Food For Thought

How to Stay Safe In The World Today

• Avoid riding in automobiles, they are responsible for 20% of all fatal accidents
• Do not stay at home because 17% of all accidents occur in the home
• Avoid walking on streets or sidewalks because 14% of all accidents occur to to pedestrians.
• Avoid traveling by air, rail or water because 16% of all accidents involve these forms of transportation.
• Of the remaining 33%...... 32% of all deaths occur in hospitals . So, above all else avoid hospitals.

BUT.......You will be pleased to learn that only 1% of all deaths occur in worship services in church and these are usually related to previous physical disorders. Therefore, logic would tell us that the safest place for you to be at any given point in time is at church.

AND...Bible study and prayer are safe too.

So, for goodness sake, Attend Church, Read your Bible and Pray!

It could just save your life!

Besides it has been

Do You Pray Without Ceasing?

A group of ministers had assembled for the discussion of difficult questions. Among the topics was how the command to "pray without ceasing" could be complied with. Various explanations were given. It was finally agreed that one was appointed to write a lengthy essay on this subject which would be read at the meeting next month.

The entire discussion was overheard by a young woman who had been serving the tea. She said, "What? A whole month to tell the meaning of that text? Why it is one of easiest and best texts in the Bible!"

"Well, well, Mary", said an old minister, "what can you say about it? Let us know how you understand it. Can you pray all the time without ceasing?"

"Oh yes, sir!" "What?" the old minister arrogantly coughed back, "when you have so many things to do?" "Why, sir, the more I have to do, the more I can pray!" "Indeed", he replied, "Well Mary, let us know how it is. Most of us think the answer is otherwise."

"Well, sir", she said, "when I first open my eyes in the morning, I pray 'Lord, open the eyes of my understanding'; and while I am dressing, I pray that I may be clothed with the robes of righteousness; when I wash, I ask for the washing of regeneration; as I work, I pray that I may have the strength equal to my day; as I sweep out the house, I pray that my heart may be cleansed from all impurities; while preparing and eating of breakfast, I pray to be fed with the hidden manna and the sincere milk of the Word; as I am busy with the little children, I ask God to make me become as a child; and so on, all day. Everything I do furnishes me with a thought for prayer."

"Enough, enough", cried the old minister.

What a lesson we have here. Sometimes we make praying so hard to understand and that everything we do needs a theological explanation or that we need to use elaborate words. In reality all God wants is for us to just pray! We never find time to pray yet the Bible tells us that we are to "pray without ceasing and in everything give thanks for this is the will of God..." 1 Thessalonians 5:17-18.

To God be the Glory forever!

The Best Is Yet To Come

Today I received the following email from my sister-in-law and the message is so true, so I wanted to share this with all my readers.

The Woman and a Fork

There was a young woman who had been diagnosed with a terminal illness
and had been given three months to live. So as she was getting her
things 'in order,' she contacted her Pastor and had him come to her
house to discuss certain aspects of her final wishes.

She told him which songs she wanted sung at the service, what scriptures
she would like read, and what outfit she wanted to be buried in.

Everything was in order and the Pastor was preparing to leave when the
young woman suddenly remembered something very important to her..

'There's one more thing,' she said excitedly.

'What's that?' came the Pastor's reply.

'This is very important,' the young woman continued.. 'I want to be
buried with a fork in my right hand.'

The Pastor stood looking at the young woman, not knowing
quite what to say.

That surprises you, doesn't it?' the young woman asked.

'Well, to be honest, I'm puzzled by the request,' said the Pastor.

The young woman explained. 'My grandmother once told me this story, and
from that time on I have always tried to pass along its message to those
I love and those who are in need of encouragement. In all my years of
attending socials and dinners, I always remember that when the dishes of
the main course were being cleared, someone would inevitably lean over
and say, 'Keep your fork.' It was my favorite part because I knew that
something better was coming....like velvety chocolate cake or deep-dish
apple pie. Something wonderful, and with substance!'

So, I just want people to see me there in that casket with a fork in my
hand and I want them to wonder 'What's with the fork?' Then I want you
to tell them: 'Keep your fork ..the best is yet to come.'

The Pastor's eyes welled up with tears of joy as he hugged the young
woman good-bye. He knew this would be one of the last times he would see
her before her death. But he also knew that the young woman had a better
grasp of heaven than he did.... She had a better grasp of what heaven
would be like than many people twice her age, with twice as much
experience and knowledge. She KNEW that something better was coming.

At the funeral people were walking by the young woman's casket and
they saw the cloak she was wearing and the fork placed in her right
hand. Over and over, the Pastor heard the question, 'What's with the
fork?' And over and over he smiled.

During his message, the Pastor told the people of the conversation he
had with the young woman shortly before she died. He also told them
about the fork and about what it symbolized to her. He told the people
how he could not stop thinking about the fork and told them that they
probably would not be able to stop thinking about it either.

He was right. So the next time you reach down for your fork let it
remind you, ever so gently, that the best is yet to come.

++++

"And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people and God Himself shall be with them, and be their God.

And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away."

Rev 21:3-4

To God be the Glory and thank you Heavenly Father for the best which is yet to come.

But Then We Prayed..........

Last night our small group of seven met for our weekly night of fellowship and prayer. Oh what a beautiful time!

We had a time of fellowship, enjoying some appetizers, desserts and coffee. We shared our common burden for our church and our pastors. Personal testimonies were given.

It was such a wonderful time, laughing and in some instances tears coming to our eyes but then we prayed!

Nothing is more precious then a group coming together in prayer, seeking God and asking for His Holy Spirit to be poured out over our church and our pastor. In English and in Spanish our prayers were raised to our Lord. It was a blessing that touched my heart and the hearts of each one there.

Amazing how time flies when you enjoy the company of others who share a common burden. It was almost one in the morning when we were finished. God was with us and we were with Him.

To God be the glory forever!

"For where two or three are gathered in my name, there I am in the midst of them." Matthew 18:20

"Porque donde estan dos o tres congregados en mi nombre, alli estoy en medio de ellos." Mateo 18:20

Music to His Ears

This past Wednesday during our mid-week service and after our Bible study, our pastor asked that we break up into groups of two or three and spend time in prayer.

As my wife and I kneeled and kept silent for a brief moment, we both observed something so beautiful! It was the sound of our brothers and sisters praying. You could not hear what they were saying but you could hear voices in prayer.

Just think about it for a moment. If it warmed our hearts to hear them seeking God, can you imagine what God thought. It must have been music to His ears.

The sound was priceless and a true blessing to us. Thank God for the privelege we have in seeking our Lord and that we have a God that listens and guards the prayers of His people.

Who Is Your Provider?

"For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect towards Him..." 2 Chron 16:9

Asa, king of Judah seemed to do everything right in the sight of God. He removed all the altars to the false gods along with the images the people were worshipping. He commanded the people of Judah to seek the real God and to obey the laws set forth by God.

In return God gave their troubled land rest and the people prospered. At all times did they seek God and God responded. When they were going to be attacked they sought God and He heard their plea and delivered them from their enemies.

God promised them that as long as they would seek Him, He would be there. If they would forsake Him, He would forsake them. So it was,the people of Judah sought God in all their times of trouble and He was there.

Then as it happens so many times even to this day, the people of Judah got comfortable and complacent, got full of themselves and started seeking help from strangers when they were in trouble with their enemies and God who is a jealous God forsook them.

Over and over we read in the Scriptures of this happening. Today it seems we do the very same thing. We abandon God and look for "strangers" to help us. When our needs are great, whether it be in our family life, our jobs, our finances, our spiritual life, etc. We go to other sources. We look for self help books, we look at the get rich schemes on the internet, the lottery, chain letters offering special blessings, fortune tellers, drawings that will give us something for nothing, preachers on TV promising riches if you only plant seeds of faith in their garden. Yet we fail to go to our main source of everything, Our Lord and Heavenly Father.

And all God wants to do is "to show Himself strong in behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward Him."

Who is your provider? I know without a doubt who is mine!

Are You Hungry? I Am!

For several months I have had such hunger pains but they aren't the type of hunger that you would associate with food.

The hunger I have felt is a hunger for a revival in our country and in our churches. My soul has been on fire to do something about this and I have sought the Lord for what He would have me do and how. For several weeks now I have been in deep prayer and study over this emptiness I have felt.

About a week ago the answer came as I was reading in Jeremiah 29:12-13 where the Lord says "then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you. And you shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart."

What an awesome promise from God! Pray and I will listen, look for me and you will find me but you have to do it with all your heart. Then I ran into a quote made by Samuel Chadwick who said, "The one concern of the devil is to keep Christians from praying. He fears nothing from prayerless studies, prayerless work and prayerless religion. He laughs at our toil, mocks at our wisdom, but he trembles when we pray."

That was my problem, I wasn't praying enough and seeking God with all my heart, I was going through the motions but I was not on my knees really seeking Him.

Are you as hungry as I am? If you are then join me in seeking God with all our hearts. That He may use each one of us as sparks to light a larger fire of revival. It will change us, change our churches, change the direction of this country and above all it will make the devil tremble!

To God be the glory forever and ever Amen!

Prayer That Moves The Arm of God

Since I was a child I believed in the power of prayer because I saw it work so many times not only in my life but in the life of my parents.

As I was scanning my journal I came across this entry made years ago. I had just finished reading Ephesians 6:10-18 about putting on the "whole armor of God" and I can remember that day as if it were today. I was struggling in my spiritual life so I got down on my knees and prayed with all my heart. Afterwards the weight I was carrying was gone. Immediately I got up and crying I wrote the following prayer in my journal and would like to share it with you.

"Oh Father in heaven, as I look over my armor, I realize I am so weak in so many areas and you know that I am.

I worry about money, I worry about what others think of me.

My pride is overtaking me. I try to impress people instead of you. Forgive me for my self centered way.

Help me get back on track, I want you to be pleased with me. Forgive me of my sins, my short comings, my disobedience, my fleshy weaknesses. Above all forgive me for not trusting you completely. You have always provided for me and you will continue to do so.

Forgive my impatience and help me to allow you to work in me according to your time table and not mine. Father, with each day, please allow me to grow in grace and knowledge, allow me to open my heart and mind so that you may instruct me, convict me and reprove me.

Remove whatever obstacles there are that prevent me from having a beautiful relationship with you. I no longer want to live a defeated life, please give me victory over my old life.

I ask you in the name of Jesus, Amen"

It was that prayer that moved the arm of God in my life and today I can say without a doubt that I have surrendered all to God and have left everything at the cross.

To God be the glory!

Free At Last!

This coming Monday is Martin Luther King day and many will be celebrating the life of the man who did much for civil rights in this country. However, I would like to introduce to you someone who is far greater and has done much for all of mankind.

His name is Jesus Christ

Through Him sin was conquered on the cross so that we would no longer have to be subjected to it. We have victory over sin because of this act of love but first we must believe in Him.

We never have to try and pay for our sins since Christ paid the price for us. This was God's precious gift to all of mankind and through this gift we have victory over sin.

Through Jesus Christ we can honestly say, "Free at last, free at last, thank God I am free at last!"

source: John 8:36 and John 3:16

"If the SON therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed"

"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life"

Reflections

What do you see when you look into a mirror?

Sometimes I see fear

At times I see how age is gaining ground

Other times I see a confident man

And other times I see a man defeated by my worst enemy, ME

I see reflections of my past

from childhood

to adulthood

Then I ask,

"Who is this graying man and where did he come from?"

"Where is he going?"

I look at him and shake my head,

I want to cry because because I feel so sorry for him

Time has passed him by

What is there to show for his life?

What a pity for someone with such great talent

To have squandered it away

Then I ask him,

"Is it too late for you?"

Then I console him and tell him,

It is never too late for new beginnings.

For today truly is the first day

of the rest of your life

Source: Ken's Journal 1995

Job 7:7a "O remember that my life is wind"

"Call Upon Me"

"Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you. And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart." Jeremiah 29:12-13

Usually after the evening service on Sunday, a small group gathers at a restaurant for a time of fellowship, enjoying some coffee and pastries. However last night was different. A small group of us gathered at the home of a couple who were gracious to invite us.

As is always the case, we enjoyed this time together just sharing our thoughts and our experiences in our Christian walk. We shared our concerns about our church and how we are seeing God working in our midst. We also notice how the devil who is miserable when the Holy Spirit is moving is at work wanting to destroy and discourage our people.

At about 11:00pm we decided to reach out to God in prayer. As we stood holding hands, we each prayed and you could just feel the Holy Spirit taking hold and moving in our midst. We sought God and we found Him just as He promised.

The evening ended close to midnight but we were truly blessed by God's presence. We as Christians need to pray for our churches throughout America and ask for a fresh anointing of God's Holy Spirit and prayer is the key that unlocks His power.

To God be the Glory forever!

The Marks Of A True Christian

Have you ever stopped to think about your walk as a Christian? Is your walk with God all that it should be? I would like to share with you what Paul in his letter to the Romans says how that walk should be like.

Source: Romans 12: 9-21

• Let love be genuine
• Abhor evil
• Hold tightly to that which is good
• Love one another with brotherly affection
• Do not be slothful in zeal but be fervent in spirit
• Serve the Lord
• Rejoice in hope
• Be patient in tribulation
• Pray constantly
• Contribute to the saints
• show hospitality
• Bless those who persecute you, do not curse them
• Rejoice with those who rejoice
• Cry with those who cry
• Live in peace with one another
• Do not be haughty but associate with the lowly
• Never be wise in your your own sight
• Do not repay evil with evil
• Never avenge yourself but leave it God's hands
• Feed your enemy
• If your enemy is thirsty give him something to drink
• Overcome evil with good

So my prayer for myself is, "May I be more like Christ and less like Ken"

To God be the glory forever and ever Amen!

Shhhhhhhhhh, Be Still!

The Psalms are full of precious verses that can be applied daily to our lives if we just take the time to absorb their absolute beauty. The first part of Psalms 46:10 which says "Be still and know that I am God......" is one that I love to read and apply to my own personal life.

Last night for example, my wife went to bed early so I decided to turn off all the lights, turn off the TV and just sit in total darkness and be alone with God. This is when I remembered this verse and I asked God to let me be still so that I could feel His presence. I asked Him to help me clear my mind and soften my heart so that He and I could spend some quality time together. At that very moment I felt such a wonderful and calming peace, a peace which "passeth all Understanding..." (Philippians 4:7)

It was also at that moment that the Holy Spirit begin to minister unto me. What a blessing to feel the load of the day lifted from me. To hear Him say, "Don't worry Kenneth everything will be just fine." It was so amazing but even more amazing was when I finally went to bed, I fell asleep with such peace and when I woke up this morning I was totally rested and energized.

Everyone of us needs to spend time in total silence, away from all the noise and distractions that pollute our lives and learn to "be still" and allow God to calm whatever storms that exist in our lives.

I challenge everyone to try God and discover the difference between what He has to offer versus what the world offers. "Tap the secret of the peace of God."

To God be the Glory now and forever!

Why Settle for Less!

Everyone knows that Jesus is the Living Water and whoever drinks from His well will never thirst again.(John 4) As I was meditating over this, I was thinking of all the people who profess to be Christians yet never really drink from this endless well. Instead they prefer drinking from other sources.

I have been to churches where they prefer quoting philosophers, self help gurus, politicians and other famous people yet the Bible with all its truths is the last to be quoted. Check out the so called Christian bookstores and you will find an endless stream of books on how to become a better Christian, books on how to improve your marriage, your finances, your health and on and on. Yet it is all in the Book called the Bible.

I have seen blog after blog quote dead people as if it were gospel yet hardly a mention of The Living Water. Now, I know that there have been many godly people who have passed through this world and their contribution to Christianity has been profound but never can they take the place of our main source and which should be the cornerstone of every church, The Bible.

In fact I read a statement that Amy Carmichael, missionary to India made, she said, "never let good books take the place of the Bible. Drink from the well not from the streams that flow from the well" To which I would add, why settle for a cup of water when I can have the whole well!

There are many good writers that are worth reading but to take the place of the best Author ever, I say no way and why settle for less when I can have the best!

To God be the Glory!