Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for He is faithful that promised;) and let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another, and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.There's nothing the devil wants more than to get you to turn loose of your faith. It's somewhat like being in a canoe. If the canoe rocks, the natural reaction is to rock the other way. But if you rock too hard, it goes even farther over the other way. Pretty soon, you're bobbing and weaving to keep it upright.
(Heb. 10:23-25)
You know, if you sit still and resist the temptation to be tipped over, the canoe will right itself. Remember, as long as you're in the canoe, you're ok. It's when you fall out that you can drown. No one ever drowned while still in a canoe.
Steady As She Goes
And when you're a regular in church, you're safer than when you aren't. When you neglect going to church, you start wavering in your faith, and that is when you're in the gravest danger. As long as you're staying in church, you're being encouraged to stand in your faith.
The storm around you can blow it's fool head off, but you're still in the position of authority to say "Shut Up!" to the storm, or as Jesus put it, "Peace, be still!" When you get out of church, you get out of faith, and you lose your anointing and the ability to say "Peace, be still" and make it stick.
Jesus said He would not leave you to face the storm alone, He said He would never leave you or forsake you. And He is faithful that promised. But Jesus believes in Church. He died for the Church.
Let's consider one another. You and I are subject to the same problems that Jesus faced when He was here. We are weak, but Jesus is strong. We need to comfort, exhort, pray for and encourage one another.
Have you ever considered how a teepee works? All the several poles lean against one another and are joined at the top. Each shares the load, each props the others up. You can remove one, and the teepee will still stand, howbeit, weaker than before.
But how about one pole by itself? Will it hold it up? Can it stand alone? No, and neither can we stand alone. Each of us has something to contribute to the Body of Christ, whether we are weak or strong. And each of us need to draw love and comfort from one another.
Don't forsake assembling yourself together with other believers. Not only is there strength in numbers, but there is safety. The devil wants to separate people from church so he can pick them off, one by one.
Why do you think the early pioneers traveled together? Each could get the same distance by themselves in about the same amount of time. But when trouble came, and it did, there was help nearby and a shoulder to lean on.
Some say, "Well, Jesus is my shepherd, and I don't need to go to church. All those people at church have so many problems."
Yes, and you do, too. And you need to pray for one another. By the way, did it ever occur to you that maybe the Pastor could use some prayers and support as well as you?
Go to church often, not just to be fed, but to do your part to make the Body of Christ ready for the coming of Jesus! He is coming back for His Church. Don't be at the airport when your ship comes in.
All rights reserved. Used by permission.
Jerry Baysinger was a twenty-one-and-a-half-year civilian employee of Missouri State Highway Patrol and operator of his own successful furniture repair business, when in 1993, he was diagnosed with five melanomas and liver cancer. Given a month to live, he resigned from the Patrol and went home to die. 
