Sadness Will Turn to Joy

[The following is a manuscript of my message delivered on Sunday morning, the 30th of September, 2018 at Pilgrim Reformed Church.  Look for the video of this and our other services on our Vimeo channel:  http://vimeo.com/pilgrimreformedchurch.]

Today I am going to conclude our little series based on statements Jesus made which He prefaced by saying, “I tell you the solemn truth”.  I chose 12 separate scripture passages, a few of which contained more than one “solemn truth”.  I could have chosen many more, for Jesus repeated that phrase often when He had something truly important to tell us.  And really, I could have just worked from everything He is quoted as saying in the four Gospel accounts and in Revelation, because everything is indeed the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.

For today, though, please listen and follow along as I read this last truth I had chosen, from the Gospel account of the Apostle John, chapter 16, verses 16 through 22, again from the New English Translation of our Holy Bible.  Jesus is speaking to His disciples when He says…

16 "In a little while you will see Me no longer; again after a little while, you will see Me.”

17 Then some of his disciples said to one another, “What is the meaning of what He is saying, ‘In a little while you will not see Me; again after a little while, you will see Me,’ and, ‘because I am going to the Father’?” 18 So they kept on repeating, “What is the meaning of what He says, ‘In a little while’? We do not understand what He is talking about.”

19 Jesus could see that they wanted to ask Him about these things, so He said to them, “Are you asking each other about this — that I said, ‘In a little while you will not see Me; again after a little while, you will see Me’? 20 I tell you the solemn truth, you will weep and wail, but the world will rejoice; you will be sad, but your sadness will turn into joy. 21 When a woman gives birth, she has distress because her time has come, but when her child is born, she no longer remembers the suffering because of her joy that a human being has been born into the world. 22 So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy away from you."

--John 16:16-22 (NET)

Let us pray…  Father God, when we are hurting and sad, it’s hard for us to imagine ever feeling joyous again.  We think that nothing could lift us out of the gloom, nothing could stop the flow of tears.  But Your Son Jesus assures us that when He returns, any sadness we may be feeling will instantly turn to joy.  There’ll be no more sorrow, no more hurting, only happiness and joy.  Speak to us this morning, Father, and give us the message You need us to hear.  Help us understand what You have in store for us.  Help us trust in Your great plan for those who love You.  In the blessed name of Jesus we pray.   Amen.


Christian author J. R. Miller once wrote:

"A saintly woman suffering for weary months in painful illness said to her pastor:  'I have such a lovely robin that sings outside my window.  In the early morning, as I lie here, he serenades me.'  Then, as a smile brightened her thin features, she added, 'I love him, because he sings in the rain.'  That is the most beautiful thing about the robin.  When the storm has silenced almost every other songbird, the robin sings on — sings in the rain.  That is the way the Christian who is with Christ may do.  Anybody can sing in the sunshine; you and I should sing on when clouds pour out their rains, for Christ is with us.  We should sing in the rain."


We should sing even in the rain.  With God’s very own Holy Spirit living within us, we should sing our Lord’s praises no matter what situation we may find ourselves in.  For we believers know something the world hasn’t figured out yet.  We know that some sweet day, all our sadness will turn to joy.  And that’s something to sing about, even in the rain.


God works in mysterious ways...  As I mentioned, this is the last message in the series I began many weeks ago based on the "solemn truth" statements Jesus made.  I've had this scripture pulled out and the message formulating in my head for a couple of months.  And then hurricane Florence hit the coast of North Carolina and ground out a wide swath of destruction all across our state, and especially down east.

There are many, probably millions, who have suffered from the effects of this storm, even here in our own small church family.  How joyful do you think they felt as Florence crept through, or even today as the flood waters slowly recede?

Jesus assures us that the sadness we may feel right now will one day turn to joy.  We read it in our responsive reading a few minutes ago where the Apostle James, in chapter 1 verses 2 and 3 of his letter to the early church tells us...

2 My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience.

--James 1:2-3 (NKJV)

James says we should be joyful even when we are going through some sort of trial, if for no other reason than because being tested can make us more patient.  How many of us have asked, “Lord, please give me patience.”?  Well, if we’re more joyful when things go bad, He will give us more patience, so we can get through them.

Now James is basically just expounding a little on what Jesus said earlier, as recorded by the Apostle Luke in his Gospel account, chapter 6 verses 22 and 23, in Jesus’ “Sermon on the Plain”…

22 "Blessed are you when men hate you,
And when they exclude you,
And revile you, and cast out your name as evil,
For the Son of Man’s sake.
23 "Rejoice in that day and leap for joy!
For indeed your reward is great in heaven,
For in like manner their fathers did to the prophets."

--Luke 6:22-23 (NKJV)

We should consider ourselves blessed, even rejoice and leap for joy, when everything turns sour in this life, because we have such a great reward awaiting us in heaven, there for when Jesus takes us home.


In our scripture reading, Jesus confused His disciples by saying that “in a little while you will not see Me” but then again “after a little while you will see Me.”  And we know He was talking about leaving this mortal life and going to heaven, then returning someday to set things aright.  In his 1st letter to the early church, chapter 1 verse 8 and chapter 4 verse 13, the Apostle Peter talks to those who never saw Jesus, not with our eyes…

8 Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory...

13 but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ’s sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy.

--1 Peter 1:8b; 4:13 (NKJV)

We do not see Jesus – we’ve never seen Him physically – yet we rejoice with a joy that cannot be expressed, a glorious joy, because we believe in Him!  We rejoice because of what He has done for us!

But notice Peter adds that we rejoice to the extent that we share in Christ’s suffering.  Just as Jesus suffered trials and persecution on earth without ever losing His love and faith in our Father God, so must we.  Then, when Jesus’ glory is fully revealed at His return, we will also share in the great joy our Father will give.


The author of the Book of Hebrews also addressed this concept of being joyful even in trials and suffering.  We know that the early church experienced much hardship and persecution at the hands of those who sought to destroy what Jesus began.  In chapter 10, the author spoke to those who had suffered, and I think he speaks to us as well.  Listen to what he wrote in verses 32 through 34…

32 But recall the former days in which, after you were enlightened, you endured a great struggle with sufferings: 33 partly while you were made a spectacle both by reproaches and tribulations, and partly while you became companions of those who were so treated; 34 for you had compassion on me in my chains, and joyfully accepted the plundering of your possessions, knowing that you have a better and an enduring possession for yourselves in heaven.

--Hebrews 10:32-34 (NKJV)

Many in the early church were thrown into prison for their belief.  Many had their possessions taken from them just for trying to follow Jesus.  We today, here in the United States especially, do not so much have to fear being arrested or having our possessions taken because we are Christians.  Of course, there’s the troubling question that if we were arrested for being a Christian, would there be enough evidence against us to convict us?

We might not have to worry about that just yet, but I know that we all have endured some “great struggle with sufferings”, as the author of Hebrews put it.  We’ve gone through trials and tribulations aplenty.  And while our possessions may not have been forcefully taken from us, I know many have freely given away much in service to our Lord.  But we do so joyfully - we give and we suffer - knowing that we have a “better and enduring possession” in heaven awaiting us.


This is what Jesus was talking about in our solemn truth this morning.  As we go through this life we will weep and wail, and the world may rejoice in our suffering.  We will be sad, and I would add that we will suffer great sadness.

But when Jesus returns and calls His church home, all that sadness, all the hurt and pain, all the suffering will turn into pure and everlasting joy!  And like the woman suffering the pains of childbirth no longer remembers any of that once she holds her child in her arms, we will forget all about any suffering we endured during this life, once our eternal life with our Lord begins.  So we do have sorrow and suffering and pain and sadness now, but when, after a little while we see Jesus again, our hearts will rejoice and no one, no one can ever take our joy away from us.

All our sadness will turn to joy.  This is the promise our Lord made.  This is the solemn truth Jesus spoke.  This is the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.  In the blessed name of Christ Jesus our Lord.  Amen.


Let us pray…  Father God, You give us so much.  You provide for our needs and You give us even more.  And You help us through the tough times.  Forgive us, Father, when we dwell on the hardships, on the negatives of life.  Forgive us when we fail to feel joyful in our hearts even in the bad times.  Please help us rejoice even now during our sorrows, knowing what You have in store for us in heaven.

Please hear us now, Father, as we come to You in the silence, speaking from our hearts, thanking You for Your many blessings, promising to turn from our sin, and asking for Your help as we do so…

Lord Jesus, You promised to return for us, Your church, to take us home.  And You assure us that on that day, all our sorrows and sadness will turn into pure joy.  Thank You, Jesus, for redeeming us with Your blood sacrifice so that we can be with You and our Father God forever!  Please help us find joy in all our circumstances, the good as well as the bad.  Help us rejoice in our trials and sufferings, knowing what awaits us when You return.  Help us remain faithful no matter what befalls us.

This we pray in Your glorious name, Lord Jesus Christ, our Master and our Savior.  Amen.

Make Miracles Happen

[The following is a manuscript of my message delivered on Sunday morning, the 23rd of September, 2018 at Pilgrim Reformed Church.  Please note there was no service on Sunday the 16th due to Hurricane Florence's passage.  Look for the video of this and our other services on our Vimeo channel:  http://vimeo.com/pilgrimreformedchurch.]

It’s been a few weeks since we last looked at our series concerning statements Jesus made where He prefaced each by assuring us, “I tell you the solemn truth”.  I want to return to that this morning, and specifically to where Jesus commented directly on the miracles He had been performing.  He did so many while He walked the earth, and all without great fanfare – He was not looking for praise.  But He made a very profound statement regarding miracles that we need to keep in mind.

Please listen and follow along as I read from the Gospel account of the Apostle John, chapter 14, verses 8 through 14, and I’ll be returning to the New English Translation of our Holy Bible for this reading…

8 Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father, and we will be content.” 9 Jesus replied, “Have I been with you for so long, and you have not known Me, Philip? The person who has seen Me has seen the Father! How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? 10 Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father is in Me? The words that I say to you, I do not speak on My own initiative, but the Father residing in Me performs His miraculous deeds. 11 Believe Me that I am in the Father, and the Father is in Me, but if you do not believe Me, believe because of the miraculous deeds themselves. 12 I tell you the solemn truth, the person who believes in Me will perform the miraculous deeds that I am doing, and will perform greater deeds than these, because I am going to the Father. 13 And I will do whatever you ask in My name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it."

--John 14:8-14 (NET)

Let us pray…  Father God, it is only human nature to think there are some things we simply cannot do.  We think that performing miracles is above our paygrade, outside our wheelhouse, not within our realm of capability.  Your Son Jesus tried to tell us otherwise.  Speak to us this morning, Father, with the message You need us to hear.  Help us understand what You would have us do.  Help us trust in Your power and strength.  In the blessed name of Jesus we pray.   Amen.


David Yarbrough of Sermon Central once contributed this little story:  A man was putting a tin roof on his barn when all a sudden he slipped and began to slide down the roof.  He cried out to God to save him.  No sooner had he got the words out of his mouth when a nail caught his pants and stopped his fall.  When he had caught his breath, the man said, “Never mind, God.  I took care of it”.

Mr. Yarbrough noted that, "The problem isn’t that God doesn’t perform miracles anymore.  The problem is we’re not looking for God to perform miracles."


Theologian and author C.S. Lewis had such a wonderful insight into the workings of God.  In his book, Studies in Theology, Mr. Lewis wrote:  "God seems to do nothing of Himself which He can possibly delegate to His creatures.  He commands us to do slowly and blunderingly what He could do perfectly and in the twinkling of an eye."


We know that God can do anything, and in the twinkling of an eye, if it so pleases Him, if it is in His will and in His time.  But if we stop to think about it, we might see where He performs a lot of His miracles through us.  Yes, we go about it slowly and blunderingly, as Mr. Lewis said, making errors and missteps along the way.  But aren’t we sometimes the tool God uses to accomplish His mighty works?

Maybe we just don’t see them because, like the man sliding down the roof, we just aren’t looking for God to do a miracle.  Maybe we just don’t believe He still performs them.  But family, every time a child is born, every time a doctor diagnoses a problem and fixes it, every time the raging storm passes and we suffer no damages from it, God has performed a miracle.


During His short ministry on earth, Jesus performed many miracles.  He healed the sick and cast out evil spirits.  He made the lame to walk, the blind to see, the deaf to hear, the mute to speak.  He even brought the dead back to life.  So why did people have so much trouble believing that Jesus was the Messiah, the Christ, sent from God?  In our scripture reading, He implored even His disciples to believe in Him, if not for the words He spoke then for the miracles He was able to perform, miracles that only God could do.

But the most amazing part of that reading is in verse 12, the solemn truth He leaves us with.  Those who believe in Jesus will be able to not only perform miraculous deeds just like Jesus did, but even greater deeds than those!  We believers can perform miracles, even greater ones than Jesus Himself did!  All we have to do us ask in His name and He’ll make it happen so that His Father God will be glorified!  But do we believe it?  If we have trouble believing that God still does miracles, how in the world are we going to believe that we can do them, too?!?


I want you to think for a moment about a miracle that a believer might have performed.  One that quickly came to my mind was when Peter walked on the water.  He saw Jesus doing it and wanted to do it too, so Jesus told him to step out of the boat and walk to Him.  And sure enough, Peter climbed out of the boat and started walking across the surface of the sea toward Jesus.

But Peter lost his focus and started doubting that he could actually do what he was in fact doing, and he started to sink beneath the waves.  Jesus had to save him.  Peter doubted he could do a miracle.  Don’t we doubt it too?


Peter’s doubt soon vanished, though, after Jesus had returned to heaven.  Maybe he remembered the words Jesus spoke in our scripture reading, for he and John healed a man who had been lame from birth and let him walk for the very first time in his life.  The people saw it and were amazed.  The Jewish leaders saw it, and had Peter and John arrested.  Listen as they admit what these two believers had done, as recorded by the Apostle Luke in his Book of the Acts of the Apostles, chapter 4, verses 13 through 16…

13 Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated and untrained men, they marveled. And they realized that they had been with Jesus. 14 And seeing the man who had been healed standing with them, they could say nothing against it. 15 But when they had commanded them to go aside out of the council, they conferred among themselves, 16 saying, “What shall we do to these men? For, indeed, that a notable miracle has been done through them is evident to all who dwell in Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it."

--Acts 4:13-16 (NKJV)

Believers, mortal men, performing miracles, just like Jesus said.  And that wasn’t the only incident of such that Luke shares with us.  Hear what he recorded about Philip, who fled Jerusalem shortly after Jesus’ crucifixion, from Acts chapter 8 verses 5 through 7…

5 Then Philip went down to the city of Samaria and preached Christ to them. 6 And the multitudes with one accord heeded the things spoken by Philip, hearing and seeing the miracles which he did. 7 For unclean spirits, crying with a loud voice, came out of many who were possessed; and many who were paralyzed and lame were healed.

--Acts 8:5-7 (NKJV)

A believer, performing miracles on his own.  And let me give you one more instance of Luke verifying that believers can indeed perform God-like miracles, from Acts chapter 15 verse 12…

12 Then all the multitude kept silent and listened to Barnabas and Paul declaring how many miracles and wonders God had worked through them among the Gentiles.

--Acts 15:12 (NKJV)

I could go on, but here’s just one more example of what we can accomplish when we ask in Jesus’ name.  This one occurred while Jesus still walked the earth, and was saved for us by the Apostle Mark in his Gospel account, chapter 9 verses 38 and 39…

38 Now John answered Him, saying, “Teacher, we saw someone who does not follow us casting out demons in Your name, and we forbade him because he does not follow us.”

39 But Jesus said, "Do not forbid him, for no one who works a miracle in My name can soon afterward speak evil of Me."

--Mark 9:38-39 (NKJV)

We know nothing about this man, other than he was not one of those who walked with Jesus.  Perhaps he heard Jesus preaching, or saw Him perform a miracle, or was healed himself.  All we know is that he believed in Jesus and in what He could do.  He believed enough to be able to do mighty works in the name of Jesus.


How strong is our belief?  We’re believers in Jesus.  If we ask for something in Jesus’ name, do we really, deep down in our hearts, believe that He will do it for us?  Or do nagging doubts linger and lie hidden just beneath the surface, pulling us under the waves?

A couple of weeks ago I prayed for God to turn Florence back out to sea.  For His own reasons He did not do so.  But weren’t we, this Pilgrim family, spared from major damage from the storm?  To my knowledge, none of us lost a loved one to the storm.  Things can be replaced, but life is precious and ours were spared.  Was this not a miracle?


“I believe in miracles.  I’ve seen a soul set free.  Miraculous the change in one redeemed through Calvary.  I’ve seen the lily push its way up through the stubborn sod.  Yes, I believe in miracles.  For I believe in God.”  [From the hymn, “I Believe In Miracles”.]

God still works miracles, and so can we.  Cast out all doubt.  Make a miracle happen.  In the blessed name of Christ Jesus our Lord.  Amen.


Let us pray…  Father God, we know You still work miracles, even though we don’t always see them.  Forgive us, Father, when we think the miracle You just performed is something we did.  Forgive us when we fail to recognize and acknowledge Your mighty hand at work.  Please help us see the miracles in our lives each and every day.  May You received all the glory.

Please hear us now, Father, as we come to You in the silence, speaking from our hearts, thanking You for Your many blessings, promising to turn from our sin, and asking for Your help as we do so…

Lord Jesus, You did so many great and wonderful things while You walked among us.  The signs You showed of Your divine nature should have been obvious to everyone, not just the few who would believe.  Thank You, Jesus, for letting us be counted as Your believers.  Please help us, Lord, to call upon Your sweet name and make miracles happen through the power of God’s Holy Spirit living within us.  Help us to push even the little doubts out of our hearts so we can do great things in Your name and in Your service.

This we pray in Your glorious name, Lord Jesus Christ, our Master and our Savior, our only hope.  Amen.

Coming Together

[The following is a manuscript of my message delivered on Sunday morning, the 9th of September, 2018, Homecoming Sunday at Pilgrim Reformed Church.  Look for the video of this and our other services on our Vimeo channel:  http://vimeo.com/pilgrimreformedchurch.]

Church homecoming – a day set aside each year for folks to come back to what once was their home church, usually accompanied by a luncheon afterwards.  Here at Pilgrim, we also take a moment on this day to remember those who have passed since this time last year.  They enjoyed a different kind of homecoming, one we all look forward to.

I’ll look at that homecoming in a minute, but there’s another I’d like to address first, and that is coming home to God.  Our heavenly Father spoke through His prophet Ezekiel and promises us new life when we come home to Him.  Please listen and follow along as I read what Ezekiel recorded for us in the 37th chapter of his book, verses 1 through 14, from the Contemporary English Version of our Holy Bible…

1 Some time later, I felt the Lord’s power take control of me, and His Spirit carried me to a valley full of bones. 2 The Lord showed me all around, and everywhere I looked I saw bones that were dried out. 3 He said, “Ezekiel, son of man, can these bones come back to life?”

I replied, “Lord God, only you can answer that.”

4 He then told me to say:

Dry bones, listen to what the Lord is saying to you, 5 “I, the Lord God, will put breath in you, and once again you will live. 6 I will wrap you with muscles and skin and breathe life into you. Then you will know that I am the Lord.”

7 I did what the Lord said, but before I finished speaking, I heard a rattling noise. The bones were coming together! 8 I saw muscles and skin cover the bones, but they had no life in them.

9 The Lord said:

Ezekiel, now say to the wind, “The Lord God commands you to blow from every direction and to breathe life into these dead bodies, so they can live again.”

10 As soon as I said this, the wind blew among the bodies, and they came back to life! They all stood up, and there were enough to make a large army.

11 The Lord said:

Ezekiel, the people of Israel are like dead bones. They complain that they are dried up and that they have no hope for the future. 12 So tell them, “I, the Lord God, promise to open your graves and set you free. I will bring you back to Israel, 13 and when that happens, you will realize that I am the Lord. 14 My Spirit will give you breath, and you will live again. I will bring you home, and you will know that I have kept My promise. I, the Lord, have spoken.”

--Ezekiel 37:1-14 (CEV)

Let us pray…  Father God, sometimes we feel and act like nothing but a pile of old dry bones, just laying around with no life in us.  Revive us, please Father.  Help us hear Your voice, feel Your Spirit moving inside us.  Speak to us now with the message You need us to hear this day..  In the blessed name of Jesus we pray.   Amen.


A lady once asked evangelist Billy Sunday, "Why do you keep having revivals when it doesn't last?"  Billy answered with a question of his own: "Why do you keep taking baths?"


Welsh author Howard Spring noted that, "The kingdom of God is not going to advance by our churches becoming filled with men, but by men in our churches becoming filled with God."


North Carolina native and American evangelist Vance Havner put it like this:  "Revival is the church falling in love with Jesus all over again."


There are some things we have to keep doing over and over because they need doing over and over, like bathing and washing clothes and mowing the grass.  Billy Sunday understood that we Christians need to be constantly revived, we need those reminders of who and what we are.  Howard Spring recognized that numbers in and of themselves don’t matter; that how many people we have filling the pews isn’t as important as how filled with God and His Holy Spirit we are.  And our native son Vance Havner summed it up best by saying that church revival is simply the family of Jesus falling in love with our Lord all over again.

Revival is all about coming back home to God, refreshing our hearts with His Holy Spirit, renewing our love for His Son Jesus.  Our revival services start tonight, but revival should be an ongoing practice for us.


God showed Ezekiel a field of dry, lifeless bones.  And then He gave them flesh and breathed life into them.  Then God explained what the vision is all about, that the dry bones represent the people of Israel, His chosen people.  Now since this is all recorded in our Bible for us all, and God speaks to us all, Gentiles and Jews alike, then we need to understand that we also are these dry bones.

And don’t we get to the point just like God is talking about, where we complain about being all dried up but don’t do anything about it.  We lose all hope for any kind of decent future.  We turn to drugs, both legal and illegal.  We seek help from doctors who give us drugs to suppress our depression, but that really only make us more depressed.  Human life becomes more and more worthless, as violence, murder, and suicides increase.

If we would only come home to God, He will pry open our self-dug graves and set us free!  He will give flesh to our bones and breathe new life into us!  He will bring us home!  This our Lord has promised!  This God has spoken!


And that brings us to the other homecoming, the one where the entire family of Jesus comes together.  For although this facility is beautiful, and we come here to our home church, this is not our home.  Indeed, no place in this world is our home, as the author of the Book of Hebrews clearly states in chapter 13 verse 14 when he states…

14 For this world is not our permanent home; we are looking forward to a home yet to come.

--Hebrews 13:14 (NLT)

Nothing in this world is permanent, not in God’s great scheme.  Everything of this world will eventually pass away, so it can certainly not be a permanent home for anyone.  We are all pilgrims here, and not just in Pilgrim Church.  As the old song “Wayfaring Stranger” says, we’re just traveling through this world below.

The Apostle Peter echoes this sentiment in his 1st letter to the early church, chapter 2, verses 11 and 12 when he writes…

11 Dear friends, I warn you as “temporary residents and foreigners” to keep away from worldly desires that wage war against your very souls. 12 Be careful to live properly among your unbelieving neighbors. Then even if they accuse you of doing wrong, they will see your honorable behavior, and they will give honor to God when he judges the world.

--1 Peter 2:11-12 (NLT)

We’re only temporary residents, but as such we should be careful to live proper lives so that the unbelieving around us see us as honorable and may come to know Jesus themselves.  For Jesus will return someday, and then God will judge the world.

In chapter 4, verses 16 and 17 of his 1st letter to the Thessalonians, the Apostle Paul tells us what to expect on that day…

16 For the Lord Himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, the believers who have died will rise from their graves. 17 Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Then we will be with the Lord forever.

--1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 (NLT)

This will be our true and final homecoming!  This will be the time when all believers in Jesus, those who have died and those still alive on that glorious day, will be reunited as one family, the full body of Jesus.  This is the great reunion with our Lord in the sky, and what a grand homecoming that will be!

But there’s a kicker, a requisite condition – did you notice?  This homecoming is for those who believed in and accepted Jesus during their life on earth.  Our homecoming service and lunch today is open to anyone who wishes to come.  But this homecoming with Jesus is strictly for believers - no one else will be invited, or allowed to attend.

This is what we need to remember.  This is why we come together every Sunday.  This is why we need constant revival.  This is why we need all our family to be filled with God and His Holy Spirit.  This is why we need to fall in love with Jesus all over again.


Someday, if we believe, we’ll be a part of that great homecoming in the clouds.  Starting this evening, we’ll come together for our three revival services.  But let’s make it a point to seek revival each and every day.  Let’s fall in love with Jesus, all over again.

In the blessed name of Christ Jesus our Lord.  Amen.


Let us pray…  Father God, You see the hearts of Your people and You know our condition.  Too often, believers look just like non-believers in our day to day actions.  Too many of us are nothing but dry bones, having lost all hope, having forgotten our first love of Jesus.  Please help us, Father.  Return to our bones muscle, sinew, and flesh.  Breathe life back into us by filling us anew with Your Holy Spirit.  Renew our love for Your Son Jesus.

Please hear us now, Father, as we come to You in the silence, speaking from our hearts, thanking You for Your many blessings, promising to turn from our sin, and asking for Your help as we do so…

Lord Jesus, You promised to return some day to call Your church home.  Please help us, Lord, to be ready for that day so we can be a part of that great reunion in the sky.  Help us regain the love we felt for You when we first came to You.  Revive us, Lord.  Lead us back to our Father God.  Lead us home.

This we pray in Your glorious name, Lord Jesus Christ, our Master and our Savior, our only hope.  Amen.