Welcome to Covenant of Hope Ministries and our sermon or midweek study. You will normally see us posted on Sunday or Wednesday at least once a month. I am Rev. Laura A. Neff. Our ministry was built on the truth of God’s love. It doesn’t conform to society’s wishes. This ministry shares the Word of God, the Spirit of Christ Jesus. Those who know me well will recognize that there are definitive differences in the creation of every sermon from this point forward. It is God’s will that has brought this to be. We wish only that God’s truth will be shared within His words as brought to us by the Spirit as it fills my heart, mind, and soul to be shared with my hands, but with His words alone.
You will find us in the following location: http://www.covenantofhopeministries.blogspot.com Rev. Laura’s other sites: Facebook & Google+ & Blogspot & Twitter
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 grows or changes every week. This is our current list.
- Please pray for Elder Cal Jennings who has been in and out of the hospital several times over the last year and more.
- Please pray for relief in the trials and tribulations for Sister Theresa who was hit by a car while legally crossing the street a few weeks ago and is taking quite a while to heal. Her latest news shares that her plantar fascia on one foot has been torn and there is serious damage to her shoulder as well.
- Please pray for a dear friend and colleague of mine as she suffers a great deal of physical pain and no doctor seems willing to find methods to remove this horrible pain from her.
- We want to thank You for the gift of a new home which my family will move into next month.
- Be thankful for each day we live as we do not know what tomorrow brings.
- Pray for our nations that the voice of God be heard through the Spirit.
- Pray for our friends and families that their tomorrows bring blessings and pray our own be the same.
- Pray for those suffering as a result of the terrors that have occurred just this past week around this world.
- Pray for those lost in disasters of natural or unnatural means all over the world in the past year or less.
- Pray for our sick and wounded that they may heal.
Prayer: Father in heaven, our prayer today as we start this New Year is to have the Spirit bring peace, hope, and love into focus for everyone who has suffered illness, loss, and more this past year. May our pain and sorrow be eased. May peace be brought from our hearts and shared with others. May Your gifts of love shine through us toward others. We pray for clarity to be brought through each of our decisions. We pray for enlightenment and understanding while studying Your Word. We thank You for these gifts and the many more You have brought us. May our fears be drawn out of us. Help us to see the many gifts Your love brings and the unknown locations it might be found. We pray for the poor, the sick, the sorrowful, the wounded, and the frightened. We pray for the soldiers, the Samaritans, the children, and the rest. We pray in thanksgiving for every gift brought us. We pray that every tomorrow would bring good things. For each of these we pray in Your Holy Name, through our Savior Jesus Christ, and the gift of the Holy Spirit, Amen and so it shall be.
Opening Song: You’ll Never Walk Alone https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mN8oN8I3lrk
Sermon: Today’s sermon comes from an inspirational post shared by one or more of the members of Covenant of Hope via social media. I found myself gathering my thoughts regarding the verses and what they mean to me, and how to share that meaning with you. The Spirit provided an answer for that and instructed me to share that with you today. So, let’s start with this set of verses here.
Philippians 4:6-7 (KJV) – Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.
And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
When it comes to making decisions, especially huge decisions, like moving to a new place, taking a new job, getting married, having children, those are the things we should be careful about our choices. This is why the citizens of Philippi were hearing this, because so many forge ahead sometimes without thinking about the path or destination. This can bring harm to a person’s mind, body, and spirit, and anyone who might be affected by those actions. Yet, also Jesus shared this with His apostles and followers.
Matthew 6:25 (KJV) – Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?
There is more to life than food, drink, or clothing for anyone. There is much, much more. Finding what that would be is something personal, individual, unique for every single person alive today, born tomorrow, or lost yesterday. Each of us must be willing to pray about where God wants us to focus our lives. It is no easy task. From experience, I myself have seen how confusing life can be if we fail to stop, think, focus on what the Spirit is trying to tell us.
1 Peter 5:7 (KJV) – Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.
There is a line in a song that says: ‘pack up all your cares and woes’.
Jesus and the Father both say that the Spirit will help us move forward, assisting us with the burdens of life that weigh down on our hearts, minds, and spirits. It is not easy for us to just give up those burdens. Sometimes the stubborn part of our psyches would refuse to let them go.
Isaiah 26:3 (KJV) – Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.
Here we see how Isaiah sees the Heavenly Father, God, with perfect peace. What is perfect peace? Well, it’s LOVE of course. Within God’s Unconditional LOVE, we will see exactly what is shared by Isaiah, by Paul, our Heavenly Father, and the Beloved Son Jesus Christ. Trust in God’s love, because it is more than eternal, it is infinite, unconditional, omnipresent for each and every human being, no matter age, gender, or homeland. Jesus taught us over and over again all about what God’s Unconditional Love consists of. He proves it in many ways. We should remember how He has done so with these words.
John 14:27 (KJV) – Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
Don’t worry. Don’t argue. Take a breath. Close your eyes. Hear His voice as He whispers in your ear. The Peace of Christ’s Unconditional Love will fill you full of joy and contentment. If nothing else, the promise of eternal peace worldwide is something we should carry with us in this New Year of 2019. Now that’s something to think about as we pray in the prayer that Jesus taught us saying:
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: Hear My Prayer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7YwT71HcWKQ
~ Shalom ~
Rev. Laura A. Neff
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Elder Calvin Jennings
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Covenant of Hope Ministries Main Site: http://www.covenantofhopeministries.blogspot.com 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 http://www.covenantofhopeministries.blogspot.com
Our mission for Covenant of Hope Ministries is not to exploit fear, but to conquer it, and overcome all that is created through fear together as the bringers of the light of Jesus found in the midst of darkness.
