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GET TOGETHER- I Know It Was the Blood

Ro 5:7-9 For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him.

One of my favorite things to do in ministry is going to the Hamilton A@I Correctional Facility. I love worshipping with the men out there and the Praise Team. It is always a great blessing. They sing all different kinds of worship music. It is a lot like Heaven as all the men join in worship no matter what type of Christian music that a particular song may come from.

One of my favorites that they sing is “I Know It Was the Blood.” Verse one goes like this:

Verse 1

I know it was the blood,

I know it was the blood,

I know it was the blood for me.

One day when I was lost

He died upon that cross,

I know it was the blood for me

I am sure that all of us as Christians have at times been reminded of our sinful pasts. That is one of the main tools of the demonic forces that come against us. If they can convince us that our pasts have not been forgiven then not only do they rob us of our peace, but they hinder us from sharing the good news that Jesus Christ came to save sinners with others.

I love the above passage. First, we see that Jesus Christ the Incarnate Son of God loved us enough when we were living in sin and rebellion to die for us. We also see the love of the Father. I love you all of you and love people. On the other hand, I would not offer either of our children as a sacrifice for the forgiveness of your sins. Much less the sins of the most hardened people that have ever walked the face of the earth.

Of course, we know that only the Holy Blood of Jesus Christ is sufficient for the forgiveness of sins: “Not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption. For if the blood of bulls and goats and the ashes of a heifer, sprinkling the unclean, sanctifies for the purifying of the flesh, how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?” (Hebrew 9:12-14)

I can remember when I was going to church for four or five years that I didn’t think that my sins could be forgiven. I thought that they were too bad and too many. When someone told me about the Blood and that one drop of the Blood of Jesus could take away all of my sins and that my past could be forgiven that day I knew that I was saved, and I surrendered my life to Him.

Think about how much God loves us. That when we were committing things that were so reprehensible He loved us anyway. Jesus was willing to go to the cross and take upon Him every awful sin that humanity would commit in order that we would repent of our sins and be saved by faith in His precious blood. 2Co 5:21 For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. (NKJV)

Today can you like me and my good friends who worship at Hamilton A@I sing I know it was the blood? If you can give Him thanks and praise that Him. He loved you enough to go to the cross and die for your sins. If you can’t He wants you to know that no matter what you have done in the past if you will repent meaning turn away from your sin and put your faith in His shed blood and His shed blood alone He is willing to forgive you of your sins and give you eternal life. Then you can have assurance and you can sing this as well. Look at the last verse of the song.

Verse 6

He rose up from the dead,

He rose up from the dead,

He rose up from the dead for me.

One day when I was lost

He died upon that cross,

He rose up from the dead for me.

Verse 7

He’s coming back again,

He’s coming back again,

He’s coming back again for me.

Let Us Pray

Lord Jesus we thank you for the precious Holy Blood that You shed for us on the cross. We thank You for the mercy that You grant to those who put their faith in You. Today Lord help us to share this good news with those who have never experienced the forgiveness of their sins.

In Jesus Name

Amen

God bless all of you. Thanks so much for your love and friendship.

Your Friend/kinfolk

Preston

GET TOGETHER- Loving People Who Oppose Your Message

Ac 7:59,60 And they stoned Stephen as he was calling on God and saying, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” Then he knelt down and cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not charge them with this sin.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep. Ac 26:27,28 “King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know that you do believe.”
Then Agrippa said to Paul, “You almost persuade me to become a Christian.”

We live in a culture that is often openly hostile to the message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It offends our current culture to publicly proclaim that Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world. It offends our current culture to proclaim that marriage is between one man and one woman. It offends our current culture to proclaim that life begins at conception. And yet as Christians we are called and commanded to love those who oppose us.
One of the areas that I have really been praying about lately is how to love people without compromising truth. That can be very challenging. I do love people. I am thankful for people. I love people of different colors. I love people of different nationalities. I love people who are currently living in sinful lifestyles and in rebellion against God. I am thankful that people loved me when I was living a sinful lifestyle. I am also thankful that God loved me to much to leave me in a sinful lifestyle.
A temptation when you love people like I do is to fall into the danger of relativism where one thinks well this might be right for you, but it is not right for me. The best place to look on how to love people and to still be faithful is in the word of God.
Stephen had preached the truth. The Pharisees and the religious leaders could not handle it. Stephen had preached the truth out of love for Jesus Christ and out of love for his people. And yet they had him stoned to death. But did he respond with viciousness and a desire to seek revenge upon those who condemned him? No, he responded out of love with a forgiving heart. He did not fall for the scheme of the enemy to destroy his testimony by responding the way that the world would respond. His battle just like ours is not against flesh and blood, but as the word tells us in Eph 6:12 “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.”
Recently there have been several occasions where the enemy has tried to sucker me in to fight battles in the flesh rather than in the spirit. We need to pray for God to give us a love for those who hate us and hate the message that we teach and preach. Jesus said it like this “Mt 5:44 “But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you.”

Another example is the Apostle Paul. He had just poured his heart out to King Agrippa. Agrippa had been made superintendent of the temple in Jerusalem by the Romans. He had the authority to dismiss charges against Paul. Paul loves him enough to share his testimony and to offer Christ to him. Yet, Agrippa refuses God’s offer of mercy and grace. But what a good example of loving one who hates your message that we see in the Apostle Paul right here. He pours his heart out before a King who lived a very immoral and extravagant lifestyle. He does this out of love for Christ and because he knows that as one that had been forgiven much that God was willing to forgive Agrippa if he had asked him to. Rather than receiving Christ after Paul had finished his response was this “Ac 26:28 Then Agrippa said to Paul, “You almost persuade me to become a Christian.” I wonder how many times that he has regretted making that statement over the past two thousand years.

My prayer for myself and all of us who are followers of Jesus Christ and hold to a Biblical worldview is that He will help us to love those that persecute us. This morning as I was praying in the church sanctuary I was calling out names of people who openly oppose the Gospel of Jesus Christ to experience his love and to be turned from darkness to light from the power of Satan to God. I also prayed that the Lord would help me to love those who oppose the Gospel and that my desire to see them saved would not be to prove that we are right, but for them to know what true love and forgiveness is through a born-again relationship with Jesus Christ.

LET US PRAY

Lord when you walked this earth there were people who hated your message. Some were religious, some were the Romans who were occupying Your land and others like the man on the cross who rejected the mercy that You were offering. Help us to love those who oppose us. Help us to pray for them and have a desire to see them come into the Kingdom. You love to turn Your enemies into friends. Thank You that You did that in my life. Please do it in the lives of others.
In Jesus Name
Amen

The trip to Guatemala to serve with Eyes Wide Open Ministries went great. Daniel and Brandi McIntyre and the interns that serve under them are as faithful as any people that I have ever served with. One of our members here Tinsley Gregg went with me. While there we had the opportunity to minister and preach in two churches. We had a Conference for Pastors at the awesome facility that God has provided for Eyes Wide Open Ministry. There were 34 Pastors that came. More than that the Holy Spirit came in a very special way. Thank you for praying for us. We love you all!
Your Friend/kinfolk
Preston

GET TOGETHER – Keep On Going Breakthrough Is Coming

Ps 34:19 Many are the afflictions of the righteous, But the LORD delivers him out of them all. (NKJV) Ro 12:12 rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer;

Several people in our congregation have been going through some challenging times. One family is the family of Ben and Sherry Harbor. They are very faithful people here at Christ Community Fellowship. Ben leads a men’s breakfast and teaches a Sunday school class. He and Sherry both have a strong gift of intercession and minister in the altars here during our services.
They have been under a strong spiritual attack and have had some very challenging things happen to them recently.
Sherry has had some ongoing issues with her neck and back. Ben is in the construction business and last week for the first time in his career in the housebuilding business he had a wall to fall that they were building. Prior to this the apartment that his Mother lives in flooded. Ben and Sherry own these apartments and later in the week they found out that they had termites in the apartment because of the flooding.
The next thing that happened was their granddaughter Susie had to have a tube put in her stomach to get nourishment for her little body. While they were at the hospital their daughter Jennifer, Susie’s mother got sick and had to go to the emergency room. This family got very little sleep or rest last week.
A lot of people that had been through the week they had been through would have stayed home from our service last week. But guess what? They didn’t let the enemy, or the situation make them stay home. They were there worshipping, testifying and praising the Lord this past Sunday morning.
Early that morning the Holy Spirit had told me to ask people who felt like they had been going through Hell this past week to come to the altar. Not only did they come, but several others did. Others gathered around these and prayed for them. It was a glorious time!
The best was still yet to come. Ben and Sherry’s granddaughter Savannah came to church with them this past Sunday morning. She had asked if she could sing a song. We told her she could. When she got up to sing the anointing of the Holy Spirit was all over her. Again it was a glorious time! Heaven and earth truly met while Savannah was singing!
I praise God for saints like Ben and Sherry If they had stayed home it would certainly have been understandable. But they are people of faith. They like all of us when we go through a challenging time don’t know when the break through is coming. But we do know that God is true to His word and we are promised that we will be delivered out of all of our afflictions.
Paul tells us in Ro 12:12 “rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer.” The Greek term for rejoicing means to enjoy a state of happiness during a time of trial. The Greek term for hope means to look forward with confidence to that which is good and beneficial. Without breaking down the other terms I think that you get the picture. When Hell and life are throwing the junk at us we can look forward with confidence that God is going to not only bring us through it, but do something great in us during the process. One key thing to remember is to continue steadfast in prayer.
Listen I know that Hell is a real place that is prepared for the devil and his angels. And I know that here on earth we are not literally in Hell like those that are not saved will be one day. On the other hand, there can be times that it feels like we have been through Hell, or going through Hell with some of the circumstances that we encounter. If that is you, or someone you know I want to pray for you right now.

Lord Jesus first we are thankful that as Your redeemed children of God that we have been saved from burning in Hell for eternity. On the other hand Lord we know that the forces of Hell want to rob us of the joy that we experience in our relationship with You and with others. Right now, Lord we come and declare over every person that is reading this that no weapon formed against them will prosper. We declare that when the enemy comes in one direction that he must flee in seven.
We declare that what he means for bad that God will work for good, knowing that all things work for good for those who love You and are called according to Your purpose.
In Jesus Name
Amen

May God bless you all in a great and mighty way!
Your Friend/Kinfolk
Preston

Joh 8:3-11 Then the scribes and Pharisees brought to Him a woman caught in adultery. And when they had set her in the midst, they said to Him, “Teacher, this woman was caught in adultery, in the very act. “Now Moses, in the law, commanded us that such should be stoned. But what do You say?” This they said, testing Him, that they might have something of which to accuse Him. But Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with His finger, as though He did not hear. So when they continued asking Him, He raised Himself up and said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first.” And again He stooped down and wrote on the ground. Then those who heard it, being convicted by their conscience, went out one by one, beginning with the oldest even to the last. And Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst. When Jesus had raised Himself up and saw no one but the woman, He said to her, “Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?” She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said to her, “Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more.”

Here we have a woman that has been caught in the very act of adultery. To be honest we don’t know where the man was. He could have fled the scene, or there could have been some other reason that he was not there. The law called for both to be stoned to death. De 22:22 “If a man is found lying with a woman married to a husband, then both of them shall die-the man that lay with the woman, and the woman; so you shall put away the evil from Israel.”

There are times that we may feel like we have committed too many and too horrible of sins to be forgiven of. This woman had to be feeling as if her back was to the wall. But rather than looking up to the executioner she was looking up at mercy.

I will try to keep this brief. Jesus told the Pharisees and scribes that if any were without sin that they could cast the first stone. There was only one there that could cast that first stone. His Name is Jesus because He is the sinless Son of God! However, He didn’t come to stone. He came to forgive.

There were none were left to stone her. They all went out one by one beginning with the oldest. Now we see the grace of God at work :Joh 8:10,11 When Jesus had raised Himself up and saw no one but the woman, He said to her, “Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you? “She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said to her, “Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more.”

I used to say that Jesus forgiving her was liberal. I used to say that Jesus telling her to go and sin no more was conservative. But really it isn’t either one. It is grace. Jesus wasn’t really worried about whether He had liberal, or conservative credentials. He came to save and change sinners.

Most of us really like the part that says, “he who is without sin let him cast the first stone.” That is grace. Praise God for the grace that we can receive to be forgiven of our sins. At one time in my life I thought that mine were too many and too bad to be forgiven. But praise God for the blood of Jesus that is on the mercy seat!

On the other hand, when Jesus tells her to go and sin no more that is grace as well. We don’t often hear people quote that part of the verse. It would be the grace that would keep her from going back into a lifestyle of adulterous living and sexual sin. Praise God for the sanctifying, transforming grace that will take us out of lifestyles that are in rebellion against God. If not for that grace you would not be reading this from me. There are times that the enemy will try to offer us the temporary pleasures of sin to rob us of the life that our Lord desires for us to have. When that happens respond with the word of God and ask the Holy Spirit to help you to keep moving forward with the Lord Jesus Christ away from sin and into His glorious presence.

I pray that you have received that grace of forgiveness. If you haven’t He will forgive you right where you are right now. If you have then ask him to continually pour out His grace upon you that keeps you moving forward in a joyful relationship with Him, rather than returning to a life filled with sin, guilt, and shame.

Let Us Pray

Lord we thank you for the grace that You give that allows us to be forgiven of our sins and restored and reconciled to an eternal relationship with You. Lord today we ask you to continually fill us with your Holy Spirit and keep us from returning to our old sinful destructive habits. Thank You again for the grace that forgives, and for the grace that sustains and empowers.

In Jesus Name

Amen

Thanks to all of you who love us and pray for us. That is the greatest thing that anyone could do for anyone else!

Your Friend/Kinfolk

Preston

GET TOGETHER- DON’T GRIEVE THE HOLY SPIRIT

Eph 4:29-32 Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice. And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God in Christ forgave you. (NKJV)

For all of us when we come to the Lord Jesus Christ there are areas that we need the Holy Spirit to work in our lives. I have had to pray this passage over myself and certain situations on numerous occasions since I became a Christian. As a follower of Jesus Christ, I certainly don’t want to grieve the Holy Spirit by exhibiting those seven behaviors or actions in the above passage. Those being corrupt words, bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, evil speaking and malice. Below I have these words and the Greek terms that the Bible was originally written in for each one.

1. Bitterness- pikria, pik-ree’-ah . It can figuratively or literally mean poison. A state of sharp resentment or hate; spite or bitter resentment

2. Wrath- thumos, thoo-mos’ a state of intense anger with the implication of passionate outbursts

3. Anger -orge, or-gay’ a state of anger or fury

4. Clamor- To cry out against someone or shout at them in a disrespectful manner

5. Evil speaking blasphemia, blas-fay-me’-ah To speak against someone in a way that will bring harm, or injure his or her reputation

6.Malice-kakia, kak-ee’-ah a feeling of strong dislike with a possible implication of the desire to do harm

I have thought about some of the ads that I have seen by some of our candidates that are running for statewide office. As a Christian that is Pro-Life and a believer that marriage is between one and one woman I have been troubled by these ads where candidates that advertise that they are Christians slam their opponents.

I don’t think us being Pro-Life and Pro Marriage between one man and one woman exempts us from abstaining from these behaviors that grieve the Holy Spirit. Certainly, we are to speak the truth. Certainly, we are to stand up for what we believe. But we are also to do this without grieving the Holy Spirit.

In a culture that is so hostile to the church we will need the Holy Spirit’s help to speak the truth in love. We will need the Holy Spirit’s help to not as Paul writes in Ro 12:17 Repay no one evil for evil. Have regard for good things in the sight of all men. (NKJV)

If you noticed I left off one behavior in my list. It is speaking corruptly. The Greek term here for corrupt is sapros, sap-ros’. It means pertaining to that which is harmful in view of its being unwholesome and corrupting – ‘harmful, unwholesome.’

We can see many that oppose the Gospel filled with rage, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking. The devil would like to have us to resort to those behaviors. But if we will not grieve the Holy Spirit we can depend upon Him to help us to glorify God even in the face of persecution and hostility. 2Co 10:4,5” For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.”

LET US PRAY

Lord Jesus I know for me and many others there are times that the enemy attempts to get us to respond as the world responds when we are persecuted or criticized. We need Your help through the Holy Spirit to not grieve the Holy Spirit and act in a manner that brings glory to Your Holy Name. Help us to pray through this passage in all circumstances and situations where we would be tempted to speak, or act in a way that would not bring glory to You.

In Jesus Name

Amen

God Bless you all!

Your Friend/Kinfolk

Preston

BLAST FROM THE PAST

GET TOGETHER – Others Are Important

Mt 7:12 ¶ “Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.

I must admit that some of my weakness and shortcomings that the Lord is healing me from are people pleasing, performance, and the opinion of man. And yes, I have been delivered from those demonic spirits, but we also must learn how to walk in a way where we are not only free of those, but realize that we are still called to love and value people.

Sometimes on the other hand we can often go to the other extreme where we don’t value people and we can become self-centered and forget that Jesus has commanded us to love others and to care for them. When Jesus was pressed by the Pharisees about what was the greatest commandment here is how He answered Mt 22:37-39 Jesus said to him,” ‘You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.” This is the first and great commandment. “And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” The Greek term for like in verse 39 is hom’-oy-os. It means being like something else in some respect. As some of the billboards on the highway used to say Jesus is serious about that loving your neighbor thing. It is a commandment from Him.

Here are a few questions that I need to ask myself. When I am tempted to fault find another Christian would I want them to fault find me? When I am in the company of a non-Christian can I win them better by treating them as I would want to be treated, or by being a jerk to them? Wasn’t that what Jesus was trying to teach us when He taught the Parable about the Good Samaritan ( Read Luke 10:30-37) ?

One of my favorite passages is Php 2:3” Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself.” With that said I pray that for all of us in the Body of Christ we will know that just because we are not supposed to be man pleasers, or perform so that we can get the approval of others we are called to love, serve, and value others without any other motive, but loving God, and loving our neighbor. When we do we are obeying what Jesus said to do and we will be about the business of advancing the Kingdom of God upon the earth.

Let Us Pray

Lord today we thank You that you have called us to be a people that love You with all our heart, soul, mind and strength. You have also commanded us to love our neighbor sa ourselves and to do good to them. We need Your help. We also know that some will need Your help in loving us. Help us to love, serve, and treat others the way that you have commanded us to do.

In Jesus Name

Amen

Your Friend/Kinfolk

Preston

GET TOGETHER- CAN WE STILL WIN THEM?

Lu 11:17 But He, knowing their thoughts, said to them: “Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and a house divided against a house falls. (NKJV)

What a great and undeserved blessing it is for me to live in the United States. I have been to several countries and met wonderful people in all of them. But I am always thankful to get back home and enjoy the freedom and the blessings that God has given to our nation. I pray that in no way in this Get Together that I try to make a political point on behalf of, or in opposition to any political figure in this nation. That is certainly not my intent. Also, I am not putting this here for some type political, or religious debate.

I will be upfront I am a person that believes that life begins at conception, and that marriage is between one man and one woman. I also know that racism is a very serious sin that has led to much mistrust and bitterness in our nation. When I was working in our family business there were at least two times as late as the 1970’s that I had some customers try to intimidate me because we had served African Americans in our business.

As a Christian that fully believes that there is only one God who has revealed Himself to us through His only begotten son Jesus Christ in whom I believe the following words to be so true “Ac 4:12 “Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” I have a question for the church. And that question is for me as well.

Can we still win people to Christ? A Pastor friend of mine who I would consider more conservative in some ways than me gave me two good words of wisdom one time. He told me to not try to defeat those that oppose the Gospel, but to try to win them. The other word was to preach prophetically and love pastorally. Meaning preach the word without compromise, love the people, and depend upon the Holy Spirit to do the work of convicting people of their sin.

There is an uncivil war going on in our nation now. For us as Christians our battle isn’t against people. Eph 6:12 “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.” (NKJV)

One of the devices of the enemy is to try to get Christians to respond in a manner no different than the world’s response. We are told to respond in a different way than the way that the world, or those who oppose the Gospel respond “Ro 12:21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”(NKJV) Jesus said it like this Mt 5:44 “But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you. ” (NKJV)

Certainly, there are evil forces at work in this nation and yes, they do work through people. Before I became a Christian the forces of evil worked through me as they do all lost people in some way. But praise God somebody was praying for me and loving me despite my sinful wicked condition! And Praise God that God used them to win me to Christ!

As we celebrate the birth of this wonderful country that many have died for. A country that I believe was founded on Christian principles although we have not always been perfect in adhering to them. My prayer is that God will birth a desire to pray for those to be converted that oppose the Gospel in this nation. For we all once opposed it either wittingly unwittingly: Ro 5:10 “For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.”

My prayer also is that God will once again birth an evangelistic and missionary zeal in His church again. Here is a statistic that should challenge us all 75 percent of all Christians do not believe that sharing their faith is important. We can’t win them if we don’t think that it is important. My answer to the question that I posed is yes, we can still win them. We can win them if we get our eyes on Jesus. We can win them if we truly make our churches Houses of prayer. We can win them if our lives reflect the life of Christ and most of all we can win them if we really have a desire to win them. I pray that as we all celebrate the 4th of July that we will prayerfully ask the Lord to guide us and direct us in order that we can win the lost to Christ. I believe that God would love to redeem all that is wrong in this wonderful nation and make it a light shining on a hill. Not only may God bless you, and God bless this nation, but may God use us to bless others.

Let Us Pray

Lord Jesus we thank You that you are the only Name given unto Heaven through which men and women can be saved. Forgive us for not being concerned about the souls of those that oppose the Gospel. You came to seek and to save that which was lost. Make our churches Houses of Prayer. Make us a people that rather than trying to beat the lost, but a people that can win the lost.

In Jesus Name

Amen

I do pray that all of you in the United States that are reading this will enjoy a wonderful 4th of July. For our brothers and sisters in Christ that we have been so blessed to serve with in other countries that are reading this we do covet your prayers and we do know that God desires to bless your nation as well. Looking forward to seeing our friends in Guatemala very soon!

Your Friend/Kinfolk

Preston

GET TOGETHER- IT’S A TEAM THING!

1Co 12:14-18 For in fact the body is not one member but many. If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I am not of the body,” is it therefore not of the body? And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I am not of the body,” is it therefore not of the body If the whole body were an eye, where would be the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where would be the smelling? But now God has set the members, each one of them, in the body just as He pleased.

This past weekend my son-in love Shaun and two of our grandsons Judah and Micah participated in a Father – Son Basketball Camp at Missouri State University where our son Jake is an Assistant Coach. We all had a great time!

During the camp Head Coach Dana Ford answered questions as we sat in the team meeting room. He also shared some of his coaching philosophy. He told us that in a team sport such as Basketball that it isn’t about the individual, but about the team. He shared that for those that may not buy into the team concept that perhaps they should pursue another sport that is about the individual rather than the team. That made think about how the church is like a team.

Certainly, God loves us individually. Jesus died on the cross for our sins. We can now have a personal relationship with Him because of that. However, the Bible also points out that we are saved to serve. We are to be in a loving relationship first with God, but also in a loving relationship with other members of the Body of Christ.

All of us have an important and essential role to play in the Body of Christ. I cannot say of Christians that may be in another part of the Body of Christ that I have no need of you. You can’t either. We may not always serve side by side. We may have different worship styles, but we are one body. We all need each other’s prayers. We all need each other’s love and support.

Within our local congregations we all need one another. For example, I just had to call one of our members to come and check something here at the church that really isn’t in my area of expertise. God has created all of us in some way to contribute to the body. Don’t ever think that what you are doing even if no one see it, but God is not important.

As the Body of Christ, we have an important assignment. We are called to advance the Kingdom of God upon the earth. If you are a hand, ask God to anoint that hand to use for His glory. If you are an eye, or a foot, do the same.

When we have a personal relationship with Christ that does not mean that we have a private relationship with Christ. Jesus said it like this:

Joh 17:20 -23 “I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; “that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.” And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one “I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.” The writer in Hebrews says it like this : Heb 10:24,25 And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, 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.”

We have no other option, but to be team players. But what a glorious option that is. This team never loses and one day we will see our opponent that is already defeated put away forever: Re 20:10 “The devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.” Be a team player! Help recruit others to the team! The benefits are eternal!

Let Us Pray

Lord Jesus forgive us for the times that we have not been team players. Today help us through the Holy Spirit to fulfill our calling in the Body of Christ. We pray as eyes we will see, as ears we will hear what the Holy Spirit is saying ,and as feet we will go where you have commanded us to go.

In Jesus Name

Amen

For the sake of being modest I won’t share about my performance at the Camp. You can check with the coaching staff. (Lol)

Your Friend/Kinfolk

Preston

GET TOGETHER-  He Shall Direct Us In All Things

Joh 16:13 “However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come. (NKJV)

 

When I was about twenty years old I coached a Junior High Football Team. I made many mistakes during those two years.   There is one that stands out to me and that I would learn from.  It happened like this.  One time was when  I changed a play when I yelled the change to a player that I was sending in off the bench.   He was so far out on the field that he could not understand me.   The play that he thought I called sounded like the play that we needed to run, but it wasn’t the one that we needed to run, and we got tackled for a loss at a very crucial time.   It was not the players fault. It was mine.

When we need direction from God we don’t need to be concerned that He is going to tell us what to do at the wrong time. His timing is always perfect.   Although the voice of the Lord is powerful and can reach us at any physical distance we can allow some things to distance ourselves from the Lord that would inhibit us from hearing His voice.

We can let being busy with even good things that inhibit us from spending time with God. We can begin to read the word prayerlessly and it becomes like homework rather than enjoying intimacy with our Heavenly Father. 

Jesus said that the Holy Spirit will guide us into all truth. We don’t have to wonder, or guess what truth is.  He will reveal the Father’s will for us in our congregation, our families, our calling in life, and every other aspect of our lives. He will never misunderstand what the Father is saying.  He will always communicate the right play to run at the right time. 

 He will also tell us what to do in the future. We don’t have to guess, and we don’t have to wonder.  We are reminded of all these things throughout the Scriptures Pr 3:5,6 Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.”

The Bible tells us that the Holy Spirit will speak to us. This morning as I was praying about a matter after some good quality time with the Lord I heard the small still voice of the Lord tell me what to do concerning this matter. In Joh 10:27 we are told “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. (NKJV) He never miscommunicates. He never leads us in a wrong direction.

There were some things that I probably should have thought about as I was trying to change the play that I was sending in by the young man. I should have thought about was he able to hear what I was shouting at the distance that he was from me.  He was also a young player and was probably a little nervous.   Our Heavenly Father knows the perfect way and the perfect time to get His message to us. It is our responsibility to be seeking, listening, and then doing what He says.

 Today He is speaking to those who will listen. Don’t let sin, or fleshly distractions keep you from hearing His voice and obeying His voice. And as I said earlier don’t let the busyness of life hinder you from hearing His voice.  If we don’t let those things interfere we will hear what to do and what not to do. Then we can walk in victory because He knows what is ahead of us. And He has planned a good future for His children Jer 29:11-13 “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.”

 

 

Let Us Pray

 

Lord Jesus today we pray that You will help us to be good listeners to what the Holy Spirit is saying to us.   We know that the Father has the perfect plan for every part of our lives. Root out the junk in us that inhibits us from hearing the small still voice of the Holy Spirit.

 

In Jesus Name

Amen

 

Blessing to all of you! May we all hear His voice and obey His voice. When we do we can get ready for some God things to come our way!

 

Your Friend/Kinfolk

Preston

 

Today as we were returning home from Springfield Missouri there was a man getting gas right beside us at a station about thirty miles out of Springfield. He had on a T- shirt. On the front it said I have been found. On the back it said “it was right that we should make merry” from Luke 15:32. No matter what you have done there is a Father willing to find you, forgive you, and throw a party to celebrate your return home. Come home today, and let the party begin! “And he said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that I have is yours.  It was right that we should make merry and be glad, for your brother was dead and is alive again, and was lost and is found.’ ”

Luke 15:31-32 NKJV

GET TOGETHER–   TRUST HIM TO DO IT!

Ps 37:3 Trust in the LORD, and do good; Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness. (NKJV)

 

 

This verse comes from one of my favorite Psalms that have so many of the promises of God in them.  I am so glad that Jesus paid the price for His children to be able to receive the promises of God. The Apostle Paul said it like this in “ 2Co 1:20 For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us. (NKJV)

 

Sometimes God allows challenges to come to our life that only He can take care of for us.  Recently J.J. had challenged me to begin to read the passages about trusting God as we were discussing some situations that were challenging to us.

As I began to read and print off several passages on trusting God this one has really stuck with me in a good way.   As Christians we have all put our trust in the Lord Jesus Christ to save us from our sins. As we progress on this journey there are challenges that will come our way to see if we are willing to trust Him in these various circumstances and situations. This is a big part of growing as a Christian.

 

Did you notice that in the passage from Psalms the first thing that we are to do after we trust the Lord is to do good? That is one reason that the enemy will try to get us to believing that we cannot trust God. He wants to inhibit us from doing good.  Remember The serpent convinced Eve that she could not trust God:

           

 

Ge 3:1-5¶ Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?”  And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; “but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.'”  Then the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die.”For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

 

Think about this it was the Lord’s desire that they trust Him, do good, dwell in the land and feed on His faithfulness.  Look what happened because of their mistrust of God.

             Today God desires to do good to His children. There will be times that the enemy will try to convince us that we cannot trust God in certain situations and circumstances.  When this happens, we can either be like Eve and suffer the consequences, or we can feed on the faithfulness of God and dwell in the land as He desires for us to do.   Below are some passages on trust.  This week get some time alone with God and begin to declare these passages over your situations and circumstances.  I believe that when you do you are going to walk in a new level of trust and watch God do some things in you, and for you that only God can do.

 

Let Us Pray

Lord Jesus we thank You that You are always calling us to a higher level of trust. We praise you that there are things that only can be done by the Father-Son-and Holy Spirit on our behalf. We are going to declare your word over them and watch for God to work in a way that it could only be God that did it and that only God can get the Glory for it.

In Jesus Name

Amen

Ps 4:5 Offer the sacrifices of righteousness, And put your trust in the LORD.

Ps 37:3 Trust in the LORD, and do good; Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness.

Ps 40:3 He has put a new song in my mouth-Praise to our God; Many will see it and fear, And will trust in the LORD.

Ps 73:28 But it is good for me to draw near to God; I have put my trust in the Lord GOD, That I may declare all Your works.

Ps 115:9 ¶ O Israel, trust in the LORD; He is their help and their shield.

Ps 115:10 O house of Aaron, trust in the LORD; He is their help and their shield.

Ps 115:11 You who fear the LORD, trust in the LORD; He is their help and their shield.

Ps 118:8 It is better to trust in the LORD Than to put confidence in man.

Ps 118:9 It is better to trust in the LORD Than to put confidence in princes.

We love you guys thanks for your love and encouragement.

Your Friend/Kinfolk

Preston