We must remind ourselves that God is good. Sometimes it is hard to remember that in a world that is full of tragic events that seem to unfold before our very eyes on social media, on television, or even on our smart phones. We all feel affected when bad things happen in our world today.
We see the images on our television screens of the people suffering in Texas and that surrounding region that was so devastated by the storm and the flooding that occurred down there. It seems so far away from most of us and yet it seems relatively close to us because we can see it on all of our devices.
We are reminded that there is much suffering in our world today and it is not just in a far away land. There is suffering in our very communities and our own countries. There is suffering in Aroostook County, where I live in Maine. There is suffering where you live as well. Maybe you are suffering in someway and you feel like no one understands what you are going through.
I just want to let you know that God understands and He cares for you and He loves you with a great and everlasting love. The Lord doesn't want you to suffer, but He knows that we live in a broken world because of sin. God made a way for us to be reconciled back to Himself through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
The Lord will provide for us in our suffering and He wants us to help others through their suffering. The Lord wants us to love Him with all of our hearts, minds, and souls and He wants us to love our neighbor as ourselves.
We believers in Jesus Christ are to be His hands and feet in this world. We are to proclaim that salvation that is available to everyone through Jesus Christ and we are to help others in their times of need. When bad things happen God is still good and He is a helper in our time of need.
Father God, Lord,
We praise Your name for You are Holy.
Help us to be Your servants and help those who are suffering.
Empower us through Your Spirit to love our neighbors as ourselves.
In Jesus Name we pray,
Amen.
Thursday, August 31, 2017
Wednesday, August 30, 2017
Praying For Fresh Fire of the Holy Spirit
Sometimes we get weary and tried. There are times when we feel spiritually dry. Maybe we feel lukewarm or have a feeling that something is missing from our walk with the Lord. The Lord is always with us and He promises us in His Word that He will be with us wherever we go. We have assurance that He will be with us through the deepest and darkest valleys that we will face.
Sometimes we wander off and away from the Lord. Sometimes we drift and we may not even notice until we get a sense that something is just not right. The Lord is waiting for us to come back to Him. He is not the one that has moved. We need to humble ourselves before the Lord and confess to Him that we have been neglecting our relationship with Him. We need to keep praying and calling out to Him. We need to keep reading His Word, the Bible, and continue to listen to the promptings of the Holy Spirit.
We must seek the Lord in faith and trust in His Amazing Grace. God loves us so very much. He demonstrated that great love toward us by sending His One and Only Son, Jesus Christ, into this world to save sinners like you and I and everyone in our world. The Lord Jesus lived a perfect and sinless life and He shed His blood on the Cross for our sins. Who so ever repents of their sins and trust in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior will be forgiven of their sins and have a Home in Heaven where they will be with the Lord for all eternity.
God raised Jesus from the dead on the third day and know He is at the right hand of God in Heaven. One Day Jesus will return to the earth and bring the Kingdom of God to full completion. The Lord didn't leave us as orphans to fend for ourselves until He returns, but He gives the Holy Spirit to indwell everyone who puts their faith and trust in Jesus Christ and His finished work on the Cross.
We live in a dry and weary land. It seems like the world is heading continually down the wrong road toward sin and destruction. It is often very easy for us to get swept up in the world's desires and start drifting along with the culture around us, but we must wake up from our lukewarmness and seek the Lord's direction.
Psalm 63
1 You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you, in a dry and parched land where there is no water.
Sometimes we wander off and away from the Lord. Sometimes we drift and we may not even notice until we get a sense that something is just not right. The Lord is waiting for us to come back to Him. He is not the one that has moved. We need to humble ourselves before the Lord and confess to Him that we have been neglecting our relationship with Him. We need to keep praying and calling out to Him. We need to keep reading His Word, the Bible, and continue to listen to the promptings of the Holy Spirit.
We must seek the Lord in faith and trust in His Amazing Grace. God loves us so very much. He demonstrated that great love toward us by sending His One and Only Son, Jesus Christ, into this world to save sinners like you and I and everyone in our world. The Lord Jesus lived a perfect and sinless life and He shed His blood on the Cross for our sins. Who so ever repents of their sins and trust in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior will be forgiven of their sins and have a Home in Heaven where they will be with the Lord for all eternity.
God raised Jesus from the dead on the third day and know He is at the right hand of God in Heaven. One Day Jesus will return to the earth and bring the Kingdom of God to full completion. The Lord didn't leave us as orphans to fend for ourselves until He returns, but He gives the Holy Spirit to indwell everyone who puts their faith and trust in Jesus Christ and His finished work on the Cross.
We live in a dry and weary land. It seems like the world is heading continually down the wrong road toward sin and destruction. It is often very easy for us to get swept up in the world's desires and start drifting along with the culture around us, but we must wake up from our lukewarmness and seek the Lord's direction.
Psalm 63
1 You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you, in a dry and parched land where there is no water.
2 I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory.
3 Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you.
4 I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands.
5 I will be fully satisfied as with the richest of foods; with singing lips my mouth will praise you.
6 On my bed I remember you; I think of you through the watches of the night.
7 Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.
8 I cling to you; your right hand upholds me.
9 Those who want to kill me will be destroyed; they will go down to the depths of the earth.
10 They will be given over to the sword and become food for jackals.
11 But the king will rejoice in God; all who swear by God will glory in him, while the mouths of liars will be silenced.
We need to seek the Lord each and everyday. The Lord wants to hear from His children and He wants us to lean on Him and seek Him in every circumstance. Sometimes we only seek the Lord in times of distress, but the Lord desires us to be in touch with Him on a regular basis.
We can count on the Lord to be with us at all times. We need to trust Him more and lean upon Him during life's storms. God is good and He does indeed love us deeply. He is our help in our time of need. We need to have hearts of thanksgiving for all He has done for us and all that He is continually doing for us on a daily basis.
Our lips should be praising Him in the good times and also in the bad times. We need to be more grateful for who the Lord is and all that His does for us. Let's rejoice in God for all that He has done for us. Let's sing praise to His Name. May our hearts be filled with joy because we know Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior and we know that our names are written in the Lamb's Book of Life.
May our spirit be revived by the power of the Holy Spirit dwelling within us because we have received Jesus as our Lord and Savior. Revive us O Lord and forgive our spiritual dryness. Send a fresh fire of the Holy Spirit among all who believe and trust in You O Lord.!
Father God, Lord,
We praise Your Name.
Send an outpouring of power and fire of the Holy Spirit in the lives of everyone who trust in the Lord Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.
Send a fresh faith and fresh power for Your Glory.
Forgive our spiritual dryness.
Draw us back to You O Lord.
In Jesus Name we pray,
Amen.
Sunday, August 27, 2017
Still Learning To Trust The Lord Jesus Christ Through Our Anxieties
Life is hard. We have all heard that said many times before and we all know that it is so very true. We live in a fallen and sinful world. There are many things that can cause us to worry and to be afraid. There are many things going on in our lives and in the world today that can cause us to be anxious. We live in a day and age of anxiety. We all get anxious about things once in a while, but some of us find ourselves in a constant state of anxiety and sometimes we are not even sure why exactly.
Anxiety can feel like pressing on the accelerator of your running car and you press it all the way to the floor, but your car is still in park. Sometimes we can be our own worse enemies because more often that not our anxieties start in our minds. We start thinking about things that could happen and we worry what would happen.
The Bible tells us a lot about anxiety and fear. We are told many times to, "Fear not!", but many of us still do. It is perfectly normal to be afraid when we are faced with some sort of danger that is right before us or a real threat that is a real possibility in the future.
Our trouble is that when we allow our fears to overwhelm us we take our focus off of the Lord. When we are consumed with worry and anxiety our faith shrinks. I am a very slow learner in many things and this is one thing that the Lord is still teaching me along with many other things. Sometimes my faith seems to be so small and my anxieties seem so over my head big that I feel helpless and afraid.
The good news is that we are not helpless when we know Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. He is bigger than any fear that we have. God is greater than anything that makes us anxious. When we are anxious our joy fizzles.
Jesus tells us not to worry, but to trust Him. Sometimes we find it hard to trust anyone, but we must learn that we can absolutely trust the Lord. God is still on the throne. He is greater that any challenge that comes against us. He is even greater than those imagined fears that never come to fruition.
I like what the Apostle Paul says in Philippians 4:4-9 which says,
"4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!
Anxiety can feel like pressing on the accelerator of your running car and you press it all the way to the floor, but your car is still in park. Sometimes we can be our own worse enemies because more often that not our anxieties start in our minds. We start thinking about things that could happen and we worry what would happen.
The Bible tells us a lot about anxiety and fear. We are told many times to, "Fear not!", but many of us still do. It is perfectly normal to be afraid when we are faced with some sort of danger that is right before us or a real threat that is a real possibility in the future.
Our trouble is that when we allow our fears to overwhelm us we take our focus off of the Lord. When we are consumed with worry and anxiety our faith shrinks. I am a very slow learner in many things and this is one thing that the Lord is still teaching me along with many other things. Sometimes my faith seems to be so small and my anxieties seem so over my head big that I feel helpless and afraid.
The good news is that we are not helpless when we know Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. He is bigger than any fear that we have. God is greater than anything that makes us anxious. When we are anxious our joy fizzles.
Jesus tells us not to worry, but to trust Him. Sometimes we find it hard to trust anyone, but we must learn that we can absolutely trust the Lord. God is still on the throne. He is greater that any challenge that comes against us. He is even greater than those imagined fears that never come to fruition.
I like what the Apostle Paul says in Philippians 4:4-9 which says,
"4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!
5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near.
6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
8 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.
9 Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you".
When we start to feel worried and anxious we need to remember that the Lord is in control. We also need to rejoice in the Lord because of who He is. He is great than anything that comes against us in life. Our God can move mountains and He can even help us over them as well. There is nothing our God can't do.
Sometimes we lose focus of the Lord and we start focusing on our worries and fears. When we start focusing on our fears our view of God shrinks, but when our focus is on the Lord our fears shrink. Sometimes our thoughts turn away from the Lord for some reason and we act as if He is not around to help us, but that is not true at all. God is always available to help us. All we need to do is call out to Him and trust in Him. I am still learning to trust in Him more. Sometimes my faith seems so very small, but even in those times I am so glad that my God is so big and loves me so much.
When we feel anxious we need to call out to the Lord in prayer and trust Him to guard our hearts and minds with His peace. We need to think on things that are God honoring and live our lives for Him by walking in the Holy Spirit. We can't do anything in our own power and strength, but we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us.
Let's surrender our anxieties to the Lord Jesus and learn to trust in Him more. We also need to be thankful for all the Lord has done for us and that He is working our in our lives. When I think about all the things that are going on in our world today I am thankful that I know the Lord Jesus Christ is my Lord and Savior and that He will never leave me and He will never forsake me.
My prayers and thoughts go out to the people in Texas who are undergoing a horrible storm and flooding. May the Lord bring them comfort and strength during this difficult time.
Lord,
We praise Your Holy Name.
I uplift the people of Texas who are facing sever flooding and damage due to a storm.
I pray that You would ease our anxieties and worries and turn our hearts towards You.
Lead us and guide us by Your Holy Spirit.
In Jesus Name we pray,
Amen.
Saturday, August 26, 2017
Encouraging One Another
There are many things in life that can discourage us to the point where we feel like giving up. When we look at the news on the television or wherever we get our news from these days we can grow rather discouraged. There seems to be a lot of bad news going on all around us. It is so easy for us to turn very cynical and very discouraged at everything going on all around us.
There are plenty of things that we could be discouraged about that is for sure. We as believers in Jesus Christ need to remember that our hope is not in a country, a political party, or even a world leader. Our hope is firmly established in the Lord Jesus Christ and His finished work on the Cross. The Lord Jesus is our hope in a world that is filled with darkness and despair.
The Lord Jesus told us that just before His Second Coming that people's hearts would grow cold at all of the ungodliness going on in the world. He said that troubles would increase all around the world. We should not be surprised at all of the turmoil and trouble that is going on all around us as if something strange was going on. Jesus told us exactly what would happen before His return and things are starting to happen.
Things will grow from bad to worse until the Lord Jesus descends from Heaven on a cloud and returns as the Lord of lords and the King of kings. Instead of believers in Christ Jesus being discouraged we should be encouraging one another to live for Jesus and we should be encouraging one another to tell people all around us the Gospel Message of Jesus Christ.
We must not get distracted from our main mission. Jesus gave us our marching orders to work on until the Day HE comes in Glory. Jesus tells us to go into all the world and make disciples. We must be careful not to immerse ourselves in the way of the world and act as the world does. We believers in Jesus Christ are to walk by the Holy Spirit and live for the Lord Jesus each and every moment of each and everyday and proclaim the Gospel message to all we meet and sometimes we will use words if necessary.
Hebrews 10:19-25
19 Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus,
There are plenty of things that we could be discouraged about that is for sure. We as believers in Jesus Christ need to remember that our hope is not in a country, a political party, or even a world leader. Our hope is firmly established in the Lord Jesus Christ and His finished work on the Cross. The Lord Jesus is our hope in a world that is filled with darkness and despair.
The Lord Jesus told us that just before His Second Coming that people's hearts would grow cold at all of the ungodliness going on in the world. He said that troubles would increase all around the world. We should not be surprised at all of the turmoil and trouble that is going on all around us as if something strange was going on. Jesus told us exactly what would happen before His return and things are starting to happen.
Things will grow from bad to worse until the Lord Jesus descends from Heaven on a cloud and returns as the Lord of lords and the King of kings. Instead of believers in Christ Jesus being discouraged we should be encouraging one another to live for Jesus and we should be encouraging one another to tell people all around us the Gospel Message of Jesus Christ.
We must not get distracted from our main mission. Jesus gave us our marching orders to work on until the Day HE comes in Glory. Jesus tells us to go into all the world and make disciples. We must be careful not to immerse ourselves in the way of the world and act as the world does. We believers in Jesus Christ are to walk by the Holy Spirit and live for the Lord Jesus each and every moment of each and everyday and proclaim the Gospel message to all we meet and sometimes we will use words if necessary.
Hebrews 10:19-25
19 Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus,
20 by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body,
21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God,
22 let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water.
23 Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.
24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds,
25 not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.
We all get discouraged sometimes. Sometimes we get discouraged and frustrated with ourselves and also with others. Sometimes we get discouraged with the church and we may even stop attending or find a different church to attend, but that isn't always the right answer. If the church body is living according to the truth of God's Word and the truth about Jesus is being proclaimed we must be very careful before we leave that fellowship. There needs to be a time of self reflection to see if our motives are right. We must always seek the Lord's direction and His will.
We must never give up the hope that we have in Jesus Christ and we must not give up the fellowship that we have with other believers in Jesus Christ. We need fellow believers to encourage us as we run our race of faith with our eyes fixed upon our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Let us also encourage other believers and not be discouraging others as many seem to be doing these days.
It is time for we believers in Jesus Christ to out on love and mercy and show the world what true followers of Christ are like. Hopefully we will draw some to the Lord Jesus by our love for the Lord and for each other.
Lord, Heavenly Father,
Forgive us for spreading discouragement to those around us.
Help us to be hopeful in the truth of Jesus Christ.
Help us to spread the Gospel truth of Jesus Christ to those all around us.
Empower us through the Holy Spirit to be encourages of other believers in Christ.
In Jesus Name we pray,
Amen.
Friday, August 25, 2017
Finding Forgiveness Through Jesus
When times are tough and things just don't make sense we must remember that our God is good and He is working out all things for our good. Sometimes it may not seem that way because the things we go through aren't necessarily good. The Lord never promised us an easy life.
Jesus tells us in the New Testament that in this world we will indeed have trouble, but He also tells us that we should take heart in knowing that He has overcome the world. Jesus won the victory over sin and death at the Cross on our behalf.
We have all sinned and have missed the mark. We have all sinned and we have all fallen short of God's high standards. The Lord made a way for us when there seemed to be no way. God sent His one and only Son, Jesus Christ, into this world to live a perfect and sinless life. The Lord Jesus went to the Cross and died there for our sins.
It was at the Cross that Jesus shed His blood and took the punishment that you and I so rightly deserve. There is no one of us that is good enough to earn forgiveness of our sins on our own. There is not one of us that is good enough to enter Heaven on our own merit. We have all failed to measure up to God's standards and we still fail to measure up everyday.
Thankfully there is forgiveness through Jesus Christ. We need to repent of our sins and come to faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ and trust in Him as our Lord and Savior to be saved. We are saved by His grace through faith.
When we trust Jesus as our Lord and Savior we are forgiven of our sins and have a place in Heaven waiting for us. The Holy Spirit comes to indwell everyone who has placed their faith in Jesus Christ. The Lord is always with us no matter where we go. He promises us in His Word that He will never leave us nor we He ever forsake us.
God is good and He always keeps His promises. "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness." (I John 1:9)
Lord, Heavenly Father,
Jesus tells us in the New Testament that in this world we will indeed have trouble, but He also tells us that we should take heart in knowing that He has overcome the world. Jesus won the victory over sin and death at the Cross on our behalf.
We have all sinned and have missed the mark. We have all sinned and we have all fallen short of God's high standards. The Lord made a way for us when there seemed to be no way. God sent His one and only Son, Jesus Christ, into this world to live a perfect and sinless life. The Lord Jesus went to the Cross and died there for our sins.
It was at the Cross that Jesus shed His blood and took the punishment that you and I so rightly deserve. There is no one of us that is good enough to earn forgiveness of our sins on our own. There is not one of us that is good enough to enter Heaven on our own merit. We have all failed to measure up to God's standards and we still fail to measure up everyday.
Thankfully there is forgiveness through Jesus Christ. We need to repent of our sins and come to faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ and trust in Him as our Lord and Savior to be saved. We are saved by His grace through faith.
When we trust Jesus as our Lord and Savior we are forgiven of our sins and have a place in Heaven waiting for us. The Holy Spirit comes to indwell everyone who has placed their faith in Jesus Christ. The Lord is always with us no matter where we go. He promises us in His Word that He will never leave us nor we He ever forsake us.
God is good and He always keeps His promises. "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness." (I John 1:9)
Lord, Heavenly Father,
Thank You for forgiveness of our sins through the shed blood of Jesus Christ.
Thank You that we are saved by grace through faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ on the Cross.
We praise Your Holy Name.
Grant us a fresh faith and a fresh power of the Holy Spirit in our lives.
Help us to live lives that honor You and bring You glory.
In Jesus Name we pray,
Amen.
Tuesday, August 22, 2017
Pressing On Toward The Goal
Sometimes we can get distracted from the call that God has placed upon our lives. When we place our faith and trust in Jesus Christ we start out on a journey or a race. The Christian life is often compared to a race in the New Testament and it truly does seem like a race when we really think of about it.
When you are running in a race you have a goal in mind and that goal is the finish line and whatever prize that you get. When a person is in a race they usually have that desire in their hearts to finish first and receive a medal. We like to win, let's face it. Winning feels good and we like the attention that other people give to us because we are a winner.
When we are running our race of faith in Jesus Christ our focus isn't about winning because Jesus is the One that won our race for us by dying on the Cross in our place. Jesus paid our sin debt by taking the punishment that you and I so rightly deserve. When we run our race here on earth our desire is to live a life in obedience to God by reading His Word, the Bible, and being empowered by the Holy Spirit to accomplish whatever the Lord wills us to do for Him.
Our focus in our race needs to be on the Lord Jesus Christ and one day we will cross the finish line which will be receiving our eternal Home in Heaven. We must be careful not to lose focus and go off course. There are times during our Christian walk that we will lose focus and try to do things our own way. When we fail to do God's will and try to do things the way we think they should be done we run into trouble. Thankfully the Lord usually lets us know when we have gone of track and He will warn us and He will help us to get refocused. Sometimes He has to drag us or He has to get our attention in some way. Sometimes those times aren't very pleasant.
Philippians 3:12-21,
12 Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.
15 All of us, then, who are mature should take such a view of things. And if on some point you think differently, that too God will make clear to you.
When you are running in a race you have a goal in mind and that goal is the finish line and whatever prize that you get. When a person is in a race they usually have that desire in their hearts to finish first and receive a medal. We like to win, let's face it. Winning feels good and we like the attention that other people give to us because we are a winner.
When we are running our race of faith in Jesus Christ our focus isn't about winning because Jesus is the One that won our race for us by dying on the Cross in our place. Jesus paid our sin debt by taking the punishment that you and I so rightly deserve. When we run our race here on earth our desire is to live a life in obedience to God by reading His Word, the Bible, and being empowered by the Holy Spirit to accomplish whatever the Lord wills us to do for Him.
Our focus in our race needs to be on the Lord Jesus Christ and one day we will cross the finish line which will be receiving our eternal Home in Heaven. We must be careful not to lose focus and go off course. There are times during our Christian walk that we will lose focus and try to do things our own way. When we fail to do God's will and try to do things the way we think they should be done we run into trouble. Thankfully the Lord usually lets us know when we have gone of track and He will warn us and He will help us to get refocused. Sometimes He has to drag us or He has to get our attention in some way. Sometimes those times aren't very pleasant.
Philippians 3:12-21,
12 Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.
13 Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead,
14 I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.
16 Only let us live up to what we have already attained.
17 Join together in following my example, brothers and sisters, and just as you have us as a model, keep your eyes on those who live as we do.
18 For, as I have often told you before and now tell you again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ.
19 Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is set on earthly things.
20 But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ,
21 who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.
We must lay down our past desires and the way we used to live before we met Christ and we need to continue onto the prize that is before us. There is a great reward awaiting all of us who have placed our faith and trust in Jesus Christ and that is Heaven. In Heaven we will be with our Lord Jesus for all eternity. There will be no sorrow there, no pain, no illness, no more death, and no more tears. What a great and awesome day that will be when we see the Lord Jesus Christ face to face.
We must run our race focused upon Jesus and live our lives for Him. We need to read the Bible and be led by the Holy Spirit. We need to be telling others about the Gospel message of Jesus Christ. The days are getting rather dark and scary. We need to be about the Lord's business and run the race that the Lord has placed us in with our focus upon Jesus.
I confess sometimes I get distracted by worldly things and things that really don't matter when compared to eternity. Many people are racing at a face pace toward eternity and they are totally unaware what awaits them. That troubles me. We as believers in Jesus Christ need to proclaim the Gospel to all of the world and that needs to start in our own communities and throughout out nation and throughout the world.
Let us live for Jesus by telling others about Him and let us have our focus on Him as we run our race here on the earth awaiting the day our race is finished and we enter our Heavenly Home.
Lord,
Thank You for loving us so much.
We pray that You will be our focus throughout our race.
Lead us and direct our steps.
May Your will be done.
In Jesus Name,
Amen.
Monday, August 21, 2017
Having Our Focus On Jesus And Eternity
We all have had trials and troubles occur in our lives. Sometimes the troubles that we have can really make us weary and tired. We make even encounter things in life where we wonder if we will make it through to see another day. Life can be really hard and trying sometimes. Maybe you are going through something really hard and challenging right at this very moment. I hope this blog posting will be an encouragement to you in some way through the Lord's leading.
Sometimes our troubles seem so very big and daunting and they sure can be. Sometimes illness comes into our lives and we lose our health and other things seem to unravel in our lives. We may lose our job, our home, or a loved one. The trials and troubles that we face can bring us to our breaking point. We may even be filled with fear and anxiety. We may even fall into a pit of depression and despair. Sometimes it seems all to easy for us to become hopeless and on the very verge of giving up, but we must never give up hope.
We must remember who God is. God is the Creator of all things seen and unseen. He is our Maker. God loves us with a great deep love that is unconditional. We can't earn His love and there is nothing we can do to make God love us less. That doesn't mean that He is always pleased by our actions and the choices that we make because sometimes He is not pleased at all.
We have all fallen short of God's Glory and we have all sinned. God demonstrated His great love for each of us by sending His one and only Son, Jesus Christ, into this world to live a perfect and sinless life. Jesus went obediently to the Cross, shedding His blood for our sins. God raised Jesus from the dead on the third day and He is now at the right hand of the Father in Heaven. One day Jesus will return to the earth and bring the Kingdom of God to the earth in full completion. The Lord Jesus didn't leave us as orphans to fend for ourselves, but He gives the Holy Spirit to each one of us who trusts Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. The Holy Spirit indwells every believer that trust in the finished work of Christ.
Sometimes when we are going through a period of suffering we forget how much the Lord Jesus has done for us and we forget that one day He will take us to Heaven to be with Him for all eternity. Sometimes as we travel through this difficult journey of life we forget how truly great Heaven will be when our faith finally becomes sight and we see the Lord Jesus Christ, the One died in our place on the Cross taking upon Himself the punishment we so rightly deserve. Jesus paid it all and all to Him I owe.
When we are going through a rough time and we most likely will. Let us remember that Jesus is with us each and every step of the way if we have put our faith and trust in Him. He will never leave us nor will He ever forsake us. We can trust Him all the way through the difficulties of life and all the way until He takes us Home to Heaven to live with Him for all eternity.
God loves you. He doesn't like to see you suffer and be in pain. God can use these moments of suffering to draw us nearer to Himself and He will show us that we can trust Him in all things whether good or bad. Our God is faithful and trustworthy. Jesus is a friend that sticks closer than a brother. Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forevermore.
We must keep an eternal perspective as we walk out our Christian journey. We must keep our eyes upon the prize. We need to keep our eyes upon Jesus Christ each step of the way no matter how dark and scary things may seem at the moment. Call out to the Lord Jesus in your time of trouble and trust Him to answer you and to comfort you by His Holy Spirit.
Lord, Heavenly Father,
We praise Your Name for You are Holy.
Draw us near to You.
Help us through our trials and troubles.
We pray for Your comforting hand to be upon us.
Grant us the peace that guards our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
Come Soon Lord Jesus.
We pray that You will send workers into Your harvest field and proclaim the Gospel message.
In Jesus Name we pray,
Amen.
Sometimes our troubles seem so very big and daunting and they sure can be. Sometimes illness comes into our lives and we lose our health and other things seem to unravel in our lives. We may lose our job, our home, or a loved one. The trials and troubles that we face can bring us to our breaking point. We may even be filled with fear and anxiety. We may even fall into a pit of depression and despair. Sometimes it seems all to easy for us to become hopeless and on the very verge of giving up, but we must never give up hope.
We must remember who God is. God is the Creator of all things seen and unseen. He is our Maker. God loves us with a great deep love that is unconditional. We can't earn His love and there is nothing we can do to make God love us less. That doesn't mean that He is always pleased by our actions and the choices that we make because sometimes He is not pleased at all.
We have all fallen short of God's Glory and we have all sinned. God demonstrated His great love for each of us by sending His one and only Son, Jesus Christ, into this world to live a perfect and sinless life. Jesus went obediently to the Cross, shedding His blood for our sins. God raised Jesus from the dead on the third day and He is now at the right hand of the Father in Heaven. One day Jesus will return to the earth and bring the Kingdom of God to the earth in full completion. The Lord Jesus didn't leave us as orphans to fend for ourselves, but He gives the Holy Spirit to each one of us who trusts Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. The Holy Spirit indwells every believer that trust in the finished work of Christ.
Sometimes when we are going through a period of suffering we forget how much the Lord Jesus has done for us and we forget that one day He will take us to Heaven to be with Him for all eternity. Sometimes as we travel through this difficult journey of life we forget how truly great Heaven will be when our faith finally becomes sight and we see the Lord Jesus Christ, the One died in our place on the Cross taking upon Himself the punishment we so rightly deserve. Jesus paid it all and all to Him I owe.
When we are going through a rough time and we most likely will. Let us remember that Jesus is with us each and every step of the way if we have put our faith and trust in Him. He will never leave us nor will He ever forsake us. We can trust Him all the way through the difficulties of life and all the way until He takes us Home to Heaven to live with Him for all eternity.
God loves you. He doesn't like to see you suffer and be in pain. God can use these moments of suffering to draw us nearer to Himself and He will show us that we can trust Him in all things whether good or bad. Our God is faithful and trustworthy. Jesus is a friend that sticks closer than a brother. Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forevermore.
We must keep an eternal perspective as we walk out our Christian journey. We must keep our eyes upon the prize. We need to keep our eyes upon Jesus Christ each step of the way no matter how dark and scary things may seem at the moment. Call out to the Lord Jesus in your time of trouble and trust Him to answer you and to comfort you by His Holy Spirit.
Lord, Heavenly Father,
We praise Your Name for You are Holy.
Draw us near to You.
Help us through our trials and troubles.
We pray for Your comforting hand to be upon us.
Grant us the peace that guards our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
Come Soon Lord Jesus.
We pray that You will send workers into Your harvest field and proclaim the Gospel message.
In Jesus Name we pray,
Amen.
Sunday, August 20, 2017
Jesus Cares
Sometimes life can get rather hard and difficult. There are times when we feel all alone and we wonder if anyone cares for us. We all get lonely sometimes. We all have wondered if anyone cares. When we think of people who care for us we usually think of our families and close friends.
There are times when we are far away from the people we love for one reason or another. When our lives hit a rough patch and our emotions are all over the place we wonder, "Does anybody care?"
We know that the Lord God cares for us. God is the Creator of all things seen and unseen. The Lord spoke the Universe into existence and He Created the stars, earth, and everything. He Created life here on earth and He made you and me.
When we look up at the starry sky and we see all the beauty it beholds we should feel really small. We should feel small because there are a lot of stars out there in space and the Universe is really, really big. Our God is bigger. Our God is so big that He can handle any problem that comes our way if we just trust Him.
When we start wondering if anyone cares for us we can know that the Lord our God cares for us far deeper and great than anyone else we know. God knows everything about us and He loves us. We have been Created by God for a very important task and He will show us what that is if we allow Him to lead us through His Holy Spirit and His Holy Word, the Bible.
Let us draw near to God by spending time with Him in prayer and reading His Word, the Bible. Let us remember that no matter what is happening in our lives or in our world today we have an Awesome God that loves us and cares for us. God showed each one of us how much He cares by sending His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, into this world to die on a cruel rugged Cross for our sins.
Yes, there is someone who cares. Jesus cares.
Lord,
Thank You that You care for us.
Thank You that You are always with us each and everyday.
Lead us and guide us by Your Holy Spirit.
In Jesus Name we pray,
Amen.
There are times when we are far away from the people we love for one reason or another. When our lives hit a rough patch and our emotions are all over the place we wonder, "Does anybody care?"
We know that the Lord God cares for us. God is the Creator of all things seen and unseen. The Lord spoke the Universe into existence and He Created the stars, earth, and everything. He Created life here on earth and He made you and me.
When we look up at the starry sky and we see all the beauty it beholds we should feel really small. We should feel small because there are a lot of stars out there in space and the Universe is really, really big. Our God is bigger. Our God is so big that He can handle any problem that comes our way if we just trust Him.
When we start wondering if anyone cares for us we can know that the Lord our God cares for us far deeper and great than anyone else we know. God knows everything about us and He loves us. We have been Created by God for a very important task and He will show us what that is if we allow Him to lead us through His Holy Spirit and His Holy Word, the Bible.
Let us draw near to God by spending time with Him in prayer and reading His Word, the Bible. Let us remember that no matter what is happening in our lives or in our world today we have an Awesome God that loves us and cares for us. God showed each one of us how much He cares by sending His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, into this world to die on a cruel rugged Cross for our sins.
Yes, there is someone who cares. Jesus cares.
Lord,
Thank You that You care for us.
Thank You that You are always with us each and everyday.
Lead us and guide us by Your Holy Spirit.
In Jesus Name we pray,
Amen.
Friday, August 18, 2017
Being Ready For The Return Of Jesus Christ
The world can be a rather scary and difficult place to live at times. There seems to be a lot of darkness in our world these days and that darkness seems to be growing rather rapidly. It is so very easy to get discouraged and even fearful. It is easy for us to develop a negative attitude about things that are going on and if we are not careful we can grow bitter and cynical about everything.
We must remember that we live in a fallen and sinful world that is trying to distance itself from the true living God. We also must remember that our enemy, the devil, is stirring up trouble all over the world because he knows his time is getting extremely short because very soon the Lord Jesus Christ will return. What a great day that will be when the Lord Jesus returns and brings the Kingdom of God to the earth in full completion.
When Jesus returns it won't be as a baby and He won't be placed in a manger. When Christ Jesus returns at His Second Coming it will be as the King of kings and the Lord of lords and every eye shall see Him come. It will be a great and horrible day when the Lord Jesus comes.
It will be great for all of us who have trusted in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. Everyone of us who have trusted in His finished work on the Cross will be with Him for all eternity, but those whom have rejected His gift of salvation will be condemned and be eternally separated from Him for all eternity and placed in a literal hell.
When we look at everything going on in our world today it is very important to know that we are ready for the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. It will happen. Jesus promised that He will return and He always keeps His promises.
Are you ready?
Lord,
We must remember that we live in a fallen and sinful world that is trying to distance itself from the true living God. We also must remember that our enemy, the devil, is stirring up trouble all over the world because he knows his time is getting extremely short because very soon the Lord Jesus Christ will return. What a great day that will be when the Lord Jesus returns and brings the Kingdom of God to the earth in full completion.
When Jesus returns it won't be as a baby and He won't be placed in a manger. When Christ Jesus returns at His Second Coming it will be as the King of kings and the Lord of lords and every eye shall see Him come. It will be a great and horrible day when the Lord Jesus comes.
It will be great for all of us who have trusted in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. Everyone of us who have trusted in His finished work on the Cross will be with Him for all eternity, but those whom have rejected His gift of salvation will be condemned and be eternally separated from Him for all eternity and placed in a literal hell.
When we look at everything going on in our world today it is very important to know that we are ready for the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. It will happen. Jesus promised that He will return and He always keeps His promises.
Are you ready?
Lord,
We praise You.
You are Holy.
We worship You with our hands lifted high.
You alone are God.
You hold us close.
You love us.
We love You.
It is to the Cross that we cling.
We cling to You Lord Jesus.
In Jesus Name we pray,
Amen.
Wednesday, August 16, 2017
Be An Ambassador For Christ
Sometimes we forget how great our God truly is. It is so very easy for us to get distracted by all the negative things going on in our world. Our world seems to be falling apart at the seams. There is a lot of anger, anxiety, depression, blaming, whining, confusion, immorality, and just plain meanness. Instead of trying to find a solution to the problems that are going on all around us people seem to just like to blame someone else or some other group or political party.
There has always been a lot of division and it all started a long time ago in a garden called Eden. Adam and Eve sinned against the true living God by eating the tree in which the Lord told them not to eat from and thus the division started. The result of their disobedience means we are all born with a sin nature and therefore we are all separated from God when we come into this world.
We have all sinned and have fallen short of the Glory of God. Thankfully God made a way for all of us sinners by sending His one and only Son, Jesus Christ, to die on the Cross for our sins. God sent Jesus to reconcile us back to Himself. We believers in Christ Jesus need to be in the reconciling business. I think far too often we end us dividing instead of trying to bring people into a relationship with God through Jesus Christ.
2 Corinthians 5:17-21
17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!
There has always been a lot of division and it all started a long time ago in a garden called Eden. Adam and Eve sinned against the true living God by eating the tree in which the Lord told them not to eat from and thus the division started. The result of their disobedience means we are all born with a sin nature and therefore we are all separated from God when we come into this world.
We have all sinned and have fallen short of the Glory of God. Thankfully God made a way for all of us sinners by sending His one and only Son, Jesus Christ, to die on the Cross for our sins. God sent Jesus to reconcile us back to Himself. We believers in Christ Jesus need to be in the reconciling business. I think far too often we end us dividing instead of trying to bring people into a relationship with God through Jesus Christ.
2 Corinthians 5:17-21
17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!
18 All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation:
19 that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation.
20 We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God.
21 God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
The Lord has given we believers in Jesus Christ a mission to go into the world and proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ to everybody in the world. God is working to draw people to Himself. We believers in Christ Jesus as His ambassadors. There is only one way for us to be reconciled back to God and that is through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
It is through the shed blood of Jesus Christ that our sins are forgiven and we have a place in Heaven that He is preparing for us. God doesn't want anyone to perish, but He wants all people to come to the truth of Jesus Christ and place their faith in His finished work on the Cross.
Let's tell people about Jesus and live for Him each and everyday. May we walk empowered by the Holy Spirit and draw some people to faith in Jesus Christ. Time is running out for people and there are many who have not heard the life changing message of Jesus Christ.
Lord, Heavenly Father,
Help us to live for You each and everyday.
Help us to be in the ministry of reconciling people back to You through Jesus Christ.
We humble ourselves before Your throne of Grace.
Lead us and empower us through Your Holy Spirit to live for You in obedience.
Come Soon Lord Jesus.
In Jesus Name we pray,
Amen.
Monday, August 14, 2017
This World Needs Jesus
The world in which we live is full of anger and strife. This world is a world full of sorrows and headed toward a dark deep abyss. There is a lot of doom and gloom around these days. There is much anxiety, depression, worry, and blame. One group blames another, but the main problem is the one of the human heart. We all have a heart problem. We are actually all born with a sinful nature. Our hearts are bent away from the Lord, the true living God, even at birth.
Every human being is wonderfully created and deeply loved by the Maker of the universe, the true living God. God Created everything seen and unseen. He made you and me. We are created in the image of Almighty God. God loves each one of us with a deep and unconditional love. He knows our hearts and our sinfulness.
God demonstrated His great love toward each human being by sending His one and only Son, Jesus Christ, to this world to die on the Cross for all of our sins. Jesus lived a perfect sinless life and took our sin upon Himself and He went obediently to the Cross where He shed His blood and died for you and me. God then raised Jesus from the dead on the third day and He is now at the right hand of God in Heaven awaiting the day when He will return to the earth bringing the Kingdom of God to the earth in full completion.
The Lord didn't leave us as orphans to fend for ourselves until He returns, but He gives the Holy Spirit, to indwell each person who receives the Lord Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. We who are believers in Christ are children of God. The Lord Jesus paid our sin debt. Jesus reconciles us back to the Father. We are saved by the grace of Jesus Christ and we enter into a relationship with Him by faith.
This world needs Jesus. Jesus is the answer to the world's problems and to people's heart problem. We are all people who are loved by our Maker and He wants to have a relationship with each one of us and that is only available through the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus loves you and He wants you to come to Him by faith and trust in His grace.
The hatred needs to stop. The anger must be put aside. We need to repent and humble ourselves before our God and Creator. There is not one of us who is worthy of God's love and His forgiveness. He loves us despite ourselves and His offer of salvation is for everyone who believes in the Lord Jesus Christ and His finished work on the Cross for our sins.
Let's humble ourselves before the Lord our God and trust Him. If you haven't received Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior I pray that you will take that step today. Jesus loves you and He doesn't want to see you separated from God for all eternity. Jesus paid the price for our sins so we can have forgiveness of our sins and we can have an eternal home in Heaven. We come to Him by faith.
I would encourage you to trust Jesus as your Lord and Savior if you haven't done so already before time runs out. We are not guaranteed tomorrow. The day of salvation is this very day.
For all of us who have received Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior let's humble ourselves and walk in the Spirit each and every day.
Lord, Heavenly Father,
We praise Your Name.
You are our Maker and You are the Creator of all things.
Father God we ask that You would help us to love You more and help us to love each other with a great love.
Lord Jesus thank You for Your sacrifice on the Cross for our sins.
Holy Spirit thank You for teaching us and revealing Jesus to us through the Bible.
Lord, lead us and guide our steps.
Give us a fresh power.
Grant to us a fresh faith.
I surrender all to You O Lord my God.
May Your will be done.
In Jesus Name we pray,
Amen.
Every human being is wonderfully created and deeply loved by the Maker of the universe, the true living God. God Created everything seen and unseen. He made you and me. We are created in the image of Almighty God. God loves each one of us with a deep and unconditional love. He knows our hearts and our sinfulness.
God demonstrated His great love toward each human being by sending His one and only Son, Jesus Christ, to this world to die on the Cross for all of our sins. Jesus lived a perfect sinless life and took our sin upon Himself and He went obediently to the Cross where He shed His blood and died for you and me. God then raised Jesus from the dead on the third day and He is now at the right hand of God in Heaven awaiting the day when He will return to the earth bringing the Kingdom of God to the earth in full completion.
The Lord didn't leave us as orphans to fend for ourselves until He returns, but He gives the Holy Spirit, to indwell each person who receives the Lord Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. We who are believers in Christ are children of God. The Lord Jesus paid our sin debt. Jesus reconciles us back to the Father. We are saved by the grace of Jesus Christ and we enter into a relationship with Him by faith.
This world needs Jesus. Jesus is the answer to the world's problems and to people's heart problem. We are all people who are loved by our Maker and He wants to have a relationship with each one of us and that is only available through the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus loves you and He wants you to come to Him by faith and trust in His grace.
The hatred needs to stop. The anger must be put aside. We need to repent and humble ourselves before our God and Creator. There is not one of us who is worthy of God's love and His forgiveness. He loves us despite ourselves and His offer of salvation is for everyone who believes in the Lord Jesus Christ and His finished work on the Cross for our sins.
Let's humble ourselves before the Lord our God and trust Him. If you haven't received Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior I pray that you will take that step today. Jesus loves you and He doesn't want to see you separated from God for all eternity. Jesus paid the price for our sins so we can have forgiveness of our sins and we can have an eternal home in Heaven. We come to Him by faith.
I would encourage you to trust Jesus as your Lord and Savior if you haven't done so already before time runs out. We are not guaranteed tomorrow. The day of salvation is this very day.
For all of us who have received Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior let's humble ourselves and walk in the Spirit each and every day.
Lord, Heavenly Father,
We praise Your Name.
You are our Maker and You are the Creator of all things.
Father God we ask that You would help us to love You more and help us to love each other with a great love.
Lord Jesus thank You for Your sacrifice on the Cross for our sins.
Holy Spirit thank You for teaching us and revealing Jesus to us through the Bible.
Lord, lead us and guide our steps.
Give us a fresh power.
Grant to us a fresh faith.
I surrender all to You O Lord my God.
May Your will be done.
In Jesus Name we pray,
Amen.
Saturday, August 12, 2017
The God of All Comfort
We all experience our share of troubles during our lifetimes. Some troubles are easy to manage while other troubles can be life changing and very difficult for us. We can rest assured that the Lord will be with us in our troubles and He will comfort us during the hardest and most difficult of times that we encounter.
We need to remember that God promises never to leave us nor forsake us. Once we come to faith in Jesus Christ we have been sealed by the Holy Spirit and we have a place in Heaven. There is only one way into Heaven and that is through our belief in the finished work that Jesus Christ accomplished by shedding His blood on the Cross for our sins.
We have great hope and assurance in Jesus Christ. We will also receive comfort from Him when we face difficult trials and troubles. Some may ask, "Why do Christians have troubles?" That is a very good question. For starters, we live in a fallen and sinful world where there is much suffering and pain and loss. Jesus tells us in Scripture that in this world we will have troubles, but He also tells us to take heart because He has overcome the world.
We believers in Christ Jesus are not exempt from suffering. We are to endure the suffering that comes our way by taking up our Cross daily and follow Jesus no matter how difficult the road may be. It won't be easy for many of us in this world, but we must lift up our eyes toward Jesus and keep our focus on Him.
"3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort,
We need to remember that God promises never to leave us nor forsake us. Once we come to faith in Jesus Christ we have been sealed by the Holy Spirit and we have a place in Heaven. There is only one way into Heaven and that is through our belief in the finished work that Jesus Christ accomplished by shedding His blood on the Cross for our sins.
We have great hope and assurance in Jesus Christ. We will also receive comfort from Him when we face difficult trials and troubles. Some may ask, "Why do Christians have troubles?" That is a very good question. For starters, we live in a fallen and sinful world where there is much suffering and pain and loss. Jesus tells us in Scripture that in this world we will have troubles, but He also tells us to take heart because He has overcome the world.
We believers in Christ Jesus are not exempt from suffering. We are to endure the suffering that comes our way by taking up our Cross daily and follow Jesus no matter how difficult the road may be. It won't be easy for many of us in this world, but we must lift up our eyes toward Jesus and keep our focus on Him.
"3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort,
4 who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.
5 For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ." (2 Corinthians 1:3-5)
God comforts us in our troubles so that we can be better able to comfort others who are experiencing similar sufferings. There are times when we are better equipped to minister to people with the Gospel and love of Jesus if we have experienced a similar trouble on life's journey.
The Lord equips us through our sufferings to better comfort others during their sufferings and we can comfort them with the comfort that God showed us during our suffering. We need to remember the God is good and He works out all things for good to those who love Him and are called according to His purpose.
When we find trouble knocking at our door we must remember to trust the Lord Jesus during this time and allow Him to comfort us by reading the Bible and worshiping Him and sharing His comfort with others around us. We must keep running our race with our focus upon Jesus Christ. We must persevere and trust Him because He knows what He is doing.
Lord,
We praise Your Name.
Comfort those who are facing troubling news and times.
Help us to receive Your comfort and Help us to comfort others with the comfort You show us.
Forgive us when we fail You Lord.
Help us to walk in the Spirit each and every moment of the day.
Lead us and guide our steps as we focus on You.
In Jesus Name we pray,
Amen.
Thursday, August 10, 2017
God Will Take Care Of You
Sometimes it seems all too easy to worry or be anxious about something in our lives. There are many things going on in our world today that can make us feel anxious and nervous. Sometimes it seems all too easy to say, "Don't worry about it", but it can seem nearly impossible to do it.
The Lord Jesus tells us not to worry about our lives and He urges us to trust Him to provide our genuine needs. The Lord is our provider of everything that we truly need. God will take care of us no matter what dreadful thing we may encounter on our journey here on earth.
We serve a Mighty and Awesome God who is the Creator of all things. God spoke the world and the universe into being. God clothed the flowers of the field with such beauty and elegance. The Lord takes care of all the animals on the earth and provides for them food and a means to find shelter. If God takes such great care of them we can surely count on the Lord to take care of us much more so since we are made in His image.
"6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
The Lord Jesus tells us not to worry about our lives and He urges us to trust Him to provide our genuine needs. The Lord is our provider of everything that we truly need. God will take care of us no matter what dreadful thing we may encounter on our journey here on earth.
We serve a Mighty and Awesome God who is the Creator of all things. God spoke the world and the universe into being. God clothed the flowers of the field with such beauty and elegance. The Lord takes care of all the animals on the earth and provides for them food and a means to find shelter. If God takes such great care of them we can surely count on the Lord to take care of us much more so since we are made in His image.
"6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:6-7)
The Apostle Paul reminds us that we are not to be anxious about anything, but we are to be in prayer about everything that comes at us in life. When we feel stressed or backed into a corner we need to pray. When we feel deserted be friends and family we need to take it to the Lord in prayer. When we get a bad report from a doctor we need to get alone with God with our Bible and pray.
We need to present all of our request to the Lord and trust Him with them then the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard our minds and hearts in Christ Jesus. He will grant us His peace if we just place our faith and trust in Him.
The path may seem dark and bumpy. Things may not get better for us here on earth, but we can rest assured that the Maker of all things holds us very close if we have made peace with Him by trusting Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. The Lord will provide us with His peace.
When we place our faith and trust in Jesus Christ we can be sure that He will indeed take care of us no matter what happens in our lives. God is faithful. We can trust Him.
Lord,
Thank You for taking care of us when things in our lives get hard.
Thank You Lord for being an Awesome Loving God.
I pray for everyone who is going through a difficult time to sense Your peace in their hearts and minds as they trust in You Lord Jesus.
Draw us nearer towards You.
In Jesus Name we pray,
Amen.
Wednesday, August 9, 2017
Trusting The Lord Through Our Difficulties
There comes a time in all of our lives when things just don't make sense. Maybe our lives are going really well and then all of a sudden, we lose our job, we get sick, a family member dies unexpectedly, or some other surprising event occurs and our lives seem to be in chaos.
We like it when our lives run smoothly and all is well. We like it when we have our routine. We like the predictability of our lives. Sometimes the Lord will upend our routine to get our attention and shift our focus back on Him. Sometimes our routine gets in the way of God's best for us. The Lord may want to teach us something.
Sometimes we like to think we have everything figured out, but guess what? We don't have things figured out at all. This world is constantly changing. The only one that doesn't change is God Himself. What do we do then when things change unexpectedly in our lives? We trust the Lord.
Proverbs 3:5-6
"5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;
We like it when our lives run smoothly and all is well. We like it when we have our routine. We like the predictability of our lives. Sometimes the Lord will upend our routine to get our attention and shift our focus back on Him. Sometimes our routine gets in the way of God's best for us. The Lord may want to teach us something.
Sometimes we like to think we have everything figured out, but guess what? We don't have things figured out at all. This world is constantly changing. The only one that doesn't change is God Himself. What do we do then when things change unexpectedly in our lives? We trust the Lord.
Proverbs 3:5-6
"5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;
6 in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight."
We instructed to trust in the Lord with all of our hearts. Sometimes saying things and putting them into practice can be really hard especially when our lives seem to be flipped upside down. It can be hard to trust the Lord at times because we don't always see or know what exactly He is up to in our situation. We can know that God is trustworthy and He has our best interest in mind.
Our journey through pain and loss may be long and difficult, but we can know that the Creator of all things is always by our side each step of the way. We can look back over our lives and the lives of man believers before us and we can see how God has been working in each moment of our lives and in the lives of believers in Christ before us.
God is an awesome loving God. The Lord spoke everything into being. He is an ever present help in our time of need. Live will have it's up and down moments. There will be great times of pure joy and there will be times of constant sorrow.
We can count on God to be there with us in the deepest darkest valley because He has promised us in His Word that He will never leave us nor forsake us. Our God is trustworthy.
We can trust Him with whatever happens to us in our lives.
Lord,
We praise Your Name.
We trust You Lord.
Help us to trust You more.
Empower us through Your Holy Spirit and guard our hearts and minds with Your peace.
In Jesus Name we pray,
Amen.
Monday, August 7, 2017
Having Discernment
We live in age of fake news or stories that people make up and try to pass them off as the truth. Jesus warns us that in the last days that there will be many false teachers around. There have been false teachers around even since the Church started and falsehood has been around since the Garden of Eden when the devil (the father of lies) deceived Eve and Adam into eating from the tree that the Lord told them not to eat from.
We as believers and followers of Jesus Christ must be very careful and test what someone says with the truth of God's Word, the Bible. Just because a famous Preacher says something doesn't mean it is the truth even if he has thousands of people coming to his church to hear him. We need to make sure that what comes out of the pulpit goes along with what the Bible says. God's Word is the truth and God is never wrong.
We believers in Jesus Christ also have the Holy Spirit dwelling within us to help us to remain in the truth and the Holy Spirit will help us to discern what is true and what is false. There will be times, if we are paying attention, that someone will say something and the Holy Spirit will give us a nudge and warn us that something isn't right with what they just said.
Matthew 7:15-23 says,
"15 “Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are
ferocious wolves.
Lord,
We praise Your Holy Name.
Help us to be discerning in this day and age.
Help us to study and read our Bibles more regularly.
Help us to fall in love with Your Word and with You even more so.
Lead us and guide us by Your Holy Spirit.
In Jesus Name we pray,
Amen.
We as believers and followers of Jesus Christ must be very careful and test what someone says with the truth of God's Word, the Bible. Just because a famous Preacher says something doesn't mean it is the truth even if he has thousands of people coming to his church to hear him. We need to make sure that what comes out of the pulpit goes along with what the Bible says. God's Word is the truth and God is never wrong.
We believers in Jesus Christ also have the Holy Spirit dwelling within us to help us to remain in the truth and the Holy Spirit will help us to discern what is true and what is false. There will be times, if we are paying attention, that someone will say something and the Holy Spirit will give us a nudge and warn us that something isn't right with what they just said.
Matthew 7:15-23 says,
"15 “Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are
ferocious wolves.
16 By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?
17 Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit.
18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit.
19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
20 Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.
21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one
who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.
22 Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’
23 Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you
evildoers!’ "
We believers in Jesus Christ must watch out for false profits and make sure that we are following the truth of God's Word. We need to listen more to the promptings of the Holy Spirit in our walk with the Lord as well.
Here is the audio version of the sermon my Pastor, Dennis Ashley, preached at the First Baptist Church yesterday in Houlton, Maine entitled, "Jesus Teaches About Discernment".
https://soundcloud.com/dcashley/jesus-teaches-about?utm_source=soundcloud&utm_campaign=share&utm_medium=facebookLord,
We praise Your Holy Name.
Help us to be discerning in this day and age.
Help us to study and read our Bibles more regularly.
Help us to fall in love with Your Word and with You even more so.
Lead us and guide us by Your Holy Spirit.
In Jesus Name we pray,
Amen.
Sunday, August 6, 2017
Trusting Jesus With Our Brokeness
The world around us is full of brokenness. There are broken marriages, broken homes, broken families, and the list could go on and on. There are a lot of people who feel broken and if we are honest with ourselves we too are broken. We all have a brokenness deep inside.
We are born with our hearts bent away from the Living God who loves us. We are born with a sin nature. We are born spiritually dead even though our bodies are alive. We are broken and many do not even realize just how broken we are. Our world is full of sorrow and broken people.
We have all sinned and we all have some brokenness within us. Sometimes the hardest thing for a person to realize is that they are broken and can't fix themselves or their situations on their own and in their on power.
Where do we turn when we know we are broken? We turn to the One who was broken for us. We turn to Jesus Christ. Jesus was placed upon an old rugged Cross. His hands were pierced with nails. His side was ripped open with a spear. Jesus suffered horribly on the Cross. Jesus was broken for our sins. Jesus took the punishment that you and I so rightly deserve.
We can't earn our way into Heaven. We aren't good enough. We are broken and sinful. There are no amount of good works that we can do to earn our salvation. There is not one of us that is good enough to get into Heaven on our own. We need a Savior and thankfully we have One in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Jesus took our sins upon Himself. Jesus shed His blood on the Cross for our sins. He has bought us with the high price of His blood. Everyone is free to come and receive Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. We must come to Him on His terms. We must come humbly to the throne of Grace and receive His Grace through faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ that He accomplished on the Cross.
We are reminded of Christ brokenness and His shed blood for us when we participate in the Lord's Supper or Communion as we often call it. When we take the bread we are reminded of how Jesus body was broken for our brokenness. When we take the cup we are reminded of the precious blood that Jesus shed for us because of His great love for us.
Sometimes I feel that we forget how much Jesus suffered and how much pain He endured for us. Do we really consider all that Jesus went through for us to reconcile us back to God? What an Awesome Savior, Christ Jesus our Lord!
Our world continues to spiral downward in a sea of despair, heartache, and brokenness. People need to discover, or even rediscover in some cases, that great love that Jesus Christ showed each one of us on the Cross when He came to be broken for our brokenness. The world needs Jesus. Are you telling them about Him?
Times are tough. There is much suffering and pain. There are hard and difficult situations that people find themselves in, I tell you that there is hope in the Lord Jesus Christ. We need to surrender our lives to Him and come to Him with our brokenness and trust Him as our Lord and Savior by faith.
Lord,
We praise Your Name.
Thank You Jesus for dying on the Cross for our sins.
Thank You for forgiveness of our sins through the shed blood and broken body of Jesus.
Lead us and guide us by Your Holy Spirit.
In Jesus Name we pray,
Amen.
We are born with our hearts bent away from the Living God who loves us. We are born with a sin nature. We are born spiritually dead even though our bodies are alive. We are broken and many do not even realize just how broken we are. Our world is full of sorrow and broken people.
We have all sinned and we all have some brokenness within us. Sometimes the hardest thing for a person to realize is that they are broken and can't fix themselves or their situations on their own and in their on power.
Where do we turn when we know we are broken? We turn to the One who was broken for us. We turn to Jesus Christ. Jesus was placed upon an old rugged Cross. His hands were pierced with nails. His side was ripped open with a spear. Jesus suffered horribly on the Cross. Jesus was broken for our sins. Jesus took the punishment that you and I so rightly deserve.
We can't earn our way into Heaven. We aren't good enough. We are broken and sinful. There are no amount of good works that we can do to earn our salvation. There is not one of us that is good enough to get into Heaven on our own. We need a Savior and thankfully we have One in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Jesus took our sins upon Himself. Jesus shed His blood on the Cross for our sins. He has bought us with the high price of His blood. Everyone is free to come and receive Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. We must come to Him on His terms. We must come humbly to the throne of Grace and receive His Grace through faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ that He accomplished on the Cross.
We are reminded of Christ brokenness and His shed blood for us when we participate in the Lord's Supper or Communion as we often call it. When we take the bread we are reminded of how Jesus body was broken for our brokenness. When we take the cup we are reminded of the precious blood that Jesus shed for us because of His great love for us.
Sometimes I feel that we forget how much Jesus suffered and how much pain He endured for us. Do we really consider all that Jesus went through for us to reconcile us back to God? What an Awesome Savior, Christ Jesus our Lord!
Our world continues to spiral downward in a sea of despair, heartache, and brokenness. People need to discover, or even rediscover in some cases, that great love that Jesus Christ showed each one of us on the Cross when He came to be broken for our brokenness. The world needs Jesus. Are you telling them about Him?
Times are tough. There is much suffering and pain. There are hard and difficult situations that people find themselves in, I tell you that there is hope in the Lord Jesus Christ. We need to surrender our lives to Him and come to Him with our brokenness and trust Him as our Lord and Savior by faith.
Lord,
We praise Your Name.
Thank You Jesus for dying on the Cross for our sins.
Thank You for forgiveness of our sins through the shed blood and broken body of Jesus.
Lead us and guide us by Your Holy Spirit.
In Jesus Name we pray,
Amen.
Friday, August 4, 2017
Trusting Jesus With Our Troubled Hearts
There are times in our lives when our hearts are troubled by something. We live in a fallen and sinful world and sometimes that can leave our hearts feeling troubled. There are times when we receive troubling news. We may get a phone call about a loved one that has died or we may have received a bad report from our doctor and we feel troubled.
The Lord Jesus told us that in this world we would indeed have trouble. Trouble can come in all shapes and sizes. Troubles come when we least expect them. When troubles do come we feel blindsided, confused, and things just don't make any sense to us at all. Our minds start to race. We try to figure things out in our mind. Then we start asking those dreaded, "What if?", questions which usually just makes our anxiety and worry worse.
There was a time when the disciple's hearts were troubled. Jesus had just finished telling them that He was going up to Jerusalem to be handed over to the religious leaders and put to death. He also told them that one of them was going to betray Him and Jesus also informed Peter that he would deny Jesus three times before a rooster crowed. The disciple's hearts sank as Jesus told Him this news. Their hearts were troubled. They had been through so much over the course of three years. They saw the miracles, they saw the crowds that followed Jesus, and now Jesus was telling them things were about to change.
We don't like change. Especially when the change seems totally overwhelming and even really scary. Sometimes our lives get turned upside down for a season. Sometimes things get hard. Sometimes we feel like we are facing a huge trial and we wonder if we will make it through it.
It was during that time as the disciples hearts were troubled and weighed down when Jesus says to them, "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, trust also in me." (John 14:1)
When a friend of a family member tells us not to let our hearts be troubled we may just cast it off to the side and think nothing about it, but when Jesus tells us this we need to pay close attention. Jesus knows that in this life we will have difficulties. He wants us to trust Him through those difficult moments. Jesus reminds us that He is preparing a place in Heaven for all who put their faith and trust in Him. This world is not our final destination. This world is not our home.
We must trust the Lord Jesus through our difficulties and trust Him to take us Home when the time is right. That is not to say things will be easy or that our faith won't be stretched to the max because it will. We know however that God is our help in our time of need. The Lord Jesus will guide us in our journey no matter how troubling in may get.
We need to trust Him each step of the way and know that one great day we will see Jesus face to face in Heaven where there will be no more tears, no more sorrow, no more pain, and no more death. God is faithful and He is trustworthy.
Lord,
Our hearts are troubled by many things, but we chose to trust in You through them.
Lead us and guide us by Your Holy Spirit.
In Jesus Name we pray,
Amen.
The Lord Jesus told us that in this world we would indeed have trouble. Trouble can come in all shapes and sizes. Troubles come when we least expect them. When troubles do come we feel blindsided, confused, and things just don't make any sense to us at all. Our minds start to race. We try to figure things out in our mind. Then we start asking those dreaded, "What if?", questions which usually just makes our anxiety and worry worse.
There was a time when the disciple's hearts were troubled. Jesus had just finished telling them that He was going up to Jerusalem to be handed over to the religious leaders and put to death. He also told them that one of them was going to betray Him and Jesus also informed Peter that he would deny Jesus three times before a rooster crowed. The disciple's hearts sank as Jesus told Him this news. Their hearts were troubled. They had been through so much over the course of three years. They saw the miracles, they saw the crowds that followed Jesus, and now Jesus was telling them things were about to change.
We don't like change. Especially when the change seems totally overwhelming and even really scary. Sometimes our lives get turned upside down for a season. Sometimes things get hard. Sometimes we feel like we are facing a huge trial and we wonder if we will make it through it.
It was during that time as the disciples hearts were troubled and weighed down when Jesus says to them, "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, trust also in me." (John 14:1)
When a friend of a family member tells us not to let our hearts be troubled we may just cast it off to the side and think nothing about it, but when Jesus tells us this we need to pay close attention. Jesus knows that in this life we will have difficulties. He wants us to trust Him through those difficult moments. Jesus reminds us that He is preparing a place in Heaven for all who put their faith and trust in Him. This world is not our final destination. This world is not our home.
We must trust the Lord Jesus through our difficulties and trust Him to take us Home when the time is right. That is not to say things will be easy or that our faith won't be stretched to the max because it will. We know however that God is our help in our time of need. The Lord Jesus will guide us in our journey no matter how troubling in may get.
We need to trust Him each step of the way and know that one great day we will see Jesus face to face in Heaven where there will be no more tears, no more sorrow, no more pain, and no more death. God is faithful and He is trustworthy.
Lord,
Our hearts are troubled by many things, but we chose to trust in You through them.
Lead us and guide us by Your Holy Spirit.
In Jesus Name we pray,
Amen.
Tuesday, August 1, 2017
What Road Are You On?
It is all too easy for us to go with the flow of things. We like when things go smoothly. When we look at the flow of a river we see it takes the path of least resistance. We as believers and followers of Jesus Christ are not called to go with the flow of the world. We are told in Scripture to be in the world, but not of it. That means we need to follow Jesus wherever He wants us to go and do whatever He wants us to do. When the Lord calls us to do something He will equip us to do it through His Holy Spirit who indwells everyone that has trusted Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.
We must wait on the Lord and seek His direction for our lives. We also need to be sure that we are on the right path. Many people think they are on the right path because they go to church, or have been baptized, or have filled some other religious obligation. The person who is on the right path is the one who is trusting in the Lord Jesus Christ as the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Jesus is the only Way to the Father and their is no other Way.
Matthew 7:13-14 says,
"13 "Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it.
We must wait on the Lord and seek His direction for our lives. We also need to be sure that we are on the right path. Many people think they are on the right path because they go to church, or have been baptized, or have filled some other religious obligation. The person who is on the right path is the one who is trusting in the Lord Jesus Christ as the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Jesus is the only Way to the Father and their is no other Way.
Matthew 7:13-14 says,
"13 "Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it.
14 Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it."
Jesus tells us that there are two paths in life. One path is broad and wide. There is smooth sailing on this road. No pot holes at all that is until you get the end and find the gate leads to your destruction. There are many people who are going through life with no thoughts of God and their eternal destination. There are many people who go about living day to day with no thought about the destruction that awaits them because they are on the wrong road.
There are many people living for themselves and feeding their own desires. They may do good deeds and good things for people, but that doesn't make a person right with God. God is Holy and nothing sinful can ever enter into His Holy presence. We have all sinned and have fallen short of God's standards. We are all deserving of eternal separation from God and placed in a literal hell forever.
The Lord made a Way for us to be forgiven of our sins and to be brought into Heaven and that Way is through Jesus Christ. God demonstrated His love to you, me, and all the people of this world by sending His one and only Son, Jesus Christ, to live a perfect and sinless life. Jesus went and died obediently on a Cross for our sins. He shed His blood for you, me, and all the people of this world.
We have been bought with the precious blood of Jesus Christ.
We must come and repent of our sins and receive Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior and trust in His finished work on the Cross in order to be forgiven of our sins and have a place in Heaven when our lives here on earth end.
The question we must ask ourselves is this. What road are you on?
Are you on the broad road with it's wide gate which leads to eternal separation from a loving God?
or
Are you on the narrow road that is difficult with it's narrow gate which will lead us to everlasting life in Heaven?
We enter the narrow road by trusting in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. We then must live for Him and be lead by His Holy Spirit. We won't be perfect. We may wonder of the path once in a while unfortunately, but if we are truly trusting Jesus He will put us back on course if we are willing.
( Here is a link to the sermon Pastor Dennis Ashley delivered on Sunday at the First Baptist Church in Houlton, Maine. The title is, "Jesus teaches about the two ways to go. Which way are you going?:
Lord,
We praise Your Name.
Thank You for Your love and care for each of us.
Thank You that You provided a Way for us to have forgiveness of our sins and eternal life in Heaven through faith in Jesus Christ.
I pray that more people will come to know You and be saved today.
In Jesus Name we pray,
Amen.
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