Dwayne

LORD, make me to know mine end, and the measure of my days, what it is; what I may know how frail I am. Behold, thou hast made my day as an hand breadth; and mine age is as nothing before thee:  verily every man at his best state is altogether vanity. Selah.  Psalm 39:4-5

Every morning, we all rise from the bed and begin to think of all that has to be done throughout the day and week ahead.    Some will make a list while others will just dive in to the first thing they come to in hopes of making a dent in the long list of undone tasks. 

 Hard work is sure to pay off so we push ahead, wanting things to be better for ourselves and our families.  At the end of the day, we sit back and most of the time will say something to the effect of, “where did the day go?“ Or, we will have a conversation amongst family and friends and end up at some point saying, “ where has time gone?”

The man Job  encountered great difficulties in his life and stated, “Man that is born of a woman is of few days, and full of trouble. He cometh forth like a flower, and is cut down: He fleeth also as a shadow, and continueth not.”   The bottom line is that in reality, our life is very short in comparison to eternity.    David, in the writing of Psalm 39, also saw the brevity of life and the need to choose our words and ways wisely. In the first verse, David states, “I said, I will take heed to my ways, that I sin not with my tongue…”. 

I believe we all can pause for a minute and do an inventory on our words and actions. What are we doing and saying during our short life? Is it all pleasing to God? Is it helpful to man?   How much are we doing to lift up the name of Jesus and how much are we doing for him because in the end, that is really all that matters. Lord help us all to know that our days are numbered and that each one should be used wisely knowing that our eternity is at hand. 

“Then Peter said, Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk.” – Acts 3:6

This past Sunday, during our church’s homecoming services, we were joined by the quartet, Molded Clay which was started by former New Birth Baptist Church member Darrell Duggins.  Darrell and I were “introduced” through our church Facebook page from which he sent me a message.  Long story short, we talked and they lead our church service homecoming morning with many songs based on the Bible and the works of Christ.  Many were moved that day but none were moved more than one young man in the congregation (and I’ll get to that in a minute…)

Before the service started, Darrell and I talked and agreed to some basic structure to the service but in the end, we simply agreed to let the service go through the power of the Holy Spirit – we were trying to be sensitive to God’s plan and not ours.  As part of the service, I had studied and prepared a message as usual but during the study time, I would simply sit and stare at the passages; I had a message complete and ready to go but, there was something more to the reading of the Scriptures than normal.  I repeatedly read the passage Acts 3:6, marked it in my Bible, jotted it down on some notes… it was constantly in the forefront as I read and studied time and time again.  

As homecoming services were drawing to a close, Darrell asked me to come lead the invitation as they continued to sing.  I did not preach the message for I felt the message God wanted preached had already been spoken through the songs and worship time all throughout the morning.  I did however, read Acts 3:6 with the simple message of “rise up and walk” the isle to eternal salvation in Christ.  People responded to the invitation with some coming to ask for prayer for their families and circumstances and of course, all were important but I was waiting for one special person to step out – I didn’t have a name but simply a strong desire for one lost to come.

That happened when Allen Shelton stepped out of his pew and walked the isle to tell me he needed to be saved.  I lead him through the Scriptures, prayed with him as he prayed the sinners prayer for salvation and the service was closed on that powerful and beautiful moment.

I could have chosen to steal the moment and preach my message; I mean, I had prepared and studied so it needed to be preached, right?  Well… no… God had already tugged on the heart of many that morning and he didn’t need me to get in the way!  The Holy Spirit was present in abundance that Sunday morning and the last thing I needed to do was get in the way!

Sensitivity to the Holy Spirit is something that is learned and trusted with time.  Paul taught the Thessalonians many things about their walk and work with Christ and it included, “Quench not the Spirit”.  For the lost to come to the knowledge of salvation, the Holy Spirit has to draw them.  That person then has to respond – I have to do my part to preach the gospel but in the end, all that is required is the power of the Holy Spirit to convict the soul to “rise up and walk” while I get out of the way.

Thank God for the Holy Spirit – without Him, we would all be more wayward than we already are.  His calling us to repentance is needed daily – and nothing or no one needs to get in His way!

“Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ.” – Galatians 6:2

As I look back through my “journal”, I see the many requests for prayer and for help in general.  Members of the church are always remembering those less fortunate, those who have gotten out of church, and those who are going through various difficulties such as surgery or sickness.  But there are others as well that are in need; there are those who are lost, those who are making bad choices, and those who are simply living in a world not pleasing to God. 

No matter though, we are to have a heart to help regardless of the situation.  Yes, everyone is responsible for their actions and it’s easy for us to grow cold toward someone or a situation in which repeated attempts are made to invite them back into a life that honors and exalts Christ.  But, we too are to have a heart of love towards everyone.  As the nation of Israel “worked” to fulfill the letter of the law under the leadership of Moses, the Christian should “work” to fulfill the law of Christ through brotherly love and compassion by bearing the burdens of those in need.  We cannot solve all the problems or fix broken relationships but we can pray and list others up to the One who can. 

2 Chronicles 2 King James Version (KJV)

“And Solomon determined to build an house for the name of the Lord, and an house for his kingdom.”

What does it take to build?  Of course to build our homes, finances, materials, time, and a builder are always good places to start!  But before that, there had to be a desire to build and a plan to follow both for you and your builder.  You envisioned the style, the colors, the place and the size.  The builder though needed much more than just your vision.  He needed a plan – a detailed plan with measurements, dimensions, layout, and of course, the place to start.

If you remember, David, the father of Solomon, was not allowed to build the temple but, that didn’t break his desire to build.  Instead, he made preparations for his son Solomon and if I count correctly, in today’s values of gold and silver, David put away over $173 billion to begin the building of the temple and then Solomon added on to that according to the plans of God. (I Chronicles 22:14)  Today, you and I may not build all that we have a vision for but, we can sure remain obedient to the Lord and begin the process by purposing in our hearts to give according to that which we have and then continuing to work for the Lord as HE builds upon that which He has already started.  You and I are servants and workers in building on what God desires.  He doesn’t need us at all – but more importantly, He WANTS us to be a part and to follow His plans for building the church we so dearly love. 

Work for the Lord and “determine” in your own heart to build upon God’s plan.

“And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that the Lord thy God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth:

And all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God.” – Deuteronomy 29:1-2

“Star Wars” – either you love it or you hate it.  I happen to enjoy the movies and have since I was 7 years old.  Within the movies are lots of memorable sayings and in particular, those that are said by Yoda.  He is the one who said, “Do or Do Not – There is No Try” as he was teaching Luke Skywalker.  I understand – Yoda is not God and “the force” is not with us but rather Christ and the Holy Spirit that dwells within us – I get it!

Regardless, the simplicity of this statement when Luke said he would try, is evident.  Nike encouraged the same thing with their slogan, “Just Do It”.  God has called us to do!  We are called to be active in our walk with God and to simply do as He has commanded.  The reward for doing so is evident in these passages.  You have a moment in time today to choose – will I follow God and keep His commandments or will I try this thing on my own?  “See, I have set before thee this day life and good, and death and evil;” – Deuteronomy 30:15.  Which will you choose?  A moment is time is small enough to ignore and yet big enough to change you life forever!  The present moment is where the past and future collide; in this moment there is a monumental potential.  Think of Adam in the garden – there was only one wrong choice available to him and he chose it!  What will you do today?  What (Who) will you choose?

Spring is coming and the desire to get outside is growing stronger and stronger.  The time to plant is upon us and many are ready to get the fields prepared and the seeds in the ground.  As for our home, we have worked hard in the past to have a garden only to see it taken over by the deer and raccoon population in our area!  It can be a little frustrating to work hard and see it all taken away.  For us to have the garden we want, it looks like we are going to have to give a little more to the effort; at the top of the list would be fencing!  Of course, that takes time, effort, and money; some would ask, “Why even try – just buy what you need.?”

If would be easy to just quit but there’s something about sowing and watchin it grow – watching it produce – and then having the produce for ourselves and maybe even enough to give to others.  There’s satisfaction in work and giving of our time to then be able to gain from our labor – and then, there’s and even greater gain to be able to give.

Paul knew about others giving to his mission work.  The Philippians knew that they have had gained from his dedication and then knew they needed to (and wanted to) give back.  “Now ye Philippians know also, that in the beginning of the gospel, when I departed from Macedonia, no church communicated with me as concerning giving and receiving, but ye only.” – Philippians 4:15.  Paul commended them for giving when others had not.  We do not know necessarily what they gave or how much but we know they wanted to and Paul appreciated their efforts. 

You and I, as Christian, can grow in our spiritual realm and then begin to give of ourselves as never before – we can give of our time, our talent and even our treasure and then see the results of doing so.  God gave to us so we too should give back to Him by giving to others and to His house.  But, we have to have a desire to do so:  “Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.” – 2 Corinthians 9:7.

Set your heart to give and watch what God can do.  But, do not expect a return; just give of what you have and what you are able and God will do the rest.

When did church become about something other than Christ and our need to grow and learn of His truths?  If you have ever been in a church service where someone or something other than Christ crucified was preached, then you understand the concern.  Church is a time for fellowship and even fun but it cannot lose the focus of keeping Christ in the center.  Unfortunately, it is sometimes at the end of church that Christ is exalted during only the invitation but left out of prayer time, left out of Sunday School, left out of preaching… yes – in many churches it appears Christ is an after thought.  I’m glad that we have a church that is about keeping Christ front and center.  Make it a point to put Christ at the head of all you do (and that you are!) 

Colossians 1:18 King James Version (KJV)

“And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.”