Devotional for Monday August 25th

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Conflict”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “With the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day.” 2 Peter 3:8 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “Give God time to resolve the conflict for you.”

 

This morning I was reading a devotional written by the great devotional writer from the last century, Oswald Chambers. In it he wrote about what he calls “The enormous leisure of God”. He wrote, “Think of the enormous leisure of God! He is never in a hurry. We are in such a frantic hurry.”

 

That statement reminded me of a lesson my original Pastor and mentor taught me many years ago about conflict in the church. This was during the years that he was getting me ready to serve in the pastoral ministry on my own. His counsel went something like this: “Jim, not every conflict needs to be immediately dealt with. Sometimes the best thing we can do is just hang back, say nothing, and be patient as God does His work. Many times He will resolve the issue for us without us having to do or say anything.”

 

Over the years since then, I’ve found that to be true more times than I can count. Many times it has turned out that if I would just leave the situation alone God worked it out in His way and in His time. My problem is that it’s not in my nature to just leave things alone. If I see a potential conflict brewing I’m inclined to step into the middle of it and try to do something about it right away. Many times that is the right way to handle it, but sometimes it’s not. This is where spiritual discernment comes in. We must be prayerful and rely on the Spirit to lead us to the right approach.

 

Unfortunately, the situation is further complicated by the fact that in those cases where God is working it out, He often takes His sweet time about it! This is the “enormous leisure of God” that Chambers wrote about. God is never in a hurry. God has all eternity to work with. So here I am fretting and fuming and practically wetting my pants wanting to jump in and handle it, and God is evidently in no hurry at all!

 

And yet in those cases where the problem is God’s to handle and not mine, I need to keep my hands off it. Because in the end He will resolve it to His satisfaction and it will be a much better resolution than I could ever have arranged. But again, the key is to know when to get involved and when to just leave it alone. The only answer to that is “spiritual discernment”. Pray about it, seek the Spirit’s leading, and if it seems appropriate, just be still and give God time to work it out.

 

God Bless,
Pastor Jim

Devotional for Saturday and Sunday August 23-24

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Conflict”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “In those days, as the number of the disciples was multiplying, there arose a complaint by the Hellenistic Jews against the Hebraic Jews that their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution. Then the Twelve summoned the whole company of disciples …” Acts 6:1-2 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “Disputes, handled correctly, can lead to improvement and growth”

 

In Acts chapter six we read of how the young Christian church was growing in numbers and in diversity. There were many from a “Hebraic” or traditional Jewish background, and there were many others from a “Hellenistic” or Greek background. They were a culturally diverse group and consequently they saw things differently. In this scene we read of how a dispute arose among the two groups regarding the division and distribution of food for the widows.

 

The Apostles wisely brought the entire group together, talked it out, and arrived at a solution that was acceptable to everyone. In verse five we read, “The proposal pleased the whole company.” Then in verse seven, “So the preaching about God flourished, the number of disciples in Jerusalem multiplied greatly, and a large group of priests became obedient to the faith.”

 

As a result of a dispute that was handled correctly, the church actually grew.

 

Tension within a church is not always a bad thing. “Tension” is the stretching of two opposite forces while searching for a proper balance. Tension in itself is neutral and natural. It occurs naturally as a force of nature, and it is common and expected in group dynamics. But how we handle tension can either be constructive or destructive. In every area of life we must learn positive and constructive ways to deal with tension so as to achieve the proper balance.

 

It has been said that tension is a sign of life. That can be especially true in a church. Tension shows that people care. Granted, their care may be pulling them in opposite directions at the moment, but at least they do care. A lack of tension could indicate apathy, and in a church, apathy is death.

 

Tension in a church, handled well, can lead to stretching, growth, health, and ultimately proper balance. The key is to handle it well.

 

God Bless,
Pastor Jim

Devotional for Friday August 22nd

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Conflict”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “A person’s insight gives him patience, and his virtue is to overlook an offense.” Proverbs 19:11 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “A spiritually mature person is slow to anger, and easily overlooks offenses.”

 

Is it possible to measure, or assess, or to gain some insight into, the depth of a person’s spiritual maturity? Yes, it is. Both the Old and New Testaments offer us plenty of verses and passages which provide us with assessment tools, so to speak. These are indicators which reveal what’s really going on in the depths of a person’s soul. In Galatians 5:22-23 the Apostle Paul wrote about the Fruit of the Holy Spirit which should become more and more evident in the life of a believer as that individual matures spiritually and grows into the likeness of Christ.

 

In Matthew 12:34 Jesus said the words that come out of our mouth reveal what’s really going on in our heart. That’s another indicator of spiritual maturity. 

 

In Proverbs 19:11 Solomon provides us with yet another of those passages. He tells us that the depth of this person’s insight (read “wisdom”) will give them patience. If you have patience you will be slow to anger. And if you are slow to anger, you will be much less likely to end up in a conflict. He also says here that one of the virtues such a person has is that they have the ability to simply overlook offenses. The ability and willingness to simply overlook an offense and shrug it off is a measure of the depth of your spiritual maturity.

 

I love the way the study notes in the Holman Christian Standard Study Bible defines “virtue”. The editors write: “Virtue is literally a “beautiful adornment”. When through insight a person gains patience, he gains the admirable capacity to overlook it when someone sins against him.”

 

Yes, the ability to do that is a “beautiful adornment” to your personality. (And it goes a long, long way towards avoiding conflicts!)

 

The Amplified Bible translates Proverbs 19:11 in this way: “Good sense makes a man restrain his anger, and it is his glory to overlook a transgression or an offense.”

 

Whether we define it as “good sense” or “insight” or “wisdom”; and whether it results in “virtue”, “beautiful adornment”, or “glory”, the Biblical lesson is clear – “Be slow to anger, overlook offenses, avoid conflict”. Sounds like good advice.

 

God Bless,
Pastor Jim

Devotional for Thursday August 21st

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Conflict”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “Be angry and do not sin. Don’t let the sun go down on your anger, and don’t give the Devil an opportunity.” Ephesians 4:26-27 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “Control your anger or your anger will control you.”

 

Numerous studies have reported that somewhere around 50% of all marriages in the USA today end in divorce. What’s especially confusing about that statistic is that on their wedding day, none of those couples expected theirs to be a marriage that would end in divorce. Nobody stands at the altar reciting their vows while thinking, “I’ll be happily married to this person for maybe five years or so, but then the relationship will start to fall apart and by the ten year mark we will be divorced.” Nobody thinks like that on their wedding day. Everyone expects their marriage to last. And yet, approximately half of them don’t.

 

And then there’s life in the average church. Viewing church life from the perspective of a Pastor and Counselor, I’m always amazed at how mean and sometimes hateful Christians can be towards each other. Years ago I came across an interesting little book entitled, “Crucified by Christians.” Actually the full title was “Healing for those who have been … Crucified by Christians”. Why does such a book even exist? Why would it be necessary?

 

There are many reasons for both of the examples cited above, but one of the most common causes of runaway conflict is uncontrolled anger. Anger is actually a normal human emotion. All of us get angry sometimes. Even Jesus got angry on occasions. And as in the case of Jesus’ anger, sometimes anger is appropriate and even needed. We should all get angry about child abuse, or genocide in Iraq, or corrupt politicians taking bribes.

 

But anger has to be properly channeled and we need to have positive control over it. If we don’t control our anger, our anger will control us. And that is when people get hurt. Uncontrolled anger results in things being said that should not have been said. Uncontrolled anger keeps a conflict going long after it should have been resolved. Uncontrolled anger is a tool in the hands of Satan.

 

As we’ve learned in previous devotional messages on this subject, the true nature of conflict is spiritual. Therefore we can know that the Bible has the spiritual counsel we need to appropriately deal with conflict and the things that cause and perpetuate it. Let’s end today with one of those pearls of Biblical wisdom:

 

“My dearly loved brothers, understand this: Everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak, and slow to anger, for man’s anger does not accomplish God’s righteousness.” James 1:19-20 (HCSB)

 

God Bless,
Pastor Jim

Devotional for Wednesday August 20th

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Conflict”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.” Ephesians 4:2-3 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “Christians have to work for unity within the church”

 

In the book, “Handling Church Tensions Creatively” author Fred Prinzing writes of the time when he was a brand new pastor, fresh out of seminary, and of how he naively went into that position believing that since everyone in the church was at least a professing Christian, and since everyone shared the same goal of serving the Lord well, then it followed that everyone would get along.

 

Wrong!

 

Fred quickly discovered that despite sharing a common faith, Christians have widely divergent views on most aspects of church life. All of those divergent views mean that there are going to be a lot of strongly held – and often opposing – opinions about what should be done, how, and when. And so there will inevitably be frustrations, tensions, resentments, and arguing.

 

In the forward to that same book Dr. Joe Aldrich, the President of Multnomah School of the Bible, wrote “Diversity of opinion and varying cultural and religious traditions make tension (in the church) inevitable.”

 

That’s why Paul wrote what he did in Ephesians 4:2-3. Even back then in the early church, at a time so close to the time of Jesus, during a period in church history when some of those who had actually been with Jesus where still alive and could be seen and heard, even then, there were tensions in the churches.

 

And so Paul found it necessary to remind them (and us) that since we are so different, and since we do have widely divergent views on many things, it’s essential for us to be humble and with each other. We must have great patience and our goal must be to safeguard the spirit of peace and unity within the fellowship. It has to be intentional. We must consciously recognize the inherent dangers of tension and disunity that always exist within any group of believers, and we must work to safeguard the peace and unity which the Lord calls for and which we all want.

 

Do the expressions humble, gentle, patient, peaceful, and loving describe your personal approach to church life? That’s what it takes to minimize conflict and maximize unity in a church family.

 

God Bless,
Pastor Jim

Devotional for Tuesday August 19th

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Conflict”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “If your brother sins against you, go and rebuke him in private. If he listens to you, you have won your brother. But if he won’t listen to you, take one or two more with you, so that by the testimony of two or three witnesses every fact may be established. If he pays no attention to them, tell the church. But if he doesn’t pay attention even to the church, let him be like an unbeliever and a tax collector.” Matthew 18:15-17

 

Our thought for today: “Jesus instructed us on how to deal with conflict”

 

Matthew 18:15-17 is the classic New Testament instruction on how to properly – Biblically – deal with conflict. The instruction comes from Jesus Himself. Let’s take a closer look at the three steps the Lord tells us to take in order to effectively deal with conflict.

 

First, if there is a conflict between you and another person, you are to go to that person privately and attempt to resolve the issue one-on-one and face-to-face. This is the first and most important step in conflict resolution and unfortunately it’s the step that is most often skipped. Many people don’t have the courage to deal with an issue in this manner. This kind of face-to-face encounter can be uncomfortable and therefore people commonly avoid it. But Jesus tells us this is the first step we are required to take in order to attempt to resolve a conflict.

 

Second, if the personal one-on-one encounter did not resolve the issue, and if it really is important enough to warrant continued action, then one or two other people should be brought into it to act as mediators. These should be mature Christians who are impartial and therefore unbiased.

 

Finally, if it is a serious situation and still has not been resolved, then it’s time to call the church together and prayerfully have the entire body deal with the issue. If it turns out that the person who is the source of the serious conflict is resistant and unrepentant, and therefore is the cause of disunity and strife within the body, and if the person refuses even to submit to the correction and guidance of the entire body of believers, Jesus says we are to treat that person as if they are unsaved. They would then have their membership in the body revoked and our attention would shift to trying to win them to genuine faith in Christ.

 

This is tough stuff, but that’s how important conflict resolution is to the Lord. However this approach to conflict resolution has to be employed in the context of, and in conjunction with, all of the other Biblical guidance we’ve learned so far this month. Our words are to be well chosen and spoken in love and kindness. We are to be careful not to give offense and we must be slow to take offense. We must limit our efforts at conflict resolution to issues that really matter, and be prepared to simply shrug off unimportant matters. And we must do our best to live at peace with everyone.

 

If our interpersonal relationships are conducted according to Biblical principles, there will be little conflict to begin with. When there is conflict, if it is addressed Biblically, the chances resolution and reconciliation are very good.

 

God Bless,
Pastor Jim

Devotional for Monday August 18th

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Conflict”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “For though we live in the body, we do not wage war in an unspiritual way, since the weapons of our warfare are not worldly, but are powerful through God for the demolition of strongholds. We demolish arguments and every high-minded thing that is raised up against the knowledge of God, taking every thought captive to obey Christ.” 2 Corinthians 10:3-5 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “Conflict is avoided and Satan is defeated when we use the right weapons.”

 

Continuing our study from the last three days of devotional messages we have learned first of all, that Satan is the father of conflict. We have also seen that he is a master deceiver and manipulator, and he will use unsuspecting and inattentive Christians to create conflict and then to keep it going. And finally, we have learned that there are Biblical strategies for defeating Satan as he attempts to sow the seeds of conflict and disunity among Christians. Today we want to focus on the fact that God has provided us with effective weapons to be employed in the spiritual realm, which we can use to defeat Satan.

 

1. First, we must recognize that since our true foe is Satan and since the real battle is waged in the spiritual realm not the physical, we need spiritual weapons to fight him with. God has provided us with those spiritual weapons and that’s the truth Paul was writing about in 2 Corinthians 10:3-5.

 

2. Second, we do not approach Satan head-on, by ourselves. Instead, we face Him standing alongside Jesus Christ. In prayer walk up to the Throne, take your place beside Jesus, then turn around and face Satan from that perspective. (Ephesians 2:6). Then when Satan looks at you he doesn’t see you standing alone, he sees you with Jesus standing by your side.

 

3. Put on the armor of God (Ephesians 6:11-17).

 

4. Command Satan with the authority of the Word of God (Ephesians 6:17-18; Matthew 4:1-11)

 

5. Claim the victory through Jesus (Romans 8:31, 37)

 

Of course what I’ve just described is appropriate for dealing with Satan in any circumstance, but especially so when he is trying to sow the seeds of conflict among Christians. Conflict can be avoided, and Satan can be defeated, if we use the weapons God has provided us with to do so.

 

God Bless,
Pastor Jim

Devotional for Saturday and Sunday August 16-17

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Conflict”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “Therefore, submit to God. But resist the Devil, and he will flee from you.” James 4:7 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “Satan’s strategies can be defeated”

 

Yesterday we learned about the true nature of Satan and how he lies, deceives, manipulates, and entices Christians to voluntarily do the things that he does not have the power to force us to do – including engaging in conflict. Today I want to share with you some intentional steps we can each take to thwart Satan’s activity among us as he attempts to create conflict in our midst. These come from the book, “The Christian’s Handbook on Conflict Resolution” by Greg Sumii.

 

1. Speak the truth about the situation, but do it in love. (Ephesians 4:15)
2. Provide correction where correction is needed, but do so with gentleness. (2 Timothy 2:25)
3. If confrontation is needed, do it privately. (Matthew 18:15)
4. Truly seek reconciliation as the desired outcome. (Matthew 5:23-24)
5. Show love and pray for the one you are in conflict with. (Matthew 5:44)
6. Bear with the shortcomings of the other person and be prepared to forgive them. (Colossians 3:13)
7. Entrust yourself to God, who is the perfect and righteous Judge. (1 Peter 2:21-23)
8. Intentionally put aside your negative emotions. (Ephesians 4:31)
9. Be a servant. (1 Kings 12:7)
10. Even if you can’t do these things for the sake of the other person, do them anyway for the cause of Christ. (Colossians 3:23-24)

 

I think you can probably see that if the Christians on both sides of a conflict take these steps, there’s no way Satan can win. Tomorrow we will take a look at some spiritual assets we have which empower us to do the things we have just discussed.

 

God Bless,
Pastor Jim

Devotional for Friday August 15th

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Conflict”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “Be serious! Be alert! Your adversary the Devil is prowling around like a roaring lion, looking for anyone he can devour.” 1 Peter 5:8 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “Satan incites conflict”

 

As we’ve discussed in previous devotional messages on this subject, conflict originates with Satan. He was the originator of the first conflict (when he rebelled against God), and he is the father of all conflict since then. It’s important for us to know this about him and to keep it in mind. Otherwise he will use our ignorance and inattention against us.

 

As my old friend Greg Sumii explained in his book, “The Christian’s Handbook on Conflict Resolution”, since Satan is our avowed enemy it’s important for us to know his true nature. The Bible tells us that his true nature is “tempter” (Matthew 4:3); “deceiver” (Revelation 12:10); “accuser” (Revelation 12:9); “liar” (John 8:44); “confuser” (1 Corinthians 14:33); “oppressor” (Acts 10:38); and “thief” (John 10:10); just to name a few. Oh, and he is a vicious lion looking to devour unsuspecting Christians (1 Peter 5:8).

 

We also need to remain conscious of the fact that Satan has a mission field – and we’re it! Satan’s mission field is the church and individual Christians. His mission is to hurt and destroy. His strategy is to tempt Christians to be hurtful towards one another by allowing their emotions to override their spiritual maturity. Any inroads he is allowed to make in damaging a Christian witness, diluting the effect of God’s love and power, or in disrupting the unity of a church fellowship, means that he wins and we lose.

 

Yes, Satan is the enemy. But the good news is that he is already a defeated foe, and he can only enjoy such victory as we allow him to have. Tomorrow we will discuss some strategies for dealing with this foe.

 

God Bless,
Pastor Jim

Devotional for Thursday August 14th

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Conflict”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “Therefore, God’s chosen ones, holy and loved, put on heartfelt compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, accepting one another and forgiving one another if anyone has a complaint against another. Just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you must also forgive. Above all, put on love – the perfect bond of unity. And let the peace of the Messiah, to which you were also called in one body, control your hearts.” Colossians 3:12-15 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “Broken relationships are restored through Christ and His grace.”

 

Many years ago when I was a Pastor in California I knew a man by the name of Greg Sumii. Greg was a Christian counselor who was on staff with the California Southern Baptist Convention. He was an expert in conflict resolution and his ministry was to travel around the state helping to resolve conflicts in churches. He even wrote a book entitled, “The Christian’s Handbook on Conflict Resolution.”

 

The passage cited above – Colossians 3:12-15, is one of the New Testament passages Greg found very instructive and helpful in assisting Christians to resolve conflicts. Conflicts almost always arise out of impatience with one another, or out of a sense of having been wronged, and are often fueled by anger and negative emotions.

 

So Greg begins by reminding us that as the people of God, we are God’s chosen ones. We share a common bond in the family of God. Second we are holy, in that we have been called to Him and set aside for Him. And also, that we are deeply loved by Him. We have all of that in common. And so, first and foremost, our attitude towards each other must be cloaked in compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, and forgiveness. You probably noticed that in that list there is no mention of, and no room for, anger, meanness, pettiness, selfishness, or a victim mentality.

 

Paul reminds us that the Lord has forgiven us for our transgressions and shortcomings, therefore we too need to be patient and forgiving of the shortcomings we think we might be seeing in others and which might be the focus of the current conflict. He reminds us that love for one another has got to be the motivating force that undergirds our relations with one another and if that is the case, it will lead to unity. Finally in this verse, Paul tells us that it needs to be the peace of Jesus that controls our hearts, and our mouths.

 

Things may not always be to our personal liking; we may not always get what we want; and other people may be less than perfect in our eyes – and it is ok to say so. However, how we go about addressing those issues matters very, very much. Bitterness, criticism, anger, is never the way of the Lord. Peace and patience, kindness and compassion, love and unity, is.

 

God Bless,
Pastor Jim