I ran across this prayer quite some time ago and have it on my desk. It is a help to me as I read and meditate upon its words. I would like to share it with you today. 

                                                  A PRAYER FOR TODAY!

This is the beginning of a new day. God has given me this day to use as I will.  I can waste it- or use it for good, but what I do today is important, because I a exchanging a day of my life for it! When tomorrow comes, this day will be gone forever, leaving in its place something that I have traded for it. I want it to be gain, and not loss; good, and not evil; success, and not regret the price I have paid for it.  {Author unknown}

I must tell you each time I read this it shakes me to my soul. What a precious gift we have called life. And what great purposes our Lord has given us for each new day. We dare not abuse our gift of life. We dare not let it slip away without making every moment count for HIS GLORY! May the Lord put within each of us the great passion to make it all count for Him!

For all you Liberty Baptist folk, please don't forget that tonight we begin our "Summer Revival", Pastor Terry Meriweather will be speaking. Please plan to be with us at 7 p.m. and bring a visitor. See you tonight. Also please pray for Don Purvis who was taken to Ft Wayne Lutheran Hospital this morning, and pray for Larry Shipps as he is suffering tremendously. 

 Wandering through life without a Savior, most Americans today lack a genuine sense of purpose or belonging. They don't know why they're here or where they're headed. That is definitely not the case with each of us believing christians. In fact our entire life is shaped by a sense of belonging- we belong to the LORD and to His church. For those of us which call Liberty Baptist our church home we belong to the believers at Liberty Baptist in Sweetser, Indiana, and to the community of the 4 -5 counties surrounding us. As Ephesians 4 makes clear {"And He gave ... pastors and teachers for the perfecting of the saints"}, God has given pastors to the church family and saints to the church family along as given these gifted ones to their local community as gifts. It's not that the pastor is "God's gift to the church," as though he's something wonderful that they're blessed just to be able to know and hear him preach. Rather, that God has given pastors to the church in much the same way that any person would give a gift to another -for the giver's intended purpose and for the recipient's benefit. Now the same is for each saint in the local church. We are ones who have been given the gift of salvation, the gift of the Holy Spirit, the gifts of the Spirit, and now we are placed into the church and the community as gifts given for an intended purpose. If we see our selves as God sees us  it would certainly change our attitudes. We are servant ministers! We should be actively using our gifts of the Spirit along with our natural abilities on a daily basis. This is our " call to walk worthy of." We should constantly use our greatest ability and that is availability. Just to avail ourselves to be willing to do anything that needs to to be done. Doing things like keeping up the church property and fixing backed up toilets. Helping a senior lady change a flat tire or a brother or sister who needs some council or prayer , no matter the time of day or night. Having the right perspective on being a gift to the church is as much an attitude as anything. How does a person feel when everyone leaves and the floor still needs swept? Is it a blessing that folks came to dirty the floor or is it a chore that no one else took care of it? It's what's in the heart that matters. I am one pastor who want's to see myself as God sees me, a minister. I want to have a HEART OF A SERVANT! How about you?

 It is Monday July 27th. We have been gone on vacation the last week and now we are back. I always enjoy getting away for a while but it is so nice to get back home. This morning when we woke up in our own bed I instantly thought how nice it was just to be home. I love this area of America. I love being in a smaller populated area. I love it where the Lord has planted Karen and myself for His ministry for His purpose. There are a lot of wonderful places in America, places we love to visit and enjoy but there is no place like the place the Lord has planned for us to live and work. Yesterday it was good to be back at Liberty Baptist Church in Sweetser, In. I am always amazed at the wonderful spirit of this place. The Lords presence was with us and I sensed a great anointing of the Holy Spirit in each service. Our attendance was just over 600 which is lower than normal but we had many  regular attenders away on vacations themselves. The altars were used each service. We spoke in both morning and evening services on "The Church God Uses." After the morning service we had 11 of our teens and adults leave for a 10 day missions trip to New York City. I have been in very serious prayer since then asking the Lord to keep them safe on the road and that He would use this trip to see souls saved and to move in the hearts of each of these  short term missionaries. My prayer is that each one will come home with a greater burden to win souls and to have more compassion for those who are outside of Christ. Don't forget to plan on being at Liberty this Thursday evening at 7 p.m. for our first Summer revival with special speaker Tony Meriwether. Pray about inviting some visitors and doing all you can to getting someone here who needs to hear the Gospel. This Sunday evening we will begin a new series on the HOLY SPIRIT! All you ever wanted to know about the Holy Spirit will be the theme for several months on Sunday eves, it will be really good . Please pray for Don Purvis he is in Marion General Hospital in CC bed 15. Don is one of our longest attenders at Liberty and he is one of our was one of our most faithful until he lost his health and has been unable to attend. We dare not forget him. Send a card or better yet go to the hospital and visit him. I am sure it would encourage him if you did so. Well I need to go and try to catch up from my time off. Speak with you again in the morning Lord willing. 

 Hey all you bloggers meant to mention I would be away on vacation for 7 days. Karen and I  along with Matt & Megan and Ryan, Beth and Lucy are near Charleston, S.C. on Kiawah Island. We are enjoying the rest and attempting to rest our minds. I have been in God's Word this morning and was studying Isaiah chapter 3. What a chapter to consider. I am also studying on the Holy Spirit in preparation for our new Sunday evening series beginning soon.  I have been in much prayer for the unity, love and vision of our church. I will be back on Saturday and Lord willing will be preaching this Sunday at Liberty . See you then. 

 For whatever it is worth I just want to SOUND OFF for a little bit. You know over the last 3 weeks we have been hearing about a man whose name is Michael Jackson. This man in my opinion had a whole lot of real issues in his life.  If you were to bring his life up against the Bible you would have to say he really fell short of being a role model and a hero. He had a lot of issues for which I am sad about but I know that at any moment of his life if he would have cried out for salvation and help from the Lord he would have found help, hope and power to live in peace. Now for weeks we have heard about his life, we have witnessed his funeral, we have literally had a circus of events reported to us. The only way to escape it was to turn the channel which this preacher has done with great frequency. We have been told he was a one of a kind. That he has been lost to this world. Now for me I am not upset that his influence has been lost. I am Thankful his influence may begin to be less. Now I have nothing but sympathy for he and his family but whenever someone is living a perverted lifestyle that has so much influence whenever that influence becomes less we should rejoice. I think Michael Jackson may have cared about people but his strange philosophy's have never helped this world draw nearer to God and His ways. But here is my point, At the same time all this commotion over this so called hero has taken place another hero has left this world without a mention without it being reported.  Darrel "Shifty" Powers a real American hero passed away on June 17th after fighting cancer. Shifty volunteered for the airborne in WW2 and served with Easy Company of the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, part of the 101st Airborne Infantry. He served from 1941- 1945. His first jump in combat was at Normandy on D-Day. He jumped many other times and fought for freedom. If you have watched the movie "Band Of Brothers" Shifty was one of the soldiers represented in the film. On June 17 there was a lot of other news reporting but not one mention of this REAL HERO. In todays society we seem to make men hero's for things that we really have no right to do so. As for this Christian I think we believers should make sure we understand what a true definition of Hero is.  

Terrific Tuesday to each of you. There is an old Chinese proverb that says: "If you are planting for a year, plant grain. If you are planting for a decade, plant trees. If you are planting for a century, plant people.  "As Christians we are planting for eternity! The ministry today screams at us to preach effect sermons, teach dynamic lessons, run great youth activities, on and on. Parents are working night and day to provide the "best that money can buy" for their children. And although the youth of today are hearing great lessons, participating in fabulous and expensive activities, attending schools with outstanding curriculum, and enjoying the materialism of our age, they are sadly growing up without a mentor a proper example. What we need today in our churches and families are true mentors and models!  Parents , we need to slow down take the time to be transparent, and vulnerable with our children. Time to talk and teach along the way. Don't just teach them right but live for them right. Don't just tell them the way show them the way. Same goes for the pastor , deacon, Bible teacher, sunday school teacher, youth leader. anyone in leadership of a young person or a young believer. Let me encourage each of you to find at least one life, or if you have the ability find a group of people and decide you will invest yourself into there lives. Be their friend, make time for them, offer a Bible study, a prayer time. Avail yourself for giving them advice when they need it. And above all else be a FAITHFUL example of Christlikeness. You will find that when you are helping to mentor others it really puts good pressure on you to be better, to do better. You will find it helps you to be the person you should be. Think about it. Pray about it. And JUST DO IT! 

 Good Monday to each of you bloggers. We had a great weekend of service and services. On Saturday we had our monthly Deacon Fellowship. That is when each of our Pastors and Deacons meet together and pray, get advice, make decisions and seek the Lords leading in our church. Saturdays meeting was a long one. We met for nearly 3 1/2 hours. Then after the deacon meeting Karen & I went visiting families until around 6 p.m. Then we studied until time for bed. On Sunday we had good services. The early morning service was higher in attendance, what a blessing to see all that were their. I thought the second morning service would be considerably lower but it wasn't it was very well attended also. With all the summer vacations being taken with many of our families our attendance seems to be growing. Last eves service was also well attended and the spirit for the day was wonderful. The theme of the messages was "Taking The Gospel To Our World." Last evening we also ended the service by bringing to the altar all the teens and teen leaders for special prayer as they left for camp this morning at 5:00 a.m. They should be somewhere in Kentucky by this time so pray they will get to Ft. Bluff, Tennessee safely and that mighty things will happen in each life. Pray for Pastor Mike and Sarah and all the leaders to be used of the Lord to help each teen to be saved if they are not already saved and to be dedicated to their Lord. Also pray for unity and single focus of the entire youth group. I have led many teen camps in the past and I know the devil will do all he can to disrupt and divide so that God' voice will not be heard. Please bathe them in prayer for the whole week. They will be returning on Friday. Last evening as we prayed for them I was reminded again of how they are the future of this church and others. If the Lord tarries they will be standing in our places in the days ahead. Take time right now if you will to lift a prayer for them. God will hear, God will move, God will speak to them if we ask. Well I just finished my first cup of coffee and it is time to get another and on with the day. We will have staff meeting in awhile so I need to get ready for that. Also today I will need to work on some personal things with my family. Our mother is not well and it is time some things must be decided and each of us will need to adjust schedules. Please pray for Louise Sullivan our mother, we sure will appreciate it!  Have a great week. 

Hope each of you re having a great Thursday. The week has gone by pretty fast for this preacher, it seems like there is always something to do and that I am never going to get caught up. That is OK because the alternative is not so attractive. I am glad to be alive and a child of God. We have so much to be thankful about and we have been given so much we have a lot to give away. I am so thankful for the Gospel of Christ. It is truly the Good News! We have Good News to share. It seems to me that every time you turn on the T.V. or listen to the Radio or ready the News Paper it is mostly bad news. We Christians have Good News to share! Good News about a Good God and Good News about a Good Saviour, and Good News about a Good Salvation.  We find that Good News in Gods Good Book. The Good News is that Jesus died for our sins and was buried and arose from the grave and is willing to save anyone, anywhere who will repent, believe and receive Him as Lord and Saviour. Now that is Good News. Then after we are born again we have a Book to live by. A Book of answers, comfort, principles, promises, and so much more. We need to get this Gospel and this Book out to the world. We don't need to share it less, we don't need to have church less, we don't need to have Bible Study less. We need to have more visitation, more witnessing, more assembly, more sowing of the SEED. Our churches are having less assembly and there is a cost to this. We as Christians need the Word of God taught to us and preached to us. We need to be stimulated {exhorted} by its life changing truths. We need to study it personally on a daily basis. We need to get IT out to our world. We need to pass out tracts, and leave the Bible in places it isn't already. We need to send the Bible to missionaries so they can disperse them. We need to give Bibles out to our family, friends and co- workers. It is the Power of God, it will not return void. We don't need less of God's Word we need More of God's Word. 

Tonight at 7 p.m. Mike Green will be teaching all our adults during midweek service. He will be speaking about the power of God's Word, HOPE TO SEE YOU IN CHURCH TONIGHT AS WE REVEAL OUR OWN DESIRE TO TAKE IN THIS WONDERFUL BOOK OF LIFE! 

Good day to each reader! We had a great Weekend of services. Mens Prayer on Saturday was tremendous. I was thinking we would be down in attendance for our weekly Saturday prayer time but it was very well attended. Because of it being July Fourth we had many men gone but we had some others who filled in their number and the time was sweet and powerful. "Lord Teach Us To Pray". Then on Sunday we had good singing and fellowship and Gods Word was proclaimed. Sunday eves service was sweet once again and the "Ice Cream & Pie Fellowship" was wonderful! Praise the Lord for His presence in our midst. We don't deserve this but our Lord is full of grace and goodness. This Thursday in midweek service Mike Green will speak to our combined adult assembly. I have prayed with Mike on many occasions. He is a man who genuinely walks with the Lord. He lives by faith and basis his life on the Word of God. How thankful I am for men like Mike who are in our church making a difference for Christ. Mike's most powerful attribute is he lives what he says. I look forward with anticipation to what Mike has to share with us because I know he received it from the Lord firsthand. 

Remember today to share the gospel with whoever you come into contact with. You know to the early church, soul winning was not a program but a passion. The apostles led of the Spirit taught the believers to go and share. They had set times as the church to do so. They went from house to house. They were taught how to clearly and simply share the good news of eternal life with those in their communities. They scheduled evangelism because it was a passion in their heart. The effort to have scheduled times for evangelism is Biblical and absolutely necessary. Just as a Christian must set aside time to pray, time to study, he must set aside time to obey the great commission. But we must be careful with any organized effort! This should never be the only time we witness about our Lord. The attitude of some Christians can become "soul winning is something I do for an hour and a half a week or month ." We are on duty for those hours but off duty the rest of the week. That is when we are working a program and missing the passion. The pronouncement of our Saviour is clear: we are to "preach the Gospel to every creature." In other words our field is the world, and everyone is a person who needs the the Gospel. May we get the heart of the Lord and every day, every place, and to every person may we have a passion for sharing the most important message we ever received and that they will ever receive. May we have the passionate burden every waking moment to share JESUS! 

 I have been thinking about Nehemiah chapter 8 and it has been a challenge to me at this our nations birthday. Israel had been birthed and blessed by the Lord. This nation was to be a visible and verbal example to all the world of Jehovah God. For centuries she was used of the Lord to reveal Himself to the nations, to reveal His Holy character, His loving kindness, His almighty power, His desire to fellowship with the sons of men. But they had a tendency to walk away from their Lord and live as they pleased, they would get "FULL OF THEMSELVES". God in His tender mercy would send good prophets and good kings to bring them back to Himself to His Holy ways. Then things would go well for awhile until they turned away again. How sad a story! Why would any nation any people any church turn away from God?? WHY? But they continued to do so until the Lord said that is it, and in His all knowing He determined the only thing which would work is for this nation to loose its freedom and its privilege to assemble in His Temple. So the Lord sent the great and godless empire of the Babylonians to conquer and humiliate God's own people. There national way of life all taken by the enemy. There children, economy, possessions, right to worship, everything gone. And for 70 years they were in captivity. We don't seem to get the pain with that was accompanied with that. Imagine how horrible that would be in AMERICA if we were conquered by the Muslim nation IRAN, let your mind imagine what would happen, as they seized power of your government, your work places your own homes. Why would God allow such things? Well perhaps He already saw his children living like the Babylonians and if that is what you want then here it is for awhile. Perhaps He knew that they would have to live it awhile until they knew what they had and would long for the life that only JEHOVAH could give through His blessings and holy standards. But back to Nehemiah 8. Time had passed and God put it in Nehemiah's heart to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the walls and to return to worship. God worked all things out for he and others to RETURN & REBUILD. With great determination the wall was rebuilt, and on the day of dedication they stood and read the WORD of God all day. As the people listened they repented and heard the ways of the Lord which they had not be obeying. They heard that at that very time was to be the "Booth Festival" so they decided to keep it and God was well pleased. The remnant was alive and well. As I read this story and meditate on its truths I sure want to be part of the remnant in AMERICA! May we not forsake His temple, may we not forsake His laws, may we not forsake His presence or His person. America's only hope is if His people will RETURN & REBUILD! It will take genuine dedication not comfort zone living. May it be in our lifetime and if not may we be like Ezra who helped prepare the way for Nehemiah, read Ezra chapter 7. 

 SOrry to all the bloggers about missing a few days this week blogging. We are presently at Ridgecrest Conference Center near Asheville, North Carolina. It has been a wonderful week for Pastor Chas and myself. It has been very full as classes start at 8 a.m and the evening service ends around 9 p.m. . The conference speaker is Dr. Don Wilton who is a gifted preacher. His messages have been used of the Lord every day in my life. The classes offered have been equally anointed. The worship has been so very good. Tonight we had Triyla Paris lead us in worship as she used many of the songs the Lord has used her to write. At the end of the service hundreds were standing or kneeling in silence as the Lords glory filled the auditorium. It has been a refreshing time to say the least. Our hearts desire is that we will come home ready to serve better and to be better prepared to lead our congregation in the most important thing on earth and that is to worship our great God. This Sunday we will be preaching on "Jehovah Tiskenu -The Lord our Righteousness.", both in the morning and evening. This weekend we celebrate our nations birthday. If ever our nation needed righteousness it is now. "Righteousness Exalts a Nation But Sin Is a Reproach Unto Any People". We must exalt Jesus so He will exalt us. I know it is a holiday weekend but let me encourage you to invite people here for the services. I am looking forward to Sunday evening as we sing a lot and testify and preach and pray. Then after the service we will fellowship with PIE & ICE CREAM. It will be worth going to church and beyond all that we will have an opportunity to exalt our great God ! See You Sunday!