Author: roylayman

“Follow Me”

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“If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. -Jesus, Luke 9:23

“To an unusual degree today, Christians mistakenly think that the freedom of Christian experience means that we no longer need to make any effort to be spiritual. We simply ‘do what we feel,’ and ‘be ourselves’. To live any other way—for example, to set aside definite and sacrificial amounts of money to do the Lord’s work, or to set aside specific time during the day for prayer, engage in deliberate acts of self-denial as we seek the Lord’s face— is seen as ‘legalism’ and ‘bondage.’ Jesus, on the other hand, assumes that these disciplines are basic to any spiritual vitality. And he was no legalist!” -Sinclair Ferguson

Jacob, Encountering God Through Trials

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Encountering God through trials—“Bethel” — The House of God.

In our study of the life of Jacob this morning we read a story that’s familiar to most of us by personal experience.

Jacob found himself in a sad, low and lonely place. Partly because of the consequences of his own actions, partly the actions of others, and then partly just because of unfortunate circumstances. But when he was made aware of God’s presence and promises, Jacob’s place of great pain was transformed to what he named Bethel which means “The House of God.” Jacob then said:

“Surely the LORD is in this place, and I did not know it.” (Gen 28:16)

This happens so often! The place of trial is the place of encounter with God. We can know about God through knowledge, but so often we come to know him personally by encountering him through hardship.

George Macdonald once said “Afflictions are but the shadows of his wings”

When we encounter God through trials it can change us. We see evidence of this in the life of Jacob in Genesis 28:16-22

Encountering God through trials can
Vs 16 build our faith
Vs 17 build our theology
Vs 18 build our worship!!!
V 22 make us thankful and generous

Whatever you are going through right now, like Jacob, you can be encouraged that we can encounter God through trials. We draw near to Him in the hard places and those places can become Bethel – The House of God. Like Jacob, we too can say “Surely the LORD is in this place, and I did not know it.” (Gen 28:16) Like Jacob, we too can face trials knowing and believing the promises of God—that by grace through faith in Jesus we are saved, called, loved, and kept!

Remember, “Afflictions are but the shadows of his wings.”

God bless you, and keep looking up!

I Have Decided…

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I have decided to follow Jesus;
I have decided to follow Jesus;
I have decided to follow Jesus;
No turning back, no turning back.
Tho’ none go with me, I still will follow,
Tho’ none go with me I still will follow,
Tho’ none go with me, I still will follow;
No turning back, no turning back.
My cross I’ll carry, till I see Jesus;
My cross I’ll carry till I see Jesus,
My cross I’ll carry till I see Jesus;
No turning back, No turning back.
The world behind me, the cross before me,
The world behind me, the cross before me;
The world behind me, the cross before me;
No turning back, no turning back.

‘I Have Decided To Follow Jesus’ (Author Unknown)

Consider this invitation…

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Had all your hopes and dreams dashed by a recent change in politics? Consider this invitation:

Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” -Jesus, Matthew 11:28-30

Thinking you’ve found hope and all your dreams are coming true because of a recent change in politics? Save this invitation, you’re gonna need it soon enough:

Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” -Jesus, Matthew 11:28-30

How majestic!

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O LORD, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens. – Psalm 8:1

Sometimes the world’s problems seem so big because our view of God is so small.

Father in heaven, let your name be lifted HIGH in our life today. Help us to live like you are big, powerful, and full of goodness because you are! Thank you for the cross, Lord. In Jesus name, amen.

Preparing for the week ahead…

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Hey friends!!! Some of us are already feeling worried, anxious, and uncertain about the week ahead. Don’t do it!!!

Here’s 6 R’s for finding certainty in “uncertain times”

1. Read the Bible 📖 🔥

Let the Word of God speak to your soul and emotions.

The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever. – Isaiah 40:8

2. Recite the gospel 😌 📰

The God of the universe loves you so much that he sent his son to die for your sins. By grace through faith we’re forgiven and He calls us son or daughter for all eternity. Let the good news give you God’s perspective!

God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. – Romans 5:8

3. Reach out to God prayer 🙏🏼

Psalm 61:1 starts out, Hear my cry, O God, listen to my prayer.

He will hear you! He will listen! It has been said if you’re praying don’t worry, and if you’re worrying don’t pray! Be a prayer warrior not a weary worrier.

4. Relationships 🤝

1 Thessalonians 5:11 says encourage one another and build one another up…

Let a friend in Christ know that you’re struggling. We’ve all been there. Don’t struggle alone! The people in your care more than you realize.

5. Remember God’s faithfulness 💡

Psalm 33:4 says, all his work is done in faithfulness.

God is faithful. He has never failed, and He won’t start now.

6. Rid yourself of sources of anxiety. 👎🏼 😟

It may be time to turn off social media and the news. 2 Timothy 2:16 says, avoid irreverent babble, for it will lead people into more and more ungodliness.

Be wise with your time and eliminate what’s causing you to get your blood pressure up!

That’s it friends! I hope these 6 R’s can help you go from feeling frantic and uncertain to feeling peaceful and assured!

💪🏼 ✝️ #LookUp

Pastoring With certainty In Uncertain Times, 30 Days of Prayer

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Pastoring With Certainty In Uncertain Times, 30 Days of Prayer
Like you all, I’ve been taken aback by many things that have occurred in 2020 and now into 2021. At times I’ve felt especially inadequate to be your pastor. But the Lord has been faithful to give me continual reminders of the importance and sufficiency of the Bible, and how we simply need to stay rooted in His Word and we’ll be who He’s called us to be for His Glory (Psalm 1). This isn’t something new for me, about 10 years ago the Lord made it clear that He had 3 objectives for me as a pastor: 
1. Preach the Word 2. Love people 3. Pray for the Spirit to move 
That hasn’t changed, and His Word hasn’t changed. I want you to know that I am resolved in sharing the Truth of God’s Word with you with every opportunity I am given. I want GOD for us, church! And we can’t encounter Him apart from His Word. 
This morning part of my Bible reading was from Mark 9, whereJesus corrected someone who was doubting his power and said “All things are possible for one who believes.” Captain obvious here, but JESUS IS RIGHT! There are no limits to His power! It made start thinking about the many powerful attributes of God. I did a quick search and came across an online post that outlined attributes of God as prayer prompts. What a great idea! Consider taking a news cycle break and spending 30 days reflecting on a different attribute of God each day. 
Here’s a link to the post: https://www.navigators.org/resource/praying-names-attributes-god

Grace equip is back!

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Grace Equip, our church’s 18 week training program, was back last Wednesday night! We looked at 6 different aspects of the atoning work of Jesus Christ. 

This current group of students is halfway through this training program, 9 weeks left. Hopefully we’ll get to restart with a new group in Fall 2021. 

C’mon somebody! 

🙏🏼✝️ 📖 🛠 💪🏼

THE BIBLE: WE CAN’T LIVE WITHOUT IT

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THE BIBLE: WE CAN’T LIVE WITHOUT IT

Church family I can’t emphasize enough the importance of the Bible in your life as a follower of Christ. We need to not only have a high regard for it, but also a consistent use of it. That includes reading it every day. This past Sunday, at the end of the service, I shared a simple but effective strategy to reading the Bible. It is as follows:

Find a readable translation. Then, find a starting spot.  The gospel of John can be a great place to begin. With you’re Bible and pen in hand, pray and then read at least one paragraph. Read it slowly and attentively. Then answer these simple questions about what you just read. 

  1. What does this say about God?
  2. What’s it say about me/us?
  3. What does it say about the relationship between God and us?
  4. How do I apply it to life? 

Something I love

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Several things I love about this picture, including my daughter on the free throw line. But after I took this picture I noticed something else I love, the flag 🇺🇸 up in the right corner. I love who and what that flag represents—Americans and our freedom. I love my country. I know we’re far from perfect. But just as none of us as individuals want to be assessed solely on our worst days, it’s not fair to judge our country as whole by our worst days. I’d like all of us to look ahead with optimism for our country—with faith, hope and love, knowing a gracious, good and loving God is in control.
When I look at the flag I think of our men and women who serve in the military, and other brave, sacrificial, hard working people of faith. People who love God, enjoy freedom and want to help others. I feel like I get to see the spirit of America in people every day, and I love it! Again, not perfect people, but people I’m blessed to share life with.
So even amid everything that’s transpired, I’m sorry to go all Lee Greenwood on y’all, but I’ll STILL 🎶proudly stand up next to you and defend her still today. Cos’ there ain’t no doubt I love this land. God bless the USA🎶🇺🇸 🇺🇸 🇺🇸