May I be...

May I be a humble man, Lord
that my words would encourage and edify

May I be a steadfast man, Lord
that my walk with You would be faithful

May I be a patient man, Lord
that my actions might witness unto You

May I be a man of perseverance, Lord
that all may see that I trust in You

May I be a man filled with Your grace and truth, Lord
that You would be glorified in my life

As a believer in Christ Jesus our Lord

As a believer in Christ Jesus our Lord;

We are called to daily pick up our cross -

Our cross is an outward sign of our dying to self, crucifying our flesh, letting the Lord lead us in all that we say and do, giving way to the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives - not my will but Thy will be done

We are called to follow Him-

Not just on Sunday and Wednesday nights, not just at fellowships and Bible studies, but in everything that we do, in everything that we are, whether it is comfortable or not, whether you feel like it or not - you have a call on your life and Jesus says ‘Follow me”

We are called and blessed with a testimony-

We must be prepared and we must be willing to share what the Lord has done and is doing in our lives - we overcome the world by the word of our testimony

We are called to preach the gospel-

The preaching of the gospel is a command of the Lord Jesus Christ to everyone that calls upon His name and has been born again from above, it is not an option, it is not just for the ‘pastoral staff’ - we are all called to ‘preach the good news’ of the kingdom of God

We are called to make disciples of all nations-

The making of disciples is another command that the believer is called to participate in, with the assistance of the Holy Spirit and the power of the Word of God we must seek to be obedient to assist the Lord in the process of maturing the body - this is discipleship

We are called to love as He has loved us-

Without the love of Christ shining forth through us none of the above will matter. . . .

If we speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. And if I give all my possessions to feed the poor, and if I deliver my body to be burned, but do not have love, it profits me nothing......we love because He first loved us.....

By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another. (John 13:35)

God of my praise

O God of my praise,

May my walk be encouraged
May my faith be strengthened
May my heart be steadfast
May my mind be renewed

For I am a man of iniquities and sin
And I am afflicted and needy

But I hunger and thirst after You
By Your loving kindness deliver me
By Your mighty Right Hand uphold me

Psalms 109:30
With my mouth I will give thanks abundantly to the LORD; And in the midst of many I will praise Him.

in You

In Your hand Lord, there is life changing hope
In Your Word Lord, there is the truth that sets us free
In Your Spirit Lord, there are waters of abundant life
In Your life Lord, there is peace and joy abounding.

prb

Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
(Romans 15:13)

I am

I am the Lord your God
Who brought you out of sin
Who delivered you from the bonds of slavery
Who set you on high ground
Who made a way where there was no way
Who tore the veil and invited you into the most holy place
I am the Lord your God
Who gives you new life
Who offers you life abundant
Who longs for your presence
Who loves you with an everlasting love
I am the Lord your God
I am the Lord Jesus the Christ

Quantity versus Quality

Where is our focus? This appears to be a part of the issue with the modern church today.

We seem to strive so hard for quantity (ie: numbers) that we are missing out on the quality (disciple making). I seem to recall that God’s Word tells us to go and make disciples (quality). I dare say that if we were to follow His admonition – go and make disciples - then we can probably let Him worry about the quantity (numbers). But maybe part of the issue is our understanding (or lack thereof) of ‘what is a disciple’!

The prb understanding of ‘what is a disciple’:
- one who follows Jesus Christ and hears and listens to His voice,
- one who places their complete faith and trust in Him,
- one who allows the Holy Spirit to fully indwell them,
- one who grows in knowledge and stands firm on every word that proceeds from the mouth of God (His Word - the Bible),
- one who is not ashamed of the Gospel of Jesus Christ,
- one who is steadfast in fighting the good fight of faith,
- one who resists the devil,
- one who understands that this world is not their own – that we are aliens and foreigners who are sojourners in this world,
- one whose hope is looking to and based upon the author and finisher of our faith,
- one who longs to be in His presence and glory in His grace, and
- one who loves the Lord God with all of their heart, soul, mind and strength and loves their neighbors as themselves.

By faith, through grace, in truth – this is the life of a disciple.

Is there such a thing as a ‘quasi-disciple’ that seems to make up a large part of the ‘quantity’ church at large these days? Could this be one who attempts to follow Jesus (on Sundays and Wednesday nights) with one foot while yet keeping the other foot solidly in the world (might I use a biblical expression: lukewarm). There are those who are a ‘mile wide’ but an ‘inch deep’ and are joined with those who believe that Christianity is a ‘spectator sport’ that should be played only by the ‘professionals’. Somehow I don’t believe this is what Jesus had in mind when He said “come and follow Me”!

Quantity for the sake of quantity is rarely a good thing…and there are lots of good ‘reasons’ for churches to focus on quantity…yet, our focus should be on what God desires that we be – His disciples, witnesses unto Him and ministers of the Gospel of Christ. Might we join Him where He has called us – whether we are planters, water-ers, equippers, encouragers, exhorters and/or sometimes even rebuke-ers – that we might be His grace and truth dispensers…?

First...

First, God loved us…
But we chose separation.
Then God gave us a promise fashioned by faith…
But we determined that we could not wait.
Then God acted upon His promise…
But it did not fit our understanding so we did not believe.
Then God, in His love for us, paid the ultimate price…
But we, in our disobedience, ignored His gift.
Then God said ‘it is finished’…
But we still wanted our own kingdoms.
Then God tore the veil from top to bottom to overcome the separation…
But we chose to ignore His redemptive work.
Then God removed the sting of death…
But we, in our pride, rejected the hope of new life.

God is still waiting,
His promise fulfilled,
His plan for our redemption complete,
His love calls us to His Son,
His Spirit draws us to His grace…
How then shall we respond to the greatest love of all?