Love Acting - I Peter 1:22

When I worked at a Community College there was a lot of effort that went into public relations, from the coaches. Each week the "Booster Association" met for a PR dinner for different coaches to tell news from their sport from the previous week. Most of the news depended on a sport being in season. Since these Association members and any guests help support the Athletic Department, there tended to be a lot of schmoozing that went on, from the coach to the member.

The schmoozing didn't stop at these luncheons. Sometimes, a member of the Association, or public, would stop by the office of a coach, unannounced, to visit with them. I remember visiting with an assistant coach about such an occasion. He basically said that, as a coach, he would visit with them to keep their interest, but he had more important things to care about than them. So, he told him things to "make them happy." He was putting on a show...acting, if you will. Are there times we fall victim of that with our brethren?

Christians are part of a group of people who have the privilege of being able to go to heaven. However, there are times which we may show some imperfections. Sometimes we may be offended/bothered by someone. Sometimes we forget that we are encouragers to one another. When we show those imperfections, whether it is having to "schmooze" through a conversation, choosing not to speak to someone because they've offended you, or some other reason, we are falling victim of being a "love actor". Here are some applications to choose from to help not be a "love actor"...

1. If you've been offended, pray that any offense will not prevent you from holding any part of a grudge against that person or group of people.
2. Approach the person from which has offended/bothered you. Not talking about them to others.
   
3. Remember that part of your Christian responsibility is to encourage others...so being with your brethren on any particular gathering is not about what you will get out of it, but to be there for your brethren.
4. Pray that people will accept you, strengths and weaknesses, and you will accept the others in the "family" the same way.
5. Offer forgiveness when you've been wronged and pray that it will not be a wedge in your relationship with that person, in the future.
6. Pray for God to use you in unimaginable ways to make the church family a closer group of people.

****PLEASE GO TO RIGHT HAND COLUMN AND COMPLETE THE SURVEY REGARDING BEING A "LOVE ACTOR"...IT IS COMPLETELY ANONYMOUS****

Peter told his recipients, that since they have purified themselves, they should be sincerely loving each other. We, also, should be accepting this challenge!

Have a great week!!!!

Continually working on this...

Monday Mentionings: Got Debt, Don't Fret - Nehemiah 5:1-6

Christ's church is just awesome! Paul describing it as a body that has "many parts" all doing different things is just an ever-chewing idea. I am fascinated by what can be accomplished through people working together. I left our Vision Team meeting with a recoiled spring in my step. This was able to bounce me into Sunday morning where it was enjoyable to attend the "family reunion". Not forgetting, capping my evening off with a great Love and Respect group. Weekends like this make me so look forward to starting "all over" on Monday! I hope you have had similar experiences this weekend!!!

Nehemiah is a mind-blowing book. Maybe I look at it from the perspective of a leader. He had responsibilities and he tried to be constantly stirring. That is tough to do, but I enjoy the challenge! The Jews were coming back from exile and they had very little. They had been working just to pay off taxes/debt. They needed some relief and Nehemiah was the one to go to bat for them. Here are some other applications from yesterday...

1. How big is your debt? You might think of tangible (monetary) debt first; how about spiritual debt? Thanks to Jesus, our spiritual debt is at zero because he paid the price! Say a praise prayer to Jesus for paying the price for the debt you owed when sin came into your life.

2. When was the last time you were forgiven of something? How did it feel? Genuine forgiveness allows us to not have the mental unrest that debt puts on us. Does someone owe you something? Something like money, an apology, etc.? Think of a way you could alleviate some of that debt that is owed to you. God alleviated it by giving us a Savior. What can you do? If you don't have this in your life right now - keep it mind for when you do.

3. Pray that God sends you someone that you can be a "slave rescuer" to. Someone you can help pull out of the debt of sin. Also, pray that you have the wisdom to know when that "someone" comes into your life and that you will be bold enough to walk through the door.

We are in the rescuing business - who will you rescue!?

Praying that God will give you many open doors this week!

Turning the knob ~

Monday Mentionings: Where Are You? - Genesis 3:8-10

What a great start to a week! Getting to go to my weekly "family reunion" followed up by spending more time with you in the early afternoon. Then, just taking some time to do stuff at home. I was excited to begin the week!

I am still going over that Romans 12:6 verse...that talks about the same God working through us all. As I was thinking about it later...maybe it isn't as fascinating when we're all in the same room together, but when you think about it today...when we're miles apart...WOW...it is fascinating! If we spread a net out as far as each family is at this very minute...think of all the "fish" we could catch!!!

So, "Where are You?" At this time, you have to be either reading this in front of a computer screen or you printed it out to read. If you heard yesterday, you know that the question is not about where you are physically, so much, but where you are in 'life', 'death', and 'in the family'. Try these applications on for the week...

1. Have you been able to be the real you today? Have you been able to show how your day is REALLY going? Have you been able to show what you are truly like to the person you had contact with today? Evaluate your day and see how you can let others see the real you. Maybe one area of "realness" would be to let others know how much you enjoy your victory in Christ. As a simple example, invite someone you know to one of our many events coming up...ice cream night, church picnic, baseball game, football game, etc.
2. Have you been hiding already today? Are you fearful of something? It could be something that happened long before yesterday. Something in your marriage, personal life, or relationship with God? What do you need to die to in order to enjoy life? Pray that God will help you with whatever you are needing to "die" to.
3. Where do you fit into the Body? Do you support - like back and torso? Do you protect - like ribs? Do you take us places - like legs and feet? Do you carry - like arms and hands? Do you pray, encourage, dream, etc.? Those are all positive, and I am not going to provide examples of the negative side of things. I hope you want to be one of those, or something like them, to allow the rest of the Body to flourish. The Kingdom needs doers, not "heel draggers". God is working through each one of us! What will He do through you?

I hope you have a "surprise-filled" week! Let me know what God is doing in your life!