Stretch out your hand

On a certain sabbath Jesus went into the synagogue and taught, and there was a certain man there whose right hand was withered. The scribes and the Pharisees watched him closely to see if he would cure on the sabbath so that they might discover a reason to accuse him. But he realized their intentions and said to the man with the withered hand, "Come up and stand before us." And he rose and stood there. Then Jesus said to them, I ask you, is it lawful to do good on the sabbath rather than do evil, to save life rather than to destroy it?" Looking around at them all, he then said to him, "Stretch out your hand." He did so and his hand was restored. But they became enraged and discussed together what they might do to Jesus.

Consideration: if we have the opportunity to do good to help another person, we should always help the person. The Lord expects us to help those in need, regardless of the timing of the act. Jesus said, "Love one another as I have loved you." Jesus performed this act of love and compassion knowing that he would be ridiculed for it. We must learn from this beautiful action of or Lord. Amen.

Together in My Name

Jesus said to his disciples, "if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have won over your brother. If he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, so that every fact may be established on the testimony of two or three witnesses. If he refuses to listen to them, tell the church. If he refuses to listen even to the church, then treat him as you would a Gentile or a tax collector. Amen, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Again, amen, I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything for which they are to pray, it shall be granted to them by my heavenly Father. For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them."

Consideration: Jesus speaks very clearly about prayer and reconciliation. Making an effort to forgive one and other; and praying together in his name to his Father; telling us that the Lord will grant the request.

New Beginning

Brothers and sisters: You once were alienated and hostile in mind because of evil deeds: God has now reconciled you in the fleshly Body of Christ through his death, to present you holy, and without blemish, and irreproachable before him, provided that you persevere in the faith, firmly grounded, stable, and not shifting from the hope of the Gospel that you heard, which has been preached to every creature under heaven, of which I, Paul, am a minister.

Consideration: Paul, a minister of the Lord, Jesus; and the once persecutor of Jesus, speaks of redemption. We too, have turned our backs on the Lord, but have been washed anew in the blood of the Lamb. Today we are called to persevere through all of the turmoil and trials of this world; this is easier said than done. Put on the armor of faith in the Lord, and the freshness of a new beginning will transform your life, and those around you. Amen.

The Things God Has Prepared

 

You can't believe it, you can't dream it, no eye has seen it, it's waiting for real!

Not on the radio, any streaming show, AI would overload, if it was made known!

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It has never entered into the heart of man; no mind could ever imagine the plan; what is waiting for you; what is waiting for me; the things God has prepared for those who love Him in eternity...for those who love Him; it's waiting for real, believe!

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Open your heart, now is the time, put all passing things aside, for the real thing!

Turn off the tube, shut down the screens, the artificial mind-blowing fake realities!

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​It has never entered into the heart of man; no mind could ever imagine the plan; what is waiting for you; what is waiting for me; the things God has prepared for those who love Him in eternity...for those who love Him; it's waiting for real, believe!

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Eye has not seen, no ear has heard, nor has it entered into the heart of man...the things that God has prepared for those that love Him! 

Do you love Him? Is He your everything? Are you empty, lonely, searching for love...God has prepared a place for you!

The Old is Good

The scribes and the Pharisees said to Jesus, "The disciples of John the Baptist fast often and offer prayers, and the disciples of the Pharisees do the same; but yours eat and drink." Jesus answered them, "Can you make the wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? But the days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, then they will fast in those days." And he also told them a parable. "No one tears a piece from a new cloak to patch an old one. Otherwise, he will tear the new and the piece from it will not match the old cloak. Likewise, no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the new wine will burst the skins, and it will be spilled and the skins ruined. Rather, new wine must be poured into fresh wineskins. And no one who has been drinking old desires new, for he says, "The old is good."

Consideration: When everything in life is going well, and we are experiencing peace, negativity is the furthest thing from our minds. Then when we least expect it, difficulty of one form or another enters into our lives. We start to look at things in a different way; and there is only one place to turn for comfort...our Lord, Jesus. When Jesus carried his cross, it contained all the sinfulness of mankind; also, every pain, suffering, and difficulty we would endure in our lives. Sounds impossible to believe; yes, it does. Remember the words: "Be not afraid, I go before always, come follow me, and I will give you peace!" Amen.

Catching Men

While the crowd was pressing in on Jesus, and listening to the word of God, he was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret. He saw two boats there alongside the lake; the fishermen had disembarked and were washing their nets. Getting into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, he asked him to put out a short distance from the shore. Then he sat down and taught the crowds from the boat. After he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, "Put out into deep water and lower your nets for a catch." Simon said in reply, "Master, we have worked hard all night and have caught nothing, but at your command I will lower the nets." When they had done this, they caught a great number of fish and their nets were tearing. They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. They came and filled both boats so that the boats were in danger of sinking. When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at the knees of Jesus and said, depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man." For astonishment at the catch of fish they made had seized him and those with him, and likewise James and John, the sons of Zebedee, who were partners of Simon. Jesus said to Simon, "Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men." When they brought their boats to the shore, they left everything and followed him.

Consideration: Seeing this remarkable event, Simon Peter tells Jesus, "Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man." Jesus said to Simon, "Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men." 

We too are sinners; not worthy of the love of our Lord. But Jesus is calling us as well, to drop all of the attachments that are binding us from freedom to live out our faith. Once we listen to the call of Jesus in our hearts and respond to his will, we too will be free to touch those in our lives by the way we live and lead them to the Lord of all. Amen.

Demons knew he was the Christ

After Jesus left the synagogue, he entered the house of Simon. Simon's mother-in-law was afflicted with a severe fever, and they interceded with him about her. He stood over her, rebuked the fever, and it left her. She got up immediately and waited on them. At sunset, all who had people sick with various diseases brought them to him. He laid hands on each of them and cured them. And demons also came out of many, shouting, "You are the Son of God." But he rebuked them and did not allow them to speak because they knew he was the Christ. At daybreak, Jesus left and went to a deserted place. The crowds went looking for him, and when they came to him, they tried to prevent him from leaving them. But he said to them, "To the other towns also I must proclaim the good news of the Kingdom of God, because for this purpose I have been sent." And he was preaching in the synagogue of Judea.

Consideration: Over two thousand years ago the demons knew that Jesus was the Christ; and today, nothing has changed. The demons now attack everything that is of Christ here on earth. The battle for souls is real; demons do not sleep and are confronting humanity with a relentless war for the destruction of souls. Be on guard always and know that this battle we are in is being fought for the glory of God. Stand firm in Christ; the reward is everlasting and for all of eternity. Amen.