Month: February 2018

GET TOGETHER- TRIALS LEAD TO GROWTH

1Pe 4:12 ¶ Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you. (NKJV)

I will never forget February 11th, 1996. The call came early in the morning that my Daddy had just had a heart attack. Things appeared to be going so perfect. I was in my last Semester at Birmingham Southern College. We were going to be leaving the family business in June to assume our first Pastorate at Bethlehem United Methodist Church in Hamilton, Alabama. The Lord had lined up everyone of my classes so that I could graduate when I did, and I was thinking wow when you say yes to the call of God everything will always be perfect.

That morning I expressed my disappointment and lack of understanding to the Lord as I knelt beside our bed, before I left to go to my Mother and Daddy’s house. When I got there, they were loading Daddy up in the ambulance to take him to Walker Baptist Medical Center in Jasper, Alabama.

While we were in the CCU waiting room. I pulled out a small pocket copy of the Psalms, and the New Testament. When I opened it, I opened it to 1Pe 4:12 ¶ “Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you.” I am not one of these people that believes that God causes bad things to happen to people so that he can teach us a lesson. I do believe that we live in a fallen world and that those demonic forces of evil are at work to kill, steal, and destroy. I also believe that what the enemy means for bad that God can work for good. Eph 1:11 “In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will. So therefore, there are certain things that God allows in His permissive will that will help us to grow.

One thing that we can rejoice in when we go through a fiery trial is that we are loved by God. And not only are we loved by God, but we are loved by God’s people. The Greek term for fiery trial is purosis, poo’-ro-sis. It means to burn, or to experience painful suffering. You may be experiencing some painful suffering right now. When I look back on that day and how God has used that day over the past twenty-two years I can honestly say that I have seen God truly do what he says that He will do in Ro 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. (NKJV)

Our most effective ministry often comes out of our life experience. Whether it be the good, the bad, or the ugly. God doesn’t waste any of our challenges, hurts, disappointments, or any part of our lives. Today you may be going through a fiery trial. There may be someone you love that is on drugs. There may have been a recent family break up. There could have been an unexpected death, or another adverse situation, or circumstance. You may really be feeling the heat of life and it appears that Hell has been saving its best shots to throw at you. Stand on God’s word. Believe that He is going to work it for your good and for His glory.

By standing on God’s faithfulness and His word you will come out a stronger person in the faith than you were before. Peter also had these words to say as well concerning the trials that we go through. 1Pe 1:6-9 In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ, whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, receiving the end of your faith–the salvation of your souls.

Let Us Pray

Lord Jesus we thank you that You are with us when the heat gets really turned up. We thank You that in You the fiery trials, don’t destroy us, but make us stronger. Continually fill us with the Holy Spirit so that others can see the difference in walking through the fire with You than those who have to walk through a fire without You. Help us to help others to walk through that fire as well.

In Jesus Name

Amen

RERELEASE IN A FEW WEEKS

THE REAL PARTY IS AT DADDY’S HOUSE

This is the first book that I wrote based on Luke Chapter 15. There will be more information in the upcoming weeks.

Your Friend/Kinfolk

Preston

GET TOGETHER- Tongues of Life

Eph 4:29 Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers.

Well today you get to read me preaching to myself. I pray that this will be beneficial to you in some way. To be honest every time that I preach, or teach the Holy Spirit always deals with me about whatever the topic, or theme of the message or lesson is about. Before I came to the Lord there were occasions when I could use some pretty foul language. It was mostly in private conversations with friends, or when I had indulged in something that was not good for me.

So, when I gave my life to Jesus Christ in 1990 that was one of the first things that He did was eliminate profanity from me. As a matter of fact, I often joke that when the Lord called me to go back to college that the only reason that I could figure out that He had me to take Algebra was to make sure that my language was cleaned up before I started preaching. I hope that didn’t offend any Algebra teachers out there.

With that said there have been at least two times this week that the Holy Spirit has dealt with me about my tongue. The first one was at our son’s basketball game this week. There were a couple of times during the game that I thought that the referees might have missed a few calls. I didn’t think that my words were that loud. However, J.J. Reminds me that I am loud most all the time.

I became convicted about this because one of my prayers this year is to let everything that I do bring glory to the Lord. The Lord even convicted me that one, or all the referees could be Christians and they really needed me praying for them, more than griping about calls.

The other time had to do with something that I didn’t mean to come out the way that it did, but none the less it came out. I was trying to make a point with someone and the way that it came out it was demeaning someone else. I never want to do that because all people are important to God.

The Greek term for corrupt in this passage is sapros, sap-ros’. It means pertaining to that which is harmful, unwholesome, and corrupting. Jesus Had a different kind of tongue. That is the kind of tongue that He wants all of us as His followers to have. Jesus said in Joh 6:63 “It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life.” James had this to say about the tongue in Jas 3:8 “But no man can tame the tongue. It is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison.” (NKJV) That might sound hopeless, but it is not. We as humans cannot tame our tongues, but the good news is that the Holy Spirit can. Jesus spoke words that were spirit and life. The Holy Spirit will help us to do the same thing.

The Greek term for edification here is oikodome, oy-kod-om-ay’. It means to increase the strength, or potential of someone with the focus upon the process involved. Today is Valentine’s Day. Many people will be sending their spouse, their friends, children, parents and other people valentines with nice words on them. If we will submit our tongues to the Holy Spirit He will give us words that build others up rather than tearing them apart. This will be something that we can do year-round. By the way it makes me feel so much better to build someone up rather than to tear them down. So, you guys pray for me and I will pray for you that our tongues are instruments of God’s grace all the time on every occasion.

Let Us Pray

Lord we come to You today confessing that we need help in taming our tongues. We desire for our tongues to be used to bring glory to Your Name. Forgive us when they haven’t and empower us in a way so that they will.

In Jesus Name

Amen

Happy Valentine’s Day to all our many friends, and family members! We love you!

Your Friend/Kinfolk

Preston

GET TOGETHER- Remember What God Has Done for You

Jos 4:3 -7″and command them, saying, ‘Take for yourselves twelve stones from here, out of the midst of the Jordan, from the place where the priests’ feet stood firm. You shall carry them over with you and leave them in the lodging place where you lodge tonight.'” Then Joshua called the twelve men whom he had appointed from the children of Israel, one man from every tribe; and Joshua said to them: “Cross over before the ark of the LORD your God into the midst of the Jordan, and each one of you take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the children of Israel, “that this may be a sign among you when your children ask in time to come, saying, ‘What do these stones mean to you?’ “Then you shall answer them that the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the LORD; when it crossed over the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. And these stones shall be for a memorial to the children of Israel forever.”

 

I plan to start back doing something that I did at the last house that we lived in.  There was a place in our back yard that I had made an altar out of rocks. When I would remember something good that God had done in my life I would take a rock put it down and say a short prayer thanking God for what He had done.  Sometimes it would be something recently and sometimes it would be something that the Holy Spirit would bring to my attention that God had done in the past.  There were some occasions that my grandson Judah would go with me and he always enjoyed pouring the anointing oil on the rocks when we offered up a prayer.

I am big on celebrating what I call twelve stone occasions. This past weekend was one of mine. I got saved on the first Saturday in February 1990. I celebrate that every year. It reminds me of the faithfulness of God and just how far God reached down into the pit and brought me out of the pit and put me on good ground. Also, I don’t want to be like nine of the lepers that Jesus healed in this account from the Gospel of Luke Lu 17:14-19 So when He saw them, He said to them, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And so it was that as they went, they were cleansed. And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, returned, and with a loud voice glorified God, and fell down on his face at His feet, giving Him thanks. And he was a Samaritan. So Jesus answered and said, “Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine?  “Were there not any found who returned to give glory to God except this foreigner? “And He said to him, “Arise, go your way. Your faith has made you well.”

Celebrating twelve stone occasions helps us to live a life of thanksgiving. Sometimes we go through challenging times and when we have put down twelve stones we just like Israel could do we can remember when God did supernatural things on our behalf. To be honest He is always working supernaturally on our behalf even when we don’t see it or feel it.

I would like to share when God first made me aware of twelve stone moments.  I am doing this because I believe that it will help someone else. While I was still working in our family business the Lord had called me to go back to college. I attended Birmingham Southern College.

The day of our graduation was on a beautiful Saturday afternoon in May of 1996. We would be leaving the business in about two weeks to begin our first Pastoral assignment. My daddy was in bed at his house.  He was still trying to recover from a heart attack that he had in February of that year. He could not attend my graduation, so I went out to see him. Our son Jake was going with me to the graduation ceremony. Our daughter Jessye was in a dance recital on that same day so she and J.J. couldn’t go with us.

I had flunked out of college at Jacksonville State University in 1968. My daddy had worked in the coal mines crawling around in the mud  to send me to college. That day I asked him to forgive me for flunking out of school and partying while he was working hard, risking his life to make us a living.  I also got to tell him that twelve hours from Jacksonville State had been salvaged and helped me to graduate when I did.

The graduation ceremony was at Boutwell Auditorium on Eighth Avenue in Birmingham.  While we were marching in I was thinking about the times that I had been in that Auditorium at rock concerts stoned out of my mind. I thought about how the Lord had protected me and delivered me from that rebellious lifestyle There were nights that I really don’t know how that I made it home.  That is redemption! God will take what we have messed up and dress it up. When we stood up to go receive our degrees I heard the Holy Spirit say “you are crossing the Jordan, put down twelve stones.”

 

How about you? Are there twelve stone moments in your life? Are you celebrating them and giving God the glory for them? Your testimony and remembering them will benefit you as you continue your journey with Jesus Christ. They will also help someone else to either start the journey, or to continue to move forward in their journey.  Put down twelve stones and celebrate the goodness of God in your life!

 

Let Us Pray

Lord let this testimony only be for the Glory of God and to help others on their journey. May we all celebrate those twelve stone occasions when we know that You have done something big time for us.

In Jesus Name

Amen

 

Any testimony I ever give I want to be sure that Jesus gets the glory. Before Him and without Him I could do nothing.

Your Friend/Kinfolk

Preston