Now as they were traveling along, He entered a village; and a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her home. She had a sister called Mary, who was seated at the Lord’s feet, listening to His word. But Martha was distracted with all her preparations; and she came up to Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to do all the serving alone? Then tell her to help me.”

But the Lord answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things; but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her.” Luke 10:38-42

God is calling you to carry joy to a fallen world, but the devil wants you to become so preoccupied with the issues in your own life that you stay in the constant cycle of maintaining and trying to overcome discouragement and distraction instead of being what God has called you to be.

Sing to the Lord a new song, sing His praise from the end of the earth! Isaiah 42:10a

Choose the good part like Mary did: “sitting at the Lord’s feet, listening to His word.” Don’t wait for the worship team or for an inspirational moment. Thank God in the morning, thank God in the noontime, thank God in the night. Enter into His gates with thanksgiving every day (Psalm 100:4).

You are still here. Whatever highs and lows you’ve had in 2011, you didn’t get alienated and cynical, you didn’t cave in to self pity, you didn’t throw in the towel, you didn’t let the devil run you off, and you didn’t negotiate with him when he was terrorizing you. Even if you feel meager and feeble in your faith, at any time, day or night, you can cry out to the Lord and He will respond. Don’t fear the future. If God has called you to a task, you will have grace and blessing equal to the task. As you take time to seek God and listen to His word, He will show you what to do.

God bless you this New Year!
Pastor Jeff Perry
St. Louis Family Church®

Copyright © 2012 St. Louis Family Church. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reprinted or distributed in any form without prior written permission of St. Louis Family Church. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are from the New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation.

Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 3:13-14

Press on. An effective driver glances at the rearview mirror but spends most of the time looking through the windshield. Think of your life in the same way: look ahead at what God has in store for you, but only glance at your past. This doesn’t mean you bury your head in the sand. It just means you look at life through the eyes of grace. It’s good to remember what God has delivered you from—He’s covered your old sins (Romans 4:6-8; Psalm 32:1). But in Christ you are a new person (1 Corinthians 5:17) and you’re free to fix your eyes on what He has for you.

Life matters. Though this life is brief, it counts. Paul did not wince at the full-spectrum nature of life— trials, bewilderment, and all. He learned the secret of being full and of going hungry (Philippians 4:12), and he thrived on challenge. But he didn’t do it in his own power. Paul wrote, “I can do all things through Him [Jesus] who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13).

For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 1 Corinthians 1:18

God’s Word is power. We aren’t sissies who shrink back in fear, but neither are we superheroes trying to do things in our own power. God’s power is available to us, and He has packed specific gifts, resources, and usefulness into each cell of our being. I pray we get so tuned into Jesus and so filled up with His Word that, instead of buzz words or religious affectation, God’s life flows out of us and people can tell we’ve been with Him.

God’s at work in you. Endeavor to live worthy of the calling, investing all your life and energy into Jesus. If you feel like you are a crummy Christian, know that God is at work in you. He is looking for people whose hearts are open to Him (2 Chronicles 16:9). If you give God a thimble full of devotion, He’ll expand it as big as heaven. Give Him a mustard seed of faith, and He’ll respond (Matthew 17:20).

God is faithful!
Pastor Jeff Perry
St. Louis Family Church®

Copyright © 2011 St. Louis Family Church. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reprinted or distributed in any form without prior written permission of St. Louis Family Church. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are from the New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation.

Jesus Came. Jesus Died. Jesus Rose.

God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things He planned for us long ago.
Ephesians 2:8-10 NLT

Free from sin. God has good things planned for your life! Jesus came on the scene at a clarifying moment in history to find and save those who were lost (Luke 19:10). When Jesus was nailed to the Cross for our sins, it got radical: He paid the price for humanity, and the result is freedom from the vicious cycle of sin and death (Romans 8:2 Phillips).

Free from the old way of living. If the challenges of life have left you feeling broken and numb, call out to Jesus. Don’t buy into the monotony of our mixed-up culture—while it is very good at assessing problems, it can’t deliver the solution. But Jesus brought the answer and addressed the problem by giving His life.

Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. 2 Corinthians 5:17

Free to serve people. You are not insignificant; God wants to use you to do some extraordinary things. He can even take the hurts of your past and turn them into credibility when you reach out to someone else going through similar pain. Lift up your eyes and see the amazing life God has for you.

Knowing Jesus is what it’s all about,
Pastor Jeff Perry
St. Louis Family Church®

Copyright © St. Louis Family Church. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reprinted or distributed in any form without prior written permission of St. Louis Family Church. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are from the New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Phillips Translation. Copyright © 1958-1972 by JB Phillips: The Gospels. New Living Translation © 1996, 2004.

What then shall we say that Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh, has found? For what does the scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness.” And [he is] the father of circumcision to those who not only are of the circumcision, but who also follow in the steps of the faith of our father Abraham which he had while uncircumcised. Romans 4:1, 3, 12

I met a modern day prospector on the beaches of California. He had a metal detector and a fanny pack full of his precious-metal findings. Fascinated, I asked him, “What did you find?” He excitedly began to show me his treasure of gold rings, watches, and old coins. When we go to God’s Word, the same question is posed: What has Abraham found? What treasure did he find concerning God’s character, about coping, about overcoming when he failed? He found that his justification before God came through grace and not by works. Even when things look “as good as dead,” there is still hope! (Romans 4:19).

Abraham developed a lifestyle of listening to God and obeying Him. We are called to learn from Abraham and walk in his footsteps (Romans 4:12 NET*). This is not just a fanny pack full of gold; it’s far more significant for our lives.

By faith Abraham, when he was called, obeyed by going out to a place which he was to receive for an inheritance; and he went out, not knowing where he was going. Hebrews 11:8

Let God be your preoccupation. Abraham had such confidence in where God was leading his life that he let his nephew, Lot, take what seemed like a better land choice. Lot became so focused on the here and now that he lost out in the long run. Don’t be attached to the stuff of this world, because it’s stifling to the larger things God has called you to. Abraham knew he wouldn’t lose out, and neither will you as you follow God.

“For I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified” (1 Corinthians 2:2). I’ve found that the best times in my life are when I’m walking by faith and obeying God. So turn your eyes on Jesus. As you do, it will cause rightness to flourish in your life and help you to overcome wicked temptation and get up one more time than you fall. God is trustworthy. He will equip you to do His will (Hebrews 13:21). When we step out in obedience, He is there.

Press on!
Pastor Jeff

Copyright © 2009 St. Louis Family Church. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reprinted or distributed in any form without prior written permission of St. Louis Family Church. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are from the New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. *New English Translation Bible (NET) Copyright © 1996-2009 by Biblical Studies Press (BSP), L.L.C. and the authors. All rights reserved.

[I pray] that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God. Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Ephesians 3:16-21

You can trip up in life if you don’t understand who God is and who you are in Jesus. You can’t get in faith on your own—only by hearing God’s Word can we get strong in faith. When you read that you have been freed from sin by Jesus’ blood (Revelation 1:5), when you see in the Word how God is rich in mercy (Ephesians 2:4) and able to supply all of your needs (Philippians 4:19), faith rises up in your spirit and gives you an impenetrable advantage against the attacks of the devil.

For the Lord God is a sun and shield; the Lord gives grace and glory; no good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly. Psalm 84:11

Take hold of the promises in the Word concerning who you are in Christ and what He has made available to you and write them down on the empty pages in the back of your Bible. Don’t be afraid to take those truths and march into your career, your marriage, and your future. An understanding of the promises in the Word will break generational curses, eliminate inferiority complexes, and straighten out distorted thinking.

If you feel ripped off, take back what the enemy stole from you (1 Samuel 30). If your joy is gone, get back in the presence of God and ask Him to revive you. If you’ve fallen into a pit, meditate on this scripture: “The law of the Spirt of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death” (Romans 8:2). God knows how to lift us out of the miry clay and put our feet on the solid rock (Psalm 40:2). If you’ve been through a thing or two lately, you’ve gained credibility to speak encouragement into others’ lives. Your answer to any challenge is found in seeking God and reading His Word—don’t back down!

Receive God’s strength,

Pastor Jeff Perry
St. Louis Family Church®

Copyright © 2008 St. Louis Family Church. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reprinted or distributed in any form without prior written permission of St. Louis Family Church. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are from the New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation.