Last week we discussed elements of unity. The way we love and serve others speaks quite loudly in our lives and into the lives of people around us. Ralph Waldo Emerson has a famous quote that applies well: "Do not tell me things. For all the while, who you are stands over you and thunders so that I cannot hear what you say to the contrary."
The Christian Church will be known for something.
Rockhills will be known for something.
YOU will be known for something.
What statement is your life making these days? What are some action steps you might take toward unity in your life between your actions and your Christian values? Are they lining up?
INVITATION: It has been noted that we are human BEINGS, not human DOINGS. Even though your life might be full of busy-ness and activity, are you BEING the kind of person God is calling you to be? There is a very specific reason we often avoid taking the time to reflect and "be":
When we reflect, it doesn’t feel like we’re doing anything.
For many of us, doing is the most basic way to assert control. When we’re doing, we feel a sense of power over our circumstances. We can identify something that we’d like to be different and change it; we see our action affecting our environment.
Is there an invitation in your life this week to BE with God and others? From there, unity can happen. It begins with your unity with God, then spreads outward from there. Without reflection and time devoted to “being,” we tend to go blindly on our way, creating more unintended consequences, and failing to achieve anything useful.
MargaMONDAY: Hebrews 3:12-14: How sad to read the letters DNF ("Did not finish") behind the name of an athlete for whatever the reason - a sprain, exhaustion, violation of a rule, or an equipment problem. It's sad, too, when we Christians don't "finish the race marked out for us" (Hebrews 12:1). One of our greatest spiritual challenges is to protect our hearts from becoming hardened and to stay receptive and softened to God's voice and actions in our lives. Are there any habits in your life that draw you away from God? What is in your life that helps you draw nearer to Jesus Christ and to deepen your relationship with Him? Is there someone in your life who has been a cheerleader for your faith journey? How might you conclude your time with God today by renewing your commitment to Him and the things of the Kingdom of God?
TUESDAY: Romans 8:12-17: The spirit and the flesh will always battle. It is easy for our lives to drift.....often we don't even notice it. It is subtle. Over time, our heart begins to get hard toward the things of God and we tend to shut people and relationships out. Verse 15 states, "You did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship." Is fear dominating your life and relationships these days? As you take some time to honestly assess the state of your heart toward God, have you grown hardened? How might you pray about that today and in the days moving forward? Is God inviting you to do, be or know something in relation to this?
Thoughts become actions
Actions become habits
Habits become a lifestyle
Your lifestyle becomes your destiny.
How are your thoughts these days regarding the things of Jesus? How are your thoughts regarding the things God is speaking into your life? It all begins there.
WEDNESDAY: Matthew 16:24-26: "Individuality is the husk of the personal life. Individuality is all elbows, it separates and isolates...but individuality must go in order that the personal life may come out and be brought into fellowship with God. God wants to bring you into union with himself, but unless you are willing to give up your right to deny yourself he cannot. 'Let him deny himself' - deny his independent right to himself, then the real life has a chance to grow." Oswald Chambers, "My Utmost for His Highest."
How do you react to these verses or this quote? Our Western culture encourages and even admires individuality. Yet, it goes against all of the teachings of Jesus Christ. Are you sensing some resistance to this verse or quote? How might you take that into prayer today? God already knows your heart, so you might as well be honest and forthright about it all. He IS faithful and full of love and grace. Perhaps it's time to bring all your resistance to Him?
THURSDAY: Hebrews 3:7-19: We again visit these verses about how the heart can get hardened. Pastor Adam brought up two ways we tend to "hide" from God: 1) We pretend. 2) We lead shallow lives. Do you tend to act like you have it all together? Are you willing to be honest - maybe even to yourself - about when you don't have it all together? What about relationships? Are you willing to truly get intimate with others? To let them know what is going on at the deepest levels? Have you hardened your heart - maybe even to your spouse? To your children? What about to your faith community? Are you willing to have some safe people to which you can bare your heart, mind and soul when necessary (and it IS necessary).
These verses admonish the believers to "look out for each other." Do you have that in your life? Do you avoid intimacy? With God? With others? Please click on the following link to find out ways you can get involved with other believers in and around the Rockhills faith community. https://rockhills.churchcenter.com/calendar
FRIDAY: Pastor Adam shared "the one another" list. The Church isn't meant to be here for some type of entertainment value. It is where we serve and tend to "one another." It is where going beyond the surface occurs. It is where we can find a soft landing and be seen and known. Are you willing to take the risk? Sure, sometimes things go wrong, but that doesn't mean you shut down and hide and become an "island" within yourself. You need others. You were created by your maker for others.
Today and tomorrow, read a few of these verses and listen for the still, small voice of God in your life regarding your relationship with the "one anothers" in your life. Your family, your work, your Church. Could your heart be getting hard regarding this "one another" aspect of the Christian journey? We ALL want to protect our hearts sometimes, but Christ calls us beyond fear and protection. How is He calling you and your heart today?
Forgive one another - Ephesians 4:32.
Accept one another - Romans 15:17.
Serve one another - Galatians 5:13.
Care for one another - Philippians 2:4 -
SATURDAY: Encourage one another - 1 Thessalonians 5:11.
Submit to one another - Ephesians 5:21.
Restore one another - Galatians 6:1.
Bear with one another - Colossians 3:13.
Carry one another’s burdens - Galatians 6:2
YOU ARE THE CHURCH
HOW CAN YOU COME OUT FROM "HIDING" THIS WEEK?