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The Word of Grace Devotion for the week of November 24, 2014
I Thank My God Romans 1:8- “First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is proclaimed in all the world.” Beloved, as we celebrate Thanksgiving this Thursday I am reminded of the many blessings, which have been bestowed on us. First of all I am thankful for all of you, thankful that your faith is being proclaimed throughout the world. I am thankful for you who answer the call each day to serve the Lord where He has placed you, whether at home, at work or on the mission field. Each of these locations is precious to the Lord and very important. There are people in each place, (children, family, co-workers, neighbors and the general populace), who need to hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I am thankful that your faith is being proclaimed both with words and in deeds. Beloved, He acknowledges your service to Him as Hebrews 6:10 says, “For God is not unjust so as to overlook your work and the love that you have shown for his name in serving the saints, as you still do.” Beloved, I am thankful for you! Keep on serving the Lord and do not become weary asGalatians 6:9 says, “And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.” Beloved, I realize that some of you are enduring difficult times. It is during those times that the enemy would have us not to be thankful but the truth is that there are blessings in our life that we can be thankful for! 1 Thessalonians 5:18 says, “Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” Here are ten of mine: Jesus, my salvation, my wife, my grandson and step-daughter, my church family, my health, my home, my parents and siblings, my job, my friends, and you! I pray that you will have a blessed and thankful week! I love you and I will be praying for you! In Christ, Pastor Joe
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Psalm 116:15, “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints.”
Beloved, have you ever wondered how God feels when one of His own passes away? Thankfully, Scripture reveals the heart of God in John 11:33-35, “When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in his spirit and greatly troubled. 34And he said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to him, “Lord, come and see.” 35Jesus wept.” John 11:35 is one of the shortest verses in the Bible and yet it reveals so much about our Lord. It shows that He loves us, that He cares for us and that He also is deeply moved at our loss. In fact as Psalm 116:15 says, “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints.” I say this because this past week one of the members of our fellowship, Michael Flores, passed away into glory. Michael knew that his health was in danger and he lived in the expectancy of seeing His Savior heal him. Jesus did heal Michael, just not in the manner in which we would have preferred. Today, Michael is with His Savior! He is no longer suffering; He is no longer in any pain; He is simply in glory! Please pray for his wife Elizabeth, stepson Miguel and all other members of the family. If you need further information concerning Michael’s funeral you can email me and I’ll provide them for you. I leave you with some promises from Scripture. 2 Corinthians 5:6-8, “So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord,7for we walk by faith, not by sight. 8Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord.” I pray that you will have a blessed week! I love you and I will be praying for you! In Christ- Pastor Joe  The Word of Grace Devotion for the Week of November 10, 2014
Your Birthday! Psalm 139:16-18, “Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them. 17How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! 18If I would count them, they are more than the sand. I awake, and I am still with you.” Beloved, today is my wife’s (Sheila’s) birthday! Therefore in honor of her birthday (Happy Birthday Sweetie!) I want to write this week’s devotion about our birthdays! Beloved, God saw you before you were even born. How is this possible? Because “he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will” (Ephesians 1:4-5). Yes, God had your days recorded in the book, “ever one of them” even before you were born. God sees things that are not yet as though they already exist and you existed in His mind before earth was even created! Beloved, God is always thinking of you! Psalm 139:17-18, “How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! 18If I would count them, they are more than the sand. I awake, and I am still with you.” Beloved, God created you with His loving care! Psalm 139:13-14, “For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother's womb. 14I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well.” Beloved, God created you with purpose! Jeremiah 1:5- “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.” Beloved, God has great plans for you! Jeremiah 29:11, “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.” Beloved, please remember that you are greatly loved by our Lord and Savior. I pray that you will have a blessed week! I love you and I will be praying for you! If it is your birthday, Happy Birthday! Happy Birthday Vic! In Christ, Pastor Joe 
The Word of Grace Devotion for the Week of November 3, 2014
Keep It Simple Deuteronomy 4:40- “Therefore you shall keep his statutes and his commandments, which I command you today, that it may go well with you and with your children after you, and that you may prolong your days in the land that the Lord your God is giving you for all time.” Beloved, I have often said from the pulpit that Christianity is simple. What I mean by this is that being a Christian merely involves reading God’s Word and doing what it says. It is simple but it is not easy. I compare/contrast Christianity with that of losing weight. The recipe for losing weight is also simple, eat fewer calories than what you burn throughout the day and you will lose weight. It is simple but not easy. Not easy because while the spirit may be willing the flesh is weak. Take forgiveness for example. It is not a difficult concept to understand. Someone offends you and the Lord asks you to forgive them,Matthew 6:14-15, “For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, 15but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” It is simple to understand but not easy to do. Forgiveness is hard, sometimes really hard. But forgiveness is also necessary. Thankfully, the Lord understands that we will have a difficult time implementing His commands. Hence He has given us a helper! (Praise God we do not have to do it all alone!). The Lord has given us His Holy Spirit! Someone once said that God’s commandments are God’s enablements. In other words, God does not give us a command we cannot keep. He gives us His Holy Spirit to enter into us to help us, to empower us to live this Christian life. Only through the power of the Holy Spirit will we be able to keep His commands. Ephesians 3:20 says, “Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us.” Beloved, when you find it difficult to, “keep his statutes and his commandments, which I command you today, that it may go well with you and with your children,” remember Ephesians 3:20 and Philippians 4:13! Remember to keep it simple. Read His Word and do what it says, “that you may prolong your days in the land that the Lord your God is giving you for all time.” I pray that you will have a blessed week! I love you and I will be praying for you! In Christ- Pastor Joe |
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