The Most Important Victory

I have recently been reading stories of faith and courage from those during the Civil War era. During this time, this brought a huge dilemma to the preachers in the North and South. Unlike other wars, this war pitted America against America, brother against brother. It must have been hard for them to know what God wanted from them in such a terrible time in our nation's history.
Pastor Joseph Atkinson spoke to the heart of the matter in his Thanksgiving day sermon on September 18, 1862:

"Never were Christians called to more diligence, self-denial, courage, benevolence and industry than at this solemn juncture; and it is, at such a time as this, that God and all good men are most fruitfully active. In a contest like this every man must serve his country according to his ability and in his appointed sphere. Everyman must find the place and the duty suited to him, and to which he is suited. None can be more important than practical, prayerful labor for the religious welfare of our heroic soldiers; directly  seeking their salvation by preaching to them by writing and distributing tracts, hymns and Bibles and by praying for them, by tender sympathy with them in the trials and temptations to which they must be inevitably exposed. If God should breathe over these Confederate States the spirit of devotion, of humility, of dependence and of faith, it would be better than any victory in the field, however brilliant, for it would be at once a proof of His favor and a pledge of our prosperity."

 Even though the South lost the war, it gained much in the spiritual realm. Confederate men and women learned devotion, humility and dependence on God.
When we go through battles in life, we may not win every one but we can gain much if we are willing to learn from our defeat.

1 Samuel 15:22,
Does the Lord delight in burnt offerings and sacrificesas much as in obeying the Lord?
To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams.

Community

Based on real-life events in 1928 Los Angeles, the film Changeling stars Angelina Jolie as Christine Collins who is reunited with her missing son—only to realize he is an impostor. She confronts the city authorities, who declare her an unfit mother and brand her delusional. Changeling explores female disempowerment, political corruption, child endangerment, and the repercussions of violence.

By the time it was over, it would involve not only an apparent abduction, but also impersonation, police coercion, false imprisonment, psychiatric abuse and a court fight that stretched on for more than a decade.

During the ordeal, one person stuck by Christine, the local church pastor, and pioneer radio evangelist. He stood up to the corruption around him even though it was unpopular and controversial.

In the midst of our recent tragedy with the Connecticut school shootings, we see many people speaking out and coming to the aid of those affected. Many ask where is God when tragedies like this happen but in the aftermath he can be found in the voices of his people who are not afraid to speak up and come to those in need in community.

The community as seen in Acts 2: 42-47 is is the church as it should be.
They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. ⁴³ Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. ⁴⁴ All the believers were together and had everything in common. ⁴⁵ They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. ⁴⁶ Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, ⁴⁷ praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.

In the beginning of Genesis, God said it is good after each step in creation. But the first time in the history of the world that God said it is not good was when He saw that Adam was alone.

Human beings were created to reflect who God is. In every other religion there is an impersonal God and human relations is secondary or peripheral. But in Christianity there is a triune God, who is co-eternal, co-equal, in a relationship forever.

A community where members live a Gospel centered life, build relationships with non-Christians, and have the ability to communicate the Gospel clearly will have a lasting impact.