In Spiritual

I was recently in a Bible Study where they shared these emergency numbers.  I thought it was a great quick reference guide so I thought I would share them with you.

 FEED YOUR FAITH, AND DOUBT WILL STARVE TO DEATH

When...
You are sad, phone John 14
You have sinned, phone Psalm 51
You are facing danger, phone Psalm 91
People have failed you, phone Psalm 27
It feels as though God is far from you, phone Psalm 139
Your faith needs stimulation, phone Hebrews 11
You are alone and scared, phone Psalm 23
You are worried, phone Matthew 8:19-34
You are hurt and critical, phone 1 Corinthians 13
You wonder about Christianity, phone 2 Corinthians 5:15-18
You feel like an outcast, phone Romans 8:31-39
You are seeking peace, phone Matthew 11:25-30
It feels as if the world is bigger than God, phone Psalm 90
You need Christ like insurance, phone Romans 8:1-30
You are leaving home for a trip , phone Psalm 121
You are praying for yourself, phone Psalm 87
You require courage for a task, phone Joshua 1
Inflation's and investments are hogging your thoughts, phone Mark 10:17-31
You are depressive, phone Psalm 27
Your bank account is empty, phone Psalm 37
You lose faith in mankind, phone 1 Corinthians 13
It looks like people are unfriendly, phone John 15
You are losing hope, phone Psalm 126
You feel the world is small compared to you, phone Psalm 19
You want to carry fruit, phone John 15
Paul's secret for happiness, phone Colossians 3:12-17
With big opportunity/ discovery, phone Isaiah 55
To get along with other people, phone Romans 12

ALTERNATE NUMBERS
For dealing with fear, call Psalm 47
For security, call Psalm 121:3
For assurance, call Mark 8:35
For reassurance, call Psalm 145:18

ALL THESE NUMBERS ARE DIRECT.
NO OPERATOR ASSISTANCE IS NECESSARY.
ALL NUMBERS ARE AVAILABLE 24 HOURS A DAY.

At Ridgecrest and Glorieta, we host a significant number of senior adult groups each year. In addition, we also plan and host several of our own senior adult events. As a result, we have an opportunity to interact with a great number of senior adults and senior adult ministry leaders.

The following post was written by Ron Pratt. Ron is our national event planner and has more experience working with churches and helping them with their ministry they he sometimes cares to admit. I recently asked Ron to write an article on the changing face of senior adult ministry. The following is the first part of what he sent me.

If your ministry is working with senior adults, then I want to thank you for what you do. The most exciting days of senior adult ministry are yet ahead and I'm looking forward to them. I am one! And, so is my 84 year old mother who is very involved with a great group of senior adults in her church. Their Senior Adult ministry has made a world of difference in her life, especially since the passing away of my father just over two years ago.

Where to begin? As you are probably aware, today's senior adults bring incredible blessings and challenges to ministry. In a humorous way, I have always talked about senior adults in three different categories. There are the "go-go's", the "slow-go's" and the "no-go's".

There are those senior adults who are incredibly active, yet they have no desire to sit in a rocking chair or get on a bus for a long trip. They are physically active and want to do ministry that they can get involved in physically, spiritually and even financially. They are the "go-go's".

Next are the "slow-go's". These are the senior adults who can't wait to get on the bus, anywhere, anytime as long as they can play their card games, eat their home-made goodies and stop at some interesting points along the way. They love "going", just as long as someone else is driving or coordinating the trip and they have rest stops along the way.

Finally, the "no-go's" are those senior adults who are mostly (or totally) home-bound, yet want and need to stay connected to their friends and their church.

In future posts, Ron will share some strategies churches can use to reach each of these 3 groups. Please feel free to share your thoughts or comments with us here on the blog, or you can email Ron directly at ron.pratt@lifeway.com.

This past year, I attended a deacon's training meeting at my home church, LongHollow Baptist. To kick off the meeting, our pastor (David Landrith), spoke with us about leadership. In particular David focused on leadership lessons we could learn from the life of Nehemiah.

Personally, I love the book of Nehemiah. Over the past 6-8 years, I've often looked to Nehemiah for encouragement in dealing with challenges at work. He is a great example of staying focused on what he was called by God to do and not letting others distract him. Nehemiah was also a gifted leader and the following are the 7 qualities David shared with us. Then, to help personalize the exercise, I've added a question to each one for us to think about.

Seven Qualities of a Gifted Leader (Lessons on Leadership From Nehemiah)

1. Godliness - What am I doing to cultivate a heart for God?
2. Courage - Am I willing to make the hard decisions, no matter the cost to me?
3. Vision - Do I have a vision for where God wants me to lead my tribe?
4. Integrity - Do my actions line up with my stated beliefs?
5. Concentration - Can I stay focused on achieving the vision in spite of internal and external distractions?
6. Persistence - Am I willing to stay the course, or will I bail when it starts to get a little tough?
7. Solution Oriented - Am I more focused on coming up with solutions to problems, or placing blame?

Whether it's in your home, at church or at work, being a leader is not easy. Leadership is hard work and not always appreciated. It's a great responsibility, but it's also a great privilege. We owe it to those we lead to do it right.

As we exchange gifts with family and friends this holiday season, I want to encourage you not to overlook a precious gift God has given many of us. The gift I'm speaking of is our spouse. If you're married, do you see your spouse as a gift?

Don't know about you, but I'm often guilty of taking my lovely wife for granted. I don't always see her as a precious gift from God. As a result, I'm sure I don't always treat her with the love and respect she deserves, according to God's Word. Too many times I focus on her behavior, what she is or isn't doing for me, and not on my behavior towards her.

 As I go through this holiday season, I am going to take some time to thank God for this precious gift He's given me. Then, I'm going to try and show my wife just how precious she is to me. I encourage you to do the same for, and with, your spouse.

Merry Christmas!

Many of you who know me, know that I’m not a real emotional kind of guy. (Side note, my daughter has threatened me with bodily harm if I don’t cry at her wedding.) That has started to change as I’m getting older, but I think I can still come across as just a little cold. All that to say, what tends to impact me the most emotionally, is music. This is especially true of much of the music we get to sing in choir at LongHollow Baptist Church. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve struggled to sing a particular song lyric because of the emotions going through me. They are primarily the emotions of thankfulness and amazement for what God has done for me. Such is the power of music for me.

I must admit though, that it usually takes awhile for that emotional transformation to take place. For me, the first few times we sing a new song, I’m just trying to figure out my part so as not to embarrass myself anymore than normal. It’s only after starting to feel comfortable with the music that I really begin to “hear” the lyrics and the message they contain.

This was definitely the case with one of the songs we sang last Christmas. The name of the song is “God Is Love” and it’s from one of David Moffitt’s newer projects, Glorious Day. At first the song seemed very hard to me, so I wasn’t really focusing on the words. That changed the last couple of weeks. The title of the song is so simple. God Is Love. Love is His very essance. Everything He has ever done, since the beginning of time, has flowed out of His love for us, His creation. While I know that intellectually, singing this song over and over helped me to know it in my heart.

Hopefully you will take the time to read the lyrics below and allow the truth of God’s love for you to penetrate your heart this Christmas season.

“God Is Love”

It’s the constant whisper heard from time’s beginning.

It’s the light that spills across the universe.

All creation finds its own way of revealing

what is carried on the wind around the earth.

God is love.

We are fragile, so He reaches down to help us.

We’re in chains, and He won’t rest until we’re free.

We are lost, and so He makes a way to save us.

Yet, it’s hard to comprehend the mystery.

God is love.

God is love! Won’t you open up your heart and believe?

God is love! There is hope for everyone who receives,

the grace He lavishes on us. God is love!

Every one He heals could gladly tell the story,

those who trust Him when He says, “I am the way.”

It is written at the cross in crimson letters.

And it rolls like thunder from the empty grave.

God is love.

God is love! Won’t you open up your heart and believe?

God is love! There is hope for everyone who receives,

the grace He lavishes on us. God is love!

When the hurt you feel is so real you can’t go on,

just remember, you are in His hands and

He’ll never let you go.

One day soon He will appear and He’ll proclaim it.

Then as one we’ll bow and worship at His feet.

And the angels will fall silent when they hear us,

as the saved begin the song of the redeemed: God is love.

God is love! Won’t you open up your heart and believe?

God is love! There is hope for everyone who receives,

the grace He lavishes on us. God is love!

I attended the Catalyst Conference in Atlanta last week and it was a great event.  One of the speakers this year was Pricilla Shrier who in her closing comments recited this poem that I found on her website.  It had the crowd cheering and I thought I would share it with you this week.

He is the First and Last,
The Beginning and the End!
He is the keeper of Creation and the Creator of all!
He is the Architect of the universe and the Manager of all times.
He always was,
He always is, and He always will be...
Unmoved, Unchanged, Undefeated, and never Undone!

He was bruised and brought healing!
He was pierced and eased pain!
He was persecuted and brought freedom!
He was dead and brought life!
He is risen and brings power!
He reigns and brings Peace!

The world can't understand him,
The armies can't defeat Him,
The schools can't explain Him,
and The leaders can't ignore Him.

Herod couldn't kill Him,
The Pharisees couldn't confuse Him,
and The people couldn't hold Him!

Nero couldn't crush Him,
Hitler couldn't silence Him,
The New Age can't replace Him,
and Oprah can't explain Him away!
He is light, love, longevity, and Lord.
He is goodness, Kindness, Gentleness, and God.
He is Holy, Righteous, mighty, powerful, and pure.

His ways are right,
His word is eternal,
His will is unchanging,
and His mind is on me.

He is my Savior,
He is my guide, and
He is my peace!
He is my Joy,
He is my comfort,
He is my Lord, and
He rules my life!

I serve Him because
His bond is love,
His burden is light,
and His goal for me is abundant life.

I follow Him because
He is the wisdom of the wise,
the power of the powerful,
the ancient of days,
the ruler of rulers,
the leader of leaders,
the overseer of the overcomer's,
and is to come.
And if that seems impressive to you,
try this on for size.

His goal is a relationship with ME!
He will never leave me,
never forsake me,
never mislead me,
never forget me,
never overlook me,
and never cancel my appointment in His
appointment book!

When I fall, He lifts me up!
When I! fail, He forgives!
When I am weak, He is strong!
When I am lost, He is the way!

When I am afraid, He is my courage!
When I stumble, He steadies me!
When I am hurt, He heals me!
When I am broken, He mends me!
When I am blind, He leads me!
When I am hungry, He feeds me!

When I face trials, He is with me!
When I face persecution, He shields me!
When I face problems, He comforts me!
When I face loss, He provides for me!
When I face Death, He carries me Home!

He is everything for everybody everywhere, every time, and every way.
He is God, He is faithful.
I am His, and He is mine!
My Father in heaven can whip the father of this world.
So, if you're wondering why I feel so secure, understand this...

He said it and that settles it.
God is in control,
I am on His side,
and that means all is well with my soul.
Everyday is a blessing for GOD Is!

If you haven't heard Pricilla Shrier speak you should, it will be a blessing for you, it sure was for me.  Look for an event near you at http://www.lifeway.com/women.

 

 

I recently read an article about the 10 things we should pray for our children.  I thought it was a good reminder as I caught myself chuckling about some of the prayers I have prayed recently for mine:  "Lord, keep him out of trouble" , "Protect his heart" and "Father, keep me sane"  I'll admit have topped my list in the past few weeks.  Here is the list from the article.

1.  For Godly wisdom

2.  For character

3.  For an excellent spirit

4.  For humility

5.  For the desire to know God

6.  For direction

7.  For favor

8.  For discernment

9.  For the right friends and the right spouse

10.  For respect toward authority

 A good list to remember for our children.  And as for our sanity, well I guess that will have to wait for another list.

I want to share with you what I believe to be the single greatest challenge ever given to mankind, by the greatest person who has ever lived.  

No matter how:  Wealthy, Famous, Brilliant or Powerful anyone may become or think they are, no one will ever give themselves to a greater cause, to a more important cause, to an eternal cause greater than the this life-changing, even world-changing call from God.  The Great Commission. 

No matter how many:  Honors, Awards or Achievements are placed in people’s hands, nothing can begin to compare with this great command of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ to help take His message of love and forgiveness to every creature, in every community, in every part of the world and make disciples of every nation.

Pause for a few moments and just think about our world.  Think about what’s going on right now.
  People are filled with frustration
  People are filled with fear
  People are filled with despair

Mankind hasn’t figured out the answers to our problems of:
  Stress
  The economy
  War
  Nuclear Proliferation
  Pollution
  Crime
  Violence
  Sexual rebellion and exploitation
  Alcoholism
  Drug addiction
  Abortion
  Pornography
  Wide spread political and social decay
  Moral decline

For such a time as this, God has given the church her marching orders.  The Greatest Commandment, from the Greatest Person, to the Greatest Institution ever, The Church.  So, here we are as Followers of Christ, as Disciples.  What are we going to do about the Great Commission.   The Great Commission is not going to change in the years ahead.  We will still have our marching orders.  We will still have an opportunity, through relationships, to seek to disciple and equip people to accept the love and grace of God the Father through Jesus Christ and to share the love of God and forgiveness of God with peoples and nations everywhere.