Author: prestonheadrick13

GET TOGETHER- The Blessing of Confession 

Jas 5:16 Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.(NKJV)

I love this wonderful passage from James. It is another one of those Biblical principles that if the Holy Spirit hadn’t used it in my life I most likely would not be typing this. The Apostle Paul wrote in 2Co 12:9 And He 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. (NKJV)

          When I think about that I am thankful for the grace of God that is there when we make a mistake, or sin in some way that does not glorify the Lord. That grace is there to let us know that when we confess and repent that God forgives us. And I think that the passage in James helps us to see that not only will God forgive us, but that there is a grace that God gives through the Holy Spirit that will help us to not continually blow it in that way again. 

Last night J.J. and our family were at our Grandson Judah’s basketball game.   During the first game I was doing some bleacher coaching in J.J.’S ear. She decided to get up and move down about three rows. J.J. doesn’t have a real competitive nature, and I am in the process of letting the Holy Spirit sanctify mine. Our team won the game, and which by the way is 12 years old and under. They also were going to play a second game.  So, between games I told J.J. that I would refrain from bleacher coaching in her ear if she would come back and sit by me. 

I have been preaching and sharing how we should be as passionate, or make that even more passionate for the things of the Kingdom than for our sports teams. The game was taking place at our opponents’ gym.  All the fans from both teams were sitting on the same side of the gym.  As the second game started out our team got behind by a pretty good margin. So, my thoughts were that they were tired from playing one game and their opponent was fresh, so a split on an opponent’s home floor late on a school night wasn’t terrible.   So, in the fourth quarter our team made a valiant comeback and won the game.

I am embarrassed to say what I did. There was a real big guy who was a fan of the other team behind us. And he had really done nothing, but cheer for his team and challenge the calls that the referees made when they went against his team. He really didn’t say anything derogatory. But when we won the game, I used my voice in a way that God doesn’t want me to. I stood up and just said what a comeback! What a comeback!  That man either had children, or grandchildren on the other team . The Bible tells us to love our neighbor as ourself, and I wouldn’t have wanted someone standing up in front of me loudly saying that. That was something that I should have said just to encourage the players on our team after the game.  I am thankful that the man didn’t knock me down the bleachers. 

 When I got home I and ask J.J. to forgive me  for getting on her nerves by bleacher coaching in her ear. I repented for what I did and ask God to forgive me. To repent means you have a change in the way that you believe and the way that you act. 

I have since confessed this to my brothers in Christ who help hold me accountable and pray for me. I ask you to help hold me accountable. When I go to a ballgame, I want to glorify the Lord Jesus Christ. I know that none of are perfect. On the other hand, we can play the I am not perfect card and inhibit our growth in Christ. I am so thankful that we can confess our trespasses to one another and pray for one another and that the Holy Spirit will help us to glorify Jesus Christ at the ballgame, in the supermarket, wherever that we may go.  I am so thankful for Christians that we can be authentic with and that the Holy Spirit will use them not to beat us down, but to help us to grow in Christ. I am thankful that the Apostle Paul said that in our weakness that He is made strong. His grace is sufficient for the forgiveness of sin. His grace is sufficient to help us to not sin. Where we may not be perfect His strength is perfect and He will perfect that which concerns us. Be sure that you have those people that you can be transparent with, and that God will use to help you to go from glory to glory!

 

Let us Pray.

Lord, we know that You have created some things in life for us to enjoy. Forgive us when we don’t glorify You during these opportunities. Help us all to crucify the flesh. Help us all to die daily and to glorify You in whatever we do and wherever we go.

In Jesus Name

Amen

 

J.J.  and I thank you for your prayers, support, and encouragement in the ministry that God has called us to. 

Your Friend/Kinfolk

Preston

 

PS   For those in Northwest Alabama our Broadcast Redeeming the Time comes on at 9:30 A.M. AND 9:30 P.M. on Sunday morning and Sunday night.  That is on Spectrum Channel 10. In Jasper,  it is on TV 16.

Please pray for the Lord to reach the lost through these broadcasts, and to encourage the faithful.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Preston Headrick 

Evangelist 

Real Party Ministry 

P O Box 2302

Hamilton, Alabama  35570

GET TOGETHER –   The Small Still Voice 

Isa 30:21 Your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, “This is the way, walk in it,” Whenever you turn to the right hand Or whenever you turn to the left. (NKJV  )Joh 14:17 “the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you.

 

          As I am typing this message out the Holy Spirit is reminding me of how much that Jesus cares about every part of our lives. He has given us the Holy Spirit so that no matter where we go or what we do He is with His children.

          I would just like to share with you something that I have shared with several others, about something that happened to J.J. and I over the holidays and some things that the Lord taught us and reminded us of during that time. 

          Our children really blessed us at Christmas our son Jake and his family gave us a new Bar-B-que grill. Our daughter Jessye wanted to buy me a new pair of tennis shoes. So, we went to Sports Gallery here in Hamilton and she bought me a new pair of real nice tennis shoes. 

           A friend of ours blessed us by letting us stay at he and his wife’s beach house.  We had a great time there. We relaxed and just enjoyed being together and eating some great seafood. 

          One day it was warm enough to go to the beach. Some wonderful friends of ours had told us about a place that had pimento and cheese hush puppies. So, we went by picked up the hush puppies and carried some other food and headed to the beach. 

          When we got to the edge of the wooden walkway just before you step on the sand I noticed this was where people were leaving their crocks, flip flops ,and sandals.    In my haste in packing, I had forgotten to take my crocks. The only pair of shoes that I carried was the tennis shoes that Jessye had bought me. As I began to remove them, I know now that the Holy Spirit was prompting me not to take those shoes off and leave them there.  To be honest my flesh was weak there. I was so excited about getting to the beach and listening to the waves, eating those good hushpuppies, and just relaxing that I neglected the warning and the prompting from the Holy Spirit. 

          When I went back to put our trash in the container and looked down to where I had taken my shoes off, yes you guessed it. My shoes were gone. The Bible tells us in John 10:10 that the Lord desires to do good for us, but there is one who doesn’t. And his demonic forces can tempt people into being used for Satan’s purposes. Jesus told us this in  Joh 10:10″The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.”

          Lesson number one listen to the Holy Spirit. He will give us warning concerning the schemes that the enemy has to rob us and to steal from us. 

          I must admit that it hurt me at first. It wasn’t the tennis shoes. But it was that Jessye really wanted to bless her dad by giving me those tennis shoes. The next time that the Holy Spirit spoke to me about  was I going to practice what I preach and teach. Was I going to forgive this person? I did forgive them.  I realize that many of you reading this have had a lot of worse things done to you by others than having a pair of tennis shoes stolen. But on the other hand, no matter how serious the offense Jesus has commanded us to forgive those who hurt us.  We are told in  Mt 6:14,15 “For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. “But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

          As we traveled to Foley to find me some more shoes J.J. began to pray for the person. Then she began to prophesy that one day we will see the person in Heaven. Not only will they come to us and tell us that they got saved, but that the Lord used them to bring other souls into the Kingdom. We are still praying for that person to get saved and to be used in that way. 

          That brought back another memory. It is a memory that I am certainly not proud of.  I remember a beach trip before I got saved. We had been to a night club. In my drunken and drugged estate, I hung my head out the window of our vehicle and mocked some street preachers who were preaching in an area of that city where there was a lot of partying going on. I believe that they prayed for me. I believe that one day when we are in Heaven, they will tell me “We knew that the Lord would get you.” 

          One more thing. A dear friend of ours heard about my tennis shoes getting stolen and they bought me a pair of tennis shoes just like the ones that I had. What if I had not chosen to forgive that person. I believe that unforgiveness could have stood in the way of that blessing coming. Because the same Holy Spirit that told me not to leave those shoes there is the same Holy Spirit that put it on that person’s heart to bless me and to give back what the devil had stolen.

          In closing always be sensitive to the voice of the Holy Spirit and do what He says. Always be willing to forgive others. Pray for those who have hurt you and let God use you as an instrument of blessing to others. 

 

Let Us Pray

Lord, we thank You that You still speak to us through the Holy Spirit. Help us to listen and obey your voice. We thank you that You care about the little things and the big things in our lives. Help us to always pray for those that the evil one has used to steal something from us. We believe that You can save them and use them for your purposes just as You have saved us. 

In Jesus Name

Amen

 

J.J.  and I thank you in advance for your prayers, support, and encouragement in the coming year.

Your Friend/Kinfolk

Preston

 

PS   For those in Northwest Alabama our Broadcast Redeeming the Time comes on at 9:30 A.M. AND 9:30 P.M. on Sunday morning and Sunday night.  That is on Spectrum Channel 10. In Jasper, I believe it is on TV 16.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Preston Headrick 

Evangelist 

Real Party Ministry 

P O Box 2302

Hamilton, Alabama  35570

GET TOGETHER -Beauty For Ashes Isa 61:3 To console those who mourn in Zion, To give them beauty for ashes, The oil of joy for mourning, The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; That they may be called trees of righteousness, The planting of the LORD, that He may be glorified.

This Christmas season has been a Christmas season of J.J. and I thanking and praising the Lord for all that He has done in our lives. Christmas can be a lonely and hard time sometimes. It can be that way because we live in a fallen world. It could be our first year without that person that we loved such as a parent, spouse, or child. On the other hand, it can be tough because to heal our broken hearts we went in a direction that didn’t lead to healing but led to more disappointment and heart break. Some of us may have gone to drug use, or drunkenness to attempt to medicate the pain and it only made it worse. Many of us have experienced what we thought of as being our dreams turned to ashes. And as the song What Now My Love by Elvis Presley gives us a picture of the broken hearted in that song the words say “now that my dreams have turned to ashes and my hopes into bits of clay.” This week we celebrate the birth of the One who came to earth to do what He said that He would do in Lu 4:18 "The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives And recovery of sight to the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed.” He is reading from the Book of Isaiah what Isaiah had prophesied about Him over seven hundred years earlier. You may be reading this and feel like your dreams have turned to ashes and your hopes into bits of clay. He will do what Isaiah prophesied. He will heal our broken hearts. He will set us free from captivity. He will give sus beauty for ashes.

In Isaiah 61 we are told what God will do for Israel, but for us as New Covenant people we can believe and expect God do it for us. He will give beauty for ashes! He will give joy for morning. We are told in Isa 61:4 ¶ And they shall rebuild the old ruins, They shall raise up the former desolations, And they shall repair the ruined cities, The desolations of many generations. That God is a God of restoration. He can do exceedingly and abundantly more than we can ask or imagine.
This past Sunday as our granddaughter Eden was singing Away in A Manger at church I thought back to a time before I met Jesus Christ. Christmas was a time of trying to drug and drink the loneliness and hopelessness away that I would ever have a family.
I would never had thought that I would have had children and grandchildren. But God is in the business of restoring the age-old waste places. He has blessed J.J. and I with five beautiful grandchildren. Our children are married to wonderful spouses. And God has blessed us with so many friends and Brothers and Sisters in Christ like all of you. If you had told me during those days of drug use and partying that God would one day bless us in the way that He has I would have most likely laughed in your face. But God!
So today if you have seen God bring you through, or out of some bad stuff give Him the praise and give Him the Glory. If you are going through a tough time in your life turn to God. Humble your self before God. Here is what His word says that He will do if you do it :Jas 4:10 “Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up. 1Pe 5:6 Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time.” (NKJV)
And if you are like I was living a life of sin because you felt like there was no way for you to be reconciled to God. Know that He loves you. Know that He wants to give you beauty for ashes. We are told in Jas 4:8 Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. (NKJV) If you do that Christmas ,or no other day will ever be the same again. He gives beauty for ashes. Give Him your ashes and let Him make something beautiful out of it.
Let Us Pray
Lord Jesus, we celebrate today not only You coming to the earth, but we celebrate that You are risen from the dead. You sit at the right hand of the Father. We celebrate that You give beauty for ashes. Today for all that are reading this, and they feel like their dreams have turned to ashes and their hopes into bits of clay work in a way that gives beauty for ashes, joy for mourning, and they exchange the spirt of heaviness for a garment of praise.
In Jesus Name
Amen

J.J. and I want to say Merry Christmas to all of you. We thank you for your prayers, support, and encouragement throughout the year.
Your Friend/Kinfolk
Preston

PS For those in Northwest Alabama our Broadcast Redeeming the Time comes on at 9:30 A.M. AND 9:30 P.M. on Sunday morning and Sunday night. That is on Spectrum Channel 10. In Jasper, I believe it is on TV 16.

GET TOGETHER – LET CHRIST BE IN YOU THIS CHRISTMAS

2Co 2:14 Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place.

            Yes, when I find it at home, I plan to get my button out that says keep Christ in Christmas.  I believe that there is a culture that needs to know about the Virgin Birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and why that He came to earth and why that we celebrate that this time of the year. 

            On the other hand, I can let some of the things that have happened here in our culture and throughout the world that if I am not careful the enemy will use to make me bitter, and I can even become very Pharisaical. As a Christian that believes that marriage is between one man and one woman. As a Christian that believes that by faith in Jesus Christ is the only way that a person can live forever. And as a Christian that believes that life begins in the womb, I realize that these things go against the current culture in the United States and much of the world. 

            So, during this Christmas season I want to pray that people can see and smell a difference in us as believers in Jesus Christ.  When Paul wrote to the church in Corinth, he was writing to a church that was in a city that celebrated gross sin much like what we see in our country today. 

            Paul is telling the church there that in this wicked city that God was always leading them in victory. There were many in the church that had been brought out of lifestyles of sin ( see 1 Corinthians 6:9-11). And if you read that you can see that there were several different lifestyles of sin that they were brough out of.  Many of us have been brought out of some type of sinful lifestyle. And there are many others that God loves and desires to bring out of lifestyles of sin. 

            This Christmas let Christ be in you. He can’t be taken out of you. Jesus said in Hebrews 13:5 ff “For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”(NKJV) In the following paragraphs I will give you some ways that you can let Christ be in you this Christmas. These will be ways that places will smell better in the spirit where you are.   You and I can diffuse the fragrance of Christ. 

            Be a worshipper. If we put worshipping Him above everything else this will put our hearts in the right place to share Jesus Christ in a hostile world. The wisemen traveled a great distance to worship Him. But you and I can worship Him every moment of our lives and anywhere that we may happen to be. We can let our lives be lives of worship. 

Be a giver.  The wisemen brought gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Give of your finances especially to the House of God. Give to others who may be needy. Give of your time. That is an excellent way to let your light shine and to let the fragrance of Christ change the spiritual atmosphere where you are. 

Here is a challenging one. Pray for and love those who may hate you and everything that you stand for. Remember that Jesus died on the cross for them. Remember that before we came to Jesus Christ that we are were lost and that we were enemies of the cross. God loves to turn His enemies into friends. He did it with the Apostle Paul. He can still do it today. 

So, the best way that we can keep Christ in Christmas is to let Christ rule and reign in our lives. A lot of people know what we are against and that is fine. On the other hand, may they see Christ in us in such a special way that they know what we are for and that just as God changed our hearts He can change their hearts as well. There is a good reason that Jesus told us to love our enemies. As a wise Pastor once told me “Preston don’t try to beat them but try to win them.”  This Christmas ask the Holy Spirit to let your light shine in such a way that we win people to Jesus Christ. Then there will be that many more people that the fragrance of Christ will be diffused in, and the spiritual climate will be changed in other places. 

 

Let us Pray

            Lord, I thank You that I can wear a button that reminds people of the real reason that we celebrate Christmas.  Lord, I pray that more than seeing the button that people can see You living in us. Lord fill us so much with Your Holy Spirit that our light will shine so bright that people will know that You live in us. May they see You in us in such away that they want to hear about that Baby that was conceived by the Holy Spirit in Mary’s womb. May they want to know just as You came the first time that You are coming back again.

In Jesus Name

Amen

Love you all! Merry Christmas 

Your Friend/Kinfolk

Preston 

PS   For those in Northwest Alabama our Broadcast Redeeming the Time comes on at 9:30 A.M. AND 9:30 P.M. on Sunday morning and Sunday night.  That is on Spectrum Channel 10. In Jasper, it is on TV 16.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Preston Headrick 

Evangelist 

Real Party Ministry 

P O Box 2302

Hamilton, Alabama 35570

GET TOGTHER- Happy Thanksgiving
Col 1:3 ¶ We give thanks to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you, (NKJV)

J.J. and I are praying that you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving. We are so thankful for the mercy that we have received from the Lord Jesus Christ. We are thankful that as Paul wrote in Ro 5:8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (NKJV) We are so thankful for the Blood of Jesus Christ which cleanses us from all unrighteousness. 1Jo 1:7 But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.(NKJV)

J.J. and I are so thankful that God has blessed us with a wonderful family. We are also thankful that He has blessed us with so many wonderful brothers and sisters in Christ. We are so thankful for so many wonderful friends. Thank you for loving us despite our imperfections. Thank you for praying for us that God will work in those imperfections. Thank you all so much!

Let us Pray
Lord, we thank you most of all for dying on the cross for our sins. We thank you for our family. We thank you for these wonderful friends, and brothers and sisters in Christ. Lord bless them in a very special way this Thanksgiving. And may we grow in our thankfulness for what You have done and are doing for us.
In Jesus Name
Amen
Love you all!
Happy Thanksgiving!
Your Friend/Kinfolk

Get Together – HERE IS SOME GOOD NEWS!
Ps 121:7,8 The LORD shall preserve you from all evil; He shall preserve your soul.The LORD shall preserve your going out and your coming in From this time forth, and even forevermore. (NKJV)

I must admit I really needed the Holy Spirit to bring this Psalm by me this morning. There have been a lot of troubling things going on in our nation and in the world. I know that we are to be informed about what is going on in the world, but sometimes if we listen to so much of the bad news it can really get us in a defeated mind set.
` Also I have had a cold the last week. And I hate having a cold. And in case you have been around me I tested negative for Covid and the flu. The weather has been really cold here in Hamilton the last few days and so I have been making sure that I praise the lord on a cold dreary day the same as I have been on these beautiful Fall days. And one more thing. I have had cell phone issues and have been without my cell phone for over a week. So I have been a little out of sync on a few things.
So, this morning I heard the Holy Spirit speak to me from Psalm 121. I think that I learned that Psalm from when we had devotional time in elementary school when I was in public school many years ago. So, with that said let’s look at some of the promises for us as New Covenant children of God that are in this Psalm. Remembering what the Apostle Paul wrote to the church at Corinth in 2Co 1:20 For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us.
When things may not look so good in the natural there is one place that we can look for help. We can look to God. The Jews could lift their eyes to the hills They could be reminded of God’s faithfulness to Abraham at Mt Moriah. They could be reminded of God’s faithfulness at Mt Zion. When I read Ps 121:1,2 I will lift up my eyes to the hills-From whence comes my help? My help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth.” I am reminded that we can lift our eyes to Mt Calvary. It is there where Jesus paid the ultimate price for us to walk in victory over sickness, death, and in every situation and circumstance in our lives. In our weakness He is made strong.
We can always look to Him. From Him we will always get help. We are told in Ps 46:1 ¶ God is our refuge and strength, A very present help in trouble. In Heb 4:16 we are reminded that we can come before His throne when we need his help. Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need. (NKJV)
We are reminded in Psalm 121 that our God never slumbers and that He never sleeps. So, no matter what time of day, or night that we need to come before Him for His help He is always there for us.
To be honest with you there are times that it looks like and the enemy will certainly try to convince us that evil is winning. But we have been given a promise in Ps 121:7 “The LORD shall preserve you from all evil; He shall preserve your soul.” The Apostle Paul tells us in Ro 8:31 ¶ What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? (NKJV) God is for us.
In the Bible there are many times that it looked like the enemies of God were winning. The Egyptians, The Assyrians, the Babylonians, the Romans they all thought that they were invincible, and it looked bleak for the people of God. But we can look in Ps 121:8 and know that the Lord Jesus will preserve us no matter how things may appear in the natural. ”The LORD shall preserve your going out and your coming in From this time forth, and even forevermore. I like that forevermore part! We have this promise in Joh 10:27,28 “My sheep hear My voice, and I know t hem, and they follow Me. “And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.
So today with all the bad news that is going on in our culture. Be assured that if you have put your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ to be your Lord and Savior that He is with you. Be assured that He is your keeper. Be assured that he will preserve your going out, and your coming in. Be assured that He will preserve your soul now and forevermore. I am comforted and reminded of these words from Matthew 20:20 “and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen. (NKJV) He is with us!!

Let us Pray
Lord Jesus, we thank you that You are with us. We thank You that You preserve our going out and our coming in. Today help us to draw near to you. We know that You are bigger than any adverse circumstances, or situation that we may encounter. We know that You have promised to be with us always. Even to the end of the age. Help us to continually advance Your Kingdom upon the earth until that day that You return.
In Jesus Name
Amen
Love you all!
Your Friend/Kinfolk
Preston
PS For those in Northwest Alabama our Broadcast Redeeming the Time comes on at 9:30 A.M. AND 9:30 P.M. on Sunday morning and Sunday night. That is on Spectrum Channel 10. In Jasper, it is on TV 16.

Get Together – HIS PEACE IS ETERNAL Joh 14:27 “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. (NKJV)

Yesterday there were several things going through my mind that were things that would attempt to be robbers of the peace that Jesus promises us. As we look at a lot of the events in our culture there are certainly some things that we need to be concerned about. On the other hand, we cannot allow those concerns to rob us of the peace that Jesus promises to those who follow Him.
On the night that He would be betrayed by one of His disciples. A night after a powerful time when the Lord instituted the Lord’s Supper and washed His disciples feet. A night when one of His most faithful disciples would deny Him three times. On a night that He knows that the next day He will be taking the sins of the world upon Him at Calvary’s cross. On this night He knows that He will be beaten and rejected by His own people. On this night He tells the disciples that He is leaving His peace with them.
You see Jesus was looking at things from an eternal perspective. In Joh 14:1-3 he tells them “Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. “In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.” He tells them to not let their hearts be troubled. There are as I said earlier lots of things in our current time that can trouble our hearts. My heart was troubled about something Wednesday that I won’t go into here. But during the day I kept hearing the Holy Spirit speak this word to my mind and to my spirit from Joh 14:27 “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” Wow!
I have prayed that passage and believed that passage many times when praying for people that may have been going through a time of challenge in some way. And I truly believe that the Holy Spirit honored that and gave people peace. On the other hand sometimes, it is a bigger challenge to our faith when we pray that, or some other promise from God over ourselves.
And yet God is faithful to His word and to His promises. As I was on my way home last night I was listening to a message on the radio and that same passage that the Holy Spirit had speaking to me was in the Preacher’s message.
I think that what God was saying to me is that in these uncertain times that we live in is that Jesus Christ will give us a peace that the world cannot give us. The world will tell you that you can find that peace in drugs, alcohol, unholy relationships, money, your favorite sports team.
For many of us we have tried to get peace from personal setbacks, or current events that bother us in the ways that the world offers peace. But peace didn’t come. The only thing that came was things that brought more trouble upon us.
I am sure that the disciples thought about Jesus words many times . They thought about them the day that He was crucified. They thought about them on that Sunday morning when He came out of the grave. They thought about them on the Day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit was poured out on them. They thought about them as they would face persecution and death for their faithfulness to Jesus Christ. And I am sure that they have thought about them and talked about them for close to two thousand years as they have experienced that perfect peace of being with the Lord in Heaven forever and ever.
I challenge you as well as myself that no matter what we may experience in these times of great uncertainty that we will receive and live out that peace that He has promised His followers no matter what the circumstance may be, or situation.

Let Us Pray
Lord Jesus we know that there are many things that can come and attempt to rob us of our peace. Lord help us to stand on your promise that your peace You have left with us. Help us to not try to get that false peace in some way that the world offers it. But help us to be drawn to you so that the world can see what true peace is.
In Jesus Name
Amen.
Love you all!
Your Friend/Kinfolk
Preston
PS For those in Northwest Alabama our Broadcast Redeeming the Time comes on at 9:30 A.M. AND 9:30 P.M. on Sunday morning and Sunday night. That is on Spectrum Channel 10. In Jasper, it is on TV 16.

GET TOGETHER- What Are You Speaking?

Joh 6:63 “It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life. Eph 4:29 Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers.  (NKJV)

Wow! After last week’s message I must admit that I had to repent for something that came out of my mouth.   I shared something with someone else that was public knowledge, that was in the media about someone that I disagree with. It was something that they are involved in that promotes an agenda that contrasts with a Biblical worldview. 

Was I speaking the truth? Yes, I was. Was I speaking it in love? I am not so sure. Why did I repent then if what I spoke about this person was true and public knowledge? Well, my concern was that as a pastor and as a Christian that I feel like my concern about this person was something that I needed to be praying for that person about. I also felt like if the person that I shared this with would not have known this about the person if I hadn’t shared it with them. They had not read the article that I had read concerning this person’s views that I consider to definitely contrast with a Biblical worldview on this particular matter. 

Jesus always spoke the truth in love. The words that He spoke were life giving words. Even when He called someone out, He was releasing life.  When He forgave the woman caught in adultery in John Chapter 8, He graciously forgave her. And He graciously told her to go and sin no more. And He was always led by the Holy Spirit. As I mentioned last week there are a lot of things in our current culture that are being advanced and celebrated that go against a Biblical worldview. On the other hand, when we address these things we always want to be instruments of redemption and grace.  We want our words to be words that are spirit and are life. 

I am reminded of what I once heard about preachers who preach about Hell. Hell is a real place where the unsaved will spend eternity there forever. There are times that Holy Spirit has me to preach on the topic of Hell. And quiet often He has me to mention Hell in my sermons. When we as preachers are preacher preaching about Hell are we preaching with tears in our eyes because we don’t want people to go there. Or are we preaching about Hell because we  would be glad that the unredeemed are going there. I pray for all of us that it is with tears in our eyes and to see the unsaved come to the cross of Christ.  

Paul tells us in Eph 4:29 Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers.  The Greek term for corrupt in this passage is sapros.   It means worthless, or rotten. When we speak are the words that we speak bearing fruit, and giving life? Or are they worthless, and rotten? Jesus words gave life and they came from the Holy Spirit. I believe that in this hostile culture to the word of God that He will give us words of life through the Holy Spirit that He will give us words to say that give life. These words won’t compromise the truth. But these words will be a different way than the way that the world uses words.  I pray that the words that we all speak will be words that build up our fellow believers. I pray that they be words that the unsaved would see Jesus Christ in us and be drawn to the cross of Christ. 

We are told in Col 4:6 Let your speech always be with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer each one.(NKJV)  Jesus said we are called to be salt and light. So even when we disagree with someone may our conversation always be seasoned with salt. Paul tells us in Tit 3:2 to speak evil of no one, to be peaceable, gentle, showing all humility to all men. So, we are not to say demeaning things about those who oppose us. Certainly, we should stand for the truth, but the way that we speak is to be different than the way that the world speaks. 

Let Us Pray

Lord forgive us when we have responded more like the world in our words, thoughts, and actions than how you responded.  You always spoke the truth. But Lord you always spoke the truth in love. Help us in this challenging time when it is not popular to speak the truth to speak as You did. May our words be words that are spirit, and that are life.

In JESUS NAME

AMEN

Love you all!

Your Friend/Kinfolk

Preston 

PS   For those in Northwest Alabama our Broadcast Redeeming the Time comes on at 9:30 A.M. AND 9:30 P.M. on Sunday morning and Sunday night.  That is on Spectrum Channel 10. In Jasper, it is on TV 16.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Preston Headrick 

Evangelist 

Real Party Ministry 

P O Box 2302

Hamilton, Alabama  35570

Get Together – Don’t let The Enemy Rob You of Your Joy.
Joh 15:10,11 “If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love. “These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full.
There is much that is going on in our culture that really concerns me. There is much going on that makes me angry. As a person that believes that life begins at conception. The Psalmist says it this way Ps 139:13 “For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother’s womb.” God spoke to Jeremiah about the office that He was called to even before he was formed in his mother’s womb. Jer 1:5 “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you; Before you were born I sanctified you; I ordained you a prophet to the nations.” While not all of us may have a calling to be a Prophet. We all have a calling and purpose that God has ordained for our lives.
As a person that believes that marriage is between one man and one woman, and that God created us male and female. I get angry at the deception that is going on concerning the Holy institution of marriage. God made the decision on our sexuality. Ge 2:24 Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. Ge 1:27 So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. The Hebrew term for wife here is woman ishshah, ish-shaw’. So, we know that a husband is a man. And a wife is a woman. And the husband is joined together with the wife.

I believe that we are to speak the truth in this, but we also called to speak the truth in love. One of the devices of the enemy with what is going on in our culture is to draw us into a fleshly argument with those who hold an unbiblical worldview on sexuality and marriage.
While we are to speak the truth in love. And while we can certainly have a righteous anger about these things. We must not let the forces of evil draw us into those fleshly battles that we are told in Eph 4:31 to not be a part of our witness for Jesus Christ “Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice.” (NKJV)
We can’t let the enemy put bitterness in our spirit. We can’t let the desire for revenge be in our spirit. As we see churches that stand for the truth on the issues that I just mentioned being firebombed and vandalized we can’t let the enemy still our joy. We are to stand for truth.
We look to Jesus Christ as our example. Remember what He told His disciples. In the verses following our opening verse He had this to say to them: Joh 15:18,19 “If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you. “If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.” Remember He was facing persecution from the religious leaders. He would also be nailed to a Roman cross. The Apostle Paul wrote the book of Ephesians from prison. So, while we are to speak the truth in love concerning some of the ungodly things that the culture would attempt to shove down our throats we are called to be different than the way the world reacts against us.
We are told in 2Co 10:4 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds.” We pray we fast,we encopurage one another. (NKJV) We do as Jesus told us to do in Mt 5:44 “But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you.” The Apostle Paul who faced beating, imprisonments and being run out of town had this to say concerning how we are to view those who hate us and oppose us. Ro 12:19-21 Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. Therefore “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; If he is thirsty, give him a drink; For in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil but overcome evil with good. (NKJV)
As we live in a culture that calls evil good and good evil may we allow the Holy Spirit to so govern our lives so that we to never compromise the truth. But by they same token may we never allow the enemy to draw us into fighting the way that the people who are under the influence of Satan fight their battles.
Now back to that joy thing that I titled this message with. Jesus who was going to be crucified was speaking to disciples who would face severe persecution and martyrdom. But He tells them that in Him their joy would be full. The Greek term for joy here is chara, khar-ah’. It means cheerfulness, calm, gladness. We can be calm. We can be cheerful because we know that He told us the following “Joh 16:33 “These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” (NKJV)
Hell is throwing it’s most perverted and evil shots at the Blood bought Church of Jesus Christ at this time. And as we speak the truth in love we can rejoice and be of good cheer because in Jesus Christ we have overcome the world. So let us speak the truth in love. Let us pray for our enemies. By the way God loves to turn His enemies into friends. Can you imagine what God could do with some of the people that have been deceived and advocate for philosophies that go against the word and will of God should they come to repentance and be saved? So, speak the truth in love. Don’t be drawn into fleshly battles and let the joy of the Lord be your strength for such a time as this.
Let Us Pray
Lord Jesus, we ask you to help us during this time when we live in a culture that promotes so many things that go against your word, and Your will. Help us to speak the truth. Help us to speak the truth in love. And we thank You that no matter what in You our joy is full.
In Jesus Name
Amen
Love you all!
Your Friend/Kinfolk
Preston
PS For those in Northwest Alabama our Broadcast Redeeming the Time comes on at 9:30 A.M. AND 9:30 P.M. on Sunday morning and Sunday night. That is on Spectrum Channel 10. In Jasper, it is on TV 16.

GET TOGETHER- THE POWER OF THE CROSS
Col 2:14 having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.
Yesterday I experienced one of those very special Holy Spirit sacred moments. I was babysitting our three-year-old granddaughter Hannah. I had gone on YouTube and put on a Veggie Tales episode. I was thinking that when that episode finished that it would just go on to another episode.
Well, what happened it went to the Gaither’s, and they were singing When I Survey the Wondrous Cross. I expected Hannah to tell me to put it on something else that would have been more appealing to a child her age. Wow! To my present surprise she moved toward the Television and watched and listened to the whole song. I believe that it was the anointing of the Holy Spirit that was on that song. And I thought about how special that the Holy Spirit could speak to the spirit of a child in such a way to hold her attention. I truly believe that God was depositing something into her spirit!
That same Holy Spirit that I believe drew her to the TV set and captivated her attention is capable of drawing to the cross those who like I was at one time are living in sinful lifestyles and are not living in the will of God. That is why we pray for those who have not yet come to the cross. There are some wonderful passages about the cross and the power of the cross. Here are a couple and what I believe that the Lord is saying to us through them.
At the cross we see that Jesus humbled Himself and took the punishment that we as sinners deserved. Paul writes in Phi4:8 And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. These lyrics in that great Hymn by Issac Watts describe that suffering:
See from His head, His hands, His feet,
Sorrow and love flow mingled down!
Did e’er such love and sorrow meet,
Or thorns compose so rich a crown?
They also describe the love that our Lord has for sinners and His willingness to suffer unto death in order that we might be saved from Hell, delivered from the power that Hell has had over our lives, and healed from the damage that Hell has inflicted upon our lives.
In the passage at the beginning of this message Paul tells us in Col 2:14 “having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.” Every charge has now been dropped. We are free from the condemnation of our sinful pasts. We can now live as people reconciled to God, by the Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ!
That brings to mind this verse from that hymn :
Were the whole realm of nature mine,
That were a present far too small;
Love so amazing, so divine,
Demands my soul, my life, my all.
His death on the cross was costly. His love for us is so great that words cannot explain it. The gift that He grants us is free and yet we give Him all of our lives to serve Him. We do this not to get saved, but because we are saved. Perhaps when we hear that song sung, we should just as our granddaughter Hannah did just get lost in it and allow the Holy Spirit to love on us and for us to love Him back. By the way I am putting the link to the Gaither’s singing that song on here. Pick you out a good time and do what I just said. And never forget the love that was poured out for us by Jesus suffering and shedding His precious Blood for us on Calvary’s cross.

Let Us Pray:
Lord Jesus we thank you for going to the cross for us. We thank You for paying our sin debt. May we surrender all of our being to You in a way that brings glory to Your Name.
In Jesus Name
Amen
Love you all!
Your Friend/Kinfolk
Preston
When I Survey the Wondrous Cross [Live] – YouTube
https://www.youtube.com › watch

PS For those in Northwest Alabama our Broadcast Redeeming the Time comes on at 9:30 A.M. AND 9:30 P.M. on Sunday morning and Sunday night. That is on Spectrum Channel 10. In Jasper, it is on TV 16.