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Post by lovelace on Feb 3, 2007 20:13:37 GMT -5
Well....the pitty party is over. I have been going through the poor me's for awhile now and last weekends IBP meet really inspired me. I had numerous folks come up to me and ask why did I quit lifting and when was I doing another meet. I had some really fire me up by stating I inspired them when I squatted 800 pounds drug free in single ply. It has hit me that God has given me a gift and I am not going to give up on myself or the faith in God. He is the one that gives us strength. He is the one that tells us when to give it up, not I. I have faith in Christ and I know He has faith in me. I am going to start powerlifting again come Monday and go from there. If God tells me the back is in too bad of shape, then so be it. I will not listen to myself or self pity. Jesus is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. I want to be an IRON WARRIOR FOR CHRIST!
Come Monday, it will be alright!
GOd Bless, Mike
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Post by ted butler on Feb 23, 2007 0:13:08 GMT -5
I've had the powerlifters blues after several meets and thought to myself about why I do this. I then think to my self that God has blessed me with the strength and longivity that He does not do for everyone. I then make up my mind that I'm going to do this as long as I'm healthy and hopefully always give him the praise for my strength. I turned 60 years old last month and I don't plan on retiring any time soom. As a 60 year old and life time drug free, I'm lifting weight that most 20 year old 220 lb. lifters would be proud of. What a super squat for drug free single ply. I pray that you will stay motivated if this is something you can do to glorify our Lord and Savior. To God be the glory, and God bless you. Ted
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Post by pastorjeff on Feb 23, 2007 8:11:05 GMT -5
My hope is to build relationships with people who are not Christians. If God chooses to allow me to get stronger, my prayer is that I would be a salt and light for His Glory.
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Post by pitbull on Feb 23, 2007 9:14:52 GMT -5
Pastor Jeff,
You may wish to reconsider the wording in your comment. We are to build a witness and a testimony to the lost, not relationships. That directly violates the Biblical doctrine of separation and will actually hinder your ability to share the Gospel with the lost. Trust me, I have been down that road before.
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Post by pastorjeff on Feb 23, 2007 11:00:17 GMT -5
Pastor Bryan, the only thing I would say is that I am building them to share the Gospel. I believe this is the method Jesus used in this world. I appreciate your concern, and do believe we must be cautious as Christians, but I have no problem being friends with the lost of this world. I have some in my family who are lost, so hence I already have a relationship with them.
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Post by pitbull on Feb 23, 2007 19:18:36 GMT -5
Pastor Jeff,
Maybe I should have used the word "fellowship" rather than "relationship". Forgive me for using the wrong term.
We all have people that we have relationships with [family, co-workers, church members, etc.] that are lost and we interact with them on a regular basis. We should always be friendly with them, but that doesn't mean that we are "friends" with them. That would violate Deuteronomy 7:2-6, Psalm 1:1, 2 Corinthians 6:14-17, and many other passages in the Bible.
Jesus would go and eat dinner, but His purpose was not for fellowship/friendships. Instead, He was there to present the Gospel. As He would say over and over again [in different forms], "This day is salvation come to this house..." [Luke 19:9]
I am not against "lifestyle evangelism" per se. What I am against is those that only teach or practice it. They forget that the Biblical commandment for soul winning has two main words in it - "go" and "tell" [i.e. preach]. See Proverbs 11:30, Matthew 4:19, Matthew 28:19-20, Mark 16:15, Acts 1:8, Acts 5:45, and other similar verses. Yes, we should live a holy life in front of the lost, but we also need to practice confrontational soul winning just like Jesus [see 3rd and 4th chapters of John].
I used to believe in only "lifestyle evangelism". I practiced this for about 17 years. During that time period, two person came to know Christ due to my testimony even though I didn't get to personally lead them to Christ. After I began to practice Biblical soul winning, I have seen over 300 people come to know Christ as Savior in about ten years. During that same time period, I also quit being ecumenical and began being obedient to Biblical separation. Big difference. God blesses obedience to His commandments.
Soul winning + Separation = Salvations of Lost Souls
Also, don't forget that Jesus has told us that if you truly love Him, you will obey His commandments. [John 14:15, 23-24] That clearly includes confronational soul winning. When we do not obey this commandment, we are demonstrating our lack of love for Him, our lack of desire to be like Christ, our unwillingness to following Christ [Matthew 4:19], and the fact that we are not abiding in Christ [John 15:1-8]. This is a sad testimony for the believer.
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