GALATIANS-EPHESIANS-PHILIPPIANS-COLOSSIANS

A great Christmas day yesterday with the grand kids.  I enjoyed so much having them around.  Yesterday I talked with my mother and my father is not doing well at all.  They were not holding out much hope he would make it out of the hospital, but thank God for heaven!!  Thanks for your prayers. In reading these prison epistles of Paul, they are a wealth of truth.  Here are a few: 1) DESERT TRAINING- If you recall, I talked about this with John the Baptist.  It says he was in the desert until the day of his showing.  Well, after Paul's conversion, he went into Arabia. (Gal. 1:17)  This was his desert training.  Time alone with God transforms!  Until we spend our time with Him, we are not fit to spend time with others.  Before we can be a benefit to others, we must first have spend a great deal of time with God.  This is "desert training", and there is no substitute when desiring to be greatly used of God.  My desert time was as a teenager, riding my bike and talking with God.  A college student walking around the block singing to God and talking to Him.  A young preacher walking inside the church crying out to God, singing to Him, asking for something special from a powerful God.  Find your time alone with God and let everyone around you benefit from it. 2) SAVIOR-CREATOR- Eph. 3:9 says: "who created all things by Jesus Christ;"  Jesus was there creating the world with God the Father and God the Holy Spirit.  He is our Savior and our Creator.  We are twice His... by creation, and by redemption! 3) DON'T GIVE PLACE- Eph. 4:27 says: "Neither give place to the devil."  The devil does not have any control in our lives, unless we hand over to him our controller.  When we give place to the devil, we do just that.  We allow him to hold the controller of our lives and then he calls the shots he desires and our flesh would welcome.  Don't do this!  We are not ignorant of his devises.... let us not live like we are ignorant.  Don't give any place to the devil. 4) THE PRIZE- Phil. 3:14- "I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus."  There will be a day when we get the "prize"!  That day every heartache will be worth it all.  Heaven is that prize for us believers and the crowns that Christ will give us on that day!  5) WALK YOUR TALK- Col. 2:6 "As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the LORD, so walk ye in him:"  What we have been taught is what we ought to walk!  Your preacher is trying to share with you the truth of the Word of God, now it is up to us to take it and walk it out in our lives! Well, I hope you have a blessed day!  Pastor Mike Mutchler