Is Our Testimony Falling on Deaf Ears?
The feeders outside my windows are getting their fill. Father, may I be filled and directed by You in my endeavors, both now and throughout my day. Amen.
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I recently was part of a conversation where I was reminded of a life-impacting incident that took place a while back. It is disheartening, to say the least.
Person “A” was greatly impacted, spiritually, by a relationship with Person “B”. “B” was very vocal about their relationship with Christ and never passed up an opportunity to interject opinions and thoughts (nothing wrong there). “B” was someone that “A” looked up to. “A” had even started attending church with “B,” and their families had grown close because of their relationship.
In their time together, “A” began to notice some disturbing things in “B”’s life – “B” often spoke in disparaging terms about others behind their backs. One time, “A” was privy to a conversation that “B” had with someone else where “B” very clearly – and strongly – advised the third party to out-and-out lie. Red flags were going up.
An additional major incident totally disconnected them…and disappointingly, it pretty much disconnected “A” from the church as well.
I’m going to be pretty blunt here. If you struggle in living out your Christianity and yet continue to rail on everyone and everything that is subpar spiritually, then maybe you had best should hold your tongue! I genuinely believe that “A” still highly regards Christ in life, but regular church attendance doesn’t really factor into it. (I do want to stress here that though it may be a challenge, we must fix our eyes on Jesus and not people. “A” wanted me to make sure this was clear. They are still struggling with the impact of the situation, but realize the need to move beyond it, taking their eyes off the problem and placing them on the Answer, for only Jesus can fix a good many of our problems.)
Just because we tout Christ and His many awesome attributes, it doesn’t cover up the disparaging things we do in opposition to His mindsets and goals for our lives. Actions truly speak louder than words. If we struggle in those areas and don’t really do anything to correct them, if we continue in those ways of living, if we never ask for forgiveness of our fellow men and women when we are out of line, then we are being hypocrites through and through. And a hypocrite’s testimony, no matter how loud, falls on deaf ears.
I have stressed multiple times that I am in no way perfect. I struggle. I stumble. I flat out fall on my face. But I put great effort into not saying something I shouldn’t say. I diligently strive not to drag Christ’s name through the mud. To a certain degree, it may be part of my personality, but it is imperative that I live out what I preach – and not just from the pulpit.
Lord Jesus, You know us through and through. You readily realize that a portion of the hymn O Worship the King’s text very aptly applies to us all: Frail children of dust, and feeble as frail…May we find our strength in You, not in ourselves. May we regularly fall at Your feet, asking for forgiveness. May we strive to be transparent to those who are watching us. May You be seen in us above all other things. Amen.
I have been crucified with Christ [that is, in Him I have shared His crucifixion]; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body I live by faith [by adhering to, relying on, and completely trusting] in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me. Galatians 2:20 AMP
Dec 6th, 2023, Wed, 12:36 pm
If You’re Looking for a “Catch” – It’s Surrender
I am grateful, Father, for Your many blessings! May our time together be fruitful!
1 Corinthians 12:7-11 (<<click here to read the passage)
As I sit to write, I decided to see what, if anything, I have written regarding the topic of “spiritual gifts” found in these verses. I came across four posts of substance on the subject.
1. No Girls Allowed! – which looks at spiritual gifts as they relate to the ministry of women in the church
2. Think Outside the Walls – which addresses the idea that spiritual gifts can be used to impact more than just those in the church
3. Integral Parts of the Whole – includes recourses for discovering the gifts you may have and might even realize!
And then yesterday,
4. Are We on the Same Page? – which addresses the equality and unity found in the Church of Christ, i.e., the body of Christ
Here is today’s passage from the Amplified Bible.
But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit [the spiritual illumination and the enabling of the Holy Spirit] for the common good. To one is given through the [Holy] Spirit [the power to speak] the message of wisdom, and to another [the power to express] the word of knowledge and understanding according to the same Spirit; to another [wonder-working] faith [is given] by the same [Holy] Spirit, and to another the [extraordinary] gifts of healings by the one Spirit; and to another the working of miracles, and to another prophecy [foretelling the future, speaking a new message from God to the people], and to another discernment of spirits [the ability to distinguish sound, godly doctrine from the deceptive doctrine of man-made religions and cults], to another various kinds of [unknown] tongues, and to another interpretation of tongues. All these things [the gifts, the achievements, the abilities, the empowering] are brought about by one and the same [Holy] Spirit, distributing to each one individually just as He chooses.
There are so many wonderful things to be found in surrendering our lives to Jesus. But if we are looking for a “catch,” there it is. If we insist on being in charge of our lives, nothing will truly be as it should be. Surrender is just that…surrender.
We have it in our heads that surrender is bad, and from a worldly standpoint, it certainly can be. But we are not talking of the world. We are talking about God, His Kingdom, and our part in it.
Every one of us was created by our awesome Creator God. We were made for a reason, and the only way to fully become what we were made to be is to yield ourselves to Him – He who knows us best and loves us most.
It has crossed my mind many times, and honestly, I am still striving for it; what would my life be like if I did, on every front, totally yield my life to Him? It can be done, but for many of us, it is a process. I don’t know about you, but I’m not giving up!
Run [your race] in such a way that you may seize the prize and make it yours! 1 Corinthians 9:24b AMP
Are We on the Same Page?
There are many things on my mind at the moment, Father. Help me to set aside the ones that would detract me from You. Amen.
1 Corinthians 12:1-6 (<<click here to read the passage)
It makes no difference where we find ourselves, in a workplace, a classroom, a church, a sports team, etc., if we are not synced together, chaos will rule, or some individuals will hold sway over the entire company of participants.
Yes, there are environments where boss and employee or coach and player setups are core to how things work – and work successfully. But even there, it’s easy to become biased towards those who hold themselves superior to the rest, resulting in dissension and disgruntled mental states. If that occurs, things begin to unravel, or at least portions of the workforce or team leave, and new, more pliable recruits are sought to fill the gaps.
So…what about the church? Often, it works the same way. Pastors or other charismatic leaders control all aspects of one particular body of believers. Some churches have found great success in following these lines of thought but read verses 4-6 from today’s passage as found in the Amplified Bible and see what it says.
Now there are [distinctive] varieties of spiritual gifts [special abilities given by the grace and extraordinary power of the Holy Spirit operating in believers], but it is the same Spirit [who grants them and empowers believers]. And there are [distinctive] varieties of ministries and service, but it is the same Lord [who is served]. And there are [distinctive] ways of working [to accomplish things], but it is the same God who produces all things in all believers [inspiring, energizing, and empowering them].
In those three verses, the word “same” is used three times – “same Spirit,” “same Lord,” and “same God.” None of those phrases speaks of the same man, woman, or child. God alone stands at the core of what should happen in His body.
This whole grouping of verses deals with spiritual gifts.
Every child of God is endowed with one or more of these gifts (which we will delve into later). There is not one of them that is a “Hey, look at me! I got the best gift of all” gift. There is not one of them that has the right – or the option, for that matter – to pronounce any other gift inferior to theirs. We are all given special abilities…by the grace and extraordinary power of the Holy Spirit, and they empower us as believers! God is the One who produces all things in all believers [inspiring, energizing, and empowering them].
A twist on the old adage goes, “There is no me in the Body of Christ!” It is all about God, and we humbly serve and are motivated to work in conjunction with each other, with no attempts to outdo each other. Lord Jesus, may it be so!
Dec 4th, 2023, Mon, 6:52 pm
Why Is Communion So Important?
I enjoyed our services today, Father. I hope and pray that our people did as well. Move us all in the direction of Your choosing. May we listen and obey. Amen.
1 Corinthians 11:27-34 (<<click here to read the passage)
In my latter years, I have listened to (via the Bible on CD) and read through the New Testament several times. (A 40-minute commute for 18 years helped immensely with the listening part!) Doing things that way gave me a wonderful oversight of Scripture. (I also listened to and read through the Old Testament numerous times. I started tracking my progress beginning in 2008.)
When I started journaling back in 2015 – which eventually transitioned into posts for my blog – my mindset changed, and instead of seeking an all-inclusive overview of God’s word – again, it was very beneficial – I started digging. I deliberately took my time. I’ve said some of these things before but wanted to stress them again because as I have been working through 1 Corinthians, I have found it to be taxing…and not necessarily in a bad way.
In writing this particular letter (epistle) to the church in Corinth, the Apostle Paul is setting them back in line with what the Lord desired of them. They lived in a very corrupt culture, and quite a bit of correction was needed. Again, it was a necessity, but I feel like my digging has yielded a great deal of corrective dialogue on my part, as well. Hence, the occasional posts when I step outside the ongoing Biblical exposition. But it is essential for me and those who choose to read what the Lord lays upon my heart.
The latter verses in the 11th chapter of 1 Corinthians continue Paul’s discourse on the particulars of our observations of the Lord’s Supper – Communion.
In today’s verses, he speaks of making sure that we are not partaking of the bread and the cup in an unworthy manner. We must not take part in it lightly or without considering its importance. It may be easy to think that because we have sinned, we should not take part – if that were the case, very few of us would take part. A sentence in my Life Application Study Bible communicates an important truth, “Awareness of your sin should not keep you away from Communion but drive you to participate in it.”
Thinking along these lines got me thinking about John Wesley’s views of the utmost importance regarding Communion. In an article entitled: A Wesleyan Practice of Holy Communion, I found this,
John Wesley believed the Lord’s Supper to be “the grand channel whereby the grace of his Spirit was conveyed to the souls of all the children of God” (Sermon 26: “Upon Our Lord’s Sermon on the Mount VI”, §III.11).*
To maintain physical health, we must regularly ingest food that feeds our body, not just fills it. When we partake in the Lord’s Supper, we are ingesting the body and blood of Jesus, as such, whereby we are filled with the grace of the Holy Spirit. We are nourished by the practice of Communion to grow in Him, to be drawn to Him, to be more like Him each and every day. It both feeds and fills us! May we never, ever take it lightly. Amen.
Dec 3rd, 2023, Sun, 7:37 pm
Can’t Hold a Candle to Him
Thank You, Father, for a little bit of breathing room. Just having the ability to catch up on a few things was refreshing!
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I was watching a few reels on TikTok this morning while eating my breakfast, and one came up that I needed to share and write a little about. I’ll share the link at the bottom, but if you don’t care to watch it or can’t watch it, basically, it’s a dad sharing a story about his 18-month-old little girl. His wife is out for the evening, and it’s bedtime for the kids. The two older ones are down and out, but the youngest will have nothing to do with it. She’s crying, and nothing is consoling her. He tries the routine of letting her cry for a bit, then checking on her, then letting her cry for a while longer, then checking on her. An hour later, she’s still crying.
He decides that this approach isn’t working, so he gets her up, holds her with her head on his shoulder, and proceeds to get some things around that might help her settle down – a bottle, a bit of food, some toys – all the while traipsing around their brightly lit kitchen and living area. He finally sits down and says her name…but there is no response. She is sound asleep on his shoulder.
He goes on to say that so many times we, as parents – or teachers or friends of families with children, or bus drivers, for that matter – are trying to figure out what in the world kids are needing, when really, all they are wanting…is us. They need to feel held or feel comforted or feel special.
Okay, I need to flip this around. How often do we find ourselves in situations where we just need to feel held, comforted, or special? We seek that comfort in all kinds of places – relationships (be they family or at work), things, jobs, you name it. But do you know where we can get the ultimate comfort? Do you realize who knows that we are special? Do you understand that there is one Person who loves nothing more than to hold His dearly loved children?
Yes, our Heavenly Father is that Someone. No one else can hold a candle to Him. Who else knows us to our very core – before we were even born! – and still loves us? Who else is ready and available 24/7/365? No one but Him. We are so blessed, yet we often look right past Him to whatever else will fill that need in our lives. And far too often, other things just don’t hold up…they don’t hang in there with us. Time is fleeting. People may love us, but time has a way of separating us…but not God. Hang onto Him. Fall asleep on His shoulder. He doesn’t mind one bit…
See how very much our Father loves us, for he calls us his children, and that is what we are! But the people who belong to this world don’t recognize that we are God’s children because they don’t know him. 1 John 3:1 NLT
Nov 30th, 2023, Thurs, 1:18 pm
@dadchats Back to funny tomorrow i promise #parenting