Church Of The Lost Sheep

Pressing toward the Goal "I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us." Philippians 3:12-14 [ This is the  10 th and last message in this short series] At one tine we were all living lives apart from God. As Christians, we were reborn and have become new creations. We received the right to be called God's children, co-heirs with Christ. Each day we learn more about our new life in Christ and we start to live more and more like Christ did. For some it could be baby steps to achieve that, and that is okay as long as we know where we started from and we d...

"So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh.They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law." Ephesians 5:16-18 [ This is the 9 th message in this  series ] Praying is the language of the Spirit. Fasting facilitates the communication process. When we pray, we worship the God of Creation. When we fast, we are saying praying is important to us and we are prioritizing God. It is like trading in our old cellphone and using 500G wireless technology. True Self When we pray and fast, and when we do so in private and not tell others,  we are showing who we are in the inside. It honors God and shows our true intentions. We do not seek a reward from our peers and other people. Because if we do, it shows that what we are doing is not r...

Fasting “When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show others they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that it will not be obvious to others that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you." -Jesus of Nazareth, 1st century Matthew 6:16-18 [ This is the 8 th message in this  series ] In the 2nd lesson in this series, we read from the Book of Matthew, chapter 6. The excerpt we read above are the preceding verses. In the bible, praying normally includes fasting . In the old days they only need to fast from much fewer things, as life isn't as complicated as it is now. Staying Away From Fasting for them generally means staying away from eating food, or certain kinds of food or a few human activities. Today we have so many food choices...

"Be humbled by God’s power so that when the right time comes he will honor you. Turn all your anxiety over to God because he cares for you." -Apostle Peter writing to the first believers, 1st century 1 Peter 5:6-7 in God's Word Translation [ This is the  7th  message in this  series ] If you have been following this teaching, you would have by now rooted yourself down with the habit of praying -- spending time with the God of Creation. You may not see the fruits yet of what you have started to do, but like a fruit tree before it sprouts and produces branches which will bear fruit, its roots first need to dig deep, so as not to easily fall over and uprooted. Having spent the first moments of each day, praying would have instilled by now a sense of awe and wonder of being able to be in the presence of God, and having an audience with the Supreme Being, the Origin, the First and the Last, the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. No One else would be higher. Humble...

"Now Jesus was telling the disciples a parable to make the point that at all times they ought to pray and not give up  and  lose heart," Luke 18:1 in the Amplified Version [This is the  6th  message in this  series ] If there is anything this world needs more of, it is by far this thing we call hope. And hope that is not like what the world peddles, not that fake or false kind or hope that only lasts for a little while, but real hope.  I used to own and manage a business which dealt with essentially bringing hope. It was a great business venture and we helped a lot of people. But that business enterprise ended, like everything else in this world. Real Hope There is one real and lasting hope and one that is not transient but eternal. In this world we will have trouble and this we are certain of. But  only God has the kind of hope that humankind needs to make it through this world and into the next. We can only do so much and we can only hitc...

"Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus." -Apostle Paul, writing to the 1st church in Philippi, 1st century Philippians 4:6-7 in the New Living Translation [ This is the  5th  message in this  series ] From many of Jesus' teachings we can see that His message is about worry free living. And it is not just to tell us to not worry without telling us how to go about it. Pray He tells us not to fret, not to be anxious. And instead of worrying we should pray. We should bring our concerns up to God. Anything we may be worried or anxious about should form what we ought to pray for. Peace As we praise God and bring our concerns to Him, before we know it God's peace envelops us. God's presence surrounds us and as the Message Paraphrase pu...

“Pray without ceasing. In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.”  -Apostle Paul, writing to the 1st church in Thessalonica, 1st century Thessalonians 5:17-18 [This is the  4th  message in this  series ] If you have been following the lessons in this teaching, you should already notice something has been happening behind the scenes. That is the Holy Spirit moving and we may only now be noticing because we have been getting to know Him more intimately. This is one result of starting each day by spending quiet time with Our Father in heaven in the secret place. God is always speaking to us every moment, we just need to keep at it, to be more aware, more sensitive to the Holy Spirit. To pray without ceasing means to walk with the Holy Spirit moment by moment. In our innermost being, we can ask Him what to say, how to react, what difficult decisions to make, and how to go about our day. When we do, we will notice th...

"In certain ways we are weak, but the Spirit is here to help us. For example, when we don’t know what to pray for, the Spirit prays for us in ways that cannot be put into words. All of our thoughts are known to God. He can understand what is in the mind of the Spirit, as the Spirit prays for God’s people." -Apostle Paul, writing to the 1st church in Rome,1st century Romans 8:26-27 in the Contemporary English Version [This is the  3rd  message in this  series ] If we went over the first two lessons in this teaching, we should be getting used to and a little comfortable with our prayers. No, we are not saying that we  already know what prayer is, or even what to pray for. On the contrary, there will be a lot of times that we will not even know what to say when we pray.  But know this, the Holy Spirit Himself prays for us! So far, we have learned:  1. Jesus prayed for us. 2. Jesus taught us how to pray. 3. The Holy Spirit prays for us. If and...

The Lord’s Prayer " And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. Truly I tell you, they already have their full reward. But when you pray, go into your inner room, shut your door, and pray to your Father, who is unseen. And your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not babble on like pagans, for they think that by their many words they will be heard. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him. So then, this is how you should pray: ‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.’ -Jesus of Nazareth, 1st century Matthew 6:5-13 in the Tree of Life Version [This is the...

Interceding for All Believers “I pray not on behalf of these only, but also for those who believe in Me through their message, that they all may be one. Just as You, Father, are in Me and I am in You, so also may they be one in Us, so the world may believe that You sent Me.The glory that You have given to Me I have given to them, that they may be one just as We are one—I in them and You in Me—that they may be perfected in unity, so that the world may know that You sent Me and loved them as You loved Me." -Jesus of Nazareth, 1st century John 17:20-23 in the Tree of Life Version It is humbling to know that Jesus, Our Lord and Savior prayed for all of us in the moments leading up to His arrest and His mock trial, and His time of agony, temptation and our redemption. Jesus knew that He needed to intercede on our behalf because we too like Him and His followers, will undergo our own trying times. And He already sent word to Our Father about us. New Year, Same & New Trials The...

Come to Me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and ‘you will find rest for your souls.’  For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” -Jesus of Nazareth Matthew 11:28-30 Even though some things may have slowly gone back to normal, many of us still have not found comfort since the effects of the pandemic of 2019 started. Many of us got sick and still have lingering side effects even after having survived the disease. Many of us have family and loved ones who are sick right now or have died. Some have lost their jobs or their businesses or means of livelihood.  On top of this, some of us also have gone through a natural calamity.  And for some, it seems like it is just one trial after another, like a strong earthquake happened and tsunamis are just coming at us again and again and again. Nothing is Hidden From God God knows what we are going through. And He ...

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