Keep Your Focus

Posted on March 26, 2012 by jesustrek

Bob Russell

In his book When God Builds a Church, Bob Russell remembers a time when he visited a restaurant called The Pancake Factory. He says that the luncheon special that day was a grilled chicken sandwich with spicy Mexican sauce. He decided that the restaurant had lost their focus!

Sometimes an organization or business can lose sight of what they originally set out to achieve. The same can be true for a church.

Jesus sends us out into the world to make disciples. He says, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” (Matthew 28:19-20).

Make sure that you and your church keep the main thing the main thing. There are a lot of godly endeavors that a congregation can be involved in, but let us not lose our focus. Let us remember that, first and foremost, we are to make disciples.

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Best Not Served

Posted on March 22, 2012 by jesustrek

The newspaper ad read: “Wedding dress for sale. Never worn. Will trade for .38 caliber pistol.”

It is so tempting to want to get back at those who have harmed us. It’s human nature to desire revenge. After all, it’s only fair, right? That person deserves to know what it feels like to hurt so much!

That’s human nature, but it’s not the type of behavior God desires of us. Romans 12:19 says, “Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord.”

It is said, “Revenge is a dish best served cold.” Actually, it’s best not served at all.

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Making Music in Your Heart

Posted on March 21, 2012 by jesustrek

Earlier this week, I attended a Christian men’s meeting. We sang a few worship songs to begin the meeting. I was pleased that I knew the songs. Every song we sang was an old hymn that I had grown up with in my home church.

Sometimes I wish that I knew every song every Sunday as well as I know and love those old faithful hymns. Occasionally I wonder why we have to sing anything but my favorites! Then I remember that people don’t gather on Sunday morning to help me re-live the best moments of my childhood; they come to worship the Lord in spirit and in truth.

Ephesians 5:19-20 says, “Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

This verse lets us know that God appreciates a variety of music. It suggests that we ought to be flexible in the music we use in the church to worship God together.

Other Scriptures tell me that I shouldn’t demand to get my way. This biblical principle certainly applies to our attitude toward music. I have six days a week—and most of the day on Sunday—to listen to and sing along with any kind of music I choose. It would be quite selfish of me to demand to have my favorite music played and sung during the church service also.

Sometimes I have remind myself not to be selfish. How about you?

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Going Forward

Posted on March 20, 2012 by jesustrek

Charlie Wi

Charlie Wi had trouble making progress on the 5th hole at the Transitions Championship in Palm Harbor, Florida last Sunday. Three straight shots he took ricocheted off a tree and bounced behind him. Wi ended up on the practice range, where he said everyone just stopped and looked at him. He scored a 13 on the par-5 hole. In case you’re wondering, that’s an octuple-bogey.

We’re not supposed to go backwards. 1 Timothy 4:15 says, “Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress.”

Sometimes it’s difficult to move forward in life. We know that God expects us to mature in our faith. But we get stuck in habits and routines that keep us from progressing. If we aren’t careful, we could even find ourselves going backward.

Let’s keep swinging away. That’s what Charlie Wi did, and he eventually finished the course.

I’ll bet that clubhouse isn’t nearly as nice as ours will be.

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Messed Up Brackets

Posted on March 19, 2012 by jesustrek

Kyle O'Quinn

Kyle O’Quinn had 26 points and 14 rebounds Friday to lead his Norfolk State team to an unlikely victory over the second-seeded Missouri Tigers in the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament. After the game, O’Quinn exclaimed, “We messed up some brackets! We messed up some brackets! We even messed up my bracket.”

Sometimes we Christians get the feeling that victory is not likely. It seems that the odds are stacked against us. Abortion is still prevalent. Sexual immorality is becoming more accepted. Injustice can be seen all around us. When God’s name is heard, it is probably being used as a swear word.

However, we are not to despair. The Bible promises that our side will win. 1 Corinthians 15:57 says, “But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Don’t pick against Jesus. If you do, he’s going to mess up your bracket!

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Undivided Heart

Posted on March 15, 2012 by jesustrek

While attending the Kentucky high school boys state basketball tournament yesterday, I noticed a fan who obviously had some mixed feelings about who to cheer for in the upcoming game. I could tell because of the t-shirt she was wearing. She had taken a couple of different colored shirts–one from each school–cut them in half and sewn the halves together to make one hybrid shirt.

I thought about asking her about her situation. Did she have relatives at both schools? Did she graduate from one school, and now works at the other? Was there some other explanation for her divided allegiance?

Since I didn’t ask her, it will remain a mystery to me. She had a reason to root for both teams, and that’s all that matters.

Sometimes we Christians try to have one foot in the kingdom and the other foot in the world. God forbids this. Jesus says you can’t serve both God and Money (Matthew 6:24). The Lord wants us to choose whom we will serve (Joshua 24:15). A kingdom divided against itself can’t stand (Matthew 12:25); neither can an individual with mixed spiritual loyalties.

We should pray like David, “Teach me your way, O Lord, and I will walk in your truth; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name.”–Psalm 86:11.

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Everyone

Posted on March 14, 2012 by jesustrek

“The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.”—2 Peter 3:9.

God wants everyone to be saved. Everyone. That means those who don’t look or think or act or talk like we do. God wants to save people who have done terrible things. He wants to bless for all of eternity those who haven’t even thought about him in years.

Let’s bring it a little closer to home. God wants to save the cashier who rings up your groceries, the man who picks up your garbage and the waitress who refills your coffee. He wants to save your mailman, your next door neighbor, your child’s math teacher, and your nephew’s basketball coach.

Sometimes it’s good to be reminded who “everyone” is.

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Noisy Bunch

Posted on March 12, 2012 by jesustrek

A farmer was becoming quite annoyed at the constant noise from the frogs in the large pond beside his house. Every night they croaked on and on. Finally, he decided that he had heard enough. He went down to the local restaurant and made a deal with the owner. The farmer said he would supply him with 10 dozen frog legs each week for the rest of the summer.

The farmer was quite embarrassed when he came in to town the next week with only a half a dozen scrawny frog legs. He said to the restaurant owner, “It sure sounded like there were a lot more frogs out there!”

The Bible says “Do everything without complaining or arguing.”—Philippians 2:14.

Sometimes it seems like there are a lot of people out there sounding off, but usually it’s just a few who are making unpleasant noises. Most people understand that to have a lifestyle of complaining and arguing is just downright sinful.

We would do well to keep our own pond as quiet and peaceful as we can.

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Hands-On Sacrifice

Posted on March 9, 2012 by jesustrek

I’ve known for some time now that the book of Leviticus is important because it explains the system of animal sacrifice that God instituted to prepare his people for the arrival of Jesus. They came to know the importance of sacrifice. They understood that “…without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.” (Hebrews 9:22).

Recently I have become more aware of the personal involvement of the worshipers who are depicted in Leviticus. They did not simply bring an animal to the priest and stand back at a safe distance while the offering was being made. No, they had an important part in the sacrifice. Leviticus 3:2 says, “He is to lay his hand on the head of his offering and slaughter it…” This same instruction is repeated several times in chapters 3 and 4, as the various offerings are prescribed.

Maybe the reason God set up the animal sacrifices this way was to make us think about the fact that it was our sin that sent Jesus to the cross. Therefore, we had a hand in his death. Perhaps we should reflect on that as we take the elements of communion in our hands.

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Speech Says It All

Posted on March 7, 2012 by jesustrek

My wife Karen has a bit of a Southern accent. This never drew much attention until we moved to Indiana. There she met a friend who had four young boys. Karen occasionally accompanied them on vacation trips.

One trip took them to Dollywood. There they were welcomed by the recorded voice of Dolly Parton herself. After listening to her for a bit, the youngest boy suddenly exclaimed, “She talks just like Karen!”

As he disowned Jesus, Peter claimed to be someone other than who he was. Those who heard his claims replied, “…Surely you are one of them, for your accent gives you away.” (Matthew 26:73).

Usually, it’s not our accent that gives us away; it is the actual words that we speak.

We all make certain claims about who we are and what we believe. Sometimes our words don’t go along with those claims.

Let us make every effort to live consistently. Words matter. Use them carefully.

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