Category: Faith Fix

Find Your Place

1 Corinthians 7:17 (NKJV) says, “But as God has distributed to each one, as the Lord has called each one, so let him walk. And so I ordain in all the churches.” That word distributed means to be separated into parts. When you come to Christ, God has called you to take your place, the place where He called you to be. That includes the local church He’s called you to, the pastor He’s called you to, and the plan He’s called you to. We are members of this body of Christ, here to help get this mission, this great commission, accomplished on this earth. God has given us Jesus, allowing us to walk in the newness of life, making us new creations (2 Corinthians 5:17). He also gave us pastors, found in the local church, for us to be equipped to go out and do the work of the ministry (Ephesians 4:11-12).

God wants us to take the place of the whole that He has purposed for us to take. 1 Corinthians 12:18 says, “But now God has set the members, each one of them, in the body just as He pleased.” In every church, God has appointed the members. That means, that God has purposed for us to be connected somewhere, and that place is not up to us, but is up to Him. Many Christians will go from church to church to church, hopping around trying to find the church that appeases their interests most. What music style do I like best? What time of day or day of the week do I want to go? Which church has the best incentive program or the most free giveaways? We’ve had people stop coming to our church because they didn’t like having only three worship songs, but would have rather had double. We’ve had people that stopped coming to our church because they didn’t like that we dressed up too much. We’ve even had people who have stopped coming to our church because the people were too friendly here. We have to be careful that we don’t let the enemy convince us, through our flesh, to walk away from the place God has set us.

Look at Psalms 92:13-14 (NKJV), “Those who are planted in the house of the Lord Shall flourish in the courts of our God, They shall still bear fruit in old age;
They shall be fresh and flourishing.” The fruitfulness of our lives depends on us being in the right place. Remember what Matthew 7:20 (NKJV) says, “…by their fruits you will know them.” That word flourish means to produce abundantly. It means to blossom and to grow. Being planted in the right local church with the pastor God has called us to, will allow us to be equipped with peace, provision, strength, boldness, knowledge, integrity, good character, and all the qualities of Christ, which is what the world needs to see. This is the flourishing this scripture promises.

Our witness and our part of winning the lost for the Kingdom of Heaven depends on whether or not we get planted and bear fruit. When we won’t take our place in the body, instead of influencing people for His kingdom we will influence people for the devil’s kingdom. Oh, the devil loves when Christians are wishy washy and not following through with their faithfulness to God. This is a witness of weakness, not a witness of power. But when Christians actually get in the place He has for them and actually allow God to use them, where He sees fit, the power of God is made manifest and others will flock to that power.

Oh that Christians would see, there’s power in the plan of God for your life. Do everything you can to get to that place where you’re in the perfect will of God for your life. Once you find your place, stay there. Amen?!

Be Blessed,
Pastor Renée

Busy, Busy, Busy

Mark 6:31 (NKJV)
And He said to them, “Come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while.” For there were many coming and going, and they did not even have time to eat.

In Western NY, summer time is an interesting time. For pastors, it can be bitter sweet. Since summer weather only lasts for a few months, people will try to cram a year’s worth of stuff in that short time. It’s no wonder that people also start to neglect their spiritual life in this season. As a pastor, I am not immune.

Outside projects, vacations, barbecues and the like can get our attention very quickly. The Bible tells us that when you sow to flesh you reap corruption and when you sow to the spirit you reap life. What’s funny is that in our busyness, we forget this principle and only sow to the flesh.

Church was not created for God. He didn’t give us our pastor because He needed it. Matthew 9:36 says, “But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd.” This is why what Christ did when He left earth was establish the church and give us the ministry offices or as the Bible says, gifts. Yes, the local church and your pastor are both gifts to you. I do not say this because I am a pastor. I say this because I have a pastor. I can connect every great blessing in my life to my pastor. It is the wisdom and feeding of the Word, and the anointing that God has placed on his life that keeps me from being weary and faint.

I preached a message recently that is the answer and help for everything that people face. The principles, all of which came from the Word of God, if put to practice, will give any person victory in EVERY situation they could ever face. That being said, only maybe two thirds of my congregation were there to hear it. The anointing that was in the service alone, not because I showed up, but because God did, would break any yoke of bondage that a person could carry. All that and yet the church was not close to full and the bulk of the reason was, the weather was too nice or people were too busy.

I have seen people who can miss three or four or more weeks of church and think little of it. They will inevitably be the same ones who will be struggling with something in the near future, not knowing what to do, and the whole time, God showed up every Sunday to church to help them and to give them answers. They just weren’t there to receive it. These are people who just don’t realize the true importance of their church.

I am not trying to put condemnation on people saying, they can never miss a service. What I am saying is that people still think that going to church is a religious duty they do for God and if they do they get some kind of spiritual brownie points for it. Church was created to be a blessing and a help to you. This is the first place where God shows up. This is the place you will get the answers for your life. My family knows this and this is why we are always there. My family does not dedicate our lives to the church because we are in ministry. We are in ministry because the church, God’s people, and His plan are everything to us. This is God’s intent for every man, woman, and child in the entire world.

People want the blessing of God in their lives and they want God to show up when they need Him, but they don’t show up where God’s power manifests. God’s number one desire is to bless His people. You need to ask yourself, do I forgo His blessing because I’m just too busy?

Here’s the truth, people who aren’t going church are also not spending time in the Word and prayer like they should either. Don’t be too busy for God. Don’t neglect the very gifts that He gave you to be a blessing to your life. Get established, get planted in the local church because this is the only way your life can flourish. Stop making excuses for things that don’t matter and help yourself to the truth. God loves you, your pastor loves you, but neither can help you or be a benefit to you if you choose not to partake. Stop letting things that don’t really matter order your life and start letting God. After all, He always knows what’s best for you.

Psalms 92:13
Those who are planted in the house of the Lord,
Shall flourish in the courts of our God.

Be Blessed,
Pastor Jeff

True Righteousness

God is righteous. Psalms 145:17 (NKJV) says, “The Lord is righteous in all His ways, Gracious in all His works.” Righteous means just and right in conduct. God is righteous and just in all He thinks, says, and does. He’s right in ALL His ways.

The Bible says that if we say we abide in Him, we ought to walk just as He walked. (1 John 2:6) The first part of Proverbs 23:7 (NKJV) says, “For as he thinks in his heart, so is he.” If we want to be righteous and walk in the righteousness of God, the way He walked, we’ve got to think how God thinks.

Romans 12:2 (NKJV) gives us very important direction, “do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.” The perfect will of God is that we would walk just as He walked. Look at Psalms 106:3 (NKJV), “Blessed are those who keep justice, And he who does righteousness at all times!” It’s going to take the renewing of our minds in order to keep justice and to live righteously.

Righteousness, right doing, justice in word, thought and deed, matters to God. Psalms 5:12 (NKJV), “For You, O Lord, will bless the righteous; With favor You will surround him as with a shield.” Remember, in the Old Testament, the Lord delivered Noah and His whole family because Noah was a righteous man, who walked with God. (Gen. 6:9) Our blessing and the blessing of our family depends on whether or not we will walk in the righteousness of God. Remember back in the beginning chapters of the Book of Daniel where he and his three friends refused to defile themselves and walk unjustly while taken captive in Babylon? God delivered them from the hand of the enemy and from the fiery furnace meant to destroy them. The Bible is filled with examples like this, where righteousness is what saved someone’s life!

I love Matthew 5:6 (NKJV), “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, For they shall be filled.” I want what God wants. I want to know how to live better. I want to know when I’m wrong. I want to know when I’m off course. I want to be correctable. If the church doors are open, I want to be there to be fed by the Word of God. Let me sit up front, let me get in line first, let me get full! I want what God wants! I’m hungry. I’m thirsting for righteousness. Because of this, I will be filled. And, being blessed, according to this scripture is being filled. Being filled means to have abundance, it means to be satisfied. This comes as we hunger for His righteousness. When we hunger to live right, when we hunger to walk in truth and justice, we will be filled in all areas of our lives.

In John 5:19 (NKJV), Jesus said, “Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner.” This applies to us as children of God. Follow what the Father does. Walk in His true righteousness and be blessed. Amen?

Be Blessed,
Pastor Renée

The Emotional Church

Matthew 6:34
Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

Electricity is a wonderful thing. It changed the world forever when humans learned how to use it. Now because of electricity we have so many things we never could have. Just because electricity has so many benefits does not mean that you can use it for anything. In fact, electricity used the wrong way can be very dangerous. The truth is this, electricity when properly applied, will change lives but wrongly applied will end them. So it goes with our emotions.

Emotions are an incredible blessing from the Lord. So much of true life is experienced through our emotions and that is precisely what they were created for. The problem arises when people unwittingly start to use them for what they weren’t intended for, that is guidance and decision making. So many people are using their emotions for their life compass, and yet they fail to see why they get in so much trouble. “I feel this or this is what feels good so this is what I will do.” The phrase, “Just do you” is one of my biggest pet peeves. This stupid phrase has snuck into the church with the encouragement of the devil and Christians have swallowed it hook, line and sinker. Sure the world will “just do you” but what the world does leads them to hell. Born again believers need to just do the Word. After all, weren’t we told to come out from among them and be separate? That means we are to be distinguishable from them. Christians, we need to look different.

If we follow our emotions they will only lead us down roads which will hurt us and others. I stayed in the church that raised me to be a pastor and learned to be faithful there. I didn’t always feel like staying and in fact sometimes it was down right difficult. I remember in times when I was sure I was going to take my family elsewhere and I remembered the words of Peter to Jesus… “but where else would we go?” It was there that I got fed the Word of God. There my life changed and I got answers I never had gotten before. There I really got introduced to God. There I also dealt with people. There I had people say things to me I didn’t like and sometimes even hurt me. The truth is, even good churches are full of people and therefore we will see imperfection in them. This I knew though, God had brought me to this place and here He set me free.

1 Corinthians 12:18 tells us, “But now God has set the members, each one of them, in the body just as He pleased.” I don’t decide in God’s plan what is right and wrong anymore than anyone in history. When God set people free He always led them somewhere and those that were faithful to follow, stay put and listen to direction were the ones that were blessed. In today’s church society it is popular to go where you like or where you desire. Rarely are people choosing their location based on the leading of His Spirit. Even if they do, when things get tough or they don’t feel happy anymore or they get bored, they often move on. Not by God’s plan or design but solely based in their emotions.

If you want the blessed life that Jeremiah 29:11 promises then you have to remember a key ingredient in that scripture. His blessing is attached to His plan and you don’t have a say in what that is. He decides, you follow. The greatest thing is, His blessing is fully attached! Stop doing things based on what you want and you will find the peace you seek. Find your way in His plan not yours and watch how life comes together. I have been set free, not by my desires but by my decision to follow His. In that place I have found and continue to find everything I could want or need.

Galatians 5:24
And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

P.S. That doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy life, it means your enjoyment isn’t what controls you.

Be Blessed,
Pastor Jeff

The Amen is Spoken

Look at, 2 Corinthians 1:20 (AMP), “For as many as are the promises of God, they all find their Yes [answer] in Him [Christ]. For this reason we also utter the Amen (so be it) to God through Him [in His Person and by His agency] to the glory of God.

As many promises as God has made to us in His Word, they are all yes, because of Christ. Christ was our exodus out of the captivity of this world and the bondage of our sin. Christ is our answer. Christ is our AMEN! Everything you have ever needed or desired in life is attached to following Christ. Remember what Jesus said in John 8:31-32 (NKJV), “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” True freedom comes through Him.

Notice the second part of 2 Corinthians 1:20, “For this reason we also utter the Amen to God.” Why does God want to hear our “amen”? Notice this scripture says it is uttered to the glory of God! To utter means to speak. It’s not enough to just believe in God, but we must speak it out of our mouths.
Luke 6:45 (NKJV) says, “…out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.” If we say we love God in our hearts, we must speak that love out of our mouths. It’s a spiritual law, just like a natural law. The love in our heart causes us to speak just as gravity allows us to stand on the ground.

The word “amen” is quite a hefty word, in its original meaning. It means the assurance. It’s means surely, verily, firm. It means so be it. It means of truth. When we utter amen, whether in prayer or at the teaching of the Word of God during a church service, or when we’re discussing the Scripture with friends, or studying the Word of God on our own time, we’re letting God know that we know it’s truth. When we speak that to God it demonstrates our faith in Him as our assurance and as our firm “so be it”.

In John 19, when Jesus knew that all things had been accomplished as He hung on the cross, He said, “it is finished.” That’s a firm statement. It’s a great amen! So be it. It’s done. Here is your assurance. I am your assurance.

We need to show God that we know what Jesus meant for us, that we know what God did for us. It’s an expression of faith. It’s an expression of gratitude. It’s an expression of love. Don’t be afraid to utter “amen” to the glory of God.

Be Blessed,
Pastor Renée

Holiness, Not Spiritualness

1 Peter 1:15-16, “but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, ‘Be holy, for I am holy.’”

“I’m spiritual.” I’ve heard this more times than I can count. Especially when people know that I’m a pastor, they always feel the need to claim this. Everybody has a concept of the importance of spirituality and they claim this as some sort of justification for how they live. Does claiming spirituality actually mean anything, though?

Not a bit! I’m sure, rather I know, there are are a lot of Christians or pastors who are quite ok with this statement and even get pleased by it. Honestly, it means nothing to me! What? That’s right! There is no secret that there is a spiritual world around us, but there’s something you should know. All spirits are not good. In fact, many, many spirits are not good. Therefore all spirits are not God. You can be “spiritual” and have nothing to do with God at all. I know some very spiritual people who are also the most flaky people. See, you can be “spiritual”, and also completely serving the devil.
Not far from where I live is the largest community of spiritualists in the world. Full of fortune tellers and palm readers; they have spiritual events all the time. Christians (at one time even me) foolishly will take part in these things thinking that they are doing something good or getting answers for their lives. They are getting answers alright, but I assure you they are not from God. They are of the devil and the Bible warns us about this. 1 John 4:1 says, “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world.” And 2 Corinthians 11:14 says, “And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light.” Most people are quick to gobble up anything fed to them as long as it feels good going down!

God has called us to be holy (1 Peter 1:16), not spiritual. We are told to seek God and His Word for our answers, nothing else. We are not even supposed to seek angels, that is not their purpose. That does not mean God won’t use them or that we are not meant to but that’s another lesson.

Following God is not hard but it does require something from us, that is the truth. We must follow the truth, live in the truth, and be truthful people. Especially as it pertains to ourselves. The Bible has strong warnings about deception and I tell you that one of the greatest deceivers can be our own mind. The devil knows this fact and often exploits it. Often times, he needs very little help because we just let him. As a Pastor, I have caught myself “wanting” to believe something that just wasn’t true. Have you ever been there? You want to believe it because it feels good. That my friends is very dangerous. I refuse to believe anything that is not true.
If you stay with a pure heart in God’s Word, He will keep you from being deceived. Part of that is refusing anything, even what you have traditionally believed, if it does not line up exactly with what is written. I constantly evaluate what I say I believe and put it against God’s Word. If it passes, then I keep it unto myself. If it doesn’t, I make adjustments. This is the path of learning, this is the path that’s safe. You don’t know everything there is to know and neither do I, but God teaches us through His Spirit by His Word as much as we will keep it before us. Don’t be spiritual, be holy. When you’re Holy the right kind of spiritual will manifest in your life. You won’t have to tell anyone, it will be very evident.

Hebrews 4:12
For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

Be Blessed,
Pastor Jeff