In
the time of Solomon, the Temple was a sign of God living with his
people. At the dedication of the Temple, Solomon said:
May
the Lord our God be with us as he was with our fathers; may He never
leave us nor forsake us. May He turn our hearts to Him, to walk in
all His ways and to keep the commands, decrees and regulations He
gave our fathers. And may these words of mine, which I have prayed
before the Lord, be near to the Lord our God day and night, that He
may uphold the cause of His servant and the cause of His people
(Israel) according to each day’s need, so that all the peoples of
the earth may know that the Lord is God and that there is no other.
But your hearts must be fully committed to the Lord our God, to live
by His decrees and obey His commands, as at this time. (1
Kings 8:57-61)
Baptist
Temple is also a sign of God being with His people and active in our
lives. Led by Him, you share His love and blessings with the
surrounding neighborhood, through the thrift store, food pantry and
other ministries. A little over a year ago, God opened doors and
brought Baptist Temple and
Family Deaf
Church (FDC) together. Because of what you have done for FDC, we
have experienced a revival, growing in number and Spirit. Now He is
asking us to do even more, to repair our temple so that we can open
new doors and go into the world, so that the world can see His light
shining in us, through new exciting ministries.
My
wife Mary Ann and I have been praying and continue to pray about what
God wants from us. In addition to our service with FDC, we feel in
our hearts to be a larger part of what Baptist Temple is doing. We
have decided that when we sell our motor home, we will give the money
to support the Heartstrong
for CHRIST! campaign. Additionally, God is
leading me to dedicate more of my life to serving Him. First, many
of you are familiar with the Catholic Church tradition of giving up
something for Lent. I feel called to give up Diet Cokes and donate
the several dollars a day for more than 1000 days to this campaign.
This serves as another daily reminder to focus on Jesus and to seek
His will. Second, at a recent religious seminar, God opened a door
for me to rejoin Wayland Baptist University. I have accepted a
temporary, part time teaching position with them and will be donating
those funds to Baptist Temple.
While
these may seem trivial to some of you, for me they are lifestyle
changes leading to increased, sacrificial giving of my time, talents
and treasures in obedience to what Christ has put in my heart through
the Holy Spirit. I will pray as Jonah prayed: “But I, with a
song of thanksgiving, will sacrifice to You. What I have vowed I
will make good. Salvation comes from the Lord.” (Jonah
2:9)
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