Encouragement

Seeds of Hope

/ pastorpete51 / 5 Comments

So take heart, men, for I have faith in God that it will be exactly as I have been told. Acts 27:25 ESV

This past week I have been cleaning up the flower beds and planting seeds at my sister in law’s. While she is in hospice care at home my wife is cooking and helping with personal care while I weed, water and trim. Those seeds I plant give Diane hope because every one put in the ground says, “Come back in six weeks and I’ll show you my blooms!” Those seeds reminded me of the story of Saint Paul in the storm.

When Paul was going through that storm the easiest thing to do would have been to complain and blame everyone else. Yet though we can be sure that Paul prayed plenty the text seems to say that God just sent an angel with a message of hope while he was sleeping. Get the picture? Everyone was desperately fighting the storm, but Paul said his prayers, trusted God and lay down to rest! Then when Paul woke up he passed that hope on to everyone else who was in the same boat with him.

When we plant seeds, our garden doesn’t do anything. Its job is simply to receive. We as the gardeners do all the work and the garden gets to give joy to anyone who sees the flowers when they bloom. If we are believers in Jesus Christ then we each are a part of God’s big garden. God plants some seeds of hope in all of us especially when we are facing storms. Maybe we should ask, “What seeds of hope has he given me that I might show to others as they face their storm today?

City Gates

/ pastorpete51 / 3 Comments 
 
 
Outside the City Gates 

 On cloudy days
 In shadow hours
 Or when the skies grow clear
 He speaks a word with quiet power
 For everyone who hears
  
 But some will look to earthly power 
 And temporary things
 Yet for the ones who will believe
 He is the King of Kings
  
  Who calls our name each one by one
 Then turns to us and waits
 For us to rise and come to him
 Outside the city gates 

Outside the City Gates by Peter Caligiuri © 2020 All rights reserved

God Still Has a Job For Us To Do

/ pastorpete51 / 7 Comments

I Confess that this election has been tough to deal with, but moping isn’t going to help much and as I’ve been praying, God comforted my heart with four things from Matthew’s gospel.

Then he got into the boat and His disciples followed him. Matthew 8:23. Jesus is still in my boat! As the disciples traveled across the Sea of Galilee they got caught in a storm. But no matter that water was coming over the sides and they were exhausted they had the most important thing going for them. Jesus was still on board!

All the storms we face in life have one thing in common. We get afraid, but Jesus is not! The disciples went and woke him saying, “Lord save us! We’re going to drown!”

Jesus is still in control! He is not wondering what to do next! …Then he got up and rebuked the wind and the waves and it was completely calm. Matthew 8:26b

God still has a job for us to do on the other side of the storm! Matthew 8:28 when He arrived at the other side… If we will just stick close to Jesus we will discover that He always brings us to the other side and that when we get there he has something for us to do!