When You Fall, Get Back Up

A few years back, there was a very popular song released by gospel artist Donnie McClurkin titled We Fall Down. The song talked about "how saints are just sinners who fell down and got up". That song was, and still remains, an inspiration for myself and many other Christians around the world.

When one accepts Jesus Christ as their savior, it is with an acknowledgment that they are indeed in sin. By accepting Christ, they also accept the gift that came from His crucifixion...eternal salvation from sin. This doesn't mean that the person won't sin again...in fact, they will very likely "fall down" many more times. But via confession and repentance for that sin, along with prayer a believer is able to get back up on their feet. The Spirit will provide that person with the power to continue going on, to stay in close relationship with God, and eventually the person will say no to obvious sin in their lives.

As a Christian, it is essential to get back up if you should fall, for "thanks be to God...He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ". (1 Corinthians 15:57) He also promises that if we do not" become weary in doing good", we will "at the proper time...reap a harvest if we do not give up". (Galatians 6:9)

Word of Faith-True Prosperity?

There is a very large movement in Christianity these days that is known as Word of Faith or Word-Faith The concept is very simple-you can, through faith, have anything you want...good health, wealth, etc. Adherents believe that you can create the things you desire by simply speaking it...and believing in your mind ("faith") that it will be done. So, if you want that new Mercedes, all you have to do is "name it and claim it"! Then God, like some powerful genie in the sky, will grant you your wish because-you believed He would! Many of the largest or most popular churches in this country today subscribe to this doctrine. It is not uncommon to have folks shouting in the aisles in anticipation of all the things they are going to receive just because they (a) believe and (b) sow "good" seeds into the ministry (i.e. giving above and beyond their tithes, giving a certain dollar amount to some "special fund, etc.) But is that God's true nature?

The answer, simply put, would be an emphatic NO! Please don't get me wrong, God does desire that we should all live victoriously. However, living victoriously does not always mean having lots of money, fancy cars, perfect health, and the like. It means using the concepts of righteous living as given in the Bible to endure in whatever situation we may find ourselves in. Being a Christian does not give us a pass from the storms of life...but strength to ride out those storms.

Some of the greatest persons of faith in the Bible were those who suffered the most. Their faith led them to go out and do what God commanded them to do-even at the risk of their lives. The prophets of the Old Testament are shining examples of this. These men, several of whom either spent years warning of God's impending judgement of the Jewish people, or either lived in the captivity that was a result of this judgement, did their duty despite the numerous threats they faced. The Disciples of Christ in the New Testament faced this very same danger. Even Jesus Christ, the Son of God, endured suffering in bringing the Gospel message to the world. Yet those who subscribe to the Word of Faith doctrine will tell you suffering is "unnatural", that it is a result of "not having enough faith", etc. They'll also tell you that Christ dying on the Cross was not atonement for our sins, but that we might "live in abundance" and have all our wants given to us by simply ASKING.

This is a very dangerous road to travel for a Christian. By doing so, we can marginalize the work of Christ on the Cross. We can start to see God as a fairy godfather who grants us our wishes. When those wishes aren't granted, we can start to doubt both Him and ourselves, rather than accepting "no" as being part of His higher will for our lives. And this ultimately can drive us right back into the clutches of the enemy, who feeds and thrives off of that doubt.

But by reading and studying TRUE faith as presented in the Bible, we can gain a better understanding of how faith works in our lives. God's Word presents a balanced view of how faith can sustain us through the most trying of times, while also serving as a witness to others around us. Faith is not magic wand, but a cup from which God serves us the tools for overcoming the stings of life!

5 Reasons to Trust God

Why should we trust God? Why should we listen to what He says? What evidence do we have that following His ways will lead us to a better place?

By God's very nature, He cannot lie. He will always tell us the truth, whether it be good OR bad. In that sense, we can trust that HIS blueprint for life, as laid out in the Bible, is one that will work out for us in the end.

Here are 5 reasons we can trust in Him:

(1)He cares about us and our well-being

Give all your worries and cares to God,
for he cares about you. (I Peter 5:7)

(2)He protects us in times of trouble

The LORD is good.
He protects those who trust him
in times of trouble. (Nahum 1:7)

(3)He wants us to have everything we need

Teach those who are rich in this world not to be proud and not to trust in their money, which is so unreliable. Their trust should be in God, who richly gives us all we need for our enjoyment. (1 Timothy 6:17)


(4) He wants us to succeed

Commit everything you do to the Lord.
Trust him, and he will help you. (Psalm 37:5)

(5) He helps us overcome fear

So we can say with confidence,
“The Lord is my helper,
so I will have no fear.
What can mere people do to me?”(Hebrews 13:6)

The Bible is full of many more examples of reasons we can trust in Him. I can certainly confirm-when we follow Him, life works, despite everything. When we don't...we make it much harder on ourselves. There really is no substitute for His way.

Daniel in the Lions' Den

This is one of the best known stories in the Bible. Daniel was a young Jewish man of nobility, taken away to Babylon after the Jewish people were invaded and captured in fifth and sixth century BC. Daniel was a devout man of great faith, who chose to follow the ways of God at the expense of angering the rulers of this land. Over the years, Daniel, because of his faith in God, was able to do things that others in his position could not. This led to him being given a high position in the Babylonian court. Daniel lived to a ripe old age, and saw a great deal of changes take place during his lifetime. However, he still remained faithful to his God.

This particular account (Daniel 6) describes how Daniel, after being found violating a decree by King Darius (who had taken over rulership after the Babylonian Empire was taken over by the Persians), was sentenced to be put in the lions' den. What was Daniel's crime? Praying to God. Several of the men of the court, being jealous of Daniel and his abilities, asked the King to decree that any man found praying to anyone other the king himself would be punished. They knew that Daniel made it a point to pray daily to God, and indeed, after the King signed this decree, they found Daniel engaging in his daily prayers. He was brought before the king, and charged with this "crime".

Darius knew nothing of this scheme to get Daniel of the way. Darius had himself seen examples of how God had moved in Daniel's life, particularly in providing him prophetic visions and explanations of these visions. Knowing that Daniel was an innocent and just man, he stressed about having to do this. Per tradition, however, he could not go back on his decree. He apologized to Daniel, but implored him to pray to his God that he might be saved.

The next morning, after a sleepless night, the king came to find out if God had indeed protected Daniel in the lions' den. Daniel called out to the king, and told him that God had sent an angel to close the mouth of the lions during the night. Darius was thrilled to hear that Daniel was safe. As punishment to those who had tried to sabotage and have Daniel killed, he decreed that THEY would be thrown to the lions, along with their families. He then issued this decree to those in his empire:

26 "I issue a decree that in every part of my kingdom people must fear and reverence the God of Daniel.
"For he is the living God
and he endures forever;
his kingdom will not be destroyed,
his dominion will never end.

27 He rescues and he saves;
he performs signs and wonders
in the heavens and on the earth.
He has rescued Daniel
from the power of the lions."

Though this story might seem harsh, it is actually a combination of two things:
(1) a graphic depiction of how faith in and devotion to God can save one from impending danger or disaster
(2) a warning to those who seek to destroy innocent people because of envy or jealousy

God, as has been shown in the Bible over and over, is a just Being. He cannot stand sin, and because of His nature, must judge it accordingly. If He didn't, He wouldn't be just. He also, because of this same nature, rewards those who are faithful and seek His will constantly. Unfortunately, we may not always see our accusers immediately "punished", as shown in this story, but we can be sure that God will do so, as He always does.

Our challenge, then, is to stay faithful and not sink to their level. Simply put, let God take care of those that accuse His people-we need not sin by trying to repay evil with evil. Allow God to do what He does best-and we will be blessed through our faith in Him!

Come As You Are

"Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”
-Matthew 11:28-30 (NKJV)

God calls to us no matter we are in our lives, and invites us to "come as we are". He specializes in taking those of us who are broken and making us whole again. During Jesus' ministry here on Earth, He made it a point to seek the poor, the sick and disabled, and especially the sinners. His point was to show that one could not reach "heaven" on good works, by being a "good" person, or through uninspired dependence on religion. He didn't tell them to "clean up" their lives first, and then He'd accept them. He simply said, "Come to Me, and I will show you the way".

God loves us, each and every one of us, more than we could possibly know. It's because of this love that He sent His son, Jesus, to bear the unbelievably crushing weight of the sins of the world at that point. Make no mistake, God could have ended everything right then and there, without blinking. But in His grace and overwhelming love for humanity, He instead gave His son as a sacrifice. That gift of love alone makes us clean in His eyes. And all it takes is simple acceptance of this gift-freely offered to each of us. Are you ready to accept the gift?

The Love We Seek

The idea for this week's message came about as I was talking to a friend who was lamenting the fact that she is single. I then thought about all the time,effort, (and in many cases, money) modern day singles spend "looking for love". Yet, even still, many of us still have this deep longing inside of us, even when we do find someone we like, when we get married, etc. There's nothing wrong with that longing-nothing at all. But that longing for love was NOT created to be exclusively filled by man. It was created to be filled by our relationship with God.

God created us to have fellowship with us. God designed us to fill a very special place in His kingdom-to Him, we were His crowning glory. He did not need us-He WANTED us. And because we were created by Him, we innately contain a longing for the meaning only HE can bring to our lives. When we accept Him into our hearts, and focus our efforts on building a strong relationship with Him, that empty space begins to be filled. We feel less sad, more hopeful, and delight in doing His will. Soon, we stop looking outward for love and validation-we begin to look inward AND upward!

This is an amazingly simple concept, but humans make it harder than it needs to be. The first step is merely acknowledging His love. Recognize that He really does love you. If He didn't, you'd be in much worse shape than you are right now. Ask Him to come into your life and your heart-and to make you over in His image.
The next step is beginning to immerse yourself in His instruction manual for humanity-The Bible. (It also helps if you have a good Bible study guide handy.) Pray for understanding and revelation as you read that day's verses. Ask God to make His word manifest in your spirit.
Third, find a Bible believing church. Pray for His guidance in helping you to find a congregation where you can be planted and best serve His purposes for your life.
And finally, seek opportunities to share this gift of love with those you come in contact with. You could even pray to God to SEND those opportunities your way daily. With more than six billion people in the world, and well over 300 million people here in the United States, there are MORE than enough folks that will respond to the the gift you have to share :)
And that's really all it takes. If you do your part, rest assured God will meet you and walk with you on your path!

"What is love? It is not that we loved God. It is that he loved us and sent his Son to give his life to pay for our sins.

Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we should also love one another. No one has ever seen God. But if we love one another, God lives in us. His love is made complete in us."
-I John 4:10-12

Acceptance

I have a very close friend who, for as long as I’ve known him, has tried very hard to be someone he’s not. He does this to impress and gain acceptance from a certain group of people. Unfortunately, the harder he tries, the more he is rejected by the very people he seeks to emulate. When he is rejected, he gets upset and lashes out. But he’d do well to remember that as long as he seeks approval from man, he will never be happy.

Trying to gain acceptance and approval from everyone is like trying to catch the wind. It’s hard to do, and you’ll never be able to do it completely. But there is One who offers complete acceptance. Jesus Christ invites you to come as you are, without putting on airs or a front. And once you’ve made His acquaintance, He’s a friend for life. All you have to do is accept Him into your life...once you invite Him, He'll answer the call. Friendship with Him is like having the best friend ever-He's always there when you need Him. Wouldn't you like to have a friend like Him?