A Word from the Lord (AWFTL) communicates Biblical teaching using the instruments of radio, Website, email, App, Podcasts, and the Internet enabling people to hear and apply the WORD of GOD and to discover the Gospel of Jesus the Christ. In today’s world of confusing and conflicting messages from th…
A Word From The Lord Our Ministry for Delivering the Lord's Word A Word From The Lord (AWFTL) is Dr. Foley Beach's personal volunteer media teaching ministry. AWFTL has distributed Biblical teachings, from the Lord's Word, for more than twenty years. AWFTL's ministry message is in a Gospel context rooted in Biblical Christianity without an Anglican emphasis. Our ministry objective and focus is to fulfill Jesus' Great Commission to “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations . . .” (Matthew 28:19). To this end, we use several content distribution mediums including radio, podcast, audio and video. We invite you to read on for more information about our ministry, but I want to encourage you to contribute by clicking HERE to donate now. You are making a secure donation through our partner the National Christian Foundation -- NCF (or you can mail checks using the information at the end of this overview). Your prayers and financial support keep our ministry in fulfilling Jesus' Great Commission. AWFTL is staffed by a volunteer Executive Director and a volunteer Treasurer. The other staff members are part-time employees. Additionally, AWFTL obtains economic and intellectual leverage through a long-standing cadre of partners (e.g., iHeart Media, Microsoft, PodBean, Salem Media). Our distribution platforms are grouped into broadcast, email, and podcast. Across all platforms, AWFTL makes contacts with sinners by communicating the Lord's Word through partners, on behalf of AWFTL, using AWFTL's media messages (i.e. Dr. Beach's sermons or a One-Minute Messages) directed to the broadcaster's/distributor's targeted markets – our contacts. From the perspective of our distribution partners, AWFTL is considered as an advertiser providing a thirty-minute sermon or a one-minute spot targeted through demographic and behavioral segmentation, using traditional terrestrial radio and targeted direct digital audio. Emails of the Daily Devotional are provided, on a free subscription basis through MailChimp, to over 2,500 recipients daily. Additionally, 2,500 listeners receive full sermon emails on Sunday from Dr. Beach. Podcasts are published daily using the Daily Devotional, and podcasts provide full sermons on Sunday. We use PodBean as our podcast publisher to gain access to eight publishing platforms (e.g., Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Podbean, Google). AWFTL's premise, through all its distribution platforms and channels, is that the volume of contacts matters to His Kingdom in fulfilling His Great Commission. Therefore, AWFTL depends on Romans 10:17 in that each contact with the Lord's Gospel Word can begin or continue their personal “faith journey” because “faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.”. Our Results AWFTL is achieving its mission to share the unchanging Word of God with both believers and nonbelievers. Across all our channels (e.g., radio, podcasting, email, Internet), we now average more than 15 million annual contacts in more than 70 countries at an efficient and effective cost of $0.008/contact. Consider that, every day, our One-Minute Message has the potential of contacting 40,000+ people -- Absolutely amazing! Dr. Beach traveled globally as Archbishop and Chairman of GAFCON (i.e. Global Anglicans representing more than70 Million members), and he met people from all walks of life who often sought him out to tell him how much our Daily Devotionals meant in their lives. For example, one American has developed and leads a global small Zoom group in which one person is assigned to coordinate Zoom discussions each day of a week. They use the Daily Devotional audio and its “Scripture References” as the base for their joint discussions and prayer time with the Lord. This Zoom group has grown to more than thirty participants, from several countries across the globe, with daily time zone scheduling being a challenge! Our Opportunities to Address the “Gospel Gap” About two years ago Archbishop Beach delivered a sermon in Nigeria to the GAFCON Primate leadership addressing the “Gospel Gap” (i.e. people who have never heard the Gospel, have heard the Gospel but are indifferent to its message, or have heard the Gospel and hate God's message and those delivering His message). Most in the Gospel Gap resist exposure to the Gospel by avoiding church attendance and/or hearing traditional faith-based audio/video media. The Gospel Gap constitutes about 38% of US adults today, and the Gap is growing. AWFTL conducted research to identify those who occupy the Gospel Gap and why. Ultimately, we developed five “Life Story” sentences which capture the reason for which people became and/or remain Gap occupants – for example: “I am alone and so confused with no trustable sources for love or the truth and no objects for my love; and the government and churches don't help.”. We believe that AWFTL has a somewhat unique opportunity to leverage our infrastructure, capabilities, and Dr. Beach's more than fifteen years of weekly sermons to extract targeted One-Minute Messages, using AI, to address the Life Stories. To this end, these derived messages, from existing content, can be delivered directly into the Gospel Gap using evolving targeted direct digital audio platforms. Dr. Beach's sermons resonate with the Gospel Gap occupants and their Life Stories. To test our thesis in 2022, we partnered with iHeart Media to target Atlanta demographic segments in the Gospel Gap. During 2022, iHeart Media streamed 6,600+ One-Minute Messages every day for 12 months. Incredibly, 97.4% of the recipients listened to the entire message. iHeart Media told us that a “listening rate” of about 86% would be considered successful in secular targeted digital advertising. Additional levels of initial listener engagement will be provided through AI Natural Language Processing (NLP) Q&A discussions to extend their Gospel message understanding. Please Support A Word From The Lord, Inc. AWFTL is supported by the prayers and contributions of its friends, and AWFTL does not receive financial support from churches or denominations. We need your support for both today's successful baseline ministry and, hopefully, to pursue opportunities for directly addressing the Gospel Gap. Will you help? Now is the time to do it! Please make your secure monthly recurring donation, for one year, through our partner, the National Christian Foundation (NCF). You can contribute by clicking HERE – just follow NCF's instructions after clicking. Also, you can visit our Website at www.awordfromthelord.org for more information about our ministry; and you can contribute using the Website by clicking “DONATE” on the Website. If you do not wish to contribute online through NCF, you may support us by check and mailing A Word From The Lord, P. O. Box 636 Monroe, GA. 30655. For all contributions, we are a 501 [c][3] charity for your tax purposes.
We Need Your Help, Today, to Support A Word From The Lord's Mission (SPECIAL 2-MINUTE VIDEO from Dr. Beach) PLEASE DONATE VIA AWFTL WEBSITE & SECURE NATIONAL CHRISTIAN FOUNDATION (NCF): DONATE. (NOTE: Instructions for donations to A Word From The Lord (AWFTL) via check are below. For all contributions, we are a 501 [c][3] charity for your tax purposes.) MESSAGE SUMMARY: Word From The Lord ministry (AWFTL) strives to, effectively and efficiently, deliver the Lord's Word, through Gospel-focused messages, delivered to large numbers of people for whom neither the Gospel nor Jesus play a significant role in their lives. Today, this Gospel message is needed more than ever because America is rapidly repositioning its environment and culture away from America's founding principles and the Gospel's principles of Love and Trust. This repositioning is being driven by the change in roles and focus of America's key institutions (e.g., family, churches, judicial, media, government, education, military). The negative consequences of this institutional repositioning are created and promulgated by a “Gospel MINUTE Gap”. The “Gospel Gap” occurs when the prime thesis of Jesus' Gospel's “Great Commandment”, “Love thy neighbor as thyself”, has either been lost or never really considered by vast numbers and segments of Americans. The “Gospel Gap” is further exacerbated by the institutional failure of churches and ministries to focus on fulfillment of Jesus' “Great Commission” – “Go and make disciples”. It is this “Gospel Gap” that presents AWFTL with both the opportunity and, indeed, the obligation to reach and begin the change of people who will close the “Gospel Gap”. The vast majority of people in the “Gospel Gap” will never attend a Church without being “preconditioned” through an encounter with the Holy Spirit (e.g., hearing the Lord's Word directly targeted media) because “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.”. (Romans 10:17).; and, in their current state, they see church and Christianity offering them nothing of value for their life. AWFTL: A Word From The Lord (AWFTL) is driven by the Holy Spirit and God's will. We need your continuing prayers and financial support to provide increasing opportunities for people to have “contacts” with God's Word. We hope that you will continue help AWFTL to “be a part of fulfilling Jesus' ‘Great Commission'” and, therefore, being a participant in addressing the “Gospel Gap”! TODAY'S PRAYER: Father, I confess that when difficulties and trials come into my life, large or small, I mostly grumble and complain. I realize the trials James talks about are not necessarily “walls,” but they are difficult to bear, nonetheless. Fill me with such a vision of a transformed life, O God, that I might actually consider it “pure joy” when you bring trials my way. I believe, Lord. Help my unbelief. In Jesus' name, amen. Scazzero, Peter. Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Day by Day (p. 94). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. TODAY'S AFFIRMATION: Today, Because of who I am in Jesus Christ, I will not be driven by Hatred. Rather, I will abide in the Lord's Love. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): 1 John 4:7–21; 1 Corinthians 13: 1-9; Psalms 40:1-17; 3 John 5–8. A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org. DONATE TO AWFTL VIA CHECK OR ONLINE: You can contribute, directly, to AWFTL using the secure facilities of the National Christian Foundation (NCF) through this link: (DONATE TO AWFTL); or through the DONATE button on our Website (www.awftl.org ). Also, you can send a check to: A Word From The Lord; P.O. Box 636; Monroe, GA. 30655.
July 2024 Dear A Word From The Lord Ministry Friend, Supporting Our Ministry for Today and the Future Your continued support of A Word From The Lord ministry, through your prayers and financial contributions, is critical in these times. In my video, I mentioned the comments of people for whom our Devotionals and broadcasts today mean so much – I call this our “baseline ministry”. Below, I present some statistics that backup these written and in-person support testimonials. Also, my video mentions the “Gospel Gap”, which I define below. Most in the Gospel Gap resist going to church and encountering the Lord's Word, even through traditional audio and video faith-based media. However we have a somewhat unique opportunity to leverage our infrastructure, capabilities, and my fifteen years of weekly sermons to extract targeted One-Minute Messages that seem to resonate with the Gospel Gap. I invite you to read on for more information, but I want to encourage you to contribute by clicking HERE to donate now. You are making a secure donation through our partner the National Christian Foundation -- NCF (or you can mail checks using the information at the end of my letter). Your prayers and financial support keep our baseline ministry in fulfilling Jesus' Great Commission to “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28:19) considering that “faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.” (Romans 10:17). Additionally, your contribution now permits us to continue defining how A Word From The Lord can participate in addressing the Gospel Gap. Our Baseline Ministry Performance Today In my global travels, people from all walks often seek me out to tell me how much our Devotionals mean in their lives. For example, one American has developed and leads a global small Zoom group, with one person assigned for each day of the week. They use the Devotional audio and Scripture References as the base for their joint discussions and prayer time with the Lord. This Zoom group has grown to include participants from several states and countries across the globe, with daily time zone scheduling being a challenge! Some statistics provide you with a snapshot of our baseline ministry's performance. Since we began podcasting in April 2018, we have had more than 800,000 intentional downloads of our devotional podcasts (e.g., Spotify, Apple Podcasts, daily emails). Podbean, our podcast publisher, tells us that this download volume places us in the top 10% of all US podcasters. Additionally, our radio broadcasting locations and time slots provide opportunities more than 20 million annual contacts with the God's Word. Our total annual costs, for all our development, production, podcasting, and broadcasting, are less than $0.004 per contact. With this efficiency ($0.004!), we remain faithful stewards of your support. Our Opportunities to Address the “Gospel Gap” While our baseline media ministry needs your continuing support, its content and infrastructure have permitted us to identify the components of the “Gospel Gap” (i.e. people that either have never heard the Gospel, have heard the Gospel but are indifferent to its message, or have heard the Gospel and hate God's message and those who deliver His message). The Gospel Gap constitutes about 35% of US adults today, and it is growing. Our baseline ministry capabilities provide an opportunity to address significant segments of the Gospel Gap by using our existing content delivered directly to the Gospel Gap using media's new and rapidly evolving digital targeting technology. Today, we are at a crossroads in our dissemination of the Lord's Word to those in Gospel Gap. As a monthly test during 2022, we targeted some Atlanta demographic segments in the Gospel Gap. Every month, we used the incredible digital targeting capabilities of our partner iHeart Media to stream 202,000 One-Minute Messages some segments of the Atlanta Gospel Gap. Incredibly, 97.4% of the recipients listened to the entire message -- 97.4%! iHeart media told us that a “listening rate” of about 86% would be considered successful even in secular targeted digital advertising! However, our baseline operating funding did not permit continuing or expanding this significantly successful test, which cost $1,600/month, into 2023. We have developed plans which would permit us to roll out our approach to Gospel Gap targeting across the US; but these plans would require a significant increase in committed support. Also, we cannot let these opportunities to expand the ministry take our eyes off the performance of our baseline ministry. Contributing to Our Ministry We need your support for both today's successful baseline ministry and, hopefully, to pursue opportunities for directly addressing the Gospel Gap. Will you help? Now is the time to do it! Please make your secure monthly recurring donation, for one year, through our partner, the National Christian Foundation (NCF). You can contribute by clicking HERE – just follow NCF's instructions after clicking. Also, you can visit our Website at www.awordfromthelord.org for more information about our ministry; and you can contribute using the Website by clicking “DONATE” on the Website. If you do not wish to contribute online through NCF, you may support us by check and mailing A Word From The Lord, P. O. Box 636 Monroe, GA. 30655. For all contributions, we are a 501 [c][3] charity for your tax purposes. In the love and service of Jesus, +Foley Dr. Foley Beach Bishop and Chairman of the Board, A Word From The Lord, Inc. info@awftl.org
We Need Your Help, Today, in Closing America's “Gospel Gap” (SPECIAL 1-MINUTE VIDEO) PLEASE DONATE VIA AWFTL WEBSITE & SECURE NATIONAL CHRISTIAN FOUNDATION (NCF): DONATE. (NOTE: Instructions for donations to A Word From The Lord (AWFTL) via check are below. For all contributions, we are a 501 [c][3] charity for your tax purposes.) MESSAGE SUMMARY: Word From The Lord ministry (AWFTL) strives to, effectively and efficiently, deliver the Lord's Word, through Gospel-focused messages, delivered to large numbers of people for whom neither the Gospel nor Jesus play a significant role in their lives. Today, this Gospel message is needed more than ever because America is rapidly repositioning its environment and culture away from America's founding principles and the Gospel's principles of Love and Trust. This repositioning is being driven by the change in roles and focus of America's key institutions (e.g., family, churches, judicial, media, government, education, military). The negative consequences of this institutional repositioning are created and promulgated by a “Gospel MINUTE Gap”. The “Gospel Gap” occurs when the prime thesis of Jesus' Gospel's “Great Commandment”, “Love thy neighbor as thyself”, has either been lost or never really considered by vast numbers and segments of Americans. The “Gospel Gap” is further exacerbated by the institutional failure of churches and ministries to focus on fulfillment of Jesus' “Great Commission” – “Go and make disciples”. It is this “Gospel Gap” that presents AWFTL with both the opportunity and, indeed, the obligation to reach and begin the change of people who will close the “Gospel Gap”. The vast majority of people in the “Gospel Gap” will never attend a Church without being “preconditioned” through an encounter with the Holy Spirit (e.g., hearing the Lord's Word directly targeted media) because “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.”. (Romans 10:17).; and, in their current state, they see church and Christianity offering them nothing of value for their life. AWFTL: A Word From The Lord (AWFTL) is driven by the Holy Spirit and God's will. We need your continuing prayers and financial support to provide increasing opportunities for people to have “contacts” with God's Word. We hope that you will continue help AWFTL to “be a part of fulfilling Jesus' ‘Great Commission'” and, therefore, being a participant in addressing the “Gospel Gap”! TODAY'S PRAYER: Father, I confess that when difficulties and trials come into my life, large or small, I mostly grumble and complain. I realize the trials James talks about are not necessarily “walls,” but they are difficult to bear, nonetheless. Fill me with such a vision of a transformed life, O God, that I might actually consider it “pure joy” when you bring trials my way. I believe, Lord. Help my unbelief. In Jesus' name, amen. Scazzero, Peter. Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Day by Day (p. 94). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. TODAY'S AFFIRMATION: Today, Because of who I am in Jesus Christ, I will not be driven by Hatred. Rather, I will abide in the Lord's Love. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): 1 John 4:7–21; 1 Corinthians 13: 1-9; Psalms 40:1-17; 3 John 5–8. A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org. DONATE TO AWFTL VIA CHECK OR ONLINE: You can contribute, directly, to AWFTL using the secure facilities of the National Christian Foundation (NCF) through this link: (DONATE TO AWFTL); or through the DONATE button on our Website (www.awftl.org ). Also, you can send a check to: A Word From The Lord; P.O. Box 636; Monroe, GA. 30655.
A Word From The Lord ministry, with Archbishop Foley Beach, has partnered with Poor Bishop Hooper to walk us through the season of Advent using their original music and animated art. AWFTL Advent Devotional Schedule 12/01/23: In this first episode "Foreword", we begin with God's Creation of the World. However, sin comes into the world necessitating the need for "A Means of Grace and the Hope for Glory", the Christ. 12/3/23: In this episode “Hope”, the Holy Spirit's notifies the aging but unbelieving Priest, Zechariah, that his barren wife Elizebeth will give birth to John the Baptizer, who will prepare the way for God's Grace for undeserved Salvation, through birth of His Son. 12/10/23: In this episode “Peace”, the Virgin Mary is notified by an Angel that God, through the Holy Spirit, will bless her with the birth of The Christ, the promised Mesiah; and He will be named Jesus. 12/17/23: In this episode “Joy”, Elizabeth is visited by her cousin, Mary as they share both the joy of their unanticipated pregnancies and the assume blessing of God's favor for them and the World, the Incarnate Jesus 12/24/23: The episode, “Love”, depicts the struggles that Joseph is facing from both his love and duty to an, as yet, unmarried but pregnant Mary. Also, Joseph is coming to grips with burden and responsibility of his early-life fatherhood for Jesus, who is Father God, in a human presence, as God's Son. 12/25/23: The final episode brings it all together in Jesus' genealogy from Adam to The Christ – proving that Advent and Christmas are a great deal more than what the commercialization of Christmas often implies. We end our Advent journey with “The First Born” - The Christ!
November 2023 Dear A Word From The Lord Ministry Friend, Supporting Our Ministry for Today and the Future Your continued support of A Word From The Lord ministry, through your prayers and financial contributions, is critical in these times. In my video, I mentioned the comments of people for whom our Devotionals and broadcasts today mean so much – I call this our “baseline ministry”. Below, I present some statistics that backup these written and in-person support testimonials. Also, my video mentions the “Gospel Gap”, which I define below. Most in the Gospel Gap resist going to church and encountering the Lord's Word, even through traditional audio and video faith-based media. However we have a somewhat unique opportunity to leverage our infrastructure, capabilities, and my fifteen years of weekly sermons to extract targeted One-Minute Messages that seem to resonate with the Gospel Gap. I invite you to read on for more information, but I want to encourage you to contribute by clicking HERE to donate now. You are making a secure donation through our partner the National Christian Foundation -- NCF (or you can mail checks using the information at the end of my letter). Your prayers and financial support keep our baseline ministry in fulfilling Jesus' Great Commission to “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28:19) considering that “faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.” (Romans 10:17). Additionally, your contribution now permits us to continue defining how A Word From The Lord can participate in addressing the Gospel Gap. Our Baseline Ministry Performance Today In my global travels, people from all walks often seek me out to tell me how much our Devotionals mean in their lives. For example, one American has developed and leads a global small Zoom group, with one person assigned for each day of the week. They use the Devotional audio and Scripture References as the base for their joint discussions and prayer time with the Lord. This Zoom group has grown to include participants from several states and countries across the globe, with daily time zone scheduling being a challenge! Some statistics provide you with a snapshot of our baseline ministry's performance. Since we began podcasting in April 2018, we have had more than 800,000 intentional downloads of our devotional podcasts (e.g., Spotify, Apple Podcasts, daily emails). Podbean, our podcast publisher, tells us that this download volume places us in the top 10% of all US podcasters. Additionally, our radio broadcasting locations and time slots provide opportunities more than 20 million annual contacts with the God's Word. Our total annual costs, for all our development, production, podcasting, and broadcasting, are less than $0.004 per contact. With this efficiency ($0.004!), we remain faithful stewards of your support. Our Opportunities to Address the “Gospel Gap” While our baseline media ministry needs your continuing support, its content and infrastructure have permitted us to identify the components of the “Gospel Gap” (i.e. people that either have never heard the Gospel, have heard the Gospel but are indifferent to its message, or have heard the Gospel and hate God's message and those who deliver His message). The Gospel Gap constitutes about 35% of US adults today, and it is growing. Our baseline ministry capabilities provide an opportunity to address significant segments of the Gospel Gap by using our existing content delivered directly to the Gospel Gap using media's new and rapidly evolving digital targeting technology. Today, we are at a crossroads in our dissemination of the Lord's Word to those in Gospel Gap. As a monthly test during 2022, we targeted some Atlanta demographic segments in the Gospel Gap. Every month, we used the incredible digital targeting capabilities of our partner iHeart Media to stream 202,000 One-Minute Messages some segments of the Atlanta Gospel Gap. Incredibly, 97.4% of the recipients listened to the entire message -- 97.4%! iHeart media told us that a “listening rate” of about 86% would be considered successful even in secular targeted digital advertising! However, our baseline operating funding did not permit continuing or expanding this significantly successful test, which cost $1,600/month, into 2023. We have developed plans which would permit us to roll out our approach to Gospel Gap targeting across the US; but these plans would require a significant increase in committed support. Also, we cannot let these opportunities to expand the ministry take our eyes off the performance of our baseline ministry. Contributing to Our Ministry We need your support for both today's successful baseline ministry and, hopefully, to pursue opportunities for directly addressing the Gospel Gap. Will you help? Now is the time to do it! Please make your secure monthly recurring donation, for one year, through our partner, the National Christian Foundation (NCF). You can contribute by clicking HERE – just follow NCF's instructions after clicking. Also, you can visit our Website at www.awordfromthelord.org for more information about our ministry; and you can contribute using the Website by clicking “DONATE”. If you do not wish to contribute online through NCF, you may support us by check and mailing A Word From The Lord, P. O. Box 636 Monroe, GA. 30655. For all contributions, we are a 501 [c][3] charity for your tax purposes. In the love and service of Jesus, +Foley Dr. Foley Beach Archbishop and Chairman of the Board, A Word From The Lord, Inc. info@awftl.org
JESUS DENIED BY PETER – Jesus Walking in the Way of the Cross LYRICS TO MUSIC: I said even if everyone else Turns on you I promise I never will I thought you were wrong wrong wrong Wrong about me… I screamed even if I have to die I'm never never gonna deny you I thought you were wrong wrong wrong Wrong about me… You used the words of an old gone man Said God will strike the shepherd down I know these lines have never been wrong before But I swear they won't define me now I knew you were wrong wrong wrong Wrong about me… When she asked her question That servant girl she broke my heart I knew she was the message That you had spoken all along Two behind her followed in the prints her feet had made Said they'd seen me walking with you said my tongue gave me away But I swore against their charges claimed you I'd never known Just in time to hear the bird you promised lift its head and crow Lift its head and crow Oh Jesus I wish you were wrong wrong wrong Wrong about me… MESSAGE SUMMARY: Peter's three-fold denial of Jesus is a well documented incident. Not only is it recorded in all four of the gospel accounts, but history has provided a wealth of art, music, and writing to immortalize one man's set of egregious mistakes. A lesser known addition to this collection is a poem written by pastor John Piper entitled ‘Peter and John.' The work examines Peter's denial from some years after the fateful event, by imagining a reunion between the two disciples. Piper's words are simple. His rhyme and rhythm straightforward. Still they paint a powerful picture of unbearable regret. As they reminisce, Peter confides in John that his denial of Jesus still haunts him. Peter's mistake has grown into a plaguing remorse, despite any good work he can do in Jesus' name. Though the conversation is entirely speculative, Piper's assumptions could very well be true. Jesus predicted Peter's behavior, and even with a warning, Peter turned his back on his friend and Savior. We know Peter was an emotional and zealous man. He was the one with the courage to step out of the boat in Matthew 14:22-33. He rebukes Jesus when Jesus predicts his own death (Matthew 16:22- 23). Peter draws the sword and cuts off the soldier's ear in the garden. And when Jesus says that all of his friends will leave him, Peter declares with full intent and belief, “even if all fall away, I will not,” (Mark 14:29). Jesus' reply must have been heart breaking to such a devoted man: “Truly I tell you,” Jesus answered, “today - yes, tonight - before the rooster crows twice you yourself will disown me three times.” What a blow this must have been to Peter's spirit! It was a statement that directly challenged his devotion. But what Jesus says is true, even when it may confuse or be hard to stomach. Remember, Jesus also proclaimed that Peter would be the rock on which the church would be built. This too is true. And what an empowering truth that must have been! Peter certainly stepped into this role after Jesus' departure. Not wallowing in his mistakes, but becoming the man that Jesus saw in him. Though Piper's poem spends a good deal of its time illustrating Peter's burden, it also accurately portrays Christ's desire for full forgiveness and redemption. He ends the conceived conversation with John laying hands on Peter and praying for him: …And so John laid His hands on Peter's head and prayed: Come now, O Lord, and touch with me, Come, Jesus, heal the memory Come, Spirit, spread a table here: No sin, no guilt, no pain, no fear. Come pour the cup and break the bread, And lift your servant Simon's head, And feed him with your righteousness, And make the cup of blessing bless… Written by Jesse Braswell Roberts / Poor Bishop Hooper golgothamusic.com // poorbishophooper.com // Second edition ©2022 TODAY'S PRAYER: All of us are often like Peter. We want to follow Jesus, but we are weak. The truth is we love him in spite of our denials. Ask Jesus to forgive you for when you deny him. Receive his forgiveness. Ask Jesus to speak encouragement over you, and open your eyes and heart to the truth of who he has made you to be. Tell Jesus you love him. TODAY'TS AFFIRMATION: Today, Because of who I am in Jesus Christ, I will not be driven by Loneliness. Rather, I will abide in the Lord's Presence. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Mark 14:66-72: “While Peter was below in the courtyard, one of the servant girls of the high priest came by. When she saw Peter warming himself, she looked closely at him. “You also were with that Nazarene, Jesus,” she said. But he denied it. “I don't know or understand what you're talking about,” he said, and went out into the entryway. When the servant girl saw him there, she said again to those standing around, “This fellow is one of them.” Again he denied it. After a little while, those standing near said to Peter, “Surely you are one of them, for you are a Galilean.” He began to call down curses, and he swore to them, “I don't know this man you're talking about.” Immediately the rooster crowed the second time. Then Peter remembered the word Jesus had spoken to him: “Before the rooster crows twice you will disown me three times.” And he broke down and wept.”. Further Reading: Mark 14:27-30; Matthew 26:69-75; Luke 22:54-62; John 18:25-27; Zechariah 13:7. A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org. THIS SUNDAY'S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach's Current Sunday Sermon: “How God Says He Loves Us: Part 2 -- The Covenant with Abraham”, at our Website: https://awtlser.podbean.com/ DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
In the Garden of Gethsemane – Jesus Pathway to the Cross LYRICS TO MUSIC: In the garden he waits For the very moment he has made Like the face before a fist Like the eyes before a kiss It's beautiful anguish In the garden he prays That this overflowing cup Could pass away And in this hour of need If there ever such a thing Out of fear I fall asleep Oh the hour has come… In the garden he bleeds But a glimpse of the coming sea And every angel up above Cannot calm the sorrow When a Father leaves his Son Oh the hour has come… MESSAGE SUMMARY: Written in 1802, Beethoven's only oratorio ‘Christ on the Mount of Olives' (Christus am Ölberg) is intense, moving, and dramatic. A fifty-minute barrage of harsh yet beautiful German words pours from the mouths of a soprano, a tenor, and a bass. Unlike many of Beethoven's contemporaries, Jesus' humanity is fully embraced in his composition. Christ's coming betrayal is witnessed amidst his own anguish and pain. From his very lips, the listener hears Jesus question his Father; every cry for mercy, every plea for help, every request for strength. Much like many other works of art, Beethoven's piece sheds new light on Jesus' suffering. It births new perspective, and makes the listener think, if even for a second, about the intricacies and complexities of the man Jesus Christ. It makes one ponder just what his betrayal meant not only to all humanity, but to Jesus himself. Understanding Christ's humanity is something that is hard to do. Where does one begin? Few have experienced anything near the physical torture he endured, and to fully understand his spiritual and emotional anguish is impossible. For “he himself bore our sins in his body on the cross,” (1 Peter 2:24). This is certainly a weight no other could carry. He experienced the cup of wrath (Matthew 20:22), the fullness of God's fury toward sin. But we know that he did so in a very human body. And it was in this body that the fullness of deity dwells (Colossians 2:9). We know he grew hungry (Matthew 4:2). We know he became tired (John 4:6). His emotions were no less real than any others', as the author of Hebrews tells us, he lifted his prayers to the Father with crying and tears (Hebrews 5:7). Seeking to better understand Christ's humanity will help us better understand how he saved humanity. Knowing the pain he endured can help us understand the frequent pain in our own lives. As Jesus prepared for his most difficult hours, the human nature of his closest friends took a prominent position. The disciples who accompany him cannot seem to stay awake in prayer. ‘For their eyes were very heavy,' (14:40) seems to be a sorry excuse at such an important time. But oh how often we share the apostles apathy! Like the disciples, we often get distracted, lose focus, or fall asleep during prayer. We too await the magnificent return of the bridegroom (Matthew 25:1-13), but we so often cannot keep our eyes open. As Beethoven's oratorio ends, we hear for a third time Jesus powerfully cry out “Nevertheless, not my will, but Thine.” What magnificent words to hear! That Jesus would fully embrace and admit his humanity, yet fully submit to his Father. These are the words that begin his journey to the cross, and usher in his final hours of sorrow. But they are also the words that allow for the world's redemption. Despite the melancholy and heartbreak woven throughout Beethoven's piece, the final moments of his work build in intensity, with flurries of rising notes and triumphant chords. It ends with the chorus singing: ‘Glorious worlds above us spire, Happy Seraphs sing your joys. Man, join in the holy choir, Hail the great Redeemer's praise' Written by Jesse Braswell Roberts / Poor Bishop Hooper golgothamusic.com // poorbishophooper.com // Second edition ©2022 Jesse Braswell Roberts / Poor Bishop Hooper TODAY'S PRAYER: Thank and praise God for his perfect plan. Ask Jesus to give you a better understanding of his humanity. Ask Christ for forgiveness regarding your inability to pray, and for the strength to endure in prayer. Ask Christ to give you a sense of readiness and expectancy for his return. Praise and thank Christ for his willingness to endure the cross. TODAY'S AFFIRMATION: Today, Because of who I am in Jesus Christ, I will not be driven by Loneliness. Rather, I will abide in the Lord's Presence. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Mark 14:32-42: “And they went to a place called Gethsemane. And he said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” And he took with him Peter and James and John, and began to be greatly distressed and troubled. And he said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death. Remain here and watch.” And going a little farther, he fell on the ground and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. And he said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.” And he came and found them sleeping, and he said to Peter, “Simon, are you asleep? Could you not watch one hour? Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” And again he went away and prayed, saying the same words. And again he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were very heavy, and they did not know what to answer him. And he came the third time and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and taking your rest? It is enough; the hour has come. The Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise, let us be going; see, my betrayer is at hand.”. Also, Matthew 26:36-46; Luke 22:39-46. A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org. THIS SUNDAY'S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach's Current Sunday Sermon: “How God Says He Loves Us: Part 2 -- The Covenant with Abraham”, at our Website: https://awtlser.podbean.com/ DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
Golgotha Experience for Lent – Jesus' Pathway to the Cross MESSAGE SUMMARY: INTRODUCTION by Poor Bishop Hooper -- Jesse Braswell Roberts Some years ago, I had the opportunity to spend a short time working and doing ministry in the Dominican Republic. During my stay in the southeastern city of La Romana, our group supported individuals living in the nearby ‘bateyes', which are small, company-owned towns for sugar industry laborers. Mostly of Haitian descent, these workers often live in grossly impoverished conditions and work arduous hours cutting sugar cane by hand. I was fortunate to meet a certain middle-aged man there one warm afternoon, tired and sweat glistening, but with a strong presence and similar forearms. He told me that he worked as a mechanic, as well as holding other jobs, when he wasn't ‘cropping cane.' We spoke amidst rubble of engine parts and tin roof. His English was broken yet formidable, so conversation came somewhat easily. I do not remember a great deal of our particular words, and I am to this day ashamed that I cannot recount his name, but I do recall one moment vividly. Our words somehow made their way to the subject of vacation. I asked about time off in his particular situation. I assumed his response to be Sundays or certain holidays. His answer startled me. ‘One day,' he said joyfully. ‘Good Friday.' It was at that time mid-March, so his day of respite was ever approaching. He told me he was excited for that day. Imprudently, I inquired further. ‘What about Christmas?' I asked. ‘No,' he replied. ‘Why not Easter?' Oh how I wish I could remember his next words exactly, for what he said was simple but powerful. Essentially, he told me that Good Friday was when Christ did the work so he did not have to. And for that he got the day off. And for that he was thankful. From that moment, my perspective surrounding this ‘holy day' and the preceding Lenten season changed. Growing up, Good Friday was at best mentioned, a semi-afterthought on the backs of Palm Sunday and Easter. But here, this man's only day of rest was the Friday before Easter. It was truly ‘good' for him, and its goodness existed in ways I had never before pondered. It was years later that my wife Leah and I wrote the body of music that makes up ‘Golgotha.' We were inspired to increase our community's appreciation and understanding of what Jesus did on his ‘Sorrowful Way' to the cross. As we explored the many traditions within the observance of Lent, we were drawn to the ‘Stations of the Cross.' We found that it was built predominantly upon a bedrock of visual art. Christians over thousands of years had recounted Jesus' last hours before his death in many strikingly beautiful ways. Our desire was to add to that beauty by creating new music. We wanted to write music that was rooted in scripture. Music that honored tradition, but also that invited the mind to see our Savior's suffering in new ways. Not for our own entertainment or enjoyment, but rather so that we might offer him more thanksgiving, more praise, more adoration, and more love. I pray the words that follow would lead you into deeper relationship with our Savior Jesus Christ. Each chapter corresponds with a song of similar title, and I'd invite you to listen to the music as you read. I'd encourage you to have a bible with you, and look up the other scriptures that are cited. They'll undoubtedly provide deeper understanding and beauty. At the end of each section, I'd invite you to pray. There are prompts provided, but they are intended to be starting places, not final destinations. With all of this, I must credit my acquaintance that day in the Caribbean sun. The Lord used his words to stir my heart. He made me think differently about the true work that Jesus did on the cross, and birthed in me an ever- growing appreciation for what Christ so magnificently accomplished there. I pray that in spending time with Jesus now, as he makes his way from the garden to the cross, the same would be true for you. Jesse Braswell Roberts Written by Jesse Braswell Roberts / Poor Bishop Hooper golgothamusic.com // poorbishophooper.com // Second edition ©2022 Jesse Braswell Roberts / Poor Bishop Hooper TODAY'S PRAYER: Lord, everything in me resists following you into the garden of Gethsemane to fall on my face to the ground before you. Grant me the courage to follow you all the way to the cross, whatever that might mean for my life. And then, by your grace, lead me to resurrection life and power. In Jesus' name, amen. Scazzero, Peter. Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Day by Day (p. 100). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. TODAY'S AFFIRMATION: Today, I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM FILLED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT. If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him! (Luke 11:13). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Luke 22:39-44: And he came out and went, as was his custom, to the Mount of Olives, and the disciples followed him. And when he came to the place, he said to them, “Pray that you may not enter into temptation.” And he withdrew from them about a stone's throw, and knelt down and prayed, saying, “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.” And there appeared to him an angel from heaven, strengthening him. And being in agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground. A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org. THIS SUNDAY'S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach's Current Sunday Sermon: “How Does God Say I Love You, Part 4: Violation of the Covenant”, at our Website: https://awtlser.podbean.com/ DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
Archbishop Foley Beach 2021 Christmas Message (SPECIAL: 3-MINUTE VIDEO) MESSAGE SUMMARY: Greetings in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, I pray that in this Advent and Christmas season you are resting in the hope, love, and joy of Jesus Christ. At this time in our world, the economy, national conflicts, travel plans, and Covid-19 and its variants all hold in common a simple reality and certainty, and that is of their uncertainty. We cannot be certain of where the global and local economy will be in the coming year, whether our travel plans will be unexpectedly changed, or what will happen with the morphing Covid outbreak. This can be very unsettling. Uncertainty can cause anxiety and stress: How will I provide for my family? Where will I even be next month? Will my classes be online or in person? What will my health be like? The uncertainty we are currently experiencing is not a new thing. In fact, it is as old as the story of a young couple in a backwater province of the Roman Empire planning on getting married but being surprised with the news that they will bear a Savior named Jesus. Not only would they be forced to travel by the dictate of an emperor for the purposes of a census and taxation, but they would be tasked with the responsibility of taking care of the Messiah. It is amazing to think that God entrusted this young couple with a role in his plan of salvation in the midst of the swirling angst in Palestine. What has he entrusted to you? Our familiarity with the Christmas story shields us from the reality of the surprises and uncertainties that arose at every turn for Mary and Joseph: the uncertainty of carrying a child and finding housing in Bethlehem; the unsettling prophecy from Simeon declaring the baby Jesus is, “...appointed for the fall and rising of many in Israel…” (Luke 2:34); the uncertainty of trusting the message to travel to Egypt; and the unsettling news of the slaughter of innocent babes in Bethlehem. When has following Jesus ever meant a security guarantee for the future apart from the assurance of salvation which is promised in Romans 8:38-39, “For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord”? By faith, Mary and Joseph followed the Word of the Lord through the angels, and it is by faith that you and I walk forward in this age of uncertainty. We know that by God's goodwill we enter His rest with joy, loved and redeemed. “Behold, I bring you good news of a great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord” (Matthew 2:10). This is indeed good news of a great joy and is a certain comfort as we in Gafcon and throughout the global Anglican Communion move forward, trusting God and His Word, and seeking to proclaim Christ faithfully to the nations. A Merry and Happy Christmas to you!! Archbishop Foley Beach Chairman of Gafcon's Primates Council TODAY'S PRAYER: Father, I confess that when difficulties and trials come into my life, large or small, I mostly grumble and complain. I realize the trials James talks about are not necessarily “walls,” but they are difficult to bear, nonetheless. Fill me with such a vision of a transformed life, O God, that I might actually consider it “pure joy” when you bring trials my way. I believe, Lord. Help my unbelief. In Jesus' name, amen. Scazzero, Peter. Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Day by Day (p. 94). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. TODAY'S AFFIRMATION: Today, Because of who I am in Jesus Christ, I will not be driven by Hatred. Rather, I will abide in the Lord's Love. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5) SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Psalm 43:3; John 1:1-14; Luke 2:1-20. A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org. THIS SUNDAY'S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach's Current Sunday Sermon: “Jesus the Christ Is Our Hope In Life and Death and He Is “Hope” for the Wave of Loneliness and Uncertainty Sweeping Our World Today”, at our Website: https://awtlser.podbean.com/ DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
We Need Your Help, Today, in Closing America's “Gospel Gap” (SPECIAL: 1-MINUTE VIDEO) MESSAGE SUMMARY: Word From The Lord ministry (AWFTL) strives to, effectively and efficiently, deliver the Lord's Word through Gospel-focused messages to large numbers of people whom neither the Gospel nor Jesus play a significant role in their lives. Today, this Gospel message is needed more than ever because America is rapidly repositioning its environment and culture away from America's founding principles and the Gospel's principles of Love and Trust. This repositioning is being driven by the change in roles and focus of America's key institutions (e.g., family, churches, judicial, media, government, education, military). The negative consequences of this institutional repositioning are created and promulgated by a “Gospel Gap”. The “Gospel Gap” occurs when the prime thesis of Jesus' Gospel's “Great Commandment”, “Love thy neighbor as thyself”, has either been lost or never really considered by vast numbers and segments of Americans. The “Gospel Gap” is further exacerbated by the institutional failure of churches and ministries to focus on fulfillment of Jesus' “Great Commission” – “Go and make disciples”. It is this “Gospel Gap” that presents AWFTL with both the opportunity and, indeed, the obligation to reach and begin the change of people who will close the “Gospel Gap”. A Word From The Lord (AWFTL) is driven by the Holy Spirit and God's will. We need your continuing prayers and financial support to provide increasing opportunities for people to have “contacts” with God's Word. We hope that you will continue help AWFTL to “be a part of fulfilling Jesus' ‘Great Commission'” and, therefore, being a participant in addressing the “Gospel Gap”! A Word From The Lord is a 501 [c][3] not-for-profit ministry; and you can contribute, directly, to AWFTL using the secure facilities of the National Christian Foundation (NCF) using the link below (DONATE TO AWFTL); or through the DONATE button on our Website (www.awftl.org ); or with a check to: A Word From The Lord; P.O. Box 636; Monroe, GA. 30655 TODAY'S PRAYER: Father, I confess that when difficulties and trials come into my life, large or small, I mostly grumble and complain. I realize the trials James talks about are not necessarily “walls,” but they are difficult to bear, nonetheless. Fill me with such a vision of a transformed life, O God, that I might actually consider it “pure joy” when you bring trials my way. I believe, Lord. Help my unbelief. In Jesus' name, amen. Scazzero, Peter. Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Day by Day (p. 94). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. TODAY'S AFFIRMATION: Today, Because of who I am in Jesus Christ, I will not be driven by Hatred. Rather, I will abide in the Lord's Love. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): 1 John 4:7–21; 1 Corinthians 13: 1-9; Psalms 40:1-17; 3 John 5–8. A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org. THIS SUNDAY'S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach's Current Sunday Sermon: “Advent Sermons from Isaiah – Part 4: The King of Assyria – A Sign from the Lord”, at our Website: https://awtlser.podbean.com/ DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
On this Memorial Day, We Remember Jesus’ Definition of LOVE: “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends” MESSAGE SUMMARY: On this Memorial Day and as we see on TV at the National Cemeteries here and overseas, we cannot help but be reminded of Jesus’ Agape Love. In John 15:12-14a, Jesus told of the actions that represent the self-sacrificial Agape Love taken by many of those soldiers interred in these cemeteries: “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends . . .”. We are made in the image of God; therefore, we are supposed to be perfect mirrors of God's Agape Love (i.e. self-sacrificing love). In 1 John 4:16-17, John tells us about God’s Love: “So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world." Sin is our failure to act as our God of Agape Love acts -- the opposite of Agape Love is our self-love. Also, in 1 John 4:18-19, John presents us with the fruits of Agape Love, within the context of God’s model for Agape Love: “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love. We love because he first loved us.". Today, let us all remember those with God’s Agape Love those men and women who served America and sacrificed so much for us by giving up their lives in Agape Love. TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Today, I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM FORGIVEN. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): 1 John 4:18-19; Psalms 51:1-2; Romans 5:2-5; Romans 8:31-39; Psalms 107b:12-22. A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org. THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “Jesus Followers Cannot Live their Lives Without Living in the Indwelled Power of the Holy Spirit, but Consequences May Arise", at our Website: https://awtlser.podbean.com/ DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
(Easter Videos & Text) Alleluia! Christ is Risen! The Lord is Risen indeed Alleluia! Watch Archbishop Foley Beach’s Easter Message (click this video link): an_easter_message.mp4 Hi, I’m Foley Beach, Archbishop and Primate of the Anglican Church in North America, and on this Easter Day, I bring you greetings in the name of our Lord. Of course, all of us have been through such challenging times in recent weeks, months, and even this past year. We’ve just come through the season of Lent, a time in which we are reminded that we are sinful creatures; that we have all fallen short of the glory of God and messed up and seek to make repentance in our lives. Of course, Holy Week reminds us that God loved us so much that he sent his Son into our world to die for our sins. As the Apostle Paul writes in Romans 5:8, “But God demonstrates his own love for us in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us.” And so he was crucified on Good Friday, and now it’s Easter morning, the day of his resurrection. He rose from the dead and affirmed everything that he said. His resurrection promises us not just hope for now and life abundantly in the present, but life eternal, eternal life with him. “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son that whosoever believes in him will not perish, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16) I don’t know where this video finds you this morning, or this afternoon, or tonight, but I hope you will find yourself in the presence of the Lord, and if not, that you will open your heart and soul to him this day. Hear this prayer from the Book of Common Prayer, this is the Collect for Easter Day: “O God, who for our redemption gave your only begotten Son to die upon the cross and by his glorious resurrection delivered us from the devil and the power of death. Grant us grace to die daily to sin that we may live with him in the joy of his resurrection, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, now and forever. Amen”. The God of peace, who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus Christ through the blood of the everlasting covenant, the great shepherd of the sheep, make you perfect in every good work working in you that which is well-pleasing in his sight, and the blessing of God almighty the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit, be among you and remain with you always. Amen! TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Today, I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM FORGIVEN. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Matthew 16:24-25; 1 Peter 4:1-6; John 12:24; Mark 8:34. A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org. THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “He Is Risen: From Good Friday to Easter!", at our Website: https://awtlser.podbean.com/ WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO – “We All Need “Hope” in Today’s World of Fear, Doubt in Our Faith, and Feelings of “Hopelessness”; and God Is this “Hope””: www.AWFTL.org/watch DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
Preparing for Lent: The Journey – Day 3 of 3 INTRODUCTION -- Preparing for Lent: The Journey, Day-3 includes: The Anglican Youth Fellowship Choir, from Kampala Diocese, Uganda and led by Group Manager Andrew Lumbuye, performs “Come Lord Jesus” Archbishop Miguel Uchoa, Archbishop of the Anglican Church in Brazil and an Anglican Primate, reflects on Lent and the Church’s mission All Saints Cathedral Worship Team from, All Saints Cathedral Nairobi Kenya performs, the song “KWAKE YESU {On Christ the Solid Rock}” Jesse and Leah Roberts, of Poor Bishop Hooper -- American writers, and performers of many Christian faith-based songs (including the albums and music collections First Born, Every Psalm, and The Golgotha Experience), reflect on Lenten music and share a special song – “Jesus Walked this Lonesome Valley” MESSAGE SUMMARY: On Wednesday, February 17, many Anglicans, along with many other denominations and churches around the world, began their observance of the Christian season of Lent with their Ash Wednesday services. Beginning today and the two days following, A Word from the Lord is providing three videos, through Gafcon Global Anglicans, with the hope that they will help you to continue to prepare your hearts and minds as you walk with Jesus in your journey this Lenten season. Gafcon’s videos have included people, songs, cultures, and images from around the World so that you can be encouraged and equipped to consider your own mortality within the context of God’s Grace of Eternal Life given to us through Jesus’ suffering and death on the cross and His Resurrection on Easter at the end of Lent. There is a broad range of practices that Anglicans and other denominations and churches follow during the Lenten season. In an age of increasing instant gratification, the practice of Lent, leading up to Easter, runs against the tide in many cultures. With these three-days of videos from Anglicans round the World, we see the Anglican diversity in the practice of Lent from many cultures, languages, and races. What is Lent about and what are some songs of worship which can, as Reverend Canon Wes Jagoe says, "...help us slow down and focus on our relationship with the Lord"? Also, Rev. Jodie McNeil of Australia, shares, "I've started to see that it is good to synchronize my calendar with Christian brothers and sisters from all tribes, tongues, and nations because everyone needs to choose a calendar to follow...but as we live as foreigners and exiles, it seems like a good thing for Christians to celebrate together the rhythm of our church calendar." Andrew Lumbuye of Uganda, discusses his Lenten perspective and how it provides him a context for selecting songs for Lent, “Lent is a period of soul searching, reconnecting of getting back to the Lord . . . the songs that I have chosen are those that help us to empty ourselves; that help us cry out ourselves to the Lord . . .” Archbishop Miguel Uchoa of Brazil discusses the Church’s mission for lent within the Gospel of John, “Lent is the time of reflection and nothing better to reflect on than the mission of the Church . . . when they {the Apostles Andrew, John, and Peter} learn about Jesus and who Jesus was, they want to spend time with Him – learn from Him. That must be our objective.” TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Today, I affirm that, because I am in Jesus Christ, I will proclaim Him. (Philippians 1:15f). “I can do everything through Him who gives me strength.”. (Philippians 4:14). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): John 1:6-18; John 1:6-18,23-28; John 1:29-34; John 1:35-42. A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org. THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “God Does Not See Followers of Jesus in Our Sin; Rather, God Sees Us Through the Eternal (Like the “Rainbow”) “Justifying” Covenant Blood of Jesus", at our Website: https://awtlser.podbean.com/ WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO – “We All Need “Hope” in Today’s World of Fear, Doubt in Our Faith, and Feelings of “Hopelessness”; and God Is this “Hope””: www.AWFTL.org/watch DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
Preparing for Lent: The Journey – Day 2 of 3 INTRODUCTION -- Preparing for Lent: The Journey, Day-2 includes: Everyday Global Anglican interviews Archbishop Foley Beach, Archbishop and Primate of the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) and Chairman of Gafcon, and Keith Getty, Irish musician and songwriter, as they discuss Lent Keith and Kristyn Getty, Irish writers and performers of many Christian faith-based songs (including Christ Our Hope in Life and Death, In Christ Alone, and By Faith), perform a new recording of their song, "My Worth." MESSAGE SUMMARY: On Wednesday, February 17, many Anglicans, along with many other denominations and churches around the world, began their observance of the Christian season of Lent with their Ash Wednesday services. Beginning today and the two days following, A Word from the Lord is providing three videos, through Gafcon Global Anglicans, with the hope that they will help you to continue to prepare your hearts and minds as you walk with Jesus in your journey this Lenten season. Gafcon’s videos have included people, songs, cultures, and images from around the World so that you can be encouraged and equipped to consider your own mortality within the context of God’s Grace of Eternal Life given to us through Jesus’ suffering and death on the cross and His Resurrection on Easter at the end of Lent. There is a broad range of practices that Anglicans and other denominations and churches follow during the Lenten season. In an age of increasing instant gratification, the practice of Lent, leading up to Easter, runs against the tide in many cultures. With these three-days of videos from Anglicans round the World, we see the Anglican diversity in the practice of Lent from many cultures, languages, and races. What is Lent about and what are some songs of worship which can, as Reverend Canon Wes Jagoe says, "...help us slow down and focus on our relationship with the Lord"? Also, Rev. Jodie McNeil of Australia, shares, "I've started to see that it is good to synchronize my calendar with Christian brothers and sisters from all tribes, tongues, and nations because everyone needs to choose a calendar to follow...but as we live as foreigners and exiles, it seems like a good thing for Christians to celebrate together the rhythm of our church calendar." Andrew Lumbuye of Uganda, discusses his Lenten perspective and how it provides him a context for selecting songs for Lent, “Lent is a period of soul searching, reconnecting of getting back to the Lord . . . the songs that I have chosen are those that help us to empty ourselves; that help us cry out ourselves to the Lord . . .” Archbishop Miguel Uchoa of Brazil discusses the Church’s mission for lent within the Gospel of John, “Lent is the time of reflection and nothing better to reflect on than the mission of the Church . . . when they {the Apostles Andrew, John, and Peter} learn about Jesus and who Jesus was, they want to spend time with Him – learn from Him. That must be our objective.” TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Today, because of I am filled with the Holy Spirit, I will not be controlled by my Self-Centeredness. Rather, I will walk in the Spirit’s fruit of Love. “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” (Galatians 5:22f). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): John 1:6-18; John 1:6-18,23-28; John 1:29-34; John 1:35-42. A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org. THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “God Does Not See Followers of Jesus in Our Sin; Rather, God Sees Us Through the Eternal (Like the “Rainbow”) “Justifying” Covenant Blood of Jesus", at our Website: https://awtlser.podbean.com/ WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO – “We All Need “Hope” in Today’s World of Fear, Doubt in Our Faith, and Feelings of “Hopelessness”; and God Is this “Hope””: www.AWFTL.org/watch DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
Preparing for Lent: The Journey – Day 1 of 3 MESSAGE SUMMARY: On Wednesday, February 17, many Anglicans, along with many other denominations and churches around the world, began their observance of the Christian season of Lent with their Ash Wednesday services. Beginning today and the two days following, A Word from the Lord is providing three videos, through Gafcon Global Anglicans, with the hope that they will help you to continue to prepare your hearts and minds as you walk with Jesus in your journey this Lenten season. Gafcon’s videos have included people, songs, cultures, and images from around the World so that you can be encouraged and equipped to consider your own mortality within the context of God’s Grace of Eternal Life given to us through Jesus’ suffering and death on the cross and His Resurrection on Easter at the end of Lent. There is a broad range of practices that Anglicans and other denominations and churches follow during the Lenten season. In an age of increasing instant gratification, the practice of Lent, leading up to Easter, runs against the tide in many cultures. With these three-days of videos from Anglicans round the World, we see the Anglican diversity in the practice of Lent from many cultures, languages, and races. What is Lent about and what are some songs of worship which can, as Reverend Canon Wes Jagoe says, "...help us slow down and focus on our relationship with the Lord"? Also, Rev. Jodie McNeil of Australia, shares, "I've started to see that it is good to synchronize my calendar with Christian brothers and sisters from all tribes, tongues, and nations because everyone needs to choose a calendar to follow...but as we live as foreigners and exiles, it seems like a good thing for Christians to celebrate together the rhythm of our church calendar." Andrew Lumbuye of Uganda, discusses his Lenten perspective and how it provides him a context for selecting songs for Lent, “Lent is a period of soul searching, reconnecting of getting back to the Lord . . . the songs that I have chosen are those that help us to empty ourselves; that help us cry out ourselves to the Lord . . .” Archbishop Miguel Uchoa of Brazil discusses the Church’s mission for lent within the Gospel of John, “Lent is the time of reflection and nothing better to reflect on than the mission of the Church . . . when they {the Apostles Andrew, John, and Peter} learn about Jesus and who Jesus was, they want to spend time with Him – learn from Him. That must be our objective.” Preparing for Lent: The Journey, Day-1 Includes: The Reverend Canon Wes Jagoea, former USMC Platoon Leader in Afghanistan and Iraq and now an Anglican Priest serving as the Chaplain to Archbishop Foley Beach, introduces and provides a background to Lent Jodie McNeil, Senior Minister at Jamberoo Anglican Church in Australia, discusses a Global positioning of the Lenten season. Also, he introduces and sings a song, “Ancient of Days”, that he is teaching his church for Lent The Sayuni Choir, from the Anglican Church of Burundi St. Marks Parish Nagara, shares a song – “Jesus Loves Us” A Worship Team, from the Chapel of St. Stephen and All the Martyrs in Lahore Pakistan, shares a song – “Come to the Waters” TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Today, Because of who I am in Jesus Christ, I will not be driven by Anger. Rather, I will abide in the Lord’s Forgiveness. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): John 1:6-18; John 1:6-18,23-28; John 1:29-34; John 1:35-42. A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org. THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “God Does Not See Followers of Jesus in Our Sin; Rather, God Sees Us Through the Eternal (Like the “Rainbow”) “Justifying” Covenant Blood of Jesus", at our Website: https://awtlser.podbean.com/ WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO – “We All Need “Hope” in Today’s World of Fear, Doubt in Our Faith, and Feelings of “Hopelessness”; and God Is this “Hope””: www.AWFTL.org/watch DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
MESSAGE SUMMARY: This teaching is an address by Archbishop Foley Beach, Primate of the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA), to the ACNA’s Provincial (i.e. Canada, US, and Mexico) Council. Dr. Beach provides both a context and call to action for all Christian Churches, Clergy, and lay persons to become a part of the solution for America’s “race issues”. As Jesus commanded us in John 5:12: This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.”. Also, in John 13:34-35, Jesus commanded us: “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”. Jesus’ “one another” is all inclusive and not just those that look like you and/or of your culture. “The past few months have not only been pandemic, but pandemonium. We have watched evil displayed by fellow image bearers and some police officers in recent weeks. We have heard cries of grief in our own neighborhoods and from all around the world. And the cries have gotten louder. We watched as peaceful protests were hijacked by chaos and violence, destroying countless businesses and property, and injuring not only bystanders . . . In the US we have struggled to overcome the effects of the systemic racism from our founding days, and we now know that changing laws would never be enough. Victories for civil rights, and for the desegregation of our schools would never be enough. For you see we do not have just a ‘skin problem’, we have a ‘sin problem’.” “As Dr. Tony Evans of Oak Cliff Bible Church in Dallas Texas recently said, ‘The evangelical church needs to speak up where it has been silent on injustice and racism. The biggest problem in the culture today is the failure of the church. We would not even have a racial crisis in America if the church had not consistently failed to deal with racism as the severe sin it is. But because the church has historically ignored and downplayed it, the issue still exists. Where the church is called to set an example, we have cowered.’. . . The Bible makes it unequivocally clear that we are all made in the image of God (Genesis 1:27): ‘So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.’. We each bear the image of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. Any hostility between brothers and sisters in Christ, especially because of skin color, is an affront to God and damages our souls and the ‘blessed community’ so many of us seek . . .” “We need God to rend our hearts as a Church. We need the people of Anglican Church in North America to display the kind of tenderness and compassion that is needed in this time. We need listening ears. We need thoughtfulness. We need preaching. We need humility. We need grace. We need to aim for the Anglican Church in North America to look like ‘thy kingdom on earth as it is in heaven’. . .” “We need to search our hearts and make sure there is no offensive way in us as the Anglican Church in North America. All the words about spiritual renewal and revival in the Bible are not directed to the non-Christian culture, but to the people of God. We need to look within ourselves. And it starts with me. What the Lord has shown me about me in the past few weeks is this – I have failed to understand the incredible burden and pain that many of my black brothers and sisters live with every day. I have not wept with those who weep. And I have not understood the depth of the effect of racism and injustice. I have not understood the burden of living under racist acts, slurs, and systems they must endure every day, nor have I understood the fear with which they constantly live for themselves and their families. It is not enough not to be a racist; we must not be blind to the sin of racism and ignore it in our midst. . . I find myself listening a lot these days. I find myself sad a lot. I find myself angry. I find myself yearning to see ‘all the sad things come untrue.’ And yet I know that none of this is a surprise to our Lord, and He can be trusted . . . ‘Doing nothing is no longer an option for me.’.” “Brothers and Sisters in Christ, I am in no way endorsing those movements that are promoting anarchy, destruction of the family, and the dismantling of our government. Our form of government has brought more freedom, justice, and liberation than ANY other kind of government . . . It will not be through political parties, rallies, slogans, or marches that our attitudes and practices are changed, that the souls of our nations are converted. They may have some impact, but the deep change we all need will be through revival that comes from repentance – turning away from our sin and toward God and his righteous ways in Jesus Christ.” “You can start right where you are. In your own heart, in your own relationship with God - first. Then, in your own community -- One person at a time. One relationship at a time. One act a time. Reaching out and building a relationship with someone different than you are. One drop of rain may not seem like much, but with other drops of rain it can create a healing flood. . . “ “So, let us pray for one another about these things, and let us get out and make a difference in our local communities. God has placed you and me here for such a time as this . . .” TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM FORGIVEN. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Genesis 1:27; Revelation 7:1-17; Ephesians 2:19; John.13:35; Galatians 6:2; Romans 12:15; Psalms 103:12; Isiah 1:18. WEBSITE LINK: www.AWordFromTheLord.org/ THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “America Will Not Survive as a Nation Unless the People of God Stand Up and Plead for Our Survival - Pray for America": at our Website: www.AWFTL.org/listen/. WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO – “Cultural Turmoil and Health Threats Bring Fear, But Your Fear Is Overcome By Following God’s Call and Seeking His Will”: www.AWFTL.org/watch DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
MESSAGE SUMMARY: We just celebrated the anniversary of America’s Independence, and “I come this day with a heavy heart for our nation; for our people; for our children; for our grandchildren; and people of faith.”. Over the past months, we have seen an unprecedented removal of ethical, moral, and spiritual foundations. These foundations have allowed this country, in the past, to be blessed by God; to be civil; to be protected; and to be successful as a nation. In the times of Jeremiah, the nations of Israel and Judah were having their problems. The people were neglecting God; abandoning God’s commandments; and doing things God considered abominable – in summary, Jeremiah’s people had no Fear of God. Given this situation, God says, in Jeremiah 5:29, “’Shall I not punish them for these things?’ declares the LORD, ‘and shall I not avenge myself on a nation such as this?’”. Given these situations in Scripture as a comparative context, we are now, like in the times of Jeremiah, pushing God’s patience. Therefore, we cannot expect for things to continue to go well. God’s laws are meant for blessing and protecting us, and our actions now are mocking God. Paul instructs us, in Galatians 6:7, that God cannot be mocked: “Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap.”. Great Britain declared that February 21, 1781 would be a day of prayer and fasting. On this day, the Anglican pastor John Newton, who wrote Amazing Grace, preached a sermon on Jeremiah 5:29. Several comments from Newton’s sermon enlighten us on God and the affairs of nations. Since we have had a public covenant with God, do you thank that God will not take notice of our public divorce from Him through our actions and the turning of our backs on Him? God tells us, in 2 Chronicles 7:14, that “If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.". Following God’s command for prayer when a nation has gone away from his blessings, Paul’s instructions to Timothy, in 1 Timothy 2:1-6, are valid for everybody today as we now live in a “post-Christian culture”: 1) we should remain diligent in our prayers, and our prayers should concern everyone, including all those in authority (e.g., presidents, cabinet members, legislators, governors, mayors, judges); 2) our hearts should be concerned for everyone’s Salvation; and 3) our message (i.e. there is one mediator between God and mankind – Jesus the Christ) should concern everyone Nations come and go; civilizations come and go; and institutions come and go; but God and His Word abide forever. Therefore, we all should throw ourselves on the mercy of God because it is only by God’s mercy that His hand will be stayed. Remember, justice is getting what we deserve, but mercy is not getting what we deserve. Are we praying; are our churches houses of prayer, are we repenting for ourselves and our nation; and are we praying for a spiritual awakening in our nation and in the world, that will turn this nation and world back to God, before there is no more mercy? As in Isaiah 6:8, “And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, ‘Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?’ Then I said, ‘Here I am! Send me.’” -- Do something in the name of Jesus the Christ as He leads you; and if not you the who? TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Today, I affirm that, because I am in Jesus Christ, I will proclaim Him. (Philippians 1:15f). “I can do everything through Him who gives me strength.”. (Philippians 4:14). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Jeremiah 5:11-31; Galatians 6:7; Matthew 11:21-24; Romans 1:18-32; 1 Timothy 2:1-6; 2 Chronicles 7:14; Isaiah 6:8 THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “God Is Love, But He Is Justice Too; therefore, We Must Pray for America and for God to Intervene in America’s Downward Spiral": at our Website: www.AWFTL.org/listen/. WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO – “In Today’s Uncertainties but as a Follower of Jesus, You CAN Answer “Yes” to “Am I Going to Heaven?”!”: www.AWFTL.org/watch DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
MESSAGE SUMMARY: As Americans, we are a privileged people, all of us, to live in a country, relative to the rest of the world, that is privileged. The key element of this “privilege” is freedom. However, something has been changing -- we are seeing many of the freedoms and blessings of America changing into curses. For example, our obsession with materialism has put most Americans into the bondage of debt; and our drive to feel happy has led many into the addiction of drugs and alcohol. We must all realize that our freedoms and liberties MUST be used for Godly purposes, or we will lose our freedoms. As we are told in Psalms 33:12: “Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, the people whom he has chosen as his heritage!". Today, through our actions, laws, and the cultural revisions of our founding Christian principles, we have told God that we do not want Him around. While God is love, He is, also, justice. Therefore, God has obliged us; and He has done what He said He would do -- God is withdrawing His presence and His protection and holding back His divine wisdom, which has guided us for so many years. God is leaving us to reap the consequences of our focus away from Him and to lives without Him. The signers of the Declaration of Independence began a revolution which started the United States of America. The American Revolution was rooted in the belief that all people, even the King and governmental leaders, are subject to the rule of God and not above the law; and everyone is endowed by God, our Creator, with certain inalienable rights. Many people have tried to deny that America's founders created a country which wove together the idea of self-governance with Christian principles. With God’s Ten Commandments as the cornerstone of our Democracy, most Americans and those others living in our country cannot name even three of the Ten Commandments. If a Christian religious context was assumed, by the founders of America and the government based on the Constitution, it seems we have a significant problem in our culture today. Now, it appears, America’s focus is to get rid of all things relating America to Christianity, the Bible, or anything that smacks of God – and, pretty much, these efforts to remove God’s influence from the public square appear to be succeeding. Today, we must all Pray for America – to carve out a time each day when we, each and every one of us, prays for America. In our prayers, we must confess our sins as individuals and collectively as a country. Additionally, we must pray for our President, Members of Congress, the Supreme Court, and our other leaders and those others in authority. Our Prayers for America should pray for the moral issues of today; blessings and protection for our leaders that are walking the walk of their Christian faith; and for a Spiritual Revival and Awakening in America. We will not survive as a nation unless the people of God stand up before God and plead for the survival of America. Spiritual laws are like the laws of physics – they are absolute unless another force intervenes. Therefore, as America increases its violation of God’s laws at an increasing rate, we will face both the implicit and explicit consequences of violating God’s laws unless He intervenes – we must pray for God’s intervention! Paul instructs us for our prayers in 1 Timothy 2:1-6: “First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time.". We must make Praying for America and, personally, for its leaders a priority in our lives. If we are praying, then God will show us what to do. Only the intervention of God will change the downward direction of America, and we must ask through our prayers. God has intervened before, and He will do it again. America was built on prayer, as we learn from the writings of Benjamin Franklin, and upon the Christian faith of our founders. Just remember, in Daniel 4:17, that God informed King Nebuchadnezzar and us that He {God}selects those that rule over us. However, God may set over us rulers that are “the lowliest of Men”: “The sentence is by the decree of the watchers, the decision by the word of the holy ones, to the end that the living may know that the Most High {God} rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will and sets over it the lowliest of men.”. It appears that God may, at a given point in time, give us either the rulers that we need or the rulers we deserve – we must pray that America receives the rulers that we need. Will You pray for America and take responsibility for the survival America and its blessings and freedoms for our country today and for our children and grandchildren in the future? TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Today, I affirm that, because I am in Jesus Christ, I will not be anxious. (Philippians 4:6f)). “I can do everything through Him who gives me strength.”. (Philippians 4:14). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Psalms 33:12; 1 Timothy 2:1-6; James 1:4; Proverbs 3:5-6; Daniel 4:17. THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “Will You “Stand in the Gap" for Our County By Participating in and Leading a Great Spiritual Awakening in America?": at our Website: www.AWFTL.org/listen/. WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO – “The “News” Today Is Unsettling and Creates Fear and Insecurity; We Need an Outpouring of the Holy Spirit and Spiritual Renewal!”: www.AWFTL.org/watch DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
MESSAGE SUMMARY: On July 4, 1776, the signers of the Declaration of Independence began a revolution which started the United States of America. The Revolution was rooted in the belief that all people, even the King and governmental leaders, are subject to the rule of God and not above the law and; and everyone is endowed by God, our Creator, with certain inalienable rights. Many people have tried to deny that America's founders created a country which wove together the idea of self-governance with Christian principles. Now, it appears, the focus is to get rid of things relating America to Christianity, the Bible, or anything that smacks of God – and, pretty much these efforts to remove God’s influence from the public square, appear to be succeeding. We need to hear, in Today’s sermon, what our founders said regarding America’s Christian base. However, not long after the enactment of the Constitution in the late 1700s, morality and church attendance declined drastically into a Spiritual Depression. The answer became the nationwide implementation of "Concerts of Prayer", across all Christian denominations, that led to an American Spiritual Awakening. Today, through our actions, laws, and cultural revisions of our founding Christian principles, we have told God that we do not want Him around. Therefore, God has obliged us; and He has done what He said He would do -- God is withdrawing His presence and His protection and holding back His divine wisdom, which has guided us for so many years. God is leaving us to reap the consequences of our focus away from Him and without Him. The Lord Said through Ezekiel: "I looked for a man among them who would build up the wall and stand in the gap on behalf of the land so I would not have to destroy it, but I found none.". We must have a Spiritual Awakening, in our country, beginning today! Will You "Stand in the Gap"? So, let us pray for one another about these things, and let us get out and make a difference in our local communities. God has placed you and me here for such a time as this Today’s Affirmation: I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM FILLED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT. If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him! (Luke 11:13). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Ezekiel 22:30; Daniel 4:28-32; Matthew 22:19-21; Isaiah 29:8-21. WEBSITE LINK: www.AWordFromTheLord.org/ WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO – “Dr. Beach Provides a Context and Call to Action for Clergy and Lay Persons to Become Part of the Solution for “Race Issues” Facing Us Today”: www.AWFTL.org/watch DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
MESSAGE SUMMARY: Paul points out to us, in Romans1:18, that God is not a disinterested bystander in either our lives or the life of our country: “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth.". From the end of WWI, in 1918, through the middle of the 1930s, Hitler and the National Socialist Party coopted the Christian Churches in Germany as the National Socialists rose to power politically, thereby, reducing Germany to only one state-supported religion. Also, the National Socialists coopted all of Germany’s political parties to reduce Germany to a one-party country. Is the Christian Church, here in the US, abdicating its role, as the Christian Church did in Germany, by not speaking with a voice that is heard against the changing culture? As followers of Jesus, we and our churches need to wake up to the cultural changes that are opposed to Jesus’ teachings and the Bible. The US was created, by the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, to be a “country of laws”; and the founding legal context for these laws was the Ten Commandments of God. However, our current and evolving culture, and its related value system, is opposed to the Ten Commandments of God. As we adhere to the new culture and its values, we are in opposition to God and the basic tenants of Christianity. Therefore, our departure from God positions us for the Wrath of God as posited in Romans 1:18. God’s Wrath may well take the form of God turning us over to our lusts, desires and the outcomes of this changed culture – as we walk away from God, He may walk away from us. It is not too late for the US to wake up! As God told Solomon in 2 Chronicles 7:14: “if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.". God has instructed us that He will forgive us if we: 1) humble ourselves: 2) seek Him, not our culture; 3) turn from wicked ways; and 4) pray. Will America wake up and follow God’s instructions? TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Today, I affirm that, because I am in Jesus Christ, I will think like Jesus. (Philippians 2:5f). “I can do everything through Him who gives me strength.”. (Philippians 4:14). Scripture Reference (ESV): Romans1:18; 2 Chronicles 7:14. THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “Dr. Beach Provides a Context and Call to Action for Clergy and Lay Persons to Become Part of the Solution for “Race Issues” Facing Us Today": at our Website: www.AWFTL.org/listen/. WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO – “Dr. Beach Provides a Context and Call to Action for Clergy and Lay Persons to Become Part of the Solution for “Race Issues” Facing Us Today”: www.AWFTL.org/watch DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
DEVOTIONAL VIDEO MESSAGE SUMMARY: Do You Have the Faith and Courage and Are You Willing to Share the Gospel? (Resurrection Anglican Church; Woodstock, GA) The world, the country, your friends, and your family have so many issues and hurts for which Jesus and His Gospel are the answer; but we keep this good news a secret by our unwillingness to live a visible life walking the talk of the Gospel and sharing the Gospel. Do you have the faith and courage and are you willing to share the Gospel? To what extent are you willing to share with others your relationship with Jesus? What price are you willing to pay, personally, so that others may know the good news of Jesus – the Gospel? What are you willing to go through to advance the Kingdom of God? In Ephesians 3:1-2, the Apostle Paul summarizes the price that he joyfully accepts to carry the news of the Gospel to the Nations: “For this reason I, Paul, a prisoner for Christ Jesus on behalf of you Gentile -- assuming that you have heard of the stewardship of God's grace that was given to me for you.". Paul was in prison facing a trial by the despotic Emperor of Rome, Nero. However, you may never have to go to prison or face death to communicate the Gospel; but you will face both physical and emotional discomfort as you become a visible follower of Jesus. While articulating the Gospel to others is important, the most effective way to communicate the Gospel is not by what you say but how you live – walk the talk and let others see Jesus in you. Pray for God’s guidance to you for His will and role for you in these challenging and times of secular uncertainty. TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Because of who I am in Jesus Christ, I will not be driven by Fear. Rather, I will abide in the Lord’s Faithfulness. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Ephesians 3:1-21; Psalms 18d:31-40. THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “Title: “Blessed Are Those Who Have Not Seen and Yet Have Believed” – Do You Believe?", at our Website: https://awtlser.podbean.com/ WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO (“Jesus said to Thomas: “Blessed Are Those Who Have Not Seen and Yet Have Believed” – Do You Believe?“): www.AWFTL.org/watch, DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
DEVOTIONAL VIDEO MESSAGE SUMMARY: Am I Going To Heaven? (Christ Anglican Church; Cashiers, NC) Can we be sure that we are in a “right relationship” with the Lord? How can we be sure that we are “saved”? As a follower of Jesus and based on Scripture, the answer is a “resounding YES, we can be sure that we are saved”! As followers of Jesus, God has given us assurances of our Salvation in three different ways: 1) the witness of Scripture through the documentation of the work of Christ on the cross from God’s Grace as a means of Eternal Life; 2) the witness of the Holy Spirit which, again, is God’s gift to those who follow Jesus in faith and confession; and 3) the witness of the Holy Sacraments of our faith (i.e. Holy Communion, Baptism) that assure us of God’s work in our lives. If you are at a place in your personal relationship with God, the relationship that you have because you are a follower of Jesus, through which you can say to God: “you died for My sins” then you should be comfortable with your Salvation. In the Anglican Book of Common Prayer, we are given the Comfortable Words of Paul in 1 Timothy 1:15: “The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost.". Also, we have the assurance, again from Scripture, in 1 John 5:11-13: “And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life. I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life.". TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Because of who I am in Jesus Christ, I will not be driven by Fear. Rather, I will abide in the Lord’s Faithfulness. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5). Scripture Reference (ESV):1 John 5:11-13; Hebrews 11:1; Romans 8:38; John 3:16; John 5:24; Philippians 1:6; Colossians 1:3-5; Colossians 1:12-14; Romans 3:23; Romans 6:23; Romans 5:8; 2 Corinthians 5:21; 1 John 4:13; Romans 8:13-17; 2 Corinthians 1:21-22; Ephesians 1:13-14; Ephesians 2:8; Psalms 70b:13-24. THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “Turkeys and Eagles, Part 3: A Child of God’s Light", at our Website: https://awtlser.podbean.com/ WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO – “Today, the World Needs to be Renewed With an Outpouring of the Holy Spirit - a Global Spiritual Awakening”: www.AWFTL.org/watc DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
MESSAGE SUMMARY: The Interior Life – Part 5: The Conscience (Holy Trinity; Madison, MS) Our conscience is that part of our soul that brings our hearts and minds into knowledge of God’s requirements and expectations for living a Godly life. In 1 Timothy 1:5, the conscience is related to love: “The aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.”. Do we have a clear conscience before the Lord? There are three aspects of our conscience: 1) the part of our person that knows right and wrong within ourselves – our moral compass; 2) as Christians, our conscience becomes God’s moral compass within us; and 3) a reminder that we have sinned against God or our neighbor. The Holy Spirit deals with conscience first and not our intellect or emotion. What happens when we ignore our conscience: 1) we begin to dumb down the power of our conscience to speak into our lives; 2) even though our conscience speaks to us all the time, we begin not to hear it; and 3) our conscience becomes polluted by the world – a defiled conscience. Ignoring our conscience leads us towards self-deception and depravity. How do we keep a clear conscience: 1) confess our sin to God as instructed in Hebrews 10:22-23: "Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.", and in 1 John 1:9-10: "We confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us."; 2) make a confession of our sin to a Christian friend; 3) sometimes, we confess our sin to a minister; and 4) sometimes, we need to make restitution to those to whom we have sinned, when appropriate. Our conscience is a mighty gift to us from God if we listen to it and keep a clear conscience. TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Because of who I am in Jesus Christ, I will not be driven by Loneliness. Rather, I will abide in the Lord’s Presence. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5). Scripture Reference (ESV): 1 Timothy 1:5-6; Job 27:6; 1 John 1:9-10; Psalms 131:1-3.; Psalms 56:1-13. THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “Remembering “he who is forgiven little, loves little”, Is You Focus Outward in the Love and Service of Others?", at our Website: https://awtlser.podbean.com/ WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO – “The Holy Spirit Deals with Your Conscience First and Not Your Intellect or Emotion”: www.AWFTL.org/watch DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
MESSAGE SUMMARY: The Holy Spirit; the Promise Fulfilled (All Saints, Peachtree City, GA) Today, the world, along with all of us, needs to be renewed with a fresh outpouring of the Holy Spirit. On Pentecost, the birthday of the Church, the Holy Spirit, the third entity of the Trinity, was poured out. The Holy Spirit is a gift from God, as a part of His Grace of Salvation through Jesus, to all that believe and follow Jesus. Your being filled with the Holy Spirit is normal Christianity. It is the Holy Spirit that enables you to commune with God and to have a personal relationship with Him -- the Holy Spirit is the presence of Jesus among us. You will be filled with the Holy Spirit every day that you surrender your life to the Holy Spirit. You cannot be filled with the Holy Spirit if you are consumed by sin and the desires of your flesh. You must learn to discern the voice of the Holy Spirit in your life from what you think, in isolation from the Holy Spirit, is best. Rene Descartes, the French philosopher, mathematician and scientist, said “I think, therefore I am”. In your life as a follower of Jesus, are you, as one could imply from Descartes, being led solely by your thoughts and what you think is best; or are you being led by the Holy Spirit? Therefore, to live as a follower of Jesus, you must be filled with the Holy Spirit. TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM A CHILD OF GOD. Yet to all who received Him, to those who believed in His Name, He gave the right to become children of God-- children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God. (John 1:12f). Scripture Reference (ESV): Acts 2:38; Genesis 1:2; 1 Corinthians 2:1-11; Acts 2:1-13; Ephesians 5:18; 2 Peter 1:20; Galatians 5:16-20; Philippians 4:13-20; Acts 1:8; Psalms 50b:13-23. THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “As a Follower of Jesus, You Should “Give thanks to the LORD, call upon his name” Every Day - Do You?", at our Website: https://awtlser.podbean.com/ WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO – “Today, the World Needs to be Renewed With an Outpouring of the Holy Spirit - a Global Spiritual Awakening”: www.AWFTL.org/watch DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
MESSAGE SUMMARY: Feeding of the 5000 (St. Andrews Episcopal Church; Ft, Worth, TX) After John the Baptizer had been beheaded by King Herod, the Apostles that told Jesus of this news and suggested that they get away from the crowds of people into a desolate area in which they could rest and pray. Jesus and the Apostles went by boat. However, a large crowd of people followed Jesus and His Apostles onshore so that when Jesus arrived at the area in which they wished to rest. Jesus had compassion on the people that had followed Him. Therefore, He began teaching, in Mark 6:34, to a very large group: “When he went ashore he saw a great crowd, and he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. And he began to teach them many things.”. When Jesus’ teachings carried on late into the evening, His Apostles suggested that Jesus send the crowd away into the villages to buy food. Rather, Jesus asked His Apostles to determine how much food was on hand in the crowd; and they determined that they had five loaves of bread and two fish. Jesus blessed this food and, in Mark 6: 42-44, all the crowd ate from this food: “And they all ate and were satisfied. And they took up twelve baskets full of broken pieces and of the fish. And those who ate the loaves were five thousand men.". In Mark’s teaching regarding the miraculous feeding of the 5,000, we see that Jesus’ compassion for the people over road His personal need to grieve for the death of John the Baptizer and to rest when Jesus began to, immediately, minister to the people. Like Jesus and in order to receive what God knows that we require, we need to move our focus away from our personal desires and perceived needs onto the real needs of others. When we move our focus away from ourselves and to a “outward focus”, we become free to hear and to receive from God. As in Jesus’ feeding of the 5,000, God desires that we look to Him; to take what He has given us; and to give to those in need. No matter where we are or in what context of life’s involvement we find ourselves, we need to be willing to be broken vessels for use by God for His purposes. TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Because of who I am in Jesus Christ, I will not be driven by Anger. Rather, I will abide in the Lord’s Forgiveness. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5). Scripture Reference (ESV): Mark 6:31; Mark 6:34; Mark 6:41; Mark 6:43; Psalms 46:1-11. THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “Some Christians Easily Walk Away from God, But God Rejoices When They Return", at our Website: https://awtlser.podbean.com/ WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO – “Are You Committed to Spending Personal Relationship Time with God Through Prayer?”: www.AWFTL.org/watch DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
MESSAGE SUMMARY: Are You Filled with the Holy Spirit? (Highland Chapel; Chattanooga, TN) God provides us with His incredible gift of the Holy Spirit – God Himself who comes to us in His presence, in the third part of the Holy Trinity, as the Holy Spirit. As we follow Jesus in our daily lives, it is difficult to be “filled with the Holy Spirit” as we are instructed in Ephesians 5:18: “And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit,". When we believe in Jesus the Christ as our Lord and Savior; accept God’s Grace of Salvation; and follow Jesus, then we can be filled with the Holy Spirit. Also, Jesus referred to the Holy Spirit as both “Counselor” and “Helper”. Don’t you need both a “Counselor” and a “helper in your life? Paul, in Ephesians, tells us that we only have two choices in our life relationship with the Holy Spirit: we either “grieve the Holy Spirit” or we are “filled with the Holy Spirit” – these two options, regarding the Holy Spirit, mean that, as we live our lives, we are either “strong in the Lord” or “we are not strong in the Lord”. In Ephesians 4:30, Paul speaks of “grieving the Holy Spirit”: “And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.”. “Grieving the Holy Spirit” means that we hurt or wound God’s expectations, for us as Followers of Jesus, because we are living our lives without being “filled with the Holy Spirit”. Anytime you sin you “grieve the Holy Spirit”. Are you grieving the Holy Spirit or are you filled with the Holy Spirit – your choice? TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Because of who I am in Jesus Christ, I will not be driven by Hatred. Rather, I will abide in the Lord’s Love. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Ephesians 4:31-32; Ephesians 5:7-18; John 7:38-39; 1 John 1:8-9; Psalms 40:1-17. SCRIPTURE REFERENCE SEARCH: www.AWFTL.org/bible-search/ THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “Is What You “SAY” About Your Priorities In Alignment with What You “DO”?", at our Website: https://awtlser.podbean.com/ WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO – “Are You Committed to Spending Personal Relationship Time with God Through Prayer?”: www.AWFTL.org/watch DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
MESSAGE SUMMARY: Praying with Perseverance (Fowery Parish; Cornwall, UK) Prayer is: 1) spending time with God – acknowledging God’s presence in all our lives’ activities; and 2) conversation with God – listening to and talking with God. Prayer reflects on our relationship with God. Many Christians, today, don’t Have an active Prayer Life. Why don’t we pray. The Apostle James, in James 4:2-3, provides a perspective regarding Prayer Life: “You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.". We need to pray and pray consistently and to pray with persistency – God wants a personal relationship with us through prayer. Jesus’ parable, in Luke 18:1-8 {Luke 18:1}, is about both faith and prayer. In this text from Luke, Jesus speaks about the power of persistent prayer: “And he told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart.". Additional lessons, that we can learn from this parable, include: 1) God is more ready to answer prayer than we are ready to pray; and 2) we must be persistent in our prayers until we have an answer. Pray specific prayers, in the Holy Spirit and in Scripture, for ourselves and for others -- be persistent TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM FORGIVEN. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Luke 18:1-8; 1 Thessalonians 5:17; James 1:5; 1 Peter 5:7; Psalms 55:22; Philippians 4:6; Matthew 5:25-34; Luke 11:5-8; Luke 11:10-12; 1 Timothy 2:1,3-4; Psalms 37b:11-20. SCRIPTURE REFERENCE SEARCH: www.AWFTL.org/bible-search/ THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “Is Your Life’s Focus on Jesus the Narrow Door and the Only Door to Your Eternal Life?", at our Website: https://awtlser.podbean.com/ WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO – “Are You Committed to Spending Personal Relationship Time with God Through Prayer?”: www.AWFTL.org/watch DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
MESSAGE SUMMARY: The Upper Room Part 1: The Promise of the Spirit (Apostles Anglican Church; Knoxville, TN) John 14 is one of the Bible’s foremost explanations of the Holy Spirit for us and our lives. The context of Jesus’ explanation is that Jesus is on His way to the cross. In John 14:23,36, Jesus is helping the Apostles and us to understand the Holy Spirit that is being sent to us by God as a gift for the followers of Jesus: “Jesus answered him, ‘If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. . . But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.’". Jesus is telling the Apostles, and us, that He is leaving them on the Earth; but God is not leaving them or us alone – God is providing the Holy Spirit. Jesus promises to His followers that the Holy Spirit will be both with us and in us. Today, twenty-one centuries after Pentecost, how should we consider the Holy Spirit: 1) the Holy Spirit is very important in following Jesus – being created in God’s image humans, like God, are Triune Beings as body, soul, and spirit which are made “alive” at our conversion, but in John3:5 Jesus told Nicodemus and us that eternal life only comes from our rebirth in the Holy Spirit: “Jesus answered, {Nicodemus} ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God’”; 2) the Holy Spirit brings the presence of God and Jesus with us and in us; 3) the Holy Spirit is our Helper in following and obeying Christ and in facing life’s challenges and the Holy Spirit helps us when we don’t know how or what to pray; and 4) the Holy Spirit is a teacher – we have the teaching of the Holy Scripture because the writers we inspired and taught by the Holy Spirit and now the Holy Spirit helps us understand the Scriptures. In many of us, “the pilot light is lit, but the furnace is not engaged.”. That is, we have Jesus in our lives, but we are not engaged with the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives. It is one thing to believe in Jesus, but it is another thing entirely to yield oneself to Jesus through our obedience and prioritization of Him as the cornerstone of everything in our life. Therefore, the question becomes not “Do you have the Holy Spirit?” but rather “Does the Holy Spirit have you?”. To this end. God desires us to be continually filled with the Holy Spirit. With this filling of our life with the Holy Spirit, God will be Lord over all in our life. TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM RIGHTEOUS IN GOD’S EYES. God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God. (2 Corinthians 5:21). Scripture Reference (ESV): John 14:15-31; John 3:3-8; John 4:24; John 7:37-39; John 14:15-17, John 15:26; John 16:4-14; Acts 2:10-13; Ephesians 2:1,4; John 14:16-17; Genesis 1:2; 2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:20; Ephesians 5:18; Psalms 28:1-9. THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “Jesus says: ‘Do you think that I have come to give peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division’", at our Website: https://awtlser.podbean.com/. A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org. DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
MESSAGE SUMMARY: The Holy Spirit; the Promise Fulfilled (All Saints, Peachtree City, GA) Rene Descartes, the French philosopher, mathematician and scientist, said “I think, therefore I am”. In your life as a follower of Jesus, are you, as one could imply from Descartes, being led solely by your thoughts and what you think is best; or are you being led by the Holy Spirit? On Pentecost, the birthday of the Church, the Holy Spirit, the third entity of the Trinity, was poured out. The Holy Spirit is a gift from God, as a part of His Grace of Salvation through Jesus, to all that believe and follow Jesus. Your being filled with the Holy Spirit is normal Christianity. It is the Holy Spirit that enables you to commune with God and to have a personal relationship with Him -- the Holy Spirit is the presence of Jesus among us. You will be filled with the Holy Spirit every day that you surrender your life to the Holy Spirit. You cannot be filled with the Holy Spirit if you are consumed by sin and the desires of your flesh. Additionally, you must learn to discern the voice of the Holy Spirit in your life from what you think, in isolation from the Holy Spirit, is best. Therefore, to live as a follower of Jesus, you must be filled with the Holy Spirit. TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Because of who I am in Jesus Christ, I will not be driven by Hatred. Rather, I will abide in the Lord’s Love. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Acts 2:38; Genesis 1:2; 1 Corinthians 2:1-11; Acts 2:1-13; Ephesians 5:18; 2 Peter 1:20; Galatians 5:16-20; Philippians 4:13-20; Acts 1:8; Psalms 23:1-6. THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “Jesus Is the Only Door to Your Eternal Life, But Jesus Has Given You the Key – His Gospel", at our Website: https://awtlser.podbean.com/. WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO – “Becoming God’s Broken Vessels to Serve the Needs of Others”: www.AWFTL.org/watch DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
MESSAGE SUMMARY: Praying with Perseverance (Fowery Parish; Cornwall, UK) Prayer is: 1) spending time with God – acknowledging God’s presence in all our lives’ activities; and 2) conversation with God – listening to and talking with God. Prayer reflects on our relationship with God. Many Christians, today, don’t Have an active Prayer Life. Why don’t we pray. The Apostle James, in James 4:2-3, provides a perspective regarding Prayer Life: “You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.". We need to pray and pray consistently and to pray with persistency – God wants a personal relationship with us through prayer. Jesus’ parable, in Luke 18:1-8 {Luke 18:1}, is about both faith and prayer. In this text from Luke, Jesus speaks about the power of persistent prayer: “And he told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart.". Additional lessons, that we can learn from this parable, include: 1) God is more ready to answer prayer than we are ready to pray; and 2) we must be persistent in our prayers until we have an answer. Pray specific prayers, in the Holy Spirit and in Scripture, for ourselves and for others -- be persistent. TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Because of who I am in Jesus Christ, I will not be driven by Loneliness. Rather, I will abide in the Lord’s Presence. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Luke 18:1-8; 1 Thessalonians 5:17; James 1:5; 1 Peter 5:7; Psalms 55:22; Philippians 4:6; Matthew 5:25-34; Luke 11:5-8; Luke 11:10-12; 1 Timothy 2:1,3-4. THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “Stop Making Excuses for Not Following Jesus and Follow Him Without Reservations", at our Website: https://awtlser.podbean.com/. WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO – “Becoming God’s Broken Vessels to Serve the Needs of Others”: www.AWFTL.org/watch DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
MESSAGE SUMMARY: Perspectives on Life & Death: Steve Jobs vs. Jesus (Holy Cross Anglican Cathedral; Loganville, GA) Steve Jobs was a Billionaire, at his death; and he was the founder of Apple. Jesus is the Christ (Messiah) and, as God, the Creator of the Universe. From his death-bed, Steve Jobs wrote his perspective on his life in comparison to his impending death. Earthly death is a fact which we all must face. On the other hand, Jesus gives us his perspective on human death, earthly life, and Eternal Life (John 11: 25– 26): “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die.”. In our message today, Archbishop Beach provides a summary of these two different perspectives on living our earthly lives while always considering that our earthly death is inevitable. However, for those of us that follow Jesus, earthly death is only the predecessor event for our Eternal Life. TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Because of who I am in Jesus Christ, I will not be driven by Fear. Rather, I will abide in the Lord’s Faithfulness. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5). Scripture Reference (ESV): John 11: 25– 26; 1 John 5:10-12; Psalms 16:1-11. THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “Christians in the Church Must Become Christians in the Marketplace of Unbelievers", at our Website: https://awtlser.podbean.com/. WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO – “Becoming God’s Broken Vessels to Serve the Needs of Others”: www.AWFTL.org/watch DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
MESSAGE SUMMARY: Feeding of the 5000 (St. Andrews Episcopal Church; Ft, Worth, TX) After John the Baptizer had been beheaded by King Herod, the Apostles that told Jesus of this news and suggested that they get away from the crowds of people into a desolate area in which they could rest and pray. Jesus and the Apostles went by boat. However, a large crowd of people followed Jesus and His Apostles onshore so that when Jesus arrived at the area in which they wished to rest. Jesus had compassion on the people that had followed Him. Therefore, He began teaching, in Mark 6:34, to a very large group: “When he went ashore he saw a great crowd, and he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. And he began to teach them many things.”. When Jesus’ teachings carried on late into the evening, His Apostles suggested that Jesus send the crowd away into the villages to buy food. Rather, Jesus asked His Apostles to determine how much food was on hand in the crowd; and they determined that they had five loaves of bread and two fish. Jesus blessed this food and, in Mark 6: 42-44, all the crowd ate from this food: “And they all ate and were satisfied. And they took up twelve baskets full of broken pieces and of the fish. And those who ate the loaves were five thousand men.". In Mark’s teaching regarding the miraculous feeding of the 5,000, we see that Jesus’ compassion for the people over road His personal need to grieve for the death of John the Baptizer and to rest when Jesus began to, immediately, minister to the people. Like Jesus and in order to receive what God knows that we require, we need to move our focus away from our personal desires and perceived needs onto the real needs of others. When we move our focus away from ourselves and to a “outward focus”, we become free to hear and to receive from God. As in Jesus’ feeding of the 5,000, God desires that we look to Him; to take what He has given us; and to give to those in need. No matter where we are or in what context of life’s involvement we find ourselves, we need to be willing to be broken vessels for use by God for His purposes. TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Because of who I am in Jesus Christ, I will not be driven by Anger. Rather, I will abide in the Lord’s Forgiveness. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5). Scripture Reference (ESV): Mark 6:31; Mark 6:34; Mark 6:41; Mark 6:43; Psalms 10a:1-9. THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “’Jesus, Teach Us To Pray’", at our Website: https://awtlser.podbean.com/. WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO – “Marriage – A Current Assessment (Christ the King Anglican Church; Birmingham, AL)”: www.AWFTL.org/watch DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
MESSAGE SUMMARY: Marriage – A Current Assessment (Christ the King Anglican Church; Birmingham, AL) Marriage and the family, in current decades, have been under attack to the degree that marriage is now losing its value in our culture. In Mark 10:6-9, Jesus speaks to God’s plan for marriage: “But from the beginning of creation, ‘God made them male and female.’ ‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.’” In our culture’s attacks on marriage and the family, we see ten ways in which marriage and the family have been and are being perverted: 1) US Supreme Court’s decision on same sex marriage – as followers of Jesus, we don’t believe the courts have the right to define/redefine marriage as established by God; 2) sex before marriage is becoming the norm; 3) sex outside of marriage has become acceptable; 4) the prevalence of divorce; 5) acceptance of cohabitation; 6) birth of children out of wedlock; 7) multi-spouse marriage; 8) escalation and the acceptance of pornography; 9) the acceptance and practice of abortion on demand; and 10) the acceptable “choosing” one’s own gender by some people. These perversions of marriage and the family are chipping away at the value and importance of marriage and the family in the US – even among Christians. Too many of our Christian young people don’t know why they should get married -- this diminution of marriage’s value is a failure, mostly, of the Christian Church. God’s plan for marriage is being, increasingly, perverted. Therefore, what should we do, as followers of Jesus, about these “attacks on marriage”? We can: 1) stand up, speak up and speak God’s truth – Christians need to stop be trampled upon by this divergent culture; 2) model good and Godly marriage and family life to the culture; 3) you teach your children, you not the church/school/government, about God and His plan for marriage and the family; and 4) pray and ask God to intervene in these attacks and to support our seeking to achieve His plan for our own marriage and the family – prayer does change things, and it brings the power of God. However, we, as followers of Jesus, hold the key to stopping this perversion though getting our own family and marriage in line with God’s plan and then witnessing and voting to stop this perversion – the time is now. TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM FILLED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT. If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him! (Luke 11:13). Scripture Reference (ESV): Mark 10:6-9; John 10:10; Genesis 2:21-25; Psalms 4:1-8. THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “Following Jesus – Jesus Calls Us to Follow Him Without Reservations", at our Website: https://awtlser.podbean.com/. WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO – “Marriage – A Current Assessment (Christ the King Anglican Church; Birmingham, AL)”: www.AWFTL.org/watch DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
MESSAGE SUMMARY: Am I Ready to Pray? (Bude, Cornwall, UK) We often enter our prayers unprepared – there is sin in our lives, or our prayers are all about “us”; and we seek “our will” and not “God’s will”. Therefore, we need to learn to “pray rightly”. To “pray rightly”, we need to consider: “1) Am I “clean” before the Lord – have I confessed the known sins in my life that I have not repented? 2) Am I in “communion with others” – are there people with whom I am not at peace? 3) Am I “confident in God’s Word” – do I believe God’s promises are true? 4) Am I “committed to God’s will” – am I committed to act on and obey God’s answer to my prayers even though His answer is not my desire? 5) Am I “centered in the Holy Spirit” – am I focused and tuned in on the Lord, filtering out the “noise of the world”? and 6) Am I “concerned for God’s Glory” – the ultimate purpose of our prayers is uplifting and glorifying God’s name?”. Additionally, in both our worship and our prayers: “Are we expecting to encounter God?”. Remember, Jesus taught us that: 1) God is more ready to answer prayer than we are ready to pray; and 2) we must be persistent in our prayers until we have an answer. TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM FORGIVEN. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9). Scripture Reference (ESV): 1 John 1:8; Matthew 6:14; Philippians 4:6-7; John 14:23; Psalms 147:1-20. THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “Our Realities Speak to Our Real Priorities", at our Website: https://awtlser.podbean.com/. WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO – “Am I Ready to Pray? (Bude, Cornwall, UK)”: www.AWFTL.org/watch DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
MESSAGE SUMMARY: The Interior Life – Part 5: The Conscience (Holy Trinity; Madison, MS) Our conscience is that part of our soul that brings our hearts and minds into knowledge of God’s requirements and expectations for living a Godly life. In 1 Timothy 1:5, the conscience is related to love: “The aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.”. Do we have a clear conscience before the Lord? There are three aspects of our conscience: 1) the part of our person that knows right and wrong within ourselves – our moral compass; 2) as Christians, our conscience becomes God’s moral compass within us; and 3) a reminder that we have sinned against God or our neighbor. The Holy Spirit deals with conscience first and not our intellect or emotion. What happens when we ignore our conscience: 1) we begin to dumb down the power of our conscience to speak into our lives; 2) even though our conscience speaks to us all the time, we begin not to hear it; and 3) our conscience becomes polluted by the world – a defiled conscience. Ignoring our conscience leads us towards self-deception and depravity. How do we keep a clear conscience: 1) confess our sin to God as instructed in Hebrews 10:22-23: "Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.", and in 1 John 1:9-10: "We confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us."; 2) make a confession of our sin to a Christian friend; 3) sometimes, confess our sin to a minister; and 4) sometimes, we need to make restitution to those to whom we have sinned, when appropriate. Our conscience is a mighty gift to us from God if we listen to it and keep a clear conscience. TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Because of who I am in Jesus Christ, I will not be driven by Hatred. Rather, I will abide in the Lord’s Love. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): 1 Timothy 1:5-6; Job 27:6; 1 John 1:9-10; Psalms 131:1-3. THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “You Are Personally Responsible and Accountable, to God, for All He Entrusts to You", at our Website: https://awtlser.podbean.com/.
MESSAGE SUMMARY: Be Strong & Courageous (Commencement -- Reformed Episcopal Seminary; Oreland, PA) We have been equipped, as God told Jeremiah in Jeremiah 29:11-12, for God’s purposes in our lives: “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you.". In Joshua 1:9, God commands us to be strong and courageous because He is with us. When we obey God’s commands, He steps into lives with support for us to achieve His command. Courage is acting and speaking even though you are afraid. If you follow God’s call and seek His will to live and act in His Word, there is no reason to be overcome by fear because “your God is with you wherever you go”. After God’s grace through Jesus, God is in us through His gift to us of the Holy Spirit. You get strong by exercising the “muscles” of your faith and commitment to God’s will and His word – often pushing your “commitment to God” beyond levels you thought possible. Spiritual strength comes from having God with you and in you. TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM A CHILD OF GOD. Yet to all who received Him, to those who believed in His Name, He gave the right to become children of God-- children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God. (John 1:12f). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Jeremiah 29:11-12; Joshua 1:9; Joshua 1:6; Joshua 1:7; James 1:22; Hebrews 10:23; Joshua 1:8: 2 Timothy 3:16-17; Matthew 28:16-20. Ephesians 6:10-12. SCRIPTURE REFERENCE SEARCH: www.AWFTL.org/bible-search/ WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO – “Be Strong & Courageous”: www.AWFTL.org/watch A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org. DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
MESSAGE SUMMARY: Are You Filled with the Holy Spirit? (Highland Chapel; Chattanooga, TN) Today, the world, along with all of us, needs to be renewed with a fresh outpouring of the Holy Spirit. Pentecost, initially, was about: people being filled with the Holy Spirit; people received Spiritual gifts; and people witnessing for Jesus. On this initial day of Pentecost, Peter stood up and preached a sermon. Afterwards, he was asked: “What must we do to be saved?”. Peter responded in Acts 2:38-39: “And Peter said to them, ‘Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself.’". These events of the initial Pentecost and from the various revivals of the 20th Century relating to the Charismatic Movements are normal Christianity; this outpouring of the Holy Spirit is what God intends for His people. If we are going to have a growing relationship with Jesus, we must be filled with the Holy Spirit who enables us to know and commune with the Lord. The Holy Spirit will never lead followers of Jesus in any thing that contradicts the Bible, God’s Word. In recent times, there have been teachings, regarding the Holy Spirit, that do not conform to the Bible. Too many of us are trying to live the Christian life without the Holy Spirit. The question is asked: “When do we receive the Holy Spirit?”. We cannot put God in a box regarding a timing for the receipt of the Holy Spirit. However, a better question is: “Have we received the Holy Spirit?”. We are told in John 3:8: “The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.". Therefore, the real question should be: “Does the Holy Spirit have me?”. Until we surrender our lives to Jesus, the Holy Spirit cannot indwell our lives and lead us. The best answer to the timing our receipt of the Holy Spirit is: “We should receive the Holy Spirit every day.”. We should pray every day for the Holy Spirit to fill us. Are you grieving the Holy Spirit or are you filled with the Holy Spirit? TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM FILLED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT. If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him! (Luke 11:13). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Acts 1:5; 1 Corinthians 12:1-11; Acts 2:38-39; Galatians 5:16-26; 2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:20-21; Philippians 4:13; John 3:8; Luke 11:13; Ephesians 5:18; Romans 12:9-31; Ephesians 4:30-32. SCRIPTURE REFERENCE SEARCH: www.AWFTL.org/bible-search/ WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO – “The Day of Pentecost – The Promise Fulfilled (All Saints Anglican Church; Peachtree City, GA)”: www.AWFTL.org/watch A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org. DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
MESSAGE SUMMARY: Jesus’ Promise of Belief (St. Thomas Anglican Church, Athens GA) Important questions were asked by Jesus in His several appearances after His Resurrection. Jesus, knowing the Apostle Thomas’ disbelief without physical evidence of His Resurrection, in John 20:27, asked Thomas to feel His wounds. Afterwards Jesus asked Thomas the implied question of Thomas’ “belief” and who Thomas believed that Jesus was; and Thomas answered with an answer that has resonated throughout the centuries: “My Lord and my God!”: “Then he said to Thomas, ‘Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side. Do not disbelieve, but believe.’ Thomas answered him, ‘My Lord and my God!’ Jesus said to him, ‘Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.’”. Earlier, Jesus was asked by Thomas where Jesus was going, and Jesus, in John 14:5-6 gave Thomas the answer upon which the Christian faith is built: “Thomas said to him, ‘Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?’ Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’”. Jesus went on to affirm Thomas’ belief in the face of compelling physical evidence, but Jesus acknowledged the power of the belief and faith by those of us who follow Him without physical evidence. So, for us who do not have the physical evidence of Jesus’ death and Resurrection, Paul tells us, in Romans 10:17, that: “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.”. Do you believe? TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Today, Because of who I am in Jesus Christ, I will not be driven by Lust. Rather, I will abide in the Lord’s Perfect Provision. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): John 10:19-30; John 11:15-16; John 14:5-7; Romans 10:17. SCRIPTURE REFERENCE SEARCH: www.AWFTL.org/bible-search/ THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “The Resurrection -- Part 3: Jesus Gives Us His Great Commission Just Before His Ascension", at our Website: www.AWFTL.org/listen/. WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO – “Where Is Your Interior Life Leading You? {Nurturing The Interior Life – Exercising the Mind – Part 2] (Camp House; Chattanooga, TN)”: www.AWFTL.org/watch A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org. DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
MESSAGE SUMMARY: Steve Jobs was a Billionaire, at his death; and he was the founder of Apple. Jesus is the Christ (Messiah) and, as God, the Creator of the Universe. From his death bed, Steve Jobs wrote his perspective on his life in comparison to his impending death. Earthly death is a fact which we all must face. On the other hand, Jesus gives us his perspective on human death, earthly life, and Eternal Life (John 11: 25– 26): “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die.”. In our Weekly Video Sermon (i.e. Easter) message today, Archbishop Beach provides a summary of these two different perspectives on living our earthly lives while always considering that our earthly death is inevitable. However, for those of us that follow Jesus, earthly death is only the predecessor event for our Eternal Life. TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM A CHILD OF GOD. Yet to all who received Him, to those who believed in His Name, He gave the right to become children of God-- children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God. (John 1:12f). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Mark 16:1-8; John 3:3-17; 1 Peter 3:18; Psalms 90:1-17. SCRIPTURE REFERENCE SEARCH: www.AWFTL.org/bible-search/ THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “Come Holy Spirit", at our Website: www.AWFTL.org/listen/. WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO – “Where Is Your Interior Life Leading You? {The Interior Life – Emotional Maturity: Exercising the Mind – Part 4 (Christ Church; Atlanta, GA)”: www.AWFTL.org/watch A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org. DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
MESSAGE SUMMARY: Where Is Your Interior Life Leading You? {The Interior Life – Exercising the Mind – Part 2 (Camp House; Chattanooga, TN) INTRODUCTION TO THE INTERIOR LIFE -- The Psalmist, in Psalms 1:3-4, describes a person with a fruitful Interior Life: “He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers. The wicked are not so, but are like chaff that the wind drives away.". Our Interior Life, typically, does not call out for our attention until, usually, it is too late. However, if our Interior Life is not maintained or nurtured, our spiritual life can come crashing down. Our Interior Life can be viewed like a savings account in a bank. Like a savings account when we make deposits, our Interior Life grows, draws interest, and becomes strong, thereby, giving us a balance that can see us through life’s tough times. However, if we are not making Interior Life deposits and our life circumstances need to draw on our “savings”, we may find that life has put us in an untenable situation; and we go spiritually bankrupt. Each of our lives is to be driven by the Holly Spirit through our Inner Person to yield our lives to God’s will. The Holy Spirit enables us to do God’s will in our lives – our Interior Life’s deposit for the future. TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Today, because of I am filled with the Holy Spirit, I will not be controlled by my Insensitivity. Rather, I will walk in the Spirit’s fruit of Gentleness. “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” (Galatians 5:22f). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): 1 Peter 3:3; Mark 7:21; Romans 12:2; Philippians 4:8. SCRIPTURE REFERENCE SEARCH: www.AWFTL.org/bible-search/ WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO – “Marriage – A Current Assessment (Christ the King Anglican Church; Birmingham, AL)”: www.AWFTL.org/watch THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “Marriage – A Current Assessment (Christ the King Anglican Church; Birmingham, AL)", at our Website: www.AWFTL.org/listen/. DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
MESSAGE SUMMARY: Marriage – A Current Assessment (Christ the King Anglican Church; Birmingham, AL) Marriage and the family, in current decades, have been under attack to the degree that marriage is now losing its value in our culture. In Mark 10:6-9, Jesus speaks to God’s plan for marriage: “But from the beginning of creation, ‘God made them male and female.’ ‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.’” Throughout history humans have corrupted God’s beautiful plan for His Creation. In Mark 10:7, we see God’s pattern for marriage. In Mark 10:8, we are provided with God’s purpose for marriage; and the product of this “one flesh” is children. By becoming “one flesh” in marriage, the man and women become a “new trinity” – husband, wife, and the Lord. In this “marriage trinitarian relationship”, each child is brought into this family relationship in the same way that we, as followers of Jesus, are brought into our personal relationship with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit through the Gospel. In Mark 10:9 we see God’s expressed permeance of marriage. God’s design and plan for marriage, as presented by Jesus in Mark 10, is ideal for us as humans, our nation and our culture; but His plan is being increasingly perverted. Therefore, what should we do, as followers of Jesus, about these “attacks on marriage”? We can: 1) stand up, speak up and speak God’s truth – Christians need to stop be trampled upon by this divergent culture; 2) model good and Godly marriage and family life to the culture; 3) you teach your children, you not the church/school/government, about God and His plan for marriage and the family; and 4) pray and ask God to intervene in these attacks and to support our seeking to achieve His plan for our own marriage and the family – prayer does change things, and it brings the power of God. We are blessed to live in an incredible time in history, but the plan and fabric that God designed to keep us together and thriving – marriage and the family – is being perverted. TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM FILLED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT. If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him! (Luke 11:13). Scripture Reference (ESV): Mark 10:6-9; John 10:10; Genesis 2:21-25. SCRIPTURE REFERENCE SEARCH: www.AWFTL.org/bible-search/ WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S SERMON VIDEO – “Marriage – A Current Assessment (Christ the King Anglican Church; Birmingham, AL)”: www.AWFTL.org/watch DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
MESSAGE SUMMARY: The Interior Life Part 1: The Power of the Will (Red Bank; Chattanooga, TN) We are body, soul, and spirit. Our Interior Life is all that relates to our Soul and Spirit – our Interior Life is private and not public. Our Interior Life is the “real me”. Much of our life’s focus is on maintaining our body but not our Interior Life. The Psalmist, in Psalms 1:3-4, describes a person with a fruitful Interior Life: “He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers. The wicked are not so, but are like chaff that the wind drives away.". Our Interior Life, typically, does not call out for our attention until, usually, it is too late. However, if your Interior Life is not maintained and nurtured, your personal, spiritual and ministry lives can come crashing down. The Will is part of your Interior Life, and your Will is your God-Given ability to choose. Often, we run into problems in our lives because we don’t control our Will; therefore, our Will has lost its power in our lives – we yield to our flesh, and we are rendered powerless to our choices. Our choices are stealing our lives away! Is it the desire of your heart to do God’s Will? TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Today, because of I am filled with the Holy Spirit, I will not be controlled by my Inconsistencies. Rather, I will walk in the Spirit’s fruit of Faithfulness. “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” (Galatians 5:22f). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Psalms 1:3-4; Ephesians 3:16; 1 Peter 3:3; John 7:37-38; 1 Thessalonians 5:23; Ephesians 3:16-17; Galatians 2:20; Galatians 5:16. SCRIPTURE REFERENCE SEARCH: www.AWFTL.org/bible-search/ THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “The Upper Room Part 1: The Promise of the Spirit (Apostles Anglican Church; Knoxville, TN)", at our Website: www.AWFTL.org/listen/. DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
MESSAGE SUMMARY: Am I Ready to Pray? (Grace Church; Bude, Cornwall, UK) Through our prayers, we can be an important part in what God is doing in the world; in our lives; and in our families – we can have an impact. Prayer is: 1) spending time with God – acknowledging God’s presence in all our lives’ activities; and 2) conversation with God – listening to and talking with God. Prayer reflects on our relationship with God. Why don’t we pray? In James 4:3, we are told: “You ask but do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.”. As followers of Jesus, we are given the awesome privilege of being able to come before God, the Creator of the Universe, in our prayers. However, we often enter our prayers unprepared – there is sin in our lives, or our prayers are all about “us”; and we seek “our will” and not “God’s will”. Therefore, we need to learn to “pray rightly”. To “pray rightly”, we need to consider: “1) Am I “clean” before the Lord – have I confessed the known sins in my life that I have not repented? 2) Am I in “communion with others” – are there people with whom I am not at peace? 3) Am I “confident in God’s Word” – do I believe God’s promises are true? 4) Am I “committed to God’s will” – am I committed to act on and obey God’s answer to my prayers even though His answer is not my desire? 5) Am I “centered in the Holy Spirit” – am I focused and tuned in on the Lord, filtering out the “noise of the world”? and 6) Am I “concerned for God’s Glory” – the ultimate purpose of our prayers is uplifting and glorifying God’s name?”. Additionally, in both our worship and our prayers: “Are we expecting to encounter God?”. Remember, Jesus taught us that: God is more ready to answer prayer than we are ready to pray; and 2) we must be persistent in our prayers until we have an answer. Pray specific prayers, in the Holy Spirit and in Scripture, for ourselves and for others -- be persistent TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Today, Because of who I am in Jesus Christ, I will not be driven by Lust. Rather, I will abide in the Lord’s Perfect Provision. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Luke 18:1-8; 1 Thessalonians 5:17; James 1:5; 1 Peter 5:7; Psalms 55:22; Philippians 4:6; Matthew 5:25-34; Luke 11:5-8; Luke 11:10-12; 1 Timothy 2:1,3-4. SCRIPTURE REFERENCE SEARCH: www.AWFTL.org/bible-search/ THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “Jesus Appears Again", at our Website: www.AWFTL.org/listen/. DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
MESSAGE SUMMARY: Praying with Perseverance (Fowery Parish; Cornwall, UK) Prayer is: 1) spending time with God – acknowledging God’s presence in all our lives’ activities; and 2) conversation with God – listening to and talking with God. Prayer reflects on our relationship with God. Many Christians, today, don’t Have an active Prayer Life. Why don’t we pray. The Apostle James, in James 4:2-3, provides a perspective regarding Prayer Life: “You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.". We need to pray and pray consistently and to pray with persistency – God wants a personal relationship with us through prayer. Jesus’ parable, in Luke 18:1-8 {Luke 18:1}, is about both faith and prayer. In this text from Luke, Jesus speaks about the power of persistent prayer: “And he told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart.". Additional lessons, that we can learn from this parable, include: 1) God is more ready to answer prayer than we are ready to pray; and 2) we must be persistent in our prayers until we have an answer. Pray specific prayers, in the Holy Spirit and in Scripture, for ourselves and for others -- be persistent. TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM A CHILD OF GOD. Yet to all who received Him, to those who believed in His Name, He gave the right to become children of God-- children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God. (John 1:12f). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Luke 18:1-8; 1 Thessalonians 5:17; James 1:5; 1 Peter 5:7; Psalms 55:22; Philippians 4:6; Matthew 5:25-34; Luke 11:5-8; Luke 11:10-12; 1 Timothy 2:1,3-4. SCRIPTURE REFERENCE SEARCH: www.AWFTL.org/bible-search/ DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
MESSAGE SUMMARY: Steve Jobs was a Billionaire, at his death; and he was the founder of Apple. Jesus is the Christ (Messiah) and, as God, the Creator of the Universe. From his death bed, Steve Jobs wrote his perspective on his life in comparison to his impending death. Earthly death is a fact which we all must face. On the other hand, Jesus gives us his perspective on human death, earthly life, and Eternal Life (John 11: 25– 26): “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die.”. In our Weekly Video Sermon (i.e. Easter) message today, Archbishop Beach provides a summary of these two different perspectives on living our earthly lives while always considering that our earthly death is inevitable. However, for those of us that follow Jesus, earthly death is only the predecessor event for our Eternal Life. TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Because of who I am in Jesus Christ, I will not be driven by Hatred. Rather, I will abide in the Lord’s Love. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5). THIS SUNDAY’S SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “Surprise – Jesus is Not Dead; Jesus Is Alive to All Who Accept Him in Faith", at our Website: www.AWFTL.org/listen/. WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S EASTER VIDEO – “Easter -- I Am the Resurrection – (Holy Cross Anglican Cathedral; Loganville, GA)”: www.AWFTL.org/watch. A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org. DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Mark 16:1-8; John 3:3-17; 1 Peter 3:18; Psalms 90:1-17. SCRIPTURE REFERENCE SEARCH: www.AWFTL.org/bible-search/
MESSAGE SUMMARY: Easter -- I Am the Resurrection – (Holy Cross Anglican Cathedral; Loganville, GA). MESSAGE SUMMARY: We are bombarded with news reports, today, about death in all forms and from a multitude of sources -- our earthly culture, today, is a culture of death. This Holy Week and this Easter Day, God gives us the means of Grace and the Hope of Glory for Life. The Resurrection of Jesus contradicts our culture of death; and God's Grace, through Jesus’ Resurrection and life after His death on the cross. Jesus' Resurrection, gives us, today, a culture of life! With your faith in Jesus as the Son of God and through God's Grace, you can live your life, both your earthly life and your eternal life, to their fullest with God as your Lord. Yours will be a culture of life even though the world is a culture of death. He has risen! He has risen indeed!! TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM RIGHTEOUS IN GOD’S EYES. God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God. (2 Corinthians 5:21). THIS SUNDAY’S AUDIO SERMON: THIS SUNDAY’S SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “Surprise – Jesus is Not Dead; Jesus Is Alive to All Who Accept Him in Faith", at our Website: www.AWFTL.org/listen/. WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S EASTER VIDEO – “Easter -- I Am the Resurrection – (Holy Cross Anglican Cathedral; Loganville, GA)”: www.AWFTL.org/watch. DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE LINK: www.awordfromthelord.org SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Mark 16:1-8: 1Peter 3:18; John 3:3-5; John 10:10. SCRIPTURE REFERENCE SEARCH: www.AWFTL.org/bible-search/
MESSAGE SUMMARY: Today, millions of Christians have gathered to celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus the Christ. Why do most Christians take Easter and the Resurrection so seriously? Christians believe that the Crucifixion and Resurrection, as a fulfillment of God’s New Covenant for our Salvation, are real. Jesus said to Martha in John 11:25-26: “Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die . . .’”. Eighty percent of non-believers say that they are willing to engage in a conversation about Jesus, yet, we Christians are not engaging in conversations about Jesus and the Gospel. On this day of the greatest good news ever (i.e. the Gospel), just share it! He has Risen! TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM RIGHTEOUS IN GOD’S EYES. God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God. (2 Corinthians 5:21). THIS SUNDAY’S SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “Surprise – Jesus is Not Dead; Jesus Is Alive to All Who Accept Him in Faith", at our Website: www.AWFTL.org/listen/. WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S EASTER VIDEO – “Easter -- I Am the Resurrection – (Holy Cross Anglican Cathedral; Loganville, GA)”: www.AWFTL.org/watch. A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org. DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): John 11:25-27; Mark 16:1-13; Psalms 89d:40-52. SCRIPTURE REFERENCE SEARCH: www.AWFTL.org/bible-search/
Message Summary: On Pentecost, the birthday of the Church, the Holy Spirit, the third entity of the Trinity, was poured out; Pentecost changed the previous limited and temporary inclusion of the Holy Spirit into human life relationships with God to a gift from God, as a part of His Grace of Salvation through Jesus, to the Holy Spirit’s availability to all that believe and follow Jesus. Our being filled with the Holy Spirit is normal Christianity. It is the Holy Spirit that enables us to commune with God and to have a personal relationship with Him -- the Holy Spirit is the presence of Jesus among us. You will be filled with the Holy Spirit every day that you surrender your life to the Holy Spirit. You cannot be filled with the Holy Spirit if you are consumed by sin and the desires of your flesh. Are You being led by the Holy Spirit, or you just doing what you think is best? Be filled with the Holy Spirit. Today’s Affirmation: I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM A CHILD OF GOD. Yet to all who received Him, to those who believed in His Name, He gave the right to become children of God-- children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God. (John 1:12f). A Word From The Lord Website Link: www.awordfromthelord.org Scripture Reference (ESV): Acts 2:38; Genesis 1:2; 1 Corinthians 2:1-11; Acts 2:1-13; Ephesians 5:18; 2 Peter 1:20; Galatians 5:16-20; Philippians 4:13-20; Acts 1:8.
Message Summary (Christ Cathedral, Kampala Uganda): Jesus the Christ died on the cross for our sins. Through Jesus’ Resurrection from the dead and God’s Grace, sinners like us can have Eternal Life if we confess our sins and have faith in Jesus as our Lord and Savior. We have the eternal life-changing message of Jesus’ death for our sins, Resurrection, and our forgiveness. After Jesus Resurrection, Jesus appeared to many people, including a group of more than five hundred, over a period of forty days. The primary messages of the Bible’s New Testament Epistles are Jesus’ death, Resurrection, and the power of the Resurrection. Today’s Affirmation: Because of who I am in Jesus Christ, I will not be driven by Anger. Rather, I will abide in the Lord’s Forgiveness. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5). This Sunday’s Sermon: You can listen to Archbishop Beach’s Current Sunday Sermon: “Personal Pentecost”, at our Website: www.AWordFromTheLord.org/listen/. Website Link to the Video – “The Upper Room – Part 2: The Promise of Forgiveness (Christ Cathedral, Kampala Uganda)”: https://www.lightsource.com/ministry/a-word-from-the-lord/ Scripture Reference (ESV): John 20:19-25; John 16:33; John 14:27; John 1:14; 1 John 1:9; Luke 24:46; John 3:16; John 5:24; Romans 3:23; Romans 6:23; Romans 5:8; Romans 10:10; Romans 8:1; Romans 8:38-39; John 1:12. Website Link: www.AWFTL.org/