CHOICES! ~ THE BOOK OF I SAMUEL

March 20, 2022 / readyforafreshstart / Leave a comment

22 But Samuel replied, “What is more pleasing to THE LORD: your burnt offerings and sacrifices or your obedience to HIS voice? Listen! Obedience is better than sacrifice, and submission is better than offering the fat of rams. 23 Rebellion is as sinful as witchcraft, and stubbornness as bad as worshiping idols. ~ I Samuel 15:22-33

CHOICES! We make decisions everyday because we have so many CHOICES. Think about your daily routines for a moment. Do you shower in the morning before you leave your home, or do you shower the night before to save time in the morning? Next, do you eat cereal at home, or do you drive through somewhere for coffee and your morning feast? Which route do you take: the fastest or the most scenic route? By the way, how did you decide what to wear today? What kind of mattress did you sleep on? Did you wear your favorite PJ’s or just the usual? Which side of the bed did you sleep on? Why?

Clearly, we make so many CHOICES without even considering why we chose what we did not to mention the potential benefits or repercussions of the choices we make. For example, how do you choose to enjoy entertainment? Do you go to a movie? If so, how do you choose which movie? Do you trust Rotten Tomatoes and their scoring system, or do you trust fan favorites?

Admittedly, I make far too many of my decisions by the wonderful process called “winging it.” You might think that pastors spend hours praying about what kind of toothpaste to buy or where we ought to get our fried chicken. However, most of us do not. Truthfully, many of the decisions/CHOICES we make do not appear to have eternal consequences. However, we will meet two men who make their decisions in entirely opposed ways in the book of I SAMUEL. During the next two weeks we will observe two men who were anointed to become kings of ISRAEL. It reminds me of the old Goofus and Gallant characters in the HIGHLIGHT’S children’s magazines. One chooses to do the right thing all the time and one does not. It won’t take much for us to see a very clear application for each of our lives. Enjoy the journey. 😊

Living in the Shadow of the Cross

Blessings in CHRIST,

Pastor Wes

I Peter 3:15

HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY!

February 12, 2022February 12, 2022 / readyforafreshstart / Leave a comment

FRANKLY SPEAKING,

4 “Listen, O Israel! THE LORD is our GOD, THE LORD alone. 5 And you must love THE LORD your GOD with all your HEART, all your SOUL, and all your STRENGTH. 6 And you must commit yourselves WHOLEHEARTEDLY to these COMMANDS that I am giving you today.

7 Repeat them again and again to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you are going to bed and when you are getting up. Deuteronomy 6:4-7

THE BOOK OF DEUTERONOMY! ~ LOVE & OBEDIENCE! I remember a time when people would start a job early in life, and they remained with the company for a lifetime. Our dear friend Caroline greeted people at Red Lobster for over 40 years. WOW! She was enduringly faithful!

It’s easy to be faithful when you remember your LOVE and your passion for someone or something. That’s why the BIBLE repeats the statement to LOVE the LORD your GOD with all your HEART. When we have your HEART; we have the very best of you! Right? Broken hearts are often marks of lost LOVE!

Our minds play tricks on us all the time. We wonder if someone is really a friend, or if they are really who they say they are. Your MIND is the battleground of future decisions. What you think is true determines many of your actions and choices. This is why the BIBLE tells us to LOVE THE LORD GOD with all your MIND! GOD knows our enemy is trying to deceive you!

We often lose perspective when we focus only on ourselves today. There is an eternity awaiting each of us. The decisions we make affect that eternity. That’s why GOD wants us to love HIM with all of our SOUL for alleternity.

Finally, we should love with all that we have. We LOVE with our health, our finances, and our possessions every day. GOD wants each of us to love HIM with all of our STRENGTH. No holding back or holding out! EVERYTHING! {Including our computers, cell phones, tablets, and Social Media posts! 🙂 }

GOD gives each of us the perfect prescription to help us in all of these arenas: REPEAT! When we keep practicing the same thing perfectly, we get better with practice! Let’s practice LOVING GOD and LOVING others! 😊

Living in the Shadow of the Cross

Blessings in CHRIST

Pastor Wes

I Peter 3:15

Celebrating the Sanctity of Life!

January 10, 2022 / readyforafreshstart / Leave a comment

FRANKLY SPEAKING,

13 YOU made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother’s womb. 14 Thank YOU for making me so wonderfully complex! YOUR WORKMANSHIP is marvelous—how well I know it. 15 YOU watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion, as I was WOVEN TOGETHER in the dark of the womb. 16 YOU saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in YOUR BOOK. Every moment was LAID OUT before a single day had passed. ~ Psalm 139:13-16

“CELEBRATING THE SANCTITY OF LIFE!” People are quick to share their opinion to try to convince us that they’ve done their research proving that they’re right and others are wrong. Here are some critical issues facing Americans today according to The Pew Research Center: health care, the national deficit, illegal immigration, gun violence, COVID, racism, unemployment, and climate change. Start a conversation on any of these topics and a healthy debate might ensue. However, mention PRO-LIFE and get ready for war! The SANCTITY OF LIFE pits darkness against LIGHT!

Unfortunately, the church as the place where the standard of TRUTH is THE BIBLE is becoming less prevalent today. Have we forgotten…?

4 THE LORD gave me this message: 5 “I knew you before I formed you in your mother’s womb. Before you were born I set you apart and appointed you as MY prophet to the nations.” ~ Jeremiah 1:4-5

As we examine Psalm 139 today, we must either come to the conclusion that GOD declares HIS SANCTITY FOR LIFE or determine that THE BIBLE is not THE TRUTH we hold on to in any season or culture. Are we prepared to leave our opinions and experiences at the door? Can we approach the timeless WORD OF GOD as THE ULTIMATE TRUTH in each of our lives? I belief that’s our biggest CHOICE as we “CELEBRATE THE SANCTITY OF LIFE!” 😊

Living in the Shadow of the Cross

Blessings in CHRIST ~ Pastor Wes~ I Peter 3:15