Quote from Forum Archives on June 27, 2006, 11:01 pm

Posted by: masinick <masinick@...>

Dear friends,

My friend Larry Davies is the Senior Pastor of a local United Methodist Church
in Virginia, but I know that he also likes to write. Author of at least three
books and numerous devotional messages, Larry is entertaining and often funny,
yet serious at the same time about his faith.

In this message, an attempt at tackling a very serious topic with a bit of
humor to "break the ice", Larry touches what may be a sensitive nerve to many.

My take on things is that many (but not all) churches have indeed dropped the
ball. They have fallen into the common trap, exchanging the truth for a lie
or watering down the truth to make it more palatable.

The truth is that humankind has a big problem, and we all face it, and it is
very ugly. It is sin. The sin in our lives completely separates us from God.
Our God knew from the very moment He created us that sin would trap us, so He
planned from the beginning to provide a remedy. He said that He, Himself,
would provide the answer and He did. He said that He would provide a
redeemer, and He did. That redeemer is Jesus Christ.

We popularize Jesus, but so many of us fail to share the full counsel of God
because it simply is not popular. Telling people that they have a problem is
never popular. In extreme cases, it can (and has) cost people their lives.

Talking about God is no problem. Nearly everyone acknowledges a god of some
sort. However, mention Jesus and you are immediately in a minority. Tell
people that there is only one way to God, through Jesus Christ, and that is
even less popular. Telling them that the doctor they really need is the
doctor of their souls is not popular, either, nor is the statement that the
wages of sin is death.

Tell me about love, people say, and I will listen. OK, I will. The love of
God is so great that He sent His One and only begotten Son into this world to
provide the solution to all the things I have just been telling you about. I
know I need Him, and I knew enough to admit it, trust Him, and turn away from
my own wicked ways. I still live in this fleshly body, so every day I
struggle with it. But I do not struggle alone. Christ is beside me, and the
Holy Spirit of God is within me.

I am, in myself, no better or worse than anyone else. I do, however, have
something that many people do not have - an eternal hope, not in myself, but
in Jesus Christ. He is the Way, the Truth, and the life. NO MAN comes to The
Father except through Jesus Christ, for HE is THE ONE who opens the gate to
God. In fact, He IS God in the flesh.

Do you know Him?

Yours in Christ,
Brian

Sowing Seeds of Faith…

Read a Sowing Seeds Ministry Devotion nearly every day of the year by clicking
here and saving this page to your favorites:
www.sowingseedsoffaith.com/Devotions.htm

God… Breathe Life Into Us! Larry Davies

One dark stormy night, I dreamed God placed me in a church preparing for their
Sunday worship service. God had me walk up and down the aisle among hundreds
of people. They all looked... gulp... they all looked dead! There were all
kinds of people: children with crayons in their hands, teenagers sitting among
friends, mothers cradling babies and choir members holding music. They seemed
normal enough... for dead folks. God asked me: “Preacher, can these dead
people live?”

I said: “Lord, you are the only one who knows.” (Ezekiel 37)

Welcome to my feeble attempt at a modern translation of Old Testament prophet
Ezekiel from chapter 37: a passage better known as the Valley of the Dry
Bones. The question asked by Ezekiel is… “Can these dead people live?” In
other words: can today’s church still make a difference in the world?

To answer the question, we need to face several important trends shaping our
church and society.

1. Our nation is in crisis: ethically, morally and financially. The
newspapers are filled with stories of corruption, corporate collapse and
scandals of all kinds.

2. September 11 and the continuing war on terrorism changed our nation
forever. We thought there would be an increase in church attendance and there
was at first but not for long.

3. Interest in spiritual growth is increasing. Christian web sites, book
sales and media attention on spirituality shows we are a nation interested in
renewing our relationship with God.

4. Church morale however is low: declining attendance combined with higher
costs made it impossible for many churches to pay their bills. There is little
left over for ministry to others.

The first two trends are somewhat obvious but three and four seem to
contradict: Interest in spiritual growth is increasing yet the traditional
source of our spiritual growth, namely our churches are experiencing steady
decline? Why is that? Surveys and opinion polls quote many typical Americans
saying: “I believe in God but don’t need to be involved with a church.”

There are many reasons why those who seek deepened spirituality are not
necessarily utilizing the resources offered by the church? Frequent comments
include:

1. “Worship services are boring and irrelevant.”

2. “Churches always ask for money.”

3. “I want ministry and they put me on a committee.”

4. “Churches don’t aggressively serve our community.”

5. “Church people are too quick to judge and exclude.”

6. “Church people are a bunch of well-dressed hypocrites.”

7. “Churches are quick to tell what is right and wrong without listening.”

Are these statements true? No… well, sometimes but if those outside the church
believe it then we as the church obviously need to do a better job of
communicating the passion and the daily excitement of serving Christ. We must
work to change the world’s image of us and preach God’s abundant love.

The prophet Ezekiel goes on to say: Then God said to me, “Preach to these dead
people and say to them, ‘Dead people, hear the word of the Lord! This is what
the Lord says to you. I will breathe into your dead bodies and you will come
to life. You will begin to smile at one another and offer a hug. You will
welcome the strangers, visit the sick and volunteer to help those who are
helpless. I will put breath into you and you will come to life. Then you will
know that I am the Lord.” (Ezekiel 37)

Can God still breathe life into the church? Of course, but are we ready to
receive God’s answers?

Ezekiel continues: “So I preached to the dead people as God commanded. First
one person began to smile and then another moved his head to look at me. One
woman began to fold her hands together as if in prayer but there was still no
twinkle of light in any of their eyes or color in their cheeks.”

Next week: A few ideas that can help any church receive God’s new life… are
you ready?

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Jesus said: "You are the light of the world—like a city on a mountain, glowing
in the night for all to see. Don’t hide your light under a basket! Instead,
put it on a stand and let it shine for all." (Matthew 5:14-15)