Weekend Review

My travel schedule on Monday hindered an opportunity to bring a weekend update to you via this blog. Once again I am truly thankful for the presence of God that was evident in the services. Each of us need to remember that the Father desires to release His love and grace in our lives if only we will make the commitment to open our hearts to His presence. Why do we allow the enemy to bring the "spirit of hesitation" into our lives when the opportunity to respond to God is presented to us when we gather to offer worship to our Loving Savior? The Holy Spirit is dealing with my heart concerning that particular attitude that seems to be gaining a foothold in the hearts of people. We find it simple to respond to the pleasurable things of the flesh but so difficult to respond to the call of the Spirit. I seek to reverse that trend in my personal life. I seek to respond quickly and obediently to the call of the Spirit and learn how to say no to the pleasures of the flesh that will hinder the development of my relationship with Jesus Christ. God is at work in the lives of His family and I desire to respond in faith and obedience to His call to draw near to Him. Let each of us ask God to develop our spiritual sensitivity to the presence of His Spirit in our daily lives!

Veterans Day

As a American citizen I want to recognize all of the brave men and women who have served our country in the various military branches. I also want to recognize those brave men and women who are presently serving our nation in the military. I desire to personally thank you for your willingness to put yourself in harms way that we might enjoy our freedoms today. As a Gospel Minister I am thankful for the freedom to share the message of the Gospel without the fear of imprisonment. This freedom only happens because of the service of the Veterans and the men and women who are presently serving our nation in the military. May God richly bless you and your family and may God to continue bless America. On a personal note I recognize the service of my father. He presently resides in Alabama and he served our nation as an infantry soldier in World War II. He served in the Third Army under the command of General George Patton. His infantry unit was involved in some of the major battles toward the end of the war (Battle of the Bulge, crossing the Rhine River, the Siegfried lines, to name a few). He was called to preach the Gospel after he returned from the war. For over 60 years him and my Mother have offered their lives in service to the great cause of Christ and His Kingdom. Dad, you are loved, appreciated, and respected by your family and all of the people who have known you through the years of your life on earth. I am proud to be one the children of Mr. & Mrs. Wallace E. Willingham. Happy Veterans Day!

Personal Reflection

Many of you are aware of my participation/leadership in a church plant in Radcliff/Fort Knox, Kentucky.  We have been able to witness the marvelous blessings of God as He has touched the lives of many people over the past several months.  These people have included those individuals who have come from "church" backgrounds as well as those who have come from a non-church background.  We must always remember that the Grace of God will reach across the vast spectrum of humanity and touch whosoever chooses to believe and receive that Grace into their lives.  I know that we are living in some very challenging times and I see those circumstances being played out on a weekly basis.  BUT I am convinced that the power and presence of the Spirit is greater than all of the forces of the enemy regardless of the tactics that the enemy may use against the people of God. 

Because of the growth of this ministry outreach effort we have purchased a building so that we can have room to expand.  I have shared a little of the story in previous posts regarding the purchase and remodeling of the building.  Feel free to email me if you would like more information concerning this effort or if you would be interested in investing in this outreach effort.  Feel free to contact me if you have friends/family who live in Hardin County, Kentucky or any surrounding counties or friends/family who may be stationed at Fort Knox.  I would be glad to make a personal contact with them regarding New River Worship Center.

I must share the blessing that I received last night as we were working in the building.  The remodeling of the building has included the combination of volunteer labor as well as the hiring of some contractors.  Last night was a night for volunteers to show up and invest their time and energy in the project.  The building was a beehive of activity last night as we gathered to clean the facility as well as place some insulation in the structure.  Neither one of those tasks are very attractive yet last night we drew a group of individuals who were interested in offering their service to this project.  I was blessed as I looked from the platform across the area that we will use for the area of corporate worship.  I saw children, youth, parents and even a 93 year old man present for the work event.  Children and youth were pushing brooms, moving trash, sweeping floors and even placing insulation in the walls.  Their parents were working side by side with them as we are approaching the end of the initial stages of this project.  My heart was warmed and encouraged as I realized that the Spirit will draw the heart of people into an offering of sacrifice.  Each of these individuals were sacrificing their time, energy, and abilities for a cause greater than any of us.  The cause is not the building but the cause is the people who will sit in the building in Children's Church, Youth service, and times of corporate worship.  The "church" must remember that we are here to reach people with the life changing message of the Gospel.  Take heart today and realize that many of us still believe in the power of the message of the Gospel.  The lives of people are still being changed and rearranged through the power and presence of Jesus Christ.

Purpose of Christ

Each of us as individual Christians need to remember the true purpose of the entrance of Christ into our world.  A devotion that I read last week challenged me to revisit my thinking concerning the ministry of Christ in our world.  It is so easy to fall into a pattern of "religious" activity and not become fully engaged in the activity of the Spirit in our world.  Jesus declared in Luke 19:10 that "The Son of Man came to find lost people and save them." (ERV)  We must desire to put the Words of Christ into action in our daily lives and realize that the family of God must emulate the purpose of Christ.  All though we can not "save" anyone through our own ability we can make certain that we point them to Christ, the Savior of mankind.  As you read the purpose statement of Jesus Christ it becomes very clear that we as the family of God bear a great responsibility as we look on the condition of our world.  People all around us need a Savior and they need to see the family of God engaged in the "Father's business." We have a great message to share and that message has the ability to bring salvation and deliverance to anyone who will choose to believe.

I am unsure of the name of the person who wrote the devotion that inspired and quickened my heart but he or she shared these thoughts.  "Jesus did not come to please the religious crowd.  Jesus did not come to pander to the social crowd. Jesus did not come to hang out with the wild bunch. Instead, Jesus entered the world to save sinners.  When we look back over the Gospel of Luke, we see Jesus reached out to men and women, young and old, powerful and forgotten, demon possessed, and the politically connected. He came to save sinners of all shapes, sizes, and stripes.  He came to save you and me."

I encourage you to re-read the purpose statement of Christ and commit yourself to following after that purpose in your daily life.  There are people all around us who need a Savior and we need to let our light shine in the midst of this sin darkened world.

Friendship

I have always been taught that a job worth doing deserves to be done well and done with quality in mind.  I take this point of view into the ministry role in which I am presently serving as well as the other responsibilities that I have as a husband, father, and grandfather.  But this morning I want to encourage you to do your best in your role as a friend, mentor, and Christian witness in the community in which you live and serve.  Is it not true that each of us are called to serve?  Each of us just serve in different areas and capacities of service to our fellow human beings.  Doing our best to serve with quality will be very rewarding not only to those that we are serving but it will also be very rewarding to those of us who are offering their service.  Many of us have walked away from an opportunity to serve and we felt such a sense of accomplishment realizing that God had used us to be a blessing to someone. 

Friendship and mentorship have been on my mind the past few days.  I desire to have good friends but do I desire to be a good friend.  Do I truly desire to offer "quality" friendship to individuals that God places in my life?  Do I truly do my best to invest my life in various individuals that God places in my life for a specific reason or purpose?  Do I seek to become a better person through the development of friendship and do I seek to assist that friend of mine to become a better person?  I recently read this quote of Mother Teresa; "Let no one ever come to you without leaving better and happier."  I was deeply challenged by those words.  How do people feel once they leave my presence?  Are they encouraged or discouraged?  Did they sense the presence of God at work in my life or did they identify the absence of God?  Would they feel comfortable introducing me to their friends and be willing to identify me as a friend of theirs?  Friends bear great responsibility for each other and I am learning that I desire for God to help me become a better friend/mentor to those who God places in my life.  I trust that this post will encourage you and me to inventory our lives and see what areas of friendship needs improving.

Ephesians 4:29, "Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen." (NIV) 

Good Works

Ephesians 2: 8-9, "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. (NKJV)

Is it possible that we place too much pressure on ourselves to perform the works of Christianity rather than allowing our works to become a natural outflow of our relationship with Christ?  I continue to understand the fresh revelation of God's Grace and Mercy.  I understand that my salvation is not based on my ability to "perform" certain actions and attitudes that are associated with being a disciple of Jesus Christ.  I must continue to identify my weaknesses and depend on the strength that is provided through Jesus Christ.  Do you remember this declaration of Paul in Philippians 4:13, "I can do all things through  (emphasis added) Christ who strengthens me." (NKJV)  We must constantly remember that it is Christ working "through" us to reveal His presence in the midst of this world.  Christ said that people would see our good works and glorify the Father which is in heaven.  John the Baptist declared that he "would decrease and Christ would increase."  The more that I release my life into the working of God's Grace the more successful I will be in sharing my witness with this world.  We can witness verbally but there is also opportunities to witness in a non-verbal manner.  Non-verbal witnessing would include those opportunities to serve our fellow man through acts of kindness, thoughtfulness, concern, care, etc.  This type of service expects nothing in return other than the joy of serving and the blessing of pointing people to Christ through those acts of service.  These acts of service encourage us to walk humbly in our relationship with Christ realizing that we are dependent on the work of Christ being released in us and through us.  Take a moment today and thank God for His marvelous Grace and Mercy.  Also be prepared to share that Grace and Mercy through acts of selfless service to others.  You will be blessed by those actions and Christ will be honored by your acts of service.

Grace or Works

Ephesians 2: 8-9, "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. (NKJV)

This particular topic has been debated by many people for many years.  I will not attempt to deal with this passage in its fullness but I do feel led to remind us of the principle that brings hope and peace to each of us.  I am truly thankful that my salvation does not depend on my ability to perform  good works.  There are days that the quality of my works are not as convincing or complete as they are on other days of my life.  The principle found in Ephesians 2 helps me understand that I could never work hard enough or good enough to deserve or receive the full blessings of the Kingdom of God.  This principle does not condone the lack of Christian works or actions in my life rather it allows me to understand that my relationship with Christ does not rest on the foundation of my works.  The opportunity to have a relationship with Christ is built completely on the grace (unmerited favor) of God that is provided through Jesus Christ our Savior.  But many of us struggle with the desire or feeling that we need to "earn" the favor of God by our actions rather than simply trusting the wonderful and marvelous grace of God.  It is true that each of us do not deserve the grace of God but it is also equally true that we can not earn the grace of God based on our own list of personal merits.  Salvation is a gift that God that bestowed upon us through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross and the completion of that process was His resurrection from the grave.  But the enemy of our soul wants us to stumble over the principle of believing and receiving and become trapped by thinking that we can earn our way into the Kingdom of God.  That trap of satan leads us into the temptation of seeking recognition for our works and efforts that should be willingly offered to God out of a heart that is simply and fully filled with gratitude and thanksgiving for the gift of salvation.  I encourage you to seek for more of God and not become captured by your own efforts and actions that lead to frustration rather than peace with God.