Daily Post! 3/10/2012

Ezekiel 47:1-12

Notice in this verse as posted yesterday in the “Weekly Post!” that the river started out as a trickle and got deeper the further it was from the temple.  That’s how it is with God, His supply is unlimited and spreads, and spreads, and spreads the further it goes.  Like the ocean, at the sea-shore it’s very shallow, but the further you go from shore, the deeper it gets.  When we decide to go deeper in the Lord, “But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit.  For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God” (1 Corinthians 2:10) we have to be pressurized, like a scuba diver does before he can go deeper into the ocean.  By being pressurized I mean, we have to be in God’s word, be rooted and grounded.  We could only understand at the level of which we are at, like in school, we can’t do 12th grade work while in the 5th grade.  So it is with the Lord, the more we study and draw closer to the source (Himself), the easier it is to go deeper and this allows God to reveal more to us about Himself.

Let me know what you think?

Pastor Dean

Rivers of Living Water! Weekly Post! 3/9/2012

Ezekiel 47:1-12

“Then he brought me back to the door of the temple; and there was water, flowing from under the threshold of the temple toward the east, for the front of the temple faced east; the water was flowing from under the right side of the temple, south of the altar. ² He brought me out by way of the north gate, and led me around on the outside to the outer gateway that faces east; and there was water, running out on the right side.

³ And when the man went out to the east with the line in his hand, he measured one thousand cubits, and he brought me through the waters; the water came up to my ankles. ⁴ Again he measured one thousand and brought me through the waters; the water came up to my knees. Again he measured one thousand and brought me through; the water came up to my waist. ⁵ Again he measured one thousand, and it was a river that I could not cross; for the water was too deep, water in which one must swim, a river that could not be crossed. ⁶ He said to me, “Son of man, have you seen this?” Then he brought me and returned me to the bank of the river.

⁷ When I returned, there, along the bank of the river, were very many trees on one side and the other. ⁸ Then he said to me: “This water flows toward the eastern region, goes down into the valley, and enters the sea. When it reaches the sea, its waters are healed. ⁹ And it shall be that every living thing that moves, wherever the rivers go, will live. There will be a very great multitude of fish, because these waters go there; for they will be healed, and everything will live wherever the river goes. ¹⁰ It shall be that fishermen will stand by it from En Gedi to En Eglaim; they will be places for spreading their nets. Their fish will be of the same kinds as the fish of the Great Sea, exceedingly many. ¹¹ But its swamps and marshes will not be healed; they will be given over to salt. ¹² Along the bank of the river, on this side and that, will grow all kinds of trees used for food; their leaves will not wither, and their fruit will not fail. They will bear fruit every month, because their water flows from the sanctuary. Their fruit will be for food, and their leaves for medicine.”

The man who is separated from sin and separated to the Scriptures has all the qualities of a strong, healthy, fruitful tree:  Planted by the rivers of water – he has a never-failing supply of nourishment and refreshment. It brings forth fruit in its season – he displays the graces of the Spirit, and his words and actions are always timely and appropriate. Jesus said: John 7:38 – “out of his heart will flow rivers of living water” meaning out of the person’s inward parts or inner life would flow streams of help to others. Arabah means: “A desert plain,” a dry place, where death abounds. This signifies to me people who are lost; they are in a desert place, searching for water, and shade. They either don’t know it or they haven’t found the life giving water yet, but are searching. Since God dwells in us (1 Cor 6:19), a stream of blessing should flow to others around us. If our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit as it states in 1 Cor 6:19, and Ezekiel saw this river flow from the threshold of the temple, then the fountain in us should flow out from us to others since we are the temple.

Pastor Dean

Daily Post! 3/8/2012

Matthew 17:5 — “While he was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them; and suddenly a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased, Hear Him!”

God the Father affirmed Jesus’ mission on earth to take the sins of the world upon Him.  This was confirmation to the disciples that Jesus was and is the promised Messiah.  We should listen for God’s voice “Hear Him” and then heed what He tells us.  God loves us so much, He wants what’s best for us, He just desires that we listen to Him and believe what He says, and then put that belief into action.  God will take care of the rest!

Pastor Dean

Daily Post! 3/7/2012

John 10:27  “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.”

Are you following Jesus?  If you are, that means you’ve heard His voice and He knows you and you are following Him.

If you’re not following Jesus, then why not listen for His voice?  Yesterday, in Rev 3:20, Jesus says He stands at the door and knocks, and if anyone hears His voice and opens the door, He will enter in and have dinner with them.  Become one of His so you can easily identify His voice over other voices that attempt to lead you astray.  What are you waiting for?

Pastor Dean

Daily Post! 3/6/2012

Revelation 3:20  “Behold, I stand at the door and knock, If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.”

Jesus doesn’t push His way into our lives, He is gentle, like the “still small voice.”  You see, He doesn’t bang the door down, but he requests and desires entrance into our hearts and lives.  If we are not willing to open the door, take the responsibility ourselves, then Jesus will remain outside.  He desires to come in,sit down and have intimate fellowship with us.  Listen for the knock at your hearts door, and then listen for His voice, open the door and let Him in and you’ll see how wonderful it is to spend time with the Lord.

Pastor Dean

Daily Post! 3/5/2012

John 21:15-19  “So when they had eaten breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me more than these?”  He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.”  He said to him, “Feed My Lambs.”

Jesus asked Peter three (3) times if he love Him, remember Peter denied Jesus three (3) times and Jesus now, after His resurrection was gently bringing Peter back.  Jesus knew Peter loved Him but Peter needed reassurance that Jesus still trusted him, because Peter was devastated!  Peter was confident and bold when he told Jesus that he would even die for Jesus if it came to that.  Then, just as Jesus told him, Peter denied him at a time when it really came down to doing what he said.  So Peter now was not as sure of himself and was ashamed of his failure to keep his word.  Jesus does that to us, when we fail Him, he gently brings us back and maintains His confidence in us.  It’s up to us to trust in the Lord and return to the mission He has prepared for us.  I love this story, because it gives me assurance that Jesus loves me and cares for me as much as He does Peter.  That’s how God loves us!

Pastor Dean

Daily Post! 3/3/2012

Hebrews 1:14 — “Are they not all ministering spirits sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation?”

God sent a ministering spirit (angel) to Elijah (see below Weekly Post) and had him rise and eat.  God sends His ministering spirits to us when we are in need.  There are times we don’t know and there are times when we look back and know without a shadow of a doubt that we had help.

Let me know you thoughts?  What do you think?

Pastor Dean

Daily Post! 3/2/2012

Psalm 34:7 — “The angel of the Lord encamps all around those who fear Him, And delivers them.”

Do you fear God?  Fear means to stand in awe, or to reverence.  When we fear the Lord, when we stand in awe of Him because of who He is, and we really trust in Him, that’s what the “fear of the Lord” really means, to trust in Him.  When we trust Him, the angel of the Lord encamps, is present, sets up residence around us, and when we are in trouble or have difficulties, He delivers us out of them.

May God richly bless you today – Pastor Dean

God’s gentleness in our despair! (weekly post)

I Kings 19:1-7

Elijah had just come from a great victory, when Jezebel threatened him.  Now after killing 450 prophets of Baal, he ran away.  This is a good example that when we have a mountaintop experience, there are times immediately after we have on that we crash and burn.  I want to point out that Elijah just finished doing the will of God, he hadn’t fallen away or backslid.  We should look at this example as a testimony that there will be times when we are depressed.  Just like Elijah, he felt all alone and ask God to take his life, he was depressed.  When the Lord comes to us, He doesn’t give us glorious visions, He simply tells us to do something ordinary.  Like, read His word, or pray.  So how did God deal with Elijah, after complaining and his self-righteous bragging that he was the only prophet left in Israel who remained true to the Lord.  Even the children of Israel he commented had abandoned God’s commandments.  God told him to “Go out, and stand on the mountain before the Lord.”  One after another, the mountains were visited by a great wind, an earthquake, and a fire. Makes you wonder if these storms reminded Elijah of his self-righteous, rebellious spirit. None of these storms brought him out of the cave, he must have been afraid once again.  Was he thinking that God was going to get him for being a coward. No, it was a “still small voice,” a calm gentle assurance, a delicate whispering voice that caused Elijah to move the entrance of the cave (Hebrews 3:6-7). And “Suddenly a voice came to him, and said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” God responded in gentleness.  God asks us at times, what are we doing here?  When God asks us, He might be referring to our physical location, or to our spiritual location.  What are you doing here?   God told Elijah to go back the same way he came. In loving patience, God renewed Elijah’s commission, just as Jesus did with Peter (John 21:15-19). God directed Elijah just as He does to us to retrace our steps back to where we strayed from God’s mission. And from there, he and we could move forward.   God doesn’t always reveal Himself in powerful miraculous ways, like the plagues of Egypt, or the dividing of the Red sea. We shouldn’t look for God in big rallies, churches, conferences, or highly visible leaders. Because we might just miss Him when He is speaking to us in that “still small voice.” Maybe through a humbled heart. Are we listening for the gentleness of God in our despair? We need to step back from the noise and busyness of our lives and listen humbly and quietly for His guidance.  It might come when we least expect it.  God bless you this week – Pastor Dean

Daily Post! 2/24/2012

2 Samuel 22:31  “As for God, His way is perfect; The word of the Lord is proven; He is a shield to all who trust in Him.”

There is nothing else that’s perfect, only God is perfect.

His word compares to no other, and has never been disproved.

He protects anyone who believes and trusts in Him.