by Pastor Cecil | Jun 26, 2015 | Isaiah
Isaiah 26:3
“You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You.”
Years ago I recall listening to a sermon tape by Donald Grey Barnhouse, a prominent pastor and teacher. He had just completed an evangelistic meeting several hundred miles from his home in Philadelphia, when he was given a telegram. It informed him that his son had been in a serious accident and was near death.
His only way back to Philadelphia was by rail. As Dr. Barnhouse entered his sleeper, his spirit was greatly disturbed. He knew that it would be hours before his train arrived back home and that there was nothing he could do but leave his son in God’s hands.
As he prayed, he recalled a phrase from Isaiah 65:25, “- – – but dust will be the serpent’s food.” Using that passage he asked the Lord to feed the serpent dust, but to please grant him a good night’s rest. He fell fast asleep and the next thing he knew the porter was touching his shoulder to tell him that they were nearing Philadelphia.
The Lord had answered his prayer. His son lived and during his time of recuperation he committed his life to full time Christian service. If you have been having trouble getting to sleep at night, ask the Lord to give you His blessed rest and feed the serpent dust.
To You Before the Close of Day
To you before the close of day,
Creator of the world we pray!
Your grace and peace to us allow,
And be our guard and keeper now.
From evil dreams defend our sight,
From all the terrors of the night.
From all deluding thoughts that creep,
On heedless minds disarmed by sleep.
O Father, this we ask be done,
Through Jesus Christ, Your only Son.
Who with the Holy Spirit and with You,
Shall live and reign all ages through. Amen.
To access To You Before the Close of Day, this week’s inspirational video from GloryScapes™ Christian Music Hymns & Songs, please go to: http://www.gloryscapes.com/toyoubeforethecloseofday in your browser or click on the image below.
May God richly bless you as you bless others by your words and actions!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Jun 25, 2015 | Matthew
Matthew 24:32-35
“Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near. Even so, when you see all these things, you know that it is near, right at the door. Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.”
Some things never seem to change while at the same time some things seem to be in a constant state of change. One of the things that always changes is the weather. We can complain about how cold it is or how hot it is, but all we have to do is wait for a while and it will change.
Sometimes we attend some function such as a wedding or a family reunion and see a young person that looks strangely familiar and yet we cannot place them. Hesitantly we ask who they are. The answer is that they were once a tiny child we knew, but now they have grown up.
We can become far more introspective if we will look at a picture of ourselves when we were younger and then look in the mirror. Yikes! I’m sorry I didn’t mean to be so personal about that, but it illustrates my point. We go through the seasons of life from youth, to young adult, to adult, and to be kind we call it, “mature adult.”
In today’s Scripture, Jesus is giving a prophetic look at the future. His reference to the fig tree has largely been interpreted as referring to the birth of nation Israel. That being the case He says that the generation that sees the birth of this new nation will signal His soon return. The seasons of His coming are close! Be ready!
May God richly bless you as you bless others by your words and actions!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Jun 24, 2015 | Acts
Acts 5:25-26
“Then someone came and said, ‘Look! The men you put in jail are standing in the temple courts teaching the people.’ At that, the captain went with his officers and brought the apostles. They did not use force, because they feared that the people would stone them.”
Holidays are very special in so many ways. They give us an opportunity to honor either individuals or occasions. We just celebrated Father’s Day, but what about the day after? Do we continue to honor dear old Dad in the days that follow Father’s Day? How about Mother’s Day, or someone’s birthday, for example?
I fear that we frequently live our lives in spurts. We will pay attention only on “special occasions” — then it is back to normal. Many of us who have lost our parents recall the wonderful joyous times we had together. We would like to be able to honor them, but they have already departed and words of appreciation are too late.
This applies to virtually everyone. We might be thinking about a certain person and all they have done and desire to recognize them, but we put it off for one reason or another. Spiritually we do the same thing; we want to thank God for his blessings in our life, but we put off getting around to spending time with Him.
The disciples were consistent in serving the Lord. It was not just when things were going good, but at all times. The disciples in today’s Scripture had been treated harshly, yet the following day they could be found serving Jesus. My prayer is that regardless of the situations we might find ourselves in today, we will still be found serving Jesus tomorrow.
May God richly bless you as you bless others by your words and actions!
– – – Pastor Cecil
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
