Category: Ministry

Greetings my friends. It is Sunday February 05TH 2023, and this is the day that our LORD has made. Let us rejoice. Let us be glad in it. Let us celebrate this great new day of believing, following, trusting, loving, and being more like our Lord & Savior Jesus Christ. Let us love our neighbor as ourself.

This is normally Communion Sunday at my home church, as it’s the first Sunday of a brand-new month. But not this Sunday. We’ll observe and celebrate Communion next Sunday after the sermon.

This Sunday I’m on the road – 3 hours away – over in Southwest Florida. Last night I had a floor seat in the middle of the Hertz Arena at the TobyMac & Friends “Hits Deep Tour” show in Estero. I’ll write all about that concert tomorrow on #Top10Monday.

This morning I’m attending a church service at Cambier Park in downtown Naples Florida. Celebration Beach Church has been hosting Sunday morning church services outside in the city park for many years now, and I’ve been attending their services occasionally over the past 13 years. If I lived in Naples it would be my home church, but since I’m a tourist in Naples it’s my vacation church.

I now continue presenting my New Year’s Day sermon in its original written form. It’s based on the Matthew West song of late-2019 / early-2020 – “The God Who Stays”. Here’s Part 4:

‘Cause somehow You don’t see me like I do
Somehow You’re still here
You’re the God who stays
You’re the God who stays
You’re the One who runs in my direction
When the whole world walks away

You’re the God who stands
With wide open arms
And You tell me nothing I have ever done
Can separate my heart
From the God who stays

Paul to the Romans (8:38-39):

And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow – not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below – indeed – nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.

My shame can’t separate
My guilt can’t separate
My past can’t separate
I’m Yours forever

My sin can’t separate
My scars can’t separate
My failures can’t separate
I’m Yours forever

No enemy can separate
No power of hell can take away
Your love for me will never change
I’m Yours forever

You know your best testimony of how great our God is – is the story of you. Only you can testify to the world out there your story – your story of redemption through Jesus Christ – our Lord + Savior. Tell them – the person that you used to be. Tell them – the person that you are now. Tell them – how you got to be where you are now. Tell them – how He lifted you out of the pit of despair – out of the mud and the mire. Tell them – that you are nothing without God – and His grace and mercy for you. Tell them – that He is the God for everyone in the entire world who accepts Him as his or her personal Lord + Savior.

If you wish to learn more about the God I know then stay tuned to #SundayScripture. The best is yet to come !

Thank you for reading my blog for this day, and may:

The LORD bless you, and keep you.
The LORD make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you.
The LORD lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace.

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. AMEN.

All rights reserved (c) 2023 Christopher M. Day, CountUp

Greetings my friends. It is Sunday January 29TH 2023, and this is the day that our LORD has made. Let us rejoice. Let us be glad in it. Let us celebrate this great new day of believing, following, trusting, loving, and being more like our Lord & Savior Jesus Christ. Let us love our neighbor as ourself.

This upcoming #TravelThursday I’ll be blogging about my fun day along the northern coast of the Dominican Republic. I took a nearly 5-hour shore excursion (land tour) of the region surrounding Puerto Plata – the country’s 3RD-largest city. Overlooking Puerto Plata from nearly 800 meters / 2,600 feet above sea level esta Loma Isabel de Torres. And atop the mountain esta El Cristo Redentor (Christ The Redeemer). It was installed in 1970. What a beautiful sight it is !

I now continue presenting my New Year’s Day sermon in its original written form. It’s based on the Matthew West song of late-2019 / early-2020 – “The God Who Stays”. Here’s Part 3:

Oh – but somehow You don’t see me like I do
Somehow You’re still here
You’re the God who stays
You’re the God who stays
You’re the One who runs in my direction
When the whole world walks away

You’re the God who stands
With wide open arms
And You tell me nothing I have ever done
Can separate my heart
From the God who stays

That’s my God. That’s your God. That’s our God. He doesn’t see us like we see us. We are not God. He is God. He is the Father. He is the Son. He is the Holy Spirit. He is here. He is not going anywhere. He is the God who stays. The Holy Spirit is within each and every one of us who believes, and follows, and trusts, and loves our Lord + Savior Jesus Christ.

I used to hide
Every time I thought I let You down
I always thought I had to earn my way
But I’m learning – You don’t work that way

You know we can’t hide from our God. He sees it all. He hears it all. He knows what we are thinking. If you do something that’s not Godly, and you instantly realize what you’ve done, and you regret it, and you feel bad about it, and you’re sincerely sorry for it – then let me tell you something about that. That’s the power of the Holy Spirit convicting you, and that’s a gift from our God.

Here’s a prayer that you can say. (I pulled this from the Internet a few nights ago.):

Help me Lord to see conviction as a gift – a gift of grace and mercy. Please continue to stir in my heart the places that I’ve fallen complacent, and lead me as I turn from them. Help me to live out the Truth from Galatians 5:25 – that if I say I live by the Spirit – then let me stay in step with the Spirit. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

That’s a good prayer right there. Let me know after the service if you want me to text that prayer to you, and I’ll do that. Today is a great day to start a new prayer regimen. Find time every day in this new year to pray to our God. He wants to hear from you more often in 2023 than in 2022.

If you wish to learn more about the God I know then stay tuned to #SundayScripture. The best is yet to come !

Thank you for reading my blog for this day, and may:

The LORD bless you, and keep you.
The LORD make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you.
The LORD lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace.

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. AMEN.

All rights reserved (c) 2023 Christopher M. Day, CountUp