Devotionals by Pastor Chuck Swindoll
I pray that your love will overflow more and more, and that you will keep on growing in knowledge and understanding. For I want you to understand what really matters, so that you may live pure and blameless lives until the day of Christ’s return. (Philippians 1:9-10)
Where did you find your mate? More than likely you (like I) found her or him in a church. Where were you married? If you weren’t married in a church, you probably wish you could have been. Who gave you the best counsel? Probably a pastor. Who was there to dedicate your first baby? Who said, “Marriage gets a little cold. And we’ve got a conference designed to help add a little spark to it …?”
Who ministered to you when you really got scared about how to rear your family? Who said, “We affirm the family. We stand with you all the way through it, even at this time when your daughter has run away. We’re here. We’re not leaving”? Who was the most effective in convincing her not to get an abortion? Who rejoiced with you when she turned back to the Lord?
The church is for all times. Celebration times. Times of praise, when we are “filled with the fruit of righteousness which comes through Jesus Christ, for the glory and praise of God” (Philippians 1:11 NASB).
How about when you made a decision to serve the Lord Jesus in your future career? How about when you celebrated a graduation out of school, and maybe even out of seminary? Who was there to say, “We’re with you, we applaud your achievement—and if God leads you overseas, we won’t forget you”? Perhaps the church held you closer than your own family. Perhaps the church contributed more to your income than any family member has ever contributed, because the church believed in you.
What a marvelous thing is the local family of God! Let me go a step further. As helpful and beneficial as most parachurch ministries are, they are all dependent upon the church to exist. When you are in college, some campus ministry may guide you and encourage you, and it is worth singing praises to God. But when you graduate, you need a church. The church alone has staying power.
It’s the church, week after week, where we learn faithfulness.
Taken from Growing Deep in the Christian Life by Charles R. Swindoll. Copyright © 1986, 1995 by Charles R. Swindoll, Inc. Used by permission of HarperCollins Christian Publishing. www.harpercollinschristian.com
Used with permission. All rights reserved.
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About Insight for Living
Join the millions who listen to the lively messages of Pastor Chuck Swindoll, a down-to-earth pastor who communicates God’s truth in understandable and practical terms, with a good dose of humor thrown in. Chuck’s messages help you apply the Bible to your own life.
About Pastor Chuck Swindoll
For most of his entire life, Pastor Charles R. Swindoll has devoted himself to the accurate, practical teaching and application of God's Word — anchoring every message in the transforming power of God's amazing grace. From congregations on the East Coast to the West Coast, his ministry has carried that message across the country, ultimately taking root in Frisco, Texas, where he founded Stonebriar Community Church. Yet Chuck's influence has never been confined to a single sanctuary. Since 1979, Chuck’s messages have aired on Insight for Living, one of the most widely heard programs in Christian broadcasting, carrying his voice — and the timeless truth of Scripture — to listeners around the world. That same passion for God's Word has shaped his leadership at Dallas Theological Seminary, where his tenure as president and now chancellor emeritus has helped raise up a new generation of men and women equipped and called to ministry. Few lives have touched so many, across so many places, for so long.
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