BLESS People

Posted on May 6, 2020 by jesustrek

If you are like many people, you sometimes need a little help in organizing your prayers. Someone once came up with the acronym B.L.E.S.S. as a method of praying for people. It goes like this.

“B” stands for body. You can start out by praying for the health concerns of the person you want to pray for. James 5:16 says “…pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.” Most churches have a quite extensive prayer list that is comprised mostly of people who have health issues. Prayers for health are much needed and usually much appreciated.

“L” is for labor. You can pray for the work of the person you want to bless. Many are currently out of work and are hoping to be called back soon. You can pray for them to have harmony in the workplace. You can ask God to keep them safe, especially if they work in a dangerous environment. There are many ways that you can pray for people in regards to their employment.

“E” stands for emotions. Pray for the mental well-being of the person who is on your mind. There are countless issues which can be very upsetting, and some people are susceptible to being anxious and worried. Pray for them to trust in the Lord and have the peace that he promises, a peace that passes all understanding.

The first “S” is for social issues. Pray for their relationships. Pray for their marriage to be strengthened, or their bond with their children to become stronger. Pray for their friendships. Pray for them to be reconciled with anyone they may be having problems with.

The second “S” is for spiritual needs. Pray that they come to know Jesus as their Savior. If they already know Christ, pray that their relationship with him will grow even stronger. 3 John 2 says, “Dear friend, I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well.”

I hope that this helps you to pray in an effective way. Perhaps you can share this little exercise with someone else who could benefit from this method of prayer. No matter how you choose to do it, just pray!

 

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Traveling Man

Posted on May 1, 2020 by jesustrek

There was a man who had lived in the Midwest all of his life. He lived in the same small town, in the same neighborhood, on the same street, in the same house. He was satisfied with small town living. His community had everything that he needed or wanted, so why move?

Then one day, all of a sudden, the man sold his house and moved into another one—right next door!

His friends were surprised that he had done this and asked him for the reason. He replied, “Oh, I guess I just gave in to wanderlust.”

Whether we stay in one place all of our lives or travel the world, we Christians have the same purpose—to live our lives as an example to others that Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world!

“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”—Acts 1:8.

 

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How to Succeed In a Crisis

Posted on April 29, 2020 by jesustrek

One of my favorite books of the Bible is Nehemiah. There we see several principles of how to succeed in a crisis. The Israelites had been exiled for many years. The walls of Jerusalem had been torn down and there was a desperate need to rebuild the walls. There was indeed a crisis. How would the people respond?

Nehemiah heard about the condition of the broken down walls of Jerusalem, and Neh.1:4 says, “When I heard these things, I sat down and wept. For some days I mourned and fasted and prayed before the God of heaven.”

In many ways, our nation is broken down because of the coronavirus pandemic. People are hurting physically, emotionally and economically. It should be enough to cause us sorrow and lead us to prayer.

After Nehemiah prayed, he went to work. He asked the king for permission to go and rebuild the walls. The king said, “Yes”. He then asked some Jewish leaders for their help. Neh.2:17-18 says, “Then I said to them, “You see the trouble we are in: Jerusalem lies in ruins, and its gates have been burned with fire. Come, let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem, and we will no longer be in disgrace.” “…They replied, “let us start rebuilding.” So they began this good work.”

After we pray, we need to get to work. And, if we really hope to accomplish anything significant, we have to get other people to help us. We need to recruit others to join us in the Lord’s work. With so many people in America hurting in so many ways, there is plenty of the Lord’s work to be done!

So they started rebuilding the wall. Section by section, often working together as family units, they tackled this important project. Neh.3:8 points out that even goldsmiths and perfume-makers helped with the construction. I’ll bet those guys got blisters where they had never had them before!

It is interesting to see those who are working outside their field of expertise to battle the coronavirus. Automobile makers started producing ventilators for those who were seriously ill. A pillow manufacturer started making masks. Distilleries are producing hand sanitizer. Maybe you will have a chance to do something important that you have never done before!

There was opposition to the building project. (See chapters 4 and 6). Any time you are doing something important for the Lord, you can expect opposition. But the Israelites succeeded. They finished the project. The walls of Jerusalem were completely restored.

Someday this pandemic will be behind us. We will defeat it! But in the meantime, there is still a lot to be done. So let’s pray and get to work!

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Led By Moses

Posted on April 28, 2020 by jesustrek

Charles Barkley

Charles Barkley had a celebrated college basketball career playing for Auburn. However, in his rookie season for the Philadelphia 76ers, Barkley was frustrated because he wasn’t getting much playing time. He turned to teammate Moses Malone, a veteran all-star, for advice.

“Moses, why am I not getting to play?”

Malone’s answer was very straightforward—“Because you’re fat and lazy. You can play at 300 pounds at Auburn. You can’t do that in the NBA.”

Rather than feeling hurt and resorting to moping, Barkley took his teammate’s words to heart. With Malone’s help, Charles lost about 50 pounds and went on to become one of the NBA’s best players.

We need more of this kind of mentoring and disciple-making in God’s kingdom. Sometimes some tough love from someone you trust is just what you need to get motivated to turn your life into something much more productive than it ever was before.

“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”—2 Timothy 3:16-17.

 

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A Time to Live and a Time to Die

Posted on April 22, 2020 by jesustrek

John Grisham

The following story was told by best-selling novelist John Grisham:

“One of my best friends in college died when he was 25, just a few years after we had finished Mississippi State University. I was in law school, and he called me one day and wanted to get together. So we had lunch, and he told me he had terminal cancer.

I couldn’t believe it. I asked him, “What do you do when you realize that you are about to die?”

He said, “It’s real simple. You get things right with God, and you spend as much time with those you love as you can. Then you settle up with everybody else.” Then he said, “You know, really you ought to live every day like you have only a few more days to live.”

Grisham says, “That left an impression on me.”

What impressed Grisham should have an impact on us all. Few things impart more wisdom than to face up to the fact that we will all die sooner or later.

The deadly coronavirus pandemic is still infecting many people and taking many lives every day. This tragic calamity should cause us all to consider the brevity of life and the finality of life on earth. And it should cause us to want to live every day to the fullest, loving God and loving people to the best of our ability.

“Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.”—Psalm 90:12.

 

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How to Keep Your Sanity

Posted on April 15, 2020 by jesustrek

It looks like we will be spending more time staying home in an effort to keep the coronavirus from spreading. Many people are not handling the isolation very well. They long for their lives to get back to normal. They miss the social interaction that was such an important part of their daily lives. Some are experiencing mental and emotional stress that could take a heavy toll on them if they don’t respond to these circumstances in a positive way.

As usual, the Bible has some great advice for us. In 2 Timothy 4, Paul is in prison and feeling lonely. He is sure that his life will soon come to an end. Even though he holds on to his great faith in Jesus Christ, it seems that he is dealing with discouragement. What he does to combat this can be an example for any of us who may be feeling discouraged as well.

First, Paul acknowledges the truth about the situation. He is in prison, for no other reason than proclaiming the gospel. Some people have abandoned him, and one has done him a great deal of harm. He is cold and lonely and in need of some help. The first step in dealing with discouragement is to rightly assess the situation. There is nothing to be gained by sugar-coating what is happening around you. Don’t spend time whining and complaining, but it can be healthy to be truthful about your circumstances.

Then Paul asks for help. He wants Timothy to come and visit as soon as he can, and he asks him to bring Mark with him. He needs help for his ministry. In addition, and perhaps more importantly, he needs some company.

Third, we see the importance of maintaining a forgiving spirit. Paul doesn’t hold anything against those who deserted him in his time of need (v.16). Like Jesus did on the cross, he offered forgiveness to those who had wronged him. It has been said that withholding forgiveness is like taking poison and waiting for your enemy to die! Offering forgiveness can have great healing power for the mind and soul.

In addition, we see that Paul makes some practical requests. He wants Timothy to bring his cloak, a heavy garment that he would need in that cold prison. He also asks him to bring his reading material, possibly sections of Scripture. Who among us has not received comfort on a cold winter day by wrapping up in a warm garment and enjoying a good, uplifting book? Simple creature comforts go a long way to revive our spirits.

Finally, Paul remembers that the Lord faithfully stood at his side and gave him strength (v.17). Others had deserted him, but Jesus promises to never leave or forsake us—“…And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” (Matthew 28:20).

There you have some good biblical advice on how to stay mentally healthy in trying times. Stay safe. Stay strong. And God bless!

 

 

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Praying for Each Other

Posted on April 10, 2020 by jesustrek

Many people are wondering what to do with their extra time as we stay at home in an effort to combat the coronavirus. During this pandemic we are urged to avoid going out in public. By isolating ourselves, we can help to prevent the virus from spreading. By staying home we keep ourselves healthy and keep others healthy too.

But what do we do while we are cooped up at home? There is only so much television we can watch. How about spending more time in prayer? The Bible urges us to “Pray continually.” (1 Thess.5:17). And, over and over, we are urged to pray for one another. Colossians 4:2-3 says “Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. And pray for us too…”

Let me offer a few practical suggestions about how to pray for your fellow Christians.

First, do you have a directory that lists the members of your congregation? Many churches do, and some even have a pictorial directory that enables you to put names with faces as you pray. Take some time to pray through the pages of your church directory. That way you can be sure that you don’t miss praying for anyone who is listed there. Pray not only for their health. Pray for their faith to grow, for their finances to be in order and for their families to be blessed.

Another way you can pray for other Christians is to pray through the contact list on your cell phone. Remember how it was back in the old days, when you actually had to remember phone numbers? Now you have them stored in your phone. Take some time to scroll through your contacts and say a prayer for the people listed there. You might even want to send them a text or give them a call to tell them that you just said a prayer for them. Everyone appreciates it when they know you are praying for them.

Finally, you can say prayers for people by remembering where they sit at church. You remember when we used to be able to go to church, right? (I am just kidding! Hopefully we will all be able to assemble together safely at our respective church buildings in the not-too-distant future.) If your church is like ours, most people tend to sit in the same seat every Sunday. Close your eyes and picture your church family with everyone assembled together. Then slowly go down each row and pray for people, one individual or one family at a time. You might not be able to remember everyone, but you will be surprised at how many people you have prayed for by the time you open up your eyes.

Those are just a few ways we can pray for our fellow believers. Let’s lift each other up to God, because we all certainly need all the prayers we can get!

 

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Well Done!

Posted on April 8, 2020 by jesustrek

There is an old saying, “When all is said and done, more will have been said than done.” It is true that there seems to be a whole lot more talking than there is action.

Someone recently came up with a different spin on that quote. They offered, “When all is said and done, what was done will be more important than what was said.”

Perhaps we Christians should take note of this. We tend to do a lot of talking, but the world is more convinced of our faith when we show it to them than when we simply talk about it.

Don’t get me wrong here. I am not saying that our words aren’t important. After all, I do make my living as a preacher! However, we can’t spend all our lives talking so much that we never manage to get anything done.

Remember, the phrase we look forward to hearing from Jesus is not, “Well said!” It’s “Well done!”

“His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’”—Matthew 25:23.

 

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What You Can Do

Posted on April 6, 2020 by jesustrek

John Wooden

The great basketball coach John Wooden, who was also an outspoken Christian, once said, “Don’t let what you can’t do interfere with what you can do.”

Many people might be focused on what they can’t do during this time when we are staying at home to try to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. We can’t: go to the movies, attend church, watch current sports on television, mingle with friends, go to church, etc.

Let’s take the advice of the old coach and focus on what we can do. We can: pray, read the Bible, sing to the Lord, phone a friend, take a walk…well, you take over. Create a list of the positive things you can do during these unusual times. Then do them!

“…Make the most of every opportunity.”—Colossians 4:5.

 

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Appropriate Applause

Posted on April 4, 2020 by jesustrek

I just saw a video of a woman being discharged from a hospital in Texas. She had just recovered from the coronavirus. As she was being wheeled to the front door, dozens of hospital employees lined the lobby, applauding and cheering for the recovered patient. It was reported that the lady said that the hospital workers were the ones who really deserved the applause.

We frequently hear cheers and applause when someone is baptized into Christ at our church. I think that the celebration is an appropriate response when someone has been healed from their sin. I also think that the One deserving the applause is Jesus.

“And now what are you waiting for? Get up, be baptized and wash your sins away, calling on his name.”—Acts 22:16.

“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”—Romans 5:8.

 

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