The Danger of Distractions

Revelation Chapter 3 presents 3 different local churches and how they deal with DISTRACTIONS:

The church in Philadelphia was encouraged for their obedience to God’s word and for NOT denying Him, even though they had little strength. They handled the distractions pretty well, so God opened a door for them that no one could shut.

The church in Sardis, however, didn’t respond well to distractions. They were living off a reputation that was no longer valid. They thought of themselves as being a LIVELY church, while in fact they were DEAD! So God demanded that they WAKE UP and Go back to what they had heard and believed at first; hold to it firmly and turn to Him again!

The church in Laodicea also gave into distractions. They were found to be lukewarm and warned of being spit out of God’s mouth! They thought they were in need of nothing, but God revealed to them that they wretched, miserable, poor, blind and naked. So God commanded them to turn from their indifference.

“The Danger of Distractions” is that they can cause you to focus on the things that do NOT matter and neglect the things that do! Distractions have a way of getting your priorities out of order!

Take the story of Achan for example: (Joshua 6:18-19/ NLT) says, "Do not take any of the things set apart for destruction, or you yourselves will be completely destroyed, and you will bring trouble on all Israel. 19 Everything made from silver, gold, bronze, or iron is sacred to the LORD and must be brought into his treasury."

(Joshua 7:1-5/ NLT) says, "But Israel was unfaithful concerning the things set apart for the LORD. A man named Achan had stolen some of these things, so the LORD was very angry with the Israelites…Joshua sent some of his men from Jericho to spy out the city of Ai, east of Bethel, near Beth-aven. 3 When they returned, they told Joshua, "It's a small town, and it won't take more than two or three thousand of us to destroy it. There's no need for all of us to go there."

4 So approximately three thousand warriors were sent, but they were soundly defeated. The men of Ai 5 chased the Israelites from the city gate as far as the quarries, and they killed about thirty-six who were retreating down the slope. The Israelites were paralyzed with fear at this turn of events, and their courage melted away…"

(Joshua 7:10-13/ NLT) says, "Israel has sinned and broken my covenant! They have stolen the things that I commanded to be set apart for me. And they have not only stolen them; they have also lied about it and hidden the things among their belongings. 12 That is why the Israelites are running from their enemies in defeat. For now Israel has been set apart for destruction. I will not remain with you any longer unless you destroy the things among you that were set apart for destruction.

13 "Get up! Command the people to purify themselves in preparation for tomorrow. For this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: Hidden among you, O Israel, are things set apart for the LORD. You will never defeat your enemies until you remove these things."

(Joshua 7:16, 19-25/ NLT) says, "Early the next morning Joshua brought the tribes of Israel before the LORD, and the tribe of Judah was singled out…19 Then Joshua said to Achan, "My son, give glory to the LORD, the God of Israel, by telling the truth. Make your confession and tell me what you have done. Don't hide it from me."

20 Achan replied, "I have sinned against the LORD, the God of Israel. 21 For I saw a beautiful robe imported from Babylon, two hundred silver coins, and a bar of gold weighing more than a pound. I wanted them so much that I took them. They are hidden in the ground beneath my tent, with the silver buried deeper than the rest."

22 So Joshua sent some men to make a search. They ran to the tent and found the stolen goods hidden there, just as Achan had said, with the silver buried beneath the rest. 23 They took the things from the tent and brought them to Joshua and all the Israelites. Then they laid them on the ground in the presence of the LORD.

24 Then Joshua and all the Israelites took Achan, the silver, the robe, the bar of gold, his sons, daughters, cattle, donkeys, sheep, tent, and everything he had, and they brought them to the valley of Achor. 25 Then Joshua said to Achan, "Why have you brought trouble on us? The LORD will now bring trouble on you." And all the Israelites stoned Achan and his family and burned their bodies."

This scripture gives credibility to the principle that how we respond to DISTRACTIONS can actually bring LIFE or DEATH to us corporately!

For Achan to merely hear about the distraction was one thing, but when he came face to face with the distraction, he gave into it which resulted in the death of 36 warriors, himself and his whole family! Don’t tell me that Distractions are NOT Dangerous!

This principle of “Corporate Worship” plays out in our local church every Sunday and Wednesday Night, which is why we can’t afford to have an “off” day. Lives are at stake. Eternities are at stake. If I don’t PRAY somebody could die! If I don’t offer God PRAISE somebody could die! If I don’t WORSHIP somebody could die!

(Matthew 15:8-9/ NIV) says, “These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. 9 They worship me in vain;”

The Danger of Distractions is that we get to a place where we honor God with our lips, we honor God with our dance, we honor God with our singing, we honor God with our shouting, but our hearts are far from him. Distractions DISCONNECT you from God, and DISCONNECTED WORSHIP is VAIN WORSHIP-it's EMPTY WORSHIP-it's WORSHIP with NO POWER!

DISRACTIONS are REAL! DISTRACTIONS are DANGEROUS! Therefore, EVERYTIME we come together to Worship God, we've got to PRAY like it's our last service-we've got to WORSHIP like it's our last service-we've got to RESPOND like it's our last service!

I No Longer Feel The Need To Pretend

I just started reading a new book today titled, "The Emotionally Healthy Church," written by Peter Scazzero. I've only read 2 chapters and it's phenomenal.

I had written this thought down on a piece of paper to blog a couple of months ago, but never really developed it until tonight. This book deals with a topic that I've blogged about before and preach regularly at Revival Center, and that's the need for us Christians to be REAL enough to admit we're NOT perfect! We desperately need to get past the "shout," "the look" and the "tongue talking" and develop a REAL, genuine, sincere relationship with Jesus Christ!

Peter Scazzero wrote, "According to some scholars, the four presidents prior to Abraham Lincoln were "compromise leaders," unwilling to confront the difficult issue of slavery between the North and the South. Then a mature leader with a solid sense of who he was, what he believed and valued-regardless of the consequences-took the White House. The strength and maturity of his character and convictions in many ways forced the nation to confront the reality of the abomination of slavery...

The starting point for change in any nation, church, or ministry has always been the leader: As goes the leaders, so goes the church.

But is is not enough for the leader to change. God wants to set others free as well..."

We will NEVER grow a healthy church if we ourselves do NOT address the issues beneath the surface of our lives! We must be honest about what is going on "INSIDE" of us and stop hiding behind our fake facades (the "OUTSIDE")!

This about it...when God went looking for Adam and Even in the Garden in Genesis 3, He wasn't interested in dealing with them on the level of who they should have been and what they should have done. NO, He was interested in dealing with where they were at the moment; who they were right then!

There was no need to pretend that they hadn't sinned because they had! They couldn't hide, let alone live behind the tree forever, either!

The Fall was evident and the need for fellowship was greater now than ever before, and the only way for God to restore Adam and Eve was for them to STOP PRETENDING!

So, I'll leave you with a few scriptures that reveal the simplicity of God's desire for you to stop pretending that you're perfect, especially since you're NOT:

(1 John 1:8-10/ NLT) - If we say we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and refusing to accept the truth. 9 But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from every wrong. 10 If we claim we have not sinned, we are calling God a liar and showing that his word has no place in our hearts.

(1 John 2:1-2/ NIV) - My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense-Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. 2 He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.

(Ephesians 2:8-9/ NIV) - For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith-and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God- 9 not by works, so that no one can boast.

I no longer feel the need to pretend that I'm Saved by my giftedness, talents, abilities, personality, charisma or WORKS! I'm SAVED by GRACE!

I no longer feel the need to pretend that I'm perfect, because the fact is: I am a SINNER in NEED of a SAVIOR!

I no longer feel the need to pretend...

Which Direction Are You Headed?

It's been a busy couple of weeks for me and our church. We had Easter on April 8th and set a NEW attendance record of 101! Then I had a friend come in town from Colorado for our 5 Year Anniversary services named Randell Williams. Randell preached for us on Wednesday night, April 11th, and brought the house down. He preached a message titled, "Dont Stop Now, Cause You Haven't Seen Nothing Yet!" Then we CELEBRATED our 5 Year Anniversary Saturday, April 14th and Sunday, April 15th with special guest, Wayne Francis. Needless to say between both preachers together, we were challenged as a church to be grateful for what God had done but not become comfortable and satisfied, because we hadn't seen anything compared to what God had in store for us!

Well, the Lord began to deal with me a couple of days later and I came across this scripture in Exodus 14:10-15 that said, "As Pharaoh and his army approached, the people of Israel could see them in the distance, marching toward them. The people began to panic, and they cried out to the LORD for help.

11 Then they turned against Moses and complained, "Why did you bring us out here to die in the wilderness? Weren't there enough graves for us in Egypt? Why did you make us leave? 12 Didn't we tell you to leave us alone while we were still in Egypt? Our Egyptian slavery was far better than dying out here in the wilderness!"

13 But Moses told the people, "Don't be afraid. Just stand where you are and watch the LORD rescue you. The Egyptians that you see today will never be seen again. 14 The LORD himself will fight for you. You won't have to lift a finger in your defense!"

15 Then the LORD said to Moses, "Why are you crying out to me? Tell the people to get moving!

So, there were three directions involved in this story. The children of Israel wanted to "go back." But going back meant, they would be going right back into the captivity, bondage and opression that God had delivered them out of. Then, Moses said, "stand still." But when you think about it, standing still wasn't the answer either because Pharoah's army was head right for them. So, again, they would have either been killed or worse yet, went back into captivity. But, God said, "move forward!" The ONLY answer for the children of Israel was to keep moving forward.

Now read (Philippians3:12-16) where it says, "I don't mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection! But I keep working toward that day when I will finally be all that Christ Jesus saved me for and wants me to be. 13 No, dear brothers and sisters, I am still not all I should be, but I am focusing all my energies on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, 14 I strain to reach the end of the race and receive the prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us up to heaven.

15 I hope all of you who are mature Christians will agree on these things. If you disagree on some point, I believe God will make it plain to you. 16 But we must be sure to obey the truth we have learned already."

There are some amazing truths found in this scripture. Let me point out a couple:

1) I'm NOT Perfect! I know that shocks some of you, but I'm NOT! However, I'm working on it and I'm looking forward to the day when I'm finally everything that God destined for me to be when He saved me. (verse 12)

2) I'm focusing all of my energies on one thing: forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead. I'm thankful for what God HAS done, but I'm even more excited about what God is GOING TO DO! I'm NOT only believing God CAN...I'm EXPECTING HE IS... (verse 13)

3) The ONLY way to win the race and get the prize, however, is to strain. IF I plan on winning this race it's going to take some work on my part. It's also going to take moving in the right direction. So, I've got to make sure I'm doing what I already know to do. (verse 14-16)

In other words, if I'm standing at the line on race day and the gun is fired but I run in the opposite direction (go back), I'm guaranteed to lose. If I'm standing at the line on race day and the gun is fired but I stand still, I'm guaranteed to lose. The ONLY WAY to WIN THE RACE is if I keep moving forward!

The ones who "go back" will NEVER receive the prize. The ones who "stand still" with NEVER receive the prize either. But the ones who keep "moving forward" will see the Red Sea split, the Jericho wall fall flat, and God fulfill His promises of power and provision!

So, which direction are you headed?

A Revival of Bones

(Ezekiel 37:1-10/ NLT) says, “The LORD took hold of me, and I was carried away by the Spirit of the LORD to a valley filled with bones. 2 He led me around among the old, dry bones that covered the valley floor. They were scattered everywhere across the ground. 3 Then he asked me, "Son of man, can these bones become living people again?"

"O Sovereign LORD," I replied, "you alone know the answer to that."

4 Then he said to me, "Speak to these bones and say, 'Dry bones, listen to the word of the LORD! 5 This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Look! I am going to breathe into you and make you live again! 6 I will put flesh and muscles on you and cover you with skin. I will put breath into you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the LORD.' "

7 So I spoke these words, just as he told me. Suddenly as I spoke, there was a rattling noise all across the valley. The bones of each body came together and attached themselves as they had been before. 8 Then as I watched, muscles and flesh formed over the bones. Then skin formed to cover their bodies, but they still had no breath in them.

9 Then he said to me, "Speak to the winds and say: 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Come, O breath, from the four winds! Breathe into these dead bodies so that they may live again.' "

10 So I spoke as he commanded me, and the wind entered the bodies, and they began to breathe. They all came to life and stood up on their feet — a great army of them.”

It's amazing the authority God gave Ezekiel by asking him whether he thought the bones could live again or not! God placed life or death in the hands of Ezekiel, and God has left that same decision in our hands today. As a result of our actions, we actually choose LIFE or DEATH! We're all modern day Ezekiels with the power to decide whether our bones will live. It's simple, unbelief and disobeying the Word of God brings eternal separation and DEATH; while faith in the Name and obedience to the Word of God brings LIFE!

The Lord has been dealing with me for the past month on what the differences are between a dead church and church that's full of life. I'll tell you this much, it's NOT their location. It's NOT their music style. It's NOT their preaching style. In fact, it has NOTHING to do with style. The difference is HUNGER! Hunger for the Word of God and the promises of which His word makes available!

There is a world of difference between an ENTERTAINED CHURCH and a HUNGRY CHURCH! People who only show up to be entertained are lifeless, complacent, and satisfied. But people who are hungry are DESPERATE! They’re desperate for His touch; they’re desperate for His presence! They’re hungry for His Word and ready to receive it! In a nutshell, desperate people do whatever it takes!

The solution to our "dead, dry bones" is found in (verses 4-10) where it says, "Speak to these bones and say, 'Dry bones, listen to the word of the LORD! 5 This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Look! I am going to breathe into you and make you live again!... I will put breath into you, and you will come to life...7 So I spoke these words, just as he told me. Suddenly as I spoke, there was a rattling noise all across the valley. The bones of each body came together and attached themselves as they had been before...Then he said to me, "Speak to the winds and say: 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Come, O breath, from the four winds! Breathe into these dead bodies so that they may live again.' "...They all came to life and stood up on their feet — a great army of them.”

What we need right now is a Revival of Bones! The Spirit can't move until the bones are REVIVED and that happens when we get HUNGRY and DESPERATE for GOD!

We NEED a REVIVAL in our Pastors!
We NEED a REVIVAL in our Leadership!
We NEED a REVIVAL in our Music Programs!
We NEED a REVIVAL in our Sunday School Programs!
We NEED a REVIVAL in our Children!
We NEED a REVIVAL in our Youth!
We NEED a REVIVAL in our Adults!
We NEED a REVIVAL in our Elders!
We NEED a REVIVAL in our Churches!

We NEED a REVIVAL of HUNGER and DESPERATION for God! We NEED a Revival of Bones!

(2 Chronicles 7:14-16/ NLT) says, “Then if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and heal their land. 15 I will listen to every prayer made in this place, 16 for I have chosen this Temple and set it apart to be my home forever. My eyes and my heart will always be here.”

God, forgive us of our CARNALITY! Forgive us of our COMPLACENCY and LAZINESS! Forgive us for being SATISFIED with where we are! Forgive us for being so consumed with "entertainment" that we've failed in our pursuit of HUNGER to just be in your presence. May there be a rattling of bones which REVIVE us and allow your Spirit to breathe LIFE into us so we can LIVE again!