The Church in times of need, and how they should respond.

You can always count on a church or christian organization to arrive on the scene when there has been a natural disaster of some sort. Hurricane Katrina was a great example of this. Churches continued helping in New Orleans by cleaning and rebuilding years after the storm struck. Why does the church live this way? Why do Christians spend their money and time to help others in trouble? There are many reasons for this, but a great component is the comfort we receive from our Father in heaven when we are in need of it. A person who has truly experienced the grace of God in these events simply cannot stand back and watch others suffer. Especially after they have experienced the comfort and peace that comes from none but the Almighty God (Philippians 4:7).

We do not only provide a physical comfort to those who are suffering though. The Christian’s is a comfort that cannot be matched by food, money, a new house, or anything here on the Earth. The early church actually grew, in many ways, because of the manner in which Christians treated and helped non-Christians in their time of need. There is something special when a person helps someone who is not of their family without expecting to receive anything in return. Remember the words of James, “Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world” (James 1:27).

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. (2 Corinthians 1:3-4 ESV)

Faith in the present tense….

Hebrews 11:1) Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. NOW faith is … not yesterday … not next week … NOW. You can’t believe that God is going to heal you someday. You’ll never get healed. You have to believe you are healed right now before it will work. “Now faith is …”

(Mark 11:24) Therefore I say unto you, what things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them. Jesus is speaking and He is saying something very important. Therefore I say unto you, what things soever you desire … things … Health or other promises of God. Believe that you receive them … Received them … He didn’t say feel you receive them … He said when you pray believe you have received them, and you shall have them! When you pray … is now believe you have receive … is now. And you shall have them … is future. If you believe Gods word …and act on it, (that’s faith) … you shall have them. In other words He will bring them into the physical world to you. If you don’t act on His words you will not get it.

Now if you believe that you have received it than you will not pray for it again. Why ask God for something you already have? If you ask again it would mean you didn’t believe you got it the first time … If that is what you believe than you won’t get it. Faith is acting on God’s word, even if you don’t see it. For we walk by faith not by sight. If we act on God’s word He will fulfill the promise. “Believe you have received them, and you shall have them.” Many of us are waiting for God to work a miracle or give us a healing, and then we will believe it. (Luke 6:46) And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say? But, you see, you have to believe you have it NOW. Act like it’s true, and then the power of God comes. Because that’s how faith works, dotting the I’s and crossing the T’s, following God’s instructions exactly.

The Lord is my Shepard and then some…a new look at the 23rd Pslam

This is an eye opener… Some probably

never thought nor looked at this Psalm in this way…

even though they say it over and over again.

 

The Lord is my Shepherd

            - That’s Relationship!

I shall not want

            - That’s Supply!

He maketh me to lie down in green pastures.

            - That’s Rest!

He leadeth me beside the still waters.

            - That’s Refreshment!

He restoreth my soul

            - That’s Healing!

He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness.

            - That’s Guidance!

For His name sake

            - That’s Purpose!

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death.

            - That’s Testing!

I will fear no evil.

            - That’s Protection!

For Thou art with me

            - That’s Faithfulness!

Thy rod and Thy staff they comfort me,

            - That’s Discipline!

Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of my enemies.

            - That’s Hope!

Thou anointest my head with oil,

            - That’s Consecration!

My cup runneth over.

            - That’s Abundance!

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life.

            - That’s Blessing!

And I will dwell in the house of the Lord.

            - That’s Security!

Forever!

            - That’s Eternity!

Work…it’s not just a job!

Have you ever had one of those days where the last thing you want to do is go to work? I’m what they call a bi-vocational Pastor. In other words, I work a secualr job while pastoring. This morning when I got up, I knew that I absolutely was NOT in the mood to go to work and face the drama that I knew awaited me. But since I live in Las Vegas, I know that I need to be grateful to have a job that doesn’t involve drinking or gambling. Having said that, it made me think about though there will be times that we wish we could make a living on permanent vacation, we still need to be grateful for the chance to work.

While I’m blessed to have some great bosses, not everyone enjoys that same blessing. While I face some “interesting” people that I have to work with, the bottom line is that there will always be something that we don’t like about our jobs. While that may be true, we have to learn to look at our jobs from a more positive perspective in order to have a happier and more spiritually mature attitude. Don’t look at your job as something you have to do, because there’s someone unemployed who would love to have that same chance at unhappiness. Don’t look at the job as beeing around ungodly people, see it as a witnessing field. Don’t look at your job as a chance to complain, think of it a an opportunity to be an example of Godly strength to others. I think you see where I’m going with this.

To inspire those of you around the world who struggle with happiness at your workplace, I offer the verses below to inspire you. Please take the chance to read them and become renewed as you think about your job.

 

Colossians 3:23 Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men,

 

2 Thessalonians 3:10 For even when we were with you, we would give you this command: If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat.

 

Proverbs 14:23 In all toil there is profit, but mere talk tends only to poverty.

 

Ecclesiastes 9:10 Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might, for there is no work or thought or knowledge or wisdom in Sheol, to which you are going.

 

Proverbs 10:4 A slack hand causes poverty, but the hand of the diligent makes rich.

 

Acts 20:35 In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’”

 

Proverbs 16:3 Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established.

 

Proverbs 12:11 Whoever works his land will have plenty of bread, but he who follows worthless pursuits lacks sense.

 

Proverbs 21:25 The desire of the sluggard kills him, for his hands refuse to labor.

 

1 Corinthians 10:31 So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

 

1 Timothy 5:8 But if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.

 

Proverbs 13:4 The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing, while the soul of the diligent is richly supplied.

The Bible…how much, and why do you read it?

Did you know the Bible is the most popular book in the world? Even though it’s the most popular, I cann assure you that it’s the least read, and this is the thing that I just don’t understand. Not reading the Bible is like saying you’re going to cook something new without the recipie. It’s like going to a new destination without a map. It’s like trying to live a Spirit filled life without the Spirit. It just doesn’t work.

Is not my word like as a fire? saith the LORD; and like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces?- Jeremiah 23:29

What is needed for the cold spirit and the hard heart? A consuming fire and a hard-hitting hammer. And that is exactly what God says that his Word is.

Perhaps you have experienced the warming radiance and the resistance-shattering power of God’s Word. When it is preached, when it is read, when it is sung it is nothing less than the power of God unto salvation to everyone who believes.

Recognizing this kinetic energy that is contained in the pages of God’s Word, do you take full advantage of this spiritual weapon? Do you strap it on before every battle? Do you ignite your heart with it daily? Do you read it to your children? Do you share it with your friends? Is it your answer to life’s problems, your retreat when you are under attack, your offense against Satan‘s dominion?

When the Word of God comes with the Spirit of God to the hearts of God’s people, there is unspeakable, other-worldly power at work. It is an uncontrollable spiritual fire, it is a perfectly weighted hammer in the hand of the great Sculptor. May it defend you today, may it inspire you today, may it engulf you today, may it shape you today.

Are you more concerned about money, or your soul?`This is a great read I ran across.

Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also- Matthew 6:21

How you handle money reveals a lot about your spiritual condition. If your treasure is on earth and you are focused on accumulating more and more material things, it is evident there is a heart problem.

It is easy to be influenced by the world and therefore think like the world thinks. The prevalent attitude is, “this is my money, my house, my car; I can do with it what I please.” But you need to embrace a basic biblical truth and that is that God owns everything: “the earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof: the world, and they that dwell therein” (Psalm 24:1).

This truth should change your whole perspective. Everything that you have belongs to God and He is blessing you to enjoy it. In fact, if you are His child, you belong to him in a special way. Paul writes that you are not your own for you are bought with a price. Our body belongs to the Lord. Our mind belongs to Him, our time belongs to him, and certainly all that we possess really belongs to him.

While in most cases it is through work that we receive what we need to sustain us, it is God who gives us the power to get wealth. So as he provides a job and gives you the mind and body capable of doing what is required on the job, you must give thanks for what he has provided. You then should be a faithful steward of all with which you have been entrusted.

If you are a good steward, you will not live above your means, incur debts you cannot pay, or waste the resources you have been blessed to accumulate. Recognizing your role as a steward — a manager of what God has given you — will not deprive you of liberty, but will keep you from being enslaved by the love of money. If fact you will become a generous giver and find a great joy in knowing that God loves a cheerful giver.

A great look at unhappy people

When many people are asked what they want most in life, their response is usually, “I just want to be happy.” Clearly, the Bible deals a lot with the subject of happiness, and many portions of Scripture speak of joy, rejoicing, blessedness etc. Needless to say, God has a plan for happiness and most unhappiness comes from violation of the plan. Please read Rom.12:9-21; Eph. 4:30-5:20 and Psalm 1:1-6. There are hundreds of other good texts but these will suffice. The major cause of unhappiness is the violation of Biblical principles. Here are some of the major causes of unhappiness I have discovered over the years.

1. Half-hearted Christian living.
   Luke 22:54-62
2. Hidden forbidden pleasures.
   (secret sins) Col. 3:5-10; 2Pet. 2:9-14
3. Habits that hold in bondage.
   1 Cor. 6:9-12; 1Cor. 6:12; 1Pet. 4:1-5
4. Harbored bad feelings.
   2Cor. 12:19-21 Things such as envy, pride, jealously and bitterness.
5. Hostile heart.
   James 3:14-18 ; Eph 4:31-32
6. Hindered prayers.
   1 Pet. 3:7; 2 Cor. 2:10-11
7. Headstrong temperament.
   Jude 8 ; Heb.13:7,17, 24. Any rebellion against authority ordained by God, such as parents, government, teachers, and yes, even against the Man of God, will eventually result in unhappiness. (Read Heb. 13:17 again).
8. Hypocritical life.
   Matt. 23:27,28 and Matt. 13:18-23 Hypocrites cannot stay happy long. They hop in and out of seemingly every Church in town and eventually drop out altogether. I meet them all the time and they are some of the most unhappy and bitter people I have ever known.
9. Headed the wrong direction in life leads to unhappiness.
   Both Saved and lost alike are in this group. A Lost person headed for hell cannot be happy, and a saved person headed into a world of sin cannot be happy. A person that can be happy in sin is not saved. See Heb. 12:3-8

Ask yourself this question: “Am I really happy or just faking it in life?” If you answer is “No”, check your heart against the points I gave above and your may find your answer to personal happiness in life.

Weeding it out

Christians need to look out for eah other-helping those who are feeling weak and guiding those who are heading in the wrong direction. This will guard against “any root of bitterness” that might pop up in the fellowship of believers. This phrase can refer to the bitterness of unbelief that can poison a church and the bitterness between people that can poison relationships.

Once bitterness is planted, it tends to spread like wildfire and almost always causes some sort of trouble. A bitterness that takes root in our lives, and pop up in our actions and words that can’t be taken back or undone. We can avoid the root of bitterness by dealing with our feelings as soon as they hit us. When hurt or doubt are allowed to remain in our lives, they provide nice and rich soil for the root of anger, and bitterness. With God‘s help, we can keep that root from having a place to grow, and if it’s already taken root, to be weeded out. Now put on those gloves, and let’s go weeding.

As always, I’ve provided some scripture to not only support what we’re praying about today, but to also help us if we’re experiencing bitterness in our lives.

Ephesians 4:31-32 Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.

Proverbs 15:1 A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.

Proverbs 20:22 Do not say, “I will repay evil”; wait for the Lord, and he will deliver you.

Ephesians 4:31 Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice.

Matthew 6:14-15 For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

James 1:19-20 Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.

Hebrews 12:15 See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no “root of bitterness” springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled;

The perfect post on what fear really is

The post below is written by a Facebook friend of mine, the Praying Medic. How aweome is this?

 

I receive a lot of prayer requests from friends who admit, ‘I’m worried’, ‘I’m afraid’ or ‘I’m fearful.’

I was asking the Holy Spirit about this yesterday. ‘Where does fear come from and how do we deal with it?’

He said ‘fear is a spirit’. And it is not from God. It’s from the enemy.

There is a spirit called fear. “We have not received the spirit of fear, but the spirit of peace, love and a sound mind.’

There is a spirit that causes fear and when you feel fearful, it’s because this spirit is controlling your thoughts and actions.

I’ve come under this spirit’s influence a lot. I’m not throwing stones at anyone. It affects all of of us at some time.

Imagine our mind is a car…

When we allow our mind to think about God, we allow the spirit of peace, love and a sound mind to take the keys to the car and steer our thoughts.

When we think of financial troubles, sickness, death, or anything we fear – we give the spirit of fear the keys to the car and it will drive us wherever it wants.

Fear is a spirit and it’s our response when our mind is being driven by the wrong spirit.

Take the keys to your thought life back and hand them back to the Holy Spirit. Don’t allow the spirit of fear to dominate you any longer.

Mental illness. It’s real, and needs to be addressed. A Godly look at this taboo subject.

Today I got an email from Pastor Rick Warren of Saddlebck Church, and the purpose driven life. He let us know that His son, Matthew, age 27, took his own life. It absolutely breaks my heart to see something like this happen. It pains me to see people who are victims of mental illness and depression go through what must be torture as they face their daily lives. It’s more common than you think, and believe me when I tell you that it’s a very taboo subject within the Christian realm.

I once talked to a Christian professional in the medical field and asked her if mental illness was a demonic thing, or a “real” illness. She explained it like this, “It can be both, but most people don’t want to think that it can be physical because they don’t understand what mental illness is in most cases.” She went on to explain that most cases of a mental disease are a result of chemical imbalances in the brain, and can be treated just as easily and appropriately as diabetis. So why then are we so afraid to talk about and deal more with people who are struggling with this affliction within the church?

I suppose that when we see someone who is suffering with a mental disorder, we may see our own weaknesses and want to shy away from them. Some people will actually go so far as to believe that the disease is a punishment for some sin the person committed. While others may believe that it’s a matter of demonic possession. The fact i, it could be any of these. But like the Bible says so often, we’re not to judge on the why’s, but we should instead focus on what we can do to help.

If you take a short look around you, I can almost assure you that you will see someone who is suffering from some form of mental illness. Don’t avoid them, pray for them. Be with them. Love them where they’re at. In many cases this is what they’re seeking more than anything. Just like Jesus as who so often went directly to the sick and lame to heal them, we should be spiritually drawn to those who suffer.

If you think you may suffer from depression or something else, I urge you to pray on it. Seek help. Don’t allow it to get to the point where you consider taking the precious life that God created, and that Jesus died for. If you know of someone who is in pain, be right next to them as they walk a very rocky path. Fair warning…walking this path with them is not easy, and it requires dedication, but it’s a must thing to do. It’s the Christlike thing to dToday I pray for all of those who are suffering on the inside. I pray for Pastor Rick Warren and all the others who have lost loved one to mental illness. I pray that we will one day be more bold in our approach to this taboo subject and be more proactive in helping others through the miracles of Jesus and prayer. Today I am broken hearted knowing how many suffer from a horrible anguish and ask that you do the same.

Psalm 103:1-22 Of David. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. …

 

Mental Illness in the Bible – you’re not alone.

Old Testament
A punishment for violating the covenant (Deuteronomy 28:28)
Feigned by David to escape capture (1 Samuel 21:13-15)
Prophets servant is thought mad (2 Kings 9:11)
Madness compared to foolish behavior (Proverbs 26:18)
Madness is the opposite of wisdom (Ecclesiastes 1:17; 7:7)
Nebuchadnezzar’s punishment (Daniel 4:32-34)

New Testament
Jesus is thought to be insane by His family (Mark 3:21; John 10:20)
Jesus heals a lunatic (Matthew 17:15)
Festus suggests that Paul is mad (Acts 26:24-25)
Believers could be thought to be mad (1 Corinthians 14:23)
Paul’s ideas so extreme as to be thought insane (2 Corinthians 11:23)