Freshwater

Located in the wilds of Wyoming, the name Freshwater was chosen as a Western analogy to Christ. Just as He is the Living Water, and we must have Him to have eternal life, any desert dweller knows the importance of fresh water to life, both for self, and the nourishment of crops or livestock. By taking nourishment in God and His word, we strengthen our own relationship with Him, our faith, and the quality and abundance of our fruitfulness.

Our keystone verse is from Jeremiah, Chapter 17, Verse 8: "For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see whenSave heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit."

The fruit that we speak of is mentioned in Galatians 5:22
"22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 23Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law."

And the heat could be anything we experience that might test our faith in God; trials and tribulations, relationships, anything that focuses our love and attention anywhere but on Him...

Wednesday, August 26, 2020

Pastor Paul Page September 2020

 

Jesus is coming again someday. We don’t know the day or hour, but He did give us some tasks to do until he comes back, and He did tell us to be prepared.

Matthew 24:42-44 42 Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.43 But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up.44 Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.

If you’re a follower of Christ part of your job is to always be prepared, to always be ready and watching, to continue doing the things He told us to do until His return.

1 Peter 5:8-9 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world.

 

The thing about doing what God wants us to do is there are always enemies who want to tear down the wall, to attack us. We know Satan is real, we can feel him every day, pushing, trying to pull us away from Christ.

Nehemiah approached this in a godly manner. God had already touched this king’s heart. Nehemiah prayed before telling the king what he needed, and the king helped him.

God wants us to build that wall and stand watch.

Nehemiah 4:7-9

But it came to pass, that when Sanballat, and Tobiah, and the Arabians, and the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites, heard that the walls of Jerusalem were made up, and that the breaches began to be stopped, then they were very wroth,And conspired all of them together to come and to fight against Jerusalem, and to hinder it.Nevertheless we made our prayer unto our God, and set a watch against them day and night, because of them.

 

We’re going to do what we’re going to do, and we’ll watch these guys.

The people kept whining. Nehemiah set them up with weapons and told them not to be afraid, that God was with them and they needed to stand up and fight for their families and their homes. So they took turns working and standing guard, building with one hand while they held their swords ready in the other.

 

Nehemiah had enough faith and courage to stand up and encourage the rest of the city. As Christians people need to see us, see who we are, how we act, we as Christians can encourage others.

God didn’t just leave us, He gave us weapons.

They had enemies, we have enemies – sin, pain, our thoughts, this world, Satan.

 

Ephesians 6:10 10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.

 

Stop trusting in your own might, what you think is right. Depend on the power of God, on His might, and His will. Instead of telling God what you’re doing, ask “God, what is it you actually want from me?”

 

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