Live and Let Live: And Do Something! (for God)

Live and Let Live: And Do Something! (for God)     Kelly Durant     6-8-25

1 Corinthians 3:13-15   Whatever we build on that foundation will be tested by fire on the day of judgment. Then everyone will find out if we have used gold, silver, and precious stones, or wood, hay, and straw.¹⁴ We will be rewarded if our building is left standing. ¹⁵ But if it is destroyed by the fire, we will lose everything. Yet we ourselves will be saved, like someone escaping from flames.

2. There were two friends that were proud in nature and they got together for a cup of tea. The one getting served said, “I should have the pleasure of serving you!” The one serving said, “No, The pleasure is mine to serve you!” Not to be outdone, the one served said, “Well, no the pleasure is mine, to be here.” The one serving said, “But the pleasure is mine you are here”. The one getting served said, “No, the pleasure is mine that you serve me.” The one serving said, “Well, I am serving, so more the pleasure is mine. “ “The pleasure is mine” argument went on for the rest of the afternoon, ha! 

As humans we are often too competitive to show off our humility, right? I really wish people here would argue over who gets to serve! How concerned are you about how others see your humble service to God? Some a lot, some nothing! What should concern us all is how God sees you and me! Are we serving one another in love only concerned that Jesus’s work gets done?

No one here can give God any excuse for not serving God, the Word is clear that we are to serve God and one another in love. (Gal 5:13) Hebrews 12:28 “Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear:”

3. When we consider what serving God is like and how we all perceive it, I try to describe it as others would see it that come in from the outside to church. Picture this analogy: Think of church as a huge unconventional classroom where you have a great variety of mixed ages and grades, all different intellectual levels, all different talents, and people with all different commitments apart from the study that they are committed to. The classes are from Pre-K all the way to college, some are still illiterate and ignorant while others are honor students and giants who have done their homework and accomplished great things.

Some of the people in the group have served God for decades and are on the master’s degree level in college, and some have served off and on and are comparable to being in elementary school. There is another group of people or ones that have never listened or served and years and years have passed. They have remained in class but not with the intention of learning or obeying, so they remain in the pre-K level. They do not know anything about what it means to be in the program denying yourself for Jesus, sacrificing their time, talent, and treasure for the use of God serving others with their God given capacities.

This dedication to God gap dynamic is in all churches, and it is very hard to manage! Usually a very small group of people will serve until they drop, until they are way too exhausted and the pastors have to intervene and say, “Stop!” In the meantime, others sit quietly by and do nothing and they don’t feel any guilt about seeing others killing their selves working so hard! This is not a very fair work distribution load, right? You have heard the phrase, ‘share the wealth’? Well that has already been done by God, Jesus gives everyone or “whoever” that accepts and obeys him the wealth of eternal life. But what about ‘sharing the work?’

4. The reality is in all community groups, be they people mixed together in churches, governments, civic groups, schools, or clubs, there will always be a disparity within the group of who pulls the weight and who does not, of whom is respected for leading and who is not. Don’t think doing nothing goes un-noticed!    

Jesus was aware of this work load disparity and He never let anyone off the hook! He never allowed for an elite few to be a ‘do nothing’ class within his disciples. They all had to do the Father’s work as Jesus himself did it, preaching, praying, and serving. When He sent them out each one did as He had taught them.             

Matt 10: 5 These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not: 6 But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. 7 And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand. 8 Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give.

5. An important lesson Jesus taught about serving was that He led by example, He did not just say, “You go and you do”, He went and He did, to show His followers (us) how to do it. In the end His obedience cost Him everything, and it cost the disciples as well but the results are that His works, His glory, His worthiness of adoration to sit on the right hand of God, has never been outdone by any other because He was the true Son of God! And try to absorb what love God has for you and me to have come down to our level to be one of us and then die for us! 

So what happens in the workplace when someone does not carry their load? They get fired, right? Definitely yes! But often people in power in the nations of today who do nothing, make horrible mistakes, and waste the country’s resources don’t fire their selves for a lousy job!? Today, disparity and the wrong message abounds! It’s embarrassing and infuriating when we experience people who are working but not doing their job just because they think they can get away with it! 

6. I recall one time in Atlanta a friend got a minor infraction and was in jail and needed my help to get him out with only $180. (He repaid me, ha!). I arrived at 10:00 pm and guess what time we got out? 3:00 am?! I paid at one window and then had to go to 5 different windows and they would take the paper and disappear for an hour or more, and I could see them just talking doing nothing in the back office. And these are my tax dollars at work, yeah right! And when I complained a little the attitude was, oh, complain or not you are just going to have to wait because I am in charge! How inefficient! How unjust and frustrating!  

People with the lazy proud, don’t-tell-me-anything, I-am-in charge of my life, I-am-an-untouchable attitude are destroying this society! They are everywhere, in authority positions (undeservingly), in unions, in companies, and even in churches. No wonder sloth (or laziness) is historically listed as one of the 7 deadly sins that will take you to hell! It is a sin from hell when someone remains uninvolved in the things of God. People forget all will be lost when death comes!

Do nothing people with zero initiative for Jesus & church will be very embarrassed on judgment day. Luke 12:47 “And that servant, which knew his lord's will, and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes”. In other words, those that have heard that they need to obey Jesus week after week, year after year and do nothing will suffer a hotter hell than those who never knew. How much do you really fear God? Honestly, not everyone does!

7. What did Jesus say to the good servant with the talents when he invested his time like money for God’s use? Matthew 25:20-21, 20 And so he that had received five talents came and brought other five talents, saying, Lord, thou delivered unto me five talents: behold, I have gained beside them five talents more. 21 His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.

But the one that did nothing for God, what happened? Matt 25: 26 His lord answered and said unto him, Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou knewest that I reap where I sowed not, and gather where I have not strawed: 27 Thou oughtest therefore to have put my money to the exchangers, and then at my coming I should have received mine own with usury.28 Take therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents. 29 For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath.30 And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Not applying your life to Jesus use when you know deep inside you are called to do it will cost you a punishment that is horribly beyond imagination!

8. Referring back to the verses of today in I Cor.3:13-15, Paul warns Christians not to be building personal kingdoms that are like straw that will be burnt up but rather be investing in God’s work.  Doing God’s work serving and sharing the gospel is like investing in gold and jewels, the souls saved are the jewels and only the things done for God on earth will last in heaven. 

On the History Channel or in Science Journals we discover the speculation of how the earth would be destroyed in the future. They all point to fire! It could be by a solar flare or a plasma, a massive earthquake with lava, a massive volcano, a comet strike, a nuclear meltdown, WW III, and a dozen other ways (which we can read about in the book of Revelation).  Prophecy is real and we can see it here…

2 Peter 3:12 “You should look forward to the day when God judges everyone, and you should try to make it come soon. On that day the heavens will be destroyed by fire, and everything else will melt in the heat.” 

There will come a day when everyone will lose everything and everything ever built on earth will be burnt up on that day, but soul and life energy are eternal. So saved people who worked so hard for the materialistic things of vanity, and invested little in God’s work, they will be saved, but like a person running out of their house on fire! They will have their life saved, but no valuables. Those who work for God though, will have their souls and works invested in the new heaven!

9. Another problem with the group dynamic of some people doing good and God’s work is that others not doing much are provoked to jealousy. When there is a person who shows up often to do the work, the others who do not want to appear as not doing enough start criticizing the ones who are doing good?!  

Gossip happens at the workplace, on the news, and in the churches from those who put down others so they appear more than them. People will say, “Oh they work so hard here because they are interested in some personal gain”. “ I don’t trust them”, and the people murmur, asking, why is this person recognized, and I am not?, “I have been here longer than these new ones”. 

10. It is not a Christian value to put others down in order to lift yourself up. When someone does something good, something of value for God, we should all praise them and share the glory with them. Philippians 2:3 Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. In other words, be thankful others help and do God’s work, recognize them and honor them! No one is getting glory for their vanity.

But in the end, no one answers to the Officers (pastors), or to anyone but to God for all of what they do! None of us are wise enough to judge motives and who is the most dedicated. So, if someone is doing something that helps God’s work, then my message is ‘More power to them’, and ‘Live and let live!’  

Like in the verses of the message theme from Mark 9:38, the disciples were concerned that some people were doing what they thought only they could be doing, and that was casting out devils, and what did Jesus say? 39 But Jesus said, Forbid him not: for there is no man which shall do a miracle in my name, that can lightly speak evil of me. 40 For he that is not against us is on our part.

11. William Booth coined the phrase, “Do something!” Everyone that is doing something good, something for God, something in the way of helping others as a testimony so they learn about God’s goodness, is doing God’s work; and the only feelings we should have for them is gratitude that they are serving God and humanity in need. Agreed?

The main attraction of our Corps, and of the dozens of ministries in The Salvation Army, is that we are people who serve, we serve the needy with food, shelter, with relief in disasters, and most of all spiritually with council, prayer, Bible classes, camps, and rehab. People who love churches with the main focus on the praise band, or on the pastor, or on how to get rich quick, who never do anything for others except their selves for their own recognition are not attracted to our serving ‘others’ focus and our uniform wearing ‘Heart to God, Hand to Man’ calling.

12. To do work that goes unnoticed and ignored by the vast majority in society, ignored by the anti-Christ press, ignored even by Christian brothers who are friends is a humbling discouraging thing. Not everyone can survive doing good works year after year doing what could appear to be unappreciated and ignored. But, if you are doing it for Jesus, you do not care for what the world thinks or says, you just do it because ‘you love Him because He first loved you!’

We are in a tug-o-war against serious evil and the enemy is gaining strength because many Christians who ‘know to do good and are not doing it’, and they are not pulling their weight here in the Church (Corps), or in the community. So by disappointing God, they (possibly you) are storing away for their selves judgment and a punishment for their proud selfishness, lack of commitment, lack of obedience, and unashamed ‘do nothing’ laziness.   

Do you feel conviction today to do more for God? It is a decision day today, you must choose Jesus as your Savior first and then trust God that He will give you the strength to do things you normally wouldn’t do. Don’t let your life pass by and be like the one who escaped a burning house with only his life. Invest in heaven now! 

Kelly Durant’s Sermon Quotes by Subject

Kelly Durant’s Sermon Quotes by Subject

Accusations

Those with a quick mentality to accuse are influenced by Satan who is known as, “the accuser of the saints”. People who are too quick to accuse, too quick to judge without all the facts, and afterwards never allow for an explanation, a reconnection, or reconciliation to determine if they were fair or wrong in their accusations, judgment, or reasoning for their out of control feelings are classified as being “fools” according to the Word of God in Proverbs 29:11 A fool uttereth all his mind: but a wise man keepeth it in till afterwards.

Apologetics

All your life as a Christian you will be challenged, made fun of, and provoked by those who have everything in their minds mixed up, these are the people with their minds fashioned by the corrupt worldviews of the day and false doctrines. How intellectually prepared are you to defend Christ? To defend you must be opinionated; you have a right to believe what you choose! Never let another person intimidate you that you must accept heresy!

Appreciation                                                                                                                                       

And Jesus said that Mary Magdalene is to be honored; it was pure thankfulness and love in her tears! Think about it, in your lifetime a few times you may have a few shed tears out of thankfulness for something someone special did for you. But his is extreme purity and holiness; this is a passionate crying repentance and love for Jesus as He wishes to see it! I wish there existed more people with this same passion and appreciation today!

Availability 

Usually it is only 3 to 5% of the church people that make their selves available to help with important projects volunteering. Making your own schedule and priorities secondary to the wishes of those being served is a noble act that will gain you heavenly rewards. But the people who are unavailable and always busy with their own things all the time probably wonder why God is not very available for them. Loving God means loving and serving others He created.

Bitterness

Unthankful bitter people lose their perspective of what others suffer. Bitter people are always self-focused. The disciples were not thankful for the tears that washed Jesus’ feet, they were indignant. Bitterness can come in when it is exposed one does not have a radical and total dedication in honoring Christ and someone else beside you does.

Competiveness

Young people and many adults are extremely competitive! They want to show off that they are the best, that they are better than the teacher, better than the preacher and supreme in all things. When they meet someone in their world, in the school or church, that seems more influential, more beautiful, or more talented, the first reaction is to hate them and destroy them. Everywhere, in schools, in jobs, in churches, we see this superiority immaturity! Competition is often nothing but pure hatred out of pride desiring the humiliation of a person who did not desire to do the work to compete fairly in the first place!

Capitalism or Socialism

Corrupt leaders will always be administrating the wealth they have confiscated either by high taxes, or property acquisition. Corruption in all systems has always been, and will always be, that is why Jesus said the “poor will always be with you”. But did Jesus promote a taking from the rich to give to the poor from the passage we just read? Luke 18:22 He in fact did, but within the context of sharing it for the fair & equal distribution in God’s Kingdom! It was to provide for the needs of the desperate poor and the disciples! But this was also about being a test of love. Did he love God and his neighbor enough to share it all? In God’s Kingdom there are many mansions, Jesus idea is that sharing all the wealth makes everyone rich here and in heaven, and with Jesus system there is no lower class of degraded poor! The young man appeared perfect in regards to the law, but he was disobedient, loving money more than God & others!

Church

The church, or this new loving group of called out ones that Jesus established, were designed to be a movement of follower teachers. They were sent to do God’s Kingdom work, to pray, preach, heal, and recruit souls that would teach others to follow Jesus as well. Jesus did not leave engineering plans and then ask his disciples to build impressive structures and then get people to come visit the extravagant cathedral so they could hear God’s word. The early disciples had many places where to meet, such as in homes. The emphasis was to “go” and preach the gospel to every creature. Expensive to maintain, luxurious structures distract the money and the mission away from getting out as Jesus did who made everyplace He went a temple, a place where God is. 

Compassion

They say that giving a beggar a piece of bread is a civil duty, but to give him a bread with butter on it, now that is compassion! Compassion is a divine quality something that is in all cultures with a certain measure, but the sad thing is that it is also very much diminishing in most cultures today. The level of the spiritual development of a culture or people can be measured by how much compassion they have. Being realistic, only Christians throughout time have proven over and over to be the ones to truly shell out millions and with an army of volunteers when there is a need or crisis. As a Christian how much compassion do you express? How much compassion does this community have? It lacks a lot!

Contributions

There is a hymn that says, I gave my life for you, what have you given to me? The Bible makes it clear we are to show our thanks to Jesus by giving Him our whole life, our time, our money and everything for His work! People that choose churches that only ask them their money contribution are getting robbed of blessings! There is a joy in serving others, in the giving of our lives in service as Jesus’ disciples did. But contributions here and there will never give you back the great joy and satisfaction you deserve to be getting as when you contribute all you can.

Correction

Today we live in a society that does not discipline nor correct people for their wrong as they need it! Quite often the right ones who justifiably want to correct someone, to expose the damage and wrong doing, end up with the punishment of ridicule and frustration instead! We live in a world were good is proclaimed as bad and the bad is exalted as good!

Culture

Racial and cultural relations are broken all the time because people are not willing to observe and respect the formalities and customs that are within the culture of the other! The rivalry between tribes, nations, and tongues has been going on ever since the beginning of time but what is our role as a Christian? How should we respond to others different than ourselves? Try to be “one” of them as Paul says to be as a Greek to the Greek, and as a Roman to the Roman.

Discipline

How many people have you ever heard give testimonies of how it was when they were disciplined by God? Here is a big problem: Many people are so unspiritual they do not even perceive when the Lord is dealing with them and understand when things do not come out right that there is a purpose. And the other problem: when people are corrected, they hide it from others so they will appear perfect. Neither way is right. 

Evangelism

 When we as Christians practice evangelism, it is very real like the sewer in the parable.  In Matt 13:3-8   there are 4 seeds and only one turned out to be the amazing one in four to give fruit! What we could conclude is, this is a crazy investment! I get little reward back for all the effort, I get waste and unthankfulness! Only 25% good if that much! But the rewards are in heaven!

Fathers

The first step for a man to be capable of being a good father is for him to recognize that he has a Father over him, who is God. If he gives honor and respect to someone over him, then he becomes a good example to his children and they will in turn honor and respect him. It works both ways, if he doesn’t honor God or anyone, his children will not learn to honor nor respect him and men, or fathers, reap what they sew.

Friends

So, mark out the names of the friends on your list who are not walking in love, or in other words, not living their lives in sacrifice to their family and others as God wants. You do not need friends who are not close to God. Even if only the pastor’s name is the only one left on your list, at least you will have Jesus and one more person on earth to look to whom you can trust and never regret knowing. In life we will always have friends, but who are friends are greatly affects our spiritual walk! Better quality than quantity and the honestly good over the ones with dubious motives who can end up draining the life out of you with their troubles or interest.

Entitlements

Some people believe they should benefit from what others have and should give up. This type of entitlement thinking wants the government, or the church, or their parents, or their husband or their wife or relatives to be continually giving to them all what they want just because they see them as richer, and having more than them. This one type of relationship from this unbiblical way of thinking and acting creates resentments, bitterness, and division. In Genesis the ones taking the best land by being selfish later paid a higher price. To share is Biblical but to share it with people who will appreciate it and not waste it.

Expectations

Some people have the expectation that we will serve them all the time, and that we will keep producing more bread and fish for them as they produce nothing; no souls won to the Lord, no friends converted to Jesus or the church. How sad their souls will be for eternity with nothing stored up in the bank of heaven! People expect, but do they give what is expected of them?

Family 

Jesus confirms that our greater family, the true common blood Christians near us, are the true family we have in God. Family is also friends, not just the relatives we inherited in our lives from our parents. Jesus makes it clear since He said,“I am your friend”, and He was a friend better than a brother, He laid down His life for you and me! He also expects the same standard from us towards our Christian brothers and sisters! Real families love each other and give their lives for each other!

Foolish Men

You can be a man with money, with power, with fame, and with much education, but without submitting to God’s wisdom you can be reduced to being an embarrassing fool! Many men reduce their lives to being in hell now and in hell hereafter, because they allow pride, selfishness, and lust, and to control them.  It destroys not just their life, but the lives of those closest to them!

Greed

What did the scripture say about the man who got a little prosperity and was rich? He wanted even more! When he had no problems, when God was good to Him, what was his attitude? Did he go to the temple and thank God for his prosperity? No! He became more and more selfish, he wanted to build bigger barns! And what provoked God’s wrath on his life? What caused God to decide to not only let Him loose everything but cut his life short? He had a heart that only could think about himself and no one else! He wanted to enjoy life without the bother of seeking or thanking God who gave him his life and his prosperity in the first place!

Hypocrites

People claim there are hypocrites in the church and they do not want to go to church. That’s like saying I do not want to see the doctor because his lobby is full of sick people! And true there always are a few hypocrites everywhere, in families, public office, etc., but usually those accusing are the not converted. They are people overcome with minds that mirror the hypocritical world. Hypocrites? These always are the other people, right? See your own!

Independence Celebrations

Jesus is very interested in the liberty and spiritual freedom of each of us! He wants us to have an Independence Day celebration!  When you first repented and received Jesus that was your Independence Day of sin and death, and it is your rebirth into the family of God with eternal life!

Immigrants

Jesus was an immigrant! He left his celestial home in heaven to come down to this poor unjust earth to be one of us! How many of you are immigrants? How many of you know how hard it is to be an immigrant? Like the immigrants, Jesus Christ had to arrive in humble circumstances! He was amongst the poorest of the poor born where the animals are born, in a manager.

Kingdom of God

Are you so presumptuous to assume that you are bound for heaven? Flesh and blood cannot inherit the “kingdom of God”! In other words you will not enter in if you are who you are now as only the holy, only the pure in heart, only the peacemakers, only the humble, only the merciful, only the honest and just, only the loving and persecuted for God will enter in! If you don’t have these qualities now, you won’t just instantly gain them there in heaven.  Jesus in Matthew 16:19 reveals that how you are now is how you will eternally remain!

Loyalty

Imagine, all of the disciples saw His miracles, they had heard all of His teachings, they probably were proud to boast that they were followers of the newest wave, at how Jesus was so popular. But now, what happens when his teaching no longer makes them feel good? What happen when a certain sermon suddenly makes Him unpopular & persecuted?  Their loyalty went out the door, and Jesus makes it clear they never believed in the beginning.

Nature

If you look up In the Bible the word tree, or look up references to the stars, animals, or any of God’s creatures or creation, you will find that there are hundreds and hundreds of these examples that display the majesty of God. All nature is used in the Bible as a spiritual metaphor as well. It is the devil’s role to try and destroy everything God made, as much as possible, be it the souls of people or any nature life as well!

New Year’s Goals

What you and I see from year to year is that some people are progressing in their walk with God being more loving, winning more people to His mission while others seem to be getting more self-centered, and farther away from God! Some people are looking more towards the things of the earth, and some are seeking more the things of God.  What goals have you made?

Perceptions

Perceptions of people, what they think about you and I, are what mess us up relationally. Godly guided people will understand more and speak more for the things of God in others, but most people do not perceive the whole picture as God does. The perceptions people deduct will cause them to speak up but notice it is usually over what is of their own self interests.  

Prophets

Paul’s definition implies that a prophet is one who follows all the word of God! A believer and transmitter of the message will follow the Old Testament, the Gospels, and the Godly counsel of fellow Christians. All Christians who share God’s message are in reality prophets! But what is a prophet? Isn’t that one of those Pentecostals who suddenly stand up in the middle of church service and yell out a verse or some phrase that tells everyone what they are supposed to do? No, that is not a prophet but a manipulator!  

 

Punishment

I want to ask you does any child just say, Oh I am so happy you are punishing me? No! No one likes punishment and the problem with some people is they have never let God do what He needs to do to clean out the rottenness in their life. They are like the dental patient who stops the dentists work and says, you know what, I don’t like pain so just leave that tooth alone, I’m out of here! But the rot will cause death! We all must learn to appreciate God’s corrections.

Relations With People

Working with people can easily be compared to the job of the snake charmer who dances the cobra with a flute! Most of the times it seems like everyone is happy, and you are happy and a lot is getting done for the kingdom of God, and then suddenly someone makes a human mistake, and then the flow of work & the music gets interrupted and then the fangs come out! Most people are not even aware of their own vicious nature when things do not go as they want them too!  People do not even perceive their own pride nor see with God’s spirit when they attack others with unkind words or defend their actions which are not according to God’s spirit!

Sadness

Sometimes God wants us to cry and be sad not over what sadness we feel from our circumstances but over the sadness He feels over us because we are proud and not clean and obedient. Everyone has a heart that needs a washing by tears but for the right reasons. It is sad that we are not in love with God more, wanting to be closer to Him in prayer and in His Word more every day!

Sin

There are many Christians that accept Jesus but they really never ask God to clean them totally inside. They want to keep having their little sins of gossip and greediness. The drug addicts and prostitutes, and really bad people understand what it means to give it all up to God, but the problem is with many people who grow up in the church, and they think they have not done too much to be so bad and wrong, is that they do not see their own faults. Sadly, there are those here, and there are Christians around the world that go to church but they never do confess their sins and live fully changed lives.

Soldiers

The Christian Soldiers of all churches are a small minority group but they have the privileged and elect status of a Soldier because they are willing to march out there into danger into their neighborhoods just as Jesus did to love the unlovely, to heal the wounded, and to preach the truth of the gospel! Soldiers fight battles with the truth against the dominant evil and each time and place requires its own tactical strategy for effectiveness. 

Teachers

In reality we are all teachers! We are all students too, but we are all teaching something just by our actions! This is evident by the way we live, the habits we repeat in our homes daily; everything we do is teaching someone close to us, our children, our spouses, our friends, what our character is made of whether it be truthfulness or hypocrisy. Whether we are authentically sweet and kind and gentle and loving, or whether we are loud mouthed complainers, unthankful and critical of everything behind closed doors!

Time

Decades pass us by. Returning to my hometown to revisit old neighborhoods is like time travel. The old neighbor next door who drove the old ‘57 Chevy for years finally bought a new Oldsmobile in the 80’s, and now that one is an already antique! Time on all of us without fail takes its toll and degenerates people and communities but only leaders with a vision to renovate and conserve that worth saving bring better circumstances. Everything before our eyes is rusting away, but God is in the renovating, saving, and conserving the good business.  

Uneducated-ness

Proverbs 1:22  How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity? and the scorners (accusers) delight in their scorning, and fools hate knowledge? The verse is basically making it clear that people who are simple and not intelligent enjoy being conflictive with others and are happy when they can bring up a subject that they can speak scornfully about to you, or of someone else. They only show their ignorance. Here is the sad part we observe more and more: Many Christians remain with simple minds due to their lack of educating themselves with the Word of God and they don’t even recognize their own ignorance! Some Christians today only hear a sermon every other week and they never open their Bibles and this keeps them simple, uneducated, and in danger of retaining a small mind and loud opinion that is more carnal than spiritual.

Vision

Your vision influences your personal life and walk with the Lord. Some people have the vision just to maintain enough in life to just get by; some want just enough of God to keep them out of hell, while others want all the blessings they can get out of the Lord! Like in the Prayer of Jabez, his family had a past of suffering, like you may have had, but he wanted prosperity and protection from evil, and God gave it to him! Vision invites reaction, either mediocre or great!