by Pastor Cecil | Jul 10, 2008 | Matthew
Matthew 19:4-6
“‘Haven’t you read’, He said, ‘That at the beginning the Creator made them male and female and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united with his wife, and the two will become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two, but one. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate.'”
You may be reading this on the 9th of July, since I send my Daily-E-Votionals out in the afternoon of the previous day, but this is the edition for July 10th. What a day this is for Joyce and I! It was fifty-six years ago, on July 10, 1952, that we were united as man and wife in Nampa, Idaho.
We have known each other since the beginning of the ninth grade, and immediately became sweethearts. Our relationship was in accordance with God’s Word. We did not live together, as the manner of some is before they are married. Both of us entered married life as virgins. Oh, how I wish more couples were able to say that!
Across these fifty-six years we have observed many couples around us who struggle, fight, and all too often dissolve their marriage. I have devoted my ministry, among other things, to save as many marriages as possible. I pray that my words for today may be of help to you.
Today’s passage, which Jesus spoke to a group of Pharisees who were trying to test Him, gives us the primary key to a harmonious marriage. “So they are no longer two, but one.” It is not just two people living together, it is two individuals merging together to become one flesh.
It stuns me when I hear of couples wanting space from each other. It would be like one of your arms saying to a leg, “Hey! Take off, I want to have some alone time to discover the real me!” I don’t think so. If we are to live as one flesh, then we are to be together as one. That does not mean going off and doing our own thing, then returning when we feel like it.
Here is some sound advice that perhaps will help us all. We are to become one with Christ in a love relationship. We are His bride and are to come under His authority. Wives! Anytime you rebel and fight the authority of your husband, remember that it was not the husband who made the rules, but the Lord Himself. Seek to fit in completely and lovingly into the leadership of your husband.
Stop gloating husbands. You are about to be toppled! Far too many husbands have demanded that their wives come under their submission. No! No! No! It simply does not work that way. Christ does not treat us that way. It is a choice that the bride makes because the husband has so fully given himself for her. That is what Christ did for the church – His bride. He did it on the cross.
Husbands are to love their wives in the same way that Christ loved the church and gave Himself for her. I have a question for all of us husbands. Are we dying for our wives? Do we put aside our own desires and sacrifice them that our wife may be cherished? That is every husband’s assignment.
An even deeper question for all of us relates to our relationship to Christ. Are we submitting to His leadership in our lives? Do we seek to please Him in all that we do and say? Do we read His Word in order to know more about Him? Do we respond quickly to what His Word says? If so we are becoming more like Him as we watch for His return.
As Joyce and I celebrate with joy these 56 years of oneness, may all of us be prepared to spend an eternity of oneness with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Blessings dear hearts. Walk with God today. Trust Him completely and become a real blessing.
— Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Jul 9, 2008 | Matthew
Matthew 6:33-34
“But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”
All of our labor-saving devices seem to have failed in reducing our stress and weariness. Do you suppose that Satan delights when we are weighed down by things that are not essential?
Yesterday I had prepared an entire Daily-E-Votional using the following article that I had in my files. At the last minute I deleted everything and started from scratch. Then this morning I read the same article from Betty Bell. I needed no further prompt but to send it. I have condensed the format:
SATAN’S MEETING: (Read even if you’re busy)
Satan called a worldwide convention of demons. In his opening address he said, We can’t keep Christians from going to church. We can’t keep them from reading their Bibles and knowing the truth. We can’t even keep them from forming an intimate relationship with their Savior. Once they gain that connection with Jesus, our power over them is broken.
So let them go to their churches; let them have their covered dish dinners, BUT steal their time, so they don’t have time to develop a relationship with Jesus Christ. “This is what I want you to do,” said the Devil: “Distract them from gaining hold of their Savior and maintaining that vital connection throughout their day!” “How shall we do this?” his demons shouted.
“Keep them busy in the non-essentials of life and invent innumerable schemes to occupy their minds,” he answered. “Tempt them to spend, spend, spend, and borrow, borrow, borrow. Persuade the wives to go to work for long hours and the husbands to work 6-7 days each week, 10-12 hours a day, so they can afford their empty lifestyles. Keep them from spending time with their children. As their families fragment, soon, their homes will offer no escape from the pressures of work! Over-stimulate their minds so that they cannot hear that still, small voice. Entice them to play the radio or cassette player whenever they drive. To keep the TV, VCR, CDs and their PCs going constantly in their home and see to it that every store and restaurant in the world plays non-biblical music constantly.”
“This will jam their minds and break that union with Christ. Fill the coffee tables with magazines and newspapers. Pound their minds with the news 24 hours a day. Invade their driving moments with billboards. Flood their mailboxes with junk mail, mail order catalogs, sweepstakes, and every kind of newsletter, offering free products, services and false hopes. Keep skinny, beautiful models on the magazines and TV so their husbands will believe that outward beauty is what’s important, and they’ll become dissatisfied with their wives.”
“Keep the wives too tired to love their husbands at night. Give them headaches too! If they don’t give their husbands the love they need, they will begin to look elsewhere. That will fragment their families quickly! Give them Santa Claus to distract them from teaching their children the real meaning of Christmas. Give them an Easter bunny so they won’t talk about his resurrection and power over sin and death.”
“Even in their recreation, let them be excessive. Have them return from their recreation exhausted. Keep them too busy to go out in nature and reflect on God’s creation. Send them to amusement parks, sporting events, plays, concerts, and movies instead. Keep them busy, busy, busy! And when they meet for spiritual fellowship, involve them in gossip and small talk so that they leave with troubled consciences. Crowd their lives with so many good causes they have no time to seek power from Jesus.”
“Soon they will be working in their own strength, sacrificing their health and family for the good of the cause. It will work! It will work!” It was quite a plan! The demons went eagerly to their assignments causing Christians everywhere to get busier and more rushed, going here and there. Having little time for their God or their families. Having no time to tell others about the power of Jesus to change lives. I guess the question is, has the devil been successful in his schemes?
You be the judge!!!!! Does “BUSY” mean: B-eing U-nder S-atan’s Y-oke?
Blessings dear hearts. Never become too busy! Rest in the Lord!
— Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Jul 8, 2008 | Mark
Mark 8:16-18
“They discussed this (His warning to beware the yeast of the Pharisees) with one another and said, ‘It is because we have no bread.’ Aware of their discussion, Jesus asked them: ‘Why are you talking about having no bread? Do you still not see or understand? Are your hearts hardened? Do you have eyes but fail to see, and ears but fail to hear? And don’t you remember?'”
When I was in the Air Force, I was stationed in areas of the country where we had quite severe weather from time to time. We encouraged the kids to be excited to watch the thunderstorms with delight, and all three of them loved to cheer at the flash-bang displays.
When my mom came to visit she was not a good judge of clouds. Many times when she came to visit she would stand at the window and say; “Cec come and look at this cloud, it looks pretty bad to me.” Most often it was a small cloud with the sun at its back so that it appeared dark.
It reminds me that it most often takes a discerning eye to see and appreciate the wonderful things that God has created. This lack of spiritual appreciation has robbed us of a blessing and God of the praise He deserves. Some people have the spiritual eyes and ears, but cannot comprehend the wonderful things which God has prepared for us.
Even the disciples of Jesus failed to grasp His words. They were thinking about bread to fill the stomach, but He was talking about the self-righteous sin of the Pharisees. They brought down to a human level the words of Jesus, which were spiritual.
Before we become too critical of His disciples, how many times do we fail to see the plans and purposes of God? How many times do we equate health, wealth and happiness as blessing, while sickness, poverty and heartbreak as a curse?
In reality, it is in the trials and tribulations of our life that we become aware of the sweet presence of the Lord. Think back on your experiences of these times and you will remember that He was always with you.
So how can we change? How can we be people who open our eyes to see, our ears to hear and our minds to understand? I am tempted to suggest that it is by HABIT! It is doing and re-doing and doing again and again.
It is asking Him to open our eyes to make us aware of His presence. It is paying attention to the words of Scripture we read, the words of songs we hear and the needs we see in those around us.
God’s precious Word is ours for the taking. May we purpose in our hearts to have eyes to see and hearts to be open to comprehend!
Blessings dear hearts. Walk with God today. Trust Him completely and become a real blessing.
— Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Jul 7, 2008 | Hosea
Hosea 12:12-14
“I am like a moth to Ephraim, like rot to the people of Judah. When Ephraim saw his sickness, and Judah his sores, then Ephraim turned to Assyria, and sent to the great king for help. But he is not able to cure you, not able to heal your sores. For I will be like a lion to Ephraim and a great lion to Judah. I will tear them to pieces and go away; I will carry them off, with no one to rescue them.”
Sometime ago I was watching an episode of “Cops.” It was extremely interesting since it recorded the actual voice of a man calling 911 to report a break-in at his house. He had been asleep when he heard a window break and his security alarm go off. He said he had a shotgun in his hand, and was on his way to the kitchen to see if anyone had entered.
Carrying his gun and cordless phone, he approached the kitchen. He suddenly yelled that “it” was in the house. It was hard to tell what “it” was until he had a chance to regain his composure. “It” turned out to be a bob cat.
The wild creature had been frightened by his dogs and had smashed through the window to escape from them, and was now growling in a threatening manner from his kitchen counter. The police arrived and were just as scared as the homeowner. (Cops tremble too you know!). Finally an animal control officer arrived to snare the animal and remove it from the house.
Today’s Scripture in the book of Hosea, shows how God deals with His people. Ephraim, mentioned here, refers to the Northern Kingdom of Israel, while Judah refers to the Southern Kingdom. Both were guilty of turning their back on God and forgetting His law.
As often as I read, or think back on this Scripture, I think of how God hates those who stray away from His will for their lives. It applies to us today, who accept Christ as the Lord of our life, and then drift away from Him into sin and transgression.
God desires to be a moth to us. A moth or butterfly may flutter about one’s head and be an irritation, but it causes no harm. It does not bite, scratch, inject venom, or any such thing. It only attracts our attention. The lion on the other hand, is much more dangerous. Daniel spent the night at “Lion’s Inn,” and lived to tell about it. When his accusers checked in they became lion chow! (See Daniel 6:16-24).
God desires to attract our attention and draw us back to him.
I heard a story of a man who went away from God. He was guilty of having an affair with another woman. The elders in his church confronted him, but he told them it was his business and refused to respond to their call for repentance.
He lost not only his wife and family, but went into alcoholism and drug addiction. His life became more and more chaotic. It grew worse as the years passed. After some fifteen years, he came back to the elders of his church and confessed his utter sinfulness and asked to be restored.
These men worked with him and prayed with him and spent months in God’s Word with him. He was sure that he had completed his restoration, but then he was notified that he was to meet with the church Governing Council one more time. It was to be at the home of the pastor the next evening. He agreed.
As he entered the house he was greeted with a cheer. A new jacket was placed on his shoulders and a new gold ring on his finger. As he was led into the back yard he saw the barbeque was fired up with a fragrant aroma coming forth from—you guessed it—It was a fatted calf!
God sends His conviction, as a fluttering butterfly. He can allow the lions of our own sinfulness to tear into us, but He is always the picture of the Father of the prodigal waiting for our return. Oh, how I love a God who loves us so much!
Blessings dear hearts. Walk with God today. Trust Him completely and become a real blessing.
— Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Jul 4, 2008 | Psalm
Psalm 119:41-48
“May Your unfailing love come to me, O LORD, Your salvation according to Your promise; then will I answer the one who taunts me, for I trust in Your Word. Do not snatch the Word of truth from my mouth, for I have put my hope in Your laws. I will always obey Your law, for ever and ever. I will walk about in freedom, for I have sought out your precepts. I will speak of Your statutes before kings and will not be put to shame, for I delight in Your commands because I love them. I will lift up my hands to Your commands, which I love, and I meditate on Your decrees.”
This is a long passage of Scripture which includes the phrase, “I will walk about in freedom.” Freedom is a precept which many times we think about, or speak about, but basically know very little about.
The Fourth of July is celebrated in the United States as Independence Day—a day that emphasizes the idea of freedom. In the minds of some people, Freedom is the “right” to do whatever I want, whenever I want to do it. Beeeep! Wrong answer!
As in all things, we must look at our freedom in light of the cross of Christ. Freedom comes as we die to ourselves, and come alive in Him. It is not doing what we want—that is bondage to the flesh—rather it is in doing what He leads us to do. That is freedom in the Spirit.
Perhaps a word picture is in order. Imagine being enslaved to a horrible master (Satan), who mistreats us so badly, we have no hope. We need not wait for hell…our life here on earth is a living hell. Even earthly pleasures that we seek to satisfy our lusts end up destroying us.
Jesus is a faithful and kind Master, in contrast to Satan. He has paid an extremely high price for us. We cannot even visualize the price. He purchased our freedom with His own life.
We are still subject to the wiles of our old, evil master, who hates that Jesus has paid the price to free any slave who desires to go free. Satan lies, and promises, and tempts, and threatens, or uses any means possible to keep us in bondage to him. He even tells us that if we become a follower of Christ, we will be slaves and not able to enjoy the pleasures of this world. He urges us to stay with him so we can be free. (This is freedom?!)
Jesus offers to free us of the bondage of sin and death. It is true that we serve Him, but it is a service of love. We are FREE to serve Him in love. We are not under the bondage of tradition or the rules of man. We have the Word of God to instruct us and the Holy Spirit of God to constantly be with us.
Wait! There’s more. We have an eternity with God forever and forever. That is worth lighting a firecracker for! But not only freedom from an eternal death, we have freedom right now! The peace that we experience in serving Jesus is a freedom that the world and Satan cannot equal.
The two masters are waiting for our decision. We can do nothing and we will stay with the old master. We can even give ourselves as willing servants of Satan, and we remain his slaves.
In order to shake off the shackles of sin and death, we must personally receive Jesus Christ as our new Master. We confess all of our sins and transgressions. We admit that we are helpless without Him. We ask Him to come into our heart and to be the Master of our life. Guess what?! We are set free to serve Him. Our hearts beat free and light! Free at last! Free at last! Thank Jesus Christ our Savior, we are free at last! That is what freedom is all about.
Blessings dear hearts. Walk with God today. Trust Him completely and become a real blessing.
— Pastor Cecil
