by Pastor Cecil | Jun 24, 2016 | Revelation
Revelation 3:20
“Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.”
This beautiful hymn was composed by Will Thompson who lived from 1847 to 1909. The words seem to capture the heart of the listener and draw us to come to Jesus. You can almost picture Jesus Himself standing patiently urging us to come to Him.
He not only pleads for us to come, but he offers complete pardon to anyone and everyone who will come to Him. He offers He has paid the price and He has the authority to extend pardon to any who will come to Him.
The words of this hymn stress the urgent need of those who are lost. Some may feel like they have time before making that decision, but sadly for many they wait too long. Now is the hour of decision to receive Christ’s mercy and pardon!
Softly and Tenderly
Softly and tenderly, Jesus is calling,
calling for you and for me;
See, on the portals He’s waiting and watching,
watching for you and for me.
Refrain: Come home, come home.
You who are weary come home;
Earnestly, tenderly, Jesus is calling,
calling, O sinner, come home.
Why should we tarry when Jesus is pleading;
pleading for you and for me?
Why should we linger and heed not His mercies;
mercies for you and for me?
Refrain: Come home, come home.
You who are weary come home;
Earnestly, tenderly, Jesus is calling,
calling, O sinner, come home.
Time is now fleeting, the moments are passing,
passing from you and for me.
Shadows are gathering, deathbeds are coming,
coming for you and for me.
Refrain: Come home, come home.
You who are weary come home;
Earnestly, tenderly, Jesus is calling,
calling, O sinner, come home.
O, for the wonderful love He has promised,
promised for you and for me!
Though we have sinned, He has mercy and pardon,
pardon for you and for me.
Refrain: Come home, come home.
You who are weary come home;
Earnestly, tenderly, Jesus is calling,
calling, O sinner, come home.
To access this free inspirational video from GloryScapes.com, please go to: http://www.gloryscapes.com/softlyandtenderly/
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
—Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Jan 21, 2016 | Revelation
Revelation 21:27
“But there shall by no means enter it anything that defiles, or causes an abomination or a lie, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.”
In my many years of pastoral ministry there has been one thing that always requires updating — The Church Roster. Whether it’s called the Church Mailing List or the Church Membership List, that list always requires updating. Just when you think you have everything in order, here come more additions or deletions.
I certainly do not want to downplay the importance of these rosters. They provide names, addresses, telephone numbers, email addresses, birthdays, anniversaries, and other pertinent information necessary for a pastor to minister to the members of the congregation
God also has a list. It is called the Lamb’s Book of Life. It is the most important book in the entire universe. If our names are in the Lamb’s Book of Life, we are assured of an eternity in heaven. If our names are not there, I do not even want to think of the terrible consequences. Hell awaits those whose names are missing.
Hollywood is trying to paint a picture that our good works will determine if we are admitted into heaven or not. That is not what God’s Word says. God says if our name is not in that book we will be denied admittance. Receive Jesus Christ by personal invitation and know where you’re heading!
May God richly bless you as you bless others by your words and actions!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Dec 10, 2015 | Revelation
Revelation 3:15-17
“I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth. Because you say, ‘I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing’—and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked.”
I just received an advertisement for a heated travel mug. For those frosty mornings (or evenings) when you are forced to spend time behind the wheel of your car, you can just plug the cup into your cigarette lighter and keep your coffee, tea, or soup nice and hot.
Keeping things this hot has long been a problem. This is true for beverages, but it is also true in other areas of humanity. My heart breaks when I am contacted by couples who have let the fervent flame of love flicker low.
Love is always a choice. Not only is it a choice, it is a commitment. It entails the giving of ourselves and receiving pleasure from the object of our affection. The first sign of danger is when we demand gratification rather than finding ways of giving selflessly. Examine your spiritual temperature. Have you become tepid? Fan the flame once again. Plug into the outlet of God’s grace and sizzle for Jesus!
May God richly bless you as you bless others by your words and actions!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Dec 8, 2015 | Revelation
Revelation 3:15-17
“I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth. Because you say, ‘I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing’—and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked.”
I just received an advertisement for a heated travel mug. For those frosty mornings (or evenings) when you are forced to spend time behind the wheel of your car, you can just plug the cup into your cigarette lighter and keep your coffee, tea, or soup nice and hot.
Keeping things this hot has long been a problem. This is true for beverages, but it is also true in other areas of humanity. My heart breaks when I am contacted by couples who have let the fervent flame of love flicker low.
Love is always a choice. Not only is it a choice, it is a commitment. It entails the giving of ourselves and receiving pleasure from the object of our affection. The first sign of danger is when we demand gratification rather than finding ways of giving selflessly. Examine your spiritual temperature. Have you become tepid? Fan the flame once again. Plug into the outlet of God’s grace and sizzle for Jesus!
May God richly bless you as you bless others by your words and actions!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Aug 14, 2015 | Revelation
Revelation 3:20
“Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.”
This beautiful hymn was composed by Will Thompson who lived from 1847 to 1909. The words seem to capture the heart of the listener and draw them to come to Jesus. You can almost picture Jesus Himself standing patiently urging us to come to him.
The second stanza gives us a little different approach not only does he plead for us to come but he offers pardon to anyone who will come to Him. He offers complete pardon to anyone and everyone who will come to Him. He has paid the price and He has the authority to extend pardon to any who will come to Him.
The words of this hymn stresses the urgent need of those who are lost. Some feel like they have time before making that decision, but sadly for many they wait too long. Now is the hour of decision to receive Christ’s mercy and pardon!
Softly and Tenderly
Softly and tenderly, Jesus is calling,
calling for you and for me;
See, on the portals He’s waiting and watching,
watching for you and for me.
Refrain: Come home, come home.
You who are weary come home;
Earnestly, tenderly, Jesus is calling,
calling, O sinner, come home.
Why should we tarry when Jesus is pleading;
pleading for you and for me?
Why should we linger and heed not His mercies;
mercies for you and for me?
Refrain: Come home, come home.
You who are weary come home;
Earnestly, tenderly, Jesus is calling,
calling, O sinner, come home.
Time is now fleeting, the moments are passing,
passing from you and for me.
Shadows are gathering, deathbeds are coming,
coming for you and for me.
Refrain: Come home, come home.
You who are weary come home;
Earnestly, tenderly, Jesus is calling,
calling, O sinner, come home.
O, for the wonderful love He has promised,
promised for you and for me!
Though we have sinned, He has mercy and pardon,
pardon for you and for me.
Refrain: Come home, come home.
You who are weary come home;
Earnestly, tenderly, Jesus is calling,
calling, O sinner, come home.
To access Softly and Tenderly, this week’s inspirational video fromGloryScapes™ Christian Music Hymns & Songs, please go to:http://www.gloryscapes.com/softlyandtenderly/ 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
by Pastor Cecil | Dec 23, 2014 | Revelation
Revelation 21:4
“He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.'”
Our tolerance to pain is interesting to observe. It is always more interesting to observe pain in others than it is in ourselves! (I am very profound in these things, right?) Many years ago I was volunteering to work on remodeling a church. There was a young man in his twenties who was also part of the work detail. Suddenly we heard this young man scream in obvious pain and rushed in to see if he may be fatally wounded. We discovered him holding his finger and dancing around in circles as he continued his loud screams. It was only a small sliver. We were not too sympathetic and gave an impromptu mimicry of his display. He was indignant and protested that there was even blood. We were not impressed!
When I today’s Scripture I really get homesick for heaven. Just think about it. Everything that causes us pain here on earth will be gone. It is beyond our comprehension. All of us experience pain. Pain is of different types — physical, emotional, spiritual, to mention a few. Pain will end!
Praise God, there is a light at the end of our tunnel of pain! Athletes, as well as others, are sometimes forced to work through their pain for the good of the desired objective. They know that the goal is worth the agony. We would do well to learn that lesson ourselves. But there is a time coming when pain will disappear!
The hope and vision that propels us is that our pain will end. The Apostle Paul has already said it better than I could ever phrase it: 2 Corinthians 4:17-18 “For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
