Champions are made, not born!

I have recently had this saying so strong on my heart and mind as I contemplate the state of Christians and christianity today. From my own observation, the trend for many of today's christians is that they are happy to just attend church services on a casual or ad hoc basis with no full commitment to a church community. The attitude of lone rangers not needing to connect with anyone but Jesus, together with the mindset that "being in love with Jesus is all that is needed; Jesus is love and grace and would never hurt me" is rampant in churches today. And it is these mindsets and attitudes that have created spoilt brat Christians who think that they can do whatever they like, whenever they like, with whomever they like - even when they know it is against God and His ways, because they have a fundamental belief that God will always forgive them and love them no matter. It is also these attitudes and mindsets that have created christians today to talk so much about God, about being more than a conqueror, about being an overcomer and about essentially being a CHAMPION. But have no lifestyle, authority or power to back this up, let alone give a true display of this in REALITY! Christians today are more talkers and proclaimers, rather than walking MANIFESTATIONS of the Word of God in their very lives.

It is time for Christians to stop mucking around with God, and get serious with Him and His process. And part of this process is that we are not called to just walk on our own with God as a lone ranger, but in a company of people called His church. For it is in the company of people and in the church, with all our imperfections and processes, that God will use this to make us into the champions we ought to be. Let's get away from all the trend of Christianity where going to church is just another social event alongside going to the nightclubs, the parties or the movies. Let's start taking our commitment to our local churches seriously, and give 100% so that we can be fashioned by God through our leadership, our fellow members and the church community. We must fear God in the right way, so that we don't misuse or abuse His grace and love that is so real. Ultimately, God's grace was not just to wash away our sins and cleanse us from all our wrongdoing, but His grace is there to CHANGE US AND MAKE US WHO HE KNOWS WE OUGHT TO BE! But that grace can never work in our lives as it ought to, if we continue to see it and use it as God's bail out plan for when I do wrong....even deliberately do wrong.

If we are truly going to be overcomers, more than conquerors and HEROES of our generation, then we need to get real and start taking God seriously, by fully committing to the process of being MADE by God rather than thinking that we will become strong heroes by osmosis through listening to great messages, reading great books and listening to praise and worship music. Being MADE by God takes guts, courage, determination, commitment, stamina, humility and a true pursuit of God Himself. To be made by God means that we have to lay down our WHOLE LIVES unto Him, and have Him deal with us as He pleases, not according to what we allow Him or what is comfortable for us. We can hear great sermons preached, read some of the greatest books ever written for christians and their walk in God, listen to the most anointed praise and worship music - but unless there is a true rendering of our hearts before God and a true brokenness of ourselves, our pride, our ways, our mindsets and EVERYTHING.....we will never become the champions that He has destined for us to be.

Being born again by the grace of God is one thing, being MADE by the grace of God through the trials, tribuations, afflictions and hard times is a whole other matter that only true champions can ever know.