Roots

 Roots

April 21, 2026

Hebrews 12:14-15 (NKJV) 

14 Pursue peace with all [people,] and holiness, without which no one will see theLord: 15 looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled;

Deuteronomy 29:18 (NKJV)

“so that there may not be among you man or woman or family or tribe, whose heart turns away today from the LORD our God, to go [and] serve the gods of these nations, and that there may not be among you a root bearing bitterness or wormwood;

Yesterday, we were working out in the yard. A couple of years ago, we had a tree cut down, and we were working on the stump to make it look better as a flower bed. Needless to say, things didn’t go as easily as we thought and it took considerable effort to try to remove even a part of that stump. The root of the problem remains…

This week at the retreat, we will be praying with people for healing and deliverance. One of the things that we will try to address is getting at the root of the problem. Like our tree, the visible part of the tree is gone, but the root still remains and causes additional problems. In our lives we frequently see unforgiveness and resentment linger on after the problem seems to be resolved, and this can lead to a root of bitterness which causes more trouble. In Deuteronomy, this is called bitterness and wormwood. Like our tree stump, it is harder than it looks to uproot these types of problems and heal the bitterness. The process starts with forgiveness, but sometimes it takes some healing of rejection or abandonment in order for a person to be able to forgive.

So pray for us this week, that we will have the wisdom to see the root of the problem and be able to pray for deep healing in the people that come. The Lord wants to heal and deliver, but He usually uses unworthy servants such as ourselves to minister this healing, so we need His wisdom and guidance and the power of the Holy Spirit to bring healing to the people

Draw Near

 Draw Near

April 20, 2026

Hebrews 4:15-16

15 For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, butOne who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin. 16 Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

The messages in the Spirit this week all seem to be converging on the topic of drawing near to the Lord for a time of refreshing and healing. Our pastor taught yesterday on times of refreshing and the importance or seeking the presence of God. Another men’s group is studying John 5 where Jesus heals a crippled man at the pool of Bethesda, but before he does anything for him he asks “Do you want to get well?”. And yet another group that I’m a part of is planning a healing retreat this weekend where we will be praying for people to be healed and delivered. The retreat will be a time of entering the cleansing stream of God’s presence, seeking His help in time of need. So the scripture in Hebrews 4 is appropriate, “draw near with confidence… so we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” 

So pray with us this week, that we can enter in and find His rest. There will be a lot of frantic preparations for our team, so we need His confidence, His rest and the power of His presence so that we will be able to host this important retreat. And the question “Do you want to be made well?” Should also be in our minds as we pray for the Lord to bring in all those who want His healing. Pray for the Lord’s plans to be fulfilled and for us to draw dear with confidence to do our part.

Words of Life - Encouragement

 Words of Life - Encouragement 

April 16, 2026

1 Thessalonians 5:11

11Therefore encourage one another and build up one another, just as you also are doing.

1 Thessalonians 5:13b-14

13 …Live in peace with one another. 14 We urge you, brethren, admonish the unruly, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with everyone.

Encourage one another… wise counsel for trying times. The modern, social media, generation does not foster encouragement. A post is more likely to go viral if it tears someone down or exposes some deep dark secret. Love and encouragement are not as popular online. We are also finding out that social media fosters social isolation. Encouragement is an aspect of true community. Real human bonds, especially in a church or family, build one another up. 

Peace and patience also go a long way towards encouraging a brother. Impatience is another trait fostered by our online society. We are a society that wants instant gratification. We have fast food and 24x7 news that wants it all and wants it now! In the church it should be different.  Making disciples requires patience and encouraging the faint hearted. Building one another up is not an instant process. So take time today to encourage a brother and pray for one in need. Build up the community of believers with encouragement.

Words of Life- Hope

 Words of Life- Hope

April15, 2026

Hebrews 6:11-12

11 And we desire that each one of you show the same diligence so as to realize thefull assurance of hope until the end, 12 so that you will not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.

Hebrews 6:17-20

17 In the same way God, desiring even more to show to the heirs of the promise theunchangeableness of His purpose, interposed with an oath, 18 so that by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have taken refuge would have strong encouragement to take hold of the hope set before us. 19 This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast and one which enters within the veil, 20 where Jesus has entered as a forerunner for us, having become a high priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.

“It’s a hopeless situation.” “The doctors gave her no hope of survival.” Or you might hear people say, “it’s so dry. I hope it rains.” This is not what the Bible says. So what is Biblical hope?

According to the book of Hebrews, hope is an anchor of the soul. That is something a lot more concrete than “I hope it rains”. It an expectation that the promises of God are sure, reliable and trustworthy. It is an assurance that when Jesus “entered within the veil”, that is he entered the holy of holies, into the very presence of God, that He made a way for us to enter as well. In fact, our hope is anchored there, so that we have a firm connection to the presence of the Lord. It is not just a once a year event, like in the old temple, where the high priest entered to present the blood of the lamb on the mercy seat. This hope is an eternal expectation that we can dwell in the presence of the Lord and that He is with is at all times and in all places. The only thing more firm that our hope is our faith.

Hebrews 11:1

1Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.

Our hope is in the promises of God, and our faith gives this hope assurance or substance. Watchman Nee says that he prefers the translation here as “faith is the substantiating of things hoped for”. Faith adds substance to hope, and gives us assurance that the things hoped for are not only going to come to pass, but are in fact already real, we just don’t see them yet. We get sidetracked by our logical mind when we doubt when we don’t see, but spiritual reality is not based on physical substance. Our hope and our faith are in things that are more real that what we perceive as reality. The God who created the whole world with His word, gives substance to our hope with a reality that is more real than our physical reality. I don’t know if that explains it very well, but it is true. As a scientist, trained in various aspects of physics, this was a hard thing for me to accept, but after following after the Lord lo these many years, I have come to understand that this is true. As the old hymn goes, “Our hope is built on nothing less than Jesus blood and righteousness”. That is a hope that will not disappoint and a faith that is a firm foundation.

So if you see difficulties in your world. If there are diseases and ailments that the doctors don’t fully understand, do not lose hope. Our God is greater than these things and He is able to do far more than we can think of imagine.

Hb 6:19 This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast and one which enters within the veil,

Words of Life- Compassion

 Words of Life- Compassion

April 14, 2026

Colossians 3:12-17

12 So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience; 13 bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you. 14 Beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity. 15 Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful. 16 Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God. 17 Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.

In studying words of life, this week, one particular word stuck out for me — “compassion”. Our guest speaker this Sunday, from India, also highlighted this word as applied to Jesus in Matthew 9:36:

Matthew 9:35-36

35 Jesus was going through all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every kind of disease and every kind of sickness.

36Seeing the people, He felt compassion for them, because they were distressed and dispirited like sheep without a shepherd.

I don’t know about you, but for me this is not a word, or concept, that comes naturally to me. To feel compassion for people, like Jesus does, required a change of heart. In my life, there had to be a great healing in my heart for me to feel compassion for others. And when the Holy Spirit touches your heart in this fashion, then it comes more easily to speak words of life to other people. Out of a heart of compassion, can flow kindness, humility, gentleness and patience, and love. I’m still working on these but it starts when you allow the Holy Spirit to touch your heart, to put on a heart of compassion. So be encouraged today. Receive the word of Christ and put on a heart of compassion.

Opposition

 Opposition

April 9, 2026

Luke 8:11-15

11 “Now the parable is this: the seed is the word of God. 12 Those beside the road are those who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their heart,so that they will not believe and be saved. 13 Those on the rocky soil are those who, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no firm root; they believe for a while, and in time of temptation fall away. 14 The seed which fell among the thorns, these are the ones who have heard, and as they go on their way they are choked with worries and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to maturity. 15 But the seed in the good soil, these are the ones who have heard the word in an honest and good heart, and hold it fast, and bear fruit with perseverance.

This week, we have been considering the word about being dedicated to the Lord. In the parable of the sower, Jesus teaches that opposition comes after the teaching of the Word. The devil is not happy to have us follow the Lord wholeheartedly, so will make every effort to dissuade and distract us. This can come as outright opposition or more subtlety as distractions and worries of life. What is there in you life that keeps you from following the Lord wholeheartedly? 

For those of us who are getting on in life, a common distraction is health. As our bodies slow down, we tend to worry. We get distracted by our aches and pains and forget that we still can serve the Lord. Perhaps we look to our doctors too much and stop trusting in the Lord to sustain and heal us. Or maybe we worry about the world situation instead of praying for our leaders. But whatever the devil brings across your path, know that the Lord has a plan and a purpose for your life and regardless of what difficulties may try to hinder you, it is you duty and privilege to serve the Lord. So hold fast and bear fruit with perseverance. One day the Lord will return, or we will go to be with Him, and all of our troubles will be over. But for today, decide who you will serve and do not get distracted. 

Rest

 Rest

April 8, 2026

Matthew 11:28-30

28 “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take Myyoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS. 30 For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

When you commit everything to the Lord, you can rest in the assurance that He has everything under control.That’s a lot easier said than done. When we look around us, we see all sorts of problems and turmoil. How can the Lord possibly be in charge when we see wars, destruction, death, disease and personal conflicts? Nevertheless, the Lord is in charge. He tells us directly that “My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” It is an act of faith to rest in that assurance and trust in Him when all around you is in chaos. 

I’m really preaching to myself today, because we have had a lot happening here. Many prayer requests have come in for various problems that are happening all around us. Some have had relatives pass away. Others have had problems with children and some have had family members sick and even in the hospital. It is overwhelming to consider all the things that can go wrong, but our faith is not in what we see, but in what we know that the Lord can do. We pray and trust the Lord to do only what He can do. We are powerless to solve these problems on our own, but we know that He is able. That is where we find rest, in knowing, in really knowing and having assurance that the Lord has all of these things under control. So Lord, help us to look only to You and give us rest for our souls, for we are weary and heavy laden, but we give it all to you, for your burden is light.