Is Anything Too Hard For God!

Hard: difficult to perform, endure, or comprehend.

Throughout the Bible, there are a number of examples of the Lord asking His people if there was anything that He couldn't do. The Lord asked Abraham, is anything too hard for the Lord? As the Lord spoke with Jeremiah, He asked him, is there anything too hard for me? We get his answer in Jeremiah 32:17, "Ah Lord God! behold, thou hast made the heaven and the earth by thy great power and stretched out arm, and there is nothing too hard for thee." The word hold true to this very day, there's nothing too hard for God.

There is also no promise that is too hard for God to keep. In Genesis chapter 18, we are reminded of the story of Abraham and Sarah. God had promised Abraham a son with Sarah, when he was a hundred years old and Sarah was ninety. Picking up the story in verse 10 of that chapter; "And he said, I will certainly return unto thee according to the time of life; and, lo, Sarah thy wife shall have a son. And Sarah heard it in the tent door, which was behind him... Therefore Sarah laughed within herself, saying, After I am waxed old shall I have pleasure, my lord being old also?... Is any thing too hard for the Lord? At the time appointed I will return unto thee, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son." Those of us who are familiar know that’s exactly what happened!

Our gracious Lord woke us up this morning. If you think you woke yourself up when your alarm went off, try this one day - take your alarm clock to the cemetery and see just how many people get up when your alarm goes off. It was definitely not you or your alarm - that was the work of God! Let's allow that to serve as a reminder for us that there is nothing (not any thing, no part or portion. In no way, not at all) that is too hard for God. If some of those five thousand men (not counting women and children) were here; those men who were in the desert, hungry and tired when Jesus feed them with those two small fishes and five loaves of bread; they would surely attest there’s nothing too hard for God! Matthew 14: 19.

My friends, God’s power is limitless; there is no person He can’t change, no problem He can’t solve, and no situation He can’t fix! Just as He did for Abraham and Sarah, and those five thousand in the desert, He will do for me and you. There is nothing too hard for God and there is no promise He can’t keep!

With all that said, let the Church say Amen... and AMEN!            

Let's Show Love For... Well...Everybody!

Love: unselfish loyal and benevolent concern for the good of another: as the fatherly concern of God for humankind

My friends, as we approach Christmas, it's important that we remember that Jesus is the reason for the season. With that in mind, we should also remember how important it is that we make an effort to take on the nature of Jesus Christ. This means that we need to show love and compassion toward one another and remember when the Lord bless us, we should be a blessing to some one else. Whether its our time, money, or simply sharing the word of God. Of course, this should be a way of life for all of us, but let's face it - it's not!

Before we get tangled up in the hustle and bustle of the holiday season, let's show the love of Jesus to someone we might not normally show it to. For instance, when we see road construction, let's not get upset about it slowing us down, making us late, or about the dust making our cars dirty - instead be grateful that the road construction is making the roads safer for us. When a car pulls out in front of us in traffic, let's be thankful that they did not hit us. If we can do something special for a neighbor instead of gossiping about them, let's show the love of God to them and do something special to brighten their day.

The Father gave us the perfect gift when He gave us His son Jesus. This is a gift that simply cannot be duplicated. So if we don't get that gift we wanted this holiday season, let's show gratitude instead of disappointment. We don't know the gift giver's situation - that gift may have been the best gift he or she could afford. It's not the gift that's important, it's the reason for this season - Jesus Christ!

Isaiah 9:6 is a good reminder that the Father gave us everything we could possibly need, "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace!"

With all that said, let the church say Amen... and AMEN!!
                                                                                                               

God Can Change Your Nothing Into Something!

Nothing: one of no interest, value, or importance
Something: some undetermined or unspecified thing

Have you ever thought about how God can take something we would call insufficient or unimportant, something of no value, and turn it or them into something spectacular?

Example #1: He took a little shepherd boy and made a king out of him.
Example #2: He took a scared young man and made him a mighty man of valor.

Simply put: God is God all by himself and He can do EVERYTHING but fail!

Let's look at example #1: David was just a young shepherd boy taking care of his father's sheep on the back side of the mountain. When the Lord sent Samuel to anoint one of Jesse's sons to be king - David's father never even called him to the sacrifice, because he thought David was insufficient. Jesse caused seven of his sons to come before Samuel, but the Lord did not chose any of them. 1 Samuel 16:7 says, "...for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart." In verse 11, we find Samuel asking Jesse, "Are here all thy children? And he said, There remaineth yet the youngest and, behold, he keepeth the sheep." Samuel then had Jesse send for David, "for we will not sit down till he come hither." When David finally arrived, "...the Lord said, arise, anoint him: for this is he" (1 Samuel 16:12). How awesome is that it doesn't matter if we are young (or if we are old!), God can change the existing situation or the existing person to be EXACTLY what He would have them to be.

Moving on to example #2: The Lord took Gideon and made a mighty man of valor out of him. Judges 6: 14-15 shares the first part of the story: "And the Lord looked upon him, and said, Go in this thy might, and thou shalt save Israel from the hand of the Midianites: have not I sent thee? And he said unto him, Oh my Lord, wherewith shall I save Israel? behold, my family is poor in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father's house." Isn't that just like us?! The Lord askes us to do something and we immediately start making excuses!! Gideon was scared and he felt very insufficient. But thank God for His mercy and His goodness toward us!

One of the things that these two men had in common is that they both ended up having to fight - David against Goliath and Gideon against the Midianites. But fortunately, God was with them just as He is and will be with us. He turned both of those "insufficient" or "unimportant men" into people who were valuable and important.

Remember, God can change us and our nothing situations into something extra-special - He just wants us to be willing and obedient!

With all that said, let the Church say Amen... and AMEN!

Live Life With A Purpose!

Live: to be alive, to be active
Purpose: a desired goal, an intention

You probably hear every day of people who appear to be living with no direction or no desired goals; people who seem to be going through life aimlessly - not really living or enjoying God's beautiful creations. Whether we have one dollar in our pocket or one million, there should still be joy and a real purpose for our lives. Although people might feel like if they don't have a pocket full of money, they are not being blessed, but I'm here to tell you that such thinking is not the case. Blessings are not always monetary. In fact, I would venture to say that if you wake up in the land of the living, then you are being blessed, because that means that you still have an opportunity to repent for your sins, to be thankful, and to be alive with a purpose - then that's being blessed!

I feel like we would be tremendously blessed if we woke up each day saying, "Lord, it's not what you can do for me, but instead what would you have me to do for you today? Often times, we forget that we were not created for ourselves, but we were created for the Glory of God and for His purpose! With that In mind, we should approach everything that the Lord lays on our hearts to do with a cheerful heart and purpose... and that purpose should always be to please our Heavenly Father.

You may not be working right now, but that does not justify you having a pity party. We must instead expect things to turn around and for new doors to be opened. Maybe your situation isn't that you don't have a job - it could be a sickness in our body, or maybe our finances are very low. Whatever the case may be, we are all still blessed because we serve a living God who owns everything in Heaven and in earth. Everything includes jobs, sickness, and finance problems, so be thankful and remember that He said in His word that He would be our provider - it's up to us to give Him that opportunity to provide for us.

Live with a purpose, my friends. And if you feel like you don't have a purpose or like you don't have anything specific to live for - well then, live for Jesus and wait for Him to give you the purpose that He wants you to have. Let's not drag our feet by moping around and complaining about this or that, because it's too easy to lose our focus when we are not living each day with a purpose. Our main intention should always be to be thankful and to ask God for direction, because it's within those directions we will likely find our purpose!

With all that said, let the Church say Amen... and AMEN!