FOR THE LOVE OF GOD

Just a Short Something to Contemplate . . . . .

Posted on June 26, 2014 by Roland Ledoux

This has been on my mind for a bit and I plan to do a study that is a little more in depth, but for now . . . . .

In our society, we’re witnessing the decline of conscience. Yes, CONSCIENCE! You can add it to a growing list of either endangered or extinct behaviors along with “common” sense, chivalry, respecting authority, etc., you get the picture.

It’s concurrent with the unfashionability and political incorrectness of certain traditional beliefs associated with Christianity and Judaism. Does anybody see a connection yet? If you subscribe to these traditional beliefs, you are immediately stereotyped as a wild-eyed fanatic, someone to be feared, someone to be put on a watch list, very similar lists that are cropping up in many of America’s public organizations, someone labeled an “extremist” and all just for believing a message that’s been accepted by millions of people for centuries before us. Yet, exactly concurrent with today’s declining conscience has been the subsequent increase in crime, hate, unethical behavior, corruption and apathy, all accompanied by the public trashing of this traditional faith. I say again, doesn’t anyone see a connection? The only group that it’s actually “politically correct” to hate, is the group that still holds to these traditional beliefs.

The ideology of some has been that conscience has become something to be purged at all cost. According to the philosophical gurus of today, conscience is an aberration of the mind. If it feels good, do it! No consequences to worry about! No wonder we have children killing children and seeing nothing wrong with it. But conscience for the unredeemed is like a pain receptor, only for the soul. It is meant to be a check, a red flag that something in my nature may be wrong.

If a person deadens all pain in the physical, sooner or later you’ll lean against a hot stove and burn your hands and fingers. Or maybe cut yourself with broken glass and bleed to death. If you deaden your conscience by ignoring the “checks”, you’ll eventually find the rest of your mind, your thought processes, in a similar situation. Conscience to the unredeemed is like conviction or convincing (by the Holy Spirit) to the Christian. It is the stop-gap by which the soul is letting your mind know something must change for the better.

Most Christians can look back and see that it was a check or some emotional pain, that led them to seek out something better which was to be found in the redemptive quality of our Savior, Christ Jesus. As Christians, we trade in conscience, which can be deadened and become ineffective as a warning tool for the psyche, for the Holy Spirit’s conviction (convincing of “rightness”) which is stronger than conscience because of God’s grace and mercy that motivates it, AND the fact that when you surrender your WILL to the Lord, His presence AND His voice will never leave nor forsake you. Following are some Scriptures that illustrate the danger of allowing one’s conscience to become deadened.

Romans 1:28 And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting;
29 being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness; they are whisperers,
30 backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,
31 undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful;
32 who, knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice such things are deserving of death, not only do the same but also approve of those who practice them. (NKJV)

God Bless each and every one of you mightily in Christ Jesus!

Posted in Food For Thought | Tagged Bad Behavior, Behavior, Bible, Choices, Conscience, Conviction, Convincer, Holy Spirit, Instruction, Pain, Political Incorrectness, Religion, Romans, Scriptures, Spirituality, Teaching | 2 Comments

I Believe – I KNOW

Posted on June 23, 2014 by Roland Ledoux

This is a condensed version of something I taught a few years ago and I happened across it today and realized, it was something that seems to be even more relevant in this day and time of not only my country, but in the world, due to circumstances transpiring before our eyes in the Middle East and seemingly all over.

“You believe that God is one. You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder. But are you willing to recognize, you foolish fellow, that faith without works is useless? For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead.”–James 2:19-20, 26.

Sometimes I get to sounding like a broken record, and especially those who know me, for I have a tendency of touching on some of the same things over and over, but something I learned when I went to Tech School for my degree in the secular work force, is that repetition is the best form of teaching. You teach something, move forward on to something else, then go back and repeat what you taught up to that point, reminding your listeners of the important points. It is similar to taking two steps forward and one step back each time. You don’t move forward real fast, but you sure “drill” the point home!

So it is no surprise and it is still amazing to me what I see the Holy Spirit wanting to say to those that claim to be Christians. Jesus forewarned us in the Gospel of Matthew that many in the last days would come not only claiming to be the Christ or Messiah, but that many would also come in His name, and that we were to be on guard against those that come falsely. We have seen in previous studies that the Apostle John has told us to “test the spirits” to see whether they come from God.

This has been something that we have been not only lax to do, but sometimes rather hesitant because of the teaching that we have received. We have a tendency to believe that if I make a determination about the truth of something or someone, I am judging and therefore non-Christ like. I believe we have been duped by the enemy into believing half-truths because of our lack of studying on behalf of the gospels.

Now, forgive me if I am sounding a bit too critical. That is not my intention, but rather, it is my attention to cause you to think about finding the balance that is entrusted to us throughout the WHOLE scriptures. For every responsibility that we are given in the Word of God, we are given the balance so as to not go to an extreme. Either we become condemning, notice I didn’t use the word judgmental, or we become apathetic and complacent. Either extreme is a compromise to the Holy Word of God.

The reason this seems so apropos, is that in the light of the recent attacks on America, they were done because, by the terrorists who pervert the truth of Islam, we are a Christian nation and an abomination. In fact, any nation who sides with us is considered to be on the side of Christianity as opposed to what they purport is Islam.

My challenge to you is this: it is easy to SAY you are a Christian, but in actuality are you what you say? That brings us to the key scripture for this lesson stated above. James was actually talking to some Christian leaders of his day when he made the statements that are found in the second chapter of his letter. When you read those few verses, he certainly comes on strong, and by today’s standards he would be considered critical and judgmental. Yet, the Word of God stands strong and true to this day.

You know that old saying, my father-in-law used to quote it all the time, “Actions speak louder than words.” At the time, dad was not so well versed in scripture, but he had a lot of common as well as spiritual sense, and it was a common quote. But isn’t it amazing that we have adopted that quote down through the decades at least, and we take stock in and believe what it means. That is what James was trying to get across to religious leaders of his day, to those that claimed they were Christians.

He wrote this Epistle or letter at a time when many Christian leaders had already become lax in their responsibilities and accountability. It was a time when many in the growing early church were becoming used to the prestige and honor that was bestowed upon the leaders of the early church. Many would gather and take the best seats as well as the best choices of food as many ate gathered together. At the same time it was also at a time when many were being persecuted for their beliefs and being martyred for the same. Because of the persecution that was overtaking many, many needs were not being met.

Today, there are many who do believe in Jesus. In fact in the true Islamic faith, Jesus is recognized for being a great teacher, a messenger of God (just not the last one), but in that religion, not as the Son of God and definitely not God incarnate. Jesus was an historical figure. Anyone who was to say that the Jesus who was born to Mary, the wife of Joseph was not a real person would probably be looked upon as someone who crawled out from a cave.

But that belief alone is not enough to assure those that believe a place in the Father’s Kingdom. James boldly stated that even the demons believe. We certainly do not believe that they are assured salvation, for the scriptures are very clear about their final outcome. Their works belie the fact of a belief in His redemptive authority and power.

When we believe with total certainty the actuality of something, our actions demonstrate that belief. For example, when you walk into a darkened room in your house, you instinctively reach for the light switch with full expectation that when you flip that switch on, there will be light. You do not analyze the situation, because through what you have been taught, in conjunction with experience, you KNOW that when you flip that switch, light will shine forth. You know it, you don’t give it a seconds doubt. In fact, it is so profound a belief that when a light has blown or a circuit is broken, it actually throws you for a second or two. You know what I am talking about. Everyone experiences this normal yet simple task. You never enter that room and before you throw the switch, think to yourself, I hope the light isn’t burnt out, I hope the circuit breaker isn’t blown, what happens if this doesn’t work, etc. You have come to know that when that switch is thrown, light appears.

That in it’s simplest form is what James is talking about. If you let doubts pervade your thoughts your actions would be frozen and you would never even consider throwing that switch. You couldn’t will the light to come on as if by some magic formula. Just knowing how the circuits work that allow the electricity to the bulb wouldn’t be enough to activate the light. Speaking to the room or switch or light source wouldn’t accomplish anything; you had to do something to make it all come about. So it is with our faith, our belief.

When we have come to the point, through teaching in conjunction with experience, that it is no longer just a matter of believing something, but it has matured to the point of KNOWING something, our faith is acted upon. You no longer analyze your circumstances; you don’t stop and think, “I believe this way so I must do this thing,” rather you just do and your life demonstrates by action what it is you do believe. Anyone who spends anytime around you will know what you believe. Your actions DO speak louder than your words!

In Christian circles today, we have relegated speaking to a high art form. Hey listen, I’m a preacher, I know, at least to some degree, what it takes to captivate or hold a crowd. But, in the process of relying so much on speech, we have forgotten the importance and overall necessity of actions.

James says it well in verses 15 through 17 of the same chapter, “If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, and one of you says to them, ’ “Go in peace, be warmed and be filled,”’ and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that? Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself.”

“Go in peace, be warmed and filled!” That is almost like reciting a magic formula or a spell. The words are there, but there is no substance. And, this is one instance where the saying, “it’s the thought that counts,” has absolutely no value. Faith or belief, like so many other Godly attributes demands action for it to be what it is claimed to be, and to the world at large, actions do speak louder than words.

Let’s take this one step further. What I am about to say next may cause a bit of controversy; my intent is not to do that but to help illuminate the Scriptures to your spirit. Are you relying on a few words or phrases that you may have once said, to secure your place in heaven? Are you believing that those “magical” words alone opened the doors to an eternity of bliss? Or, was the commitment you made at the time you knelt before the Savior enough to allow Him to change you into a totally different person? If someone who never knew you were to spend a day with you, would they see a unique individual, or just one who talks about high and mighty things? Would that person know what you believe by spending time with you in silence?

James, Peter, Paul, and John, as well as all the other disciples who walked and talked with Jesus didn’t just believe in what He said. Yes, granted, it started out as belief, but it soon became solid knowledge, and that is what has made their testimonies so dynamic, so alive with power and authority. As we mature, and yes, we all mature at different rates, we must go beyond just believing, we must go beyond just the sayings, we must come into the knowing or the knowledge. That knowing, or knowledge becomes a definite certainty, and it is that very knowledge that makes us act the way we act. The more we know, truly know, the more we act in that knowledge.

Paul said it this way, “And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping (actions) of the saints for the work (actions) of service, to the building up (actions) of the body of Christ; until we all attain to the unity of faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ.”–Ephesians 4:11-13 (bold emphasis mine).

That is why we preach and teach and exhort and prophecy to all and any who would listen. We must equip the saints so that we all can do the work. So that we all can act in their lives. We serve one another. We serve those that are less fortunate. We do so out of love, which requires us to act. Our service to one another actually builds, strengthens, fortifies the Body of Christ. The reason? So that we all, meaning not one left behind, we all attain a oneness of faith in the Son of God, Jesus Christ and we come to the knowledge (full certainty, beyond doubt) of Him. That knowledge is not a head knowledge of some historical person, but rather the intimate heart knowledge that goes with a personal, in depth relationship; that’s called intimacy. That takes action. I know that is what the Body of Christ, the Bride is to be. An intimate, living, powerful and dynamic force that is preparing for the day of the coming Bridegroom. Just talk? Not in my life! Hopefully, not in your life either.

So, let’s not just only talk about it anymore, talk is fine to encourage one another, and it can be a great service in edifying or uplifting one, but let’s transform that talk and GET to work! How? By using the very gifts and the desires to serve that the Holy Spirit has placed into each of the Father’s children, the disciples who don’t just say, they follow after Christ Jesus, but the ones who truly do!

God bless you all so very sincerely!!

Posted in Vintage Messages | Tagged Bible, Bible Teaching, Body of Christ, Christ Jesus, Church, Communion, Encouragement, Faithfulness, God, God's Love, Gospels, Heavenly Father, Holy Spirit, Holy Word, Inspiration, Jesus, Lord, Love, Ministry, Religion, Scripture, Service, Spiritual Intimacy | 1 Comment

Prayer IS Powerful & Works!

Posted on June 23, 2014 by Roland Ledoux

1 Chronicles 5:20b, ——-for they cried out to God in the battle. He heeded their prayer, because they put their trust in Him.

2 Chronicles 14:11, And Asa cried out to the LORD his God, and said, “LORD, it is nothing for You to help, whether with many or with those who have no power; help us, O LORD our God, for we rest on You, and in Your name we go against this multitude. O LORD, You are our God; do not let man prevail against You!”

Psalms 22:5, They cried to You, and were delivered; They trusted in You, and were not ashamed.

Proverbs 18:10, The name of the LORD is a strong tower; The righteous run to it and are safe.

I want to share with you an AWESOME praise report on the power of prayer! Now, I can’t go into real specifics because of ongoing prayer and circumstances, but I can tell you about the MIRACLES that our Heavenly Father still performs today!

You might look at this opening and say something like, “Pastor Roland, Miracles, is kind of a strong term to be using in this day and age. Or, maybe luck or coincidence prevailed.”

Let me tell you something first, I will be 62 years old in August. I have been attempting to serve and live for the Lord since I was a young 17 years old. Yes, I have stumbled from time to time as a young man, but in ALL those years and with the experience that I have accumulated these past decades, there is NO ONE or no science that could or ever would convince me in, number one, luck or coincidence (don’t believe in it) or number two, that our God, our Heavenly Father, doesn’t answer prayer today!!

But, this isn’t a teaching on prayer, rather it is a PRAISE report to God’s mighty hand of power AND HIS unlimited love!!

We have a dear friend who has for more than the last seven years, been dealing with one crisis after another. It is like a monsoon storm almost every day, except in this case, the monsoon doesn’t pass! When you are in the middle of that kind of turmoil and darkness, sometimes it is hard to see, let alone believe that there is any light to be found.

But—just as Christ Jesus quieted the stormy seas for the disciples that were with him on that turbulent sea, He still brings, light, hope and love to any situation to which we are willing to GIVE to Him and to trust Him with!

This friend has asked us to pray for their family and all the circumstances surrounding them. It almost looked hopeless that there could even begin to be any resolution. Part of the circumstances were literally a matter of life and death, both naturally AND spiritually!

This is why I say that MIRACLES still happen. By definition, a miracle is something that happens outside the norm or outside of nature. In other words, it can be defined as something that by most standards would be considered “impossible!” But, with GOD Almighty, “ALL things are possible!” No truer words were ever written or spoken!

We just received a report last night, that one of the major circumstances in their family turned around almost 180 degrees, and even more than that, it astounded those who are “experts” in this particular area and has actually drawn more to this particular situation because of the enormity of the turn-around!

God knows what is on our hearts before we can even ask; that IS intimacy at its ultimate! When we take time out of our lives, when we “lay our lives down, or aside for another,” the Bible tells us that is the “demonstration” of love at its greatest!

We have personally known of the circumstances that has demanded prayer. We have seen the toll it has taken on our friend, a toll that goes back even BEFORE we knew them! Yet, when our loving Heavenly Father takes care of a situation, HE takes care of the WHOLE situation and everything and everyone who is encompassed or involved in it!

This report received is awesome, but even in its awesomeness there is still more prayer needed. Yet—because a LIGHT has been seen in the midst of this turmoil, faith has been strengthened, assurance has increased AND LOVE is abounding!!

You may think that I am embellishing this a bit, but I tell you in all honesty, if you knew the situation you would NOT think it embellishing; AND this is what makes it such a Praiseworthy report! This demonstrates beyond a shadow of any doubt, God’s love in ACTION! After all, that IS what true love is, an action, and we see God’s love continually displayed in the lives of His creation and the children He calls His own!

God DOES still answer prayer and when He does, miracles of one degree or another are ALWAYS involved! Over-dramatizing it? No way, not when you have seen God’s handiwork for decades! This is why I Praise, Exalt, Glorify AND yes Magnify (not the situation or even the answered prayer) but God, our Father Himself and Christ Jesus who gives us authority in not only asking these requests, but also doing so BOLDLY before His throne!!

I LOVE the Lord with everything I have and am and even at that, it is sadly not enough. But being WHO HE is, He lovingly accepts our praise and the love we do have to give! My hope today, is that this cryptic example can and will give you inspiration, encouragement, strength, stamina AND hope in your requests before the Father Who truly DOES watch over each and every one of us!!

May this day, shine the Father’s LOVE, Mercy and Grace upon each of you this day! That is my prayer for all those who read this! God bless you each, so very abundantly!

In Christ’s Love; Pastor Roland

Posted in Prayer and Praise | Tagged Calmed the Sea, Christ Jesus, Exalt, God Almighty, Going Boldly, Heavenly Father, Hope, Hopelessness, Jesus, Love, Magnify, Miracles, Praise, Prayer, Storms, Turmoil, Word of God | 1 Comment

A Wish For You Today

Posted on June 21, 2014 by Roland Ledoux

(Or Tomorrow)

Today…I wish you a day of ordinary miracles.

A fresh pot of coffee you didn’t have to make yourself.

An unexpected phone call from an old friend.

Green stoplights on your way to work or shop.

I wish you a day of little things to rejoice in…

The fastest line at the grocery store.

A good sing along song on the radio.

Your keys right where you look.

I wish you a day of happiness and perfection, little bite-size pieces of perfection that give you the funny feeling that the Lord is smiling on you, holding you so gently because you are someone special and rare.

I wish You a day of Peace, Happiness, Joy and Love.

It’s been said that it takes a minute to find a special person, an hour to appreciate them, a day to love them, but then an entire life to forget them.

God Bless you ALL so very richly!

Posted in Food For Thought | Tagged Appreciation, God Bless, Happiness, Joy, Love, Peace, Perfect Days, Thoughts for Today, Wish for You | 1 Comment

My Sincere Prayer For All of You Today!

Posted on June 17, 2014 by Roland Ledoux

Gracious, Mighty and Merciful, Heavenly Father, I come to you today with an open heart, my mind set upon You and all Your wondrous ways! Truly there is none like You Lord and this truth is ever present before us!

Your wisdom and knowledge dear Father is beyond imagining and we can only guess at the heights to which Your LOVE is expressed to us. If we allow our spirit to see and allow Your Spirit to show us, we can see Your love in everything created! When I look at the stars, I see Your wisdom and love for us, mere humans who don’t deserve and yet who are subject to all You have for us! We are ever in awe of your Majesty!

My precious Father, I come to you for each and every person that You in Your great wisdom and love has brought our way! Whether they are active here today or just stopped through one time and gleaned from what You prepared for them for this day, I lift them up to YOU! I do this as an honor to You and as a demonstration of my love for You and for them, my brothers and sisters, created in Your likeness!

I know that You already have Your hand upon each of them and that You have prepared the paths before them with all the knowledge You had of them before You created this very world for us! Father, Precious Guide and Counselor, reveal to all Your children how much You care for them and wish only the best for each and every one. Let Your children realize and bask in the assurance and security that the knowledge of Your foresight is a blessing to each one of us individually and something that we can have great confidence in.

Father, for those that are ill, sick in body, sick in heart, those that are lost in their feelings, allow Your Holy Spirit, our Comforter and Teacher, to reveal to them just how much You truly DO Love and care for each of them. Only You have the power and ability to love each of us individually more than anything else in the universe! We can’t even begin to comprehend it and yet Your Word is Truth and has no shade of falsehood, so we choose to believe in that love that is unfathomable and yet unquestionable!

Your will is ever sovereign and Your wisdom is beyond compare! We trust in Your ability to keep us in the palm of Your hand no matter what our physical situations appear. Your Grace is always sufficient to sustain and yes to empower us to continue in You! For those that are suffering, help us, their brothers and sisters and their neighbors to share in their burdens. Increase the capacity for love in each of our hearts that we may truly share and be a strength to one another, not just in times of need but at ALL times!

For those who have slighted us, whether intentional or not, give us the wisdom, the strength to demonstrate our love for your creation by forgiving them and forgiving them sincerely without recourse. Teach us HOW TO forgive. Strengthen us to forgive. Empower us to forgive. We CHOOSE Your way over ours. Your Word tells us too, it shows us that in forgiveness is freedom and liberty! Forgive all those that we feel took advantage of us and let the love of that forgiveness shine forth in action so that it is not just a string of words but life to the other!

We ask that You forgive us for our sinfulness to our neighbor, to our brothers and sisters. We ask that Your Holy Spirit, the Convicter, the Convincer of our faith, illuminate our hearts and minds and reveal any hidden areas that need to have light shed upon them! When You reveal to us whom we have slighted, empower us with Your love to sincerely apologize and repent to our brother or sister whom we may have hurt!

Your Kingdom, Your Sovereignty is based on righteousness; right-standing in Christ, Jesus our Redeemer! Help us to be the light, the beacon on the hill, the lighthouse necessary for those encompassed by the storms of life to see their way through the darkness that the enemy of this world has blinded them with! Help us that the process of shedding light, of clearing a way through the darkness is not found in mere words, but in actions. A light chases away the darkness. It is action, it is progressive. Help us to be that active light in a world of ever increasing darkness. Help us to remember that it is our actions that empower the light to shine in the lives of others!

Above all, you see our hearts and sincerity; above all, let Your will be accomplished in our lives, in our gifting’s, in our relationships with one another, in all that we say and do. May You be proud of your sons and daughters just as You were of our Example that You sent us when You proclaimed, “This is My Son in Whom I AM well-pleased!” May we only boast of our Gracious Father and all You do!

We ask these things per Your instructions, per Your teaching and Your Will. We seek these things in the Name, in the Authority of the One Who came to give authority; in Christ, Jesus our Lord!! Forever and ever, without out end, Amen and Amen!

With Love from a humbled heart,
Your Brother in Christ—Pastor Roland

Posted in Prayer and Praise | Tagged Beacon, Comforter, Convincer, Exaltation, Glorify, God Almighty, Heavenly Father, Holy Spirit, Light, Love, Magnify, Pray, Prayer, Redeemer, Religion | Leave a comment

Jesus Is Our Best Friend

Posted on June 17, 2014 by Roland Ledoux

poeticpraisehdr

When all your friends have let you down
They’ve all gone from your sight.
Jesus Christ is always there
He’ll answer day or night.

Don’t underestimate His love
He cares when you’re alone
No matter what you’ve said or done
No matter where you’ve gone.

When your friends don’t understand
The pain you feel inside
And when the tears keep falling
And they don’t know why you’ve cried

You can call on Jesus
He will understand your pain
He’ll wipe the tear drops from your eyes
And give you joy again.

Jesus is the best friend you could ever find.
His line is never busy,
He will answer every time.

Posted in Poetic Praise | Tagged Caring, Friend, Jesus, Joy, Poetry, Redemption, Religion, Tears | Leave a comment

Are You Hurting?

Posted on June 17, 2014 by Roland Ledoux

“The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore beseech the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest. Go your ways; behold, I send you out as lambs in the midst of wolves.”–Luke 10:2-3

“Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves; therefore be shrewd as serpents, and innocent as doves.”–Matthew 10:16

“Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.”–Mark 16:15

Hurting takes many forms and in actuality, the question, “are you hurting” is kind of a trick question. Maybe it would have been better if I had asked, “are you healthy?” At this point, you might even be asking yourself what any of this has to do with the scriptures listed above!

Indulge me for just a bit. How many of you have either had, or know someone who has had a problem with ingrown toenails? If you do, you know the pain and suffering that they had to put up with, as well as the pain of most treatments for it. To those of you who do not really know about this painful condition, let me take a moment to clue you in.

An ingrown toenail occurs when one (or both edges) of the toenail grows into the soft tissue causing painful inflammation. Infection frequently results from damaged tender skin from the corners of the nail. Ingrown toenails can be caused by injury to the toe, poor personal hygiene, trimming the nail improperly, or pressure on the nail from wearing tight or improperly fitted shoes. Now that is a clinical definition. If you can just imagine, the hard piercing edge of your nail, digging, cutting, puncturing its way into the soft edges of your toe. It has got to hurt!

Then, the inflammation or infection makes your skin even more sensitive, to the point that it is painful to walk on or function effectively. It’s amazing how something so small on your body can hinder its usefulness so effectively. When that happens, you don’t want anything touching the area. You don’t want to wear the appropriate shoes. You don’t even want to have to stand on the affected foot. It is really a pain!

The causes, stated above, could be toes that are shut up to tight in a poorly fitted pair of shoes; not caring for yourself in the way that your body demands; injury from some outside source, such as poor trimming or stubbing of the toe. In essence, when you think about it, your toes were never meant to be closed in tightly. They were never meant to take abuse, but rather they work best and most efficiently when exposed to air and protected from abusive trauma.

You’re probably wondering why you get the medical lesson, right? Well, let’s consider the spiritual body for a moment. The Bible says in Ephesians chapter four, that we are all a part of the Body of Christ. We are all necessary components of that body; each part needing the other, relying on the effectiveness of the other parts to grow and mature. Just as in the natural, when one part is hurting or “unhealthy” the rest of the body suffers; and isn’t it amazing how much suffering one little part that is not right, can cause to the rest of the body?

If one part of the Body of Christ is allowed to become ingrown, in other words, not growing outward as it should, it can become inflamed, infected and utterly useless. In the case of a foot for instance, the body would not move, or at least not move efficiently. When movement ceases you have a condition called stasis and from stasis you develop atrophy. Atrophy is a condition where the muscles shrink up and can no longer do the work they were designed or created to do.

Are you starting to get a picture of what I am talking about? It is no coincidence that the natural or physical realm mirrors or shadows the spiritual. It is no coincidence that the Apostles likened the Body of Christ to a natural body and how it works. We were created in the image of God not just individually, but corporately as well, once we became born again.

When the body is healthy, there is always growth. When the body is hurting, there is always death of some type or another. We must always continue to grow. Paul said that in the same chapter of Ephesians and hinted at it in the third chapter of Philippians.

The same principle applies in the spiritual as in the natural. It is a principle that was established by God, the Father in the creation of our very existence. If we abuse our physical bodies, premature death occurs on a continual basis. If we abuse our spiritual bodies, that part of us that comes together, supposedly in unity, we can see death occur there also.

I want to challenge you in this lesson. I want the Word of God to become real, in a mighty way, in all of our hearts. If Jesus, whom we claim to be our Lord and Master, says as in the scriptures above show, to go forth, to get out and accomplish what we have been called and gifted to do, doesn’t it stand to reason that growth and spiritual health and well-being is out there. On the other hand, if we hide behind the four walls of whatever institution we choose to call church, and never let the outside “air” of the spirit touch us, and we wrap our “programs” too tightly to us, doesn’t it stand to reason that part of us, by principle, will grow inward causing infection and inflammation, pain and lack of movement in our local body? That causes pain in the whole Body then!

Many of you who read this will understand, especially in the light of experience, that what I am saying is true. The sad thing is, the only way to correct that infected condition is through a change that can be very invasive to the body. In the natural, there are drugs that you can take to help with the infection. Drugs, by the way, that were never meant to be taken in healthy situations. Sometimes, the only way to restore health is by invasive surgery. In the natural it is minor surgery granted, but it is still painful, and, the healing process still takes time. In the spiritual, doesn’t the same principle apply?

Now I am going to depart from our analogy for just a bit here. In the natural, the cells that make up a toenail, for example, do not have the independent intelligence to change their situation. They do what toenail cells do. If they are directed in a different direction than what is natural, an unhealthy condition can prevail. In the spiritual on the other hand, we are made up of “cells” that have independent thought. We can change the circumstances that we find ourselves in. If we find ourselves in an environment that is constricting and choking, we can move ourselves from that to a healthier one. If the environment that we find ourselves in is always centered “inward” rather than where the harvest is, “out” side, we can and must change our place in that environment. Sometimes, that means we create the circumstances that allow us to change perspective from looking inward to outward, but sometimes it means we have to move, if others refuse to change their perspective. But, if we choose not to move, we can actually become a part of the “infection” or “disease” that is causing the whole Body harm.

Now let’s put this in perspective in the eternal scheme of things. As Christians we all know and have often stated that Jesus is coming back for a Bride without spot or wrinkle. Have you ever thought about what that means? I have. Jesus is coming back for a healthy Bride. One where there is no sickness or disease present. That means if a part of the Body, or a part that “claims” to be of the Body, is diseased or infected or unhealthy, it will not be a part of the Bride. Jesus Christ is not coming for a lame, crippled or atrophied Body. He is coming for one that is in His image.

Paul states it this way:
Philippians 3:20-21, “For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ; who will transform the body of our humble state into conformity with the body of His glory, by the exertion of the power that He has even to subject all things to Himself.”

In the natural, our bodies will be changed, Paul says in Thessalonians in the “blink of an eye.” That is individually, but, what Paul is saying here in Philippians is that it will happen corporately also. We as individuals will be transformed into conformity with His glory, but we as the Body or Bride of Christ will also be transformed into conformity with His glory.

This does not mean, that I can sit back, do my own thing, and He will change my disobedience, or “disease” into a healthy one. If I am the “infection” or “disease”, I will be removed so that His Bride will have no spot or wrinkle within her Body. This is serious stuff, so that is why we cannot be so self-centered that everything we do revolves around us inwardly. Remember, near sightedness is also a condition we were never created with. Our vision should be looking outward where the harvest is, and that means we have to look outside the four walls of the institution that we call church.

Jesus Christ, Himself stated that He was sending us out. This is not just some fancy rhetoric that ministers choose to throw out at their congregations. These are commands from Jesus, whom we claim to be our Lord and Master. In this day and age, we really need to search our hearts to discern if we are truly looking and moving outward to where the “fields are white unto harvest,” or are we content to wrap the four walls of security around ourselves and just hope, that “surgery” will never be needed?

Jesus Christ is still the Great Healer. If we have become “ingrown” and too concerned with ourselves, if we are too nearsighted and only see the four walls of our “church,” and care little about the harvest field out there, He can still heal us and cause us to grow and become a strong part of His True Body!

When you consider the seventy or eighty years that we may have on earth as compared to eternity, forever and ever and ever, etc., the things I may have to deny myself here will be nothing compared to the glory that we will get to share as we reign as kings and priests with our Lord, Jesus Christ! Think of it!

We are in job training for eternity, right now! Let’s all lift our eyes and our minds and pursue what is necessary to bring as many others with us as possible. Remember, when we move, we grow, but when we stop and become too comfortable we atrophy and become useless. Let’s all move forward in unity!

In closing, I want to state that even though to some, this message may seem “hard” or “harsh,” it is given with a heart of love. You may ask how this can be a demonstration of the love I like to speak of so often, but if you can realize that my concern is for the eternal well-being of my brothers and sisters in the Lord, then you can see where I am coming from. When the Holy Spirit drops something in my heart to share, I have learned not to question Him, but rather move in the direction He is pointing, in faith. I want to fellowship and get to know each and every one who calls themselves Christians when we sit at that Marriage Supper of the Lamb. I don’t want to look around and see someone missing and wonder if I could have done or said something to make a difference!

God bless you richly!

Posted in Vintage Messages | Tagged Analogy, Apostles, Body of Christ, God, Harvest, Harvest Field, Holy Bible, Jesus, Jesus Commands, Ministry, Parable, Redemption, Religion, Service, Souls | Leave a comment

Questions – Raised by Adversity

Posted on June 17, 2014 by Roland Ledoux

anecdotal stories
Questions

Psalm13:1-2; John 1:14

A confirmed bachelor, C. S. Lewis married late in life only to find love doomed when his wife was stricken with cancer. He plummeted into despair following her death, raging against God about whom he had so coolly and confidently written when not personally afflicted. His little volume, A Grief Observed is a testament to his agonizing endeavor to find meaning in the incomprehensible. He said that he would listen to anyone who spoke the truth of religion. He would even listen if told of the duty of religion. But he would suspect the individual of not understanding who spoke of the consolations of religion.

We understand intellectually that God loves us even when it seems he does not. But faced with a despair we could not handle, haven’t we all felt abandoned, even if we did not express it? Haven’t we occasionally accused God of not caring, of overlooking our concerns, of being too busy to notice us? Lewis shared the thoughts he experienced while working through his grief. Some of his ideas offend the gospel truth; they might even offend the untouched Christian. But God was never threatened by Lewis’ grief, nor did He hold Lewis responsible for the charges grief conceived and agony shrieked. God understands. He too was once a man afflicted with the agonies of our existence.

Man Shall Not Live By Bread Alone!
But By EVERY Word That Comes From God Above!

Psalm 13:1 To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David. How long, O LORD? Will You forget me forever? How long will You hide Your face from me?
2 How long shall I take counsel in my soul, Having sorrow in my heart daily? How long will my enemy be exalted over me?

John 1:14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.

FAVORITE QUOTES

God brings men into deep waters, not to drown them, but to cleanse them. -Aughey

He knows not his own strength that hath not met adversity. Heaven prepares good men with crosses. -Johnson

Prosperity is not without many fears and distastes, and Adversity is not without comforts and hopes. -Bacon

Posted in Anecdotal Stories | Tagged Adversity, Anger, Bible, C. S. Lewis, Challenges, Gospels, Grief, John, Psalm, Quotes, Religion, Scripture | Leave a comment

The Importance of Listening in Prayer

Posted on June 14, 2014 by Roland Ledoux

This is a study that was started some time ago, but it fits perfect with the two recent studies Who Do We Pray To? and Praying In Jesus’ Name and so I include it here updated to coincide with those two other studies.

John 10:3-5 “To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.”

John 10:16 “And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd.”

John 10:27 “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.”

Revelation 3:20 “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.”

When we pray, to our Heavenly Father, we are not only communicating with Him, heart to heart and spirit to Spirit, but we are also communing with Him; abiding or residing in His presence listening as well as speaking. It is a precious gift that our Heavenly Father has bestowed upon us. Many times though we have been taught that we go to the Father when we have needs. Oh yes, we can praise and rejoice in the Lord, but notice that it is usually one sided, us doing the talking and us doing the praising.

As you can see in the Scriptures cited at the beginning of this message, communication and communing as the Father intends is and should be two ways. In fact as a Christian, it is so much more important for us to listen to the Lord, more so than to do all the talking! We need to practice what Lazarus’ sister, Mary did, and that is sitting at His feet, hearts open and taking in all He has to offer us.

If we practice doing all the talking and do not take time to put our spirits and minds at ease so as to “hear” what the Spirit is saying to us, that is selfishness, which as many of you know from my teaching is just the opposite of true or real love. You can’t have a selfish heart and sit in the presence of our Lord at the same time. When we go to Him, we must have a heart and spirit that is not only bold in our communicating TO Him, but also sensitive to hearing FROM Him!

You will find that if you practice the art of “listening” that your heart and mind will praise the Lord and give Him the glory while at the same time, being aware of His voice speaking to your heart and spirit. It is His voice that leads us in safety and in the paths that He has established for us. When we practice “listening” to Him and His voice, we cannot be swayed by the shouts of the enemy that can seem so right at times.

We all have experienced incidents when we have either seen a situation arise or have been placed right smack in the middle of a situation and in our minds we have heard the loud call to do something that at the moment may seem right and righteous. But the Bible tells us that our Lord calls us and talks to us in that “still small voice,” not the shout that carries above the din of any given situation.

It is only when our spirit is calm in the crisis of the storm that we are able to hear the true instructions of the Holy Spirit. When you can practice calming your spirit in the midst of the battle you will usually recognize that the “voice” you hear quietly, almost whispering, is in direct contrast to the shouts that are coming at you from every side.

Hearing the Lord was so important to David, the writer of the majority of the Psalms that in the midst of personal crisis he wrote this in Psalm 143:

Ps 143:8 Cause me to hear Your lovingkindness in the morning, For in You do I trust; Cause me to know the way in which I should walk, For I lift up my soul to You.

David knew that only by HEARING and LISTENING to the Lord would he know which way to walk and he knew it was the only way to come out of his crisis successfully. Notice that David also cried out and pleaded to the Lord to “cause” him to hear. David may have caused himself a lot of problems, but he ALWAYS knew Who to turn to save him. This is the reason why he was considered to be “the man after God’s own Heart.”

This is also why the Apostle John was so adamant when he told us that we would KNOW the voice of our Lord if we were truly His. Our Shepherd is a GENTLE Shepherd albeit a GREAT One too. Sometimes we overlook the gentleness in the character of His Greatness. It is His calmness in the bustle of life’s situations that is meant to give us peace and comfort and assurance. It is the stranger’s voice or the enemy’s voice that wants confusion and discord and dissension to have reign. A stranger is not concerned about your personal peace, but rather wants to move you and your brothers and sisters to distraction. The only way he knows how to do that is by shouting; and yes, maybe he is lacing a little truth in those loud orders, but even a little truth is not the whole truth and therefore is rather a whole lie or deception.

Christ Jesus wants us as His sheep, as His disciples to demonstrate His character in all we do. He wants the world to see the calm in the storm, the peace in the crisis situation. The enemy on the other hand wants just the opposite and so he will work on your human nature to demand what is seemingly right towards yourself. In other words, he tempts us to show the world how we are right and have been wronged thus showing the world ourselves and leaving Christ Jesus out of the picture.

We need to remember that each and every one of us have been called and given a gift that is meant to show the world the TRUTH. Contrary to popular teaching, we haven’t been saved or redeemed just so that we could go to Heaven. On the contrary, everything that our Lord does for us is so that we can be empowered to show the world the SELFLESS nature of Christ and His gifts to man. We were redeemed to show those that are lost that there truly is a better way and that this is just a training period for eternity.

Now, I’ve said all that to remind you that one of the greatest actions we can take on behalf of others is to pray for them. We aren’t to just pray for our own needs as the Bible tells us that our Father in Heaven knows those needs before we can even ask.

Mt 6:8b “For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him.”

Knowing this in our hearts and spirits allows us to concentrate more on others when we enter that prayer time, than on ourselves and it is during this time that if we “listen” to the Lord, we can hear His instructions how best to not only pray for others, but how to act toward others and especially in specific situations.

When we listen, this puts the burden of what to do and how to act on the Holy Spirit’s ability to guide and lead us rather than having us worry about whether our prayers for someone will be answered or not.

I sincerely hope that as intercessors and prayer warriors, you realize and recognize that we do a mighty ministry or service by standing in the gap for others. It is the example that Jesus most wanted to establish in us, but it is so much more important in the light of this to do what Jesus also demonstrated, and that is to get away to be alone in the presence of the Father. We need to hear Him; we need to feel His love and presence in our hearts. It is that nearness to Him that gives us the continued strength to pray effectively and fervently for others. It is only by our nearness to the Lord and our ability to actually attune our spirits to His that allows us to realize the joy that He has in us and thus strengthening us for continued service.

If you never spend time just listening to His Spirit and just relaxing in His presence, it is too easy to become “burned out” in relation to our service to others that the Lord allows us to be in contact with. I have personally seen too many people and especially pastors and teachers who say they reach a point where they don’t even know if the Lord hears them anymore. What a sad situation to be in, but it is usually brought on because they have gotten away from (or never practiced) actually “listening” to the Lord and letting Him direct their thoughts and hearts in specific situations. They are always trying to “second guess” the Lord and all of us at one time or another has been there and done that!

We can avoid that pitfall if we only learn to sit and listen to that “still small voice.” It isn’t just a cliché but rather a spiritual fact and truth from the Father Himself. I have stated it before and I can’t say it enough; the Lord wants and desires more than anything to have a relationship with each and every one of us like it was meant to be before Adam destroyed our ability to walk in that type of relationship. But, the Father in His great love, knew exactly what was needed to make that relationship not only possible again, but even greater than it was in the very beginning and that was by allowing us to be clothed, bathed, covered in the Blood sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

Remember, Jesus was constantly affirming that He and the Father are ONE! When we are covered in that Blood sacrifice, what the Father sees in us is the relationship of Oneness that He has with the Son and He sees that in each of us. It isn’t the Father who isn’t availing Himself of the gift of that wonderful relationship but rather it is us by not taking the time to not only speak to the Father but to sit at His feet and also listen to Him.

Each and everyone who is reading this, I want you to try an exercise and PRACTICE sitting and trying to “listen” to the Father the next time you enter into communion or prayer with Him. Open your heart and spirit and allow the Holy Spirit to calm your mind of all the cares around you and let His Spirit guide you into that deeper relationship. See if what I am telling you is not the truth and see if you don’t come away from that time feeling more refreshed and more vitalized than you have ever felt before.

Remember this, our walk with the Lord is NOT a religion, it is a lifestyle. It is something that we live our lives by doing! It’s not some scheduled program that we allow time out of our lives for. It is something that we can do always, even when we are active doing other things. Remember what the Lord has assured and promised us:

Hebrews 13:5b For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”

You must realize that He is with you in every thought and in every moment and this should be a great assurance and not something to fear. This means He is only a thought away when I want to commune with Him. It’s great and admirable to set a scheduled time where you can spend time with Him without distraction, but what I am saying is that doesn’t have to be the ONLY time you spend with Him for He is a part of your everyday life whether you are aware of it or not. This should give you the freedom to include Him in all parts of your life and also give you the liberty to practice listening to Him in all things. The more you practice listening, and especially in your quiet times, the easier it will become in the midst of life’s stormy situations. Then you will not make the mistake of listening to the thunderous voices you hear but will know instantly the thoughts of your Heavenly Father!

Brothers and Sisters, we ARE in the last days for it is so obvious by all those things going around us. Even though the warnings are there people are saying the very things the Lord said they would utter. “You’ve been saying for two thousand years the Lord would come back and He hasn’t. Where is He that was prophesied?” All you have to do is turn on the news channels and you will see the signs and hear the utterances. It should be no surprise to us as the Lord’s children.

But the importance of this is also found in Revelations, where the Lord speaking through the Apostle John stated the importance of listening to Him:

Revelation 2:7 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God.”

This isn’t some loud proclamation shouted from the hilltops and the highest buildings. The Lord specifically says “he who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” Do you have an ear? Not physically, but do you have the desire, the willingness to hear or to listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches. We are the churches my brothers and sisters. We ARE what make up the church universal the Body of Christ. Are we listening? Do we have our “ears” attuned to what the Holy Spirit is trying to tell us?

In closing I want you to remember what Jesus told us; it was that His authority came from the Father and He ONLY said the things the Father told Him to say. The only way He could have done that is to be constantly listening to the Father.

There is an old saying that is oh so true; it has been said that “God made us with two ears and one mouth, so we should listen to Him twice as much as we speak to Him!”

It may be a cute saying and a good moral but it is true and if you practice it I guarantee you will find more power, more refreshing, more of every fruit of the Spirit as you take the time to open your heart to hear what He has to say to you!

God Bless You in your continued and ever deepening prayer life!

Posted in Prayer and Praise | Tagged Being Still, Bible Teaching, Christ Jesus, Communication, Communion, Hearing God, Heavenly Father, Holy Spirit, Holy Word, Kingdom of Righteousess, Listening to Spirit, Meditation, Prayer, Religion, Spiritual Intimacy | Leave a comment

Praying In Jesus’ Name

Posted on June 13, 2014 by Roland Ledoux

I want to thank a very dear Sister in Christ for bringing up a question that led to this lesson. This lesson will go great in conjunction with the teaching I did entitled, “Who Do We Pray To?” I believe that it will not only round out that study but also answer some other questions that arose from it as well.

In that lesson I explained the importance of praying or communicating to the Father; whether it be vocally, or meditating on Him and His ways. I used the reference in Matthew Chapter 6 that so many of us know as “The Lord’s Prayer” as our example.

The fact that we pray to the Father doesn’t ever change, for it is with Him that all our needs are met, our strength is received, including direction and purpose in our lives of service to Him. But there are times when we do pray, especially when it comes to requests, that we do so in the name, or with the authority of Jesus.

John 14:12 ¶ “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father.
13 “And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.
14 “If you ask anything in My name, I will do it.”

25 ¶ “These things I have spoken to you while being present with you.
26 “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.”

15:16 “You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you.”

16:23 ¶ “And in that day you will ask Me nothing. Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you.
24 “Until now you have asked nothing in My name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.
25 “These things I have spoken to you in figurative language; but the time is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figurative language, but I will tell you plainly about the Father.
26 “In that day you will ask in My name, and I do not say to you that I shall pray the Father for you;
27 “for the Father Himself loves you, because you have loved Me, and have believed that I came forth from God.”

Ephesians 5:20 “giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,”

Colossians 3:17 “And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.”

Many people are confused and believe that the very name “Jesus” has some magical or mystical quality. But this is New Age thinking and departs from the truth of the Scriptures. The power of the name Jesus, is in the authority that He gives to those that know and abide IN Him! The name of Jesus IS known for every good and great thing that comes from God the Father, but the real power comes from the PERSON of Jesus and not just reciting His name.

As an example to this I will give you another Scripture in Matthew:
7:21 ¶ “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.
22 “Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’
23 “And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’ (bold emphasis mine)

You can see by these verses that it isn’t the name of Jesus that carries the authority, it is the abiding IN Him, the KNOWING Him in a personal way that carries the authority. We can use His name only when we have a personal, intimate relationship with Him; otherwise, you are doing things using His name without permission, without His authority or power! This is why He will tell some, that He never knew them!

Why can we go to the Father and using the name of Jesus, know that we are being heard? Remember that God cannot bear sin, it is an abomination to Him. So unless you are covered in the Blood Offering of Jesus, the Father can’t hear you, only IN Jesus can the Father hear you and your prayers.

Leviticus 11:44 “and you shall be holy; for I am holy.”

Deuteronomy 25:16 “For all who do such things, all who behave unrighteously, are an abomination to the LORD your God.”

Psalms 5:4 For You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness, Nor shall evil dwell with You.
5 The boastful shall not stand in Your sight; You hate all workers of iniquity.
6 You shall destroy those who speak falsehood; The LORD abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man.

Proverbs 3:31 Do not envy the oppressor, And choose none of his ways;
32 For the perverse person is an abomination to the LORD, But His secret counsel is with the upright.

12:22 ¶ Lying lips are an abomination to the LORD, But those who deal truthfully are His delight.

15:9 ¶ The way of the wicked is an abomination to the LORD, But He loves him who follows righteousness.

Luke 16:14 Now the Pharisees, who were lovers of money, also heard all these things, and they derided Him.
15 And He said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is highly esteemed among men is an abomination in the sight of God.
16 “The law and the prophets were until John. Since that time the kingdom of God has been preached, and everyone is pressing into it.

(Remember the Kingdom of God is righteousness and that is exactly what John preached.)
The one exception that the Father makes concerning the hearing of our prayers WITHOUT the covering of Jesus’ Blood, is when we cry out to Jesus Himself to save us from our sinfulness! Remember this also, our Heavenly Father already knows our heart, He knows our true needs; God sees the need for us to be covered by Jesus’ Blood and when we finally realize it, our hearts are aligned with the will of God Himself.

You can see that sin and God will not and cannot abide in the same place. This is why when we come to the Father, and we can come boldly, we do so covered by the Blood of Jesus Christ. When we approach the Father, what He sees is a child, sinless, covered by the payment required of sin, by the Blood of His Son. Yes, the Father sees you the individual, don’t misunderstand that. But Jesus Blood cleanses, washes away the taint and stain of sin. It is when we are thus covered that we are able to be in the presence of the Most Holy Father, and be there intimately!

We are covered by the Blood of Jesus, not because we said some words, but because we asked Him to come and abide within us. We chose to have Him, Lord and Master of our lives. What small price on our part to be in servitude to the One who bought us freedom with His very Blood and earthly life! It is when He abides in us, KNOWS us, in an intimate, personal way, that we then have the authority to go before the Father in the AUTHORITY of Jesus. Our Father already knows who has that authority and who can come in Jesus name, for remember, the Father and the Son are One.

Because we come to the Father through the Son and in the authority of the Son, we don’t have to plead or beg. We can have the confidence that whatsoever we ask will be provided to us. Now I need to make something clear here just as I did in the other study; this doesn’t give us license to ask for frivolous or things that aren’t necessary!

I gave you the Scripture that many use to justify asking for things they desire, showing how it is twisted. Well, here is one that people use with the authority of Jesus name and again, they take it out of context and twist it.

John 16:23 ¶ “And in that day you will ask Me nothing. Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you.
24 “Until now you have asked nothing in My name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.”

So many people use this to justify asking for things, for desires that have nothing to do with the Kingdom of God and everything to do with their happiness. But notice that Jesus was telling them they would receive so that their JOY would be full. Joy is a fruit of the Spirit. It comes when we are walking in the Spirit and not in the flesh. Joy is not based on the pleasantness of our circumstances as is happiness. To be happy, things must be going our way or we are sad. Joy is of the spirit. We can have joy abounding within us by spreading the seeds of joy and reaping the harvest of spiritual joy. We CAN be sad emotionally and still have joy spiritually!

Jesus didn’t tell us that our happiness would be full or complete, He promised our JOY would be. The other thing is this; if you are intimate with the Father; if you have the Son abiding in you and you KNOW Him and He KNOWS you, then you will also know what to ask for, for you are not fulfilling your will but rather His will, since you have asked Him to be Lord (Master).

You can see why it is so very important to take the WHOLE counsel of God, from the Word, and not just the parts that you want to use to justify a theory or doctrine. This is why intimacy and a very personal relationship with the Father is so important. When we know the mind of the Father, His Spirit, we know HIS desires, for it is HIS desires that He places in our hearts!

As a True child of the Father, we KNOW that we have the authority of Jesus Christ, because it was Jesus and His sacrifice that won us the freedom to again commune and communicate with the Father, our spirit to His Spirit. We can then ask in that authority, we can work and do what is necessary in the world IN that authority. It is not reciting the name necessarily, but it is recognizing our position in Christ and the inherent authority we have by abiding in Him!

When we are praying publicly it is a good thing to end with “in the name of Jesus” or “in the name of Jesus Christ” or even “by the authority of Jesus Christ” because you don’t know if there is an unbeliever who is among you and it is letting them know that it is in His authority that we ask or do these things. When the answer comes and those that are unbelievers see the answer, then the glory and honor is given to the Father, because ALL honor and glory go through the Son, to the Father. Jesus did everything and so should we, that the Father be glorified. We glorify the Father though, in the authority of Jesus, the Son of the Father!

Remember, our lifestyle in Christ, as Christians, or followers of Christ, is not one of ritual. It is not the “letter” of the Word, but the Spirit and the intent of the Word of God that we follow. Christianity is NOT a religion, it is a lifestyle. It is a spiritual walk, an endeavor to follow after Christ, by His example so that we as the Father’s children, might, just like Christ did, bring glory and honor to the Father.

There are no magic potions or sayings in Christianity, there are intimate and personal relationships with the Father, through the Son, empowered by the Holy Spirit that dwells within each of us!

God Bless you all very richly and so abundantly as you become more intimate and empowered in the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Posted in Prayer and Praise | Tagged Bible Teaching, Christ Jesus, Combating Evil, Communication, Communion, Heavenly Father, Holy Spirit, Holy Word, Kingdom of Righteousess, Prayer, Religion, Spiritual Intimacy | Leave a comment

Who Do We Pray To?

Posted on June 13, 2014 by Roland Ledoux

I am still receiving emails from people who ask the question, “Who do we pray to?” They are confused as to whether they should pray to God or the Father, or the Son or even the Holy Spirit. This doesn’t even take into consideration those few I receive from individuals who still believe that it must be okay to pray to others who have died and gone to heaven.

We talk about prayer and praying all the time and I think those of us who are teachers take it for granted that everyone knows how to pray. After all, most of us learn to pray as a little child, many of us barely old enough to speak.

I think many of us as teachers have dropped the ball so to speak when it comes to teaching effective prayer.

First I want to discuss with you what prayer is. I’m not going to give you definitions from books or explanations from encyclopedias, but rather will discuss with you what the Bible shows us prayer is, not just in instruction but by example. Prayer has been around since the very beginning of man’s time. Adam was the first to “pray” to God.

In reality, prayer is just a “religious” description of communication or “talking” to God. Now understand that many people “pray” or talk to others besides God. But just to keep it simple, it is a form of communication between one person and their deity. Now, that is a very general description and as Christians or followers of Christ, prayer has much more meaning, or should have for us.

Jesus’ ministry began very quickly and the multitudes followed Him because of His teaching and His care for the sick and infirmed. The Bible tells us in Matthew Chapter 5 that Jesus went up a mountain and when He had seated himself, He drew His disciples close. This is considered the “Sermon on the Mount” and is beloved by many.

During this teaching He began to teach on prayer, you will find this in Matthew 6:5 ¶ “And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward.
6 “But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.
7 “And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words.
8 “Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him.
9 ¶ “In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name.
10 Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us this day our daily bread.
12 And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors.
13 And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
14 “For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.
15 “But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”

Jesus started teaching by pointing out to those gathered around what I like to call a “negative” example. There are times when the Lord teaches us, even today, by showing us what NOT to do as well as what we SHOULD do. You can read these examples in verses 5-7 above. Jesus closes this example by stating to be not like them for this one reason: Your Heavenly Father already knows what you need even before you can ask Him!!! This statement alone should bring assurance and comfort to all who find themselves in need.

I will get into why we should still pray, since the Lord knows our needs but first I want to continue with the how-to of prayer. Notice how Jesus tells the disciples to pray, do it in this manner, or in other words, here is an example. He then goes on to give the example that is today known worldwide as “The Lord’s Prayer.” Please remember though, He didn’t tell the disciples to recite this prayer, but rather, He was very clear to state, “in this manner” pray. In other words, this was clearly an example of how to pray.

Notice the very first thing; Our Father, in heaven. Jesus made it very clear that when we pray we are praying to our Father, who is in Heaven! This is why I don’t always like to use the generic term, God. For truly, God IS our Father. Speaking to Him and acknowledging Him as Father, OUR Father is more personal, more intimate. Jesus is telling us that is what the Father wants. He wants to be acknowledged intimately and personally.

What loving earthly father doesn’t just love his children to crawl up on his lap and be called dad, or daddy, or even papa?! Whatever the endearment, it warms the father’s heart to be acknowledged that way. Jesus was telling us in very simple terms, when you “pray” or communicate with God, acknowledge Him as your Father! Our Father in Heaven; Heaven is His domain, His Kingdom, His Home. As His children we are pilgrims. We are foreigners here on earth for if He IS our Father, then Heaven is also our Home!! Jesus is telling us to recognize that and acknowledge it!

Can you also see that when you acknowledge Him as your personal Father, how much more meaningful it is to you? It brings about a sense of assurance, comfort and peace. There is nothing greater than to be in the presence of a Father who loves you so much more than you can comprehend. Here is the Majesty, the Wisdom, the Brilliance that created the Universe and all that is in it and the very laws that govern it!! Yet, this Majestic, Exalted Person, wants us “who were created a little lower than the angels,” to call Him Father, to acknowledge Him as Parent!!! How AWESOME is that???

Jesus goes on to tell us that we should be reminded that He is Holy. He IS our Father, but He IS Holy still. This is our act of worship to Him. We realize the Awesomeness of His being, how Great, Majestic, Exalted He is. Many people get stuck here on “hallowed be thy NAME.” They feel that it is the NAME of God that is to be worshipped. The name of God, IS Holy because God is ALL Holy! But it is the idea that we remember HIM personally as being Holy and worthy to be worshipped. We identify with a Person by their NAME. So it is with the Father in Heaven. We recognize Him as our Father intimately, but we also remember that when we speak Father, we are speaking to One who IS HOLY!

We are to pray for His Kingdom to come and His will to be done. What is His Kingdom? Is it the Spiritual Heavenly realm that He inhabits? Think of this though, if He is Omnipresent, which means everywhere, all at once, then He is in Heaven, on the earth, in our hearts, out there in the Universe. There is no place in all of Creation that is hidden from the Lord.

Psalm 139:12 Indeed, the darkness shall not hide from You, But the night shines as the day; The darkness and the light are both alike to You.
13 For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother’s womb.
14 I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, And that my soul knows very well.
15 My frame was not hidden from You, When I was made in secret, And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.
16 Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, The days fashioned for me, When as yet there were none of them.

Jeremiah 23:23 “Am I a God near at hand,” says the LORD, “And not a God afar off?
24 Can anyone hide himself in secret places, So I shall not see him?” says the LORD; “Do I not fill heaven and earth?” says the LORD.

So then, with this in mind, where is His Kingdom that we should pray or ask it to come? What is the Kingdom that we should ask to come on earth and His will be done? Here’s what the Scriptures say:

Psalms 45:6 ¶ “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your kingdom.
7 You love righteousness and hate wickedness;”

Matthew 5:20 “For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.”

Matthew 6:33 “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.”

Romans 14:17 “for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.”

Hebrews 1:8 “But to the Son He says: “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your Kingdom.
9 You have loved righteousness and hated lawlessness;”

Do you see the pattern in Scripture? The Father’s Kingdom is righteousness. Righteousness is His will for each of His creation. This is the Kingdom of the Father we are to be asking (praying) for; His righteousness on earth; this is the Father’s will; that we all “be righteous for He is righteous.”(I John 3:7)

We don’t pray or ask for the Kingdom of Heaven to come to earth, for the earth has to also be reborn because of the taint of sin. This is why we will eventually have a new earth. But the Kingdom we are to seek the Lord for now, according to His will, is His Kingdom of righteousness. This should be the continual prayer of each of us.

Notice that we are to ask for His will to be done on earth as it is in Heaven. This shows us also that it isn’t the Kingdom of Heaven we are trying to bring to earth, but rather His Kingdom of righteousness for this is His will and this is what Heaven is. Heaven is a Kingdom of righteousness for there will be no one there that isn’t righteous or holy!

Now, notice what Jesus says we should pray or ask for next; “give us this day our daily bread.” Not, Lord help my savings account to grow; not, Father give me that better job next month; not, Father ensure me perfect health this next year. Rather, we are to ask for what we need this day. Today, the present. To ask anything more is to be presumptuous. Remember what Jesus said just before sharing this example of how to pray? “Don’t be like the heathen and hypocrites who pray for show. Your Father already knows your needs before you ask!” To carry on with YOUR needs any more than this is to doubt what Jesus says is true, “that your Father KNOWS your needs even before you ask.”

I want to share something else with you. Do you notice anything here where Jesus tells us to go to the Father with our “wants?” We are to ask for our present day needs. If you look at the verses in Matthew 7 that take up after this example of prayer, specifically verses 19-34, you will see a theme that Jesus is reiterating. You aren’t to worry about tomorrow; not food, not clothing, nothing of necessity, for our Father will take care of those things. To follow this is to have total confidence not only in the Father’s ability to care for you, but in the Truth of His Words to us.

This teaching that has gone on for many, many years that the Lord will give me anything I ask for and especially if two or three stand in agreement with me is a falsehood from the devil. It is twisting the Scriptures just as the Pharisees used to do to justify getting more than your needs! Psalm 37:4 is the Scripture most used to justify having your wants but it is so taken out of context. “Delight yourself also in the LORD, And He shall give you the desires of your heart.” When you put it in the context of the other verses, you will see the true meaning, “3 Trust in the LORD, and do good; Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness.
4 Delight yourself also in the LORD, And He shall give you the desires of your heart.
5 Commit your way to the LORD, Trust also in Him, And He shall bring it to pass.
6 He shall bring forth your righteousness as the light, And your justice as the noonday.”–Psalm 37

This is speaking of the righteousness of the Lord and committing your way or submitting your will to His. He does give you the desires of your heart! He places those desires to be righteous and to follow after Him in your heart! He puts them there!

Jesus tells His disciples of the sower and likens it to those that sow the seed of the Word. One of the things that cause the Word to be unfruitful in those that hear it can be found in Mark 4:19, “and the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.” (bold emphasis mine)

So, when you put this back in the light of Jesus’ teaching, we are to ask for our daily or present needs, but with the understanding that the Father already knows those needs and will meet those needs. Anything beyond that is not proper prayer but rather a willfulness that is not submitting to the Lord.

Jesus goes on to tell us that when we pray, or talk with the Father, we are to ask Him to forgive us our debts, transgressions, sin; those things that have caused us to be indebted to others through our actions or inactions but, we ask with this qualifying statement, “as we forgive those who are indebted to us.” Remember, we aren’t talking about finances, but rather those things that we do against others and they do to offend us. We are to ask the Father to apply forgiveness to us as we apply it to others, the same measure for measure. We cannot expect to receive more forgiveness than what we are willing to impart ourselves. This is very clear in Jesus statement on how to ask for it.

“And Father, don’t lead us or direct us into temptation.” First we are must understand that we are never tempted by the Lord. What we are to pray here is in conjunction with the next sentence. “Deliver us from the evil one.” A better way of understanding this would be, “Father keep us out of temptations path and thereby protect us from falling prey to the devil.”

James 1:13 ¶ “Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone.
14 But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed.”

We can see that the Lord does not tempt us. So our prayer is one of help and protection that we don’t succumb to the temptations of the enemy.

I Peter 5:8 ¶ “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.
9 Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world.”

In the Scriptures in James and Peter you can see the need to pray the way Jesus shows us. “Father, help us avoid the traps and snares of the evil one and keep us out of his grasp. Father, lead us AWAY from temptation.”

Now, why do we ask this?? Because the Father’s is the true Kingdom, Power and Glory! When we pray this way, when we go before the Father and talk with Him, communicate with Him, keeping the Spirit of these principles in mind, we are doing so all for the goal that “His Kingdom (of righteousness) comes and His will be done! This is the completion of the circle of prayer. It starts out acknowledging Him as a personal, intimate Father, recognizing His Kingdom of righteousness and all the things we pray for and do (as in forgiving) is to bring that righteousness about because, His is the true Kingdom, the power and the glory, always!

Jesus then explains the importance of forgiving others. This is the only point that Jesus took time to further explain and because He did, it holds a great weight of importance. Forgiveness is the key to bringing the Lord’s Kingdom of righteousness to us. We all make mistakes. We all are tempted and at times sadly fall under the spell of that temptation. Because others do as well, we need to have a heart of forgiveness so that we might also be forgiven.

Because of the time Jesus spent clarifying the importance of that forgiveness, we can assume that this portion of our prayer time or communion with the Father should be of utmost importance. We do know that being able to forgive and choosing to forgive others is the greatest demonstration of our love for others. It takes action; it is an act of the will and a demonstrable choice to forgive others. It is also one of the greatest things we can do to show the Father how much we love and appreciate Him. Forgiveness of those who have transgressed against us or those we love is not the natural thing to do. It is a “super-natural” act.

So, I know we spent quite some time analyzing this pattern that Jesus gave us for prayer, but in this very example is the answer to the question of who we pray to and why. Jesus didn’t tell us to pray to Him, even though He told those close to Him that He is the Son of God. Jesus constantly taught that He and the Father were One. But, He also taught extensively that His job or His mission was to come to man to point the way “to the Father;” the way that had been cut off by Adam’s sinful action.

Jesus didn’t instruct us to pray to the Holy Spirit, or the Comforter that He would be sending. Rather, He told us that the Holy Spirit would lead us into all truth. The Holy Spirit is the One who gives us the power needed to circumvent the natural tendency to not forgive. He is the One that gives us the “super-natural” power to forgive others.

Jesus also didn’t instruct us to pray to men or women who have died and have gone on, no matter how great they may have been while on earth. What He did tell us is that those who were obedient to righteousness, would be rewarded in the Father’s Kingdom.

Jesus instructed us to pray or talk, to communicate with the Father! It was the Father that Adam and Eve walked and talked with in the Garden of Eden. It was the Father that we couldn’t communicate with intimately any more once sin entered into our lives because of Adam’s choice. It was always the Father, that the Holy Spirit in Old Covenant times, pointed the children of Israel too, and the coming of the Messiah, the Son of God who would reopen the path to the Father.

When we pray, we seek the Father’s will. We seek His righteousness and ask for it to be a part of this world. We ask for our daily needs so that we won’t be distracted with need when we do fellowship with Him. He wants us to be intimate with Him, to spend time communing on a personal basis. Communion with the Father is always talking and this is where the real concept of prayer goes deeper. When we become one with Him in communion, by being in His presence, by putting ourselves aside so that we might KNOW Him better, words aren’t always necessary.

Remember, our Heavenly Father is Spirit. We must worship, be intimate and personal with Him, our spirit to His Spirit! We can sit in His presence just as Mary, the Sister of Lazarus did at the feet of Jesus, just listening. There is an intimacy, a closeness that can’t be accurately described when our spirits are in the presence of our Heavenly Father. All the cares of the world disappear and all that matters is Him. This is true worship, this is true communion with Him. It isn’t some mystical thing, it is a spiritual condition. This is the relationship that He desires with all those He loves.

It is this relationship, this closeness, this intimacy that refreshes us to continue to do those things that He desires us to accomplish so that others can also experience the same intimacy. This is true prayer. You can find other examples of prayer in the Scriptures, such as Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, but even there, you will see the principle He gave, in practice!

I hope this helps you to understand the importance of prayer and where our prayers, our thoughts, our meditations should be directed. We can have this relationship with the Father because of the work that Jesus did on the Cross and the work He continues to do at the right hand of the Father!

God bless you ALL in your continued intimacy (prayer) with the Father!!

Don’t Stop Praying and Don’t Lose Heart!

Posted on June 10, 2014 by Roland Ledoux

Have you ever felt discouraged and/or wondered if you were really accomplishing anything? Have you ever sometimes thought to yourself, “If I only had a ministry like so and so. Then, I would do great things for the Lord.”

Be honest with yourself. I know you have, because I have myself, and believe me when I say that I am the least of any of you. Don’t confuse this statement with false humility. I have been constantly amazed at the strength of the intercessors God has graciously allowed me to meet over the internet.

Luke 18:1-8 starts out by saying this, “Now He was telling them a parable to show that at all times they ought to pray and not to lose heart—“ and He (Jesus) proceeded to tell the parable of the unjust judge and the widow woman.

The point is this; Jesus is saying, “Don’t give up. The Father hears and an answer will come. Keep doing what you are doing. Keep praying and don’t lose heart.”

Have you ever thought about why prayer was such a key point to our Great Teacher and Lord. Because it is the most powerful gift we have in developing an intimate relationship with our Heavenly Father.

Think about communication in general for just a moment. It can cover a wide range of subjects. We can ask things. We can command things. We can develop relationships and intimacies. We are able to forgive hurts, and tell our Heavenly Father about hurts. We can use the process of communication to cover the whole spectrum of emotion and sentiment.

What does our Heavenly Father want from us, His lowly creation? Why did Jesus teach us about prayer the way He did with the emphasis on it like He did? Remember all the times the religious leaders tried to trick Him up? They were always asking Him, “By what authority do you do this and why do you say the things you do?” and so forth.

Jesus was always faithful to let them know that it was because He only said and did what the Father wanted Him to do and say! Why? Because He had an intimate relationship with the Father and He desires ALL disciples who follow after Him to use His example and have the same relationship with our Father! He taught that to the disciples two thousand years ago, and His Spirit is still teaching it until the time He comes back to take us Home to be with Him.

So, don’t be discouraged or down hearted because you don’t see a specific answer right away. Or, because maybe you don’t feel you are contributing. You ARE getting to know the Father with every instant that your mind and heart, as well as your words, are centered on Him! Jesus taught us to pray because of the power of the intimate relationship with the Father that stems from those prayers, or that act of communication.

Also, there is no greater power or show of love for your fellow man as well as the Lord, than to intercede (stand in the gap) on behalf of another. So, don’t stop praying and don’t lose heart; after all, your heart truly belongs to the Lord!!!

Your brother and friend in Christ;
Pastor Roland

Posted in Prayer and Praise | Tagged Bible, Communication, Discouragement, Down Hearted, Gospel of Luke, Holy Word, Interceding, Intercession, Jesus, Lord, Praying, Scriptures, Usefulness | Leave a comment

Why I Praise You

Posted on June 10, 2014 by Roland Ledoux

poeticpraisehdr

WE’VE COME A LONG LONG WAY TOGETHER,
I HAVE TO PRAISE YOU LIKE I SHOULD.
YOU’RE THE ONLY ONE WHO BROUGHT ME OUT,
AND YOU’RE THE ONLY ONE WHO COULD.

THOUGH THE ROAD SEEMED LONG AND ROUGH AT TIMES;
YOU WERE THERE, ALWAYS BY MY SIDE.
AND YOUR FAITHFULNESS DID COMFORT ME,
BECAUSE YOU HEARD MY EVERY CRY.

YOU WERE BY MY SIDE EACH NIGHT AND DAY,
AND YOU LEAD ME EVERY HOUR.
YOU KNEW I HAD LITTLE STRENGTH WITHIN,
BUT YOU GAVE ME YOUR GRACE AND POWER.

WE’VE COME A LONG LONG WAY TOGETHER,
YOU’VE BEEN SO MERCIFUL TO ME.
O’ YES I THANK YOU AND I PRAISE YOU,
IT’S YOU WHO GIVES ME THE VICTORY.

WHEN I STOOD BEFORE THE MOUNTAIN STRONG
WITH SUCH CONFUSION IN MY HEART,
IT WAS BY FAITH AND TRUST IN YOU ALONE
THAT THIS MOUNTAIN WOULD SOON DEPART.

WE’VE COME A LONG LONG WAY TOGETHER
FROM BEGINNING TO THE END.
YOU HAVE PROMISED NEVER TO LEAVE ME,
ONLY ON YOU I CAN DEPEND.

YET AT TIMES IT IS STILL SO HARD FOR ME
TO UNDERSTAND THE REASONS WHY.
I HAD TO PASSTHROUGH LONG DARK VALLEYS,
THINKING THAT I WOULD SURELY DIE.

WE’VE COME A LONG LONG WAY TOGETHER
THIS IS WHY I PRAISE YOU LIKE I SHOULD.
FOR THE VICTORIES THAT YOU GAVE TO ME,
KNOWING IT’S YOU WHO ONLY COULD.

I WANT TO PRAISE YOU AND TO THANK YOU
YOU’VE BROUGHT ME SUCH A LONG LONG WAY.
BUT FOR YOUR GRACE AND LOVE AND MERCY,
I WOULD NOT BE STANDING HERE TODAY.

Posted in Poetic Praise | Tagged Confusion, Faithfulness, God's Understanding, Grace, Leading Me, Love, Mercy, Praise, Praising God, Rough Times, Strength | Leave a comment

A Word of Encouragement

Posted on June 10, 2014 by Roland Ledoux

I want to take a little time to get personal and share with you some things that I have learned through experience and time and especially the last couple of years working with so many wonderful people on the internet.

I have been told many times by some peers and family, many of them well-meaning, but just lacking understanding, that internet ministry is just a hobby. They tell me that at the most it can be a tool used to get people involved in your “real” church. Of course what they mean is what I like to call the “brick and mortar” church.

The thing that I have found to be true though and especially working so diligently with so many of who have ministry on the world-wide-web is that the “real” church is right here! I don’t mean in the traditional sense of course, but the real church has ALWAYS been in the hearts and spirit of “true” believers and worshippers of Christ Jesus.

This internet ministry reaches so many more people than could ever be accomplished with all the programs and special meetings that a traditional church uses to try and “win” people to their congregations!

Don’t get me wrong. I am NOT condemning traditional churches. There is a need for them on the local level, but when it comes to the idea of “real” ministry, who is meeting the “real” needs of the people hurting and searching in the world?

I, like many of you, am involved in prayer groups that are made up of people in so much pain that they couldn’t sit in a church pew for an hour let alone a couple! Yet these dear brothers and sisters are some of the strongest most diligent prayer warriors and intercessors that I have ever had the opportunity to join with! I have not met face to face with people as bold and strong in the Lord as many of these people that use a keyboard for ministry!

And ministry it is!! Prayer requests come from all around the world because the people that find these ministry sites know in their hearts that if it is a part of the site’s ministry, then someone, somewhere, is going to see their request and take it to heart!!

You can’t say that in the traditional “brick and mortar” church! How many requests and opportunities do the local churches in your towns and cities get from all over the world?

Each and everyone of you, has at some time in your life been hurt, despised, dis-trusted or have an infirmity in the body, or some other reason why a “religious leader” be it a pastor, a priest, or a reverend, what ever the title, has said you can not be used of the Lord due to your situation. You do not have the training. You have been in trouble with the law. You have been divorced, or not married, or don’t have kids or have too many. Your sick, or have a life-long disease or a terminal illness. God can’t use you!

But you know what? You’re the very ones that the Holy Spirit chooses to use! You already know why, most of you. I’m not telling you anything new. But, it’s because no matter the circumstances in your life, no matter the situation, or condition of your body, your spirit is ALIVE unto Jesus! You look to Him when know one else will listen to you! You find strength in His Spirit when your friends don’t support you anymore! You are the vessel the home owner threw away, but the very vessel that Jesus chooses to use because you still love Him so no matter what!

Your situations and circumstances have given you the best teaching, the best lessons that no amount of money could ever buy! No book outside the Bible could ever teach you what you have to earnestly offer others! I don’t care how many Bible schools or colleges you could attend, the situations and circumstances that each and everyone of you has gone through has provided you with strength, wisdom, knowledge, compassion and mercy that can help someone else who’s going through the very thing and searching for answers. These are answers they will never find in any book based on theology or philosophy!

The strongest and wisest preachers or teachers that I know of, have come from a life filled with exactly the same obstacles and hardships and they have been overcome by that person’s faith and strength in the Lord Jesus!

I have come to know so many of you who live everyday with pain. Some of you have to crucify everyday the feelings of self-doubt and worthlessness that you feel, believing in faith what the Bible tells us about Jesus’ feelings for each of us. We fight the battle everyday in one way or another and yet, you are still willing and able to put your pain, your feelings and hurts aside to pray for a complete stranger. Or, you give a word of encouragement or inspiration to another brother or sister who may be feeling a little weak!

You, and You alone in Christ, are the backbone of the “true” Church, the Bride of Christ! No one can take that away from you! Not by words, not by actions, not by curses! The love that you demonstrate everyday, even if it is something simple like causing another to smile and forget their pain for just a moment, is the seed that grows and causes more seeds to be sown! It is this ACTION that is the “real” love that the Holy Word speaks of.

Don’t EVER let anyone tell you that what you do is not a MINISTRY! Ministry in it’s truest sense is SERVICE to another! That is what ministry means! Remember what Jesus told us, “The greatest amongst you, will be the servant to all.” You are already there! You know what it is to serve! It doesn’t matter that we don’t see one another face to face! All the greater, because we have a connection to one another that goes deeper and reaches into eternity! We have a spiritual connection with one another!!!

The Bible tells us that our “spirits will bear witness, one with another!” Anybody who doesn’t believe this only has to browse any number of Christian blogs, forums or websites alone for a day and they would be able to see the undeniable connection! And remember, each one of us is only one tiny island in a sea of many that the Holy Spirit is raising up!!!!!

So, don’t be disheartened when you have a down day! Don’t beat yourself when you’ve made a mistake! Let the Lord use these things; “to make all things work together for good” because you “love the Lord and have been called according to His purpose!!!”

Many of you may be the only ones who are truly standing in the gap for another soul because of what you have been through yourself! You know what others feel and the hurts that can slow them down! So, keep moving on and doing what the Lord has placed in your heart to do! Remember, it is the LORD who “will give you the desires that are in your heart.”

In closing I want to encourage you with this Word of Scripture:

“I urge you therefore brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to the world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”

“—–so we, who are many, are one body in Christ and individually members one of another. And since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let each exercise them accordingly; if prophecy, according to the proportion of his faith; if service, in his serving; or he who teaches, in his teaching; or he who exhorts, in his exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness.” Romans 12:1-2, 5-8.

God Richly Bless you all who so diligently look out for the needs of others and who continue to demonstrate (an action) your love to one another despite your pain and hurts, and despite what other “religious leaders” tell you what you can and can’t do for the Lord, God Almighty!!

Praise God for His mercy and Grace which shines forth upon ALL His children and showers our hearts with HIS LOVE and GRACE! Praise Him on High for He IS worthy of our praise!! Continue to exalt Him to the ends of the earth!! May Glory and Honor be His forever and Ever!! Amen and Amen!!

Given with Love;
God bless you richly!

Posted in Vintage Messages | Tagged Bible, Body of Christ, Brick and Mortar, Church, Disabilities, Encouragement, Gifts, Grace, Heavenly Father, His Love, Holy Spirit, Illness, Internet, Jesus, Lord, Ministries, Scripture, Service, Traditional Church | 8 Comments

Perspective, or Life in the Deep, Dark Pit

Posted on June 10, 2014 by Roland Ledoux

A man was walking along and fell into a pit and couldn’t get himself out.

A subjective person came along and said, “I feel for you down there.”

An objective person walked by and said, “It’s logical that someone would fall down there.”

A mathematician calculated how deep the pit was.

A news reporter wanted the exclusive story on the pit.

An IRS agent asked if he was paying taxes on the pit.

A self-pitying person said, “You haven’t seen anything until you’ve seen my pit.”

A Pharisee said, “Only bad people fall into pits.”

A fire-and-brimstone preacher said, “You deserve your pit.”

A Christian Scientist observed, “The pit is just in your mind.”

A psychologist noted, “Your mother and father are to blame for your being in that pit.”

A self-esteem therapist said, “Believe in yourself and you can get out of that pit.”

An optimist said, “Things could be worse.”

A pessimist claimed, “Things will get worse.”

But then . . . . .

Jesus, seeing the man, didn’t say a thing, but took him by the hand and lifted him out of the pit.

The moral? Your life, situation, circumstance is just a matter of perspective!

AND . . . .

If you feel like your life is in that deep dark pit, just “look up,” Jesus WILL be standing there with a hand out!

Posted in Food For Thought | Tagged Darkness, Help, Jesus, Look Up, Perspective, Salvation | Leave a comment

God IS My Comforter

Posted on June 10, 2014 by Roland Ledoux

Posted in 'Nuff Said! | Tagged Comfort, God, Hope, Light, Lighthouse, Pictures, Strength | Leave a comment

Prayer for All Servants of God

Posted on June 8, 2014 by Roland Ledoux

I have been busy with ministry but have NOT forgotten my Brothers and Sisters in the Lord who serve alongside us with this digital technology. This is what the Lord has laid on my heart for ALL of you who serve with whatever gifts you have:

Father in Heaven, I come before you as I have come before you daily with a humbled heart and honoring You because You are the Great I AM.

Lord, you have seen all the needs and all the needs that this season has a tendency of creating. Lord, help us to remember that You ARE the I AM, which means right now, right here in each heart of those that believe in You. This means you aren’t the I WAS or the I AM GOING TO BE, but rather the ONE who sees all needs right in this moment.

Sometimes Father, the enemy comes at us with attacks on every side, bombarding us and distracting us with all he is able to throw our way. Lord, help us, your children to see these things for what they truly are; just distractions to get our eyes away from You and all Your Glory! Your promises and blessings have been too true and too real to let the enemy distract us with his lies.

I pray that You would allow the Holy Spirit to give comfort, peace AND strength to all those that are distracted by the enemies attacks and that the Holy Spirit who is our blessed Guide would lead us back to see what is real and true in this life; and that is You and the sacrifices you made to draw us back to you in a loving and intimate relationship.

Help us also to remember dear Father that this life is but a shadow in time compared to the joys that we will be able to experience for all of eternity with You. We know that feelings can sometimes be misleading but Lord we pray that your children would feel your presence and feel your loving arms surround them with your Almighty and Wondrous Love.

Father, You have given us so much and blessed us so abundantly, we Praise You and Exalt Your Name above all things. Help us to remember to never forget our blessings in the midst of these trials. Help us to remember that you have brought each of us this far and you are not going to abandon us now after blessing us so much in the past.

Father, allow Your Holy Spirit to bring to remembrance the fact, not the wish, not the hope, but the fact that You will NEVER leave us nor forsake us, but that You are with us through all the trials and testings that come our way. Help us to remember that we NEVER go through them alone, for You are always with us.

As we go through this season, a season of remembrance for who You gave to us to draw us back to You in a relationship we lost, let us remember that it was Your sacrifice of love for us. It was Your sacrifice to give us strength to go through things and it was Your sacrifice that allows us to come so boldly before you, not as a stranger, but as children to a loving Father.

Even amidst the distractions and ploys of the enemy, Your love is always sure, always true, always steadfast. For that, Father we Thank You, we Praise You, Glorify, Magnify and Exalt You!!

Father we ask that anything that has come our way due to our transgressions, please forgive us. Reveal to us in Your loving way, our transgression that we might truly repent of it and be fully forgiven. Father, if in our hearts we are harboring any unforgiveness, please reveal that also that we might forgive those who transgressed against us, so that we might absolve them from any guilt of wrong-doing. Father we do this not out of sacrifice, but out of love and obedience to You.

Father, in the name of Your Son, our Redeemer, Savior and Lord, Jesus, the Anointed One, our Christ we ask these things boldly and yet humbly. May we learn to Love as You love us and share that Love with one another.

Amen, Amen

Pastor Roland

Posted in Prayer and Praise | Tagged Brothers and Sisters, Exalt, Glorify, Magnify, Ministry, Praise, Praising God, Prayer, Repentance, Servants, Service | 1 Comment

He Walks The Dark Valleys

Posted on June 8, 2014 by Roland Ledoux

poeticpraisehdr

When my heart is filled with sorrow
And no hope for the future I see,
I simply call on my best friend
And He walks the dark valleys with me.

When my life is filled with pain
And I feel alone with despair and misery,
It’s then I feel His presence
For He walks each dark valley with me.

Thank you Lord for my journey
Of many good and long years,
For walking with me through each valley
And calming all of my fears.

Thank you Jesus, my Lord and my King,
Thank you for setting me free,
For always staying close by my side
And walking the dark valleys with me.

Posted in Poetic Praise | Tagged Calm, Dark Valleys, Encouragement, Fear, Future Hope, His Presence, Inspiration, Mountain Peaks, Sorrow, Spiritual Journey | 2 Comments

Blessedness of Children

Posted on June 8, 2014 by Roland Ledoux

anecdotal stories
Children Bring Joy

Psalms 127:3-5, Mark 9:36-37

John Adams wrote to Thomas Jefferson pitying James Madison’s childlessness. As many fathers before and since have said, Adams noted that while children often cost parents grief, anxiety, and even vexation, their very presence lightens and lengthens life.

Agnes Newton Keith would agree. It was horrible to be a mother in the Japanese internment camps – more horrible than the mothers could say. Yet, in a way, it was heavenly too, she wrote. In the midst of that deprivation there were thirty-four reasons for staying alive – every one a child. Describing how the mothers brought all of thirty-four safely through the tragedy, Agnes added, “I said to begin with, that we brought them all through alive. But perhaps they brought us through alive.” Indeed, a child is someone worth living for, and the joys they bring more than compensate for the emotional, spiritual, intellectual, and economic costs of raising them.

God, too, experiences both the pain and sometime pleasure of fatherhood. But, truth to tell, if earthly fathers experienced an infinitesimal amount of the frustration and disappointment God experiences with His spiritual children, birth control would never have to be taught anywhere in the world. Governments, like the Romans under Augustus, would be paying parents to have children, not discouraging them from parenthood. Only an infinitely patient Father in Heaven could not only tolerate, but love the wayward children His Son’s death has acquired for him.

Man Shall Not Live By Bread Alone!
But By EVERY Word That Comes From God Above!

Psalms 127:3-5, Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD, The fruit of the womb is a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, So are the children of one’s youth. Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them; They shall not be ashamed, But shall speak with their enemies in the gate.

Mark 9:36-37, Then He took a little child and set him in the midst of them. And when He had taken him in His arms, He said to them, “Whoever receives one of these little children in My name receives Me; and whoever receives Me, receives not Me but Him who sent Me.”

FAVORITE QUOTES

Every child born into the world is a new thought of God, an ever-fresh and radiant possibility. –Wiggin

It is the highest wisdom to pray for our children that while they are young their hearts may be given to the Savior. -Spurgeon

Posted in Anecdotal Stories | Tagged Bible, Children, God, Gospels, Jesus, Lord, Psalms, Quotations, Savior | Leave a comment

FOR THE LOVE OF GOD

Just a Short Something to Contemplate . . . . .

I Believe – I KNOW

Prayer IS Powerful & Works!

A Wish For You Today

My Sincere Prayer For All of You Today!

Jesus Is Our Best Friend

Are You Hurting?

Questions – Raised by Adversity

The Importance of Listening in Prayer

Praying In Jesus’ Name

Who Do We Pray To?

Don’t Stop Praying and Don’t Lose Heart!

Why I Praise You

A Word of Encouragement

Perspective, or Life in the Deep, Dark Pit

God IS My Comforter

Prayer for All Servants of God

He Walks The Dark Valleys

Blessedness of Children

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