Making a Differencewith Pastor Phil Erickson

Jul 31st Here Am I! Send Me

Today’s Passages – Isaiah 5 – 8; Proverbs 31

(Second Milers also read – Luke 17 – 18; Memorize – Matthew 7:7 & 8 )

And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” Then I said, “Here am I! Send me.” (Isaiah 6:8)

Just a quick thought from the Word this morning. God is looking for laborers. He has something for all of us to do; but will we surrender to God’s calling on our life. Years ago, I was at a missions conference at Ocean Count Baptist Church in Toms River, NJ. I was a brand new Christian and very excited about my new faith. I was looking for a job to do for the Lord. I already worked in the parking lot; I cut the grass; I cleaned up the chairs after the Sunday School. I wanted to serve God any way I could. The missionary preached a message about the need for laborers in God’s vineyard. At the invitation he asked this question: “If God were to call you to serve Him full-time, would you surrender?” To me that was a no-brainer. He didn’t say that God was calling me; he just said that God may call me, and if He did, would I be willing to go? I said yes, and went forward at the invitation. I honestly thought that there would be many people down at the altar, but there was just one other man. I now look back on that moment as the time I began to realize that God had a special plan for my life.

God has a special plan for you as well; but will you be willing to heed the call of God. The pay isn’t the greatest, but the benefits are out of this world. Why not say “Here Am I! Send me” to God’s call.

Jul 30th Who Do You Dine With? – The Saturday Morning Post by Pastor Ted Stahl

 Today’s Reading: Isaiah 1-4, Proverbs 30, and Luke 15-16

Today’s Passage: “Then drew near unto him all the publicans and sinners for to hear him. And the Pharisees and scribes murmured, saying, This man receiveth sinners, and eateth with them.” – Luke 15:1-2.

Good morning. In our passage today, we can easily see that the Pharisees and scribes forgot where they came from. The Bible does say that we are all sinners, and none of us are righteous. The only righteousness we have is the righteousness of the Lord Jesus Christ that was imputed to us. Our own righteousness is as filthy rags. The Pharisees must have skipped over that verse in Isaiah. Here are a few ways to tell if you are a Pharisee.

Do you murmur (talk, gossip, spread lies or even truths) about others? “This man receiveth sinners, and eateth with them.”

Do you look down at others while lifting yourself up? “And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others: Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess. And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner. I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted. (Luke 18:10-14)

Do you get upset when you are corrected? “But the Jews did not believe concerning him, that he had been blind, and received his sight, until they called the parents of him that had received his sight. And they asked them, saying, Is this your son, who ye say was born blind? how then doth he now see? His parents answered them and said, We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind: But by what means he now seeth, we know not; or who hath opened his eyes, we know not: he is of age; ask him: he shall speak for himself. These words spake his parents, because they feared the Jews: for the Jews had agreed already, that if any man did confess that he was Christ, he should be put out of the synagogue. Therefore said his parents, He is of age; ask him. Then again called they the man that was blind, and said unto him, Give God the praise: we know that this man is a sinner. He answered and said, Whether he be a sinner or no, I know not: one thing I know, that, whereas I was blind, now I see. Then said they to him again, What did he to thee? how opened he thine eyes? He answered them, I have told you already, and ye did not hear: wherefore would ye hear it again? will ye also be his disciples? Then they reviled him, and said, Thou art his disciple; but we are Moses’ disciples. We know that God spake unto Moses: as for this fellow, we know not from whence he is. The man answered and said unto them, Why herein is a marvellous thing, that ye know not from whence he is, and yet he hath opened mine eyes. Now we know that God heareth not sinners: but if any man be a worshipper of God, and doeth his will, him he heareth. Since the world began was it not heard that any man opened the eyes of one that was born blind. If this man were not of God, he could do nothing. They answered and said unto him, Thou wast altogether born in sins, and dost thou teach us? And they cast him out.” (John 9:18-34)

Are you upset or angry at only these three questions? Remember: if the shoe fits, you still have a choice whether to ware it or not.

And if you listen to someone talking about another person, think about this: is that person also talking about you to others when you’re not around? Sorry – didn’t mean to make you paranoid – but that’s the way it is with gossipers, back stabbers, and the like. We need to accept others the way they are. Compared to others, we may know a little bit more, or a little bit less. Compared to God: we know nothing.

Peace. (John 13:34)

Jul 29th Without Spot

Today’s Passages – Song of Solomon 5 – 8; Proverbs 29

(Second Milers also read – Luke 13 – 14; Memorize – Hebrews 1:8)

“How fair and how pleasant art thou, O love, for delights!” – (Song of Songs 7:6)

Jul 28th A Wonderful Story of Love

Today’s Passages – Song of Solomon 1 – 4; Proverbs 28

(Second Milers also read – Luke 11 – 12; Memorize Hebrews 1:8)

“He brought me to the banqueting house, and his banner over me was love.” – (Song of Songs 2:4)

I must confess that I would rather write about a subject this morning that I have a better understanding of. The Song of Solomon is a wonderful account of love and marriage, but I must confess that I do not comprehend all that is contained in this beautiful story. I know that there is a literal, earthly story here about the love between a husband and a wife. It is clear from the passage that Solomon is the husband; but trying to figure out the identity of the wife with certainty is rather difficult as we know that Solomon had 700 of them (and 300 additional concubines). It is thought by some that this beautiful woman is Abishag, the woman who ministered to Solomon’s father in the last days of his life. We know that she was a Shulamite woman (6:13). At any rate, she is obviously Solomon’s first wife, before he had sinned by marrying so many other women.

The broader implication of this book is that Solomon is a type or picture of the Lord Jesus Christ; and his bride is a picture of the Church. It was a strange thought for me when I first learned that I was part of the Bride of Christ. I guess the man in me rebels against the feminine identity; but as I have grown through the years I have learned to accept and even somewhat understand the meaning of it all. I do love my Lord Jesus. I want to grow and learn to love Him more, but in order to do so I must learn to love myself a lot less.

As I said in the beginning of this thought, I don’t understand all that this love story has to tell us; but I love story nonetheless from both an earthly perspective, and from the spiritual picture that it represents.

Jul 27th Sharpen Your Axe

Today’s Passages – Ecclesiastes 9 – 12; Proverbs 27

(Second Milers also read – Luke 9 – 10; Memorize Hebrews 1:8)

“If the iron be blunt, and he do not whet the edge, then must he put to more strength: but wisdom is profitable to direct.” – (Ecclesiastes 10:10)

I have been enjoying this devotional reading of the Book of Ecclesiastes as there are so many nuggets of truth. I actually had a hard time deciding what to write about this morning. I had considered doing something on Ecclesiastes 9:11, or 10:1; but I beleieve the verse above will be the most helpful for us today.

Solomon says that if a man does not “whet the edge”, he will have to add a little strength in order to be able to accomplish the goal. Whetting (or sharpening) the edge allowed the blade to penetrate deeper into the wood with less strength. It helps accomplish the goal without as much effort. Solomon is using this illustration to teach us about life. At the end of the verse he says that wisdom is profitable to direct. Acquiring wisdom is like sharpening the axe or whetting the edge. It will help you do the job with less difficulty.

God has given us a lot of things to do in life. In order to accomplish the things that the Lord has for us, we will need to acquire some wisdom. Wisdom makes us more proficient and helps us to accomplish the tasks at hand. God says that He will give us the wisdom that we need if we simply ask for it in faith.

“If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.” – (James 1:5)

We can get God’s wisdom from the Word of God; through prayer; and from the counsel of those who are wise.

I do not think that God is minimizing or belittling the value of hard work, either. There are a lot of things that I find myself doing where I am perhaps not as wise as someone else. In these situations I will have to work a little harder than that person, but  I can still accomplish the goal.  However, if I am going to be the best that I can be at all that God has given me to do. I will need to ask for wisdom. I need His wisdom to be a good husband and father. I need wisdom in order to pastor the people of God at the church. I need wisdom for every task that I perform, and so do you. Work hard, but if you want to get the most out of each swing, you will want to sharpen your axe.

Jul 26th Promises, Promises

Today’s Passages – Ecclesiastes 5 – 8; Proverbs 26

(Second Milers also read – Luke 7 – 8; Memorize – Hebrews 1:8)

“When thou vowest a vow unto God, defer not to pay it; for he hath no pleasure in fools: pay that which thou hast vowed. Better is it that thou shouldest not vow, than that thou shouldest vow and not pay. Suffer not thy mouth to cause thy flesh to sin; neither say thou before the angel, that it was an error: wherefore should God be angry at thy voice, and destroy the work of thine hands?” – (Ecclesiastes 5:4-6)

Back when my grandfather was a young man, a man could get a loan simply by promising with a handshake that he would pay it back. People in those days kept their word. They followed through on what they said they would do. Today it is much different. Many people today are not at all trustworthy. They are quick to promise, but often slow to keep their word. God says here in our passage this morning that we should be slow to make promises, but once a promise is made, we should do everything we can to keep it.

I want to encourage all of you that are reading this thought this morning to think (and pray) very carefully before you commit yourself to something. Don’t let pressure or emotion cause you to agree to do something that you may not be able to fulfill. I remember years ago I gave a pledge in January that I would give a certain amount of money per week toward that year’s faith promise missions offering. I was making good money at the time, and I did not think that there would be any problems. However, later that year, my family and I packed up to move to Texas to go to Bible College. I was no longer in a financial position to keep that committment, but I had made a promise, and I knew our church’s missions program was depending on that offering. Cindy and I agreed that we should sacrifice some things in order to fulfill our pledge. I haven’t always kept my promises in life, but I am very glad I kept that one.

Today we live in a world that is lacking basic trust, and the reason we don’t trust one another is that we do not keep our word. We say one thing and do another. We make promises to people and to God that may be well meaning, but ultimately we fail to follow through. Let’s stop making promises that we can’t keep. And when we do give our word, let’s keep it.

Jul 25th Vanity of Vanities

Today’s Passages – Ecclesiastes 1 – 4; Proverbs 25

(Second Milers also read Luke 5 – 6; Memorize – Hebrews 1:8)

“Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher, vanity of vanities; all is vanity.” – (Ecclesiastes 1:2)

We have been studying the Book of Ecclesiastes at our church on Sunday Evenings, so I have had the advantage of giving these passages a little more thought than perhaps I would normally give one of our morning devotions. As I have told our church many times, there are three keys to understanding the Book of Ecclesisastes:

1  There is a key word – “vanity” – It literally means vapor or breath. It means emptiness. James said that our lives were like a vapour.

“Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.” – (James 4:14)

This key word appears 27 times in the Book. It carries with it the idea that much of what this life has to offer ultimately is empty in itself, or will lead to emptiness. God wants us to have an abundant, fulfilling life.

2  There is a key phrase – “under the sun” – This phrase appears 33 times in the Book. It speaks of the things that are of this earth. Things that are temporary in nature, not eternal. Things that are “under the sun” are not necesarily evil things, they are just things that will be forgotten, and are without eternal value.

3  There is a key verse:

“Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.” – (Ecclesiastes 12:13)

Solomon came to the conclusion that much of what is done by man “under the sun” are things that are in themselves “vanity” or they produce emptiness. Therefore, we should devote as much time and energy as possible to the things that are eternal: things that will last forever. Fearing God and keeping His commandments is the highest order of business for the child of God today. Though it is certainly not wrong to enjoy the lawful things of this earth, it is important for us to keep in mind that they are temporary, not eternal; so our primary focus should be on eternity – living for the Lord.

One more thing. It might help us to remember that the human author of this book is Solomon, a man who experienced everything that this world had to offer. He had widom, wealth, works, and lots of women; but none of those things brought any lasting value. Only the things that were done for the Lord followed him into eternity.

Jul 23rd You Can Take The Fire – Pt 3 – The Saturday Morning Post by Pastor Ted Stahl

Today’s Reading: Proverbs 23, 25-27 and Luke 1-2

Today’s Passage: Luke 1:30 – 37: And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end. Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. And, behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was called barren. For with God nothing shall be impossible.

Good morning. I guess after reading the passage above, you already know what verse I’m going to focus on. Verse 37, …with God nothing shall be impossible! Aren’t you glad to have the One and True, Living, All Powerful God in your life?

Last weekend, me, Camille, and Melissa went camping in Lancaster, PA. Guess who was in the trailer across from ours… a Christian woman who had survived cancer several times. Like I said in a previous blog, “It ain’t over till it’s over.” And our faith and hope received a booster shot.

On Wednesday, we drove out towards Philadelphia (Melissa was going to be operated on Thursday). We had to be at the Philadelphia Hospital at 5:30 am. We did not know what was going to happen. The plan was to remove most of her lower insides and the tumor. We prayed that the Lord would give the surgeons wisdom, and guide them in what they should do.

For with God nothing shall be impossible, and it would have been awesome if when the doctors opened her up the tumor would have vanished. But it was still there, attached to the pelvic bone and the stomach cavity. It would be too dangerous to remove the tumor. The doctors decided that it would be better for Melissa to get chemo again. God in His mercy, which endureth forever, spared Melissa the trauma of this massive operation that may have killed her on the operating table, or caused the cancer to spread. Melissa ran a slight temperature Thursday’ night, so they were going to keep her in the hospital another 24 hours. She should be coming home today.

God wasn’t done yet. He showed me something on, of all places, 20/20. They ran the story of Paralympian Chris Waddell, who climbed Mt. Kilamanjaro with his handcycle. Nearing the top, he could not make it any further because of the steepness. He was down on himself because he could not make it to the top. Until his trainer said something, and Chris allowed the guides to carry him and his handcycle to the top. What did the trainer say? “No man climbs mountains by himself.” And with that I would like to thank everybody for their prayers, and lifting up me and my family to the Lord.

Peace. (Psalm 136)

Jul 22nd Laziness

Today’s Passages – Proverbs 22 – 24; Proverbs 22

(Second Milers also read – Mark 15 – 16; Memorize – Genesis 1:26)

“Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep: So shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth; and thy want as an armed man.” (Proverbs 24:33 – 34)

As I have read through the Book of Proverbs, I have noticed that there are certain themes that reappear again and again. One of these is the subject of laziness (the Bible uses the terms slothful; and will also call a lazy person a sluggard). The above passage speaks of a man who, because of his laziness, has neglected his field to the point where it was overgrown with with weeds. I feel that way in my life sometimes. I notice that there are times when I lose focus, and allow things to fall into neglect. It happens in all areas of my life as well. Sometimes, I may neglect the spiritual priorities, and at other times I may become lazy in one of my responsibilities as a father or husband. I get lazy. Laziness seems to be a bigger problem for me in the summertime.

God expects us to be fruitful. God expects us to be busy and productive. Here are some things that will help me stay on track to fulfill the things that God expects from my life:

1  Have a schedule – determine what time you need to get up, and how much time is needed to do what you have to do. Go to bed early, and get up early. Avoid the time wasters like the internet and television.

2  Set Goals – what do you want to accomplish this year; this summer; this week; tomorrow? Attempt to get a lot of things done. You may not get to them all; but you will accomplish a lot more than if you don’t set goals. “he who aims at nothing hits it every time”. Set spiritual goals; goals for tasks around the house; etc.

3  Be accountable to someone. This is the problem that many preachers have. They have no earthly boss standing over them with expectations. If I am not careful, I will let this lack of accountability cause me to get lazy; get up later; leave earlier, etc.

4  Stay motivated. I listen to preaching and leadership lessons from Godly pastors around the country to stay challenged. What motivates you?

We will have to give an account of our live to God someday. What did we do with our time? Were we productive? Did we fulfill God’s will for our lives? Or did we sleep in? Don’t be lazy. Get up and do what God has called you to do.

Jul 21st Wine Is A Mocker

Today’s Passages – Proverbs 19 – 21; Proverbs 21

(Second Milers also read Mark 13 – 14; Memorize Genesis 1:26)

“Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise.” – (Proverbs 20:1)

“He that loveth pleasure shall be a poor man: he that loveth wine and oil shall not be rich.” – (Proverbs 21:17)

“Who hath woe? who hath sorrow? who hath contentions? who hath babbling? who hath wounds without cause? who hath redness of eyes? They that tarry long at the wine; they that go to seek mixed wine. Look not thou upon the wine when it is red, when it giveth his colour in the cup, when it moveth itself aright. At the last it biteth like a serpent, and stingeth like an adder. Thine eyes shall behold strange women, and thine heart shall utter perverse things. Yea, thou shalt be as he that lieth down in the midst of the sea, or as he that lieth upon the top of a mast. They have stricken me, shalt thou say, and I was not sick; they have beaten me, and I felt it not: when shall I awake? I will seek it yet again.” – (Proverbs 23:29-35)

“It is not for kings, O Lemuel, it is not for kings to drink wine; nor for princes strong drink: … Give strong drink unto him that is ready to perish, and wine unto those that be of heavy hearts.” – (Proverbs 31:4, 6)

“And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;” – (Ephesians 5:18)

The Bible is full of warnings against the consumption of alcohol. Above, I have listed some of the verses from the Book of Proverbs that deal with the subject, as well as a New Testament reminder. God did not outlaw the use of intoxicating beverages in the Bible, but He certainly taught that consuming alcohol was the cause of a great many problems for His people. The first mention of fermented wine in the Bible was in Genesis 9 referring to Noah who drank of the wine and then lay naked in his tent, causing his son Ham to sin by looking upon his father’s naked body. Shortly thereafter in the book of Genesis we read about Lot who drank wine and then slept with both of his daughters. Alcohol will certainly cause you to do some pretty dumb and damaging things. Today it is no different. In America, 38% of all traffic fatalities occur because of alcohol consumption (nearly 65 people a day). Statistics reveal that there are over 14 million people in the U.S. that are addicted to alcohol; and alcoholics are four times more likely to be hospitalized than non-drinkers. When will we learn?

In the New Testament there is an added warning to the child of God regarding the consumption of alcohol. The verse mentioned above from the Book of Ephesians tells us that alcohol is a controlling force that will hinder the Christian from being filled with the Spirit. That is why they call being drunk “under the influence”. To the degree that you are “influenced” by alcohol, you are not being influenced by the Holy Spirit of God. Plus, God warns us that we should be careful about being a stumbling block to another Christian. You may be able to handle an occasional drink, but by your indulgence you may just be encouraging a future alcoholic. If you are a child of God, filled with His Spirit, you have no business consuming alcohol. God is the only influence you and I need in our lives. We don’t need alcohol to enjoy the abundant life that God has given us while serving Him on this earth.