Serving Christ Through Montgomery Area Churches

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2, 2016

Living in Biblical Tension

The last few months I have been pressed by the idea of living in
biblical tension. What I mean by biblical tension is living in a
place where we do not allow ourselves to be complacent, but
we are constantly searching our hearts to see if we are truly
extending ourselves for Jesus. Once, when I explained to a
fellow pastor that I believed Jesus was wanting more of me, he
eloquently pointed out, Jesus doesnt want more of us, he
wants all of us. Thats exactly it! Jesus wants me to live a life
Pastor Terrance Jones
that
is completely devoted to Him in every area. He wants no
Strong Tower
stone in my heart to remain unturned for His mission and
kingdom. A few areas stick out in my mind where Im challenging myself and my
congregation to strive to remain in a biblical tension and never settle for
complacency. I have shared a few of them below.

resources but in their Provider. They trusted in the Provider and not the provision. I
quickly realized that even though I have given a greater amount of money to this
project than the lady in our church, she had truly given more. I couldnt remember
giving as sacrificially as she did. My giving had become automatic and not a
heartfelt sacrifice to the Lord. May we wrestle with the tension that all we have
belongs to God. Whether its our time, talents, or treasure, may we never be
complacent and consistently ask God if we need to be giving more!
My desire is that we simply live a life that is daily seeking to give God, not more of
ourselves, but all of ourselves. We can agree that there is no other name (but Jesus)
under heaven by which we may be saved. May we offer ourselves as a living
sacrifice ready to be used as He desires. Lets pray for courage to live to this end.
Amen!

The first area is our mission. Where and how is God calling us to serve Him? This is
not necessarily driven by occupation or serving in full-time ministry. When is the
last time we prayed and asked, Lord, am I where you want me? Am I serving you
in the capacity you desire me to serve? Often times we are driven by a need to
provide or by a personal dream rather than by advancing the mission of God. Is
God calling us to be overseas missionaries? Is he calling us to move into the inner
city of Montgomery? Is he calling us to share the gospel with people at work? Im
convinced that we should frequently do a mission evaluation of our lives, making
sure we are withholding nothing from Christ as it relates to our mission. Ephesians
2:10 tells us that we were created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God
prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. Our family lives in a
community that, given a choice, most would not move into. Yet, we are there. Not
because we are brave, but because God has compelled us to value His mission more
than our own. Nevertheless, we still want to make sure we are in Gods place for us.
Is it West Montgomery? Africa? Iraq? Wherever He leads, may we all be willing to
follow.

Church Tax Conference

For Small Churches

Rally For The Galley

August 13

June 7, 2016
10:00am - 3:00pm

Motorcycle Ride and Food

Scavenger Hunt to stock
Forest Park Ministry
Centers food pantry.

Secondly, there is the issue of homelessness. We are blessed to have an amazing

group of people consistently attending our church who are experiencing
homelessness. I say blessed because their presence makes us wrestle with the words
of Jesus. Jesus has some very sobering thoughts in Matthew 25:31-46 about how we
relate to the least of these and our eternal destiny. Salvation is bound in the cross
of Christ alone. But, those who have truly been converted will bear fruit, caring for
the least of these. On a recent vacation I was overwhelmed by the reality that I
have used my garage to protect my vehicle from the elements while human beings
are exposed to the cold, rain, heat, etc. Pressed by living in a tension to act on Jesus
words my family and another guest family in our home agreed to use our garage as
transitional housing for a man experiencing homelessness. We have been
exceedingly blessed by the experience. As you read Matthew 25 ask yourselves,
Are we really sheep or goats? What if every Christian family with a garage
attached to their home used it for transitional housing? We would quickly impact
the homeless population in Montgomery. Obviously, wisdom needs to be used.
However, we cannot allow a need for wisdom and fear to keep us from acting at all.
Jesus is watching and taking inventory of our lives. May we daily do the same.

Register online at
www.alsbom.org/
smallchurchtaxconference
Or send a check to State Board of
Missions, Attn: Nancy Cornett
P.O. Box 11870 Montgomery, AL
36111

Last is our giving to Gods kingdom. Recently, an unemployed lady in our church
called me with a very strange idea. Despite having very little ability to provide for
her monthly needs, she wanted to donate $45.00 to further our vision of building a
multipurpose ministry facility. I was shocked because I knew she didnt even know
how she would pay her bills the next month. I urged her not to give the money, but
she insisted it was what she needed to do. After I got off the phone with her the
passage of the widow who gave the last of her resources (Luke 21:1-4) flooded my
mind. This widow as well as the lady in our church had discovered something very
powerful. Their hope of consistent provision for their lives was not in their

State Board of Missions

2001 E South Blvd,
Montgomery, AL 36111
Cost:

Early Registration by May 31,$15

Late Registration by June 6, $25

Currently seeking bikers,

rally locations, and
sponsors.
For more information contact
Donna McCullough at
269-5726.

The heavens
declare
the glory of God,
and the sky
Proclaims
the work of His
hands.

The Montgomery Baptist Association 20 Interstate Park Dr. Montgomery, Alabama 36109 334-271-6227 www.mgmbaptists.org
This publication is made possible by your churches contributions to Associational Missions.

Psalm 19:1