Your Voice

Lemonade: God’s gifts of 2020

By George Yates
SBOM church health strategist

What makes a successful lemonade stand? It takes much more than a thought.

Before the lemonade can be sold, a table and or materials for a stand must be available. Someone had to manufacture the product that made that stand. Promotional signs must be made. Someone must manufacture a poster board and markers to write with. Cups, pitchers, ice, lemons and sugar must be purchased.

Somewhere a lemon farmer is growing a large orchard of trees to produce the lemons. A treatment plant is cleaning the water and sending it through miles of pipe to the homeowner.

Every person in that list has a part in the success of the lemonade stand.

[Similarly,] teaching sound theology is only the beginning for creating an environment for succeeding in fulfillment of the Great Commission. In each local congregation, this type of environment — valuing and empowering each person’s God-given talents with ongoing opportunities to flourish individually and corporately — is needed. Until we do so, we will continue to have declining, unhealthy environments feeding off the outside culture rather than influencing that culture.

It is not taking in information that creates a disciple. Even Jesus’ disciples’ true growth came when they were sent into the world.

Their true growth came as He invited them to get actively engaged through practicing His teachings.

These disciples continued growing in spiritual maturity not only while Jesus was with them but throughout their entire lives. Read the Book of Acts with an eye for their learning experiences.

A person growing in spiritual maturity will develop mental, emotional and spiritual health, will desire to restore and build healthy relationships inside and outside the church, and will move toward his or her God-given creativity in fulfilling God’s purpose.

God has not given us a box of lemons in 2020. He has given us a world of opportunities. Go and make some lemonade! Change the environment; change the culture.

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The more pastors I talk to, the more concern there is for a spiritual falling away of members as a result of the last several months. Here’s my personal and very humble take on what is happening.

For years, we’ve held church attendance (even spotty) as the gold standard of being a Christian. I think this is especially true in the deep South Bible Belt.

We’ve failed to disciple and train our people to feed themselves the word of God, spend time every day in communion with God through prayer, actively share the gospel through witnessing and hunger after God through fasting.

For several months, COVID-19 took away the one thing that many self-proclaimed Christians held, again, as the benchmark of good Christianity.

All that remained was the foundation of the spiritual disciplines, and when our house of Christianity isn’t built on a solid foundation, it falls like stacked cards when even the smallest wind blows.

Our personal daily walk with Christ cannot be neglected because when everything else is stripped away, it will determine how long we survive.

Pastor Daniel Atkins
via Twitter

All of humanity’s problems stem from man’s inability to sit quietly in a room alone.

Blaise Pascal (1623–1662)

When we are so focused on the love of God that it flows from us, we don’t easily take offense because we are too full and too pleased with God to care when others revile us on Christ’s account.

James Hammack
theropetab.com

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Letter to the Editor

How exciting to read in The Alabama Baptist of the innovative method of presenting VBS to the children at Mount View Baptist Church, Trinity.

Thank you, Pastor Mark Milwee and VBS director Penny Phillips, for using not only available technology but finding a way to minister during these difficult days of social distancing due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

We serve an amazing God who can give direction no matter what roadblocks get in our way.

With many churches having difficulty recruiting VBS workers, this outreach could be used at any time in churches no matter the size.

The influence of the biblical material in the home could be key to reaching families for Jesus Christ.

Iris Wiggins
Hartselle, Ala.

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Authentic community is not geographical but is spiritual.

Gary Fenton
Retired pastor

Personal discipleship is not easy. In fact, it’s hard because we can’t follow Jesus well unless we are willing to give up some things and to make some personal sacrifices.

Author Gary Hardin

“Discipleship for the Rest of Us: Lessons on Following Jesus from Mary Magdalene”

Jesus showed no partiality to those He hung out with. He knew no bias. He was the original diversity champion. For some in the ancient world this caused a problem, and in the Gospel of Luke it says, “All who saw it began to grumble and said, ‘He has gone to be the guest of one who is a sinner’” (19:7).

Part of developing our faith and our own healing is expanding our circle. The very act of treating other people as equal is redemptive. Through our acceptance of all people, we emulate the acts of Jesus and live the concept that all people are made in the image of God. When we become more accepting, we also begin to satisfy the human need to help. Filling this need brings us joy.

Author Bruce Hartman

“Your Faith has Made You Well: A Radical New Way to Create Hope and Peace”

Being a Christian is more than just an instantaneous conversion — it is a daily process whereby I grow to be more and more like Christ.

Billy Graham

We’re not called to faith in Christians. We are called to faith in Christ. If “Christian leaders” can cause us to shrink back from Christ, our faith was in leaders, not in Jesus. Everyone will fail to be Jesus but Jesus.

Beth Moore
via Twitter

I have reached out to preachers and politicians across Alabama and America as well as our local director of missions asking that we start prayer and fasting from 7:00 p.m. on Nov. 2 until the polls close at 7:00 p.m. on Nov. 3. Please be much in prayer about supporting this effort.

Russell Bamberg
Brent, Ala.

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From the Twitterverse

@Blackwell_Kevin
My level of joy cannot be dependent upon my ministry success. It must be completely based upon the fact that there is an empty tomb in Jerusalem. My victory, my joy is in Jesus, and He is alive.

@BeesonDivinity
It’s finally here! Today (Aug. 25) is the day we have been anticipating since March. Students, rain or shine, we are excited to have you back on campus. #WhyBeeson #HodgesChapel — “Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His faithful love endures forever.” Ps. 107:1

@shadesmtn
How can you and I not be willing to give a greater level of commitment and exert a greater amount of sacrifice and energy to the One who died for us?

@drjjwilliams
A basic point my [doctoral adviser] @DrTomSchreiner taught me as his student was to work hard to represent fairly and accurately scholars with whom I disagree and to engage critically their views as if they are in the room as I write. This is indeed a hard but an important exercise to learn.

@bellevuepastor
The best way to receive encouragement is to encourage others. When you encourage others, God will encourage you. “Therefore encourage one another and build up one another, just as you also are doing” (1 Thess. 5:11). You always reap what you sow.

@PaulTripp
Heart change is not the result of the exercise of human persuasion or power, but rather the result of the intervention of divine grace.

@brocraigc
“Knowledge may become good or ill according to the use which is made of it.” — Charles Spurgeon

@MattMason3
If you look away from self to Jesus Christ for forgiveness, you’re joined to Him. Believe on Christ and your checkered past is forever buried in a grave just outside Jerusalem. And because He rose, you rise.

@DrDavidLAllen
I tell my students every semester: Make sure your ambition and your ability do not carry you beyond where your character can sustain you.