BAD HABITS OR BAD WEEDS!

Did you know that the Word of God commands us to "not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts. Romans 6:12;?" It's much like yanking weeds out of your garden. You and I both know that it can be a struggle to stay on top of dandelions, crabgrass and the like. It can be difficult to overcome God's curse in the Garden of Eden. Genesis 3:17-18; And unto Adam He said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake: in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat of the herb of the field;"

When the ground is hard and dry it is nearly impossible to rid that ground of the weeds in it. But when you get a good rain, the ground gets soft and you can pull them out real easy. And did you notice. The newest or youngest weeds are the easiest to pull out in soft ground because they don't have deep roots, whereas the older more mature weeds have deep roots and are more stubborn to pull out.
Bad habits are just like that. The longer they remain in us, the more difficult they are to uproot. If we uproot them early when the heart is tender towards the love of God then we have the best chance for success.
In Romans 5:20-21; we read "Moreover the law entered, that the offence might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound: That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord." These truths can soften the soil of a hard heart. And when we understand that Jesus died to free us from the penalty and power of sin, we will see the need to fight aggressively against sinful habits.
A passive faith will never kill bad habits. In order for these truths to work, an active faith needs to be applied. Yanking weeds out is often painful. It comes with many failures. Weeds grow back unless the root is taken out. But when we root out the weeds, 'the bad habits', success follows and then failure is defeated finally!
Do you need to pull some weeds out today? They say a bad habit is like a soft chair. It is easy to get into but hard to get out of.
Have a great day in the Lord and I look forward to your feedback.
Blessings. Pastor Coutts

LOOK OUT FOR THE BEAR!

Have you ever been to the far north? I mean like NORTH!! Northern Canada, Alaska, above the 60th parallel north! If you have, then you have seen the signs that warn you about the bears that roam wild in the wilderness. If you speak to old timers and the natives who live there and experienced bushmen/women, they will give you some sound advice. (If you go north, you should take this advice). 

1. Do not climb a tree if you run across a bear. Bears climb trees!
2. Don’t run. Bears can run and they are faster than you!
3. If the bear is brown, curl up in a ball on the ground and don’t move, play dead.
4. If the bear is black, jump around wildly and make a whole lot of noise. They are afraid of noise and they will turn tail and run.
5. If the bear is hungry, pray!
6. Never, NEVER, offer food to a bear!
7. Above all, never get between a bear and her cub(s).
In Hosea 13:8; we read this, “I will meet them like a bear deprived of her cubs”. In this verse God described Himself as being as angry with Israel as a mother bear who has been deprived of her cubs. God had done so much to show His love, but His people had wandered away from Him and taken the path of disobedience. So He disciplined them, while He reminded them of His love for them (Hosea 13:4-6; and Hosea 14:1-9;).
It would be wise for us to learn from what happened to Israel. By so doing we can avoid God’s anger and enjoy His love for us today.
1. Love and worship Him above all. Hosea 13:4;
2. Don’t try to hide your sin, confess it. Hosea 14:1-2;
3. Stay on the path of righteousness. Hosea 14:9;
Our God is a jealous God (Exodus 34:14;). He loves us but He will not tolerate disobedience.
Beware of the Bear!

BITE! BITE! BITE! ENOUGH TO DRIVE YOU CRAZY

Psalm 81:13; says, "Oh that my people would listen to me." Listening is an art. It's an art if you pay attention to what is said. I should have listen before I went fishing. I am a Canadian by birth and a Nomad by virtue of the times I have moved. But still, I lived in my native Canada long enough to learn how to fish and love it. Problem is, I should have listened to my elders before I went fishing. They said I needed, bug repellent or a good shotgun. They said, "the mosquitos are so big they come through the trees sideways so they don't clip their wings", and "the flies will sit on your shoulder and take a bite out of you and sit there and eat the piece they have bitten off you while they defy you to hit them". Also they said I should carry a shotgun to shoot them because they are so big. All the advice in the world did not work. I went without all that protection and sure enough, Bite! Bite! Bite! Enough to drive you crazy. Did you know that the bite of a blackfly creates a wound that swells up, gets red and itches like crazy? One or two bites and you scratch a lot but get a whole bunch and it can drive you nuts!

But the bite of a blackfly or a mosquito is nothing compared to what happened when the fourth plague hit Egypt. (Exodus 8:20-24;). As Moses said would happen, the air was thick with a swarm of flies that invaded Pharaoh's palace and every house of his officials and for that matter all over Egypt. But they were not found in the land of Goshen where the Israelites lived.
By this time Pharaoh should have been listening intently to every word that came out of Moses mouth. But even after the flies were gone verse 32; says Pharaoh hardened his heart. By doing this he set himself and his people up for even more serious judgments from God.
Sometimes the Lord uses drastic measures to get our attention. The "swarm of flies" can take on different forms like trouble, failure, guilt, the hurt looks of people we love. Those are the times we especially need to listen to God.
I would suggest today if you have not been in the habit of listening to God, that you try it while it is still quiet. The flies will come again and they will Bite! Bite! Bite! Until it drives you crazy. Hardening the heart can be worse than hardening of the arteries. Are the flies swarming around you? Post your comment. Have a great day.
Pastor Bob.

FEARING THE END OF THE WORLD, I THINK NOT

There is no reason for you to fear the "end of the world" if you are a born-again child of God. You have the promise of living eternally with God on this earth after it has been redeemed and perfected. But if you have never accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you have every reason to fear the future. The signs of the times given in the Bible indicate beyond a shadow of a doubt that Jesus is about to return to take His believers out of this world in preparation for the pouring out of God's wrath during a period of seven years that the Bible refers to as the Tribulation. It will be a time of unparalleled horror on this earth, so terrible, in fact, that one-half of humanity will die during the first three and a half years! God does not wish that any should perish (2 Peter 3:9). That's why He has provided us with signs to watch for that will indicate the season of His Son's return. We are in the midst of that season. We are living on borrowed time. Don't delay. Give your heart to Jesus today (John 3:16 and Romans 10:9-11). I would like to hear from you if you have made a decision to follow Christ by accepting Him as your Savior. What can I do to assist you in learning more. Give me a comment or email me with your request. Pastor Bob 

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DID YOU KNOW?

Did you know...Christ warned that we are facing a time of "GREAT TRIBULATION, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be" (Matthew 24:21)? 

Did you know...Christ promised His true disciples PROTECTION from this terrible time to come? 

Did you know...The prophet Daniel wrote about that same time and possible deliverance from it? LISTEN to what an ANGEL told Daniel: "At that time Michael will arise--the great Prince, defender of your people. That will be a time of great distress, UNPARALLELED since nations first came into existence. When that time comes, your own people will be spared--all those whose names are found written in the Book" (Daniel 12:1, New Jerusalem Bible)." 

Did you know...Satan and his demons will try to utterly destroy the world in an all-encompassing war, but God's loyal angels will fight against them? Learn the real truth about Angels and Demons. 

Did you know...A powerful personage will soon arrive on the world scene? He is described as "the lawless one," whose coming will be "according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs and lying wonders, and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish" (2 Thessalonians 2:9). 

Did you know...Mighty political and religious leaders will operate under Satan's influence, and the deceived world will worship them, being mislead by false signs and wonders (Revelation 13:4, 8, 11-15; 19:19-20)? 

Did you know...Satan and powerful demons will influence the "kings of the earth and of the whole world" to gather them for battle at a place called "Armageddon" (Revelation 16:14)? 


Did you know...God and His angels will need to punish this world so that mankind will cease from worshipping demons (Revelation 9:20)?


Christ is coming, 'In Case You Didn't Know'!

LOVE IS FOR LOSERS, (or is it?)

I have learned that you can learn a lot about a person by some of the T-Shirts they wear. Some are just downright nasty which says much about their attitude, and some are very obscene which speaks to the condition of their spirits. Then there are others who are literally trying to make a statement. Some legitimate, others because of a wound or hurt in their life. Still others want you to know how they feel about life. I saw a person wearing one the other day that said, "Love Is For Losers". Maybe that person thought it was clever or provocative or maybe even funny. But one look at the face and you could feel the hurt from that person and it seemed like they were trying to tell you that they had been jilted or left alone after a relationship went sour. Rather than risk being hurt again, they donned a T-Shirt with their message that screamed , "Leave Me Alone."Is love for losers? The fact is, when we love, we take risks. People could very well hurt us, disappoint us, or even leave us. Love can lead to loss. The Bible, though, challenges us to higher ground in loving others. In the infamous love chapter, 1 Corinthians 13: Paul describes what it means to live out God's kind of love. The person who exercises God's kind of love does not do it for personal benefit or gain but rather... "bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things." 1 Corinthians 13:7;. Why? Because godly love endures beyond life's hurts by pulling us relentlessly toward the never diminishing care of the Father. So, perhaps love is for losers, because it is in times of loss and disappointment that we need God the most. Even in our struggles, we know that "love never fails." Won't you accept His unfailing love today.   Blessings. Pastor Bob