From the Heart

"God is never late"

2009-02-20T10:20:00.000-08:00

(Psalm 6 -9) The Lord has heard my supplications; The lord will receive my prayer.

Has there ever been a time in your life when you needed God to answer prayer? I know we all have been there. There comes those very serious times when you need God immediately. You call on him and you wait for him to answer. You put everything in his hands, live or die, it's in his hands. The Lord giveth, the Lord taketh away, blessed be the name of the lord. Pastor Swanson & I have just faced one of those mountains. it was hard to climb, but God walked us thru every step.We saw the hands of death as they came for our son, but the angles were beside his bed. He died 3 times and God brought him back each time.You have come to late to tell me that God doesn't answer prayer. I know he does. He is a delivering God. A God who see's us when we are hurting, he does what he thinks is best for us. Sometimes his answer is yes, and sometimes it is no. Whatever his answer is,remember it is the will of God. Remember the prayers of a righteous man availeth much. God is no respecter of persons. What he has done for others, he will do for for you.

One Day At A Time

2008-10-01T10:43:00.000-07:00

" Don't Be anxious... God Will Take Care Of Your Tomorrow... Live One Day At A Time."

Need a philosophy to live by? Try this one.
" Today I will delete from my diary two days -yesterday and tomorrow. Yesyerdad was for learning and tomorrow will be a consequence of what I do today. Today I will face life with the conviction that this day will never return again, that it may be the last opportunity I'll have to contribute because there's no guarentee I'll see tomorrow's sunrise. Today I will be courageous enough not to let opportunity pass me by; my only alternative will be to suceed.
" Today I will invest my most valueable resource, my time, into my most important posession, God has given me. I'll spend each moment purposefully, making today a unigue opportunity. I'll tackle every obstacle, knowing that with God's help, I can overcome it.
" Today I will resist doubt and pessimism and illuminate my world with a smile. I'll maintain a strong faith, expect nothing but the best, take time to be happy, see every task as an opportunity to honor God and endeaver to leave his footprints on the heart of those I meet.
" Today I invite you to start afresh with me, to dream again, to "live one day at a time", remembering that, " with God all things are possible" (Mt19:26

From The Heart

2008-09-09T13:32:00.000-07:00

Today I attended A funeral of a 43 year old lady that I had known since we came to pastor here.
She went to college with my son at lee University. It brought to my remembrance of the things
God had done for me and my family. It let me know we are not promised tomorrow, and how our family's and children need to know Jesus personally.God has blessed us in so many ways, he spared my son's when they were both in wrecks, the oldest, his truck was totaled and he only got one scratch.He was spared from death, in fact, he has been spared from death 4 oor 5 times. I just want to say thank you God for being good to me and giving grace where Grace was needed.
We are grateful and thankful for all you have done. It does us good to remember what God has done, then we can see we are here only by the grace of God.....

Doing God's Will

2008-08-18T08:15:00.000-07:00

You'll either spend your life doing your own thing, or doing God's thing! To understand which is which, consider your heart and your personality. Paul advised, " make a careful exploration of who you are and the work you have been given and then sink yourself into that." Ask yourself questions like; What do I really enjoy doing? When do I feel most fully alive? What am I doing when I lose tract of time? Do I like routine or variety? Do I prefer serving with a team or by myself? Am I more introverted or extroverted? Am I more of a thinker or a feeler? Which do I enjoy more, competing or cooperating?
Examine your life experiences and extract the lessons you've learned. Review your life and think about how it molded you. Listen: "Remember today what you have learned about the lord through your experiences with him" ( DT11:2 ). Forgotten experiences are worthless; that's a good reason to keep a spiritual journal. Paul wrote: "were all your experiences wasted? I hope not!" (Gal. 3:4). We rarely see God's purpose in pain or failure while it's happening. Only with hindsight do we understand how God intended the problem to mold us for good.
Since God knows what's best for us, we should gratefully accept the way he's fashioned us. You were designed for a purpose so you shouldn't resent or reject it.Instead celebrate who you are, and enjoy everyday of your life.

He Gives Songs In The night

2008-08-08T08:37:00.000-07:00

Have you ever experienced a time in your life when your world fell apart? Well I did, It was the worst thing in my christian experience I ever had to go thru. I felt like God had forsaken me in my time of trouble.God led me through this valley day after day when darkness covered me and there seemed to be no light. I prayed an prayed and prayed some more, I would go to my bedroom and claim God's promises over this trial and tell God what the word says.All this went on for a long time. I wanted it to be over soon, but God had another time frame. God had to teach me that he can give songs in the night. The most beautiful songs you could ever amagine. God taught me to wait on him, he is faithful. To trust his word for it is true. He would wake me up in the midnight hours with a song. He would send people to me to hold me up and give me encouragement from God's word. To this day I felt like one of the ladies who came to the church at this time in my life, I believe she was an angel sent from God. She came in suddendly and left soon after.She would always come to me and hand me a note of what God would do for me. There came a time when God came to me and told me everything is going to be alright. It did not happen right then, but it did happen just like he told me it would. So you see dear friend, we think all these trials are awful, we hate them, and I did. I wanted them to just go away.If they had went away, I would have never experienced the things that I learned in this valley.These are some of the things I learned. God is faithful, he will never forsake you, Patience to see it through,faith to believe his word will do what it says.God will meet you at your lowest point, forgiveness, for if we do not forgive, he will not forgive us our trespasses and much more. I learned,he gives songs in the night, beautiful songs of encouragment.....

Black Dot's

2008-07-23T11:21:00.000-07:00

We once saw a man draw some black dots. We looked and could make nothing of them but irregular assemblage of black dots. Then he drew a few lines, put in a few rests, then a clef at the beginning, and we saw these black dots were musical notes. On sounding them, we were singing, Praise God from whom all blessings flow, praise him all creatures here below.
There are many black dots and black spots in our lives, and we cannot understand why they are there and whyGod has permitted them to come.But if we let God come into our lives, and adjust the dots in a proper way, and draw the lines he wants, and separate this from that,and put in the rest at the proper places;out of the black dots and spots in our lives he will make a glorious harmony. Let us not hinder him in this glorious work!

Many men owe the grandeur of their lives to their tremendous difficulties. ( C.H. Spurgeon )

When the musician presses the black keys on the great organ, the music is as sweet as when he touches the white ones, but to get the capacity of the instrument he must touch them all....

Concentrate on this sentance

2008-07-18T10:10:00.000-07:00

"To get something you never had, you have to do something you never did". When god takes something from your grasp, he's not punishing you, but merely opening your hands to receive something better. Concentrate on this sentence..... The will of god will never take you where the Grace of God will not protect you.!
You are loved and appreciated today, but most of all, God loves you, cares for you , and is waiting to to hear from you.

Slightly Irregular

2008-06-23T11:59:00.000-07:00

"make allowance For Each Other's Faults."

Most department stores have a section with merchandise labeled, "as is," or slightly irregular." There's a stain that won't come out, a missing handle, a wobbly leg. Now, they don't tell you where the flaw is, you have to look for it. And once you buy it there's no return,no refund and no exchange.Stop and look around you! you're living in this department. Think about those you know and love. Aren't they "slightly iregular?" A flaw here,a streak of deception there, A hot temper, a passive/ aggressive attitude? If you've been looking for perfection, you've walked down the wrong asile! The only way to have a relationship with anybody is to love and accept them "as is."
Don't buy into the myth that most folks are normal (whatever that means ) except the people in your life. based on that misconception relationships become an endless quest to fix others, control them, or pretend they are what they'er not. Thomas Menton say's "love is letting those we love be perfectly themselves, and not twisting them to fit our own image. Otherwise we love only the reflection of ourselves we see in them." One hallmark of maturity is acknowledging that nobody's perfect, and loving them despite their shortcomings. paul says " make allowance for each other's faults," so that when you discover them, and you will, you're not disillusioned. But there's another here. It means acknowledging something you probably don't like to admit."And what's that?" You ask.That you belong in the slightly irrigular" department too!

And she shall sing there as in the days of her youth.

2008-06-10T11:12:00.000-07:00

A strange place to find vinyards- in the wilderness! And can it be that the riches that a soul needs can be obtained in the wilderness, which stands for a lonely place, out of which you can seldom find your way? It would seem so, and not only that, but the "valley of achor, "which means bitterness, is the door of hope. And she shall sing there as in the days of her youth!
Yes, God knows the need of the wilderness experience. He knows how and where to bring out that which is enduring. The soul has been idolatrous, rebellious: has forgotten God, and with a perfect self will has said, "I will follow after my lovers." But she did not overtake them. And when she was hopeless and forsaken, God said, "I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak comfortably unto her." What a loving God is ours!
We never know where God hides his pools. We see a rock, and we cannot guess it is the home of the spring. We see a flinty place, and we cannot tell it is the hiding place of a fountain. God leads me into hard places, and then I find Ihave gone into the dwelling place of eternal springs.
Wilderness's are not made to harm us, they are made to purify us.

I Will Pour Out My Spirit And My Blessings On your Children

2008-05-12T11:58:00.000-07:00

ISAIAH 44:3

"Promise Prayer's For your Children"

In the old testament, parents laid hands on their children, passing the blessing of God from generation to generation. You can do the same! You can pray, claiming God's Promises over your family, declaring that his will be done in their lives. Are such prayers effective? Absolutely! God says, " The words I speak, They will not return to me empty.They make the things happen that I want to happen, and they succeed in doing what I send them to do" ( Is 55:11 ). Here are some "promise prayers" you can pray on behalf of your children.

1. " I will pour out my spirit and my blessings on your children...I am the Lord's they'll proudly say" ( Is 44:3-5 ).

2. "My spirit and my words that I give you will never leave you or your children or your grand-children, now and forever" ( Is 59: 21 ).

3." Do not weep any longer, for I will reward you. Your children Will come back to you from the distant land of the enemy.There is hope for your future says the lord" ( Jer 31: 16-17 ).

4. " You can also be very sure that God will rescue the children of the godly" ( Pr 11:21 ).

5." blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who finds great delight in his commands. His children will be mighty in the land; the generation of the upright will be blessed. Wealth and riches are in his house, and his righteousness endures forever" ( Ps 112:1-3 ).

This is promise's that we can cling to when we have wayward children. Stand on the word and believe what the word tells us and it will come to pass. God has not forgotten his children....

Fight one more round

2008-04-24T13:00:00.000-07:00

When prizefighter James Corbett was asked what it takes to be a champion, he replied, "Fight One more round!" Did you know that Somerset Maugham earned only $500 during his first 10 years as a writer? Enrico Caruso was a factory worker who studied voice for 12 years before getting his first small break? Gershwin composed 100 melodies before he sold one for $5? Zane Gray didn't sell a single story during his first five years as a writer?Study the lives of those that you most admire and you'll discover that they spent years surmounting obstacales, facing their deepest fears, learning from repeated failures, rising above the predictions of those who said, "you'll never make it".If you'er looking for a neat, clean,respectable, no-loose-ends-formula for success, forget it! Success is sweat, prespective, and dirt under your fingernails. It's disipline, commitment, and a long distance view. It's the tenacious bulldog quality of a Churchill rising in the darkest hours of World Warll to tell the nation, " What is our aim? I can answer in one word: VICTORY at all cost, victory in spite of the terror, victory, however long and hard the road may be; for without victory there is no survival.Don't be discouraged if your dream hasn't come true yet. Keep pursuing it. pray over it daily. Study and learn. Grow by experience. Keep working. Victory always goes to the man or woman who's willing to "fight one more round!"

God Really Loves You

2008-04-15T12:01:00.000-07:00

Isn't it wonderful to know that we serve a God who knows us and cares about us. He cares when we are hurting and when we're on cloud nine. Believe me I know how that feels. God has been there when the hurt was so I could hardly stand it. He was beside me all the time. He'll be with you to, just learn to trust him in the good times and the bad times.
PSALM 121:7-8 tells us The Lord will keep you from all harm, he will watch over your life; the Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore. NOW THATS A GREAT PROMISE.