Hang on

 Just a song...

https://youtu.be/uysGt7JVw9U?si=tC0FUDX1qs7hpdN3

Hang on...trust God!

Waiting is not standing still!

Just wait . . . Ever heard that before? Be patient!

Wait on the Lord; Be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the Lord! (Psalm 27 : 14)

The psalmist is not telling us to simply sit down and wait upon God to act. No . . . he is letting us know that as we walk with the Lord, trusting Him through the ups and downs of life, He will be there whenever we need Him. This is the same writer who penned Psalm 23 after all!

Let's look back upon our lives. Those days when we struggled the most, He was there. If He was not, we would not be here today! We doubted. We complained. We moaned and groaned . . . yet God came through in His own way . . . and we made it through! 

Won't He do it again!?!? Waiting is not simply standing still. It is a continual trust in the Lord as we walk through the valleys and mountains of life. . . Just wait!

Totally accessible

My God . . . yes, my God!

And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit. Then, behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth quaked, and the rocks were split, and the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; and coming out of the graves after His resurrection, they went into the holy city and appeared to many. So when the centurion and those with him, who were guarding Jesus, saw the earthquake and the things that had happened, they feared greatly, saying, “Truly this was the Son of God!” (Matthew 27:50-54)

When He died upon the cross, the ultimate sacrifice was made . . . once for all people who would accept Him. Heaven's throne is now accessible to all who choose to humble themselves and come. The Creator of the universe welcomes us into His home! Totally accessible . . . . He is my God . . . yes, my God!

Will you come? Will you make Him yours as well?

To judge or not to judge . . .

"Don't judge me!" How many times do we hear that today . . . even from believers? What did Jesus say about judging? To judge or not to judge . . . .

“Judge not, that you be not judged. For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye’; and look, a plank is in your own eye? Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye. (Matthew 7:1-5)

You see, believers are to judge one another, but in the context of love. We must correct one another in the Body, but the sinful world we must simply share the love of Christ until they come to know Him. (1 Corinthians 5). We have to be careful to correct (judge) our fellow believers in love, knowing we too are sinful and not perfect. Our goal is not to embarrass or belittle anyone, but to encourage each other to live righteously before God.

It is also clear that if the believer refuses to listen, then we are to avoid that person and pray for him to change. Leave that person for God to deal with him.

“Moreover if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he hears you, you have gained your brother. But if he will not hear, take with you one or two more, that ‘by the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.’ And if he refuses to hear them, tell it to the church. But if he refuses even to hear the church, let him be to you like a heathen and a tax collector. (Matthew 18:15-17)

I need you . . . you need me!

 We need one another. We need to see one another. We need to challenge one another!

Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching. (Hebrews 10: 22-25)

We have to begin to stop using excuses for not going to church! Stop allowing other things and other people tell us how and when to worship our Lord and Savior! They don't know our God like we do. 

Our God is awesome. Our God is powerful. Our God is loving. Our God is forgiving and giving. He demands and deserves our praise . . . and our presence! He wants us to join together with one another and with Him to be encouraged, challenged, instructed, and yes . . . even corrected to be more useful to for Him and for one another!

We cannot walk this life in this world alone! I need you and you need me. We all need to spend more quality time together with our Lord and each other! 

Only Jesus....is it all real?

Is it all real? Heaven, hell, the Bible? Yes....yes....and yes! It is all real. Jesus is real....since eternity! He saw fit to humble Himself to save us as well!

And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.(Philippians 4:8-11)
Question is. Are we for real or are we simply playing a game and one day it will all be over? In every game there is a winner and a loser. It is the same in life. There is only one winner at the end of every game....one winning team. Whose side are you on today?


And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire. (Revelation 20:15)


This is real!

Daily Focus

There is so much going on these days. . . . political battles, global warming threats, economic challenges, rumors of continuing pandemics and more. There is so much going through our minds. How does one navigate through each day without getting frazzled? It takes a daily focus . . . or refocusing . . . upon these things.

Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things. The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you. (Philippians 4:8-9)

Keeping things in focus helps to keep our minds at ease. When things hit us in the face, a keen focus on the things that matter will help us navigate life. For the believer, that focus is God and His Word!

Relax . . . Stress kills!

Our minds are terrible things to waste! I have heard that on commercials for years, focusing upon our kids' education. However, Paul stated the same right here in his letter to the believers in Rome in the first century! His focus was not upon education in a worldly sense however. 

For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be. So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God. (Romans 8:5-8)

Focusing our thinking on worldly desires and issues will lead to an early death. Stress kills for sure . . . strokes, heart attacks, and more. Chasing the world will also lead to spiritual death; separation from God! Yet chasing after our relationship with God and seeking to please Him brings a peace beyond human understanding. 

It has been proven that those with a personal relationship with God live longer or at least a more peaceful life. We know Who is in control . . . not the President, not the money regulators, and definitely not the news casters! We place our trust in God and God alone as we navigate this dying world with one goal in mind . . . to make others to know Him as well.

RELAX!

God will applaud you!

Why do we do things anyway? What or who is our motivation? As believers, many times we do things without notice. We can get a bit jealous at times and even feel forgotten, invisible and left out. I know I do at times. But it is ok. Eventually, God will applaud you!

Take heed that you do not do your charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them. Otherwise you have no reward from your Father in heaven.  Therefore, when you do a charitable deed, do not sound a trumpet before you as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory from men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. (Matthew 6:1-2)

All the attention , rewards, and applause in this world can never compare to God's rewards . . . His applause. Just imagine stepping into eternity and hearing, "Well done, my good and faithful servant. Great is your reward!"

Don't make it a habit!

Morning prayers and devotions....prayers over meals....SONday worship.... don't make it a habit!

Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends. You are My friends if you do whatever I command you. ( John 15:13-14)

Jesus gave His life for us! Let that sink in for a minute. What are we doing for Him?

A few minutes of rehearsed prayer....an hour a week at best....a necklace around our necks?

He gave His life for us....can we live our lives for Him?

How to . . .

Some often wonder, " How can I possible walk closely with God?". Here's a how to guide . . . plain and simple. Stop following the world!

Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. (Romans 12:1-2)

The only way to follow closely with God is to stop thinking like the world. The pathway to heaven is narrow and a struggle. The highway to hell is wide, slippery, fast, and yes, dangerous. We have to choose daily which way we travel.

It begins with the mind.

. . . but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death. (James 1:14-15)

THINK about it!

Can they see see Jesus in me? Am I experiencing an identity crisis?

Can they see Jesus in me? 

Can we ask ourselves that question today? If I say I am a believer in Christ Jesus, can others see Him in my everyday actions and hear Him in my words . . . or am I experiencing an identity crisis?

“My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one I in them and you in me so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. “Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world. (John 17:20-24)

Jesus prayed for us to be like Him . . . unified with Him so others would get to know Him through us? Do we identify with Jesus so closely that when others are around us they experience God's presence?

Let's ask ourselves: Can they see Jesus in me?

How to fight

We have all heard the saying (and scripture) that the battle is not ours, but the Lord's. Yet we continue to fight our battles they way we choose with the weapons we choose. However, Paul here tells us how to fight our battles:

For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ . . . (2 Corinthians 10:3-5)

Living in the presence of God and in His will and by His Spirit gives us peace knowing we are trusting God and not ourselves or others? When is the last time God failed?

Let's fight with God and not against Him!

Turn back to God

Give honor where honor is due and never forget that God is always present! Despite the awful memories of 9-11-2001, we can look back and still see God's presence. It could have been worse. It can still be worse. While we continue to pray for those who suffered such devastating losses, many look back and see God's hand upon their lives that day. I am one of them . . .

He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. (Psalm 91:1)

I can only pray that we as a Nation can turn back to God. We saw what can happen in just a few minutes on 9-11. We saw how a pandemic can change the world in just weeks. What more needs to happen before God says enough is enough?

Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people He has chosen as His own inheritance. (Psalm 33:12)

Please continue to pray for those who rush in to serve when others run. We are eternally grateful!

God knows our struggles!

God knows our struggles!

For to be sure, He was crucified in weakness, yet He lives by God’s power. Likewise, we are weak in Him, yet by God’s power we will live with Him . . . . (2 Corinthians 13:4)

Be assured, God knows our struggles. Whether it is circumstances getting us down or just the feelings of rejection, dejection, and isolation, God knows. Jesus went through it all while living on this earth . . . much more than we could ever imagine! We must learn how to rely only upon Him at times in this life! 

Just before dying, Jesus was at His lowest point . . . alone, abandoned and left naked in front of all to see upon the cross.

About three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” (Matthew 27:46)

Yet on SONday morning, God the Father raised Him up! Oh, God knows . . . He cares!

Stop trying so hard!

We can never make up for what God has done for us. We can never out-do Him or out-give Him. So stop trying so hard!

There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.  For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.  For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son . . . (Romans 8:1-3)

What Jesus has done for us on the cross is enough. We cannot do any more to obtain God's forgiveness but accept it and walk in it. I once thought I had to be right before God could forgive me. I was constantly trying to be perfect so God would finally accept me. It was frustrating. It was insane!!!!

Then someone introduced me to the words in the Bible so I could understand. Yes, I was a sinner, but only Christ's sacrifice on the cross and is overcoming the grave could save me from myself. I had to admit it and accept it for what it was!

It is His grace and mercy, not my efforts to reach Him. He reached out to me . . . . and He is reaching out to you! Will you admit your sin and accept His sacrifice for your eternal life?

Romans 3:23 Romans 5:8 Romans 6:23 Romans 10:9-10 1 John 1:9

What is your life source?

 Stay connected or die!

Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. (John 15:4-5)

What is your life source? What do you absolutely need to survive on a daily basis? Some would just die without coffee. Others need sports 24/7 to exist. Some turn to drugs, sex, alcohol . . . Many simply cannot survive without other people's applause and approval. 

Listen to Coach Prime: https://fb.watch/mT-JGKKlce/

We have to stay intimately connected to God in order to survive this world as a believer. Trusting the world and its traps is deadly! Without Him, we can do absolutely nothing of value guys!!!!

What (Who) is your life source?

THE Rock!

Who is God to you? 

Do you have a special name for Him as He has been with you? We give everyone nicknames . . . why not God? Is He not special? Does He not deserve a special place . . . a special name within our hearts?

The Lord is my rock and my fort. He is the God who saves me. My God is my rock. I go to him for safety. He is like a shield to me. He’s the power that saves me.He’s my place of safety. I go to him for help. He’s my Savior. He saves me from those who want to hurt me. (2 Samuel 22:2-3)

David knew what it was like to be on top of the world but also how to hide from the world. He had his ups and downs . . . times of sweet fellowship with God and times of fearing for His life because of his decisions. In other words, he had a personal relationship with God Almighty!

God has been called the God of Peace, my Provider, my Leader in battle, the God my Healer, the God Who sees, etc. Do we know God well enough to have a personal name for Him? Maybe it's time we do!

He is The ROCK of ages after all . . . lean upon Him today!

He is still God!

He is still God!

So let us come near to God with a sincere heart. Let us come near boldly because of our faith. Our hearts have been sprinkled. Our minds have been cleansed from a sense of guilt. Our bodies have been washed with pure water. Let us hold firmly to the hope we claim to have. The God who promised is faithful. Let us consider how we can stir up one another to love. Let us help one another to do good works. And let us not give up meeting together. Some are in the habit of doing this. (Hebrews 10: 22-25)

In these days, God is STILL God!

In days when people choose not to attend church ion person, this is a great reminder and INSTRUCTION! When facing difficult times, we need to be around one another . . . in person.

What are we in the habit of doing these days? SONday is coming!