"Religious"

"For there they that carried us away captive required of us a song; and they that wasted us required of us mirth, saying, Sing us one of the songs of Zion." (Psalms 137:3)

  There is actually an easier way to get to the truth; it is a way that separates what the world might say we should do, and what it is that God tells us to do. The most important thing for the believer to do, is to understand where the line is drawn between the two. I heard part of a message from Pastor Jack yesterday, where he was sharing about a young man in his church that had came up to him and said, "The Lord told me to quit my job." Talking about jobs, I thought it was interesting how that came about, because there was a very good lesson, just in case anyone is hearing the same thing. Pastor Jack continued by saying what his reaction was, as he asked the young man, "This is a pretty big step of faith; how are you going to pay your bills?" To that the young man answered, "God told me that you would know what I should do and that you would help me." Pastor Jack replied, "No, you should have figured that out on your own, before you quit your job; or at least waited for God to provide you with something else." To the one who might be planning such a move, let me tell you a little secret: God will always open the door to something else before He closes another one! It is the same way for churches, as in, should I stay or should I go? The answer is quit simple: If God is asking you to leave a church, for whatever reason, then before you do anything, ask Him to show you where you should be going. It is really quite simple; not that there isn't a little faith required, because any move you do requires putting your faith in God, if you are wanting to follow the will of God for your life. In the case of Abraham, for instance, he was told to leave the land of his father and mother, and that He would show him the land that awaited him; a land that had promise, backed up with blessings upon blessings, and with the ultimate declaration: "And in thee shall all the families of the earth be blessed." So, if you hear God say anything like that, who needs to actually know where it is that you are going? Besides, this is about listening to God! Some people listen to God by flipping through their Bibles and landing on certain Scriptures; and some people try to hear from God by listening to the noise around them. God still speaks in "a still small voice." The point of that is quite simple too: God has so much authority, He does not need to shout! It is very similar to the illustration of Jacob wrestling with God; it only took God's finger to change the subject...

"For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish, foolishness; but unto us which are saved, it is the power of God. For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and I will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent. Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe. For the Jews require a sign, and the Greek seek after wisdom: but we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness; but unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God. Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men." (1 Corinthians 1:18-25)