JUST PRAY, STOP PICKING AND CHOOSING

John 3:16-18 MSG “This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life. God didn’t go to all the trouble of sending his Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He came to help, to put the world right again. Anyone who trusts in him is acquitted; anyone who refuses to trust him has long since been under the death sentence without knowing it. And why? Because of that person’s failure to believe in the one-of-a-kind Son of God when introduced to him."

This has been on my heart for the past how long to pray for celebrities. I think we as everyday people forget that the people behind the celebrity are just people like us who go through things like we do. 

Matthew 7:3-5 KJV "And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye? Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye."

Lately before I put my mouth on what's going on in someone else's house I tell my self, "Get your house in order." I go back to this quote my Dad would use often, "Don't throw rocks from a glass house." The same grace we thank God for everyday, don't they deserve the same grace? I've learned that who ever God puts on my mind to pray for, I stop what I'm doing and pray. Sometimes yes, it is celebrities. As I scroll through my timeline, I see people as for prayer all the time. I also see celebs ask for prayer. So I shouldn't pray for them because they do entertainment? Their bad choices get publicized while some of ours that we don't post about stay private. God sees them all anyway. The sin is already judged right? Jesus didn't come to condemn so what gives me the right? What gives you the right? 

I've been talking about mental health for the past year and a half. I read a story about a guy that checked himself into rehab for a addiction and now he and his wife are divorcing. As a guy that's working through my mental health on a daily, it makes sense for me to send up a prayer for that celeb during this time of trouble. A lot of us have dealt with a lot of death in the last couple of years. I know personally it's gotten closer to home. The same way those losses hurt us, is it safe to say it hurts the celebs as well? I'm not saying condone what some of them do, but ask yourself would God condone all you do? First cast the beam out of your eye.

We're so quick to look at someone and say, "they're too far gone." To who? Were you too far gone? Why is it that when we get delivered, we choose to look down on those who still need it? Remember when you would come to church and people looked at you the same way? Some of the Jesus loving people looked down on you because of your bad choices. Remember how that felt? So why pass that to others? The saying goes, "You can draw more flies with honey than with vinegar." The same honey that drew you will draw others if you use it. 

Remember May is Mental Health Awareness month. Keep praying for those who are working through it on a daily. I'm currently working on something. Not going to say what it is, but keep praying for me, ok? That's all I got for this piece. I thank you for reading. If you feel led, can you please share, retweet, and all that?

Stay saved,

Daniel Richerson

DO YOU STILL BELIEVE?

 Isaiah 64:4 "For since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen, O God, beside thee, what he hath prepared for him that waiteth for him."

1 Corinthians 2:9 "But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him." 

Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end." 

The bible is still right. I know the phrase, "Holiness is still right" is the big cliche in the Pentecostal church. While I agree that Holiness is still right, but I question what are we really talking about. Are we talking about Holiness or are we talking about tradition? Are you talking about holiness or are we talking about style? 

Hebrews 12:14 "Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord."

Romans 14:19 "Let us therefore follow after the things which make for peace, and things where with one may edify another."

How can you say Holiness is right when we can't even get along with each other sometimes? Holiness is right while at the same time what we say on Social Media...it's not adding up. 

1 John 4:20-21 "If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen. And this commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love his brother also." 

How can we say holiness is still right while at the same time hate a person based on the lifestyle they live that may be different than how we live? So again, I ask, what is holiness? Again I say, the bible is still right. We're in the 4th quarter of 2020. The Bible is still right. Covid-19 doesn't seem to be going away, but the Bible is still right. Those verses I quoted at the beginning still hold up. I still believe eyes haven't seen the great things in store. I still believe God's promises are still yea and amen. I still believe His yoke is easy and His burden is light. I still believe 2 Chronicles 7:14. "If my people..." I still believe  in "they that wait..." 

The old song asks a question, "Whose report will you believe?" The response is, "We shall believe the report of the Lord." Do you still believe that God has the final say? I watched an interview with Dave Chappelle and Dave Letterman on Netflix. Chappelle, who is a Muslim, said, "I believe that God is in control, no matter what I worry about." I was going to write a post about are you walking about faith or by sight? It is written, "For we walk by faith, not by sight." I know, but the question still remains, are you walking by faith or by sight? Is what you're seeing affecting your relationship with your Faith?

Romans 10:9 "...that if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart the God hath raise him from the dead, thou shalt be saved."

Stay Saved,

Daniel Richerson

LET THE WORD WORK AS IT IS

"We no longer have to perform for God" ~Kirk Franklin

I was thinking of posting what I spoke on Sunday. And then I began thinking about ones that try to spice up the Word of God like it's an unseasoned raw piece of meat. The Bible is already good enough as it is. No need to put your opinion on it. The Word is alive by itself. Donald Lawrence had a song that said, "Let the work do the work." Part of the problem of why we see no growth in church is because, I believe, the Gospel is not being preached. Opinions are being preached. Your opinions are not going to get people saved. Your opinions are not going to get people delivered. Your opinions are not going to catch the fish you want to catch. Opinions fail. But the Word (Bible) will never fail. Opinions die when you die, but the Bible is what will stand forever. No matter what man says.

We live in a world now that is doing what is against the Bible, but we as a people have to be unashamed of the Gospel. Romans 1:16, "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek." Opinions are what you sometimes end up being ashamed of. Opinions have power. But you really want to really on the power of human opinion? That's called politics, and I'm know I'm not the only one that believes that we don't need any more politicking in the church.

We don't need to try to impress God with our fanciness. It's timeout to just dance and praise in church, then as soon as you leave the "church ground" you get mad of every little thing. It's timeout just showing the love of Christ in the four walls, but outside the four walls you show the false love of the Devil. Now is a time more than any to be real with God. To be real with your spiritual life. Now is a time to start applying church and stop just going to church. Now is a time to start living church.

Somebody is always watching. I'm not talking about God cause God sees all and knows all. I mean non believers and young believers. Keep that in mind the next time you let your temper get the best of you.

Stay Saved,

Daniel Richerson

*UPDATE 8/10/14*
Hebrews 4:12 "For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart." let the word do the work