Mark

Wasted

September 21, 2015 by Tim Sherfy

Most people have one or more irrational fears. These kinds of fear are far worse in our minds than they are in reality. As much as we want to think otherwise, irrational fears exist largely only in our minds. My greatest fear, however, is not of the irrational variety. It is only too real, based on hard cold facts and unyielding truth. My greatest fear is when I die my life will be labeled by God as “wasted”.

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image © bruno135_406 via Fotolia

It will have been wasted because I spent most of the time and energy entrusted to me pursuing the pleasures and delights of this world rather than living a life dedicated wholly to Him. There is no recovery from a wasted life. It’s over, done, and labeled for eternity.
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Busy

August 20, 2015 by Tim Sherfy

Commenting on Leonard Ravenhill’s statement that “The accent in the Church today is not on devotion, but on commotion”, A.W. Tozer said “What a man is must be shown to be more important than what he does… Externalism has taken over. God now speaks by the wind and the earthquake only; the still small voice can be heard no more. The whole religious machine has become a noisemaker.”

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image © bahrialtay

As you survey the well-known churches of our day, this seems very true. As a general rule, there is a lot of activity surrounding them, but the world is not changing as a result. It’s not just the big churches either. For too many local congregations, the emphasis is on what they are doing with little concern being shown for the ultimate results of that busyness.
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The Rich Young Ruler Revisited

May 14, 2015 by Tim Sherfy

I have always been drawn to the story of the rich young ruler found in three of the four gospels (Matthew 19:16-22, Mark 10:17-22, Luke 18:18-23). I love the black and white of it (or so it would seem). I love the way it lays down the gauntlet and demands everything from us in exchange for Jesus.

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image © vladimirfloyd

So much has been written about this story already. Yet still I keep coming back to it. What does it mean to you and me and the lives we lead on a daily basis? How does it apply to those who profess to follow Christ 2,000 years after He walked on this very earth?
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The Promise of a Fresh Start

January 1, 2015 by Tim Sherfy

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How will you serve Jesus in the year ahead? In what ways will your life reflect the love and character of God? What new disciplines will you implement to facilitate your spiritual growth? We are a people given to new beginnings and New Year’s resolutions. There is something exciting in being given a clean slate, an opportunity to begin again from scratch. We don’t need the beginning of a New Year for this; we can choose a fresh start at any time. Still, when the New Year does roll around, most begin excitedly thinking and planning for the possibilities the next year might hold. This is a great time to honestly evaluate your walk with Christ and prayerfully consider how you might better serve Him in the year to come.

Are You Denying Jesus or Satan?

December 18, 2014 by Tim Sherfy

Albert Schweitzer said, “Day by day we should weigh what we have granted to the spirit of the world against what we have denied to the spirit of Jesus, in thought and especially in deed.” Every day we should consider what parts of our life we are dedicating to the spirit of this world (Satan) and which parts we are surrendering to Christ. Too much of my time, and I suspect yours as well, is given to the things of this world and not to the mission of Jesus. This isn’t a situation that is easily remedied. We have spent years buying into the lies of the devil, subscribing to cultural myths and standards, while relegating God to an unassuming place in the background.