**A GOOD FATHER** Part 10

PREPARE YOUR CHILDREN

Proverbs 23:24 - “The father of the righteous will greatly rejoice, And he who begets a wise son will be glad in him.”

You are preparing your children to leave home … PLEASE! Some day, they’ll take what they’ve learned from you, and begin to apply it out in the real world. You’ve only got approximately 18 years to get them ready.

Preparing them for life away from you is only part of the picture. If you haven’t spent your time preparing them for eternity, you have failed as a father. God didn’t give you your children just to prepare a doctor, a teacher, or a plumber. God gave your children to Christian fathers to prepare them for eternity.

You can’t choose which eternal path they will take … but you CAN choose to show them the way to Heaven … OR … you can choose to just ignore their spiritual destiny. They have to decide for themselves the path they’ll take … but you can have a Godly influence on their choice.

BE A GOOD FATHER … prepare your children … for eternity.

It’s not easy being a good father … BUT … it’s NOT IMPOSSIBLE either. It takes hard work, hard praying, and making hard decisions. You can’t do it alone.... God doesn’t expect you to....God doesn’t want you to.....Don’t leave Him out of your fatherhood.

**A GOOD FATHER** Part 9

BE A POSITIVE ROLE MODEL

Proverbs 22:6 - “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.”

You are a role model for your children … like it or not … good or bad … they will, to one degree or another, model their lives after you. You have inherited some of your father’s characteristics … your children are inheriting some of yours. 

Whether you know it or not (or mean to or not), you are influencing the lives of your children, and your children’s children. 

You ARE a role model … A GOOD FATHER will be a GOOD role model.

It’s not easy being a good father … BUT … it’s NOT IMPOSSIBLE either. It takes hard work, hard praying, and making hard decisions. You can’t do it alone.... God doesn’t expect you to....God doesn’t want you to.....Don’t leave Him out of your fatherhood.

**A GOOD FATHER** Part 8

PRAY FOR YOUR CHILDREN

Psalm 55:17 – “Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and he shall hear my voice.”

You can’t be with your children all the time … God can. You can’t protect them wherever they go … God can. You can teach them right from wrong, but you can’t be there when it’s put to the test … God can.

Pray for your children! Lift them up to God to do for them what you can’t do. As parents, we aren’t perfect, and we make mistakes. If we had to do it all over again, we would do things differently. Maybe we’ve done the best we could … we did what we thought was right … we raised our children the best we knew how. 

NOW … PRAY FOR THEM … because your Heavenly Father loves them as much as you do … and He has more experience than you do. Pray that God the Father will take your well-intended efforts at fatherhood … and use them to bring your children into His loving arms.

BE A GOOD FATHER … pray for your children.

It’s not easy being a good father … BUT … it’s NOT IMPOSSIBLE either. It takes hard work, hard praying, and making hard decisions. You can’t do it alone.... God doesn’t expect you to....God doesn’t want you to.....Don’t leave Him out of your fatherhood.

**A GOOD FATHER** Part 7

PRAY FOR YOURSELF 

1 Chron. 16:11 – “Seek the Lord and His strength; Seek His face continually.”

You don’t have all the answers to their questions … you can’t solve all their problems. You don’t have all the wisdom, love and patience to be the father you ought to be. Without God’s help, you can never be the father God wants you to be.

You need help! You can’t do it by yourself … 

BE A GOOD FATHER … pray for yourself.

It’s not easy being a good father … BUT … it’s NOT IMPOSSIBLE either. It takes hard work, hard praying, and making hard decisions. You can’t do it alone.... God doesn’t expect you to....God doesn’t want you to.....Don’t leave Him out of your fatherhood.

**Carry The Cripple Till The Miracle Happens**

        Post from Bro Netterville

When a brother or a sister falls is not a time for anger, judgment, or condemnation. (2 Corinthians 2:5-8) "But if any have caused grief, he hath not grieved me, but in part: that I may not overcharge you all. Sufficient to such a man is this punishment, which was inflicted of many. So that contrariwise ye ought rather to forgive him, and comfort him, lest perhaps such a one should be swallowed up with overmuch sorrow. Wherefore I beseech you that ye would confirm your love toward him." (A Spirit of Gentleness) and (Love) When we allow this to come forth from within we begin to share there burden, this requires of our time, pray, lifting up, and listing!

The lady who at the barbershop gave her testimony the other day. She said that she gave 3 days a week she would substitute with the paid care taker. Taking care of an older lady that needed a sitter she did it for free what a burden to bear. Although she did not sit with her on Sunday she would get up and go and dress this dear lady and take her to church. Our Lord Jesus Christ also was a substitute in death! He was our substitute for our sin, sorrow, and shame. If Jesus did this for us, and He did! How then we say we're too busy to help others. Thank God He wasn't. I though of this when I pickup a lady for church.

          **Carry The Cripple Till The Miracle Happens**

Acts 3

King James Version (KJV)

1 Now Peter and John went up together into the temple at the hour of prayer, being the ninth hour.

2 And a certain man lame from his mother's womb was carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms of them that entered into the temple;

3 Who seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple asked an alms.

4 And Peter, fastening his eyes upon him with John, said, Look on us.

5 And he gave heed unto them, expecting to receive something of them.

6 Then Peter said, Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk.

7 And he took him by the right hand, and lifted him up: and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength.

8 And he leaping up stood, and walked, and entered with them into the temple, walking, and leaping, and praising God.

Proverbs 17:17

King James Version (KJV)

17 A friend loveth at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.

A faithful friend is good like a medicine for a wounded self-image!! 

F- ORGIVING          To excuse for a fault 

R- EAL                    True and actual

I-  NTERESTING     Holding attention

E- NTHUSIASTIC    Having and showing great excitement 

N- ICE                     Courteous, pleasant Pleasing character

D- EPENDABLE     Trustworthy, reliable, consistent 

**Disloyal friend is only a friend when everything is going great**

                           **Real Friends**  

Ecclesiastes 4:9-11

King James Version (KJV)

9 Two are better than one; because they have a good reward for their labour.

10 For if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow: but woe to him that is alone when he falleth; for he hath not another to help him up.

11 Again, if two lie together, then they have heat: but how can one be warm alone?

*Accepting a Friend*

1. **Recognizing that he or she will make mistakes and forgiving them when they do*** 

2. **A true friend is not necessarily someone who agrees with us all the time**

3. ** A friend will challenge our ideas in a corrective loving way**

 4. **A friend helps us by listening to our problems and sharing our burdens as well as our joys** 

 5. **Friends are a valuable resource** 

 6. **Chosen carefully and treated with love and respect they could last a lifetime** 

                                  **The Man With 10 Legs** 

Luke 5:17-26

King James Version (KJV)

17 And it came to pass on a certain day, as he was teaching, that there were Pharisees and doctors of the law sitting by, which were come out of  every town of Galilee, and Judaea, and Jerusalem: and the power of the Lord was present to heal them.

18 And, behold, men brought in a bed a man which was taken with a palsy: and they sought means to bring him in, and to lay him before him.

19 And when they could not find by what way they might bring him in because of the multitude, they went upon the housetop, and let him down through the tiling with his couch into the midst before Jesus.

20 And when he saw their faith, he said unto him, Man, thy sins are forgiven thee.

21 And the scribes and the Pharisees began to reason, saying, Who is this  which speaketh blasphemies? Who can forgive sins, but God alone?

22 But when Jesus perceived their thoughts, he answering said unto them, What reason ye in your hearts?

23 Whether is easier, to say, Thy sins be forgiven thee; or to say, Rise up and walk?

24 But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power upon earth to forgive sins, (he said unto the sick of the palsy,) I say unto thee, Arise, and take up thy couch, and go into thine house.

25 And immediately he rose up before them, and took up that whereon he lay, and departed to his own house, glorifying God.

26 And they were all amazed, and they glorified God, and were filled with fear, saying, We have seen strange things to day.

It wasn't the SICK MANS FAITH that impressed Jesus but the Faith of his FRIENDS!! 

Jesus responded to THEIR faith and healed the man. 

We cannot make another person a christian, but we can do much through our WORDS, ACTIONS and LOVE to give him or her a chance to respond.

Look for opportunities to bring your friends to Christ. 

                **Carry The Cripple Till The Miracle Happens**

Acts 3

King James Version (KJV)

3 Now Peter and John went up together into the temple at the hour of prayer, being the ninth hour.

2 And a certain man lame from his mother's womb was carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms of them that entered into the temple;

3 Who seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple asked an alms.

4 And Peter, fastening his eyes upon him with John, said, Look on us.

5 And he gave heed unto them, expecting to receive something of them.

6 Then Peter said, Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk.

7 And he took him by the right hand, and lifted him up: and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength.

8 And he leaping up stood, and walked, and entered with them into the temple, walking, and leaping, and praising God.

The Comfort of Death

Sometimes we face great loses in our lives. It's hard losing someone we care about. We must face it, people die. They die unexpectedly, they die needlessly, they die after a long battle. they die naturally.  People we always thought would be around then one day we get the news. How many of you have lost a loved one, someone close to you? Death is not an easy subject to talk about for many. Sometimes the only time we discuss or talk about death is when a loved one dies and we go to their funeral.

Hebrews 9:27 *And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment.*

Although you and I can’t be fully prepared when someone close to us passes away we need to continue to live our lives the way God meant for them to be lived.  We were not made to live forever here on this earth but we were made to live forever in perfect fellowship with our Creator. God made Adam and put him in a perfect environment. But Adam had some boundaries. Boundaries are a good thing. Boundaries keep us in check and help us maintain our relationship with God. A boundary God put in the Garden was this .......

Genesis 2:16-17 *The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the free of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die.*

1 Corinthians 15:21-22 *For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive.*

Death is a blessed release from an imperfect world for the Christian. For those of us who hope in Christ we look forward to death in the sense that we know what is on the other side of death. It is not a mystery to us. God has made it clear. Jesus has prepared a place for us. Our hope is secure in him because Christ died for our sins. He has defeated death! One minute in heaven you will not want to come back. You will not want to settle for anything else. Christians have great hope when they die. But that doesn’t mean death is not painful. It does not mean we are not to miss the person who has passed and have a hard time with it. The Bible teaches us to,

Romans 12:15 *Rejoice with those who rejoice, and mourn with those who mourn.* 

(surround ourselves with godly people) 

When we experience loss we don’t need someone to come up to us and say, “Hold your chin up” or “Be brave.” That’s the last thing we want to hear. Sometimes we need to just show up and say, “look I don’t know what you are going through and I don’t know what to say, but I am here and I love you and we’ll walk with you through this. Remember we will see them again.............1 Thessalonians 4:16 *For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: 17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.*

**To Receive Your Crown, You Must First Drink From The Cup**

Matthew 26:36-42

³⁶ Then cometh Jesus with them unto a place called Gethsemane, and saith unto the disciples, Sit ye here, while I go and pray yonder.
³⁷ And he took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be sorrowful and very heavy.
³⁸ Then saith he unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with me.
³⁹ And he went a little farther, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.
⁴⁰ And he cometh unto the disciples, and findeth them asleep, and saith unto Peter, What, could ye not watch with me one hour?
⁴¹ Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.
⁴² He went away again the second time, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done.

2 Timothy 4:7-8

⁷ I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith:
⁸ Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.


PAUL, means Small or little one  
    Yet no other figure in church history stands as high or has had such a far reaching influence!
****As Christ died for us, we should suffer and die daily****

Wherever Paul went you could either look for revival or a riot !!

2 Corinthians 11:23-27

²³ Are they ministers of Christ? (I speak as a fool) I am more; in labours more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequent, in deaths oft.
²⁴ Of the Jews five times received I forty stripes save one.
²⁵ Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep;
²⁶ In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren;
²⁷ In weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness.
Paul endured every species of hardship. Encountered every extreme danger!
 *To receive your crown, you must first drink from the cup*

Acts 16:19-24

¹⁹ And when her masters saw that the hope of their gains was gone, they caught Paul and Silas, and drew them into the marketplace unto the rulers,
²⁰ And brought them to the magistrates, saying, These men, being Jews, do exceedingly trouble our city,
²¹ And teach customs, which are not lawful for us to receive, neither to observe, being Romans.
²² And the multitude rose up together against them: and the magistrates rent off their clothes, and commanded to beat them.
²³ And when they had laid many stripes upon them, they cast them into prison, charging the jailor to keep them safely:
²⁴ Who, having received such a charge, thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks.

Assaulted by the populace, Punished by the Magistrates!
 **You must first drink from the cup**!!
Beaten, stoned and left for dead!
**You must drink from the cup**

Acts 13:50-51 Acts 14:5-7,21
Driven from one city he went to another and continued preaching!

Acts 9:16
*Paul was warned of many things he would suffer for Christ sake*

Paul never sighed never moaned!

Philippians 4:13

¹³ I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.

Paul in prison, back full of open wounds, hands and feet in stocks!
 He knew he must first drink from the cup to receive his crown!!

Now today granted, at least in this country it is not common for a christian to be beaten as Paul was.  But there is still a cup we must drink from!!

You may have to walk through:
  Tear stained eyes
  Pain and Sufferings
  Dark Clouds
  Times of questioning

But remember, as you are drinking from the cup your crown awaits you!

God has a tremendous plan and a purpose for your life and it includes
experiencing the cup of Christ.

There will come a time when you will go through things, and you don't understand
what God is doing.
But *This Cup** IS ALWAYS PREPARING YOU FOR A PROMOTION, FOR THE
CROWN, FOR THE HIGH PLACE THAT GOD HAS FOR YOU!

The cup always precedes the crown!

Anytime you go through a struggle (the cup represents, trials, struggles, adversities
in life) Anytime you go through this you might as well know and realize that always---He
promises if we endure the cup a crown awaits you!
We must endure to the end!!

ALWAYS BEFORE THE CROWN, THERE WILL BE A CUP!!

God uses adversity to develop us!
God is more interested in developing your character than He is solving your problems.

There will be times when you go through things and you don't understand what God is doing.
But remember the cup is always preparation for the crown!!

Matthew 26:39
³⁹ And he went a little farther, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.

Matthew 26:42

⁴² He went away again the second time, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done.
What Jesus was saying ........was If i could pass on this cup of pain, trials, hurt, difficulties,
sickness.......But, I'm willing to drink from this cup if it is your will and I know there is a crown awaiting!!

If Jesus our example took the cup before His crown.....We must realize that in our life
the cup must be served to us sooner or later!
This gospel has 3 parts ...DEATH, BURIAL, RESURRECTION!
 First two parts seems like bad news but the third part is when we want to stand to our feet
and begin to shout!
But let us not forget Jesus had to drink from the cup Death and Burial before the
crown (resurrection)

This cup is the bad side before he good side
experience!

If I could just make it through the cup, I know i will soon receive my crown of victory!


Job......His cup experience!

He had everything, but in just a few short days he lost it all !!!

Lost his oxens
Fire consumed his sheep
Caldeans took his camels
Tornado wiped out his home
Health failed
Wife turned against him!

Job 13:15
¹⁵ Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him: but I will maintain mine own ways before him.

^{Job 23:10
10} But he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold.

In other words ....after I drink from this cup I shall come forth as gold!!


Satan, have you considered my servant_________________?


When you are drinking from the cup ........That's when the Lily of The Valley shows up, Rose of Sharon
shows up!! JESUS rises with healing in His wings!!!
It's time to realize who Christ is, not on the mountain top but when you are drinking from
the bitter cup.

This is not a tragedy it is a trust!

(CLOSING)

Some of you may be drinking from that cup today.....Just know that God trust you just as He trusted 
Job!

God trust's you when the hedges are down!

Anybody can serve when wearing the crown...but can you serve during tough times? Difficult times? When you are drinking from the cup?

Don't quit in the middle of the cup!!

Say. I'm gonna take it all!! Because it's time fro a new level!! This cup is letting me know I'm getting closer
to my crown!!

Don't give up is what I'm preaching!! Don't give up!! Don't shut up!!! Don't sit down!! But stand up proudly and drink from the cup!!!

1 John 4:4
⁴ Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.

This is not a cruise ship we are on ....we are on a battleship, we are in a spiritua; warfare, we are warriors in the spiritual kingdom!!

Job said My redeemer Lives!!
              When this cup passes I'll receive my crown!!

This cup is designed to draw you close to the King!! So He can reveal to you His great Love, Mercy and Grace!!!

Are you drinking from the cup tonight??
Don't let it get you down, know tonight can be your night to receive your personal crown!!

Tonight can be your night to go to that higher place in Christ!! 

Come Receive your crown!!!!