Is the Word in your heart?

Run, run, run! Been all over the place my friends. Sorry for missing the devotions. I just got back last night from Gatlinburg,TN where we were at a youth conference with over 6,000 kids. Great conference. One of the messages was based on this question, Is the Word in your heart? It was based on this scripture:



Psalm 119:10-12



10 With my whole heart I seek you; let me not wander from your commandments!11 I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.12 Blessed are you, O Lord; teach me your statutes!



I want us to concentrate on verse 11. The speaker at the conference asked us a very interesting question, for those that have been saved over 4 years, can you quote a verse for each year you have been saved? Hmmm I have been saved for 22 years, that would mean 22 verses. That brings us to this question, how much of God's Word do I have stored up in my heart???? Why is that important? So that I do not sin against God!



Now I will be the first to admit I am not good at memorization. I can tell you lots of things the bible says but may not have book and verse and would have to look it up! These are lame excuses! If I sat down and thought about it I am pretty sure I could come up with 22 verses, but that is not the point....I should know much more! Why is it I can remember stupid sports numbers but not my bible? Perhaps I need to do some thinking on that huh? What about you?



So as we head into the new year, we may want to make a priority of storing up God's Word in our hearts! After all it will help us to not sin against our God!



Tom

Really whoever?

In this lonely, hate filled, sinful world of ours I want to remind you of some great news this morning. Check this verse out:



Romans 10:13



13 For “whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”



No matter where you are in life, if you call upon Jesus as Lord and Savior of your life, you will be saved! I love that word "whoever". That includes me and you. No matter where you been or what you have done. What a merciful and loving God we have. We don't deserve to be saved, matter of fact we deserve hell because we sin against a righteous and holy God. All we have to do is call on Jesus!



God loves us so much. We have a hard time understanding just how much He loves us. More than our parents love, more than our childrens love, and yes even more than a spouses love. God's love is deep and wide. This is how much God loves us:



John 3:16



16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.



Would you sacrifice your child for me? That is what God did for you! Amazing Love! Did you catch that word again? "Whoever"! Their is no one that is excluded from this whoever, the only way you are excluded is if you decide you don't want Jesus!



Thank you God, for including all us "whoevers" in your master plan! We love you!



Tom

Be like Phil, spread the truth!!!

Well needless to say I am very perturbed by what A&E has done to Phil Robertson. Suspending Him from the show Duck Dynasty for his views on homosexuality which are in line with the bible. If you haven't read it look it up on internet. So I am posting this to say Phil is standing on the Word of God and God's Word tells us we will face persecution when proclaiming God's Word. Each of us should ask ourselves, am I proclaiming the Word of God?



Here are some scriptures to think about:



This is the scripture Phil is being persecuted for:



Romans 1:18-32



God’s Wrath on Unrighteousness

18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, 19 because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them. 20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, 21 because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Professing to be wise, they became fools, 23 and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man—and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things.

24 Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves, 25 who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.

26 For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature. 27 Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due.

28 And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting; 29 being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness; they are whisperers, 30 backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, 31 undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful; 32 who, knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice such things are deserving of death, not only do the same but also approve of those who practice them.

Scriptures that tell us persecution will come when standing on God's Word:Matthew 5:10-12

10 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11 “Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. 12 Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

John 15:20

20 Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they kept My word, they will keep yours also.



When spreading God's Word persecution will come:





1 Peter 4:12-16

12 Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; 13 but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ’s sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy. 14 If you are reproached for the name of Christ, blessed are you, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. On their part He is blasphemed, but on your part He is glorified. 15 But let none of you suffer as a murderer, a thief, an evildoer, or as a busybody in other people’s matters. 16 Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in this matter.





2 Timothy 3:10-12

10 But you have carefully followed my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith, longsuffering, love, perseverance, 11 persecutions, afflictions, which happened to me at Antioch, at Iconium, at Lystra—what persecutions I endured. And out of them all the Lord delivered me. 12 Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.



2 Corinthians 12:10

Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.



John 16:33 I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”



Romans 12:12

Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.



James 1:2

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds,



1 Peter 1:5-7

5 who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.



Spread the truth of God's Word:



2 Timothy 2:15

Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.



John 17:17 Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth.



Spread the truth, and if trials come so be it! Thanks Phil for setting the example!



Tom

Where is my mind?

Sorry about missing devotions the last couple of days. The stomach virus payed a little visit to me and my daughter!



I found this verse thought provoking:



Romans 8:5

5 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit.



We all have control over our minds. This verse makes it clear that we choose to live for the flesh or we choose to live by the Spirit. To sum that up, we choose to sin or we choose to live like Christ. From the moment we roll out of bed in the morning until we lay back down that night we have choices all day long. What is our mind focused on? Look at what the bible says if we are focused on the flesh:



Romans 8:7

7 For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God's law; indeed, it cannot.



Ouch! Thank goodness for the grace and mercy of God! When our minds are in the flesh we are hostile to God!



When we are in the flesh we can not please God:



Romans 8:8

8 Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.



Who in their right mind wants to live like that??? I want to please my heavenly Father don't you?



So what is the answer?



Romans 8:16

16 The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God



Keep your mind on the things of the Spirit! Hard to do but doable! Be an obedient child. A reminder of what the things of the Spirit are:



Galatians 5:22-23

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness,

self-control; against such things there is no law.



So where is your mind at?



Tom

Want peace with God?

Romans 5:1



Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.



According to the Word of God there is only one way to have peace with God and that is through Jesus. You can't do enough good things to earn peace only through a relationship with Jesus Christ! Do you have this peace? You can. Invite Jesus into your life today, the peace of God is waiting for you!



Tom

No promise of easy life!

So many times I hear folks say they can't understand why something is happening to them because they are faithful followers of Christ. Here is my response to that. Why do you think it should not happen to you? We all have sinned, and we all have to face consequences of our sins. No where in the bible does it say we will not have troubles this side of heaven. Remember this side of heaven is not our home, we are just passing through. Heaven is our home and that is when we will have the perfect life! For an example, look at Job:

Job 1:1

1 There was a man in the land of Uz whose name was Job, and that man was blameless and upright, one who feared God and turned away from evil.

Job was a godly man, he had everything one could be blessed with. In one day all that was taken away. He remained faithful to God. His wife turned on him, and his friends falsely accused him of sin bringing this on. Job remained faithful. Now in Job's case, his faithfulness, brought God's blessing back here on this side of heaven. That is not always the case. We can look at Stephen in the New Testament and see that as he remained faithful to God but was stoned to death.

The key is remaining faithful, and continuing to love our faith no matter what the circumstances. This side of heaven will not be easy but when we get to heaven oh will the good times roll! Praise God!

Tom

Why is the USA falling apart?

Once you read these verses below it is simple to see why the USA is falling to pieces:



Romans 1:18-32



God's Wrath on Unrighteousness



18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. 19 For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. 20 For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. 21 For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Claiming to be wise, they became fools, 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.

24 Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, 25 because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.

26 For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; 27 and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error.

28 And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done. 29 They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, 30 slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, 31 foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. 32 Though they know God's righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them.



All that is this nation right now! I want to point out a few things in the above passage:



1. v.19 tells us God has shown us what He desires from us. He has given us His Word to show us sin and how to become right with Him through Jesus.



2. v.20 points out the fact that if you question if God is real just look at creation. We have no excuse to question if God is real.



3. v.22-23 tells us how foolish we are...we worship idols instead of a God who created us. Now we worship t.v. stars, cell phones, music, sports and a host of others things!



4. v.24-28 shows us how sexually immoral we are. Homosexuality, porn, adultery, molestation, rape and the list goes on. God allows us to do these things because we have pushed him out. Just like Sodom and Gomorrah it will cost us in the end.



5. v.29-31 describes the USA today. Sadly many of these things are both inside and outside the church. Most people can not see a difference between a follower of Jesus and one who is not. Brothers and sisters this should not be so! We are to be set apart from the world.



6. v.32 tells us not only do we know what God desires, we deserve to die because we do what God doesn't want us to do and encourage others to join us and approve of their sin! Wow.



So how can it change? One person at a time starting with me and you. Make sure our own life is right with God and then lovingly help others come to Jesus and live for Jesus. Remember you alone will answer to God!



Tom

We are not good!

I was reminded yesterday by a young lady that none of us are good! Kind of humbling when you sit down and think about it! Read this scripture and soak it all in because it is about you and I:



Romans 3:10-18

10 as it is written:

“None is righteous, no, not one;

11 no one understands; no one seeks for God.

12 All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one.”

13 “Their throat is an open grave; they use their tongues to deceive.”“The venom of asps is under their lips.”

14 “Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness.”

15 “Their feet are swift to shed blood;

16 in their paths are ruin and misery,17 and the way of peace they have not known.”

18 “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”



Ouch! That hurts don't it? That is talking about you and me! We are not righteous, we don't seek God, we don't do good, we lie, we hurt others with our talk, we shed blood, we don't know peace, and we don't fear God. If that don't make you do some thinking I don't know what will.



I do have some good news and many of you already have it. Jesus! A free gift from God that overcomes all these terrible traits we have. The shed blood of Jesus covers all these sins. We repent of these things, ask Jesus into our lives as Lord and Savior, and then with the help of the Holy Spirit we live for God. We then become righteous in the eyes of God because he sees the blood of Jesus upon us. Thank you Jesus! Thank you.



We in ourselves are not good, but in Christ we are righteous!!!



Tom

Are you ashamed?

This is an important question for all those who say they are followers of Jesus: Are you ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ? Before you answer you better think about it. How often do you share the gospel? Do you find yourself holding back as people down Christianity? Do you vote by your faith? Is your faith first in your life? Do you boldly stand upon the gospel of Jesus?



Paul boldly proclaims he is not ashamed of the gospel below:



Romans 1:16



16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.



I pray this morning we all can say this same thing! I recently asked the youth if they would give their life if they were put in a position of having to choose Jesus or death. The majority raised their hand. I told them it is much easier to say than to do if your neck is on the line. So I ask you the same....would you die for Jesus and your faith in Him?



Now one more important point to consider is this scripture:



Mark 8:38

For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”



These are to words of Jesus. Don't let these Words go by lightly. If we are ashamed of Jesus or His Words (gospel) then He will be ashamed of us before God! Ouch!



So are you being bold for Jesus and His Word? I don't really think it is an option, do you?



Think on this today!



Tom

Is this our nation now?

Just read this before you answer the question:



Acts 28:26-27



26 “‘Go to this people, and say,“You will indeed hear but never understand, and you will indeed see but never perceive.”27 For this people's heart has grown dull, and with their ears they can barely hear, and their eyes they have closed;lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears and understand with their heart and turn, and I would heal them.’



Paul was quoting Isaiah here to the Jews but i believe it can be said of our nation that was founded on Christianity. We can still turn back to Jesus as a nation but it all begins with me and you!



Oh do we need Revival and oh do we need God!



Tom

Keep sharing Jesus!

Here we see Paul has just told his testimony of how Christ came into his life to King Agrippa. This is Agrippa's response:



Acts 26:28



28 And Agrippa said to Paul, “In a short time would you persuade me to be a Christian?”



The Holy Spirit was working on Agrippa. If Paul would have been allowed more time with Agrippa, he may have been moved enough to come to Jesus. So what does this have to do with us? Keep sharing Jesus to others. It may take some time to get them to come to Jesus. Every second spent on sharing Jesus with someone is worth the effort. In the end it may make the difference of heaven or hell for the person you are sharing with. I prayed for and shared with my dad for seven years before he gave his life to Jesus. Was it worth it? Absolutely!!!!!



So my friends share, share, share and you may just persuade someone to Jesus! If nothing else you have planted a seed! May God water that seed.



Tom

What are you here for?

God has a purpose for you. Everyone of us has things God wants us to accomplish in our life. When we do it brings God glory! Do seek God's Will for your life? It is of utmost importance that you do. I was reminded of this reading this verse in Esther yesterday:


Esther 4:14

14 For if you keep silent at this time, relief and deliverance will rise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father's house will perish. And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?”



At this time some folks had got the King to sign a decree to kill all the Jews. Esther was the Queen and asked to go appeal to the King to spare their lives. In order to go before the King the queen must be called or she could be put to death. Esther was willing to take the risk!



God has called all of us to His Kingdom. We have a choice to come into it or not. If we choose to follow King Jesus then we can come in but then we have work to do for the Kingdom! Are you willing? You are here to serve the King!



Think about this today.



Tom

Death keeps coming!

It seems like death just keeps coming don't it? I am sure you are like me and have lost some loved ones over the past year. Sadly this is life. Just yesterday, I lost a classmate, Henry Moses. Why does death come? Sin. All of us sin and all of us will die unless Jesus returns first. The bible has given us all the details:



Romans 3:23

23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,



Romans 5:12



Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned—



We do have good news in all this though. God loves us. Even though we sin against Him, He still loves us, and has a free gift for us.



Romans 6:23



23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.





Romans 5:8



But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.



A free gift! Everyone likes a free gift, only this gift has love and eternity in heaven wrapped up in the shed blood of Jesus Christ. All you have to do is believe and follow!Jesus died so you can live forever in heaven, don't ever get over that! You and I don't deserve heaven, but Jesus covered your sin so you and I can go! Thank you Jesus!



Remember this from the mouth of Job in the bible:



Job 14:1



“Man who is born of a woman is few of days and full of trouble.



So true! Life is short, be prepared!



Love to all!



Tom

Worship together

Did you take time to go to church yesterday? God expects you too.



Leviticus 23:3



The Sabbath

3 “Six days shall work be done, but on the seventh day is a Sabbath of solemn rest, a holy convocation. You shall do no work. It is a Sabbath to the Lord in all your dwelling places.





Hebrews 10:25



25 not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.



From the old testament to the new, God has always had the design for believers to come together to worship and praise Him. Anyone who says they do not need the church does not know their bible and the teachings of Christ. He established the church and died for the church. The church is not the building but the people who have trusted in Jesus as Lord and Savior.



God has given us seven days in a week, and He expects us to take one to rest and worship Him with other believers. It is very clear in the Word. So are you? Are you teaching your kids this important teaching in the Word of God? If not start today!



God even set the standard for us in the very beginning:



Genesis 2:2



And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done.



No excuses! Get to church and worship with other believers!



Tom

With my whole heart!

God doesn't deserve just a passing thanks, He deserves thanks with everything we got!





Psalm 9:1



I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart; I will recount all of your wonderful deeds.



Just take time over the next few days and think about all the wonderful deeds God has done for you, for others, in the past, present, and future. It is mind boggling when you take the time to think about it. Then praise and thank Him with all you got!



Happy Thanksgiving to all of you!



Tom

Brag on God!

Psalm 44:8

8 In God we have boasted continually, and we will give thanks to your name forever.



Short and simple today as the verse pretty well says it all. Do you brag on God? Not just every once in a while but continuously? He deserves it! When we brag on God it reminds us how great He really is thus we will give thanks for all He is and all He does. We are so unworthy but He is so worthy!



Tom

In all circumstances???

This is a very simple but yet very important verse of the bible!

1 Thessalonians 5:18

18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.



I heard Pastor Mutter from our local First United Methodist Church make a very good point yesterday about this verse at our community Thanksgiving service. He said it says give thanks "in" all circumstances and "for" all circumstances. When things are going badly we are to give thanks because God is with us in those circumstances if you are a believer in Christ Jesus. God does not give bad things so we don't thank him for the bad circumstance.



Matthew 7:9-11

9 Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? 11 If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!



Romans 8:28



And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.



James 1:13



Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one.



Now let me clarify here that we reap consequences of our sins. So when bad things come it isn't like we don't deserve them for we have sinned. God could stop them, but we reap what we sow sometimes!



Of course it is easy to give thanks when things are going well but let us not get to the point when we take it for granted!



So are you giving thanks in all circumstances? You should because our God is in control!



Tom

Are we willing to die for Jesus?

Here we see folks trying to stop Paul from going to Jerusalem for fear he will be imprisoned, hurt, or even killed for preaching Jesus:





Acts 21:12-14

12 Now when we heard these things, both we and those from that place pleaded with him not to go up to Jerusalem. 13 Then Paul answered, “What do you mean by weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.”

14 So when he would not be persuaded, we ceased, saying, “The will of the Lord be done.”



Paul gave his life to Christ when he accepted Him as Lord of His life. Paul was bought by Christ and we are too if we have Jesus as Lord and Savior:



1 Corinthians 6:19-20



19 Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, 20 for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.



As this verse says, we are not our own, we belong to Jesus. When Jesus says this:



Luke 9:23

Then He said to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and takeup his cross daily, and follow Me.



Jesus is saying it is not our will to be done but His even to the point of death. So many over the years have given their lives for Christ. Many at this moment are living in places telling about Jesus whom if discovered will be killed. This is the kind of mindset Paul had and Jesus expects all of His followers to have. Now most of us will never have to give our life for Jesus, but we have people we need to share Jesus with that we are scared to do so. It really is no option. It is a matter of eternity in heaven or hell for that individual! Always keep that in mind. If they reject the gospel so be it, you did you job!



So are you willing to die for Jesus? Are you willing to die to self to tell the most important news this world has to offer? I pray if you are a disciple of Christ you are willing!



Tom

Excited and loud about God!

My wife leads worship at our church. I preach occasionally at church. We both have said when we look out at the congregation we sometimes wonder if we are at a funeral or at church worshiping the risen Savior!!! We should have great joy in worship. Singing and shouting for our King has done great things!



Below is how Israel celebrated when they were dedicating the wall they had just built around Jerusalem:


Nehemiah 12:43

43 And they offered great sacrifices that day and rejoiced, for God had made them rejoice with great joy; the women and children also rejoiced. And the joy of Jerusalem was heard far away.



Do you have joy in worshiping God? Can others tell? Now I don't want it to be a show, but there is nothing wrong with praise and worship being heard and seen! Think about a ball game. Is it hard to tell what team you are rooting for? No! In church sometimes it is hard to tell what team we are on! This should not be! Our God has done so much for us let Him hear our praises!!



Psalm 30:4



4 Sing praises to the Lord, O you his saints, and give thanks to his holy name.



Psalm 33:2



2 Give thanks to the Lord with the lyre;

make melody to him with the harp of ten strings!



So this week at church let it go for the Lord! Who cares what others think, you don't seem to care at the ballgame!!! Praise and worship with all you got! And as they did in Jerusalem, let your joy be heard far away!



Tom

We need to do the same! (confess sin)

For the Christian, we should see we need a turning back to God in this nation. It starts with me and you. When Israel realized, after hearing God's Word, they had sinned they did this:



Nehemiah 9:2



2 And the Israelites separated themselves from all foreigners and stood and confessed their sins and the iniquities of their fathers.



The separation from all foreigners were those that were unbelievers, even if it was their wives, as they had disobeyed God's Word and married outside the tribes of Israel. (See Ezra 9-10) For us we also would separate ourselves from unbelievers, confess our own sins, and then get busy trying to reach unbelievers! Have you confessed you sin to God recently?



They also confessed the short comings of their fathers. As a nation we need to confess the sins of our leaders. Then we need to vote our values and hold our leaders accountable to the Word of God. In the Christian life there is no separation of church and state. All areas of our life are to be governed by God!



So this morning think about this, leading our nation back to a right standing with God starts with you and I! Get right with God!



Tom

We should be weeping!

As I read this verse I thought to myself, does the Word of God move us anymore?



Nehemiah 8:9



9 And Nehemiah, who was the governor, Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, “This day is holy to the Lord your God; do not mourn nor weep.” For all the people wept, when they heard the words of the Law.



The wall was finished, the people gathered, the Word of God was read. It was a Holy Day to God. As the people heard the Word they realized their sin before God thus they wept. When is the last time you seen anybody weep before God because of their sin? It is not very common anymore. We will cry over a movie, a dead pet, a ball game, and many other things but for some reason the biggest issue in our life (sin before a holy God) does not bring us to tears. We have become hard to sin! Not good!



The reason they told them not to weep here is because it was to be a day of celebration to a Holy God.



If we realize our sin it should bring us to tears, and then it should move us to repent and get right with God! Do something about it! We have a loving God and look at what He promises when we confess our sins:





1 John 1:9



9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.



Oh what an awesome God we serve! Thank you God for forgiveness through the shed blood of your son Jesus!



As a nation, we should be weeping and praying for our sins are destroying us!



Tom

Are you laying down your life?

We had Jeff and Kathy Deasy speak at our church yesterday morning. Kathy grew up at Trace Creek Baptist Church. Jeff and Kathy have given their lives to serve as Missionaries. They served several years in Brazil and now are in Kenya serving. As they were sharing yesterday these verses came to mind:





John 15:13

Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.



1 John 3:16 By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers.



Now our first thought when we read these verses pertaining to "lay down his life" is death. Which is true love. I also think we can look at it another way and I want you to think about it pertaining to your own life this morning. We can also "lay down our life" in a way in which we put down our own agendas and serve others. This is what Jeff and Kathy do on a daily basis. For the Christian it is a call for us also. All of us are not called to go to Africa, but all of us are called to be servants! Look at what Jesus says here:



John 13:14-17

14 If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. 15 For I have given you an example, that you should do as I have done to you. 16 Most assuredly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master; nor is he who is sent greater than he who sent him. 17 If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them.



Now Jesus wants to do more than just wash feet, the example He gave here is clear...serve others and you shall be blessed!



When I think about laying down my life for others the first thing that comes to mind is TIME! That is what is most precious to us. We have to lay down time that we want to spend on other things and spend it on serving others!



So are you laying down your life for Jesus or keeping it for yourself?



Tom

Attentive to the Word!

As a Pastor and even as a layman, I have seen many things when in church. The Word of God is being presented and this is what I see as it is common place now: sleeping, texting, talking, passing notes, reading magazines, eating and drinking, digging for keys, trips to the bathroom, balancing check books, and you can add on to this as you see fit. Folks when the Word of God is presented these things should not be so! So this text below grabbed my attention:



Nehemiah 8:1-3



Ezra Reads the Law



And all the people gathered as one man into the square before the Water Gate. And they told Ezra the scribe to bring the Book of the Law of Moses that the Lord had commanded Israel. 2 So Ezra the priest brought the Law before the assembly, both men and women and all who could understand what they heard, on the first day of the seventh month. 3 And he read from it facing the square before the Water Gate from early morning until midday, in the presence of the men and the women and those who could understand. And the ears of all the people were attentive to the Book of the Law.



First, "all the people gathered". Wouldn't it be great to get all the members to church at one time??!!! Even better the whole community to be in church! When the Sabbath is celebrated we need to be in church worshiping!



Second, "as one man". Unity! They were united at this moment to hear from God. The people of God need to united more than ever right now! Satan is slowly eroding away Christianity and as followers of God we must stand and fight together!



Third, they read the word for several hours! What? But grandma had dinner ready! God and His Word is to take first priority. We are to be interested and ready to learn what God has for us. Remember what Jesus said:



Matthew 4:4 But he answered, “It is written, “‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”



The Word is life to the believer!



Fourth, "the ears of all the people were attentive to the Book of the Law". Hmmmm attentive. All those things I listed above I have seen in church are not attentive. He wants our undivided attention! No multitasking with God! He is God after all and He deserves everything we got! And with our ignorance of the bible these days we need to learn all we can!



So this morning think about you attentiveness to the Word of God both at church and at home. What kind of grade would you get? Make changes if needed and pay attention to the Word of God!



Tom

So much for judging!!!!

Ever hear someone say "who are you to judge me"? I know I have too many times to count. Well there is a difference between loving judgement and no-loving judgement. Before I go any further read this verse:

Luke 17:3

3 Pay attention to yourselves! If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him,

Hmmm did you see that, "If your brother sins, rebuke him", a judgement must be made to determine if a brother has sinned! How do we judge? By the Word of God. Now let me be clear when we judge we must do it in love. But we also must stand on the Word and not tolerate sin. We are not to be tolerant of sin. We are to be loving!

We also need to note forgiveness. If they repent we forgive, case closed! If they do not we keep loving them til they do. So how many times do we do this before we give up? Here is the answer:

Luke 17:4

4 and if he sins against you seven times in the day, and turns to you seven times, saying, ‘I repent,’ you must forgive him.”

Now if you are like me after about five times I would say forget it and give up on them but that is not what God says or has done with us. God says continue to forgive, that's love! Seven represents a complete number in the bible so this number represents you to continue to forgive...really there is no set number!

Remember how many times God has judged you and forgiven you sin because He loves you, that should be a good teaching point for us! We must imitate Christ and He judges and forgives, and even lays down his life for us sinners! Give Jesus some praise!

Luke 17:3 started out by saying "Pay attention to yourselves"!!! May we make sure the sin in our own life is taken care of, and then help others with theirs out of love!

Tom

Continue to Pray

It is said that our relationship with God is directly related to our time spent in prayer. So how is your relationship with God? Read this verse:

Colossians 4:2

2 Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.

Simple but important. Steadfast means: unwavering, as resolution, faith, adherence. So our prayers are to be solid, continuous, a commitment, and always faithful. Then as we see our prayers being answered and unanswered as God sees fit we are to be thankful. God knows us best and knows what we need and don't need.

Look at this verse:

1 Thessalonians 5:17

pray without ceasing,

Keep an attitude of prayer, that keeps you in a good relationship with God as you seek Him in every area of your life!

Thank you God that you allow us to talk to you, and that you talk back to us! We are so thankful to have a loving God like you!

Tom

Step up and do right!

In reading Nehemiah, Israel is rebuilding the wall in Jerusalem, and Nehemiah finds that many Jews are being oppressed by their own brothers(people). So what does Nehemiah do....ignore it or step up and do something?



Nehemiah 5:9



9 So I said, “The thing that you are doing is not good. Ought you not to walk in the fear of our God to prevent the taunts of the nations our enemies?



First, if you go back and read Nehemiah tells them of their wrong doing and then says the above verse. "Walk in the fear of God!" This is the key to it all, we need to do right because we fear God. He loves us like a good father and expects us to treat others right or consequences will come!



The people listen to Nehemiah's words and respond:



Nehemiah 5:12



12 Then they said, “We will restore these and require nothing from them. We will do as you say.” And I called the priests and made them swear to do as they had promised.



This required them to return what they had taken from them...houses, fields, vineyards, orchards and a percentage of money, grain, wine, and oil that they hard extorted from them! They agreed to do so.



Then Nehemiah did this:



Nehemiah 5:13



13 I also shook out the fold of my garment and said, “So may God shake out every man from his house and from his labor who does not keep this promise. So may he be shaken out and emptied.” And all the assembly said “Amen” and praised the Lord. And the people did as they had promised.



In other words, do as you say or God will take care of you!



So Nehemiah took a stand for folks who needed help. Think about it, are you standing in the gap for those who need a hand or a voice? God may be waiting for you to stand up and do something! Do it!



Tom

Be a praying church!

Peter had just been arrested, James had just been killed, both for doing the Lord's Work. Herod was doing the work of the devil by doing these things. So what was the church doing at this time?


Acts 12:5

5 Peter was therefore kept in prison, but constant prayer was offered to God for him by the church.



They were in constant prayer over the situation! What an example for us. We have so much to be in prayer about as the church. Missionaries, Pastors, the sick, the hurting, the lost, those being persecuted and even killed for their faith, and the list goes on. We must be in prayer!



So the church was praying for Peter, look what happens:




Acts 12:6-11

6 And when Herod was about to bring him out, that night Peter was sleeping, bound with two chains between two soldiers; and the guards before the door were keeping the prison. 7 Now behold, an angel of the Lord stood by him, and a light shone in the prison; and he struck Peter on the side and raised him up, saying, “Arise quickly!” And his chains fell off his hands. 8 Then the angel said to him, “Gird yourself and tie on your sandals”; and so he did. And he said to him, “Put on your garment and follow me.” 9 So he went out and followed him, and did not know that what was done by the angel was real, but thought he was seeing a vision. 10 When they were past the first and the second guard posts, they came to the iron gate that leads to the city, which opened to them of its own accord; and they went out and went down one street, and immediately the angel departed from him.

11 And when Peter had come to himself, he said, “Now I know for certain that the Lord has sent His angel, and has delivered me from the hand of Herod and from all the expectation of the Jewish people.”



God answered their prayers. When God's people devote themselves to prayer, He moves in awesome ways! Who knows what would have happened if the church had not been in constant prayer.



Oh my brothers and sisters, God can and will do some amazing things if we will be a people of constant prayer. It all starts will me and you. Be a man or woman of prayer and see God move! He desires to hear from His children!



Tom

Am I blessed?

I think we already know the answer to the question above. No matter what you think you are blessed. All you have to do is look around and you can always find someone who is not as fortunate as you. Go to another country and look around, you are blessed.



What I want you to see this morning though is there is a key to the ultimate blessed life. Here it is:



Psalm 128:1



1 Blessed is everyone who fears the Lord, who walks in his ways!



Key #1: Fear the Lord! God even breaks it down more for us here:



Proverbs 1:7



The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.



Can God make it any plainer than that for us?



Key #2: Walk in His ways.



Do what God has told you in His Word. He knows what is best for each of us. He loves us and that's why He has given us this instruction book called the bible for life. Here is another verse for that:



Romans 12:1-2



12 Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. 2 Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.



Give your entire life to God!



If you are looking for great riches of this world to be your blessing, that is not what I am talking about here. I am talking about needs here. God will meet your needs, not your wants.



I am blessed beyond measure. Thank you God, thank you God. May I surrender every second of everyday to your will for my life.



Tom

The Lord is good!

I am writing this on Sunday night because I will be out of pocket tomorrow!



Sunday morning at church I looked at the front of my bulletin and it has this verse on it:



Psalm 106:1



Praise the Lord!

Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,

for his steadfast love endures forever!



As we are now in the month of November I see many folks telling each day on facebook things they are thankful for. We should be thankful everyday! The number one thing in life we should be thankful for is God! Without Him we would never have been! In the verse above it tells us He is good. That is an understatement! We don't have a word great enough to describe God, He is God after all!



The verse goes on to say God's love endures forever. The love of God surpasses all. His love for each of us is deeper, more sincere, and stronger than any other we will ever have. We need to understand that. We deserve nothing but God gave us everything including the life of His only Son Jesus. That is amazing love.



The word steadfast means: fixed in direction; steadily directed. Gods love is fixed on you! Gods love is steadily directed at you! Don't miss that! Only God can do that to everyone at every second! Oh thank you God, thank you.



So what do we need to do? Praise the Lord! That's the way the verse above starts out. Praise Him all day long, He is worthy!!!!



I am so thankful God loves me and saved me through the blood of His Son Jesus and I will praise Him all the days of my life! Will you?



Tom

Family #4 Parents train children

Family #4 Parents train children


Well here we are at the final direction of the family in this section of Colossians. Check this verse out:



Colossians 3:21



21 Fathers, do not provoke your children, lest they become discouraged.



The dictionary define provoke as this: to anger, enrage, exasperate, or vex. So as Fathers and mothers, we are to train our children in a way that will be encouraging, loving, and caring. But let me say this also, we must be firm. We can not turn from biblical teachings just to tickle the ears of our children. The truth must be told. Sometimes in the truth our children may react in a negative way, love them but do not stray from the truth! Lets look at some other scripture about training our children:



Proverbs 22:6



Train up a child in the way he should go, And when he is old he will not depart from it.



Ephesians 6:4 4



And you, fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord.



Proverbs 1:8



My son, hear the instruction of your father, And do not forsake the law of your mother;



Proverbs 3:12



For whom the Lord loves He corrects, Just as a father the son in whom he delights.



Proverbs 4:1



Hear, my children, the instruction of a father, And give attention to know understanding;



Proverbs 6:20



My son, keep your father’s command, And do not forsake the law of your mother.



Proverbs 15:5



A fool despises his father’s instruction, But he who receives correction is prudent.



Proverbs 23:22



Listen to your father who begot you, And do not despise your mother when she is old.



Proverbs 29:15



The rod and rebuke give wisdom, But a child left to himself brings shame to his mother.



Deuteronomy 6:6-9



6 “And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. 7 You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. 8 You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. 9 You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.



Do you see how important it is to train your children in the Lord. It is of utmost priority because if you don't train them, the world will train them of their way! So let's get busy! One other point, the church has a small part in training your children through Sunday School, and other programs BUT you are the Pastor in your home....do your job! Train your children!



Tom

Family #3 Children Obey!

Well we have talked about the wife, the husband, and now it is the childs turn. God's design for children in the life of a family is this:



Colossians 3:20



20 Children, obey your parents in all things, for this is well pleasing to the Lord.



It seems so simple when we look at it. It is in reality. But our society has allowed the child to run the home. This is not God's plan. We are to love, guide, and yes even discipline our children under God's Word. We have even went as far as saying spankings are bad!!! Not according to God:



Proverbs 13:24

He who spares his rod hates his son, But he who loves him disciplines him promptly.



What are we doing?????



Children, we are to obey our parents. Only one exception to this rule and that is is we are told to do something that God's Word says not to do, or God's Word says to do and we are told not to do it. That's it! In everything else we are to obey until we are on our own. Even then it is a good idea to listen closely to what our parents say!



One last thin here, to the parents, you are not their best friend! You have a job to do. That is to raise a well grounded child of God. Of course they have to make the choice to be a follower or not but you are to lay the foundation! Be faithful to God! Many are failing at raising their child as God desires! Later in life you may be the best friend but as you raise them be the parent!



Tom

Family #2 Husbands love your wives.

Yesterday we looked at wives, today we look at what God desires from husbands toward their wives. Here is the verse:



Colossians 3:19



19 Husbands, love your wives and do not be bitter toward them.



It seems so simple when we read it, don't it? Love your wife. When we are courting, love is so easy it seems. Throw in marriage, jobs, children, bills, and little bit of taking each other for granted and love becomes very hard in some cases. TV and books don't help as they display love in ways that are fantasy land. Love takes work and commitment in good times and they bad. God tells us what love is in 1 Corinthians 13: long suffering, kind, truth, bears all things, hope, enduring and then it also tells us what love is not: envy, prideful, rude ,selfish, provoking, thinking evil, rejoicing in sin, and then ends with LOVE NEVER FAILS!



Now husbands and even wives, take a look at the list again, love does and does not. Evaluate yourself. Do you see any changes that need to be made? Be honest and look at yourself not your spouse....yourself! Like I said before love takes work, and men God expects you to do His Word. Here are some other verses to the husbands:



Ephesians 5:25

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her,



Ephesians 5:28



So husbands ought to love their own wives as their own bodies; he who loves his wife loves himself.



1 Peter 3:7



Husbands, likewise, dwell with them with understanding, giving honor to the wife, as to the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life, that your prayers may not be hindered.



A couple of things here: 1. Love your wife like Jesus loves the church...He died for it. 2. Love your wife like you love yourself....you meet all your needs and many of your wants....do the same for your wife. 3. Give honor to your wife, she deserves it as she is a creation of God....don't miss the warning at the end! Your prayers may have difficulties if you are not being the husband God desires of you! Think on that!



Men, God designed to to lead and love your wife the way he has prescribed! Are you doing that? If not change now! Blessings will follow!



Tom

Family #1 Wives submit!

That title should get some attention! That don't seem to go these days does it? In the next couple days we are gonna look at the family and God's Word and how He expects it to work. So here is today's verse about wives:

Colossians 3:18

18 Wives, submit to your own husbands, as is fitting in the Lord.

This verse is not as hard as it sounds. If men love their wives as commanded by God, treat them with respect, and lead them spiritually, most wives will not have a problem with submission. This submission is leadership not dictatorship! Don't miss the last part of the verse "as is fitting in the Lord". This is the key to it all. When we treat our wives in a way that is fitting to the Lord, and we must know our bibles to know what that is, our wives have no problem with submitting to our leadership. In fact most wives desire us to lead but we have dropped the ball so many times over the years that they now either don't expect it, or have had to lead themselves that they don't know what it even looks like for a husband to lead! How sad!

Here are a couple of other verses to think about on this subject:

Ephesians 5:22
Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord.

Ephesians 5:24 Therefore, just as the church is subject to Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in everything.

1 Peter 3:1 Wives, likewise, be submissive to your own husbands, that even if some do not obey the word, they, without a word, may be won by the conduct of their wives

So we see, what God desires for the wife. Ladies are you being faithful to God's Word? Men are you treating your wife like God has called you to do?

Tomorrow we look at the husband!

Tom

Joy over a beating?

I must admit it is hard for me to completely understand this below:



Acts 5:40-42



40 And they agreed with him, and when they had called for the apostles and beaten them, they commanded that they should not speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go. 41 So they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His name. 42 And daily in the temple, and in every house, they did not cease teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ.



The apostles had been arrested for preaching and teaching Jesus. God miraculously had them freed and they went right back to preaching and teaching. The high priest and his gang were not happy about this but a wise man in their group told them to let it alone and see if they were of God or not. So they beat them and let them go. All that I get but what is hard for me to grasp is this "rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His name"! Wow. Now don't get me wrong, I love Jesus, but to rejoice over a beating? That is hard to comprehend.



This is what God is looking for: Uncompromising faith. After all God told us that we would face persecution if we are doing His work. I guess we have to ask ourselves, have I been persecuted for my faith? Probably will not be a beating. Maybe cussed at for telling somebody about Jesus. Or a door slammed in our faces. People may make fun of us because we are trying to live for Jesus instead of the world. If we have never faced any of these it is probably because we are not serving Jesus like we should!



Many across the world are suffering physically for Jesus. They do get beat, starved, families separated, and yes even killed for serving Jesus. The reason the apostles could rejoice was it was a clear sign they were serving Jesus! I pray we all have that same strength to rejoice and stand strong no matter the opposition. Remember we have the power in the Holy Spirit!



Tom

What has God torn away from you?

God wants our obedience. When we willfully disobey God we lose blessings and even responsibilities God may have had for us. This is what is happening to King Saul in the verses below. God told him to completely destroy the Amalekites and their animals. He did neither. He spared their King and kept every animal that had worth. This what happens next:



1 Samuel 15:24-28



24 Then Saul said to Samuel, “I have sinned, for I have transgressed the commandment of the Lord and your words, because I feared the people and obeyed their voice. 25 Now therefore, please pardon my sin, and return with me, that I may worship the Lord.”

26 But Samuel said to Saul, “I will not return with you, for you have rejected the word of the Lord, and the Lord has rejected you from being king over Israel.”

27 And as Samuel turned around to go away, Saul seized the edge of his robe, and it tore. 28 So Samuel said to him, “The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you today, and has given it to a neighbor of yours, who is better than you.



When you read the surrounding text you can see Sauls ask for pardon is not genuine. He is worried about self more than pleasing God. Saul even grabs the prophet and tears a piece of his robe, which is then a sign to Saul that his Kingdom will know be torn away from him by God and given to someone who is better than him. Guess who that person is? King David! A man after God's own heart we are told in scripture. Saul was not!



So thinking on our own lives, what has God taken from us because we are not seeking Him in all areas of our life like we should? I hope nothing because you are living for Him. In reality though many of us may have lost some blessings and responsibility from God because we are worried about SELF more than God! Thankfully we can turn things around. God says if we confess our sin, He will forgive us in 1 John 1:9. So what are you waiting for! Do it and get back to serving God the way He desires! If you are serving the way He desires, keep up the good work!



Tom

Let the house be rebuilt!

(Continued from yesterday)



Yesterday we seen some men of God answer His call to continue building His house even though a prior King had ordered them to stop! These men heard the call of God and nothing was going to stop them and remember the Word of God said "the eye of God was on the the elders of the Jews" meaning the leaders! God was protecting them! Again opposition arose questioning their permission to carry out this building so a letter was sent to King Darius to search the archives and decide on this matter. Here is the result:



Ezra 6



6 Then Darius the king made a decree, and search was made in Babylonia, in the house of the archives where the documents were stored. 2 And in Ecbatana, the citadel that is in the province of Media, a scroll was found on which this was written: “A record. 3 In the first year of Cyrus the king, Cyrus the king issued a decree: Concerning the house of God at Jerusalem, let the house be rebuilt, the place where sacrifices were offered, and let its foundations be retained. Its height shall be sixty cubits and its breadth sixty cubits, 4 with three layers of great stones and one layer of timber. Let the cost be paid from the royal treasury. 5 And also let the gold and silver vessels of the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar took out of the temple that is in Jerusalem and brought to Babylon, be restored and brought back to the temple that is in Jerusalem, each to its place. You shall put them in the house of God.” 6 “Now therefore, Tattenai, governor of the province Beyond the River, Shethar-bozenai, and your associates the governors who are in the province Beyond the River, keep away. 7 Let the work on this house of God alone. Let the governor of the Jews and the elders of the Jews rebuild this house of God on its site.



12 May the God who has caused his name to dwell there overthrow any king or people who shall put out a hand to alter this, or to destroy this house of God that is in Jerusalem. I Darius make a decree; let it be done with all diligence.”



14 And the elders of the Jews built and prospered through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo. They finished their building by decree of the God of Israel and by decree of Cyrus and Darius and Artaxerxes king of Persia;



Oh yeah! King Darius had a search done. A scroll was found. King Cyrus decree was on this scroll! King Darius said basically...let the building be done! Opposition was ordered to stay out of the way! The King also said let this building be done quickly! The House of God was completed! Why? Because the eye of God was upon them and some faithful men did what God told them to do!



Folks we are to be building too. We are to be building the Kingdom of God by bring others to Jesus. God's eye is upon each of us. He gives us everything we need to share Jesus. Are we being obedient even in the face of opposition? No excuses, let's build!



Tom

God's eye is on you!

God at times makes it clear to us to do something for Him. We are to do that task no matter the obstacles. The devil will try to stop you. Be strong and carry your task out. We see this here in these verses. In a nut shell King Cyrus had sent some Jews back to start the building of the house of God. Well they started and then some opposition had arose and stopped them by appealing to a new King, Artsxerxes. He stopped building. That brings us to these verses below:



Ezra 5:1-5



Rebuilding Begins Anew

5 Now the prophets, Haggai and Zechariah the son of Iddo, prophesied to the Jews who were in Judah and Jerusalem, in the name of the God of Israel who was over them. 2 Then Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel and Jeshua the son of Jozadak arose and began to rebuild the house of God that is in Jerusalem, and the prophets of God were with them, supporting them.

3 At the same time Tattenai the governor of the province Beyond the River and Shethar-bozenai and their associates came to them and spoke to them thus: “Who gave you a decree to build this house and to finish this structure?” 4 They also asked them this: “What are the names of the men who are building this building?” 5 But the eye of their God was on the elders of the Jews, and they did not stop them until the report should reach Darius and then an answer be returned by letter concerning it.



God said get back to work through His prophets and faithful men did just that! The opposition showed up again and asked who gave them permission to start building again? And wanted names of men who were building, so they could hold them accountable! Then the key part is told to us! "But the eye of their God was on the elders of the Jews". When God's eyes are on you doing His business, you have nothing to fear!



Tomorrow we will see what happens next!



So this morning, God's eye is on you! How are you handling the business of God. One thing we are all to do is share our faith in Jesus. Are you? Let God find us all faithful to His callings!



Tom

Is Word of God dwelling in you richly?

Yet once again we see the importance of God's Word in our lives. Have you been in the Word today?



Colossians 3:16



16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.



Getting in the Word is a day long process as we see in this verse. First we have to get in the Word. Learn it, soak it in, dwell in it so it is a part of every area in our life. Get rich in the Word! I am not talking about money here, I am talking about the Word enhancing our lives as God desires! Second, once we are in the Word daily, we are to teach others. Do you know you bible well enough to teach others? You should! This verse also says admonish one another. Admonish means caution, advise, reprove, or even scold. This is to be done with love and wisdom from the Word. Notice it says one another, you are to receive admonishing when needed too! Third we see worship and praise as we sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs! Let it go! Shout it from the roof tops! Jesus is worthy to sing about and praise all day long! We should be the happiest, singingest, dancingest people around! We serve the Savior of the world, who died for you and for me!!!! Then fourth, we see with thankfulness. I like what my Pastor, Mark warren, said about this. Don't wait til Thanksgiving to be thankful!!! Be thankful 24/7/365! God is good and deserves to be thanked all day long!



A side not on the word richly, it means of great value. It God's Word of great value you to you? Before you answer, evaluate what you have been doing with the Word. If it isn't much then it isn't of much value to you!



So I pray the Word is of great value to you today! Use it as God desires in your life! Do some singing and shouting for the risen Savior. God is good!



Tom

Rate yourself!

I was doing some counseling yesterday and asked a few simple questions to the person about their time with God and leading their family. I was surprised at the answers and it is obvious why life isn't where it should be. Let me share the questions with you and you rate yourself....the key is to be honest in your answers.



1. On a scale of 1-100, what is your relationship with God right now.



2. How many times a week do you read your bible/have a devotion?



3. If you are married, how many times a week do you study/have a devotion with your spouse?



4. When is the last time you have a family dinner at home around the table?



5. Besides a food blessing, when is the last time you prayed?



6. If you are married, when is the last time you prayed together?



7. If you are married, when is the last time you had a date night?



8. List the top priorities in your life right now, what they are not what they should be!



9. What two things keep you from where God wants you if you had to name them?



10. Have you ever read the Bible all the way through?



Now think about these things. The one I was counseling is considered a strong Christian. But the answers to the questions showed major work needed to be done. Rarely was the bible being read. Church attendance was not a priority. Leading the family spiritually was not happening. Priorities were not in line. things were placed in front of God and family.Let me remind you about priorities....this is how God says they should be according to the bible:



1. God

2. Spouse

3. Children

4. Church

5. Others

6. Self



When we get these out of order which many of us do, we are headed for problems!!! It is amazing to me that followers of Jesus get so out of whack, including myself! Keep God on the throne and get ourselves off it!



One other thing that I have said before, a majority of Christians have never read the bible all the way through! Think about that. God has given us His Word, a guide book for life, and we don't take the time to read it and study it. This is crazy!!!! Read psalm 119! It shows importance of the Word. How can we live like God wants us too if we don't know what His Word says? It is impossible!



So how did you do on the little test? Only you can change the answers. Do it! The devil don't want you to, he likes you right where you are!



Tom

Remember this!

Here is a verse we need to keep at the front of our thoughts constantly:



Hebrews 13:14



14 For here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come.



We are just passing through this time period in our life. We will not dwell here forever. We have an eternity to spend somewhere else....heaven or hell. In my life there is much heartache going on in our friends, family, church family, and in general around the world. No where in the bible does it say this side of heaven is going to be easy. As the verse above says "we have no lasting city" here! This is not our home....heaven is for the follower of Jesus Christ. "We seek the city that is to come"! That heavenly city! Oh what a day that will be!



In the meantime, we have much to do here. Pray for the lost and the hurting. Share the gospel. Help the needy. Live daily for Jesus. In doing all this remember, this is not your home! It is coming soon!



Tom

Something about the name "I AM"!

Have you ever set back and thought about God saying He is the "I AM"? Check it out here:


Exodus 3:13-15

13 Then Moses said to God, “Indeed, when I come to the children of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they say to me, ‘What is His name?’ what shall I say to them?”

14 And God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And He said, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’” 15 Moreover God said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel: ‘The Lord God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you. This is My name forever, and this is My memorial to all generations.’



John 8:58
Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM.”

'I am' and light: John 8:12; 11:25; 14:6; 6:35; 10:9-11,15
'I am' and belief: John 6:35; 8:24; 11:25; 13:19
'I am' and knowledge: John 8:28; 10:14; 14:6,7
'I am' and witness: John 8:12-13, 8:18
'I am' and truth: John 4:24, 26; 8:17-18; 14:6
'I am' and origin/destiny: John 6:40, 5 1; 7:34; 8:23-24
'I am' and time: past and future: John 8:58; 13:19; 7:34
'I am' and the Father: John 8:18; 8:28; 10:14; 14:6; 15:1
'I am' and Titles: John 4:26; 8:28
'I am' and Authority: John 6:20; 8:28; 18:5-6

There is much to the title "I AM". The main point is deity. God! All powerful, all knowing, and everywhere at one time! WOW! Just sit back and think...if you are in Christ, a believer, a follower of Him, you are in the hands of the "I AM"! It don't get any better than that!



Tom

Have you put on love this morning?

Here we are another Monday! Whooo hoooo! Been a great Monday for me so far. Got to go hunting with my son this morning. Now sitting at work in the office writing this devotion. Some of you may have not started off as well. Boss yelling, wife or husband mad, children dragging their feet for school, somebody pulled out in front of you and the list can go on and on!!! But guess what? we still need to show the love of Christ. Look at this verse:


Colossians 3:14

14 But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection.



Putting on love is a choice we have everyday! We can do it or we can put on the grumpy, grouchy, dislike face! But to be the Christians we claim to be the Word says put on love! So how about it? Where you at today? When we love our day will be much better because we will make others day better.



Did you notice in the verse "above all these things"? What else are we to put on? Here is the list and you can find it in verses 12-13.



1. compassionate hearts

2. kindness

3. humility

4. meekness

5. patience

6. bearing one another

7. forgiving each other



Whew! I can put on these other traits only if I have love put on first. So let me ask...have you put on all these traits today? Tough isn't it? It can be done in the strength of Christ!



So put on some Love today and share it! It will make your day much better!



Tom

Are you doing greater things than Jesus?

Your first response to this question may be....ha ha are you crazy? How can I do greater things than Jesus? Don't say that so quickly...read this:


John 14:12

12 “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father.



Remember these are the Words of Jesus. So how in the world can we do greater works than Jesus? It seems like an impossible thing to do. When Jesus died, resurrected, and then went back to heaven He promised to send us a helper. The Holy Spirit. This is the first key. When Jesus was on the earth he could only be at one place at a time but when He sent the Holy Spirit back we are now indwelt with the Spirit at all times as a believer in Jesus. With the Holy Spirit in us we are able to follow His promptings 24/7/365!!!



The second key is Jesus ministry only lasted 3 years. If we are blessed to live a long time physically as well as in Christ, we have a much longer time to work for the kingdom of God. Thus we should have many works done for the kingdom.



The third key is Jesus had a limited range of ministry as he walked everywhere he went. With our modes of transportation, with internet, and with phones, we have a much larger area we can impact. Basically around the world if we want to.



So when you add these three things up we can have a greater ministry than Jesus, but of course all glory and honor goes to Him!



So what are you waiting for? Get busy! Souls are at stake!



Tom

Do you love Jesus?

Jesus tells us in these verses there is proof of your love for Him:


John 14:15-24

15 “If you love Me, keep My commandments. 16 And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever— 17 the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. 18 I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.

19 “A little while longer and the world will see Me no more, but you will see Me. Because I live, you will live also. 20 At that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you. 21 He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.”

22 Judas (not Iscariot) said to Him, “Lord, how is it that You will manifest Yourself to us, and not to the world?”

23 Jesus answered and said to him, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. 24 He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father’s who sent Me.



So what is the proof you love Jesus? Keeping Jesus's commandments. He also says it another way in verse 23, Keep My Word! So here is the question for each of us....are we obeying the Word? It is not a partial keeping either. We are to obey all of the Bible. We do not have the option of picking and choosing like so many so called followers want to do.



Here is the flip side in verse 24, if you do not love Jesus, you do not keep His Words! Can't be put any plainer. Again here is another reason why we need to know our bibles! Hard to keep Jesus's Words if you don't know what they are!



So do you love Jesus? The proof is on the keeping of His Words!



Tom

A return to God.

Under the leadership of King Hezekiah, Israel had a return to God which was much needed. Look at how the people took part here:



2 Chronicles 31:1



The Reforms of Hezekiah

31 Now when all this was finished, all Israel who were present went out to the cities of Judah and broke the sacred pillars in pieces, cut down the wooden images, and threw down the high places and the altars—from all Judah, Benjamin, Ephraim, and Manasseh—until they had utterly destroyed them all. Then all the children of Israel returned to their own cities, every man to his possession.



This makes me think of what it would take for our nation to return to God. The reforms that need to take place. It would be a major under taking. Just think of all the sinful things according to God's Word that would need to be removed by the faithful! Billboards, music, movies, television shows, websites, clothing stores, and even people!!! The list would be huge! Folks it could happen. If we would have revival in this land it still could turn back to God but it has to start with me and you! Our homes must be in order! It is so easy to point at others but remember when we do that we have 3 fingers pointing back at ourselves!



Pray with me for a return to God. Our leaders of this country are not going to bring us back to God, so we must do it on our own! Thank God for leaders like Hezekiah! May we be a leader like him.



Tom

Sermon-I pledge allegiance to the Lamb

Watch this before sermon, then skip song in sermon!

Wait for God in marriage!!

I just Got back from marrying my cousin Sara in Michigan. Sara along with her new husband Eric have waited for a long time for each (in their mid 30's) other but most importantly for God to show them who to marry. In today's society, we tend to think get married to who ever we think we want to and then if it don't work get a divorce and try again. Folks this is not so and we need to learn this is not pleasing to God! Look at this verse:



Mark 10:6-9

6 But from the beginning of the creation, God ‘made them male and female.’ 7 ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, 8 and the two shall become one flesh’;  so then they are no longer two, but one flesh. 9 Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate.”



Can it be any more plain than that? First, we see male and female to be joined together. Not man and man or women and women. Do what God says not what man thinks is right! Second, we see they become one flesh. They are now united after marriage. Treat each other with love and respect as you would yourself because in marriage you become ONE! Third, we see the command from God....Don't separate what God had joined together! This is why it is so important to wait on God for the one he has for you! When we get ahead of God, things are not what they should be and hard times lie ahead!



Wait for God to lead you in marriage, it will be worth the wait!



It was such a pleasure to perform Eric and Sara's wedding as they have put God first in their lives. They even asked for me to present the gospel during the ceremony! Praise God! May God bless them and use them for His glory!



Tom

Are your ways in order?

Today will be the last devotion for a little over a week as I will be away from the computer for a bit!



I was reading in 2 Chronicles and came across this verse:


2 Chronicles 27:6

6 So Jotham became mighty, because he ordered his ways before the Lord his God.



Jotham was a King in Judah. He was a faithful servant of the Lord. What caught my attention was "he ordered his ways before the Lord his God". Wow what a great thing to be said about someone. So I want to ask us this morning, are our ways ordered before God this morning and every second of everyday?



The concept of things being ordered is to be so in love with God that all of our day is in accordance with His will for our lives. In other words, our day is planned by God and we obey. What a great way to live! For the believer it should be how we want to live. Totally surrendered to God.



The result for Jotham was he was a mighty King! The result for us will be a joy filled, blessed, and victorious life in Jesus Christ our Savior and Lord.



So this morning, are your ways in order?



Tom

I wait on you God....lead me.

Great verse this morning I seen shared by Sadie Robertson the teenage girl from Duck Dynasty.



Psalm 25:5

5 Lead me in Your truth and teach me,For You are the God of my salvation;On You I wait all the day.



The world wants to lead you this morning. Don't let it. Put your blinders on and keep your focus on Jesus. Ask Him to lead you in truth and to teach you...He will. Acknowledge Jesus as your God, the God of your salvation. Praise Him for dying on the cross from you! No matter what you face today, wait on God. He will lead and give answers and love you! Just remember it will be in His timing not ours. His ways are not our ways so just wait and listen. God is there and always will be for those who follow Him!



Have a great day!



Tom

Are you praising God?

Well here we are half way through the week. You may have had a great week so far or maybe not so great. No matter what your are facing we need to sing praises to God! Check this verse out:



Psalm 13:6

6 I will sing to the Lord,Because He has dealt bountifully with me.



Dave Ramsey, the christian financial guru, always responds to a caller to his show who asks "how are you" by saying "better than I deserve". I think the majority of us can say that, matter of fact all of us can say that because what we deserve is death and hell!



Singing praises to God helps in so may ways. First, it shows our love for Him. Second, it shows others whom our God is. Third, it makes your feel good to praise God. Fourth, it is scriptural to do so. Fifth, God is worthy of our praises!



The later part of the verse says "Because He has dealt bountifully with me." Can I get an amen on that! I am blessed! God has blessed me beyond my comprehension. I am so unworthy of even another breath, but God loves me and provides. He loves you too, think about all the blessings God has given you!



So this morning let the singing go, and praise God......for HE IS WORTHY!



Tom

Where ya dwelling today?

No matter what kind of day you have today, good or bad, you can know where you dwell. God has given us a choice to live in Him or to live somewhere else. God loves you and wants you to be with Him but he will not force you. Read these verses:



Psalm 91:1-2

91 He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. 2 I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress;My God, in Him I will trust.”



I am so thankful for those who brought me to Jesus. Life has thrown me some curve balls and I am greatful to dwell in God. God has also blessed more than I deserve and I praise God that He gives me the opportunity to dwell in Him. I trust God and always will no matter where life takes me. I know God will be right there beside me. One thing to keep in mind, this is just my temporary home, for one day soon I will live for eternity with God in heaven because I placed my trust in His Son Jesus!



So where have you chosen to dwell this day? In the world who will let you down or in Jesus who will never leave nor forsake you? Your choice!



Tom

Where is your mind at?

Monday, Monday! If you are like most you have a million things to do this week at work, with the kids, at church, ect. So our minds tend to be focused on those things instead of God. Look at this verse:



Colossians 3:2

2 Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.



Where are our minds suppose to be? On things that are in heaven or important to the Kingdom of God. The stresses of life can be overwhelming, but God tells us not to worry!



Matthew 6:25-34 Do Not Worry

25 “Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? 27 Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?

28 “So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; 29 and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

31 “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.



God tells us how to deal with these worries here:



Philippians 4:6

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;



Give it to God and then be obedient and do the things of the Kingdom of God. When we are doing God's work, we won't have time for our minds to get on things we have no control over!



So get your mind right this morning! Get it on God!



Tom