Play Offense // Thursday E-Devotion

Today's devotion is taken from an article by Mark Batterson. May God revolutionize the way we think about and do church so that we will be the church and others will become part of His church! Mark wrote the following article for the Catalyst newsletter:

Matthew 11:12 (niv) --- From the time of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it.

There is nothing remotely passive about following Christ. Faithfulness has nothing to do with maintaining the status quo or holding the fort. It has everything to do with competing for the Kingdom and storming the gates of Hell.

Does it bother anyone else that the church is more known for what we're against than what we're for? The church needs to stop playing defense and start playing offense!

A few years ago, I started coaching my son's basketball team. And at the beginning of our first season, most of the kids didn't know how to play the game. They had zero basketball instincts. In fact, the beginning of games was pure chaos. Despite repeated attempts to point them in the right direction, most of the kids didn't know which basket to defend and which one to shoot at. Occasionally, our kids would play defense on the offensive side and offense on the defensive side. Sometimes our kids were totally oblivious to the fact that we had the ball, so I would yell at the top of my lungs: You're on offense! You're on offense!

I wonder if that is what Jesus is yelling to His church: You're on offense! You're on offense!

Jesus commissioned the church to play offense in Matthew 16:18 : I will build my church and the gates of hell will not prevail.

The gates of hell are defensive. The church is called to play offense!

PRAY FOR

A young boy battling cancer who lives in Danville. Pray for Tammy and Teresa's sister Vicky. An unspoken request.

E-DEVOTIONS are sent each week day from Michael Harrison, lead Pastor of The Community Fellowship in Collinsville, Virginia. These devotions are intended to encourage you in your faith in Jesus and your walk with Him. To change your subscription, send an e-mail to Michael at mharrison@thecommunityfellowship.org.

Have you heard of EDITH BURNS?

Edith Burns was a wonderful Christian who lived in San Antonio, Texas . She was the patient of a doctor by the name of Will Phillips. Dr. Phillips was a gentle doctor who saw patients as people. His favorite patient was Edith Burns. One morning he went to his office with a heavy heart and it was because of Edith Burns. When he walked into that waiting room, there sat Edith with her big black Bible in her lap earnestly talking to a young mother sitting beside her. Edith Burns had a habit of introducing herself in this way: "Hello, my name is Edith Burns. Do you believe in Easter?" Then she would explain the meaning of Easter, and many times people would be saved. Dr. Phillips walked into that office and there he saw the head nurse, Beverly. Beverly had first met Edith when she was taking her blood pressure. Edith began by saying,"My name is Edith Burns. Do you believe in Easter?" Beverly said, "Why yes I do." Edith said, "Well, what do you ...

wash feet, sharing hope

John 13:4-5,14 NLT So he got up from the table, took off his robe, wrapped a towel around his waist, 5 and poured water into a basin. Then he began to wash the disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel he had around him… 14 And since I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash each other’s feet. Jesus set the example we follow. He served. He valued and gave value to others. That is why we choose to serve. For 18 years our church has shared an outreach called back2school, and for 16 of those years we have chosen to give students brand new shoes and socks as well as washing their feet. It is one of the most important parts of this event. Washing feet is a humbling experience where both the give and the receiver learn how to share some moments that might change their lives. Jesus said we should do this. See the verse above. Follow His example, do what He did, and give far more than you will ever know....

Catalyst ticket arrived

My ticket to the Catalyst Conference, in Atlanta Oct 8-10, just arrived. I'm excited!

Michael Harrison's e-devotion

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