by Pastor Cecil | Dec 17, 2010 | Psalm
Psalm 98:4, 9-10
“Shout joyfully to the LORD, all the earth; Break forth in song, rejoice, and sing Let the rivers clap their hands; Let the hills be joyful together before the LORD.”
“O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” is probably the oldest Christmas carol we still sing today. The words were thought to have been penned before 800 A.D. While the writer is unknown, he was evidently a scholar with a deep knowledge of both the Old and New Testaments. It seems to present the various prophetic roles Jesus fulfilled when He was on earth.
One of the many tragedies connected with modern music is that our hymns are being neglected and belittled. Deep spiritual meaning is being replaced with words and music that is unclean. This hymn is a prayer for the Lord to come and rescue us from our deplorable condition. How sad that at best, we may only hear this hymn once a year. I pray that the Lord will come into our jaded lives.
“O Come, O Come, Emmanuel“
O come, O come, Emmanuel,
and ransom captive Israel,
that mourns in lonely exile here
until the Son of God appear.
Refrain: Rejoice! Rejoice!
Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.
O come, thou Rod of Jesse,
free thine own from Satan’s tyranny;
from depths of hell thy people save,
and give them victory over the grave.
Refrain: Rejoice! Rejoice!
Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.
O come, thou Dayspring, come and cheer
our spirits by thine advent here;
disperse the gloomy clouds of night,
and death’s dark shadows put to flight.
Refrain: Rejoice! Rejoice!
Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.
O come, thou Key of David, come,
and open wide our heavenly home;
make safe the way that leads on high,
and close the path to misery.
Refrain: Rejoice! Rejoice!
Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.
O come, O come, Adonai,
Who in thy glorious majesty
From Sinai’s mountain, clothed in awe,
Gavest thy folk the elder law.
Refrain: Rejoice! Rejoice!
Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.
To access O Come, O Come, Emmanuel, this week’s inspirational video from GloryScapes™ Inspirational Music Videos, please go to: http://www.gloryscapes.com/ocomeocomeemmanuel in your browser or click on the image below.
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
360-570-0074
PastorCecil@Daily-E-Votional.com
P.S. – You can find previous E-Votionals covering a variety of Scriptures and topics to help you in your walk with the Lord at www.Daily-E-Votional.com.
P.P.S. – I have completed my first book, 100 of Pastor Cecil’s Select Illustrations. The cost is $12.95 plus shipping. You can now order it online by going to https://dailyevotional.com/prior2020/book-by-pastor-cecil . . . You may want to consider this book as a thoughtful gift idea for those who do not have Internet access or as helpful sermon illustrations for your Pastor.
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by Pastor Cecil | Dec 16, 2010 | Luke
Luke 3:15-17
“Now as the people were in expectation, and all reasoned in their hearts about John, whether he was the Christ or not, John answered, saying to all, ‘I indeed baptize you with water; but One mightier than I is coming, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather the wheat into His barn; but the chaff He will burn with unquenchable fire.’”
Joyce and I were living in a church parsonage several years ago. We had been in bed for a short time when the doorbell rang again and again. I made it to the door and a man I had never seen told me we had a chimney fire. I stepped out into the night and could see fire blazing out of the chimney.
Immediately I called for firemen and then took a garden hose up on the roof. (I was told by the firemen that this was a foolish thing for me to do). Never-the-less, my on sight fire system worked and the flames were out by the time they arrived.
That was a sleepless night. I tried to sleep on the sofa, but the smell of smoke still permeated the air. Cleaning up the residue of soot and ashes was miserable, but at least we and the house were spared.
In God’s Word we are warned of eternal fire for those who neglect to receive Jesus Christ as personal Savior and Lord. This failure can be indifference, preoccupation or absolute rejection. A man recently told me he was looking forward to going to hell because his mother was there and he would be working for her. He refused to listen to any witness that I gave him. I pray that each of you will not neglect such a great salvation that Jesus paid for with His own blood.
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
360-570-0074
PastorCecil@Daily-E-Votional.com
P.S. – You can find previous E-Votionals covering a variety of Scriptures and topics to help you in your walk with the Lord at www.Daily-E-Votional.com.
P.P.S. – I have completed my first book, 100 of Pastor Cecil’s Select Illustrations. The cost is $12.95 plus shipping. You can now order it online by going to https://dailyevotional.com/prior2020/book-by-pastor-cecil . . . You may want to consider this book as a thoughtful gift idea for those who do not have Internet access or as helpful sermon illustrations for your Pastor.
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by Pastor Cecil | Dec 15, 2010 | 2 Corinthians
II Corinthians 11:13-14
“For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into apostles of Christ. And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light.”
Back in our college days we had far more energy than we do now (which I’m sure is a big surprise to you). Three of us married couples were enjoying a Sunday afternoon visit when we decided to play a prank.
This was before the days of television and radio was the venue. We decided to concoct a game show called the “Grow Pup Dog Hour.” We had music on a record player and those of us in the room would act like a studio audience. Then we started calling people we knew from the church and telling them they had been selected to play for a $50 prize. In those days that was a lot of money.
The music would come up and the announcer (the one with the most dignified voice) would ask the big question: What appears just below the words “GROW PUP DOG FOOD” on a can of Grow Pup Dog Food. As far as we knew, there was no such dog food so they always answered wrong. The music would be turned up loud and we would hang up.
The funny part was listening to people at church that evening telling others about being called from a national radio quiz program. We confessed to our trickery and it was a good laugh for everyone.
As believers we are told to test the spirits to see if they are of Christ. Just because someone claims to be a Christian does not mean that it is true. What kind of fruit do we see in another person? Are they demonstrating a Christ-like life? Is there a love for God and His people? Is there a turning from sin to the Living God? By their fruit we will know them!
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
360-570-0074
PastorCecil@Daily-E-Votional.com
P.S. – You can find previous E-Votionals covering a variety of Scriptures and topics to help you in your walk with the Lord at www.Daily-E-Votional.com.
P.P.S. – I have completed my first book, 100 of Pastor Cecil’s Select Illustrations. The cost is $12.95 plus shipping. You can now order it online by going to https://dailyevotional.com/prior2020/book-by-pastor-cecil . . . You may want to consider this book as a thoughtful gift idea for those who do not have Internet access or as helpful sermon illustrations for your Pastor.
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by Pastor Cecil | Dec 14, 2010 | Matthew
Matthew 6:19-20
“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.”
A few years ago, just before we moved to a home on 2 ½ acres, I purchased a small utility trailer from a neighbor. It seemed to be an ideal trailer since it was small enough to be towed behind my riding lawnmower for all sorts of yard work.
Unfortunately, it was one of those times when outward appearance covered major problems. Our neighbor had painted the trailer and it looked as good as new. Wrong! The paint covered the fact that the frame was extremely rusted. On about my second use, the frame collapsed into a pile of rust. Ouch!
It reminds me of the saying: It’s better to burn out than rust out. Either way, we are going out. We have to choose whether we will end our days on fire for the Lord or merely slowly rusting away.
There are some people (I won’t name them-Ha!) who frequently try to get me to slow down and not try to do as much as I am doing: writing this Daily-E-Votional, pastoring a congregation, officiating at numerous funerals, and the like. I don’t feel like I am burning myself out—I just want to glow for the Lord!
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
360-570-0074
PastorCecil@Daily-E-Votional.com
P.S. – You can find previous E-Votionals covering a variety of Scriptures and topics to help you in your walk with the Lord at www.Daily-E-Votional.com.
P.P.S. – I have completed my first book, 100 of Pastor Cecil’s Select Illustrations. The cost is $12.95 plus shipping. You can now order it online by going to https://dailyevotional.com/prior2020/book-by-pastor-cecil . . . You may want to consider this book as a thoughtful gift idea for those who do not have Internet access or as helpful sermon illustrations for your Pastor.
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by Pastor Cecil | Dec 13, 2010 | 1 Thessalonians
I Thessalonians 1:2-3
“We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers, remembering without ceasing your work of faith, labor of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ in the sight of our God and Father.”
It seems as if I am confronted daily with people who have lost their jobs and find themselves in financial chaos. I have faced this same problem a few times in my life. I have felt led to present a practical guide to help those of you out of work.
First and foremost is to go to the Lord in prayer. Ask Him to show you the path He is opening for you. Keep Proverbs 3:5-6 constantly in your mind. Recite it to yourself several times each day: “Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.”
After talking with the Lord about your need, get serious! You cannot afford the luxury of waiting for a job to come to you—you have to go at it with a vengeance. Until you are employed, your full-time job is seeking employment. Spend as much time looking for work as you would if you were working.
You need to prepare a good and solid updated résumé. Emphasize those character qualities that you possess (dependability, promptness, loyalty, honesty, integrity, ability to interact with people) but make sure you actually possess these qualities.
Be sure to give copies of your résumés to friends and family and ask them to pass them on to anyone who may be able to consider you for employment. Keep in mind that you belong to the Lord and He rewards those who put Him first.
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
360-570-0074
PastorCecil@Daily-E-Votional.com
P.S. – You can find previous E-Votionals covering a variety of Scriptures and topics to help you in your walk with the Lord at www.Daily-E-Votional.com.
P.P.S. – I have completed my first book, 100 of Pastor Cecil’s Select Illustrations. The cost is $12.95 plus shipping. You can now order it online by going to https://dailyevotional.com/prior2020/book-by-pastor-cecil . . . You may want to consider this book as a thoughtful gift idea for those who do not have Internet access or as helpful sermon illustrations for your Pastor.
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