Sundays Sermon, Tried and True

I thought Scot had eaten gun powder with his breakfast yesterday morning. He preached a wonderful message. It may not have helped anyone else, but it was just what I needed. Thats just like God, isn't it? When he said the title, my head popped up in attention; Tried and True.
Thats the name of the last song I wrote. How 'bout that! I think God is trying to tell me something. Isaiah 28:10-18 was his text.

Verse 10: says: For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little:
Verse 13 says: But the word of the Lord was unto them precept upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little; that they might go, and fall backward, and be broken, and snared, and taken.
Verse 16 says: Therefore thus saith the Lord God, Behold I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste.

We should always add to our Christian knowledge. Scot gave the example of math.
We don't start out in Kindergarten knowing algebra formula's, we start out with learning to recognize numbers and counting, and then we add to that little by little. If we stopped learning there, we would be very limited in our knowledge of math. As Christians, we need to grow in the Lord and His Word.
He talked about Judgement. We will be judged according to God's Word, line upon line, precept upon precept. The standard of judgement will be gun-barrel straight, no loop holes. The plumet mentioned in verse 17 is a weight. We put Gods righteousness on one side, and what can we put on the other side to even it out? Only Christ's blood. All our righteousness is as filthy rags.
But, then he got to the good-good news. He talked about Christ being our foundation of stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation! Stone is God made, not man made. I can depend upon what God does, I can't fall off.
In verse 16, it says that he that believeth shall not make haste. Scot said that if we are saved, we don't have to run from the storms of life because we are safe in the Lord.
The hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies. In the end, it comes down to the individual and God. The water shall overflow the hiding place: can't hide behind excuses, church membership, works, or in ourselves.
Verse 18 mentions a covenant with death. People say that they'll get right "someday" or that they have plenty of time. That will not stand when we face God.

I'm so thankful God is True. What a joy and comfort to me.

Angels, Godliness, & Words

Scot taught on Angels tonight at church.
I enjoyed the study very much. The verses he gave us were so encouraging and uplifting.
Just to think that God gives angels charge over us. There's no tellings how many times we are kept from harm by God putting an angel between us and the danger. In Daniel, God sent an angel to shut the lions mouth. Wow!
We talked about the angels Michael and Gabriel, seraphims, & cherubs. He said angels are sent as messengers and guardians. The angels mentioned in the Bible are masculine form.
Other verses used:
Gen. 16:7, I Cor. 15:39, Ps. 148:1-2, 5,
Zech. 1:9, Matt. 1:20 and 24, Matt. 2:13 and 19,
Ps. 91:11, Dan. 8:16, Dan. 9:21,
Dan. 10:13 and 21, Dan. 12:1, I Thes. 4:16, Jude 9,
Jude 6, Is. 6:1-3 and 6, Ezek. 1:5, Ps. 34:7, Dan. 6:22, Heb. 13:2, Matt. 25:34

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I've been reading A Woman's High Calling by Elizabeth George. Today, I read about Godly speech and personal discipline.
How to follow our calling to godliness:
(from pages 18-22)
1. Pray- Prayer will most definately affect our behavior.
2. Purpose- to be more aware of God's presence.
3. Praise the Lord
4. And Praise Him some more
5. Pick a point of meditation
6. Prize-your high calling to reverent behavior.
7. Plan-to act in ways that attract attention to the Lord rather than to yourself.
8. Ponder- your behavior and your choices, for by them you tell on yourself.

You Tell on Yourself

You tell on yourself by the friends you seek,

By the very manner in which you speak,

By the way you employ your leisure time,

By the use you make of dollar and dime.

You tell what you are by the things you wear,

By the spirit in which your burdens bear,

By the kind of things at which you laugh,

By the records you play on the phonograph,

You tell what you are by the way you walk,

By the things of which you delight to talk,

By the manner in which you bear defeat,

By so simple a thing as how you eat.

By the books you choose from the well-filled shelf:

In these ways and more, you tell on yourself.

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A note from me:

May I tell you that it DOES matter what we say and how we say it? Words cut far worse than a knife. Words can either make or ruin someones day. Words can lift or tear down. Words can encourage or discourage. It's our choice! God does not make us speak goodness and kindness; it pleases Him when we do though. I myself am going to make a point and a matter of prayer to work on my tongue and my Words! I want to be an encourager, a good day maker, a lifter-upper. ( I made up that word) I want to spread sunshine all around, not slander and hurt.

Pray for me as I work on this and other Godly traits. And pray for me that I will handle peoples Words with a heart that over-looks and forgives quickly.

Oct. 5, 08, Sermons

I enjoyed church services yesterday at Bethany. God is so good to always give us what we need.
Scot preached out of Isaiah 26:1-11 yesterday morning. He preached about the song to be sung of Judah and pointed out things about the city & people.
1. The strength of the city. (Salvation) The strength of the city is the walls. Jn. 6:46-47
2. The gates of the city. (A Way) (Invitation to a Whosoever) Jesus is the door and the ONLY way to obtain salvation. John 10:9
3. The Walk of the saved, vs 7 and 8 of the text
4. The Justice of God, Vs. 10 and 11 of the text

Yesterday mornings sermon was good, but last nights sermon helped me more.
The text was Ezekiel 47:1-12. This is a great read.
He talked about how that when we get saved, what we do after that to grow as a Christian is up to us. He compared our Christian walk to the depths of water listed in the scripture text.
1. Ankle deep- salvation, life of faith
2. Water to the knees- prayer life, praying faith
3. Water to the waste- more under water than not, works
4. Water to Swim in- resting faith

He told us that God desires for us just to "jump in". God has no end to our bountiful life.
I want to be in the water deep enough to swim in. I don't want to be satisfied with just an ankle deep Christian walk.

Sunday's Sermon

Scot preached out of the book of Daniel yesterday morning. It was a very encouraging message.
In Dan. 6:10, Daniel knew the writing was signed, and that he was not suppose to pray for 30 days. Scot said that to stay out of trouble and keep from causing problems, Daniel could have just prayed in private for those 30 days. He asked what would happen if we let up for 30 days. What if we just stayed out of church, stopped praying, etc. for 30 days? It would be hard to get back in church and back in prayer; our spiritual lives would be dry, our children would even suffer from our decision. Ole Daniel just kept doing as he always had. He kept his window open and prayed! Scot pointed out several things about Daniel.

1. His character (flawless), vs. 4
2. His critics (lots of them), He was standing alone, vs. 7
3. His challenge, (don't pray for 30 days) vs. 7
4. His concern ( He prayed toward Jerusalem. This was his home. He was concerned for his family and friends) vs. 10
5. His Champion (God is Able!) Dan. 6:22
6. His choice Dan. 6:14

I desire to be a Daniel, even if it means standing alone, or worse, standing in a den of lions.
Christ is worth dying for, but most importantly, he is worth living for. That's what he wants; our lives! I will joy in the God of my salvation.

PS I love my Pastor!

Our Sunday

We had wonderful services yesterday morning and last night at church. We had eight visitors yesterday morning which was a blessing. Scot preached a great message from Isaiah 25.
He encouraged us from verse 4 that 1. God has been a strength to the poor. 2. He's been a strength to the needy. 3. He's been a refuge from the storm. 4. He's a shadow from the heat.
He compared it to us today with our needs, storms of life, and even death. God has provided power over death and given us joy and peace. In verse 8, it says that God will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord God will wipe away tears from off all faces;
I didn't know what the word "lees" was referring to, but Scot said it was preserving something.
And if we are saved, we are preserved by God, and of course His Word is preserved.

Once a month, we have singing instead of class from 5 to 6. The congregation sings quite a bit and if anyone that sings specials wants to sing, they can. Then, at 6, Scot usually brings the message. But last night, Scot got up and said that God had not given him anything, so he felt led to give us the opportunity to read a verse that was on our heart or to give a testimony about our salvation or tell what we are thankful for. Alot of people were telling how good God has been to them and some read scriptures they had on their heart. It was a very touching service. I sang my new song, "Tried and True". Noelle did a good job on her special. She sang "I'm Free".
At the closing of the service, I played and sang "He Touched Me" (by request) and the congregation stood and sang it with me. There was such a sweet spirit.
God is truly good.

Before church yesterday morning, I called my dear friend Angie Hutcheson and wished her a happy 40th birthday. I think I was more excited about her birthday than she was! ha.
She is very dear to my heart and has been such a blessing in my life. She deserved a great big happy day!