We had a great elders/ministers meeting last Saturday morning. Almost 3 hours long...wow. Thank you God for caffeine. (We start at 7:30 am on 2nd & 4th Saturdays of the month...)
We talked about many things, dreamed about how God will use us in His overall mission of loving and reconciling the world...somewhere during the discussion we brought up Matthew 7:21ff...which at the outset is not all that encouraging...but in this version, it really helped us internalize and personalize what Jesus was saying about true obedience to Him.
From Matthew 7, The Message version:
15-20"Be wary of false preachers who smile a lot, dripping with practiced sincerity. Chances are they are out to rip you off some way or other. Don't be impressed with charisma; look for character. Who preachers are is the main thing, not what they say. A genuine leader will never exploit your emotions or your pocketbook. These diseased trees with their bad apples are going to be chopped down and burned.
21-23"Knowing the correct password—saying 'Master, Master,' for instance— isn't going to get you anywhere with me. What is required is serious obedience—doing what my Father wills. I can see it now—at the Final Judgment thousands strutting up to me and saying, 'Master, we preached the Message, we bashed the demons, our God-sponsored projects had everyone talking.' And do you know what I am going to say? 'You missed the boat. All you did was use me to make yourselves important. You don't impress me one bit. You're out of here.'
Definitely worth pondering....
Go Colts! Go Cowboys! Go Carl Edwards! (what a nasty wreck near the end, huh? Kasey Kahne is one of my favorite drivers, and he took the brunt of it...how cool that they've designed those cars to handle such impact.)
Let's see if the Titans can show up tonight and get a W.
Happy Monday everyone.
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