A daily, Bible-based message of hope and encouragement.
 A daily, Bible-based message of hope, encouragement and exhortation. The online Bible teaching ministry of Stephen & Brooksyne Weber. <Previous Message · Archive edition Friday, March 16, 2012  Our friend Lee Smucker took this photo from an attic window of his home. He is overlooking the Amish gathering for a church service in a member's home, as is their practice. I don't suppose too many of us will see our church parking lot look like this! For a larger photo see here.  Listen to this message on your audio player."A Clean Heart" "Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me" (Psalm 51:10). "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:9). Brooksyne and I serve as workplace chaplains in an HVAC (heating, ventilation & air conditioning) company. I enjoy visiting with the servicemen as they arrive early in the morning to get their assignments for the day. They're very devoted to their work and often talk "shop" for a few minutes, discussing work related issues that they are encountering.  Usually I don't understand much about what they're discussing but the other day one of the servicemen brought in an air filter and showed it to the other men, commenting on how extraordinarily dirty the filter was (see left photo for contrast of dirty filter vs. new filter).Filters are important in HVAC not only for our comfort and health but also for functionality. A dirty filter can starve the unit for air and make it work much harder causing it to use more energy and wear down more quickly. Well, as you might imagine my mind started considering a spiritual application! Generally speaking, a filter is a device for removing impurities or solid particles from a liquid or gas passed through it. Physically speaking, the coronary arteries pump blood that is essential to the heart. If cholesterol and fatty deposits (called plaque) attach themselves to the inner walls of the arteries this restricts blood flow to the heart which can lead to coronary heart disease, sometimes resulting in instant death. And there's yet another heart disease that is not physical but spiritual instead. The seasoned believer will quickly recognize our daily Scripture verses. I suppose many have memorized the second and a few the first. These verses speak of repentance, renewal, and rightness of one's heart. The first verse is part of David's great prayer of repentance following his sin with Bathsheba. "Create in me a clean heart, O God." A clean heart is a work of redemption. David realizes this and makes his appeal to God. "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." It's one of those remarkable truths in the Christian life that form a fundamental principle. It describes the wonderful means that our gracious God has provided for us to receive a spiritual cleansing from sin in our lives. The apostle John is writing late in the first century, perhaps sixty years after he had walked with Jesus. Peter, Paul and many of the other notable apostles had been martyred about thirty years prior to this writing. John is surely very mature now. If anyone was ever expected to have reached his fullest spiritual potential and earned the right to point his finger and use a preachy "you" it would have been John. But I find encouraging significance in the personal pronoun he uses throughout the passage. It's known as the first person plural. John does not say, "if you confess your sins", rather "if we confess our sins." Is your spiritual heart dirty, clogging the work of the Spirit within you? Just as coronary heart disease can go undetected for years because the patient looks healthy and doesn't heed the occasional symptoms, we too can ignore or hide sin that is invisible on the outside. The spiritual image we want to portray to others may be different than the sinful "plaque" that is building within our hearts. In our personal assessment it's important to remember that "Man looks at the outward appearance but God looks at the heart" (I Samuel 16:7). God wants to thoroughly cleanse us. He has provided a means for spiritual cleansing, a straightforward promise based upon the character of His forgiveness. "He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." This really is good news and the best kind of cleansing. Search your heart, seek His forgiveness, and accept His thorough cleansing today. Be encouraged today, Stephen & Brooksyne Weber  Daily Prayer: Father, I lay my sins on Jesus, the spotless Lamb of God. Thank You for bearing them all and freeing me from the accuser's condemnation. I confess my sins to You, the big and small, so that my crimson stains are washed white in the blood of the sinless Lamb of God. Thank You for being the Sinbearer that lifts me from the slimy pit of mud and mire that blocks the flowing of Your Spirit within me. You are faithful and just; You forgive me of my sins and cleanse me from all unrighteousness as I seek Your forgiveness. You put a new song in my mouth and a hymn of praise and thanksgiving for Your wondrous love and forgiveness. Thank You in Jesus' name. Amen. Last night we had our friend George Blizzard over for dinner and following our meal we went on the long Donegal Creek trail walk we often mention here on Daily Encouragement Net. We passed lots of wildlife and George snapped this photo of a muskrat in the creek. We passed an electric fence and George reminisced about a childhood experience involving an electric fence and unheeded advice! It's a bit dreary today but signs of spring are abounding in our area with many blooming flowers and budding trees. Our friend Doris High shared this photo of a crocus on her photo blog.  Mike, a friend from the HVAC company, seeks to get in a witness for the Lord using a whiteboard.  We passed this interesting contraption at our Amish neighbor's farm yesterday. It appears to be some type of steam engine used in his greenhouse operation. Notice how the chimney is hinged to fold down. Do any of our readers have any idea how this is used? Share here. Today's Suggested Music and Supplemental Resources |
 Weber family Christmas 2011 "We want to encourage you daily in your walk with Christ!" Personal Ministry Update (Revised 12/11)  Are our daily encouragement messages a blessing to you? Each weekday morning Brooksyne and I prepare these messages and distribute them at no cost to you and many others all over the world. We ask you to consider making a donation to Daily Encouragement Net so that we can continue to prepare and provide this daily resource which is accessed by believers and seekers all over the world. Daily Encouragement Net relies solely on the generosity and financial support of its readers and podcast listeners. See here for more information on supporting this ministry. Gifts are tax deductible.2012 financial offerings to Daily Encouragement Net as of 3/15/12: $2,867.00 We express thanks to all who support our ministry! SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION  Were you forwarded this edition of Daily Encouragement Net? If you desire you can receive your own free! To receive these "Daily Encouragement" devotionals each Monday-Friday through email see this page to subscribe. This newsletter is never sent by us unsolicited. It was sent to you because you either signed up to receive it OR a friend forwarded it to you. You can also subscribe to the rss feed or as an email subscription through feedburner.Cancel: We respect and value your time and privacy. If you no longer desire to receive these messages you can remove your address from the list by merely using the link automatically inserted by the mailing list software at the very bottom of each email message. (To change addresses cancel your old address and then join again using your new address.) Weekly Version: The weekly version is intended for those who may not check their email regularly or who may desire less frequent mailings. It is Friday's message with a link to previous messages. To receive the free weekly version, send a blank email to this address. Daily Encouragement on Facebook and Twitter:  The daily message and prayer on Facebook. The daily message and prayer on Twitter.Reader Survey: Please take a few minutes to assist us in improving our ministry effectiveness by filling out this online reader survey. To take the survey click here. Please feel free to pass these messages on! Our other blogs: "A Daily Prayer" - A blog simply posting the daily prayer. We keep this up each day since it's merely the prayer from the Daily Encouragement Net message! "A Little Foolishness" - Humor/satire blog (a great outlet for non-serious writing but at times with a subtle message!) (Note: This material is satire!) "Clear Minded" - Longer, periodic articles on specific issues impacting the faithful believer and church. (Actually this is my intent but I haven't done much with it!) "Hymns of Hope" - Brooksyne along with two friends made a CD using classic hymns. Brooksyne tells the background story of the 11 hymns. All of these songs are also available for download on the site. Personal Mission Statement "I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ I have been redeemed and I make it my life's goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and to prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity."  How to become a child of God Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. and the King James Version. © Copyright 2012 Stephen C. Weber - All Rights Reserved Daily Encouragement Net Stephen & Brooksyne Weber 495 Kraybill Church Road - Mount Joy, PA 17552 Contact us  Endorsed chaplain "Living securely today anchored in God's solid foundation" www.dailyencouragement.net |
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