You will have Tribulation - John 16:33
Faith Journey | Rev. Kenn Blanchard
New King James Version John 16 33 These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you []will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”
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Altar call #13
Faith Journey | Rev. Kenn Blanchard
james 4:8 Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded. But as for me, it is good to draw near to God. I have made the Lord GOD my refuge, that I may proclaim all Your works. let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Seek the LORD while He may be found; call on Him while He is near. / Let the wicked man forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him...
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Can you show some compassion for the grieving? Romans 12:15
Faith Journey | Rev. Kenn Blanchard
Matthew 14 Romans 12:15 Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep. Grieve with those who grieve” is a phrase from the Bible, Romans 12:15, which encourages Christians to be compassionate and share the grief of others. Grief is a very personal and complex emotion, and there's no one-size-fits-all answer to this question. However, here are some things to keep in mind that may help you continue to do good while you are grieving: Acknowledge your grief. It's important to allow yourself to feel your emotions and to grieve in your own way. Don't try to...
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Be Purposeful / Intentional with your faith's journey.
Faith Journey | Rev. Kenn Blanchard
Ephesians 4:14 That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; An intentional Christian is someone who lives their life with purpose, in accordance with God's will, and with a focus on growing closer to God. This involves putting God at the center of their actions, and being intentional with their emotions and time.
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The Struggle is Real, Pt 2 - Trust
Faith Journey | Rev. Kenn Blanchard
This is pt 2 of the series entitled the struggle is real. Ephesians 6:12 says For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. Trusting the gospel: Christians may struggle to trust in the gospel and the promises of God.
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Struggle is Real, part 1 - episode 9
Faith Journey | Rev. Kenn Blanchard
Episode 8 begins series that I will be sharing about the struggles we Christians face. You might be perfect and don’t have any of the problems, issues or challenges that I am going to talk about, but maybe someone close to you does, and then with this new understanding you will be able to minister to them. Christians face a variety of challenges, including maintaining their faith, dealing with sin, and coping with change. Part one: Maintaining your faith.
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What is a dead church? Episode 8
Faith Journey | Rev. Kenn Blanchard
Is your faith dead? What would you call a dead church? What is a church? What does God say about a dead church. Revelation 3:1. And unto the angel of the church in Sardis write; These things saith he that hath the seven Spirits of God, and the seven stars; I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead. A church building might be considered dead if it is abandoned or unused. Signs of a dead church* Decreased attendance: The number of people attending services consistently decreases Decreased tithes: The amount of money given in tithes...
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What Are You Fishing For?
Faith Journey | Rev. Kenn Blanchard
What Are You Fishing For? Men pleasers- Ephesians 6:6 Not with eye service, as men pleasers; but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart; Gold/wealth- Matthew 23:17 Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gold, or the temple that sanctifieth the gold? Treasures-Proverbs 10:2 - Treasures of wickedness profit nothing: but righteousness delivereth from death. Lust of the flesh- Galatians 5:16 - This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. Earthly accolades, wealth, something of value, women, men, Luke 12:20 But God...
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You ought to ALWAYS pray. (Episode 6)
Faith Journey | Rev. Kenn Blanchard
And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint; The sin of not praying. Prayer is communication with God. Jesus told us to always pray. You can tell a spiritual contender from a pretender by their prayer. The Spirit knows spirit. There are people that stand up in church and start TALKING but they are not praying. There are people that in their minds they are praying but their words are not going further than a few feet in front of their mouths. How do you NOT do that? Watch ye therefore, and pray always,...
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5- Why are we never satisfied?
Faith Journey | Rev. Kenn Blanchard
Better is the sight of the eyes than the wandering of the desire: this is also vanity and vexation of spirit Ecc 6:9 KJV It is better to be happy with what you have than to always want more and more. Always wanting more and more is useless. It is like trying to catch the wind. Ecclesiastes 6:9 Proverbs 13:25 The righteous eats to the satisfying of his soul, But the stomach of the wicked shall be in want. Proverbs 27:20 Hell and Destruction are never full; So the eyes of man are never satisfied. What's the deal on the quesiton of the week? ...
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We all want to be happy. Happy is temporal and temporary. It depends on what is happening at the moment. Joy is deeper. Joy comes from God. That feeling that can make you weep from the inside. That feeling like seeing the birth of your child, the return of your child, feeling the love of your child, feeling the love of a close friend. You know that feeling. its safety, security, outside of time, that can occur wherever you are. Satan hates joy. he sends demons and his people to stop yours as soon as you feel it. Think about the last time you felt some joy. It wasn't long before someone made a offhand, sarcastic, negative, nasty or straight up evil comment or action you had to recoil or defend. That was not from God.
Psalm 51:12
Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit.
Joy is evidence (fruit) of the Spirit of God in you. We are to seek to be filled with the joy of the Holy Spirit.
As Christians, as disciples of a living God, followers of Jesus. you should expect to fight with the enemies of God. You are in a constant fight against good and evil why are you surprised? if you weren't on Gods side, the devil wouldn't bother with what he already had. You'd be a part of the world, part of the lost, part of those going on an express one way ticket to hell. but you are not.
so you woke up this morning feeling good. a few minutes later someone said something that changed your mood, we have to learn how to fight better than that. learn to bob and weave, parry and side step. Don't stand there and marvel at how you got hit. Or worse stand flat footed and just take a spiritual beating. Prepare for battle so your joy will stay intact by the end of the day. work on yoru responses to negatives, the verbal judo, the war for your soul. I didn't say counter punch or try to hurt them but deflect, reflect and do as Jesus would. Pray about that and how you will respond the next time. don't stand in the octogan with a demon and take punches. It could come from anyone that does not have the spirit of God to be used by other spirits.
1 Thessalonians 1:6
And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you received the word in much affliction, with the joy of the Holy Spirit.
Joy is not necessarily the absence of suffering, it is the presence of God. - Sam Storms
A few years ago I was having conversations with a rabbi from NY that moved to FL about music and the charismic side of judism. I was going to write a book about joy. You know what happened. The rabbi crashed his motorcycle and almost died. The pandemic hit. My wife had a brain tumor removed and it changed our lives. I never did finish my research for that book. Up until now I didn't put all this together. There must be something to this joy thing. Not saying I caused all this mess but it difinely put a hurt in my getty up. It put me down like four flats on my cadillac.
Prayer
Rejoice, rejoice, again I say rejoice. Lift up your countenance to the Lord, for He is good, and His mercies endure forever. Forgive me father, I plead the blood of christ over my situation so I may approach your throne. You have already blessed me in so many ways. thank you, thank you, thank you.
My Lord and my God, you are tender and merciful. thank you for your son Jesus, that you gave to me so that I might live.
You are the lover of my soul. You know my weaknesses and my foolishness. You love me despite my failures, and you long for me to be filled with Your joy.
Lord, I confess that I get distracted by the cares of life, and regularly loose sight of your goodness. I have a tendency to get discouraged easily. I confess that I focus too much on myself and my problems instead of focusing my attention on You.
Lord I surrender my life to you. Have mercy on me. please help me not to hinder the flow of joy in my life, reveal to me what I need to do to stay with you. May your will be done.
Thank you for my life, and the capacity you have given to me to experience Your joy. Thank you for my family. Thank you for my home. Thank you for friends who care about me and who share my interests. Thank you for my work. I pray that you would fill it with meaning and purpose, and that you would give me opportunities to honor you with it.
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Rev. Kenn Blanchard
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Galatians 5:22-23
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.
John 16:24
Until now you have asked nothing in my name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.