by Pastor Cecil | Jan 22, 2008 | Daily-E-Votionals
John 15:5-8
“I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.”
In the shower this morning I was struck with an illustration for today’s Daily-E-Votional. As I was about to place the bar of soap on the holder, I felt a small swelling on one side of the bar. I smiled to myself as I realized that it was the remainder of the old soap bar.
I remembered when the old bar was getting worn down to a sliver. I opened the package on the new bar, but as is my custom, I placed the sliver on the new bar. For several days the new bar and the sliver were definitely two separate items. But after a time the sliver sticks firmly to the new bar.
If I had not put the two together and placed them through the hot water, they would have remained separate— APART! That was not my intention. I wanted them to become A PART! Do you see the difference? They are the same letters, but a space between the “A” and “PART” makes all the difference.
“APART” speaks of separation. In today’s Scripture, Jesus teaches that if we remain “APART” from Him we are worthless. As He says, these branches which are “APART” are worthless and, “- – – such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned.” That certainly not a pleasant thought.
But what about being “A PART”? That is a completely different story. Like the bar of soap I held in my hand this morning, it becomes one. I am so glad for the positive aspect of the Word of God. Jesus encourages us with His words of assurance: “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit.”
The question before each of us, is whether we will choose to remain “APART” from God’s grace and perfect plan for our life, or become “A PART” of His mighty army of believers. As for me, I choose to be “A PART” !!
Blessings dear hearts. Walk with God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing.
— Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Jan 21, 2008 | Daily-E-Votionals
I Chronicles 16:14-18
“He is the LORD our God; His judgments are in all the earth. He remembers His covenant forever, the word He commanded for a thousand generations, the covenant He made with Abraham, the oath He swore to Isaac. He confirmed it to Jacob as a decree, to Israel as an everlasting covenant: To you I will give the land of Canaan as the portion you will inherit.”
Last Friday the Daily-E-Votional dealt with the Covenant of Praise. I received a response from a very dear friend, who included a bulletin insert that her pastor includes about once a year. There are five items that are included and the pastor asks that those who are willing, to sign and date their intention of entering into these principles. The inserts are not to be turned in, but retained by the one who has made a commitment. Let me share them with you:
1. To worship regularly with the Christian community on Sunday (Hebrews 10:24-25) and to cultivate a lifestyle of worship through the practice of the spiritual disciplines of Bible study, prayer, fasting, etc. (Romans 12:1-2)
2. To be in a Life Group (small group ministry) as a means of connecting to God and one another in a smaller community experience as a means of developing stronger and more authentic relationships with God and each other. (Corinthians 12:12-27; Ephesians 3:14-21)
3. To be a lifelong learner of Jesus Christ by taking advantage of the various opportunities to grow spiritually (Adult Education, Spiritual Renewal Conference, etc.) as a means of learning more about loving God with my mind, living in authentic community and pouring myself into a ministry, mission or service project. (II Timothy 2:2 and 3:16; Colossians 1:28 and 4:2)
4. To live a whole life of stewardship that is guided by the movement of grace and gratitude, recognizing that I am graced by God with time, talents and treasure and that I am called to respond to that grace with a lifestyle of gratitude by aspiring to (giving of my time) in worship, ministry and mission of the church; by aspiring to give a tenth or more of my income to further the worship, ministry and mission of the church. (Romans 12:3-8; II Corinthians 9:6-15; Ephesians 4:1-16)
5. To intentionally seek opportunities to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ in word and deed with those who do not yet know Christ because God has called each of us to be a sign of God’s love to the whole world. (Psalm 67:2; Matthew 28:16-20; Mark 16:15; Acts 1:8; I Peter 3:15-16)
________________________________________
Signature
____________________
Signature Date
Wow! I would encourage you to prayerfully consider signing these five areas of commitment. But before you do, let me suggest something to you. God calls us to enter into a Covenant relationship with Him. That Covenant is bathed in the blood of His own dear Son, Jesus Christ.
As I have shared many times, back before the days of contracts there was a covenant ceremony. The two people who were entering into the covenant would kill an animal and cut it in two pieces. They would join hands and as they walked between the pieces of the slain animal they would utter together; “May it be done unto me as has been done to this animal if ever I break this covenant.” That my precious friend is powerful!
Blessings dear hearts. Walk with God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing.
— Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Jan 18, 2008 | Daily-E-Votionals
I Chronicles 16:14-18
“He is the LORD our God; His judgments are in all the earth. He remembers His covenant forever, the word He commanded for a thousand generations, the covenant He made with Abraham, the oath He swore to Isaac. He confirmed it to Jacob as a decree, to Israel as an everlasting covenant: To you I will give the land of Canaan as the portion you will inherit.”
Today’s Scripture is a Psalm of David found in the book of I Chronicles. It was written by David in honor of the return of the Ark of God. It had been brought to Jerusalem and into the tent that David had prepared for it. Of all the people in the Bible, David stands above all others in the area of praise.
From his youth it seems that he was captivated by the awesome nature of God, and expressed it in psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. What a guy! Too often we read words of praise and are caught up in the adulation of the moment, but fail to see depth of meaning being expressed.
The concept of Covenant is a fantastic reality. It is expressed and confirmed in the presence of death. When two people made a covenant an animal was killed. Between God and Abraham, it was animals which had been halved, but it was unique in that God alone passed between the pieces. The covenant between God and man required the body of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. He was sacrificed in our behalf.
Men may deny the existence of God—they may ignore or reject God—but God is still supreme. We read in today’s Scripture that God’s judgments are in all the earth. What that tells me is that man may deny Him, but God is and always will be, the Blessed Controller of All Things!
It is impossible for us to fully understand the reality of God’s covenant. God has never broken a covenant, nor will He ever break His covenant with man. His covenant has both promises and consequences. It seems impossible that rational people would fail to recognize that rejecting God will result in such horrible judgment. Thats reality! But His Word is true.
How does this apply to us? Probably many things—but certainly it teaches that we cannot work out our own salvation. There is absolutely no possible way that we can do enough good things or obey enough commands to be righteous in God’s sight. It is His work. We either accept it or continue on in our rejection of a completed work.
David must have seen through the eyes of faith that one day, almost 1,000 years in the future, Jesus, the promised Messiah, would be born. This precious Lamb of God who would take away the sins of the world and would be of his house and lineage.
As we read what David penned under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, it is vital that we understand that God’s covenant applies to us. We have been grafted into the branch. His promises of His love and provision are our constant hope and assurance. May we walk in confident expectation! Praise Him for His covenant of love!
Blessings dear hearts. Walk with God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing.
— Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Jan 17, 2008 | Daily-E-Votionals
I Thessalonians 1:4-6
“For we know, brothers loved by God, that He has chosen you, because our gospel came to you not simply with words, but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and with deep conviction. You know how we lived among you for your sake. You became imitators of us and of the Lord; in spite of severe suffering, you welcomed the message with the joy given by the Holy Spirit.”
“Believers”! What a name! It was the name that was used to describe the members of the early New Testament church. It was actually used before the name “Christian”, which was first used to describe the believers in Antioch. The name implies identification with Jesus. It is not simply believing, in something—it is being identified with some ONE!
Back in the late 60’s, I was in the US Air Force, stationed in Missouri. From time to time I visited with a dear pastor, Rev. Frank Meyers, in Warrensburg, Missouri. Frank shared that his first pastorate was in St. Joseph, Missouri, near a large meat packing company.
One of the workers there was a member of his congregation. This elderly meat packer had, at best, a 3rd grade education. Each day this man got off work at 3:00 p.m. Almost every afternoon he would head for the pastor’s study. Frank said that old man, with such a limited education, taught him more about the true Word of God than all of his highly educated professors in college and seminary. It is my desire to be like that old unknown meat packer—a true believer!
Please understand that it is not my intention to belittle professors. Some of my own professors were godly students of God’s Word, who were faithful believers. Unfortunately there were others who placed more value on their title “professor” than “believer”.
As I was praying throughout the day and wondering what the Lord wanted me to share, my mind went back to the time I was an associate pastor in Nampa, Idaho. The Christian Education Director asked me to teach a class attended by many of the pillars of the church.
It was made up of retired pastors, missionaries, college professors and the like. (I WAS IN DEEP TROUBLE)!!! The Christian Education Director laughed and said, “Cecil, they are going to chew you up and spit you out!” Thanks for that encouragement, Bob! I could hardly wait to get started. – – – RIGHT!
I prayed fervently for leadership in being a humble believer. I will never forget that first Sunday. I could not get away from the burden of going back to the basics. I stood before them and said, “You know, I think we need to start at the beginning and learn the ‘basics for believers’ all over again.”
I was prepared to be chewed up and spit out! To my absolute amazement I saw smiles all over the room which held about 100 members. Someone finally spoke out loud and said “That’s exactly what we need and what we want.” WOW! Thank you Lord!
I took my Boot Camp in the USAF in April 1953. It was a shock that rattled my cage and taught me that I was going to learn to do things the military way, not my way. In a similar fashion we need to understand three very important principles:
1. STICK WITH THE BASICS.
2. STUDY A PASSAGE OVER AND OVER UNTIL YOU UNDERSTAND IT.
3. MODEL WHAT THE GOD’S WORD TEACHES.
Please read the entire book of I Thessalonians. It is only five chapters so you should be able to read it all the way through at one sitting. Even though there are only five chapters, they are dynamite.
Blessings dear hearts. Walk with God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing.
— Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Jan 16, 2008 | Daily-E-Votionals
Hebrews 11:1-3
“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good testimony. By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible.”
If someone were to ask you to define faith, would you have an intelligent answer? How do you describe something as intangible as faith? Is there a Scriptural basis and framework for faith? Beyond defining faith, do you possess the kind of faith that is pleasing to God?
I feel that we often define faith by simply quoting today’s Scripture and leaving it at that. It is certainly a fantastic description of what faith is, but do we really capture the meaning? Words will remain only words without some way to attach them to a meaningful picture.
I have often visualized faith in this manner. Imagine with me that it is the afternoon on a warm summer day. The thought suddenly comes to you that an ice cream cone would taste wonderful. Three blocks away is the home of Friendly Fred’s Forty Flavor Ice Cream Emporium and Fitness Gym. (That last part is just for the conscience).
On the walk down to Friendly Fred’s, you try to think about some of the flavors that Fred has to offer. You suddenly recall that Fred has cherry chocolate delight with caramel streamers. (I doubt that there is such a flavo.r). As you think of the cone, you imagine two scoops piled onto the cone and spreading over the side. You can even picture having to lick the sweet tasting ice cream around the edge of the cone before it melts and runs down the side of the cone. Ahh, Yes!!
Here comes the question. At what point do we begin to enjoy the ice cream cone? You are so right! It is the moment that we begin to visualize the cone and imagine what it will taste like. It is seeing in our mind what is going to be a reality, even though we have not yet walked through the doors of Fred’s Emporium.
Faith is choosing to see what God desires for us even when the thing has not yet come into being. The writer of Hebrews has chosen chapter eleven to serve as the “Hall of Faith.” He presents men and women of faith who had trusted God, even when it seemed that the thing hoped for was impossible. Here is the list: Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham and Sarah, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses’ parents, Moses, Joshua and Rahab and millions of martyrs across the ages.
In our modern time, science, so-called, has attempted to brainwash students into believing that we are the result of the evolutionary model. They claim that it was not a Supreme God who created all things, but tiny micronisms interacted with other elements around them, and can you believe it—amazingly, life was formed. BEEEP! Sorry, but that takes more faith than I can muster. Yes–evolution does require faith–the wrong kind!
It is a howl to observe the way atheistic scientists have stretched the truth far beyond the breaking point to prove their theory of evolution. In light of thousands of scientific findings in support of creation, they go further and further afield to find support. Running out of ways to show that life evolved here on earth, now some have proposed that life evolved from some other planet – Mars! That is simply to place the problem beyond the bounds of this world. The question still remains, how did it start there?
Moses gives the answer, and one which is to be received by faith. God framed the worlds, the universe by His powerful word. He spoke, and it came into being! It is not necessary to have the creation theory proven before we believe God’s Word. We believe God’s Word and then see the confirmation of His Word by His creation!
Here is the bottom line. The Almighty God, who created all things by the power of His Word is certainly able to deal with the problems we encounter in our life. How do we access that power? By faith! It is not a matter of waiting to see some great miracle and then believe—we believe and then watch for His miracles. I fear that we have missed many of God’s miracles because we have failed to look for them.
I hope I can get this last thought across. It has to do with what we see through faith. In place of the “I” in faith, picture a big eye ball. So here we go. Whatever you have been praying and trusting God to accomplish, visualize it through the eye of – – – FA<I>TH!!!
Blessings dear hearts. Walk with God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing.
— Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Jan 15, 2008 | Daily-E-Votionals
Matthew 7:13-14
“Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.”
Last week I was reading a guest column in the local newspaper. The columnist was confessing to a particular bias that she had dealt with and overcame in her life. That would have been all well and good had she stopped there. As is often the case, she didn’t!
She went into the transference mode and used the mighty “E” word—EVERYBODY! She wrote: “Everybody has this same type of prejudicial bias.” Hold it Nellie! I have enough of my own shortcomings without you imposing yours upon me and everyone else in the world.
It was almost as if she was trying to justify her sinful attitude by saying that not only were a few other people guilty, “everyone” was guilty. I guess it falls under the attitude of misery loving company. For the life of me I fail to see the joy in having a bunch of miserable people clumped together. Where in the world would we find hope or comfort if “everybody” were in the same miserable condition?
There is another aspect of the concept “everybody“. It is a justification to participate in questionable or even out and out sinful activites. It’s okay to do it because “everybody” is doing it.
Many modern day parents are being coerced by their children to allow things that should not be permitted. These parents fall for the old stale line, “But everybody is doing it!” Or, “Everybody has one.” It is sad that many young people have been targeted and subjected to exploitation because their parents gave in and allowed their children to do things that posed a danger.
It is well past time for people to stand up and do things God’s way regardless of what “everybody” around us are doing. We need to inquire of God’s Word and read what He says we are to do. If God says something is wrong, we need to stay as far away from the activity as possible.
Jesus said that the path to heaven and eternal bliss is narrow and hard and only a few will enter in. The way to hell and eternal suffering is wide and easy and many (everybody) will enter in. Choose the right way!
Blessings dear hearts. Walk with God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing.
— Pastor Cecil
