Well, it's officially 2017 now. While thinking over this past Sunday's "vision" sermon and reflecting on the things I wished to have said, please know; as with all sermons, time does not allow for everything to be conveyed. I'm sure that those in attendance appreciate my being conscious of time, so I will share with you in this blog a little more of what God had pressed upon me from last week.
During this Sunday's "vision" sermon, we mentioned that the mission, vision, and purpose for Campbellsburg Baptist Church has not changed. The Mission and Ministry handbook that was published and distributed last year requires no updates or revisions for our continued ministry. But this Sunday we did take a close look at the individual Christian that makes up CBC. In Ephesians, we noticed Paul giving the church a hope in their "oneness" with the Father and how we are called to walk in a manner worthy of our calling. This manner demands that we first consider our relationship with God.
In addition to last week’s sermon, let me say that we must take serious our opportunity and our calling to make much of God in our daily lives. But for the believer, it all starts with our desire to know God better and to accomplish this, it requires that we study and spend personal time with Him on a regular basis. With life being so full of distractions, it is totally understandable how one can put-off squeezing out more time for anything. But if someone has been called into a relationship with Jesus Christ by the Holy Spirit, I can't imagine anything replacing the love, forgiveness, and promise that was received during the conversion.
I am not perfect, and yes, there are times that I to put-off spending time alone with God because of my own personal desires; however, when I do put-off that time with God, I miss it. I miss spending time with God and listening to Him speak to me through His Word. I miss praying to God and then later seeing Him answer my prayers.
Let me challenge each of you to make the commitment this year to sacrifice your personal desires in order to make sure you spend time with God on a daily basis. If you desire to study in groups, I will connect you with others that share your desires. I also commit to meeting with you to study together until you feel more comfortable studying on your own.
Having already stated that there is more to be said than time will allow each Sunday; well, so does God have so much to say that an entire lifetime will allow. Let me ask you to reflect on this; there is so much to know about God, that He gives us an eternity to learn it. Will you put forth the time to learn what God is teaching us right now?
