Jesus is Coming Again!

Well, last night ended our last revival meeting at church. Before I get in to what the service was actually about, let me recap on the blessings that the Lord showed to us during the week. We had a lot of visitors at the church which was a HUGE blessing! Many of them came just because they saw the church sign while they were driving past. We also had a number of people who came to know Christ as their personal Savior! Many of the church members made decisions to better their relationship with Christ and others. The Lord truly answered our prayers. It was so great having the Pelletier's and the Murray's with us again. We had a great time of fellowship with them this week and we can't wait until they come back!

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Last night, Brother Mike talked about the second coming of Christ. The Bible speaks very clearly about this (Acts 1:11; Hebrews 9:28; Revelation 1:7; 22:12, 20). The Bible tells us that Christ will come back as a "thief in the night" (I Thessalonians 5:2; II Peter 3:10). Even though we don't know for sure when that will be, the Bible tells us that there are signs that we can see that the day is drawing near (Luke 21:11). If you're not ready for heaven, the book of Revelation tells us that you will face great tribulation here on earth.

Some signs of the second coming of Christ: Revelation 17 talks about a one world government forming. There are many countries who have signed on to join the International Criminal Court. The ICC was established in 2002 and as of January 2009, 108 states are members of the Court. The Bible also talks about a one world currency (Revelation 13:16-18). There is already a card out called "The Smart Card." It is generally the same size as a credit card with a small chip inside. This chips can contain any information about you: medical history, credit card history, etc. Some countries are already using this kind of like a debit card would be used. The Bible also tells us about the formation of a one world religion. Are you seeing signs of this today?

For more insight to the events surrounding the Rapture and the Tribulation, please read, in your Bible, I Thessalonians 5, II Peter 3, and the book of Revelations. This is so important! This is not a legend or a myth. We have God's word on it! This is something that will happen one day. Will you be ready? The only solution is Jesus Christ. As stated in yesterdays blog post, II Peter 3:9 tells us, "The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance."

I Thessalonians 5:2-3: For you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, "There is peace and security," then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.

Thursday Evening Service

Last night, Brother Mike preached on hell in Revelation 20. He talked about the different words for hell that the Bible lists and the meaning of those words.

In Mark 9:47, the Bible tells us that hell is more painful than plucking your eye out. Also from the Bible we learn how God sees sinners (Psalm 14:1,3; 53:1,3; Romans 3:12). It should be more important how God sees us than how we see ourselves! 

In Revelation 20, the Bible talks about the Great White Throne Judgement (v. 11). It goes on to say (v. 15) that those not found written in the book of life (believers) are cast into the lake of fire (hell). The Lord wants us all to live in eternity with Him. II Peter 3:9 says, "The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance."

While Brother Mike was preaching this sermon, I kept thinking about a phrase that the president at my college always had us quote in chapel. "The most sobering reality in the world today is that people are dying and going to hell today." We, as believers of God's Word, should be out there winning souls for Jesus one by one! 

Tuesday and Wednesday

Sorry that we didn't post yesterday. Don't worry, we won't leave anything out! We will cover both Tuesday and Wednesday evening services on today's post.

On Tuesday evening, Brother Mike asked, "Are you prepared?" It was mostly for unsaved people or those who might have been unsure about salvation. I still took something away from that evening. There is an urgency to prepare for eternity. We must tell others about eternity because life is brief and life is uncertain. (That is one of the reasons why we titled our blog as "Our Vapor." Please read the verse description under our blog title.) Our life is but a vapor. We are only here on earth for a little while. We, as Christians, need to help others be prepared for eternity.

One thing that I want to make sure that I explain to you is that salvation doesn't come from good works or praying to an idol. It is about faith in a God who is still alive. All of us have sinned and have fallen short (Romans 3:23) but God sent His Son to take the punishment for our sins (John 3:16). All we have to do is put our faith and trust in Him (Acts 20:21). Mark 1:15 tells us that we need to "repent and believe." If we confess our sins, God is faithful to us and He will forgive us our sins (I John 1:9).

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Wednesday's Service was a little bit different. It was Family Night so Brother Mike preached on the family. The design of the home is support. Ecclesiastes 4:10 tells us that we are to uplifting. There are a couple of ways that we should be uplifting in the home. We should uplift with our attitudes. I Peter 3 tells us that husbands are supposed to give honor to their wives and wives are supposed to obey their husbands. Ephesians 6:1 says that children are to honor their parents. One thing to remember is that before honor comes humility. A second way that we can uplift is with our words. The Bible tells us that the tongue is a deadly poison (James 3:8). We can change our tongues by changing our hearts.

Ecclesiastes 4:12 tells us that we are to be protectors. A view that even society agrees with is that family sticks together! If you're in trouble, you're family is always there to bail you out. The Bible also talks about godly discipline (Proverbs 19:18, 22:15, 29:15). This is a view that society has warped our minds about. Discipline is not what you do TO a child, it is what you do FOR a child (Proverbs 23:13-14). One thing to remember is that you need to stay in control when you discipline and you do it out of love for your child.

The delight of the home should be satisfaction. The home is where we can find comfort in the time of need and it is also where we find a cause to live. We should make our home a happy place for our families. At the end of the day, they should love coming home. One important thing to remember is that you need to keep God first. You can't do right by your family unless you're right with God and you can't be right with God unless you do right by your family.

The defense of the home should be spiritual (Ecclesiastes 4:12). The family should be a three-fold cord: two family members (husband and wife) and God bound together as one. Also, there should be three altars in our home. The public altar is church attendance. Only 1 out of 40 families that attend church together end in divorce. Church attendance is one thing that strengthens families. What we do as parents will set the course of what our kids do. Another altar is the private altar which says that any family is a strong as its weakest member. The final altar is the family altar. We should not only be spending daily time in God's Word individually but also as a family. It's our fault, as spiritual leaders of the home, if our family isn't led in the Word of God. 

We only have two more nights of services. Please continue to pray for Missouri Avenue Baptist Church and its members. So far this week, two visitors have made professions of faith and many people have made decisions for, not only their spiritual lives, but their families as well.

The Foundation of our Faith

Last night Mike Pelletier talked about the foundation of our faith. 

How do we know the Bible is true? Because it claims to be (II Timothy 3:16, II Peter 1:20-21); because of its power to change lives; because of its unity (if we just read the Bible, we will KNOW and find that it's true); and because science backs it up! Sir William Harvey said that life is in the flesh and blood. The Bible says that exact thing in Leviticus 17:11. Of course there are many more examples. I'll just give you a few more scripture passages and you can look at them yourself: Judges 5:20; Job 26:7; Job 28:23-28.

The promises of God are true and we can claim those promises for ourselves! Jesus said, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me" (John 14:6). Everything that we need to know is found in God's Word! All we need to do is open it up and read it. 

One down, five to go!

Yesterday began the first of six meetings that we will be having at our church. Evangelist, Mike Pelletier and family, along with Musicians, Greg and Heather Murray, are with us for meetings all this week.

Last night was such a blessing. Mike talked about what happens to Christians when they fall spiritually. The scripture passage that he read from was Psalm 51. He talked about how we shouldn't be discouraged when we sin because when we ask God to forgive us, He promises to do so (I John 1:9). He also talked about how, every time we sin, we break our fellowship with God. That is why it's so important for us to ask His forgiveness!

We are being encouraged this week and we look forward to five more nights of fellowship with other believers as well as strengthening our fellowship with our Lord!

We leave you with this: "For the righteous falls seven times and rises again," (Proverbs 24:16).

Keep reading our blog for more updates about this week!

Faith-The Evidence of Things Unseen

I have just finished my second book for the year 2009! I recently bought the book Mistaken Identity. I'm sure most of you have heard about it. It is the true story of two young women (along with several others) from Taylor University who were involved in a horrible traffic accident and their identities were switched at the scene. The book was written by the families of both of those young women. I was touched by the story when I heard about it back in 2006. I saw the book one day at Barnes and Noble and wanted to learn more. If you don't have this book, I recommend buying it. You will be greatly encouraged.

The main thing that I was impressed with was the bond that these two families shared, not only with the switch of the identities of their daughters, but with their bond in Christ, their Savior. Their faith is evident throughout the whole book. It was an encouragement to me to see that no matter what twists and turns their lives took, they turned their eyes to God and His Word. They shared different accounts of how each of their daughters lived their lives on earth and how they helped to point others to Christ. (I remember seeing their story on Oprah and on The Today Show. They were even willing to share Christ with viewers on television!)

With each page and chapter that I read, I thought about how I reflect Christ in my life. Do I point others to Him just as those families do? Reading this book really brought that to my attention. My one goal is life should be to glorify God. I realized that I haven't been doing that like I should lately. I often get mad at the littlest things. Here are two families who went through horrible and tragic events and aren't mad at anyone! What an amazing testimony of how God is in control no matter what happens. 

As the father of one of the victims involved in the accident said, "Bad things happen to good people and good things happen to bad people. It's not a perfect world that we live in but we believe that God is sovereign and takes an active part in our lives. Even in sorrow there can be joy and even in tragedy there is hope." What a testimony of what true faith in Christ can be! I only hope that I will take this story with me each day and be reminded of what Christ did for me when He died on the cross for my sins. It is only through Him that I can have that hope.

To the families of these two young women, if you ever read this, please know that you have encouraged me with your story and your willingness to share your faith in Christ with the world around you. Just reading your book has been a reminder that I so much needed in this time of my life. God is good no matter what happens! There is not a doubt in mind, that when it is time for you to meet our Saviors face, He will say to you, "Well Done!" 

"I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me" (Galatians 2:20).

Revival Meetings

          Evangelist Mike Pelletier and Music by Greg and Heather Murray

Just wanted to let you know that our church is holding Revival Services on January 25-30. Evangelist Mike Pelletier and his ministry team will be with us. If you're in the Clearwater area on the 25th through the 30th, please join us at Missouri Avenue Baptist Church. Just click on our church website link on the right of our blog for directions. Service times are as follows: Sunday- 9:45 am, 10:45 am, 6 pm and Monday through Friday- 7 pm. 

To learn more about Mike Pelletier Evangelistic Team, please go to mikepelletierminitries.org.

New Year's Resolutions?

Okay it's been a little over a week since we posted our last blog. I (Sarah) wanted to take the time today to comment on something that is one of my pet peeves. New Year's Resolutions (NYRs). What?! Yes, I said the three most horrible words in the world! Or, if you're thinking like most people, you're saying, "What in the world! Why are you speaking so poorly about making NYRs?!" Well, let me take the next few paragraphs to tell you. 

First of all, who cares about NYRs?! I don't see the point. If you don't make 'em, you don't feel bad about breaking 'em! Think about that for a minute. How many of you out there have made countless of NYRs and kept up with them for a little while only to break them a few weeks later? I too have been there. I think I came to this realization in my later years of college. Who needs the stress of NYRs? Certainly not a college student and certainly not a newly married young woman. There is too much going on in our lives today to be worried about this. So, I say, read and heed my words of advice.

Secondly, I may not make NYRs but I have started to make it a point to make NDRs (New Day Resolutions). These are a little bit easier to keep up with. When I get up, I think about one thing that I want to accomplish that day. Only one! If you start making a huge list, you're sure to fail just like you would do if you were making any NYR. The key is only have one thing each day that you want to do. If you go to bed that night, and you have accomplished that one item on your list, then your day has been worth it and you will have the best nights sleep EVER! Then you just wake up the next day and do it all over again. If you make the decision daily, you don't have time to forget about it and you're not fretting about your unaccomplished NYRs on December 31st. 

Now lastly, it's important to remember that you don't put in something that should be a normal responsibility as your NDR. For example, going to church, spending daily quiet time with God, going to work, or doing house work, should not be put in as your NDR. These are things that you should be doing every day already. You could say things like, read a chapter of a famous novel, be an encouragement to someone you don't know, do something special for your spouse, or exercise/workout/eat right. Those kinds of things are what I'm talking about as NDRs. 

So, instead of New Year's Resolutions, make the decision, when you first get up tomorrow, that you are going to make your first New Day Resolution of the year! Trust me! You won't regret it and you will feel so much better when you check that off your list when you go to bed tomorrow night...especially if you've made someone else's day.

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Top 10 New Year's Resolutions

1. Spend more time with family and friends.

2. Fit in fitness

3. Tame the bulge (weight gain)

4. Quit smoking

5. Enjoy life more

6. Quit drinking

7. Get out of debt

8. Learn something new

9. Help others

10. Get organized (on just about every NYR top 10 list) 

"Home for Christmas!"

We were able to go to Indiana to visit Sarah's family for Christmas. We were there from December 22nd through January 1st. Here are some pictures from our visit.

With our niece, Hannah

Martin family portrait

Decorating gingerbread houses!

All of the cousins

My mom with her brothers and sister

With Grandpa & Grandma Honey

With Amanda, Addie, and my mom

With Grandma Martin