How Not To Waste Your Life

John Piper wrote a book titled Don’t Waste Your Life. It’s one of my favorites and I would encourage you to read it. But I want to take it a step further. Think about these things:

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Admonish Yourself

Don’t waste your life—work hard, train like an Olympian—and find your purpose in Jesus Christ.

Don’t waste your education—enrich your mind with the knowledge of God’s creation.

Don’t waste your talents—glorify God with your creativity—make kids laugh, dancers dance, and praise God, the Creator.

Don’t waste your health—you only get one body, one mind, and one spirit.

Don’t waste your time—you can only spend your time once. Spend it on activities that will draw you near to God.

Don’t waste your opportunity to do great things—Jesus died for you. Give him your best. He gave you his life.

Don’t waste your money—many in the world need food and medicine. World Vision, Wycliffe, and Samaritan’s Purse are among my favorite charities.

Don’t waste your love—the world never has enough. Love until you grow weary and go to bed exhausted. The Holy Spirit will renew your strength and passion. Your tank will never run dry.

Don’t waste your mind—it’s too precious. Think about whatever is beautiful, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, and whatever is lovely. Renew your mind with the daily reading of God’s word. God’s Hall of Fame is filled with martyrs who died so you could own a Bible.

Don’t waste this moment—if you haven’t done it, accept Jesus into your heart. Once you receive his salvation, you will be filled with the Holy Spirit. He will help you to live a godly life. You may not have tomorrow. Yesterday is gone. Seize this moment—this nanosecond, and make a decision to follow Christ.

Once you have committed your life to Jesus, visit some churches and find one that meets your spiritual needs. You can also do a Google search to locate some places of worship near you.

Jesus is coming back again. He wants to receive you into his kingdom. An inheritance awaits you. In heaven, moths don’t eat your dreams, burglars don’t steal your wealth, and diseases don’t rob you of life.

Don’t waste your salvation—bring others into the kingdom. Be a witness so that others can hear the truth. Remember, eternity lasts a very, very, very long time.

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http://bit.ly/Dont_Waste_Your_Life

To read more of Lorilyn Roberts' books, visit her website at http://LorilynRoberts.com

Why Do I Keep Having All These Same Issues Over and Over and Over?

When Will God Give Me An Answer or Provide Relief?

Do you ever feel like some of your "stuff" is going to haunt you to the grave. That stuff could be physical problems, emotional issues, financial troubles, attitudes, interpersonal relationship problems, sexual hangups, and the list is endless. You get counsel, you pray, you read, and you take steps, but the weight is still there, the porn is still a problem, my anger is still destroying relationships, or the bank account is overdrawn again!

What is going on? What is God trying to teach me, assuming that the afflictions is being allowed by God to teach me something?

This is not a new issue, but one that God has addressed so clearly that it is a wonder that this headline even attracted any Christians to the posting. We need to go back to the begging of the old Testament to find the answer.

Adam, Eve, Cain all suffered affliction for the same reasons that we do today. Even though God has clearly laid out the things they were to do in order to live a blessed life, they just don't do those things.  The story is repeated over and over throughout the old Testament as God's people decided to do things their way in order to get what they wanted and get it now, or to take matters into their own hands rather than trust God's provision.

And nothing has changed in the Church age. I read and reread the Bible, go to church, lead a Bible study, pray, tithe, and more. Then when I'm confronted with some difficulty, my first inclination is to fix it myself. When I am dealing with the sin in my life, I am all too ready to rationalize the sin away. When it comes to trusting God or trusting myself, I generally win. In fact, even when it comes to trusting God or trusting man, I often lurch towards man.

What is your thorn in the side? What is your unresolved sin? Where do you fail to trust?

What God Considers A Curse As Defined In The BIble

Bible's Definition Of  A Curse

Before going further to understand about God’s view on death since the time of the Risen Christ, (meaning after the resurrection, as opposed to the Old Testament days, and before Christ’s death and resurrection) let’s see what the Word itself have to say. Personally, I wholeheartedly believe that although much of the legalism of the Old Testament doesn't apply to us, in this time and age, the Word of God still reigns true—today, yesterday and forever. How God defines things still stand. For instance if the Bible says a particular passage or description is an imagery, then it’s an imagery. If the Word says this is what actually happened (meaning it’s history) then so it is.

When it comes to blessings, most of us, believers and unbelievers alike, can pretty much agree. Good health and peace of mind, for instance are certainly blessings. After all, do you know of anyone who truly enjoys living in anguish…and doesn't consider this a blessing?

But when it comes to what is a curse, it’s not so easy to define.

What is a curse, what is considered a curse?

As a  Christian, I want to know what God defines as a curse and since His word remains true, yesterday, today and tomorrow, I’d like you to examine, God’s own definition of what a curse is as defined in the Bible.

Before you feel this is being simplistic, let me remind you that Jesus’ disciples for the most part were simple folks, fishermen, and  villagers and they were not theologians. (In fact, Jesus often rebuked the theologians and religious experts of His day, if you recall.) Jesus himself said that salvation is so simple that even a child should be able to understand.

Deuteronomy 28 lists out what God considers a curse:

15 But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe to do all his commandments and his statutes which I command thee this day; that all these curses shall come upon thee, and overtake thee:
16 Cursed shalt thou be in the city, and cursed shalt thou be in the field.
17 Cursed shall be thy basket and thy store.
18 Cursed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy land, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep.
19 Cursed shalt thou be when thou comest in, and cursed shalt thou be when thou goest out.
20 The LORD shall send upon thee cursing, vexation, and rebuke, in all that thou settest thine hand unto for to do, until thou be destroyed, and until thou perish quickly; because of the wickedness of thy doings, whereby thou hast forsaken me.
21 The LORD shall make the pestilence cleave unto thee, until he have consumed thee from off the land, whither thou goest to possess it.
22 The LORD shall smite thee with a consumption, and with a fever, and with an inflammation, and with an extreme burning, and with the sword, and with blasting, and with mildew; and they shall pursue thee until thou perish.
23 And thy heaven that is over thy head shall be brass, and the earth that is under thee shall be iron.
24 The LORD shall make the rain of thy land powder and dust: from heaven shall it come down upon thee, until thou be destroyed.
25 The LORD shall cause thee to be smitten before thine enemies: thou shalt go out one way against them, and flee seven ways before them: and shalt be removed into all the kingdoms of the earth.
26 And thy carcase shall be meat unto all fowls of the air, and unto the beasts of the earth, and no man shall fray them away.
27 The LORD will smite thee with the botch of Egypt, and with the emerods, and with the scab, and with the itch, whereof thou canst not be healed.
28 The LORD shall smite thee with madness, and blindness, and astonishment of heart:
29 And thou shalt grope at noonday, as the blind gropeth in darkness, and thou shalt not prosper in thy ways: and thou shalt be only oppressed and spoiled evermore, and no man shall save thee.
30 Thou shalt betroth a wife, and another man shall lie with her: thou shalt build an house, and thou shalt not dwell therein: thou shalt plant a vineyard, and shalt not gather the grapes thereof.
31 Thine ox shall be slain before thine eyes, and thou shalt not eat thereof: thine ass shall be violently taken away from before thy face, and shall not be restored to thee: thy sheep shall be given unto thine enemies, and thou shalt have none to rescue them.
32 Thy sons and thy daughters shall be given unto another people, and thine eyes shall look, and fail with longing for them all the day long; and there shall be no might in thine hand.
33 The fruit of thy land, and all thy labours, shall a nation which thou knowest not eat up; and thou shalt be only oppressed and crushed alway:
34 So that thou shalt be mad for the sight of thine eyes which thou shalt see.
35 The LORD shall smite thee in the knees, and in the legs, with a sore botch that cannot be healed, from the sole of thy foot unto the top of thy head.
36 The LORD shall bring thee, and thy king which thou shalt set over thee, unto a nation which neither thou nor thy fathers have known; and there shalt thou serve other gods, wood and stone.
37 And thou shalt become an astonishment, a proverb, and a byword, among all nations whither the LORD shall lead thee.
38 Thou shalt carry much seed out into the field, and shalt gather but little in; for the locust shall consume it.
39 Thou shalt plant vineyards, and dress them, but shalt neither drink of the wine, nor gather the grapes; for the worms shall eat them.
40 Thou shalt have olive trees throughout all thy coasts, but thou shalt not anoint thyself with the oil; for thine olive shall cast his fruit.
41 Thou shalt beget sons and daughters, but thou shalt not enjoy them; for they shall go into captivity.
42 All thy trees and fruit of thy land shall the locust consume.
43 The stranger that is within thee shall get up above thee very high; and thou shalt come down very low.
44 He shall lend to thee, and thou shalt not lend to him: he shall be the head, and thou shalt be the tail.
45 Moreover all these curses shall come upon thee, and shall pursue thee, and overtake thee, till thou be destroyed; because thou hearkenedst not unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to keep his commandments and his statutes which he commanded thee:

Before we go on, let's really prayerfully consider what each of these mean.

Take verse 22, for instance:
22 The LORD shall smite thee with a consumption, and with a fever, and with an inflammation, and with an extreme burning, and with the sword, and with blasting, and with mildew; and they shall pursue thee until thou perish.

I hope we can at least agree that "consumption" or tuberculosis, and illnesses that includes fevers and/or inflammations, etc (disease) are considered curses.. at least that what verse 22 says.

So, the question arise, would God curse us? Does God still judge us New Testament believers? Especially on those days we slip and fall short of even one of the commandments? (Bear in mind, even just ONE unholy thought is considered as falling short--for all have fallen short, the Bible says.) Would God still curse us and spew His wrath upon us--for those of us who have been paid for and purchased by the blood of Christ?

Psalm 103:12
New King James Version (NKJV)

12 As far as the east is from the west,
So far has He removed our transgressions from us.

And in Isaiah 54, God promises and swears by His name this:
9 “For this is as the waters of Noah unto Me; for as I have sworn that the waters of Noah should no more go over the earth, so have I sworn that I would not be wroth with thee nor rebuke thee.
10 For the mountains shall depart and the hills be removed, but My kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of My peace be removed,” saith the Lord that hath mercy on thee.

As a Believer living on the risen side of the cross, it appears from these scriptures that God has neither remembered our transgressions and neither will He curse us, all because of what His son did for us.

But what about death? Does God bring down death upon Believers? (God calls "death" the last enemy to be defeated.) God's view on death to learn more.

To learn more about Emma Right visit here.

Yes, I Did Use the "I" Word

Why go to church? It's Irrelevant. How many times have you heard that?

In Kenda Creasy Dean's book Almost Christian, she explains the attitude of most Millennials toward church. “Teenagers tend to approach religious participation like music and sports, as an extracurricular activity; a good, well-rounded thing to do, but unnecessary . . . religion is 'A very nice thing.'”

I don't know about you, but to me that makes church sound a bit like a plate of macaroni and cheese.

It's not that they don't like church or have negative feelings about the Christian faith. It that they simply don't care. It has no relevance to their daily lives. Kind of in the same category as the climate in New Zealand. It exists and is probably nice. But it has zero impact on a 20-something American.

When we're talking discipleship, that's a far more dangerous attitude than outright hostility. Hostile people at least accept that religion is worth talking about. Indifferent people don't. In the US, the probability of the church atrophying away from indifference is much higher than being persecuted to death.

So what must happen for the church to be back on the radar for the next generation? How do we achieve a higher SEO, so to speak, in their spiritual google search?

One way is to end our church culture of entertainment and create instead a culture of engagement.

Remember last week talking about how America has a consumer church mindset? Funny thing is, that's what we intentionally cultivated for the parents of today's Millennials. But it's death for retaining their kids. (I think God just likes to switch things up to remind us we don't know everything and can't do it without Him.) 

Young people are highly sensitive to consumerism—they see more commercials in one day on the internet than most of us in ten years of television. They tune it out. They know when they're being sold to, and they don't like it. 

That includes sales pitches from the church to come enjoy/make use of/be entertained by God. Unexpected thing is--They don't want less demanded of them. They want more.

One big reason young people find church irrelevant is that they feel there is no place for them there. They have been entertained and instructed in moral behavior. But they have not known the power of the Holy Spirit or been set free to use that power as Jesus did. 

Our youth know how to be good people, but they don't know how to be meaningful people.  [tweet this]. 

That's not enough for the newest generation to reach adulthood. Praise God.

When I wrote my book, Don't Forget to Pack the Kids: Short-Term Missionsfor Your Whole Family, I didn't want simply to write about missions. I wanted to write about relevance. How do we keep the next generation in church? An important answer for me was to get them involved in serving, using their gifts, and believing they could contribute, at any age. We've lost large portions of the next generation by keeping them entertained and occupied but not discipled. Not being little Christs (the meaning of the word “Christian”).

When people complain that church is irrelevant, what they often really mean is that church is only relevant inside its doors, to the people already there. There is a little bit of accuracy there.

When it gets outside its doors, however, church can be the most relevant force on the planet. Funny, I think that's how God planned it to work. He did say “GO into all the world.” Not “Hang out here and I'll bring them in to you.” We're not Noah's ark; we're the church. One was meant for God to bring his creation inside for safety; the other was made to go out and batter the gates of hell. I think we get those two mixed up sometimes.

The church is relevant when the people who make it up are relevant to those around them. When we don't dissolve into our church walls doing our own thing. When we teach our children that they are the church and they make it relevant by being the hands and feet of Christ. And that they don't have to wait to do so until they known enough verses or are old enough for it to be “safe.”

We've tried to be relevant by creating relevant programming. It's a short-term fix. Creating relevant people—now that's long term. That changes everything outside our walls. When the church is that, it's nearly impossible to be ambivalent about it. It will no longer be perceived as “a nice place with no meaning to me.”

Do we want to be relevant? Forget bells and whistles programming. Forget fancy guest speakers. (Ouch. I'm a guest speaker.) Create disciples. Start as early as possible. Give young people the benefit of believing they can handle real theology and service.

Be relevant people. That's it.

What are You Missing?

Opportunities to share the love of Christ that slip by us.

My husband and I were in Seoul South Korea recently. Some of our Korean friends had told us to expect the people there to be on their phones constantly, even more than most Americans. We found this hard to believe, but I’m telling you, it’s true. People walked down the street . . . staring at their phones. They rode the subway . . . staring at their phones. They did shop without . . . staring at their phones. They also had earbuds in most of the time. People were everywhere and yet during the day, I was struck by how quiet it was. Perhaps it was because people were . . . staring at their phones, in their own little world.

At the risk of sounding egocentric, I wondered what the people walking past my husband and I, with their heads down, would say if they knew they had missed the opportunity to see us. You see, we are quite the odd birds in Korea, and drew stares and startled expressions from the people who happened to look up from their phones and see us. I have red hair, very white skin and freckles. My husband has startling blue eyes and dishwater blond hair. To say the least we could have sung the Sesame Street song, “One of these things is not like the others.”

My understanding is that red hair is a novelty for people who have rarely, if ever, seen it. But many of them missed it. I imagine it might be similar to you or I hiking in the Rocky Mountains and walking right past a bull moose without seeing it because our eyes were focused on the trail. If only we knew what we missed, we would be disappointed.

How many times do we miss an opportunity to share the love of Jesus with someone, simply because we are . . . staring at our phones, or looking at the path we are trudging through life on? We are missing chances to share the gospel with people who are walking right by us. We are also missing the joy of helping a brother in Christ.

Perhaps it’s not our phones. For me, it’s my schedule. I truly love to help others, but I have a really hard time doing that if it interferes with my schedule. This is harder on short notice. Give me a day to think through my stuff, and I can work it in. But throw something at me and ask me to adjust right now? That is much harder for me. As the mother of four my days are so full of things that I remember to do, and places I remember to be, that adjusting my day on the fly makes me feel out of control and lost. I must remind myself that serving others, even if I miss something else, is what I’m called to.

 Here is another question; Are we too busy serving the body of Christ to see those times that the Holy Spirit is calling us to serve in one time opportunities? 
How about this scenario: I play percussion on our church’s worship team. During second service, I sit out in the foyer and chat with anyone who might be out there. Sometimes someone is really hurting and needs me to share the love of Jesus with them. That’s all fine and dandy, until . . . it’s time for closing song. At which point I dash into the sanctuary to make it up to the hand drums before the pastor is done praying. Worship is important and it’s a good place to serve. I love to worship, especially when I’m playing, but is it okay to miss one closing song because I’m listening to a hurting sister? I need to rethink my priorities.

Let me tell you about one family in Korea that didn’t miss the opportunity before them. On Sunday, we attended an English speaking church. The congregation was made up of people from all over the world. They were so friendly and welcoming that we felt right at home.

After the service, we were asking where we could go to enjoy the Han River for the day. Before we left the church, a wonderful Korean couple offered to drive us to a park. Since we had walked or ridden the subway everywhere we went the prospect of a ride thrilled us. Not only did they give us a ride, but they also took us out for lunch, their treat, and then gave us a tour of the Olympic park.

 

They changed their whole day for us, and spent most of it showing us the love and generosity of Christ. It warmed our hearts and blessed us in many ways. The fellowship was sweet, despite the few miscommunications. Their English was great and it was so nice to have complete conversations.

One afternoon may not be much of a sacrifice, but it was huge to us. We felt our Fathers love through our brother and sister.

I know I should rely less on my schedule and more on the Holy Spirit to order my days. How about you?

The Times They Are A-Changin'

 

Come gather ’round people
Wherever you roam
And admit that the waters
Around you have grown
And accept it that soon
You’ll be drenched to the bone
If your time to you is worth savin’
Then you better start swimmin’ or you’ll sink like a stone
For the times they are a-changin’

 

I grew up hearing Bob Dylan on the radio, a folk singer and eclectic songwriter whose insightful words and influential music in many ways defined a generation. The generation he spoke to experienced a dramatic and historical shift in the status quo.  The ‘60’s was a time of religious, political, and social turmoil. The culture-altering events that transformed America--and the world--during that decade produced long-lasting repercussions that are being felt even today, much like the ongoing aftershocks of a major earthquake.

 

 

           In many ways the Church is in the process of undergoing an equally radical transformation, one that will impact every aspect of our lives in the years and decades to come, should Christ tarry.  The words from Dylan’s song The Times They are A-Changin’ are as prophetic today for the Body of Christ as they were for the secular culture of the ‘60’s.

 

         We are living in the most profound time since Jesus walked among men and proclaimed that He is the Son of God. Even though Scripture tells us that no man knows the day or the hour of Christ’s return, we are expected to be aware of the season, and we’ve been given signposts to alert us to its imminence. Those of us who comprise the Body of Christ are also being drawn closer to our Heavenly Father than we have ever been.  Because of His passionate desire for intimacy with us, He is making Himself available to us in extraordinary and unique ways, just as He did when His Son first came and walked among us.  Yet, many in the Body resist the current move of Holy Spirit, because it doesn’t fit into their religious concept of who God is and how He demonstrates Himself among the people.

 

 The result is that much of the Church, especially in the West, is asleep. The challenge that faces us is whether or not we’re going to wake up from our slumber and “start swimmin’” or “sink like a stone” in the River of Life He is pouring out through and upon us.

 

            What do I mean by that?

 

            A wise mentor once remarked that “Many in the Body of Christ today continually seek God’s hand.  Few truly seek His face.”  Many pastors have become so “seeker-friendly” they now preach “another gospel,” one in which sin has no place, where the fear of the Lord is absent, and where it’s more important to be socially and politically correct than to be salt and light to a dying world.

 

Those who sit by and embrace a watered-down gospel risk much.

 

We know from Scripture that the pathway of righteousness is a narrow road, one that can only be walked upon by daily taking up our own personal cross and allowing Holy Spirit to increase in us so that we might decrease.  We are called to “die daily” to those things which distract us from an intimate relationship with Christ, and to encourage one another in the Faith. We are also called to spiritually separate ourselves from the world. This is sanctification. The process of being set apart spiritually from the world, first by salvation, then by “working out our salvation with fear and trembling”, and finally being fully transformed into His likeness and glory, separated from sin for all eternity.  Yet, sadly, many resist this process, choosing instead to pick and choose those aspects of Christianity that appeal to their soul, rejecting anything their soul does not delight in, as if their Faith was a buffet.

 

 It’s never easy choosing the road less traveled, especially when that choice brings you into continual conflict with most everyone around you. Thankfully, we not only have someone to look to who successfully walked that road, but also someone who, because of His success, gained the legal right to be our advocate on a daily basis.

 

 

Come mothers and fathers
Throughout the land
And don’t criticize
What you can’t understand
Your sons and your daughters
Are beyond your command
Your old road is rapidly agin’
Please get out of the new one if you can’t lend your hand
For the times they are a-changin’

 

  There is a generation arising who are not satisfied with the status quo.  They look at the hypocrisy they see within the Body and want no part of it.  They look at the lack of power and true spiritual authority and dare to ask “Why is it absent when it’s promised to us?” They hunger for Truth and Righteousness and will pay any price to have it.  These are the spiritual “rabble rousers” of our day.  They are the ones, like Jan Huss, John Wycliff, Martin Luther, John Calvin, and others, who will bring about a Reformation in the Church.  They are the ones willing to take on the religious spirit that has deafened, and blinded, and caused much of the Church to fall into a deep slumber.  They are not afraid to call it for what it is and do whatever Holy Spirit guides them to do to defeat it, regardless of the consequences.

 

 

Look around you this coming Sunday in church.  Can you identify the “rabble rousers?”  Can you identify those who want more than the “same old same old” every Sunday?  Are you one of them?  If not, why?  Are you content with the status quo, or do you long for something more.  I challenge you to take a realistic, truthful look at yourself.  Do you have the kind of Faith that inspires others to greatness in Christ?  Do you walk the kind of walk that causes the lost to say, “I don’t know what you have, but I want it--”?  Do you most often seek God’s hand, or His face?  Are you prepared to risk whatever your soul finds desirable in order to follow Christ?