Are You Listening to the Real Song

The strains of the song “Autumn Leaves” filled the air.  I reached for my iPhone, wondering what alarm was going off. You see, on iPhones, you can use songs for the alarm. I stared at the screen of the phone.

No alarms were sounding. 

My iPad was playing music from my iTunes selection. The song next in the shuffle was the real “Autumn Leaves.”

I had confused the two.

Don’t we do that in life? I think of the brochure I received in the mail this week, advertising a local church. As I read the words, it sounded like a real church. But I’ve talked with people who believed the advertising and attended. They didn’t go back when it was made clear you didn’t have to believe in Jesus to be a Christian.

It wasn’t a real church.

It is confusing when the words sound so great. We have churches that actually fall under the category of cults. I grew up in one. It takes so much more than a building and a pastor to be real.

Are you listening to the real song?

 “Don’t suppress the Spirit, and don’t stifle those who have a word from the Master. On the other hand, don’t be gullible. Check out everything, and keep only what’s good.” 1 Thessalonians 5:19-21 (MSG)