Two Funerals, One Wedding

BIBLE MEDITATION:
“Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave Himself for it.” Ephesians 5:25

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
Do you know what most marriages need? Two funerals and one wedding where both the husband and the wife die to themselves and come alive to Jesus Christ.

You see, when a man loves his wife passionately, there’s nothing too precious for that man to give up for his wife, except his relationship to Almighty God.

When there’s that kind of love shown to a woman, I dare say the topic of submission would not be an issue.

Most women don’t mind submitting to a man who loves her enough to die for her and shows it by the way he lives for her.

ACTION POINT:
Are you married? Then go on a date this week with your spouse.  Are you single? Pray that God would prepare you to be the spouse your mate will need.

 Devotions taken from the messages of Adrian Rogers.

© 2011 Love Worth Finding Ministries | PO Box 38300 - Memphis, TN 38183-0300

Prayer

Theme: Prayer

The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much– James 5:16
After pondering the perfect sovereignty of God, many have asked the question “Why should I even bother praying then? If God is always going to do His will, and His will is always perfect, then why should we ever pray?”

The answer, it is important to recognize, comes from the same God Who tells us that He “works all things after the counsel of His own will.” This very same God informs us that effectual, fervent prayer on the part of His people avails — not just a little bit, or for a little while, but much!

How can this be? How can an immutable, all-knowing, eternal God listen to our prayers and allow them to influence the outcome of events great and small? Frankly, we may never know or understand. But this we do know: God tells us that our prayers make a tremendous impact.

So then, how should you respond to temptation or trial? Pray. What should you do on behalf of sick, or wayward, or feeble loved ones? Pray. What is your responsibility toward those that have authority over you? Pray for them. How can you make a difference in the world around you? Pray.

The hard work of sincere and fervent prayer gains much ground, does great good, God says. Do you believe Him? Do you pray like it makes a difference?

Taken from A Good Thing, Daily Devotions

http://baptistbiblehour.org/

From Our Sister Church: FULL GOSPEL MISSION

FULL GOSPEL MISSION
887 W. Spruce Ave. Ravenna, OH  44266
Rev. Barbara A. Davis, Pastor

Sunday March 11, 2012 Pastors Pen:  ONE MINUTE EACH NIGHT

This is the scariest election we as Christians have ever faced, and from the looks of the polls, the Christians aren't voting Christian values. We all need to be on our knees.

Do you believe we can take God at His word? Call upon His name, then stand back and watch His wonders unfold. This scripture gives us, as Christians, ownership of this land and the ability to call upon God to heal it. I challenge you to do that. We have never been more desperate than now for God to heal our land.

This election is the scariest I remember in my lifetime. 2 Chronicles 7:14. 'If my people, which are called by my name shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.'

During WWII, there was an advisor to Churchill, who organized a group of people who dropped what they were doing every night at a prescribed hour for one minute, to collectively pray for the safety of England, its people and peace. This had an amazing effect, as bombing stopped.

There is now a group of people organizing the same thing here in America.

The United States of America, and our citizens, need prayer more than ever!!! If you would like to participate, each evening at 9:00 P.M. Eastern Time (8 PM Central, 7 PM Mountain, 6 PM Pacific), stop whatever you're doing, and spend one minute praying for the safety of the United States, our troops, our citizens, for peace in the world, the upcoming election, that the Bible will remain the basis for the laws governing our land, and that Christianity will grow in the U.S.

If you know anyone who would like to participate, please pass this along. Someone said if people really understood the full extent of the power we have available through prayer, we might be speechless. Our prayers are the most powerful asset we have. Thank you.  Won’t you take the challenge?

The challenge to pray for America?  TO PRAY!!!

PRAYER LIST:    Sylvia Smith--recovery           Dennis--recovery
Sister Bishop--recovery         Center of Hope        FGCC/Radio Ministry
RC & Esther                  Dale & Sheila--jobs & home           Calvary Crusade
Easter Revival          Hazen Ministries          Zac & Shawn& all soldiers
Ruthie--health/Twins     Andi’s---unborn baby            UNITY & SOULS

 EASTER REVIVAL       APRIL 6, 7, & 8TH

March 30th Breakfast $5.00 all u can eat

Sylvia Smith--1398 Brook dale Rd. Kent, OH  44240  Send her a get Well Card.

Joke of the Week: In honor of Brother Willard’s 70’s Birthday---Perks of reaching 50 or being over 60  And heading towards 70 or beyond!

1. Kidnappers are not very interested in you.

2. In a hostage situation, you are likely to be released first.

3. No one expects you to run -- anywhere.

4. People call at 9 PM (or 9 A M) and ask, 'Did I wake you?

5. People no longer view you as a hypochondriac.

6. There is nothing left to learn the hard way.

7. Things you buy now won't wear out.

8. You can eat supper at 4 PM.

9.  You get into heated arguments about pension plans.

10. Your eyes won't get much worse.

11.  You no longer think of speed limits as a challenge.

12.  Your joints are more accurate meteorologists than the national weather service.---Notice it’s all in bold print!!!!!!

Don't Forget To Wear It!

BIBLE MEDITATION:
“A merry heart maketh a cheerful countenance.” Proverbs 15:13

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
What is a smile? Someone once wrote:

“A smile costs nothing, but creates much good. It enriches those who receive it without impoverishing those who give it away. It happens in a flash, but the memory of it can last forever. No one is so rich that he can get along without it. No one is too poor to feel rich when receiving it. It is rest to the weary, daylight to the discouraged, sunshine to the sad and nature’s best anecdote for trouble. Yet it cannot be bought, begged, borrowed or stolen.”

ACTION POINT:
When you get dressed this morning, don’t forget to put on a smile. Wear a smile all day from the inner joy that only Jesus can bring to your heart. Don’t feel an inner joy? Then ask for one!

 Devotions taken from the messages of Adrian Rogers.

© 2011 Love Worth Finding Ministries | PO Box 38300 - Memphis, TN 38183-0300

Please Share

I don’t know where this came from or who wrote it but what a lesson for
those of us who confess the Risen Christ.

The Pastor's Son

Every Sunday afternoon, after the morning service at the church, the Pastor and his eleven
year old son would go out into their town and hand out Gospel Tracts.

This particular Sunday afternoon, as it came time for the Pastor and
his son to go to the streets with their tracts, it was very cold
outside, as well as pouring rain.

The boy bundled up in his warmest and driest clothes and said, 'OK,
dad, I'm ready.'

His Pastor dad asked, 'Ready for what?'

'Dad, it's time we gather our tracts together and go out.'

Dad responds, 'Son, it's very cold outside and it's pouring rain.'

The boy gives his dad a surprised look, asking, 'But Dad, aren't people
still going to Hell, even though it's raining?'

Dad answers, 'Son, I am not going out in this weather.'

Despondently, the boy asks, 'Dad, can I go? Please?'

His father hesitated for a moment then said, 'Son, you can go. Here are
the tracts, be careful son..'

'Thanks Dad!'

And with that, he was off and out into the rain.. This eleven year old
boy walked the streets of the town going door to door and handing
everybody he met in the street a Gospel Tract .

After two hours of walking in the rain, he was soaking, bone-chilled
wet and down to his VERY LAST TRACT. He stopped on a corner and looked
for someone to hand a tract to, but the streets were totally deserted.

Then he turned toward the first home he saw and started up the sidewalk
to the front door and rang the doorbell. He rang the bell, but nobody
answered.

He rang it again and again, but still no one answered. He waited but
still no answer.

Finally, this eleven year old trooper turned to leave, but something
stopped him.

Again, he turned to the door and rang the bell and knocked loudly on
the door with his fist. He waited, something holding him there on the
front porch!

He rang again and this time the door slowly opened.

Standing in the doorway was a very sad-looking elderly lady. She softly
asked, 'What can I do for you, son?' With radiant eyes and a smile that
lit up her world, this little boy said, 'Ma'am, I'm sorry if I
disturbed you, but I just want to tell you that * JESUS REALLY DOES
LOVE YOU * and I came to give you my very last Gospel Tract which will
tell you all about JESUS and His great LOVE.'

With that, he handed her his last tract and turned to leave.

She called to him as he departed. 'Thank you, son! And God Bless You!'

Well, the following Sunday morning in church Pastor Dad was in the
pulpit. As the service began, he asked, 'Does anybody have testimony or
want to say anything?'

Slowly, in the back row of the church, an elderly lady stood to her
feet.

As she began to speak, a look of glorious radiance came from her face,
'No one in this church knows me. I've never been here before. You see,
before last Sunday I was not a Christian. My husband passed on some
time ago, leaving me totally alone in this world. Last Sunday, being a
particularly cold and rainy day, it was even more so in my heart that I
came to the end of the line where I no longer had any hope or will to
live.

So I took a rope and a chair and ascended the stairway into the attic
of my home. I fastened the rope securely to a rafter in the roof, then
stood on the chair and fastened the other end of the rope around my
neck. Standing on that chair, so lonely and broken-hearted I was about
to leap off, when suddenly the loud ringing of my doorbell downstairs
startled me. I thought, 'I'll wait a minute, and whoever it is will go
away.'

I waited and waited, but the ringing doorbell seemed to get louder and
more insistent, and then the person ringing also started knocking
loudly...

I thought to myself again, 'Who on earth could this be? Nobody ever
rings my bell or comes to see me.' I loosened the rope from my neck and
started for the front door, all the while the bell rang louder and
louder.

When I opened the door and looked I could hardly believe my eyes, for
there on my front porch was the most radiant and angelic little boy I
had ever seen in my life. His SMILE, oh, I could never describe it to
you!

The words that came from his mouth caused my heart that had long been
dead, TO LEAP TO LIFE as he exclaimed with a cherub-like voice, 'Ma'am,
I just came to tell you that JESUS REALLY DOES LOVE YOU .' Then he gave
me this
Gospel Tract that I now hold in my hand..

As the little angel disappeared back out into the cold and rain, I
closed my door and read slowly every word of this Gospel Tract. Then I
went up to my attic to get my rope and chair. I wouldn't be needing
them anymore.

You see-- -I am now a Happy Child of the KING. Since the address of
your church was on the back of this Gospel Tract, I have come here to
personally say THANK YOU to God's little angel who came just in the
nick of time and by
so doing, spared my soul from an eternity in hell..'

There was not a dry eye in the church. And as shouts of praise and
honor to THE KING resounded off the very rafters of the building,
Pastor Dad descended from the pulpit to the front pew where the little
angel was seated....

He took his son in his arms and sobbed uncontrollably.

Probably no church has had a more glorious moment, and probably this
universe has never seen a Papa that was more filled with love & honor
for his son.... Except for One.

Blessed are your eyes for reading this message.

Don't let this message die, read it again and pass it to others. Heaven
is for His people!
Remember, God's message CAN make the difference in the life of someone
close to you.
Please share this wonderful message...

If you love JESUS, please forward this message.
Spread His word, and share His goodness and faithfulness.

Matthew 10:32 says:
'Whoever acknowledges Me...................................

From Our Sister Church: FULL GOSPEL MISSION

FULL GOSPEL MISSION
887 W. Spruce Avenue, Ravenna, OH  44266
Rev. Barbara A. Davis, Pastor

 

March 4, 2012  Pastor’s Pen:  The Pastor's Son--Every Sunday afternoon, after the morning service at the church, the Pastor and his eleven year old son would go out into their town and hand out Gospel Tracts.

 

This particular Sunday afternoon, as it came time for the Pastor and his son to go to the streets with their tracts, it was very cold outside, as well as pouring rain.  The boy bundled up in his warmest and driest clothes and said, 'OK,  dad, I'm ready.'  His Pastor dad asked, 'Ready for what?'  'Dad, it's time we gather our tracts together and go out.'  Dad responds, 'Son, it's very cold outside and it's pouring rain.'   The boy gives his dad a surprised look, asking, 'But Dad, aren't people still going to Hell, even though it's raining?'

 

Dad answers, 'Son, I am not going out in this weather.'  Despondently, the boy asks, 'Dad, can I go? Please?'  His father hesitated for a moment then said, 'Son, you can go. Here are the tracts, be careful son..'    'Thanks Dad!'

 

And with that, he was off and out into the rain.. This eleven year old boy walked the streets of the town going door to door and handing everybody he met in the street a Gospel Tract .  After two hours of walking in the rain, he was soaking, bone-chilled wet and down to his VERY LAST TRACT. He stopped on a corner and looked for someone to hand a tract to, but the streets were totally deserted.

 

Then he turned toward the first home he saw and started up the sidewalk to the front door and rang the doorbell. He rang the bell, but nobody answered.  He rang it again and again, but still no one answered. He waited but still no answer. Finally, this eleven year old trooper turned to leave, but something stopped him.  Again, he turned to the door and rang the bell and knocked loudly on the door with his fist. He waited, something holding him there on the front porch!   He rang again and this time the door slowly opened.

 

Standing in the doorway was a very sad-looking elderly lady. She softly asked, 'What can I do for you, son?' With radiant eyes and a smile that lit up her world, this little boy said, 'Ma'am, I'm sorry if I disturbed you, but I just want to tell you that * JESUS REALLY DOES LOVE YOU * and I came to give you my very last Gospel Tract which will tell you all about JESUS and His great LOVE.'  With that, he handed her his last tract and turned to leave.  She called to him as he departed. 'Thank you, son! And God Bless You!'

 

Well, the following Sunday morning in church Pastor Dad was in the pulpit. As the service began, he asked, 'Does anybody have a testimony or want to say anything?'  Slowly, in the back row of the church, an elderly lady stood to her feet. As she began to speak, a look of glorious radiance came from her face, 'No one in this church knows me. I've never been here before. You see, before last Sunday I was not a Christian. My husband passed on some time ago, leaving me totally alone in this world. Last Sunday, being a particularly cold and rainy day, it was even more so in my heart that I came to the end of the line where I no longer had any hope or will to live.

 

So I took a rope and a chair and ascended the stairway into the attic of my home. I fastened the rope securely to a rafter in the roof, then stood on the chair and fastened the other end of the rope around my neck. Standing on that chair, so lonely and broken-hearted I was about to leap off, when suddenly the loud ringing of my doorbell downstairs startled me. I thought, 'I'll wait a minute, and whoever it is will go away.'  I waited and waited, but the ringing doorbell seemed to get louder and more insistent, and then the person ringing also started knocking loudly...I thought to myself again, 'Who on earth could this be? Nobody ever rings my bell or comes to see me.' I loosened the rope from my neck and started for the front door, all the while the bell rang louder and louder.  When I opened the door and looked I could hardly believe my eyes, for there on my front porch was the most radiant and angelic little boy I had ever seen in my life. His SMILE, oh, I could never describe it to you!

 

The words that came from his mouth caused my heart that had long been dead, TO LEAP TO LIFE as he exclaimed with a cherub-like voice, 'Ma'am, I just came to tell you that JESUS REALLY DOES LOVE YOU .' Then he gave me this Gospel Tract that I now hold in my hand.. As the little angel disappeared back out into the cold and rain, I closed my door and read slowly every word of this Gospel Tract. Then I went up to my attic to get my rope and chair. I wouldn't be needing them anymore.  You see-- -I am now a Happy Child of the KING. Since the address of your church was on the back of this Gospel Tract, I have come here to personally say THANK YOU to God's little angel who came just in the nick of time and by so doing, spared my soul from an eternity in hell..' There was not a dry eye in the church. And as shouts of praise and honor to THE KING resounded off the very rafters of the building, Pastor Dad descended from the pulpit to the front pew where the little angel was seated....He took his son in his arms and sobbed uncontrollably. 

 

Probably no church has had a more glorious moment, and probably this universe has never seen a Papa that was more filled with love & honor for his son.... Except for One.

 

PRAYER LIST:  Sylvia Brown-Smith--surgery/healing  Center of Hope
 Sister Bishop in Michigan--health/surgery           Dennis--recovery
RC & Esther       Susan         Dale    FGCC/Radio Ministry    UNITY
Calvary Crusade         Easter Revival        Hazen Ministries     SOULS
Soldiers Zac & Shawn     Ruthie--Health/Twins        Andi’s--unborn baby

 

ANNOUNCEMENTS
REVIVAL---APRIL 6,7,8
Breakfast   March 31, 2012  $5.00    8:30-11:30

 

Joke of the Week:  Kids Explain Angels--- I only know the names of two angels, Hark and Harold.  > Gregory, age 5
Everybody's got it all wrong.  Angels don't wear halos anymore. I forget why, but scientists are working  on it  -Olive, age 9
 It's not easy to become an angel! First, you die. Then you go to Heaven, and then there's still the flight training to go through.  And then you got to agree to wear those angel clothes.> -Matthew, age 9
 Angels work for God and watch over kids when God has to go do some-thing else.  > -Mitchell, age 7
 My guardian angel helps me with math, but he's not much good for science.
> -Henry, age 8
 Angels don't eat, but they drink milk from Holy Cows!!!> - Jack, age 6
 Angels talk all the way while they're flying you up to heaven. The main subject is where you went wrong before you got dead.> Daniel, age 9
All angels are girls because they gotta wear dresses and boys didn't go for it> -Antonio, age 9       Angels live in cloud houses made by God and his son, who's a very good carpenter.> - Jared, age 8
 And As they Say ..........No One Say's it Better Then A Child......

 

 

From Our Sister Church: FULL GOSPEL MISSION

FULL GOSPEL MISSION
887 W. Spruce Ave. Ravenna, OH  44266
Rev. Barbara A. Davis, Pastor

 

February 26, 2012----Pastor Pen: It was chilly in Manhattan but warm inside the Starbucks shop on 51st Street and Broadway, just a skip up from Times Square . Early November weather in New York City holds only the slightest hint of the bitter chill of late December and January, but it's enough to send the masses crowding indoors to vie for available space and warmth.

 

For a musician, it's the most lucrative Starbucks location in the world, I'm told, and consequently, the tips can be substantial if you play your tunes right. Apparently, we were striking all the right chords that night, because our basket was almost overflowing. It was a fun, low-pressure gig - I was playing keyboard and singing backup for my friend who also added rhythm with an arsenal of percussion instruments. We mostly did pop songs from the '40s to the '90s with a few original tunes thrown in.. During our emotional rendition of the classic, "If You Don't Know Me by Now," I noticed a lady sitting in one of the lounge chairs across from me. She was swaying to the beat and singing along.

 

After the tune was over, she approached me. "I apologize for singing along on that song. Did it bother you?" she asked. "No," I replied. "We love it when the audience joins in. Would you like to sing up front on the next selection?"  To my delight, she accepted my invitation. "You choose," I said. "What are you in the mood to sing?"  "Well. ... do you know any hymns?"

 

Hymns? This woman didn't know who she was dealing with. I cut my teeth on hymns. Before I was even born, I was going to church. I gave our guest singer a knowing look. "Name one." "Oh, I don't know. There are so many good ones. You pick one."  "Okay," I replied. "How about 'His Eye is on the Sparrow'?"

 

My new friend was silent, her eyes averted. Then she fixed her eyes on mine again and said, "Yeah. Let's do that one." She slowly nodded her head, put down her purse, straightened her jacket and faced the center of the shop. With my two-bar setup, she began to sing.  Why should I be discouraged? Why should the shadows come?  The audience of coffee drinkers was transfixed. Even the gurgling noises of the cappuccino machine ceased as the employees stopped what they were doing to listen. The song rose to its conclusion.  I sing because I'm happy; I sing because I'm free. For His eye is on the sparrow And I know He watches me.

 

When the last note was sung, the applause crescendo to a deafening roar that would have rivaled a sold-out crowd at Carnegie Hall. Embarrassed, the woman tried to shout over the din, "Oh, y'all go back to your coffee! I didn't come in here to do a concert! I just came in here to get somethin' to drink, just like you!" But the ovation continued.. I embraced my new friend. "You, my dear, have made my whole year! That was beautiful!"

 

"Well, it's funny that you picked that particular hymn," she said.  "Why is that?"  "Well . .." she hesitated again, "that was my daughter's favorite song."  "Really!" I exclaimed..  "Yes," she said, and then grabbed my hands. By this time, the applause had subsided and it was business as usual.. "She was 16. She died of a brain tumor last week."

 

I said the first thing that found its way through my stunned silence. "Are you going to be okay?"  She smiled through tear-filled eyes and squeezed my hands. "I'm gonna be okay. I've just got to keep trusting the Lord and singing his songs, and everything's gonna be just fine." She picked up her bag, gave me her card, and then she was gone.

 

Was it just a coincidence that we happened to be singing in that particular coffee shop on that particular November night? Coincidence that this wonderful lady just happened to walk into that particular shop? Coincidence that of all the hymns to choose from, I just happened to pick the very hymn that was the favorite of her daughter, who had died just the week before? I refuse to believe it.

 

God has been arranging encounters in human history since the beginning of time, and it's no stretch for me to imagine that God could reach into a coffee shop in midtown Manhattan and turn an ordinary gig into a revival. It was a great reminder that if we keep trusting God and singing the songs, everything's gonna be okay.

 

The next time you feel like GOD can't use YOU, just remember....
Noah was a drunk                                 

Abraham was too old    
Isaac was a daydreamer       

Jacob was a liar          

Leah was ugly  
Joseph was abused      

Moses had a stuttering problem    

Gideon was afraid
Sampson had long hair and was a womanizer    

Rahab was a prostitute            

Jeremiah and Timothy were too young                         

Elijah was suicidal            
David had an affair and was a murderer         

Paul was too religious             
Isaiah preached naked   

Jonah ran from God             

Naomi was a widow      

Job went bankrupt              

John the Baptist ate bugs   

Timothy had an ulcer
Peter denied Christ & The Disciples fell asleep while praying  
The Samaritan woman was divorced, more than once  

Zaccheus was short    
AND Lazarus was dead!  

No more excuses now!! God can use you to your full potential. Besides you aren't the message, you are just the messenger.

 

Prayer List:  AndI’s Unborn child     Center of Hope    Soldiers Zac, Shawn     Bro. Dealer in Youngstown
Dennis--recovering at his Mom’s         Ruthie-health/twins     SOULS
RC & Esther           Susan          Dale        Bro. Willard--pretesting/procedure
FGCC/Radio Ministry      Growth in the Church        Hazen Ministries
Calvary Crusade            Easter Revival               Growth & UNITY 
 Youcef Nadarkhani, an Iranian pastor who in 2010 was found guilty of apostasy and sentenced to death for refusing to recant Christianity, may have received a final execution order-- we need to pray!!!!!!

 

JOKE of the WEEK: An eye witness account from New York City , on a cold day in December,  some years ago: A little boy, about 10-years-old, was standing before a shoe store on the roadway, barefooted, peering through the window, and shivering With cold.

 

A lady approached the young boy and said, 'My, but you're in such deep thought staring in that window!'  

 

'I was asking God to give me a pair of shoes,' was the boy's reply.

The lady took him by the hand, went into the store, and asked the clerk to get half a dozen pairs of socks for the boy. She then asked if he could give her a basin of water and a towel. He quickly brought them to her.  She took the little fellow to the back part of the store and, removing her gloves, knelt down, washed his little feet, and dried them with the towel. By this time, the clerk had returned with the socks.. Placing a pair upon the boy's feet, she purchased him a pair of shoes.. She tied up the remaining pairs of socks and gave them to him.. She patted him on the head and said, 'No doubt, you will be more comfortable now..' As she turned to go, the astonished kid caught her by the hand, and looking up into her face, with tears in his eyes, asked her:           'Are you God's wife?' 

Prayer is not a "spare wheel" that you pull out when in trouble, but it is a "steering wheel" that directs the right path throughout your week

Free From The Ghost Of Guilt!

BIBLE MEDITATION:
“As far as the east is from the west, so far hath He removed our transgressions from us.” Psalm 103:12

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
There are two days that can steal the joy from today. One is yesterday and the other is tomorrow.

Paul exhorts in Philippians 3:13-14, “Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”

We are to forget the past—the guilt, the glory, the grief, and the grudges. Paul was one who was guilty, along with others, for the stoning of Stephen. He said he was the “chiefest of sinners” (1 Timothy 1:15). But Paul buried that guilt in the grave of God’s forgetfulness.

Maybe you’ve done something so horrible that you’re gripped with fear to think someone would find out what you’ve done. Have you repented? Then don’t be haunted by the ghost of guilt.

ACTION POINT:
Have you done something worse than being an accessory to the murder of one of the leaders of the New Testament Church? If Paul can be forgiven, my friend, you can be forgiven!

           

 Devotions taken from the messages of Adrian Rogers.

© 2011 Love Worth Finding Ministries | PO Box 38300 - Memphis, TN 38183-0300

Pass Along The Gift Of Laughter

BIBLE MEDITATION: “Be glad in the Lord, and rejoice, ye righteous: and shout for joy, all ye that are upright in heart.” Psalm 32:11

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

A merry heart is the ability to capture and enjoy those wonderful times of life and let it turn to laughter.

Your sense of humor is a gift from God. Research studies have shown that laughter, along with a well-rounded sense of humor, is one of the sure signs of intelligence. It is also known to produce endorphins in your body that generate feelings of well-being.

Good, wholesome laughter is a gift from God. Abraham Lincoln said, “God must have meant for us to laugh, or else he would not have made so many mules, parrots, monkeys and human beings. God wants us to laugh.”

ACTION POINT:

Pass along the gift of laughter today to someone. Tell a good, wholesome joke. Send an email of a funny story to a friend you haven’t talked to in awhile.

           

 Devotions taken from the messages of Adrian Rogers.

© 2011 Love Worth Finding Ministries | PO Box 38300 - Memphis, TN 38183-0300

Pray To Be Heard Of God, Not Men

BIBLE MEDITATION:

  “And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.” Matthew 6:5

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

One time a young professional was waiting for a meeting when he heard someone walking down the hallway. Thinking that this might be a potential client for him, he picked up his telephone and pretended to be having a high-powered conversation.

Soon the footsteps stopped at his desk. Looking up he asked, “What may I do for you?” The man standing before him replied, “I’m from the telephone company. I’ve come to hook up your phone.”

Prayer is the same way. The prayer that gets our Savior’s attention comes from the heart and not from the head, “to be heard by men.” Prayers to impress people are one-way conversations.

ACTION POINT:

Find a quiet place in your home where you can be alone with the Lord every day for a special time of communion with the Him. He is waiting for you there.

           

 Devotions taken from the messages of Adrian Rogers.

© 2011 Love Worth Finding Ministries | PO Box 38300 - Memphis, TN 38183-0300

Why Is There Suffering In The World?

BIBLE MEDITATION:

“If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.” John 8:36

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

“If there is a God, and that God is a good God, then why is there suffering?”

“What kind of a God is it that has created evil?”

Ever heard those comments before? Ever made them yourself?

You’re not alone. Many people have thought the same thing. But that’s not straight thinking. Let me tell you the way it truly is.

God did not create evil. God created perfection. God made man perfectly free. The freedom He granted man meant that he had to be free to choose to love.  Then in order to choose to love, we must be able to choose not to love. This freedom of choice gave rise to evil, for man’s freedom meant he could make a wrong choice.

ACTION POINT:

Which kind of love do you want from others? A forced love or a free love? Which sounds better, “I love you” or “I have to love you”?

 

Devotions taken from the messages of Adrian Rogers.

© 2011 Love Worth Finding Ministries | PO Box 38300 - Memphis, TN 38183-0300

Just Remember to PRAY

Do you have trouble praying or praying for someone who has hurt you or who wishes to harm you?

Here are some Prayer tips that might work for you.

I. Set the atmosphere for prayer.

A. Play spiritual music on the stereo
B. Sing
C. Find your quiet place and pray there

II. Make yourself right with God first.

A. Confess your sins
B. Confess why you are having a hard time praying
.......1. He already knows, he want you to hear it.
.......2. Be honest and spill your heart
C. Pray for wisdom and insight
D. Ask others to pray for you
E. Ask someone to pray with you at first

III. It is your duty to pray for your enemy.

A. Read a scripture to help
.........1. Ephesians 3:14-21
.........2. Proverbs 16:1-7.
.........3. Proverbs 25:21 & 22.
.........4. Matthew 6:14
.........5. Romans 12:14
B. Look at what Jesus did when he was being mistreated
.........1. Matthew 26:36-75
.........2. Mark 14:43-72
.........3. Luke 22:47-71
.........4. John 19
C. You can do this

IV. Put this person in prospective

A. See them as a little child
B. See them as a child of God
C. Remember they are only flesh and blood too
D. Satan is after them as well

V. Start simply

A. Asked God to Bless their heart
B. Thank God for the Good that is in this person
C. Do this even if you don't believe it.
D. Ask God for blessings that you would ask for yourself
E. Write down a simple prayer and read it
F. Substitute their name in the blanks.


VI. Reasons to pray.

A. It will do you more good than the person you are praying for
....1. You will release the anger
....2. It will help you sleep at night.
....3. You will not have bad feelings eating away at you.
....4. You will not be sinning.
B. Your inability to pray
.....1. Is a sin
.....2. This means Satan is after you too.
.....3. You are no better than the person that has wronged you
.....4. But you are a good person and good people pray for enemies
.....5. Unforgiveness (God gave me a picture once of unforgiveness. It is like a woman in full labor, in lots of pain ,that closes her legs and says," No! I am not going to give birth". She can rid herself of the pain but chooses not to. It is a choice for you to carry this burden.)
C. You will be blessed
.....1. Your burden will be lifted
.....2. God can and will change their heart
.....3. If not he will take your vengeance (coals of fire)
........a. Don't pray for this reason
........b. or you will not be blessed

VII. Example of simple prayers.

A. Ask God to melt their heart of stone
B. Bless her heart, Bless her heart
C. Heavenly Father, you are all knowing and all wise. I am just a human and do not understand everything that happens. Please give me guidance to deal with your child,XXX. Help me to know what I should be doing. Father, give XXX the wisdom to do what is right. Help XXX to remember that we are all your children and that you want us to love one another and treat each other with love. Give XXX your loving guidance in all s/he does.
D. Smile every time you think about this person
E. Every time you have a bad thought about them
....1. Ask for forgiveness
....2. Say a prayer for them right then and there
....3. This will help you to realize, and control your thoughts
F. Set a specific time to pray for them
....1. When you wash the dishes
....2. When you take a bath
....3. When you are driving
....4. When you watch the birds.
....5. When you do something you really enjoy doing

Even if no one is trying to harm you, some of these tips can help you pray for guidance and blessings for yourself or your family and friends. Adapt them to your own situation just remember to PRAY.

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Strength and Encouragement

I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me– Philippians 4:13

It is not uncommon in human experience to run up against things that are bigger than we are, that we simply cannot overcome in our own strength. It may be a lust that threatens to consume us, an addiction that repeatedly overcomes us, a resentment that is growing inside us, or a sorrow that seems to paralyze us.

It is also not uncommon to try to grit our teeth, hunch our backs, and seek to make it through by shear determination. We tell ourselves we can overcome if we just try hard enough. Isn’t that what being a good Christian means?

Yet here is the mighty apostle Paul admitting that his strength does not come from himself, or from his own willpower. He is not trying to do it on his own. Rather, he is looking to Jesus Christ for the power and deliverance he needs.

How can you make it through this trial? Through Christ. How can you overcome that temptation or addiction? Through Christ. How can you rise above your grief or depression? Through Christ. There is nothing that you cannot do through the strength that Christ has promised to you. Turn to Him, beloved, and find for yourself the confidence, the joy, the strength that Paul found through Christ.

Taken from A Good Thing, Daily Devotions

http://baptistbiblehour.org/