The Pastor's Pocket

  If you are a Christian, you have an invisible target on your back! The Bible speaks of the “fiery darts of the wicked” (Ephesians 6:16).  The devil perceives you as a threat, the culture considers you irrelevant and sometimes even family and friends think you stand in the way of their own agenda.  Jesus even warned us, “the world hateth you” (John 15:19). But why do I say the target is on your back? Because Paul said we wear the “shield of faith”.  A shield is always held in front of the soldier.  God has provided all the spiritual armor we need to defeat the oncoming attacks of our enemies.  The only one place that is ever exposed is our back side. This is why you must confront the forces of evil head-on.  Stand firm in your faith. Confront your problems. Face-up to the enemy.  Live for God. Do the will of God. Never turn your back on your opponent and God will give you the victory (I Corinthians 15:57-58). The Pastor’s Pocket Pastor Bruce Freeman

  Broken focus is the cause of much discouragement and stumbling. How many Christians have you known who were going along just fine for the Lord and then seemed to lose sight of their goal?  They got distracted and discouraged.  Are you a Christian living with a broken focus? Peter wrote in I Peter 2:21 that Christ “…leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps”.  As long as we stay focused and follow in the steps of Jesus we will be happy, fruitful, and productive believers.  Christ taught us to keep our focus when He said, “seek ye first the kingdom of God…” Matthew 6:33. Remember this, my friend: Satan’s goal is to “break our focus” so that we allow minor things to consume our time, our energy, and our attention.  Don’t let it happen!  Just keep on loving Jesus, serving Jesus, hour by hour, day by day. Don’t allow yourself to get “sidetracked” by the little things. The Pastor’s Pocket Pastor Bruce Freeman

  We share this planet with other people.  As long as we live, we will interact with people, so remember this; no relationship in your life is insignificant. The Apostle Paul discussed how we need each other in I Corinthians 12:21, “the eye cannot say to the hand I have not need of thee, nor again the head to the feet, I have not need of you.” Using a comparison to the human body, he illustrated how inter-connected we really are.  Each of us has knowledge, talent and skills that others can benefit from. We cannot succeed in a society which ignores the potential of its people, and it’s the same in the Church.  So guard your friendships within your Church. Cherish them. You need them and they need you! By the way, make the effort to establish new friendships within your Church.  Everyone benefits in the long run.  Proverbs 18:24 says, “A man that has friends must show himself friendly…” The Pastor’s Pocket Pastor Bruce Freeman

  When you replay the past, you poison the present.  Perhaps this is why Jesus once said, “No man, having put his hand to the plow looking back , is fit for the Kingdom of God” (Luke 9:62). We must all keep pressing forward in our journey, forgetting the failures of the past.  Our focus must always be to press on as did the Apostle Paul (Philippians 3:13-14).  Every Christian has experienced heartaches, sorrows and setbacks in his or her life, but we must not dwell on those things.  Why? Because focusing our attention on the past only drains our energy that is needed for the present challenge. Keep pressing on my friend.  What you are willing to walk away from determines what God will bring you to. The Pastor’s Pocket Pastor Bruce Freeman

 As Christians, we’re destined for something much better than what this world has to offer!  As the old song says, “This world is not my home, I’m just a passin’ through, my treasure is laid up somewhere beyond the blue…And I can’t feel at home in this world anymore.” The Bible tells us our time on earth is brief (Psalm 103:15 / James 4:4).  If we’ve trusted Jesus as our Savior, our eternal home is heaven.  Therefore we are seen as pilgrims just passing through here.  We are aliens, strangers to this present, evil world system. Isn’t it silly? We spend so much time trying to “have it all” here and now, when in reality we already have it all “in Christ”.  Abundant life that Jesus told us about doesn’t have anything to do with having an abundance of things.  It has to do with the quality of life we possess with all the spiritual riches that come from knowing Christ. God warns us not to love this world.  We must never get too attached to “stuff”.  The fact is; we will suffer rejection, ex

  I came across a tragic story about some mountain climbers who had scaled a mountain and were on their way down.  They came to a very steep place, so they roped themselves together and were lowering themselves off a cliff when their rope broke.  They fell to their deaths. An investigation led to the reason for the tragedy.  They were not using genuine Alpine rope.  You see, Alpine rope has a red strand running through it. It’s guaranteed not to break.  Most mountain climbers in Switzerland use it.  For some strange reason, these climbers were not using the Alpine rope and it cost them their lives. When I read that story, my mind went to the “red”, precious blood of Jesus that guarantees salvation. “Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things as silver and gold…but with the precious blood of Christ…” (I Peter 1:18-19).  Going to church, claiming your own good works, reading the Bible, etc. won’t get you into heaven. There is only one thing that will guarantee

  “Exhorting one another…” Hebrews 10:25 Paul uses the word “exhorting” (Greek: parakaleo).  It means to comfort, to entreat or to encourage, to stir. When we see someone who needs encouragement, we should give it to them. Why? Because a lot of people are discouraged, their hearts are broken because of any number of things. They may have problems of all sorts, troubles that may be weighing them down.  Someone once said, “more people die of broken hearts than swelled heads”.  I think that’s true – don’t you? A little boy once said, “Come on Dad, let’s play catch.  I’ll throw the ball and you can shout ‘WOW’!”  It’s important to encourage others.  Lots of professional athletes, when they were young, had someone who encouraged them and believed in them.  We should never give up trying to exhort people, trying to help them along life’s pathway.  Most folks will make progress if they have somebody, anybody, who encourages them a little. Look for people that might need a little encouragement