Posted in Uncategorized at 10:35 am by jeff@dlaog.com
There are so many things that we can be thankful for in this day. There are so many things in my life I have to be thankful for. Some of them are my wife, my children, that I live in a climate where it snows, that I am in reasonably good health, that I can finally afford to get my guitar fixed. Other thanks include my house, the view that I have, the fact that I have only one neighbor, and that I can ride my snowmachine right out of my front yard to wherever I want to go pretty much. All great things to be thankful for in my estimation.
But above all, we have Christ Jesus to be thankful for! Paul, writing to the Corinthian church in 2 Cor. 9:15 (NKJV), wrote “Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!” How can any of the above things that I am thankful for compare to the amazing gift of eternal life through Jesus Christ my Lord? How can I even describe what I can, on this side of eternity, never fully comprehend or fathom? How can I describe what I cannot fully come to understand the magnitude of this amazing gift?
Yes, we have much to thank God for this Thanksgiving, but above, we give thanks to God the Father for sending His Son, Jesus Christ, to die for us while we were yet sinners, that we may have eternal life.
Posted in Uncategorized at 12:25 pm by jeff@dlaog.com
Hello,
Just a few thoughts here on Christmas and Christmas Carols. I just love Christmas Carols. I’ve been listening to my new CD of Christmas Carols entitled “Winter Carols” by Blackmore’s Night. The power of the music stirs me to the depths of my soul!
In many of our popular Christmas Carols, and various songs of the season, the purpose of the Advent is revealed. In particular, I see three particular themes:
1. The proclamation of the Messiah’s Identity and Purpose
2. Adoration, worship and praise of the Messiah
3. Assurance of His Second Coming.
As we sing and listen to the traditional and familiar Christmas Carols of the season, I pray that you will be reminded of the purpose that Jesus came for, and worship Him in Spirit and in truth, fully assured that He is in fact coming again.
Posted in Uncategorized at 12:01 pm by jeff@dlaog.com
Jer. 29:11 (NIV) For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.Gods plan is not to harm you.God’s plan is to prosper you, to give you a hope and a future.God has a plan for your life.A good plan, a positive plan.To give us hope.God spoke this promise of hope to a rebellious generation.
God’s plan is not to harm us.a. God tells us that He knows His heart towards us.He knows His plans for us.He knows that His plan is not evil; His plan is not for our harm. God is not out to wreck our lives.He is not out to hurt us, to watch us come to ruin and to harm.He does not delight in our suffering and pain, He does not rejoice when we come into bad situations and circumstances.Somehow in our reasoning, we have decided that, because bad things do happen to us, pain does come into our lives, evil does in fact touch us, that it must be God’s will for us, and somehow He derives pleasure from it.b. Evil comes to us because:1.We live in a fallen world.There are sinners in this world, and they will behave like sinners.Because they behave like sinners, and their lives touch ours, we get hurt in the process.2. Sin in our own lives.This is why Jerusalem experienced such a terrible fate.Deliberate, continual, generational acceptance of and participation in sin, in spite of warning after warning through prophet after prophet sent to warn the people of judgment to come as a result of sin, eventually brought the very opposite of God’s intention to His people.c. Sin derails God’s plan for our lives.We must understand that sin prevents God’s plan from taking place in our lives.1. Ps 66:18 If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened;2. Ps 106:43 Many times he delivered them, but they were bent on rebellion and they wasted away in their sin.Sin keeps us from the plan of God.If we want to step into the plan of God, we must flee sin, repent of sin that we are currently involved in, amend our lives and our ways, cleanse our hearts and resist temptation to any future sin.This is why I put a “Holiness” quote in our bulletin weekly…to remind us that this is the path into the plan of God.1Pe 1:15-16 says: But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.”
Posted in Uncategorized at 9:13 am by jeff@dlaog.com
Jer. 29:11 (NIV) For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Gods plan is not to harm you. God’s plan is to prosper you, to give you a hope and a future. God’s plan is not to harm us. God tells us that He knows His heart towards us.He knows His plans for us.He knows that His plan is not evil; His plan is not for our harm.God is not out to wreck our lives.He is not out to hurt us, to watch us come to ruin and to harm.He does not delight in our suffering and pain, He does not rejoice when we come into bad situations and circumstances.Somehow in our reasoning, we have decided that, because bad things do happen to us, pain does come into our lives, evil does in fact touch us, that it must be God’s will for us, and somehow He derives pleasure from it. Evil comes to us because: 1.We live in a fallen world.There are sinners in this world, and they will behave like sinners.Because they behave like sinners, and their lives touch ours, we get hurt in the process.2. Sin in our own lives.This is why Jerusalem experienced such a terrible fate.Deliberate, continual, generational acceptance of and participation in sin, in spite of warning after warning through prophet after prophet sent to warn the people of judgment to come as a result of sin, eventually brought the very opposite of God’s intention to His people. Sin derails God’s plan for our lives.We must understand that sin prevents God’s plan from taking place in our lives.Ps 66:18 If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened; Ps 106:43 Many times he delivered them, but they were bent on rebellion and they wasted away in their sin. Sin keeps us from the plan of God.If we want to step into the plan of God, we must flee sin, repent of sin that we are currently involved in, amend our lives and our ways, cleanse our hearts and resist temptation to any future sin.This is why I put a “Holiness” quote in our bulletin weekly…to remind us that this is the path into the plan of God.1Pe 1:15-16 says: But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.”A holy life is the key into God’s plan for our lives.
Posted in Uncategorized at 11:03 am by jeff@dlaog.com
Hello,
I believe that God is saying something very clear to His people. He wants to return our focus to Him alone, not some man, or some agenda, or some political faction or party. I believe this so strongly that I am posting my notes that I will speak from this coming Sunday morning, 11/9/2008, so that everyone who reads this can follow and study with me.
Jeff
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Let us look to God alone11/9/2008 amI believe that God wants to re-direct the eyes of His Church to Himself again.For to long we have been putting our hopes into man-made positions of authority and power.For to long we have looked to man, and He is a jealous God.He wants to be “The One” we look to alone.For about a month before the elections, I have been hearing this verse as I pray:a. Jer. 17:5 NKJV Thus says the Lord: “Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength, Whose heart departs from the Lord.Let us be a people who look to God in every situation, in every circumstance.Why?I.Can God not save us?a. Isa 50:2 Is My hand shortened at all that it cannot redeem? Or have I no power to deliver?Again, He declares:b. Isa. 59:1 Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, That it cannot save; Nor His ear heavy, That it cannot hear. 1. His hand is not shortened here.He can still reach us.He can still redeem us.He can still save us.He still has the power to deliver us from ourselves.Nothing has changed in the heavenly places.2. His ear is not heavy.He is not hard of hearing.He has not gone deaf.He is not in need of a hearing aid.As a Blood-washed child of God, I have the right of access to the very Throne of God and I can get near Him and He will hear my request!Rather…II. 2 Chron. 16:9 (RSV) For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show his might in behalf of those whose heart is blameless toward him.a. God is not intimidated by situations or circumstances.Rather, this passage of scripture speaks to me that God is actually actively looking for opportunities!Opportunities to demonstrate His nature, which He has already revealed throughout Scripture. One of the ways which He has revealed His nature is the various names given to God throughout the scriptures.Our English translations tend to translate the various names and nuances all the same as “Lord”, “Lord God”, or “God”, but they say so much more than a generic God.I want to look briefly this morning at 16 Names of God in scripture this morning, and their meanings.Some are used in rather mundane verses, but speak volumes to the nature and character of our God.III. His Kingship – He is the King.The only true and supreme King.The Only One who is rightfully called “Lord and King and God”a. Gen. 15:2 But Abram said, “Lord God, what will You give me, seeing I go childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?”Adonai Yahweh, The Lord Godb. Ps. 98:6 With trumpets and the sound of a horn; Shout joyfully before the Lord, the King. Hamelech Yahweh, The Lord, the Kingc. Josh. 3:13 And it shall come to pass, as soon as the soles of the feet of the priests who bear the ark of the Lord, the Lord of all the earth, shall rest in the waters of the Jordan, that the waters of the Jordan shall be cut off, the waters that come down from upstream, and they shall stand as a heap.” Yahweh Adon Kol Ha’Aretz The Lord, the Lord of all the Earthd. 1 Sam. 1:3 This man went up from his city yearly to worship and sacrifice to the Lord of hosts in Shiloh. Also the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, the priests of the Lord, were there.Yahweh Sebaoth, The Lord of HostsIV. He is full of strength and mighty powera. Ps. 24:8 Who is this King of glory? The Lord strong and mighty, The Lord mighty in battle.Yahweh ‘Izuz We Gibbor, The Lord strong and MightyV. He is our source of strength, both corporately and personally.a. Corporately: Ps. 28:7 The Lord is my strength and my shield; My heart trusted in Him, and I am helped; Therefore my heart greatly rejoices, And with my song I will praise Him.Yahweh ‘Oz-Lamo The Lord, the strength of His peopleb. Personally: Ps. 27:1The Lord is my light and my salvation; Whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; Of whom shall I be afraid? Yahweh Ma-oz Khayyay, The Lord, The strength of my life.VI. He is the One who will defend usa. Ps. 89:18 For our shield belongs to the Lord, And our king to the Holy One of Israel. Yahweh Maginnenu, The Lord our Defenceb. Ps. 91:9 Because you have made the Lord, who is my refuge, Even the Most High, your dwelling place… Yahweh Machsi, The Lord my refugec. Deut. 33:29 Happy are you, O Israel! Who is like you, a people saved by the Lord, The shield of your help And the sword of your majesty! Your enemies shall submit to you, And you shall tread down their high places.”Yahweh Magen, The Lord, the shieldd. Jer. 16:19 O Lord, my strength and my fortress, My refuge in the day of affliction, The Gentiles shall come to You From the ends of the earth and say, “Surely our fathers have inherited lies, Worthlessness and unprofitable things.”Yahweh Ma’oz, The Lord my fortressVII. He is our source!This is where God wants us to look!To Him!Him alone!a. Ps. 18:2The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; My God, my strength, in whom I will trust; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.Yahweh Mephalti, The Lord our deliverer.1. He alone is our source of deliverance!There will never be a human who will lead us into deliverance.b. Ex. 17:15 And Moses built an altar and called its name, The-Lord-Is-My-Banner;Yahweh Nissi, The Lord our banner.1. The Lord is our covering! He alone is the One who can cover us properly, and that is with the precious blood of Jesus.There is no other covering that can protect us and shelter us from whatever storm may come our way.c. Ex. 15:26 and said, “If you diligently heed the voice of the Lord your God and do what is right in His sight, give ear to His commandments and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have brought on the Egyptians. For I am the Lord who heals you.”Yahweh Rophe, The Lord that Heals1.Health Care was a big issue in this election.Jesus Christ took care of health care 2000 years ago when He took stripes on His back for our healing just as the prophet Isaiah foretold 700 years beforehand.Now this is healthcare with no exemptions, no clause for pre-existing conditions, no co-pays, no chance of canceled coverage.He is our healer.Praise God for modern medicine and the relief that it brings to so many.I am so grateful that I live in this era and not in the middle ages or some ancient time when lifespans were short and painful.I just love Tylenol when I have a splitting headache, Nyquil when I have a bad cold.Praise God.But He is our healer.And I believe that He wants to re-direct the eyes of His Church back to Him as our healer.d. Isa. 60:16You shall know that I, the Lord, am your Savior And your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.Yahweh Moshi’ekh, The Lord your savior.1.And this is the point I believe that God wants us to see…that He alone is our Savior, our Redeemer, He is the Mighty One, our Deliverer, our Strength, our Defender.VIII. He is with us!a. Judges 6:12 And the Angel of the Lord appeared to him, and said to him, “The Lord is with you, you mighty man of valor!”Yahweh ‘Immekha, The Lord is with you.1.He will never leave us or forsake us.The Lord is with us.He is strong and mighty.He is, as the traditional address for God in many ancient Jewish Prayers address Him, “Blessed are You, King of the Universe.”Rise and Praise His name with me this morning.
Posted in Uncategorized at 10:54 am by jeff@dlaog.com
Hello,
As an addendum to to what I posted below, I wanted to post the lyrics to one of my favorite worship songs right now, “Mighty to Save” by Hillsong.
Everyone needs compassion,
Love that’s never failing;
Let mercy fall on me.
Everyone needs forgiveness,
The kindness of a Saviour;
The Hope of nations.
Saviour, He can move the mountains,
My God is Mighty to save,
He is Mighty to save.
Forever, Author of salvation,
He rose and conquered the grave,
Jesus conquered the grave.
So take me as You find me,
All my fears and failures,
Fill my life again.
I give my life to follow
Everything I believe in,
Now I surrender.
My Saviour, He can move the mountains,
My God is Mighty to save,
He is Mighty to save.
Forever, Author of salvation,
He rose and conquered the grave,
Jesus conquered the grave. (x2)
Shine your light and let the whole world see,
We’re singing for the glory of the risen King…Jesus (x2)
Posted in Uncategorized at 10:33 am by jeff@dlaog.com
Hello,
Just a few quick thoughts regarding the elections and everything going on in the United States today. As I was praying
this morning, I was strongly impressed with this statement the Lord makes from Isa. 50:2 (NKJV) “Is My hand shortened at all that it cannot redeem? Or have I no power to deliver?”
I look at the fear and trembling of American Christians over the impending results of this election. But I have to ask, is the Lord’s hand shortened that it cannot deliver? Has He lost His power to deliver us from trouble? I think not. He is still able to deliver today. He still has the power to redeem us. He still has the power to save us. He still has the power to exalt His Holy Name on high.
Again, Isaiah says in Isa. 59:1 (NKJV) “Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; nor His ear heavy, that it cannot hear.”
Whoever gets elected to office, whichever party is declared the winner, we must cry out to God, for no earthly political party can rescue us. Only God alone can rescue us from the mess we find ourselves in as a result of our sin. Only His hand can reach us in the mire of our dispair, and only His hand can bring the healing touch we so desperately need as a nation.