Seize the Moment – Day 1448
The Offspring of the Messiah!
Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Monday, March 4.
Children say the darndest things. Often, it is just that children will simply parrot what they’ve heard a parent say, which sounds funny when they don’t really know the meaning of the words they are repeating. In the best of situations, a child will repeat something wise, upon which an awestruck adult will quote the Scripture, “Out of the mouth of babes” (Matthew 21:16, KJV). In the same way, you will know a child of God by how their speech reflects the One to whom they spend time listening. Isaiah 59:21 described the children of the coming Messiah, “‘As for Me, this is My covenant with them,’ says the Lord: ‘My Spirit which is upon you, and My words which I have put in your mouth shall not depart from your mouth, nor from the mouth of your offspring, nor from the mouth of your offspring’s offspring,’ says the Lord, ‘from now and forever.’”
To be an offspring of the Messiah, you must receive His Word as from God, just as John announced about the coming of Jesus in John 1:12-13, “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.” When you receive His Word, you are born again when the Spirit comes upon you, as Paul stated in Romans 8:15-16, “For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, ‘Abba! Father!’ The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God.”
Seize the moment and spend time with Jesus, meditating upon His teachings, so that when the Spirit brings them to your mind, you know what they mean and use them accurately (John 14:26; 16:13-15; 17:7-8).
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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Heart of a Child
Heart of a Child
- Are you currently up to 2 Corinthians 9? Y or N
- Are you using the S.O.A.P technique? Y or N
- Pray and meditate on the Lord’s prayer? Y or N
- Did you memorize Matthew 11:28-30? Y or N
- Did you work with Jesus (not for Him),do everything for His glory, and truly abide with Him? Y or N
Today’s scripture was one of those that “jumped out” at me during this current challenge. The disciples have been with Jesus now for over two years. They had heard His teachings, witnessed His miracles and had even seen thing happen in their own time of ministry. But this scripture points out just how ‘human’ the disciples were…and it can also be found in Mark 9:33-37 and Luke 9:46-48.
About that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who is greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven?” Jesus called a little child to him and put the child among them. Then he said, “I tell you the truth, unless you turn from your sins and become like little children, you will never get into the Kingdom of Heaven. So anyone who becomes as humble as this little child is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven. And anyone who welcomes a little child like this on my behalf is welcoming me.”
I don’t know about you, but ‘adulting’ can be tough sometimes and I would love to be like a little child with no responsibilities. To be able to be carefree, play games and enjoy life. I remember playing with my boys when they were kids, and now being able to repeat that with my grandkids.
Playing games like “Peek-a-boo” (tell ‘dad joke’ here)
Or “Hide-n-seek”, not the one where you tell them to go hide, and then ‘forget’ to go seek them…but where they are able to use their creative thought processes to find a spot to hide where you would least expect to find them.
Adam and Eve were the first ones to play Hide and Seek…not a good outcome. But God came up with a plan to seek and save that which was lost.
So for today, I would like for each of you to find the ‘inner child’ inside each and every one of us and become the child of God we are called to be. Let’s look at the scriptures on how we have our own version of ‘Hide and Seek’:
- Hide His Word (Psalm 119:11)
- Hide to seek (Matthew 6:6)
- Seek to find (Matthew 6:33)
1. Hide His Word
Psalm 119:11: “I have hidden your word in my heart,
that I might not sin against you.”
Much like when you save money back in a safe place to be able to buy a big ticket item, the same is true when we mediate and memorize God’s Word.
Psalm 78:4: “We will not hide these truths from our children; we will tell the next generation about the glorious deeds of the Lord, about his power and his mighty wonders.”
How will they know unless we tell them???
2. Hide to Seek
Matthew 6:6: “But when you pray, go away by yourself, shut the door behind you, and pray to your Father in private. Then your Father, who sees everything, will reward you.”
Find a place to get away from the distractions of this life.
Jesus did it, so you need to also!!! (Mark 1:35; Luke 5:16)
Turn off the music, the phone, any distraction.
There is a time for the music/worship, but you also need the “BE STILL” time.
ILLUS: Intentional Time: Sabbatical: Katie Kinnaird
TBH….this is a difficult one for me.
3. Seek to Find
Matthew 6:33: “Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.”
Other translations…”Seek FIRST..”
The worlds says there is a proper order for things…. First things first!
*This idiom is used to tell someone that more important things should be done before less important things.
With God, we are told to keep Him first, seek Him and we are promised that we will find Him.
Matthew 7:7-8: “Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.
This is in no way a one and done thing
We have to daily be working on this, especially for us slow learners!
John 14:21: “Those who accept my commandments and obey them are the ones who love me. And because they love me, my Father will love them. And I will love them and reveal myself to each of them.”
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Seize the Moment – Day 1446
Today’s worship song focus :
First Things First
Revelation 2:4-5a (NASB95)
and repent and do the deeds you did at first;”
The brotherly trio of Caleb, Jordan and Josh Ward make up the group “Consumed by Fire”. They grew up traveling with their father who was an evangelist, serving others through church planting and medical missions. After their father had a catastrophic stroke, the boys took a hiatus to care for him. Following his passing in the spring of 2022, they reemerged with a fresh passion and commitment to the calling of their ministry through song. Jordan said this song “spearheaded the creation of a new direction for us… We’re saying, ‘Lord, we want what You want.’”
First thing’s first I seek Your will Not my own
Surrender all my wants to you Keep the first thing first
We need to wake up and take the words of this song as a prayer for our own lives. By returning our hearts to our first love, Jesus, we are then moved to love others in the way that He loves us!
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:
First Things First
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Seize the Moment – Day 1445
Fast to Break the Yoke of Slavery!
Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Friday, March 1.
As I read Isaiah 58:6-11, I find myself contemplating the invitation to fast during Lent, which is an annual rhythm of preparation for Holy Week, which many Christians around the world participate:
Is this not the fast which I choose, to loosen the bonds of wickedness, to undo the bands of the yoke, and to let the oppressed go free and break every yoke? … Then you will call, and the Lord will answer; you will cry, and He will say, “Here I am.” If you remove the yoke from your midst, the pointing of the finger and speaking wickedness, and if you give yourself to the hungry and satisfy the desire of the afflicted, then your light will rise in darkness and your gloom will become like midday.
Throughout this 40-day period, the church has historically participated in the spiritual discipline of fasting as a means of focusing oneself on the crucifixion of Jesus Christ (Good Friday) and His resurrection from the dead (Easter). When I consider the invitation to join with the larger church body in this ancient practice, I seek wisdom from Jesus, who said in Luke 5:34-35, “You cannot make the attendants of the bridegroom fast while the bridegroom is with them, can you? But the days will come; and when the bridegroom is taken away from them, then they will fast in those days.” These are those days as we await the return of Jesus Christ, who has ascended to the right hand of the Father, where He is interceding for us (Romans 8:34). Until His return, we fast to remind ourselves that there is nothing of this world that can satisfy our needs; we are fulfilled in Christ alone!
Seize the moment and find your satisfaction in the easy yoke of Jesus Christ (Matthew 11:28-30), which shatters all other yokes that seek to enslave you (Galatians 5:1).
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 1444
Lowly of Spirit and Contrite of Heart!
Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Thursday, February 29. Happy Leap Day!
“I dwell on a high and holy place, and also with the contrite and lowly of spirit in order to revive the spirit of the lowly and to revive the heart of the contrite. … Peace, peace to him who is far and to him who is near,” Says the Lord, “and I will heal him.” But the wicked are like the tossing sea, for it cannot be quiet, and its waters toss up refuse and mud. “There is no peace,” says my God, “for the wicked.”
Seize the moment and come to God lowly of spirit and contrite of heart (Psalm 51:17). Jesus promises to guard your heart and mind with His peace that goes beyond anything this world can offer you (Philippians 4:6-9).
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 1443
Salvation is for Everyone!
Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Wednesday, February 28.
From the beginning, God desired for all the nations to be saved and to know His loving embrace. God expressed His heart to save all the peoples in Isaiah 56:6-7:
Also the foreigners who join themselves to the Lord, to minister to Him, and to love the name of the Lord, to be His servants, every one who keeps from profaning the sabbath and holds fast My covenant; even those I will bring to My holy mountain and make them joyful in My house of prayer. Their burnt offerings and their sacrifices will be acceptable on My altar; for My house will be called a house of prayer for all the peoples.
This passage is quoted by Jesus when He cleared the temple in Matthew 21:12-13, and, as if to put an exclamation point on the context of His quote, in verse 14, Matthew highlighted, “And the blind and the lame came to Him in the temple, and He healed them.” That which was formerly excluded from the people of God has now been invited to come and find salvation in Christ. Jesus’ heart to include the foreigner and the outcast into the fellowship of God, and to heal the blind and the broken as a sign of sabbath rest was one of the reasons they sought to kill Him, as seen in Luke 4:24-30. Jesus took a crowd who was lauding him and stirred them up to the point of trying to kill him, simply by spotlighting that God had always desired to save even those outside of Israel. Furthermore, Paul, who went through a similar experience in Acts 21:21-22, emphasized this truth in 1 Timothy 2:3-4, “This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth”(cf. 2 Peter 3:9).
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 1442
Drink of the Living Water!
You often hear people say, “There is nothing for free in this life.” Contrast that thought with the image of a flowing stream or a cascading waterfall, both of which are sources of living water, which refresh one’s body with a single drink. God yokes this bountiful imagery of His provision with the coming Messiah in Isaiah 55:1-3a:
Ho! Every one who thirsts, come to the waters; and you who have no money come, buy and eat. Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost. Why do you spend money for what is not bread, and your wages for what does not satisfy? Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, and delight yourself in abundance. Incline your ear and come to Me.
Seven hundred years later, Jesus invites His disciples in John 7:37-38, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’” The people hear in Jesus’ words the messianic invitation of Isaiah. This was not the first time Jesus referenced the living water; in fact, the first time was his scandalous interaction to the Samaritan woman at the well. In John 4:13-14, Jesus promised her the living water (10), “Everyone who drinks of this water will thirst again; but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never thirst; but the water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life.”
Seize the moment and be satiated through the living waters of Jesus Christ – “The Spirit and the bride say, ‘Come.’ And let the one who hears say, ‘Come.’ And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who wishes take the water of life without cost” (Revelation 22:17; cf. 7:17; 21:6).
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 1441
The Protection of the Redeemer!
Isaiah 54 reminds me of the promise in Jeremiah 29:11, which should never be taken out of its context of verse 10, “For thus says the Lord, ‘When seventy years have been completed for Babylon, I will visit you and fulfill My good word to you, to bring you back to this place. For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.’” Yes, God does have a good plan for your life, but that doesn’t mean there won’t be international turmoil, national disaster, or personal hardship along the way. In fact, God’s promise of redemption and abundance in Isaiah 54 is set in the context of after “the destroyer” has been destroyed, after the seventy years of exile have been completed, as God testified in verses 7-8, “For a brief moment I forsook you, but with great compassion I will gather you. In an outburst of anger I hid My face from you for a moment, but with everlasting lovingkindness I will have compassion on you.”
The destroyer is any tool in God’s hands to bring about His righteous judgment, so, never forget, that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love Him and are called according to His purpose (Romans 8:28). No matter what you are facing, God’s promises will prevail, as declared in Isaiah 54:17, “No weapon that is formed against you will prosper; and every tongue that accuses you in judgment you will condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their vindication is from Me.”
Seize the moment and put yourself under the protection of the Redeemer – there is no weapon, which has been formed against God’s people or His will, that can thwart the finished work of Jesus on the Cross.
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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Everyday Discipleship Wk 7
Teaching #7: “How to Work with Christ and Do All Things for God’s Glory!”
(If you are just beginning your journey, please click HERE to read the introduction
2) Use the S.O.A.P. Bible journaling technique: Y or N
3) Pray & meditate upon the Lord’s Prayer daily: Y or N
4) Memorize the assigned Bible verses, to include last week’s memory verse of Galatians 5:25: Y or N
5) Manage your calendar for the “Big Three” and for gathering with your church: Y or N
6) Did you “start your engines,” “keep your chin up,” and “trust His promises”?
+ Disciple = intentionally following Jesus’ way and teachings
+ Discipleship = intentional journey and life-long commitment to learn and manifest the fruit of who I am in Christ
+ The “Big Three” = transformative practices of Bible intake, prayer intimacy, and spiritual friendships
+ Church = intentional community of disciples who are called in love, gathered for love, and sent on mission
+ Walk by the Spirit = empowered lifestyle of focused surrender
Jesus doesn’t ask you to work for Him! He invites you to have life with Him! Memorize Matthew 11:28-30.
+ Come to Me… (Same invitation as Mark 1:17)
+ “I will give you rest” (How does this promise connect to Mark 1:17? How does 1 John 5:3-4 inform your answer?)
+ Take My yoke upon and learn from Me (Discipleship!)
+ I am gentle and humble in heart (Spiritual Formation!)
+ Jesus quotes Jeremiah 6:16. Read it in its context, then check out the context of Jesus’ gracious promise in Matthew 11:20-24.)
+ My yoke is “easy” = custom-made / well-suited (your personal relationship with Jesus) Read Acts 15:10-11.
Do all things for God’s glory! Read Colossians 3:23-24.
+ Whatever you do… (Does that exclude any activities?)
+ with your whole living being (soul) = Wholeheartedly!
+ as for the Lord, not for men (Read Galatians 1:10. How does this free you up from people pleasing tendencies?)
+ What reward are you hoping to receive from Jesus? Think about 2 Timothy 2:4 and Matthew 25:21.
Jesus’ teaching on the vine and the branches brings it all together – you need a trellis if you are going to bear fruit in the Kingdom of God! Read John 15:1-8.
+ “My Father is glorified by this…” (8)
Action Items for this week:
1) Bible intake for this week: 1 Cor. 7-16 & 2 Cor. 1-9.
2) Write a SOAP journal entry for either each chapter or each day. Bring your notebook to take notes.
3) Review this handout as you prepare to read your Bible every day. Invite the Holy Spirit to help you “become” conformed to the image of Jesus Christ (Romans 8:29).
If you would like to watch this lesson on YouTube, click HERE.
If you would like to view the entire service including music, etc. click HERE.
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Seize the Moment – Day 1439
Today’s worship song focus :
Every Move I Make
Psalm 139:1-3 (NASB95)
“ O Lord, You have searched me and known me.
2 You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
You understand my thought from afar.
3 You scrutinize my path and my lying down,
And are intimately acquainted with all my ways.”
Written by David Ruis and recorded by David Crowder Band in 1999, this energetic song of worship reflects our faith and trust in God’s plan. We are reminded that He is our guide, our protector and our source of strength because of His constant presence in our lives.
Every move I make, I make in You, You make me move Jesus
Every breath I take I breathe in You.
Every step I take I take in You, You are my way Jesus
Every breath I take I breathe in 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 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:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MPvnZILn6EY
Every Move I Make
Na Na Na, Na Na Na Na Na Na
You make me move, (Jesus)
Every breath I take I breath in you
You are my way (Jesus)
Every breath I take I breath in you
Na Na Na, Na Na Na Na Na Na
Na Na Na, Na Na Na Na Na Na
You make me move, (Jesus)
Every breath I take I breath in you
You are my way (Jesus)
Every breath I take I breath in you
Everywhere I look I see your face
Your love has captured me
Oh my God, this love, how can it be?
Na Na Na, Na Na Na Na Na Na
Na Na Na, Na Na Na Na Na Na
You make me move, (Jesus)
Every breath I take I breath in you
You are my way (Jesus)
Every breath I take I breath in you
Everywhere I look I see your face
Your love has captured me
Oh my God, this love, how can it be?
Na Na Na, Na Na Na Na Na Na
Na Na Na, Na Na Na Na Na Na
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