LEAD UP TO THIS WEEK'S LESSON - July 26th

Revelation 2:1-7 (NIV)

To the Church in Ephesus
1 “To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands.

2 I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked people, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false.

3 You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary.

4 Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken the love you had at first.

5 Consider how far you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place.

6 But you have this in your favor: You hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.

7 Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.

LEAD UP TO THIS WEEK'S LESSON

• Have you ever been in a continual routine and catch yourself wondering. "What am I doing"?
• A steady routine is not always bad! Sometimes, when it is a spiritual routine it can lead to a very productive relationship with the Lord.
• A routine that becomes a "rutine", which is being in a "rut", is not good. My definition of a rut is "an open end grave." 
• This is when we do things without thinking about why and what we are doing. 
• We are working merely out of habit and forget what really established the good habit in the beginning. 
• When we lose the motivation that brought us to a close walk with Christ, this is troubling.
• When this happens, we need to re-turn, re-establish, and re-dedicate ourselves to God's will for us. 

Key Point

Return to a love for Christ that permeates everything we do.