Good afternoon, welcome to Covenant of Hope Ministries.
My name is Rev. Laura A. Neff, the Rainbow Minister. The choice for Rainbow has
to do with the fact that the rainbow symbolizes a promise made and one that can
and will be kept. I made, long ago, a promise to God that I would do all I
could to keep that faith within me. We are normally posted on Sundays for
sermons and Wednesdays for studies. You can find these posted in the following
locations.
Prayer
List: We have many on our
prayer list. Some wish to remain anonymous, and others only wish to have their
first names mentioned. Our prayer list has grown from last week. This is our
current prayer list for this week.
- Please pray for my brother as he is having far too many
issues with his job. The stress is really getting to him. May the Lord bless
him with comfort and a clear mind.
- Please continue praying for a friend Susie Bartholow as
she is, as far as I know, still in hospice. She has been in very grave
condition with cancer. She is home with her family while in hospice care. I
have heard no updates at this point in time.
- Please pray for Elder Cal Jennings as he is going
through a whole lot health wise and emotionally as well. He has gotten to the
point of nearly bedridden. His pain and strife needs to be eased. Please pray
that he will be able to find and follow inspiration still. Lord see Your
servant and ease his pain.
- Please pray for members Theresa and Wayne that their
trials and tribulations would cease.
- Pray for those near and far who have been suffering in
battles that do not have to be. Pray that peace can be found amidst the fear
and anger, frustration, and more. May hope blossom and bring that peace once
more.
- Pray for our friends and our enemies, may they all find
that the gift of God’s Son, Jesus, holds the hope and faith everyone seeks.
- Keep hope alive in your prayers no matter the pain or
strife we might suffer.
Prayer:
Father in heaven, we thank You for this day and for those who are here to share
it with us. We thank You for blessings You bring to each of us. We pray that
You can remind us always what we should be looking forward to. We bring prayers
for those who have been seriously ill. Help those who are working to fight
serious illnesses the ability to find solutions. We pray for those who suffer
pain, that their pain be relieved. We pray for those lost, and those who mourn.
We pray for all those who are victims of violence. We pray for patience and
courage for those we love and care about, and ourselves as well. We pray for
peace to reach out from the heart and be heard, felt, and understood. We pray
that Your grace and love would fill the hearts of the many in this world. We
pray all this in Your Holy Name through the Savior Jesus Christ, and the gift
of the Holy Spirit, Amen and so it shall be.
Opening
Song: Open the Eyes of
My Heart https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IHZ9iuo1kRs&index=163&list=PL614A115BF39E5936
Sermon:
Good
afternoon. Today we have a new inspiration brought by the Spirit of God. Often
there are dreams, sometimes some quotes found, even friends or family that
would bring that inspiration to life and the Spirit takes over. Everything
started with a verse that is often shortened, and leaves us wondering what it
actually says. I saw a study with this first pair of verses shared there with
only three words, the first three words. That needs to be discussed, as the
details of it are missing. We find some of them in the remainder of the verse. Here
is what has been given to us today.
John
5:39 KJV – Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life:
and they are they which testify of me.
Well this is an interesting view. It’s something we have
learned in many points of view through the Word. Often we don’t see just what
this verse shares. Jesus says we THINK we have eternal life. Here’s what He
says in the next verse.
John
5:40 KJV – And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.
Remember Jesus said without Him we would not have eternal
life. Through Him we would. Well, if we follow only that which has been written
before He came into being, and don’t hear His words as they were spoken and
written as He preached and taught, we’re not going to get the whole picture. It
isn’t possible to see the works if we’re only looking at half a completed
puzzle and the rest is in pieces as yet to be put together.
Many of our lives have felt like the parts that were
already put together have been tossed in the air and scrambled. We’ll have to
work to find the order the pieces belong in. That’s something Jesus teaches us.
Just because we have some of the picture in what has been taught before, doesn’t
mean we have the whole picture. Let’s see what other verses these would refer
back to.
Luke
24:27 KJV – And beginning
at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the
things concerning himself.
What does it mean to expound upon something? Well, to
expound means to explain, to give more detail to what was already said or
written. There are times we’ve heard others say something and asked, ‘Could you
give us more to understand it?’ That’s where Jesus comes in with Scripture. If
we don’t understand something found earlier before Christ, find where it
corresponds to His words from the New Testament. We learn a lot that way. Even
in the Old Testament there are verses that will go back to others behind it,
and then forward to those shared later on. Here we see how some go from what
they know to what was written and back again. It’s important to find as many
references as possible. There is a reason. We can’t understand what Jesus is
telling us if we don’t find details to add to what He has shared. Those details
help us find that path toward eternal life. Here we see a verse related to
that.
Acts
17:11 KJV – These
were more noble than those in Thessalonica in that they received the word with
a readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things
were so.
See? These from Thessalonica received the Word, and then
they explored where it referred back to, and applied it to what was known. We
can’t learn more completely unless we first read it or hear it and then apply
the knowledge gained through those. Otherwise wisdom cannot be gained. Now we’ll
see what is shared in the Old Testament in regard to bringing a method for us
to be taught, given the knowledge, and the ability to share it with others,
thus applying what has been taught.
Deuteronomy
18:15 KJV – The LORD
thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from in the midst of thee, of thy
brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall hearken.
That prophet is Jesus. He continues to be a prophet, even
long after He rose from the dead so many years ago. Listen to His words. Read
them, write them to memorize them, say them out loud, even if it is to
yourself. You’ll find answers come more easily as you gain that knowledge,
learn how to understand it, and apply it.
Wow, when you can do that, you gain the wisdom Jesus
wishes we would bring to hearts and minds. It is no easy task to be Christian
in every way. Yet, Jesus wants to try more than just a little. He wants us to
really try as much as we can, not just hearing or seeing, but bringing the Word
to life. In doing so, we do just that for our hearts, minds, spirits, and
souls.
Now that’s something to think about as we pray in the
prayer that Jesus brought us.
Our Father, which art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, in earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine
is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen. (Matthew 6:9-13)
Closing
Song: Bring Me to Life https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SEy6WPB_txw
~Shalom~
Rev.
Laura A. Neff ~ The Rainbow Minister
Covenant
of Hope Ministries
Scripture Excerpts: The New Open Bible Study Edition:
Copyright © 1990: Thomas Nelson Publishers, Inc.
Scripture Excerpts: Holy Bible: Copyright © 1982: E.
E. Gaddy and Associates, Inc.
Scripture Excerpts: Holy Bible: Copyright © circa
1890-1910: International Bible Press,The John C. Winston Co.; Philadelphia,
PA., USA
Sermon or Study Copyright © 2015
Our
mission for Covenant of Hope Ministries and Poetic-Expressions is not to
exploit fear, but to conquer it, and overcome all that is created through fear
together as the rainbow in the darkness.
This
mission statement speaks of the rainbow in the darkness. Every time I would
have a seriously traumatic thing happen in my life I would wake in the middle
of the night. When I do I see a rainbow at the end of my bed, or even through
the window behind my head. I’ll see that rainbow in a dark room even during the
day. It will hover in the shadows and reassure me that God is with me.
