by Pastor Cecil | Nov 29, 2019 | Hebrews
Hebrews 10:22
“Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.”
Those of us who have said farewell to beloved family and friends experience the pangs of separation. The pain of separation is eased with the assurance that there is a bright tomorrow waiting for us when we will be united with those who have died in the Lord.
Fanny J. Crosby was visiting the home of a friend, Phoebe Knapp. Phoebe was playing a new melody she had just composed and mentioned to Fanny that she called it Assurance. Fanny responded, “Blessed Assurance.”
Fanny returned home and quickly penned the words to the hymn that has become such a favorite since it was published way back in 1873. It is just as much a blessed assurance today as it was back then.
Blessed Assurance
Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine!
Oh, what a foretaste of glory divine!
Heir of salvation, purchase of God.
Born of His Spirit, washed in His blood.
Refrain: This is my story, this is my song,
Praising my Savior all the day long.
Perfect submission, perfect delight,
Visions of rapture now burst on my sight;
Angles descending, bring from above
Echoes of mercy, whispers of love.
Refrain: This is my story, this is my song,
Praising my Savior all the day long.
Perfect submission, all is at rest,
I in my Savior am happy and blest;
Watching and waiting, looking above,
Filled with His goodness, lost in His love.
Refrain: This is my story, this is my song,
Praising my Savior all the day long.
Enjoy this free inspirational video of, “Blessed Assurance” by going to: https://gloryscapes.com/blessedassurance/
May God richly bless you as you bless others by your words and actions!
—Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Nov 28, 2019 | 1 Thessalonians
I Thessalonians 5:18
“In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”
Being thankful is not, or at least it should not be, a once-a-year thing. As members of God’s family we are to be thankful at all times. It is not our prerogative to choose when or what we will be thankful for.
In today’s Scripture, Paul admonishes the church at Thessalonica (as well as all of us) that we are to give thanks in everything. Do you frequently look as though you have been baptized in vinegar? That, my dear friend, is not being continually thankful.
Paul also encourages believers to pray continually. That brings us to another embarrassing question: How is your prayer life? Are you continually speaking to the Lord in prayer? It is a discipline that we need to pursue.
The last admonition in line with today’s theme is that the Lord expects us to thank Him in all circumstances. Chew on that while you are munching on your sumptuous dinner. What if you had little or nothing to eat? Would you still give thanks? That is exactly the Lord’s will in any and every circumstance. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving Day!
May God richly bless you by your words and actions!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Nov 27, 2019 | Psalm
Psalm 57:7
“My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast; I will sing and give praise.”
Steadfast! The Hebrew word is Niphal. It means: to be set up, be established, be fixed, to be firmly established, be stable, be secure, be enduring, securely determined, to be directed aright, be fixed aright, be steadfast (in the moral sense).
Just because a person gives a glowing testimony does not insure a steadfast walk with the Lord. I have known some yo-yo Christians—on fire for the Lord one moment and cold as a cucumber the next. One of the problems with yo-yo Christians is that their lack of spiritual steadfastness makes witnessing difficult for faithful Christians. That is why it is sometimes essential to spend years of steadfast living before certain non-Christians will be willing to listen to the gospel message.
Having spent many years in the criminal justice field as well as a military career, I have heard the disparaging comments from the world crowd. Believe me, they did not candy coat their feelings! Hypocritical (or yo-yo) Christians were called names I will not repeat here.
Would you describe yourself as a steadfast Christian or a yo-yo Christian? If you desire to have a steadfast walk with the Lord, start right now by making a covenant to be faithful and true to Him in all that you do—then do it!
May God richly bless you by your words and actions!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Nov 26, 2019 | 1 Peter
1 Peter 3:17
“For it is better, if it is the will of God, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil.”
I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but we are going to experience periods of suffering in our days here on earth. There are some teachers and preachers who try to convince their listeners that only good things come to those who trust (and send in a generous offering).
Jesus prayed for all of His disciples (including us) that His Father not take us out of the world, but be with us in the world. All of His disciples suffered terribly here on earth, but oh, what peace and comfort awaited them as they were welcomed into paradise.
Suffering in and of itself is not worthy of praise. We can be the source of our own suffering and it certainly is not worthy of praise. We might truthfully say that we can endure suffering and be a blessing, or we can cause suffering and be a pain!
The question arises then, what are we suffering for? Are we the cause of our own suffering, or is the Lord allowing us to shine forth as bright lights in the midst of our suffering? I want to be on God’s side suffering for the right reason!
May God richly bless you by your words and actions!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Nov 25, 2019 | Matthew
Matthew 5:11
“Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me.”
I once had a man from my congregation make an appointment to talk with me. He came to our home and we enjoyed a light lunch before going into my office. Out of the clear blue I heard these words: “I hate your guts!” Wow! You could have knocked me over with a feather. Prior to this there did not seem to be any sort of conflict between us, so his statement was an unexpected blow.
With my mind reeling, I prayed silently for God’s wisdom and strength. With as much sincerity as possible I said, “I am so glad that you feel free to share your feelings with me.” From that incident I would like to suggest a few ways to respond to and love the unlovable:
(1) Rely on God’s wisdom in dealing with the person.
(2) Realize that these unlovable people need love—perhaps more than others.
(3) Remember how unlovable our sins are in God’s sight.
(4) Rejoice that we are counted worthy to encounter persecution.
(5) Respond with love rather than retaliate with resentment.
What happened on that Sunday evening so long ago? We spent time together as he poured out his heart. As he was leaving he looked me directly in the eye and said, “Pastor, I love you so much!” Double Wow! That was certainly a dramatic change from the statement he had declared earlier. God is so good!
May God richly bless you by your words and actions!
– – – Pastor Cecil
