by Pastor Cecil | Jun 23, 2015 | Philippians
Philippians 4:8-9
“Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things. The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you.”
Recently I began using a program that uses my voice to type. It is fantastic! I never learned to type so I used a modified hunt and peck system. Now I can just speak and the words are typed out for me. The problem arises when I speak to my dog Izzy, or to someone who comes in the office. It is rather startling to see unexpected words appear on the screen.
Yesterday’s E-Votional focused on keeping our eyes looking upward toward God instead of grumbling and griping about how bad things are. Paul certainly calls each of us to focus our attention on things above, not on the temporary things of the world. He now goes on in this same chapter to give specific directions to believers. It has to do with our thought life.
What kind of things are we to ponder on? Paul says we are to think about things that are JUST – PURE – LOVELY – OF GOOD REPORT! He says those are the things we are to meditate on. But he does not end there. He bravely adds more.
Paul urges believers to meditate on the things they have Learned-Heard-Seen in him! Wow! That is awesome! He puts his life out on the line for them to see. It is not through a sense of pride, however, but a determination that he will be following Jesus so completely that if they see the way he lives, it will be an example to them to follow. I want to be that transparent in my own life!
May God richly bless you as you bless others by your words and actions!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Jun 22, 2015 | Philippians
Philippians 4:6-7
“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”
Have you heard the story about the man who asked a friend how he was doing? The friend replied, “Pretty good, under the circumstances.” The man then asked his friend, “Well, what are you doing under there?!”
Read the first four words of today’s Scripture once again. I wonder how often we find ourselves being anxious about the smallest details of our lives instead of turning them over to God? It seems as if we sit as judge and jury about what is small and what is large. The Lord knows our tomorrows, and He knows the situations that we will encounter. According to this passage of Scripture, being anxious for nothing means just what it says: Quit being anxious!
So what are we to do about our stressful situations? Well, the answer is also given in this same Scripture: Encounter everything by prayer and supplication. To me that means praying before situations occur, not after. Commit your way to the Lord and allow Him to direct your path.
There is a key element involved in having victory in this area, and that is making our requests known to God. He already knows, but we need to bring our requests to Him — not in an attitude of begging, but with prayer and thanksgiving. Let Him know that you have placed him on the throne of your life and as our powerful Almighty King, He can do what no one else can do.
May God richly bless you as you bless others by your words and actions!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Jun 19, 2015 | 1 Corinthians
1 Corinthians 6:19-20
“Do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit. “
In 1979 the U.S. Embassy in Iran was overpowered and the Americans inside were held hostage for 444 days. One of those was the son of the former pastor of our church in Nampa, Idaho. I can recall our fervent prayer for Gary Lee as well as all of the other hostages.
They were finally redeemed and allowed to go free. That incident has returned to my mind just recently as I read that these hostages have battled to receive compensation for the time that they were held hostage. It is difficult to know what would be fair compensation, but in this case they have been asking for something like $3 million each.
Forgetting that particular incident and thinking of our redemption from sin, what is the worth of the human soul? The Lord Jesus paid the price for our redemption, and I am so grateful that we have been set free from the penalty of sin!
The writer of this hymn, Fanny Crosby, was eagerly looking forward to that day when her Redeemer would appear and her blinded eyes would be opened and she would behold the most beautiful sight she could ever imagine—Jesus!
Redeemed
(1) Redeemed, how I love to proclaim it!
Redeemed by the blood of the Lamb;
Redeemed through His infinite mercy,
His child and forever I am.
REFRAIN: Redeemed, redeemed,
Redeemed by the blood of the Lamb;
Redeemed, redeemed,
His child and forever I am.
(2) Redeemed, and so happy in Jesus,
No language my rapture can tell;
I know that the light of His presence,
With me doth continually dwell.
REFRAIN:
(3) I think of my blessed Redeemer,
I think of Him all the day long:
I sing, for I cannot be silent;
His love is the theme of my song.
REFRAIN:
(4) I know I shall see in His beauty,
The King in whose law I delight;
Who lovingly guardeth my footsteps,
And giveth me songs in the night.
REFRAIN:
(5) I know there’s a crown that is waiting,
In yonder bright mansion for me,
And soon, with the spirits made perfect,
At home with the Lord I shall be.
REFRAIN:
To access Redeemed, this week’s inspirational video from GloryScapes.com, please go to: http://www.gloryscapes.com/redeemed/ 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 | Jun 18, 2015 | 1 Kings
1 Kings 15:14
“Although the pagan shrines were not removed, Asa’s heart remained faithful to the LORD throughout his life.”
How can you be faithful to the Lord without doing everything the Lord tells you to do? I wish I knew the answer to that question. An even greater question in my mind is why does the Lord bless me when there are things in my life that are not pleasing in his sight? That brings it closer to home doesn’t?!
It is so easy to be critical of others instead of looking at the faults in our own life. King Asa of Judah came to the throne following evil reigns of his grandfather and his father. He was the first king of Judah that found favor in the sight of the Lord. That means there was some mighty fine things that Asa did. But there was something missing!
There is always something missing if we fail to make a total commitment to the Lord. Yes, the Lord did bless Asa because he loved God and had done many things that were right. But there was something missing . . . Total commitment!
People looking at us may think that we are doing so many fine noble things for the Lord. But what does God say? Are we committing our way 100% to the Lord so that when we enter the gates of glory we will hear those words that will be the most precious words we can never hear; “Well done good and faithful servant!” I do not want to have anything missing in my life when I go to be with Him.
May God richly bless you as you bless others by your words and actions!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Jun 17, 2015 | 2 Kings
2 Kings 6:17
“And Elisha prayed, and said, “LORD, I pray, open his eyes that he may see.” Then the LORD opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw. And behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.”
A number of years ago one of the men in our congregation came to my office and brought a plaque of sorts. It is about 7 inches long and 2 inches wide. It is black with white wood pieces glued on. As you look at it at first you would think there is nothing there but just gibberish. He told me to look again harder. As I did I realized the black background was what I was should be looking at. It was only then that I saw the word; JESUS.
So many times as we go through this life there things all around us that we do not see because we do not have eyes to see. It often makes me wonder what I’ve missed by being so busy are so preoccupied that I failed to take the time to really look.
In our modern society cell phones and other such devices have so consumed the minds and attention of people that they fail to take time to realize there are others that need their attention. They’re so busy talking to someone somewhere else that they ignore the person in front of them.
We have done that with Jesus so many times. Through the Holy Spirit he has wanted to reveal Himself to us but we are so busy with our own activities that we fail to see Him. I want to urge us open our eyes see JESUS!
May God richly bless you as you bless others by your words and actions!
– – – Pastor Cecil
