Your Voice

No better time to examine commitment to God

How diligent are you in your Christian faith? Churches of every denomination are struggling at present and have been on a downward trend in growth for the past decade — long before the COVID-19 pandemic.

A 2019 Pew Research study found an amazing 65% of Americans describe themselves as Christians when asked.

Yet according to a January 2021 poll by Statista, only about a third of respondents say they attend formal worship services at least monthly or seldom.

Just 24% say they are in church every week.

Studies also suggest that overall church attendance across all faiths has dropped at least 7% in the past decade.

Consequently, one must conclude that our society is trending toward a laid back approach to worship. It seems most Americans are seeking more of a “feel good” spiritual life that fits our overall lifestyle.

Where do you fit in these studies? If you need or are seeking guidance in your choices for worship, I direct you to 2 Timothy 4:3–4 (TLB): “For there is going to come a time when people won’t listen to the truth but will go around looking for teachers who will tell them just what they want to hear. They won’t listen to what the Bible says but will blithely follow their own misguided ideas.”

No time is better than the moment to reexamine your life and face the reality of God’s role in your life.

Hope to see you in church this Sunday!

James W. Anderson
Talladega, Ala.

Living by the treasure principle

Jesus talked so much about what we do with our resources, it leads us to believe that the way we manage resources not only affects our quality of life, it also impacts God’s initiatives in the world.

Jesus specifically encourages his followers to lay up treasures in heaven. … Here are a few things to remember as we live by the treasure principle:

• God wants us to become good managers of all our treasures. God is the primary owner of all things, and we are temporary stewards of those things placed in our care. Often we speak of time, talent and treasures. But time and talent are also treasures.
• God wants us to make wise investments with our treasures. Our treasures come in many forms: money, family, friendships, personal network, tangible property, intellectual property, spiritual insight, spiritual gifts, vocational skills, reputation, influence and time. To lay up treasures in heaven means to manage my resources now so that the investment bears dividends for eternity.
• God wants us to be cheerful and generous in giving of our time, talent and treasure. The three primary enemies of the treasure principle are greed, debt and materialism. And the antidote for greed, debt and materialism is generosity.
  Because God is love, as our hearts become molded in His likeness, we will naturally move toward a life of greater generosity that is transformational rather than transactional.

As followers of Jesus, God invites and equips us to become wise managers of our resources so we can use all of our treasures to advance God’s kingdom.

Pastor Barry Howard
Church at Wieuca
Atlanta, Ga.

“There are many of us that are willing to do great things for the Lord, but few of us are willing to do little things.”

D.L. Moody

In the verses that precede Ephesians 4:16, Paul explains how it takes different people with varying abilities, gifts and callings to organize, run and grow the church. As Christians, God gave us all unique spiritual gifts and the strengths and traits that accompany them so we can work together to grow His kingdom. And despite our differences, that is what unites us.

Sara Claudia Cain
Speaker and author
Saraclaudia.com

As Christ-followers, we are called to live a life of love. We are called to love God and others. Sometimes it is hard for us to love. Love is putting God and others before ourselves. Love is a verb; it is what makes a beautiful life. Let’s live a life of love every day.

Pastor Jeff Simmons
Rolling Hills Community Church
Franklin, Tenn.

Any church that grows primarily through transfers from another church needs to question why that is happening.

Keelan Cook, Associate director
Union Baptist Association
Houston, Texas

I hear so many today say (including some Christians), “But, we are all children of God.” False! God is the Creator of all (Genesis); we are all creatures of God, but not His children. In fact, the Bible teaches that we all begin as “goats.”

We come into the world as sinners, estranged from God, and even enemies of God. (See Gen. 3; Rom. 5:6–10; 12–21). And it is only after a person is saved that “He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son” (Col. 1:13).

Blog post by Doug Bell
Central Baptist Church
Eureka, Missouri

When we evangelize and baptize but do not teach, we lay the foundation for problems which are not anchored in Christian ethics and/or biblical directives.

Morris Murray Jr.
Jasper, Ala.

From the Twitterverse

@philipnation
I’m convinced that if modern church leaders read more church history, we’d have more unity, less hand-wringing and more urgency to be witnesses for the gospel.

@CSLewisDaily
“There are only two kinds of people: those who say to God, ‘Thy will be done,’ and those to whom God says, ‘All right, then, have it your way.’” —C.S. Lewis

@michaelcatt
There’s so much posturing and pontificating on social media by religious leaders. What we really need is a remnant gathered at the foot of the Cross, broken, desperate and confessing our sins. Then we might see a breakthrough.

@GaryFenton07
If you are spiritually healthy you will find that you are very susceptible to generosity. If being generous rarely or never crosses your mind, you probably need to check your spiritual health.

@ricklance
When William Wordsworth wrote his poem “The World Is Too Much with Us,” he could not have imagined the cultural challenges we face. As Christians, we are to impact culture for Christ and not have culture impact us with its agenda.

@davidjeremiah
The God who made heaven and earth knows you by name.

@joshreavis
This morning I sat by my parents during worship. They both sang loudly. I was overwhelmed with thanksgiving that I’ve heard them sing this way my entire life. I learned how to sing in church from them. Parents, let your kids hear you sing. Teach them by example.

@macbrunson
“Never be content to know about God. Know God yourself in the intimacy of prayer and by quarrying in the book of God.” William Sangster

@DannyAkin
“Let Jesus command, and I delight to obey.” Samuel Clopton, first Southern Baptist missionary. Died on the field in China at age 31.

@jasonkeithallen
“Days of trouble must be days of prayer.” —Matthew Henry

@TheonlywaytoGod
There is only one way to get rid of the burden of sin. We must bring it to Jesus. He is our great Sin Bearer. Saved people carry sins, and lost people carry sins. Bring them all to Jesus. He will take them away.