 Every Thursday a group of pastors gets together for the sole purpose of prayer. I always listen to the prayers and any conversations that might take place before or after the prayer time. Recently in one of these prayer meetings I jotted down some thoughts that were shared or prayed. Theses caught my attention and I felt they were God breathed, for me they had a sense of God speaking to us:
Sometimes we forget who we are as Christians. We are “badder" than we think. Even in the middle of a culture that is becoming increasingly anti-Christian, we are not looking for a cave to live in, we are looking for a platform to stand on. God has given us something to share that will be a blessing for all that will listen and hear. Paul is gone, Peter is gone. Who is God going to use today? He is going to use us. God is looking for people in the church to step up and step into their rightful place and calling as children of the Living God. We have nothing to be ashamed of and everything to be excited about. We believe we are a people of the resurrection, believe also that we are a people of the incarnation. Just as Jesus, when He walked on this earth, modeled for us what it means to live under the presence, power, and purposes of God, so can we model that type of living today. It is very clear from Romans 8:11 and other verses, that the same Spirit that raised Christ Jesus from the dead is alive in us today. Believe it! Live it! Release it! What does it mean to be a people of the incarnation?
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 In the book of Mark there is a story of a man with leprosy who approached Jesus with the hope of being healed.
Mark 1:40–42 (NASB95) 40 And a leper came to Jesus, beseeching Him and falling on his knees before Him, and saying, “If You are willing, You can make me clean.” 41 Moved with compassion, Jesus stretched out His hand and touched him, and said to him, “I am willing; be cleansed.” 42 Immediately the leprosy left him and he was cleansed. It is obvious that the man had a certain expectation in his heart concerning Jesus' ability to heal him. When the leper said to Jesus, “If You are willing, You can make me clean”, he was making a bold statement of faith and confidence in the Lord’s ability to heal. He did not doubt that Jesus could heal him, he only seemed unsure whether Jesus was willing to heal him. This is interesting in light of the struggles many have with faith today, especially in the area of healing. Perhaps we struggle with the same dilemma. Many of us believe Jesus has the power to heal us but struggle with whether He is willing to heal us. We wrestle with all types of questions like, “Is it God’s will to heal me, is He using this sickness to teach me something, etc.” Jesus is not only able to heal, but willing to heal- today as well as 2000 years ago. Jesus gave instructions to the disciples 2000 years ago and I believe those instructions apply to us today as well … Matthew 10:7–8 (NASB95) 7 “And as you go, preach, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ 8 “Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons. Freely you received, freely give. God is asking us to share with others the life He has given to us- freely give what we have been freely given. Do you feel comfortable praying for others that God would heal them? Are you able to pray in faith believing that God is both able and willing to heal?  The third part of our church mission statement is … Share Life.
Life is one of those big Bible words. It is filled with meaning. We know from the Bible that God is the source of all life as we know it. In the very beginning of time God breathed His life into Adam and Adam became a living being. There is no possibility for life of any type to exist when God withholds His breath. God placed Adam and Eve in a beautiful garden and in the center of the garden God planted the Tree of Life. God is the originator and sustainer of all life. A very interesting passage of scripture is found in the book of Job: 14 “If He should determine to do so, If He should gather to Himself His spirit and His breath, 15 All flesh would perish together, And man would return to dust. (Job 34:14–15) God the Father took His life and gave it to His Son Jesus Christ. Then God granted that Jesus would give that very same life to those who would believe in Him as the Savior of all mankind. Jesus said: “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly. (John 10:10) Jesus is … the bread of life, the light of life, the resurrection and the life, the way, the truth, and the life. God has given to mankind natural life and He has also offered us eternal life. When we believe in Jesus Christ we receive eternal life both in the present and the future sense. We possess the very life of God from the day we give our lives to Him. God’s life is filled with vitality and energy. We have been given so much that we can share with others. Give it away today! Bless someone. Pray for them. Give them a word of encouragement. Speak a prophetic word into their lives. Freely you have received, now freely give.  Our church mission statement is … Encounter God, Love People, Share Life.
This past Sunday we looked at the Share Life portion of our mission statement. Share is an interesting word. It can mean to … -give a portion of something to someone -enjoy something jointly with another person -possess something in common with others -tell someone about something In today’s terms when we make a post on Facebook we are sharing some idea or thought with those who might read our post. For the purposes of our mission statement … Share is to take of something I have been freely given and give it to another person to bless them. To Share Life is to see every person experience the greatness of God through their own personal encounter. To Share Life with others it is people caring for people. When we take time to Share Life we let people know that we care and God cares. How have you Shared Life with someone recently? How has someone Shared Life with you?
 Recently the Supreme Court passed a number of rulings that will, for better or for worse, dramatically affect our nation and our culture in the future. The decisions of men can dramatically affect the way we live our lives, but ultimately God is in control. The will of God will be done here on earth as in heaven. For a Christian, this is our source of hope.
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