Project Change Weekly Messages

WM19 Faithwalk May 13, 2017

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Sorry, Im late! With high school graduation, my 18th birthday, a vacation and my first job at a construction company, you could say I was pretty overwhelmed this week!

Shallow Friends

(After the Israelites escaped by crossing the Red Sea)

And Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a timbrel in her hand; and all the women went out after her with timbrels and with dances. And Miriam answered them, Sing ye to the Lord, for he hath triumphed gloriously; the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea.
Exodus 15:20‭-‬21 KJV

(a short while after, in the same chapter)

And the people murmured against Moses, saying, What shall we drink?
Exodus 15:24 KJV

The Israelites have a repetitive history for this throughout the whole Bible. Loyal when it's easy and they're feeling it and they can see God moving, and then as soon as miracles stop flowing or when things get rough they turn.

I have a little story for you guys.

Once upon a time, there was a very wealthy man who had no family and just three close friends, John, Bill, and Joe, who seemed very loyal and loving. He shared all that he had with them, driving around with them in his fancy cars and paying for all their wants and needs as they asked. One day he thought to himself, "I wonder if my friends would still love me if I didn't have my wealth to share with them."

So he made a plan. He moved all his resources to another account. He made it appear that his mansion was on the lease, and he bought something like a shed to move his bed into. He put his fancy cars in the garage and drove a battered old truck that spat and squealed. He traded his suit for dirty sackcloth. He waited for his old friends to come. He invited Joe to his "new house".

And he waited.
And waited.
And waited, giving him two full weeks for Joe to visit or even call in case something had simply risen up.

Joe didn't come at all. He came within minutes of a call whenever he had money, but now the rich man couldn't even get a response, not even a text. So the rich man remorsefully took his will and his pen and struck off his plans for Joe.

So the next week he invited Bill. Maybe Bill would be more loyal. Maybe Bill would care about him.
Bill came to his new house.

"Wow. So you live here now??"
The rich man nodded.
"Yup. I've lost everything I own. Except for my friends, of course."
Bill started off.
"So.. no more rides in the Ferrari? No plane tickets and music concerts?"
The rich man shook his head.
"Nope. I'm sorry. But I still have some coffee, if you'd like to-" He raised his eyes.
Bill was already gone. The rich man began to weep as he took his pen and struck Bill off of his inheritance.

The only friend left was John. Maybe, just maybe, somebody really cared about him and didn't just love him for the money.
John came to his new house.

"Wow. You live here now?"
"Yup. I've lost everything I own. Except for my friends, of course," The rich man lied. He already had lost his friends.
John stared off.
"So.. So..."
The rich man readied his pen.
"So.. no more rides on the boat? No amusement parks and fancy food?"
The rich man shook his head.
"Nope. I'm sorry. But I have some coffee if you'd like to.." He looked up, and to his surprise, he realized John was still there. "If you'd like to.. join me."
"Of course. Let me get it."
John ran and made the drinks, as the rich man set his pen down.
John sat down and handed him a coffee, just how he liked it.
The rich man squinted, confused and distrusting.
"John.. You realize I have nothing left to give you. My truck won't handle the roads we once went on. My house won't fit the parties we once had. My bank account won't support the life I let you lead. Do you understand that?"
John looked at him and nodded.
"Then why are you here?"
John laughed.
"I'm not your friend because of the fancy cars or boat or plane rides. I'm not your friend for the parties or the bank accounts. It's never been about that."
The rich man began to cry as he jumped out of his chair and declared,
"John, I never lost anything. I would like you to have all of my possessions in my will when I go. I want you and your family to live with me in my mansion, and drive my cars and have all my money forever and ever!"

So it happened, that while Joe and Bill lost all the money in the world, and a close friendship that could've lasted a lifetime, John and his children and their children and onward would live in the rich man's mansion for as long as their family line endured.

Your Mission: I want to talk about loyalty to God today. Anyone who has been filled with the True Holy Ghost can testify that God lavishes His friends, His Children, with gifts and blessings. But sometimes we go through times when those things don't come. Sometimes, as in the verses in Exodus at the top, it's easy to love and praise God when He gives us all we need, and sometimes it's not so easy, sometimes we wonder what we are going to drink. It's human nature that we seek opportunities to raise ourselves up, and when the wells seem to have drained up, we want to leave. God will at some, likely several points in time test each of us, if He hasn't already, to see what we're really in it for.

Are we in it for the money? If God took away everything we trusted Him with for a time, as He did with the Israelites, as He did with Job, would we abandon Him, or do we love Him for more than that? Will we pass the test, often called the "Dry Season" of our faith walk, or were we always just in it for the spiritual highs and the blessings?

It is when we love Him for more than all that that we will be worthy in His eyes to receive those things. More important than anything we have or are, is our pure love for God. We have to understand our relationship with Him like a relationship with a person, in the sense that although He is all wise, all powerful, immortal and invincible, He still has feelings, and He still weeps and rejoices for us, as He did for His Children in scripture. And it's when we see Him as a personal friend just as much as we see Him as our God and our Master, that's when we can begin to do His will and please Him.

Also, this message is to help you recognize something called a Dry Season when it comes. It's not always your fault when you don't feel God like you have before. Sometimes you wonder where He is, and sometimes it feels like He isn't helping you, or isn't giving you what you want or need. Sometimes God is refraining from giving you obvious blessings, like powerful moves in the Holy Ghost and immediately answered prayers, so He can give you the blessing of training you to be loyal, faithful, and faith-filled. Sometimes when it feels like He has left you, what's really happening is He is testing you, strengthening you, and working inside of you to make you a better man or woman of God!

And if you trust in Him and remain to be His friend when He seems to offer nothing, when blessings don't seem to be a reality and you couldn't possibly be "loving God" for selfish purposes instead of loving Him because of Who He is, He will see your heart and your love and reward you bountifully!

And being that kind of person, a loyal, humble, loving friend and servant of God no matter what season, that is exactly what God wants to use to change the world.