LWF - What Your Heart Really Longs For

What Your Heart Really Longs For

BIBLE MEDITATION: "Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desire of your heart." Psalm 37:4

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
This verse doesn't mean you'll have every whim and fancy met—that you can have an island paradise somewhere, a pink Cadillac, or a handful of diamonds. It means when you delight yourself in the Lord, what your heart has really been seeking for, it will find. What your heart really yearns for is God. Only Jesus can meet the deepest needs of your heart.

Do you know why so often we live in fear? Because we think our needs are not going to be met. Or because we think the things we believe are meeting our needs are going to be taken away from us. This verse tells us God will never leave us nor forsake us, and godliness with contentment is great gain. We have something that can't be tampered with.

ACTION POINT:
Suppose someone were to go into your house and carry out all your material possessions. Could you still praise the Lord? If your delight is in the Lord, you could!

Devotions taken from the messages of Adrian Rogers.
© 2011 Love Worth Finding Ministries | PO Box 38300 - Memphis, TN 38183-0300

LWF - You May Have All of God that You Want

You May Have All of God that You Want

BIBLE MEDITATION: "He that loveth silver shall never be satisfied with silver." Ecclesiastes 5:10

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
We live in a day that has confused luxuries and necessities. Material things can never bring contentment, for they can never satisfy the deepest need of your heart. Either you can't get enough of them, or when you get them, you find out they don't meet your need.

Do you remember the story of the little boy who loved pancakes? One day his mother thought she would satisfy him, so she decided she would cook all the pancakes he wanted. He ate the first ones with relish and the second plate—if not with relish, at least with delight. He ate more, and then some more, and she just kept cooking them. Finally she asked, "Johnny, do you want another pancake?"  He said, "No ma’am. I don't even want the ones I've already had."

Now that's the way it is with silver. “He that loveth silver shall never be satisfied with silver.” When you get it all, it doesn't satisfy, and you want more.

ACTION POINT:
This round world will never fit into your three-cornered heart. There is nothing wrong with material things; they just cannot satisfy the deepest longing of your heart. Your deepest needs will never be met by material things, only by the living God. I don’t know how much of God you have, but you may have all of God that you want.

Devotions taken from the messages of Adrian Rogers.

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

Pledge to Our Lord and Savior

Good morning! **

I pledge Allegiance to the Christian Flag and to the Savior for whose kingdom it stands, one brotherhood uniting all mankind in service and love.

Pledge to the Bible:

I pledge to the Bible God's Holy word, and will take it as a lamp unto my feet, a light unto my path, and hide it's words in my heart that I may not sin against God. 


** This may not be the same as the you're familiar with.

Pledge to Our Lord and Savior

Good morning! **

I pledge Allegiance to the Christian Flag and to the Savior for whose kingdom it stands, one brotherhood uniting all mankind in service and love.

Pledge to the Bible:

I pledge to the Bible God's Holy word, and will take it as a lamp unto my feet, a light unto my path, and hide it's words in my heart that I may not sin against God. 


** This may not be the same as the you're familiar with.

LWF - The Disease of Discontent

The Disease of Discontent

BIBLE MEDITATION: "But godliness with contentment is great gain." 1Timothy 6:6

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
Many times we think we need something when we really don't. Sometimes we want things we don't need. We get our luxuries and our necessities confused.

Discontentment is a disease that takes away your joy and peace. And what is contentment? It’s not getting what you want but wanting what you already have. You see, contentment will make a poor man rich. And discontentment makes a rich man poor. No matter how much you have, if you're discontented, you're really poor.

Sometimes it is God’s grace that we don’t receive what we think we want. Once upon a time, two tears met up along the river of life.

Said one tear to the other, “Where did you come from?”

“Oh,” the second tear said, "I'm the tear of a girl who loved a man and lost him. And where do you come from?"

The first tear answered, "I'm the tear of the girl who found him and married him.

ACTION POINT:
You are rich today if you know the Lord and are content. Paul goes on to say, “For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. But having food and raiment, let us therewith be content." If you have clothes to wear and food to eat and you have Jesus Christ in your heart, my dear friend, you're blessed.

 Devotions taken from the messages of Adrian Rogers.
© 2011 Love Worth Finding Ministries | PO Box 38300 - Memphis, TN 38183-0300

LWF - The Casual Prayer Life

The Casual Prayer Life

BIBLE MEDITATION: “Then I set my face toward the Lord God to make request by prayer and supplications, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes.” Daniel 9:3

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
So often our prayer is casual prayer, prayer that comes with almost a take-it-or-leave-it attitude. Many of us could not even remember what we prayed for this morning or last night.  We rattle off little “Now I lay me down to sleep” prayers. The truth is, more often than not we’re flabby, undisciplined, and exhibit no determination.

ACTION POINT:
Have you ever set your face to prayer—desperately sought the Lord?  If you want to see God move in your life, devote yourself to prayer. Friend, God does business with those who mean business.

 Devotions taken from the messages of Adrian Rogers.

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

Pledge to Our Lord and Savior

Good morning! **

I pledge Allegiance to the Christian Flag and to the Savior for whose kingdom it stands, one brotherhood uniting all mankind in service and love.

Pledge to the Bible:

I pledge to the Bible God's Holy word, and will take it as a lamp unto my feet, a light unto my path, and hide it's words in my heart that I may not sin against God. 


** This may not be the same as the you're familiar with.

LWF - A Clear Picture of Who God Is When You Pray

A Clear Picture of Who God Is When You Pray

BIBLE MEDITATION:  “O Lord, great and awesome God, who keeps His covenant and mercy with those who love Him, and with those who keep His commandments…O Lord, righteousness belongs to You…. To the Lord our God belong mercy and forgiveness…for the LORD our God is righteous in all the works which He does…. Daniel 9: 4, 7, 9, 14

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
When you pray, is it with a clear picture in mind of the might and power, the holiness of the One to Whom you are addressing your prayer?

This passage reveals the character of God, His greatness, His awe, His power, righteousness and mercy. We must see this about the great heart of our God:  God is a God of righteousness, judgment, and justice, but God had rather show mercy than send judgment.

ACTION POINT:
It is impossible to see who our great God is in a time of crisis and not want to pray. When you see the character and nature of God, you can hardly keep from praying! God says, “The instant I speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom, to pluck up, to pull down, and to destroy it, if that nation against whom I have spoken turns from its evil, I will relent of the disaster that I thought to bring upon it.” (Jeremiah 18:7-8)

Devotions taken from the messages of Adrian Rogers.

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

Pledge to Our Lord and Savior

Good morning! **

I pledge Allegiance to the Christian Flag and to the Savior for whose kingdom it stands, one brotherhood uniting all mankind in service and love.

Pledge to the Bible:

I pledge to the Bible God's Holy word, and will take it as a lamp unto my feet, a light unto my path, and hide it's words in my heart that I may not sin against God. 


** This may not be the same as the you're familiar with.

LWF - What Do You Seek Most?

What Do You Seek Most?

BIBLE MEDITATION:  “O Lord, according to all Thy righteousness, I beseech thee, let Thine anger and Thy fury be turned away from Thy city Jerusalem, Thy holy mountain: because for our sins, and for the iniquities of our fathers, Jerusalem and Thy people are become a reproach to all that are about us.” Daniel 9:16

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
The sins of God’s people were great. Daniel prayed, “Our sins have risen up in Your face. And O God, we’re praying. Turn Your anger and Your fury away.” God will judge any nation that continues to print pornography, abort babies, applaud sodomy, and sings, “God bless us” at the same time.  God’s fury is turned against that nation. But Daniel is standing in the gap saying, “O God, remove our guilt,” then, “Lord, restore Your glory…cause Your face to shine upon Your sanctuary that is desolate, for the Lord’s sake.” (v. 17).

Daniel’s motivation is not for America’s sake, not for Israel’s sake, not for a denomination’s sake, not for his sake, but for God’s sake. “For Thy city and Thy people are called by Thy name.”

What a great man Daniel was.  Most of us ask God to get us out of the mess we’re in so we can drive new cars and not see the stock market tumble. How many are consumed for the glory of God?  Very few.  Daniel was.  Daniel says, “God, for Your sake, for Your name, do it!”

ACTION POINT:
Do you have a burning in your heart for the name of our God to be exalted throughout this earth? His name has been stepped on, blasphemed, and ridiculed. Make the focus of your prayers and the goal of your prayers the glory of God.

 Devotions taken from the messages of Adrian Rogers.

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

Pledge to Our Lord and Savior

Good morning! **

I pledge Allegiance to the Christian Flag and to the Savior for whose kingdom it stands, one brotherhood uniting all mankind in service and love.

Pledge to the Bible:

I pledge to the Bible God's Holy word, and will take it as a lamp unto my feet, a light unto my path, and hide it's words in my heart that I may not sin against God. 


** This may not be the same as the you're familiar with.

Newsletter - Full Gospel Mission

FULL GOSPEL MISSION

887 W. Spruce Ave., Ravenna, OH  44266

Rev. Barbara A. Davis, Pastor

January 20,2103 Pastor’s Pen:  How well do you obey the Lord? How well do you keep such commandments? Considered in the light of such criteria, how much do you love the Lord? Following His resurrection, Jesus appeared to His disciples beside the Sea of Tiberias and asked Peter, "do you love Me more than these?" Three times Christ posed the question and three times Peter, becoming "grieved" with the repetition, answered, "Yes, Lord." Then Christ gave Peter what would become a test of his love: "Feed My sheep." (John 21:15-17.) If Peter really loved the Lord, he would obey by feeding the Good Shepherd's sheep. Peter went on to prove his love by doing exactly that.

But Christ was, by extension, telling us to do the same thing. That's why it's in the Bible. He's saying that one way we can show our love for God is by "feeding His sheep," by telling others about God and by having a servant's heart toward others. "But whoever has this world's goods, and sees his brother in need, and shuts up his heart from him, how does the love of God abide in him?" (1 John 3:17.) The rhetorical question's answer is clear – it doesn't. And this "love test" from 1 John 4:20-21 is related to that last one: "If someone says, ‘I love God,' and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen?" And later, "By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and keep His commandments." (1 John 5:2.) How much do you love God?  Unfortunately, 2 Timothy 3 reminds us that "in the last days" (and we are surely there) people will be "lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God." Danger! Hard question ahead! Do we value our pleasures more than our relationship with God? DON’T FORGET THE FELLOWSHIP ON FEBRUARY 16th, PASTOR BARB DAVIS WILL BE THE GUEST SPEAKER, COME JOIN US AT AGLOW!!!!

PRAYER LIST: Tony---illness      Lois Mooney          Devria St.Aubin---health            Hazen Ministries            ALL MILITARY---Zack &Shawn               Center of Hope   Jenny B. and Dennis—recovery     Libby--health        RC & Esther—health       Gene & Debbie--Grandchild         Dale and Sheila         Don & Sue Duncan              Angela bosses granddaughter—illness     SOULS       Bud Jordan--hospital

 Rev. Donnie, Mack Turner—health   Sister Rachael & Church     Calvary Crusade     FGCC/Radio& Ministers       Sister Helen Ballew              Arthur Wilson—health  Will & Amber—& family        Barb K—job             Betty’s Nephew and Family   Rev. Charles & Sue Herron         Zach and Ella  Lost love one     Anne C--Cancer    Grieving families—    Newtown, CN—families   Flu—victims   Pastor Barb D.

Sister Sally devotion word to take with you this week: JOY

Joy orients from God and from living in close connection with God, not from our

immediate situations or emotional states. God wants us to know his joy now. Not

tomorrow, not when we are healed, not when sorrow has passed, not when we've

become successful not when our children or spouses change, not when we've lost

ten pounds, not when we paid off our debt, received a promotion or bought a

bigger home, but now--- your strength!

Lasting joy does not reside in God's blessings, God's favor, God's gifts or

God's people, but in God himself. Take time this day to seek The Lord and draw

upon him to find your Joy -- your strength.  Reflect and pray: what's the difference between Joy and feeling Happy? To what or to whom do you tend to look to as the first source of your joy? What are you waiting to overcome or obtain before experiencing God's joy?

JOKE OF THE WEEK: A church congregation that decided to have four worship services each Sunday. There was one for those new to the faith. Another for those who liked traditional worship. One for those who'd lost their faith and would like to get it back. And another for those who had bad experiences with churches and were complaining about it. The church came up with a different name for each of the four services: "Finders," "Keepers," "Losers," "Weepers."

Bible Trivia Question  ( 1 )  God is described as physically writing three times in  the Bible on what did he write ?

Question (2)   In which book of the Bible do we read the story of Sampson and Delilah?

Question (3) Which Book records the first example of book censorship in the Bible?

Question (4) What was taken up to heaven in a chariot of fire?

Question (5) What prominent individual was first cremated in the Bible?

LWF - What Gives You the Right to Pray?

What Gives You the Right to Pray?

BIBLE MEDITATION: “Now while I was speaking, praying, and confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my supplication before the LORD my God…the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, reached me about the time of the evening offering.” Daniel 9:20-21

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
What is the evening offering? Daniel is praying in Babylon. There was no temple or altar in Babylon.  There was no sacrifice made.  As a matter of fact, it had been almost seventy years since a sacrifice had been made. In the temple, the time for the evening sacrifice was between 3 and 4 pm in the afternoon.  That’s when the animals were slain. They also called it “the ninth hour.” 

Daniel says, “I was praying at the time of the evening sacrifice.”  That is, “I was praying on the basis of a sacrifice made a long time ago.  I’m linking my prayer with that sacrifice.”  May I tell you, Jesus died exactly the same hour! “And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?  That is, to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46)  That same hour was the hour Daniel was praying; only Daniel was praying long after the time of those animal sacrifices and hundreds of years before Jesus’ death.

ACTION POINT:
Daniel’s prayer, like any prayer that has ever been offered, will only get to heaven on the basis of a blood sacrifice.  Whether that sacrifice was made seventy years ago, as in Daniel’s case, or two thousand years ago in our case, we need to link our prayer with Calvary.

Devotions taken from the messages of Adrian Rogers.
© 2011 Love Worth Finding Ministries | PO Box 38300 - Memphis, TN 38183-0300

Pledge to Our Lord and Savior

Good morning! **

I pledge Allegiance to the Christian Flag and to the Savior for whose kingdom it stands, one brotherhood uniting all mankind in service and love.

Pledge to the Bible:

I pledge to the Bible God's Holy word, and will take it as a lamp unto my feet, a light unto my path, and hide it's words in my heart that I may not sin against God. 


** This may not be the same as the you're familiar with.

LWF - The Prayer that Makes God Angry

The Prayer that Makes God Angry

BIBLE MEDITATION: “And I prayed unto the LORD my God, and made my confession…We have sinned, and committed iniquity, and have done wickedly, and have rebelled, even by departing from Thy precepts and from Thy judgments.” Daniel 9:4-5

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
Daniel’s prayer here is not the prayer that makes God angry. Some people think “If we just pray, God will hear our prayer.”  My dear friend, it is not so.  Prayers of a wicked people anger God. They make the matter worse.  It’s an affront to God. 

The Bible says, “If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me” (Psalm 66:18). “The LORD is far from the wicked: but He heareth the prayer of the righteous” (Proverbs 15:29). Again, God says, “He that turns away his ear from the hearing of the law, his prayer shall be an abomination” (Proverbs 28:9). Prayer could actually become an abomination to God.  The psalmist said, “Lord, how long will you be angry at the prayers of your people?”

ACTION POINT:
Have you ever thought that a prayer of yours, rather than enlisting God’s mercy, might stir up God’s anger?  Nothing angers God more than for a people stuffed full of sin and self to be imploring God to do something good for them when they stand in need of judgment. Confessed sin will be forgiven, but it must be confessed.  “If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me.”



Devotions taken from the messages of Adrian Rogers.
© 2011 Love Worth Finding Ministries | PO Box 38300 - Memphis, TN 38183-0300

Pledge to our Lord and Savior

Good morning! **

I pledge Allegiance to the Christian Flag and to the Savior for whose kingdom it stands, one brotherhood uniting all mankind in service and love.

Pledge to the Bible:

I pledge to the Bible God's Holy word, and will take it as a lamp unto my feet, a light unto my path, and hide it's words in my heart that I may not sin against God. 


** This may not be the same as the you're familiar with.

LWF - Praying for What God Has Already Promised

Praying for What God Has Already Promised

BIBLE MEDITATION: “…I, Daniel, understood…by the word of the LORD through Jeremiah the prophet, that He would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem. Then I set my face toward the Lord God to make request by prayer and supplications…” Daniel 9:2-3

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
God had prophesied that He was going to do something, but still Daniel prayed. Why didn’t Daniel just sit back and say, “Well, God, since You prophesied that You’re going to do it, then, ha-ha-ha, there’s no need for me to pray about it”?

It’s a strange thing—the Bible teaches us to pray about what God has already promised He would do.

•    Revelation 11:15 says, “The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and He shall reign for ever and ever.” Yet Jesus taught us to pray “Thy kingdom come and Thy will be done…”
•    The Bible teaches there’s going to be peace in Jerusalem, yet Psalm 122:6 tells us to “pray for the peace of Jerusalem.”
•    Jesus Christ is going to come again. (Revelation 22:20) Then John prays, “Even so, Come, Lord Jesus.” It is prophesied, yet we’re told to pray it will happen.

ACTION POINT:
Even when God says He’s going to do something, God does what He’s going to do through the prayers of His people. God wants us to have a part in bringing about His will upon this earth through prayer.

 Devotions taken from the messages of Adrian Rogers.

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

Pledge to our Lord and Savior

Good morning! **

I pledge Allegiance to the Christian Flag and to the Savior for whose kingdom it stands, one brotherhood uniting all mankind in service and love.

Pledge to the Bible:

I pledge to the Bible God's Holy word, and will take it as a lamp unto my feet, a light unto my path, and hide it's words in my heart that I may not sin against God. 


** This may not be the same as the you're familiar with.

LWF - You Won’t Have One without the Other

You Won’t Have One without the Other

BIBLE MEDITATION: “In the first year of his [King Darius] reign I, Daniel, understood by the books the number of the years specified by the word of the LORD through Jeremiah the prophet, that He would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem. Then I set my face toward the Lord God to make request by prayer and supplications….” Daniel 9:2-3

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
What was it that caused Daniel to set his face to seek the Lord? It was reading the books, the Old Testament prophets.  As Daniel studied the book of Jeremiah, God showed Daniel that He had prophesied a seventy-year program of captivity for His people the Jews in Babylon (Jeremiah 25:11, 12), and the seventy years were almost up. Through Jeremiah God said to Daniel, “I’m going to judge Babylon.” 

Now Daniel is in a crisis, and he’s praying.  But what prompted his prayer? Reading the Word, Daniel saw God’s blueprint and knew he was living at the end of an age. He was asking God for wisdom. What do we learn from this? That Bible study and prayer rise and fall together. Your study life will not be greater than your prayer life and vice versa.  There is no way you can separate Bible study from prayer.

ACTION POINT:
When you read the Bible, the Bible impels you to pray. And when you pray, your prayer life will urge you to read the Bible. Prayer and Bible reading go hand in hand. When you read the Word of God, God is speaking to you. Prayer is you, talking back to God. And it ought not to be a one-sided conversation from either side.


Devotions taken from the messages of Adrian Rogers.
© 2011 Love Worth Finding Ministries | PO Box 38300 - Memphis, TN 38183-0300

Pledge to Our Lord and Savior

Good morning! **

I pledge Allegiance to the Christian Flag and to the Savior for whose kingdom it stands, one brotherhood uniting all mankind in service and love.

Pledge to the Bible:

I pledge to the Bible God's Holy word, and will take it as a lamp unto my feet, a light unto my path, and hide it's words in my heart that I may not sin against God. 


** This may not be the same as the you're familiar with.

LWF - The Spiritual Discipline that’s a Lost Art

The Spiritual Discipline that’s a Lost Art

BIBLE MEDITATION: “I, Daniel…set my face toward the Lord God to make request by prayer and supplications, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes.” Daniel 9:2, 3

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
Someone has called fasting “the weeping of the soul.” Fasting is a lost art in most of our churches, but it is one of the clearest taught doctrines in the Word of God, especially in a time of crisis. 

When Ezra and his people were in a predicament, he “proclaimed a fast there at the river of Ahava…” (Ezra 8:21). Nehemiah said, “And it came to pass, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned certain days, and fasted, and prayed before the God of heaven” (Nehemiah 1:4). Jehoshaphat “feared, and set himself to seek the LORD, and proclaimed a fast through all Judah” (2 Chronicles 20:3). Joel said, “Blow the trumpet in Zion, sanctify a fast; call a solemn assembly” (Joel 2:15). The Lord Jesus said, “Moreover, when you fast…” (Matt. 6:16-17).

Most of us have never practiced fasting with consistency. Fasting is not just going hungry, and it’s not a way to lose weight. Fasting is the affliction of the soul for discipline and determination to humble ourselves before God and seek His face.

ACTION POINT:
When was the last time you “set your face” to seek the Lord? Is there a situation in your life, in your home, at your job or in your church, that merits serious, sustained prayer? If so, perhaps it is time to seek the Lord in fasting and prayer.


Devotions taken from the messages of Adrian Rogers.
© 2011 Love Worth Finding Ministries | PO Box 38300 - Memphis, TN 38183-0300

Pledge to our Lord and Savior

Good morning! **

I pledge Allegiance to the Christian Flag and to the Savior for whose kingdom it stands, one brotherhood uniting all mankind in service and love.

Pledge to the Bible:

I pledge to the Bible God's Holy word, and will take it as a lamp unto my feet, a light unto my path, and hide it's words in my heart that I may not sin against God. 


** This may not be the same as the you're familiar with.

LWF - The Changed Life

The Changed Life

BIBLE MEDITATION: “The dog is turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire.” 2 Peter 2:22

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
An unsaved person can sit in church, sing in the choir, and sound holy and righteous. But as soon as he’s back in the world, he’ll return to the sordid, old sin he enjoyed before.

Peter likens the unsaved religious person to a dog and a pig. You can scrub him clean, brush his teeth, and dress him in a pink ribbon; but he will go right back into the mire. A scrubbing on the outside doesn't change his inner nature. The dog may feel better, and the pig may look better; but neither has been changed.

But a person who comes to know Jesus Christ as his personal Savior is changed. He does not want the same things anymore. He does not live the same way anymore. He has been born again into a new life.

ACTION POINT:
What has changed in your life since you came to know the Lord Jesus Christ? Are you different? The Bible says when we are “in Christ,” we become new creatures—for the old has passed away, and all things have become new. Have you experienced that? Then thank Him today!

 Devotions taken from the messages of Adrian Rogers.

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

LWF - “Lo, I Am With You”

“Lo, I Am With You”

BIBLE MEDITATION: “All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.” Matthew 28:18-20

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
Do you know what worry is? Worry is a mild form of atheism. It's acting like God doesn't exist. The great missionary David Livingstone took the Gospel to Africa and actually discovered and unlocked much of Africa. He lived a life of loneliness and danger. On January 14, 1856, surrounded by hostile people beating war drums like they were going to attack the next morning, he wrote in his journal: "Felt much turmoil of spirit in prospect of having all of my plans for the welfare of this great region and this teaming population knocked on the head by savages tomorrow."

Sitting at his campfire, he knows what's out there in the dark. Then he writes, “But I read that Jesus said, 'All power is given unto Me in heaven and in earth, go ye therefore and teach all nations, and lo I am with you always, even to the end of the world.' This is the word of a gentleman of the most strict and sacred honor. I will not cross furtively as I had intended. Why should such a man as I flee? I shall take observations for latitude and longitude tonight. Though it may be the last, I feel quite calm now. Thank God.”

ACTION POINT:
Follow Livingstone’s example. Practice the presence of the Lord this coming year. You're going to be tempted. Know that Jesus Christ never leaves us, never forsakes us. When the devil comes and knocks at your heart's door, simply say, "Jesus, please go answer the door."






Devotions taken from the messages of Adrian Rogers.

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

Pledge to our Lord and Savior

Good morning! **
 
I pledge Allegiance to the Christian Flag and to the Savior for whose kingdom it stands, one brotherhood uniting all mankind in service and love.

Pledge to the Bible:

I pledge to the Bible God's Holy word, and will take it as a lamp unto my feet, a light unto my path, and hide it's words in my heart that I may not sin against God. 


** This may not be the same as the you're familiar with.

LWF - The Hidden Cupboard

The Hidden Cupboard

BIBLE MEDITATION: “Search me O God and know my heart; try me and know my thoughts. See if there be any wicked way in me and lead me in the way everlasting.” Psalm 139:23-24

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
F. B. Meyer was one of the greatest Christian writers of the centuries. As a pastor, Meyer was successful, but not as he ought to have been. He had two friends, Charles Studd and Hudson Taylor, great men in the history of the church. They seemed to have victory day by day—joy and power in their lives. Meyer watched them. One day he went to Studd and said, “You have joy in your life that I don’t have.” Studd said, “There is nothing I have that you can’t have. Have you given everything to God?” 

Meyer went back to his room that night and began to pray. In his heart there had been something he did not want to yield to the Lord. It seemed like a small thing, but it was standing between him and victory. He wrestled with God that night until finally he came to the place where he had to do something. He took a bunch of keys out of his pocket and said, “Lord here it is. This key ring represents my life. I give it over to you.” And he said, “It seemed as if the Lord said to me, ‘Are all the keys there?’  ‘Yes Lord, they’re all there except one small key, a key to a little cupboard. But it’s just one little key.’ The Lord handed the keys back and started to walk out the door. I said, ‘Wait Lord. Don’t go. Here’s that key. I don’t believe I can give it to you, but I will hold it out. Please take it.’ The Lord took those keys, every one of them, and went into that cupboard and began to do a work, and my life was transformed.’”

ACTION POINT:
Is there some little key like that in your life?  Some little cupboard where you say, “Lord, you can be Lord of all—except this.” Have you yielded?



Devotions taken from the messages of Adrian Rogers.
© 2011 Love Worth Finding Ministries | PO Box 38300 - Memphis, TN 38183-0300

LWF - The Peril of a Life That Rebels

The Peril of a Life That Rebels

BIBLE MEDITATION: Thus saith the Lord, “Go and get a potter’s earthen bottle… Then shalt thou break the bottle in the sight of the men that are with thee, and shalt say unto them, Thus saith the Lord of hosts; even so will I break this people and this city, as one breaketh a potter’s vessel that cannot be made whole again….” “Behold, I will bring upon this city and upon her towns all the evil that I have pronounced against it, because they hardened their necks, that they might not hear My words.” Jeremiah 19:1, 10-11, 15

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
You can say, “Well, I’m not going to yield to God.” Then you are clay that is going to be hardened. There is peril in a life that rebels against God. Some vessels when they hear about hidden impurities and stubborn resistance will be broken and say, “Here I am Lord, I yield myself to you. I repent.  Take me, make me, mold me. Give me a new start.” 

Or you can say, “It’s my life.  I’m going to live it the way I want to live it.  I’m not going to yield.” That is your privilege.  But if you do that, you’re going to be hardened in that position, and once the clay is hardened, the Potter cannot remold it. He cannot remake it.

ACTION POINT:
God gives a second chance.  When you read the Bible, you find it is full of people to whom God gave a second chance. But always, always they were pliable. Search your heart. Are you pliable?



Devotions taken from the messages of Adrian Rogers.

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

LWF - The Promise of a Life that Repents

The Promise of a Life that Repents

BIBLE MEDITATION: “At what instant I shall speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to pluck up, and to pull down, and to destroy it; if that nation, against whom I have pronounced, turn from their evil, I will repent of the evil that I thought to do unto them.” Jeremiah 18:7-8

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
God is saying here, “If you will repent of your sin, I will repent of the judgment I had planned.” That is a promise to every one of us today. Just because you may have failed in the past doesn’t mean that God is finished with you. Are you ready for some good news on the threshold of a new year?  You can have a brand new start!  There’s hope for you. Our God is the God of the second chance. Your life may be marred. Your life may have gotten off track because of some hidden sin or some stubbornness when you refused to yield to God.  But He is saying , “I don’t hold grudges. I am the God of the second chance.”

ACTION POINT:
This condition holds true for a life that is still pliable and gives God all the pieces.  If your life is broken, give Him all the pieces, but do it while it is still pliable, and He can make another vessel out of you.  Are you willing to do that?

Devotions taken from the messages of Adrian Rogers.

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

LWF - He Is the Potter, I Am the Clay

He Is the Potter, I Am the Clay

BIBLE MEDITATION: “Then the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, O house of Israel, cannot I do with you as this potter? saith the Lord.  Behold, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are ye in Mine hand, O house of Israel.” Jeremiah 18:5-6

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
God the Potter has the clay upon His wheel—but something happens. It’s marred. It’s ruined. Did God make a mistake? The problem is not in the hands of the Potter. The problem is in the clay. 

Now what could be the problem in the clay? First there might be some rock, some hidden impurity keeping the vessel from becoming what it ought to be. There may be some hidden impurity in your life, marring what God wants to do. Or it may just be that the clay is not broken enough. The clay is too stiff. The clay does not yield to the hand of the Potter. What is clay to do in the hand of the potter? We are to yield.

ACTION POINT:
Are you yielded? Can God form and shape you and make out of you what He wants?  We must be willing to say, “Lord You are the Potter, I’m the clay; mold me, make me after Thy will.”  Have you said, “Lord, here I am, make of me what you wish, do with me what you will”?  Most of us dare not dream what we could be if we would allow God to have His way in our lives.

Devotions taken from the messages of Adrian Rogers.
© 2011 Love Worth Finding Ministries | PO Box 38300 - Memphis, TN 38183-0300

LWF - Would You Like To Make Your Life Over?

Would You Like To Make Your Life Over

BIBLE MEDITATION: “Then I went down to the potter’s house, and, behold, he wrought a work on the wheels.  And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as it seemed good to the potter to make it.”  Jeremiah 18:3-4

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
The making of pottery is one the oldest arts known to men. A potter takes clay and molds it and squeezes it until it is soft and pliable. It is a beautiful thing to watch: a vessel of beauty or a vessel of service, or both, emerge from that ugly clay.

God is the potter.  We are His workmanship.  God is the Master Workman, working on us. Think of yourself as the clay and see what God can do with you, for He is at work in your life.

ACTION POINT:
Though you may not understand it now, every turn of the wheel has been a part of God’s plan. If He does not rule, God overrules. He’s going to turn every Calvary to an Easter, every midnight to a sunrise. He is going to turn every tear to a pearl and make a diadem for you.

Devotions taken from the messages of Adrian Rogers.

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

LWF - A New Year Without Fear

A New Year Without Fear

BIBLE MEDITATION: “…for He hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.” Hebrews 13:5-6

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
I heard of some men years ago who were on a leaky old ship in the middle of a rough and stormy sea, fearful for their lives. They didn't know whether they were going to sink or not. So one of them went to see the captain and said, "Captain, are we safe?" He said, "Well, I'll put it to you this way. The boilers on this ship are very weak and may explode at any moment. Also, the ship is very old and she's taking on water. To be honest with you, we may have an explosion or we may sink. “We may go up or we may go down. But,” he continued, “at any rate, we’re going on.”

And that's the way we are, as we face this new year. Jesus may come—we may go up. We may die—we’ll go down and then go up. But at any rate, we’re going on...even though we don't know what it's going to bring.

ACTION POINT:
Face this new year by squaring your shoulders, lifting your head, and saying “The Lord is my helper, I will not fear.” The greatest thing you could do to begin, if you have not done it yet, would be to give your heart to Jesus Christ. This would be the beginning of a brand new life. This can be the first day of an eternal life.  Are you willing to openly and publicly acknowledge Christ as your personal Savior?

Devotions taken from the messages of Adrian Rogers.

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

LWF - The Lord Will Be My Helper—I Will Not Fear

The Lord Will Be My Helper—I Will Not Fear

BIBLE MEDITATION: So that we may boldly say, “The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.” Hebrews 13:6

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
If you are going to face this year with steadfast resolve, you must find your contentment, your companionship, and your confidence in Christ. And then you'll find your comfort in Christ. Then you may boldly say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear what man shall do unto me.”

I'm not trying to tell you life’s going to be all honey and no bees. No, the Christians in the book of Hebrews faced heartaches and trials. They had opposition from family, friends and foes alike. They faced mockery and brutality. Yet they could boldly say, “The Lord is my helper."

Friend, this coming year may be difficult for you. But I am telling you that you can stand upon the promises of the Word of God.

ACTION POINT:
We don't know what the coming year will bring—sickness, heartache, or trouble. But I do know that you can boldly say, “The Lord will be my helper. I will not fear what man shall do to me.” Find your contentment, your companionship, and your confidence in Jesus. In Him you will find your comfort and your courage.

 Devotions taken from the messages of Adrian Rogers.

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

LWF - Starting From A Secure Position

Starting From A Secure Position

BIBLE MEDITATION: “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved.” Acts 16:31

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
If you are not saved, your first step in this new year must be giving your heart and life to the Lord Jesus Christ. If I had a thousand lives to live, I’d give Him every one of them. I really would.

I came to Jesus Christ as a teen. If I had understood it sooner, I would have come sooner. I don’t care how young you are or how old you are, if you are reading this, you can be saved. I don’t care how good you are or how bad you are, there’s no one so good they don’t need to be saved and no one so bad they can’t be saved.

The Bible says, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.” That doesn’t mean mere intellectual belief or just accepting some facts about Him.  It means trust. You can believe an airplane can fly; you don’t trust it until you get on it. Come to Jesus and I promise you, on the authority of the Word of God, He will save you instantly. He will be with you continually. He will keep your eternally.

ACTION POINT:
Commit your life to Jesus. Believe on Him. Trust Him and a transformation will take place. He will save you. He will satisfy you. He will secure you if you trust Him.

 Devotions taken from the messages of Adrian Rogers.

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

LWF - The Danger of Drifting

The Danger of Drifting

BIBLE MEDITATION: “Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip.” Hebrews 2:1

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
Life is like an ocean…a trackless ocean with winds, currents and waves. We’ll meet ships we never knew were on that ocean and we'll have all kinds of opportunities, heartaches, tears and fears as we sail into a new year on an uncharted sea.

Scholars tell us Hebrews 2:1 refers to the sea—the writer is using a nautical term. He must have spent time at sea, because the phrase “giving more earnest heed” and the word “slip” refer to bringing a ship into the harbor, a difficult and sometimes dangerous task. A ship never just drifts into the harbor. The most skillful part of being a sea pilot is bringing the ship into the harbor. "Let them slip" literally means drift away. You have to be careful when you enter the harbor that you don't end up on the rocks or drift past the harbor.

The worst thing that could happen to us this year is that we just drift through it—live an aimless life—letting this year “happen” to us rather than charting a course and getting into God's appointed harbor. The winds of worldliness, the tides of circumstance, and the currents of the old nature are determined to cause you to drift.

ACTION POINT:
You will drift unless you decide not to drift. You must have an anchor. You need a fixed direction. It’s important, because drifting is one of the easiest things in the world to do.

Devotions taken from the messages of Adrian Rogers.

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

LWF - Finding Contentment in Him

Finding Contentment in Him

BIBLE MEDITATION: "Let your conversation be without covetousness, and be content with such things as you have." Hebrews 13:5a

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
If you would face a new year without fear, know the contentment of His provision. You say, “That’s just preacher-talk.” Well, I'll tell you this much. I would not sell the contentment I have in Jesus Christ for any price you could name. I am content in the Lord Jesus. That doesn't mean I'm satisfied with myself, but that along with the Apostle Paul I can say it gladly and surely: “I can do all things through Christ who is pouring His life into me,” and “I have learned that whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.”

ACTION POINT:
If you want the source of your satisfaction, your sufficiency and your security to be steadfast, then you must find it in the Lord Jesus Christ. “All other ground is sinking sand.”

 Devotions taken from the messages of Adrian Rogers.

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

LWF - Jesus Meets the Heart’s Deepest Need

Jesus Meets the Heart’s Deepest Need

BIBLE MEDITATION: "Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.  I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere, and in all things, I am instructed both to be hungry and both to abound to be both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need.” Philippians 4:11-13

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
When Paul wrote this he was in prison. But he said, “I've learned in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.”

The word “content” literally means “self-contained.” We're hearing a lot today about the "r" word, recession. Back in 1929 and 1930 when the stock market crashed, there were men who jumped out of skyscrapers, committing suicide. Why? Because the things they were trying to satisfy their heart with, they lost. That's where their security was. Friend, you’d better have your security, sufficiency and satisfaction in something that can't be tampered with.

ACTION POINT:
Paul continues, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." That literally means, I can do all things through Christ who is pouring His life into me. Learn a life of contentment. Have the contentment of His provision—Christ Himself. The deepest need of your heart can be met in the Lord Jesus Christ.


Devotions taken from the messages of Adrian Rogers.

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

Newsletter from Full Gospel Mission

FULL GOSPEL MISSION

887 W. Spruce Ave., Ravenna, OH  44266

Rev. Barbara A. Davis, Pastor

 

January 06, 2013 PASTOR PEN: HAPPY NEW YEAR 2013 Ever had one of those days? Weeks? Years? It's the kind of time when you wonder what could go wrong next.  For most of us, 2012 has been "one of those years."  The car broke, the marriage broke, the kids are still broke, wrecked vehicles, legal issues, a death in the family, flooded basement, and broken appliances.   This is the point where I say, "Why me? Why do I have to worry about health issues? Why do I have to deal with financial problems? Why do I have to face loss of property and loved ones?"  I would guess that everyone reading this is facing some problems of their own. In this life, no one is immune to difficulties, sometimes real traumas.  I've often said that if I didn't have the Lord, I don't think I could make it. It is the presence of the Lord that takes me over the rough paths, through the valleys and keeps me safe in the midst of the storm. So many scriptures tell of God's faithfulness regardless of the circumstances. Paul, the writer of Philippians, faced unbelievable trials like most of us have never faced. Philippians 3 reads, "Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ. ...One thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus." Paul didn't focus on the "have not’s." He focused on what he had in Christ Jesus. I John 2 reads, "Do not love the world or the things in the world...The world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever...And this is the promise that He has promised us – eternal life." When we look at circumstances, we can become fearful. God knew that could happen, so He wrote I John 4:18, "There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear...We love Him because He first loved us."  Sometimes situations look impossible. The Bible speaks to this several places. Matthew 17:20 talks about casting out evil spirits and standing against the devil. "If you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you."    Matthew 19:26 is talking about who can have eternal salvation. "Jesus looked at them and said to them, ‘With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.'"  Luke 1:37 are words from an angel referring to Elizabeth being pregnant when she was old and God working in the natural life that which is seemingly impossible. "For with God nothing will be impossible."  Whatever you are facing, know that God is in your circumstances. He is working although you might not recognize His hand at work. He knows the best plans for you and He will provide what is truly needed. My prayer for you in 2013 comes from III John 1:2. "Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers."    From Monday night message:  Stop making excuses                                                   Take an Inventory of your life                                                    Act in Faith                                                    Refocus                                                       Trust   Pastor Barb challenges you in 2013  S.T.A.R.T  a new, a fresh—God started by sending his son to save your soul, won’t you start something with him?

PRAYER LIST: Tony---illness      Lois Mooney          Devria St.Aubin---health            Hazen Ministries            ALL MILITARY---Zack &Shawn          Center of Hope   Miss Jenny B. and Dennis—recovery     Libby--health        RC & Esther—health       Gene & Debbie--Grandchild         Dale and Sheila         Don & Sue Duncan              Angela bosses granddaughter—illness     SOULS      Rev. Donnie Turner—health   Rev. Mack Turner—health       Sister Rachael & Church          Calvary Crusade     FGCC/Radio& Ministers       Sister Helen Ballew              Arthur Wilson—health  Will & Amber—& family        Barb K—job             Betty’s Nephew and Family   Rev. Charles & Sue Herron         Zach and Ella  Lost love one     Anne C--Cancer    Grieving families—especially as the Holiday approach       Newtown, CN--families

Sister Sally devotion word to take with you this week: “Role Models" For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you.—John 13:15.  As we start a New Year ask yourself how can I be a Godly example to others?  Whether we like it or not people are going to be examining our lives. Are they going to be able to see Jesus through your actions or words? Jesus is coming very soon!! Let’s win all the souls we can in 2013.

  Reflect &Pray Titus 2:7 tells us that we are to set an example for others. 

Jokes of the week---- Best Uses for Holiday Fruitcake

·       Bury it in the back yard for future archaeologists to discover.

·       Give it to your child for a science project.

·       Hang on to it to find out if there REALLY is more than one fruitcake that's making its rounds every year!

·       Use it to hold up a broken table or chair leg. Or to pave freeways or driveway pot holes, just fill in the hole and flatten.

·       Mash several of them down and use for mortar when building a log cabin.

·       Use it as an exercise stepping block for step aerobics.

·       Donate to the Road Kill Cafe for a wonderful dessert

·       Last but not least try to eat them—that one way to get rid of them.

 

A collector of rare books ran into an acquaintance who told him he had just thrown away an old Bible that he found in a dusty, old box. He happened to mention that Guten-somebody-or-other had printed it.  

 

 "Not Gutenberg?" gasped the collector.     "Yes, that was it!"

"You idiot! You've thrown away one of the first books ever printed. A copy recently sold at auction for half a million dollars!"

"Oh, I don't think this book would have been worth anything close to that much," replied the man. "It was scribbled all over in the margins by some guy named Martin Luther."

 

FYI:  A special thank you to Sis. Terri for running the quarter stand, last year we made $ 280.00 in profit from pop and candy sales.  Also thank you to Cara and other who filled in for her during her absences. Stop and see us!!!!

The Pastor and I would also like to thank Bro. Willard, Sister Grace, Charlie, David, Pauline, and Cody for taking the decoration down in the sanctuary.  It looks clean, but empty!  Only 11 months till they go back up!

 

Gossip:  Could it be true, that a certain young lady let the Holy Ghost get in her life, why yes it is, so pray for her strength, she will need it as Satan fights on!!

 

And last but not least who is Sister Willard?

 

BREAKFAST FUNDRAISER JANUARY 12^th at 8:30, worker at 7:30!!!!!!!!!

 

Fellowship Meeting February 16---Aglow Saturday Morning 9:30 am be there!!!