Many weeks ago I felt the Holy Spirit leading me to do a teaching series this fall on Storms. Little did I know at the time that the launch Saturday of that series (tonight - September 15, 2018) would come at the end of a week when Hurricane Florence has been in the news daily. Like you, I have been praying for all who are in the direct path of this large storm.
Storm stories are throughout Scripture. From Noah to the Apostle Paul, God’s people experience storms. All of us are in one of three categories: we might be facing a storm in the future or are currently in a storm or the storm has passed. No one wants to be in a storm or is exempt from storms. So why do they happen?
That is a question that will be debated for years to come, but, right now, we know two very important truths. First, God is both present in storms and more powerful than storms. And secondly, Godly pain and brokenness in storms are used by God to help not harass you. When these two truths are applied to any and all storms, Godly purpose and clarity will begin to come into focus. God never tells us why He uses storms, but He always grows us in storms.
My prayer and the prayers of others over the last few weeks is that this fall focus on Storms would be used by God to transform thousands of lives. We worship the God who speaks through storms, speaks to storms, and continues to speak after storms have passed. Join us Saturday nights at 6pm beginning tonight at Celebration Church & Outreach Ministry. You can worship with us live at 5501 Midlothian Turnpike or LiveStream via FB or YouTube. Bring yourself and others. Bring those that need to find hope in the midst of a storm. Bring your story of deliverance from a storm.
Feel free to post your comments, questions, and/or insights in response to this blog. Looking forward to seeing what God will do over the next 7 weeks.
Ex nihilo,
R.J. Rhoden
Saturday, September 15, 2018
Friday, August 17, 2018
Learning To Trust Again
Psalm 37:5-6
Commit your way to the Lord; trust in Him and He will do this: He will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn, your vindication like the noonday sun.
In general, people are hesitant to trust. For good reasons, many shrink back when hearing the word “trust” because of past hurts and disappointments. That pain can come from a variety of places: abandonment by a parent; a dishonest church or civic leader; betrayal from a close friend; or, most difficult of all, distrust in oneself. I meet people weekly who are in a major trust crisis.
While distrust among people is understandable and often justifiable, distrust also brings with it an unintended consequence - one that will stifle your ability to grow and mature spiritually. This happens when distrust becomes embedded in your heart preventing you from fully trusting the only One who is worthy of all your trust. In other words, if you have a constant, distrusting attitude towards people, you will likely have a constant, distrusting attitude towards God.
The good news is that broken trust in your past does not need to hijack your future. You can learn to trust again and enjoy all the benefits of placing your life in the Father’s Hands. It will not happen instantly, but it will happen in step with God’s perfect timing. Here are seven practical suggestions:
1. Keep a journal of all the small ways God is faithful to you daily.
2. Put your trust in God not a man/woman of God.
3. Confess your honest feelings of distrust to God asking Him to help you.
4. Choose not to overreact or overthink when walking in confusing seasons.
5. Stop spending energy and effort on people who are not trustworthy.
6. Evaluate your progress semi-annually not daily.
7. Understand that trust is a choice not a reward.
We worship the God who is able to sympathize with the pain of betrayal and broken trust. He has experienced them daily since that fateful day in the Garden. Yet, God does not break His covenant with us. It is not in His nature to do so. He alone is worthy and worth your learning to trust again.
Ex nihilo,
R.J. Rhoden
Thursday, January 11, 2018
Praying In The Mud
The prophet, Jeremiah, found himself in a heap of mud one day. In Jeremiah 38:6, his enemies put him into a deep cistern so that he might die a slow death. God’s Word says, “...They lowered Jeremiah by ropes into the cistern; it had no water in it, only mud, and Jeremiah sank down into the mud.”
We worship the God who is able to use mud as grace. If the cistern had been full of water, Jeremiah would have surely drowned within hours as fatigue set in from treading water. But God provided mud instead - nasty, smelly, dirty mud.
Scripture does not directly tell us that Jeremiah prayed in the mud, but we can infer it. We know he was a man that prayed, heard God’s voice, and regularly prophesied the Word of God. Can you picture him waste deep in mud, legs stuck, lower body unable to move, yet his hands lifted in prayer to the Lord Almighty? I can almost hear him chuckling under his breath, “Thank you, God, for removing the water. I have never been so happy to be in mud!”
Nobody has really prayed until they have prayed in mud. Your mud might be an intense trial, a place of brokenness or grief, regret, lack of hope, deep depression or anxiety, job uncertainty, relational problems, loneliness, faith crisis, or any kind of woundiness. You might be a little stuck, but you can still lift your hands in prayer. There are very few prayers more powerful than muddy ones.
When you cry out to God from the mud, you will discover the God who rescues. In Jeremiah’s case God used a royal official named Ebed-Melech, some old rags, and 30 men to lift him out (vv11-13). We can’t predict how or when God will bring about deliverance, but we can be assured that He does deliver. Maybe your mud is grace not punishment because God is preserving you for rescue? He did it for Jeremiah, and He is able to do it for you.
Ex nihilo,
R.J. Rhoden
We worship the God who is able to use mud as grace. If the cistern had been full of water, Jeremiah would have surely drowned within hours as fatigue set in from treading water. But God provided mud instead - nasty, smelly, dirty mud.
Scripture does not directly tell us that Jeremiah prayed in the mud, but we can infer it. We know he was a man that prayed, heard God’s voice, and regularly prophesied the Word of God. Can you picture him waste deep in mud, legs stuck, lower body unable to move, yet his hands lifted in prayer to the Lord Almighty? I can almost hear him chuckling under his breath, “Thank you, God, for removing the water. I have never been so happy to be in mud!”
Nobody has really prayed until they have prayed in mud. Your mud might be an intense trial, a place of brokenness or grief, regret, lack of hope, deep depression or anxiety, job uncertainty, relational problems, loneliness, faith crisis, or any kind of woundiness. You might be a little stuck, but you can still lift your hands in prayer. There are very few prayers more powerful than muddy ones.
When you cry out to God from the mud, you will discover the God who rescues. In Jeremiah’s case God used a royal official named Ebed-Melech, some old rags, and 30 men to lift him out (vv11-13). We can’t predict how or when God will bring about deliverance, but we can be assured that He does deliver. Maybe your mud is grace not punishment because God is preserving you for rescue? He did it for Jeremiah, and He is able to do it for you.
Ex nihilo,
R.J. Rhoden
Saturday, January 6, 2018
It’s Time To Go Bold
Bold doesn’t mean loud or obnoxious. Some of the boldest people I know have a quiet resolve to them. But bold does mean powerful and full of faith. The early church in Acts 12:5 was “earnestly praying” for Peter who was incarcerated with an imminent sentence of death hanging over his head. And then suddenly he was miraculously delivered against all odds.
An earnestly praying individual or church is not afraid to pray bold prayers for what seems impossible. If you could solve it in your own power than what is the point of praying? Why waste your prayers on anything other than the impossible? You can’t move that mountain but God can. You can’t create favor from a difficult boss but God can. You can’t change the heart of your spouse but God can. You can’t part the Red Sea or shut the lion’s mouth but God can. It’s time to go bold with your prayers like the Acts 12:5 church.
Don’t confuse a bold prayer with a farcical prayer. Bold prayers place all trust and hope in the Lord Almighty and are rooted in the purposes of God’s heart. Farcical prayers are self-serving and rooted in human fantasy that exists far removed from God’s heart. There is nothing farce in a bold prayer, and there is nothing bold in a farcical prayer.
Over the next couple of weeks I want to be inspired to pray and instructed how to pray. I can’t imagine any more important way to begin 2018. It’s time to go bold. It’s time to place the impossible in the Hands of the One “who is above all things.” Join us at Celebration Church & Outreach Ministry on Saturday nights at 6pm and Thursday nights at 7pm. Join us for 21 Days of continual prayer from January 16th at 6am - February 6th at 6am. Join us in person or Fb LiveStream.
It’s Time To Go Bold.
Ex nihilo,
R.J. Rhoden
An earnestly praying individual or church is not afraid to pray bold prayers for what seems impossible. If you could solve it in your own power than what is the point of praying? Why waste your prayers on anything other than the impossible? You can’t move that mountain but God can. You can’t create favor from a difficult boss but God can. You can’t change the heart of your spouse but God can. You can’t part the Red Sea or shut the lion’s mouth but God can. It’s time to go bold with your prayers like the Acts 12:5 church.
Don’t confuse a bold prayer with a farcical prayer. Bold prayers place all trust and hope in the Lord Almighty and are rooted in the purposes of God’s heart. Farcical prayers are self-serving and rooted in human fantasy that exists far removed from God’s heart. There is nothing farce in a bold prayer, and there is nothing bold in a farcical prayer.
Over the next couple of weeks I want to be inspired to pray and instructed how to pray. I can’t imagine any more important way to begin 2018. It’s time to go bold. It’s time to place the impossible in the Hands of the One “who is above all things.” Join us at Celebration Church & Outreach Ministry on Saturday nights at 6pm and Thursday nights at 7pm. Join us for 21 Days of continual prayer from January 16th at 6am - February 6th at 6am. Join us in person or Fb LiveStream.
It’s Time To Go Bold.
Ex nihilo,
R.J. Rhoden
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