Are you listening?

Let me just say a few things! I know that my God is greater than whatever the devil brings my way! I know that my God is greater than anything the devil brings my familie's way! I know that Jesus died on the cross and gave me victory!   According to the Word of God I have been made more than a conqueror through our Savior Jesus Christ! I refuse to Cave-in . I refuse to give up. I am determined to dig deeper and hold my ground!  However, when I see an opening, a break in the lines, I will advance and take the ground!  I know according to the Word of God the Bible says that He is working everything for my good!   God is at work on my behalf! 

There is a victory and a key to revival in Chattooga County I will not stop until I find it.  I will not stop until it's used to unlock the chains that hold people's hearts captive. I will not stop until I see the 81% of our population who do not attend church not only attending church but redeemed, revived, restored, renewed and doing something great in this world for Jesus Christ! I will not give up, I will not!  So in your face devil!  In your face with a cross and in your face with the blood of Jesus!  You may stand against me but you cannot withstand the one that is in me in Jesus name!  

This has been a rant from one ticked off Follower of Christ!

(Explanation of a Follower's rant!)

Please do not get me wrong!   I just think it is time for those who really serve Jesus to take a stand.    I believe their is a Great work to do and we have not been doing it.    John 4:35 "You know the saying, ‘Four months between planting and harvest.’ But I say, wake up and look around. The fields are already ripe[a] for harvest."  

Less than 2 out of every 10 in our county attend church and out of that 2 how many are true followers of Jesus or are they just a member of a religious social club?  The scripture says it best...."14 Therefore He says,

“Awake, you who sleep,

Arise from the dead,

And Christ will give you light.”

Walk in Wisdom

15 See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, 16 redeeming the time, because the days are evil."

Ephesians 5

I love this county, state, and our country but long to see a true MOVE of the Holy Spirit here.  We must cast down the spirit of religion and pray...Luke 10:2 (NKJV)

"2 Then He said to them, “The harvest truly is great, but the laborers are few; therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest."

It's time to WAKE UP AND REDEEM THE TIME AND HARVEST!

What Are Your Motives?

As we begin this week, here are a few things to think about... Many times when we set space aside in our life to fast, pray, study the Word, and meditate on the Lord we do it based on selfish motives.  I believe it is good to have a plan of action for your time with God; however, we also need to realize that if we are doing these things only to receive what we want that is a selfish motive.   In Mark Chapter 3 we find that the crowds followed Jesus many times just to receive something from him.  

Mark 3:7-10  “7 Jesus withdrew with his disciples to the sea, and a great crowd followed, from Galilee and Judea 

8 and Jerusalem and Idumea and from beyond the Jordan and from around Tyre and Sidon. When the great crowd heard all that he was doing, they came to him. 

9 And he told his disciples to have a boat ready for him because of the crowd, lest they crush him, 

10 for he had healed many, so that all who had diseases pressed around him to touch him.”

There were a lot of people crowding Jesus that day, but they were not really interested in getting to know Him. They were only interested in what they could get from Him. They only wanted to be healed of their diseases. Jesus, as the healer and miracle worker, was very popular, but Jesus wasn’t interested in popularity.  He wanted people to hear the message behind the miracle.  The Bible does say that Jesus healed many of them.  He blesses us at times even when we are seeking the blessing and not the blesser.

That brings me to my challenge for this week:  Whatever your motives might be can we not lay aside the list of things we are praying about and seek His face!  Could we not make the purpose of this time of consecration to know Jesus and draw closer to him in a deeper way?  Could we not make it our desire to know the one in whom all blessing flow.  Take time today to refocus yourself on the ways of the Lord, for when we seek him first and his kingdom all other things are taken care of. 

Pastor P.

21 DAYS OF CONSECRATION

21 DAYS OF CONSECRATION

21 days of Consecration begins this Sunday January 8-21, 2012.   I want to challenge you to take part in this corporate fast for a mighty move of God’s Spirit in our personal lives, our families, church, community and nation!  The next few weeks God is calling us to a deeper walk and revelation of Jesus.   The church needs to encourage, and build up one another in this fast.  Here are some pointers of how our fast might reach its full potential in our lives:

·        Stay focused on the things of God. (Listen, watch and do things to keep your mind on Christ)

·        If at all possible, don’t miss church.  (You will need the extra boost in your life.)

·        Stay focused on the things you want God to do in your life, as a result of this fast.

·        Feed your mind with the Word, prayer, meditation, and Worship.  Avoid the things of the world during your fast,(i.e. limit TV, internet, and other amusements).  Instead, feed your mind with Christian music, books, messages, prayer, meditation, and worship.

·        Keep a journal.  It helps to write down your thoughts, and feelings during the fast!

·        Remember; above all else, this is your time to really hear from God!

To help in the fast we will be doing some things differently during the next three weeks.  Wednesday Nights we will be having revival type services in the sanctuary.  Let us keep our eyes on Jesus and our prayers focused!  This is a time you can, and will hear from God, if you will just put your whole heart into seeking His face.

Pastor, P.

Kingdom Ministry, Proclamation and Demonstration!

Kingdom Ministry, Proclamation and Demonstration!

First, Jesus preached repentance and the good news of the kingdom of God. Then He cast out demons, healed the sick, raised the dead... all of which proved that He was the real deal.  I've tried to look at ministry the way Jesus approached it. What was the message Jesus preached? 

We have been commanded to carry on the ministry of Jesus until He returns! If that’s the case, then, I think it would be good to actually know what type of message and ministry Jesus had when here on earth. 

The good news Jesus proclaimed was the gospel of the kingdom of God. You could summarize the message of Jesus in  Mark 1:14-15:

"14 Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, 

15 and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel." " (ESV)

The heart of the Christ’s message was both the proclamation of God's action...

"the kingdom is near"... and the demands for a response...”repent and believe." This salvation was presented with the idea that the "kingdom of God" is close... I are you ready for the Kingdom? For the rest of His public ministry, Jesus demonstrated that the kingdom of God was nearby, by healing the sick, casting out demons, and raising the dead. Every miraculous act had a purpose... to confront people with the message that the kingdom had come and that they had to decide to accept or reject it. This was the twofold pattern of Christ's ministry which was repeated wherever He went. Jesus presented His message with, first proclamation and then demonstration.

The people of God are very good at the first part (Proclamation) of this approach to ministry; however, we really need God to demonstrate His kingdom power through us! This can only happen through a true Encounter with the Holy Spirit!

A Call to Fight! We Must Awaken!

It is time for the church to wake up! There are more lost souls than ever walking around us!!!  I’m not asking for God to send Revival,  I'm asking for God to begin an Awakening of the church (True Believers)! We have allowed our passion for reaching a lost and dying world to be replaced by being comfortable in the pew!

a•wak•en•ing/əˈwāk(ə)niNG/

Noun: An act or moment of becoming suddenly aware of something.

Adjective: Coming into existence or awareness.

Today I will AWAKEN! This day I make a choice to fight and not slumber, to step into God's purpose and anointing! I choose to equip and cover myself with the Whole ARMOR OF GOD! I will not be dressed up with no place to go. The Captain of my soul commands us to move in His name! To engage the spirit's of addiction, anger, bondage, strife, bitterness, and fear!  But most of all bind the Spirit of religion! 

I cannot sit by with the knowledge that souls will be lost this day while I bask in the Grace and peace of God! I must move.... Move FORWARD! (Ephesians 6)

There is a cost to this and I must be aware of that fact!   To free those who are captive is to invite the enemy to attack my life!!!!  

No, I'm not asking God to send revival... I'm asking God to make me the REVIVAL!  To make us the REVIVAL!!!!

You Can Make It!

You Can Make It!

There are many times that we feel as if we will not make it through our day! In Christ, we can make it. What a comfort it is to know that we can turn everything over to Jesus! If you are loaded down with the worries of your day why not do what Peter said in the 1 Peter 5:7, 

“Give all your worries to him, because he cares about you." (NCV) 

The power of Christ can help us deal with whatever comes our way. There is no need to be afraid if we are trusting in Him with everything. If we do not look to Him, then we are helpless when we face difficult times. We are lost trying to find our own way.   There is only one thing you can do when you are lost… use your compass and find “true north”!  That's what outdoors adventures are taught.   What is our true Spiritual North?  It's simple, it's the Cross!  Philippians 4:6-7 NLT

“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.”

Our true direction is found only when we surrender our worries and anxiousness to him!  There is only one way to find peace to find direction and that is on our knees before the Cross in prayer!  Jesus has some powerful word he leaves us in John 14.   A better way to put it is, Jesus gives us a powerful GIFT!

““I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.”

John 14:27 NLT

So right now why not just take a second to turn it all over to Jesus. Remember He cares for you!

Love & Peace

Pastor P.

"An Honest Moment!"

To be totally honest I got and e-mail last night about the persecution of Christians in the nation of Kenya! I felt bad for those people but I did not have true empathy for them. I have spent the morning repenting for my lack of genuine heart felt compassion. I think we forget so often how blessed and spoiled we are in this nation of ours. I am afraid that sometimes we live out the scripture in
Matt 24:12 "Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold,"
We cannot get to the place that our love toward people becomes cold because we feel helpless and unable to change this evil world around us.
Truly if we are the body of Christ then we should be moved beyond just the feeling bad for those people to true heart felt prayer and anguish. When we hear of things like the horrors in Kenya we should not be able to go right to sleep! We should be so troubled that we can't find rest until we touch God on behalf of our family that is suffering!
I just ate lunch and my biggest problem was to choose what to eat. There are people right now that have to try to find something to eat so they will not starve. So right now yes pray for the Christians that are suffering! However, before you do why not join old Pastor P. and repent for not being moved beyond just feeling bad about the situation to imagining you were in their shoes.
Prayers for you and our suffering brothers and sister who are across this world!

Remember you are in my prayers!
Pastor P.