Are We Too Rich?

In Matthew chapter 19, the Bible tells us of a conversation between Jesus and a young man known only as a rich young ruler. All we know about this man is that he had "great" posessions and that he cared more for those things than he did God's Kingdom. He ask Jesus the question, "what must I do to get in?" Jesus responds, "follow the commandments." The rich young man says that he had already done those things at which Jesus responds and tells him to give everything he has away to the poor and follow Him. This caused the young man to be troubled and he walked away from Jesus. Some of us will read this passage in Matthew and feel like it doesn't apply to us because we are not rich. I beg to differ. You and I may not have financial prosperity, but we are all rich in something. The problem with the rich young man is that he could not give his life away. He could go through the motions of what it was to serve God, but he could not sell out. Some of us have too many things in our lives that are keeping us from being "sold out." Our job is too important for us to live too holy in the work place. Our friends mean so much too us that we don't want to cause friction with them by telling them about Jesus. Our hobbies are too much a part of our lives that we can't give them up for more time with the Father. Being sold out is not just a cool church song or a statment we can make with our lips. It is a lifestyle that Jesus has called us into. Don't make the mistake today of being "too rich for Heaven." God bless

Saturated Life

The word saturated means to be full and unable to absorb any more. I believe that is the life that God intends for us to live. The Bible says in Ephesians 5:18 that we are to be "filled with the Spirit." We should seek to be full of His presence in our lives. If we are full of Him, then there is no room left in us for the influences of the enemy. Galatians 5:25 says, "If we live in the Spirit, let us walk in the Spirit." What this verse tells us is that if we are going to profess a Christian life then we are to live accordingly. As Christians, we profess to be influenced by the Holy Spirit. If that is our profession then let us live it out. We are to bear the fruit of the Spirit and minister in the gifts fo the Spirit. The only way to do this is to be fully connected to Christ. John chapter 15 tells us that He is the vine that we are to be connected to and that we recieve the ability to produce based on that connection. My prayer today is that we be fully connected to Christ and saturated by His Spirit. God bless

The Lost Disciplines

We have spent the last four Wednesday nights dealing with spiritual disciplines and how they will feed our hunger for the Lord. I believe that in some ways these disciplines have been forgotten by the church and so we have lost the power of a close relationship with the Lord. The first discipline is meditation. God tells Joshua to meditate on His law day and night and that if he does his ways will prosper. David tells us in Psalms chapter 1 that the blessed man meditates on Gods word. Isaac was meditating in a field when God brought his bride to him. Meditation focuses our mind on the Lord. In a day when there are so many things to distract our minds, meditation gives us our focus back. The second discipline is prayer. Prayer is the means by which we communicate with God. Prayer is broken down into four parts: communion, petition, intercession, and thanksgiving. The third discipline is study. Paul tells Timothy to study so that he can learn how God wants him to live. Study renews our minds and gives us knowledge. Jesus tells us in John chapter 8 that knowledge of truth gives us freedom. The fourth discipline is fasting. Fasting brings our whole body into subjection. Paul said that he beat his body into a place of subjection so that he would not be disqualified from this race of faith. As a whole these disciplines will cause one to be focused on the Lord, to communicate with Him, to know what He expects of us, and to be in obedience to His commands. With this comes the power of God in ones life. I pray that we the church will once again turn our whole selves to the Lord. God bless

Here's What's Happening At Friendship

I wanted to post today and give a little insight to whats going on here at Friendship. God is doing some awesome things! We finished our new sanctuary last September and we are already pushing 80% capacity. We have seen lives saved in the altars which is the most important thing. We have taken in new members and started some new ministries giving more people an opportunity to serve. April 1st we will start our 21 day fast here at the church. We will be joining together for 21 days of fasting and prayer. April 24th we will be having our first "Saturday Night Experience." Once a month we will be having a saturday night service with a focus of worshipping God first and bringing the community together as our second focus. A very good friend of mine, George Tallmage, will be coming in that weekend to bring the message. The "SNE" will be a contemporary service with passionate worship. I firmly believe that God is wanting to do some great things through His Church. Notice that I said "through." If we will allow ourselves to be empty vessels that He can fill and use, I believe that He will do some awesome things. Keep us in prayer as we make every effort to follow the Lord. God bless

Holiness

First, I want to begin this morning by telling my oldest son Nathan happy birthday. Four years ago today, Shea and I were in the hospital enjoying our first morning with our first born. I can not describe to you the emotions of that moment when for the first time, I laid my eyes on my son. I love him, and I pray that daily I can be the father he needs me to be, and that he will always see Jesus through my life.
Now, what does the word "holiness" mean to you. I am a member of a Pentecostal denomination here in the U.S. that now spans the globe. Our movement was birthed on the doctrine of holiness. I have been raised in this belief, that we as followers of God should seek a holy lifestyle. I have heard this message preached all of my life. However, yesterday, I heard one of the most convicting messages about holiness that I have ever heard before in my life. It taught me things that I had never looked at before. It made me realize yet again that I have not arrived yet. That I am still not perfect and that there is much to be done in me. I am so glad for God's grace today. I am so thankful that He continues each day to work in me and to work out of me those things that would hinder my relationship with Him. The Bible says in Hebrews 12:14, that we should "follow peace with all men and holiness, without which no man will see the Lord." Are you pursuing a holy life today? Are you seeking Him in such a way that you are willing to lay things down that may grieve Him? Seek holiness today that you may see Him. God bless

What would we do without each other?

As I sit at my computer this morning, that is the question that is on my mind. So many people are trying to get by on their own. We can only make it so far by ourselves. We need each other. I know, and have no problem confessing, that others are strong where I am weak. There are things that I do well and I can help others in those areas, but there are areas where I have no idea what I am doing and I need someone to help. The ministry of the church will never succeed if we never let others get involved. Pastors, you must train those around you to do ministry. Don't be afraid that they will try and take your place. Its not yours anyway, it belongs to God. You are in the place that God appointed for you and if you stay obedient to Him, no matter what the enemy does or someone says, the gates of hell can't prevail against you. Also, don't be afraid to get involved with other churches and ministries. It is not about your church being the best, but about all of us fulfilling the Great Commission. As long as we divide up on Sunday's and do our own little things, we will never do the "BIG" things that God has called the Church to do. We can not succeed while divided, we must be in unity. Get out of you comfort zones today and let God expand your way of thinking so that we begin to think His thoughts. God bless

What Are We Chasing?

I sit down with an old friend this past weekend and spent some time talking about the Church. We talked about both the good and the bad that we see going on. One of the things that we both agreed concerned us was that some are chasing "cool" instead of Christ. I believe that we are in a season where some of the methods that we have been using in having "church" needs to be evaluated and possibly changed. Culture has changed but the Church seems to be stuck. Before you get all worked up, let me explain. The Message of the Church should never change. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is central to who we are and what we are called to do. There is no other name that men can call on and be saved. Also, we must continue to preach sanctification and a holy lifestyle. We must also preach and exhort the Church to seek the baptism of the Holy Ghost so that we may be empowered to reach the lost. These are things that cannot change, ever! However, there are some things that can. Music, for one, is changing. Every generation has a song to sing unto the Lord. I love the old hymns of the Church and still sing them, however, I love the new worship as well. If the song has the message of Jesus and His love and mercy for us, then sing it. Technology is bringing change to the Church. We can now use video intros and post live stream video's on the internet. These things are changing how "church" is done. My concern is that in developing new ways to reach the communities around us for Jesus, some have begun chasing "cool." For some it is important for them to be the most cutting edge, the most modern, or the most popular. If these are our motives for change, then our change is sin. Our motives should always be to glorify Him who has redeemed us and called us. It should never be about us. We must follow Him into what He wants the Church to be. We must allow Him to tell us how to do His work. Let us chase Christ and not the "cool." God bless