Thank God for Lectureships

In the past two months I have been part of two lectureships (one in Ohio, the other in Indiana) and have been reminded of just how wonderful these events are. I understand the great interest many brethren have in such events.

Lectureships are a refreshing time of change from the mundane lives we live. Isn’t it so taxing on our spirits when we face the same routine day after

day, week after week? Even Jesus saw the necessity for a break from the rigors of life. He told the

disciples,“Come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while” (Mark 6:31). He and the

apostles separated themselves from the multitude and were refreshed. Lectureships do this for us!

Lectureships allow you to spend time with brethren. At the recent lectureships, I have had some of the most enjoyable times I could imagine simply by being with my brethren—not just during the lectures but in times between various sessions. I have rejoiced at seeing those I have known in the past, and have grown to love and appreciate the new ones I have met. These men and women are

going to be with me in heaven for all eternity. Time with them is a foretaste of heaven!

Lectureships challenge your thinking and rekindle new resolve. It is easy to become complacent and stagnate spiritually. Literally hundreds of hours are spent in preparation of lectures by those who speak, and I gain the benefit of all that time. Jesus described the kingdom being like a householder who brings new and old things out of his storehouse. Lectures remind me of things I have known in the past, and they open new horizons for study.

Lectureships increase faith in a faithless world. I live by faith; I walk by faith; I am saved by faith! But that faith only comes from time I spend hearing the word of God (Rom. 10:17). There is little in daily life that allows me time to mediate on the really important things in life. There is almost nothing in the media, the news, TV, radio or movies that produces faith. If my life is filled with that which chokes out spiritual time, then I am dying and may not realize it! Lectureships are some of the most important times when our faith can increase dramatically in such a short time.

Now think about all of this in view of our upcoming lectureship. We are just weeks away from the time when every one of us can be refreshed, be with our brethren, be rekindled and increase our faith! Make your plans, now!

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Is There Anything More Tragic Than This?

The pictures of the third world countries of starving children burn images in our souls that simply cannot be erased. In a land of obesity, we sit on our plush couches and are moved when we see the poverty in other parts of the world. Is there anything more tragic than this?

A study by the United Nations shows there are 800,000,000 starving people on this earth with 25,000 of them dying each day from starvation. It is hard to imagine this as we look at the abundance of food in stores. Yet, the reality is about 20 people have starved to death since you started reading this article. Is there anything more tragic than this?

As much as it may surprise you, the truth is that there is something more tragic! There is another death, not of thousands, but of hundreds of thousands each day. It is from spiritual starvation! There is no country exempt from this starvation. It is not just in the poverty-stricken, third world countries, but in the most affluent nations on this earth. Europe is filled with houses of worship that are empty! God has been abandoned there in almost every form, and the same thing is happening in our own land. We are starving to death and don’t realize it.

The spiritual food is all around us. The New Testament has been translated into over 1,100 languages and less than 3% of the world’s population does not have access to the New Testament. Americans purchase 40,000 Bibles each day. The spiritual food is all around us.

Yet, we are starving to death! Whereas just decades ago most Americans had a working knowledge of the Bible, the average attendee at churches today leaves worship “feeling better” without having been fed the food God provided.

Those of you who are reading these words, take time to evaluate just how much you are being fed. The parable of the sower describes how the word entered the hearts of some, but then they “…are choked with cares, riches, and pleasures of life, and bring no fruit to maturity” (Luke 8:14). Are you one who attends worship and Bible class regularly only to get your life so busy that the word is pushed out from your heart? The word can be removed by things not inherently evil!

The difference in the two kinds of death by starvation is so obvious. We are moved by the one and ignore or deny the other. There is a famine in America and we are starving to death. Is there anything more tragic than this?

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Thank God for the Challenges

You can call them whatever you want, but they are part of our lives and the life of the church. Some view them as grave problems. Others see them as insurmountable obstacles, certain defeats, or reasons to give up, but when viewed through the eyes of faith they are simply challenges on the road to heaven.

Thank God for challenges because they teach us to rely on Him. Every reader has one of the “insurmountable obstacles” in his life now or one which will soon be there. We never want them, but they are simply part of life. We need to have an appreciation for them because they help us realize just how weak we are. If we were stronger, we could “fix” them and they would cease to be problems. However, the truth is that such trials force us to admit our weakness and turn to God. Perhaps Paul said it best, “Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Cor. 12:10). That last phrase sums it up best—when I am weak, then I am strong.

Thank God for challenges for they strengthen our souls. The strongest oak is not the one which is nurtured in a greenhouse environment, but one that grows in the open where it battles against the storms around it. The same is true of Christians and the “storms” in their lives. Here is the way God describes trials, “The testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing” (James 1:3-4). The way to full maturity (perfection and completion) is to travel the road of adversity.

Thank God for challenges because they give us a sense of certain victory. We may not win every individual skirmish but the bottom line is that we are winning. Each of us has come a long way in our walk with the Lord and though it has at times been trying, we are better people now than we were before. This is because we are overcoming our encounters with adversity. Look back at your life. You are winning! There are challenges ahead, but you have been winning and with God’s help you will achieve victory!

Now think about the challenges around us and how God is working through us to become victorious. Our latest victory was the lectureship this past weekend. It was the finest we have ever experienced! If you want to know the primary reason, then read David’s article this week. Our finest days and greatest victories lie before us!

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Our Impersonal World

Heaven recognized that the written word can bring joy to those who read it. John had personal knowledge about Jesus and wrote about the joy it brought him. “That which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us . . . And these things we write to you that your joy may be full” (1 John 1:3-4). John wanted others to share in the joy he had because of his personal knowledge of Jesus and wrote to them so that their joy might be full.

However, even John realized that there was a higher level of joy. When he wrote his second epistle it was much shorter. At the end of it he gives an astonishing revelation about a greater joy than one which comes from simply reading his words. “Having many things to write to you, I did not wish to do so with paper and ink; but I hope to come to you and speak face to face, that our joy may be full” (2 John 12). He made a conscious choice not to write words that might bring joy, but to wait until he could speak with them face to face realizing that greater joy would result.

This is a principle Christians must not overlook in our world filled with technology. Think of how much of our communication with others is impersonal. Be honest, how do you feel when you are phoning to get personal attention and you are confronted with “Press one” or “Press two”? When you press the appropriate number you hear another set of instructions about other numbers to press. Whatever happened to talking to a human being!

The same situation is found in widespread use of answering machines. You leave a message because the opportunity is there, but you never know if it is received or more importantly if it is understood.

Then consider how much communication is centered around text messaging and e-mails. Is there anything more impersonal than a message sent via these methods, especially if you know it may have been sent in a similar form to others?

I am thankful for all that we have to assist us using technology—for example, this very bulletin! Such advancement has changed our world. However, it has removed the personal touch from many relationships.

Now think about what John said about a higher way to bring joy to others. Christianity, by its very nature, is personal and we must make sure that we bring greater joy to others, personally.

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The Presidential Secret File

I suspect that almost every American believes that in the deep recesses of the Oval Office is a top secret folder prepared by the outgoing president to be given to the newly elected one. No one knows about it but we suspect it exists and is marked “For President’s Eyes Only.” In it is found secret information about all the plots from foreign lands to destroy America. There is probably information about the Kennedy assassination, the truth about Area 51 in Roswell, and a host of information about other trivial matters.

Of even greater importance would be the information about how to govern this great land. There would be information about how to make wise decisions which would guarantee the glorious future of the land we love so much. Think for just a moment about the awesome responsibility a new president has! Think of his need for wisdom and guidance in leading our nation!

The kings of Israel had this same need for wisdom and information about how to lead God’s chosen people. Hundreds of years before their first king was crowned God prepared His “secret folder” to be used by the new king. Fortunately, that folder is not secret. We can read it.

“When he sits on the throne of his kingdom, he shall write for himself a copy of this law in a book, from the one before the priests, the Levites. And it shall be with him, and he shall read it all the days of his life, that he may learn to fear the LORD his God and be careful to observe all the words of this law and these statutes, that his heart may not be lifted above his brethren, that he may not turn aside from the commandment to the right hand or to the left, and that he may prolong his  days in his kingdom, he and his children in the midst of Israel” (Deut. 17:18-20).

Now imagine a new king, like David who had been raised to be a shepherd, ascending to the throne. Imagine the impact of his making his own handwritten copy of the Bible. Imagine that copy being at his side as he governed the people. Imagine him reading it every single day with the intent of carefully observing all that God said. Imagine these words keeping his heart from being lifted up with pride and humbly following God’s teaching and prolonging his days.

In just weeks we will have a new president. Let us pray for him as he governs us. Let us pray that there will be the copy of the Bible by his side and that he will spend time every day letting God lead him and give him wisdom. Pray!

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