. . . and teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age. ~ Matthew 28:20
READING: II Timothy 2:2
When you fly over the Amazon River in a small plane or navigate the rivers, you can see clearly the natural phenomenon of the river channels and lakes constantly birthing and dying. When the water changes course and a channel loses its connection with the flow of the current, it begins to close up at what was once the entrance and exit of the lake. We have gotten stuck on just such sandbars many times when traveling the rivers in the river launch.
Churches, and even our personal lives, are the same. If we get out of the flow of the Holy Spirit in our church services or personal relationships, the “dirt” starts to accumulate at the intake and output of our lives. We become stagnant and accumulate other unwanted things in our lives. If this continues too long, like the river channel, we will become closed off and dry up, ceasing to produce good fruit in our lives.
One of the devil’s strategies to sabotage the fruitfulness of a church is to cause strife within, which causes the vision to stagnate. Then the outreach dies. When this happens the church will likely eventually die. Matthew 28:20 tells us that we should teach people to obey immediately what they are being taught and promptly share it with someone else, thus keeping the blessing flowing like the river.
What about your church? Do you have a church outreach project? Is there a church plant nearby where your people can experience the joy of serving and winning others to Christ?
Dear Heavenly Father, Please help me to instill in my church the vision for reaching others so that we can keep our channels open to your Holy Spirit. Amen.
