Grace for the Race

God used Moses to order Pharaoh: “Let my people go that they may serve me!”

This command brings out a biblical truth. We have been saved for service. But if our service is not rooted in love, we have missed the most important aspect of service. Make no mistake; our hearts are more important to God than our hands!

I have no need of a bull from your stall or of goats from your pens, for every animal of the forest is mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills. I know every bird in the mountains, and the creatures of the field are mine. If I were hungry I would not tell you, for the world is mine, and all that is in it. (Psalm 50:9-12)

God does not “need” our service. The Gospel is not a Help Wanted advertisement for the people of God. To be sure, we are called to serve our God, but our primary service is heart-service. God wants our hearts to beat for Him. He will tolerate no rival, for He is a jealous God (Exodus 20:5). Sometimes we can get so caught up in serving our God with our hands that we forget all about bringing our hearts to our service.

But this is not for you! The Pharisees served God, but only with their hands. Jesus said their hearts were far from Him. The psalmist tells us that God owns everything and has everything and needs nothing from us. The logical inference is that whatever we give to Him must be given through a heart of love. David made this crystal clear in the very next chapter of Psalms:

You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it;

you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.

The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit;

a broken and contrite heart,

O God, you will not despise. (Psalm 51:16-17)

When our hearts are “broken and contrite,” our hearts are beating for Jesus; when our hearts are beating for Jesus, service is more than simply service. It is a privilege to put a heart on display that beats with humble gratitude for God. The Christian is to be thankful, not only for the finished work of the Lord Jesus Christ, but also for the work He is still completing in the world and in us.

The King of kings will complete what He started . . . and that includes what He has started in you! He is not finished with you yet. And as part of that process, He has ordained service as a sanctifier in the lives of His people. But the only service that sanctifies is service that flows from a heart of love.

So . . . what has your heart been beating for lately? Have you been serving God out of a sense of duty or a sense of devotion? Have you been serving like a slave or like a son? When duty is our motivation for service, there is no joy. But when devotion moves our hands, the joy of the Lord is the strength for the service.

This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!

What does it mean to be meek? The unbelieving world would say it is just another word for the kind of weakness that leads others to walk all over you like a door mat. But God’s Word says something quite different:

Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

(Matthew 5:5)

Meekness, which you can also call humility, is a gift from God that begins with trust in God. It is not weakness. It is strength that transcends the physical. The Old Testament identifies Moses as a man who possessed this quality.

Moses was a very humble man, more humble than anyone else on the face of the earth. (Numbers 12:3)

I don’t think anyone would seriously consider Moses—who boldly declared to Pharaoh, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘Let my people go’”—to be a “weak” man who allowed others to trample on him like a divine door mat. Moses trusted in God, and in utter meekness he allowed God to use him as the deliverer of Israel. When Moses went before Pharaoh, he went in the strength of the Lord, speaking only the words God had given him to speak. He went in utter weakness and humility. And what was the result? God used meek Moses to overthrow the wealthy, powerful, arrogant Pharaoh.

The story of Moses gives you and I some insight into what we can accomplish when we trust in God. At first, it may seem difficult! When God first spoke to Moses out of the burning bush, Moses did not believe he was the right man to deliver the Israelites from bondage in Egypt. Recall that Moses was forced to flee Egypt because he tried to save his people in his way and in his own strength. So God sent Moses to the back side of the desert for 40 years to prepare him to serve God in humble dependence.

Moses went from trusting in his wisdom to trusting in the wisdom of God . . . from trusting in his strength to trusting in the strength of God . . . from trusting in his plan to trusting in God’s plan. And this could only happen through the gift of meekness.

You see, God doesn’t need our wisdom, our strength, or our plans to accomplish His purposes in this world. He only needs willing servants who will trust Him even when we cannot trace Him. The great “I Am” called Moses and He is calling you and me to surrender complete control of our lives to Him. That is meekness. That is humility. That is the only way we will find meaning, significance, and purpose on this side of the grave.

Blessed are the meek, for they are the ones God will use to expand the cause of His kingdom, regardless of the obstacles we face. May that be the confession of our lives!

This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!

In the previous blog, we took a look at the testimony of thirst. Today we will focus on the witness of waiting.

Those who wait on the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.(Isaiah 40:31)

Waiting is a part of life. We wait at traffic lights. We wait in traffic jams. We wait in check-out lines at stores. We wait on hold on the telephone. We wait for a promotion at work. We wait for the doctor’s report to come back. We wait for the start of our vacation! Frequently our attitudes during these “wait times” could in no way be described as “Christlike.”

But there is a witness of waiting for those who wait on the Lord. And that witness is strength! The apostle Paul prayed that the Christians at Colossae would be “strengthened with all power, according to [God’s] glorious might, so that you may have great endurance and patience” (Colossians1:11).

There is a special kind of strength that can only be found on the other side of waiting on the Lord. Waiting on the Lord strengthens the saints of God in a supernatural way. Imagine what it means to soar on wings like eagles! Only eagles and hawks have the ability to soar. They take advantage of air currents and heat risers to soar (fly) with little or no effort at all, simply being carried along in the sky. This is the witness of waiting for those who wait on the Lord.

You see, God has a perfect plan for our lives. But we must remember that this plan is His plan, and it will happen in His time and in His way. As we wait upon the Lord, our strength is renewed, which gives us everything we need to do all that God is calling us to do. There will be times of running toward God’s plan for our lives, and we will not grow weary. There will be times of walking toward God’s plan for our lives, and we will not be fainthearted. And there will be times of waiting on God’s plan for our lives, and we will not be discouraged or disappointed. We will be strengthened according to His glorious might!

So . . . how is your witness of waiting? Remember, the Christian life requires waiting on the Lord, and in that waiting we find a strength that cannot be acquired in any other way. This supernatural strength lifts us above the clouds of life and empowers us to soar with very little effort, because it is our Lord who is carrying us along on Almighty air currents and Holy heat risers to our intended destination!

This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!

As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?(Psalm 42:1-2)

Can you picture a deer literally panting with thirst on a blistering August afternoon? Does your soul ache like that for God? Do you thirst so greatly to be in His presence that you feel your breath quicken? Or . . . maybe not so much?

What does your thirst for God—or lack thereof—testify to in your life today?

The best way to glorify the worth of a stream of water is to drink in great gulps of its cool, clear refreshment . . . and to keep coming back for more! The same is true for our God, who is our only source of living water. Whether we acknowledge it or not, our soul does thirst for the living God. The Sovereign Lord “has set eternity in the hearts of men” (Ecclesiastes 3:11); as Augustine said so beautifully, “You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you.”

We feel that thirst within . . . but all too often we work hard at trying to slake our thirst in countless ways other than coming to the living waters. We look for fulfillment in:

• Our work
• Our finances
• Our relationships
• Physical intimacy
• Recreation
• The applause of man

Yet we all know from personal experience that none of these “false fountains” can deliver on their promises. We are left unsatisfied and far more thirsty after we drink from these soiled streams then we were when we started. There is a God-sized void inside of every one of us that can only be filled by God; only by sipping from the streams of living water will we find the refreshment our soul longs for.

If you want to perform a quick self-evaluation on the testimony of your own thirst, consider how much time you engage in these two means of grace: Bible Intake and Prayer. God has given us His Word that we might drink it in daily; along with His Word, He invites us to come into His presence through prayer. The best gift we can offer our God is a thirst that pants for Him who delights to satisfy us through multiple streams of living waters.

One final thought: when God moved the prophet Isaiah to write, “Come, all you who are thirsty” (Isaiah 55:1), he made it clear that the waters are available to all who thirst. Isaiah did not identify a special few who have access to these waters; the invitation is made to all . . . the invitation is made to you. If you have never come to these waters, come today, just as you are, and drink. If it has been too long since your last drink, come back and sip from the sublime streams of your Savior. You’ll be glad you did!

This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!

Do you know what the world’s greatest labor-saving device is? Tomorrow! That’s right; why do today what you can put off until tomorrow, right?

But this is not for you!

The sluggard says, “There is a lion outside!” or, “I will be murdered in the streets!” (Proverbs 22:13)

Notice that it is not the fearful who cry, “There is a lion outside,” but rather the lazy. Why? Because they’re lazy! The sluggard creates all sorts of reasons in his mind for his inactivity. Rebellion always finds its reasons, and what better reason for being lazy than a lion?

You see, deep down the sluggard knows that his laziness is a bad thing and that he will receive no sympathy—and certainly no reward—for his procrastination. But who could fault someone who postponed his work because there is a lion on the loose, looking for someone to devour?

OK, perhaps you never actually talked about lions, but . . . have you been making any excuses for not doing what you know you ought to be doing at home, at work, or for your church family? Scripture is piercingly painful in its description of our procrastination: “As a door turns on its hinges, so a sluggard turns on his bed (Proverbs 16:24). There will always be a lion for the lazy to rationalize laziness. We all have a tendency to put off what we ought to do in order to do what we would rather do.

So how do we overcome this tendency? We stay focused on the Lord, rather than the lions!

Think about this truth for a moment: Jesus was born to die. He came into this world to pay the price for your sins and mine with His precious blood. When our Savior said, “There is a lion crouching at the door,” there really was one—Satan, the roaring lion who would stop at nothing to disrupt and destroy our Lord’s perfect purpose. Yet even though Jesus knew that pressing on meant that He would die the most horrible of all deaths, He rejected the way of the sluggard. “He steadfastly set his face to go to Jerusalem” (Luke 9:51) and kept pressing on in His amazing work of love and grace.

This is what the Bible means when it says we are to keep God’s mercy in view. God’s mercy is to both the motive and motivation put aside procrastination and set our hearts to do what we have been called by God.

Procrastination is simply not an option for the people of God, if for no other reason than that it boasts in what it will accomplish tomorrow. But Scripture warns us clearly:

Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring forth(Proverbs 27:1)

As I have said many times before, the past is gone, the future is promised to no one; all we have is the now, and that is why it is called “the present”—because that is exactly what it is: a gift from God!

Remember, even if there truly was a lion outside, it should not keep us from doing what God has called us to do. As disciples of Christ, we are to be devoted to Christ. That devotion may lead us down lonely paths of pain and persecution, but what better road to travel than the one that our Savior travelled before us—the road that makes us more like Him!

This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!

Far too many in the church today mistakenly believe that the adversity they are currently facing is a sign of God’s abandonment. NOT TRUE! Regardless of the reason for the adversity, God has not abandoned His children, and in the end it will prove to be for their good and His glory.

Think of all the adversity the children of Israel experienced shortly after their divine deliverance from over four hundred years of captivity in Egypt. They experienced the adversity of an army of angry Egyptians thundering up behind them, with the Red Sea blocking their only means of escape. God led His children through the Red Sea—they passed through on dry ground—and annihilated the Egyptians. Israel experienced the adversity of hunger; God provided manna from heaven. They experienced the adversity of thirst; God provided water from the rock.

Adversity did not equal abandonment for the Israelites. God was with them in every adversity they faced, teaching them to call out to Him in every circumstance. One of the most important lessons you and should take away from the Exodus is that, despite the difficulties they faced, God could and indeed did bless them every step of the way into the Promised Land.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.(Proverbs 3:5-6)

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)

Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”(Hebrews 13:5)

Adversity has been promised from the Almighty. But in every adversity we will see that our God is with us. Not only does adversity not equal abandonment, but adversity is actually a stepping stone upon which we advance in the direction of God’s call in our lives. Peter exhorted us to remember that adversity has come “so that your faith — of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire — may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed” (1 Peter 1:7).

So . . . what adversity have you been facing lately?

• Trouble at the office?
• Difficulties in your marriage?
• Tough times at school?
• Struggles in your singleness?
• Prodigals in your parenting?

Adversity and hardships are designed by God to humble us and strengthen us. Trials remind us to depend more on our Savior than on ourselves. Remember, some blessings in life can only be found on the other side of adversity. Keep on keeping on, knowing that Jesus is with you every step of the way. Adversity does not equal abandonment; it’s the necessary precursor of blessing!

This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!

Today we celebrate American Independence Day, commemorating the day the Continental Congress approved the final wording of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. The American colonists had legally separated themselves from the authority of the British Crown on July 2, but the Declaration formally laid out the reasons for the colonists’ separation from England.

As important as this day is in the life of our great nation for our independence, I pray we will be reminded to declare our utter dependence upon God . . . and not only this day, but every day on this side of heaven.

Jesus spoke of our need to recognize our dependence on Him:

I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you.Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. (John 15:1-5)

As a pastor, I often meet Christians who believe our dependence began after Adam and Eve sinned against God. They are mistaken! Before Adam and Eve’s dreadful act of cosmic treason in the Garden of Eden, they were totally dependent upon God for everything! Their divine design was one of utter dependence upon Omnipotence. They were made by God for God, and they were never to live a single moment independent from God. Self-reliance and self-rule were never a part of their divine design; rather, it was the fruit of their terrible rebellion against God, when they greedily grasped for autonomous rule apart from their Creator and Sustainer.

The serpent spun his slick lies and convinced Adam and Eve to seek their independence from God and live above and apart from the One who created them and was sustaining them. Tragically, they immediately found out just how dependent they were upon God! Only now they were dependent upon God for His mercy and forgiveness, which they received in the promise of a Savior.

I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel….And the Lord God made for Adam and for his wife garments of skins and clothed them. (Genesis 3:15, 21)

God would have been totally justified to strike our rebellious parents dead right on the spot to satisfy His holy justice . . . but He did not. What God’s justice required—payment for in full for their sin and ours—God’s grace provided for in the giving of His precious Son, Jesus Christ. Adam and Eve were dependent upon God for life prior to sin and they were dependent upon God for life after their awful sin through God’s grace and the cross work of Christ.

When was the last time you considered just how dependent you are on God? Most people immediately reflect back on a season of struggle, suffering, or sorrow and how dependent they were upon God to get through it. But what about the times in life when the sun is shining, the sky is blue, and the clouds are fleecy? We have a tendency to forget about our dependence upon God in seasons of plenty and prosperity.

Regardless of where this finds message you, your next breath is dependent upon God. The next beat of your heart is dependent upon God. Your hearing, eyesight, and the circulation of your blood are dependent upon God. If God were not upholding you right now, life as you know it would cease. This is true, not only for every person who has ever lived, but for everything that was ever created. Everything in the cosmos was created by God, for God, and is totally dependent upon God. The universe exists as a holy hymn for His glory. “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands: (Psalm 19:1).

So on this Independence Day, let us all be reminded of our total and utter dependence upon God, “For in him we live and move and have our being” (Acts 17:28).

The Bible makes it clear that the person who is most aware of his or her dependence upon God is the one who is most often pursuing God through prayer. The more you feel your need for Him, the more time you spend in prayer to Him. If your prayer life is short or shallow, you can be assured your sense of dependency upon God is short-circuited.

Scripture is full of examples of saints who were sold out in pursuing God through prayer. The model, of course, is our Master, who was in constant communion with His Father in heaven. Here is one of my all-time favorite verses:

Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed. (Mark 1:35)

“Prayer for God’s help” John Piper says, “is one way that God preserves and manifests the dependence of his people on his grace and power. The necessity of prayer is a constant reminder and display of our dependence on God for everything, so that he gets the glory when we get the help.” Dependence is a good thing, when we place our dependence upon God, and our prayer life is one of the best indicators of just how deeply we sense and show our dependence. Our Lord modeled it for us, and we are to continue in daily, heartfelt prayer and supplication.

What better time than now, as we Americans celebrate Independence Day, to declare and celebrate our utter dependence upon the righteous, self-sacrificial, and benevolent rule of our Gracious God!

This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!

Do you know the last command in the Bible? It is found, as you might expect, in the last book in the Bible.

The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let him who hears say, “Come!” Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life. (Revelation 22:17)

Oh, what comfort can be found in this final command in sacred Scripture: “COME!” Are you thirsty? “COME” and quench your thirst with the water of life. What great encouragement is in this command from Christ!

And notice the qualifications set forth for those who are to come: Whoever is thirsty! Here we find our Lord Jesus Christ, the Good Shepherd, offering living water to replace the bitter water of our broken lives . . . the bitter water of selfish ambition . . . the bitter water of self-righteousness . . . the bitter water of self-centeredness . . . the bitter water of sin and self-rule.

To be sure, this world offers water that spills out from broken cisterns, but it will never—never—deliver what it promises. We are always left thirstier than when we started and totally unsatisfied. Dare not to slake your thirst with anything smaller than Jesus! Our Lord explained this to the Samaritan woman who had come to fill her water jug from Jacob’s well:

Everyone who drinks [from this well] will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life. (John 4:13-14)

Scripture invites us to drink our fill from the Fount of every blessing to all those who thirst. Do you thirst . . .

ü  For truth? Drink in the Scriptures!

ü  For peace? Drink from the Prince of Peace!

ü  For a forgiving heart? Drink from the Fount of Forgiveness!

ü  For unconditional love for others? Drink from the Well of Limitless Love!

Only Jesus can slake your every thirst. Remember, the Bible promises that those who hunger and thirst after righteousness will be filled (Matthew 5:6).

One last thought: Do you recall the cost of all the bitter water you sipped on over the years? They were costly, right? You paid in ruined relationships, shattered dreams, and separation from God. Well, this glorious invitation to drink in the water of life comes without cost! There is nothing you must do—nothing you can do—to “earn” the opportunity to drink from the living waters. That cost was borne by Him who paid in full the staggering cost of sin for all those who will simply trust in His atoning work on their behalf.

Thirsty Christian . . . Come! Come and drink! Come and drink freely and fully!

This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!

I’m sure there are some of you who read that title and immediately thought of the rock band that became popular during the turbulent 1960s. This group of musicians was famous for their wholehearted celebration of the San Francisco drug culture and hedonistic lifestyle. Several of them died as a direct result of that deadly embrace. Trust me when I say that today’s blog has nothing to do with that notion of “The Grateful Dead,” but rather with the life of those who have placed their trust in the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ on their behalf.

Where should those who were once dead and are now alive (Colossians 2:13) be found? There can be only one place: communing with Jesus.

Six days before the Passover, Jesus arrived at Bethany, where Lazarus lived, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. Here a dinner was given in Jesus’ honor. Martha served, while Lazarus was among those reclining at the table with him.(John 12:1-2)

When Jesus arrived at the home of Lazarus, whom He had raised from the dead, we see the beating heart of a man who had been raised from death to life, sitting among those who were enjoying a meal with Jesus—drinking in His presence and listening to His every word. How inappropriate and ungrateful would it have been for Lazarus to be found anywhere else—except by the side of His Savior?

Beloved, we too were dead at one time. We were dead to the things of God. We were dead to the spiritual life. We were dead to the Savior Himself. We were dead and buried, our souls putrefying in the grave of our trespasses and sins . . . and then Jesus called us forth from the dark, terrible tomb that held us in the grip of death and damnation. It was Jesus who removed our graveclothes of sin and corruption and draped the rich robe of His righteousness on our shoulders. It was Jesus who brought us near when we were far away (Ephesians 2:13).

The cords of death entangled me,

the anguish of the grave came upon me;

I was overcome by trouble and sorrow.

Then I called on the name of the Lord: “O Lord, save me!”

The Lord is gracious and righteous; our God is full of compassion.

The Lord protects the simplehearted; when I was in great need, he saved me.

You, O Lord, have delivered my soul from death,

my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling,

that I may walk before the Lord in the land of the living. (Psalm 116:3-6, 8-9)

Can we, His adopted children, whom He saved from an awful eternity of separation from God, be satisfied living at a distance from Him? God forbid it! We, the “grateful dead,” must not live at a distance from our Savior. Lazarus set a wonderful example for all of us who have been brought forth from the grave. The grateful dead who have been raised to new life in Christ live lives that reflect their gratitude. They seek first the kingdom of heaven, knowing that everything else necessary for a life of godliness will be given to them (Matthew 6:33).

The grateful dead seek that new life in . . .

• Bible study
• Prayer
• Church attendance
• Service
• Giving
• Our homes, our workplaces, and in our communities

Lazarus could not imagine not sitting at the table of our Lord. Can you?

One last thought: If it has been a while since you have communed with Christ, fear not! Your place at the table has not been taken away or given to someone else. It is simply sitting empty, and Everlasting Love is eagerly waiting to embrace you when you return.

This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!

COMPASSION COMPASS

As you probably know, a compass is the direction-finding instrument typically used in navigation. A hiker, soldier, or sailor will use a compass to be sure he or she is headed in the right direction.

A compassion compass is the direction-finding instrument used by the Christian to find all those who are in need of Christlike compassion. This is the right direction for us.

Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. (Matthew 9:35-36)

I’d like to emphasize three things about the way the compassion compass works:

1. It requires searching.

Jesus went through all the towns and villages. He did not wait for people to come to Him. He did not hang up a sign that said, “The Great Physician is in” and wait for customers to bang on His door. He was not stationary in His service to others! He went searching for those who needed what He alone could provide.

2. It requires seeing.

Jesus was other-oriented, which opened His eyes to see the crowds of harassed and helpless sheep who needed a Good Shepherd. He refused to do what so many do today: look away from those in need. Our English Bibles do not capture the full force of the Greek verb translated had compassion in Matthew 9:36, which means to feel deeply or viscerally. When Jesus saw the sick, the lost, and the hopeless, He felt an ache in the pit of His stomach! Compassion began to beat His heart and He yearned to help them. So He did!

3. It requires shepherding.

A shepherd cares for his sheep. He knows how defenseless they are, and he knows that if he does not care for them, they simply will not survive. He knows how helpless they are without a Helper.

Like Jesus, we are to search, see, and engage. Recall Jesus’ foretelling of His words at Final Judgment:

“The righteous will [ask Jesus], ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

“The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’” (Matthew 25:37-40)

When we serve the harassed and helpless, we are serving our Lord!

So . . . how well is your compassion compass working these days? Remember what is required to keep it in top notch condition: searching for those who need to experience the healing grace of God in Christ; seeing their distress and resolving to take action; and shepherding them by meeting them at their point of need. And in a lost, broken, and hurting world, their greatest need is to hear of the One who died in their place so that they might have life in His name.

This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!