Pastor Leo Colon’s Blogs

Grace and peace be multiplied unto you, through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus Christ our LORD.

Beloved to is day number six and you are well on your way to conquering the first week. You are doing a great job, congratulations. Some of you didn’t think you would make it this far. Remember just do today. Tomorrow will handle itself. Drink as much water as you can, at least 10 to 12 glasses of water and make sure you doing what you need to do to get the toxins out of your body. Either take a strong laxative or schedule some colon therapy at least once a week if possible. You are doing great and I for one am proud of the job you are doing.

Today, my beloved wife Pastor Dorothy is our guest blogger during our twenty-one day journey. Please welcome, Pastor Dot, she has submitted a word from the LORD to encourage us today. Join me in thanking her and don’t forget to leave a comment on the blog to let her know that God has bless you through this effort.

Tomorrow, make a point to bring someone to church with you. No matter what church you belong to, evangelism is a vital part of every believer’s faith. Don’t come to church by your self. Bring a guest and share the Gospel. Why? Because Christ commands us.

Luke 14:23 And the lord said unto the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled.

God wants his house filled. Do your part.

Live Life on Purpose and not By Mistake,
Yours Because I am His,
Leo Colon
pastor@ihpfwc.org
www.ihpfwc.org

Vessels of Honor

Grace to you and Peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus, the Christ. Thank you Pastor Leo for allowing me to share in this Spiritual edification:

When you are preparing dinner for special guest, you set the table with your fine dishes; dishes that make the food look even more inviting. (I guess you are thinking why is Pastor Dot talking about food?) Well, it is on my mind! But that’s okay. When you set out your dishes some of them may have come from Department stores and others may have come from second hand stores, thrift shops, but you have chosen them to sit and serve at your table with joy and pride. Well, my friend you are chosen, for this moment, this season to be a vessel of honor, fit for the Master’s use.

Tim. 2:21 If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour, sanctified, and meet for the master’s use, and prepared unto every good work.

Before you get to the table to serve you must go through examination, selection, purchase and purification. No one will put a weak, dirty dish on the table; because vessel chosen represents the owner and speaks of how you feel about those you are entertaining. Well you have gone through the first three processes. Jesus Chose you and purchased you with His blood, John 3:16, and now you must go through your purging process to become the Vessel of Honor, fit for the Masters use, placed on the table with pride and confidence, knowing you can take the heat, hold the substance needed to feed the people of, the invited guest will continue to dine, because you have been proven.

In His Service,
Pastor Dorothy

Grace and peace be multiplied unto you, through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus Christ our LORD.

Beloved to is day number five and you are well on your way to conquering the first week. You are doing a great job, congratulations. Some of you didn’t think you would make it this far. Remember just do today. Tomorrow will handle itself. Drink as much water as you can, at least 10 to 12 glasses of water and make sure you doing what you need to do to get the toxins out of your body. Either take a strong laxative or schedule some colon therapy at least once a week if possible. You are doing great and I for one am proud of the job you are doing.

Today, another one of my best friends has submitted an entry as Guest Blogger. Pastor Maurice Johnson has also consented to be a guest blogger during our twenty-one day journey. Please welcome, my colleague, friend and brother, Pastor Maurice Johnson, our guest blogger for today. He has submitted a word from the LORD to encourage us today. Join me in thanking him and don’t forget to leave a comment on the blog to let him know that God has bless you through this effort.

Tomorrow, we are looking forward to an entry from our own Pastor Dorothy Colon.

Live Life on Purpose and not By Mistake,
Yours Because I am His,
Leo Colon
pastor@ihpfwc.org
www.ihpfwc.org

It’s Give and Take.

I offer my sincere thanks to Pastor Leo who has entrusted me with the task me of sharing a word with you as we traverse through these 21 days of consecration.

It is with the same frame of mind that I would admonish you to posture yourself on today, day 5. I whole heartedly agree with Pastor Leo’s post on day three, questions do arise concern the purpose of the fast. In fact the fast can become something of an annual tradition if we are not careful. Nevertheless I would like bring to bear a servant’s imperative that must companion itself with your abstinence from eating and that is spirit of gratitude. John Fitzgerald Kennedy said, “As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.”

In Psalms 116 King David expresses the opinion that has been his renown in scripture; he offers thanksgiving and praise, in verse 1 his declaration speaks of his undying love for the Lord. David writes from a cause and effect stance in verses 1 through 4, observe Verse 1 “because he heard my voice and my supplications, I love the LORD. Verse 2, because he hath inclined his ear unto me, I call upon him as long as I live. Verse 4 I called upon the name of the LORD because he is the deliverer of my soul.” In verses 5 through 10 David speaks of his fears, his enemies and repression, but I would like to call your attention to verses 12 through 14. Here David begins to speak about a need to respond to the Lord and his benefits.

The love given by Jesus should not go unaddressed by those he loves; David writes in Verse 12” What shall I render unto the LORD for all his benefits toward me? “What do we give to the Lord for all he has done to preserve, governed, provide and protect us? Verse 13 David says I will take the cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the LORD. Described in the cup of his salvation is not only his redemption for us, but also the terms or standards given to those he has redeemed. What you give to the Lord is what he wishes for you to take, simply said your greatest gift is to take on what he demands. Hence David says in verse 14 I will pay my vows unto the LORD now in the presence of all his people. Not only do we fast because we are commissioned to do so, we also fast because we are grateful for his many benefits to us. I encourage you to strive through today day with a spirit of gratitude, as David instructs in verses 17 and 18, offer the sacrifice of thanksgiving, call upon the name of the LORD and pay your vows unto the LORD. Stay strong, I encourage and applaud you because your fasting complies with the terms by which you have been saved.

It is a good thing to give thanks!

Pastor Johnson

Grace and peace be multiplied unto you, through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus Christ our LORD.

Beloved to is day number four and you are well on your way to conquering the first week. You are doing a great job, congratulations. Some of you didn’t think you would make it this far. Remember just do today. Tomorrow will handle itself. Drink as much water as you can, at least 10 to 12 glasses of water and make sure you doing what you need to do to get the toxins out of your body. Either take a strong laxative or schedule some colon therapy at least once a week if possible. You are doing great and I for one am proud of the job you are doing.

Today, as promised, my colleague, friend and brother, Pastor Paul Dean is our guest blogger. He has submitted a word from the LORD to encourage us today. Join me in thanking him and don’t forget to leave a comment on the blog to let him that God has bless you through this effort.

Live Life on Purpose and not By Mistake,
Yours Because I am His,
Leo Colon
pastor@ihpfwc.org
www.ihpfwc.org

Grace and peace be unto you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

1 Corinthians 16:14 (NKJV)
14 Let all that you do be done with love.

Do all with love.  The word “with” should be translated to “in.” The believer is to live “in” love and to do all “in” love. Remember the love chapter, 1 Cor. 13. The greatest answer to the division and other problems within the church was love. Love must prevail in the hearts and in the behaviors of believers in our churches and homes. We deal with so much as human beings and sometimes we don’t know what and how to deal with the situations, but Apostle Paul is one of the greatest solutions-oriented people in the Bible.

When problems arose in the churches, Paul’s answer was a one word answer: “Love.” When problems arose in the home, Paul answered with one word: “Love.” When and wherever there was division, Paul said “Love”.  Your answer to any problem is love. Love brings about unity. Where there is love, there are no demands. Love finds a way to resolve the conflict. When I am hurting or angry or very bothered, I search for love around me. It brings me peace and joy and many times laughter. The situation might not change, but because of the love, I have on the inside and around me, it causes me to change my posture regarding the situation; thus leaving me in a peaceful state.

When you understand this, your health conditions get better, because you love yourself enough to make changes. Technically this is where it all begins …with you and in you. You must love yourself in every situation of your life. How you love will determine the results of the problem.
“I need to talk to her about something she did” –Do it in love.
“I don’t like the way he is acting” tell him in love.
Need to prepare a message? Prepare it in love. Need to disconnect from people? Do it in love. Your outcome will be greater. Need to build a house, work on a marriage, raise kids…do it all in love. That’s your answer.
Love conquers all…
God bless you, heaven smile upon you, go in peace and may your peace be multiplied.

Share the Amor
Pastor P

Grace and Peace be multiplied unto you, through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus Christ Our LORD.

Today is day number three in our journey with the LORD. Congratulations you are well on your way to victory. Be encouraged by what has gone on so far. You have been praying. You have been fasting. One thing we can all be sure of is that we are doing this because we believe God has a plan, and that we believe that God alone will meet by God and our needs. I want to encourage you today from the word of God.

New Living Translation
Prov. 3:5 ¶          Trust in the LORD with all your heart;
do not depend on your own understanding.
Prov. 3:6          Seek his will in all you do,
and he will show you which path to take.

When we engaged in fasting, often the sentiments that arise in us is, does this really work? Am I afflicting my body (fasting) for a religious ritual? I don’t really know if this will work and I am doing this hoping God will answer. I don’t know if this is the way I should go about getting what I need? What do I do? Should I continue, or am I crazy for doing this?

The word of God speaks to our ambiguity even in times like this. Beloved, trust in God. I know that seems like a platitude, but it really is the best advice one could receive. Trust in the LORD, not only as a matter of intellectual assent but with all your heart. Our mind often tries to reason us out of our miracle. Often we tend to believe what we can see or feel. The word of the LORD for us is not to do that. Don’t depend on your own understanding. It does not matter how brilliant we are, we are not God. As such, we do not know what God will do, nor do we understand everything God will do. Our understanding is not why things work for us. So much has gone right in our life and we cannot explain it, because God’s ways are not like our ways, nor his thoughts like our thoughts. Know that this fast is a good thing. Trust the LORD and not your understanding.

Today, seek his will, God’s will, in all that you do, and God says he, himself will direct you. God will show you which path to take. Seek God’s will in your meetings today. Seek his will as you are talking to your colleagues today. Seek his will as you write your reports, even in how you deal with problems that may come up. God says if you do that, you will know which course to take, because he will show you the path. Do not operate in the dark. Trust God, and God will show give you information on your day. Insure success for today by asking God, “what is your will in this situation?” God has promised clarity.

So our plan today is to ask God, “what is your will LORD”, and God says I will give you direction. I cannot wait to hear the testimonies of how God came through, as you trusted him. Remember Beloved, Trust in the LORD, with all you heart.

Tomorrow, our guest blogger will be my colleague, friend and brother, Pastor Paul Dean. Pastor Dean has agreed to write and encourage us in our journey and we are looking forward to a word from the LORD as giving to us for this season. Thank you Pastor Paul Dean.

Remember, Beloved, Drink as much water as you can, and don’t worry about tomorrow. Just do today.

Live Life on Purpose and not By Mistake,
Yours Because I am His,
Leo Colon
pastor@ihpfwc.org
www.ihpfwc.org

Grace and Peace be multiplied unto you, through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus Christ Our LORD.

Beloved, today is day number two. You have successfully done what many of you thought was not going to happen. What’s that you may ask? You have made it over the initial hump of day one. Take the time to think about how many times you questioned whether you were going to make it through yesterday. Well, you did it. Congratulations to you. Yesterday is proof that today is doable. I want to encourage you again, drink as much water as you can possibly stand. At least drink 10 to 12 glasses of water.

Today Beloved, I want to just encourage you. The scriptures teach us that God is really the only one who can be trusted to define our expectations. Man, indulges in his own type of secular wisdom. Even the term secular humanism has become the mantra for many who hope to achieve secular intellectualism. We cannot as believers, trust the limited thoughts of men regarding what God will do for us. Let’s look at the word of God.

King James Version

1Cor. 2:9 But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.

Paul is writing this letter to a society in Corinth that is proud of and defined by their accomplishments in obtaining wisdom. That not withstanding, there is a truth that is being inculcated to the church at Corinth, and to you and me. Man cannot think the way God thinks. Mankind just cannot grasp who God is and how God operates. Knowing this fact, it is foolish of us to count on anything but the word of God for our understanding of his promise. What is the promise to us from God in the text? God has prepared some things for you, because you love him. That is exciting, mind blowing news. I have declared this to IHP on the first Sunday of 2012; God has prepared 2012 for us. Now that is exciting news, if you have ever had something prepared for you. Let me give you a correlation. My wife Dorothy will often go shopping for food to prepare dinner for the week. She may go shopping on Saturday. On Wednesday, I may feel especially hungry and find that my wife has prepared some food for me. The food was thought of before I got hungry. It was prepared knowing something about me, my likes and dislikes. She also prepared the food for me cognizant of my dietary needs. Her knowledge of my medical decision was a determining factor in what she has prepared for me. She also knew what tastes good to me. So one could say that no one but me would enjoy what she has prepared for me like me. She prepared the food just for me.

Well, know that God has made a declaration. God has prepared some things for you in 2012. He did not prepare it in 2012. He did not wait until you needed something to prepare it. God already though about you and what you needed before you needed it. He prepared some things for you before you were even in trouble. Before you needed 2012 he prepared it.

Know that the things you are praying for in this fast, God says he has prepared it for you. This fast is already provided for, your victory is already assured. This battle is already won. With that in mind, I would like to encourage you with a thought that my friend and brother Curtis Smith posted on his Facebook page today. I was encouraged by it and I hope you will be also.

“Welcome to flight number 2012 – we are prepared for take off into this New Year. Please make sure that your standards are secured and locked in an upright position. All self destruction devices should be turn off. If we lose altitude under pressure during our flight reach up and pull down PRAYER, prayer will be automatically activated by FAITH. Once your faith is fully activated you may assist other passengers. There will be no baggage allowed on THIS flight. The captain of our souls has cleared us for take off, destination in 2012… GREATNESS.. In Jesus name. Enjoy your flight!”-Curtis Smith.

Remember, Beloved, Drink as much water as you can, and don’t worry about tomorrow. Just do today.

Live Life on Purpose and not By Mistake,

Yours Because I am His,

Leo Colon

pastor@ihpfwc.org

www.ihpfwc.org

Grace and Peace be multiplied unto you, through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus Christ our LORD.

Beloved, today is January 2nd, 2012. Happy New Year and welcome to this journey with God that we are embarking on. Starting today at 6:00 AM, we are engaging in a spiritual journey with the LORD. We will be fasting and praying for Twenty-one (21) Days. By fasting I mean will be eating one bowl of soup per day and drinking all the water we can drink daily. At the very least we expect to drink ten to twelve glasses of water per day. We are assembling our prayer list and committing to at least one hour of prayer daily. For more instructions on the fast, feel free to email me at pastor@ihpfwc.org. I am expecting to witness the miraculous among our ranks. I am expecting God to do incredible things, even though I cannot prove it, or see it. I want to encourage you to look out for not only the obvious and the mundane, but look for the miraculous with me. Let’s look at what the word of God says to us today.

NRSV

Heb. 11:3 By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was made from things that are not visible.

Beloved, the word of God tells us that the worlds, including this world we are living on today was prepared by the word of God. This world that we build our homes on, rely on for food and vegetation. This world where we take advantage of the air we breathe, the water we drink. The word of God says that all these things that we often take for granted, was prepared for us and is available to us, not because God was lucky, or had an awesome bank account, but by the “word of God”.

Your miracle does not need to be backed by a ready investor, nor by some philanthropist. We could not facilitate it if we tried. We need to go into this journey understanding that what we want and need from God has been prepared already by the “word of God”. Expect what you cannot see to become visible from the word of God. And that’s what the writer of Hebrews is telling us. “What is seen” meaning that which we determine is real, like your house, the plane I flew on yesterday, the car you’re driving, all of these things come from that which was not seen. Even things in nature, came from something we cannot point to in the natural.

So, if that is true, (and it is) why do you talk yourself into a depression because you cannot see what you need? Why talk yourself into unwise behavior because what you are praying for has not happened yet and you cannot see it? Why would you even make any decision because you or your good friends cannot see where the miracle is going to come from? Nothing that we enjoy today came from what we can see, but we still take advantage of it.

As we go through this journey, go through it expecting God to do miracles. Expect God to blow your mind. Expect what you cannot see now, to be visible this year. I am looking forward to this fast. I expect to see miracles during this fast.

Remember, Beloved, Drink as much water as you can, and don’t worry about tomorrow. Just do today.

Live Life on Purpose and not By Mistake,

Yours Because I am His,

Leo Colon

pastor@ihpfwc.org

http://www.ihpfwc.org

Beloved, Grace and Peace be unto you, from God our Father and from the LORD Jesus Christ. Today is Saturday, day number twenty (20). All you have to do to obtain victory is hold on just one more day. Today you can see victory. So I would like to encourage you with the word of God. This text is awesome because it encourages us to praise the LORD for the victory he has brought us to. Let’s look at the text.

NLT
Psa. 98:1 ¶ Sing a new song to the LORD,
for he has done wonderful deeds.
His right hand has won a mighty victory;
his holy arm has shown his saving power!
Psa. 98:2 The LORD has announced his victory
and has revealed his righteousness to every nation!
Psa. 98:3 He has remembered his promise to love and be faithful to Israel.
The ends of the earth have seen the victory of our God.
Psa. 98:4 ¶ Shout to the LORD, all the earth;
break out in praise and sing for joy!
Psa. 98:5 Sing your praise to the LORD with the harp,
with the harp and melodious song,
Psa. 98:6 with trumpets and the sound of the ram’s horn.
Make a joyful symphony before the LORD, the King!
Psa. 98:7 ¶ Let the sea and everything in it shout his praise!
Let the earth and all living things join in.
Psa. 98:8 Let the rivers clap their hands in glee!
Let the hills sing out their songs of joy
Psa. 98:9 before the LORD.
For the LORD is coming to judge the earth.
He will judge the world with justice,
and the nations with fairness.

Beloved, this text is encouraging us to sing and new song, shout to the LORD, break out in praise and sing for joy. We should sing our praises with the harp, with trumpets, and make a joyful symphony before the LORD. Nothing about our worship should be subdued.
Rejoice beloved because VICTORY belongs to you. Drink all the water you can and hang in there.

Live Life on Purpose and Not By Mistake,
Yours Because I am His,
Leo Colon
pastor@ihpfwc.org
www.ihpfwc.org

Beloved, Grace and Peace be unto you, from God our Father and from the LORD Jesus Christ. Today is Thursday, day number eighteen (18). You are seeing the finish line. Today our daily blog is coming to us from Pastor Dorothy. We are so glad that she has given us our word today. Remember drink all the water you can and you hang in there.

Live Life on Purpose and Not By Mistake,
Yours Because I am His,

Leo Colon

www.ihpfwc.org

leocolon.wordpress.com

Grace and Peace to the hungry people of God and to our fearless leader Pastor Leo. Your sacrifices have reached heaven and are duly noted. Let me take this time to prophesy to you….I see you in your future and a table is spread before you and….I see a feast. It is easy to give you a word when you have a history or familiarity of the circumstances. That’s why in my Bible reading time this morning the Lord led me to 2 Samuel 5- 17-22.

In this passage of scripture David had just been anointed King over Israel, which was the promise of God to David and Israel. David’s enemies, whom he defeated as a Shepard boy, heard about it and decided to attack him. Clearly they forgot who was backing David. God, the Father! Don’t forget who has your back! Clearly this was personal, because heretofore, the Philistines were not interested in war with Israel. You must understand that because you are fasting and you are growing in the Lord, the enemy of your soul has launched a personal attack against you. Just because you are being blessed and you are growing in the Lord. But when David heard of this, he inquired of the Lord. When he was a Shepard boy he went up against them because they defied the armies of the living God, there was no question about fighting, he need not inquire, he felt it was his duty. But this was against David himself.

As you have been seeking God’s face and inquiring of the Lord on this fast the Word of the Lord to you is “I will certainly hand your enemies over to you. God is going to “Burst out against those problems, situations and circumstances in your life!” Hallelujah! Your mind is going to be blown! When there is a bursting, it is uncontrollable, it cannot be contained by you or your enemy, it is all God! At the end of this exercise, your enemies will abandon their idols, weapons. Things that had power over you, will have power no more! Grace to you,

Pastor Dot

Beloved, Grace and Peace be unto you, from God our Father and from the LORD Jesus Christ. Today is Wednesday, day number seventeen (17). You are seeing the finish line. Our late Archbishop used to tell us that in the military they would not say to us that we have four days left. They would tell us we have three days and a wake up. This is when the enemy tries to suggest that you have proven your point, and try to convince you there is no viable reason to continue. Allow me to encourage you, people want you to fail. You can win if you stay committed to God’s commandments. Let’s look at the text:

NLT

Psa. 119:85 These arrogant people who hate your law have dug deep pits for me to fall into.

Psa. 119:86 All your commands are trustworthy. Protect me from those who hunt me down without cause.

Psa. 119:87 They almost finished me off, but I refused to abandon your commandments.
Beloved, our success will not happen because our adversary decides to back off. We should not expect our enemies to give us a pass. They will not do it. As a matter of fact, what we can count on is that fact that our enemies in Christendom always make our lives harder when success is in our sights. Thank God, because God’s word tells us that we can win, even when it looks like we are through. Sometimes when we look at our own situation, winning does not look possible, even to us. Our way to win according to the word of God is to make up our own mind not to abandon God’s commandment. The word of God is encouraging us to know that seeing the way we are going to win is not necessary. Our victory is tied to our resolve. Actually it is tied to faith. Evidence says that losing is inevitable, but what you believe can negate the certainty of the evidence of our life. Do not give up on the word of God. You can win if you refuse to abandon God’s commandments. What do you believe? What does your faith say about your ability to finish what God has started? Hang in there. You are a winner now. Do not give up. Not only the 21-day journey, but this also goes for your dreams. If you refuse to believe that God can fail, you can win. If you refuse to believe that God can lie, you can win. I am in agreement with you. With God everything is possible.
NLT

Matt. 19:26 ¶ Jesus looked at them intently and said, ‘Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible.’
Remember drink all the water you can. Hang in there. Do not worry about tomorrow just do today. You have made it this far with the help of God, and you WILL win.

 

Live Life on Purpose and Not By Mistake,

Yours Because I am His,

Leo Colon

pastor@ihpfwc.org

www.ihpfwc.org

Beloved, Grace and Peace be multiplied unto you, through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus Christ. Today is day number sixteen (16)! You are really doing so well. Really Congratulations!! I want you to be encouraged today. There is a reward. You are not doing this for nothing. I have praise reports coming in from many of you. Some of you have forgotten to tell me, and when you do I am always blown away. Make a point of commenting to this blog and share some of the miracles God has done for you on this fast. If they are not to personal, lets share and brag on God. It is still January and already I am excited about what God is going to do. Let’s look at the text.

King James Version.
Matt. 16:27 For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then he shall reward every man according to his works.

Jesus in this passage is talking about reward. The way you approach this life in Christ does avail you to a reward from God, but not by selfish intentions. The way for us to please God is by denying oneself. If I, in the name of Christian pursuits, seek my own reward, even where my life is involve, I have engaged in a futile endeavor. Jesus said this: Matt. 16:24 ¶ Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.
Your motives in this practice of fasting determines your reward. Deny yourself, what does that mean? Does it mean that we should not love ourselves? Not at all, we are commanded to love ourselves. It means that we ought not to miss the opportunity to think of others. You are not the only consideration in this life that God has given you. Do something today for someone else, without needing a reward. Do something that might even cost you. Beloved, even this practice of fasting, is a practice of you denying yourselves not only to seek God for your needs, but for the needs of your family and your loved ones.
So Jesus ends this thought with an assurance. God will come and scrutinize your works. The word works, in the greek means your deeds, or practices. God will scrutinize your practices. As a result of your works, your practices, you will receive a reward. Are you only in this for yourselves? Be concerned with others, pray for someone today. Do something just because it would be good for someone else. Do this with the right mind set and God, who is faithful will reward you. That’s a promise, from God. There is a reward.

Remember, drink all the water you can. At the very least 8-10 glasses of water a day. It should be closer to a gallon if you can. I will be praying for you.

Live Life on Purpose and Not By Mistake,
Your Because I am His,
Leo Colon
pastor@ihpfwc.org
www.ihpfwc.org