe he did, but kept living righteously. He walked with God when the rest of the world walked away from Him. He communed with God when others offended God with their evil actions. He stayed true and faithful when all others lived in depravity. None of these things deterred Noah from walking with God. 

This begs the question how is our walk wit God? Have we neglected or forsaken that walk for much less? Have we fallen for the lie we are just too busy to maintain quality devotion time with Jehovah? Do we justify half hearted devotions void of passion and focus? Are we lured away from God to walk after shiny temptations that ensnare us?

Noah walked with God even though it put him at odds with the whole world. Including his family, friends, neighbors and community. He put spiritual blinders on giving his focus to a close relationship with God. God rewarded that relationship by communicating a special assignment. An assignment that impacted the whole world. 

Reading about Noah walking with God fuels a passion in me to do the same. To spend valuable time in His presence. To move at His pace. To draw near to Him. To not lag behind Him nor run ahead of Him. To walk with Him. To stay in step with Him. To tune my ears to listen to His counsel and commands. To enjoy Him. To know Him. To walk step by step day by day with Him. That is both a privilege and a priority. 

It would be great if at our funerals someone said, "Helen walked with God. Pam walked with God. Kelly walked with God. Dierdre walked with God. Terri walked with God. Connie walked with God. Brenda walked with God. Valerie walked with God. Lisa walked with God. Sylvia walked with God. Aline walked with God. Allan walked with God. David walked with God. Gary walked with God. Damon walked with God. Fred walked with God. Hughey walked with God. Hugh walked with God. Paul walked with God. Haskel walked with God. Tim walked with God. Dennis walked with God.  You walked with God."

May that be our habit, our custom, our quest and our greatest delight. Lord, please help us be a people who walk with y=You. In Your name, amen. 

Then She Prayed

 For many years, I have found inspiration through suffering saints. My shelves are lined with biographies of those who suffered. I am currently reading a book about persecuted believers. Their tenacious faith, endless courage, and their persevering grit move me. 

I just wrote about a very sick lady facing several health issues visiting our church this past Sunday evening. The sound of people praying over her sounded as beautiful as any worship music you can imagine. I love the sound of the people petitioning God for help in the sanctuary. It is a sacred sound to these ears. 

Both men and women interceded for this sick sister. Many prayed in broken tears. Some prayed quietly. Others prayed loudly and forcefully. I heard deacons praying in tears. Those prayers moved me as I prayed for others before getting to the sick lady. 

Then I heard a sound that stopped me in my tracks. The sick lady started praying for all of us. In her weakened voice, she prayed through her sufferings for all of us. She did not focus on herself. She pleaded with the Father to help and bless those gathered around praying for her. 

If her prayers give a window into her soul, her faith is strong. Her love for Jesus is intense. She is no stranger to prayer. Listening to her moved and still moves me. She has faced set back after set back. One bad doctor report after another. One bad day of not feeling well on top of another. Yet her focus remained on other people. It took great effort for her to attend. She just recently got home from the hospital. She did not use that as an excuse not to attend. She may have come to receive from God but she ended up giving in addition to receiving. 

A holy hush fell over the congregation as she started praying. We all knew we were experiencing one of those holy ground moments. I can't describe the scene for you. I cannot recreate the atmosphere. You would have had to be there to know what I am writing about. 

The prayers of that suffering saint were the highlight of the evening for this preacher. God used her to inspire me and to challenge me to pray harder for her healing. I wish God would use any prayer I pray publicly like He used her prayer for us in my life. Selfless, faith filled, fervent, humble, bold, and powerful. May God teach all of us to pray that way. 

They Don't Know What They Are Missing

 Most churches no longer have Sunday night services. Over the years, that has by far been my favorite service. I have seen some powerful moves of God on Sunday nights. Let me tell you about one. 

Many years ago I was preaching a revival in Palestine, TX at the Emmanuel Baptist Church. God really came powerfully that night. Right in the middle of the message, a thunderstorm started. The thunder clapped loudly vibrating the whole building. The lights went out in the middle of my message. We sat in the dark, nobody really knowing what to do. 

Someone found a candle and brought it to the pulpit so I could finish preaching. What a powerful moment. It reminded me of Jonathan Edwards preaching by candlelight over 300 years ago. That excited me and I preached even more forcefully asking God to come visit His people. God moved even more powerfully. As I gave the invitation, a man got up to come forward. He did not go to the steps to pray. He came right down front in the center and turned to address the congregation. God was at work so I stopped talking and watched to see what would happen. 

The man served as a deacon and Sunday School teacher. He came forward to confess the sin of not serving and ministering under God's anointing. He simply went through the motions of his ministries not believing for God's power to work through him. In his brokenness, people got up all over the building to come pray for their brother in Christ. That unleashed a night of repentance and prayer in several others. That night will be remembered for a long time by those who were in attendance. 

Like I said earlier, most churches stopped holding Sunday evening services. I guess the justification to cease is because the attendance is so small. I have been in multiple Sunday evening services with barely half a dozen people present. 

I will be the first to admit it is easier not to hold them for the preacher. It is one less message to prayerfully prepare and preach. It is added work. I find the reward well worth the effort. 

I typically go back to my office on Sunday afternoons. I pray, look over my notes and prepare for any scheduled meetings for the day. That is exactly what I was doing when I got a text that left me bewildered. The text came from a lady in our church. She texted to inform me she was bringing a friend to the evening service that night we have prayed for many times over the past several months. I have prayed for this lady repeatedly though I had never met her. I immediately asked God what He was up to. This lady is facing severe health issues that are life threatening. I did not feel this to be coincidence. Nor did I feel like it would be another normal Sunday evening service. I left my office and went to the prayer room to ask God what He wanted to do that night. I had a message prepared on Gideon I was excited about. In a gentle whisper, I sensed God leading me to a different message. 

The attendance this past Sunday night was at least double what we have seen in recent months for no apparent reason. People were there I have never seen at a Sunday night service. By faith, I preached the changed message and watched God work. 

During the invitation the body of Christ gathered around the sick lady to pray for and over her. A beautiful and touching sight to behold. Faith ran high as people cried out to God on her behalf. Tears flowed. The saints prayed fervently. The results are left in God's hands. 

What a special encounter with God we shared. People who chose not to attend do not know what they are missing. Churches who long ago suspended the Sunday evening service due to low attendance do not know what they are missing. We met God this past Sunday night, and more importantly He met with us. I want more of those encounters. I don't want to miss what He intends for us. Even on a Sunday evening.