by Zeke Flores<\/p>\n
As I survey the fractured state of the people of America in general, and God’s people specifically, I’m humbled and grateful for those precious saints in congregations across the continent and around the world who understand the concept of congregational loyalty while others wander looking for greener pastures; who support their leadership even when decisions are made they don’t agree with; who encourage and uplift even when they’re discouraged; who overlook their own desires without imposing them on others even when those convictions are strongly held; who quietly and without fanfare simply work to be the best they can be while encouraging others to do the same.<\/p>\n
May their tribe increase.<\/p>\n
“So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus<\/em>” (Philippians 2:1-5).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
“<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
by Zeke Flores As I survey the fractured state of the people of America in general, and God’s people specifically, I’m humbled and grateful for those precious saints in congregations across the continent and around the world who understand the concept of congregational loyalty while others wander looking for greener pastures; who support their leadership…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[27],"tags":[1177],"class_list":["post-90787","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-article","tag-commitment"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":55206,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/blind-to-the-truth\/","url_meta":{"origin":90787,"position":0},"title":"Blind to the Truth","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"October 15, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"by Matthew W. Bassford Upton Sinclair once said, \"It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary depends on his not understanding it.\" Few better illustrations of this truth exist than the behavior of the craftsmen of Ephesus in Acts 19. They, along with everyone else\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/blindfold-225x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":91970,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/why-remain-a-christian-when-christians-sin\/","url_meta":{"origin":90787,"position":1},"title":"Why Remain a Christian When Christians Sin?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"November 8, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"by Doy Moyer Why do we stay faithful to Jesus when so many churches and people do so much wrong? It's a common complaint. Here is an elder, a deacon, or a preacher who fell from grace in some way or abused other members. Here is a church that is\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":59601,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-sin-of-self-righteousness\/","url_meta":{"origin":90787,"position":2},"title":"The Sin of Self-Righteousness","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 26, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"by Steven Harper Jesus rebuked the religious leaders of the first century, often because they had a too-high view of themselves. When He was at the house of Simon [a Pharisee], a woman who was known to be a sinner came in and began to wash His feet with her\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/proud.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":88580,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/celebrate-repentance\/","url_meta":{"origin":90787,"position":3},"title":"Celebrate Repentance!","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"July 11, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"by Perry Hall People celebrate when others recount how they overcame their sins, even using them as examples of good - and they should. However, people often shun those when they first repent of their sins (except when being baptized!). Shameful. It is true that overcoming sins, whether sexual, alcoholic,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":528,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/waiting-for-the-proper-time\/","url_meta":{"origin":90787,"position":4},"title":"Waiting for the Proper Time","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"June 8, 2003","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Few youngsters enjoy being told they must wait. When a thought enters their heads, they want to act on it right now. If they desire something, it must be in their possession right now. Any delay to a person who has not lived long appears to\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":68782,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/is-the-gospel-political\/","url_meta":{"origin":90787,"position":5},"title":"Is the Gospel Political?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"July 9, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"by Doy Moyer No\u2026 and yes. First, no. The gospel is not about parties and political power. It is not a brand of worldly government, for it transcends all governments (see Isaiah 2:1-4; Daniel 2:44-45). We can be Christians regardless of the political system in which we live. Some are\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/90787","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=90787"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/90787\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=90787"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=90787"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=90787"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}