Can Church Make My Life Better?  The answer is “YES!”  (If you will let it!)  The problem that most of us have, is that we see church as a place instead of a community of people!

Too many people come to a place that we call church for all of the wrong reasons.  Too many people come to a place we call church and distracted by the stuff that really does not matter.  Too many people come to a place we call church and miss their opportunity to be a part of something bigger and do something more amazing than they could imagine!

Stop looking, thinking, seeing and treating church like a place and instead involve yourself in the common unity = community of faith and watch the Holy Spirit of God begin to do incredible and amazing things that words cannot even begin to explain!

In Matthew 16:18 Jesus says: “Upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hell will not overpower it!”  The church of Jesus is powerful because it is made up of the men, women, boys and girls of everlasting relationship!  This is what God has saved, called and gifted us to be a part of!

Can church make your life better? – Sure it can!  Make sure you let it – you will be glad you did!

Mistakes!  We all make them and all most none of us care to admit that reality, but the truth is – live long enough and you will make more than your fair share.  It’s part of life, part of living and dying.  We are not perfect and so we make mistakes!  There are some things we need to do and should do and we just fail to do them, not necessarily because we are bad people with devious schemes, but just because we are people who are not perfect, people who make mistakes.  On the other hand, there are some things that we should not do and we do them anyway.  Again, this is not because we are evil monsters with sinister plans to crew up the world.  It is simply because we are imperfect humans and imperfect humans make mistakes.

If you’ve never made a mistake it would be pretty easy to have an expectation that others would not make a mistake as well, but the truth is:  If you are human and living on this planet earth at this time, then you have and you will make mistakes.  Mistakes are a part of life.  The great Apostle Paul put it this ways in the Scripture:

¹⁴ We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin. ¹⁵ I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. ¹⁶ “And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. ¹⁷ As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. ¹⁸ For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. ¹⁹ For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. ²⁰ Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.  ²¹ So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me. ²² For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; ²³ but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me. ²⁴ What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? ²⁵ Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord! ‘  Romans 7:14-25

The battle is always waging!  I have and will continue to make mistakes, not because I want to, but because I have the battle waging inside of me.  I am trying to do better and on some days, I really think I am beginning to make some progress, but then on other days I feel like I am back at the starting block.

I think the real battle is not in living a mistake-free life, but in admitting and learning from your mistakes.  I John 1:9 says “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”

I’ve discovered this will keep you more than busy in this life.  So stop pointing the finger at others and begin to inspect your life.  See your mistakes, admit them, do what you can to make them right and receive and give God’s forgiveness – you will be glad you did!

Whenever my girls go to spend the night with grandparents, I am thinking this is going to be good, I can use the break!  I mean let’s be honest, they asked a thousand questions and usually with just one word like:  “Why?”, “How?” or “Where?” as in “Where are we going?”  They have loud toys or like to listen to their music loud and if they are the opposite sex, then that creates another set of issues that we don’t even have time to talk about!

While I enjoy my girls going to spend the night, I also can’t stand it, because after about thirty minutes, I am missing them!  I miss the things they say, the expressions on their faces and the crazy things they say!  I miss getting to love them and be loved by them.  When they are gone, it makes me realize how valuable every minute of everyday we get to spend together is!

It’s not just about me missing them.  I am better when I am with them and they are better when they are with me.  God gave them to me and me to them; and He did this on purpose – so that we all could live more fulfilling lives!  Next time the noise from the toys starts to get on your last nerve or the music is just a little too loud, take a moment to think about how you will miss it when it is gone.  Instead of dreading it, jump in there with them and create a memory for you and for them – you will be glad you did!