Accountable or Not Accountable, That is the Question.

Individuals must accept accountability for their actions. Trust is something that is easy to lose and very difficult to regain. In the long run all one has is their reputation. An individual is seen as reliable or not. If individuals will just do what they say they will do they will be head and shoulders above 99.9% of the people.

When we think of the leaders of GSMCOC do we see them as reliable? Can they be trusted to do what they say they will do? Do they accept accountability for their actions? Jesus told people to "Let what you say be simply 'Yes' or 'No'. . ." I understand that to mean we are to live so that whatever we say will be accepted as the truth; our character and life will give affirmation to what we say. Others should be satisfied to take our statements at face value.

If I understand the discussions in the Men's meeting concerning getting men to participate in the assemblies some or many are not reliable, cannot be trusted to do what they have agreed to do and will not inform the responsible individuals. The lack of response to the sound equipment training supports that conclusion.

As individuals and as a congregation will we be accountable for our actions? We have no choice. If we do not we cannot be trusted. Can anyone believe what we say?

Faith First

Before one can come to God, before God can open their heart, as it he did Lydda's the individual must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who seek him and wants to know the truth. That is pretty simplistic because if you did not believe he existed why would you want to do anything. 

 

Hebrews 11:6 And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him. 

 

1 Cor. 1:18 For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of

God. 

 

1 Cor. 1:21 For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe. 

 

God will have to hide his eyes from my failures for me to make into Heaven. This is my reason for believing the only responsibility a congregation has is to facilitate, encourage, be cheerleaders for my efforts to accomplish my responsibilities. I forget her name but the one who got the award that Jesus had nothing to do with, she is perishing, she is not seeking, she does not believe God exists, there is nothing anyone can do for her until she decides to believe in something other than herself.

Bible Supported Prayer

 

Using the following verses:

 

Matthew 7:7  

    "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 

 

2 Thes. 2:9-12   

    The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders,  [10] and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved.  [11] Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false,  [12] in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.

 

The story of Job where God permitted Job's children to be killed as a test to Job. We can only imagine how Job's wife took those events.

 

I believe those verses and stories tells us that if we want to know how to be saved God will ensure that we find the way. If we do not, God just may use us as a test for someone he is attempting to strengthen. The key is asking, seeking, knocking, and loving truth.

 

 

Items with bible support:

 

Using the prayers of the apostles etc as examples.

 

For others as long as it does not violate their free will. God opening their heart will not happen unless that individual wants to know.

 

Ourselves if we love truth.

 

God to send someone seeking the kingdom of God to us.

 

Being used as instruments for him to accomplish his will.

 

The contents of the Lord's prayer as the relate to us.

 

God's will to be done and for him to help us accept whatever it is. Since all things work together for good for those who love the Lord why wouldn't be go along with his will.

 

We know he wants everyone to be saved. So we know he has already provided whatever needs to be done in that area. So praying for people whom we are willing to teach is a bible supported subject.

 

Having the boldness to keep teaching in the face of persecution.

 

James says we should pray without doubting. If we do not find support in the bible how can we not doubt. During the miraculous times that woman who touched the edge of his robe, Jesus said your faith has made you whole or something to that affect. Maybe praying with that kind of faith brings success.

 

Praying for our leaders both in the church and in the state so that we can live peaceable lives not so we can go on vacations but so we can teach about Jesus. Jesus' church spread like wildfire during and after WWII and during times of persecution.

 

That's probably enough to let you find something to challenge. Whatever we pray for we should look to see if the Bible supports it.

 

 

 

Thanks, John Jenkins
865-803-8179  cell
Gatlinburg, TN

Email: jrjenki@gmail.com
Website: http://www.greenbriersolutions.com  
Blog: http://littlepigeon.blogspot.com/

"Fix the Problem, Don't Affix Blame."
John G. Miller

Otter Creek Church of Christ

Ray,

 

Reference the Otter Creek church: what they are doing is why the Church of Christ must have a forthright, Bible supported, discussion of our Sunday ritual. Like the Pharisees of old the Church of Christ claims its traditions are commanded by God.

 

Nowhere does the Bible support the contention that Sunday a day to worship. The Bible does not command worship nor are specific acts designated as acts of worship.

 

The human author of Hebrews said we assemble to encourage each other to love and good works. Assuming the human author was inspired the Holy Spirit says we assembly to encourage each other to love and good works.

 

What Otter Creek is doing is the future of the Church of Christ. What in the Bible suggests what they are doing is "sin?" Someone said to always be ready to give a reason for hope we have. I believe that means Bible supported reasons. When our grandchildren are our age the church will not be as it is today.

Thanks, John Jenkins
865-803-8179  cell
Gatlinburg, TN

Email: jrjenki@gmail.com
Website: http://www.greenbriersolutions.com  
Blog: http://littlepigeon.blogspot.com/

"It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it."
---Warren Buffett

Wrong Jungle! Stephen R. Covey, The 7 Habits of Highly effective People

Management is doing things right; leadership is doing the right things. Management is efficiency in climbing the ladder of success. Leadership determines whether the ladder is leaning against the right wall.

 

You can quickly grasp the important difference between the two if you envision a group of producers cutting their way through the jungle with machetes.  They're the producers, the problem solvers. They're cutting through the undergrowth, clearing it out.

 

The managers are behind them, sharpening their machetes, writing policy and procedure manuals, holding muscle development programs bringing in improved technologies and setting up working schedules and compensation programs for machete wielders.

 

The leader is the one who climbs the tallest tree, surveys the entire situation, and yells, "Wrong jungle!"

 

But how do the busy, efficient producers and managers often respond? "Shut up! We're making progress."

 

As individuals, groups, and businesses, we're often so busy cutting through the undergrowth we don't even realize we're in the wrong jungle. And the rapidly changing environment in which we live makes effective leadership more critical than it has ever been---in every aspect of independent and interdependent life.

 

We're more in need of a vision or destination and a compass (a set of principles or directions) and less in need of a road map. We often don't know what the terrain ahead will be like or what we will need to go through it; much will depend on our judgment at the time. But an inner compass will always give us direction.

 

Effectiveness---often even survival---does not depend solely on how much effort we expend, but on whether or not the effort we expend is in the right jungle. And the metamorphosis taking place in most every industry and profession demands leadership first and management second.

 

In business, the market is changing so rapidly that many products and services that successfully met consumer tastes and needs a few years ago are obsolete today. Proactive powerful leadership must constantly monitor environmental change, particularly customer buying habits and motives, and provide the force necessary to organize resources in the right direction.

 

Efficient management without effective leadership is, as one individual has phrased it, "like straightening deck chairs on the Titanic." No management success can compensate for failure in leadership. But leadership is hard because we're often caught in a management paradigm.

 

I'm convinced that too often parents are also trapped in the management paradigm, thinking of control, efficiency, and rules instead of direction, purpose, and family feeling.

 

And leadership is even more lacking in our personal lives. We're into managing with efficiency, setting and achieving goals before we have even clarified our values.

 

 

We Buy Too Many Books - Abraham Maslow and John G. Miller

Abraham Maslow said:

 

" There is no teaching without learning. One requires the other."

 

John G Miller wrote: 

 

"We attend too many seminars. We take too many classes. We buy too many books. We play too many audios in our cars. It's all wasted if we're unclear on what learning really is. Learning is not attending, listening, or reading. Nor is it merely gaining knowledge. Learning is really about translating knowing what to do into doing what we know. It's about changing. 

 

If we have not changed we have not learned."

 

If those two are correct. When was the last time anyone learned from listening to a sermon or attending Bible class?

Thanks, John Jenkins
865-803-8179  cell
Gatlinburg, TN

Email: jrjenki@gmail.com
Website: http://www.greenbriersolutions.com  
Blog: http://littlepigeon.blogspot.com/

"Computers in the future may weigh no more than 1.5 tons."
Popular Mechanics, 1949

Providence of God

I'm reading a book put out by Ira North's wife in the mid 90s “Marching to Zion.” It is some of North's sermons. One of the chapters/sermons is "Look for the Providence of God." How do we differentiate the Providence of God from karma, good luck, bad luck, no luck at all? North mentions God sending problems to give us time to spiritually grow. Sometimes he blocks us from getting too far ahead and getting into trouble. At end of his sermon he thanks God for the mountains to stop us, for the mountains to strengthen us, for the mountains to humble us, for the mountains to mature us. He then thanks God for the mountain of debt in paying for their auditorium, for it has helped us to be liberal and taught us to depend on You. Thank You for the mountains and problems that we face in our child care program. It has taught us to love the humble and lowly. Thank You for the mountains you have given us in this television and radio ministry. He gives several more examples but my question is how do we recognize the providence of God or are we like Charlie Brown when he shot an arrow and drew a circle around it. Lucy asked him why he did that and he said “this way I never miss.” Are we drawing a circle around an event and calling it “the providence of God?” Is there such a thing “providence of God” or do we get it from our denominational friends?

Aren't we claiming we recognize the providence of God when we claim something is God's will?

Last night on the television they had a story about that boy who was killed in a sledding accident on Sunday came on. They showed his mother and I thought of Ira North's comments. To a grieving mother his sermon comes across as simplistic, naive, and empty. Or do we claim only the good things, the things that work out the way we want them to work out as "God's Providence?"

We need to have bible support for what we believe or we are no different than the Pope claiming to be God's vicar on earth or the Muslim claiming to be a prophet. I find it easier to believe in miracles or in God's direct interaction with us than in what we call "the providence of God."

According to Ira North we should be thanking God for the debt of the building and for the increased utility bills and the leaks and the muddy parking lot after all they are God's mountains to teach us something.

What is the providence of God and how does that compare with our just trying to keep our heads above the water?

Pray in Jesus' name

1. Pray in Jesus' name. The Bible says, "And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask anything in My name, I will do it" (John 14:13-14). To pray in Jesus name does not mean that you tack His holy name in your wish list. It means that your prayers are consistent with what Jesus Himself would pray about a particular situation.

2. Pray according to the Word and the will of God. "Now this is confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask any thing according to His will, He hears us" (1 John 5:14). The Word and the will of God are synonymous. To pray for anything not promised in the Word of God is a waste of time, but not pray for what we know is God's desire is a surefire winner!

3. "Pray without ceasing" (1 Thess.5:16). Set aside a few minutes for concentrated prayer every day. Be very still, and get quiet before the Lord. Don't worry if you don't receive instant answers. Remember that Daniel prayed for twenty-one days for an answer to his prayer. Finally, an angel of the Lord appeared to Daniel and said, "We heard you praying the first day, but I was intercepted by the prince of Persia" (paraphrase of Dan. 10:13). Can you imagine that? One of Satan's archangels tried to prevent the angel of the Lord from bringing the answer to Daniel's prayer. But Daniel won the battle on his knees. What Daniel did on earth in prayer determined what happened in the heavenly realms, and eventually the answer came. So don't get discouraged. Pray until you get the answer. This is what you call "praying through."

4. Pray audibly, using simple, natural words. You don't have to impress God with your vocabulary or your spirituality. Do not feel that you must use religious phrases. Talk to God in your own language. He understands it.

5. Do not spend so much time asking God for the things, but, instead, confess that God's blessings are being poured out upon you. For most of your prayer, give thanks to God for the answer that you know, in faith, is coming.

6. Practice the attitude of putting everything in God's hands. Ask for the faith to do your best and to leave the results in the hands of a loving God. The Bible says, "casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you" (1 Pet. 5:7).

7. Pray for people you dislike or who have mistreated you. Resentment blocks spiritual power because it separates us from God.

8. Practice the presence of God. You must put yourself in an atmosphere that allows you to focus on Him. The importance of experiencing God's presence cannot be overemphasized. The Bible says, "…for in him we live and move and have our being" (Acts 17:28). After he rediscovered God, Tolstoy expressed this fact in an unforgettable phrase: "To know god is to live."

9. Agree with another believer for the answer to your prayer. Find another believer and ask that person to join you in prayer for God's answer. The Bible says, "Again I say to you that if two of you agree on the earth concerning anything that they shall ask, it will be done for them by My Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered together in My name, there I am in the midst of them" (Matt. 18:19-20).

10. Pray in faith, believing. Many people say, "My faith is weak." When I hear that statement, I remind them that it doesn't take great faith to believe in a God who never fails. The Bible commands, "Have faith in God" (Mark 11:22). The scripture also says, "If you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you" (Matt. 17:20). Believe that God is hearing and answering your prayer, even as you speak it.

God's Word makes it very clear: prayerlessness is sin. Samuel said, "…far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord in ceasing to pray for you" (Sam. 12:23). At pivotal moments in your life, prayer should be your first choice, not your last chance. Remember, as powerful as God is, He does not answer prayer until you pray.

Based on Harold G. Taylor's Soul Winning

There is a crisis in the kingdom of God. Christians have lost their passion for the lost.

The task of Jesus is our task. His purpose is our purpose. Seeking the lost begins with the Christian.

A word of caution: churches must not confuse the task of the church with the mission of the church. The task of the church is to evangelize and equip. The mission is to glorify God by making men like God. Confusion will bog us down in methods, programs and the numbers game. Causing us to miss our real mission: The indwelling of God in men (Colossians 1:27).

First, give the church a clear reason for its existence. Churches often lose their reason for existence. Christians have substituted so many human purposes and trite traditions that their function has been blurred.

Second, convince the church that men are lost. The first century church believed that the world was lying in the power of the evil one.

Third, be a role model for outreach. Live a life of imitation. Paul was supremely aware of his example.

Fourth, the church should be on a wartime basis. The early church understood the race with catastrophe. They were no peacetime army. They were out to win the ultimate battle for the undying souls of men.

Fifth, the church must understand outreach is not optional. Soul winning must be its passion.

Sixth, encourage evangelism as a lifestyle. The early church lived as "exiles and strangers" in a hostile environment. The church is under fire. There is a war going on. Believers are not paranoid --- there really are people out to destroy the church.

Seventh, empower others to win. God gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry… Training soul winners is a priority matter.

Eighth, recruit every Christian to be involved in evangelism at some level. To capture the spirit and the work of the first century church, Christians must be soul winners.

Ninth, focus on the harvest. Prospects are all around us: mates of members; visitors at services; children on the Bible school roll; Vacation Bible school Contacts; senior citizens in the community, newcomers to town, benevolence contacts; radio and television contacts; prospects from a religious census of the community; those at the local jail; the youth taught at summer camp; those contacted through hospitals and nursing homes; and those who attend our gospel meetings.

What you hear is a potential spiritual explosion. The need has never been greater and the multitudes have never been more accessible. It is a poor time for God's evangelists to develop evangelistic laryngitis.
It is time we get on with the Great Commission. We must view the whole world as needing Christ. We must start at home and reach out to all the nations of men. God's people must not fail the Lord who sends them, nor the world who needs them

Spies on Pigeon Forge

In Numbers chapters 13 & 14 is the account of God, through Moses, sending men to spy out the land of Canaan to see what the land was like, whether the people were strong or weak, few or many, good or bad.

So twelve men went up and spied out the land.

When they returned they reported to Moses and to the entire congregation.

Ten of the spies said "The land, through which we have gone to spy it out, is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people that we saw in it are of great height. And that compared to the people who lived their Israel seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them."

Then the people of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron and said to them, "Would that we had died in the land of Egypt! Or would that we had died in this wilderness!" And they said to one another, "Let us choose another leader and go back to Egypt."

Then Moses and Aaron said to all the people of Israel, "If the Lord delights in us, he will give the land to us, only do not rebel against the Lord and do not fear the people of the land. The Lord is with us; do not fear them."

And the Lord said to Moses, "How long will this people not believe in me, in spite of all the signs that I have done among them?

The men whom Moses sent to spy out the land, who returned and brought up a bad report of the land—died by plague before the Lord. Of those men who went to spy out the land, only Joshua and Caleb remained alive.

When we look at Pigeon Forge what do we see? Are we as one of the ten or are we as Joshua and Caleb?

For Your Cogitation, a Now What?

Many of Al’s sermons this year have been to encourage the members of GSMCOC to become more active in evangelism. Remember when he challenged the congregation to read the Bible at the beginning of 2008? While I have read the statistics he quoted it appears to me group activities offer encouragement for individuals to engage in individual activities. So, while people may not attend because of the preacher, this was not true for the Billy Graham Crusades, having an activity for the individuals to invite people to just might be worth the effort.

I have the complete series entitled Hardeman’s Tabernacle Sermons or at least I did before termites discovered them and found some of the books quite tasty. A side issue is termites prefer old paper (prior to 1940s) more than the newer paper. In the history and description of the meeting, meetings among the congregations in Nashville are mentioned. Various groups are identified such as finance, publicity, usher arrangements, song preparations, selecting a preacher, selecting a song leader. They even mention establishing an office in Room 234 of the Maxwell house. There was a fair amount of intra-congregational activities.

100,000 blotters (whatever they are) were distributed as well as 65,000 personal invitation cards were sent out. Pages of the telephone book were assigned to various people with the intent that everyone in Nashville having a telephone was to be called and personally invited to attend. The first night on March 28th, 1922 between 6,000 and 8,000 people attended with another 2,000 to 3,000 were turned away. I do not know the population of Nashville at the time so I cannot compute the effectiveness of the efforts.

Hundreds if not thousands of people were involved in preparations for and conducting the series. The picture I get is a lot of people were involved. This would give them something to talk to their neighbors and friends about and something to invite those neighbors and friends to attend.

The results are identified as: “the results of this meeting cannot be measured by any of us during this life. It is believed that the remote results will be far greater than the immediate. While there were two hundred baptisms at the auditorium and the local church houses and some twenty-five restorations, nevertheless it is thought that the influences of this combined effort of forty or more churches of Christ cooperating in a great missionary undertaking will be felt among the churches all over the land and for many years to come. … It is believed that the big scale on which the meeting was planned, advertised, and carried out will help us to see the great interests of the kingdom in a bigger way that ever before and encourage and inspire us too put forth greater efforts to extend its borders than have ever been done in the past. … At the last meeting it was announced that all expenses had been met.” At least J.E. Acuff and Wayne Burton considered it “the greatest meeting conducted by the churches of Christ since New Testament times.”

My point for all of this is that a major group activity encouraged individuals to perform individual acts of evangelism. The sermons are in print eighty-eight years later.

It may not be an activity on such a scale but we need a group activity that is larger than our congregation to encourage and inspire our members to become involved in evangelism. But first we need to get buy-in to the idea that what Al has been saying is relevant to us as GSMCOC. We are a small group. It will take everyone buying in or at least all the men and women who attend the Men’s / Ladies’ Meetings no matter how sporadic.

The Willing-to-Serve summaries identify:

17 -Greet Visitors; hand out bulletins;
21 -Grade Lessons for Bible Correspondence courses;
10 -Lead a Bible Study in the home;
13 -Study with New Converts;
16 -Distribute Literature in neighborhoods, motels, restaurants.

What we need are plans for these people to get involved, leaders to lead and followers to follow. Now what?