Glorify God, Stand Strong, and Lead

One of the most recent additions to our group has started writing his own letters. Here is one that I hope will encourage you as much as it has encouraged me:

_____________________________________________________

Corey,

Sorry it took so long to answer your first letter. I agree with you that there are very few godly men standing up for what they believe. So many people are distracted by the things of the world. For example, the media today is growing more and more popular, seeking to entertain us, but rarely with anything good and wholesome.

Very few men are leading their families, teaches their sons and daughters to be godly men and women. As a result, there is an increasing tendency in the youth of today to want to satisfy their flesh, rather then seeking the Lord, so that they might be truly satisfied.

There is a song circulating today that talks about a man who is so busy in life that he misses the true purpose in life. Just like that man, we tend to read parts of the Bible that we like the best and live by the rules those passages teach. We try to make God into something that can fit into our lives, rather making God the focus of our lives.

It seems as if people have forgotten that there is a purpose to their lives. If you go up to a person in the streets and ask them what they are living for, they will most likely give a worldly, self-centered answer. Only when the Lord moves their heart do you get a question in response, “I am going to Hell: what must I do to be saved?” However, very few people are asked this question, because most people are sitting at home, rather than evangelizing in the street.

Godly leaders need to rise up in this generation and stand strong in the faith. They need to direct people to Christ and guide people to lives that glorify God. May God bless you this week.

Brian

Specks and Sploches

“And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your eye?” ~Matt. 7:3

Nick,

As I’ve written in times past, our nation, and in fact our whole world is in dire need of Christian leaders. As men, we are commanded to become those leaders. One of the most uncommon, yet most necessary characteristics to be found in a leader is the ability to admit his own weaknesses. A leader is just that: a leader. He should always be the first to admit that he was wrong and also the first to forgive. He is to take the initiative in all situations. Why is it important for a leader to admit his faults? 1) So that he might remain humble. 2) So that he can more easily correct the faults of others. I’m sure we all can give examples of times when we got frustrated, not because someone is trying to correct a fault, but because they are unwilling to admit their own part in the argument. Before we tackle any situation, we first need to acknowledge our inability to solve the problem by ourselves, and then we need to pray to the Lord, asking Him to give us His strength and wisdom. The founding fathers, while penning the Constitution, prayed to the Lord before they did any work whatsoever. Why is this so remarkable? In part because it is the complete opposite of what would happen if a similar project was undertaken today. It is also remarkable, and inspiring, that these men, some of the wisest in the world at that time, still recognized their own weaknesses and inability to lead without the Lord’s help.

I want to bring up one last topic. One other requirement of a godly leader is that he able to lead his family in worship and that he is able to explain why they, as a family, believe what they believe. One of my goals for 2011 is to write position papers on all major doctrines, such as baptism, communion, predestination, etc. I encourage all of you to write your own papers, whether as part of your morning devotions or as a summer project. When we all have finished them we can meet and discuss them. These papers, besides requiring you to do a lot of research, will be useful to you later in life. When you forget the reason why we baptize infants or why we baptize with sprinkling and immersion, you can look at these papers and remind yourself of the evidence of Scripture. As you continue through the coming weeks and the rest of this year, may the Lord bless you labors and may He give you bountiful harvests in mind, body, and spirit. May you never cease to worship and fear and praise our great Redeemer.

Your brother in Christ,

Corey

Give ear to my words...

“Give ear to my words, O Lord, consider my meditation…My voice You shall hear in the morning, O Lord; In the morning I will direct it to You, and I will look up.” ~Ps. 5:1,3

Nick,

Throughout the Psalms, we see a pattern: every Psalm is directed to God. The whole Bible, in fact, is one continuous story of God’s majesty, mercy, and love. In our modernized world, we are often distracted from the things of the Lord. TV and radio commercials encourage us to buy things to improve our lives; newspapers and magazines highlight the scandals and sin of our culture; internet chat groups entice us to spend more time looking at a computer screen and less time enjoying actual fellowship and encouragement from believers. Books are also written to satisfy our fleshly lusts. For instance, what good is there in mystery novels? There is never anything God- glorifying behavior, but only death: a constant reminder of Man’s sin and the consequence of it. Self-help books do not point to God as the solution to our troubles, but rather to our own selves. Even supposedly Christian books contain a shockingly enormous amount of sensuality. I bring this all up to illustrate, and to show more clearly, the need for godly thinking and judgment. Our thoughts are always to be on the Lord. Morning prayer times and evening Bible studies are important for our spiritual growth, but we should always be questioning our actions as to whether or not they are for God’s glory.

If you watch a movie, before you even turn on the TV, you should ask, “Is what I am going to see and hear going to make me become more like Christ?” Before you pick up a book, evaluate whether it contains godly examples, whether the plot ends with the good side victorious, and whether there is God-honoring behavior. In Scripture we repeatedly see sinful man turning away from God, but God always returns victorious.

“Therefore, whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” ~1 Cor. 10:31

So, whether you’re reading a book, playing a game, watching a movie, eating, drinking, walking down a sidewalk, etc., constantly be asking yourself whether you are glorifying God with your actions. The world needs godly men to lead; men who glorify God in all that they do. We are to be those men who take up the duty of leadership. May the Lord bless you this week.

Your brother in Christ,

Corey