Ask; Receive

Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:

For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.

Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone?

Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent?

If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?

                                                                               (Matt 7:7-11 KJV)

Most parents do give good gifts to their children. However, there are some who never give them anything but grief and bad examples. They don't even help to raise them. Thankfully the latter are not the majority.

All parents make mistakes. We are human. But, most of us will give good gifts to our children when they ask and often even when they don't ask.  Most parents will strive to do what is best for their children even grieving when they are not able to do as much as they desire to do or give. But, our Father in heaven is not human. He does not make mistakes or sin like human parents. He does not fall short. He is able to and indeed gives, according to Jesus, even more abundantly to his children who ask for good things; who ask according to His good will.

Ask and it will be given you. Ask for good things. Ask for a greater knowledge and understanding of God's great love for us and His good plan for us. Ask to live in His presence always and to be filled with the living Spirit of Christ. Ask and you shall receive. Ask and live life in Christ.

God's Peace - Pr. J.

One Body; Many Members; Many Gifts

Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. Even so the body is not made up of one part but of many. (1 Cor 12:12-13 NIV)

Well, there you have it. We have all been baptized into the one body. If you read Paul's firsts letter to the Corinthians you will find that he advises that the Body of Christ which is the Church needs every part of the body to continue it's mission to proclaim the Gospel; to grow and edify the church. There is not one member of the church on earth that is greater than another. God gives to each of us gifts to be used for His glory. We use them in unison. It does not matter what God has called you to do. Whether you clean the church, type the bulletins, assist at worship, teach Sunday School, sing in the choir, serve on the council; whatever it is that God has called you to do, it is important to the health of the congregation; to the health of the church. Each of these callings contribute greatly to the growth and health of the local congregation. If the bathrooms are a mess it will not matter how awesome the music is. If the greeters ignore visitors it will not matter what the preacher is preaching. If the members of a local congregation of the church on earth do not work in unison with the one mind of Christ it will fail or at the most struggle to survive in the mission to which we are called.

Every individual member in a congregation is important to the life and health of that congregation. There is nothing and no one too small to be unimportant. One of the most common laments that I hear from those who are very elderly is that they can no longer actively serve as they once did. They loved serving God and others through the church on earth and they miss it. But, the truth is "Yes, you can continue serving." You can continue serving by continuing to pray for the congregation and the whole Body of Christ. You can share your love of God with others around you by testifying to the great love you have for Jesus the Christ and for them. After all, St. Paul reminds us that love is the greatest gift of all. (1 Cor 13:13)  You can share the vision that God had inspired within you for your congregation; for your community, with your pastor and with the other members of the Body of Christ. There are many things you can continue in. Not everything has to be or should be visible to the whole congregation. Some things are done quietly; unbeknownst to the majority.

Every single member of the church on earth; every single member of every congregation is an important part of the Body of Christ. None are more important or less important than another. No gifts are less or greater than another. We must strive to work together according to the gifts that God has given to each of us that God may be glorified in all that we say and do.

God's Peace - Pr. J

Training Required

James 3:1

Thanks be to God for dedicated and faithful teachers!

"The student is not above the teacher, but everyone who is fully trained will be like their teacher." Luke 6:40 NIV

Having trained and supervised many, I am aware that there are a minority of people who prefer not to be trained; not to learn how to do any right or well. There are people out there who simply don't care. However; having supervised the training of both paid employees and volunteers for close to forty years, I have found that the majority of people learn quite well when they are trained or taught properly and treated with respect. When businesses have to continually hire people week after week for the same entry level positions, maybe it's time for a change in the training department or management so that the cost of rehiring might be minimized.

When Jesus called his disciples, they followed him around for three years; watching and doing and learning. After he was crucified they still hadn't quite gotten everything they needed to know; so after his ascension to the right hand of God, he sent the Holy Spirit to continue to guide and train his followers. To aid in our respective callings training needs to be on-going. It does not end after one week or one hour of formal training. God doesn't quit teaching. So why do we?

May God teach us how to teach others in a manner that will be more beneficial to all.

God's Peace - Pr. J