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Early Gift

24 Dec

Early Gift

Proverbs 8:17 I love those who love me, And those who seek me diligently will find me.

What is the one things you are looking forward to over the next couple of days of vacation? OK, honestly, before the Christmas present you hope to be getting? Is it that the alarm clock will be turned off? That you won’t have to get up to go to work for the next couple of days? It does seem no matter what age we are, we come to have a tough relationship with that necessity. It does start really early in life in the form of likely our parents waking us up for school, then continues to the likelihood of first shift work at some point in our lives. Therefore those couple of days a week, and then those holidays throughout the year bring a simple joy of sleeping in. I can promise you there is a God-sized way to change your attitude about every morning: First thing every day spend time with Him in prayer and his Word. No longer will it be anything less than exciting and expectant to hear from your Creator each day. You will arise each day like it was Christmas morn.

Next to Salvation found through Jesus Christ alone, if there is one thing I can share with you, is to spend daily time with God in his Word. My testimony is one of the power of that. I still remember not so long ago starting that daily habit with like maybe five minutes; “Whew, got that tasks done. Now on to the rest of them.” You cannot spend daily time with God and remain the same person. True change begins with Christ, and life changes when spend each day with God. When Jesus was teaching us how to pray, he told us to seek from God what we need for each day. Matthew 6:11 Give us this day our daily bread. That daily bread is found through prayer and his Word. Everything you need is found in the daily time consecrated to God.

John 6:33 For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” 34 Then they said to Him, “Lord, give us this bread always.” 35 And Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst. Christ had performed the miracle of feeding the 5000, and the followers were drawn to him by the miracles. They had followed him to the other side of the sea. Christ had claimed to be their Messiah, and yet they still wanted another sign. This bread of life, Jesus Christ, is revealed to the true heart that searches Him out; a true heart that seeks him every day will find him. Jeremiah 29:13 And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. Arise early during these holidays and spend quality time with God. It could be the be the best present you get this year.

 
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Posted by on December 24, 2013 in Daily Devotions

 

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Sermon Link

22 Dec

The INCARNATION

https://www.dropbox.com/s/3s6s1fxetxn5l0l/Christmas.docx

 

 

 
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Posted by on December 22, 2013 in Daily Devotions

 

Keep pursuing when it gets hard

21 Dec

Keep pursuing when it gets hard

2 Corinthians 4:1-6   Therefore, having this ministry by the mercy of God, we do not lose heart. 2 But we have renounced disgraceful, underhanded ways. We refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God’s word, but by the open statement of the truth we would commend ourselves to everyone’s conscience in the sight of God. 3 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.(ESV)

This has been a week that brought a new challenge; getting sick and trying to prepare a sermon when the pains in my head made it hard to think. I have truly had a rough time with it. I could go down a long road with what I am feeling, but this is not supposed to be about me. But these devo’s are supposed to show you that I am no different from you, struggle the same as you, and try to encourage in all of it to show Christ to you. Sermon’s are many times supposed to show these deep revelations of God, everyone wants the wow in the sermon; “What did God show the pastor in all his time studying this week?” Couldn’t the wow in the sermon be God showing you the same thing that He showed the pastor that week? Shouldn’t Sunday be a reflection of your time spent with Him? When you sit and hear that God laid the same thing on both your hearts, that will truly be an incredible Sunday morning with God you will never forget.

Paul was struggling in this message to Corinth. Paul goes on to list his persecutions in 2 Corinthians 11:23-33; read that list for a humble reality check any time you are feeling sorry for yourself. Paul suffered greatly for Christ, but he also kept his eyes on Christ. He knew he was only to preach the simplicity of the Gospel. He knew in all his education he could sway any crowd down any road, but he wanted no glory, nor any of his words to take away from the message of the Cross. 2 Corinthians 4:8 We are hard pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; 9 persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed– 10 always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body. Spend time this week seeking God in his Word and prayer. Spend time this week leading up to Sunday and see what God shows both of you. If you have had a rough week, maybe the encouragement you need will be greater than you imagined when you have sought God through all of it.

 
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Posted by on December 21, 2013 in Daily Devotions

 

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Land & Souls

18 Dec

Land & Souls

   2 Chronicles 7:14 if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.

God went to Solomon
He had heard Solomon pray;
God had come to the temple
And there He planned to stay.

God warned Solomon to keep
Their hearts focused above;
To remember what God had done
For Israel out of love.

God knew their hearts
Of how soon they would forget;
Of the days of slavery
Now that all their needs were met.

When we turn against God
Take sin by the reigns and ride;
At some point we become convicted
And likely from God we hide.

Look at the promise
Look at the hope here found;
Humble repentant hearts
In grace they abound.

A glimpse of the Gospel
Prayerful humble pleas to above;
Praying for forgiveness
An outpouring of His love.

Prideful hearts will perish
They will ever be in pain;
Humble hearts that soften
With Him they will remain.

Turn from your sin to Him
Humble your heart & pray
Forgiven through Christ
More than land healed today.

 
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Posted by on December 18, 2013 in Daily Devotions

 

Revelry

17 Dec

Revelry

Luke 12:29-31    And do not seek what you should eat or what you should drink, nor have an anxious mind. 30 For all these things the nations of the world seek after, and your Father knows that you need these things. 31 But seek the kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added to you.

The past couple of weeks the pressures of life have been getting to me. I am no different from you, and we all know the added stresses that come with this time of year. I have found the mental strains wearisome, and found myself sleeping in more. The excuses could be many, but this morning I just lay there thinking…….. and I realized the stresses had increased, because my time alone with God had decreased. I have spent much time in prayer and his Word during the day preparing for sermons each week, but my alone time with Him was lacking in these early morning hours. This is our special time of day; our appointed time where God began to change my life only a few years ago. Where He began to do a great work in me by opening my eyes and mind through my heart in the scriptures. He began to reveal himself to me, and tugged my heart to began sharing it with all of you. He placed Matthew 6:33 on my heart, which is parallel to Luke 12:31; (Seek Ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.)

There is nothing that I have that makes me anything special. All I seek to do is to point you to the One who will make you special. Outside of Salvation, nothing will change you in life like spending time every single day in God’s Word. You cannot open the truths of God and not be changed by them. You will begin to view life differently when you begin to filter it through the Bible. Luke is telling you not to have that anxious mind here; to know that God will supply all your needs, and the proofs of that are recorded throughout time in the Bible.

New Years resolutions are rolling around the corner. There is nothing that will change, whatever you are wanting to improve, like spending time in God’s Word. Any bad habit, will bring about a conviction of sin, and urge to change. Any desire to be a better person, will come as the outpouring of love you feel welling up inside of you. You cannot spend time with God every day and remain the same person; His Word is a living word and will change you like nothing, or even your own pride, can change you. Luke ends this portion of scripture with the proofs of where your heart lies; where you place your focus in life; where our focus should be. Luke 12:34 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

 
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Posted by on December 17, 2013 in Daily Devotions

 

The other 11 months

16 Dec

The other 11 months

Romans 13:10-14    Love does no harm to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law. 11 And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. 12 The night is far spent, the day is at hand. Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light. 13 Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy. 14 But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.

We are steadily approaching Christmas week, the celebration of the birth of our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. I have been thinking, praying, and studying on the message for this coming Sunday. This coming week there will be the message of Christ’s birth 2000 years ago, but there will also be the message of his return; Lord willing he doesn’t return before then. If we are truly a child of His, we should grasp the grace that God bestowed upon us that day in that barn. We should grasp that our eternal lives were secured by that incarnation of God himself; humbled beyond description, destined to die for our redemption. All to pay for our sins for which we could not ever pay on our own. He came and died to provide what we could not ever accomplish by any good deed, or work, or sacrifice in any way.

Paul writes in Romans of this coming day, the day that Christ returns. He speaks of how we are to live our lives as an expression of love; 1 John 4:8 He who does not love does not know God, for God is love. This time of year we many times find ourselves doing our good deeds, showing expressions of our love for our fellow man, or those that are seemingly less fortunate. It brings about a good feeling inside when we perform these tasks; it shows a warm heart and hopefully an example of Christ living inside of us. But what about the other 11 months out of the year? Do we return to our worldly ways on January 1st and live for ourselves and our worldly pursuits? Do we  reflect Christ for those other 11months?

Paul is truly pointing the finger at us, he is reminding us that every day brings us closer to Christ return. Matthew 24:36 “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only. In these days of office parties and New Years celebrations, take time to remember the true meaning of the season and how you are reflecting it. When He returns, we shall stand before him and give an account of our lives. It will be much better to live all 12 months out of the year in with the evidence of love that He gives us.

 
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Posted by on December 16, 2013 in Daily Devotions

 

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Sermon Link

15 Dec

Sermon Link – The Power of a Praying Church

https://www.dropbox.com/s/d7u8gdw9usl8a1y/Power%20of%20a%20praying%20church.docx

 

 
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Posted by on December 15, 2013 in Daily Devotions

 

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Heavenly Bricks

11 Dec

Heavenly Bricks

John 14:1-4   “Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. 2 In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. 4 And where I go you know, and the way you know.”

Jesus was with his disciples after the Last Supper. He had just told them of the trouble that was to come to all of them. He had pointed to their failures to him, and he had pointed to his death. He had dismissed Judas Iscariot from them to start act of his capture, and all that comes with it. The disciples were greatly troubled and discouraged. Matthew Henry has a great commentary on how Christ knew the weight of what troubled them. John 14 is a discourse of encouragement to them, and us all. The pathways, and promises of the Holy Spirit, and the treasures in heaven.

How many deep things can God enlighten you with in these opening scriptures? The entire tone is set is the opening verse, don’t worry, just believe. There are likely roads to go down into theology of the representations of these mansions, but it is as simple as it’s literal meaning; you have a house built in heaven for you by God. Can you grasp how glorious that is? God could prepare us a 10×10 room that would outshine any 10K square foot mansion of today. We cannot fathom what awaits us in heaven; we cannot fathom what our individual dwelling may be. 1 Corinthians 2:9 But as it is written: “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, Nor have entered into the heart of man The things which God has prepared for those who love Him.”

What if your life’s dedication for your short time here, was relative to your heavenly mansion? How the sinner saved at the cross compared to Billy Graham? We all enter unto paradise, but what if? We are all called to work out our faith; James 2:18 But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. Christ last words to us in the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19-20) were to go and make disciples, to put feet on our faith. Being a disciple of Christ demands action, work if you will. We are not saved by it, but called to it. Is your house going to be one made of hay and stubble, or one made of heavenly brick?

 
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Posted by on December 11, 2013 in Daily Devotions

 

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Can’t pray, then read

10 Dec

Can’t pray, then read

Romans 8:26-27    Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. 27 Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God.

This is one of my bedrock scriptures that I hold onto; knowing that when I struggle to pray, that I am always being prayed for by a member of the Triune God. Prayer with me seems to go in cycles sometimes. Sometimes it feels as though God is sitting in the room with me and the conversation is just flowing both ways. The words just roll out of my mind onto my tongue and I feel God’s attention to them. Spirit led prayers that are so special you must hold onto the high feeling of them to carry you through the low feeling that will come. Sometimes I get stopped in my tracks with a heart that desires, but a tongue that is silent. My heart, mind, and speech are completely disconnected. We have heard the saying of our prayers bouncing off heaven; I struggle to even get them sent up. These times Satan will slide in and always point to our weaknesses; he will point to sins, failures, inadequacies, and anything else to point the finger at us for fault. He is always his best at kicking someone that is already down.

What is our defense against this attack by the evil one? Simply to pick up the only offensive weapon that we have, the Word of God. Don’t try to pray, simply pour your mind and heart into the scriptures. God will strengthen you there; the Spirit will encourage you through the truths found there; all the while He is praying for you there. You absolutely cannot come away from quality time alone in God’s Word not encouraged; and dare I say able to pray. Matthew 6:5 “And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. 6 But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. 7 And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words. 8 Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him.

Right there in the last verse is the proof of the Sovereignty of God; the proof of the Holy Spirit going before God on your behalf with words so glorious that they cannot even be spoken. You have a way to have access to God through what Jesus Christ accomplished on the Cross, and you have the Holy Spirit inside of you always taking the needs of your heart to Him. When you can’t pray, open the Word and read.

 
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Posted by on December 10, 2013 in Daily Devotions

 

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Sermon Link

08 Dec

You Are What You Believe

https://www.dropbox.com/s/a5o9ui33rzazfk4/You%20are%20what%20you%20believe.docx

 

 

 
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Posted by on December 8, 2013 in Daily Devotions

 
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