Month: October 2025

And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.

– Galatians 6:9

We have all probably heard at least once in our lives that we need to pray for patience. We even know we should pray for patience. However, sometimes we are just too busy, in a rush or just plain don’t have time. Ironic isn’t it? On the other hand, how often are we encouraged to pray for perseverance? In our prayer time, is perseverance even a thought? And now the big question to ponder, have you ever looked at how patience and perseverance are linked together?

At first glance it seems these two character traits might oppose each other. Patients is waiting for an opportunity to present itself. The textbook definition brings a bit more detail as to what makes having patience so difficult. Patience is the capacity to accept or tolerate delay, trouble, or suffering without getting angry or upset. We live in a very “anti-patience” culture if you think about it. We want what we want and we want it now. When we text someone we expect an immediate response. When we need answers, Google can get us thousands of websites, usually under a second. Food can be warmed up in one to two minutes in our microwaves. Not a lot of patience is required here. So when we are faced with situations that are not so quick and easy, we tend to get irritable, frustrated, angry and yes, impatience.   

Perseverance is different. It is actively staying on task. Again, take a look at the textbook definition. Perseverance is a continued effort to do or achieve something despite difficulties, failure, or opposition. If you really stop and think about it, patience and perseverance complement each other quite nicely.

Think about it like this. Patience without persistence can lead to apathy. Persistence without patience can cause us to chase our tail. Sometimes we are in a situation where we need to wait, but it is crucial to not lose focus. At other times, we are to be active and yet accommodating to the process.

Each one of these character traits takes effort, focus and intentionality. However, when we prioritize one over the other or disregard either, both become difficult, ineffective and discouraging. 

In Galatians 6:9, Paul encourages us to persist in doing good, doing right, engaging in God’s Truth. We are to keep focused on Christ so we will not get discouraged. We do this for the simple yet powerful reason to glorify our Lord. To persist in doing good unfortionatally does not guarantee an immediate result. Rather, we are to be patient. Sometimes our good works take time to grow. We can take confidence that in time, the good works we do for the Lord will reap a harvest that glorifies Christ.

A farmer is a great example of someone who balances patience with perseverance. He works and readies the land and then he plants his seeds. There is a lot of planning and effort that goes into this. There has to be focus and intentionality. And then he must be patient. It takes time for the seed to germinate, to take root and to grow. Then, at just the right time, not too early and not too late, he harvests.

Maybe in addition to praying for both patience and persistence, we should be praying in a manner consistent with patience and persistence. We persistently seek the Lord and pray and then we confidently and patiently wait. Sometimes day after day, even year after year, always understanding that God is never idle or hard of hearing. But maybe, just maybe God is accomplishing something in us and through us while we exercise patience and persistence.

Jason Metz, lead Pastor

For we all stumble in many ways. And if anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle his whole body.

– James 3:2

Mistakes. We all make them, but then what? Mistakes as well as failures tend to be seen as a negative in our culture. We are taught to avoid, to hide, to do whatever it takes to not make mistakes or admit failure. But might there be value in our mistakes and in our failures? 

There definitely can be, but only if we allow it. Only if we have confidence in God that He can make a positive out of any negative. We can only learn if we resolve to be teachable. Ah, there’s the key. To be teachable. To seek understanding. To gain the invaluable experience that seems to only come from making mistakes and failing.

How we perceive things has the power to stifle us and hold us back or to propel us forward. If you were brought up in an environment where success was pushed at all costs and anything else was punished, an unrealistic and suffocating mentality most likely took root. And that root usually grows into a fear of making mistakes and failing. However, mistakes and failures are unavoidable. In fact, they are a part of life. How unfortunate so many are stuck in this rut of apprehension and anxiety when it comes to making mistakes and failing. On the other hand, if you were raised with the freedom to explore, to err, to make mistakes and yes outright fail, how liberating. What an opportunity to learn. Someone once said, if you are not failing, you are not trying hard enough. Rarely does anything new we try go without some mistakes and failures. The question we must ask ourselves is, will the possibility of mistakes and failure hold me back from the possibility of success?

Now don’t get me wrong here, we should not intentionally make mistakes or put effort into those things that are bound to fail. But we shouldn’t be afraid to dream, to try, to fail. When we accept the possibility of disappointment, we open ourselves up to the freedom to grow. So why fear something that has the ability to make us better.

Anyone who has read just about any part of Scripture can’t help but notice all the mistakes and failures people of God have made throughout the centuries. From Abraham to Moses to King David to Peter to Paul and of course Adam and Eve. What we find out is that even when there is a heart to follow God, the greatest opportunity to learn comes from the ashes of where we crash and burn. Now we are back to being teachable. From a faith perspective, we must get to the point in our humility before God that allows us to accept what He has for us. We must also understand that mistakes and failures do in fact come with consequences. Because my mistakes and failures cost me something, they tend to have a much greater impact on my ability to learn and to grow. And in the presence of the Holy Spirit, that growth takes us in a direction that we would have most likely never gone if we always resolved ourselves to fear and avoidance. 

This is not about intentionally falling into sin, however many have solidified their faith through repentance. The mistakes and failures we are talking about here are those overly ambitious things we do that just may be our own ideas and not God’s directions. Believe me, I have had many of those in my life. As the mistakes and failures become evident, God seems to simply say, I appreciate the effort, now let Me show you why it didn’t work. What a great place to be! Instead of contamination if I receive coaching. Instead of an, I told you so, He picks me up, dusts off the mistakes and failures and grows me through the process. Many times those are some hard, even heart wrenching lessons, but I for one wouldn’t trade them for anything. When I learn to listen to God’s guidance, success comes, even when I make a mistake or fail.

Jason Metz, lead Pastor

So then each of us will give an account of himself to God.

– Romans 4:17

Accountability. That’s not a popular topic these days. Unless of course it is used to lay blame on someone besides ourselves. The definition of accountability is simple and to the point: an obligation or willingness to accept responsibility or to account for one’s actions. This rational sure seems to imply that accountability is meant to be used to judge ourselves and take action in those areas needed. The opposite of accountability is immunity, as in being protected or exempt from something.

We live in a culture that seems to fear accountability. Excuses are constantly made to seek to justify one’s behaviors or lack of responsibilities. Many react by pointing a finger at anything that can take the spotlight off of them. It wasn’t me, it wasn’t my fault, no one told me, no one helped me. Instead of accepting and learning from accountability, we are quick to shift blame. In essence, trying to convince others as well as ourselves that we are immune from our responsibilities. That’s a hard way to live because it’s based in mistrust and fear. Though accountability when not met usually carries some hard consequences, they are in no way near the consequences that trying to pass the blame on to others carry. Things like a breakdown of trust from others and increased conflict in even the simplest situations. And yet, our human nature, if not reined in, seems to default to self-justification and avoidance of personal accountability.

Unfortunately, this is nothing new. It was there in the Garden, in the beginning. It wasn’t me, it was the serpent. It wasn’t me, it was the woman. Cascading down through history, we find ourselves in a precarious position living in a world who thrives on the blame game. 

Grace is the unmerited favor of God. It is the Father’s gift to us through His Son Jesus Christ. That sounds pretty great. In fact, that sounds pretty wonderful. Who wouldn’t want the unmerited favor of God? Especially when it is wrapped up in the form of a gift. But there is a catch. In order to unwrap and accept this amazing gift from God, we have to come to a place of, you guest it, accountability. Grace is the gift of Jesus and His atonement for our sins. If we falsely believe or attempt to avoid our responsibility when it comes to sin, in other words, deny our accountability, then why would we ever need the gift of grace? However, the harsh reality is that no one is immune to sin, no one is protected or except from the consequence of a sinful nature, which is eternal death. No one except the born-again believer who, through their accountability or willingness to accept and account for their sinful actions has humbly surrendered before God as a wretched person beyond excuse. It is at that point of accountability, that point of admission, that point of confession that the gift of grace becomes available.

As born-again believes, we now have the realization of grace and the justification that it brings before the Father. We rejoice in this. It literally changes our life and the deep appreciation to our Lord can never be compared to anything else. 

But how much does this transition to other aspects of our life? If we understand and embrace God’s grace and acknowledge that we are accountable, not just to ourselves, but before Him, how should that change how we live our lives? The born-again believes separates themselves from the world in the sense that they are no longer confined to the world’s standards. The born-again believer chooses to live by God’s standards, not simply compartmentalized within their faith, because their faith cannot be compartmentalized. Jesus isn’t for a time or place, rather Jesus is glorified at all times and in every place. That means that personal accountability from the biggest things, like our sin to the littlest thing, like minor responsibilities must be exercised. If we blame and point fingers in the small stuff, we are at risk for trying to justify within ourselves the big things. 

Jason Metz, lead Pastor

Let all the earth fear the Lord;

    let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him!

– Psalm 33:8

Sometimes I wonder if the church is too accommodating. You’re just fine the you are. Late, no problem, go right in. Busy this Sunday with (you fill in the blank), no problem, we understand, we’re all busy. We don’t use words that offend like Hell or sin or accountability. Make yourself… comfortable.

Have we lowered our expectations so much that we are in danger of offending God?

After all, a seeker sensitive mentality means the customer is always right. Ahhhhh, I think we are on to something here. We have mistakenly interchanged church ministry with a business model. Instead of desiring people to engage with Christ we look to fill seats. Instead of discipleship being a measure of growth we look at the financial health to gauge how the church is doing. To what are these standards compared and to whom are we seeking adoration from? Hard questions in a society that uses competition to push a worldly sense of success.

All this has to come down to the basic realization of the essence of the Church. The Church exists for three fundamental reasons. To exalt the Lord, to edify the body and to evangelize the world. If a church trades or substitutes any of these assignments is it really a church? 

Notice that the responsibilities of the local church are also not dependent on human rational or worldly principles. For a church to be a church, factors like building space or location, finances, audio and visual technologies, free coffee or an established budget are not a requirement. Might these things help and be beneficial in ministry? Only if they are used to complement those imperative things that are held to the highest degree. Things like the proclamation that Jesus is Lord, the Son of God. Things like solid Bible teachings and a strict stance on the authority and importance of Scripture. Things like welcoming everyone in, but not freely accepting their sinful behavior or lifestyle. Things like discipleship and creating a culture that operates within the Truth and Love of Christ. 

Let us also remember that the Body of Christ is made up of individual believers. That means these hard questions cannot only be asked about the church, but also about ourselves. Questions like, do I actually have a respect, a reverence and an awe of the Lord? Do we even know how that should look? That’s a hard one and ultimately, if we are honest, heartwrenching. Here’s another one, do I treat my faith like I can pick and choose how I live it out? This includes who I believe Jesus to be, the authority of the Father, the severity of my sin and what worship is. Also a hard and convincing question. But without the questions how can we ever come to the answers? 

When Jesus walked this earth, though He was 100% human, but He remained 100% divine. That means He possessed all knowledge and wisdom from eternity past to eternity future. And yet, He was always asking those around Him questions. From those that He was closest to like Peter, James and John, to those He had a more brief interaction with, to the religious leaders that opposed Him, Jesus asked questions. Why? It wasn’t because He didn’t know the answer, but so those He was interacting with could be guided to the Truth. 

In our churches and in our personal lives how willing are we to forego the worldly standard, the busyness, the distractions and the acceptable justifications to simply move to a place of respect, reverence and awe of the Lord? What are we willing to sacrifice and what are we needing to embrace to build our faith in a Christ consuming way?

Jason Metz, lead Pastor