Jason Sneed Simple Thoughts

A Christian’s Goal for 2021

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I am not, nor have I ever been, someone who sets New Year resolutions. Resolutions really just fade away quickly, much like the difference between gym attendance in January & February.

I am one that does enjoy setting goals for myself. Goals help to keep me focused on what is important and what is not. Setting goals allow you to strive for something.

“A person should set his goals as early as he can and devote all his energy and talent to getting there. With enough effort, he may achieve it. Or he may find something that is even more rewarding. But in the end, no matter what the outcome, he will know he has been alive.”

Walt Disney

We have all strived to set goals for ourselves at some point in our lives. We have said we would like to get more active; or we would like to lose some weight. We want to read more, eat healthy, spend more time with family. We all have good intentions, but do we follow through with those intentions? That is the question!

In this post, I want to help challenge you, if you are a Christian, to set some goals for yourself. Let’s be men & women of the Bible. Robby Gallaty has always said, “Let’s get into God’s Word, until God’s Word gets into us”! YES, YES, YES!!!!!

The following are 6 goals that I believe every Christian should strive for in 2021 (and beyond).

  • Hearing The Word – Jeremiah 3:15

“‘And I will give you shepherds after my own heart, who will feed you with knowledge and understanding.

  • Reading The Word – Deuteronomy 17:19

And it shall be with him, and he shall read in it all the days of his life, that he may learn to fear the Lord his God by keeping all the words of this law and these statutes, and doing them…

  • Study The Word – Proverbs 2:1-5

My son, if you receive my words and treasure up my commandments with you, making your ear attentive to wisdom and inclining your heart to understanding; yes, if you call out for insight and raise your voice for understanding, if you seek it like silver and search for it as for hidden treasures, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God.

  • Memorizing The Word – Psalms 119:11

I have stored up your word in my heart,that I might not sin against you.

  • Meditating On The Word – Joshua 1:8

This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.

  • Be Doers Of The Word – James 1:22

But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves

These are six goals that every Christian should try to make for themselves in 2021. They are worth the time and energy to achieve. As Walt Disney said, “With enough effort, he may achieve it. Or he may find something that is even more rewarding.”

Christians, let’s be people of the Word. And in getting into the Word, I believe that we will find something that is even more rewarding – Jesus himself! He is the one who is the sustainer of life, our rock, our refuge and our strength. Does it not make sense to spend time with Him each day?

Jason Sneed Worship, Worship Wednesdays

Worship Wednesday – “Is He Worthy?”

As Christians, we all seem to lose our focus on Christ from time to time. The great hymn writer Robert Robinson, even added our loss of focus to his song when he penned “Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing”.

O to grace how great a debtor, daily I’m constrained to be!

Let Thy goodness, like a fetter, bind my wandering heart to Thee.

Prone to wonder, Lord, I feel it, prone to leave the God I love;

Here’s my heart, Lord, take a seal it, seal it for Thy courts above.

So, from time to time, we need to be reminded of who we are but more importantly, we need to be reminded of who HE is.

Today’s Worship Wednesday song is entitled “Is He Worthy?” from Andrew Peterson. Peterson has written this song as a reminder to us as to the power and worth of God Almighty! We are reminded of His power and worth in chapter 5 in the book of Revelation. It says,

Then I saw in the right hand of him who was seated on the throne a scroll written within and on the back, sealed with seven seals. And I saw a mighty angel proclaiming with a loud voice, “Who is worthy to open the scroll and break its seals?” And no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll or to look into it, and I began to weep loudly because no one was found worthy to open the scroll or to look into it. And one of the elders said to me, “Weep no more; behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered, so that he can open the scroll and its seven seals.”And between the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders I saw a Lamb standing, as though it had been slain, with seven horns and with seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth. And he went and took the scroll from the right hand of him who was seated on the throne. And when he had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each holding a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. And they sang a new song, saying,

“Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation, and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth.”

I hope you enjoy “Is He Worthy?” and worship our Lord today because He is the ONLY ONE WORTHY!

Do you feel the world is broken? (We do)
Do you feel the shadows deepen? (We do)
But do you know that all the dark won’t stop the light from getting through? (We do)
Do you wish that you could see it all made new? (We do)

Is all creation groaning? (It is)
Is a new creation coming? (It is)
Is the glory of the Lord to be the light within our midst? (It is)
Is it good that we remind ourselves of this? (It is)

Is anyone worthy? Is anyone whole?
Is anyone able to break the seal and open the scroll?
The Lion of Judah who conquered the grave
He is David’s root and the Lamb who died to ransom the slave

Is He worthy? Is He worthy?
Of all blessing and honor and glory
Is He worthy of this?
He is

Jason Sneed Simple Thoughts

A LAMP Unto Their Feet

Russ Clip Boat
Traveling up river to reach a village

Back in 2011, I had the opportunity to take a missions trip with two of my favorite missionaries – Clifford Suddeth​ & Russ Turner​ – to Panama City, Panama. This was one of the most eye opening events in my life and I can truly say that God changed my view of missions.

Missions is not just for those who have left the states to enter a different country and eat food we would never even think about putting in our mouths. Missions is a responsibility of every Christians! Period!

John Piper puts it this way,

Go, send, or disobey.

Christians should be doing everything possible to “Go” & “Send”. Notice the quote does not say that we should “Go” or “Send”. There is no OR. We must be doing both to accomplish the Great Commission.

We may not be able to “Go” to Panama City, Panama, but we can go across the street and tell our neighbors, or across the cubicle and share the love of Jesus with a coworker. We all can go!

And we all can be a part of “sending”! We can all be a part of spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ around the world. The Bible says in Romans 10:14, “How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching?”

There are 4 steps in this process:

  1. People will call on Jesus to save them if they believe He can do so
  2. Belief in Christ can not exist without knowledge about Him
  3. One hears about Christ only when someone proclaims the saving message
  4. The message about Christ will not be proclaimed unless someone is sent by God to do so

We need to be part of sending people to reach into parts of the world that we would never be able to reach and tell them of the great love of Jesus Christ and His Word. We need people to take the LAMP into a dark world.

The Bible tells us in Psalm 119:105 that, “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path”.

God’s Word gives us teaching, correction and training. 2 Timothy 3:16 says, “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.

Whether you open your Bible daily or once in a while, most of us know that God’s Word shines bright, like a lamp, to guide our steps. But what about those who have never heard? How will they be reached?

russ-lynn1
Russ & Lynn Turner

Today is one of those days that you can play a huge part in “sending”. Russ & Lynn Turner (website: Reach Latin America), are trying to reach further and further into the jungles of Panama & the Amazon. They want to reach out and bring the LAMP, the Word of God, to these villages.

They are trying to raise $12,000 to purchase a 4-Wheel drive vehicle to help them reach into these village. We are asking that you pray and see what God would have you do to be a part of this great ministry. You can donate here – LAMP PROJECT.

We all need to be going and we all need to be sending. Today, let’s help send the Turners to places that the gospel of Jesus Christ has never been before! 

Jason Sneed Points To Ponder

Points To Ponder: July 13

Points To Ponder

If someone were to pole 10 people on defining the term discipleship you will be hard-pressed to get the same definition. In fact, you might leave more confused. I have noticed, over the years, the same thing with the term faith. A word often spoken about in Christian circles everywhere. Faith, however, is a word that can be one of the most difficult to define for many Believers. Greg Gilbert affirms this when he says, “Faith is one of those words that’s been misused for so long that most people have no idea what it really means. Ask someone on the street to describe faith, and while you might get some respectful-sounding words, the heart of the matter will most likely be that faith is belief in the ridiculous against all evidence.” To be fair to those who are outside of the faith they shouldn’t have to provide an exact definition of faith (much less a Biblical one). We as Believers know far too well that our faith isn’t belief in the ridiculous, yet why do we struggle so much to define what is such a cornerstone to our faith?

So, for the record, “What is Faith?” And/or, “How would we/you define it?”

If you consider yourself a Bible-believing Christian, a follower of Jesus whose chief aim is to glorify God and enjoy him forever, there are important questions I hope you will consider before picking up your flag and cheering on the sexual revolution. These questions aren’t meant to be snarky or merely rhetorical. They are sincere, if pointed, questions that I hope will cause my brothers and sisters with the new rainbow themed avatars to slow down and think about the flag you’re flying.

Your church is broken because it’s made up of broken people, including yourself. Abandoning the local church is only acceptable under a few extreme circumstances. Other than in certain circumstances, the people of God have the responsibility to sacrificially love their local churches as Jesus has.

If anyone has the right to abandon the adulterous, idolatrous bride called “Church,” it’s God, and he hasn’t, so we need to be careful how quick we are to bail when the going gets tough.

Here are three bad reasons to leave the local church:

Writing to Timothy, his son in the ministry, Paul balanced warning and instruction. Paul reminded his protégé to continue engaging God’s Word like he had done since childhood. Paul emphasized that the Bible was inspired by God to equip Christ’s followers for their work.

Jason Sneed Simple Thoughts

Another Generation Who Did Not Know

A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to preach at my church and I spoke from Joshua 24:15, “…as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord”.

There were three things that Joshua warned the leaders of Israel about that they needed to be doing:

  • Keep God’s Word (Joshua 23:6)
  • Cling To The Lord (Joshua 23:8)
  • Love the Lord (Joshua 23:11)

Joshua told them that:

(Joshua 24:12-13)

“if you turn back and cling to the remnant of these nations remaining among you and make marriages with them, so that you associate with them and they with you, KNOW FOR CERTAIN that the Lord your God will no longer drive out these nations before you, but they will be a snare and a trap for you, a whip on your sides and thorns in your eyes, until you perish from off this good ground that the Lord your God has given you”.

Joshua’s plea to the children of Israel did not fall on deaf ears. Later in Joshua we see that the children of Israel “served the Lord all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders who outlived Joshua”.

However, the story does not end at this point. It continues in the book of Judges. In chapter 2, we find one of the saddest verses (to me) in the Bible.

Judges 2:6-10

When Joshua dismissed the people, the people of Israel went each to his inheritance to take possession of the land. And the people served the Lord all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders who outlived Joshua, who had seen all the great work that the Lord had done for Israel. And Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, died at the age of 110 years. And they buried him within the boundaries of his inheritance in Timnath-heres, in the hill country of Ephraim, north of the mountain of Gaash. And all that generation also were gathered to their fathers. And there arose another generation after them who did not know the Lord or the work that he had done for Israel.

Even though the children of Israel served the Lord until their death, what they did not do was train and disciple the next generation to love the Lord and to serve him.

Let this verse be a wake up call to all Christians today. We can keep His Word, cling to Him and love Him but if we don’t train our children and disciple them, then the next generation after us will be “another” generation who did not know.

Deuteronomy 6:5-9

You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

Jason Sneed Simple Thoughts

How Often Do You Read the BIBLE?

Bible

In my discipleship group at church, we are going through Francis Chan’s book “MULTIPLY” and it is amazing! This past week, we came to a section in the book entitled “Why Study the Bible?”. I thought that was an interesting title until I began to read the chapter.

I am not going to talk about the whole chapter today, but I do want to share with you several quotes from Francis Chan regarding the Bible and why we should be in God’s Word.

… an important part of making disciples is teaching people to obey everything Jesus commanded (Matthew 28:20). This means that we need to know Jesus’s teaching and commands.

When we talk about the Bible, we’re actually talking about something that the all-powerful, all-knowing, transcendent God decided to write to us! What could be important?

If we really believe that the Bible is the Word of God, then it should be much more than a book that we are familiar with. It ought to shape every aspect of our existence. It should guide the decisions we make in like. If God is the designer and creator of this world, if He made us and placed us on this earth, and if He has taken the time to tell us who He is, who we are, and how this world operates, then what could be more important to us than the Bible?

As our group discussed this chapter, I began to wonder just how often Christians are in God’s Word. If we truly believe that the Bible is God’s Word, just like Chan said, should that not drive us to read it everyday?

So, I want to know – How much are you in God’s Word? How important is it to YOU and do you let it shape “every aspect of your existence”?

(Don’t worry, this is only a vote and no names will be collected in this poll. I will not be able to track down IP address or anything that may be traced back to you – so be honest!).

Please take the time to vote and then share this poll with other people! I’ll post the results in a few weeks.