Lessons from Vomitting and Diarrahea (ooo gross)

Some events in the past week have caused me to remember a verse in Jeremiah. It says,

"If I say, “I will not mention him,
or speak any more in his name,”
there is in my heart as it were a burning fire
shut up in my bones,
and I am weary with holding it in,
and I cannot."

Between Wednesday and Sunday about 90% of our church "shared" a stomach bug. Many had something inside them and had no choice about holding it in or not. They just shared it. Jeremiah, known as the weeping prophet, became fed up with giving a gospel to a people who would not take it. He constantly tried to tell them to change their ways, but they would not. He finally decided to quit, and something inside of him caused him to say those words.
O, that God would give us the fire so we would not have a choice. No. O, that we would not hinder the fire in us from burning to the point that it would remove our choice. How might we be "quenching the Spirit?", and what might we do about it?

The Pursuit of God

"The soul’s paradox of love is to have found God and still pursue Him" A.W. Tozer

I love my wife. I have apprehended my wife. I still desire to continue to pursue my wife as a new lover.(or I should)

I can be exhausted after a day's work outside in the heat and drink enough water to feel physical pain, yet still desire more water.

I can eat my favorite food until I am too full to breathe, yet I want more.

We have come to the belief as a people that salvation is the pinnacle of our Christian walk. We have attained God. Just as in an unhealthy marraige, we do no longer pursue Him as a "lover of our youth". How many sitcoms poke fun at the ignorant man who does not seek his wife? It is our version of comedy, yet it speaks volumes of our overall idea of what a relationship with God should be like. We say that a person needs to accept salvation (a term which is not used in the Bible), and it leaves the idea that they will have accepted wholly the God who saves them. I understood that when I was married, I would have a lifetime of new discovery. I did not understand that it would be the same with God.
Paul explains this idea in Philippians 3-
12 Not that I have already reached [the goal] or am already fully mature, but I make every effort to take hold of it because I also have been taken hold of by Christ Jesus. 13 Brothers, I do not consider myself to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: forgetting what is behind and reaching forward to what is ahead, 14 I pursue as my goal the prize promised by God's heavenly [b] call in Christ Jesus.

We have not grabbed God, He has grabbed us. Our life is then to be spent seeking to put both arms around God and hug Him with a love grounded in worship for the awesome gift of salvation. Do we pursue God?

I Need Answers

What do you think is the largest physical hinderance to our church's growth?

Spiritual hinderance?

In The World You will have Tribulation

This is a phrase that is often questioned. Why should we have tribulation? Where will we find tribulation? In our world today, what does tribulation look like? In order to understand why and what, we must understand a few things.

1. Look at God. He is a holy and righteous God. It is His desire for us to be Holy (Be ye holy as I am holy). The only way to burn away the chaff is with struggle. There is a couple in our church who are dealing with an unforseen situation with their son. One person asked me, why should this happen to such great people? I think that they are so wonderful at their christian walk that they are truly ready for the next level. Paul said it this way, "Therefore I delight in my infirmities, in my weakness... for when I am weak, He is made strong". Tribulation is a cleansing process.

2. Look at us. We are a dual-natured creature. Inside each child of God is a new regenarated man that cannot sin and a fleshly nature that is not subject to the laws of God, neither indeed can be. Tribulation, at times is the natural struggle between these two entities. Why am I in such a bad mood? Because I am allowing my soul to be vexed by my soul.

3. Look at Satan. He walks around as a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour. He is always on the prowl, seeking those children of GOd who desire to serve Him. At times, tribulation is the struggle against evil spiritual forces in our lives. In our culture, the idea of spiritual forces is over looked, and I think this works to Satan's advantage. Be aware. Walk circumspectly.

What's the deal with tribulation for God's children? It is absolutly necessary. The real wuestion is: Am I experiencing tribulation?