From: The Pastor’s Heart
To: You
Title: “Until You Finish the Job”
Today, the citizens of Indiana are gathering at various poling sites to cast their vote for the
person they hope to represent their party in the presidential election this November. There
are three men still competing for that role in the Republican party and on the Democratic
side, there’s one man vs. one woman. I’ve been watching several television news outlets to
get up to the minute information on how this state’s primary election is going. One thing
that that is being reported on nearly every channel, is that this is one of the strangest
election cycles that many of us have seen in our lifetime. There are so many experts who
just can’t seem to get a handle on what to expect from either party or from the way the
race will ultimately end. What they all clearly agree on is that there is a great deal of
fighting between the candidates and everyone’s committed to stay in the race until the
bitter end.
It takes a lot of courage to stand firm on a position and be willing to undergo personal
attacks and mean-spirited criticisms, but yet still hold your ground. I’m not talking about
what the political nominees have to deal with, I’m referring to what men and women of
faith must endure on the way to reaching excellence in the Kingdom. We should expect
that Christian principles and doctrine are not going to be popular and well received in this
secular society in which we live. When those who don’t know Jesus show a blatant
disregard to the word of God and the principles of Christ’s teaching; then you can best
believe that they are not going to care much about what His representatives say. Without a
doubt, it can be difficult convincing the unsaved that there’s a better way, but often times
it’s as equally challenging convincing one’s self to remain disciplined in the race no matter
what happens in life.
The bible teaches us that the flesh and the spirit are at odds against each other and the
spirit may be willing, but the flesh is often very weak. It’s important that we be honest with
God in confessing what our struggles are and that we press hard everyday to avoid them.
The enemy tirelessly works to remove us from the path of righteousness that God’s
designed for our lives. All throughout humanity he’s enjoyed great success in getting some
of God’s elite to violate their commitment to holiness and purity. He’s even been
successful in many of our lives by getting us to say or do things we knew we should not
have said or done. The key, however, is to learn from our mistakes and get back on point
in living a life that pleases the Lord and makes Him proud.
Wherever you’ve been and whatever you’ve done, it’s behind you. It’s time to ask for
forgiveness, dust yourself off, put on the whole armor of God and get busy advancing the
Kingdom! Your being here confirms that your work is not done and since we don’t know
when will be our last time, we might as well make this day the best one so far! You’ve got
work to do and I encourage you to be committed to it UNTIL YOU FINISH THE JOB!
EVERYTHING WE DO MOVING FORWARD WILL BE INTENTIONAL AND DRIVEN WITH
PURPOSE TO REPRESENT THE KINGDOM OF GOD IN THE BEST POSSIBLE LIGHT!
NOTHING WILL BE DONE WITH ENERGY LESS THAN OUR BEST AND EFFORT BELOW
OUR MAXIMUM POTENTIAL.
OUR SERVICE IS LOCAL, BUT OUR REACH IS GLOBAL – SO WE CANNOT REDUCE OUR
PRESENTATION DOWN TO WHAT’S CONVENIENT, BUT RATHER WE MUST RAISE IT TO
THAT WHICH IS EXPLOSIVE!
Get ready for major change that’s coming systematically, intellectually, purposefully, and
professionally. Nothing we do moving forward will be done haphazardly, sloppily, poorly,
or carnally.
We Are the LIGHT!
Sincerely,
Pastor J.E. Chandler, Sr.