IS THERE ANY WORD FROM THE LORD? Then Zedekiah the king sent, and took him out: and the king asked him secretly in his house, and said, Is there any word from the LORD? And Jeremiah said, there is: for, said he, thou shalt be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon. (Jeremiah 37:17) Zedekiah the King had not been one to listen to Jeremiah concerning the word of God previously; instead he had listened to false prophets who had literally said that all is well. They were telling Zedekiah that Babylon would not come against him. Now Zedekiah wants a sure word from God and comes to ask God’s prophet “Is there any word from the LORD? It appears that he wants confirmation of the prophecy of the false prophets. This he did not get because Jeremiah had the sure word of God, which was, “thou shalt be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon.” We know from history that this did occur. It seems that Zedekiah had waited too long to inquire of truth or that he had ignored God’s instruction of warnings previously spoken by Jeremiah. To ignore the Word of God leads to the sin of disobedience and thus ultimately God’s judgment. We should have our “ears” tuned to hear the Word when God speaks. “If any man have ears to hear, let him hear.” (Mark 4:23) To hear and obey can save a lot of heartaches and heartbreaks. Some may ask, does God still speak and if so how does God speak? I believe that I can say with authority that God still speaks to His people. How? 1. Through His written Word the Bible. 2. The Holy Spirit speaks with that still small voice that nudges our hearts and minds to do what is right and to avoid that which is sin. 3. As we pray. Prayer involves adoration, confession, supplication and listening. 4. Even creation itself speaks to us of God’s power and majestic strength and being. Yes the Lord STILL speaks. ARE WE LISTENING? Consider: Deuteronomy 11:13 “And it shall come to pass, if ye shall hearken diligently unto my commandments which I command you this day, to love the LORD your God, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul, 14 That I will give you the rain of your land in his due season, the first rain and the latter rain, that thou mayest gather in thy corn, and thy wine, and thine oil. 15 And I will send grass in thy fields for thy cattle, that thou mayest eat and be full.” The word hearken means: to hear intelligently (often with implication of attention, obedience) Take time to listen and commune, “Stand in awe, and sin not: commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still.” (Psalms 44) This is a good day to listen.

Encouragement and Strength

I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me – Philippians 4:13 This verse is often quoted, “I can do all things through Christ” which is an incomplete quotation. Therefore we must complete the quote to get the full intent of what Paul is saying. We can do those things through Christ that strengthens us. There are things we do that weakens us ands surely this is not with the blessings of Christ. It is not unusual in life to come up against things that are larger than we are, and we cannot overcome them by our own strength. It may be a lust that threatens to consume us, an addiction that repeatedly overcomes us. It could be resentment or an unforgiving spirit that is growing inside us. It may be grief and sorrow that seems to paralyze us. When we give our self over to these things they can weaken us spiritually and cause “our light” to be dimmed or extinguished. So often we roll up our sleeves, stiffen our backs, and seek to make it through by our strength. We tell ourselves we can overcome if we just try hard enough. Yet, here is the spiritually strong apostle Paul admitting that his strength does not come from himself, or from his own willpower. He is not trying to do it on his own. Rather, he is looking to Jesus Christ for the power he needs. Through Christ, you make it through trials. Through Christ, you overcome that temptation or addiction. Through Christ, you can you rise above your grief or depression. There is nothing that you cannot do through the strength that Christ has promised to you. Trust in Jesus Christ for your strength in handling the problems in your life and you will find that His grace and strength is sufficient for all the cares of life. Paul found strength through Christ. That is where we will find strength also. Today may we seek to follow after those things that will strengthen us, and cause us to walk closer to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

MY TIMES

MY TIMES Psalms 31:14 But I trusted in thee, O LORD: I said, Thou art my God. 15 My times are in thy hand: deliver me from the hand of mine enemies, and from them that persecute me. 16 Make thy face to shine upon thy servant: save me for thy mercies' sake. The Bible has much to say about time. The brevity of time and use of time and we are encouraged to redeem the time; to consider the latter end of our time. The Bible stresses the importance of being prompt and on time and then tells us that whatsoever thy hand finds to do to do it now. The wise man Solomon instructs the young people to “Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them;” (Ecclesiastes 12:1) James says in James 4:13, “Go to now, ye that say, To day or to morrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain: 14 Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away 15 For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that.” James evidently was of the same opinion as the Psalmist that our times are in The Lords hand. We know not what life holds for us, and I thank God that my time is in God’s hand and that I can claim the promise found in Hebrews 13:5, “Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. 6 So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.” We all will be “traveling a road” we have never traveled before it will all be new! Therefore let us continue the journey of life by seeking the Lord’s guidance for our journey that we will be pleasing unto Him. May we experience the joy and peace that can be ours when we “walk” with Him. May we all truly realize that our time is in the Lord’s hand. Let us learn to say; “If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that.” You are the steward of your time. Use it wisely.

A Big God

A BIG GOD !

Two men went fishing. One was an experienced fisherman, the other wasn't. Every time the experienced fisherman caught a big fish, he put it in his ice chest to keep it fresh. Whenever the inexperienced fisherman caught a big fish, he threw it back.

The experienced fisherman watched this go on all day and finally got tired of seeing the man waste good fish. 'Why do you keep throwing back all the big fish you catch?' he asked.

The inexperienced fisherman replied, 'I only have a small frying pan.'

Sometimes, like that fisherman, we throwback the big plans, big dreams, big jobs, big opportunities that God gives us. Our faith is too small.

We laugh at that fisherman who didn't figure out that all he needed was a bigger frying pan, yet how ready are we to increase the size of our faith?

Whether it's a problem or a possibility, God will never give you anything bigger than you can handle. That means we can confidently walk into anything God brings our way.  (copied)

You can do all things through God. Nothing is too big for God.

REMEMBER:
Stop telling God you've got big problems..
Tell your problems you've got a BIG GOD!

REMEMBER:
Philippians 4:13 I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.

 

Are You Making A Difference?

Jude 1:22 And of some have compassion, making a difference

We're  living in this world, but are we making a difference? Are we really making a difference?  In the Bible we find that every time Jesus had an encounter with people there was a change. He healed some, some were humbled, some were angry ...but all were affected in some way by their encounter with Jesus.  As we come into contact with various individual does our manner of life impact them? Do our words and actions reflect the Saviors love ?  Do we have compassion for  people in their time of need, When maybe all they need is encouragement, comfort or just knowing that someone cares.  Does our lives direct others to the One who makes  the difference in quality of life ?  We are to be salt and light.

It seems that there are so many needs today, some we recognize many we do not.  It may be our blessing today to recognize a need in the life of some individual that we are acquainted with or one that is a stranger to us.. The blessing will not be in recognizing the need but in doing something about it. A good place to look is in nursing homes, shut ins because of age or infirmities, the sick, those in mourning.  Seek and you will find.  What can we do?  A phone call, a visit, a card, a smile,  a hug  or even a small gift of remembrance.   A little is a lot if the Lord is in it      

The story is told of the little girl  who was walking along the beach when she noticed that the high tide had washed hundreds of starfish upon the shore. She realized that they would soon die being out of water. She began to pick  up one at a time and throw it back into the ocean.

An older man came up to her and ask,Why are you doing this there are hundreds, maybe thousands of them. Do you really think you can make a difference?  The little girl picked up a starfish, threw it back  into the ocean and replied, I made a difference to that one, didn't I ?   Yes, you can make a difference today.  Having compassion makes a difference.

 O' Lord help me to be a blessing to someone today. Bless those upon our prayer listing and all that have needs. Lord help us all to be salt and light that your name may be praised. Thank you for your blessings upon me and my family. Forgive me of my sins both of commission and omission. It is in Jesus name I pray. Amen

Every Man In Place

EVERY MAN IN HIS PLACE

Judges 7: 21 And they stood every man in his place round about the camp: and all the host ran, and cried, and fled. 22 And the three hundred blew the trumpets, and the LORD set every man's sword against his fellow, even throughout all the host: and the host fled to Bethshittah in Zererath, and to the border of Abelmeholah, unto Tabbath.

 This is a descriptive account of Gideon’s victory over the Midianites, every man stood in his place and did what he was suppose to do.  Gideon put a trumpet in every man's hand, with empty pitchers, and lamps within the pitchers. Then: Judges 7:17 And he said unto them, Look on me, and do likewise: and, behold, when I come to the outside of the camp, it shall be that, as I do, so shall ye do.  18 When I blow with a trumpet, I and all that are with me, then blow ye the trumpets also on every side of all the camp, and say, The sword of the LORD, and of Gideon.

 19 So Gideon, and the hundred men that were with him, came unto the outside of the camp in the beginning of the middle watch; and they had but newly set the watch: and they blew the trumpets, and brake the pitchers that were in their hands.  The army of The Lord and Gideon achieved a great victory that day because every man (person) was in their place and did what they were supposed to do.

What is the moral of this for us today?   Could it be that there are great victories to be achieved when every child of God is in their place and doing what the Lord would have them to do?

I believe the victories can be personal, for families and churches.  Many are defeated because they are not in place for service to the Master.

Many Churches have weakness because there are members who have professed a Love for Christ and His Church that are not in his or her place when the Church meets. Many of these individuals expect God to be there for them when they NEED Him.  I’m afraid that they may be in for a rude awakening when the need occurs.

Consider these verses: Luke 6:46 And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?  47 Whosoever cometh to me, and heareth my sayings, and doeth them, I will shew you to whom he is like:  48 He is like a man which built an house, and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock: and when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently upon that house, and could not shake it: for it was founded upon a rock.  49 But he that heareth, and doeth not, is like a man that without a foundation built an house upon the earth; against which the stream did beat vehemently, and immediately it fell; and the ruin of that house was great. 

In Matthew 7:24 the man that built on the rock was said to be a wise man.

The Lord’s will is for His People to be in His Church when it meets. It is His will for the child of God to stand steadfast in the righteous living and to be an example to others.

Are you standing in your place?    IF not, will you take your place in the Lord’s Service?

By His Grace,

Brother Edward

OUR GOD IS AWESOME

                                              God

                                                                                                                         

From everlasting to everlasting, thou art God “– Psalm 90:2

          It is hard for us as mere humans to grasp the fact of eternity or one that is eternal. Everything we know has a beginning and an end. Nations rise and fall, businesses are established and then close.  People are born and die regardless of position or of prominence. We are seeing many changes in our nation things we were told were permanent are falling by the wayside.  Fear could consume us if it were not for the fact that the eternal God still reigns over His creation and the affairs of man. We are such self-centered and existentially focused creatures, it is hard for some to realize the fact that their parents were once teenagers or newlyweds, that there was a time when they did not even exist, or especially that there have been hundreds or thousands of generations that have lived before and that will live after us, if Christ does not return first.

But there is One who lives today who was present when World War II ended in 1945 and by His grace America was victorious. The same One witnessed the Constitutional Convention in 1787, who was present at the crucifixion of His Son, Jesus Christ, who observed Moses as he led the children of Israel through the Red Sea, who talked with Adam in the Garden of Eden, the one who spoke and the earth was created all that we see came into being and who existed in perfect satisfaction before He created the earth.

God is eternal. He has always existed and always will exist. He predates and will last longer than time. He has no beginning and no end. But the psalmist reminds us of a truth more impressive still: not only has God always existed but He has always existed as God. He did not have to work His way up to the position or earn the right to be God. He has always been, and will always be, God.

The great comfort of this truth is that God will not only still be here when we grow old and then face death—or when our children grow old and face death—but He will also still be God. His power, His dominion, His wisdom, His love, His goodness, His promises will not be diminished in any way by time or circumstances or world events.
          What a great encouragement to our faith, to know that we believe and trust a God Who is eternally God—from everlasting, to everlasting He is God.  Knowing this also that He is God and He or His promises are not subject to change.  “For I am the LORD, I change not; (Malachi 3:6a)

“In thee, O LORD, do I put my trust; ( Psalms 31:1a)

By His Grace.

Brother Edward