by Pastor Cecil | Jun 17, 2019 | Philippians
Philippians 3:12
“Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me.”
I cannot believe how much quicker time passes when you get older. As a kid it seemed as if everything ran in slow motion and the days seemed to drag by. But once I arrived at my seventies, the years began to fly past like watching a picket fence at highway speed. Fast or slow, life is constantly slipping past and another year is suddenly before us.
Some people spend the majority of their time remembering the days gone by. We say that they are living in the past. Others spend much of their time worrying and wondering about the future. As I see it, neither of these choices are worthy of our time. We cannot relive the past (what is done is done). We cannot pre-live the future (we have not been there yet).
That leaves the here and now. There is a familiar quotation that sounds like a Bible verse, but if so I cannot locate it: Only one life and it soon will be past. Only what is done for Christ will last!
My sincere desire is to live each day for Jesus Christ as if it is the last day I have to live for Him. It may very well be the last day and I want most of all to please Him rather than to enjoy any other thing — ONE DAY AT A TIME!
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Jun 14, 2019 | 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 1969 the U.S. Embassy in Iran was overpowered and the Americans inside were held hostage for 444 days. They lived in terror for over a year not knowing if they would live to see another day, be it prisoner or free. They were finally redeemed and allowed to go free, but what scars they carried with them into freedom!
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: Redeemed, redeemed,
Redeemed by the blood of the Lamb;
Redeemed, redeemed,
His child and forever I am.
(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: Redeemed, redeemed,
Redeemed by the blood of the Lamb;
Redeemed, redeemed,
His child and forever I am.
(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: Redeemed, redeemed,
Redeemed by the blood of the Lamb;
Redeemed, redeemed,
His child and forever I am.
(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: Redeemed, redeemed,
Redeemed by the blood of the Lamb;
Redeemed, redeemed,
His child and forever I am.
Enjoy this free inspirational video from GloryScapes.com. To access Redeemed, please go to: https://gloryscapes.com/redeemed/
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
—Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Jun 13, 2019 | Daily-E-Votionals
Luke 6:27-28
“But I say to you who hear: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, and pray for those who spitefully use you.”
It seems that God’s children have always had a question of how to pray. Jesus’ disciples asked Him how to pray, even though they had been in His presence and had personally heard many of His prayers. So how are we to pray — not simply memorized prayers, but meaningful prayers with power?
Most of us have experienced prayer services where the only prayer requests have been for a physical need. That is not to say that we are not to pray for physical afflictions, but we are banging our head against the wall if that is the extent of our prayers.
We are repeatedly told that we are to praise the Lord in our prayer times. In spite of that we usually launch into a laundry list of requests instead of magnifying and glorifying the Lord who has given us eternal life.
Besides praising the Lord, how should we be praying for others? In today’s Scripture, Jesus directs us to go beyond the scope of our normal prayer pattern. We are to pray for our enemies and those who despise us. We are to pray in love for those who are treating us with evil intent. Our prayer should show the same sacrificial love that Jesus demonstrated to us. That is my prayer for each of you as you read this Daily-E-Votional!
Blessings dear hearts! Walk with God today and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Jun 12, 2019 | 2 Corinthians
2 Corinthians 12:10
“Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”
There was once a poor man who had only one son and one horse. As the son grew older, he used the horse to plow the fields, to haul produce to market, and ride from place to place on various errands. The townspeople pitied the poor man and often made disparaging remarks about his poverty.
One day went from bad to worse when his son was returning from the village on the horse and was thrown to the ground and his leg broken. His neighbors clucked their tongues and wondered what evil thing this poor man had done to have such bad fortune befall him. He would just smile and reply, “The Lord knows what I need. I will trust Him to give me what He wants me to have.”
Not long after the son’s accident, the king of the province dispatched messengers to each village and demanded that every able-bodied young man immediately report for battle. The only one in that age group who was not conscripted was the poor man’s injured son.
In short time the sad news was relayed to the village that the battle had gone very wrong and all of the young men had died in the fray. Now the man who had once been pitied for his poverty was considered to be the one who was blessed.
As a child of God we should desire to be under His control. He may delay the answer to our prayer, or He may deny it as He did with Paul. Whatever the Lord determines for our lives—to delay or deny—we can know that His grace is sufficient.
Blessings dear hearts! Walk with God today and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Jun 11, 2019 | Revelation
Revelation 2:4
“Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love.”
The hectic turmoil of our present-day life may be likened to the flying fury of a major hurricane. There never seems to be enough hours in the day or enough days in the week to complete the many tasks we feel pressured to accomplish.
We may sometimes observe a slight increase in the interest of spiritual things. The problem is that most lose that interest all too quickly. It seems that people view spirituality as a passing fancy instead of a life-changing experience.
In the Scripture for today we discover a letter to the church at Ephesus that the Lord has revealed to the Apostle John. This was a dynamic church that was complimented for their labor, patience, abhorrence for the doers of evil deeds and false teachers. But there was something lacking — they had lost their first love.
It is possible for us to participate in activities that are spiritual in nature and have wonderful intentions, but we lack the love that first existed when we were new Christians. Now is the time for us to perform an evaluation of our walk with the Lord to determine if He would find that we still possess that first love we had for Him. I pray that we will be found worthy of His name.
Blessings dear hearts! Walk with God today and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
