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There are always opportunities for us to join God in what He is doing. The Holy Spirit reveals to us God’s work and as children of God, in the Kingdom of Heaven, we are invited to join Him. The work God is doing is about drawing people to Himself. God has drawn you to Himself, through His Son, Christ Jesus and God is drawing others to Himself as well.
Do you notice that God is at work (John 5:17)? What do you notice about what God is doing? What has God asked you to join Him in during these past weeks? Let’s take some time and pray for your Community All that we have is a free gift from God (Romans 4:15; 5:16; 6:23), His amazing grace! The great truths of Jesus our Prophet, Priest, and King is that He came fully God and fully man that all of humanity would have the same opportunity to spend eternity in heaven with Him. Also, a wonderful truth is that Jesus is also about life today. John 10:10 The thief's purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life. Jesus gives for us today, this very day, the fullest life possible, a rich and satisfying life through Himself. Pause for a moment and reflect on the life God has given you, through Christ Jesus. God is at work in you Joining God is what He is doing is looking at where we can help others come to know Jesus as Lord and Savior. God provides many wonderful opportunities for His Church to show His tangible love and grace to others. God has sent His Holy Spirit to fill us with Himself, so that we can join (do good deeds) Him in what He is doing. For instance, in James we read James 2:14-22 17 So you see, faith by itself isn't enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless. 18 Now someone may argue, "Some people have faith; others have good deeds." But I say, "How can you show me your faith if you don't have good deeds? I will show you my faith by my good deeds. … 26 Just as the body is dead without breath, so also faith is dead without good works. The words “good deeds” from the original text is karpophoros (kar-pof-or'-os); and it means figuratively fruit bearing. (Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.) Good deeds are about bearing good fruit… We bear/display good fruit because the Holy Spirit produces good fruit in us (Galatians 5:22-23). God, fills us with Himself that we might join Him in what He is doing that is bare good fruit. Our ability to do good deeds comes from God! All glory to Him for all He does! Another Scripture that we can consider is in Philippians. Philippians 2:12-13 12 Dear friends, you always followed my instructions when I was with you. And now that I am away, it is even more important. Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear. 13 For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him. Main Word for “show the results” or “working out” is katergazomai (kat-er-gad'-zom-ahee); do work fully, i.e. accomplish; by implication, to finish, fashion. This word is made from two words: First word: kata (kat-ah'); a primary particle; (prepositionally) down (in place or time), in varied relations according to the case with which it is joined: genitive case, dative case or accusative case. Second word: ergazomai (er-gad'-zom-ahee); middle voice from: to toil (as a task, occupation, etc.), (by implication) in effect, be engaged with, etc. (Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.) To work out our salvation in the Scriptural way is to be engaged with and accomplish what God is doing today and all the tomorrows until Jesus comes again. Faith and good works and working hard to show the results of our salvation is completely reliant upon God doing His work in us that we would join Him is what He is doing for others. This work that God is doing in you, so that you can do what pleases Him (Ephesians 2:13), is done so that others might come to know Jesus in real, personal, and practical ways. God is always at work and in His un-slumbering way, as the Psalms point out, God is always watching over you (Psalm 121:3-4). He is always at work in you changing your heart’s desires and equipping you (giving you power) to live out the results of your salvation. God’s takes great pleasure in you pouring into others what He has poured into you! 2 Corinthians 5:19-6:2 19 For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people's sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation. 20 So we are Christ's ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, "Come back to God!" 21 For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ. 6:1 As God's partners, we beg you not to accept this marvelous gift of God's kindness and then ignore it. 2 For God says, "At just the right time, I heard you. On the day of salvation, I helped you." Indeed, the "right time" is now. Today is the day of salvation. The reconciling work Jesus did on the cross has been entrusted to us. God has made us partners in His great work of reconciling the world unto Himself. Each of us in the unique and wonderful ways are gifted and equipped by God to be used by God to bring His message of salvation to the world. We are disciple making disciples… Who are you making disciples for? Numbers 6:24-26 'May the Lord bless you and protect you. May the Lord smile on you and be gracious to you. May the Lord show you his favor and give you his peace.'
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Greetings friends, family, and brothers and sisters in the Lord. I am posting early this week, I just can't wait till Sunday. God is so good!
PERSONAL TESTIMONY All that Jesus gives to us, is given through Grace (Ephesians 2:8-10). Jesus brings into our lives so many wonderful things, the most amazing is forgiveness through His Grace and Love. Grace is such a wonderful gift; God giving us what we do not deserve and the fact is – grace is something we cannot earn. The craziest thing to wrap my brain around is that I do nothing to earn God’s Grace. Everything that I have, in Christ, today, tomorrow and into eternity I did nothing to earn it. The healing both spiritually and physically, peace, comfort, love, joy, the ability to laugh in spite of circumstances, and so much more is all because Jesus fulfills all of life’s purposes. During the isolation, because of Covid-19, I became aware of something that had changed in my body. I am sharing this with you in hopes of bringing encouragement to your life, not to make me look special, good or anything. I share this that God would be glorified and that you would somehow, some way, have your faith strengthened today. Father in heaven, thank you for the glory you have brought to my life. Oh God, help this encounter with you glorify you in all ways. (John 17:1, Romans 8:17, Romans 8:30). In 1987, 33 years ago this July, I had a life altering accident. After several surgeries, I found myself needing to start life over. September 19, 1993, I gave my life to God, and Jesus became Lord (Master, Shepherd) of my life. Many prayed for healing for my shoulder over the years and it never got any better. I never gave up, thank you friends, for never giving up as well! Thank you for all who prayed for me over the years, God is Faithful and Just in all He does. Thank you for always standing beside me and never losing hope. During these years God’s grace became sufficient for all my needs, the shoulder stopped getting worse and never got better. I learned to live a life full of joy, peace, and was very content to be where God had me (still am for that matter). I was fully confident in where God had me physically, His grace is sufficient for all things. For many years I thought if I just had enough faith (some people even told me my faith was too weak to be healed); if I would just live to God’s potential (I was certain that I missed something); or perhaps if I just loved Him more the shoulder would get better. The problem with these statements is “I.” What God does, does not depend on “me” or “I!” OK, it is time for me to proclaim to a watching world, my shoulder is pain free, it does not swell up when I use my chainsaw, the old hog of a rototiller, a shovel, or anything. There are no longer the sympathetic nerve reactions of electrical shock, cold then hot, or stabbing pain… God, by His marvelous most amazing grace has for some reason healed my shoulder. I noticed this about 5 weeks ago after spending time logging and working in my garden. Thank you, God, all praise and glory to YOU! God’s wonderful gift of grace has nothing to do with what I have to do or offer. I must proclaim again: God healing my shoulder is not about the “I’s” in my life! it is completely about His purposes, His ways, His life, His will. I can take no credit for what He has done in and with the life He has given to me. I am healed in so many different ways; all glory and praise to God whose grace is sufficient for all our needs. All that we have is a free gift from God (Romans 4:15; 5:16; 6:23), His amazing grace! The great truths of Jesus our Prophet, Priest, and King is that He came as God and as man that all of humanity would have the same opportunity to spend eternity in heaven with Him. Also, a wonderful truth is that Jesus is not just about eternity; He is also about life today. Given for us today, this very day, is the fullest life possible, a rich and satisfying life through Jesus (John 10:10). This rich and satisfying life given, through Jesus, is for God to purpose in us His plans; the plans He has since time began (Ephesians 2:10). The rich and satisfying life comes when the Holy Spirit fills us with Himself and produces in our lives those things that bring satisfaction and contentment in all of life’s situations. Galatians 5:22-23 But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things! As these fruits are produced in us, the glory of the Lord shines through us, so that the world comes to know God in and through our lives. Holy Spirit, lead us, comfort us, fill us to over flowing that all these fruits are produced in us. Dear God, as you have poured your glory into our lives, help to glorify You! Even now as I get ready to post this for all to read, I am second guessing whether I should post this. I wonder if I should have told anyone about this. I don’t want to hurt anyone who has sought healing and are still suffering. Why God, now after all these years? Brother and Sister, my heart hurts for you to be fully restored and healed. Most importantly, my heart is full of joy, peace, and love for you, that you would, through all of life’s circumstances, come to know God in the most personal, real, and practical ways. That you would experience the ripening of the fruits of the Holy Spirit an bring glory to God through your life and that you would open up, every day, God’s gift of Grace and be filled to overflowing with a content and meaningful life. ALL PRAISE AND GLORY TO HIM WHO SITS ON THE THRONE; KING JESUS! PRAISE GOD!
During the time of isolation God moved in some very powerful ways, the Church rose up and met their respective communities needs with the tangible love of Jesus. All around the world, the Church remained a light to their communities. There are many opportunities to join God is what He is doing. Joseph reminds us Genesis 50:20 that what man/Satan means for evil God can turn to good. The evil is so real in our world today, the “Good,” those things God is doing is far more important and needs to be our focus. Yes, acknowledge evil, give all glory and honor to God who is always at work in our world today (John 5:17). Our prayer focus is for Pakistan: April 17…Distributed 25 packets of food to those at the brick making factory as it is shut down during the pandemic; May 10…Distributed 25 packets of food to others because of lock down; who lost jobs during the pandemic; May 15… 4 baptisms From Pakistan: Two Pastors (Name removed for safety) had the privilege of leading these 4 new believers to Christ 4 months ago and were giving them Bible study regularly. Now the new believers were very excited to take the next step of faith in their spiritual journey. Sister (name removed for protection), one of the new believers said, "As I have come to know all about my savior Jesus Christ, why should I delay for more days to publicly declare my choice to follow Him"? Her passionate words of boldness touched our hearts and encouraged us to arrange the baptism ceremony even in the midst of covid-19. Her passion to get baptized reminds me the story of Ethiopian Eunuch when Christ was preached to him. He said," “See, here is water. What hinders me from being baptized?” Praise God!! All the Glory to our Lord and Savior!! Amen. After the Baptisms we gave them all Bibles copies as Free gifts for them and for their families to read and grow in personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Take a moment and pray Pakistan and Missions work around the world! It is so good to take time to praise God for the wonderful works He is doing. Hebrews 10:23-25 23 Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise. 24 Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works. 25 And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near. One of the ways we can motivate one another to acts of love and good works is to share what God has revealed to us when we meet together. What is God doing in you? What is the Holy Spirit teaching you in the Scriptures? What Truth has Jesus taught that makes Him more real and personal in your life? God is doing in you so that you can be His witness to ends of the earth (Acts 1:8). If you are up for it take a moment and share in the comment section an adventure God has you on. What has God asked you to join Him in? PART 2... "Freedom is not free" Time for a heart inspection/checkup. The freedom we have to gather and worship the One True God, the God of all creation, was given to us through Jesus, God's one and only Son; His life, death, and resurrection. Jesus brings this freedom into our lives that we might love one another as we are loved by God the Father, God the son, and God the Holy Spirit, who first loved us (1 John 4:18-19). We love one another so that all of humanity might come to know Jesus as Lord, Savior, Prophet, Priest, King (John 13:32-35; Philippians 1:9-11; Ephesians 4:1-6). 1 Thessalonians 3:12-13 12 And may the Lord make your love for one another and for all people grow and overflow, just as our love for you overflows. 13 May he, as a result, make your hearts strong, blameless, and holy as you stand before God our Father when our Lord Jesus comes again with all his holy people. Amen. NLT Jesus’ love for us must be so real and practical that our love for one another, the Family of God, and for all people will grow and overflow. We know that Jesus’ action of love was costly; it cost Him His life. Our freedom to love as God loves us was not free. I pray that the words "freedom is not free" never becomes a cliché in the hearts of God’s children. All of the freedom we have is because the penalty for sin has been paid in full for all of humanity by Jesus' blood. For you were slaughtered, and your blood has ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation. (Revelation 5:9-10). We have no room in our lives for hate of people, for causing discord or disunity in people’s lives. The Scriptures tell us: Proverbs 6:16-19 16 There are six things the Lord hates – no, seven things he detests: 17 haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that kill the innocent, 18 a heart that plots evil, feet that race to do wrong, 19 a false witness who pours out lies, a person who sows discord in a family. Christ Jesus has broken the bonds of these sinful chains in our lives. The love and grace of God should so fill our hearts that all the evils of our enemy, Satan, are squished out of our lives. The Scriptures tell us: James 4:7-10 7 So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world. 9 Let there be tears for what you have done. Let there be sorrow and deep grief. Let there be sadness instead of laughter, and gloom instead of joy. 10 Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up in honor. I have heard so many Christians say they are praying for revival, and that is so good, I pray continually for revival to come to my home town and this nation. I was convicted here recently about revival in my own heart. How have I come to God with a repentant heart and sought His prefect ways for my own life? Oh God, that I would humble myself before you and let you search my heart for hatred and squash it out of me! It is time, brothers and sisters, to Pray/Confession/Repent and get right with God! It is time to have the revival start with you and me! Let us love one another and all people with an over flowing love. As God’s holy priesthood “May the Lord bless you and protect you. May the Lord smile on you and be gracious to you. May the Lord show you his favor and give you his peace.” Numbers 6:24-26 The freedom we have to gather and worship the One True God, the God of all creation, was given to us through Jesus, God's one and only Son; His life, death, and resurrection. We are given this freedom that we might love one another as we are loved by God the Father, God the son, and God the Holy Spirit. We love one another so that all of humanity might come to know Jesus as Lord, Savior, Prophet, Priest, King (John 13:32-35; Philippians 1:9-11; Ephesians 4:1-6).
1 Thessalonians 3:12-13 12 And may the Lord make your love for one another and for all people grow and overflow, just as our love for you overflows. 13 May he, as a result, make your hearts strong, blameless, and holy as you stand before God our Father when our Lord Jesus comes again with all his holy people. Amen. NLT I pray that the words "freedom is not free" never becomes a cliché in our hearts. Our lives were bought by the blood of Jesus, all of the freedom we have is because the penalty for sin has been paid in full, for all of humanity by Jesus' blood. For you were slaughtered, and your blood has ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation. (Revelation 5:9-10). As we gather to praise and worship, I wish we could all be together. I guess we really are together because Jesus told us that we are to worship God in Spirit and in Truth, so we gather from all over the world to worship our Heavenly Father in Spirit and in Truth (John 4:23-24). Let us bow our hearts before God and praise and worship Him. Take a moment and go get some bread and a cup of juice(wine), let's share communion together today. Hebrews 10:19-25 is a Scripture that came to mind as we spent the last 10 weeks in isolation. Hebrews 10:19-22 19 And so, dear brothers and sisters, we can boldly enter heaven's Most Holy Place because of the blood of Jesus. 20 By his death, Jesus opened a new and life-giving way through the curtain into the Most Holy Place. 21 And since we have a great High Priest who rules over God's house, 22 let us go right into the presence of God with sincere hearts fully trusting him. For our guilty consciences have been sprinkled with Christ's blood to make us clean, and our bodies have been washed with pure water. Come into the very presence of God, come with a sincere heart. Take a moment and allow the Holy Spirit reveal sins in your life and repent. Come repenting of those things God has shown you are sin, come forgiven and restored. Because Jesus our High Priest, has made the way for us to go right into the presence of God we were never disconnected although isolated these past weeks. The connectedness we have is a Light to our community, of God Grace and Love. The Holy Spirit, the Spirit of unity, kept our hearts united and full of grace and love for one another, so that the world might know that we are Jesus’ disciples (John 13:35). Jesus our High Priest has made a way for all to come into God’s presence, let us come together and worship God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, let us worship the One as He has made us one. Let us break bread and share in the cup together today. Take a moment and pray and receive the elements of communion. During the time of isolation God moved in some very powerful ways, the Church rose up and met their respective communities needs with the tangible love of God. All around the world, the Church remained a light to the community. Hebrews 10:23-25 23 Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise. 24 Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works. 25 And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near. One of the ways we can motivate one another to acts of love and good works is to share what God has revealed to us when we meet together. What is God doing in you? What is the Holy Spirit teaching you in the Scriptures? What Truth has Jesus taught that makes Him more real and personal in your life? God is doing in you so that you can be His witness to ends of the earth (Acts 1:8). Take time to write down some of those things and praise God for the wonder and awe of His presence in your life. If you are willing respond to this post that others might be encouraged by your story. 'May the Lord bless you and protect you. May the Lord smile on you and be gracious to you. May the Lord show you his favor and give you his peace.' Numbers 6:24-26 Rescued by His amazing Grace! Love you all |
AuthorDean Walker; Pastor Archives
January 2023
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