Taking our stand with the Lord.

During our worship service on Sunday, October 24, I shared Ephesians 6:10-13 "Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of god so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, powersof this dark world and against the spiritual forces of eil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Within this passage of scriptures it acknowledges that we are at war. There are evil forces of darkness that wants your defeat and will do anything, use anything or anybody to bring about discouragement, disallusionment, depression, anger, being offended, bad decision making and a whole host of others things to get your eyes off of the Lord and on anything else that will distract you from loving and serving the Lord. One of the first steps in this spiritual war we are in is to acknowledge that truth and then realize I am powerless to win this battle on my own. That is why the apostle Paul encourages us to be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. This is a winable war but only if I am strong in the Lord. The action that I must take is stand against the devil's attackes and schemes. This means I must be aware of the battle and then I must reject what the devil is trying to get me to do and then by the grace of God commit to do what Jesus wants me to do. God will give us the victory but only if I am willing to take a stand with the Lord and against the devil. The devil is not under every rock but he will try to use life circumstances to cause negative things to happen or to get you to be negative. The devil has lost. Jesus has won the victory on the cross. Let us stand tall against our enemy and act like we are on the winning side. May you be bless as you take your stand with the Lord today.

Pastor John

Prayer of Honesy

I am quoting a prayer that I have had in my Bible for many years. I look at it periodically and it helps me to realize my dependency is on the Lord completely for within myself I tend to try to accomplish life in my own strength.
"Prayer of Honesty"
"O merciful Father, I confess that I am in bondage to sin and cannot free myself. I have sinned against You in thought and word and deed by the things which I have done and by the things which I have left undone. I have not loved You with my whole heart. I have not loved my neighbor as myself. For the sake of Your Son, Jesus Christ, have mercy on me. Forgive me. Cleanse me. Renew me that I may walk in Your ways and delight in Your will to the glory of Your holy name. Amen."

Whether you use this as a reminder or something else we need to be reminded that we cannot control life and the tendency to sin in our own strength. We need the living Christ to come and forgive us and to strength us in His power which is the only way we will be able to walk in His will for our lives.

May the grace and love of our Savior and Lord Jesus Christ be with you.

Pastor John

Forgiveness

On Sunday October 17 I will address the topic "The Transforming Power of Forgiveness". The practice of forgiveness is vital to restore our relationship with God and with others. We serve a big God who knows everything, sees everything and who loves us in spite of everything He knows and sees. For that reason alone I ought to be honest with myself and with God when I approach God about an area in my life that is clearly not consistent with what God wants me to doing or I am not doing something that He wants me to do. The beauty about forgiveness with God is the fresh start that He gives us for He treats me as if I had not sinned. This is an amazing truth because though we say we forgive someone we will often hold that thing against them. God was so loving that He sent Jesus Christ to earth so that He would become my sacrifice meaning that the punishment owed to me was upon Him. This truth is exciting for me because I know that my sins are wiped clean and now I am on my way to heaven. So much more could be said but I will leave this last thought with you. How we are forgiven by God is how we as His followers are to forgiven one another. When we master this art of forgiveness we are well on our way to spiritual maturity and vitality. May we walk in love and in forgiving one another.

Pastor John

What's in a life?

That question cannot be answered easily or when a person is young. On October 4 there was a celebration of the homecoming of Gladys. It was evident by the many who reflected upon her life just how many people she touched and then in the manner in which she touched them. What's in a life? That was easy to answer for Gladys in that she was the same person in public as she was in private. When we are young we think we have life all figured out but it does takes a lot of time to formulated a godly character that will stand up to the pressures of life. The scriptures encourages us to finish well. What does it profit a man to gain the world and lose his soul? One does not gain the world over night so this is obviously spoken of people who are at a mature age. Life can distract us if we will allow it but if we want to have influence then we must make an effort to develop the kind of character that will actually make a positive influence in the lives of others. What's in a life? That question must be asked in various ways throughout one's lifetime but when this life is over for us what are people going to say about us. May we follow the admonition of Solomon "Above all else guard your heart for it is the wellspring of life." Proverbs 4:23

Pastor John