oneminuteministry

Here is a link to my testimony and sermon for today.

Please pray for me for this. God has really been stirring my heart the last two days regarding this.

I awoke this morning in great physical pain also – my back is out big time.

This is going to be hard in many ways, but that also lets me know I am on the right track.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/1qp24prp46a0r25/Testimony%2011-10-13.docx

You want me to do what at 46?

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

Today is my birthday, 46, closer to 50 than I am to 40. This morning in prayer I rattled off all that came to mind in a heart a thanksgiving to God. I – Am – So – Blessed. Even with all that I could think of, I can’t help but wonder how much I forgot. The aches and pains have accelerated, yet I am so thankful for my health. I look back at the life I led for so many years as a rebel without a cause; raised in a Christian home ,yet, with the freedom that came at 16 I turned my back on God. God let me travel down that road of many sins for over half my life, and then He started reeling me back in. I knew it was Him calling, I knew it was a decision with eternal consequence. I am so thankful for my upbringing that helped me realize the weight of that decision.

I am giving my testimony from the pulpit this Sunday. My testimony is one rooted in pride, rooted in selfishness, idol worship, and worldly pursuits. My testimony is one of grace, mercy, forgiveness, and the power of God through a daily pursuit of him. I am living proof of this Proverb above. Jesus Christ saved my life with what he accomplished at the Cross, paying the price for my sin debt due, that in no way could I ever earn by any good work; being a good person, or sadly what so many of us think that Salvation is found in church pews. The understanding of Grace is truly what changed my life. I now find myself in a position by His design that I do not deserve, and never would have imagined as a preacher at a small church. I am committed to delivering His Gospel message of grace and repentance found only through Christ for the remainder of my days here on earth.

What do you believe gets you to heaven?

How you answer that question determines your eternity. I truly believed for most of my life that it was going to church; that belief puts you into the category of earning your salvation by your own works (your attendance record). That would mean that Christ died in vain. Galatians 2:21 I do not set aside the grace of God; for if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died in vain.” You must come to understand Grace; God’s free gift that you can only accept as a free gift that you cannot earn. That He gave you grace through the sacrifice of His Son Jesus Christ on the cross as a payment through his perfect blood for your sins. Once you understand the grace found in the Good News, your life will be transformed eternally and for your time here. Your heart will be moved to that of a disciple, and your life’s desire will be to make other disciples of His. Won’t you join me on this eternal journey with your Creator, Savior, and Sustainer of your life?

ME T-shirts

Romans 12:3 For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. (ESV)

Anytime I spend time in the Word and read about pride, it impacts me. I could go on and on about the life I led for most of my life; I lived a life defined by pride. It was almost a game of seeing how far I could push myself to see what I could attain. My motto was always, “You don’t know your limits until you find them”.  Those pursuits landed me all sorts of financial debt and emotional pain. When God had enough of my selfish pursuits, he turned off power switches and took me down great roads of wonder and pain. He humbled me financially to the point it looked as though bankruptcy was the only option. He humbled me physically with a shoulder injury that even the doctors could not explain. It even seems to this day He continues the physical side of sanctifications work in me; he knows I still rest on my pride of continually pushing myself to the limits. I cannot help but wonder how far I, and He, will continue down this road.

Paul was writing here in Romans of the sovereignty of God prior to this; of how once we realize that everything is by his hand, (Romans 11:36 For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen).it should become a sobering moment in our lives, and should transform our lives forever. Romans 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. Paul was beyond qualified as prideful with his pedigree; raised and educated as the epitome of a devote Jew to the point of religious persecution, even to the point of death of those that followed Christ; until Christ struck him blind on that Damascus road. Paul’s life changed in the blink of a blinded eye; Paul was humbled by the grace of God that chose not to kill him, but to use him to preach the Gospel that he had condemned to the point of murder.

This world teaches pride, this world teaches selfishness; look out for yourself to the point and understanding that no-one else will. If we each are so worried about ourselves, how could anyone have any concern and show love for their fellow man? The evidences of a world wrapped up in pride are evident to each of us every day in countless ways; from the lack of integrity in the business world, to day to day encounters with people in life. Everyone should wear a t-shirt with “It is all about ME” printed on the front. Spend time in the book of Romans 12 today; Paul teaches the exact opposite. He teaches a sacrificial life to the One whom gave and sustains your life. Which one will matter for eternity?

This is a link to my sermon today.

I do write a manuscript for them, that is where God has gifted me in writing, and I could never remember all that he lays on my heart from notes.

Nov 3 Sermon

This is a re-blog from a year ago today. I have been going back some, seeing where I was a year ago. This is still so pertinent today, I wanted to re-post this. The media talked us into this hole, and they are desperately trying to talk us out of it. I don’t believe the recovery is quite as great as they say, and is about to get worse with healthcare. Place your hope in the eternal, and the weight of today is not so burdensome.

But this is heavy God

But this is heavy God

Hebrews 10:32-37   But recall the former days in which, after you were illuminated, you endured a great struggle with sufferings: 33 partly while you were made a spectacle both by reproaches and tribulations, and partly while you became companions of those who were so treated; 34 for you had compassion on me in my chains, and joyfully accepted the plundering of your goods, knowing that you have a better and an enduring possession for yourselves in heaven. 35 Therefore do not cast away your confidence, which has great reward. 36 For you have need of endurance, so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise: 37 “For yet a little while, And He who is coming will come and will not tarry.

I don’t even know how to pen all the pain I see these days. Those around me that are struggling financially seems to be a common thread; the pains of an economy that is so far from where it peaked only a few short years ago. These pains have infiltrated families, churches, careers, and to be honest most of our lives. The leadership of our country is failing to give us hope and simply spending money so grotesquely that it is further devaluing the dollar and increasing debt. Our world as we know it is collapsing around us, and very few of us have escaped the reality of it. Pain has an underlying tone in the smiles of cover. We all want everything to be ok; but it is not.

The author of Hebrews is speaking to how once we were saved, the trials of life came to steer us away. Satan’s sons prosper when all of God’s children struggle. All of these struggles are allowed and designed for strength and endurance. We would never by choice take these tough roads of life that deepen our faith, for we would take the high road of simplicity and ease, and rest shallowly there. God wants more; wants to bring you more to the likeness of His Son; wants to show you the weight that He bared for you from deep within; knowing that you have a better and an enduring possession for yourselves in heaven. These tough times build us like weights we carry strengthen us. The heavier the weight or burden, the stronger or faith becomes.

I truly feel there is an urgency in the air for those who do not know Christ; or worse yet those who rest in false religion. The reality of our world is that it is so far from God; and Satan is peaking before his eternal fall. Satan has planted so many false teachings in today’s society, and so many have been led astray by the struggles of life. They have went someplace to ease their pain; some religion that preaches only joy and not conviction of sin. The author of Hebrews was warning the Jews to not fall back into the trap of the false security of Judaism; to hold fast to their faith in God’s grace through Christ; and the rewards of that endurance. 36 For you have need of endurance, so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise. No matter how heavy the burdens get, through the pain of it you are gaining strength. We may only see and feel the present of the pain, but God sees the strength and the end, eternal result of it.

No baby carrots in a jar

Hebrews 6:9-12   9 Though we speak in this way, yet in your case, beloved, we feel sure of better things–things that belong to salvation. 10 For God is not unjust so as to overlook your work and the love that you have shown for his name in serving the saints, as you still do. 11 And we desire each one of you to show the same earnestness to have the full assurance of hope until the end, 12 so that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.

The writer of Hebrews had just pointed to the fact of the needed maturity in our faith. He had pointed to the need of a faith and hope that grows in Christ. He had pointed for the need to mature as adults in our faith, not to rest on the “spiritual milk” as infants and toddlers do, but to feed on solid foods and grow up.5:12 For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food. 13 For everyone who partakes only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. 14 But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil. We must return to these truths often, they are a bedrock of our faith. We must grasp grace, repentance, and forgiveness found only in Christ, but that is not where our faith stops. It must mature to begin to understand the spiritual things that revolve around us every day that we do not see. There is an entire other world in the unseen that affects the seen and felt every single day. This understanding comes with time cultivated in God’s Word and prayer every, single, day. This discernment is only granted by Him with maturity. Toddlers cannot handle this level of faith; it would create fear and likely fleeing. It is only in the mature that this is granted. With it comes much greater faith, hope, and love; but with it comes greater responsibility also.

The closer you draw to God, the more he reveals himself to you. The more He reveals himself to you, the greater your awe of him. The greater your awe of Him, the more you realize how much you need him. This is the cycle that He desires; that you seek Him out of a heart that has grown intimate with him. 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. This is how you grow in your faith; you seek God every day with every thing you have got. He will reward those that seek him! Proverbs 8:17 I love those who love me, And those who seek me diligently will find me. When He begins to open more truths of his Word to you, you begin to want to know more. An expectancy comes with it; hope grows in it; faith grows in it; you mature with it; He becomes glorified through it all. Amen.