PNA

 

“If you believe what you like in the gospel, and reject what you don’t like, it is not the gospel you believe, but yourself.”  Augustine  

Although about two-thirds of Americans have a prescription medication, approximately 50% of them don’t take their medications as prescribed. It’s a phenomenon known as “medication non-adherence” (MNA). It’s the cause of a huge amount of unnecessary physical and emotional suffering, financial loss, and premature deaths that cost too many individuals precious time that they could have with their loved ones. 

  When someone tells you that a kidney stone is painful, believe them. After self-diagnosing that my recent extreme back pain was a pulled muscle (Web MD told me to get my will prepared), but after no relief I realized that “Dr. Carson” was painfully wrong. After one trip to Urgent Care and another a day later to the ER, they diagnosed correctly that it was a kidney stone. When I was able to schedule an appointment with my urologist, Dr. Tran, I was feeling a lot better and assumed I’d probably passed the stone. But kidney stones are one of Dr. Tran’s specialties and he informed me that based on the size of the stone and the small amount of time that had passed, it was unlikely that it’d ever pass on its own. Now I had a choice, to trust “Dr. Carson,” who was relying on Google or the expert who’d gone to medical school, had a license to practice medicine and over a decade’s experience. It seemed wiser to trust the expert, so I did.

  A pastor is a “soul doctor.” The Bible teaches that he’s to be a man of God and saturated in God’s Word. God has not called us to share our feelings or opinions but His truth. He’s to love the Lord and those He’s been called to pastor. He’s to want God’s best for those under His care.

  When a pastor shares counsel either in the pulpit or personally with you that’s based on God’s Word, it’s wise to listen. Yet as many ignore their doctor’s advice, many in a church ignore their pastor’s biblical counsel. Here are some of the more common areas.

  Meet your Savior daily for breakfast. Nothing is so life altering, so prepares you for every part of your day than starting the day in God’s Word and in prayer. Yet, you’ll continually meet Christians who long for peace yet won’t take the time to meet regularly with the Prince of Peace.

  When something is important, we make it a priority. One of my mentors used to say, “No Bible, No Breakfast.” It doesn’t need to be a spiritual marathon. It needs to be consistent. And it doesn’t have to be in the morning in case you’re not a morning person. It doesn’t even have to be reading, though there are some benefits of reading with engaging several senses. You can easily listen to a passage of Scripture, if that works for you. There really is no excuse. We have so many tools today. You won’t be a healthy Christ-follower without consistent time with the Lord!

  Gather personally for weekly worship. As our culture increasingly becomes unchurched, there are innumerable options and “obligations” on Sunday morning than ever before. The early church felt the same pressure. A high percentage were slaves, which is why they’d either meet before the workday began or after it. The church that I grew up in was one of the first to have a weekly radio broadcast. It was designed to minister to those who couldn’t attend worship, usually because they were physically unable to come. With the advent of Covid, every church launched a media ministry.

  Watching worship can never replace being personally part of a worship service. It’s the difference between a microwave dinner and a homecooked meal. It’s why Scripture commands us to gather for weekly worship (Hebrews 10:25). It’s amazing that while we’re casual about personally attending worship in America, the persecuted church throughout the world takes great risks to gather for worship. They know that personal involvement is key to spiritual health, even though it’d be safer to watch a media ministry. It's in community that we’re stretched as we interact with those unlike us, economically, personality wise, politically, marital status, age-wise. Most of us tend to group with those like us. It’s not God’s plan. God uses the diversity of a church family to help us grow spiritually.

  Make serving and sharing part of your life. Selfishness comes naturally. Because of sin we all have an “I” problem. Yet, self-oriented individuals are miserable. We are saved to serve (Ephesians 2:10). Why do most people visit a therapist? “To talk about MY problems.” Love, joy and peace don’t come from being self-focused. Serving the Lord is to stretch us! While it’s true we’re to serve our families, remember Jesus washed Judas’ feet. Service often includes those we may not want to serve. Selfishness guarantees carnality but serving is vital for spiritual growth.

  Then, we weren’t saved to hoard the gospel. We were saved to share it. The most miserable Christians and churches are those that have discarded the Great Commission. They become petty and self-focused. Seeing individuals rescued and lives revolutionized is our purpose.

  Praise and gratitude are habitual. Read the pages of Scripture and you can’t help but notice how the Bible is filled with praise and gratitude. It’s God’s will that they fill our hearts. Yet, observe a world without Christ and you can’t help but notice how its brimming with griping, complaining and criticism. Sadly, most wear their unhappiness right on their face.

  As Christ-followers, we’ll never have pain-free, trouble-free lives, but we know the One who is in control. We also know how blessed we are. This life is as close to Hell as a Christ-follower will ever get…and it’s so short in comparison to eternity in heaven! Even our suffering has a purpose. Our heavenly Father is in control of the heat and will let nothing happen that’s not in His plan, even though we may not understand. The worst we experience is being used for His glory and our good (Romans 8:28).

  Obviously, there are many more. These are some of the basics. Please make these a part of your life and you’ll be astounded how much they help you. I love our church family and I love you. More than that God loves you and wants the best for you, so please follow His prescription!

Can we help you spiritually? Please check out more resources on our church's web page, Gracechurchwi.org. Or call us at 262.763.3021. If you'd like to know more about how Jesus can change your life, I'd love to mail you a copy of how Jesus changed my life in "My Story." E-mail me at Carson@gracechurchwi.org to request a free copy. Please include your mailing address.