It's a new day - Let us rejoice!

Jesus paid our sin-debt in full. At His death, God the Father placed all the sins of mankind – past, present, and future upon Him. His painful death provides for our gift of salvation and it is by the gift of God’s grace whereby He forgives our sins. The Old Testament records how God’s faithful people sacrificed animals on His altar in atonement for their sins. These blood sacrifices would later be replaced by the supreme sacrifice by the One called Jesus Christ, whom John the Baptist referred to as the Lamb of God. Jesus sacrificed His life by dying on the cross as a substitute for us. We are then eternally secure in the Holy Spirit, and our fate is sealed with Christ for all eternity. We have salvation by God’s grace not by any good works or our good behavior. Just because we religiously go to church every Sunday or we give of our tithes and offerings or even that we preach from a pulpit does not guarantee our salvation.    (Ephesians 2:4, 5) speaks of how we were made a

God expects us to be thankful for everything. In fact, He commands us to be grateful in all things even though we may not understand why -- He is God, His ways are not our ways. As Christians, Scriptural principals like this are what ultimately help us establish our trust in God. In (Ephesians 5:15-20) we read, “Be very careful, then, how you live – not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore, do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit. Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord, Jesus Christ.” Our gratitude to God is not founded on our emotions or the outcome of our situation, but rather our full knowledge that God is working it all out for our good (Romans 8:28.) In the

I wonder, do you think we miss God’s purpose for our lives because we are waiting to learn more of what God has planned for us? Truth is; God isn’t required to lay it all out for us. All He must do if He has a plan for our lives is to show us how and then enable us to do it. It seems when we don’t know all the particulars, life is too perplexing. We think, “ but I need to know just what God wants me to do.” Abram (later known as Abraham) probably had thoughts just like this. God asked Abram to go somewhere he wasn’t familiar with and he most likely thought of asking God, Lord, must I go somewhere I don’t know, can’t I just stay here in Haran? However, God’s plan for Abram was far greater than anything Abram could ever imagine. Our personal feelings, vision, and human reasoning will always get in the way of our walk of faith . God teaches us to have faith in Him by placing us in positions where our feelings, vision, and common knowledge don’t work for us. Haven’t you ex

Several years ago, a woman, my wife Sally and I know in Houston, was undergoing Cancer treatments. She suffered for a lengthy time from all the prescribed treatments required for her illness and she was visibly weak and very sick. The Chemotherapy made her thin and pale, and had taken all of her hair. The remarkable thing I noticed about her back then was that although much had been taken away from her by her illness and the treatments, her faith in Jesus remained exceptionally strong! She remained full of hope and she was convinced Jesus was going to heal her. One night, as we were getting ready for bed, we received a phone call from this same woman. She was calling to give us her great news; her doctors having told her she is cured and now Cancer-free! Her voice was rightfully, joyful and vibrant, and so happy! We rejoiced together over the phone then I asked her if she believed Jesus had healed her. She said, yes , He had! We agreed she was a living testament that God does st

During our lives we will face many times when fear will attempt to conquer us. It’s Satan’s way of causing us to doubt God and the good God wants for us.  It can be a real struggle to stand up against fear because there are times when the enemy seems so much bigger than us. In (Numbers 13:1) the Lord spoke to Moses instructing him to send spies into the land of Canaan, which He was giving to the children of Israel. Moses did as the Lord said but, the men whom he sent returned saying, “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we.” Fear gripped the men for they saw the people of the land which God had promised them as giants and told Moses and Aaron they were as small as grasshoppers in the eyes of the enemy. Yet God had already determined the land for them. Instead, the children of Israel wanted to go back to their familiar slavery they had known in Egypt. We’re sometimes like the children of Israel; afraid of the future, not trusting God

Patience is another word for long-suffering and long-suffering is a by-product of what God is doing in your life. What then is impatience? Impatience is a warning to us that we are not allowing God to control our lives. We are neither perfect nor patient in all circumstances, but as Christians we must strive for a life characterized by patience .   Remember the Fruits of the Spirit, and that long-suffering is one of them? These fruits are found in (Galatians 5:22, 23.) As we come more under the control of the Holy Spirit we also experience more success in demonstrating this fruit. Patience is not an option with God but rather a serious responsibility for us to be patient with others, with circumstances and with ourselves. No matter how hard we try to develop patience it will only grow when we allow the Holy Spirit to develop it supernaturally within us. God uses our Christian brothers and sisters to help us develop patience. When we fellowship with them, pray with t