21 Day Break

Those of you who follow this blog has probably noticed that I have not been as consistent as I once was. I want to apologize to you for that. I intended this blog to be a resource for people who needed some direction, encouragment, and insight. I have not been faithful and I am sorry. I never want to come to this computer and just say something. I want to speak the heart of God each time. So, as part of my fast this year, I will be taking a 21 day break from blogging. I will be spending my time away from the internet and t.v. to spend more time with God. I pray that God will refresh me in all areas of my life and ministry, including this blog. During this time away, I will be praying for those who follow this page. I pray that God will do a work in all of our lives. We are living in some strange times and I feel as if the church needs to pray like never before. God bless and I'll see you in 21 days.

Loving This Time of Year

Spring has sprung! I love this time of year. Well most of the time. I love playing golf, basketball, wearing shorts, cooking out, swimming, and all of the fun stuff. I could, however, do without cutting the grass and just about any kind of work that has to be done. LOL! Seriously though, this is a great time to be alive. Easter is in just a few weeks and that is a big time for pastors and the church that they serve in. This is the time of year where we have an opportunity to speak to those who only come in during the "special" seasons. I pray that God will give a powerful message to each servant who takes the pulpit this Easter season. Also, my kids are getting older and they have a blast playing outside. I love to watch my oldest play baseball. My youngest already enjoys swinging a golf club. This is going to be a great spring/summer. What do you enjoy about this time of year? Get out and enjoy this wonderful season that God created for you. God bless

Why do you do what you do?

This question is for those of us who profess to have a relationship with Christ. Why do you go to church? Why do we pray or read our Bibles? Why do we help others? I found a verse in the Bible yesterday that caused me to spend some time in prayer over these same questions. The Bible says in 2 Chronicles 25:2 that Amaziah "did what was right in the sight of the LORD, but not with a perfect heart." In other words, he did the things that God required or would have wanted him to do, but all along his heart was wrong. He was doing these things with the wrong motives. Eventually his heart won out. After God helps him win a great victory over his enemies, he sets up idols to worship. This story reminded me of Matthew 7:21-23. In these verses, Jesus tells us that not everyone who comes before Him on that day calling Him Lord will enter into His presence. He tells us that there will be some who claim to have done His work yet He will not let them in. His response to them is that He never knew them. I have always read this word with a little fear if I may be honest with you. Even Paul said that he did not want to run this race showing others the way and then find himself to be disqualified at the end. I believe what Jesus is telling us in these verses is the same that we find in the life of Amaziah. We may at times be doing the things of God, yet not have a heart for God. The bottom line is that it is not the works but the condition of our heart. Where is your heart today? Have you and I given our hearts totally to Him, or are we holding part of it for ourselves? Let us be certain to give it all away today. God bless.

Perfect Conditions

Some of us wait on everything to be exactly perfect before we do anything. However, Ecclesiastes 11:4 says, "He that observes the wind shall not sow; and he that regards the clouds shall not reap." What Solomon is saying is, there is never going to be a perfect situation to do what God has called us to do. There will always be some opposition. There will always be something to cause us to want to wait or to doubt. We have to trust in God and go forward. I spoke with a lady from a local church here in Rock Hill this week about building in these tough economic times. She told me that her church had bought property several years ago and had actually sold the building they were worshipping in in anticipation of building on their newly aquired property. Then the economy bottomed out. So now they are worshipping in a rented location waiting for the "right" time. In talking to her I was reminded of our situation this time last year. We had to decide to go forward or wait and we decided to trust in what we felt the Lord telling us to do, so we built. We had been attempting to do something for several years and now things were finally coming together right when things around us were falling apart. However, we were able to get a loan with an excellent rate when banks were not lending to churches to build and we were able to have alot of things and time donated. My point is, when it is God's time, go for it. It may not seem like everything around you is going right, but if everything in you is, follow God. We the church must put our faith, not in the world around us, but in the God that we serve. God will do great things in those that trust Him. God bless

Feeling Nostalgic

I don't know exactly why, but here lately I have been looking back with great joy on the years gone by. I grew up in what would be considered a classical Pentecostal church. For those of you who don't understand what that means, let me help you. We sung out ouf the "old redback". Songs like "Victory in Jesus", "He Set Me Free", "Heaven's Jubilee", and "On the Battlefield." The ladies had hair that stood tall to heaven and the men were respectful and reverant. The worship was free and yet in order. They knew the presence of the Lord when it manifested and they were not afraid to celebrate Him. I miss those days. It seems that these days church is all about the entertainment. Sunday's have become nothing more than our day to show up and show off. While some go overboard, others don't even act like they want to be at church. Oh Lord send the Power just now!!! We need a move of God in a bad way. We need Him to show us the way back to Him. I don't believe that we need to go back to a certain way of dress or a certain style of music, but I do believe we need to go back to holiness. I believe that we need to get real with God and give our lives away to Him again. Oh how I long for a powerful move of the Holy Ghost in our church. I long for sinners to be convicted and saints to be reminded. Oh Lord send the Power just now!!!

Real Fellowship

Last night at church, we talked about "real" fellowship. The Bible teaches us that we are to be one body working together for His glory. The problem is, that so many of us attend churches that have a type of fellowship, but not real fellowship. Real fellowship is defined by four things. First, real fellowship is defined by authenticity. Authenticity means that you are genuine. That there is nothing fake about you and your relationship with Christ. There should be no put-ons in the church. One of the things that we hear people say about church and church people, is that we are hypocrites. The way to change that is to become genuine. Second, real fellowship is defined by mutuality. Mutuality means that we have all things in common. That we are more committed to giving to the needs of others than we are focused on our on personal needs. It means that we are here for each other. Third, real fellowship is defined by sympathy. We, like Chirst, are to be moved by compassion. Paul tells us in Colossians chapter 3, that we are to put on a heart of compassion. We are to care about others and bear there burdens and problems. Lastly, real fellowship is defined by mercy. We are to forgive those who have sinned and those who have hurt us. We are supposed to show mercy to those who have fallen rather than criticize them and push them out of our "groups". These are the same things that defined the ministry of Jesus and should define our ministries as well. If the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ would come together as one body, His blessings would flow through us and much could be accomplished. The church house should be a place where all feel welcome. God bless and have a great day.

I'm Back

My family and I just returned from a much needed break. We have been going hard since this time last year when we started the construction of our new facilities and it was so nice for me to get some alone time with my wife and kids. Nathan and I was able to get away by ourselves and have some dad and some time in the pool and on the mini-golf course. It snowed about 8 inches on tuesday and it was a beautiful sight. This time away allowed me to spend time in prayer and refocus. It refreshed me and has in a sense re-energized me. It reminded me how important it is for all of us to get away with God from time to time. We don't realize how the daily activities of day to day life can wear us down. I encourage you to do the same. You may not be able to get out of town, but you can block off a day for God. Begin by not making plans one saturday and just spend the day in prayer and Scripture. Learn again how to hear His voice while tuning out the chaos around you. This will do wonders for your faith. God bless and have a great day.