Faith and Politics...

Okay, when a politician is a Believer and worships the same God that I do, that's a beautiful thing! BUT, I'd much rather they promote polices that reflect my political views (which, by the way, are heavily influenced by my biblical views) regardless of their faith.

As an example, I was ready to support Mitt, even though I'm a Christian and not a Mormon (and no, Mormons are not Christians).

One of the more annoying things is when someone pretends to be (or thinks that they are) a Christian. Honestly, I think this happens with a lot of people. There are many people who think they are Christians, that just are not, that's just people in general - it's gonna include politicians as much as anyone else.

Jesus tells us in Matthew 7:13-14 "Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few."

This is a quote from our president-elect "“I’m rooted in the Christian tradition... I believe there are many paths to the same place, and that is a belief that there is a higher power, a belief that we are connected as a people.”

Not only is this not a Christian belief, it is a decidedly anti-christian statement. Quite clearly John 14:6 says "...I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."

There is only one way to God, His name is Jesus. That is the core of Jesus' mission and ministry. Christians follow Jesus, so, if there's someone who uses the name "Christian" and doesn't believe what Jesus said - as much as they would want to change Jesus' teaching, they are not a Christian.

Romans 13 makes it clear that it's our job (as Christians) to follow the direction of our leaders (as long as it doesn't contradict God's word - Acts 5:29) regardless of their faith.

Will I follow Obama? 100% I will (as long as he doesn't contradict God's word). Do I believe he's a Christian? Based on his statement, I do not. But I see people every day that say they are Christian, and don't seem to be. I believe that Christ saw people like that every day (see Matthew 7 above).

It breaks my heart and I believe God can change people.

(bring on the comments)

Education in America

Can you believe that 10% of Yale's graduating class wants to teach in
some of the lowest performing schools for 2 years? 5-10% of the
graduating class of the top 100 schools want to do this through Teach
For America. 3,700 will do it this year.

Teach For America focuses our countries future leaders at the greatest
social injustice in the US, and they are making a difference.

It is a regular thing for a Teach For America leader to move a class
from the 13% against the national norm to the 90% in two years. One
such leader is now running Washington DC schools.

In Houston 7% of students from public schools graduate from High
School. There is a Teach For America running a school in the same
population and 90% of his school graduate from college. Why are we
not doing more?

It's not lack of student motivation, lack of parental involvement, or
homelife issues that makes low income schools underperform (as a
Gallop poll might suggest). After those who actually work in those
areas for Teach For America and see the problem solved, they realize
that it's teacher quality, principal quality, and academic
expectations for the kids.

Throwing money at a problem and allowing underperforming teachers/
principals to continue will not fix it. We should expect a lot from
kids, and they should not get a "pass" if they don't live up to it.
When the child is motivated to learn, it does not take a lot of money
to teach them, they just need to be inspired to believe they can do
more.

This is within our grasp to solve.

Voter Turn-Out Is Amazing!

Hey, the polls are filling up so they are extending the election times.  If you're voting Republican you can go ahead and vote today and if you're going to vote Democrat you have the opportunity to cast your ballot tomorrow.

(yes, that's a joke - voting ends Nov. 4)

1Timothy 2:1-4

Pray that we would all be reminded that the Lord is the one who is in control. He is the one that appoints our leaders and removes them from power. Ask God to speak to the hearts of those elected, and ask Him to bring them joy and wisdom. Start tomorrow praying for our new president and leaders...

Philippians 4:6-7

Just pray, and know that we should not worry, but give everything up to God. We will have a peace that we can't fully understand and that will keep us in Christ.

Matthew 18:19-20

Pray that citizens would take advantage of their opportunity to vote, and take it seriously

Luke 18:1

Pray for the candidates physical, mental, and spiritual health

Pssalm 33:12

Pray for those serving in our armed forces, thank God for them and ask Him to bless them and their families with strength.

Psalm 4:1

Pray that Believers will demonstrate Christ's life where they work and inspire people to follow Jesus.

Proverbs 3:5-6

Pray for the candidates that they will be moved by God, listen to His voice, and respond by seeking Godly and wise advisers.

Romans 13:1

Pray that more and more people will vote as God directs them to after careful prayer and study.

1Peter 3:12

Pray that our government leaders would serve our country in an unselfish way.

Joshua 1:9

Pray that government officials would stand for Godly principles regardless of cultural trends.

Titus 3:1

Pray that Believers would live passionately for Jesus and obey His word so that it affects all the areas of our culture.

2Timothy 2:2

Pray for teachers and those in education that they will have a positive and Godly influence in the lives of their students.

Psalm 1:1-3

Pray for the candidates by name that they would be moved by god to do what is right.

Colossians 2:6-7

Thank God for the gift of living in a free country with free elections

Romans 10:9-10

Pray for conversion and true change for those that have committed crimes.

2John 5:14-15

Pray that the election process will operate smoothly in all 50 states (and Washington DC).

(if you are prepared, go vote early today)

Ephesians 6:18

Commit to making prayer for your country a consistent and ongoing part of your life.

(Come to First Euless tonight for prayer for the election at 6:00PM)

Psalm 28:8-9

Pray that our leaders, churches, and believers in Texas will cry out to God for His direction and that His will be done on election day.

Psalm 34:17-18

Pray for God's Kingdom to come and His will too be done in your life...

From Bad To Worse!!!!

Okay, 2Timothy tells us that "...evil people and impostors will go from bad to worse..." and there will be bad people all the way to the end.  So does that mean that there will be MORE evil in the world as the end of the world draws nearer?  Well, whether or not that's true, this verse doesn't say it.

When Jesus is talking about the kingdom, He says that it will start small and go throughout the whole world like leaven in 3 measures of flower until the whole lump is leavened (Matt. 13:33; Lk. 13:21).

So, Jesus taught that the kingdom (His rule and reign) will be marked by progress.  So has that been the case?  Yes!

Throughout world history, there have been increasingly MORE BELIEVERS for every unbeliever on this planet.  Here are the Barna statistics...

AD100 = 1 out of every 360 people on the planet were believers

AD1000 = 1:220

AD1500 = 1:69

AD1900 = 1:27

AD1980 = 1:11

AD2005 = 1:7

In other words, don't trust the guy that says "the world is ending a week from Thursday, things are getting worse so just give-up and give me your money"

We're not losing, the kingdom isn't shrinking, our job isn't done yet, we still have the power of the Spirit and the authority of the Son so let's get after it.  The great commission is not only accomplishable, it WILL be accomplished - don't you want to be a part of that?

Evangelize - Assimilate - Equip (make disciples, baptize them, teach them to do - Matt. 28).

Let's do it together!

2Timothy 4:11-15

Pray for the youth of America to be filled with Godly desires and hope.

Psalm 51:9-13

Pray for spiritual awakening in the United States - that the lost will be saved, believers will be refreshed, and that Biblical wisdom will reign.

Proverbs 15:22

Pray for the candidates to be moved by God and seek what is honorable, just, moral, and Godly.

Psalm 27:11

Pray for our military and thank God for them. Ask Him to encourage them and reveal himself to them.

7-Deadly Sins

There's a great new book by Bill Donahue and Russ Robinson called "The Seven Deadly Sins of Small Groups Ministry"

So, are you at a church that has "small groups" (e.g. Sunday School, Home Groups, etc.) - then this is a great book for you to read.  There are a lot of things that churches fall into doing, usually without thinking about it...

So here they are...

#1 - Unclear Ministry Objectives

#2 - Lack of Point Leadership

#3 - Poor Coaching Structures

#4 - Neglect of Ongoing Leadership Development

#5 - Closed Group Mind-Set

#6 - Narrow Definition of a Small Group

#7 - Neglect of the Assimilation Process

You never agree with a book 100% (or I don't at least) - but this is a good one.

2Timothy 2:8

Pray that God's people would commit to pray and never stop calling on Him.

Proverbs 10:17

Pray for our police, prosecutors, defenders, judges to be vigilant and make wise judgment.

Proverbs 8:17

Pray for God to convict Americans of their sin and for them to trust in Him.

John 8:31-32

Pray for our leaders to govern with God honoring discernment to preserve American freedom.

Psalm 34:9-10

Pray our leaders would seek God's heart for vision and direction.

What Should We Do?

It's easy for churches to do a lot of things.  After all, there are a lot of "good things" that people want to do.  The church should be good, so it's natural for churches to want to do these good things.  But what if good things take up so much of our time we are not able to accomplish our goal(s)?  What if we are so spread thin, we are able to accomplish things that are good, but we don't have the personal capitol to accomplish anything great?  What if the real enemy of "the great" is not evil, but "the good"?

So what SHOULD a church do.  What does the Bible expressly tell us to do?  If we can come to that understanding, if we can define our specific charge, shouldn't we take care of that FIRST, and then whatever is leftover we can put towards "good things"?  Here are some things that I believe the church is charged to do...

EVANGELISM - making Christians.  Accepting people where they are, and leading them to a relationship with Jesus Christ.

ASSIMILATION - people commit to Christ and His church

EQUIPPING - showing people how to live the faith

These three are expressly commanded in the great commission.  Matthew 28 tells us to make Christians, baptize them (as a symbol of them joining the mission), and then teach them to live out what Jesus told us to do.

WORSHIP - listening to God and responding to Him.

John 4 tells us God is looking for worshipers and Colossians 3 is a great picture of that.

CARE - encouragement and restoration spiritually and materially of God's people.

Hebrews 10 tells us to encourage each other and Galatians 6 & 1 Timothy 5 are good examples of restoring Believers and helping them see where they are not living-up to their calling. 

MISSION - we are to care for those here, there, and everywhere.

As we follow Acts 1:8 to take the gospel, we should live out Romans 12 of caring for the physical needs of all.

So there it is...

EVANGELISM

ASSIMILATION

EQUIPPING

WORSHIP

CARE

MISSION

There are other ways to categorize it, other words to use.  Categories could be combined or subdivided - but I think this is essentially what we're called to do.  Churches should do this - if there's anything left-over of our resources after we have fully done these 6 things, fine.  But if anything of these things are left undone - let the rotary club take care of it...

Just my thoughts.

James 1:5

Pray that our leaders would be guided by God and based on biblical principles