Tues/Wed Jan 31/Feb 1 2012 The Beatitudes

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they will be filled. Blessed are the merciful for they will be shown mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

PRAISE GOD, PRAISE GOD. Thanks for all your prayers, I have been cleared for hand surgery for Thursday, so my heart tests came back good enough for that. Wednesday morning I will get those final results. Today's message will be my last till at least next week. Ministry partner Pam Bower will be writing some and it will be sent to you under the same name as now. Thanks again for your prayers.

Tuesday the day we pray for healing and Wednesday our day we pray for Salvation, which is of course healing also. So let's keep our prayers centered today for the unsaved and for those who are saved to be working hard for the Lord to seek out the lost. Let me get straight to the message, as I am having trouble typing with my hands. (Yes, my left hand is starting to act up now also.)

The Beatitudes: Matthew 5:6 - Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they will be filled. 7 Blessed are the merciful for they will be shown mercy. 8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. (NIV)

Again I will try and bring out examples of what I think Jesus wants us to get out of these scriptures. One of the things we need to do is to try and get people to hunger for the word of God. Think about this, as we look at Matthew 5:6 - Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they will be filled - if you never ate a big juicy steak, would your mouth water for it? If you never tasted ice cream, would you really hunger for it? So if people never go to church, or never open a Bible, how could they really hunger for the word, or His righteousness? To me this is another way that Jesus is telling us we need to preach and teach and tell the good news. Sometimes in our lives today we use our hunger for food, to help get people to hunger for the word of God. Example, church dinners. You know those church dinners are not just for fellowship, and I feel that while a good church dinner is nice for members and those attending the church, I think it is a great place to bring people in as guests and then they get to see just how good God is and just what the Good News is. Of course the good news is about Salvation. So folks, as we sit down and hunger for a burger, let's also hunger for The Word of God. Amen.

As we look at the next verse, Matthew 5:7 - Blessed are the merciful for they will be shown mercy - I want to try and relate this verse to the verse in the Lord's prayer... "Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us... I think Jesus is teaching us on this scripture, that if we show mercy to others, He will also show it to us in the same manner. You see God forgives us as we forgive others, and I feel He shows us mercy according to the mercy we show others.

One last scripture for today...  Matthew 5:8 - Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. Ok, let's look at this verse, Blessed are the pure in heart. Do you know how quickly God can pick out a phony? Let's face it, He knew us before we were in the womb, so I guess He knows our every move before we even think about it. Which includes but is not limited to knowing our hearts. Scary, right? That is why Jesus is teaching us these things, and after we learn them we should tell others. Yes, I think it is important that as we take out the word of the Lord we should do all we can to walk the walk...

Father in Heaven, we want to be true to You for You have given us so much, including Your Son who died for us. We really want to walk the walk with Jesus and try our best to follow Him in all we do... We confess we need help and lots of it... So today, Lord, I pray You help us walk with Jesus and also share His word with Others... In Jesus' name, Amen.

Now go forth sharing the blessings. Good Lord willing, I will be back next week... love ya, Pastor Dan. 

Monday January 30, 2012 The Beatitudes

Now when He saw the crowds He went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to Him and He began to teach them, saying "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they will be filled."

Good Monday morning, my dear brothers and sisters. Can you believe it, January is all but over and it has been, well, almost spring-like. The other day we saw some tulips coming up from the earth (no, the earth was not in a pot in a flower shop).  Monday and the day we pray for our leaders and also for our military and all those who work hard to keep us safe and free. I am also asking for prayer today for former Senator Rick Santorum's 3 year old daughter. She is very ill, was born with a birth defect. (Senator Santorum is a strong, strong supporter of LIFE.) Also I am asking for your prayers this week. I am to have hand surgery on Thursday, but I have run into a "heart" problem that needs to be cleared first. Tuesday I go for several more heart tests. Vicki still needs our prayers as does Carol and others on our prayer lists from last week.

The Beatitudes:  Matthew 5:1 - Now when He saw the crowds He went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to Him 2 and He began to teach them, saying 3 "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. 5 Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. 6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they will be filled."   (NIV)

As I have told you in some of my past messages, I am trying to bring out the examples that Jesus set for us when He walked the earth that we should be following today. As I start the Beatitudes today, I confess I struggled with Matthew 5:3 "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." I was thinking that we who love Jesus should be very, very rich in spirit and why would the poor in spirit have the kingdom of heaven?So I called on my dear friend Neil Enloe who helps me when I get into trouble or need to get deeper into the word to really understand it. Neil responded to me and his words will be at the end of the message. With his help, my thinking turns to the fact we are just plain unworthy of what He, Jesus, did for us. With that I will leave verse three and go back to verses one and two. Here we find Jesus heading up on the mountainside, more than likely a nice peaceful place and a place to talk and teach His disciples. The example to me is that even as we follow Him, we need to sit down with Him, even though we cannot be face to face (for now anyway) and we need to listen to his teachings. How do we do that? We can dig into the word, we can go to church and take in fuel, and we can talk to Him... Yes, talk to Him and then we must listen to Him for answers. We can also dig into His word by having dear friends who also know and love Jesus, just as I have on this line and call upon them for help and understanding.

So now let's look at Matthew 5:4. "Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted." Have you ever been to a funeral? Of course you have! Has it been a very near relation and/or a dear friend or someone you dearly love? We hurt and I have said many times how does someone get through times like this and not know Jesus? Folks, I hope you never need to go through it, but I am sure when you are in love with Jesus, He will carry you through. He will hear your crying and He will be there for you.

OK, enough for this day, let's pray.

Dear Father in Heaven, please forgive us of our sins and thanks for opening Your word to us this day. This is tough, Lord, and I really need Your help, thanks for sending Your love in the form of a friend today to help me. Please honor our prayer requests according to Your will, dear Jesus... as we pray in Your name. Amen.

Now go forth and share your blessings, and please take time to read these words from my dear friend Neil Enloe.   Love ya,  Pastor Dan.

Dan-

Good to hear from you, Bro. I have an app on my iPhone that has many translations of the Bible and I went looking for “poor in spirit.”

The Amplified Bible says, “the humble, who rate themselves insignificant”.
The Common English Bible says, “hopeless”.
The Good News Translation says, “those who know they are spiritually poor”.
The God’s Word Translation says, “those who recognize they are spiritually helpless”.
The New Century Version says, those “who realize their spiritual poverty”.
The New International Reader Version says, “those who are spiritually needy”.

I think we’re seeing a pattern here that seems to agree that “poor in spirit” refers to our recognizing that we are utterly bankrupt (as opposed to being proud) in spirit, and knowing that even though we are broke we have an inheritance in the Kingdom of Heaven. Pretty comforting, huh? Makes you feel rich.

Have a great one, Dan.

Neil

Thur/Fri January 26/27, 2012 Once Body, Many Gifts.

The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.

Good Morning, my dear brothers and sisters. Today, I am writing for Thursday and Friday. Thursday we set aside to pray for churches, schools and also families. Friday we pray for those working in the fields of Harvest. But first a praise report. Rick Brouse thanks all for prayers and gives glory to God. His back surgery yesterday to take care of a bad disc, he was in the hospital by 8 am and home by noon. God is good... Thank You, Jesus.

Prayers also today for Vicki, Carol, and others who have been on our prayer lists the past days and weeks. Also, I had a EKG the other day getting ready for my hand surgery, I did not do well on the test and am heading to the heart doctor this morning to be checked out and cleared for surgery. Your prayers will be appreciated.

One Body, Many Gifts: 1 Corinthians 12:12 - The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ. 13 For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. (NIV)

A few weeks back, when we were sorting and packing food for our big Christmas food distribution day, Rick Brouse was with us helping and he was having a bad day. As I recall he was on the detail to break down the empty boxes and stack them and his back was really barking at him. I am pointing this out as when one of our body parts does get out of sorts, then all too often it makes the rest of our body not work so good. What happens if we just get a head cold, and we get a fever, we feel punk and cannot work right, our body sort of gives up.

Here we find in the Bible our body being compared with the "Body of believers." Let's look at our local church for a minute. We need many people who have different gifts who come together to work for the Lord at the local church. In the Church of Christ, meaning God's church, well, let me just give it to you right from the scripture.

1 Corinthians 12:27 - Now you are the body of Christ and each one of you is a part of it. 28 And in the church God has appointed first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then workers of miracles, also those having gifts of healing, those able to help others, those with gifts of administration and those speaking in different kinds of tongues. 29 Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? 30 Do all have gifts of healing? Do all speak in tongues? Do all interpret? 31 But eagerly desire the great gifts. (NIV)

Now we can see there are many gifts given or I like to say lent to us from God. And while God is talking about the Church of God, His church, one we all belong to when we love Jesus and have received Him as our personal Savior, the local church supports many of the same gifts and needs them all to have the church work for the Lord. If the body of Christ, that would be all of us working together as one, starts to come apart, then the church gets hurt. I am sure we have seen the devil get involved in local churches and some people with gifts start not using their gifts but get involved in other things. Sometimes when one does not use their gifts properly and for the good of God, then the church falls apart, maybe even fails. Brothers and sisters, God has also lent to us more than one gift. Let me use my dear, dear brother Pastor Larry Hale as an example on this.  Among the gifts that God has lent to Pastor Larry is the gift of teaching, the gift of faith and also the gift of Administration (all pastors need to also be administrators). While he might have a few more, one of those others that he has is the greatest gift of all, and that gift is "Love".

Let me look a tad deeper into this great gift called love... 1 Corinthians 13 talks about this great gift.

1 Corinthians 13:1 - If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3 If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing. 4 Love is patient, love is kind, it does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 8 Love never fails!! (NIV)

So we can see in the scriptures, there are many gifts, but the one that is above all others is Love. Now where did we see that? Oh, in Jesus, we know He heals, we have studied that, we have seen His great faith, we have see Him tempted, but above all we have seen His great love for us when He died on the cross for us. He gave His life for us, and His love never fails, and the Bible tells us that it will not fail. Please, folks, please do not be afraid to show love towards others, please do not be afraid to share your love, do not be afraid to hug others, and most of all do not confuse LOVE FOR SEX. Brothers and sisters, fall first in love with Jesus, then and only then do you really know what REAL LOVE IS.

Dear Father in Heaven, Please forgive us of our sins, and Lord Jesus, thanks for the great love You gave to us when You died on the cross for us. Thanks, Jesus. Father, please honor our prayer requests according to Your will, and Father, thanks for the many gifts You have given us and thanks for the good report from brother Rick, all glory and honor to you. In Jesus' name I pray... Amen.

Now go forth sharing your blessings and loving others. Have a great weekend... love ya (I really do),  Pastor Dan.    

Wednesday January 25, 2012 They Came to Be Healed!

News about Him spread all over Syria and people with various diseases, to those suffering severe pain, the demon-possessed, those having seizures and the paralyzed, and He healed them. Large crowds from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea and the region across the Jordan followed Him.

Good Salvation Wednesday morning to you, my dear brothers and sisters. It is Wednesday and the day we pray for the Lost, and pray that those who are born again go out and help seek out the lost to bring to the feet of Jesus to be saved. Also today please pray for Rick Brouse who is having back surgery today, and pray for Donna Pierce who could not get out of her wheelchair last night to get into bed.

Vicki had some good news from her doctor yesterday but still has a lot of health issues and needs prayer.

They Came to Be Healed! Matthew 4:24 - News about Him spread all over Syria and people with various diseases, to those suffering severe pain, the demon-possessed, those having seizures and the paralyzed, and He healed them. 25 Large crowds from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea and the region across the Jordan followed Him. (NIV)

How many times have you been healed by Jesus? Now think about that question a bit, it is not a loaded question, but think about it. Let me throw in some more guidelines to the question. How many times were you healed by Jesus when you did not even know you were sick, or when you had something wrong and it just seemed to clear up on its own? And how many times did Jesus block the sickness that was heading your way? Or even this, how many times has He kept you safe on the highways? One last question and this the biggie. How many times has Jesus forgiven you of your sins? Now a few other quick questions. How many times did we sort of ask to be sick? Come on now, how many times have you gone out and did things that gave you that sore back, because you lifted wrong and you knew better?

How many times have you been warned that smoking causes cancer and also bad lungs?How many times has Jesus blocked us from an accident even though we were speeding, or ran a traffic signal or stop sign? And another big question, how many times have we asked to be forgiven of our sins, only to sin again, sometimes within the hour? Have I told you how often I think God gives me a message to write that He is pointing right at me?

How many times have we really stopped to give thanks to Him for healing us and looking after us and forgiving us of our sins? Let me answer that one right now. Not near often enough!!!!

When we dig into the scriptures of today the Bible talks about how the people followed Jesus as the news spread of His healing every disease and healing of pain and even driving out demons. Folks, I know of churches that have services to heal and to drive out demons and some will laugh at those services most often if they are having hands on to drive out demons. Brothers and sisters, please do not think that things are different today. Would you, if you really hurt and knew of people coming to your area that were going to have a big healing service, would you not try and go? Or do you think this is fake? When you see Pastor Benny Hinn lay hands on someone and they claimed to be healed, do you believe it to be done or do you doubt it happens? Maybe thinking just showmanship or a way to raise money. Let me tell you that there are people today who have been given the gift of healing, but they do it through Jesus and always give Him the Glory. We have healing services many times throughout the year at The Bridges and each week we pray for people to be healed just like we do on this line. Has God blessed me with the gift of healing? I don't know, even though I have prayed for people who were healed, but I AM SURE THEY WERE HEALED BY JESUS AND NOT BY ME. I want to be very clear on that. Do I believe in direct healing from Jesus through the power of the Holy Spirit? Yes, I do, and it is in the Bible. The power of the Holy Spirit is the most powerful source of power in the world. Let me repeat that again. The POWER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT IS THE MOST POWERFUL SOURCE OF POWER IN THE WORLD. The Holy Spirit sent from God has the power to drive out demons, heal the sick, calm the storms, not just those storms of weather, but the storms in your very own life. Oh, and remember this, that power, that power of the Holy Spirit, can work the other way. When Katrina hit a few years ago, people said God did not cause that storm to happen, and I said, who is in charge of the weather, your local weather reporter?

Tomorrow I am going to talk more abut Spiritual Gifts. Not all of us have been lent the same gifts, but trust me when I say, we all have have been trusted gifts from God. To use that term of Rush Limbaugh, "Talent on loan from GOD." If God has trusted you with a gift from Him, learn to use it for the good of mankind and to promote the Kingdom of God. To get ready for tomorrow I invite you to read 1 Corinthians 12:1/30, yes, all of chapter 12.  Now let us use one gift that we all have been given and this one is given and that is the power of prayer.

Dear Father in Heaven, I am still trying to figure out all of the gifts You have trusted to me from time to time in my life. I am sorry when I did not even know that I had been trusted with the gifts and turned my back on not only them but on You also. Dear Father, many of us have done that on this line and right now I want to just ask that You forgive us for that and help us to use the gifts wisely as long as You have them trusted to us. Lord Jesus, I love You very much and today I pray for those who are not saved and pray for all of us who are saved to come even nearer to You and work harder at repentance of our sins. I pray that You will honor our prayer requests for healing according to Your will for us. And I pray that we may honor You this day by living a life that is pleasing to You and so that others also see we live for You, that we are proud of it and of You and tell others the good news of Your coming kingdom. In Jesus' name, I pray.  Amen.

Now go forth, doing at least one thing you can do with gifts from God and that is share them with others. And know this. I love ya,  Pastor Dan.  

Tuesday January 24, 2012 Jesus heals the sick!

Jesus went throughout Galilee teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness among the people. -------- 

 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.

Good Tuesday Morning, my dear brothers and sisters. It is a wonderful, beautiful morning here at the Southern Location of the North Pole. Tuesday and the day we pray for God to furnish a cure for every disease and sickness. Pray also this day for Michelle who has cancer.

PRAISE REPORT. Dolores went to the doctors yesterday for her checkup on her kidneys which requires a blood test, and then she gets shots to keep the blood in line so her kidneys do not go down hill more. She is in third stage kidney failure. Yesterday her blood work was so good, that she did not need to get the shots. Quoting the doctor, "Your blood is too good for a shot today." All honor and glory to our Lord Jesus who is still healing. I have my appointment today to have my knees injected again and make the final preparation for surgery on my right hand. I also want to schedule the date for replacement of my right knee.

Jesus Heals the Sick: Matthew 4:23 - Jesus went throughout Galilee teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness among the people. (NIV)

Hebrews 13:8 - Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. (NIV)

As we look at the scriptures of today, let us first look for the examples Jesus is setting for us. Right away we see Jesus is teaching and preaching, and what is He teaching and preaching? The Good News of the Kingdom!! I want to bring this scripture out to you on this day. This would be Jesus sending out His disciples.

Mark 16:15 - Jesus said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the Good News to all creation." 16 "Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned."

Now, I brought this out to you as an example of what we should be preaching. No, the example is not mine, it is Jesus not just telling us what to preach and teach, or sing about, but He is showing us. Going on with the scripture, we see that Jesus was healing EVERY disease and sickness among the people. He did not heal one thing and not the other, He healed them all. Again it says "Jesus was healing EVERY DISEASE AND SICKNESS. So some might say, well,  that was back then and this is now, and brothers and sisters, I know some would say that, so I brought out the scripture from Hebrews which tells us Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever.

One thing some of us lack today is faith, faith that Jesus will heal us. I am not telling you not to see a doctor, for sometimes Jesus heals through the hands of others, sometimes direct healings, other times it could come through the hands of the doctors. As we go through the Bible and look at scriptures where Jesus is healing folks, I don't think we will find one time where people say anything like, I don't think He will heal me. I know, folks, that it does not always happen as fast as we think it should, but folks, Jesus still heals this day. I want to give you two examples of healing just on Carry The Light Ministries Team. Pam has been healed from breast cancer and I have been healed from prostate cancer.

Then there is the big sickness, and Jesus still heals from that one also. Do you know what that big sickness might be? Well come back tomorrow and we are going to talk about that.

Calling of His disciples. It happened long ago as the men are now up in age. They were classmates in a Bible College and they were singing together. Just those young men who wanted to work for God... I don't know their early story other than Jesus asked them to lay down their nets and follow Him. The men I understand picked Central Pennsylvania as their base and brought their Southern Style and also a style all of their own gospel music to this area, and they never left this area as their base. I met these gentlemen back in 1981 when Dolores took me to a "gospel concert" on our second date. I took her on a motorcycle ride for our first date. These gentlemen started singing when the dead sea was still sick and the streets were still dirt, and they are still out their singing. Their voices as rich as ever and their mission just as strong, still preaching, teaching and singing the good news. They have sung all over the world, even in Russia. They, I understand, even did the church service at, at least one NASCAR race. Do you know who these men are that answered the call? They have set many fine examples and like the gentleman from yesterday had a lot to do with what I do today.

Yesterday I had several people email me and tell me they thought that I had described my good friend Timothy Beitzel, and those who guessed that were correct... He is still out there working for Jesus in all he does.

Dear Father in Heaven, forgive me of my sins, and Lord, forgive all who ask in faith this day, help us to repent and turn from sins. Lord, be with all those who have answered the call to be a disciple for You. Please look over our prayer requests and answer them according to Your will and not ours. Thanks for the good report on Dolores. All honor and glory to You. In Jesus' name, Amen.

Now go forth and share your blessings, keeping Your faith and your eyes on the Lord. Love ya, Pastor Dan. 

Monday January 23, 2012 Jesus calls His first Disciples

As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, He saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. "Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men." At once they left their nets and followed Him.

Good Morning, my dear brothers and sisters, it is Monday and if you are hitting the roads in Central Pennsylvania, BE ALERT FOR BLACK ICE. Monday and the day we pray for our leaders, and let's add our future leaders as we are in a major election year. Also pray for our veterans, for our current military, for our police and firefighters and all others who work so hard to keep us safe and healthy. Please pray also today for those who work at our retirement and nursing homes. Please also pray for the family of Joe Paterno in their time of sorrow. Please pray for Vicki, for Carol, for Ruby, for Katie, also for Dolores, and for Eleanor, Sharon, Robert, and Dan (The Saylor family).

Jesus Calls His First Disciples: Matthew 4:18 - As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, He saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. 19 "Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men." 20 At once they left their nets and followed Him. (NIV)

So let's take a look at the scripture and try and see the examples Jesus was setting way back when He walked on this earth. I would think as Jesus was walking along the Sea of Galilee that day He would have been talking to His Father in Heaven, and also pondering all the work He had ahead of Him, His many, many missions along with the "biggie" which of course is Salvation through Him. As He came upon brothers Simon Peter and Andrew, Jesus called out to them. "Come, follow me, and I will make you fishers of men." And the scriptures tell us that AT ONCE they left their nets and followed Him. Their minds were made up already and they were ready to put their whole life on hold to work for Jesus and to follow Him. I know some of you have already had your feet in the shoes of Simon Peter and Andrew and that Jesus has called you to be disciples, and yes, He is still calling disciples today and if you do not hear Him, you are not paying attention.

When I look back over my life I have met a lot of men and women who follow Jesus, some of them heard the call when they were very young, while others, well, like me, got the call later in life. Maybe I had it early on, but then my ears were not into listening to Jesus back then. Years ago I met this fine young man who at that time was singing with a Gospel Quartet, not one of those big name Quartets but a less known one, which had a big local following. This young man was blessed to be born into a wonderful family who loved the Lord, and would you believe he was the son of a carpenter. He was also blessed as he grew to have a great baritone/bass voice. When he was not singing he would be at concerts listening to other groups sing. Although I was old enough to be his father, I just marveled at how his witness for Jesus helped me along in my younger years as a Born Again Christian and how at his young age he could reach out and touch people of all ages in the name of Jesus. I am sure he put down his net many times to follow Jesus, sometimes having to bring the net along to make some dollars to work for Jesus. I know that he loves his wife and children very much, but above them he loves Jesus, and I know that because he lives that life. This gentleman, and he is a gentle man, has never stopped working for the Lord, he has over the years had to shift gears, but his mission is still the same. Tell the masses about Salvation through Jesus, in other words, take the Good News of Jesus wherever he can. He might now stay nearer to home, but again, our neighbors need the word also. I know this man very well, and as I said he has helped me many times in my walk for/and with Jesus, and I could be telling you of more than one person.

Who in your life do you know that was called by God and picked up their nets and followed Him, and who do you know who might have just said No to Jesus? Folks, it is not easy to answer the call, there is a lot to think about. 

Near the end of next week you are going to hear about a young family, the Stoner family, who fly for the Lord. During the week, this week I am going to tell you of others who have put down their nets, and then some others, who really worked harder at their jobs, so they could use their dollars to help some who have put down their nets and followed Jesus.

Think about this, folks, if Jesus calls you to follow Him, and would tell you to put down your nets, would you go, or would you have an excuse? Please do not say you are too old, for at any age you can still work for Jesus, as an example I point to our flock at The Bridges, for as God calls some home and new folks move in, those living there who love Jesus invite them to church right away. When people move in one of the things they tell us other than needing to give up a lot of things, they don't get to their church, so we try and make them feel at home with our services. God is good, and He does have something in mind for you to do for Him, why not ask Him about it? It is not too late to get out working for Jesus. If you are a person sitting at home, maybe retired and maybe have been sick, but you still get on your computer, why not start a prayer line? Start it first with Jesus praying for Him to open doors for You, and then asking Him how you can be used to comfort people. Please do not be afraid to pray with others and hug them as you pray. Let God use you, folks...

Dear Father in Heaven, I pray today that You will call on us to work in Your fields of Harvest. Please add to or change our assignments as per Your will and may we hear the call and not just say to You, Jesus I will work for You, but I want to name my terms, no Lord, I want to do it according to Your will for me, and I pray others do the same. Help us, dear Lord. And Lord, for our other prayer requests, please honor them according to your will. And Lord, please keep blessing the young man who I was talking about today, for he is still ready, willing and able to work for You. Thank You, Lord, for his presence in our lives. In the name of Jesus, I pray... Amen.

Now folks, my dear, dear bothers and sisters, go forth and share your blessings, and by the way, the young man I was talking about this morning, maybe you can tell me, I will let you know if you are correct. He might figure it out when he reads this today, as he is a prayer warrior on the line. Yes, I will let you know who it is this week... Tomorrow, more on calling of His disciples and more on if you would take the call even today if He calls on You. Love ya, Pastor Dan.

Friday January 20, 2012 Jesus starts to preach!

When Jesus heard that John had been put in prison He returned to Galilee. ----- From that time on Jesus began to preach, "Repent for the kingdom of heaven is near."

Good Friday Morning, my dear brothers and sisters. Can you believe we are 2/3 the way through January already? COME ON, SPRING!! Friday and it is the day we pray for all those who are working the fields of Harvest for our Lord Jesus, those who by the way should be preaching and teaching these words... "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near." Anyway, as we pray for those workers of God today, please remember Daniel Stoner and his family. More coming on them real soon. Also please remember Vicki on that daily prayer list. And please also pray for Dolores, she is having lots of problems, and in the past two days she has fallen twice.

Speaking of how time flies. I can remember when I went to high school, and some of my school classmates and LONG TIME friends are on the line. If my memory serves me right we went back to homeroom and waited for the dismissal bell which rang at 3.05 PM. Hey, kids on line, am I right on that time? Anyway, it seemed like that last 5 minutes would never pass, but from the time we got out of high school the clocks went into high gear. In fact, the clocks turn so fast as we get older I now have one mounted on the celling and use it for a fan.

Jesus Starts to Preach: Matthew 4:12 - When Jesus heard that John had been put in prison He returned to Galilee. ----- 17 From that time on Jesus began to preach, "Repent for the kingdom of heaven is near." (NIV)

Let's review for just a minute and look back, where did we hear those words before? For that I am just going back to -----------

Matthew 3:1 - In those days John The Baptist came preaching in the desert of Judea and 2 saying "Repent for the kingdom of heaven is near." (NIV)

So again as I look at what Jesus was doing while here on earth and look for when I feel He was showing us just what we should do, in other words teaching and preaching and setting examples for us to follow, I see He was setting us up for the messages we are to be talking to our flocks about. On this occasion as Jesus started to preach and teach He was telling the same things as John, His forerunner was telling... REPENT FOR THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN IS NEAR. And again what I am going to tell you this day, REPENT FOR THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN IS NEAR. Do you see the example that Jesus is showing us? For sure He is not copying what John had said, because Jesus is not a follower, He is a leader, however, John was sent with a mission from God to start with, and that was to prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for Him. I also want you to notice that you will not find me wasting any time at all (could not say that in school), I also want you to notice that you will not find me wasting any time at all trying to figure out when Jesus is coming back, it is enough for me to know and believe that He is coming back, and I want to thank God our Father in Heaven that He did not send Jesus back while I was still lost and had drifted away from Jesus. Pastors, preachers, teachers of the gospel, Sunday School teachers, gospel singers and all others who are taking the Good News of Salvation through Jesus to the masses have enough to do without trying to tell people that Jesus is coming back and then picking a date. I will tell you this much, however, He is coming back and it could be today!!

Our job is to get our flocks ready so that when Jesus comes for His bride, we are ready, we are dressed in white for we have already come to Christ and have been forgiven. Our robes are clean, we have been forgiven and brothers and sisters, once that is done for us we have others to tell. Folks, there is only one way to heaven and it is through Jesus, don't let anyone tell you different. You cannot buy your way in! You cannot work your way in! Although work is required after you are saved! You cannot talk your way in once the end has come! The only way into Heaven is through Jesus and I want to show you that in scripture. So here are just a couple of them.

John 3:16 - For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him. (NIV)

John 14:6 Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. NO ONE comes to the father except through me. (NIV)

So let me put it to rest for today and for the week like this... REPENT FOR THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN IS NEAR.

Dear Father in Heaven, when we are out preaching and teaching, singing and talking about You, give us the words to say when we tell folks that Your kingdom is coming. In all of our prayer requests I pray Your will to be done. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

Now go forth and share your Blessings and please, folks, share these words also... REPENT FOR THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN IS NEAR. Do not be afraid to tell the good news of Salvation and it starts, folks, with Jesus going to the cross for us, and we repenting of our sins for us and also for Him... Have a blessed weekend... love ya, Pastor Dan. 

Thursday January 19, 2012 Jesus leads by Example

My son, do not forget my teaching, but keep my commands in your heart. For they will prolong your life many years and bring you prosperity. Let love and faithfulness never leave you, bind them around your neck; write them on the tablet of your heart. Then you will win favor and a good name in the sight of God and man. Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and he will make your paths straight.

Good Thursday morning, my dear brothers and sisters. Thursday,  the day we pray for churches, schools and families. Also please keep praying for Vicki, and for the guys at Sonshine Ministries.

Remember the teachings of God. Proverbs 3:1 - My son, do not forget my teaching, but keep my commands in your heart. 2 For they will prolong your life many years and bring you prosperity. 3 Let love and faithfulness never leave you, bind them around your neck; write them on the tablet of your heart. 4 Then you will win favor and a good name in the sight of God and man. 5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. 6 In all your ways acknowledge Him and he will make your paths straight. (NIV)

Jesus teaches by example and by doing and also laying down some rules, or commandments, as they are called. Do you know that if we would have paid attention in our youth in Sunday School and in Vacation Bible School we would have learned about all we really needed to live well in our nation? What was it we learned? Well, if the teachers were doing their job, and we kids were paying attention, we would have learned to above all else Love God, and then Love our neighbors as ourselves.

God led me to Proverbs 3:1. The first thing God is telling us is "Do not forget my teaching." As I have pointed out this week, I want to bring out His teaching and mainly His teaching by example. Lets face it, folks, the only reason that Jesus let the devil tempt Him was to show us that all during our lives we are going to be tempted. And folks, we for sure have been tempted. I think we give Satan too much credit, for I believe there are temptations that come from other than the devil himself. Temptations come in the shape of people, temptations come in the form of money and things money can buy. Temptations come in the form of drugs, and booze and sex and many other forms. And while I believe that those temptations don't always come for the devil, I do believe that we need Jesus to fight them off. Brothers and sisters, money cannot buy off our temptations, we need to just ask Jesus to help us fight temptations, we really do and we need Him daily. We need to try our very, very best to follow the footsteps of Jesus daily. Jesus is the only one who has lived without sin and should be the only one we set our sights on. Earthly heroes will always fail you, Jesus never will fail you. So please keep your eyes on the Lord. Work together with other Christians and when you see a friend slipping, talk to them, and tell them to do the same with you. If you are slipping a tad from God, your friends should pull you back. We Christians need to work together and stay near each other as we walk with the Lord.

Dear Father in Heaven, help us this day to walk with You in all we do, forgive us of our sins and keep us away from evil and all evildoers,  and Lord, today I want to just lead us all in this wonderful prayer You taught us to pray. Our Father whom Art in Heaven, Hallowed be Thy Name, Thy Kingdom Come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us, and lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil, for thine is the Kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.    Thanks for leading us by examples Lord. I pray in Jesus' name.  Amen.

Now go forth sharing your blessings and yes, you may test God in this one... but only this one, you may test God in your giving, your SHARING OF YOUR BLESSINGS, SO TO SPEAK... Love ya,  Pastor Dan.  

Wed. January 18, 2012 Jesus Tempted Again

Again the devil took Him to a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. "All this I will give you," he said, "if you will bow down and worship me." Jesus said to him, "Away from me, Satan! For it is written, 'Worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only.'" Then the devil left Him, and the angels came and attended Him.

Salvation Wednesday, Salvation Wednesday, help bring in the lost so they can be saved. Salvation Wednesday, Salvation Wednesday, help bring in the lost so they can be saved.

Good Morning, my dear brothers and sisters, it is Wednesday and I just came in from feeding our goats and our pet chicken. We were having a bit of snow. Lake effect, they say, but hey, we do not have a lake. Myself, I would love to call it our "onion snow."

Anyway, pray for the lost today, and yes, everyday. Please remember that we cannot save anyone, but Jesus needs us to get out the good news of Salvation through Him so that the lost can be saved. Also remember that we have Vicki on our daily prayer lists.

On the front page of the Patriot-News, the morning paper out of Harrisburg Pa., it talks about the number of abortions which came down in the year 2010. The abortions dropped 1.4 percent from the year before. Both sides, pro-life and abortion folks, were trying to say they had a hand in it. FOLKS, IN PENNSYLVANIA THAT SAME YEAR WE MURDERED 37,284 UNBORN BABIES. Folks, nobody has bragging rights on this until the number of abortions is ZERO, ZIP, NONE, and all God's people shouted AMEN.

Dear Father in Heaven, help us to stop the killing of the unborn babies, help us, Lord, these are Your children. Lord, please please lead us in what we can do to help. In the name of Jesus,  Amen.

Once again Jesus is tempted by Satan. Matthew 4:8 - Again the devil took Him to a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. 9 "All this I will give you," he said, "if you will bow down and worship me." 10 Jesus said to him, "Away from me, Satan! For it is written, 'Worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only.'" 11 Then the devil left Him, and the angels came and attended Him. (NIV)

NIV=New International Version (I use a large print, New International Version Study Bible, and also a large print King James Version for some of the scriptures.)

Again I want to take a look at the scriptures to see the example that Jesus is setting for us. In the scripture today Jesus is being offered all the kingdoms of the world if He would just bow down and worship Satan. This is funny and to explain my thinking on this and bring out this fun part I want to go to John 1.

John 1:1 - In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through Him all things were made, without Him nothing was made that has been made. 14 The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. (NIV)

This is what is so funny, here we have Satan, the master of evil trying to give to Jesus, WHAT JESUS CREATED. So Satan wanted Jesus to bow down to Him and then he, the devil, would give control over all things to Jesus... Wow, Jesus had that control and still has the control over most all things except man and a few other things, like animals. Yes, God gave it to us, all those things, well, except for that one tree. I am sorry but it just struck me funny this morning. Now let me get back to some of those examples that were set by Jesus in these scriptures.

Now Jesus told Satan that He would not bow down to him, or anyone but our Lord God. If I were to ask you, do you bow down to Satan and worship him, I would think most if not all of you would say you do not bow down to Satan, but the fact remains sometimes we do seem to worship others or more so other things. I would think the most worshipped thing, what would be worshipped more than anything else would be the almighty dollar. Money, we have heard it is the "root of all evil" and while I think maybe Satan is the root of all evil, money surely must be the trunk. Even in some religions I would see people bow down to some of the leaders in the religion. In our flock at the Bridges we have people from many church backgrounds, and once in a while someone will bow to me at the door and thank me and use a name other than Pastor. I correct them at once, and tell them, please, please give God all honor and glory, I am just a servant for Him as we all need to be. One other thing that I want to point out to you, other than Jesus saying we should bow and worship God and God alone, is found in Matthew 4:11 - "Then the devil left Him." Folks, I do believe that once Satan has had his run at you and after trying and trying to get you to worship him, he will leave you alone. But we also need to be careful for if he cannot get to us, he will for sure come after those we love. I also want to bring out from that same verse this Matthew 4:11 - "and angels came and attended Him."

Brothers and sisters, if we are truly only going to worship God and we are going to live fully for Him, we will find that the same protection offered to Jesus is available to us. Pray for it and expect it. Let's pray now for God's protection and also for a renewal in Jesus and for those not saved, for salvation... Are you ready?

Dear Father in Heaven, I Love You and today ask that You forgive me of my sins again. Yes indeed, Jesus, I am a sinner and I am sorry that I keep messing up. Forgive me, Lord, and wash me white as snow and come live in me. Lord, I pray today for the unsaved and pray they will come fully to You to be saved. For all other of our prayer requests each day, Thy will be done. In Jesus name, I pray. Amen.

Now go forth serving your King, King Jesus, and sharing those blessings He so richly poured out on You. Share them, brother.

By the way, no one responded with an answer to my question of yesterday, so I will ask it one more time. In yesterday's scripture Matthew 4:7 "Do not put your Lord your God to the test." However there is one thing you can test Jesus on... what is it?

Love ya, Pastor Dan 

Tuesday January 17, 2012 Jesus Tempted Again!

Then the devil took Him to the holy city and had Him stand on the highest point of the temple. "If you are the Son of God," he said, "throw yourself down." "For it is written. "'He will command His angels concerning You, and they will lift You up in their hands, so that You will not strike Your foot against a stone.'" Jesus answered him, "It is also written: 'Do not put the Lord your God to the test.'"

Good Tuesday Morning, my dear brothers and sisters. Another beautiful January day here at the Southern Location of the North Pole. It is Tuesday and that means it is pray for a cure day on the line. Instead of praying just for someone who has cancer for God to heal them we are praying for God to throw away those diseases that harm and even take the lives of so many people. Dolores sends all of you her thanks for sending birthday cards to her this year. She gathered them all together again yesterday to have another look. She was humbled to know that so many of you care so much. We just found out that on Memorial Day we might have two new great grandsons. Our Son Keith and his wife Karen's two oldest boys are both expecting sons of their own within a few days of each other. It will be Keith Jr and his wife's first child, and Kyle, his younger brother and his wife are expecting their third. God is good. All glory and honor to Him... Amen.

Please mark your calendars for July 7, 2012. That is the first Saturday in July for our annual picnic in the park. All food will be furnish and most all will be cooked by this humble chef. (Yes, after all these years I am mastering cooking hot dogs.)

Jesus is tempted again: Matthew 4:5 - Then the devil took Him to the holy city and had Him stand on the highest point of the temple. 6 "If you are the Son of God", he said, "throw yourself down." For it is written. "'He will command His angels concerning You, and they will lift You up in their hands, so that You will not strike Your foot against a stone.'" 7 Jesus answered him, "It is also written: 'Do not put the Lord your God to the test.'" (NIV)

Again we find that the devil is leading Jesus around, but we know this is done so Jesus can set examples for us to live by. Again as we do scriptures I want to bring out each day the examples that God is pointing out to me for all of us to learn. So what are we learning here from Jesus? Let me say this first, please do not let, I said do not let the devil lead you around for you and I, we are not strong enough to handle things as Jesus did and still does. Here we find Jesus standing on the highest point of the temple and the devil saying, jump, Jesus, jump, so to speak. And while it is true if Jesus was to fall or even jump the angels of the Lord would have protected Him, just as they were standing by on the day He was put to death to rescue Him if He changed His mind. But as we know, Jesus told His Father in Heaven thy will be done. Anyway, what is the example that Jesus was telling us? What about a person who is depressed, maybe loves the Lord, and they are standing on the edge of a big high bridge thinking life is not worth living and they are going to jump. The example to me is, if you are expecting Jesus to catch you just because He loves you and you are saying you love Him, don't count on it.

Jesus does want to help you and He wants to help you long before you would go out on the bridge. Don't test Jesus, don't test Him for we are not to test our Lord God except in one thing. Do any of you want to tell me what we can test our Lord in and where you can back up your answer in the Bible? Remember I work from the Bible on this line, so please back up your answer with scripture... Otherwise I will let you know tomorrow...

Each day we need to follow the examples of our Lord, we need to walk with Him the best we can each day. And yes, we do not need to ask the devil to tempt us, he will do that on his own.

Dear Father in Heaven, again we want to walk with You, holding onto You and walking in Your footsteps. All so often we fall to the temptations of not just the devil but others also. Lord, we are weak and You are strong, and we need to lean on You daily in our walk. We cannot walk it alone. And Lord, speaking of being alone, none of us ever need to be alone for we all have You. Please look over our prayer requests and honor them according to Your will. And Lord, please, may I call Vicki to Your attention for healing, from the tips of her toes to the top of her head, we ask for healing for her, her plate is full and she needs Your help... In the name of Jesus, Amen.

Now go forth and share your blessings and watch what happens to your blessings as you share them. Love ya, Pastor Dan.  

Monday January 16, 2012 The Temptation of Jesus

Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil. After fasting forty days and forty nights, He was hungry. The tempter came to Him and said, "If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread." Jesus answered, "It is written, 'Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.'"

Good Morning, my dear brothers and sisters, and Happy Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Dr. King would have been 83 years old had his life not been cut short by one that hated him. Please pray this day for the extended family of Dr. King, as I am sure the hurt never goes away, yet I am sure they are thrilled that his work did not stop. No one bullet, no one knife can stop the work of those who are truly working for our Lord. A good example is that even Jesus was killed, but that did not stop Him or His work. Please pray today for our country's leaders, pray for President Obama and his family and pray that they will come nearer and nearer to God. Pray for state and local leaders and also our military leaders and all of our military and also our police and firefighters. Also Vicki still needs our prayers and I ask that you keep her in your daily prayers. Please also keep the Dan Stoner family in your prayers as they fly into the back woods to take in the word of the Lord. In the very near future I will be taking a few days off for hand surgery, I am going to try and get a few guests to write for me, and one I want is the story about Dan Stoner and his family and just what they do for the Lord.

The Temptation of Jesus. Matthew 4:1 - Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil. 2 After fasting forty days and forty nights, He was hungry. 3 The tempter came to Him and said, "If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread." 4 Jesus answered, "It is written, 'Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.'" (NIV)

Let's break the scripture down a bit today. Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil. Jesus was led by the Spirit to be tempted, maybe as to set an example for us, for if we would depend on our own self when we are tempted by things that Satan puts in front of us, we would fail for sure, but when we call on Jesus through the power of the Holy Spirit to help us through the temptations, then and only then can we defeat the master of evil. Once again we are looking at Jesus setting examples for us to live by. The Spirit was with Jesus when He was being tempted by the devil, and we need the Spirit with us, and we need Jesus with us and we need it daily for there is not a day goes by that the devil is not going to try and get to you. And there are times when we just fail on our own, we do not need the devil to come after us, we can do it all on our own.  In fact I think there are times we give the devil too much credit for what he does... Seems to me we might sometimes try and use him for an out, so to speak.

Now Jesus fasted for 40 days and 40 nights and when those days were over, He was hungry. I would be hungry after 4 hours, folks.  So we see in the scripture that the devil is trying to talk Jesus into turning stone into bread. (Wow, stone ground wheat bread.) But Jesus said man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God. So, what is the example here, for in these lessons that we are looking at as we head toward Easter and the death and resurrection of Jesus, I really want to look at the examples of living that Jesus is trying to teach us today. Let's say today that we could have surf and turf each day of the week whenever we wanted it, we could have chicken and turkey and fish and all those good veggies, and even top it off with Hershey's Ice Cream, what would we really have? Nothing, if we do not have the Word of God and follow His examples of living. It seems here in America even those who do not have much to eat have more than some have in other countries, even the poorest of the poor in America have more than the rich people have in some countries, but what we should be hungering for and thirsting for here is more about Jesus, more on the word.

Even when we sit down to eat, how many people take time to talk to Jesus and give thanks for that food? But do we listen to what God tells us when He speaks to us? I would wager a surf and turf dinner that some folks never listen to what God tells us.

Let me tell you this story and you folks know me by now, I speak my heart and mind and I get the word from the Bible. One morning a lot of years back, Dolores and I had gone to church at one of the biggest churches here on the West Shore area of Harrisburg. I will not mention the name of the Church for it did not have a thing to do with this. After church like so many folks we headed out to have our noon meal at a local all you can eat restaurant that gets very busy as the churches leave out. We were standing in this long line when we noticed about a dozen people come in and cut to the head of the line where one person was holding a place for them. I remembered seeing these folks in church and one of them cut out a little early, headed to the eating place and saved the places in line. When the whole crowd had cut in line ahead of a lot of people, I walked up to them and very nicely said, Did you learn that move in church this morning, for I had seen them in church. I said, would it not have been more like Jesus if the ones who got here early went to the back of the line? That did not mean a thing to them, they thought it was ok. Others do, it they said. I brought this up for they did not follow the lead, the examples of Jesus or they would have put the others first. Jesus did not go to the desert to be tempted by the devil because He needed something to do, He went to show us how to handle things when we get tempted. You know, years and years ago there were these letters and you saw them all over the place - WWJD - They stood for What Would Jesus Do! I think we need to get this back into our thinking, our daily thinking, in all we do. Regardless of what it is we are going to do, we need to ask our self...  Self, what would Jesus do? And more so we should ask Jesus this. Jesus what would You do? And then we need to listen, for folks, He will tell you what He would do... Trust Him, and trust the examples that are set for in His Holy Word, for folks, we cannot live on bread alone, or surf and turf or turkey and steak, or fish, we need the Holy Word of God each day and we need to feast on that.  Then we need to trust in Him and we will have those daily needs which will include that food you love so much. BUT DO NOT CUT INTO LINE TO GET IT.

My daddy and mamma were school teachers, and when my daddy would go to the school cafeteria to eat, he would never cut in front of his students to get into line, even though the teachers were permitted to do so. Folks, walk daily with Jesus and you just cannot go wrong.

Dear Father in Heaven, teach us each day to follow Your lead, Your examples of daily living found in our Bibles, and help us to put it to practice, and Lord, as I write the messages help me to find those examples and bring them to light, Your light. Please, Lord, answer our prayers according to Your will. In Jesus' Name, I pray. Amen.

Now go forth, following the examples of Jesus and sharing also your blessing and remembering that all blessings come from God.

Love ya, Pastor Dan.  

Friday January 13, 2012 Jesus gets Baptized.

Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John. But John tried to deter Him, saying, "I need to be baptized by You, and do You come to me?" Jesus replied, "Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness." Then John consented. As soon as Jesus was baptized He went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on Him. And a voice from heaven said, "This is my Son, whom I love; with Him I am well pleased."

Good Friday the 13th, my dear brothers and sisters. Folks, it is just another day for we who love Jesus, we don't worry about such things.

Friday is the day we pray for all those who work the fields of Harvest for our Lord Jesus. Today I would like to place Dan Stoner and his family, and I ask that you support them in prayer each day. More about this flying family in the days ahead.  Please pray for your pastors and their families. Now let's get moving on with that wild man, John, as we find out about him baptizing Jesus.

Matthew 3:13/17 - Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John. 14 But John tried to deter Him, saying, "I need to be baptized by You, and do You come to me?" 15 Jesus replied, "Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness." Then John consented. 16 As soon as Jesus was baptized He went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on Him. 17 And a voice from heaven said, "This is my Son, whom I love; with Him I am well pleased." (NIV)

One day, Tim, the four year old son of Kevin, a Baptist Minister, was watching as his dad baptized some of the flock. Now this little one had watched one other time at a Methodist Church when people were baptized. So this little lad went home after church and decided it was time to baptize the three house cats. So he gathered them up and put them in the bathroom and shut and locked the door. Then He filled the bathtub with water. The young man took the first cat by the scruff of his neck and put him under water, and when he came up he stated, "I baptize you in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit." Now the cat did not like it and as he shook off the water, the lad grabbed cat number two. This cat fought a good fight but in the end the lad won and the cat went under the water. When he pulled him up again he stated, "I baptize you in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit." Now the lad went to cat number three and this cat was bigger and was not going to have anything to do with it. The cat's claws dug into the boys arms and his legs went across the tub so the lad could not get that cat under the water. After a big fight, the young man took his hand and cupped it and got a hand full of water and put it on the cat's head. Again he said, "I baptize you in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit." And then as the cat ran the lad also said, "Hey, if you want to be a United Methodist that is ok with me. --------- Moving on...

As John was telling all those he could that they should repent and turn from their sins, he would baptize them. John was really putting out the word, telling all that "The Kingdom of Heaven was near." Then his friend Jesus, our Lord and Savior, showed up and asked John to baptize Him. John would tell people as he baptized them that he was baptizing in water, and soon one would come that would baptize in the Spirit. As we look at the scripture about Jesus being baptized a few things jump out at me. One is that Jesus is again setting an example to us that it is important for us, as we fall in love with Jesus and we ask him into hearts, that we also should consider being baptized. If Jesus did not think this was important then I don't think He would have had it done. I know a lot of churches baptize babies and younger children, I like to dedicate babies to the Lord and baptize people as they know in their own hearts what they are doing and why they are doing it. John at first did not want to baptize Jesus, thinking he, John, was not worthy of doing this. But Jesus said this to John. "Let it be so now! It is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness."

One time John had made this statement and this is recorded in the Gospel of Mark 1:7.  "After me will come one more powerful than I, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. I baptize you with water, but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit." (NIV)

So John baptized Jesus and as Jesus came up and out of the water, the heavens opened up and a voice from Heaven said this. "This is my Son, whom I love; with Him I am well pleased." Brothers and sisters, as I close up for the day, I think that each day we should do all we can do to follow in the footsteps of Jesus so that at the end of each day, at the end of each day, our Lord Jesus might look upon each of us and say, "This is my child, whom I love and with him/her I am well pleased." Now brothers and sisters, we all know we are children of God, and we also know that Jesus loves us very, very much. Those things are a given, and now the rest is up to us, do we live each day to please Him, do we do all we can do to please our Lord and Savior, and at the end of the day of time on earth will He say I am well pleased, or will He say, I am sorry I don't even know this person? I pray that we will all act each day to please Him... Let's work at it, ok? Let's start now.  Not tomorrow, but right now.

Dear Father in Heaven, we want to live to please You and we want to start right now. We see the example of how our Father in Heaven was pleased with Jesus and we want You to be pleased with us also. We, however, will require a lot more work than Jesus, but we are willing and we want to walk it with Jesus, help us, Lord, and Lord, please be with those working the fields for You, including Dan Stoner and his family, bless those and keep us on the straight and narrow path leading toward heaven. In the name of Jesus, I pray.  Amen.

Now go forth walking in the light of Jesus, walking in His love and sharing His Love with others. Love ya,  Pastor Dan.   

Thursday January 12, 2012 Into The Fire!

The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.

Good Thursday morning, my dear brothers and sisters. It is Thursday and the day we pray for churches, schools, and families, and remember please to pray for the family of God.

Into The Fire: Matthew 3:10 - The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire. (NIV)

Let's together today take a look at the scripture of today. The ax is already at the root of the trees. This coming Saturday there are some friends showing up at our little piece of earth here at the Southern Location of the North Pole, and we have trees already marked that will be coming down. Why? They have been damaged and are not producing what they should be producing, which in the case of these tress are just good leaves. Some have been broken off, other just sort of uprooted from passing storms, but those coming down are just not good trees. What will happen to them? They will be cut up, and yes,  tossed into the fire.

Let's go on to what it means to all of us. The ax is already at the root of the trees. Folks, it means that Judgment day is just not far away and those who are not producing good fruit will be tossed into the lake of fire. Let's look at another scripture to help us out on this one.

Matthew 7:19 - "Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them. 21 Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord,' did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles? 23 Then I tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!" (NIV) (Jesus being quoted here.)

Let me try and put it into Lehman's Language today (don't you love it, Lehman's Language?) While there are a lot of people who act like they are working for God, and maybe some of them do a lot of things around their church, but when not around the church, do they live their life to please God? To bear good fruit, to me, means that you not only need to confess your sins to God, you must repent of them, do your very best to live your life to please God in all you do. You don't go out on a Saturday night and drink yourself silly and then get up on Sunday and go to church, right? Or do you? You need to talk to God often and see what He wants you to do for Him. He might change your plans once in a while. You need to invite Jesus into your heart and into your life, and that means into your home and into all you do. If Jesus was walking with you, would you act differently than you do now? Think about that!! Would Jesus approve of what you are going to do today? One thing I think a lot of us fall short on from time to time is speaking out for Jesus. How often have we missed that chance to witness to someone because we, we, I said, we were not comfortable in doing it right there. And you think, next time, and maybe you will not have a next time with that person. Brothers and sisters, that ax that is already at the root of the tree, is really at the tree of all of us. However,  once the Lord returns, those who don't bear that good fruit will get tossed into the fire, meaning go to hell, but those who have repented and work for God and bear good fruit will get into heaven. Now I am not the judge on this, Jesus is and PRAISE GOD, HE DIED TO SAVE US FROM OUR SINS, for dare I say not one of us is worthy of getting into the Kingdom without His grace being poured out over us.

Tomorrow, more on that man that some called wild... And yes, I am talking about John, and tomorrow we are going to see that special person that John baptizes. Who will it be?

Dear Father in Heaven, forgive us this day of our sins, and Lord, help us each day to produce good fruit, even on a day we rest, even on the day you want us to rest, we need to produce good fruit. And Lord, by that I mean even on our day of rest, we want to please You. Help us with it, Lord, help us to repent, and Lord, help us to live our lives like we are holding onto Your hand as we walk, and Lord, help us to do just that. Light our way, dear Lord, and help us when we slip and fall. Lord, bless churches this day and those who are assigned to take care of the flocks, bless schools this day and help us to get the word of Jesus to the children in those schools. And Lord, bless families and most of all bless the family of God, and Lord, may we all be brothers and sisters in Christ. Lord, thanks for a very good day yesterday with our ministry team, Lord, watch over Dolores, Pam, Wanda and Grant and also me as we keep moving forward in Your name. Lead us to others, Lord, that need help, and let us help them. In the mighty, mighty name of Jesus, I pray. Amen.

Now go forth bearing and sharing good fruit, meaning your blessings, and brothers and sisters, please try and do your best to share your blessings from the top, and not the leftovers, for if we share from the top, there will be left overs... now enjoy your day and enjoy it as your walk with Jesus... love ya, Pastor Dan. 

Wednesday January 11, 2012 Produce Fruit.

But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to where he was baptizing, he said to them: "You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee of vipers? Produce fruit in keeping with repentance."

Good Salvation Wednesday Morning, my dear brothers and sisters. It is a beautiful morning here at the Southern Location of the North Pole.

Yes, Salvation Wednesday, the day we pray for those who might not be saved. Also, we pray for those who are saved to get out and work in the fields so that we can produce some fruit. Update on my hands! As you may or may not know, I am having a lot of problems with my hands, mostly my right hand. I had the tests done and my hands need surgery, my right one needs it yesterday. So it is scheduled for February 2, 2012 at OSS in York Pa. The doctor said it is so bad, it might not be repairable, and that he will not know until the surgery is over and the healing begins. However with God in charge, my hands are in good shape. I am told my fingers will be out so I hope I can still type. 

Yesterday we had a sing-along at The Bridges, and I just love them. Our entire ministry team was there to help. Dolores plays the piano, and we let the residents pick what they like to sing. Pam and I lead the singing along with Grant and Wanda who while leading go around and help guests get their song books to the right page.

Produce Fruit,  Matthew 3:7 - But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to where he was baptizing, he said to them: "You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee of vipers? 8 Produce fruit in keeping with repentance."  (NIV)

I want to start just a little differently this morning on the message part. Regardless where you are today, I say regardless where you are today, let's ask the Holy Spirit to be with us. I don't care if you are home cleaning the house, you are working at your own business or if you are a teacher in a public school, or like one friend of mine, working at an Ice Cream Plant. (Now that is a good job) Let's put this on your lips today... Let's sing "Holy Spirit" Thou Art Welcome...

Holy Spirit, Thou art welcome in this place, Holy Spirit, Thou art welcome in this place.

Omnipotent Father of mercy and grace, Thou art welcome in this place.

Holy Spirit, Thou art welcome in this place, Holy Spirit, Thou art welcome in this place.

Omnipotent Father of mercy and grace, Thou art welcome in this place.

Holy Spirit, Thou art welcome in this place, Holy Spirit, Thou art welcome in this place.

Omnipotent Father of mercy and grace, Thou art welcome in this place.

Ok, you have that on your mind, in your heart and on your lips, sing it over and over again today.

The scripture points to all of us today, not just the Pharisees and Sadducees, it points to all sinners and I for one am a sinner, just saved by the loving grace of a Man who died on the cross for me, so I could be relieved from my sins and self-destruction. Over the last two days, I have been telling you the words that John as in "John The Baptist" told people. REPENT FOR THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN IS NEAR.

However, what you must do besides repenting is produce good fruit. Now brothers and sisters, that does not mean to run out and dig a hole in your backyard and plant a few fruit trees. What it means is you need to help others, and you need to be doing that by working for our Good Lord. One of the best ways to produce fruit is by just sharing your blessings, by sharing what God has already trusted to you.

Now along with sharing your blessings, you must also work for God by taking the Good News about our Lord Jesus to others.(Mark 16:15).  You do not need to be a person who is fluent in the Bible but should know those scriptures that talk about salvation and you should pray that God gives you the gift to take a person's hand and pray for and with them. A thing I don't like to hear is someone who is with you, saying, I will pray for you. How about praying right there on the spot. So what kind of blessings have you been given that you can share? You should not need to think too hard about this. You could be a helper at Church, maybe you like to clean up after events. Not many people like to do that, but it is needed. You can help neighbors that might need different kinds of help. Maybe you like to mow lawns and you have neighbors who struggle to do that, you could help them. Maybe God has blessed you with that nice lawn tractor and you could surely cut more than one lawn, yours and a neighbor who needs help. How about those of you with a strong back, help a neighbor or older family member shovel snow. Maybe you play an instrument and/or sing. Retirement homes and nursing homes are always looking for people to come and put on shows. I know a lot of people who have been trusted with the talent, but charge for what they do, and that is not bad, for some make a living with that talent, but remember sometimes to GIVE BACK. Let me give you this very, very true advice. You cannot outgive the Lord. If you share your blessings with others, God will bless you with more and more and more. In fact the Bible tells us we can test God on this one, on our giving, and I believe the Bible and God to mean it is not just money or your dollars God is talking about but all of your blessings. When you are giving of your blessings, and giving of yourselves, that is what John is talking about when he says, and it is recorded in Matthew 3:8,  Produce fruit in keeping with repentance.

How long has it been since you produced some good fruit? Are you ready and willing to start producing some today? Remember, folks, you cannot work your way into heaven, you must be saved, but after you are saved, your work for the Lord is needed. AMEN.

Dear Father in Heaven, forgive us of our sins this day for I am a sinner in need of Your saving grace. Also, Lord, I want to share my blessings even better, not just in dollars, Lord, but in time spent helping others. Help us with our work for You. Hear our prayers this day and according to Your will for us, please answer them. Lord, please save us from ourselves and keep us working with our eye on Repentance and our selves ready to produce good fruit. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.

And now brothers and sisters, please if you want to clean up today, or maybe just ask Jesus into your heart for the first time will you pray with me this prayer of Salvation and then go to work for Him.

Dear Father in Heaven, forgive me of my sins today, wash me white as snow and help me to repent of my sins and work for You telling others of Your wonderful grace. I love You, Lord Jesus, and give thanks for You dying for me. In Jesus' name, I ask You into my heart, and please help me live like You are on board with me. And Lord, help me give this day back to You because You first gave it to me, by living the day to please You. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

Now go forth sharing your blessings and knowing Jesus loves you. Go forth working for Him and knowing I love you. And how about going forth this day and singing over and over again this tune we started with...

Holy Spirit, Thou art welcome in this place, Holy Spirit, Thou art welcome in this place.

Omnipotent Father of mercy and grace, Thou art welcome in this place.

Holy Spirit, Thou art welcome in this place, Holy Spirit, Thou art welcome in this place.

Omnipotent Father of mercy and grace, Thou art welcome in this place.

Holy Spirit, Thou art welcome in this place, Holy Spirit, Thou art welcome in this place.

Omnipotent Father of mercy and grace, Thou art welcome in this place.

I really, really love you folks... I do... Pastor Dan. Need prayer, call our home...

Ministry Phone... 717 691 8200.   Pastor's cell phone -  717 991 0754.  And if you want to talk to Dolores, her cell number is 717 991 0763

Bye, Bye...