tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25506148944685988532011-12-21T09:27:52.504-05:00A weekly devotional and discussion about Jesus Christ, the Bible, Christianity and world views.Straight Talkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04536322410471501704noreply@blogger.comBlogger311100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2550614894468598853.post-75469579290690594762011-12-21T09:27:00.002-05:002011-12-21T09:27:52.514-05:00

POWER BELONGS by Gary Wilkerson “Then he called his twelve disciples together and gave them power” (Luke 9:1). Jesus gave his disciples power not because they were ambitious but because they were his. Belonging to Christ is a non-negotiable to receiving his power. Power is birthed out of belonging. Belonging brings real power. So many Christians lead powerless lives—having habitual sin

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by David Wilkerson [May 19, 1931 - April 27, 2011] The Bible says the Holy Ghost will be poured out as “. . . the Spirit of grace and supplication” (Zechariah 12:10). The book of Titus tells us that grace is given to us as power over sin, to enable us to live sober, holy lives: “For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly

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If you want the peace of God to reign in your life, you have to quit several things: * You must quit trying to figure out how God will work everything out. * You must quit worrying and fretting: “Be anxious for nothing...” (Philippians 4:6). * You must quit telling God what you think is right for you. * And most of all, you must quit thinking you are a failure; stop

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Between the Extremes: Learning to Spend Time WiselyThe phrase “spending time” isn’t a metaphor. Each of us is allotted 24 hours per day, which we have no choice but to expend. We can neither stockpile time, nor buy back hours already spent. In his book, What To Do Between Birth and Death, author Charles Spezzano offers the following observation about time:You don’t really pay for things with

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Suppose a boxing trainer took his fighter to an isolated training camp and then spent the whole training session psyching up his man for the big fight. He tells him, “I will be with you at ringside—I will never leave your side. Here is a list of great boxers of the past, so study their every move. You do not have to suffer through hard workouts. I told you that you are a winner and my word is all

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by David Wilkerson[May 19, 1931 - April 27, 2011]Joseph was in one of his darkest hours—lonely, downcast, about to give up hisdreams, questioning his place in God. Suddenly, the call came from one of theking's guards: "Joseph! Get cleaned up—Pharaoh is calling for you!"In that moment, I believe the Spirit of God came mightily upon Joseph and hisheart leapt with excitement. He was about to

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JESUS HAD A PLAN by David Wilkerson “When Jesus then lifted up his eyes, and saw a great company come unto him, he saith unto Philip, Whence shall we buy bread, that these may eat? And this he said to prove him: for he himself knew what he would do” (John 6:5-6). Jesus took Philip aside, and said, “Philip, there are thousands of people here. They are all hungry. Where are we going to buy enough

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MAY THE PEACE OF GOD RULE IN YOUR HEART by David Wilkerson The Spirit has been making it so clear to me that all my praying is totally in vain unless I pray in faith. I could weep, fast, intercede, agonize and travail in prayer, yet make no impact with the Lord at all – unless I was doing it all with simple, childlike faith. God will not act on our behalf without faith. The Word says, “Let not

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GIVE ME ALL YOUR TOMORROWS by David Wilkerson The Lord appeared to Abraham one day and gave him an incredible command: “Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will show thee” (Genesis 12:1). What an amazing thing. Suddenly, God picked out a man and told him, “I want you to get up and go, leaving everything behind: your home, your

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David gives us a clear picture of Jesus’ attitude in the face of the coming storm. He speaks prophetically of Christ, saying, “I foresaw the Lord always before my face, for he is on my right hand, that I should not be moved” (Acts 2:25). The literal meaning here is, “I was always in his presence, beholding his face.” David quoted Jesus as saying, “Therefore did my heart rejoice, and my tongue was

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When we hurt, when we are lonely, afraid, and overwhelmed by circumstances beyond our control—we quickly turn aside from our true source of peace and victory and look to human ways and resources. How tragic! We know God is still on the throne waiting for us to call on him. We know the answer to all our needs is to be found alone with God, shut in with him. We will even confess to our spiritual

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“They shall abundantly utter the memory of thy great goodness, and shall sing of thy righteousness” (Psalm 145:7). We cannot deny God’s claim to praise him in all his excellencies, but we are especially called to praise him for his goodness. Note that the Psalmist insists on an abundance of praise in memory of the Father’s goodness—they sang the Hebrew for abundant utterances: to gush out like

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THURSDAY, MARCH 10, 2011 PRAISE GOD FOR HIS TENDER MERCIES I have a short message for those who are experiencing a painful, overwhelming situation. I am not speaking to those who now enjoy a time of rest from suffering, who are not in any kind of pain or sorrow. Thank God for those times of quiet rest. Rather, I receive so many letters from precious followers of Jesus who are living with

Straight Talkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04536322410471501704noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2550614894468598853.post-28976830244836625182010-12-17T15:45:00.004-05:002010-12-17T15:46:53.097-05:00

Hope to see everyone this Sunday, Dec. 19th at 10a.m. as Pastor Mike preaches a message on this very subject.

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FINISHING THE RACE "For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it? Lest haply, after he hath laid the foundation, and is not able to finish it, all that behold it begin to mock him, saying, This man began to build, and was not able to finish" (Luke 14:28-30). Jesus spoke these words near the close of his

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Great devotional by David Wilkerson. (ENJOY!)Because God loves you, he will work to cleanse you. But it is a loving chastening upon those who repent and return to him. You may feel God’s arrows in your soul because of your past and present sins, but if you have a repentant heart and want to turn from error, you can call upon his chastening love. You will be corrected—but with his great mercy and

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Israel had fallen into idolatry. But their root sin was still unbelief, resulting in all kinds of fears! And God sent them a prophet to expose their root sin. The prophet told them in so many words, “Look at you—a bunch of wimps, hiding out, afraid to stand up and fight. You’ve already given up. But you have a history of God’s deliverance! He gave your fathers great victories when they trusted

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Some believers can tell you all about their spiritual growth. And you can clearly see the changes in their lives. They testify to you about how the Holy Ghost has vanquished the enemy for them, and you rejoice with them in their victory. Yet these kinds of Christians are the exception. Most believers are totally unaware of any spiritual progress in their lives. They pray, read the Bible and

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The story of Queen Esther is one of intense warfare, one of the greatest spiritual battles in all of Scripture. The devil was trying to destroy God's purpose on earth, this time through the evil Haman. This wealthy, influential man persuaded the king of Persia to declare an edict calling for the death of every Jew under his rule, from India to Ethiopia. The first Jew in Haman's sight was

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ONE MINUTE BEFORE MIDNIGHT We see in 1 Samuel 13 that Saul faced a crucial moment that every believer must eventually confront. It is a time of crisis when we're forced to decide whether we'll wait on God by faith, or get impatient and take matters into our own hands. Saul's pivotal moment came when ominous clouds of war were gathering over Israel. The Philistines had amassed a huge army of

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In Ephesians 4:31, Paul lists things we must remove from our lives if we are to grow in the grace of Christ: "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice." We dare not skip over these issues on Paul's list. The apostle says we absolutely must face these things if we are to grow in grace. If you ignore the heart issues Paul

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WHEN QUESTIONS ARISE"When he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward hungry.And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread" (Matthew 4:2–3).At a moment when Jesus was physically vulnerable, the devil brought his first temptation.There's no sin in being hungry. So, what's the issue here? Satan was challenging Jesus: "

Straight Talkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04536322410471501704noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2550614894468598853.post-75528000821295320262010-06-16T09:59:00.002-04:002010-06-16T10:01:02.223-04:00

A VOICEJohn the Baptist's definition of his ministry was blunt and simple: "I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness" (John 1:23). This servant of the Most High, who according to the Scripture was the greatest "among them that are born of women," was the most blessed of all the prophets and a revered preacher of righteousness.The crowds flocked to hear John's scorching messages. Many were

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Hello Holland First Family and all those in Blogland,This Sunday I preach a message about "gentleness and self control." We live in a day where it seems we seldom see these two fine qualities in action. God has laid a message on my heart that will stir your heart to possess these Fruits of the Spirit on a daily basis. Christianity is more often caught than it is taught and when people see

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As fear spreads and uncertainty abounds, let us pray the Holy Spirit will show us that murmuring and complaining are signs of impatience and distrust of our faithful Lord.In Exodus 17, Moses called murmuring “tempting God.” The children of Israel were at Rephidim and there was no water to drink. Unbelieving doubt spread through the encampment! The people forgot all their past deliverances from

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Hello Holland First! This Sunday, May 16th, I will be continuing my current series, "Nothing's too hard for God" with a message on MARRIAGE.Today, marriages are being attacked like never before. The greatest way to show a lost world that Jesus is real is by showing the world a marriage that works & honors God. If you know of someone who is struggling in their marriage you need to invite them to

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Hello Holland First and those in Blogland. There is a young lady that attends Holland First when she is not traveling with CTI Music ministries. She had something happen to her that would have probably made others mad and seeking revenge, but not this young woman of faith. Read her story below and be blown away by a young lady with PROPER PRIORITIES! (Pastor Mike)Used with permission.........

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Below is a powerful devotional from David Wilkerson. It's regarding the Supreme Courts decision to take the 10 Commandments out of every courthourse throughout these United States of America. I praise God for men and women who tell it like it is and let us know the truth. I pray this devo not only blesses you, but truly causes you to pray for our nation like never before.In His Grip,Pastor

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Hello everyone! I received a online devotional from David Wilkerson, the anointed Senior Pastor at Times Square Church in New York and I wanted to share it with all of you in blogland. I pray it blesses you! (Pastor Mike Houser)David Wilkerson TodayTHURSDAY, MARCH 11, 2010HE DOES IT THROUGH LIFELet me tell you how God brings people into his house, how he speaks to them, and how he saves them.

Straight Talkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04536322410471501704noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2550614894468598853.post-70107624315570151592010-03-05T15:17:00.001-05:002010-03-05T15:17:33.211-05:00

The Battle For Next Generation (Message for this Sunday night) This Sunday night I believe God has given me a powerful message for all parents! There is a battle raging for the souls of our children and God has given me a fresh word that addresses how we can see this next generation through. If you are a parent you need to be here.Our service begins Sunday night at 6p.m.In His Grip,Pastor Mike

Straight Talkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04536322410471501704noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2550614894468598853.post-30455865865384111862010-03-04T10:06:00.002-05:002010-03-04T10:11:02.091-05:00

Hello Holland First Family,My first blog on our newly enhanced website. A special thanks goes out to Cory Zigterman who has spent many hours putting this incredible website together. This Sunday I begin a new series on "JOY." One of my favorite verses in the Bible is found in the Old Testament book of Nehemiah. It reads, "The JOY of the Lord is our strength." That means if you are not

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