To Have Them Loved or To Have Them Leave?

We live in a day right now more then ever, where people are searching for something more than what they presently have. We see people everywhere wanting more and more whether it be by way of finances, material possessions, or even in the area of relationships. This is where the Church can and should play a vital role in our respective communities.

The more time that I spend in the Ministry, I am utterly convinced that people, in general, have the same basic need and that need is to feel loved. Think about it.....in a successful marriage, both partners know that they are loved. Even though problems may occur from time to time, they have the security of that love from their partner that lifts them up above the problem instead of being another statistic buried by that hardship. If we in the Church would take time to love people as Christ loved people, then our Churches would prosper and floursih above their problems as God intends for them to.

We have to rise above the stigma that is especially prevalent in some Independent Baptist circles that says "People that need babysitting aren't serious about the Lord's work anyway!" While this sounds like a super-spiritual statement, it is not Biblical. We're not talking about babysitting people, we're talking about ensuring that they feel loved and that they know that God's people are there for them and praying for them.

If you are a Godly influence today, it is solely because someone took the time to love you and show you God's love with their life. Please remember that we in no way, shape, or form have to condone people's sin to love them. People don't expect the church to help them in efforts of continued sin, however they DO expect the church to help them to get out of continued sin. How can we do this? It starts with loving them.

As we love them, they will do one of three things. If they're saved they will get right with God, if they're not saved they will get saved, or if they are part of the percentage that strictly takes advantage of the people of God, they will eventually move on. Either way let's not allow the negative possibilities to be a deterrent in accomplishing the will of God for our lives.

Let us make a concentrated effort to do what God would have us to do. In reality that is what we need to remember. What we're talking about here is not anything above what God has already asked us to do. If we'll take time to do this, then our Churches will have God's blessings upon them! The choice is simple......We can either love people as Christ loved them, or they will leave! It really is that simple!

In Christ's Service,
Bro. Brandon

Is it ever too late to pray?

In the day that we live in, we see the vast majority of people who claim to know the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior whose prayer life leaves a lot to be desired. Many times it seems as though these would be prayer warriors wait until some type of tragedy takes place in their lives to truly get before God and make their petitions unto Him.

The truth of the matter is that the praises of these individuals do not precede their petitions. Psalm 100 clearly instructs the believer to "Enter into his gates with thanksgiving and into his courts with praise." The key word in this scripture, when taken in its proper context, is "Enter." We must begin with a perennial praise of the Lord. If we praise the Lord in all aspects of our lives whether great or small, then we will not feel like novices when we must approach the Creator of the Universe with something that we deem as "important" or "pressing" in nature.

So the question is begged...."Is it ever too late to pray?" The Word of God teaches us that as believers, Jesus Christ will NEVER leave us nor forsake us. We must remember however that the Scriptures state that if we regard iniquity in our hearts, then God will not hear our prayer. If we stay prayed up and confessed up and in right standing with God, then it truly is NEVER too late to pray.

There are examples in the Bible where we see that for some, that it was too late to pray. Take Sodom and Gomorrah for example. God had turned them over to a reprobate mind and turned them "over to their own lusts." This is still applicable for today. Be careful about the things that you desire more than God, because He may just turn you over to those desires.

There is coming a day for the lost that it will indeed be too late to pray. You see, one day every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. This will in no way shape or form constitute Salvation, but will rather be a recognition that they have wasted and squandered every opportunity to make things right between them and the Almighty God. Please dear friend, don't be the one for whom IT WILL BE TOO LATE TO PRAY!