Take our survey

SHARE a Christmas Story…

For those willing, I wanted to open up the forum to share a Christmas Story from your family or loved ones… Maybe share a tradition, or a memory from childhood. Perhaps a favorite God moment from those family gatherings…

 One of the most special memories I have from this Christmas  is that my 78 year old grandfather is around for us to enjoy his company, and of course preside over the family prayer.  Earlier this year he had a massive blood clot in his brain, and had brain surgery, in which the doctors did not expect him to live.  But GOD!!  Below is a picture of my Papaw, Billy F. Williams.  He is a Mighty man of God, who has faithfully served Christ and lived out his faith through his walk for over 65 years! 

He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Romans 8:32

Thank you Lord for giving us another Christmas with him and Mamaw!

 

Papaw Williams

Mamaw & Papaw Williams

 PLEASE CLICK HERE TO SHARE ONE OF YOUR CHRISTMAS STORIES OR MEMORIES!

 

-Jason  (God’s Presence is His Greatest Present to us)

The 4th of July is a picture of the freedom we have in Christ!

I love the 4th of July! I guess it’s just the patriot in me and the thoughts of so many who have given their lives for our country’s freedoms over the many years. What a privilege to live in a free country!

Even more so, as a Christian, I really celebrate my freedom…in Christ! He alone gave His life on the cross to make the payment for my sins. Amen and Hallelujah!

Not only that, yet because of Him, I realize that I am now free from the power of sin! That does not mean that it is impossible for me to ever sin again in this life (my wife and I both wish that were the case!), but that it is now possible for me to say “no” to my fleshly desires for sin and to say “yes” to the leading of the Holy Spirit.

Romans 6:16 says it this way: “Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness?”

The question posed above is that if you ”present yourselves” to sin, then as a Christian, you can still become enslaved to sin’s power. However, as a Christian and by the power of the Holy Spirit, you now have the ability to say “no” to sin and to “present yourselves” to obedience to Christ which is doing what is right (righteous).

What an awesome power we possess in the indwelling of the Holy Spirit! To think that God lives in us to enable us to do what is right and to say no to “sin” means that we cannot ever say that we are “powerless” over sin. Those who have been addicted to drugs and alcohol cannot say that they are “powerless” over sin either because it would contradict the Word of God. Philippians 2:13 states: “for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.”

If you are a Christian, then God works in you to want and to do His good and holy will. Sin has no more power over you UNLESS you allow it to have power over us. Say “yes” to the Holy Spirit today!

-Mark (celebrating the freedom from the power of sin in my life due to the sacrifice of Christ)

(all verses taken from The Holy Bible : English standard version. 2001 (electronic ed.) . Good News Publishers: Wheaton)

Authority

The Bible teaches us that God’s authority over us is GOOD. But Satan attempts to deceive us by saying that God’s authority is not good and cannot be trusted (see Gen. 3:1, 4-5). In addition, it is in the heart of unsaved men to automatically disobey God and live independently of God. We are all rebels at heart until God saves us, indwells us, and begins to reign in us.

Romans 13:1-5 makes it clear that we are to submit to our human authorities as unto the Lord Himself. All of us recognize that our human authorities (including pastors, policemen, mayors, Presidents, parents, teachers, husbands, etc.) are flawed YET we are really trusting God with our submission to them. God will take care of them as He is their ultimate authority. We are called to do our part to honor God by honoring those persons He has placed in authority above us.

Think about it – if God is good and loves us, then won’t He have our best in mind? I want God’s best for my life and the authorities He has placed above me are for my own good…even the harsh ones. I Peter 2:18 tells servants: “Servants, be subject to your masters with all respect, not only to the good and gentle but also to the unjust.”** That is a tough verse to obey but we obey it out of our faith and trust in Christ. God means that difficult situation for our own good and to teach us to become like Christ. God is molding our character to be like His character! Jesus submitted to the rulers of His day (i.e. give to Ceasar what is Caesar’s) and we are to do likewise.

At Truth in Love, I am so thankful to have a group of godly men serving on our Board to direct this ministry! I submit to their leadership and authority and am grateful that they are just servants of the Most High God!

-Mark (learning to daily submit to the God-given authorities over me AND seeing them as GOOD) 

 

** – The Holy Bible : English standard version. 2001 (electronic ed.) Good News Publishers: Wheaton.

Learning to “Wait on the Lord”

Have you ever been in a situation that forced you to wait?  No, redlights and department store lines don’t count! I remember waiting to receive my acceptance letter from College.  Maybe you have had loved ones in surgery and had to wait with other family members in hopes of success.  I’m sure each of you can bring to rememberance many areas and times in life where you were stuck waiting.  Were we really stuck? 

Many times in life I find myself pursuing my own way, sometimes foolishly forgetting to consult God before I make a decision.  Historically speaking this ALWAYS ends up being one more lesson session from my Loving God.

Below is an article that I recently read from Dr. Charles Stanley that shares many valuable benefits from learning to wait on the Lord.  I would love to get some feedback on what God has taught you in the waiting periods of your life. 

Why Wait?

Waiting on the Lord does not mean doing nothing. Oftentimes, a period of waiting means spending time actively seeking God’s will in prayer.

We wait where we are, doing what God says to do, until He intervenes or tells us to do something different. For instance, we usually shouldn’t quit our jobs before God leads us to new ones.

What are the Benefits of Waiting?

1. We discover God’s purpose for us.

Read Lamentations 3:25 and Romans 8:28. In what area of your life are you having difficulty trusting that God has good things for you?

Write a brief prayer, asking God to increase your faith to trust that He has something good for you in that difficult area.

God is not stringing us along to tantalize us. He is not saying, like earthly parents, “Well, we’ll see.” He promises to provide what we need, when we really need it.

2. We receive supernatural physical energy. (Isaiah 40:29-31)

Actively waiting on God energizes us. When we wait on Him, He supplies us with supernatural physical strength.

When the Lord finally delivered David from the hands of his enemies, including Saul, David attributed his strength to the Lord, “For You have girded me with strength for battle; You have subdued under me those who rose up against me” (2 Samuel 22:40).

Describe a situation in which you were able to rely on the supernatural strength of the Lord for either physical or emotional energy. (If you haven’t experienced this, you may want to write a prayer asking God to show you how to depend on His energy.)

3. We win battles.

In Biblical times, manpower and horsepower usually determined the odds of success, humanly speaking. However, God’s criteria for success are different. Read Psalm 147: 10-11.

What natural talents or strengths do you tend to depend on instead of the Lord?

Why do you think waiting on God empowers us for victory?

4. We receive answers to our prayers.

Psalm 40:1 says, “I waited patiently for the Lord; and He inclined to me, and heard my cry.” Many times, God requires us to go through a season of waiting before He answers our prayers for provision, guidance, or healing. If we are unwilling to wait on God, we fall into sin—trying to meet our needs ourselves—or simply miss His timing. Either way, we won’t experience His best for our lives.

Think of a time when you became weary of waiting on God’s direction or His provision for your need. Did you wait patiently on Him, or did you rush ahead without His guidance or blessing? What was the outcome of your action?

5. We see the fulfillment of our faith. What do Isaiah 49:23 and Isaiah 64:4 promise to those who wait on God?

When others encourage us to forge ahead instead of waiting on God, we should remember that He will not let us down.

God Uses Waiting

While we wait, God may change circumstances, get us in step with Him, and prepare us for His answers. Think of a situation in which you had to wait on the fulfillment of a dream or desire and describe how God used the time you waited.

Waiting is not wasted time. No matter why we are waiting on the Lord, God will use the long pauses in our lives if we let Him. He is the God who “acts for the one who waits for Him” (Isaiah 64:4).

Prayer

Father, thank You for having a purpose and a plan for every season of my life. Help me wait patiently on Your best in every area of my life. Increase my trust that You will do something wonderful in my life if I submit to Your timing. In Jesus’ name, amen.

-Adapted from Charles Stanley’s Handbook for Christian Living. pp. 333-335. 1996.

Killing Pride

Romans 8:13 states: “For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.” - The Holy Bible : English standard version. 2001 (electronic ed.) . Good News Publishers: Wheaton.

Pride influences all of the “deeds of the body” and must be put to death! I often say, “Either you humble yourself or the Lord will humble you!” The Lord humbled Pharaoh, Nebuchadnezzar, the prophets of Baal,  Diotrephes, and the Pharisees. I don’t know about you, but I don’t want God to humble me like He did those people! God loves us enough to humble us in a loving, convicting way.

In this brief blog, the best, quick advice I can give you is to do good deeds and spiritual disciplines in secret without others seeing your good works! According to Matthew 6, pray, fast, give money, help others, and read your Bible privately without seeking the praise of mankind. These spiritual disciplines are to be done in secret, not announced to the whole world with a trumpet and a parade! These are things the Christian ought to do willingly. The only Person a Christian must receive approval from is the Lord.

After we put-off pride, we are to put-on humility which is strength under control. An explosive, angry man is not humble. In fact, with anyone who struggles with anger, you will find a prideful heart directing those moments of explosive outbursts. In time, an angry person can become more Spirit-controlled and humble. There is hope for change and the Bible is explicit in how to change!

We are so honored to have the privilege to see people change over a period of time through biblical counseling!

Prov. 14:29: “Whoever is slow to anger has great understanding, but he who has a hasty temper exalts folly.” – The Holy Bible : English standard version. 2001 (electronic ed.) Good News Publishers: Wheaton.

-Mark (trying to put-off pride and put-on humility moment by moment by God’s grace!) 

Speaking the truth in love!

Jason and I were able to speak to a men’s group at a local church in the area to share with them the transforming power of the Lord Jesus Christ Who changes hearts! We were so blessed by going and pray that the message will be fruitful in the lives of the hearers. We got a great response from many of the men afterward!

Rom. 12:2: “And do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.”

-Mark Shaw (obeying the Lord’s commandments only by the empowerment of the Holy Spirit)