No Problem Is Too Small

 In 2Kings 6:1-7 we read the account of Elisha and the floating iron axe head. How that by cutting a stick and tossing it into the water where the axe head fell in, Elisha made the iron swim on the surface. This is a miracle of God. But I noticed something about this act of God in my devotions today. It is interesting how we think that God can only work in big services or during a big event.  

But this floating axe head miracle was not during a church service. There were not thousands of people present. There was nothing dramatic about it. And yet God made the iron swim like a fish. He did this to help in a time of need. They could have jumped in the water and retrieved the axe head I suppose. But God helped them and it ended well.

I noticed also how when the axe head fell into the water the guy did not try to figure out what to do. He just whined and cried and acted like it was a big deal. How often do we make a mountain out of a mole hill when facing some minor problem.

The last thing that I noticed was how pastor Elisha was there present with them. He was not back home praying or studying or taking care of business. He took the time to be with the young guys who had a job to do. Elisha being there made a big difference.

Are you facing some problem today? Ask God for His help. No problem is too big. And no problem is too small. God will help you.

Politics Or Faith?

The next time someone from the pulpit tells you how bad the world is, I want you to think about your part of the world. How bad is your neighborhood? How bad is your job? How dangerous is your grocery store? How wild is your Walmart?

We are told how bad the world is for a reason. That reason is not so that we will love people more or love Jesus more. It is to motivate us to reach out to save people from destruction. It is to challenge us to go to war for truth. It is to shock us to pray more and to give more and to witness more and to preach more.

I wonder why anyone who follows Christ would think of Donald Trump as a prophet? President Trump is not a Christian. He will not join us in Heaven when he dies. He is a sinner just like most of the other people in the world. And because he is rich, it will be hard for him to get saved.

Evangelicals in politics are not in politics to save the world.  The want worldly power to control people. They want to legislate their brand of righteousness. They are kingdom builders, not Earth fillers. They admire the rich and famous and powerful and they despise the poor. Many evangelicals are not born again. They are CINO. 

We have one job as the body of Christ. We have our marching orders. God has not changed His mind about the church. Ask your pastor what our main job is. If it doesn't involve preaching the gospel to the poor then he is wrong.

Inheritocracy

 I was reading about inheritocracy. Children who live on the wealth of their parents or in-laws. One writer call it the bank of mom and dad. The term helicopter parents is also used. These are parents who I think get pleasure out of seeing their children live a lavish lifestyle. They provide a place to live. They provide expensive cars. they give the kids their credit cards. These spoiled children live, with the help of their parents and family, an extravagant lifestyle that otherwise they could not afford. The question is, are they helping or are they hurting their children?

Some of the children of inheritocracy feel like their life is empty and unsatisfying. They feel like they have missed out on some important lessons in life. They have everything their hears could desire, and they feel empty inside.

I grew up in a world where parents raised their children, and at an early age they emptied the nest. Mom and dad did what they could, but no more. Kids had to go out on their own and learn the lessons they needed to learn. They got jobs or went to college and then got jobs. They paid bills and learned how to budget their money. They got married, had children and started their own families. This worked for centuries. If you did your job as a Christian parent, your children will do fine. My children both are better off than their mother and I ever were.

America

 Is America a Christian nation? Was America founded on Christian principals? Were the founding fathers born again followers of Jesus Christ? I say the answer to these questions and other similar questions is no.

America has never been a theocracy. Some Muslim middle eastern countries are. America has been influenced by Christian, Catholic, and Jewish faiths over the years. But the founding documents are not taken from the Bible and the cornerstone of our nation is not religious faith.

Those who try to make America something that it is not are not promoting unity and cooperation, but they are promoting strife and division. They are hungry for political power, not Holy Ghost power.

The job of the church is to preach the Gospel to the whole world, not to build a nation. Our job as the body of Christ is to be salt and light to a dying world. Not to win elections or to hold public office. We may do our civic duty and vote, but beyond that it is not our calling to be politically active and informed. Try being a disciple of Christ instead.

Years ago I was told by a political insider that if I went to a strong evangelistic church that I should not get involved in partisan politics. That was good advice.

People who have grown cold in their faith begin to look around for other things to capture their interest. Sometimes they get drawn to politics. Ask God to rekindle the fire that used to burn in your heart for God and you may find your interest in this present evil world diminishing.

"Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passes away, and the lust thereof, but he that does the will of God abides forever."  1John 2:15-17

Sunday Night Wrap Up

Some Bible scholars think that the creation account in Genesis is actually a re-creation event. That there was an inhabited world before the Earth where Adam and Eve lived. I don't get that idea at all.

There are those who go, we send them out to preach the Gospel. There are those who stay, we do the sending and the praying. Both are vital and both must share the same vision. 

Immediately is a vital Bible word. Especially in the Gospels. Much of what Jesus did to heal people happened immediately, not over a long time. 

At the wedding in Cana of Galilee when did the water become wine? The water turned into fine wine. But when did that happen?

God always saves the best until last. The end is always better than the beginning.

Pastor gets excited when he talks about people getting saved, especially in the early days of revival.

Donald Trump is not a real Christian. He is a slick politician who courted and tapped into the conservative Christian vote. Mr. Trump is not qualified to park cars in our church. Why do we put so much stock in politics?

God does not stir up a man just to stir him up. A stirring of God means it's time to move.

That's all, folks!

A Changing Focus

 The Prescott conference of today is not the same as the Prescott conference of years ago. A long time ago the preaching at the Prescott conference was directed at the heart. Challenging pastors to be right with God. Challenging pastors to keep their hearts pure and to keep their hearts steadfast following Christ, who had called them into the ministry. This is why pastor Mitchell called the Prescott conference a people's conference. Everyone could benefit from heart directed preaching.

Something began to change in conference and today the Prescott conference is about how to be a better pastor and how to keep the main thing of evangelism as the main thing. We do not let a man whose heart is not right with God pastor a church, but we do not apply the Bible to men's hearts so that they can be changed. We substituted evangelism, discipleship, and church planting instead of keeping your heart right with God. These are not the same thing.

I think we need to go back to preaching practical righteousness instead of preaching the Vision. Only a few benefit from vision preaching while all benefit from heart preaching. Ask God to show you how to preach to people's hearts and then do it.

Mid Life Crisis

 Midlife crisis is a term that you do not hear much about lately. It used to be a big deal. Men would get in shape, and try to regain their youthful outlook on life, often divorcing their wives and marrying a trophy wife. They would try to regain the glory years of youth. Only now with the money of success.

But the idea of regaining a sense of youth seems to emerge as a driving force during the midlife years between 40 and 60 years old. We talk a lot about how great we used to be. We brag about the girls we dated and the jobs we had and the sports we played. We focus on what used to be when we were young.

In the faith we are not immune from this midlife crisis. We do not brag about girls or jobs. We talk a lot about when we were first saved and what we did as new converts. We brag about outreaches we did and sacrifices we made. We think that the secret to the Christian life is to act like a new convert again. And we quote the Bible to justify our midlife crisis. Like, I'm only doing this because it's what God wants me to do.

There is no magic wand to wave over a midlife crisis. There is no magic cure. There needs to be an honest assessment  of where we are in life and what we are going through. Ask God to help you. He will.