Category: From Pastor

Devotions this week based on the Message: “BELIEVE: Week 23: PEACE”

WATCH Full Sunday message

(NOTE: This sermon series and devotional series is based on a book by Randy Frazee entitled, “BELIEVE.”

You may choose to download or purchase the book as a supplement to your worship and devotional emails.)

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Romans 12:17 Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody. 18 If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.

Peace takes work…because the Scripture in yesterday’s devotion pointed that out.

Peace takes work…because I must be humble enough to admit my role in the lack of peace.

Peace takes work…because it involves other people.

Perhaps you have felt at times, “Life would be easy, if it weren’t for the people.”

To be honest, I have thought that in ministry.  “Ministry would be easy, if it weren’t for the people.”

Because people get in conflict.  People break peace with people.

But the easy answer is to separate from the other person.  The hard and necessary work is restoring peace with the other person.

It starts with you.  (See yesterday’s devotion)

But then we must have “other-awareness.”

To restore peace where it is broken, we must get to a point where we can see how this lack of peace is affecting the other person or people.  Perhaps it’s asking questions such as:

• How am I affecting others?
• What do others seem to be feeling?
• What do they seem to need?
• How can I demonstrate genuine love and forgiveness?

Philippians 2:3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. 4 Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.

While one must do some self-reflection, we must not dwell on ourselves.  Finally we must be willing to see the situation from the other person’s perspective.

Most important, however, is to have God –awareness.

Every conflict has a spiritual component to it.  Remember what the Apostle Paul wrote in Ephesians 6:12:

12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

So perhaps asking these questions helps to discern the spiritual component of the situation:

• What is God up to?
• Why did he allow this situation?
• Am I acting in faith or unbelief?
• What do I need to repent of?
• What do I need his strength for?
• What would glorify him?

The outcome of the conflict, we don’t always know.  But when we take time to reflect personally, put ourselves in the other person’s shoes and allow God’s Spirit to work in our hearts and in the situation, the peace factor certainly increases.  And after all this, the situation still doesn’t resolve, perhaps our conscience can rest that, with God’s help, I have done everything that is possible to live at peace.

Apply:  Again think of a current or past conflict you encountered.  How would you answer the questions listed above?  What insights does God bring to your mind as a result?  Will it help to restore peace?

Prayer: Lord, work with your power to motivate us to make every effort to live at peace with people. When peace is broken, may we be an instrument of your peace.  AMEN.

NOTE: Some of the content in yesterday and today’s devotion comes from a post by Brotherhood Mutual entitled, “Six Tips for Resolving Conflict in the Church”  It’s a good read.  Link to it HERE.

Devotions this week based on the Message: “BELIEVE: Week 23: PEACE”

WATCH Full Sunday message

(NOTE: This sermon series and devotional series is based on a book by Randy Frazee entitled, “BELIEVE.”

You may choose to download or purchase the book as a supplement to your worship and devotional emails.)

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Romans 14:19 Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification. 

Ephesians 4:2 Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. 3 Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.

Hebrews 12:14 Make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord. 15 See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many.

Do you see a common theme in these three passages?

Here’s what I noticed.

Peace takes effort…a lot of it!

Why is it such hard work?

Remember the definition from Monday’s devotion.  Peace isn’t just the cessation of conflict, it is the restoration to wholeness.

Ceasing conflict is perhaps the easy part.  Restoring to wholeness is what takes a lot of work.

And honestly, I have to admit, I sometimes just don’t want to do the hard work.

Why?

Because my sinful pride gets in the way leading me to believe a) it’s not my fault and b) it’s not  worth the effort.

That’s why it’s so important to remember that every conflict or lack of peace in a Christian or the body of Christ is a spiritual issue.

So what does the hard work look like?

Before I blame someone else or expect someone else to restore peace, I must do two things.  First, I must go back to the cross of Jesus and see where he restored peace between me and God.  He’s the one who took my sin which broke that peace and carried the wrath and punishment of God for it to the cross.  I have peace with God through Jesus Christ.  Let this promise sink in first.  Why? Because the only way I can work toward peace and live in peace is to draw on the peace God has established through Jesus.

From the foot of Jesus’ cross I can then do the second step. Be self-aware.  Self-awareness is allowing God to open up your own heart, emotions, actions before I begin the process toward peace.  As we were taught as kids, “It always takes two to tango.”  So it will take you to work toward peace.

Ask yourself these questions:

• What’s going on in my own heart?
• What do I need to repent of?
• What am I feeling? Why?
• What role do I have in this conflict? (Even if it’s 1%, it’s something!)
• How am I inclined to respond?
• What will I do instead?
• How would Jesus want me to act/react?

Self-awareness is also hard work.  We often find it hard to admit our faults, understand our past, or realize how we get triggered by others.  But it’s worth it and its part of “making every effort” to do what leads to peace.

But there is wisdom in allowing God to work on our own hearts first.  The Proverbs put it this way:

Proverbs 16:7 When a man’s ways are pleasing to the Lord, he makes even his enemies live at peace with him.

Let the Spirit of God align our heart with his first…then we will be in better emotional and spiritual space to engage the one with whom we are in conflict.  (More on that tomorrow!)

Apply: Think of the last or current conflict you are or were in.  How would you answer the questions above?

Prayer:  Lord, thank you for restoring peace with me through Jesus.  Allow me with your Spirit’s power to draw on that gift to work toward peace with others.  AMEN.

Devotions this week based on the Message: “BELIEVE: Week 23: PEACE”

WATCH Full Sunday message

(NOTE: This sermon series and devotional series is based on a book by Randy Frazee entitled, “BELIEVE.”

You may choose to download or purchase the book as a supplement to your worship and devotional emails.)

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What destroys peace?

You can’t fix a problem if you ignore the real cause.

How many solutions in politics simply deal with a symptom of the problem versus really understanding and addressing the root cause of the problem?

Here’s an example.  Low test scores in schools…the solution is always money or lowering the standards.  Little is done to address discipline problems, parent involvement in their child’s education, or removing political agendas from schools and focusing on real education and learning. (Thanks for listening.)

Politics and political topics aren’t the only arena where there is a failure or unwillingness to address the heart of the issue and so solutions stay superficial.

Same with peace.

A negotiated peace treaty may address terms of a ceasefire or surrender, but the root cause of the conflict was never fixed…so the battle may resume later.

Marriages strained by disagreements and other destructive behavior find the solution to peace in getting a divorce.

Sometimes superficial solutions need to be enacted to get to a place where civil conversations can be had.  But then the hard work of establishing peace has to get to the root of the problem.

Here is where a biblical perspective helps.

At the root cause of the lack of peace is the presence of sin.  Sin is always the underlying cause when peace is disrupted.

Consider these words from Galatians 5.  How many of these “fruits of the sinful nature” speak to what’s going on when there is a lack of peace?

Galatians 5:19 The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20 idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21 and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like.

Sin destroys peace with others.

But even one step deeper is sin destroys peace with God.

A broken connection and relationship with God is the root cause of the lack of peace.

Consider Adam and Eve shortly after they sinned.

Genesis 3:8 Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden. 9 But the Lord God called to the man, “Where are you?”

10 He answered, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid.”

No other day did Adam hide from God.  But sin broke the peace they enjoyed in the garden.  Adam was now afraid of God, hiding from God, and scared to confront God.

This is a tell-tale sign when peace is broken between us and God.  We hide from God.  We stay away from where he is.  We stop praying.  We don’t want to be around where he is.

Bigger than that is sin, left unaddressed leaves us separated from God forever.

So the root cause of conflict has to be addressed.  Sin has to be addressed.  Our relationship with God has to be addressed.

We can try on our own and fall short.  Or we can rely on Jesus Christ to restore what our sin broke.

Isaiah 53:6 says, “ We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.

When Jesus went to the cross he paid the price our sins deserved and restored to completeness our relationship with God.

Romans 5:1-2 Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand.

The impact of Christ’s work on our behalf is a profound foundation from which to build peace in other relationships.  But we must first understand the root cause of conflict: sin.  And when we understand the cause, we can rejoice in the true solution: Jesus!

Apply: Consider the last conflict you had with someone.  What sin was in play that was at the root of the conflict?

Prayer: Lord thank you for point out sin in my life so I might repent of it and turn from it.  Thank you for sending Jesus to take all my sins to the cross and restore a right relationship with you, my heavenly Father.  AMEN.

Devotions this week based on the Message: “BELIEVE: Week 23: PEACE”

WATCH Full Sunday message

(NOTE: This sermon series and devotional series is based on a book by Randy Frazee entitled, “BELIEVE.”

You may choose to download or purchase the book as a supplement to your worship and devotional emails.)

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I don’t like conflict.

I hope I’ve gotten better over the years at dealing with conflict in a better way.

But I still don’t like conflict.

Do you?

Our world is full of conflict.  We have Russia vs. Ukraine.  Chris Rock vs. Will Smith.  Democrats vs. Republicans.  Green energy vs. fossil fuels.  And the list goes on.

Every morning the headlines are very similar.  Conflict in politics.  Conflict among nations.  Conflict in neighborhoods.  Conflict in companies. Conflict in….you name it, conflict exists.

And peace is rare.

So we try to make peace which in many minds is simply the cessation of conflict.

But it’s not that simple.

Here is a great video that explains Biblical peace.  Watch it as part of today’s devotion.

It helped me understand again that peace is not just a cessation of conflict, but a restoration of wholeness.  This is the heart of Biblical peace.

I love Jesus’ words in John 14:27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.

Jesus doesn’t give a peace that is superficial and just ends conflict, he gives our hearts a peace that restores us to completeness.  He allows our hearts to rest in his love, grace and forgiveness. As the world tries to create peace by treaties, legislation, or law enforcement, Christ creates a peace that surpasses understanding.

He creates a peace that restores to wholeness our relationship with our heavenly Father.  He took the conflict our sin deserved and suffered it for us on the cross.

Romans 5:1-2 Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand.

This truth of grace is what we will build on this week. Only peace that is built on the peace found in Jesus Christ can be a lasting peace.  Only peace that ends conflict AND restores to wholeness can come from the One who did just that for you.

Peace truly is a fruit of the Spirit.  “The fruit of the Spirit is … peace.” (Galatians 5:22)

Apply: How do you think of peace?  What changes when you think of peace as not just cessation of conflict, but also restoring to wholeness?

Prayer: Lord, thank you for restoring our relationship with you through your Son Jesus.  We treasure the peace we have with you.   Help us learn from this to have peace with others.  AMEN.

Devotions this week based on the Message: “BELIEVE: Week 22: JOY”

WATCH Full Sunday message

(NOTE: This sermon series and devotional series is based on a book by Randy Frazee entitled, “BELIEVE.”

You may choose to download or purchase the book as a supplement to your worship and devotional emails.)

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So it’s with heavy heart that I will say that today will be the last of these daily devotions.

Thanks for reading and I pray they were uplifting to you.

Pastor Mike

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

April Fools! (OK I couldn’t help myself!)

This was probably a pretty lame attempt at an April Fool’s joke and perhaps you have some planned that are much more involved and deceptive.  Have fun, but don’t hurt anyone!

Do you ever feel like it’s an April Fool’s joke that God is playing when he says,

Philippians 4:4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!

Always?  You’re fooling, right?

“Nope,” God says.  “Every day I give you a reason to rejoice.”

Your fooling, right?

“Nope.”

Every day comes with external circumstance that lead to happiness or sadness or a multiple of other emotions.  Yet, the joy of the Lord residing in our hearts not only provides perspective on our day, but positivity in our life.

It’s not just a token “Turn the frown upside down,” but rather a unshakable joy that knows I rest secure in the grace and love of God.  So I can rejoice no matter what the circumstances.  Consider the Apostle Paul in Philippians 1:15 and following.  Paul had a choice to get angry, jealous or defensive when he heard that others were preaching the Gospel with impure motives.

His reaction? I rejoice that Christ is preached.

Philippians 1:15 It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of goodwill. 16 The latter do so in love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. 17 The former preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing that they can stir up trouble for me while I am in chains. 18 But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice.

Paul didn’t let his ego be threatened, condemn the motives of the others, or call on God to tear them down and lift him up.  He simply saw that the Word of Christ was being preached and that was his reason to rejoice.

Satan loves to fool us into believing a lie that most days don’t have a reason to rejoice and be filled with joy.

So call out the joke and rest secure in God’s truth.  You are a loved, redeemed, gifted child of God that has received God’s love, forgiveness and promise of eternal life.

This is a reason to rejoice in the Lord…always.

No foolin’!

Apply: Where does Satan try to steal your joy?  What aspect of your relationship with Christ secures joy back in your heart?

PRAYER: Lord, thank you for giving me reasons every day to rejoice!  AMEN.