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Tuesday, March 14, 2017
Proverbs 23:31-32: Do not look at wine when it is red, when it sparkles in the cup and goes down smoothly. In the end it bites like a serpent and stings like an adder. If you have ever wondered what an "Adder" is, it is a venomous snake that lives in the Middle East. It's deadly. So is the overuse of alcohol and drugs. It is so enticing. It is desirable. On one side of the coin, a glass of wine with dinner sounds good. And it is good. One the OTHER side of the coin, a glass or two, or three, or four, or more of Jack Daniels goes down smooth in order to mask the hurt, the trouble, or the pain of life sounds good so that you don't feel. It's NOT good. That's when it stings. That's when it kills. We want to give up that side of the coin. We don't want all the bad effects of overuse of alcohol and drugs. We want a Savior from that. And His name is Jesus. Jesus, through His salvation, and grace, and love for you went to the cross. Jesus carried our burdens and our sorrows. He is acquainted with our grief and pain and sin. He knows us so very well. And He died on the cross in order to take all of your burdens, sorrows, grief, and pain. They were buried with Jesus in the tomb. And when Jesus rose to life, they stayed buried. That means we get up to speed with Jesus is our salvation. Jesus is the one whom we can trust. Jesus sent to us the Holy Spirit who is our "sponsor" that guides us into the truth of ourselves and the truth of Jesus. The Holy Spirit reminds us of all that Jesus did for us. Let's pray. Dear Jesus, thank You for all that You did for us. Lead us by the Holy Spirit to rely on You and trust in Your will and way. And all God's people say...
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Monday, March 13, 2017
Luke 21:34: [Jesus is saying,] “But watch yourselves lest your hearts be weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and cares of this life, and that day come upon you suddenly like a trap." It has always been and always will be. The tension between living in the ways of the world and the ways of God. From the day that Adam and Eve disobeyed God and thereby sinned until today, mankind has been and always will be against God. Most of mankind doesn't even realize it. The small percentage of people in the world who are Christian realize the tension. We live in it every day. We fight against ourselves; the sinful human nature versus the saint nature. Jesus is giving to us a fair warning. If we are getting "caught up" into traumas and struggles and problems of life, then keep you "wits about you." Stay focused on the prize that is eternal life with Jesus. Because getting caught up in the struggles of life leads us away from the life that God gave through Jesus. And you just might not see the way out of the struggles that God has given to you. And what is that "way out?" The way out is believe and trust in Jesus. Jesus gave to you the Holy Spirit who is always trying to get your attention before the trap is set. The Holy Spirit is leading you away from the pitfalls and hurts. The Holy Spirit is leading you to Jesus who forgave you of your sins and sinfulness and cleansed you from all unrighteousness. He is directing you to use your faith and trust in Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith. Let's pray. Dear God, thank You so much for Jesus and the forgiveness of sins we have through Him. We pray through the power of the Holy Spirit that You will guide and direct us from all harm and danger and lead us to remember the prize. We pray this in Jesus' name. And all God's children say... Thursday, March 9, 2017
Colossians 2:20-23: If with Christ you died to the elemental spirits of the world, why, as if you were still alive in the world, do you submit to regulations —“Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch” (referring to things that all perish as they are used)—according to human precepts and teachings? These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh. The most popular thing to "give up for Lent" is CHOCOLATE! People love chocolate. They love the sweetness of it. They love it because it makes them feel good. They also realize that chocolate, especially if one over indulges, can definitely lead to a good sized tummy ache. That is one of the reasons why people choose to give up chocolate for Lent. At the same time, there is a bigger issue with the indulgent behavior that we exhibit sometimes with chocolate. The bigger issue is giving in to the indulgence. I remember getting the BIG bag of M&M Peanuts for a Christmas present. I love M&M Peanuts. So I would eat the entire bag of them, or close to it, that afternoon. And my stomach paid for it. Then the guilt. Then the, "I'm not going to do that again." Then I do it again the next Christmas. Sound familiar? Now, God is telling us that we died to those pulls, desires, and wants. He is also saying that we have no way of stopping them. Only through God and the strength that He gives will we resist the indulgence. Only through the power of God through the Holy Spirit by means of faith are we resistant and resilient. By means of the grace of Jesus, we have life that does not, and will not, crave the desires of CHOCOLATE. Through faith we crave the freedom that God gave to not indulge. So let s live by God's grace. Let's pray. Dear Father God, lead us through the cravings and desires for indulging in chocolate. Lead us to indulge in the freedom we have in Jesus from "sin and every evil." We pray in Jesus' name. And all God's children say... Wednesday, March 8, 2017
Psalm 100:5: For the LORD is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations. There is a young man named, Eddy. Eddy has made choices that haven't been good for him. Eddy made choices that in many ways have been hurtful, even to other people. And most of all, Eddy has made choices that do not honor and glorify God and the love that God has for Eddy. And Eddy knows it. Eddy is tired of making these bad choices. He knows, all too well, the direction his life is headed. And he wants to stop. Eddy's made New Year's resolutions. Didn't work out. Eddy's given up the choices. At least he started to. Now Eddy is frustrated and afraid. Eddy's next "choice" is to get up to speed with the love and grace that God gave to Him through Jesus Christ. Through faith, Eddy says to God, "God, I am powerless to change my way of thinking, my acting, and my choice of words. God, I am relying on You and Your enduring love for me. I am relying on Your faithfulness to me. I am counting on Your power and strength for me to get up to speed with Your will for me. Remind me again that the Holy Spirit is my power to give up my bad choices and get up to speed with Your grace. I pray this in Jesus' name. Amen." Praise God, "Eddy." Tuesday, March 7, 2017
Romans 12:1: I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. We all know that smoking is bad for you. Beyond the direct links to lung cancer for cigarettes and throat cancer for pipes and cigars, they're not good for you. And if your desire to give up smoking, and even vaping, for Lent, I'm with you. There are many medical reasons why to give up smoking. There are many reasons why you shouldn't even start. At the same time there is a better reason to give it up and to not even start. It's in our verse for today. Our bodies are not our own to "do whatever I want to" with. Our bodies are the physical residence of God here on earth. Our bodies were created by God in the womb of our mothers. Our bodies were saved by means of the blood of Jesus Christ, who gave up His body and shed His blood so that our sins and sinful nature are forgiven. Our bodies, especially as believers in Jesus, are temples of the Holy Spirit who guides and directs our lives so that we offer our bodies and our very lives as a sacrifice that continues to live, holy and pleasing to God. So our spiritual worship is to take care of the body that we have and get up to speed with what God has done for, and with, this body. Let's pray. Dear Father God, be with us this and every day. Remind us that we who believe in You and Your salvation, are Your temples. Lead us to take care of "Your house" in us. We pray this in Jesus' name, And all God's children say... Monday, March 6, 2017
Matthew 6:24: [Jesus is saying,] "No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money. The big issue is, "Who's in charge." It's a simple statement with great significance. If we think that we are in charge, then we are the master. This is drilled into our heads from an early age. "Pull yourselves up by your bootstraps." is a famous phrase that solidifies what we are being told today. We can fix our own problems. We alone are responsible for our own decisions. We are masters of our own lives. And here is the rub. We aren't in charge. We can't fix our own problems. We can't master our own lives, even though we would love to be able to. That's why there is so much "self help" books out there. That is why we have "experts" telling us how to raise our children, teach our children, care for our parents, and the like. "Do this, don't do that, can't you read the sign?" This is what happens when we try to be in charge. God is in charge. When we pour our lives into His leadership, His direction, and His purpose for us, we struggle less with "who's in charge." We more fully realize that when we cast our burdens on Him, He takes care of us. God is our master when we live by faith. He is in charge of our lives when we "let go and let God." God is our help in ages past, our hope in years to come. Give God the glory and honor and praise and allow Him to save you from your sins, cleanse you from all sin, and to strengthen you to live your days and deeds in His peace. Let's pray. Dear Father God, thank You for being in charge. Lead us by Your Holy Spirit to realize that You are our Master, Savior, and Lord. Holy Spirit, empower us to follow Your lead and life. We pray this in Jesus' name. And all God's children say... Thursday, March 2, 2017
John 14:5-7: Thomas said to him, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.” There are so many distractions in our lives today. There are so many things that are an attempt to either keep us from getting bored, or to keep us from facing reality. There are so many things that "entertain" us and keep us calm. How many of us remember being to to watch "Barney" or "Sesame Street?" It kept us out of mom's hair while she was trying to do what she needed to do. Today it's play your game on your phone, iPad, tablet, or game console. What unfortunately is happening is people, adults as well as children, are getting distracted away from life, and more especially, God. And if this is something that you want to "give up for Lent," realize that there is more to just saying, "I going to quit playing my games for six weeks." It's more like, "What does God want for me?" That's where "getting up to speed" with God is so critical. God reveals Himself to us through the Scriptures. He reveals Himself through Jesus as "the way, and the truth, and the life." Getting up to speed with God is knowing Him and knowing Jesus. Getting up to speed is spending time with Him through reading, learning, marking, and inwardly digesting the Word of God. You will be amazed when you spend time with Him how much you'll learn about yourself. Let's pray. Dear God, thank You for Jesus and who He is and what He did. We know that distractions lead us away from You. Direct us through the Holy Spirit to focus on getting up to speed with You and Your grace through Jesus. And it is in His name we pray. And all God's children say... Wednesday, March 1, 2017
Ash Wednesday Job 2:7-8: So Satan went out from the presence of the LORD and struck Job with loathsome sores from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head. And he took a piece of broken pottery with which to scrape himself while he sat in the ashes. Today begins the season of Lent. It is a season of lamenting, which means, actively grieving for sins, evil, and hurts. Job was lamenting and full of grief. So, as was the custom, Job sat in ashes and wore sackcloth instead of his normal clothes. We as Christians, don't sit in ashes. We "wear" ashes upon our foreheads. It is there to remind us of our laments, our sins, our hurts, and our struggles. It is in the shape of a cross to remind us that through Jesus and His death upon the cross, we are forgiven, renewed, and restored through God's grace and love. When Pastor James and I impose ashes upon you today, we will say, "From dust you came. To dust you shall return." That means our bodies will decay and turn to dust, like the dust that formed Adam. That phrase reminds us of the consequence of sin in our lives. It also reminds us of how God so loves us that He sent Jesus to die for our sins and cleanse us from all sin. So we also spend time in pondering in meditation the life, death, resurrection of Jesus Christ who will raise the bodies, form them again, this time in perfect forgiveness and grace, so that we will live with Him forever. So through lamenting, there is hope and life. Let's pray. Father, we know our sin. It is always before us. Lead us to remember the work of Jesus who saved us from our sins and gave to us a new life. We pray this in His name. And all God's children say... See you tonight as we celebrate the grace and mercy of Jesus. The service starts at 6:30 after a Pancake dinner at 5:30. |
AuthorPastor Robert Hemsath joined Faith Lutheran Church and School as the Senior Pastor in January 2017. Pastor Hemsath comes to FLC from Christ the King Lutheran Church in Waxahachie, TX. He has also served congregations in Aberdeen, ID and Pocatello, ID. He has been a Lutheran pastor for the past 20 years. Archives
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