Pastor Jan Simmons of Breakthru Church has a powerful reminder for Christians in this temptation-filled world. He said, “Friendship with God doesn’t come by watching TV.”
Friendship with God
The senior pastor of the Texas-based church hopes to lead believers in a deeper relationship with Christ. So, he is reminding them how to build an intimate friendship with God. And he believes that it comes with a cost.
“Friendship with God does not come by watching TV. It does not come by sitting here in the service listening to a good sermon or a bad one, if that’s what you think,” he said.
Pastor Jan continued, “Relationship with God comes as you spend time with Him.”
He explained that choosing to build a relationship with God will take denying the things your flesh wants to do.
He said, “You have to yield that ugly, stinky flesh that says, ‘Surely, you can find something better to do. Go find your phone and play that little poker game on it. Surely, that’s more beneficial than sitting before your Heavenly Father, saying, ‘Father, I worship You. I love You.”
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Moreover, Pastor Jan believes that the decision to prioritize God above all else comes from a genuine encounter with Jesus. In one of his sermons, he shared that encountering Jesus will bring forth transformation.
“Too many Christians mistake emotions with an encounter with Jesus,” he said. He illustrated an example where a Christian believes that he had an encounter with God because of the strong emotions he felt during a Sunday service. But then, three or four days later, they forgot that it happened.
“That’s not an encounter with Jesus,” he declared. “An encounter with Jesus usually happens when you’re on your knees.”
“When you experience the reality of Jesus, your life will change. Your thinking will change. You will not be the same.”
Header Image: Breakthru Church [@breakthruchurchlongview], Instagram, November 22, 2023, https://www.instagram.com/reel/Cy63qrlJPAh/?igshid=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ%3D%3D
