The blog contains daily devotions and notes from the weekly messages.  We encourage you to review the notes during the sermon or through the week!  Most of the posts will have an audio and/or video link at the end of the notes.  From time to time the pastors will share other insights and devotions here.
 
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We realize it isn’t easy to always find what you are looking for, so we are in the process of organizing these blogs.  Click HERE to go to an index of blogs that reference our YouTube channel in order to get you where you need to go…

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Seize the Moment – Day 1280

Preserve Me from Violent Men!

Psalm 140

 

Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Monday, September 18.

 

There are violent people, driven by evil desires, willing to do whatever to whomever to achieve their ends. How are we to go about our daily lives with such people in the world? Above all, we can’t live in fear of them! In 2001, I was a Captain in the US Army, on orders to Fort Carson, Colorado when the terrorist attacks of 9/11 happened. I was supposed to travel home that day, but it took days before flights resumed because evil had shut down our nation. A week later, President Bush announced to Congress the War on Terrorism.

 

Whenever you are anxious for the future or worried about tomorrow, take your emotions as an invitation from the Holy Spirit to petition God for His peace to protect you, as Paul said, “to guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6-7). God wants you to trust Him in every circumstance of life, whether in times of peace or war. In Psalm 140, David was opposed by violent men, and the first action step in his plan was to petition God for divine help:

 

  • Verse 1, “Rescue me, O Lord, from evil men; preserve me from violent men…”
  • Verse 4, “Keep me, O Lord, from the hands of the wicked; preserve me from violent men who have purposed to trip up my feet.”

 

In both instances, David asked God to preserve his life when violent man came up against him. He did not take matters into his own hands; rather, David turned to God for protection. Just as Paul taught in Romans 12:21, “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” In seeking to defeat evil, don’t become like it. Train yourself to respond in faith!

 

Seize the moment and pray Psalm 140, meditating upon Jesus’ promise to give you His peace – “Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful” (John 14:27).

 

God bless you!

 

If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.

 

YOUTUBE:

If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.

 

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Missionary: Jim White

Faith (And what it takes to live in Faith)

from Missionaries Jim & Teresa White
 
 
Teresa shared, thanking the church for their support during a time of deep loss and for a time of renewal in Newfoundland. Teresa also shared about some changes in their mission outreach into “the hood” of their city in the Dominican Republic.
 
Jim wanted to share about Faith and what it takes to live in Faith…. For many, when the hard times come, they walk in doubt.
 
The Bible teaches that we are to be like Jesus when we walk on earth.
 
1 John 2:6; 4:17; We bring the Gospel of Life with others. You may be the only “Jesus” that others ever see. If we are living like Jesus, then others will meet Jesus. We are the hands and the feet and the love of Jesus on earth!
 
We should live each day as if it were the last day for us on earth. How would you change your daily life?
 
1 Corinthians 9:24-27 Run is such a way that you will not be disqualified.
 
We are to run the race with great intent. Our goal is to see Jesus face to face!
Our first thought of the day, our thoughts at work or with others and our final thought of the day – is it Jesus?
 
Philippians 2 – we are to think of others more than we do ourselves.
 
God has given us everything we need to be like Jesus. He honors effort. We are to work out our salvation with fear and trembling…
 
Evil today is rampant. It’s not isolated, it is everywhere! It is not going to get better. From here on out it is going to get worse. Are you prepared? We hear about Christians being in other countries, but it is beginning to happen here. Satan has more freedom in out schools while Christians have to fight for the privilege to do things there!
 
Evil is expanding across the globe and Christians are beginning to lose faith. They are impatient and don’t want to wait on God.
 
There is a goal we need to focus on: to see Jesus face to face. We need to be willing to give up everything. To go where God sends us!
 
We started the mission field dirt poor with rats and cockroaches, and now we are blessed with a nice (although unfinished home), but if He asked us to give it up tomorrow, could we? We need to be ready and willing…
 
I spent 60 days in a Haitian prison and was accused of being a terrorist. I was cleared by Homeland Security and ATF. I was a political pawn. It was the perfect storm. There were many demonic “coincidences”. 60 days was a miracle. The consulate expected me to be there for at least a year and maybe more. They even told me it was a miracle. And many miracles happened while I was in prison. God does things in our lives like he did for the apostles!
 
Paul considered himself to the be least of the apostles, yet he did so much more.
 
We have to be prepared for what’s coming…
 
Colossians 2:6 Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.
 
The only way we can be intimate with Jesus is through His word. Not by asking Him for things! Just by showing up and reading His word and talking to Him!
 
I was never afraid while in prison. Although I was never given a number (which meant they could make me disappear), but God protected me with others who took care of me.
 
A lady gave him a pamphlet, “How do die in a foreign prison.” He wouldn’t take it because God had already assured him that he wouldn’t.
 
I don’t need to learn how to die in prison, I need to learn how to die in Christ! The worse thing you can do when faced with death as a Christian, is to beg for your life. Death is the doorway to being with Christ!
 
Like Paul, I would rather be with the Lord than with you…please don’t take offense at that.
 
Around the world we see evil being taken as good and good as evil!
 
We are all given the ministry of reconciliation, not just the pastors! We will all be held accountable for those in our circle of ministry where we live, and for the truth He has given us.
 
2 Corinthians 5:18 Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation.
 
Jim shared a story about an event in the jail and the healing of a nonbeliever there and how God used that to lead him to Christ.
 
Another story was about a man in the prison who was so depressed that just waiting to die. He wouldn’t eat or drink. Jim was sharing with others about how simple it is to receive Christ. Many were saved and began preaching the Gospel. That night this man told Jim that he needed Jesus, but he didn’t know how. Jim told him to just speak to Jesus and tell him of his need. He began to pray and pour out his heart. He changed from being so depressed to being full of joy! The whole cell of men celebrated.
 
He was still sad because he had murdered someone and would never see his family again. Jim prayed a simple prayer for him. He was released 3 days later. Another miracle. He was asked to pray for many people after that!
 
Faith is not complicated. Faith is believing that God is who He said He was and that He will do what He said He would do!
 
We just need to be faithful, no matter what comes your way. He will deliver you!
 
Death is a door. If we die in Christ, we are delivered. We have no need to fear!
 
1 Thessalonians 2:13 For this reason we also thank God without ceasing, because when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you welcomed it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which also effectively works in you who believe.
 

You can watch the message by clicking HERE.

 
 

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Seize the Moment – Day 1278

Today’s song focus will be

As The Deer

 Psalm 42:1 (NASB95)                  

 
 
 
 

“As the deer pants for the water brooks,

So my soul pants for You, O God.

 

Written in 1981 while attending a summer session at Christ for the Nations

Institute in Dallas, TX, Marty Nystrom was on a quest to recover his joy. He had

been active in ministry while also teaching, but something was missing. His

roommate suggested that he go on a fast to help him recover his joy. So Marty

took the challenge and on the nineteenth day of his fast, he found himself sitting

at a piano, playing some chord progressions when he looked over and saw a

Bible on a music stand that was opened to Psalm 42. After reading through the

passage, he began to sing its message. The song was finished in a matter of

minutes:

 

 As the deer panteth for the water, so my soul longeth after Thee

You alone are my hearts desire and I long to worship Thee.

 

We need to wake up and renew our hunger and thirst for more of God. It is not

something that anyone else can do for you. Just like you can lead a horse to water,

but you can’t make it drink, the same is true for us in our personal walk with Christ.
 

 

 
If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.

 

YOUTUBE:

If you prefer a video, Pastor Ken reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.

 

If you would like to listen to this song, click on this link:

 
 

As The Deer

 
As the deer panteth for the waterSo my soul longeth after TheeYou alone are my heart’s desireAnd I long to worship Thee
 
You alone are my strength, my shieldTo You alone may my spirit yieldYou alone are my heart’s desireAnd I long to worship Thee
 
As the deer panteth for the waterSo my soul longeth after TheeYou alone are my heart’s desireAnd I long to worship Thee
 
You alone are my strength, my shieldTo You alone may my spirit yieldYou alone are my heart’s desireAnd I long to worship Thee
 
You’re my friendAnd You are my brotherEven though You are a KingI love You more than any otherSo much more than anything
 
You alone are my strength, my shieldTo You alone may my spirit yieldYou alone are my heart’s desireAnd I long to worship Thee
 
 
Source: LyricFind
Songwriters: Martin J. Nystrom
As the Deer lyrics © Capitol Christian Music Group, Capitol CMG Publishing, Warner Chappell Music, Inc
 
 
 
 

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Seize the Moment – Day 1277

Search Me and Know Me!

Psalm 139

 

Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Friday, September 15.

 

The first time I had my neck adjusted by a doctor, I was a cadet at West Point. I was miserable from congestion, and upon examining me, the doctor adjusted me, bringing everything into proper alignment. I didn’t know what to expect, but I immediately felt better as a significant amount of pressure was released. God, our Mighty Physician, does the same thing for us through His Word when we come to Him in prayer. Psalm 139 is a prayer of examen, inviting the Holy Spirit to reveal to us the truth of what God already knows about us. You can hear the call of the Spirit from beginning to end in today’s psalm, starting in verses 1-4 and ending in verses 23-24:

 

O Lord, You have searched me and known me. You know when I sit down and when I rise up; You understand my thought from afar. You scrutinize my path and my lying down, and are intimately acquainted with all my ways. Even before there is a word on my tongue, behold, O Lord, You know it all. … Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me and know my anxious thoughts; and see if there be any hurtful way in me, and lead me in the everlasting way.

 

I encourage you to start a daily practice of praying Psalm 139 in the evening, inviting the Holy Spirit to reveal the truths of your attitudes, relationships, and decisions, seeking to know the motives of why you did what you did throughout the day. Don’t be deceived, the hardest form of deception to root out is self-deception. Ask God to align you to His good, acceptable, and perfect will for your life today (ref. Romans 12:1-2).

 

Seize the moment and pray Psalm 139, meditating upon the Mighty Physician’s examination of your heart, mind, body, and soul. You will feel better immediately if you would relax and trust your life into God’s hands.
 

God bless you!

 

If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.

 

YOUTUBE:

If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.

 
 

 


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Seize the Moment – Day 1276

The Promise of Completion!

Psalm 138

 

Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Thursday, September 14.

 

When I was young, I used to enjoy the adrenaline of a good roller coaster ride. Not anymore, now I prefer the rest found in floating down a lazy river. I’m content to sit in my innertube, letting the current take me to my destination. I see too many people who are on a roller coaster ride with God, not knowing where they stand with Him on any given day because they experience God’s love based on their performance. Honestly, they don’t look like they are enjoying a single moment of it. It doesn’t have to be that way when your relationship with God is grace-based, focused on His promises and where He is taking you in life. Psalm 138 teaches us one of my favorite promises of God – the promise of completion, found in verses 7-8:

 

Though I walk in the midst of trouble, You will revive me; You will stretch forth Your hand against the wrath of my enemies, and Your right hand will save me. The Lord will accomplish what concerns me; Your lovingkindness, O Lord, is everlasting; do not forsake the works of Your hands.

 

God is going to get you to the finish line of your faith! This promise is found in Philippians 1:6, “For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.” Your relationship with God was bestowed upon you by God. It wasn’t your idea, and you didn’t initiate it! Your walk with God is not a religion you must maintain, but a relationship you get to have because He has chosen you to be part of His family. There is a world of difference between the two – religion and relationship, so choose wisely!

 

Seize the moment and pray Psalm 138, meditating upon the relationship God has bestowed upon you (John 15:16; 1 John 3:1). Find rest for your soul, trusting God to get you Home (John 14:1-6).

 

God bless you!

 

If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.

 

YOUTUBE:

If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.

 
 

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Seize the Moment – Day 1275

Pray Real-Life Prayers!

Psalm 137

 

Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Wednesday, September 13. Please join me in wishing a happy birthday to Vinny Slover.

 

The psalms teach the faithful how to handle their real-life emotions. Psalm 137 captures the profound pain of Israel during Babylonian exile, starting in verses 1-4:

 

By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down and wept, when we remembered Zion. Upon the willows in the midst of it we hung our harps. For there our captors demanded of us songs, and our tormentors mirth, saying, “Sing us one of the songs of Zion.” How can we sing the Lord’s song in a foreign land?

 

What trauma and anguish it must cause to have witnessed your nation destroyed, with cities razed to the ground by your captors, and people murdered by your tormentors? What a horrific existence to then be demanded by those same people to sit by the edge of their home rivers, providing entertainment for them with the songs of your former happiness while all those memories stream on the big screen of your mind. Let us not judge the psalmist for the rage found in today’s psalm.

 

By the end of today’s heartbreaking psalm, as described in verses 8-9, the psalmist’s rage has crashed against his captors, like a tsunami plummeting down upon a coastal village, “O daughter of Babylon, you devastated one, how blessed will be the one who repays you with the recompense with which you have repaid us. How blessed will be the one who seizes and dashes your little ones against the rock.” It is painful to read these final words, experiencing the raw pain of the exiled. My heart breaks! I am appalled! I weep for the suffering of the abused throughout the world and cry out, “How long, O Lord?” (Psalm 13). Where are any of us to go with such real-life emotions?

 

Seize the moment and pray Psalm 137, meditating upon the God who sees and cares, casting all your trauma and anguish on Him today (1 Peter 5:7). Pray real-life prayers!
 

God bless you!

 

If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.

 

YOUTUBE:

If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.

 
 
 

 


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Seize the Moment – Day 1274

The Rhythm of Praise and Thanksgiving!

Psalm 136

 

Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Tuesday, September 12.

 

The greatest antidote to so many of life’s struggles is giving thanks – the spiritual discipline of counting your blessings. There is something liberating about an attitude of gratitude. Your perspective is elevated when you praise God and intentionally think about all the ways God is good. Paul commanded in 1 Thessalonians 5:18, “In everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” That’s a clear focus to live by! Psalm 136:1-4 introduces you to a twenty-six-verse template for the daily practice of counting your blessings:

 

Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, for His lovingkindness is everlasting. Give thanks to the God of gods, for His lovingkindness is everlasting. Give thanks to the Lord of lords, for His lovingkindness is everlasting. To Him who alone does great wonders, For His lovingkindness is everlasting.

 

Every verse after this introduction combines a specific thanksgiving with the refrain of praise, “For His lovingkindness is everlasting.” As you meditate upon today’s psalm, may you experience the powerful rhythm of praise and thanksgiving, liberating your soul from worry, and focusing your mind on the goodness of God. I encourage you to count your blessings every day by rewriting Psalm 136, letting this be your custom-made song of praise and thanksgiving to God for what He has done in your life. Most of the work is already done for you as you will keep the refrain the same, as well as the introduction verses. Prioritize time today to tell God how thankful you are for what He has done for you specifically. There is power in praising God and giving thanks!

 

Seize the moment and pray Psalm 136, meditating upon the everlasting love of the Lord. Focus on God and all that He has done, and He will elevate your perspective no matter what you are facing today.

 

God bless you!

 

If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.

 

YOUTUBE:

If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.

 
 

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Seize the Moment – Day 1273

The Everlasting Name!

Psalm 135

 

Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Monday, September 11.

 

There is power in a name! People love to hear their name spoken. If you want to get someone’s attention, use their name. Yelling random names across the room may draw people’s attention to you, but it most likely won’t get the attention of the person you are trying to communicate with. If you want to be in a relationship with someone, you need to learn their name. Names matter to God, and names should matter to us! Psalm 135 emphasizes the Old Testament’s usage of the everlasting name of God. Three times, the psalmist states:

 

  1. Verse 1a, “Praise the Lord! Praise the name of the Lord.”
  2. Verse 3b, “Sing praises to His name, for it is lovely.”
  3. Verse 13, “Your name, O Lord, is everlasting, Your remembrance, O Lord, throughout all generations.”

 

The name of God captures His character and personal identity, proclaiming His existence. God revealed His everlasting name to Moses at the Burning Bush, establishing a personal relationship with him (Exodus 3:14); hence, Moses became known as the “friend of God” (Exodus 33:11). While God was given many names in the Old Testament, He has revealed to us the only name by which we can be saved (Acts 4:12). In fact, the everlasting name of God was “bestowed on” Jesus for this very purpose (Philippians 2:9). Jesus took on the everlasting name of God, by which He saves us, as He prayed in John 17:11-12, “Holy Father, keep them in Your name, the name which You have given Me, that they may be one even as We are. While I was with them, I was keeping them in Your name which You have given Me.”

 

Seize the moment and pray Psalm 135, meditating upon Jesus Christ, “the name which is above every name” (Philippians 2:9-10). Cry out to God using His everlasting name, for Jesus is the way to the Father (John 14:6). There is power in the name!

 

God bless you!

 

If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.

 

YOUTUBE:

If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.

 

 

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Ed Bell’s Testimony Sept 10, 2023

Ed Bell, Husband, Father, Farmer and Speaker.

 

As a youth I had it better than Opie Taylor. I’ve been a farmer most of my life.
 
 

Little things make a big impact!

Deb and I were dating and thinking about getting serious. She had a former boyfriend who couldn’t take no for an answer. Deb was a nurse and had moved into an apartment. She invited me over to see it.

 
 
 
 

My life was changed forever on Sept 5, 1982.

Her boyfriend shot at the apartment and drove off. The police came and told us to stay put. I had driven the farm truck that weekend and I had a 22 rifle and took it into the apartment. Her boyfriend came back and broke all the windows out of the truck. He climbed up to her balcony.

Deb hid in the closet and dialed 911. He kicked at the sliding glass door. He had a trench knife and a large pistol. He dropped the knife as he kicked. The door latch broke and he came in. He said, “Kill me, Ed.” Ed had his rifle and knew he had the right to kill him. Ed wouldn’t kill him. He grabbed Ed’s rifle and Ed heard a “boom”.

They continued to struggle. Ed shot him in the leg and it made him angrier. Ed fell over and he shot Ed point blank while he lay on the floor. Ed tried to shoot him but the rifle jammed. He shot Ed again and hit him in the collar shattering vertebrae paralyzing him. It was a 44 special hollow point. The blood was pouring out of his body (he lost half of his blood supply) and Ed could hear it hitting the floor.

He was passing out and could hardly breath. He was sure he was going to die. He could only think of all of his dreams. He feared for his parents’ reaction. He even wondered if his science teacher was right – there is nothing after death. But he said “NO!, I believe in Jesus”. His sins passed before his eyes. “No, I believe in Jesus! I’ve got nothing but Jesus!” I remembered the song, Jesus Loves Me. The blood stopped!

The next thing he remembered was ER.
The doctors found the holes but couldn’t find the source of the blood. He kept asking, “Am I going to die?” He could hear the guy who shot him screaming in the next room. When the blood stopped in the apartment. He was sure God did it. The first time Ed told Deb he loved her was while he was lying on the floor of her apartment.
 
 

He had to learn to do things all over again.

God has called Ed to till the soil and cultivate people whenever he gets the chance.

Ed took the chance to challenge us…

Romans 15:28-29

Matthew 16:24-26

Galatians 2:20

Isaiah 57:11-13

“Get planted where you are, grow, make fruit. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul and all your mind – and tell the world.

It’s that simple. Do it now. Repentance isn’t you crying. It’s you changing.

Die…let that rot and then sprout new and follow Christ. No matter what the cost…”.
 
 
 

You can watch the message by clicking HERE.

 
 
 

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Seize the Moment – Day 1271

Today’s song focus will be

Rock of Ages

 

Psalm 62:1-2 (NASB95)              

 

“Truly my soul finds rest in God; my salvation comes from him.

Truly he is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will never be shaken.”

 

In 1740, Augustus Toplady was the pastor in Somerset England, traveling along a road near Burrington Combe when an intense storm broke out. The rugged  cliffs on one side and a deep gorge on the other, forced him to dash into a cave

for shelter. The words for the hymn began to form in his mind as he thought of the shelter being found in the rock of faith and it giving protection from the  storms of life.

 

 Rock of Ages, cleft for me, let me hide myself in thee

 

We need to wake up and acknowledge the words of this hymn! It is a solid testimony of the powerful sacrifice of Christ who is not only our Savior, but He is our source of protection and encouragement.

 

If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.

 

YOUTUBE:

If you prefer a video, Pastor Ken reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.

 
 
If you would like to listen to this hymn, click on the link below:
 

Rock of Ages

 

1 Rock of Ages, cleft for me,
let me hide myself in thee;
let the water and the blood,
from thy wounded side which flowed,
be of sin the double cure;
save from wrath and make me pure.

2 Not the labors of my hands
can fulfill thy law’s demands;
could my zeal no respite know,
could my tears forever flow,
all for sin could not atone;
thou must save, and thou alone.

3 Nothing in my hand I bring,
simply to the cross I cling;
naked, come to thee for dress;
helpless, look to thee for grace;
foul, I to the fountain fly;
wash me, Savior, or I die.

4 While I draw this fleeting breath,
when mine eyes shall close in death,
when I soar to worlds unknown,
see thee on thy judgment throne,
Rock of Ages, cleft for me,
let me hide myself in thee.

United Methodist Hymnal, 1989

 
 
 

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