Our Mission To love all people at all times and lead them into a new life in Christ.
Our Vision To be a church that will be multicultural and generational, having a lasting impact on the people to whom we minister.
To see the gospel extend beyond the walls of our church through various outreaches.
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“Or do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance?” Romans 2:4 (NKJV)
What causes a person to decide they need to be saved? Is it the fear of going to hell? Is it a fear of God’s judgement? Is it the desire to go to heaven when one dies? Is it another personal reason? If it is one of these it may not last. The only sure reason is the revelation that God loves you so much and He wants you to love Him in return. Nothing else matters. Love is God’s only requirement for your salvation.
“Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said to him, You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all you mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: you shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets” Matt. 22:36-40 (NKJV)
Jesus’ answer then is still the same today. If we can truly understand the power of love we will know the security it gives us in Jesus Christ. The love of God never changes, no matter what happens. He still loves the “worst sinner” as much as His “greatest saint”. ONLY God can do that. God loves our fellow man through His love in us. It is our love that all men need, not our judgement. Let us all be “about our Father’s business”.
If we live up to love, it will solve all our problems with other people and with God, our Father. “And the world will be a better place.” Let’s just do it!
We are the Church – the blood bought – called out – the redeemed – the anointed – the overcomers!
You are Peter, and I can guarantee that on this rock] I will build my church. And the gates of hell will not overpower it.
God was also pleased to bring everything on earth and in heaven back to himself through Christ. He did this by making peace through Christ’s blood sacrificed on the cross.” Colossians 1:20
Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, whom He has delivered from the hand of the adversary.” Psalm 107:19
They shall lift up their voice They shall sing for joy They shall cry aloud and be free They shall glorify the name of the Lord It’s the blood bought, the church, the redeemed
Oh, pick up your heart, Oh, Zion of the Lord Let the earth ring forth with His praise All His children rejoice form the island of the sea It’s the blood bought, the church, the redeemed
And we are in that army of the Lord We’ve been washed in the blood And we are going forth There is nothing that can stop the mighty moving force, With a shout of praise, a two edged sword Every stronghold of bondage must fall beneath our feet Every prisoner held captive must be freed For our deliverance has come Through the power of the Son It’s the blood bought, the church, the redeemed
Let the earth be silent All winds cease to blow Every created being hold your wing For there’s new song being sung With a new melody It the blood bought, the church, the redeemed! Song by Nancy Harmon
Life has a way of throwing curve balls. This year we have seen them make living life a little different than previous years.
Two things I have learned in the difficult seasons of life is-God is with me-this too shall pass.
We can go back and read in the Word the countless stories where a person or a group of people faced a significant challenge – a difficult situation and those things eventually passed away. There were times in the wilderness, wandering in the desert, exiles, being stuck in the belly of a whale, illnesses, plagues, jail time and even death – all of these things came to an end. There are situations that we go through that are difficult and hard, but they are only for a season and then they will be over. Yes they will pass.
Hebrews 13:5-6 “God ]Himself has said, I will not in any way fail you nor give you up nor leave you without support. [I will] not, [I will] not, [I will] not in any degree leave you helpless nor forsake nor let [you] down (relax My hold on you)! [Assuredly not!]
God wants to answer the prayers of His people.
The Word tells us, “When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears, and delivers them out of all their distress and troubles”. Psalms 34:17
Are you experiencing trouble or distress in your life? Cry out to Lord. I have heard people say well I can’t do anything to help you but pray. Well praise the Lord. Matthew 18:19 tells us, “Again I tell you, if two of you on earth agree (harmonize together, make a symphony together) about whatever [anything and everything] they may ask, it will come to pass and be done for them by My Father in heaven”.
I encourage you to keep praying. Don’t lose heart if your answer seems not to come when you think it should. God has heard your cry and He is working on your behalf.
Joshua’s mentor had died. In Joshua 1:2, the Lord told him “Moses my servant is dead. Now then, you and all these people, get ready to cross the Jordan River into the land I am about to give to them…” Joshua knew he had some pretty big shoes to fill. Joshua remembered that God had once parted the Red Sea for the Israelites under the leadership of Moses, but he still had to believe the Lord would part the Jordan River under his leadership. Remember the land I am about to give to them… But the only way to see God move was for Joshua to make a move of faith. In verse 3, God said to him, “I will give you every place where you set your foot, as I promised Moses.” This meant Joshua and those following him had to take a step of faith. They were about to walk into their place of promise, as long as they were willing to act on God’s Word.
The word is right there in front of you could see God waiting for you to make a move of faith. In Joshua 3:15 we see that it wasn’t until the feet of the priests who carried the Ark of the Covenant—symbolic of the presence of God—touched the water that a miracle occurred. The water stood up in a heap and all of Israel was able to cross on dry land. God did it again!
I believe God is doing it again for you. Make a move of faith toward the promises of God.
So, what do you think? With God on our side like this, how can we lose? If God didn’t hesitate to put everything on the line for us, embracing our condition and exposing himself to the worst by sending his own Son, is there anything else he wouldn’t gladly and freely do for us? And who would dare tangle with God by messing with one of God’s chosen? Who would dare even to point a finger? The One who died for us—who was raised to life for us!—is in the presence of God at this very moment sticking up for us. Do you think anyone is going to be able to drive a wedge between us and Christ’s love for us? There is no way! Not trouble, not hard times, not hatred, not hunger, not homelessness, not bullying threats, not backstabbing, not even the worst sins listed in Scripture: They kill us in cold blood because they hate you. We’re sitting ducks; they pick us off one by one.None of this fazes us because Jesus loves us. I’m absolutely convinced that nothing—nothing living or dead, angelic or demonic, today or tomorrow, high or low, thinkable or unthinkable—absolutely nothing can get between us and God’s love because of the way that Jesus our Master has embraced us. Romans 8:35-39 Message
“Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me?” Psalm 42:5
Recently I found myself asking a question we ask all the time. The problem is we usually don’t think about the answer. The question is “Why”?
We usually ask about the “whys” but take very little time considering the answer. “Whys” always seem to arouse a feeling of the lack of understanding and it troubles us because we seemingly can’t come up with the answer. We spend a lot of time on why things happen. “Whats” are easy to see but “whys” do not come as easily.
We can explain the “whats” but we can’t understand the “whys.” In the New King James Version of the Bible the question “why” appears over 440 times. Many of the times it is a person asking God the question.
“Why” is an easy question for us to ask. Most of the time it is being asked to justify our position in the matter. “I can’t understand why this is happening to me.”
We are familiar with using what as a question to be considered but why is so many times used to question what is happening.
Today I hope to help us understand a deeper reason for the question. Consider asking why before you commit to the “what”. Maybe it will be easier to deal with “what.” Is the “why“ good enough to justify the “what”? Then, you can decide the action to take.
You must know (recognize) that you were redeemed (ransomed) from the useless (fruitless) way of living inherited by tradition from [your] forefathers, not with corruptible things [such as] silver and gold, But [you were purchased] with the precious blood of Christ (the Messiah), like that of a [sacrificial] lamb without blemish or spot. 1 Peter 1:18-19
Of all names given to Jesus the most precious one is that of “Redeemer”. Redeemer definition means “a person who redeems someone or something”. Jesus Christ redeems us from our sins by offering Himself. When we speak of the name “Redeemer” we are recalling the ultimate price that it cost Jesus to bring us back into relationship with God. Our Father God had to give up His only begotten Son and Jesus had to shed his precious blood to make the redemption. Instead of our death there was His-instead of our shed blood there was His. Had it not been for the redeemer we still would be lost without any hope.
He paid a debt He did not owe, I owed a debt I could not pay, I needed someone to wash my sins away And now I sing a brand new song: Amazing Grace (all day long) Christ Jesus Paid the debt that I could never pay. He paid that debt at Calvary, He cleansed my soul and set me free. I’m glad that Jesus did all my sins erase. I now can sing a brand new song: Amazing Grace (all day long) Christ Jesus Paid the debt that I could never pay.
David said in Psalms 27:13 I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Faint in this scripture means to lose heart, to grow weary. What kept David from giving up? His hope was in God not what was going on around him. His hope was not wishful thinking but faith in knowing better days were coming because of the faithfulness of his God.
Our hope as Christian’s is sound because it is founded upon the redeeming work of Jesus. This is living hope. Celebrate with praises the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has shown us his extravagant mercy. For his fountain of mercy has given us a new life—we are reborn to experience a living, energetic hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. 1 Peter 1:3
What great encouragement for us in the times in which we are living. We choose to believe that we are seeing the goodness of God in the land of the living. Don’t lose HOPE- Help-in-Overcoming-Problems-in-Everday-life.
May God, the source of hope, fill you with joy and peace through your faith in him. Then you will overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. Romans 15:13
In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord high and lifted up. Isaiah 6:1
Isaiah turned his eyes away from the throne that had seated an earthly king. In his grief he turned his eyes to the King who is seated on the heavenly throne now and forever more.
Whatever situation you may be in the midst of, turn your eyes to what Isaiah saw-the Lord high and lifted up seated on the throne. He is in control and bigger than any situation that would discourage you.
Bigger Than Any Mountain
Bigger than all my problems, bigger than all my fears;
God is bigger than any mountain that I can or can not see.
Bigger than all my questions, bigger than anything;
Bigger than all the shadows that fall across my path,
He’s bigger than all the confusion, bigger than anything;
Bigger than all my problems, bigger than all my fears;
Bigger than all my questions, bigger than anything;
Bigger than all the giants of pain and unbelief;
Bigger than any hangups, bigger than anything;
My God is bigger than any mountain that I can or can not see.
We know that God spoke to people in the Bible, but also wants to speak personally to each of His children today. This means that each person must be attentive because no one else can listen for us.
Incline your ear [submit and consent to the divine will] and come to Me; hear, and your soul will revive. Isaiah 55:3 Incline means to lean forward.
God is always speaking but we are not always hearing. We are bombarded by chatter all around us. Have you ever learned (inclined) toward someone in order to hear more clearly what they were saying. We have to lean into God and listen to what He is saying to us.
When the words hearing or ears were used in the Bible it referred to listen up-take notice.
Proverbs 8:34 “Blessed are those who listen to Me”.
As we go back to the Old Testament we read how God commanded the children of Israel to remember the miracles-water from theo now the case is closed. There remains no accusing voice of condemnation against those who are joined in life-union with Jesus, the Anointed One rock, parting of the Red Sea, manna daily from Heaven.
Now the devil wants you to remember the bad. He will bring up everything from the past to bring you into condemnation. But the Word tells us in Romans 8:1 “So now the case is closed. There remains no accusing voice of condemnation against those who are joined in life-union with Jesus, the Anointed One. That is a good remembrance to be reminded of.
Just as God had the children of Israel to take the time to pause and remember we should follow suit and do the same. We can get busy with just living life and become weary. We may need to intentionally put ourselves in remembrance of what all the Lord has done for us.
“I remember to think about the many things You did in years gone by. Psalms 143:5
Romans 8:31 “If God is for us, who can be against us.”
God is “for us” meaning that He is on our side. He is working on our behalf and for our good. Who can be against us. There is absolutely no one or nothing that comes against us is greater than our God. Yes we face opposition but that opposition will not be successful against us.
Real life situations may seem at times to overshadow the words written in Romans 8:31. We must continually go back to the Word for assurance. Psalms 127:1 “The Lord is my light and my salvation-whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my-life shom shall i be afraid?”
Paul penned Romans 8:31. He wrote from experience. He faced the same struggles we experience in life and many, many more. Over and over again He saw the God who was for him come through time and time again. So do we on this journey called life. We win!
“Therefore hear the parable of the sower.” Matt. 13:18
Parables have often been defined as, “an earthly story with a heavenly meaning”. Jesus taught with parables so often that the Bible says that He spoke in parables altogether. Matthew 13:34 says that He did not speak to the multitude without using a parable. Why was this and what was His purpose?
If we search the Scriptures about parables we will find that even His own disciples didn’t understand them. But, they went to Him and asked what the parables meant and Jesus enlightened their understanding by explaining the parable.
Compare this to our reading the Bible to find God’s Word for us. Don’t we often read it and ponder its meaning. We ask, “What does it mean, Lord,” and then The Holy Spirit speaks to our heart with the understanding we need.
Anyone that can read can read the Bible but not many people can get its full meaning on their own. That is why God poured His Spirit out upon His people The Spirit guides us into all truth and shows us things to come because He loves us so much.
Jesus never spoke in mysteries without giving the meaning to anyone willing to ask. The Bible contains no mystery that the Holy Spirit can’t give us the meaning. We ask and then we listen.
L-I-F-E “LIVING IN FAITH EVERYDAY”
Galatians 2:20 “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me”.
Paul says, “My new life that I am living now is empowered by the faith of the Son of God who loves me so much that He gave himself for me, and dispenses his life into mine”.
Romans 10:17 “So then faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the Word of God. Verse 10 “For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation”. It was supernatural faith that moved us to life (salvation) to the power of living by faith.
Faith is the key ingredient in the recipe called life. Hebrews 11:1 “The fundamental fact of existence is that this trust in God, this faith is the firm foundation under everything that makes life worth living tis oru handle on what we can’t see”.
Ephesians 5:1 “Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power”. The unlimited power of Christ is the source of strength for those who belong to Him.
Philippians 4:13 “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me”. Our strength as believers is found in Christ. It is Christ who empowers us to do whatever is necessary to accomplish God’s will. It is strength found in Christ that helps us to overcome any attack of the enemy.
In Matthew 6:24 Jesus tells us, “So do not worry or be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will have worries and anxieties of its own. Sufficient for each day is its own trouble”. Jesus was telling us to take one day at a time. We are to live our lives one day at a time and live in the strength that has been given to us from God.
And as your day, so shall your strength, your rest and security, be. Deuteronomy 33:25
God gives us grace (strength) for one day at a time.
“For you were like sheep going astray, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.” 1 Peter 2:25
As we look around and listen to all that is going on in our nation and world, we see a lot of chaos that can trouble the soul if we let it. We must not lose sight of whose we are and who is the caretaker of our souls.The above verse tells us how we need to see ourselves in this world and in the Kingdom of God.
If we are children of God, we are citizens of His Kingdom with all its rights and privileges as written in His word. God’s word is the Constitution under which we live. Earthly connections are secondary for us as we are strangers and pilgrims on the earth. If we function as citizens of the Heavenly Kingdom, we will have peace in the earth. That doesn’t mean we pay no attention to what is happening around but we must remember our Savior and Overseer is watching over us and goes to “war” on our behalf.
You can find this explained in Hebrews 11:13-16. The God who said, “I will never leave you or forsake you”, is the God whom we serve. He is with us in every situation to perform His word for us. We do not have to fear what man can do to us for we have a God who watches after us like he did the Hebrew Children in the fiery furnace.
Therefore, face every day with its events knowing that God is for us not against us. His eye is on the sparrow and He watches after you. Never forget, YOU ARE BLESSED!
ARISE CHURCH
Arise Church you have been equipped with power
This is the final hour
No time for sitting back
Now is the time to be arise
We are army of God that has been made bold
A mandate from Heaven we have received
Now is the time to go so others can believe
We have been called to break down the walls that
have stood so tall
No longer can we be silent in this day
God has given us something to say
A Word God has place in our heart
That is the place for it to start
The things that have kept us apart
We now know have been the enemies darts
The Bible tells us in James 5:17 that Elijah was a human being with a nature such as we have but he prayed and received supernatural answers.
When we read about the prophet Elijah, beginning in I Kings 17, we see an ordinary man who did great exploits, because he believed God. Yes Elijah had his ups and downs, successes and failures. He had times that he spoke God’s word boldly and had instant results and times that he doubted God and ran from his enemy. But Elijah never quit-he got back up. Like Elijah we have ups and downs in life. At times we speak the Word boldly, pray with authority and at the times we wonder where you are God. At times we get an instant answer to prayer and times we are waiting day weeks months or even years for that which we have ask of God to be manifested
The key to living a life of faith as sons and daughters of God is to never quit. Even at the times we have thrown in the towel Jesus is right there waiting. Yep I have done that more than once (you know threw in the towel). But my Jesus is oh so faithful.
Winston Churchill said, “success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts. If you’re going through hell, keep going. Never give up on something that you can’t go a day without thinking about”.
That last quote got me-really got me. Because even in the times “I quit” there was not a day that went by that I did not think about my Jesus. Let me tell you when you have been touched, really touched by the hand of the Lord-no hope, someone who could have tossed by the wayside and easily forgotten about by the world. Jesus saw something that nobody else saw. He saw worth. He saw value. And when Holy Spirit comes in and radically changes you and continues to do as SM Lockridge said,”You can’t get Him out of your mind. You can’t get Him off of your hands; you can’t live Him and you can’t live without Him. That is my King!
I have good news for you today-God is no respecter of persons. What He has done for me He will do the same for you. You may be discouraged, you may have silently said to yourself, “I quit”. Just living life going through the motions. The Jesus I know has not given up on you. He is going to love you back to His heart.
As born again sons and daughters of God may we never forget our freedom and the “One” who paid the ultimate price.
In [this] freedom Christ has made us free [and completely liberated us]. So take your stand! Never again let anyone put a harness of slavery on you. Galatians 5:1
“I Am Free”
Through you the blind will see Through you the mute will sing
Through you the dead will rise Through you all hearts will praise
Through you the darkness flees Through you my heart screams
I am free Yes, I am free I am free to run I am free to dance
I am free to live for you I am free
Through you the kingdom comes Through you the battle’s won
Through you I’m not afraid Through you the price is paid
Through you there’s victory Because of you my heart sings
I am free Yes, I am free Who the Son sets free – is free indeed
News Boys (song lyrics)
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