Pastor Stephen Dedman

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Tell The Good News

Trust

‘Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.” ‘
John 20:21

One of the worst things is for Christians to remain silent. It is our duty and responsibility to share our faith just as Jesus sent the disciples to do. How are you sharing your faith with others?

There’s no better time than now to share the Good News of Jesus Christ! The world needs to hear it and see it. And we need to proclaim it and live it. We miss too many opportunities to share our testimony or share the love of Jesus with those we come into contact with.

God has chosen us to be His witnesses in this world. That doesn’t mean that we must stand on a street corner and condemn people of their sins. We share our faith with others because we are concerned with their eternal destiny. We have Good News to give and they want it; they just don’t know what to do with it, yet.

If you have a voice, speak about Jesus. If you can sing, sing aloud to Heaven so others will hear a joyful noise. Can you teach? Teach someone the truth of God’s word. Are you called to preach? Proclaim the full Gospel of Jesus Christ. Can you write? Use your skillset so others may know the love of Jesus Christ.

The Devil wants you silent. Jesus wants you to witness. Loving others is a good witnessing tool. People want to be loved and people need to be loved. Today is a good day to share your faith with someone who needs the love of Jesus.

Pray

Lord, give me boldness to speak my faith when I’m tempted to remain silent. Let me show love and kindness to someone who needs it today.

Doing It For The Lord

Encouragement

‘And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ. ‘
Colossians 3:23-24

Mediocrity and laziness have no place in the Christian life. We must always maintain integrity and reliability. Our work habits and labor reflect in our personal relationship with the Lord. God always wants us to do our best.

We will always have people in our lives that will disappoint us, neglect us, mistreat us, and even betray us. Some will demand that we give to them while offering nothing in return. And that is why Paul instructs us to do everything enthusiastically as to the Lord and not to people.

There is a big difference between doing something for people and doing something for the Lord. Working for the Lord changes our perspective as we view our endeavors in light of what He has done for us. Our efforts are never overlooked when we know we are doing it all for the Lord.

You may have a boss that doesn’t appreciate you, a friend who isn’t loyal, or a spouse who doesn’t respect you, but that does not give you the right to cut corners, gossip or cheat in return. God demands that we love others the same way He does. We are to treat others according to the way God treats us.

Pay close attention as to why you do what you do. Are you doing things to please others or to please the Lord? God is worthy of our best effort.

Pray

Lord, increase my abilities to always give my best in everything I do. Give me wisdom to understand that I am working for You and You will reward my efforts. Thank You for giving me strength, knowledge and wisdom to do what I do.

The Righteousness Of Jesus

Faith, Salvation

“But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, He saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to His own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit,”
‭‭Titus‬ ‭3:4-5‬

Do you ever find yourself trying to do something good to make up for the wrong you’ve done? It’s very common for us to think good works will justify the bad, but that’s far from the truth.

The truth is we could never do enough good to outweigh the bad. In addition, we could never do enough good works to get us into Heaven.

God saves us through the righteousness and holiness of Jesus Christ. Because of the good deeds of Jesus Christ, we are found righteous unto God. But only those who believe in Jesus as Lord and Savior of their life can be saved and forgiven.

So why do we do good deeds to cover up the bad? This is how human nature works. Truth be told we want to clear our conscience and expect good things to happen. If we do good to others then good will be done to us, right?

The problem is we think this way about God as well. We think if we do more good than bad then we are ok. That’s not the case and we need to rethink this. God is holy. Even if we did one wrong thing it’s enough to keep us from spending eternity in Heaven.

God knew we needed to be saved so He sent to us a Savior. It’s not about our good works. It’s all about our faith in Jesus. Jesus renews our souls and gives us life. Jesus forgives our sins and gives us justification. Now we have the Holy Spirit who convicts us of our sins and directs us to serve Him.

Pray

Lord, I know You were sent from Heaven to save the world of sin. I know You have saved me of my sins. Thank you for giving me eternal life. May I do good only to please You.