PASTOR’S CORNER, Phillip Dow, New Beginnings Church, Liberal

Throughout the years, I've noticed something interesting. Most people don't struggle to attend church occasionally; they struggle to belong. We live in a culture that encourages us to keep our options open. Unfortunately, that mindset can follow us into the church. However, Jesus didn't call us to simply attend His Church. He called us to become part of it.

The New Testament consistently describes the church as a family and a body—not a crowd. Paul writes, "Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it" -1 Corinthians 12:27. Notice that every believer has a place, a purpose, and each one matters. The healthiest churches aren't built around a gifted pastor or a talented worship team. They're built by ordinary people who have decided, "This is my church family, and I'm going to invest my life here."

PASTOR’S CORNER, Jeremy Harris, First Southern Baptist Church, Liberal

“For me to live is Christ and to die is gain.” ~ Philippians 1:21

Continuing my series on Paul’s words to the Philippians and how they can help us overcome the joy stealers in our lives.

Joystealer #3 - Circumstances…

This might be the hardest joy stealer to fight against. Circumstances are so often outside of our control. Illnesses that we never saw coming, job changes that lower our income, tires that need replacing, the A/C at the house going out, an unexpected pregnancy, a new friend from work, even willing the lottery can take out lives and throw them into such a whirlwind that joy can get lost in a hurry. In fact, this is the area of our lives where we often lose our Jesus lens. When circumstances affect us we often begin to look at Jesus through the lens of our circumstances rather than looking at our circumstances through the lens of Jesus.

PASTOR’S CORNER, Jeremy Harris, First Southern Baptist Church, Liberal

“For me to live is Christ and to die is gain.” ~ Philippians 1:21

Continuing my series on Paul’s words to the Philippians and how they can help us overcome the joy stealers in our lives.

Joystealer #2 - People…the good, the bad, and the ugly…

Much like the things in our lives, people can be a great source of joy. However we all know that sometimes, people can steal the joy right out of our lives. There are people we expect cruelty or ugliness from and even when they prove us right it hurts and hinders our joy. There are people we trust who don’t always treat us the way they should and those hurts can be even worse. Heroes fall, leaders become corrupt, and friends don’t always have our backs. I’ve heard more than one pastor say that church work is pretty enjoyable if it weren’t for the people.

PASTOR’S CORNER, Jeremy Harris, First Southern Baptist Church, Liberal

“For me to live is Christ and to die is gain.” ~ Philippians 1:21

Last week I shared that this verse just might be the key to Paul’s joy in the Lord. The next three weeks I will consider three different things that tend to threaten our joy.