Covenant Of Hope Ministries: His Strength Is Ours and Will Get Us Up On the Path Once More

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.

Main Site:http://covenantofhopeministries.blogspot.com/

Rev. Laura’s Other Sites: Facebook & Twitter &Google+ & Blogspot

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 a friend Susie Bartholow as she is in hospice. She is in very grave condition with cancer. Hospice care is in her home with her family. Keep them all in your thoughts and prayers.

- Please pray for Elder Cal Jennings as his heart and spirit need to be lifted high once more. Pray that inspiration would assist in this.

- Please pray for a friend of ours, Lucy, whose liver is failing. She is going to be on medication but may need a transplant. Pray that the first option works and she returns to health.

- Pray for a friend of my brother’s, who is far from home right now. There have been many problems for her right now. It is our hope that she will return and be here to complete her healing and more.

- Pray for our members Theresa and Wayne who had a very rough year last year. May some of their trials and tribulations end in time for our celebration of the birth of Jesus.

- 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.

- May God bless every one of us as we continue on.

Prayer: Father in heaven, we thank You for this day and for these who are here to share it with us. We thank You for the blessings brought and for those yet to come. We pray that You can remind us always what we should be looking forward to. We thank you for the gift of inspiration, no matter when that might be. 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 lost and those who mourn. 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: His Strength Is Perfect

Sermon: Good afternoon. Today’s sermon was influenced by a much older one, but gives a slightly different message. Many of us in this world today, whether in this ministry or otherwise have had a very hard time finding strength in themselves. It doesn’t matter which view of Christianity, all of them have seen their shares of weakness, especially lately. Let’s see what God shares with us in that regard.

Isaiah 35:3 KJV – Strengthen ye the weak hands, and confirm the feeble knees.

So, how do we do this? How do we strengthen our weak hands and feeble knees? How do we strengthen our spirits and more? That’s simple. Trust in the LORD. I know, the first words out of most mouths would be, it sounds simple, but that doesn’t mean it is so. Well, this is true. It can indeed be difficult to trust in the LORD to heal our feeble hearts, knees, and our weak hands.

Job 4:3, 4 KJV – Behold, thou hast instructed many, and upon thou hast strengthened the weak hands.
Thy words have upholden him that was falling, and thou hast strengthened the feeble knees.

Look at this here. He has instructed many, and has strengthened many of the weak hands. His words have held up the ones who have fallen, or are falling, and has strengthened the knees of many.

Hebrews 12:12 KJV – Wherefore lift up the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees;
And make straight paths for your feet, lest that which is lame be turned out of the way; but let it rather be healed.

This is also interesting, that He not only unbends our weak knees, or helps us stand. He also straightens the path for those same feet. This keeps us on the path, fixing the path itself. Think about this. Just think about it. We might fall off the path, but that doesn’t mean the path wasn’t broken. Perhaps our thoughts strayed. Perhaps things have happened that have taken us away. Yet, He will put that path right in front of us again, straight and smooth when we learn again that He can lift us up. He can hold us securely. He loves us enough to bring that strength to our hands, our hearts, our knees, and our spirits as well. 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: You Raise Me Up https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aJxrX42WcjQ

~Shalom~

Rev. Laura A. Neff ~ The Rainbow Minister

Facebook & Twitter & Google+ & Blogspot

Calvin Jennings ~ Elder Facebook & Twitter &Blogster

Covenant of Hope Ministries

Main Site:

http://covenantofhopeministries.blogspot.com/

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.

Covenant Of Hope Ministries

MESSENGER

Sunday, February 22, 2015

His Strength Is Ours and Will Get Us Up On the Path Once More

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