Day 3

This is Day 3 of the Fast and things are going well.  I continue to hear great testimonies of what God is doing in the lives of many people that are participating in the fast.  I want everyone to know that we are calling your names in prayer before the Lord daily during this time of fasting and prayer.  I want everyone that will to take part in the discussion that I will post over the next day or so on http://www.facebook.com/ and on my blog site.  I think that everyone learns more when we all participate in the discussion.  It gives everyone an opportunity to get involved in the conversation, to express themselves, and interact with others.  This is something that we could not accomplish in a service or even in a classroom setting.  So I will be posting some questions and inviting discussion over the blog site and facebook.  I encourage you to take part when you can. 

Special Prayer Request: 

1. Please remember the Holmes and Frazier families in prayer.  Sister Viola Holmes lost her brother yesterday morning, so let us hold them up in prayer. 
2. Brigitte Barbery is still looking for a job.
3. The Scalon's are in need of a great miracle (God knows).

*Please post any other requests that I missed or am not aware of.


Michael D. Sanes
Pastor, THWC

Day 2 of Fast

Friends,

It is day two of our fast and I would like to thank those of you are taking an active part in it.  God is moving in ways that people cannot imagine.  Brother Glen called me this afternoon to tell me about the greatness of God.  He went on to tell me how Kristy was selected as a professors assistant, and that they would wave her tuition and pay her nicely each month also.  This is a huge financial blessing, and it came during the fast.  It was definitely the hand of the Lord.

As you pray today, please remember Jack Richardson's mom.  She had brain surgery this morning and is recovering now.  Let's ask God to completely hear and restore her.  There are many others in the church that are sick and in need of prayer.  Please feel free to use the comment button below to post any thoughts or prayer requests you may have.

We are having Bible reading and prayer every weekday morning at 6 a.m. I invite you to come and be with us.  It is good to see the new faces at prayer.

Today I ask you to pray for Harbor Class Discipleship Program; it will be starting up on Monday night at 6:30pm.  I invite you to sign up and take part.

Be Blessed!

Pastor Mike Sanes

The Fast Starts Today

Well friends, it is January 10th and the fast starts today.  I want to encourage everyone to spend as much time as they can today in the Word and in Prayer.  There is much to learn and apply from the Word and so much that we need to pray about. 

I would like to encourage any new believers that are fasting with us to begin their Bible reading in the book of St. John, and just continue pushing on through the New Testament during the fast.

Today I would like for us to concentrate on our relocation project.  Things are going well, but there are always wrinkles to be ironed out. 

1. Pray that God will give us wisdom to do things HIS way and not our own. 
2. Pray that God will be glorified and lifted up throughout the process.
3. Pray that He will send un-thought of blessings and provisions for His church.
4. Pray that this project will touch the lives of many people who pass by and participate in the building process.
5. Pray that we select and use the right people throughout the whole process, not just the building process, but also the staffing process.
6. Pray about how you can be used in the process.
7. I would also like to ask as many as will to go to our property and walk through it, praying with Abraham-like faith that God will have His Way in this whole process, and that He will give us everything we need to make this vision come to pass. 

Also, when you pray, please remember Bro. David (Kathy Hopkin's father), Bro. Larry Lee, Bro. Josh Cribbs, Sis. Marylou Howell, Bro. Ray Ward.  There is probably others that I'm not aware of, but please feel free to use the comment button at the bottom to add your thoughts or prayer requests.

Here is the link that I mentioned yesterday for Pastor Jentezen Franklins thoughts on fasting.  http://jentezenfranklin.org/fasting/


Pastor Sanes

The New Year Fast

Well, it's that time again.  It is the first month of the new year and time for us to offer ourselves unto the Lord afresh and anew.  It's not that we don't offer ourselves throughout the year, but that this is the "first part" of the year, and it seems fitting that we would fast and devote ourselves to God, and pledge our faithfulness to Him for the rest of the year.  This is the fourth or fifth year that we have participated in the New Year's Fast at some level.  I don't know if he started the movement, but Pastor Jentezen Franklin champions the movement of fasting at the start of every year.  You can follow the link http://jentezenfranklin.org/fasting/ to find helpful information about fasting.  He has several links that will be of value for you as you participate in this fast.  I invite you to follow this link and participate with us at whatever level you feel led do.  I will be blogging everyday concerning the fast, and there will be a place for you to respond with comments, and I invite you to do so.

The Fast Starts Tomorrow!

Blessings!

Pastor Sanes

For Those Who Are Weary

A Place Called Weary 

Hebrews 12:1-3

Intro:  Sometimes we just don’t have the energy to accomplish all that must be done.  We may be faced with great responsibility or a marvelous opportunity, but there is no strength to go on.  We are weary, utterly tired, we need rest from the burden of over-work and the pressures of life.  Some need rest and time to recuperate because they have a body that is not well and they’ve already pushed it beyond its limits.

Sometimes our energy has been drained away by a heavy burden that has been placed on our backs.  Just remember, He will not allow more to be placed on you than you can bear.

No matter what we are going through God invites us to share that burden with Him.  “Cast all your cares upon Him, for He cares for you” 1Pt.5:7

For He gives rest to the weary and strength to the burdened heart

Isaiah 40:28-31 (KJV)      Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding. [29] He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. [30] Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: [31] But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

Trans: Although you are weary, consider the following…

I.                   The Lord Knows You’re Weary

1.      Hebrews 4:13  “Nothing in all of creation is hidden from God’s sight, everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account”.

                                                              i.      So God sees through your painted on smile and outward appearance that says everything is okay. 

1.      I’m as strong as ever…

2.      Never been better…

                                                            ii.      God knows that deep inside, behind that outward appearance is a person who is:

1.      Weary and worn out…

2.      One who is utterly tired and is starting to weigh the options to determine if life is still worth living.

3.      One that is weak from fighting battles and cannot think clearly now.

2.      Great is our Lord, and mighty in power, His understanding has no limits

                                                              i.      God understands the place called weary, for He has been there too

II.                He Invites You to Come To Him

1.      Matthew 11:28-30 (KJV) Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. [29] Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. [30] For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

2.      The Lord has given us an invitation to come to Him

                                                              i.      He has offered help for our problems and rest for our souls

                                                            ii.      But often we turn to everyone but the right One.

1.      Illus:  Green Leaf, Charter by the Sea, Turning Point, Teen Challenge, Etc…

                                                          iii.      My question today is:  Since you’ve tried all of that, why not turn to Jesus?

III.             He Promises Strength, Rest and Help if You Will Come To Him

1.      Exodus 33:14 (KJV) And he said, My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest.

2.      Psalm 29:1 (KJV)  Give unto the Lord, O ye mighty, give unto the Lord glory and strength.

3.      2 Cor. 12:9 (KJV) And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness.

4.      We may not understand it but, “the foolishness of God is wiser than the wisdom of men; and the weakness of God is stronger than the strength of men…

5.      When we have no strength to go on Jesus says: “Lean on Me”

IV.             He Promises That if We Endure In This Life, We Will Never Be Tired or Weary Again

1.      Galatians 6:9 (KJV)  And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.

2.      IF we can just hold on a little while longer we will live in a place where the wicked will never be, they will trouble us no more

                                                              i.      The weary will lay down his burdens and rest

                                                            ii.      The warriors will beat their weapons into plowshares and learn the art or war no more

                                                          iii.      The Lion will lay down with the lamb

                                                          iv.      No more hostility, no more violence, no more crime

1.      What a Day That Will Be (Song says)
“There is coming a day, when no heartaches shall come
No more clouds in the sky, no more tears to dim the eye
All is peace forever more, on that happy golden shore
What a day, glorious day that will be.

Chorus:
What a day that will be when my Jesus I shall see,
And I look upon his face,
The One who saved me by his grace;
When he takes me by the hand,
And leads me through the Promised Land,
What a day, glorious day that will be.
There'll be no sorrow there, no more burdens to bear,
No more sickness, no more pain, no more parting over there,
But forever I will be with the one who died for me,
What a day, glorious day that will be.”

Conclusion:  You may be weary of Failure, exhaustion, burnout, always coming up empty. 

Hebrews 12:1-3 (MSG)
¹ Do you see what this means—all these pioneers who blazed the way, all these veterans cheering us on? It means we'd better get on with it. Strip down, start running—and never quit! No extra spiritual fat, no parasitic sins. ² Keep your eyes on Jesus, who both began and finished this race we're in. Study how he did it. Because he never lost sight of where he was headed—that exhilarating finish in and with God—he could put up with anything along the way: cross, shame, whatever. And now he's there, in the place of honor, right alongside God. ³ When you find yourselves flagging in your faith, go over that story again, item by item, that long litany of hostility he plowed through. That will shoot adrenaline into your souls!

1. We have this cloud of witnesses.
2. Keep your eyes on Jesus—remember Peter walking to Him on the water.
3. Study how He did it—He did it by spending regular time with the Father.
1. He prayed often.