Remember That You Are Lord

“Almighty God, when all hell is breaking loose

against me, help me to remember that You are Lord,

that You are able, that You are present.

Help me to lift my eyes from earthly conflict

To see Your heavenly power. Cause me to know the

Peace that passes understanding, a peace

That comes from acknowledging Your lordship

In every circumstance of my life..”

(a prayer taken from the NIV Worship Bible Exodus 14:14)

As we look at the children of Israel in the book of Exodus, how many times can and do we see ourselves. God had just done so many miracles, things that only He could have done. They had watched Him turn the Nile river into blood; cover the land of Egypt with frogs, gnats and flies. They had seen God kill all of the livestock of the Egyptians, but spare theirs. The had witnessed God sending boils to cover all of the men and animals throughout the land. These people had seen God rain down hail on the land of Egypt and destroy everything growing in the fields. Then they saw the plague of locusts and darkness that culminated in the death of all of the first born of Egypt while all of God’s chosen people who where covered by the blood of the lamb did not see death. You would think that after all of that, trusting God would not be an issue with these folks. However, our human nature is strong and how soon we forget God’s gracious provisions and protection when the going really gets tough.

Their thought was that this had to be a trick. All that separated them from their enemy was land and in front of them sat the Red Sea. They cried out to Moses, “Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die? What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt? Didn’t we say to you in Egypt, ‘Leave us alone; let us serve the Egyptians’? It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!”(14:11-12). However, God in His incredibly gracious way, once again provided for His own. He opened a way where there was no way. He made a roadway in the wilderness and a path way through the sea. The pathway of life for the Lord’s people became a roadway of death for the Egyptians. God had given His word through Moses and Aaron that they were going to a land that He had prepared for them. He had made a covenant with Abraham, with Isaac and with Jacob. He was not about to break His promise. However, circumstances were giving other signals.

God has given us His word. He has promised to never leave us or forsake us. In every circumstance He has promised to meet our every need! He has promised to not only hear, but to answer our prayers. We need but to exercise our faith and believe Him at His Word. He is worthy to be trusted, He has never failed. Praise His Name!!

I Will Boast Only In The Lord

“Riches I heed not, nor man’s empty praise,

Thou mine inheritance, now and always;

Thou and Thou only, First in my heart,

High King of heaven, my Treasure Thou art.”

~”Be Thou My Vision”

Ancient Irish Hymn (8th Century)

In this world of vast material wealth it’s easy to see how people can be overcome with the desire to get more and more and never have enough. Boasting is something that many shy away from verbally, but many show in the way that they live. It’s easy for this to happen especially when you begin to believe your own press. You’ve succeeded by the world’s standards and everyone is always telling you how great and wonderful you are. The success may not be financial; it may be in sports, or in your job. Maybe you’ve been a wonderful and proactive parent and your children are very successful.

Whatever our success may be, we must never forget where the ability to succeed comes from. That’s important especially when you realize that God’s standard of success is far different than man’s standard. God in his gracious wisdom and love has given all of us the potential for success. The world exalts the wise, the strong, and the powerful as being the examples of success. God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise. (1 Corinthians 1:27) He has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the strong. He has chosen the powerless people, the ordinary people to proclaim the Almighty One.

That brings great comfort to me. Knowing that I don’t have to compare myself to others gives me great comfort because there is always someone better or more gifted. But thankfully that is not what God is looking for. What He is after is a person who is willing, and has an available heart where He can reside and work His wonders in and through. That takes the pressure off of us to be the “best”. Who came up with that anyway? Where does Jesus command us to be the best? We are told to do our best, and to give of our best, but the difference comes with who is ultimately in control. When we try to be the best it’s easy to boast in our own strength. When we do our best in His strength and rely on God for the results, it’s easier to give the glory where the glory is deserved.

As you worship today, thank and praise God that He is willing and ready to use you to show the world that He is a kind, just and righteous God! Wow, what an honor!

Pastor MJ

The LORD Is My Shepherd

“Even through I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.” Psalm 23:4

The 23rd Psalm, what a beautiful and treasured passage which reminds us that as our Shepherd, God loves and cares for each one of us! We are also reminded of the relational aspect of our walk with God. When temptations face us, we can turn to the One who is ever present and who loves unconditionally. Our Shepherd who desires to do far beyond what we can imagine does just that!

Awhile back, I received from a friend, a wonderful way to read through and understand the Lord’s Prayer. I want to share it with you and encourage you to thank God today for being the awesome God He is and for giving us His word not only to comfort us, but to give us strength to live victoriously in the midst of pain and temptation.

“The Lord is my Shepherd…THAT’S RELATIONSHIP!

I shall not want…THAT’S SUPPLY!

He maketh me to lie down in green pastures…THAT’S REST!

He leadeth me beside still waters…THAT’S REFRESHMENT!

He restoreth my soul…THAT’S HEALING!

He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness…THAT’S GUIDANCE!

For His name sake…THAT’S PURPOSE!

Yea, though I walk though the valley of the shadow of death…THAT’S CHALLENGE!

I will fear no evil…THAT’S ASSURANCE!

For though art with me…THAT’S FAITHFULNESS!

Thy rod and thy staff they comfort me…THAT’S SHELTER!

Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies…THAT’S HOPE!

Thou anointest my head with oil…THAT’S CONSECRATION!

My cup runneth over…THAT’S ABUNDANCE!

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life…THAT’S BLESSING!

And I will dwell in the house of the Lord…THAT’S SECURITY!

Forever…THAT’S ETERNITY!

Isn’t God good? That’s something to praise Him for today!
With you on the Journey,

Mark Jones
Worship Pastor

Back In The Day

“Back in the day” I remember arriving at church seeing people exiting their cars with smiles. Hugs and handshakes would be followed by the infamous, “how are you?” and the just as infamous, “just fine”. Just what does “fine” mean anyway? I knew many of these people and knew that everything was not “just fine”. So why the game face? Many days I wondered why we’d gather on Sunday. From my vantage point there was no difference in the way we left from the way we came in. It never seemed like we were on common ground as to why we were there. Why not just stay home?

Think for a moment, what is it about Sunday gatherings that we can’t do at home? We’ve got bibles; we can read them at home. With the availability of videos and the internet we can get incredible teaching. Pastor Jeff’s sermons are online; why not just log-on? Christian music is everywhere; there are recordings of live worship experiences, DVD’s, video’s, and other multimedia experiences. Why not just pop one in with your pj’s on and worship at home? Why rush out on Sunday morning when you can stay at home; avoid the arguments in the car and sleep in and worship at “Bedside Tabernacle”? Why should you be here and not make it a practice to worship on a fishing boat or at the lake house or on the golf course? God it there too, so why gather here with those around you today?

First of all, because God’s Word tells us to (see Hebrews 10:25). God uses people. If you are a believer, you don’t have the option to be a spectator today. You are here to bring, and to respond. We are to bring praise, thanksgiving, adoration, needs, joys, pain, sorrow, success, failure, etc. and together present them to the Lord. We bring Him all that we are because He is worthy. We are to respond to Him and all that He is and allow that to make a difference in the way we listen, sing, and relate to others. One of the reasons we do that together is for encouragement. As I see you, hurts and all magnifying Him, I am encouraged to do the same. As we listen to the truth of God’s Word together and I see you struggling during the week, we can remind each other of the truths we’ve learned. As we gather together we represent that we are family, a community of believers with the same purpose of glorifying God with our “everything-ness”. To love the Lord our God with our whole being and to be encouraged to do that together and be equipped for the week ahead. To proclaim together that He is good and that no matter what our week brings that He is still good and that we’ll be there for each other. Let’s never allow corporate gatherings to be just something that we do when we want. It’s a command; it’s a privilege; let’s make it a lifestyle.

He is worthy and we won’t regret it.

Pastor MJ