Tag Archives: courage

Fear of Tomorrow, March 30, 2020

Today’s Podcast

Subscribe in: iTunes|

Thanks for joining me today for “A Little Walk with God.” I’m your host Richard Agee.

We are in the middle of Lent. We are also in the middle of an event no one probably imagined possible in our lifetime – a global pandemic. We had the Swine Flu that swept flu years ago, and it was terrible. But certainly didn’t seem to be on the catastrophic order this coronavirus appears to be taking us.

People are afraid. You can see it in the blank stares of those you meet. You see it in the panic-stricken faces of the shoppers who can’t find the staples necessary to meet the needs of the week. You see it in the faces of the officials who try to bring calm to the cities and states across the country when they don’t have answers or solutions, and they know it.

The pandemic seemed to be out there somewhere when we first heard about the numbers in China and on the cruise ship stuck in Japan. Then we heard the report of the nursing home in Washington, and it began to worry us just a bit. Next, the stories blossomed in Italy, France, Spain, and the rest of Europe. Then New York City became the epicenter for our country, and fear began to grip the nation.

How do we handle all of this? Where do we go from here? How could God let this happen to our nation?

I wish I had answers to all the questions, but I don’t. There are some things I do know, however. God is just the same today as he was when we faced the Swine Flu pandemic and the Spanish Flu pandemic and the Black Plague pandemic and all the other pandemics that have swept through the world. He has not changed. Where is he? Still in the hearts and lives of those who believe and follow him.

Does that make us less susceptible to the outcomes that will occur because of what might happen in the next weeks and months because of these new events? No. Christians will suffer along with the rest of humanity. But we can feel God’s love and share it with those around us. We can face the days ahead with courage, knowing that God is still on the throne and will not forsake us.

One of the passages from yesterday’s lectionary was from one of David’s most famous psalms. In it, he tells God and us, “though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me.”

This virus we face is undoubtedly an evil little bug. It infects others before you know you have it. It seeks out the most vulnerable in the population and wreaks havoc on their system. It invades cities and states and societies indiscriminately. It causes us to give up the thing we need most in times like this, the comfort of human touch and face to face relationships.

God remains, though. He tells us he is ever-present in times of need. I’m not sure how many will reach out to him during this crisis time, but my hope is we will use it as an opportunity to share his love with those around us. Find peace in the middle of all the chaos and fear. Understand that he is the answer to our current dilemma.

Another of the passages from the lectionary spoke of the raising of Lazarus from the dead. By the time Mary and Martha’s messenger reached Jesus, Lazarus was already dead, but the disciples and the messenger didn’t know it. Jesus delayed going to Mary and Martha for their sake and ours. When he finally told the disciples they would go to Bethany to Mary and Martha’s house; the disciples were confused. Why would Jesus wait until Lazarus was dead to go? Why wouldn’t he go and heal him before he died?

We know Jesus had a plan. He wept for Mary and Martha. For their unrelenting love for their brother. For their grief in his death. For their unbelief in his power as the giver of life. Jesus had the stone removed from the tomb, called Lazarus to come out of the grave, and to everyone’s astonishment, the dead man walked out alive.

Jesus demonstrated his resurrection power in calling Lazarus out of the tomb. He had already done it with his touch on the young man at the funeral in Cain and the centurion’s daughter and Jason’s daughter. This incident wasn’t the first time Jesus raised someone from the dead, but it was the first time it wasn’t the same day they died that he brought them back to life.

Burials happened within twenty-four hours in Jesus’ day. The heat of the middle east sun meant a corpse began to smell pretty quickly. The custom was when a person died, they were immediately wrapped in linen clothes embedded with spices and then lain to rest within a day. So all that Jesus raised before had not yet been buried. Until Lazarus. He had been in the tomb for four days.

God gives us that same resurrection power through his Spirit living in us. Can we make it through this current crisis? With his resurrection power in us, we can enjoy the peace he brings. We can know his presence in our hearts. We can share the love he shares with us. We can extend his grace to those around us. We can live with the assurance that the valley of the shadow of death does not need to frighten us because he is with us.

Might we suffer as the pandemic progresses? We might. Will things get worse in the days ahead? They probably will. Can we endure through it all? Yes, we can. God’s resurrection power can help us through the worst of times, giving us his peace in the most turbulent times.

As we get locked into our homes to avoid the spread of the virus, spend time with God. Let his scriptures and his spirit comfort you. Learn more about him and let his words encourage you.

You can find me at richardagee.com. I also invite you to join us at San Antonio First Church of the Nazarene on West Avenue in San Antonio to hear more Bible-based teaching. You can find out more about my church at SAF.church. Thanks for listening. If you enjoyed it, tell a friend. If you didn’t, send me an email and let me know how better to reach out to those around you. Until next week, may God richly bless you as you venture into His story each day.

Hug a vet, November 12, 2018

Leave a reply

Today’s Podcast

Subscribe in: iTunes|Download

Thanks for joining me today for “A Little Walk with God.” I’m your host Richard Agee.

As I prepare this week’s podcast, I’m also in the throes of preparing for a special Veterans’ Day service at my church. USAF Col(Ret) Thomas “Jerry” Curtis graciously accepted our invitation to speak for us. If you haven’t heard his name before, Carole Engle Avriett wrote the account of his 7 ½ years of captivity as a POW during the Vietnam War. As I read the harrowing story of his capture, imprisonment, and unrelenting torture, I could not imagine the suffering Col Curtis and his fellow prisoners endured.

There is a similar group of individuals who demonstrate that selfless service. Men who stand in the face of danger and demonstrate incredible courage in the face of the enemy. I’ve been extremely fortunate, especially in my later assignments in the service, to meet some of these incredible people. At the Army Medical Department Center and School we often invited Medal of Honor recipients to address classes of young students as they began their new careers. I enjoyed the honor of meeting with most of them in my office for some conversation and a cup of coffee before they spoke to the class. What a privilege!

Invariably, when asked about the event that resulted in their earning of our nation’s highest award, these humble men remarked, “I was in the wrong place at the wrong time. I just did what anyone would do. My buddies were in trouble and I did what I had to do.” I always read their citations before I met them and I have to tell you, there are few men who would do what these heroes would do. This collection of 3521 men and one woman (Dr. Mary Walker) are truly outstanding examples of selfless service. Dr. Walker and five other civilians received the award after the Civil War. Not quite half of the Medals came from the Civil War era. Many of the awards were given to next of kin postumously. The service members recieving the awards dieing as a result of their actions to save others.

I was consistently mesmerized by these men’s stories. I was equally mesmerized by Col. Curtis’ story. The courage of the POWs remind me of the selfless sacrifice our veterans and their families make so we can enjoy the freedoms enumerated by our Constitution. It’s easy for us to forget those sacrifices today since less than 1% of our population has any connection to the military these days. They endure the separation from home and family, often living in abysmal conditions in far off lands, to keep war from our shores so that we can sleep peacefully at night.

They also remind me that Jesus and his disciple, Paul and those early Christians knew well the suffering veterans like Col. Curtis and his fellow prisoners endured. Paul was beaten, enslaved, moved from prison to prison. He never knew if he would live or die at the hands of his next jailers. He was cold, hungry, thirsty, lacked basic hygiene we take for granted. He had nothing to call his own. He was ridiculed for his beliefs and told he was nothing. Our POWs, some living in those conditions for almost eight years, endured those same atrocities.

Why do I bring these things up today? A couple of reasons. First, as we celebrate Veterans’ Day, it is a good time to thank a veteran for his or her service. We enjoy what we have today in large part because of their willingness to sacrifice for us. And thank their families because they too sacrifice. While veterans deploy to far off shores, families stay home and wonder what is happening. They worry about their safety. They wonder if they will even make it home again. Spouses act as single parent as often as not. Reunification when service men and women return is never easy either as that service member returns to take their place in the home…changed because of their experiences. Remember families.

Second, as we think about the atrocities that humans can inflict upon other humans, pray that peace can break out in places like the Middle East and the Pacific Rim and Africa. There are dangerous places around the world that put everyone at risk because of the interconnected nature of the world today. There is no such thing as isolationism today. There just isn’t.

Third, remember that as Christians we are soldiers of the cross. Jesus said to expect the world to hate us because of him. Knowing what our military enemies of the past have done to our service men and women and reading the accounts of men like Col. Curtis and the Apostle Paul, I think we can expect similar treatment at the hands of evil me as Jesus’ return gets closer. Pray that we, like those who have gone before us will have the courage to endure to the end. I fear that as we progress toward the final battles that John wrote in the Revelations he penned on the Isle of Patmos we will feel the pain and torture evil men can inflict on others.

Finally, you will find that blessing others is so much more rewarding that complaining about others. Whether talking about politics or work or family or neighbors or any other topic, blessings will go so much further than curses. Just bless those around you. When you read and understand Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, you find again and again his admonishment to treat others well regardless how they treat you. He tells us our behavior show mimick God’s sharing mercy when mercy is not deserved. He says to extend grace when grace is the last thing on our mind as we suffer because of him.

Remember what we mean by grace. We sometimes forget the difference between justice and mercy and grace. I think it important to remember the difference as we extend God’s grace to others. Justice is what we deserve, punishment for our wrong behavior, sin. Justice requires our eternal punishment for our disobedience to God. Mercy says we are forgiven. Because of Jesus’ death on the cross, we can accept his sacrifice as our own, ask forgiveness, follow him, and we experience his mercy. Forgiveness we do not deserve. But grace. Grace is overwhelming. Grace stuns us. Grace makes us fall on our face in awe of God’s indescribable love. He gives more than we deserve, expect, imagine. God gives all he is to us. He sacrificed himself. He became like us to show us who he is.

I’ve shared this story before to describe his grace. You come into the parking lot and see a young thug with keys in his hand standing next to your brand new Lambergini. There are streaks all down the side and flakes of paint still falling to the ground beside it. The young man’s keys are stained with the same paint and his eyes grow big as you approach your car. He’s caught. Trapped. No where to go. He knows your know exactly what has happened.

Justice says you call the police. Justice says the young man pays to have your brand new car repainted. Justice says punishment is coming quickly for this young man caught in the act. But you extend mercy. The young man is afraid. You see it in his eyes as you walk up to him. But mercy says. Young man I forgive you for what you’ve done. You know it was wrong. I know it was wrong. I think you’ve learned your lesson, though. It’s not about being caught. You understand that, right? Now, go about your business, I won’t punish you. I won’t call the police. I won’t make you pay for the damage. You are forgiven. I only ask that you don’t do something like this again. That’s mercy.

But grace. Grace says this. You walk up to the young man who obviously has fear in his eyes. And here’s what happens. “Young man, I see you’ve scratched up my car. I forgive you. It’s only a car, but here are the keys. I want you to have it. I think you know it was wrong and you won’t do something like that again. Let me sign the title over to you. Oh, and let’s go to the body shop and get the scratches fixed. Don’t worry about the cost. I’ll pay for it. The car is yours and I want it to look perfect for you. One more thing. I want you to take this credit card and if you need gas or tires or any kind of maintenance, be sure to charge it to me, okay?” That is grace. Awesome. Unbelievable. Beyond what we can think or imagine. Stunning. That is the grace God give us.

What does Jesus want us to do? Forgive our enemies. Extend his mercy to them. Then love them the way he loves them. Extend his grace to them. Can we do that without knowing him? Not a chance. We cannot understand his grace until we experience it ourselves. And how do we experience it? Ask him into your life and obey him. You will know his grace. He gives it freely to all who let him in.

You can find me at richardagee.com. I also invite you to join us at San Antonio First Church of the Nazarene on West Avenue in San Antonio to hear more Bible based teaching. You can find out more about my church at SAF.church. Thanks for listening. If you enjoyed it, tell a friend. If you didn’t, send me an email and let me know how better to reach out to those around you. Until next week, may God richly bless you as you venture into His story each day.

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved. In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

Don’t be afraid to face your giants, June 4, 2018

Leave a reply

Today’s Podcast

Subscribe in: iTunes|Download

Today we want to talk about another obstacle in the way of overcoming those giants in our lives. Last week we discovered you should never try to tackle Goliath alone, but go into the valley with God by your side. It’s also good to have a mentor, a friend, and a church along with you to conquer those giants that come your way.

There is an old saying that goes something like this, “People are more comfortable with the devil they know than with the angel they don’t know.” What does it mean? People will stay in a bad situation, stick with bad habits, continue down the same destructive path because they are comfortable with it. Even though they see what might be a better way, they still hold on to what they know instead of taking a chance with something they don’t know. It’s pretty amazing just how hard we push against change in our lives.

That was true of those warriors in the Valley of Elah who listen to the Philistine, Goliath, challenge them each day. For forty days, Goliath marched down the hillside and stood in the valley with his armor bearers. He dared anyone to come fight him. The Israeli warrior cowered in their tents. They knew Goliath’s reputation and feared what would happen to them if they went into that valley. It was called “Death Valley” for a reason. They all just knew that if you went into that place, you wouldn’t come out again.

Fear of the unknown or fear trapped in their imagination captured them and froze their feet to the ground. They listened to that giant of a man roar his blasphemies against God and did nothing. They were afraid. They pictured themselves looking up into the eyes of that nine foot monster and couldn’t see their blood turned to ice. Who could possibly fight this guy?

But something happened after 40 days of the same old pattern. Goliath comes out, shouts his challenge, the Israelite warriors hide behind anything they can find, Goliath finally gets tired of waiting, and he climbs back up the hillside to wait until the next morning to do it all over again. The soldiers got used to the ritual and probably got to the point that when they saw the first glimmer of sunlight reflecting off Goliath’s helmet from the top of the hill, they hightailed it to the back forty to wait until he left. Fear.

In some ways you can’t blame them, I guess. I know I wouldn’t want to take on a nine foot monster in a fighting match. He was trained as a warrior. He had the reach, the weapons, every advantage you could think of except one. God was on David’s side.

So Jesse’s youngest son sees what’s going on. He’s too young to join the army. He’s only there to deliver some lunch to his brothers. Get a little news to take back home so his mom and dad will know their kids are still alive and doing well against their lifelong enemies, the Philistines. David went with no intention of joining the fight. He was just a shepherd. All he had was a sling. Coming from Bethlehem, he was pretty good with it, but still… A sling against a spear doesn’t sound like very good odds.

Was David afraid? You know, I want to think he had a few butterflies in his stomach as he reached into that stream and pulled out five stones. David knew God was with him, though. David knew how to use that sling. Elsewhere in God’s word, it tells us that the Benjamites could hit a hair with one of those slings. That’s pretty good. And considering that David could attack Goliath from the length of a football field with his sling and he had to be closer to the 20 yard line for Goliath’s spear to be as effective a weapon, David had a little bit of an edge from a distance. He had to hit Goliath in the space around his eyes, though. Everything else would be covered and the stone would bruise, but not kill on impact.

David marches out onto the field after refusing to take Saul’s armor. We sometimes think David was a puny little kid since the Bible tells us Saul’s armor didn’t fit. That’s not the picture I get of David, though. He killed a lion and a bear with his bare hands. I think the armor didn’t fit because Saul was head and shoulders taller than any of the other men present at his coronation. Saul stood out in a crowd. His armor was too big for everyone there.

The most important part of this story in relation to Goliath and fear, though, is that whatever fear David might have had as he looked at this monster of a man, he set it aside and trusted God. David believed God would help him vindicate his name against the blasphemous outpouring that came from this heathen. David believed God could take his fear and turn it into enough adrenaline to help him conquer this undefeated champion of his enemies. He pushed past the fear of what he knew and dared to launch into the unknown.

That’s exactly what we have to do with the Goliaths we face in our life. I don’t know what your Goliath is, but I expect you are like 99% of everyone else who faces Goliath. I expect there is that little bit of fear that asks what happens when I let go of this and let God have it? What will God ask of me? What will happen? How will my life change? What will other people think? What if God can’t break through the problem? (Yeah, right! Let me tell you, it’s not God that can’t fix it. He’s God! We are the problem, not him!)

The best way to attack those giants in our life is to act just like David. Don’t let those giants taunt you with their blasphemy. You will undoubtedly hear some voice in your head tell you that you can’t win the battle. It’s too hard. You can’t possibly overcome. You will hear the same tired excuses Goliath yelled at the Israelites across that Death Valley. But David refused to listen to Goliath. He refused to give in to his fear. He refused to let the giant dictate his moves, but instead listened to the voice of God.

I think it was God that prompted him to pick up five stones instead of one. He only needed one to defeat Goliath. David knew that and God knew it. So why five? Finish reading the stories of David’s battles and you’ll find Goliath had four brothers. David was ready to take on all of them if necessary. Fear. Sure. Enough to stop him from doing what God told him to do? No way. David knew God was bigger than any problem or any giant he came against. He was ready.

Are there times you will be afraid? You are not human if you don’t experience that emotion every so often. But we don’t have to let it cripple us. We can remember that God is for us, so who can be against us. Nothing can defeat us, because nothing can defeat him. He proved it a couple of millennium ago when he decided he didn’t want to stay dead. We can borrow his strength and his power to push through the fear the world tries to stir up and we can win against our Goliaths. Be like David today.

We are all exiles…or should be, January 22, 2018

2 Replies

Today’s Podcast

Subscribe in: iTunes|Download

Bible Reading Plan – www.Bible-Reading.com; The Story, Chapter 18; You Version Bible app Engaging God’s Story Reading Plan Days 120 through 126

Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego are not exactly household names. Maybe Daniel, but certainly not the other three. Of course, if you’ve been around the church for a while, you might have heard the stories of these three young men and their exploits with a furnace. You might remember their refusal to bow and the king’s fury that put them into a furnace so hot that it killed the guards as they approached it. You might remember the fourth figured that appeared in the fire that resumed them from the flames so that they didn’t even smell like smoke.

But I don’t want to talk about Daniel and his escape from the lions’ den today or Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and their escape from the furnace. I want us to recall today that these three young men were exiles in Babylonia. I want us to remember how they got there in the first place. Then I want us to see what God’s upper story then and now tells us.

You’ll recall that the Israelites had every chance to return to God. He sent prophets and priests to try His best to get them to return to Him and follow His teachings, but they refused. They wanted to be like all the other nations around them and so they abandoned God and sought after the gods of the nations around them. Finally God withdrew His protection from the nation He built and they fell first to the Assyrians and then to the Babylonians.

These two ancient civilizations were pretty smart in their capture of their enemies, though. They dispatched their captives to several other nations and instead of putting them in prisons, put them to work. They became farmers and masons and musicians and in the case of the best and brightest, Nebuchadnezzar even brought them into the palace to teach them about the country and its government to make them officials in their new adopted land.

Many don’t realize that the same thing happened to thousands of those imprisoned in World War I and II. They weren’t just kept in prisons, but many were “loaned” to cities and farmers and industries as workers. Many were even paid and became close friends with their “employers”. The goal of the king was to assimilate the young into his kingdom to reduce any resistance. Rather than spark rebellions from poor prison conditions, he gave them meaningful work and good living conditions and showed them a better way to live than they had seen in their homelands under siege.

But one thing these a group of these Israelites failed to do was change their ways with respect to their God. You see, to be totally immersed in the new country meant believing the way the adopted culture believed. It meant adopting their gods as well. Start thinking like the local populace. But some of these Jewish captives, notably people like Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, refused to change their religious habits. They refused to let their faith in their Creator diminish.

Our culture bombards us with information every day trying to get us to ignore our God. The off color jokes at the water cooler, do I participate or stand up for God’s standards of morality and equality among all people? The sexual innuendos toward the waitress by my table mates, do I let it slide or remind them that sex is God’s gift for married couples to enjoy intimacy in their relationships and not to be exploited otherwise? Do I fudge my travel expenses just because everyone else does, or do I provide honest and accurate accounting because God expects it of me?

You see, it doesn’t matter what the culture we live in might think or do because we live here as exiles. We are not of this place. Even though I was born and raised in the United States, my citizenship changed when I accepted Christ as my Lord. I entered a new kingdom and gave sovereignty and allegiance of my life to Jesus. So this place is no longer my home.

Peter tells us we are foreigners and exiles, just passing through this place. If we remember that and don’t get caught up in the culture of this place but remain true to the culture of our Father and His Son, we never need to worry. He will take care of us.

Does that mean we’ll never have trouble? No, by no means. Just look at these three young men. They were probably teenagers when their first test came. Daniel said, “I won’t defile myself by eating the king’s food. Just give us vegetables and water.” Then I love what his three companions told the king when they refused to bow to the golden statue made in his likeness.

“If we are thrown into the blazing furnace the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and He will deliver us from your Majesty’s hand. But even if He does not, we want you to know, you Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.”

That is faith. That is the testimony of so many thousands of martyrs who have given their lives for Christ through the centuries. It tells of the faith of so many today who are refusing to renounce their faith in Him even though they face the executioner’s blade or bullets. I would like to think my faith is strong enough to refuse to recant if faced with that situation. I’m afraid too many in our culture would not, just as was true in Daniel’s day.

Knowing I don’t belong here helps my faith. Knowing this place is just a temporary stopping point in my journey the garden God is preparing for us helps my faith. Knowing others have gone before me and have had the courage to stand before the crowd and kept their faith when others failed helps me to keep my faith. Knowing that if I can stand firm in the face of adversity that my testimony might help someone else stay strong as well helps me to keep my faith. Knowing God never fails and even though I can’t see how His upper story plays out in my lower story, I have the assurance that if I love Him and obey Him, all things work together for my good and His glory, I can keep my faith no matter what might happen around me.

We can go back to one of those very early lessons we had. Job never knew why he faced the adversities he faced. God never revealed to him the questions Satan raised or the contest God allowed behind the backdrop of heaven. God’s upper story encourages us because we know God will never allow us to face more than we can handle. God’s upper story encourages us because we know in the end we are rewarded for our faithfulness. But like Job, we often cannot see around the bend in the road and may never understand why we face the difficulties in life that come our way. But with God on our side, we can know that a better day is coming. We are only exiles in this world and one day He will come to take us back home to the place He has been preparing for us for an eternity. Take courage as an exile, a foreigner, a child of the King of kings. He will never let you down.

What do you do with fear? (Revelation 1:17-20), May 11, 2017

Leave a reply

Today’s Podcast

Subscribe in: iTunes|Download

Thanks for joining me today for “A Little Walk with God.” I’m your host Richard Agee.
Franklin D. Roosevelt is famed with saying, “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” But how well do we do that?
Scripture
1. Revelation 1:17-20
2. The One: This is not the time for fear; I am the First and the Last, and I am the living One. I entered the realm of the dead; but see, I am alive now and for all the ages—even ages to come. Amen. I possess the keys to open the prison of death and hades.

Now write down all you have seen—all that is and all that will be. Regarding the mystery of the seven stars you saw in My right hand and of the seven golden lampstands: the seven stars are the heavenly messengers who preside over the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches themselves.

Devotional
1. Fear is rampant in our society
  1. Fear of physical harm
    1. Terrorists
    2. Robbers, murderers, assault
  2. Fear of disease
    1. Cancer
    2. Heart disease
    3. Diabetes
    4. Communicable diseases
  3. Fear of failure
    1. Work
    2. Relationships
    3. Life
  4. Fear of death
2. What do we do with fear?
  1. Wikipedia – Fear is a feeling induced by perceived danger or threat that occurs in certain types of organisms, which causes a change in metabolic and organ functions and ultimately a change in behavior, such as fleeing, hiding, or freezing from perceived traumatic events. Fear in human beings may occur in response to a specific stimulus occurring in the present, or in anticipation or expectation of a future threat perceived as a risk to body or life. The fear response arises from the perception of danger leading to confrontation with or escape from/avoiding the threat (also known as the fight-or-flight response), which in extreme cases of fear (horror and terror) can be a freeze response or paralysis.
  2. We all experience it as a natural emotion, but Roosevelt tells us we have nothing to fear but fear
  3. Jesus tells us now is not the time to fear
  4. He has already conquered the thing we fear most – death
  5. He holds the keys to the prison of death
3. Follow Him and He can release us from that prison
  1. Knowing He holds the keys to the worst that can happen to us
  2. We do not need to be afraid
  3. Our greatest failure is overcome by the one who holds the solution to our biggest problem – death
  4. He takes us through the veil to life everlasting
  5. There really is nothing to fear – not even fear
4. Go show a little courage
If you want to learn more about my church, you can find us at SAF.church. If you like the devotional, share it with someone. If you don’t, tell me. I hope you’ll join me again tomorrow for “A Little Walk with God.”

Feeling alone (Acts 18:9-10), May 8, 2017

Leave a reply

Today’s Podcast

Subscribe in: iTunes|Download

Thanks for joining me today for “A Little Walk with God.” I’m your host Richard Agee.
Topic Introduction with headline.
Scripture
1. Acts 18:9-10
2. The Lord: Do not be afraid, Paul. Speak! Don’t be silent! I am with you, and no one will lay a finger on you to harm you. I have many in this city who are already My people.
Devotional
1. Have you ever been in a crowd of people listening to someone spout of something you knew was wrong but noone spoke up?
  1. Hitler’s speeches
  2. Terrorist rhetoric
  3. General wrongdoing/evil action
2. We think we’re the only one in the crowd and are afraid of what the crowd might do to us if we speak up
  1. Usually not the only one
  2. Usually others in the crowd feel the same way but are also afraid
  3. Usually just need someone with the courage to start that chain reaction of good will to stand up against evil
3. Will standing up against evil always put the crowd on your side
  1. No
  2. Jesus was crucified
  3. Paul was martyred
  4. Many have lost their everything they owned and some lost their lives for speaking up for Christ
  5. But the courage to speak up always has positive consequences
4. Look at what Stephen’s martyrdom sparked
  1. Saul an onlooker
  2. Many witnesses saw Stephen’s reaction and thousands wanted to know this Jesus he spoke of
  3. The same has happened when others throughout history have stood up for Christ
5. Jesus promised His disciples He would never leave the or forsake them
  1. He never fails to keep His promises
  2. When we invite Him into our lives He is with us and in us
  3. He gives us the courage to stand alone in the crowd because we know we are never alone
  4. He is with us, empowering us
  5. Gives resurrection power to enable us to share His message of forgiveness for the asking
6. Do you feel alone in the crowd?
  1. Think again
  2. Search your heart
  3. You may be the spark that begins a revival fire among those who witness your testimony of God’s grace and mercy in your life
If you want to learn more about my church, you can find us at SAF.church. If you like the devotional, share it with someone. If you don’t, tell me. I hope you’ll join me again tomorrow for “A Little Walk with God.”

What happens when you give in to the mob? (John 19:11), April 24, 2017

Leave a reply

Today’s Podcast

Subscribe in: iTunes|Download

Thanks for joining me today for “A Little Walk with God.” I’m your host Richard Agee.
Mob rule is a scary thing. It’s easy to get trapped in it. But dangerous when you let it rule you.
Scripture
1. John 19:11
2. Jesus: Any authority you have over Me comes from above, not from your political position. Because of this, the one who handed Me to you is guilty of the greater sin.
Devotional
1. I have to admit, on more than one occasion, I’ve just given in to the crowd.
  1. I was in charge
  2. I knew in my heart what should be done
  3. I knew the consequences that would take place if I let the crowd rule and gave in to their demands
  4. The crowd was small, my platoon or my staff or the section I was leading at the time
  5. They were tired or hungry or wanted to stop or do something I knew wouldn’t have the outcome we needed
  6. I gave in to their demand
  7. It didn’t turn out well
  8. Mission wasn’t accomplished
  9. Results were poor
  10. All of us embarrassed
2. Pilate was the governor
  1. Had the authority to release Jesus
  2. Knew what was right
  3. Knew the consequences of giving Jesus over to this mob
  4. An innocent man would die because of his failure to stand up for what was right
  5. Wife even warned him of the failure in justice
  6. Pilate listened to the crowd instead of his conscience
  7. Gave a glimmer of hope when he offered Barabas in place of Jesus
3. It’s easy to follow the crowd
  1. Jesus told us broad the way that leads to destruction, though
  2. Easy to follow the crowd that leads to nowhere
  3. Harder to follow the narrow path that leads to righteousness
  4. Harder to stand for what is right and just and holy
  5. Like salmon swimming upstream against the current
  6. Everyone else will push against you trying to turn you around
  7. But when you know what is right it is worth maintaining the course
  8. In the end you will hear, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”
If you want to learn more about my church, you can find us at SAF.church. If you like the devotional, share it with someone. If you don’t, tell me. I hope you’ll join me again tomorrow for “A Little Walk with God.”