Covenant Of Hope Ministries: October 2019

Sunday, October 27, 2019

We Are Saved, All Who Believe

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

Rev. Laura’s other sites: Facebook & 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 suffering greatly with his health. At this time, he is in the hospital once more. May the Lord bring his spirits up and help heal him.

- Please pray for relief in the trials and tribulations for Sister Theresa due to continued pain and suffering from that same hit and run accident late last year.

- Pray for those of us mourning the loss of dear and close family or friends in our lives.

- 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 our sick and wounded that they may heal.

Prayer: Father in heaven, our prayer today is to have the Spirit bring healing to each of our bodies, minds, spirits, and souls. We pray for Your grace and hope 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 where it might be found. May our pain and sorrow be eased in the hope and faith You hold within us. 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: Ancient Words ~ Michael W. Smith https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wkTUoJT_gVU

Sermon: Today we are continuing to pursue the full understanding of belief in our Lord and Savior Jesus and the Heavenly Father above. Many people on this earth have a hard time believing due to the amount of chaos that goes on here on this earth. The strongest part of belief begins with each individual person and the ability to take our knowledge of God’s Word and the Truth within it and apply it to our individual and collective lives. The Apostle Paul and Apollos share that thought with their congregations as shown here.

1 Corinthians 3:5 KJV – Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by whom ye believed, even as the Lord gave to every man?

Notice how they share here that ministers who directly knew Christ, share that belief in His divine strength with those around them. They are working toward salvation, not just for themselves, but for all those who believe. It’s not easy to believe something you can’t completely comprehend until you learn how to comprehend His love through more than words on paper.

1 Corinthians 15:2 KJV – By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain.

Remembering is the important thing. God wants us to remember Him. Jesus wants us to remember Him. That is why they bring us Scripture through the Holy Spirit. It is also the reason we have Scripture in the first place. Yet, still we have problems, sorrows, depression, that prevent us sometimes from seeing the full glory of God. That is due to earthly chaos caused directly by the Evil One as Jesus and God have shared more than once.

2 Corinthians 4:4 KJV – In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.

This is where faith and believing have to rescue us. Yes, I said rescue. Belief is more than just reading and learning Scripture. It is applying the Word, and pursuing the methods within the Word with faith, hope, and understanding. Once we can do that, we will find, no matter what chaos this earthly life may bring, we have hope, and the gift of Unconditional Love through Jesus’s last gift to us as He rose from the dead, the Holy Spirit.

2 Corinthians 4:13 KJV – We having the same spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak;

The next thing we must remember as true Christians is to share the reason by which we are Christians. Share your heart with each other, the belief that, no matter what happens on this earth, Jesus has faith in each of us. The important components of belief would include faith, hope, love, understanding, and knowledge, not necessarily in that order. There is a better world waiting for us. God’s love proves that much.

Galatians 3:22 KJV – But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe.

See this? The PROMISE by FAITH of JESUS CHRIST is given to those who BELIEVE. That’s a promise repeated over, and over again throughout Scripture. Take the words BELIEVE, BELIEVED, BELIEVERS, BELIEVEST, BELIEVEST, BELIEVING, a total of 447 times. There is a very good reason to repeat this concept of believing. People lose faith all the time. This is because of the earthly chaos we see everywhere around us, and sometimes even within us. Belief is a powerful gift given to each of us who are willing to learn, listen, hear, feel, the gift of God’s Word and its true meaning, which is the same always, even when we interpret it individually and then share it collectively with those around us. Belief is powerful, as shared here.

Ephesians 1:19 KJV – And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power,

God is a powerful gift. That’s why the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross resonates with people this far into the future. On that day when Jesus died, the single greatest gift was brought to each and every one of us, so long as we believe in that sacrifice and understand He was ensuring we would all find that very special place at His side when this world ends.

Philippians 1:29 KJV – For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake;

It isn’t easy to be a true Christian, a follower of Christ. In fact, even today it can be one of the most difficult journeys we make in life. Yet, if you think about it, we see what believing in His almighty gift of Unconditional Love in everything around us and within us. All we have to do is believe, and then we will see Him. 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: El Shaddai ~ Amy Grant https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DuXB1a3NBCw

~ 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

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.

Sunday, October 20, 2019

The Importance of Believing in God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit

You will find us in the following location: http://www.covenantofhopeministries.blogspot.com

Rev. Laura’s other sites: Facebook & Blogspot & Twitter

- Please pray for Elder Cal Jennings who has been suffering greatly with his health. His heart has given him such a hard time, and nothing more can be done according to the doctors. Jehovah Rapha heal his heart. He has recently learned that a very dear friend of his has passed away. May the Lord bring his spirits up and help heal him heart, mind, spirit, and soul.

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

- Please pray for my dear friend Kristy, who has gotten some relief in her financial situation, but it came at a great cost to her heart, mind, and spirit in the past three years.

- Please pray for the friends and family members of our member, Debbie Bolton’s dear friend, Grant, who passed away Friday. Remember these others in his family as well, remember his wife, Judy, daughter, Kim and his granddaughter, Madison and his brother, Keith and his wife, J-Anne. Debbie Bolton has been friends with them for many, many years, and I knew his voice from her former radio post as she did a request hour or three.

- Pray for those suffering as a result of the terrors that have occurred just this past week around this world.

- Pray for those in suffering in the Midwest due to the severe flooding after their recent storms.

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

Prayer: Father in heaven, today we pray for so many who have been hurt, injured, killed, or have suffered and died from disease and more. We pray for Elder Cal Jennings who is heartbroken over the death of a very close friend. We pray for Sister Debbie Bolton as she mourns the loss of a very dear friend. We pray for the families and friends of both lost to us through death. We pray that peace can be found in our hearts and spirits and souls thanks to the gift of Your Holy Spirit. 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: Here I Am Lord https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EcxOkht8w7c

Sermon: This week’s sermon has been a tough road for many. Two of my dear friends and colleagues here in the ministry have lost family, or friends as close as family, this past week. Elder Cal and Sister Debbie have both been in my thoughts all week. I have been working on the ideal of believing in Christ, God, and the Holy Spirit. Sharing how often belief and believing would be shared in Scripture, through the Old Testament, and all the way through the New Testament. Today we are working with the Scroll of Romans. Belief shares something with us, heart, mind, body, spirit, and soul. We should be happy, and joyful in sharing our belief. We should never be ashamed or afraid to share our faith with ourselves, our friends, family, and even strangers. This is the intention Jesus and God have always had since the very beginning.

Romans 1:16 KJV – For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.

Even in the times of Jesus and the Apostles, people didn’t want to believe. There were some who had never even been offered the potential to share belief in God and Jesus as the Savior. This is why Jesus brought us into this picture, starting with the Apostles and Disciples, and continuing to the Teachers, the Preachers, the Ministers, Deacons, Elders, and so many more. This is why I have worked most of my life with my belief. It took me a long time to realize that belief has been my salvation. Once I did, I embraced that gift, because belief is truly a gift. That’s where this verse comes in.

Romans 3:3 KJV – For what if some did not believe? shall their unbelief make the faith of God without effect?

Belief is not something that everyone can easily manage. It is a true struggle for so very many here on this earth. We have so much to learn about believing in God, Jesus, and the potential for eternal and everlasting life. When we suffer a devastating loss, like two of our members in the past week, and even my family in the loss of my grandmother just over a month ago, it shows there can be cracks in that belief. We have to remember that belief builds us up in righteousness.

Romans 3:22 KJV – Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference:

Those who are wondering about this verse, why faith and belief go hand in hand no matter who we are, or where we come from. That’s the powerful gift of faith in believing. All believers, true believers, understand that it is not easy to stay on His path and follow His lead, but it is possible to see that path and try our best to share that path with others.

Romans 4:17 KJV – (As it is written, I have made thee a father of many nations,) before him whom he believed, even God, who quickeneth the dead, and calleth those things which be not as though they were.

While we live here on this earth there are trials and tribulations, life and death, laughter and sorrow. Sometimes, in order to see the good parts in life, we must suffer through the bad episodes that we don’t wish to revisit. That is something Jesus points out, and what many of His Apostles and Disciples have done ever since.

Romans 4:24 KJV – But for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead;

We can believe in Jesus, but if we don’t also believe in God, and the Holy Spirit, we are not fully believing in the power that God’s Unconditional Love shares with us. We have to remember, believing in the Holy Trinity, the Three in One, is the entire view of Unconditional Love. This is what Abraham shared in His walk with God. It is the same for Enoch, Joshua, Moses, and so many more.

Romans 6:8 KJV – Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him:

Everlasting life is something people tend not to understand. It is that part of life that holds so much mystery. True, there is a lot of mystery in life in general, like how we can have near death experiences and share them with others, who will either believe or won’t believe in those types of stories. It is a challenge to understand this struggle between life and death. Many who have suffered terrible health issues wonder why they still suffer, especially after they may have had one of these near-death experiences. I have known more than one person who knew they were going to die, almost a year before they actually did so, and without notice from a doctor. Those I have known believed strongly in the gift of unconditional love and everlasting life, and the link between them. That’s why, regardless of their stumbling stones in life, they believed each of them would be here for a reason. This verse shares something I have often caught myself thinking about. Stumbling stones come in many shapes, styles, and sizes in life. It is that experience in testing our belief that we have which will share that testing faith is something we should go on and work through. Don’t fear those stumbling stones, be glad that you survive them. That’s something more than one of those I have known over the years, have shared with me.

Romans 9:33 KJV – As it is written, Behold, I lay in Sion a stumblingstone and rock of offence: and whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.

Everything in Scripture shares a beginning and an end. Everything in life does the same. When we start out in life there are zillions of possibilities. Depending on life, that narrows down as we grow and age. In the end, how we live our lives becomes more important than the length of that life we live. With each of us, we have had our good times, our bad ones, and those in between. We have had things we are proud of, and things we would sooner wish to forget ever happened. Time changes all of those experiences into experience that enhances our beliefs.

Romans 10:9 KJV – For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth.

God asked us to do one thing. Jesus reinforced that request. He then shared the Holy Spirit to ensure that we learned what it means to believe in Christ, and in the fact that He was crucified, dead, buried, and resurrected to become part of every person on this earth who believes. It is a celebration of His love for us that is noted when we prove our belief in the things we say, do, and even think about in this life. It’s easy to be earthly, because so many don’t think about it. Belief takes much more than just waking up, going through life, and going to sleep at night. We have to share our thoughts regarding belief. We have to share it with ourselves, with God and Jesus through the Spirit, and with those around us, be they family, friends, or perfect strangers. This is where this last verse comes in.

Romans 10:14 KJV – How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?

Over the years, believing has been something even I myself have suffered questions and worries about. Do I share enough of God’s unconditional love for each of those I interact with? Have I expressed just how wonderful it is to have God’s unconditional love can do for all of us, no matter the level of belief we have? I sure hope God proves it to each of you. Now that’s something to think about as we pray in the prayer that Jesus taught us saying:

Closing Song: Spirit Lead Me https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Ko4yroBP0A

~ 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

About Us/

Welcome, we are Covenant of Hope Ministries. We celebrate the light in the darkness. There are those of us who need a connection, one to another, whether it is someone we want to learn about, or someone we know and wish to keep in touch with. Ministry is all about sharing faith, hope, and unconditional love. This all would offer peace from the heart. It doesn't matter who you are, where you live, if you are traveling a lot, or otherwise, we serve Christians and Others who are disabled, displaced, disadvantaged and disenchanted in today's world. Licensed Ordained Minister, Rev. Laura A. Neff, Evangelist, Cal Jennings, Outreach Ministers including Rev. Lisa, Pastor Stephen, Apostle Eric, and many others. I am licensed to perform wedding ceremonies in the state of Georgia, USA. I was ordained in 2007 by Rev. Teresa Piercey-Gates. We established this ministry in October of 2008.

MESSENGER

Sunday, October 27, 2019

We Are Saved, All Who Believe

Sunday, October 20, 2019

The Importance of Believing in God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit