Highland Lakes church of Christ

The Bible enjoins us to serve God. “Never flag in zeal, be aglow with the Spirit, serve the Lord” (Romans 12:11). The Thessalonians, we are told, “. . . turned to God from idols, to serve a living and true God” (1 Thessalonians 1:9). But if I serve God, what does that entail? It means serving God with all my heart and soul.
There is nothing half-hearted, lukewarm, or indifferent about my service. It’s “all-in” for God. “And now, Israel, what does the LORD your God require of you, but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all His ways, to love Him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul” (Deuteronomy 10:12). Play-acting, being a hypocrite, is excluded.
It means to serve with a willing mind. David pointed this out to his son Solomon before his death. “And you, Solomon my son, know the God of your father, and serve Him with a whole heart and a willing mind; for the LORD searches all hearts, and understands every plan and thought. If you seek Him, He will be found by you; but if you forsake Him, He will cast you off for ever” (1 Chronicles 28:9). It’s not reluctant service, or grudgingly doing it out of a sense of duty. Service to God is done with a willing mind, with the heart (seat of our emotions) involved.
It means to serve with humility. One of the great servants of God was the apostle Paul. In speaking to the elders of Ephesus he said, “You yourselves know how I lived among you all the time from the first day that I set foot in Asia, serving the Lord with all humility and with tears and with trials which befell me through the plots of the Jews” (Acts 20:18-19). Arrogance has no place in or out of the pulpit. Sevice to God must be characterized by genuine humility.
It means to serve with gladness. The psalmist said, “Serve the LORD with gladness! Come into His presence with singing!” (Psalm 100:2).
True service to God is a challenge for me. What about you?

~~ John Gibson, Little Rock, AR

Imagine being caught up in a rip current and being helplessly swept away into the sea. Imagine nobody being around to help bring you to safety.

That’s not what happened some time ago on a Florida beach. While several members of a family were caught up in a very strong rip current in 15 feet of water, there actually were people around to help them to safety.

Initially, two young boys were caught in the current. Their mother, Roberta Ursrey, saw them struggling, and against the advice of several onlookers, decided to swim out and try to save them. Once she was caught up in the current herself, other family members attempted to rescue the three. That’s what family members do. But they were swept into the current, as well.

Then something remarkable happened. Over 80 people linked themselves together to form a football-field-length chain in the direction of the struggling swimmers. All nine members of the family were saved, and all of the rescuers made it safely to shore (Panama City News Herald, July 11, 2017).

There are times when we, as brothers and sisters in Christ, need to “chain up” in order to go out into the world in a concerted effort to help bring the spiritually struggling, the drowning, the helpless, and the hopeless brother or sister to safety.

We don’t attempt the rescue alone.

We understand the dangers we face in making the attempt.

We respect the power of the rip current.

But we make the attempt, because that’s what family members do.

“Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted. Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.” (Galatians 6:1-2)  ~~ Troy Albers, Rosenberg, TX

It is, at least in my opinion, tragic that so many people do not understand the value of congregational fellowship. There are way too many individuals who look at church as a “thing to do” a couple of times a week, rather than times to look forward to and cherish. Where else can we spend an hour or two with like-minded individuals, praising the Creator and our Savior, while encouraging each other? The problem – compartmentalizing the religious experience!!!

There is a disconnect between personal life and Bible class, Bible class and praising, praising and sermons and sermons and communion and communion and everyday life. Each is seen and treated like a separate experience instead of being what it is supposed to be: a combined experience that enriches. We may not come to Bible class because we do not see the inherent value of learning about God’s Word in a classroom of our peers. We just ”go to church”! We may treat a Sunday as if it is just about communion and not everything else. Of course, there is no denying the importance of communion but when we place the entire Sunday experience into that one event, we think it is ok to leave directly after. This causes us to miss the opportunity to be encouraged by further praise and great sermons. I also know of individuals who see praise and worship as being more important than the sermon, singing heartily with the song leader and then nodding off for the sermon. Of course, it is not our fault that the sermon was “boring” (as if God’s Word can ever be boring!!!!), or that the message was not intended for us on that day. We even sit in the auditorium and insult some of our fellow congregants as we lean over to our loved ones or friends and “discuss” things unrelated to the sermon. We also behave one way in church and a completely different way when we are at home. That is what I mean by compartmentalizing the religious experience.

When we compartmentalize religion we lose the benefits of the combined experience and, psychologically speaking, create a dichotomy (separation) between our personal lives and our religious experience. What we need to do is see the value of experiencing our Christian life as a series of events that, although they differ in inherent value, are all equally important to our spiritual encouragement and maturation.

How do we do that? By praying for a change in attitude and allowing ourselves the benefit of enjoying every aspect of our Christian life and worship as a combination of many different events of equal spiritual importance.   ~~ Cleve Stafford, Whiterock church of Christ, Dallas, TX (adapted)

After a struggle with a domain server that lasted several weeks, somebody finally did something right and we are back.  We will be up to date in the next couple of days.  Thanks for your patience and God bless!

The Affirmation of His Spirit

God affirms us, making us a sure thing in Christ, putting His “Yes” within us. By His Spirit He has stamped us with His eternal pledge — a sure beginning of what He is destined to complete (2 Corinthians 1:21-22).

Key Thought:  The genuine test of a follower of Jesus is the presence of the Holy Spirit living in him/her. The Spirit transforms the follower to become like Christ (2 Corinthians 3:18). The Spirit helps produce the fruit of Jesus’ character and compassion in our lives (Galatians 5:22-23). Now we are reminded that the Holy Spirit is the “earnest money” paid by God to show we belong to Him, that He claims us, and that we are His by something much greater than blood relationship — we are children through the Holy Spirit. He will complete the work He has begun in us, bringing us to Himself in glorious joy (Philippians 1:6). The Holy Spirit is our guarantee, our assurance, that this is true and that we are God’s!

Today’s Prayer:   “Father, thank You for the proof of Your claim over my life through the presence of the Holy Spirit in me. Make me more aware of the Spirit’s presence. Help me yield more to the Spirit’s influence. Please know my deep joy at having the assurance of my relationship with you living inside in your Holy Spirit. In Jesus’ holy name I offer my thanks and praise. Amen.”

In 2 Kings 5, a very familiar story of the Old Testament is recorded. Naaman was the commander of the army of Syria – an enemy nation of Israel. He was a mighty man of valor, but he also suffered from leprosy. After one of his raids, he brought back a young Israelite girl to be a slave for his wife. She must have felt very alone being forced into servitude in a foreign land.

We know “the rest of the story” very well – of how she informed them of a prophet in Israel who could heal Naaman of his leprosy. Curiously, he got permission from the king of Syria to go and see if this was true.

When he found the great prophet Elisha’s house and inquired, Elisha sent a messenger to him and informed him that if he would dip in the Jordan River seven times, he would be cured. Naaman was indignant that Elisha didn’t come into his presence and heal him then and there, so he decided to leave. His servants were then able to talk him into giving the dipping into the Jordan thing a try, which he did and, as they say, the rest is history. He was cleansed of his leprosy!

Now, I would like to speculate on something concerning this wonderful account. Here we have this unnamed young girl brought back as a slave doing something incredible. Instead of being bitter about the hand life had dealt her, she reached out to help another. She could have taken all her hurt, pain, and resentment and let it fester inside her and made the determination not to say anything to her master and let him suffer through his disease. Apparently, she had no desire for revenge against her master. Instead, she loved her enemies, forgave the wrong done to her, and set about pointing out to her master that God was his only hope.

Another thing I often contemplate as I read this account is that this young girl must have conducted herself in such a way that when she had something to say, they listened to her. What a great example to us. We should live such a kind, forgiving life among people that when we have something to say, they will listen. You never know where the sharing your faith combined with a great attitude will lead! – Edd Sterchi, Campbellsville, KY