Where Are We?

Where are we? Now, I don’t mean simply where you and I are – as we read this.
     I mean, where are we? Where are we as a country? As a community? Where are we as the church, as the community of believers? Where are we as the individual members of the Body of Christ?
     When I asked several people that question, one of them said: “Oh, we’re OK, we’re doing fine.” Someone else said: “Wow, we’re doing a lot better then we were.” Yet another person said: “Well, I’m doing great, but I know a lot who aren’t.”
     Then there was the person who asked if I wanted an honest answer, or just one to make me feel good cause I’m a preacher. I said an honest one. They said: “Our country is going to hell in a hand basket because the people of God have lost their zeal, and God has lost His place.”
     Quite frankly, I happen to agree. We are in trouble. Just as Israel was in the time of Jeremiah, I see our country, and the church, headed in the same direction, if we are not already there.
     There are many parallels between Moses leading Israel out of Egypt to the Promised Land and the Pilgrims leaving England for the New World. The primary one being religious freedom. The right and freedom to worship God without government interference or the threat of persecution.
     Once in the Promised Land, and the New World, the Israelites and the Puritans rejoiced and gave their whole heart to the Lord in praise and thanksgiving. They focused their lives on the Word and ways of God, and exercised great diligence in observing the Commandments of the Lord.
     Their numbers grew. Houses of worship sprung up everywhere, and were filled to capacity with people wanting to praise and worship God. People wanting and yearning to hear the Word of God, to experience His presence, and to build a bond of kinship with one another. And, God blessed them.
     But, as time passed, we are told, that the zeal and desire to follow the Lord faded. The Lord tells Jeremiah of several areas where the Israelites were in contempt of the ways of God. He said they had followed idols and become idolaters. He said: “those who handle the law did not know Me; the rulers also transgressed against Me; the prophets prophesied by Baal, principal male god of the Phoenicians, and they walked after things that do not profit.”
     The Lord told Jeremiah: “My people have committed two evils: they have forsaken me, the fountain of living water, and dug out cisterns for themselves, cracked cisterns that can hold no water.”
     As I watch the news and read the papers, I can’t help but believe – history is in the process of repeating itself!  I believe we as a country and as the Body of Christ have, like the Israelites, become cocky, comfortable, and careless.
     Oh sure, we love to hear the touchy, feel-good messages that tell us of God’s goodness and how much He is going to bless us. We want to hear about the glory and the goodies – but we don’t like hearing about our responsibilities. We love the conferment’s and candy, but when it comes to the commandments, well, the news and the pews speak for themselves.
     I’ve heard many of you tell of how this church used to be full. You have told stories about when the Lord and matters of faith were held in high regard, and folks came hand in foot to praise and worship God.
     How many of you remember when the morals and ethics taught by God’s Word were respected, honored – and followed? When God was given His rightful place – in our country, our church, and in our lives?
     God sent the prophets to Israel, He sent Disciples to the multitudes , and He sent Jesus to the us. In Luke 12:54-56 Jesus asks: “When you see a cloud rising out of the west, immediately you say, ‘A shower is coming’; and so it is. And when you see the south wind blow, you say, ‘There will be hot weather’; and there is. You know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and the sky, but you can't interpret these present times.”
     I believe we need to be asking our selves, ‘Where are we?’ Are we cocky, full of pride and other little gods, or just full of ourselves and don’t think we need God? Is it all about me and what I want?
     Are we comfortable. You know, I’m set so I don’t need to go any further in my faith. Everything is OK just as it is. I get a little preachin’ from the radio or TV and I’m fine.
     Are we careless? Do we just accept any ol thing that comes down the pike in the name of religion. As long as it sounds good, it must be good, right? Have we lost our care for the Lord and His Word and ways to the point where we will let the naysayers, the agnostics, atheists and everyone else who doesn’t care about the Lord, control how, where and when we may pray and worship? How long do we allow them to set the legal, moral and ethical codes of our society?
     Where are we? I know this is a tough question, and this is a tough message. But sometimes we need to ask tough questions, especially now as we see the spiritual backbone of our country and the church deteriorate and disintegrate right before our very eyes.
     To put it another way, how we answer the question, “Where are we?” not only effects how we live in the Lord, it also has a direct effect on the lives of other people, and – and where they may be, now and forever.
     Where are we? Are we merely complacent Christians coasting along till the end of the ride? Or, are we going to answer the call of the Lord to Jeremiah to: “Go and shout this in the city streets: The Lord says, I remember how eager you were to please me as a young bride long ago and how you loved me and followed me even through the barren deserts.”
     Let us remember also the call of Christ to: To love the Lord and to love one another, to obey His commandments, and to walk in His ways – now and forever.
     Where we are, as a country and as the church – begins right here. Where we are, and where we will be – begins with you. May you know where you are in the Lord, and apply it unto His Kingdom. Amen.
Pastor Eldon

Is Everything Semi-Permanent?
     When I worked for a gold mine in Nevada, I remember talking to the Pit Superintendent about a large parking area they were going to have to move because of the way the mine was developing.
     They used this parking area for the huge dump trucks, as a service and maintenance area, and a place where the powder room was kept. (Not that one!)  The powder room was actually a small building housing blasting caps, det-cord, fuses and small explosive charges.
     As mining operations shifted, this area was getting rained on by rocks more and more from blasting operations above it. I guess they finally got tired of replacing windshields, and having their service trucks look like they just came from a Nebraska hail storm.  Or was it the holes in the roof of the powder room???
     That parking area had been there since the mine had opened long before I began working there. It was often referred to as ‘The Permanent Parking Ditch’.
     When I asked the Superintendent about them moving this parking area he simply stated: “Everything Is Semi-Permanent!”
     As I have thought about this statement over the past twenty plus years, ‘ner a truer statement could he have uttered.’
     As my life progresses, I have come to understand just how many things are ‘semi-permanent’. The fact is – change happens.
     Some changes are met with joy, excitement and enthusiasm, while others are met with fear, anxiety and resistance.
     When I was a lot younger, I though I could do just about any thing, and I tried a few. Now that I’m a lot older, I find that I can’t, and now I’m paying for those things I did do.
     The world around us is changing. Our lives are changing. Technology is even changing the way we change.
     Change is inevitable. In Ecclesiastes, Chapter 3, King Solomon tells us of change. There is really nothing we can do to stop the changes we will see in this life. We can accept them, or reject them and try to fight them.
     The best thing we can do is to acknowledge the changes and try to adjust, adapt and make the best of them.
     Whether it’s changing from a typewriter to a computer, or moving to a different home, or completely changing your wardrobe and look – change happens.  The world keeps on spinning and things keep on a changing.
     But there is one thing we know that doesn’t change – The LORD!  Hebrews 18:8 reminds us: “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.”  In 1 Peter 1:24-25 we read: “All flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of the grass. The grass withers, and its flower falls away, but the word of the Lord endures forever.”
     With the unchanging Word of the Lord, there comes changes we should all look forward to. The first being found in 2 Corinthians 5:17 where Paul tells us “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.”
     Paul is saying that when we turn our lives over to the Lord Jesus Christ, we are transformed, changed, into new creations. We are on a journey changing from what we used to be to becoming more like what God created us for. We are becoming more Christ like.
     The other change we should be looking forward to is found in Revelation 21:1-5 where we read about an new heaven and a new earth, and the New Jerusalem prepared for God’s people.
     A new place and time where “God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying; and there shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.” Then He who sat on the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.” Rev. 21:4-5
     As things change and as we change, we can change in faith and grace knowing we are changing in the likeness and glory of the Lord.
     It’s our choice how we change. We can change in the likeness of Christ and enjoy the newness He gives us, or we can change along with the world and – miss out on being made new.
     Yes, everything is semi-permanent, except the end. How will you change?

WARNING

     OK, I just received another e-mail containing a warning that something may be hazardous to my health, safety, and well being.
     This one talked about the plastic in my car emitting a hazardous chemical called Benzene. ‘This stuff causes cancer’, the e-mail said.  Oh my gosh, just what I need, another warning that something else is hazardous to my health.
     Watch out for asbestos, can’t drink coffee, my cell phone is going to fry my brain cells, chedderwurst is going to clog my arteries, and my Big B Burger is going to give me a heart attack.
     My TV and computer monitor emit dangerous rays, I’m going to pull a hammie playing WeII, and I’ll suffer from a severe case of carpel tunnel syndrome from texting.
     I can’t mow the lawn because the exhaust from my mower is going to destroy the ozone layer. Even grilling a burger on the barbeque poses a health risk.
     With all these hazardous elements, dangerous activities, and poisonous products, it’s a wonder any of us are still alive!
     It seems as if one person in 50,000 becomes ill or is hurt by some product, someone screams for an investigation, a recall and a warning label.
     Now there has to be warning labels on everything. My can of pop has a warning label on it. My car has dozens of warning labels. Like “Don’t stick you hand into a moving fan blade.”
     Even my pencil comes with a warning: “Pointed objects may be hazardous to children.” My wife’s blow dryer has a warning label that says: “Do not use in tub or shower.” My can of mixed nuts states: “Made in a facility that uses nut products.” (Go figure!)
     We used to have a label on our new recliner that read: “Do not remove under penalty of law.” Can they prosecute my dog for chewing it off?
     Oh, here’s a good one. The big red label on our new countertop oven says; “Warning, things in this oven may be HOT!” I sure hope so…..
     One can only ask if there is anything in life that isn’t hazardous. The answer is NO! Life is hazardous to your health!
     However, we can minimize the risk and possible effects by following a few simple rules. First, by using a little common sense, we can determine what is good for us and what is not. We can figure out what is safe, and what may be harmful.  We are not stupid people. We just don’t use the faculties God has given us to the extend He intended.
     Second, we need to exercise moderation. We live in an era of excess, the bigger the better. The more, the merrier. Everything has to be supersized.
     Our diets stink. We can’t live on fast food or highly processed food all the time and in huge amounts, and expect not to be subject to the consequences.
     Thirdly, we need to read the Owner’s Manual. There’s a wealth of information contained in that Book we keep tucked away in a drawer or on a shelf.  If you want to know what’s safe and what’s not, what’s good for you and what’s not – READ the BOOK!
     The most common decal we print reads: ‘WARNING – To Reduce The Possibility of Injury or Death - Read the Owners Manual before operating this equipment.’
     Maybe we need a decal for The Book … ‘ATTENTION – This Book Could Save Your Life!  Read it daily.’
     May you be safe and be blessed with health,
Pastor Eldon