The Pastor's Pocket

  “What God ordains–He sustains!” Where God leads–He feeds! Have you ever heard that or maybe something similar? Many success fulgurus today are teaching people to set goals for themselves and I suppose there is nothing wrong with that EXCEPT, goals and objectives for a Christian must be in-line with God’s ordained plan and purpose. God said through the prophet Jeremiah that there were men who “...speak a vision of their own heart, and not out of the mouth of the LORD” (Jeremiah 23:16). We must be cautious about the plans we make for ourselves. If God is not leading us, He is not obligated to sustain our plans, nor insure the success of those goals. King David wanted to build a temple for the Lord. However, it wasn’t God’s will for David to do that. A temple would be constructed under Solomon’s reign, but not David’s. Our plans, our desire for ministry, must flow out of what God wants done. Only then can we have the confidence that God will bless and sustain. Pray my friend. Seek God’s

It should be the goal of every believer, to be steadfast. Unfortunately, the Christian ranks in these days are filled with wishy-washy saints. I call them yo-yo believers. Up and down, and up and down. They are seldom consistent. They’re in and they’re out, hot one month, cold the next. My friends, you can never build credibility or respect from others when this is your pattern. The lost have seen too many half-hearted Christians. It’s time for them to see folks who are steadfast in their faith. The word steadfast means: steady, strong, rooted, grounded, firm in the faith. This kind of Christian is not easily shaken by circumstances. How do we attain this? We must invest time in God’s Word. There is no other way. Personal Bible Study is a must if we are to become and remain steadfast. We must be in prayer, asking God to build this into our lives, and we must have the desire to become steadfast. May all of us who have pledged ourselves to Christ make this our goal, and then may we take

"And at midnight, Paul and Silas prayed and sang praises unto God... "If you are familiar with this passage of scripture, you know the next verse begins with, “and suddenly”. The Apostle Paul, and his team member Silas, were tossed in prison for proclaiming the gospel. But instead of whining and complaining about their circumstances, they started praying and singing. It moved the heart of God, so He caused an earthquake and there was a Jailhouse Rock. (Some of you Baby-Boomers will pick up on that). The prison was opened, and Paul and Silas were freed. Notice they were praising God before the miracle occurred. Most Christians now days wait until they see God move, then they worship and give God the praise He deserves. It’s exactly backwards from what we ought to do. We need to live in a continual pattern of praise, day in and day out. Don’t wait until Sunday when you go to church to praise the Lord. Remain in an attitude of prayer and praise all day long, every day, making m

  Compassion Makes a Difference (Jude 22) Most likely, we have all read or heard the story of “The Good Samaritan”. It’s found in the gospel of Luke 10:30-37. Jesus used the illustration to answer this question posed to Him by a lawyer; “who is my neighbor?” He told of a man traveling down a road who was mugged by some thieves and left for dead. After several others passed him by, doing nothing to help, a Samaritan man came upon the troubled soul and the scripture says, “when he saw him, he had compassion on him” (vs. 33). Because of his compassion, he went the extra mile to help the injured man recover. If only we could see hurting people through the eyes of compassion. What might we do to try and help those in need of our Savior’s love? Hurting people are everywhere! We can’t help everyone, but we can help someone. What if we began each day with a prayer; “Lord, who do you want me to help today?” That request just might lead us to the one God would have us to help that day. Like the

  On our way to and from church for the past six months, we drive through a construction zone where they are building a new road. It’s a major project and at this point you can’t tell how and where it will one day reach completion. There are a lot of earth-moving bulldozers, dump trucks, and a lot of other machinery moving all over the place. At this point, only the architects and engineers really know how it will eventually come together to become a major highway. It’s like that with our lives. Sometimes we go through trials, pass through the fires of hardship, and we wonder how it all fits together in God’s ultimate plan for us. The Apostle John wrote in I John 3:2, “It doth not yet appear what we shall be…” In other words, right now, only the Divine Architect knows how it all fits together, but this much we do know; He does have a purpose and plan. John goes on to say in that same verse, “…when He shall appear, we shall be like Him”. One day, we will come to the completion phase of

   Jesus is “the people’s Savior” Remember the angel that announced the birth of Christ and the message of “good tidings of great joy”? That angel also said, “which shall be to all people” (Luke 2:10). God sent His Son into the world to benefit the entire human race–all races, all creeds, tribes and tongues–including people just like you and me. Jesus came to all people, not to condemn, but to save people from all continents, from every direction, from all backgrounds, and from all ages. To reach all people, He had to become one of the people, yet without sin. This is the essence of the redemption story. Jesus truly is the people’s Savior. Jesus died for all people (I John 2:2). The cross reaches out to all! The empty tomb offers hope, salvation, restoration and eternal life for all people. Provision has been made for all, but of course all do not come to Him! Why not? Unbelief; many simply will not believe. They will not receive the gift that Jesus offers. However, the scripture decla

  “But grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” 2 Peter 3:18a Christian maturity does not come easily. If it did, everybody would attain it. The sad truth is, the majority of those who claim to be saved will never reach their full potential in Christ. Why not? Perhaps I could offer a few observations. First of all, there is resistance that every believer will face in the endeavor to grow. When seeds develop into small sprouts they will have to push up through the soil in order to begin the process towards maturity. It’s not easy. Some never make it. It’s the same way with a young Christian. Today’s ungodly culture is not conducive to spiritual growth. Secondly, there is of course, the adversary of every believer, Satan himself, who will hinder, discourage, intimidate, and oppose the growth process. Why, because a mature, well-grounded Christian poses a threat to him and his objectives. The devil’s opposition to the growth of any Christian is just one mor