by Pastor Cecil | May 9, 2013 | Daily-E-Votionals
Philippians 2:19, 22
But I trust in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you shortly, that I also may be encouraged when I know your state. But you know his proven character, that as a son with his father he served with me in the gospel.
When I mention that thoughts are critical, I do not mean to imply that it is just being critical of others, but that our thought life has a bearing on what we will become. A friend has been taking a class and sent me some of the thoughts that were shared in the class sessions. It reminded me once again of the importance of what we put into our minds.
- WATCH YOUR THOUGHTS . . . THEY BECOME YOUR WORDS
- WATCH YOUR WORDS . . . THEY BECOME YOUR ACTIONS
- WATCH YOUR ACTIONS . . . THEY BECOME YOUR HABITS
- WATCH YOUR HABITS . . . THEY BECOME YOUR CHARACTER
As I read these words, it is clear that our thought life controls the type of character we will develop. Questionable thoughts will start us down the wrong path and ultimately lead to doubtful character. Good and noble thoughts, based upon the Word of God, will begin the process of developing a Christ-like character. Spend time reading and meditating on the Word of God. It will set the tone of your thought life and ultimately you will achieve a character that is pleasing to the Lord.
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
—Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Jan 18, 2013 | Daily-E-Votionals
Psalm 31:2-3
Turn Your ear to me, come quickly to my rescue; be my rock of refuge, a strong fortress to save me. Since You are my rock and my fortress, for the sake of Your name lead and guide me.
My wife Joyce and I have had more than a few fiery trials in our life. We have been forced to our knees and cried out to Him to support us. When it seemed that we could not go on, the Lord has always been faithful and our Firm Foundation.
The hymn for this week was the favorite hymn of Rachel Jackson, wife of Andrew Jackson. He requested that it be played for him in the final hours of his life. It was also a favorite of General Robert E. Lee. It was sung at the funerals of American presidents Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson.
On Christmas Eve, 1898, an entire corps of the United States Army was camped on the hills near Havana, Cuba. Almost as a man they spontaneously took up this sacred tune and words. In times of trial and danger it is essential to have a firm foundation in the Lord upon which to stand.
HOW FIRM A FOUNDATION
How firm a foundation, ye saints of the Lord,
Is laid for your faith in His excellent Word!
What more can He say than to you He hath said,
To You who for refuge to Jesus for refuge have fled?
Fear not, I am with thee, O be not dismayed,
For I am thy God and will still give thee aid;
I’ll strengthen thee, help thee, and cause thee to stand
Upheld by My righteous, omnipotent hand.
When through fiery trials thy pathways shall lie,
My grace, all sufficient, shall be thy supply;
The flame shall not hurt thee; I only design
Thy dross to consume, and thy gold to refine.
The soul that on Jesus has leaned for repose,
I will not, I will not desert to its foes;
That soul, though all hell should endeavor to shake,
I’ll never, no never, no never forsake.
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Nov 15, 2012 | Daily-E-Votionals
Matthew 13:8
But others fell on good ground and yielded a crop; some a hundred-fold, some sixty, some thirty.
One of my greatest delights is to stand in the middle of a large tomato patch with luscious ripe tomatoes all around me just begging to be eaten. I never let them down! This year I only had one plant, but it was a beauty! I have never seen such huge tomatoes and the flavor was fantastic. I did not have to spend much time growing my crop, but the harvest made me feel like a real gardener.
I must confess I usually feel guilty participating in the harvest without doing any of the work to bring it about. Over the years I have had the blessing of leading individuals to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. Frequently they are more than ready to pray the sinners prayer and give their hearts to the Lord. I often have heard about how others have witnessed to them and prayed for them across the years. Others did the sowing and I just had the joy of harvesting.
Some Christians delight in counting how many people they have led to the Lord. To me that is tragic! The Lord has called all of us to work in His fields. We may plow, sow, water or reap—but it is what the Lord calls us to do—not what we choose to do ourselves that counts.
It is my prayer that when I get to heaven, some joyous soul will greet me with a great smile and say, “You never knew it, but something you said (or did) made me realize I needed the Lord in my life. Years later I accepted Jesus. Thank you!” God needs workers in His fields. Will you accept His call and make yourself available to Him?
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
—Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Nov 13, 2012 | Daily-E-Votionals
Matthew 10:34
Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword.
A friend of mine used an expression that still echoes in my mind. His words were brief, but they explode with spiritual impact: When you cease to bleed, you cease to bless. Wow! It gives new meaning to the ordeals we encounter in life.
When we encounter troubles and trials, it is too easy to expend all of our efforts to get out from under the pressure instead of asking God to use our situation to bring about His purposes. This is also true when we see or family and friends going through adversity. We should always spend time in prayer to discern if the Lord is using the thorns of life to bring about His divine will.
In our Scripture for today, Paul shares that he was given a thorn in the flesh. By his not naming the thorn, we are better able to relate to the thorn that we may have in our own life. I guess you might say: The type of thorn does not matter—any old thorn will do!
It is essential that we spend much time in prayer asking God how we should pray. We must not be guilty of telling God what to do. We need to listen for His voice. Once Paul learned the secret of the thorn’s purpose, he could see that the Lord’s strength and power was made perfect in his weakness.
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
—Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Sep 13, 2012 | Daily-E-Votionals, Ezekiel
Ezekiel 3:18
When I say to a wicked person, ‘You will surely die,’ and you do not warn them or speak out to dissuade them from their evil ways in order to save their life, that wicked person will die for their sin, and I will hold you accountable for their blood.
This morning I had an appointment to have lab work done before my annual physical later on this week. When I had traveled a few blocks I noticed a warning light on the console. I was unfamiliar with this warning symbol so I had to stop the car and check the owner’s manual. (I actually do read those things once in a while).
I was surprised to see that it was a warning to indicate that I needed to check the air in my tires. As I walked around the car and looked at each tire, they all seemed to have enough air pressure. I wondered if the warning indicator was wrong.
The store where I had purchased the tires gives free checks, so I drove by and asked the mechanic to check them. The first thing he did was to check the manual to see what the recommended pressure was for this model. As I watched him check and adjust pressure for each tire, the warning light remained on. It was not until he filled the last tire that it went out. I am now free from the dreaded warning light!
God sends warning lights into our life. I will not even attempt to list the various types of warning lights He may use, but His owner’s manual is His precious Word. If we check it carefully we will find the source of our problem as well as the solution. Are there warning lights in your life?
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
—Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Aug 30, 2012 | Daily-E-Votionals, Hebrews
Hebrews 5:11-12
We have much to say about this, but it is hard to make it clear to you because you no longer try to understand. In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s word all over again. You need milk, not solid food!
What determines if a person is an effective teacher? Is it one who stands in front of a class to expound the truth? Possibly that is the case. Is it someone who spends hours, days, and weeks in careful study before sharing what has been discovered? That, too, may be the case, but I want to offer that there are wonderful teachers who are just one lesson ahead of the people they are teaching.
Joyce and I are eagerly awaiting the birth of our fifth great-grandchild. We love babies and it is a special joy to watch them grow and develop. They start with milk and then are fed predigested food. As a grandpa and great-grandpa I cheat and slip them bites of mashed potatoes and gravy . . . until I am discovered and told to stop. It is hard to look innocent when you have been caught red handed.
There comes a time when babies move from being fed by others to begin feeding themselves. It is often a messy sight, but it is the price for personal development. (Some of us seem to have over developed this process of feeding ourselves.) Eventually, the time comes when they are old enough to feed their own babies. It is then that the cycle is complete: 1. Being fed by someone else; 2. Feeding ourselves; 3. Feeding others. The writer of Hebrews is confronting his readers by using this illustration.
There was a pastor in Missouri who shared with me that his greatest blessing was a meat-cutter who worked at a meat plant near his church. Every afternoon this older man would drop by the pastor’s study to share what he had discovered in God’s Word the previous evening. The pastor said it made him into the preacher he was. I never met that old meat-cutter, but I praise God he blessed me by his teaching this pastor.
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
—Pastor Cecil
