talk2shari – Page 109 – The Jesus Chick

Posted in Leadership, Life Inspiration, Political

Seriously… You believed that?

Written by talk2shari Published July 1, 2014July 1, 2014 Discussion Leave a Comment

I went to sleep last night with this outline on my mind and it was there again when I first awoke this morning; that’s how God works and I love that about Him! The problem then was I couldn’t go to sleep trying to think of scripture that would go along with my outline and why was this outline on my mind? Obviously something God wanted me to hear, and while I love the thoughts of being Spiritually Fed and Led, the thought of being Spiritually Dead made me nauseous. I’ve seen it far too often when a church just doesn’t get it. The only thing they’re missing is an undertaker to remove the bodies (spiritually speaking of course.)

The Spiritually Dead

Hosea 10:1 ~ Israel is an empty vine, he bringeth forth fruit unto himself: according to the multitude of his fruit he hath increased the altars; according to the goodness of his land they have made goodly images.

Israel’s altars were lined, but with images not with people serving God. It’s a crying shame that the altars in America are much the same. The church altar is empty while wealth and possessions have consumed the minds of two generations; it’s scary to think what the next generation will be like when history has proven “what one generation accepts as norm, the next embraces and goes deeper into it.” It doesn’t have to be so.

The Spiritually Fed

Hebrews 5:12-14 ~ For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat. For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe. But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.

If we ate food like we’re fed on the gospel I’m pretty sure there wouldn’t be an obesity issue in America. It’s so easy to put God on the backburner in the course of a day. I speak from shameful experience; God is not always my main course. We wonder why America’s going to “Hell in a hand basket” and yet we have but to look in the mirror. Why else would Hobby Lobby have to fight for their right to their rights? Because Christians have stopped reading the Word of God and listened to the liberal media tell us what’s right. Well that’s wrong.

The Spiritually Led

Romans 8:14 ~For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.

I read a joke on Facebook this morning that Pinocchio entered a liars contest and lost to an American Politician. I won’t name names, mainly because he probably came in 432^nd place behind every other knothead on Capitol Hill. (Fictional number, I have no clue how many liars there are). But that’s probably a low number. So you say Pinocchio’s not real… well I’m not sure honest politicians are either.

If you’re a child of God, should it not be God that you go to for the truth. After all He is the truth.

John 14:6

Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

We need to stop being led by media and political factions and start being led by the gospel. Open the Word of God or go to a Bible preaching church and you’ll discover that the Word of God reads like what a modern day newspaper should read like. But our local media is filled with more tattles than truth, pointing out the faults of their opposing party.

I know, I’m likely preachin’ to the choir if you take the time to read “The Jesus Chick.” So… share me with someone you love. Perhaps it will give them the desire to come alive! Come to the well of Living Water to feed on the truth and be led away from the wiles of the world.

Posted in Life Inspiration

Do You Know The Cuddler?

Written by talk2shari Published June 26, 2014 Discussion Leave a Comment

How precious is that! My Grandbaby Parker Keith arrived home to be greeted by his very excited siblings and cousins as well as a few very excited grandparents! Six weeks after a birth weight of 2 # 13 ounces he now tips the scales at 4 pounds 7 ounces and although I’m certainly glad those weeks of concern are behind us it was as usual a life lesson. Parker has already taught Noni (that’s me) a spiritual lesson I’ll not soon forget.

During his time in the hospital, a 2 ½ hour journey away for us, he spent a few days alone. His Momma had two other children at home who needed care, their families had jobs and responsibilities that would not allow us to spend every day with him and our hearts were torn. Daughter Tiffani traveled every other day to Morgantown, West Virginia to cuddle and bond with her precious new child. But what about the days no one was able to be there? It was gut wrenching to think of him being alone. But it turns out he wasn’t alone. West Virginia University hospital had paid cuddlers! It was their responsibility to spend time each day cuddling babies and providing emotional support to the families. It made my heart a little lighter knowing that someone was cuddling Parker in our absence. Isn’t it awesome that as children of God, we have a cuddler too!

Jesus spoke in John 14:16-20

And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever;Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you. Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more; but ye see me: because I live, ye shall live also. At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.

Even though God is not physically here with us, His presence is felt in the child of God and what a privilege that is! I need not go through anything alone. Every heartache and sorrow that I’ve faced I’ve had that Cuddler within me speaking peace to my heart. Do you know that feeling? It’s a peace and comfort that only accepting the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior can afford. He died for you, paid the sacrificial penalty for sin (death on the cross) so that you and I would not have to be separated from our Holy God, Who knew no sin. I hope you have that peace today. If not, please contact me and let me introduce you to the saving grace of Jesus or check out the Romans Road to Salvation page on my site. God bless!!! And if you prayed for Parker…. THANK YOU!!!!

Posted in Christian Service, Life Inspiration

But what about Monday?

Written by talk2shari Published June 23, 2014 Discussion Leave a Comment

Psalm 147:1-5

Praise ye the Lord: for it is good to sing praises unto our God; for it is pleasant; and praise is comely.The Lord doth build up Jerusalem: he gathereth together the outcasts of Israel. He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds. He telleth the number of the stars; he calleth them all by their names. Great is our Lord, and of great power: his understanding is infinite.

God’s understanding is infinite, ours lasts about twenty minutes; just long enough for the preacher’s sermon to be over. It’s almost as if when the lights are flipped off after the final service on Sunday, so was the message. We go from worship mode to work mode, or wife mode or whatever mode it is that is the next event in our week. Jesus is left in the back of the pew with the dog-eared pages of our hymnal. It’s a favorite spot we like to turn to, but just on Sunday. We have a burden for the lost…on Sunday, we pray for the sick… on Sunday, we study the Word… on Sunday. But what about Monday?

Praise the Lord He doesn’t turn us off on Monday.

Today, at some point, I can almost guarantee you’ll walk past the brokenhearted who feel like an outcast. They didn’t get spiritually recharged at all on Sunday. Sunday may have been spent in one argument after another, or dealing with broken pipes or broken people. They have wounds that are deep and you very well may have the ointment of healing within your words, or just an outstretched hand. The Lord gathered together those of us who were in the house of the Lord yesterday for the purpose of encouraging us to take the message back out of the church to the masses that are hurting just like we were pre salvation. We forget what it was like to have no hope.

I had the opportunity to lead a young woman to Christ yesterday at the altar. She was shouting before I got the scripture out of my mouth. I’ve never experienced someone so excited and ready to meet Jesus. My heart fluttered and my fingers fumbled through the pages as she and I traveled along Romans Road together. Oh my stars! What an exciting day. She met Jesus and found hope, I met a new sister in Christ and found happy!

Today, regardless of the circumstances in your life, your path will likely cross someone who needs to see the hope of Sunday in you on Monday. That message you got yesterday… at least I hope you got it… needs to go out. The preacher gave you some seed to sow today; plant it and watch it grow!

Posted in Life Inspiration

Did you see what my God did?

Written by talk2shari Published June 18, 2014 Discussion Leave a Comment

If you’re looking to see God glorified you don’t have go very far into your day to see the failure of self-proclaimed Christian people. I say self-proclaimed because it’s not obvious from their behavior. But what’s the excuse of those of us who genuinely, (not perfectly) try to serve and glorify God. Why is our praise not more evident? Why is it when we win victory over a battle in our life we hesitate to tell the unsaved world Who it is that’s responsible for our Victory? We’ll give God credit for life and death situations because to even the world that’s not unreasonable, but what about the everyday battles.

What about the ‘whew’ moments when you were a few buck shy meeting the bill demands and it suddenly appeared, the good doctor’s report that wasn’t real scary but it was scary enough in your world, the not so bad mechanics report on your car issues, the fall that almost happened, that unexplained blessing that was sent your way today on the job or in the home, what about those times and why is it important?

A saint of God well known for his praise was David. He penned the majority of psalms, he gave credit to Whom credit was due and not just his fellow warriors were aware but the heathens around him as well, so that all were without excuse; they’d been told God prevailed in David’s life. One example is 2 Samuel 22:47-51

The Lord liveth; and blessed be my rock; and exalted be the God of the rock of my salvation. It is God that avengeth me, and that bringeth down the people under me. And that bringeth me forth from mine enemies: thou also hast lifted me up on high above them that rose up against me: thou hast delivered me from the violent man. Therefore I will give thanks unto thee, O Lord, among the heathen, and I will sing praises unto thy name. He is the tower of salvation for his king: and sheweth mercy to his anointed, unto David, and to his seed for evermore.

This is possibly a reference to the many perils that David had experienced at the hands of Saul, Absalom his son and many others. His friends and colleagues had seen him low, his enemy had assured themselves they’d won the victory over him only to see him rise from the ashes of defeat! He wanted them to know where his strength was derived; and because of that David’s reach was extended. He says in verse 44

Thou also hast delivered me from the strivings of my people, thou hast kept me to be head of the heathen: a people which I knew not shall serve me.

People whom David had never met would be his servants because they’d hear of David’s God and desire to serve the man who’d had the blessing of God upon him. How much greater of an impact could the church make if we’d praise God more? If we were giving God His just dues for everything in our life, would they not desire to serve that God?

Praise Him for His goodness today, somebody needs to hear!

Posted in Life Inspiration

But I want That!

Written by talk2shari Published June 17, 2014 Discussion 1 Comment

How many times have we said it? We know it may not be the will of God for our lives, but we want it. We’re not sure we can even afford the maintenance, but we want it. We have two similar, but not exact… we want it. Color me guilty. We’re a spoiled nation. I’m never any more aware of it than I am when I speak to my friends in other countries whose idea of luxury is more than one meal a day; those whose meager belongings would likely fit in a grocery cart and I’m complaining because I don’t have the latest and greatest of some new trend that I’ll tire of tomorrow.

That wasn’t necessarily the case in Sarai’s day. What she wanted was a child, not an unreasonable request, especially for the culture of the day. But she grew tired of waiting and tried to fix God’s problem for Him.

Genesis 16:2

And Sarai said unto Abram, Behold now, the Lord hath restrained me from bearing: I pray thee, go in unto my maid; it may be that I may obtain children by her. And Abram hearkened to the voice of Sarai.

I posted a quote yesterday that I heard on Sirius XM radio on my way to work in the morning.~ “Worry is not believing God knows what’s best, bitterness is believing He was wrong.” I don’t know who’s thought it was, but I thought it was profound! And then when I added the story of Sarah to the equation later on in the day, I thought God may have just been trying to tell me something. Possibly He’s trying to tell you too!

It wasn’t that God didn’t want Sarah to have a child, but her timing was off. So in her attempt to fix God’s problem she created a problem for the entire nation of Israel. (Ishmael, the son of her handmade) is the root of the Arab nations which continue today to be a thorn in Israel’s side, and ours! Ahhh, but surely your decision won’t have a lasting effect? After all, yours is not a child, it’s a car, or a stereo, or cute shoes. As with most issues in life, it was Sarah’s heart issue that was the problem.

She had told Abraham, “the Lord hath restrained me from bearing.” To restrain is to “keep something under control.” It wasn’t that Sarah couldn’t have children, it was that the Lord was preventing it and Sarah knew that. She was in a sense saying “God says it’s not my time, but I believe it is.” Timing is everything, whether it be a child, a job, or something materialistic.

Sarah’s decision didn’t please God and it didn’t please Sarah. We find her later complaining to Abraham in verse 5 “And Sarai said unto Abram, My wrong be upon thee: I have given my maid into thy bosom; and when she saw that she had conceived, I was despised in her eyes: the Lord judge between me and thee.” If I’m reading that right Sarah still had quite the attitude and her relationship with the Lord may have been a little skewed. In my mind the phrase “the Lord judge between me and thee,” is the equivalency of saying “If you don’t believe me, just ask God.” Had either of them done that, we’d not be in the fix we’re in today in the Middle East. Sarah now expected Abraham to fix the issue.

Times haven’t changed much. We still play the blame game and wait for someone else to clean up our aisle. We need more prayer prior to our decisions for less problems afterwards.

Are you trying to rush God? Stop. Are you angry because it didn’t go as planned? Stop. If a wrong decision’s been made, repent and allow God to walk you through. If you haven’t crossed the line yet, now would be a good time to reflect back on Sarah’s story and consider the far reaching consequences of your decision.

If someone else’s bad decision is the issue, forgive and allow God to work through both of you.

If this message encouraged you, I’d love to hear about!

Posted in Life Inspiration, salvation

Stress and the Greatest Coping Factor known to Man

Written by talk2shari Published June 14, 2014October 20, 2023 Discussion Leave a Comment

Saturday morning as a kid was spent watching cartoons like Bugs Bunny & Daffy, Scooby Doo Where Are You, Josie and the Pussy Cats, The Adventures of Mighty Mouse, The Pink Panther Show and a few dozen others. I had little responsibility and zero stress. I was blessed. I know now the zero stress factor did not hold true for every child. Click on view website if you want to know more about stress reduction. It no longer holds true for me either, so Praise God! for salvation. It didn’t eliminate the stress factor but it is certainly the greatest coping factor known to man.

Acts 3:19

Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord.

Please don’t misunderstand, I’m not insinuating that saved people don’t have stressful days or days you’d just as soon pinch the head off someone than to hear them utter another word. We have those days, believe me. But the difference is, I don’t pinch their head off and when stress comes I have a refocusing mechanism on the inside of me that helps me to cope with the stress off the day; the Holy Spirit.

While some may seek various methods to cope with stress, others might explore alternatives like cbd vape juice, recognizing the value of both spiritual and natural remedies in finding balance and peace. Just as faith serves as a source of strength, some individuals find relaxation and relief in the soothing effects of CBD vape oil, emphasizing the diverse approaches people employ to navigate the challenges of everyday life. Ultimately, the choice of coping mechanisms, whether rooted in faith or natural remedies like CBD vape oil, reflects the deeply personal and intricate ways individuals manage the complexities of stress.

In Acts 3, Peter stood before a crowd of people who had just witnessed a miracle, it was a great day! Most everybody wants to serve the God of miracles. But what about the disastrous days ahead that God’s Word warns us of; the days we don’t want to think about. The day of the lame man’s healing the people were refreshed in seeing him healed, it was a day of rejoicing and praising God; but how much sweeter will it be in the troubled times ahead that you will still feel the refreshing of the Lord.

Salvation is awesome every day, but its importance is never any more understood than on the bad days when you need someone to hold on to and it seems the world has walked out, or even if they’re there, there’s no comfort found in them. That’s when the Holy Spirit rushes in and there is an unexplained calm that comes over you and you feel the presence of the Lord.

There are times I long for the no responsibility cartoon days. But I’m ever so glad that when reality bites I have a friend in Jesus.

Do you know Him? Trust Him. If you don’t… let me introduce you. Click here: https://thejesuschick.com/the-road-to-salvation/

Posted in Life Inspiration

Good Grief How’d that Happen?

Written by talk2shari Published June 13, 2014June 13, 2014 Discussion Leave a Comment

We live in a world where everyone’s looking for the miracle. The miracle of anti-aging, super strength, etc., etc… and yet any given Sunday they miss the greatest miracle of all.

Acts 3:7-13 ^~And he took him by the right hand, and lifted him up: and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength. And he leaping up stood, and walked, and entered with them into the temple, walking, and leaping, and praising God. And all the people saw him walking and praising God: And they knew that it was he which sat for alms at the Beautiful gate of the temple: and they were filled with wonder and amazement at that which had happened unto him.And as the lame man which was healed held Peter and John, all the people ran together unto them in the porch that is called Solomon’s, greatly wondering.And when Peter saw it, he answered unto the people, Ye men of Israel, why marvel ye at this? or why look ye so earnestly on us, as though by our own power or holiness we had made this man to walk?The God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob, the God of our fathers, hath glorified his Son Jesus; whom ye delivered up, and denied him in the presence of Pilate, when he was determined to let him go.

Surprised by the Healing

No one was any greater surprised than the man who was healed himself. He leapt! Forget taking it easy your first time ‘round, this man knew his body was healed. He didn’t stop there he leapt and praised all the way to the temple! And when he got to the temple he held on to the men of God. Maybe I’m overthinking the verse, but this morning was the first time I had noticed that he “held” Peter and John when he got to the temple porch.

What a great message for the new believer and the old believer. When I got saved I was running to church every day for something. Seriously. I couldn’t get enough. And you better believe I held on to the man of God because I wanted to glean from him every ounce of knowledge I could. But there came a day when I had to loose that hold and step off the porch on my own.

When the long term Pastor left last year, many in the community assumed our church would fall apart. They’d accused us of worshiping the preacher because we loved him so. There were a few who attended the church for the preacher, but for the most part we certainly proved that theory wrong. When he left, we held on to each other down here and God in Heaven. So that when the new preacher arrived last week, our body of believers was still very much in tact and going strong!

Searching for the How

Those who hadn’t experienced the healing of the lame man came running to the porch to see for themselves. And when the saw him they were amazed! But the apostles warned to make sure they gave the credit to Whom the credit was due, and that was Jesus! I don’t want to belittle the education of doctors and other medical professionals but the healing comes from God. Without the wisdom made possible by God the healing wouldn’t take place. Without the miraculous body that God created us to have (which often heals on its own because of Him) Healing wouldn’t take place. Praise Him! And never fail to give glory for how the healing came and Who made it possible.

Skeptics for the Holiness

Non-believers are skeptical of Christ as a healer and they’re skeptics of Him as a Savior. Nothing’s changed since the day of the crucifixion in relation to sinful man. For the most part, the world still doesn’t get it. They continue to scoff and rail on Him and His followers, but without His holiness, whether they like it or not, what would this world be? I believe it would be the worst sci-fi movie of death and destruction you’ve ever seen multiplied to the largest known number.

They can deny our Holy God all they want, it changes nothing on that end either. God’s still God. Amen! It’s our job as believers to sing His praises loud and long until He returns in Glory. And hopefully we’ll have more saints standing on the porch with us for His glory because of our praises.

Posted in Life Inspiration, salvation

Exercise Don’t Come Easy

Written by talk2shari Published June 12, 2014 Discussion Leave a Comment

Ecclesiastes 1:13 ~ And I gave my heart to seek and search out by wisdom concerning all things that are done under heaven: this sore travail hath God given to the sons of man to be exercised therewith.

Ol’ Solomon. Or so tradition has it. Some believe Solomon wrote the Song of Solomon in his youth, the book of Proverbs in his middle age, and the book of Ecclesiastes when he was old. His entire life he’d given to search out the wisdom of God, and it was often a burdensome feat.

I get that. Especially this week, only it’s not a burdensome feat, but rather burdensome feet that have got me in sore travail. Another crazy antic in the life of Shari found me in nothing less than a Physical Education teacher class with PE teachers being trained to implement SPARK curriculum. Shari… the blogger… who exercises her mind, not her body, although I should have been. Shari… the out of shape blogger has had 3 six hours days of jumping, dancing, hoola hooping… (don’t go there, not a pretty image) and now has a sore heel due to the “cute” little flat sandals I wore the first day, not knowing I was going to be actually in this class, not just helping to set it up.

How much better it would have been had I been studied up. Or at least thinner.

I fear there will be those taking the tests of life, and especially the final, unprepared and sore vexed for answers from their lack of exercise of faith. Solomon himself said it was a hard task to study the things of God, even before the days of Facebook and Twitter and all the other gadgets and activities that consume our time. How much more now… are these gadgets and activities a trial or blessing. We need time to prepare.

It’s not only preachers who need to “study to show themselves approved” (2 Timothy 2:15). Studying scripture is not for the bible scholar, although they need it, but for every common man, woman and child so that when the trials of life come upon them they’ve had an exercised faith that’s ready for the work out. Someone dies, someone’s ill, financial struggle, broken hearts and all of life’s frustrations are covered in the training manual. And practiced in the lives of saints if you’ll watch them every day.

During this training a young man sat down at our breakfast table before the day started and out of the corner of my eye I watched him bow his head and bless his food. He not only had trained his body, but trained his mind in Spiritual things as well. I was so grateful! I had wondered that morning if my own faith would be understood that day, and God sent another of his warriors to the table as if to say… you’re not alone Shari.

Perhaps to day you’re in the midst of exercise of faith. Train on. God will strengthen you in the trial.

So… what if today you stood before God taking the final, are you prepared? Would you have the answer if He ask, “Why should I allow you to enter Heaven?”

I’ll even give you a cheat sheet. The answer would be given by Christ when He said, “They’re mine. They’ve claimed Me as their Savior, trusted me for their Salvation. They ask me into their heart at the age of _____.”

Could you fill in the blank? If not you’ve failed, and that’s one exam you can’t afford to fail, because there’s not a do-over. Eternity in Hell will be the penalty.

A loving God will not make you prepare, it’s your choice. I hope you’ve made it! If you’d like to know more or you’re unsure, follow this link: https://thejesuschick.com/the-road-to-salvation/

Posted in Life Inspiration

Three Ways to Destroy a Relationship

Written by talk2shari Published June 10, 2014June 10, 2014 Discussion Leave a Comment

Cranky Pants

Proverbs 15:1 ~ A soft answer turneth away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger.

I try really hard to be a little Susie Sunshine, realizing that my attitude has the power to turn the helm of a relation-ship from blue skies to stormy seas with just a few words; but I can on any given day be the Gloomy Gus especially if I’m under stress, overly tired or not feeling well. Short curt answers are a telltale sign that something is not right, something a wise man like Solomon likely figured out with his 700 wives and 300 concubines. One thousand women… what was he thinking?

There are days it’s best just to walk away or at the very least answer softly. It seems that we feel we have the greater right to speak harshly to those we love the most, and yet we’ll bite our tongues off to keep from offending the a co-worker or friend. Why is it that? Likely one reason (speaking from experience) is that we have those curt conversations at the end of very long days, or at the beginning of one where the night was too short.

Rest on my friend, and speak easy.

Critical People

Proverbs 15:2 ~ The tongue of the wise useth knowledge aright: but the mouth of fools poureth out foolishness.

We likely all have that person in our lives that always sees the glass half empty, it’s never good. Perhaps you’re married to them. I am married to the guy that sees the exact water level. It’s neither half empty nor half full, its 4.2 ounces. I don’t dare ask his opinion unless I really want it, because he gives it and it’s usually brutally honest. It’s a good thing he’s married to a little Susie Sunshine! But I have my days as well. A critical spirit begins when we start having conversations in our head that eventually work their way out of our mouths. We’ve somehow formed the idea that our opinion is expert, and sometimes we are. It’s always better to assume you’re not than to open your mouth and prove the point.

Crude Profanity

Proverbs 15:3-4 ~ The eyes of the Lord are in every place, beholding the evil and the good. A wholesome tongue is a tree of life: but perverseness therein is a breach in the spirit.

I know there’s no “Cussin’ Christian’s” out there, (she said sarcastically and a tad bitter) but just in case there are, Solomon had a few words to say about it.

If I weren’t such a failure in so many other respects in my own life I could get up on a soap box and preach about this one a while. I guess Solomon felt the same way when he said it was “breach of spirit.” It puts a crack in a Christian testimony as wide as a canyon. And there’s not enough Christian service or words that fix it in the eyes of a lost person. They’ll be hard pressed to ever believe there’s a difference between the God we serve and the gods of this world. If it’s said to a friend or family member it breaks their spirit as well. There’s something far more demeaning about “those” words than the average word. And a relationship is on shaky ground.

I don’t know why I parked in this spot today, other than to encourage you to choose your words wisely, get some rest, and love the people in your life like there’s no tomorrow. Because you don’t know if there is.

Posted in Christian Service, Church Unity, Life Inspiration

Church… No Big Deal?

Written by talk2shari Published June 8, 2014September 8, 2023 Discussion Leave a Comment

Why is going to Church such a Big Deal?

Yesterday morning, I was up early getting ready for the Baptist Church Ministry to perform in our local grand parade. We let our little light shine! I was excited, and so were the kids. I wasn’t just excited about Saturday, but Sunday too. My heart begins to stir this morning as I think about our services today. It’s exciting for me! But for so many others, Christian’s even, it ranks just above going to the dentist, or so their face appears when you mention it. They generally have a well-rehearsed excuse as to why they can’t go, or a reason Church is not top priority in their lives. I know I write about this a lot, and I’m likely preachin’ to the choir on this blog. Because if you care enough to read me, you must surely love Christ!

So why is a big deal for me? First and foremost because God died for me to have the opportunity. That’s a pretty big deal, but even before Christ did that Church was a big deal.

In Psalm 122:1 David said “I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the Lord.” Many Christian’s can recite that verse from heart, but that wasn’t all he said.

It was in David’s time that Jerusalem was chosen to be the city where God would record His name. It was a Holy City and the people were excited to have the opportunity to worship where God put His name. It was a Jewish privilege which they too took for granted until it was no longer a “big deal” for them to have communion with God. I think there’s a few keys in Psalm 122 as to how we got to where we are concerning the lack of eagerness to attend church.

A LOST SENSE OF COMMUNITY

Vs. 2-3 – Our feet shall stand within thy gates, O Jerusalem.Jerusalem is builded as a city that is compact together:

Church time was a time when the community came together in support of not only God but one another. They were compact, a tight knit group that studies the Bible and american prophecy. That’s how church was meant to be, not these click centered social hours where families arrive at 11 o’clock sharp, sit in row 5, shake hands with rows 6 and 4, having “suffered through the long list of prayer requests”, enjoyed the singing, tolerated the preacher, until he said something that convicted them and then at 12 o’clock dull they were frustrated because the altar call was taking a little longer than it should, so they stormed past the preacher at the church door without so much as a hand shake. Woah… where did all that come from? I guess it was on my heart.

But communities as a whole have lost their need to support one another. We’re far too busy supporting our Facebook Community.

A LOST SENSE OF ACCOUNTABILITY

Verses 4-5

Whither the tribes go up, the tribes of the Lord, unto the testimony of Israel, to give thanks unto the name of the Lord.For there are set thrones of judgment, the thrones of the house of David.

How can one possibly tell their friends and family that they should have a right heart with the Lord, when those same friends and family know where they are on Sunday morning? And it’s not in church. That’s like a smoking physician telling a tobacco chewing farmer he needs to quit his bad habits… okay now I’m meddling.

A LOST SENSE OF CONCERN

Verses 6-8 ~ Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee. Peace be within thy walls, and prosperity within thy palaces.For my brethren and companions’ sakes, I will now say, Peace be within thee.

Peace. We’ve had it too good too long. Throw some heartache into the mix and people have a tendency to at least consider church. But then let it subside a day or two and their old habits kick in. I spent most of yesterday on the verge of tears during the festival. If I had dwelled on my thoughts I would have been like Jeremiah the Old Testament prophet. I seen oceans of apathy all day concerning God; with the exception of my church family that I fellowshipped with during the day.

David knew the power of the house of the Lord. He drew strength from it. I’m not prideful when I say this, mostly humbled, but I’m so glad I know the power in the house of the Lord!

Vs. 9 – Because of the house of the Lord our God I will seek thy good.

I’m going to do my best today to seek thy good Lord as I travel to my home church this morning and then sing in Doddridge County, WV for their West Fest festival this afternoon and hopefully be back in time to attend evening services! It’s important to me.

I’m Praying that our Lord’s services are blessed today, let me know how your went.