Membership has Privileges

I am a Church Member

Perhaps it's different for you, but that phrase doesn't immediately stir a flood of happiness in me. I believe my visceral flatline is a consequence of the mixed meanings and messages wrapped in that phrase. 

Know as you start this quick read, it will end well. I'll take it backwards. 

For me, "membership", especially placed next to the word "church" draws up images of stodgy meetings, dusty buildings, religiosity, irrelevance (at best), and legalistic judgmentalism (at worst). Incidentally, if that word is paired to another word, it can draw out much different feelings.... BiMart Membership (I like BiMart, my heart doesn't exactly skip a beat.. but it's good. Lucky Number Tuesday?) What comes to your mind with the word "membership?"

To be a member of something can be really powerful, but our experience of "membership" is directly tied to our perception of that which we are a member of. 

Moving on.

Church. This can be confusing at times, because in the christian vernacular we tend to us the word "church" interchangeably to refer to a building, or an organization, or a group of people, or an activity, or a culture, or a global population of people with similar beliefs. I can see where confusion could emerge.

Folks have lots of different experiences of each of these. A church maintenance worker may love (or detest) the building she is helping to maintain. Another person may have deeply nostalgic feelings when they remember going to church as a child with their family. 

In 1 Corinthians 12, Paul compares a Church (a local body of people who have entrusted their earthly and eternal lives to Jesus Christ) to the human body. Paul writes, "the body is not one member, but many. If the foot says, 'Because I am not a hand, I am not a part of the body,' it is not for this reason any the less a part of the body." 

The Church, better understood, is a group of people bound together in Christ. You can also call them a family. The family of God. Like any family, the Church family is filled with lots of different types of people. The building.... well... it's a building. Church buildings are often purpose-built for a local Church family to gather and worship. They are a building, a tool used by the Church.  Most local churches have an organization, but the organization is also a tool. It's also a tool used by the Church.

The Church is a diverse group of people, bound together in common relationship together and with Jesus. There is nothing stodgy or dusty about the people I know to be part of the local Church I am part of. Religiosity, legalism, and judgementalism are not values of our Church culture. We are blessed to have a building (at tool, or even a "home" for this family to share) and we have an organization that serves us. 

I'm a church family member. I have a role in my family. I give and receive love. I learn from many and help to teach also. We eat together. We pray for each other and worship together. I know God on my own, but I know Him better because the family of believers He has placed me among. 

By that definition, I am a Church Member... and it is an enormous blessing in my life. 

It turns out that because I'm a part of a local church body that I also serve as an active member in the organization. A healthy, local, church will be best served by an organization that reflects the family. I help with tasks around the building - because the building is a tool used by the family. 

God gathers His people, locally, into diverse families where we become more together than we will be alone. 

Thank You, Jesus, for Your Church. It is Your kind grace that allows us to serve together, know and be known. 

Not one should be lost.

Battle for Your Soul

Powerful warriors have lost the battle for their mind even after winning great victories. Here are 9 strategies to win when the battle is in your head.

In 1 Kings 18 & 19 we find an account of a powerful victory... and a brutal spiritual battle that takes place afterward for the prophet Elijah.

Elijah (walking in the spirit in surrender to God) saw a great victory on Mount Carmel. The Lord poured fire from heaven that consumed the sacrifice, stones, and water Elijah had prepared opposite of the altar that had been prepared by Queen Jezebel's priests of Baal and Asherah. The altar to Baal remained untouched as a testament of Baal's impotence before the One True God.

A lightning-struck tree

Jezebel was not happy. Unfazed by the glaring failure of her god to do anything at all, she was angry that after this supernatural event, the people destroyed her group of priests and turned their hearts back to the One True God. "Not happy" is an understatement. Her already deep hatred of Elijah reached a new depth. She sent him an email saying, "I'll have you dead in 24 hours... I guarantee it with my life. Ta ta Mr Prophet of God!, Sincerely, Queen Jezebel"

When Elijah receives her message, scripture says, "Then he was afraid, and he arose and ran for his life..." 1 Kings 19:3a (ESV). The clues in this passage are in the original language. The words for "afraid" and "life" literally mean "see" and "soul." - In other words, Elijah SAW what Jezebel said, and because of what he saw, he got up and ran for his SOUL.

Elijah allowed Jezebel's threat to capture his mind. He was seeing her people capture him and imagining all the horrible things she would do to him as she made good on her promise. Elijah was no longer operating in his spirit in surrender to God. Instead he was living from his soul. Your soul is your mind, your will, and your emotions. Elijah's mind, will, and emotions had been captured and Elijah had surrendered to his soul to Jezebel's control instead of remaining focused in his spirit on the One True God.

This happens pretty often. It's happened to me. It's happened to you... perhaps even right now. Something you fear captures your thought to such a degree that it becomes difficult to see anything else. Fear like this often has the facts in its favor. For Elijah, Jezebel had an army and a track record of killing prophets of the One True God. For you, the enemy will also be reminding you of facts.

.... But God.

I encourage you to read the story for yourself. Find it in your Bible in 1 Kings chapters 18 and 19.

Here are 9 strategies for dealing with this type of spiritual attack. The first two strategies are the two that Elijah doesn't use. If Elijah had started here, the story would have read differently. The other 7 strategies are listed in the order they appear in Elijah's story.

Repent - Ask the Lord to identify sin in your life... and get rid of it. Sin gives the enemy influence over you. (Romans 6:16 - you are slaves of the one you obey; Acts 3:19 - repent so times of refreshing can come; Psalm 24:3-4 Ascend the mountain of God... with clean hands and a pure heart.)

Worship - Choose to worship God anyway. True, God focused, worship is warfare against the enemy. You won't feel like expressing thanksgiving and worship. Do it anyway. (Psalm 23:5 - You prepare a table for me in the presence of my enemies)

Take a Nap - and eat something. When you're under stress be deliberate to take care of your body. (1 Cor. 6:19-20 - your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit) If the Lord leads you to fast, then do it... but don't disregard the body the Lord has gifted to you as inconsequential to your spiritual life.

Stay Connected - Talk to people that speak truth and encouragement to you. Resist the strong temptation to isolate yourself. Spend time with your mentor, your pastor, and your encouraging friend. (Prov. 15:22 - with many advisers, they succeed.)

Go Meet with God - Elijah went to the mountain of God (1 Kings 19:8). Where do you meet with God? Go there. Often.

Take Every Thought Captive - Align yourself with truth. What does the Bible tell you is true? Stand on it. (2 Cor. 10:4-5 - Our weapons aren't carnal, take captive every thought to Christ)

Resist the Devil - Contend for your own freedom and freedom for others. Spiritual warfare is real, so take it seriously. Scripture says that if you resist the devil that he will flee. (Eph. 6:10-12 - Be strong in the Lord. Put on the full armor of God)

Keep Obeying God - If you're going through hell, for heaven's sake... don't quit! Many times, freedom, healing, and victory come as we continue to press on. (Gal. 6:9 - Continue doing good, you will reap a good harvest) The voices of fear will drive you to sit down under the mirage of futility. Don't quit! The fog you are in may end only a few yards further on... but you won't see that until you are back in the sunshine. Keep moving forward.

Walk in the Spirit - Surrender your soul (mind, will, emotions) to your spirit.. and your spirit to the Lord. (Gal. 5:16 - Walk in the Spirit so you don't fulfill the lust of the flesh.)

Jesus has authority and victory... in Christ, you have it too. Don't quit. Don't quit. Don't quit.

Your victory isn't just about you.

...Not one should be lost. (John 6:39)

Not another Buzzard

My family is blessed to live about 20 minutes from the nearest "real" town. In this setting, I've learned from those that have spent their lives among the trees to pay more attention to what's happening. To watch the birds. Pay attention to the flowers. Feel changes in the air.

I've noticed a flock of ravens that passed over my house morning and evening for quite a while. The calls of birds have become familiar... and I've even discovered that Steller's Jays will make the call of a hawk or other bird of prey to intimidate nearby birds (or perhaps warn them of a threat). A friend pointed out how you can feel sudden changes in the barometric pressure... and that can forewarn of a sudden shower or sun break. 

A couple of years ago, in late Spring, I was in my front lawn. I enjoyed the chattering of the little birds. The morning ravens had passed by and a crow was shouting from the top of a tall tree. Suddenly, I saw an enormous dark bird emerge in a low lazy circle over that same tree. It was a buzzard. And it brought friends. There were five large buzzards circling very low over my home... riding a thermal slowly to the Southwest. 

Suddenly the crow made a racket, jumped out of his tree and started swooping down at one the large birds. A Steller's Jay began making it's telltale mocking call of a bird of prey from the old apple tree in front of my house. All the little birds went silent. Then I saw it. 

One of the buzzards was not a buzzard. It was an eagle with it's pure white head and matching tail feathers. 

It was a beautiful moment. There was an eagle soaring just over my head making slow circles over my house. Then I started to notice things. 

The crow ignored the buzzards and dove vengefully at the eagle. The jay wasn't making a buzzard call (whatever that would be), but the cry of an eagle. The smaller birds may have simply gone silent because of the large passing shadows.... but they knew something important was happening... and they should be nervous. 

Everyone knew that an eagle was flying over... everyone knew what that bird was. Everyone was in awe (except, perhaps, for the oblivious buzzards).... and the eagle herself. 

The eagle was just riding the wind. No different than the buzzards around her.... but it seemed the whole world was against her. The stupid crow swooping and pecking; "You don't belong here! Get outa here!". The mocking jay bird down in that tree; "Ooooohh... I see you up there! Hey, listen, I can sound JUST LIKE YOU! You think you're hot stuff don't you!"

I imagine the eagle suddenly coming unglued, "COME ON! I'M JUST TRYING TO FLY HERE!!  LEAVE ME ALONE!!! WHAT'S YOUR PROBLEM!?"

It was a problem of understanding. Everyone knew exactly what the eagle was... except the eagle herself. Maybe no one ever told her. Perhaps she just hadn't taken any real risks yet. Or sadly, was settling to be an above-average buzzard.  

When you're just trying to make it through life, but everything is against you. You might want to ask the question, "Who am I again?" You are the eagle. The little birds see you a mile away and are instinctively terrified. The big, lazy, birds ignore you as long as you don't do anything sudden.... happy to see you picked on as they glide along in peace. 

The enemy knows who you are, even if you've forgotten. If you belong to Jesus, then you are the righteous redeemed. You overcome by the Blood of the Lamb and the word of your testimony. You are a saint. Purified and empowered by the Creator of everything.... to take back what the devil has stolen. 

.... Not one should be lost. 

Revelation 12:11 

1 Corinthians 1:2 

Acts 1:8 

John 10:10ff 

John 6:39