Brown's Daily Word 7/14/09

Good morning,
It is one of the ten spectacular days here in NY. It is bright, brilliant, beautiful and bountiful. Thank You, Jesus. Alice drove up to Boston, yesterday, for a week to spend some time with Micah and Simeon. Laureen drove to Washington to spend some time with Sunita and Andy and to spend some time with friends in Virginia. Laureen told me that it has been so cold here in NY that she wanted to go to a warmer climate in Virginia where she used to live. I'm home alone, II. We are getting ready for the Saturday event, Heaven Now. There is still room for you to sign up for those of you who live in the area. Please mark your calendar for The Continental concert on July 23, 2009 at 7:00 p.m. To be held at the First United Methodist Church, Endicott.
It was May 1985. I was invited to preach at the Limeville United Methodist church,( Lancaster, PA),during their annual missions conference. I stayed with our friends Dr. and Mrs. Allan Burns. I still recall the sweet and wonderful fellowship we shared. Allan gave me a copy of the book titled" Company of The Committed". I still have the book in my library. The book illustrates the lives of Christians in Washington DC, who belong to a small church, but who are committed to the cause of Christ, who continue to make a tangible and visible difference in Washington, DC. They serve the Lord with reckless abandon. We are often tempted to be casual Christians. We remain often lukewarm, neither cold nor hot. We are confronted by the Gospel of Christ to be committed. He calls us to a life of full surrender in season and out of season. In the world we live in and the culture we are surrounded with, we are called to be " salt of the earth." In the former Soviet Union, Jewish dissident Natan Sharansky was denied a visa to Israel and became a human rights activist (a “refusnik”). He was arrested for treason and sentenced to a Siberian labor camp where he remained for nine years, until international pressure forced his release. Many of his friends were harassed by the KGB and some were arrested for assisting him. We follow Christ as His disciples, not mere converts who have the password to Heaven’s gates. Someone reflected that “The only reason Christians are safe in the United States is that we are moderately Christian.” If you were arrested for being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you? During times of religious persecution the church is pretty much free from hypocrisy; those who are only going through the motions don’t usually take a stand for Christ. A divided commitment to Christ is no commitment at all. A Christianity that costs nothing, suffers nothing, and does nothing is worth nothing. During the American Revolution, farmers who joined the Continental Army during the spring and summer went AWOL in the fall and winter. They were known as "summer soldiers." They signed up with the Army after their crops were planted, they fought the British over the summer, but then returned home to help with the harvest. Meanwhile, citizens who supported the revolution when the war effort was going well (but not otherwise) were called "sunshine patriots". This led Thomas Paine to write his famous pamphlet Common Sense, in which he stated: "These are the times that try men’s souls: The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of his country; but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict the more glorious the triumph." The Army of jESUS, needs soldiers who will not shrink from battle; men and women who are fully committed to serving the Captain of their salvation. Are we “fair weather” Christians? Some people consider Christianity a casual arrangement, like belonging to a club that doesn’t demand much of its members. It’s part of their identity but not a big thing. They can take it or leave it. For Paul, Christ is everything. Are we committed to Christ? John Calvin noted that “A person’s life is appraised according to its purpose.”
There’s a cartoon that puts persecution in perspective. In the 4 panels, we see people praying--first a New Testament Christian: “Lord, give me the courage to face this accusing mob.” Then a Reformation Christian: “Lord, help me declare Your truth despite the cost.” A 20th Century believer from Soviet Russia: “Lord may we persevere faithfully under these burdens.” Then finally, today’s American Christian: “Lord, the Audi’s been running rough lately.” “God did not give us a spirit of fear but of power, of love, and of self-discipline” (II Tim 1:7).
In Him,
Brown

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9XVUVNqWus0