Meeting 08/6/11
Paul's journey had planted seeds that grew into fruitful churches. The believers ran into much opposition from the Jews as they saw the Gentiles growing in number. These new believers were persecuted badly and suffered many hardships. So Paul, on the run, wrote one of his many letters to his churches to encourage them to hang on until Jesus returns. This is the theme in 1 Thessalonians. He reminded them of the things he taught them. He complimented them on their sustained faith. In fact, they encouraged him by their perseverance! He often stated that he thanked God for how well they are doing, as it makes his joy complete. It's so much better when someone benefits or receives your message, joins you, and does something with it, isn't it? Without positive response, you can miss out on the greater joy. We weren't put here to be alone, but to spread like a wildfire, become unified, and encourage one another. With so much opposition and discouragement available in the world today, we desperately need this invaluable encouragement. It is a matter of life, truly. Without it, some may turn back and give up hope, never to return. I really liked the parts about pleasing men or pleasing God. Which will we choose? Which is more important? We need to be about pleasing God and not worry about fitting in, conforming, etc. We're not going to fit in. Neither Jesus, nor his disciples fit in their world. They were on the run, remember? We need to be God's men: men that like what He likes; men that think like He thinks; men that see like He sees; men that agree with what He deems important; men that value what He values. Men need to represent God and His truths. We need to liberate our women from the world's pressures of the world's images of beauty, desire, and value. We need to stand up for what's right and noble. Friends, when we are being God's men, we will not be popular. We will not fit in. We will be ridiculed and persecuted. This is a key facet of unity and its value. We have to stick together and be like-minded. We must not withhold the invaluable encouragement and positive strokes that are so desperately a part of the disciple's success. They are words of life that could possibly save them from drowning in despair. So may we continue to seek the Lord, and listen for the Holy Spirit's nudging to pray for our friends and speak those huge words of encouragement.