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God’s Continually Providing Hands

 

    Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. And thereby put me to the test, says the LORD of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need. I will rebuke the devourer for you, so that it will not destroy the fruits of your soil, and your vine in the field shall not fail to bear, says the LORD of hosts. Then all nations will call you blessed, for you will be a land of delight, says the LORD of hosts.

(Malachi 3:10-12 ESV)

 

 

 

    I felt like this was so incredible that I had to write about it. In the past month God has shown our family that He will always provide for us. I previously mentioned how God had provided for us financially when we needed it which included a job that should allow us to meet our basic bills and gas expanses. I had also mentioned that we were asked to go with some friends to the beach and we were really hoping to go. Everything we were seeing told us that God was providing the opportunity. We unfortunately ran into a snag. Right after we made the decision to go to the beach we found out that Crystal's parents were going to her grandmother's 90^th birthday party and would be unable to watch our dog. He is getting older in years and we did not feel it would be right to ask anyone else to watch him so the only way we could go would be if we kenneled him. When I looked into the cost I found that it would be anywhere from $250-$350. When I added that to the gas it would cost us to go we were looking at as much as $700. I was nervous about spending that much because it was about all we had from the various gifts we had received and that would be assuming that Crystal's last check and my first partial check would be enough to cover our bills that would be due at the same time and the gas money we would need for our normal use. I knew how much the girls could use a vacation and our family could use the time together, but did not think it was prudent to use every dime to go. Crystal and I decided that we would wait and see what happened before we would make a decision one way or another.

    Saturday night after Hannah's birthday party we sat down to eat dinner together. When we prepared to say the blessing Alyssa claimed she wanted to which tends to be par for the course. I asked her to thank God for the gifts we had been receiving, for our friends who had invited us to go to the beach and to ask God to sort out the gas and kenneling costs. She did so and we proceeded with dinner. The next morning I subbed for Robert Courson in Sunday school so that he could attend his son's graduation service. After class a friend of ours told me someone had asked him to give us a card. I thanked him and hurried of to run the power point for the 11:00 service. During the service I opened the card and found a very encouraging greeting card. It told us that they were praying for us and had faith that we would continue in God's work. Inside the card there was another envelope. I opened the envelope to find $1000 in cash. I was blown away at the generosity of God's people and the speed at which He answers prayer especially since I have been reading a biography of George Mueller; the apostle of prayer. When we got to the car after church I asked Alyssa if she remembered what she prayed for yesterday. She said she did. I asked her if she wanted to see how great God was. Crystal still did not know how much we had been given. I handed the envelope to Hannah and asked her to count it. She announced that it had $1000 in it. Crystal could not believe it and asked me if I was serious, as if I had announced the amount. At first I felt a little strange about the idea of using this money for a vacation but the more I thought about it I realized that God mentions the need for rest several times in the Bible and requesting help for that purpose is not against His will and I also realized that this money had come as a direct response to prayer and that I should treat such a response in the same manner one would treat and offering towards a specific purpose.

    In the time I have been at school God has made sure that we have always had our bills paid, food on the table, a roof over our head, gas in our cars, and medical care for our children. He has gone beyond that to providing the means to pay off all our outstanding consumer debt and now has even provided the means to allow some rest and relaxation time for our family as well as an opportunity to grow closer with friends that He has placed in our paths. I don't know for sure if God has another purpose in store for this vacation but I plan to keep my eyes open and ask Him to show me anything He wants me to do while I am there.

 

 

Thank you, Lord, for all you bountiful blessings and for you abounding grace. In the great and powerful name of Jesus we thank you, Amen.

Got a new job

Well, it finally happened.  I got a job!  I started a new job at the school working in the maintainance department.  It will be difficult to keep up with my normal study habits but we could use the income and I think God will work it all out.  He has done so much for us in a short period of time and so much has happened so fast it can be mind boggling at times.  I am enjoying the roller coaster ride though.

Location : 1456 County Road 1577, Hendersonville, NC 28792,

Wow

We have just been blown away by God's blessings.  If last week wasn't enough, we recieved a large blessing on Saturday that took us completely by surprise.  I am continually amazed at the way God shows us that He is in controll and we should not worry but just have faith and be about His business.  Thank you Lord!!!

Location : 12289-12323 U.S. 74, Fletcher, NC 28732,

Great Week at Fruitland

    This week God has shown us how great he is. When I left to come out here this week I had $13 and some change in the bank and $22.45 in cash. I put $12.50 in my tank using the debit card which left me about $1.85 available in all 3 accounts combined. I drove out to school. When I got here, I knew I would need gas to get home so I went ahead and put $12.45 in gas back into my tank, and I prayed that it would be enough to get me home on Friday. Well, I still had $10.00 left that I had saved for a special purpose. Part of me was saying that IO should put $5.00 in my tank to be sure I would have enough to make it home. Well, I decided against it and continued on to school. Later that night Crystal called me and said that some friends of ours had given her parents $100.00 to give to us. I was floored. This just came out of the blue, and completely unlooked for.

    The next day when I was going into chapel I could not help thinking about the fact that God had given me tenfold what I had given for His children. While I was visiting with a friend that had come the school for Founders Day, Lisa Horton, the wife of the President of Fruitland came up to me and handed me a card. She said that it had come to her house in my name. Upon looking at the address I found it was from a couple I had met that belonged to David's last church whom I had met around Christmas time. When I opened the card I found a check for $100.00. Our God is an awesome God. To top it all off, I may have a job next week and our family was invited to join some friends of ours for a week at the Outer Banks, NC in a prepaid house. We need to talk about it, but I am floored at all the ways God has blessed us.

    Today our Literature class canceled class and we went down to the county courthouse for an hour of prayer and worship for the National Day of Prayer. It was wonderful to here all those voices in the open air singing praises and lifting up sweet smelling incense to Heaven. It was as if the Holy Spirit inside me was smiling back at God the father and Jesus Christ as they bathed us in their love. The event went completely unopposed. It was wonderful. I would love to see a day we can do that every day and everywhere. Thank you, Jesus!

 

 

Jesus loves me this I know,

For the Bible tells me so.

 

Little ones to Him belong,

They are weak,

But He is strong.

 

Yes, Jesus loves me,

Yes, Jesus loves me.

 

Yes, Jesus loves me,

For the Bible tells me so.

Opportunity for Faith

Yesterday we had an incredible opportunity. Many people may look at a capital campaign as, "Oh boy, the church needs more money." Well, they are drastically missing the point. As I sat there in the service thinking about all those people in ther Bible that we read aout over and over I kept think about how they were ordinary people.

Many of the people we read about were no different from you and me but God called them to do incredible and mighty things. I am sure when Gideon was told that he would drive the Midianites out by the strength of his hands he had to be thinking, "What you talkin' 'bout , God?" But when push came to shove, god did it. He does this over and over in the Bible and as brother John said yesterday, He usually waits untill the last minute when things impossible. That way He can show how mighty He is.

Have you ever known someon who experienced failure? Most times they tell you they never really thought that they would succeed. That's why they didn't. The Bible tells us to ask Him for everything, and when we ask, to ask believing it has already been done.

Lastly, as I shared with some friends already, yesterday I started thinking about the movie "Evan Almighty". In that movie Morgan Freeman, who plays God, asks Evan's unsuspecting wife whether God gives some patience who asks for it, or if He gives them an opportunity to learn patience. It is the same thing here. So many times us Christians ask God to give us the faith of those great people in the Bible, yet when He gives us the opportunity to have faith, we miss the bar by a mile. If we ask for faith, we need to be prepared for when God gives us the opportunity to develop breath. Yesterday was one of those intances. When we have a chance to give to a capital campaign we calculate what we can afford based on our budget. But in reality we need to ask God what He wants us to give and believe that He will provide the means. I believe that in two years, the people of Lake Norman will be amazed at how God has acted to make it possible for His ministry at our church to grow and spread. I pray that God will help everyone stay on task and keep believing that He will act. We serve a mighty God who can do mighty things.

Location : 3567 Lake Bluff Dr, Sherrills Ford, NC 28673,

Thank you Lord

I find that sometimes I forget to thank God for all the little things.  The other day I received a refund from the student loan I paid off with my fwderal tax return.  It wasn't a lot but it is enough to put a tank of gas in each car.  Today I am doing feont and rear brakes on Tim Moody's car which will cover the presents for the birthday parties the girls are invited to.  God you are so faithful even when we forget to be.  Thank you Lord for you have done, all you are doing and all you will still do.  I pray I can be usefull to you in some way no matter how great or small.

Location : 16930 W Catawba Ave, Cornelius, NC 28031,

Interesting conversation

I just had the opportunity to speak to some Mormons and I found myself realizing how important it is that I take the time to learn about what other reliigions believe.  I want to make sure I have the facts straight.  That said I followed their advice that if I really want to know what they believe, I checked out their website.  From reading it I found that on the surface they believe Jesus died for our sins.  Based on this, it is possible that many mormons may be saved and will see the kingdom of God.  That being said I also came across a lot of stuff that down right contradicts the Bible.  What concerns me most is their view of what it takes to get into heaven.  They have a three fold view of heaven where the top level is for those who accept Christ, repent, and live according to the commandments.  The second level is for those that except Him but do not repent or change their way of living.  The bottom level is for those that accept Christ only AFTER death.  The problem isn't that some may get saved but that they teach that repentance is not a part of salvation and that you will have a finally opportunity after death.  This view is going to doom many to eternity in Hell.   The Bible clearly teaches that man is to die once...and then judgment.  Also, we have a limited opportunity to accept the gospel here on earth.  This is just the most blatant misunderstanding of Biblical teaching.  There are many others.

Location : 3555 Lake Bluff Dr, Sherrills Ford, NC 28673,

Back from break.

The sermon went well and I was able to return to school a day early.  I spent the better part of the day trying to get some work finished up and get ahead in my reading.  Today school was canceled due to snow, so I am trying to get some more reading done and will be studying for my New Testament test tomorrow.  I plan to try and spend some time in the last few weeks of this quarter doing some in depth Bible study and putting tigether some sermons so that I can be prepared for future oppourtunities.

Location : Edneyville, NC,

Preaching tonight.

I'm getting ready to preach in a 1/2 hour.  This is my first time preaching at a church that doesn't know me and I don't know any of them.  Lord, please be with me and use me for your glory.  In Jesus name, Amen.

Location : Edneyville, NC,

Big day tomorrow

I'm teaching Sunday school tomorrow,then coming home and packing for school, then preaching a Sunday night service at a church in Western NC. Should be a very busy day.

This is a beautiful view I found at a nice peacefull study spot.

Wednesday night sermon

    I just finished preaching the Wednesday night service here at Fruitland. I was so nervous and scared going into it but several guys prayed over me and after we sang a hymn I started to feel a little better. I could not believe how many students showed up. I was really surprised. After a few minutes I actually started to relax. I had practiced a few times to build my confidence but I still completely unprepared when I went down there. I pray this gets a little easier. Everyone said I did a great job but I will probably never agree.

Trying out a new app

I had to do a master reset on my phone yesterday so I had reload all my stuff.  I lost a few good programs but I found some really good ones in the meantime.

I was at : Conover, NC,

Trying out a new app

I had to do a master reset on my phone yesterday so I had reload all my stuff.  I lost a few good programs but I found some really good ones in the meantime.

I was at : Conover, NC,

Facebook Breast Cancer Support

    Over the last couple of days I have noticed a pattern of colors. The ranged from black, to red, to pink, to burgundy, to beige, and even skin as woman listed as their status message what color bra they were wearing or in some cases not wearing. Now please, please, please do not think I am writing this from a critical or accusatory view point nor am I trying to say the cause is not important. I believe that this was a loving response from woman to try and make people focus on a very real threat to women of all ages as well as to their families and I admire their attempt to spread awareness of the disease. However, there is an equally devastating epidemic among men of today including men in the church. Please take note that I am only sending this to people that I know are Christians and would appreciate the seriousness of this epidemic.

    Pornography and sexual immorality is among the largest problems among men today. This is a problem that includes Christian and non-Christian and has even afflicted many in the ministry. Now I am sure that many of you are already aware of this, but since men and women are wired differently I fear a few things may not have occurred to the women out there who are trying to make a difference in this world. As I said, men and women are wired differently and men are visually stimulated. This is not reserved to a visual stimulation strictly in the physical sense. The mind's eye can be just as detailed and stimulating. Speaking from experience all sin begins with a thought and grows from there. In the last couple of days I have heard opinions from several Christian men who have expressed that even though they commend the effort of trying to spread awareness of breast cancer, they wish it was done in a different way that was not so distracting. Men today are assaulted with all kinds of stimuli that are tailored directly at men's weaknesses. I know this is not a pretty subject but it is an important one. I have had many men express the difficulties they struggle with have tried to help them find ways to build up barriers to these temptations. Among many comments, one of the most often mentioned is the wish for their Christian sisters to be aware of our plight, as men, so that they may assist us in our battle.

    So I close with this, when you consider that this begins with a thought, and these thoughts are easily placed from all kinds of sources, do you really want your Christian brothers reading, and which may then lead to them to thinking about what color bra you are wearing? I know this was all done with good intentions, and this is a serious disease, but which disease is more critical, the one that affects the body or the one that affects the soul? Therefore sisters, please consider the affect this may have on you brothers and your husbands and please, consider another approach.

""God demonstrates His own love for us in this, while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.""

Romans 5:8

""God demonstrates His own love for us in this, while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.""

Romans 5:8

2nd Quarter

 

    Well I just finished my first day of the second quarter here at Fruitland. Christmas break went pretty fast even though we stayed home most of the time. Everyone was sick, except Crystal, but at least we got to hang out together. The girls really enjoyed their Christmas. Thanks to God and all the people at our church and even strangers the girls had a wonderful day. Pastor Bobby gave me the opportunity to teach last Wednesday night. It seemed to go pretty well. I look forward to getting to a point where I feel more comfortable and getting the opportunity to preach at different churches in the area, although I am sure it will come faster than I am ready.

I'm still waiting to see if I got a job at the bookstore here on campus, it won't be a lot of money but it will at least cover gas money back and forth to school. It was nice to see all my friends again and this is a very special place. I am hoping as the weather warms up I can find a way to get the girls up here to visit. I think they would really like it and they would love the mountains. I got my report card today and was very happy. I just pray that I can keep up the pace. I know it would be silly for me to expect to get the same grades the whole time here so I will try to keep a good attitude and not get down if my grades aren't what I want them to be. I just know how many people are helping us out, especially with the job market what it is, and that sometimes feels like the only way to demonstrate the effort that we are putting in. Realistically, I am happy with whatever I get as long as I know I did not cut corners or get lazy. I try to remember that I am here for God and He deserves everything I got; I guess as long as I give Him my best he will be happy with the results. I feel like I learned so much last quarter but I still have so much further to go.