by Pastor Cecil | Nov 29, 2013 | John
John 14:27
Peace I leave with you; My peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.
We have a liberal college in our community and from time to time we see bumper stickers from this group that read, World Peace. Some jokesters have made a play on this sticker by coming up with one of their own;Whirled Peas. I suppose the second sticker is much more easily achieved.
From the day that Adam and Eve sinned and were evicted from the garden there has been strife, conflicts and wars. For all of the rhetoric about attaining peace we are no closer to world peace, nor will we ever be until Jesus comes again to establish His Wonderful Peace over all the earth. What a fantastic day it will be when there is eternal peace. The featured hymn this week from GloryScapes, is Wonderful Peace.
Wonderful Peace
Far away in the depths of my spirit tonight
Rolls a melody sweeter than psalm;
In celestial strains it unceasingly falls
O’er my soul like an infinite calm.
Refrain: Peace, peace, wonderful peace,
Coming down from the Father above!
Sweep over my spirit forever, I pray
In fathomless billows of love!
What a treasure I have in this wonderful peace,
Buried deep in the heart of my soul,
So secure that no power can mine it away,
While the years of eternity roll!
Refrain
I am resting tonight in this wonderful peace,
Resting sweetly in Jesus’ control;
For I’m kept from all danger by night and by day,
And His glory is flooding my soul!
Refrain
And I think when I rise to that city of peace,
Where the Anchor of peace I shall see,
That one strain of the song which the ransomed will sing
In that heavenly kingdom will be:
Refrain
Ah, soul! are you here without comfort and rest,
Marching down the rough pathway of time?
Make Jesus your Friend ere the shadows grow dark;
O accept of this peace so sublime!
Refrain
To access Wonderful Peace, this week’s inspirational video fromGloryScapes™ Inspirational Music Videos, please go to:http://www.gloryscapes.com/wonderfulpeace/ 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
by Pastor Cecil | Nov 28, 2013 | Psalm
Psalm 103:1-5
Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits. Who forgives all your iniquities, who heals all your diseases. Who redeems your life from destruction, who crowns you with loving kindness and tender mercies. Who satisfies your mouth with good things, So that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
Here in the United States, today is the day we celebrate Thanksgiving Day in the year 2013. One reader playfully suggested: “We should have 364 days of Thanksgiving and One Day for Grumbling!” I agree, but I would like to eliminate that day of grumbling as well!
Thanksgiving celebrations are usually characterized by consuming mounds of food to express thanks and acknowledge the bounty God has given us. It is tragic that we focus so much attention on the food He has blessed us with and so little focus on the Lord who has blessed us.
I love the words of today’s Scripture that speak of satisfaction. From the world’s point of view, there is never enough of anything. Life is filled with struggles and fights to get more and more. I find this depressing in my spirit and want to avoid this attitude.
The encouraging thing that I discover is that the Lord promises to renew our youth so we can soar with the eagles. Spiritually I want to soar with the Lord. Someone much wiser than me once commented that they would rather soar with the eagles than gobble with the turkeys. Where are you spending your time?
May God richly bless you as you bless others by your words and actions!
—Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Nov 27, 2013 | Psalm
Psalm 103:1-4
Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits. Who forgives all your iniquities, Who redeems your life from destruction, who crowns you with loving kindness and tender mercies.
Today we add yet another verse to our consideration of the spirit of thanksgiving to the Lord. How truly blessed we are to be able to lift our hearts of praise to Him. He is our blessed redeemer from certain destruction.
As a small boy I was swimming with a church group at a popular swimming area in a local river. I somehow became separated from the group and found myself being swept along by the current and unable to stop. Suddenly I felt a tree root that ran along the stream bed that had formed a loop. My foot slipped in it and held me until help arrived. Jesus is our root to hold us from certain destruction. He is our redemption!
Not only is He our redeemer, but He crowns us with His loving kindness and tender mercies. Kindness and mercy are rare commodities that are especially welcome when we are not deserving of them. When we deserve punishment and penalty, our Lord offers His love and compassion.
Are you beginning to comprehend all of the things we need to be thanking the Lord for each and every day of the year? Thanksgiving should not be restricted to a single day, but should be a vital part of our daily worship to the Lord.
May God richly bless you as you bless others by your words and actions!
—Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Nov 26, 2013 | Psalm
Psalm 103:1-3
Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits. Who forgives all your iniquities,who heals all your diseases.
Yesterday we started a review of Psalm 103 that will lead up to the celebration of Thanksgiving Day this Thursday. (Some countries use other dates to celebrate it). Regardless of a particular day, we need to be thankful to the Lord for all He has done for us. Today we focus on His forgiveness of our iniquities and His special healing touch.
How do you describe a person? Tall? Short? Slender? Blonde? Ruddy? Dark? There are many adjectives we may use to describe someone. However, there is one that fits us all: Sinner! Psalm 51:5 reminds us that each of us is born as a sinner; it is not something that we have to learn . . . it is ours by inheritance. (I would rather not inherit this please, but I have no choice!)
Thank the Lord we have an answer to the sin problem: Jesus came into the world to save us sinners and give us eternal salvation. It is not that we deserve it, but we certainly do need it! It is not what we do for Him that determines our salvation, but what He has done for us. By His blood we are offered redemption from sin’s curse.
We are also promised healing. This healing takes many forms, but we know that even when age begins to ravage our anatomy, His healing touch makes us fit for our eternal body that will last forever. Now that is a full-body make over!
May God richly bless you as you bless others by your words and actions!
—Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Nov 25, 2013 | Psalm
Psalm 103:1-2
Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits.
This is Thanksgiving week and a time to pause in all of our busyness and reflect on all of the things we have for which to express our gratitude. Years ago I read a book by Maurice Berquist called, The Miracle and Power of Blessing. He has gone to be with the Lord, but his ministry still lives on through this powerful book.
God desires us to be a blessing people. To bless means to allow the spirit part of our being to entrust to the Lord those around us. Rather than being distraught and angry, we need to call a blessing upon them. This is especially the case when they will be able to hear the words of our blessing.
Stop for one moment and think of the blessings we enjoy. God has favored us with life and eternal salvation through our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ. There is no way we will be able to express our gratitude in this life. It will take eternity to adequately praise His name.
During this week I intend to focus attention on praise and gratitude. My prayer is that we will take the time to bless as many people as possible. See what a difference it will make when you call a blessing on someone.
May God richly bless you as you bless others by your words and actions!
—Pastor Cecil
