With every rising of the sun, think of your life as just begun. –Anonymous
Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. John 14:6
IF YOU DON’T TELL THEM, WHO WILL?
Preach not because you want to say something but because you have something to say.- ME
For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God. 1 Corinthians 1:18
Some say, “Pastor, I’m not a preacher”, but I say, “Oh, yes you are!” You preach a sermon by the life you live to your spouse, to your children, to your co-workers, to extended family, and even to the person checking you out in the Walmart line. So what are preaching to them?
Child of God, GET UP, GET READY, and GO TO CHURCH today to learn about your Saviour! That way you will always “…be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:”
WHAT ARE ANGELS?
Millions of spiritual creatures walk the earth unseen, both when we sleep and when we awake. –Milton
Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares. Hebrews 13:2
The messengers of God we call angels were created by God for a two-fold purpose; To glorify God and to do His will. You may ask, “Where do you find that?” Well, I’m glad you asked! I find it in Job 38:4-7, “Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding. Who hath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest? or who hath stretched the line upon it? Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened? or who laid the corner stone thereof; When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?”
God told Job the angels watched His handy work of creation and rejoiced about it! So before Adam and Eve were created, God had angels with Him. So, when a love one dies they do not become an angel, they graduate from this earthen vessel to a heavenly body. Bodies that never grow old, never have cancer, never break a leg, nor gets hungry. What a day that will be my friend! But until then, we have angels taking care of us until we reach that Heavenly City!
The angel of the LORD encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them. Psalm 34:7
For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. Psalm 91:11
SO YOU’RE CALLED TO PREACH?
To love to preach is one thing-to love those to whom we preach, quite another. –Cecil
This is a true saying, If a man desire the office of a bishop, he desireth a good work. 1 Timothy 3:1
Pastoring is more than preaching. It's bible study and prayer, it's soul winning, hospital visits, late night calls, discipleship, mentoring, leading by example, counseling, financial decisions, and the list goes on and on.
If you feel as if the Lord is calling you to pastor, don’t end up like some. Some have a wonderful message that challenges the congregation. However, to actually put legs on what they preach—forget it! To actually get in a car to go visit someone in the hospital, they don’t have enough time. To make a phone call checking in on a shut in is too hard. It is beneath them to knock on a door and tell someone about Jesus. Instead of being a pastor—they are nothing more than a hireling waiting for their next pay check.
So if you’re called to preach, then start serving the Lord by serving from the heart!
WHAT WOULD YOU HAVE ME TO DO, LORD?
I used to ask God to help me. Then I asked if I might help him. I ended up by asking him to do his work through me. –Taylor
I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. Romans 12:1
From the pulpit to the pew, the Lord has plenty of work for everyone to do. All you have to do is make yourself available. Isaiah heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” We should echo Isaiah’s response, “Here am I, send me.”
Send me to the beggar on the street. Send me to the drunkard in the ditch. Send me to the lame in the hospital. Send me, with the Gospel in hand to meet the needs of the lost, hurting, and dying world. Would you echo with me, “What would you have me to do, Lord?”
WHY CAN'T WE BE FRIENDS?
Insomuch as any one pushes you nearer to God, he or she is your friend. -Anonymous
Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. John 15:13
Do you have a friend that you can count on? Do you have a friend that challenges you do be more for the Lord? Do you have a friend that will direct you to the God of all comfort when you are down and out? Do you have a friend that uplifts your spirit in such a way it pushes your walk with the Lord closer? Do you have a friend that when everyone else is asleep you can call out to? Do you have a friend that wants to be your friend so bad He died on a cross for you? Do you have a friend that suffered death, hell, and the grave so you would not have to? Friend…do you know Jesus as your friend? He wants to be yours!
LET ME TELL YOU A LITTLE BIT ABOUT JESUS!
Jesus Christ is light to the eye, honey to the taste, music to the ear, joy to the heart. –Spurgeon
These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full. John 15:11
The Lord tells us everything we need to need about Jesus! He is the Alpha and Omega, The Beginning and The End of everything. Before time existed He was. Before matter existed HE was. Before space existed He was. He is the redeemer of mankind. He is sinless. He paid the price to buy you of the auction block of sin. He can break those chains of sin you are tied up with. The sin that so easily besets you, He shed His blood for that and because He did you can be free from it! That’s just a little bit about my Lord and Saviour! I hope today you will see how good He is and trust Him to be your Saviour if He isn’t already!
WHAT ARE YOU SINGING ABOUT?
Our singing should be such that God hears it with pleasure-singing in which there is not so much art as heart, not so much of musical sound as of spiritual emotion. –Spurgeon
I call to remembrance my song in the night: I commune with mine own heart: and my spirit made diligent search. Psalm 77:6
One thing that will divide a church quicker than anything other is this topic of music in the church. I believe music has a vital purpose in a service. Its purpose is to prepare the heart for the message God has laid on His servant’s heart; nothing more and nothing less.
If the music over powers the message…we have missed the boat. We should be singing about His grace, His mercy, His love, etc. Our singing should magnify the majesty of the Lord Jesus Christ! If we don’t then we are not singing to Him!
I NEED TO GIVE HOW?
The problem with our giving is that we give the widow's mite, but not with the widow's spirit. –Anonymous
And there came a certain poor widow, and she threw in two mites, which make a farthing. And he called unto him his disciples, and saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, That this poor widow hath cast more in, than all they which have cast into the treasury: Mark 12:42-43
I have been hooking up some sound equipment at our church over the past few days. I needed some wires so I call the sound shop where we get most of our equipment and asked him for a certain wire. The next day one of the ladies at church went and picked up the stuff I had asked the guy to get. I went today to finish up and the wire I had asked for was wrong. So I got back in the car and took it back. I got to the store and said, “You gave me the wrong cord.” With a bewildered look on his face He said, “You asked for a female cord.” I looked at it and said, “That’s not a female cord.” Needless to say I was wrong because I didn’t know the terminology of sound equipment.
Such is our giving to the Lord. We don’t understand how we are to give. We are not to give out of abundance but out of faith. We need to give like the widow did with her whole heart. So won’t you GET UP, GET READY, and GOT TO CHURCH this morning ready to learn how to give?
TOOTING YOUR OWN HORN?
If you're tooting your own horn, sooner or later you will give out of breath!
Let another man praise thee, and not thine own mouth; a stranger, and not thine own lips. Proverbs 27:2
There are some who like to tell everyone what they have done for the Lord. Day after day they proclaim; I washed the church van, I cleaned the bathrooms in the church, I mowed the yard, I preached to 500 people, I have taught Sunday School for 40 years, I grew a church from 10 to 1,000, I pastored the same church for 50 years. While many of those examples are solid reasons to “brag”, who are you bragging on? When many of those same people get to Heaven, they will find out the list they were keeping up with wasn’t as long as they thought it was.
Child of God, quit keeping up with what you do for the Lord. It’s not like you’re getting into Heaven for your good works anyway, so why brag and promote self. Just do what the Lord has asked you to do and be happy He knows what your motives are—FOR HIS GLORY and not tooting your own horn!
Forgive you say?
There is no father on earth who has as much love in his heart as God has for you. You may be sinful as hell; yet God stands ready and willing to receive you to His bosom and to forgive you freely. - D.L. Moody
And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses. But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses. Mark 11:25-26
I was once asked, “How can you forgive such a person.” My response came from somewhere deep inside me. So deep that I don’t think I was the one doing the speaking. I believe it was the Lord speaking through me. My response was, “Well ma’am, you may not understand but I figured if the Lord has forgiven me for all that I have done to Him, why should I not forgive the one that abused me?” She said, “But sir, I do understand with a smile on her face. “
Child of God, whoever has hurt you the most, has cause the most turmoil in your life, has put you down, kicked you, rolled you up and sent you packing—forgive such a one! And Yes, I said forgive!