With our Freedom Life service now moving forward, I find myself right now between the Army and the Sea. With a word from God now six weeks ago, a series of events was set in motion that is gaining momentum and will necessarily move towards some future conclusion. Like Moses, I am in a place where I cannot go back, but also in which I do not see a clear path forward. Wherever I look it seems there are troubles, complaints, and concerns. I am not foolish enough to think all these concerns will just go away, but I also know that we will need to move beyond most of them if we are going to realize God's promise.
That's where the Lord steps in. When we have done what God has called us to do, and when we have come to the end of our best efforts, that is when we must expect miracles; things that only God can do. Exo. 14:13-14 says, "And Moses said to the people, "Do not be afraid. Stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD, which He will accomplish for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall see again no more forever. The LORD will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace."
Holding our peace takes faith. We must trust in the Lord and expect to see His mighty power at work. There will never be any shortage of negative people who will say something cannot be done, and in one sense they may be right. It was not possible for Moses to defeat an army or to part a sea. But it was possible for God. There are many things in which I do not see the possibility, but with God, all things are possible.
If, however, we have never seen God show up in miracle working power, then perhaps we have never stepped out in faith and expected anything more than what we could do on our own. God didn't bring Israel out on a magic carpet. They had to pack up their homes and step out in faith. That was their part. They could do that. But they couldn't defeat an army or part a sea either. That was God's part. He could do that and He did.
We can preach, pray, sing, witness, visit, call, invite, etc. We can do our part and we should, but it is God who saves the lost soul. I cannot change anyone's mind on things they hold firmly, but God can change a heart. He did it for me. He's done it for you. He will do it for others.
Where are you today? What army and sea do you stand between? Do you believe God will show up in power and do something you cannot do for yourself, or do you believe God will abandon you and do nothing? It's one or the other. I encourage you to go with God.
UHM? Can I just cut and paste this post onto my blog, I think it is QUITE fitting for my family's situation as well, don't ya think?
ReplyDeleteFaith is the main substance of every Christian's life. It is through faith that we have surrendered our lives to the Lordship of Christ. It is through faith that we continue to serve the way we think He is leading us to. God calls His people uniquely for the purpose of His Kingdom. Often times however, the fatal mistake that we make as a part of the body is that we often think that God should also let us in to our brother's or sister's calling-as if to say just to confirm it. What I mean by that is that we should get the same conviction as they did so we can be in one accord to the pursuit of the "calling." For instance the pursuit of the early service at LOBC-Freedom Life. I believe that before we voice our concerns,and cast our doubts we should look within what is the most important issue-SAVING THE LOST. As long as the Gospel is not compromise and people are growing in God's grace, and becoming firm in faith to fight life's battle, let us be collectively pray and be gracious to support the calling. If this is God's will for LOBC it will stand, if not, let us pull in faith together again to seek His will and remain strong-avoid pointing fingers and "I told you so." After all, what is a psuedo-peace in a congregation or in that regards in any relationship if we are not doing God's will? Cross roads are hard, but He is faithful to those who remains humble and faithful to him.
ReplyDeleteTleshia,
ReplyDeleteYou are definitely between the Army and the sea. You can't go back, and it's not quite clear yet how God will lead you forward. What you do know is that God has led you to right where you are. He will split an ocean and conquer an army all in one fell swoop if you trust in Him and do not lose heart. We do so many things in our own power and we should do that, but there comes a point when only God can bring us out. That is when we grow in Christ. He will bring you out.
Evelyn,
ReplyDeleteYou are so right. I like your use of the term "pseudo- peace."
Jeremiah indicted the leadership of Israel saying,
"13 “Because from the least of them even to the greatest of them,
Everyone is given to covetousness;
And from the prophet even to the priest,
Everyone deals falsely.
14 They have also healed the hurt of My people slightly,
Saying, ‘Peace, peace!’
When there is no peace." Jer 6:13-14
In other words, the people who should have known, and perhaps even did know, would not tell the people the truth. They told the people what they wanted to hear. They said, peace, and that healed the hurt of the people slightly, but it was not true. It made them feel a little better, but it did not fulfill God's will for them.
So let's bring it a little closer to home. Many traditional churches have had a good long run. In our case at least 50 to 60 years. Everything has remained essentially the same. Same building, same songs, same preaching, same pews, same Sunday school, same programs, many of the same people. That's wonderful and we praise God for all He has done.
But the fact is of our roughly 90 members, 63 are over 40 years of age. That's 70%. 30% are over 65. That's 1/3. But only 10, are between the ages of 19 and 39. That's 11%, and of those 10, only 2, Michelle Henline and Adam Beaty, participate on a regular basis. That's 2%!
We are not reaching 19-39 year olds!!! Those are the next generation Christians and if something does not change this church will be no more no long in the future.
Our strategy is to design services and programs that they like and might attend, and to love them right where they are in Jesus name. If someone can come up with a better strategy than that, then let me know, else $upport , pray, encourage, or help. But for heaven's sake, do not stand in the way.
I can no longer say, peace, peace, when there is no peace. When we make peace with giving a lost generation over to Satan and the world, then we definitely are not following Christ.