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Praise God, I’m Saved: Moving from Darkness to Deliverance

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  When was the last time you paused, took a deep breath, and simply said, "Thank you, Lord, for saving me"?       If you have been saved for a while the answer to that question might be a bit embarrassing, but not surprising. Truth be told the longer a person is saved, the more likely it is for the excitement of your salvation to be just as thrilling as it once was. Its a rare thing to see someone who has been saved for several years to still have the same passion, drive and enthusiasm that they had when they first received the gift of salvation for themselves.   In the hustle of our daily routines—juggling work, family, and endless to-do lists—it is easy for the miracle of our salvation to become "old news." We know we are saved, we know Jesus died for us, and we know our eternity is secure . But has the wonder of that reality faded into the background? Has the fire you once had when you first were saved cooled down to a simple smoldering ember? Well ...
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Are You Measuring the Right Things?

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     When you think about a "successful" church or a "growing" Christian, what are the first things that come to mind? Often, we look at the external: the size of the crowd, the variety of programs on the calendar, or the health of the bank account . Another words we tend to look at the numbers right? After all if God is at work shouldn't it be visible?      Years ago a pastor friend told me something that has stuck with me for many years. We were talking about some churches we knew who were allowing things that were down right unbiblical. They were doing things that were ethically and morally questionable. However despite all of these there churches were massive and there weekly attendance was always in the hundreds. I asked how in the world does that happen? To which my pastor replied "Well Tumors grow too".  You see not everything that is Growing is good.        It is easy to fall into the trap of the "expert" mindset, belie...
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Location: Ashmore, IL 61912, USA
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Have You Ever Felt Like Your Story Wasn’t "Big" Enough?

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           Have you ever wondered if your life actually makes a dent in the spiritual landscape of your community? We often look at global ministries or famous preachers and think, “That is how the world changes,”  while viewing our own small conversations as insignificant. We look at the big tent revivals of Billy Graham and think man God used him to do a great work. Yet we look at what we do for the lord as not as important of valuable. We tend to maximize the spiritual impact of others, while minimizing the spiritual impact that we have and how God is using us.      Anyone who has ever shared the gospel knows that sharing our faith is intimidating. We worry we don't know enough of the Bible, or we fear that our "small" efforts won't yield big results. We think to ourselves "If another person would share the gospel with that person instead of me that person would have a better shot at getting saved."       Howe...
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Location: Ashmore, IL 61912, USA
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The Danger of the "Comfort Zone": Jesus’ Counsel to Laodicea

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     Have you ever sat down to a cup of coffee that you expected to be piping hot, only to find it was lukewarm? Or perhaps you reached for a refreshing glass of ice water on a hot and humid day, but it was room temperature? As someone who grew up from down south; I firmly believe the only tea that is suitable to drink is sweet ICED tea. There is something uniquely unappealing about "lukewarm." It’s neither soothing nor refreshing; it’s just bland.       This is exactly how Jesus describes the church in Laodicea. They weren't a "bad" church by worldly standards—they weren't teaching heresy or falling into deep scandalous sin. They were simply comfortable. They were self-reliant, wealthy, and at ease. Yet, out of all seven churches in Revelation, Jesus saves His harshest words for this one. You have to wonder Why? The answer is because a heart that thinks it "has it all" feels no need for the One who actually provides everything. The Modern "Ap...
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Location: Ashmore, IL 61912, USA
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