There are 1,440 minutes in a day.  We go from moment to moment, just living our lives, without much thought of the day.

There are three things happening as you read this, the past, the present, and the future is happening.  With every tick of the clock.  With every second that passes, the present becomes the past and the present becomes the future.  The words that you are reading in a second, will be in the past and we step into the future.  As the clocks tick.  As the earth rotates around the sun, time is happening.  The seasons change with every tick of the clock. 

December 21st marks the winter solstice.  June 21st marks the summer solstice.  March 21st and September 21st mark the equinox.  We march to time.  We are governed by calendars and time.  We have appointments to keep.

We have schedules to make.  We live a regimented, time-keeping life.  It’s all about time.  What do you spend your time doing?  What does your time mean to you?  “This is your life, this is your time.”

The Bible says in Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:

² A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;

³ A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;

⁴ A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;

⁵ A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;

⁶ A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away;

⁷ A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;

⁸ A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.

When things happen in our life, we say, that life happens. But, in the midst of tragedies, there are no accidents.  It has been said; “Everything happens for a reason.  Live it, Love it, Learn from it!

We don’t sit at the beginning of every year and schedule the bad times, they just happen.  We have no control over life.  There are a lot of things that are out of our control.  We can’t change the times.  We can’t change the past.  We can’t rewrite, rewind, or go back in time.  It was a time that came and a time that has gone. 

So what do we do when the storm clouds roll in?  We need to be prepared.  You never know when that storm comes raging through, but you spent time preparing for the storm.  You are prepared for the worst. 

Hosea 10:12; “Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground: for it is time to seek the LORD, till he come and rain righteousness upon you.”

It’s all about the preparation for the times of the unknown.  It is time to pray.  It is time to read the Bible.  It is time to seek God

When God happens in our lives, it changes everything.  What we once were, we are now, forever changed.

“Life doesn’t happen to you, it happens through you!” When the bad times come your way, have faith in God.  Trust that God is working all things out for your good.  Spending time with God makes all things better.  It won’t change the situation or circumstance, but it will change the way you look at life. 

God knows the end from the beginning.  He is not controlled by time or a calendar.  He is alpha and omega, the beginning and the end. 

Spring is a great time of the year.  It represents hope and new beginnings, and that is where the word Easter is derived from.  

Personally, I think that Easter is one of the greatest days that we celebrate.  

There is something special about Christmas, our Savior came to the earth, wrapped in flesh, and took on the form of a human.  I’m not taking away from the birth of Jesus, but everyone is born.

There is something special about the cross, I’m not taking away from why Jesus died on the cross for the sins of the world, but everyone dies.  

But, there is something extraordinary or supernatural about Jesus conquering death, hell, and the grave.  There has only been one man who was dead for three days and rose again from the grave.  There is only one who has done that and His name is Jesus. 

Romans 8:11 says; “But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also bring to life your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwells in you.”  We live because He lives!  

I’m thankful for Christmas.  I’m thankful for Good Friday.  But, I’m so very thankful for Easter.  I’m thankful that He is alive forevermore.  That’s the real meaning of Easter!  

Pastor Hatter

March on!

We are beginning the month that, to me, means action.  March is more than a name of a month on the calendar, it is a command.  To march means to walk in a stately, deliberate manner.

To march forth does not imply charging, or pushing through haphazardly. If anything, it implies a slow methodical step in the right direction toward some particular goal, often one that may frighten us. It implies a careful step with discernment as we progress.

To march forth means to establish intent, to engage willpower and hopefulness, often enough to take just one step.  This self-command might be needed at a time when we feel stuck, when we need to keep plugging away.  This is often a psychological and personal spiritual command.

In Joshua 6:3, God gives Joshua and the army a command to march around the walls of Jericho one time for six days, and then seven times on the seventh day. It was to be done with complete focus, without distractions.

I was in the marching band in high school and we were not allowed to march with our heads down or in a slouched position.  We were required to march with our backs straight, our heads up, and our shoulders back.  If we played a wrong note, we kept marching.  If we messed up, we kept marching.  It didn’t matter what happened, we kept on marching. 

It doesn’t matter what happens in this life, we just need to keep marching.

Pastor Hatter

February, a month that has a day named after a groundhog, is also known for the month that celebrates love, Valentine’s Day. 

As you may or may not be aware, Valentine of Rome was a priest and a physician.  He was martyred on February 14th, 269, thus giving us the date of Valentine’s Day, named after Saint Valentine. 

According to historians, a love letter from Margery Brews to her fiancé John Paston, dating back to February 1477, is the oldest Valentine’s Day letter, thus giving us the Valentine’s Day tradition of a love note.

This Valentine’s Day tradition is one of showing love to that special someone in your life of whom you love dearly.  

When Jesus told the audience to love their neighbors as themselves, they asked Jesus the question, “who is my neighbor?”  Jesus responded with the parable of the Good Samaritan.  According to Luke 10:25-37, a man was stripped of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead.  A priest and a Levite saw him and passed by on the other side.  A Samaritan saw him and had compassion on him, bound up his wounds and took him to an inn to restore him back to health.  

The question Jesus asked was, “who was this man neighbor?”  The answer given was, “the one who showed mercy.”  Jesus instructed them, “go and do likewise.”

The attitude of so many is; do unto others before they do it to you.  But, the Golden Rule, “do unto others as you would have them do unto you,” is how we are instructed to live.  The actual quote from the Bible is from Luke 6:31, “And as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise.” Simply put, this phrase means to treat others as you would like to be treated.  If you want to be loved then love others. 

Jesus said in Luke 6:27-28, 35-36, (NLT), “But to you who are willing to listen, I say, love your enemies! Do good to those who hate you. Bless those who curse you. Pray for those who hurt you. “Love your enemies! Do good to them. Lend to them without expecting to be repaid. Then your reward from heaven will be very great, and you will truly be acting as children of the Most High, for he is kind to those who are unthankful and wicked. You must be compassionate, just as your Father is compassionate.”

John 13:35, “By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.”

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Jn 15:12, This is my commandment: love one another as I have loved you. 

Love is more than just words in a letter, love is an action.  Love is helping, love is giving, love is going the extra mile.  Love is what we have been instructed to show daily, not just one day of the year!  Show love, show mercy, show compassion, show kindness to people who are hurting because people need to see the love of Jesus through our acts of love.  

Follow the example of God.  For God so loved the world that He gave.

“Happy New Year!”  These three words bring hope and excitement this time of year.   

Happy is what we all want to be.  Happiness is a choice that we can make daily.  We know what the opposite of happy is, it is sad.  The weeping prophet Jeremiah wrote in Lamentations 3:21-23; This I recall to my mind, therefore I have hope. It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.  They are new every morning.  We are happy when we get something new.  New is what we like most.  This new year offers new beginnings, new challenges, new expectations, new experiences and new opportunities.  The apostle Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 5:17; Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

The old year is behind us and the new year lies ahead of us.  The next 365 can bring something new into our lives.  We need a new touch.  We need a new and fresh anointing.  God wants to do something new for you.  I pray we walk in the newness of life in Jesus Christ every day.  So instead of “Happy New Year” how about “Happy New Day!”  Everyday can be happy in the Lord. 

May God bless you in the new year 2023!

Pastor Hatter