Category: By faith

What Child is this?


To many in the church, regardless of the denomination, this Child is Jesus the Savior and our Messiah! But who is He to everyone else? Yes, Jesus has a name in many languages and in every book of the Bible but Who is He to you? See if I count His name in this list and if not, comment it for me…OK?

He is a Priest of the order of Melchizedek and before him. He is the Seed of the Woman and the Righteous Branch of Jesse. He is our Creator and the I AM. He is the Son of the Most High and the Son of Man. He is the Lamb that was slain from the foundation of the world. He is the Captain of the Lord’s Army. He is the fourth Man in the furnace. He is the Rock which gives water in the desert. He is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords!

He is the Babe wrapped in cloths lying in a manger Who was born to die on a cross. He is the One Who vanquished Satan’s temptations in the wilderness. He is the One that is greater than all, yet He was humble enough to wash His disciple’s feet. He was the Suffering Servant and the Lord’s Christ! He was wounded for our transgressions and it is by His stripes that we are healed! He is God with us, Emmanuel and our Advocate with the Father.

I have tried to remember most of the names which are given to Him in God’s Word but the one name that we should remember Him by is our Savior. Yours and mine and anyone else’s who will believe that He came here to take the sins of the WHOLE world on His shoulders…and paid the price for them by dying on the cross and then rising to life eternal on the third day! We can have hope in Him because He said that He would be coming again and being God, then He cannot lie! He will return and set the world back to the way it was supposed to be.

God loved us so much until a part of Himself came down to take our sins and the punishment for them on Himself in order to be able to forgive each and every person who would receive His grace and mercy by faith. It can’t be done any other way and there is nothing that you can add to it in order to make it better or more complete. He accomplished it all in those few hours on the cross and what we should do is accept it by faith in Him and then tell others about Him!

5 things which God wants you to know


5thingsgodwantsyou2knowTruly, not much more I could add to that except…Amen.

Soothing, calming, slow rain


rain-nature-animated-gif-31I live in Mississippi and we have been in a “drought condition” since the last week of July. God has now ended that condition during the last week of November and the first of December and listening to it is so soothing to my soul! It is falling slowly enough to soak into the ground and not flood and run off everywhere, which is great!

So many times in our lives we look around and see things which concern us at times and we get upset about them, but really can we do anything to fix those problems? Many times they are caused by natural processes or some careless individual with a match or cigarette and they are too far away for us to make a difference anyway. All we can do at that point is pray that the right people will be available to help.

Believe it or not, God does care about us and our situation, even though we occupy a small, speck in His Creation. Why does He care so much? Because He chose this speck to be the place where He would have His Presence and His people live. Why did He choose our planet? I haven’t a clue. The only explanation would be that it is His decision because He is God!

He is outside our existence, even outside our universe, but He chose to love and care for us and maybe one day we will understand that…in His Presence. Until then, we just have to muddle along and learn more about Him from His Word because that is the only way to learn about Him while we are here. Have you spoken with Him today? It is a privilege that we have which allows us to talk to Him anytime.

Seek His calming presence each and every day and if you don’t believe in Him, then pick up a Bible and read it. Ask Him, if He is there, to show you His Presence and His grace because He is there, I promise!

Holidays and loss


Many times we think of the holidays as the happiest time of the year but for some that is not the case. Twenty-one years ago my mother died on Christmas day which has impacted my holidays for a while. Some of my friends on Facebook have lost beloved pets just this week. Why do I compare the two? Because pets are part of your family and when their lives come to an end, it is just as heartbreaking as a child’s death or someone else that is close to you.

During the holidays many people are more depressed than during the rest of the year. Sometimes it is because of deaths in the family, sometimes it is because of loneliness or other problems, but the effects come down hard during the holidays. It happens to all of us at one point or another and it is natural to be emotionally drained and depressed when the holidays come around. Why? Because we expect or we are taught to expect this time of year to be happy with family and friends visiting and sometimes those visits just don’t happen.

God loves you dearly and He is always near to each of us. His Word gives us comfort and strength to get through this time. When depression comes to my house and involves me, I get into God’s Word, specifically in Psalms. Sometimes I read a number of them and I have spent three weeks in the Psalms to find my way out of depression or in the attempt to keep it at bay. God will give you strength and the ability to do this along with His Wisdom that you can share with others.

The loss of a family member, whether they happen to have fur or not, is a hard loss but with the wisdom and the comfort that is available from God, you can get through these hard times. Seek Him out for your comfort and for your salvation because both can be found in Jesus! Amen.

Why worry?


There are some thunderstorms and tornado warnings going on all around us tonight. Some have taken shelter in their shelters or in safe places. I live fifteen mile out in the country in a mobile home/trailer but I am nogodisincontrolt scared nor am I worried. God has got this and He is in control! Am I praying? Yes, but I am not worried because Jesus said not to do that. I can’t have any effect on the storm or the winds or anything that is coming, but God can! My Creator is able to take care of me in any situation, no matter what it is! Amen.

God loves us and when we are doing His Will, all we need to do is to lean into Him and trust that He has our best outcome in His hands. That is what I am doing. I hear some thunder coming so I suppose I better shut the computer down for the night. I will be back sometime tomorrow.

The day of His birth…


Most of us celebrate our birthdays, although many seem to worry about them as the numbers get bigger. Why worry about a number? It just means that God has given you another year, another day to live and enjoy your life here with friends and family! Yes, there are some who feel as if their life would be better if they didn’t have so many birthdays piled one on top of another, but let me ask this question: Without killing yourself, what can you do about the march of time and another birthday?

Blunt answer: nothing

God gives us the air that we breathe and the food that we eat throughout our lives, so what will you do with another day, another week or month or even another year? Will you glorify Him in your days, telling others about His grace and His mercy?

This is one of the jobs that we are all supposed to be engaged in, particularly if you are a follower of Christ. Why do we walk as though we don’t know Jesus? Are there some who do this? Yes, there are some who only come to church on holidays or weddings or funerals, what good does it do for you to come at these times? Do you truly listen to the message or did you come to be seen and be in the community?

If you are doing this for your personal gain, it is no good at all for your spiritual well-being. Like the Pharisee and the Tax Collector in the Temple:

Luke 18:9-14 King James Version 

9 And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others:

10 Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican.

11 The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican.

12 I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess.

13 And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner.

14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.

Jesus’ day of birth is celebrated in December not because that is when He was born but because it was easy to get pagans to celebrate a day that they already celebrated. Jesus was likely born sometime between the middle of September and October, in any case we do celebrate Him by giving gifts to each other, just as He was the ultimate gift to us. He came not to bring a kingdom down or to begin His reign as Lord and King, but to shed His blood as a perfect sacrifice for ALL of our sins! He died for the whole WORLD, not just for the Jewish nation but for all of the people on Earth and His sacrifice was necessary for us to be able to atone for our sins.

God loves us because that is what His Word says! He is not a liar nor a cheat, yet some people seem to feel cheated by Him because He doesn’t magically provide all of their needs or their desires. He provides for exactly what you need, WHEN you need it. Not more than you need or less, yet that is why many people don’t like Christianity. They seem to expect God to provide for them because He owes them something. God doesn’t owe you anything at all! If you are blessed by Him with riches and wisdom be thankful for it and help those who don’t have what you have been blessed with, as much as you can without offending them.

Why do I say this? Because many people don’t like charity. They don’t want you to give them something and to some it is insulting that you would even think of helping them. But, if they truly needed it I don’t believe the offer would be turned away. It is the same with salvation. It doesn’t cost us anything and we don’t have to do anything to get it. Sometimes it is because of this that people don’t see the value of coming to church and accepting Jesus as their Savior.

Life is moving too fast!


Has anyone else noticed that this year has flown by? I know, while the “candidates” were campaigning  it seemed like it would NEVER end! That is how it felt to me anyway. Yes, life does move quickly and the older we get, we notice it more. While you are working it seems that life flows by like a swift stream. Every day goes by, you come home, have something to eat, watch a little TV, take a shower and go to bed, get up and begin again. Hopefully, you don’t work the night shift because when I worked that shift I went to work at 9:30 pm, worked all night in the hospital lab, got off work at 7:30 am. Drove home, got as much sleep as possible and then ate something, took a shower, and went back again.

These schedules don’t allow for much family time, or me time, they just run on and on and on until you finally quit or something else happens in your life.

God did not intend for us to work like this, but our society demands it because there is no equality in our lives any more. What do I mean by this? I mean e-quality, emotional quality of life. If you are married and have children there are plenty of emotions in your home already. But, are they quality emotions like love,kindness, patience and truthfulness?

This is something which we are missing out on these days because of all the electronic distractions that are in the home. We have smartphones, tablets, Kindles, computers, laptops, game systems (small and PC sized), when do you find the time to sleep and pay attention to the people around you who are supposed to be your family? This needs to be fixed but how? Throwing out all of the electronic gadgets won’t work, that only creates animosity and bitter feelings between those involved. There should be some moderation in their use, but I don’t know how to get this message across.

Why am I complaining about this? Because it happens not just in my home but I am sure it happens in millions of other homes as well. Attention spans have dropped to the point of seconds not minutes like it was during my years growing up. If something isn’t solved in the first fifteen seconds or so, they move on to the next level or game and maybe they will try again later. If that doesn’t work, many of them just trash it and move on to the next game system they have.

Yes, life moves at the speed of attention spans. Today it may be said that five to ten minutes are the top-tier of attention that you may get. After that, minds wander in all kinds of directions but the subject matter that you may be teaching or preaching on. If you home school, the span of attention is a little better, but not by much. Particularly if they LOVE to play games, hand-held and console type.

But God loves each and every one of us, game players included, and He can use our talents and our gifts IF we will let Him. Please seek Him out as your Savior before the day comes when you don’t have a choice but to stand before Him. Your life here is your time given to learn of Him, get to know Him and seek Him earnestly for your own salvation. If you don’t use this time for this, then your eternal destination will be much different and far worse than you can imagine.

The Blessed Life


Psalm 1

1.Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.

2.But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.

3.And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.

4.The ungodly are not so; but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away.

5.Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.

6.For the Lord knoweth the way of the righteous; but the way of the ungodly shall perish.

Blessed is a state of satisfaction, joy and happiness in the circumstances of your life. It is usually the state of a man who lives in obedience and faith in God.

The Hebrew word for law is torah, which encompasses more than just “law”, it is more closely related to teaching or instruction. So, it is a revelation of God’s will for His people rather than a list of legislative material or judicial decisions.

The image of the righteous as flourishing trees is a common metaphor in the Old Testament. Bearing fruit is an extension of the metaphor and refers to the product of faith in God and the spiritual life of the individual.

In the fourth verse, the life of the godly and the ungodly are contrasted by the reference to the chaff. Chaff which is a useless byproduct of threshing wheat is in contrast to the fruit of the previous verse.

The ungodly are carried away by the wind, being separated from that which is useful and valuable, even separated from God.

In verse five, stand gives the idea of being able to survive or remain after the judgment.

In verse six, the summary shows what is anticipated for those who follow the two ways; God’s protection for the righteous and disaster for the ungodly.

In this sermon/study of Psalm 1, it is easy to see what is important for those of us who decide to follow God and His laws and His wisdom. The blessings of God are the expectation or the reward which will be given to those who delight themselves in Him. In today’s society, many people think that these “blessings” will be in the form of money or other tangible things such as cars, homes, etc.

In God’s economy, obedience to Him can reward us with things such as these if He desires to give them to us and if we are willing to use them for His glory and His Kingdom. The big part that many people miss is that they look for these things NOW!! We tend toward being very impatient when looking for a blessing or reward from God.

God may reward you during your lifetime, or your actual reward may be your eternal life in Heaven and your dwelling place there. Your reward is completely up to God because He is in control ultimately. He is the rewarder and your Creator, so your rewards are entirely in His hands and under His decisions.

This psalm was written to show us and anyone else who reads it, that wisdom comes from God and true wisdom comes from seeking Him out in your life. I am not speaking of your so-called “life” here, paying bills, going to work, having a relationship with your spouse and your children.

I am speaking of your Life in Christ, the Life that you receive from Him when you give your heart to Him and accept Him as your Savior. Seeking Him out in the Word of God and learning about Him through reading it and studying it. Yes, it takes a few minutes every day, but so does reading a newspaper. If you need to learn something about Jesus and His Father, the Bible is the only place to find truthful information. Reading a magazine about flower arrangements or gardening takes a few minutes, sometimes more, but if you want to know how to do those things it is necessary to learn from the source.

If you want to be successful in being a Christian and a follower of Jesus, then you need to read and study His teachings in the New Testament and learn about His Father’s ways by reading and studying the Old Testament. That is a lot of study and reading isn’t it? If you have a college education you had to read and study those subjects while in college didn’t you?

If you didn’t learn from those books, then you couldn’t pass the tests to get your degree. If you really want to know Jesus and His Father, then you need to study the Word of God. Not only to learn some passages or to remember some of the Psalms or a few passages from Matthew, but to understand the requirements of being a child of God. The only real requirement of God which can’t be negotiated or bargained away is obedience.

God required it of Solomon, David, Saul, Moses, Abraham, Noah, Enoch and Adam too. All of them failed at some point in their obedience, but they came before God, admitted it and asked forgiveness for it at some point. We all fail, but Jesus paid the price for each of us because the price of sin (failure) is death or being far from God Himself.

Why would that be a punishment? Because, when you are exposed to the perfect, Holy and whole Love that God is, then you realize that you don’t measure up without Jesus. If you stand before Him without Jesus, you will know how unworthy you really are. How bad would that look to us today? Think of a wedding chapel. Decorated all in white from top to bottom. Everyone is required to wear a white robe or clothes to be admitted to the celebration. Someone arrives, who is a friend of the groom, but they look as if they rolled around in the mud of a pig pen before coming. Can they come in? Will they be admitted dressed as they are? No! Because they may have had white on, but now it is filthy and they can’t change in time right? Wrong! If they repent and the Groom forgives them, then a fresh garment will be provided, after a short bath of course, and they can attend.

That robe is the covering blood of Christ which cleanses all sin (the bath), making us acceptable and holy before a Holy God. When we stand at our judgement and our life’s decisions, wrong or right, sinful or not, are brought forth. If you are covered by the blood of Christ, the consequences are taken care of by Him and He is your advocate before God. Your debt has been paid in full by Jesus and you are part of the family of God.

Please, make sure that your heart is right with Him before that day comes because afterward is not the time to make a decision which should’ve been made during your life here. When this life is over, you will stand before God. Pray that you don’t stand there alone.

Give …. a chance!


There are many, many things which could go in that space and I don’t want to even attempt to go over all of them. Today, you could say that our country should go in there or the President-elect, Donald Trump, should be in that spot. There are many more that could go there but my point here is that whatever you place in that blank space, do it!

Don’t just say it, do it! What is the most important part of your life which needs to be in that place? Is it your job or something concerning school or your marriage which needs a chance to work? Is it your relationship with your Savior? Is there a multiplicity of options in your life which needs a chance to work?

We all have things which need a chance to work, in one way or another. For some of us it is a relationship, whether it is one with our Savior or our spouse or another family member, really doesn’t matter. The point is that relationships have to be worked on, taken care of, nurtured if we want them to grow. So much is going on in the world today, and if it was broken down to what the REAL problems are and what or maybe Who would fix it, the choice would be simple.

The problem with that is this: nobody likes a simple solution.

Simple solutions to complex problems involving cultures and religions which have been at odds for centuries are not achievable in our world. Why? Because we are human and our solutions involve other human beings, each of us has their own idea about a solution to a specific problem. When we don’t cooperate with each other to implement a solution, the problem gets bigger and it isn’t solved in the long run.

The point that I am attempting to get across to those who may read this is that human problems don’t have a human solution. Our solution is found in the Bible, in His Wisdom and faith in Him, not in our fallible ways and understanding. I don’t claim to have those answers, but God does. They are found by reading and studying His Word and asking Him for wisdom in our daily lives.

Living by His Word, studying His Word and His wisdom and asking Him to show you and me the way through a problem or around a problem is the best way to live. It isn’t easy because most of us don’t like to admit that we can’t find the solution. It isn’t easy because we don’t really like to study any book, regardless of which one it may be. God’s Word isn’t hard to understand if you ask Him to help you to understand it.

Seek Him out in the Bible, because when you go looking for Him…you will find Him or He will come to you. He hasn’t lost you, but you may have forgotten where to look for Him. Don’t forget that God loves you and has loved you and me since before the world was created. Each of us has a job in His Kingdom, mine is being a preacher, yours may be something totally different. Just like any government in the world, all jobs are important in some way and if someone isn’t doing their job then the rest suffer for it.

When life gets too hard….


Kneel and pray to your Father in Heaven. Some might say that this is a cop-out or just a crutch that we Christians use to get through the tough times. It is NOT a cop out or a crutch but God does give us the strength from His Spirit for our struggles and our hard times. It doesn’t make them any easier nor does it make them go away, but His Strength and His Spirit give us a boost…a little more ooomph to get through those tough patches.

When the burdens of life get so frustrating and demoralizing that we just feel like it is too much to bear, that is when we should cry out to God and ask for His Wisdom and His Strength to carry us through. He will give those things to each of us to get through these times and these problems, no matter how big they may seem to us…He is BIGGER!

There is no problem too small or too great for God to help you with if you will give it to Him. Don’t take it back after an hour or two, let God have it and then you need to rest in His provision and grace that it will be taken care of, by Him and in His way and time. In the political climate that we have today, we can’t turn away from prayer. Because it is necessary!

I urge all of you, not to vote because I am sure you have likely done that already if possible, to pray and to do so earnestly for the remainder of the day today. Why? Because, our country needs God influence in this election. Many times we live and work without God’s influence or His wisdom leading us and guiding us and we are using our own wisdom in all of our life’s problems. Why is that bad? Because, God knows the outcome before we could possibly see it come to pass.

Is He in control? Yes! We may get the person that we want in office or we may not. The office of our President is not the One that will save our country or this world from chaos, only Jesus as our Lord and our King will do that. God is on His throne and He will decide who sits in the Oval office, whether we like it and the outcome or not.