It seems like we’ve been spending more time on the couch these days. Maybe binge-watching some Netflix, and then just sort of dozing off to sleep. The couch is so comfy and inviting. It calls out to us, “Come sit on me. Lay down. Relax.” The couch is comfortable?
Are you feeling comfortable right now? When you go to bed at night, is there a blanket, or maybe a pair of pajamas that make you feel comfortable? I remember growing up, we had one of those blankets, that had the really smooth hem lining around the top edge, and I loved to get under that blanket and hold onto the edge and it was so safe and comfortable.
There are a lot of people who would say, “I’m a Christian, and I’m very comfortable in my faith.” The problem is, it’s really apathy. An apathetic life is a pathetic way to live! There’s a dangerous side of do-nothing Christianity that is just downright lazy.
The Connection Church is a safe place to hear a dangerous message. We want to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable.
God wants to move you out of your safe, little, comfortable life and into the BIG plans He has for you!
There are areas in our life, where we get too comfortable. We move from really living to just existing. There are areas where we just get stuck on the sofa.
It could be in your marriage, it could be in your finances. It could be in any area of your life.
Solomon was a wise man, but he acted very foolishly. He chased after empty dreams. He had everything you could hope to get in life including massive mounds of money. He had land, silver and gold, homes, and numerous wives. In Ecclesiastes, he wrote what he discovered: “You can’t find happiness in things. The best things in life aren’t things at all. You can’t find joy in things.” He said it was all completely worthless and meaningless, like chasing after the wind. And then in Ecclesiastes 12:13, he summed it all up:
That’s the whole story. Here now is my final conclusion: Fear God and obey his commands, for this is everyone’s duty.
Your ultimate purpose is to fear God, or to worship God. In fact, that’s why everything exists, to worship God and give God glory. “Let everything that has breath, and everything that doesn’t, praise the Lord!” And… obey His commands.
You may be facing any one of millions of problems. Here’s your solution: No matter what problem you have, you fix it by doing what God asks you to do.
We partner with God. We work with the God who is working in us to become who He made us to be.
You need to make a move. You need to do something about what God says you need to do.
In Proverbs 6:5-9, Solomon says:
Take a lesson from the ants, you lazybones. Learn from their ways and become wise! 7 Though they have no prince or governor or ruler to make them work, 8 they labor hard all summer, gathering food for the winter. 9 But you, lazybones, how long will you sleep? When will you wake up?
Solomon is saying, “that little ant is smarter than most people.”
When you live to please God, when you live for an audience of One, then you will succeed by doing what He tells you to do.
When you choose to wholeheartedly pursue God and love Him with everything you’ve got, that’s when things are going to change in your life.
Some people today are just feeling sorry for themselves and waiting for a miracle.
Your past does not define your future! You’re not trapped by your past!
Isaiah 60:1 says, Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord rises upon you.
This means Arise! Arise and Shine! Don’t Arise and Whine! Get up off the couch! Get moving!
In John chapter 5, there was a guy who was very disabled, but he was also very comfortable with his disability.
Afterward, Jesus returned to Jerusalem for one of the Jewish holy days. Inside the city, near the Sheep Gate, was the pool of Bethesda, with five covered porches. Crowds of sick people—blind, lame, or paralyzed—lay on the porches.
One of the men lying there had been sick for thirty-eight years. 6 When Jesus saw him and knew he had been ill for a long time, he asked him, “Would you like to get well?”
That’s sort of an obvious question, right?
“I can’t, sir,” the sick man said, “for I have no one to put me into the pool when the water bubbles up. Someone else always gets there ahead of me.”
First, he says, “I can’t.” You’ve heard the phrase, “Can’t never could,” Then he makes an excuse: “I’m all alone.” Then he makes a second excuse, “Someone is always better than me.” He has a victim mentality.
What did Jesus say?
Jesus told him, “Stand up, pick up your mat, and walk!”
Jesus said, “Get Up! Take your bed, or your couch cushion, and get on with your life!”
You can stop waiting! Stop feeling sorry for yourself! I will get up, follow God and obey Him! If anybody can do it, I can! If anybody can follow God, I can!
9 Instantly, the man was healed! He rolled up his sleeping mat and began walking!
He got up off of his sleeping sofa. At that moment, his life was changed by Jesus.
You don’t have to just read about what God is doing through and in other people. You can do it too. We can change the world by living for Jesus.
Decide today that you refuse to keep living like you lived before.
No matter what happened yesterday, or what you’re facing today, there’s still tomorrow. And it can be better than you can imagine, or ask or think, or request in your wildest dreams if you will surrender to God and obey Him.
Our dream at The Connection Church is to see everyone living a life of purpose, changing other people’s lives for God. Because when you live for God’s kingdom, you will do what He says to do. You will be less stressed. You will be more joyful. Your kids will be in better condition. As a church, we will be more effective at changing lives than ever before. And God is going to do unimaginable things through His followers! It’s time to Make Your Move.
Talk It Over Discussion Questions
- How would you describe your best “comfy” setting right now?
- Read Proverbs 6:5-9. In what ways have you been an “ant” these days? How have you been a “lazybones” (sluggard)?
- What activities are you participating in to keep you moving? How are you exercising your faith?
- Read John 5:1-9. In what ways have you played the “victim” role in this current pandemic?
- In what area(s) do you need to pray for God to move in your life? In what area(s) do you need to take action?
- Read Ecclesiastes 12:13. What next steps are you committing to take this week to obey God?