Worth saying again: Ten Reasons I Love my church...

I originally posted this in December of 2008, but it is worth saying again!  Too many times is the bride of Christ slandered and spat upon, but she is beautiful because she is loved by God.  Though the Universal Church is filled with imperfect sinners, it is being led and perfected by a most glorious, most perfect Savior.  He will complete His work, and she must strive to live for Him, no matter what comes against her. 

10. Godly Examples: I have so many examples of godly wives and mothers around me; women doing what they are called to do in Titus 2. My husband has a great group of godly men to surround himself with that strive to fulfill their roles as husbands in Ephesians 5.

9. My daughter has a wonderful group of children that I know and love to play with. I don't have to wonder about their parent's beliefs, question their home-lives and hope she is surrounded by at least a mediocre example of a biblical family. I know their home lives, I know their values and I know that they don't separate Sunday morning from the rest of their lives.

8. My pastor's wife: I love her, she's a great friend and dear sister to me, and I have never known a more godly example of biblical submission and meekness (controlled strength) in a woman as young as her. The beauty of the love for her husband makes me want to be a better wife to mine.

7. Fellowship: I know that lots of churches get together to "fellowship" and never speak of their Lord. Well, I have had more rewarding conversations in the last year with my dear brothers and sisters in Christ than I have had in a long time. And though we joke around are get silly, we do glory our in Redeemer and can't help but speak of Him.

6. A Desire for Holiness: For the most part there is a large group in our church that has decidedly began to strive for holiness. Through our own personal studies and through the teaching of our pastor, we have grown to know the Lord in such a way that we long to know Him more and long to do what pleases Him; Men who desire to be holy in all their conduct, mortifying the deeds of the flesh, loving their wives as Christ loves the church, and being both prophet and priest in their homes. Women who desire to submit to their husbands as unto the Lord and children who would strive to honor their father and mother.

5. My Pastor: He loves the Lord and you can see it in his life. You could come by his home unannounced and see that what he preaches on Sundays is what he strives to live out for the glory of God the rest of the week. He is a dear friend and loves to have fun, and is out to prove that Christianity isn't boring. He desires to rightly divide the Word of God and pours over the Scripture each week to ensure that he is able to do so. He loves the church and does his best to protect her from all ungodliness and understands the weight of his calling to keep guard over our souls. (Plug: Pray for your Pastor!)

4. Teaching and Application: Not only does our Pastor do a great job of teaching and urging the body of believers to learn and apply all that is in Scripture, but we have other men who use their gifts of teaching to do the same. We have women in our church that strive to teach the younger women in all godliness. We have fathers that do what they are called to do in teaching and raising their children up in the fear and admonition of the Lord. I am thankful that teaching is held in such high regard in this body.

3. Balance: We understand that we are to be ever-reforming. We understand that God is sanctifying Himself a people. But it is our greatest challenge in holding doctrine so highly that we do not go off into idolatry of doctrine and practices. I pray that we would continue to have balance and to remember the first things first: "Seek Ye First the Kingdom of God and His Righteousness. And all these things shall be added unto You. Matt. 6:33"

2. Truth: It is held in high regard here. We know who provides absolute truth and we understand the inerrancy of the Word and we do our best to apply these truths to our lives and pray that the Spirit would teach us all things. In a world where truth is relative, it is a wonderful solace to find a place that regards highly a word of Truth.

And the number 1 reason I love my church:

1. She's the bride of Christ and He holds her more precious to Himself than the apple of His eye, how could I not love her if I desire to be like my Lord?

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Yet in spite of this word you did not believe the Lord your God

This morning, I run into the bathroom to share with Jim what the Lord showed me in His word over a quiet cup of coffee.  Some days He shows me great encouragement, some days grave conviction.  Today was the latter.  As I look up at Jim with bible in hand I say, "I'm a stupid Israelite." 
Now, I don't believe that Israelites are actually stupid, in a degrading sense, I just believe they are sinful humans and God uses examples of other sinful humans to humble me, convict me, and show me I'm not smart, but stupid too.

Deut. 1:29 Then I said to you, ‘Do not be in dread or afraid of them. 30 The Lord your God who goes before you will himself fight for you, just as he did for you in Egypt before your eyes, 31 and in the wilderness, where you have seen how the Lord your God carried you, as a man carries his son, all the way that you went until you came to this place.’ 32 Yet in spite of this word you did not believe the Lord your God,33 who went before you in the way to seek you out a place to pitch your tents, in fire by night and in the cloud by day, to show you by what way you should go.

Okay, we have all been guilty of scoffing at the Israelites as well as Jesus' disciples when we read of their unbelief, their stubbornness, and their complaining. I have even caught myself doing this and questioned my own heart- "Seriously, would I be found faithful or faithLESS if I had been confronted with these things in those days? We wonder how they could struggle with unbelief when they actually SAW with their own eyes God's faithfulness shown in His miracles, element-controlling, and power. I ask you, as I ask myself, how is it that we struggle when we have seen His power and miracles displayed in our own lives? How is that I have observed Him miraclously change my heart from a cold, hard piece of stone that is at enmity with Him into a soft piece of flesh that loves Him? How is it that His words are powerful enough to call the earth and the fullness there of into exsistence; powerful enough to divide the thoughts and intents of a man' heart like a two-edged sword (Hebrews 4:12), powerful enough to sanctify me and yet when trials come, afflictions rise, I go to my own strength, my own thoughts, my own devices to solve them, or fret over them? If His word isn't powerful enough, what is? Nothing! And not only that, as the Israelites and the disciples, I have seen with my own eyes His faithfulness towards me and yet I hesitate to trust Him nearly every time. My first reaction to is to have the wind knocked out of me when I am hit with some sort tempest. One of my favorite Anne Hawks hymns says,

"But, oh, when gloomy doubts prevail- I fear to call Thee mine.

When springs of comfort seem to fail and all my hopes decline...

Yet gracious God where shall I flee? Thou art my only trust

and my soul would ever cling to Thee though prostrate in the dust.

Hast Thou not bid me seek Thy face? And shall I seek in vain?

And can the Ear of Sovereign Grace be deaf when I complain?

No, still the Ear of Sovereign Grace attends the mourner's prayer.

Oh, may I ever find access to breathe my sorrows there."

 Afflictions turn my cry to God and away from myself. He delights each time our hearts and cries are turned to Him. He is turning my faith to Him instead of other things or self. Though I doubt and struggle with unbelief and faithlessness, He is faithful to bring me to His word to help me to see how much I lack and how I can look back and see how faithful He has been countless times before and how I can trust Him. He is going to deliver me. He may not deliver me from afflictions or trials, though He might, but He will certainly deliver me from my lack of faith and He will strengthen my faith and my trust and my hope in Him alone. If my Redeemer pleads my pardon with His blood, He will certainly deliver me from my lack of faith. He is trustworthy and He can not deny Himself. He will keep His covenant for His own glorious namesake. Praise Him for His faithfulness!

"... but that the works of God might be displayed in him..."

I needed these Scriptures desperately this week.  I still need them today, and I am sure that the principals in these Scriptures need to be lodged into my brain and written on my heart for the rest of my days.  We can say we believe in God's sovereignty and His word, but when trials and afflictions come,  we (I) quickly see the difference in what I say I believe and how much faith I actually have, or in my case- how much faith I actually lack.  May these Scriptures encourage your heart and spur you on to know that God is working out trials and afflictions in your life that he might be given much glory and so that you might believe in Him!  He is trustworthy!

Lord, help my unbelief!  I have seen you work in my life over and over again, and yet when my life is stricken, I see where I fail. Please give me the faith on THIS side of struggles so that I may honor you with my trust, my speech and my actions.

John 11:

1 Now a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. 2 It was Mary who anointed the Lord with ointment and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was ill. 3 So the sisters sent to him, saying, “Lord, he whom you love is ill.” 4 But when Jesus heard it he said, “This illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.”

40 Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?” 41 So they took away the stone. And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me. 42 I knew that you always hear me, but I said this on account of the people standing around, that they may believe that you sent me.”43 When he had said these things, he cried out with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out.” 44 The man who had died came out, his hands and feet bound with linen strips, and his face wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.”

John 9:

1 As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth. 2 And his disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” 3 Jesus answered, “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him. 4 We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is coming, when no one can work. 5 As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” 6 Having said these things, he spat on the ground and made mud with the saliva. Then he anointed the man's eyes with the mud 7 and said to him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam” (which means Sent). So he went and washed and came back seeing.

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