This morning here on the House of Hope we need to change the message a bit from what I intended it to be this morning, but we remain on the same these, Why does the Church exist
?
Dr. Jim Denison posted this:
Pastor Jarrid Wilson’s death came one day before World Suicide Prevention Day. While suicide is the tenth leading cause of death among the general American population, it is the second leading cause of death for young people between the ages of ten and twenty-four. Suicide rates in the US have increased more than 25 percent since 1999.
The World Health Organization estimates a global suicide rate of one death every forty seconds. By next year, they predict someone will take their life every twenty seconds.
If you or someone you know might be at risk of suicide, please call 1-800-273-8255 to reach the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. It provides confidential, free support twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. You can also call this number to talk to someone about how to help a person in crisis.
Listen now to my podcast…..Thank you!
PS: I was told by a our dear friend Grace yesterday that a dear friend of hers still tells her that I saved her life. I did not, God did. She called me one night years ago thinking of suicide, she lives today even closer to God. Amen!
Get so very close to God that you can feel His presence. I am blessed to have God with me.
I love to study! I love to have God with me! I love to hear from God! I love the discernment that God gives us! I love being all sold out for God.
I have been praying and studying about the Church in America. When I see drama in a Church, it is because the eyes of folks are not on Jesus! The same thing in families and business. Trouble happens when we do not stay focused on God and His ways. The way we live shows the world who we really are. Who are you, or what are you focused on this Sunday morning? What you focus on is what you become.
I love this……..
The way we live demonstrates God’s glory to the world around us. When we display unconditional love, accept others, show kindness even when wronged, we are being obedient to God and that gives Him glory. In fact, it was Jesus who said, “I have glorified Thee on earth; I have finished the work Thou gavest me to do” (John 17:4). Early in His ministry, the Lord Jesus exhorted those in His kingdom to “Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven” (Matt. 5:16). The presence of God is to be manifested in His body, the church. When God is disobeyed, His glory departs (1 Sam. 4:21). That does not mean He personally leaves, but it does mean His attributes can no longer be seen. That is why it is imperative we continually acknowledge our sin and turn from it. Only then can we truly give Him glory (Cf. Joshua 7:19). The early church understood what it meant to participate together in fellowship so that God was honored. Whether it was the “breaking of bread” (celebration), “praying” (intercession), the “selling of their property, possessions, and sharing” (participation) or “with gladness and sincerity worshipping together” (adoration), they cultivated every experience to express the will of Christ (cf. Acts 2:42-47). Because of Christ’s command to “…walk in a manner worthy of the Lord…” (Col. 1:10), it is essential that “The one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked” (1 John 2:6).
From Christ Community Church in West Covina, CA Christ Community Church
