Honest Talk

Today's Quote:  "Apart from blunt truth, our lives sink decadently amid the perfume of hints and suggestions"

Are we truly honest and transparent with ourselves? We speak of being transparent with those around us but are we seeing ourselves for who we are?  And when we do, are we willing to go to our Father and say, "daddy, help me be all I can be in you."  Our heavenly Father desires honesty and intimacy - He wants us to be like him, formed in the image of His son Jesus Christ.

"Think of yourselves the way Christ Jesus thought of himself."  Philippians 2:5 (THE MESSAGE)

Pastor Winston

This is His Day

Father, thank you for such a wonderful and glory filled day. As I view the mountain before me and the heaven's subtle embrace I think of your awaiting us in the holy place of Worship.  Fill our hearts with yourself and I covenant to give you all the honor, all the glory and all the praise for this privileged life of knowing You so intimately.

The mountain before me is the Blue Mountains of Jamaica and the colors, the various hues of blue, gray and white along with a golden glow that hovers over the east is unquestionably the hand of the Master Designer.

O, that I would know you. To have a single heart and thoughts in common with You my Father.  Teach me your way, show me the path of truth that I may honor you in this life.  That I may bring glory to your name as Jesus did - let us be one as even He was one with you.  

Lord, let this gate of authority be opened unto us and come down and be with us as we create an habitation for your presence. 

Your servant ...

The Presence of the Lord

"I get up in the middle of the night to thank you; your decisions are so right, so true — I can't wait till morning!" Psalm 119:62 [THE MESSAGE]

At about 1AM I awakened and found myself praying in the Spirit.  The presence of the Lord is always so apparent - how can I choose anything but to honor Him, love Him and serve Him.  

When I consider His goodness even in the times that challenge my faith - He is indeed an awesome God. 

Pastor Winston

No Limit in Prayer

Don’t limit God. God is able to do exceedingly abundantly more than we can ask or think. It is nothing less than an insult to His omnipotence when our prayers are for pitifully little things. We should ask for BIG THINGS – IMMENSE THINGS - FAR REACHING THINGS. Of course these things must be in His will and for His glory. Believe BIG, pray BIG, and expect BIG!

As I sit here and reflect on the greatness of God an old hymn echoes in my soul. I remember hearing it during the Billy Graham broadcasts on our television when I was still a young boy in Kingston, Jamaica – Indeed my God, how great, Thou art:

O Lord my God, When I in awesome wonder,

Consider all the worlds Thy Hands have made;

I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder,

Thy power throughout the universe displayed.

When through the woods, and forest glades I wander,

And hear the birds sing sweetly in the trees.

When I look down, from lofty mountain grandeur

And see the brook, and feel the gentle breeze.

And when I think, that God, His Son not sparing;

Sent Him to die, I scarce can take it in;

That on the Cross, my burden gladly bearing,

He bled and died to take away my sin.

When Christ shall come, with shout of acclamation,

And take me home, what joy shall fill my heart.

Then I shall bow, in humble adoration,

And then proclaim: "My God, how great Thou art!"

Pastor Winston

Peace in Prayer

The promise is so clearly revealed in the text also. God states that His peace, a peace not understood by the world, sometimes little understood even by the children of God. Peace that will garrison your heart and minds.

Remember that God does not promise to answer every prayer especially in the form in which it is made. That would be unwise, for our request may or may not be in His will for us. But He does promise a peace, a heavenly peace that will cause our hearts to rest comfortably. As I write this entry, an old refrain begins to rise in my spirit:

Peace, peace, wonderful peace,
Coming down from the Father above!
Sweep over my spirit forever, I pray
In fathomless billows of love!

Pastor Winston

Pray Often About Everything

What should we do? Worry about nothing, pray about anything, expect God to provide everything! That’s PRAYER.

19 And my God will liberally supply (fill to the full) your every need according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:19 AMP

Pastor Winston

Payer of Thanksgiving

Prayer can be a season of thanksgiving. For in seasons of prayer we show our gratitude for what the Lord has done for us. This is pleasing to God as we come near with a heart of thanksgiving into his presence.

Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms. Psalm 95:2 KJV

Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name. Psalm 100:4 KJV

Pastor Winston

Casting Away Worry

How do we not worry? What thread of wisdom is revealed to us to take us from worry to believing God? It’s the command to PRAY. Paul said, “in everything, by prayer and supplication bring your request to your Father.” This is the way of perfect peace.

Take everything to God in prayer. Big things, little things, medium sized things. Take it all to Him in prayer. The classic hymn “Sweet Hour of Prayer” so emphasizes our thoughts and position as we enter the presence of our Father with our petions and worship.

Sweet hour of prayer! sweet hour of prayer!
That calls me from a world of care,
And bids me at my Father’s throne
Make all my wants and wishes known.
In seasons of distress and grief,
My soul has often found relief,
And oft escaped the tempter’s snare,
By thy return, sweet hour of prayer!

Sweet hour of prayer! sweet hour of prayer!
The joys I feel, the bliss I share,
Of those whose anxious spirits burn
With strong desires for thy return!
With such I hasten to the place
Where God my Savior shows His face,
And gladly take my station there,
And wait for thee, sweet hour of prayer!

Sweet hour of prayer! sweet hour of prayer!
Thy wings shall my petition bear
To Him whose truth and faithfulness
Engage the waiting soul to bless.
And since He bids me seek His face,
Believe His Word and trust His grace,
I’ll cast on Him my every care,
And wait for thee, sweet hour of prayer!

Sweet hour of prayer! sweet hour of prayer!
May I thy consolation share,
Till, from Mount Pisgah’s lofty height,
I view my home and take my flight.
This robe of flesh I’ll drop, and rise
To seize the everlasting prize,
And shout, while passing through the air,
“Farewell, farewell, sweet hour of prayer!”

Pastor Winston

Be Careful for Nothing

The Apostle Paul wrote it from the depths of a Roman prison cell. Some have said it is the most complete comprehension of true prayer in the Bible. Paul said, “We are to be careful for nothing.” We are not to be anxious or absorbed in worry about anything.

Why? Simply because we have an all knowing, all wise, all loving and all powerful heavenly Father. In the entire Bible there’s not one scripture that would lead us into worry.

Therefore do not worry and be anxious, saying, what are we going to have to eat? or, What are we going to have to drink? Or, what are we going to have to wear? Matthew 6:31 AMP

Pastor Winston

Commit our way unto God

This is the true story of prayer. This is the means to answered prayer – FRET NOT THYSELF. Wait on the Lord and commit your ways unto Him. We must rest in Him and He will bring to pass the desires that He continues to place in our hearts.

This was David’s philosophy as God had revealed it to him – it may be ours also.

“Commit everything you do to the Lord. Trust him to help you do it, and he will.” Psalm 37:5 TLB

Pastor Winston

Resting in the Lord

Then, to REST in the Lord follows quite naturally. We are to rest in the Lord and wait patiently for him. In His own good time He will most surely bring his plans and purposes to pass for us.

There may be days intervening, but the end of those days will be the complete fulfillment of all that the Lord has said regarding us. And as we rest, and as we wait, we have the daily exquisite satisfaction of His presence.

Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lord. Psalm 27:14 KJV

“Wait on the Lord, and keep his way, and he shall exalt thee ...” Psalm 37:34 KJV

Pastor Winston

Staying On Course

We must have confidence in our God and fully commit our way unto Him. We say to our hearts that we want nothing less, nothing more, nothing else but His will for us.

Our daily walk is to be down the path of His choosing. Our life is to be lived at His command. Our day by day joy is His companionship and guidance. We look to Him for everything.

1 You're blessed when you stay on course, walking steadily on the road revealed by God. 2 You're blessed when you follow his directions, doing your best to find him. 3 That's right — you don't go off on your own; you walk straight along the road he set. Psalm 119:1-3 THE MESSAGE

Pastor Winston

PRAYER: Trust, Delight and Rejoice

Our TRUST in the Lord is to be manifest by delighting ourselves in Him. Our confidence is not in the level of mere duty. We take a higher path than that.

We delight in God. We joy and rejoice in His will. We seek His face always, and listen for His step. He becomes the perfect happiness of our Heart.

“Fearing people is a dangerous trap, but trusting the Lord means safety.” Proverbs 29:25 NLT

Pastor Winston

PRAYER: Trust in the Lord

Instead of being fretful, we must come to trust in the Lord. Actively TRUST. Having come into the knowledge of who God is and what Christ has done, we’re to definitely decide to rely upon Him. Not in people, not in forces and certainly not in ourselves. But in the living Lord.

5 Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. 6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. Proverbs 3:5-6 KJV

Pastor Winston

PRAYER:Fret Not

In David’s thirty seventh division of the Psalm we are told not to fret. In spite of the worry and fear of the people around us, the formidable situations that face our communities, our families and us personally. In spite of the threatening clouds of doubt, unfamiliarity and questions.

We are children of the God of the universe. WE are kept in the hollow of His mighty hand. “FRET NOT,” says the Lord.

“Do not fret ...” Psalm 37:1 NKJV

Pastor Winston

PRAYER: Don't Fret or Worry

One of David’s Psalms is a most beautiful reading on the subject of prayer. Within the span of seven short verses the whole theme is rivetingly reviewed. Precious, so precious indeed is the lesson of confidence in a tender and loving heavenly Father.

37:1 Never envy the wicked! 2 Soon they fade away like grass and disappear. 3 Trust in the Lord instead. Be kind and good to others; then you will live safely here in the land and prosper, feeding in safety. 4 Be delighted with the Lord. Then he will give you all your heart's desires. 5 Commit everything you do to the Lord. Trust him to help you do it, and he will. 6 Your innocence will be clear to everyone. He will vindicate you with the blazing light of justice shining down as from the noonday sun. Psalm 37:1-6 TLB

Pastor Winston

SALVATION: Praying for the Lost

All of this being true, it is vitally necessary that we rely upon the ministry of the Holy Spirit. The fact is, no one is ever saved unless the Holy Spirit convinces him of sin. But prayer for sinners calls upon the Holy Spirit to do just that. And when consciousness of sin I present, the way is made open to bring the lost one to the feet of the Savior to be comforted and brought into God’s own family.

Do not ever become discouraged, the answer may be delayed (in your own mind) but your prayers for the salvation of lost ones must be answered.

2 Behold, God is my salvation ; I will trust, and not be afraid: for the Lord JEHOVAH is my strength and my song; he also is become my salvation. 3 Therefore with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation. Isaiah 12:2-3 KJV

Pastor Winston

Pray without ceasing

As we review God’s instruction to us it is evident that Prayer and Anxiety are mutually exclusive in our lives. Prayer and worry are on the opposite ends of the pendulum of power with God.

We have heard it said, “why pray when you can worry?” But God’s ageless revelation remains, “WHY WORRY, WHEN YOU CAN PRAY!”

5 Peter therefore was kept in prison: but prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto God for him. Acts 12:5 KJV

17 Pray without ceasing. 1 Thessalonians 5:17 KJV

Pastor Winston

Come to God and ask...

It may be alright to tell others of your desires and your petitions of God. But there is no experience like coming to Him and making your request known to him alone. It’s also acceptable to ask others to pray with you but Paul informs us to – TELL GOD.

Make them known to God and leave them there. Why not? He is able to care for our every need? More than that, He has promised to meet every need according to His own abundant supply.

Continue in prayer , and watch in the same with thanksgiving; Colossians 4:2 KJV

Pastor Winston

SALVATION: God's Ultimate Miracle

The salvation of a soul is a mighty undertaking even for God. For salvation includes not only redemption from sin, but a complete new place in the family of God. The saved one is freely given the gift of life everlasting, made an heir of wealth incalculable, commissioned as an ambassador, joined forever to Christians of all ages and to our wonderful Lord. And all of these things are perfectly accomplished and eternally secure.

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation …” Romans 1:16 KJV

7 Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ. Galatians 4:7 KJV

Pastor Winston

SALVATION: God Saves

There is no doubt that prayer for the salvation of others is well within the will of God. Other requests may be doubtful. This type of prayer is never doubtful. When one engages in intercession for the salvation of the unsaved, one may be sure beyond the shadow of a doubt that his is God’s will. And being the will of God, prayers are right and proper, and one shall, in God’s good time, see its fulfillment.

Prayer is fulfilled in the “fullness of time.” God hears and moves at the appropriate time to complete the petition that came before him.

4 But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, 5 To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons. Galatians 4:4-5 KJV

Pastor Winston

SALVATION: The Intercessors Mandate

God’s desire is that all men shall be saved. But He has tied the salvation of men and women to the ministry of prayer coming from His children. No one is ever saved unless someone first prays.

No soul ever comes to Christ unless first the way is paved by sincere intercession. Preachers may preach, workers may plead, but unless prayer has previously been made, all is in vain. Prayer is the absolute requisite for evangelization.

1 I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; … 3 For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour; 4 Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth. 1 Timothy 2:1,3-4 KJV

Pastor Winston

SALVATION: The Cry of the Holy Spirit

God’s mightiest miracle is not the creation of the world, or the suspension of the sun, or the ceaselessness of the tides, the flight of the humming bird or the fragrance of the rose. God’s greatest miracle is the salvation of the human soul.

For when God saves us, He does so on a completely righteous basis. God is both just and the Justifier of all who believe in Jesus Christ.

When someone becomes a Christian, he becomes a brand new person inside. He is not the same anymore. A new life has begun! 2 Corinthians 5:17 TLB

Pastor Winston