God cares about the little things

I have been wanting to get another racquet for playing racquet ball. I just started playing again and the kids took an interest in playing too, so I had planned on getting a racquet this week, sometime soon, but it wasn’t in the budget as of yet. Also, I have been wanting an air mattress for whenever we go camping (also another thing we enjoy as a family, but lack equipment).  A customer of mine had a box of things they were giving away and in that box today was a racquet ball racquet (not tennis, which is usually the more popular sport), and a queen size air mattress. Both items were in perfect condition!! Also they gave me a beautiful feather bed that I have always wanted, but once again not exactly in the budget. This is just one of the little things that God likes to surprise me with. He totally cares about all the little things and also the things that bring a family closer! When we do those activities, our family bond grows stronger and is healthier! Amen!

God is good and cares about the little things.  Hand your cares to Him, He will never let you down.

Led By The Spirit week 1 – video & notes – Pastor Sarah Marie

Led by the Spirit Series – Week 1

“Promptings, Dreams, and Visions”

Pastor Sarah Marie

Romans 8:14-16 – For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.

The Holy Spirit has been active among the people of God since the beginning of time.

Old Testament – Holy Spirit came on people like kings, prophets, and leaders and gave them insight, guidance, direction, and wisdom. He would come on them to do a job and then leave.

It was prophesied that the Holy Spirit would come on Jesus.

Isaiah 11:2  – The Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon Him, The Spirit of wisdom and understanding, The Spirit of counsel and might, The Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD.

New Testament – The Holy Spirit descended on Jesus. Jesus fulfilled the OT prophecies. He closed the Old Covenant. He established the New Covenant.

Before Jesus departure, He promised to send the Holy Spirit.

John 14:16 – And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever.

John 14:26 – But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.

Only you are not going to see Him like you see me with your natural eyes, but by faith, He will be with you forever.

On the day of Pentecost, the church began. The Holy Spirit was released on earth for every believer.

Acts 2:2 – And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting.

And all the men received the Holy Spirit and the women were left out.

Acts 2:4 – And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.

Acts 2:17 – “And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God, That I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, Your young men shall see visions, Your old men shall dream dreams.

We see that this scripture includes gender and generations. Male and female; young and old. Every one is included.

The Holy Spirit leads Christians sometimes through promptings, visions, and dreams. Sometimes He puts a strong desire in your heart.

Philippians 2:13 – for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.

The Holy Spirit is a powerful person. He is on our side working for us and with us.

You don’t have to wait hours and hours for the Holy Spirit to give you promptings. He makes it easy not difficult.

Prompting – Port St. Lucie

Sometimes we do special intercession. The Holy Spirit took me into intercession when He gave me the vision of Life Christian Church.

Vision – My Vision of Life Christian Church

In Acts 10:11-17 - Peter had a vision in which he was commanded to kill and eat unclean animals. He was offended. Later, when he met men sent to him from the Gentile Cornelius, who was unclean to Jewish Peter, he understood the vision as God’s permission to minister to the Gentiles.

Dream – Anton’s dream, California.

In Matthew, Joseph had a dream…Matthew 1:20-21 – But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. 21 And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.”

I used to tell my children either you will learn to be guided or you will learn by circumstances.

You can live your life watching out for yourself. I better make sure I get that promotion. I better make sure no one takes advantage of me. Living like this is too stressful.

But being led by the Spirit is fun and exciting and He takes you places you never dreamed.

I made a choice I will keep my eyes on Him and while my eyes are on Him, He will help me to see through His eyes.

Video of message by Pastor Sarah Marie below:

Do a little dance…

On Wednesday, I was doing media for service. My knees were aching and as I was running around trying to figure out how to turn on the screen and computer (yea I’m a guy and didn’t read the directions Pastor had given me the week before) which took me to the youth center to talk to the leader of tech…up and down the stairs, I went. A few times I was thinking to myself, “Ok, I’m 52 years old and replacement knees last about 20 years, so I should be ok. I will be able to tolerate the arthritus that my doctor says I have for another few years which takes me into my 70′s maybe 80.”

Totally receiving it! Well during Pastor’s message and prayer I was prompted to lay my hands on my knees and reject arthitus! Yea, yea, yea, you already know the answer…knees felt fine and still do! Hmmmmmmm, thinking I am going to learn how to do the macerena. Thank you for being the conduit of the Holy Spirit that I needed!

My time at Life Christian

I have been attending this church since Life Christian (LCC) took over. I was part of the Fisherman’s Home Church congregation prior as well. God has blessed me financially and personally since my salvation.The one blessing that stands above any personal or financial blessing is how God is building a relationship with me. The message at LCC is grounded in building a personal relationship with God. My early training in “religion” taught me about a judgmental God. My earthly father continued to be a judgmental dictator who was critical of most everything I did. I learned to tune out fathers.
I now look forward to starting my day in God’s presence. Praising and asking for His guidance to perform His will in my life. My days start happier, I am more receptive to what is given to me and I do not dread another day on the job.
I am grateful to LCC for introducing me to a father who not only says He loves me, but also acts like He loves me. I can feel His love, and I look forward to each day so that I can grow in that relationship with Him.

Text Message Prayer

Today, I received a text message from a friend at Life.  His friend was in bad shape.  Very difficult situation, when you can’t get to someone that needs you.  My heart sunk.  The only thing that we could do was pray…which is the only thing to do anyway.  God is looking for those of us that know Him to impact the rest of this world, and it just takes our willingness to bring a situation before the Father for Him to enter the scene.  You’ll see what I’m talking about in the text string to follow:

God is good all the time!  Life Christian Church believes exactly that!  Blessings to you all.

2012 at Life Christian Church – CTWG Testimony

Our family has been so bless with the CTWG, specially on the beginning of this year 2012. GOD has spoke so clear to our hearts that we truly believed he has a great plan for us and our blessings will be pour out on us as we seek him and put him first in our lives. We look forward to get more CTWG journals for the rest of the year 2012….

CTWG “with” by: Pastor James notes/video 01/22/22 (English & Spanish)

CTWG – “with” – by: Pastor James

01/22/12

Matthew 19:26 – But Jesus looked at them and said to them, “With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

• “with God”, not for God, to God, because of God
• We have a “with God” relationship
• The only thing impossible for God is to lie (Hebrews 6:18). Every other time that word is used its regarding man. This is good news, because everything in that Word about you is then impossible to be untrue. You are much more impressive than you thought or give yourself credit for.

“with” – accompanied, alongside, in proportion to, before, after

• High school basketball game alone story: I’d like to see your child show up to his high school basketball game with only him and see how well he does.
  • If you’re not “with” Him, you’re alone and setup to lose.
• Alone: It’s very obvious that 1 on 5 isn’t fair. What’s not so obvious is that we’ve been doing this for a long time in our personal lives.
  • Lunch: Everyone has forgotten their lunch from time to time. When lunchtime roles around, you realize that you’ll never do that again.
  • Clothes: Anyone ever forget to get dressed in the morning when heading out the door to go to work? Why not?
  • We don’t put the same emphasis on our “with relationship” with God. What if you were to die the second you walked out of the house without God? Would that change your perspective? I imagine you wouldn’t leave without Him, if that were the case.
    • Sometimes I wonder how many things Jesus fends off in my life on a daily basis? How many attacks that the enemy planned for destruction, that I don’t even see, because God pushes the enemy away before I even see it. Those things that I never even saw coming.
• Isaiah 58:8 (KJV) Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health shall spring forth speedily: and thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of the LORD shall be thy rereward (rearguard).
  • I don’t know about you, but I’m usually pretty focused on my tasks. I’ve noticed about myself, that I can see very well what is on my list and in front of me. However, what is behind me or in the shadows is my biggest weakness. I can’t see it, don’t know it’s there, and get surprised by it.
    • This is where I can easily miss it. In the unseen attacks.
    • “righteousness shall go before” – He’s telling us what to focus on. Focus on your righteousness in Christ. Not on you, but on Him. Focusing on your right standing with the Father, will protect you from the wrong thoughts and insufficiency that you likely focus on many times.
    • “the glory of the Lord is your rearguard” – do you realize that the glory of the Lord is unapproachable? Sin, negative forces, bad initiatives, attacks, etc. can’t come near you with the glory of the Lord taking up the rearguard.
      • The glory of the Lord turned a guys hair gray
      • Sin couldn’t be present in the glory of God
      • Stagecoach story “shotgun”
      • You won’t make it on your own. Good news is, you don’t have too.
        • With God all things are possible, even a trek across enemy territory. Honestly, many of you trek across enemy territory everyday. It’s dangerous out here, if you forgot your shotgun.

(KJV) Matthew 28:20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, [even] unto the end of the world. Amen.

• I (forgiveness, grace, love, mercy, protection, etc) am with you always. We recognize it when we spend time WITH Him.
  • Our biggest challenge is recognizing that everything we need is readily available in Jesus. And He is always near.
  • Sometimes being with someone isn’t enough, if you don’t understand what they are there for. If you’re not in relationship, understanding each other, hearing each other, and truly listening.
    • running camp storymy sophomore year of high school. I thought that it would just be a lot of running and not much else. However, we had to go thru the rules of the camp first. Some of the rules were these:
      • No headphones in your ears while running.
        • They wanted to make sure that we could hear each other while running
        • Terminology: they had terms that we would all understand. “car back” meant that there was a car coming from behind. “car front” meant coming from the front.
          • You see, there’s a difference between hearing and listening.

In a “with relationship”, there is hearing, listening and understanding that needs to take place. This is for our safety and the safety of our relationship.

“good relationship” – number one thing is communication; listening is the first step in communication and relationship.

• Listening and hearing are two totally different things
  • I can hear you, but I’m not listening; he heard me, but he didn’t listen.
    • Listening involves obedience. Listening involves a change in direction, or a change of plans many times.
    • (KJV) James 1:22But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.
      • Not hearers only. When you couple hearing with doing, you get “listening”.

John 10:27 (KJV) My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me

• Hear (better word is listen): to attend to, consider what is or has been said
• A parent to child:
  • “Did you hear me?” – wrong question. Of course they heard, but didn’t listen
  • “Are you listening?” – better question. Are you perceiving, putting thought to, or understanding my direction.
    • “You didn’t listen”, what you’re actually saying is: “you didn’t obey” or “you didn’t follow my direction”.
• God is always speaking…are we always hearing or listening???
  • When you open the Word, you are allowing God to speak. Opening the Word is like opening God’s mouth. This is why I worship before I open the Word, I’m preparing myself to hear, understand and listen for my day.

Example of how you can test your listener:

• Take some feedback from your wife or kids on how you listen
• Pay attention to how much you retain from conversations with those close to you.
• The way we listen to people around us is a reflection of how we listen to God.

Ephesians 5:21 (KJV) – Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.

• Submitting one to another means listening one to another

James 1:19 – So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath

• These things are trained into us when we spend time with God.
• Slow to wrath is a difficult one. Being in His presence, with Him, reminds us continually how much He loves us, how much He cares, and sometimes even how much He’s got to put up with in us. So, we are more apt to return the favor to others.

What does your “with” look like?

• Facebook, Yahoo news, fox news, google currents, or YouTube?
• We’re listening to the news, and we’re very tuned in. Spending time “with” all this outside influence. How do we get out of the noise, so that we can properly assess all that we’re taking in?

John 15 – Abiding in the Vine:

Jesus’ words in this passage give specifics regarding what it is like living WITHOUT being connected to the VINE, and what it is like living WITH connection to the VINE:

Without:

-I can do nothing

-I wither, I am only good for kindling wood (short, unimpressive, non-abundant life)

-I am disconnected from the source and flow of life

-I can not bear fruit

With:

-All Things are Possible

-Ask and it shall be given

-I bear much fruit

• Prophecy for 2012:
  • Psalm 147:14 “The Lord shall establish peace withinyour borders.”
    • Your border starts with your mind, threads thru your household.
    • When you let Jesus come in with you, there is peace that follows
    • Borders: house, work, impact area

Are you ready to receive that Word? Are you ready for a peaceful year, like you’ve never seen before? Are you ready for your “with” to take on your life instead of your “you”?

01/22/12 CTWG week 4 – Pastor James Boyd from Life Christian Naples Campus on Vimeo.

CTWG Naples Campus Testimony – my son is changed!

Our kids couldn’t wait to do CTWG (Consistent Time With God) so… on the way home from church we let them complete day one. Something had been bothering our youngest son. It was something that was inconsequential to us but a really big deal to him that left him very confused that we never would have known was bothering him. CTWG, from our first entries has improved our communication. We are only on day three, and I’m buying it for other families that need this! Thanks so much Life!

jobs are raining in

As you know I have been out of work for the past 2 and a half years…

The two places I would have always thought I would love to work at is U of M Hospital or Chrysler. Obviously, Chrysler because that is the engineering customer that I have been working with for the past 8 years, and who wouldn’t want to work for the hospital since it is the best of any other by far

Today, I had an interview with both organizations. The interview at U of M went very well when I met with the administrator, and I believe I will be called back for the 2nd interview next Wednesday.

Last night, I tried looking for an email address or telephone number to contact my past customer who taught me all my technical skills to ask her to be a reference for me since she works at Chrysler. I never did find the number, but when I showed up for the interview she met me at one of the offices where the meeting was to take place. She gave me a hug and I told her I was going to ask her to be a reference. She said she saw my resume and she already spoke on my behalf. She said she herself was a hiring manager and is hiring for a few positions in Chrysler. She was going to stay in the meeting and participate.

As they were talking to me the manager mentioned there were four areas of work they needed to fill and what did I WANT. We talked a little more and I told them I was a little overwhelmed by the wonderful response, all the positions sounded great, and I was going to leave and have a wonderful ride home. PRAISE THE LORD. I was in my car a few minutes and the contract person called to say he went to the meeting room to quickly ask them how it all went and they were in the room talking, and giggling. They said I could fill any one of the positions wonderfully, and they were trying to duke it out where I would go since they all three wanted me. My friend told her boss “I TOLD YOU SO.” So I have been told….I am verbally hired.

I could not believe that I was at Chrysler again and that so many people came up hugging me and saying such nice things….God is GREAT! And I was and have been feeling physically GREAT!!! How many people would have an interview at their favorite places on the same day and have wonderful experiences as well….and get hired on the spot with WHAT DO YOU LIKE AND WHAT DO YOU WANT!!!!

I have another interview at a different company tomorrow that is scheduled so I will attend it. But what I really want is the job at U of M hospital. It might be less money…much less money, I don’t know…but who wouldn’t want to work there and it’s close to home — direct hire with benefits. We’ll see about the 2nd interview. I’ll let the Lord work it all out.

I thought you would appreciate another answer to prayer….the Lord does have a sense of humor

The contract manager that called me with the great news said he thought the interview would go well….but he had NO IDEA HOW WELL IT WOULD GO!!! I told him, I did, since I have been going to serious Bible study the past 6 months….he said he was currently on the way to one and he totally agreed with me. How wonderful.

All my love to you and your wonderful family

God at work from a man’s point of view

Life Christian Church Naples Campus testimony

“God at work from a man’s point of view”

On Friday I was preparing to embark on a four- hundred mile trip with the family in our van. As I was walking to the drivers side door to start the vehicle up, I was told/urged to look down at the left rear tire where I made a important discovery. The tread from the tire had begun to separate at the side wall. A space some four inches long on the side of the tire was present and a cavity had opened up inside the tire itself. Knowing that the tire would surely fail, we opted to take our other vehicle on the trip.
As if the blessing of finding the failed tire is not enough, when I returned home and started to remove the tire so it could be replaced one of the lug bolts broke off under the torque of the wrench. When I started on the second lug bolt it too was ruined.

I immediately stopped and gave Thanks to God for his covering on my family. I am certain that if we had left on our journey, the tire would have failed and then we would have been stranded, unable to fix the problem. Learning to listen FOR and TO the voice of our Heavenly Father in our everday life has proven its reward again in my life. Giving thanks to the Almighty Lord for his timing on our behalf.