priorities

Love Your Neighbor

October 26, 2020 by Tim Sherfy

Most of us are familiar with the greatest commandment: love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength (Mark 12:28-30). And while I think we are aware of the second greatest commandment, “love your neighbor as yourself” (Mark 12:31), it seems we give that one more lip service. I’m not sure that’s ever more obvious than during a Presidential election season.

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I see a lot of evidence that many forget their allegiance is to Jesus and not to a political party. It manifests in the words we say to each other. To love your neighbor as yourself means to love them even if they support opposing political ideals or candidates than you do. Loving those who agree with us is easy. Discipleship is hard.

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Choosing Sides

October 5, 2020 by Tim Sherfy

Choosing sides is something we do from cradle to grave. Whether it’s picking teams on a playground or deciding for whom we will vote in a Presidential election, our culture is always pushing us toward choosing sides. Choosing sides reveals something about us. On the playground, it may speak of your popularity. The side you choose in an election shows your political philosophy. As disciples of Jesus, we also choose sides.

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We reject the lies of Satan and align ourselves with the truth and love of Christ. We believe Jesus is the Son of God, died on a cross, and rose to life again. His death provides the way to life for us. No matter what other sides in life we might choose, choosing Jesus is the only side that matters and is the decision that should direct the way we live each day of our lives.

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Distracted by Jesus

October 2, 2020 by Tim Sherfy

What if we were so focused on the mission of Christ that we could only be distracted by Jesus Himself? We live in a world designed to distract, and few of us are very good at resisting the siren call of a pleasant distraction. It’s always easier to do the more comfortable things than the difficult. Living as a disciple of Jesus will never be easy. If it is, you probably aren’t living for Him.

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Jesus promised us we would have trouble in this world (John 16:33). We often think in terms of persecution or being mocked when we read that verse, but distraction wreaks havoc in our lives and causes all sorts of trouble. Nothing will knock you off course faster than a distraction, and distractions are the killer of all dreams. No one can be on mission and distracted at the same time.

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The Joy of the Lord

September 28, 2020 by Tim Sherfy

Since the beginning days of the coronavirus and the drama that unfolded in the response to it, the racial tensions that began exploding soon after, and a crazed political environment, the world has seemed to have just gone mad. Every issue seems to polarize us, dividing friends, family, and most disturbingly the church. In a matter of months, what we considered the normalcy of life has been discarded. I’ve seen a lot of dramatic changes in my lifetime, but never ones that occurred so suddenly and were so divisive.

I don’t know when or if this all ends, or what life looks like on the other side of this seemingly unending tunnel of darkness. But somehow, in the middle of all the chaos and uncertainty, I have found my joy of the Lord increasing. I am more aware of His presence than ever, and despite the anger and confusion swirling around me, I am at peace.

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A Higher Standard

August 31, 2020 by Tim Sherfy

Maybe it’s just me. You won’t find it explicitly in the Bible, and I will be the last to add anything to the Word of God. Still, it appears it is at least implied that disciples of Jesus should live their lives held to a higher standard. After all, our model is none other than Jesus Christ. How could we help but live dramatically different lives than those around us? It’s what He did.

We too easily surrender to the malaise of Western Christianity and forget the purpose of our lives. Our mission is to tell everyone the good news of Jesus. It’s to look after the orphans, widows, sick, impoverished, and imprisoned (James 1:27; Matthew 25:31-46). And we are to do these things with excellence (Colossians 3:23-24).

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