I know the Lord desires that daily communion because he filled me with his Spirit, the Holy Ghost, the promise he made to his disciples when he told them, “Even the Spirit of truth, … he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.”  I also know there are other things competing for my time and attention; and though they are certainly not as important, they often carry a greater sense of urgency.  Mark put it this way by saying, “And the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful.”  I have found, within myself, that when I give place to every mosquito of life through the day (reasoning that later will be a more convenient time to  pray, read, and meditate with the Lord),  by the end of the day (with my mind numb and by body weary) communing with the Lord no longer seems convenient.  However, when I take the time, to include the Lord in my day … throughout the day, desiring that closeness with Him, creating that place for Him; then, I am more intensely aware of His presence, am more at peace, more joyful … and in turn more aware of opportunities and more willing to share the love of God and the joy of that I feel with others.

David, in preparing a place for the ark, in making the journey (moving it) the way the Lord had specified, in sacrificing and praising through word and song all along the way, laid the foundation for a glorious celebration of victory where he danced confidently with joy before the Lord with all his might.  Let us prepare a place for the Lord as well, let us order our daily life by his word, let us sing his praises and testify of his infinite grace and mercy; and ultimately let us shout the glory down as we victoriously celebrate His entry! Hallelujah!!!

GOD BLESS AND HAVE A GREAT WEEK!

Bro. Mickey

My son, John, recently introduced me to a wonderful biography about a man named Louis Zamperini.  He overcame seemingly insurmountable odds to lead a great life.  He started out on the wrong foot as a young boy, but his older brother helped get him on the right track and he went on to become a 1936 Olympic medal winner in track, almost breaking the four-minute mile (despite his competitors willfully injuring him during the course of the race).   When World War II broke out he became a gunner aboard a B-24 bomber.  His plane crashed into the Pacific Ocean during a routine flight, and he and the pilot survived over 45 days aboard a life raft before drifting within reach of the Marshal Islands (then controlled by the Japanese).  Before they could reach land they were picked up by the enemy and spent over two years in various POW camps suffering daily beatings, humiliating mental torture, starvation, and disease before being released, following Japan’s surrender.  After returning home, he continued to be plagued by the haunting images of his captors (one particularly abusive officer who was called “The Bird”).   Those memories filled his waking hours and followed him into sleep each night.  He sought relief through drinking and soon became an alcoholic.  He became obsessed with the idea that if he could only return to Japan, find “The Bird”, and repay him in kind by torturing then killing him, he would finally be able to free himself from the nightmares and flashbacks.  Through his drinking, depression, and growing rage, he nearly lost his family (his wife left temporarily with their daughter before eventually returning).  He never was able to free himself by taking revenge on “The Bird”; however Louis Zamperini did find the freedom he so desperately desired.  And it came unexpectedly in a place he never would have imagined.

His wife had started attending a nearby tent revival and had decided to serve the Lord.  She finally talked Louis into attending a service.  When it came time for the altar call, he grabbed her and they left .  The revival continued on for several more days and she kept trying to convince him to return with her.  However, he had already  reached a point where he doubted the very existence of God and had decided that if there even were a God he could not be a good, kind one because of all the atrocities he had allowed Louis and others to suffer during the war.  His wife persisted and even used a bit of trickery to finally get him to attend one of the final nights of the revival.  As the service progressed and the sermon came to a close, Louis was reminded of a particular time during his days on the raft, when he had concluded there surely was a God and at that moment had prayed, “Lord if you will save my life, I will live the rest of my life for you.”   A flood of emotions overcame Louis; anger toward God for all he had endured, guilt for not having followed through with the vow he had made, and an overwhelming sense of how awful his life had become through drinking and obsession with revenge. With his mind swirling and sweat breaking out on his forehead, he once again grabbed his wife’s arm and began ushering her toward the exit.  However as they reached the center aisle, he stopped.  With his mind racing a million miles an hour he paused briefly and then turned, not toward the exit but instead toward the altar.

He had concluded that the Lord had not “done” those things to him, but had actually been with him and “sustained” him through them all, every hardship throughout his life.  In that moment of repentance Louis Zamperini received forgiveness from Jesus Christ for his own sins, and in turn forgave “The Bird” and his other captors who had so abused and dehumanized him during his days as a POW.  His hatred fell away and was replaced with compassion.  He returned home that evening, the weight of the world no longer on his shoulders, poured all his liquor down the sink, and ripped up his cigarettes and threw them in the trash.  He was never again plagued with nightmares or flashbacks from the war.  He and his older brother went on to create social programs to provide guidance and encouragement to children who had started out on the wrong foot.   He became an accomplished public speaker, sharing the testimony of his life with groups both large and small.  Later on, after receiving word that “The Bird” was still alive and had been located, he asked to meet with his former captor face-to-face; however, “The Bird” refused.  Louis sent him a letter confirming his forgiveness for him and his hopes that he would also one day become a christian.  Louis continued to run well into his late eighties and early nineties, and was privileged to carry the Olympic torch along part of it’s route in the 2008 Olympics.  As of the date of this writing, he is still living and sharing his testimony with others.

As I read the book, I was struck by the power of forgiveness.  When we are unwilling to forgive, holding on to hatred, bitterness, offences, and possibly shame for our own failures; when we strive to make others “pay” for what they have done to us, we chain ourselves to them, we bind ourselves to the pain that was inflicted on us, and time stands still.  Whether days or decades ago, we remain in the moment(s), we relive it/them.  However, when we forgive others and ourselves (I believe a huge part of forgiving is realizing that we are all flawed, broken creatures before a loving God who is more than willing to forgive us) we are set free.  It is then and only then that we rise above the pain and hurt, out of the darkness and into the light of a new day … a day wide open, full of potential and promise.

Can you forgive today?  Will you forgive?  Don’t wait.  Do it today, right now.  Forgive others, forgive yourself, and receive Christ’s forgiveness.

GOD BLESS AND HAVE A GREAT WEEK!

Eccl. 9:10 tells us, “Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest.”; and Gal. 6:10 states, “As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.”  I encourage you to take action today; do good things today that move you towards the positive goals you have set; do things today that change you so that you become the best person you can envision yourself to be; do things today that positively affect those you contact  (especially those who reside within your circle of influence).

God bless and have a great week!

As the story goes, two gentlemen stood by the coffin of their deceased friend during the visitation.  As they looked down on his earthly remains, one commented to the other,”I wonder how much he left?”  After a brief pause the other friend slowly remarked,”All of it.”  Ecclesiastes 5:15 tells us that we will take nothing of our earthly labor with us on the day of our departure from this life.  Furthermore, it says, just as we entered into the world (naked) so shall we leave it.  However, even though we cannot take anything with us, we can ensure there is something waiting for us at the close of this life.

Matt. 6:20 encourages us to lay up for ourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust  can corrupt it, and where thieves cannot break in and steal it.  What the Lord is talking about here is investing in the things of God, studying his ways, and walking as he walked.  Anytime you do something to benefit yours or someone else’s spiritual well-being, you are investing (laying up treasures) in heaven.  I encourage you to get involved in the things of God.  Take your family to church, don’t just send them.  If you don’t have one, get a bible; then begin reading it regularly.  Faithfully attend church services (be there every time possible and be on time, so you can feel good when you get there).  Rather than a spectator, be a participant in the services.  It won’t be long before you will come to the understanding that you have more to go to heaven for than you used too.

Remember, you can’t take anything with you, but you can send it on ahead.

At the same time he told them about their coming sorrow, he also gave them hope.  He told them they would see him again and their sorrow would be turned into joy, in fact such joy that no man could take it from them.  It was this joy at the recognition of their resurrected Lord on the shore, that propelled Peter over the side of the fishing boat and caused him to swim to shore instead of waiting for it to return land.  It was this same joy that caused him and the other apostles to stand boldly together in unity on the day of Pentecost before a crowd of thousands, while Peter delivered the gospel of Jesus Christ to those who had only weeks before crucified their Savior.  With joy they faced threats from the priests and the counsel, and spoke the word of God with even more enthusiasm.

Over the years when one by one they were captured, put on trial, and executed for preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ, they stood firm in the the reality of his resurrection, knowing that through him everyone who is born again (through faith, repentance, baptism in his name, and being filled with his Spirit) has the same hope of eternal life.  They refused to recant their faith in Jesus Christ, because they saw him alive after his death.  As he stated to the apostle John in the book of Revelation, “I am … the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.  Although, we today who call him Lord were not there, and did not see the events unfold with our own eyes, we believe the testimonies left us by his disciples, and through the same faith have committed our lives to him, also sharing in the hope of eternal life that his resurrection brings us.

God bless and have a great week!

I am thankful for the reassurance of the scriptures today.  It is a joy and overwhelming blessing to know that Jesus Christ stands ready to intercede on our behalf in times of weakness and faultering.  When the mountain seems too high, the valley too deep, the desert too hot, and the gulf too wide … he is able to save us, to strengthen, and secure us.  He is able not in just the little things, but in the big things … the things where we have lost our ability or strength.  There is no limit to his power to save, to his ability to deliver, and he will extend his grace to all those who come boldly before the throne to receive help in time of need.

Are you faced with an obstacle in your life that you cannot overcome?  Does it seem like every time you climb to your feet the devil knocks you down again?  Remember the scripture, “Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts.”   Don’t try to fight the battle on your own.  Give the battle to the Lord, call out to him in your distress.  Call on his name, Jesus Christ, and rest in knowing that he is able to save to the uttermost, to the very end, he will not stop short of meeting your need.

GOD BLESS AND HAVE A GREAT WEEK!

Saturday morning our church family awoke to heart-breaking news that one of our young brothers, Bro. Stacy Hall, had passed from this life during the pre-dawn hours, as the result of a car accident while on his way to attend our church convention here in Dyersburg, TN.  His father, Bro. Roger Hall, older brother, Bro. Paul Hall, other family members, and his local church family from Florida were already here.  He had been unable to get off work in time to leave with them, but was determined to be part of the convention.  Sadly for us God chose to call him home.

As the news spread our primary thoughts were for Bro. Roger and the family.  We were prepared to do whatever it took to take care of them in their grief.  I personally could not imagine going on with the convention under the circumstances and was prepared to cancel it altogether.  With remarkable (supernatural) strength and peace Bro. Roger told those of us gathered around him that we must go on with the convention and that he and Bro. Stacy’s family were going to stay and be part of the services Bro. Stacy had been striving to attend.  Bro. Roger stated that his family, the young people that loved Bro. Stacy, and their church needed the strength they would receive from the services to get them through the coming days and weeks.  Bro. Steve Geary and Bro. Mike Herrin (co-pastors of their church) agreed; and so, with heavy hearts, we pushed on and prepared to open with the first service Saturday morning.  Bro. Roger, Bro. Steve, and Bro. Mike addressed the assembly, dedicating the convention to the memory of Bro. Stacy Hall.

Their decision to continue the convention and remain in attendance filled me with awe; however, the story does not end there.  Within only a few hours of having received the news of his passing, Bro. Stacy’s father, brother, cousin, friends were ministering under the anointing of the Holy Ghost, and worshiping the Lord with uplifted hands and heads, rejoicing in the presence of God.  Bro. Roger put it very simply and truthfully, “Only by God are we able, only through the Holy Ghost can we …”.  From the beginning of the first service until the final “Amen” of the last service, the power of God filled the place where we were.  The youth service scheduled for that night, which by all practical guidelines should have been full of grief, was filled with joy in the Holy Ghost.  The young people did an awesome job honoring Bro. Stacy and uplifting one another and the entire assembly.

Although speaking in tongues is the initial sign of being filled with the Holy Ghost, I witnessed quite possibly the greatest additional demonstration of the Holy Ghost that I have ever seen in my lifetime this weekend.  I saw the supernatural power and peace the Lord promised to those who would receive his Spirit.  Yes … the bible is real, His words are true, “With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.” (Mat 19:26)

Bro. Stacy, thank you for inspiring us by your determination to be His servant.  Father in heaven, thank you for the comfort and power of your Spirit.  As much as lies within each of us, may we follow his and his family’s example of unwavering faith and trust in You.