Dear Father in Heaven: I love You very much. Please forgive me of my weaknesses and help me with my daily struggles. Thanks for watching over family, our flock at The Bridges, and our flock online. Please keep watch over Pastor Larry and Luella as they lead the services at camp this week. Please bless and keep all those who are attending. Please be with the family of Vicki in the passing of her mother. Please bring world peace, and please calm things in the St. Louis area. Please, Lord, comfort the family of the reporter that was beheaded by ISIS. Please touch Dolores and also me and take away some of our pain. And dear Lord, please help us to bring in the lost to be saved. Now, dear Father in Heaven, please help me with a message for this day and help me to dispatch it. In Jesus' Name, I pray. Amen.
Greetings from the Southern Location of the North Pole. You can see all the folks listed in my prayer. Please pray for them. Please also pray for our President and for all of our leaders. Please pray for our veterans, current military, and for peace around the world. Pray for the events going on in Ferguson, MO, and for the parents of the black teen and also for the police officer who shot him. Last night bottles of urine were thrown on police officers. On Monday an 18 year-old youth was shot to death in Hall Manor, a section of Harrisburg, PA. This youth had four children, all under the age of two. I could go on and on. So I say to all of you who I call "prayer warriors" to pray and pray and pray. I need to get started on the message. I tried to start it on Tuesday evening, but I could not get myself together to write. So it will be a Tuesday/Wednesday writing and that means Salvation Wednesday is included.
Please pray for Dolores and me as we make decisions being caused by pain in our bodies. Let me get started with God's work.
Tuesday/Salvation Wednesday: August 19/20, 2014, Repent and Walk (Day One)
Matthew 3:1 - In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the Desert of Judea 2 and saying, "Repent for the kingdom of heaven is near." 3 This is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah: "A voice of one calling in the desert, 'Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.'" 4 John's clothes were made of camel's hair, and he had a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey. (NIV)
Brothers and sisters, what I pray I can get covered this week is about repenting and then walking with Jesus. I truly believe with all my heart and mind that this is what is wrong with the world today. People, all people including me, need to repent and walk nearer and nearer to Jesus. God started me with this scripture today, maybe because of all the people in the Bible, I think I fit the description of "John the Baptist" the best. In fact when the Couriers and others would sing the song about John the Baptist and I would be there, they would point to me. Why? Well,I do not get hair cuts, I at one time dressed like a biker in leather jackets and yes, around my waist holding up my pants was always a leather belt. No, I do not eat locusts, but I do enjoy some honey on my toast. With that said, let me say it like maybe John might have said it back in those days. "REPENT, FOR THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN IS NEAR." And yes, I put in those large letters because that is yelling according to some computer folks. John the Baptist did not have the benefit of speakers and sound equipment like we have today. However, I have a "loud mouth" anyway. (You do not need to shout AMEN on this.)
Brothers and sisters, you do not need the wild look like John the Baptist had or I have to tell people they need to repent for the "Kingdom of Heaven is Near." You just need to let God use you. Each of us has a different style and for a different time and even place. I suggest as you witness to others telling them they need to repent, be sure to tell them you had to do it and are still doing it. Remember the messages about judging? Sometimes it is just a quiet sit down with a friend and talking about things. We also need to get out from the church buildings and get the message to the street. I know of one church that at one time had a great Vacation Bible School program, but stopped the program saying they do not have small children in the church anymore. This church sits near several trailer parks where lots of children live. I remember at one time walking those trailer parks talking to parents about the best summer schools of all. Schools in the summer that can talk about Jesus. Each and every one of us needs to be a John the Baptist, or a Wanda the Baptist. (I used Wanda's name for the Wanda I know already reaches out to others.) Yes, ladies can witness as well and sometimes better than men. I do want you to remember that working as a "John the Baptist" of today, we can witness to people to repent, and then if we can, get them to a good church and let them be baptized at that church.
Think of this, you have seen the bucket challenge for ALS, what a great thing. What if that was done for the Lord? No, not with ice water, but if one did not have a pool to baptize, could it not be done with buckets of water? Just thinking out loud. Okay, I do need to wrap this message up for today. Please remember it is Salvation Wednesday and the day we work a little harder to witness for the Lord. Maybe we should all have a goal to witness to at least one person each day. Sometimes this could be Christians witnessing to each other. Let's face it, pastors go to conferences and there they witness to each other. Years ago when I went to conferences on school transportation, I would learn as much talking with others in my position at other schools after the classes or at breaks. We could share each other's ideas. When Christians get together they also could share with each other about the best way to witness to each other.
Tomorrow I will get into walking, and walking in the shoes of Jesus. Until then I would like you to think and pray about this. Until we walk in the shoes of others, we do not know what they are going through. Being white, with native American blood in me (American Indian), I have no idea what our black brothers and sisters really went through. I want you to really think about that. Maybe you are a person of color, for I have never seen all of you. I do know we have a lot of Native Americans on the line. I want you all to think what it is like walking in the shoes of others and in fact we do not know what it is like walking in shoes other than our own.
Dear Father in Heaven: Please, please, bring peace in this world, and please bless this message and help it reach others, and help them benefit from it. In Jesus' Name, I pray. Amen.
Now go forth, sharing your blessings, being a witness for Jesus and on this day, try walking in the shoes of others. Love ya. And yes, please pass on my love to others.
Pastor Dan
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