The Most Attacked Life in the World

I am convinced that one of the most difficult lively hoods today, is the life of a Pastor. I have seen in my life some great Men of God that have stood in the gap and taken a stand for what is right, as well as taken a stand against that which is wrong. Being a Pastor is a public position. Everything that you do is under a microscope. Every word that you say is dissected and looked at under every possible light, and yet your words are not always heard by those who need them most. In the last few years, as I've paid more attention to Pastors that I've come in contact with, I've seen more and more attacks go their way. This does break my heart, but this also comes with the territory. As Pastors, God has put them in a local church to be the man that stands to proclaim every word of the Lord. 2 Timothy 4:2 says, "Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine." This was written to a young pastor... He is called upon the be ready always to preach and proclaim the Word of God. He's to do this when it popular and when it's not popular. He is to reprove: to be the one to correct when things are not done right. He is to rebuke: to express disapproval when things are done wrong. He is to exhort: to advise and to urge those in the faith to do what is good and holy in the eyes of God. These sound harsh on the surface, BUT he is to all these with longsuffering, that is great patience, and with doctrine, that is the Word of God. It is the responsibility of the Pastor to be the one who proclaims God's Word, and that is not a very popular thing to do anymore. Because the Pastor is called by God to do these things he is attacked harder by Satan than the majority of the people he pastors. If Satan can cause the Pastor to fail then he causes an entire congregation to stumble...

As of right now I am not a Pastor. God called me to preach His Word so as His Preacher I will strive to follow 2 Timothy 4:2, but I never want to forget my Pastor. I'm convinced that he spends hours in prayer for me and my family each week. He is fighting a spiritual battle for me by calling for God to help and protect me, and I know that your Pastor is doing the same for you!!! God has placed in me the desire to pastor a church, but even when that day comes may I never forget to pray for MY Pastor! God has given me a GREAT Pastor, and I need to show my thankfulness by praying for him and lifting him up before God daily! Let us be careful what we say about God's Man. Make sure the things that we say are uplifting and make sure that we are lifting him up to God in prayer! Have you prayed for your pastor today? I bet he's prayed for you...

The Short Comings of a Day

Ever had a day where you feel that nothing goes right? Really?!?!? Never?!?!?!?!?!?!? Yeah, right... me too! Every step you take something goes wrong. You wake up late, don't get to bathe (hooray for the military shower - extra deodorant), make it to work right on time but you still feel like you were late sense you were the last one to walk in the door, your mind is racing thinking about everything you couldn't do because you now feel so lazy for sleeping in... The day goes on and as you strive to do your job you find new ways to mess up! You finally make it home and you get started on the list that you thought up during the morning meeting and things just don't go the way you plan. You reach the point of pulling your hair out because of the frustration you feel, and then realize that tomorrow is another day. Its with the thought of tomorrow that I realized something... 1 Thessalonians 5:18, "In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you."

WOW... That "in every thing" kinda covers EVERY THING doesn't it. In the days that we feel it all falling apart, do we thank God for it? Do we stop and put our trust in God for what He has for us in a day where we realize our short comings? What pierced my heart the most was not that I failed in the everything department, but I completely missed the "will of God in Christ Jesus" concerning me. Because I wasn't thankful today I missed the will of God for me today! So what about you? We all have bad days, but that is just another proof that we are alive! So for tomorrow, the day we always look forward to when we have a bad day, lets not miss the will of God for our lives. Lets find a way to be thankful! There is always something to be thankful for. It could be something simple: the fact that we woke up; the fact that we have a job. But when I woke up my back was hurting; or I hate my job. We all face that from time to time, but NEVER forget that Jesus Christ died on the cross for YOU, and because of that YOU can life forever in Heaven! All because He shed His blood for your sin; He paid a debt that you could never pay! There is always something to be thankful for, we just choose not to look for it sometimes. Thank you Lord for loving me, even when I feel so unlovable!

So, What Do You Believe?

Psalms 37:4, "Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart."

So, do we really believe the Bible? Or is it just another book to us? Is the Bible what we pull out only in times of great need, or is it really God's Holy Word? There are so many wonderful promises in God's Word that I think we know about, but there are few that we really care about. God has promised us here that if we delight ourselves in Him that He will give us the desires of our hearts. THAT IS HUGE!!!!! BUT WE DON'T DO IT. If we did really delight ourselves in the Lord we regularly witness the handy work of an almighty God. Many of us have our parts memorized. We look right, we act right, we smile at the right times, we get emotional at the right times, but we are as dead as we can be on the inside. Are you moved to act for the Lord? Are you burdened to spend time with the Lord? Does His word lift you, or do you even read it? Do songs that glorify HIS name fill your heart and mind, or is that just for Sundays? Do you and your friends spend more time talking about last nights game then you do the things of God? Make yourself happy in the things of God. Make Him your #1 focus! Make being like Jesus Christ your #1 goal! Delight yourself also in the Lord! It is only then that He will bless you by giving you the desires of your heart! So... Do we believe this enough to act on it? Do I believe this enough to act on it? Do YOU believe this enough to act on it???

The Greatest Man I Have EVER Known!

My Grandpa passed away on January 9, 2012. We called him Pa. Pa was most definitely a family man and a man of Faith. His life was devoted to the care of his family and the work of his Lord. He never drew a paycheck... What was grown in his garden was what he ate. The crops he was able to sell was the money that he earned. He depended wholly on his Savior for everything in his life. And my Pa was an amazing Bible student! He was one of the wisest men I think I've ever had the pleasure of spending time with. The life of Pa was certainly a lasting impression on my life. Most notably was the impact Pa made on my life with the way he reverenced the things of God. It was this reverence that truly introduced me to the greatest man I've ever known! Jesus Christ, God in the flesh, God with us! Pa's life was one dedicated to Christ. As my family grieves with the loss of Pa we now look Christ as we have been taught. Matthew 11:28, "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." Jesus Christ, the giver of rest to those that are in need; to those that are weary; and those that are burdened down. John 15:13, "Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends." Jesus Christ showed us the greatest love that anyone could ever imagine! He came to this world to die for our sins. He, God in the flesh, laid down His life for us! John 3:16, "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." Jesus Christ, 100% man yet still 100% God. I may not understand it fully how God wrapped himself in a robe of flesh, accepting the limitations that we have, yet without sin. Nevertheless... Jesus Christ, in His deity, in His glory, in His holiness; the greatest man I have ever known!