The One Thing - United Faith Church Podcast

The One Thing - United Faith Church Podcast

By Pastor Jeffrey BrandtReligion & SpiritualityChristianityEducation
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The One Thing - United Faith Church Podcast episodes

  • What Entices You? – EP71 (Prov. 7)

    Proverbs 7:21-23

    "With persuasive words she led him astray; she seduced him with her smooth talk. All at once he followed her like an ox going to the slaughter, like a deer stepping into a noose till an arrow pierces his liver, like a bird darting into a snare, little knowing it will cost him his life."

    Hello and welcome back to the One Thing Podcast. Today I'd like to ask you the question: What entices you? See, one thing I've learned in life is that every single day there's always something tugging and pulling for our attention, for our hearts, for our minds - there's always something. We live in a world, and we know that the world - the Bible says the spirit of the world is in opposition to the Spirit of God. So we know that living in this world - the spirit of the world is always looking to draw us away - away from who? Away from God. Vice versa, the Spirit of the Lord is always speaking and always looking to draw God's people to Himself.

    "People...can be caught or enticed or pulled away if we're not on guard and not looking to what God wants to speak through His Word in order to keep us pure, to keep us with Himself." Why is this important? Well one thing is if you look through the Scriptures, you can look through Kings and Chronicles - Israel had an issue many times, and what does the Bible say in numerous occasions? The Israelites were enticed or drawn away, seduced by neighboring people who worshipped foreign gods and they were literally enticed even by some of the women, and they got into immorality and all sorts of things. But bottom line we know that that same thing still happens today. Many times, people who are looking to maybe follow God or maybe to, you know, to walk in purity, can be caught or enticed or pulled away if we're not on guard and not looking to what God wants to speak through His Word in order to keep us pure, to keep us with Himself.

    Now, looking in Proverbs chapter 7 one of my favorite chapters in Proverbs - if you look at the title many of the titles that you may have may say ‘The Immoral Woman,’ it's talking about this woman. Now it's not literally talking about just a physical woman, but it's talking about that spirit - it's a seducing, enticing spirit. It’s the spirit of the world that looks to pull away. Now, let's look at verse 21. And you can read the whole chapter but I’m just gonna do a couple bits and pieces here. But this woman is now seducing a young man. It's a kind of a short story here but it says in verse 21 - it says, “So she seduced him with her pretty speech and enticed him with her flattery. He followed her at once, like an ox going to the slaughter. He was like a stag caught in a trap, awaiting the arrow that would pierce his heart. He was like a bird flying into a snare, little knowing it would cost him his life.” How sad to see that this young man was seduced by this woman. By her what? Her pretty speech. She enticed him, it says, with her flattery and what? It says that he went literally like an animal, and just got caught into this trap, and what happened in the end? It says that it cost him his life.

    "Right now, what is consuming our minds, and what is consuming our heart?" There is a seriousness in the Word of the Lord today. We have to ask and say, ‘Are we enticed in the same way?’ Has the world enticed us, has the world overtaken our mind - what entices us what draws our attention every single day? Right now, what is consuming our minds, and what is consuming our heart? See, think about the world for a moment. The world is very sensual. When we look at every television ad, it is so easy to be enticed to even purchase things that we don't need. When we’re watching different movies or different television shows, and I have nothing against TV but we just really have to think - when we get caught three or four hours watching television we look at our watch and we go, ‘Wow, how did that even happen?’ How easily can we be enticed even just watching one of our favorite shows and in the process, nowhere near thinking about God or even thinking of what His will is or what His voice is speaking.

    "But there is hope today...“Obey my commands and live!”" Another thing we can look at is today, one of the big things - actually the biggest thing on social media is, you know to check out people's Instagrams and the pictures they’re putting up and all the different things. And it's, you know, who's wearing the nicest swimsuit, you know, what guy has the six pack abs. And when you really stop to think about it, how easily people are sucked into it drawn into it. People have billions and millions of followers to check out what they're wearing how they look, and to look at the body, and to see what they have or what they don't have, the jewelry and everything else. And we stop for a moment: Look at how enticing and seducing the world can be. People spend hours looking at photos and pictures of people they'll never meet or never know, rather than being with God rather than seeking Him rather than taking care of maybe their household. Or many times we can even find ourselves being caught up in a whirlwind of enticement by this world. Now the sad thing is, we know that it ends in death. Now it may not even be physical death, but a death to our minds, a death to our heart - a death to our relationship with God, our relationship to one another, because we find ourself caught up in the world or overtaken. But there is hope today. Let's go back to verse one in chapter seven, it says, “Follow my advice, my son; always treasure my commands,” - the commands of God. What is God saying? What is God doing? See like Jesus - Jesus said, “I only do the will of My Father.” Why would He only do the will? Because Jesus knew something. Verse two, “Obey my commands and live!”

    The hope, the antidote today, is the very voice of God, and that voice is being sounded through the Lord Jesus Christ. See, when we obey when we follow when we hear Him, when we just say, ‘Father, today, help me. Open my mind. Holy Spirit, train my heart, train my ears to hear Your voice train my heart. Father draw me in to where You are.’ Because as we do that, as we seek Him, listen - the immoral woman? She was looking to seduce unto death, but see the voice of the Lord, the commands of God are to give us life. God will tell you to go right, when if you went left, there was just gonna be a trap. God will tell you to go left, because if you went right, there was gonna be a swallowing up of the world. But God, He speaks and as those who heed and obey His voice, we live. We find life because to do the will of God, to hear His voice, to obey is better than food. It's better than anything the world can offer. See, the images that the world gets caught up into - the images of man and women and the body - see, we get caught up in the image of the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the Everlasting One. It says that His eyes are like flames of fire, His hair is white as wool. How beautiful the Lord Jesus Christ!

    "I pray today...that you would no longer be enticed by the world, but drawn in by the precious Lord Jesus Christ - drawn to the Father." So I ask again, what entices you this day? If you find that you've been enticed by the world I'm praying that we would turn and repent, and say, ‘Father I'm so sorry for being overtaken with my mind and my heart by this world. Father let me come back to You this day.’ May we follow His advice may we treasure His commands, may we obey His commands and live by the power of the Lord Jesus Christ. I pray today that the Word would bless you, and that you would no longer be enticed by the world, but drawn in by the precious Lord Jesus Christ - drawn to the Father. Amen.

    The post What Entices You? – EP71 (Prov. 7) appeared first on United Faith Church.

    8 min
  • God’s Unfailing Love – EP70

    Psalm 33:5

    "The Lord loves righteousness and justice; the earth is full of his unfailing love."

    Psalm 6:4

    "Turn, Lord, and deliver me; save me because of your unfailing love."

    Psalm 13:5

    "But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation."

    Hello and welcome back to the One Thing Podcast. I wanted to share just something so incredible that the Lord was impressing on my heart this day. The word that I was really beginning to understand is His unfailing love. I started to think about all throughout the Scriptures and there's numerous Scriptures - I can't list them all but I'm going to list a few - that speak about God's unfailing love. Psalm 33:5 says “The Lord loves righteousness and justice; the earth is full of His unfailing love.” Psalm 6:4 says “Turn Lord and deliver me, save me because of Your unfailing love.” Psalm 13:5 “but I trust in Your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in Your salvation.”

    "What's so spectacular about God's unfailing love is that this love is powerful to deliver us!"
    What's so spectacular about God's unfailing love is that this love is powerful to deliver us! When we read about the psalmist saying ‘Lord deliver me, save me because of Your unfailing love,’ he's not saying ‘save me because of my own righteousness, save me because I'm a good person’ or because ‘I've earned my way,’ but, ‘God, see me through the eyes of Your unfailing love and have mercy this day to deliver me from sin, to deliver me from this sickness, to deliver me from evil, to be able to walk and live in Your Kingdom.’ With all the craziness that's happening right now in this world and in our nation - with the coronavirus, with the unsaid future of our economy - many people are wondering what they're going to do with themselves - what they're going to do. But we as those in Christ, we trust in the Lord's unfailing love! His unfailing love will be what delivers us, His unfailing love will be what keeps us safe and carries us through any disease, any sickness, and through any darkness.

    "...but those who trust in the Lord Jesus Christ: you will see His unfailing love carry you through!"
    What's incredible is that for those who fear Him - the Bible makes clear that if we fear Him - that if we turn to the Lord Jesus Christ, that if we don't trust in our money, we're not trusting in our gadgets and our things, we're not even trusting in what the government's going to be able to do or not able to do. But those who look to God, who trust not in horses and chariots but trust in the Lord their God, who trust in the Lord Jesus - those who don't trust in what they have in the stocks; those who don't trust for what they've built for themselves - but those who trust in the Lord Jesus Christ: you will see His unfailing love carry you through!

    "The Lord Jesus can come in and bring life on the inside"
    Psalm 31:16, another Scripture here and as I said there's so many Scriptures but I love some of these I'm reading: “Let Your face shine on Your servant; save me in Your unfailing love.” One thing I've truly recognized, and I pray that you would also recognize today, is that the unfailing love of God has come in the form of a man, in the form of the Lord Jesus Christ. The gospel of the Lord Jesus is this: God looked down upon the earth and He saw those who He would call to Himself, who were at one time dead in their transgressions and sins, and He sent His unfailing love in the form of His Son that we would awaken this day! I pray that we would awaken through His unfailing love to the great glory of Jesus; that we awaken to the hope of the gospel that the Lord Jesus can come in and bring life on the inside - life that cannot be defeated by any virus, life that cannot be taken over by a loss of money or food or anything else - but life that is sustained by God Himself.

    When the Lord Jesus Christ is within us, His unfailing love is sure to deliver us, sure to provide for us, and sure to carry us through so that we would demonstrate to the world the Kingdom of God, the everlasting Kingdom - that we would demonstrate to the world that we trust in the Lord who is alive and well, and God, whose unfailing love is with us, and shall be with us now and forever more. Will you step into the unfailing love of God? Will you trust in His Name? Will you seek for Him with all of your heart until this pours into you, until a deep understanding is given by His power, to understand that His unfailing love is all that we need in this life? I’m praying that God will bless you in this time and in this season, and that He would deliver you through His unfailing love, and that He would make you strong - that He would demonstrate His Kingdom power in your life through His unfailing love.

    The post God’s Unfailing Love – EP70 appeared first on United Faith Church.

    5 min
  • In God’s Dwelling Place – EP69 (Psalm 91:1)

    Psalm 91:1

    "Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty."

    "Is the Lord your dwelling? Is the Lord your shelter?" Hello, and welcome back to the One Thing Podcast! Today I would like to share a very beautiful psalm, and it is Psalm 91! We're gonna begin with the first verse, but even as we begin I would like to ask the question today: Is the Lord your dwelling? Is the Lord your shelter? Now, verse one it says, “Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.” And I love this because we're in a time right now in which we know that things like the coronavirus, things like the flu, and all sorts of sicknesses seem to be growing at such a rapid pace. It's grown to a point where kids are not in school, where businesses are closing and it's not just in our nation, but it's literally a worldwide thing. And what is happening right now? The government, people, everybody's looking for a safe dwelling. Nobody wants to be infected, you don't want to be in the wrong store at the wrong time, you don't want to be next to somebody that's sick and so everybody right now is looking to be basically on a lockdown. You know, maybe in their homes, maybe trying to just keep away from everybody and everything -- and the reality is, we're looking for a dwelling place.

    "Father, you are the dwelling place that no fire can consume, you are the dwelling place that no germ can overtake, you are the dwelling place that no man can ever destroy" But when I want to really share from this Word -- it says that “whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High”, what I love about God.. see when you dwell in Him, when you make the Lord your focus for every single day, when you look and you seek His face saying ‘Father, you are the dwelling place that no fire can consume, you are the dwelling place that no germ can overtake, you are the dwelling place that no man can ever destroy’, see, the Word of the Lord says that we are able to find rest. It is a rest not just for our physical bodies, but God is saying that if you dwell in me, if you dwell and you seek my face and you make the Lord the one that you are after, if you seek me with all of your heart-- you will find a rest that no man can give, that no medicine can give. You see we're not just gonna find a rest from all the havoc of the world of viruses and sickness, but there is a rest that God brings to our soul. Is He your dwelling today? Is He your shelter? If not, I'm praying that you will begin to seek Him even now saying, ‘Father, I want to know you. Father, I want to be close to you. And as things are going crazy, Father, I will find a rest-- a rest that can only be found in the shadow of the Almighty.’

    "His shadow is a shadow of rest and peace" Inside God's Dwelling Place
    Now as I read this, I'm thinking it says that we're gonna rest in His shadow; now there's another point in the Bible, and many of us may be familiar with it, that talks about a shadow -- and what is it? It's “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death..” Now that's not a good shadow to be in. When I think of the ‘valley of the shadow of death’, I think of the turmoil of the world, I think of it as a place of deep dark sin, of a place of darkness that looks to consume us and to keep us from God, it's a scary place, it's not a joyful place. In the ‘valley of the shadow of death’ when we really look at it -- is to walk without the Lord, Jesus Christ. It's when our mind is always in worry and in fear because we seem to be in this dark place, this dark valley. It's when our hearts seem to faint left and right -- we're worried about money, we’re worried about sickness, we’re worried about all sorts of things and there just seems to be no rest. But I want to say today that there is rest in the shadow of the Almighty God because His shadow is not a darkened shadow of evil, His shadow is a shadow of rest and peace; the rest and the peace of the Lord, Jesus Christ. Will you come and dwell in the shelter of the Most High?

    "There are viruses, there are sicknesses that we are facing -- money cannot stand up to those things...God is able to conquer." Furthermore, verse 2 it says, “I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” And I find that right now, many people are wondering how much food they have, how much money they have, if the money's even gonna make a difference, if the money's gonna last, we see the stock market falling, we see all sorts of things that man trusted, literally, fall apart because it's something that we are facing. There are viruses, there are sicknesses that we are facing -- money cannot stand up to those things. Even our stock, you know, all those things, they're nothing in the face of sickness and turmoil, but I want to say today, that if we look to the Lord and we find Him to be our refuge and our fortress, our God in whom we trust, He is worthy to be trusted. See, the love of the Lord never fails. The Lord Jesus never fails. God is able to conquer. God is able to provide, a matter of fact, the Word of the Lord says, “He who does not sleep nor slumber will watch over his people.” And we think of that, we can rest assured knowing that as we trust in the Lord, as we seek Him as our refuge and our fortress, we can truly trust in Him. And to trust in Him means very simply that this day I'm not going to go about and do my own thing, I'm not going to decide to go wherever I want and do as I please, but my heart is going to be yielded to God. Father, I yield my mind to you. I yield by heart. Father, let me do that which pleases you. Father, may your Kingdom and your will be done in my life. Guide me this day. Father, in every decision, let it be decided in the light of your will. In all that I do, Father, let me prayerfully consider that I be walking in your way that you have called me to walk in. This truly is to trust in the Lord. This truly is to find Him to be our refuge and our fortress.

    "He saves us not only from the deadly pestilence of physical sickness but He also shall deliver us from the pestilence of our sin." Verse 3, “Surely he will save you from the fowler’s snare and from the deadly pestilence.” What is the deadly pestilence? Right now there is the pestilence of a virus, there’s the pestilence of sickness, there's the pestilence of the money and everything dwindling down and yet God says that if you dwell in Me, if I am your dwelling, if you seek Me, if you follow Me -- listen I am going to deliver you even from that! But I want to also say today that the deadly pestilence that we see, there is even yet a much deadlier pestilence. And that deadly pestilence is sin. The sin of man, the darkness of man's heart is much worse than any virus, it's much worse than any cancer or any sickness because it is the very pestilence against our soul. The deadly pestilence of sin is what separates us from God, it's what has kept us from His glory and it is destroying man every single day to no longer live with God as God intended, but to be his enemies, as the Word of the Lord says, ‘to be under the wrath of God.’ But today, if we trust in the Lord, He saves us not only from the deadly pestilence of physical sickness but He also shall deliver us from the pestilence of our sin. As we turn to the Lord Jesus, He delivers us from the darkened mind. He delivers us from the separation of God. He delivers us from God's wrath and now brings us in-- to a friendship with God, to a restoration with God today. If there is a fear in your heart of the deadly pestilence, know, that if you turn to the Lord Jesus Christ, He's not looking just to deliver us from physical sickness, but He is looking to deliver us from darkness into His glorious light, that we would now be able to serve Him. We would now be able to love Him with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength. And to come into true healing -- which is a healing between God and man. A healing of heart back to the Father, back to what God has intended.

    And I love verse 5! Says “You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the plague that destroys at midday.” And when I think of the terror of night.. Think of the night -- what do we do normally in the night? We try to rest, we lay our heads to rest and not many people can rest when there's terror, bad things happening, when viruses are spreading, it's very hard for people to rest, BUT HALLELUJAH, in God, in Christ, we do not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day! I think sometimes of the news that we hear, the things that are going through the atmosphere that are being spoken, can really cause our minds to never be at rest. They can really cause our minds to literally go crazy and all through the night to fear this terror, but see, there is a blessing for the people of the Lord. There is something special about dwelling in God, that even through the night, we can rest assured knowing that the Almighty God is watching over us.

    "The odds for the Christian are this -- you may feel outnumbered, but see, with God, you only need one!" So today -- Is He your dwelling? Is He your dwelling? Because if He be your refuge, if He be your shelter, verse 7, “A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you. You will only observe with your eyes and see the punishment of the wicked.” What a beautiful thing for the Christian. You see, the odds for the Christian are incomparable. The odds for the Christian are this -- you may feel outnumbered, but see, with God, you only need one! When you have Him you have an army behind you. When you have God, you have the full force of heaven behind you. When you speak a Word, it is not just your Word, it is God's Word with you! When you say a prayer, it is not just your prayer, it is the prayers of God forcefully being brought through you by the power of the Spirit. When you walk, you're not just walking alone, but you are carrying the glory of God. We are not alone, but we join together as one with the people of God, as a force that cannot be reckoned with, but a force that comes from God in which a thousand may fall at your right, ten thousand at your right hand, yet it will not come by your dwelling because God is with you! He will be sure to see you through the end. God who began this good work in you, God who began this good work in me, will make sure it is brought to completion! we will only observe with our eyes; in other words -- we will worship, we will praise God, we will be thanking Him, when everybody else is scrambling and many people seem to not know what to do, we can find joy and we can find hope. If that is you today, if you are one that has said, ‘I've been on the outside’, if you were one who were thinking, ‘I have not made the Lord my dwelling’, I'm praying today that right now you would stop and turn to the Lord Jesus Christ because the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ is the gospel that brings us out of the darkness into light, out of the openness into the world into the shelter and the dwelling place of God. God says today that ‘if you seek Me and you seek Me with all of your heart, you will find Me.’

    "Christ alone - my solid rock." I'm praying today that for those of you who are already in the shelter -- that you would be worshiping, that we would be worshipping even if we are in a different place, in a different location, that our worship would join as one, that we will be praying as one and that God would be honored; that He would be honored in our homes, He would be honored in our hearts. And in this time, where many are looking to find the right dwelling, the best shelter, we are able to say, ‘Praise God we are already in the place of safety for we are in the presence of the Lord.’ We are already in the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ. So I ask again: Is the Lord your dwelling? If not, may you turn to Him with all of your heart. May the spirit of God touch you today, I pray that the Holy Spirit would open your mind, that He would open your heart to turn to the Lord, that you would find refuge, that He will become your dwelling and that you will be able to serve the Lord with all of your heart, soul, mind, and strength. And I also pray for those of you who are in the dwelling place of God, where He is your shelter. I'm praying that God would increase. I'm praying that God would bless you where you are. That a new song would arise that you would be able to go deeper with God now than ever before. Father, we thank you that you are our refuge. Thank you, Father, that you are our dwelling. There is no other God that compares to you. There is no other thing, there is no other fortress that is like our God. Christ alone - my solid rock. Father we thank you, and we pray that in the season you would be honored, that your people would rise and that your name will be lifted high. In the mighty name of Jesus, amen.

    The post In God’s Dwelling Place – EP69 (Psalm 91:1) appeared first on United Faith Church.

    14 min
  • Overcoming the Flesh -EP68 (Romans 8:12-13)
    Romans 8:12-13
    "Therefore, brothers and sisters, we have an obligation—but it is not to the flesh, to live according to it. For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live."Hello welcome back to the One Thing Podcast. Today I would like to share with you 2 verses from Romans chapter 8 and looking at verses 12 and 13 it says “Therefore brothers and sisters we have an obligation but it is not to the flesh to live according to it for if you live according to the flesh you will die but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body you will live.” Very interesting we read all throughout the New Testament about overcoming the flesh and how the power of Jesus gives us victory to overcome and to overcome by the Spirit of God but what are we overcoming?The Flesh and the Spirit"The flesh is anything that is separate from God."See it says that we have an obligation, but it is not to the flesh to live according to it. We can overcome the flesh but what is the flesh? See the flesh can be numerous things but sometimes you know people think that the flesh is only something really bad that's obvious maybe smoking or drinking or going to bad places but it is so much bigger than that. You see the flesh is anything that is separate from God. It's when our mind sets are so caught up on just going our own way, maybe just doing our own thing apart from God and enjoying our luxuries and our rests and everything else but disregarding God's will, disregarding what God wants. It's okay to enjoy things in life but see the flesh goes further. It not only wants to enjoy things it wants to have things greater than Christ. It wants, and has a desire to have everything else to be everywhere else but where God is, and to come close to Him…that's the flesh.
    "The natural inclination of man is to walk away from God."And He says if we live according to the flesh, if we live according to our sinful nature it produces death. But we have no obligation to it, see those in Christ those who trust in the Lord Jesus Christ we receive the Spirit of the living God. We receive the Spirit of Jesus, the Spirit that now helps us to overcome. We don't have to live according to our sinful nature but we can put to death the misdeeds of the body the misdeeds that seem to wander away from God. That natural inclination of man to walk away from Him. The Spirit now over comes and causes us to live as Jesus lived. Our obligation is no longer to the flesh but now we can be those who are after God.
    "Have you overcome today? - call upon the Savior"Those who have received Christ, who carry the Spirit that causes us to move, causes us to move where? To move closer to the Father. The Spirit of God that brings us back to God, the Spirit of God that causes us to love, to desire, to obey, and to be looking and seeking for what His will is in our life because it's growing on the inside. So we don't have an obligation to live in the old, we don't have to live according to our flesh, but by the power of the Spirit of God we can come into Christ and we can live for Him.
    Have you overcome today? If not, if that old flesh, if that old darkness within is still driving away from the Lord will you call upon the name of the Lord Jesus? Will you call upon the Savior who can save us from even the flesh to be filled with the Spirit. Now living for God, now thinking on the Father, now looking to be close to Him and be closer as never before. Every day growing in the goodness and the will of our God. I'm praying today that the Spirit of the Lord Jesus Christ would touch you that as you call upon His name you would believe this day and in the name of His wonderful Son the Lord Jesus Christ.
    4 min
  • Only Through Faith – EP67

    Hebrews 11:6 (NIV)

    "And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him."

    Hello welcome back to the One Thing podcast. The Word of the Lord says in Hebrews 11:6, "And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him."

    "The only way to please God begins with faith"The fact here that's very clear from the Word is that unless we have faith we cannot please God.  It doesn't say if we do good things, if we try to be good people or anything else for that matter, but the entrance to God the only way to please God begins with faith.  We must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him.

    "What are we seeking Him for?"He's not saying He rewards those who seek Him here and there who kind of think about Him, but He says those who earnestly seek Him.  What are we seeking Him for, what is it that we really are putting our faith in?  It is in the promise that God has made through the Lord Jesus Christ.  You see our faith is placed in the One who is pure, our faith is placed in the One who was good alone and His name is the lord Jesus Christ. Our faith is that when we look to Him, when we turn from our sins, when we turn to Him and truly believe in the son of God that the promise of God comes forth.  That the Lord Jesus would come in and dwell inside of us.

    "It's God pleasing God...God in us"You see we can try again to do many different things. We can try to keep the Word of the Lord we can try to pray really hard, we could try to do a lot of different things but nothing happens in our lives apart from the Lord Jesus.  He is our hope, He is our hope of God coming in in living within us. And with God in us when He lives inside of us this is what becomes pleasing.  It's  God pleasing God, it's Jesus living in me, it's Jesus living in you, it's His spirit coming in.  And now the Spirit living and breathing once again as He did in Jesus on this earth.

    "May we examine our lives to see if we be in the faith"So without faith it is impossible to please God.  I'm praying today that faith would arise.  I'm praying that God would open up our eyes and that He would touch us by the power of the Holy Spirit to come deeper into faith. So may we examine our lives, to see if we be in the faith to see if we're trusting in our own works, if we're trusting in the fact that we're doing good today in comparison to yesterday which has nothing to do with what God is calling us into.

    I pray today that we would realize true faith is in Jesus and Jesus alone so may we come to Him today.  May we look at our lives and examine to see you know as Paul says to test the faith, to really see if our faith be true.   To see if our faith truly be in Him and in Him alone. and I'm praying today that we would awaken to faith that we would come to God and that we would be a people pleasing to Him.

    We thank you God for sending your Son.  Thank you for making a way that is only through faith by trusting in the Lord Jesus Christ...in Jesus name.

    The post Only Through Faith – EP67 appeared first on United Faith Church.

    4 min
  • This New Year, Be Still and Know – EP66
    Psalm 46:10
    "...be still and know that I am God."be still and wait on the lordHello, and welcome back to the One Thing Podcast. I would like to wish everybody a very Happy New Year as we begin this new season and this new time.
    "God calls us... to stop, to be still, and know that He is God." One of the scriptures that had come to mind, that I believe is so important, even for this new year to grasp is Psalm 46 verse 10 and it says to, “...be still, and know that I am God”. And as we enter into this new year, you know, we live in a culture, we live in a time where there are so many different distractions that are so easy to distract us from God. Maybe so many different voices going through our hearts and mind; whether it be television, whether it be media, whether it be the worries of this world, whatever it may be - God calls us to himself this time, this season, this day to stop, to be still, and know that He is God.
    "And in this new time and new season, walk with me in a new way, that I would be King" It takes a discipline, it takes a moment to stop, in order to come into a place of stillness with God. It requires us for maybe some of us to put the cell phone away. Maybe it requires for us to put the remote down for a day or for a week or for a time. But God is saying to stop, be still and know that I am God. Let me consume your mind. Let me consume your heart. And in this new time and new season, walk with me in a new way, that I would be King, that I would be the one to guide you every step, that I would be the one to empower you to do the work of my kingdom.
    As we begin this new year... may we first of all be still and wait on the Lord. So let us stop, let us as we begin this new year, before we begin to make our plans, before we decide what we're going to do, may we first of all be still, and know that God is God. That he reigns eternally, that he is the King, and that those who trust in him, those who follow him, find life and light. Happy new year once again! And may we walk in the stillness of the Lord Jesus Christ this day as he guides us and as he leads us through.
    3 min
  • Returning to The Shepherd of Our Souls – EP65

    1 Peter 2:24-25

    “'He himself bore our sins' in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; 'by his wounds you have been healed.' For 'you were like sheep going astray,' but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls."

    Welcome back to the One Thing Podcast, the word of the Lord says in first Peter chapter 2 verse 24 and 25 it says “He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross so that we might die to sin and live for righteousness by His wounds you have been healed for you were like sheep going astray but now you have returned to the Shepherd and overseer of your souls. And this makes me think truly about faith, which faith really is you see when we come into faith in the Lord Jesus Christ we realize first of all that He Himself had laid His life down. He bore all of our sins in His body on the cross. Why? So that we might die to sin and live for righteousness.

    Is there a move in our hearts?We can we stop and we begin to examine our faith. One real sign is that in our hearts - there is a shifting, there is a change. Where, no longer do we want to live in our sinfulness, no longer do we want to live for this world for our own purposes but those in the faith those who trust in the Lord Jesus Christ something begins to draw you nearer to Him. You desire to be close. Is there a desire in our hearts today, is there a desire to come close to Him to follow Him to seek His face to come out of sin and come closer into righteousness? Is there a move in our hearts? If not today may we stop and recognize Him who bore our sins in His body on the cross. The one who laid it all down, that we would trust in Him and come into a full serving, to come into the kingdom of God.

    We're like sheep now inside His gates! And Furthermore the scripture says “you were like sheep going astray”. See man in man's heart apart from God apart from Jesus, we are like sheep that go astray…going about our own business doing our own thing following our own will the will of this world, the will of the devil. But hallelujah today, it can be broken! It can be broken by coming into the Lord Jesus Christ, returning to the shepherd and the overseer of our souls. See when we are in Christ, no longer are we going astray but by the power of the Holy Spirit we are drawn to follow Him. We're like sheep now inside of His gates inside of His pastures.

    Is He your shepherd today?And I love how this scripture says we return to the shepherd and overseer of our souls. You see Jesus Christ the Lord is not only the author but He's the finisher of our faith. We can trust Him as the great shepherd that as we look to Him and as we follow Him, that not only would He initiate faith in our life but He will be sure to see it through to the end. He who began a great work in each one of us will be sure to bring it to completion. Is He our shepherd today? Is He the overseer of our souls? Have we trusted in the Lord Jesus Christ? Have we truly come into the faith?

    The faith that causes us to come out of sin, to come out of living for ourselves and to have a heart for the Lord Jesus to have a heart for God looking to do His will looking to produce His fruitfulness and to live in His kingdom. I pray today that we would return to the great shepherd and overseer of our soul.

    The post Returning to The Shepherd of Our Souls – EP65 appeared first on United Faith Church.

    4 min
  • Remember His Sacrifice- EP64

    Isaiah 53:7

    "He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth."

    "...yet he walked that road in faith and in trust of his Father." Hello, and welcome back to the One Thing Podcast. I’d like to share a scripture from Isaiah chapter 53 today. And it's a scripture that is really foretelling Jesus and the sacrifice that he would make for each of us, for his people, for his children. And verse 7 is one that I wanted to specifically read, it says that “He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth.” And we think of, you know, the road that Jesus had taken; he had taken the road that the Father had laid for him and although it would be a difficult road, although it would be a road where he would be betrayed and the whole world would seemingly all come against him all at once on the road to Calvary; yet he walked that road in faith and in trust of his Father.

    It says that he was oppressed and afflicted, yet he didn't open his mouth; think about that... in this crucial time, in a time where people were beating him and coming against him, he kept his mouth shut. Why? How can a man do that? Because he was trusting in the voice of his Father that was leading him through.

    "As we think about his amazing sacrifice" It also says again, “he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth.” In these moments, many would maybe be in this same position and begin to shout out against people; begin to declare that this is wrong, you know, you don't have a right to do this. But Jesus, he simply knew that he had one right, which was to follow the Father.

    This day as we think about his amazing sacrifice and the depths of his love and how he loves his father so much and how he loved us so much that he would give his life... that he would not go by the rights of this world or by the rights that he felt that he had, but simply go by the will of God. As we reflect on these things, may we too, come in thanksgiving. Thanking the Father, for his Son. Thanking God for his great sacrifice, but also beginning to say, ‘Lord, let me also reflect this love in obedience, in great faith in the Father, just as our Savior, just as the Lord Jesus has done’.

    "Even though it may be a difficult time, even though there may be obstacles that we seemingly face, may we trust in the Lord Jesus." May we, too, rise in the spirit of Jesus to bring glory to God. May the only thing that we begin to speak is glory. May the only thing that we begin to utter, be things of faith. May every action be wrapped in trust and in faith to God as we walk the road that He has called us to walk. Even though it may be a difficult time, even though there may be obstacles that we seemingly face, may we trust in the Lord Jesus. Even in times of joy when the road seems to be marked with joy and victory, may we also be praising God and all together say, ‘Father, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven’ as we follow our Great Savior the Lord Jesus Christ. Thank you Lord for your sacrifice. Thank you for what you've done. May it also reflect in our lives this day.

    The post Remember His Sacrifice- EP64 appeared first on United Faith Church.

    4 min
  • God Inhabits the Praises of His People – EP63
    Psalm 22:3
    "But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel."Welcome to the One Thing Podcast, we know that this is a special week this week as many of us are preparing for Thanksgiving. And Thanksgiving we know is a time of enjoying food together with family for some people is traveling for some people are looking forward to the shopping but we today want to be reminded of one of the greatest things that a Christian can do.
    The greatest thing which is to thank God, to be thankful in our hearts not just for one day but to literally live a life of thankfulness. But we can reflect on this this week.  We can really think about all the wonderful things that God has done and know what's so incredible is that for the Christian we yes we thank God for the great things that He does.   We thank Him for you know when things are going well but even more powerful is the Christian who even in the best of circumstance even some of the worst situations that we can still look up and give God glory and praise and thank Him even for the bad things that may occur in life.
    "A big part of praise is giving thanks to God."This is powerful, this is powerful because God looks at one who appreciates who he is and what he does regardless of what's happening in their lives.   And so on that note I'd like to share a scripture today, It's Psalms 22 verse 3 and I really like the King James version of this which says but thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel.  And it's really simply saying that God inhabits the praises of his people and a big part of praise is giving thanks to God.
    "God is found in a place of thankfulness."Think about that, you know God is found in a place of thankfulness when we are... maybe a car accident just happened and our car is ruined and maybe the car is not starting today.  Maybe we don't know what to do it all the bills maybe we just seem to have a flustering of mind and and the darkness seems to be in our faces.  You know we can seek for the presence of God, and one of the best entrances the greatest way that God has provided is that we would begin to thank Him.   That we would begin to worship him and we know that this Scripture says that he inhabits, that he dwells.  In other words he makes his presence known in a place of thankfulness.
    "We live in a culture that forgets what God has done."Father just thinking you regardless of what's happening your God and I just think you that you called me by name.   Father yes all is well right now but God I also just want to thank you for your great mercy and your great compassion.   And it's in these moments and it's with such a heart that God can pour out his presence in our lives.   We live in a culture that you know forgets so many times you know what God is done and it easily goes from one thing to the other without stopping to think about how fortunate we are to maybe have food on the table that we can open the refrigerator in and enjoy you know something to drink as we please or something to eat as we as we want.
    And these small things which are really great things you know are easily overlooked because we live in a culture that just goes on from one things to the next.  It's nonstop, you know get the new shoes get the new phone you know you don't have enough.  But for us we are stopped today and to thank God I just want to thank you for everything that I have.  I want to thank you and begin walking in thankfulness as never before because following your presence is everything and you inhabit the praises of your people.
    You come along those who are thankful and grateful you pour out your glory your presence so that the world would know that you are God.  So that we ourselves would carry your presence wherever we go because we know that you are with us as we were walking in thankfulness and in gratefulness.
    So may we be thinking all this week as we're preparing for Thanksgiving is for cooking as ...
    5 min
  • We Shall Lack Nothing – EP62
    Psalm 34:9-10
    "Fear the Lord, you his holy people, for those who fear him lack nothing. The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing." "To fear God means this, that we worship Him with more than just song, but with our lives."
    Hello and welcome back to the One Thing Podcast! Today I'd like to share with you Psalm 34 verses 9 through 10 it says, “fear the Lord, you his holy people, for those who fear him lack nothing. The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.” God is instructing us, He says, “my holy people” you his holy people, fear the Lord. The fear of the Lord, we know, is the beginning of wisdom. It's the beginning of understanding God and knowing Him. To fear God means this, that we worship Him with more than just song, but with our lives. It's where we revere God as the God who spoke from the very beginning. He said, “let there be light” and there was light in all of the universe! He is God who gives and takes away. He is God, who is able to sustain us by the very word and by the very Spirit that comes from what only He can provide, and that is the Lord Jesus Christ.
    "You see, when we fear God we are taken care of, we find that we are satisfied in Him.
    We are thankful today, for those who fear the Lord, there is such a reward for those who fear Him, lack nothing! How is that possible? You see, when we fear God we are taken care of, we find that we are satisfied in Him. What a man or woman is truly satisfied in the Lord, they lack nothing. They may not have $1,000,000, they may not be totally poor, but wherever or whatever circumstance or situation they have or where they are in life, they lack nothing because they do not lack the presence of God, they do not lack the Lord Jesus. It says “the lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.”
    "Let a Spirit of the fear of the Lord enter my heart so that I shall not lack any good thing." What is that good thing? The good thing is God himself! For those who fear Him, who choose to fear God, rather than to fear man or to fear the world or anything else that Satan tries to throw into our life when we fear God above all, “we shall not lack any good thing.” We shall not lack the presence of God, we shall not lack His blessing, we shall not lack His glory that brings us into this life that carries us through to do his work. That empowers us in order to bring glory to His kingdom, we shall not lack any good thing! “Fear of the Lord, you his holy people, for those who fear Him lack nothing.” Will you fear the Lord today? Will we call out to the Lord and pray, Father, let a Spirit of the fear of the Lord enter my heart so that I shall not lack any good thing. I shall lack nothing, but carry your presence in your glory and bring others into your kingdom. Thank you God, that you have called us for such a glorious time, and to fear your mighty name.!
    4 min

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