Tag: Tyre

How To Spend Your Spare Time

On By Ed AlgreenIn Answered Prayer, Appreciation, Believers, friends, Needs, Praise, Recognize God, Worship2 Comments

DATE POSTED Sunday, 2022-07-03
WRITTEN AT: O Brien, FL

SCRIPTURE FROM: Acts 21:3–4
TRANSLATION: Contemporary English Version (CEV)

BIBLE TEXT: 3 We came within sight of Cyprus and then sailed south of it on to the port of Tyre in Syria, where the ship was going to unload its cargo. 4 We found the Lord’s followers and stayed with them for a week. The Holy Spirit had told them to warn Paul not to go on to Jerusalem. 

APPLICATION: By using one of the only means of transportation from one place to another, a sailing ship, Paul wound up having to be at the Port of Tyre for over a week while goods were being unloaded for the local people. In our world today, think about when a cruise ship stops into a port. They will inevitably have lots of tours and/or suggestions for its passengers, but I don’t believe you would hear them suggest time with friends, or at a religion establishment, or listening, and ministering to the poor and downtrodden. But what about you, what do you tend to do while on vacation with regards to God, His church and/or His people? Do you tend to take a vacation from all of your ‘God related things’ also? I once heard a sermon entitled ‘Saints on Vacation’, and it truly was an eye opener! Here’s what I really enjoy about attending a church in the area in which I vacation: (a) It is refreshing to see God at work not only in my home church, but also in fresh new ways that are so apropos for the area that I am visiting. In other words, ministry in a rural town to mostly farmers, might look quite different to ministry in a coastal town to mostly college-aged kids. (b) I find that there is greater freedom to worship in a place that I am visiting, because we tend to build a box around us, as to what is permissible in worship at our home church, mostly because of what our friends and family may think. (c) I look for ideas that I could bring back and share with my home church. Perhaps a bulletin, or other literature; and (d) I find it refreshing to just worship with these new-found believers without the distraction of any side jobs on my mind. In Paul’s case, he placed the sightseeing aside; he wasn’t attracted to the shade trees overlooking the ocean where he could catch up on his rest; he simply had a hunger to be with fellow believers! When it was time to leave the island, Paul’s new found Christian friends followed him to the seashore and sent him off with a prayer meeting. I believe that visiting a church while on vacation, might bring similar results, for fellow Christians are often out to minister to attendees – especially visitors! Be sure to always seek out fellow believers, and plan to attend a local church the next time you visit an area. Paul did, and he was blessed with receiving a word from God through his new friends. Let’s get used to being with fellow Christians while here on earth, as that will be the norm around the throne of God!

PRAYER: Father, we are either a Christian or we’re not. We either want to be with you, or we don’t. These things will hold true in our normal work week, but they will also hold true when we’re out of town, and even when out of sight of our pastor or church leaders. Mixing with saints of other towns remind us a lot of what it will be like when we worship around Your throne with saints from all nations and all cultures from all over the world. Please help us to hold true to our faith, and to desire times of worship with other believers, even when out of town or far from our local church. Heaven will not just be made up of members of our home church, so please help us to get used to the idea of worshiping with other believers while still here on earth. Thank You Lord for who You are and especially who You are to such a vast cloud of witnesses/believers here on this earth. I look forward to the day that we will all be gathered around your throne worshiping at Your feet! 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 might 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 subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. You may also visit me on Spotify and listen to Nuggets while you’re out and about. I would encourage you to find a church home near by your home, and attend as frequently as you could. Get to know God, and allow His people to encourage and strengthen you in your Christian walk, while making every effort to be a blessing to them. God is at work among His people! Please consider growing in your faith, as you worship with fellow believers!

Woe To You……

On By Ed AlgreenIn A Lamp unto My Path, All have sinned, Ask and Receive, Bible Believing, Bold Confidence, Christian, Eternal Life, Evangelism, Faith, Faith, Follow Jesus, Forgiveness, God Cares For Us, God Reigns, God’s Word, Humility, Listen to the Word of God, Love God, Obedience, Our Help comes from God, Righteousness, Surrender, Victorious LifeLeave a comment

Scripture: Genesis 36 – 37; Matthew 11  

OBSERVATION (What is God saying here?)

20 Then Jesus began to denounce the towns where he had done so many of his miracles, because they hadn’t repented of their sins and turned to God.21 “What sorrow awaits you, Korazin and Bethsaida! For if the miracles I did in you had been done in wicked Tyre and Sidon, their people would have repented of their sins long ago, clothing themselves in burlap and throwing ashes on their heads to show their remorse.22 I tell you, Tyre and Sidon will be better off on judgment day than you.23 “And you people of Capernaum, will you be honored in heaven? No, you will go down to the place of the dead. For if the miracles I did for you had been done in wicked Sodom, it would still be here today.24 I tell you, even Sodom will be better off on judgment day than you.”   Matt 11:20-24 (NLT)

APPLICATION (How Can I apply what God is saying here to my circumstances today?)

I believe that too often we tend to think about how good we are as a church, or a nation, that God would surely bless everyone in it. I also think that we tend to take it for granted that because we go to this or that church every week we will also go to heaven. Friends, there is only one way to get there, and that is to accept Jesus as Lord of you life. Just like Jesus may have done numerous miracles in our church, or in our family, so we may be tempted to think that we too are among those blessed, and will surely reap God’s blessings. These verses tell us that although Jesus performed many miracles in these towns, yet they (the people) will surely die and go to hell if they don’t make personal decisions to accept Him. We too must turn to God, and not think for a moment that we can depend on our blessed lineage to also slip into Heaven. It just doesn’t happen that way. Woe to any that believe that way. A personal decision to accept Jesus is THE only way to ever see Jesus and/or Heaven. The one good thing is that, if you are able to read this devotional today, there is still time for you to make the type decision of which I speak about here. Don’t delay your decision friend, we are not promised one moment past the present breath. Contact me if you would like a friend to talk with about this decision. Directly from God’s Word I will find the words to help you in your decision to accept Jesus. Respond to this posting today, please?

PRAYER (With God’s help, what am I going to do differently today because He said it?)

Thank You Father for saving my soul. please help me to be sensitive to those who have yet to make this most important decision. Please direct me to someone today that I may help in their dilemma so that they may personally know that they will see You one day, regardless of what may go on around them. Thank You for making this provision for us and providing a means for forgiveness of sin and the promise of eternal life.