My First Church

A Good Place for Rest

2012-01-26T21:32:00.000-08:00

Learning to rest in the comfort of God's Word and promises is the lesson the Lord is teaching me in this semester of life!

Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus, Just to take Him at His word, Just to rest upon His promises, Just to know, Thus saith the Lord.

Jesus, Jesus, how I trust Him! How I've proved Him o'er and o'er! Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus! O for grace to trust Him more!

O how sweet to trust in Jesus, Just to trust His cleansing blood, Just in simple faith to plunge me Neath the healing, cleansing flood!

Jesus, Jesus, how I trust Him! How I've proved Him o'er and o'er!

Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus! O for grace to trust Him more!

Yes, tis sweet to trust in Jesus, Just from sin and self to cease,

Just from Jesus simply taking Life and rest and joy and peace,

Jesus, Jesus, how I trust Him! How I've proved Him o'er and o'er!

Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus! O for grace to trust Him more!

I'm so glad I learned (I'm learning) to trust Thee, Precious Jesus Savior, Friend

And I know that Thou are with me, Wilt be with me to the end.

Jesus, Jesus, how I trust Him! How I've prved Him o'er and o'er!

Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus! O for grace to trust Him more!!

From Death to Life

2012-01-16T06:57:00.000-08:00

"....The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life." John 12:23b-25 ESV
These verses captures in paradoxical fashion the essence of the Christian calling and experience, Life through Death! The understanding that life is found through death. Of course Jesus himself spoke these words as God's Son, the Incarnate One. Through His incarnation He would die for the sins of the elect and through His death alone would be born much fruit. Namely that many would be saved through His atoning, sacrificial, vicarious death. "If the seed does not die it remains alone....but if it dies it bears much fruit."
These words have arrested me....life through death....not incarnational but yet incarnational! These words are spoken by the Christ. Only through His death could the Father produce much fruit. Only through the Incarnates death...not through ours. But yet incarnational....in the fact that in a real sense Christ calls us to adopt the same attitude as believers. A sort of incarnational death....death to self...death to sin...death to the flesh....death to ambition...death to pride...death to selfishness.....death!!! Not physical death but a certain putting to death of that which hinders real life...the different quality of life God has promised....eternal life.....starting here and now!
This death is just as torturous, agonizing, and painful as any other kind of death. A death that causes invisible tears to flow, the bowels to wrench in agony and gush out, the mind to split and be uneased, the heart to be torn assunder and stop........real pain....death...six feet under in spirit while walking about above...death!!!
But there springs from this death the beautiful promising bud of life. How long the death? Who knows..each seed blossoms at its own appointed time...but with its first sprouting brings forth signs of promise, hope, destiny and a brighter future........LIFE!!!!!........"but if it dies, it bears much fruit"....incarnational ...can God, will God really honor this kind of voluntary, incarnational death?
He gave His very life to prove that He would!!!!!

Dying to Preach

2012-01-11T05:26:00.001-08:00

"Every Pastor can identify with Paul's pain. Preach to the people; they do nothing, Love the people-nothing. Work for the people-nothing. Perhaps this frustration is most clearly seein in the pulpit ministry. We lay out our guts in the pulpit, and in response see stone-cold faces with no ambition toward godliness or motivation to change. We see only deep embeded spiritual stubborness and heartbreaking disappointing, spiritual pride. Nothing is more discouraging toa pastor than to give his life for fallen sheep, only to find that they are perfectly content in their fallen state. Lethargy, complacency, and mediocrity become the norm.Yet, this is pastoral ministry, and that means finding the stamina to tread water while you explain to the drowning that they are indeed drowning."

Dying to Preach, pg. 24, Steven W. Smith

Staying in the Closet

2012-01-07T05:00:00.000-08:00

"Apostasy begins in the closet. No man ever backslid from life and the power of Christianity who continued constant and fervent in private prayer. He who prays without ceasing is likely to rejoice evermore."
Adam Clarke

Living Devotions

2012-01-04T06:26:00.000-08:00

One of the most common themes of Christian living is the committment of spending daily quiet time with God. I know several godly men and women whom I strongly admire, I've read literature written by spiritual leaders of the past and present who have highly influenced my ministry and life. And the one common denominator that stands out above all others is that they all consider daily time alone with God a must and priority in Christian living!
I wholeheartedly concur that there is no substitute for daily, consistent devotional time with God.
But what is devotional time with God? Is it reading the bible, praying and singing, meditating and other spiritual disciplines? I contend that it's these things and so much more. To "do" devotionals is very unproductive and futile. At least that's been my experience. I've had times where I've risen early, read the bible, prayed, meditated and even sang (can you imagine that? How funny...). But as soon as I walked out the door of my office and into the world, I had forgotten all about the things I did in "doing" my devotions.
I've discovered a better way...."living" my devotions. This for me is a more intentional way of seeking that day to keep before me, with the help of God, the things I learned in my devotion time. Usually the Lord provides a consistent theme that runs through my Bible reading, other reading, meditating, prayer time and hymn that I seek to committ to memory that day and seek to focus on throughout the day. For instance...my devotional theme for yesterday was "service to others" in the name of Christ. As I entered the day I prayed that God would help me take my eyes off of myself and seek to really find intrest in serving someone else that day in whatever way I could, be it small or great. And the Lord opened up the window all day long and on several occasions I was reminded of service to others and the Lord helped me live out that theme.
I don't think Devotional time is static or of cookie cutter fashion. You prayerfully do what works for you. My pattern is to rise early before I head off to work. Say a brief prayer, read the passages from my one year devotional bible, read from the book (s) that I am currently reading, sing from the hymn book, meditate on the theme and truths I've read, then close with prayer.

If you don't have any quiet time with God, I strongly urge you to prayerfully start to develop one. However you are lead start today! Yes, there will be days you may miss, yes, you'll still have days of defeat, trial and temptation. But in the midst of all of that God will bring to your heart, mind and presence, the things He gave you in your quiet time. Your devotional time can be a great tool that God uses to transform your life into a more mature Disciple and follower of the Lord Jesus Christ. Don't just "do" your devotions "live" them.

My Current Devotional Tools:

One Year Devotional Bible (ESV)
Baptist Hymnal
The Radical Disciple (John R. W. Stott)
The Spiritual Secret of Hudson Taylor

Lord Please Lead Me!!

2011-12-27T14:55:00.000-08:00

I am weak and I need Thy strength and power, To help me over my weakest hour
Let me thru the darkness Thy face to see
Lead me, Oh Lord, lead me.

Lead me, guide me along the way. For if you lead me I cannot stray
Lord, let me walk each day with Thee, Lead me, oh, Lord, lead me.

Help me tread in the paths of righteousness, Be my aid wehn Satan and sin oppress.
I am putting all my trust in Thee, Lead me, oh Lord, lead me.

Lead me, guide me along the way. For if you lead me I cannot stray
Lord, let me walk each day with Thee, Lead me, oh, Lord, lead me.

I am lost, if you take your hand from me, I am blind without Thy Light to see,
Lord, just always let me Thy servant be,

Lead me, guide me along the way. For if you lead me I cannot stray
Lord, let me walk each day with Thee, Lead me, oh, Lord, lead me!!!

Christmas and the Faithfulness of God

2011-12-24T09:11:00.000-08:00

Great is Thy faithfulness, O God my Father, There is no shadow of turning with Thee;
Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not, As Thou hast been Thou forever wilt be.
Great is Thy faithfulness! Great is Thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new Mercies I see,
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided, Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord unto me!

Summer and winter and springtime and harvest, Sun, moon and stars in their courses above
Join with all nature in manifold witness, To thy great faithfulness, mercy and love.
Great is Thy faithfulness! Great is Thy faithfulness! Morning by morning new mercies I see
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided, Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord unto me!

Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth, Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide,
Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow, Blessings all mine with ten thousand beside!
Great is Thy faithfulness! Great is Thy faithfulness! Morning by morning new mercies I see
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided, Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord unto me!!

A Great Time for Preaching the Gospel

2011-12-19T16:02:00.000-08:00

"But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people."(2 Timothy 3:1-5 ESV)

These are the prophetic and saged words of the great Apostle Paul to his young protogee Timothy who is now providing pastoral leadership to the church at Ephesus. These words are a harbinger of things that will soon characterize the attitude of the people to whom this young Pastor would find himself preaching to. Wow....what sobering words!!!
But Paul would admonish Timothy to stick to the scriptures and the things he has seen and learned from Paul and to continue to Preach the Word!! Wow...what encouraging words!!!

I love the word of God! It is more than sufficient to meet every need we have as believers, even as Pastors.
This passage has been a great friend to me as it has encouraged me as I have walked the well beaten path of perplexity and frustration due to the reality of the times and context in which I preach and pastor and after observing the church culture at large. The times that the great Apostle spoke of are here!! And while they may have been here for sometime now...the reality of its presence is more evident to me now than ever before.
Perilious times when some in the church love pleasure more than God. Perilous times when some don't love good but rather cherish and cling to that which is evil, calling bad good and darkness light!! Perilious times....19 ungodly characteristics that will envade the minds and attitudes of those Timothy would have to deal with and preach to. Perilious times!!!!

Yet, I contend it is a great time to be a hearld of the gospel message because these times will not last! God in His own soveriegnty has a way of shaking us from our spiritual lethargy to the reality that it is He who is in control and not us. It seems that when we as humans think that we have no need of God that that is when we turn our backs on God and seek our own personal pleasure rather than seek to please God. Life becomes about us rather than about God. That's the testimony of the O.T. and God's people who turned their backs on God once they enjoyed a modicum of success in the land God had given them. But God knows how to bring us back! And that time will come. And when it does I want to be found still believing in the power of the Gospel.
To all my fellow Pastor's who labor at the sacred task of preaching to a congregation and environment that exhibits the signs Paul speaks about, keep preaching the gospel!! While we don't stand apart from the times in which we preach and sometimes we ourselves succumb to these ungodly traits, may the Spirit of God awaken us and keep us mentally focused on our calling to challenge, love and care for God's people with grace and patience. Trusting God and God alone to do what only He can do.

My Brother's Preach the Word!!!!!!!!!

Tis the Season

2011-12-04T18:55:00.000-08:00

This is a very busy time of the year for most people but especially for Pastors. Year end meetings, minstry reviews, 2012 ministry planning and the usual busyness of preparing weekly messages and Bible studies along with all of the other Pastoral responsibilities makes the load a little heavier than usual. But in the midst of it all God grants the grace and strength to make it through with some since of Pastoral sanity and focus.
Looking back over the past 11 months at Galilee I must say that God has been extemely gracious to us as a church. The Lord has added to Galilee this year well over 25 to 30 people the majority of which are active in ministry, the ministry opportunities have grown, the spiritual growth of many of the members is evident more than ever, the budget has grown over 2010, corporate prayer time is slowly improving, the facilities have been maintained and the spirit of Chrisitian unity is getting much better. So often we as Pastors are prone to compare our ministries to the so called "great growing ministry" down the street. But I thank God that I haven't fallen into that trap of comparing our ministry to others. Don't get it twisted there is tons of room for improvement in all areas of our ministry and I'm trusting God for that! I constantly try to teach Galilee that our measurement for how were doing as a church must come from God's standards and not mans. I believe we are slowly learning that as a church.
Today was one of those days I got caught in between. I had been preparing all week to preach from Hebrews 4:14-16. But do to the fact that I am bivocational and work in an industry that thrives during this time of the year, it was an extra long work week. I just could not get to the text like I felt I needed to. I had informed one of our associates, Rev. Renaldo Lemons, to be ready if I didn't get to where I needed to be by Sunday morning. I really wanted to preach but didn't want to go half cocked to the pulpit. Needless to say God allowed me to stand and preach a message I had preached before that was right in line with the theme of corporate prayer that I have been preaching for the past 2 weeks, "When the Church Prays", Acts 12:1-16. As tired as I was and as sore as my back was, I really thought about taking the Sunday off but something in me just wouldn't let me take the easy way out. God breathed on the messenger and the message and gave physical strenght to preach and added 2 to the church today. Praise God!!
We shared from the Lord's Table today and it was a high moment for our church. I believe the Lord is really opening up our understanding of this very sacred time in the bodylife of our church.
Shout out to Rev. Lemons for getting in the chamber and for being ready to be shot for the Lord. Faithfullness is a priceless commodity in the life of an associate preacher and he is truly learning that.

God be praised for all He has done and is doing through the Galilee Baptist Church of Shawnee Oklahoma!!!!

The God Who Controls the Ends of the Earth

2011-11-22T04:31:00.000-08:00

I have been tempted to complain and become frustrated lately about some situations in my life that I've been waiting for God to change. Things seemingly seem to be going a lot slower than I would like and it seems to be weighing on me a lot more than usual. Generally I am not a complainer, I really am not. I've learned how to take most of the things that trouble me, perplex me and frustrate me to God in prayer and to try and leave it there. But being the sinful, falliable human being that I am I often pick them back up after laying them at His feet and allow them to weigh heavy on my mind and spirit!
However, in preparing to preach this past Sunday I was struck by a few lines from one of the passages that I preached from and the words struck me like lightning. This passage bothered me, arrested me and as of yet has not left me alone, thank God!
The passage is from Isaiah 40:28 "Has thou not known? Has thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? There is no searching of his understanding."(KJV)
This verse reminded me of what I often forget when I am complaining about something in my life. That is this...though my situation may not have changed, God is still in control!! That may not be anything you don't already know, but it's something most of us as Christians are quick to forget!!! God has everything under control and when He is ready He will act.
This contextually is the message to the nation who is in exile in enemy territory. They are about to lose hope because there situation is desperate and they feel as if God has forgotten about them. God sends this mid 8th century B.C. prophet by the name of Isaiah to them with this message of hope. Here is the jist of the message..."from beginning to end and everything involved in between, I am controlling your situation". This message was designed to give the people the needed hope to continue trusting and waiting on God.
As we approach this Thanksgiving Holiday I thank God for my situation, though it hasn't changed yet. I am trusting that God is totally aware of my struggles and as the creator of the ends of the earth, He has my situation under divine surveilance. If you like me are tempted to complain about things not being the way you think they should be in your life, I encourage you to continue taking it to the Lord in prayer and faithfully trust that He who controls the ends of the earth will move in His own Sovereign way and time to do what's best for you and for that which will most glorify and honor His name. Be it a relationship, marriage, financies, a job, a church, an enemy, a sickness, a loved one.....you name it....God has it all under control!!!! Just keep trusting and waiting on God!!
I read the other day that one of the smallest particles known to man is what is called a "quark". It's so small that no one has come up with a size for it yet. It's just that small!!!! But the author said "if there is one quark running around in this entire massive universe and world that God does not have control over or is unaware of then He ceases to be God!!!" If God knows about and controls every single quark, then surely He knows about and controls our situations!! Wait on God loved one...Wait of God!!!!

"Waiting! Yes, patiently waiting! Till next steps made plain shall be, To hear, with the inner hearing, The Voice that will call for me. Waiting! yes, quitely waiting! No need for an anxious dread, Shall He not assuredly guide me, Who giveth me daily bread? Waiting! Yes, hopefully waiting! With hope that needn't grow dim, The Master is pledged to guide me, And my eyes are unto Him. Waiting! Yes, expectantly waiting! Perhaps it may be today, The Master will quickly open The gate to my future way. Waiting! Yes, trustfully waiting! I know, though I've waited long, That, while He witholds His purpose, His waiting cannot be wrong. Waiting! Yes, waiting, Still waiting! The Master will not be late, He knoweth that I am waiting For Him to unlatch the gate."

The Lingering Effects of Worship

2011-11-14T05:53:00.000-08:00

It's Monday morning and my mind is replaying the last week at Galilee. The week seemed to go by in a flash but the experience I pray will linger for a lifetime.
We kicked off our Fall Revival last week with Pastor Ronald Saunders sharing the word of God. I am always amazed at how the Lord knows what we need to hear and how and whom to use to deliver the needed message to us. Pastor Saunders is a great preacher and his messages were timely and on point. I left each night thanking God for His word. It was also a great week of fellowship with Pastor Saunders, sharing our common concerns, pastoral challenges and life lessons. I pray that he was just as encouraged as I was from the time of fellowship and worship.
Our women shared in our Women's Conference on Saturday and they had a wonderful time. My sister's were the speakers for this event. Shree Walter encouraged our women with the word and my little sister Felecia Nero shared her life testimony. I am so proud of my sisters. They have both grown to be sharp arrows in God's quiver for encouraging women of God.
We had a great time in worship at Galilee on yesterday from our time in early morning prayer, to our small groups, the singing, fellowshipping, giving and hearing the word preached by Rev. Ted Curtis. We motored to Chickasha for 3pm worship with the New Hope Baptist Chruch for their 101 church homecoming and anniversary and I preached from Matthew 18:21-35.
Needless to say it was a busy and tiring week but I pray that all that we experienced will manifest itself through our lives as we surrender ourselves in every area for the glory of our Lord.

Fall Revival

2011-11-08T04:40:00.000-08:00

Tonight at Galilee we start our Fall Revival. Our guest for these 3 nights will be Pastor Ronald Saunders of the Rhema Community Church of Los Angeles, California. I was privileged to meet Pastor Saunders a few years ago through a mutual friend and our friendship has grown every since that time. He has shared with Galilee once before and we have been praying and are expecting God to speak to us through Pastor Saunders again this year.

Please pray for him and the services this week. If you would like to join in with us during this week of Revival, services will begin each night, Tuesday through Thursday, at 7pm sharp. Hope to see you in worship.

The Healing Power of Our God

2011-11-07T06:26:00.000-08:00

Early Sunday morning about 2:30 a.m. I awoke from sleep with a dreadful pain in my side. I knew immediately what it was. It was another Kidney Stone. For those who have ever had to deal with this almost death blow, you know the pain. It is sharp, immense, intense, agonizing and can literally bring you to tears. I tried everything I could to find relief but the pain just would not go away. Finally I awoke my wife and told her to take me to the emergency room. And for the record, I don't know which is worse, the pain of a kidney stone or the pain of having to die a slow death in the emergency room. However, Mercy Hospital, my favorite hospital, has emergency room waiting down to an art and they were able to get me to a doctor in less than an hour. The nurses and doctor scheduled an xray and sure enough what they saw was another kidney stone.
The doctor gave me some pain and nausea medicine and told me that where the stone was located it would soon pass. He informed me to go home and rest and wait for the stone to pass. While I was awaiting to see the doctor I was praying that the Lord would grant healing and relief and He did. He worked through a great hospital with loving nurses and staff and a wise Doctor to bring about this miraculous healing.
The doctor wanted me to stay home but I wanted to preach. I had one last Stewardship message I had been working on (Acts 4:32-37 "The Profile of A Giving Church") and I desperately wanted to preach!! I told the doctor I was going to church.....I didn't tell him I was going to preach.....but I did and the Lord gave me the power to make it through. It was another great day at Galilee.
I arrived to join in for the last 10 minutes of our Corporate Prayer time....I love this time! Our small groups met and were well attended. Our choir did an excellent job and I just felt God the whole time while preaching. One was added to the church and we shared from the Lord's Table. ....Wow....what more could a Pastor ask for?

Shout out to Rev. Ted Curtis for being prepared and ready to preach. Thanks Ted...your faithfulness is priceless!!!!!!

Thank you Lord for being faithful and blessing us. You are truly High and Lifted Up and worthy of our praise.

To God Alone Belongs the Glory!!!!!

r12

2011-11-02T03:46:00.000-07:00

Tonight we will introduce our next small group study entitled "Living on the Edge" by Chip Ingram. It is my contention that many of us as believers live far below the maximum level of Christian living and that God wants us to experience so much more of Him.
This study is designed to help us as belivers focus more on becoming the kind of Christians who take Christian living to the limit and truly experience the abundant life that Christ offers.
"Romans 12 provides a picture of how an authentic disciple of Jesus Christ lives out the faith."

Surrendered to God Romans 12:1

Seperate from the World Romans 12:2

Sober in self-assessment Romans 12:3-8

Serving in Love Romans 12:9-16

Supernaturally responding to evil with good Romans 12:17-21

May the Lord breathe upon this study that we might live better Christian lives for the Glory of God. Please pray for those who will be facilitating the small groups as well.

It's Not the Church's Fault!!

2011-10-30T20:00:00.000-07:00

I love serving God's people as Pastor even with all the bumps and bruises that come along with the job. One of the greates joys in serving God's people is to see God change hearts, minds and lives.
But one of the agonizing relentless perpetual thorns in my side is to see so called christians who just have no desire to engage in the body life and discipleship process of the church. They never pray when the church prays, the are not present to learn when the church is teaching, they don't give when the church is giving, they don't fellowship when the church is fellowshipping. And yet they have the adacity to complain about the church and have the unmittigated gaul to say that they are not growing as a Christian!! What? For real? Who does that? Who says that? Are you serious?
If your life is plagued with insecurity and spiritual defeats and the church is trying to equip you for such spiritual realities and you will not participate...IT'S NOT THE CHURCH'S FAULT! If God is not moving in your life and in the life of the church that you attend and you would rather complain than pray with the church....IT'S NOT THE CHURCH'S FAULT! If you feel no one likes you or that no one wants to deal with you and yet you never spend time fellowshiping with other believers.......IT'S NOT THE CHURCH'S FAULT! If your kids love the world and its values more than they do God and your kids are never present for teaching and training...IT'S NOT THE CHURCH'S FAULT! If your finances are all jacked up and the church helps you and provides wise biblical counsel concerning your stewardship of your resources and you refuse to heed the word....IT'S NOT THE CHURCH'S FAULT! If God has gifted you to serve in a particular area and you see the need in the church and yet refuse to serve and complain that the church doesn't have the type of ministry you think it should have.....IT'S NOT THE CHURCH'S FAULT!!!

Psalm 32

2011-10-18T05:29:00.000-07:00

Learning to be honest with God about the sin in my life allows me to experience the gracious benefits of God's forgiveness.

1). Learn to Celebrate because of what God has done in forgiving your sins. vs.1-2
A). Recognize your sins
1). Trangressions
2). Sins
3). Iniquities
B). Recognize what God has done with your sins
1). Forgiven
2). Covered
3). Not Counted

2) Learn to Confess your sins to God. vss. 3-5
A). Becasue unconfessed Sin has physical consequences
B). Because unconfessed Sin brings guilt
C). Because God stands willing and ready to forgive.

3) Learn to Come near to God after you confess your sins. vss.6-10
A). God will hear you through prayer.
B). God will protect you.
C). God will prepare you.
D). God can place you in circumstances that make you come to him

4). Learn to Celebrat God. vs. 11

"God does not permitt His children to sin successfully" Spurgeon

"Intelligentia Prima Est Eut Te Noris Peccatorem" (The beginning of knowledge is to know oneself to be a sinner." Augustine

"God's kiss of forgiveness sucks to poision from the wound." McLaren

Amazed By Grace

2011-10-13T05:26:00.001-07:00

"Grace plus anything is anything but Grace."

I have read several books concerning the Grace of God but none has helped me apprehend that truth like this one. A simple read which God has used to help reshape my thinking of the Grace of God.

One for the Books!!!

2011-10-10T08:21:00.000-07:00

Worship at Galilee on yesterday was phenomenal!!! One of those days that I will never forget as Pastor of this great congregation of believers. The Lord's presence was felt from beginning to end on yesterday. From our early morning time in prayer, to our small group study time, devotion, praise and worship, singing, the time of giving, the high moment of hearing from God through His word and the fellowship meal after service, all was breathed upon by the Spirit of God!!! It was simply incredible.
The church was packed from wall to wall and we were caught a little off guard by the crowd. But the men and women of Galilee moved swifty to do what was needed to accomodate our guests. I was simply amazed at how they all worked together to get the situation handled. Our praise team and choir sung as I have never heard them on yesterday. They sung "My Worship Is For Real" and it was an excellent offering of worship through song.
Pastor Mitchell preached from Hebrews 10:19-25 "A Better Worship" ...we were blessed and encouraged throgh the message.
After service we shared in our fellowship hall for lunch and I must say.....I was somewhat concerned that the 2 fish and 5 loaves we had prepared would not be enough and that we would not get everyone served quickly enough. The line was literally out of the door. But the Lord showed us His presence again.....the guests were served quickly and we had enough food leftover to donate to a mission group in our community!!!! Look at God!!! Look at God! A couple of friends from my home church came up after they had eaten and asked me what was our secret to getting the people served so quickly? I had no answer. But when I stepped in the fellowship hall to see for myself....it was obvious how this had happened.....we had a batallion of members serving our guests to help expedite them through the serving line.

Galilee is simply the best church in the world!!! I simply believe that God has given me the privilege and opportunity to serve a group of growing believers who truly understand that service is primary in the Kingdom of God. I pray that the Lord will continue to grow us together as He uses us to win lost people for Christ.
Thank God for 51 years. May the Lord grant us at least 51 more years to serve His purposes here in this world.

Galilee I love you!!! May God continue to knit our hearts together as Pastor and People!!

51st Church Anniversary/Family & Friends Day

2011-10-07T06:30:00.001-07:00

This Sunday if the Lord says the same, Galilee will celebrate God for 51 years of His faithfulness to our congregation. Galilee is a relatively young church and has a very colorful yet godly and great history. At one time the church was down to group of about 5 people. This small group of comitted believers were gathering to discuss closing Galilee and joining in with a local neighboring church. The decision had been made but on the day of the final meeting a couple of the members in that group decided that they would continue to trust God for the future of the Galilee Baptist Church of Shawnee. The lord honored that act of faith and in just a few years the church grew and even expanded. What a testimony!!!!
Many of those members prayed that God would continue to bless his people and the church. They gave of their meager means and trusted God to multiply the resources of the church. God proved, as He always does, to be faithful!
Sunday we will take the time to reflect and worship God for His faithfulness to our church and for using some comitted Christians, many of which we may never know, who worked at prayer and sacrificing and helped to build the spiritual legacy of our church. Their dreams are now our reality!!!!!

Praise God!!!! Praise God!!!

Please pray for our services and for Pastor Mitchell as he delievers the word!

Has God Spoken

2011-10-04T05:37:00.000-07:00

This is one of the books on my current reading list. I truly believe in the word of God as God's word and the final authority for all matters of faith and practice.

In an age where many trivialize the Bible as just another book or as an anachronistic worn and dated collection of myths and fables, believers need to boldy declare our belief that the bible is God's inspired, infalable, inerrant word!

In an age where even preachers and pastors settle for tricks and gimmicks, smoke and mirrors to try and grow their churches, this book serves as a reminder to us who take the bible seriously, that the word of God is more than sufficient to bring about genuine spiritual growth and transformation.

In this book Hank Hanegraaf gives a great apology for why we must hold to the bible as God's word to us and nothing less!!

I highly reccomend this read to all serious students of the bible.

Forgiveness

2011-09-30T05:08:00.000-07:00

The past 2 weeks I have been preaching on the Biblical theme of Forgiveness. This thematic series began with Romans 8:1-4; "The Believer's Freedom in Christ"
where Paul addresses the good news of no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. I was led to start here because Christian forgiveness has to be born out of recoginition and grattitude of the gracious and beneficient forgiveness we have been given by God through Jesus Christ.
Studied in context this truth of what Christ has done to free us from the damning wrathful penalty and punishment of our sins is simply mind boggling. This liberating truth should flow over into all of our relationships in the area of forgiveness.

Last week we shared from Matthew 18:21-35: "The Scandal of Christian Unforgiveness".
This story simply highlights, in dramatic fashion, the depth of our forgiveness by God and what the believer's response "must" be in relation to genuinely forgiving others unceasingly!!!
Jesus tells the story in relation to Peter's question of how often should believer's forgive one another. Jesus in this passage tells us "why" we should forgive our brothers and sister's unceasingly.

1). Because Forgiveness Characterizes God's Kingdom.
2). Because Christians Have Been Forgiven by God.
3). Because Unforgiveness has Consequences.

This Sunday, Lord willing we will share from the book of Philemon. This brief book is loaded with theological implications and truths concerning Christian forgiveness. Reconciliation, atonement, the gospel, brotherly love, sanctification and unconditional love are just some of the biblical themes God packed into this tiny book.
Praying the Lord continues to grant insight and understanding into the time of study.

We will conclude this thematic series on October 16th from Psalm 32, one of my favorite passages on Forgiveness.

Next week we celebrate our 51st Church Anniversary and Family and Friends Day. Pastor Jefferey Mitchell of the Tabitha Baptist Church is slated to share with us in the morning worship.

After this series on Forgiveness we will move to our final series for the year on Prayer.

Pray for our church and the messages the Lord will speak to us. May we be doers of the Word and not hearers only!!!!!!!!!

Headed Twoard Sunday

2011-09-23T07:45:00.000-07:00

Sunday is fast approaching and I am looking forward to sharing with fellow believers in worship. This is going to be a busy weekend and I pray the Lord helps me to use my time wisely.
I am preparing to preach from Matthew 18:21-35 this Lords day, if the Lord says the same.
This passage has been latently speaking to me this week and the thoughts from this text have confronted me time and time again. This dilema of forgiveness is something that I honestly struggle with. Isn't it easy to overlook the depth of our forgiven debt by God and so easily be unwilling to forgive others over miniscule matters? Of course it is! We so easily cast off, forget and take lightly the agonizing, tortoureous payment rendered on our behalf by our Saviour and so easily hold those in contempt who sin against us.
As I have read this text time and time again and will read it several more times before Sunday, I have been amazed at how so easily I rush past the willingness and graciousness of God to forgive. Why? Do I feel deserving of His forgiveness? Do I think my debt before God is not that much? What's the price of 1 sin? What's the price of a world full of sin? 1 or many the demand and price to be paid for sin is the same!! God paid a debt I could never ever repay. How the more in light of His payment should I be willing to forgive!

Speak to me Lord and open my understanding that I may truly comprehend the scriptures!!!!!!

The Challenge of Romans 8:1-4

2011-09-12T04:41:00.000-07:00

Oh what a great day we had on yesterday at Galilee. God just over and over and over again continues to amaze me in how He takes care of His church. Admittedly God is always present among His people when they gather to worship but there are times when we just don't sense His presence. I continually instruct our church not to ask or pray for God to come into our church because there is not one place where God is not. Instead we need to learn to pray and ask the Holy Spirit to help us sense God's presence among us. And on yesterday His presence was truly felt at Galilee.
Our small group continues to be blessed as we study "Discovering God's Will". I am being helped myself through this study. I discovered this week that discovering the will of God is not an end in itself. It's about discovering more of who God is! The thought of that blows me away. God doesn't want me to just know which way to go in my life but He wants me to know the one who directs my steps. He doesn't communicate His will to me for my consideration but for my illumination of who He is!!!!
You can search the planopy of scripture and see this truth displayed over and over and over. Consider Abraham in Genesis 22 and God's command to sacrifice Issac his son. He discovered in doing God's will more of who God is. That's why at the end of that encounter he names the place Jehovah Jireh. He now knows more about God, that is, that He is a provider. What a great lesson.
I preached from Romans 8:1-4 yesterday. I must say that I prayed harder last week over that text than I have in a while. This text intimidated me, as all of the scriptures do, but I was literally scared to preach this text. Why? Paul is masterful in crafting his argument up to this point for justification by faith and the believer's struggle with sin and the victory we have over sin via the operative Spirit of God in our lives and through our vital union with Christ.
He crafts this argument in such a masterful fashion that I did not want to preach it until I fully understood the flow of his argument and presentation of this spiritual truth. It wasn't until late saturday, after reading and re-reading all week long, that the light finally came on.
Needless to say God did what He always does. He took my insuffiency and made it sufficient and blessed his word. Praise God!!! Praise God!! Two were added to the church and one of them was accepting Christ as Lord. God is simply amazing!
I love the word of God and am eternally grateful for the privilege to have been called by God to hearld the unsearchable riches of the gospel.

Discovering God's Will for Your Life

2011-09-05T06:53:00.000-07:00

One of the most frequently asked questions I am often asked as a pastor is "how do I know or discern the will of God for my life?" I am often amazed at the methods that we sometimes try to use to discover what God wants us to do in a given situation. If the light turns red before I get there then God didn't want me to go that direction. If no one answers the phone when I call then God didn't want me to talk to them. If the temperatrure is over 100 degrees tomorrow then God dosen't want me to go out and look for that job. What??? I know these methods sound crazy but weve all manufactured crazy ideas like this trying to find God's will for us.

However, what I've discovered is that God's will is not as big of a mystery as we make it out to be. When we speak of knowing God's will we overlook the fact that God has many wills. He has a providential will, a moral will and a personal will for your life. And the more we know those things that God is going to do no matter what, the more submissive I am to obeying God's moral will the easier it is for me to discern God's personal will for my life!!

We kicked this study off on yesterday with a big bang. Great attendance and the participants were highly excited and encouraged through the first lesson. This is an eight session study and I am sure it will have a great impact upon the lives of those participating.

Please be much in prayer for our facilitators, Deacon Harvey Ryan and Sis. Ebony Harris. They are excited about this study.

After 5 years of going through that great book of Psalms I feel somewhat lost. We started our study in the pslams with Psalm 1 and stopped at the end of book 4 with Psalm 106. This study in the Psalms was a personal blessing and challenge to me and a blessing to our congregation as well. I truly believe that our faith in our risen Lord is much stronger and our understanding of faith through trials expressed through a comittment to trust and worship God no matter what, will help us all be much better Christians.

New Season

2011-08-28T19:06:00.000-07:00

The winds of change are blowing and new horizons seem to be in view. I am amazed at the wisdom of God and how he allows change to blow into our lives unexpectantly. There is something uncomfortable yet welcoming and invigorating about being forced to change.
This past year has been a very unusual year in many aspects, both personally and pastoraly. Many valuable lessons have been learned about myself, others and life in general. I have discovered more than ever that what God says is true in all matters of life. And no matter how we try to get around the word of God to satisfy our own selfish desires, or in an effort to make life easier, we always end up right where the word of God says that we would.
Nonetheless, I an now ready to listen. Speak Lord for your servant is listening.

The Prodigal's Return

2011-08-22T20:19:00.000-07:00

"It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is found'.

Praise God!!! Praise God!!!

One More Time

2010-05-02T18:51:00.000-07:00

Well it feels good to be back in the saddle. After 4 weeks out of the pulpit, it was good to stand and preach today. Boy I tell you pastoring has taught me so much about the faithfulness of God and myself. He has held me, wiped my tears, strengthened me and given me more grace for the journey.
It's been rough but refreshing and rewarding to view my soul through the window of pain.
I wrestled, really wrestled with my calling and my commitment to the work of ministry and honestly was just tired of it all. I was faking and shaking up to the week before my break but God has restored me, one more time!
During this time I plunged myself into praying and being brokenly honest before the Lord. I have been empied even more of the pride, selfishness and arrogance that once characterized my inner thoughts and feelings. Through the thorn of my pain God has given me the gifts of patience and compassion and I thank God for these gifts.

There are several books that have been my best friends during this time. They have helped me gain some since of perspective about some of the things I have had to deal with this past year of ministry.

Windows of the Soul
Believing in God but Living as if He Dosen't Exist
The Hour that Changes the World
The Lost Art of Praying Together
Deep Preaching
Planning Your Preaching
Preaching that Connects
The Valley of Vision

I still believe God has great things in store for the church He has called me to serve. The Lord is blessing the work inspite of me and it is a great blessing to see Him do what He does best. Galilee has a great future and I am expectantly excited about it. Only God knows the future but I am excited just to have the strength for just another days journey.

Thank You Lord for sustaining me.

Pastors in Pain

2010-03-04T04:59:00.000-08:00

For any fellow pastor growing through the season of pain you may currently be in, please let me reccomend this great read to you by Gary Preston.

It along with God's word has been an invaluable tool and support to me the past few weeks.

May it bless you as much as it has blessed me.

Be Encouraged fellow Pastor, Be Encouraged!!!

Walking Wounded

2010-02-28T18:43:00.000-08:00

How to handle internal wounds inflicted by others seems to be the lesson the Lord is teaching me this season. Misunderstandings and false accusations have laid bare the flesh of my soul. Oh what pain. My first and natural thoughts were to strike back and get even. However, thank God that spiritual thoughts have prevailed. This was expected with the bold faithful stance that has been taken but what was unexpected was the way the enemy would attack. I could quit, complain and verbally strike back. But this would only cause further spiritual damage and play right into the hands of that insidious infernal trickster.

I have decided to let the salve of God's Grace heal my internal wounds and to thank God in my pain. Only God knows the pain and the hurt but Lord I am determined to say thank you in advance for what you are doing and about to do. To you belong all the Glory and Honor and if more pain must be endured for your Glory to be revealed then I resign myself to the uneasiness knowing that your grace is more than sufficient to keep me in the midst of it all.

As your servant testifies, when they were hurt I prayed and fasted for them but at my stumbling they rejoiced and gathered, they gathered together against me. But even still I pray that you would bless them beyond measure and lavish heavens greatest blessings upon them. Make them stronger, faithful, loving and useful for your service. And all the while help me to serve them with your gifts, with your strength, with your life.

I am determined to thank you and praise you in the midst of it all.

The Walking Wounded!!!

The Character of A Real Godly Friend

2010-02-01T16:04:00.000-08:00

We are working our way through the book of 1st Thessalonians on Sunday mornings at Galilee. This book is rich and exciting and I have just been watering at the mouth each week as I have labored to try and faithfully proclaim the godly truths of this great book.
Paul, Timothy and Silas had labored in this city on Pauls' second missionary journey as he entered into the region of Macedonia (Acts 16:9) preaching the gospel.
They were soon ran out of Philippi, a province of Macedonia, and made their way to the city of Thessalonica. According to Acts 17:2 Paul preached in that city for 3 sabaths a won some to Christ before he and his traveling companions, Timothy and Silas were ran out of town.
Paul and his companions go on to Berea, where once again Paul himself is ran out of town for preaching the gospel (Acts 17:14). Paul makes his way to the city of Athens awaiting the arrival of Timothy and Silas, all the while longing to know how the believers in Thessalonia are faring since his departure. Paul knows they are experiencing great persecution for their faith in Jesus Christ and longs to be with them to exhort and encourage them but is hindered in his return.
While Paul is away some of the Judaizers come behind him to the Thessalonian believers and begin to level attacks against Paul and his ministry there. Timothy and Silas come to Corinth where Paul now is (Acts 18:5) and inform him that those young believers in Thessalonia truly are experiencing great affliction for their faith in Christ but are still maintaining the faith.
This 1st letter to them is Pauls loving response, exhortation and defense of his ministry.
One writer has said tha chapter 2 verses 1-16 is Paul's "Apologia Pro Vita Sua", the defense of his life and ministry there in Thessalonica and verses 17 through 3:5 are his "Apologia Abstenia", that is the defense of his absence from the Thessalonians. Evidently his attackers were trying to accuse Paul of unconcern and insincerity because he left Thessalonia. But in verses 2:17-3:5 Paul makes his defense. This text serves not only as Paul's defense of his absence but also as a model of one who is genuinely concerned about believers and their spiritual growth and faithfulness, especially during times of affliction.

C.I.T.- We all need a real godly friend to help us live the Christian life successfully.

The Christian life, really lived for the glory of God, is frought with afflictions and trials. And if you are going to make it through it successfully you need a real godly friend to help you make it through.
The Christian life was never meant to be lived alone! No...no...no. The road is too long, the hills are too hard to climb, the going gets too tough and we all need someone to come to our side to help us, to encourage us, to exhort us and even to tell us the truth.
Heed the words of the wise Proverb writer Solomon in Ecclesiastes 4:9-12:
"Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil. For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow. But woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up! Again, if two lie together, they keep warm, but how can one keep warm alone? And thought a man might prevail against one who is alone, two will withstand him-a threefold cord is not quickly broken."
Here me church you need someone to help you as you live out the Christian life!
Question? Who's your Paul? Question? Who are you being a Paul to? This text gives us the characteristics of those we need in our lives to help us live the Christian life successfully. And this text also shows us the kind of character we must have to truly be of help to one another as we live the life of faith.

T.S.-What characteristics should they or we have?
This text gives us 3 godly characteristics.

1). We Must Be Sincerely Concerned About the Spiritual Growth of Other Believers. vss.17-20
A). Empathetic (torn away-"Orphaned") 17a
B). Emotional (not in heart) 17b.
C). Eager to help (endeavored, more eagerly, great desire, we wanted to come) 17c-18a
D). Emphatic (I Paul-Greek, emphasis) 18b.
E). Excited (to present them to Christ at His return) vss. 19-20

2). Willing to Sacrifice for the Spiritual Growth of Other Believers. vss. 3:1-2a
A). Willing to take a risk (willing to be left behind at Athens alone) vs. 1 (Athens wasn't very hospitable to Paul but he risked the consequences so that Timothy could go back to Thessalonia)
B). Willing to give up its best (Timothy-Phil. 2:19-23) vs.2a

3). Willing to Support the Spiritaul Growth of Other Believers. vss2b-5
A). Establish and Exhort
1). So they wouldn't be moved. 2b-3
2). By telling them the truth. vs.4
3). By keeping them from falling for the lie of Satan.

What A Friend We Have in Jesus.
All Our Sins and Griefs to Bear.
What A Privilege it is to Carry
Everything to God in Prayer.

There's not a friend like the lowly Jesus.
No, not One! No, not One!

Still Hungry for God!!

2010-01-31T19:54:00.000-08:00

Today at Galilee was one for the record books. Wow....what can one say after the experience of worship on today. The past several days it has snowed in the OKC metro and surrounding areas including Shawnee, where Galilee resides. I had contemplated canceling services on today due to the snow and ice but decided that we would still have service for those that wanted to attend.
Since today was to be the day that we were to break our corporate Fast together I really didn't want to cancel service. We had planned to have worship and then worship together in a corporate fellowship meal as we ended the fast together. We had about 70 people show up today for worship!

All I can say is that the Lord allowed us to see His back sided today! We were blessed from our early morning prayer meeting all the way through the meal we shared. The Lord is truly doing something in the life of Galille and I by no means take any...not any of the credit for it (Psalm 115:1) . We are a small congregation with about 65 faithful members and the Lord is moving in the life of our congregation in awesome ways.

My prayer for Galilee is the same it has been since my arrival, that Galilee would be a place of worship where above all God is glorified in all that we do, not just in word but in deed.

Galilee we've had our bad days and our slow years but the Lord continues to show His faithfullness to us in ways that are beyond our understanding. May His word continue to be Honored as our soul source for faith and for practice. May His word contine to take our consciences captive to the obedience of Christ. May we as a people and a church seek to be a loving community of Faith. May God help us to have the best youth ministry in the world. And my our Galilee@Home ministry impact families for Christ for generations to come. During our struggles, as we go through hell together, may we never forget that sometime God chooses to allow us to go through hell in order to put some of heaven into us.

For all the families that have experienced the blessings of God in bringing your families together through prayer, bible study and just quality time, may you continue after today to make family time in God's word and Bible study a priority.
I am praying God's best for you all. And look forward to serving you the rest of my days as the LORD allows for His glory and honor. I love you all.

"So, being affectionately desirious of you, we were ready to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own selves, because you had become very dear to us." 1Thess. 2:8

Things I have learned during this season ofPrayer & Fasting:

*God is still Sovereign and moves as he wills, even during times of fasting
*Food is good but God is so much better.
*I am still a sinner.
* The blessing of being saved is sometimes unappreciated.
*God sustains those who really trust Him.
*God honors and keeps his word.
*God is awesome
*Families are priceless.
* I've wasted a lot of time not leading my family the way God wanted me to lead them.
* To hear your child confess her sins to God and pray is better than any of her worldly accomplishements.
* Not to take my wife for granted. She is my biggest supporter.
* T.V. and Radios are highly overated as a necessity and as must have items.
*Galilee is a great church!!!!!

Another Favorite Psalm: Psalm 63

2010-01-28T07:38:00.000-08:00

As we continue to make our way through the entire book of Psalms on Wednesday nights at Galiee, I am loving this book more and more. Admittedly the challenge is teaching recurrent themes in fresh and challenging ways. But the Psalms helps the teacher out tremendously in this challenge by the use of vibrant poetic language, which draws the reader and audience in in 3D.

Such is Psalm 63. This Psalm of David is picturesk in its imagery, a man of God estranged from God by the enemy, thirsty for the presence of God, finds himself in a dry and weary land with no hopes of quenching his souls thirst for God.
His solution? Seeking GOD in the Sanctuary. Not seeking the Sanctuary but GOD in the Sanctuary! God is the source of his souls refreshing.

This Psalm so reminds us that our souls can never find the refreshing in any place other than in God. As Augustine said, "Our Souls are restless O Lord until they find rest in thee".

We live in a parched and weary world where all attempts to satisfy our souls thirst for God will never be met with success. We may try to satisfy that thirst with sex, drugs, humanism, pride, reputation, success, pleasure, materialism.....etc....but none of it will ever give the lasting satisfaction that God can.

How much do you really long for God? Do you have a genuine passion for the Glory of God?
If not read Psalm 63. May this Psalm inspire you to seek the Supremacy of God above all for the joy of all peoples.

Soli Deo Gloria....

God Did It!

2010-01-12T06:25:00.000-08:00

I have been wanting to do something for God for months that I just haven't done. I prayed and asked the Lord to help me and provide so that it could be done. Guess what? God did it....Oh yes He did!

I pray that it will help the Supremacy of God for the Joy of all peoples be spread throught the earth.

Thank you Lord, Thank You!

A Taste of Things Yet to Come

2010-01-10T19:28:00.000-08:00

Today at Galilee we started our corporate Daniel Fast. 21 days of a limited diet, no T.V., no radio, no cell phones, 21 minutes of family prayer, 21 minutes of family bible reading and 21 minutes of family exercise.
This is the second year that I have asked the congregation of Galilee to comitt to 21 Days of fasting togehter. While the Daniel Fast does not entail total abstenance from food, it however demands a restricted diet. The concept is born out of Daniel 10:2 where Daniel seeking to understand a vision he had been given limited his intake of certain foods to focus upon God seeking His revelation of the vision.

This fast is a challenge physically and spiritually. The obvious physical challenge is to the body and mind as we abstain from some of our favorite foods like cheeseburgers, pizza, ice cream, steak, seafood etc... But the physical challenge is nothing compared to the spiritual challenge. Spiritually we are longing to feel the fullness of God in our lives. That challenge is much greater because spiritually we croud our lives with so much stuff that it is often difficult to sense God's presence in our lives. We are so accustomed to following the desires of the old Adamic nature that longs spiritually for "stuff". Yea, "stuff". Most of us spend a lot of time trying to find peace, joy, contentment and happiness in stuff. We covet stuff, we long for stuff, we even forsake God for stuff. But just as a physical fullness never last so never can a spiritual fulfillment ever be attained by stuff. And so during this time we are forsaking "stuff" for the "substance" that really satisfies.
The misunderstanding when it comes to fasting is to think of fasting as something that is automatically spiritual and to turn and see food as something evil and to be avoided. Not so! People fast for several reasons that have no spiritual connecitons whatsoever. And food is a good thing a real good thing. I believe that 1 Tim. 6:17 says it best "......God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy." Food is a good thing given by God. It is one of those good and perfect gifts James talks about.
But as good and as perfect a gift food may be it can never compare with the one who provides it. Bread is good for the body and is enriched with nutrients and vitamins to make our bodies stronger and useful for our master. And we long to taste it's goodness. But during this time of fasting, instead of longing for the bread that perishes, we are setting that aside and longing for the "Baker of Heaven". Daily bread is just a simple fortaste of the things yet to come in the life of the believer.

We started today our trek through the book of 1 Thessalonians, 1:1-10, "The Profile of A Saved Church." What a challenging study and I am excited about the trek ahead. If the Lord says the same we will look at chapter 2:1-12 next week.

Please cover Galiee in your prayers for the next several weeks as we long for the fullness of God in our lives that we may make ourselves available for His Kingdom Agenda to be done through us, His Will to be Done through us and His name to be Hallowed through us.

God Be Praised!

An Unsettling Question

2009-12-29T09:36:00.000-08:00

"What are you doing right now that requires faith? That question affected me deeply because at the time I could think of nothing in my life that required faith. I probably wouldn't be living very differently if I didn't believein God: my life was neither ordered nor affected by my faith like I assumed if was. Furthermore, when I looked around, I realized I was surrounded by people who lived the same way I did."

Crazy Love, Francis Chan, pg.124

The Short List

2009-12-10T15:06:00.000-08:00

On last night we had our end of year church conference. I thank God that things went well. Galilee is not, or let me say at least in my opinion, not a hostile church. There are no lingering, Hatfield vs. McCoy battles going on at Galilee. Praise God for that.
In approaching this meeting I began several months ago asking God for wisdom to plan and do a much better job of planning our calendar for 2010 and setting our ministries agenda. I must honestly say that I didn't not come up with much of anything that is new. I am not one of those pastors that thinks novelty is next to godliness and that everything that is new and "out of the box" is of ultimate spiritual value. I also do not subscribe to the other extreme and say that there is sanctity in the status quo. I think that simply and practically that if any changes need to be made that the scriptures and the teachings of scripture should dictate our changes. Change for change sake is not profitalbe at all, only to the degree that it helps our church to function more biblically have I sought to make changes.
We do have high expectations for our church for 2010. I am challenging each and every member to deepen their committment to the Lord, to the church and to those in the family of God.
My prayers and hopes for Galilee for 2010 are as follows:

*May we seek to bring Honor and Glory to God in everything we do as a church.
*May the Lord grant us a hunger and a thirst for His Holiness and presence in our lives in every area.
*May we honor the total suffiency of God's word as our rule for faith and for practice.
*May the Lord continue to raise up in Galilee men, women, boys and girls who love Him with all their hearts, minds and souls. And may that love be expressed through committed relationships with other believers.
*May each member be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding. May each member walk worthy of the Lord fully pleasing Him and bearing fruit in every area. May our lives be filled with glorious power of Christ for all endurance and patience. May we, with joy, continually give thanks to God for our salvation through Christ.
* May Galilee be a serving Church.
*May Galilee be a giving Church.
*May Galilee be a evangelizing Church.
*May Galilee experience true and genuine fellowship.
*May Galiee be a discerning Church.
*May Galilee have the best youth ministry in the world.
*May the Lord continue to bless the finances of Galilee.

May the Lord according to His own Sovereign will bring these things to pass. I am trusting and believing He will.

Swallowed by the Book of Jonah

2009-11-29T17:01:00.000-08:00

Today I finished up the 5th sermon in a series out of the Old Testament book of Jonah. What a blessing to have the privilege of struggling through this prophetic narrative.

God is Calling You - Jonah 1:1-3
Nowhere to Hide- Jonah 1:4-16
The Big Take Down- Jonah 1:17,2:1-10
God Want's to Give You Another Chance!- Jonah 3:1-10
The Eternal Priority of God- Jonah 4:1-11

It has been joy and pain preaching through this book. The Hermeneutical task left my mouth watering but the Theological challenge of the book revealed my need for more study. The truth is the Historical and Philological aspects of preparation where exilerating but I felt as if I was missing something in putting together the theological truths about God in the book of Jonah. The book is not about Jonah nor the big fish but it is all about God and how he mercifully and persistently pursues rebellious people with His love and grace.
Jonah may be a brief book of only 4 chapters but it is long on Theology Proper. How do you handle a God who loves rebellious people so much that He never gives up pursuing them? How do you handle Jonah in light of the fact that he was a man who truly loved God, his own people the Jews but looked God in the face on at least two occasions with defiance and yet God still loves him and uses him? How do you square His actions with the Sovereign control and Sovereign will of God? How is the final line of the book to be dealt with? These and other challenges found in the book make good fodder for further study and preaching and Christian living.
I must say I was swallowed by this book. Being an ex-Pharisee the truth was hammered home week after week that God really does love people whom I may not like, may not agree with, may not think worthy, people who may not share the same doctrinal convictions I have, people I may not want to see blessed by God. In my myopic mindset I am learning more and more that God's love can never be earned, not even by the most devoted saint. It is a free gift offered to even the most unworthiest of sinners. Thank God for that! I have also been challenged to share the gospel more. God's love is persistent, he never gives up pursuing the lost, in this life. He will do whatever it takes to get His message of love to them and he expects me, like Jonah, to share it with other people, even people I may erroneously deem unworthy. I pray that we as a church will take that challenge from this book personally and corporately and become more comitted to this calling of sharing the gospel with the lost. Yes, God is Sovereign even in the matter of Salvation but He does ordain the means as well as the end. God help me and may we as a people be comitted to being ambassadors of the gospel.

The Long Road of Patience

2009-11-15T18:52:00.000-08:00

Are we there yet? Are we there yet? When we will get there? These are the troubling questions of unseasoned travelers who long to get to the appointed destination without enjoying the view along the way. And such is the experience of the new pastor, so I am learning.
Pastoring is not an easy job! If done right I believe it empties one of self and leaves him in a postion where he cannot operate effectively on any strength of his own. Let me say atleast that has been my experience.
Upon arrival at my current assignment I was most assured that I was prepared and equipped for the road ahead. I knew within a few short months of this new journey that we as a people would arrive at destinations unbefore seen. And so with the earger energy of a beaver I got after it, digging and chugging along giving it all I had. I just knew that my growing biblical acumen and serious comittment were enough to transform the life of the people and the church.
After almost 4 years of that kind of foolishness, I am still asking the question, "Are we there yet?". Boy what juvenile ignorance! It feels like and looks like from my perspective that the car is still in the driveway. I need patience.
I have learned that Pastoring is not for the faint of heart. You can literally die because of ministerial setbacks. I have experienced this a lot this year. It seems like I have lost more than I have gained. My heart has been broken by people I thought were really with the program only to discover they had hidden motives and agendas. This has been the lonliest year of my ministry as I have suffered in silence while pretending that everything was okay. Man this is tough stuff. I find myself wanting to cry but the tears just will not flow. "Are we there yet?" I want to get out, I am just about tired of the ride. No one really knows how I feel and to try express this to someone is really an exercise in futility because I still have to go right back to my pulpit next Sunday wanting to be further down the road only to discover we haven't made much progress.
Lest I seem ungrateful, I thank God for this experienc. I have learned to thank God for the slow but steady progress. I thank God for the heartaches caused by others because these experiences remind me that God really does use weak people.
So thank you Lord for your Sovereign arrangement of circumstances at Galilee. Thank you that you keep reminding me that it must be none of me and all of you.
Are we there yet? I don't know and I pray that I wont be preoccupied with the nagging question. May the Lord grant me the wisdom and patience to just enjoy the ride.
Thank you Lord, Thank you!

God be praised!

Don't Waste Your Storm!

2009-11-05T19:06:00.000-08:00

Psalm 57 is another prayer of deliverance. It is one of a number of successive Psalms (52,54,55,56) attributed to David who is once again on the run from his enemies. This Psalm has as its background a time in the life of David when he was hidding in a cave trying to escape from Saul. David finds himself in this cave surrounded by his enemies and he calls out to his God for protection and deliverance.
David knows that if Saul and his men capture him his life will be over, his situation is desperate.
But while in this cave he realizes that his ultimate protection is not the cave he is hidding in but God in whom he trusts. He realizes that God is his refuge, one whom he can depend on to keep him in the midst of his impending danger, this "storm of destruction" vs 1b.
David cries out to God for deliverance but the driving beat of his heart in the midst of his situation is for God to be exalted and God's glory to be seen over the earth. David wants to honor God even while going through his storm!
That's a tremendous testimony! David is more passionate about the Glory of God in the midst of his personal trial than he is for even his own deliverance.
What a lesson for the believer to heed because many of us seek personal comfort, success, wealth, accomplishment and status at the expense of honoring God. But Davids situation reminds us that even storms, personal calamaties, times of personal challenge and setbacks in a believers life can and should be times we seek the honor and glory of God. But most of us waste our opportunities. Storms are an opportunity for the Glory of God to be seen in the life of the believer.

The question is How can I bring Glory and Honor to God in the midst of lifes storms?

Psalm 57 teaches us how.

1). Trust God in the Midst of Lifes Storms. vss. 1-6
A). Because God will Protect you in the midst of lifes storms. vs. 1
1). Refuge 2). Wings
B). Because of His Power to fulfill his purpose for you in the midst of lifes storms. vs.2
C). Because of His Passionate Comittment to you in the midst of lifes storms. vs.3
1). Devotion 2) Dependability
D). Because He will Preserve you in the midst of lifes storms. vss. 4&6
E). The Plea that demonstrates trust in the midst of lifes storms. vs. 5

2). Thank God in the Midst of Lifes Storms. vss.7-11
A). With a heartfelt comittment. vs 7-8a
B). With your service. vs 8b.
C). With your testimony. vs. 9
D). With an apprehension of God's comittment to you. vs. 10
1). Devotion 2). Dependability
E). With a God Centered Desire for His Glory. vs. 11

Jesus lover of my soul, let me to thy bosom fly. While the nearer waters roll, while the tempest still is high. Hide me, O my Savior hide, till the storm of life is past. Safe into the haven guide, O receive my soul at last.

Other refuge have I none- hangs my helpless soul on Thee. Leave ah, leave me not alone, Still support and comfort me. All my trust on Thee is stayed. All my help from Thee I bring. Cover my defenseless head with the shadow of thy wing.

An Inside Job

2009-10-23T05:05:00.000-07:00

Lurking deep within the hidden cave of the human soul is a monster. He is insidious, vile, decrepet, disgusting, sinful and as greedy as the grave. His name is selfishness!

No one has actually ever seen this hideous monster because he cloaks himself in human flesh. But he leaves a trail everywhere he goes. Behind every proposterous crime he ever comitts he leaves wounded souls, bitter bite marks of hurtful language and stab wounds of character assanation. His desire is to inihilate everyone who gets in his way and does not submit to his selfish agenda.
For milenia he has been on the most wanted list. His first crime was classic. He claimed that following his leadership would lead one to true freedom independence and self rule. His victims bit on his lie, fell and died! He has been using this same Modus Operandi for centuries to kill his unsuspecting victims.
The irony of this selfish monster is that he always leads his victims to lonliness and isolation, of course he doesn't tell them this, it's only discovered once the selfish crimes have been committed.
But there is an antidote to this perennial foe that comes from another realm. It was delivered a couple of centuries ago by the wisest apothecary ever to live. He gave instructions on how to starve this monster to death.

1). Esteem others better than yourself.
2). Don't just be concerned about your own interests.
3). Let the mind of Christ rule your heart.
4). Humble Yourself.
5). Don't trust in your own self righteousness.
6). Have an honest estimation of yourself.
7). Ask God for the strength, help and power and wisdom to do all of the above!

From Start to Finish

2009-10-06T04:53:00.000-07:00

"To no person can a higher tribute be paid than this: You have finished the work I gave you to do. Bezalel and his assistant, Aholiab, had been called, Spirit-endowed, and commissioned for one work and one work alone. That work was the building of the tabernacle and particularly the furnishings, using precious metals and various types of fabrics.
Neither of these individuals ever became a celebrity. Moses, yes, but Bezalel? Aholiab? Fortunately, God does not measure our effectiveness in His kingdom work by how many times we make headlines in the local media. He does, however, measure our effectiveness on the basis of our full acceptance and implementation of those responsibilities with which He does challenge us.
Bezalel and Aholiab are complimented for having completed their assignment. It is so easy to accept responsibility verbally, to make an initial commitment in the flush of that first excitement. But alas, too often we do not carry through.
Bezale and Aholiab are not just beginners. They are finishers. They encourage us also to be finishers."

Speak to My Heart; Psalm 54

2009-09-30T19:55:00.000-07:00

Who do you talk to when you are perplexed? Who do you talk to when what you have to say may sound strange or unusual? Who can you really tell how you really feel? Most of us have friends, family members, spouses that we can uload on. But what about those times that you need someone who can identify specifically with what you are going through to hear you out and just flat out be honest with you? Who do you talk to about your fears of the future, your insecurities, your doubts, your needs and your need of assurance?
Thank God for prayer!!!!!!!!
When the questions of life bounce around in your head and heart and you even become disheartended of your present and future it's just a real blessing to be able to unload and cast all your cares and burdens upon the Lord.
It's a blessing to know that God will Sustain the righteous. God takes care of His own and God will never be a dry well for a thirsty soul. Praise God!

When life puts you in a position where you are immobolized

!). Cast Your Burdens On the Lord.

2). Have Confidence that God will Sustain You.

3) Comitt to Blessing God, even if He hasn't delivered you yet.

4). Take A Risk for God!!!

Lord thank you for sustaining me. I know you will!

The Making of A Pharisee

2009-09-14T17:10:00.000-07:00

How do you balance godly passion with godly compassion? Are these two mutually exclusive or can there be a perfect blending of the two? Honestly I know there can be andI know that there is a danger in being extreme in either one.
If one is passionate as a preacher about doctrine, preaching, studying, reading, preparing sermons and lessons and shows little to no compassion toward those to whom he preaches or serves, chances are he will not be received well or for long. On the other hand if one is compassionate at the expense of his passion for his calling and neglects his doctrine, study, reading,preperation, preaching etc...he may have a great audience but nothing really to feed them to help them grow.
I love preaching...I really do. I have such a long way to go but the grind in the study is my cup of joe...I really yearn for it, even after sitting in the study all week long, turning over rocks and digging looking for nuggets only to walk to the pulpit with with nothing but the promise of God's presence. Even when the week has been grueling on my secular job and time in the study has been hard to find.....I still love preaching. I love the reading, learning the truths of the scriptures and reading to deepen my understanding of tough doctrinal issues. I love the tough passages that challenge me. I love the moment of delivery when all is silent in the midst of a crowd and you actually hear yourself speak to you...when you are oblivious to all your surrounding and your are in the moment...feeling that thang...yeah....
I love it so much I am super hard on those who I know, who say they have been called to preach and are cavalier about their calling. They don't take it seriously, so it appears to me, and they show little evidence of really being called. My passion for preaching causes me to show little compassion for those who love the title more than the calling.
But wait a minute...am I slowly becoming a Pharisee? They were passionate for the law...very zealous for the law...they cherished the law and hated those whom they thought didn't honor the law as they did. They tithed of all they had....added extra commandments to the law to try and make sure it was kept. I mean these fellows if anybody were passionate about God and the law. So it appeared!
As zealous as they were Jesus chided them for their lack of compassion and not following through on the weighter matters of the law, like justice and mercy. What an indictment!
I have made one of the biggest mistakes of my young pastorate. In a honest passionate moment my lack of compassion showed it's ugly head in a most ungodly way. I have seen first hand that no matter how well your preperation, doctrine, exegesis, delivery or how well illiterated your message is, a show of no compassion kills the message and destroys the messenger!
I don't know if this lack of judgment and compassion on my part is redeemeable or even forgiveable, only God knows. I accept full responsibility for whatever may come from it. But I have learned my lesson and pray that God will use this to help me be a more compassionate Christian, friend and pastor.

Jesus is the perfect example of passion and compassion. He was passionate about the law and honoring His Father. He was passionate about redeeming mankind. But His passion was expressed in his most compassionate act, His death on Calvary. Where He died for vile sinners like you and I. If we are ever to learn how to be both passionate and compassionate may the life of Jesus and the Cross of Calvary be our model.

Lord please forgive me.

Jim Elliot

2009-09-07T11:09:00.000-07:00

"God , I pray Thee, light these idle sticks of my life that I may burn up for Thee. Consume my life, my God, for it is Thine. I seek not a long life but a full one, like you Lord Jesus."

Wow!

New Vistas

2009-09-02T19:42:00.000-07:00

"A person who does not have much experience studying the Bible is likely to think that a well-known passage must be easy to elaborate. Actually, the opposite is the case. The well-known passages are the hardest, and some seem almost impossible to expound. This is true of Psalm 51."
Spurgeon the prince of expositors tells how he postponed working on Psalm 51 week after week and often sat down to it and got up again without having written a line. He concluded "It is a bush burning with fire yet not consumed, and out of it a voice seemed to cry to me, "Draw not nigh hither, put off thy shoes from off thy feet.""

Boy what a challenge it has been the past week preparing to present Psalm 51. But man has the study yielded some very priceless and precious fruit. I labeled the lesson tonight
"The Confession of A Sinner Pt. 1" (verses 1-6). We will seek to conclude Pt. 2 on next week, verses 7-19.
The danger for me in studying a familiar passage is garnering the new eyes to see it as never before. Truly "familiarity breeds contempt" and dullness.
But I thank God that, through prayer and dilligence, God has given me a new look at the landscape of this precious passage. This new Vista has allowed me to see some new countours and crevices I have missed in years past. No, I have no new revelation or no left field or hair brained idea about a new take on any of the passages. But just a deeper appreciation for the mercy of God, David, his experience and the Psalm itself.
Just knowing that our God is merciful no matter the depth of a believers sin is really unfathomable. David definitely deserved death but God granted him Mercy.
We are constituently and constitutionally sinners the same as David and deserve no less than death but God through His only begotten Son has given us Mercy. Thank you LORD an eternity over.
The ugliness of sin can promise so much and deliver so little. But only God can grant us the real pleasure we seek in sin.
When we grow in disgust of our sins and fonder of God's marvelous grace we will begin to see Him as never before.

Soli Deo Gloria!!!!

Scandalous Worship

2009-08-27T18:58:00.000-07:00

Is there a right or wrong way to worship God? This seems to be the question of our times among churches across the world but even more so among evangelical churches here in the United States. It appears that tinkering with the way we do worship, if I can say it that way, is in now. Video screens, drive thru services, non threatening lingo, the removal of the cross, infinity groups and starbucks coffee among other man pleasing trivalities are what's up in the emergent church.
How does God feel about all of this? Or is He even concerned as long as all of this is done in His name? Why make such a big deal out of our approach to worship?
Psalm 50, written well over 2000 to 3000 years ago addresses this timely issue perfectly.(Thank God for the suffeincy of His Word!) And it answers the question emphatically. God does care how His people worship Him!
Psalm 50 is an indictment upon the covenant people of God, who have grown cold and calous in their worship. They gather to worship God but it is prefunctory and not passionate.
This Psalm takes place in the court room of God's presence. As the mighty, majestic and merciful Judge comes forth from His chambers out of the beauty of His Holy City, He summons everyone from East to West to be present as He lays His charges out among His people. Derick Kidner characterizes the two groups addressed here as "Nominally Orthodox" & "Mechanically Pious".
One would expect God to charge the heathens with this type of worshipful neglect but it is the covenant community that He summons.
His charges against His people:
1). You think you are doing me a favor by worshipping me. vss8-13 (Ritual Worship)
2). Your worship is thankless vs. 14
3). You have not kept your commitment to me. vss. 14b & 15
4). You hate discipline. vs.17
5). You don't keep my word vs. 17b
6). You tolerate sin. vs. 18
7). You assault one another with your words. vss.19-20
8). You have a low view of God. vs.21
9). But you keep worshipping me like I don't see what's really going on!

What an indictment upon the church. When we seek to make worship anthropocentric rather than keeping it theopocentric, we are in danger of becoming like the people of God in Psalm 50.
But may this Psalm remind us that God is watching how we worship and God is holding us accountable for how we worship Him. If He becomes the sideshow and not the Main Attraction of our worship our worship is no more than a spiritual scandal. We make think we are getting away with it but when the Judge enters His court He will reveal and lay His charges before us.

How will He find your Church?

Out of Focus

2009-08-02T19:10:00.000-07:00

The past several weeks have been a struggle for me. I so look forward to Sunday mornings at Galilee. The new members class I teach is always such a thrill for me and the anticipation of preaching keeps my stomach swirling with butterflies. I just love the fact and thank God that "He has counted me faithful and called me into the ministry."
But I must honestly say that I have lost it the past few weeks. I just have not felt that thing......preachers will know what I mean. That feeling in the gut that tingels with the excitement of study, preaching and the moment of delivery. I have been at best mediocre and can honestly say I have not given God my best.
My devotional time has grown cold and the drudgery of still seeking God hoping that the embers will reignite has become wearisome.
What's going on? Honestly I just don't know. I don't need a vacation and I have no hidden sins that need confessing. I have just lost my focus!
One scripture that constantly drives me and keeps me on my toes is Luke 16:10. At times this scripture has motivated me to go the extra mile, to be unordinarly comitted to my assignment. But I have lost it. In all honesty I have not been faithful in those small things that only God knows about. I have even been carefree in my delievery and just down right a slopy, undisciplined pastor/preacher.
Maybe its frustration. I found myself literally laughing at God this past Wednesday when it was time to teach and I just knew I hadn't done enough due dilligence to feel sufficiently prepared. But you know what? God blessed His word anyway! And I think that is what frustrates me. God keeps blessing His word inspite of me. It's like I say every Sunday night..."Lord please help me to do better this week" and then Saturday night I find myself again saying "Lord I've blown it again, I've been lazy and haven't used my time wisley this week, please forgive me". It's the same old thing week end and week out.
Church life, from my view seems stagnant and even seems to be regressing. A couple of members have left the church. Not really sure why but I will try and check it out.
You know, I have come to the conclusion that in any church there is a multiplicity of reasons to leave.....perhaps the people are not accomodating, the service is too long, the church is too big or too small, the choir dosen't sing the right kind of songs...etc....the list could go on and on.
Though there may be many reasons to leave a church, and even some of those may be legitimate, there is only one real reason to stay.........and that reason is God!
I don't know what God is up to in my life at this point or this season but I trust that His best intrest is at hand. I just pray that He will help me to hold out before I give up or become mired in that despised, despicable, detestable, distasteful dungeon of mediocrity.

Lord help me!

Imagine

2009-07-26T19:37:00.000-07:00

Pastoring is a very demanding calling and if done well it consumes a lot of energy and time. Preparing weekly messages, caring for God's people, providing wise biblical cousel, calling, visiting members, meeting with church staff and leaders, providing vision, reshaping vision and many other pastoral responsibilities never seem to end.
Imagine being bi-vocational and watching these things pile up from a lack of time to get them all done. Imagine weekly struggling to faithfully prepare a message for that day of the week that seemingly tries weekly to break the record for the speed of light. Imagine Sunday evenings knowing where you are headed scripturally for the upcoming Wednesday and Sunday only to reencounter week after week the same dissapointing situation of finding yourself up late Tuesday and Saturday nights week after week. No matter how hard you try to beat and avoid the cramming it just never goes away. Imagine watching your daughter grow up right before your eyes wishing that you could skip a weekend of study and just do things that she wanted to do. Imagine having a more than loving and supportive wife who says she understands but you know longs to have more of your undivided attention.
Imagine having a job that you love and enjoy with all the benefits and perks one could ever ask for in a job. Imagine leaving this job and taking the pastorate fulltime so that you can focus more on all of the above.

Imagine.....Imagine that!!

The Worlds Greatest Love Song

2009-07-16T07:57:00.000-07:00

Do you remember the song or songs that were sung at your wedding? Why did you and your spouse select those songs for that momentous occassion? There may be a myriad of reasons for choosing love songs for weddings but I believe that we tried to select songs that would best capture our sentiments for each other, our aspirations for our live's together and songs that would encapsulate our hopes for a blessed marriage.
Love songs are great and bring with them a flood of stirring emotions and hope .
But will that song keep the marriage together? Certainly not! Marriage is tough and frought not only with joys but also with struggle. But yet those songs can inspire us and move us maybe to endure the tough times we encounter in marriage.
Psalm 45 is essentialy a love song. It was penned to accompany the wedding of an anomyous Isralite king to an anomyous yet beautiful woman. It's a beautiful Psalm and when studied with the historical background, Messianic meaning and customs of ancient Hebrew weddings in mind it really enlivens the heart.

Why is this love song a part of the sacred Psalter? I believe its there to remind believers of all ages of the hope that we have in our relationship with God. God promised Israel that there would be a king who would sit on the throne of David forever. And for a while it appeared that this promise would always be a reality. But then the people were carried away in captivity and after their return there was never another king to sit on the throne of David. You would think that at some later point after their return that they would have taken Psalm 45 out of the Psalter. But yet it remained a part of sacred and inspired scripture. Why? Maybe they remembered the words of that Love Song and looked beyond their present predicament in hope. And God did keep his word! The Messiah, Jesus Christ, the ultimate King came as the fulfillment of that sacred Psalm.
How does it provide hope for us today? Well as members of the body of Christ, that Great Bride. We know that the Groom has promised to return. To bring us unto himself. That great day when the wedding will be consumated. The Groom bedecked in his finest raiment will receive his glorious Bride and she will reign with him forever.

If your struggling today, play that Love Song! May it remind you of the splendor and greatness of the Groom. May it remind you of His conquering power, His righteous rule and His imminent return and His unending love. Listen to the melody, listen to the Lyrics....listen.....listen....HE Loves you and has not forgotten about you. He will return!

Come Quickly Lord Jesus!

Ours Is No Easy Life!

2009-07-03T11:26:00.000-07:00

C.S. Lewis wrote that Christians should realize that they are destined for absolute perfection. The saints remind us of that destiny. No possible degree of holiness or herroism which has ever been recorded of the greatest saints is beyond what He is determined to produce in every one of us in the end. The job will not be completed in this life: but He means to get us as far as possible before death. The process (biography) is as important as the outcome (Icon). It is for this reason, Lewis warns, that a Christian should not expect an easy life. Why?
"Because God is forcing him on, or up, to a higher level: putting him into situations where he will have to be very much braver, or more patient, or more loving, than he ever dreamed of being before. It seems to us all unnecessary: but that is because we have not yet had the slightest notion of the tremendous thing He means to make of us."

Lord Have Mercy!!!

Loving My Pulpit

2009-06-29T06:01:00.001-07:00

I just simply love to preach at Galilee!! I am sure just like every other pastor that we feel our best and most comfortable preaching to those whom we serve week by week. Galilee is such a fertile place for good preaching. It is a blessing to wittness members of Galilee grow in their desire and attentiveness to the word of God. I will honestly say that it has not always been a "Hot House" but the Lord is changing that and I take no credit for it. Just to see members with their bibles open actually following you and looking down at their bibles, smiling as they see where you are going and taking notes as you make your points, to me is simply priceless! I pray that Galilee will be a place known for its sincere desire to honor the word of God as our sole rule for faith and for practice.

I have had opportunities to preach in some pulpits where I felt all alone. Great buildings, great sound systems, great choirs, great crowds but I felt as if I was alone during the preaching because the people just were not into the message . No bibles open, people asleep, no note taking I was being looked at like they were waiting for me to do something spectacular, like okay.....hurry and get to the good part. When I get that look, I am saying to myself, boy they are really going to be let down if they are waiting on something else, I am no whooper and just can't do it so if you don't get this word, you are going to be disappointed. That's the frightening part of preaching out. You just don't know what kind of hunger the people have for the word. I have found that if the people have a hunger for the word and the message is on point, it's a lot easier to preach in that pulpit. But if they have a hunger for treats it becomes obvious by their unattentiveness and that makes a non whooper like myself uncomfortable.

But in my pulpit I don't have that struggle. I know that the people are growing in their desire for the word and while I am preaching I get excited as I see and sense there excitement as the Spirit makes the word clear to them. I look forward everyweek, in spite of the challenges I face during the week, to laboring with all my strength in the pulpit where God has placed me.

Thank You LORD for my Pulpit!!!

Greatful!!!

2009-06-10T04:45:00.000-07:00

There is an old story about a student pastor who once attended Spurgeons college for preachers. He asked Mr. Spurgeon how he could grow his congregation to be the size of Spurgeons. Spurgeon gave the eager and zealous young man some very sound spiritual advice. After several months the student appeared again to Spurgeon and told him he had had no success and his congregation was the same size. Spurgeon told him that maybe the Lord only gave him the size congregation that he could be accountable for on the day of judgement.
I often think about that story and it reminds me to thank God for His wisdom and omniscience. God knows what size congregation I need and no matter what I think He knows best. Like any honest preacher, we all desire to preach, serve and give godly leadership to the most people we can. I don't think I am the only preacher who's heart drops when he walks into a half empty sanctuary! But God knows our abilities and He grants us gifts according to them.
Praise God for the size membership He has given me! I pray that He will continue to equipp me to faithfuly serve them with all I have and not to dishonor Him by coveting someone else's ministry. May He allow me to blossom where I am becuase in the end, inspite of the size of our congregations, we will all have to give in account for our service. I don't think God will ask how many people did we have, all He will want to know is were we faithful with the people we had!

Thank you Lord for Galilee!

My First Book

2009-06-04T16:20:00.000-07:00

On last night we finished our study in the first book of the Psalms, Psalms 1-41. The book of Psalms is actually a collection of 5 seperate books, Psalm 1-41, Psalms 42-72, Psalms 73-89, Psalms 90-106 and Psalms 107-150.
The study through this first book has been a blessing and a challenge but it has been oh so rewarding!!!!

Some things I have learned in the study of this first book.

-God IS Faithful at all times!!!
-There are real challenges to be faced in living for God.
- Psalm 1 is a great introduction the the Grand mansion to the sacred Psalter.
-I understand Psalm 1 better now that I have studied book 1.
-I want to preach Psalm 1 again!!!!!
-The better the quality and quantity of resources the better the understanding of the Psalms!
- I can't have enough resources on the Psalms!
-Good note taking and diligent study is a must when moving progressively through the Psalms.
- Some Messianic Psalms are not Messianic in their entireity.
-Finding the Theological thread of each Psalm is key to effectively understanding it and providing proper application for the Christian.
-Equilibrium, upset, status quo, resolution, new equilibrium.
-Not all the Psalms were used in the corporate worship of the Israelites.
-There are some Psalms that run together or share the same themes (20/21, 37-41).
-God is good, God is faithful and God still reigns.
-The close of each major section resounds with faith, confidence, trust and adoration to the God who remains steadfast in His love toward His people inspite of their failures, frustrations and sometimes faltering faith.

I pray the Lord will continue to grant me illumination by His Spirit as we make our way through this next book of the Psalms.

"Bless"-Comitt all you have to God
"the LORD"- The covenant keeping God.
"God of Israel"- The God who through His own consel and will has redeemed me through His Son
"From Everlasting to Everlasting"- He is worthy of my all just because of who He is. He has always been worthy, before my arrival and will be worthy after my departure
"Amen and Amen"-Truly, Truly, most assuredly, He is worthy!!!

Life & Death

2009-06-01T13:39:00.000-07:00

"Preaching therefore is a matter of Life and Death."

R. Albert Mohler Jr., pg. 63, He Is Not Silent- Preaching to a post modern Generation.

"A Ministers Prayer"

2009-05-31T17:39:00.000-07:00

"O My LORD, let not my ministry be approved only by men, or merely win the esteem and affections of people; But do the work of grace in their hearts, call in thy elect, seal and edify the regenerates ones, and command eternal blessings on their souls, Save me from self opinion and self and self seeking; Water the hearts of those who hear thy Word, that seed sown in weakness may be raised in power; Cause me and those that hear me to behold thee here in the light of special faith, and hereafter in the blaze of endless glory; Make my every sermon a means of grace to myslef, and help me to experience the power of thy dying love, for thy blood is balm, thy presence bliss, thy smile heaven, thy cross the place where truth and mercy meet.
Look upon the doubts and discouragements of my ministry and keep me from self-importance; I beg pardon for my many sins, omissions, infirmities, as a man, as a minister; Command thy blessing on my weak, unworthy labours, and on the message of salvation given; Stay with thy people, and may thy presence be their portion and mine. When I preach to others let not my words be merely elegant and masterly, my reasoning polished and refined, my performance powerless and tasteless, but may I exalt thee and humble sinners. O Lord of power and grace, all hearts are in thy hands, all events at thy disposal, Set the seal of thy almighty will upon my ministry."

"The Never's of the Gospel"

2009-05-27T21:07:00.000-07:00

"May I never fail to come to the knowledge of the truth, never rest in a system of doctrine, however scriptural, that does not bring or further salvation, or teach me to deny ungodliness and worldly lusts, or help me to live soberly, righteously, godly; never rely on my own convictions and resolutions, but be strong in thee and in thy might; never cease to find thy grace sufficient in all my duties, trials, conflicts; never forget to repair to thee in all my spiritual distresses and outward troubles, in all the dissatisfactions experienced in creature comforts; never fail to retreat to him who is full of grace and truth, the friend that loveth at all times, who is touched with feelings of my infirmities, and can do exceedingly abundantly for me; never confine my religion to extraordinary occasions, but acknowledge thee in all my ways; never limit my devotions to particular seasons but be in thy fear all the day long; never be godly only on the sabbath or in thy house, but on every day abroad and at home; never make piety a dress but a habit, not only a habit but a nature, not only a nature but a life.
Do good to me by all thy dispensations, by all means of grace, by worship, prayers, praises, And at last let me enter that world where is no temple, but only thy glory and the Lamb's."

What Can I Say?

2009-05-25T11:51:00.000-07:00

The past few days have been a tremendous blessing. God is so faithful and continues to shower his blessings upon such an unworthy person as myself. I have had the privilege of traveling to Los Angeles with my wife and daughter to share with my good friend Pastor Reginald Payne and my blog brother Pastor Clinton Smith for Full Gospel's Family and Friends Day. From our arrival we have experienced the warmth and welcome of The Full Gospel Church and Pastor Payne in everything we have done. Pastor Payne is just a phenomenal pastor, friend and brother and kindness and genuiness is just all over him.
On yesterday I had the opportunity to meet Rev. Clinton Smith in person and he is a kind and welcoming brother. His worship facility is really nice and the pictures on his blog really do no justice to the warmth and feel of the building.
I preached on yesterday from Luke 5:1-11 from a message entitled "Further Out and Down Deeper:Trusting God to Change Your Life". Admittedly I preached way too long! This was a great day for me and my excitement robbed me of my sense of time.
25 years ago yesterday I surrendered my life to Christ. The same text that the Lord used to win me to the Kingdom was the same text I preached yesterday and it didn't dawn on me until right before I got ready to preach. I was thanking God for His providence and how He has made all the difference in my life. Nobody but the Lord has been able to change my self righteous attitude, my hard heartedness, stubborness, selfishness and unforgiving spirit. He did it!
This morning I played golf here in L.A. with Pastor Payne, Pastor Darryl Labott, Pastor Woodson, and Pastor Labott's head deacon Terrance. I played horribly but the fellowship was great and a lot of fun. This afternoon we will share with Pastor Payne, some of his friends and family in a memorial day BBQ. I am looking forward to it.
My wife and daughter have been out shopping all morning so I know that they are happy.
Tomorrow morning we head back home and return to reality. But I thank God for the respites he provides to refresh you and encourage you. God has just been good to us as a family and I thank Him for it all, what else can I say!

The Mutual Benefit of Honoring the Man of God

2009-04-26T04:30:00.000-07:00

Today at Galilee we celebrate together 3 years of Pastoral leadership. Galilee has set aside this time to specifically honor God by honoring His word in honoring the one whom God has called and placed among this congregation to faithfully teach and preach the word of God and to provide spiritual leadership. In the tradition of the church this celebration will entail celebrating together through the preached word, which will be given by Rev. Derrick Walter this morning and my Pops and pastor, Pastor John A. Reed Jr. this afternoon. We have invited several guest churches to participate with us and look forward to all this great day has in store.
However, the question of my heart and mind for the past several days has been, How do those who honor God's servant benefit from this celebration? Or does this time just benefit the one being honored? I believe there is some recopricity of spiritual benefit in this endeavor because we are partners in this gospel cause (Phil. 1:3-5, 27-30). Obviously the pastor is benefited spiritaully, emotionally and materially through the well wishes of the congregation and the expressions of thanks. But I believe the benefit for the membership comes through and honest desire to honor God's word by honoring His servant. Consider the scriptures that teach and commend the people of God to do so : 1 Cor. 9:7, 9-14, 1 Timothy 5:17-18, Luke 10:7. These passages make it abundantly clear that the man of God has every right to expect of those, whom he serves faithfully, some form of material renumeration. Likewise the church has the responsibility of heeding the words of scripture to obey these scriptural mandates to honor God's man. The mutual spiritual benefit extends to the congregation through God blessing that membership for obedience to His word (James 1:21-25, Matthew 7:24-27, Psalm 1:1-3.
Today Galilee I say thank you for taking this time to express to me your sincere love for me and my family. I honestly do not serve you for my benefit but as a steward of God, I serve you so that God may be honored and glorifed and that you may be benefited. As the Apostle Paul said to the church at Philippi said "Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the fruit that increases to your credit" (Phil 4:17).

God may you be honored above all today. You are worthy O Lord, You Alone are worthy.

Revive Me Again

2009-04-12T19:20:00.000-07:00

What a great time in worship on today. Ressurrection Sunday......wow....up at 3:00 am to prepare to make it to early morning service out in the country....got lost in the rain....family was scared...it was funny to me...

This week begins I believe the 65th annual simultaneous revival here in OKC. This week is filled with great preaching, soul winning and rich fellowship. Again this year Galilee is pleased to have as our evangelist my good friend and brother Pastor Reginald Payne of the Full Gospel Baptist Church of Los Angeles California. Reggie is an outstanding preacher of the gospel, a well seasoned Pastor and a very open and friendly brother beloved. Galilee is praying that the Lord will use him to revive us, encourage us and save the lost among us as he shares with us on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday of this week. Please remember to pray for Pastor Payne, Galilee and all of the other guest evangelist who will preaching in this great event this week.

I look forward to hearing the word of God also from some familiar voices and some not so familiar voices this week. I had a chance to check out the roster for the week and see the other evangelist who will be participating. There are some new additions to the line up this year, among whom is my friend and brother Pastor Ray Owens of the Macedoina Baptist Church in Indy, who will be the guest evangelist for the New Hope Baptist Church. Also I understand that another blog brother will be in town this week in the person of Pastor Keith Witherspoon. I look forward to seeing these brothers and hearing them trumpet the majestic message of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

May God be honored in every pulpit this week and may the lost be won unto Christ.

At What Level?

2009-03-29T17:42:00.001-07:00

Without question I believe that the church of Jesus Christ, with all of her imperfections, will last indefetigibly until the return of Christ. I believe that the blood Jesus shed for the body of Christ has empowered the church to march valiantly through the dark and challenging times it now faces and will face in the future.
However, my concern is at what level will the church exist? Will it be marginalized to insignificant tolerance? Let's face it, the claims of Christianity are offensive, devicive and troubling (Matt.10:34-36). We are quickly being seen as those not to be invited to the ecumenical peace party that the world is putting together.
Add to that a church that is not alarmed by the biblical illiteracy that plagues the church, espicailly our young people. It is seen as something that will go away given enough time, something that someone else will fix for us. Compound the issue with the mindset of most black churches, where buildings, budgets and personalities supersede in priority over making investments of time and dollars now into the lives of those whose hands the church will soon fall.

Why are there so few heeding the alarming warning signs? Could it be that we just know that God will see the church through? No doubt he will. And I am not so ignorant of church history as to think that these times are new to the life of the church. Sure enough it has marched triumphantly through the dark ages in time past!
But these times are different, or are they? Am I like generations past just getting older and now saying what every other generation has said about the church? Maybe so but I do see some legitimacy in my concerns. Consider this. More than 2/3rds of church going young adults are expected to drop out between the ages of 18 and 22, 30% will stay in church. I am not big on statistics but if these are true we are headed for trouble and challenging times.
Add to that the quality of training in most of our youth ministries. Pablum....pablum....pablum....no meat, cotton candy delights to keep them satisfied and coming back. I know youth ministry is challenging but does it have to be reduced to gospel rap, pizza parties and car washes? Why not the Apostles Creed, Christian Doctrine, Apologetics, Catechizing? "Oh no!" "That's too boring, too much, they won't be interested." The devil is a lie and we have bought into it! Our young people literally grow up in the church, then go out into the world and are eaten alive by ungodly professors, worldly ideaology, ecumenialism and false religions because they are not equipped to have a ready answer other than "that's what I believe" and circular reasoning which makes them appear ignorant and narrow minded. I hear you..I hear you....yes I did make it out...by the grace of God. But that was before the advent of computers and access to the plethora of information bombarding us via the internet, 24 hour television, Youtube etc...which constantly reminds us of the so called legitimacy of these other world religions and which constanlty remind us that others cant be wrong, I must accept their view also.

I believe in the church! Lord help us to have a vital, solid, unique, god honoring youth ministry.

A Good Reminder from Piper on Personal Devotions

2009-03-23T09:11:00.000-07:00

A Plea for Heart Devotions and Head Study
Posted: 22 Mar 2009 11:20 PM PDT
(Author: John Piper)
This is a plea that all of you would build into your lives both personal devotions and purposeful study of God's word.
Both:
Daily prayerful meditation seeking personal application of God's word to your own heart and life.
And:
Regular study in a class or with a book where the (living or dead) teacher has seen more than you have and can give you insight in 30 minutes that might otherwise take you ten years to see.
The reason I plead for both is that without a book or a class about what some part of the Bible means and a teacher who is ahead of you, your devotions will probably flatten out at a low level of insight.
Year after year you will go over the same biblical ground and find it as perplexing as before. There will be little advance in understanding. This will tend to take the heart out of devotional reading, because the lack of growth cannot sustain the joy.
Seek out preaching, books, and classes which take you further in grasping what various books and texts in the Bible mean.

Remembering Vanessa

2009-03-14T19:59:00.000-07:00

On yesterday Galilee celebrated the life and legacy of one of our faithful members who went home to be with the Lord last October in the person of P. Vanessa Washington. Vanessa was a great faithful christian young lady. She loved the Lord, her calling, her family, her church and her pastor. She was a great encouragement to me while we had time to worship togehter at Galilee.
On last night we held our inagural P.Vanessa Washington Scholarship Banquet in her honor and it was a tremendous success. The Lord really blessed! We had a great time of food, fellowship and worship as we ate together and enjoyed the word together on last night.
It was a long day for me, about a 15 hour day but it was well worth it and I would do it all over again. I wanted to honor her work with a spirit of excellence and had been praying that the Lord would help us to do just that and he did.
We raised over $3000 for the scholarship and plan to make this an annual event. Her family was present and it was good to have them share in this blessed event. I pray that our church family and all in attendance were encouraged and more importantly I pray that God was honored.
On today we followed up with a breast cancer awareness sympossium. Vanessa died of breast cancer and I wanted to try and have this sympossium on the heals of the banquet to keep the awareness of this insidious disease on the forefront of our minds and hopefuly provide some much needed information that would maybe keep some man or woman from being overtaken by the deadly effects of breast cancer. And yes, men do get breast cancer also.
Thank you Galilee for your support, thanks to all who helped and volunteered to make the evening and the sympossium tremendous successess'. May the renown of our God be seen and known in all that we do.

Soli Deo Gloria!!

God's Time In Answered Prayer

2009-03-12T05:35:00.000-07:00

In a book I recently read I was reminded of the fact that God always answers prayers that are prayed in accordance with His will even though we may never live to see the answer. The author tells of a young pastor who pastored a small fledgling church in a rural area and often prayed that the Lord would grow the membership, enlarge the building and do several great things in the life of his church. Years passed and nothing changed but yet he persisted in his prayer requests. Eventually this young pastor left that church only to come back to same area several years later to discover that the building had been improved and the membership had almost doubled.
God's timing in answered prayer sometimes runs counter to our understanding of time but prayers prayed in accordance with his will will always be answered!
Since my arrival at Galilee I have consistenty been praying for the Lord to do the following things in the life of our church:
1). Help us to honor and Glorify Him in all that we do as a church.
2). Help us to learn to honor His word as our rule for faith and for practice.
3). Raise up and add to our congregation specifically men who love the Lord with all their heart, mind and soul.
4). Help us to be a giving church, give of our time, talent and treasure
5). Help us to be a serving church. Where the gifts He has invested into our lives can be used to build each other up and to glorify His name.
6). Help us to be a discerning church. That we would love the word of God so much that we will know truth from error instantaneously.
7). Help us to experienc true and genuine fellowship amongst the body of believers as difficult as that may be. That we would truly learn to love one another without pretense.
8). That He would help us to train and equip our young people for Christian living. I pray that our youth training will be relevant, challenging and bold.

The Lord is honoring these prayer request in the most subtlest yet profound ways. Ways in which none of us can take credit for. It is truly amazing and I praise God for it all.
There are many challenges ahead but I am confident that in the Lords own time He will answer all of these requests, even if it's after I am gone or dead.

Thank you Lord for your faithfulness.
"For the word of the Lord is right and all His works are done in truth." Ps.33:4

Keeping It Simple

2009-02-15T17:55:00.000-08:00

There are a lot of things to focus on in sermon preperation. Thank God that a consistent routine leading up to the message can add focus to this time to make it so much more productive. However, even with my routine I sometime lose focus of where I am going or where I am at in sermon prep which causes problems for me.
Some wise advice I received years ago about sermon prep and delivery was to stay focused on trying to get the original intent of the passage from the page to the ear of the people. That's all I should focus on doing. For a minute I had lost focus and was determined to try to get the meaning into the hearts of the people by demanding adherence to the text. As any preacher knows, some who listen to us preach just don't get it, in the ear or heart. Sometimes its due to our lack of clarity in delievery and sometime they just don't want to hear it. Either way it can be frustrating!
Thank God I was reminded this week to labor diligently at keeping it simple, to just concentrate on trying to be faithful to the text and to focus on a clear presentation of the text so that the intended meaning reaches clearly the ears of the parishoners.

What a relief!

Adversity

2009-02-12T06:58:00.000-08:00

"Adversity does not make us weak, it reveals how weak we really are."
Anonymous..

Finishing Fast

2009-01-26T06:41:00.000-08:00

Yesterday at Galilee worship was extraordinarily unusual, the mystery of God filled the place from beginning to end. We were in awe of how God made His presence known. It was one of those days that you just have a hard time expressing, in ways that make sense, what your eyes saw and your heart felt. Praise God...Praise God...Praise God.
We finished up our 21 day corporate Daniel fast on yesterday which made the day even more meaningful. Galilee is a small congregation, 50-75 active worshippers, but the Lord is binding hearts and strengthening us in our fellowship.
We joined together for early morning prayer @ 8:30 a.m. , continued our study together of the 9 Marks of a Healthy Church, read the Lord's word together in our responsive reading, sung together with our praise team and choir and then we woshiped together through the preaching of the word of God. I delivered a sermon from Psalm 100, "How Real Worshipers Tell God Thank You", the Lord added 3 new members to the church, we had the benediction and then we broke our corporate fast together as we pertook of a meal prepared by our culinary comittee.

The oneness of the day was just tremendous. You could sense everyones excitement and awe of God. Wow...what God has done. Praise God.
Now I get a better glimpse of why that first church had so much power as they continued in the Apostle's doctrine, prayer, fellowship and the breaking of bread from house to house.

God ta mighty............(Pastor Reed...lol..)

Thank you Father!!!!

Zeitgeist

2009-01-21T19:41:00.000-08:00

Zeitgeist-the spirit of the time, the moral and intellectual trend of any age or period.

Any human being of normal intelligence has to recognize that on yesterday with the installation of this countries newest President, Barack Obama, that something new refreshing and exciting is in the air. Barack has ignited something in this country that I can honestly say I have never seen in my lifetime, a spirit of Esprit De Corps, a uniting together of people, ideas and common goals and an overall prideful sense of patriotism. Something about yesterday just makes you feel proud to be an American citizen even if you did not vote for Barack or do not agree with all of his political and religious persuasions.
I was moved by all of the pomp and circumstance of yesterday. To see all of the former Presidents there, the mass of humanity and the realness of the Obama family, finally, something I could relate to.
He has made many promises and has been quite frank in his assessment of the state of our economy and country.He has called on each American citizen to sacrifice and engage themselves in action, volunteering and giving themselves to some cause greater than themsleves.
I applaud Barack for his candor, his commitment and his call to action and pray that all the godly hopes he has for this country will come to pass. I pray that the Lord will continue to move upon his heart, protect he and his beautiful family and use him as a tool to bring forth the glory of God.

However, I am somewhat frightened by the language being bantered about. People want to do something.....they want the barriers to dissappear. How can this happen when there are so many differences that divide us? Can there really be unity without limits? Can the call to ecumenical harmony really abide the tides of political, cultural, religious and doctrinal differences? Or is this just wishful thinking? Only God knows. But the inherent danger is that we will throw out the truth with the bathwater in order to maintain this zeitgeist. The danger is that we will begin to compromise our Christian values and beliefs in order to maintain the harmony. Remember we are called as Christians to view all of life through the pages of scripture. And if we are not careful we could end up viewing life through the rose colored lenses of someone else.
The bible does warn us that "false christs and false prophets will arise and perform signs and wonders, to lead astray, if possible, the elect. But be on guard, I have told you all things beforehand."(Mark 13:22). I am by no means equating Barack with the false christs but ones actions will always speak louder than his words.
The zeitgeist is sweeping and powerful may our commitment to the truth keep us fettered to the word of God, which is our sole rule for faith and for practice.

Lord please grant us discerning hearts.

Sola Scriptura!!!

My Perspective on Pastoring

2009-01-18T18:25:00.001-08:00

How has my personal perspective on pastoring changed since I began pastoring Galilee? This is the question I have found myself asking myself in the past couple of weeks. I honosetly am still committed to the calling of prayerfully and faithfully serving God's people and studying, teaching and preaching God's word. However, my view of what it takes to grow a church has changed somewhat. I believe I had said in a post sometime last year that I had a sophomoric notion upon beginning my pastorate that "I" could do it, grow a church, by a dedicated committment to faithful study and preaching. Believing that this commitment by "itself" would be the conduit through which this growth would occur.
To some extent my thinking has changed. God knows how to humble a preacher. There have been weeks where long hours in the seat have yeilded little "visible" fruit and I flunked in the pulpit and I left church crushed. There have been Sundays where other churches were packed full, Christmas, 1st Sunday of the year, mother's day etc..., and I have had to look at more empty seats than occupied seats. There have been months, several in fact, where the water was not troubled at Galilee, while others were taking in and baptizing several each Sunday. This left a hollowed feeling in my gut. My outlook was downcast and I wanted out!
But I thank God for my assignment because I know God is at work even though I don't see it. If no one else knows, I know that the Lord needs to change somethings in me and this maybe the means by which this change occurs. Honeslty, if the Lord flooded Galilee next Sunday with new members I, my ego, nor our current church structure would be able to effectively handle it. I thank God for Galilee and the privelege to serve there. May God grant me strength and fortitude to serve and give my best in all areas of my calling inspite of what I don't see. May my perspective of this blessed assignment always be seen through a spiritual lens.

Lord thank you for giving me this blessed assignment.

The Dangers of A Fatal Fast

2009-01-11T16:35:00.000-08:00

Isaiah 58 is a very sobering passage to keep before you when you are seeking the fullness of God during fasting. The passage is frought with the reality that godly people can busy themselves doing religious things and yet be far from the heart of God. The people were seeking the presence of the Lord (vs.2) but they were neglecting their communal responsibility to care for the poor and other needy members of the community (vss.2-7). Mistreatment and injustice was rampant but the people sought the presence of the Lord in fasting instead of addressing the social ills of the people and God rejected their fast!
One thing that continues to strike me more and more as I study scripture is the high value God places on community among His people. Religious acts without brotherly kindness and concern for others in the community of faith is null and void in the eyes of God. We can become so occupied with our own "spirituality" that we blind ourselves to the pains and hurts of others. Does God accept our religious service when we knowingly neglect the needs of others? The planoply of scripture seems to answer no!
When God called the nation He gave them laws governing their relationships (Leviticus 19:1-18, Exodus 20:12-17 and various other passages) among each other. And those same expectations of community care are found in the New Testament as well (John 13:34, Matthew 23:23-24, Acts 3:44, Col.3:12-14, Romans 12:4-5, 1 Cor.12:25-26).
God help those of us who really desire your fullness not to overlook those among us who need our help.
This is the kind of Fast You have chosen for us Lord.

Confidence for All Seasons

2009-01-07T20:39:00.000-08:00

"Waiting on God is hard work. Yet it is one way-perhaps the only way of demonstrating God's strength manifest in our weakness. Whenever we rush frantically about trying to do "it" on our own, we will in effect become "functional atheists", denying by our actions that God is active in our lives."
Gerald H. Wilson

A Hunger for God

2009-01-04T18:11:00.000-08:00

Today at Galilee we commenced a 21 day corporate fast. This fast is called the Daniel fast and is based off of Daniel 10:2-3. We introduced the fast last week in a message entitled "Are You Hungry for God?" based upon Matthew 6:16-18.

There are a lot of misconceptions about fasting in the church. The biggest shocker to most believers is the fact that there is not intrinsic inherent spiritual value in fasting. People all over the world fast for various reasons, some for political reasons, some for health reasons and some fast to draw attention to a cause they care much about. The bible only speaks of one command to fast, which is found in Leviticus 16:29 where the people were told to "afflict themselves" (fast) on the day of atonement. Jesus never commanded his disciples to fast, though He himself fasted in preperation for his earthly ministry and did drop a hint that fasting would be necessary after His departure (Matt.9:14-17).

The once and for all sacrifice, the Lamb of God has been given to atone for the sins of the world and passages like 1 Corinthians 8:8, Romans 14, Colossians 2:16-18, raise the question to us, should we still fast today and does it have in any salutary spiritual merrit?

The issue raises a great polemic for those who fast.

But Piper does a phenomenal job in this book of helping the believer properly understand the place of fasting in the life of the church.

"When we eat, we taste the emblem of our heavenly food-the Bread of Life. And when we fast we say, "I Love the Reality above the emblem." In the heart of the saint both eating and fasting are worship. Both magnify Christ"

pg. 21.

May God bless those who truly hunger and thirst for Him.

Reformation

2009-01-01T07:36:00.000-08:00

Confess (Homologeo-Greek:to agree, confess, say the same).
I am a sinner saved by the Grace of God!
I truly thank God for sparing me yet another year. 2008 for me was a great year. The experiences of the year were very beneficial in aspects both good and bad. I learned a lot in 2008 from situations I have never encountered before in my life. I learned a lot about being a Christian, that sometimes you just feel down right out of it and alone (The book of Psalms is a good place to lay your head and heart when you feel this way). I learned that pastoring is not easy and is a constant challenge to the ego, which is a good thing. This challenge for the preacher comes weekly and unrelentingly and at break neck speed. It has been an humbling year, a year where I questioned my calling and my desire to pastor/preach, a year where the seeming lack of production robbed me of my perserverance.
But of all the things I have learned and experienced in 2008 was a growing uneasiness of having to live with myself as a sinner. I recognize now more than ever how depraved I am. My heart is desperately wicked and deceitful. My sins of pride, arrogance, self righteousness, envy, covetousness, unforgiveness and ingrattitude have almost made a ruin of me spiritually. I honestly confess that these things are the things that constantly plague me and it makes it hard for me to get along with others and foster genuine relationships. When you cannot live with yourself it becomes impossible to really live and enjoy others and that's a very lonely place to be, believe me!
However, I am confident, that as I allow the Spirit of God to control my life that these sins of the flesh ,which dominate my life at times, will loose their controlling influence over me in this process of Sanctification. And I thank God that it is a process, a reformation of sorts, of reformed and being reformed. Not a punctilliar action but something ongoing. Not a resolution, a point in time but a reformation, an ongoing change that continues from here until eternity. That's what I need for my sinful struggle and thank God that I am a part of the Christian faith where the reality of my struggle is never more powerful than the reality of our help to overcome such sinful and ungodly behavior.
Lord please continue to reform me for your honor and for your glory.

I nail this confession to the door of my heart in your presence.
"Here I Stand, I Can Do No Other!"

To God Alone Be The Glory.

My Thoughts on Today

2008-11-09T18:07:00.001-08:00

Awesome!!! There is just simply no other way to explain what my eyes have seen and what my heart has felt today. I had the privilege to share in the installation services of Pastor H.B. Charles Jr. and his lovely wife Crystal at the Shiloh Metropolitan Baptist Church in Jacksonville, Florida.
I came here to worhip, I had prayed before arriving that the Lord would set my focus on just that and I was not dissappointed. I had a great time of fellowship with members of his family, some of the members of Mt. Sinai, including their new pastor George Hurt and Phil, Mt. Sinai's children's pastor. All the messages I heard, from my pastor Pastor John A. Reed Jr., Pastor Kevin Willis and Pastor Melvin Wade, were helpful and challenging.
Shiloh is my first real experience with a mega church and I must say that Shiloh is a great church! Everyone I met there over the past couple of days were friendly and helpful. The church is huge and the facilities are just phenomenal.

I really don't know how to explain or express my hearfelt joy for H.B. and Crystal. To wittness this auspicious beginning of pastor and people is just beyond anything I have ever experienced. My rejoicing heart brought me to tears as I thought about how profound a moment this was. I thank God for His grace that brought me salvation and which has allowed me to recognize the significance of this moment in time.
I was taken aback to the first time I ever met H.B. . I had only been saved a couple of years and really didn't understand what being a believer was really all about. Through the providence of God, I had the opportunity to hear and meet H.B. and something about our meeting clicked in me. I began not only to understand but really began to see that you really can live differently as a believer and really preach from a hearfelt conviction of the authority of scripture and a genuine desire to see the redeeming grace of God change lives.
Over the years I always looked forward to H.B. coming to preach at Fairview during the Simultaneous Revival. After I began preaching, I really began to study his ministry and life as a preacher. His preaching was so different and I knew when I would hear him preach that that was the kind of preacher I wanted to become and prayerfully set my heart to pursue it, and I am still pursuing it.
Shiloh has a great preacher pastor and first lady, and if shares of their ministry were sold on the stock exchange, I would sale everything I own and invest it there. The state of Florida and the world has not yet seen what the Lord will do through his ministry if H.B. remains faithful to the Lord.
My memories of this day will soon began to fade but I pray the future successes and joys for H.B., Crystal and Shiloh will replace them as we rejoice together over what the Lord is doing in their lives and ministry.
Lord thank you, H.B. thank you, Crystal thank you, Shiloh thank you, may the Lord continue to use your lives to bring lost people to the saving knowledge of His Son Jesus Christ!

To God Alone Be the Glory!!!

God's Pattern of Forgiveness

2008-11-06T09:21:00.000-08:00

"bearing with one another and if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other as the Lord has forgiven you so you also must forgive."
Col. 3:13 ESV
"And if God's forgiveness is truly our pattern for forgiveness then we must remember four important aspects of this promise we make to forgive others.
First, we are promising never to bring up the sin to them again. Second, we ar promising never to bring it up to ourselves again. If we have chosen not to remember a sin, when it pops back into our thoughts we will deliberately fill our mind with something else. Third, we are promising never to talk to somoeone else about it in a condemning way- including even our spouses, other family members, and close friends. Fourth, we are promising to not allow the sin to affect the way we feel about or relate to that person. When God forgives us, He remembers our sins no more and restores us to fellowship with Himself. We must be willing to do the same."

Wayne Mack, Reaching the Ear of God, pg.243

Be Encouraged.
Pastor Rhone

God Forbid!

2008-11-05T06:33:00.000-08:00

"Moreover, as for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by ceasing to pray for you, and I will instruct you in the good and right way."
1Samuel 12:23 ESV
How seriously do you take the responsibility to pray for others? Often we casually promise those who are in some situation needy of our prayers that we will "be praying for them" only to forget about the vow we have made to present them and their situation to the Lord in our prayer time. But it ought not be so. Our vows to pray for others with those less than meaningful words means a lot to the Lord and we should be careful in making such a rash and hasty spiritual vow knowing that we will have to give an account for every "idle" word that proceeds out of our mouths (Matt.12:36).
Samuel too seriously his responsibility to pray for the nation even after they essentially fired him. Samuel in the position as prophet had a responisbility to intercede for the people and he honored the Lord and his responsibility even though the people were not worthy of his prayers.

How much more for you and I to take seriously our promise to pray for others.
As you intercede for those on your list today take it seriously and set aside some serious time to "pray for them" ! God forbid you do anything less.

Be Encouraged.
Pastor Rhone

God's Willingness to Give

2008-11-04T06:16:00.000-08:00

"And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus."
Phillipians 4:19 ESV
It should be comforting to each and every true child of God to know that we will never meet any circumstance along the christian path that will ever out strip the resources we have in God through our relationship with His Son Jesus Christ.
The needs we have are many, joy for hopless days, strength for impotent days, courage for fearful days, answers for questionable days, guidance for uncertain days, peace for troubled days, resources for broke days, forgiveness for sinful days, wisdom for foolish days, warning for tempting days and grace for every day.
But no matter what the need for living for Christ, God promises to provide it for you. That's good news isn't it? If we give all to God today in living for him our storage may be empty at days end but God promises to fill us again for tomorrows journey!
Will you give all you have to live for Christ today? Whatever your need is to meet His demands God has promised you that He will supply. Will you ask Him for it today? He is willing are you?

Be Encouraged.
Pastor Rhone

A Purpose Driven Ministry

2008-11-03T06:18:00.000-08:00

"Not that I had already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own."
Philippians 3:12 ESV
I would venture to say that every church has enough challenges, problems, obstacles and disappointments to pass around to each member at least 10 times. Thes ministry hindrances can lead to mental fatigue, frustration and can even bring about spiritual paraylasis because the problems just seem to be too much.
But one of the most powerful forces given by God to his people to plow through disappointing times is purpose. Purpose is powerful and often serves as our reserve when the tank of desire is about empty. When you lose focus on your calling and purpose in whatever aspect of ministry you serve in, you allow the trivial and unimportant to supercede your calling and that can be very distracting. You can become negative, unappreciative for all the things God has done and is doing and can even become cynical.
But I truly believe that the power of God is able to change people, situations and even those problems we face in serving Gods people. If I didn't believe that I would quit today!
Whatever your calling in ministry is let your purpose in being saved and made part of the body of Christ be your primary driving force in serving God's people for HIS glory. Keep stretching out with every ounce of your fiber and being as you seek to lay hold of that for which Christ has laid hold of you.
May that be the desire for each and every member of Galilee as we seek to be a ministry driven by the purpose of God to serve his people for His glory and his glory alone!

Be Encouraged.
Pastor Rhone

The Problem with Holiness

2008-10-31T05:11:00.000-07:00

"Moses said, "Please show me your glory.'"
Exodus 33:18 ESV

Mans natural tendency is to violate God's holy standard of righteousness that is written on the heart of every human. As much as the natural man tries he/she could never measure up to this standard. No amount of good deeds, moral goodness or self righteousness could ever merit man a relationship with a holy God. That relationship comes only through the redemptive work of Christ on Calvary, when we by the grace of God, through faith accept Christ as Lord and Savior.
Once the relationship is established the believer is ever in a state of becoming more like his Savior through sanctification, spiritual growth by the Spirit. That state where we are being freed from the power, lure and temptation to succumb to the evil, unholy desires of the old nature, the world and the devil.
It is in this process of sanctification the real believer develops a hunger, thirst and desire to be more like Christ and less of what he/she use to be. As we grow in holiness there is a tranferrence of vision, where once the world, flesh and devil were our primary focus they now become peripheral and unimportant as we entently focus on the Savior.
However this causes a problem, a good problem! When you read the scriptures there is a pattern to be observed as you read about those who encountered the Holy presence of God. First the vision, then the self abhorance, self abasement, the averted face, the sense of uncleanness, blindness, prostration, self banishment and falling as dead.
Jacob -Genesis 32:24,30, Joshua, the holy high priest- Zechariah 3:1, Job 42:5-6, Elijah 1 Kings 19:11-13, Isiah 6:1-5, Ezkiel -Ezekiel 1:26-28, Daniel 10:7-9, Peter - Luke 5:8,Paul -Acts 9:3-5.
Do you still desire to pray for a vision of God, for personal holiness? Is this pattern consistent with us in our pursuit of holiness? If not the problem could be we have really never had an encounter with the Savior.
God cannot entrust a believer with any deep blessing, any important spiritual ministry, until there has come a complete collapse of self.
May your prayer today for personal holiness allow you to see more of God, the ugliness of your sins and the marvelous resplendit grace and mercy of our God!

Be Encouraged.
Pastor Rhone

Forgiveness and the Suffeincy of Scripture

2008-10-30T06:34:00.000-07:00

"If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. But if he does not listen take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses..........."
Matthew 18:15-20 ESV
I am by nature a very passive, shy and reserved person who tries to avoid conflict by all means. But one of the things that has been both eye opening and challenging to me since serving our congregation is the reality that church folks don't always get along! I have discovered that we fall out and quit speaking to each other over some of the most trival things.
As one who is learning how to deal with and counsel those who harbor ill will toward one another as members in the body of Christ, this passage of scripture has been more than suffeicent to provide wise counsel when it comes to forgiveness. I have no wiser counsel than to direct my brothers and sisters in Christ to this passage of scripture.
I have seen it actually practiced and have seen God honor it and bring about healing and reconcilliation when it was done. Is it easy no, but it is worth the effort in that it honors God and His word and has heavens backing when done His way.
Who do you need to approach this Sunday and seek their forgiveness? Start praying today and if the Lord allows you to see Sunday, honor God by seeking forgiveness, let this passage of Scripture be your guide and you can have the peace and assurance of knowing that God will honor your effort at bringing about forgiveness.
God's Blessings be upon you church.

Be Encouraged!
Pastor Rhone

Pray Like Job

2008-10-29T05:40:00.000-07:00

"And the Lord restored the fortunes of Job, when he had prayed for his friends."
Job 42:10 ESV
We are familiar with the suffering of Job and all that he suffered. In pain and anguish he was falsely accused and verbally accosted by some of his so called friends. But in all that he endured scripture records that his change came about by God when he prayed for his friends, those who verbally attacked him. That's a potent statement! God decided to hold the windows of heaven until Job interceeded for his attackers.
Could God be doing the same for you and I because of our lack of intercession for those around us, be they enemies or friends? Only God knows but this principle and passage is worthy of practice and memorization.
Particularly let me ask you to pray most for those who are disabled from praying for themselves. Job's three friends could not pray for themselves because the Lord said He would not accept them if they did. God said He was angry with them, but as for Job, He said, "Him will I accept" (Job 42:8).
Prayerfully and sincerely intercede for someone today, your blessing could be in the balance.

Be Encouraged.
Pastor Rhone

Thanking God for Wonder Bread

2008-10-28T05:05:00.000-07:00

"When the people of Israel saw it, they said to them, "It is the bread that the LORD has given you to eat.'"
Exodus 16:15 ESV
Most bible students are familiar with this account as recorded in Exodus. After Israels deliverance from Egypt by the mighty hand of God they began their trek toward the promised land. But they soon start to complain to Moses and the leaders about not having anything to eat and they even accuse God of bringing them out into the wilderness to die. They long for Egypt and the flesh pots and leeks and onions and bread they once enjoyed there as slaves.
But God in His mercy provides these ungrateful ex-slaves a miraculous provision of Manna from heaven.
This narrative so perfectly depicts the human and even spiritual condition of some believers prayer lives. Instead of trusting God to provide our daily bread and instead of thanking and being content with the daily bread He has provided in the past we complain or we seek to satisfy our carnal cravings by consuming the cotton candy of the culture.
As a child of God we have heavens storehouse open wide to us to seek heavens pantry for our daily needs. We have the assurance that God will abundantly supply our needs in accordance with his will. What a privilege. But while you are waiting for your wonder bread to come from heavens oven don't forget to take time today and thank God for the crumbs still on your table from yesterday.

Be Encouraged.
Pastor Rhone

Name Your Blessing; Samuel

2008-10-27T04:40:00.001-07:00

"And she vowed a vow and said, "O LORD of hosts, if you will indeed look on the affliction of your servant and remember me and not forget your servant, but will give to your servant a son then I will give him to the LORD all the days of his life, and no razor shall touch his head.""
1 Samuel 1:11 ESV
How determined are you to seek God's blessing? What is your driving motivation in being so determined? These are good questions to keep before us as we seek God's blessings. It can keep us from being selfish in our pursuit of of heavens favor. So many times our requests are clothed in selfish suits, that we accessorize with spiritual language trying to fool ourselves into thinking that the requests we make to God are legitimate.
However, thank God that He knows and can see the naked truth of our hearts and our real motivation for making our request.
There is in some spiritual circles the idea that in prayer you can get from God whatever you want. You've heard of it, it's called "name it and claim it". The idea is whatever you want from God you can speak it, believe it and God will grant it. As wrong as that idea sounds and is, it can me made right by adding this simple biblical truth to it, "God will only give us that which will most glorify His Name."
That's what we learn from Hannah, as bad as she wanted a son, God only gave her one for His own glory. Hannah vowed even before she was blessed with Samuel to give him back to the Lord. She did not want the blessing for her own selfish ends but she saw her blessing as an instrument to further the glory of God.
Today as we continue to pray for the ministries of Galilee may that continue to be our guiding principle, may we want for our ministries only that which will most honor His name.
"And in due time Hannah conceived and bore a son, and she called his name Samuel, for she said, "I have asked for him from the LORD.''"

"When the greatest desire of your heart is the glory of God, then the greatest joy of His heart is your blessing."

I love you Galilee!

Be Encouraged!
Pastor Rhone

Glancing and Gazing

2008-10-24T05:08:00.000-07:00

"And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit."
2Corinthians 3:18 ESV.
How much time do we really spend in God's presence? With all that we have to do on a daily basis nothing can be more important in the life of the believer than to spend time in God's presence.
In Exodus 34 Moses is called to the holy mountain to commune with the God of Israel to receive instructions for Gods people. He basked in the resplendit Glory and presence of God and it was evident. When Moses came down to the people his face was shinning, reflecting the glory of the Lord. He veiled his face so the people could both look at him and not see the shinning glory fading.
Here Paul reminds the believer that as we gaze into the word of the Lord, the Spirit transforms our lives from one level of glory to another. Unlike the shinning glory on Moses' face that went from greater to lesser the believer has the privilege of growing from lesser to greater in holiness as we constantly gaze into the word of God.
Do you hunger for holiness? It will not happen apart from the word of God. Commit today to gazing deeply into the word of God as you pursue the holy life. No, you may not have a bible before you today but may the meditations of your heart be upon the truth of God's word.
J.Oswald Sanders says of God's word and personal holiness "a glance into God's word may save but it is only the constant gazing into the word that truly transforms."

May God grant our request to seek his holiness through his word.
God Bless.

Be Encouraged!
Pastor Rhone

"How to Behave In A Cave"

2008-10-23T04:35:00.000-07:00

"See, my father, see the corner of your robe in my hand. For by the fact that I cut off the corner of your robe and did not kill you, you may know and see that there is no wrong or treason in my hands, though you hunt my life to take it. May the Lord judge between me and you, may the Lord avenge me against you, but my hand shall not be against you."
1Samuel 24:11-12 ESV

This account records for us David's opportunity to strike back against his chief enemy, Saul. While Saul was hunting down Davids life to kill him, he stepped inside of a cave to relieve himself, "cover his feet", is the Hebrew idiom for going to the bathroom. Unknowingly to Saul was the fact that David and some of his men were in this same cave. Davids men advised him to take advantage of this opportunity to strike Saul and kill him but he refused. While Saul is relieving himself David cuts off a small corner of Sauls robe. After Saul leaves the cave, David comes out, some distance from Saul, and tells him basically that if I really wanted to kill you Saul, I had my opportunity today to do it but I have chosen not to. Here is a piece of your robe to show you how close you were to me and how I could have taken your life if I really wanted but I have chosen not to touch the Lord's anointed. I have chosen to let the Lord judge between you and me.
This is powerful and most worthy of emulation. How many of our enemies would we really like to strike back at? How many of them really don't know the damage we could inflict upon them? But we must like David let the Lord handle our enemies. Remember in Christ we have been forgiven and we must be forgiving. God knows how to deal with our enemies much better than we can.

Pauls admonition here is "Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all." Romans 12:17

"Blessed are the merciful for they shall obtain mercy"

Be Encouraged.

Pastor Rhone

An Inside Job

2008-10-22T07:21:00.000-07:00

"Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do no know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.

Romans 8:26-27 ESV.

Do you know what you really need? I have been struggling today in my prayer time to ask the Lord for my daily bread. I know this may sound strange but I don't know what to ask him for. Yea, I could ask for money, a raise, a promotion, a better car etc.....but honestly I am content with what I have. I know I desire to please God through my request but don't know exactly what or how to pray for it.

The good news for those of us who seek daily bread not for personal consumption but for the strength and vitality to do those things that are God honoring, we have some help in the person of the Holy Spirit. He is our resident guide, director, intecessor and interperter. He is able to take the groanings of our Spirit to the Father and intercede on our behalf. I would imagine that He says, "Father this is what your child means and this is what he is asking you for in accordance with your will for his life." That's a great encouragement to me and I hope so to you.

Thank God that real prayer is an inside job.

Be Encouraged.

Pastor Rhone

Patricia Vanessa Washington

2008-10-21T15:04:00.000-07:00

On Friday of last week, I performed my 2nd funeral as pastor of Galilee. We funeralized one of the most faithful Christians in our membership, Patricia Vanessa Washington. Vanessa suffered from terminal cancer, which she valiantly battled. She died believing that the Lord was still going to heal her and I am glad to say that neither her faith nor her God disappointed her. She is now victoriously healed and resting in the presence of our God. Rejoice.
Vanessa was a gigantic supporter of the church and her pastor. I have no one at Galilee who expressed her genuine concern for her church and pastor as she did. She had a lived faith not just a said faith and she expressed it daily in practical ways.

My heart is truly hurt and her departure has left and indellible mark on my life. I really miss her presence in worship. May the Lord grant Galilee and her family the grace and comfort to make it through this.

I pray that Galilee will never forget her life and legacy. As long as I am at Galilee I will make it a priority to keep the memory of her service to God and her church before our congregation.

"And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labors, and their works do follow them."
Revelation 14:13 KJV

Rest on Vanessa!!!

Cover Me

2008-10-21T05:05:00.000-07:00

"So Peter was kept in prison, but earnest prayer for him was made to God by the church."
Acts 12:5

How many times has God chosen to bless you through the prayers of others? Only eternity will reveal the answer. But the scriptures give good indication that God often uses this means to bless us.
When we are dealing with issues that confront us as believers we must pray for ourselves but one of the most encouraging things we gain from being members of the body of Christ is knowing that other believers have committed themselves to pray for us while we are dealing with what we are dealing with.
In the 12th chapter of Acts is scriptural proof of the effects of intecessory prayer. Peter was facing imminent death, locked up in prison, chained to and kept by the guards but God chose to use the prayers of the church as means by which to set Peter free.
How many of our brothers or sisters in Christ are dealing with some prison like situations bound by fear, hurt, pain, frustration, dissapointment, temptation, lonliness, unforgiveness etc.. that need the freedom of God's grace in their lives?

As an advid fan of old Western's, there is one line often yelled out when one goes in to battle the enemy......."Cover Me".......

Who is counting on you today to "Cover" them? Cover Me!

Be Encouraged.

Pastor Rhone

Don't Give Up

2008-10-20T04:43:00.000-07:00

"And I tell you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks reveives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened." Luke 11:9-10 ESV

God is more than willing to answer our prayers when they are in accordance with His will for our lives, that's a fact. However, some believers are not as persistent about praying or seeking the will of God through their desires offered up in prayer and quickly fizzle out. But to have a prolific prayer life demands dogged persistence. Not that God has to be begged but our desires have to be in tune with that which is going to honor the name of Christ. Persistent prayer is not overcoming God's reluctance to be a blessing to the lives of his children but it is laying hold of his highest willingness to give us that which is best for us and that which is going to glorify his name.

Today as we continue to seek God's blessings upon our ministry work at Galilee, stick with it.....keep asking, keep seeking and keep knocking. God will answer and while we are asking seeing and knocking God is either changing us or changing our situation. Do you believe that? Then don't give up.

Be Encouraged!

Pastor Rhone

70 Times 7

2008-10-16T05:36:00.000-07:00

"Then Peter came up and said to him, Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times? Jesus said to him, "I do not say to you seven times, but seventy times seven."
Matthew 18:21-22 ESV
How many times can you forgive someone? Most of us probably have no problem forgiving someone maybe once, but let that person do something to us again and we find forgiving that person to be more difficult.
In Matthew 18:21-35 Jesus, in response to Peter's question of how many times he should forgive a brother who has offended him, tells a story of a king who forgave one of his servants a huge debt he owed the king. The debt he owed the king was equal to 190,000 years worth of wages, an amount that the servant would never be able to repay in his life time. But after pleading with the king the king releases him from this insurmountable debt.
But as soon as the servant is released he goes and finds a fellow who owes him about 3 years worth of wages. He seizes and chokes this fellow demanding that he pay him the debt he owes. The man, unable to pay falls down and begs for mercy but the unforgiving servant has the man thrown into jail. However, some servants of the king find out how this servant who had been forgiven by the king had treated the borrower who could not pay. The king calls him in and has him thrown into jail and then says "so also my heavenly father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from the heart." vs 35

May this parable remind us of the unpayable debt we have be forgiven by the gracious act of Christ's death and may it also remind us of our obligation to be just as forgiving from our hearts as beneficiaries of this great gift.

God's Grace be upon you today.

Be Encouraged.

Pastor Rhone

Asking with Confidence

2008-10-15T03:52:00.000-07:00

"And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him."
1John 5:14-15 ESV.

How do you discern the will of God? How do you know if the decision you have made is in the will of God? How do you know you are heading in a godly direction in life? These are some of life's most challenging questions for the child of God. Ask most pastors and they will tell you this is one of the top 5 questions they are asked as they lead God's people.
But how does one in praying and communicating with God have the confidence and assureance that God will grant his/her request? According to this passage the confidence comes in knowing that what we have asked for is in accordance with God's will. But this leads us back to the beginning, how do I know what God's will is?
Bryan Chappel, in his book "Praying Backwards" offers some very helpful biblical counsel here.
Chappel says, when a believer is unsure of the will of God we must navigate life between 2 guide post. God's righteousness and godly prudence.

1). God's righteousness as revealed in his word will guide us in decision making. God will not grant anything that contradicts His word. God will not bless your efforts to steal in order to help the needy.
2). Godly prudence. Either by principal or precept God's word assist us with every decision we will ever have to make even in matters not directly addressed in scripture. Christian prudence forces me to ask myself "why do I want this?" Do I want what is best for me or do I seek to honor God by this request?

Today as you seek God's will through pettitioning Him for your daily bread, use these guide posts to steer you in asking for those things that are in the will of God. Then and only then can we have the confidence of knowing that God will grant our requests. May God grant your requests.

Be Encouraged Pastor Rhone

Take the Blinders Off

2008-10-14T04:36:00.000-07:00

"Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others"
Philippians 2:3-4 ESV.

How can I show my genuine concern for my brother or sister in Christ? Paul helps us here in this passage. This simple passage helps us to tackle one of the toughest problems mankind faces and that is thinking less of ourselves and more of others. If we are honest we all struggle with this not necessarily from a lack of healthy self esteem but from sinful hearts and desires.
To find someone who authentically puts your concerns above their own is a rare find. In this "me first" world that kind of attitude has even invaded the church. This me first attitude fosters struggles and fights and is very unhealthy for spiritual growth(James 4:1).
We have blinders on that keep us from seeing the needs, hurts and pains of others. But if our lifestyles are truly going to honor Christ we must take on the same kind of attitude He displayed during his earthly sojourn. He had an others first attitude.

Today as we intercede for one another take your blinders off and really see the needs of others. Pray for them, ask the Lord to bless them with the same things you want the Lord to bless you with. Remember, for your brothers and sisters in Christ, that we are on the same team and rembember to have an honest opinion of yourself, which will help you not to think more highly of yourself than you ought.

Be Encouraged.

Pastor Rhone

Grow Up

2008-10-13T04:46:00.000-07:00

"Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work."
Ephesians 4:15-16 NIV

How is christian maturity measured? What standards do we use to gage the strength of believers. Is timed served a good measure, what about age? How do you measure the spiritual maturity of our churches? Congregational size, budget, ministries? Well those may be good bench marks for some aspects of growth but to use those signs as measures for spiritual growth is dangerous.
Be it an individual or an entire church God has given us an objective means by which to measure spiritual growth and that is His word. In this Ephesians passage the Apostle Paul gives basically 2 ways for the believer and the body to grow spiritually.
1). Speak the truth in love. vs.15. Paul says this will be evident int the life of a growing believer and church. Instead of being tossed about like infants by every wind of doctrine and the cunning and craftiness of men who scheme, mature believers will speak the truth, in love. Even if it means correcting those who think they are speaking the truth but are in error, a mature church will lovingly correct this error. It may be painful and tough but it must be done if the church is to grow to Christ like maturity.
2).Each part of the body must do its work. vs 16b. Every believer has an assignment in the body of Christ. Either we are fufiling our assignment or we are not. As we do our part in the body it, the body grows and builds itself up in love. If we fail to do our part the body is hindered from growing. A mature believer recognizes his/her responsibility to exercise the gift God has given him/her and as that gift is used not only does the posessor grow but the people grow.

As we focus our prayers on the ministry of our church, pray for the spiritual maturity of our church in all areas. That each believer would exercise his/her gift and that each believer would speak the truth in love even if it hurts.

God's blessings be upon you today.

What an awesome time in worship on yesterday. Galilee you are a great church.
God be praised!

Be Encouraged.

Pastor Rhone

The Balanced Life

2008-10-10T03:51:00.000-07:00

"so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God."
Colossians 1:10 ESV

This verse is part of a compact and powerful prayer that the Apostle Paul pray for the church at Colasse. He prayed that their lives would be controlled and dominated by the will of God. Such powerful living comes as one knows the purpose for which the Lord has called him/her. And expression of a life controlled by the will of God is that it will be in balance with the character of Christ. This is what Paul wants from the church. He expresses it here in verse 10 when he uses the word "worthy". It means weighty, of like value, having the weight of, weighing as much as another thing. It is the word picture of scales beign in balance.
The point is this, when we as believers allow the will of God to control us our conduct will be in the like porportion with the God whom we confess. In other words our confession will match our expression, our walk will match our talk, what we say will match what we do. We will then be walking worthy of the Lord.

Today as we again pray for our personal holiness, may we in seeking to live as Christians seek the controllin and dominating power of the will of God for our lives. May we seek Him above all. Only then can we live the "balanced life."

God's blessings be upon you.

Be Encouraged.

Pastor Rhone

Send It Away!

2008-10-09T04:23:00.000-07:00

"As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today."
Genesis 50:20 ESV.

This passage found in the book of Genesis is one of the most profound narratives contained in the scriptures dealing with forgiveness. Most are familiar with the details of the story and how Joseph was mistreated by many but in the end God used all of the harm of others to be a blessing for Joseph. Josephs response to all of the ill and mistreatment, even by his own blood, Mrs. Potiphar and the cupbearer is simply summed up in Genesis 50:20. His statement is significant in the fact that he did not have a lexicon, commentary or bible dictionary to do a word study on the providence of God, a New Testament Bible with Romans 8:28 highlighted, no all he had was faith and trust in God, that God had HIS best interest in mind for the life of Joseph.

Forgiveness, true forgiveness, for the believer, begins with realizing first that you have been forgiven only by the Grace of God. We did not earn it or deserve it but God has forgiven us by giving us his Son. God through his Son has put away our sins.
The word most often used in New Testament for "forgiveness" has the idea of "sending away" or "putting away", the Old Testament ideal is one of "covering". Either way, God has done for us what we could never do for our selves, He put away and covered our sins forever! You ought to thank God for that.

As we focus on forgiveness today, ask God for the strength to let go, or put away the anger, resentment, pain, frustration, hurt, bitterness that you are holding against those whom you have been unwilling to forgive. Not in an effort to minimize your pain or hurt but t0 Maximize the gracious covering and gift we have received by being forgiven by our God.

"Lord, my request today is that you would help me to forgive, put away the anger and resentment I have toward others. May my desire to strike back and get even be satisfied by accepting your forgiveness of me. May my life reflect your forgiveness and may it bring honor to your name. In Jesus' Name, so let it be."

I would like to reccomend a dynamic message on forgiveness preached by a friend, which I believe will be a tremendous to all who truly struggle with forgiveness. Here is the link.

http://www.shilohmedia.com/listen/07-13-2008-10am.htm

God bless you Galilee.

Be Encouraged!

Pastor Rhone

How Bad Do You Want It?

2008-10-08T04:12:00.000-07:00

"Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you.
My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever."
Psalm 73:25-26 ESV

What really makes you happy?.................................No, I mean really makes you happy? Most of us would answer with the expedient answer, and maybe so, that it's the Lord that truly makes us happy. Well, if we were honest, God is just one of the many things(persons) that makes us happy, am I right about it? You can be honest here!
The truth of the matter is that today you and I will spend a lot of time seeking some things not only to satisfy our natural human needs but we will also spend a lot of time today seeking some things trying to satisfy our inate longing for happiness, joy and contentment. And most of those things are probably legitimate pursuits.
However, in our pursuit of those things today, consider asking the Lord to help you and teach you how to be satisfied, happy and content with Him. There is nothing wrong with seeking "daily bread" but let us not seek "it" at the expense of "Him".
One of the most ironic things about life and Christian living is discovering that we get all we need for happiness, contentment and real joy, when we make living for Him and seeking Him our goal. That's what the Psalmist says to us. His one desire was the Lord. If everything else in his life failed, he knew God would be ....... And that was enough for him.

Today as you seek the Lord for your "daily bread" your own personal needs, ask the Lord to help you desire Him more than you do those things you think you need to make you happy.

Be Encouraged!

Pastor Rhone

I Need You, You Need Me!

2008-10-07T04:38:00.000-07:00

"I appeal to you, brothers, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to strive together with me in your prayers to God on my behalf."
Romans 15:30 ESV

One of the conspicuous things about the ministry of the Apostle Paul is that he always ask and sought the prayers of others. This mighty man of God who preached the gospel unceasingly knew that his work demanded the prayer support of others. Everyone of his letters reverberates this fact. None of us are probably as strong as this great Apostle so how much the more do we need the prayer support of others?

Today as we again focus on intecessory prayer I want to continue to challenge you to ferverently pray for others. The work and life that we are called to as believers is too much for anyone person to try and do alone. The burdens are too much, the pain to great and the anguish too paralyzing to try and trod this road with out the prayer support of others.
As you pray for those the Lord has placed on your heart today, pray that above all Christ would be honored through your requests for them.

Oh my brother, pray for me,
When you bow at the altar,
Please don't forget to pray for me.

God's blessings be upon you today.

Be Encouraged!
Pastor Rhone

God is In the Details!

2008-10-06T04:12:00.000-07:00

"do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made know to God."
Philippians 4:6 ESV

Today as we join together to seek the Lords will and blessings upon the ministry of Galilee, pray specifically for the Lords blessings in those areas we have been asked to pray. Instead of offering up a general prayer asking the Lord to bless our ministry worker needs, ask specifically that the Lord would grant us 4 saved youth workers who have a passion for working with kids and teens. Instead of asking the Lord to bless our music ministry pray that the Lord would add 10 voices to the choir and that the choir would continue to honor God through songs that sing forth the gospel. Instead of asking the Lord to bless the finanaces of the church pray that the Lord would grant us 10 people in our congregation who will commit themselves to faithfully and generously supporting the ministry through tithes and grace gifts. And any other area you commit to praying for the ministry be specific in your requests.
May the Lord honor our requests today as we continue to learn to truly pray in Jesus' Name.

Be Encouraged!
Pastor Rhone

"Specific prayers puts us on intimate terms with our heavenly Father. We trust him to care about the details of our lives, and in doing so, we learn to trust him more. This is why specific prayer does not rule out the need (or desire) to submit our requests to God's will. We honor Christ's example (Luke 22:42) when we pray "Father please hear and answer this specific requests offered out of my desire to seek you in all things. But, Lord if this requests is not all it should be, make it so. Specific prayer offered as a continuing act of worship seeks to submit every moment of life to God's wisdom as a means of knowing, loving, and honoring him."
Praying Backwards, Bryan Chapel, pgs.108 & 109

A Hunger for Holiness

2008-10-03T04:23:00.000-07:00

"Beloved, I urge you as sojurners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they may speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation." 1Pt. 2:11-12 ESV

Today our prayer focus is on personal holiness. Just what does it mean to be holy? Strange as it seems it's not a word you really hear too much of these days, not even in church. Some Chrisitians have some very misguided ideas about what it means to be holy but in its simplest terms it just simply means to be "set apart by God". As a believer you have been set apart by God for his use and his use alone. This is a positional reality, which means that because you are "in Christ" God sees you as holy. However, there is also a practical side of holiness and that has to do with the believer, daily deciding to live for God in ways that reflect in character and action the holiness of God. This is a commandment of scripture, 1Pt. 1:15-16, "but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written "You shall be holy, for I am holy."

Decide today on purpose and with a purpose to be holy. By the Spirits help let your conduct in all that you say and do reflect the holy character of our loving God. In the midst of this crooked and sinful world let the holy splendor of God shine forth in your intentional desire to be different for God. But know that you can't live a godly, holy lifestyle outwardly unless you truly hunger for holiness in your heart.

Are You hungry and thirsty for the holiness of God? Seek it by seeking Him!

Be Encouraged!

Pastor Rhone

Forgiven and Forgiving

2008-10-02T04:17:00.000-07:00

"and forgive us our debts,as we also have forgiven our debtors.
For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses."
Matthew 6:12,14,15 ESV

You are forgiven. In all reality this is the message of Christianity. That by the grace of God through faith in his Son Jesus Christ, sinners who were once headed for an eternal seperation from God now have the blessed assurance of being eternally secure because God has forgiven us by giving us his Son. That's good news. We are forgiven!

Today our prayer focus is on forgiveness. As we seek the Lord's forgiveness for our failures, mistakes and sins we also want to focus on asking the Lord to help us also be forgiving. Jesus teaches this in the model prayer, that we are to ask for forgiveness and then we also must be forgiving. We simply cannot truly experience grace without having it profoundly transform our attitude toward others. The concern to reflect the character of God revealed in our request for pardon naturally unfolds into commitment to forgive others.

What hidden sins do you have that need to be exposed to the light of God's gracious forgiveness? Who's forgiveness do you need to seek today?

Seek the Lord earnestly today in your prayer time. Seek His forgiveness and seek his character to be more forgiving.

Be Encouraged.

Pastor Rhone

Wheat Bread or Strawberry Shortcake ?

2008-09-30T19:44:00.000-07:00

"Give us this day our daily bread,"
Matthew 6:11 ESV

Today, Wednesday our prayer focus is on our personal requests, things you desire from the Lord to help you fulfill His will for your life here on earth. Whatever you, need, in accordance with His will he has promised to provide, even your daily bread.

Be Encouraged.

Pastor Rhone

"Most people understand the prayer for daily bread to e a request for God to provide for our necessities-not necessarily our wants (such as strawberry shortcake a la mode). We need this understanding to caution those who think their Savior guarantees diamond rings and money trees.
The prayer for daily bread reorients us to God's purposes. With such prayer, we pettition God to provide our greatest satisfaction through the things that he determines will most glorify him in our lives. Thus prayer for daily bread is not just a request for boring whole wheat. We pray that God will provide all that is best for us and is so doing sustain our faith. This may be whole wheat or it may be strawberry shortcake.
A prayer for daily bread does not limit God to the ordinary but pettitions him to provide all that enables us to glorify him most. The prayer for daily bread is really a pettition for spiritual vitality to do heaven's work on earth."
Praying Backwards, Bryan Chapell, pgs.37&39