Safe Heaven House Of Prayer

"In that day you will ask Me nothing. Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you. Until now you have asked nothing in My name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full." -John 16:23-24 What brings you joy? What brings you joy says a lot about you. If you could ask for anything, what would it be? We have an extravagant  God who loves us beyond measure. Why not ask Him to help you share the gospel? Ask God to make you a soul winner. After all, what could give you greater joy? Being present when the Lord saves another soul brings more joy to a believer's heart than any other thing. Tragically, in the American church today, we don't see in God's people a hunger for souls or hearts broken for the lost around us. Our passion for the salvation of others has cooled. Proverbs 11:30 says, "He who wins souls is wise." Proverbs 10:5 says, "He who sleeps in harvest awaits. We need to be awake, excited, e

My God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus. -Philippians 4:19 God always supplies our needs. He always come through. He is, after all, Jehovah-Jireh, the God who provides. I had just gotten home from being away for a few days was excited about seeing my family. Holding my son, Jake, in my arms, I walked downstairs to see my daughters, Macey and Kenzey. I missed the last step, awkwardly pulled back to keep from dropping Jake, and tore my quadriceps muscle and the tendons in my leg, causing me to need surgery. Now, my ministry was completely faith-based, and I had no idea how long it would be before I could preach again. After just a few days at home, a supporter in Atlanta called me and said he wanted to send a little something to me in mail. I told my wife "a little something" could $50.00 or $500.00. A few days later, I grabbed my crutches and hobbled to the mailbox. There I found a small security envelope addressed to me. The ch

He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work. -2 Corinthians 9:6-8 God wants us to be cheerful givers of time, talents, and treasures He gives us. I'm on the road a lot. Once when I was in Missouri, I received a Facebook message from a woman asking me to pray about possibly presenting the gospel at a local skating rink where several lost teenagers hung out. She had grown up going there, and God had burdened her heart for young people she saw there each day. I told her, "I don't have to pray about it. Let's do it!" I was excited to go that night. The woman made the arrangements and spread the word, and the rink played Christian music and offer

We have such trust through Christ toward God. Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God, who also made us sufficient as ministers of the new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. -2 Corinthians 3:4-6 As an evangelist, I am honored to see the Spirit give new life. I never want to be lazy about that privileged calling, and I always want to e mindful that I am to do all that I can and trust God to do what I cannot. When I go into a church to preach, I faithfully present the Gospel, but God saves the lost. I am the chaplain for a high school football team in my hometown. One day after I shared the devotion, I went into the coaches room, and the middle school coach pointed to my Bible and said, "Hey, will you do that for us? Will you be chaplain for our team too?" Of course I agreed. I asked, "When do you want to start?" He replied, &q

The Lord said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness." Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ's sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong. -2 Corinthians 12:9-10 One afternoon, I began to feel weak with flu-like symptoms. I thought I'd be tough and sweat it out. Two days later, I was in the ER and then admitted into the hospital. I remember a battery of tests, CT scans, MRIs, bloodwork, and, finally, the diagnosis: spinal meningitis. The eight long days quarantined in the hospital, thinking of my wife and children, wondering if I would live. The doctor said the reason for sickness was exhaustion. My body was drained. My immunities were down. I had been trying to be everything from the custodian to the CEO of the new church plant. The doctor said,

The Lord your God in your midst, the Mighty One, will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing. -Zephaniah 3:17 Today's verse is rich with promises from our God. We read that He is in our midst. Our Mighty God will rescue us. He rejoices over us with gladness and singing. And among those wonderful assurances is that line that captures my attention: "He will quiet you with His love." We've focused this week on Jesus gifting us with His guardianship. Often, world, our minds and emotions are most frequently under attack? Physical jeopardy, while possible, is inferior to the attack on our inner person. Pressures, anxieties, and all kinds of threats shriek so loudly that we can find it difficult to function in the daytime and sometimes difficult to sleep at night. Isn't it good to know that our God "will quiet you with His love"? You've undoubtedly seen a toddler fall down, ma

He shall cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you shall take refuge; His truth shall be your shield and buckler. You shall not be afraid of the terror by night, nor of the arrow that files by day, nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness, nor of destruction that lays waste at noonday. A thousand may fall at your side, and ten thousand at your right hand; but it shall not come near you. -Psalms 91:4-7 It was the middle of the night when one of those out-of-nowhere storms that we might in Kansas rolled in, bringing hail the size of ping pong balls. Out among those fiercely bouncing pieces of ice, a mother duck sat on her nest and she didn't move. She had eggs in that nest, so whatever happened to her would just have to happen. She refused to leave her eggs at the mercy of the storm. The atheist would have to engage in some serious mental gymnastics to imagine how such a self-sacrificial, altruistic instinct could happen accidentally. That's because the instinct

Behold, I send an Angel before you to keep you in the way and to bring into the place which I have prepared. Beware of Him and obey His voice; do not provoke Him, for He will not pardon your transgressions; for My name is in Him. But if you indeed obey His voice and do all that I speak, then I will be an enemy to your enemies and an adversary to your adversaries. For My Angel will go before you...and I will cut them off. -Exodus 23:20-23 In the days leading up to a major event such as the visit of an important dignitary, an advance team is often dispatched to the site. Members of the team very special responsibilities as they secure accommodations, assess potential risks, and set the stage for the big occasion. As you face a new day, God offers to do the same and more for you. But He won't merely send a team; He will personally check things out. In fact, many Bible scholars believe the angel God promised to Moses and the Israelites in today's Scripture verses was none other

The Scripture has confined all under sin, that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe. But before faith come, we were kept under guard by the law, kept for the faith which would afterward be revealed. Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith. -Galatians 3:22-24 Long before the newborn child fully knows the mother, the mother knows the child. The child's memory meter isn't running yet, but the mother cares for, shelters, and guards her little one. Only with maturity will the child come to realize the protection and care provided in that unknowable season before awareness. As we focus today Jesus watch over us, let's stop to reflect on something wonderful. Even before we were God's children, He was guarding and taking care of us. The book of Romans says He "foreknew" us (8:29 and 11:2). Even when we didn't know Jesus, He knew us, and God's Spirit was at work bringing u

The Lord is faithful, who will establish you ad guard you from the evil one. And we have confidence in the Lord concerning you, both that you do and will do the things we command you. Now may the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God and into the patience of Christ. -2 Thessalonians 3:3-5 According to one account, the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, our sixteenth president, occurred because a guard deserted his post. The man assigned to watch the door of Lincoln's box in Ford's Theatre left for a nearby tavern and we know the rest of tragic story. Abandoned by his protector, Lincoln was the victim of an assassin. We, too, have an enemy. First Peter 5:8 tell us that our "adversary the devil walks about like roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour." But we don't have to face him alone. Our Scripture reading assures us that Jesus will guard us faithfully from the evil one. As our Protector, He will never leave His post. Is there any characteristic more

For the eyes of the Lord are on righteous, And His ears are open to their prayers; But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil. And who is he who will harm you if you become followers of what is good? -1 Peter 3:12-13 We've all done it. We're supposed to be watching someone a child we know and love and we get distracted. Maybe our eyes stayed focused, but we found ourselves listening to something other than the little one's voice. Or perhaps we were still within earshot, but our eyes drifted away from our young charge. Isn't it great to know that Jesus never gets distracted? His eyes are watching us continually, and His ears are always open to our prayers. In other words, we have His complete and undivided attention. What's so amazing is what that fact suggests about how important we must be to Him. Normally, in our world, this kind of attentiveness is lavished only on the most significant of people. This level of personal attention suggest the Secret S

Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. -Ephesians 4:29-30 According to Merriam-Webster's, a seal is "something that confirms, ratifies, or makes secure: a guarantee, assurance." The verb seal means "to determine irrevocably or indisputably."  So the verses above teach that our salvation is confirmed, made secure, guaranteed, and irrevocable! But a seal is only as secure as either the quality of the seal or the person who applied the seal. That being the case, it is glorious that our salvation is confirmed, made secure, and guaranteed by the Holy Spirit! In light of this unshakeable security, some people conclude that they can live any way they want. Paul told the Ephesian believers and us by extension that their lives and their lips were to be gracious. Believers are not to li

All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out. For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. This is the will of the Father who sent Me, that of all He has given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day. -John 6:37-39 I am so thankful that it isn't up to me to keep myself saved, to keep myself in the circle of God's family. If that were the case, I would no doubt have lost my salvation long ago. I am all too aware that, in spite of my desire to please God, I have failed Him miserably so many times. I am also thankful that praise Lord I didn't have to clean my life up or  promise to keep it clean.  Instead, all I had to do was simply go to Jesus. Because I did so, and because He saved me, He is now responsible for keeping me. It would be blessing enough if our security were solely in Jesus promise never to cast us out of the family of God. But Jesus

This is faithful saying: For if we died with Him, we shall also live with Him. If we endure, we shall also reign with Him. If we deny Him, He also will deny us. If we are faithless, He remains faithful; He cannot deny Himself. -2 Timothy 2:11-13 Salvation does not come with merely an intellectual acceptance of some historical facts. Neither does salvation mean just declaring what we believe. Instead, salvation comes when we see ourselves as sinners under God's judgement; believe that Jesus paid with His death on the cross the penalty God  established for our sin and then rose from the dead; and call upon Jesus to save us. At that moment a divine, spiritual transaction takes place. We are actually identified with Jesus death, His burial, and His resurrection. In addition, the water baptism of a new believer offers a picture of the spiritual reality that has taken place. Then comes the promise: since we died with Jesus, we will also live with Him. Paul went on to tell us that one

Because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, "Abba, Father!" Therefore you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ. Galatians 4:6-7 The apostle Paul wrote emphatically that Christians are sons and daughters of God, and, therefore, Jesus is the Christians's brother. Did you hear that? It's truly remarkable! And this position of son and daughter is not just on paper; you enjoy this position every day. If you have accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior, something supernatural occurred. At the moment of your salvation, the Lord Jesus released His Holy Spirit into your heart, and your spirit came alive. You were born again! As a result of your new birth, the Holy Spirit is constantly at work bringing you into a fuller, richer relationship with the Lord Jesus and the Father. One of the Spirit's most wonderful works is to give you the unqualified assurance that God is your Fathe

You are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being chief cornerstone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. Ephesians 2:19-21 One afternoon when Jesus was alone with His disciples, He made one of His greatest promises: "I will build  My church" (Matthew 16:18). Using that same metaphor, the apostle Paul described the building materials Jesus was using, and they weren't physical stones and boards. Rather, Paul declared that Jesus church was being built of saints, of holy ones who were "members of the household of God." This remarkable truth has great consequences. The apostle Paul taught that any person regardless of age, race, sex, wealth, or power could enter the household of God. That was radical in Paul's day, and still is today. Jesus planned fo

For both Jesus who sanctifies and those who are being sanctified are all of one, for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren, saying : "I will declare Your name to My brethren; In the midst of the assembly I will sing praise to You." Hebrews 2:11-12 Salvation, sanctification, and family these go together in God's plan. Because of Jesus great victory over sin and death, He is able to make humans holy in a process called sanctification. In fact, the New Testament calls those who receive Jesus as Lord and Savior "holy ones" and "saints." As the writer of the book of Hebrews put it, the One who sanctifies and the one who is sanctified are of one Father. Jesus and Christians have the same Father, Jesus is our Brother! The Lord Jesus desires for each Christian to know the Father as He knows the Father. According to Psalm 22:22 (quoted in the Hebrews passage above), Jesus declares the name of the Father to His brothers and sisters. To know so