Category: Knowing God

Don’t Leave The Lord When You Leave Home

Father and son unpacking car for college

When a young person moves away from home for college, work, or to join the military it is often the first time a young person takes complete responsibility for attending worship service and serving God publicly. In truth, a person always has responsibility for their spiritual life but at home the parents or guardians exercise more control and direction than will be the case away from home.

Be Faithful in Worship to God

The Christian should always give God the honor and worship that He deserves. One way a Christian does this is by assembling faithfully with a church and sharing in the work of the local group. This responsibility is described in Hebrews 10:23-25:

Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near. (ESV)

Worshiping faithfully recognizes God’s goodness and need to encourage others. When moving away from home, each person takes personal responsibility and self-direction for attending worship.

  • When you move out from home you will not have parents coming in to wake you up in the morning and taking you to services.
  • You will be responsible for making sure that you plan to go in the first place and get up in plenty of time to eat, dress, and arrive before time to start.
  • You will be responsible for getting your Bible lessons and making sure that you are there for each service.
  • You will be responsible for not staying up so late on Saturday night that you sleep in on Sunday or are asleep in the assembly.
  • If there is a congregational meeting, you are part of the congregation and should attend.
  • Young men: if there is a men’s meeting, you are expected to attend and have a voice in what is done or, at least, to listen and learn.
  • You are expected to be there for the nights of the gospel meeting and the work that the church does throughout the year.
  • You need to find a place to worship and let them know that they can depend on you to be a part of that church and its work.

Make A Difference Where You Worship

When you are a part of the local work you can help build up the group. In 1 Timothy 4:12-16, Paul urged Timothy to:

  • Be a good example in your speech and conduct
  • Give attention to building up your Biblical knowledge
  • Use your gifts and abilities for the building up of the local church
  • Immerse yourself in the life of Christ and let it shine through you
  • Guard yourself so that you are not drawn away to ungodliness

When I went to college in another state and attended a local church, it hit me one day that the people at church didn’t know my mom or sisters. Everything they knew of me was by my own responsibility and participation. Always remember, you are not there as your parent’s child or of a group called “college students” or “young people’s group;” you are a Christian and you should take responsibility to do what you can do to help the growth of the church.

Faithfully Attend Worship Services

Do not allow yourself to begin missing services. Sometimes people do this when working late or studying late into the night. Perhaps after a late night with friends you hit the snooze saying, “I’ll skip Bible class and go to worship service” eventually saying, “I’ll skip this morning and go to the assembly tonight.”

This is a bad habit that can lead you to drift from a close relationship with God and His people. Such behavior makes you weak and vulnerable. A sheep that wanders from the flock is vulnerable for being attacked and taken away by a predator. Similarly, the Christian who drifts away from his brethren can be easily drawn into the world and the jaws of Satan, the lion who seeks those he can devour (1 Peter 5:8-9)

Give Financially To Show Gratitude To God

Another important habit to continue as you start your life is to give financially as you prosper to show thankfulness to God. Proverbs 3:9-10 advises believers to “Honor the LORD with your wealth and with the firstfruits of all your produce.” We honor God when we give back to the work of His kingdom from the money we have earned. The amount you give may not be great as you work through college and begin your career, but give something from what you earn as thankfulness to God and sharing in the work that the local church does for the glory of God.

The proper attitude of giving, described in 2 Corinthians 9:6-12, requires that we give cheerfully of what we have received recognizing that we are sharing in the good work of God.

When you move from home you have a great opportunity to grown in your faith and to take your place, independent from your parents, as a faithful active member of the church.

Other Articles in this series:

Trust God Completely And You Can Face Anything

Though you are beginning a life independent of your family, you will never live a life independent from God’s rule. However, you must choose whether you will trust God completely with your life and enjoy the benefits of His love and care or follow your own passions and desires and suffer the negative consequences of your decisions. A life lived trusting God allows us to be confident, comforted, and content. It is a life in which much of the suffering that results from poor choices and selfish living can be avoided. Most of all, you can face the greatest trials and challenges knowing that God is with you and is taking care of you.

Trust Requires Complete Dedication

Trusting in God requires a complete dedication to living with God as the center of our life. It can be likened to a base jumper or parachutist taking a leap into the air trusting in the parachute, their preparation, and other gear to guide them safely to the ground. We can study God’s word and do good things but we must take a leap and make God the center of our decision process and choose to live to His glory. Some people live a life that agrees with God–they are doing what they want to do but it happens to be what God wants them to do–but our challenge comes when we must do what He commands when we desire to do something different.

We must trust God with our whole heart and mind. Proverbs 3:5-8 urges us to trust God with our whole heart and mind:

Trust in the LORD with all your heart,
and do not lean on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make straight your paths.
Be not wise in your own eyes;
fear the LORD, and turn away from evil.
It will be healing to your flesh
and refreshment to your bones. (ESV)

Complete Trust Enables Us To Face Any Challenge

When we have this kind of trust we can face any challenges, even death for the cause of Christ. Paul told Timothy, in 2 Timothy 1:12, that he was not ashamed of being a prisoner and was ready to face death, because he entrusted his life to God. Imagine having that kind of confidence! That is why the believer, compared to a sheep in Psalm 23:4, could walk through valley of the shadow of death (a fearful trial that is surrounded by dangers) without fear–for God is with him. And it is God’s guidance and discipline (rod and staff) that provides comfort as we live in His care.

Trust That God’s Way Is Right

As the passage quoted earlier from Proverbs 3 tells us, don’t be caught up in your own understanding. Remember that the instruction from the Bible comes from an eternally wise God and has been proved true for thousands of years. It is not the product of ungodly men or the shallow knowledge of a few decades of life on earth. Trusting God means that we realize depending on our own understanding  usually leads to foolishness or, sometimes, evil. You don’t have to experience sinful things to know that they are wrong. Trust that God’s way is right and is designed for your maximum good in life and that avoiding sin will bring you greater joy and contentment in life. Do not be deceived.

Trust God completely and He will take care of you, guide you, and make all things work for good.

Other Articles in this series:

My Soul Follows Close Behind You

I was the child who would get lost in the mall or at the state fair. I would walk behind my mother and sisters then get distracted by the shiny exciting things around me. Awaking from my distraction I would realize my presence among strangers in an unfamiliar place. This horrific realization that I was lost would overcome me and the flashy distractions provided no comfort. I wanted one thing: the comforting experience of being reunited with my mom.

To the child, the outside world can seem a fearful place full of dangers. In such a place the child finds comfort walking tight against their parents leg and even greater calm when their hand is tight in the parent’s hand. The presence of the parent is sufficient to provide the feeling of safety and strength as the parent and child walk through unfamiliar, and seemingly dangerous, places.

While David lived in the wilderness to escape his enemies he was separated from the comforts of Jerusalem and the tabernacle and those he loved. The comforting thought of God’s presence with him in the wilderness allowed him to endure the painful separation of worship in God’s sanctuary.
Psalm 63 describes the intense yearning David had for a relationship with His father:
He pledged his personal allegiance and relationship with God. He sought God’s companionship early when he awoke and hungered and thirsted for God as a desert traveler thirsts for water from deep within his being (v.1).  He sought for God’s presence in the sanctuary so he could see God’s power and glory then praised and blessed God for His wondrous majesty (v.2-5). Just as he hungered for God’s companionship, having enjoyed it he felt as satisfied as one who has enjoyed a filling dinner (v.4). As he sought God’s companionship when he awoke, so also he went to sleep meditating on God and His goodness (v.6).

Even in the dangers of the wilderness, being hunted like a wild animal by his enemies, David could rest in comfort in the shadow of God’s wing because he, like the trusting child, followed close behind his loving Father and held tightly to His mighty hand (v.7-8). David knew that the hand that protected him would punish those who sought to kill him (v.9-10) and would protect all those who sought His divine care (v.11).

If we are feeling lost from God, we need to remember that sin will never provide comfort only alienation. When we have been distracted by sin or just the concerns of this world, we need to seek God in His word and among His people and draw close to Him in prayer. We will know safety and comfort again when we quit wandering around and hold tight to His hand and follow close behind him. We will sleep safely in the shadow of His wing, satisfied with the fullness of His presence and enjoy days that begin and end with thought and praise to Him.

Read Psalm 63 at BibleGateway.com

Innocence by Keith Stonehart

I woke up one day and I wasn’t as young as I used to be…My youth had gone to my children and years of poor choices and bad habits had taken their toll on my body… Looking into my own eyes I see what is left of what used to be young and beautiful. I had changed….but I am better for it.

We don’t realize what we have when we are young and it’s only in losing it – that we are ever able to dig down deep and truly find ourselves…When we lose our youth , we lose our looks…this is hard for most of us… but we also lose our arrogance , our ignorance and immaturity – and we are better for it.

My only regret is not coming to know God sooner…Only in knowing God can you ever really know yourself , and in breaking my own heart – I found him , although it wasn’t him who was lost… And I am better for it.

The trade offs have been well worth the trip so far , although the cost has been high at times.. Clearly getting “Better” comes with a price. But what I wouldn’t give for to have back my Innocence… …Have a great day people.. 😉

A guest post by Keith Stonehart from his blog Keith Stonehart is Dead

The Process of Letting Go by Keith Stonehart

I can vividly  remember being 9 years old and gripping the rope I was holding on to with force that would rival a Python gripping his latest soon to be meal…Nervousness  was all over me like a bad suit and he had brought his friends fear and fear with him (yes, I said fear twice-apparently there is strength in numbers)  , but –  I being the stubborn hard headed punk I have always been ,  was determined to beat this…

Then it came – that one moment where this whole journey had led me to…The moment when I was forced to choose… To LET GO…

Seconds later I was submerged in the cool flowing waters of the Flint River..I HAD DONE IT!.. I had swung from the rope swing attached to the tree growing from the high bank of the river.. I had beaten the seemingly unbeatable  , little did I realize that the unbeatable wasn’t the rope swing that dauntingly hung high above the Flint River –  It was FEAR.

Fear  , a true “4 letter word” If I have ever heard it.. While healthy fear is often referred to as “respect” and is the only way to  begin to learn about God (Proverbs 1:7) – this is too often the fear we don’t practice. We give ourselves over to fear of failure,rejection,pain and a laundry list of other hosts that feed on the energy we give it..And with THAT fear , we open the door to sin and welcome it into our lives like the sickness it is  – But , like every illness there is treatment -and in this case not JUST a treatment  but a CURE…

LETTING GO.

For many of us , our understanding of “Letting go” is associated with weakness and it is in fact –  quite the contrary. True strength comes from doing what we KNOW is right NO MATTER the consequence – This is the birth of COURAGE and beginning of the Process of Letting Go.. So allow me give this encouragement :

GIVE IN – Give in to the will of GOD by submission of your own will to HIS… Submission isn’t a power struggle but rather a mutual relationship of love ,humility and respect.. Understand the PRINCIPLE of submission and you’ll understand the PRACTICE of submission. – (1 Peter 1:14)

GIVE UP – Not as in failure , but but in Prayer.. Give the things that plague you to God. Psalm 118:5 says  “Out of my distress I called on the Lord;the Lord answered me and set me free” ..

MOVE FORWARD – Giving in to the Lord and Giving up your problems to him in prayer is absolutely the right and best way to BEGIN – but a beginning is ONLY  a BEGINNING if you move on..You MUST commit to moving away from where you came in to the fold ,lest you fall out.. For this read 2 Corinthians 5:17

Things are just things..and like everything around us -things decay and disintegrate..The harder you try to HOLD ON , the more they slip from your hands and take you with them on the path to destruction…Imagine for a second that you are at Heavens edge and God Almighty is standing there waving you to “come in” – only every time you make your attempt , you are blocked by a figure that you cant quite identify. The harder you try , the more its gets in your way..All the while God keeps bidding you to “Come in”..

Finally , you overcome your fear of what this figure will think of you, or what it might do to you ,or what it might say to others about you and you shove it to the floor and RUN TO THE LORD where he is patiently waiting for you to respond to his invitation..Just before getting to him you turn to look one last time at your menacing opponent only to realize that the ENTIRE time , the one in between you and the LORD – was YOURSELF..

What will keep you from God and his rest for you?..Nothing except YOURSELF and your FEAR…. So Let it GO – Let go of the rope that this life will ultimately hang you with and fall headlong into the cool  flowing waters of Christ… In him there is no fear ,only love.. No weakness,only strength.. No labor , only rest…

Linkin Park’s song “Iridescent” says it better than I’ve heard in quite a while..In the last line of the chorus that chant”Do you feel cold and lost in desperation? You build up hope, but failure’s all you’ve known..Remember all the sadness and frustration..

And let it go.

I, for one , couldn’t agree more… The invitation to study the Bible is still open.. 😉

Revelation 21:4 -“   He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”

Guest post by Keith Stonehart from his blog Keith Stonehart is Dead