I’ll explain more in the days to come, but Cheryl and I made a video recently. We shared it with the church yesterday. It’s one of the hardest videos I’ve ever had to make, but it feels great to be in the center of God’s will.
Ron and Cheryl Edmondson from Gcomchurch Sermons on Vimeo.
Hebrews 11:6
I was running recently in Asheville, NC. Have you ever been there? What a beautiful city! The area where I was running is full of big houses. Mansions galore. Not Biltmore big, but bigger than my house big. Lots bigger. I was running part of the time with my mouth open. I couldn’t believe the enormity.
I kept thinking:
Wow! Who lives in those houses? What would it be like to have a house like that? How cool is that house?
Then the thought occurred to me…
It felt convicting at first, then comforting.
In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. (John 14:2)
(I love having Scripture hidden in my heart!)
I was instantly reminded that I have treasure in God that no one could afford. No one in Asheville or anywhere in the world. Bill Gates, or the new richest man in the world (I hear Bill’s not the richest anymore) couldn’t afford the treasure I’ve been afforded by my God.
Next time you run (or walk or drive) past a mansion, remember where your real treasure is.
Instead of being overwhelmed by the things of this world…be overwhelmed by the glories of His world. My richness is in Christ. How rich am I?
Are you ever like me? Do your thoughts ever get side-tracked?
Often we focus on the wrong treasure. The cheaper treasure. The one that won’t last.
When is the last time God redirected your thoughts towards Him?
It seems there is an internal pressure to:
I feel the pressure. Am I alone?
What if we let the Gospel be the Gospel? What if we let truth prevail and the Holy Spirit be the teacher?
What if we drop the pressure and share the truth that God still loves sinners, that the Cross is still enough and that He is calling people to repentance and restoration?
What if we share the glory of the resurrection, not in a way that brings attention to our creativity in preparing a message, but in His humility and grace on the cross?
What if we decrease so the light of the world might increase?
That’s my aim this Easter. Who’s with me?
This week I’m at Moody Founder’s Week. It’s a Bible conference put on by Moody Bible Institute that I’ve come to for several years, especially since my son Nate is a student here. One of the underlying themes this year has the persecution of Christians around the world. I’ve read recently that Christians are under more persecution today than any time in church history.
Then, my friend Tami Heim tweeted that she was praying for the Christians of Uzbekistan. I’ll be honest, I don’t know that I ever prayed for anyone in Uzbekistan. Then I followed the link she provided and realized it’s part of an initiative called the Five Minute Challenge. I signed up. You can too. In fact, I think you should.
HERE is a list of the 50 most-watched countries for church persecution.
Watch this video and then go HERE.
Do you ever pray for persecuted Christians?
Be serious! Be alert! Your adversary the Devil is prowling around like a roaring lion, looking for anyone he can devour. 1 Peter 5:8
I’m not a pastor who is constantly looking for Satan behind everything that goes wrong. I concentrate my attention on Jesus and encouraging others to follow Jesus and not to focus on the defeated one. Yet, I’m fully aware that Satan loves to destroy…or attempt to destroy…a church. Obviously Satan is a limited being and God’s church is secure. The gates of hell shall never overcome what God started, but Satan certainly loves to disrupt what God’s church is doing.
Church conflict – Satan loves business meetings that get out of hand or when two church members have disagreements outside of church. He loves when church members argue about trivial things, such as colors of the carpet or big things, such as whether to add another service. Doesn’t matter to him. Show him a good argument potential and he’s willing to stir the fire.
Burnout – Satan loves to burn out a church volunteer, staff member, or pastor. If he can make them feel they are no longer needed, their work is not appreciated, or that they no longer have anything to offer…he feels he’s winning part of the battle.
Rumors – Satan is the stirrer of dissension. He likes to plant little seeds of a juicy story, about someone in the church or community…sometimes even the pastor or staff…and watch them quickly spread through a church congregation or community. The version, of course, usually grows to a larger portion than reality. Satan likes that too.
Busyness – Satan loves to distract church goers with a plethora of activity that produces little results in Kingdom-building.
Lies – Satan attempts to interject what he calls a “half-truth”; just a hint of false doctrine and then watch it disrupt or divide a body. Of course, we all know that half-truth is really just a cleaned up version of a bold face lie, but Satan is clever enough to disguise a lie in a way where false teachers gain entry and do damage before being discovered.
Scandal – Satan loves a good, juicy, gossipy news headline in the local paper. If it will split, divide or destroy a church body…even better. If it will destroy someone’s Kingdom calling or work…he’ll take that too.
Marriage and family disruptions – Satan loves to destroy any relationship, but he also goes after key leader’s marriages; even the pastor’s marriage. He likes to encourage prodigal children. He wants to cause families to fight within the church and fight with the church. Satan knows if he can destroy a home, he has a better chance of destroying a church.
You are from God, little children, and you have conquered them, because the One who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. 1 John 4:4
What other ways have you seen Satan try to destroy a church?
Introducing…from the men of Culby X…
It’s free, it’s inspiring, and it’s good.
Forgive me, but this is a personal privilege post. My son Nate, a pastoral student at Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, released his first Christmas album today. This was his brainchild. He recruited the guys on his dorm floor, Culby 10th floor, to help. Nate coordinated the electronic music, another guy sang, and the guys on the floor participated with Scripture input, marketing, and general morale support.
Most amazing to me is that this project was completed in a dorm room. I don’t recall that insanity in dorm rooms from my days in college. Don’t let anyone tell you this generation can’t make a difference. The guys of Culby X, and so many others, will prove you wrong.
Download the album:
Like their Facebook page:
And have yourself a Merry Christmas!
I think I’ve often viewed mentoring the wrong way. For years, I’ve been an advocate of having a mentor. I’ve had one since I was in my early 20′s. I’ve written about mentoring previously. I’ve written about mentoring in posts such as:
Questions to Help Know What to do with a Mentor
In the last post listed, I stated that if you want a mentor, you must be willing to ask someone to mentor you. I still agree with that concept. If you need a mentor, it’s better to ask one than to do without. I wonder, however, if that’s really the Biblical model.
Consider for example:
So my questions are:
You may feel you have nothing to offer. That held me back from intentionally recruiting people to mentor for years. I’ve learned, however, that if a person has experience at any level, they have plenty to share with those who haven’t walked where they walk.
In a future post I’ll share how I have implemented this thought process.
Do you have a mentor?
Do you have someone to mentor?
Do you need to recruit someone?
Mustard Seed Thoughts
