How the Enemy Attacks- Plot 3

Jesus-followers are in a very real battle, not against people or politics, but against the enemies of God (Ephesians 6). If you follow God and His purposes, then you will be opposed by God's enemies.

The principles of how these enemies attacks and the antidote to those plots are found in Ezra and Nehemiah, which Lifehouse studied in January, as we went through the Unquenchable Series (subscribe to our podcasts). Here are a series a lessons about spiritual battle, that I didn't cover in that sermon series.

1. The enemies first attack - friendship and flattery.
2. His second line of attack is just the opposite - insults and ridicule.

When these attacks fail, the enemy comes at you with threats, discouragement, and weariness.

His goal is to leverage your exhaustion and fear against you -  to get you to quit without actually having to go to battle. Read Nehemiah 4, where the enemies are strategizing in anger,

“They all plotted together to come and fight against Jerusalem and stir up trouble against it. But we prayed to our God and posted a guard day and night to meet this threat."
Meanwhile, the people in Judah said, “The strength of the laborers is giving out, and there is so much rubble that we cannot rebuild the wall.”
Also our enemies said, “Before they know it or see us, we will be right there among them and will kill them and put an end to the work.”
Then the Jews who lived near them came and told us ten times over, “Wherever you turn, they will attack us.” Nehemiah 4:8–12, NIV.

The enemies threatened the Jewish people from the outside, and stirred up fear. In the midst of the threats, the people were already growing tired and discouraged.

When you are faithful to doing God's work and obedient to His purposes in your life, guess what? You get TIRED and DISCOURAGED and face THREATS! The enemies of God don't want you to follow God, and they certainly don't want you serving Him and building His Kingdom.

So, what do we do when we get weary, discouraged, and face threats?

"I stood up and said to the nobles, the officials and the rest of the people, “Don’t be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your brothers, your sons and your daughters, your wives and your homes.” 
When our enemies heard that we were aware of their plot and that God had frustrated it, we all returned to the wall, each to his own work. Nehemiah 4:14–15, NIV.

Nehemiah rallied the people and encouraged them to muster their strength. How?

• He reminded them that GOD IS FOR US! And if God is for us, who can be against us? See verse 20, Nehemiah states, "God will fight for us!" Awesome!
• Then, he challenged them to NOT be AFRAID. If God is on our side, whom shall we fear?
• Then, he challenged them to BE on GUARD. While working for God, we must guard our hearts and recognize that the enemy is constantly strategizing to destroy us.

See how the enemy uses both external and internal strategies?

• Threats from outside, 
• Fear, discouragement, and weariness from inside. 

Finally, Nehemiah was able to recognize the enemy! We have both an external and internal battle. We must fight on both fronts- outward threats and internal fear and discouragement.

In the face of these strategies:

1. Recognize the enemy- both external and internal.
2. Rely on God, He will fight for you and don't be afraid.
3. Rally your strength.
4. Be resilient- stay the course and keep working.

How is the enemy trying to threaten you to quit, while victory is so close at hand?

How is the enemy using your own emotions of fear and discouragement to weary you? 

Where do you need to stay the course?

How the Enemy Attacks- Plot 2

When you are obedient to God and His purposes, then you are also in opposition to God's enemies and those that the enemy uses to strategizes against God's Kingdom. Great! It's assured by Jesus in the Bible that Christian will face persecution, hardship, and attack. Satan will oppose us when we pursuing God and build His Kingdom. The principles of how the enemy attacks and the antidote to those plots are found in Ezra and Nehemiah, which Lifehouse studied in January.

The enemies first attack - friendship and flattery.

His second line of attack is just the opposite - insults and ridicule.

When friendliness and flattery don't work to slow you down or stop God's work in your life, then expect mocking and insults.

Here's some humor to illustrate this second plot of the enemy.



Now, for a less sacrilegious example straight from the Bible,


When Sanballat heard that we were rebuilding the wall, he became angry and was greatly incensed. He ridiculed the Jews, and in the presence of his associates and the army of Samaria, he said, “What are those feeble Jews doing? Will they restore their wall? Will they offer sacrifices? Will they finish in a day? Can they bring the stones back to life from those heaps of rubble—burned as they are?”
3 Tobiah the Ammonite, who was at his side, said, “What they are building—if even a fox climbed up on it, he would break down their wall of stones!” Nehemiah 4:1-3, NIV.

Do you notice the patter when you read? Sanballat and Tobiah were angry, so they ridiculed the people, mocked Nehemiah, and made fun of their "great efforts" and belittled them.

Plot 2 - what does the enemy hope to accomplish through insult and ridicule?

• to discourage us,
• to make us feel like failures,
• to make us doubt God and His power in us,
• so that we'll give up and stop working for God's Kingdom.

Nehemiah's response and our principle to overcome the enemy's strategies?

Hear us, O our God, for we are despised. Turn their insults back on their own heads. Nehemiah 4:4, NIV.

The antidote to Plot 2?

• in face of discouragement, prayer and worship!
• when feeling like failure, depend on God's strength rather than our own!
• in face of doubt, endure by faith! 
• in face of temptation to quit, NEVER GIVE UP! If it's God's work, then it's worth all sacrifice and any price. Endure hardship until the end!

Prayer is the antidote to worry and fear. Trust God, depend on God. Hand the situation over to Him. Read Psalm 36-37 to hear King David's response when he faced this attack of the enemy.

Why does the enemy attack in this way?

There is pride, selfishness, and genuine evil in the world. Someone people genuinely don't like it when others are about God's Work and care about His Church and His people. Nehemiah explains why his enemies opposed him.

When Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite official heard about this, they were very much disturbed that someone had come to promote the welfare of the Israelites. Nehemiah 2:10, NIV.

The lesson in the "why"? When you are about what God is about, care about what God cares about, and are passionately engaged in the Work of God, don't take attacks PERSONALLY! Understand that the enemy of God will attack anyone that is doing the Work of God. The attack is against God and His Church not against you specifically.

Don't FORGET- SPRING FORWARD

This Sunday, March 13th is Daylight Savings Time! That means TOMORROW!

So don't forget to set all your clocks AHEAD one hour before you go to sleep Saturday night!

Sure, we all might be a little groggier on Sunday morning, but look at the bright side...we're all one step closer to long summer days!

So pass on this friendly reminder to any sleepheads you know, and we'll have a fresh cup of coffee waiting for you this Sunday at Lifehouse...

Pray for the People of Japan - links to news coverage

The images are staggering and devastation unimaginable. As the Church, let's pray for God's comfort and healing for the people of Japan. We have many missionaries and friends there.

Pray that recovery efforts are fruitful and lives are saved.

Text TSUNAMI to 50555 to donate $10 to @ConvoyofHope Disaster Response efforts gearing up to help in Japan.

Links to watch footage and coverage of the tsunami that has hit and devastated so much of the nation:

houses burn as tsunami devastates Japan

• Sky News in Japan video shots
• Photos of the tsunami and destruction by ABC News
• Watch huge whirlpool formed by tsunami videoed by BBC News.

How the Enemy Attacks- Plot 1

The enemy doesn't want God's purposes to prevail, and if you are following and serving God and His purposes than you are a target of the enemy's attacks. Examining the narrative of Ezra and Nehemiah, we discover several strategies the enemy of our soul uses to attempt to destroy God's destiny and purposes in and through our lives.

PLOT 1

When the enemies of Judah and Benjamin heard that the exiles were building a temple for the LORD, the God of Israel, 2 they came to Zerubbabel and to the heads of the families and said, 
“Let us help you build because, like you, we seek your God and have been sacrificing to him since the time of Esarhaddon king of Assyria, who brought us here.” Ezra 4:1-2 (NIV).

The enemy of God in your life will first try to befriend you and flatter you.

The plot of Satan is to distract you through ungodly alliances and the facade of friendship. However, he is plotting to destroy God's purposes in your life and to prevent you from continuing in the work of God.

How? The enemy will do the following:

1. claim to be like you and share your love for God and His work,
2. flatter you with praise and affirm your efforts,
3. publicly express these sentiments for others to hear, so that others will be persuade and possibly persuade you.

How did Zerubbabel recognize this tactic and first plot of the enemy?

But Zerubbabel, Jeshua and the rest of the heads of the families of Israel answered, 

“You have no part with us in building a temple to our God. We alone will build it for the LORD, the God of Israel, as King Cyrus, the king of Persia, commanded us.” Ezra 4:3 (NIV).

These wise and discerning God-fearers and God-followers saw past their enemies words to the fruit of their intentions. They recognized that their enemies did NOT serve God but had other gods- false gods.

Application: are you being lured away from doing God's work through enticing offers of "friends"? Is flattery distracting you from God's best and greatest purpose for your life? Are these "friends" serving God or do they have false gods of power, politics, pride, and/ or the purse (money)? If those who are appealing to you claim to worship God but worship another god then they are being used by the enemy to plot against you.

Anytime someone attempts something great for God and takes a step of faith, the enemy will set a trap for them by trying to sweeten the offer to stay where you offer. Sometimes that's a pay raise, new or better opportunity, friends or family getting upset. But every time, it's also an attempt to keep you back from following God.

What's Keeping Us from Living Our Dreams

It's not intentions or dreams that matter. It's action or the lack there of.

What's keeping us from living our dreams is not ability, competence, resources, or the right connections. Initially, you might be tempted to disagree and disregard my post. BUT...

I've heard lots of people share big ideas, powerful dreams, and grandiose plans with me. All of which are entirely possible. However, while they're sharing, I'm tempted to ask, "are you really serious about living that out and seeing it through?" Sharing a dream is one thing. Having good intentions is encouraging. But neither actually make anything happen.

Want to know how dreams are lived, plans are laid, and ideas are fulfilled. Action! That's right! Execution. Implementation.

It's what you actually DO that determines whether you'll accomplish your dreams or not.

If you say one thing, but continue doing what you've done or never actually do anything to move toward that dream, guess what? You're not going to live those bold ambitions.

Andy Stanley teaches and explains it best in his podcast, The Principle of the Path (listen here or read his book here). It's the steps you take in a direction that lead to a destination NOT your intended destination. You can want and dream to arrive at a specific destination. BUT if you step in another direction, you will invariably arrive at the destination with which you've actually walked.

So, you want to live your dream? Do something. Write out all the action steps it will take over the next 6 months, 1 year, 5 years, and 10 years. Then, discover and decided on one action step that you can take immediately to begin living out that dream.

Read a book. Start writing a book. Take a college course. Start down-sizing. Start giving more. Run ONE mile. Throw out the cigarettes or soda or chips. Make the phone call. Send in the application. Make the appointment.

Resetting Your Default Mode

Maybe it's a bad habit, an attitude, a fear or worry. Maybe it's going back to an old relationship or replaying a bad memory. Maybe you revel in a past regret or that mental recording of what 'someone' once said to you.

We all have a default mode.

In crisis, stress, or discouragement, we often revert back to our default mode. Uncertainty, spiritual dryness, and loneliness can all trigger our default mode.

And it needs to be reset.

Computers and most electronics  have this safety, emergency feature 'reset default' to factory settings. At times, in crisis or ruts, we must reset our default mode. Once we realize that our default patterns are not God-pleasing, we invite God to conform our will and transform our thinking to a default mode of WORSHIP and PRAYER.

AND here's the BIG Annoncement...

We are transitioning to THREE (yes, 3!!) services on Sunday mornings at Leitersburg Cinemas.

WHY?

1. TO MAKE MORE DICIPLES: Lifehouse is at capacity during 10:30 service, and we have seen many people transition to our 9am service. However, since we’re at nearly 100% capacity, we do NOT have room for growth, which means we can’t reach those who need Jesus! We must create opportunities and space to continue expanding God’s Kingdom and reaching the un-churched and de-churched in our region.
2. BEST IMMEIDATE OPTION: while we’ve been preparing for other options and venues, these will take more time and cost more money. We are still planning making exciting plans for further growth and development, and will announces those as they approach. At this point, the fasts, most cost-effective solution is to add a 3rd service. This also maximizes our space at Leitersburg Cinemas.
3. NOT A FINAL STEP: going to 3 services is only a NEXT step! We are aggressively trying to find office space, as well as assembly space for a smaller venue for a Saturday evening service. AND we are developing plans to launch a 2nd Sunday morning campus in the Fall. SO, buckle up! God is doing great things in expanding HIS Church through Lifehouse Church East!

WHAT?

Starting MARCH 27th to give us a one-week trial run BEFORE April 3rd Friend Day.

Service times: 8:45 – 9:50am; 10 – 11:05am; 11:15am – 12:20pm. Why these services times:

• It’s an experiment- since we’ve never done it before, let’s try it and then adjust as needed :)
• 8:45 is very close to 9, so we’re asking EVERYONE who attends the 9am service to shift to 8:45.
• Hopefully, we can multiply the full 10:30 service into both the 10 and 11:15 service times.
• Time to tear down: we need to finish up as early as possible to still leave sufficient time to tear down BY 1PM.

NOW WHAT?

• be flexible: thanks for your willingness to adapt with us as we make every effort to expand God's Kingdom and share His love and gospel with everyone possible,
• invite FRIENDS: we're making space so you can keep inviting friends, and everyone you know who is not plugged into a church. So, please invite your friends! A great opportunity- Spiring Fever Sunday (Friend Day) April 3rd.
• serve: obviously, with expanding service times, we need more people serving in every ministry. So, please find a place to serve.

--
Fired up,
-Patrick Grach
www.lifehousechurcheast.org
www.twitter.com/patrickgrach

BIG Announcement Coming THIS Sunday

Don't miss it! During our services I'll be making an exciting BIG announcement about Lifehouse and our continued adjustments to reaching more people with the message of Jesus Christ.

Our Cause is to share and show God's love through Christ with as many people as possible. This means that we must continually adjust and expand and be flexible while also being incredibly innovative.

So, I beg you- INVITE your friends and be FLEXIBLE!

Who Does God Promote? Lessons from 2 Samuel

Humility is probably a lot like Margret Thatcher's description of being a lady,

"If you have to tell someone you are, you are not!"

"Humble yourself in the sight of the Lord and He will lift you up," James 4:10. And the opposite is also true, "God resists the proud" (1 Peter 5:5) and "Pride comes before destruction," (Proverbs 16:18).

Love King David's example of God-centered humility in 2 Samuel 6. He dances and "humiliates" himself before God in celebration and worship. His wife Michal, scorns him by sarcastically saying,

“With what honor the king of Israel acted today! You took off your clothes in front of the servant girls of your officers like one who takes off his clothes without shame!” (2 Samuel 6:20, NCV).

But David wasn't worried about impressing his wife, or other ladies on the street, or his kingdom or constituency. David was worshipping to an audience of One, trying to impress only God,

“I did it in the presence of the LORD."

David understood that humility before God is our act of worship, and that humility before God doesn't mean thinking little of ourselves, but thinking more of others, and having a right understanding of who we really are in His sight.

David also profoundly stated,

"So I will celebrate in the presence of the LORD. Maybe I will lose even more honor, and maybe I will be brought down in my own opinion, but the girls you talk about will honor me!”


God exalts those who humble themselves before Him. Others will honor those who are not ashamed to be humiliated before God.

Who are you trying to impress? Whose attention are you trying to catch? With whom are you most afraid to loose honor?

Demystifying Leadership of The Church- Lesson 7 from 2010

Lots of people rightly complain that too many churches identify leaders based on an American political model. So, they'll say, "the church is full of and run by politics!" Agreed! And most of us hate politics in the church. Politics means that leaders are identified for these type  of reasons:

• influence: a person has influence in business, government, or finances SO we give them influence IN the church,
• popularity: a person is popular and everyone likes them SO they should be in leadership,
• the vast majority of people in the church like the person or vote for that person So they should, by virtue of democratic vote, be in some type of leadership,
• secular leadership: a person is a leader elsewhere SO they must be able to lead in the church,
• money: they give lots of money SO let's give them a voice for how that money should be used.

Okay, you read that list and could probably add lots more to it. But the point is, that we hate politics and hidden/ false agendas within the Kingdom of God.

So, how does the Bible state the leaders are identified? Let's Demystify the Leadership Code in The Church:

• Spiritual Maturity: Paul tells Timothy that leaders in the Church should not be novices, young and immature in their relationship with Christ (1 Tim 3:6). Maturity is not measured by years but spiritual growth, in essence, is a Jesus-follower a reading the Word, in prayer, and multiplying by sharing and showing God's love with others.
• Character: people who are growing in the Character of Christ can be entrusted with influence and leadership. The Church can only give influence to those who exhibit growing Christ-like character, and must remove from leadership those who consistently demonstrate a lack of character and are unteachable or unwilling to repent (1 Tim 3).
• Competence: obviously a person must be capable of either leading now or learning to lead, in order to be a leader in a particular area of the Church. This means they have the capacity, giftedness, desire, and willingness to lead well (Romans 12),
• Calling: along with giftedness, a person must have the heart or passion from God to lead. People don't ask to lead, they are asked by God to lead. Ephesians 4 makes it clear that God gives to the Church the gifts of Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists, Pastors and Teachers for the equipping of the saints...
• Faithful: leaders prove themselves by being faithful in lesser areas of responsibility and influence. If a person is unwilling to do the unnoticeable tasks, they won't be faithful in areas of greater influence. Jesus taught that within His Kingdom, those who are faithful with little will be entrusted with much and vice versa. Luke 16:10-12.
• Fruitful: a person could be all of the above and still not be a leader, if they are not fruitful. Seed that lands of good soil, in Matthew 13, produces a fruitful harvest of 100, 60, or at least 30 times what was sown. We can recognize leaders within the Church by those who take the "little" that has been invested and given to them, and they produce "much" with it. They share and show God's love. They make disciples and lead people to Jesus. They develop others into servants of Christ, leaders in the Church, and help others grow.

There it is! Those ware the demystified keys of how we identify leadership within The Church according to the Bible?!

Leadership Lessons from 2 Samuel

for The Unquenchable Life daily Bible reading plan, we've been reading through 2 Samuel. Here are a few leadership lessons from the reading over the last few days:

1. How to treat our "enemies".

• Do you rejoice or mourn at the death (or pain) of your enemies? David grieved and mourned when Saul was killed in battle, thus the phrase from his song, "Oh, how the might have fallen!"
• Do we take revenge of evil into our own hands? Do we think that harming our enemy or laughing at their pain is justified? David killed those who killed his enemies and grieved that the evil done to them. Evil is evil regardless of the server or recipient.

2. Fulfilling God's agenda or my agenda.

• Do you trust God to accomplish His purposes through your life or take it into your own hands and build your own kingdom? David didn't try to secure his own throne or rule, but allow God to raise him up. David never saw the throne as "his" but as "given by God". (see 2 Sam 5:10).

3. Facing battles.

• Even though David's army had defeated the Philistines once, they gathered against him again. Does that mean he didn't win the first time? Should he have become discouraged? Should David have said, "I've been here before and faced same battle?" then use same battle plan as before?
• David recognized that even though you may win a battle, the enemy may fight against you again. Don't be discouraged if you're facing a similar battle as in past victories. BUT don't assume that the same strategy is required. 
• v. 23- David inquired of the LORD (again)...

4. Obedience to God is more important than accomplishing the task (even if it's the right thing to do).

• Do we use the patterns of the world to follow God? David copied the Philistines method for handling the ark of God and it caused death and despair, when it should have brought blessing and joy.
• Is it appropriate for us to "fear God" (v.9) if we engage in "irreverent acts" (v.7) toward God? We should fear God and worship Him with a holy, healthy respect.
• v.11- God's blessing rests on those who treat His presence with honor and obedience.

Re-discovering Masculinity in a Love-crazed Culture

Subscribe, download, or just stream weekly podcast sermons at Lifehouse Church East.  Currently in a series called Love & Other 4 Letter Words, and examining what it means to love as Jesus-followers, and how that love impacts every part of our life.

Most recent message addressed the identity and role of men according to the Bible.

Yes, it's counter cultural. Yes, it'll offended some people. Yes, it will challenge you to live different than what you've been taught by our cultural teachers of TV, news, and movies.

BUT guys need a challenge and a fight worth fighting.  In a generation plague with fatherless homes and male role models like Charlie Sheen, we could deeply use an infusion of counter- cultural teaching that goes counter- intuitive to our own desires and nature.

To a generation that has seen the role of men torn down to nothing more than negligent sperm-donors or helpless saps.

We need a strong teaching and model of what it means to be real MEN. HUSBANDS. FATHERS.

Listen to this teaching from Ephesians 5:25-33. and discover what it means to BE a MAN!

Discover the Man's Role in Love - Tomorrow

Is this the image of what a man should be? Most guys think so, and so do the women.

Come out to Lifehouse Church East tomorrow at 9am or 10:30 and discover what the Bible says about the role of men in love, marriage, and community!

Prepare to be challenged as we continue our series "Love & Other 4 Letter Words".

Faith VS Fear

It would make great reality TV, but no one would sign up to have their faith tested. Would you be a contestant on Faith versus Fear? Here are some indicators of how you'd be tested.

You might be controlled by fear if you think:

• Ambition: The journey of a thousand miles sometimes ends very, very badly.
• Despair: It's always darkest just before it goes pitch black.
• Limitations: Until you spread your wings, you'll have no idea how far you can walk.
  
• Mistakes: It could be that the purpose of your life is only to serve as a warning to others.
• Wishes: When you wish upon a falling star, your dreams can come true. Unless it's really a meteorite hurtling to the Earth which will destroy all life. Then you're pretty much hosed no matter what you wish for. Unless it's death by meteor.
• Potential: Not everyone gets to be an astronaut when they grow up.
  

The above were taken from www.despair.com. Now, you know I have a dry sense of humor.

HOWEVER:

• Faith knows that darkness, pain, hurt, and hardship are the pathway to greater revelation of who God is and how He works in and through our lives.
• Faith sees those moments, not as an end BUT as the front end of a miracle.
• Faith sees risk through the eyes of God's power and Spirit, which is limitless and all powerful.
• Faith chooses to believe rather than plunge into fear, worry, and doubt. 
• Faith wrestles with deep emotions of anguish, fear, doubt, frustration, and despair BUT is not overtaken by them. How? Not through self-inspiration, but through TRUST in God. Faith allows God to overcome through us.
• While fear worries, faith prays!
• Faith does not look to God to avoid suffering BUT to discover my joy in Christ goes deeper than suffering, lack, or hurt.
• Faith does not ask for comfort BUT learns that Jesus-followers have a peace that surpasses all discomfort in this lifetime.

Okay, not preaching, just explaining from personal experience. Maybe we've all been entered into the reality show of life called "Faith versus Fear".

What are your faith vs. fear stories?

You can save a baby's life!

The Hagerstown Area Pregnancy Center is an incredible organization that serves those in a crisis pregnancy, as well as their unborn child.

Several churches in our area have rallied support behind the Center to raise funds to help them become a full-care center open 5 days a week.

If you're collecting coins for the Hag.Pregnacy Center, fill your baby bottle and bring it into Lifehouse by the end of February! (Please return unfilled bottles as well.)

Thanks so much for turning your change into a BIG change!

Your Opportunity to be BAPTIZED!

Water Baptism is a significant step in the life of a Christ-follower, and if you or someone you know would like to participate in our upcoming ceremony, email our office and complete an Application for Water Baptism by February 17.  You can also read more about the meaning and significance of this ceremony by reading our baptism brochure.

The big event happens during the adult worship services at Leitersburg Cinema, so we hope everyone will participate in this special day!

Friend Day

No need to sign up for the "Lonely Hearts Club" this Valentine's Weekend!

February 13th is FRIEND DAY at Lifehouse Church East!

Surround yourself with good company, good food, and good music as we kick off a brand new series, "Love & Other 4 Letter Words." Watch the teaser video here.

Services begin at 9:00 AM & 10:30 AM, with free coffee & breakfast available before each service.  So, grab a friend, co-worker, or frienemy and we'll see you Valentine's weekend at Lifehouse Church East!

Exciting Stuff Happening at Lifehouse

Join us for Friend Day on 2/13! Invite your FRIENDS: http://www.lifehousechurcheast.org/feb-13-friend-day.


Kicking off new series: "Love & Other 4 Letter Words"

**Plus FREE showing of Fireproof at Leitersburg Cinemas from 2/11-14 for Valentine's Day: http://www.fireproofthemovie.com.





***The Grace Card MOVIE coming to Cinemas on 2/25-27, sponsored by Lifehouse & area churches: 



Tell everyone!

-Pastor Patrick
www.twitter.com/patrickgrach
www.barenakedfaith.blogspot.com

Lesson #8 from 2010: DON'T EAT!

I enjoy eating as much as anyone, especially meats and sweets. But there are seasons when we must learn to NOT eat. First, you can watch this guy to learn why you shouldn't eat "ghost peppers". But I'm not writing about avoiding foods that will light your intestines on fire, but about a critical principle in life and ministry.

DON'T EAT YOUR SEED.

If a farmer started with a single seed, what would he do? Cultivate the soil. Bury the seed. Water. Fertilize. Weed around the growing seed to protect it. At harvest, the seed might produce100 or 60 or 30 fold. Then what? Does he eat the entire harvest? If so, what will he plant in the spring?

A wise farmer knows to only eat what he must, so that he can sow even more seed in spring, and expect an even greater return the next harvest.

What's the point?

In ministry and life, we have a choice: enjoy the moment, eat our "seed" of financial resources and time OR only use what we must so that we can invest our finances and time into more fruitful ministry and the Cause of Christ.

Christ called us to be "good and faithful" AND to allow the grain of wheat to fall to the ground and die. When we follow the example of Christ, and willingly give up our life and agenda for Christ, our life (seed) produces a harvest- some 100, 60, or 30 fold.

Jesus promised, "If you are faithful with little, you will be entrusted with much. But to those who are not faithful with little, even what they have will be taken and given to those are already have much."

Are you eating away the little seed you have or are you investing it into what matters for eternity?