The Apostle Paul sets a beautiful example for us when he shows his love to be with Jesus. He wants to go right away and be with Jesus. Most of us say we want to go to Jesus but we just don’t want to be on the next bus to heaven. Paul wanted to be with Jesus right away but he stayed because it was needful for his people. Wow. I have so much to grow. Thanks for all your prayers and support. Pastor Bob
He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion…
Isn’t God wonderful. He starts a work in you but loves you so much that He keeps working in you. Sometimes it is in spite of yourself but He keeps working in you. He brings circumstances about in your life that help you to grow. Remember that your comfort is not God’s number one concern. He wants to see growth in your life. Enjoy the ride. PB
Posted in Miscellaneous, Uncategorized
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Doctor update
I had a great update from the doctor yesterday. He basically said that the medicine has knocked down the cancer and it was in remission. Now remission doesn’t mean that the cancer has gone away but that it has been stopped. Very good news and the doctor cut back some of my meds. I am so thankful.
Thanks for all your prayer. It’s working. PB
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Your amazing blood
As part of my cancer treatment, I have to get blood work done every week. They check my immunoglobulin a, immunoglobulin g, immunoglobulin m, calcium, protein, globulin, red blood cells, hemoglobin, hematocrit, gamma globulin, glucose, etc. to name a few. It is truly amazing the amount of information they can get from your blood. I had no idea there was so much stuff in there. It shows me how amazing our God is. How can anyone work in the medical or any science field and not believe in God. Our bodies are truly wonderfully made. I serve a powerful God. Rejoice. PB
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My run
Today I walked and ran. I use the word “run” loosely since I went so slow that it barely counted as running. But I lifted my body for 50 yards at a time. (With my medical condition my doctor does not recommend running. Rebellion is a topic for another time). (Notice the picture of a tall, handsome, young, man- That’s not me but one out of four isn’t bad)
While I was running I used my iPhone to keep track of distance, time, and my pace. I used the program “Mapmyrun.” Now I have a Garmin wrist GPS which is more accurate but it was not with me. “Mapmyrun” does okay but it has issues. It has a tendency to make the run logger than it really is. For my pace today it didn’t matter but if you really want to know how you are doing, then you need a more accurate measuring device.
For example, you could run 3.0 miles today and track it on your program. In reality you probably only ran 2.7. That may not matter to you but it would to me. I want to know how I am really doing so when race time comes I am not made aware of my deception.
I found a spiritual application to all this. We as humans measure our behavior against others. That is kind of like using an inaccurate program because you can always measure yourselves against someone that you find that does something that makes you feel good about yourself. In reality, we should be measuring ourselves against God’s standard. When we do that we find that we are lacking and then we are made aware of our need for salvation and cleansing.
So what is the moral of today? You want an accurate measuring device when you are talking about eternity. See ya. PB
Posted in Life
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Rejoice in the Lord Always
“Rejoice in the Lord Always; again I will say, Rejoice.” Phil. 4:4 The Apostle Paul is writing to one of his favorite churches, the church at Philippi. They had supported him when others hadn’t. This had been the place that Lydia, the dealer in purple had met the Lord. This had been the place that the jailer and his whole family had come to the Lord. Now Paul was writing from another jail to the church at Philippi.
Paul was an expert in trouble. He lists his troubles in 2 Corinthians 11 and 12 and it is quite a list. He knew what it was like to face problems but still he has managed to make his relationship with Jesus real to his everyday life…no matter what that meant. In the midst of problems, in the midst of troubles, he said, “Rejoice.” Rejoicing is more than an inward feeling. It is an aggressive outward act of your will when things go wrong.
Let me explain. For some reason, we think it is okay to holler our heads of at a ball game, but it is undignified to express emotion about the creator of the universe who has happened to provide salvation for us. We holler at football games but somehow equate silence with holiness and proper etiquette in church.
Rejoicing is an act of your will and touches to the core of your being when you exercise your will to rejoice in the Lord. It stirs you on the inside. It reframes your problems. It highlights the power of God not the difficulty of your problem.
When you make the decision to rejoice, you have set your life on a new course. I have found this to be true with cancer. When I walk into the hospital from the parking lot, I praise the Lord. I rejoice in the Lord. Some days are easier than others. Some days I don’t rejoice and I can tell the difference in the outcome of the day. Some days our emotions give us a huge battle but this is where your will comes in and where God helps you when you take that step of faith and rejoice in the Lord.
When you rejoice, the problem, difficulty, or affliction may still be there but by rejoicing in the Lord, you have reduced the affliction down to size. You have refocused on the Lord and eternity and that is a whole new way of living.
Enough said for one day. Sorry I am preaching but what do you expect of a preacher. Rejoice in the Lord. PB
Posted in Cancer
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God is so good.
I am so thankful. Yesterday (Thursday) is normally a day of low energy for me as I crash off of steroids. I was, however, able to work in the yard and put out about 40-50 wheel barrels of mulch. I kept busy all day and didn’t run out of energy. Praise God. Your prayers are working. God is so good.
Posted in Cancer
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The not so big “C”
Join us tomorrow (Tuesday) at 2:30 at Full Gospel Fellowship for our cancer support group. It helps to have others that are journeying with you through difficulty. PB
Posted in Cancer
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Cancer Support Group
Today we started a cancer support group at Full Gospel Fellowship. It was so encouraging to hear others share how God had helped them through their individual trials. That is just what the Bible says we should do. The comfort we receive in our trials allows us to help others receive help in their trials. God is so good to set up the body of Christ like that. That’s why it is so important that each believer be involved in a local body of believers. You receive strength from that each other. God is so good. PB
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Earthquake afflictions
Paul and Silas were thrown in jail. As Roman citizens they had rights. But it was their attitude in what I call their earthquake afflictions that caused a jailer to rethink his theology and accept Jesus as Lord.
Earthquake afflictions are those things that shake the believer to his core… and make him or her depend on God. In these moments of afflictions, the people that are watching the believer in the affliction are also having their own earthquake experience. Their theology is being shattered and they are seeing that the believer is genuine in their relationship with God, the true and living God. It is during these times of affliction that the believer grows and God opens opportunities of ministry. God is so good. Embrace your earthquake afflictions. PB
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Pastor Bob 