As For Me And My House

Week of October 6, 2023

“And if it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the river, or the Amorites, in whose land you dwell.  But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. (Psalm 1:1-3 NKJV)

Serving God was not Joshua’s only option.  He could have adopted the religious beliefs and practices of his family heritage in the pagan land of Egypt.  He could have accepted the idolatrous religion of his neighbors in the land where he now lived.  Those options might have been easier choices than worshipping God.  Joshua though, had witnessed God’s faithfulness; He was convinced that his Lord was the only true God and that serving him would bring blessings.  Joshua decided to serve God alone.  He was determined to teach his household to honor the Lord as well.

We too must decide whom we will serve. An assortment of popular beliefs lobbies for our allegiance.  If you come from a Christian heritage hopefully you embrace the faith of your family.  If you did not grow up in a Christian home you can decide, as Joshua did, to begin a generation that serves the Lord. 

Set your mind wholeheartedly to serve the Lord.  Those around you will witness your faith and they may decide to trust Him too.  Choose, as Joshua did, to serve God with all of your heart and then watch to see how God blesses you.

God Bless, Pastor Rick

The Key To Prosperity

Week of September 29, 2023

“And in every work that he began in the service of the house of God, in the law and in the commandment, to seek his God, he did it with all his heart.  So he prospered.”  (2 Chronicles 31:21, NKJV)

The key to prospering in what you do is to always remember to serve the Lord with all your heart. During the time of the Judean king Hezekiah, idolatry was the accepted religion of the day.  His parents had rejected God and encouraged people to worship other gods;              (2 Chronicles 28).  Hezekiah could have also rejected God but instead he chose to serve God with all of his heart.  He followed God’s commands and he made efforts to promote worship of the one true God.  As a result of Hezekiah’s determination to serve, God blessed him. He thrived in an unsettled time because he resolved to always follow God.

God will honor the person that commits to follow Him.  Notice the words of this next verse from 2 Chronicles 26:5 speaking of Uzziah. “He sought God in the days of Zechariah, who had understanding in the visions of God; and as long as he sought the Lord, God made him prosper.”  It has always taken courage to seek after God.  God is pleased to prosper those who strive to please Him. Hezekiah stands in contrast to Rehoboam an earlier King of Judah.     2 Chronicles 12:14 says, “And he did evil, because he did not prepare his heart to seek the Lord.”  When you don’t set your heart to seek the Lord, calamity is the most likely result.  The surest way to prosper is to diligently pursue God with all of your heart.

God Bless, Pastor Rick

God Weighs Our Motives

Week of September 22, 2023

All the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the spirits.” (Proverbs 16:2 NKJV)

Often times we are quick to question the motives of others.  Yet we are slow to question our own.  When we are guilty we often excuse our offenses, concluding that others are far too insensitive.  Regardless of how we monitor our motives, God weighs them in His scales of righteousness.  We can’t deceive God for He sees our hearts.

Many things cause us to do what we do.  We can be motivated by good things such as love for God, compassion, generosity and faith.  Or our actions can come from unhealthy motives such as pride, insecurity, lust, greed, anger, and fear.  When the Lord measures our motives He looks for one thing: Love.  All that we do should proceed from our love for God and others.

Take time to look past your actions to what He sees when He examines your motives.

God Bless, Pastor Rick