“I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.” Philippians 4:13
 
Shortly after trusting Christ as my Savior I discovered this wonderful verse and clung to it like a drowning man clings to a life preserver. I knew from the very beginning that I was weak and could never live as a Christian should without divine help. As I struggled to overcome various sins I quoted this verse over and over again–I still do today!
 
This glorious truth has helped many others as well. But some folks have misunderstood. The assurance that God will give us the strength to do His will does not mean it will be quick or easy or fun. Often times the path to victory is through blood, sweat and tears. Don’t assume that, because you are struggling, God isn’t helping you. Sometimes the difficulty is by divine design. God could make it easier, but He doesn’t. Here’s why—you are working on one thing and God is working on two– your problem and you! God uses the process to develop your character, conforming you to the image of His dear Son. He knows “easy” isn’t always best, and that the happiness you seek can only come through holiness.
 
Sometimes God delays the answer to our prayers and withholds His help because He knows we need the struggle. We long for a quick and easy way out, but God knows we need the opposite. Just as you cannot liberate the butterfly from the cocoon without killing it, we need the struggle to make us strong. Do not be discouraged when your efforts seem futile. Regardless of what you are going through, God is able to meet your need. He brought you to it and He will bring you through it. If you live in the sunshine of His bright promise it will help you to have hope when all seems doom and gloom. Claim it today! – HDS

David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346

“I am weary with my groaning; all the night make I my bed to swim; I water my couch with my tears.”–Psalm 6:6 
It’s early morning, still dark outside, and even darker within your heart. All seems doom and gloom. You haven’t hardly slept a wink, you’re tired, your bones ache, and your heart hurts even more. There is no hope in sight. You feel as though you are trapped in a giant vice that is slowly squeezing the life out of you. It seems that the day will never break and relief will never come.

That is somewhat the way that David felt as he penned the words of his song. But, out of the depths of his despair he prayed for deliverance and, although still hurting, he was confident that God would help. He said, “The LORD hath heard my supplication; the LORD will receive my prayer.“(Psalm 6:9)

Dear friend, the same God is now watching over you. The centuries have rolled by and the circumstances are now different, but God hasn’t changed. He knows, He cares, and He can help. Don’t give up. Hope is on the horizon. As sure as the sun will rise, you can count on God to bring light into your darkness. Trust Him–Please!

I’m not saying that God will give you what you desire or that things will turn out exactly as you would like. I don’t know your future, nor mine, but I do know God. I know His grace is sufficient and His ear is open to your prayer. He might not change your situation, but He will change you. Believe it or not, you will laugh again. As David said, “Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.”(Psalm 30:5). Whether this will be the day or whether it is a month away I don’t know, but one glad morning the sorrow will end. The sunshine of His grace will break through and banish the darkness that engulfs your soul, and the joy will return–it’s just a matter of time! It’s not by accident that you are reading this. Divine providence brought you to this place and God isn’t through yet. Just wait patiently on the Lord.—HDS

David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346

KEEP YOUR EYES ON THE PRIZE

“—forgetting those things which are behind–I press toward the mark for the prize”.—Philippians 3:13-14 
 In these wonderful verses we see Paul’s past, his proclamation, and his pursuit. Then in the next verses we see his plea–setting himself forth as an example. 
 That dear old apostle refused to allow anything in his past divert his attention and dim his vision of the prize before him. That is really rather amazing when you consider all of the things from his past that he could have been thinking about– his abilities, his accomplishments, his authority, his associates, his adversaries, his afflictions, etc. Yet he was looking ahead to “the prize of the high calling”. And he wasn’t just looking, he was reaching–straining with all his might to gain what God had for him.
Paul was no quitter, nor loafer, nor coaster. He had a fixed purpose and a burning desire to fulfill it. He was willing to pay the price regardless of the circumstances, cost, conditions, or consequences. Although he had learned to be content in whatever state he was in (Phil.4:11) he was not content to remain as he was as a person. 
 Some of us need to get past the past! Although we can learn from it we must never be controlled by it. We would do well to learn from the example of Paul. If you’re going to build momentum for a better future you’ve got to get rid of the ball and chain of your past. As Lehman Strauss wrote,” There is no bright future for the Christian who wastes time dwelling on the past.”
Winston Churchill was right when he said, “We must learn to accept the past as unalterable and move on.” Good advice! And, Paul proved that it can be done. God records this information about Paul to inspire us, not so we can idolize him. He wants us to see what He can do in our life. Regardless of our past, God can give us a glorious future. That’s where our attention needs to be.– HDS (8-22-10)
David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346

“For the body is not one member, but many.”– 1 Cor. 12:14

As you might expect, being a preacher I love to preach. But, what might surprise you, there is something else that I love almost as much, sometimes more! I’m not talking about a hobby. I’m talking about studying God’s word, which is essential to preaching. By the way, that isn’t natural for me. The reason I love preaching is because that’s what God called me to do, not something I chose. As Paul said, “For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.” ( Phil. 2:13).. Both the desire and the doing comes from God.

I mention this because that’s the way you should feel about what God has called you to do. My wife would tell you that God’s will for her life has been and is to be my helpmeet and a homemaker. And she does both extremely well. And from all appearance she loves it. She keeps going even when I beg her to stop. It isn’t God’s plan for every man to be a preacher, but God has a plan for every man. And I can tell you that we would fail as a church if everything depended on me, or you, or any other person. No one can do everything. Under the direction of the Holy Spirit, Paul likened the church to a body– the whole of which is dependent upon the function of the different members. That being the case “That there should be no schism in the body; but that the members should have the same care one for another.”(1 Cor. 12:25).
 
No member of the Lord’s church should feel inferior or superior to the other members. “God set the members every one of them in the body, as it hath pleased him.” ( 1 Cor. 12:18). We are all different and all are important. Regardless of how God chooses to use you it should be considered a great honor and it deserves your best. There’s an old song that says, “ Do what you do do well boy… Give your love and all your heart. And do what you do do well.”. If you are doing the will of God from the heart you need never feel inferior to anyone. — HDS

David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346

“Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment.“- Matt. 22:37-38

If God loved you as much as you love Him where would you be? Let that sink in and be honest when you answer. It’s easy to sing, “O How I Love Jesus”, or to testify, “I just love the Lord so much”, but it’s another thing to prove it. And if there’s no proof there’s no love. God proved His love by giving His own dear Son, heaven’s best, for sinful man. But where is the evidence that we love Him?

Have you ever considered what the Bible says about the evidence of love? If nothing is more important than that we dare not refuse to examine ourselves. Love for God will show itself in our worship, our work, our words, and our walk. A person’s lifestyle reflects what they think about God. Sadly, from all appearance, some don’t think much of Him.

Now, back to our question–” If God loved you as much as you love Him where would you be?”. Naturally we could never love Him as much as He loves us, but we could sure love Him more than we do. We ought to love Him as much as possible. Do we? Do you? Be honest!

God demands our love–it is the first and great commandment, and God deserves our love as well. To love Him less than we could or should is a sinful insult to God–a crime of the highest order. Yet, amazingly, He loves us still. His love is unconditional, undeserved and unending. Is that not all the more reason why we should love Him? No one ever has a reason to not love God. No one could ever do anything greater than to love God. This is the one thing that affects everything. If we fail here we have failed altogether.– HDS

David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346