The Church Has Lost the Home Field Advantage

January 12, 2015

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Dear Family of our Lord Jesus Christ,

Good to be with you this day! Praise God!

We love you all more than you know!

We are getting ready for the radio show! 12:05pm mt on KDAZ AM730 “The World We Live in” You can also listen from the website www.fggam.org

From Sonja Haldeman in Surprise, Arizona, “We wait everyday to get the CUP!”

Thank you for the kind words Sonja!

I just got off the phone with Wanell Pate, FGGAM Board Member who is recovering from breast cancer surgery. Wanell wants to thank you all for your love and prayers. She is in a bit of pain this morning, please continue to cover her in your prayers for complete healing. No cancer…….test results on Wednesday. Lord, we pray for Wanell and you know all and we come to you this morning and ask for complete healing for her. Thank you Lord, in Jesus name, Amen.

I talked on Saturday to Kathy Garcia another FGGAM Board Member ( we are under attack) who had cancer surgery awhile back. Kathy continues to recover, she has a couple of health issues, we pray perfect health over Kathy Lord, perfect health, in Jesus name, Amen. Kathy also thanks you for your continued love and prayers.

We also want to extend our sympathy to the Eldon Nagorske family back in my hometown of Windom, Minnesota. Eldon has passed onto heaven. He produced so much Godly fruit in his life, his family, his works at Fairfield Management Company in Windom. God Bless the memory of Eldon Nagorske.

“If we could get America as excited for Jesus as it is for football, we could turn this country around for God! Pray with me that that day will come soon. I pray America’s pastime becomes Jesus Christ.” Pastor Dewey

I just heard this on KKIM AM1000 yesterday from Rev. Randy Walquist of Immanuel Lutheran Church in Albuquerque, NM: A recent USA Today survey showed that the American Church has lost the home field advantage. This so ties in with my message today! The survey showed that 72% of Americans do not belong to a Church but believe in a living God. They do not belong to a Church because they feel that the Church and Church attendees are hypocritical. 50% of that group said that Church attendees get on their nerves. 4 out of 5 said that Church attendees to not show the love of Jesus. Chew on that for awhile! Despite that news, I Thank the Lord for the many Churches that are standing in the gap for God!

That information ties in with today’s message:

I just love going back and reading about God’s Saints, my Mom would say to me, “I want you to grow up to be a Saint, live like a Saint.” Grandma Caraway said to me in 1974, “You are going to be a Preacher someday!”( Definition of a Saint: a person acknowledged as holy or virtuous) We are all called to be Saints! To behave like Saints! 1 Cor. 1:2 in King James we read: Unto the church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours. When I was growing up if someone got to big for their britches we would say, ” You think your a Saint!” Today many of us think we are Saints, but many of us have a ways to go, I sure do. Now to be clear I’m not talking about the Catholic Church and their Saints, I’m talking about you and me and our calling from God, being Holy and virtuous, living a Saintly life for God. Today I have been studying the life of Pastor Robert Murray McCheyne of Scotland who lived from 1813 to just 1843. He was just 30 when he died, But what an IMPACT for GOD! Oh, so much of the Church has watered down what it means to be the Church of our Lord Jesus Christ.

McCheyne was careful and consistent in his devotional life. It was a happy custom to spend time before breakfast reading scripture (three chapters a day, singing hymns (he was an excellent musician), and praying. He followed the counsel of Godly seventeenth-century Anglican Jeremy Taylor.

Taylor said, “If thou meanest to enlarge thy religion, do it rather by enlarging thine ordinary devotions than thy extraordinary.”

Warren W. Wiersbe writes in his book, “50 People Every Christian Should Know”, That is good counsel(from Taylor) for today, to many Christians are scurrying around looking for special meetings, thinking that extraordinary experiences will make them better Christians. In my own ministry in Pastor conferences, I have discovered that too many ministers neglect their daily devotional time, or hurry through it, so they can get involved in “more important matters.”

McCheyne said, “It is not great talents God blesses so much as great likeness to Jesus. A holy minister is an awesome weapon in the hand of God.”

I love to hear people say, “My Pastor is a Holy man of God!”

Another quote, “I feel there are two things it is impossible to desire without sufficient passion—-personal holiness and honor of Christ in the salvation of souls.”

The American Church is not Baptizing enough. We are not growing the Church in America, most Church growth comes from people changing Churches. I have read so many books/facts and figures on this! Also there is the problem of when people are baptized many forget about them, that they are just in diapers and don’t stand by their side to grow them up in Jesus Christ.

Another quote from McCheyne, “Live so as to be missed”

Also: “To gain entire likeness to Christ, I ought to get a high esteem of the happiness of it. I am persuaded that God’s happiness is inseparably linked in with His holiness.”

I strongly encourage you to study the Saints of the past………a good start is Wiersbe’s book.

The Late Chuck Colson, another Saint, said one day on his radio program, Breakpoint, “The American Church has become one big High School pep rally, there is not much substance.” Yes the American Church as a whole wants to make people “feel good” We need more of: ” I have come to comfort the inflicted and inflict the comfortable.”

Grab one of Colson’s books, read it, it is either going to comfort you or make you feel very uncomfortable, better yet, read your Bible.

My discernment, through studying these Saints, has shown me what true Church is, It’s all about God and His Word. Being obedient to God in everything! Amen!

Romans 1:7

To all those in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

1 Corinthians 14:33

For God is not a God of confusion but of peace. As in all the churches of the saints,

Hebrews 12:1

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,

2 Corinthians 5:17

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

The next two posts are from Dawn Rae Bridges. Dawn is from Maine and writes for us here at FGGAM. She is an outstanding writer for the Lord. These two really PREACH!!!! AMEN!!! CHOSEN……………

John 15:16 You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you.

Several years ago a sister in the Lord gave me a card. On the inside she had written: You are chosen of Him to bear His name. To show forth His glory in all you do and say. Be blessed today as He works in you, refining you for His purpose and namesake.

Think about that for just a minute…….He chose you……YOU! He wanted you and He loves you! You were worth all He suffered. It was His desire that you become His wife. He wanted an intimate relationship with you, so in His great love, He gave Himself.

We were talking with Gabi yesterday and she was telling us that some of the kids at Youth Group were upset because they were playing a game and had to choose teams. She was one of the last to be chosen yet the ones before were complaining because they weren’t picked first. Ron said, “Well, that’s right Gabi, because Jesus said the last shall be first.” (Matthew 19:30, Luke 13:30)

What a good word in His perfect timing! It made me think about when I was in school and was always one of the last three to be chosen…..every time. Then I began to think on this wonderful scripture:

Ephesians 1:4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love

And this one:

1 Peter 2:4 Coming to Him as a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious…

All that stuff from years ago will try to make you doubt that you are of great value, but Jesus is saying, “I choose you. I chose you before the foundations of the earth were formed. I knew you then and it was My desire for you to choose Me as well so that we could be one. I want you. You are not a reject, nor are you worthless. I lay down My very life for you because you are My heart’s desire.”

As you go about your day and the next time you have someone reject you or be unkind to you, I want you to remind yourself the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords, our very own Beloved Bridegroom, our Husband, chooses you. You are of great value…….Him.

Today, I say to you, my beloved brethren:

You are chosen of Him to bear His name. To show forth His glory in all you do and say. Be blessed today as He works in you, refining you for His purpose and namesake.

PEACE…………

Isaiah 26:3 You will keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on You, Because he trusts You.

I just got back from a vacation to see my family and then Ron’s. The Lord has been talking with me about perfect peace and how to stay in that place of rest. The day before our trip, I turned on the computer to write my post and the computer was jacked up. Peace? Not at that moment! We couldn’t get it to work properly no matter what we did.

That night the Lord gave me a vision. I was walking and all around me a movie was playing of these last few years with the heartaches, struggles, and all the things that kept trying to pull my eyes off Him. Jesus was standing at the end of the place I was headed. He was smiling and motioning me to come. He was saying, “Look at Me, Dove. Don’t let all the things that try to pull you from me get your attention. Look at Me!” As long as I kept my eyes on Him, none of the peripheral stuff bothered me.

Jesus, our Prince of Peace has promised to keep us in perfect peace when our eyes are fixed on Him. Peace is in us……it is fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22). When we fix our eyes on Him, our mind is just agreeing with Him in our spirit man.

I looked up the word peace in the dictionary and the Strong’s and this is what it says:

Freedom from disturbance; safe, well, happy, health, all is well; to be safe in mind, body or estate; to be completed, restore.

Romans 8:6 For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.

John 14:27 Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

John 16:33 These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.

Hebrews 12:2a looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith…

Jesus keeps His word! The word “looking” in the above scripture means “fixing one’s eyes on trustingly”.

You can see a perfect example in Peter’s experience of walking on the water….and sinking. All was well as long as he looked at Jesus, but as soon as he noticed the storm and tossing waves….down he went.

It has been the same in my own experience. As long as I keep my eyes on Him, no matter what is going on in the natural realm, I have peace that passes all understanding. Perspective is key here.

When your eyes are on Him you begin to see as He does. Jesus doesn’t worry so if we are fixing our eyes on Him, neither will we.

How do you fix your eyes on Him? When I start to get distracted by things, I immediately turn to Him and say, “Lord, I can’t deal with this. I give it to you.” or “How do You see this, Lord?” I pray in the Spirit, I read the scriptures, and I ask Holy Spirit to help me. If I am still struggling to get my thoughts off the issue and on Jesus, I put on some worship music and worship.

You see….it is a choice. In the scriptures above we are told: carnal thoughts…..death, spiritual thoughts…..life and peace; He gave us peace; LET not your heart be troubled nor afraid….you choose.

It isn’t always easy, but it is ALWAYS worth it to fix your eyes, heart, thoughts on the Lord Jesus. We do have an enemy that works hard to steal our peace. It’s up to you whether or not he succeeds.

Peace…..freedom from disturbance…. Amen! Choose to agree with Him today and to fix your eyes on Him.

(All scriptures NKJV; Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, Thomas Nelson Publishers 1990; Thorndike Barnhart Comprehensive Desk Dictionary 1950)

God Bless you Dawn!

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