Obedience to God is the key to freedom

Obedience to God is the key to freedom

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READ: Numbers 14:1-10

If the Lord delights in us, then He will bring us into this land and give it to us. —Numbers 14:8

Eugene Cussons rescues chimpanzees. Orphaned by those in the business of bush-meat trade and taken from the jungle as infants, many have lived their entire lives confined in a space smaller than a prison cell. When Cussons arrives to take them to the game reserve he calls “Chimp Eden,” he often finds them hostile and untrusting.

“These chimps don’t realize that I am one of the good guys,” Cussons says. When he tries to put them into a smaller crate for the trip to their new home, they put up quite a fight. “They don’t know that I’m going to take them back to Chimp Eden and give them a life so much better.”
On a much grander scale, God’s offer to liberate us from the slavery of sin is often met with resistance. When He rescued the children of Israel from Egypt, God took them through difficult places that caused them to doubt His good intentions. “Would it not be better for us to return to Egypt?” they cried (Num. 14:3).

On our journey of faith, there are times when the “freedom” of sin that we left behind is more appealing than the restrictions of faith that lie ahead. We must trust the protective boundaries found in God’s Word as the only way to get to the place of ultimate freedom. — Julie Ackerman Link

Sin’s lure may look like freedomBut in its grip we’re bound;It’s when we’re bound to JesusReal freedom will be found. —D. De Haan

Obedience to God is the key to freedom.

Postponement Problems

Postponement Problems

ODB RADIO: Listen Now DownloadREAD: Romans 12:4-13

We have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function. —Romans 12:4

Many of us struggle with them—postponement problems. A professor at the University of Calgary in Alberta studied the problem of procrastination for 5 years and reported that 95 percent of us put off doing one thing or another. One estimate showed that Americans lose approximately $400 million a year by putting off filing taxes! Because of fear of failure or other insecurities, we wait and wait before starting a project or making a decision.

Procrastination is a problem in the church too. Many of us postpone serving God. We know we should reach out to others, but we feel insecure or worried about what to do. Because we’re unsure of our gifts or interests, we put off our involvement in the church. We worry, What if I do a poor job? What if I find out I can’t even do it?

Romans 12 gives us some encouragement. Serving starts with presenting ourselves to God as “a living sacrifice” (v.1). Pray and give yourself anew to the Lord and His work. Then look around at what others are doing in your church and ask if you can join in. Start small if you need to, and try a number of things.

Your church needs you. Ask God to help you overcome your postponement problems. — Anne Cetas

Don’t put off for tomorrow
What you can do today;P
ostponement may bring sorrow,
Prompt action is the way. —
Hess

For a healthier church, exercise your spiritual gifts.