May Christmas Be Centered Around Christ As You Enjoy Your Family And Friends.
Be A Miracle In Someone’s Life.
No Activities At Church This Week.
Beats From Your Pastor’s Heart:
Jude 1:20-21, “But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost, Keepyourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.”
God’s love is made up of the Spirit’s communication.
The Spirit transmits all that is in this love — God’s choice and His plan, Christ’s redemption, resurrection, ascension, and intercession.
Now we can have the reality of this love in our experience.
We can have “the good” of it by the Holy Spirit.
The participial phrase “praying in the Holy Spirit” modifies “keep yourselves in the love of God.”
So the way we keep ourselves in the love of God is by praying in the Holy Spirit.
When we pray in the Holy Spirit, we enter the realm of the poured-out love of God.
This is how we keep our hearts in the unconditional love of God.
It is so easy for a day to go by–you go to work and come home.
Maybe you have been burdened down with all the cares of life and have had no prayer and fellowship with the Lord.
You feel somewhat beaten down.
And you feel like God does not love or care about you that much.
You do not have the present enjoyment of His love in your sensation.
But Jude tells us, “Keep yourselves in the love of God.”
Take some initiative now.
Do not go away from the love, but keep yourself in it.
He tells you how–“praying in the Holy Spirit.”
It is not praying just from your mind, but praying in the Holy Spirit.
That means you use your spirit to pray, fellowship, talk, call out, cry out, and sing.
This activates your spirit and brings you into the realm of the Holy Spirit.
Sometimes there is a breaking-through period, but the principle is that we can keep ourselves in the love of God.
This is God’s unconditional love toward us through the Spirit’s transmission.
As we see the composition of God’s love, we discover that it is not just a shallow, superficial feeling in God.
This love is eternal.
This love can never be defeated or frustrated, because it met the devil, it met sin, it met every obstacle, and it overcame.
It overcame through death, through resurrection, and through ascension.
And now this love is transmitted into us by the Holy Spirit.
Until Tomorrow
With a Shepherd’s Love
Pastor
TODAY’S PRAYER LIST
Bill Lawhead – Much Prayer needed
Jill Haines
The Graham Family – Brandon’s Friends
Amy Garner’s Mother/Dad
Ashley Burn’s Sisters
Barbara Shed’s Family
Bill Moody
Carol Lawhead’s Brother
Charlie Sessom – Waiting
Colby/Connor – Allison’s G’sons
Denise Stubbs – Kim Allison’s Mom
Greg Payne – Lisa’s Brother
Hanna Hall – Pray for Grace
Kimberly – Dustin’s Sister
Larry Barker
Linda Breedlove’s Sister – Sarah
Mary Sims
Marynell Ford – Good News
Michael Stanley
Nora Allison – Dustin’s Mom
Paula Ferus’ Missionary Friend
Ricky Stubbs
Rod Gustafson – Cancer
Roseleigh Osborn
Scott Lanier – Linda’s Son
Shaelyn – Jill’s Friend
Sheila Simmons Cousin
Tom Witcher