Security

The word "security" has become very prominent in our world over the past twelve years (especially since 2001). Each of us are interested in being secure as we move through our daily schedules and accomplish our daily goals. We want to believe that our children are in a secure place when they head off to school as well as believing that our workplace environment is a secure venue in which we work. But we need to realize that there is no guarantee to complete security regardless of how much that we desire that to be true. BUT we realize that we can place our hope and confidence in the "true" God who is in charge of our daily lives. He is the unchanging Shepherd and we can depend on His presence to remain the same regardless of the circumstances that we are facing at any given moment in our lives.  Take a moment and read this illustration that Max Lucado has shared in one of his writings.

 

When author Lloyd Douglas attended college, he lived in a boardinghouse with a retired music professor who lived on the first floor. Douglas would stick his head in the door and ask, “Well, what’s the good news?” The old man would pick up his tuning fork, tap it on the side of his chair and say, “That’s middle C.  It was middle C yesterday; it will be middle C tomorrow; it will be middle C a thousand years from now.  The tenor upstairs sings flat. The piano across the hall is out of tune, but, my friend, that is middle C!”

 

You and I need a middle C.  A still point in a turning world.  An unchanging Shepherd. A God who can still the storm.  A Lord who can declare the meaning of life.  And according to David in Psalm 23—you have one. The Lord is your shepherd!  He is your middle C!

Greatness of God

I have sensed the Spirit speaking to my heart concerning the greatness of God. I am thankful that God is sovereign and that all power has been given to Him. It is such comfort to realize and understand that we can trust in the "True & Living God" and that His love is extended to us on moment by moment basis. We can rely on God and we can focus on His Supremacy as we gather to offer our corporate worship in the setting of celebration and declaration. One of the daily devotionals that I read this week brought some clarity to my thoughts and I would like to share it with you today.

"And, Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of Thine hands.” - Hebrews 1:10

Nobody knows the exact date of Jesus’ birth, and yet His birth has divided all of history to A.D. and B.C.  He never, so far as we know, wrote a book, and yet more books have been written about Him than any other person. He never painted a picture or composed any poetry or music that we know of, and yet He has been the inspiration of the greatest music, art, and poetry that the world has ever known. He never had any formal education, yet more schools, colleges, universities, and seminaries have been founded in His name than any other person who ever lived.

That’s who the Lord Jesus is, and never has there been another like the Lord Jesus Christ!

Read Hebrews 1:1-14. Marvel at His majesty! Praise His omnipotence!"

Challenge

I would like to share with you a portion of the thoughts that I shared this past Sunday ( Father's Day)in Radcliff, Kentucky.

 

God is truly looking for a “few good men” to stand strong in this critical hour of choosing to follow God or follow after the plans of man. Surely we can all agree that we are living in very unique and also challenging times.   We are seeing prophetic events and spiritual decline playing out right before our very eyes.   We are seeing the effects of sin, violence, evil and spiritual apathy make an unwelcome impact on our world, on our nation, on our state, on our communities, on our neighborhoods, and in our immediate families.   BUT IN THE MIDST OF THE TURMOIL WE CAN HEAR AND RECOGNIZE THE PRESENCE OF THE SPIRIT AT WORK IN THE MIDST OF THE LIVES OF PEOPLE WHO ARE WILLING TO LOOK TO GOD FOR THEIR INSPIRATION AND DIRECTION.  

I refuse to lose faith and I refuse to lose heart but I declare that I will turn my face toward God and look for divine intervention in the midst of the chaos.   Our text in 1 Corinthians 16 finds the Spirit looking for a few good men in the local church and the Spirit uses the Apostle Paul to remind them of some important characteristics that needed to be evident in their life.   Watch ye: watching, in its usual actions, signifies a rejection of sleep; and because we have chosen to reject sleep we recognize that we are to be alert and aware of the tactics and strategies of the enemy of our souls.    The men and women of this generation must stop hitting the snooze button on their spiritual calls.   We must arise, shake ourselves from spiritual sleep and be alert to the call that God is issuing to His people. 

1 Corinthians 16:13, “Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men (act like a man), be strong.” (KJV)

I Corinthians 16:13, “Watch, stand fast in the faith, be brave, be strong. (NKJV)

 

 

 

 

Father's Day Challenge

1 Corinthians 16:13, “Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men (act like a man), be strong.” (KJV)

I Corinthians 16:13, “Watch, stand fast in the faith, be brave, be strong. (NKJV)

I Chronicles 12:32, “From the tribe of Issachar, there were 200 leaders of the tribe with their relatives. All these men understood the signs of the times and knew the best course for Israel to take. (NLT)

These are the scripture passages that the Lord placed in my spirit to share with the men of New River Worship Center on Sunday morning. I truly believe that God is looking for a "few good men" who are neither embarrassed neither intimidated when it comes to standing for the truth of God. The attitudes, desires and decisions of this culture are demanding an appropriate response from the family of God. I understand that there are times that the pundits and commentators of this day and time try to make it appear that Christianity is some "far right" religion that needs to be feared and shunned. But reality says, "Why do people fear and shun the truth?" The truth teaches love, forgiveness, and repentance. We must be prepared to take our stand and live out the message of the Gospel on a daily basis. Challenging times can and will produce the best in each of us as we rely on the presence of God to direct and order our steps. I pray the blessings of God upon the men of our nation as we prepare to follow God with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength.

Father's Day

The Bible still teaches us to "Honor thy Father and Mother..." In my opinion that requirement of God either goes unnoticed or either it is rejected by many people in our present society. I understand that  the media does a great job when it comes to informing us of the failure of parents and their parental duties/responsibilities. I have no qualms with that scenario but I also need to remind all of us that the failure of some people does not distract from the faithful service of a large number of parents (birth, foster as well as adoptive) who do a superb job serving their families in a very honorable way day after day. Many of these parents serve under challenging circumstances (illness, multiple jobs, long hours, etc.) yet they serve their family in a manner that reflects the love of God and the principles of God. Now, there is certainly no such thing as a "perfect" parent but there are wonderful men and women who do their best to reflect the Biblical plan of parenting to their children. I give a tip of my hat to those individuals today as well as a THANK YOU for your willingness to put your family as the highest priority next to your relationship with Jesus Christ.

 

A few weeks ago we took the opportunity to recognize and honor our Mothers. This is a weekend in which we take some time to remember and recognize our earthly Fathers and their contributions to our successful life journey. I am blessed that my Dad is still serving His family. His role has changed since he has grown older and since his children have grown older yet his role still makes a powerful contribution day after day. Him and my Mother serve as confidants, encouragers, intercessors, and examples to their immediate family (children and their companions) as well as their extended family (grandchildren and great-grandchildren). They also serve in the greater community of believers and society as servants and encouragers through their daily activities. It goes without saying that their parental responsibilities have changed over the years yet their responsibility to God and their connection with God has not changed. Thank you Mom and Dad for showing your family how to love your children and how to love God.

 

I appreciate the earthly Fathers of our world. There are times that their place in the family is somewhat overlooked or downplayed. But notice some of the problems that our society is facing because of the absence of Fathers in the home. Today I want to recognize those men who do not make the headlines of the media but they still place a smile on the faces of their wife, their children and  their grandchildren. We owe you a debt of gratitude for your faithful and dedicated service to your family. We also take a moment to remember those earthly Fathers who have passed on to their eternal reward. You are gone but not forgotten. We also take a moment to remember those "spiritual Fathers" who have made a difference in our lives. They helped lead us into a deeper knowledge of God and a stronger relationship with Him.

This is God's Day

  Psalms 118:24, "This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it." (KJV)

This is the beginning of a new work week for many of us. We do not know what challenges or opportunities that we may face as we move through this week but we can rest assured that the presence of God will be with us as we move through this week. The Lord placed Psalm 118:24 in my heart a few minutes ago as I was planning a strategy for my approach to the responsibilities of this week. I have several commitments already in my calendar. I have goals to accomplish as well as tasks to complete. But I also understand that time and circumstances can change my plans at any moment. I can be asked or in some cases forced into making adjustments in my "strategic plan." I must remember that I am not the one in charge of my life; God is the one who orders my path and directs my steps. But I am confident of this one thing that I can do this week. I can find hope and strength in the presence of God and remember that I am not alone in my walk through life. Will you take a moment and rejoice in the fact that God has ordered and planned our days according to His plans and not our plans? Take comfort that God will never leave or forsake you regardless of the path that you travel. 

Personal Reflection

I am a Minister who encourages people to look to their present day and their future days as they set their heart to seek after God. I am convinced that God does not call us to live in our yesterdays of life although He has used those days to teach us His presence and He has revealed His daily activity in our lives through those days. But we do have the wonderful opportunity to look back in retrospect and identify and remember many of the blessings that God has provided for us along the way. I am eternally grateful and thankful for all of the Provision that God has shared with me through my journey of life on planet Earth.

 

This past Saturday was one of those times of reflection as well as celebration. I was given the wonderful opportunity to lead the New Worship Center congregation in the dedication of our church building. The first meeting of this ministry effort was on 9-11-09 and we have witnessed God provide many blessings as well as many miraculous provisions during that span of time. Time will not allow me to share all of those testimonies but it is sufficient to say "To God be the glory for the great things He has done." Our brief history has included a short time in an elementary school in Radcliff, Kentucky as well as the rental of a small office building in the same city. The Lord opened a door for us to purchase a building in the Spring of 2011. This building required much re-modeling as well as re-construction (it had never served as a church). But through the hard work of many volunteers and contractors we were able to have our first service on Christmas Day, 2011 in our partially completed building. We waited for a period of time before we finished our project as we gathered more funds to complete what we had started. We began the final stages of the project in the Spring of this year and saw the completion of that phase in the past few weeks. We celebrated our "official" dedication on June 1st.

 

I felt led to challenge the congregation that the "house" belongs to God (Psalms 127) and not to us. The people of God are called to stay focused on the true purpose of the true work of Christ. We are to share the Good News of the Gospel with a fallen and hurting world who need to understand that Christ stands ready to forgive our sins and minister to our lives. I pray daily that the New River Worship Center congregation will stay focused on our original call to be a "refuge" for the hurting of our community. I also pray that each local community of believers will stay focused on their call to their community. Each of us are called to "let our light shine" in the midst of this dark and sinful world.