Now when Jesus had come into Peter’s house, He saw his wife’s mother lying sick with fever. So He touched her hand, and the fever left her. And she arose and served them. Matthew 8:14-15

Has God ever healed you of an illness? Maybe it was something as simple as a fever, or more complex like cancer, a rare disease or a physical impairment. Maybe God has healed you from an addiction that has held you captive for years.  No doubt, God can heal anyone, even bring the dead back to life, as documented in the bible. Why does God heal?   

God has a plan and purpose for every human being. First off, His desire is that every human come to accept Jesus Christ into their life (1 Timothy 2:4). Secondly, God desires that we serve Him in every area of our life. That can be the most challenging thing for a Christian, to yield every area of their life to Him. Challenging yes, impossible no.

As humans we are broken. Bent towards sin and the ways of the world. As I look back over 54 years of my life, I see areas of my life where I was spiritually sick and God was not able to use me because of my sinfulness or brokenness. Yet, as time progressed, He slowly began to heal the darkest areas of my life and brought me to a healthy state, spiritually and in the flesh. As a result, I became more useful to serve Him.

God wants you to have a personal relationship through the sacrifice of his Son, Jesus Christ. Once your journey begins with Jesus, He will touch areas of your life that need healing, so you can serve Him. You know what needs healing, call upon God for His healing touch today, so you can serve Him and be blessed.

Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable-if anything is excellent or praiseworthy-think about such things. Philippians 4:8 

Between the news, social media and all these videos displaying violence and injustice, they have stirred hearts, angered souls, made people react in ways they normally wouldn’t and say hurtful things. It appears that everyone has a voice and no matter how truthful they may feel about a subject, there is an opposing belief that is equally believable. It’s a mess out there and I’m ready to take a mental escape from it all.

Today’s verse was brought to my attention and I wanted to share a thought. As we know from past experiences, everything changes over time and what has our blood pressure up now will be history in time. Another crises will arise (and Lord knows 2020 has not been short on them!), that will scream for our attention and reaction. But there is one thing that never changes and that’s God and His word.

Through an excellent devotion and today’s verse, I was reminded that my focus needs to be on the consistency of God. Nothing changes, its clear and truthful and most of all backed by God’s love and care for His creation…you and me!  I know it might be difficult, but lets slowly back away from social media and the news for a while and spend an equal amount of time in God’s word and pray. The minute you take your mind off the world’s troubles and focus on God, your mind turns from anger to peace, hate to love, justice to forgiveness.

Join me right now in prayer and some time spent in scripture. Let God lead you through His word. Simply ask Him to reveal what you need at the moment and soak it up. Meanwhile, silence that phone and pay no attention to the news and social media. It’s time we declutter our minds and fill it with God’s goodness! God bless!

For the Lord God is a sun and shield; The Lord will give grace and glory: No good thing will He withhold from those who walk uprightly. Psalm 84:11

Have you had enough of 2020? Between the Coronavirus, strange weather and social unrest in the country, this year has been taxing on many Americans, including myself. I’ve had enough and desire so much for us to get back to the way things were. In the midst of this year’s chaos, many have asked if these are signs of Christ return.

Far be it that I predict His return. But one thing I do know, we as a nation have been out of sync with God. Society as a whole has deteriorated so much that I truly fear its beyond repair. I wonder if God himself has had enough of his creation’s disastrous ways, beliefs and lack of respect for Him. As a result, He is slowly withholding His hand of protection and allowing our nation, and world, suffer the consequences by turning our backs on Him.

Today’s verse gives encouragement for His children to walk uprightly. As a result, God blesses and withholds nothing good. Well, 2020 has been anything but good. Although God is good Himself, we have royally screwed up things and we are reaping what we’ve sown. The truth is, no one is innocent. We are all sinners, thankfully saved by grace.

So what can we do? Pray. Pray that through all this mess we are seeing in the media and in our own communities, we as a society will turn back to God and give Him the true respect He deserves. He has a basket full of blessings, ready to share with the nation that honors Him. Your prayers have power to change, and we are in need of every one of them! Join me in daily prayer for our world, our nation, our community and our neighbors! God bless!

For perhaps he departed for a while for this purpose, that you might receive him forever. Philemon 1:15

If you’ve never read the book of Philemon, I encourage you to do so. Its only 25 verses long and has a great story. Onesimus was a slave to Philemon. He did some bad things and ran away from his master. Onesimus was caught and imprisoned. There, he met the disciple Paul. During their time together in prison, Onesimus accepted Jesus Christ as his personal savior.

With his newfound faith, Onesimus knew he needed to return to his master. Back in those days a runaway slave who returned was sure to be treated badly or worse yet killed. To smooth the transition back, Paul wrote a letter to Philemon, asking for him to offer grace and mercy to Onesimus. If it wasn’t for him running away, he would never had the opportunity to discover the life transformation Jesus Christ could offer him and make him a better person.

As I read this story, the verse above really spoke to me. Maybe you have someone in your life whose left the comfort of your family and looking for escape from the realities of life. You worry about them, pray for them and hope to see their return. Have faith in the Lord that even on the run, God will help them cross paths with someone like Paul who can minister to them and transform their life into someone better. When they return, have grace and mercy for the one you love. God is working on your runaway! God bless!

One who turns his ear from hearing the law, Even his prayer is an abomination. Proverbs 28:9

Have you ever lost connection with someone while talking to them on your cell phone? You talk and talk and realize the other person is no longer there. Everything you said was in vain.

As I read this proverb the thought came to mind about the past few months during this Covid-19 pandemic. We have missed many church services while “sheltering in place.” As a result of missed sermons and quality worship time, my prayer life has suffered. I’ll even be transparent to admit my walk with the Lord has struggled. Without church attendance, I’ve quickly filled that time with other, non-significant, less than meaningful things. My prayers have no rhythm and I feel disconnected from God. Can you relate?

This evening Lori had a chance to connect with some of her friends. I took the opportunity of quiet time to turn off the TV and pick up my bible and read. Like a man staggering in the desert looking for water, I was thirsty for God’s word and in just 30 minutes was filling my spirit with truth, and connecting with God in a way I have missed for a long time.

The simple truth is, God’s word keeps us connected to Him. If we don’t read it daily, we are simply living our lives like a one-sided conversation. Our prayers will have no meaning as long as we are disconnected from Him.

Maybe your walk with the Lord has struggled over the past few months. Take some time to yourself and read God’s word. Ask God to lead you through scriptures to quench your thirsty soul and replenish wisdom so your prayers are like a sweet aroma to your Heavenly Father! God bless!  

I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you. John 14:18

Well, its been a month since we have walked into a church building for worship service. I was just thinking yesterday how many Sundays have passed, especially Easter Sunday, and no communing with fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. All because this pandemic has changed the way we live for a while. Its sad, and I miss my church family. I miss worshipping God with music and a message, in person, that really touches my heart. Can you relate?

The other day I took a few minutes to do a spiritual checkup. I’ve got to be transparent; I don’t feel as if my spiritual health is better than it was before I went into this pandemic. I feel malnourished and weakened in my faith. As I was tossing around these thoughts in my mind, God laid a few simple words on my heart….”I will never leave you, nor forsake you.” Wow, I needed that refreshment. Here I am feeling down because my faith isn’t where it should be, yet Jesus reassured me, He is with me, loves me, and watches over me, even when I’m not able to attend church.

Maybe your walk with the Lord has suffered during this pandemic. Time away from God’s holy table can leave you malnourished and longing for His word and fellowship with brothers and sisters. So isolated, you feel like an orphan. Trust me friend, Jesus Christ has not left you alone. He is with you and will bring you through this difficult time. Stay in His word, keep praying and stay in touch with others as we come closer to brining the family back together for spiritual nourishment and worship! God bless!

But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them. Acts 16:25

 

If there is one word said and seen in text and email messages is “canceled”. With this COVID-19 pandemic, so many events, religious services, meetings….etc, everything has been canceled. As we approach Easter Sunday, we hear of church services and Easter gatherings cancelled. The real question is, is Easter cancelled?

 

We read in Acts 16 where Paul and Silas were doing work of the Lord and suffered physical abuse by beatings and threats against their life. After their beatings they were thrown into the inner most part of prison with their feet shackled. After going through all of those horrifying hours of abuse you’d think any mention of Jesus Christ and praising Him would be halted. If you read on past verse 25, you see the impact of their dedication to praising and worshipping God. People got saved. Their boldness and commitment to the Lord, despite all the bad things that happened, actually returned blessings to them and others.

 

Although your church services and Easter plans might be cancelled, Easter is not canceled. A day celebrating the life, death and most awesome resurrection of Jesus Christ can still be celebrated and honored, even in the most dire of moments. Celebrate Christ in your words and actions. The prisoners of Satan are watching you closely. Don’t be defeated. Keep celebrating Jesus through your faith and words this week! God bless!