Enough is Enough

Numbers 11: 15 “If this is how you intend to treat me, do me a favor and kill me. I've seen enough; I've had enough. Let me out of here." (The Message Bible)

I have seen enough; I’ve had enough. These were the words of Moses, a man chosen by God to lead the children of Isreal out of the land of Egypt. This statement is made after hearing one complaint after another from the people. The people complained about their misfortunes and how life was so hard for them. In other words, they complained about their problems instead of praying to God about them. They complained about the lack of meat or the things that they did not have. We can all find things to complain about; let’s try and find some things to be thankful about.

Moses was a very meek man. The word meekness means strength that is under control. But sometimes, even the strongest person gets weak. After hearing the people continually complaining and whining, it began to affect Moses. Moses went to God and asked him why was he treating him this way? What did he do to deserve this? Why was all this responsibility on his shoulders? He began to rehearse to God what the people were saying to him. Finally, he said I can’t do this by myself, it is too much.

Perhaps today you may be feeling like Moses. You want to know what did you do to deserve what has happened? And where is God in the midst of all this adversity? God is always with us, his goodness and mercy shall follow us all the days of our lives. Ultimately, we must all come to the conclusion that Moses did; I can’t do this by myself; it is too much. We need the Lord’s help to make it through each and every day. With the changes in our economy, the job loss, the stress in marriages and just the financial strain alone you may want to throw in the towel. You might even be saying enough is enough, but don’t quit.

When we complain to one another nothing is accomplished. But when we take our concerns, our dreams and desires to the Lord much can happen. Ps 62:8- Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge. (niv) I want to encourage you today, to pour out your hearts before God.

Prayer can release our tensions in times of emotional stress. When we trust God to be our rock, salvation and defense it changes our entire outlook on life. Prayer will change things. True relief does not come when the problem is resolved because more problems are on the way. True relief comes from an enduring hope in God’s ultimate salvation.

Prayer: Lord I do not understand why you have allowed this trouble to beset me. I have exhausted all my possibilities for changing my situation and circumstances and found that I am powerless to change them. All things are not possible with man, but all things are possible with you. In the face of discouragement, disappointment and anger I choose to believe your word, that if God is for me who can be against me. It is with patient endurance, steady and active persistence that I run the race, the appointed course that is set before me. I know that if you bring me to it, you can bring me through it. I am more than a conqueror through Him who loves me. In Jesus name, AMEN…… God Loves you and so do I….. Pastor Tammy

A Lesson from Amos: Have we become too comfortable?

Thought: I need you to survive

Amos 5:14-15 “Seek good, and not evil, that ye may live: and so the LORD, the God of hosts, shall be with you, as ye have spoken. Hate the evil, and love the good, and establish judgment in the gate:”

When life is going smoothly, we need to be careful. It’s at that time we are ripe for complacency and a downfall. In the day of the prophet Amos, the people of Israel were prosperous and began to think they could make it without God. This sounds a lot like us today! We can slip into that dangerous place sometimes without really thinking. This behavior led the people of Isreal toward a path of destruction.

The name Amos means burden or burden bearer. He carried the heavy burden of God’s message to the people. Because the people had become so complacent they acted as if they did not need each other.

They exploited the weak and poor. They were indifferent to the pain of those around them. They enslaved the helpless through extortion and heavy taxation. God created us to live in relationships, not in isolation. This is stated very clearly in the words of a song entitled, I need you to survive by Hezekiah Walker. The lyrics: I need you, you need me, we’re all a part of God’s body, stand with me, agree with me, we’re all a part of God’s body, it is his will that every need be supplied, you are important to me, I need you to survive.

A final similarity between the Israelites and our culture is that many of them kept up outward appearances of religion even though they had abandoned their faith in God. I think many are in danger of falling into the same trap. Are you performing to get the approval of your boss or friends? Are you hiding your failures from your spouse, pretending you're faithfully following God's way when you're not? God is not so concerned with how we appear on the surface; he sees through our false appearances even if others don't. God cares about the attitude of our heart. Man looks at the outward appearances and God looks at the heart.

Remember we must all answer to God for how we live. A complacent present leads to a disastrous future. When we become self sufficient we develop a false sense of security. All that we have has come as a blessing from God, so let’s remember to be thankful. God made all people, therefore, to ignore the poor is to ignore those whom God loves and whom Christ came to save. We must move beyond just feeling bad for the poor and act compassionately to help care for those who are in need.

At times we can become too comfortable with life. We must not only be concerned with obvious threats but also to slowly developing ones. Indifference is a slow developing threat that eventually leads to complacency. We are our brother’s keeper and we must show a genuine concern to help when and where we can. In closing I will use additional lyrics from the song; I need you to survive referenced above. The chorus of the song says: I pray for you, you pray for me, I love you, I need you to survive, I won’t harm you with the words from my mouth, I love you, I need you to survive. Today, let us seek good and not evil and live. It’s time for us to grow and develop into the person we were called to be. God Loves You and so do I……… Pastor Tammy

Let Us Go On By Faith

There are many people today who have been adversely affected by the events in this world. I awakened this am thinking of all the people who are on the verge of giving up or giving in due the pressures and cares of daily living. I want to encourage you today, BE STRONG and let us go on by faith. Today, let us walk by faith and not by sight. We might not be able to see where we are headed; and when we can’t trace God’s hand; we can trust HIS heart.

We can choose today to be overcomers or overcome; a victim or victorious. The word of God declares we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. We are loved by the Father regardless of whether we love him or not. The life given to us is a precious gift. Eph 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God.

Faith says: Let us go on. Unbelief says let us go back to where it is safe. When Moses sent the spies into the promise land to check out the land and bring back a report; two reports came back, one of faith and one of unbelief. Joshua and Caleb stated to the people we are more than able to defeat the enemy and take the land, let us go up at once. The other 10 men said we are not able. What a contrast of faith vs. unbelief.

It’s amazing how God can use the personalities of ordinary people to teach us some very simple principles. Joshua and Caleb were men of faith. They had faith and believed God. God honored them. And because of their belief they entered the promise land.

God hasn’t changed, and the principle of faith hasn’t changed. What seems to have changed is the attitude of God’s people: We no longer believe God and act by faith in His promises. His promises never fail but we can fail to live by the grace of God and not enter into all that He has promised for us. God has “brought us out that He might bring us in,” but too often we fail to “enter in because of unbelief”

“Have Faith in God” God Loves you and so do I….. Pastor Tammy

A Family Affair

"A Family that Prays Together will stay Together"

The strongest institution on this earth is FAMILY. Family bonds are a link to our beginning and a guide to our future. We all want to belong and feel accepted and being in a family helps us to do that. A question arose a few days ago about being born into the “right” family. My response, I don’t believe there is a “right” family. When we become born again and give our lives to the Lord, we have the privilege of being a part of the “right” family. A part of God’s family!!

The Word of God declares that all have sinned and fallen short of God’s Glory. Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me. (Psalm 51:5) While some may have grown up in less than desirable environments; where abuse and suffering was a daily part of your living. Hurting people hurt people. For some your life really wasn’t bad, but it was something less than what you wanted it to be. It was simply a matter of unfulfilled expectations.

Our very spirit can either blossom or wither within the family unit. When we don't have the security and influence of strong family bonds early in life, the ground work is laid for an emptiness, which is often sought to be filled, through destructive means. If a person does not receive love as a child, they may later seek love and acceptance in a way that brings them harm. Some would call that looking for love in all the wrong places.

We can choose to resent our families and family members for our lives growing up or we decide today, we are going to make a difference in our families across this world. I grew up in the South and my mother is really big on the family getting together every Sunday for dinner at “Big Momma’s House”. And yes, she did all the cooking for everyone. This was our time to come together, laugh, cry and yes sometimes get into arguments and some pretty close “hand to hand” combats. But through it all, the family loved each other and came back to Big Momma’s house the following Sunday. Family also includes people who are not related by blood. Princess Diana said: ‘”Family is the most important thing in the world.” Are you a member of God’s family? Why not? When you come to HIM, he will in no wise cast you out. God Loves You and So do I………..Pastor Tammy

Unwavering Faith in Unstable Times

Heb 11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

What is faith? Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. The word substance means the foundation, assurance, the guarantee. The word evidence means conviction. Simply put, faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.

Faith is being described as an act in Hebrews, an act of the mind and the heart. Our hearts and minds believe something and we have the assurance and conviction that it is true. Faith is not something a Christian is going to posses; we already possess it. We can possess it now, we cannot see it, but we can actually possess the very substance of it by believing and entrusting our lives to it.

William Barclay said: “Faith means that we are certain of the things we hope for, convinced of the things we do not see”

These two qualities need a secure beginning and ending point. The beginning point of faith is believing in God’s character; that is believing he is who he says he is. The end point is believing in God’s promises; he will do what he says he will do. When we believe that God will fulfill his promises even though we don’t see those promises materializing yet, we demonstrate true faith.

Biblical faith does not deal with what is unreal, imaginary, superficial or deceptive. Biblical faith is the knowledge, experience and possession of things hoped for. True biblical faith deals with truth and reality.

The reality is we are living in perilous times. The economy is unstable, the auto industry is unstable, and even the banking system is unstable. We must believe in our hearts and in our minds that God has a good plan for our lives and that he will perfect that which concerns us. The plan that he has for our lives is not conditional nor dependent upon our circumstances, the economy or environment in which we live.

Of course, any Christian can see that that worldview is at odds with faith. For the church, however, what is more significant than secularism, which rejects all forms of religious faith or worship; is sociologically when we start dealing with social questions or problems, focusing on cultural and environmental factors rather than on psychological or personal characteristics. In other words, the world would have us believe that religious ideas, institutions, and interpretations are losing practical social significance. Nothing could be further from the truth!

God declared in Matt 19:26 “With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.” If you are facing tough times, I want to encourage you today to be Strong in the Lord and the power of his might. It is very easy to allow your circumstances and situations to speak so loudly that you cannot hear the voice of God. Stand up and declare today, I have the assurance and conviction that all things are working together for my good.

In the rhythm of grace, we go to sleep, and God begins his work. As we sleep he develops his covenant. We wake and are called out to participate in God’s creative action. We respond in faith, in work. But always grace is previous and primary. We wake into a world we didn’t make, into a salvation we didn’t earn. And he asks of us one thing: Have Faith in God…… God Loves you and so do I….. Pastor Tammy