BE sure and stop by our booth at the Franklin Fall Festival on the square today. We would love to meet new people and see old friends!
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Just thinking - Its easy for me to write a devotion most days. God's Word is full of example's for our lives. But, know this, I am not just a Pastor who tells you how to, or what to, or should do, without it effecting me also. Pastors, evangelist, bible teachers and good Christians who try to live a Godly life faces these examples each day with me. This is a very stressful life we live in today. Just twenty years ago, we lived in a different USA, now we all are looked at lik...e someone who is illegal to be free; to give our opinions; you name it we are living in a world where each of us are looked at like criminals. God is our answer and I believe that! Jesus is our saviour and I believe that! HE is the Way, The Truth, and The Life! and I believe that. How can a person get by in our world today without HIM? HE is COMING SOON! And I believe that! Are you ready to meet HIM?
“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” Hebrews 11:1
A nobleman’s son became ill, so he sought Jesus to heal him. Whe...n he found Jesus, he asked Him to come to his home. But instead of physically going to the boy’s bedside, Jesus healed him by His word. John 4:50b says, “And the man believed the word that Jesus had spoken unto him, and he went his way.” Not a wonder, not a sign, not a vision, not angels playing tic-tac-toe on his ribs, or cold chills going up and down his spine…the man believed Jesus’ Word and went on his way. Faith sees the invisible, believes the incredible, and receives the impossible. Doubt sees the obstacles; faith sees the way. Doubt sees the darkest night; faith sees the day. Doubt dreads to take a step; faith soars on high. Doubt questions who believes; faith answers, “I”! Life follows faith like night follows day. There is no life without faith. Isaiah 40:31 - “But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.”
We live in a very stressful world. We try to make ends meet in a very stressful life today. Stress is all around us, is it not? So, Stress is nothing new. In the bible we read about Noah, when he was building the ark with no rain in sight. Martha had stress when she was preparing a meal for our Lord. So, what is "Stress" - "Stress is the gap between the demands placed on us and the strength we have in meeting those demands". It is not a sin to be stressed, nor a sin to be weary. It is a sin, though, not to seek a lessening of that stress which tears down the temple of the Holy Spirit, your body. Where is your answer? In waiting upon the Lord — waiting in the midst of demands. When you learn to wait on Him, God steps in to bridge the stress gap with His mighty strength. Why not ask God to equip you to be a stress-buster today. Perhaps it will be your boss or your spouse that is “stressed out.” Rejoice in the opportunity you have to share God’s love. “And to you who are troubled, rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with His mighty angels…” 2 Thessalonians 1:7
Do you want some good news today? How about a word or two that is positive? Are you troubled today? If you are, and I may say, should be, troubled today? Listen: God's Word says, “And you who are troubled rest with us.” That is, be at ease. Quit your worry. It is not over yet. There is an unfinished story. If you are troubled, rest with u...s. Well, you say, “Pastor, it’s so dark, this world is getting more evil each day.” Yes, it’s gloriously dark, because the darkest hour of the night is just before the sunrise. Our hope is not in politics, our hope is not in sociology, our hope is not in science. The only sure hope for our world is the Second Coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. Think about who is coming again. Underscore this: “when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed.” The Lord Jesus is who is coming again. We’re not looking for some event in history. We’re looking for Jesus Christ to be revealed. And when He’s revealed, He’s going to be revealed as the Lord Jesus. Today He is despised. He is rejected. He is mocked. But He is coming as the Lord Jesus to be glorified and admired. Just say to yourselves, " I'm not looking for the undertaker, I'm looking for the Uppertaker." Matthew 14:14 - “And Jesus went forth, and saw a great multitude, and was moved with compassion toward them, and He healed their sick.”
It is the unbelievable, supernatural replenishment that awakens the world to see the mighty power of God. Jesus demonstrated, once with a crowd of 5,000 and again with a crowd of 4,000, that He is the God who provides (see Matthew 14:14-21, 15:32-38). When the most “responsible” thing to do, in human terms, was to ask the multitudes to find t...heir own food, Jesus turned to the supernatural power of God. Moved with compassion, He confidently told the disciples to begin feeding the multitudes. Jesus never wavered in His complete and utter trust in God - Jehovah Jireh. Read the accounts of these miracles in Matthew with your family today, then ask God to fill your family with an utter and complete trust in God -our- Jehovah Jireh - The God who Provides. “But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer.” 1 Peter 4:7
The end of all things is at hand, The Apostle Peter said.... That was written about 1,980 years ago. And years ago, G. Campbell Morgan was a great expositor of the Word of God. He said, “I never lay my head on the pillow without thinking that perhaps before I awake the final morning may have dawned. I never begin work without thinking that He may interrupt it to begin His own.” w...ow, that statement was written decade's ago. Are these statements true, you ask? Whether or not you think men just keep on talking about the soon return of our Lord, as hearing themselves blowing wind, it doesn't matter, but what matters is, are you ready to meet HIM? Every night before we go to sleep, we ought to say, “Jesus may come tonight.” And every day when we get our tools and go to work, this may be the last day of work that we do. We are to be looking for His return. We are also to be longing for His return. Are you praying for Jesus to return? If you love Him, you ought to be longing for His return. I have Him in my heart, but I long to lay my eyes upon Him and walk with Him and talk with Him. “Even so, come Lord Jesus” (Revelation 22:20). Before the Apostle Paul met Jesus, he was trying to live a life of working his way to heaven. Most churches today want to tell you what you need to do, how to dress, how to talk, how to act. This was Pauls life. But when he met Jesus, HE sat him free of these bondages. He said "I'm tired of trying, I'm going to start trusting". Are you trusting in something that seems to be fruitless? Try Jesus!
“Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God.” Romans 13:1
The world around us is getting pretty strange, to say the least. A lot of people living a life of "Who Cares"... Some folks defy guidelines and authority. Many don't believe in anything except "Self". If you think about it, us baby boomers started this movement of "Free Love" and we coined the phrase "Born Free" or "Born to Die"... So we ...baby boomers can't blame this new generation of people for refusing to submit to authority. We don’t like to be under anybody. We stick out our chests and talk about being free-born Americans. Now, if you are a baby boomer, you’re of a generation of anti-authority figures. In your lifetime you’ve gone through the hula hoop, the Barbie doll, pop psychology, Dr. Spock, Donahue, and the Beatles. It was all anti-authority! Fathers were Archie Bunker. Preachers were Flip Wilson. The anthem was, “Do your thing. If it feels good, do it.” Many of us dare not realize the vestiges of rebellion that still lurk down in our hearts. Give some serious thought to the question: Who is on the throne of my life today? |
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