Pastor Brad’s Notebook

18 Sep

Posted at 12:09h in Devotionals
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"For perhaps he departed for a while for this purpose, that you might receive him forever..." Philemon 1:15 There are certain thing that only become truly ours when we have lost them for a while.  There are joys that will never be internalized and made fully ours until they have first gone through the cloud of grief.  So many times we're like Philemon in that it is our losses that ultimately come to enrich us.  Far too often we hold a faith only because we were born with it and as a result we fail to realize its true value.  But when there comes a cloud for a season which removes it from our sight for a while, suddenly we understand it is precious and therefore come to cherish it.  We wake to the knowledge that we have held a diamond in our hand.  We've been rich without the realization of our riches and we would given and entire world to hold once again what just the day before we tossed away.

13 Sep

Posted at 12:42h in Fridays Are For Family
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One of my earliest memories is that of hearing my mom, early in the morning, praying for me and my two brothers. I remember waking up and hearing someone talking in the house, but I knew that by that time my dad had already left for the day. So I knew it was my mom who was doing the talking, but who was she talking to? As I lay there in my little twin bed I tried to listen to the conversation, and as I did my young mind finally realized who it was that she was talking to - it was God. She was talking to God about me and my brothers. I'll never forget that day. It has made a deep, meaningful and eternal impact in my life.

11 Sep

Posted at 12:39h in Devotionals
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"But as for me, my prayer is to You, O LORD, in the acceptable time; O God, in the multitude of Your mercy, Hear me in the truth of Your salvation." Psalm 69:13 It is commonly considered that prayer falls into one of two categories - those prayers that are in accordance with God's will and those prayers that are not.  However, it seems that the Psalmist here is suggesting a third category.  He tells us that there may be those prayers that are not in accordance with God's will...today. Evidently there is an acceptable time in which certain prayers may be answered, because obviously he is not suggesting that there is an "acceptable time" for us to pray. The Scripture makes it clear that our Father loves to hear His children pray even when it is not a prayer that He can respond to positively.  You see, the limitation isn't on the prayers that we prayer, but on the answers He gives.

09 Sep

Posted at 21:28h in Sunday Review
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"By faith Abel offered to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts; and through it he being dead still speaks." Hebrews 11:4

Yesterday morning we began a journey of walking through one of the most exciting chapters in the entire Bible, Hebrews Chapter 11. The author of Hebrews introduces us to the God’s Hall of Faith.” Twenty-Four times in the Twenty-Three verses of this chapter we find the word “faith.” What is faith?” Faith is hearing, believing and acting on the Word of God. Through Abel’s worship, he displayed and demonstrated the kind of faith it takes to have a meaningful fellowship with God.