Do you struggle with guilt and want to talk to someone about it? Contact an online mentor today.

While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and sinners came and ate with him and his disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” (Matthew 9:10-13)

When I first became a Christian at age 22, I thought church was only for perfect people. Or at least people who could act perfectly on Sunday mornings. I didn’t understand that the purpose of the church is to give a hand to the sick, not pat the healthy on the back.

Jesus often ate at the same table with “sinners”, and when he did, the Pharisees questioned why He did so. Jesus responded by saying “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick.” (Matthew 9:12) Author Brennan Manning puts it this way: “The church is not a museum for saints but a hospital for sinners”. That’s encouraging, because I often don’t feel much like a saint. Do saints lose patience with their brothers and sisters in Christ? Lose their temper? Sometimes even lose that passionate fire for the gospel?

The apostle Paul recognized his own moral failures when he says: “Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners – of whom I am the worst.” But Paul continued by noting “for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his unlimited patience as an example for those who would believe on him and receive eternal life.” (1 Timothy 1:15-16)

So at the same time as we acknowledge our sin, by trusting in Jesus’ righteous sacrifice on the cross for our sins, we can gather together to strengthen and encourage each other in our faith, so that we can continually strive towards becoming “perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Matthew 5:48)

Lesson: Never feel unworthy of worshiping God in repentance and faith with your fellow believers, because Jesus welcomes you to His table!

Question: Do you sometimes feel guilty or unworthy of worshiping God? Why do you feel that way?

“Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results.” (James 5:16, NLV)

Have you noticed how perfect people LOOK at church? They seem to have no problems, no messiness.   They’re in their nice “Sunday best” clothes with smiles on their faces, and everyone looks perfect regardless of how their week has gone.

On the other hand have you noticed how imperfect you FEEL when you get there?  Maybe you just couldn’t find the right clothes to wear or you’re reeling from an argument you just had with your spouse on the way?  Maybe your teenager has refused to get out of bed or you’ve had a terrible, awful, bad week?  We all arrive at church knowing our inside messiness and seeing only the outside perfectness of everyone else.  So we wear a mask in the hopes that it will disguise us enough that people won’t recognize how broken we really are. The mask wearing only leads to isolation and aloneness.

I have to wonder . . . is this what God intended for us to experience in the body of Christ?

I remember vividly the Sunday when I felt the messiest.  My seventeen-year-old son had been arrested over the weekend for shoplifting.  It was one of the lowest times of my life – I felt like such a failure.  As I carefully arranged my mask and stepped into the atrium area of our church on that Sunday after his arrest, I looked around and saw all the “perfect families” with their “perfect children” and it was all I could do to stay where I was and not run screaming from the building.

I wondered if anyone had problems like I had, whether they could see the sorrow in my eyes that I was trying to hide.  Did they know I was a failure?  Did they even care?  What would they say if they found out?  What would they think of me? That day it felt as if I had a big scarlet letter on my chest, warning people not to get too close.  It was all I could do to act like nothing was wrong and get to my car as fast as I could.

It wasn’t that my church family was insensitive or judgmental; it was my own perception and pride that would not allow me to be transparent. It isolated me from any intrusions into my pain. So why aren’t we more open and transparent?  Wouldn’t that really be more attractive to people than trying to prove that we are perfect?  James 5:16 (NLV) says, “Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results.”

God calls us to be open, vulnerable and honest about our failings and struggles because He knows that that is the place where we will find healing.   When we choose to keep our failures and difficulties to ourselves we move into a place of isolation and loneliness as we forge a path on our own.

And isn’t that just what Satan wants? He wants to keep us all in our own little fortresses “safe from the outside world” where no one can be a witness to our pain and discouragement and where we will be unable to care for and encourage someone else?  He doesn’t want us to be what God intended the church body to be to one another.

On that Sunday of my son’s arrest, I ran into a dear friend after church.   Knowing the brokenness she had experienced in her own life, I felt free to take off my mask.  Through many tears I poured out my heartache to her and experienced no judgment from her, only love and concern.  My friend was the church for me that day and I will always remember her love and care when I was in a very difficult and lonely place.

This Sunday, when you walk into your church building, remember that the people around you are not perfect, they might look like they are but they’re not.  Ask God to help you to have the courage to take off your mask and be transparent and to open your eyes and allow you to be the church to someone who is hurting and in need.

Father God, It’s so tempting to keep my mask on. Please gently peel the mask out of my hands so that I can truly be part of this community You’ve called me to. Help me to be willing to let others help me.  Amen

Question: Are you wearing a mask? Ask God for courage to be transparent or to be open to others who need your help.

“We went into the land to which you sent us, and it does flow with milk and honey! Here is its fruit. But the people who live there are powerful, and the cities are fortified and very large…We can’t attack those people; they are stronger than we are.” (Numbers 13:27-31)

You wouldn’t necessarily think so, but Numbers 13 and 14 provide an interesting and insightful read.  The Lord gave Moses the instructions, and in turn, Moses instructed the men.  It was time to explore the land.  What was the land like? Were the inhabitants strong or weak? Were they few or many? What kind of land would it be to live in?

Upon their return, after forty days of exploration, they all agreed on the fertility of the land.  A single cluster of grapes was so large it had to be carried on a pole! It was definitely fruitful; however, they discovered the people were powerful and “dangerous.”  The towns were large and fortified, intimidating.  As the explorers described the people, the listening crowd of God’s people became more frantic.  Caleb tried to calm their fears and remind them of God’s sovereignty, but they insisted that the land’s “giants” were stronger.  Compared to the giants, they felt like grasshoppers.

All night, the people cried, and said that they preferred slavery in Egypt to attempting to take the Promised Land.  Joshua and Caleb reminded the people that God was with them and they should not be afraid of these people!

How does the Israelites’ behaviour parallel the behaviour of today’s church community?  We want to stay safe within our own community.  The people outside the church look like giants to us they seem “dangerous.”  In reality, our neighbors and our colleagues and the people in the cities are like sheep without a shepherd.  They need a Savior and the Lord is calling us to reach out to them and to not be afraid.  Reaching out to them fulfills God’s purpose and design for every believer.  It will actually be life-giving, faith-building and brings a sense of fulfillment like nothing else!

Caleb and Joshua were the only adults allowed to enter the Promised Land along with the children.  The Lord said, “You said your children would be carried off as plunder.  Well, I will bring them safely into the land, and they will enjoy what you have despised.”  As punishment, the parents spent forty years wandering in the wilderness.

Joshua and Caleb understood and proclaimed that the Lord had the power to give them the Promised Land.  Today, the world needs forgiveness, hope, and power. We perceive those outside the church as dangerous, but God sees them as broken and hurting. God is with us as we reach out to others in His name!  May the Lord give us eyes to see others as He sees them and to share His love – even today!

Father, we still see others as “giants” in our eyes or dangerous when we think about them in the context of reaching out and sharing Your love and message.  Lord, would You give us ears to hear, eyes of compassion, a courageous heart to risk, a mouth that speaks gently with respect, the sensitivity to come alongside, and may people be drawn to You through us! Amen

Questions: Think about the people in your world. Who do you see as needing Jesus? How do you perceive them?

Indeed heaven and the highest heavens belong to the Lord your God, also the earth with all that is in it. (Deuteronomy 10:14)

Today, look around you. Imagine a name label on everything you see, “On loan from Almighty God.” See how that changes your attitude toward all things. If we think we own it, we will cling desperately to it and be grieved when it is taken. If we realize it is all God’s and returns to God, we can let go, graciously thanking Him for the short time we were blessed to be the stewards of God’s things.

We seem to live in a world possessed by possessions. Madison Avenue does its best to convince us that the more we have, the happier we will be. Even in the church we can get the impression that if we give God “His” part we can do what we want with the rest. But the overlooked basic principle is that God owns it all.

Our world is not as charitable as it once was. Only slightly over half give anything away to charity and about a third of that goes to religious causes. Though the Bible is clear about tithing, only nine percent of Christians tithe and the average church member gives only thirteen dollars a week to the church.

The average contribution to the church is two and one half percent of income and that is down from three and a third during the Great Depression. Most cite debt as the prime reason for not giving.

Understanding God’s ownership changes how we look at money and possessions. First we must examine our attitude about money. Budgeting, borrowing and debt, saving, tithing and other financial topics are important, but our attitude about money is more important. Once our way of thinking about money lines up with God’s, it’s much easier to tackle the practical matters.

The most important principle to keep firmly in mind is to understand whose money we are talking about. It’s not ours. It is God’s. God’s ownership of everything is a foreign concept to most of us. We like to think of our money and our possessions. Yet the Bible makes it clear that God owns everything. All things were created by him and for him (Colossians 1:16). Everything belongs to him.

You live in God’s house and drive to work in His car. Once you realize that all is His not only will your attitude change, but your pattern of giving will increase. So as you look around today look at everything you are blessed to possess and realize that truly God owns it all.

The feeling of not belonging trailed me for many years. Then Jesus came into my life and adopted me into his family. He made me a child of God. He qualified me to “share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light.” How? Through Jesus Christ, I’m no longer on the outside looking in – I’m on the inside learning to see all people as valued by our Father.

Think of it: the Creator of the universe loves us! In fact, he’s very fond of us. He delights in every detail of our lives. He created us for fellowship with Himself and with each other.  Our challenge as children of God is to reach out in love to everyone we meet, to make them feel valued and included.

Father, I feel so blessed that you have adopted me into your family. Fill me with your love so that I will see people as you see them and make them feel special and included.  Amen.

Question: Do you see someone standing alone in the church foyer? Walk up to him or her and begin a conversation, maybe even invite them for coffee.

Originally written by Charles H. Spurgeon, published in “Mornings & Evenings,” entry for Dec 26th, PM.
Updated to modern English by Power to Change.

“Surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” (Matthew 28:20)

The Lord Jesus is always intimately involved in His church. He walks among you, and His promise is “I am with you always.” He is as close to us now as He was to the disciples at the lake when they sat and ate fish with Him around a fire. Not physically, but still in real truth and presence, Jesus is with us.

And this is a blessed truth, since where Jesus is, love becomes inflamed. Of all the things in the world that can set the heart burning, there is nothing like the presence of Jesus! A glimpse of Him so overcomes us, that we are ready to say, “Turn your eyes from me; they overwhelm me.” (Song of Solomon 6:5) Even the touch of his garments causes the sick and the faint to grow strong. If we for even a moment lean our heads against Him, and receive His divine love into our poor cold hearts, we are cold no longer, but glow hot in love. We will gain strength equal to every labor and capable of withstanding every suffering.

If we know that Jesus is with us, all our abilities will be developed, every grace strengthened. We must cast ourselves into the Lord’s service with heart, and soul, and strength. Therefore the presence of Christ is to be desired above anything else. His presence will most clearly be appreciated by those who are most like Him. If you desire to see Christ, you must seek to conform ever more closely to Him. Bring yourself, by the power of the Spirit, into union with Christ’s desires, and motives, and plans of action, and you are likely to be favored with His company.

Remember, Jesus is with you. His promise is as true as ever. He delights to be with us. If He does not come, if He does not seem close, it is because we hinder Him by our indifference. He will reveal Himself to our earnest prayers, and graciously lend an ear to our praises, requests, and tears, for these are the golden chains which bind Jesus to His people.

Question: When God seems far from you, where can you turn for reassurance?

Learn more about how to live in harmony with others with Dr. Muriel’s Recipe for Peace.

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called the sons of God.” (Matthew 5:9)

I grew up in a musical family.  My mother played the piano and mandolin.  Dad played the violin and drums. My brother played the trumpet.  And I played the piano, organ, clarinet, and saxophone. For some reason, they wouldn’t let me carry a piano in the high school band.

As a pianist I have often helped others to get their instruments tuned up to the piano.  With stringed instruments, every string must be tuned for the music to sound right. My father tuned pianos, and they have many more strings than hand-held instruments!  If several keys are flat compared to the rest, there goes the harmony.

If several strings can cause disharmony in an instrument, just think what a few disgruntled Christians can do to a church. Well, think about it.  Perhaps you can remember a church split of some kind that separated and scattered the people, and all because a few persons spread disharmony.

Do we listen?  Do we join the discord? How can we save the harmony in our church?

• When we first perceive the clink of a discordant note, we can get right with the Lord if necessary. Check Romans 12:1-2 and Psalm 51.  Walking close to the Lord enables us to hear His guiding voice of wisdom. He fills our hearts with love and concern for our fellow Christians–all of them. He restrains us from adding to the discordance.
• Abstain from gossip, criticism, or caustic debate.  As we walk with Jesus, we will know in our hearts just how we may contribute to harmony and not to the cacophony.
• Pray, pray, pray!  Often when a piano gets out of tune, moisture may be involved.  Well, when a church gets out of tune, the devil is probably involved.  Peter counsels the church, “Be self-controlled and alert.  Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.

“Resist him, standing firm in the faith.” (1 Peter 5:8-9) The devil loves to tear up churches!

Ephesians 4:26 tells us, “In your anger do not sin; do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold.”  We may get involved in church disharmony when we get up our “righteous indignation”.  (Well, hey, that sounds a little more “Christian” than anger, doesn’t it?)

Our Lord knows the right way to handle every situation with a minimum of ill feelings.  As we pray, God will show us His way to deal with anything–and He will help in the resolution.

God’s Word twice gives the following recipe for harmony:  “Whoever would love life and see good days must keep his tongue from evil and his lips from deceitful speech.  He must turn from evil and do good; he must seek peace and pursue it.” (1 Pet. 3:10-12; Ps. 34:12-16)  And Jesus said, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called the sons of God.” (Matt. 5:9)

Lord, Help me to be a peacemaker in my circle of influence. Amen.

Questions: Are you part of the disharmony in your church? What steps can you take to become a peacemaker instead of causing disharmony?

Daily audio podcast: A second daily devotional, You’ve Already Won, today on the Men’s Devotional Blog

“But forget all of that-it is nothing compared to what I am going to do. For I am about to do a brand new thing.  See I have already begun…” (Isaiah 43:18,19a NLT)

I stepped out of the front doors of the church that I had been a member of for 17 years.  As I walked down the driveway towards my car I felt as though I were going through a divorce. This was the place that where God sent me to help me grow in my spiritual walk.   This was the place where I received a corporate word from God at least twice a week.  This was also the place where God told me that this Sunday would be my last as a member.

Even though I felt a deep sense of loss as I was leaving the church property, I also felt a great sense of hope and anticipation.  What was God about to do in my life?  What new plans did He have for me that required me to leave my church home of 17 years?  What do I do in the meantime?

In Genesis 12:1-3 Abraham was told by God to leave his home and his family to go to a place that He would show him.  Abraham did not know where he was going but he did know what God promised him, and it was something new. God promised to make him a father of a great nation, to bless him, to make him famous and to be a blessing to others.  God would bless those who blessed him and curse those who cursed him. Through Abraham all of the families of the earth would be blessed.

As children of the new covenant through Christ, we have the same promise that God gave to Abraham (Galatians 3:9).  We have also been blessed with every spiritual blessing in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 1:3).  As I go through this time of transition, I have been blessed to meet and worship God with brothers and sisters in Christ on Sunday mornings and during the week at different churches.

Through the sowing of my tithes and offerings, I have been a blessing to different ministries that I possibly would not have touched before.  Most of all, am experiencing a brand new relationship with the Holy Spirit has He is taking me on a wonderful journey with Him each day.  I don’t know where God is taking me, but I like the process of the brand new thing that He is doing in my life.

Father, we all go through times of transition.  Help us to enjoy the process, remembering that we don’t go through it alone.  In Jesus name. Amen.

Questions:  What transition are you going through in your life right now? How can you be a blessing to others during this time?  What blessings do you see in this time of your transition?

As church pianist I started to play the introduction for the choir during the morning service. After several measures, I glanced at the keyboard and was so startled that I almost missed a beat. There, on middle D, lay a stunned cockroach flailing its legs. Obviously it had run into the path of my flying fingers.

What could I do? Gritting my teeth, I went on, gingerly trying to avoid middle D, but not always able to do so. (The choir number would be in the Key of D!) Finally, halfway through the first verse I was able to flick the now-deceased roach onto the floor. (Well, that’s one way to kill a roach!)

Some problems we may face are not so easily resolved as a cockroach on a keyboard. They might not be brushed off during the first phase of the situation. We may have to live with them longer than the first verse. But I have learned that if I just keep looking to the Lord for grace and trusting Him with a problem, He takes care of it one way or another.

Sometimes as we pray, He shows us ways to make the situation easier, as I did by avoiding the “middle” D while I played. Sometimes He shows us how to deal with the situation, as I did by flicking that roach to the floor during a whole note in the melody. (Thank heavens for piano “hold” foot pedals!)

Then during or after the resolving of the problem, there’s the cleanup.  After church I went to the rest room and washed my hands off using liquid soap. But in dealing with life’s problems, we may often need a more comprehensive spiritual cleanup.

It may be necessary to ask the Lord to forgive us if we have sinned. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).  We may discover a need to forgive any who have hurt us. “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you” (Ephesians 4:32).

And let’s never forget the One Who guided and helped us! Let’s thank and praise Him for His help and deliverance.

“Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; his love endures forever” (Psalms 107:1)

Question: Are there problems you’re facing that you haven’t yet brought to the Lord in prayer?

A friend once asked me, “Are all the spiritual gifts for today?” and “How can I discern my spiritual gifts?”

He had been reading a number of books with conflicting views on gifts and had heard sermons – some encouraging him to discover his gifts and others saying the gifts are not for today. He was woefully confused.

I shared with this friend that I have been a Christian for more than 35 years and have known the reality of the fullness of the Spirit for more than 30 years. I explained that I have seen God do remarkable – even miraculous – things in and through my life throughout the years.

Yet, I have not felt the need to “discover” my gifts, because I believe that whatever God calls me to do He will enable me to do if I am willing to trust and obey Him, work hard and discipline myself.

The Holy Spirit obviously controls and distributes all the gifts. So when I am filled, controlled and empowered with the Holy Spirit I possess all of the gifts potentially. God will give me any gifts I need.

I went on to tell my young friend that some of the gifts of the Spirit are supernatural enhancements of abilities common to all men, wisdom for instance. Other gifts, such as healing, are granted by the Holy Spirit to only a select few.

But the gifts differ in another way, too. Some are instantaneous, and others are developmental in nature. Primarily, we need to remember that whatever God calls us to do, He will enable us to do. “For it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure” (Philippians 2:13, NAS).