Sunday morning retuning: Our two week series on tithes and offerings took us to Malachi 3:8-10. Are we robbing God? If we are not tithing, the answer seems pretty clear. Will you put God to the test this year?
When I started to write down these thoughts last week it was about -2 degrees and I was going to call this entry “Cold”. What a difference a week makes, huh? Sometimes a day, or even one decision can make a huge difference in your life. Part of my thinking last week was to be an encourage that if you do not like this season, hold tight there is another one coming, wrought with the purposes of God just like this one. It made me think of Ecclesiastes 3:1-8, “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven.” That made me think of that great setting of the text by The Byrds, “Turn Turn Turn”. Groovy man!
I think that was partly on my mind last Tuesday because I was still trying to shake off “vacation brain”. My family had a great visit with our extended family back in West Virginia and having returned over the weekend I was still trying to get in the groove. This was complicated by the fact that I had been inspired through some reading over break to purge 16+ years of ministry files/resources. OUCH! I am nowhere near completed and I have already disposed of close to 70 gallons of outdated materials.
Then on Sunday we were offered a great challenge, to live lives marked by health, in our living and our giving. I have taken the challenge and I hope you will join me. I am really excited that our church is promoting health in every arena of life. And I am looking forward to shedding a few pounds along the way to a healthier me.
So now that I have outlined at least three different themes that have been converging in my life, here’s my point or question rather. What changes are within your control that you can initiate to produce a more fill in the blank you? But I want to caution you with Proverbs 20:25 from The Message. “An impulsive vow is a trap; later you’ll wish you could get out of it.”
Do not be impulsive about the changes you want to make. First of all, you need to identify if you actually have the control required to make the change. If you do, you need to ask yourself if you are truly ready to make the adjustments in your thinking and living to make the change a reality in your living. Otherwise, you will only find yourself frustrated like millions of folks who have made pie-in-the-sky resolutions before you.
With those sobering words behind us, I want to encourage you that with God’s help you can make the changes He is leading you to make so that your life can better honor Him. So I ask again, “What changes are within your control that you can initiate to produce a more fill in the blank you?” What is God putting on your heart as we have walked into another New Year? None of us has arrived and we need to continue to grow and change. And with God’s help me can. So, let’s stay a step behind Jesus and let Him change us to be more like Him in every facet of our lives this year.
Jesus we acknowledge that as much as change is a part of life, it is especially true of our life in You. We want to be more like you in every way. Stir us in this pursuit in the days ahead, and guide us to create goals that will move us in that direction. For the glory of Your name. In Jesus name. Amen.
In Christ,
Pastor Timothy
