The Pastor's Pocket

Romans 6:46 says, “…even so, we should walk in the newness of life.”  It’s springtime!  Look around you and you’ll see new life everywhere*.  New buds on the trees, new blades of grass, new flowers, even new weeds!  Birds have “little ones” to feed.  There are new calves, new little rabbits and new little skunks. Spring season reminds us all of the “new life” we have in Christ.  In Romans 6 Paul mentions, “that as Christ was raised up from the dead…” Because Jesus sprung forth from the grave, we have a Savior!  All of us, any of us, can break forth from the tomb of spiritual death and be raised up to enjoy the “newness of life”.  I think back to John chapter 11 when Jesus raised Lazarus from death.  A man, four days in the tomb, and yet Jesus called him out!  “Lazarus come forth”, Jesus said. And Lazarus “came forth…” What a picture of our salvation.  You see, we were once in the tomb of spiritual death.  Then Jesus called our name!  Some of us He called more than one time.  I’m so gla

 We could all use some courage in these trying times we live in.  Joshua was given the assignment of leading the Israelites across the Jordan River and into the land of promise after Moses had been their leader all those years in the wilderness. In Joshua 1:6, God said to him, “Be strong and of good courage” (Joshua 1:6). In verse 7, “only be thou strong and very courageous”, verse 9, “Have I not commanded thee? Be strong and of good courage, be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed for the Lord thy God is with thee withersoever thou goest.” Knowing that Joshua would need some COURAGE after serving under Moses in the wilderness, the Lord commanded him to be strong and full of COURAGE. In chapter three of Joshua, we read of how this bold and fearless leader, full of COURAGE, lead the people across the Jordan River and into the land of Canaan, the land full of milk and honey, yet filled with many unknowns and many challenges. We too have big challenges ahead as we prepare for the coming o

  Let’s turn back to God – now! (Hosea 6:1-3)  The story of Hosea and Gomer is one of the most interesting stories in the Bible. God spoke to Hosea, His prophet, and told him to marry a loose woman, a prostitute, and so he did.  But she was unfaithful and gave herself to other men and sinned against her husband. The sins of Gomer, the unfaithful wife, depicted the sins of God’s people, who just like her, turned  their back on the Lord.  I see a parallel in this story to our own nation.  In Hosea’s day God’s people were not only experiencing material prosperity, but also moral bankruptcy.  Their sins are listed in various places in this book.  They included cursing and swearing, deception and lying, murder, stealing, adultery, fornication, drunkenness, rebellion and idolatry, chasing after other gods and wrong-doing in general.  America today may be materially prosperous, but we are as a nation sinking in moral decay.  Each does what is right “in his own eyes” and just like Hosea’s wife

  Lamentations 3:25 / Psalm 16:11 / Isaiah 40:28-31  We will only linger around something we love.  Think about it. If we love the Lord, lingering in His presence should be our delight, our joy.  Waiting upon the Lord has tremendous benefits if we’re patient enough to linger in His presence.  Waiting is hurry’s enemy.  Satan wants us to rush, rush and hurry through life, bypassing the joy that comes from enjoying the present moment we have with the Lord.  Patience brings power, vision, motivation, and perseverance.  True change occurs in the presence of God!  If we learn to linger long enough and wait upon the Lord, anger will subside, confusion will disappear, and the fear of man will die.  While we are waiting, we can hear His voice, hope can be birthed, our countenance will change, wounds can be healed, true joy will return, mistakes can be exposed, instruction and direction are given, a fresh anointing is imparted, love is reignited and God gives renewed strength for tomorrow’s cha

  I Thessalonians 5:18 says, “In everything give thanks…”  At first glance this seems impossible.  How can we possibly give thanks to God in everything, at all times, and in every situation?  The truth is there is a huge benefit for any of us who learn, by faith, to be grateful.  It’s an attitude that we must develop if we are ever to become grounded believers.  Being thankful helps us focus on God rather than our circumstances.  It is no test of faith to rejoice and shout when the sun is shining and when all is well.  We must learn to be thankful when all is not so well.  That’s faith!  It’s the example of Paul and Silas in Acts 16.  They were in prison!  They were uncertain of what the next day might bring, and yet the scriptures tell us “…at midnight, they prayed and sang praises to God”.  They were giving thanks to the Lord who held them in His care.    So here is my challenge for you today: when your world turns upside down, thank God; when sickness visits your house, thank God; w

  I John 5:3 says that God’s “commandments are not grievous.”  In other words, they are not difficult to obey for those who love the Lord.  Christianity is not just do's and dont's.  However, they are in the Bible for our benefit.  God knows that certain boundaries are needed for our well-being.  Moral, physical, and spiritual boundaries are given so that we might live full and abundant lives.  The truth is, when we put God first, we are happier.  When we follow the restrictions found in God’s Word, the quality of our lives is much better overall.  The Book of Proverbs is filled with wisdom ready to be harvested.  It also is full of dos and don’ts.  For example: don’t envy the wicked (24:1). Don’t try to get even with people (24:29). Don’t boast of tomorrow (27:1). Don’t brag or praise yourself (27:2). Do fear the Lord (24:21).  Do love your enemy (25:21). Do discipline your children (29:17). Proverbs contains a host of other instructions that indicate your wisdom if you follow

  In II Corinthians 9:8 and 12:9 we read where Paul’s life was a demonstration of the grace of God.  The Lord transformed this self-righteous, religious Jew into a bulwark for the gospel of Jesus Christ, but before his salvation experience on his way to Damascus one day (Acts 9), Paul persecuted the church, opposed the church and considered himself right in doing so.  But God showed him mercy and soon Paul began to understand that being a Christian was tied to the marvelous grace of God.  He then went everywhere preaching to anyone who would listen, “by grace are ye saved…” (Ephesians 2:8).  He bore witness to the grace of God and began to learn day by day that God’s grace, kindness, and favor was indeed sufficient for every situation.  I declare unto you my friend that the grace of God is indeed an “all-sufficient grace”.  It is sufficient for; (1) The would-be Christian.  The lost sinner seeking salvation and forgiveness will discover God’s grace is available to all who repent and be

  Revelation 10:6 says, “…that there should be time no longer.”  People today of every nation, tribe and tongue on planet earth know instinctively that history is going somewhere.  If to you, things seem to be moving toward a climax, the truth is, they are! Time, as we know it, as it is measured on the earth, will one day be no more.  The final scene is about to unfold, all the players are in position and are ready to move.  The final chapter will soon play out and King Jesus will return in power and glory. The climax of history is the “glorious appearing of our great God and Savior” (Titus 2:13).  Before He returns, “He will judge the earth with righteousness” (Psalm 96:13).  The longest segment of John’s prophecy in Revelation 6 – 18 reveals the wrath of the Lamb being poured out on a sinful planet, a seven year period of turmoil on the earth.  Jesus said in (Matthew 24:21) “for then shall be great tribulation such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no ever sha

     In the last chapter of John’s gospel, the resurrected Christ appeared to seven of the disciples by the Sea of Galilee. Simon Peter went out to do some fishing and some of the boys joined him. They fished through the night but didn’t catch anything.  Each time they pulled in the nets, they were empty. What a bummer.     Early morning now, and Jesus standing on the shore calls out to the disciples, “Children, have ye any meat?”  In other words, “catch anything?” They answered Him, “No”.  A simple confession. An admission of failure. The text says “they”, so I assume they all said “No”.         What if the Lord were to ask any of us the question, “Caught a soul lately?”  In other words, led anyone to the Lord lately?  I wonder if we would offer up excuses like, I’ve been awful busy, just haven’t had the time Jesus. Or would be honest enough to just reply, “No”.  What if the Lord were to ask us, “Have you been in the Word lately?”  Would we make excuses for skipping Bible Study, or wo

  Jesus is the “Master of Turnaround”, and He proved it early one Sunday morning 2000 years ago.  In the first three gospels (Matthew, Mark and Luke) there is a great contrast between the last and the next to the last chapters.  The next to the last chapters of all three of these gospels describe the crucifixion. The last chapters detail the resurrection. When Jesus was taken down from the cross, He was a bloody mess.  Wounds from the crown of thorns on His head, the nails that were driven through His hands and feet, the spear that was thrust through His side and from the whip upon His back, all of this He suffered for people like you and me. But early Sunday morning when the women went to the tomb the angel said, “Why seek ye the living among the dead? He is not here; He is risen”!  When Jesus was nailed to the cross, there was pain, weeping, darkness and death, but remember Jesus was the “Master of Turnaround”. Where there was death, now there was life.  Where there was darkness, now

  When God does something wonderful for you, you have a right to be happy about it! In Acts 3:1-10, consider the incredible miracle that this poor crippled man experienced. His whole life up until that moment was filled with misery, humiliation, pain and frustration, but by the power of God, his humiliation turned into jubilation!  For the first time in his life, he was overwhelmed with pure joy.  He was so happy that he just couldn’t hold it in!  He entered the temple with Peter and John “walking and leaping and praising God”. In most churches today, there is not enough rejoicing.  The sounds of happy Christians, clapping, shouting, singing and testimonies of praise are too often absent in our services.  It’s no wonder we don’t attract the lost!  We’ve given the unsaved the impression that our salvation has made us miserable. May I remind you dear friend that the gospel is still “good news”.  God loves us (in spite of ourselves) and He still offers eternal life, forgiveness, peace and

  You can appreciate your relationship with God more, when other relationships let you down (Job 19:13,19,25). The story of Job is fairly familiar to most who have read the Bible.  In one day, Job suffered more loss than a lot of us will ever experience in a lifetime.  He lost his livelihood, his children, his health, his possessions, his house and even his friends turned against him.  It was hard for Job to understand or to make sense of it all. Job came to the point when there was not one arm of the flesh left on which he could lean.  Everyone he knew turned against him. If you live a dedicated, godly life, you’re going to be deserted by someone sooner or later, but God will never desert you (Hebrews 13:5b).  When God is all you have, you will discover He is all you really need to press on! Notice Job’s words in verse 25 of chapter 19.  “for I know that my Redeemer liveth…”  It’s interesting to note that it was after Job had experienced the failure of earthly kinships; that the reali

    Most Pastors I talk to share with me the same struggle. That is, how to keep their people motivated. How do they help them maintain a fervency in serving in their various ministries?     I certainly don’t have the answer, as I struggle with the same thing. I do believe we are still suffering from the after affects of a lethargy left behind from the Covid pandemic. However, I witnessed this lack of fervency even before Covid.     Perhaps it is partly a fulfillment of Paul’s prophecy in 2 Timothy 3 where he said that God’s people would be “lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God”.  We seem to have no problem being fervent at a ball game or a race, or a trip to Disney World, but we struggle to be fervent in our service for the Lord.  What can change that? REVIVAL! Only when we are truly revived in our hearts, and we rearrange our priorities. will we ever change.  Our fervency will return when we understand what a privilege it is to serve the King of Kings.     I have for years sa