Give And Do Not Refuse

October 30, 2019 Pastor Stephen Dedman Encouragement, Trust

Give And Do Not Refuse

Give to the one who begs from you, and do not refuse the one who would borrow from you.
‭‭Matthew‬ ‭5:42‬ ‭

A Right Heart

In the sermon on the mount, Jesus is addressing the issues that plague the heart. Real heart issues that really have an effect on how we treat others and how we live our lives publicly and privately. Most of the issues that Jesus covered are issues that most people have when they are selfish and motivated by self pleasing ambitions.

Jesus says to give to the those who beg and don’t refuse to lend to those who ask to borrow. The heart issue here deals with greed. Most of the time we are not quick to give or lend because we have a greedy mindset. When it comes to our personal possessions we tend to get very selfish. When someone comes to us with a need and we have the means to meet that need we should be quick to help. Most of the time we want information that we should not necessary need. For example we ask a lot of questions when someone wants to borrow money and we test to see if it is really a need or not. What Jesus is getting to in this idea is that when we have a brother or sister in Christ who needs our help we should be willing to help them quickly.

If we see a person who is in need we should be quick to help them before they ever ask for help. 1 John 3:17 says, “But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in Him?” If we see someone in need we need to meet that need. The issue lies in the heart. Are you more concerned with your possessions or serving God?

Prayer

Lord, show me someone who needs my help. Let me be quick to see the need before they ever ask for help. Thank you for blessing me with what I have.

I Am With You

October 28, 2019 Pastor Stephen Dedman Encouragement, Trust

I Am With You

Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.
‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭41:10‬

His Presence Is Everything

This is a verse we all should memorize and keep close to our hearts. Whenever you feel that God may not be listening, remember this promise. Or when you feel you just can’t make it another day, know that God is still there. When you just cannot do it, He will. He holds everything together in the palm of His hand.

The truth of this great verse is found in the promise of His presence. We never know what we may encounter from day to day, but we can count on God being right here with us. If we have fear, His presence is all we need. If we are without understanding, His wisdom surrounds us. When we are lacking, He fills us with His love. The power of His presence is overwhelming when we realize how close He is. God is not far away. As a Christian, He is living inside of you. He wants to be part of your life.

We should seek and desire His presence everyday. Moses said to God in Exodus 33:15, “If Your presence will not go with me, do not bring us up from here.” Moses didn’t want to make a move until he knew God was going with them. Moses was so use to seeking His presence that He would be lost without it. That should be our same attitude and desire. God’s presence is the most important thing we know. The Holy Spirit is God’s presence.

Prayer

Praise Him out loud by saying or singing, “You are my strength, You are my help, You are my God!”

Not My Will

October 26, 2019 Pastor Stephen Dedman Encouragement, Trust

Not My Will

Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.
Luke 22:42

God’s Will

As Jesus was praying in the Garden of Gethsemane the night before He was to be crucified, He was intensely praying for God’s will to be done. Divinely, Jesus knew what needed to be done but on the humanity side He was dreadful of what was to come. This verse points to the fact that Jesus was fully man and fully God.

Jesus was praying for God to remove the cup of suffering. He was praying if there could be any other way besides the cross then let it be. But if not, then the will of the Father is best. Jesus wanted the will of God to be done, perfectly. This should be our prayer as well. We should pray for God’s will to be done in our life not matter what. No matter what suffer, loss, or anguish we must face it will be for the Lord’s sake.

Sometimes we don’t fully seek the will of God for our lives. We seek was pleases us the most and when we face a mess we turn to God for help. God’s will is always best for us but it’s not always the easiest. We too may face suffering and shame in our walk with God but in the end we should always remember that if it is God’s will then it is the best way. It’s hard sometimes to agree to have God’s will to be done in our life but we should yield our will and way to His. Since God knows all things and He knows the future then we need to pray the same prayer that Jesus prayed.

Prayer

Lord, today, nonetheless, not my will, but yours, be done. I submit to your will and way for my life.