November 10, 2014

Do you think it is possible to live without anxiety? Would you like to do so? Five times in the 10 verses, Matthew 6:24-34, Jesus used the word worry.

And in three of these instances, He spoke it as a command: "'Don't worry'" He wasn't merely making a suggestion or trying to calm people down. This was an order! "Worry." He said, should be banned from the hearts of kingdom people.

Why is it wrong for kingdom people to be fraught with worry?

1) Worry is futile and counterproductive. Jesus pointedly asked whether anxiety could add even a short time to our life spans (v. 27). In truth, doctors tell us that anxiety will most likely shorten our lives.

2) Worry indicates a lack of understanding. The nature and character of our Father is to feed the songbirds and water the wildflowers. "'Aren't you worth more than they?'"

3) Worry shows a lack of faith. Jesus said it takes a person "'of little'" to worry about His needs being met (v. 30). What impact does anxiety have on our kingdom witness?

4) Worry is an ungodly response to life. Of all the arguments against anxiety, this one should perhaps stun us. If worry is the pattern that comes most naturally to everyone (V. 32), why would we want to be known for being like the average unbeliever.

As kingdom people, there should be numerous things about us that can only be explained by the presence of the Holy Spirit. Freedom from worry is one of them.

When I pray, "Thy kingdom come," I am establishing that my first concern each day is God's kingdom and not mine. Further, I am asking the Father to show me what He s doing and allow me to participate with Him as He advances His kingdom on earth. Ask God to strengthen your faith and put your focus and the kingdom so that you can put worry behind you.

November 9, 2014

"Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever. Let the redeemed of the LORD say this— those he redeemed from the hand of the foe," Psalm 107:1-2

Who are the "redeemed"? What does it mean to be "redeemed"?

To be redeemed means to be "bought back". In this case, "Redeemed from the hand of the foe".

So, what's the deal with that?

The deal is we were sold out by Adam when he disobeyed God and sinned. When Adam sinned he became sinful, his nature became corrupted and his mind became wicked. Since we are his heirs we inherited his sinful and corrupt nature. Everyone born since Adam has been born as a sinner spiritually separated from God and therefore, spiritually dead.

Because we are born as sinners we are cut off from the goodness of God. Even worse, we are unable to receive the love of God. His goodness and love have no effect on us when we are dead in our trespasses and sins. There is no hope in His goodness and no connection to his love.

But, because God is good and because His love endures forever, He would not allow us to spend time and eternity separated from His goodness and love. Something had to be done. His goodness and love demanded it. A price had to be paid if we were to be redeemed.

What God did out His goodness and love was to send His Son, Jesus. Jesus became the second Adam and was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of a virgin. That enabled Him to be born with a sinless nature. He was uniquely and divinely designed to redeem us, to buy us back. Because He was without sin He could take our sins upon Himself and become the sacrifice. Only One so filled with goodness and love would do such a thing.

Jesus redeemed us. God bought us back at the cost of His Son. We have been ransomed and set free!

Let the redeemed of the Lord say this, "God is good! His love endures forever!" 

Thanks be to God!

November 8, 2014

"Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me." Luke 9:23

Is your life "ship" shape? What is your state of being?

The "ship" I want to examine is "worship".

What is worship and what should I "be" to enjoy it? I think Jesus gives some clues.

Let's begin with a definition of the word "worship". It has its roots in "worth". To "worship" means to acknowledge and honor the "worthiness" of God.

Therefore, to "be" a worshiper means to be a giver. What does Jesus ask you to give?

Give your best. "Deny yourself", Jesus says.

Being a worshiper requires that I give God my best energy, my best effort, and my best focus. That means I withhold it from myself and my other interests and give it all to Him! He gets my first and I keep the leftovers.

How does that work?

My first thoughts in the morning should be directed toward Him. My heart is aimed at Him. My first hour is given to Him. As a worshiper I am being brought into fellowship with Him. I am acknowledging His worth and drawing value from Him.

Worship is not something reserved for one hour on Sunday morning. Worship is something I do 24/7 365! It is a state of being. I don't "do" worship but I must "be" a worshiper. I deny myself to honor Him. I offer my best to Him. I acknowledge His worthiness and draw my worth from Him. Sunday morning "worship" should be the gathering of worshipers who come together to corporately share what they have individually enjoyed all week!

Have you worshiped God today?

How will you have you acknowledged His worth? Have you attached your worth to Him?

Will you purpose to go to church next week not to worship but to go worshiping? 

Determine not to "do" worship but to "be" a worshiper!

November 7, 2014

“These are the words of him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. What he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open. I know your deeds. See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut.” Revelation 3:7-8

As FredWes reaches the halfway point of its 20^th year, it may be a good time to pause and reflect on the open doors God has led us through and those He is setting before us in these days.

We may be a small church, but let me ask you:

How many small churches intentionally and enthusiastically embrace two worship styles and is growing because of it?

FredWes does!

How many small churches have 85+ years of successful and productive pastoral leadership experience available to guide them?

FredWes does!

How many small churches have carved out an entire national mission field (Guatemala) to the benefit of its Denomination?

FredWes has thanks to the vision of Gerald Rodgers and the anointed ministry of Luis Martinez!

How many small churches are directly involved fighting on the Ebola epidemic on the front lines in Sierra Leone?

FredWes is through the well we sponsored in Makeni, Sierra Leone, on the campus of the University of Makeni!

How many small churches have a regular and ongoing gospel witness in a public elementary school?

FredWes does through the Good News Club at R. E. Lee Elementary School! Every other Wednesday our ladies have the privilege of presenting a Bible lesson to over 40 children!

Let me remind you that it isn’t about the size of our church it is about the size of our God! And it is also about the size of our vision!

FredWes’ legacy has been when God puts an open door before us, we always walk through it in His Strength. That must be true of our future as well! What will be our legacy for the second generation of Wesleyans at FredWes?

Decisions we make over the next several years will have a significant impact on FredWes’ next 20 years!

Guide us Holy Spirit!

November 6, 2014

"And he said, “The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.” Luke 9:22

When Jesus foretold his future He also predicts yours. That is, if you dare to be His disciple.

What a contrast to the attitude of many Christians today. Where did we get the idea that following Jesus is guaranteed to make you healthy, wealthy and generally bullet-proof? It certainly didn't come from Jesus.

When did happiness become our goal? When did possessions become our passion? When did health become the measure of our spirituality? And what have these misdirected values done for the state of our Faith or the strength of our churches?

Being a disciple will cost you something! No, actually, being a disciple will cost you everything! Jesus gave up everything for you and me. What makes you think you can get through life easier that your Lord? How can you expect to follow Him and get a free ride? When did Jesus become your Santa instead of your Savior?

I guess you must understand the purpose of discipleship if you are going to grasp the price. God is not interested in making you happy. Happiness is SO overrated in our culture and it has infested our churches. God is committed to your holiness, although holy people do end up happier! Holiness requires some pressure and some purging to purify your heart and mind and spirit of its selfishness.

Discipleship is about a series of deaths and resurrections that lead to your ultimate eternal resurrection. Death is painful. Nothing dies easily - wrong motives don't, impure thoughts don't, sinful habits surely don't and selfish desires will battle to the end.

So, you want to be a disciple? Prepare for some pain - pain that will prepare you for Paradise!

November 5, 2014

"I cried out to God for help; I cried out to God to hear me. When I was in distress, I sought the Lord; at night I stretched out untiring hands, and I would not be comforted. I remembered you, God, and I groaned; I meditated, and my spirit grew faint."  Psalm 77:1-3

Psalm 77 is timely and insightful because it shows how to battle discouragement.

Christians are not immune from discouragement and may, in fact, be prone to discouragement for several reasons:

1) We tend to care more than other people

2) We tend to care more about other people

3) We have intimate knowledge of a God Who has the power to "fix things" but sometimes doesn't

4) We are under constant attack from the Enemy who continually attempts to discourage  us

5) Faith is a journey that doesn't have clear mile markers and progress can be hard to measure

6) There is a constant dynamic tension between the work of grace God has accomplished in our lives and the awareness of how much more growth needs to happen - this "holy dissatisfaction" is necessary but hard to manage.

7) We are called to accomplish a task that is never completed and often overwhelming

8) We hold ourselves and our leaders to a high standard and therefore, are often disappointed

I could go on, but I think you get the picture!

Psalm 77 is a Psalm of Aseph. Who was Aspeh?

Aseph was one of the three musicians who worked for and with King David. He and his cohorts were responsible for developing inspiring worship to maintain the spiritual climate of God's nation and His people.

Sort of a big job, eh?

If Christians are prone to discouragement (and they are) how much more so for the "point people" who serve on the front lines of ministry?

Discouragement not properly handled will lead to depression. Over the years I have seen many good and effective ministry people knocked out of the game by perpetual discouragement that morphed into depression.

Before I depress you with these thoughts, let me get to the good news! Aseph discovered how to work through discouragement before it became depression.

Read and meditate on Psalm 77 and see if you can find out how he did it. See what the Spirit says to you.

Be encouraged today!

November 4, 2014

"Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin condemns any people." Proverbs 14:34

This verse is one of the many that guide my decision-making in how I vote and which candidates I support.

But it raises several questions:

1) What is righteousness?

2) Who determines what is right?

3) How much does it really matter?

Righteousness is the standard for determining what is right, and therefore, what is wrong.

Since God is the Holy Almighty Creator and Judge of all men, I would say He is best qualified to decide what is right and what is wrong. I'm going with His opinion!

It matters very much to Him, therefore it should matter very much to you!

And, righteousness also mattered very much to the Founding Fathers!

Following are several quotes from John Adams:

"The general principles on which the fathers achieved independence were the general principles of Christianity. I will avow that I then believed, and now believe, that those general principles of Christianity are as eternal and immutable as the existence and attributes of God."

"Without religion, this world would be something not fit to be mentioned in polite company: I mean hell."

"The Christian religion is, above all the religions that ever prevailed or existed in ancient or modern times, the religion of wisdom, virtue, equity and humanity."

Virginian, Patrick Henry declared:

"The Bible… is a book worth more than all the other books that were ever printed."

"Righteousness alone can exalt [America] as a nation...Whoever thou art, remember this; and in thy sphere practice virtue thyself, and encourage it in others."

"The great pillars of all government and of social life [are] virtue, morality, and religion. This is the armor, my friend, and this alone, that renders us invincible."

"This is all the inheritance I can give to my dear family. The religion of Christ can give them one which will make them rich indeed."

So, as I was holding baby Wendy Beasley this morning, I am marveling over such a miraculous result of God's handiwork and thinking, "I could never support or vote for a candidate who believed it is right to murder precious innocents in the womb."

Later, as I was thinking how much Barbara means to me and how much our marriage has blessed my life, "I could never support or vote for a candidate who isn't willing to define marriage exclusively as a union between one man and one woman. That just wouldn't be right."

The Bible declares it, the Founders affirmed it and I believe it - righteousness matters and I will live righteously and vote for a candidate who at least gets those two issues right!

Do the right thing today! Vote!