Another great Sunday...

It was another great day at church. Gracie was excited, as usual, to go to Sunday school and Church. She enjoys her time at church, which is great. Knowing she is at ease and happy in the nursery lets up concentrate on the message presented in the church service as well as our Sunday school class.

As I mentioned, last Sunday, our pastor is preaching a series called "The Twelve". He is teaching about the twelve minor prophets in the Old Testament, . He started with Hosea. Today we moved on to Amos. Amos was a shepherd, living in Judah, who received a message from God, regarding the nation of Israel.

^{Amos 2:4-5}

⁴ This is what the LORD says:
"For three sins of Judah,
even for four, I will not turn back {my wrath}.
Because they have rejected the law of the LORD
and have not kept his decrees,
because they have been led astray by false gods, ^b]">
the gods their ancestors followed,

⁵ I will send fire upon Judah
that will consume the fortresses of Jerusalem."

Here are some points made by my pastor.

• "We are in a relationship, a covenant, with God (if you are a believer). Our lives should reflect that relationship with Him.
  
• Our identity permeates every aspect of our life. Do we live a life that permeates an identity showing that we are in a relationship with God? Do we live a life of worship for God?
• Where does WORSHIP fall in our life? Is it a hobby- just a past time on Sunday? Is it a profession - Do we worship with an expectation of compensation from God? Or is Worship part of our identity- permeating every aspect of our life?
• Ross, my pastor said, "If your worship, of God, is only a hobby or you expect compensations for it - then you have missed out on what it is supposed to be."
• Amos was trying to get the nation of Israel to see that even though they go through the acts of "worship", they did not live a life that was honoring God's laws and commands.
• Basically, the people of Israel did not help their poor, needy, widowed, hurting.... they were not showing compassion and following God's laws to care for those in need. If you are not familiar with the Old Testament and the Laws of God, He made provisions for those in need, in debt, widowed, etc. However, at this time in the history of Israel, they were not following these laws. You can read these instructions, from God, in Deuteronomy 15.

God speaks throu Amos, telling the people of Israel:

• Seek me and live. (Amos 5:5)
• Seek the Lord and live. (Amos 5:6)
• Seek God and not evil. (Amos 5:14)
• Hate evil, love good. (Amos 5:15)

Our take home thoughts were in regards to the way the Israelites had stopped caring for those in need, in their nation. Forgetting to show mercy and grace, as God had shown them. Ross challenged us to think about how we interact with those in need in our own community. He said, "We need to know how the poor in our community are cared for." He challenged us with this homework - What are the resources in our community for the poor and needy? We need to start thinking about that.
I am expecting some community outreach planned and encouraged by our pastor. Sounds like a good thing.

Finally he said, "We are not doing it (care for the needy) to earn His favor (God's favor), or gain salvation. But because of His grace given to us."

Good stuff!! So, I will be thinking about our community, this week. I know there are many organizations doing good work. Who are they? Is there an organization that I could work with? Am I doing anything to help those in my community in need?

I can answer that... I'm not doing enough. What about you?

James 2:14-17
What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? ¹⁵Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. ¹⁶If one of you says to him, "Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed," but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? ¹⁷In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.