Oak Hill Baptist Church

The end of anxiety and despair

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Deep Discipleship”

Our Bible verse for today: “Can any of you add one moment to his life-span by worrying?” Matthew 6:27 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “The End of Anxiety and Despair”

I love the Sermon on the Mount. It is by far Jesus’ most famous sermon. Also, being able to say that a lesson comes from “The Sermon on the Mount” seems to add extra weight to it. (It actually doesn’t add extra weight to it, not really. All of Scripture is the inspired Word of God, but adding the kicker “He said it in The Sermon on the Mount” makes me as a preacher and writer sound even more authoritative. So, let me just tell you that, “He said it in the Sermon on the Mount!”)

And what did Jesus say in the Sermon on the Mount in this instance? He said that anxiety does nothing to help my situation. It doesn’t add a minute to my life; it doesn’t solve my problems; and it doesn’t make me feel better. So sayeth Jesus! The Apostle Paul said it too: “Don’t worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7.

Experiencing anxiety and despair is part of the human condition. Those are normal human emotions. But they are unhelpful human emotions, and the more we learn to master them the happier and healthier we will be. Also, the better our overall quality of life will be. This is why Jesus said what He said in Matthew 6:27, and why Paul wrote what he wrote in Philippians 4:6-7. This is where deep discipleship comes in. As we grow in spiritual maturity anxiety and despair should become less and less of a problem for us. That’s one of the goals of our spiritual growth.

Anxiety and despair are such a big problem for so many Christians that I wrote a new book about it. The title is “The End of Anxiety and Despair.” It’s a collection of fifty short and encouraging devotional messages designed to help us dispel anxiety and despair from our lives. It is due to arrive from the publisher today. If you would like to have a copy of it, just send me a note at pastorjimmohbc@gmail.com. I would be happy to send you one.

Anxiety and despair are not part of God’s plan for your life. Jesus wants you to have victory over them. The depth of the spiritual maturity we experience as a result of deep discipleship helps to achieve that. Anxiety and despair will probably never be fully absent from our lives, but its effects can be greatly minimized.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(If you like what you’re 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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We need the divine perspective

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Deep Discipleship”

Our Bible verse for today: “But when Jesus turned and looked at his disciples, he rebuked Peter. “Get behind me, Satan!” he said. “You do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.” Mark 8:33 (NIV)

Our thought for today: “We need the divine perspective”

So, Peter was in trouble with Jesus again. Jesus had just explained to the disciples that the Son of Man was going to be rejected by the Jewish leaders, He would suffer, he would die upon a cross, and then He was going to rise again from the dead. But rejection, suffering, and death were not part of Peter’s understanding of what should happen to the Messiah and so, Peter rebuked Jesus.

Yes, you read that right, Peter rebuked Jesus. Then, Jesus rebuked Peter. Peter’s problem was that he was viewing things from a worldly perspective rather than from the divine perspective. He was not seeing God’s plan God’s way. It probably didn’t even occur to him that there was a difference. He was sure that the way he was seeing and understanding things was the right way.

Peter’s problem is also our problem. We view things from our own perspective rather than from God’s, and then we quickly conclude that our perspective is the right one, the only one. We think, “This must be the way God sees it too, right?”

Peter was brash, impetuous, way too sure of himself, and too quick to jump to conclusions. We are too. But the practice of deep discipleship gives us pause. It teaches us to slow down, think, pray, and to seek facts. It teaches us to place ourselves in a position before God whereby the Holy Spirit can speak to us, open our minds, and give us deeper understanding. And we are to stay there, in that position before God, until we are reasonably sure that we do see things from His perspective and not just from our own.

And lo and behold very often that sort of calm, reasoned, patient seeking of Godly wisdom and perspective will often lead us to surprising conclusions. Peter learned that the role of the Messiah was indeed to be rejected and to suffer and to die so that He could then be resurrected. After all, there can be no resurrection without a death.

As God reminds us through the prophet Isaiah, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” Isaiah 55:8-9.

We need the divine perspective on our situations, but that doesn’t come from our own reasoning and in our own understanding. We must spend the time before God so the Holy Spirit can form our perspective for us.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(If you like what you’re 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

Wisdom waits to be gathered

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Deep Discipleship”

Our Bible verse for today: “How much better to get wisdom than gold, to choose understanding rather than silver!” Proverbs 16:16 (NIV)

Our thought for today: “Wisdom waits to be gathered”

According to Solomon (the wisest man who ever lived) getting wisdom is better than getting gold. He’s speaking, of course, about Godly wisdom. He’s referring to being wise in the ways of God. Being wise in the ways of the world may get you some gold and other possessions, but being wise in the ways of God will bring you understanding of things from God’s perspective. It will develop in you a settled mind and a peaceful heart. This is what we were thinking about in yesterday’s devotional when we considered what it means to live as a non-anxious person in an anxious world.

Godly wisdom is understanding God and His ways, and then applying that understanding in ways that makes a real difference in your own life and in the lives of others. How do we get Godly wisdom? It comes to us from God, of course. He develops it in us. In James 1:5 we read, “If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God – who gives to all generously and ungrudgingly – and it will be given to him.” The fact is that God wants you to have this kind of wisdom. Ask Him for it, seek it, and He will develop it in you.

Referring once again to the book “The Traveler’s Gift,” on one of his stops through history the young man David Ponder gets to spend some time with Solomon. Through that encounter David comes to understand the importance of applying himself to seeking and developing Godly wisdom in his life. My personal paraphrase of David’s resolution that grew out of that encounter reads like this, “Wisdom waits to be gathered. I will seek her out. My reading, listening, and choice of association will serve to make me wise. Wisdom is a gift to the diligent.”

“Wisdom is a gift to the diligent … Wisdom waits to be gathered … Ask God – who gives generously …” If you want Godly wisdom all you need to do is ask God for it and then go after it. Pray, study your Bible, faithfully attend worship services, take notes during the sermon, participate in group Bible studies, read good Christian books, associate with Christians who are wise in the ways of God, and keep doing those things. Practice those disciplines day-in and day-out and in time wisdom will become yours. God wants you to have it.

Wisdom waits to be gathered. Go get it.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(If you like what you’re 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

Living as a non-anxious person in an anxious world

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Deep Discipleship”

Our Bible verse for today: “Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Don’t let your heart be troubled or fearful.” John 14:27 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “Living as a non-anxious person”

I was reading an article the other day in the latest edition of “Christianity Today” magazine, and I came across a great line that I liked so much, I wrote it down and resolved to use it myself one day soon. If fact, not only do I want to write about it, but I want this to be true of me. The author of the article was making the case that Jesus enables us to live as “non-anxious people in an anxious world.”

What an accurate description of the world we live in today! It is anxious. People are anxious. They are worried and stressed out about politics, the economy, social unrest, cultural divisions, international threats, their jobs, their families, their weight, the score of the last Titans football game, and a thousand other things. People go through life anxious and stressed.

But then there are those people who have learned to not be anxious and stressed. I’m talking about those special people who seem to be able to deal with the ebb and flow of life in a calm, unflustered manner. They do take things seriously, but not too seriously. They are engaged, but not obsessed. They recognize problems, without allowing themselves to be overwhelmed by the problems. Such a person also has a steady and calming influence on others in the middle of sometimes chaotic and even threatening circumstances.

Jesus was like that. Jesus was alert, aware, empathic, and engaged. But at the same time, He was calm, reasoned, unflustered, and completely in control. He was a non-anxious presence surrounded by very anxious people.

I want that to be me. I want that to be you. I want that to be all of us. Our world today needs Christians who are able to approach these chaotic and uncertain times with calm confidence and with the absolute certainty that God is sovereign over the events going on around us, and that He is at work in the middle of all this accomplishing His Kingdom-building purposes. Then we need to realize that you and I are His instruments for accomplishing that. God does most of His work in this world through His people. That means that the work He is doing in the middle of all the chaos is being accomplished through His people on-mission with Him in this world.

How do we become non-anxious people living in the middle of a very anxious world? Deep discipleship. Jesus was that way and He wants to transform us to be that way too. Tomorrow we will think about one of the primary ways in which the Holy Spirit brings about this transformation in the lives of those who are engaged in deep discipleship.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(If you like what you’re 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

Take personal responsibility

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Deep Discipleship”

Our Bible verse for today: “For each person will have to carry his own load.” Galatians 6:5 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “Take personal responsibility”

In my opinion, one of the glaring weaknesses in America today is a lack of personal responsibility. This weakness manifests itself in a multitude of ways, from apathy and indifference, to shirking our duties, to relying on others to do what we should be doing for ourselves, to a widespread sense of entitlement, and much more.

But perhaps the most common example of evading personal responsibility is in the area of excuse-making and blaming others. Christians do this too. Far too many Christians excuse their own shortcomings and failures and seek instead to shift the blame for their actions to other people and to circumstances. They claim that it is the other person’s fault that they lost their temper; or it was the other person’s actions that forced them to make the choice they made; or the other person this, and the other person that; these circumstances; that reason; et cetera, et cetera, “But it’s not my fault.”

I have mentioned before that one of my favorite inspirational books is “The Traveler’s Gift: Seven Decisions that Determine Personal Success” by Andy Andrews. It’s all about assuming full personal responsibility for our own lives. The main character is a young man named David Ponder who is taken by God, in a dream, on a trip through time. At each stop in history, he encounters a historical figure who teaches him an important life-lesson.

At one stop David encounters President Harry Truman. What Truman teaches David is that “The buck stops here. I am personally responsible for my own life.” The ultimate shape of anyone’s life is largely determined by the choices they make. Therefore, the responsibility for your circumstances is yours. You are where you are in life largely because of the choices you have made.

David’s discussion with Harry Truman helped him realize that if he was going to succeed in life, he had to take full responsibility for his actions. The same is true for all of us. We have to own our past; accept responsibility for the present; and make good choices that will move us into the future.

Please don’t blame others. It’s your life; it’s your responsibility. We are each responsible for ourselves and for our choices. And the best, most helpful decision any of us can make, is to stay close to Jesus in deep discipleship. No other action we take will have a more profound positive impact on us and on those around us. As we have already learned in this series, your own life will be better and you will also be a blessing to everyone around you when you are walking closely with Jesus.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(If you like what you’re 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

No halfhearted measures from halfhearted Christians

Good Morning Everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Deep Discipleship”

Our Bible verse for today: “When you present a blind animal for sacrifice, is it not wrong? And when you present a lame animal, is it not wrong? Bring it to your governor! Would he be pleased with you or show you favor?” Malachi 1:8 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “No halfhearted measures from halfhearted Christians”

In their introduction to the Old Testament book of Malachi, the editors of the Experiencing God Study Bible wrote, “Malachi, the priest and prophet, summoned the people from religious indifference and carelessness to a new respect, honor, and love for God expressed in obedience, a commitment to live by God’s standards, and an understanding that God still loved them.”

Malachi 1:8, which we read above, is an excellent illustration of how the average person in that day was practicing their faith – it was a careless and halfhearted effort at best. They were just going through the religious motions. They were going to the temple, lighting the candles, burning the incense, saying some prayers, and giving some tithes and offerings, but it was all with a bored sigh and a yawn. Malachi’s task was to wake them up, draw them out of their indifference, and bring them back to God in a committed and serious relationship.

I think large numbers of the Christian community in our nation today could also be described as careless, indifferent, and halfhearted in the practice of their faith. They go through the religious motions of faith, but not in a serious way. It certainly could not be described as “deep discipleship.”

However, I believe we live in morally perilous days and therefore it is essential for Christians to be securely tethered to sound doctrine and Biblical principles. Otherwise, they will be swept up in the cultural tide and carried along to wherever the culture takes them – believing and accepting whatever the culture tells them to believe and accept.

That being the case, I have decided to continue our study of deep discipleship through the month of October. More than anything, the Church needs strong Christians who know what they believe and why they believe it, and who are bold and courageous in their stand for Biblical values – Christians who are secure and confident in a deep and passionate relationship with Jesus Christ. Even if others around us are not like that, you and I need to be.

I look forward to continuing this journey with you as we go deep with Jesus. God doesn’t want halfhearted measures from halfhearted Christians. He’s looking for serious discipleship from serious disciples.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(If you like what you’re 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

Don’t make life harder than it should be

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Deep Discipleship”

Our Bible verse for today: “For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:30 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “Don’t make life harder than it should be”

Does your way of living sometimes feel burdensome? Do you find yourself sighing a lot and feeling like you have to lean into your days, push through them, and endure them? Do you really think that’s the life Jesus wants for you?

In his wonderful devotional book “A Year of Slowing Down: Daily Devotionals for Unhurried Living,” Alan Fadling notes, “There are ways of living that are hard on people. Workaholism and addictive ways diminish us rather than increasing our joy. There are ways of practicing religion that makes people’s lives harder. The Pharisees had a way of making the Jewish law burdensome rather than life-giving.”

For many Christians, the practice of their faith seems to be an afterthought at best and makes little real difference in the quality of their lives. For others it is so legalistic and restrictive that it becomes like a heavy old coat they wear everywhere they go. Those folks are essentially modern-day Pharisees.

But that is not the life Jesus wants us to have and therefore it’s not the life He leads us to. In John 10:10 He declared, “I have come so that they may have life and have it in abundance.” In John 14:27 He promised us, “Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you.” And in John 15:11 He said, “I have told you these things so that my joy may be in you and your joy may be complete.”

Life with Jesus brings freedom and vitality and joy. That’s what He meant to convey in Matthew 11:28-30 where He invites us to take His yoke upon us and to walk with Him through life – side-by-side, Him and us, walking through life together. In that passage He paints a picture of a team of oxen walking through a field yoked together. The bigger lead ox carries most of the load and provides all the direction. The younger follower ox walks alongside sharing the load and following the direction of the lead ox. In this parable Jesus was saying, “Let Me be your lead ox. Stay yoked to Me and we will do this together. I will carry most of the load and I will provide all the direction. You just stay with Me and we will do this together.”

Don’t make life harder on yourself than it needs to be. Come alongside Jesus. Stay close to Him. You will find that His yoke is easy and the burden suddenly becomes much lighter.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(If you like what you’re 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

When you flourish, everyone benefits

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Deep Discipleship”

Our Bible verse for today: “When the righteous flourish, the people rejoice.” Proverbs 29:2 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “When you flourish everyone benefits”

Would other people benefit if God blessed you? I’ll bet they would. One characteristic of serious disciples of Jesus is that they share the blessings. When God blesses them, they bless others. When righteous people succeed in life their success overflows and impacts everyone around them in a positive way. Righteous leaders lead their people well; righteous employers treat their employees well; righteous neighbors are good neighbors who help one another; righteous parents raise children who grow up in God-honoring homes; and churches filled with righteous people are a blessing to their community.

Like Solomon tells us in Proverbs 29:2, “When the righteous flourish, the people rejoice” – and well they should because when the righteous flourish everyone benefits. We could probably consider a thousand examples of how that’s true in a physical sense regarding everything from housing the homeless, to feeding the hungry, to visiting the sick, to caring for the widow and orphan, and so much more. But the greater blessings that righteous people share are spiritual blessings.

A flourishing godly person will be living in the fullness of the Holy Spirit. They will be experiencing the fruit of the Spirit in their own lives, and then that fruit will be rising-up and flowing out of them: “Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control” (Galatians 5:22-23). What a joy and what a blessing to be around someone who is just overflowing with the fruit of the Spirit! When you’re with a person like that you get enveloped by love and joy, peace and patience, kindness and goodness, faithfulness and gentleness, and their self-control has a calming influence on you. Their spiritual flourishing greatly enriches your life simply because you had the good fortune to be around that person for a while.

There are many other spiritual virtues I could cite as examples of ways that a righteous person blesses others including purity of thought and speech, Biblical wisdom applied to complex and difficult issues, generosity, the plan of salvation, and so much more, but you get the idea. Your deep discipleship results in manifold blessings for you, and it blesses everyone around you as well. When you flourish, everyone benefits.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(If you like what you’re 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

Just go deeper

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Deep Discipleship”

Our Bible verse for today: “The Lord is good, a stronghold in a day of distress; he cares for those who take refuge in him.” Nahum 1:7

Our thought for today: “Just go deeper”

It bothers me to hear Christians in our day sound and act as if the sky is falling. Usually, it’s in response to social and political issues, sometimes economics, other times opposition to Biblical principles. There can be lots of reasons for it but the rhetoric is often exaggerated, overheated, and even apocalyptic. That shouldn’t be. I don’t believe such talk is helpful nor does it do justice to the cause of Christ on earth.

As Christians we should be engaged in our society, active in social and political causes, and vocal in advocating for Biblical principles. But we must do so with calmness, confidence, and reasoned rhetoric. As was noted yesterday, as bad as things might seem, God is sovereign, He is present, He is working, and ultimately, He wins – which means that ultimately, we win too.

In recent days we have been considering lessons learned from some of the Old Testament prophets as they dealt with the difficult situations that existed in their days. Yesterday we considered Habakkuk, today it will be Nahum. Nahum was a contemporary of Habakkuk. They lived and ministered in the same place, around the same time, and to the same people. And like with Habakkuk, God gave Nahum a message meant to warn the enemies of God and to reassure the people of God.

As the editors of the Experiencing God Study Bible noted, “Nahum called people to hope in God and to hear his vision for the future. He reassured an oppressed people that their God remained in sovereign control of history and would show grace and justice to his people.”

That same God has the same message for us today. He is still on the throne and He is still in control of events here on earth. Do you believe that? Was God in control of events back then? Is He still in control today? Do you speak and act as if He is?

In Nahum 1:7, Nahum urged the faithful people of God to simply go deeper with God in their discipleship – to draw even closer to Him and to trust Him as they navigated difficult times. That’s the answer for us today as well. In the midst of a crazy and mixed-up society that seems to be on a fast track to destruction, we are to trust God. He is in sovereign control of history and as we continue to see events unfold all around us, our God will show grace, mercy, and justice to His people.

Just go deep with Him and trust Him.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(If you like what you’re 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

Is God even listening?

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Deep Discipleship”

Our Bibe verse for today: “How long, Lord, must I call for help and you do not listen?” Habakkuk 1:2 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “Is God even listening?”

Have you ever had the sensation that your prayers rise about ten feet above your head, hit the ceiling and bounce right back down, without ever getting close to God in heaven? Yeah, me too. The Old Testament prophet Habakkuk certainly felt that way.

Habakkuk lived and ministered about 600 years before the time of Jesus in the land of Judah. The majority of Habakkuk’s ministry took place shortly after good king Josiah had been killed in battle. Josiah was then followed in quick succession by three sons and a grandson, all of whom were inept and proved themselves to be bad kings. Also, the land of Judah was being threatened on all sides by encroaching enemies.

Verse 1:2 clues us in to the fact that Habakkuk had been calling out in prayer to God for help but God seemed silent and perhaps even absent. Habakkuk essentially said, “God, are you even listening to me?”

The rest of the short book records God’s response to that cry and Habakkuk’s response to God’s response. In 1:5 God said to him, “Look at the nations and observe – be utterly astounded! For I am doing something in your days that you will not believe when you hear about it.” In response to that, in 2:1, Habakkuk said to himself, “I will stand at my guard post and station myself on the lookout tower. I will watch to see what he will say to me and what I should reply about my complaint.” In 2:4 the Lord reminded him, “But the righteous one will live by faith.” Then God showed him a vision of the not-to-distant future when the enemies of God’s people would be defeated. Then in chapter three Habakkuk rejoiced and worshiped God.

God was listening after all. He was present and He was at work behind the scenes the whole time bringing about events that would further His own plan. The same is true in our nation today, and in our individual lives. God is present, He is listening, and He is working, even if it might not seem that way. Just like in the days of Habakkuk, perhaps God is preparing to do something truly amazing in your life, in your family, in your church, or in your nation. As bad as things may sometimes look, God is still sovereign, the sky is not falling, all is not lost, and ultimately God wins. Also, Romans 8:28 is still true: “We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.”

Is God even listening? Yes, my friend, He is. He is present, He is listening, and He is working.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(If you like what you’re 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