Serve Together In Love

Love one another; serve in unity

And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;

For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:

Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:

That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive;

But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ:

From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love. 

                                                                                        (Eph 4:11-16 KJV)

Do we ever really grow up?  To truly grow up can take a lifetime and usually a lot of heartache. Society, today, gives us about eighteen years to help our children grow up and then we turn them loose on the society. As Christians, we do our best to teach our children who Jesus is and what he has done for us and why. We pray that they will follow him. But, the devil prowls and not everyone would have our children go in "The Way" that they should go for their own good and for the good of society. But, with the help of God, we do what we can and then continue to pray for them until the day we die.

It would be most helpful for our children and for society if we could all work together using the gifts that God has given each of us to help all of our children grow up into him who is the head; who is Jesus the Christ. 

I have been following an interesting and energetic young Christian man who has established a school for teens in Albany, GA. He has just turned 22 years of age yet has accomplished amazing things. His group is known as "the X for Boys."  King Randell is intent on not only making sure that they complete their High School educations; but,  to also prepare them for their futures teaching them life skills as well. A couple of the projects they've been working on are automotive repair and carpentry. 

He uses his God-given gifts to help (not hinder) his community as a whole as he teaches these young men to grow up in Christ and to use their gifts to help themselves and others. What a wonderful world this would be if we would all use our gifts to serve the whole community in love.

God's Peace - Pr. Judy

Choose Justice; Choose Peace

He that walketh with wise men shall be wise: but a companion of fools shall be destroyed.

Evil pursueth sinners: but to the righteous good shall be repayed.

                      (Prov 13:20-21 KJV)

I have been accused of being legalistic on more than one occasion. I am not (at least not usually). I have been accused of it because I truly prefer to attempt to obey the law and not offend God or harm any other persons.  I would genuinely love to live in peace. I consider obeying the law, no matter how trivial the law may seem, as a small way to keep peace around me and in the world. I am not saying that I never break the law. We all sin in some ways and breaking the law is sin because it causes a break in community. Sometimes, we do this with intent. At other times, it just happens. It may possibly "just happen" because we haven't bothered to think about the consequences of our words or actions. Often, our desire to break with the law, causes damage to ourselves or others. There are  consequences to our words and actions whether good or bad.

However, there are times, that we might (must) act in peaceful civil disobedience for the good of others; for the sake of justice. When we do this we also acknowledge that there still may be consequences. This is also not to say that there are not any times when we  might actually have to defend ourselves or others for the sake of justice and hopefully peace. Conflicts and wars are, at times, necessary to protect ourselves or others.

But, to follow in the ways of anyone whose purpose is solely to profit themselves without considering others is not the wise path to follow. There will be consequences. Hanging out with those who would consistently do what might harm others; that might harm society as a whole, is not wise. It will lead you on a path that is not according to the will of God. That also is not to say that you should never minister to them. We definitely should. But, do so with the integrity and with the strength to say no when you are invited to join in the sinful; the unlawful, way.  

Choose justice. Choose to live in peace and do what is right in the eyes of God.

God's Peace - Pr. J.

Growing Up In Christ

Growing up in Christ is not easy; but it is essential.

"That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive;

But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ:

From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love." 

                                                                                    (Eph 4:14-16 KJV)

To truly grow up takes a lifetime and even at the time of death we still will never be as mature as we could be. Society, today, gives us about eighteen years to help our children grow up and then we turn them loose on the society. As Christians, we do our best to teach our children who Jesus is and what he has done for us and why. We pray that they will follow him. But, the devil prowls and not everyone would have our children go in "The Way" that they should go for their own benefit and for the good of society. With the help of God, we do what we can while they are with us and then we continue to pray for them until the day that we die.

It would be most helpful for our children and for society if we could all work together to help all of our children grow up into him is the head, even as we continue to grow in Christ. May God help us to follow in "His Way."

God's Peace - Pr. Judy

God Sees

But the Lord said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart. (1 Sam 16:7 KJV)

Saul's time as king was coming to an end. It was time to anoint the next king of Israel so the Lord sent Samuel to anoint one of Jesse's sons. But, who would it be? The first son to come before Samuel was Eliab. He thought he looked like he'd make a fine king. But, the Lord said that it didn't matter what he looked like. What matters is what is in his heart. Humankind might judge by what we sees; but, the Lord knows who we really are because he knows whats in our hearts.

Seven of Jesse's paraded in front of Samuel. But, the Lord said that it was none of these. How could that be? The Lord had said the next king was to be one of Jesse's sons. So, Samuel asked Jesse if he had any more sons. Yes, there was one more. David, the youngest, was out in the fields tending the sheep.

It was the youngest one, taking care of his father's business, his father's sheep who was to be anointed as the next king of Israel.

Too often we judge others by their appearance or their present place in society. Too often we place those who have found high status in the world above those who have not. But, it is not so with God. Over and over again, we see in scripture, that God has chosen the lowly, the youngest, those who have the least standing in the world.

Jesus reminds us: 

So the last shall be first, and the first last: for many be called, but few chosen. (Matt 20:16)

God's Peace - Pr. J

Do Unto Others

“In everything do to others as you would have them do to you; for this is the law and the prophets." Matt 7:12
You have heard the saying: "what goes around, comes around." Others refer to it as karma. What really is happening is that when you treat others with disrespect they most likely will treat you in the same manner that you have treated them. It is human nature. People simply have a hard time showing respect for those who disrespect others. When people break the rules of society, there are usually consequences set in place by society as a whole. I dislike this word, karma, immensely. I think a better word for this might be justice.

"Depart from evil, and do good; so you shall abide forever. For the Lord loves justice; he will not forsake his faithful ones." Psalm 37:27-28

Show respect for others and they might show respect to you. Love others and you will be loved. Do good to all people that it may be well with you and them; that we might all live in harmony and peace.

God's Peace - Pr. J

Growing Up In Christ

"We must no longer be children, tossed to and fro and blown about by every wind of doctrine, by people’s trickery, by their craftiness in deceitful scheming. But speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by every ligament with which it is equipped, as each part is working properly, promotes the body’s growth in building itself up in love." Eph 4:14-16

To truly grow up takes a lifetime. Society, today, gives us about eighteen years to help our children grow up and then we turn them loose on society.  As Christians, we do our best to teach our children who Jesus is and what he has done for us and why. We pray that they will follow him. But, the devil prowls and not everyone would have our children go in The Way that they should go for their own and for the benefit of society. With the help of God, we do what we can and then continue to pray for them until the day we die.

It would be most helpful for our children and for society if we could all work together to help all of our children grow in the Body of Christ. May God help us to follow in "His Way."

God's Peace - Pr. Judy

Just Stop Doing Wrong!

Wash and make yourselves clean. Take your evil deeds out of my sight; stop doing wrong. Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed. Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow. Isa 1:16-17 NIV

I just finished reading a bit of news on the internet as I do every morning. There were some articles that I chose not to read because the headlines pointed to some pretty gruesome and despicable conduct. I get tired. I imagine much of the world gets tired of reading and hearing about the evil that is done. Some of the evil is so bold and in your face that it is nauseating.

Other evil deeds are more behind the scenes and are often looked at as lesser evils or maybe not even evil at all. What is evil is sometimes called good. This lesser evil can have an even more far reaching effect on the world than some of the seemingly worst atrocities because this type of evil has become generally accepted in society as something that we just need to learn to live with. It is often justified with the excuse that someone was exercising their personal rights without considering that someone else's personal rights just got trampled on. Just because one thinks that the damage they do to others is not as horrible as what others do does not make it right.  

Other evil deeds are perpetuated daily by a world that has forgotten what evil is. Sin abounds. The Lord's name is taken in vain. People curse one another and act like their words are said in jest. The filth that is seen on television makes it appear that these words and activities are actually good things. The list goes on. Do we really think that the youngest people who see and hear this evil can discern what it good and what is evil unless someone teaches them? And, who can teach them if we ourselves no longer know?

Evil is evil. Sin is sin and when we say that sin is no longer sin it changes the world's perception of what is right and what is wrong and wrong gets perpetuated and approved at an even more alarming rate. There is way too much evil in the world. Let us focus on doing what is good and right.

Create in us clean hearts, O God, And renew steadfast spirits within us. (Psalm 51:10)

God's Peace - Pr. J