Category: Faith

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FOCUS

focus1015“Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” (Phil 3:13-14)

Thoughts

One of the most basic rules of aviation is trust your instruments. A variety of circumstances and situations can disorient even the most seasoned pilot, but a properly maintained cockpit instrument is consistent. It is not affected by lack of oxygen or too little sleep. It looks the same in foggy weather as it does in clear. Bad days do not affect its judgment. These instruments provide a critical reference for achieving the goal of a safe landing at the desired destination.

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Where is Your Trust

trustGod’s heart was breaking! He looked with great sadness upon the people who had repeatedly rejected Him. Though He had freed them from slavery in Egypt, dried up the Red Sea for their escape from Pharaoh’s army,  provided for them through the wilderness and led them into their promised land, their hearts were stubborn and unyielding.

Like a husband who loves his wife deeply, God cried for them to turn back to Him. Though they had betrayed Him over and over again, He was willing to take them back and restore them to their former place of glory, but they would have no part of it.

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Apprehended by God

1apprehendHis mission was simple. He would attend the bizarre Christian meetings and gather evidence he could use against them in the classes he taught. The night would not go as planned.

The time was the early 1900’s, the city was Los Angeles. Although traffic was already becoming a problem, there were very few roads. Motion pictures were still largely a dream although Nickelodeons had begun to pop up, and Thomas Edison had produced a feature film.

In an old livery stable, turned apartment building, turned church, a growing number of people were meeting under the leadership of William Seymour. Seymour was a simple man, he was the son of former slaves whose father had been killed fighting for the Union Army in the Civil war. The father’s death left the family absolutely devastated. Seymour was completely blind in one eye following an illness.

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Is it Good or Bad to Fear God?

fearprovs17Should we fear God or is that simply an archaic notion of a by-gone era?

A well-known Prophet recently said that when he was just five year old, God said He had His hand on the young boy’s life. The Prophet went on to say that this instilled a fear in him that God was always watching. As a result, the Prophet said he abstained from many of the sins that his siblings got caught up in.

Some would read this as a good thing since the boy was spared the harmful affects of sin. Others however, consider this spiritual oppression and abuse. In their minds, a loving God would never make someone fear Him.

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Are Christians Free from Conviction?

conviction9115Some of today’s most popular preachers have declared that conviction does not operate in the lives of believers. Is this true? Does salvation free us from the convicting power of the Holy Spirit?

Some modern day teachers appear to be a little confused about what the Bible has to say about conviction. One of the favorite scriptures of the no-conviction-for-believers crowd is Romans 8:1, “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.” (NKJV)

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How Firm is Your Foundation?

firmfoundationIf you have spent any time in Sunday School, Children’s Church or Vacation Bible School, you have probably heard the parable of the wise man and the foolish man. But it is more than just a story, it begs the question, which one are you?

The story is found in Matthew 7:24-27. In the story, the wise man built his house upon a solid rock foundation. When the storms came, the house stood strong. The foolish man however, built his house upon the shifting sands. When the storms came, the house fell with a great crash.

Notice that both of the men built houses. Both of the men presumably lived in their house. The houses probably looked pretty much the same. It is even possible that foolish man’s house looked even better. After all, he probably did not spend as much money on his foundation, or land, so he had more money to put into the cosmetics. When the storms came however – and they always do – the foolish man lost everything.

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Unity of Faith

unityoffaithGod called me into the ministry when I was twelve. He used a passage of Scripture from the Old Testament and one from the New Testament. In the Old Testament, He used the Prophet Ezekiel to illustrate the seriousness and weightiness of the Call. From the New Testament, He used the prayer of Jesus (John 17) to reveal His heart for unity among believers.

From the time I was five, I have been blessed with the opportunity to sing and play music to Christians of many denominations. I have been honored to lead crazy Pentecostals and quiet Presbyterians, and most everyone in between. One of the many things God showed me through my experiences was that He has a lot of people earnestly desiring His presence even if they search for it in different ways.

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Witchcraft In the Church

witchcraftchurchIs it possible that some who have accepted Christ, still dabble in the occult and witchcraft? Is it possible that some are doing it without even being aware?

It never ceases to amaze me when people who consider themselves “good Christians” – and go to church every week – still get caught up in pagan practices that are absolutely offensive to God.

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What You “Like” Says More than You Know

facebookOkay, I admit it. Sometimes I post stuff on Facebook just to see how it will play out in “likes” and “shares.”

It is fascinating to me that I can post two bible verses – without commentary – seconds apart from each other and one will get dozens of “likes” while the other is largely ignored. I have even discovered a fairly proven – though not scientific – formula for predicting what will be “liked” and what will not. For example, here are two Bible verses from the same version of the Bible:

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Old School Parenting

ParentingCan we learn parenting from someone who lived hundreds of years ago? If the success of her children are any indicator, we certainly can.

In a previous blog, I wrote about the phenomenal woman, Susanna Wesley. In case you missed that one and don’t know who Susannah Wesley was, she was the mother of John Wesley who became the founder of the Methodist movement. His brother Charles is a famous songwriter who wrote over 6,500 songs. A number of them are still sung in churches today.

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