Always Remember God Is With Us Even in Mourning

Welcome to Covenant of Hope Ministries and our sermon or midweek study. You will normally see us posted on Sunday and Wednesday. 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

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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 suffering greatly with his health. May the Lord bring his spirits up and help heal him.

- Pray for my family as they mourn the loss of my grandmother, Emilie Hansen, just before her birthday, which would have been today.

- Please pray for relief in the trials and tribulations for Sister Theresa due to pain from a terrible hit and run accident late last year.

- 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 in the path of the latest hurricane.

- Pray for our sick and wounded that they may heal.

Prayer: Father in heaven, our prayer today is to have the Spirit bring hope to our hearts while absorbing the loss of loved ones. Please send Your healing touch to each of our bodies, minds, spirits, and souls. 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. 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 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: Angels Among Us https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y_4Xfj2LRSA&feature=youtu.be&fbclid=IwAR00kJjv3u3mwHe0Oa1WQQpoRX_R4hL70_dpLiKcLXfH_lTKOVlGdN9NG_4

In Memoriam, Emilie Jane Foley-Bohon-Hansen, Born September 1, 1917 – Died August 29, 2019: May She Rest In Eternal Peace https://www.greenfieldfuneralchapel.com/obituaries/Emilie-J-Bohon-Hansen?obId=6906462&fbclid=IwAR19LtsXcWdROoO-zpMAjM_uhUStbSXS9VPGmasLfCVogY3MTsAsZWml-JQ#/obituaryInfo

Sermon: I spent a lot of time praying over what to write for this week. Then I got the tragic news from my mother that my grandmother, Emilie Jane Foley-Bohon-Hansen, had passed away. That was August 29th, 2019. So, I decided it was time to reflect on one of my favorite sections of Scripture. It is not necessarily what many would think about mourning and remembering those we mourn for. My grandmother was a very devout Catholic, even in the worst times of her life. So, in honor of my grandmother, I will share one of the sections of Scripture she often shared with me.

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 KJV – To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:
A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;
A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;
A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away;
A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.

This was just one of those series of verses. She also enjoyed many other portions of Scripture. One of those is the one that is typically shared with death and loss. That section is next.

Psalm 23 KJV – The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.
He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.

God gave us a beautiful method to do anything and everything, from laughter, to mourning, and back again. His Word, His Eternal and Unconditional Love, shared through Scripture, through the Prophets, Ministers, Leaders, and more all during the existence of humanity for thousands of years. My heart remembers and reflects on the blessings of just having people like my grandmother, and many others, touch my life in ways I could never fully describe. Here we share another of her favorite hymns.

Song: Amazing Grace https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDdvReNKKuk&list=PL614A115BF39E5936&index=94

  

I am certain there are those in our lives who have touched us in ways we will never forget. That is one thing God wants us to hold on to. He wants us to always remember, not just the good times, but the bad ones, the ordinary ones, because they will fill us with memories of truly unconditional love. Our last set of verses are familiar, and impactful for every person who has followed in the footsteps of Jesus in their lives.

Matthew 5: 1-14 KJV – And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his disciples came unto him:
 And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying,
Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.
Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.
Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.
Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.
Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.
Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.
Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.
Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.

In Catholicism this series of Scripture verses would be known as the Beatitudes. They are defined as the eight blessings Jesus Christ shared with His Apostles and Disciples, and even with us here and now as we share Scripture together. Truthfully, there are far more than eight blessings even in these verses. That is something I learned from my grandmother, many, many years ago. I remember her fondly when I read these passages, yet again this day. Remember Jesus and God when you mourn, and when you rejoice, because life always will be filled with trial and triumph, laughter and tears, love and hate, and all the rest, until the day when life as we know it will be gone and life as God and Jesus promised will prevail.

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: Calling All Angels https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KRUErh47sao&list=PL614A115BF39E5936&index=121

~ 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 © 2019 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.