What will 2020 Hold for You ?
Southaven, Ms
By: Mike Upchurch
Sometimes I’ll channel surf some of the “religious” channels to hear what’s being said by preachers. I always get a kick out of watching those preachers who tend to prophesy over their congregation, moving them to the point of euphoria sometimes, where the congregants will stand, nod or wave, and ‘shout’ the preacher on. In recently listening to some sermons about the upcoming New Year, it occurred to me most sermons I heard fall under two headings:
A) What God will do for you.
B) What you can do for God.
The first category would be the prosperity preachers who are always saying what the Lord will do for you…..
They might say something like this…..
“This is what God says….‘2020 will be a breakout year for you! You’re going to rise up victorious. The Lord has seen your struggles and those chains that held you down are coming off! Your ship is about to come in!’”
Well, what did you expect them to say? They have to promise you SOMETHING! If they didn’t tell you what you wanted to hear, you might stop following them, or worse you might stop giving them money!
They are of course very popular preachers, and their flock support them with sacrificial offerings. Ironically, the money the sheep give them could be used to get said sheep out of debt, the very thing they believe God is going to do for them through their preachers exhortation.
Sadly, most of those prosperity preachers have become wealthy off of their loyal flock’s giving.
And lest you think I’m against prophecy and preachers or Pastors who prophesy I’m certainly NOT. Not when it’s truly from the Lord. I have prophesied over people from time to time, but only when I knew the Lord was speaking. Those prophecies have always come true at some point. That’s the test by the way for any prophet or their prophecy; if it doesn’t come true, you can disregard that prophet!
The other category of sermons I hear though, come from Ministers who may not be as popular. They may not have huge followings and may struggle financially themselves. They aren’t often heard outside their own flock as some are not on television. But they are the ones, in my humble opinion, who are telling their congregation the truth! It’s not about us and what God is going to do for us. It’s about the Lord and what we can do for Him in serving Him! And that means serving others. Serving others is actually in truth serving God. The way in which you treat others shows where your heart truly lies as a Christian. Listen to a preacher I admire deeply who was giving instruction to His church in a letter. It was written years and years ago, but thankfully it survived and can be shared today.
“We earnestly urge you, believers, admonish those who are out of line; the undisciplined, the unruly, the disorderly. Encourage the timid who lack spiritual courage, help the spiritually weak, be very patient with everyone always controlling your temper. See that no one repays another with evil for evil, but always seek that which is good for one another and for all people. Rejoice always and delight in your faith; be unceasing and persistent in prayer; in every situation no matter what the circumstances be thankful and continually give thanks to God; for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus. Do not quench subdue, or be unresponsive to the working and guidance of the Holy Spirit. Do not scorn or reject gifts of prophecy or prophecies and spoken revelations—words of instruction or exhortation or warning. But test all things carefully so you can recognize what is good. Hold firmly to that which is good. Abstain from every form of evil; withdraw and keep away from it.“
Those are excellent words of advice for anyone who desires to please the Lord. They really don’t have anything to do with our prospering or gaining wealth here on earth, or winning battles, or overcoming our enemy. But they have everything to do with serving others and serving the Lord and having wealth laid up in Heaven, which should be the goal of every saint. And they have everything to do with pleasing the Lord!
Oh, the Preacher who penned those golden words to live by? The Apostle Paul. Those words are found in
1 Thessalonians chapter 5, verses 14 through 22. They were shown here in the amplified version, with punctuation amended for clarity.
Yes, 2020 can indeed be a breakout year for you, if you purpose in your heart to put those around you first and walk in love! You’ll never be happier than when you find yourself striving to serve God with all your heart, caring not about earthly rewards which may or may not materialize.
And regarding prophecies from TV Evangelists, ask yourself this question…..
How many of the prophecies which were spoken over you in 2018, or those which you heard on TV and then appropriated for your own, actually came true in 2019?
This coming year, serve others and serve the Lord regardless if it benefits you. Serve like it’s your last year on earth. It may very well be! Who knows, a Trumpet could sound before you finish reading this sentence!
And that’s the way I see it!
Pastor Mike
