Begin Afresh Each Day

The faithful love of the LORD never ends! His mercies never cease.
Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning. Lamentations 3:22-23 (NLT)

Confession and asking for forgiveness should be part of our everyday prayers. Jeremiah told us in Lamentations that God’s love and mercy will never cease. He has promised us forgiveness. Trust Him and be confident!

I found this comment from Pastor David Guzik: “Each dawning day gives mankind hope in fresh mercies and compassions from God. We need a constant supply and God has promised to send them without fail. No matter how bad the past day was, God’s people can look to the new morning with faith and hope.”

David reminds us in Psalm 30:5 that the anger of the Lord will last only a moment, but that His favor lasts a lifetime.

Psalm 51 is often read when searching one’s heart and seeking the mercy and forgiveness of God. It is a plea by David for mercy, forgiveness, and cleansing. Here we learn that no sin is too great to be forgiven. We have to understand that sin in any form is really insubordination against God and His way of living. Verse 10 is often memorized: “Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a loyal spirit within me.” We have to be cleansed from within! Then our spirits can be loyal once again. Our hearts have to be right. When we are genuinely sorry for our sin and fully intend to stop God will be pleased.

The hope that Pastor Guzik speaks of is in Christ Jesus, who paid the price of our sins on the cross. He defeated death in His resurrection and with that, we have the promise of eternal life if we place our faith in Him! 1 John 1:9 assures us that sins confessed are sins forgiven. Be thankful that God wants to forgive us and that He allowed His Son to die for our sins.

Now go tell others this good news!

Remember, "His faithful love endures forever."

Until next time...

Chaplain Gray

Obedience Builds a Firm Foundation

It is said that the Hall of Fame Quarterback Roger Staubach, who led the Dallas Cowboys to the Super Bowl victory in 1971, admitted that playing the quarterback who didn’t call his own signals was difficult for him. Coach Landry sent in every play. He told Roger when to pass, when to run, and only in emergency situations could he change the play. Even though Roger considered Coach Landry to have a “genius mind” when it came to football strategy, pride said that he should be able to run his own team. So, Roger had a decision to make. Would he allow pride to rule his life and ignore his coach, making himself the star? Or would he listen to the coach and do what he wanted? Staubach later said, “I faced up to the issue of obedience. Once I learned to obey there was harmony, fulfillment, and victory.”

The Hebrews had a decision to make. Would they obey the Lord or the local gods? Joshua proclaimed his decision loudly in Joshua 24:15 “But as for me and my family, we will serve the Lord.” Even today, we have to decide. The ‘local gods’ still surround us and tempt us.

Jesus said to the crowd in Luke 9:23 “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross daily, and follow me.” We belong to Him and it should be our desire to love to serve His purposes. We are called to deny our self, take up our cross daily and follow Him. How do we show that we love Him? In John 14:21 Jesus said those who accept and obey His commandments are showing they love Him. He also said that the Holy Spirit will help remind us of what HE taught us.

Jesus was teaching about obedience in Luke 6:48. “It is like a person building a house who digs deep and lays the foundation on solid rick. When the floodwaters rise and break against that house, it stands firm because it is well built.”

When we practice obedience, we’ll build that foundation that will help us weather the storms of life.

David said in Psalm 40:8 “I take joy in doing your will, my God, for your instructions are written on my heart.”

Remember that false teachers may attempt to distort the truth, dilute it, or maybe even delete it. But God’s truth has never changed, will never be shaken and certainly will not fade - ever!  Follow God’s truth by living His Way!

Dr. Charles Stanley summed it up like this: “To grasp the importance of obeying, think about children receiving instructions from parents or teachers. Careful listening is needed for the task to be done safely and properly. Some steps may seem pointless, but the rationale often becomes clear later. Always make obeying God your priority.”

Finally, even our Lord and Savior Jesus submitted to the Will of God. He told us this early in His ministry in John 6:38 “For I have come down from heaven to do the will of God who sent me, not to do my own will.” He prayed to His Father in the Garden of Gethsemane (Luke 22:42) “Father, if you are willing, please take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.” And He shouted in His last breath “Father, I entrust my spirit into your hands.” (Luke 23:46).

Are you ready to submit to and obey the King of Kings? We can’t just study the Word of God. We must OBEY, do what it says. Make Jesus the King of your life and worship Him as our Savior, King and Lord!

Remember "His faithful love endures forever."

Until Next time.....

Chaplain Gray

Read, Study and Obey

My friend Reverend Jay W Lippy of Tampa, Florida once wrote “Understanding His word is essential. It’s the instruction manual for daily living - not to mention a personal love letter that God has written to each of us. Why not spend some time with Him and find out what He has in store for you!” I have some thoughts, tips, and suggestions on how you can read, study and learn to obey God’s Word.

Dr. Charles Stanley wrote, “Through God’s Word, we possess eternal riches.”

Let’s get started! You can conduct a word study, or follow certain themes or topics throughout the Bible. You want to do your reading with some plan, however. Just turning the pages and pointing to a place to read will not give you the same insight or knowledge of the Word as systematically reading and studying the Bible. It’s helpful to have other resources to enhance your Bible study. Commentaries offer background information and other explanations of historical significance. 

Author Janis Cox offers a Bible study method she often uses. You can find more about it at janiscox.com. She uses the acronym “SIMPLE”. I think it is worth mentioning here that she encourages prayer to begin with and again during your time of study. Praying for guidance is encouraged because God wants to speak to us through His Word. He’ll help us if we ask! She also offers a “closed Facebook group” for accountability, prayerful support and much more.

Maybe a reader wants to know why we have an Old Testament and a New Testament. The purpose of the Old Testament is 1) reveal the severity of sin, 2) expose the hopeless condition of humanity to save itself and 3) show the need for a savior. The New Testament reveals God’s plan to us. It specifically reveals 1) the solution to sin, 2) that hope has arrived, 3) our Savior and 4) how we can be saved.

There are multiple Bible reading plans and resources for following a structured path through the scriptures. Here is one plan. First, get to know Jesus. Read the four Gospels. Next, read some of the Letters in the New Testament: Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, 1 Peter, 2 Peter and 1, 2 and 3 John. It will take one month to read through Proverbs if you read one chapter each day. Next read Genesis, Exodus, Daniel, and Jonah. From time to time, read the Psalms. You are well on your way to delighting in reading the Word.

Jesus instructs us about obedience. “Anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock.” (Matthew 7:24). Next week we will take a closer look at obedience.

Paul gave up a lot to know Christ. But are we willing to make time for prayer and Bible Study? What are you going to give up in your schedule in order to intentionally add this essential spiritual discipline?

James Macdonald summed it up this way: “The minutes, hours and days you’ve spent immersed in God’s Word can increase your faith.” Paul tells us in Romans 10:17 (ESV) “So faith comes from hearing and hearing through the Word of Christ.”

Remember, “His faithful love endures forever.”

Until next time…..

Chaplain Gray

Time for a Heart to Heart Talk

Barry Black serves as the Chaplain to the United States Senate. He finished a career in the Navy as Chief of Navy Chaplains and as a Rear Admiral. He said “Jesus frequently sought the strength-renewing reservoir of private prayer. If our chief pastor and exemplar depended so totally upon this wonderful exercise for His spiritual fitness, should we be any less dependent?”

We often struggle to find the time. Think about this: Prayer is an essential part of your day. If you are denying yourself the time to pray, you are actually declaring that you have no time for God! Is that really you? I don’t think so.

So, here is a very practical method to use your time to have a heart to heart talk with our Heavenly Father. This will follow the common method called ACTS. Do you exercise regularly? Walk on a treadmill? Go for a run? Go for a walk somewhere? You can use this method while doing so to spend time with the Lord.

Start with adoration! If you have a way to listen to some music while walking, make it some high energy praise music! Praise God for who He is. Psalms are full of praise and many of our favorite verses come from Psalms. When you adore and praise God, you take your eyes off of yourself!! As you can, look up and raise your hands in praise! If you’ve had answered prayers, turn those into praise so that they don’t turn into pride. 

Next is the confession. Unconfessed sin makes the intimacy God desires to have with us impossible. David said in Psalm 51:7 “Purify me from my sins, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.” Then in verse 12 “Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and make me willing to obey.” Keep walking while you are confessing your sins. Remember that King David even asked God to search for and point out the sin in his life. It’s hard sometimes to admit our own wrongdoing. 1 John 1:9 says “But if we confess our sins to Him, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.”  

Now on to thanksgiving. You can express thanks to the Giver of Life for all He does for you. You can also thank Him for others who have aided you in some way. The doctors who tend to your health needs. Teachers or perhaps a friend who offers support, or encouragement when you need it. Express your gratitude!

Lastly, we are ready for supplication. We are told to present our request to Him, so here’s the time. Perhaps begin by making petitions for others. Paul tells us in Ephesians 6:18 “Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere.” Pray for others peace and healing. You may know many details or just a few. It’s okay because the Sovereign Lord knows already. Okay, we are now ready to ask Him to meet our needs. Turn your worries into prayers. “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank Him for all He has done.” 
(Philippians 4:6 )

I also want to think about how listening is part of prayer. John 10:27 - “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them and they follow Me.” At the transfiguration (Matthew 17:5) - “But even as he spoke, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, ‘This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy. Listen to him.’ “

A young girl named Tammy described her feeling about her time in prayer. “Having a quiet time wasn’t like some chore I had to do. It was a privilege to meet with the awesome God of the Universe!”

Are you ready to MAKE time for prayer? Can you get up earlier in the day? Is there something you can give up so you have the time? Don't forget a prayer journal is a great tool. Write down your petitions and when prayers are answered, be sure and make a note! 

Your prayer time can take a few minutes or an hour. What a great thing to have the discipline to do daily! God will use this to bless you and others.


Remember "His faithful love endures forever."

Until next time...

Chaplain Gray