by Pastor Cecil | Mar 22, 2010 | John
John 15:16
“Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, ‘Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?’ And I said, ‘here am I, snd me!’ ”
Over the years I have volunteered for many things — some good and some not so good. I recall when I was in Air Force basic training back in the early 50’s. (For some of you that is the dark ages). As I was about to say, a captain who was our training officer asked for volunteers to assist in the command post. Few of us knew what that involved so only two of us raised our hands. What we did not know was that there was a five mile night march that we were excused from because of our special duty. The laughter of our fellow trainees turned to envy when they heard of our stroke of good fortune.
The Lord has always sought volunteers for His army. Let me be quick to remind us that His soldiers have often been called upon to serve under extreme conditions — even to the point of death. The blood of the martyrs marks the pathway God’s soldiers have been called upon to march. Are you up to it?
It seems that many ministers in our modern era try to paint a pretty picture of servanthood. “Volunteer for Jesus and you will be assured of a life of prosperity and blessing.” Tell that to Job who lost all of his wealth and all ten of his children. Tell that to Stephen who felt stones crash into his body until he entered the gates of glory. Tell that to the multitude of saints across the ages who were burned at the stake for volunteering in the Lord’s army. God’s cause is worth dying for! I volunteer! Will you join me?
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
360-570-0074
PastorCecil@Daily-E-Votional.com
by Pastor Cecil | Mar 18, 2010 | John
John 15:16
“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.”
This is the third Daily-E-Votional dealing with an agricultural theme. First came God’s Orchard, then God’s Fields and today God’s Vineyard. Each one of these themes has a little different slant.
Remain in the Vine
We know that Jesus and His disciples spent much time walking through Israel. They ate fruit and grain as they walked along. It is very likely that they also plucked a few grapes from a vineyard here and there. Perhaps it was in or near one of these vineyards that Jesus spoke the words of today’s Scripture.
There is a simple, yet profound truth in what Jesus said. “You have to be attached to the vine to continue growing.” Once a branch is severed from the vine it begins to shrivel and die. It may not be apparent right away, but before long the signs of death will appear.
How about you? When you separate yourself from the Branch, which is Christ Jesus, you will begin to show signs of death. At first you may be able to display signs of life, but they will soon fade and you will be nothing but a dried-up stick ready for the fire. While there is still time, attach yourself to Christ and produce fruit!
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
360-570-0074
PastorCecil@Daily-E-Votional.com
by Pastor Cecil | Mar 16, 2010 | John
John 15:16
“You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit—fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in My name.”
Orchards are interesting places. Almost always the limbs of the trees are gnarled and twisted. During the winter months some trees look more dead than alive. A walk through the orchard in winter is a stark contrast with summer.
During the dormant period an expert orchardist appears with what seems to be instruments of torture: saws, clippers and shears. As the expert passes through the orchard, limbs are sheared off and taken away to be burned. The scene of carnage does not seem to be healthy for the fruit trees. But it is! It is this constant pruning that stimulates new growth and to produce more fruit and better fruit.
Sometimes when we are going through the dormant periods of our life, our Master Orchardist (Jesus) appears in our life to lop off those branches that prevent us from bearing the fruit He desires.
Pruning hurts! There is no other way to look at it. When we experience painful surgery in our life it is never easy ― but it will produce fruit. The Lord has never promised us a life of comfort and ease, but He has promised to make us fruitful when we follow Him. We are called to produce fruit in His orchard.
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
360-570-0074
PastorCecil@Daily-E-Votional.com
by Pastor Cecil | Feb 2, 2010 | John
| Special Note: Pastor Cecil is out of town holding his brother’s funeral, so he’ll be gone for a few days. Please remember to pray for him and his family at this time. Thanks, Russ |
John 3:16-17
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”
Have you ever wanted to ask God, “Why?”
Thirteen year old Logan Henderson of Whitman, Nebraska, did just that. He prayed and asked God why his special new born calf broke it’s back so it had to be put down. And Logan heard a special response from God. And Logan heard a special response from God. Watch the video below to hear Logan’s own accounting of what happened…
Remember Logan’s statement he heard from God, “My Son was special but He died for a purpose.” It reminds me of one of the most treasured verses in Scripture, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him” (John 3:16-17). Jesus did come for a purpose. The primary purpose is stated clearly in 1 John 2:2, “He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.”
Jesus said of Himself in John 14:6, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” God paid an incredible price for relationship with us through the suffering and death of His only Son. He wanted to redeem us and break the power of sin in our lives.
Some in our culture want to say there are many ways to God, but Jesus made it crystal clear that the only way to God was through Him. Why is He so exclusive? Because, as the Scripture says above, “He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins.” Without Jesus’ shed blood, our sins are not atoned for. Hebrews 7:24-25 says, “. . . because Jesus lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood. Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.” So not only are we able to come to God because of Jesus shed blood to cover our sins, but Jesus is interceding for us on an ongoing basis.
Have you put your faith and hope in Jesus’ atoning sacrifice for you? If you have, you “will not perish but have eternal life.” If you haven’t, God is waiting for you with open arms. I urge you to make that choice today, you’ll never regret it.
To access God Why?, please go to: http://www.gloryscapes.com/godwhy in your browser or click on the image below.
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Brother Russ (for Pastor Cecil)
by Pastor Cecil | Dec 29, 2009 | John
John 4:14
“But whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”
In yesterday’s Daily-E-Votional I mentioned that I live in the vicinity of Olympia, Washington, actually in Tumwater, Washington. The area is blessed with many artesian springs that produce clean and pure water from deep underground.
Joyce and I have lived in desert localities where water was hard to come by. Old time ranchers in these areas were always cautious about allowing their livestock to stray too far away from sources of water. To do so could, and would, lead to death.
Spiritually we have a great need of God’s abundant supply of His water of life. You would think that anyone in their right mind would rush to drink eagerly from the well of God’s grace, but it is not that way!
Have you ever wondered why people are so resistant to the message of the gospel of Jesus Christ? I think we have the answer in II Corinthians 4:4; “The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.”
This makes the task of sharing the gospel difficult. We may be able to lead the unbeliever to the well of living water, but we cannot force him or her to drink. The answer is that we can “salt the oats!” Live in such a manner that they will want to have what makes us so blessed. Are you living that way?
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Dec 21, 2009 | John
John 4:42
Special Note: I upgraded to Windows 7 over the weekend and I thought the transition would go smoother, but the email software is different, etc., so all that to say, Russ & Janelle Hansen are helping me with E-Votionals until I get the new software mastered. – Pastor Cecil
“Now we believe…and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Savior of the world.”
Silent Night? Have you had one of those lately? Ever? About the closest I have ever come was one starry night in the middle of a campground with my husband Russ and our two young daughters. We had only the popping of the burning logs on the campfire to distract us from the marvelous silence of the star-filled midnight sky.
We now live in the middle of a small town where from just about anywhere you can hear the trains in the distance rumbling through our city. The calm, quiet air of a wintry city night here in the Northwest carries a variety of other sounds to my listening ears, too. But, occasionally, when the burdens are heavy and the cares are many I don’t even notice those sounds. Instead, I hear only a profound silence. Not a beautiful silence like we had in our camping experience so many years ago, but a painful silence. The kind of deafening silence when you ask a difficult question and hold your breath for the answer…..and the answer does not come.
On a silent night like that I may be calling out to God with concerns too deep to share with others, and in my preoccupied bubble I hear only the silence. Did God hear me? Does he care? Has he forgotten me in my little small town?
At this Christmas time of the year I am reminded of the seeming silence of God in the 400 years between the happenings of the Old Testament and the New. I’m thinking the people of Israel might have laid silently in their homes or on their rooftops at night wondering if God still heard their cries, did He care about His people?…would He ever fulfill His promise of a Savior…deliver them from their suffering…had He forgotten them?
And then one silent winter night, a star shone above another small town, the Son of God was quietly born, and the answers to all our questions began to unfold. Jesus would show us that God did care, He does listen, He loves us and He is a God who keeps His promises.
Silent night. Holy night. Love’s pure light. He heard. He still hears. And after that silent night, in the dawn of a new day, we can say along with the Gospel writer, “Now we believe…and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Savior of the world” (John 4:42).
Merry Christmas!
Janelle
To access Silent Night, this week’s inspirational video from GloryScapes.com, please go to: http://www.gloryscapes.com/silentnight in your browser or click on the image below.
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
