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If He comes suddenly, do not let Him find you sleeping. Mark 13:36 NIVThere was a time in our life when our business started failing and our income got less, and less, and then stopped. As the bills started piling up, we tried everything, but nothing seemed to help. We gave more, prayed more, fasted more, served more, tried to find any job possible and then as the last straw, we prepared to move out...

God spoke all these words, saying, 'I am Yahweh your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. You shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourselves an idol, nor any image of anything that is in the heavens above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: you shall not bow yourself down to them, nor serve them, for...

A Scattered Flock from Refreshing Hope Ministries on Vimeo. Jesus was the good Shepherd (John 10:1), and He was also our example of how to live a perfect life. He came to Earth at a dark, difficult time, especially in religion, for God’s presence had left the temple. The last book in the Old Testament is the prophet Malachi, and this is what the Lord told the priests that took care of His...

Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven. James 5:13'15 NIVAs I got out of bed, I was more tired than when I had laid down. We had not slept now for weeks except for a brief...

Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us. For it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree,” that the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Christ Jesus; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith. Galatians 3:13–14 WEB In Roman times, slaves were sold on an auction block under a spear. When a spear...

If I were hungry, I would not tell you, for the world is mine, and all that is in it. Will I eat the meat of bulls, or drink the blood of goats? Offer to God the sacrifice of thanksgiving. Pay your vows to the Most High. Call on me in the day of trouble. I will deliver you, and you will honor me.' Psalms 50:12 WEBGod owns the entire universe, above and below, seen and unseen. Some people think that...

I have said these things to you, while still living with you. But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things, and will remind you of all that I said to you. John 14:25 WEBWhen I rested my hand on the box, a light came on. When I moved my hand away, it went out. I examined the wires connected to the back of the hub and found that one of the network...

I Care from Refreshing Hope Ministries on Vimeo. While I was praying about the message today, I prayed: “Lord help me feed Your sheep. What are Your people are missing today? What can I tell them to give them hope?” I heard two words spoken slowly, but very firmly: “I Care.” Then a flood of thoughts and scriptures came to mind. We truly don’t understand how much the...

The Wet Fleece from Refreshing Hope Ministries on Vimeo. Today I want to talk about Gideon in Judges, chapter six. For seven years, raiders from the land of Midian would invade Israel at harvest time, set up camps, then systematically steal their crops, livestock, and destroy and pillage anything of value. They came up like locusts and their numbers could not even be counted. The Israelites were...

Then David and the people who were with him lifted up their voice and wept, until they had no more power to weep. David's two wives were taken captive, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail the wife of Nabal the Carmelite. David was greatly distressed; for the people spoke of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and for his daughters: but David strengthened...

Moses said to the people, 'Don't be afraid. Stand still, and see the salvation of Yahweh, which he will work for you today: for the Egyptians whom you have seen today, you shall never see them again. Yahweh will fight for you, and you shall be still.' Yahweh said to Moses, 'Why do you cry to me? Speak to the children of Israel, that they go forward.' Exodus 14:13 WEBMoses and the Israelite people...

The son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in your sight. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.' But the father said to his servants, 'Bring out the best robe, and put it on him. Put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet. Bring the fattened calf, kill it, and let us eat, and celebrate; for this, my son, was dead, and is alive again. He was lost, and is found.' Luke...

The First Christmas from Refreshing Hope Ministries on Vimeo. Today I want to talk about the first Christmas. What was it like to be on the Earth the night that Jesus was born? What was the world like then? What do we know about it? Well, things were complicated. It was a difficult time. Under Julius Caesar, Rome had expanded to a vast empire that spanned from Egypt to England, which was called...

And Mordecai told them to answer Esther: “Do not think in your heart that you will escape in the king’s palace any more than all the other Jews. For if you remain completely silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?”...

For Such a Time As This from Refreshing Hope Ministries on Vimeo. Today I want to talk about God’s timing. Too many of us read the Scriptures and feel that God is dated, or out of touch with modern times, when nothing could be further from the truth. He invented time. He created the Sun that the Earth orbits. Sometimes we can feel that He is distant, unconcerned with the occurrences in our...

I love those who love Me. Those who seek me diligently will find Me. Proverbs 8:17 WEBI came out of my prayer room that morning feeling like I was walking on a cloud with tears of joy in my eyes. If you would have told me that the world was getting ready to explode, I would have said 'Let 'er blow!' I truly did not have a care in the world. An hour earlier, I felt like the weight of the world was on...

Sow to yourselves in righteousness, Reap according to kindness. Break up your fallow ground; For it is time to seek Yahweh, Until He comes and rains righteousness on you. Hosea 10:12 WEBI grew up on a farm and over the long cold winter, the ground of the fields would become so hard that water would just run off of it like it was rock. The rain would no longer penetrate the crust but just ran through...

The Comforter from Refreshing Hope Ministries on Vimeo. Today I want to talk about the work of the Comforter. Before Jesus’ crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension, He promised the disciples that He would send Someone else to them. He knew that His time on Earth would soon be completed and that He would return to heaven, but He would not abandon the disciples or leave them all alone. It...

In nothing be anxious, but in everything, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your thoughts in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers, whatever things are true, whatever things are honorable, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things...

The Choice from Refreshing Hope Ministries on Vimeo. Today I want to talk about the choice that each person has to make when Jesus calls us them. We read about the disciples and apostles that followed Jesus and assume that this was set in stone, meant to be, that they automatically followed Him, but they were each given a choice. Some people chose not to. Jesus called some fishermen in Matthew chapter...

My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give eternal life to them. They will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. John 10:27 WEBJesus said that His sheep would hear His voice and that they would follow Him 'and a stranger, they would not follow" (John 10:5). God speaks to His people individually and collectively. Some are so concerned on being deceived that...

Elijah said to her, Don't be afraid; go and do as you have said; but make me of it a little cake first, and bring it forth to me, and afterward make for you and for your son. For thus says Yahweh, the God of Israel, The jar of meal shall not empty, neither shall the jar of oil fail, until the day that Yahweh sends rain on the earth. She went and did according to the saying of Elijah: and she, and he,...

Recalculating from Refreshing Hope Ministries on Vimeo. Today I want to talk about getting your life back on course after a mistake. Walking with God is a bit like traveling with a GPS. You can miss an exit or make a wrong turn and the GPS will recalculate your route to get you to your destination, from wherever you are at that moment. The Holy Spirit works much the same way. We can make a complete...

He said therefore, What is the kingdom of God like? And to what shall I compare it? It is like a grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his garden, and it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air made nests in its branches. Luke 13:18 ESVAs I stared out of the window at the huge oak tree in our yard, I thought of what it looked like thirty years ago, when I first moved here. It...

Rejected Identity from Refreshing Hope Ministries on Vimeo. Today I want to talk about rejection, especially in your calling, your gifts, your talents, by those who are familiar with you. We can read the Bible and feel like Jesus had an automatic win button in every circumstance. Storms, disease, demons, even death obeyed His words, but there was one thing on Earth that did not: people. Not everyone...

The Journey from Refreshing Hope Ministries on Vimeo. Today I want to talk about the journey of life. Our thinking is often consumed with what is happening today, or tomorrow, or sometimes what happened yesterday. God thinks in the long term. He can see our entire life at once. Think of it like this: if our life were a bicycle wheel and each day a spoke, then God sees it from the hub in the center...

He said, 'Abba, Father, all things are possible to you.' Mark 14:36 WEBAfter growing up in the Bible Belt, my image of God was as a complete disciplinarian, an angry, white-haired, lightning bolt throwing super being who stalked me. He was rightly called 'The Lion of Judah.' He was always watching, ready to pounce on the unsuspecting soul that broke one of those precious commandments. There were a...

Then his lord called him in, and said to him, 'You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt, because you begged me. Shouldn't you also have had mercy on your fellow servant, even as I had mercy on you?' His lord was angry, and delivered him to the tormentors, until he should pay all that was due to him. So my heavenly Father will also do to you, if you don't each forgive your brother from your...

Goldfish from Refreshing Hope Ministries on Vimeo. Today I want to talk about a very strange miracle of Jesus that is recorded in the Gospel of Matthew. When Jesus and the disciples came to Peter’s hometown of Capernaum, tax collectors came up to them and asked them for money. Only Matthew wrote about this, and it may have stood out to him because he had been a tax collector in Capernaum himself....

White Knuckle Driving from Refreshing Hope Ministries on Vimeo. Today I want to talk about what I call “white knuckle driving.” It is when you clutch the steering wheel of a car so hard that your knuckles become white. For example, my son once called us on Easter weekend. He had been involved in an accident and his leg was broken in several places. He was taken to a hospital, then transferred...