Sermon Audio – A Walk With The Lamb
Pastor Edward Davis – 03.28.2010

Sermon Audio – A Saviour and King Comes To Jerusalem
Pastor Edward Davis – 03.28.2010

I love the Olympics! I purchased a special antenna just to be able to watch them. Every athlete there has trained hard everyday, and has been on a strict diet, just for a chance to win a gold medal and represent their country.

Yet, so many times the difference between gold and silver can be 1/100th of a second! Or in other words, 1/100th of a second can mean going home with a medal, or going home empty handed.

Rarely does the media talk about much more than the one who won the gold, and let’s face it, gold sounds a lot better than silver. First sounds a lot better than second. So in the eyes of most people it’s either gold or it’s nothing: pass or fail.

Spiritually speaking, we are in training everyday. When a difficult situation arises in my life, I try to think of it as a training experience. It’s a test, and at the end of the day I have either passed or failed. “Well I did good except for that one little thing” does not cut it when it comes to making it to Heaven!

Matthew 7:22-23
“Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Thy name? and in Thy name have cast out devils? and in Thy name done many wonderful works?And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from Me, ye that work iniquity.”

1/100th of an inch… Oh so close.

My uncle told me a dream he had one time that has stuck with me for years now. When he was younger he worked at a saw mill. In his dream he said that he and others had been working hard on getting a load of lumber ready to leave. It was loaded on the truck, and he said that it was the nicest load of boards that he had ever seen. But, the inspector came out with a measuring tape, measured the load, and looked at them and said “It’s no good; you’ve came up short.”

I don’t know what it will be like when I am at the gates, but I do know that I don’t want to be told that I have come up short. It sounds scary I know, but when it comes to eternity, why take chances? I don’t want to just slide in on a thread; I want to know that I have been that “good and faithful servant.”

1 Cor. 9:23-25
“And this I do for the gospel’s sake, that I might be partaker thereof with you.
Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain.
And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible.”

We obviously aren’t in a race with each other, we are here to help each other. But the goal is Heaven. The goal is better than a gold medal; it is an incorruptible crown.

How’s your training going?

It’s been unusually cloudy for the last month. No sun; just clouds, snow flurries and cold, day after day. As I was driving home from Johnson City the other day, I noticed that while it was snowing where I was, there were big, round holes in the clouds where the blue skies above could be seen. It reminded me of something that happened a long time ago.

Once, when I was going through a very difficult time, I had to get on a plane and fly from South Bend, Indiana to the Tri Cities. It was late May, but it was cold and rainy outside, and I felt cold and rainy inside, too. I sat in the plane, watching the raindrops run down the window, and felt sorry for myself. My whole life was upside down and out of control. I could not see or feel God anywhere around me. Finally, the plane started to move. As we accelerated toward take off, I watched the gray scenery pass by.

I am not a fearful flyer, but there is a part of my brain that thinks leaving the ground in a thin metal box is not a good idea. That goes double for doing so in the rain. It just doesn’t seem like a good plan. There’s that little catch as you leave the ground: it’s always a relief when the plane actually flies and you don’t go hurtling into the trees.

For the first few minutes, I couldn’t see anything at all out the window. We were in the clouds. It was wet and gray and very close. But then, something amazing happened. We pulled out on top of the clouds and it was sunny. Not just partly sunny, but bright sunshine everywhere, with the clouds far below.

I began to think about the fact that the sun is always there, even when it is completely concealed by clouds. The skies may look like a never ending sheet of gray but the sun is there, just above everything, doing what it always does.

God is the same way. My outlook may be bleak and gray, and I might not be able to see or feel God. That doesn’t change the fact that He is there. “…for He hath said, I will never leave thee nor forsake thee.” Hebrews 13:5. Just because I can’t see Him working in my life does not mean that He isn’t. He is shining every day, all day.

Jesus cares about all of our problems. He told us to consider the lilies, and to remember that He loves us more than any flower. He never loses sight of us, even when we can’t see Him.

That plane ride taught me a lesson. Now, when I am faced with the lowering skies of my problems, I try to remember to look up. God is there, shining His love and answers down on me, even when I can’t see Him.

That’s a lesson worth defying gravity to learn.

Sermon Audio – The Vulnerability Of The Weak
Pastor Edward Davis – 03.07.2010

The New Year is still fresh in our minds and most of us are now anticipating the arrival of Spring and much needed warmer weather. The New Year as well as Springtime makes us think of something new. A New Year to make changes, offer hope for the future, a time to plan out where to go from here.

Spring brings new life to everything around us and shows us through nature that the hand of God is still at work. Spring also offers a new beginning as we celebrate Easter and the resurrection. If there’s something most of us like it’s a chance for a new beginning.

New beginnings are a time of refreshing. New beginnings can be established every day or every so often, but they are necessary for our sanity, and for change. With God, man has a chance for a new beginning. As we make God the ruler of our lives, we establish a foundation of new beginnings.

“Your word is a lamp to my feet, and a light to my path.” Ps 119:105. As we make God’s Word a priority in our lives, it provides the light we need on our faith journey in life. A relationship with God is what lights our path and gives us direction, guidance, and encouragement along the way.

Each time we start the day in prayer, we are in a sense asking God to provide us a new beginning, and He does. Our sins and mistakes of the day before are forgiven and put away and we start over. Even if no one else gives you that extra chance or new beginning, God does.

If you’re in need of a new beginning, take it to God right now. Ask Him for a new life, a new beginning filled with hope, joy and peace. Not only does God want to give you a new beginning, but check out this promise: “I came so that they might have life and have it more abundantly.” (John 10:10)

Imagine that, a new beginning with a good life, and even more so, an abundant life! That, my friend, is what all of us really need.

Remember: Everybody is welcome, nobody is perfect and anything is possible with God! Encourage someone else today and see how it will encourage you in return!