Strong Coffee

Mark 6:48...and would have passed by them. How many times have we passed Him by? Now we see where He would have passed them by, but...they cried out to Him. He saw them, straining...wrestling. The wind and waves were against them, but to Him they bow.  He is Lord of all that is against us, and is touched with the feelings of our infirmities for He knows what is against us Do you know it? That's why He always comes to us. He came to me; He came to me When I could not come to where He was He came to me That’s why He died on Calvary When I could not come to where He was He came to me. He is an ever present help in time of trouble. They called unto Him. Have you called out to Him? Is He not as close as the mere mention of His name? The word is nigh thee...Lord save me. To call...is to draw Him close. Soon, the wind and waves that once buffeted us...we walk upon. Keeping our eyes fixed on Him. The Lord is deaf to the cry of the wicked...

1 Peter 5: 10 And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. 11 To him be the power for ever and ever. Amen. When I consider suffering in our present world; all kinds of suffering; from sickness, satanic attacks on our families, to persecution, and financial distress, I think of all that Peter and the early church had to endure. From the pages of scripture we can feel their pain and sorrow as they fully embraced a new life in Christ yet encountered the extremely hostile world around them. On one hand, the lost were streaming into the church seeking salvation. On the other, marauders were looking for followers of "the way" to heap upon them mountains of cruelty and hate. This scripture passage, among others, gave great comfort to those suffering just as it does now. Peter even said ... "consider it pure joy when you experience trials...

Lurking around in the dark recess of my mind has been this little gnome like voice whispering that my future in clinical pastoring counseling is limited. In a soulful confession, when sainted servants face the fiery trial of their own sin and frailty, although eventual recipients of great grace and forgiveness, they encounter a new thorn...worthiness & worthlessness. It kind of depends upon the day. Soon, my residency will come to an end. I will apply later this spring for the second year. After my residency, my desire is to remain in medicine. Working closely with medical teams and patients in acute and long term care has been very fruitful. God has worked in unspeakable ways to bring glory to his name. The work is unique. Through the partnership with several Christian physicians, most importantly, Dr. Dunn, we have stretched the usual role of chaplaincy into a a broad spiritual mission: to find those who are hungry and thirsty for the bread of lif...

"You can accomplish more in one hour with God than an entire lifetime without him." It looks like Alora is showing us that we all could use a little prayer before we take on a task at hand. Even our Lord escaped the pressures of the day and found a quiet place of solitude. Mark 1:35 And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he went out, and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed . You have to admit that Jesus set the bar very high when it comes to prayer. After all, He longed for His Father and it is evident by the things He did and said. He felt a stranger in this world as we often do. Prayer gave Him a oneness with God that He desperately needed... to accomplish His task at hand. You may not be an early riser and that's okay. God is not expecting you to save the world either. But, God does have a deep longing for you as His child and you should have one for Him. There are days that we need to escape and lean on His breast; other days we...

2 Peter 3: 3 Above all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. 4 They will say, "Where is this 'coming' he promised? Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation." 5 But they deliberately forget that long ago by God's word the heavens came into being and the earth was formed out of water and by water. 6 By these waters also the world of that time was deluged and destroyed. 7 By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly. In my research on the subject of eschatology (study of the end times) I have discovered this alarming fact; very few have any opinion. There are basically three camps. The first is a new testament camp; consisting of those who believe the bible and it's prophecies. Second is the atheist view or the new normal camp. Atheism is o...

2 Thessalonians 2:1-4 Concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered to him, we ask you, brothers and sisters, 2 not to become easily unsettled or alarmed by the teaching allegedly from us—whether by a prophecy or by word of mouth or by letter —asserting that the day of the Lord has already come. 3 Don’t let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day will not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction. 4 He will oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called God or is worshiped, so that he sets himself up in God’s temple, proclaiming himself to be God. I'm grateful that nearly two thousand years ago the writers of the New Testament were consumed with passion on the Second Coming of Christ. The Holy Spirit moved them to write about the Lords return and it was their presumption that the event was just around the corner. Anticipation for the Lords return undoubte...

Matthew 24:12 Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold... Their is nothing attractive about this verse. It describes an environment that is desperate, dark, and dangerous for all mankind. The bible refers to this period as "The Last Days" A period on earth surrounding the second coming of Jesus Christ. The time is upon us, more than ever before, for the teaching of the last days to be proclaimed in all the world. Jesus calls this the season of His second coming . When Christ first came to earth He came as the Lamb of God. When He comes the second time He will appear as the Lion of Judah. The return of Christ will be preceded by signs or indicators. One of these signs will be the overwhelming rise of sinfulness and lawlessness. This epidemic will be so influential that even good, moral, and decent people will succumb to its power. Christians will falter and yield to Satan like puppets. News of our nations civic and religious lea...