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Monthly Archives: July 2011

Singing And Speaking At New Salem Baptist Church

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First of all, I just want to say that we had another wonderful experience at New Salem. The church there is growing in a great way, and it is wonderful to see what they are working for come to pass each time that we come and visit them. Their love and fellowship is always great and makes a person feel so welcome to come there. If you are in their area, and are looking for a church to go, go check them out! I can guarantee Pastor Kenny Rogers will make sure to make you feel right at home!

The homecoming to me was a great success. It was great to see the church work together to step out and do all that you can to provide a platform for anyone that needs help to be able to get it. When you get in that spiritual place with God, that is when you can really begin to get the work done that you need completed! We enjoyed singing there so much, and even got to debut Reagan and Emmy this time! They were champs!

There were many that came and prayed for many different reasons, and many that came to us afterward to leave prayer requests with us as we go. It was truly uplifting to see people make that statement and step out to enhance their life in a greater way! I just want to state for the record that we will be remembering all of these things that were spoken to us!

Hopefully we’ll be receiving a recording of that service in the near future, and when we do, we will get it on here as soon as possible! And for all those that mentioned it, don’t worry we’ll be back soon!

Break The Mold, Step Out Of The Trendy Fold

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I love God! I praise Him today for everything that I have in my life. He has done so much that could not even begin to start telling you in words through any media or venue! I did not always have this excitement about God in my life. I know, you might be thinking, “what?!?”. You see, I have been saved for a long time and it has been wonderful to accept Jesus Christ and to have salvation in my soul. However, I had been essentially in a place in my life where I was in a state of mind to not explore what the spirit of God can perform in my life. For many, this is a touchy subject, and I get that.

I encourage you to read on with me.

You see, the spirit of God is a wonderful thing. It’s the part of the ministry that does what we cannot do for others. It’s the part of worship and your love for God that gives you strength for another day. It’s the comforter to your heart and mind in a time of trouble in your life. After I got saved, there were many trials of my life that began to start to overwhelm me (far more than I could handle for sure). I started becoming someone that was in need of those things we read of that we know as the fruit of the spirit.

When I began to pray to God for more of Him in my life, the hunger and thirst for God began to be fulfilled. I know you might be wondering, “how did you know?” There was a day that came after allowing the spirit to work through me that I stood and gave a testimony like I never had my entire life. It shocked me. I didn’t know that it was possible. At first, it even felt wrong simply because it was not what I was always used to, you know?

Over the next period of time as I allowed God to shape me, I began to sing in a greater way (and I previously thought it couldn’t get any better!). And after I began to allow my lifestyle to be what God wanted it to be, my life was truly transformed by the Holy Spirit in a way that could not begin to explain. I started beginning to exhort which eventually led into preaching. The preaching has led into outreach and publishing, and still I seek more!

The great thing about it all is that a long time ago when I was in desparate need for a change that the Holy Ghost began to perform a miracle in my life. It changed my mind, body, and heart truly for the better. Each day as I allow the spirit to lead and teach me I become a better witness of God and servant to God.

My excitement is unwavering! I cannot say this excitement was always met with acceptance everywhere that I have been, nor can I say that it has always been easy to stand where you know people would consider that kind of excitement frowned upon.

This is what I leave you with today. We have to be an example to show that the spirit of God can be and is fluent in the day we live in. We show that by stepping out of the mold set before us and being who God has called us to be. Let it be shown and let God be glorified! For when you step out for God in obedience by the spirit, the spirit will reach out even when you have done all that you can! It makes the difference!

Step out and be a brave obedient vessel today!

Following God’s Plan

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A lot of us need to forsake our focus on “God’s will for my life”. I know that that sounds like a big shocking statement, but read on. God wants a response about us moving and working in his spirit today! We use searching for God’s will as a crutch so our fears over making mistakes never come. We need to come to a decision to start living now. Let us use a couple applied examples from the scriptures.

Galatians 5:16-25

[16] This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.
[17] For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.
[18] But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law.
[19] Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness,
[20] Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies,
[21] Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.
[22] But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
[23] Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
[24] And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.
[25] If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.

The spirit and flesh work directly against each other. Verses 19-21 lay out some specific works of the flesh. Verses 22-23 lay out some specific works of the spirit. If they are Christ’s, we have already put to death the flesh (along with the parts that lift it up). If it’s in there, let it go with you! Put into practice what you believe in Christ!

Paul said in the passage above to walk by the spirit and you will not gratify your flesh; that if we live in it (the spirit) thereby we also walk in it. In essence that is saying if the spirit of God lives in you that it is going to show on you and show to others.

We’re getting into this mold of what we like to call church, with new followers who will not follow. God does not want big numbers, short services, an engaging speaker and all of that with no spirit!

He wants his bride to be a faithful people and lovers of him.

I am beginning to wonder if the Lord is looking down upon us and seeing us as the prophets of Baal more than the prophet of Elijah, the prophet of God.

1 Kings 18:18-40

[18] And he answered, I have not troubled Israel; but thou, and thy father’s house, in that ye have forsaken the commandments of the LORD, and thou hast followed Baalim.
[19] Now therefore send, and gather to me all Israel unto mount Carmel, and the prophets of Baal four hundred and fifty, and the prophets of the groves four hundred, which eat at Jezebel’s table.
[20] So Ahab sent unto all the children of Israel, and gathered the prophets together unto mount Carmel.
[21] And Elijah came unto all the people, and said, How long halt ye between two opinions? if the LORD be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him. And the people answered him not a word.
[22] Then said Elijah unto the people, I, even I only, remain a prophet of the LORD; but Baal’s prophets are four hundred and fifty men.
[23] Let them therefore give us two bullocks; and let them choose one bullock for themselves, and cut it in pieces, and lay it on wood, and put no fire under: and I will dress the other bullock, and lay it on wood, and put no fire under:
[24] And call ye on the name of your gods, and I will call on the name of the LORD: and the God that answereth by fire, let him be God. And all the people answered and said, It is well spoken.
[25] And Elijah said unto the prophets of Baal, Choose you one bullock for yourselves, and dress it first; for ye are many; and call on the name of your gods, but put no fire under.
[26] And they took the bullock which was given them, and they dressed it, and called on the name of Baal from morning even until noon, saying, O Baal, hear us. But there was no voice, nor any that answered. And they leaped upon the altar which was made.
[27] And it came to pass at noon, that Elijah mocked them, and said, Cry aloud: for he is a god; either he is talking, or he is pursuing, or he is in a journey, or peradventure he sleepeth, and must be awaked.
[28] And they cried aloud, and cut themselves after their manner with knives and lancets, till the blood gushed out upon them.
[29] And it came to pass, when midday was past, and they prophesied until the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that there was neither voice, nor any to answer, nor any that regarded.
[30] And Elijah said unto all the people, Come near unto me. And all the people came near unto him. And he repaired the altar of the LORD that was broken down.
[31] And Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, unto whom the word of the LORD came, saying, Israel shall be thy name:
[32] And with the stones he built an altar in the name of the LORD: and he made a trench about the altar, as great as would contain two measures of seed.
[33] And he put the wood in order, and cut the bullock in pieces, and laid him on the wood, and said, Fill four barrels with water, and pour it on the burnt sacrifice, and on the wood.
[34] And he said, Do it the second time. And they did it the second time. And he said, Do it the third time. And they did it the third time.
[35] And the water ran round about the altar; and he filled the trench also with water.
[36] And it came to pass at the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that Elijah the prophet came near, and said, LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and of Israel, let it be known this day that thou art God in Israel, and that I am thy servant, and that I have done all these things at thy word.
[37] Hear me, O LORD, hear me, that this people may know that thou art the LORD God, and that thou hast turned their heart back again.
[38] Then the fire of the LORD fell, and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench.
[39] And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces: and they said, The LORD, he is the God; the LORD, he is the God.
[40] And Elijah said unto them, Take the prophets of Baal; let not one of them escape. And they took them: and Elijah brought them down to the brook Kishon, and slew them there.

Sounds like some of our services, right? There is lots of noise but no God?!? They did not say how wonderful the speaker or praise band was, but they acknowledged God alone for the works that were performed at that time. We need to learn to worship what has been performed in our lives, and to not settle for just a bit of peace, but the peace of God:

Philippians 4:7

[7] And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

When you consider Elijah, read the passage below and it will begin to unlock higher heights and deeper depths in your life.

Three things stand out here:

1)    It wasn’t in the numbers

2)    Giving glory to anything other than God will not work

3)    God is powerful enough to defy anything that we would consider impossible

James 5:15-20

[15] And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.
[16] Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.
[17] Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months.
[18] And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit.
[19] Brethren, if any of you do err from the truth, and one convert him;
[20] Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins.

He (Elijah) was subject to the same battles we face, and yet still took a stand for God. He prayed earnestly, passionately; this is where we need to find our prayer lives: with faith and with passion!

Praying for rain and no rain and seeing them both come to pass not only demonstrated the faith that Elijah had but the almighty power of God!

Nave’s Topical Bible (Reference)

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This book came from my sister a few years ago, and only now have I found is one of my most enjoyed overall! I know when it comes to reference books about the bible that most of us might want to go to sleep….zzzz…you probably fell asleep at the thought, right? Let me try and excite you though!

In practically using it, it has just about any reference or word that you could possibly think of that is tied in the bible, with at least 1-2 good references to it as well as some defined meanings behind others. It has helped me countless times when I am trying to get my head around finding the place or general location of a scripture that even some search engines and apps cannot do!

This book has an A-Z layout, over 1,600 pages total, over 20,000 topics to read from, and over 100,000 scripture references to go by. There are cross-references all over the place so you don’t end up getting lost in it!

And always remember when you are done with one, pass it on or recommend! That helps the ones who work so hard to write them!

Check out: Nave’s Topical Bible – ISBN 0785250573

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In Whom I Believe

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Many world issues are all around us and among us. Nationwide issues are prevalent, and local issues (where we are at least) are in vast abundance. When we hear of all the problems that are going on, the first instinct is to immediately “tune it out”.

That scares me.

My question is, whatever happened to the day when God’s people prayed in whom they believed? I know at one point it use to dominate everywhere that I would go; you could not go somewhere without the presence of God being reflected in some way. Now? It’s starting to fade from the falling away of the conditioning of the children of God today. I wish I could say something better than that, but I like to speak things that will get us thinking. We are all included in that list, because we have to learn to go forward and not stop! Sometimes I know it seems silly to sit down and to pray for situations that are way bigger than you are, but we have to be reminded of two things: 1) We aren’t able, but 2) God is!

If we can remember that, and hold true to the promises of God, we could have enough to fill our prayers every single day. We wouldn’t dread to hear things that would “pull us down”; I would say we would take a different approach. People that came to Jesus were met with faith and power. When people come to us, what do they see? What do they hear? I hope that when people come to the church of today, they know about “in whom we believe”. I hope we do not forget who is alive and on the throne today, and hears our every prayer! Knock the dust off of your prayer voice and get going! The next time someone comes to you with something, just remind them that you are praying about it (and that you actually are for real)!

The Remnant: Restoring the Call to Personal Integrity

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This book was given to me by one of the local ministers in our town and was most appreciated!

When I began to start reading this, it at first felt like my toes were getting stepped on a lot, but as you go on it brings out the deeper meaning and bigger vision of why we have to start at the personal level.

Here’s what helped me (This is what it meant to me, and not a paraphrase of the book!): it really begins at home. There are many things that you could accomplish out there to work hard for your ministry, but where is the joy in your life to do it without it all being centered with God in the home (or as it reads a Godly environment)?

I can definitely see why he was passing it out to people to read, and I definitely recommend it to anyone, and especially anyone that is called to work in ministry!

And always remember when you are done with one, pass it on or recommend! That helps the ones who work so hard to write them!

Check out: The Remnant: Restoring The Call To Personal Integrity – ISBN 978-1599794549

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Zondervan Atlas of the Bible

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Welcome to another review! I would like to start off by saying that I have a very heavy interest in attempting to understand the geological significance and relationship that it has with the word of God. I loved this book when I first got it because of some of the detailed illustrations that it has. I loved it even more when I began to read into detail about some of the bible history that is directly related with the way the land was laid out by possession.

To put it simply: if you want a step in the door on geography and terrain as it relates to the bible history and genealogy, this is for you!

And always remember when you are done with one, pass it on or recommend! That helps the ones who work so hard to write them!

Check out: Zondervan Atlas Of The Bible – ISBN 978-0310270508

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What Do They Remember The Next Day?

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THE WORD

Matthew 5:14, 16 – Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Whether you are serving in a church ministry or walking the streets of your hometown, one thing is certain: you leave an impact upon those that you come in contact with. How you bless people goes far beyond your songs and spoken words; in fact it begins from that moment forward as people see you live your life every day. People are looking at you as a witness of God, whether you are active in the moment of obedience or idle at the grocery store. The conversations and actions that we take each day are the very parts and impacts that are left with people.

It is easy to say that if people come to church to hear me speak that the next day they will think of me as that speaker, right? What about someone who never comes inside the building and just talks to you in passing? When they leave your company, what is it that they say about you? Does it include the influence Jesus Christ within you? Is the witness and spirit of God evident in your life? This is something that all of us need to work on more and more as we venture on in life so people can know of the impact God has had on each of us. Remember to be keen to what is going on around you and to always operate in love. Let God shine in your life no matter the surroundings or circumstance. Allow yourself to lead by example and not a worldly spectacle. Lead by what God’s spirit teaches you and not by your own understanding. God’s instruction, as given by the word of God, will never lead us astray. God’s spirit, as given to every living being who will believe, will never leave you comfortless. God’s salvation, as given by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, is the message we given by the life we live! Let that message live in you so people will remember God in you!

PUT INTO PRACTICE

Perform an act of kindness that you often overlook (aka open a door for someone; offer to pay for something, etc.). Use the opportunity to simply invite them to the church you attend. It does not have to be complicated to be an effective opportunity! It works!

More Features! More To Do! More To Come!

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We hope that you have been enjoying a lot of the parts that have been rolled out lately. We have came so far from where we started. I wish I had saved a screenshot of what the site looked like in the beginning compared to where we are now! Our main goal as a ministry is to provide as many avenues that we can that you will find something that will draw you closer to God. So let’s talk about some of the things that have been going on!

More features:

Books! I decided a little while back to incorporate the books section because it’s always hard to find a good recommendation with millions of choices. We thought it would be a great idea to simply put out there the books that we read that we actually enjoyed (and save you from the ones we didn’t so much lol). There will be books that we loved in the past and ones that we are currently working on now that will continually be posted as we move forward!

Verse of the day & What To Study Today! I don’t know how much more of a convenient way that you could make it to actually give a verse to read and a study plan to conquer the bible in a year, but we found it and made it available to you! As we all know, the tricky part is actually doing it! Trust me, as a person who loves to read the bible and to learn more and more each day, it is a fun experience and well worth the time you spend to do it!

After The Fact & The Everyday Word! Now that these are in full swing, we truly enjoy getting these out there. If someone reads a thought or an idea that inspires them to go out and be a greater witness then the intent was completely fulfilled! With so many different types of pieces that you could read, it’s almost like coming to a buffet; you can sort of choose what style you enjoy and get that word you need for the moment!

More To Do:

Outreach! As we are starting to come around the next bend in our ministry, we are committing to participating in ministry to one of our local nursing homes. It will be a mix of singing and speaking, and we hope to lead all that we can to the Lord. Sometimes we think that we have to wait for those great big opportunities before we’ll ever jump out there, but there is work right in front of you!

Sermons & Messages Pages! We’re now on iTunes! And now that we are implementing these new parts, we are phasing out the old message page and converting to our new sermons page. This will have a easier look and feel and incorporates far more than what I could write right here! Be sure to subscribe to our audio podcast by using the email subscription link in the top right corner! You’ll be emailed every time a new sermon is added!

Radio! With the great effectiveness that the radio ministry set us up with, we are hoping to expand where we are in our town and to start moving out to other stations. Pray with us that we make the right choices so that the message we carry goes out as far as it possibly can.

More To Come:

Recording! We have finally got all of our equipment and song selections fine tuned, so be prepared for some posts in the future with some demo previews of some officially recorded content! I personally cannot wait!

Writing! One of our big goals for this year is to begin to start compiling our works into a book that can be distributed by hand, so be sure to check back in for updates for that! It’s going to be a very exciting project!

Outreach! As God leads us, we’re going! We hope to see you soon! And if you don’t see us, you’ll more than likely get a chance to hear it on the site! That’s why it’s here!