Deaf Devotion 12/25/2010

“For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God.” (Romans 1:20 NLT)

Today is Jesus’ Birthday. It was not a surprise party. And what’s more, you and I received the gift. You and I do not deserve any gifts, but still there was one gift wrapped on that day that brought eternal life to all.

What a wonderful giver. The angel came and first came and told Mary she was chosen as the Mother of God’s Son. The angel came to Joseph and told him what he needed to do. The angel came and told the shepherds they would find a gift, wrapped and ready to be revealed.

What’s interesting is that God had planned this birthday party even before He planned the universe. In His wisdom and power He wanted to live among us. He walks with us. He talks, laughs, cries, and fellowships with us. He arrived as a gift and the gift continues for eternity.

That first Christmas, the heavens declared the glory of God! By looking into a night sky filled with stars, the shepherds learned about God. The night sky so limitless was suddenly filled to capacity with angels shouting and praising God. About that same time some Magi or “King-makers” also looked into the sky and saw God. They knew they had a long road ahead of them and they would not stop until they found the gift. Since the universe appears almost limitless, so God must also have no limits. God does not live in time and space. God lives in eternity.

The universe God created literally pulsates with energy, He must be all powerful.
Since the universe is wonderfully complex and contains intelligent life, God must possess all knowledge. Since the universe contains feeling and emotions and love and human relations, God must have a love that knows no limits. It is a personal love.

It is the love of a baby in a manger. He was born to die. No person took His life. He gave up His life for you and me. He died so you and I could have our re-birth day. We are new creations.

How do you explain the meaning of Christmas in just a few words? Well the best way I know is this: "For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." (John 3:16 KJV)

Marvel at THE GIFT He has given today!

Deaf Devotion 12/18/2010

I have one word on my mind this morning. It is the word “gratitude.” It comes from the adjective “grateful.” Other words for this are: “appreciation;” “recognition;” “credit;” and “acknowledgement.” The dictionary defines being grateful as “warmly or deeply appreciative of kindness or benefits received; thankful.” It is being so full of thanks that we are sometimes not able to put into words how thankful we are.

We are led to feel like this: “Thank God for this gift too wonderful for words!” (2 Corinthians 9:15 KJV)

There was a movie a few years ago called “Pay It Forward.” A young man had something given to him. He knew he would never be able to repay the person who gave him the gift. He also knew that the person gave the gift out of love and they would never accept repayment anyways. It was a gift and not a loan. Instead of trying to repay the person who gave him the gift, he started with one person and with gratitude in receiving the gift, gave a gift to another person. This person was expected not to repay, but to also pay it forward. It is blessing someone else with a blessing one has received. This was done in the spirit of love in the person who gave the young man the gift in the first place. The gift was not re-gifted, it was not “see who could do more, and it was not hidden. The gift was paid forward. This is why repaying a loan is called paying it “back.”

The point is that “You do not need to repay me, just pay it forward.” Do something to make someone else’s life better. We are thankful for the gift and the giver, but the gift and the giver are honored if the blessing is passed along to someone else.

Note to those who blessed us this week: You know who you are. God knows who you are and how much you have blessed someone else. We may not be able to ever pay you back. We also know what you have done is out of love and you would never expect to be paid back. Please know that the blessing God enabled you to pass along to us will be used to bless someone else at the time God decides and in the manner God chooses. Thank you.

We do not give to draw attention to ourselves. Remember God gave to us first and we can never ever give more than God. We give to draw others to God. We love because He first loved us and died for us.

Isn’t this the way it is with God? Our salvation has been won. Sin and death are overcome and defeated. Jesus said, “It is finished.” I believe Him. There is no more paying "back." only paying "forward." The gift is ours. The victory belongs to Jesus. The glory is God’s. And this truth sets us free.

Jesus said we are to go into ALL the world to make disciples. To me this is God saying that He does not want us to repay Him. It is God saying, “Now go and pay it forward.” The gift of Jesus Christ and the Giver who is God are honored and glorified if the gift we have been given is passed along to others.

This is why Mary and Joseph rejoiced. This is why the baby John the Baptist jumped in Elizabeth’s womb when Mary and Elizabeth met. This is why the sky was filled with angels the night the angel appeared to the shepherds. This is why the shepherds left the stable rejoicing. This is why the wise men showed up around two years later. All of them knew they had been given a special gift that was beyond description, beyond anything they had ever dreamed of. And the list goes on and on.

We have received a gift that was paid forward. It is a gift from eternity to eternity. It is a gift that is the perfect gift for any person. It is a gift that keeps on giving.

Suddenly we realize that God has been so good to us that we can’t keep it inside any more. From the depths of our being we shout our joy to God. In 2 Corinthians 9:15 Paul is clearly speaking about the gift of Jesus Christ. But with any blessing from any person by any method, our response should be, “Thank God for this gift too wonderful for words!”

Our response should be to now pay it forward and not pay it back. The debt is paid. It is a gift not a loan.

Pay it forward.

Deaf Devotion 12/11/2010

“Let all that I am praise the Lord. O Lord my God, how great you are! You are robed with honor and majesty. You are dressed in a robe of light. You stretch out the starry curtain of the heavens.” (Psalm 104:1-2 NLT)

We have a God who is simply presented in all of creation. He was born a baby on a cold night in a stable. He was laid in a manger. Shepherds were told to look for Him. They were told they would find Him in a stable wrapped in cloth. They found the Savior. We should recognize Him.

We have a God who is sovereignly powerful. How many of us have been out at night and looked up at the starry night sky? How many stars are there up there? Are there millions? Are there billions? Are there even trillions? Who put each one in place? Who holds them all in their place? It does not matter how many stars there are. There is only ONE light. God is the only one. Is that not amazing, extraordinary? Yes, of course- think, imagine. Who is this God we worship? We should respect Him.

We have a God who is surely purposeful. He said we have eternal life. He said our sins are forgiven. He said we already have a place to live with Him forever. He said He will never leave or forsake us. In fact, He said it’s already done for us. All if we accept His Son Jesus Christ as Savior. It was all confirmed and completed at the Cross. All of heaven’s angels announced His birth. Mary and Joseph obeyed. The Shepherds did as they were told by the angel. They searched, found, and worshipped. Two years later, after a long and dangerous journey, the wise men from the east did not rest until they found Him. They cut the red tape of government and found Jesus. They entered the house and worshipped. All of these were given a purpose and plan directly from God. We should worship and adore Him.

We have a God who is able to save personally. Christ is with us. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David!” (Luke 2:10b-11 NLT) “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.” (John 1:14 NLT) Now every day of our lives is an invitation.

It is an invitation to a birthday party. Jesus Christ was born once to die once for all sin. Yes there will be mistakes. We are human and will mess things up. But God is faithful and just to forgive through the blood of His Son who died once for all.

We need only turn to Him and open our hearts and eyes. Look full into His wonderful face. Bask in His presence and share in His life. Yield to His Lordship; celebrate the glory and wonder of His birth, of His life, of His death and resurrection, and of His victory over sin and death. Just like children on Christmas morning, just like the shepherds coming from the field to the city searching, just like the wise men on a long journey, we need to become a child again looking afresh at our Savior. We should receive Him.

All of that is in Genesis 1:1 which says, “In the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth.” John 1:1 says, “In the beginning was the Word, the Word was with God, the Word was God.” The Word became a baby in a manger. The Word became a baby, born to die. We have an obligation to God. We are twice His. First, we are His because of creation and secondly, we are His because of redemption. He made us, and then He bought us back.

We need to celebrate Christmas with Joy and Thanksgiving.

Deaf Devotion 12/4/2010

“So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world. Let there be tears for what you have done. Let there be sorrow and deep grief. Let there be sadness instead of laughter, and gloom instead of joy. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up in honor.” (James 4:7-10 NLT)

"Come close to God and God will come close to you." The King James Bible says if we “draw near” to God He will “draw near” to us. That is an amazing promise! When we open ourselves up to the Lord He opens heaven up for us. When we come to Him in surrender, repentance, and brokenness, He hurries to answer with forgiveness, love, and faithfulness. God, His love, His faithfulness, and His forgiveness have been there since before the universe was created. We are the ones who sinned against God and ever since He has been calling us to “draw near” to Him.

Many people have this “get close,” but “not too close” attitude. Closeness to some people has a limit. But with God there is nothing ever too close. There is also nothing that is too far away. Have we ever thought about giving God all control in our life? Wait a minute Pastor, that’s toooooo close for comfort. Satan wants to deceive us and have us to believe that we cannot do that. That means God will know everything and see everything that happens in my life. Trust me He already sees and knows. What could be closer than that? Everything that happens to us has already come across God’s desk. He is not surprised.

There is no room for self-sufficiency or self-protection in this interaction. Only in the humility of helplessness will we discover the all-consuming peace and love of His presence.

At first glance, we may seem to be the ones who begin this open relationship, but in reality, it is all God’s idea. We are merely responding. This is what Jesus meant when he said, “For no one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them to me, and at the last day I will raise them up.” (John 6:44 NLT) Many times He uses situations and difficulties to get our attention and motivate us to seek Him.

What appears to us to be a painful or desperate situation is His invitation to draw near. When we feel overwhelmed and there is no hope or no way out, He invites us to draw near. Imagine what would happen if we accept God’s invitation to draw near and then actually let him take over. With God nothing is impossible.

Even our greatest failures and mistakes can lead us to Christ. We seek to make up for our mistakes with an attitude of humble repentance. Hopefully we learn and we can enter into a more cherished relationship with God.

However, if you and I continue living in rebellion and are unwilling to confess and repent, He will not open up and reveal more of Himself to us. Satan can step in and use this to his advantage to draw you and me AWAY from God. Sin always blocks our ability to know the Lord.

Have we let hardship or failure make us feel like we are pulling away from God instead of moving toward Him? Or do we believe God has forgotten us and pulled away from us? When there is this feeling of moving away or being left alone, God is still there. He is still God and He is still in control.

Satan knows this and will remind us and will misuse any situation to deceive us into thinking that we are abandoned and there is nothing we can do because after all, we are human. And we are all sinners. But I affirm, on the Word of God, we are redeemed by the Blood of Jesus Christ. But these are the very situations that the Lord can utilize to draw us to Himself. Don't let the enemy, his deceit, and his lies win the battle. "Resist the devil and he will flee from you." (James 4:7 NLT)

Accept the invitation. Draw near to the Lord and He will draw near to you.

Deaf Devotion 11/26/2010

I will be honest. You would expect nothing less than that from any person, right? I try very hard to keep the devotions focused and that anyone can use for their personal situations. Sometimes my own feelings and thoughts collide with that and overflow so I write devotions to preach at myself too. Today is one of those.

I have been struggling with some issues in my so-called “life.” Things are not going exactly the way I would like them to go. Maybe I am experiencing my own mid-life crisis. (Don’t worry. I am not going out to buy a motorcycle!) Things are not happening the way I want them to happen nor are they happening fast enough for me. I ask God, “Why?” “Why not?” “When?” God responds with an answer that says that it’s not about what I want or what I expect to happen. It’s all focused on Him and His plan and purpose for me and the purpose for which HE created me. Still sometimes those words seem empty.

Do I need “more faith?” I thought I was faithful in quiet confidence. What is “more faith?” I pray my faith stays strong while at times it seems difficult and at other times seems not to make sense.

”All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort. He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us.” (2 Corinthians 1:3-4 NLT)

God's care for us extends to the smallest and most hidden details of our lives. He knows when His children hurt and longs to offer comfort “Sing for joy, O heavens! Rejoice, O earth! Burst into song, O mountains! For the Lord has comforted his people and will have compassion on them in their suffering. (Isaiah 49:13 NLT)

The Lord's compassion is personal, continuous, and always available. We receive His comfort through the Holy Spirit, who lives within us. There is no situation or time when He is inaccessible to the believer. We can be consoled and reassured at any time, day or night.

Consider how the compassion of God was demonstrated through Jesus' life. He interacted even with the "untouchables"—people whose bodies were infected with a contagious disease. And no sickness of ours will prevent Him from caring for us.

Jesus had compassion on people with medical conditions. He not only healed them physically but also gave an even greater comfort. Each and every time He gave new life through the forgiveness of sins. And while our infirmities may remain, the Lord lovingly strengthens us to carry on into the future.

And what about the messes we get ourselves into? Peter's betrayal of Christ was met with forgiveness. Thomas' doubts were answered by Jesus Himself. Our mistakes won't stop Him from loving us. Even to His enemies, Jesus left the way open for repentance.

God's comfort and care are adequate for anything we face, whether it's declining health, insufficient finances, or family trouble. Then, once we've experienced His consolation, we are to become bearers of comfort to others. People everywhere are in great need of His compassion.

Whenever feelings of low self-worth threaten us with discouragement, we need to rely on the truth of God's Word rather than our emotions.

“But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light. “Once you had no identity as a people; now you are God’s people. Once you received no mercy; now you have received God’s mercy.” (1 Peter 2:9-10 NLT)

“A Chosen People” – God chose you and me to be part of His kingdom and family because He wanted us. No one who has been specially selected by almighty God can call themselves insignificant or even forgotten.

“A Royal Priesthood” – As believers, we are children of God and, therefore, part of a royal family. In other words, we are "heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ." (Romans 8:17 KJV) Just as Jesus fulfilled the roles of both king and priest, so God has also entrusted us with priestly responsibilities of worship and intercession for others.

“A Holy Nation” – The church—or body of Christ—is a group of people who are holy, which means "set apart" for God’s specific plan and purpose individually. Our lives are never meaningless, because living for the Lord is the greatest purpose one can have.

A People for “God's Own Possession” – You and I are the personal possessions of God. He so values each of us that He sent His Son to die in our place in order that we could be His.

Each of these descriptions shows the high value God places on us. Satan may whisper lies of condemnation and criticism, but he can't change who we really are. Begin today to demonstrate the truth of Scripture by remembering our real identity and living out our high calling from the Lord.

God gives to us so that we can give to others. God comforts us so that we can comfort others. The Christian life is about loving, giving, caring, comforting, etc. How can we help hurting people? How can we help one another? After all, we are to love one and bear one another’s burdens. What can we do? We don’t know what to say or how to pray or what to do.

I’m convinced that there are many people in the world who are hurting unnecessarily because they refuse to turn for the source of all compassion and comfort. Here’s the hope for the hurting this morning: when there is discouragement and hurting, and comfort is what we seek, go to the source. There’s only one source, and that is God.

He is called the Father of compassion, and the God of all comfort. God wrote the book on compassion and comfort, because He is the creator of it. That is the best self-help book one could buy.

Deaf Devotion 11/19/2010

“Let us go right into the presence of God with sincere hearts fully trusting him. For our guilty consciences have been sprinkled with Christ’s blood to make us clean, and our bodies have been washed with pure water.” (Hebrews 10:22 NLT)

God's grace has no limits. This is an easy statement to make. But do we really understand the meaning of “no limits?” Wherever we go God is already there. If we are worried about the future, God is already there. Whatever trouble we experience God is right there with us.

If we think of God in heaven, remember God is everywhere. If we think God is Wise, remember there is nothing that God does not know. Whatever problem we have God is bigger and more powerful. His name is the name above all names. The depth of His love is so great we cannot copy it here on earth.

His mercy can reach the darkest part of our hearts. What's more, the forgiveness Jesus completed on the cross stretches back to earth's first day and projects forward to its last. Christ not only erased our past, present, and future sin; He also paid for the wrongs of every generation.

When the ancient Israelites brought a goat or a lamb to the temple for a sacrifice, they placed their hands on its head and confessed their sins. The priest then killed the animal and sprinkled some of its blood on the altar of atonement. The ritual symbolized a person’s payment for sin. But that is all it was, a ritual, a habit, a tradition, or a procedure. The problem was that the lamb could not actually take on the sin and die in place of the Israelite (Heb. 10:4).

If an animal's blood could actually bring forgiveness and erase a sin-debt, you and me would still be offering those frequent sacrifices in a temple, and Jesus' death would have been unnecessary. Yet we must remember that, though the act itself had no saving power, the ritual of sacrifice was God's idea. He established such offerings as a powerful image of the seriousness and penalty of sin. The act of sacrifice also pointed to Christ's perfect sacrifice and death on the Cross for you and me and the salvation He offers.

Modern believers practice certain biblical rituals too. But God does not forgive us through prayer, Bible reading, or even the act of confession. Like the Israelites, we must also look to a lamb—the Lamb of God. When we receive Jesus' sacrifice for our sins, we are forgiven forever.

It is only through accepting Jesus Christ as Savior that our debt is paid in full and the payment was made at the Cross one time for all people.

If someone or someone we know of doubts that God has forgiven them, make it right immediately.
If someone or someone we know of needs to hear the truth of the Gospel, tell them now.
If someone or someone we know feels that they are unworthy or unable to be saved, remember that God loves us so much and thought us important and worthy enough that He sacrificed HIS OWN Son once and for all to forever erase the sin-debt we owe Him.

Right now stop and praise God for His unlimited grace and mercy. Exalt Jesus Christ the sacrificed Lamb of God who gave His life so that you and I can have eternal life. That’s forever. That means a future with no limit. And God is already there. Amen.

Deaf Devotion 11/14/2010

“Whatever is good and perfect comes down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens. He never changes or casts a shifting shadow. He chose to give birth to us by giving us his true word. And we, out of all creation, became his prized possession.” (James 1:17-18 NLT)

There is a saying that says, “The more things change the more they stay the same.” We live in a changing society. A society that says:
If you don’t like yourself, change.
If you don’t like your job, change.
If you don’t like your wife or husband, change.
If you don’t like your church, change.
If you don’t like your God, change.

But, Praise God James says GOD DOES NOT CHANGE

God's character is often distorted and changed by the world. To those who do not know God, or those who say there is no God, He can appear as a harsh ruler who is quick to condemn any act of disobedience. Or He is some mysterious being who holds out salvation as a prize only to be taken away or lost the next time we make a mistake. Somehow that false view has infected our churches as well. There are believers who approach the Lord as if He were a stingy old man who gives out bits of love, grace, and forgiveness when things are good and then turns His back and disappears when things go wrong. But spiritual poverty is not the Father's plan for His children!

At salvation, God gives and we receive every good gift that God intends to give us: forgiveness, redemption, righteousness, a place in His family, and a room in His house, access to His richness and wisdom, and so much more. There is a mistaken notion among some believers that the Lord's grace to us increases as our faith matures. If that were accurate, we would be earning His blessing though works. The truth is that spiritual growth makes us better able to recognize and enjoy His grace in our lives.

Sadly, plenty of people feel unworthy to enjoy the Lord's blessings. Thankfully, we do not have to earn His goodness, because none of us would be able to do so. In fact, Ephesians 2:8-9 KJV underscores the fact that God operates on the basis of His grace rather than our works. “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.”

Think of how big, wide, deep and limitless is God’s love. We are His masterpiece. His best work. He honors, blesses, and showers us with grace because He wants to, not because He must, and not because we earn it.

Our heavenly Father is so generous. He opens His hand wide to pour out grace upon us. Instead of sampling meager bites of His Word and His presence on Sunday, we ought to devour whole "meals" every day. Follow the psalmist's advice to "taste and see that the LORD is good." (Psalm 34:8)

Praise and thanksgiving be to the Lord our God for all His countless gifts and blessings. Amen.

Deaf Devotion 11/02/2010

“O God, you have taught me from my earliest childhood, and I constantly tell others about the wonderful things you do.” (Psalm 71:17 NLT)

Today is Election Day around the country. Have you noticed? Does it stir your heart to do something? Have you voted? If not, why not? If not, get up and go. Many people are saying this will be an Election Day to change history. It seems to be the same thing they say every two years. Some people say, “Well I am one person and my vote will not matter.” “I don’t have time.” “Why vote? Nothing will change anyways.” These excuses are sad, but people have actually said them.

Satan wants us to forget one simple truth. One thing is missing. We tend to forget that many men and women have given their lives so you and I can have the freedom and the right to vote. To not vote is to say all these heroes have died and their families sacrificed for nothing.

One of the things Brenda and I dislike about voting is the group of people who stand outside handing out papers and stuff about their candidate. You must go through them to get in to vote. Today was different. There was a group of people there representing several different candidates. None of them tried to hand us a pencil, a pin, or even a piece of paper with someone’s name on it. What happened is that when we were going in and coming out someone in this group shouted simply, “Thanks for coming out to vote!” That impressed me.

Understand when we do not vote because we do not feel like it or because we don’t think our vote matters or makes a difference actually dishonors God. God established government in the post-flood era with the family of Noah. They messed it up then, and because we are all sinners, it is still not a perfect system today. But in the end it belongs to God. The only perfect system of government is that which God lays out in His Word.

We need to understand that voting is a way for God to show Himself mighty and powerful through the votes HIS people cast on Election Day. Only God through HIS people can bring about the change HE wants to see.

Understand that Satan is on a killing spree. He wants to kill our memory and wants us to become forgetful, so that we will not remember our Christian heritage as a nation. Tragically, he’s aiming his artillery at our children, and particularly in the place where they used to grow, mature and become the future leaders of this country: The Schools.

Prayer is out. Police are in.
Bibles are out. Political correctness and tolerance is in.
The Ten Commandments are out. Social programs and trusting the government for everything is in.
Creation is out. Evolution is in.
History is out. Rewriting history to match a political agenda or “revisionism” is in.

God says we need to remember the generation to come. That is our children. Do we want children to not care about the future or think that the government will take care of it? No, the answer lies in today’s verse. “O God, you have taught me from my earliest childhood, and I constantly tell others about the wonderful things you do.”

The universe as we know it and everything in it, leaders and followers, time, space, the past, the present, and the future are all in God’s hands. That includes voting and the right to vote. Let’s think about God as we vote. How would He view our choices? Would our choices show what God has taught since our birth? This is not an easy question. It does not have an easy answer. It requires prayer. It requires seeking God’s wisdom in voting, and not the wisdom of a newspaper writer, or a person on CNN or Fox.

I do not support politicians going into a church and speaking anything other than God’s Word. I will not use this devotion as anything other than that for which God wants it used. Today when we vote, let God lead our hands as we mark the ballot. “O God, you have taught me from my earliest childhood, and I constantly tell others about the wonderful things you do.” Let our votes show what God has taught us.

Deaf Devotion 10/25/2010

“But the LORD shall endure for ever: he hath prepared his throne for judgment. And he shall judge the world in righteousness; he shall minister judgment to the people in uprightness. The LORD also will be a refuge for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble. And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee: for thou, LORD, hast not forsaken them that seek thee.” (Psalm 9:7-10 KJV)

There is much talk today about trust. What is trust?

The dictionary says trust is “reliance on the integrity, strength, ability, surety, etc., of a person or thing; confidence; confident expectation of something; the obligation or responsibility imposed on a person in whom confidence or authority is placed.”

The Bible is full of verses calling us to trust in God, in His Love, in His ways, in His protection. The word trust shows up mostly in the Book of Psalms. The Old Testament revolves around the Hebrew word “batach.” This means to act boldly with security. This is shown in Psalm 91:2: “I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.” (KJV) It is also reflected in the New Testament with the Greek word “pepoithēsis” which has the meaning of submitting with confidence. “We are confident of all this because of our great trust in God through Christ.” (2 Corinthians 3:4 NLT)

This is all nice and well. But how much are we really willing to commit our trust to God? Before answering, consider these situations. Do we really trust the Lord when everything seems out of control and He appears absent? Do we commit our trust when He's called us to move in a certain direction that seems risky and does not seem to make sense? Or are we willing to trust when painful circumstances continue, making us wonder if the Lord really cares at all?

We all have times of doubt when our expectations of God are crushed by the reality of our situation. Many of us want to trust Him more but aren't sure how to do so.

In verse 10 of today’s passage David reveals that the key lies in knowing the Lord. Distance in our relationship with Jesus results in a lack of faith, but those who are in close relationship with Christ find it easier to trust Him wholeheartedly.

Whenever we are tempted to doubt, remember these three essential truths about the Lord:

He is completely sovereign. “The Lord has made the heavens his throne; from there he rules over everything.” (Ps. 103:19 NLT) God has everything in His control even when we can't see it or recognize it.

He is infinitely wise. “Oh, how great are God’s riches and wisdom and knowledge! How impossible it is for us to understand his decisions and his ways!” (Rom. 11:33 NLT) The Lord knows every side of the situation, the up side and the down side, inside and out. And every He knows every event past, present, and future.

He loves perfectly. When God came and met Moses, He declared His love for His people. “The Lord passed in front of Moses, calling out, “Yahweh! The Lord! The God of compassion and mercy! I am slow to anger and filled with unfailing love and faithfulness.” (Exodus 34:6 NLT) “Love and faithfulness” focused on whom? Is it Himself? No, His love and faithfulness is focused on you and me. Without exception, He always chooses what is best for us, even if it's not easy.

We grow in faith, not by trying harder to believe but, rather, by seeking God’s face in all we do. We trust the Holy Spirit will lead us to what God has planned for us. But we must submit with confidence knowing that God is in control and act boldly in all we do so that what we do exalts the name of Jesus Christ. This involves doing all we can to get to know Him--in particular, spending time in His Word and talking to Him in prayer. Then our trust in Him will grow as we learn that He never forsakes those who seek Him.

The early American Indians had a particular way of training young boys to become Indian braves. On the night of a boy’s thirteenth birthday, after learning hunting, scouting, and fishing skills, he was put to one final test. He was placed in a thick forest to spend the entire night alone. Up until then, he had never been away from his family and the tribe. But on this night, he was blindfolded and taken several miles away.

When he took off the blindfold, he was in the middle of a thick woods and he was scared to death! Every time a twig snapped, he would think that a wild animal was getting ready to pounce. After what seemed like an eternity, and the sun began to rise the next morning; the boy looked around and saw flowers, trees, and a path.

And then, to his complete amazement, he saw the figure of a man standing just a few feet away, armed with a bow and arrow. It was his father. And he had been there all night long.

God is like that. Even when we don’t see Him, He’s there. He is faithful and true. He has promised, and He has kept His promise. He is our refuge in times of trouble, and we can trust Him on that.

Deaf Devotion 10/18/2010

“Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marveled; and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus.” (Acts 4:13 KJV)

Anyone who studies the way God does things soon realizes the way God does things is quite different from the way we humans do things. Worldly wisdom says that extraordinary people and abundant resources are needed for great success. But God often chooses the small and insignificant to achieve His purposes on earth. The King James translation of today’s verse uses the words “unlearned and ignorant” and at the same time there was amazement at Peter’s and John’s boldness in their testimony.

“Unlearned and ignorant” are not pretty, positive, or uplifting words in the English language. Most of us would be offended if someone said that about us. But let’s go back to the original language. The real context of this is that Peter and John were ordinary men with no special training in theology or spiritual things. Yet they spoke with authority, and the council “marveled.” This means they were amazed, even shocked. This is the same amazement the Pharisees had when Jesus at a young age was teaching the teachers in the temple. He spoke with an authority that only God can bring. This is the same amazement the Rabbis had when Jesus preached in church in His hometown.

Think about it. Jesus called a rather unimpressive group of men as disciples, yet after being filled with the Spirit, they literally changed the world with their testimony. During His ministry on earth, Jesus fed thousands with an unknown child's meager everyday lunch, and He viewed the lonely unnamed widow's two small coins as a greater offering than all the other generous offerings.

God specializes in using people who aren't naturally qualified to accomplish His tasks. Moses was an 80-year-old shepherd with a speech problem who brought an oppressed nation out of Israel. After Gideon hid from the enemy, God made him a valiant warrior. David was the overlooked youngest son who killed a giant with a small stone and became Israel's greatest king.

God isn't looking for impressive people. God is not looking for ability. God is looking for availability. He wants those who are willing to bow the knee in humble submission. Being weak and ordinary doesn't make us useless. Rather, it puts us in a place for God to show HIS divine power in our lives. He takes anyone at any level and takes delight in making them great to do great things for HIM.

The religious community during the time of Jesus was given to proud, conceited and snobbish attitudes. The Pharisees boastingly told Jesus: “But we are descendants of Abraham,” they said. “We have never been slaves to anyone. What do you mean, ‘You will be set free’?” (John 8:33 NLT)

Peter and John had for three and one-half years studied at the feet of the greatest Teacher in the history of the world but their demeanor was one of humility, grace and magnificent simplicity.

Have we ever considered that what we think is our lack of ability, talent, or skill is really the ideal setting for a great display of Christ's power and glory? If we are willing to submit to His leading and move forward into the scary yet rewarding territory of faith and obedience, He will do great things in and through us. We are called as “ignorant and unlearned” to obey, and then trust God with the details, not the other way around.

Deaf Devotion 10/11/2010

This week I am being called to write about faith and salvation. Salvation is already done. It happened at the Cross when Jesus said, “It is finished.” Faith, on the other hand is not a goal or a place. It is something which we cannot always fully grasp. It is total dependency on God. It is total acceptance of His plan as the roadmap for our lives. I’m not so sure this is always possible. Faith is a journey.

Here is today’s Bible passage in two translations:
“For though I be absent in the flesh, yet am I with you in the spirit, joying and beholding your order, and the stedfastness of your faith in Christ. As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him: Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving.” (Colossians 2:5-7 KJV)

“For though I am far away from you, my heart is with you. And I rejoice that you are living as you should and that your faith in Christ is strong. And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow him. Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.” (Colossians 2:5-7 NLT)

Most times Christians generally associate faith with their salvation experience, and rightly so. By believing in Christ, we enter into a relationship with Him. But that's not the end--afterwards comes a lifetime of “walking” with Him.

Since the word “walk” is used to describe one’s behavior and the way we do things, we may mistakenly believe that after salvation, the Christian life is all about what we do and how well we do it. But today's verses clearly state that we “walk” with Christ in the same way we received Him--by faith. This means we place our trust in Him for every circumstance of life. To help us understand this, Paul uses some phrases which describe how confidence in God grows:

"Having been firmly rooted" or “Let your roots grow down into Him” --At the moment of salvation, believers are "planted" in Christ. Our roots grow deep as we anchor ourselves in the Lord, drawing our spiritual nourishment and our life from Him.

"Be built on Him" or “Built up in Him” --The believer's life is built on the foundation of the Savior through obedience. God wants us to choose precious and valuable building materials that will last into eternity. “Because of God’s grace to me, I have laid the foundation like an expert builder. Now others are building on it. But whoever is building on this foundation must be very careful. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one we already have—Jesus Christ.” (1 Corinthians 3:10-11 NLT)

"’stablished in your faith" or “Grow strong in the truth” --In time, as we begin to understand more about the Lord and how He operates, our trust in Him increases, and we experience stability even in the times of trouble. Jesus must increase and I must decrease.

In our goal-oriented society, it's easy to forget that “walking” in Christ is a really a process. While on earth, we never "arrive" but are slowly transformed along the way. As we trust the Lord, our hearts will overflow with gratitude for all His blessings and the strength He offers in every circumstance.

Living in our faith and living out our faith are two different things. We are called to live in faith that Jesus Christ, at the cross, finished the work of salvation for all mankind. We are called to live out our faith by living in obedience and surrender to God’s plan for us.

In the end these two verses challenge us to:
Grow downward by being “rooted” and anchored to Jesus Christ.
Grow upward by being “built up” in Him as Savior and as the Son of God.
Grow inward so that we can be “strengthened in the faith” and fully trust in Him.
Grow outward as we “overflow with thankfulness” because of His sacrifice that is fully pleasing to God.

Deaf Devotion 10/4/2010

“In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.”
(1 Thessalonians 5:18 KJV)

Nobody gets through life without trials. Realistically, we are either in a storm, just getting out of a one, or about to enter a rough time. That is the bad news. Thankfully, we serve a good God who provides beautifully—especially during the dark periods of life.

If we are not in a difficult time, we more than likely will encounter one soon. Jesus promised that we will have many hardships in this life. “These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33 KJV) And was He right!

As unpleasant as trials are, and as much as we do not like to admit we are in a time of trouble, there's still much reason for giving thanks.

Protection. God doesn't necessarily keep believers from suffering or disappointment. Stopping the storms may be our goal, but from His point of view, the hardship may be necessary to make us more spiritually mature. But the Father offers protection by staying with us in the struggle. Once we receive Jesus as our Savior, we are promised that God indwells us and will never leave. What's more, we have assurance that nothing can separate us from His love. “For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Rom. 8:38-39) So our ever-present God walks with us through the hardships, providing guidance and speaking nothing but pure truth into the situation. The problem becomes whether are we paying attention to what God is doing in the situation or focusing on what we can do to get out of the situation.

Peace. While difficulties cause many people anxiety, believers have God's peace. This inner serenity does not depend on whether circumstances improve. Rather, it's a result of our relationship with Him. Our main focus shouldn't be on fixing the problem but on our dependence upon God.

As we recognize the Lord's provision during trials, we can genuinely express gratitude. Doing so will enable us to fix our eyes on Him rather than on our circumstance. We often don't know what the purpose is for each ensuing trial, but we do know that our God is good and trustworthy.

No one enjoys trials or hardships. But remember to express gratitude for God's hand in our life and the way He will use the difficult times to bring glory to Himself. Hardships are chances to trust our Creator and to know Him better. Of course, they are painful, but don't waste the opportunity to become all the Lord has planned for us.

Deaf Devotion 9/27/2010

On a personal level, I have been feeling “under attack” on many different levels. I know and feel that through all the attacks and uncertainty God will bring a breakthrough to something that is greater than I can imagine. And in the middle of the struggle and feeling of defeat, God will glorify Himself in what He does. It’s not about what you or me are going through. God already knows that. But God wants us to let go and let Him turn loose every power He has to draw us closer to Him. In that way God will use you and me to show His power. I may feel forgotten, overwhelmed and even discouraged. Being disappointed will happen. Being discouraged is a choice. But God is our rock, our anchor, and our salvation.

We can be disappointed in ourselves, with others, or with a situation that involves home, ministry, or finances. But that disappointment cannot drag us into discouragement. When we look at God’s Word, one clear example of this comes out: David.

To set this up, the Israelites were trapped against the Sea on one side and the Philistines on the other side. (By the way – did you know the name “Philistine” is the old name for “Palestine?”) The Israelites had all but given up. Their disappointment in their leadership, and in God, to some extent had led them to become discouraged and then unable to act. They were just too afraid of what would happen, could happen, or should happen.

“David replied to the Philistine, “You come to me with sword, spear, and javelin, but I come to you in the name of the LORD of Heaven’s Armies—the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. Today the LORD will conquer you, and I will kill you and cut off your head. And then I will give the dead bodies of your men to the birds and wild animals, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel! And everyone assembled here will know that the LORD rescues his people, but not with sword and spear. This is the LORD’s battle, and he will give you to us!” (1 Samuel 17:45-47 NLT)

Life's “Goliaths” come in all shapes, sizes, and strengths. It can be in the form of an unhappy relationship, a difficult job, a rebellious child, a pile of debt, an uncontrollable habit, and so on. David faced what appeared to be a problem too big to overcome. Like Him, we can gain victory through God's power, though we may "suffer and bleed" on the battlefield.

Notice that in verse 46 David declared victory over Goliath before the battle even began by declaring “Today the LORD will conquer you.” It was a done deal. But notice also that this did not stop the Philistines from advancing. They depended on their earthly “Goliath” to win the victory for them. They put all their confidence in the size and power of Goliath. But Goliath was a man. David had the unlimited power of God on His side. David knew his human limitations would not bring victory. David's confidence, on the other hand, was rooted in his past experiences. David credited God with protecting and strengthening him when he killed the lion and bear that had threatened his flock.

Furthermore, David believed he would triumph because he was God's servant. The boy had spent hours alone in the wilderness listening to God's quiet voice. Even a giant's discouraging shout could not shake his convictions about who the Lord was and what He could do through His servant.

David had practical faith habits. He spent time with God, which yielded a strong relationship. In turn, he responded to a problem with the certainty that he was a beloved child of God with full access to his Father's storehouses of power, courage, and wisdom. If David had a moment of doubt, he could recall his own poetic words about the Lord's great faithfulness in past troubles.

Our faith does not depend on the wisdom of men. Our faith depends on the power of God. Sometimes words of encouragement fall empty. Sometimes what others say to lift us up will fall short. But it is the faithfulness of God that will stand strong. I encourage all of us to practice David's faith habits. Spend time alone with the Lord, and keep a record of His work in our life. Then we can act in confidence that God is sufficient, no matter how big a problem looms. He gives victory to those who stand in faith and confront their “Goliaths.”

Deaf Devotion 9/20/2010

“He existed before anything else, and he holds all creation together.” (Colossians 1:17 NLT)

There is a song some of us learned as children. It goes, “He’s got the whole world in His hands. Red and yellow, black and white, all are precious in His sight.” We sing about the Lord having the whole world in His hands. But do we realize what is more remarkable than that? He has the whole universe in His hands.

He's the One who spoke it into existence.
He’s the One who keeps it going.
He's the One who is going to fold it up like a garment and tuck it away in a drawer somewhere.
He has absolute power over it; He rules it, and He runs it.

When we pick up the newspaper and read something alarming, we don't need to panic. It is no surprise to God. That just says "Praise God, I told you so!" God is in control! He who flung the stars in space has the whole universe in His hands!

There is one name that is above ALL names in heaven and on earth: Jesus Christ. The more we realize who He really is, the more we will give Him the worship and praise He deserves. Let’s do that today! “Come, let us tell of the Lord’s greatness; let us exalt his name together.” (Psalm 34:3 NLT)

We tend to lose sight of what was done at creation. God as Father, Son, and Spirit existed before the universe came into creation. God as Creator, Son as the spoken Word, and Spirit as the motivator were present when the universe was called into creation with a single Word. God looked at each step in creation and said, “It’s all GOOD.”

-A single drop of water is filled with so many molecules that if each one was the size of a grain of sand, you could build a road a half mile wide, one foot thick all the way from New York to Los Angeles.
-The surface temperature of our sun is about 11,000 degrees. Fortunately, we are 93,000,000 miles away. -- Just the right distance for life on earth to be possible.
-The earth is tilted just the right way for us to have seasons.
-Right now we are spinning at a thousand miles an hour.
-At the same time we are flying around the sun at a thousand miles a minute. -- But we don’t even have to hold on because the Lord’s design is so perfect.
-Our atmosphere is 21% oxygen. -If it was 45%, then the first time there was a spark -- BOOM -- the whole earth explodes!

Think about our heart. It’s about the size of fist and weighs 12 ounces. -- But in 12 hours your heart will do enough work to raise 65 tons off the ground one inch.

All of these things and countless more give glory to the One who created us -- Jesus Christ! “In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God. He existed in the beginning with God. God created everything through him, and nothing was created except through him. The Word gave life to everything that was created, and his life brought light to everyone. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it.” (John 1:1-5 NLT)

What does this mean for us? It means that our God, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is bigger than we can possibly imagine. Nothing is too hard for Him. It also means that God is paying attention to the smallest details of His creation. He cares about all of His creation. He cares about every person. As Pastor Bill Bouknight once said, “Every new baby bears the fingerprint of Christ.”

Give glory to God the Son! We give praise because He is the cause of all creation, and because He has the strength to sustain us. The common thread that holds all of creation together is Jesus Christ.

Jesus Christ is the spoken Word of all creation, the reliable revelation of God, and the source of our salvation. But who is Jesus to you? Now is the time to trust in the Lord, follow the Lord, serve the Lord, and worship the Lord. Share His Gospel and lead others to open their heart to receive Jesus as Lord and Savior. Whenever we go to God in prayer, behold the greatness of God.

Deaf Devotion 9/14/2010

Pastor's Note: Please forgive my absence for a couple weeks. It has been full of activity preparing for the launch of Master's Hands Deaf Church (See update below). I thank each person involved in the hard work of preparing the building, assisting in worship and uplifting us in prayer as we start a new journey reaching the Deaf in our area. To God be the Glory! Great things He has done! -Pastor John-

Ahead with today's devotion:

“Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised)” (Hebrews 10:23 KJV)

Let’s be honest. How often do we catch ourselves feeling "hopeful"?

“Hope” is one of those mysterious feelings. It sometimes comes across as an ”emotion” or “view” that we seem to know more when we don’t think about more than when we do think about it. It should not be that way, but it often is. Most times we may not recall the last time we felt hope-full, but we can probably remember the last time we felt hope-less.

Hope, often taken for granted, is nothing more than rock-solid assurance that what God has said is true and will happen. It will happen even when there is nothing except His Word to back up what He says He will do. Hope does not depend on a person’s circumstances. God says our hope is all about our relationship with Jesus Christ. With Jesus as Savior, we ALL have a place in heaven. Jesus said that in His Father’s house are many mansions. That means a place in heaven with your and my name on the door. (Mine has a Starbucks next door too!!!)

Seeing is not the same as believing. Hoping is believing! We walk by faith and not by sight. Hope is the knowledge and confidence that wells up as a result of our believing God. There's a fine line between the two, and one must take a close look to understand fully the difference. A person must believe before they can hope, and hope happens as soon as you believe. So if today we are walking confidently in our relationship with Christ, if we are at peace about today and the future, if Jesus holds the key to your and my future, we are full of hope. We are hope-“full”. When we are hope-“full” there is no room for doubt. A glass full of water will become full before it overflows.

What happens when we become hope-“full”? Our hope overflows and we tell others about the rock-solid assurance that God has a place for EVERYBODY in heaven through a personal relationship of faith in Jesus Christ as Savior.

The Bible says to "hold fast” to the Hope, the assurance, and the promise we already have. It was finished at the cross. When Jesus died, the temple veil was torn. Heaven was opened and God is calling His children to come home through Jesus Christ. Stay hopeful by staying faithful, just as God is faithful.

When we hold fast, it means we are “unshakeable.” It means confidence. It means trust. It means assurance.

When we are “unshakeable” we:
1. Depend on Jesus Christ – It’s not about what we do. It’s about what Jesus did for everyone at the Cross.
2. Plan for Growth – We seek to be the hope-“full” person where the hope we already have overflows to others. It is the growth in a closer relationship with God through faith in Jesus Christ.
3. Meet with friends – We have fellowship with others. We have fellowship with God.
4. Encourage others – Our community strengthens our faith. We see someone struggling we come alongside to encourage. We see someone rejoicing we come alongside and help them share their joy.
5. Stay connected - Too many of us are “off and on” or “hot and cold.” We plug in then we pull out. We’re like yoyos – up and down, up and down. The people who are unshakeable are the ones with the HOPE.

Hope means believing that God is in control when things are otherwise hopeless.

Master's Hands Update

God is good all the time.
We had a wonderful "Launch Sunday" celebration with 22 in attendance.
It was a time of celebration, praise and worship.
A huge thank you goes out to those who gave up their time to make the Master's Hands building a place of worship to honor and exalt God.
The local ABC News came out and did a story on us also.

Here is the link:
http://abclocal.go.com/wjrt/story?section=news/local&id=7660874

Thank you to all who lift us up in prayer as we start a journey together.

God Bless you!

Pastor John

Deaf Devotion 8/28/2010

“Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.” (Psalm 23:4 KJV)

Notice that we walk through the valley of the SHADOW of death. It is not the “valley of death.”It certainly is not Death Valley in California where the average daily temperature is 112 degrees. The writer is also speaking in the present. Meaning it is happening now. It is as if the valleys are something which we cannot avoid. There is a reason for that.

Think about it. Who doesn't love the mountains? The views, the cool, refreshing air, and no mosquitoes! In ancient times both pagan and real worship were always in "high places," These “high places” are mentioned nearly eighty times in the Old Testament. The temple in Jerusalem was on the top of Mount Moriah. It was on a mountaintop where Jesus was transfigured before Peter, James, and John “Six days later, Jesus took with Him Peter and James and John, and brought them up on a high mountain by themselves. And He was transfigured before them.”(Mark 9:2 NASB)

“Transfigured” is from the Greek word “μεταμορφόω” (metamorphoō) which means to change into another form. This is much the same when a caterpillar goes into the cocoon and comes out a butterfly. We go to the cross as sinners and come away from the cross redeemed and forgiven. We go into the valley of the shadow of death with fear and we come out the other side protected and saved. We are new creatures.

As nice as mountaintops are, we live in the valleys below. Even Jesus refused Peter's request to set up shelters on the mountaintop to extend their stay. By their very nature, valleys can be darker with roads that have many bends and turns. Life in the valley has more unexpected twists and turns than life on a high place. We can't see as far or as clearly in the valley, a fact that makes us insecure, even fearful. It is for that reason that God promises to be with us in the valleys of our life. He promises to stand with us even in the valley of the shadow of death.

Breathe deeply of God's goodness on the mountaintop, but when we return to life in the valley, we can know without a shadow of doubt that God goes with us. There is nothing to fear in the valley where we live.

God is God of the mountaintop and God of the valley. This means that God is God on the mountaintop. But He does not stay there. He comes down into the valley to stay with us as the Shepherd and leads us to places of rest and safety. The focus is not the valley or the mountaintop. God calls each and every one of us in a personal way to focus on the Shepherd, the One who is with us.

David says “I will walk, I will not fear, and I will get through…” David did not say, “I walk IN the valley” but “I WALK THROUGH the valley.” That’s why David starts off this Psalm declaring, “The Lord is MY Shepherd.” He does not say “was” or “will be.” Our Shephard is alive in the here and now ready to protect and save. When life blows up in our face and God seems far away and distant, we are not looking for reasons. We need comfort. We don’t need some answers. We need someone. And Jesus does not come to us with an explanation of “why” or “how.” Jesus comes to us with His presence.”

The basic question is not whether we have many or few valleys in life. It is not whether those valleys are dark or not so dark. The question is how we respond to them. How can we get through? Trust in the Shepherd. Depend on Him. We go into the valley at one end and we come out the other end as different people. He is the God of the mountaintop and the God of the valley. Jesus was transfigured on top of the mountain, but He transforms us coming through the valley.

ANNOUNCEMENT - The Deaf Church at Cornerstone

Praise the Lord!

On September 12, 2010 Deaf Church at Cornerstone will become Master's Hands Deaf Church. You may wonder why. The Deaf Church is a separate mission church Cornerstone is planting. We will no longer be in the Cornerstone Baptist Church building but in the building to the west. The address is 6273 Miller Rd., Swartz Creek MI 48473.

Master's Hands Deaf Church is a congregation of Deaf and Hearing individuals started as a mission of Cornerstone Baptist Church with the purpose of bringing the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the Flint, Michigan area.

Cornerstone Baptist Church had a Deaf Ministry for many years and will continue to serve the Deaf. The Deaf Church at Cornerstone began three years ago as a separate Deaf Church within Cornerstone Baptist Church. The focus was Deaf Worship, Sunday School and Bible study which is signed and not interpreted.

Master's Hands Deaf Church is a church where you come as you are and are welcome. We do not get hung up on what you look like. We want you to have a relationship with Jesus Christ. Come expecting to exalt the risen Savior, praise and worship God, and study God's Word to learn God's plan for each person. The goal is to make sure all Deaf know of the salvation God offers through Jesus Christ and by His grace and how to live a victorious life in His Will.

Sunday, September 12, 2010 will be “Launch Sunday.” Deaf Sunday School starts with fellowship at 945am. Deaf Worship is at 11am. Bible Study is Wednesday at 630pm. If you plan to attend and are in need of a voice interpreter, please contact us and we will do our best to provide accommodation for you. Sunday evenings, the service at Cornerstone Baptist Church will continue to be interpreted at 6pm and the Deaf are welcome to join our Hearing brothers and sisters in worship. Master's Hands Deaf Church does have child care and children's programs available with Cornerstone Baptist Church.

I would encourage you to visit and worship with us. If you have questions or need more information, please feel free to contact me. God Bless You! We look forward to seeing you soon at Master's Hands Deaf Church.

Blessings,
John Bienlein
Pastor
Master's Hands Deaf Church

Deaf Devotion 8/20/2010

“Great is the LORD! He is most worthy of praise! No one can measure his greatness." (Psalm 145:3 NLT)

Our God is too big to be contained in facts, formulas, or by limited minds. Trying to explain Him is like a child trying to teach about quantum physics to his friends in the first grade. If we could understand God who has no limits, and pack Him up within our soggy brains, there would be no way He could be eternal, limitless, uplifting, and glorious. It is our own minds that put limits on God. God will never limit Himself in any way.

If we could remove the “mystery” of God, He would not be God after all. As theologian Wayne Grudem wrote, "It is spiritually healthy for us to acknowledge openly that God's very being is far greater than we can ever comprehend."

Another scholar, Henry Morris, adds an important point. Speaking of the person of God, he said, "We cannot really comprehend this with our minds, but we can believe it and rejoice with our hearts." We can sing praise to God who reigns above, the God of all creation, the God of power, the God of love, the God of our salvation. The characteristics of God cannot be fully known by our limited understanding; we just know He is mighty, merciful, and full of majesty.

Many of us know the hymn “How Great Thou Art.” Psalm 145:3 is from where the song is taken. Think about the words.

“O Lord my God” – You are God we are not. We are sinners through and through. But you reach into history to lift us from our sin. Only from your hands can the universe be created, and controlled.

“When I in awesome wonder” - I stand in awe and respect of my Savior, my Salvation and the Creator of the Universe.

“Consider all” – well almost everything as my mind cannot take in all that you do, Lord. Isaiah said that your thoughts are not our thoughts and your ways are not our ways.

“The works Thy Hand hath made” - by your word the entire universe was brought into existence.

“I see the stars” - you want me to count them? Only you know how many, Lord. And you know every name too!

“I hear the mighty thunder” - My mom always said it sounds like angels are bowling. Really, it is you Lord making your awesome power to be felt.

“Thy power throughout” – there is nothing that exists outside of the limitless power of God. Wow that is some power.

“The universe displayed” - His power throughout the universe displayed. It’s HIS POWER that is on display. It’s HIS POWER that shows our sin and weakness. Thank you Lord for showing your power over sin through your Son Jesus Christ, Our Savior.

Then sings my soul, My Savior God, to Thee. “How great Thou art! How great Thou art!” Then sings my soul, My Savior God, to Thee, “How great Thou art! How great Thou art!”

“When Christ shall come” – He said He will be back to bring us all home to heaven. He promised. What He says He will do He will do. God has not yet broken a promise. Can we say the same thing?

“With shouts of acclamation” – Praise, honor, glory, adoration, worship, and approval all belong to your name Lord Jesus.

“And take me home” – We are travelers in a strange land. We long to be home with Jesus.

“What joy shall fill my heart!” – And we mean filled to overflowing. There will be no other thing on which we can focus. Jesus now and always.

“Then I shall bow” – Before the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

“In humble adoration” – To worship only you.

“And there proclaim” – “My God, how great Thou art!"

God is great.
His power and His might is more than we can figure out.
His gentle Spirit brings us peace and calm.
His saving Son brings us eternal life, and takes away all our sin.
And His saving power brings us home to an eternity of humble adoration of the great God we worship.

“And there proclaim” – “My God, how great Thou art!"

“If God were small enough to be understood, He would not be big enough to be worshipped.”
Evelyn Underhill, quoted by Elizabeth Elliot in “Secure in the Everlasting Arms.”

Deaf Devotion 8/13/2010

This is a little late. Brenda and I took a short vacation to Amsterdam.

“We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves.”
(2 Corinthians 4:7 NLT)

I have heard many people say, “I’m at the end of my rope.” What does this mean? To many people it means they cannot take any more negative things happening. They have gone as far as they can and they have now reached the limit of their patience. To others it means there is no more hope. They have exhausted every possibility of help and feel there is no more for them to hold on to.

Most of us do not realize how much we need Jesus until we are burned out from stress. This could be either stress we bring on ourselves or by stress that is caused by circumstances beyond our control.

Why is that?

In today’s verse Paul says it is because we are fragile, but he doesn’t stop there. He says that God made us this way so that His power may be known through us! Maybe someone has said to just tie a knot in the end of your rope and hang on!

We could be at the end of our rope and feel defeated, but we still have Jesus. The joy of knowing Jesus will keep us from being destroyed.

Joy will keep us going when we are at the end of our rope offended by a harsh word or deed. We still have Jesus!
Joy will uphold us when we are at the end of our rope with circumstances and situations. We still have Jesus!
Joy will lift us up when we are at the end of our rope with the actions of friends and family. We still have Jesus!
Joy will make us free when we are at the end of our rope with weeping due to loss and pain. We still have Jesus!

When we are at the end of our rope, when we have lost all patience and hope, we still have Jesus!

Jesus will lift us when happiness is wiped out.
Jesus changes hopelessness to hope fulfilled.
Jesus changes confusion to praise.
Jesus changes questions to truth.
Jesus changes depressed to delivered.
Jesus changes giving up to looking up.
Jesus changes sorrow to joy.
Jesus changes bewildered to strengthened.

All of us know that life is not always fair, bad things happen to good people. Sometimes Christians have financial problems, Sometimes Christians get sick, Sometimes Christians fight personal battles in their marriage, in their minds, even in their flesh, or their appetites. Many times Christians will reach “the end of their rope.” But there is victory in Jesus Christ.

Stop depending on the rope. The rope will not save us. Jesus Christ will save us. It’s time to turn our eyes from how much or how little rope we have left to a faith and trust in Jesus Christ that has no end.

Sometimes God wants us to let go of the rope because it is keeping us tied down to our destructive habits. We are totally dependent on God so that the love of His Son may be made known to the world.

Deaf Devotion 8/2/2010

“For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him.”
(Philippians 2:13 NLT)

One of the greatest secrets I have ever learned is this: God doesn’t want us to do anything FOR Him. He wants to do something THROUGH us.

I have heard people say, “Well, I just serve God in my poor, little, old small way.” I feel like saying, “Well, quit it.” He doesn’t want us to serve Him in our own “poor, little, old small way.” God wants our plans, goals, and pride out of the way, so He can flow through us! We need to make ourselves available to God and say, “God, I’m tired of limiting what you can do. I want to be filled with YOUR Spirit. I want you to live your life through me.”

We need to stop and allow God to show us where we have been standing in HIS way instead of surrendering to God and letting HIM live through us.

This can affect how we relate to each other also. Jesus had to deal with this in His Disciples.

“From then on Jesus began to tell his disciples plainly that it was necessary for him to go to Jerusalem, and that he would suffer many terrible things at the hands of the elders, the leading priests, and the teachers of religious law. He would be killed, but on the third day he would be raised from the dead.

But Peter took him aside and began to reprimand him for saying such things. “Heaven forbid, Lord,” he said. “This will never happen to you!”

Jesus turned to Peter and said, “Get away from me, Satan! You are a dangerous trap to me. You are seeing things merely from a human point of view, not from God’s.” (Matthew 16:21-23 NLT)

Believers are called to be compassionate. “Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.” (Colossians 3:12 NLT)But at the same time we must show sensitivity even when dealing with others. At times, when we step into another person's life with a plan we put together, it puts us in front of God and God cannot put His plan into action. It has to be God's way.

Peter once allowed feelings to cloud his judgment too. Attempting to interfere in the divine plan for Jesus Christ was an experience that he likely never forgot.

Peter knew exactly who Jesus was—namely, the Messiah and Son of the living God, he also held common Jewish misunderstandings about the Messiah's mission. Many Israelites awaited a king who would overthrow Roman rule. Consequently, Peter refused to accept Jesus' warnings of the judgment, mistreatment, and death He anticipated. After trying to convince the Lord that such an end was attempting to upset God's will.

Peter had a narrow view of God's plan. Jesus’ priority was to set free people’s hearts from sin rather than people’s bodies from government authority. Peter's wrong views led him into open rebellion. Do not make his mistake. Seek God's will before offering compassionate aid, lest we block His unfolding plan.

What sometimes we fail to understand is that God’s plans can be different from our plans. The truth is that we should expect that God’s plans will be different than our plans.

Understand that we should never, never, never stop acting in love to help one another. Let’s just do it with God and not ahead of God.

The greatest test of our commitment to God is when God’s plan is different to ours. Peter believed that stopping Jesus was the loving thing to do. No doubt, Peter thought that this would be the greatest display of love to the Savior that could ever be expressed. But, Jesus knew better that the most loving thing would be to follow God’s plan that would take Him to the Cross, to death, to the tomb, and then to resurrection Sunday. That is the love Jesus has for you and me. Peter’s version of love would have stopped salvation’s plan. God’s version of love made salvation available to all who will believe.

God asks us, “Are you willing to make whatever changes might be necessary in your life to follow me?” if not, we will not hear from God and we need to get out of His way. But if we are sincerely willing to let God make changes in our life and work through us to the glory of His perfect plan, then we are in a position to hear God speak!

Deaf Devotion 7/23/2010

“Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ.” (1 Corinthians 11:1 KJV)

At first glance it looks like Paul is talking about becoming a person that really follows Jesus from place to place always looking for something else. Like they are looking for something Jesus to do something better, something more exciting, or even something more meaningful. In this verse, if one were to study the Greek means for us to be imitators of Jesus just as Paul became an imitator of Jesus.

Everything Jesus taught, Paul taught. Every insult Jesus took, Paul took. Every step Jesus took, Paul took. Paul became an imitator of Jesus even to the point of death. Paul faced death several times only to be spared because God had a bigger mission in mind for him. For Jesus, His mission was to die for all sin. Only Jesus could do that. Paul could not and knew it. So he became an imitator of Jesus

What does it mean to “imitate?” To imitate is to copy the characteristics of an example as closely as possible. It means to act like someone or something. It also means to do all one can to equal, excel, or match the example.

Paul had a certain attitude that Christians are wise to imitate, follow, or copy. He reveals some of his heart in 1 Corinthians chapter 11.

There is humility. Pride cannot hide in the heart of a believer who understands God’s mercy. Paul spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ because he believed that God’s grace, which was sufficient to save a sinner like him, and is more than adequate for anyone to become saved and have eternal life.

Paul had a sense of responsibility. He never lost sight of how far God's grace had brought him and he frequently reminded believers of his role in persecuting the church. Paul says, “even though I was formerly a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent aggressor, yet I was shown mercy because I acted ignorantly in unbelief.” (1 Timothy 1:13 NASB) Paul's gratitude for salvation from that former life never decreased. The book of Acts records the almost constant turmoil and heartache of his travels, and yet he kept praising the Lord for the honor of serving.

Paul also knew dependence. To describe the source of his strength, Paul used these words: "But whatever I am now, it is all because God poured out his special favor on me—and not without results. For I have worked harder than any of the other apostles; yet it was not I but God who was working through me by his grace." (1 Corinthians 15:10 NLT) He knew what it was like to depend upon one's own goodness and work to be religious. It took Jesus to show Paul how foolish this is and then Paul wanted no part of it. Paul desired more dependence on Jesus and no dependence on himself. “Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ.” (Philippians 3:8 NLT)

Paul took on a spirit of absolute confidence. At the end of his life, Paul was as certain as ever that God was real, in charge, and worthy of all honor, glory, and praise. He knew no other Savior because there is no other Savior. He knew no other Gospel because there was no other truth. For Paul Christ is everything, God’s grace is sufficient, and he could rest in the knowledge that God is in control.

Do we see these attitudes in ourselves? If not, sneak a peek here at Paul’s heart for God. Do not be just a follower, but a “doer.” Become a person who takes the humility, responsibility, confidence, and dependence taught by Jesus and copies those attitudes in everything we do. Paul did it. We can too.

Deaf Devotion 7/19/2010

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.” (John 3:16-17 KJV)

Is there any clearer message that God wants everyone in a relationship with Jesus Christ?

Okay...check this out. This past Sunday was one of those days when God really blessed The Deaf Church at Cornerstone. I had finished preaching on becoming soul winners. How our responsibility becomes to reach out to as many people as possible with the Gospel of Salvation – The Gospel of Jesus Christ. I was finished and the only way I can explain this is to say that the Holy Spirit led me to add to my message.

We had three visitors this past Sunday. I simply said that if there was anyone there that did not know Jesus as Savior or if they were not sure that Jesus really is their Savior, to talk to either myself or another believer. We can share the Gospel to show how to have the assurance they can be with Jesus today if something were to happen.

One person is saved and knows it. Another is not yet saved but is not really a “religious person.” They made the comment that they thought the Bible is a nice story to encourage people to act right. The third person raised their hand and said that they always felt they were saved but has made too many mistakes to really be saved.

I have heard many reasons why people are uncertain about their eternal future. "I sin too much," says one. "I don't feel saved, Pastor," says another. Someone else worries that he or she did not follow the "right procedure" to ask for forgiveness. Still others have erroneously learned from their families or churches that no one can be sure of salvation.

My response to all of these has been and will stay the same: “If you believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and that His death on the cross purchased God's forgiveness for your sins, then you are saved. And you can be sure. From this point forward this is not something that will be lost nor can it be taken away.

Why?

God's promises never change. He said that those who trust in His Son would have eternal life. “I tell you the truth. Those who listen to my message and believe in God who sent me have eternal life. They will never be condemned for their sins, but they have already passed from death into life.” (John 5:24 NLT) What's more, a believer cannot be snatched from God's hand “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one can snatch them away from me, for my Father has given them to me, and he is more powerful than anyone else. No one can snatch them from the Father’s hand. The Father and I are one.” (John 10:27-30 NLT)

The Lord loves us completely. Nothing can separate a believer from God's love “And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love.” (Romans 8:38 NLT) Satan's charges against us can never change how precious we are to our Father.

The Savior's work on the cross is finished. Jesus Christ made one perfect sacrifice—His own life. In this single act, He atoned for every sinful deed, word, and thought. When we receive His salvation, it is ours forever.

God loves us so much that He sent His Son to die for our sins so we could live eternally in His presence. It really is that simple. Whatever our doubts, ask the Holy Spirit to confront them with biblical truth. He will quietly assure our hearts that we are God's children forever.

The question is not about how we can reach Deaf with the Gospel. Our prayer should always be, “Lord, lead me and show me how to be a soul winner today.” That is the challenge I put before us. Dare to be a soul winner.

I will tell you this. From Sunday one person is sure, the other had seeds of faith planted and the other prayed and accepted Jesus as their Savior once and for all with the assurance that we all make mistakes and that Jesus knows and will be faithful to forgive. God be praised for an awesome opportunity to witness! It’s not about us witnessing, it’s making sure that everyone has the saving relationship with Jesus Christ.

“I am willing, God is able.
God is able. I am willing.”

Deaf Devotion 7/12/2010

“But when Daniel learned that the law had been signed, he went home and knelt down as usual in his upstairs room, with its windows open toward Jerusalem. He prayed three times a day, just as he had always done, giving thanks to his God. Then the officials went together to Daniel’s house and found him praying and asking for God’s help.” Daniel 6:10-11 NLT

I send you greetings from the twin cities of Minneapolis-St Paul. I am here for a training conference and will be home Tuesday evening.

Do we dare to pray? Or does the world say, “How dare you pray?”Or is prayer something that is just so commonplace that it really does not have a special place in our worship of God or our devotion time with God? Paul says in I Thessalonians that we are to always have an attitude of prayer and be ready to pray at the time God calls us to pray. Paul seems to say pray when it seems right and when it just does not seem right. Paul says to, like Daniel, dare to pray when things are good and when things are not so good.

Daniel had three choices. Each choice carries a price tag with a high cost. Daniel could decide not to pray and that would cost him his fellowship with God. Daniel could also decide to hide and pray in secret. This would cost him the ability to influence people around him. Finally, Daniel could decide to continue to pray and that would cost him his life.

We may not face a real lion’s den or fiery furnace like Daniel did. But we will all face trials where we feel the lions are circling looking to devour and there are times when we feel the flames of trouble burning our toes. But we go on. We go on with business as usual. We serve a Savior who is able to go into the lion’s den. We serve a Savior who stands with us in the flames of temptation and denial. We serve a Christ who is able to see us through. We must keep our eyes on the Lord and not on the lions or on the heat from the flames.

Someone we know may be in a lion’s den. It could be a lion’s den of a broken marriage. It may be a lion’s den of a broken family. It may be furnace fueled by the loss of one’s health. God is calling us to prayer for those people that He will show Himself mighty in their situation. Paul said that God’s grace is more than enough for whatever we face. God will stand with us and He will not leave until we are on the other side of the problem.

And we can learn that the difference between Daniel and most of us is, Daniel served God continually. But most of us serve God when it is comfortable and convenient. We serve Him until we can’t get our way anymore. We serve Him as long as everything is going our way. Am I right about it!? But Daniel answers, my God is able. Daniel also knew that God had sent deliverance from the Lions and from the furnace.

Daniel is an incredible person to look at for a life study. He shows us with living example what it is to live in a society wants nothing to do with God and His Word. Looking to his life we learn how to live in the world around us … to separate ourselves from the grip of the world and at the same time make an impact upon it for the cause of the kingdom. Have you dared to be a Daniel this week?

Be a Daniel … dare to pray!

Deaf Devotion 7/5/2010

Psalm 121:1-2 "I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help. My help cometh from the LORD, which made heaven and earth."

It is a holiday weekend here in the United States. Let me ask you this. When you stand for the National Anthem or say the Pledge of Allegiance do you still put your hand on your heart? I was taught to do it and still do it with pride. I was surprised recently at those who do not. It also makes me sad.

I have heard people say that it takes one person to make a change. I would like to respectfully disagree. It takes two. It takes us AND God. Without God nothing is successful. But it must start with us and we must include God.

In preparing for yesterday’s sermon, I came across this:

In his book “The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire,” completed in 1787, British historian and Member of Parliament Edward Gibbon lists the he thought the Roman Empire failed.

1. The rapid increase of divorce; the weakening of dignity and sacredness of the home, which is the basis of human society.
2. Higher and higher taxes and the spending of public money for free bread and circuses for the people.
3. The mad craze for pleasure; sports becoming every year more exciting and more brutal.
4. The building of gigantic armaments when the real enemy was within: the corruption of the people.
5. The decay of religion—faith fading into mere form—losing touch with life and becoming impotent to guide the people.

Does that sound like something we are experiencing today? But wait, there’s more.

On a typical day in this country:
- 5,962 couples marry and 2,986 divorce
- drunk drivers do $18 million worth of damage
- 90 million cans of beer are consumed
- 2,740 teenagers get pregnant
- 63,288 cars crash killing 129 people
- 3,231 women have abortions

What’s our hope? Not in government. Not in the military. And not even in the genius of Americans, if they are any! Here is our only hope:

Psalm 121:1-2 (NLT) “I lift up my eyes to the hills—where does my help come from? My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth.”

What do we need to do help turn America around? There is no magic solution to save America. To save America we must share the Gospel. We must share the Good News of salvation in Jesus Christ.

We must repent. “If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” (2 Chronicles 7:14 KJV)
If people cannot see Christ through us in what we do, then we can’t expect anyone else to do what God expects. We have to set the right example for others to follow. Even Paul said “Imitate me in the ways that I imitate Christ.” (1Corinthians 11:1 KJV) Or in other words, “Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.”

We must pray and always have an attitude that is ready to pray. “I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. Ask God to help them; intercede on their behalf, and give thanks for them. Pray this way for kings and all who are in authority so that we can live peaceful and quiet lives marked by godliness and dignity.” (1 Timothy 2:1-2 NLT)
When we pray and ask of the Lord. He will do things that we cannot do! And we need to ask Him to do something in America! We need to pray for our leaders, if nothing else we must pray for them to come to their senses and seek the Lord!

We must be people that show trust in God. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.” (Proverbs 3:5-6 NLT)
We obey God in what He has already planned. Then we trust that He will work out the details. God knows what He s doing and He knows far better what is best than you and me know what is best.

We must tell others about Jesus Christ. The Institute for American Church Growth asked over 10,000 people this question: “What was responsible for your coming to Christ and this church?” This is how they replied:
(1) I had a special need 2%
(2) I just walked in 3%
(3) I like the Minister 6%
(4) I visited there 1%
(5) I like the Sunday school 5%
(6) I attended a Revival service 1/2 of 1%
(7) I liked the programs 3%
(8) A friend or relative invited me 79%

Acts 8:4 says of the early Christians: “Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went.”

Can we do less than they did? I really think Christians in America have lost this passion for sharing the Gospel. Did they believe more than we do? Was their faith stronger? What’s the difference?

I don’t believe there is any hopeless situation and certainly not, when the Lord is involved.

We are all individuals. There really is only one person who can make things right when things go wrong. Things do go wrong in life. We’ve seen things go terribly wrong in America and the Lord is only hope of changing things and making life better.

Pray and ask Jesus to show us how we can make a difference for His name in America today. “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.” (Philippians 4:13 KJV)

Deaf Devotion 6/28/2010

“Together as one body, Christ reconciled both groups to God by means of his death on the cross, and our hostility toward each other was put to death.” (Ephesians 2:16 NLT)

“Hostility” – unfriendliness; resentment; lack of sympathy; anger; animosity.

I had to ask the question, “Why are people so hostile against God?” Some people are downright mean in how the approach God, treat God, and in what they expect from God or expect God to do. Is it because He is righteous and we are not? Is it because He is holy and we are not? Is it because He is in control and we are not? Is it because He is God and we are not?

No, that’s not it. The answer my friends, is with us. It is pride. It is plain and simple pride. We want to believe we can do more than God and get ahead of Him in His plan. It’s not going to happen. We cannot give more than God and we cannot give up more than God gave up.

Pride’s primary fruit is HOSTILITY.

The word is only found in the New Testament, here in Ephesians 15 and 16 and once in Luke 23:12. We’re told there that Herod and Pilate did not get along too well. It was a political thing. They were hostile toward one another. That ended when Pilate sent Jesus to be judged by Herod, and Herod having his ego properly stroked, softened toward Pilate and after that they were best buddies. Awww... how sweet.

It is interesting that the three times this word is used in the New Testament, Jesus the one who is somehow involved in erasing it.

Up in heaven is the holy God; down below is the sinful man. And sin is what separates us from God and God from us. We have an empty void in our soul, so we are constantly trying to reach God. But he cannot get past the sin barrier.

Then God, who wanted to have mercy on us and our hopeless situation said, “I will do something.” God sent His Son, the Lord Jesus, to make a way. And upon the rough sawn timbers of a cross, Jesus gave His life so you and I could not only live forever, but also live forgiven forever.

All of our sin for all time was judged, condemned, and came under the fire of God’s wrath, in the body of His Son, Jesus Christ there on that cross.

There’s a song that goes, “There’s a bridge to cross the great divide. There’s a cross the bridge the great divide.” Jesus built that bridge between man and God with His life and His blood. It’s a bridge man could never build and a bridge that man can never take away. God made a way that we couldn’t make — for you and for me. Since Jesus built a bridge of love for us to be reconciled to God, it's our turn to build a bridge of love to someone who is lost and searching.

Drop the pride. Drop the Hostility. Right now we all know a person who needs to accept Jesus as Savior. Tell them now how to live forever forgiven.

Deaf Devotion 6/21/2010

“How much more do I need to say? It would take too long to recount the stories of the faith of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and all the prophets.” (Hebrews 11:32 NLT)

I’m letting you know. I’m going to get personal.

Last week was a tough week for me personally. I saw my job of eight years given to somebody else. I saw my office closed. I saw my friends and co-workers laid off. It was tough. I saw the reality that if I want to continue working, I must transfer to an office in another city.

But the focus is not me. Personally, I would like to focus more on God’s work. I sometimes wonder just how bi-vocational Pastors do it. There is so much work, but not that much time. Frankly, I would rather be a Pastor full time teaching Deaf and hearing how to share Jesus Christ. I would rather do that than anything else, but it’s up to God to prepare me for that.

My goal is to obey God’s call, and let Him work out the details to lead me to what He wants me to do. My responsibility is to be obedient. It is the same for all of us.

God led me in my personal devotion time to the verse in Hebrews and what I realized is that even the writers of Scripture ran out of time. The author of Hebrews 11, who is assumed to be Paul, wanted to list the Old Testament heroes of faith, but by the time he covered the ones in Genesis, he was almost out of space. He snuck in a handful of examples of Godly faith from the early books of the Bible, and then regretted that it would take too long to tell ALL the stories he wanted to tell. Do you have a story to tell?

In heaven, we'll have no limitations; but here on earth we have only so many years, days, hours, and seconds. The Bible tells us to "number our days" and to "redeem the time" because, frankly, life here is short.

“So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom. “ (Psalm 90:12 KJV)
“Make the most of every opportunity in these evil days.” (Ephesians 5:16 NLT)

We can't do everything, so let's ask God to show us day by day the work He has assigned us. A good prayer upon awakening each morning is: "It’s your plan today, Lord!" A good bedtime blessing is: "I have finished the work you gave me to do today."

With my new schedule at work, I regret to say that I will need to cut back the devotions from two times a week to once a week. I am planning to publish the devotions on Mondays, one of my days off. I feel like maybe I am letting down some people or even letting God down in some way.

But I’m not. Satan wants me to think I have let you down or let God down. But I don’t have time to listen to Satan’s lies. I am going to continue teaching and preaching from God’s Word the grace, mercy, and love that God has for all. I will continue reaching people with the Gospel by this devotion. There is so much God has blessed me with and I want to teach and I want to use this devotion to teach as well as teaching at preaching at church. But it’s not about what I want. It’s about what God wants

In the end God is still God, Jesus Christ is still Lord, Savior, and the King of Kings. Keep it that way. Use the time God allows us to glorify Him, expand His Kingdom, spread His Gospel, and tell people about Jesus.

Remember, if you have Jesus, you have the prize. There is a place in heaven for you. Now the goal becomes to bring as many people with us as possible. Use the time to tell friends, family, and those God sends our way about eternal life with Jesus Christ. Get personal with people. Don’t let anyone live another day without Jesus Christ.

How much more do I need to say?