The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away, blessed be the name of the
Lord (Job 1:21).
My wife and I joined a local church after searching for about six months
for the church where God wanted us. We looked at a number of churches, each one had some
outstanding characteristics that separated it from the rest. One we visited was renovating
and looked more contemporary than the rest. Another seemed to be very traditional,
including the cathedral ceiling and choir robes. One seemed to fall right in the middle.
One was large, another small. One sang upbeat songs while another the old hymns.
I was at a point where I had had my fill of "traditional churches" feeling that
they were stuck. It seemed they had fell into a routine of "doing church" the
way they had always been doing it. There seemed to be a stagnate heart about such
churches, which to me seemed unwilling to change even if God Himself were to speak audibly
to them and tell them to do so. I believe Jesus addressed such an attitude when He said
(speaking of the Pharisees) that they teach "for doctrines the commandments of
men" (Mt.15:9). Such churches seemed more directed by budget and bylaw than by
Christ. They seem to do business according to the dollar sign and Robert's Rules than by
the guidance of the Head of the Church which is Christ.
One of the churches we visited seemed to be rooted in tradition. It held the traditional
sanctuary decor, along with choir robes and mostly old hymns. Yet, to my amazement this
was the church for us. We were at our first Sunday service at the church and it was not
long before we discovered something wonderful. This church had a vision. It had direction.
And it had purpose. It was one that seemed motivated by a deeply seated desire to see
God's work done, and was driven to act on the same. Not to glorify the church but what God
was evidently doing in it, through it, and with it.
Sometime during the process, God showed me an example of a great truth. Just as in all
things, you cannot judge the heart by the exterior. And you cannot let the exterior guide
your actions. What appears to be right, good and best is not always right, good and best.
We know this truth well. Yet, for some odd reason so many of us continue making more of
our decisions based on outward appearance than on inward reality.
By the grace of a loving, guiding God who opened my eyes, I have found a church home for
me and my family. Had I allowed my human eyes to guide me I would have certainly gone
elsewhere. Yet God allowed me to see beneath the traditional coverings of this old
church--to see a young, vibrant heart beating for Him.
Imagine how much we miss out on because we allow our choices to be influenced by
appearance. We may miss out on a relationship with a wonderful, godly person because maybe
they seem a little odd. Or maybe we miss out on working a job where God knows we would be
happiest, because it doesn't seem to pay what we think it should. Perhaps we miss out on
leading a soul to Christ because of the apparent lack of time, money, etc.
It is time we stop looking with the eyes of flesh and start looking through the eyes of
God. Only then will we experience His will perfected in us, and have the abundant and full
life that He wants for us. Only then will we be able to beyond what seems to be to what
is.
How can we do this? We must question our first impression. Before we even give way to
wrong thoughts we must back up and see if what we are thinking is Christ-like. We must
take our thoughts before God in prayer and ask Him to help us to see His truth in the
matter. And we must base our decisions upon what He shows us to be, and not what we think
that we see. Until our nature learns to respond more like Christ, our greatest enemy is
our first response.
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