Category: Christian Living

Articles I have written specifically dealing with areas of Christian living.

New Year’s Resolutions, Anyone?

by Mike Avery, posted in All Articles, Christian Living, Holiday

–Winter of 2002

New Year’s Resolutions, Anyone?

How long has it been since you’ve heard anyone talk about New Year’s resolutions?  It has been years since I’ve actually penned a list of resolves that I wanted to give special attention to throughout the New Year.  This year, I’ve decided to dust off this time-honored tradition and join my fellow pilgrims who will take up the challenge of change as the calendar year rolls over to 2002.

To insure that my resolutions do not melt away with February’s final snow, I’m putting them in print for all the Revivalist family to read.  Furthermore, I’m going to pledge to you an article on each one of these areas in the coming Revivalist year.

 RESOLVED: To gain an understanding of corporate worship

My holiness tradition has taught me much.  Yet, somehow, I missed the all important matter of worship.  Since coming to GBS, I have had more opportunity to experience church from a pew rather than from a pulpit.  To be honest, that has not been an altogether pleasant experience.  In saying that, I do not blame the church, but myself.  I have approached church far too often with the spirit of a discriminating consumer (what’s this doing for me?), rather than a grateful creature seeking to praise his Creator.  As a preacher, I have found myself being more of a sermon critic than a truth consumer.  I have left church thinking, “I don’t believe I got anything out of this service,” rather than wondering, “Was God pleased with my worship of Him today?”  I fear that I’m not alone.  The single-most complaint I hear about church is the inability to worship while there.  I believe the church at large has lost the art of worship.  As for me, I want to know how to worship God corporately in a way that truly honors Him.

 RESOLVED: To enlarge my understanding of spiritual authenticity

A question that has probed my thinking for years is, “What does it really mean to be spiritual?”  In the holiness tradition, spiritual experience is given a prominent place.  So much so that we have found it easy to think that a personal momentary religious incident that leaves us ecstatic or astonished is far more genuine and satisfying than the hard work of developing spirituality.  This thinking has produced Christians who are easily destabilized if removed from spiritual feelings and emotions.  The conversion of the soul does happen in the miracle of a moment, but the making of a saint is the work of a lifetime.  Spiritual experience can be found in shallow, fickle people, but spirituality is only found in the unshakable saint who makes God’s Word and the pursuit of godliness the passion of their life.

 RESOLVED: To invest more in the relationships that matter most

Ruth and I have shared so much life in the past 23 years of marriage.  We have experienced an abundance of love and happiness.  We brought two boys into the world and parented them into fine young men.  Together we have poured an unbelievable amount of our lives into them and plan to continue doing so until God calls us home.  Together we have pastored, promoted and presided over various aspects of God’s work.  We have shared sorrows, stress and misunderstandings.  We haven’t always agreed, but we have always been committed to loving on and going on.  Ruth has allowed me to invest a huge amount of myself and time in others without complaint.  Yet, I’ve been convicted over the need to invest more of myself in her —  more encouragement, counsel and love —  more prayer and time — more of my energy and effort to build her up emotionally and spiritually.  Our relationship matters, and I want my commitment to it to reflect its importance.

 RESOLVED: To live a better balanced life

I’ve never been afraid of hard work and time-consuming jobs.  As a matter of fact, I’ve thrived on being busy.  But a well-balanced life also makes time for physical and emotional renewal.  I need to laugh more.  Laughter is medicine for the soul and body.  It can relieve tension and restore perspective to life.  I need to exercise more.  My work taxes me emotionally, spiritually and mentally— but it doesn’t keep my muscles pounded into shape!  I need to exercise more on a regular basis.  Exercise relieves stress, stimulates the mind, and reduces the body’s need for rest.  A strong body and a stress-free mind make for a more effective ministry and longer usefulness.

Sharing my New Year’s resolutions with you is one way to encourage you to make some new resolves of your own.  Our journey to Heaven must be punctuated with times of fresh wind and fresh resolve.  Why don’t you resolve right now to strengthen some resolves in your life?

Triumphing Over Tragedy

by Mike Avery, posted in All Articles, Christian Living, Church, Theology

–November of 2001

Triumphing Over Tragedy

America has been awakened from decades of secure slumber by a terrorist nightmare of monumental proportions.  In a series of murderous assaults, our sense of territorial invulnerability has been shattered, our economy shaken to its heels, and our carefree way of life halted in its tracks.  The American psyche was clearly rattled on September 11, 2001.

Our response to this national horror has been interesting.  Rescue workers became heroes in swift succession as they braved the burning buildings only to be entombed with those they sought to save.  Congressional leaders closed ranks, made speeches, and allocated funds to relieve the victims and to capture the attackers.  The talking heads in the media marshaled the experts and discussed everything from Islamic fanaticism to World War III.  The average American, however, went to his knees in prayer, stood in line to give blood, and opened both his heart and his purse to thousands of widows and orphans.

My greatest disappointment came from the religious media personalities.  They blamed every segment of sinner it was safe to blame (though Scripture says judgment must begin at the house of God), predicted the end of time, and offered specials on their latest prophecy book.  These are the same religious leaders who promised dire consequences for the world just because our calendar was changing was from 1999 to 2000.  In their haste to capitalize on another “ministry opportunity” they stooped once again to interpreting the Bible through the newspaper, instead of interpreting the newspaper through the Bible.

A very bright spot for me came from two things that our President did.  First, he led America to the place of prayer.  Second, he stood atop the rubble of the World Trade Center and announced to the world that America’s soul had not been torn asunder for it rested on something far more permanent than concrete and steel.  He reminded all of us that terrorists may destroy our infrastructure, but they could never damage our spirit.  I don’t believe our President was grand standing.  He was simply voicing his core beliefs.

President Bush offered the church a great object lesson as he stood atop that pile of rubble.  During times of crisis the church must possess and project a discerning faith that looks beyond the fleeting shadow of the moment to the abiding substance of eternity; beyond things shaken to the things that are unshakable.  Jesus told His church not to fear anyone or anything that could destroy the body (the passing), but fear Him that could destroy both body and soul (the permanent).

The men of this world despair when buildings topple, bodies are broken, and lives are snuffed out.  But the child of God stands amid the encircling gloom of a desperately troubled day, lifts his eyes to Heaven, and remembers “this world passeth away but He that doeth the will of God abideth forever.”

In times of tragedy the greatest responsibility that the church may have is simply to live up to its greatest convictions and beliefs.  Oh yes, we must be there offering our hands to dig through the debris.  We must be there offering our hearts to comfort those that mourn.  We must be there giving of our means to provide shelter and food for those who are needy.  But, we must also be there standing atop the broken dreams of this present world letting our faith point the way to the only world that really lasts.

Knowing God

by Mike Avery, posted in All Articles, Christian Living, Theology

–October of 2001

Knowing God

To the average man in America God is an inference, not a reality.  He has put belief in the Almighty into the back of his mind along with the other various odds and ends that make up his philosophy of life.  The possibility of an intimate acquaintance with God has never entered his thinking.

Christians, to be sure, go further than this.  God is more than brain deep.  To them He is life deep.  The Bible makes it perfectly clear that God is personal and can be known in personal experience.  Leaping out from almost every page of Scripture is a God who affects us and is affected by us.  The Old Testament gives us portraits of God speaking, pleading, loving, working, and manifesting Himself whenever and wherever His people have the receptivity necessary to receive such manifestation.  We see Him walking with Adam and Eve in the Garden, eating with Abraham by his tent, and arguing with Moses on a mountain top.  The gospels give us a front-row seat as God steps from behind the curtain onto the stage of life to interact with man.  The Bible assumes it to be self-evident that we can know God intimately.

Within the holiness tradition, we are regularly summoned to know God, to talk to God and to love God as one loves a friend.  Yet, to many, the idea of being intimate with God is still mystical and illusive.  Their knowledge of God is more accidental than intentional—more like an occasional contact than an ongoing companionship.  When talking about God they use the textbook language of a learner rather than the transparent language of a lover.  They remind me of a story the Boston Globe carried about an Elvis Presley look-alike contest.  One contestant had this to say, “Elvis was my idol.  I have seen his concerts, watched every movie he has done, bought every album he made, collected ticket stubs and clippings from programs all around the world, had my hair styled like his, and won many look alike contests.  I’ve stormed the stage at his concerts so that he would see me, and I’ve climbed the walls at Graceland to catch a glimpse of him.  It’s really funny, though.  All the effort I put into following him…and I could never seem to get close.”

Why do so many Christians find it difficult to get close to God?  I believe, for the most part, it is the same reason we find it difficult being intimate with one another.  One of the more significant barriers to any relationship is self-centeredness.  The sinful self seeks independence from both God and man.  It is self-seeking rather than self-giving.  No relationship can find true intimacy unless there is a giving of oneself freely to the other.

Another barrier is superficiality.  Our image-conscious culture holds others at enough distance to prevent the development of close relationships.  To allow people to get close means that they will see me as I really am.  We struggle with this kind of openness.  Honesty about ourselves makes us vulnerable.  Being vulnerable is often too threatening to our self image and security.  When this is carried over into our Christian walk, we keep God at a distance.  We fear exposing our inner self to Him.  We talk to Him in clichés rather than pouring out our heart in true transparency.  But the more we mask our true self and hide from God and others, the more distant our relationships become.

A final hindrance is time.  Children spell love “T-I-M-E” and so does God.  Most relationships I know are starving for a lack of time.  Our Western culture has forgotten how to walk.  We know only how to run and drive.  We pack our days so full that time to build meaningful relationships is all but impossible.  Our relationship to God has to be “crock-potted” not microwaved!  The salvation of our soul may be the miracle of a moment but the making of an intimate relationship with God is the work of a lifetime.

God wants to tear down every barrier and walk with us in intimate fellowship.  Scripture tells us if we will, “draw nigh to God, He will draw nigh to us.”  That’s not just a possibility, but a promise.  There is no better time than the present to start “knowing God”.

Don’t Forget to Say “Thank You”

by Mike Avery, posted in All Articles, Christian Living

–September of 2001

Don’t Forget to Say “Thank You”

He was sitting in his garage watching cars go by, nodding and daydreaming of yesteryears.  My surprise visit startled him back to the present.  We shared greetings and took a little time to catch up on family news.  My 83 year old friend then walked me to his bedroom and showed me two of his most prized possessions.  The first was his lifetime subscription card to the God’s Revivalist.  The second was a plaque from his church thanking him for his many years of service.  My friend beamed with joy.  He felt appreciated.  Somebody had taken the time to say thank you.

As I have advanced in years, my realization has grown of the importance of expressing verbally and in other tangible ways my appreciation for the contribution that men and women have made to life.  My first valuable lesson came as a result of the H. E. Schmul Banquet.  We invited hundreds of people to our campus to celebrate the life and legacy of this great man.  I watched Brother Schmul bask in the accolades given him by one leader after another.  Plaques were presented, letters were read and a proclamation from the Governor was presented.  Brother Schmul was still radiating in the warmth of those accolades the next day!  It was a beautiful moment!

Banquets to celebrate life should not be limited to the high profile saints with very visible ministries.  There are thousands of faithful men and women in our denominations, local churches, mission organizations and Christian day schools who have given years of faithful, sacrificial service who deserve a word of thanks.  Why not have a party and celebrate their life and labors?  Let them know they are appreciated!

If you’re a son or a daughter with a parent that has reached an advanced age, have a celebration.  Write a letter of gratitude and read it to them.  Yes, you’ll cry and they will too, but do it anyway.  They will treasure that letter more than a million dollars worth of gift cards.  They will read it and re-read it many times over.  It will be their sunshine on many a dark and cloudy day.

Church, have a “Pastor Appreciation Day”.  Pastor, find those senior saints in your church and honor them.  Have a “Grandpa Jones Day” or a “Bertha Smith Day” and let both young and old extol their virtues.  No, they didn’t go to dark Africa, but they did stay true to the home church.  They paid the bills, never missed prayer meeting, taught Sunday school and faithfully cleaned the church when the preaching was good and when the preaching was bad.  Celebrate their faithfulness.

God despises any lack of gratitude.  Eleven of the thirteen plagues that troubled the traveling children of Israel came upon them for their ungrateful grumbling.  The reprobates of Romans 1 began the first chapter of their degeneration with these words, “neither were they thankful.”  On the more positive side, God is planning an indescribable celebration and a rewards banquet for His children when this life is over.  Why not get a head start and spread a little cheer now!

Don’t be stopped by the false humility that says, “I don’t want anyone making over me now; my reward is to come.”  Don’t miss the opportunity all around you to make someone’s day.  Don’t forget to say “thank you” in a meaningful way.  The time will come all too soon when the opportunity will no longer be with you.

Recommitting to the Great Commission

by Mike Avery, posted in All Articles, Christian Living, Church, Ministry

–April of 2001

Recommitting to the Great Commission

Standing before the open door of this new millennium, the church has never faced so many challenges on so many different fronts.  Rather than moving forward as salt and light, our response has been paralyzed by uncertainty and fear.  It has been easier for the church to look inward toward developing inner piety than to look outward with the intent of sharing our faith with the world.  However, it is from this inward focus that the Holy Spirit faithfully seeks to turn the church.  Those He turns will become the missionaries of this our present day

Emerging Trends

What should the church expect to confront?  The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association has projected four major challenges or trends for the church in the 21st century.

1. Massive urbanization.  This century opens with a population of approximately six billion people, half of whom live in large cities.  Half of that number is under 25 years of age.  The holiness church has become far too comfortable in suburbia and has in all reality lost touch with the inner city.  To fulfill our calling and remain relevant, we must reconnect and re-engage the population of the world’s great cities with the gospel.

2. Aggressive secularism.  Secularism has turned former Christian nations into post-Christian countries.  Its onslaught has affected the emerging nations of Southeast Asia, and economically strong countries like South Korea, where one Korean elder said, “Materialism is eating the heart out of Korea’s prayer life.”  Secularism roots God out for economic prosperity and so-called intellectualism.  These are two fronts the church must face with answers.

3. Expanding non-Christian religions.  The expansion of Westernize has created militant and aggressive propagation of non-Christian religions.  Hinduism and the Muslim religion are enjoying significant growth even in the United States.  Though these two religions are not typically evangelistic, they have become so, due to the influence of the western world and its threat to their way of life.  The church can no longer ignore these as Eastern problems, but must prepare to evangelize those who embrace Eastern religions on Western soil.

4. The rise and fall of new political ideologies.  The fall of communism almost caught the church unprepared to move through the opening in the iron curtain to evangelize a new frontier.  China or the Middle East could be next, or it is also possible that doors that are now open may quickly close.  The church must be sensitive to the Spirit and ready to move in either direction.

 Some Things Never Change

Though these and other challenges will always confront the church, some things will remain the same.  God has not changed, nor has the need of every human heart.  The gospel is still the answer to the deepest need in all of our lives, regardless of culture or political persuasion.  God has offered no other cure than the cross of Christ and its redemptive message.

The Great Commission hasn’t changed.  We are not commanded to understand all the challenges of tomorrow, but we are commanded to confront those challenges with the gospel of Jesus Christ, and do so in every corner of the world.

 Equipping for the Task

If the church of Jesus Christ is to meet the challenges of the 21st Century, then those of us in the church must move quickly to restore the primacy of evangelism and recommit ourselves to the Great Commission.  This issue of the Revivalist unveils part of the plan we are implementing here at GBS to renew our historic commitment to world evangelism with an emphasis that permeates every aspect of campus life.

Let me challenge you and your church to re-engaged in evangelism.  The effectiveness of the church lies in her faithfulness to the commission.  The “Spirit and the Bride say come…”

Let’s add our voices to the chorus and call men and women everywhere to repent and receive the Gospel.