Do Not Grow Weary

Listen Christians PLEASE

Many of you who often voice your feelings and positions on various topics must not grow weary in well doing!! You must learn how to allow people to disagree with you! But not frustrate you to the point that you get off Facebook and blame it on them! Be careful that it is not you who just cannot handle the pressure of others disagreeing with you? And because you cannot control your temper you just get off Facebook and retreat to blaming them, when the fault really lies in your inability to argue biblically and not grow so mad that they drive you off of this media. It is you(Christians)who must learn when to stop talking, when to unfriend a person, when to just let them ramble and leave them rambling, etc.,.

To fight anger with anger will accomplish absolutely nothing! Talk with people who are genuinely interested in a conversation and learn to dismiss those who are not, which in turn keeps you from growing to a point of anger or frustration that you cannot control. The point in an argument(reasonable discussion seeking a logical conclusion)is never to win the argument, rather, it is always to win the person to Christ! You(Christian)cannot obtain that end if you cannot control your temper and emotions! If this is you? Then know that it is you who needs personal Christian growth in how to defend your faith in the market place and cause the ungodly to be put to shame! You ought to be learning this in your Church!! If you are not, then I am interested in knowing exactly what is it that you are learning at your church?

To many Christians in this Media are to easily shaken and run off because they cannot control their emotions. Please, if this is you? Be determined to get your spiritual act together and learn to fight this battle rightly holding to the attributes of gentleness, love, and peace with an unshakable poise and an undisturbed disposition when in verbal conflict with others in this Facebook Media!!! Practice does not make perfect! Only perfect practice makes perfect outcomes for HIS GLORY

I’m Thinking Out Loud about how the Christian is to handle conflict in words as a good steward of the Word Of God when in verbal confrontation with the world, unbelievers, or wolves in sheep clothing

Come on My brothers and Sisters!! You are the voice of God in this Generation! Make Him proud.

Wise or Otherwise?

Good morning to you who read this.

Sometimes I am made weary at the comments on Facebook by people who want to come off as HIGHLY intelligent! Yet, who do not have the Biblical sense of the Ant!!(the ant is used in a Biblical proverb, this is not intended as an insult as several people have already taken it)
Most of the Christian people I talk with when I move around from place to place don’t even know the difference between a reading Bible And a Study Bible? They cannot define terms like hermeneutics, general hermeneutics, special hermeneutics, canon, textual criticism, historical criticisms, exegesis, biblical theology, systematic theology, practical theology, and how these things work in relationship to biblical interpretation. Many of these Christian people have been in church for years and are no better off now then when they first excepted Christ as their Savior. Because Facebook gives many people an audience of people! That somehow seems to translate to the one posting that they own understand? I want you to here this “a fool can gather a congregation of people and a following”. Pastors, the Bible says are given to Equip their congregants for Ministry! There is very little of this going on in our churches. People are busy forever learning and not coming to the knowledge of the truth... so says the Bible. Many, many people get on Facebook and level their assertions with bible verses taken so out of context until it is shameful to even read. There is a science and an art to biblical interpretation! Many of you reading this have NO idea of what I am talking about and you have been in church for years and your church leaders for the most part have never even raised this reality to you in their preaching and teaching to you!
In the study of Scripture, the TASK of the one who is the exegete is to determine as closely as possible “what God meant in a particular passage”, rather than “what it means to me”. If YOU accept the view that the meaning of a text is “what it means to me”, if bible study is done this way then God’s Word can have as many meanings as it does readers. Such a position provides NO basis for right concluding of a text. The question to the Christian in study is “what is the authors intended meaning?”
Facebook is making many of you who think yourself wise look very, very otherwise!!

I’m thinking out loud about WHY it is that Christians cannot THINK WELL about Biblical interpretation?? And WHY Pastors are so slack in teaching their congregations how to????

- Pastor Roy Smith

A thought for 2019

I read a lot in this Social Media Forum that suggest to others to rid yourself of negative people and negativity. Let me say something to you, particularly those of you who are Christians to consider. While all the withdrawal language sounds good, or if said by certain people seems profound and even spiritual. If there is such thing as good(and there is) or such thing as evil(and there is) then there is also such things as positive and negative. It’s a way of life for the living!! It is an impossibility to rid one’s self of negativity or negative situations. Negative and Negativity(also called drama) are in any direction you move in this life, and there is no place you can run to neither is there any place you can hide from it! Life calls us to deal with these formations head on with the WORD of God!! If you are unequipped spiritually to face life then you hide in phrases like “I refuse to embrace negativity” or “remove negative people from your friend list”” and other such phrases as if you could!
The Bible teaches us to LOVE our enemies, not to figure out ways to avoid them! The Bible teaches us to PRAY for those who despitefully uses us, not to figure out ways to avoid them, to ignore them, to have nothing to do with them! Being Christian is not doing things as you want to make life easier for you! Christianity is doing and embracing the requirements of scripture no matter how much personal difficulty it causes you!! Because, after all, you claim to have surrendered your life to Christ, and that does not give way to avoiding the troubled waters of life. Those troubled waters will include going around and being in the company of negative people, full of drama, and who hate the sight of you! They hate you because of the Christ you love and are bent on your destruction!! But you must represent HIM Even at the cost of personal loss. 
Life is good sometimes and sometimes life is bad... life is positive sometimes and sometimes life is negative!! Pay attention to my next point here... change can happen all around you! But until it happens in you! Nothing in your life will be different for you!! God calls us as Christians to love the broken and messed up people just as much as you love those who look like they have it all together and in the inside they are broken and hurting as well, they just hide it better!!
This next year, be Christian rather than trying! Embrace the challenge of loving people( sometimes these people are our own family)rather than talking about ridding yourself of negativity. THE STRUGGLE IS REAL!! Christianity is no joke! And what God requires of you must be sought after and pursued with haste and diligence, with no turning back!! God is simply asking you “are you in or out?)
The way to HEAVEN is not an easy road!!! And the road to HELL is paved with good intentions and leaves the hard part yet undone!!!
In 2019 WHO and WHAT will YOU be??
I Am thinking out LOUD about the Christian persuasion in 2019

- Pastor Roy Smith

Christians Must Pursue God

I am amazed at the number of Christians who tell me how much they love The Lord! Yet, as I watch them live out their lives, I see in them no real pursuit of God, nor any passion for the Word of God. Neither do I see any real want to make themselves accountable to anyone? But what I do see is those who live out their Christian lives believing that they can live footloose and fancy free, answering to no one!! And believing that this is okay with God! Church’s existing in autonomy, even they answer to no one? 
This is wrong!! As Christians we must know that being accountable is apart of making Christ real to the unbeliever! We are never taught in Scripture that we are to live unto ourselves. Being accountable and living responsibly in a world that is totally selfish and self centered is the attractiveness of our faith! People in our church’s need to know that if they live and do things in church that hurt the message of the cross? That they will be confronted with there sin! Loved!! But made accountable!! 
I’m just expressing here what I am feeling in my heart!! 
There are reasons why Church’s do not grow and one of them is that there is to much compromise and cowardice among those who lead our church’s. To see a person headed for destruction or living destructively and we do not warn them is not love at all!! It’s cowardice at its peak! 
Come on Church, we have got to get our act together!!! To much fun and frolic, to many senseless programs that promote talents and people above the Gospel message. To many programs that honor Men and Women in the name of God! To much foolery that is called Church is going on and being accepted as the real thing!
Now!! If the shoe don’t fit? Let this post go over your head. However, if it does? Own it!! And ask the Lord to give you strength to both do and be a better Christian brother or sister, or Church!
THINK ON IT

- Pastor Roy Smith

Change Yourself. Change the World.

I want to say something here that is and will be very thought provoking I hope, for every Christian!!

If we are expected to change the world? Then we as Christians are going to have to change who we are? Our comfort zones, our daily routines, how we care to interact with others!! If you really want to make an impact!!
The only point I want to bring forward today for your consideration is this.... YOU might want to consider visiting other Church’s that are not primarily of your ethnic make up! And not just visit but become apart of it? If Christians are going to change the norm, then we are going to have to change, person by person, concept by concept, habit by habit. This is especially true in Midland, TX. People tend to hang with those who look like, act like, and are of the same economic position as we are. If Christians are going to make a real difference you are going to have to learn by practice to dwell with those who are not like you in any way! This kind of existing and interacting resolves racism on all sides!! We don’t like to talk about what it takes to be an affective, impactful Christian? Part of what it takes is that the Lord many times will call us away from our own as He did Abram(Abraham). We often want to do Christianity by our own rules never stretched out of our comfort zone. We never tend to desire Gods will over our own comfort and ease. We will never change what racism looks like in the world until we change what it looks like in our personal world and our daily schedule of who we are in relationship with!! There is a cost in Christianity and most Christians never consider that the Lord calls us to lead out where that change needs to be!! As Christians we are not making change fast enough in the world because change is not happening fast enough in us on a day to day basis in how we embrace and love others(particularly other races)!! It is not pronounced enough for the world to see that we are any different than it. 
Get out from among your own and make a difference!! We have done it at True-Lite Christian Fellowship and it has changed our lives as Christians. Black people, White people, Mexican people, etc., all worshipping together the God that we love!!! It is a beautiful thing, not an easy thing, but a beautiful portrait of what heaven will look like❤️. We do not act as though we are color-blind, we embrace our difference, acknowledging our difference, move through our difference and love each other anyway with no faking and shaking.
Consider it Christian and go make a difference out there!! 

- Pastor Roy Smith

All Pastors are not EQUAL

I’m thinking out LOUD about something I need you all to consider🙏🏽

I want to state a simple TRUTH that is over looked or ignored by Christians!!
What I am about to say is for those of you who are Christians ONLY!
It blows my mind that Preachers and even more specific, Pastors! Are considered by most as ALL EQUAL!!!! Here is a Truth WE are NOT ALL EQUAL! We do not all preach the same JESUS? We do not all hold people accountable? We are not all accountable to someone ourselves? Etc., etc. 
I grow weary of being lumped with other Ministers or Pastors as though I am the same as others. We all might have the same calling to preach!! But many of us are NOT preaching the same Biblical Truth!! And that leads to me saying, someone is wrong??? Jesus is not what preachers say He is, if what they say He is, is not what the Bible says He is!!!! Why is this so hard to see??? 
I am amazed that Christians, Church folk, will Amen just about anything said from a Preachers mouth!!! I am just overwhelmed at this!! The Church is not a Social Organization that gives handouts to people!! Although it does help people. It is designed to be a living and engaging ORGANISM, that breeds New Life, Change in the hearer!!. Preacher’s who preach the TRUTH often offend the hearer, until the hearer can accept the reality of the mirror image the preacher holds in front of them. The real gospel message of truth always hurts before it helps! Always!! But it becomes sweetness to the hearer seeking Gods LOVE and it ceases to be offensive. But a coward Preacher or Pastor will never get to this reality with those He shepherds or the general Public if he is afraid of them.
Preaching the Truth will either Compel people toward you and your message or it will drive them away from you all together.
I am not willing to be friends with anyone who I have to compromise the truth with! 
I am a very hard and serious Pastor on those that I shepherd! However, I never preach for people to go anywhere or do anything that I don’t first lead them through! I have failed many, many times in different areas of my life and ministry! But I will not move God’s standard just to look good as a Minister and Pastor before people. Because of this stance I am rejected by many especially my own ethnic persuasion. 
I have more to say but will stop here, I believe I have made it clear for those who care to see things rightly!
Many Many Ministers and Pastors are not preaching the same Jesus? YOU better learn the difference??
Blessings!!

- Pastor Roy Smith

Who Will Hold Up Our Pastor's Arms?

Exodus 17:12
"When Moses' hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held his hands up--one on one side, one on the other--so that his hands remained steady till sunset".
A good leader has support from his followers! He can't do everything by himself! Aaron and Hur were not there for a few minutes, but for the duration of the battle. As long as the battle raged on, Aaron and Hur remained by Moses’ side and provided what was necessary so that Joshua would prevail! 
There are definitely battles we must fight on our own when Christ is our only help. He is enough! However, God has made it known to us that we are to rely on one another for strength as well. Ecclesiastes says quite clearly that “two are better than one…pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up…though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves" (Ecclesiastes 4:9-12).
We need a congregation of people who will pray and seek the Lord's face and lift up the hands of those leaders who become weary in the Lord's work! These people are absolutely indispensable because if the battle is ever to be won, it will be won by the saints of God who are winning the victory in the closet of prayer as they lift up the hands of God's servants! 
"So it came about when Moses held his hand up, that Israel prevailed, and when he let his hand down, Amalek prevailed" -- the spirit willing, the flesh weak. We all can be people like that for others! That is how God’s will is accomplished in and through us. That’s what the story from Exodus tells us. We cannot overestimate the value of a supportive congregation! Our pastors success in many ways are dependent upon the support of committed, faithful, loyal members to the church! The staff of God is only effective as the people involved do their part! 
In the end, the message of this story is clear. Every Joshua needs a Moses and every Moses needs an Aaron and Hur. And when we know a Moses, then we need to choose. Are we going to be an Aaron and a Hur or are we going to be an Amalek. Because when we fail to help lift up the arms of those men who 'have charge over us in the Lord and give us instruction', we are in a figurative way, contributing to the battle. Psalm 12:1 says, “Help, Lord, for the godly man ceases to be, for the faithful disappear from among the sons of men". Let’s always stand behind God’s servants in full support! There’s honor in being called by God and we are to give honor to whom honor is due. Pastors are not better than anyone else, but respect is to be given for the office and calling. By being supportive and showing respect for the pastor and church, we also show respect for God! 2018 and going forth, let’s properly care for the men God has sent to watch over us!!

- Linda Jackson

Teaching Commitment Beyond Just Coming to Church

Contained in this dialogue is not an indictment upon anyone’s Pastorate. Rather, it is however, to secure a look at particular realities that should be present within a Pastoral Calling to a local Church. Paramount in this calling is the reality of a FOCUS upon people above ideas and ones personal benefits behind the title itself.
As Pastors, we are by title the Pastor of many or a few. In either case the truth is we are actually the under-shepherds of Jesus. As under-shepherds, for those that we are actually shepherding, the question becomes, what are we as shepherds actually teaching them about the God of the Word? Also, as we instruct them in the Word, are we doing it so that they know how to defend what they believe to be true? Do our members even know why they believe what they believe?? Our teaching to those we are in charge of must encompass teaching them to embrace 1st Peter 3:15-16 as a way of life and ministry. It says, “But in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who ask you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect.”

There are 4 basic, yet, ultimate questions that every religion, including Christianity, must answer. We as Pastors must teach our congregation to focus upon how to answer these questions, while over and over again equipping them with real time answers from the Word of God! We do this over and over again because the law of learning is repetition! Paul makes us to know this reality in Philippians 3:1, “To write to you again about this is no trouble for me and is a safeguard for you.”

The questions are these:
1) ORIGIN (where do I come from?)
2) MEANING  why do I have significance?)
3) MORALITY (how do I differentiate right and wrong?)
4) DESTINY  what happens after death?)

As pastors, we must begin to ask ourselves, “Am I really teaching and addressing my people concerning these issues of Scripture and everyday living? Or am I just preaching Sunday after Sunday with no real teaching of objective Biblical Truths? Am I just preaching to the people with no attempt to make them accountable to the truth I am pouring into their lives?”
We must teach those who are under us that they are required to do evangelism in the market place of everyday living. We are required to make them to know that “Evangelism will look less like one conversation with a hundred people and more like a hundred conversations with one person.” (Everyday Questions, Ravi Zacharias) 
Our conversations with every single individual aims to foster an attitude of compassion and empathy for the challenges and concerns of friends, neighbors, and family, whether they follow Christ or not. People do not care how much you know until they know how much you care!
Christianity is to be taught to those placed in our care as a comprehensive life system, a worldview. And a worldview is not something that we see, rather, it is something that we see with(to the Christian it is the Bible).
We as Christians must agree with C.S. Lewis when he asserts concerning Christianity that, “ I believe in Christianity as I believe in watching the Sunrise. Not only do I see it, but by it I see everything else.”
Finally, as shepherds we must engage those that we shepherd to embrace the VISION that we have received from the Lord to the Church. Thus, I close with this statement about VISION: “VISION without ACTION is merely a dream; action without VISION just passes the time; VISION with ACTION can change the WORLD!” 
Author Unknown

What sort of Pastor are you?
What sort of sheep are you?

Thinking out Loud to begin 2018

-Pastor Roy Smith

See You at the Pole

Good morning all!!

If what I am about to say does not apply to you! Please just let it go over your head.
This morning was "National See You At The Pole Day" for public schools. This is where the kids get to assemble around the Flag Pole and pray. 
I was with students at MHS this morning. A total of 8 kids showed up and 5 of the eight were from Truelite. Out of the whole student body, this was all WOW!!!! Also, there were only a few adults that showed up to support them. All of them were from Truelite. Where are the Christian children and their Christian Parents, Pastors, Community leaders, etc.
We want the Public School system to be better but if Christian people don't get out to events like this with their children? The world and its secular views will govern our schools! Most churches especially minority churches probably were not even informed by your leaders that this event was going on! And probably because they did not know themselves. We often wonder why our youth have a growing non-interest in Church? It is likely because the church has a non-interest in them. I promise you that if this were some athletic event adults would have been there yelling, screaming, and putting on a show!! Pushing their child to achieve!! But when it comes to the spiritual, NOTHING!!! 
I am amazed that the Christian Community does not get it!!! Somehow the modern church seems to believe that all is well and God will always take care of us!!! This is very foolish thinking!! If we do not take care to make God known! Then understand that He will take away His presence from among us and turn us over to our on ways, and you know what it's like when we are governed by our own foolish minds and hearts!!! 
My spirit is just disturbed this morning to see such Christian neglect concern our children's Christian up bringing😔

LORD PLEASE FORGIVE OUR M.I.A. Attitude as Christians. And stir our hearts to ACTION within our Community if we are to have any impact on this secular establishment called M. I.S.D.

Being Christian

Allow me to STRESS a very definitive point of concern I have as it relates to those who define themselves as being a Christian! You cannot live like the world! Party, get drunk, curse, etc, etc.
You cannot live with no distinction between the way you live and behave as a Christian and the way the world lives and behaves and mark yourself as a Christian. It's not rocket science! It is simple deduction. If your fruit (the way you walk out your life) does not define you as Christian? According to the standard of the Bible, not your own created design!! It is not likely that you are! If your public life and your private life cannot shake hands? It is not likely that you are a Christian. It is frustrating to me that people think that because they go to a church, or work in the church, or preach, that that qualifies them as Christian? Don't be deceived!!! If you live like HELL!! You will die and go to where you made eternal preparation to be!
Now, on the other side, if you live like you belong to God and pursue His agenda? Then know that you are making eternal preparation to spend eternity with the God you love and live for!!
Maya Angelo stated " If a person show you who they are! Believe them!!" 
And Jesus said it best, " You will know a tree by its fruit"
CAN YOU DIG IT?

Simply Thinking!!!!

- Pastor Roy Smith

Back to School Prayer

Lord, with the beginning of a new school year and all the drama, excitement, and plurality of world views that our children in every grade will face! Please allow our children to know that you(Jesus) are indeed the only one true God that loves them and will keep them this year. Give them and their parents the courage this year to stand boldly for you as the enemy seeks to undermine your plans for their lives. Lord Jesus, become more real to the minds and hearts of our children as they seek their education through the public and private school systems of our City. Lord, please give courage to those Christian Teachers who will govern our Children this year. Courage to stand for you Lord in principle or in actual situations where they are confronted with the enemy of our soul! Watch over all the parents of our children they they too will be the godly model for their children in Christ in order that they may know the reality of your requirement in real time situations! There is more on my heart Lord, but not enough space and time to express it all here. So, I leave them all in your mighty hand! Knowing that your hands are big enough to hold us all!!! In Jesus name I make this petition!!! Amen and Amen again.

- Pastor Roy Smith