Spiritual Check II

I had been in rebellion against the Lord for the past year before moving back to South Carolina with my wife and son. When we got married, the Lord placed a strong call on my heart that became evident as we prayed together and talked of what He wanted to do in us--but I guess I must have resented the purity and obedience it would entail for me, and so I ran, first to Virginia to try to relive the life I had had as a graduate student before moving to Fort Worth, Texas (where I first met Christ), then to Fort Worth itself to try to relive the life I'd WANTED to lead before coming face to face with the Creator of the universe. Now, Jessica and I are back in South Carolina, after a series of what I can only describe as miracles that enabled us to recover far more quickly from moving 3 times in one year than we otherwise would have.

Here's the call I have been given:

Our generation, our church, needs to be awakened from its slumber. We've been sleeping for too long, lying in our pews, comfortable in our beautiful buildings, and all too cozy with professional pastors, professional salaries, and professional training centers. Meanwhile, the lost are growing in number day by day, increasingly embittered and alienated from a Christianity that claims to represent a God of love but which instead represents a God of evil and deceit.

Sound a little harsh?

Maybe.

But when you've lived on the "other side," as I have, you have far more appreciation for the position of the hopeless man, the downtrodden woman, and the loveless child in our desperate, cruel world than anyone else can ever imagine. Christians--believers in Jesus Christ--have a power inside them to change the lives of their communities that DWARFS anything the world, the flesh, and the devil can muster, and yet it is ironic that Christians act as if THEY are on the defensive, THEY are on the run, THEY are in retreat.

What army do you think you're fighting, anyway?

Do you think Satan and his hordes are some horrible, zombie-like force that can do anything they wish? Do you think they can lift a finger against the Lord who created both you and THEM?

Ladies and gentlemen, this is very simple: Either Christ Jesus is in charge of things, or He's not. Either He's the Way, the Truth, and the Life, or He's not. If you don't believe in your heart that He has everything in control, then you need to get a spiritual thermometer and see if you really want to follow the Author and Finisher of our faith. If you don't, then Satan and his henchmen will be glad to take you in--their kingdom is passing away, but if you're foolish enough to waste everything the Lord gave you on the pleasures of a moment, they'll be more than willing to assist you.

Basically, I guess I'm like a modern day John the Baptist, telling the believers in America and the West to wake up, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand. Jesus is coming, and all of us--me included--need to walk as Jesus walked, preparing the way for the Lord. Christians used to talk about Judgment in relation to non-believers all the time, but as I read the Bible, it becomes clear that CHRISTIANS are the ones who will be judged first, with a STRICTER judgment. And I am afraid that Western Christianity is woefully unprepared for its Founder's return.

In the next few weeks and months, I will outline in a full and complete fashion where I believe we are and what we need to do to prepare the way for the Lord. Much of this is going to be hard for you to hear, especially if you've been a part of Western Christianity for a long time, but I believe that our spiritual condition is such that it will require us to make far greater sacrifices than simply tuning into Christian television, going to church twice a week, and reading the Bible--sacrifices that I'm afraid far too many of us are going to be unwilling to make.

Christians need to get out of the selfish, materialistic box that too many of us have been calling home.

Our world needs Jesus.

Will we let Him use us to speak to that world, or will we stumble around in the dark, as we have for so many decades, hoping He doesn't come when we don't expect Him?