Going To The Lord In Prayer

Sometimes the challenges and trials in life can seem totally overwhelming to us and to our families.  We live in a fallen and sinful world.  These are very dark times that we are living in and that darkness seems to be growing everyday.  Sometimes we can slide into despair and hopelessness if we are not careful by looking at the way the world is.  Life can be hard.  Sometimes the things that happen to us and to our loved ones don't seem fair to us.

We sometimes feel confused and alone in our troubles.  Thankfully, there is someone we can always turn to in the very midst of our trials and troubles.  We can turn to the Lord our God.  He is the Creator of the heavens and the earth.  He is our Maker.  We who have placed our faith and trust in Jesus Christ are His children.

The Lord wants us to call out to Him in prayer.  I don't consider myself very good at prayer.  I sometimes don't know how to pray and I sometimes don't know what to pray for.  The good news is that every believer in Jesus can pray and call out to God.  We don't have to make big long fancy prayers that seem to put more focus on our abilities and less on God's.

The power is not in our prayers or our prayer language.  The power of our prayers lay in the One that answers our prayers and that is the Lord our God.  We are to come to Him in prayer with a humble spirit and with faith that all things are possible with our God.  The Lord may not answer our prayers as we want Him to, but we are assured that He will always answer our prayers in accordance to His will and in His timing.

The Holy Spirit will help us to pray when we have to idea how to pray.  We must remember that God isn't our genie and He doesn't work for us to accomplish our wills.  He is God not us.  We are His servants and we are to be subject to Him and His will.  The Lord will always answer our prayers as I mentioned before, but that doesn't mean that He will always grant us what we want or what we think is best.  He will answer either with a yes, no, or a not right now.

Sometimes we pray with selfish motives and the Lord will teach us to adjust our prayers to be more in line with His will for our lives.  We must never give up during the challenges and difficulties of live, but we should always pray to the Lord for guidance and strength and all kinds of prayers.

The Lord wants to hear from all of His children in prayer.  We all have that ability to call out to Him in prayer and we should do so as individuals and collectively as well.  We should come to the Lord in reverence and humility for who His is.

Lord,
We praise Your Name.
Thank You that You hear our prayers.
Help us to pray.
I uplift those who are sick and facing hard times.
Lead us and guide us by Your Holy Spirit.
In Jesus Name we pray,
Amen.

Guarding Our Thoughts

The world can seem so dark and scary at times.  There seems to be a lot of turmoil and wickedness all around us.  It is so very easy to become negative and hopeless these days.  There are many people suffering from depression and anxiety.  There are many things that we can worry about these days.  There is also a spiritual war going on in our world and we believers in Jesus Christ are on the front lines of it.  We must place upon ourselves the full armor of God and be anchored in the truth of the Lord Jesus Christ.

We need to stand firm of the Holy Word, the Bible.  The devil knows his time is short and he is stirring up trouble all over the place.  The devil likes to stir up fear and worry in people's hearts and minds.  The devil doesn't know our thoughts, but he carefully whispers doubts into our ears in hopes that we will take the bait.

We need to be on our guard and pay attention to what enters our thoughts and make sure those thoughts line up with Scripture.  I am reminded of what the Apostle Paul wrote in Philippians 4:8 which says,

"Finally, brothers, 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."

What we think matters.  We are to honor the Lord with our thought life.  When people stray away into some sin it can be traced back to a certain thought.  Maybe the devil whispered to them like he did to Eve in the garden and planted a seed of doubt in their thoughts.

We need to pay attention to the thoughts that we have so we won't be led astray.  Our thoughts should be on the Lord.  We need renewed minds and that can only take place when we submit to the Holy Spirit that indwells everyone that has placed their faith and trust in Jesus Christ and the finished work that He accomplished for us on the Cross.

Lord, 
We praise Your Name,
Help us to guard our thoughts.
Help us to think upon Your Holy Word throughout the day.
Renew our minds through the Holy Spirit.
Help us to honor You with our thoughts.
In Jesus Name we pray,
Amen.

We Need Jesus

We are living in a dark and wickedly sinful world.  When we look at the world these days we can see that everything seems to be coming apart at the seams.  People will point fingers at one political party or another.  Some will blame one people group and so on and so forth.  The true problem of the world lies within every person's heart.

We are all born into this world with a sin nature.  Our hearts at bent away from God.  We are born spiritually dead.  There are many people walking around us and they seem to be alive physically, but they are actually spiritually dead because they are still in their sin.

The Bible tells us that we have all sinned and we have all fallen short of God's glory.  There is no one that does good and we have all gone astray.  We are all deserving of being placed in a literal hell for all eternity.

Thankfully, God made a way for each one of us to have forgiveness of our sins and a place in Heaven.  God sent His one and only Son, Jesus Christ into this world to live a perfect and sinless life and die on the Cross for our sins.  In order to be welcomed into Heaven we must be born again.  We need to recognize that we are sinners and we must repent of our sins and confess them to Jesus.  We need to receive Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior.  We need to trust in the finished work that Jesus Christ accomplished on the Cross for us when He shed His blood for us.  Jesus took the punishment that you and I so rightly deserve.

When we come to faith in Christ the Holy Spirit comes to indwell within us.  The Holy Spirit will work in our hearts to make us more like Jesus and that will continue throughout our lives here on earth and it will be completed when we enter in to Heaven when we see our Lord Jesus with our very eyes.

There is still hope for our world.  There is still hope for our family, friends, and co-workers.  The hope that we have is Jesus Christ.  He is the One that the world needs.  We need Jesus.

Lord,
We praise Your Name.
We need You Lord Jesus.
Thank You for all that You have done for us on the Cross Lord Jesus.
Thank You that One Day You will return to the earth.
I pray that many other people will come to know You Lord as their Lord and Savior.
In Jesus Name I pray,
Amen.

When Anxiety Strikes

There are times when we can be our own worse enemies.  Sometimes we allow fear to overwhelm us. We don't want to be anxious and fearful, but it can be something that is so deeply ingrained within us that we just can't seem to help it.  I shouldn't speak for others, but I know these feelings all too well.

I have tried dealing with the worries, anxieties, and fears, but I can't do it on my own.  Sometimes new fears pop up in the most inconvenient times.  Today I learned that I am a little bit claustrophobic.  I was supposed to have an MRI done today and I was very willing to do it.  I was on the table and something like a catchers mask of sorts was placed over my head and I had head phones on.  There was a mirror so I could see the technician, (who was super nice and awesomely gracious by the way), but when it came to being placed into that tunnel my fight or flight starting to kick in.  I started to feel dizzy and warm all over.  I told the technician what was going on and she brought me out the tunnel and we talked some and then gave it another try.  The same thing happened unfortunately.  I apologized.  I told her I felt bad.  I felt like I wasted her time, but she assured me this happens sometimes.

Sometimes we just can't help to be a little afraid of the unknown.  The Lord is always with us every step of the way.  Sometimes we get afraid, but that doesn't mean we are failures or wimpy.  We all have our short comings.  There is not one of us that is perfect.  Sometimes we can be hard on ourselves when we feel like we have failed at something.

I will try again to have my MRI in a few weeks with some medicine from the doctor and with a focus on the Lord.  The Lord Jesus still loves us and He will always be by our side even when things don't go well.

Lord,
We praise Your Name.
Help us to focus better upon You.
Help us not to be anxious and afraid.
Grant us a peace in our hearts and minds.
Empower us to live for You.
Lead us and guide us by the Holy Spirit.
In Jesus Name,
Amen.

Letting Go Of Fear And Trusting The Lord

There are many things in life that can make us anxious and a little fearful.  We all react differently to different situations.  I am scheduled to get an MRI at the Hospital tomorrow and I must confess I am a little anxious about it.  It has been weighing on my mind, but after some prayer and talking with other believers I am feeling less anxious about it.

Sometimes we need encouragement from other believers in Jesus Christ.  We also should encourage others in their walk with the Lord as well.  Some people are better at encouraging than others, but we can all say a kind word to lift someone up.

There will be times when the situations of life can drag us down.  We may feel like we are drowning in a sea of worry and fear.  It is very easy for us to get distracted and take our eyes off of the Lord.  We must remember that we are not in control, but the Lord is.  He knows all things and He holds us in the very palm of His Mighty hand.

There is no battle that the Lord can not handle.  There is nothing that comes against us that surprises the Lord.  We can trust the Lord to be their with us each step of our journey.  We may feel nervous sometimes and that is normal.  We must remember, however, that our God is a Mighty and Awesome God and He will never leave and He will never forsake us.

We can trust the Lord to see us through the darkest of days.  We can rest in the Lord because of who He is.  There is nothing that is too difficult for the Lord to handle.

Let's trust the Lord with all of our tomorrows.  May we let go of the anxieties and fears that come against us at times and learn to trust the Lord more.  May we tell others words of encouragement to continue seeking the Lord and draw near to Him.

Lord,
Thank You for words of encouragement and prayers from other believers.
We praise Your Name.
Help us to encourage others.
Lead us and guide us by Your Holy Spirit.
In Jesus Name we pray,
Amen.

Showing The Love Of Jesus

There are times when we get rather discouraged with the way things are going in our world these days and even in our own lives as well.  It is all too easy for us to develop a cynical attitude.  This can be true in our service to the Lord as well.  Maybe we are involved in a certain ministry and it just seems like no one else wants to help you.  I find this true at times and I am sure I am not the only one that has had this experience.  It is hard not to have those feelings of being left out in the cold sort of speak and on our own.

Sometimes we won't have help from others for one reason or another.  Our main goal needs to be serving the Lord wherever He places us and no matter if others join in or not.  We need to do what pleases the Lord and brings Him glory.  It would be nice if other people would join in and serve the Lord while serving the Lord and it is all too easy to judge those who should be helping, but seem to have no interest.

We can't answer for them and we don't know their reasons.  We are to serve the Lord with the best of our own abilities and hopefully others will eventually come by our side and help us in ministry.
Over the past few months I have been visiting a local nursing facility and conducting a church service for the residence there.  Each time I leave there I feel so very blessed.  It is only two Sundays a month and I only stay for about 30 or 40 minutes, but the people seem so grateful to know that someone cares enough to come to them.  We sing hymns, we pray, I play some guitar, and I asked a good friend to play the piano.  It is a great ministry and we have a great time praising the Lord and I read them something from my blog that will minister to them.

I have done services at other nursing homes and hospital facilities over the years and I have learned that the people there like to know that someone cares enough to visit them.  They want to hear how much Jesus loves them and they also really need to hear how much we love them and care for them.

When the Church forgets to love the Lord Jesus and forgets to love others we all suffer terribly.  The hearts of many people are growing cold and the spiritual thermometer is rather chilly at times.  We need a revival of the Holy Spirit in our Churches and in our individual lives as well.  There are people all around us that need Jesus and they need to know that we care as well.


Let's have our hearts open to the Lord and seek His direction for our lives.  Let's serve Him while serving others.  Find a ministry in your local church and show the love of Jesus.

Lord,
We praise Your Name.
Help us not to get discouraged.
Help us to serve You and honor You in all we do.
Lead us and guide us by Your Holy Spirit.
In Jesus Name we pray,
Amen.

Yes, Jesus Does Care

Life can be challenging at times.  Everything may seem to be going really well for us then all of a sudden something out of the ordinary happens and we have trouble.  There is a lot of trouble going in our world these days and Jesus tells us in the Word that we will have troubles in this world.  We see the troubling things happening in our world and in other people's lives, but when trouble comes knocking on our door that is when it really wakes us up.

I like the mountain top experiences in my walk with the Lord and when I feel close to Him, but I know that may faith doesn't grow there as much as in the deep dark valley of trials.  None of like to go through trials.  We like the smooth traveling roads, but sometimes life gets bumpy.  There are times when the road of life resembles a road in Northern Maine in the spring time.  If you have never had the experience of traveling a road in Northern Maine in the spring time just trust me it is a lot bumpy with pot holes and frost heaves and other bumps.

Life can get bumpy even when at first things seem to be going smoothly, but you know what?  We never have to travel that bumpy road of life alone.  The Lord Jesus promises us that if we are trusting in Him as our Lord and Savior that He will be with us each step of the way.  Jesus promises us that He will never leave us nor will He ever forsake us.

The storms and challenges that come against us can be scary and severe.  We must take courage and trust the Lord to see us through no matter what.  The Lord will be with us each step of the way and He will empower us through the Holy Spirit to persevere during our trial.

I remember reading of when the disciples were on the Sea of Galilee in a small fishing boat and a storm came upon them.  The boat was tossed back and forth.  Water was pouring into the boat.  The disciples were terrified as anyone of us would be.  That is how we feel sometimes when our lives are rocked by a storm of life.  The storms that come against us come in the form of money problems, job loss, death of a loved one, or an illness.  The storms of life and the challenges they bring can catch us off guard.  We feel nervous and scared.  Our thoughts race and we wonder to ourselves, "Does Jesus care?"

That is what the disciples asked Jesus in the middle of the storm they found themselves in.  Jesus had been sleeping while the storm raged all around the little boat.  We can read about what happened in Mark 4:35-41 which says,

"35 That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side.”
                                                                                                       

36 Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him.

37 A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped.

38 Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?”

39 He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.

40 He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?”

41 They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!” 

We can rest assure that Jesus does care for us in the trials and the test of faith that come against us throughout our lives.  Jesus loves us and He will take care of us no matter what we find ourselves facing.  We can also be sure that Jesus no longer requires sleep and He we won't have to wake Him up when our little boat gets hit by a raging storm.  

The Lord Jesus is the One who can calm the storm that is coming against us.  We need to trust the Lord when the storms of life come against us.  The disciples were so scared, but they knew where to run to in their time of need.  They ran to Jesus and that is what we must do as well.  

We troubles come against us we must run to Jesus and call our to Him in prayer.  We also need to reach out to other believers in Christ and have them call out to Him on our behalf as well.  We need one another and we need to lift each other up in prayer.  Sometimes we try to do things on our own, but that doesn't work out for us most of the time.  We need Jesus and we need other believers in Christ Jesus.  

Last month I was taken by an ambulance to the hospital with a high pulse rate.  It was 140 or something and I was afraid.  It turned out my heart was fine. I even had a 48 hour heart monitor and my heart is healthy.  My experience was stress and anxiety related.  I had a panic attack.  While I had my follow up doctors appointment I mentioned my sinus problem that I have been struggling with for many years.  They constantly feel irritated and full.  So, my doctor suggested I get a x-ray of my sinuses.  The doctor called me today and they discovered something that they weren't expecting.  The pouch that contains my pituitary gland is swollen bigger than it should be.  So, that means that I need to have another test to see what exactly is going on.  My doctor told me not to worry and not to lose any sleep over it.  I am one of those people that worry.  I try not too, but I still do. 

I am thankful that I know the Great Physician and that He is with me in my boat no matter what happens next.  Hopefully everything will turn out alright, but I would like to ask you to pray to the Lord for me.  Pray that whatever happens that the Lord would us this experience to draw me closer to Him and draw people to Himself.   I would like to thank you for praying for me ahead of time and I will pray for you as well.  

The Lord Jesus cares about you and what you are going through.  God demonstrated His great love towards each one of us by sending Jesus to die on the Cross for our sins.  Jesus rose from the dead in the third day and one day He will return to the earth.  We must come to the Lord by faith and trust in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior in order for us to be saved and have a home in Heaven.  I am thankful that I know Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior.  Jesus died for my sins past, present, and future.  I am thankful that I will spend eternity with Him in Heaven because of what Jesus did for me on the Cross by dying for my sins.  I am thankful that Jesus cares.  I care for you and I hope you have come to know Jesus as your Lord and Savior.

Lord,

I praise Your Holy Name.

Thank You for caring for us so much.

I pray for each one that reads these blog postings.

Touch them with healing and encourage each one to keep seeking You.

Thank You O Lord for all that You provide us with.

Help us not to be afraid.

Empower us through Your Holy Spirit to live for You and to trust You in the midst of our storm.

In Jesus Name we pray,

Amen.

Calling Out To The Lord In Prayer

Sometimes we find ourselves in trouble.  We live in a fallen and sinful world that is full of trouble that is for sure.  We can see troubling things going on all around our world today and sometimes the trouble comes into our own lives and communities as well.  Sometimes we try to figure a way out of our troubles on our own, but sometimes when we do that we just make things worse.

There is something that we should do when we are in trouble and also when things are going well for us.  We should pray.  Sometimes we wait until we exhaust all of our resources first then we call out to God for help, but we should call out to God first thing.

It fact we should be reaching out to God everyday.  Sometimes we might find ourselves calling out to Him moment by moment depending on the circumstances that we are in.  We are living in perilous times where trouble seems to be everywhere.  This world needs the Lord Jesus.  He is the only hope that this world has.

We believers in Jesus Christ must cry out to God for those in our families, in our communities, our countries, and everyone everywhere in the world that don't know Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.  We must pray that their hearts will be opened to the Good News of Jesus Christ.

There are so many things we can pray about. The good thing is that everyone of us, no matter what talents we have, can pray.  The Lord wants us to come to Him humbly with our request.  We should come in reverence for who He is.  He is God.  He is the Creator of all things and He is Holy.

We are His servants.  We are weak, but He is strong.  Everything is possible with God.  He loves us and He wants us to come to Him in prayer.  He wants to here our praise and thankfulness as well.
We must also take time to listen to what God has to say to us.  The Lord will speak to us through His Word, the Bible, and through the promptings of the Holy Spirit.  He will also speak to us through other people as well.  We need to make sure what people tell us lines up with Scripture.

We believers need to pray for each other.  We need to pray for our Pastors and our congregations.  We need to lift up the sick and the orphans.  We need to pray for those who are shut in and those who are suffering from horrible things.  We need to pray that the Lord would break the chains of addiction in our communities.

We need to pray for a wake up call for the Church.  The Church needs a revival.  We need the Holy Spirit to flow through us in a powerful way to draw others to the Lord Jesus Christ.  We need to pray in the Spirit.

Let us not neglect reading God's Word and Prayer.  May we draw near to God that He will draw near to us.

Lord, Heavenly Father,
We praise Your Name.
We come boldly to the throne of grace.
We humble ourselves before You O Lord.
Forgive us for not praying as much as we should.
Help us to have hunger for Your Word.
We uplift those we are sick and those who are in trouble.
We pray for those in Law Enforcement and we ask Your protective hand to be upon each one.
We pray that You would send revival.  
Set our hearts on fire for You O Lord and I pray that You would start in me.
In Jesus Name we pray,
Amen.

Trust Jesus On The Path Of Life

                                                       (Photograph by Michael Rairdon)

Sometimes life's path can seem rather hard to navigate and the journey can seem extremely long and hard.  There are many things that we will encounter throughout life.  Some good and some bad.  Sometimes the storms of life will assail us and we will be tossed back and forth like a small boat on a stormy sea.  There will be times of great joy and there will be times when we feel discouraged and want to give up.

There will be times when we will question ourselves and we may even wonder what exactly God is up to in our lives.  The good news is that the Lord is still at work in our lives even though sometimes we don't see His work right away.  We have great hope in the Lord Jesus Christ and we can know without a shadow of a doubt that He does indeed care for us.

We may feel abandoned, misunderstood, and even looked down upon, but the Lord looks at us as His child.  The Lord understands us more that we understand ourselves and He knows exactly where He wants us.  We can trust that the Lord will lead us to where it is He wants us to go.  

The path that we are on may not be easy.  The path can be hard to walk on and dark.  We don't know what dangers may be lurking around the next corner.  We can know that if we are trusting in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior that He will be with us each step of the way throughout life.  We can also take good comfort in knowing that one day when our life's journey comes to an end that the Lord will take us to our new home in Heaven where we will be with Him forever.

There will be tears, pain, and sorrow on the journey we are on throughout life and we don't know what tomorrow holds, but thankfully we can know the One that holds tomorrow and that is the Lord Jesus Christ.  We have great hope in the Lord and we can know that He will never leave us and He will never forsake us.

Lord,

We praise Your Name.

Sometimes the path can seem hard.

Sometimes we feel alone and friendless.

Thank You Lord that You are a friend that sticks closer than a brother.

Help us to feed upon Your Word and pour our Your Spirit upon us.

Lead us and guide our steps to be pleasing to You.

In Jesus Name we pray,

Amen.

Jesus Christ, The Only Name Under Heaven That We Must Be Saved By

Sometimes we can get so awfully discouraged by the way our world is and the direction it appears to be taking.  We can get discouraged by someone making unkind comments or criticism as well.  Sometimes we can find ourselves being criticized at Church by one of our fellow Church members.  We may have done the very best in serving the Lord, but someone always seems to feel it is their job to point out our mistakes.

I really try to do the best I can at serving the Lord, but sometimes I fall short of that goal.  I am not a perfect man.  I am just an unworthy servant of the Lord Jesus Christ.  I am not out to please people no matter what some may think.  I want to be pleasing to the Lord.  He is my top priority.  I am sorry that some people feel it necessary to criticize people who are serving the Lord the best way they know how.  We should be building others up and helping them run the race that has been set before them instead of tearing them down.

There are still people who act like the Pharisees.  There are many who prefer man's traditions rather than having a relationship with God through faith in Jesus Christ.  I shouldn't be surprised at all by critics because they are everywhere.  People criticized Jesus and if we are following Him faithfully then we too will be mocked and criticized as well.

Sometimes the words sting and they can hurt like a bad word.  We must forgive the person and give them to the Lord to deal with because He can handle them better than we ever could.  We should also see if there is any truth in what the other person said and maybe we can learn something from it.

I remember reading of a time when Peter and John were in the Temple telling other people about Jesus and the resurrection of the dead.  The religious leaders heard what they were doing and they didn't like it at all so they had them arrested.

We can read of what happened in Acts 4:1-13 which says,

"1 The priests and the captain of the temple guard and the Sadducees came up to Peter and John while they were speaking to the people. 
                                                                                                       

2 They were greatly disturbed because the apostles were teaching the people, proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection of the dead.

3 They seized Peter and John and, because it was evening, they put them in jail until the next day.

4 But many who heard the message believed; so the number of men who believed grew to about five thousand.

5 The next day the rulers, the elders and the teachers of the law met in Jerusalem.

6 Annas the high priest was there, and so were Caiaphas, John, Alexander and others of the high priest’s family.

7 They had Peter and John brought before them and began to question them: “By what power or what name did you do this?”

8 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them: “Rulers and elders of the people!

9 If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a man who was lame and are being asked how he was healed,

10 then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed.

11 Jesus is “ ‘the stone you builders rejected, which has become the cornerstone.’^a

12 Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.”

13 When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus." 

Peter and John were criticized by those who considered themselves to be religious and looked down on others.  Peter and John were proclaiming the truth of Jesus Christ and they healed a man who had been crippled in the name of Jesus Christ.  The religious leaders didn't like it one bit and they had Peter and John thrown in the slammer.  

The next day Peter and John were brought before the leaders in a trial setting or sorts and they were questioned.  Peter was filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak to these religious leaders about how the crippled man had been healed in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth.  Then He proclaimed the truth about Jesus Christ who was crucified by the religious leaders, but whom God raised from the dead.

Then Peter said something earth shattering and even shocking to people today.  He said, "Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved."  There is only one Savior of the world and that is Jesus Christ.  There is only one that can save us from our sins and that is Jesus Christ.

Religion will not save us.  Being a good person will not save us.  Giving to charity will not save us.  Belonging to a Church will not save us.  Belonging to a religious group will not save us.  Being baptized will not save us.  Only Jesus Christ can save us from our sins and keep us from facing eternal separation from God by being placed into a literal hell.

It is only through the shed blood of Jesus Christ that we are saved.  We must confess that we are sinners and receive Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior to be saved.  The religious leaders heard the message that Peter had given them, but they didn't seem to get it.  Many people in our day and age just don't get the message that we proclaim about Jesus either, but we must still proclaim it because it is the truth.

There is only one way to be reconciled back to God and that is through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.  It is Jesus who saves us.  We can't save ourselves.  

The Religious leaders saw the courage that Peter and John had and they realized that they were just ordinary men who had no fancy seminary training.  They saw that these were just your average unschooled men, but they knew that they had been with Jesus.  

I think that is a good testimony to have as a follower of Jesus Christ.  Do people say that about us?  Do they know that we have been with Jesus?  I would hope that the Holy Spirit would flow through me in such a way that others would see that I have been with Jesus and that He has made a difference in my life.  I know that on my own I can't draw others to the Lord because I am just an ordinary man with no seminary degree or a fancy title.

I just want to follow Jesus and draw closer to Him that others may come to know Him as well.  May the Lord draw us closer to Him and empower us to live for Him through the Holy Spirit.  Sometimes people will criticize us for one reason or another, but we must continue to proclaim the truth about Jesus no matter what.

Lord,

We praise Your Name.

Help us to forgive those who criticize us and hurt us with their words.

We give them into Your hands.

Deal with them in Your tender mercies.

Help us to live in such a way that others will know that we have been with You O Lord.

Lead us and empower us through the Holy Spirit.

In Jesus Name we pray,

Amen.

Using Our Talents For God's Glory

We all have certain abilities and talents that we can use to serve the Lord with.  We all don't have the same talent or skill.  Some people are good at encouraging others, some are really good at leading worship music, some can preach the Word,  some people may be good host, and others are good at organizing events.  The Lord has given us all some talent and at times He calls us to do things that are out of our comfort zone and we may feel like we aren't very good at that certain task.

We can be sure that if the Lord has called us to do something He will enable us to do it.  He will provide us with the resources and encouragement to complete the task that He wants us to accomplish.  We just need to be obedient and trust Him.  The Lord knows what He is doing and He loves using ordinary believers in Christ like you and I to accomplish His will.

I really don't consider myself highly talented by any means, but I know (and am still learning) that the Lord will provide a way for me to accomplish whatever He has called on me to do for Him.  Sometimes we get down on ourselves and we feel so very small and weak.  The thing is we are small and weak, but the Lord can still use us to do His will.  He loves using people whom the world considers powerless and small to accomplish great things so He will get all of the glory.  We can't take any credit at all for anything that the Lord accomplishes through us.

We should give God all the credit and glory and praise.  He is worthy of it all.  What an Awesome God we serve.  The Lord will do great things in our lives and through our lives if we just humble ourselves and be obedient to His call.  We need to submit to the lead of the Holy Spirit and allow Him to work through us to bring glory to the Lord Jesus Christ.

God can use anyone to accomplish His will if we just trust Him.  The Lord can use you an I to do great things for the furthering of the Kingdom of God.  We need to submit ourselves to His direction and be obedient to Him.

Let us use whatever talents and skills the Lord has blessed us with to bring Him glory, honor, and praise.  We may think that our talents are small and not worth mentioning, but they are important and can be used to draw others to a personal relationship with Jesus Christ in ways we may not even realize this side of Heaven.

Lord,
We praise Your Name.
Thank You for the talents that You give us.
Help us to use them for Your glory.
In Jesus Name we pray,
Amen.

Getting Right With Jesus Christ

The world is becoming an increasingly hostile place.  There is also a growing hostility towards believers in the Lord Jesus Christ.  There are Christians all over our world today that are suffering horribly for their belief in Jesus Christ.  Several are put to death for being a Christian.  The truth about Jesus Christ is under attack like never before.

We believers in Jesus Christ must stand firm upon the truth of God's Holy Word, the Bible, and the truth of who Jesus is.  Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and The Life.  There is only One Way to the Father and that is through Jesus Christ.

Religion will not save us.  Religion is trying to do enough good works to earn God's favor and hopefully enter into Heaven if our good works out weigh our bad.  There is a major problem with that way of thinking.  There is none of us that I good enough on our own to earn our way into Heaven no matter how much good we do.  Our good works will never our weigh our bad.

We have all sinned and fallen short of God's high standards.  The Bible tells us that their is no one that does good.  We have all been born with a sinful nature and we are all born bent away from God.  There is only one God and He reveals Himself in the Holy Bible.  He is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.  There is no other God but Him.  He is the Creator of all things seen and unseen.

There is only one way to find forgiveness of our sins and that is by placing our faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ.  God demonstrated His great love towards you and I by sending His one and only Son, Jesus Christ, into this world to live a perfect sinless life and He died on the Cross shedding His blood for our sins.  We must come to Jesus and confess that we are sinners and receive Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior.

Jesus rose from the dead on the third day to show us that He is indeed God.  He is at the right hand of the Father and one day He will return and establish the Kingdom of God upon the earth in full completion.  God doesn't want anyone to perish or go to hell and be eternally separated from Him, but many unfortunately will reject the truth of Jesus Christ.

The Lord loves you and wants to have a relationship with you and that is only available through Jesus Christ.  God invites us to come to Him and know Him and more importantly be known by Him.  Everyone is invited to come to faith in Jesus Christ.  No matter where you live and no matter what you have done.  God is willing to forgive your sin and give you a place in Heaven, but only if you come to receive Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior.

There world is growing darker and more hostile.  We believers in Jesus Christ must stand firm upon our beliefs in Him and be empowered by the Holy Spirit to live for Him each and everyday.  Come to the Lord Jesus Christ right know if you haven't done so and make Him your Lord and Savior.

If you have already I would like to encourage you to keep praying and calling out to the Lord.  Keep loving Him and trusting Him for all things are possible with God.  Keep reading the Bible.  Keep persevering as you run the race of faith while focused upon the Lord Jesus Christ.

Lord,
We praise Your Name.
You are Holy.
Thank You for all that You have done and all that You do for us.
I uplift those Christians that are facing persecution.
Strengthen them.
Lead us and guide us by Your Holy Spirit.
In Jesus Name we pray,
Amen.

Telling Others About Jesus Because Time Is Short

We live in a desperately dark and fallen world.  We just need to watch the evening news on the television to see the evidence for ourselves.  There is a lot of anger in our world these days and a extreme lack of love and compassion.  Our world is troubled and it appears to be spiraling downward even more so everyday.

We believers in Jesus Christ may feel rather discouraged with everything that is going on, but we must remind ourselves that Jesus told us that things would grow from bad to worse until the Day He returns.  Jesus told us that in this world we would have troubles, but He also told us to take heart because He has overcome the world.

Yes, the world is falling apart at a rapid rate and things will grow worse until the Day that the Lord comes.  What then should we do?  It would be all too easy for us to collapse in despair and give into fear and worry, but that is not what the Lord would have us to do.

It is time for we who are believers and followers of Jesus Christ to live for Him each and everyday.  We need to read the Bible and study it.  We need to draw near to the Lord Jesus by spending time with Him in prayer.  We also need to tell others about having a personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ.  People need the Lord.  Time is running out on this limited time offer to have their sins forgiven and have a place in Heaven.

We need to pray for our pastors, deacons, and church leaders and for everyone else in the Body of Christ.  We need to humble ourselves before the Lord and be empowered by the Holy Spirit and live boldly for the Lord.  We need to proclaim the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ throughout our communities, our region, our state, our country, our families, and throughout the world.

This world is dying and fading fast.  There are people all around us that are facing eternal separation from God because they have not received forgiveness of their sins through Jesus Christ.  We must tell them the truth about sin and that they can find forgiveness of their sins through Jesus Christ and His finished work that He accomplished on the Cross for each one of us.

The Church needs to awaken to the mission that we have been called to do and that is to Go into all the world and make disciples of all nations.  We need to renew our relationship (or start one if we haven't done so) with Jesus Christ and be empowered by the Holy Spirit to live for Him.

Lord,
We praise Your Name.
Forgive us for being complacent at times.
Revive us O Lord through Your Holy Spirit.
Help us to have a fresh faith.
Give us the words and courage to tell others about Jesus Christ.
In Jesus Name we pray,
Amen.

God Understands Our Brokenness

There are times in our lives when our hearts feel utterly broken and beyond repair.  We may feel the pangs of despair weighing us down and we feel like we will never be the same again.  Sometimes grief and sorrow come against us in this life.  Sometimes we grieve the loss of a loved one who has passed away.  There are times we have sorrow in our hearts when a friend or a loved one moves far away to another town.

People may try to comfort us with their kind words, but the sting is still there.  Sometimes the wounds and scars in our hearts are so very tender that we wonder if they will ever heal.  We all feel broken at times.  We all bear the scars of past hurts and the wounds of disappointments.

Life is filled with trials and troubles.  Sometimes things don't go the way that we think that they should go.  We wonder if there is anyone that truly understands our brokenness and our sorrow.  I am here to tell you that there indeed is someone that knows all about the sorrow and pain we feel.

The Lord Jesus Christ knows all about our troubles, our sorrows, and our brokenness.  He knows every little detail of our lives.  He knows what is bothering us.  He sees our brokenness.  The Lord invites us to come to Him to find rest for our weary souls.  Jesus cares more than anyone we know.

Today at the First Baptist Church in Houlton, Maine we had Communion.  I was reminded of the broken body of Jesus as He was nailed upon the Cross for my brokenness.  I am a broken person.  My heart breaks because of my sin and my heart breaks for those who are lonely, afraid, and don't know Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.  My heart breaks for those who are facing addiction to various things and need the chains of sin broken off of them.

I was also reminded during Communion of the shed blood of Jesus Christ that cleanses us of our sins.  Jesus died on the Cross for my sins, your sins, and the sins of the whole world.  The Lord Jesus rose from the dead on the third day and He is now at the right hand of the Father in Heaven.  One Glorious Day Jesus Christ will return to this earth as the King if kings and the Lord of lords when He brings the Kingdom of God to full completion upon this earth.

The Lord didn't leave us as orphans to fend for ourselves until He returns, but He gives the Holy Spirit to indwell each of us who have placed our faith and trust in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior and His finished work on the Cross.  God understands our brokenness very well because His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, was broken for our brokenness.

We may not always understand what God is up to in our lives or in the lives of those we love.  We can still pray for them and we can continue to trust our Living Loving God to do what is best for His Glory and perfect will.

We will never see the full picture as we dwell on this earth, but we can rest in the assurance that the Lord knows the beginning to the very end and He sees the full complete picture.  God is good and He is good all the time.  We can trust Him with our broken hearts.  We can trust Him with our grief and sorrow.  We can trust Him with our today's and we can know that He will lead us through our tomorrows.

I like what Isaiah 53 says about the suffering servant who is Jesus Christ and all that He endured for us.

Isaiah 53

1 Who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed? 
                                                                                                       

2 He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.

3 He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide their faces he was despised, and we held him in low esteem.

4 Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted.

5 But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.

6 We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.

7 He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth.

8 By oppression and judgment he was taken away. Yet who of his generation protested? For he was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgression of my people he was punished. 

9 He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth.

10 Yet it was the LORD’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the LORD makes his life an offering for sin, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the LORD will prosper in his hand.

11 After he has suffered, he will see the light of life and be satisfied ; by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities.

12 Therefore I will give him a portion among the great, and he will divide the spoils with the strong, because he poured out his life unto death, and was numbered with the transgressors. For he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors."

What a wonderful Savior that we have in the Lord Jesus Christ. He bore our sins upon Himself on the Cross.  He took the punishment that you and I so rightly deserve.  Jesus paid it all for us so that you and I can be reconciled back to God.  Our sin separated us from having a relationship with the Lord Almighty God, but now because of the Sacrifice of Jesus Christ upon the Cross we can obtain forgiveness of our sins and come into a right standing with God.  God made a way for us when there seemed to be no way possible.  What an Awesome God!

When we feel broken let us remember all that Jesus suffered for us and the sacrifice that He made on our behalf.  There will be times when we will have to give up something and that can be considered a sort of sacrifice.  It made not be easy or comfortable, but sometimes serving the Lord in obedience to His will won't be easy or comfortable at all.  In the end we need to trust Him because He is God and He knows what He is doing.

Lord, Heavenly Father,

We are a broken people.

Our hearts break over many things.

Heal our broken spirit.

Thank You Lord Jesus for becoming broken for us an our sins on the Cross.

We praise Your Holy Name.

Lead us and guide us by Your Holy Spirit.

In Jesus Name we pray,

Amen.

Knowing That God Is In Control

I live in an area where winters are harsh and seemingly long.  Yesterday we received 17 inches of new snow from a storm and many people are still shoveling and plowing.  I came home early from work to clear some snow off of my roof.  I used a snow rake because I am not a fan of heights or of falling and injuring myself.

The snow was rather deep in the front of my house so I thought the best solution was to wear my snowshoes and make a trail so I wouldn't sink in the deep snow as I raked my roof.  There I was dressed in multiple layers of winter gear and wearing my snowshoes while holding onto my extra long roof rake clearing the snow off of the roof.

If you have ever snowshoed you know very well how easy it is to fall down if you aren't careful.  I tripped and fell into the deep snow.  I had a hard time getting back up ( after I finished laughing).  I needed a good laugh.  Thankfully I planned ahead somewhat and left my snowshoe poles sticking up in the snow for easy access.

(Allow me to pause my story a bit and tell you about my snowshoes.  I purchased these brand new snowshoes a few months ago for a Christmas present to myself.  I used them for the for the first time on Monday.  During that snowshoe adventure I discovered that one of the telescoping poles that came with the snowshoes kept collapsing if I applied too much weight on it.  It really didn't bother me at the time, but I was kind of discouraged because one of the poles didn't work like it should.)

So, there I was laying in the snow trying to get myself back up which can be rather challenging when you are wearing several layers of winter clothing and wearing snowshoes.  Eventually I managed to get onto my side and I was close enough to grab one of my poles and I thought, "Great, I got this!"
You can probably guess which pole I grabbed to try to help myself back up on my feet.  Yes, you guessed correctly.  I grabbed the broken pole that collapses on itself and I gently went back onto my back into the deep snow as the pole collapsed.  It seemed like slow motion. I was laughing again as I laid there in the snow looking up into the sky.

That is when I started thinking about how sometimes we think that we are in control of things even though we have no control at all.  We like to think we have control over our lives, but we really don't.  We try to control things and do things our way, but we still aren't in control.

There is only One that is in control and that is the Lord our God.  God is in control of all things and sometimes that is a hard concept for many to fathom, but it true.  We don't always understand why God allows certain things to occur, but we can know that the Lord will work it out for good in accordance to his perfect will.

The Lord wants us to trust Him with everything in our lives.  He doesn't want us running around in a state of fear and anxiety as many of us do sometimes.  The Lord wants us to realize that He is the One that has the answers and He is the One that we have to answer to.

The Lord loves us and He is not out to harm us, thankfully.  God demonstrated His love for each of us by sending His One and only Son, Jesus Christ, to this world to die for sinners such as you and I.  The Lord made a way for us to have forgiveness of our sins and He made a way for us to have a home in Heaven.  There is only one way to obtain forgiveness of our sins and have a home in Heaven and that is by placing our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and His substitutionary death on the Cross for us.

God is so good and He loves you and I so very much.  The question remains, "Do you love Him?"
He wants to have a relationship with you and that is available to you by placing your faith in Jesus Christ.  We must come to the point where we admit we are sinners and can't save ourselves.  Then we must place our faith in Jesus Christ and make Him our Lord and Savior.

I am thankful for the Lord Jesus Christ saving a wretched man such as myself.  I am thankful that the Lord is always with me even when I fall flat on my back in the deep snow of Northern Maine.  Oh by the way, I was able to reach the working snowshoe pole and I was able to get back up on my feet.  I was also able to clear the snow off of the front part of the house.  The other side can wait until another day and hopefully I will be able to stay on my feet next time.

No matter what we are going through in life we can be thankful that God is in control and we can trust Him with every detail of our life.  The Lord will lead us and direct our steps if we just trust Him.

Lord, Heavenly Father,
We praise Your Holy Name!
Thank You that You are in control.
Thank You for Your great love.
Lead us and guide us closer to You.
Empower us to love those around us and share the Good News of Jesus Christ with them.
In Jesus Name we pray,
Amen.

The Lord Jesus Comforts Us In Our Trials

Life can seem rather hard for all of us sometimes.  We all face challenges and we all encounter difficulties in life's journey.  Sometimes the storms of life come upon us and knock us down for a moment or two.  There are times when we feel weary and the burdens of life seem to be a heavy weight on our shoulders.  We don't always understand why we have to face certain trials, but we believers in Jesus Christ can rest assure that the Lord will be with us through the difficult trial.

The Lord is our comforter and He has great compassion on us when we are facing hard trials.  It is during those hard moments of life when we need to draw closer to the Lord and not farther away.  God loves us and He cares for us.  We can count on God to be their with us no matter what we are going through.

When we come out of our trial with our focus on the Lord we will be better equipped to minister to others who are facing similar difficulties.  God comforts us during the hard times in life so we will be able to comfort those who are in need all around us.

There are many people all around us who are facing hard times and various challenges.  For some people they see no light at the end of the tunnel concerning their trial.  Some people feel like they are hopeless and that things will never get better.

We believers in Jesus Christ know for a fact that their is hope in the Lord and that things will get better for those of us who are trusting in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior.  There is great hope in Jesus Christ.

We have the hope of Heaven through our trusting in Jesus Christ and His finished work on the Cross of our behalf.  God is good and He made a way for us to have our sins forgiven through the shred blood of Jesus Christ.

The Lord will comfort us during those difficult times in life.  We can gain great encouragement form reading the Bible and allowing the Holy Spirit to speak to our very hearts as we read God's Word.  His Word is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path.

Lord,
Thank You for being with us through our trials.
We praise Your Name.
Lead us and guide us through Your Holy Spirit.
Help us to comfort others as You comfort us during our trials.
In Jesus Name we pray,
Amen.

Having Our Focus On Jesus Throughout The New Year

Today is the first day of a brand New Year.  We don't know what this year will bring.  There may be challenges and trials.  There will be good times filled with joy and laughter.  There may also be times of discouragement and learning.  Whatever the New Year holds for us we know that the Lord Jesus will be with us each step of the way through it.

We believers in Jesus Christ are on a journey through life.  The Christian life has been compared to a race of sorts.  We must run our race with our eyes fixed upon the prize that awaits us at the finish line.  Our eyes must be fixed upon the Lord Jesus.  He is the prize that we long for.  Jesus is the one that has paid the penalty for our sins by dying one the Cross and He is the one that gives us eternal life in Heaven.  We must come to Him by faith and trust in His grace.

I like what the author of Hebrews says in Hebrews 12:1-3,

"1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, 
                                                                                                       

2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart." 

During this coming year may we cast off everything that hinders us and the sin that easily entangles us.  We won't be able to do that on our own, but the Lord will help us to do that when we submit to Him and His direction.

We must fix put eyes upon Jesus and have our faith securely in Him.  The Lord will be with us each step of the way.  Let us not grow weary and be weighed down with fear and anxiety, but instead may we be led by the Holy Spirit and empowered by Him to live for the Lord Jesus Christ each and everyday during the new year ahead of us.

I pray that the New Year will bring you great blessings form the Lord as you draw nearer to Him.  Continue to read and study the Bible and continue to walk in the Spirit and rejoice in His wonderful presence.

Have a blessed and Happy New Year.

Lord,

We praise Your Name.

You are Holy.

We pray that Your blessing would be upon each of us during this New Year.

Lead us and guide us by Your Holy Spirit.

In Jesus Name we pray,

Amen.