A blog produced by Rolling Fork Baptist Church designed to help Christians live out their faith in their homes, their work places, their schools, and their communities.
Monday, February 21, 2011
Monday, February 14, 2011
Saturday, February 12, 2011
ARE YOU SEEING DOORS OPEN TO SHARE GOD'S WORD?
Today, we visit verse 3 of this passage...
2 Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. 3 At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison— 4 that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak. 5 Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time. 6 Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person. Col 4:2-6 (ESV)
What a timely request for prayer! Just as Paul asked for prayer support in his ministry, so am I... and not just for me but for all of our pastors and teachers so that we would be able to say what God wants us to say in the way that He wants us to say it and when He wants it said. He said 'pray for us' showing his awareness of self limitations when it comes to knowing what it takes to reach people for Jesus Christ. Yes, he knew the scriptures and yes, he had experience, but just because one approach worked with one person doesn't mean it will work with the next person. And not only that, he was reaching CROWDS of people at the same time with the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Years ago, I heard of the 'Three Open Prayer' that you and I should use each day.
1. 'Lord, open the door for me to share Your good news about Jesus.'
2. 'Lord, open my mouth that I was say what you want said.'
3. 'Lord, open their hearts to receive what you have for me to say.'
Be faithful to God because He is already been so faithful to us. I want to close this post with the chorus of a great hymn...
Great is Thy faithfulness, great is Thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning, new mercies I see.
All I have needed, Thy hands have provided
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord unto Thee.
2 Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. 3 At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison— 4 that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak. 5 Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time. 6 Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person. Col 4:2-6 (ESV)
What a timely request for prayer! Just as Paul asked for prayer support in his ministry, so am I... and not just for me but for all of our pastors and teachers so that we would be able to say what God wants us to say in the way that He wants us to say it and when He wants it said. He said 'pray for us' showing his awareness of self limitations when it comes to knowing what it takes to reach people for Jesus Christ. Yes, he knew the scriptures and yes, he had experience, but just because one approach worked with one person doesn't mean it will work with the next person. And not only that, he was reaching CROWDS of people at the same time with the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Years ago, I heard of the 'Three Open Prayer' that you and I should use each day.
1. 'Lord, open the door for me to share Your good news about Jesus.'
2. 'Lord, open my mouth that I was say what you want said.'
3. 'Lord, open their hearts to receive what you have for me to say.'
Be faithful to God because He is already been so faithful to us. I want to close this post with the chorus of a great hymn...
Great is Thy faithfulness, great is Thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning, new mercies I see.
All I have needed, Thy hands have provided
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord unto Thee.
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Friday, February 4, 2011
WOULD YOU?
People like this man would. In fact, he IS. Meet Jacob Brothers. To hear Jacob talk or preach or pray, you can't help but notice his love for Jesus. And now he is showing that love in another step of faith... a BIG step. Leaving a small county town that only has one traffic light to Scotland to pastor a church because Jesus wanted him to go. That's love.
But then again, who has shown more love than Jesus Christ? Nobody but Jesus could have and DID die for you and me so that we wouldn't have to go to hell when we die. If we will put our trust in Jesus by asking Him to forgive us of our sins and by asking Him to take control of our lives so that we can please God in our thoughts, words, and actions, then when we die, we will spend eternity in heaven with God, Jesus, and all of the saints.
So today, I ask you to pray for my friend and fellow pastor, Jacob. Pray that he and family are safe as they travel and that God is glorified in their lives as they start this new chapter in their lives.
2 Pray diligently. Stay alert, with your eyes wide open in gratitude. 3 Don't forget to pray for us, that God will open doors for telling the mystery of Christ, even while I'm locked up in this jail. 4 Pray that every time I open my mouth I'll be able to make Christ plain as day to them. 5 Use your heads as you live and work among outsiders. Don't miss a trick. Make the most of every opportunity. 6 Be gracious in your speech. The goal is to bring out the best in others in a conversation, not put them down, not cut them out. Col 4:2-6 (MSG)
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
NO MORE COMPLACENCY
In the last several weeks, my spiritual walk has been going through an 'extreme makeover'... evaluating and re-evaluating, reading and studying, asking and explaining, and most of all, praying. Praying for guidance. Praying for direction in certain areas. Praying to be more effective in my personal life as well as in my ministry life.
One of my 'discoveries' is that there are some areas in my ministry that need to be looked at to make sure that I am pleasing God through the decisions that I make each week. Yes, we are to reach people for Jesus Christ and yes, we are meet them where they are but we are not to 'water down' or compromise the seriousness of what God wants us to do and how He wants us to do it.
I have realized that part of the reason that we have so many complacent churches in America is because we have so many complacent pastors in America. Last year, I went through several areas in my life and in my spiritual walk that I was just 'going through the motions'. Not necessarily intentional about it, but just acted that way. So as we continue living this new year, I am asking God to help me correct those issues by renewing my mind through His Word and through prayer. Instead of just doing what I would normally have done in the past, I am trying to re-align it with God's Word to make sure that I am going the right direction.
How about you? Is your life going the right direction or do you need to let God make some adjustments in your life? Do you have areas in your life that you need to re-energize and serve God like never before? What areas in your life have been neglected in the last year? Let's take every opportunity to make this the best year we have ever lived. It all starts with Jesus Christ and Him being glorified in our everyday lives. Amen?
One of my 'discoveries' is that there are some areas in my ministry that need to be looked at to make sure that I am pleasing God through the decisions that I make each week. Yes, we are to reach people for Jesus Christ and yes, we are meet them where they are but we are not to 'water down' or compromise the seriousness of what God wants us to do and how He wants us to do it.
I have realized that part of the reason that we have so many complacent churches in America is because we have so many complacent pastors in America. Last year, I went through several areas in my life and in my spiritual walk that I was just 'going through the motions'. Not necessarily intentional about it, but just acted that way. So as we continue living this new year, I am asking God to help me correct those issues by renewing my mind through His Word and through prayer. Instead of just doing what I would normally have done in the past, I am trying to re-align it with God's Word to make sure that I am going the right direction.
How about you? Is your life going the right direction or do you need to let God make some adjustments in your life? Do you have areas in your life that you need to re-energize and serve God like never before? What areas in your life have been neglected in the last year? Let's take every opportunity to make this the best year we have ever lived. It all starts with Jesus Christ and Him being glorified in our everyday lives. Amen?
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
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