Let us begin with a prayer:
Lord, some of us hurt. We call to You for comfort, knowing You understand and feel our pains. But we are humbled by You, Lord, for You have known far greater pains than us, and survived with Your innocence intact. Sometimes we fall short of You, Lord, weakened by the worlds efforts to push us down. But, God, we know You are still there, and You are still strong. That will never change.
And so we ask, oh Lord, that You be with us now. The journey is rough, the path is painful, the future is bleak. But despite all this, You're there. That is enough to keep us moving. In Christ's name we pray, AMEN.
"If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you" John 15:18 (New King James Bible).
Are you having some pain come forward in recent times? Perhaps an old ailment is beginning to resurface? Finding it difficult to throw yourself to your knees in prayer because you feel ashamed for your emotions? It's okay, Brothers and Sisters, it's normal to have this. The world is a rough place to live, especially when you are refusing to succumb to its cheap pleasures. But I promise you, it WILL be worth it. You have something better than my promise, too; you have the promise of the Lord.
He assures us that the world hated Him far longer than it hated us. He died on the cross for us, loving us as we spit on Him with disgust. If anyone knows pain, it's Jesus. It's natural for us to think our pain is the worst, but we must always think back to His death on the cross. How bad do we really have it compared to the innocent who shed His blood for our faults? Doug Batchelor, my personal hero, wrote a book called "At Jesus' Feet; the Gospel according to Mary Magdalene". On page 125, he quotes one of his favorite authors.
"It will do you good...to frequently review the closing scenes in the life of the Redeemer. Here, beset with temptations as He was, we may all learn lessons of the utmost importance to us. It will do well to spend a thorough hour each day reviewing the life of Christ from the manger to Calvary.
"We should take it point by point and let the imagination vividly grasp each scene, especially the closing ones of His earthly life. By thus contemplating His teachings and sufferings, and the infinite sacrifice made by Him for the redemption of the race, we may strengthen our faith, quicken our love, and become more deeply imbued with the spirit which sustained our Saviour.
"If we would be saved at last, we must learn the lesson of penitence and faith at the foot of the cross...Everything noble and generous in man will respond to the contemplation of Christ upon the cross" (Lift Him Up p.240).
I think the author makes a valuable point in this passage. Look at your trials, your friend's trials, your family's trials, and pile them all together. Christ suffered them all, with the addition of the rest of the world's trials! I am not belittling the problems we all suffer, but it gives us something to think about. Before we complain that the Lord has forsaken us and curse His holy name, stop and think. He suffered every single one so as to make our pain less. He could have stay in the Kingdom and lived His life of leisure, but He chose to come down and die for us. If He chooses to do such for us, don't you think He will be sure to guide us through? He wouldn't come here and get nailed to a cross, only to allow His children to become crushed under the worldly pains!
"Therefore do not cast away your confidence, which has great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise" Hebrews 10:35, 36.
It's clear here that no matter our trial, no matter what this world (and its master, Lucifer) throws at you, stand strong against it. It is okay to mourn over your ailments, but do even that with rejoicing because our sufferings lead to perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope (Romans 5:3,4). It WILL be worth it for the Lord keeps His promises. If we stand strong and push through with the joy of Christ in our hearts, we can prevail and we will find ourselves a place within the Kingdom. The Lord says so, so we know it to be true.
Let us end with a prayer:
Oh Father, we hurt, but we know You share in our pain. For us You died so for You we must live. As we close here, we pray You be with us in the coming week. The world is a difficult place to live, You know this better than anyone. Walk with us, Lord, and carry us when need be. Only through you can we be strong enough to survive the journey. With this said, take our will as we hand it to You, Father. Mold us into the beings You wish us to be. In Christ's name we pray, AMEN.
Friday, August 27, 2010
Monday, August 16, 2010
Journey
Shall we start with a prayer?
Dear Heavenly Father, we come here today to worship Your mighty being. We pray you rain the Holy Spirit upon us, help us to gather what it is You wish us to learn from the sermon ahead. And Lord, we pray you are with all who gather in Your name today. Finally, we want to pray for those who are lost. We pray they find You and know the comfort You provide. In Christ's name we pray, AMEN.
So, last week didn't go as I planned. Okay, it went very differently from what I planned.
My piece last week was not supposed to travel on over to a sermon about the great promise of the Lord. It was supposed to be a welcome thread, telling how I got to where I was. But you know something? God has His own plans. I do believe that though the 'sermon' did not go the way I intended, it was God who switched my way of going about it. God knew that someone who was going to be reading that or watching it would need a reminder of His promise of all promises. So, I have no complaints. I just thank God for speaking through me.
Well, I ended last week talking about the promises of the Lord. I'm tempted to continue on from there, but something deep within me is saying to tell my story further. Perhaps there's another one out there, thirsting to find faith. Maybe hearing my journey from the Devil to the Lord will help someone else believe. I don't always listen to my gut, but I feel this time it's different. This is God speaking.
So last week I explained how I jumped into the church. I was a greedy vegetarian, and they were having a buffet (now I know it to be called a Fellowship Dinner). At the very beginning of my piece last week, I mentioned how it bothered me thinking that my loved ones were watching me fail from above. That doesn't sound like a very nice Heaven, does it? I mean, who wants to live a good life, and then be rewarded after death by getting to watch their children and grandchildren suffering? I sure wouldn't wish that upon anyone, which is my biggest reason for not believing.
This was cleared up pretty quickly for me. My pastor explained, and showed many texts proving, that after death, it is not straight to Heaven or straight to an eternal Hell. No, rather we sleep. Yes, I said it, until Christ comes again, we are unconscious. "For the living know that they will die; but the dead know nothing, and they have no more reward, for the memory of them is forgotten" (Ecclesiastes 9:5). "[...]There is no work or device or knowledge or wisdom in the grave where you are going" (Ecclesiastes 9:10). "So man lies down and does not rise. Till the heavens are no more, they will not awake nor be roused from their sleep" (Job 14:12). It is clearly stated here that God says the dead know absolutely nothing, and the dead cannot contact the living, nor know what the living are doing. They are dead. Their thoughts have perished (Psalms 146:4).
When my pastor informed me of this, oh wow, I can't even comprehend the extreme joy I felt. But still...another thing bothered me terribly. Could a God so high and mighty really let His lost children suffer for eternity in Hell? Would God really let the Devil have control of the punishment for His misguided children? How could I serve a God that allowed this, while still remaining happy? How could my pastor, a truly loving individual, respect such a cruel and ruthless being?
"The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgement to be punished" (2 Peter 2:9). There are no souls in hellfire today. The Bible clearly states that God holds back the wicked until the day of judgement. You see, they are sleeping too. Both the righteous and the unjust that perish before Jesus' coming simply sleep. Now, when Jesus does come, the wicked burn for all eternity after that, right? FALSE! How cruel would that be? Plus, it would be contradictory to so many other places in the Bible! The wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23)! If they burned in eternal hellfire, wouldn't that be living? Sure it'd be a painful life, but still living. Now, I could name verse after verse that shows the wicked are destroyed in a temporary fire, but why don't I leave that for a future sermon? I could speak for a VERY long time on this topic.
After all this was settled in my head, my pastor had smiled at me, thinking his job was done. I was sold, now that my questions were all answer, right? Well, he was wrong. With sad eyes, I had looked up and met his gaze, my expression showing my sorrow clearly. "Pastor, if God is so good, why are Christians so cold? Isn't it a commandment to love thy neighbor as ye love thyself? But they don't. I just don't think God would allow the insanity if He existed." This caught the pastor off guard, but then he smiled a warm smile, eyes thickly presenting his understanding. "Lindsay, we are humans. We sin. If God made the path easy, we'd never learn. I know good Christians and I know bad Christians." He got lower and spoke softer. "But I also know good atheists and bad atheists." And with that, he had walked from the room, his point made.
I once saw a quote and, though it is humorous, it does hold much truth. "God, I love you, but it's your fan club that terrifies me." It's true that not all Christians hold true to the ways God gave us, but does that mean He doesn't exist? No way. He gave is freewill, and He isn't going to take that away by making us do certain things. If we want to live a lieing, deceitful life, He won't stop us. But He will hold us accountable for our choices.
I want to end with a prayer:
Dear Almighty Father, we come to the closing of another week. Another week filled with both pain, and joy. Lord, we know You walk with us, holding our hands and sometimes even carrying us. You won't have us suffer more than we can handle, for You are a just Father. You care for Your children, even when they don't care for You, oh Lord. In this coming week, Father, guide us. We want to surrender our will fully to You, and have You mold us into what You want us to be. We know You won't force us, Lord, but we are willing. Hold our hands and lead, for we are ready to follow. In Christ's Name we pray, AMEN.
God bless and have an amazing week,
Lindsay
Remember, you can always watch the sermons rather than read. Or you could do both! The videos may contain music and stories that are not found in the writing pieces :)
If you'd prefer to listen to my sermons, rather than read them, I also have a Youtube account:
http://www.youtube.com/user/HisHiddenVoice (Due to technical difficulties, this weeks video sermon is not yet up.)
Dear Heavenly Father, we come here today to worship Your mighty being. We pray you rain the Holy Spirit upon us, help us to gather what it is You wish us to learn from the sermon ahead. And Lord, we pray you are with all who gather in Your name today. Finally, we want to pray for those who are lost. We pray they find You and know the comfort You provide. In Christ's name we pray, AMEN.
So, last week didn't go as I planned. Okay, it went very differently from what I planned.
My piece last week was not supposed to travel on over to a sermon about the great promise of the Lord. It was supposed to be a welcome thread, telling how I got to where I was. But you know something? God has His own plans. I do believe that though the 'sermon' did not go the way I intended, it was God who switched my way of going about it. God knew that someone who was going to be reading that or watching it would need a reminder of His promise of all promises. So, I have no complaints. I just thank God for speaking through me.
Well, I ended last week talking about the promises of the Lord. I'm tempted to continue on from there, but something deep within me is saying to tell my story further. Perhaps there's another one out there, thirsting to find faith. Maybe hearing my journey from the Devil to the Lord will help someone else believe. I don't always listen to my gut, but I feel this time it's different. This is God speaking.
So last week I explained how I jumped into the church. I was a greedy vegetarian, and they were having a buffet (now I know it to be called a Fellowship Dinner). At the very beginning of my piece last week, I mentioned how it bothered me thinking that my loved ones were watching me fail from above. That doesn't sound like a very nice Heaven, does it? I mean, who wants to live a good life, and then be rewarded after death by getting to watch their children and grandchildren suffering? I sure wouldn't wish that upon anyone, which is my biggest reason for not believing.
This was cleared up pretty quickly for me. My pastor explained, and showed many texts proving, that after death, it is not straight to Heaven or straight to an eternal Hell. No, rather we sleep. Yes, I said it, until Christ comes again, we are unconscious. "For the living know that they will die; but the dead know nothing, and they have no more reward, for the memory of them is forgotten" (Ecclesiastes 9:5). "[...]There is no work or device or knowledge or wisdom in the grave where you are going" (Ecclesiastes 9:10). "So man lies down and does not rise. Till the heavens are no more, they will not awake nor be roused from their sleep" (Job 14:12). It is clearly stated here that God says the dead know absolutely nothing, and the dead cannot contact the living, nor know what the living are doing. They are dead. Their thoughts have perished (Psalms 146:4).
When my pastor informed me of this, oh wow, I can't even comprehend the extreme joy I felt. But still...another thing bothered me terribly. Could a God so high and mighty really let His lost children suffer for eternity in Hell? Would God really let the Devil have control of the punishment for His misguided children? How could I serve a God that allowed this, while still remaining happy? How could my pastor, a truly loving individual, respect such a cruel and ruthless being?
"The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgement to be punished" (2 Peter 2:9). There are no souls in hellfire today. The Bible clearly states that God holds back the wicked until the day of judgement. You see, they are sleeping too. Both the righteous and the unjust that perish before Jesus' coming simply sleep. Now, when Jesus does come, the wicked burn for all eternity after that, right? FALSE! How cruel would that be? Plus, it would be contradictory to so many other places in the Bible! The wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23)! If they burned in eternal hellfire, wouldn't that be living? Sure it'd be a painful life, but still living. Now, I could name verse after verse that shows the wicked are destroyed in a temporary fire, but why don't I leave that for a future sermon? I could speak for a VERY long time on this topic.
After all this was settled in my head, my pastor had smiled at me, thinking his job was done. I was sold, now that my questions were all answer, right? Well, he was wrong. With sad eyes, I had looked up and met his gaze, my expression showing my sorrow clearly. "Pastor, if God is so good, why are Christians so cold? Isn't it a commandment to love thy neighbor as ye love thyself? But they don't. I just don't think God would allow the insanity if He existed." This caught the pastor off guard, but then he smiled a warm smile, eyes thickly presenting his understanding. "Lindsay, we are humans. We sin. If God made the path easy, we'd never learn. I know good Christians and I know bad Christians." He got lower and spoke softer. "But I also know good atheists and bad atheists." And with that, he had walked from the room, his point made.
I once saw a quote and, though it is humorous, it does hold much truth. "God, I love you, but it's your fan club that terrifies me." It's true that not all Christians hold true to the ways God gave us, but does that mean He doesn't exist? No way. He gave is freewill, and He isn't going to take that away by making us do certain things. If we want to live a lieing, deceitful life, He won't stop us. But He will hold us accountable for our choices.
I want to end with a prayer:
Dear Almighty Father, we come to the closing of another week. Another week filled with both pain, and joy. Lord, we know You walk with us, holding our hands and sometimes even carrying us. You won't have us suffer more than we can handle, for You are a just Father. You care for Your children, even when they don't care for You, oh Lord. In this coming week, Father, guide us. We want to surrender our will fully to You, and have You mold us into what You want us to be. We know You won't force us, Lord, but we are willing. Hold our hands and lead, for we are ready to follow. In Christ's Name we pray, AMEN.
God bless and have an amazing week,
Lindsay
Remember, you can always watch the sermons rather than read. Or you could do both! The videos may contain music and stories that are not found in the writing pieces :)
If you'd prefer to listen to my sermons, rather than read them, I also have a Youtube account:
http://www.youtube.com/user/HisHiddenVoice (Due to technical difficulties, this weeks video sermon is not yet up.)
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Welcome:: He Promised
Never thought I'd be doing this, writing words for God. Never IN MY LIFE did I expect to want to be a pastor. But now, the want is so strong that I would be a fool to ignore it.
You see, I grew up a self-proclaimed athiest. For 14 or so years I followed this theory, though I could often find myself looking to the sky in wonder. I found comfort in the fact that we were buried and that was the end. I didn't want to think my loved ones were up there watching me tumble through life, watching me fall and fail. Even when we moved to Virginia, the Bible Belt, I refused to give in. I hung with the crowd that shared my "lack of belief", and I actually thought I was happy.
But about a year ago now, my mother stumbled across a church I'd never heard of. They were called the Seventh-Day Adventists and I became oddly intrigued. Okay...maybe it wasn't so odd. I mean, my ma proposed it to me with saying "Wanna go to a vegetarian buffet? We have to sit through a sermon first." Now, I am a vegetarian, so I was willing to suffer the words of some wacko pastor in order to get good food (and boy, are there some fine cooks in that church). But I never bargained for what would happen. As the pastor stood up front and preached, I found myself unable to look away with disinterest. Truth was, I was interested...more than that actually. I was yearning to learn what this pastor knew. How could he stand up there and preach about a slave owner named God, and keep a smile on his face the whole time? He really loved his master...and for a year now, he taught me to as well.
Now, of course, this year has not all been up hill. Heck, I want to meet a Christian that has a life of rainbows and butterflies! Truth is, the Christian road is tough, really tough. God is very blunt is saying that it's the toughest road one could follow. However tough it is though, He promises it will be worth it. Now, if some human came up and gave me a promise like that, I would laugh and shew him away, ordering he stop speaking such nonsense. But God? No, this Guy doesn't lie. He is the only one who's never spoken a lie. He's the only one we can count on to keep His promises.
So let me end with some proof here. Let us travel to the Great Book, the Word of God. Yes, I do mean the Bible. Now, my Bible is the New King James version, so if you prefer a different version, you can find it online or in your own Bible. The book we are turning to is Psalms, chapter 23, verse 4. "Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me." You see, God knows this life is difficult, and that the Devil tempts us at every corner. Each choice we make could mean the difference between Salvation, and death. But, he promises here, and in many places within the Bible, that He's there for us. My pastor once said in a sermon that if we get to the end of our rope, swing on over to God's rope. His rope is endless and He won't let you fall.
God bless you and have a wonderful week.
Pastor in training, Lindsay :)
If you'd prefer to listen to my sermons, rather than read them, I also have a Youtube account: http://www.youtube.com/user/HisHiddenVoice
You see, I grew up a self-proclaimed athiest. For 14 or so years I followed this theory, though I could often find myself looking to the sky in wonder. I found comfort in the fact that we were buried and that was the end. I didn't want to think my loved ones were up there watching me tumble through life, watching me fall and fail. Even when we moved to Virginia, the Bible Belt, I refused to give in. I hung with the crowd that shared my "lack of belief", and I actually thought I was happy.
But about a year ago now, my mother stumbled across a church I'd never heard of. They were called the Seventh-Day Adventists and I became oddly intrigued. Okay...maybe it wasn't so odd. I mean, my ma proposed it to me with saying "Wanna go to a vegetarian buffet? We have to sit through a sermon first." Now, I am a vegetarian, so I was willing to suffer the words of some wacko pastor in order to get good food (and boy, are there some fine cooks in that church). But I never bargained for what would happen. As the pastor stood up front and preached, I found myself unable to look away with disinterest. Truth was, I was interested...more than that actually. I was yearning to learn what this pastor knew. How could he stand up there and preach about a slave owner named God, and keep a smile on his face the whole time? He really loved his master...and for a year now, he taught me to as well.
Now, of course, this year has not all been up hill. Heck, I want to meet a Christian that has a life of rainbows and butterflies! Truth is, the Christian road is tough, really tough. God is very blunt is saying that it's the toughest road one could follow. However tough it is though, He promises it will be worth it. Now, if some human came up and gave me a promise like that, I would laugh and shew him away, ordering he stop speaking such nonsense. But God? No, this Guy doesn't lie. He is the only one who's never spoken a lie. He's the only one we can count on to keep His promises.
So let me end with some proof here. Let us travel to the Great Book, the Word of God. Yes, I do mean the Bible. Now, my Bible is the New King James version, so if you prefer a different version, you can find it online or in your own Bible. The book we are turning to is Psalms, chapter 23, verse 4. "Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me." You see, God knows this life is difficult, and that the Devil tempts us at every corner. Each choice we make could mean the difference between Salvation, and death. But, he promises here, and in many places within the Bible, that He's there for us. My pastor once said in a sermon that if we get to the end of our rope, swing on over to God's rope. His rope is endless and He won't let you fall.
God bless you and have a wonderful week.
Pastor in training, Lindsay :)
If you'd prefer to listen to my sermons, rather than read them, I also have a Youtube account: http://www.youtube.com/user/HisHiddenVoice
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