Believe or Doubt

Week of January 26, 2024

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed;”  Luke 4:18 (NKJV).

This was an amazing moment.  You would have liked to have been in the room.  This was the announcement that people had longed to hear for generations.  But, sadly, many did not believe.  Jesus walked into a Synagogue and picked up the scroll of Scripture to read.  He read Isaiah’s prophecy of the Messiah’s role to heal, free, and restore.  The people had heard that passage read before, but today it was different.

Jesus finished, handed the scroll back to the attendant, looked out at the people looking at Him, and in so many words, said I am that person.  In Luke 4:21, someone questioned how Jesus could possibly be the promised Messiah.  It turned out that the people were angry with Jesus.  In fact, they were so angry that they wanted to kill him.  Why did they respond this way?  Because now the long-awaited promise had arrived, and now they either had to choose to believe or to doubt.  Many chose to doubt because believing required too much of them.  Some believed, and some doubted. How do you think you would have responded that day?  Maybe God is asking you to trust Him in an area of your life.  Will you move forward and believe, or will you doubt?

God Bless, Pastor Rick

Do You Have It Written Down?

Week of January 19, 2024

I have always been a person who writes everything down. In fact, my wife Dana says that when I die, she is going to put all my notes in the casket with me: my notes give me clarification for the day, the week, and the year. Some people wander from one thing to the next without clarification of their purpose. If your purpose is unclear, you will not be inspired, your attention will not be riveted, and your energy level will fade. Once, when the prophet Habakkuk was in prayer, God told him to write down the vision.  “2Then the Lord answered me and said: “Write the vision And make it plain on tablets, That he may run who reads it. 3 For the vision is yet for an appointed time; But at the end it will speak, and it will not lie. Though it tarries, wait for it; Because it will surely come, It will not tarry.”  Habakkuk 2:2-3 (NKJV)

I would encourage you to write down your vision and goals for the year. A clear vision statement will free you from confusion, passivity dissipates, and inspiration to pursue those written-down goals runs deep. Now, these written-down goals do not mean that there will never be any down times. It doesn’t mean that there will never be delays and disappointments. It does mean when those times come, that you will not lose sight of what you are pursuing. At God’s appointed time, the vision becomes reality. Do you have a vision statement? Do you have goals for 2024? Are they written down?

God Bless, Pastor Rick

God Is Looking For Clay

Week of January 5, 2024

“O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter?” says the Lord.  “Look, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are you in my hand, O house of Israel!”  Jeremiah 18:6 (NKJV).

God is searching for the people who will allow Him to shape them into the vessels that He requires for His work. This shaping process is necessary so they will be equipped to do His divine work.  When we hold earthen clay, we understand that it has no true form of its own but is really just a substance that is waiting to be molded. It is always submissive once it is in the hands of the potter.

When we think of what God can do with us, we may consider our known strengths, and at other times we may examine our weaknesses.  When we do this, we are announcing where we think we can best serve and where we are not capable of serving. This thinking, though, is not how God sees us. God is not limited to working with our strengths and weaknesses.  He can mold us into whatever kind of instrument He needs if we will allow ourselves to be like the moldable clay.

There is no real glamour in clay, but it is what God is looking for and what he can use for His glory. Regrettably, our tendency is to tell the Father what we can and cannot do for Him. Remember this, He really wants you to be sensitive and submit to His agenda, and allow Him to shape you in His unique way. He will always mold you into the person He wants you to be!

God Bless, Pastor Rick