Kyle Idleman, teaching minister at Southeast Christian Church in Louisville, KY offered an article in their church paper. It was entitled "Dear Church". It was an excellent piece written to encourage and exhort the church. I'd like to share some of his thoughts here as well as my own.
I want to invite Oakwood to be the church that God wants it to be. To be the bride of Christ means to be married to the Son of God. The church is God's prized possession as each person and soul involved in it are desiring an even deeper walk with their Lord. God is pleased when we are the church. But many times I think that He's disappointed with our complacency. I want to invite Oakwood to be the church like we see in the book of Acts. I see our generation as the one restoring the radical calling of New Testament Christianity and being the church that most pleases God. So I invite every part of the Oakwood body to be a part of this.
This is an invitation to define success not by the size of the crowd in a building, but by the commitment of the followers when they leave the building.
This is an invitation to stop cheapening Jesus by dressing Him and selling Him cheap, but to raise the cost of following Jesus to nothing less than everything.
This is an invitation to preach the whole Gospel of God without concern for polls, popularity, or political pressure. It is an invitation to preach the Truth with grace and love.
This is an invitation to set free those who are bound by the rules of religion, the traditions of man and personal legalisms of preachers who decided the Bible would be better if they added to it.
This is an invitation to love. Not because it's someone you've made into your evangelism project, but because it's someone. They will know we are Christians not by our rule keeping, not by our political influence, or moral policing--but by our love.
This is an invitation to not focus on building your kingdom, but to be a part of building God's Kingdom. It's an invitation to be a part of a global revival that will usher in the second coming of Christ.
This is an invitation to redefine worship as a way of life. It's an invitation to leave behind our humanistic approach to our worship services. We do not gather to be entertained. We do not gather to celebrate ourselves, our families or our country. We gather to glorify God and to celebrate the difference His gift of Jesus has made in our lives.
This is an invitation not to send letters to church leaders about the temperature in the sanctuary, the volume of the music, the length of the service, or the crowded parking lot. Instead, send a letter asking to serve, committing to pray and celebrating the work of the Holy Spirit in the lives of others. This is an invitation for the church to officially close its doors as a country club and open its doors as a refuge, a shelter, a sanctuary.
This is an invitation to fight a different kind of cultural war--to declare war on issues such as hunger, homelessness, addiction and loneliness.
This is an invitation to answer the prayer of Jesus in the night of His death: that the church would be one. This is an invitation to leave behind our man-made denominations and stand united on the Word of God and faith in Jesus Christ.
This is an invitation to holiness. To put behind the pick-and-choose approach to the lordship of Christ and regain our distinctiveness as those who live as Jesus lived and love as Jesus loved.
This is an invitation to just raise your hand and say a prayer. This is not an invitation to come to church once a week and mark it off your list. This is not an invitation to put a Jesus fish on your car. This is an invitation to surrender your life and your heart. It is an invitation to die to ourselves.
This really is an invitation of Jesus: to deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow.
Let's be the church together.
Sunday, August 2, 2009
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Proverbial Sharing
Our Men's Group is studying Proverbs on Tuesday mornings. It's a great time of fellowship and learning together. We are as "iron sharpening iron" and it's something that I personally look forward to every week.
I thought that I'd share a little bit (just a small portion) of what we talked about this morning. Maybe you will be encouraged to open the Word and do a little study yourself.
We are in Proverbs chapter 4 right now. In verses 18-19, there is a contrast given about light & dark. The life of a true believer is like the dawn of a morning. The light increases. It begins as a faint glow on the horizon and then proceeds to the full light of the noonday. 1 John 1:5 says that God is light and in Him there is no darkness at all. Light exposes and darkness covers. Throughout scripture we see this truth over and over again. Take time and look at these passages: Romans 13:12-14, 2 Corinthians 6:14, Ephesians 5:8-17, 1 Thessalonians 5:4-9, 1 Peter 2:9, 1 John 1:5-7 & 2:9-11.
As we went over these, many men shared about the light and darkness that we see in everyday struggles. One of the things that most impacted me was that scripture from Ephesians 5:8 that says, "For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light." It doesn't say that we were once in the darkness, it says that we were darkness! We are called to be the children of light, the ones that shine Jesus to all that we come in contact with.
In Matthew 5 (Jesus' Sermon on the Mount) Jesus told us to be salt and light. In that context we think of light being evangelism and that we are to let our light shine to the unbelievers, which is true. But we are also called to expose the darkness around us by confronting sin, being a conscience in our community & by helping brothers and sisters that fall back into the darkness of sin and the world of the "Prince of Darkness".
I always say that nothing good happens after dark. If you are going to break in and steal, it's going to happen at night in the covering of darkness and not in broad daylight. If you cheat on your spouse it's always in covering of darkness so no one will know. As you sin, you don't tout it and brag about it, but you try to conceal and hide it and put it out of sight into the darkness. As God changes your life and your heart, you will find that His exposure of your sin and self to light will keep you on the narrow path that leads to life. And over time, you will enjoy the light of salvation even more.
I thought that I'd share a little bit (just a small portion) of what we talked about this morning. Maybe you will be encouraged to open the Word and do a little study yourself.
We are in Proverbs chapter 4 right now. In verses 18-19, there is a contrast given about light & dark. The life of a true believer is like the dawn of a morning. The light increases. It begins as a faint glow on the horizon and then proceeds to the full light of the noonday. 1 John 1:5 says that God is light and in Him there is no darkness at all. Light exposes and darkness covers. Throughout scripture we see this truth over and over again. Take time and look at these passages: Romans 13:12-14, 2 Corinthians 6:14, Ephesians 5:8-17, 1 Thessalonians 5:4-9, 1 Peter 2:9, 1 John 1:5-7 & 2:9-11.
As we went over these, many men shared about the light and darkness that we see in everyday struggles. One of the things that most impacted me was that scripture from Ephesians 5:8 that says, "For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light." It doesn't say that we were once in the darkness, it says that we were darkness! We are called to be the children of light, the ones that shine Jesus to all that we come in contact with.
In Matthew 5 (Jesus' Sermon on the Mount) Jesus told us to be salt and light. In that context we think of light being evangelism and that we are to let our light shine to the unbelievers, which is true. But we are also called to expose the darkness around us by confronting sin, being a conscience in our community & by helping brothers and sisters that fall back into the darkness of sin and the world of the "Prince of Darkness".
I always say that nothing good happens after dark. If you are going to break in and steal, it's going to happen at night in the covering of darkness and not in broad daylight. If you cheat on your spouse it's always in covering of darkness so no one will know. As you sin, you don't tout it and brag about it, but you try to conceal and hide it and put it out of sight into the darkness. As God changes your life and your heart, you will find that His exposure of your sin and self to light will keep you on the narrow path that leads to life. And over time, you will enjoy the light of salvation even more.
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Saturday, July 18, 2009
Closing Program and Carnival
Just wanted to say a couple things about the closing program and carnival from Friday night. It was awesome!!! Amanda and Carina did a great job. The volunteers were great and the kids were wonderful. That's one of the best closing programs I've ever been too. Great job team!
After the program everyone was invited to the OAC dining room to have some ice cream. Then it was off to the carnival! We had cotton candy, balloons, several carnival style games, moonwalks, lots of prizes and candy. It was really fun for us and the girls. The weather couldn't have been nicer. It was a nice northerly breeze, not a convection over wind like we've had lately. The temperature was in the low 80's. The clouds in the west blocked out the direct sunlight. It was near perfect. Praise God for His provision for everything. It was truly a great family night. My girls had a blast and are still talking about it. It was great to mix and mingle with people you know and get to know some new families too. It looked like everyone there was appreciative and having a good time. Again, it was just a really great night. Thanks to everyone, and the Main ONE, who made it possible!
After the program everyone was invited to the OAC dining room to have some ice cream. Then it was off to the carnival! We had cotton candy, balloons, several carnival style games, moonwalks, lots of prizes and candy. It was really fun for us and the girls. The weather couldn't have been nicer. It was a nice northerly breeze, not a convection over wind like we've had lately. The temperature was in the low 80's. The clouds in the west blocked out the direct sunlight. It was near perfect. Praise God for His provision for everything. It was truly a great family night. My girls had a blast and are still talking about it. It was great to mix and mingle with people you know and get to know some new families too. It looked like everyone there was appreciative and having a good time. Again, it was just a really great night. Thanks to everyone, and the Main ONE, who made it possible!
Thursday, July 16, 2009
The Secret to Golf
I think that I've finally figured out the secret to a great golf game. For many years, people have tried to figure out the secret to getting that little white ball into that cup. I've had the great joy of playing a couple of rounds here lately and I think that I've figured out the secret to it all: consistency.
When you watch players on the PGA Tour, what they possess that you and I don't have a lot of is consistency. If you can learn to be consistent with your clubs, then your game will massively improve. When you are consistent with your clubs, how your strike the ball, where you line up, how you swing and place the ball, then you are at the top of your game. I love to golf and I've hit a 91, 96, and 92 my last 3 times out. Maybe we're starting to see a little consistency.
The worse part of golf is when you don't play for a while. You kind of have to relearn your feel and how you swing and hit. You feel off-kilter and out of touch with everything.
The same is so true in the Christian life. When you quit reading God's Word everyday, when you quit praying, and when you quit attending church regularly and doing the things in the Christian walk that you know that you need to be doing, you feel off-kilter and out of touch. You will not perform well in the Christian life if you have no consistency to your walk. You must do the daily work and work hard at it, just like you would for any sport.
If you've ever sat back and watched someone succeed and do well in their Christian faith, know that it didn't happen overnight. It was because of a personal pattern of consistency in the spiritual disciplines that they could be all that God wanted them to be. If you see people that God uses is great ways and you want the same, it all starts with some consistency in your walk. Then you are allowing God to pour into you and use you to His fullest intent. (Ephesians 2:10 "We are God's workmanship created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.")
When you watch players on the PGA Tour, what they possess that you and I don't have a lot of is consistency. If you can learn to be consistent with your clubs, then your game will massively improve. When you are consistent with your clubs, how your strike the ball, where you line up, how you swing and place the ball, then you are at the top of your game. I love to golf and I've hit a 91, 96, and 92 my last 3 times out. Maybe we're starting to see a little consistency.
The worse part of golf is when you don't play for a while. You kind of have to relearn your feel and how you swing and hit. You feel off-kilter and out of touch with everything.
The same is so true in the Christian life. When you quit reading God's Word everyday, when you quit praying, and when you quit attending church regularly and doing the things in the Christian walk that you know that you need to be doing, you feel off-kilter and out of touch. You will not perform well in the Christian life if you have no consistency to your walk. You must do the daily work and work hard at it, just like you would for any sport.
If you've ever sat back and watched someone succeed and do well in their Christian faith, know that it didn't happen overnight. It was because of a personal pattern of consistency in the spiritual disciplines that they could be all that God wanted them to be. If you see people that God uses is great ways and you want the same, it all starts with some consistency in your walk. Then you are allowing God to pour into you and use you to His fullest intent. (Ephesians 2:10 "We are God's workmanship created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.")
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)