Where is Jesus when evil people do evil things?

Columbine. Sandy Hook. Attacks in Paris. San Bernardino. (Just to name a few)

With all that is going on in the world, it is so easy to be discouraged. Life can be so hard, filled with ups and downs, and so mentally and emotionally draining that it's hard to think straight. I pray you take the time to let the words of David speak to your heart, comforting you at your core. This passage gives me so much peace and hope amidst all the brokenness and evil I witness daily.

Though I may fail, the Lord never will. Though evil seems to reign, God is still in control.

This earth and everyone on it will perish, but there is more to come for those who believe.

Psalm 37[a]

Of David.

1 Do not fret because of those who are evil
    or be envious of those who do wrong;
2 for like the grass they will soon wither,
    like green plants they will soon die away.

3 Trust in the Lord and do good;
    dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.
4 Take delight in the Lord,
    and he will give you the desires of your heart.

5 Commit your way to the Lord;
    trust in him and he will do this:
6 He will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn,
    your vindication like the noonday sun.

7 Be still before the Lord
    and wait patiently for him;
do not fret when people succeed in their ways,
    when they carry out their wicked schemes.

8 Refrain from anger and turn from wrath;
    do not fret—it leads only to evil.
9 For those who are evil will be destroyed,
    but those who hope in the Lord will inherit the land.

10 A little while, and the wicked will be no more;
    though you look for them, they will not be found.
11 But the meek will inherit the land
    and enjoy peace and prosperity.

12 The wicked plot against the righteous
    and gnash their teeth at them;
13 but the Lord laughs at the wicked,
    for he knows their day is coming.

14 The wicked draw the sword
    and bend the bow
to bring down the poor and needy,
    to slay those whose ways are upright.
15 But their swords will pierce their own hearts,
    and their bows will be broken.

16 Better the little that the righteous have
    than the wealth of many wicked;
17 for the power of the wicked will be broken,
    but the Lord upholds the righteous.

18 The blameless spend their days under the Lord’s care,
    and their inheritance will endure forever.
19 In times of disaster they will not wither;
    in days of famine they will enjoy plenty.

20 But the wicked will perish:
    Though the Lord’s enemies are like the flowers of the field,
    they will be consumed, they will go up in smoke.

21 The wicked borrow and do not repay,
    but the righteous give generously;
22 those the Lord blesses will inherit the land,
    but those he curses will be destroyed.

23 The Lord makes firm the steps
    of the one who delights in him;
24 though he may stumble, he will not fall,
    for the Lord upholds him with his hand.

25 I was young and now I am old,
    yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken
    or their children begging bread.
26 They are always generous and lend freely;
    their children will be a blessing.[b]

27 Turn from evil and do good;
    then you will dwell in the land forever.
28 For the Lord loves the just
    and will not forsake his faithful ones.

Wrongdoers will be completely destroyed[c];
    the offspring of the wicked will perish.
29 The righteous will inherit the land
    and dwell in it forever.

30 The mouths of the righteous utter wisdom,
    and their tongues speak what is just.
31 The law of their God is in their hearts;
    their feet do not slip.

32 The wicked lie in wait for the righteous,
    intent on putting them to death;
33 but the Lord will not leave them in the power of the wicked
    or let them be condemned when brought to trial.

34 Hope in the Lord
    and keep his way.
He will exalt you to inherit the land;
    when the wicked are destroyed, you will see it.

35 I have seen a wicked and ruthless man
    flourishing like a luxuriant native tree,
36 but he soon passed away and was no more;
    though I looked for him, he could not be found.

37 Consider the blameless, observe the upright;
    a future awaits those who seek peace.[d]
38 But all sinners will be destroyed;
    there will be no future[e] for the wicked.

39 The salvation of the righteous comes from the Lord;
    he is their stronghold in time of trouble.
40 The Lord helps them and delivers them;
    he delivers them from the wicked and saves them,
    because they take refuge in him.

Broke? You don't want to miss this.

In a world where it is becoming increasingly difficult to be financially free, people are willing to look anywhere for some advice that can serve as a "lifeboat" to help save them from the sinking ship that is their finances. The problem is, often times the services advertised as "help" are actually sharks waiting to devour anyone who is jumping ship.

Loan sharks start out very friendly, disguising their lucrative plans to basically own you by pitching their offer as an opportunity to silence debt collectors once and for all. "Borrow from us, and never worry about that credit card company (charging 25% interest) coming after you again!" or "Don't lose your house, we'll help you pay rent this month!" Did you know that some loan sharks charge up to 719,000% interest? Yeah, you read that correctly.

I've spent the past few months working diligently on clearing up my outstanding debts and becoming financially free. I believe Jesus meant it when he said "You can't serve both God and money." When you are in the position of a "borrower", the lending agent has more control than they would lead you to believe. You can get upset, argue, and even choose to not pay... But don't be fooled, they will get theirs eventually (plus all the interest and fees they imposed because of the time it took to collect from you).

If you are in the middle of a financial mess, rather than racking up a balance on a MASTERcard, or borrowing from a company you never heard of that seems so generous in their weekly flyer, take a minute and read this story of a woman you may be able to relate with...

"A certain woman of the wives of the sons of the prophets cried out to Elisha, saying, “Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that your servant feared the Lord. And the creditor is coming to take my two sons to be his slaves.” 

So Elisha said to her, “What shall I do for you? Tell me, what do you have in the house?” And she said, “Your maidservant has nothing in the house but a jar of oil.”

Then he said, “Go, borrow vessels from everywhere, from all your neighbors—empty vessels; do not gather just a few. And when you have come in, you shall shut the door behind you and your sons; then pour it into all those vessels, and set aside the full ones.”

So she went from him and shut the door behind her and her sons, who brought the vessels to her; and she poured it out. Now it came to pass, when the vessels were full, that she said to her son, “Bring me another vessel.”

And he said to her, “There is not another vessel.” So the oil ceased. 7 Then she came and told the man of God. And he said, “Go, sell the oil and pay your debt; and you and your sons live on the rest.” 

(2 Kings 4:1-7)

What do you do when you are at risk of losing it all? When you feel like you have NOTHING left to work with? Are you listening to the plans others are making for your future, or do you trust the future God has planned for you?

God is quoted saying, "For I KNOW the plans I have for you. Plans to PROSPER you and not to harm you. Plans to give you HOPE and a FUTURE."

He also says, 

"Seek, and you will find. 

Ask, and it will be given to you. 

Knock, and the door will be opened."

Does this mean that God will give us everything we want if we ask? No, not at all.

It's a promise that if we seek Him and ask Him for His Will he will deliver.

"But the word says that God wants to give me the desires of my heart?! How come he hasn't? How can I trust someone who has let me down?"

God wants to place HIS DESIRES in our hearts, so we crave the things that God wants for us. When we focus on the stuff we don't have (enough money, latest tech, travel experience), we forget the gifts from God that matter (peace, joy, family, health, salvation through Jesus, life itself).

In a bind? Turn to Christ. Put down the credit card application. Stop stressing for a moment and have a one-on-one with God. I'm certain that you'll find Jesus working in your crisis.

"I don't need to go to church."

We’ve missed the point. We’ve been led astray.

See, we’ve changed something beautiful, and we’ve made it our way.

Something that was built so great, yet at the will of our hands,

We’ve turned it into a house built on pillars of sand.

There’s a disease in the "church", called self-gratification,

And if we don’t take action now it’ll be our own condemnation.

We continue to make it about ourselves and not about Him,

Choosing our time of worship around our favorite songs and hymns.

We spend our time absorbed in making a name for our “church”,

And yet we turn our faces away from the lost and hurt.

We’re quick to help others when eyes are upon us,

Yet when no one is watching we whine and we fuss.

See, things need to change, that’s without a doubt.

We need an attitude adjustment, a spirit-led reroute.

We need to start seeing people as Christ himself does,

And stop asking ourselves what's in it for us.

It was the most unlikely of people that God Himself used;

The broken, the doubtful, the outcasts, the abused.

We have to treat each person as a gift from above,

And give them an chance to share Christ’s love.

The church was built for much more than we know,

And if we do it His way, it’ll undoubtedly grow.

Not for the money, and not for our fame,

But to help the poor, the sick, the lame.

Take your eyes off your pastors, your needs, and your band,

Put your face to the floor, cry out, lift up your hands.

Stop asking for your own gain, realize His request.

You don’t need the church, but the church needs your best.

You were made to be a part of a heavenly whole,

A body of believers, millions of souls.

You can take your own path, and go your own way,

Or take part in the victory for which you were made.

10 Things That Can & Will Destroy A Leader

Leadership isn't easy. Anyone who's ever served in a position of leadership knows that people can be difficult, and the responsibility of equipping and guiding them can be challenging. Here is a list of ten things that can and most likely will ruin any leader if not tended to quickly enough.

1. Laziness:
A leader will get results that are equal to the amount of work that is put into leading. The lazy leader will fail to equip volunteers, employees, and followers, who will then in turn look for a better leader elsewhere. Your people will do just as much as you do, so if you want productivity, set the example and get your hands dirty.

2. Envy:
When a leader is caught up looking around at the success of the leaders around them, they miss out on the golden opportunity God has placed in front of them. Each leader has a unique calling, and that calling can be missed when a leader is too busy wishing he had the organization or success of another leader. Cheer for the success of others, and they will be glad to help you reach yours.

3. Blaming Others:
A leader who is constantly pointing the finger at others is a leader who is pointed towards failure. A true leader will assume responsibility for mistakes and errors in their organization and will spend more time seeking a solution and less time seeking a scapegoat. A leader knows that when a follower fails, it usually points to miscommunication or a lack of training from the leader.

4. Lack of Vision:
The easiest way to steer someone off track from their goal is to give them two destinations. A leader knows what they want, and is not distracted by flashy opportunities elsewhere. Until the goal is reached, a leader does not pursue outside ventures that can jeopardize or prolong the completion of the primary goal.

5. Procrastination:
When a leader continually pushes a responsibility to a later date, the leader shows an inability to follow procedure and a lack of concern for the deadlines of others. This leader has little regard for others, and only prioritizes his own to-do list. Procrastination also hints at a fear of failure for small tasks and can cost an organization. This leader will likely end up causing the organization to pay interest rather than collect interest. Be wary of the procrastinating leader.

6. Being a "Yes-Man":
A leader who cannot say "no" is not much of a leader. This leader finds himself overly-committed to many things that he or she does not want to do. This leader runs the risk of burning out, selling out, or running out of funds to pursue the ultimate goal of the organization. It is okay to say no, especially to an opportunity that does not fit the mission and vision of the organization the leader is in charge of.

7. Ego:
When a leader finds himself unable to listen to the criticism of others, he is in serious danger. This leader carries a "know-it-all" attitude that will take his organization to the grave if not dealt with. This leader will ignore warning signs, and is unwilling to learn new things. This ego will cause the business to either fail or plateau, and followers will begin to see the lack of growth and seek opportunity elsewhere.

8. Savior-Complex:
When a leader begins to feel as if they are the reason for the success or well-being of their followers, they adopt a savior-complex that places their followers in a position of dependence. This leader now has unreasonable expectations from his team and is surprised when his followers aren't brimming over with exaggerated appreciation for all of his "hard work" and "care".

9. Thin-Skin:
This quality pushes a leader to make changes whenever they are faced with criticism and insult rather than investigating into whether the remarks are valid. This leader is easily swayed by any comment about their leadership, appearance, company, or team and operates out of a very sensitive spirit causing them to rarely take risks and be manipulated by a team member with a personal agenda. This leader barely realizes that they are a leader, and instead tries to please his team in order to gain friendships and avoid pain.

10. Lack of Integrity:
This leader operates out of self-interest, and will break the rules for personal gain and comfort. This leader is on vacation while on the clock, spends the organizations funding on personal expenses, and may even gossip about team members. This is the most dangerous quality, especially in our day and age where there is easy access to records and information spreads so quickly through any department. The truth will expose this leader eventually, and their credibility will be destroyed. This leader is ridiculously fortunate if they ever get a second chance to lead, and will have to do some major trust-building in their new organization.

Church Decisions

Many churches are driven by different forces. The decisions a church makes can be driven by finances, the building, personal influences, or the purpose of the church.

When a church is driven by its finances, the reoccurring theme is "How much will this idea cost us?"

If driven by its building, the answer always sounds something like, "Well, it's a nice idea but we can't do something like that in our church. Something can be stolen or broken!"

If driven by a person, a few phone calls or intimidating words will seal the deal for any decision.

But, when a church is driven by it's purpose, amazing things can happen. This begs the question, "What is the purpose of the church?" We are called to make disciples of all the earth, bringing them the Good News. This means we are to invest time, money, energy, and tremendous effort into loving people, serving them, and introducing them to a God who died to turn their wrongs into nothing more than their past.

I know, investing so much into people who may literally wipe their ends with what you've given them seems too risky and not worth the pain, but as the old adage goes, "No pain, no gain." Jesus gave himself up for a people who would slander his name, abuse his grace, and ridicule his teachings. As he died on the cross, he said, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do." We have to take up the same attitude when dealing with those who use the church one weekend, and badmouth the leadership the next. They don't know how precious the work the church does really is, but can we blame them for it? No, because He didn't.

We are the redemptive work of God through Jesus. We are the builders of His Kingdom, voluntarily here to introduce the peace of Christ to a world in chaos. If we allow the stress of this life to consume us, we are allowing the fire God has given us to be quenched, and we become useless for the work of the Gospel.

As the church, we must wake up every morning KNOWING that there our people literally dying to hear the message of Christ, and we must operate out of a desperation to do the will of the Father. From the moment we step out of bed we need to put on the mind of Christ, and treat every conversation, thought, and action as an opportunity to bring the light into our world.

Let's not worry about money, church attendance, a building that will eventually crumble anyway, or what someone will think of us. Rather, let's focus on building the Church, a body that will never crumble or decay, and will never go bankrupt. God will open up His heavenly storehouses on us and provide us with what we need to build His Church.

God bless you today, and this week.

Pastor Alex