DATE: 02 06 2008, 7:35 am / MOOD: Happy

Our hearts are heavy this week as we deal with some ‘not so great news’ concerning a special young lady in our church.  She has won the hearts of everyone and has us all eating out of her hand.  Her first question to you when you see her is “Do you love me?”  She already knows the answer but she loves to hear it anyway (that’s an article for next week). Cancer has taken hold of her small body but not her Spirit.  Her Spirit is stronger and brighter than ever and her Faith is as pure as a mustard seed.  We are all drawn to her as her childlike innocence sees things of a spiritual nature that our earthly eyes can’t see.  We all have a lot to learn from her.  She is a perfect example of what true faith is all about.   

After eleven months of planning True Faith has approved the building plans for our new church building and by now the contract has been signed but the ink I’m sure is still wet.  The dollar figure containing all the zeros (before the decimal point) is quite intimidating and would make anybody hesitate signing their name to a piece of paper that ties them to that dollar amount.  However, for eleven months God has provided for all of our needs, not our wants, but every single one of our needs.  We have a temporary building where we hold services at least three times a week in addition to children and youth meets.  Land has been generously donated.  Pews and hymn books were given to us from other churches that heard of our needs.  Our building pad that will be the foundation of our future church was work done by people out of the goodness of their heart.  There are so many blessings that my computer couldn’t hold all the pages. It surpasses all human understanding how all our needs have been provided, but  Proverbs 3:5 says trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. God has provided and He will continue to provide. 

We won’t lie to you, it is a bit hair raising and down right scary to build a church especially in this economy but as God says, through Him all things are possible.  Here is where faith come in. Faith, what is faith?  The Bible says it is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. Hebrews 11:1.  Well I can definitely tell you that the number with all the zeros behind it is unseen, but God promises that we cannot fail and will not fail if we seek Him first.   

We have learned a lot from the young lady mentioned above.  We have put aside our earthly doubts and concerns.  We have put the earthly blinders on and put on our spiritual glasses as we exercise true faith and live up to our name following the example set before us by a young lady battling cancer whose personal relationship with Christ is stronger than most of us can comprehend.  She wants to see a new building and it needs to be soon.  As we stand on the promises of God, a dream of a church building standing under the tall oaks will become a reality.  No more sitting on the premises waiting for it to be built, we will stand on the promises and not only glorify God, but make a young lady’s dream come true. 

You are more than welcome to come join us on this exciting adventure of a lifetime as we step into the water and gain a better understanding what true faith is all about. We invite you to sign our guest book at www.truefaithbaptist.org with words of encouragement for Crystal and her family as they go through this storm in their life, or send a card to PO Box 84, Harrells, NC  28444.

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DATE: 01 10 2008, 6:35 am / MOOD: Happy

Another year has come and gone once again.  The old calendars come down off the refrigerators and are replaced with the new 2008 calendars.  Last year is quickly becoming a distant memory as we get back to a normal schedule after the hustle and bustle of the holidays.  

Looking back over this past year how many non-Christian people did you tell about Christ?  How many un-churched people did you share your testimony with telling them about how God is working in your life?  Did you share with at least one, three or maybe ten?  If you did, that is absolutely wonderful, after all that is what we have been told to do by Christ Himself in Matthew.  Let me tell you a story. 

Two men were in the church office discussing some business of the Church when the subject of witnessing was brought up.  John was telling Mike about how many people he had witnessed to this past year and what a joy it was to be able to tell someone about Jesus and to share the blessings he had received during his walk with God.   Mike felt the same way.  Telling someone about Jesus and helping them to get started on their journey in building a relationship with God is one of the most exciting and joyous occasions we, as Christians, will experience.  The conversation continued and John was able to count at least 27 people he had witnessed to in the past six months.    He asked Mike what his count was and Mike responded with a whopping 384 people in just a week.  John looked at Mike in a strange way with a scrawl on his face as he contemplated the response and Mike began to explain.  “You see John, my number does not represent the people I have talked to about God, it represents the missed opportunities where I could have said something and didn’t.  Yes, I have witnessed to some people, but am ashamed to say that for whatever reason I have passed others by, whether it was because I was in a hurry, afraid of what they might say, afraid of being ridiculed or persecuted or just plain lazy. God put opportunities before me and I did not take advantage of them.  I could have been their only chance to hear about Jesus and what He did for them.”   

How many people have we passed by?  Did we say something to the Cashier at Wal-Mart or the person who takes our order at McDonalds or maybe the person standing next to you in line at the checkout counter?  How many people have we come in contact with today, just today, that we said nothing at all about our Savior who died for us so that we may have eternal life?  You may be the only person who will ever tell this person about Jesus.  Not saying anything is called the “Sin of Silence”, a sin of deadly consequences. 

A new year brings about a new beginning.  What will your number be?  How many missed opportunities will be notched into your belt?  Together we can conquer the “Sin of Silence”. 

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DATE: 12 19 2007, 7:21 am / MOOD: Happy


“Ready for Christmas,” she said with a sigh,
As she gave a last touch to the gifts piled high,
Then wearily sat for a moment and read,
Till soon, very soon, she was nodding her head.

Then quietly spoke a voice in her dream,
“Ready for Christmas? What do you mean?
Ready for Christmas when only last week
You wouldn’t acknowledge your friend on the street.

“Ready for Christmas, while holding a grudge?
Perhaps you had better let God be the judge,
Why, how can the Christ-child come and abide
In the heart that is selfish and filled with pride?

“Ready for Christmas when only today
A beggar lad came and you turned him away
Without even a smile to show that you cared?
The little he asked – it could have been spared.

“Ready for Christmas? You’ve worked, it is true,
But just doing the things that you wanted to do.
Ready for Christmas? Your circle’s too small –
Why, you are not ready for Christmas at all!”

She awoke with a start and a cry of despair,
“There’s so little time and I’ve still to prepare.
O Father, forgive me, I see what You mean,
To be ready means more than a house swept clean.”

Yes, more than the giving of gifts and a tree,
It’s the heart swept clean that He wants to see;
A heart that is free from bitterness, sin –
Ready for Christmas – and ready for HIM.


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DATE: 12 05 2007, 7:59 am / MOOD: Happy

One of the hardest things for people to do is to tell perfect strangers about Jesus.  Why is it so hard?  What are our reasons for not spreading the Good News?  A lot of us have the mentality that, “Hey, here is the Church, they go by it everyday, if they want to come the doors are open”.   What about this one, “I did my part today, I saw Ms. Smith while I was out shopping and invited her to church this Sunday!”  This is good but it is not sharing Jesus.  Sharing Jesus is telling others what Jesus is doing in your life.  Sharing Jesus is caring enough about others to tell them how to get to Heaven, that the only way to Heaven is through Jesus Christ, not by good deeds or works.  You can’t work or pray yourself into Heaven.  “It ain’t gonna happen that way.”   Here are some reasons for not sharing Jesus.

1.      I might get beat up

2.      I won’t make any sense

3.      I might be made fun of

4.      I won’t know how to start

5.      I’ll be a bad witness

6.      I will say the wrong thing

7.      I’ll be a religious nut

8.      I don’t know enough 

I’m sure there are plenty more reasons if you start thinking hard enough, and I think of them more as excuses than reasons.  I’m sure glad when Jesus went to the cross that he didn’t say: 

1.      I’m too tired

2.      I haven’t done anything wrong

3.      Why should I pay your debt?

4.      It will hurt too much

5.      I have something better to do

6.      You’re not worth it

7.      What have you done for me?

8.      I don’t love you enough to die for you.

Actually that is what we are saying when we miss opportunities to share Jesus with others.  Christmas is only a couple of weeks away, a time of giving and receiving gifts.  Have you received your gift from Jesus?  He paid the ultimate price for your gift?  This gift cost God His Son.  How can you turn it down?  Receive your gift, the gift of Eternal Life.  It is a gift that will last more than a life time, it will last forever. 

Tell everyone about Jesus.  He will give you the words to say - just trust Him.  You can do all things through Him - just trust Him.  

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DATE: 10 17 2007, 7:05 am / MOOD: Happy

God is good all the time and it always amazes me how He prepares us for the future choices we must make.  The song “The Blessing” from John Waller was introduced to me a few weeks ago.  I listened to it and at the time honestly didn’t hear anything to get excited about.  A few days later I pulled the song up again on the internet and listened to it in the privacy of my “Closet” and began to let my mind wonder.  The song talked about the trials and tribulations put before us and how we as Christians have a choice to turn those trials and tribulations into a curse or a blessing.          

 How many times have we said “Why does this always happen to me?”, or “Why me?” The question is why not you? What makes us so special that we think we should not suffer through trials and tribulations?  By asking why me, we are really saying why not my neighbor.  In actuality you are wishing your trial on someone else.   Remember the Bible says there is nothing that you and God can’t handle together.  Everyone is going to have trials.  Some are going to be worse than others, but we all have them.  How you choose to handle your trial will be how people will remember you.  I believe for every trial that happens or comes our way there is a hidden blessing.  We can choose to look at the trial as a curse or we can choose to find a blessing or we can choose to be a blessing.  What is your choice… a blessing or a curse? I believe that everything happens for a reason.  I believe everything happens for God’s Glory. (It’s Bible)  I pray that God will allow me and you to find a blessing in every trial that comes our way no matter how big or how small.  By finding a blessing you will become a blessing to someone.  I choose to be a blessing for life.  Do you?

“The Blessing”
John Waller

Let it be said of us
While we walked among the living
Let it be said of us
By the ones we leave behind
Let it be said of us
That we lived to be a blessing for life

Let it be said of us
That we gave to reach the dying
Let it be said of us
By the fruit we leave behind
Let it be said of us
That our legacy is blessing for life

This day
You set life, you set death right before us,
This day
Every blessing and curse is a choice now
And we will choose to be a blessing for life

Let it be said of us
That our hearts belonged to Jesus Let it be said of us
That we spoke the words of life
Let it be said of us
That our heritage is blessing for life

For your Kingdom, for our Children
For the sake of every nation

The LORD thy God turned the curse into a blessing unto thee, because the LORD thy God loved thee. Deuteronomy 23:5

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DATE: 09 27 2007, 5:42 pm / MOOD: Happy

The Prayer Chair

Pastor Hall has been delivering a series of sermons on prayer. A lot of people find it difficult to pray or even how to pray.  This is a story that touched on Pastor Hall’s sermon that came to mind as he was speaking and I want to share it with you.

A man's daughter had asked the local minister to come and pray with her father. When the minister arrived, he found the man lying in bed with his head propped up on two pillows. An empty chair sat beside his bed. The minister assumed that the old fellow had been informed of his visit.

"I guess you were expecting me," he said.

"No, who are you?" said the father.

"I'm the new minister at your church," he replied. "When I saw the empty chair, I figured you knew I was going to show up."

"Oh yeah, the chair," said the bedridden man. "Would you mind closing the door?"

Puzzled, the minister shut the door.

"I have never told anyone this, not even my daughter," said the man. "But all of my life I have never known how to pray. At church I used to hear the pastor talk about prayer, but it went right over my head. I abandoned any attempt at prayer," the old man continued, "until one day about four years ago my best friend said to me, 'Joe, prayer is just a simple matter of having a conversation with Jesus. Here is what I suggest. Sit down in a chair; place an empty chair in front of you, and in faith see Jesus on the chair. It's not spooky because he promised, "I'll be with you always." Then just speak to him in the same way you're doing with me right now.'

So, I tried it and I've liked it so much that I do it a couple of hours every day. I'm careful though. If my daughter saw me talking to an empty chair, she'd either have a nervous breakdown or send me off to the funny farm."

The minister was deeply moved by the story and encouraged the old man to continue on the journey. Then he prayed with him, anointed him with oil, and returned to the church.

Two nights later the daughter called to tell the minister that her daddy had died that afternoon.

"Did he die in peace?" he asked.

"Yes, when I left the house about two o' clock, he called me over to his bedside, told me he loved me and kissed me on the cheek. When I got back from the store an hour later, I found him dead. But there was something strange about his death. Apparently, just before Daddy died, he leaned over and rested his head on the chair beside the bed. What do you make of that?"

The minister wiped a tear from his eye and said, "I wish we could all go like that."

We live by faith, not by sight. 2 Corinthians 5:7

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DATE: 09 26 2007, 7:33 am / MOOD: Happy

 

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DATE: 09 19 2007, 6:12 am / MOOD: Happy

The question was asked, “Why do you read the Bible?”  This really got us to thinking about what our true reason is for reading the Bible.  What is our true reason for wanting to understand the Bible?  We know what the answer should be and some of us are conditioned to spit out the right answer, but is it the real answer?  Some of us have even convinced ourselves that we are reading the Bible for the right reason. However if you look deep down ... no go deeper than that, the real reason is sometimes completely different.

How many times do we try to gain an understanding so that we can have all the answers?  For example some of us have a fear of witnessing because we may not be able to answer questions that are thrown out at us.  Sometimes not having all the answers is a witness as well because it shows that Christians are human too.  It is okay to say, “I don’t know, I need to get back to you.”  Sometimes it is not how much you know, but how you use what you know.  Turn your fears over to God and let Him speak through you when witnessing to others.  It is not as hard as we want to make it out to be.  As long as we are being obedient to God and giving Him the glory, He will give us all the answers we need. 

How many of us want a better understanding to prove others wrong?   Some times we use the Bible to show others, I’m right – you’re wrong.  Showing others proof in the Bible is not a bad thing as long as your motives are in the right place.  To use the Bible to prove a point to intimidate is wrong.  To use the Bible to prove a point to help someone to get back on the right path without intimidating or belittling is a good thing. 

How many of us want a better understanding to strengthen our relationship with Jesus Christ.?  The Bible is God’s Word and the Word is Jesus.  Jesus is the Bible.  We should read the Bible to draw us closer to Him, not to prove others wrong, not so we can have all the answers.  Jesus wants a relationship with you.  What is our real reason for reading the Bible? Give it some thought, it may surprise you. 

I have been guilty of all of them, however once your focus shifts to the relationship with God, the answers you so desperately searched for before begin to reveal themselves. Is it because we have gained a spiritual maturity and God says "Okay you've grown up enough now to have the answers. I know you are not going to use the answer for your glory but Mine. So here it is. Take this answer and apply it to your life and your circumstance. Learn from it and remember it when it is needed to be remembered.

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DATE: 09 12 2007, 7:52 am / MOOD: Happy

“Open or Closed – Part 2”What is your closed door?  Last week the article was about opened and closed doors both physical and spiritual.   Closing doors is like a protection mechanism if you will.  Doors are shut to close ourselves off or barricade us from whatever is on the other side.   After writing the article, I along with others began to think about what we have closed our spiritual doors to.  I’m sure the telephone lines were at capacity and the internet provider experienced an increase in traffic with all the phone calls and emails being made to each other as the realization of another closed door entered our heads.  Hearts were humbled and knees became sore from kneeling as forgiveness was asked for the carelessness of our closed doors and the impact it had on others. 

We all have closed doors and most of the time it is because whatever is on the other side doesn’t meet our individual standards, we don’t want to get involved or we are better off not knowing.  Whatever the excuse, it is still a closed door however you slice it.  Recognizing a closed door is the first step to opening it.  The second step is allowing God to help us open the door again. We can’t do it alone.  It is like forgiveness, we can’t do it by ourselves. Only with God’s help is it possible.  By forgiving others, whether they know they have hurt us or not, is opening a door that was once closed.  It takes God working with us to open the door and to keep it open.  My closed door may not be the same as yours, but regardless it is still a closed door.

There are many examples of closed doors and we would like to hear from you.  What is your idea of a closed door?

 

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DATE: 09 04 2007, 7:24 pm / MOOD: Other

"Open or Closed"

When you open your door, what is your intention?  Do you open the door to circulate some fresh air?  Do you open the door to let the sun shine in? Doyou open the door to better hear the birds singing?  Do you open the door to welcome others?

            When you close your door, what is your intention?  Do you close the door to keep out the rain and storms?  Do you close the door to keep out the bugs and mosquitoes?  Do you close the door to retain the warmth of the inside?  Do you close the door to hide?

            I'm sure you can think of many other reasons to either open or close door.  Most of the time doors are open to let things come in!  Most of the time doors are closed to keep things out!  Open doors make us vulnerable to the outside, while closed door protect us from the outside.

            Just take a few minutes to think of other reasons why we open or close doors.  The door we are talking about is a physical door, however the door to our hearts works the same way.

It is human nature to open our hearts to the good stuff.  It is human nature to open our hearts to the sunshine.  It is human nature to open our hearts and venture out unprotected when things are good.  It is human nature not to judge when things are on track.

However, it is also human nature to close our hearts to the "not-so-good" stuff.  It is human nature to close our hearts to the things we don't understand.  It is human nature to close our hearts from the coldness beyond the door.  It is human nature to close our hearts for protection from things unknown.  It is human nature to judge others when ripples appear above and beneath the surface of the water.

But, what is God Nature?  God Nature is an open door to an open heart, a door where the spring is broken and the door remains permanently ajar, allowing entry to everybody.  God Nature  is accepting people for who they are without judgment along with the storms they bring with them.  God Nature
is not to pick and choose who can enter  or when they can enter through the open door.  God Nature is letting God keep the door open no matter what the outside environment brings, whether it be sunshine and smooth sailing or whether it be hurricanes with high winds.

Is your door open to your neighbor with hungry and dirty children or is your door closed so you don't feel guilty when you sit down to supper.  Is your door open to people who are un-experienced in the ways of the church or is your door closed because you expect more from them.  Is your door open to
your brother and sister in Christ who is hurting emotionally or is you door closed because you don't quite see eye to eye with them.

I am ashamed to say that I am one of those people who open and close the door based on the circumstances on the other side of it.  Is our door always open?  Jesus never closed His door, not even to His betrayer and neither should we.

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