Reasons That We Worship

On 2018-02-23 By Ed AlgreenIn Jesus Loves you, Love of God, Love others, Love your Neighbor, The Father's Love, WorshipLeave a comment

SCRIPTURE FROM: Psalm 89:13-16 (GNT)

TEXT: ¹³How powerful you are! How great is your strength! ¹⁴Your kingdom is founded on righteousness and justice; love and faithfulness are shown in all you do. ¹⁵How happy are the people who worship you with songs, who live in the light of your kindness! ¹⁶Because of you they rejoice all day long, and they praise you for your goodness.

OBSERVATION: David grew up as a shepherd boy, so he was used to the idea of the outdoors and looking around at all of the wonders of the Almighty. Furthermore, we could tell that he was one that had no problem expressing himself to God. It seems like he was always bursting at the seems to praise and worship his Master. I believe we should be the same, so let’s look closer at this passage.

APPLICATION: When our hearts are filled with what we see and what we hear, we could only imagine how many of us must look to God and talk about the game last night, or the TV show that we were so engrossed in, or the gossip that the neighbors called about. My wife and I went to a Marriage Enrichment conference last weekend, and we realized that our marriage is probably last on our priority list, considering the amount of time that we actually set aside for just husband and wife. Is this not the same in our time with the Lord also? I know, you just don’t have time, right? Friends, let me encourage you to say that a little differently. Replace the words “don’t have time” with “didn’t make that a priority”. I know, it means the same thing. But friends, try it in your prayers tonight. Lord, I just didn’t make it a priority to look around and take in the beauty of the morning sky, or look for the value of the sunshine in making my garden grow so wonderfully. It never crossed my mind how healthy I am, compared to my neighbor who is in and out of hospital. I truly believe that no matter what is going on in our lives, we should always strive to look back to the focal point of our existence. It began with God, He reinforced His love when He sent His Son to die at Calvary for our sin, and He maintains that love each and every day – if only we will recognize His goodness and His presence. Let’s learn to praise God for all things, especially those things that we are sure were customized just for us! God is so good, my friend, thank Him and glorify Him today for all that He does each day for you. He promised to never leave you. May I encourage you to do the same, and never leave God alone by ignoring His blessings!

PRAYER: Lord, it is so challenging for us to imagine the kind of love that You display for us each and every day. We feel so unworthy – like a speck of dirt in Your huge universe. But Lord, I believe that Your children are the apple of Your eye, and that there is nothing You wouldn’t do for us. Thank You Lord for Your mercies on me, and for the love You show to even me. Lord, may I be just as conscious about the love I give to You in return. Bless each reader today and draw them all to You dear Lord. AMEN!

FOOTNOTE: There are two more pages on my blog that will provide you with additional information, one of them being ‘To Know Jesus’. If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please click on the above page, or speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Please allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Words underlined in my blog could indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to Nuggets From God’s Word and read more, or you may freely to subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. If you are anywhere near the Sebring, Florida area and do not have a church home, I would be thrilled to welcome you at Bible Fellowship Church, located at 3750 Hammock Rd, Sebring, FL 33872! Click the link to check out service times and/or other special activities. God is at work among us! Please consider coming to worship with us!

The Love of Our Wonderful God!

On 2018-02-222018-02-22 By Ed AlgreenIn Healing, Humility, Power of Prayer, Prayer, Seek God's Face, Seeking GodLeave a comment

SCRIPTURE FROM: 2 Chronicles 7:13-14 (TLB)

TEXT: ¹³If I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or if I command the locust swarms to eat up all of your crops, or if I send an epidemic among you, ¹⁴then if my people will humble themselves and pray, and search for me, and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear them from heaven and forgive their sins and heal their land.

OBSERVATION: To build an awesome sanctuary, like Solomon did, and receive the blessings of God on it, must have been overwhelming for Solomon. But it was also made clear to him by God that the beautiful temple would not exonerate the people, should they continue in sin. In fact, God even warned that at times He may have to perform certain acts to get their attention, however in His love and compassion, He also gave Solomon the formula for the people to reconcile themselves with Him again. This living, loving, and caring God that we worship, has not changed, and I believe that He is just as ready to forgive us today, if we will also seek His face.

APPLICATION: At times we may sit and ponder the trials that we face personally, then if we consider friends at church and all that you are praying for with them, you may wonder: “where is God?” After reading this Scripture today, I believe that we should be ever so thankful for the awesome God that we serve, for we are told that in spite of the beautiful sanctuaries we build, yet God will still finds ways to get our attention. However, He showed Solomon how the Israelites should recognize the correction of God, then how they should humble themselves and pray – in other words, don’t go before God in pride or as a know-it-all. But seek His face and ask His forgiveness, turn away from their sin and get over themselves. Then God – only God, will hear from Heaven and heal their land. Friends, we can hardly watch television news for the constant bombardment of crime that goes on in each of our communities. Could this be the correction of God for us? Have you tried humbling yourself before God, seeking His face and asking Him for His forgiveness? I can only assume that often we try to exclude ourselves from the sin, because we are far removed from the crimes. However, in all sincerity I believe that God is the only one excluded. For Christians allowed certain laws to be approved by sitting back and convincing ourselves that it was not meant for us, or we don’t want to offend others that could be impacted. Friends, its time that we stand up against sin and take responsibility for the evil works of Satan in our communities. It’s me – standing in the need of prayer. It’s you (Christian) – standing in the need of prayer. The verse states that ‘If MY people….’ – that’s you and I Brother and Sister. Let’s do our part, then we will be amazed at what God will do with His part!

PRAYER: Thank You Lord, for Your blessings on me, and I believe that each of my readers could give an ‘Amen’ to that also. Thank You for getting our attention, and thank You for giving us the secret on how to adjudicate ourselves, so that You may hear from heaven and resume blessings on our families, our churches and our country. Lord, You are good, and Your faithful mercies last for evermore. I love You Lord! AMEN!

Tactics For Fighting Savage Wolves

On 2018-02-212018-02-21 By Ed AlgreenIn Defense against the enemy, Power of Prayer, PrayerLeave a comment

SCRIPTURE FROM: Acts 20:28-30 (NIV)

TEXT: ²⁸Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood. ²⁹I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. ³⁰Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them.

OBSERVATION: Paul called the elders of the Ephesian church together, as he was about to leave town. I wonder if they were aware of the items that Paul was about to warn them about? However, Paul wanted to make sure that they were aware of the challenges they might face, so he wanted to part some advice to them on those challenges. Knowing that our local churches today run so smoothly, with all ‘sheep’ super excited about they Lord and therefore getting along with each other, I know that it will be challenging to apply the truth declared in this passage, but let’s try!

APPLICATION: Churches today split over such minor things, that I believe we could easily reflect on what God may have been showing Paul, and encouraging him to mentor the leaders he had developed in Ephesus. I believe that the easiest thing for church leaders to do today, is to bury their heads in the sand and falsely see everything working to the growth and benefit of the gospel at their church. Friends, I hate to burst your bubble, but if that’s happening, then the gospel of Jesus Christ is not being declared without compromise. For when the Word of God is preached under the inspiration and power of the Holy Spirit, then it will cause men to whimper in their seats and hang their heads in shame. So what exactly might be considered ‘Savage Wolves’ in our churches today? How about: a). Gossip about pastors and elders; b). Teaching or preaching being so worldly based that the Word of God is hardly opened; c). Small Groups’ teaching material without the knowledge, or approval of church leadership; d). No follow-up or accountability to unbelievers attending, or on folks who are struggling; e). Members with other priorities, such as sports, fishing, hunting, etc; or f). lack of commitment to prayer, daily devotions, attending church, visit shut-ins, etc. It is so sad that often people have heard about the Lord, know His power, and will call on Him every time there’s an issue, but don’t expect to see them doing anything in return. Thankfully our God is much more forgiving than most of us, so He stands ready to receive Christians who have fallen prey to the above, and are now ready to serve God faithfully. Run to Him child of God, for the Savage Wolves’ are lurking at every point to distract you from your commitment to your Savior.

PRAYER: Lord, we need You today more than ever before, for Satan has ramped up his attack on Your children. Please help us to be quick to run to You for help. We know that only You can fight the likes of Satan, and we know that anything that serves to pull us away from You, is of the Devil. Lord, we commit ourselves to You again, and we pray that our relationship with You will become so strong that Satan will have to clear all attacks through You before he could lay a hand on us. For I ask all this in the all powerful name of Jesus, my Lord. AMEN!

To Be Used of God

On 2018-02-192018-02-19 By Ed AlgreenIn Committed, Daily communion with God, Totally committed, Unconditional commitmentLeave a comment

SCRIPTURE FROM: Acts 20:8-12 (TLB)

TEXT: ⁸The upstairs room where we met was lighted with many flickering lamps; ⁹and as Paul spoke on and on, a young man named Eutychus, sitting on the windowsill, went fast asleep and fell three stories to his death below. ^10-12Paul went down and took him into his arms. “Don’t worry,” he said, “he’s all right!” And he was! What a wave of awesome joy swept through the crowd! They all went back upstairs and ate the Lord’s Supper together; then Paul preached another long sermon—so it was dawn when he finally left them!

OBSERVATION: Paul was indeed a special messenger of God. He was about to leave Troas, but wanted to enjoy the Lord’s Supper with the saints there before he left. That service grew into a time of Paul sharing the Word of God, and before they knew it, midnight was upon them, and folk were falling asleep, with particular attention on a young man who was sitting in the window. Of course Eutychus fell from the window after falling asleep, down three floors to his death. God used Paul to revive this young man. I believe that many question today, why won’t He also use us like He did with Paul?

APPLICATION: I believe that the question at the end of my Observation is a good one, why won’t God use us to perform miracles? Let me continue with a deeper self examination, hoping that we can get to the root of the problem: Why won’t God use me to speak the truth of God to my unsaved family members? Why won’t God promote me to a place of recognition by my fellow employees, that I’m a child of the King? Why won’t I testify of His mercy at our midweek or Sunday evening service? Why won’t God reveal Himself to me when I read His Word each day? Why won’t He answer my daily prayers to Him? Why won’t He give me the words to share when I meet friends at the store or restaurant? Why won’t He respond to my need to be prepared before I leave home for worship? Why do I get antsy when the preacher takes our service over the hour mark? Friends, could the answer to any of these questions be that it’s because you never do many of those things and therefore never take time to ask God to bless you in those ways? I know, doing any of these things I mentioned will not save you, right? In all humbleness, may I suggest that if you had a sincere relationship with the King of this universe, you would be asking for most of these things, because you would be so anxious to be in His presence and complying with His perfect will for you. For the child whose parent(s) are still alive, or for the spouse whose partner is still alive, don’t you try every day in every way possible to please them? Won’t you also want to do the same for the Prince of Peace, who sacrificed His life at Calvary just for you, because He wanted to ensure that you have everything you need to enter heaven’s gates to spend eternity with He and His Father? Read more into the Scriptures about Paul, and you will find that he went through immense struggles, and beatings, and jails, and mockeries for his faith in God, yet he stayed strong and unmovable in his faith. God may not be using us in the same way that He used Paul, because He may still not be convinced that we love Him more than anything or anyone in this world, and are willing to sacrifice anything in order to serve Him better, or more. Draw close to God, and He will draw close to you my friend.

PRAYER: Lord Jesus, You are so merciful and wonderful to me, yet I fail You in so many ways. Please forgive me and draw me close to You. My readers and I want to present ourselves as holy sacrifices to You, knowing that we can only do all things through Christ who strengthens us. We need You today Lord. Please guide us unto total Truth and embolden us to be Your witnesses wherever we go. You’re the One that matters oh Lord, and we need You more today than ever before. Into Your hands we commit ourselves anew. AMEN!

Just Do It

On 2018-02-152018-02-15 By Ed AlgreenIn Commitment, Committed, Priorities, Priority, Totally committed, Unconditional commitmentLeave a comment

SCRIPTURE FROM: 1 Chronicles 28:9-10 (AMP)

TEXT: ⁹“As for you, Solomon my son, know the God of your father [have personal knowledge of Him, be acquainted with, and understand Him; appreciate, heed, and cherish Him] and serve Him with a blameless heart and a willing mind; for the Lord searches all hearts and minds, and understands every intent and inclination of the thoughts. If you seek Him [inquiring for and of Him and requiring Him as your first and vital necessity] He will let you find Him; but if you abandon (turn away from) Him, He will reject you forever. ¹⁰Consider this carefully, for the Lord has chosen you to build a house for the sanctuary. Be courageous and strong and do it.”

OBSERVATION: David was ‘a man after God’s own heart’, so we should pay close attention to his actions and his words. In these two verses we could tell how closely in tuned he was with God, because he spoke to Solomon as if directly from the lips of God. Wouldn’t it be awesome if we had an individual like David in our lives, who would be so open with us and share so honestly with us what God revealed to them, and especially what He revealed to them about us?

APPLICATION: For any of us that have, or had, parents that were so close to God that they would speak words of wisdom to us, and try to enrich our spirit at every opportunity with the love, protection and wisdom of God, we are truly blessed! Wouldn’t we have a special appreciation for them, and develop a spirit of trust, love and respect for them, that we would easily listen and quickly follow their advice? From memories of answered prayer, don’t you know that we would make it a point to follow their advice and return love to them in every way possible? Friends, as we meditate on these verses today, I believe that we will also receive a clear understanding of the intimacy of a true relationship with our Lord. For as we are filled to overwhelming with the Spirit of God and the sweet fellowship of His Holy Spirit, not only will it impact our own lives, but we would have a deep and sincere desire to see friends and loved ones do the same. I love the way that the Amplified Version of the Bible helps us to soak in the real meaning of every word, that we might otherwise have quickly read over and not given much thought to. I believe that these words that David shared with his son, are intended to enrich our experience with God and with each other. Who are you praying for, and when last have you gotten with them to see how they’re doing, and what God may have given you to share personally with them? Doesn’t it seem like this world has sucked us into the busyness of its demands, that we hardly have time in our busy schedules anymore to visit, or even call family and friends to show that we care, or to tell them what we feel God is saying to them? I’ve always said that it’s not a matter of time, but of priorities. So will you end the day in prayer by telling God that it really wasn’t a priority to visit that Sunday School member in hospital today? What if He challenged you back by suggesting that your television wouldn’t work tomorrow so that that member will receive more priority from you than the Olympic games? Please know that only God is perfect, so your Brother is being preached at just like you, as we think about the things that please God. I will end by repeating to us what God said through David to his son – Be courageous and strong and just do it!

PRAYER: Lord God, I am so sorry that we confuse priorities with the familiar excuse that we didn’t have time to do Your work. Please help us to practice changing our vocabulary to help us realize the impact of not making Your work a priority in our lives. May the work of Your Holy Spirit be evident in our lives today oh Lord, and may we always prioritize Your work above all else. All for Your glory, Your honor and Your praise, AMEN!

Your Decisions Will Cost You

On 2018-02-132018-02-13 By Ed AlgreenIn Decisions, Determination, Determined, directionLeave a comment

SCRIPTURE FROM: Acts 18:5-6 (NLT)

TEXT: ⁵ …Paul spent all his time preaching the word. He testified to the Jews that Jesus was the Messiah. ⁶But when they opposed and insulted him, Paul shook the dust from his clothes and said, “Your blood is upon your own heads—I am innocent. From now on I will go preach to the Gentiles.”

OBSERVATION: Paul was a very patient evangelist of the Gospel of Christ. He had a passion for reaching the lost, and also those who allowed other teachings to hide them from the truth of the Gospel. However, he was a very smart man, and one who was closely in tuned with the work of the Holy Spirit. Therefore Paul realized that he could not force anyone to believe on the name of Jesus, so he allowed God to direct him when to move on, so that the people would feel the absence of the Savior. This is still very prevalent today, so let’s dig deeper into this.

APPLICATION: One of the most joyous occasions in a church is to help welcome a new pastor to serve at your church. For those who dig in and work along with the pastor to accomplish the work of the Lord in His local church, one of the saddest events in a church is when a pastor feels compelled to leave your church. Way too often, it’s for reasons very similar to the scenario faced by Paul, for the people are steeped in tradition and refuses to accept the love and preaching from men who, they feel, don’t fit the mold of their personal ideals for a ‘perfect’ pastor. Unfortunately, this could mean that in spite of their gentle heart for the Lord and His work here on earth, yet the man presenting the gospel is a mortal man, and this is often reflected through his casual talk; the friends (church members) that he hangs out with during his downtime; the jokes that he uses to help demonstrate or illustrate the story being preached that day; and the casual dress throughout the week is even being brought into the pulpit. However, he has a passion for the lost; he is a student of the Word of God and faithfully communicates with God about His perfect will for your church. Friends, these same pastors leave our church because of silly things that hurt them and their family, and they go on to another church where God is at liberty to work through them to reach the people of that community. Often these pastors brush the dust off their feet when they leave your church – the dirt of distrust; lack of communication; lack of acceptance and cooperation; excessive gossip about them and/or their family; refusal to allow God in and use you as part of the ministry at your church. Oh that we might remember that we are all equal at the foot of the cross. While here on earth we should be preparing ourselves, with the help of God, to see our old selves changed into the likeness of God as we prepare for that day when we will see Him face to face. Our time here should now be spent getting rid of old habits and the tricks we played on people that hurt them so badly. Our time should be spent in developing an attitude like that of Christ, and getting along with all men and women, even those that the world might look at and wonder why do we bother. Friends, I wonder if the blood of others may not sometimes be upon our shoulders it we had a part in steering them away from the gospel of Jesus Christ.

PRAYER: Lord Jesus, it is so challenging to live here on earth and imitate You in every way. Often we find many excuses and reasons why we can’t, but Lord I humbly plead that You would melt our hardened hearts so that we might see our old selves with its flawed character, step aside as we assume the life that You have given to us and demonstrated for us. People need the Lord. They need to see You. They need to hear from You. If that’s not happening through us, then please teach us to step aside and not be a stumbling block to those You are trying to reach. I pray that You might be able to use me Lord, but I would rather Your will, not mine. To God be the glory, for all that You will accomplish! AMEN!

Love Is In the Air

On 2018-02-112018-02-11 By Ed AlgreenIn Jesus Loves you, Love, Love God, Love of God, Love others, Love your Neighbor, The Father's Love, The love of God, Unconditional loveLeave a comment

SCRIPTURE FROM: Mark 12:29-31 (NLT)

TEXT: ²⁹Jesus replied, “The most important commandment is this: ‘Listen, O Israel! The Lord our God is the one and only Lord. ³⁰And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.’ ³¹The second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ No other commandment is greater than these.”

OBSERVATION: Jesus took the opportunity to declare and remind the teachers of the law again of the first and second commandment. In fact the greatest of all the commandments. I particularly like the way the New Living Translation put it, that ‘you MUST love the Lord your God.’ I love that! We will have a closer look at this matter of us loving our Master and loving our neighbor.

APPLICATION: I wonder how many couples would cancel their weddings if, during their premarital counseling they were told that ‘they MUST love each other if they expect that preacher to marry them’? Sounds funny, because we go to the preacher in the first place because ‘we love each other’, but when told that we must love, we tend to back off and question the authority of the preacher. The difference that Jesus was trying to explain to these teachers of the law, is that His Father is love. In other words, when we stop to consider the word ‘LOVE’, it is inseparable from God. Think also about John 3:16 where it is emphasized that God loved us so much that He willingly gave up His one and only Son, Jesus, to be crucified in place of our sin. Praise be to God that He loves even us – sinners saved by grace! Friends, we are thankful for God’s love for us, now we need to be extra sensitive to not gloat in that love, and keep it bottled up inside. Just as Jesus showed love to us, so we are to show love one to another – especially to those seeking for pure love – greater than anything they can find here on earth. This is the month of ‘love‘, and many will find unique ways of showing love to their spouse, or significant other. Oh may the world see Jesus more in us than any other characteristic that we may try to impart. He is love, and His love will satisfy the sinners heart. We simply need to be the willing, open servant that our Savior and Lord can work through!

PRAYER: Lord, please have Your perfect way in and through us today and everyday, so that others will see Jesus, and not this old sinful man. They deserve seeing God’s best. The One who died to set them free from the pit of sin, hell and destruction. Lord may many be drawn to You today, is my humble and sincere prayer. AMEN!

Spontaneous Worship

On 2018-02-092018-02-09 By Ed AlgreenIn Praise, Praise-worthy, WorshipLeave a comment

SCRIPTURE FROM: Psalm 86:11-12 (ERV)

TEXT: ¹¹Lord, teach me your ways, and I will live and obey your truths.
Help me make worshiping your name the most important thing in my life.
¹²My Lord God, I praise you with all my heart. I will honor your name forever!

OBSERVATION: David had a knack for speaking honestly to God. But one thing I observed is that if David started a Psalm in deepest concern and honestly sharing his upset mind, before the end of the Psalm he was praising God for who He truly is. I believe the emphasis in our Scripture today, is that David truly wanted to live and obey the truths of God, culminating into the most important thing of life – to worship God. To do this it seems like David realized that he should be saturated with the Word of God. Wow, what a desire!

APPLICATION: I wonder how many of us make it a priority to seek God’s face before each worship service and ask Him to open our hearts and minds so that we may understand and absorb His teachings! And as He does, do we promise to obey and worship Him sincerely? In fact, we want our worship to God to become the highlight of our day and the most important thing that we do. Notice I didn’t say the highlight of our Saturday or Sunday, but of every day! Can’t you imagine friends, that if we were led by the Holy Spirit each day during our time with the Lord, and we took time to just praise the Almighty and worship the Creator and King of this universe, then imagine what a time of rejoicing that will be when we lock arms with several others at our weekend church services? Oh my, I don’t believe that the four walls of our sanctuary would contain us! But isn’t that how true worship truly works? If you don’t learn to worship God each day in response to His Word, or His presence, or His handiwork, or in return for all that He has done for us, then you honestly feel like at our corporate services you will respond to a pastor or worship leader simply saying ‘OK, let us stand and worship God’? Is that the way you acted when you saw your fiancee only on the weekends? Can’t you see why so many worship services are dry and dull and often meaningless to so many? Let’s be sure to remember that we arrive at weekend services, after enjoying a daily, living and meaningful relationship with the One who loved us enough to send His one and only Son to die on a cross, just so that we would know that we now have the means of getting to heaven, through the Son, Jesus Christ. David concluded these verses by saying that he would praise God from the bottom of his heart, and that he would honor Him eternally. I believe that we can honestly boast of the same, if only we did better on our daily relationship with this wonderful Savior of ours! Ask Him to help you attain this worthy goal, friend!

PRAYER: To God be the glory, great things He has done! Lord we acknowledge that this is our daily cry of worship and praise, in response to all that You do for us daily. Please teach us Your Word, Your ways and Your will. Remind us of Your love for us and Your daily provisions that You provide for us, just like You do with the birds of teh air and the wild animals all over the world. As we worship You today Lord, may that effort be multiplied 10 times over on Sunday as we worship You with other believers who are also met to worship. You deserve our worship and our praise dear Lord. May we be obedient and bring our praises to You each and every day. AMEN!

Always Let Your LIGHT Shine

On 2018-02-072018-02-07 By Ed AlgreenIn Committed, Light, Totally committed, Unconditional commitmentLeave a comment

SCRIPTURE FROM: Acts 16:27-31 (TLB)

TEXT: ²⁷The jailer wakened to see the prison doors wide open, and assuming the prisoners had escaped, he drew his sword to kill himself. ²⁸But Paul yelled to him, “Don’t do it! We are all here!” ²⁹Trembling with fear, the jailer called for lights and ran to the dungeon and fell down before Paul and Silas. ³⁰He brought them out and begged them, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” ³¹They replied, “Believe on the Lord Jesus and you will be saved, and your entire household.”

OBSERVATION: In order to quiet the witness of Paul and Silas, they were thrown into prison and the guards were ordered to take extra precaution in securing them. The mouths of Paul and Silas were left unbound, so in the darkness of the night they serenaded other prisoners with their sacrifices of praise and thanksgiving to their Heavenly Father. God saw the need for salvation among those in that prison, so He sent an earthquake. The effects of the ‘quake opened the prison doors and broke the chains that bound God’s men there in that prison. Being accustomed to prisoners looking for every opportunity to escape, the guard was about to take his own life – until Paul spoke up in the darkness of that prison. Of course this had an enormous impact on that prison guard. Are you having a similar impact on those who witness your actions and your speech?

APPLICATION: I believe that the very times that we feel shy about witnessing, or feel like we are incapable of sharing the Word of God with anyone, it is then that the Holy Spirit ‘kicks in’ and says, ‘OK, now I can do the work of Him who sent me in this weakened vessel’. Friends, we are taught how to be comfortable in witnessing, yet we become timid in speaking up for our beliefs; we fear the evil one, instead of fearing the God of this universe; we are too quick to conclude that only ministers of the gospel could share Christ with others, for we tend to believe that it was surely a miracle that God saved us, so let’s not push our luck in believing that God could possibly use us to witness to a friend or family member. Friends, these myths are straight from the devil, for you won’t find in Scripture where God says to call your pastor or elder to go into all the world and share Christ. God ordained that all of His children should ‘go’ and ‘share as we go’, because He allows others to see Himself in our actions and through our character and speech. Friends, I believe that we should also question ourselves when we realize that we are not having a godly impact on others. For we should then strive to draw closer to God than ever before, through reading His Word – a message to us from God Himself; and commune with Him in prayer – open communication with our Father. We have nothing to be ashamed of, for the Kingdom of God is accessible to us! We have nothing to be ashamed of – for there is only one God, and we have personal contact with Him, through His Son, Jesus! – and God is the author and creator of all things. You talk about having a relationship and a connection with important people! WOW, this is THE Almighty God of this world!

PRAYER: Lord Jesus, people recognize when we’re happy in life’s circumstances, and they notice when we are happy being around family and good friends. Oh that they may see the glow of You living in and through us as are obedient to You and sow love to You and them. To repeat what I saw taped on a previous pastor’s pulpit: ‘Oh that they see Jesus’. That is my prayer today Lord! Have Your perfect will and way in directing me, and in the lives of those that will encounter You through me. Oh that they see Jesus! AMEN!

Protect Your Heart

On 2018-02-062018-02-06 By Ed AlgreenIn Clean Heart, Heart, Protection, SurrenderLeave a comment

SCRIPTURE FROM: Proverbs 4:23-27 (MSG)

TEXT: ^23-27Keep vigilant watch over your heart;
    that’s where life starts.
Don’t talk out of both sides of your mouth;
    avoid careless banter, white lies, and gossip.
Keep your eyes straight ahead;
    ignore all sideshow distractions.
Watch your step,
    and the road will stretch out smooth before you.
Look neither right nor left;
    leave evil in the dust.

OBSERVATION: When we guard our heart, I believe that we are looking at our mind; thoughts; will; and our affections. For out of these things we will see the issues of life that lead to the effectual cause of all men’s actions. It is from our heart that others will see our spiritual condition; our happiness; our decisions that make us a good person in someone else’ eyes, or a bad person. On the contrary, others might also see our deceit; our evil actions; or our mean actions as well. Guarding, or protecting our heart, is leading us to filter what aspects of the above is welcomed into our heart to determine the type person that we want to be known as.

APPLICATION: The subject sounds like something my cardiologist might say to me, for without a good functioning heart there would be little chance of my survival here on earth. He would therefore give me exercises, or a certain diet to help me stay heart-healthy. Got created our heart, even the one we are speaking of here today, and I believe it is super important to Him that we keep our heart in sweet communion with Him, so that we may worship and praise Him eternally – as He originally intended. Unfortunately, sin came into this world, and in the effort of humans to always look around the corner for whatever seems most enticing, this divided the hearts and minds of people like you and I. This will often result in a life filled with worldliness, or in many cases a life trying to live for Jesus but being pulled back by the things of this world that we fall in love with. Friends, it is important that we stay away from sin, if we expect to have a noble spiritual life, where the Father has His will and way with us (Isaiah 59:2). For the natural man, I believe that our heart is susceptible to wanting the best things for us to enjoy here on earth. However when the Holy Spirit begins to work in our lives and draws us unto Himself, we have a decision to make – we either say yes to Jesus, which automatically results in us saying no the the world, or vice versa. There is no combo deal in the offer, it’s one or the other. A married couple will leave old boyfriends and girlfriends behind as they commit their lives unconditionally to each other. So it is with God, friends! When a spouse enters into marriage without having severed a relationship with an old ‘flame’, divorce will quickly follow, because there is mixed allegiance by that spouse. Similarly, our God is a jealous God and He will not settle for a ‘mixed allegiance’. Decide this day, my friend, whom you will serve, and then stay true to that commitment until death makes that commitment impossible. As a child of the King, I have heaven on my mind, and I want to live my life here on earth in total obedience to my Father, His Son and the Holy Spirit. My wish for the day, is that you will do the same Brother and/or Sister!

PRAYER: Lord Jesus, thank You for making a way for us to one day see You in glory. Thank You for allowing us to enjoy Your presence while we wait here on earth, even among the many temptations of Satan. Please continue to protect our hearts dear Lord, so that we may stay true to You. Please touch hearts of those that may have made decisions just for grandma or grandpa, but never understood or totally committed their lives to You. These ones may think that they know You personally, but really have never personally sought Your face. Lord, we stand in awe of You, and we await Your return in deep anticipation! We want to see Jesus, the One who died for all! Glory to the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, AMEN!

Nuggets From God's Word

Tag: Bible Fellowship Church of Sebring FL