Does God really love me?

Let's gain the right perspective about how God loves you.

Reflections from my message today at NRN - A Terrifying Love

Today at NRN was an awesome day of worship and celebration of the Lord's Day.  The day following our annual 24 Hour Prayer Vigil is usually a day where hearts are full of thanks for answered prayers and testimonies are on the lips of the faithful!

This year I presented something a little different from the traditional Palm Sunday sermon.  Here are few of my thoughts:

 

Series: ENCOUNTERS BY THE SEA

Part 5:  A TERRIFYING LOVE 

Mark 6:45-52

 

By following in direct obedience of the Lord’s command they found themselves in this struggle. In the darkest hour, in their greatest need, and in a totally unexpected way Jesus came to their rescue and He will do the same for us. This passage is all about contrary winds or the storms that come into our lives. Let us look at four realities about this incident:

1. Jesus COMPELLED  them into the contrary winds.

Right away Jesus made his disciples get into the boat. He had them go on ahead of him to Bethsaida. Then he sent the crowd away. After leaving them, he went up on a mountainside to pray.                                                        Mark 6: 45-46



2. Jesus COMPREHENDED their troubles.

When evening came, the boat was in the middle of the Sea of Galilee. Jesus was alone on land.  He saw the disciples pulling hard on the oars. The wind was blowing against them.                                                                                Mark 6:45-48a

 

 

3. Jesus CAME  to them in their trouble.

Early in the morning, he went out to them. He walked on the lake. When he was about to pass by them, they saw him walking on the lake. They thought he was a ghost. They cried out. They all saw him and were terrified.  Right away he said to them, “Be brave!              It is I.  Don’t be afraid.”                                                   Mark 6: 48b – 50

 

 

4. Jesus CONFIRMED their faith in Him.

Then he climbed into the boat with them. The wind died down. And they were completely amazed. They had not understood about the loaves. They were stubborn.                                                                                                          Mark 6:51– 52

Application:

What are some of the storms that cause me to struggle in life?

 How does Jesus want me to respond to these contrary winds?

Do I tend to waste opportunities like this to grow in my Christian life?

 Here is one of my favorite reminders that God is with us when we go through the storm....

 

 

Sandi Patty: LIVE in Lexington at Immanuel Baptist Church, November 07, 2013

Preparing for Worship of Sunday April 13, 2014

Today we continue the 24 hour Prayer Vigil. On Friday evening at 6:000pm I called our church to prayer.  Since that time people have been coming each hour to pray for the hundreds of prayer request placed upon the altars at the church.  If you have not participated in this year's 24 hour Prayer Vigil - it's not too late.  Come and join us for a season of prayer.  I will be at the church for the closing hour of prayer which begins at 5:00pm.

It is with a season of prayer that we come with great expectation for the visitation of the Holy Spirit upon our time of worship tomorrow at NRN.  Here are the songs planned for our worship:

 

 

We begin with a warm welcome and a call to worship in prayer.  Then we stand and lift our voices to the Lord.

 





Now we pause for prayer as we bring our petitions to the Lord and take time to acknowledge the answers to prayer during the 24 hour prayer vigil.  An hour alone with God is a very moving experience and I sense in my spirit that several people may want to share about this experience.

We close our time of prayer with a great song of thanking God for His Great love,.







The announcements and a time of greeting is followed by our worship through our financial gifts to the Lord.  May we be found faithful as the God of provisions supplies our every need!




And now, the closing message in the current Lenten Teaching Series:

This evening at 6:00pm I will be at the church to declare the call to prayer as we begin a 24 hour time of prayer.  Hundreds of prayer request are located on cards that line our altars.  I hope you will join us, if you live in the Raleigh area.   Here is a last minute primer for our season of prayer:

THE FIVE FINGER PRAYER

1. Your thumb is nearest you. So begin your prayers by praying for those closest to you. They are the easiest to remember. To pray for our loved ones is, as C. S. Lewis once said, a 'sweet duty.'

2. The next finger is the pointing finger. Pray for those who teach, instruct and heal. This includes teachers, doctors, and ministers. They need support and wisdom in pointing others in the right direction. Keep them in your prayers.

3. The next finger is the tallest finger. It reminds us of our leaders. Pray for the president, leaders in business and industry, and administrators. These people shape our nation and guide public opinion. They need God's guidance.

4. The fourth finger is our ring finger. Surprising to many is the fact that this is our weakest finger, as any piano teacher will testify. It should remind us to pray for those who are weak, in trouble or in pain. They need your prayers day and night. You cannot pray too much for them.

5. And finally comes our little finger - the smallest finger of all which is where we should place ourselves in relation to God and others. As the Bible says, 'The least shall be the greatest among you.' Your “pinkie” should remind you to pray for yourself. By the time you have prayed for the other four groups, your own needs will be put into proper perspective and you will be able to pray for yourself more effectively.

Preparing for the 24 hour prayer vigil - The Skinny of Prayer

Prayer is our way to communicate with God, but as Christians we often treat prayer as something to be checked off a list and we miss the part where we are building our relationship with the Creator of the universe.  Here is a clip by the Skit Guys:  The Skinny on Prayer.

Preparing for the 24 hour prayer vigil - We pray this evening at 6:30pm

Tonight we gather at 6:30 pm to experience a time of prayer as we prepare our hearts for the 24 hour Prayer Vigil this coming weekend.

I invite you to join us for prayer at NRN.  We are preparing for our annual 24 hour Prayer Vigil.  Whether you currently attend or have once attended - you are invited to our worship center to prayer.  We begin on Friday at 6:00pm and continue non-stop in 24 hours of prayer.  I plan to pray with people for the physical, emotional and spiritual healing during the last hour of prayer which begins Saturday at 5:00pm. 

You are also invited to bring your prayer request and place them upon the altars at the church.

I am trusting God for a moving of His Spirit through our church and ministry.

There are so many examples of how corporate prayer was the springboard for the sweeping movements of God. Let me mention a few. In 1857, America was riding the wave of a strong economy, and, as tends to be true in times of prosperity, showed a radical decrease of interest in the things of God. There was a layman named Jeremiah Lamphier whose concern led to a call for prayer. He tacked up notices in NYC calling for a weekly prayer meeting on Wednesdays from noon till one at a rented space on Fulton Street.

The first prayer meeting was on September 23, 1857. Only six people came, and they didn't arrive until just before 12:30. The next week, the attendance jumped to 20. The numbers continued to climb week-by-week.

Then, on October 10th, the Stock Market crashed and financial panic ensued. Trouble had its humbling affect and the hearts of many turned to spiritual matters. It wasn't long until somewhere between 10 and 50,000 businessmen were meeting every day in NYC to pray at noon. By week 15, the meetings moved from weekly to daily.

In 1858, this prayer movement leaped to every major city in America. The Second Great Awakening swept our land. Estimates are that a million Americans out of a population of 30 million at that time were converted in less than two years. And it all started with prayer.

Rees Howells, a Welsh coal miner, journeyed to South Africa as a missionary in 1910 in response to an increasing burden from the Lord. Six weeks after arriving, he joined in a prayer meeting. Out of that came the sweeping work of the Holy Spirit in which they had two revival meetings a day for fifteen months and all day on Friday. Thousands were converted as a result.

Preparing for the 24 hour prayer vigil - My House Shall Be Called A House of Prayer.

Here is a message from Jim Cymbala entitled "My House Shall Be Called A House of Prayer."  While I was away on Sabbatical I watched this DVD on day to settle my heart and prepare for the time alone with God during my time away.  I remember this message bringing a spirit of revival and moving of God when I presented it to the church family at Sturgis Wesleyan Church.  My first Lenten Season at North Raleigh Church of the Nazarene in 2008 I once again presented this message to a church family.  That year we held our first 24 hour prayer vigil.  This year,  2014 we once again prepare our hearts for the 24 hour prayer vigil. 

I encourage you to block out 52 minutes to view this powerful message and ask God to speak to your heart.   Get ready to have your heart stirred - and keep the tissues close by: