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Statement of My Personal Faith and Action
by Jim Latham
I believe that
we have all been given different gifts and because of that
we have all been given different callings.
Mindful of the total theme and power of God’s word, each of us are
called to different emphasis with certain scriptures calling each of us to
different areas of service to the word.
I base my
Statement of Faith and Action on these scriptures that I am called to:
Matthew
22:37-40 And He said to him,
"You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your
soul, and with all your mind. This
is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it, You shall love your neighbor as
yourself. On these two commandments
depend all the law and the prophets."
(All the law
must answer to love. I am called to testify to the simplicity of
God’s plan in a world that would enjoy it’s complexities, against
religions that would like to add a couple more of their hoops to jump through.
Love God, love your neighbor, and love yourself.
The acid test for everything is
love. I believe that Christ is far
more concerned with what we do in love, than what we don’t do in law.
A one time student of etiquette, I learned a simple rule.
Etiquette is to do and say, the kindest thing, in the kindest way.
I believe that Christianity is to do and say, the most loving thing, in
the most loving way.)
Revelation
3:11 "I am coming soon; hold
fast what you have, so that no one may seize your crown."
(The crown is
interpreted to mean our salvation, but in Paul’s letter to the Romans 8:38,39
“For I am sure that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities,
nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor
anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God
in Christ Jesus our Lord.” The
only possible way that we can lose our crown is by us disavowing or doubting our
Savior and our Salvation. I am even
doubtful of that. As an imperfect
father, there is nothing my children could do that would stop my love for them
and deny them a place at my supper table, even if they would disavow me as their
father. God is the perfect loving
Father, and I can’t believe that he would ever disavow us even when we might
disavow Him. I also believe, and it
is the reason I love this verse, that our crown is the uniqueness and the value
that God put upon each of our heads as His children. God loves variety and He loves each of His unique and special
children. If anyone or anything
diminishes the value or self worth of any of God’s children, including myself,
it saddens God the perfect loving Father. I
am called to be in the crown repair and restoration business, for others, and
for myself. If anyone causes us to
doubt our salvation or value, or God’s love for us, they are trying to seize
our crown.)
Revelation
3:15 & 16 "I know your
works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would
that you were cold or hot! So,
because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spew you out of my
mouth.
(I believe that God calls us to action through Jesus Christ. I think that in most cases He would rather have us make a wrong decision or wrong action rather than no decision or action and play it safe. When we are wrong, even really wrong, we find eventually that we lay prostrated in desperation for God’s help and wisdom. That is better than doing nothing. We are called to action as Christians.)
My Pastor for
a while, Lowell Hennigs was big on "Because and Therefore". Got
to agree with him. It's a good way to put things
BECAUSE God
loves me and my brothers and sisters, and has called us forth to love God, love
each other, and love ourselves, and reminding us that we are made unique and has
called us to action in this world:
THEREFORE I will take action to be diligent and courageous in my love and devotion to God, and take action to be diligent and courageous in my love, care and defense of my fellow brothers and sisters, and also to myself, and I will defend and nourish the crown of uniqueness, well being and salvation that God has given each of my brothers and sisters and myself. I am called to action.