All Categories - Messiah Missionary Baptist Church

JOY!!!

11/6/2020

TODAY’S VERSE
I have loved you even as the Father has loved me. – I have told you these things so that you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your joy will overflow!”
John 15:9-12 (NLT)

TODAY’S THOUGHT
We were born for joy! So often we think joy is the result of our circumstances. If we behave, if we are lucky, if everything works out right, there will be joy. But joy goes much deeper than that. Events and circumstances can make us happy or sad, but can they give us true long-lasting joy? The kind of joy that isn’t dependent on what we do? No. But Jesus can. Listen to the words that He says to you, “I have loved you like my Father loves me.” And that love was from the time He chose to create you—unconditional, irrevocable, love from God Himself. Today, let the thought of God’s love poured out for you on the cross of Calvary bring wonder. Let the image of almighty God looking at you with pleasure, love, and acceptance warm your heart. Hear the words of Jesus, “I have told you these things so that you will be filled with my joy!” Today, let His joy overflow in your heart.

TODAY’S PRAYER
Father, overflow my heart with Your joy. The joy that comes from knowing that You love me. From believing that there is nothing, I could ever do to earn or lose your love. You love me because You choose to. It is finished, and I am left with deep, deep joy.
AMEN

A Fruitful Life

10/29/2020

TODAY’S VERSE
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.
Galatians 5:22-23 (NIV)

TODAY’S THOUGHT
We live so much of life as if it all depended on us. We must achieve. We must make people happy. You know, “If it’s going to be, then it’s up to me!” mentality. Now, I believe in personal responsibility and accountability, but we need to realize that we cannot live the kind of life Christ wants us to without Him. He is the one that came to give us a full life. It is “with” Him. We need to add faith to whatever we do by bringing God into the picture. We do this by changing “me” to a “we.” It is “Christ in me” that makes all the difference in the world. Jesus said that He came to give us a life that is to the full. He didn’t come to make us busy, or famous, or rich, or any other obsession that we may have. He came to give us the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. This is what He wants our life to be built on. This is the life He desires for us. Today, let’s quit striving and start living. Come to Jesus and let Him fill you with His Holy Spirit. Ask Him to produce the “fruit of the Spirit” in your life.

TODAY’S PRAYER
Father, I ask that You would produce the fruit of the Holy Spirit in my life. Help me live for You in Your strength and Your power.
AMEN

He is Alive!!

10/18/2020

TODAY’S VERSE
I am the living one. I died, but look—I am alive forever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and the grave.
Revelation 1:18 (NLT)

TODAY’S THOUGHT
“He’s Alive!” Those two words can make all the difference in the world. So many people talk about a God of their choice. They say that we should be in touch with an energy, a force, or one with the universe. But the God of the Scriptures is so much more than that. We serve an entity. A true living God, not of our choice, but one that chooses us. A God who is there and is active in His creation. A God who united with us through His son Jesus. Jesus came as a baby lived among us, and then died to be a sacrifice for us. He took the penalty for our sins so we could be right with God. And then, as a result of His very Deity, Jesus rose from the dead. He is alive! What does that do for you? What reality does that speak into your life? Our God is real, and He is alive. He is all-knowing and all-powerful. And most of all, God is vitally interested in your life! Do you know Him as your Lord and Savior? If not, today, you can invite Him to be your God, and you can give Him complete control of everything that you are. When you do, He will not only be alive, He will be alive in your heart.

TODAY’S PRAYER
Dear God, I thank You that You are alive. I need to know that You are alive in me. Forgive me of all my sins. I accept the death of Jesus Christ as the payment for all my wrongdoing and ask You to become alive in my heart. Make me a Christian right now. I pray this in the name of Jesus.
AMEN

Worship Him

10/9/2020

TODAY’S VERSE
Day after day and night after night they keep on saying, ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God, the Almighty—the one who always was, who is, and who is still to come.”’
Revelation 4:8 (NLT)

TODAY’S THOUGHT
What is it about God’s Holiness that moves me so much? Holiness, I can’t comprehend it. I try to put my mind around it, but it is too vast. When I sing, “Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty,” the fact that this Holy God allows me to adore Him and worship Him is humbling and very moving. It is mind-boggling to be in His presence and sing about the very thing that would generally separate me from Him. His majesty, His power, His might, His Holiness; who am I that He would allow me to sing His praise? And yet He desires my praise. And He desires yours! He rejoices in our worship. He invites us to say with all of Heaven, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God, the Almighty—the one who always was, who is, and who is still to come.” Today, worship Him. He is Holy. He is worthy of all our praise.

TODAY’S PRAYER
Father, how I adore You. How I worship You. Thank You for Your Holiness, majesty, and power. Thank You for Your grace and love. Indeed, You are worthy of all my praise.
AMEN

No Burden

9/2/2020

TODAY’S VERSE
Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.”Matthew 11:28 (NLT)

TODAY’S THOUGHT
I love this passage. The Lord bids us come and rest. How different is that? It is the complete opposite of striving. You know, striving to “earn” God’s love, or worst, “keep it” as if God is some fickle tyrant. Nothing could be farther from the heart of God. Jesus knew we would be weary and carry heavy burdens. It is part of living in this world. But He never meant that living for God would be the cause of the burden. No, He said if we would take His teachings and live them, we would find rest for our soul. In “Desiring God’s Will” Dr. David Benner writes, “Hearing the invitation, everything within me wants to draw near and receive the gift of love that Jesus represents – not out of obligation but out of a soul-aching desire. And each time I do, my heart is slowly but progressively more aligned with the heart of God – God’s desires becoming my desires and God’s will becoming my will.” So today, quit trying to earn His love. You already have it. Don’t strive to please Him so He won’t abandon You; he will never leave you. Today, rest in His love.

TODAY’S PRAYER
Father, forgive me for not believing You. Forgive me for making a mockery out of Your unconditional love for me. Thank You that your love for me is real, I don’t have to earn it, it is not a burden. Help me rest in your love today.
AMEN

Real Love

8/6/2020

TODAY’S VERSE
Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good. Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other. Never be lazy, but work hard and serve the Lord enthusiastically. Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying. When God’s people are in need, be ready to help them. Always be eager to practice hospitality.” Romans 12:9-13 (NLT)

TODAY’S THOUGHT
When Paul decided to write about love, he didn’t mix words. He starts by telling us to quit being phony and really love each other. We are to hate what is wrong and do good. We are to have a real genuine affection for each other and not fake it. We are to delight in honoring each other! This kind of love Paul is writing about is not lazy. It serves others. And what is love without encouragement? Paul, who knew real hardships, modeled encouraging love and asked us to do the same. Love helps us to rejoice in hope, be patient in trouble, and pray when things aren’t going our way. Finally, when those we are supposed to love are in need, then love insists that we help them. Love is eager to practice hospitality. Today, let’s commit ourselves to real love, the love Paul is writing about. Let us love those around us the way Christ would love.

TODAY’S PRAYER
Dear Jesus, help me love the way You love. Help me love with action, not just words.
AMEN

Press On!!

5/31/2020

TODAY’S VERSE
I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.
Philippians 3:13-14 (NLT)

TODAY’S THOUGHT
It is so easy to live in the past. Remorse, grief, disappointment, bitterness, so many painful emotions can keep us in a state of limbo. Paul had regrets; he had persecuted Christians. Paul had disappointments and hardships, but he knew the secret to living with all of life’s ups and downs. He pressed on. He knew when the appropriate time came; it was time to forget. It was time to quit looking behind and trust God for the future. God doesn’t remain in the past, and neither should we. Today, what is keeping you in the past? What has you locked in painful emotions? Give it to God. Forget the past and look forward to what God has ahead. He is not finished with you yet!

TODAY’S PRAYER
Father, I have hung on to my past. Today, I surrender to You. I quit looking back with regret, sorrow, remorse, and bitterness and will look forward with anticipation, joy, and excitement toward what lies ahead. Today, I choose to trust You. In Jesus’ name.
AMEN

There is Hope This Special Weekend

4/11/2020

TODAY’S VERSE
Therefore, we who have fled to him for refuge can have great confidence as we hold to the hope that lies before us. This hope is a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls.
Hebrews 6:18-19

TODAY’S THOUGHT
With the magnitude of the crisis that we have been in, with all the changes in schedules, with lives, turned upside down, it would be easy to forget Easter weekend. The fact is for many who look forward to this weekend; churches will be empty. No choirs singing, no pageantry, no sitting with friends and family listening to a special sermon filled with the hope and power of the resurrection. But churches are not the only thing that will be empty. Today there is a hill with a stone that has been rolled away. There is a tomb that is also empty! Jesus is not there, He has risen! And even though our churches will be empty, our hearts can be filled with hope, faith, and love because God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. Today there is hope in the midst of our crisis. We are not alone. Our faith is not empty. Jesus left the tomb empty so He could fill our hearts with His hope. Today know that we live in both worlds. We are citizens here with the very presence of God among us, and because of our faith in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, we are citizens of our eternal home where the power of God radiates from the Throne of God to keep us and sustain us even in these times. Today, take a moment, stop whatever you are doing, and give Jesus thanks. Thanks that He is here and that He loves you and knows what you are going through. Thanks that He died on the Cross for you and that He is not dead but very much alive in your heart.

TODAY’S PRAYER
Dear God, on this special weekend with all the crisis around us, we stop to give you thanks. Thanks for your sacrifice for our sins on Calvary. Thanks for the hope of Easter. And thanks for Your presence with us because of the Risen Christ.
Amen

HOPE AND COMFORT

4/3/2020

TODAY’S VERSE
LORD, you know the hopes of the helpless. Surely you will hear their cries and comfort them. Psalms 10:17 (NLT)

TODAY’S THOUGHT
There are times when we feel helpless. But it doesn’t mean we are hopeless. David shared that God can give us hope no matter how helpless we feel. He hears our cries and will bring us comfort. That is why Abraham kept hoping even when there was no reason for hope. When circumstances did not make any sense, it was the comfort from hope that allowed Abraham’s faith not to weaken. Paul shared that “Abraham never wavered in believing God’s promise. His faith grew stronger, and in this he brought glory to God.” Why did his faith grow stronger? Because He knew God, and “he was fully convinced that God is able to do whatever he promises.” How my heart yearns for that kind of faith, that kind of trust, that kind of hope. Today, may we know God like David. May we believe God like Abraham. May our faith grow stronger. Today, let us keep hoping.

TODAY’S PRAYER
Father, help me know You better. Increase my faith. Help me to trust in You and be comforted and full of hope. In Jesus’ name.
AMEN

COME!!

3/1/2020

TODAY’S VERSE
“Come, follow me,’ Jesus said”
Matthew 4:19
TODAY’S THOUGHT
Come is one of the most beautiful words in the Bible. It is an offer to participate in something. An invitation to move in a certain direction. It is only as good as the person requesting you to come and the object which you are moving toward. Today God offers so much for you to partake of. He offers you the ultimate relationship with Himself and all that goes with it. What is it your soul desires? Come. What is it that you find missing in your life? Come. Are you weary? Come and find rest. Are you poor in Spirit? Come, take your inheritance. Is your heart thirsty? Come. Do you desire peace, joy, forgiveness, strength, hope, and love? Come. Today, hear the voice of the Lord. He is calling out to you. All you need to do is come.
TODAY’S PRAYER
Father, You love me, and today I hear Your voice say, “Come.” So I come to You dear Lord with open arms and heart. I come to You in humility and anticipation to receive all that You have for me. In Jesus’ name.
AMEN