CHURCH NEWS

THE PASTOR'S CORNER... David Stauffer
"DIVE"

JEBU:  “You are being called to join God in the deep.”  

 

I took my family to                            Summersville lake . . .                                  last Memorial Day                                      weekend. 

I learned a valuable                                  lesson diving off the                                 cliffs with Jordan,                                        Taylor and Frankie. 

I could not see the                                      water . . . . I had to                                      jump through some                                       bushes. 

I had to overcome the                                 fear of jumping . . .  

And the feeling of falling . . . .

I remember the relief of hitting the water well . . .

The sense of going deep . . .  .

The exuberance of having faced my fears.  

Had I been a younger man, I would’ve said:  “Let’s do it again!”

Many people have gone down in history for great acts of courage . . . many make that their aim in life and never make it. 

And some people just do stupid stuff and make it into the books . . .

We’re asking you to DIVE INTO God . . . DIVE into His Word, DIVE into His presence, DIVE into His Grace . . . .

Go DEEPER with Him.

WHY? 

1.   YOU WERE NOT MADE FOR THE KIDDIE POOL

 

Psalm 42:1: "As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God."

The journey of many Christians never takes them much farther than a comfortable inch or two down . . .  they only have about a hour’s worth of God. 

Hebrews 6:1: "Therefore let us leave the elementary teachings about Christ and go on to maturity."

 

We want you to have all of Him.  We want you to grow deeper with him. 

Believe it or not, the kiddie pool is a dangerous place . . . .

1 Peter 2:2:  "Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation."

 

2.   YOU WERE MADE FOR DEEP WATER

You know this.  You know deep down in your soul there is a place . . . there is a hole no one or thing can fill . . . it’s what has been called that “God-shaped hole.”  And an hour’s worth of God on Sundays won’t fill it. 

 

Hebrews 11:6: "And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.

Courageous faith is an amazing thing!  It predisposes us to God’s blessings.  It forces us into God’s presence!  And it’s really the only thing that pleases God.

 

– The woman who pushed her way through the crowds to get to Jesus . . .

– Like a little man –Zach – who climbed a tree and took a chance on God . . .

– Like a Gentile woman who risked punishment for approaching a Jewish rabbi for help

– Like a man named Peter who stepped out of his comfort zone . . & got out of the boat.

 

It’s not always your intelligence or your gift-mix, your talent or your looks or social status that make your story great . . . Sometimes, and most often for those who’ve gone down into the history books unintentionally, it’s your courage and persistence. It’s your motivation to move out into deeper water . . .

 

“So you have a choice,        will you chose to continue living life in the shallows?

or will you follow God into the deep?

 

Publisher's Note:  David Stauffer is the Senior Minister of Gateway Church in St. Albans. He is also a Gulf War Veteran.

Stauffer and his family reside in Scott Depot.

Gateway Church is located at: 422 B. Street, St. Albans, WV 25177.

The church phone number is: 304-727-8919.

The church web site is: www.GatewayChurch.net

 
PutnamLIVE.com invites Putnam County pastors to submit a column each week for publication-free of charge as a spiritual outreach to the community. The subject matter may be selected by the pastor. Please submit columns to:
News@PutnamLIVE.com.

Columns will be rotated among each pastor so that a variety of pastors will have an opportunity for publication.

PutnamLIVE.com reserves the right to edit for space, grammar, and publication style, but will not change the integrity of editorial content.

 

 

David

Stauffer