Archive for the ‘Blessings’ Category
26
Dec
Posted by sandhillspastor in Assurance, Blessings, Christian Living, Faith, God's Word, New Year, Praise, thanksgiving, Trials, Uncategorized, Witness, Worship. Leave a comment
A week ago, it was 25 below zero. It has been some time since it was that cold. I remember, just before Christmas in 1983, we had a cold spell that stayed well into January. On top of that, we had a lot of snow that drifted almost every day. It was a test for men, machines and livestock. I’m glad I don’t have to face that again, and I pray for those who do.
This sticks in my mind, partly because of what happened on that Christmas eve. Our neighbors had gone Christmas shopping with their young kids, and made it back to the school house, which was about a half-mile west of our place. It was 20 below zero with a vicious wind-chill. I don’t remember exactly how, but I was able to get in touch by phone with them and offered to bring them to our house. I took the tractor and snow-blower and went to get them. The wind was filling our tracks with snow as fast as we made them, but we made it safely. Our two families then spent all night together.
At 1:00 AM, I woke to find the power had gone off, and went to the shop to get a tractor to power our generator, only to find the tractor’s alternator had a bad bearing. Neighbor Dave held the light and I changed that bearing in record time. Did I mention it was very cold that night? We did get the stand-by generator connected and stayed warm the rest of the night. It was definitely a Christmas to remember. Others have their own memories of that winter.
In those years on the ranch, as I look back, there were many times things worked for good in the middle of some really stressful times. Each one was a reminder of God’s faithfulness to his people, even when they don’t immediately recognize it.
The Psalms speak much of the faithfulness of God. Here are some verses:
“I will sing of the Lord’s great love forever; with my mouth I will make your faithfulness known through all generations (Psalm 89:1). The heavens praise your wonders, O Lord, your faithfulness too, in the assembly of the holy ones (Psalm 89:5).
“For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations (Psalm 100:5).
Happy New Year,
Pastor Jerry
28
Nov
Posted by sandhillspastor in Bible, Blessings, Christian Living, Culture, Faith, God's Word, Truth, Uncategorized, Wisdom. Leave a comment
We had a good Thanksgiving. Family, feasting, and football, combined with nice weather made it a special time.
According to the Oxford Dictionary folks, we are living in a “post-truth” time. What does it mean? In short, it means that feelings and opinions are now more important than truth.
The world may see “post-truth”, the Bible presents a different view. At the trial of Jesus, Pilate asked Him, “what is Truth?” Country singer Johnny Cash recorded a song in 1970 entitled “What Is Truth?” It seems to be question that has echoed through the ages.
God is truth. Jesus Christ is the Truth. The truth is found in the Word of God. The lost people of the world are imprisoned by a great lie. The truth will free them from the darkness, and bring them into the light of God’s truth. To restate; the Bible is truth. Jesus Christ is the Truth. God’s Word is true.
Bishop J.C. Ryle (1816-1900) said, “It (the Bible) has left lasting marks wherever it has been received. From the Bible are drawn many of the best laws by which society is kept in order. From the Bible has been obtained the standard of morality about truth, honesty, and the relations of man and wife, which prevails among Christian nation, and which—however feebly respected in many cases—makes so great a difference between Christians and heathen.”
Speaking of the Lord Jesus, John wrote, “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14).
John 18:37-38: “You are a king, then!” said Pilate. Jesus answered, “You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.”
“What is truth?” Pilate asked.” The truth was standing right in front of him. Jesus had said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6).
The Truth is still there. It has not become obsolete. We have not seen the end of truth. We are far from it. “The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God stands forever.” (Isaiah 40:8).
In Truth,
Pastor Jerry
7
Nov
Posted by sandhillspastor in Bible, Blessings, Change, Christian Living, God's Word, Gospel, Grace, Obedience, Peace, Praise, renewal, Salvation, The Good News, Uncategorized. 2 comments
Well, last week was rather busy. It appears retirement doesn’t leave much time for sitting by the lake, meditating on the scenery. Monday was the church pancake supper, later in the week, I worked on a little project for a friend, and we made two trips to Kearney to visit an old friend in the hospital. Oh, and Saturday we attended a cowboy poets gathering in Comstock. If someone else had written this, I would feel tired, just from reading it. Really though, it was most enjoyable.
Our friend was in the hospital for quadruple by-pass surgery, after suffering a mild heart attack on Monday. We visited him on Wednesday before his operation, and then again Sunday. There was a noticeable difference in his appearance after the surgery, due to the repairs made by the surgeon. You might call it a miraculous change.
This experience brings to mind God’s promise to his people. Because of Israel’s disobedience, the people had been scattered. Now, for the sake of his own holy name, God would bring his people back, and let the nations know that he would restore His relationship with them. Here is the promise he made: “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws…You will be my people, and I will be your God” (Ezekiel 36:26-28).
In the New Testament, the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ provided the way for sinners to have a restored relationship with God. When we place our faith in Him, God changes our hearts, also.
Just as our friend’s appearance was transformed by the surgeon’s skilled hand, so is the Christian transformed by the work of the Holy Spirit, given by the hand of God.
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ…” (2 Corinthians 5:17-18).
Only by placing our faith in Jesus, can we have our hard hearts transformed. Have you experienced this change? Do your friends see a change in you because of your relationship with the Lord?
In Him,
Pastor Jerry
10
Oct
Posted by sandhillspastor in Best Life, Blessings, Christian Living, Faith, God's Word, renewal, Rest, Uncategorized, Wisdom. Leave a comment
I have worked outdoors most all my life, and looking from my current vantage point, I see that my view of the changing of the seasons was more oriented to my work than to the actual God-ordained seasonal changes.
Maybe it is because of another birthday, but I’ve become more aware of the gradual transition between those seasons. Lately, I’ve noticed a subtle change taking place as summer makes way for fall. Leaves turn from green to gold, temperatures cool, and the winds are becoming more northerly. Nature seems to be taking a short rest in anticipation of the changes ahead. There is a quietness to the mornings and evenings that wasn’t there in the hot summer months.
We have the idea that the seasons change quickly, but that is a misconception. There are slow, but inevitable signs of coming change. It is much the same in our own lives. We don’t suddenly wake up some morning and discover we are teen-agers. Likewise, we don’t arrive at old-age overnight. There is constant change, leading up to each stage of life.
It is the same with our spiritual life. It seems as we get older, there is a new awareness of the changing seasons of our lives. God has a plan for each person, and there are seasons of change as he brings us to maturity. When we become Christians, we do not stay the same. There are stages of growth, each one leading to another, until he takes us home to heaven.
It was King Solomon who wrote “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven” (Ecclesiastes 3:1).
In his book “The Seasons of God”, Richard Blackaby reminds us there are seasons in our lives. They aren’t all about just being born, living to a ripe old age and departing from this life. Instead, he focuses on the fact that just as in nature, the seasons keep repeating throughout our individual lives. At each stage in life, we each move from a beginning to an ending, only to move on to another beginning, and so on.
Here is the problem; as we go through life, we get caught up in our labors and our own self-effort, and fail to see those seasons. In particular, we overlook what God is doing in us, for us, and through us.
Reflecting,
Pastor Jerry
29
Aug
Posted by sandhillspastor in Blessings, Culture, Families, Family of God, Fellowship, Forgiveness, Gospel, Praise, Uncategorized. Leave a comment
Dear friends,
We spent the weekend reconnecting with family, some of whom we haven’t seen for most of twenty years. It was a good time, a perfect day, and an ideal location. It always interests me to see how well we have all aged (or not). I enjoyed the little kids and their exuberance for life. Then there are the older kids; they appear to be mostly bored and wishing they were home with their friends. And the old people? They just tell stories of how it used to be.
Family is one of those things the Lord has blessed us with, that too often we forget. It shouldn’t take a family reunion, wedding, or the funeral of a member of the family to get us together. In the “old days”, our families were not separated by distance as much as today, and yet with all the means we have available to stay in touch, it seems harder to stay connected. I don’t necessarily have any answers; I’m just thinking out loud here.
Time is fleeting. Life is short. We need to stay in touch, at least occasionally, because we have no guarantee that any of us will be here next week, or next year. This might be the time to remind ourselves if there is a broken or damaged relationship somewhere in our family, it is time to start the mending process. It would be better to have restored a relationship than a lifetime of regret for not doing so.
Today (Monday), I will check in at the hospital for a CT scan. It is just over a year since I had the medical emergency and night-time ride in the medical helicopter. The scan will tell the doctor if all is well, and if the medication is doing its job. This could be the reason for the thoughts on family and relationships this week.
I’ll leave you with two biblical references regarding our plans and the brevity of life: “What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes… “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live…” (James 4:14-15). “All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord stands forever” (Isaiah 40:6-8).
Just thinking,
Pastor Jerry
15
Aug
Posted by sandhillspastor in Baptism, Bible, Blessings, Christian Living, Eternal Life, Faith, Family of God, Freedom, Gospel, Obedience, Praise, Repentance, Salvation, The Good News, Uncategorized, Witness. Leave a comment
I hope you are enjoying these late summer days. We have had some nice rains here, and the crops and pastures are in great condition. God is good, but not just in the good times, He is still good in whatever bad times we might go through. We were blessed this past Sunday, to attend a baptismal service at one of our area rivers. I had the privilege several years ago, of hearing a young lady ask Jesus Christ into her life. On that day, she and two others followed the Lord’s example, being baptized by immersion in the river. What a blessing it was to be there and see their obedience to God’s word.
On a somewhat related topic, do you remember the guy in the commercial who, when asked if he had ever done heart surgery, answered, “No, but I stayed at a Holiday Inn Express last night!” How many people know the terminology of a process or procedure, but have no personal experience in that thing?
I fear there are some who claim to be Christians, and know all the right words, but have no personal knowledge of the Lord Jesus or of his teaching. They have some idea that they need to do good deeds, or get their lives in order, before they are acceptable to God. They learn from their Christian friends some of the terminology, and how a Christian is to live, but they are depending on these things for their salvation.
The simple truth is, God will only accept us on His terms, that we take by faith the gift of salvation provided by the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross. There is no way to the Father except through Jesus Christ the Son of God. (John 14:6).
The apostle Peter preached a sermon at Pentecost that had people asking “brothers, what shall we do?” Peter’s answer was, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins.” (Acts 2:38).
The proper sequence it this: Admit you are a sinner. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. Repent; that is turn from your sin. Then be baptized as a public witness to a changed life. Died to sin, raised to new life in Christ. It’s that simple. Is this your testimony, as well?
Blessings,
Pastor Jerry
8
Aug
Posted by sandhillspastor in Bible, Blessings, Change, Christian Living, Faith, Freedom, Giving, God's Word, Possessions, Praise, Stewardship, Uncategorized, Wisdom. 1 comment
We have appreciated the cooler weather of the last few days. I have no personal fishing report yet, although I did see some really nice largemouth bass that two ladies had caught Friday afternoon.
I find we are still having to deal with years of collecting things we thought we had to have. In fact, due to the amount of stuff we still possess, we have purchased another piece of property here at the lake. We will now have a place to keep our “overflow”, that is the tractor and its attachments, the little pontoon boat, golf cart, etc. This does not mean we have found the answer to the problem of having these things, downsizing must continue.
I am continually reminded of scripture that warns of letting material goods take first place in our lives. Note: It’s not my wife that keeps reminding me, she has stuff, too. Could it be the Spirit of God tapping me on the shoulder, saying “enough already”?
As I talk with other people, I find we are not the only ones dealing with the abundance of things not needed. Many of us are having this struggle. What is the answer to this? God’s word has some suggestions.
“If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me” (Jesus, speaking to the rich young man in Matthew 19:21). “A man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions” (Luke 12:15). In the follow-up to his story of the rich man who built more bins to hold his grain, Jesus had this advice for his disciples, “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. Life is more than food, and the body more than clothes” (Luke 12:22-23).
Here is a final thought on this subject. I read this statement a few years ago, and it comes to mind now. “Someday, all your valued possessions will fit in a small drawer in some nursing home.”
Blessings,
Pastor Jerry
25
Jul
Posted by sandhillspastor in Assurance, Bible, Blessings, Eternal Life, Eternity, Faith, God's Word, Gospel, Salvation, The Good News, Uncategorized. Leave a comment
It’s been a hot week, but there are cooler days ahead. I was able to spend a little time fishing one day last week, but had no success. Maybe I can get serious this week…one can only hope. We would like to spend some time exploring some of our state parks before winter. Cooler weather might provide the incentive to get started.
Every now and then, the question is posed on Facebook, “Do you think our nation has forgotten God?” I don’t think it takes a lot of study to answer a resounding YES! The world at large has no concept of God as creator and sustainer of life.
We have indeed forgotten God. Romans 1, beginning at verse 18 describes the culture of today. As I read these verses, Paul is painting a picture of today’s society. Let’s look at this passage together: “The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse” (Romans 1:18-20). The rest of the chapter describes these godless people in words that are descriptive of people today.
In addition to those who deny God altogether, are people who are trying to please God by doing good works. They will not acknowledge Him for who He is, but try to gain His favor through good deeds. It is a little like trying to win the lottery by buying more tickets in the hope of improving your odds of winning, except that the odds of winning God’s favor are zero.
Hebrews 11:6… And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”
Acknowledging and obeying God are not only beneficial in this life, there is an eternal element. In this life, the Christian has the assurance of heaven, but also there are rewards that will last for eternity.
It’s been said before, no one is guaranteed tomorrow. Choose God, trust Christ, be saved today.
In His love,
Pastor Jerry
4
Jul
Posted by sandhillspastor in Assurance, Best Life, Bible, Blessings, Christian Living, Eternal Life, Faith, Freedom, Gospel, Praise, Salvation, The Good News, Uncategorized. Leave a comment
Independence Day! Let Freedom Ring! Patriotic greetings from our place to yours. Some of you will read this on the Fourth of July, some will read it in the newspaper later. I need deadlines to get things done, but sometimes they are inconvenient. When writing for newspapers, deadlines get moved, so I am actually writing this on July 1.
Independence and freedom can mean different things to different people. Every kid wants to be independent. Everyone wants to be their own “boss”. Freedom, to most people means being free to do as they please, all of the time. These are not exactly the true meanings of independence and freedom.
You see, both independence and freedom involve a degree of responsibility. Independence Day commemorates our country’s achieving independence and gaining freedom from English rule, but with that independence came the responsibility for the new government to care for its people.
Freedom came to the people of America at great cost, and it also carries the responsibility to be good citizens. Those responsibilities include obedience to the law, and support of our government leaders, among others.
The Bible speaks of freedom. It refers to freedom in the sense of the relationship of a free people to their leaders, as they submit to governmental and civil authority. “Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every authority instituted among men…Live as free men, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as servants of God” (1 Peter 2:13-16).
Then, there is the concept of the Christian’s being freed from the bondage of sin. This happens when a person trusts in Jesus Christ, who died to set people free from their sins. “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery” (Galatians 5:1).
What then, are the responsibilities of one who has been set free from sin? James gives this advice: “Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom” (James 2:12). Paul cautions his readers to “be careful, however, that the exercise of your freedom does not become a stumbling block to the weak” (1 Corinthians 8:9).
“He (God) has sent me (Jesus) to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and… to release the oppressed” (Luke 4:18).
Free in Him,
Pastor Jerry
23
May
Posted by sandhillspastor in Bible, Blessings, Culture, Eternal Life, Family of God, Fellowship, Freedom, God's Word, Gospel, Marriage, Obedience, Sin, The Good News, Truth, Uncategorized. 1 comment
Over the weekend, we participated in the wedding of a great young couple. I would describe it as a perfect example of marriage, as defined in the Bible. Two young people, committed first of all to their Lord, and then to each other. Congratulations to Adair and Anita Ballagh. You have set the bar high for those who are watching.
I enjoy the early part of the day; those first hours after sunrise are the best. Sunday morning, I was listening to a sermon by Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones. He had some good thoughts that apply to current times, maybe even more so today than when he preached.
He related that in his time, people were asking, what is the reason for the violence and all the unrest that is going on? His one-word answer to the question was this: Ungodliness! We do not have to look very far today, to see that he is right. In a godless society, immorality rises, when men exhibit godly behavior, morality returns.
According to Dr. Lloyd-Jones, when people turn their backs on the Bible, its instruction concerning morals, and the gospel of Jesus Christ, immorality is rampant. I ask, is this not a picture of society in our day?
We are failing to see the real problem, and in doing so, we miss the remedy. People who behave badly are told to “just be good.” If that doesn’t work, some try medication, or someone suggests it is a psychological problem and they call in mental health people to find the cause.
Here is the truth: The problem is the same as it has been since the Garden of Eden. Sin! People just can’t be “good.” Do you remember what the scripture says about being good? “There is no one righteous (good), not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God…. there is no one who does good, not even one” (Romans 3:10-12).
John the Baptist introduced Jesus as “the Lamb of God who comes to take away the sin of the world” (John 1:29). “No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God’s seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God” (1 John 3:9).
So then, the answer to the problem of sin in the world is Jesus Christ!
Standing on His Truth,
Pastor Jerry
