Good Monday morning all,
I am working from home today as I have a dentist appointment midmorning. I also have an orthodontics appointment midmorning next Monday. I am hoping that we can get all this metal out of my mouth in the next week!
Thank you for a Sunday off to watch our granddaughter Lucy wrap up her volleyball season. Her team went 2-0 on the day winning both matches 2-1. And we were able to take our youngest granddaughter to church with us on Sunday. When we arrived at their house, Posey, they youngest grand, was at a birthday party. When my daughter pulled into the drive way, she said Posey asked her if she thought Oma and Opa were going to church on Sunday because she wanted to go. Yeah! We found out she already had a “fit” laid out for Sunday morning. For those of you not dealing with the younger generation, “fit” is an outfit! And without knowing it for sure, she matched up pretty good with me in my jeans and boots.
I also want to thank you for the time away at the Church Leaders Conference in Dallas. There are always great takeaways from this gathering. As I sat through the general sessions and some breakouts my mind was grinding away. The theme was “Undivided.” We live in a culture where we are divided by so much but the church should be united in two things: Jesus and mission. If we are “all in” on Jesus and his great commission, there should be little to stop the church. After all, Jesus told Peter and the disciples that he would build his church and “not even the gates of hell would prevail against it.” What if we – as a church family – were “all in?”
This coming Sunday I want to go back to Saul’s conversion after going “all in” on Jesus. What did it cost him? What did he give up? The one thing we can say about Saul is that he wasn’t a “cultural Christian.” Cultural Christians identify as followers of Christ but do so primarily because of cultural heritage rather than a personal or committed faith in Christ. Mom or grandma were committed followers like Timothy’s! More men seem to be cultural Christians than women. Cultural Christians see holidays like Christmas and Easter more as social events than a time to reflect on faith. Another defining characteristic of cultural Christians is their moral compass, which frequently stems from Christian principles even when the individuals do not hold a substantial commitment to the faith. Their alignment with these moral principles, however, can sometimes be selective, depending on cultural times and personal beliefs. In other words, they pick and choose from God’s Word which teachings they want to follow depending on how it affects them and their preferences. Jesus never said deny self and follow me only when it is convenient or when it is profitable for you. No, we are told to deny self daily…daily!
This coming Sunday I want to take a look at going “all in” on Jesus like Saul did. Join us if you dare! Going to be hard to hear but sometimes hard is good for us.
P.R.
