Hello Brothers and Sisters in Christ! Thank you for the wonderful Homecoming service God so graciously blessed us to celebrate on October 15th. I am convinced that some of the very best, salt of the earth people attend and worship the Lord at Four South Zetterower Avenue. This place is a "Grace Place" if there is one anywhere on earth. The local church is one of the rest areas along the highway of life where we can truly sit together in Heavenly Places.

And hath raised us up together and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus. Ephesians 26

God's fingerprints are everywhere this time of year! It's a good thing we have a special day set apart and named Thanksgiving in November. With the colors of fall, the harvest season, and the gatherings of family and friends, it's easy to recognize and rejoice in God's grace with gratitude.

There is a beautiful hymn we sometimes sing entitled, "Take Time to Be Holy". Now is the time we ought to tune our hearts with a humble humming entitled, "Take Time to Be Thankful". Some years Thanksgiving gets covered up with Christmas. It's not that Christmas is not a great time, it's just that we ought to take time to be thankful that Christmas is coming.

Thanksgiving is usually the time we eat too much. This year let's make it the time we don't do too much. Taking the time to be thankful happens not by hopping from one point to another or by trying to be at more than one place at the same time:  but getting still and staying close to God. Actually, we'll most likely get a lot more done when we have a thankful heart and attitude, this moves us to be more effective in whatever we are involved in. A thankful heart is a merry heart. It's much better to be grateful than to be grouchy. A thankful person will wear a smile you can see for a mile, but a grumpy grinch can hardly grin an inch.

Turkey and dressing and all the trimmings will strengthen our bodies though not without additional points but being thankful will nourish our souls and may even cause our plate to run over.

Thou prepares a table before me in the presence of mine enemies. Thou anoints my head with oil my cup runneth over. Psalms 23:5

Now our God is faithful and blesses us whether we thank Him or not. Just like a Thanksgiving dinner has a wonderful aroma but doesn't do you much good until you partake of the food, even so being thankful won't help us much if we don't take the time to sit at Jesus' feet and be thankful for each and every one of His perfect purifying words.

In the day when I cried thou answeredst me, And strengthenedst me with strength in my soul. Psalm 138:3

The two virtues that every Christian must ask God for is the Holy Spirit and strength. When God gives us His Holy Spirit, we are strengthened. Strength is defined,  spiritual strength that is, as "resident power". The indwelling Holy Spirit is a renewable spiritual resource which God provides His people so that they may follow Him, exercise faith in Him and have a way to witness for Him every day. When Moses blessed the Israelites, he was inspired by God to say to the tribe of Asher, "...and as thy days, so shall thy strength be." (Deuteronomy 33:25). Today, God is still telling us we'll have strength to do what He wants us to do and to live as long as He wants us to live on earth.

But my God shall supply all your needs according to His riches in Glory by Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:19

God provides strength for us today much like he provided manna for the children of Israel while they wandered in the wilderness of Zin. the manna came from above. It was not made by man but was Divine. So is our spiritual strength. Also, the manna wasn't given out all at once but only in daily doses. Likewise, God provides His strength to us meted in just the right increments to meet the circumstances He sends our way. We'll only find strength we need to live one day at a time, to take one step at a time, and to breathe one breath at a time.

Strength and grace must be close kin because both are blessings from God showing His mercy toward us. Both are vitally needed to live for Him who died for us, and both are most sufficient for whatever we're going through or having to do. The problem we face, and life's patient pace show up most prominently when we're trying to follow Jesus. We can only face the reality of life when we fight the good fight of faith, and keep on keeping on the right course as we're strengthened by God's grace.

It took a thorn in the flesh, a tough trial in his life for the Apostle Paul to appreciate grace and find strengthening  help from God in his time of great need.

What we really need to do when we're facing tough times and terrible trials is not to pray to God to take them away, rather we should pray for God to give us strength to be faithful to Him through it all. Here we notice another parallel with spiritual strength and manna:  The Israelites had to go get the manna for themselves, nobody brought it to them. We ought to know by now that if faith without works is dead, strength without effort  is ineffective and will be defective. Great is the mystery of godliness is true item what happens nor whyn every aspect of God's saving Grace most especially when it comes to strength. God is good at commanding us to do things that are utterly impossible to do, at least in our ow strength. Have you ever tried not to sin, even if just for one day? How about loving the Lord with all your heart for just one hour? Can you feel peace in your heart when your whole world is unglued? Do you worry when what you want is not working out when you know it is right? All the above require strength from above to please God and enjoy the peace of His felt presence no matter what happens nor why it's happening.

These times we're going through should cause us to remember whose we are and why we are His. We are God's purchased by the precious blood of His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. And this God of whose we are forever, is a covenant God, who keeps His promises and directs us to predestined destination. Even though the trip is not always smooth, we can be sure of a safe arrival!

God gives us Starting Strength

When it comes to spiritual strength it all starts with God. A dead person cannot start anything and that's exactly the condition of our spiritual souls until God quickens us and gives us a start. Our lives are like dead batteries until the Lord jump starts us with His powerful Holy Spirit. We can praise God for His starting strength because what God starts, He most assuredly finishes.

Being confident of this very thing that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ. Philippians 16

Sometimes in the morning when I get up, it's hard to get started. But once I get to moving, I feel better, walk easier, think clearer, and get stronger. Often, the tasks we face are hard to deal with. We'd rather be doing something else or do nothing at all, but once we hunker down and dig into our duty, the work becomes easier, the burdens lighter, and life seems fulfilling. There is an old proverb which says that "a journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step. A child's first step is anxiously anticipated, but once it is taken, it's not long before he or she leaves tracks everywhere. The hardest time to go to church is the first time, but once you start, you'll miss it when you don't go.

If God is prompting you to start something good, it is for His glory, and you ought to go ahead and do it. Whether it's a visit, a prayer meeting, a bible study, a godly marriage, a holier workplace, or a happy family, if God is in it, you can do it for He will strengthen you.

That he would grant you according to the riches of His glory to be strengthened with might by His spirit in the inner man. Ephesians 3:16

God Gives Us Struggling Strength

When I was very young, I ordered an incubator and six chicken eggs through an ad in a progressive farmer magazine. The order was C.O.D. and my mama didn't know about it until it arrived. I was so excited with my project; I turned the eggs as instructed and made sure the temperature was right. Finally, three chicks appeared one morning, and what a joy to experience the miracle of birth. But I couldn't understand why the other three eggs had not hatched yet. So, I thought I would help the little chicks get out of their crusty shells by cracking them open myself. The chicks were alive but did not thrive. Two of them died and the other remained weak and was smaller than his siblings. I found out later that the chicks needed to peck their own way out of those shells because the inner shell contained an enzyme which gives them strength, sort of like colostrum of the first milk from the mother does for a baby calf. The chicks I thought I was helping; I was actually hurting for they needed the struggle to get their strength.

The struggles you and I must deal with are from God and hey all have some purpose -- to strengthen us. A tree exposed to the greatest winds will have the strongest roots. Those who suffer the most are capable of yielding the most, and it is through our pain that God is getting the most out of us, for His Glory, and the blessing of others. If we are struggling, we are right where God wants us to be. Prosperity weakens us and causes us to forget God. A child of God will grow weak without work but will fatten on the bumps and bruises of life's issues.

Fear thou not; for I am with thee:  be not dismayed; for I am thy God:  I will strengthen thee: yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness. Isaiah 41:10

We will never know just how good and merciful and powerful our God is until we struggle. And when we survey our days gone by and realize how far we've come and while we're not what we want to be, but know we're not what we used to be, we'll know that God has done it all and He is truly the wind beneath our wings. Which blesses us to soar above the obstacles of the sinful world!

God Gives Us Staying Strength

The Bible depicts God's people as trees of righteousness. A tree is a plant which stays in its place. The roots grow because they are not misplaced and as they grow, they pick up nutrients and water which results in growth, stability, and fruit. We need God's staying strength to be settled in our purpose in this life and to be content with what God provides for us. Lost of time, it takes more strength to stay than it does to go. To stay married, or single, to stay in church, to stay honest, and to stay the course for the cause of Christ takes more than mere human strength.

But they that wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. Isaiah 40:31

A welder once told me that the part of the metal that was broken but welded properly would be the strongest part of the metal. If God's grace allows circumstances or sin to break our hearts, even if we are confused and convicted, He will weld us with Hi wholesome forgiveness although the fires which fuel our faith burn out the weakness or doubtful dross, and that very brokenness or our life will be the strongest part of us. May we never be ashamed of our failures nor have too many pity parties over our regrets. Stay near to the heart of God; stay turned with progress; stay thankful; and stay true to God and yourself.

Yes, strength is a key to the Kingdom of God here on earth. If we happen to lose this key, He will provide another. For He has given us all a copy to open the master lock, His name is Jesus!

Brother Randy Waters