Barabbas deserved to be hung up on that cross just like everyone does. (Romans 3:23) But God, being rich in mercy, sent his son to die on the cross for all our sins so we can spend eternal life with him in heaven.
What does it mean to be productive? It’s not just about ticking off tasks but about transforming your life. Productivity, in the context of our faith, is about using your time intentionally to glorify God. If your time is not glorifying God, then you are not being productive. But what does it mean to glorify God?
Spring is here. The fields are turning green again, the birds are singing, and the calves are on the ground. It is a time of renewal and growth. A library can be an amazing resource for expanding your understanding, exploring new ideas, and entertaining yourself with an imaginative tale. It can also be an intimidating series of rooms and shelves and books upon books. Where to start?
This Sunday, February 24, 2020, we continued our way through the Sermon on the Mount found in Matthew 5-7. In Christ’s sermon, he moves from a theological notion of righteousness that exceeds the religious elite of the day and his first application is anger. I do not believe Christ did this by chance, but with purpose. Anger is a problem that touches the hearts of most people across the globe. While we may all struggle differently with the outworking of that anger, we all still struggle. Sometimes it takes the form of mumbling under the breath and others the throwing of a chair.
In Christ’s sermon, he makes it clear that he is not merely satisfied with stopping someone from throwing a chair. The righteousness which fulfills the law of Christ must also be concerned with mumbled words and the bitter heart. As James says, “Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.” (James 1:9-20)
It is great to understand how God is concerned with our Anger. However, many people are left saying, “But How?!” It is not sufficient for us as pastors and believers in Christ to just say, “Stop it! Stop being angry!” So, if this is an issue for you I have compiled a small compilation of resources to help you get started.
If you would like more help with your anger, send us a message. We’d love to get together a group of people to study this topic in greater detail.
Podcast (Free)
Blog Posts (Free)
Pamphlets
Books
Other Resources
Written by Pastor Benjamin Leonard in memory of his Uncle Don.
Something many people probably don’t know about me is that my uncle has Down Syndrome. I don’t talk about it much because he doesn’t seem that different to me. I have grown up playing games, watching Flipper reruns, and shooting basketball with him. Last night, September 22, 2016, he passed away at the full age of 61. Read more
Every year Southern Baptist Churches across America begin collecting an offering titled the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering. Named after a woman, Annie Armstrong, who transformed the way Southern Baptist do missions, this offering specifically supports missionaries across North America. One hundred percent of these funds are given directly to the missionaries and their work. This long-standing offering began in 1895 with approximately $5,000. However, in 2013 the offering collected was 57 million dollars. God has used the faithfulness of Southern Baptist for the last 119 years to do an incalculable work of missions through this offering.
We are praying that he will continue to do so in 2015. However, dangers exist in holding an offering such as this. It can be a temptation for Southern Baptist to merely put some money in an offering plate to support missions in general. Mrs. Annie would have been horrified by the thought of this. I want to issue A CALL TO MORE. Do more than drop a few dollars in a plate, commit in your heart to make this a season of care for missions. This can be accomplished in four specific ways.
Pray
Each day this week we will be posting specific missions and missionaries you can be praying for throughout your day. Take time to stop and pray for them with your family, in your small groups, and on your own. Don’t allow this to be a momentary thought rather devote your heart to lifting up the needs of these ministries and ministers to our Great God.
Come and hear, all you who fear God, and I will tell what he has done for my soul. I cried to him with my mouth, and high praise was on my tongue. If I had cherished iniquity in my heart, the Lord would not have listened. But truly God has listened; he has attended to the voice of my prayer. (Psalm 66:16-19 ESV)
Encourage
Take time to read about each missionary or ministry and send them a note. We will include in each post a link to their Facebook page and/or an e-mail for you to send them some words of encouragement. In one year Annie Armstrong wrote 18,000 notes to encourage others to give, honor her legacy by sending messages to each of these missionaries. However, don’t allow this to be a one week event. If you use Facebook, follow them so you can see how God is using them and continue encourage them in the future. Missionary work can seem fruitless at times, because the fruit is not always immediate. Encouraging words can often bolster their perseverance in this difficult task.
Give
Don’t let this title scare you. Some may be saying, “Here we go again. They just want our money.” Let me exhort you with these words; Southern Baptist Missionaries are not rich, nor will they get rich doing this work. Many sacrifice nearness to relatives, good retirement plans, and benefits in order to barely get by, just so they can be more intentional about sharing the gospel and making disciples. This is not a task which bring fame and fortune, however it does exult the name of Christ among the nations. However, we must be realistic and see that this takes money. It takes money to have a place to live, food to eat, and a place to meet. It takes money to have the necessary resources for the work of ministry. So, give sacrificially in the same way they have sacrificially given their lives to this work. This can be accomplished through the offering time at your local church or at this link. Our church has a goal of $3,000, please consider joining us in this goal.
Go
I find it no coincidence that Christ encourages his disciples to pray for the missionaries (Luke 10:2) and then he sends them(Luke 10:3). So, I ask you to pray for more missionaries and I encourage you to consider how you might go on mission. Whether that be intentionality in your current community, taking short-term mission trips, or dedicating your life to being a missionary. This Sunday we will continue our sermon series through Gospel Mission, so join us in finding how you can be a part.
And he said to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. Go your way; behold, I am sending you out as lambs in the midst of wolves. (Luke 10:2-3 ESV)
The following video assists us in seeing how we can continue in the legacy of Annie Armstrong.
Tyrone, Missouri has experienced a tragedy that will affect the community for years to come. In the days ahead the news media will leave and new stories will grace the headlines, however for the people of Tyrone and the communities throughout Texas County these event will press upon their minds for decades. We should not consider lightly the impact of these events.
You may be asking, “How could anyone take a devastating situation such as this lightly?” The gravity of this situation becomes light if and when we only allow it to reside in our minds or on our lips. If we merely think and talk about this tragedy without taking action we are wasting it. Something of this magnitude in the community of Texas County calls for action. One way to take action might be pursing gun control or encouraging the right to bear arms. We could talk about home security and the need for ADT, however all of these solutions fall woefully short of helpful. Actually, they are damaging to the families and the community. Reactions such as these are horribly rude and not only waste but exacerbate the problem. So how do you and I take action in such a way that we encourage the families and assist the community? The answer lies in the Gospel! The Gospel of Jesus Christ calls us to three actions in tragedies such as this. Read more