Pea Ridge Baptist Church

I am so excited about what God is doing at PRBC.  It seems like every time I look around something new is happening or someone new is coming into our fellowship.  I see people who are maturing in their faith and in an understanding of what it means to be a disciple of Jesus Christ.  I see people stepping out to serve in new ways.  I see people who are making commitments to growing and being all that God wants them to be!  As your pastor, it is so wonderful to see God at work in the lives of individuals in our church.   I can see the Holy Spirit at work in the lives of people each day.

I believe that one of the realities I am seeing is people making right choices and setting right priorities in their lives.  The scriptures are full of instruction when it comes to putting God first.  The writer of Proverbs said, ”Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight” (Proverbs 3:5-6, NIV). When we trust in the faithfulness and goodness of the Lord, we are promised that we will be directed in the ways of God.  Jesus told his followers to “Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need. (Matthew 6:33, NLT).  When one makes the right choices and puts God first, I know God blesses that decision and will respond with provision and wisdom in our daily lives.

I also see people seeking purpose in their lives.  As Christians, we must identify what purpose we are living for in our lives.  As a church, we participated in the 40 Days of Purpose campaign in the fall of 2003.  This was a great time for our church and for individuals to answer the question “What on earth am I here for?”  The opening statement of the book The Purpose Driven Life, by Rick Warren, is ”It’s not about you.”  This sets the tone for the book and the study of purpose of our lives.   Searching and understanding purpose will never be fulfilled if we only focus on ourselves.  Warren continues,

“…you cannot arrive at our life’s purpose by starting with a focus on yourself.  You must begin with God, your Creator.  You exist only because God wills that you exist.  You were made by God and for God – and until you understand that, life will never make sense.  It is only in God that we discover our origin, our identity, our meaning, our purpose, our significance, and our destiny.  Every other path leads to a dead end“(Rick Warren, The Purpose Driven Life, p. 18).

I see people searching for purpose and meaning in their lives and I see them finding that in a relationship with God.  That is most important for us all to understand and live out.

I must be the first to say that over the past few months I have struggled with both of these realities in my own life.  I have trusted in myself too often and have failed many times.  I have searched for meaning and purpose on my own with only me in mind…only to find a dead end and frustration in my days.   What I am finding is so simple…focus on my relationship with God…the BIG THING…and then the other parts of my life, relationships, leadership, parenting and more will fall into place.

Such a simple lesson in life, but one that will transform your heart and your life toward God’s purpose and will.  It is not easy to live in this way, but it is possible and will make you a purpose filled person God can use.  My prayer is that we will continue to put God first in our individual lives and in our church!

Pastor Greg