 The CBC missions team invites you to join us for our Missions “In Real Life” conference! You may have seen the abbreviation IRL (“in real life”) in different places. This is a slang term used to talk about the real world, in contrast to the world of the internet, or some other virtual or cyber world like AI (artificial intelligence). "IRL” could take on added meaning in the future, as distinctions between physical and cyber worlds continue to blur and blend.
So often what we see on social media doesn't line up with what is happening IRL. When it comes to missions, we tend to do the same. We glorify missions and make superheroes out of missionaries and their greatest accomplishments. We see them as these super-spiritual, powerful Christians who have everything together, leaving the "average" person in the pew filled with doubt about how God could use them. Missionaries know nothing is further from the truth! We are all broken and weak vessels that the Lord chooses to use. He uses our human weaknesses! That being said, this missions conference to be about the "real life" of missions. It's about taking the masks off and being authentic and transparent with what it's really like to be a missionary--the challenges they face and the weaknesses they’ve discovered--but also the way that God has shown up and worked through those things. The theme verse is 2 Corinthians 4:7, "But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves." 2 Corinthians 4 is an encouraging chapter to read to prepare your heart for this conference. Missionaries joining us for this conference include:
Please join us on Sunday, October 27 for the following events:
If you’re interested in joining our dinner with the missionaries the night before (Saturday, October 26 at 5:30pm), please let someone on the missions team know. We are looking forward to seeing you there! God bless, The Chadron Bible Church missions team
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 August 6, 2024
We're pleased to announce that as of August 4th, 2024, after a nearly unanimous vote of the membership, Chadron Berean Church is now Chadron Bible Church! Thank you for your participation, input, and prayers in this process. Thank you for your patience as we navigate this adjustment together. Let's continue to be "people of the Book" who share the help and hope Jesus offers. If you would like more on the process and rationale for this significant change, please read the statement below, published July 21, 2024. ----------------------------------------------------------------- July 21, 2024 Dear members and friends of Chadron Berean Church, We, the leadership board of Chadron Berean Church, trust that this letter finds you well. As was announced last Sunday, we will be voting to change the name of our church to “Chadron Bible Church” on August 4, 2024, following the fellowship dinner. The intention of this letter is to help get you up to speed on the name change process and to present the rationale and conviction for changing the church name. Process In January, the church leadership announced their desire to change the name of the church to Grace Bible Church. After prolonged prayer and deliberation between leaders and members or regular attendees, the proposal was made to hold a members’ meeting on June 2, 2024, to discuss it further. During this meeting, the members present expressed their concerns and recommendations. The church leadership would like to thank everyone for their input during this meeting and any personal follow-up meetings that took place thereafter. The conversation was genuinely helpful and cordial. The members present at this meeting voted to approve or disapprove of the continuation of changing the church name. The majority approved and/or were neutral, while a few disapproved. Follow-up was done with any of the identified individuals who disapproved and most agreed to the changes after further discussion. The members present at this meeting were also asked to give any name recommendations. The only recommendations were “Chadron Bible Church” and “Chadron Berean Bible Church.” The name Chadron Bible Church was the most popular recommendation. After further prayer and deliberation, church leadership decided (6 to 1) to adopt the name “Chadron Bible Church” upon an affirmative vote of three-fourths of the church members taking place on August 4, 2024. Rationale & Conviction Now we turn our attention from the process to the rationale & convictions for changing the name to Chadron Bible Church. The “Chadron” Label One of the concerns shared at the June 2nd meeting was that if we chose a name like “Grace Bible Church” or “New Life Church,” we may be associated with other churches who have the same name. Considering this, the board elected to keep the Chadron label as part of the proposed name because it allows us to remain distinct from other churches. Keeping this geographical label will also make it easier to find our church online. The “Bible” Label There are two major concerns that dominated the conversation regarding replacing the “Berean” label with the “Bible” label. The biggest concern is that in departing with the “Berean” label, we run the risk of losing the noble vision of the Bereans to “examine the Scriptures” (Acts 17:11). While this is a legitimate concern, and the Berean vision is a noble vision to pursue, the leadership team in favor believes that we will still be known as “the people of the Book” because “Bible” is in our name. “Chadron Bible Church” still conveys the message that we are serious about understanding God’s written Word and keeping it as our authority for faith and practice. If you go to a “Bible church” of any kind, that is the expectation. The second concern regarding the “Berean” label is that our historical identity in the local Berean movement across Nebraska (since 1932) will be lost. Again, while this is a genuine concern, we remind you that we are still members of the Berean Fellowship of Churches and can share our passion to “diligently examine the Scriptures” or “be Bereans” as we share that part of our affiliation. The Berean Fellowship has and still is a significant part of the national Bible church movement in our area in the last century. That being said, we do not believe we are losing that part of our identity. Rather, we are clarifying it since many are familiar with the “Bible church” movement, but not with the Berean movement, of which it was just a local facet of. Here is the heart of the matter. It’s that in moving forward as Chadron Bible Church, the name will be less confusing for newcomers, new believers, or those outside the faith looking for a church for the first time. How we are perceived by the community is not everything, but it is significant to our witness, and we do not want to place any unnecessary hurdles for people trying to understand who we are and how to be saved. Too often, the name “Berean” has been a negative or confusing hurdle for non-churched individuals seeking a church and works against our current, ongoing visioneering efforts to increase outreach effectiveness. There are a few other thoughts worth noting:
As the church leadership, we want to thank you for taking the time to read this and for considering the heart behind this potential change. We understand this is not our church, but Jesus’s church, and we aim to be the best stewards we can of this beloved Christian community. We would like to say thanks again for your participation, input, and prayers as we seek God’s will together for our church. Regardless of the outcome, may we continue to be Christ-centered followers and “people of the Book.” May the Lord continue to bring new people into our wonderful community who need the hope and help Jesus offers. If you have any further questions or comments, please contact one of the board members. If you cannot be present at the meeting on August 4, 2024, but would still like to participate in the voting process, please ask the church secretary for a ballot, fill it out, and place it in an offering box on or before August 4, 2024. Thank you for your participation.  This month’s core value is generosity. As part of the culture of our church family, we want to foster a community of generous, Christ-like givers! While I use an exclamation mark to note my excitement about this core value, many of you upon reading that may have said to yourselves, “Oh man, here we go again, talking about giving... How can God expect me to keep giving with the economy the way it is?” Like you, I too feel the inflation. I too wince at the gas pump and the grocery store. I too try to buy what’s on sale and make wise purchases. The Bible talks profusely about handling money wisely and being good stewards of God’s resources. If you’re doing that, that’s great! It will help you get through tough economic times. But don't forget that the Bible also talks about being crazy generous with our money too—even when times are tough!
A good example of this is the poor widow in Luke 21:1-4 who, rather than giving off the top, put in all she owned! Even though she could only give two mites (less than a cent in today’s money), Jesus said she put in more than everyone else because she gave “out of her poverty.” Another model of generosity is the churches of Macedonia, of whom Paul said gave “beyond their ability” and “of their own accord.” Even though they were experiencing a “great ordeal of affliction,” they begged(!) Paul to allow them to participate in giving towards the Lord’s work (2 Corinthians 8:1-5). Because of their generosity, Paul said they were filled with joy and that their generosity was a clear sign that the grace of God was with them. They embraced Jesus’ words of wisdom: “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35). Right now, in this time of economic inflation and uncertainty, I think the Lord would have us lean into generosity even more. Let me share why. In their book, Contagious Generosity, Chris Willard and Jim Sheppard describe how in the 2008 recession, churches typically responded in 3 ways:
At the end of the day, that’s what I think God wants to accomplish in our lives in this season. It’s not about the church budget, building, or programs (though the needs are there). This is not about fundraising. This is about God cultivating in us a lifestyle of generosity—demonstrating God’s love and grace in action to others. This is about taking part in what God is doing. It's about making disciples through generosity and becoming more mature disciples ourselves. Rather than denying the difficult economic times or allowing the natural tendency of survival mode to take over, let’s seek to become sacrificially generous! If the Lord leads you, challenge yourself to give beyond your ability. It’s not the easiest season to be in, no doubt. But in this season, we have the opportunity to increase our giving, our faith, and our Christlikeness at the same time. We have the opportunity to share Jesus through our generosity! Isn’t that exciting?! Nothing says, “Jesus has changed my life” like generosity!  Our core value focus this month is prayer and I wanted to talk about it before the month is over. However, first I want to remind us that when we’re talking about a core value, we’re talking about something that we want to be engrained in the fabric of our church’s culture. Every church has a culture, and we want to be known as a praying church. We are known as individuals who pray and as a church that prays together and for each other.
My personal thoughts on prayer this year have been very relaxed. What do I mean by that? I mean that prayer, at its most basic sense, is simply the communication of the soul in relationship with God. It’s the actual and constant flow of communication between us and Him. As the Apostle Paul said in 1 Thessalonians 5:17, we are to “pray without ceasing.” This means that all throughout our day, we’re living with an awareness of Him and communicating with Him. It’s like we’re doing life with Him by our side and in our hearts, sharing life with Him. It reminds me of the evening walks my wife and I frequently go on. Walking together creates a natural space to talk about the things of life and of that day. We have some of our best conversations while simply walking together, side by side. Recently I had someone ask me what I think about using things prayer beads or prayer acronyms to give more structure or routine to our prayers. The degree of my response would depend upon the exact nature of those elements (Matt. 6:5, 7), but I tend to avoid such things and most definitely some of those things. God is a person, and I think He wants to hear communication from the heart like we do. We don’t want people to treat us like impersonal beings who must respond in a pre-programmed, cause-and-effect way. I think God, too, wants our soul to open and unfold before Him much like any intimate relationship would. The relationship grows deeper and deeper over time as we talk about our hopes, dreams, fears, struggles, and the things of life—and then walk through those together much like a married couple does. That being said, I think those structured elements can turn a relationship with God into something religious and un-relational. I think it can make God out to be a genie who must turn left every time we expect Him to turn left and to turn right every time we expect Him to turn right. In reality, God often turn left when I expect Him to turn right. He is no tamable genie. In my experience, my best praying doesn’t happen with a list or acronym or even in a specific posture. It comes from the heart when I let out what is really going on inside of me. When I don’t pretend to be something I’m not. When I refuse to be fake, and instead, admit my sins and struggles and give it all over to Him. As a new believer, I remember looking down on someone who was praying with their eyes open, their hands unfolded, and in a relaxed, unconcerned posture—that is until I read the Scripture where Jesus gave thanks at the feeding of the 5,000 and with His eyes open, looking up towards heaven (Luke 9:16). Quite often when I pray, I’m sitting in my recliner or on the porch with a cup of coffee, at a picnic table in the park, in an empty pew in the back of the church (not on Sunday), or on a walk or a hike—and my eyes aren’t usually shut. If I’m praying while I'm still, I may have a pen handy because I’m unpacking the things weighing down my soul and giving them to God. I’m processing life with God and dreaming about the future. A journal and pencil help me be authentic and transparent in prayer. I had one Bible school instructor who liked to walk around in circles around an empty, second-story classroom while praying. How do I know? The library was on the first story of that old, creaky building. At the end of the day, prayer should be authentic and genuine communication with a relational God. Let’s embrace and embody authentic prayer together. Let's make it part of the culture of our church's fabric.  Not long ago I receive a phone call at the church from North Carolina. On the other end of the line was a voice with a strong southern accent. After a brief introduction, she explained that her son and his fiancée were coming through our area, and he was needing a place to stay. While his fiancée stayed with a friend at the college, I told her I would talk to my wife about him staying at our house. I must admit, I was hesitant at first. It’s not every day, after all, I let a complete stranger stay at my house! But after talking with her some more I began to realize that we knew many of the same people in ministry and I began to sense that she (and her family) really knows Jesus. There was an unexplainable and supernatural connection in Christ there. At the end of the day, her son did stay at our house. I met him at the gas station late at night, showed him our guest room, and enjoyed some great conversation over breakfast the next morning. The Lord even used this young man to impact me in a way he’ll never know. I left the breakfast table that day reinspired in ministry. My guess is that you, too, have experienced this supernatural connection that Christ can bring between strangers. Maybe you were on an airplane and discovered that the person next to you was a believer. You shared about your faith and church and how good the Lord has been to you both. Maybe you went on a mission trip overseas and worked with some of the indigenous believers there and realized you had a joyful connection with them that you didn’t even possess with some of your closest relatives back home. Even though they do not look like you, speak the same language as you, eat the same food as you—and let’s be honest, they even do some things you find culturally inappropriate—they’re like family to you because you have a connection in Christ. They are your “blood-relative” through the blood ofChrist! You have a bond with them that you don’t even share with some of your closest relatives. I think this supernatural bond in Christ is just a small taste of what heaven and eternity will be like. Heaven will be filled with people from every tribe, tongue, and nation (Rev. 7:9). Revelation 22:24 says that the nations and kings of the New Earth will bring their glory (possibly a reference to their wealth & cultural contributions) into the New Jerusalem. Even though the nations are so different, and the community will be incredibly complex, it will still be one giant family because we all have the same Lord (Eph. 4:1-6). Revelation 22:1-5 says the nations will live in harmony, dwelling together with God. It will be as if we’ve always known each other, and we will celebrate our differences. Only Jesus can do that! In this world, difference tend to divide us rather than unite us. But differences are not a mistake. Differences are by design. Like the human body, differences cause us to care for each other, rely on each other, and praise each other’s contributions (1 Cor. 12). Some Christians want to argue over every little thing: the color of the carpet, the order of service, whether or not its okay to use a “Dirt-Devil” vacuum to clean the church, whether to call the fellowship dinner a “pot-luck” or “pot-blessing” (I think we’ll stick with fellowship dinner), what the pastor should wear, what translation to use, et cetera. These are signs of a church experiencing missional drift. They have forgotten what matters most. There will never be a church where every member believes or agrees on exactly the same thing on all Christian issues. It simply won’t happen. The church is too complex. That sort of unity is unrealistic. Perfect biblical clarity will always be slightly out of reach on some issues. That is why we must stick to the absolutes, show charity in personal convictions, and give grace in any gray areas. Most importantly, we must keep Christ at the center of all we do. While the Corinthians were quarreling over who was the best preacher—Paul, Apollos, Peter, or Jesus (1 Cor. 1:12-13)—he said, Has Christ been divided? Paul was not crucified for you was he? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?... For I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified." Christ was at the center of everything Paul did. In all we do, he said, we are to do it in His name (Col. 3:17). People need Jesus to find freedom and hope. Knowing this, Jesus prayed we would be one just as He and the Father are one (Jn. 17:11) so that our unity would show the world that Jesus is the way (17:21). Are we showing the world that Jesus is the way? Is Jesus at the center of all we do?
 If you missed the Journey announcement, please check it out on our livestream beginning at the 38:00 minute mark. Here is a link to the livestream: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3tp-WB0sy3A Journey is not another Bible study, small group, or conference. It is an experience. An invitation for men to live again. To hike a path less traveled. To rediscover the adventurous side of our hearts. To do battle together. To refresh our relationship with God. To let our soul catch up with our body. To find rhythm and balance so that we finish our journeys well. If you are even remotely interested, please let me (Justin) know on the sign-up sheet or call me. Here are the dates and locations of the sessions:
Again, it is desirable but in no way perfectly expected that you will be able to make all of these. If you would like to, but can't, sign up still and you will receive the resources in-between sessions and take the journey with us the best you can. What you will need:
What you will NOT need:
This may be the most important journey you take in your life. I hope you'll join us! Pastor Justin   I wish it were true that I could place my Bible under my pillow at night and wake up more spiritual. I wish it were true that when we came to faith in Christ, we never struggled with sin again. I wish it were true that by simply attending church, I would be guaranteed to never fail in my walk with Jesus. The reality is, none of these are true, and we know it all too well. We all struggle to walk with Jesus, and even fail Him at times. However, this does not mean that we shouldn’t make it our aim to follow Jesus and become more like Him. In fact, this is our aim! It is also one of our core values at CBC. Calling it a “core value” though, might be an understatement. I would dare to say, as I often have in the past, that the chief responsibility of the Christian is to grow in Christ-likeness. This is what we are about. We want to follow Jesus, becoming like Him, and help others do the same. That’s how we got the name “Christian” to begin with. People identified us as those who followed Christ and His ways.
In the world of five-dollar theological terms, we call this “progressive sanctification.” It’s the idea of progressively becoming more and more like Jesus in how we live. We have our ups and down, for sure, but overall, we want to become more like Him over the course of our lives. For the sake of simplicity and relatability, I like to refer to this doctrine as “modeling.” No, not the modeling like you see on a runway show with fancy designer wear! We’re talking about looking to Christ as a role-model that we seek to imitate or copy. Back in the summer of 2021, I taught a series on modeling Christ. I taught how we can model Christ as a church, in the family, in marriage, in all relationships, and in every circumstance. In this series, we discussed how we all look for other people to imitate and follow. We may call them role-models or mentors, but there’s something about them that we want to incorporate into the way we live. Don’t believe me? Just think of kids. They’re copycats! The mimic what they see and hear whether it’s good or bad. That’s scary as a parent! As a pastor, responsible for casting the vision for our church and for teaching, I’m always looking for exemplary characteristics in other churches or pastors that I want to imitate or incorporate into our church. Paul praised the Thessalonians for being such a church. He says, “You… became imitators of us and of the Lord” and as such, “you became a model to all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia” (1 Thess. 1:6-7). The Greek word Paul uses for imitate (mimetes), reminds us of the word mimic. It’s a term that could refer to an actor who mimics a person or role. It may remind us of the Mimic Octopus that can change colors to blend in with its environment or change its shape to look like a poisonous lionfish, sea snake, or jellyfish to prevent being eaten by predators. The word Paul uses for example (typos) could refer to a stamped pattern, image, or recreated model. As Christians, we want the Christlike virtues like love, joy, peace, patience, forgiveness, and grace to be recreated in us by His Spirit. When we truly follow Christ, people take notice. One man said, “We exist. We behave. Others notice.” They take mental notes about our faith and Jesus. They’re examining our lives and considering whether or not it would be helpful for them to follow Jesus as well. The atheistic philosopher, Friedrich Nietzsche, once said, “Show me that you are redeemed, and I’ll listen to you talk about your Redeemer.” He’s got a point. They understand we should live differently. So let’s show the world who Jesus is by how we live so that they too will find hope in Him. Ephesians 4:29-5:2 says, “Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you. Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children; and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us.”  The following is an article by Pastor Justin published in the Chadron Record under "Minister's Moments." An audio version of this article can be found at the following link: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/cbc-devo-living-for-what-matters-forever/id1550004417?i=1000651451557
As I write this (Wednesday, March 27th), our community is losing two large buildings at the same time: the old Catholic school and an apartment complex. I was planning to write about Easter, but I woke up to a voicemail from a church member saying that their apartment was on fire. As I was on my way to see the fire, I received another message informing me that demolition had begun on the old school. I decided to drive by this crumbling structure as well. Recently, I’ve been reading a book about staying balanced in life by slowing down and spending extended times of solitude with the Lord. The book also talks about the need to break routine and just be “in the moment.” So, rather than simply driving by, I decided to pull over, get out of my car, and watch the demolition of this historic building. As I stood there, I kept thinking, “This has to be one of the largest and oldest buildings in town. This just isn’t something you see every day.” I also couldn’t help but think of all the memories that many people had growing up in or around that school. In fact, another bystander told me their own stories and while understanding, they were sad to see another piece of their childhood and Chadron’s history gone. However, the overwhelming thought was, “This is exactly why I want an eternal perspective on life. This is why I want to live for that which is going to matter forever.” Just like these two buildings, the temporal things that we live for—even life itself—can be taken from us in an instant. Jesus told a story about a man who once he finally had all he ever wanted, died, and left it all behind. He said, “So is the man who stores up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God” (Luke 12:21). The point is if we live for the here and now only, building our own little kingdoms, we’ll have to watch them burn and crumble in the end. Instead, we should view life with an eternal lens and live for God’s kingdom, seeking the inheritance that will never perish nor fade away (1 Peter 1:3-5). As C. T. Studd wrote, there’s “only one life, ‘twill soon be past. Only what’s done for Christ will last.”  You can find an audio version of this blog at: https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-mprmt-15a7f6b The core value we are highlighting for the month of March is sensitivity. What do we mean by sensitivity? We mean an awareness of, or sensible response to, the Lord’s promptings and leading in our lives. (1 Cor. 12:12; Gal. 5:25; Eph. 1:22; Col. 1:18; 1 Pet. 5:1-5). As individuals and as a church family, it’s important that we have an awareness of the direction that God is leading us and that He is with us in our endeavors. If we’re going to be attuned to the Lord and His leading in our lives, we must first have the Spirit of God dwelling in us to begin with. In 1 Corinthians 2:12-15, Paul shares about how the Spirit of God enables us to understand the things of God and the Word of God. Therefore, without the Spirit of God, we are natural men and not spiritual men. Natural men, who have not been born of the Spirit of God through faith in Christ, cannot grasp the spiritual things of God. So the Spirit of God is required to connect with God on His frequency and have a relationship with Him. This only happens when we place our faith in Jesus Christ and are born again spiritually speaking by the Spirit of God. Beyond receiving the Spirit of God, we need to "walk" with Him. Galatians 5:25 has always reminded me of a sensitive or receptive walk with God. Paul says, If we live by the Spirit let us also walk by the Spirit. When you go on a walk with someone, technically you’re only “with” them if you are beside them or close to them, often talking with them. If you are too far ahead of them or behind them, you are not really “with” them. Simple enough, right? The sensitive believer desires not to get ahead of God or to fail to respond to His promptings altogether, lagging behind God. Because of that, I like the way the ESV and NLT translate this verse. ESV: If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit. NLT: Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives. How do I know if I’m keeping in step with the Spirit? Following His leading in our lives? Paul says the fruit of the Spirit will be evident in our lives (Gal. 5:16-26). Most people, however, want to know God’s personal will for their lives: How do I know if I should move to that town? Take another job? Marry this individual? Enter this ministry? I’ve been a follower of Christ long enough to admit that there is mystery involved in answering these personal questions and I’ve often been comforted by the missionary journeys of Paul. Even the Apostle Paul wrestled with the direction that the Spirit of God was leading him at times. Sometimes Paul was told exactly where to go and what to do. Sometimes he had no clue (!) and had to wait on God’s response. Sometimes he wanted to go one way and the Spirit of God said, “No.” Other times the Spirit clearly said, “Yes,” and he experienced great opposition! Sometimes he stayed longer in places that were insignificant and stayed a short time in significant places. So how did he know where to go and what to do? There simply is no pat answer because there was no pattern! You can’t calculate something that requires a living relationship. Some of it is simply an adventure with God! That being said, I do want to leave us with few practical steps to discerning God’s personal will for our lives: 1) If we want to know His personal will for our lives, we need to apply the clearly revealed general will of His written Word. His personal will will never violate His written will; 2) Praying and asking; 3) Seeking God through His Word; 4) Inquire wisdom from other mature believers in the body of Christ; ask them, “Is this wise?” 5) then pursuing it further and testing the waters. More than once a person has asked me, “How long do you plan to stay at Chadron Berean?” I always respond with, “I don’t plan on going anywhere. If God called me to live out the rest of my days in Chadron, I would be content with that. However, I always try to remain sensitive to the Lord’s leading. I never want to presume this is where I’ll always be.” In fact, in the past, when presented with opportunities to go elsewhere, I’ve prayed and I believe I was prompted to stay. But the only way you or I will know the answer to personal questions is through a real, living relationship with Him. So, should you take a chance and step out into that job or ministry that you think the Lord is leading you to do? That’s between you and the Lord. That may not be the answer you wanted, but I would give a note of encouragement: flourish or fail, grace is there like a net is there to catch the trapeze artist. You will learn from each fall and will get better. Proverbs 24:16, "For though the righteous fall seven times, they rise again." Praying that we will remain spiritually attuned to the Lord's direction in our lives,
Pastor Justin  You can find an audio version of this blog at: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/cbc-devo-core-value-joy In recent years our church has had a theme to focus on each year. This year, however, instead of a specific theme I want to focus on core values. These core values developed over the past several years of preaching on subjects like spiritual gifts, modeling Christ, the Christian family, prayer, and worship. In compiling these subjects, we now have an extensive list of core values that I don’t want us to forget and that we need to apply if we’re going to continue being a healthy, effective, life-giving, and God-glorifying church. Each month I plan to focus on one core value through a devotional like this one. The core value will also appear in our bulletin. If interested, you can find the entire list of core values on our website. The first core value I want us to focus on is joy. Joy! It’s what everybody wants! In my first year as a pastor, my personal theme that year was “to serve the Lord with joy.” Followers of Jesus should be known for their joy. I’ve said many times before that if we can’t have fun and enjoy doing ministry, we won’t be doing much ministry at all! No one wants to be part of a church or any other group that has no joy. We can communicate all the right information to people but without a sense of joy, it will go over like a lead balloon. Who wants to hang around a bunch of cranks who argue and complain about everything or go through life as an expressionless Stoic? They make a terrible witness for the good news of the gospel! Joyful Christians, however, are winsome witnesses for Jesus. Charles Swindoll once said that long before people are attracted to our life of love, they are often attracted to our joy. Christ came to give us an abundant life (John 10:10) and in a very real sense, part of that “life” is a lightening of our spirits and learning to laugh at life! There are two principles that I would like to share to make sure we don’t lose our joy. The first one is that joy comes with abiding. In John 15:10-11 Jesus said, If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love. These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete. Jesus teaches that we can abide in His love by keeping His commandments. The reason He tells us this is because He wants us to have an abundant life characterized by joy! He wants us to have His joy and for our joy to be complete. One translation says “so that your joy may overflow.” Sometimes people are tempted to view God’s commands as restrictions that steal their joy. God is looked at as a big bully in the sky who doesn’t want us to have any fun. On the contrary, for believers, it’s when we are living in sin against God that we lack this overflowing joy. God will not let His children enjoy what is not good for them. Therefore, overflowing joy only comes when we are walking in fellowship with the Lord and thus abiding in Him. The second principle is that we must be careful about where we find our joy. In Luke 10 when the disciples returned from their first short-term missionary journey, they returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name." Understandably, the disciples learned that serving Jesus can bring them immense joy. They were joyful about the way He used them and empowered them for the work of ministry. However, Jesus knows that ministry hardship lay ahead and they need something more secure to rest their joy in. He responded, saying, Do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are recorded in heaven. As heaven’s disciples, and especially for those in some sort of vocational ministry, we must beware of placing our joy in what we do (maybe it’s a ministry or job) or in what we possess (maybe it’s material possessions, influential qualities, or personal performance). Placing our joy in anything other than Christ and what He has done for us—formally inscribing our names in heaven’s book of life—is a recipe for disaster because everything other than Christ is temporary and fleeting or fluctuates up and down. If I place all my joy in my job but my job isn’t doing well, my joy won’t be doing well. If I place my joy in a fancy vehicle but then it gets wrecked or I am forced to sell it, my joy will go with it. Joy comes to stay when we recognize that Jesus is everything we need and because of Him, we are saved and going to heaven. If you seem to have misplaced your joy lately, I encourage you to pray with David in Psalm 51:12, Restore to me the joy of Your salvation and sustain me with a willing spirit. In Christ with you,
Pastor Justin 2/18/2024 |
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