The Lazy Christian.

Is there such a thing? A lazy Christian?

The Lazy Christian does not:

• Pray
• Read the Bible
• Serve
• Evangelize
• Tithe
• Know their personal gifts
• Bear fruit

We are called to live a life set apart FOR Christ.
Yet apart from Jesus, we can do nothing (John 15:5).
So then: DOING NOTHING = LAZINESS.

Need a definition?

 

la·zy  (lā′zē)

adj. la·zi·er, la·zi·est

1. Resistant to work or exertion; disposed to idleness.

2. Slow-moving; sluggish: a lazy river.

3. Conducive to idleness or indolence:

Lazy Christ are apart from Christ. These lazy Christians are the lukewarm church. Do they know their destiny? Revelations 3:16 explains it simply.

So what then shall they do? Luke 13:5 has the first step of the solution.

Folks, the end is drawing near. There is no time to procrastinate abiding in the Lord. I long to see the Body of Christ full engaged living a biblical lifestyle that attracts the unsaved to Christ.

How will the world know that Jesus Christ transforms lives,

if your life looks no different from the world?

Where did you get off track? Refer to the list above. The starting point of living out a 'changed life' starts with a 'devotional life' of prayer and spending time in the Scriptures/truth! In this time, you will be filled with the Holy Spirit and you will begin to bear fruit, find your spiritual gifts, serve, give, and evangelize.

The Christian life is intended to be active, not passive.

Matthew 28:19-20 gives the directive: Go and make disciples! This is not an optional commandment, it is what the Lord Jesus calls us all to. It's up to you to spend time with the Lord to find out who in your life you are to lead and direct toward Christ. God speaks. His Spirit leads and convicts. Obedience is key. Obey the voice of the Lord, the nudge of the Holy Spirit and you will find yourself being an "active participant" in the work of God.

Otherwise, you will remain the "spectator Christian"...the Lazy Christian. And that my friend is just down right boring. No wonder sexual immorality, alcohol, drugs, porn, the Internet, money, -- FILL IN THE BLANK -- is so attractive and consuming your time. You are not aggressively engaged all that God created you to do FOR HIM.

John the Baptist said it best: I must DECREASE, He must INCREASE. It is to be about HIM, not us!

When it is about US, our lives, dreams, comfort, choices....we become disengaged with Jesus...and resort to being Lazy Christian, living the lukewarm powerless life fulfilling OUR will, not HIS will.

It all begins with repentance. Luke 13:5. Repent of the selfish lifestyle and call onto the Holy Spirit to fill you with the power to overcome your fleshly desires and give you the passion to live sold-out to Christ. And then daily - stay plugged into the power source!!!!! This is when you crush the lazy, spectator Christian lifestyle and you will produce the kind of fruit that is imperishable...that which will stand with it refined by the fire coming!

WHY do you want more God????

Wrote this one line in my prayer journal today:

"Lord, you are so good...thank you for showing up...."

(Referring to our table leader meeting last night.)

 

 

And then I wrote the following down:

 

"God will show up in the way we allow Him to."

 

 

For those who expect little from God, they will get little.

For those who expect greatness from God, they will get abundance.

 

And I am never talking about money when I mention 'abundance'...I am so over that message.

 

Personally, I want an abundance of:

COMPASSION                     

PATIENCE

GENTLENESS

SELF-CONTROL

FAITHFULNESS

PEACE

JOY

and the greatest of all: LOVE

 

 

I also want an abundance of:

WISDOM & KNOWLEDGE

ADMINISTRATIVE ABILITY

FAITH & HEALING HANDS

WORKING OF MIRACLES

 

We get these from pursuing God for who HE is as a disciple, not seeking His hand as a consumer.

 

Ask God for the spiritual things to develop within you, and then you will begin experiencing His presence in your life, His spirit moving in your days, and His love pouring out of your heart!



IS THE BODY OF CHRIST CRIPPLED? CRIPPLED BY ADDICTION, IDOLATRY, OBSESSION?

Are we crippled? In bondage to our addictions? I believe so.

But we cannot hang onto our vices any longer, our addictions: alcohol, drugs, pills, porn, media (FB, YouTube, etc.), movies, t.v., games, activities, money, shopping, illicit sex, cigarettes or even work. The list can go on and on.

For this leaves us in bondage, slaves to our body, the ruler of this world, and to the world’s standards and morals.

Doing what you want,

Doing what you think is right,
Is not always what is best for you.

You think you have freedom-

But you are a slave.
Just try to stop those vices and see what happens, how you feel.
Don’t pick up your phone, your remote, that glass,
that ___fill in the blank__. And you will see the hold it has on you.

Obsessions are bondage & idolatry.

Possessions can enslave & burden.

Freedom in Christ is rising above your flesh.

Yet your thoughts are full of lust, lust for pleasure.
There is a battle for your attention, time, and affection.

The enemy is winning when you give into these

vices, obsessions, addictions.

When tangled up drunk, high, hungover, glued to a screen –

How are you able to fulfill:

1.      The Greatest Commandments?

2.      The Great Commission?

Be honest with yourself & God.

Answer the question….you simply can’t.

Your obsessions are robbing your life of the time, money, and energy that God intends to be poured out to: HIM, YOUR FAMILY, AND OTHERS! (Also known as: The Greatest Commandments: Love God & Love others!)

Your possessiveness over your life, time, money, and energy prevents you from being led by the Spirit to carry out the Great Commission! (AKA: Preach the Gospel to all the tribes and nations (people)!)

How often do you examine yourself, your life, your schedule, your bank statement, or your relationships?

When we examine ourselves,

We must be honest with ourselves.

Many avoid this self-reflection because it often requires change.

The Bible calls it REPENTANCE.

It’s the most freeing thing you can do for yourself.

Repent of those addictions, obsessions, and unhealthy behaviors.

The Lord calls you to:

Love Him, your God with all your heart, soul, and might.

 

So who or what will you repent of, lay down, or run from in order to do Love God first?

Let Jesus Christ be the One Lord in your life so that you can experience His Presence, His Spirit, His Leading, and His Peace.

In doing so, you will have the passion, excitement, boldness, desire to fulfill God's will for your life and you will overflow with ambition to share the Good News of Salvation!

**** I write this as a person who once was so entangled in my own addictions, many of the ones listed above. And I found freedom in Christ. If you would like to hear about my testimony, email me at promojen@gmail.com.

I am because He is...

I do not 'do'
For God to give...
I do for God,
Because in Him, I live.

I do not expect
God to bless  me...
I live for God,
Because He set me free.

I do not talk a talk,
Without good deeds...
I aim to please God,
Because He meets all my needs.

My allegiance is to Christ,
First and foremost.
He's the center of my life,
The King of kings, the Lord of hosts.

My prayer is that my life,
Will offer proof of His faithfulness...
A testimony of His enduring love,
His presence and gracious forgiveness.


Jennifer Morin - June 3, 2013

10 Years Ago, today - My Day of Salvation

TODAY IS OCTOBER 14, 2011 - It is a significant day for me!

Today marks an anniversary for me. Ten years ago today, I gave my life to Lord at a Billy Graham crusade.

And it has been the most amazing 10 years of my life.

Just the other day, I noted on a friend's FB page that my wedding day was the 2nd most amazing day of my life...my first son's birth was the 3rd, and my second son's birth was the 4th.

The #1 day of my life was the day I heard of the love of Jesus & His offer of free salvation to me.

October 14, 2001 was a Sunday. I was a realtor at the time. And on that Sunday, I had an open house from 1-4 p.m. I remember it was a huge, gorgeous, custom-built home on Jill Jean Ave. off Norris. Gorgeous neighborhood of custom built homes. There was no reason why this home shouldn't have sold that day, except for the fact that I had to leave Bakersfield at 4:30 p.m. to make it to Fresno for the Billy Graham Crusade event start at 7 p.m...And I had a divine appt. w/ God. I took my friend/hairdresser Rachel w/ me. (BTW - she has witnessed numerous things in my spiritual walk, it's as tho' she is my ordained witness to God's hand in my life).

Now while I 'raised my hand in a church service' numerous times the summer proceeding this road trip, nothing really happened. My hand-raising was more agreement that my life needed to change...but I still lacked knowledge of who Christ was & the importance of His death on the cross, the power of His resurrection, and the role of the Holy Spirit in my life.  That summer, my hand-raising was more out of emotion, and not necessarily an understanding of salvation and Jesus Christ. I understand why change never took place until this night w/ Billy Graham.

That night at the BG event, Billy spoke of the love of Christ. I mean the deep love and acceptance Christ has for us. Now, if you knew anything about me from childhood & up....that was what I always longed & yearned for: unconditional love & acceptance.

Then Mr. Graham went on to explain what sin in my life was doing. And boy, at this time of my life from 2000-2001 - boy, did I have sin....multiple ones. The summer of 2001, wow, I think I tipped the scale w/ all my partying and 'relationships'. I was in need of a Savior for sure!

That night, he didn't just ask us to raise our hands, he said come down to the football field (as we were in Fresno State's football stadium). And I told my friend, "I gotta go down there"!

Raised my hands -
Finally fully surrendered
to the LORD!

Once I got down to the football field (from all the way at the top of the seats in the stadium), I raised my hands high during the prayer, and this time - I meant it. I fully understood what the sin in my life was doing, I fully understood what Jesus Christ did on the cross, I fully understood that if I wanted to go to heaven, I needed Jesus...and I fully understood that the Holy Spirit would change me from the inside out. I was finally at the place of understanding & was fully embracing all that God was, is, and would do in me.

That was the best night of my life. However, while I meant every word I said, I did not go from party animal to angel overnight. Overtime, however, all the things I thought were fun (like drugs & alcohol) lost their appeal (the power of conviction)...and I began my walk with the Lord. Despite drinking on the weekends, I still made it to church (yes, w/a hangover sometimes). But as I told one of my friends, "If I stop going to church....then I'll never stop drinking". (And I'm not talking one drink on a Friday night...I mean, drinking from 8 p.m. - 3 a.m. on Friday & Saturdays...and 2+ on the weeknights).

I did not 'get right & then start going to church'. I realized that the information at church would help me pursue God with greater ambition. I continued to learn about the Bible. And of course, I showed up in time to worship the Lord and sing to Him. I was so zealous to extend my worship and love to Jesus. All that He forgave me for, all that He was doing in my life, and all that He would continue to do....it all deserved my praise and worship. He is amazing!

I quickly learned at church to walk with God included: a prayer life, time in the Word, church attendance, serving others w/ the love of God, and depending on HIM daily.

Although, I am still no where near perfect...I am so grateful that looking back over the last 10 years, I stayed on the path set before me. I have not, for one season, gone back to the 'old life'. I did everything I could to get out of the club scene (in fact, relocated out of Bakersfield for a season).

Now, I stay in the Word, I stay accountable to my God-loving friends, and stay in a place of thanking and worshipping Christ for the life He saved me from.

To read my testimony that was published in a Billy Graham Decision magazine, click here:
http://www.billygraham.org/articlepage.asp?articleid=440

I am celebrating my 10 years with Lord today.

I'm in awe of where He brought me from...

and now where He is taking me!

Have a fantastic Friday!