May 3, 2014

"Trust in the LORD and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture. Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him and he will do this:" Psalm 37:3-5

Temptation happens at the point of your desire. That is abundantly clear in the temptation of Adam and Eve as it is in the temptation of Jesus. Adam and Eve were controlled by their desire and sinned against God. Jesus controlled His desire and remained sinless. So, it seems that you are confronted with an option, "either you control your desires or your desires will control you". Therein lies the battle of temptation. Will you be controlled by your emotions or will you exercise your will to control your emotions?

There are some who believe you cannot control your desires and that you are a slave to them. No thanks to Adam and Eve, it is difficult to gain control over your desires. Once they exercised their will against God it perverted their desires. That is the nature we inherit from them.

So, how do you get control of your desires? How do we keep your desires from controlling you? The Psalmist, who is very open about his struggles to gain control over his desires, shares some insight into how he does it.

"Trust in the Lord". The word for "trust" means to "lean on" or to "rely on" or to "put confidence in" God. The word picture portrayed is the idea of putting your total trust into God. It is like when you sit in a chair. You put your total weight into that chair and completely trust it. When you put the key in your car you totally trust it to start. When you lie down on your bed you totally trust it to support you. You must "trust, rely, lean on" God to help you control your desires. By the power of your will you choose to aim your emotions at God.

"do good". When you place your trust completely on the Lord He will guide you and strengthen you to "do good". Notice it does not say that you should desire to do good, it simply says to "do good". People who are controlled by their emotions and desires will only "do good" when they feel like it. But people who control their desires do good whether they feel like it or not!

Jesus probably didn't feel like dying on the cross. But he "did the good" that His Father desired of Him. Jesus probably felt like turning thos stones into bread - partly because He was very hungry and partly because he wanted to show the devil that He really could after the devil challenged His "godhood". How do you feel when someone challenges your manhood? You want to show them, don't you? Imagine being God and having some inferior being challenge your "godhood".

So, here it is. Another day, another battle with temptation. Temptation will be there to meet you at your point of desire and you will either control your desire or be controled by it. You can trust your own strength to take charge over your emotions or you can rely on God and trust Him to help you do good.

The first "good" thing you can do today is to put Him in charge of your emotions AND your will!

May 2, 2014

"In those days there was again a large crowd, and they had nothing to eat. He summoned the disciples and said to them, “I have compassion on the crowd, because they’ve already stayed with Me three days and have nothing to eat. If I send them home hungry, they will collapse on the way, and some of them have come a long distance.” His disciples answered Him, “Where can anyone get enough bread here in this desolate place to fill these people?” “How many loaves do you have?” He asked them. “Seven,” they said. Then He commanded the crowd to sit down on the ground. "Taking the seven loaves, He gave thanks, broke the loaves, and kept on giving them to His disciples to set before the people. So they served the loaves to the crowd. They also had a few small fish, and when He had blessed them, He said these were to be served as well. They ate and were filled. Then they collected seven large baskets of leftover pieces.   About 4,000 men were there. He dismissed them and immediately got into the boat with His disciples and went to the district of Dalmanutha."  Mark 8:1-10

I just realized recently a significant discrepancy between the feeding of the 5,000 and the feeding of the 4,000. 

No, I am not talking about the 1,000 fewer people. That is obvious! 

Here is the what I noticed, in this account the bread and fish belonged to them! In the feeding of the 5,000 they had borrowed lunch from a lad. This time it was THEIR lunch they donated.

You have to believe their willingness to give up their own lunch must have been made easier with the memory of the previous mass feeding! The disciples had a little more invested in this miracle but still, their offering was not exactly a great sacrifice.

This miracle is an example that big things can happen when a few people are willing to give a little. Their donation hurt a little but it also helped a lot!

When were reminded of that this year at FredWes!

Last Summer when God put it upon our heart to take the challenge of raising money to finance the drilling of a well in a remote African village, the good folks of the FredWes family promised to donate money toward the $8,500 goal. Whatever donations they pledged were to be above their regular tithes. They were not to sacrifice local giving obligations to meet this overseas outreach goal. So, the commitment to "FLOW H2O" would represent at least a little more than they normally give. 

Sure enough, as the year went by and we did a little more, we saw God do a lot! We learned the lesson of the 4,000 - when we all do a little more God can do a lot more!

Have you learned the lesson of the 4,000?

Will you?

May 1, 2014

"When Jesus heard what had happened, he withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place. Hearing of this, the crowds followed him on foot from the towns. When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed their sick. As evening approached, the disciples came to him and said, “This is a remote place, and it’s already getting late. Send the crowds away, so they can go to the villages and buy themselves some food. Jesus replied, “They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat.” “We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish,” they answered. “Bring them here to me,” he said. And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve baskets full of broken pieces that were left over. The number of those who ate was about five thousand men, besides women and children." Matthew 14:13-21

When a few people do small things in obedience to Jesus a big need can be met!

That is the story of the feeding of the 5,000.

Jesus and His disciples found themselves surrounded by thousands of hungry people miles away from any food source with not much money and nothing to eat. Does that sound like a formula for a happy ending?

Since you know the story you know that it was precisely the perfect scenario for a miracle to occur!

Each person who saw the need and cared about the need gave the little that they had and performed the small task they could do and Jesus did the rest! One of the disciples found a youngster with a lunch. The lad donated his lunch and the disciples went out into the crowd and got them to sit in an orderly fashion. After Jesus had bless the fishes and the loaves, He handed them to the disciples to begin passing them out. Moving through the famished throng they passed out bread and fish and handed out bread and fish and keep passing the out until people wanted no more.

After everything had been given out and was devoured, the disciples were instructed to collect the leftovers. Once the extra food was retrieved and returned to the Master it added up to twelve times more than they had when they started!

It is amazing what God can do when His people commit to doing what they can with the little they have, because it is all about Him and not about us!

The disciples found that out in a remote seaside location. FredWes discovered it with our "FLOW H2O" project this year. We committed to raising $8,500 for the cost of drilling a well in a remote African village. One after another, FredWes family members pledged to contribute what they could toward that goal. When the pledging was done, the total was $12,000! Over $10,000 of that has come in.

This Sunday we will present a representative from World Hope International with a check for our first well!

Little is much when God is in it!

Don't wait for big things, do little things in faith!

April 30, 2014

"So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up" Ephesians 4:10-11

As popular as the passing game is in football, especially the NFL, I think there is nothing more beautiful than a running play that breaks for a long touchdown. In real time I will notice the running back shake a tackle, spin into the open and out run the defenders to the end zone for a score.

When they show it again on the replay, I see something different. Rather than just a stellar run by a speedy back, I see an offensive guard who knocks a defensive lineman down and an offensive tackle pushing another defensive lineman to the side opening a hole for the running back. I also see a fullback engaging a linebacker to make more space and a wide-receiver blocking a defensive back down field. 

Looking at the replay in slow motion reveals the touchdown was the result of a team executing their individual assignments and not just one ball carrier making a great play. 

No individual player can beat the opposing team by his self. One person going against eleven others is not a winning formula for football. It takes a team that is committed to teamwork in order to have a chance to win.

Winning teams are the product of players who consistently execute their assignments on every play. Teams that don't execute their assignments on a consistent basis will get beaten - often!

Jesus designed the Church in a similar pattern. God has gifted each member in each local church to be able to successfully execute a ministry assignment.

You have a spiritual gift as do I! Your gift is as important as mine. When we each use our gifts within the ministry of a local church under the authority of that local church, that church (team) becomes more effective in ministering the Gospel. Spiritual gifts are given by God and are empowered by the Holy Spirit.

No single person in a local church can do every thing that is required to be done. But he can do one thing! As each one does what he is gifted to do, under the power of the Holy Spirit, the "team" begins to execute more effectively! 

A lot can happen when each person on the "team" does the little things he is good at doing rather than trying to "do it all".

This year at FredWes, we raised $8,500 to build a well in an African village! We did not do it by one person giving it all, but instead we had many people doing the best they could!

Do you want to have a winning team?

Have you discovered your position on the team?

If so, play your position the best you can!

April 29, 2014

"The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor. For we are co-workers in God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building." I Corinthians 3:8-9

My life has been greatly enriched by belonging to teams!

In middle school and high school I was on winning basketball and baseball teams. 

Again, in college I enjoyed playing on soccer teams and basketball teams and baseball teams.

Even though I have played on a number of teams in several sports, I have never won a game by myself. Every victory was the result of playing my position as well as I could and counting on my team mates to do the same. Together we were able do what none of us could have done alone, win games and even championships!

That is the beauty of my most favorite team, the local church body at FredWes! In this year that just ended, we accomplished some significant things together that we couldn't have done alone!

While we may have some members who could write a check for $8,500 to drill a well in Africa, many could not. But with the members of our team giving $50, $100, $200, $500 we surpassed our goal and currently have raised over $10,000!

That's a big win!

That's a win that will result in eternal victories!

That win will not only be celebrated in this generation but for generations to come! 

It is the equivalent of your favorite sports team winning a game that makes them the champions of their league forever!

FredWes this Sunday will celebrate a team win when we hand a check for $8,500 to the representative of World Hope International! When we do, you should feel like a winner! You didn't win it by yourself, but we would not have won without you!

Well done!

April 28, 2014

"Make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord."  Hebrews 12:14

"Strive to live in peace with everybody and pursue that consecration and holiness without which no one will [ever] see the Lord."  Hebrews 12:14 (Amplified)

Holiness is hard!

Look at the two main verbs in this verse "strive" and "pursue". Those are extra effort type words. They require energy and determination - and desire.

What is holiness and why is it so hard?

Well, the "what it is" is "why it is" so hard.

Holiness is consecrating yourself to God, as the Amplified renders it. Consecrate means that I set myself apart from my selfish desires, my selfish ambitions, my sinful past and give myself completely to God for the purpose of being made holy by Him. You or I cannot make ourselves holy, we can only repent of our sins and renounce sin to give ourselves unreservedly to God so He can make us holy by the cleansing of His blood and the indwelling of His Spirit.

Holiness refers to the condition of your heart in relationship to God. Holy people love God with all their heart and all of their mind. Holiness allows the Holy Spirit to take up residence in your heart empowering you to overcome temptation and sin.

Holiness purifies your motives so that whatever you do is fueled by love (for God and for others). Holiness is being able to fulfill the Great Commandment by loving God and loving others as yourself.

In this verse holiness is equated with peace. You cannot be holy with God while you live in turmoil with others.

So, holiness is difficult because it requires being reconciled on two levels of relationship - holy with God and at peace with men. That doesn't happen automatically. It doesn't happen accidentally. You have to "strive" against your selfish nature and you must "pursue" God's nature.

But holiness is necessary and required of those who desire to see God - Who also happens to be holy.

Holiness really matters! Does it matter to you?

April 27, 2014

"And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him."   Hebrews 11:6

Did you ever have someone in your life who was hard to please? No matter how hard you tried or what you did you found you could never please them? That is pretty miserable isn't it?

God doesn't want you miserable and He is not hard to please. In fact, He makes it clear what it takes to please Him. When you come to Him believing that "He is" or "He exists" He is pleased.

When you think about it, why would you come to someone who doesn't exist or whose existence you doubt? What is the point in that?

God does, indeed, exist! He always has! He always will. There will never be a time He doesn't exist. He exists at all times in all places with all power and forever!

God can be fully present here in Fredericksburg, VA and be fully present with you at the same time!

In fact, when God identified Himself to Moses He named Himself as "I am". Or, you could also say "I exist".

So, when you come to God and you believe that He exists as the "I am" - the fully present, fully powerful, and fully perfectly personal eternal Being - He is perfectly pleased!

Are you fully persuaded that "He is" when you seek Him? If so, He is fully pleased!