Steadiness in the Storm

I waited patiently for the Lord;
and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry.

 He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay,
and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings. 

And he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God:
many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the Lord.

Psalm 40:1-3

1.  He leaned in to help me.

2.  He established my steps.

3.  God wants to take your burdens and give you a reason.

God will take your burdens for prayers and give you praises for what he has done.

In Matthew 14 we read the account of the disciples in a boat in the storm, Jesus walking toward them on the water.  Peter at first in trust walks toward Jesus, looks down, in fear begins to sink.

If in the storm you are afraid it is because you are looking at the wrong thing.

(Fear always tries to overthrow faith.)

Take courage; do not be afraid.  Any storm or battle in your life is under His feet.  He is walking with you.  He is in the storm with you!  Do not believe the lies of the enemy who says you are alone.

Do the next right thing in this moment.

God will always show up on time.  Maybe not your time, but the right time.

  
Hold up my goings in thy paths, that my footsteps slip not. --Psalm 17:5  David trusted God.  You trust Him, too.  Cede control to Christ.  Trust Him.

Pastor Johnnie Blair

Sunday morning

Footnote: Saturday evening the Missus and I went to a high school performance of "Getting Away With Murder" in which our grandson, Alex, played the role of Dr. Bering.  The crux of the matter, or so it seemed to me, was that the doctor had assembled a bunch of patients for group therapy, the seven patients representing each of the seven deadly sins.  The doctor proposed via notes they found (he was already dead) that he had identified the eighth deadly sin, even greater and more powerful than the combine of the other seven.  We extrapolate that he himself represents this eighth sin, for it is 

Control: the sin of playing God.

How, if at all, does this mesh with the Sunday morning sermon?

Are You All In?

The critical question closing the "All In" sermon series;

Are you all in for Jesus?

Deuteronomy 6:5-7

"And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.
And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart:
And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up."

Jesus demands an "all in"commitment.

If your loyalty is divided you will have a problem in your Christian life. 

You are called to let your life be totally His.

Pastor Johnnie Blair

Sunday morning

Bob Warr's takeaway:  If you are halfway in you are all the way out.

Serve

Truncated sermon notes

"Fear the Lord and serve Him."  --Deuteronomy 10:20

Mythunderstandings about serving.

     1. To serve means to volunteer.  Not so.
     2. To serve is a type of physical labor.  Never too old nor incapacitated to serve.  Prayer, e.g.
     3. To serve means short-term mission trips.  Often the "missionary" is served more than others.
     4. To serve means random acts of kindness. Even non-Christians practice this.  Everyone should be kind.

These are all things we can do to make us feel better about ourselves.  True service implies self-denial.

Service is a two-sided coin.  It is a passion for God and true compassion for others.

Are you worshiping God with your best or with your least?  See. Genesis 3: Abel and Cain.

 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.  --Romans 12:1

Ask yourself
     1.  What am I willing to sacrifice in order to serve God better?
     2.  What consumes my passions and energy?
     3.  How would I describe my offering of worship?
     4.  Do I work hard to serve my own agenda or the needs of others?
     5.  Am I serving God by offering my best?

Pastor spoke of the Last Supper, of Jesus service by washing the feet of the disciples and many other pertinent things.  The best laugh was evoked by the question, "Would you make a reservation for 26 so that your entire party can sit on one side of the table?"

Pastor Johnnie Blair

Sunday morning