What is Your Why?

So many times we do things with actually no purpose, or it is so clouded and blurry, we can't even make it out.  Clarity is an amazing thing when doing ministry and it must be the thing that shows us the way in our Christian walk.  Through the years I have seen a lot of things change that should have stayed the same, and many things stay the same that should have changed.  All of this comes down to the why of our purpose.  Why sing this song?  Because one person said they like it.  Why start this group?  Because one person said we needed to.  Why build this building?  Because we wanted to dedicate it to a someone.  There are so many different reasons we do things that might not pass the God inspired test, and of those things, many of them get in the way of doing the right thing.  The prayed for, God inspired action, that takes so much patience and tossing and turning.  It's easier to weigh things on the scales of human wants instead of following God's why!  God's why means we have to speak to Him and then listen to Him and that is so scetchy for some who don 't really have that kind of relationship with the Father.  That seems too mystical for them, so they decide to use human judgment and rationalize with human wisdom.  Why?  It's easier and more within reach.  Plus it doesn't stretch us so much.

Just like Sunday school in Baptist life.  Do we ditch it or call it something else, or just keep it and struggle along.  Churches are doing away with Sunday school faster than church choirs nowadays and we use the lack of participation of those in those classes as a reason to do something different or do nothing at all.   In the 70's Baptist churches were glad to have 50% of enrolled in Sunday school actually attending regularly.  In the 80's we refired "visitation" up again and that salvaged Sunday school for the next decade.  In the 90's everyone kind of said "who cares?"  And that brings us to today.  So many churches are still doing Sunday school, but in homes and not necessarily on Sunday.   Some are doing it at the church and trudge on.   Some have totally gone away from it.  I want to address these three and hopefully we can get a little clarity out of the Why Sunday school?

First off, those who have ditched it completely are missing the point of what Sunday school is all about, and probably still have it but they don't call it that.  Sunday school originated out of a need in church life to get people into small groups so they could discuss the Bible and build closer relationships with other Christians.  When a Sunday school class fulfills the why, it will be a growing, thriving, group of growing Christians that strengthen the foundation of the local church and provide energy to reach out to their community.  Any Bible Study group that meets with intent of having less than 20 people in it is a Sunday school class.  Years ago Pastor's saw the strength of those classes and formed Pastor's Classes so they could interact with God's People in that way.  Those classes usually met in the sanctuary of a church and really became everything but a Sunday school class, because  they didn't meet the why of Sunday school.  Just so you know.  Classes like those probably weakened the intent of Sunday school over the years and contributed to the demise of the Sunday school organization.  Why?  Sunday school was intended to remain a smaller discussion group than a non-discussion worship service.  Many of these flawed models led to churches just "giving up" on the Sunday school ministry.  It lost it's purpose and thus lost it's value to churches that are striving to be current.  Bad Move!!!

Secondly, I want to speak to the churches that do Sunday school off campus and not at the same time.  I actually have no problem with that approach as long as those doing it are completely trustworthy in their love for building up the local church they are serving.   Today's church needs a bunch of little churches meeting away from it like a hole in the head.  Those who do this "at home" approach must know and adhere to the purpose of the church they are attached to and know why they are having these groups and what their purpose is.  Their why has to be very strong and very resolved.  Small groups for Bible Discussion has to continue to be the mantra of those classes and a heavy accountability model has to be in place to continue to make sure they are functioning properly.   In the Christian life accountability is sorely needed and small groups off campus must be very aware of that need and follow the churches guidelines for that accountability.  Other factors, like insurance needs, food and drink needs, and good room space is something that also must be addressed when going to that approach.  In reality, that too becomes old hand, so the cool thing wears off quickly and we are back to square one.

Lastly, I must address the churches that keep their Sunday school in the schedule and in the church building.  This might be called the traditional way to do Sunday school and some boomers might freak at the mention of that word.  Settle down and listen up.  We must go back to the purpose of Sunday school.  Remember, small groups with Bible DISCUSSION!!  Some larger churches are still knocking it out of the park with Sunday school in this format and some are just barely hanging on and giving away prizes to  keep people attending.  The development of relationships in the Sunday school class is the only thing that will keep Sunday school intact!!!  We live in a society where people would rather type their words to others, than talk to them one on one.  We are a fearful, intimidated group of Americans and the only strength we have is when we don't have to look into the face of someone we don't agree with.  We call that strength.  We have allowed ourselves to become third person in almost everything we do and that has bled over to the Bible Study discussion group and how we minister in that group.  If we would reclaim what Jesus was like by looking a person in the eye, getting involved in their stuff, and allowing ourselves to be real to them, our Sunday school classes would be full and overflowing.  We would have to beat people off with a stick!! (not literally)   So you can see why Sunday school is not growing anymore.  We have lost the caring heart of Jesus that is in each of us through the Holy Spirit.  We have found a way to minimize the Holy Spiri in our life and thus keep guilt from motivating us anymore.  We have become detached and so has everyone around us.  Detached from God and detached from others.  This radical lack of fellowship can be turned around with a simple magical wand called friendship.  That wand when activated will take our spotlight off of ourselves and put it on others and they will want to be around us because we CARE!!

Sunday school will grow as never before when we once again recapture the ability to care.  Care about a person's week.  Care whether a person is in class or not.  Care about a person's family needs.  Care. When we care for someone, we are caring for Jesus.  Jesus sais, "if you have done this to the least of these, you have done it to me."

Here's the question.  Do you love Jesus?  Do you care about Jesus?  Do you know your life purpose for Jesus?  If you said no to any of those, you got problems!!  Come back to CARING and marvel at the impact it has on those around  you.  If you are a person who believes in the Sunday school ministry, then allow it to come to life by CARING!!  You don't even have to have a group at your house.  Just meet them at the church house.  What is your why?  My why is.....because God's word says to do it.  Nothing more, nothing less.

The Pilgrimage continues......

David Warren

Awakened Worship Lifestyles

John 4:24 God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth."

God’s Word is always a major clarifying thing when we make plans for living our life in worship. For our life to be one that is an awakened worship lifestyle we must be willing to allow Him to show us the way through His Word.  In His Word He really raises the bar.  

God wants His children first of all to

1.    Worship Him -  Jesus said in Luke 4:8 Jesus answered, "It is written: 'Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.' "  In this scripture worship and service are synonymous.  That is how our lives as Christians have to be lived to follow Christ and live the life that He wants us to live.  No in betweens, worship….serve.

2.    Honor Him – God spoke through the prophet Malachi in Malachi 2:2 If you do not listen, and if you do not set your heart to honor my name," says the LORD Almighty, "I will send a curse upon you, and I will curse your blessings. Yes, I have already cursed them, because you have not set your heart to honor me. “ God wants us to honor him in all things, or He will send a curse on us.  That’s what the Word says, so my conclusion would be “honor God.”  That’s a no brainer for believers, but something we must remember.

3.     Love Him -   In Mark 12:30 Jesus says to “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.'  Every part of our life is meant to love God.  When we do that He becomes very strong in our words and our actions and the natural result of that is a true life of worship.

Worship that is acceptable to God is worship that is spirit-led and full of truth.  The truths are listed above and if we live our life accordingly, our worship will be full and meaningful.  That kind of worship impacts our lives and changes our perspective on everything.  So we

must worship not just in the church building, but throughout our everyday lives.  The end result will be something like what the Psalmist wrote in Psalm 1:3 He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers. 

I am prayng for a new season of worship that is God centered and Spirit inspired.

A.W. Tozer wrote this What is worship? Worship is to feel in your heart and express in some appropriate manner a humbling but delightful sense of admiring awe and astonished wonder and overpowering love in the presence of that most ancient Mystery, that Majesty which philosophers call the First Cause, but which we call Our Father Which Are in Heaven.

I like what Tozer says and I pray for that for my life.  Join with me in praying that same prayer as we long for God’s Spirit to move in a great awakening!!

The Pilgrimage continues....

David Warren

The Bragging Rock

This is a story about a king who lived on a mountain and His great love for the people below in the village.  They were always complaining about their low estate and weakness and wanted something to help them feel good about themselves.  So the King made a rock and placed it in the middle of their village and He called it The Bragging Rock.  Every time one of the villagers had done something wrong, they could come to this rock and touch it and they would feel great freedom from the penalty of their wrongdoings.  Also, those who wanted a great talent would come and touch the rock and they would have that talent and they would get better and better.  Those who could sing would sing better every time they sang and those who could preach would preach better every time they preached, and those who could play a musical instrument would play better every time they played if they touched the rock.  The only stipulation the King set on using the rock was that the villagers always bragged on the rock itself and proclaim they couldn't do anything without the rock. News of this great bragging rock spread far and wide and people came from all over to touch the rock and of course, they were able to do greater things than they could ever do from their own abilities.  Soon people were wanting to see how they could do things and not brag on the rock, but look like they had those talents already.  So they brought chisels and started knocking off pieces of the rock and taking it with them wherever they traveled and they soon forgot The Bragging Rock in the village and they were able to do things rather welll without needing The Bragging Rock because they had a piece with them and that was enough to make them feel good about themselves.  In fact, people would come up to them after they sang and say, "Wow, you are good!  Where did you get such talent?"  And they would say, "Oh I've always been able to sing and I love to do it."  Never once did they mention the source of their talent, The Bragging Rock."  Back at the village so many people had chiseled away pieces from The Bragging Rock that it made it now a small rock and they took it out of the middle of the village and put in a shed located out back of the village.  Since people couldn't see the Bragging Rock anymore, they soon forgot about it and life went on.  Those who had small pieces of the rock continued to pass down their "talents" to their children and their children's children, but there wasn't as much power in the talent.  They started wondering why the power of the chipped rock pieces wasn't enough, so they started bragging on themselves hoping to see more power come out of their bragging, but it didn't help.  After a while they became disillusioned with their rock pieces and threw them away.  They continued to brag on themselves and on others to make them feel like the power from the bragging rock was still with them, but it wasn't.  The power source of their talents became themselves and others who bragged about them.  The pure power of The Bragging Rock was gone and they didn't know it could be any different, so they lived powerless lives puffing up each others egoes.   One day the King came down from the mountain and told them if they would bring all the bragging rock pieces back to the village, he would make everything like it should be.  So word spread out far and wide about the King's proposal and one by one they found their rock pieces and  brought them to the village square.  When they got to the village they saw the King standing in the very place where he put the bragging rock and he was holding the remmant of the original rock in His hands.  He told the people.  "Bow down and repent!!"  They fell to their knees and lifted up their rock pieces and those pieces were lifted out of their hands and connected to the central rock in the Kings hands.  He put it all back together again and The Bragging Rock was whole in the Kings hands.  Once again power and light emanated from the rock the King had formed to empower the people, and once again, all who touched it and bragged on it received the power of forgiveness and the power to do great things in their lives.  The lesson the people learned changed their village, their province, and their world, and all knew that  the only bragging that would be done in the kingdom would be done about The Bragging Rock.  The King went back up the mountain and watched carefully to make sure that The Bragging Rock was never chipped away again for the people's own gain, and the people once again remembered where their power and talent came from.  The Bragging Rock.

1 Peter 2:4 Welcome to the living Stone, the source of life. The workmen took one look and threw it out; God set it in the place of honor. 5 Present yourselves as building stones for the construction of a sanctuary vibrant with life, in which you'll serve as holy priests offering Christ-approved lives up to God. 6 The Scriptures provide precedent: Look! I'm setting a stone in Zion, a cornerstone in the place of honor. Whoever trusts in this stone as a foundation will never have cause to regret it. 7 To you who trust him, he's a Stone to be proud of, but to those who refuse to trust him, The stone the workmen threw out is now the chief foundation stone. 8 For the untrusting it's . . . a stone to trip over, a boulder blocking the way. They trip and fall because they refuse to obey, just as predicted. 9 But you are the ones chosen by God, chosen for the high calling of priestly work, chosen to be a holy people, God's instruments to do his work and speak out for him, to tell others of the night-and-day difference he made for you - 10 from nothing to something, from rejected to accepted. 

Jesus is the cornerstone, He is our bragging stone.  If we will continue to be connected to Him and His touch we will do great things. But, if we try to do things on our own He we will be the stone that trips us up and we will live powerless lives where we brag on ourselves and leave God out of our lives.  The powerless church of today is not connected to the Bragging Stone, Jesus.  The church of today is full of conceited, self gratifying, selfish people who only brag on themselves and their family and friends.  They have chipped away at the power source and tried to live without God.  Their worship is heartless, powerless, and fruitless.  We must bring our weak, lifeless lives back to God and beg Him to put us back together again.  We  must bring our chipped off pieces back to our Maker and live lives that brag on Jesus, The Bragging Stone.  He is not just a stone.  He is the cornerstone!!  When we do that we will see God's power as of old and a great awakening will occur.  We must touch The Bragging Stone!!!

The Pilgrimage continues.....

David Warren

Loyalty-The Land Mines

Loyalty (def) - As strong feeling of support or allegiance.

There are definite land mines in life and some of those land mines cannot be avoided and some can.  One of the land mines that I step on all the time is in the area of loyalty.  I tend to trust what a person says when they say it and then all that goes out the window when they go back on what they said.  Of course, they will say, "did you think that was supposed to last forever?"  To which I reply, "It didn't even last a year!"  Loyalty in life is something you don't see much of and is something when you see real loyalty causes you to trust again.  Years ago I had such a chance to be loyal to a pastor I was serving with and, even at my own cost, decided to be loyal.  It worked out great for him, but not for me.  Does that make me a great guy?  Probably not, but at the time it was done with a pure motive and a great deal of respect for the person I was standing by.  When given the chance to do the same thing for me, he didn't return the loyalty and my life was heavily impacted by it.  Sooooo, loyalty is very important when working as a team.  Not being a pastor has given me many opportunities to be loyal, even to a fault.  I have been loyal in most of those circumstances and it has cost me.  Of the ones I was less than loyal, it cost the person I wasn't loyal to.  When is it good to be loyal?  When you know a lack of loyalty could hurt the person you are serving with and that their life or ministry could be compromised.  Years ago I remember my dad coming home one day and telling my mom about one of his closest friends stabbing him in the back.  He was devastated, and so were we.  It totally changed our impression of that man and to this day I remember the hurt he caused in my dad's life.  My dad was loyal to him though and that man benefited from my dad's loyalty.  Here is the kicker.  My dad wasn't a Christian and this other man was...  What's up with that?  Just because we put the name of Christ next to ours, it does't mean we will always be loyal.  But, it should!!  Of all people, we as Christians, disciples, should be the most loyal people you will ever meet.  The ability to be loyal comes out of the awesome changes God makes to the life of a believer.  He takes a fallen person and puts on a new character in them and one of those attributes is loyalty.  The very foundation of the loyalty of our military comes from God's Word and should also be seen in God's people.  As leaders we are at our weakest when we don't believe others Christians are behind us and supporting us.  We are at our strongest when believers lift us up in prayer and think the best about us. When those of the houshold of faith are loyal to us as leaders we soar as never before and serve with an unbridled heart.  Listen to what the writer of Hebrews said about following your leaders in Chapter 13: 17 Obey your leaders and submit to their authority. They keep watch over you as men who must give an account. Obey them so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no advantage to you.  This isn't only for following leaders but for loyalty to all we call friends.  The ministry God has called me to is forever hindered when God's people are not loyal to the Lord and loyal to me.  Uh oh!  See the parallel?  Most will never live out their loyalty to others without first being loyal to Christ.  Not gonna happen.  It is my desire to be loyal to the calling of God on my life and those who honor that calling will in turn be loyal to me as they undergird my life with prayer and exhortations.

I guess you can say "it's part of the code!"

A young man in the army confided to his padre that he never went about with another girl if he was within fifty miles of home, his loyalty went fifty miles. How far does your loyalty to Jesus Christ go?

How far does your loyalty go?  I have a few friends who are no where near me right now, but they are the most loyal people I know.  I rely on their loyalty and try to live up to that loyalty.  It spurs me on to greatness.  Sadly though, I have other people who call me friend who are the most disloyal people I know.  I don't even give them much thought on a daily basis.  I don't have anything against them.  I just don't have anything for them.  The true story below speaks to what loyalty is all about.

One of the all-time greats in baseball was Babe Ruth. His bat had the power of a cannon, and his record of 714 home runs remained unbroken until Hank Aaron came along. The Babe was the idol of sports fans, but in time age took its toll, and his popularity began to wane. Finally the Yankees traded him to the Braves. In one of his last games in Cincinnati, Babe Ruth began to falter. He struck out and made several misplays that allowed the Reds to score five runs in one inning. As the Babe walked toward the dugout, chin down and dejected, there rose from the stands an enormous storm of boos and catcalls. Some fans actually shook their fists. Then a wonderful thing happened. A little boy jumped over the railing, and with tears streaming down his cheeks he ran out to the great athlete. Unashamedly, he flung his arms around the Babe's legs and held on tightly. Babe Ruth scooped him up, hugged him, and set him down again. Patting him gently on the head, he took his hand and the two of them walked off the field together.

When our Savior went to the cross, in the midst of booing and people jeering as he walked up Calvary, Jesus carried His own cross and showed His loyalty to God and to us as he fulfilled his great calling to free us from the penalty of sin.  His loyalty drives my loyalty and keeps me going no matter what humans may do.  I have given my life to be more loyal to Him and fulfill what He has called me to do no matter what may come my way.  Praise God for the loyalty of Jesus.  Oh if we would be half that loyal, the Christian faith would soar like an eagle and lives would be eternally impacted.  Be that loyal person, no matter if others are never that way to you.

Galatians 6:10 Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.

There are land mines in life and loyalty helps all of us navigate in such a way as to miss those land mines and it begins in the thing called loyalty.  Go ahead, shock someone.  Be loyal!!

The Pilgrimage continues....

David Warren

Overwhelming

Our granddaughter was just born and she is beautiful!!  So proud of Lindsey, our daughter in law, Seth, our son, and of course, Charlie Mae.  She has come into this world to live with two loving parents, many loving uncles and aunts, adoring grandparents, and a wonderful loving Lord.  The tremendous feeling of life and it's blessing is overwhelming for all of us, whether here or on facetime and skype.  Tears have been shed and will continue to be shed as we look into a face that God has shaped and formed in His image and our lives will never be the same because of the blessing named Charleston Mae Warren.  Mother and daughter are both well and praise God for that blessing.  My little boy Seth is now a dad and his life will never be the same.  I know and speak from experience.  To be a father or a mother is what I feel like is the closest we will ever get to experience how God must feel about us, His children.  The precious honor of seeing this child grow up will cause all involved to realize just how awesome our God is and how overwhelmed we are in the presence of His Greatness.  Greatness is seen in the smallest of things.  Small but formed by a loving God who continues to overwhelm us with His goodness.  God takes undeserving people like me and blesses us with the birth of a precious child.  

A little boy asked his mother where he came from, and also where she had come from as a baby. His mother gave him a tall tale about a beautiful white-feathered bird. The boy asked his grandmother the same question and received a variation on the bird story. Outside to his playmate he said, "You know, there hasn't been a normal birth in our family for three generations."

Praise God we had a very normal birth and we didn't have a bird, but a beautiful child that was prayed for by all our family.  Those prayers will continue to be voiced for her as she grows up and blossoms into a young lady we know will serve God with all her heart.  God is faithful and we are relying on His faithfulness for Charlie Mae.   We are overwhelmed by her beautiful birth and know she is going to live in the greatness of God's Grace.  Praise God and Thank you Lord for caring for her in the womb and now in the world we live in.Charleston Mae 7 lbs 13 oz and 21 1/2 inches long.

The Pilgrimage continues...

David Warren

Much Bigger Than Me - Out of Focus Thinking

We Disciples tend to get really enamored with ourselves from time to time.  Something happens that we know God did and all of a sudden we think we are so big and mighty.  If that happens too much we forget where all of our power and our strength come from and then life gets out of perspective or focus.  What we should clearly see as God, becomes some God and some us, when it is all about God....nuff said!!  The psalmist writes in 121:1 "I lift my eyes to the hills--where does my help come from?"  In other words, my help comes from the Lord!!  It doesn't come from me or any other human source.  What is the end result of all this type of thinking?  Nothing less than pure praise and adoration to the one sustainer, Our Lord God!!

Think about the birth of Jesus and the significance of Mary.  She is thought to be like God in some faiths, but we know that she was the bearer of the Son of God.  When Jesus was born her significance was paled by the wonder of the Son of God.  She was very important and used by God, but the one who was born took everything to a new level.  That seed blossomed into full bloom through the ministry of three years, the death on the cross, and the resurrection after three days in the grave.  Jesus' time in Mary's womb led to a birth.  Jesus time in the grave led to a new birth for each of us.  In the end, it was all about God, and His great plan, and His great power.  Those completed prophetic events still power us today.  When you accept Jesus as Savior and Lord, that rebirth begins a process in each of us that enables us to be more than conquerors, through the power of God, not ourselves!!  Paul wrote to the church in Rome in Chapter 8:37 "In all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us."  Our rebirth in Jesus is the beginning of awesome God power being seen in and through us in an incredible way.  That power gives hope to our hopelessness strength to our weakness, light in our darkness, and vision to our blindness.  It's takes an out of focus life and gives it clarity.  Without the power of God, everything in life is still blurry.  Jesus gave examples of our vision being out of focus in Matthew 7:5  "take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye."  In this example we once again try to be God by judging, as though we have been given the right to judge.  End result- blurry vision and an out of focus life.  Bumping through our life without the sight to see things as God sees them puts us at a disadvantage when trying to react to the many things we deal with on a daily basis.  This out of focus position stunts our growth as a believer and puts a tendency in our thinking that just won't work.  It puts a tendency to trust our own strength more than we trust God's strength.  That unclear thinking results in unclear living and causes us to rely on ourselves.  Bad move!!  Self reliance is caused from a lack of God reliance and that is a troubled soul.  Paul wrote to the church in Philippi these great words  Philippians 4:9  "Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me-- put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you."  What was Paul telling or living in front of them?  Trust God....Trust God, and then Trust God.  Paul was a great example of a focused life.  A life of clarity and power that was given to Him by God.  He was at peace because he knew his strength comes from the Lord.  Real peace.  What he was doing was much bigger than him, it was God sized.

The sooner we realize and put our total reliance on God the sooner our lives will have the clarity Jesus wants for us all.

So before you run out and try to do something on your own strength, stop, pray, and trust God to show you what to do and then do it.  His strength is sufficient for all things.

A weakness of all human beings, " Henry Ford said, "is trying to do too many things at once. That scatters effort and destroys direction. It makes for haste, and haste makes waste. So we do things all the wrong ways possible before we come to the right one. Then we think it is the best way because it works, and it was the only way left that we could see. Every now and then I wake up in the morning headed toward that finality, with a dozen things I want to do. I know I can't do them all at once." When asked what he did about that, Ford replied, "I go out and trot around the house. While I'm running off the excess energy that wants to do too much, my mind clears and I see what can be done and should be done first."

Let God clear your mind by realizing that He is the one in control and all of this "following Jesus" stuff is way beyond us, because it is all about Him.

The writers of Hebrews put it all in perspective for each of by saying Hebrews 12:1-5  1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. 2 Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. 4 In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. 

Step back from thinking all of this is about you and you will see that you have been  blocking the view for others to see the real source of all we say and do and His name is Jesus.  It's all about Him..

The Pilgrimage continues..

David Warren

God's Favorite - His Diary for My Life

Charles Francis Adams, 19th century political figure and diplomat, kept a diary. One day he entered: "Went fishing with my son today--a day wasted." His son, Brook Adams, also kept a diary, which is still in existence. On that same day, Brook Adams made this entry: "Went fishing with my father--the most wonderful day of my life!" The father thought he was wasting his time while fishing with his son, but his son saw it as an investment of time. The only way to tell the difference between wasting and investing is to know one's ultimate purpose in life and to judge accordingly. 

What does it mean to be God's Favorite?   It means that the God of the Universe, who set the stars in the sky, who sees all and knows all, loves us individually in a very speial way.  The Pslamist realized this when he penned these words.  Psalm 139:14 - "I praise you because I am fearfully and

wonderfully made;  your works are wonderful, I know that full well."  

Some believers have a hard time praising God because they feel like they are just another "sinner saved by grace" and even that statement makes them just another fish in the sea of many fish.  NOT SO!!  Each of us are precious to God.  Each soul has been carefully crafted for His purpose and has special value.  Sometimes we want to show a false humility about how we are nothing and like the lowest worm.  In reality, we are special to God.  So special that He gave His son Jesus to die for the penalty of our sins.  God has done everything needed to take the barriers away from us living a significant life for His glory.  When He is in our life we start to see a new purpose ignited that takes who we are to a whole new level of living.  God makes those changes at our core.  I suppose that's why the Psalmist says in His Word, "Psalm 139:13 "For you created my inmost being, you knit me together in my mother's womb."  As humans we like the ability to categorize other human beings.  It makes us feel powerful and totally takes the humility thing out of our lives.  In reality, all are precious to God and especially those who are of the household of faith (disciples).  Paul wrote specifically about how kind we are to be to others, and especially those who are believers.  Galatians 6:10 - Therefore, asa we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.  When we look at others with God's perspective it helps us see them in a better light.  I look at you, I see God in you, I honor the Lord in you by loving you.  We make strong comments like, "what the world needs now is more love", but are totally unwilling to allow God to make that lifestyle change in us. Why? Selfishness.  For Christians we like to do the "humble selfishness" thing.  You  know where I can get my way, but not look like I am trying to get my way, so that makes it all right....  Not gonna work.  In the purity of the faith we see that God doesn't like playing games with the truth.  He allows no extra water to be added to that truth.  So, even if I don't  like you or respect you, I must love you?  You must be kidding?  Nope! You have been crafted together with the hands of God almighty and He has a great purpose for your life.  I am not big enough to get in the way of God's purpose, so I honor His Creation, even if I don't understand that creation.

It is a point of spiritual maturity when we learn to take what God has made and allow it to bloom without trying to stop it.  Why?  Because when we try to interject our opinion in on God's Plan, we are now against God's Favorite.  Don't do it to others, and I pray it isn't done to me.  It's never a waste of time to make the effort to take time and put  yourself in the shoes of someone else and be there for them.  We are probably more like the heart of God when we make that effort.  But making that effort changes the way we look at God and all of God's Children.  Then we will be like the Psalmist and say that each of us are unique, and made with a special God purpose for our life.  But.....To start that process, Jesus must be in your life.  Please accept Him as Savior and Lord today and get to know the God who made you and He will show you your purpose in life.  He's God and He has great plans for His creation!!!  You are His favorite....God did not waste time in making you and I believe you will not feel like your time is wasted when spending it with Him, your Daddy.  Your name is in His diary and it is written in red....

The Pilgrimage continues....

David Warren