A daily, Bible-based message of hope and encouragement. Having trouble reading this message?
Read mobile edition online
 A daily, Bible-based perspective of hope, encouragement and exhortation. Home About Us Archives Free email subscription  Listen to these messages  Text only for printing  See here for more info. <Previous Message · Archive edition Thursday, June 26, 2014  Old car in Springfield, MO "A Lesson From An Apostolic Coach" Due to travel a podcast is not available today. "Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the Author and Perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God" (Hebrews 12:1,2).   I normally associate coaching with sports and athletics. In my younger years I ran in both cross country and track (long distance). The photo to the left shows me over 40 years ago when I was a just a bit trimmer and better fit. Being a member of the 2 mile relay team I am ready to receive the baton. To this day I recall how I esteemed my coaches.For a number of years I was a high school tennis coach at Saint Marys Area High School when I lived in northern Pennsylvania. I hope some of those players still remember me! There are all kinds of coaches, but today let us consider a lesson from an apostolic coach. Based on the illustrations the Apostle Paul uses, I believe he enjoyed sports or at least recognized their value in "connecting" with his readers. All of us who follow Jesus Christ are participating in a great contest. The writer of Hebrews alludes to this in our daily Scripture portion (many believe the writer of Hebrews is Paul but this is not specified). He certainly is an apostle and speaks to us like a coach so let's examine some lessons from this apostolic coach:  1) Our apostolic coach informs us that "We are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses." These witnesses are the men and women of faith chronicled in Hebrews 11 and those all throughout the church age who have gone on before us after a life of faithful service to Christ. They include Biblical people of faith and well-known heroes in the church with names many of us recognize such as D.L. Moody, A.W. Tozer, Billy Sunday, and other great gospel preachers and hymn writers such as Fanny Crosby.But I also receive spiritual encouragement as I consider among the witnesses those who personally ministered to me such as my mom and dad, along with many dedicated people that most of you have never heard of like Pastor John Howard, Elbert Sherrell, Tracy Sutherland, Bill Shibilo, Earl Martin and many, many others. (It might be well for you to develop a similar list of those who influenced you in your spiritual walk.) 2) Our apostolic coach calls us to "Throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles." This speaks of singe-minded dedication, surrendering all to the Great Cause. Sin still entangles! Is there any question about that? In our conference we sang a hymn that calls us to this consecration with the line "just from sin and self to cease." * Bluntly it seems with such an emphasis in our age on praise and worship, which is good, we fall short on songs that specifically call us to a consecrated life. We also need balanced music and sermons that preach of God's holiness and call us to live holy lives as well.  4) Our apostolic coach calls us to keep looking unto Jesus as our greatest example, "Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the Author and Perfecter of our faith." In athletics it's important to keep a focus on the goal. As followers of Christ our goal is finishing well and seeing our Lord. Throughout the race we need to "fix our eyes on Jesus". Today let us stay faithful and keep running this great race with perseverance! Be encouraged today, Stephen & Brooksyne Weber  Daily prayer: Jesus, the race You've marked out for us doesn't require nearly as much physical stamina as it does spiritual endurance. Those who are physically weak due to disease, illness, and aging are just as qualified to run as those who have young athletic bodies. It's a spiritual race where You call us to perseverance as we discard those things that would trip us up, lead us on a disastrous detour or a total defeat. The great cloud of witnesses spur us on; those from the Biblical period, throughout history, and from our own generation. But above all we thank You, Jesus, that You endured the cross and all the suffering that accompanied it, being spurred on by the joy You knew that would be Yours afterward. You cheer us on by Your own example and by the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit that sustains us in our struggle against sin. Keep us faithful to the finish line as it is an entry way into a life unentangled by any form of sin in the perfect world God created for us. Amen.* "Tis So Sweet To Trust In Jesus" The chaplain training conference has concluded and late this afternoon I will head back to Pennsylvania arriving home around midnight. More photos from the Chaplaincy training conference and sights around Springfield: (Note: Some of the photos are not orienting properly on some devices and due to working from an old laptop while on the trip I am unable to pinpoint why.)  Jim and Ann Whisnant I met Jim when I registered Sunday afternoon and he commented on my "Lord's Prayer" tie inquiring where he could get one. I felt led to give him mine. Turns out it was his birthday! He was severely injured in an accident several years ago, losing a leg and almost his life. He is a prison ministry chaplain.  We honored Chaplain Simmons, who is a World War 2 veteran and a participant in D-Day. At 92 he continues to serve the Lord as a chaplain.  Passed this church sign north of Springfield. They had a big tent selling fireworks in the parking lot. That's something you just don't see where we live!  Brooksyne and I lived in the small town of Fair Grove, Missouri the first year of our marriage. I stopped by the MFA farm store where we shopped nearly 40 years ago and they gave me a couple of MFA caps, rather pleased that I would be interested in visiting their store. They snapped the above photo of me and a local farmer who is dressed in denim overalls just like I remember as a child.  Last night my friend Dave Simpson and I went to watch the Springfield Cardinals at Hammons Field, a beautiful minor league ball park built in the last ten years. Springfield has grown a lot since we lived here in the mid-seventies, probably doubling in population. Today's Suggested Music and Supplemental Resources "Running The Race" Video Lighthouse Evangelism "Press On" Video Selah "Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus" Video Michael W. Smith Send a message to Stephen & Brooksyne  Stephen and Brooksyne Weber (Click on photo to enlarge)About Us "We want to encourage you daily in your walk with Christ!" Personal Ministry Update (Revised 10/21/13) 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 an offering 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. Click here to donate online.2014 YTD offerings to Daily Encouragement Net: $6,152.00 SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION  If this email was forwarded to you, you can subscribe here.These messages are never sent by us unsolicited. It was sent to you because you either signed up to receive it OR it was forwarded to you. You can also subscribe to the Wordpress rss feed or as an email subscription through Wordpress email subscription. (See the email subscription on the right side after opening this page.) Cancel: These messages are only sent from us to people who request it; please accept our apologies if it reached you in error. You can unsubscribe from this list at any time. 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. Your answers are anonymous and I we are unable to respond. If you want to send a personal message use the 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. Other versions are also occasionally used. © Copyright 2014 Stephen C. Weber - All Rights Reserved Daily Encouragement Net Stephen & Brooksyne Weber 495 Kraybill Church Road - Mount Joy, PA 17552  Endorsed chaplain "Living securely today anchored in God's solid foundation" www.dailyencouragement.net |
Daily Encouragement is issued Monday-Friday. To make sure you continue to receive these e-mails in your Inbox (so they're not sent to a junk folder), please add scweber@dailyencouragement.net to your address book or safe sender list. You are receiving these recurring messages as a subscriber to Daily Encouragement Net because you signed up on our website or otherwise requested it unless someone forwarded the message to you. If you desire to unsubscribe use the link below. However, please do not use this link unless your address is the subscribed address below as you will otherwise unsubscribe the person who forwarded it to you!
| You are currently subscribed to dailyencouragement as: stephencweber.dailyencouragement@blogger.com Add scweber@dailyencouragement.net to your email address book to ensure delivery. |
Forward to a Friend | Manage Subscription | Subscribe | Unsubscribe | Snooze |
