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 that the good tidings
which have occurred for my family far away from me would continue for as long
as it can be.
- 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 my nearby family
members as we are going through some tough times here.
- Please pray for Elder Cal Jennings
as he is going through a whole lot health wise and emotionally as well. Please
pray that he will be able to find and follow inspiration still.
- 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 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: Whispering Hope https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tq2ksjpT548&index=1&list=PL614A115BF39E5936
Sermon: Good
afternoon. Today’s inspiration came in a series of dreams this past few days.
It was as though God were bringing me, through the Spirit, a point of view that
must be shared, but in pieces, so that understanding could be seen, heard, and
felt. Perhaps there would have been a question regarding situations for all of
us that needed faith, hope, trust, and love. Now, our Elder Cal Jennings always
has ended his studies and sermons with the words Love, Hope, and Christ Be With
You. That is a fitting point of view. Shalom shows a similar view, peace, yes,
just peace. However, you need love, hope, and Christ to bring you peace. So see
here what God has given through the Spirit regarding faith, hope, and trust in
Him.
Romans 5:1-5 KJV – Therefore being
justified with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:
By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience;
And patience, experience; and experience, hope:
And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given to us.
By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience;
And patience, experience; and experience, hope:
And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given to us.
Notice there are plenty of verses regarding
hope in different points of view. Today, however, we are sharing the ideal of
hope as an instant connection with God through the Holy Spirit. Here is a
second view of that from the Old Testament.
Psalm 71:5 KJV – For thou art my hope, O Lord GOD: thou art my trust from my youth.
Psalm 71:5 KJV – For thou art my hope, O Lord GOD: thou art my trust from my youth.
Hope this verse shows. However, it shows it
in an eye opening way. Notice it shares that hope for the author began while
they were a youth. This is something that builds trust. Remember there are many
verses also about trust. Jeremiah shares yet another view of both hope and
trust.
Jeremiah 17:7 KJV – Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is.
You can see here that trust is built up. It isn’t there by osmosis. In humanity there are many who have broken trust between others. However, as shared in many views of Scripture we see that hope rebuilds, hope brings trust. Faith brings hope. Notice also faith, hope, trust, are all components of love. This is the gift God and Jesus both wish us to see, hear, and understand. Now that’s something to think about as we pray in the prayer that Jesus brought us.
Jeremiah 17:7 KJV – Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is.
You can see here that trust is built up. It isn’t there by osmosis. In humanity there are many who have broken trust between others. However, as shared in many views of Scripture we see that hope rebuilds, hope brings trust. Faith brings hope. Notice also faith, hope, trust, are all components of love. This is the gift God and Jesus both wish us to see, hear, and understand. 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)
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: My Peace https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ls01XGV7oA0
~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.
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