SURVEY: Logan Milford

God Gold of the day

 

The Survey:

1. {QUALITY} What’s your quality like to God?

Is it…..?

~Excellent

~Good

~Fair

~Poor

2. {ACCURACY} How accurate are you in following God’s orders?

Are you…..?

~Excellent

~Good

~Fair

~Poor

>Scripture: ““If you love me, obey my commandments.”/John 14:15

3. {SERVICE} What’s the quality of your service?

Is it……?

~Excellent

~Good

~Fair

~Poor

>Scripture: “For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.””/Mark 10:45

4. {Cleanliness} How clean are you living?

Are you…..?

~Excellent

~Good

~Fair

~Poor

>Scripture: “You are battered from head to foot— covered with bruises, welts, and infected wounds— without any soothing ointments or bandages.”/Isaiah 1:6

5. {Overall Satisfaction} What’s God’s overall satisfaction with you?

Is it…….?

~Excellent

~Good

~Fair

~Poor

>Scripture: ““I know all the things you do, that you are neither hot nor cold. I wish that you were one or the other! But since you are like lukewarm water, neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth!”/Revelation 3:15-16

6. Rate and compare yourself from now, to how you used to be?

~ How has God grown you?

~ How has your relationship with God grown?

~ Were you on fire for God and now you’ve cooled off? Where do you want to be?

Testimony Tuesday: “Waiting” by Craig Suglia

God Gold of the day

“I cannot wait to give you the answer on how to deal with your season of waiting… its killing me!”

How many times have you heard someone say “I am in a season of waiting” or tell you that you are in a season of waiting and to just trust God and His timing? I have heard and said this so many times and to be honest it can be more discouraging then anything at times. I feel like it is a general and sort of a cop out answer when it is given to me and when I say it to others it can feel like empty words.

Whether you are waiting for that raise at work, for a future spouse, to start a family, to get accepted to your dream school, end of financial worries, to finally quit an addiction, or finding your career job there are endless possibilities, but regardless you are in this season of waiting, and you want a quick fix and for it to happen now. When you are in this season of waiting with no end in sight to be real it sucks sometimes. In this season, I know I get very impatient especially when I compare and see other people around me thriving; it may make you wonder why it seems like God is answering their prayers and not yours. Which can lead to stress, depression, and worry which could make you look other places instead of God to try and get a quick fix to your problems or to get your wants and plans answered.

Sometimes seasons of waiting can be days, weeks, years, and sometimes you might never get what you want. I know this so far sounds negative and discouraging, but JUST WAIT.

Something that I have realized very recently in this season of waiting which has been years is that I am praying, hoping, and waiting for things I WANT. I am waiting for my plans and wants to come through even if they aren’t inherently selfish things. I know when I pray, and you may do this too when you pray at times about these wants and plans you may say; “Let your will be done in my life God in this season of waiting,” but in the back of your mind you have your plans, timing, and desires that you are praying for. Or you could be putting God in a box with your requests, your timing, and your plans and hope that He answers them. Let me challenge you with this!

Take some time to read these verses before you continue reading this Romans 12:1, Luke 9:23, and Philippians 1:21. Verses I have heard many times phrases like “dying to self”, “take up my cross”, “present myself as a living sacrifice”, and “to die is gain” I heard those words and I understood what they meant, but never put them into practice. If you don’t know what they mean I will try to explain first with “taking up your cross” it will help bring them all together. So the cross now is seen as a symbol that relates to Christ or being a Christian my chain has a cross on it so some people might assume I am religious or a Christian today because I have a cross around my neck. In Jesus’ time, a cross symbolized death, and not just any death but the most intense and painful way to die. When Christ died on the cross for our sins He completely surrendered to God the Fathers plans and fulfilled the purpose He called Jesus Christ to do.

So, when I read these verses now and put the context of that time period behind it, it hit me harder than before. Christ is literally asking me to take my selfish wants, my sins, and my plans for my life and to put them on the cross, and to put them to death and present myself as a living sacrifice in complete surrender to His plan.

So, I challenge you to everyday pray to take up your cross and die to yourself in complete surrender to His plans for your life. Instead of asking for your wants and plans ask God these kind of questions without any of your own input; “God where are you calling me to go?”, “God what are you calling me to be?,” and “God who are you calling me to be with or impact?” When you truly die to self, “to die is gain” really means something. You put to death all the stress and worry of when or how your plans or wants are going to come true and you gain the endless possibilities and things you could not even imagine that God can do when you truly are seeking His will for your life. Living this way is hard and it is a daily decision to take up your cross it leaves you vulnerable hoping and having faith that God is working behind the scenes.

I encourage you to read Romans 8:28, Romans 4:21, and Philippians 1:6 through this time of waiting as a chance to really grow in your faith and relationship with Christ and trust His plan not yours  for this life. I encourage you to be excited in this time because literally with God anything can happen and is possible when you are following His plan for your life.

Word Wednesday: Eklektos

God Gold of the day

Thankful today to share a special Word Wednesday message from a historically minded theologian and great friend; RC Sloan!

[Eklektos]——->Chosen, Elect

“So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience…”

Colossians 3:12

The Greek word eklektos is often rendered as “elect” for obvious reasons in the New Testament, but its meaning is probably more clear when translated as “chosen”. The concept of God’s people being chosen by God from before the foundation of the world is woven throughout Scripture so firmly and so prevalently that it is clear that the Lord wants us to sit up and take notice.

In fact, “eklektos” is just the Greek rendering of the Hebrew word “bahír”, as used in places such as Psalm 105:43:

“And He brought forth His people with joy, His chosen ones (bahír) with a joyful shout.”

From Old Testament to New, from eternity past to eternity future, the Lord God has chosen His people out from the nations and secured their destiny with Him. The old hymn that says “there’s a new name written down in glory” might have its heart in the right place, but the writer definitely didn’t have a good hold on the concept of “eklektos” and “bahír”—there aren’t any new names written down, because our names were written down as part of the Master Plan of Redemption before God created light!

If that doesn’t excite you, check your heart, bro!

Once saved, always saved? A THOUSAND TIMES YES. It is GOD who brings forth His chosen people with a shout of joy, it is Jesus who tells us in Mark chapter 13 that He will gather His eklektos from the ends of the earth, and back in Romans 8 we are reminded that God calls His eklektos according to His unbreakable foreknowledge and predestination. Eternally secure? CHECK.

So what do we do now as the eternally chosen eklektos/bahír?

Act like it. Conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the name. Handle yourself in a way that shows that you have a glimpse of understanding of the ramifications that the Ancient of Days secured your place in His kingdom before He built the solar system. Colossians 3:12-13 is a good start but above all else:

Testimony Moment: Adam Tomberlin

God Gold of the day

Today’s testimony is a little different….. instead of a story of what God has done throughout someone’s life, it’s a moment of God working in their life bringing out a story has changed their life and we pray it changes yours today!

Question Challenge: How are you using the blessings God has given you? To serve yourself or to serve others?

Golden Highlight: Mark Rogers

God Gold of the day

“Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.”
‭‭Colossians‬ ‭3:23-24‬ ‭

Happy Sunday God Gold family! Today’s God Gold is a special one and the very first of it’s kind! After the first God Gold shirts made it out, we thought it’d be awesome to spend a day to celebrate some of the people who exemplify what “God Gold” is all about in their daily lives. These are people who daily live out the Gold God has given to them in the workplace, in their family life, and in the lives of their neighbor’s. These are people that we can easily overlook in our lives because they live their lives to the standard of Christ so consistently, the way they live is expected and “normal” to those around them. Our goal with these Golden Highlights, is to shed light on these faithful individuals to recognize, appreciate, and learn from their examples.

Today’s Golden Highlight is none other than my dad, Mark Rogers. So much God Gold can be found in this man’s life but today we want to highlight his heart to work to a standard of excellence that is out of this world. If you asked many friends, family members, or co-workers over the years one word to describe Mark, the word “hard-worker” would be the word most often found. Being his son, I’ve gotten the chance to see and experience first hand my whole life the work ethic of my dad and I’m telling you, it’s pretty incredible! Maybe you think I’m just saying this because he’s my dad but to be honest, there’s been a lot of moments in my life, especially growing up and hearing him pour his work ethic into my life, I wished that this quality wasn’t so true. In my younger years, just learning how to work, I had no desire to work in the ways my dad did or listen when he challenged me to meet his standard. I stand here now at 25 years old, working several different manual labor jobs just how crucial the years of lessons he taught me is in every area of my life. I wouldn’t be half the man I am today without having his example to follow all these years. I’m one of many people who can say that their time spent around Mark Rogers challenged them to be better and influenced their life in huge ways!

His work ethic is just the beginning though, it’s the standard at which he works that sets him apart from the rest. As a grocery store manager the majority of his life, he makes a job that most would see as “insignificant” and daily doesn’t skip a beat in working each part of the job to a standard of excellence that is an example that moves each person around him to follow. If it’s stocking shelves, counting change in the register, or even bringing buggies back inside the store from the parking lot, he does even the small things with all that he possibly can. It’s a standard that has been shaped and molded into his life throughout his years of living, it’s a standard that can only be seen in light of Christ. Some would call Mark a “perfectionist,” in the way he works but even he knows only Jesus can be perfect. A better word to describe him or this standard is “excellence.” Although he can never be perfect, he works daily to be excellent, and continues striving for this excellence standard no matter how he feels, what the circumstances around him are or who is around him.

How can someone continue day after day working so consistently to this standard of excellence? The answer is simple, Jesus. His work is done through the power of Jesus, following after the example of Jesus and to the purpose Jesus has given him. Anyone can strive after success in their work daily for many different reasons, money, praise from others, or for personal gain, but all of those avenues can never obtain the fullness of life that Jesus has given us. That’s what sets Mark apart, that’s what keeps him so consistent and reaching the standard of excellence in all he does, it’s Jesus. With Jesus at work in his life and with him giving all he has for the glory of Jesus on a daily basis, his work is noticed and the people who notice are made better than they were before they encountered him. Mark Rogers, a living example of God’s Gold. My prayer is that we can all learn from his faithful example of what it looks like to give your life to Jesus in all that you do for the glory of His name and nothing else.