Hi John,

I feel like I had one of those “aha” moments when you were preaching tonight about works. It wasn’t that I didn’t already know it was true, but something about what you said tonight made it sink in deeper. I love it when Jesus gives us a better understanding of something.

You were talking about how, when Paul said, “…not of works, lest any man should boast” (Eph. 2:9), he was speaking of ceremonial works. And then you said that the works we have to do are good works, the will of God. That was so good to me! Good works are not any one particular thing, or kind of things, like helping your neighbor, or doing a good deed for someone, or whatever. Any time you listen to the Spirit and obey, you are doing a good work! Any place in the Bible that refers to doing good works (i.e. James 2:24), you could replace with “doing the will of God”. Good works = doing the will of God. I love that!

Vince

Hey!

I love how things come together! At the beginning of the meeting, you told us that when someone is seeking the holy Ghost, a seed has been planted. And when that seed is planted, if men will leave it alone, it will grow. You said next, “it just needs to be watered – and that comes from God.” The meeting continued, and we moved on to other subjects. But later on in another testimony. you said when God sends His Spirit and it falls on us, and we all feel it; “the fellowship waters the seed!” My ears perked up! That was the answer from what you told us at the beginning when you said the seed just needs to be watered – and that comes from God. Fellowship comes from God through His Spirit, and when we feel it together, we are watering the seed of God in whoever is hungering and thirsting for Him. I love things like that. 🙂

Thanks for the good food tonight! It’s all in the Spirit.

Amy B.

John,

I loved today’s meeting. There were so many good feelings, one would have to be dead not to have felt the life in them.

When Darren was singing his song about things that men consider holy, such as crosses, clothing for worship, ceremonies, holy looks, etc., I had this thought: Psalm 96:9 says, “O worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness: fear before Him, all the earth.”

The thought I had was that beauty is the effect of what’s truly holy. When I saw the ladies dancing in the Spirit today, I thought how beautiful they were because what is inside of them is holy. The beauty of their dance was the effect. Amy French’s testimony was beautiful because of the effect of what is holy living in her. All the songs today were beautiful because of the effect of what is holy. Brother Coy’s faith and excitement for the truth is the effect of that holy thing living in him. I could go on and on.

The difference between what men call holy and what is truly holy is that what is truly holy is not only beautiful, but alive. (Crosses are neither beautiful nor alive, not even gold ones.)

I know these thoughts are not new. You have taught them to us many times. I just felt like I wanted to express what I was thinking and feeling during the meeting today.

Tom

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Good morning Pastor John,

I LOVED the meetings this weekend! The music, the testimonies, your message, the feelings…it was all wonderful!

Last night I went to bed and began to pray for different ones. My prayer started, Jesus please help… then a praise just burst out. My prayer became, Oh Jesus thank you! Thank you for helping us. Thank you for hearing our prayers, thank you for loving us! I woke up this morning just saturated feeling the goodness of God. I’m so thankful we serve a living God! A God who hears us, loves us, helps us and who is always near! Whatever we’re going through he is our answer, he is our help! He is our burden lifter… and I’m feeling light as a feather! I praise God from the bottom of my heart for us and our life together!

Michelle

Pastor John,
Love, love, love today’s meeting. It was so good! I loved all the testimonies & songs. Oh my & having faith! I could hardly take it!

It reminded me of my testimony Monday when I woke up feeling so bad with a head/neck/ear ache and thought about calling in sick, but ended up taking meds before leaving for work. Then, after hearing Caleb’s symptoms (and later his diagnosis), I knew it was the flu settling in, but then Gary’s song came on about “don’t analyze the situation”, and about faith, “it’s not dna…” – it went away!

I didn’t realize it when it left right away, though, until I pulled into work. I couldn’t wait to share it. But I got to thinking about it later that evening, still feeling those sweet feelings from Jesus, and Jesus reminded me that as I was listening to Gary’s song, I was praying for others, not about my own pain. And it took me to where I was asking him to please let me live for my brothers & sisters!

It was so good, and that’s where I want to live all the time… having faith and living so others can be healed, or whatever is needed and getting past my own thoughts and feelings…

It reminded me of the night I got the Holy Ghost, and I was expecting something, to feel something, or not feel anything… Feels so good typing this out! I hope it comes across the same way. So much more, but too much to write. ️

Tracey 

Hi, Pastor John;

I had this dream years ago, but I have been thinking about it a lot this week.

In my dream, a sister in the Lord that is no longer with us, looked at me smiling and said, “You have pretty teeth”. I thought this was odd. Maybe, saying a nice smile would be more appropriate. The next scene, I was looking at my smile and teeth in a mirror, touched the front tooth and it fell out in my hand. I was embarrassed with how my, “smile” looked now; I would compensate my smile by not smiling as wide to show my teeth . . .kind of like a kid that first gets braces.

I looked into the mirror again. Each tooth had a word written on it. The words written on each tooth were words of the flesh ; strife, anger, etc.; there are more than just listed in the bible. It could even be, looking good on the outside or pretending to be good. I heard the Spirit’s voice, “If you remove this tooth, the rest will come out easier”. When I looked at the mirror to see the tooth that the Spirit pointed out to me, the word, “Pride” was written on it. I didn’t like the feeling that pride was associated with anything on me. I touched the tooth and it was loose, but it moved. I began to work and work on it, pushing and pulling form side-to-side and up-and-down, that I finally had the bloody tooth with pride written on it in my hand. When I look into the mirror and saw my bloody shin and mouth, the other teeth were falling out all by themselves.

When I saw in the mirror that I had no teeth left in my mouth, I knew that all of the works in my flesh were gone. When I smiled, there wasn’t a tooth in my head. At that time, the embarrassment of not having one of my teeth tuned to joy of having no teeth.

I know, if we let God help us remove the pride in our hearts, He will take the bite out of us. It may not look as pretty to others that we don’t have teeth, but God loves this kind of smile.

Billy M.

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Well, brother Billy, one thing is for sure. Without teeth, we can’t “bite and devour one another.” And that is a good thing!

Seriously, Jesus said to be harmless as a dove, and once pride is removed, all the weapons of the flesh which strife uses will crumble. Thank God for that! “Strife comes through pride,” Solomon said.

And Ezekiel said that pride was Satan’s first sin:

Ezekiel 28:15,17 KJV
[15] Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee. [17a] Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty….

Humility is the way into eternal life.

Pastor John

Pastor John,

I was thinking about a man you once spoke of. He had the holy Ghost and came up under your father, Preacher Clark. This man had taken the liberty of wearing very short shorts to a retirement home where he worked, knowing that an old saint there, full of the holy Ghost, who came up in a time when it was inappropriate to be exposed that way in public.

If I recall, you said he was resolute in the liberty he felt he had to wear shorts, even going as far as ridiculing the woman’s thoughts and feelings to the contrary.

Well, what about our liberty in Christ NOT to dress that way? That is what the Lord impressed on me recently. What about the liberty not to hurt someone’s fragile heart or feelings?

When the Apostle Paul spoke of his liberty in Christ, he said: “If eating meat causes an offense, I will never eat meat again.” That was Paul’s liberty in Christ – liberty to do good. He was free to never eat meat again if he thought it could help someone’s soul – free to use that tool in his arsenal.

It reminds me of that scripture that your father once thought was in the Bible (and might ought to be): “If the truth offends, let it offend.” It does not say, “If my self-will offends, let it offend.”

I believe Paul would have enjoyed that home-made scripture, adding to it, “not because I glory in your offense, but because I glory in the truth.”

The truth is that good, that if it offends a soul, so be it. But even then, not because there is pleasure in another’s pain, but because the truth is just that good. If there were a way around hurting others with the truth, a righteous man would choose it.

Liberty in Christ is liberty from the rules of men so that we may persuade others of Christ; it is not liberty to have our own way.

It is our liberty to be holy, any way that God wants us to do it.

Jerry

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Amen, Jerry. And James said that we will be judged by the “perfect law of liberty”. God has given us perfect liberty to do anything He wants us to do. And everything He wants us to do is filled with love for Him, His Son, and His people.

Pastor John

Pastor John,

I was praying for President Trump yesterday. I felt such pity for him. I can’t recall anyone in my lifetime in this country that has been more despised. I don’t know how he functions under the weight of it. I asked Jesus to open everyone’s eyes during this impeachment trial to the good the President has done for the Country. And to just help him!

My next thought surprised me: “Maybe God is helping him. Maybe this impeachment will get him out of politics”.

I did not expect that. Maybe God loves him and is getting him out of the nasty business of politics.

Maybe so.

Jerry

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It would be a blessing from the Lord, Jerry, if Mr. Trump lost interest in politics and spent his last days filled with the Spirit and happy in Jesus.

Pastor John

Good morning,

I woke up this morning so excited because it is meeting night! Been thinking about all of us being together there with Jesus! We can have meetings by ourselves, but they sure are not the same. I thought I just feel homesick for us all to be together praising God! Then the sweetest thought came, one day this is all we are going to do together. There will be no interruptions! We are just getting ready for the rest of our lives.

Sweet feelings this morning!

Beth

Good morning, John;

I had a thought from the Lord about the “Speed of Life” that you mentioned Wednesday, and at other times. Most of us need to slow down, but there are some of us that need to pick up the pace, and still others are at the place where they should be. Whatever the pace or place in God’s “Speed of Life” that the Lord wants us in the Spirit, is the place where He is for each one of us. It is the place where God is for our lives, and the place where our connection and communion with God is.

Billy