Daily book quote;
"More from the Pastor's Desk"

Secondly, I find that - like a potter, God works in us to form us, mold us, and make us into the vessel He created us to be. In my book “Jars of Clay” I wrote about this subject. Some of us are created to be beautiful vases and some of us are created to be jars, and some are created to just be plain old POTS! However we must remember that there are many different kinds of pots, and each has a unique purpose. The story is of course found in Jeremiah 18 - God sends Jeremiah to the potter’s house to learn a lesson as he tells him “Like clay in the hand of the potter, so you are in my hand” God is at work within us to mold us and make us to will and to act according to His good purpose; not ours! While a crystal vase may be beautiful, it can’t strain spaghetti! My point is this; we can only be useful to God if we allow Him to work in us to become what He intended for us to be.

Daily book quote;
"More From the Pastor's Desk"

    Being an electrician, it is easy for me to draw on the analogy of a “light” in the physical sense. One thing I know is that a light needs some source of power. And, if not connected to the right source, the light may be very dim, or not work at all. We, as Christians, have the greatest and most powerful source available to us to make our spiritual light shine like the “stars in the universe”…However, some Christians try to make their light shine by attempting to generate power by some other means…maybe works, or talents, or knowledge, but the key words here are “trying to make” their light shine. We ought to stop trying to make our light shine, and start “allowing” God’s light to shine through us. We are called to reflect God’s light, not try to create our own.

    Paul tells us in our text for today, that it is “God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose” the problem is that we don’t always “allow” Him to do so. As I read and re-read this scripture, I asked myself the question - “How does God work in me?” Does the Bible give us some idea of how God works in us to will and to act according to His good purpose? And of course, the answer is yes. So I would like to give you a few of the things I found.

    The first has to do with empowerment; it is found in Ephesians 3:16-20 and it may be very familiar to you; “I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with POWER through His Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have POWER together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and how long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than we ask or imagine, according to His POWER that is at work within us…to Him be the glory!” Three times he mentions “power” so first of all, God works in us to “empower” us.

Daily book quote;

Many assume the abundant life depends on circumstances, or fate or luck, or their bank account, or their status in life, or their health, and, no doubt these things are highly valued in our lives; but wealth, power, status, worldly pleasure, and even health issues have nothing to do with living the abundant life Jesus came to give.

    As we learn to see what life is all about, we will begin to see all around us many people who are successfully living this "life to the full" inspite of circumstances. These people quietly go about their lives filled with meaning and hope, happiness, satisfaction and vitality, and peace of mind. They enjoy quality friendships, have good, loving, family relationships, and a strong faith in God. Their life becomes an adventure worth living. They do not allow trivial or non-essential matters to control their thoughts and their life! Life is too short to waste time complaining, or arguing, or worrying about such things.

    Don’t expect the abundant life to come easy. There are going to be giants in the way, and obstacles of some sort, but God desires for us to have the abundant life that Jesus came to give, and He will help us all along the way, if we let him.

    The abundant life is much like that small gate and narrow road that Jesus told us about in Matthew 7:13. The reason why so few will find it is because it takes more EFFORT to find it.

    “I CAME THAT THEY MAY HAVE LIFE, AND HAVE IT MORE ABUNDANTLY”. A few years from now, Lord willing, you are going to be a few years older. Either you will be a few years older and enjoying the abundant life, or you will be a few years older and still not get it!

Daily book quote;

    But, remember that the “opposite of truth is also true”. So, everyone who desires to live the abundant life avoids these negative qualities that are just the opposite and lead to an unhappy and unsatisfied life: selfishness, hatred, lust, unforgiveness, envy, jealousy, fear, drunkenness, sexual immorality, discord and malice, fits of  rage, dishonesty, greed, gossiping, slander, pessimism, despair and self-pity. In other words, the more these negative qualities are a part of a person’s behavior, the further they are from obtaining this "abundant life" that Jesus came to give.

    God can remove all of these negative characteristics from a person’s life. Every one of them! God is greater than our sins! Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 6:11- "And this is what some of you WERE…But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God."

    So it’s no longer an excuse to say, "This is who I am…this is just the way I am… and I can’t change that; oh yes you can. Part of the abundant life is being able to make right decisions and follow through on them.

Daily book quote;

    What does the abundant life consist of? What would it look like to you? Let me tell you something I have learned from God’s Word concerning people who really live and enjoy the abundant life - they will possess all of these qualities, and it will show: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control, all of which are the fruit of the Spirit. And, let me say one more thing about it; these are not individual fruit of which you can have one or two and not the others; this is the “fruit”- singular- of the Spirit. You don’t live an abundant life if you have peace and kindness but no joy or love!

    People who live and enjoy the abundant life also have compassion, humility, modesty, dignity, faith, character, wisdom, enthusiasm, optimism, confidence, honesty, and a vital and passionate relationship with God. They also have a passion for whatever they are doing. In other words, the abundant life is full of all the things money can’t buy. No matter how much money you have, you cannot buy more patience, self-control, or salvation! You can’t buy the desire or passion to do something. Hardware stores do not sell wisdom or hope. And, in case you are wondering, yes, you can possess all of these qualities! You can get everyone of these things from God, who is the giver of all good things. 

Daily book quote;

One of the things I haven’t done since leaving Wisconsin is fishing. I love to fish; and some of the best fishing is in Wisconsin. There I had 27 lakes within a 20 minute drive of my first church. I had several poles and reels for different types of fishing, and a tackle box. A tackle box of course is filled with lures. The world in which we live is filled with lures that Satan uses to lure us away from God. He entices us, and tempts us, and points to our natural or fleshly desires and says “Come on, you know you really want this!” What are the characteristics of a lure? They are brightly colored; attractive; some with spinners for added attraction. If you are hungry, it offers fulfillment; If you are bored, it offers excitement; If you are sick & tired, it offers to make you feel better; It offers pleasure and satisfaction. The problem with lures is the hooks! I have noticed that sometimes, when the fish realizes it is hooked, it fights and fights,
and if it is strong enough, it breaks the line, but sometimes the hook is too deep.

Daily book quote;

“A Listening Heart” – pg. 26 – “More from the Pastor’s Desk”

How do we develop a listening heart? First of all, the Philips version of Romans 12:12 says; “Base your happiness on your hope in Christ. When trials come, endure them patiently; steadfastly maintain the habit of prayer”. The habit of prayer! It’s not a hobby like something we do in our spare time, but a habit. If you look at all the times Jesus went off to pray in scripture, it was always followed by some dramatic or miraculous event. When we are in the habit of prayer, we will develop a listening heart and a listening ear and something may actually happen in our lives!...Let me take that a step further and say that some things may be prevented from happening in our lives…because we are listening!

    James 1:25 says; “The man who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and makes a habit of doing so, will hear and not forget!” And, “he will be blessed in what he does”! He is talking about making a habit of spending time in God’s Word.

    These two habits of prayer and bible reading go hand in hand. We need to pray for understanding and enlightenment before we read and after we read. The Bible is not a newspaper to be skimmed through, it is a mine that contains precious gold and silver that needs to be quarried out. Proverbs 2:4 says that insight and understanding and wisdom will come if “you search for it like silver and hunt for it like hidden treasure”…“Then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God.”

Daily book quote;

“Three Stages of Transformation” – Page 20 – “More from the Pastor’s Desk”

God wants a transformation to take place in your life – and this isn’t just any ordinary transformation. This is a transformation that is super-natural in nature. Something that cannot, does not, and will not occur naturally. The word transform or transformation is found three times in the NIV translation of the New Testament. And, there are actually two different Greek words that have been translated the same way. The first word “metamorphoo” is used in two of the instances and refers to an inner kind of change; one that affects character and moral behavior. Then there is the word “meta-schematizo” which refers to a change in appearance or an outward change. These describe what I want to put before you today; and that is, what I find to be, three different "stages" of transformation. There is a beginning transformation; that which begins to change us inside; then there is a process of transformation; where that which is changing IN us begins to show up on the outside, and then there is an end or finished product…that which has been transformed.

Daily book quote;

    A dear elderly lady was teaching a Sunday School class, and one day the lesson was about building the temple of God. The teacher explained that when the temple was finished, “the presence of the Lord filled the temple”. Instantly the eyes of all the children got wide and full as they imagined that huge building filled with presents from God!

    Sometimes we are more like them than we like to think. At times we are more concerned about presents from God rather than being in the presence of God. When we come to worship, it should lead us to a growing revelation of who He is, what He can do, and who we are in His presence; knowing that He wants to know us in a more intimate way.

Daily book quote; "More from the Pastor's Desk"

    The terms “love” and “hate” are not necessarily emotions or feelings as much as attitudes; just as “light and darkness” are not places but rather actions that reflect our spiritual growth.  The love we have for one another and for our neighbors is a love that expresses itself in our actions and attitudes, not our feelings. In fact, we are to love others whether we FEEL like it or not. Some people are easier to love than others; I heard one preacher say; “Some Christians are like porcupines…they’ve got a few good points, but they’re hard to get close to!”

    If you claim you are a child of God and yet “hate” any man - in John’s sense of the word - because of his face, his place, or his race, you are walking in the darkness, and, may need to check your walk. Sure it’s easy loving my wife, and loving my friends, but loving people I find irritating, people who I think are weird, or loving people who just grate me the wrong way; that takes God’s love.
    That’s why the word John chooses here is the Greek word “agape”, which describes God’s kind of love, the kind of love that’s given freely and generously, regardless of the worthiness of the object.  C. S. Lewis was right when he wrote in Mere Christianity that “we spend too much time worrying about whether we really love our neighbor or not, when we should just act as if we do, and as we pray for them and do loving things, love will happen.” 

Daily book quote;

 

Second, is with our time. Deuteronomy 6 goes on to say “Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit down at home, when you walk along the road, when you lie down, and when you get up.” Let me paraphrase that - “Talk about God and Godly things when you sit down for a meal, when you sit down for a devotional time with your children; Talk about God when you are driving along in the car; when you lie down at night and when you get up in the morning! As often as you can, tell your children about God’s love and care, and lead them into a relationship with Him!”

    Time is a gift that you can’t get back. You can give money, and always make more. You can give gifts, and you can receive gifts back. But once time is given, it never comes back. We only have so much time to give; why not invest it in our children and grandchildren?
    We can win the war with our words and with our time, but most of all, we can win the war with our lives. Genesis 18:18-19 says this - “Abraham will surely become a great and powerful nation, and all nations on earth will be blessed through him. For I have chosen him, so that he will direct his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord by doing what is right and just.”  the best example to follow, some may not have had much of a relationship at all with thIn 2^ndKings 14:3 it speaks of a king in Israel named Amaziah. “He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord…In everything he followed the example of his father Joash.” Yes, he had a good example to follow in his father…Some of us may not have hadeir father, but this is why the responsibility falls on all of us. We must fight the war for our children and our grandchildren with our words; with our time; and by our example!

 

Daily book quote - the reason why I write;

Look at Romans 1:21-32 - What happens when a generation grows up not knowing the God of their fathers?  I’ll tell you again moms, dads, grandmas and grandpas, it’s a war; and we are on the front lines. Can we turn the tide of this battle? Yes we can. Let me give you three suggestions how we can win this battle for our children and grandchildren;

First, with our words. Deuteronomy 6 says “These commandments I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children!” We need to talk to our children and grandchildren. We need to be very involved in their lives. We need to tell them about the God whom we serve, and His Word that is our guide for everything we need to know in life. We need to tell them what God has done for us! We need to teach them about faith and trust and morals and values according to the Holy Word of Almighty God! We also need to teach them the consequences! “You reap what you sow!” Thus saith the Lord! “There is no other name by which we can be saved”, than by the name of Jesus! “If you walk in the light, as he is in the light, you will have fellowship and the blood of Jesus, his son, purifies us from all sin!” “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the heavenly Father” who does not change…He is the same yesterday, today, and forever!” “Without faith it is impossible to please God” and “What good is it for a man if he gain the whole world and yet lose his soul”? When was the last time anyone quoted scriptures like these to their children or grandchildren? They need to know that God’s Word is truth and God’s Word is absolute!

 

DAILY BOOK QUOTE;

    “He guides me in the paths of righteousness.” When God is my shepherd, I can trust that he will - not that he can, but will - guide me wherever he wants me to go either for my good, or His glory. However, I must make the decision to follow; even if I don’t understand the direction or the even if the path doesn’t make sense. “My ways are not your ways, and my thoughts are not your thoughts” says God…“Lean not on your own understanding, but in all your ways acknowledge Him, and he will lead in paths of righteousness. It may not always be the easy way or the smoothest way, or the way we believe will make us happy, but it is always the right way!

    “Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life.” God’s people don’t leave this world with no one following. I have seen cars following for miles, someone who has gone through life with the Lord as their shepherd. They don’t leave behind hurt feelings and broken relationships. They have many friends and family; many lives they have touched and been a part of over the years. They leave goodness and mercy and beauty and honesty and integrity as those things which have followed them all the days of their lives.   
    All of life is a decision, and all of life is the result of decisions! Joshua said; “As for me and my house, we will follow the Lord!” I challenge you today to make the decision that the Lord will be your shepherd; and everything else in life will be based on that decision. It’s the most important decision any of us will ever make.

Daily book quote;

    The 23^rd. Psalm begins with the most important decision we could ever make in life; “The Lord is my shepherd.” (It’s a fact, it’s a truth, and it is a decision.) David says; “I have made a decision that the Lord is my shepherd. “I shall not want.” That’s also a decision. It’s an attitude. But, it is also a fact, a truth, “Because the Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want!”

    David paints us a great picture here. As we consider our lives and our future both here and now and eternally, every one of us has made a decision as to who we will follow; who will be the shepherd of our lives. If not the Lord, then maybe we follow the world, or maybe we follow some other person or religion, or maybe we have made the decision that we are our own shepherd and we follow self! Well, let me ask you this; “How’s it working for you?” Do you have peace and joy and self-control and kindness and love in your life? Or is life filled with cheap imitations?
    Some people have asked why we would move clear out to Virginia from Wisconsin…or why to Maryland …or South Carolina? There is only one answer - “because the Lord is my shepherd.” He leads us, he guides us, he restores us, even when we don’t know why; we trust him. We have made some bad decisions in the past, but the best decision was to follow Christ and allow God to be in control.
    “I shall not want” says David. He has learned that God supplies all his needs. God cares about all our needs; our spiritual needs, our emotional needs, as well as our material needs.

Daily book quote;

    There are two things that also stand out to me; these whom he is talking about also lack two important character ingredients: two things that Paul says they are “without” or lacking: “without love” and “without self control”. Love is putting the needs of others before your needs. Self control is putting God’s character or “godly character” before self.

    Ephesians 4:17-19 says – “So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking. They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, with a continual lust for more.” In other words, rather than love God and live godly lives, they love and do whatever pleases “self”.
    What does it mean to us? You can’t just put on a Christian costume and be saved. Christianity isn’t a club you join or a part you play in the game of life. Church is not a place you go or something you do…it is who you are! I’m afraid that sometimes we get too comfortable confessing that we are sinners; but not thinking we can be victorious over sin. What I mean is this: When God saved us through the grace of Christ; he put power in us by His Holy Spirit to live godly lives. Is that true or false? We do not have a salvation that leaves us powerless over sin!
    If my life is defined by anything on the list in these verses, I need to ask an important question: Where is the power of God in my life? What I am suggesting here is that we begin to live victorious lives. The question to us is not “Do we have the power?” It is “Are we using the power?”

 

Daily book quote;from "The Pastor's Desk"

Timothy 3:1-5 – “But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people.”

    The beginning of verse 2 says it all: “People will be lovers of themselves”…This is the typical pattern of sin - it was Lucifer’s downfall (Isaiah 14:13-14) and it is mans as well (Genesis 3). How that sin of “self” manifests itself is found in the rest of the paragraph. This is also what happens when a nation turns its back on God. People are unholy, ungrateful, lovers of themselves, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God; which leads to a total moral collapse. People become lovers of money, conceited, without love toward others, boastful, proud, unforgiving, “not lovers of what is good.” This leads to a total breakdown of society. People will be treacherous, rash, slanderous, brutal, disobedient to parents, abusive and without self-control.

   That last phrase means that in the end, anything goes! No rules, no moral absolutes, no restraints of any kind. Every man does that which is right in his own eyes, and woe to the person who dares to question his “lifestyle choices.” Just as a side note: It’s interesting that Paul includes “disobedient to parents.” It may seem too trivial to be in such a radical list, but for Paul, disobedience is the spark that ignites the flame that leaves the home in ashes. In the light of Bible prophecy, we should expect that as we approach the end times, all these things will increase in intensity and frequency, until we have the situation portrayed in the Book of Revelation.

Daily book quote;

There are 4 ways that we can truly demonstrate our love for God:
First, we love God with our worship. “God is Spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.” When we worship God, it should be a genuine, grateful expression of our love; “we love because he first loved us.” We ought to come to church prepared to worship; prepared to show or demonstrate our love for God.

Second, we love God with our walk. It is through our lifestyle that we demonstrate our love.
Third, we love God with our words. The words we speak have a defining effect on our thoughts and our attitudes.
Fourth, we love God with our wants and wishes. What is it that you wish for today? What is the upper-most desire that directs your thoughts and your actions?
God does not expect us to come into his presence with perfect worship, or a perfect walk, or to be perfect in speech or in our desires; but he does expect us to grow in all these things.

Daily book quote;

James 1:2-18 – “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything….Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.

In What Forms Does Suffering Come? –

1. The Lord may providentially allow suffering to come into your life for reasons of adding fertilizer for your     spiritual growth thereby enabling you to bear greater fruit. (Heb. 12: 8- 12)

2. Suffering may come as a result of our own mistakes, immaturity or lack of spiritual wisdom. (Gal. 6:7)
3. Suffering may come through physical ailments. (James 5: 16)
4. Suffering may come so that God’s greater purposes could be accomplished through our lives. (John 9: 1-4)
5. Suffering may come through the persecution of the ungodly or carnal believers. (I Cor. 10: 13)
6. Suffering may come through emotional disturbances that have not been given over to the Lord’s control. (Phil. 4:6-8)
7. Suffering may come through a social disturbance. (I Cor. 13:4-7)
8. Suffering may come through our attempts to accomplish God’s will in our power. (2 Tim. 3: 12)
9. Suffering may come through economic hardships that bring everyone to a greater sense of dependence on the Lord for our provisions. (Matt. 6: 11)
10. Suffering may come as a result of a sin of omission that we are somehow overlooking in our  responsibilities. (Matt. 7:7)
11. Suffering may come through our employers, supervisors or spiritual authorities for our correction and to create in us more of a humble attitude. (I Peter 5:5,6)

The lesson we learn from these trials is perseverance/patience. God is still using trials to test the believer…and help us to grow and mature - both physically and spiritually.

Daily book quote from "The Pastor's Desk"

    Our American culture especially, places extreme value on outer appearance. We value youth, beauty, athletic ability, intelligence, education, wealth and fame. Self-esteem today seems to be tied to our abilities. But what happens when you have it all and lose it. What happens when Superman becomes a wheelchair man? What happens when a supermodel gains some super weight or gets super old? What happens when a super intelligent person has a stroke? What happens when a superstar ends up in jail or addicted to drugs? What happens when you have a super career and lose it? What then? Where do you get your feelings of esteem and personal worth, when everything on which you have based your value has vanished? The world wants to single us out according to these things; while God desires that we find our self-esteem according to who we are according to His Word and who we were created to be. An accurate view of yourself comes from an understanding of God’s view of who you are. If your feelings of self-worth are based on how you see yourself, or how others see you, then you are hooked to the wrong star.

    What I am trying to say is this: One day your looks will change. Your abilities will diminish. You will not be able to think or remember as you once did. You may lose friends or even lose your spouse. What then? On what will you base your self-esteem? If your self-esteem is based on your looks, your intelligence, education, youth, or abilities then your self-esteem will be shattered. The only thing that will last — the only thing that no one can take from you — is your relationship with God and your value to him. All your feelings about yourself, others, and life must come from him or you will live in disillusionment and despair. This relationship will guide you in your youth and sustain you later in life as well. It will provide you with the meaning and fulfillment that only God can give.

Daily book quote;

Jesus said we are to “let our light so shine before men that they will see our good deeds and praise our Father in heaven.” Notice that he does not say that we let our light shine in the church, but in the darkness of the world – “in a crooked and depraved generation” to be exact. Our relationship with God, and the difference He makes in our lives is not something we hide but something that we hold high and allow to shine in the darkness of the lives of those around us.

    You know, it is easy to forget how bad the situation of our lost friends and loved ones really is. The Bible says in Colossians 1:13 they are “prisoners in the domain of darkness”; in Ephesians 2:12 they are “without real hope in the world”…In 2^nd. Thessalonians 1:8 they are “headed for hell and judgment and face the wrath of God. It also says in Ephesians 2:1 that they are “spiritually dead in their trespasses and sins.” And, in Colossians 1:21 they are “enemies of God and cut off or (separated) from Him.” On the outside they may look like they have it all together, but inside they are dying, and they need the “word of life” that Paul says we are to “hold out” as a light in the darkness.
   The Message Bible says it this way, "and so we are transfigured much like the Messiah, our lives gradually becoming brighter and brighter, and more beautiful, as God enters our lives and we become like him." I like that!
    You know, we can rally against the darkness or we can shine light into the darkness…I hope that you will choose to shine the light!

 

Daily book quote from "The Pastor's Desk"

 The Pharisees had a Biblical Religion but they rejected the very one that their religion was centered around - Jesus!

Religion alone focuses on the things others can see and forgets that God can see everything about them.

Religion alone worries about what others may think and wants to be perfect.
Religion alone finds the loopholes in the regulations in order to avoid obeying them.
Religion alone honors heroes of the past but rejects God’s work in the present.
Religion alone prevents people from becoming genuine Christians!
Religion alone oriented people tend to look for faults in others, but spiritually relational people look to build one another up as they grow together in grace and knowledge of Jesus. True spirituality helps people realize that judgment is the sole responsibility of God. We are all sinners in need of grace and a life-transforming, destiny-changing experience with the living Savior!

Daily book quote from "The Pastor's Desk"

Philippians 2:12-18 – “Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfil his good purpose.”

     Let me give you a little better understanding of the term “work out” and we’ll see what Paul is getting at here. This term is translated from the Greek, and it was the same word used when giving an account of the once-famous silver mines of Spain. They spoke of “working out” the mines, meaning that the owner would operate the mines in a manner that would get the utmost value from them. Now, the mine’s owner already had the mine in their possession, but now they were to derive the full benefit of their ownership by “working out” all the ore from all the various tunnels and shafts and caves.

    So what Paul is really saying here is that as Christians, we are to strive to get the greatest potential benefit from our salvation. God has put a tremendous capacity for good in our lives - like the “mother-load” in a silver mine, and he wants us to realize that potential to its absolute fullest. Jesus said; “I have come that they may have life and life abundantly!”

Daily book quote from "The Pastor's Desk"

Philippians 4:4-9 – “Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

    Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.”

    There is one thing about life that I have found to be absolutely true that I think you will all agree with; life is unpredictable. We can go to bed at night, making our plans, thinking we know exactly what we are going to do and what is going to happen the next day, and most often it does, but sometimes we get a real awakening to the fact that life is unpredictable; the car won’t start; the phone rings and it’s something that causes us to change our plans; we watch the weather and we have to change the picnic plans for the day; we have all been there. But, it’s not always bad news, sometimes we may have nothing in particular planned, and someone calls and wants to take us out to lunch, or we get unexpected visitors, or we win the lottery!   

    There is one thing about the Bible I have also found to be true; God’s Word most often deals with principles and not with details. It is not a book of how to act, or what to do when certain things happen in our lives, but like this scripture, it gives us principles to live by that will help us through any and all circumstances and situations that may come at any time in our lives.

Daily book quote from "The Pastor's Desk"

I want to take a look at some directions in life with Paul as he writes to the Philippian church:

Philippians 3:12 – “Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”
    In this portion of Paul’s letter I find some key words that speak of direction in life; First - Paul says, take a look backward - with the words “forgetting what is behind;” Then he takes a look forward with the words “straining toward what is ahead;” Next, he takes a look upward in the words “toward the goal for which God has called me heavenward;” And, finally, he takes a look inward with the words “not that I have obtained all this, or been made perfect;” So, Paul looks at life backward, forward, upward, and inward, and so will we.
    Perhaps we could add one more; we need to take a look around, and see the number of people who don’t even know there is a race going on!

Daily book quote from "The Pastor's Desk";

    I want to provide you with one of the most important promises in the entire Bible for times like this. It is found in 1 Corinthians 10:13 where it says, “No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And, God is faithful: He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But, when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand under it.”

    There are three promises you can hang on to and derive hope from in whatever your current crisis or the next crisis to come:
(1) You are never going to face anything that other people haven’t had to face before – it is going to be something common to man.
(2) You will never cface any risis that is bigger than you are – God is faithful to never allow that to happen. Even though it may SEEM to be bigger than you are, it never is and never will be.
(3) You will be provided a way out to be able to stand under it. God is going to supernaturally show up and do something in you, through you, around you, with you or for you – that will enable you to survive what appears crushing…even to the point of death. Understand that the TIMING of this crisis is no accident. Is there ever a good time for a crisis? Listen very carefully – not only are you not an accident – the TIMING of the crisis is also never coincidental. Somehow, in the vast reaches of the mind of God, he has always known the timing of every event in your life.
    May I suggest you take a deep breath in your crisis, whenever it may be, – and realize you just have discovered a second reason to have greater hope? Not only are you more than capable of going through this difficult time – the timing is right for you to be facing it – somehow, God has already seen to that. It was not right for this to happen a year ago – and it wouldn’t be right for it to happen a year from now – it’s the perfect time right now for this to be happening. God knew it would happen, God knows it is happening, and God will help you through it…He will “provide a way out”.

 

Daily book quote from "The Pastor's Desk"

    How can we learn to develop more characteristics of true spirituality and less law and tradition directed religion? Especially in a world where many people see religion as a set of rules, regulations and restrictions. Paul teaches us the meaning of true spirituality. The great apostle wanted the Roman church to realize that true religion is not interested in observing a long list of laws to find favor with God. Paul saw the law as a schoolmaster that leads us to Christ. He taught that the law is a means to an end instead of it being the goal of religion.

    Paul reasoned that the law was to be used as a helper to bring people to learn how to trust and obey the Lord out of love instead of out of blind obedience. The Romans needed to learn that the directives of scripture are given to help us grow in all aspects into Christ. Many of the Jews wanted to use the Law to force the Gentiles to conform to their religious standards. Paul recognized that perfect obedience to the law could not be done without an inward change of heart or mind.
   True spirituality lives more by grace and not by law. Religion alone oriented people tend to look for faults in others, but spiritually relational people look to build one another up as they grow together in grace and knowledge of Jesus. True spirituality helps people realize that judgment is the sole responsibility of God. We are all sinners in need of grace and a life-transforming, destiny-changing experience with the living Savior!

Daily book quote;

    Notice that self-righteous judgment has a boomerang: "For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you." In other words: “What goes around comes around.” If you start throwing out this critical spirit on other people, it’ll come back. We’ll receive the same kind of treatment that we dish out. If we judge others harshly and jump to the worst conclusions about others, we can be certain that we’ll be treated in the same way, I believe by both others and God. Does it make you mad when you find out that someone has made a judgment about you without knowing all the facts?

    We’re not qualified to sit in judgment on others because it’s impossible to be impartial -- we’re influenced by our own imperfections. Jesus here uses the graphic example of a plank of wood and a speck of dust. I think Jesus used the illustration of a plank and a speck because he was a carpenter; that was familiar to him and it was familiar to the people around him.
    Now, we are never to look down in self-righteous judgment on another sinner, for we have all fallen short of the glory of God, but we can recognize sin as sin, and we should never try to justify it.
    We need to be careful not to become harshly judgmental, looking for faults, taking the opportunity to look down on others from a position of self-righteousness, but neither are we to overlook sin. We need to be able to recognize sin for what it is. Any attempt to overlook or justify sin on any grounds is itself sinful. We also need to be able to judge a person’s motive or position against the truth and standard of God’s Word. - (False teachers, etc.) There is a difference between exercising judgment and a judgmental attitude. One can be good, the other is destructive.

Daily book quote;

Matthew 7:1-6 –“Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.

    “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.

    As Jesus looked at the religious situation of his day, he saw that judging others had become a great religious problem. The Pharisees and scribes sat in the place of the critic. They were quick to pass judgment on those who didn’t live up to their expectations. When Jesus was in the house of Simon the Pharisee and the sinful woman anointed his feet, Simon said, "This man, if he were a prophet, would know who and what manner of woman this is who is touching him, for she is a sinner." (Luke 7:39).
    The Pharisees, in their self-righteous arrogance, had created a special class of people called "sinners" as if they themselves were not such. Do you think we sometimes do the same? It’s a self-righteous judgment; so Jesus says that we are not to judge. Now he’s not talking about the judgment in a courtroom. He’s not talking about judging open and obvious sin (we’ll get to that later). He’s not talking about judging false teachers. What he is talking about is a hasty, unloving, "holier than thou" type of attitude. It’s that "jumping to conclusions" about what we see, attitude. The Native Americans had their way of saying this: "Don’t judge a man until you’ve walked a mile in his moccasins." And there’s something to that.

Daily book quote from "The Pastor's Desk"

Romans 8:28 - “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”

    Some people misquote this verse by saying; “God works all things together for good.” But, that leaves out some very important words: And we “think?”…no, we “hope?”…no, we “pray?”…no, we what? “WE KNOW!” We know that God “works all things?”…no, “IN all things God works”…In how many things?...“ALL THINGS”….For everyone’s good?…no, “for the good of those who LOVE Him.” Do you think words make a difference? Yes they do! Is it important to quote scripture correctly? Yes it is!

    I know what many of you are going through right now in your lives…I know the pain, I know the struggle, I know the disappointment, I know the challenge, I know the doubt and even disbelief. I wish I had all the answers, but I don’t. I’m going through things in my own life that I don’t know if I will ever understand this side of heaven; but I ask you to find peace and rest in this fact; “I KNOW that “in all things” whatever it is, “God works for the good of those who love him.” Don’t question it or try to understand it … just believe it!

 

Daily book quote from "The Pastor's Desk"

God’s plan -3

    Physical death is one thing…But, God’s Word tells us that it is not the last thing! The “lake of fire” or the “second death” is eternal death…it is what we call “Hell”…And, it is God’s plan for all whose “names are not written in the book of life.” But, God’s plan for those who come to Christ, the “bride of Christ”, is Paradise Regained! Eternal access to the Tree of Life that was taken away by sin… eternal access to the Holy City of God… and eternal rule upon the “new” earth… Part three of God’s Plan 1, 2, 3. revealed to us in the last three chapters of Revelation;

    In the end, Part 3 of God’s Plan is that the image and the rule of man is restored;  The water of life and the tree of life are restored;  “No longer will there be any curse” And, we will be with God and reign with Him forever and forever! Can you think of a better or happier ending? Can you think of a better plan? God had a perfect plan! And, it is as simple as 1, 2, 3.

Daily book quote;

    If you were raised in church, you’ve heard the creation story dozens of times. And you probably know the story of Adam and Eve in the Garden by heart. So why do we need to look at it again? Because without the first three chapters of Genesis, the rest of the Bible is meaningless. It’s putting the first button in the right hole. I will say this - if you can’t agree with Genesis 1:1, you will have a hard time agreeing with John 3:16; and you may as well forget about the Book of Revelation! That’s why Satan attacks it so hard.

    Scholars tell us God didn’t create the universe, time and chance did. They tell us the Genesis account is a myth. Satan attacks the first three chapters of Genesis, because if he can discredit them, it will discredit the entire Bible. They are that important.
    If you are not absolutely convinced of Genesis 1, 2, and 3…If you are not absolutely convinced that “God is who He says He is”…You need to make that decision in your life. There is only one thing that can give you hope in the end, and that is if God is the beginning! I pray that He will make himself real to you today. You need to get the first button right!
 
Posting two quotes today because I missed Tuesday's post;

God’s Plan - 2

It’s interesting, and probably not circumstance, that the first words in the Book of John are “in the beginning.” I think it’s because God has had a plan since the very beginning! “And the Word was with God, and the Word was God”. Jesus was part of God’s plan from the very beginning. In fact, John tells us that “all that was made, was made for and through him.”
In the beginning, God said “Let us make man in our image” and, “Let them rule over all the earth”…Then man sinned and that changed things. God said “he must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take from the tree of life, and eat, and live forever.”Man became mortal, and death was the consequence of sin. Man had tarnished the image, and lost his right to rule. The rest of the Bible has to do with God’s plan to restore man’s image and man’s rule over all creation.
God chooses a man –Abraham…God chooses a nation – Israel. You see, God has an ultimate plan of redemption that is revealed in John 3:16…But, He first had to deal with the sin issue and the degrading image of man.
In chapter 2 Jesus begins doing miracles and revealing the Father… And, in chapter 3 we have the“Nick at Night” story. In John 3:16 – (the verse that more people in the world know than any other) – we have the true revelation of God’s plan. Jesus was to be the vessel of a new covenant – a new way of redemption – the only way that God could show his love and his plan for mankind.