by Pastor Cecil | Dec 10, 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.”
It has been told that Isaac Watts, who wrote the words of this beautiful Christmas hymn, had not intended it to be used only at Christmas. He wrote the words to paraphrase the words of today’s Scripture from Psalm 98.
To me it is a reminder that God will take our most feeble efforts and allow them to be used to accomplish His divine purpose. Once again Proverbs 3:5-6 is proven true: “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.”
“Joy to the World“
Joy to the world! The Lord is come.
Let earth receive her King
Let every heart Prepare Him room,
And heaven and nature sing;
And heaven and nature sing
And heaven and heaven and angels sing
Joy to the world, the Savior reigns;
Let men their songs employ
While fields and floods; rocks, hills and plains,
Repeat the sounding joy;
Repeat the sounding joy
Repeat, Repeat, the sounding joy
No more will sins and sorrows grow;
Nor thorns infest the ground;
He comes to make His blessings flow;
Far as the curse is found,
Far as the curse is found,
Far as, far as the curse is found.
He rules the world with truth and grace;
And makes the nations prove,
The glories of His righteousness,
And wonders of His love;
And wonders of His love;
And wonders, wonders of His love.
To access Joy to the World, this week’s inspirational video from GloryScapes™ Inspirational Music Videos, please go to: http://www.gloryscapes.com/joytotheworld 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 9, 2010 | 2 Timothy
II Timothy 2:1-2
“You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.”
Do you ever feel humbled? I mean, have you been stunned by something positive that someone has seen in you that you were unaware of and complimented you? But inwardly you feel that you should not be receiving such praise.
That happened to me once when I was a pastor in Burns, Oregon. One day I received a sermon tape from a pastor I knew in Boise, Idaho, and thought it strange that he would be sending me one of his tapes.
The title of the sermon was The Steps of A Godly Man. As I half listened to the message while doing something else, I unexpectedly heard my name! Immediately I rewound the tape to hear what I had missed. The pastor was relating that he had crossed the footsteps of a godly man during the week. He noted three or four people who mentioned that a certain person had been an inspiration to them. He then revealed that the man was Cecil Thompson. My teeth almost dropped out!
I certainly did not feel deserving of his comments, but I realized that we all are leaving footprints in the lives of those around us. We may never know what we have done to bless a person, and that is all right. We should be living a Christ-like lifestyle with no thought of accolades or compliments. But we all are leaving footprints in the lives of those around us.
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 8, 2010 | 1 Corinthians
I Corinthians 13:12-13
“For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known. And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.”
Where in the world did modern behavioral scientists come up with the idea that “self-esteem” was the answer to our personal problems? Some of the most violent criminals I have known had great “self-esteem.” Many of the greatest achievers seemed to lack any “self-esteem.” Consider Moses as one example.
In 1967 I was stationed with the US Air Force in St. Anthony, Newfoundland. One day two civilians arrived at our Radar Site and one was talking to some of our electronic technicians. One of them had just purchased a boat and was interested in having our men help him with some of the equipment. He was flamboyant, and I guess you could say that he had an extra dose of “self-esteem.”
The other man seemed rather withdrawn and shy. I went over and began to talk to him. Upon discovering that we both enjoyed fishing, I brought out some of the new fishing equipment I had just bought. He showed real interest in it and then asked that when I completed my assignment to have my wife meet me in Montreal. He gave me his card and asked me to give him a call, stressing that it was really something I should do.
I cannot take the necessary space to describe what awaited us when Joyce met me in Montreal. Suffice it to say that this man was a multimillionaire and owned a private lodge high in the Laurentian Mountains. We were the guests of a man who was one of the most self-effacing men you could imagine.
It is not how highly we esteem ourselves that matters—it is the amount of surrender to Christ and allowing Him to fill us with His purpose that counts. As we surrender our lives to Him, He takes us (warts and all) to become His disciples.
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 7, 2010 | 2 Corinthians
II Corinthians 10:4-5
“For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.”
December 7, 1941 was a tragic day for the United States. The Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor and thrust this nation into WWII. I was seven years old at the time and remember vividly when I first heard about the attack. We were coming out of church when some teenage girls came running up screaming that Pearl Harbor had been attacked.
Living fairly near the Pacific coast meant that we were on immediate alert. That meant we were required to darken all of our windows at night and the cars could only drive with narrow slits of light to illuminate the way ahead.
There was rationing of gasoline and food items. Various types of metals (pots and pans and whatever) were collected to be melted down to create the instruments of war. There were constant bond drives to raise the money to pay for war expenses.
I have been thinking back over the nearly seventy years since the day we first heard that we had been swept into war. It meant a change in the way we thought and the way we lived. We are in the midst of a spiritual war that many believers fail to recognize. Our instruments to wage war are prayer, spending time in God’s Word, meditating on His Word and obeying what the Word says. Attention! We are in the Lord’s army now. Listen for His commands!
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 6, 2010 | Jeremiah
Jeremiah 29:11
“‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.’”
Winter weather is here (at least in the northern hemisphere). Weather reports show huge snow drifts in various localities. It reminds me of a snow incident I experienced many years ago. I was traveling to Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada, to speak at a week-end seminar.
As I was traveling across Montana, I encountered a heavy wet snow. It was beautiful but I had been driving for over an hour in the heavy snow when I began to encounter a problem steering—I couldn’t. The steering wheel refused to turn. That is a scary experience, believe me!
I was fortunate to be able to muscle the car into a pull-out. When I looked in the front wheel wells, they were packed solid with snow. I had a pry bar in the trunk and was able to clear away the snow and steer again. I had to do this two more times before I passed through the heavy snow.
It reminds me that spiritually we can plow through the heavy accumulation of this world and if we are not cautious we are in danger of losing the ability to steer. The “things” of this world may seem beautiful, but if we are not careful we can lose our ability to steer.
The “things” may even be good things or even spiritual things, but if they are not part of God’s plan for our life, they can lead to disaster. It is essential that we stop frequently and ask the Lord to pry lose all of the things He does not want for us.
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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