Ever Wonder?

Have you ever wondered:

1. Why there is some much crap going on in the world today?
2. Why are there wars and famines?
3. Why are there homeless, and shut-ins?

My list could go on and on, but I'll let you think about the possibilities. Have you ever thought about these things? I'm sure you have, most everyone I've ever talked to has at some point in time thought about world hunger, famine, dying children and the homeless.

Let me share a couple scriptures with you before I explain.

Leviticus 26:3-13
(vs 3 and 4)

If ye walk in my statutes and keep my commandments, and do them; then I will give you rain in due season, and the land shall yield her increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit.

Also read:
Deuteronomy 28:1-14
Deuteronomy 30:1-14

The above verses describe the blessings of God upon His people if they will follow in His ways.

BUT

There is another side to the coin! If we will not walk in God's ways He will put on us all the curses, and more until we repent and come back to God!

Read:
Leviticus 26:14-46
Deuteronomy 28:15-68
Deuteronomy 30:15-20

These scriptures are for the children of God you say.....sure here are some for those who are not "children of God."

Leviticus 18:24-30
God will command the land to spew out the inhabitants who defile themselves with unholy things and activities!

The simple answer is "SIN".

We have let down our standards, our beliefs, our convictions, our faith and let society and modernism dictate to us what is right or wrong. The only problem is that society things all the wrong things are right, and all the right things are wrong!

We must get back to God, repent and live according to Holiness and pleasing God!

Yours for righteousness,
Pastor Fred

Learning from their mistakes

In studying for the Home Bible Study I teach weekly, another one of God's purposes has become very clear. It is so very important, yet we often neglect it because of our own stubborn natures. "Pride comes before a fall, and a haughty spirit before destruction." This is a quote from the wisdom of king Solomon, and is the reason we miss out on many of the simple straight forward truths of the Word of God.

Our study this week was a survey of Israel's entering Canaan, conquering it and dividing the inheritance. We ended with the reign of the first three kings Saul, David and Solomon. However, before we can get to any of the above events we must first study Moses' last sermon. Parts of which are in Deuteronomy 28 and 30.

Moses gives a blessing and a cursing upon Israel. A blessing for obedience to the commands and laws of God, and a cursing for the disobedience of those commands and laws. He presented life and good, death and destruction. It was up to Israel to choose which path to take.

Moses died, and Israel, under the leadership of Joshua, divided and conquered the land of Canaan.

The Bible tells us in Judges that Israel served God throughout the life of Joshua, and throughout the lives of the elders who out lived Joshua, but soon after the final elder died, they left God's ways and followed the pagan, unholy ways of the peoples around them. Israel looked around and saw the ways of the people they were living among, and began to serve their gods.

Guess what happened? Exactly what Moses told them would happen! The Bible tells us that God punished them until they were sore distressed, and cried out to God. And as Moses said, when they cried out to God for help, He gave them a judge to deliver them. This happened 16 times until the time of Samuel. After whose time Israel asked for a king, which is another message altogether.

1 Corinthians 10:5-12 tells us that we must learn from their mistakes so that we don't fall in the same way!

Here is the moral to the story.

1. Follow, Trust and Obedience brings life, health and prosperity.
2. Neglect, Doubt and Disobedience brings death, sickness and poverty.

People often wonder why they are going through the circumstances they face, and the simple answer my be that God is trying to bring them to repentance for the sin and evil in their life! Don't blame the devil for every bad thing that happens. Instead, repent of your sins and turn to God, and He will prosper your path!

Yours for following the ways of God,
Pastor Fred

A strange time to study!

The Holy Spirit leads in mysterious ways and at mysterious times! Sunday is our unofficial day of rest. We all have a nap or relax during the afternoon. I personally don't usually take a nap as it usually messes me up pretty badly. However, my wonderful wife asked me to have a nap as I had to go to work for the evening. So, I complied. Needless to say I was majorly messed up!
I got home about 12:30 am after working for 8 hours scrubbing and waxing a floor, and was very energetic. ( I slept from 1pm - 4:30pm!) I tossed and turned in bed for many hours unable to sleep. My mind continuously turning. Finally, about 2:30am I got back up, and came down to the computer to do some work. The Holy Spirit had been working me over about doing a study for someone who had been emailing me as of late. So for the next hour I studied! I went back to be around 3:3o am after doing a fairly lengthy study about the Holy Spirit and why it is so very important and essential.

(Here is the link, it is also above in the new section.) The Necessity and Importance of the Holy Spirit.

Jesus moves upon us in mysterious ways, and at mysterious times. The important thing isn't why, when or what for, but how we will react when the call comes. If I had not have gotten up and done the study my inspiration and train of thought would have been gone. When Jesus calls we must answer and go quickly!

Yours for the mysterious ways of God,
Pastor Fred

Happily Married Ever After.....

I believe I've discovered on of the greatest Marriage tips. I've known about it in the back of my head for awhile, but I actually got to the place where it worked for me! It is so secret that your spouse doesn't even have to know that you are doing it!

What is this powerful weapon of marital success? What is this secret that is so subtle in its approach that the recipient won't even realize it?

PRAY and Living in the Presence of Jesus!

What? I pray and still don't get along with my spouse.... Your are wrong! No I'm not wrong! Just sit back and read. Let this simple truth sink in and take root.

Pray as most people know it is simply a forum for us to bring our complaints to Jesus; our needs, wants and desires. However, true prayer isn't just a forum for us to talk about us, and other people's needs, rather prayer is a meeting, conversation, relationship of time spent between two friends. Time well spent between a Father and child; that is true prayer!

Prayer is a time of relationship between Jesus and you. The more time you spend in the presence of Jesus the more you will become like Him! If you let His Spirit come in, and wash over you the light of His presence will make you see things differently! The Holy Spirit and The Word of God will work together, and grow you into a new spiritual creature in Christ Jesus!

Now I'm not talking about just a few minutes here and a few minutes there. I'm talking about relationship prayer; prayer closet prayer. I am talking about taking time out each day to be with Jesus; 30 minutes to more than an hour. This type of relationship prayer spills over into the rest of your day and life. You will find yourself spontaneously bursting into praise, prayer and worship throughout your day!

Then, when your spirit becomes in tune with His Spirit your life will be changed.

Now, how does this effect your marriage? Well, those little things that we all dislike our spouses doing, no matter how small become insignificant. Instead of seeing those negative qualities, we begin to focus on the wonderful things, which made us fall in love with that person in the first place. We are no longer finding ways to pick a fight, but instead we are finding ways to love.

The Bible tells us that, "perfect love casts out all fear," and "Love covers a multitude of sins." If we truly have the presence of Jesus in our lives we will have this "true" love, and it will spill over into your marriage!

So if you are having marital problems, sure go find a counselor to help, but also try to get close to Jesus who will in turn help you get close to your spouse! Pray like you've never prayed before! Stay in your closet of prayer until you feel His presence, like arms enfold you! Make it your lifestyle!

Then you will be happily married ever after!

Yours for a great marriage,
Pastor Fred

The Tabernacle God's PLan of approach!

First I must apologize for not publishing anything over the past few days. I've been busy studying a very interesting part of the Word of God - The Tabernacle.

I've been reading and studying in Exodus lately about the Israelites, Moses, Mount Sinai and the instructions to build the Tabernacle. I have found some very interesting parallels, types and shadows that are reflected in our approach to God today. (I hope to have my draft published for viewing in a day or so.)

So often people try to get to God on their own terms, and don't care much about God's ways, plans and purposes. In the process they get "kicked" out of God's presence, because they have entered the throne room in the wrong manner.

I you were to bust open the door to the throne room of the queen of England or another Monarch, and run up the hall shouting your demands you'd probably be shot within a few moments and/or ushered out by some rather large, strong soldiers. Yet, we think we can do this very thing when entering into the Throne of Almighty God!

What about the scripture in Hebrews that says we can enter into the throne room of Grace boldly to find help in time of need? The writer of Hebrews is writing to Christians, who should have already taken the appropriate steps to becoming accepted into God's presence.

I'm sorry to be the one to break it to you, but the books from Romans through the Revelation of Jesus Christ are not written to or about sinners, and people not serving God. Rather these books are written to people who have accept the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ as found in Matthew, Mark, Luke, John and Acts and have given their lives to Jesus and now serve Him. They are not meant to be instructions for sinners on the way to be saved, or enter God's presence. No that is what the Old Testament and the first five books of the New Testament are for. The other 22 books in the New Testament are instructions and doctrine for the Christian who already understands some things about the Gospel and Truth of Jesus.

If you are not a regular in the throne room of God, next time you enter don't make a show of who you are rather, make a display of who Jesus is!

Yours for God's Plan of Approach,
Pastor Fred

Your Life is Like a cloud of steam....

We find in James these words:

Jam 4:13-15 BBE How foolish it is to say, Today or tomorrow we will go into this town, and be there for a year and do business there and get wealth: (14) When you are not certain what will take place tomorrow. What is your life? It is a mist, which is seen for a little time and then is gone. (15) But the right thing to say would be, If it is the Lord's pleasure and if we are still living, we will do this and that.

Your life is like a cloud of steam, it rises up for a moment then is gone. You saw the form of something for a moment but it vanished, before you could determine what it was. Mist, Steam, Clouds, Smoke all figments of something great, but that is now gone!

What is your life? What are you doing with your life in the short time you have left? Time is all you have, and it is very fleeting and short! What are your ambitions, goals, desires? Are they worthy of the time needed to do them?

Don't waste the time you have, rather aim at what is really important in life, and seize the day! Don't let it be said of you when you are dead and gone, "They were a nice person, but I don't remember anything that they did...."

Rather let it be said of you, "They were a child of God," or "That was a true Christian, who showed the love of God everywhere," or "Their life was full of God's Love." What will be the epitaph on your tomb?

Paul wrote these words:

2Co 6:1-2 BBE We then, working together with God, make our request to you not to take the grace of God to no purpose. (2) For he says, I have given ear to you at a good time, and I have been your helper in a day of salvation: see, now is the good time; now is the day of salvation:

You don't have to wait for God, God is waiting for you. Today is always a good day to turn your life around and get in with the "God Gang"! Don't waste your life anymore let Jesus show you a better way!

Yours for Time well spent,
Pastor Fred

Places God Records His Name!

Yesterday while reading in Exodus 20 I came across a couple verses that threw me into a studying frenzy!

Here is the verse:

Exodus 20:24
24 An altar of earth you shall make for Me, and you shall sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and your peace offerings, your sheep and your oxen. In every place where I record My name I will come to you, and I will bless you.

An altar is a place of sacrifice, consecration, separation, forgiveness, repentance, renewal and judgment. God's Altar was to be of earth. Never of cut or hew-en stones, but raw stones and dirt. Also, this verse describes two types of offerings upon this earthen altar. (Note: Both of these sacrificial offerings were to be free-will. In other words you do it because you want to not because you have to.) First, the burnt offering which is an offering of judgment and repentance. Second, the peace offering which is an offering of thanksgiving and worship.

Especially notice the last phrase.

"In every place where I record My name I will come to you, and I will bless you." First of all you must realize that this phrase is linked to the first part of the verse, and the following couple verses. As a matter of fact this truth can be traced all the way through the whole Bible!
(Transliterated this verse could say:
The places where God's Name is marked, and when viewed brings remembrance of God. In these places God's blessing is found!)
Let me see if I can discuss it in short. (If you would like a complete copy of this study please email me.)

Let's go to 2 Corinthians 4:7
The "Treasure" Discussed in this verse in its simplest form would be the Gospel of Jesus Christ and Salvation from our Sins. The "Earthen Vessel" refers to an implement or container that contributes to the usefulness of the user and is made of clay. (Which is breakable.)

In the Old Testament God asked His people to make altars of earth upon which they would offer sacrifices of worship. Now we become the earthen altar, within which Jesus places His Glory, Power, Salvation and Gospel!

Let's go to 1 Corinthians 6:19-20
In this scripture the believer is described as the "Temple of the Holy Spirit". Is there not an altar within a temple? Is there not the Name of a God within a temple? We are not our own Jesus owns us!

Let's take a step farther. Remember that Exodus 20:24 referred to a place in which the name of God has been recorded?

When we are Baptized into Christ in water and Spirit we put on HIS NAME!
Galatians 3:26-4:6
If we are now children then we must also have the family Name!
Notice these verses which describe to us the proper method of Baptism, which always included the NAME of JESUS!
Acts 2:38-41
Acts 10:44-48
Acts 19:1-7
1 Corinthians 6:11

Summary:
Jehovah seems to have been looking ahead in time and telling us that upon whatever earthen vessel his name is marked there shall the blessings of God be! In the New Testament we have the revelation of the fullness of God's name - Jesus! When we are baptized "in the Name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins", and filled with the Spirit of Christ, not only does this cleans us from our sins, but it also stamps upon us the family name - JESUS!

Yours for the Name of JESUS,
Pastor Fred

Stewardship Part One: Time

Over the past week or two, I've felt a real tug in my spirit to pay more attention to proper Christian stewardship.

What is stewardship? The Holy Bible describes stewardship in this way:

(If you wish to look up the word in Strong's Concordence or Thayer's Bible Dictionary it the Greek word "oikonomos" number 3623 in the Greek sections.)
Thayer Definition:
1) the manager of household or of household affairs
1a) especially a steward, manager, superintendent (whether free-born as was usually the case, a freed-man or a slave) to whom the head of the house or proprietor has intrusted the management of his affairs, the care of receipts and expenditures, and the duty of dealing out the proper portion to every servant and even to the children not yet of age
1b) the manager of a farm or landed estate, an overseer
1c) the superintendent of the city’s finances, the treasurer of a city (or of treasurers or quaestors of kings)
2) metaphorically the apostles and other Christian teachers and bishops and overseers

Read with Me a couple scriptures before we move on. (Click on scriptures to read them.)

• Matthew 25:14-30
• I Corinthians 4:1-2
• Ephesians 5:15-21
• Colossians 4:5-6

God has given us so many wonderful thing! Health, Strength, Life, Breath, Family, Friends, Employment, Houses, Vehicles, Money and the list can go on and on. Some people have more and some people have less. It doesn't matter what you have, or even how much you have. What really matters is what are you doing with what you have?

I purposely left out of the above list on of the most important commodities that God has given us. Why? 1) Because we often over look its value and importants. 2) Because above all I believe that God has given it to us to use wisely, and we fail every day!

What is it? TIME! We play with time as if it doesn't exist. We manipulate time for our own purposes, uses, and desires. We are NOT good stewards of the time that God has given us! Someone was quoted to have said, "Time is the coin of Life, Don't let a fool spend it for you!"

How often do we waste time needlessly? Probably every single day! We waste time doing frivolous things that mean nothing. Don't get me wrong, I like to take a break and play a computer game sometime too, but it isn't what we are doing so much as how long we do it. Jesus didn't save us from our sins, just to sit on our rear-ends watching our favorite Television Show! Jesus washed our sins away so we could be stewards of the Kingdom of Heaven!

Is salvation truly free then? Yes! Salvation is still free. You are not required to work for salvation, nothing we can "do" is ever good enough. Jesus paid for salvation in the garden, on the Cross and in the grave. His precious blood was spilt to paid for the removal of our sins. In order to be saved and washed from our sins, we must believe and have faith in Jesus Christ and His Gospel. We must have faith that His sacrifice was sufficent to set us free from our sins. Then we must understand that we are all born in sin; everyone is a sinner - no one is guiltless! Acknowledging our sin should cause us to be sorry that we have rebelled against the will of the Almight God. This sorrow will bring true heartfelt, tearful repentance of our sins. This brings the forgiveness of God into our lives and it feels wonderful. Next we must get the stains of sin out of our spirit and soul. We do this by being baptized by imersion in water for the remission of our sins. We must be baptized in the NAME of JESUS CHRIST, as it is the only name with the power to invoce the cleansing blood of Jesus into our lives. When we come out of the water we are now also cleansed. So we have been Forgiven and Cleansed, which means we are now empty! The sin that was in us is gone, and there is now void in our spirits which must be filled. This is where the gift of the Holy Spirit comes into play. After the above is finished we open our mouths, and hearts in honest, transparent worship to Jesus for His gift of Salvation, and then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit of Christ into your spirit! The first evidence that you have been filled to overflowing is when Christ's Spirit begins to speak through your mouth in a language that you don't understand; a language of man or angels! (Acts 2:38)

As it says in John 3 you can't see or enter into the Kingdom of Heaven unless you've been spiritually born of Water and Spirit!

Now back to our topic of stewardship. Once you've been "saved" from your sins, as described above you are taken from the kingdom of darkness and put into the Kingdom of Light - the Kingdom of Heaven! Now you are a sworn resident of Jesus' Kingdom, and part of His family.

To explain this a little better let me ask some questions. You did not have to pay a cent to become a part of your family did you? No you were born or adopted, and your family loves you even though you don't pay for it. (hopefully) You don't have to pay for salvation either, just obey the scriptures! (as described above.) However, your family often askes you to take responciblity for things. Such as, cleaning your room, taking out the garbage, doing the dishes, household chores and the like. This is a form of stewardship. By your actions toward the above list you are showing your level of stewardship ability. If you obey and do what your parents ask, without much fuss, then you are probably a good steward. On the other hand, if you kick up a stink, and throw a temper tantrum you are not a good steward, and can be likened to the servant in Matthew who buried his treasure.

Stewardship is about taking care of God's Kingdom, and the portion of it that He has given to you! There are many areas of stewardship, which we will discuss at other times, but here we are looking at time.

TIME! Every Moment of every day has a purpose. It is our job to stay close enough to Jesus so we understand what each purpose is! Did you bump into someone to day accidentally? Maybe Jesus wants you to minister to that person. Did you end up in a hospital recently? Maybe Jesus wants you to reach out to a nurse, doctor or another patient? What are you doing with your time? Is it spent on you, and only you? Do you use your time to reach others? Are you giving your time back to Jesus? What are you doing to take care of the TIME that JESUS has GIVEN you in this LIFE?

Many preachers talk about tithes and offerings in regards to money. However, we ought also to give at the very least a TITHE (or tenth) of our TIME back to Jesus! Time is so valueable and we often waste it! It's like going to the store, and buying pop and a candy rather than Juice and fruit. You just wasted your money because the pop and candy will not benefit you at all! In the superstore of Life what are you buying with your time? Pop or Juice, Candy or Fruit? Are you sharing the Love of Christ to others or are you giving the cold shoulder to someone who may need your help? Are you giving to people in need or filling your bank accounts and home with riches? Do you spend time at the soup kitchen to help the homeless or are you playing your latest Nintendo or PS3 game?

Jesus gave you the TIME you HAVE LEFT, Don't Waste it!

Yours for stewardship of time,
Pastor Fred
PS> if you would like further information on anything discussed above please feel free to email me!

A Prayer Family!

THANK YOU! Thank You! Thank You!

I appreciate your prayer so much. My back is much better (See Prayer Requests Label). I am finally up and about. I still can't bend over much, but I can walk around and help the wife with the house work and taking care of the children. As long as I keep my back fairly straight I can do quite a bit! I went back to work last night. Wasn't too bad. I will be going back to my day job tomorrow.

Again thank you for your prayers!

This little incident has given me yet another inspiration for this blog. I will start a prayer request sharing portion. In this section you will be able to send me your prayer requests, I will post them, and we will all share in your request, pain, situation through prayer. We don't have to know every detail, but a name or a little info will help us to focus our prayer for your need.

Everyone needs a family, and what better family than a prayer family! The United Pentecostal Church International has a prayer section called "World Network of Prayer", which works along the same lines. They have prayer nets all over the world and when someone needs prayer, they are all called and everyone in the net prayers of that need! In this case this Prayer Family would be you, and the requests would be visible to all, and everyone who reads them will be able to pray. I will also leave space for praise reports!

So please send your prayer requests to my email address through the comment link below, and let's become a Prayer Family!

Yours for Prayer
Pastor Fred

Prayer Requested

First of all I would like to thank everyone for coming and returning to visit this blog. I also, hope and pray that it is a source of inspiration and challenge for your life.

Saturday Morning when I was getting dressed I pulled something in my back. I am in a lot of pain, although prayer and Advil are help a lot! Today (Sunday) I can tolerate my pain, and we had church in spite of this set back. We are pretty sure it isn't slipped disk as there was no bulging on my lower spine. I am requesting that you join with us in prayer. May Jesus come and touch my back!

Also, I own my own business which takes care of our financial needs. Now that my back is hurt I will not be able to fulfill my contracts. I do have someone helping me out for a couple of days, but that is only temporary. If I can't get to work, I will not get paid, which means we will not eat and the bills will not be paid.

PLEASE PRAY for a quick healing!

Thank you in advance, and may Jesus richly bless you for your kindness, faith and togetherness!

Yours for health in Jesus Christ,
Pastor Fred

This is the Day that the Lord has made!

Good morning one and all! What a wonderful day this is! God is so Good, so righteous, so loving, so merciful; I love Him with all of my being!

There is a song that we sing, which also is a scripture; a Psalm of David.

This is the Day,
This is the Day,
That the Lord has made,
That the Lord has made,
I will rejoice,
I will rejoice,
and be glad in it,
and be glad in it.
This is the day that the Lord has made,
I will rejoice and be glad in it.
This is the Day,
This is the Day,
That the Lord has made!

Did you realize that your attitude in the morning can reflect upon the remainder of the day? As a matter of fact a joyful attitude in the morning can help you stay joyful no matter what happens through the remainder of the day!

It is amazing what a godly attitude can do for your soul! Thankfulness and joy to God is healthy for you mind, and for all who come in contact with you!

So I challenge you to pray this morning (or whenever you read this) and get a thankful, joyful attitude before God and man!

Yours for the Day the Lord has made!
Pastor Fred

Daily Repentance...important or unimportant?

While praying this afternoon I received an inspiration!

Before I discuss this inspiration let me ask some questions, which will lay the foundation for our premis.

• Do you ever feel like you and God are not on the same page, frequency or station?
• Do you ever wonder why your prayers are not seemingly being answered favorably?
• Do you ever have a hard time praying?
• When you are finished praying do you feel better, worse or the same?

Now on to our premis: Daily Repentance...important or unimportant?

If you are a practicing Christian then you will probably say "Ofcourse repentance is necessary!" However, do you understand why? Maybe, maybe not.... Here is a little discussion about repentance.

Notice my title mentions "DAILY REPENTANCE" most people understand that repenting of sins if important, however, how often do you repent? This is the question which must be answered very honestly! Scripture has much to say about prayer, and repentance. Let us look at some of these verses.

• First let us look at Matthew 6:9-15
• 9 In this manner, therefore, pray:
  Our Father in heaven,
  Hallowed be Your name.
  10 Your kingdom come.
  Your will be done
  On earth as it is in heaven.
  11 Give us this day our daily bread.
  12 And forgive us our debts,
  As we forgive our debtors.
  13 And do not lead us into temptation,
  But deliver us from the evil one.
  For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.^[a]
  
  14 “For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

Notice there is much in the "LORD's PRAYER" that requires us to repent and forgive. Notice the outline of this prayer: 1. Praise (Praising God for Being God) 2. Will of God (Praying about God's will to be done in our lives) 3. Petitions and Requests (Daily needs) 4. Repentance (notice this repentance is based upon our continued show of mercy and forgiveness to others) (also, note verses 14, and 15! Jesus will not forgive if we do not forgive!) Finally, 5. Praise and Worship.

Jesus teaches us here that whenever we pray we should include this simple outline in our prayer, which includes much needed repentance.

Personally, while I am praising at the beginning of my prayer I usually repent, as I find that it makes me more open to the Word of God, presence of God, voice of God and the leading of His Spirit.

• Second Scripture: Philippians 2:12, 13
• ASV So then, my beloved, even as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; (13) for it is God who worketh in you both to will and to work, for his good pleasure.
  

Here Paul the Apostle is exorting the Philippian church to obey the teachings that he taught them. He makes is personal by telling the to "work out their own salvation with fear and trembling". As much as God is a God of Love, He is also a God of Holiness, Righteousness and Justice. Another scripture tells us that "it is a fearful thing to fall into the Hands of a Holy God." Therefore, Paul is implying, along with many other things, that a daily prayer life, which should include a humble attitude and repentance is very important!

If you haven't answered the above questions with these two verses then let me close with this summary.

First, an attitude of forgiveness toward everyone on our part is important. Without it we can't be forgiven of God. If we aren't forgiven of God then our prayers will most likely be answered with a resounding "NO"! In order to come into the presence of God through prayer, we must enter without any baggage. No weights or sins are allowed into the throne room of God. Therefore, if we are to gain audience with Jesus we must first repent of our sins!

As an illustration: I've been walking with God for most of my life, and I was brought up to fear, trust and pray to Jesus as my Saviour and Friend. However, as I'm only a lowly human, I can still make mistakes, and fall short of God's Glory. Therefore, no matter how long I am a Christian there is still and need for daily repentance.

I wouldn't want to miss the Second Coming of Jesus, and the taking away of His Church because I forgot to repent that day, and I had sinned! (Food for Thought!)

Yours for Daily Repentance,
Pastor Fred

Nothing But Jesus

Here is an interesting verse for you.

• Matthew 6:33 - "Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you!"

Isn't that wonderful! Oh, you don't know what "all these things are"? Well let me tell you!
This verse is found near the end of the middle of the Sermon on the Mount, one of - if not - the most important and famouse sermons that Jesus taught. Jesus taught these lessons first to His disciples, then to the crowds of people who were waiting for him in the valley. It the verses of chapter six prior to this verse Jesus was talking about things in life which we need daily to survive. Such as, food, health, shelter, and work.

Too, often we live our lives in utter selfishness. We work so we can pay for our car, and house, eat our food, play our games, and be with our family. And, last but not least much of our getting is so we can keep up with the "Jones's". This is the mentality that society would like us to have, because it makes the business man rich!

However, Jesus taught us another way. The road less travelled!

Jesus taught us to think of God first, then others, and lastly ourselves! Jesus taught us to seek ways to help the Kingdom of God grow, and ways to live in God's righteousness rather than to seek what will make you or I important, rich or look better than someone else. Here is an acronym which may help keep this idea in your mind:

• J - Jesus
• O - Others
• Y - You

If we will follow this simple rule, it is most certain to bring everlasting Joy! Our focus should be on "NOTHING BUT JESUS" If Jesus is the formost thought in our lives we will not have to worry ourselves about the little things that we need He will supply it!

Now don't miss understand me, we still must work, eat, sleep and live, but instead of focusing of making enough money to pay the bills, start focusing on what Jesus might want you to do. Jesus wants you to pay your bills, but if we offer Him first dibbs at the pot He always supplies the rest!

So in the coming weeks I challenge you to stop focusing on your needs, and to start focusing on the Needs of the Kingdom and His righteousness! Find out what Jesus wants you to DO!

Nothing But Jesus,
Pastor Fred

Normalicy Again?

Praise the Lord I'm finally finished my all nighters! As a matter of fact I'm home early! It's only about 1:30am rather than the usual 5 or 5:30 am.

My Children will be over joyed!
My Wife is already happy as I will be able to get up with the baby tonight!
I'm very happy as I'll be able to get back to normal life!

I've had a lot of time to pray this past 9 days, but I've missed going to my office and having alone time with Jesus, and reading my Bible.

Jesus is a wonderful friend, and I don't know what I would do without Him!

Here is a quick suggestion, no, a double dare!

--Put your complete trust in Jesus, no matter what the situations you face in life. Leave doubt and fear behind, and let just the presence, peace, love, grace, mercy and righteousness of Jesus walk with you. You'll be amazed at the results! (When you do this let me know how Jesus walks with you!)

Yours for an amazing life in Christ
Pastor Fred

To Wax or not to wax!?

Good Morning one and all! Praise the Lord I've finished - sort of!

You haven't seen much activity lately as I've been out every all night every night this week stripping and waxing floors. Consequently I've been sleeping most of the day time hours away. I've finally finished my second store, and on Monday and Tuesday the grand finale!

There are pros and cons to working at night....
PROS:

1. You get to spend some time alone.
2. There is a lot of time to talk to Jesus.
3. You can think about your life, and hopefully put some perspective to things.
4. You realize how important time with family is.
5. You appreciate the little things that you normally did during the day more. (such as writing blogs, reading the Bible, playing with my children....)

CONS:

1. Your way from your family for many hours a day. (away all night and sleeping during day for about 6 to 8 hours.)
2. You are alone.
3. It ruins your days.
4. The things that you normally did during the day aren't done.
5. Your family misses you terribly.

On the flip side of the coin the store really looks great!

As you can imagine I've had a lot of time to think, pray and think some more this week. I'm so glad that Jesus is as close as the mention of His name! I haven't had much time to do things during the day, but I've felt His presence so close this week, some times I feel like I'm at heaven's door!

Before I go here are a couple of questions for your? Something that might start the old (or young) thinker grinding away.

• When you work, do you take time throughout the day to talk to Jesus?
• When you work, do you allow yourself to burst forth in songs of praise to Jesus?
• Are you away from your family for long periods of time? (NOT A GOOD THING!)
• Does your work get in the way of your relationship with Jesus? (NOT A GOOD THING!)
• Is your relationship with Jesus such that you feel at liberty to talk to Him anywhere, anytime? (YOU SHOULD!)
• When someone catches you singing to Jesus or praying, do you feel embarrassed? (I HOPE YOU DON'T!)

Always take time to be with Jesus. You don't have to be in a Cathedral to find His presence.

Yours for an all time relationship with Jesus,
Pastor Fred

The "Rather Than" Principle!

I've been trying to get the time to write this post since Monday evening, however, with the in laws visiting time is very short each day! So I'm up rather early just to write this post...., and get ready for work! LOL.

I started reading a book last week called "Beyond the Closet Door" by Freddi Trammell. She is an amazing writer! She is one of the prayer warriors that you'd read about in a book - no pun intended. She's written many books and is a travelling speaker. Anyway this book like many she writes is on prayer. I wanted to share a portion of the second chapter with you.

Trammell starts the chapter describing the story of a lady named Bernadette who was experiencing an extreme amount of pain. So, much that she missed church at times. On this particular occasion Bernadette hid away in her closet of prayer, and prayed a prayer something like this: "Lord, you know my physical condition. I do not understand why these knots are growing in the upper part of my body. The swelling is enormous, and the pain is almost unbearable. Jesus I am going to your house tonight. I desperately need a healing touch from you. I must seek medical help if I fail to receive help from You tonight."
Mrs. Trammell was speaking at the service Bernadette was going to that night. She spoke on prayer. During prayer time Mrs. Trammell was lead to call out Bernadette, who stepped forward. She and the congregation read and prayed Jeremiah 17:14 over Bernadette. To make the verse more personal they inserted Bernadette's name in place of the pronouns. They prayed --"Heal Bernadette, O Lord, and she shall be healed; save Bernadette, and she shall be saved; for thou art Bernadette's praise."
A jubilant Bernadette testified that while the Word was prayed she felt the sensation of a whirlwind of fire swirling through her chest area. All the knots had disappeared. The swelling had dissipated and the pain was gone!
(now I will quote from the book rather than paraphrase:)

Bernadette chose to BELIEVE the Master was her deliverer rather than to accept a disease into her body! She spent time alone with Him and God honored her honest confession and dependence upon Him.
The "rather than" principle should be applied when the enemy begins to bombard our minds with anything less than what God has planned for us. Examples in scripture prove God will come to our rescue when we meet with Him in sincerity and truth:
Moses, rather than enjoy sin for a season, chose to suffer some afflictions in the flesh and be one of God's leaders.
Ruth, rather than stay with her own people, went with her mother-in-law and chose to be used of God and become instrumental in the birthing of the Messiah.
Esther, rather than continue to live in luxury, and ease, chose to take advantage of God's timing and save her people.
Rahab, rather than refuse to become involved with the spies God sent to spy out the land, chose to hide them in her house; thus saving her entire household from destruction.
....
Jesus, rather than call ten thousand angels to deliver Him from the cross, chose to give His life's blood for the saving of those who will believe in Him.
.....
(there where more, however, I chose the most common for the sake of space.)

What are you willing to do rather than accept what sin and the devil have waiting for you?
Are you willing to give up some time for prayer, study and communion with Jesus rather than spend time doing something with your friends, that will not mean anything tomorrow?

What is your rather than story?

Yours for Jesus rather than the devil,
Pastor Fred

A Time for Renovations!

What a Week! It has been a very looooooong week! Yet, it hasn't been a long week in a bad sense. I've been extremely busy renovating. We gutted out our dinning room, and renewed it from floor to ceiling! What a job, it took us all week, as I had to work most of the week. Now at the beginning of the new week we are basically finished. Just a few nick knacks to fix up.

So, on account of this I haven't had time to write my thoughts this past week. Now, let me share something that I feel is very important.

While we were busy renovating this week the Lord Jesus impressed upon me the importance of renovations not just in a home, but also in the spiritual life of a person. Everyone of us needs to undergo a period of renovations every once in awhile so we can keep out the junk that the devil, this world, and our old carnal nature tries to hide in us.

Webster describes renovation as:

• 1. the act of renewing, a making new after decay, destruction, or deprivation; renewal; as the renovation of the heart by grace.
• I looked up Renovating and it refered me to Renewing: -- 1. Making new again; repairing; re-establishing; repenting; reviving; renovating.
• Romans 12:2

In order to renovate we must first take out the junk, decay, depravity and destruction. We need to lay aside our weights and sins which distract us from walking with Jesus. We need to separate ourselves from things that are worldly, and lead away from God. We need to repent which is a turning away from something, and get baptized, which is a washing away of the dirtiness of this world and sin.

• Hebrews 12:1
• 2 Corinthians 6:16, 17
• Acts 2:38

Next we must rebuild after we take out all those bad things in our lives. For, if we don't put something back in, something other than God will find its way into our hearts and take us over again. Luke 11:24, 25

We need to fill our lives with the Holy Spirit of Jesus Christ, for we are the living temple of the Holy Spirit. We must put on Jesus Christ, and the Whole armor of God. We need to become the image of Christ, so that when people look at us they see Jesus instead. We must fill our selves with the Spirit so much that we portray the fruit of the Spirit.

• Acts 2:38
• 1 Corinthians 6:19
• Romans 13:12-14
• Galatians 3:27
• Ephesians 4:24
• Ephesians 6:11
• Colossians 3:10
• Galatians 5:22, 23
  
• Colossians 3:12-14

Regular renovation will ensure that we stay close to Jesus, and that we are always fresh and alive in the Spirit. We can't afford to become stagnant or stale for then we will open ourselves up to something that we really don't want in.

If we don't renovate our lives we will not be saved from God's wrath to come!
If we do not renovate our lives we will not be able to understand what God's will it!

I want to know what God desires of me!

Yours for Christ,
Pastor Fred

PS. These are not images or our renovations! Just some I took off the Internet for emphasis.

My Revolution: Organization

Well its only been a few days, but it already feels like a year long journey!

I've determined to revolutionize myself, and among other things become organized, and stay organized. I must teach myself to be organized! I must force myself to be organized! I must live a life every day that is organized! (to a certain extent)

I went to my office at the Church and re organized it. At work I re organized the way I work and plan for each day. I keep more notes - so I don't forget important things!

Organization is extremely hard work!

A revolution is extremely hard work!

There are some things in life that we must be willing to sacrifice for, and there are other things that we never sacrifice!

Things that can be sacrificed:

• Time (there is never enough so sacrifice it for the right reasons.)
• Energy (you only have so much so make sure you know what your doing it for.)
• Food (only eat to live never live to eat.)
• Material Things (stuff only weighs you down, only have what you need, and never get attached to it for it only lasts so long.)

Things that should never be sacrificed, but sacrificed for:

• Jesus Christ (never sacrifice your relationship with Jesus for anything! You'll regret it sooner than later.)
• Your Family (family is only second in importance to God, and above all else! Do not let anything get between you and your family and Jesus!)
• The Holy Bible of God's Word (refer to number one)
• Prayer (refer to number one)

So often we put importance on things that are not really important. The Bible tells us to "buy truth and sell it not." There are so things in life that are priceless, and should not be traded once we have obtained them!

• Truth
• Love
• Friendship
• Family
• Jesus
• Honesty
• Moral Values
• Forgiveness
• Faith
• Joy
• Peace

The list could go on for a long time, as could both of the previous lists. Yet, the point here is what are you willing to sacrifice for? I've made some decisions to sacrifice what time and energy I need to in order to be organized, what are you going to change in your life?

As i mentioned in my previous two posts, Jesus is and must be an integral part of my revolution in order for it to work. Is your revolution Jesus worthy? Would Jesus be happy to help you, or would he have to say no to your offer?

Find Jesus and you'll find something worth living for and with!

Yours for a revolution with Jesus,
Pastor Fred

Revolution through Jesus Christ! It can be Done!

Romans 7:24, 25a
O wretched man that I am! Who shall deliver me from the body of this death? I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord.

These verse have helped me to actually make revolutionary change! If you were to read the context of these verse you would find that Paul the Apostle was talking about the battle that goes on within each of us between good and evil. Paul describes it something like this:

When I try to do good I can't, and instead I do something wrong. When I try not to do something wrong the carnal nature in me will not allow me to do right. How can I get out of this conundrum!

Sunday I preached a message from these verses, and it was most definitely for me! It seemed everyone got something from the message, but I personally acted upon these convictions Sunday evening. But first let me explain what I'm describing above.

We try to make resolutions every year, and almost every year we through the resolutions out the back door. This year I want not to make resolutions, but to make a revolution in my life! Like Paul's description of our human state I am often stuck in this rut. Resolutions are made by individuals, and often tried to be enforced by individuals, but a revolution takes more than one person! It might start with one, but it spreads and soon a group of people are raising up and making permanent change!

Notice what the first part of verse 25 said: "...Through Jesus Christ our Lord." We Can have a revolution in our lives, make these changes and maintain these changes, but we must have help! We must have a group, and you and Jesus definitely makes a group! Romans 8:31 tells us that If God be for us who can be against us!

So, if you want to jump on the band wagon with me to start a personal revolution first you must get a hold of Jesus! Repentance is the start of a revolution! Turn from the direction you are taking, and turn unto Jesus, and he will lead you into a personal revolution!

It can be done! You can do it!

Your for a revolution
Pastor Fred

Resolutions or Revolutions

New Year is here again, and it's time for us to re-evalutate our lives, make changes, do things differently and love a little harder.

So many people make resolutions, which Webster defines as

• "1. Fixed purpose or determination of mind; as a resolution to reform our lives; a resolution to undertake an expedition.
  
• 2. The effect of fixed purpose; firmness, steadiness or constancy in execution, implying courage."

It is a resolve to make changes, but so many times there is no action, back bone or determintation to actually make the necessary changes you've decided to do. Often I feel that resolutions are so common place that we don't feel bad to neglect them, or forget them altogether. Things that are common place don't hold very much value, but like the old saying "you don't no somethings value until its gone." People don't value water until they don't have it any morel. People don't value friendship and love, until they are all alone with no one around. People don't value anything really until they don't have it anymore.
I believe its time for a revolution instead of resolutions!
The Wikipedia describes a revolution as:

• A revolution (from Late Latin revolutio which means "a turn around") is a significant change that usually occurs in a relatively short period of time. Variously defined revolutions have been happening throughout human history. They vary in terms of numbers of their participants (revolutionaries), means employed by them, duration, motivating ideology and many other aspects. They may result in a socio-political change in the socio-political institutions, or a major change in a culture or economy.

A complete turn around! It is much like the word we use to describe our part in the salvation process - repentance. A revolution and repentance are basically the same thing! They both describe going one direction and then seeing the error of that way and making a complete U-turn, and going the opposite direction!
All of our lives need a revolution! We are travelling, many of us, down a road, which the Bible describes as, "the end thereof are the ways of destruction!" It is time we got some determination, back bone and stood up to ourselves, and make a revolution that we can look back on with pride and resolution. Let us be able to say of this day, "that was the day I changed my life for the better!" May we also be able to say, "I gave my life to Jesus, and Oh, what a change!"

Revolutionize your resolutions, and really make change in your life!

Yours for positive change,
Pastor Fred

The Crossroad of Change

HAPPY NEW YEAR's EVE!

The end of the year. What a promising, yet sobering thought. As this last day of the year is on a Sunday I've taken the opportunity to force myself to objectively scan this past year. I was aiming to see what I'd done and had not done. Then in my praying and retrospect I came across a sermon I preached at the beginning of 2006. I decided the best way to find out what I was supposed to do last year is read my goals, and so I read.

I was uplifted and devastated all at the same time! I had forgotten what God had inspired me to preach and do last year! After reading the message in its entirety I realized that I had let people, and negative spiritual influences keep me from attaining my God given goals. And as I look at where I am today I see that instead of going forward it would seem I've gone back a ways.

Nevertheless, I am making this last day of 2006 a day of crossroads. A day in which I remember the past in order to ensure the future. I will not make the same mistakes twice! In reading my goal setting sermon I found at least one major area in which I didn't maintain myself.

One of the many things I set out to do was to maintain a personal intimate relationship with Jesus in order to foster personal evangelism. Which means in short that I wanted to get close to Jesus so I could lead more people to His side for their own personal salvation.

Because I took the time and made myself look back I identified areas that I need to change and work on. I believe that this is very important for all of us. It takes strength, character, courage and a willingness to face our own personal skeletons and demons.

It is impossible to make positive changes without first looking back and finding the problems and their roots. We must look backward and inward. We must be willing to face the music. We must not fear what we will find.

We all have things in our live that must change! Please make the next 24 hours worth while, and make those personal changes that will take you closer to Jesus. Don't let a habit, character flaw, a grudge, a hurt, jealousy, bitterness, hate, lifestyle keep you away from Jesus, and put you in Hell! Rather join me at the Crossroad of Change, and together we will change our lives so that Jesus can be apart of our lives.

Change is never easy, but it is always essential, important and impossible to escape. The problem with change is that you can do it willingly or eventually you will be forced to change. Changing willingly ensures that you can change for the good, and maintain control. But, when you are forced to change it is rarely for your good or benefit. Please make the right change today! Today is the day of salvation!

Yours for Positive Change in Jesus,
Pastor Fred

He Never Sleeps!

What in the world are you doing up at 5:50 am on a Saturday Morning?! Saturday is the day of the week that you're supposed to sleep in!

I was thinking this very thing this morning when I got up at 10 minutes to six. What? Yeah, I was up that early on a Saturday. I own a janitorial business, and I find that getting up early is easier than staying up late. And besides that I need to keep my customers happy, so I get up even on the days when I should be relaxing, and go to work.

While cleaning this morning the thought occurred to me that Jesus is much the same. He is the head of the Church; the people in this world who have truly obeyed the scripture and been born again of water and spirit. Jesus, the scripture tells us, is like a watchman on the wall; He never slumber nor sleeps. He is always looking out for His people. He never sleeps in. He never doses off, and misses a call. No, Jesus never sleeps! He is always on call. He Always is ready to take care of His own!

I'm so glad that I serve a God and Saviour that is on me side. Who always has me best interest at heart; even if I don't think so! Thank you Jesus for being with me through the thick and thin! Thank you Jesus for preparing the path before me, and ordering my steps! Thank you for never sleeping!

Yours for Christ,
Pastor Fred

What A Wonderful Christmas!

Greetings again to all my blogger friends from around the world! God has been good to us, as He always is, this Christmas! Surrounded by family and friends it has be just great!

My wife and children were very good to me as well, boy what wonderful gifts they got me! My family and friends, thank you for these blessings!

Among the many wonderful things I received, my wonderful wife got me a new Bible! I love it. It has large print (now I don't have any trouble reading it!). It is just the right size! Thanks Baby!

Well, I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas. May the Peace that Passes all understanding come upon you during this end of the year! May you have a divine visitation from Jesus our Lord and Saviour, the Christ child!

P.S. I will be putting regular posts up during this week and the new Year again. Thanks for visiting over the holidays, and may God richly bless you all!

Yours for the Kingdom of Jesus Christ,
Pastor Fred

One Week Left, and I'm up before 6:30am!

Micah, my youngest boy - 14 months - woke up briefly at about five after 6 this morning! I walked him back to sleep rather quickly so now at about 6:40 am I'm writing in my blog. I didn't figure that it would be much point going back to bed for about a half hour - my alarm is set for quarter to seven. So, here I am taking a great opportunity to talk to you; my blog friends!

It's one week until Christmas! This time next week we will most likely be celebrating the Birth of our Saviour Jesus Christ! I'm so excited!

What do you get excited about? In general I mean? Not necessarily about Christmas, but what in your life gets you excited? Here are some things that get me excited:

• When I'm being spontaneous with my wife!
• When I see my children doing something cute, special, funny and or profound!
• When I watch my oldest, Ethan, pray and God answers His prayer - pretty much every time! (For example: It has snowed every time my son has prayed for "Jesus to throw more snow or water up in the air so that it will snow.")
• When someone repents of their sins, and/or gets baptized in Jesus Name for the remission of their sins, and/or receives the Gift of the Holy Spirit into their spirit. (I say and/or because it doesn't always happen one after the other.)
• During Holiday's when I'm celebrating something about Jesus. i.e. Easter, Penecost Sunday, Thanksgiving, Christmas...
• When I get to buy something for someone and watch them get excited when they receive it.
• When God answers my prayers, and/or when God blesses me just because!
• When God opens a door for me to witness to someone about His greatness, grace, love and mercy!

There is so much more I could say, but I think you can see how I work from this short list. Again I would like to know - "what makes you excited?" This is a very particularly excited time of the year, so maybe it would be a good time to reflect about this. So often we go through life and do not take time to reflect on our own lives. Looking back over your own life can be a very helpful way to see what direction your life is currently taking, and maybe will give you the opportunity to see that you need to make some very important changes.

The Bible tells us in the Proverbs that there "is a way that seems right unto a man, but the end of that way are the ways of destruction!" During this last week before we celebrate the Birth of Jesus Christ, take time to reflect, and see what needs to be changed. Nothing would excite me more if I know of someone who gave their life, spirit, soul and body to Jesus during this Christmas season!

Don't wait to get right with Jesus! NOW! is the time, to day is the day of salvation! Take care of your spirit, and soul's eternity now! The longer you wait the harder it gets. Don't get me wrong nothing is impossible with God, but I found that the longer people live in sin and their own will the hard it is for them to let go, and let God have His way! Jesus is here right now! Just reach out and touch Him, as He passes by. He isn't to busy to here your hearts cry. He is passing by this moment your needs to supply. Jesus is here right now, reach out and touch Him, as He goes by!

Don't ever for get that Jesus really does love you!

Your's for and exciting Christmas with Jesus!
Pastor Fred

Alone with Jesus....finally!

It is so easy to get caught up in the rat race of life! Running to and fro trying to make a living, trying to support your family, trying to love and live right, but too ofter getting caught up means that you have lost your identity and individuality!

Don't get me wrong I do pray often while going through the day, but it isn't always private. Walking and talking with Jesus is wonderful, but there is something special about getting alone with Jesus. It's like taking a walk with a friend in a mall. You don't get into a conversation of great depth, but when you are alone with that friend you may talk about many private things at great length and detail. This is kind of what I'm talking about. Getting alone with Jesus, and letting your "hair down" as it were.

I would strongly suggest that you stop, take a deep breath, look around, find a quiet place and talk to Jesus! When we get caught up in the hustle and bustle it is easy to forget about Jesus, it is very important that we make some time to slow down, clear our minds, and be still and realize that He really is God!

Well, I finally got the chance to be alone with Jesus! It was wonderful! It only lasted a few minutes, but it was awesome! I was able to pour myself out to Him, and He was able to pour Himself into me! What an awesome God Jesus is! So personal, so intimate, so loving, so forgiving, so gentle, so kind, and full of grace!

Get alone with Jesus!

Yours for time with Jesus,

Pastor Fred

Are you in the "mood" for Christmas?

(As you might have noticed I've been occupied else where. As I've said in my previous post it's the season to be busy!)

Over the past couple of weeks I've... (I had to stop writing this post because my son was sick, and needed me to hold him, and now a couple days later I don't remember in which direction my thoughts where going!)

Let me start again!

Are you in the "mood" for Christmas? Do you like Christmas? What is your reason for celebrating Christmas? There are so many answers to these questions, and I'm sure most everyone would have a different answer to each question. The other night while doing some Christmas shopping I over heard a couple of old ladies complaining about the hustle and bustle while they where trying to shop in WalMart. One old lady said something as I passed by that really struck home to me. She said to her friend that the problem is that we allow ourselves to get sucked into the bustle, and we forget what it's all about. (That was a little bit paraphrased!)

This statement is so true. We allow the commercial industry to dictate what we must do to have a fun, festive and happy Christmas season. Yet, there is truly only one thing that can make us happy, and that is Jesus Christ! A personal, intimate relationship with Jesus Christ is the most satisfying thing you'll ever experience. It helps you have peace in turmoil, joy during pain, love through hate, faith while in despair, and endurance through the tough times. He is always there to lean on in every situation!

Yesterday we where able to go Christmas shopping in Corner Brook yesterday (Saturday), by ourselves. (Just the wife and I.) We left the 3 children at a friends house and went shopping all day! It was most relaxing. We were definitly tired after, but we had a large amount of gifts, and a large amount of fun! Why am I saying this? How many people really have fun during this season? How many people really enjoy shopping while about 5,000 other people are too? Not too many, but because of Jesus, and because the children where at a trusted friends house we had nothing to worry about, and just had fun! See, even during the most stressful time of year you can have peace and joy when your trust is in Jesus!

Yours for a peaceful happy Christmas,
Pastor Fred

Tis' the season to be.....busy!

Seasons Greetings,

I guess this week kicks off the Christmas season in its highest gear! I've been going crazy for the past 2 weeks, and I'm just realizing that I need to slow down, take a deep breath and take a look around.

During Christmas everyone seems to forget the reason we celebrate, and goes crazy getting gifts, decorating, baking, shopping ect.... Yet, if we would only take time out of our craziness, and remember this is the season we celebrate the coming of Jesus Christ, the Messiah, the Saviour. We ought to give the greatest gift to Jesus, because He is the one who came to save us from our sin, the wickedness of the devil and death. We ought to give of our time, money and most importantly of ourselves to Jesus.

The greatest gift this Christmas would be if you met Jesus this year, and started a personal relationship with him!

Read Acts 2:38 for more information on how to start a relationship with Jesus.

Yours for a Christ filled Christmas,
Pastor Fred

With God nothing is impossible!

What a day yesterday! Yeah it was one of those days! I missed an appointment, and forgot about another. (They called me a reminded me about 5 minutes after the meeting started!)

My wife started participating in our business yesterday. She's supplying baked goods to one of our local stores, ValuFoods. So, she was baking all day yesterday, and our normal schedules were non-existant!

Anyway, let me discuss my premiss and title for this post. The meeting I was late for was a Ministerial Association Christmas Carol Service at one of the local services. We have one every year to raise money for a charity or good cause. It was a great service, and during the benediction Pastor Foster made reference to the scripture about Mary, when she was talking with the Angel about the birth of Jesus. The Angel said, "For with God nothing is impossible!"

This is a very powerful scripture! The angel came on an ordinary day. Mary was probably in the house doing her chores. When the Baby was born it was an ordinary day. The people were being taxed, the shepherds were in the field working, and everyone was busy doing what they did.

Yet, on a very ordinary day Jesus came. God manifest in the flesh shone His light into a very dark world, and the darkness could not defeat it! Nothing is impossible with God.

It could be on a very ordinary busy day for you that Jesus could stop by and visit with you. His light could shine so brightly in your life, and melt all your sins away! It doesn't matter the day, nor does it matter the hour. It doesn't matter the situation, nor does it matter the problem. Nothing is impossible with Jesus!

As the song says:
My God can do anything, anything, anything;
My God can do anything, but fail!
He put the stars in the sky,
He'll wipe those tears from your eyes,
My God can do anything, anything!

Never dispair Jesus can do anything!

Yours for the Spirit of Christ,
Pastor Fred

Faith that is greater than the storm!

(First I'd like to apologize for blogging late today. It's been a very busy day!)

We've had about 15 centimeters of snow over the weekend, and this morning when i was up early getting ready to shovel at the church and around the house, my wife asked if we knew if anyone was going to be coming to church this morning. I said I didn't know. (The people who have been coming are rather erratic!) I believe she was implying that we stay home and enjoy the comfort of our living room, but we went to church anyway.

Well, the above conversation although brief got me thinking about faith. We often let circumstances dictate how we feel, what we are going to do, and what level of faith we are going to employ. Instead we ought rather to have faith, faith that will see you through every situation great or small. Faith isn't a wimsical comodity that is here today and gone tomorrow. Rather faith is an entity, that if we allow to grow, will be able to carry us over every mountain, across every river, and beyond evern desert that life may through our way.

I went to church today, not because of the weather, or because it is the right thing to do, but rather I went to church because I have faith in Jesus, and I wanted to go and worship Him. I went inspite of the storm. Let your faith soar beyond your physical sight, beyond your physical feelings, and beyond your mental emotions. Trust in Jesus for everything, I garauntee that you will not be disappointed!

Yours for Faith
Pastor Fred

A Child's Faith!

Well it's time again to bragg about my children! Sorry if you don't think it's appropriate, but when you have your own children you'll understand.

Anyway, My Son Ethan can be very spiritual sometimes, especially for being 4 years old. I've tried to teach him about prayer, faith and trusting Jesus. However, it usually affects him when someone has a booboo, or when he needs to take care of monsters at night. But, once in awhile he says and does something that is profound and has extraordinary faith involved.

It snowed here on Thursday, yeah!, but it rained on Friday. Well, this disappointed Ethan, as you can imagine. Children love to play out in the snow! It's pure and white, beautiful, and peaceful. Kids love it! So Friday morning Ethan asked me to take some water and throw it up into the sky so we could have more snow! (Is that profound, and understanding for a 4 year old or what!) Anyway, I try to be truthful and honest with my children, and told him I couldn't do that, but, I said, Jesus could. So I lead Ethan in a simple prayer of faith for more snow.

Well, all Thursday while we had the snow everyone said that it was going to be warm all weekend. (between 11 and 14 degrees Celcius) This would make sure that we wouldn't have any snow. So, I went to town on Friday after lunch, a couple hours after Ethan prayed, and behold everyone was talking about the snow storm we were now supposed to get! The forcast changed in a matter of hours from no snow to a bunch of snow. (15 centimeters I think)

If we could just learn to have the absolute unconditional faith of children this world would be filled with the wonders of the divine working in our lives! Too, often we let doubt and life cloud our minds, and we can no longer see into the unsee world of faith, hope, love and peace! Shed your doubt and "realism" and let true child like faith work in your life today!

Yours for Faith,
Pastor Fred

You Can't Hide YOUR Mistakes!

Have you ever made a mistake, whether small or large, which you tried to cover up? Of course you have! We've all done that at some point in time. Adam and Eve humanities parents did it so what hope do we have!?

Anyway, I made a mistake while working at the print shop a couple months ago. It was a "big" mistake! If you read my post from yesterday, you'll know I had a great day which included church bulletins, however, the last order of bulletins I destroyed! (just to be honest and plain!) Anyway I forgot to set them up properly, and printed them. I only figured out I'd done it wrong while I was cutting them down. Anyway I worked really hard to make them look like they were the right size, but many of them were about an inch small both length and width wise! I hoped and prayed my boss wouldn't notice!

That night she was in the shop doing some work after hours, and decided to see if I'd done a good job, well she took one look at the bulletins and knew they were too small. (After 20 years of experience her eye is pretty good!) To make a long story shorter, we had to redo all the bulletins, and didn't hardly make a penny on the job! (By The Way: I do know what I'm doing now!)

So, the moral of the story is, it doesn't matter how hard you try you can't hide your mistakes for ever! You may keep something hidden for awhile, but somewhere alone the line your mistakes will be found out!

Yours for honesty
Pastor Fred