Pastor Stephen Dedman

Tag: Living Word Baptist Church

You Are Not Alone

Encouragement, Faith

‘Then the Lord God said, “It is not good that the man should abe alone; I will make him a helper fit for him.” ‘
Genesis 2:18

After God created man, He said, “it is not good that man should be alone.” God wants us to love others and to be loved by others. It’s important that we have social interaction with others and feel a sense of community and fellowship. Maintaining healthy relationships with others is vital to a healthy lifestyle, physically and spiritually.

There are some negative effects of loneliness that could have an impact on your health. Studies have shown that those who feel lonely or isolated choose more unhealthy food options and are less motivated. Loneliness can also lead to depression.

The devil tries to isolate you and make you feel like a prisoner in solitary confinement. He tries to eliminate your community and fellowship with others. But God provided a solution to the problem and created other people.

He told Adam and Eve to be fruitful and multiply. (Genesis 1:28) After the flood He told Noah and his sons to be fruitful and multiply. (Genesis 9:1) He told Jacob to be fruitful and multiply. (Genesis 35:11) God wants us to be with and around other people.

We have become a society that avoids people and personal, social contact. We even have a fear that contact with others will cause sickness and the spread of viruses. We need to use caution but we still need personal interaction with others.

Do you know someone who lives alone? Have you noticed someone close to you not being as social anymore? Reach out to that someone today and let them know they are loved by you and loved by God.

Are you feeling a sense of loneliness? As a Christian you are not alone. Christ is living inside of you and He is with you. The Holy Spirit is our Helper and Comforter. Jesus said, “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.” (John 14:18)

Pray

Lord, give me peace and comfort through Your Spirit today. Help me to notice who is lonely and share Your love and comfort with them. Thank You for giving us the Holy Spirit to help us.

Trust Jesus’ Commands

Faith

‘And when they ran out of wine, the mother of Jesus said to Him, “They have no wine.”’
John 2:3

What do you do when you have problems? Our problems are actually good opportunities for God to show us what He can do. They give God the opportunity to work on our behalf and display His glory.

Jesus’ mother knew exactly what to do with the problem. She went straight to Jesus and said, “They have no wine.” It is interesting to note that Mary did not tell Jesus what to do or how to resolve it. In verse 5, Mary simply said to the servants, “Whatever He says to you, do it.”

When we give our problems to the Lord, we trust Him to work on our behalf and we do whatever He commands us to do. We must remain faithful and obedient to the Lord regardless if it makes sense or not. Jesus turned the water into wine because the servants were obedient to Jesus.

Most of the time we want to tell Jesus how to fix our problems. However the most important thing to do when we give our problems to the Lord is be obedient and patient. Do whatever He tells you to do.

The servants obeyed the words of Jesus and had faith that He had a plan. They could have easily came up with excuses and reasons of why not to go fill up the water pots, but they didn’t. In the end, the servants were not only witnesses of the miracle, they were participants in it.

What is the Lord telling you to do? Allow the Lord to turn problems into opportunities. Only the Lord can do such marvelous works.

Pray

Lord, when You speak I will listen and obey. Help me today to do Your will and let me witness a marvelous work.

Make Him A King

Encouragement, Trust

‘Therefore when Jesus perceived that they were about to come and take Him by force to make Him king, He departed again to the mountain by Himself alone.’
John 6:15

After Jesus fed the 5,000 men, the Jews sought to make Him king. The Jews had often suffered famine in those times allowing their surrounding nations and enemies to prevail against them. Once they saw the power that Jesus had to multiply a few loaves of bread they instantly thought He was the one who could also provide protection against their evil enemies.

Their plan would get rid of king Herod, who allowed the Romans to be in power, and force Jesus to bring control back for the Jews. Jesus perceived this notion either by divine revelation or by watching circumstances unfold. So before the Jews could team together and form a new government, Jesus departed to the mountain to be alone and to pray to the Father.

If Jesus would have become king on earth, He would have never went to the cross where He essentially conquered the entire world. Jesus was fully aware of what was happening and knew the hearts of men. It is also possible that the disciples themselves were going along with making Him king because it would give them a seat of power in Jesus’ kingdom.

Sometimes we get the wrong idea about what God is doing in our life. We must be careful to make sure that we are submitting to His will and not trying to accomplish our agenda. We know the power of God and we want to see great things happen but it’s not always the plan of God to do so. We must be patient and wait upon the Lord.

Pray

Lord, You know all things and I don’t. I submit myself to your authority and I will wait for You to instruct me. Help me to know Your will and Your way.