HCC Monthly Harvest Seed
2 Timothy 3:13 - But evil men and impostors will grow worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived.
The Bible tells us that Satan is a liar and the father of lies.
John 8:44–45 (AMP) - You are of your father the devil, and it is your will to practice the desires [which are characteristic] of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks what is natural to him, for he is a liar and the father of lies and half-truths. 45 But because I speak the truth, you do not believe Me [and continue in your unbelief].
Satan is the exact opposite of Jesus.
Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.
Right now, we all have a sense that we are being lied to about everything.
It is hard to trust almost anything that anyone says.
You and I are being lied to on a regular basis. In fact, our entire culture is riddled with deception.
We have governmental agencies like the (Food and Drug Administration) to oversee the ridiculous claims made by advertisers and retailers.
We have social media claiming to “monitor the truth” in our news so that we are not lied to as they manipulate what they want us to see and hear.
Our Government opened and closed what it called an office of truth that was so close to the Nazi’s ministry of truth that it could not hold up to the back lash it was so obviously wrong.
The Bible tells us that in the last days people lying and deceiving will grow worse and worse. That people will be deceiving others and being deceived themselves.
We are in those times.
The Bible tells us that in the last days even the very elect or God’s Chosen ones will be deceived if it is possible.
Matthew 24:24 - For false Christ’s and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.
That is a powerful statement. If possible. – The truth is that those who are walking in the Holy Spirit will have discernment. Most of God’s elect won’t be fooled. They will be lied to but will be able to see through the lies.
But some who are not paying attention and some who just don’t really want to know will be deceived.
Satan uses every sort of duplicity to lead people away from Truth and into the tangled and confusing realm of Deception. Truth has been outrageously violated in every area of society.
Deception is when you are lied to and you believe it.
Some other words that describe it – Misinformation, disinformation exaggeration, subterfuge, sleight of hand, fake news, distraction, counterfeit, camouflage.
2 Corinthians 11:14 - And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light.
The word deception could be defined as communication or behavior that is meant to leave others with a false impression.
Here are some ways that deception is being sown in our culture today:
• Disinformation: deliberately misleading or biased information; manipulated narrative or facts; propaganda.”
• Doublespeak: evasive, ambiguous language that is intended to deceive or confuse.
• Duplicity: deceitfulness in speech or conduct, as by speaking or acting in two different ways to different people concerning the same matter; double-dealing.
• Fabrication: to make up a story or facts for the purpose of deception.
• Falsehood: Contrary to fact or truth.
• Fraud: deceit [or] trickery… perpetrated for profit or to gain some unfair or dishonest advantage.
• Half-truth: a statement that fails to divulge the whole truth… or using a portion of truthful information to make a lie seem more trustworthy.
• Hypocrisy: a concealment of one’s real character or motives… a deceitful show of a good character, in morals or religion; a counterfeiting of religion.” Actor – To pretend to be something or someone that you are not.
• Lie: a falsehood uttered for the purpose of deception; an intentional violation of truth.
• Scam: a confidence game or other fraudulent scheme, especially for making a quick profit; swindle.
• Subterfuge: a cleverly disguised way or strategy used to evade a rule, escape a consequence, hide something. Deceit used in order to achieve one's goal.
Deception has become a part of our culture.
2 Timothy 3:7 - always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.
Lying has become so common place that we almost expect it and are shocked when people are actually honest.
Lying has become ubiquitous in our culture. We expect that every time a politician opens their mouth that they are lying.
When news is dispensed, we are confident that it is no longer being reported accurately but with the slant and stats manipulated to make them say what they want us to hear so that we will believe what they think is best.
Law has become so nuanced that no one really understands what a lawyer is saying except other lawyers.
The disciples asked Jesus what would be the sign of His coming and the end of the world and the first thing He told them was deception.
Matthew 24:3-5 - Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?” 4 And Jesus answered and said to them: “Take heed that no one deceives you. 5 For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many.
Jesus gave many signs, but the first sign Jesus told them about contained a clear warning of a wide-scale deception that would emerge in the last part of the last days — and the need for people to prepare and guard against it. Jesus said, “…Take heed that no man deceives you.”
Take Heed – Pay attention, Live with your eyes wide open, have your Spirit in step with the Spirit of God. – Be decerning.
The word “deceive” is used to depict this period when it will look as if delusion is taking over the world.
It is the Greek word which means to lead astray or to wander off course. This word “deceive” could depict a single individual who has wandered far off course, or it could describe a whole nation or nations that have morally veered from the position once held to be true.
That describes today. – In many ways our world is delusional.
~ Someone said – “Human beings are willing to believe anything, as long as it caters to what they want.”
Satan understands this and has developed philosophies, religions and belief systems that sound so reasonable that they keep us from God because they tell us exactly what we want to hear.
2 Timothy 4:3 (AMP) - For the time will come when people will not tolerate sound doctrine and accurate instruction [that challenges them with God’s truth]; but wanting to have their ears tickled [with something pleasing], they will accumulate for themselves [many] teachers [one after another, chosen] to satisfy their own desires and to support the errors they hold,
We often think this just means religious teachers and pastors. This goes far beyond that. This includes actual educators (Children and Collegiate), entertainers and so-called experts.
~ Rick Renner – People in the last days will become supernaturally hoodwinked — that is, they will be ensnared by an unparalleled period of deception on every front. This period of deceitfulness will be so intense that people will believe what is false over what is obviously true, even denying facts and truths that are common sense and that nature itself teaches. It will mark a time when wrong belief and delusion will pervade every realm of society. This is the clear teaching of prophetic Scripture about developments that will occur at the conclusion of this age.
I believe that Christians should be the most discerning, wise and aware people in the world.
Why? Because we are people of the Word and people of the Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Wisdom and discernment.
If anyone can spot and know the difference between the truth and a lie it will be a Christian who walks in the Spirit and who lives by Faith.
This month we are going to unpack this in a big way.
Continue to walk and live in the Truth. You will be of those who know the difference and do not walk in description, Spiritual or otherwise.
Remember you are dearly Loved,
Pastor Marvin and Dawn
Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay
HCC Monthly Harvest Seed
Proverbs 25:11 - A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold In settings of silver.
All of us like a pat on the back. An Atta – Boy
How many are thankful for those words that come at just the right time?
Encouragement is one of the gifts that God has given to believers to pass on to other people.
How many have ever gotten an unexpected word of encouragement and been thoroughly blessed by it at just the right time?
It’s wonderful. You know what that feels like and understand the difference that it makes in your life and the difference that it can make in others’ lives.
~ Mother Theresa said that - “being unwanted, unloved, uncared for, forgotten by everybody is a much greater hunger, a much greater poverty than the person who has nothing to eat”.
Everybody needs encouragement. It doesn’t matter the level of success you’ve had or haven’t had; it doesn’t matter how well off you are or how well off you’re not.
The truth is everybody needs encouragement no matter how old you are or what you’ve accomplished. Everyone gets tired sometimes, feels lonely and has disappointments. Everybody at some point has failed and everyone has had a really blue day. Sometimes you just wake up and you’re not feeling good at all.
~ Ken Blanchard, one of the great ministers of our time, said, “Encouragement feeds people’s souls”.
Anytime you speak into someone’s life, something that blesses them or builds them up, it’s like feeding a hungry soul. Encouragement is a real gift to the one who has that gift of giving encouragement - and to the one who is receiving it.
The Bible says that encouragement is actually a ministry gift. It’s a gift that God has given to certain people and is also a tool that God has put into the life of every believer so that they can impact people at any time and at any moment.
Romans 12:8 (NLT) - If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly.
At any moment you and I can talk to someone or do something for somebody that builds them up. You may think you’re not the most talented person in the world but you have a mouth and all it takes is a kind word or a bit of inspiration that can change someone’s entire day.
Depending on your version of Romans 12:8, it’s called the gift of encouragement or the gift of exhortation. Literally, it’s speaking into someone’s life. Some people are better at this gift than others but the truth is all of us can work at being an encourager.
Those who are encouragers will make a name for themselves.
Acts 4:36 (NLT) - For instance, there was Joseph, the one the apostles nicknamed Barnabas (which means “Son of Encouragement”). He was from the tribe of Levi and came from the island of Cyprus.
If you become an encourager, you will make a name for yourself that you won’t be able to shake. You will be known as someone who pours into others’ lives.
Barnabas was a priest; that’s what it means when it says he was a Levite.
He came from the tribe of Levi and was a priest that ministered to the nation. Mostly he did it with the sacraments and the sacrifices but there was something that stood out about this man.
Not only did he serve God and do the priestly duties that he was assigned, but there was also something about the Spirit of God that was on his life when he came into contact with other people; they were better for having been around him.
They called him the son of encouragement because whenever he was around people they were blessed. I believe every Christian wants to be that way with others.
Those who encourage others have unleashed a power that can change someone’s life.
There’s a story of a teacher who was always speaking positively to this one boy who struggled tremendously in her class.
He wasn’t the brightest in the class, didn’t have any learning disabilities but wasn’t one of those people who could make straight A’s and not study. He was one of those people who had to work for even the ‘C’ that he got. One day when he was handing in his work, the teacher said, “You know, you’re doing a great job. What are you planning to do when you go to college?” He looked at her and said, “I never really thought about going to college because I have to work so hard to do this, I’m just not smart enough and could never go to the next level”. She looked at him and said, “Son, I want to tell you something, not only are you smart, but when you don’t understand things, you work hard to do it and I believe in you. If you apply yourself, you’re going to go farther than you ever dreamed possible”.
From that time on, that young man’s whole thought began to change. His grades began to come up, he graduated and went on to college. He wound up getting a good job and having a good family. One day he said, “I credit that teacher for turning my life around because she encouraged me that I could and she challenged me to do my best. Because she did, I believed I could and I did”.
Every one of us need someone just like that teacher in our life.
There are people around you right now that no one will speak into their life; people who have been given up on, that no one wants to talk to. But you and I can be life changers.
Sometimes we think that being a Christian who makes the difference means that everywhere we go we have to see the miracles of God follow.
Although his Word says that these signs will follow those who believe, sometimes the simplest thing we can do is just be an encouragement to those who are near us.
That in itself can feel miraculous to the one being encouraged. Encouragement breaths life into a soul.
~ William Arthur Ward, one of the great poets said, - “Flatter me and I may not believe you; Criticize me and I may not like you; Ignore me and I may not forgive you; Encourage me and I will not forget you”.
As we come to the end of summer lets commit to being a “Barnabas” to others. Let’s all be encouragers.
Remember you are precious to God and to us.
Pastor Marvin & Dawn
HCC Monthly Harvest Seed
Romans 1:22-25 - Professing to be wise, they became fools, 23 and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man—and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things 24 Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves, 25 who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.
For some time now I have been hearing God call me to preach a strong prophetic message concerning our days.
The truth is it seems like the entire world has gone mad. Today what was once evil is now good. What once was considered good is now considered evil, outdated, small minded and scoffed at.
People believe that male is female, and female is male and anything else that you want it to be.
Today it is clear that people have exchanged the truth of God’s Word for the lies offered by the devil.
Romans chapter one shows us what a society without God will look like.
Today we are watching the collapse of society all around us. While we stand here in awe and unbelief at what we see going on - it has all happened before. Once mighty empires that people thought would never collapse have. The Romans, the Incas, the Aztecs, the Persians, the Babylonians. All of these were once mighty places that believed the lies of the devil and they are no more. They are no longer with us.
America and many places in the world have allowed the lies of the devil to become their truth. It is causing confusion, crime, and the perversion of so many things that it is leaving the heads of even the unsaved spinning. It is obvious that the world is not in a good place.
There are some things that we need to understand about lies.
These lies are what the devil tells us about God – Like he did with Adam and Eve.
It could be lies that we believe about ourselves. Either how good we think we are, which is pride, or how bad that we think we are. We now live defeated, depressed, and dejected.
We must remember that Satan is the Father of lies and that lies are his native language.
John 8:43-45 (NLT) - Why can’t you understand what I am saying? It’s because you can’t even hear me! 44 For you are the children of your father the devil, and you love to do the evil things he does. He was a murderer from the beginning. He has always hated the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, it is consistent with his character; for he is a liar and the father of lies. 45 So when I tell the truth, you just naturally don’t believe me!
Satan thrives on deception by presenting misinformation to promote a hidden agenda. His plan has been to control people through misdirection, deception, and intimidation.
The problem with deceiving is that it …. Does in fact deceive.
The Bible warns us that in the last days people will not put up with truth and sound doctrine but will gather teachers and preachers around them that will tell them lies and what they want to hear. They will scratch any itch that they want to believe.
2 Timothy 4:3-4 - For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; 4 and they will turn their ears away from the truth and be turned aside to fables.
Deception is a huge problem because people who are deceived are absolutely sure that they are correct, that they are accurate and on the side of truth.
In reality they are not correct. They are living and assuming a false reality. This is why deception is so scary and so effective.
It begins by not staying committed to truly Biblical teaching and believing.
The Bible says that people are drawn away by their own desires and they will turn from the truth and embrace fables. Another word for fable is myth… a widely held but false belief or idea. What gives power to the lie is that there are many people who believe it or…. want to believe it… so they do.
The Bible tells us that many in our day will gravitate toward doctrine that is “Culturally” Acceptable. Even if it does not align with God’s Word. This is called selective hearing.
People with selective hearing drift from the truth and gravitate towards those who tell them what they want to hear. This in turn reinforces what they want to believe which governs the way that they live. This leads to a life of true confusion. They actually believe that good is evil and that evil is good. That light is darkness, and that darkness is light; and that male and female are interchangeable or redefinable.
It is important to understand that deception leads to confusion and confusion leads to delusion which is believing that the truth is a lie and that the lie is the truth. In these days, the Bible speaks about God allowing people to fall into a strong delusion.
1 Thessalonians 2:9-11- The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, 10 and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved.
11 And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie,
I hear people ask today when they see the lies that people are believing – “Don’t these people know that they are delusional?” No, they do not because they are deceived.
The Apostle Paul delt with that in his day.
2 Corinthians 11:3-4 - But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. 4 For if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted—you may well put up with it!
This is something that concerns me as a pastor in our day. People are embracing and putting up with another gospel.
The same deception that deceived Eve is deceiving people today. It has crept into the church and has been cleverly packaged to appeal to the desires of the flesh.
If we leave this problem unaddressed it will continue to weaken the church and allow Satan unfettered control of the world.
We cannot remain silent and we need to grasp the severity of this issue.
We need the discernment of God that will keep us from becoming confused and deceived.
Silence is not an option. We must declare the truth and declare it often so that it counteracts the lies and propaganda that are being told.
Silence communicates agreement and agreement grants permission. We enable deception when we refuse to confront lies.
The Bible says that in the last days because people will not retain God in their knowledge that He will give them over to a debased mind. Different versions say God gave them over to a debased mind, a reprobate mind or foolish thinking. If you're not familiar with the term reprobate, the literal definition in the Greek is failing to pass the test, unapproved, counterfeit.
People today aren’t crazy they are debased. They do not think straight, correctly or in truth. This is rampant in our society at all levels of education and financial spectrums.
The Good news is that we are not crazy either. We are walking in the light of God’s truth.
So, in light of this what are we to do?
Understand the times we are living in. Refuse to compromise ourselves and stay IN the TRUTH. We must refuse to be silent – we must preach and Declare the truth. We must call people individually and our communities and nation – corporately to repentance. If we are in sin We must turn from our wicked ways.
– We must pray and stand in the gap for our nation.
There will be a lot more to unpack when I preach this message. Listen, God is still on the throne. We are still saved and He is coming back soon. In all the turmoil of the World one thing has remained constant. God is still the same – Yesterday, Today and Forever! - You are dearly Loved.
Pastor Marvin and Dawn
Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay
HCC Monthly Harvest Seed
Matthew 6:25-34 - “Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? 27 Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature? 28 “So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; 29 and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31 “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.
I love the opening verse do not worry about your life. What part? Any of it.
Health, finances, relationships, jobs, family and children and grandchildren. God cares about it all.
All of us deal with worry at different times throughout our life.
Worry is part of the arsenal of our enemy. It is designed to steal from us. Harm us. Wear us out. It is used to cause us to deal with things in our mind when we may never ever have to deal with them at all.
Worry is designed to control our thoughts and emotions. It is the dread that convinces us of things that aren’t real. It is designed to come across as fact and is the evidence of a deep fear that things won’t turn out well, that there will not be enough, and that the worst will happen.
It causes us to internally live the worst possible outcomes when God is calling us to trust Him for the best that He has for us. It causes us to experience trauma that most of the time never materializes. How many people suffer from PTSD because they entertained vain imaginations that never became a reality?
Worry can be impossible to turn off on our own. It can affect hours and days of our lives. It is a disruptive force. It will affect our sleep, our attentions span, and our creativity. Worry will affect our relationships. Putting us on edge, causing us to smother those that we love or preventing us from getting close to anyone.
It will rob you of your joy and your confidence. It will make you suspicious of people. Worry is at the root of many health problems. It is a thief.
The goal of worry is o cause us to distrust God, His word, His goodness and His faithfulness. One of the significant results of worry is a profound lack of peace.
Worry is just another word for fear.
Fear has many names, Worry and Anxiety are just two of them. I looked it up and Worry comes in so many flavors that it has 118 synonyms or other words that help to describe the way we express worry. Worry can range from simple concern to an overriding preoccupation that paralyzes your life.
We need to understand that worry is something that we learn to do. Because worry is something that we learn to do it is something that we can unlearn.
Worry is our response many times to life and the things that we can’t control when they don’t go our way. Worry is something we learn to do from experience. Someone once said that “Worry is really our personal irritation with God” because he didn’t do something when we thought he should do it and the way he would do it. This is why worry often leads to anger and frustration. Not just with people but with God.
Matthew 6:27 (AMP) - And who of you by worrying can add one hour to [the length of] his life?
Worry doesn’t add one hour to our day and can’t make us change our stature. As a matter of fact, What Jesus is saying is that worry doesn’t change what is. Worry is actually proven to make people look smaller and worry causes us to waste the precious time we have. Worry doesn’t lighten the load of life it actually increases the weight. This is why they call it being – “Weighted down with Worry”.
There are two quotes that I love about worry.
~ Worry often gives a small thing a big shadow.
~ Worry is like a rocking chair. It gives you something to do but it gets you nowhere.
One of the things that this verse teaches us is that – Control is an illusion.
We don’t have control. To think that we do is to fool ourselves.
It takes a great deal of faith to live this life. God is in control! This is our hope!
One of the great truths of the Bible is that God invites us to exchange our fear and worry for His peace.
Philippians 4:6-7 - Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
Fear is the opposite of peace. The opposite of chaos is calm.
John 14:27 - Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
Jesus is offering us HIS peace. This is a marvelous exchange.
He says – “Let not your heart be troubled.” This means that we allow either trouble or HIS peace into our life.
My prayer this month is that we will enter into a deeper understanding and reality of living in His Peace. May God bless you and your family this summer.
Remember that you are loved.
Pastor Marvin and Dawn
Image by NoName_13 from Pixabay
HCC Monthly Harvest Seed
Deuteronomy 34:4 - Then the Lord said to him, “This is the land of which I swore to give Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, saying, ‘I will give it to your descendants.’ I have caused you to see it with your eyes, but you shall not cross over there.”
Can you imagine Moses getting to see the promised land? Getting to see how good it was. Getting to see the promises that God gave to the Children of Israel that they had held onto for generations and then being told that you would not get to enter into it.
Talk about disappointment. One preacher called Mount Nebo – The Mountain of Disappointment. The truth is all of us have been on that mountain in our life at one point or another. There are times when life just does not go our way or the way we were hoping for. Disappointment is that let down feeling when our emotions bottom out and our faith and trust in God is tested.
It is never easy to deal with disappointment. Let’s just be honest about that. It is not easy to live through. It is real and it will visit us from time to time. Learning to live and work through disappointment will save us from a life of bitterness, sadness and resentment. To understand disappointment, we just need to look at the word. – It implies that we believed that we had an appointment. When we got to the appointment, the place, or a certain thing that was supposed to happen – didn’t happen. The appointment with destiny that you thought you had wasobliterated by the reality of the day. You have been dis-appointed.
Anytime that our hopes are not realized or our expectations or our desires are not fulfilled we can feel disappointment.
Disappointment can be a passing emotion over a temporary loss, or it may impact us powerfully when something permanently changes our lives.
It is important to understand that disappointment is not a sin.
Many of God’s people experience disappointment. Joseph when he was sold into slavery. The disciples were devastated when Jesus was hung on the cross. Hannah was disappointed that she could not have a child. So much so that she went to the temple and cried out to God. Job was certainly disappointed, we read all about his conversations with God. Jobs wife was so disappointed that she told her husband to curse God and die. How we handle disappointments is important.
Disappointments can bring us to a crossroads where we have two options;
All of us have known people who have chosen the road of despair. These men and women have wounds and hurts that are so deep that they are no longer able to accept hope from God’s word or comfort from people who truly love and care for them. They became so wrapped up in frustration and sadness that they no longer trusted what anyone said to them, not even in the Bible.
Disappointment is a trap set by our enemy that is meant to erode our confidence in God and in people. If we are not careful it is easy to grow skeptical of people and cynical about everything. This is when we get in the dangerous position of blaming God for our troubles. Grumbling and complaining. Our prayers become whiny and powerless.
When we get this way, we will never trust people or risk allowing them to get close.
Disappointment often times leads to disobedience to the ways of God. We begin to take things into our own hands and plan our own ways. Never allow disappointment to become disobedience.
When we do this, we no longer are walking in the blessing of God but in His displeasure. We must make sure that we never allow OUR disappointment to become HIS displeasure.
To combat disappointment, we must refuse to doubt.
Disappointment is the first seed of doubt that intrudes on our faith.
It can be the tip of the wedge that will hinder our spiritual growth and make us bitter and defeated.
If doubt festers in us it turns to discouragement, discouragement becomes disillusionment and that leads us to depression and eventually we resign ourselves to defeat.
Keep believing and trusting in God.
2 Corinthians 4:8-9 - We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; 9 persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed—
Dis-appointment in life can quickly be changed by altering our attitude and one letter.
Change dis-appointment to HIS- appointment.
To overcome disappointment, you must allow yourself to grieve.
Grieving is to loss what healing is to sickness.
Grieving is a process. – It is not only ok, but it is necessary to process disappointment.
Never say to a wounded person – “Hey, you shouldn’t be disappointed, snap out of it”.
You don’t just “Get over” disappointment, you work though it with God.
Work through the bitterness, anger, loss, disbelief, and awe that this is happening with God.
Disappointment brings confusion and disorientation. It is good to find your balance and gain your footing.
~ Someone said – Don’t just get over it or it will have the ability to get back on top of you.
Hannah was so disappointed that she couldn’t have children that she cried out to God. She went to the house of God and poured out her heart. She was angry, hurt and confused but she took all of that to God to work on it.
Because she did God blessed her with Samuel AND other sons and daughters.
Naomi lost her husband and her sons. She was so overcome with grief that it changed her so profoundly that she changed her name to Bitter. It is ok to grieve our disappointment, but we must not allow it to change our identity.
All of us at some point in our lives experience disappointment.
My prayer is that for all of us we will learn to trust God and grow through our experiences.
My Friend God desires for us to be better and stronger in all that we have experienced in life. May God heal, restore and refresh you this month.
Remember that you are loved.
Pastor Marvin & Dawn
HCC Monthly Harvest Seed
Matthew 6:14-15 (NLT) - “If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you. 15 But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins.
The issue of forgiveness is at the forefront of all that the Bible teaches.
The entire reason that Jesus came was so that the forgiveness of sins is possible.
Forgiveness, according to the Bible, is understood as God's promise not to count our sins against us. Biblical forgiveness requires repentance on our part (turning away from our old life of sin) and faith in Jesus Christ.
Forgiveness is defined - as a conscious, deliberate decision to release feelings of resentment or vengeance toward a person or group who has harmed you, regardless of whether they actually deserve your forgiveness. To release someone from a debt that they owe you. To lay down anger and hatred and refuse to hold the wrong and hurt that someone caused you against them.
It is a difficult thing many times to forgive those that have wronged us. The truth is that many people have been hurt deeply by others. Many have had abusive parents or an abusive spouse.
People have had unspeakable and unthinkable things done to them and yet Jesus still calls us to forgive.
Matthew 5:44 - But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you,
This past month there was a story circulated on the internet about a pastor who had a heart attack and went to hell. He was shocked at how horrible everything was. But most of all he was angry at God that He was there.
Here is what happened. - "I rose up out of hell and God spoke to me. He said, 'You were secretly angry with people who harmed you and you hoped I would punish them. These are not your people. They are My people. I just want you to focus on the task I have given you.' "A man who cannot forgive is a man who forgot that He was forgiven,"
Forgiveness does not come easily or naturally to any of us. It is not supposed to.
Forgiveness is something that is to be chosen and it is to be learned.
Truly forgiving someone who has hurt, wronged, shamed or used us is a process that we work through with God.
It is a choice and a decision, but it is not a light or trivial thing and it is not supposed to be.
Forgiveness causes us to look at what someone has done to us and honestly and intelligently deal with the fact of how it has affected our life. You can’t effectively heal unless you address the places of woundedness.
It is remarkable how unforgiveness can turn an otherwise nice, kind and caring person into a bitter, angry and fearful individual.
Hebrews 12:15 (NIV) - See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many.
(AMP) - See to it that no one falls short of God’s grace; that no root of resentment springs up and causes trouble, and by it many be defiled;
The word resentment comes from two Latin words that mean to “cut again and again”.
Every time we rehearse a hurt or injustice, or the devil brings up pain or we dwell on our anger and frustration about what was done to us, we are getting cut and reinjured all over again.
This is why the devil loves his tool of unforgiveness. It allows the hurt and pain to feel fresh and new all the time. –
Unforgiveness is not justice, it is torture. It is also murder because each time we feel the pain it reminds us of how we would like the person who hurt us to suffer.
This is why Jesus honestly reminds Peter that forgiveness is not a onetime event. Forgiveness is a process that we must work through until the hurt and pain no longer have an effect on us.
Matthew 18:21-22 - Then Peter came to Him and said, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Up to seven times?” 22 Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.
Our job is to forgive. It is Jesus’ job to do the healing in our lives.
So, every time we feel the hurt, pain and woundedness return we must make a conscious effort to forgive. For some of us, depending on our personality and the level of the hurt it may take a while. It may take 490 times a day for a little while until the work of forgiveness is complete.
Someone needs to hear this – forgiveness is not effortless. Just remember that the effort is not pointless, it will be rewarded.
This month as we celebrate the Resurrection let’s take time to remember how God has forgiven us. Let’s also take the time to forgive those that have hurt us. Let’s release them from their sin and place them into the hands of God. Take time to allow God to heal any areas of your life that have been affected by hurt. The Bible that “He who the Son set’s free is free indeed.
I believe this is going to be a powerful month of forgiveness, healing and redemption.
Remember You are dearly loved.
Pastor Marvin & Dawn
HCC Monthly Harvest Seed
Matthew 8:5-10 - Now when Jesus had entered Capernaum, a centurion came to Him, pleading with Him, 6 saying, “Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, dreadfully tormented.” 7 And Jesus said to him, “I will come and heal him.” 8 The centurion answered and said, “Lord, I am not worthy that You should come under my roof. But only speak a word, and my servant will be healed. 9 For I also am a man under authority, having soldiers under me. And I say to this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” 10 When Jesus heard it, He marveled, and said to those who followed, “Assuredly, I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel!
~ Smith Wigglesworth – Often called the Apostle of faith – “Great faith is the product of great fights. Great testimonies are the outcome of great tests. Great triumphs can only come out of great trials.”
All faith starts out small and then it grows. Just like a seed.
All of us have been given a measure of faith in our lives.
That measure is enough to cause us to be able to receive the Word of God and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.
Romans 12:3 - For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith.
Each of us have been given enough grace (God’s unearned and undeserved favor) to have enough faith to be saved and begin our journey with God humbly.
Ephesians 2:8-9 - For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.
Throughout the Bible and in Jesus teaching we discover that there is a progression of faith.
It goes like this… Little faith, Mustard Seed Faith, More Faith, Much Faith, and Great Faith.
We are not going to spend time on all of these, but the level of our faith is important.
Luke 9:29 - Then He (Jesus) touched their eyes, saying, “According to your faith let it be to you.”
One moment Peter was getting out of the boat and walking on water and the next he took his eyes off of Jesus and was sinking.
One moment Peter was full of boldness cutting off the ear of a servant and within hours was denying Christ.
There are people and places that do not see God do many miracles because their unbelief is stronger than the willingness to receive the Word that is given to them.
Matthew 13:58 (AMP) - And He did not do many miracles there [in Nazareth] because of their unbelief.
A little bit of faith is the substance of big things. This is the entire concept behind Mustard Seed Faith.
Luke 17:6 - So the Lord said, “If you have faith as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be pulled up by the roots and be planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.
The opposite of faith is not fear, it is unbelief.
A little bit of unbelief in God and His Word is a big hinderance.
A little bit of faith in God and His Word and nothing will be impossible for us.
All you need is a little Word, and you have the substance of big things. It is interesting that Jesus often told people that they had little faith.
This means that they didn’t even have enough of His Word in them to contain the substance of a mustard seed.
Before we can know what Great Faith looks life we need to understand – “Little Faith”.
Little faith is faith that is LESS THAN a mustard seed.
Little faith does not understand the basic concept that God loves us and that because He loves us, He will take care of us. Little faith does not understand the concept of covenant love.
Matthew 6:30-34 - Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31 “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.
Peter started out with great faith. He took Jesus up on His Word to “Come”. Then doubt crept in. The reality was in the midst of the storm he walked on water but then Peter looked at the other part of reality and doubt came in.
Doubt is different than unbelief. It believes but it doesn’t believe. It becomes unsure. Little faith is faith that wavers.
There are only two places in the Bible that talks about great faith.
Twice Jesus commends people for their Great Faith. One is a man, and one is a woman.
The interesting thing is that neither of them were Jewish nor Christians.
The first one:
Matthew 8:5-10 - Now when Jesus had entered Capernaum, a centurion came to Him, pleading with Him, 6 saying, “Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, dreadfully tormented.” 7 And Jesus said to him, “I will come and heal him.” 8 The centurion answered and said, “Lord, I am not worthy that You should come under my roof. But only speak a word, and my servant will be healed. 9 For I also am a man under authority, having soldiers under me. And I say to this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” 10 When Jesus heard it, He marveled, and said to those who followed, “Assuredly, I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel!
Great faith takes Christ at his word. – The centurion said only speak the word and my servant will be healed. – Just say the word. Your word is good enough for me. I don’t need anything else.
Those with Great faith understand the authority of Jesus.
For I also am a man under authority, having soldiers under me. And I say to this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”
The centurion understood how authority works. He was a man under authority. He was submitted to authority himself. When he was given orders, he obeyed.
And He was a man of authority. He understood that when a command was given by him, he expected it to be carried out.
Matthew 28:18 (AMP) - Jesus came up and said to them, “All authority (all power of absolute rule) in heaven and on earth has been given to Me.
When Jesus spoke – worlds were created from nothing. That’s authority.
At the name of Jesus every knee shall bow, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the Glory of God the Father.
Those who have great faith don’t walk around giving orders to God. They understand that Jesus is Lord of Heaven and Earth, and His will is done.
Those who walk by faith understand the authority of Jesus.
This month we are going to unpack what it means to have great faith. In this months Harvest Seed we have only looked at a few of the many things that God has revealed to us in His Word concerning the levels of faith.
I am excited about where God is leading us this year as we live – By Faith!
You are loved by God and you have a place here at HCC!
Pastor Marvin & Dawn
Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay
HCC Monthly Harvest Seed
Psalm 145:9 - The Lord is good to all, And His tender mercies are over all His works.
From the time we are young we are taught that God is Good, and God is great.
Notice that - The greatness of God is directly connected to His Goodness.
If we understand the Goodness of God, we will never question the Greatness of God.
It is when we begin to question the goodness of God that we question the greatness, ability, intention, and power of God.
In Church circles we love to Say – “God is Good, - All the Time - and - All the Time – God is Good.”
I Love these things – it is important that we don’t just say them but that we believe them. It is important that we remind each other of the Goodness of God all the time.
I want to ask you – DO you really believe that God is Good? Have you had a revelation of the Goodness of God that has radically affected how you live and believe?
The image of God that we carry in our heart will determine everything about our faith, our peace our joy and our future.
Romans 2:4 - (NLT) - Don’t you see how wonderfully kind, tolerant, and patient God is with you? Does this mean nothing to you? Can’t you see that his kindness is intended to turn you from your sin?
The Gospel is the good news of the Goodness of God. Believing in the Goodness of God is one of the pillars of our faith. Everything that we believe about God flows from this truth that GOD IS GOOD. It is a belief in the goodness of God that leads us to repent of our old ways and sin. We repent because we know it is possible to be in the good graces of God.
It’s interesting how we often associate certain traits of God’s character as “Bad or Hard” Things like His Judgement, anger, justice and wrath. It is important to understand that all of the character traits of God are wrapped up in ONE supremely good being. Theologically this is known as the – Simplicity of God.
God is one. He is not split into different things. He is not a bit of wrath and a little bit of mercy: he is not more judgement and less compassion. Every attribute of God is wrapped up in His Goodness.
Mark 12:29-30 - Jesus answered him, “The first of all the commandments is: ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30 And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ This is the first commandment.
God is ONE. Everything about Him is good.
If God were only powerful, he would be throwing lightning bolts at us like a Greek God, whenever it suited His mood.
Our all-powerful God is also merciful. Psalm 145:8 - The Lord is gracious and full of compassion, Slow to anger and great in mercy. His goodness isn’t soft on one end and hard on the other – it is powerful in all aspects.
Good is WHO God is and WHAT God does.
Because God is good all that He does is good whether it is in Kindness, discipline or in judgement.
Psalm 119:68 - You are good and do good; Teach me Your statutes.
Good – To be morally right in every way, to be excellent in every way. To be perfect in quality and degree.
Goodness – Means being kind, benevolent, to be generous and to give favor towards someone. To be big-hearted and liberal and not stingy.
Tied to God’s goodness is the idea of Faithfulness.
Faithful – Loyal, dependable, reliable, steadfast. It is a picture of a person who is devoted, constant, unwavering and completely and entirely trustworthy.
Lamentations 3:22-24 - Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed, Because His compassions fail not. 23 They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness.
24 “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul, “Therefore I hope in Him!”
One of the reasons that we can depend on the Goodness of God is because He IS Faithful.
2 Timothy 2:13 (AMP) - If we are faithless, He remains faithful [true to His word and His righteous character], for He cannot deny Himself
God will never not be who HE is. He is the great - I AM.
He AM Good and He AM Faithful.
Our life lived BY FAITH is entirely dependent on the goodness and faithfulness of God.
It is the unchanging, constant, stable, unwavering nature of God that causes our trust in Him to grow and stay strong.
He is God and He is entirely Good and completely faithful, and He does not change.
Think for a moment of all that God has done for you! How He has blessed you.
He has been faithful… therefore we can trust Him and not worry – He has a great track record. Those who live – By Faith – count on it.
Those who live by faith have experienced the goodness of God.
Psalm 34:7-9 - The angel of the Lord encamps all around those who fear Him,
And delivers them. 8 Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good; Blessed is the man who trusts in Him! 9 Oh, fear the Lord, you, His saints! There is no want to those who fear Him.
God desires that we experience what happens when we trust Him.
We are to taste and see that the Lord is good. We are to discover how blessed we are when we trust Him.
God provides for us, protects us, heals us, meets our needs.
God invites us to taste and discover His goodness for ourselves.
My Friend in this year of living – By Faith – I believe we are going to become more aware of God’s goodness and faithfulness. If you are still unconvinced of the kindness and love of God, I invite you to taste and see that He is good. To You!
Remember that you are loved,
Pastor Marvin & Dawn
Image by Jill Wellington from Pixabay
HCC Monthly Harvest Seed
Hebrews11:1-6 - Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. 2 For by it the elders obtained a good testimony. 3 By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible. 4 By faith Abel offered to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts; and through it he being dead still speaks. 5 By faith Enoch was taken away so that he did not see death, “and was not found, because God had taken him”; for before he was taken, he had this testimony, that he pleased God. 6 But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
Our faith is the foundation of all that we believe.
Hebrews chapter 11 is often described as “God’s hall of faith”.
These are people that we can look to as an example of what it is to serve God, love God and to make a difference in this world for God.
Faith is at the heart of all that a true Christian is. Christians LIVE -By Faith. Every aspect of our life is lived – By Faith.
2 Corinthians 5:7 - For we walk by faith, not by sight.
True Christians live by faith and not by what they see. They trust God and His Word. Faith is not wishing, it is not positive thinking, it is not manipulating things and circumstances. Faith is the substance of things hoped for. Our faith has substance to it. And it is the substance of faith that gives substance to our lives.
This year our theme is – By Faith. We will be learning to live our lives by faith. To walk BY FAITH and not by Sight.
Today many Christians are living by what they know and see. This year is a call to Biblical living. Faithful living and faith-filled living.
What many consider faith is something that has been humanized. Today much of what is taught about faith is corrupted faith. It is rooted in personal gain or to meet self needs and desires. The faith that is taught is urging believers to ask God to bless them, prosper them and to give them their dreams and desires.
True faith that walks in obedience to God’s Word already understands that they are blessed and walk in favor with God because it stems from a relationship with God.
True faith is born out of intimacy with God.
If the faith we have doesn’t come out of intimacy with God, it really isn’t faith in His sight. True faith comes out of the SUBSTANCE of our intimacy and relationship with God.
It is out of this intimacy that the blessings of faith come.
Hebrews 11:6 - But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
People want to know the secret of having great faith. – There are no shortcuts, no secret formulas. God is a REWARDER of those who diligently seek HIM. People of great faith are people of prayer. Those who spend time in the presence of God.
The presence of God is not a mystical cloud that appears – to be in the presence of God means that we are PRESENT where HE is.
Presence is not a feeling, it is not an anointing, it is PROXIMITY.
James 4:8a - Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.
You only truly get to know someone the closer you get to them. First in physical nearness then in emotional and spiritual nearness.
The reason people of faith are able to walk by faith and see the results of faith are because they stay close to God. –
A life that is lived by faith is a life that is lived near and close to God. Daniel 11:32b - but the people who know their God shall be strong and carry out great exploits.
It is impossible to have faith that pleases God without sharing intimacy with Him.
True faith comes as we desire to know and please the Lord above everything else in our lives.
A life lived by faith is not a life that is lived alone it is lived in relationship with God. It is a bond of faith, a communion that is like a marriage.
A life lived by faith is a life lived together with God. All of it.
Each year we start out on a fresh journey. I am excited about what God is going to do in our lives individually and through us as a church as we truly learn to live – By Faith.
May you and your family be blessed in this New Year. Remember it is a New Year but the Same God! You are Loved-
Pastor Marvin & Dawn
Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay
HCC Monthly Harvest Seed
Happy December and Merry Christmas!
Luke 2:25-29 (NLT) - At that time there was a man in Jerusalem named Simeon. He was righteous and devout and was eagerly waiting for the Messiah to come and rescue Israel. The Holy Spirit was upon him 26 and had revealed to him that he would not die until he had seen the Lord’s Messiah. 27 That day the Spirit led him to the Temple. So, when Mary and Joseph came to present the baby Jesus to the Lord as the law required, 28 Simeon was there. He took the child in his arms and praised God, saying,29 “Sovereign Lord, now let your servant die in peace, as you have promised.
One of the most untold stories of Christmas is what happened forty days after the birth of Jesus. This was when Joseph and Mary went to the Temple with Jesus for the ceremony of purification and dedication and had an encounter with Simeon.
The Christmas story is about real people living real life who are serving a very real God. The stories we read in the Bible are perfect for life today because these people were living everyday life just as we are.
temple when he did.
I don’t want you to miss this. – Simeon was able to walk into a very precious moment with God, simply because he lived each day led by the Spirit of God. –
Don’t miss this. – It is when we walk everyday with the Spirit of God that we are led into extraordinary moments with God.
I want you to notice I said walk not stumble. Those who walk with God don’t stumble into things accidentally they are led there intentionally by the Spirit.
One of the Great Lessons we learn from this story is that being Led by the Holy Spirit isn’t really all that difficult.
Notice that everyone in this story was where they were supposed to be when they were supposed to be there.
Mary and Joseph- They came to Jerusalem 40 days after the birth of Jesus to dedicate him.
Luke 2:21-24 -And when eight days were completed for the circumcision of the Child, His name was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before He was conceived in the womb.22 Now when the days of her purification according to the law of Moses were completed, they brought Him to Jerusalem to present Him to the Lord 23 (as it is written in the law of the Lord, “Every male who opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord”), 24 and to offer a sacrifice according to what is said in the law of the Lord, “A pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons.”
Simeon
Luke 2:27 - So he came by the Spirit into the temple.
Simeon was led at just the perfect moment by the Spirit of God into the Temple.
All of them were just doing what they should be doing.
Being in the will of God is not a matter of luck it is a matter of obedience.
Everyone was doing what God called them to be doing at that point in their lives. This obedience brought everyone together in the same place at the same time.
We get so afraid sometimes about missing the promises of God. Listen the Holy Spirit will lead you right into it.
When you don’t know what you should be doing just do what you should be doing.
I love the saying “If you aren’t doing what you should be doing then you are going to get the very things you don’t want”.
Encounters with the Holy Spirt are commonplace when you learn how to listen and are led by the Spirit of God.
Those who are filled with the Spirit of God are being led even when they don’t realize THAT they are being led.
Proverbs 3:5-6 - Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; 6 In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.
Someone needs to get this – If we are not leaning on our own understanding then that means that we are going to be led in ways that we don’t make sense to us. What we are doing is taking each step, in faith knowing that God knows what He is doing.
When you are Spirit led you will never suffer from FOMO.
FOMO – Fear of Missing Out.
I want you to hear me - if you will be filled with the Spirit, you will be led by the Spirit. If you are led by the Spirit, you will not miss God and you will not miss out on His promises.
Over the years I have met people that are afraid that somehow, they will miss out on what God has for them.
Hear me – If you are living for God – you will not.
Being filled with the Spirit is not just about walking in His power but it is also about walking in His timing. He will lead you where you need to be at the very moment you need to be there.
To many times we over think things. Our obedience and God’s timing will always intersect when it should. This is the essence of being Spirit Led.
Simeon allowed the Holy Spirit to work in His life and because he did God allowed him to be a part of something truly amazing.
Simeon reminds us that we can wait with expectancy when God gives us a promise.
Scripture says that Simeon was eagerly waiting for the consolation of Israel.
It does not say that he was impatiently waiting but that as he went about his days, he did it with hope and expectancy, looking to see when God would keep his promise.
He wasn’t anxious about God’s promise, his impatience didn’t leave him weighed down a heaviness.
Expectancy – The act or action of living with the knowledge that something will happen. Hope that is certain and steadfast. The feeling that something exciting and positive is going to happen. Anticipation that comes with a promise. It is knowing that God is good and will always keep His Word and promises. An eagerness to see God proved true.
God had promised Simeon that he would not die until he had seen the Messiah or the consolation of Israel. God’s peace and comfort for the Nation of Israel and for all mankind.
Christmas reminds us that God is a promise keeper.
Christmas reminds us that if God will fulfill the promise of that first Christmas that He will fulfil every promise that He has given us in His Word.
2 Corinthians 1:20 - For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us.
The fact that Jesus came the first time gives us the hope that He is coming the second time.
The story of Simeon reminds us that God gave a promise of Salvation to all people, and He fulfilled that promise.
My Prayer this month is that you will have a renewed expectancy in the promises of God.
Wishing you and your family a very Merry Christmas!
Pastor Marvin & Dawn