Updates:
- Our work in Sulphur Springs - Pray that God will give you a vision for work we can do in this town!
Praise Reports:
- In answer to last week's prayer, Clayton passed away last Wednesday. He was more than ready to go and we rejoice in his being in the Lord's presence. The memorial will take place at the Shiloh chapel on Saturday at 2 PM. All are invited.
- Shirley's brother-in-law Paul came through his surgery wonderfully, his condition was not as serious as the doctors thought, and he went straightaway up to Portland with Ruby and Shirley to buy a motor home.
- Vanessa's mother is doing better, and hopefully will be home soon.
- Julie encouraged us with Psalm 40:8, in confirmation of last week's message.
- Brandon was in a car accident last week, but came out very little the worse, praise God!
- Apparently, Carolyn got a very good report from the doctor on her cancer. Please continue to keep her and Harvey in your prayers as she recovers from chemotherapy.
Prayer Requests:
- Emily is still recovering from her surgery, and Donovan's tests have not come back yet.
- Rod is having faith that he will sell his rental property this year.
- Joyce prayed for faith and truth in her friend Larry.
- The Augustin's pray that the Lord will provide them with another vehicle to replace the one that was totaled.
- Always remember our nation and the authorities in our world. Also remember our soldiers in harm's way.
- May God bring revival to America and may the Holy Spirit raise up a standard!
Cleanup Crew:
- On August 8 our helpful cleaners will be Roy, Shelly, and Vanessa!
Luke 8:4-18
The parable of the sower can give us insight into the problems that people bring to their relationship with Christ. We are born believing (Matthew 18:6) but fall away for some reason or other.
Some people harden their hearts after experiencing pain and disappointment. If children are not protected, encouraged, loved, and cared for, they can put their hearts on the shelf and decided to deal with everything mentally. A hardened heart is not going to receive the Word by faith. They must become like little children again (Matthew 18:3). People make conscious decisions to rule their hearts with their minds (Romans 8:5-6).
Some hearts are like rocky ground. They need to know that even those who have the strongest faith will still be plagued by pain and trouble in this world of sin. Suffering is a fact of life. Sometimes, in order to get a plant to produce fruit, it must be beaten and put through stress.
Some hearts are choked with thorns. Riches, pleasure, and worries have the potential of competing with our faith. Worry is another word for fear (Mark 5:35-36). Fear competes with faith, it is an action of our rational mind, not our believing heart. Faith is of the spirit. If we are afraid, our minds are in control. The lure of money is powerful (Matthew 19:23) and can be a dreadful obstacle to faith and may be impossible for an evangelist to deal with.
People lock their spirits, and their faith, away, so the Gospel becomes illogical to them since they are looking at it solely with their minds.
Look at everyone in this light: when they were born, they believed.
God can work mightily in their lives, and we are honored to serve Him.
No comments:
Post a Comment