Friday 1/31/14 "I Promise!" 9

Dear Father in Heaven.  I love You, and I want to thank You for taking care of me, my family, the Ministry that You trusted to us.  For taking care of this line and all that use it, and Lord, for saving my unworthy sinful self.  I appreciate it and pray You will keep blessing me with these things.  Please, Lord, be with all those this weekend who are heading out to work in Your fields of harvest, and bless them.  Lord, please be with those on our prayer list, and please heal the bodies, minds, and souls of all those who we pray for in Jesus' Name.  Then, Lord, please help me with the message today and then please help me to dispatch it.  I give thanks again for all You do and I offer up my prayers in the name of Jesus.  Amen.

Hi, brothers and sisters.  It is a tad warmer here at the Southern Location of the North Pole, but still cold.  According to the weather folks, it is to go all the way up to freezing today.  Next week maybe snow, but wait, next week the rodent speaks. I can tell you this, regardless of the weather, God will  have His hand on it.  What does God tell us about the weather?  Let's look up.  I think there is a promise about it.  Hey, can you believe that this is the last day of January?  Time sure does fly!  Let me get to the message.

Friday:  January 31, 2014, "I Promise!" (Day Nine).

John 15:16 - "You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last.  Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in My Name."  (NIV)

James 1:12 - Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has PROMISED to those who love Him.  (NIV)

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

Let's dig into the scriptures of today.  John 15:16 is Jesus talking, and don't you just love it?  Jesus chose us, He really wants us to choose Him, but He first chose us and why did He do this?  To pardon us of our sins so we could have eternal life living with Him.  Now Jesus also "appointed us to go and bear fruit."  Now what does that tell you about "gay marriage"?  Now there are also other ways to bear fruit, and we can see the fruits of our labors if we indeed live for Jesus and walk with Him and have people come to Jesus because of our witness.  Now if we do these things that Jesus wants us to do, then anything we ask of the Father in the Name of Jesus and in faith, of course, will be granted unto us.  Now I do want you to remember that it also must tie into God's will for us.

Now as we look at the scripture in James 1:12, it tells us if we persevere under trial, and that means if we are persecuted for loving and living for Jesus, and the Word tells us we will have that happen, if we stand the test, if we don't run to Satan and the forces of Evil, if we stand up for Jesus and live for Him, we have that promise of the crown of life, which means of course we will have eternal life.

Now I also wanted to just put in my favorite, or one of my favorite, scriptures, Hebrews 13:8, which tells us that Jesus will not change,and that, brothers and sisters, is indeed a promise from God.

Now there is no doubt in my mind right now that we will be still looking at promises next week, unless our Lord tells me different.  Okay, so you know you are blessed, I am sure you know that, so it is time for me to tell you to "go forth and share your blessings."  Love ya.  Pass on that love, please.

Pastor Dan

Thursday 1/30/14 "I Promise!" 8

Dear Father in Heaven:  I love You:  Thanks for another blessed day and a great night of sleep.  Thanks for dying to save me from my unworthy self.  Thanks for watching over those who use this line.  Thanks for watching over family and friends.  Thanks for the folks who came for food yesterday.  Please walk with us today and more so help us to walk with You.  Hold our hands, Lord, for without that we surely will slip and fall.  Lord, please bless us and keep us safe.  Lord, please be with Ruby, Burt, Patsy, Eleanor, Bob, Sharon, Dan times three.  Lord, forgive me of my sins and even the sins that I might not realize that I am doing, help me repent, and now, Lord, help me with the message and help me to dispatch it.  In the Name of Jesus, I pray.  Amen.

Brothers and sisters, I am ready for spring.  This week the big rat, the groundhog, will appear on a Sunday morning.  I think instead of a rodent handler in front of that crowd, a real "born again" minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ should come out and tell them about Jesus, the real reason for all seasons, and who will cause either a lot more winter or an early spring.  Yes, while some think worshiping a rodent, a groundhog, might be run for a few hours, I have found that worshiping my Lord Jesus is fun, and it is fun every day.  Oh, Worship The King, who made us a lot of promises.  Speaking of which, let me get started on the message.

Thursday:  January 30, 20124, "I Promise!" (Day Eight).

Isaiah 41:10 - So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God.  I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.  (NIV)

Revelation 3:20 - "Here I am!  I stand at the door and knock.  If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with Me."  (NIV)

Oh, how I love this scripture out of Isaiah.  God is telling us, DO NOT FEAR, for I am with you!  That is a promise, my brothers and sisters, we are not to fear because God is with us. Look what else He tells us, we are not to be dismayed, for He is our God.  He will strengthen us, and that is a promise.  He will help us.  He will uphold us.  And that is a promise, my dear brothers and sisters. (Yes, I used this promise before!)

Let's look at Revelation 3:20.  Jesus is standing at our door knocking.  And we are hearing Him knock.  But wait a minute, if Jesus were standing at your door knocking, or even the pastor from your church, would you or could you open the door?  Would you need to dust off your Bible and throw out some Playboy or Playgirl magazines?  Would you need to change the channel on the TV?  Would you even know Jesus if you saw Him?  And more so, and please, please, think about this, WOULD HE KNOW YOU?  For some sweet day, we will see Jesus face to face, and it will be us knocking.  Knock, knock.  Who's there?  Dan Lehman from Mechanicsburg, PA.  I know you, come on in.  Yes, I have been "born again," and I will get in.  You can also, if you just come to Jesus.  So I ask today, DO YOU KNOW JESUS?  Please do not put it off another day.  Come to Jesus now.  Amen.

Brothers and sisters, Jesus made us a promise, if we come to Him, we will get to see Him face to face in Heaven.  The promise goes the other way also, if we don't come to Him, then it is we get to see Satan face to face.  God's promise, but our choice.  Do you know Jesus today?  Will you come to Him now if you don't?  Will you pray this with me today?

Father in Heaven, please forgive me of my sins today.  I believe that Jesus was born of a virgin, died on the cross to save me from my sins, was risen from the dead, went t heaven to sit at the right hand of God the Father Almighty and judge us.  Please, Lord, book my passage to heaven today.  I love You, and I ask in the name of Jesus.  Amen.

New Christian today?  Please call me and let me know.  My personal cell number for this is 717 991 0754.  You will need a good church with a good pastor to help keep yo walking with God.

Now go forth and share your blessings, and if you have just been "Born Again," share it, for it is indeed the best blessing you have been given.  It cost Jesus His life.  I love ya, please pass on that love.

Pastor Dan

Please also keep praying for President Barack Obama and his family.  Pray if he is not saved he will come to Jesus.  Pray, warriors, pray.  Pray for his soul, regardless if you voted for him, pray for him.  Let's win one for Jesus.  Amen.

Wednesday 1/29/14 "I Promise!" 7

Dear Father in Heaven.  Thanks for another night's rest and for waking us this day.  Thanks for watching over us and watching over our families and friends.  Lord, please be with Vicki, for it seems her plate is full once again.  Lord, we here at Carry The Light Ministries need You to help us get some gas for in our tank to keep the pipes and food from freezing.  Lord, please intervene for us.  Lord, please, on this our Salvation Wednesday, help we who are saved to be working in the fields of harvest for You bringing in the lost to be saved.  Help us with our work for You, dear Lord, help us to repent from our sinful ways and to walk in the light of Jesus in all we do.  Now, Lord, if You would be so kind as to help me with a message and then help me get it dispatched, I sure would appreciate it. In Jesus' Name, I pray.  Amen.

Brothers and sisters:  In a country such as ours we should not be having shortages of fuel when the weather is cold.  People are hurting, but thanks to years and years of people blocking companies who are trying to drill and get out the God-promised things needed to have fuel, we run short.  Our president who wants to do things by just signing an order is blocking a pipeline and has been doing so for years.  He just needs to sign it.  Others want to run companies out of Pennsylvania by overtaxing them.  (Companies do not pay taxes, end users pay taxes.)  In our area people want jobs, but they do not want the business in their backyard, so they block it.  And so it goes on and on.  It is called being selfish, folks.  Anyway, brothers and sisters, pray for Vicki and her problems and also pray that God will intervene and we will get some much needed gas.  We will run out before the end of this very day.  By the way, the company that tells us no gas also owns our gas tank so other companies would not deliver to it, nor would I call other companies, for I made a PROMISE that I would not.  Speaking of a promise, let me get to the message.

Salvation Wednesday:  January 29, 2014, "I Promise!" (Day Eight).

Psalm 33:12 - Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people He chose for His inheritance.  (NIV)

2 Chronicles 7:14 - If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.  (NIV)

Psalm 34:8 - Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him.  (NIV)

Psalm 50:14/15 - Sacrifice thank offerings to God, fulfill your vows to the Most High, 15 and call upon Me in the day of trouble, I will deliver you, and you will honor Me.  (NIV)

Psalm 77:14 - You are The God who performs miracles; You display Your power among the peoples.  (NIV)

Promises, promises, and more promises, God has made so many promises to us and He keeps them.  What about us?  Do we make promises to God that we do not keep?  After watching our president last night talk about things he has done and h ow he is just going to get out his pen and go around Congress, well, from that God pointed out scriptures to me from Psalms and 2 Chronicles that are pointed to promises that He (God) made to us as a nation.  Well, tell me, how is our nation doing toward Him?  You answer that question, please!  Let me see, we tossed Him out of our schools and said no more Bible reading in school and no more praying in school either.  And then years and years later when this old man and lady would go into schools as Santa and Mrs. Claus and tell the real story of Christmas, Jesus was once again tossed out.  These scriptures are so important today after watching that speech last night that I would like us to go over them again.

Psalm 33:12 - Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people He chose for His inheritance.  (NIV)

Look at Psalm 33:12 - BLESSED IS THE NATION whose GOD IS LORD.  Then it goes on to talk about His inheritance, and well, folks, the way we act as a nation, I would think that after we put Him out of our schools and our government buildings and even chapels on our military bases, He, our Lord God, will strike us, the United States of America, out of His Will.  We have been warned, and then I guess when we are removed from God's will (not the will of God), some will want to hire an attorney and try and "protest the will."

Brothers and sisters, the United States of America needs to get our act together and we also need to STAND SOLID beside our Jewish brothers and sisters in Israel.  Right now I am not sure if I were the Prime Minister of Israel that I would trust President Obama.  AMEN!!  Please keep praying for President Obama to come to Jesus and pray hard, warriors, pray hard.  Let the Lord  hear us in Heaven.  SHOUT IT OUT, WARRIORS!

2 Chronicles 7:14 - If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.  (NIV)

Now we need to look at this, brothers and sisters, we who live in America, who love the Lord, and we are the ones called by His name, we need to humble ourselves, and we need to pray on behalf of our country, and we need to seek the face of God and we need to be seeking the lost and telling them they need to come to God to get into  heaven, and we need to start to be seeking out politicians who love God and vote them into office.

CAN YOU JUST STOP AND SAY PRAISE THE LORD?  PRAISE THE LORD, PRAISE THE LORD.  My cell phone just rang, it was the dispatcher from the gas company.  They are going to stop in today and bring us "some gas," not just fill the tank, but enough to keep running the heat.  Answered prayers, my friends, answered prayers.  Thank You, Jesus.  Now back to the message.

Now look at these promises, all coming from the book of Psalms.

Psalm 34:8 - Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him.  (NIV)

If we seek refuge in God, we will be able to taste and see that the Lord is good.  Think about it, folks, how do we know food is good?  We taste it, so why not taste the Lord, feast on Him, brothers and sisters, feast on Him.

Psalm 50:14/15 - 14 - Sacrifice thank offerings to God, fulfill your vows to the Most High, 15 and call upon Me in the day of trouble, and I will deliver you, and you will honor Me.  (NIV)

Look at this one, if we fulfill our vows to Him, He will deliver us in our time of trouble.  Does this sound like it is a TWO WAY STREET?  Just like our nation, we need to come to Christ.  I want you to think about something, if you had a few loans and you did not pay them, you just flatly would not pay them, how long do you think it would be until one of those companies would ever give you another loan?  Maybe when hell would freeze over?  Did I say that? Yet we sin over and over again and again and we ask God for things and guess what?  He forgives us of our sins and comes to us, but I am sure He would bless us even more if we just would fulfill our vows to Him.  In other words, fulfill those promises you make to God when you are praying for something you want.  And tell me you don't pray to win the big drawing.  Lord, if you just let me win, I will build You five churches out of the money, and I will give a million to the poor and needy, if only you would let me win.  But when it is all said and done and the Lord looks in His collection plate, He, our Lord God, can really, "THE BUCK STOPS HERE!"  God is truly the only one that can say that old saying and really mean it.  "The Buck Stops Here!"

Psalm 77:14 - You are The God who performs miracles; You display Your power among the peoples.  (NIV)

And God still works on miracles, He indeed is our miracle worker, just trust in Him.  And now, folks, go forth and share those blessings, those miracles of God, and know that I love ya.  Please pass on that love.

Pastor Dan

Monday 1/27/14 "I Promise!" 6

Dear Father in Heaven, I love You.  Thanks for bringing Eleanor home from the hospital.  Thanks for taking care of Dan Stoner's cancer and putting it into remission.  Father, I call remission healed.  Lord, please watch over him and  his family so they can get back in the plane and fly again for You.  Thanks for watching over families and for watching over this line.  Lord, please, if it is Your will, please bring forth an early spring.  Lord, be with President Obama and his family, and I do pray that he will come to You and confess over to You and become born again if he has not already done that.  Keep him safe, Lord, along with all of our other leaders.  Now, Lord, if You would be so kind as to plant a message on my mind for today, help me write it out and then get it dispatched.  In Jesus' Name,  help me to work each day for You and to walk in the light of Jesus in whose name I pray.  Amen.

Good morning, my dear brothers and sisters.  Another very cold week, and if you heat with gas, please do not let your tanks get low.  Our gas supplier tells me that they do not have enough to bring us any. This is what happens when we keep putting off the "pipe line" and are now trying to shut down the shale drilling.  Did you take notice that God does provide our needs; it is man who blocks the use of it and causes the shortages.  Let me get started with the message, and maybe as we work on "I Promise!" we can talk about God supplying our needs.

Monday, January 27, 2014, "I Promise!" (Day Six).

Psalm 23:1 - The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not be in want.  (NIV)

Isaiah 28:11 - The Lord will guide you always; He will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame.  You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail.  (NIV)

Philippians 4:19 - And my God will meet all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus.  (NIV)

Brothers and sisters, our Lord God has promised to take care of our needs, our needs, and He does good even taking care of a lot of "our wants."  Make no mistake about this, we so very often get our needs and our wants mixed up, and maybe sometimes it looks like God forgot to take care of our needs.  However, if we look really closely we will find that there is never a time that He does not take good care of our needs.  Think about it, how many people do you know right now that say they need a job, yet are very satisfied to sit at home and let others who work pick up the tab for them for work they do not do?  I have heard with my own ears people say, "I can make more on unemployment than by going to work at McDonald's."  Or, "If I take the job at McDonald's, the government will cut my food stamps."  Every need supplied, my brothers and sisters, but again I must say that we need to be putting feet on our prayers.

God has never broken a promise to us, and He never will.  Some, however, have not been carried out as of this time, and we just know that they will happen.  Some of the promises also might have been carried out to you and not to me, or the other way around.  Psalm 23 might be the most used scripture in the Bible along with John 3:16 and John 14:6.

Psalm 23:1 - The Lord is my Shepherd, I SHALL NOT WANT!  (KJV)

Isaiah 28:11 - The Lord will guide you always; He will satisfy your needs.  (NIV)

Philippians 4:19 - And my God will meet all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus.  (NIV)

Now let me ask you a couple of questions.  We are to be supplying food to the hungry, and that is in the Bible, so I ask you today, if God is using you to supply food to the hungry and you are not keeping your end of the deal, are you breaking a promise to God, or are you going to say, "no, I did not make the promise."  In a way, I would guess you are correct, you did not make the promise, God just wants us to do some things for Him.  Now think about this.  If you depend on, say, electric to heat your home and the power goes out and your electric is down and your home is getting cold, is God breaking His promise?  No, He has given man the knowledge to make the rivers that God made produce power.  Now here is a question for you.  What if all the people in the United States of America would take on the attitude (oh, that attitude coming again), but what if all the people working for the power companies would say, "I am not going out in the cold to fix the electric, let the people freeze, I have a generator at my house to keep us warm."  What then?  Makes us think, doesn't it?  How about this one?  When we sign on with a power company and we make a promise to "pay the bill" and then we do not pay it, we did not send it in on time, so it gets real cold, our bill is unpaid, and the power company shuts you off, who are you going to be mad at?  Oh, there is a law against that, they cannot shut my power off, they cannot shut my power off!  Did God break a promise?  NO.  Did the power company break a promise?  NO.  Did you break the promise?  Why, yes, you did!!  Brothers and sisters, God has made us a lot of promises and when we are done with these lessons, maybe by mid-February, one thing I would like to see all of us gain from the lessons is not just what God has promised, but how important it is for us to remember our promises and to keep them.

We have people who come to Carry The Light Ministries Food Pantry for food.  Some get mad if we ask to see ID from them, some make promises to come and then do not show up or they just decide not to come and don't even call.  Yes, each day, day after day, I want you to think about the promises you make and just how you would feel if someone breaks a promise that they made to you.  Like what if you were promised food and when you came for it, none was given to you.  And what if God would break His promise to you?  It is really worth thinking about.  Here also is something you should think about each day.  I do not take this lightly.

Go forth now sharing your blessings that God gave you.  I love ya.  Please pass that love on.

Pastor Dan

Friday 1/24/14 "I Promise!" 5

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.

Brothers and sisters, once in awhile it is nice to use the prayer our Lord Jesus taught us to pray.  It covers most all we need to pray about, and once in awhile we need to really look it over to be sure we are praying it and not just talking it or saying it.  Today I would ask that in your personal prayers you might pray for all those who are going to be working for Jesus this weekend.  Pray for pastors, missionaries, lay leaders, those who work clearing the parking lots at the churches, and pray for God to really bless those who are preaching the true and complete Word of God.  Now let me get on with the message of Friday when we talk about "I Promise!"

Friday:  January 24, 2014, "I Promise!" (Day Five).

Psalm 84:11 - For the Lord God is a sun and shield; the Lord bestows favor and honor; no good thing does he withhold from those whose walk is blameless.  (NIV)

The promise of God, He is a sun, now look at this.  God made the sun, and it is the great light,and the Bible is telling us He is a sun, meaning tome, He is a Great Light, for Jesus is indeed the "Light of the World."  I never really looked  at it that way, but it is how God gave it to me today.  And the Word also tells us He is a shield,and to me a shield is something that will protect you.  Think about it, you have a wind-SHIELD on your car.  On my helmet, I had a face SHIELD.  Above our stoves there is a heat-SHIELD and I could go on and on about God being a shield.  Let's just look at Jesus and He could be our personal Heat-SHIELD, for if we come to Him, He will shield us from the fires of hell.  Now look at this, if we walk with Jesus, walk with The Light of The World, NO GOOD THING WILL BE WITHHELD FROM US.  Listen to that promise, my dear brothers and sisters, if we just walk with Him, "NO GOOD THING WILL BE WITHHELD  FROM US."   And that, my brothers and sisters, is a promise from God.  So I ask you today, are you walking with Him and will you do it daily?  Have you made promises today that you will break?  You know if all of us could turn back the hands of time,and we cannot, but if we could, I think all of us would change how we worked on our promises.  All we can really do is go forth from here and get better at the promises we make to others and promises that we even make to ourselves.  Because God has made us so many promises we will be working on more of them next week.  

Hey, time for me to tell you this, and this is a promise to all of you.  I love ya.  And please, please pass on the Love.

Pastor Dan

Thursday 1/23/14 "I Promise!" 4

Dear Father in Heaven:  I love You:  Please wash me white today and  help me to repent.  Please be with Eleanor and heal her so she can come home.  Please also be with Sandy and help her eyesight.  Lord, thanks for taking care of Beverly's knee.  Help her heal, Lord.  Be with Ruby, Patsy, Burt, and others on our prayer list. Please straighten Dave's legs and ankles so they are back to normal.  Please, Lord, touch the back of Dolores.  Lord, please watch over this line and be it Your will, help me with the daily message and then help me get it dispatched.  In Jesus' Name, I pray.  Amen.

Good day, brothers and sisters.  Please forgive me, as I am running behind.  I was a tad under the weather yesterday and laid down for a nap.  The nap lasted all night.  I guess I needed the rest.  People who know me as "Santa" keep saying it is my kind of weather.  No, Santa likes it warmer.  Anyway, let me get to the message of today, more on "I Promise!"

Proverbs 22:6 - Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it.  (NIV)

Have you made a promise to someone today?  Or is it too early?  If you made one, are you going to keep it?  One of these days we are going to talk about Jesus and the promise that He made to us about taking care of our burdens.  And one promise that we often break is when we cast our burdens to the Lord  and then we take them back. Maybe I will get to that in the next message. Let's look at the scriptures of today.

Proverbs 22:6, and this is a promise from God,and I am so glad that I had a mamma and pop who raised me up in the way of the Lord.  My parents raised me in the way of  the Lord and the Lord's promise has held true.  For indeed I drifted but now that I am old, I will not turn from it.  I am sure there are parents on this line right now that lean hard on this promise.  I know for a fact that Dolores and I do when it comes to our son Matthew.  If you were a "prodigal son or daughter," I am sure you will come home or have come home.  I am also sure if you have a "prodigal son or daughter" you are praying like we are for that son or daughter.  I would love, I would love to post a list of children of those who use the line and have drifted from God so we can all pray for them.  Let's list them and pray over them daily.  Promises are great when they come from God for we know that the promise will not be broken.

Matthew 3:11 - "I baptize you with water for repentance.  But after me will come one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not fit to carry.  He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire."  (NIV)

We see in Matthew that "John the Baptist" is baptizing people with water, and he is telling them that one will come after him who will baptize them with the Holy Spirit and with fire.  By the way, we need to be "baptized" by Jesus and the Power of the Holy Spirit, and once that happens, we are forgiven of our sins, and we are put on fire for Jesus.  And when we are baptized by the Holy Spirit, we are a brand new person, for we have been "Born Again."  Now some people get confused on this and think if you have been baptized by the Holy Spirit you will speak in tongues and that you need to speak in tongues to get into heaven.

Speaking in tongues is a great gift of God, but it is NOT needed to get into heaven.  In fact, speaking in tongues is a gift from God, but is not His greatest gift to you.  The gift of Love is the greatest gift of all and there are many gifts that God has given us, and we all have them if we indeed truly love God.

One great big promise that we need to make to our Lord Jesus is when are baptized by Him we need to promise Him that we will try our best to repent of our sins and walk away from them.  So as I wrap up the message of today, will you pray with me asking God to help you to repent of your sins and walk away from them?  It is a promise we are going to make.  Will you join me now?

Dear Father in Heaven, some of us today are coming to You and asking You this.  Please, Father, forgive me of my sins, and Lord, then help  me repent of them and to turn and walk away from them.  Lord, I ask You this day to take Satan away from me and put me on fire for You.  Help me walk forth this day and to spread the Good News about Jesus.  In Jesus' Name, I pray.  Amen.

Did  you make that promise with me?  Let me know, and we can keep after each other helping each other to keep the promise.  It is called being a good brother or sister.  Okay, done for Thursday.  Now go forth and share your blessings.  Love ya, and please pass on that love.

Pastor Dan

Wednesday 1/22/14 "I Promise" 3

Dear Father in Heaven.  Thanks for watching over us during the night.  Thanks for answering prayers for my legs last night.  Father in Heaven, please be with the Mummert Family and the Jones Family in their time of grief.  Please watch over Ruby, Patsy, Burt, Eleanor, Sharon, Bob, Wanda, and Dolores.  Please keep Your healing hand upon them.  Thanks for watching over this line and all who use it, and please now, Lord, help me with the message.  Plant the message on my heart and mind and then, Lord, help me to dispatch it.  Lord, please forgive me of my mess-ups and Lord, help me to repent of my sins.  Also, Lord, today is our Salvation day here on the line and we need to get busy bringing in the lost.  Help us with that, please, Lord.  In Jesus' Name, I pray.  Amen.

Brothers and sisters, it is cold at the Southern Location of the North Pole, and I am looking forward to spring.  Each year without fail, our Lord brought forth spring, so hang in there, folks, it is coming.  Soon the flowers will pop up their heads, the birds will be back and will hover over your car!!  But that is okay, I would sooner wash that off than brush off snow.  Brothers and sisters, it is Wednesday, and that means it is Salvation Wednesday on this line.  Now, regardless of the weather, we need to get to the lost for Jesus.  So let's get working on it.  Amen.  Now to the message.

Salvation Wednesday:  January 22, 2014, "I Promise" (Day Three).

Luke 10:25 - On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus.  "Teacher," he asked, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?"  26 What is written in the Law?" He replied.  "How do you read it?"  27 He answered:  "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and Love your neighbor as yourself."  28 "You have answered correctly," Jesus replied.  "Do this and you will live."  (NIV)

Luke 11:9 - So I say to you:  Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened to you.  For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds and to him who knocks, the door will be opened."  (NIV)

So have you made a promise today?  Have you promised to do something worthwhile for someone today?  I want you to really think about this.  Before the end of today, you will more than likely either make a promise, keep a promise, or break a promise.  Which will it be?  Let's look at the scriptures for today, let's see what promises God has given us.

In our first scripture, we find if we love our Lord and love  our neighbors we will "LIVE."  Wow, that is a great promise.  But look closely, we must love God with ALL of our heart, soul, strength, and mind.  In other words, we must really, really love God, and remember from last week, God knows the attitude of our heart, so you cannot just say I love You, Lord, you must really love Him.  And how about this loving your neighbor thing?  What if your neighbor is different from you?  What if you are a white guy and your neighbor is black?  Are you going to still love him?  What if your neighbor does not even talk to you, will you still love him?  Oh, and your neighbor might be in some other part of the world.  Veterans, here is a very hard question for you.  Do you love your neighbor, and if you were in the Viet Nam war, do you now love those folks you fought against?  You had better forgive and love them, for the way I read it, and in the words of Jesus, if you want eternal life you must love them.  What about your ex if you have been married before?  Can you say with all truth that you now love them, and brothers and sisters, I am talking about God's love here, not sex or anything like that.  Let's face it, as we age, those birds of the air are not the only ones that have made doo-doo on us.  Forgive them and get on with your life, and love God and love them and you will live, so saith the Lord.

Now the other scripture.  Ask, Seek, and Knock.  "Knock, knock."  "Who's there?"  Danny from Mechanicsburg, PA.  "Danny who?"  "Danny Lehman!"  "Sorry, I don't know you!"  Of all the doors you want opened to you, I am sure Heaven's door is most important.  But look beyond that, if you are out of work.  Ask (pray about it, talk it over with God).  Seek (yes, you got to get off the couch and go and look for the job.)  And you might seek in more than one spot.  Knock, and brothers and sisters, if you knock in the name of the Lord, the door will be opened.  And brothers and sisters, when it is God's will, when you are at the place He wants you to be, THE DOOR WILL BE OPENED TO YOU.  And when you get that  job, and you promise to do a good job, keep the promise you made and go to work daily for them.  And remember then to thank God.

Now this.  Last evening I was out plowing, and I  have been having a lot of problems with my legs.  I have trouble walking and my legs really cramp up.  Last night in the truck, my legs were cramping so bad I was crying.  I was downing "Gator" drink and praying.  I called home and asked Dolores to pray and call Grant and Wanda and asked them to pray.  Within about ten minutes of my call, my cramps let up and I was able to finish up the plowing without the severe pain.  ALL GLORY AND HONOR TO GOD for the answered prayer.  Amen.

Now go forth and share your blessings.  Love ya.  Pass on the Love.

Pastor Dan

Monday 1/20/14 "I Promise"

Dear Father in Heaven:  Thanks for forgiving me of my sins, and Lord, I want to repent and walk with You daily, please help me with that.  Thanks for watching over families and friends, and thanks for watching over this line.  Lord, please be with Ray Funk as he has surgery.  Father, there is a group of people I ask that You bless this day.  They are former Central Dauphin School bus drivers.  Father, please touch their health and use them to spread the safety they learned to others who drive in the winter.  Lord, thanks for yesterday.  It was really special.  Now, Lord, if You would, bless me with a message and help me to dispatch it.  In Jesus' Name, I pray.  Amen.  And Father in Heaven, please help us to remember what Jesus taught us and Martin Luther King, Jr., also taught us as Dr. King surely did love Jesus.

Hi, brothers and sisters.  Please pray today for the works of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., to not be lost.  This man served Jesus first and then helped people.  Ray Funk also needs prayers.  Ray is from Oregon.  On this first day of the week, please pray for our leaders, pray for veterans, for our current military, and for all those who work hard to keep us free and safe.  Please keep praying for families, all families, your family, my family, the families who use this line, and please pray for the family who lives at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., Washington, DC.  Now let me get to the message.

Monday, January 20, 2014, "I Promise," (Day One).

Ephesians 6:1 - Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.  2 Honor your father and mother, which is the first commandment with a promise 3 that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth.  (NIV)

Exodus 20:12 - Honor your father and mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you.  (NIV)

Today we prayed for families, and The Lord talked to my heart about promises.  "I Promise," I am calling this series.  Let me start with a question.  Have you ever made a promise?  Silly me, of course you have made a promise, and more than likely lots and lots of them.  Now let me ask you this question.  Have you ever made a promise that you did not keep?  I confess I have!  The only person that I know of that made promises and did not break any is Jesus.  Now, Jesus has made promises that have not been fulfilled as of this time, but He never broke a promise.  This week and maybe even next week we will look at some promises, some made by man and broken, and some made by God, already fulfilled and some that are yet to come.  Today let me start with a few promises that over the years I have made.  Some I have broken, and others I am trying my best to keep.  Ready?  This one from most men.

"I promise to put the toilet seat down when I am finished."  Okay, let me get serious.  The scripture that God led me to today is the first commandment with a promise.  The Commandment is the one where we are told to "Honor your father and mother."  And the promise from God is, "if we obey this commandment we will live longer in the land your God is giving you."  If we take notice, there are two promises in this.  One is we will live longer if we honor our parents, and the other is we will do it in the land God is giving us.  That is two.  God is good.  It is sad that God gave us the land, and our leaders, since forever, have charged us to live on it.  You remember it was going on even before Jesus was born.  In fact, it is tax time again right now.  So let me look at one more promise today.  But before that, how about we go to prayer and we promise God something today?  Will you follow my lead on this?  I can't pray this one for you.

Dear Father in Heaven, You have promised to forgive me of my sins if I love You and if I just ask, so today, Lord, I am calling on that promise from You to wipe out my sins, and Lord, in return, I am in need of repenting and I want to promise You that I am going to do my best to repent, to turn and walk away from sin.  I do need Your help on this, Lord, and again, I am going to try my best.  In Jesus' name, I ask and pray.  Help me, Lord.  Amen.

Of course the promise from God on this is just what I was talking about.  Jesus will forgive us of our sins.  He made that a promise.  Your homework, tell me where you find it in your Bible.  Have a blessed day.  And remember to share your blessings.  Oh, and will you make a promise to share your blessings?  No, not to me, but to God.  Love ya.  Please pass on the love.

Pastor Dan

Tuesday 1/21/14 "I Promise!" 2

Dear Father in Heaven, I love You, and each day I want to show that love for You more and more.  Lord, I do need Your help to do this.  Lord, clean me today of my sins.  Make me as the new fallen snow I see out of my windows.  Lord, please be with Leann as she flies on business.  Keep my baby safe, Lord.  Please be with those on the roads today, help people hang up and drive.  Thanks for taking time today and everyday to love us.  Please be with those DOT workers as they work with the weather.  Lord, shortly I will be crawling up into my truck to plow, as will our son Keith.  Keep us safe, Lord, please keep us safe.  Lord, please be with Sammy Mummert and his family, as  his wife has left to be with You.  Please, Lord, help me now with the daily message and then help me dispatch it.  In Jesus' Name, I pray.  Amen.

Brothers and sisters, it is snowing at the Southern Location of the North Pole.  Twenty years ago today it was 22 below zero here at the North Pole, Southern Location.  That was not the wind chill, and I remember the date as I had my first of five back operations that day.  Please pray today for safety on the road.  Also give praise to God that the schools closed today.  You know, if the school boards were smart, they would close for Christmas vacation (I called it that, Amen) and then open back up on Groundhog Day.  They could build that into June and keep the kids out of a lot of bad weather.  Think about it, folks, people worry if the buses can get through, what about those kids standing along the roads, cars can slide into them.  Common sense, it is called.  Anyway, at one time the best drivers on the road were SCHOOL BUS DRIVERS.  By the way, the best safety tip I can give you today is to "stay off the roads" if you can, and if you must go out, drive slowly.  Okay, let's get to the daily message.

Tuesday:  January 21, 2014, "I Promise!" (Day Two).

Psalm 14:4 - Will evildoers never learn?  Those who devour my people as men eat bread and who do not call on the Lord.  5 There they are, overwhelmed with dread, for God is present in the company of the righteous.  5 You evildoers frustrate the plans of the poor, but the Lord is their refuge.  (NIV)

Do you remember last week we talked about attitudes and I said we all had attitudes, even Jesus.  I also said Jesus had/has an attitude of Love.  Well, look at the lead-in scripture.  God is telling the evil people, those who choose to do evil things, will they never learn?  Then it goes on to say that the Lord is present in the company of the righteous.  He said evildoers frustrate the poor, and the Lord is their refuge.  What does it mean?  Our Lord Jesus loves us, loves those of us who love Him and long to be with Him.  Once again we see in Jesus an attitude of Love.  Let's look at some more today.

Psalm 11:7 - For the Lord is righteous, He loves justice, upright men (women) will see His face:  (NIV)

Once again we see in this Psalm the Love our Lord has for us, and He loves justice.  It tells us if we are upright, good, God-fearing people, we WILL SEE HIS FACE.

Psalm 9:10 - Those who know Your name, will trust in You, for You, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek You.  (NIV)

Once again we see the Love, once again we are told if we love Him and trust in Him, He will never forsake us.  GOD IS GOOD.

Psalm 9:9 - The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble.  (NIV)

How many really dear friends will love us enough to stand with us when we are really in trouble?  Jesus will always love us if we love Him.  Run to Him, brothers and sisters.  Run to Jesus.

So today I tell you once again that God has made us many promises.  There are over 7,000 in the Bible.  We are going to cover but a few of them.  God will never break a promise to us.  Today I ask again, how many promises do we make and then break?  Do you know that when you sign up for a loan, you make a promise to pay it back?  How many people just do not pay back the loan, or pay it back on time?  That not only messes with your credit, but it is a broken promise.  We need to be praying each day that when we give our word, when we make a promise, we should keep it, for after all we need to be like God, we are made in His image and we are to be Christ-like.  Amen.

More on promises tomorrow.  For now, let us keep sharing our blessings, and when you share your blessings, they will grow, and that is another promise from God.  Love ya, share your blessings and your love and pass that love on.

Pastor Dan

Friday 1/17/14 Attitudes 4

Dear Father in Heaven.  Thanks for all You do for all of us.  Thanks for this line and thanks for trusting us to carry out work for You.  Forgive us when we fall short of what we should do, and please forgive me of my sins and even sinful thinking.  Thanks, Lord, for taking care of Baby Allie and thank You, dear Lord, for her parents, Jim and Beverly.  Please, Lord, look after Dave and Linda.  And Lord, please, please keep your healing hand on Dolores.  Lord Jesus, please now bless me with the message.  Help me to also get a message ready for Sunday, and please, Lord, help me to dispatch the message You give me for today.  I love You, dear Lord.  In Jesus' Name.  Amen.

Brothers and sisters, what a great day.  Our dear friends Grant and Wanda spent the day working in the food pantry and then dear Wanda even made lunch.  We truly are blessed to have such great people helping with Carry The Light Ministries.  I don't know about you folks, but I am ready for spring.  I only have one set of long johns, and one of these days I need to get out of them and wash them!  I am just kidding, folks!!  I need to get to the message.

Friday, January 17, 2014, Attitudes (Day Four).

Philippians 2:1 - If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from His love, if any fellowship with The Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, 2 then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose.  3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than ourselves.  4 Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.  5 Your ATTITUDE should be the same as that of Christ Jesus.  6 Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, 7 but made Himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant being made in human likeness.  (NIV)

Brothers and sisters, how is your attitude today?  Has it changed even a little bit since I started this series on Monday?  Let me ask you just a few questions.  When you get up in the morning, are you a happy person?  Or did you just go five rounds with the snooze button on your alarm clock?  Are you a bull until you get that first cup of coffee or like me that first Diet Cherry Pepsi?  Or are you thankful for another day and you have made up your mind you are already blessed as God woke you up?  There are days, I think your attitude for the day gets set by the attitude you have when you get out of bed.  I am sure you have heard people say, "they must have got out of the wrong side of the bed today."  Years ago I was heading to Hope United Methodist Church (Carlisle Pike, Mechanicsburg, PA.)  Worship service was being held in the Salem Chapel and the windows were wide open as it was very warm morning.  Walking up the sidewalk, I could hear the organ and it was really bouncing.  I had never heard it being played like that, and I loved it.  When I went in, the head usher greeted me and said, "Sorry about the music."  And his attitude was set, he did not like the music and the young man, a guest playing the organ had it really working.  There was a really big difference in the attitude of the usher and the organist.  For me, wow, it was great, it was alive.  Why did I bring this up?  To point out that two people can have a different attitude about the very same thing.  People have different attitudes about working.  Some love it, others would sooner let someone else pull the cart.

Folks also have different attitudes about others and also about our Lord Jesus.  Our scripture for today tells us that we should have an attitude the same as Christ Jesus.  The scripture tells us that God made Himself as nothing taking on the very nature of a servant.  So I want to ask you this.  Gosh, I am full of questions today.  Let me ask you, is your attitude better when you are "serving others," or when you are, well, being served?  I love helping others, I really do.  It is fun, and I find it rewarding, and in most cases it gives me a positive attitude.  How about you?  When we are serving others, you are doing what our Lord wants us to do.  I have mentioned all week that our Lord Jesus has an attitude and it is an attitude of Love, an attitude to serve others, an attitude to forgive.  So as I bring this series to an end, I really want you to go to your mirror and take a deep look.  Do you like what you see?  I mean take a good look, a really deep look.  Do you like what you see?  Do you like your attitude even to the one you are seeing in the mirror?  In other words, do you like your own attitude?

Our scripture reads in part, "Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves."

We should always consider others better than ourselves, always, for that is the example that Jesus showed us.  Yes, Jesus always considers others better than Himself, and that was shown many, many times, but the best time was when He gave His life for us, when He died on that cross for us.  Even in dying He forgave others.  In Luke 23:34, Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing."  (NIV)

Do you have an attitude of forgiveness?  Do you have an attitude of Love?  Come on, let's all try and make our attitude one that others want to be around.  Oh, and that really bouncy music at the Chapel at Hope United Methodist Church?  Not sure about it?  Read Psalm 100!!

Now go forth sharing that good attitude and those blessings.  Love ya.  Pass that Love on.

Pastor Dan

Thursday 1/16/14 Attitudes 3

Pastor/Brother Dan,

PRAISE REPORT ...
I just wanted to update you on the young girl that was in that bad accident awhile back.  She is up at Hershey Med.  But she is progressing REALLY well.  Her (many) broken bones are healing.  She is learning to walk again and her speech is slowly but surely coming back.  There doesn't appear to be any long-term brain damage.  She knows what happened, knows what is going on.  Is eating by herself .. albeit VERY slowly!  It is looking like she will be able to come home in a week or two if all the doctors agree!  Her goal is to be home for her 18th birthday (Feb. 2).  She is still in for about a year or so of therapy.  BUT GOD HAS BROUGHT HER THROUGH A VERY NEAR DEATH EXPERIENCE!  And in classic Sarah form ... she is transforming lives (FOR GOD) in the hospital!!

Blessings, Brother Rick

PRAISE GOD, PRAISE GOD!!

Dear Father in Heaven, I just want to thank you for taking care of this young lady who was so near to death and You turned her around.  All honor and glory to You, dear Lord.  Father, thanks for another beautiful day and the donations that came in to the ministry today.  Dear Lord, we are so blessed this day.  Thanks for watching over family and friends, Lord.  Please, Lord, place Your healing hand on Kelsey and help her, and thanks for protecting her in a traffic accident.  Lord, Dolores really needs Your touch, she is so weak, dear Lord, and I ask in the name of Jesus, You heal her, please.  Now, dear Lord, if You would please help me with the daily message and then help me to dispatch it, I would appreciate it.  In Jesus' name, I give praise and honor and ask my prayers.  Amen.

Brothers and sisters, I posted that praise report just as I received it.  Sarah was not to make it after a very bad accident and if memory serves me, she was T-boned right into the door where she was sitting.  It is so important that we list praise reports.  We ask God to heal us, or heal a pet, or help feed us, and then when He sends help, be it directly or through the hands of others, we do not say thank you to our MASTER HEALER and Provider.  Brothers and sisters, if it is worthy of praying for, then it is also worthy of praise.  So, warriors, pray and give praise.  PLEASE!!  Now, let me get to the message.

Thursday, January 16, 2014, Attitudes (Day Three).

1 Peter 4:1 - Therefore since Christ suffered in His body, arm yourself also with the same ATTITUDE, because he who has suffered in his body is done with sin.  2 As a result, he does not live the rest of his earthly life for evil human desires, but rather for the will of God.  3 For you have spent enough time in the past doing what the pagans choose to do, living in debauchery, lust, drunkenness, orgies, carousing and detestable idolatry.  (NIV)

Brothers and sisters, do you see how the messages on attitudes this week are building?  We started with our own attitudes and talked a lot about them, and yes, I said some of our attitudes even smell like the old outhouse.  But you see as we are going through our scriptures our attitudes should, and I say should, be changing.  We are to take on a God-like attitude, we are to be walking in the light of Jesus.  You can see in the verse above we have done all those bad things, and now we are to MOVE ON.  Let me bring in another scripture here.

1 Peter 3:18 - For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. (NIV)

We find many places in the Bible where we can read that Jesus died on the cross to save us from our sins.  He died so we can come to Him (our choice) so we could get into heaven.  Here we see He died for sins "once for all," meaning He died one time for all the sins of the world.  And why, and the Bible makes it personal here.  "He died to bring you to God."  This was the plan of The Father when He sent Jesus to us, to save us from ourselves, it was to bring us, you and me, to God.  Just telling you what the Bible tells us, and of course what God is giving me today.  Please remember that The Word of the Lord is true today.  Let's go back now and look some more at ...

1 Peter 4:1 - Therefore since Christ suffered in His body, arm yourself also with the same ATTITUDE, because he who has suffered in his body is done with sin.

We are to follow the lead of Christ, since He suffered in His body, we are to take on the same Attitude.  So if we hurt a tad, or even a lot, we are going to do some suffering, and yes, we should pray for the pain to leave, but think about this, how near would you be each day to God if you never had an ounce of pain?  You can start to see if we really do love God as we claim we do, our attitude should be Christ-like and His attitude is what?  Come on, I told you already, Jesus had/has and always will have an attitude of Love.  Oh, that is easy for Jesus, you say, He is Jesus and we are just human.  Excuse me, Jesus is not just God, He is also "human."

Maybe I should hold this scripture for tomorrow, but let's go with it now.

Romans 5:3 - Not only so,but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance, 4 perseverance, character, and character, hope.  5  And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out His LOVE into our hearts by The Holy Spirit, who He has given us.  (NIV)

And there you have it, brothers and sisters.  It comes down to Love.  So tomorrow we are going to take one more look at attitudes and do a lot of online praying about it.  Some good old suggestions for attitude adjustments, and maybe even a song or two.  But for now, get that attitude adjusted into sharing.

Go forth now and share your blessings.  Love ya.  Pass on the Love.

Pastor Dan

Tues/Weds 1/14-15/14 Attitudes 2

Dear Father in Heaven:  Thank You for a blessed and wonderful Tuesday, working all day for You.  Thanks for trusting us to do just that.  All  honor and glory to You for healing Vicki and her not needing surgery.  Lord, she still has some other issues and needs Your help.  Lord, be with families this day, families that touch our lives through the ministries of Carry The Light.  Be with those bringing food, and be with those needing food.  Be with our flock here online and also at The Bridges.  Lord, I pray this day for Patsy and pray she will be healed and be able to go home to be with Burt.  Be with Eleanor, Bob, and Sharon each day, Lord.  Be with Dave who had a very bad fall.  Be with Beth and Craig and their struggles with their home.  Lord, please keep Your hand upon Dolores and also me as we want to keep pressing forward and even grow this ministry You have blessed us with.  In Jesus' Name, I pray this day.  Amen.  And now, Lord, please help me with the message, and help me to get it dispatched.  Thanks again.  My prayers go up in the name of Jesus.  Amen.

WEATHER ALERT:  Watch for black ice!!

Brothers and sisters, this morning I sent a letter to all online on our annual ministry update.  Hard copies of this letter will also go out today.  Some of you will receive both.  I just want to mention this; here in Central Pennsylvania we seem to have a shortage of liquid propane gas.  I called to have my tank filled last week and was told I would be put on a list.  DON'T LET YOUR TANKS GET TOO LOW.  On Monday I started a series on Attitudes, and as you can see, I missed yesterday.  We had a very busy day, and so you know I have been ordered to be off my legs more.  So after starting at 4:00 AM yesterday morning at 6:00 PM I needed to get off my legs, and I went to lay down.  Well, Martin Martin Jr. and I fell asleep.  So here I am.  Good morning to you and I am playing catch-up again.

Praise report:  Vicki, who we pray for a lot, needed hernia surgery.  She was at the surgeon yesterday and her hernia is GONE, removed by God.  Can we shout AMEN today?  WAY TO GO, GOD!!!  Thank You, Jesus!!!

Praise report:  Patsy took 8 steps yesterday.  She has been bed-fast and that is the first she has walked in three years.  Well, glory!!

Tuesday/Wednesday, January 14/15, 2014, Attitudes (Day Two).

Hebrews 4:12 - For the Word of God is living and active.  Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and ATTITUDES of the heart.  13 Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight.  Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.  (NIV)

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

I mentioned the other day that every one of us has an attitude, some are good, some are bad.  I mentioned that even our pets have attitudes and more so I mentioned that our Lord Jesus also has an attitude and that attitude is of Love.

Let me talk a tad today about our attitudes and how God might be, well, not might be, according to the scriptures, He does look at our attitudes all the time.  I use Hebrews 13:8 a lot, and I have used it again today just to remind you and yes, even myself, that although our Bibles were written years and years ago, our Lord Jesus has not changed, therefore making The Word, God's Word, God's inspired Word true to this very day and even unto the end of time.  There are things in the Bible that will not happen again, as in the really big flood that destroyed everything.  God never promised there would not be smaller floods and we have seen many, many of them.   There is nothing like a good dose of God's weather in the winter to humble us and have us praying for spring.  I know I am walking around the house saying "come on, summer."  However, I really am ready to see those first flowers sticking their heads through the earth when our earth becomes "born again."  However, He promised that never again would He destroy everything with a flood.  And once in awhile we see the rainbow in the sky and that is God's sign reminding Himself about what He had promised.

Let me get to Hebrews 4/12 and go over it with you.  The first thing I want to point out is that the Bible tells us:  "The Word of God is LIVING and ACTIVE!"  In my terms it means it is alive and well, it is healthy and it should be living and active where?  In each of us!  What good is The Word of God to be just in the Bible or just written on paper or in an email such as this, or even preached by a preacher if it is not living and active in us?  How can we even talk about the Word of God if it is not alive in us?  But some people do and some of the best at quoting God's words are the nonbelievers.  Going back to the scripture in the Bible tells us His Word is "sharper than any double-edged sword."  I have told people they need to "fear God," and that is in the Bible and they said they do not fear Him because He is all-loving.  Yes, He is all-loving, but according to His Word we need to fear Him.  That is one place we need to have an attitude adjustment.  Our attitude toward others is the same as our attitude toward God.  Now why would I say something like that?

Jesus said:  "For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat."

Now if our attitude toward feeding the hungry would have Jesus saying this, then why would not our attitudes toward all others be the same as if we were doing the same attitude unto Jesus?  Think about that one really hard, folks.  I am about to bring this out some more, but remember the next time you are showing an attitude that smells like the old outhouse, remember God knows, and He can smells the stink.  Let's look!

Again pulling from Hebrews 4:12 - "It penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and ATTITUDES of the heart."  Wow, is this scary or what?  "It judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart."  That would be your heart and my heart, folks, God knows what we are thinking and even what is in our hearts.  Did you ever need to stop and just pray, Lord, forgive me for what I am thinking?  Oh, I have, I confess and it happens a lot.  You know, sometimes what comes out of our lips is not what we are thinking in our hearts.  We need to line those things up and line them up for God!  Hang in there with me, folks, I am going as fast as I can go.  Now let me bring down ...

Hebrews 4:13 - Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight.  Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.

Do you see this?  Nothing, the Bible tells us, nothing is hidden from God's sight.  The Word tells us that EVERYTHING is uncovered and laid bare before Him and WE MUST GIVE ACCOUNT.  And brothers and sisters, that means our attitudes.  Today is SALVATION WEDNESDAY on this line.  Will you join me in prayer today, asking God to help give all of us an attitude adjustment that I know I need and more than likely we all need?  Let us ask Him to adjust our attitudes that we would want Him to see and our Mamma to see.  Speaking of which, my mamma died long ago. I wish I could have pulled back some of my attitudes toward my mamma.  She told me more than once in my short life with her, you will think of this day often when I am dead and gone.  She was right.  Join me, please.

Dear Father in Heaven, we might be born again, we might all be in love with You, but once in awhile our attitudes stink and we ask that You will help us clean them up.  Not just those that the public see, but all of them, and of course the attitudes of our heart.  Help us to work this day to bring in the lost so You can save them, and Lord, please, please pour out a good attitude upon us to do this work.  Forgive me of my sins and sinful thinking in my heart.  In the name of Jesus, I pray.  Amen.

Now go forth and share a good attitude and your blessings.  Love ya.  Please pass on that love with a good attitude.

Pastor Dan

Monday 1/13/14 Attitudes

Dear Father in Heaven:  Thanks for a wonderful weekend, and thanks for watching over us.  Thanks for sending Jesus to the cross to clean us of our sins.  Please, Lord, as we start this week, help me to walk each day with You, and please, Lord, be with those who watch over us here on earth.  Be with our military, our police,  our firefighters, and Lord, those who work the utilities and have been working so hard in the cold to keep power on.  Lord, bless those who serve You by serving others on this earth, who do the jobs nobody else wants to do.  Be with our "trash folks," those who  hang out on the back of the trash trucks, for it is cold and windy.  Lord, bless those who read this line, bless our flock at The Bridges, bless families this day, and Lord, please look after Donna's cat and Silver Spring Township K-9 police officer.  Thanks, Lord, for trusting us with Your critters.  Now, Jesus, I just want to tell You this this morning.  I love You.  And now, if You would be so kind as to plant a message on my mind and heart and put it out through my fingers and then help me dispatch it, I would appreciate it.  Thanks for teaching me how to love others, and Lord, please be with President Obama, his family, and all others who have power over us here on earth.  In Jesus' name, I pray.  Amen.

Good morning  from the Southern Location of the North Pole, where it has felt more like the North Pole.  For those of you who have followed Carry The Light Ministries over the years, a letter will be coming to update you on what is going on.  We are also sending out some hard copies by the way of Uncle Sam's postal  workers.  As you pray today, please pray for our leaders and all those who work to keep us safe.  And please remember to pray for those trash and recycle workers.  Back when I was a youth, we had to keep our trash and food  stuff separate.  It was called trash and garbage.  Well, I had a job on the garbage truck.  I made 50 cents per hour and all I could eat.  Yes, folks, I made that one up.  I worked in service stations, when they indeed were SERVICE STATIONS.  Please pray today for our leaders, including President Obama and his family.  Please note, whenever I mention our president, I send him a copy of the daily.  Now, brothers and sisters, let me get to the message.

Monday, January 13, 2014, Attitudes (Day One).

Ephesians 4:19 - Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to  sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, with a continual lust for more.  20 You, however, did not come to know Christ that way.  21 Surely you heard of Him and were taught in Him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus.  22 You were taught with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self which is being corrupted by deceitful desires, 23 to be made new in the ATTITUDE of your minds; 24 and to put on the new self, created to be like God in truth and righteousness and holiness.  (NIV)

Brothers and sisters, we all have one, you have one and I have one.  Our friends all have one, and so do those who might not like us.  Our political leaders have one, and even our animals have them.  And yes, brothers and sisters, Jesus had/has one also.  Yes, I am talking ATTITUDES.  Our attitudes can also change.  How can we take charge of our attitudes and make them be positive and not negative?  Be with me this week as we dig into Attitudes.

Dear brothers and sisters, if you want to lose friends, if you think your circle of friends is getting smaller and smaller, it might not be because your mouthwash is not working or your seven-day deodorant pad has been in use for fourteen days.  It might not be because they are on your left side and you used "Right Guard."  It might just be your attitude is really bad.  Brethren, it could be you have a very bad attitude or you are always complaining about something.  You know it is not always easy to get up in the morning and put on a good attitude when you are feeling a tad under the weather and you must go to work.  I am sure at one time or another we, and that means me and you, have had an attitude that really needed adjusted, and the best attitude adjuster is of course our Lord Jesus.

Have you ever gone to a store or someplace where the sales person has a bad attitude?  You wonder how they got hold onto their job.  If you are like me, you would sooner be waited on by someone with a good attitude.  Someone who smiles at you as they take your money.  One of the worst ways to show a really poor attitude, and I am sure you have seen this, you are being waited on at the food store, you are checking out and the clerk and the bagger or some others are standing there putting down their job and the bosses.  I have even stopped the folks and told them instead of complaining about the job they should be thankful they have a job, and if they did not like it they should go find  one they do like.  So I ask you today, is your attitude positive or negative?  Is it plus or minus?  Let's look at today's scripture:

You were taught with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self which is being corrupted by deceitful desires, to be made new in the ATTITUDE of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in truth and righteousness and holiness.

While I did not pull all of the scripture down, I want you to look at this.  If your attitude is bad, we are to put off our old self and take on a new self and do it to be like God.  And while that sounds easy, we might need to do this each day, or each time our attitude starts to turn bad.  If our friends who are slipping away would just be real truthful with us and tell us right up front, you need to change your attitude, it would be a blessing.  However, sometimes we do not want to hurt someone's feelings or we might be afraid of what they might say back, true friends should be able to really talk to each other.  So today I invite all of you to face yourself in the mirror, look deep into it, and ask yourself, do I need my attitude adjusted, and if so, ask God to help you adjust it.

I mentioned that even Jesus had/has an attitude, and if anyone should have had a bad one, it could have been Him, for He was born in a barn, had to escape because Herod wanted to kill Him as a baby, and people hated Him and even wanted to and then did kill Him, and His attitude was and still is an attitude of Love.  Amen.

Dear Father in Heaven, please help me adjust my attitude each day to be an attitude of Love.  In Jesus' name, I pray.  Amen.

Now go forth in the name of Jesus, sharing your blessings and your GOOD ATTITUDE with others.

Love ya.  Please pass that love on.
Pastor Dan

Thurs/Fri 1/9-10/14 Lonesome 4

Dear Father in Heaven:  Thank You very much for taking care of me once again as I plowed snow.  Thanks for watching over Dolores while I was out.  Thanks for families and friends.  Thanks for the help You sent me on Thursday.  Please bless my buddy Grant and keep him well.  Please be with pastors, priests, missionaries, worship leaders, lay leaders, gospel singers, and all others who are going into Your fields of harvest and working for You to bring in the lost.  Lead us to those people who do not know Jesus and are not saved.  Help us to keep walking in the light of Jesus.  Keep us from falling and slipping away from You, dear Lord.  Be with those we have been praying for, Lord, and heal them.  Now, dear Lord,  help me with the message.  I am sorry I got behind again.  And then, Lord, please  help me to get it dispatched.  I love You, Jesus, and I pray in Your Name, Jesus.  Amen.

Dear brothers and sisters:  I just want to say right up front today that I really do love and appreciate all of you, and I am so sorry that I have not been regular on my writings.  The snow plowing and cold weather has got me behind a tad and I am having trouble catching up.  Today I was once again up early and out in the plow truck.  Please pray for all those working for God this weekend, and each one of you should be on that prayer list.  You do remember that command from God?  As in Mark 16:15, He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation."  Anyway, dear brothers and sisters, I want to wrap up this series on Lonesome.

Brothers and sisters, even after getting the message started on Friday evening, I just could not stay awake to keep going on.  God was telling me you must rest your body and your mind.  So about 10:30 PM I got my chocolate milk, picked up Martin Martin Jr. and went to bed.  God rested me well, so I am up and trying again, morning chores done, so to speak.  So let me get started:

Thursday/Friday, January 9/10, 2014, Lonesome (Day Four).

James 5:7 - Be patient, then, brothers, until the Lord's coming.  See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop and how patient he is for the autumn and spring rains.  8 You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord's coming is near.  (NIV)

Romans 8:26/28 - 26 - In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness.  We do now know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.  27 And He who searches our hearts, knows the  mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God's will.  28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.  (NIV)

None know better than those who are lonesome that it does produce a lot of suffering.  And we can have others wrap their arms around us and hug on us and love on us,but when we are truly lonesome, it can bring on a lot of suffering, real honest-to-goodness suffering, and a lot of pain.  We can be told over and over again that God is on our side and He is the answer, and brothers and sisters, I am here to tell you He is, but it does not always work overnight, and maybe we will even need to wait upon Him to relieve us of this pain and suffering of being lonesome.  I have never been told this by any of these fine men, Dave, Duane, and Neil, but I would think that all the time they were on the road, all the time in front of large groups, there would be times they would be really lonesome for their families back home.  While we have lots of devices today that you can talk to people and see them on screens, it is not the same as being there.  While I am a person who gets "homesick," and it did not take many days for me to be away at a conference, about two, and I would be driving people nuts, I wanted to go home and get back to work.  I am a real mess now, Dolores will tell you my outside limit of being away from home is about 5 to 6 hours tops and I want to get home, get going on something and be with our animals.  However, to get rid of that real lonesome feeling, we need to send in the "Calvary," or in this case, the One who died on "Calvary" on that "Old Rugged Cross."

So let's get looking at some scriptures and find out just where we can find some of this help, and trust me, our Bible is full of the Love of our Lord Jesus.  These scriptures God planted in my heart today.  James 5:7/8:  These scriptures tell us to have patience in our suffering, and that of course means we need to be patient in our loneliness and that is hard to do.  We might be longing to get home to a loved one, and I do not mean home to your house here in this world, to your home on Main St., USA.  You are longing to get home to be with those loved ones, those mothers and fathers, those brothers and sisters, those grandparents, and yes, even those of you who lost children and you want to see them again.  Be patient, if you are still here on this earth, the Lord is not finished with you yet.  We are in the early part of what has been a cold winter, and it will seem long, but just around the corner the flowers will start to bud.  Be patient, winter will soon be over and it will be spring.  Likewise, be patient, enjoy it here on God's earth, and it is His.  Be patient and think about nice things.  Think about God, read your Bible more and grow your faith deeper and deeper.

Next week we might just talk about why a bay needs its pants changed often.  We will see.  But before I wrap this out for today, I want you to take a look at this from Romans and this one I will bring down for you.

Romans 8:26/28 - 26 - In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness.  We do now know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.  27 And He who searches our hearts, knows the  mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God's will.  28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.

When Jesus died and left us to return back to be with His Father, our Father, He left us with The Holy Spirit, and this Spirit helps us in our weakness.  Yes, in our loneliness, He helps us.  The Bible tells us we need to pray, but we seem lost for words, so the Spirit helps us. It intercedes for us, the Bible tells us.  And He intercedes for us according to God's will and not ours.  Please let me point out the Spirit intercedes for the SAINTS, and that means we need to be "Born Again."  You see, once we are "Born Again," that is when we become a saint, but that scripture is for another time.

Romans 8:28 - And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.  (NIV)

Now please watch me on this.  So many people just quote part of this scripture.  They will say, "All things come together for good."  But brothers and sisters, they miss a really big point.  All things do come together for good, for THOSE OF US WHO LOVE HIM, and Him of course is Jesus.  And also we WHO HAVE BEEN CALLED ACCORDING TO HIS PURPOSE.  That means it will always come together for good if we do love Him and are working for His purpose in our lives.  However, it might not come overnight.  A lot of times even for those who do not love Him, He will work things out for them.  And there will be times you, as one who loves Jesus and are doing what you feel He has called you for, will seem like it will take forever for you to see the good.  Once again I will tell you to hang in there for "The Calvary is coming."  And you need to remember when God was risen from the dead, and then later rose to the Heavens, HE MADE THIS PROMISE:  "I AM COMING BACK.  I AM COMING BACK."  Folks, do you hear me today?  Jesus said, "I AM COMING BACK."  While He might just call us out one at a time, that day will come when God The Father sends His Son, His One and Only Son, back to get we who are BORN AGAIN.  Until then, hang in there.  God is good, and He loves you.  Please keep the faith.  SOMEONE SHOUT AMEN.

Dear Father in Heaven, until You send Jesus back or call me out by myself, please help me keep working for You in all I do.  In Jesus' Name, Amen.

I hope you prayed that prayer with me, the one right above.  So time to go, now please go forth and share your blessings.

Love ya.  Please pass that love on!
Pastor Dan

Wednesday 1/8/14 Lonesome 3

Dear Father in Heaven.  Please forgive me of my sins.  Please forgive all those on this line who are praying along with me this day.  Father, as You know, this is Salvation Wednesday on Carry The Light Ministries and Message line.  So Lord, please help Your Words of Salvation fall on the saved and unsaved this day, and use we who are saved and use this line, please, dear Lord, to get the unsaved to Your feet.  We indeed want to work in the fields of Harvest for You.  Please, Lord, help me now with the message on Lonesome, and point me to the scriptures I need for this lesson.  May the words come straight from You to my heart and then to my brain and out my fingers.  And Lord, help my fingers keep working.  Lord, I will also need help dispatching the message, for I can do nothing without You, nor do I want to.  I love You, Jesus.  I pray in Your Name, Jesus.  Amen.

Good morning, my dear brothers and sisters.  It is Salvation Wednesday, and it has been very cold here at the Southern Location of the North Pole.  Hi, Bobbie,  I pray all is warm in the south!  Bobbie is my classmate (John Harris 1959) and she lives in Florida.  Thanks to all of you who have been giving us a ring just to check on us in the cold weather.  We are doing fine.  Please check on your neighbors.  As I told you yesterday, I was ordered to get off my feet and legs to get them above my heart and rest.  For those who know me, resting is not in my blood, BUT yesterday I did listen, and Martin Martin Jr., Angel, Millie, Marie, Mike, and Bentley, all K-9s along with Marvin, my cat, who thinks he is a dog, but smarter, went to bed.  To update you on our newest rescue, a 12-year old Yorkshire who cannot hear a thing and is almost blind, is doing fine.  This morning I tested the fire alarms (burnt my toast) and Kissy did not wake up.  Hey, I need to get to the message, "Lonesome."

Salvation Wednesday, January 7, 2014, Lonesome (Day Three).

Hebrews 13:5/6 - 5 - Keep your lives free from the love of money, and be content with what you have, because God has said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you."  6 So we say with confidence, "The Lord is my helper:  I will not be afraid.  What can man do to me?"  (NIV)

First let's look at this scripture.  We are to fall in love with God and not fall in love with money.  We should be happy with what we have, knowing our Lord will provide our needs as we learned in the 23rd Psalm yesterday.  Psalm 23:1, The Lord is my Shepherd, I SHALL NOT WANT!

In this scripture from Hebrews, it also tells us that God will NEVER LEAVE US OR FORSAKE US.  How about that, our God will never leave us, and while we have dear, dear friends, sometimes they "bail out on us," but God never will.  Trust in God, brothers and sisters.  The scripture also tells us that the Lord is our helper, so in the morning, in your morning prayers, ask Him for that help.  You will be surprised that our God can help you in all you do.  He can love on you by helping you not just when you are lonely but also in your housework, or in whatever field you are working.  GOD LOVES US ALL, and by gosh, He even loves those who hate Him.  Do you love those who hate you?  You need to, you know that, don't you?  Let's get happy today!!

I love to make up tunes and sing while I do things.  Words come to my mind and a lot of times I just use them in the message.  On this Salvation Wednesday, when we are talking about being lonely, a few such words have come to my mind.

"Salvation Wednesday, Salvation Wednesday, Love on Jesus and you'll be saved.

Salvation Wednesday, Salvation Wednesday, Love on Jesus and you'll be saved.

Let the love of Jesus come on you today and let that love of Jesus in your heart to stay.

Salvation Wednesday, Salvation Wednesday, Love on Jesus and you'll be saved."

Brothers and sisters, if you are lonely or down, put a good gospel CD in that old machine and turn the volume up and sing your heart out with those gospel singers and as they do, sing it for and to the Lord.  In other words, put a song in your heart and sing some of God's really good music.  Want the "meat and potatoes" (Neil Enloe)?  Get out those old hymns and sing them.  As I have often told you, you need a good, and I mean a good church to attend, where the pastor speaks words from the Bible, and all of them.  However, some of you cannot get out to church, you are disabled, but you can still get involved with a good church, and on Sunday tune in to Dr. Charles Stanley.  It is hard if you have lost loved ones, it is very hard, but YOU CAN DO IT, YOU CAN PULL YOURSELF UP WITH THE HELP OF GOD.  Turn off the soaps, turn off the junk on the TV and put on that music.  Listen, h ave faith for you will, I said you will, if you are saved, catch up with those saved loved ones in Heaven.  Tomorrow we will look at some scriptures that talk about that.  But for now, and this is Salvation Wednesday, let us make sure that all on this line have been saved.  We have added new folks, and you know me, brothers and sisters, I do ask these questions.  DO YOU KNOW JESUS?  I mean one on one, not do you just know who He is, do you know Him and love on Him?  Do you draw strength from Him?  And now for that biggie.  ARE YOU BORN AGAIN?  Do you walk with Him daily?

Read these scriptures:  John 3:16, John 14:6, Romans 10:9/10.  For now, will you pray with me?  I cannot pray this prayer for you, I can only lead you.  Please either renew or be saved this day.  It is a good way to start the day and a good way to get on "The Road Again" (Duane Nicholson).  Please do not wait.

Dear Father in Heaven.  I love You.  Please forgive me of my sins.  Wash me white as snow today.  Send The Power of the Holy Spirit over me and into my heart.  I need You, Jesus, and I want to be sure I get into heaven when I pass from this earth.  I do believe that You were born of a virgin and You died on the cross for me and that You were risen from the dead.  Again, Jesus, save me.  Thank You, Jesus.  I pray this prayer in the name of Jesus.  Amen.

New Christian?  Call if you need to find a church or need prayers.  My cell number, which you may use for prayer, is 717 991 0754.

Now go forth and share your blessings.  Love ya.  Please share that love!

Pastor Dan

Tuesday 1/7/14 Lonesome 2

Dear Father in Heaven.  Thanks for carrying us through a very cold day.  Thanks for keeping us safe and thanks for a great day of rest.  Lord, please be with Your people who are without heat. Be with the homeless and help them in the cold.  Be with Vicki as she gets ready for surgery, and help them through the cold.  Be with Beth and Craig and help them with their freezing pipes.  Lord, please be with our police and firefighters and our power people and utility workers as they work out in the cold serving others.  Lord, please help me now with the message and help me to get it dispatched.  I love You, Jesus, I really do.  I pray in Your wonderful Name, Jesus.  Amen.

Brothers and sisters, it was cold out today, and almost everyone said "Amen."  Please pray for all those who must work outdoors, and please remember your trash collectors in those prayers.  Here are just a few.  Plumbers, heating contractors, utility workers, firefighters (and in Pennsylvania most are volunteer), police (state and local), military folks, and remember your guard unit.  Also please pray for families and for our son Matthew.  Also, I could use some prayers.  I was grounded today by my doctor.  Ordered off my feet for a day due to swelling of my legs and feet.  Okay, let me get going on the message,  "Lonesome", Part 2.

Tuesday, January 7, 2014, Lonesome (Day Two).

Psalm 23:1 - The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want.  2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures; He leadeth me beside the still waters.  3 He restoreth my soul; He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for His name's sake.  4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for Thou art with me; Thy rod and Thy staff, they comfort me.  5 Thou prepares a table before me in the presence of mine enemies; Thou anointest my head with oil, my cup runneth over.  6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.  (KJV)

Isaiah 41:10 - So do not fear, for I am with you, do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.  (NIV)

To overcome being lonely is not an easy thing to do.  As I said yesterday, there were a few times in my life when I have been lonesome and even in a crowd.  When we are lonely, the really sure help comes to us from God.  However, we must have faith for that to  happen.  Again I have used the 23rd Psalm as a reference point as I did yesterday.  For those of you who might be lonely, I would suggest that you just might try putting your feet in the shoes of David and go over and over this beautiful scripture that is used so much.  I want to go through the Psalm again and highlight some of it.  I suggest that you go over it again and again and really find comfort in our Lord that comes from Him, right out of this scripture.

Psalm 23:1 - The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want.  2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures; He leadeth me beside the still waters.  3 He restoreth my soul; He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for His name's sake.  4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for Thou art with me; Thy rod and Thy staff, they comfort me.  5 Thou prepares a table before me in the presence of mine enemies; Thou anointest my head with oil, my cup runneth over.  6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.  (KJV)

Brothers and sisters, look at what I have highlighted in dark print and think about all these things that God does for us who love Him, for He love us, all of us.  He is our Shepherd, and He makes us, He restores us, and look at this.  We need not to fear, for He is with us.  He comforts us, He sets our table.  Our cups run over, not just full, but overflowing.  God is so  good.  So brothers and sisters, let's look at some more scripture as we look for ways to cozy up to God and find ways to end being lonesome.

Isaiah 41:10 - So do not fear, for I am with you, do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.  (NIV)

One thing when we feel lonely, we also at the same time have fear, we fear things.  Let's look at some things we might fear.  Most people have a fear of something.  I fear flying.  I am afraid of heights.  Most people have a fear of public speaking.  I can handle that.  There are people afraid of the dark, and believe it or not, people have a fear of eating some foods.  However, if we just trust God, He will cover our fears, even the fear of being alone.  Look up again at Isaiah 41:10.  Brothers and sisters, God has us covered when He tells us these things.  Plus, we have Jesus, who has covered our sins with His blood.  Again God tells us, "Do not fear, do not be dismayed, I will strengthen you, I will uphold you."

Now, brothers and sisters, go forth sharing your blessings in all that you do.  I love ya.  Pass on that love, please.

Pastor Dan

Monday 1/6/14 Lonesome

Dear Father in Heaven. Thanks for another great day.  Thank You for talking with me and speaking to my heart.  Thanks for the job for Craig, all honor and glory to You, Lord.  Thank You for Tom's safety home.  Lord, be with Your people in the cold.  Thanks for changing the weather so we are reminded You are in charge of it.  Please keep watch over Leslie, and please help her with a job.  Please watch over this line and all who use it.  Thanks for watching over our family and friends, and please, dear Lord, continue that blessing for us.  Thanks for the good report on Gretchen.  Please watch over Dan Stoner and his family, and Lord, he needs healed so he can get back in the plane and fly to the back woods for You.  Be with our son Matthew, wherever he is.  Lord, if in Your will, please carry a tad of my pain.  In Jesus' Name, I pray and give thanks.  And now, Lord,  help me with the message and then help me to dispatch it.  Thanks, Jesus, and I pray in Your Name, Jesus.  Amen.

Dear brothers and sisters, when you have been driving in water as in rain or wet snow, and it is going to get really cold, DO NOT USE YOUR PARKING BRAKE!!  Also, if you do not have to, do not lock the car.  If you do and the door locks freeze, you can heat your key with a match.  Also a few tips:  Remember, the first inch of snow is the slippery inch.  Snow is more slippery between 28 and 34 than when on the road and it is 10 degrees.  Watch out for black ice.  It can come from rain, freezing rain, drizzle, and believe it or not, fog can freeze on the road.  Be safe, slow down, increase your following distance.  Go easy, easy on the brakes, easy on the gas, easy on the steering.  And most of all, PRAY BEFORE YOU GO ONTO THE ROADS.  I think it was Elvis who sang the song "Are you lonesome tonight."  Anyway, around the holiday season, a lot of people get lonesome, so I talked to God about me writing about it.  Let's get to it.

Monday, January 6, 2014, Lonesome (Day One).

Psalm 23:1 - The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want.  2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures; He leadeth me beside the still waters.  3 He restoreth my soul; He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for His name's sake.  4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for Thou art with me; Thy rod and Thy staff, they comfort me.  5 Thou prepares a table before me in the presence of mine enemies; Thou anointest my head with oil, my cup runneth over.  6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.  (KJV)

I think all of us have been lonely sometime or other in our lives, and most often when we really get lonely it is near a holiday, Christmas, Easter, birthday, or some other important date in your life.  I know that I have had periods in my life when I was lonely, and if you are like me, you can be lonely even in a crowd.  Now ladies, chances are you are not like me, for I have a beard!  (I just needed to do it once in awhile.)  Many times, not much helps, you can talk to a friend, or a family member, but what I would suggest is you go talk to Jesus and then read some good scriptures.  If you are thinking about hurting yourself, you need to get some professional help, and my suggestion would be your pastor.

One scripture that gives great comfort to me is the 23rd Psalm.  Let's take a look at it starting with verse one.

Psalm 23:1 - The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want.

As each of us read it, we can highlight the word MY and then be sure to use that large S on shepherd, which my Bible does not do but when speaking of Jesus, always use that large letter.  Let's look at a few verses today, and get started on getting over our loneliness.

The Lord  is my Shepherd, and I shall not want because I have Him to lean on. Most often we think of our wants, and he really does supply our NEEDS and a lot of our wants.  Most often here we are thinking of our air, water, food, and clothes, and heat in our home and a car for getting to work.  However, He is the great comforter, and He will comfort those of us when we are lonely.  He supplies us with friends and people to talk to; however, if we are still lonely, we can call on Him and HE will comfort us.  His line is never busy, and He is never too busy to listen to You.  Sometimes we need to listen more and stop running at the mouth.  Also, brothers and sisters, if you are lonely, do you have a pet?  One of my blessings from God to help me in times of loneliness over the years is my pets.  Martin Martin Sr. was a great example of a dog that would just always be near when you needed him.  I want for nothing, folks, because I have Jesus, and you can be the same.  When you do get lonely, maybe because you have lost a loved one, maybe a spouse or parent, or heaven forbid, a child, you can always call on God.  Tomorrow we will really dig into this subject.  Lonesome!!

Now go forth and share your blessings.  Love ya.  And pass the love on, please.

Pastor Dan