Knowing when to speak

In Mark 14:60 Jesus was asked by the high priest to speak concerning the witnesses that have come forward against him. Jesus held His peace and answered nothing.
Sometimes we need to stay silent and let God fight our battles. This is something we need to pray about and ask God what He wants us to do. The Bible is full of different circumstances when someone spoke up or remained silent.  Our tongue can be sharp and tear a person apart when we don't think before speaking.

Closer to God

something i want to share that i have learned through this whole ordeal--whenever you want to feel close to God, when you may be wondering 'are you really out there' do this: serve. help someone do something, volunteer to clean someone's house for them (don't say "gee i don't even have time to clean mine") , visit a nursing home, visit a prison, take food to a homeless family, pay for a total strangers meal, do something, anything to make someone's day. sacrifice yourself, your time, your money. don't do it for you, do it for the Lord and your neighbor. honestly, don't tell me, but be honest with yourself, when was the last time you did something for someone in need? when Christ wanted to show love, he did something that required work as service to another person. if you are down tonight, depressed, blue, bored, drifting in uncertainty of why you are even alive, be thankful you have these free minutes, and instead of continuing to waste time, get in your car, drive to McDonalds and look for a single mom getting dinner for her kids and pay for it. go to Burlington coat factory or Wal-Mart and buy a couple of cheap coats, drive downtown Indy to the corner of south and Delaware and give them to the homeless. you, yes you, are the light of the world, yet the majority of us sit in our climate controlled homes, bellies full, complaining over what we don't have or how meaningless our lives seem. not tonight, get up, get up, and do something for someone, pray that God leads you to who and where. please do this for me since this is my heart tonight but i cannot do it. i promise you in that act, you will feel God.. thanks for reading this...

Love Story

Guest writer, Russell Taylor
hi there..keep in mind, the greatest love story, ever, is the love of Christ for his bride, which is the church. if you feel like Jesus has been silent of late, and not as involved with you, its because he fellowships mainly with us on this earth through his children. we are to gather ourselves frequently together to experience his love and companionship. there should be nothing, zero, that any other christian can do to keep us away from having this church experience. want to have joy in your life? want to start feeling Gods presence? then stop avoiding his best friend, the love of his life, his church. find a local congregation, and start worshipping there. the old "i can worship right there on the river bank" sounds great, but its simply not true. Jesus married us when you accepted him as savior and he demands our faithfulness the same as any married couple should do. once at the church, dont pay one ounce of attention to who else is there, personality wise, its not our role or job to correct, judge, or gossip about others. nope, dont burden yourself with that, simply show up to love, worship, sing, and learn about our husband, Jesus Christ...my thought for today, yes this was preachy but i felt led to send it...love, love, love, etc, so on and so forth...

Why settle for less?

Why Settle for Less?

Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus.
Colossians 3:17

John Flanagan, Jr., was flying a routine Air Force mission during the Vietnam War, seeking to confirm a radio report of 300 enemy Vietcong troops spotted in a nearby area. Flying low above the coordinates of the site zone, he could see nothing that aroused his suspicions or indicated the presence of enemy forces.

But just before he pulled up and headed back for base, the memory of his high-school English teacher flashed through his mind. Father John Mulroy was one of those instructors who never allowed halfhearted work to be passed off as acceptable. His students—like John Flanagan—either gave it their very best or got the consequences for just getting by.

So with a new resolve to swing around and look more closely this time, he spotted a gathering of Vietcong. Not only that, he noticed a squad of American gunships zooming into position to blow them away.

But something didn't look right. Sinking lower, skimming just above the treetops, Flanagan buzzed his plane right into harm's way and recognized that the troops on the ground were not Vietcong but South Vietnamese forces—friendlies! By blocking the ensuing battle at the risk of his own life, he stopped a dose of bad reconnaissance from leading to regrettable bloodshed.

The disaster John Flanagan courageously helped avoid by going the extra mile that day earned him a Distinguished Flying Cross and the admiration of his fellow airmen. But many of the accolades could have legitimately gone to a tough-minded teacher who wouldn't let his students settle for second best.

Are you challenging one another and your children to be the very best you can be?

New Testament Churches

Where are the churches of the New Testament? Churches are watered down these days. The man is the spiritual leader of the house. If the man is removed, the family will disappear. It's in commercials, TV shows, songs and the silver screen. They have all removed the husband/father. A church can't get 10 men to join a men's Bible study but when they have a softball call out, 50 men will sign up. We need prayer warriors for the spiritual battle we face.

New Identity

I have a new identity. I have been identified with Christ. I do not identify with the past anymore. I do not identify with the world any more. I identify with Christ. i do not identify with failure anymore. I do not identify with poverty, guilt or shame, for I identify with Christ. I have been made righteous in Him. Christ lives within me by the Word and the Holy Spirit. The life of God is in me. Victory is mine, because Christ is triumphant. I reign with him and I am seated with him. I am blessed and complete in him. Jesus has made an impact on me. Christ died on the cross for me and now I am not my old self. I consider myself as having died. I give thanks to the father who has made me worthy and has qualified me. Victory is mine, I am not trying to get it, I do not hope to get it, I have it now. Satan is trying to kill me, he is trying to make me believe I am no good, i am beyond forgiveness, and no one (especially my 5 kids) loves me. I recognize this and thank the Lord for what he has done for me. anyway, this really helped me today so i thought i would share it.

The Pharisee and the tax collector

In Luke 18:10-14, Jesus talks about how the Pharisee was proud of himself for not being like the tax collector, when he was praying. I struggle with this, more times than none. I'm comparing myself to this person or that and it might not be in prayer, but the thought is there and God knows. I am not any better than the person serving a prison sentence or the person leading a Bible Study. We, as Christians, get arrogant and like to boast to ourselves, or friends. Point is, it's a level playing field. There are only two kinds of people in this world, saved and unsaved. We need to pray for both.

Tags and Labels

I have noticed that people, including Christians, like to put labels, or tags, on people for their actions. I was talking to someone recently that said the mayor of a certain city was "queer". This came from a Christian. I hate that word. First, I have never heard that this is true; second, if it is true, shouldn't we, as Christians, lift him up rather then condemn him? Everyone of us are sinners. I'm just a sinner saved by grace and my label would be; lying, adulterer, thief. I could probably think of a few more.
God loves us and in turn, we should love our brothers and sisters.

Poem

I was shocked, confused, bewildered; as I entered Heaven's door.
Not by the beauty of it all, nor the lights or its decor.
But it was the folks in Heaven, who made me sputter and gasp.
The alcoholics, the sinners, the sex-offenders aka the "trash."
There stood the kid from the seventh grade, who stole my lunch money twice.
Next to him was my old neighbor who never seemed to say anything nice.
Herb, who I always thought was probably rotting in hell,
Was sitting pretty on cloud nine, looking incredibly well.
I nudged Jesus, and said "what's the deal? I would love to hear your take.
How did all these sinners get up here? God must've made a mistake.
And why is it so quiet, so somber, please give me a clue?"
"That's easy my child" said Jesus, "they're all in shock, no one thought they would be seeing you."

Today's sermon

From guest writer, Russell Charles.
hello, i hope everyone is having a good sunday! today in church we had a guest speaker that has been here a few times and i really enjoy him. he has 4 earrings, an ex-con, and preaches a lot in the style of Dr. Gene Scott, if you know who that is. today's sermon was outstanding as he laid out--why did David think he could beat Goliath? in a nutshell, david knew he, by representing God, was in the right, so even if he happened to lose to Goliath, God would use david's defeat for his glory. While everyone else was shaking in their boots wondering what to do, scared of a man, David got PISSED-OFF that someone, regardless of their size, was mocking the Lord God!! It really hit me, how many of us are like david and willing to charge into the fight for we are servants of the Lord? Or do most of us (imagine me looking at the floor, diverting my eyes as i type this, over a guilty conscience) act like the other soldiers and say "well, i will sit quietly here, i sure hope someone says something."??? like david did, when is the last time we got pissed off at sin and made a stand?? the Lord has convicted me to stop being such a weak, worthless, defeated-acting sissy, and stand up for our Lord, the true King of Kings!! please join me in no longer being more scared of what men think of us, than we are what God thinks of us. Jesus isn't coming here next time as a cooing baby wrapped in a baby blanket in a stable, he is coming from the sky swinging a sword with a host of angels, ready to roll son!! So, join me today in picking a side, because SOONER OR LATER you will have to pick one and you better make sure you have choose the winning one. have a great day, and i thanks for reading this.

Sacrifice

This morning I was reading Leviticus and how they had to sacrifice a ram, goat or a bull for their sins. It hit me that for every sin, their had to be a sacrifice.
I'm glad today we have Jesus Christ, who made the ultimate sacrifice, to forgive us of our sins. Can you imagine, walking down the street, have an evil thought then have to look for an animal to sacrifice.

Your Time

One of the things that scared me and made me more conscious was the passing of friends, acquaintances, co-workers and family members. Yesterday, I found out a friend of mine had passed last Friday. He was only 39 and left 2 children behind. He was also a co-worker but I still considered him a friend. What can I do be a better person and a Christian. I do need help and strength.
We do not have any idea when we will take our last breath. So, what comes to mind that I need to do is use each day as it is your last. Have a personal relationship with your savior, Jesus Christ; be kind to others; witness and plant the seed and follow your passions and use your gifts in life.
One of the worst feelings I can have is knowing a friend or family member passed without me sharing the Gospel. God puts us here to fill His kingdom. My final thought and question; God has given you His Son, what have you done with Him?

Distance from God

I can always tell when I am distant from God. Problem is, it's like cooking a frog in the kettle. Satan turns up the heat gradually. My realization came Saturday night when a brother of mine gave me his testimony and invited me to a Bible study.  It woke me up and I was able to get back on path with God. Sometimes we don't see it coming. The best way to prevent this, is a close relationship with your heavenly Father.
God Father, I hope this blesses someone who reads this. Please touch their heart. In Jesus' mighty name, Amen.

Just showing up

I have heard that sometimes you just need to put away your "need" list and just show up. God wants to meet with us and have that relationship. Listening to Him to give us direction in our life. There is nothing wrong with telling Him our needs. Tell Him you love Him, tell Him why.