When a football quarterback breaks the huddle to run a play, he looks over the defense to try to determine how they are going to come after him.  Sometimes he will get to the line and he will get a signal from the sideline that came from the press box high above the stadium.  A coach who has a view of the entire field has seen either an opportunity to make yards or a defensive lineup that will mean disaster.  The quarterback then calls an audible (a change of plays).  It takes a lot of skill and he has to trust the coach.

It seems to me that we are living in a world where we are forced to call a lot of audibles.  It is hard to understand what is happening in our society.  Things that would change yearly or monthly are now changing daily.  We are constantly hearing about the changes that are taking place every day.

The game of life is much like the game of football.  We are in the game and there are those that are trying to defeat us.   Left to our own ability, we do not have much of a chance.  But the Lord looks down on the entire game and unlike the coach, he had a perfect understanding of what is going on in every situation.

The rules do not change and there are certain principles that lead us to victory.  It is important that we follow Biblical principles.

When we are in the midst of pressure, confusion, and change what are we to do?  Let me give you some ways we ought to respond.  They are not new but it helps us to focus on them again.

• We must remember that we are dependent upon Him
• Make prayer a priority in your life
• Be aware of other opportunities to invest in others
• Spend time regularly in the Word of God
• Be found faithful with your time, talent and tithes
• Make Bible Fellowship and Worship a priority. They will provide strength in times of challenge
• Make faithfulness the watchword of your life
• Never forget that we serve a risen Savior and no matter what the circumstance victory is ours.

This week someone alerted me of the fact that the American Humanist Association has unveiled a Christmas ad campaign in Washington, D.C., with the slogan “Why believe in a god?  Just be good for goodness sake.”

Once again, I find it very interesting that the campaign starts in Washington, D.C.  The head of the association said that the purpose was not to argue the existence of God, but they were trying to plant a seed.  Make no mistake about it, they are trying to stamp out God and to certainly take Christ out of Christmas. This is a reminder to us that we cannot take what we believe for granted. Now is the time for us to be verbal and vigilant. It is important for us to be ready to defend what we believe.

A survery earlier this year found that 92 percent of Americans say they believe in God. While that may be the case, a major portion of America is certainly not acting that way. This once again provides for us an opportountiy to proclaim the truth.

In recent days, we have had best selling books by Sam Harris, Christopher Hitchens, and Richard Dawkins promoting a new atheism.  There is nothing new about this atheism. It is still just a plain rebellion against God, only packaged differently.  This is a time for us to proclaim clearly, that Christmas is not just about love or peace or goodwill, but it is about God reaching out to mankind with the promise of salvation in His greatest gift, the Lord Jesus Christ. We cannot let efforts like this pass by without taking the opportunity to proclaim our message clearly.

Yesterday I was in Columbia to receive the Impact the World Award from the South Carolina Baptist Convention for the work that our church has done in the area of social and moral concerns in order to impact people with the gospel.  As I sat there on the stage, I listened to them list a number of ministries in which we have been involved. It was a great experience. Some of them I hardly even remembered and I was reminded what a powerful purpose they served. Others are ongoing and I was also reminded of how they are touching the lives of people on a regular basis with the gospel.  It turned out to be a very exciting experience.

As I walked off the platform, I realized that no one in our church even knows this award exists. You do what you do because you love the Lord and because you want to see the world impacted for Christ. I can assure you that your presence, your time, your efforts, and your gifts make a tremendous difference. In the midst of great opportunities and great challenge, this is not a time for us to backup, individually or collectively. We should be standing strong and increasing our efforts to spread the Good News. God will continue to honor our faithfulness as we seek to honor Him.

One of the things that excited me the most yesterday was to think about the numbers of people who have served so faithfully. God has given to this family of faith a very special attitude of service. I can assure you that is not present everywhere. So we must remember to whom much is given much is required. A number of people stopped me yesterday and said “congratulations,” but I assure you that I understand that those words of affirmation don’t belong to me, but they belong to those that are so faithful in our fellowship.

Today is Veterans Day.  This is a time when we honor those who have served and serve us in such an important role of protecting our country. Men and women in every part of the armed forces make great sacrifices in order that we might have the safest and most freedom- filled lifestyle of any people on earth.

Today as you pray, you need to pray for those who are serving us around the world, particular in Iraq and Afghanistan. While there are a great number of opinions about what is going on in this conflicts, their work is important. They do it out of a sense of responsibility and love for their country.  It is easy for us to second guess our leadership, but America has a responsibility around the world. I believe that when we show gratitude for our veterans and remember those who are presently serving, we also honor the Lord. It is certainly the proper and honorable for us to do, whether you have ever served in the service or not, or whether you have ever had a loved one serve, it is a privilege for all of us to show gratitude to those who have given so much.

Yesterday I shared with the church our 12 Days of Christmas emphasis that we are planning for the Christmas season.  This begins at midnight on November 29th as we begin 600 hours of continuous prayer going through midnight on Christmas Eve.   We have had over 200 people already take hours on our prayer wall. This is a wonderful start, and this is an effort in which every person should be involved. Everyone can find an hour and everyone should be a part of this effort.

The Christmas season is a very emotional and a very traditional time. There is a great deal of talk about love, caring, the love of Jesus and the importance of the birth of Christ. As believers, we are to be intent on sharing the whole gospel. Christmas is not just a sentimental holiday, it is a time when we celebrate God sending His son who ultimately died on the cross for our sin. We plan to use these days and opportunities to share the gospel aggressively.  People are looking for answers. They are not going to find it in political change, in economic prosperity or cultural opinion. They will find it only in Jesus Christ. It is important that we become prayer warriors.

In Jeremiah 29:13, it says  “You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.”  That is exactly what we need to do. We need to search for Him with all of our heart.  The opportunity to be a part of this prayer ministry is going to be a very special part of this Christmas season.