Light of the Word Radio
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In today's message, Pastor Ray will remind you that who you choose to spend your time with is vitally important to your life and your walk with Christ. The Bible says that in marriage, Christians are not to be unequally yoked, meaning they should not marry an unbeliever. This same concept can be and should be applied to all relationships. From friendships to coworkers, the relationships that we cherish the most should strengthen and sharpen us spiritually. We need people who will spur us on in Christ.
In today's message, Pastor Ray will remind you that purpose from the Lord is crucial to all areas of life. The old saying that if you aim for nothing, you'll hit nothing still rings true to this day. When we read our Bibles, we can know and understand our purposes as parents, spouses, students, siblings, friends, and so much more. When we know what God expects of us, we can ask for the Lord to empower us to be the best that we can be. Through purpose comes power from God that leads to success.
In today's message, Pastor Ray will share with you about the idols that may be ruling and reigning in your life. When we think of idols, we might think of a small metal statue that one might bow or pray to... However, in our modern context, an idol is really something that becomes more important than God. These modern idols could be relationships, status, or money to name a few. These idols can not only take our eyes off of Christ but they can truly derail our lives from the plans and purposes God has for us.
In today's message, Pastor Ray will encourage you to live your life backward. So what does it mean to live your life backward? Living life backward as a Christian means that your perspective of life moves backward from the point when you enter eternity with Christ... And if you live from that perspective then you know that you have to read your Bible and know when Jesus is coming again. While we can't know exactly when Jesus will come, we can surely see the signs and bring people to Christ before He returns.
In today's message, Pastor Ray will remind you that the Bible tells us that the wages of sin, is death. Now, this means two things. For one, it means that when we sin, we've put ourselves at odds with God and because of that sin, we deserve death. In the new covenant of Jesus, He covers our sins... But sin can also turn out to lead to physical death as well. Some sins like overindulgence in alcohol or the use of drugs can cause us to physically perish... But no sin isn't covered by the blood of Jesus.
In today's message, Pastor Ray will remind you that Jesus is coming again. He left His throne in heaven to be born of a virgin, to live life as a man, and to die a horrendous death for the sins of humanity... But His Word says He will come again to take His bride the Church to be with Him in heaven. He will clean the world of its evil and will reign on the Earth for 1,000 years. As Christians, it's our duty to share the Gospel with others so that they too can share in the glory of the coming of Jesus Christ.
In today's message, Pastor Ray will remind you of the incredible transformation that you'll undergo when you accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. When you accept Jesus, not only does He cleanse you of your past self and past mistakes... He transforms who are now for the future! The Bible says that God renews our minds and makes us into new creations! Who you were before Christ is gone, you're free and made new in Christ Jesus. It's a process each and every day, allow God to restore you.
In today's message, Pastor Ray will encourage you to educate yourself on the end times. Some people don't want to talk about the end times at all because of the uncertainties or theological differences... But no matter what, we need to know what the Bible has to say about the end times. We need to know the signs and prepare for the return of our savior Jesus. For 20-year-old Christians to 2-month-old Christians, we all need to know what will happen and how we can usher people into God's kingdom before then.
In today's message, Pastor Ray shares with you one thing that you may want to consider adding to your daily life with Jesus. For most of us, our life with Jesus includes reading our Bibles, praying, and going to church... And while these are all wonderful things, we can't forget about Thanksgiving. Not the holiday but the act of sharing with God the things that you are thankful for. We don't need a yearly holiday to give God praise for all He has blessed us with, we can make it a daily routine of praising God.
In today's message, Pastor Ray will remind you that God gives His children grace and peace. Grace is something that's becoming more and more scarce in our world... But God gives it to us each and every day, we just have to accept His offer. Now, something we see even less than grace is peace. Many people in the world today suffer from a lack of peace and the inability to find it... But God offers peace freely to those who will take it. There is peace that comes from the Lord and it has no explanation!
In today's message, Pastor Ray will share some of the slogans of various branches of the U.S. military and compare those to what we can pray for in the church. Over several years, the Army's slogan was “an army of one”. In the Church, we too can adopt this idea of an army of one. An army of one implies that though there are many parts, they all work together as one for the good of the greater whole. As the body of Christ, it's important that we all work together in harmony for the kingdom of God.
The number one tool the Devil will use is discouragement. He will use any means necessary to keep you distracted from your relationship with the Lord every day. He will try and keep you from the truth that God is our Lord and Savior. In today’s message, Pastor Ray will remind you to stay strong and unwavering in those times of discouragement and disappointment. It can be easy to stray from God in those moments, but remember that the devil is NO match for God’s love!
Occasionally we can get so blinded by our shame and troubles that we can forget who Jesus is and what His heart is like toward us. He will never turn you away! Jesus will meet you right where you are in your shame, in your anxieties, in your overwhelming days. He can take those heavy burdens, and carry them for you. In today’s message, Pastor Ray will remind you of Jesus’ accepting love. He is the only way, the only truth, and the only life. Jesus is constantly pursuing a relationship with YOU!
Many of us often go to church just because that's what we do on Sundays, or we go because our families go, or our friends pulled us along. We just get into the habit of going and lose that excitement of getting to go to church every Sunday and worship the Lord freely. In today’s message, Pastor Ray will prompt you to find that passion again, and to have expectations that you will meet the Living God! God does speak and He will speak to you, all you must do is draw near to Him and He will draw near to you.
As followers of Christ, we oftentimes can get attacked for just loving Him or pursuing His ways in our lives. That can get exhausting very quickly. God knew that we would be persecuted or afflicted for just chasing after Him, so He made it possible to go to the Father any time of the day in prayer. In today’s message, Pastor Ray will encourage you to trust the Lord your God completely in what He's doing in your life. You can go to God anytime you feel overwhelmed and He will give you rest.
As people, we often think we need to be sinless and pure if we want to go to God, but the truth is we would never be able to come to the Father if it was based on our sinful nature. That’s the beauty of God sending His Son, Jesus! It’s through Him that we can approach God in prayer. Without Jesus, we would never be able to make ourselves righteous enough to converse with God. In today’s message, Pastor Ray simply states that the God we love and serve is gentle. He will not turn you away if you seek after Him.
We fellowship so we can remind each other that the King is coming—and He's worth the wait! When is the last time you joined in with a family of believers to worship God together, to be reminded that He's coming soon, and to remind someone else that everything they're going through now is worth it for the day when Jesus returns!? In today's message, Pastor Ray is going to draw on principles from the book of James to invite you to be faithful in gathering together, so that you can be encouraged, too!
Today Pastor Ray is going to show you that Real faith shows up in real life! And this is what it looks like when you're making the plans, you first listen to God. The first thing you do is ask God what He wants for your day, for your week, for your year. It's a daily thing, and God is in the details! But He's also in the big picture. And the great thing is, when you follow His plan, you can't go wrong! Things around you can go wrong—and they will!--but when you follow in faith He will guard every step.
Nineteen degrees doesn't feel like too much of a difference when you're talking about sailing in the entirety of the ocean. But when it's time to come into the harbor, nineteen degrees is the difference between a safe landing and running aground! Right now, you're sailing the ocean of your life. Whether the water is clear and blue or murky, you're ok out in the open seas. In today's message, Pastor Ray is going to remind you to check your heading, because one day you'll be heading into port.
James 4:8 says, “Draw near to God and he will draw near to you.” But how do we do that? If you look at the other verses surrounding this one, it's already pretty clear! Want to have God draw near to you? First, be a person of peace. Let peace characterize your relationships. Submit to Him and be humble. In other words, you draw near to God by emulating Him and how He loves people. There's so much more surrounding this verse and Pastor Ray is going to dive into it all in today's message!
Do you know the will of God for your life? Pastor Ray does! It's to live in peace with each other. We know that it's not always possible, but are you doing everything you can do to be at peace with the people around you? It might mean swallowing your pride and apologizing for things you've done wrong. It might mean forgiving what's been done to you. Are you willing to do whatever it takes to be in relationships that are covered in the peace of God? Pastor Ray has more to share about that peace today!
How about you? Are there dead things in your life that are dragging you down? What Pastor Ray is going to share with you today is more than just words from an old book. What he has to share with you today is the power of God that takes the dead things and makes them alive again. Sound good? Stick around and watch God do miracles in your life today! God is ready and waiting for you with arms WIDE open. And those dead things? Don't worry about taking care of them first—He's got you covered!
Have you ever found yourself compromising in a situation for the sake of peace? While it can certainly be understandable in certain circumstances, we as believers are to never compromise when it comes to The Word of God, no matter the situation. In today’s message, Pastor Ray discusses how we as believers are to speak the truth no matter what, but in meekness and humility. In his study, you’ll learn that while the world often demands compromise or tolerance, we should practice neither when it comes to truth.
Have you ever been so determined to win an argument or prove a point that you found yourself compromising on your source of wisdom? Whether we recognize it or not, it can be easy for us to rely on worldly wisdom and strife, rather than the peaceful wisdom of God. In today’s message, Pastor Ray discusses the importance of being able to distinguish between worldly wisdom and Godly wisdom. In his study, you’ll learn that if there’s any form of malice, strife, or bitterness, it’s certainly not from God.
Each and every one of us go through life having to make decisions. While many of them are simply day-to-day decisions, every now and then we come across life-altering decisions. It’s none other than these types of decisions that we should heavily rely on the wisdom of God. In today’s message, Pastor Ray will remind you that God eagerly awaits to give us His wisdom. In his study, you’ll learn the importance of seeking the wisdom of God when it comes to the big decisions of life so that you might live out His will.
“No man can tame the tongue.” That’s certainly a strong statement that can be rather discouraging if we’re, to be honest. However, the key word in that verse we read in James is “man.” As you’re probably well aware, we as believers rely on The Spirit, not the flesh. In today’s message, Pastor Ray reflects on how we can either choose to speak from the flesh or The Spirit. In his study, you’ll learn the importance of committing to building others up with wholesome speech and encouraging words.
Many of us have experienced our fair share of moments where we immediately felt regret after saying something we wish we didn’t. Unfortunately, sometimes we’re absolutely oblivious to the damage caused by words we thought were completely harmless. As Pastor Ray will teach you in his message today, this is why it’s extremely crucial that we mind our tongues as believers. In his study, you’ll learn the importance of filtering your words through the power of The Spirit and God’s Word.
It’s rather unfortunate how so many of us have a complete lack of awareness when it comes to our choice of words as we interact with others. This can be especially true when it comes to confrontations, arguments, or even simple disagreements. In today’s message, Pastor Ray reflects on the power of the tongue and its ability to either build others up or tear them down. In his study, you’ll learn the importance of guarding your tongue by being quick to listen, slow to speak, and mindful of your heart.
As believers and followers of Christ, it can be easy for us to get so caught up with an interpretation that we fail to let Scripture speak to us. When it comes to James discussing faith without works being dead, we all too often get hung up on the legalism debate. In today’s message, Pastor Ray will speak clearly about what it is that James is addressing in his letter to The Church. In his study, you’ll learn how coming before the throne of grace with belief in God’s promise is a work of faith in and of itself.
Whenever we hear the word “works” many of us are quick to throw the baby out with the bathwater so to speak. However, it’s important that we understand the definition and context of the word works when it comes to our faith as believers. As Pastor Ray will teach you in his message today, the works in the life of a believer speak to the transformation that should be taking place. In his study, you’ll be reminded that while grace comes by faith alone, faith should show the working fruits of The Spirit.
