Tag: Revival

Sex, Theology and Politics

Lisa M. PriceLeave a comment

 Above all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires~ 2nd Peter 3:3 NIV

 I started blogging because, well, frankly I was naïve and weirdly overconfident in my ability to attract an audience. I figured if I took the time to write it, people would read it.

 My expectations were quickly brought down to earth.

 It didn’t take long to conclude that I had fooled myself into believing I am far cooler than I actually am. My world was briefly shattered when I discovered (much to my chagrin) that most people are not interested in the subjects I find fascinating. I now have irrefutable evidence that there are two subjects that the average person cares nothing about.

 History and theology.

 If I were foolish enough to write a blog on the history of theology I can give you the first and last names of the three (possibly four, five if you count my husband) people who would take the time to read said blog.

 Sigh.

 On the other hand, sex is typically a huge draw.

 I briefly considered putting the word sex in all of my blog titles just to get the clicks. However, I was told it would be misleading to write a blog on say, the pros and cons of the doctrine of determinism; and then trick people into reading it by leading them to believe it was actually about sex.

 I have also found that a rousing political blog typically attracts readers. I also learned that broadcasting my political opinions is the most efficient way to get un-friended by family members on Facebook.

 Today I have decided to throw caution to the wind and combine the topics of sex, politics and theology and see where all that takes us…

 This morning I ventured away from some of my preferred books of the Bible and read through the book of Jude. There I found a verse that got me thinking about how a faulty interpretation of theology can affect both sex and politics…

  For certain individuals whose condemnation was written about long ago have secretly slipped in among you. They are ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into a license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign and Lord~ Jude 4 NIV

 On the surface this verse is fairly straightforward from a historic perspective. Teachers in the ancient church had introduced teachings regarding grace that were generating all sorts of moral chaos and even causing some believers to turn away from Jesus.

 Like I said, fairly straightforward.

 However, Jude was not writing entirely for the benefit of the 1st century Church. Any warning given in the New Testament was intended for all believers throughout the ages. Furthermore, with all the dubious notions concerning the subject of grace floating around today; it’s safe to assume that Jude’s warning was prophetic and more applicable today than at anytime in history.

 The word translated as license in English is a Greek word (exousia) that means authority. Jude seems to be indicating that some had/would come into the church and make themselves into the ultimate authority on what the grace of God is really all about. In the process they would/had pervert the subject and lead many away from truth about God and life.

 We live in a world where many (including some Christians) believe that things the Bible calls evil are good and the things the Bible says are good, are evil (Isaiah 5:20-21).

 This is the fault of the church itself.

 For years the church in America has taught that grace is a giant bucket of forgiveness believers can dip into anytime they please. Not just for unintentional sin but also for intentional sin as well. We have conveniently forgotten that in the Old Testament there was no provision in the law for intentional sin. We have also failed to teach that there are lists of sins in the New Testament that, if they are deliberate and ongoing, promise to defile and ultimately disqualify folks from the Kingdom of God (Mark 7:21-22, Romans 1:24-31, Galatians 5:19-21, Colossians 3:5-9, 1st Corinthians 6:9-10, 1st Timothy 1:9-10, Revelation 21:8).

 Christians are called to be the moral leaders of the world. Because believers have adopted a wobbly view of right and wrong- especially where sexuality and divorce are concerned- social chaos has followed. Now politicians are busy sanctioning sexual sin into the law of the land. The Church paved the way for the world to believe that there will never be any sort of consequences for anything, no matter how sinful.

 We need a restructuring of our thinking regarding the subject of grace. Christians are called to be holy people, not exploiters of God’s willingness to forgive. A return to holiness might just stimulate a much-needed sea change that affects every sphere of society.

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

My Wishlist for the Church In 2017

Lisa M. PriceLeave a comment

 And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ~ Philippians 1:9-10 NIV

I have a rather sketchy relationship with New Year’s resolutions.

 I love the whole notion of New Year’s resolutions. Unfortunately, I tend to struggle with the follow-thru required to actually bring my dreams of self-betterment to fruition.

 It all starts out fairly well.

 Like most folks I typically I find myself feeling a bit pudgy and sluggish between Christmas and News Years. It’s the sad but predictable outcome of too many Christmas cookies and not enough time on the treadmill in the weeks leading up to the holidays. So logically my goals for the coming year begin with a strategy for weight loss and reaching a level of physical fitness I have never achieved before (a doubtful endeavor at my age and stage of life, but you can’t fault a woman for hoping).

 Next, because I like to consider myself a spiritually minded individual, I normally include a resolution to study and pray more. I also typically resolve to read at least a couple of books written by people who are smarter and more spiritual than I am. I also always include some sort of strategy to better myself in a tangible way (i.e. become a better wife, mother, writer, speaker, leader, friend etc.)

 To my credit, I tend to do better at the stuff that actually matters (spiritual discipline, self-improvement, prayer) than I do at weight loss and achieving physical fitness goals. The only time I can remember losing a significant amount of weight in the month of January was the year my daughter was born. She was born in January, so losing fifteen pounds wasn’t exactly an earth-shattering achievement

 My biggest grievance with New Years resolutions is that most years my resolve vanishes around the same time the Valentines candy shows up on store shelves. Therefore, this year I am taking a new approach. Rather than simply resolving to make some superficial changes in my life, I have decided to choose a few issues and make them a focus of prayer throughout the year.

 Some of the things I intend to pray about are personal; others are more global, most are both. Many of my prayers for this coming year will be focused on the church and what I hope God does in the lives of His people (me included) this coming year.

 Without question, my number one yearning for Christians is that we will do what needs to be done to make the main thing the main thing once again. From God’s perspective the main thing is for people who don’t know Jesus to come to know Jesus and repent of their sins (Acts 4:12, 1st Timothy 2:3-4, John 3:16).

 Sadly, evangelism ceased to be the main thing in most of our churches long ago. Making unsaved people feel loved, welcome and utterly un-judged has taken a backseat to getting those people saved and walking in truth (Matthew 28:19-20). I pray this is the year we do the soul searching and hard work necessary to make evangelism a priority in the life of the Church once again.

 My hope is that this is the year we will gain a deeper understanding of the complexity and depth of Christian love. Love is our highest calling as Christians (1st John 4:7, 1st Corinthians 13) no one with even a shallow acquaintance with Scripture would bother arguing against that point. However, Christian love is more complicated than simply being nice to sinful people.

 Jesus was the nicest, kindest person who ever lived. However, niceness did not prevent Him from informing sinners they would go to hell if they refused to repent of their sins (Matthew 4:17, Luke 13:2-3, John 8:11) and kindness didn’t stop Him from calling out hypocrisy and pretense when He encountered it (Matthew 23). I’m thinking it’s time for the pendulum to swing back and for the church to preach all aspects of the gospel consistently once again.

 My prayer is that followers of Jesus will do the hard things that need to be done so we can grow into the people God has called us to be and reach the people God has called us to reach. If we do that, 2017 will be the year we truly impact our lost and hurting world for Jesus Christ.

 Happy New Year! 

 

 

 

 

Why We Should Stop Telling People to ask Jesus into Their Hearts

Lisa M. Price1 Comment

When He (Jesus) had called the people to Himself, with His disciples also, He said to them, “Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me~ Mark 8:34 NKJV

 Anyone who has been a Christian for any length of time will tell you in a state of wide-eyed wonder that evangelical Christianity has changed significantly over the course of the last three decades or so.

 Some changes have been positive and healthy. Changes in attitudes have righted some legitimate wrongs that were shockingly common in some Christian circles, especially in the arena of legalism.

 I have an older Christian friend who told me that when she was growing-up her family had an actual LIST of things she and her siblings were told they could not do if they wanted to be followers of Jesus.

 Among other things THE LIST included: skipping church for any reason other than serious illness, playing card games (because go-fish and Uno are gateway sins that the devil exploits to lay the foundation for future gambling addictions) attending movies of any kind, wearing make-up, going to the beach (because of swimsuits) and of course wearing pants (because she was a girl). Her Pastor also taught that it was possible to lose ones salvation for owning a television, smoking cigarettes or attending a school dance.

 Sigh.

 Thank heaven most of us have chosen to part ways with the pharisaical judgment of the past, and leave it in the past where it belongs.

 However, Christian’s today are far less devoted to their faith than our more judgmental forerunners were. Christians today are far less likely to attend weekly services, honor their marriage vows, observe scriptural commands regarding sexuality, read the Bible consistently (or at all), pray and serve in their local congregations.

 Sigh.

 It would be foolish to argue that the problems vexing the Church are somehow less threatening to Christianity than the sins of the past. The current crop of problems the church is dealing with may be different from the problems of the past, but that does not make them any less hazardous to the health of the average Christian.

 Theories abound as to how exactly we got into this mess. There are some who blame inadequate teaching from the pulpit. Others attribute the problems on an absence of church discipline. Many blame invading secularism and the acceptance of worldly entertainment in the Church.

 Oddly enough, there are even some who believe that it was the demise of legalism that created the problems the Church is now wrestling with.

 No I am not kidding.

 Some individuals actually believe that legalism (strict adherence to manmade rules) made Christians more aware of their own behavior and fearful of the judgment of others. Thus legalism protected the church from the sinful excesses currently devastating the body of Christ.

 Clearly, some theories have greater merit than others.

 However, in my estimation they all miss the mark. The real problem is not with legalism per se. In this case legalism is simply a symptom of a much bigger problem. The real problem lies with how we view the Christian life. If we view the Christian life as a list of rules to be kept then we will eventually devolve into a pool of legalistic goo and destroy the beauty and spirit of grace that makes the Christian life a life worth living.

 Conversely, if we view the Christian life as simply “asking Jesus into our heart” then we will inevitably come to see our relationship with Jesus as something we get to do on our own terms. The Christian life becomes something we do for our own pleasure and to meet our own needs. God becomes the servant and we become the master. He becomes a tool that we use to get what we think we need out of life. If God fails to meet our needs on our terms we leave Him on the margins of our lives or abandon Him all together and go off in search of something that will satisfy us on our terms.    

 The answer is not a return to legalism or even simply ridding our lives of bad entertainment and wrong thinking (although that idea is not completely without merit). The answer is to rethink how we view the Christian life. Christianity is not about asking Jesus into our hearts just so we have assurance of salvation.

 Christianity is about following Jesus wherever He leads and obeying His commands, whatever the cost.    

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Election Nightmare is Over-Now What?

Lisa M. Price4 Comments

 For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him~ 2nd Chronicles 16:9a NASB

 I was not going to write a blog this week.

 I am on vacation. My only plan for the week was to reconnect with friends, catch-up on some much-needed sleep, replenish my rapidly dwindling stores of vitamin D and indulge my love for tacos in the great state of Arizona.

 However.

 Events have compelled me to break with the plan and attempt to communicate my hopes, fears and thoughts concerning the future of America, and more specifically, the church in America in light of the election results on Tuesday.

 After arguably the weirdest, most contentious election in modern history, the people have spoken and Donald J. Trump has been chosen as leader of the free world.

 To say I have mixed feelings about a Donald Trump presidency understates my feelings to such a degree that I literally do not have words to describe my feelings (and I always have words, having words is my thing). On the one hand I am thrilled Hillary Clinton will not be President of the United States.

 Hillary Clinton is a corrupt and godless woman. Her behavior as Secretary of State repeatedly crossed the line into criminal territory. I am opposed to the vast majority of her policy positions and I find it highly disturbing that those positions can and do change on a dime. Furthermore her irksomely smug assumption that she somehow deserved to be President because it was “her turn” irritates me to no end.

 I am beyond relieved she lost the election.

 Despite my well-documented misgivings, Donald Trump has some qualities that give me hope. He has raised four loyal, hard working, adult children, (no small feat in this world). Throughout the campaign he has chosen to surround himself with some very wise and godly people. He has promised to restore sanity to the Supreme Court and he clearly loves our country. His Presidential acceptance speech was genuinely moving and exhibited a deep desire to unite and heal the country.

 However.

 My concerns have not vanished. Some are directly related to Donald Trump as a man. The other concerns are a bit squishier and harder to put into words.

 But I will try.

 My concerns regarding Donald Trump are mostly related to his temperament and lack of consistency on issues. He has changed his mind more times on more issues than a tired toddler coming off a sugar-high. Humility (a necessary quality in a leader) is quite clearly not his greatest strength. He has said some extraordinarily “indelicate” things regarding women and appears to relish offending people unnecessarily.

 However.

 God has had lesser men to work with and still accomplished the impossible. I may not entirely trust Donald J. Trump but I do trust God.

 My concern for the country runs deeper.

 We are a deeply divided nation of dreadfully immature people. We are no longer capable of agreeing to disagree on the issues and behaving like adults. Over the course of the last week I have seen posts on social media that have left me stunned and disillusioned with the human race. There has been gloating on one side and inexcusably ugly vitriol on the other. Some are threatening to leave the country because their candidate didn’t win; others are literally setting things on fire and shutting down our cities.

 The childishness is appalling.

 Confounding the situation further, we have reached a point in America where many have come to believe that good is evil and evil is good. Every sort of depravity is encouraged by those in authority and celebrated by the masses. In recent years government agencies have begun to mandate Christians go along with the never-ending onslaught of degeneracy or lose their freedoms. Historically God has not had a lot of patience with societies that reach our level of contempt for decency and human freedom.

 Despite all that, I believe God is giving the Christian community a much-needed opportunity to regroup and get our churches, communities and families healthy again. We cannot sit back and assume a Trump win is a mandate from God to continue on with the business-as-usual mentality that has infected our homes and Churches for decades. The time has come for Christians to get serious about serving God, deal decisively with sin, live righteously, pray for wisdom and tell others about Jesus.

 It is essential we make the most of the opportunity we’ve been given. It might be the last one we get.

Why “Finding My Own Way” is a Stupid Concept that only Leads to Destruction-

Lisa M. PriceLeave a comment

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths~ Proverbs 3:5-6 NKJV

 

Like most human beings I have my fair share of weird quirks.

 There is only one brand of socks I will put on my feet. I obsessively track all things news related and possess an almost unnatural affection for the color orange. But perhaps my quirkiest quirk is the love-hate relationship I have with GPS.

 I freely concede there are countless reasons to love GPS.

 GPS can be used by anyone with the brainpower roughly equivalent to that of a chimp from any civilized locale on earth. It operates at all hours of the day and night and will direct even the most navigationally challenged person anywhere they wish to go. The voice guiding the driver never sounds surly, irritable or critical, no matter how many times the computer is forced to recalculate due to the stupidity, stubbornness or inattention of the driver.

 However.

 I secretly view dependency on GPS as a form of weakness.

A weakness that is essentially equivalent to that of a porn addiction. I live in a mid-size city that’s laid out fairly well and believe I should be able to find my way without a machine telling me what to do. I believe that I am above being bossed around by a computer chip.

 The sad result of this (clearly) faulty worldview is that I typically waste a great deal of time before I pull over, confer with SIRI and get headed in the right direction.

 Sigh.

 Just last week I found myself in a parking lot programming the GPS on my phone after ten minutes of meandering in an unfamiliar area of town. As I merged back into traffic it struck me that anytime we insist on willfully leaning on our own wisdom, intellect, or sense of direction we run the risk of looking and behaving like fools.

 Our culture has been busily proving this point for the better part of a century.

 Children educated through our taxpayer funded school system have been taught they are nothing more than pointless blobs of protoplasm and the result of millions of years of happenstance. The same system has done its level best to convince our kids that morality and religion are nothing more than the archaic consequence of millions of years of evolution and human futility. Like fools, we throw our hands up in baffled outrage when the children force-fed this worldview behave exactly like the animals they have been told they are.

 Years ago it was decided that the best sex is “value-free” and “responsibility-free” and the only human life worth defending is life that is “planned” or “wanted” (Psalm 139:13, Jeremiah 1:5). Many have ridiculed, mocked and even feared the whole notion of growing-up and taking responsibility. Now we can’t understand why more folks aren’t settling down, getting married and having children or taking better care of the kids they do have. Like fools we wonder why so many grown people are stuck at an adolescent level of maturity.

 Decades back society concluded that integrity and decency were unnecessary character qualities in elected officials. Getting the job done and keeping the economy rolling along were the only priorities anyone really cared about. Today the current crop of political candidates is for the most part, a group of people who would have been considered unfit for any office just a few years ago. The government is permanently gridlocked and the economy is stuck in second gear. And we shake our heads in dismay at the corruption, ineptitude, and double-dealing that has become systemic in politics (Proverbs 28:15, Proverbs 29:2) .

 “Society” is not entirely to blame for the mess we find ourselves in. Many Christians have done their best to rewrite the guidelines God laid down. We have lifted the prohibition on divorce, relaxed our views on fornication and adultery, and turned church attendance into a strictly optional activity (Colossians 3, Romans 12, 2nd Peter 1:3-11). Church discipline is no longer tolerated and morality is no longer a fixed set of standards established on the unchanging character of an unchanging God. Morality is now a messy muddle based entirely on our feelings at the moment and the situation we find ourselves in.

Sigh.

 We have to stop trying to find our way without God.

 Christians cannot nor should they attempt to control what non-Christian people do (1st Corinthians 5:12). However, I am convinced we can lead the culture back to a more biblical way of thinking and behaving. In this case, leadership begins with repentance and repentance begins with a complete turn around in our thinking about how we educate our kids, think about sex, choose our leaders, demonstrate our obedience to God and do church (Matthew 4:17, Acts 3:19, Romans 2:4).

 Anything else is just leaning on our own understanding.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Where We Went Wrong With the Millennial Generation

Lisa M. Price1 Comment

When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things~ 1st Corinthians 13:11 NKJV

 Over the last dozen or so years a countless number of articles and blog posts have been written on the subject of the Millennial generation and their well-documented indifference towards organized religion in general and Christianity in particular.

 Most writers focus almost entirely on solving the immediate spiritual crisis. Concerned parties want to reach the eighty percent who have wandered from the faith, before the entire generation is irrevocably lost to secularism, humanism, and atheism. I truly care about reaching the millennial generation on a spiritual level. However, I believe its every bit as imperative we understand how we got into this mess in first place.

 History is always critically important.

 Unless we know where we went wrong in a particular area we will be doomed to repeat the same stupid mistake until we die. Sadly, a countless number of blunders were made with the millennial generation. Parents, schools and churches all carry a share of the blame.

It all began with how my generation was raised.

Few in my generation were ever told we were special or smart when we were kids. This was true even when we did things that were genuinely special or smart. We were seldom permitted to voice our opinions or encouraged to share our thoughts. It was NEVER okay to contradict an adult. So when we became parents we did what Americans do when they encounter a wrong.

 We overcompensated.

 We told our kids a hundred times a day that they were smarter, more special and better informed than any children in the history of forever. If they pooped we threw a party, complete with M&M’s and party hats. If they shared an opinion, we celebrated that opinion no matter how irrational or poorly thought-out it happened to be. We insisted every kid get a trophy and made certain no child ever felt less than AWESOME about his or her academic or athletic abilities, regardless of actual ability.

 Educators were quick to focus on feelings rather than facts and hop on to the self-esteem bandwagon. Discipline went out of fashion and subjects like history were taught from an extremely one-sided perspective. Kids were rarely expected to examine both sides of an issue nor were they taught to judge historical figures actions and attitudes in the context of the time period they lived in. Absurd viewpoints were rarely, if ever challenged in academic settings.

 Churches and youth ministries focused on having fun, forming relationships and making kids feel good about themselves. Learning the Bible was dropped in favor of “service projects” and “doing life together”. The whole notion of sin was marginalized. Youth ministries focused on transforming children not yet out of puberty, including some who exhibited no indications of salvation into “leaders” who would “reach their generation for Jesus”. Do not judge, lest you be judged (Matthew 7:1) was the one Bible verse every high school student memorized.

 The end result of this collective madness has been devastating to our culture.

 Many millennials never let go of childish ideas about life and reality. It’s appallingly common for grown people to think that feelings are more important than facts and that if you believe something to be true then it must be. Many become anxious and overwrought when a flaw is pointed out in their thinking or when a viewpoint that differs from their own is presented. That is why we now have “safe spaces” on college campuses and in workplaces, to shield people from words or ideas that make them uncomfortable.

 Sigh.  

 The most tragic consequences of our folly have manifested themselves in the realm of the spiritual. Many millennials believe that if a Bible verse FEELS wrong to them then the Bible got it wrong on that subject. Because teenagers were placed in positions of spiritual leadership long before they were actually converted, acquired any wisdom or knew much of anything about the Bible; many are prideful and will not tolerate correction, even when the correction comes directly out of the Bible.

 Sadly, that is the root reason many millennials have left the church to “work out their own spiritual experience”. They simply cannot tolerate the fact that there is a higher authority than them, be it God or the Bible.

 We must change the way we look at life, God, parenting, and the nature of reality. It’s time to put away childish thoughts about such things and think like adults, this is especially true for Christians.

 It is time to acknowledge some basic truths: facts are more important than feelings, believing something does not make it true and only children shield themselves from ideas that challenge their thinking or hurt their feelings. While we’re at it we need to get back to the understanding that God is real and due to His position as Creator and Sustainer of all things He really does have a fundamental right to tell us what to do.

 Before it’s too late.

Be the Leader you Want to see

Lisa M. PriceLeave a comment

If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land~ 2nd Chronicles 7:14

 We live in an age of bizarre contradictions. Some are amusing, others are puzzling, and a few are rather troubling:

 For the first time in human history places exist where it is possible to be both overfed and undernourished.

 Most organizations striving for equality for women refuse to recognize the right of unborn woman to actually be born.

 Those who report spending the most time “connected” to social media sites are also the most likely to report feeling “lonely” and “disengaged” from others.

 Leadership is another arena of inconsistencies and absurdities. A recent and rather hasty Amazon search for “leadership books” netted a whopping 185,460 results. Leadership seminars and conferences have become virtually ubiquitous and every high school student in America is required to take at least one leadership class in order to graduate. Leadership is the current buzzword and yet good leaders are getting tougher and tougher find.

 The sad state of leadership in our culture is most clearly seen in the political realm. Many of the “leaders” who are running for President tell lies on a fairly consistent basis. Few are above stooping to dirty tricks to win an election. One frontrunner will likely be indicted on federal charges and the other is being sued for fraud. Few of the officials who presently hold office are any better. Almost none of them have done what they promised to do; fewer still are humble enough to own up to their lack of accomplishment.

 The political realm is not the only arena where leadership is sadly lacking. Both male and female teachers are frequently dismissed from their positions for having sex with the students they are paid to lead. Sports, movie, and music icons are eager to take the material blessings and notoriety that come with celebrity. However, few are prepared to use those blessings to benefit others or lead kids in a wholesome direction. Some of the vilest offenders of common decency have stated categorically that they “are not role models.”

 Leadership is an issue in many churches as well. There are an appalling number of Christian leaders who live lives of duplicity, preaching love and righteousness from the pulpit and mistreating people or viewing porn when they think no one is watching. However, incidents of obvious sin are not the only issue creating chaos in our churches.

 Many “leaders” in our churches are so averse to saying anything that might possibly be construed as offensive, or hurt someone’s feelings that little of substance is actually said. Christians have bought into the lie that it’s the Holy Spirit’s job to do ALL the convicting and challenging.

 Conviction, or the awareness that we have done wrong, is the natural outcome of exposure to spiritual truth (Acts 26:20, 2nd Timothy 4:2). Too many churches seem to have set the bar at simply transforming sinners into nicer people, rather than leading them to a radical change of thinking about life and God that leads to repentance and transformation.

 It is simply a fact that the Holy Spirit is the only one actually capable of truly transforming a person’s heart and mind. However, Christians have an obligation to give Him something of substance He can work with as He does the work of persuading people of their need for change.

 The muddled state of leadership in our world ought to give us all pause. If history is repeated and it usually is our future world will likely be rather grim. Typically following a period of corrupt leadership and cultural anarchy, strict, autocratic and sometimes even fascist leadership rises from the ashes of cultural decay.

 It’s not too late. Change is still possible, but it won’t come easy. Christians need to be the leaders they want to see. We cannot be anything or do anything of any substance without God’s leadership, help and mercy. It is time for Christians everywhere to to pray and seek the face of God. Don’t pray that God changes the world; rather, pray that He changes us so we can change the world.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Time to Wake Up

Lisa M. PriceLeave a comment

I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope he has given to those he called—his holy people who are his rich and glorious inheritance.   ~ Ephesians 1:18 NLT

 For as long as I can recall, I have loved the idea of New Years resolutions. I made my first one when I was eight years old. I scribbled it out in crayon and resolved to sweet-talk my parents into getting me a dog of my very own. As I matured, my yearly resolutions gradually became a bit more refined but no less self-centered. For the most part I focused on losing weight, meeting personal goals, making money, and other self-improvement schemes.

 I became a Christian as a young adult and over time my New Years resolutions evolved more into prayers I would commit to praying for the year. Some of those prayers/resolutions were and still are rather self-absorbed, but most centered on becoming a better, godlier person rather than just a skinnier, more attractive person.

 As 2015 makes its debut, I have committed to pray for and resolved to work on some personal and family issues this coming year. I have also committed to praying for the Church this year. In this context, “Church” refers to the people throughout the world who profess Christ as Lord.

 I feel led to pray for the Church because, well, frankly I am profoundly concerned for the Church and and have been for a very long time. I fear that the body of Christ has gone off course and is in danger of losing its way. So for my first post of 2015 I will share the top six prayers/hopes I have for God’s people this coming year.

 I pray that we would all:

 Know our value-

 Scripture and experience have persuaded me that every Christian has boundless potential for impacting their little corner of the world for good. You are valuable enough for Christ to die for you. We are so cherished that Jesus is continuously interceding for each one of us (Romans 8:34, Hebrews 7:25). That makes us all far too significant to waste our time chasing pointless pastimes, getting stuck in patterns of sin or exerting energy harboring bitterness and resentment.

 Do something hard-

 Hard things include, but are not limited to, helping those who have life-controlling issues, loving the unlovable, adopting orphans, offering help to the hurting, and just generally functioning as salt and light in our broken-down, busted-up world. Hard things are seldom attempted, because hard things are by their very nature time-consuming, emotionally risky and expensive. Hard things are also the only things that have the potential to transform the lives of people. When we work to transform the lives of people we make this world a better place and bring God’s Kingdom a little closer to Earth.

 Stop being afraid to make people squirm every once in a while-

 The New Testament repeatedly links repentance or a change in behavior with saving faith and spiritual growth (Luke 24:7, Acts 3:19, Acts 17:30-31, 2nd Corinthians 7:10, 2nd Timothy 2:24-26). Preaching and teaching on repentance has been replaced with upbeat messages aimed at boosting self-esteem and soothing consciences rather than awakening them. I am not advocating an all-out return to hellfire-and-brimstone preaching; nevertheless I do think it’s high time we stopped being so fearful of making people feel bad.

 Repair something-

 Every Christian should be a reconciler and rebuilder (2nd Corinthians 5:18-19). Think of all that could change if enough of us got serious about reconciling broken relationships and rebuilding broken systems in our communities.

 Pray more-

 Prayer isn’t about getting God to see things our way or do what we want. Prayer is about being enabled to see things God’s way and empowered to do what God wants done. We could certainly use a little more of all that. Getting it will require a commitment to pray more.

 Restore shame-

 Physiologists have sold society a flimflam job. As a result, many Christians have bought into the ludicrous notion that shame is always a sign of some sort of psychological issue or problem. The Bible teaches that shame is a natural consequence of bad behavior. I am aggressively campaigning for a return of shame because without sit no one will ever feel the urge to adjust course or repent of their sin.

 I love the New Year because it is a time to reflect on where we are, who we are becoming and what we are accomplishing with our time and resources. I am praying that this is the year Christians awaken to our value in Christ, pray zealously, speak the truth openly and lovingly, embrace hard things, rebuild broken things and endeavor to be the Church rather than simply attend Church.