SPORTS DAY CANCELLED
Sorry for the inconvenience but Sports Day has been cancelled due to poor weather conditions. So if you show up tomorrow and we are not there, you know why.
Have a Blessed Day!
Jeremiah 1
The call of the Prophet
In the first chapter of Jeremiah we are introduced to the prophet. But before he was a prophet he was a priest. During the reign of Josiah(a good king) the Lord came to Jeremiah and called him to be a prophet to the nation of Judah. Jeremiah was a young man at the time and his first response was, “I don’t know how to speak, I am only a youth.”
Has God ever called you to something you felt like you were not capable of doing? Have you ever told God that maybe He picked the wrong person for the job? Maybe you felt God telling you to share your faith with your friends at school but you felt like you couldn’t. You did not know what to say, you weren’t sure if they would listen, what if they ask a question you don’t have the answer to? All these things can keep us from doing the work of God. But God does not call us to something He will not give the ability to accomplish.
Look at what God’s response to Jeremiah was in 1:7-10. God specifically told Jeremiah that He would give the words to him. God would give Jeremiah the ability that he lacked so that he could accomplish what the Lord told him to do. Do you really think that when God calls you to share the Gospel with someone and leave you hanging? He will help you and He enable you. This does not mean that you should go around and get into arguments about Christianity with everyone you see, wait for the Holy Spirit to guide you.
Does God view youth the same way that we do? I don’t think so. Where we see immaturity and lack of experience I think God see’s potential and a way to bring glory and honor to himself. What is more God glorifying than a young person living a life sold out for God and giving the honor to God? 1 Timothy 4:12 says “Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity.” So next time you feel like you are too young or people will look down on you because of your age, set an example for them to the glory of God.
Isaiah 66
Isaiah 66:2b “But this is the one to whom I will look: he who is humble and contrite in spirit and trembles at my word.”
Do you want to really worship God? Do you want to bless and honor God with your life? How can we do that? How can we worship God in a way that guarantees that we are truly worshipping and honoring God? This verse is the key to authentic worship. I don’t mean just singing worship songs either. I am talking about a lifestyle of worship that brings honor and glory to God in everything it does. Let’s look at 3 steps to a God honoring life.
Being Humble
What is the first thing the verse above says about the one that God looks at? “he who is humble.” The first step to a God honoring life is realizing that you can do nothing for God. That’s right, nothing. Going to church will not honor God, reading your Bible will not honor God, and praying will not honor God if it is done with the attitude of “look at what I have done for you God!” A humble person understands that he can do nothing to earn anything from God. Humility is the first step to living a God honoring life.
Having Remorse
The next step toward a life that honors God is a contrite spirit. Look at the verse above again. “contrite in spirit.” What does that mean? It means that you have remorse and that you feel bad about sins you have committed. It’s about knowing that you deserve death for even the smallest sin you have committed. Without remorse we will continue in our sin. Ask the Lord to give you His heart toward sin. It is evil and disgusting. Be broken over your sin and that will help you toward the last step of living a God honoring life.
Obeying His Word
The final step to living a God honoring life is found in the last part of Isaiah 66:2b “trembles at my word.” How do you view the Bible? Hebrews 4:12 says “For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” Is that how you view the Bible? 2 Timothy 3:16 says “All Scripture is God-breathed.” That means that every word in the Bible was inspired by God. It is one thing to read the Bible or even study the Bible, but do you obey it? Jesus said that those who love me keep My(Jesus’) commandments. His word instructs us and guides us and we need to do what it says.
With humility we come to God because of what He has done for us(not the other way around), our remorse points us to our Savior(Jesus), and our Savior calls us to obedience. That is the life that honors God.