From the Pastor's Heart
This Week's Message
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
A Whale of a Problem
Did you ever feel like you had a 'whale of a problem'? Jonah did when he ran from the call of God to preach to Nineveh. From the depths of his problem, Jonah prays; "In my great trouble I cried to the Lord and he answered me; from the depths of death I called and you Lord have answered me! I sank beneath the waves and death was very near. The waters closed above me and the seaweed wrapped itself around my head. I was locked out of life and imprisoned in the land of death. But you O God have snatched me from the yawning jaws of death." (Jonah 2:2-5 The Living Bible)
Jonah had to stop looking at where he was and begin to see where he could be. It is a spiritual truth that you must believe what God says about who you are so you can become what God says you are. The act of believing must be first and then the becoming follows. Once two blind men cried out to Jesus asking for healing; Jesus asked them, "Do you really believe I can do this?" They said, "Why, yes - Master!" Jesus touched their eyes and said, "Become what you believe." IT HAPPENED! (Matthew 9:27-29 Message)
Jonah made a powerful declaration of faith during his whale problem. He said, "those who observe lying vanities forsake their own mercy". (Jonah 2:8) According to Hebrews 4:14-16 we have a High Priest who is touched with the feeling of our infirmities and we are instructed to 'come boldly' to His throne and obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need. So the choice is either to continue to look at the problem or to change our focus and look at the solution. Go to God with your problem, pray the prayer of faith according to His word, approach the Throne of Mercy with confidence (you are welcome there) obtain the grace and the mercy you need that will deliver you out of your problem.
Archive Messages
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Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Be Happy In Your Faith
Christianity is to be enjoyed - not endured! In the
truest sense of the word, Christianity is not a religion
but a relationship. It is not just a relationship only,
but a fellowship and empowerment from within to live
life to its fullest every day. The Apostle Paul said in
I Thessalonians 5:16, "Be happy in your faith, and
rejoice and be glad-hearted always." Other
translations read, "evermore and always be in joy."
What does our faith give us that enables us to live as
victors and not as victims? Colossians describes it as a
"glory strength that God gives." I personally believe
and I am personally convinced that Christ in me gives me
the victory and enables me to walk this victory out in
my every day life. In Colossians 3 Paul wrote, "if
you're serious about living this new resurrection life
with Christ, act like it. Pursue the things over which
Christ presides. Don't shuffle along, eyes to the
ground, absorbed with things right in front of you. Look
up, and be alert to what is going on around Christ -
that's where the action is. See things from His
perspective." (Col. 3:1-2
Message)
Christ is our life - for us to live is Christ. Join me
as I commit my life afresh and anew to allow Christ to
shape my life into fulfilling His purposes and plans.
The surest way to victory in Christ is to allow His
resurrection life to live in you, and to allow Him to
direct your paths. "I am crucified with Christ - and
yet I live, yet not I but Christ lives within me, and
the life I now live I live by the faith of the Son of
God, who
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
How Can We Honor God?
Recently I was thinking about the concept of
honor, and I began to think about this question, "How can
we honor God?" As always, the answer to this question is
in the Word of God.
I Samuel 2:30 states "those who honor me I
will honor; and those who despise me shall be lightly
esteemed." The original word translated 'honor' in
the Bible is a word that meant "to be heavy laden
(especially with good); to be noble and mighty in power
and strength and ability" My definition of this word is
that a person of honor is a 'heavyweight' when it comes to
their arena of expertise.
So then, how can we honor God? First we can
honor Him with our praise and our worship; "Make a joyful
noise unto God, all the earth, sing forth the honor and
glory of His name; make His praise glorious." (Psalms
66:1-2) "My mouth shall be filled with your praise and
your honor all the day long" (Psalms 71:8)
Secondly we can honor God with our substance and
first-fruits of our increase. "Honor the Lord with
your substance (capital) and with the first-fruits of all
thy increase." (Proverbs 3:9)
Thirdly, and probably the most important is to
honor God with your whole heart, not just your lips and
outward service. "I will praise you O Lord with my
whole heart; I will show forth and recount and tell aloud
all your marvelous works and wonderful deeds." (Psalms
9:1) We can refuse to be like the people the prophet
Isaiah spoke of when he said "this people honors me
with the mouth and their lips, but their heart is far from
me." (See Isaiah 29:13)
As you decide in your heart to honor God, He will show you the way to do so. Whether it is with your praise and worship, giving into His kingdom financially, your attendance in the house of God, serving in His vineyard, being a witness on your job and at home, God will show you how to honor Him.
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
A Miracle in your Mouth
A Bible truth that is often lost and misunderstood by
many believers today is this; the Word of God, in your
heart and in your mouth creates your world. When God
created the world, as we know it today, He spoke it
into existence. Genesis records that the earth was in
a chaotic condition, and the Spirit of the Lord was
moving (hovering or brooding) over the chaos. It was
only when God SAID something, that creation began.
Hebrews 11 teaches us that "through
faith, we understand that the worlds [during their
successive ages] were framed [fashioned, put in order,
and equipped for their intended purpose] by the word
of God."
When we really understand the creative
power of God's word, we will be diligent to put that
and that only in our hearts and mouths. Psalms 119 is
one of the best commentaries on the power of God's
word. A sampling of Psalms 119 reveals this; "You
are blessed when you stay on course. Your words hold
me up in bad times; your promises rejuvenate me. When
I take a long careful look at your ways, I got my feet
back on the trail you blazed. Before I learned to
answer you, I wandered all over the place, but now I'm
in step with your word." (Psalms 119:1, 50, 59,
67, The Message)
The Word of Faith, in your heart and in your mouth, will create the world around you according to God's will (His Word); then you will see and experience the miracle working power of God's word in your life like never before. Remember, "Every word you give me is a miracle word, how can I help but obey?" (Psa. 119:129 Message)