Tag: Jesus

Grace and Peace be multiplied unto you, through the knowledge of God and of Jesus Christ. Beloved, today you have moved into a new phase in your 21 day journey. Today is day number 10. You have moved into double digit days on your journey. Congratulations to each and every one of you. That is awesome. Remember this is a process. You don’t have to be perfect, but you want to be committed.

Today let us revisit the text we looked at yesterday. Yesterday we talked briefly about the point that we do not want to be hypocrites. We want to behave in a way that Christ says is appropriate, for those of us who seek him. We are believers. Today let’s take another look.

NLT

Matt. 6:16 ¶ “And when you fast, don’t make it obvious, as the hypocrites do, for they try to look miserable and disheveled so people will admire them for their fasting. I tell you the truth, that is the only reward they will ever get.

Matt. 6:17 But when you fast, comb your hair and wash your face.

Matt. 6:18 Then no one will notice that you are fasting, except your Father, who knows what you do in private. And your Father, who sees everything, will reward you.

Hypocrites short change themselves by receiving the reward of men whom they are trying to impress. This reward, I assure you, at best, lacks the luster of any reward God can give to us. Here is the assurance the we receive from the word of God. Fasting produces rewards. There is the reward from Man, that is the result of showing man how pious you are. Which is nothing more than their assent that you are a pious person. This for me is worthless. Then there is the reward from our heavenly Father. Which reward do you want? I know I have made up my mind. I would much rather have the assurance of Holy Writ, which tells me he will never forsake those who seek him.

King James Version

Psa. 9:10 And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee: for thou, LORD, hast not forsaken them that seek thee.

I would much rather have the reward of knowing that God who answers prayer, will hear my request and grant them.

King James Version

Job 6:8 ¶ Oh that I might have my request; and that God would grant me the thing that I long for!

Beloved this is a goal worth reaching for. Who cares what man decides about me. I want to obtain the ear of God, and the assurance that he hears me, and can grant my request. Again I ask, which reward do you want? What is more important to you? If the reward of God is more important, then you are on your way to receiving your reward.

Hang in there. Just do today. Drink all the water you can. At the very least drink 8-10 glasses today. You are doing so well.

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. Again, thank you for visiting our blog site. I would like to take this time to invite you to our church, In His Presence Family Worship Center. It is a friendly church where the praise and worship is sweet and the word of God is preached with power and without compromise. Join us at four (4) PM at 154 Lexington Ave @ 30th Street. Our midweek bible study services are at Seven (7) PM. We would be honored to have you as our special guest. Make plans now to come and prepare to receive from God. You will not be sorry.

This is day number NINE of our fast. Congratulations, this is a great reason to celebrate. You have made it to day number Nine (9). You are in the big leagues now. You victory is nigh beloved. Listen, you are doing great. Just do one more day. Don’t worry about the rest of the fast. Just do today.

Beloved, today I would like to encourage you as you begin day number NINE (9), to continue on your journey of transformation. In our Christian walk, sometimes we need to remember the basics. I have found that sometimes the basics can be a challenge. Like many I understand that being a believer is absolutely about submission to the will of God, but how often do we forget that belief comes with requirements that God expects us to follow. In chapter twelve of the Book of Romans, the Apostle Paul gives us a litany of things we need to obey. This ‘code of conduct’ is what makes us different and it is expected of us. God expects it of us. Let’s look at the text:

HCSB

Rom. 12:9 ¶ Love must be without hypocrisy. Detest evil; cling to what is good.

Paul, instructs us how to live as believers. We are commanded to love. Here the teacher says that our attitude when we love should be sincere. The word here hypocrisy suggests that it should not be an act. Don’t be an actor when you love. It should be genuine. Not always easy, but I am a believer. My goal according to verse one (1) (of chapter 12) is to be “holy and pleasing to God”. This means that even if loving sincerely makes me look crazy to people, it does not mean it is crazy. If I am pleasing God, then he is what matters.

Detest evil. Key point, evil is not synonymous with sin. Evil means to cause harm. We should detest the causing of harm. Either personally or when done by someone else. Don’t be happy about someone’s affliction.

Then lastly, “cling to what is good”. This is pivotal. The Apostle says that we should cling to what is good. Cling means I should hold on to what is good. If I cling to what is good, when good moves in one direction, I am pulled along with it. If good goes up, so do I. If good makes a left, so do I, because I am attached to, clinging to, purposely connected to good. This means, “Good” defines my direction. It tells me what to do. Good tells me what is good and not reason. I have notice that I often determine good by what makes me comfortable. Does good make sense to me? That was usually my reasoning. My transformation means I need to develop new habits. I need to step back and ask what is good independent of my feelings and search God, even the scriptures to make my mind up and pursue good as God defines it.

Today I will cling to what is good. How about you?

Remember, drink as much water as you can, and make a point of cleaning toxins out of you body during this process. You are doing well.

Also, remember to start planing now, to bring someone to church with you this Sunday. There is no more important goal for the believer than to share your faith. Go public with your faith. Ask several people to come to church with you. I believe there is a miracle for you, in your obedience.

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. Again, thank you for visiting our blog site. I would like to take this time to invite you to our church, In His Presence Family Worship Center. It is a friendly church where the praise and worship is sweet and the word of God is preached with power and without compromise. Join us at four (4) PM at 154 Lexington Ave @ 30th Street. Our midweek bible study services are at Seven (7) PM. We would be honored to have you as our special guest. Make plans now to come and prepare to receive from God. You will not be sorry.

This is day number Eight of our fast. Congratulations, this is a great reason to celebrate. You have made it to day number Eight (8). You are in the big leagues now. You victory is nigh beloved. Listen, you are doing great. Just do one more day. Don’t worry about the rest of the fast. Just do today.

Celebrate Frequently.

Again, Jeff Henderson speaks to this when he said, “When you celebrate your wins, there are typically more wins to celebrate”. Then this (celebrating) usually fuels the other three points. What this means is when we celebrate a win, what we are celebrating is the fact that thinking abundantly has worked and we are encouraged to continue to think abundantly. Because that has worked so well, we begin to plan intentionally, looking forward to executing consistently, which of course gives us a reason to celebrate again.

How do we celebrate? We should certainly give credit where credit is due. Praise God for every win. Let’s look at the scripture:

KJV

Psa. 148:1 ¶ Praise ye the LORD. Praise ye the LORD from the heavens: praise him in the heights.

Psa. 148:2 Praise ye him, all his angels: praise ye him, all his hosts.

Psa. 148:3 Praise ye him, sun and moon: praise him, all ye stars of light.

Psa. 148:4 Praise him, ye heavens of heavens, and ye waters that be above the heavens.

Psa. 148:5 Let them praise the name of the LORD: for he commanded, and they were created.

He created everything, even you. He created you as the person who can do what you set out to do. He made you “more than conquerors” Romans 8:37, so our celebration should start with praise. Think about it, do you have any reason to praise God? Can you look at in your life and realize that God was a pivotal part of that success? Then beloved, celebrate by praising him today. Right where you are, give God the credit.

Remember, drink as much water as you can, and make a point of cleaning toxins out of you body during this process. You are doing well.

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. Again, thank you for visiting our blog site. I would like to take this time to invite you to our church, In His Presence Family Worship Center. It is a friendly church where the praise and worship is sweet and the word of God is preached with power and without compromise. Join us at four (4) PM at 154 Lexington Ave @ 30th Street. Our midweek bible study services are at Seven (7) PM. We would be honored to have you as our special guest. Make plans now to come and prepare to receive from God. You will not be sorry.

This is day number SIX of our fast. Congratulations, this is a great reason to celebrate. You have made it to day number Six (6). Honestly, some of you did not think you were going to make it this far. Listen, you are doing great. Just do one more day. Don’t worry about the rest of the fast. Just do today.

Execute Consistently

Our mantra, every single day, should be what can I do today to renew my mind? What can I do to achieve my goal(s)? What can I do to please God? These should be our concerns. How do I fulfill today the Romans 12 paradigm? Move forward consistently, one decision at a time.

Let’s look at the Apostle Paul has said:

HCSB

2Cor. 8:11 But now finish the task as well, that just as there was eagerness to desire it, so there may also be a completion from what you have.

Execution of a task in our context is to do it with the end in mind. We as believers should not ever try to do something to see if there is an end, but to accomplish a thing to the end. So in our context we execute what we plan. Remember, planning is preparing today for tomorrow. Meaning to think before we execute. So now that we have thought this through, it is time to execute. If the objective was good enough to plan, it is good enough to execute.

Paul also tells us our attitude in the accomplishing should be one of “eagerness” to desire it. I want to reach my goals, how about you? I feel better when I accomplished my goals. So for me, every goal is an opportunity to win. Every seemingly small task is really a win. Every big task is a big win.

And finally, we do this so that there is a completion from what you have. We want as believers “completion” not frustration. There is a completion to every task. There is a completion to every day. There is a success for every goal. Even the seemingly mundane thing is an opportunity to succeed. Execute consistently! What will you execute today?

Remember the words of the Apostle Paul:

KJV
Rom. 8:37 Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.

Remember, drink as much water as you can, and make a point of cleaning toxins out of you body during this process. You are doing well.

Also, plan to bring someone to church with you this Sunday. Go public with your faith. Ask several people to come to church with you. I believe there is a miracle for you, in your obedience.

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. Again, thank you for visiting our blog site. I would like to take this time to invite you to our church, In His Presence Family Worship Center. It is a friendly church where the praise and worship is sweet and the word of God is preached with power and without compromise. Join us at four (4) PM at 154 Lexington Ave @ 30th Street. Our midweek bible study services are at Seven (7) PM. We would be honored to have you as our special guest. Make plans now to come and prepare to receive from God. You will not be sorry.

This is day number Five of our fast. Congratulations, this is a great reason to celebrate. You have made it to day number Five (5). Honestly, some of you did not think you were going to make it this far. Listen, you are doing great. Just do one more day. Don’t worry about the rest of the fast. Just do today.

I beg your indulgence for getting this blog out so late in the day. I have just returned from officiating a wedding for two of my congregants. I am such a blessed Pastor.

Today, I thought to repost a blog I did in the past. Today I beg your indulgence. Today’s blog is an act of humility for me. Sometimes I read a passage and fall in love with God and his word all over again. Sometimes while preparing to write a blog, I come to the conclusion that there are passages that need not be elaborated upon, and that sometimes the wisest thing a Pastor can do is to not get in the way. Today is one of those days. Next week I will elaborate, but today I feel led to just offer the passage. I pray that we all would simply APPLY the word of God. The passage is rendered in the New Revised Standard Version.

NRSV Proverbs Chapter 18:

Prov. 18:1         The one who lives alone is self-indulgent,

                showing contempt for all who have sound judgment.

Prov. 18:2         A fool takes no pleasure in understanding,

                but only in expressing personal opinion.

Prov. 18:3         When wickedness comes, contempt comes also;

                and with dishonor comes disgrace. `

Prov. 18:4         The words of the mouth are deep waters;

                the fountain of wisdom is a gushing stream.

Prov. 18:5         It is not right to be partial to the guilty,

                or to subvert the innocent in judgment.

Prov. 18:6         A fool’s lips bring strife,

                and a fool’s mouth invites a flogging.

Prov. 18:7         The mouths of fools are their ruin,

                and their lips a snare to themselves.

Prov. 18:8         The words of a whisperer are like delicious morsels;

                they go down into the inner parts of the body.

Prov. 18:9         One who is slack in work

                is close kin to a vandal.

Prov. 18:10         The name of the LORD is a strong tower;

                the righteous run into it and are safe.

Prov. 18:11         The wealth of the rich is their strong city;

                in their imagination it is like a high wall.

Prov. 18:12         Before destruction one’s heart is haughty,

                but humility goes before honor.

Prov. 18:13         If one gives answer before hearing,

                it is folly and shame.

Prov. 18:14         The human spirit will endure sickness;

                but a broken spirit—who can bear?

Prov. 18:15         An intelligent mind acquires knowledge,

                and the ear of the wise seeks knowledge.

Prov. 18:16         A gift opens doors;

                it gives access to the great.

Prov. 18:17         The one who first states a case seems right,

                until the other comes and cross-examines.

Prov. 18:18         Casting the lot puts an end to disputes

                and decides between powerful contenders.

Prov. 18:19         An ally offended is stronger than a city;

                such quarreling is like the bars of a castle.

Prov. 18:20         From the fruit of the mouth one’s stomach is satisfied;

                the yield of the lips brings satisfaction.

Prov. 18:21         Death and life are in the power of the tongue,

                and those who love it will eat its fruits.

Prov. 18:22         He who finds a wife finds a good thing,

                and obtains favor from the LORD.

Prov. 18:23         The poor use entreaties,

                but the rich answer roughly.

Prov. 18:24         Some friends play at friendship

                but a true friend sticks closer than one’s nearest kin.

Yours Because I am His,

Leo Colon

www.ihpfwc.org

pastor@ihpfwc.org

leocolon.wordpress.com

Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God and of Jesus Christ. Again, thank you for visiting our blog site. I would like to take this time to invite you to our church, In His Presence Family Worship Center. It is a friendly church where the praise and worship is sweet and the word of God is preached with power and without compromise. Join us at four (4) PM at 154 Lexington Ave @ 30th Street. Our midweek bible study services are at Seven (7) PM. We would be honored to have you as our special guest. Make plans now to come and prepare to receive from God. You will not be sorry.

This is day number Four of our fast. Congratulations, this is a great reason to celebrate. You have made it to day number Four (4). Honestly, some of you did not think you were going to make it this far. Listen, you are doing great. Just do one more day. Don’t worry about the rest of the fast. Just do today.

Our next topic in the four points I shared with yesterday is “Plan Intentionally”. Let get into it.

Planning is preparing today for tomorrow. Jeff Henderson said it this way, “Great days typically begin the night before”. Great days typically do not happen by mistake. Also days that seem to be worthless usually did not have goals affixed to it. If you plan for nothing, you get what you planned for. Our late Archbishop Bill McKenley used to say, “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail”. So if we manage for no excuses, then planning will become a new or revised habit in our process of “Renewing our mind”.

Even the Apostle Paul planed and set in order how services should be conducted. Let’s look at the text.

HCSB

1Cor. 14:26 ¶ What then is the conclusion, brothers? Whenever you come together, each one has a psalm, a teaching, a revelation, another language, or an interpretation. All things must be done for edification.

1Cor. 14:27 If any person speaks in another language, there should be only two, or at the most three, each in turn, and someone must interpret.

1Cor. 14:28 But if there is no interpreter, that person should keep silent in the church and speak to himself and to God.

1Cor. 14:29 Two or three prophets should speak, and the others should evaluate.

1Cor. 14:30 But if something has been revealed to another person sitting there, the first prophet should be silent.

1Cor. 14:31 For you can all prophesy one by one, so that everyone may learn and everyone may be encouraged.

Planning not only leads to order but to success. A successful life happens because of a successful vision. A successful vision starts with a successful plan.

In the leadership course I am taking now, one of our lecturers, a man named Mark Riesenberg, who is an expert at Goal Setting and Time management, kept saying to us, “Don’t think it, Ink It”. Meaning that we should not be satisfied thinking of something, we should ALWAYS write it down. Always!!!!

I read a study down by some university, They asked a group of people, How many of you have goals? One hundred percent (100%) of the participants in the study agreed they had goals. Of the 100% that had goals, 3% said they have accomplished their goals. Of the 3% who have accomplished their goals, 97% of them wrote their goals down. So there was a real correlation between people who write down their goals and those who achieve their goals.

Plan Intentionally. Write things down. Plan a successful day, the night before. Renew your mind and form new habits. Renewal is a process. Are you up for it?

Remember, drink as much water as you can, and make a point of cleaning toxins out of you body during this process. You are doing well.

Also, plan to bring someone to church with you this Sunday. Go public with your faith. Ask several people to come to church with you. I believe there is a miracle for you, in your obedience.

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. Again, thank you for visiting our blog site. I would like to take this time to invite you to our church, In His Presence Family Worship Center. It is a friendly church where the praise and worship is sweet and the word of God is preached with power and without compromise. Join us at four (4) PM at 154 Lexington Ave @ 30th Street. Our midweek bible study services are at Seven (7) PM. We would be honored to have you as our special guest. Make plans now to come and prepare to receive from God. You will not be sorry.

This is day number three of our fast. Congratulations, this is a cause to celebrate. You have made it to day number Three (3).

As I promised yesterday, I wanted to share some thoughts on practical things we can do today, and from now on, to renew our mind. I was listening to a man named Jeff Henderson and he had some ideas that I would like to share with you. He suggested four ways to invest our time, that would bring different results from what we normatively expect. Here are the four things that we will bring into a Christian construct for our purposes.

• Think Abundantly
• Plan Intentionally
• Execute Consistently
• Celebrate Frequently

Think abundantly: How we think is the point in renewing our mind. One of the resources I will be using this year is Joyce Meyers “Battlefield of the Mind”. She postulates that the mind is the battlefield that devil is trying to control in order to keep you from a victorious life. So then our mind, our way of thinking is the front line in the battle to a better way, better life, better results. Proverbs 23:7 is a passage that draws attention to the power of thinking.

Prov. 23:7 For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with thee.

Now we want to be careful to read this in context, the idea of this text is that when there is agreement between the mind and the heart, actuality is effectuated. How many times have we heard the word of God. Believed it intellectually, but our heart convinced us that it would be impossible for me. I believe Jesus can heal Deacon Smith, but I have cancer, and somehow I have a hard time believing for a miracle for me.

Paul also tells what to think on:

Phil. 4:8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

Now if we are honest, we don’t really tend to guard what we think. That needs to be something we talk about, even research.

Now if we should determine that this year I will think abundantly, then we need to recognize that abundantly means- in large quantities. I need to think bigger than I have been thinking. It suggests that I need to attempt to think harder and better. I should not bring things to my level, but think bigger than what I have done. This year I resolve to plan bigger than what I have already achieved. I will “Think Abundantly”. How about you?

Remember, drink as much water as you can, and make a point of cleaning toxins out of you body during this process. You are doing well.

Also, plan to bring someone to church with you this Sunday. Go public with your faith. Ask several people to come to church with you. I believe there is a miracle for you, in your obedience.

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. Again, thank you for visiting our blog site. I would like to take this time to invite you to our church, In His Presence Family Worship Center. It is a friendly church where the praise and worship is sweet and the word of God is preached with power and without compromise. Join us at four (4) PM at 154 Lexington Ave @ 30th Street. Our midweek bible study services are at Seven (7) PM. We would be honored to have you as our special guest. Make plans now to come and prepare to receive from God. You will not be sorry.

This is day number two of our fast. Congratulations, this is a cause to celebrate. You have made it to day number two (2).

The Apostle Pau; said, “Be transform by the renewing of your mind”. So we need to renew your mind in such a way that it does not return to what it was.

“We are what we repeatedly do,” Aristotle proclaimed. If this is true, we cannot renew our mind by doing the same thing or feeding it the same thing. So you say, Pastor I read scripture all the time, but do we apply it? Do we repeatedly read then apply? We need to change our habits. It is possible even for us.

Going forward, this year, what can we do to renew our mind. What changes can we put into place that can help us every day? I know for me, it will mean feeding my brain by reading more. When I feed myself, it is not as easy to control me and/or my situation. If I am busy feeding my mind, renewing my mind, then situations, people and circumstances cannot control me. Allowing yourself to be lazy in this area can lead to control by another.

Carter G Woodson wrote in the miseducation of the Negro’

“If you can control a man’s thinking you do not have to worry about his action. When you determine what a man shall think you do not have to concern yourself about what he will do. If you make a man feel that he is inferior, you do not have to compel him to accept an inferior status, for he will seek it himself. If you make a man think that he is justly an outcast, you do not have to order him to the back door. He will go without being told; and if there is no back door, his very nature will demand one.”

― Carter G. Woodson, The Mis-Education of the Negro

Take control of what you think by renewing your mind. You feed it the things God says will be helpful to you. Determine to read (feed your mind) books. Entire books in the scripture that will change your thinking. This does not happen over night. You have to take steps that will cause new habits. You will get there. I heard a Pastor say, “change is emotional, Transformation is a process”.

In tomorrow’s blogs we will look for things we can do to start new habits that can be life changing. Also, I will be developing a reading list that I will offer my church and will share with you all.

Remember, drink as much water as you can, and make a point of cleaning toxins out of you body during this process. You are doing well.

Live Life on Purpose and not By Mistake,

Yours Because I am His,

Leo Colon

pastor@ihpfwc.org

www.ihpfwc.org