HONOR GOD IN YOUR YOUTH

Today’s Bible readings are Ecclesiastes 10:1-12:14, 2 Corinthians 8:1-15, Psalm 49:1-20, & Proverbs 22:20-21

Ecclesiastes 12:1-2

Don’t let the excitement of youth cause you to forget your Creator. Honor him in your youth before you grow old and say, “Life is not pleasant anymore.” ² Remember him before the light of the sun, moon, and stars is dim to your old eyes, and rain clouds continually darken your sky.

There are so many things that can come up in our lives as a distraction. We can easily get preoccupied chasing after many different things. When we are young & trying to build a family, there are so many things that can take our attention.

              

1.      School activities

2.      Sport activities

3.      Family activities

4.      Vacations

5.      Work

6.      Hobbies

7.      Friends

None of these things are bad things, but they all can become distractions. Each of these things can take the place of our relationship with Christ if we don’t intentionally purpose to put Christ first.

I look back at my early years serving Christ & I can see that we made some very good decisions that have kept us out of the pitfalls that so many others fall into. We had some great old men & women in our life to instruct on. They did a great job in warning us of the dangers of letting other things take precedent in our lives. They helped us see the importance of making Christ the center of everything.

1.      We chose early that Sunday was ALWAYS God’s day.

2.      We chose that Sunday was a family day BUT it would be spent together in church with God.

3.      We decided that praying together was something that we would do regularly.

4.      We decided that nothing was going to take us away from our Sunday commitment to God & each other.

5.      We chose that we were going to honor God by eating together as a family & praying before we eat.

Those may seem like small things, maybe even petty things, but they have kept us rooted & grounded when many others fell away & backslid.

When you commit to put Christ first in the beginning of your journey, it is so much easier. You will never be more motivated to give it all up then you are in the beginning. The longer you wait to surrender, the harder it becomes.

Think of some ways today that you can begin to honor God. What are some things that you can do right now make sure that God stays first place in everything that you do? Take those steps today. You will not be disappointed. It will be worth it now & worth it later.

Pastor Richard Schlotter

SORROW THAT BRINGS REPENTANCE

Today’s Bible readings are Ecclesiastes 7:1-9:18, 2 Corinthians 7:8-16, Psalm 48:1-14, & Proverbs 22:17-19

2 Corinthians 7:8-10

⁸ I am not sorry that I sent that severe letter to you, though I was sorry at first, for I know it was painful to you for a little while. ⁹ Now I am glad I sent it, not because it hurt you, but because the pain caused you to repent and change your ways. It was the kind of sorrow God wants his people to have, so you were not harmed by us in any way. ¹⁰ For the kind of sorrow God wants us to experience leads us away from sin and results in salvation. There’s no regret for that kind of sorrow. But worldly sorrow, which lacks repentance, results in spiritual death.

As people of faith, we often think that we need to demonstrate such a level of love that we neglect to administer correction where it is needed. We ignore behavior in people that could destroy them. We often do this thinking that it is what love would do. We don’t want to offend people so we keep our mouths shut & let destructive behaviors persist. In the end, this is the worst thing that we could do for an individual.

I do want to take a moment to clarify a couple of things. First, we need to make sure that we are not intentionally offending people. The scripture tells us that an offended brother is more unyielding than a fortified city. When we drive unnecessary wedges between us & others we lose our influence with them. They are not going to listen to a word we say if they think we are out to get them. Correction always needs to be mingled with love.

I also know that there are times when we avoid having certain conversations with people because it may be awkward or uncomfortable. This can be the worst thing we could do. Rarely does a problem go away by ignoring it.

I have learned that we have a responsibility to hold each other accountable to a level of Christ-like character that honors God. Sometimes in doing this people can get upset. Sometimes, according to Paul, it may bring sorrow. In the end, that sorrow is a good thing because it brings them to repentance.

I remember a time I was at a conference listen to a preacher teach the Word of God. He said some things that triggered something in me. I began to realize that I had unforgiveness in my heart toward one of my leaders. To be honest, until that point I didn’t even realize it was there. But as the Lord revealed it to me I felt such sorrow inside. That sorrow brought me to a place of deliverance. God freed me from the thing that would have otherwise destroyed me as I repented.

This is the awesomeness of repentance. It doesn’t feel good as we realize that we have erred. It can be an uncomfortable thing as we recognize that we are wrong. Yet, what follows is sweet victory. The sorrow is worth feeling when it brings the freedom in the end.

I want to challenge you to do your best to un-offendable. Here are some things to work on:

1.      Don’t get angry when your pastor corrects you.

2.      If a sermon convict your heart, don’t assume it was prepared just for you; God could just be using it to bring repentance to you.

3.      Stop taking everything so personal. It isn’t always about you.

4.      Remember, repentance is a gift from God, not punishment.

5.      If something bothers you, there is probably a reason for it, FIND OUT WHY!

6.      Do your very best to maintain a heart of humility.

7.      Always remind yourself that the Father correct the one HE loves.

Our goal is growth. Sometimes growth can be uncomfortable but in the end it is worth it all.

Pastor Richard Schlotter

PANIC TURNED TO TRUST

Today’s Bible readings are Ecclesiastes 1:1-3:22, 2 Corinthians 6:1-13, Psalm 46:1-11, & Proverbs 46:1-11

Psalm 46:1-3

¹ God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble. ² So we will not fear when earthquakes come and the mountains crumble into the sea. ³ Let the oceans roar and foam.
Let the mountains tremble as the waters surge!

Have you ever had a situation come up that made you panic? Has there ever been a time when you were told something that immediately sent you into a frenzy? I can remember one evening my wife called me & the call was a call of panic. The kids her were on their way home from the lake & our daughter started to act very strange. Within minutes, she was totally unresponsive. She lay lifeless in the back seat.

My wife pulled over to the side of the road & called an ambulance. I jumped in my truck & sped off to get to them. On the way to them, my truck started to run real funny. It never had problems before but this night it didn’t want to go anywhere. I immediately knew this was an attack from satan.

There was a word that came up on the inside of me—authority. That is when the panic mode shifted to faith mode. I spoke out loud & took authority of the situation at hand. I also knew that if I could get to my daughter & lay hands on her that everything was going to be fine.

When I pulled up on the scene there was an ambulance already there. That sight is enough to put a person in panic. They had the road closed & my daughter was in the ambulance being worked on by the medics. I walked into that ambulance & laid my hands right on her chest & said, “This is my daughter. She is mine & satan has no right touching her. She is off limits. I declare in the name of Jesus that she is recovered. Within minutes she was responding. They went ahead & took her to hospital for precautionary measures but they released her in just a few short hours.

This experience taught me that when panic is present to call on Jesus. We have nothing to fear when we are in His will. No matter how crazy things can get; If God be for us who can be against us! We can stand back in the midst of the roaring oceans & surging waters & have peace, while we watch the awesome power of our God protect & deliver us.

Here are a few things that will help you when panic is trying to take ahold of your heart.

1.     Stop thinking & start praying.

 

Our mind can be our biggest hurdle in moments like this. All the thoughts that can race though it, are often catalysts to the panic. Our minds usually start to gravitate to the worst case scenario. So we need to get out of our head & into faith. This usually happens for me as I start to pray.

Our strength & our refuge is God. It is important that we hear the encouragement that He gives in those moments instead of the fear that the enemy tries to sow.

            2. Remind yourself who God is & His love for you.

God CANNOT fail. It is His end of the covenant to protect, provide, & keep His children. He will never fall short of His end of the covenant. We can rest in that.

Next, we must remember His great love for us. He WANTS to help us. Our text reminds us that He is always ready & willing to rescue us in a time of trouble. This is a promise to each of His children.

            3. Get your eyes off of the raging seas & onto the promise God has given.

What you magnify will become larger in your own mind. If you magnify the problem the problem gets bigger in our mind. If we magnify the promise of God it starts to grow in us too. It is not long before we are overtaken by the promise & all panic leaves & we are left with perfect peace!

We know that there are going to be times when the will be opportunity to panic. When those times come we must remember that there is a better option for us. It is trusting in God.

 

Pastor Richard Schlotter

Living for Christ

Today’s readings are Job 40:1-42:17, 2 Corinthians 5:11-21, Psalm 45:1-17 and Proverbs 22:14

Living for Christ

2 Corinthians 5:14-15

¹⁴ Either way, Christ’s love controls us.^[a] Since we believe that Christ died for all, we also believe that we have all died to our old life.^{[b] 15} He died for everyone so that those who receive his new life will no longer live for themselves. Instead, they will live for Christ, who died and was raised for them.

                                                                                                    

Today was Labor Day a day most of us think of as a day to rest.  Today has been one of the busiest days of the summer for us.  My children and husband and I got to help serve a family who lost a loved one.  We felt so blessed in doing so. After that  we got to pray with hundreds of students for 4 awesome boys who we have grown to love.  My son went to Iowa City and Des Moines with his aunt and uncle to visit 2 of the boys . We felt honored to be a part of anything that would bring healing to these two young men.  God is able and amazing.  We are standing in faith with them.  I am not trying to brag about what we have done.  I am simply trying to paint a picture of what living for Christ is.  

Loving people, helping others and telling them about Jesus.  It is easy to live for Christ with the right attitude.  Get outside of yourself and see how differently you look at living for Christ.

Kelly Schlotter