Get your fix

Good morning, everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Just keep dancing”

Our Bible verse for today: “Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you believe so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” Romans 15:13 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “Get your fix”

The other night Aimee and I drove to Knoxville to attend a concert featuring three of our favorite Christian recording artists, all on the same stage. Phil Wickham, Tauren Wells, and Jamie McDonald. The tickets were a Christmas gift from me to Aimee, and we had waited three months for this concert.

It was well worth the wait – especially the Phil Wickham set. It was one of the most high-octane worship experiences I have had in a long time. Recent months have been a particularly busy and draining time in our lives and in the middle of the worship in the arena I was thinking to myself, “I really needed this. This is so good!”

According to “The Dictionary of Idioms” the slang term “to get your fix” means to obtain an adequate amount of something you desperately need or something you are addicted to. In the most pejorative use of the term, we sometimes hear of drug addicts seeking their next fix of whatever it is they’re addicted to. Late at night I sometimes find myself needing a fix of chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream.

The term is also used in positive ways though. Not long ago one of our church members arrived for Sunday school. I greeted her and asked how she was doing. She rolled her eyes and said “Pastor, it has been such a hard week. I really need my fix.” Confused, I asked her what she meant by “her fix”. She said, “I need my fix of the love of Jesus. I need to be loved-on by my church family!”

She was exactly right. She knew exactly what she needed and she knew exactly where to get it. If you’re a member of a good church family, then you know what she was talking about. Experiencing an overwhelming expression of the love of Jesus is like refreshing spring water on a hot dry day. It is like soothing ointment on an itchy rash. It’s like a good shoulder massage for your aching muscles. And it often comes through your fellow Christians.

The people of God are the hands and feet of Jesus and so the experience of the love of Jesus comes from being around joyful Christians who love each other and who are eager to show it. This is one of the reasons God wants every Christian to be part of a good church family and to then be faithful in your attendance at the gatherings of your church. Not only do you need to be there for yourself, but you need to be there for others. They will be a conduit for the love of Jesus to flow to you, and you will be a conduit for the love of Jesus to flow to them.

Life can be hard. We all have stuff we’re dealing with, stuff that can be oppressive and which can weigh us down. Church is the cool breeze in your week; it’s the spiritual shoulder massage you’ve been longing for. Being in church is a time of renewal and refreshing – it empowers you to keep dancing as you deal with the challenges in your life.

Paul’s words of blessing to his readers in Romans 15:13 are also my prayer for you. Come to church tomorrow and get your fix of love, joy, hope, and peace.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(If you like what you are reading in these daily devotionals and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

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