"There is an appointed time for everything. And there is a time for every event under heaven--"
Ecclesiastes 3:1
"Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. We have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him."
1 John 4:15-16
These two above passages have a lot in common. I'll explain why as we go. Nearly everyday I hear or read of some tragedy happening in our world. I read of murder, domestic violence, mass murder, bombings, drunken rages, and on and on. I read of violence everywhere (it reminds me of Genesis 6:5).
I follow the back and forth debates on same sex marriage, gay rights, homosexuality, alternative lifestyle disputes, etc., which seemingly flair up tempers more than they solve problems. Do we really think we will solve the problem by writing scathing articles and giving hate filled speeches that often demonstrate that there is as much sin on one side as the other?
I read about and see the problems that have come with the economic stress in our country. People stressed about their job future, people losing homes, people's retirement being spent. And the response seems to be the Democrats blaming the Republicans and the Republicans blaming the Democrats. In the midst of the upcoming election, I see very little about how either candidate would solve the problem, mostly all I see is why you should not vote for one over the other. It seems, from looking at social media, that both groups feel the best way to solve the problem is to post and repost derrogatory, inflammatory comments made about one over the other again showing that in many cases each side is sinning as much as the other.
Christian and secular leaders and academics face off giving their interpretation of what the problem is. Most of them offering statistics explaining why their point is correct and the other is not. We protest, boycott, and make statements that we should expect to hear and see from the secular community, but not from the Christian community. {as a sidenote, I am impressed at the show of support for Chick-fil-a. This seems to be a truly kind and grace motivated gesture. I just hope it does not get the negative spin also}
I look at the Church. It seems our seats are not as filled in our Churches as they once were. According to Lifeway Research, fewer than 20% of Americans regularly attend Church, and that they believe, according to the research that 7.9 million people leave the Church each year or 150,000 people per week. Add to that the statistic that reveals about 1,700 Pastors resign their Churches each month, leaving the ministry for good. WE ARE IN TROUBLE!!!!!!!!!!!
The problem is not the Democrats, or Republicans, or homosexuals, nor the violent, nor any number of other causes that are being pushed as the reason for the problems in our world. The problem is empty seats and lack of abiding.
We, as a culture, do not make devotion to God and commitiment to the local Church a priorty anymore. I remember when Wednesday evenings were kept for going to Prayer Meeting. Schools did not have Wednesday night activities. I remember one move we made to a community in Indiana, where at a parent-teacher meeting the school board president said, "As long as I am the head of the school board, there will be no Wednesday night, school sponsored activities." There did not used to be community sponsored activities on Sunday mornings. America, as a culture, went to Church.
I know that people are busy, but TIME has to be made for devotion, worship, and service to the God who created time. It really is not about the fact that we do not have enough time, the problem is how we prioritize that time. MAYBE:
- If we 'seek first His kingdom and His righteousness all these things (material things) will be added to you' (Matthew 6:33) then maybe we might see a solution to economic woes.
- If we 'Do nothing from selfish or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves' (Philippians 2:3) then we may end some of the violence, hatred, bigotry, and lack of value for human life.
- If we realize 'He is before (primary or first) all things, and in Him all things hold together' (Colossians 1:17), then it really won't matter which political party we are part of as our focus would be on God. As Christians, our allegience is to the King of Kings. We should not allow ourselves to become immersed in a political party's agenda, but be focused on God's agenda.
- If we realize, 'The earth is the LORD's, and all it contains, the world, and those who dwell in it' (Psalm 24:1) then worship and commitment to the local Church and devotion to our God would revitalize our Churches. What if being present in Church on Sunday morning consumed us. When we show those around us what our commitment to God looks like, what a difference that might make.
There was a time when being a part of the kingdom of God was 'Good News,' however, it seems that it has become for many, 'Old News.' Let's call the problem what it really is: a need to surrender all to the only God and Savior. We are to show the world a picture of the Savior. What a joy! What a privilege! What a responsibility! Let us prayerfully and with mercy and grace respond to the crises of our world in a way that reflects the One who saved us. Let us go forth and love one another...maybe even to the place where they embrace the King of Kings.
The NEW GOOD NEWS is the SAME GOOD NEWS, that is the Good News of Jesus. Why not try to put God first and give TIME to the Creator of Time.
