An Undivided Heart

I found myself singing an old hymn just a few days ago.  They old hymn is entitled, "Come, Thy Fount of Every Blessing."  The writer of that old hymn says, "Let that grace, Lord, like a fetter, bind my WANDERING HEART to thee."  He goes on to say, "Prone to WANDER, Lord, I feel it.  Prone to leave the God I love."  And finally, the writer says, "Here I raise my Ebenezer.  Here by Thy great help I've come."  This is a song that I grew up singing in my church.  And though we don't sing it as much today as we used to, this song is still just as powerful today.  

I recently preached a short series on Sunday evenings entitled, "It's All About the Heart."  Throughout the Bible, we find that every word we speak and every action we take is the overflow of what is in our hearts.  When I speak of the "heart," I am not talking about the organ of the body that pumps blood throughout the body.  I am talking about the core of who we are physically, mentally, and spiritually.  Our heart is the center of who we are and how we live.  In the Bible, David is known as "a man after God's own heart."  This does not mean that David was perfect.  The Bible is clear that only Jesus is perfect; everyone else sins and falls short of the glory of God.  No, David was not perfect, but he did strive to walk with God daily and to please God with his words and his actions.  David knew his heart; he knew the fleshly longings and desires that pulled him in every direction.  David knew his heart was divided.  What did he do?  He cried out to God and asked God for help.  I love Psalm 86.  In Psalm 86:1, David says, "Hear me, Lord, and answer me, for I am poor and needy."  He goes on to ask God for guidance, for mercy, and for joy.  He reminds himself of God's presence, God's goodness, God's forgiveness, and God's marvelous deeds.  In Psalm 86:11, David cries out to God, "Teach me your way Lord, that I may rely on your faithfulness; give me an UNDIVIDED HEART, that I may fear your name."

I don't know about you, but I certainly have a divided heart.  I have fleshly longing and desires that pull me away from God, that pull me away from my family, and that pull me away from my friends.  David had many enemies, but his chief enemy was Satan.  My chief enemy is Satan.  He wants to steal, to kill, and to destroy me!  Satan wants me to have a divided heart.  He knows that if my heart is divided then God doesn't have it all, and God wants all of my heart, all of my mind, all of my soul, and all of my strength.  If God doesn't have all of my heart, then I cannot properly fear His name.  When an enemy of God "fears the Lord," it refers to "terror."  However, when a child of God "fears the Lord," it refers "worship, honor, respect, and awe."  I have been crying out to God these past few weeks these same words of David: "Teach me your way Lord."  "Give me an UNDIVIDED HEART."  I know that I am poor and needy.  I know that my enemy, Satan, is after me.  I know that I cannot defend myself.  I need God!  I rely on His faithfulness, not my own!  My prayer is that God will give me an UNDIVIDED HEART so that I might fear Him.  In doing so, God will guide me in His ways.  He will help me be the husband my wife needs, the father my children need, and the pastor my church needs.  Am I perfect?  No.  Will I ever be perfect?  No.  However, through Jesus' life, death, and resurrection, and through repentance and faith in Him, I am forgiven and set free!  I can live the life God created me to live.  And like the writer of the old hymn, "Come, Thou Found of Every Blessing" says, I am raising my Ebenezer (my Stone of help) daily.  From where does my help come?  It comes from Jesus who loves me so!!!  Greater is He (Jesus) who is in me than he (Satan) who is in the world!!!

These Kinds of Clothes

I don't like cheese.  I don't like cheese.  I don't like cheese.  Most people who know me well know that I don't like cheese.  This morning I stopped by Waffle House to get some breakfast and coffee.  The waitress was extremely nice, and she immediately took my order.  I ordered my usual: a cup of coffee, a waffle, and a bacon and egg sandwich - NO CHEESE.  She read my order back to me, and it was word for word the way I ordered it.  When she brought me my breakfast just a few minutes later - you guessed it - my bacon and egg sandwich had cheese on it.  Fail.  She walked away, but I immediately saw the cheese (and smelled it).  Inside I was angry.  Is it really that difficult to not put cheese on something?  In that moment I had a choice. I could choose to be rude and unkind, or I could choose to be humble and kind.

I'm not sure if you read my blog yesterday, but God had already prepared my heart.  I kindly said, "Mam, I asked for no cheese on my sandwich."  She said, "I'm so, so sorry.  Let me take that back and make you a new one."  She was incredibly kind to me.  After I finished my meal and my coffee, I picked up the ticket to pay.  I noticed that I was only charged for my coffee and my waffle.  She told me not to worry about the sandwich because it was her mistake.  She was humble and kind to me.  I chose to be patient with her and kind with her.  After I paid my bill, I walked over to my table, and I left her a tip plus the amount for the bacon and egg sandwich.

Colossians 3:12 tells us, "Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience."  I take that to mean all the time.  We need to put on these kinds of clothes all the time, not just when it suits us or is comfortable.  We need to put on these kinds of clothes all the time because we are God's chosen people.  God calls us to live in holiness and in love, toward Him and toward others.  I am thankful that God allowed this to happen to me.  I am thankful for the Christlike clothes (humility and kindness) my waitress was wearing this morning.  I am thankful for the prepared heart God gave me so that I could also wear these kinds of clothes (humility, kindness, and patience) in this circumstance.  I pray that today you will choose to put on these kinds of clothes no matter the circumstances of your life.  You are God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved!

My Thanksgiving - Seasonal or Annual?

I learned to love working in the yard from my Aunt Nancy and Uncle James.  They taught me so much about grass, plants, flowers, shrubs, and trees.  My Aunt Nancy loved roses and really all kinds of flowers.  I recently went to Lowe's to look at some flowers.  I noticed several signs that caught my attention.  One of the signs said, "climate-controlled."  Another sign said, "seasonal."  And finally, another sign said, "annual."  I understood what the signs meant when it came to the plants I was selecting for my house.  However, I couldn't help but thing about my attitude and my choices as a Christ follower.  We are entering the time of year when we celebrate many things: fall, Thanksgiving, Christmas, a new year, etc.  For me, I really get into celebration mode thinking about Thanksgiving.

The question that I asked myself shook me to my core.  Is my THANKSGIVING seasonal, climate-controlled, or is my THANKSGIVING annual?  When we talk about plants, a seasonal plant is only around for a few short weeks.  It shows off and then it is gone.  A climate-controlled plant only survives when the conditions are just right.  An annual plant is one that thrives and survives throughout the year.  Psalm 95 reminds us that as Christ followers, we should come before the Lord with THANKSGIVING in our hearts.  We should sing and shout for joy before the Lord daily.  Our THANKSGIVING to and for God should never be seasonal or climate-controlled.  However, what I am seeing and hearing more and more often is that instead of praising God and giving Him thanks daily, we only do so when it is convenient; we only do so in certain circumstances, in climate-controlled environments; our praise and our THANKSGIVING seems to be more seasonal than annual.

As Christ followers, we need to be careful with the culture we create or the culture we embrace.  Instead of hearing many conversations filled with THANKSGIVING, I am hearing many more conversations filled with grumbling and complaining.  We grumble and complain about everything...in the home, in the workplace, in the school, and yes, in the church!  This is not OK!  Paul says in Philippians 2:14-16, "Do everything without grumbling or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, 'children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.'  Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky as you hold firmly to the word of life."  In John 6, Jesus had just fed the five thousand with bread and fish, and He had just walked on the water to be with His disciples in the boat.  The crowds followed Him, and Jesus told them that He was the Bread of Life come down from heaven.  He was meeting their needs, both physically and spiritually.  However, John 6:41 says, "At this the Jews began to grumble about him because He said, 'I am the bread come down from heaven."  In John 6:43, when Jesus heard their grumbling, He said, "Stop grumbling among yourselves."  In the Greek language, the word "grumble" means "to mutter and complain."  Jesus shows us throughout the New Testament that grumbling is serious!  Grumbling, muttering, and complaining can be deadly for the body of Christ.  When we cultivate or participate in an environment of complaining it weakens commitment and chokes surrender.  As Christ followers, surrender is choice we make daily.  We surrender our will to the will of God.  We surrender our hearts for the heart of God.  As Christ followers, commitment is choice we make daily. We commit ourselves to be ambassadors of God in a "warped and crooked generation."  We commit ourselves to love God and to love others the way Jesus loves us.  A culture of grumbling, muttering, and complaining destroys our surrender and our commitment.  We need to see and to understand what we are doing when we choose to grumble and to complain.  It is not good!

What can we do about the culture of grumbling, the spirit of complaint in our lives?  I believe the answer is found in Philippians 4:4-7.  Paul says, "Rejoice in the Lord always.  I will say it again: Rejoice!  Let your gentleness be evident to all.  The Lord is near.  Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.  And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.  If we have cultivated or embraced a culture or a spirit of grumbling and complaining, we need to repent of it.  We need to take it to God in prayer and let go of it.  We need to stop spreading the disease of grumbling to our homes, to our workplaces, to our schools, and even to our churches.  We need to rejoice in the Lord...always!  We need to cultivate and to embrace gentleness and THANKSGIVING!  And we need to do it daily!  A culture and a spirit of THANKSGIVING shouldn't just be seasonal or climate-controlled.  A culture and a spirit of THANKSGIVING should be annual...all year round, every day!  I am praying that the Holy Spirit will convict me of my sin and move me to walk in God's love and celebrate God's love and share God's love daily.  I am praying that my THANKSGIVING will be annual and not seasonal or climate-controlled anymore from this day forward!  Amen.

My Light & My Salvation & My Stronghold

If you are reading these words, then at some point or in all points of your life you have dealt with fears and/or troubles.  I could list a million fears and/or troubles, but I want you to name your fears, name your troubles right now.  How do you deal with your fears and your troubles?  If you are a Christ follower, then you have a Father you can run to; you have a Father you can rely on in your times of fear, in your times of trouble.  I love David's words in Psalm 27:1, when he says, "The Lord is my light and my salvation - whom shall I fear?  The Lord is the stronghold of my life - of whom shall I be afraid?"  I believe David's words were more like statements than they were questions.  David was clear: GOD was his Light, his Salvation, and his Stronghold.  David's confidence and hope was not in himself or in anyone else.  His confidence and his hope were in God.

Today, whatever fear has overcome you, whatever trouble has surrounded you, put your hope and your confidence in your Father who loves you!  Put your hope and your confidence in your Father who is your Light, your Salvation, and your Stronghold!  In John 16:33, Jesus says, "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace.  In this world you will have trouble.  But take heart!  I have overcome the world."  Believe the words of Jesus!  Claim the words of Jesus!  He is your Light and your Salvation and your Stronghold!  Whom shall you fear?  Of whom shall you be afraid?

Happy Birthday, Marty!

Galatians 5:22-23

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

October 12th is a special day for our family.  Marty Hill Thomas is celebrating her birthday today, and we want to wish her the very best and the happiest birthday wishes!  Marty, you are an awesome wife and mother!  You are an awesome teacher and friend!  We thank God for you!  You are full of love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control...just like Galatians 5:22-23 says.  The Spirit of God fills you and overflows your heart.  You are a blessing to so many people, but today we are praying God's blessings on you!  Happy birthday, Marty!  We love you so, so much!

Jeff, Francie, Jacob, Katie, and Jonah