Pray
Walking up the path to my office this morning, seeing the grounds so well kept by one member, I give thanks to God for his work, and ask God to guard and guide him as he walks along the Journey with Christ.
Glancing to my right, I see the hanging baskets another has given and which bless everyone here with their beauty. She and her husband work here together. He's a real role model for the boys he leads in RA's, and she's a blessing in whatever she places her hand on. They're off on a vacation trip, so I breathe a prayer of intercession for their safe return.
Arriving at my office, yesterday's contacts are still on the monitor before me. One family is coping with the devastation of cancer's onslaught. I stop and pray, asking God to comfort, strengthen, and heal. Another deals daily with the prolonged separation from each other, with the wife in a nursing home, and the husband of decades going home each night to an empty house. Hard work that, after decades as a loving couple together. So I pray.
Oswald Chambers wrote, "the purpose of prayer is to reveal the presence of God."
After thinking through some of the problems that our church family members are dealing with, I'm sure looking for Him.
In reading through the Psalms, two things stand out. First, the writers sure did have a lot of problems. Second, they never lost their focus on God. In the 150 Psalms, the names "Lord" and "God" are mentioned more than 1200 times. Even though some of the Psalms were written during times of great distress, they were able to look past those to God.
So I pray. There's a lot of things a pastor does, but two activities top the list.
Acts 6:4 (Msg)
Meanwhile, we'll stick to our assigned tasks of prayer and speaking God's Word."
I don't have to get to my office to begin. Neither do you.
Pray.
Don't wait.
Pray.
Grace!
David
This devotional is written by David Wilson, pastor of New Hope Baptist church in Valparaiso, FL. If you find you have received this via a forward and would like to receive it regularly, or find you no longer wish to receive it, drop me an email at dwilsonfl@earthlink.net and I'll make the change to the list. If you'd like to know more about New Hope, visit our website at www.newhopevalp.org . May God bless you.
Wednesday, June 23, 2004
Tuesday, June 22, 2004
We've Found the Weapons of Mass Destruction!
It would be safe I think to say that authors William Faulkner and Ernest Hemingway were good at their craft. While they vary in style, the books and short stories that they penned have enlivened the reading of millions of people. Yet I found out today that the two men didn't always value each other's work. Here's a couple of quotes from each.
"He has never been known to use a word that might send a reader to the dictionary." -William Faulkner (about Ernest Hemingway)
"Poor Faulkner. Does he really think big emotions come from big words?" -Ernest Hemingway (about William Faulkner)
The weapons of mass destruction? Words.
Proverbs 15:4 (Msg)
Kind words heal and help;
cutting words wound and maim.
We can choose what to say, how to respond, whether to build people up with our speech or cut them down. That old rhyme about sticks and stones breaking bones and words never harming us just wasn't true. Who among us doesn't remember someone who hurt us deeply with their words?
For the believer in Jesus, words are part of our example of a changed life.
Col. 3:17 (Msg)
Let every detail in your lives—words, actions, whatever—be done in the name of the Master, Jesus, thanking God the Father every step of the way.
Every detail - every word. You'll be amazed at the positive impact you can have on people if you'll become a person who encourages others and who speaks words of grace.
You'll be happy to know that Faulkner and Hemingway, though they never became close friends, through a series of letters and meetings, did grow to respect and value one another. Here's what Faulkner said upon hearing of Hemingway's tragic death.
"He is not dead. Generations not yet born of young men and women who want to write will refute that word as applied to him."
Let's use our weapons to build, not destroy.
Grace!
David
This devotional is written by David Wilson, pastor of New Hope Baptist church in Valparaiso, FL. If you find you have received this via a forward and would like to receive it regularly, or find you no longer wish to receive it, drop me an email at dwilsonfl@earthlink.net and I'll make the change to the list. If you'd like to know more about New Hope, visit our website at www.newhopevalp.org . May God bless you.
It would be safe I think to say that authors William Faulkner and Ernest Hemingway were good at their craft. While they vary in style, the books and short stories that they penned have enlivened the reading of millions of people. Yet I found out today that the two men didn't always value each other's work. Here's a couple of quotes from each.
"He has never been known to use a word that might send a reader to the dictionary." -William Faulkner (about Ernest Hemingway)
"Poor Faulkner. Does he really think big emotions come from big words?" -Ernest Hemingway (about William Faulkner)
The weapons of mass destruction? Words.
Proverbs 15:4 (Msg)
Kind words heal and help;
cutting words wound and maim.
We can choose what to say, how to respond, whether to build people up with our speech or cut them down. That old rhyme about sticks and stones breaking bones and words never harming us just wasn't true. Who among us doesn't remember someone who hurt us deeply with their words?
For the believer in Jesus, words are part of our example of a changed life.
Col. 3:17 (Msg)
Let every detail in your lives—words, actions, whatever—be done in the name of the Master, Jesus, thanking God the Father every step of the way.
Every detail - every word. You'll be amazed at the positive impact you can have on people if you'll become a person who encourages others and who speaks words of grace.
You'll be happy to know that Faulkner and Hemingway, though they never became close friends, through a series of letters and meetings, did grow to respect and value one another. Here's what Faulkner said upon hearing of Hemingway's tragic death.
"He is not dead. Generations not yet born of young men and women who want to write will refute that word as applied to him."
Let's use our weapons to build, not destroy.
Grace!
David
This devotional is written by David Wilson, pastor of New Hope Baptist church in Valparaiso, FL. If you find you have received this via a forward and would like to receive it regularly, or find you no longer wish to receive it, drop me an email at dwilsonfl@earthlink.net and I'll make the change to the list. If you'd like to know more about New Hope, visit our website at www.newhopevalp.org . May God bless you.
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