by Pastor Cecil | Apr 28, 2015 | 2 Corinthians, Isaiah
2 Corinthians 6:1-2
“We then, as workers together with Him, also plead with you not to receive the grace of God in vain. For He says: ‘In an acceptable time I have heard you, and in the day of salvation I have helped you.’
Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation” (Isaiah 49:8) .
As a boy I remember the frustrated voice of my mother telling me to do something this instant! I am sure there had been previous requests, demands, and threats before the words, this instant!
Those were the days before instant mashed potatoes (Ugh!), instant pudding and instant credit. We did not hear of instant anything except responding quickly. Isn’t it interesting that with all of the instant time saving things we have in our modern day we feel the time crunch more than ever? We now do not have the time to visit family and friends because we are too busy operating our instant time saving devices.
There is one thing that is always instantaneous. That is obedience to God’s Word. There is no way we can afford to be slow in responding to the infallible call of the Lord for our immediate obedience.
When God calls we are to respond immediately. One thing I learned in my military training was to obey orders immediately without question. There may be a time when immediate response will save our life. To stop and ask why may be fatal. It is the same way we must respond to the Spirit’s leadership. Trust and obey for there is no other way to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey! John H. Sammis (1846-1919)
May God richly bless you as you bless others by your words and actions!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Feb 27, 2015 | 2 Corinthians
2 Corinthians 5:1-3
“For we know that if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed with our habitation which is from heaven, if indeed, having been clothed, we shall not be found naked.”
I enjoy hearing people talk about what they do. I recall listening to fighter pilots talk about the thrill of combat and how close they came to death. I have been enthralled by the stories of the deep sea fishermen in Newfoundland. Police officers share with other officers interesting, sometimes dangerous, incidents.
The apostle Paul was a tent-maker by trade. I can almost visualize his calloused fingers and hands. They would almost certainly have been the marks from years of stretching and stitching the fabric to create or repair tents.
In today’s Scripture, Paul uses his profession as a tent-maker to illustrate a spiritual truth: This human body of ours is not going to survive. There are those who try to reverse the aging process in various ways, but nothing is going to keep us from coming to the end of our life and entering eternity.
It is sad that most of us spend far too much time and effort on things that will pass away. By spending so much time on earthly things we neglect the things that really count—those things that have eternal value.
Spending time with God in prayer and reading His Word will prepare us for that heavenly home that will never pass away. What home are you spending your time and effort to build?
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Nov 27, 2014 | 2 Corinthians, Psalm
2 Corinthians 12:8-10
“Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But He said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”
For as long as I can remember I have been a positive person. Depression has never been an enemy that I had to encounter. When I tell people that I am doing great, they doubt it and seem to feel that I am not being honest with them. This has been the case with caring for a wife with dementia. We have had wonderful support from family and friends, but often it is just me and Joyce. These have been precious times that I cherish.
There have been several who want to protect me and have suggested that it is too much for us and that we need to consider placement in a care facility or bring in outside help to take some of the load.
This evening I was cleaning up in the kitchen and today’s Scripture came to me. When the Lord told Paul that His grace was sufficient for the thorn that Paul experienced, how did he respond? He did not call in the cavalry troops to help—he went right on doing what he was called to do in faith that God’s grace was sufficient.
I thank God that He has given me strength and guidance to keep on keeping on. I intend to do just that very thing and like Paul I do it with delight!
May God richly bless you as you bless others by your words and actions!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Nov 19, 2014 | 2 Corinthians
2 Corinthians 5:16-17
So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come. The old has gone, the new is here!
I think it was back in 1960 that I was a County Juvenile Probation Officer. Three teenage girls had repeatedly been arrested by local authorities — they had fled from the officers so many times they were known as the gazelles. As a last effort to deal with their delinquency, the judge ordered them to be confined in the Youth Training Center several hundred miles away.
The Judge had me transport them, so along with my wife Joyce, we began the trip. The deputies had placed leg restraints on the girls to keep them from escaping. A few miles out of town, however, I stopped and asked the three if we could make the trip as a family rather than treating them as prisoners. They readily agreed and we had no problem. By the time we arrived at the facility, we all felt like family.
A few days ago I saw an obituary for a man whose name sounded familiar. As I looked down the list of survivors I saw he had a sister who had the same name as one of those girls. I was able to find her phone number and called. Amazingly she said it was her and vividly recalled the trip. Her life was turned around and she was a changed woman. Did I say woman? On the trip she was about 15, she now is approaching 70. How time flies!
We all have opportunities to impact others we come in contact with. Never neglect to spend time with young people. Let them know you are there for them. Perhaps you will be the only family they will ever have.
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Oct 29, 2014 | 2 Corinthians
2 Corinthians 12:9-10
My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness. Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
Have you ever made a mistake? I have no idea why, but I recently remembered a blunder I made over 50 years ago. I considered going to work for a bakery that would entail delivery of baked products. I was riding along with the manager and he had me hold a special-order pie so it would not be damaged in transit. It was the last delivery before we were to deliver the pie. I opened the door and as I sat down, I felt the horrifying squish of the specially prepared pie. No delivery and no job!
I have realized many times that it is not my strength that counts, but only my willingness to be used. Several years ago I was having trouble with my Internet connection. When I called my Internet provider about the problem, the first technician did not have the answer and referred me to his manager. After explaining what I was doing, the manager asked me to send him one of my Daily-E-Votionals. After he read it and realized what I was doing, he helped correct the problem and then asked to be included on my list of subscribers.
Does God work? Yes! I have no idea who that man was or what he was going through. I do know, however, that he received a copy of that message. The Lord is the One who does the real work in individual hearts.
May God richly bless you as you bless others by your words and actions!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Oct 7, 2014 | 2 Corinthians
2 Corinthians 12:8-9
Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.
A story is told of a very poor man who lived in ancient times that had only one horse and one son. As the son grew older, he used the horse to plow the fields, to haul the produce to market, and ride from place to place on various errands. People showed no pity and often made disparaging remarks about his poverty.
Things went from bad to worse for the poor man when his son was thrown off the horse to the ground and broke his leg. The people clucked their tongues and wondered what evil thing this poor man had done to have such bad fortune to befall him. But he would just smile and reply, “The Lord knows what I need. I will still trust Him.”
Soon after the son’s accident, the king sent messengers to each village and demanded that every able-bodied young man report for battle immediately. The only one in this age group who was not conscripted was the poor man’s injured son. Later on, the sad news reached the village of a terrible defeat for the king’s army. Now the man who had once been pitied was considered to be the one who was blessed.
Romans 8:28 is true in any and every circumstance: “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.”
As a child of God 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, His grace is sufficient.
May God richly bless you as you bless others by your words and actions!
– – – Pastor Cecil
