Fall Creek Christian Church

"I knew you before I formed you in your mother's womb. Before you were born I set you apart and appointed you as my spokesman to the world. ... for you must go wherever I send you and say whatever I tell you."  Jeremiah 1:5,7b  I've never said to myself, "Wouldn't it be great to be a press secretary or spokesman for a major political figure?" Honestly, what a terrible job! Everytime you stand up to speak, at least half of the people already hate you. Everyone is waiting to pounce on any poorly worded statement. Each word is dissected, twisted, misinterpreted, or taken out of context to fit the agenda of a particular reporter or editor. In addition to all the negativity, how would one even know if they were successful? It's just plain depressing. No wonder there's such a turnover in that job. Welcome to Jeremiah's world. He was God's spokesman to a people who had no interest in what God had to say. Most of his preaching and prophesies were...

"Whenever Jehudi finished reading three or four columns, the king took his knife and cut off that section of the scroll. He then threw it into the fire, section by section, until the whole scroll was burned up. Neither the king nor his officials showed any signs of fear or repentance at what they heard."  Jeremiah 36:23-24  We've all witnessed our own children or somebody else's child locked into a position of defiance. It may be a temper tantrum. It may be an ear piercing, "No!" aimed at the beleagured parent. It may be a poorly disguised, "I didn't hear you." However it comes, the message is clear ... "I have no desire to respond to what you're saying and you aren't going to make me." In a word ... defiance. The king in this story chose to go toe-to-toe with God. The prophet had issued the warnings. He then had them written down and the king arrogantly cut them up and threw them in the fire. The rest of the chapter revea...

"Dear brothers and sisters, I love you and long to see you, for you are my joy and the reward for my work. So please stay true to the Lord, my dear friends."  Philippians 4:1  I used to watch the Chicago Cubs play baseball when I was a kid. I grew up near Chicago and WGN was one of the few channels we had so Harry Carey and the Cubs were my team. Their inability to win a world series title has now spanned over 100 years, the last being 1908. I don't watch the Cubs anymore. There are too many other channels these days and frankly, I've received no encouragment to remain true. Call me a fair weather fan if you will, but seriously ... 106 years?! Paul, in closing his letter to his dear friends, was thinking about remaining true as well. His concern was in regards to something infinitely more significant than baseball. He was talking about their commitment to Jesus. "Stay true." The conversation could have continued along these lines, "Remain loyal. Don...