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Monthly Archives: April 2014

Big God

Big God

Isaiah 55:8-9 “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord. 9 “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts.”

Those of you that know me well, know that I am a stubborn,determined, bull-headed, I can do anything I put my mind to guy. I don’t know if I like the challenge, or the competition, or inner competition of proving to someone else or myself that I can do something. I don’t do anything half-hearted, and I honestly have a problem with people that do. I am driven, and I am a “product” of the American dream that I can do anything; but I have been humbled by my God to the point of being in awe of just how small I am in recent years. “I stand amazed” is a statement I heard early in my walk, and it has stuck with me; my God leaves me in awe.

When my God reveals just minute particles of himself to me in countless ways, my mind cannot comprehend or articulate the complexity of what I have experienced in that small tidbit of God. I think of when God spoke to the prophet Jeremiah personally, but this same promise is to all of us that will seek Him with our whole heart; love him with our whole heart. Jeremiah 33:3 Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know. I sit here this morning with the lightning storm outside my window and know that God is even in the storm. God is even in the storms of life; he uses the toughest times in our lives to draw us closer to Him. He either designs, or allows, the things we think we cannot handle, the things when we may question God, that can draw us closer to him as a result of them. When our little minds begin to grasp only a minute portion of Sovereignty; we can find him and peace in those storms.

God is in blessings; he will lay before you things that he had worked out from the start. You can try to plan your ways to them, but likely if you move before him you will the blessing from him. James 1:17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning. Every single thing in your life flows through God’s hands. All the good, and all the bad have passed through the allowance of God. You must rest in the knowledge of his Sovereignty; and the knowledge of how big your God is.

PS-Cut it short due to the lightning. 🙂

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Posted by oneminuteministry on April 30, 2014 in Daily Devotions

Tags: Big God Isaiah

Sermon Link

27 Apr

Sermon Link’

Pieces

https://www.dropbox.com/s/q6hyrvtt1563xjy/Pieces.docx

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Posted by oneminuteministry on April 27, 2014 in Daily Devotions

Hydration = Lower Anxiety

23 Apr

Hydration = Lower Anxiety

Philippians 4:4-7 Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice! 5 Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand. 6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

I really wonder how many roads I could go down with this passage; how many roads of our lives could this passage minister to each of us? Should not this scripture be on the dashboard of our cars, on the screensaver of our phones, on a post-it note on our computers? We need to be daily reminded of this scripture, for all of this world takes us in the opposite direction. I am entering into what will likely be the most difficult summer of my life; the air conditioning business is brutal in the summer and now I have the load as a pastor also, and still all the load as a husband and dad. Already in these few early weeks I am seeing the stresses and anxieties it is going to place on me; I think I need to figure out a way to place this scripture as my screensaver.

I read a book called “Out of Control” a few years back; I really need to find it and re-read it to be honest. It spoke greatly to me of how God did not create us for this 4G world we live in. He did not create us for living our lives in constant communication and constant stimulation. Our world and the demands of it are moving us away from God. Sunday’s are becoming just part of our calendars, making time for God on them. That moves us one step closer to religiosity, and one step farther away from God. He created us for a relationship born out of love; not mindless worship and motions that we feel obligated to perform on Sundays. Religion teaches and kills, for it teaches that we are saved in it; nothing you can do earns you favor with God except the humble heart that realizes Grace. Only in that realization are you saved through his Son. John 14:6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.

Even in my early hours out here with God, I never want it to be of duties call. There was a point in this ministry that it became a call of duty, and God showed me that clearly. I only want early mornings to be about spending time with One I love and expecting to hear from Him. Those days such as this when I struggle to arise, my heart pulls me from bed to seek my alone time with him before the pressures of the day demand my attention. I have always leaned on Psalm 63:1 A Psalm of David when he was in the wilderness of Judah. O God, You are my God; Early will I seek You; My soul thirsts for You; My flesh longs for You In a dry and thirsty land Where there is no water. When we all go out and about into our day, the pressures of the world are that dry and thirsty land is our world is. It daily points to our need of the “Living Water” that Christ nourishes us with; that living water that we should seek early each day to prepare for the day. A properly hydrated soul will be a soul that faces the day with the strength found in Philippians 4.

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Posted by oneminuteministry on April 23, 2014 in Daily Devotions

Tags: christ jesus

Sermon Link

20 Apr

Sermon Link

https://www.dropbox.com/s/xsjltj0ul93lm53/Easter.docx

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Posted by oneminuteministry on April 20, 2014 in Daily Devotions

He is risen indeed.

17 Apr

He is risen indeed.

Matthew 28:5-7 But the angel answered and said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. 6 He is not here; for He is risen, as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay. 7 And go quickly and tell His disciples that He is risen from the dead, and indeed He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him. Behold, I have told you.”

What do you believe regarding Jesus Christ conquering death; do you believe that he arose from the grave so miraculously that his clothes still lie undisturbed on the third day just as was prophesied? Do you believe that death has no power over him? Do you believe that he conquered death for you? Do you believe in what we are celebrating this time of year? If you say that you believe in Jesus, but yet not all that the Bible teaches about his virgin birth, sinless life, and that he arose from death after three days in the tomb; you are living a lie and making a mockery of your faith and Jesus Christ; repent for the kingdom of heaven is near.

Paul addresses this directly; Paul speaks to those that say He did not arise. The Corinthians were teaching a mix of faiths; they were teaching that Christ only arose spiritually; not physically. They were teaching what maybe made more sense and required less faith. 1 Corinthians 15:12-20 Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? 13 But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. 14 And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. 15 We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified about God that he raised Christ, whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. 16 For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. 17 And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. 18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. 19 If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied. 20 But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. Christ arose physically! Left a cave without a trace; conquered death for he created life; conquered death so that you have the opportunity for eternal life. Do not be eternally mistaken on how you view Christ’s death; it gives you life, or your mistake takes it from you.

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Posted by oneminuteministry on April 17, 2014 in Daily Devotions

Tags: Jesus Christ

Don’t have time for____________

15 Apr

Don’t have time for____________

John 12:25-26 He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. 26 If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also. If anyone serves Me, him My Father will honor.

Henry Blackaby says in the Experiencing God study that, “People that struggle to spend time with God don’t have a scheduling problem, they have a love problem.” They simply don’t love God enough to put him at the top of their priority list. When you have fallen in love with someone, their is never a need to pencil them into your schedule; they are at the top of your list, and your to-do list falls below them at the heading. Everything in this world, in this sin filled world, teaches success bred from selfishness. Nothing matters in life more than whatever you want in life. Nothing will get done unless you do it; nothing will come back to you unless you do the tasks at hand; nothing will come to those that don’t put 110% of their life into something. This top priority could be work or play; we have many idols that take our hearts and focus off God. We may simply not love Him enough to have the drive to pursue him enough to get to know him better.

Jesus was setting the example of a servants heart in this passage in John. He was showing us what it is, what it means to God, to have a heart that thinks first of others; not what we get in return from anything. John 13:15 “For I gave you an example that you also should do as I did to you. Jesus lived his life for the purpose we are celebrating this week; He came to give his life so that we might have eternal life; he lived and died sacrificially. Can you imagine how God smiles down on you when he knows the true motive of your heart when you do a complete sacrificial, selfless act, expecting nothing in return? He sees your true heart; he sees Christ in you; he sees you transformed into the image of his Son when you put the needs of another before your own.

The closer you draw to God, the more you will be like Christ. The more you are like Christ the more you will live a selfless life, seeking to point others to Jesus. Things that once matter so much in this life, will not carry the weight they once did. Things that were high on your priority list, are now maybe not even on the list. Careers turn into J.O.B.S. All that money and time you put into your sports or hobbies that turned into idols, are now just good recreational fun. All those times you didn’t have for God, now you don’t have time for them.

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Posted by oneminuteministry on April 15, 2014 in Daily Devotions

Tags: Experiencing God study, Henry Blackaby, top priority

Sermon Link

13 Apr

Sermon Link

The Triumphal Entry / The Time of Your Visitation

https://www.dropbox.com/s/a72i7gi6dtohjna/What%20is%20today.docx

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Posted by oneminuteministry on April 13, 2014 in Daily Devotions

Tags: Triumphal Entry

Heart Agenda

11 Apr

Heart Agenda

2 Corinthians 4:3-6 And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled only to those who are perishing. 4 In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. 5 For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. 6 For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,”has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

My world, and my load in my world is crazy right now. We are approaching Easter, the most Holy week of the year in Christianity, and that weight is heavy on my heart and mind. My cooling business’s floodgates have broken from their hinges. My work load is incredible, which is a true financial blessing from God. Even when I laid down to sleep last night, my mind continued on at warp speed leaving me with a night of broken rest. When I finally got up this morning, my mind was still going at it. Don’t we all have times like that too?

I had talked to God this morning. I thanked him for all the blessings he was pouring out on me right now. I prayed for wisdom; I prayed for His words to be spoken through me both here and at church. It is hard to describe the pain that comes in Paul’s words above; to preach and teach about Christ, and hardened hearts not respond. My heart hurts for the lost that are outsiders, but my greater burden is the lost that are among us; those that think they are saved but are not. Do you proclaim Christ? Do you know that you are saved? It is never about a head knowledge, it is a matter of the heart. Mark 12:30 And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ This is the first commandment. When you live your life with a love for Him as this, you will be secure in your salvation and secure in your eternity with Him. If you know you are lacking in this level of love for Him, I am sure you are feeling doubt in your security right now. What is holding you back from committing your life to him completely? Why do you focus on things here that truly do not matter? What is on your agenda for today that has eternal implications?

We watched a movie last night as a family called “My name is Paul.” It is a modern day play on the Apostle Paul’s life; it was really good and made you think about your focus in life, and your willingness to die for your beliefs. Are you; would you? What about when you kneel before your Lord one day feeling secure in your religiosity? You prayed the prayer, and went through the motions, but you never loved him with all your heart? What could he say? Matthew 7:21 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. 22 Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ 23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’ What possible excuse do you have for today for not living your life for him today? What is on your agenda that has eternal implications? What does that say about your heart?

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Posted by oneminuteministry on April 11, 2014 in Daily Devotions

Encouragement

08 Apr

Encouragement

1 Thessalonians 5:9-11 For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, 10 who died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep we might live with him. 11 Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.(ESV)

Sunday’s sermon was a tough one; it was one of a call to repentance. I knew I was to preach it, and I knew it would bring with it spiritual warfare. Monday was the low, after the high of Sunday. I can’t begin to explain here what my life is like now; I honestly do not think the details matter, but God can show you generalities that you can relate and deal with in situations that you currently face too. We are all called to a daily repentance; we all fail daily and have that need to go before our Lord and ask for forgiveness. I felt that weight heavily yesterday. I thank God for those deep convictions of sin, but they hurt deeply also. I have to ask myself just as Paul did in Romans 7:15 For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. (ESV) But you must continue reading, and understanding as Paul, that you will never be perfect; you will fail daily, and therefore require daily repentance due to sin. 17 So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. (ESV)

Paul writes of the encouraging words that we can lean on in times of trouble above. The promise of eternal paradise with our Savior above. When we get entrenched in the woes of our sin state that binds us, we are of little use to the kingdom. We become so down and worried about ourselves we may miss the blessing from God, or the way he wants to use us for the day. We should focus our minds on heavenly things, living with a repentant heart that casts our sins at the foot of the cross. Colossians 3:2 Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.

Personally, my plea is for you to encourage your pastors and ministers in your life. This has been a tough lesson to learn for me; it is a very lonely place to be. Those that lead you at church every week need your encouragement. They may be your pastor, your youth leader, your worship leader, anyone involved in ministry is in battle for their servant hearts on the weekend. They need your encouragement; you would be amazed at how far a little will go. Paul knew these battles that the early churches faced; that was why he returned to them, sent letters to them, and constantly sought to encourage them with those he sent to them. Pray for those that serve the Lord by serving you; encourage them in some way, for I promise you they need it.

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Posted by oneminuteministry on April 8, 2014 in Daily Devotions

Tags: Encouragement, lord jesus christ