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The Everyday Word

A Bid Farewell To The Amen Corner (Not Really) – Support Is A True Calling!

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Over the many years that I have attended church, there has always been the classically stereotyped band of people that were always known as the super-supportive “amen-corner”. These were the kind of people that would stand through the beginning and end and were the greatest example of what support stood for. I could remember seeing people literally begin to grow and over time become a stronger individuals in God from the support of their brothers and sisters in Christ. There were MANY moments I am sure that people would have given up without the words of encouragement to pick them up after moments where they felt like they had failed. There were other moments I am sure where people came through like a breath of fresh air to revive someone that had been walking and carrying the load of a work for quite some time as well. Are we living in the day where we are seeing the end of support for one another? Has the amen corner truly fell?

To me, I do not think the amen corner will ever go. I do think however that the amount of support in the church for one another is at an all time low. And with the additions of newly committed lives to Christ, those lives are in need of continual refreshing and rejuvenation by those around them! I can honestly say that in my own personal life that there are 4-5 people (new or renewed in Christ) that I stay personally committed to on a constant basis by making sure that I encourage them and stay as a spiritual mentor to. This is such a vital piece, as they need to see me on my feet when they step out to obey God. They need to hear my words in person when they have stepped out for God and maybe faced a tough night. Most importantly, support needs to come when it counts the most: in a time of weakness! When God shows you by discernment when a person (or persons) are in weakness and are in a frail state, support them! Do what you are called to do to help them. Waste no expense to which you have in your resources to make a difference. In other words, love your neighbor as yourself.

Here is the tough part (I have had to learn this the hard way): I cannot guarantee that support will ever return back to you. The great part about being selfless for God is that the blessings of God will flow in your life for your service in Him! Always remember this when you give yourself for Him in service for others! It is worth every step, every word, and every mile of the journey! As for me, I’m in (the amen corner that is). There may be a day where you look and you stand alone, but never forget that God is with you!

God Is Love, And Love Will Make The Difference If You Let It

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If I told you today that when you began to share your feelings with me that I would turn a deaf ear, what would your reaction be? Likewise if you walked by me to say hello and we were as close as family and I looked away or pretended you were not there…what would be your thoughts or feelings? What if I told you that this lack of compassion has began to lay dormant in the hearts of people everywhere (even in church!) ? I know at first you would want to say no but consider within yourself the amount of love you have for not just people that are close to you but people in general.

When you consider the amount of time that is being spent towards God versus what we spend for ourselves, the love to which we have for what we spend time for is truly reflected. It cannot lie and will tell on us every time. Let’s examine both contrasts of this. If I seek God and am before Him with it as my first priority, then the love in my heart is towards God, which in turn creates a love and compassion for others that is not naturally there. Now if I seek for myself all the time, then the things that I lust for and seek after are what I love, right? This could mean that you could have someone broke down on the side of the road and yet you speed on by to make sure you catch your tv show. This could also mean you do not participate in church actively because you love the social aspect of church more than the spiritual. Some often discuss this topic as selfish love for carnality or as a love for one’s self. Let me just make note here that just because the love of many will wax cold does not mean you lose the capacity to love, it is simply love redirected for the love of things greater than God (which makes us spiritually dead or cold).

In looking at both of these, it is reminding me to seek God not only in a church or group setting but on a very personal level. For when you do, the love of what you cherish will flow out and your natural desire and likemindedness will be to help others and lead them to Christ! Help us at this ministry continue to never pass anyone by and love everyone as they should be! People need a loving generation of the body of Christ!

Is The First Step Is Always The Hardest One? I Feel A Poll Coming On…

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One of the most used phrases that I have ever heard in church or for even life in general is that “that first step is always the hardest”. I remember one of the first times that I ever prayed out loud in front of anyone when I was a child. At the time it seemed like the hardest thing in the world to do. What helped me to carry through was the help of hearing the voices of others around me praying. It was truly a great moment to remember. It is always a great thing to remember to be a voice for someone else to follow along to, no matter what medium it is for the Lord!

I also remember one of the first times that I ever stepped out and played and sang a song alone. The first few seconds before I began felt like a million years, yet as I began there was a gentle calm that came over me that helped me through. I attribute the ‘calm’ to the presence of the spirit coming to help me make a difference through the offering of obedience. If there is something that I remember each time I obey God, it is that the spirit of God is always going to meet you in your immediate act! You will not be alone!

One of the toughest first steps I have ever taken was when God was moving me into a new church. It was a brand new environment with new people and very little that I had ever known before. I was afraid at first because I did not want to leave the place I had been my whole life. However God was preparing me for my next work! And as I stepped out more and more and continued to follow the Lord in my calling I have been blessed to see many wonderful things there! The lesson that I learned here is that I would have missed on so much if I had not been listening to the burning call of God that was moving on me. Follow God when He leads you and be surprised at just how much of a blessing you are!

Do I think I have taken my last steps? No way! I think there are many more things and churches ahead! Do I think you have either? Absolutely not! Seek God for the understanding and be willing to follow for the directions for change in your life. Most importantly as I have heard all my days, do not be afraid to take that first step!

Here’s A Little Advice: Be Careful With Multitasking

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In the busiest of times that we are in, we find ourselves trying to wear many hats, balance many plates, and be in 10 places at once. It is the never ending struggle to supply the world with its demand for the only thing we can give: ourselves. Now I am a total advocate for making the most of your time; quite frankly I only allow a few moments of time where I am not doing something. However, as I have been praying lately and learning through the trials of my own life, I have something to share with you today. It goes a little something like this:

Beware of multitasking, as it is not multitasking at all. Be careful with this ‘act’, especially with your walk with God. It is fun and fair to say that it can be argued that there should be ‘me’ time, ‘us’ time, ‘family’ time, ‘friend’ time, ‘hobby’ time, ‘work’ time, etc. Trust me, there has been every reasonable argument pass through my mind and ears to attempt and persuade me that God can just be incorporated in some way….BUT NOT SO!

That’s where I feel as a minister that we are missing the 1-2 punch on the enemy. We are in our weakness when we do not dedicate enough ‘God’ time. The word of God speaks of seeking the Kingdom of Heaven in essence ‘alone and above all things’, because all other things were bundled and were aforementioned to be added to you at the conclusion of seeking God. Studies have even began to show that our balancing acts are no acts at all, and that we can only truly devote our concentration to one piece fully.

So today? Seek God first before you begin trying to do everything else. You would be surprised how some of the pieces in your life would begin to fall into place as the favor of God, which of more word than gold and silver, will begin to transform your life and do great things. Stick to that singular mind of serving God to the fullest!

Uh Oh, The Excuse Cookie Jar Just Ran Out Of Cookies….What Now?

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I like to visualize things to food as much as possible because…well I like food of course. It is easy for me to relate things to something I like or understand, as it is for anyone right? For now, I would like to visualize our ‘cookie jar’ and relate the contents of this jar to excuses….good ol’ excuses. You know what I am talking about right? We all probably have had a jar heaped full of cookies full of sweet excuses like “I am too tired”, “I am not good enough”, or even my personal favorite “they do not like me so I do not have to”. We’ll consume all of them (as we tend to do with good cookies) until we get so slothful and junked up on it that we are not active about anything and every excuse that we have consume becomes what we are.

I have read in the bible time and time again about the conversation that was being made about what defiled us. When you defile something you are saying that you are polluting or spoiling it. So when we put this all together it is pretty easy to realize: living in our excuses every day and consuming them as how we are expected to live will spoil and pollute the very life source that is supposed to be so much more than that. As we know, doctors, nutritionists, and even my wife tells me to consume things that promote life unto me! Put this with the word of God! The word of God is life unto you! And as I hear through God in service and prayer so often that bread of life when consumed is life and promotes life everlasting!

So the moral of the day is this: get out of the cookie jar, stop making excuses about your walk with God and get busy with all you have and all you know! It is your life and God is life unto you! Be a willing obedient vessel and see your life begin to flourish! Trust me, it WILL come!

Attention: Now Accepting Applications For Spiritual Leaders

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I first would like to clarify in a very silly way that this is in no way directed towards Heart of Grace Ministries actually taking applications. I am writing this today for what I feel God is leading me to give some direction on about spiritual leadership.

When it comes to the everyday hometown spiritual leaders, most of them have put in many wonderful years of service. The examples of people that I have had the privilege to meet and know has blessed me and helped me beyond words I could explain today. The part that alarms me is that how we are starting to not match up or miss with the word of God. All through the times you read in the scriptures the anointing and wisdom of the older generations was written and passed down, purposed for the up and coming seed that was growing to be the new leaders after them. There were multiple cases of this you can study to, and how the ministries and works only multiplied!

Today I am striving with all that is within me to be a spiritual leader and to use what had been passed down to me. I cannot say that when I received all of the wisdom that I saw myself as ‘ready’, but God sure did! Even at a younger age God has already given me a work and a purpose. If I were to waiver or give up on this purpose, I would not only be hindering the work God had intended for me but the works that were passed down to me!

So as God leads you each and every day, learn to take in each and every good work and wisdom from your elders. Give respect and honor and understand their purpose to better help you find yours! God is surely looking for those of us in the current generation to begin to rise as the new and next leaders of God! How do we apply? Prayer and continual seeking before Him! Finding your calling is the easy part (just like your dream job), but sticking with it with dedicated passion and purpose will prove you as a leader to others and a follower of Christ!

Repenting To God: Outdated And Replaced? No Way!

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If there was anything that I could ever be sure of that I know, it is to recognize God’s voice when it begins to speak into my life. There are going to be so many moments when it will speak words of encouragement when we are down. And as I am sure that when the time calls for it that we are all so thankful for the moments that God comes through. The moments that I want to talk about today though are the ones that seem to be the times that we sweep under the rug, never talk about, or stay in denial over. So go ahead and brace yourself for it, because here comes our old friend reality, which says: there are also other moments when God will direct us to repent or turn from what it is that is trying to pull us away from God.

I know this seems silly when you read me writing this, but consider the illustration of praise and worship. Praise and worship is assuming we are in a place of thankfulness and are able to get past everything in our heart and are light enough to be in a spirit of praise, right? In church services you can get millions to operate in praise and worship because we are sometimes praising God for things to come, right? The funny thing to me as a minister is when it comes to the art of repenting and being humble that you seldom find roughly 1-5 percent of your participants willing to do praise and worship AND be driven to repent.

What is up with that? It has been observed from my point of view that lately repenting to God has become somewhat unnecessary and outdated. Friends, asking God for the forgiveness of the mistakes you made is not only in style but necessary for the keeping of your mind and life each and every day! Please do not misplace this with the ideal that we can just replace asking forgiveness with just only being thankful. We must remember to have moments where we are humbled and acknowledge that we are human and that God is God! Stay in style and sanctify yourself through prayer today!

A Special Thank You On This Special Day

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I write this today with a very humble heart, because I am so grateful for what God has done for me. There are many trials that I have faced in my life to which I would have counted myself out or defeated or even done with life, yet God had another plan. Through the love of my wife Angela, God has shown me how magnificent that He is. Through the way that she has stood throughout all of time no matter if I was on the mountain or in the valley, God has shown me what patience means. Through the way she looks over my irrational behavior and times when I was weak and discouraged, God has shown me what forgiveness and mercy means. It is one thing to hear people say your whole life to wait one day until you just “know” what these sorts of principles are, but I feel like that God has given me the most wonderful person in the world to show me each and every quality that I would have never seen otherwise. God gave me someone to be able to make it through life instead of giving up a long time ago. Today I thank my wife for sticking with me throughout all of the changes in life. I celebrate this day with her and I pray that each and every one of us examine and magnify the great things about one another! I thank God for His love and the love that He has given me through letting me meet such a wonderful person!

Helping To Heal And Healing To Help

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I come in a very open point of view with the word I share today. I have been in prayer as of late and my heart has come to a word of encouragement for each one who is so wonderful to read this. When it comes to the discussion of healing for your life it can oftentimes be confusing as to how we should begin to allow God to let change come into motion. For example, I know when I have a head-cold and could probably see a quicker move if I changed my behavior to reduce my chances of it coming around again. Yet without any reaction or change to know is better direction for healing in my life, I prolong a sickness that could otherwise be moved quicker.

God is looking for us to be more proactive to react and change when we hear the word of the Lord to help heal each and every one of our troubles and trials. If I learned to not just be a hearer but a diligent doer of it then I am reducing the likelihood of the same thing occurring again of the same magnitude. This could be a test of patience, anger, moving you from depression, helping you through finances, etc. that list could go on forever. My point to you is that the healing of the Lord is for way more than just our bodies! It is for our minds as well!

So remember this: using the healing that God performs in you to allow you to be changed once and forever. After your wonderful change, use that experience as part of your witness to draw others! That is how others can begin to be drawn for their own change and the beginnings of that brand new life in Christ!

If You Hold Your Peace, You Will Find It

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There is no height or depth of a distance that I would go to find peace sometimes, especially the kind that will help me to stand still in the presence of God! It is when we have true peace over things that we are able to hold our words when we are angered, right? I praise the God that I serve because I know of the experiences that I have had to know this first hand. Just remember to allow God to guide you in your conversation and you will not find yourself in a place where you are confused and feel like you are slipping in your confidence.

When it comes to being a powerful witness, it’s important to carry your confidence with not just words, but in the peace in your mind and heart by the spirit you carry within. Sometimes it’s not how much we can give or how much we can say but simply how we can be there by being a Godly comfort to one another. And as we learn to do that for one another, it becomes easier for ourselves (and vice versa). Some of the greatest influences I have ever been encouraged by never said a word to me; they were simply there and gave me a hug.

The greatest thing that I could say today is that when you want to give something in abundance that you must possess it. To give great wisdom and powerful moving encouragement you must first receive that word of the Lord and apply it! As you grow and begin to build up your life you can begin to let your words speak to others in a way you have never seen before!