Point Of Hope - Issue #36 - December 2016

DECEMBER 2016

WA I TI NG ON GOD

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TO BE HEA LED

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TO BETHLEHEM

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when no response seems to come

is to be made whole again

the shepherds witnessed first-hand God's work

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nomatter

WHA T. FA I R-W EAT H ER

Ch r i st i an i ty

STAFF Founder/ President Rev. Melissa D. Pearce

Copy Editor Barbara Watts

Contributing Writers Bryan McCabe, Dr.

Ron Pearce

Mary Beth Pecora

Shelly Hess

Rev. Melissa D. Pearce

William R. Glaze, Dr.

WANTMORE? Cant Get Enough?

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04 MELISSA'S HEART Have you ever sought God but did not receive an answer? Days, months and even years ? and still no response from God?

C O 08 N T E N T 20 S

NO MATTER WHAT

There are times in life the Lord will ask us to stand firm 'no matter what'as opposed to being a fair weather Christian.

12 TO BE HEALED Healing can be physically, emotionally or both. Simply put, to be healed is to be made whole.

CHRISTMAS SHEPHERDS The shepherds actions not only impacted their own lives but the lives they came in contact with. afterwards.

Magazine Layout & Designs created by: L ogicWebDesigns | contact@logicwebdesigns.com Point of Hope is a publication dedicated to encouraging and equipping people of all ages with the Word of God. Our Goal is to provide readers with life applicable articles that will edify and strengthen their personal walks.

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HAVEYOUEVERSOUGHTGODBUTDID NOT RECEIVE AN ANSWER? DAYS, MONTHS AND EVEN YEARS GOBY? ANDSTILLNORESPONSEFROMGOD? HOWDOWEREACT TOTHIS? DOWE GETANGRYANDWALKAWAYFROMGOD?ORDOWECHOOSETOREMAINSTEADFASTTOWARDHIM?

R E V.

M E L

acharias and Elizabeth are great examples of remaining committed to God despite circumstances and unresolved pleas: ?And they were both righteous before God, walking

Z

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I

S S A

in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless?

(NKJV ? Luke 1:6). What a powerful Scripture recorded about these two! Zacharias and Elizabeth never wavered in their walk with God, despite

P E A R C E unanswered prayers. As we read through Scriptures, we know their heart?s desire was to have a family.

NEVER LOST HOPE IN THE POSSIBILITY THAT WITH GOD ALL THINGSWERE POSSIBLE

Despite their aging bodies, Zacharias never lost hope in the possibility that with God all things were possible! Zacharias was serving as a priest in the temple, when Gabriel the angel appeared before him and uttered these words: ?? Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your prayer is heard; and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John?(NKJV ? Luke 1:13). ?For your prayer has been heard?are powerful words of hope! We serve a relational God Who hears our heart cries and answers our pleas. We are not forgotten nor rejected. No matter what may be transpiring within your life, you need to know God hears your heart! He sees your circumstance, and He?s using this article (just as He sent Gabriel to Zacharias) to reaffirm you! God does not want you to be

DONOTBEAFRAID, ZACHARIAS, FORYOUR PRAYERISHEARD;AND YOURWIFEELIZABETHWILL BEARYOUASON, ANDYOU SHALLCALLHISNAME JOHN? (NKJV? LUKE1:13).

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?For M y thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways M y ways,?says the LORD? ISAIAH 55:8

afraid; He will remain Faithful and True to you. He is a Covenant God Who will fulfill what He has started within your life.

Keep your posit ion! Be like Zacharias. Even with the passage of time, Zacharias never stopped believing in God. There are times in our life when God does not answer our prayers the way we expect. We must not allow those moments to define our relationship with Him. We must be utterly convinced of God?s love and goodness toward us, as was Zacharias.

God has a purpose and plan for unveiling His answers the way He does: ??For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,?says the LORD?(NKJV ? Isaiah 55:8). Sometimes, we receive

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an immediate response while at other times there is a delay. No matter if God?s response to you is ?Yes,??No?or ?Wait,?keep persevering, knowing the plans He has for your life are for good and to give you a future and a hope.

WHAT DOYOUDOWHEN YOUARE WAITINGFORGODTORESPOND? So what do you do when you are waiting for God to respond? First, you never move from this core position: love and serve God with all of your heart, mind, soul and strength! Secondly, trust in God?s timing! God sees things from a heavenly perspective and knows the impact something (or

someone) will have not only in our life but in the lives around us: ?And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God. He will also go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, ?to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children,? and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make read a people prepared for the Lord? (NKJV ? Luke 1:16-17). God knew the impact John would have for His Kingdom. He was to be the forerunner to Jesus. God had a specific calling for John, and the release of His timing was critical to John?s mission.

We must realize, especially in those seasons we do not receive an immediate response from God, there is a far greater reason for the delay than we realize. We often constitute delay as a ?No,? but

this is not necessarily so. Delay means ?Wait,? because there is a greater purpose behind the end result. Never underestimate the power of God within your life. All He has to do is speak, and it shall come to pass within your life!

As you are in a waiting pattern for God to manifest His power and glory within your life, ask Him to reveal His greater plan and vision to you.

Allow Him to reveal His heart and to show you the purpose for which He is working. The wait is going to be good, because the dividends of the impact are going to be great!

In Him, Melissa Pearce

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BY: SHELLY HESS

The "N O M ATTER WHAT " Kind!

Lately, the words ?fair weather fan? have been on my mind. The Urban Dictionary defines fair weather fan as a fan of a sports team who only shows support when the team is doing well. During hard times, they usually bandwagon other teams. They basically have no real loyalty to the team, but still manage to get better seats than you at the game. Strangely, they mysteriously vanish at the first sign of trouble.

The words fair weather friend and fair weather spouse are related and also refer to a lack of commitment.

going to watch the Steelers for a while, until they got their penalties for over-celebration under control.

Though I desired they get rid of the behavior that causes those penalties as well, there is no way I could boycott them. It?s not in my heart to do.

I grew up in a family of (mostly) boys; we rendered weekly the respect due crispy Pittsburgh Fall days, pigskin, long spirals, outrageous quarterback sacks and hot wings!

This season, the Steelers lost a game by an unusual margin! It was frustrating to watch, but I kept coming back to that high school cheer: We are proud of our team; they?re #1 TO US! After the game the following week, I heard people talking about how they weren?t

I was thinking about this while these people were talking, and I heard the Lord say, ?You AREN?T a fair weather fan!? That?s right! I?m not! Like Sandy sang in the musical Grease, ?To my heart I must be true! Nothing left! Nothing left for me to do!? To my heart I must be true ? I stand with my team, ?no matter what!? Bad games; good games. Wrong choices; right choices. I stand with my team, ?no matter what!? There?s nothing for me to do but be true to my heart.

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You stay with your team. You see them through to the end ? win or lose ?

I believe there are many times in life the Lord asks us to stand with Him (with someone else, with a job, with a ministry, with a team, with a candidate, with an activity) ?NO MATTER W HAT,? as opposed to being a fair weather fan. The Bible says (Ephesians 6:12-13, NIV): ?For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.? Stand! Remain! Don?t leave! Don?t faint! Remain! Stand!

In the game of football this means that, even if the game is going south, you don?t turn it ?OFF.?You stay with your team. You see them through to the end ? win or lose ? because (according to Dictionary.com) commitment (to stand) means engagement and involvement.

?But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: ?GETUP,PETER. While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.?

KILLANDEAT.?ACTS10:13

Romans 5:8 We must learn to have the ?no matter what? kind of love! The ?no matter what? kind of loyalty.

The ?bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things? kind of devotion (1 Corinthians 13:7, NKJV). You may know that the Lord loves you like this. But ask Him for a revelation of His ?no matter what?kind of love and devotion to you, so that you can live in it for yourself and have it for others.

I believe that when you stand with whom (or with what) the Lord has called you to, you are standing with Him. Because ?no matter what? you see, you are standing there. ?NO MATTER WHAT?like He asked you to. You have chosen to stand with His will. I think back to the Garden of Gethsemane, when the disciples fell asleep before Jesus was taken into custody.

Jesus asked them, ?? Could you not watch with Me one hour??

(Matthew 26:40, NKJV) In this hour, what will of God is the Lord asking you to stand with Him 12 December 2016 Point of Hope Magazine

on ?no matter what?? What person or place is He asking you to stand with ?no matter what?? He will reveal to you His heart for this.

And grant you great grace for it, if you will just ask Him. God proved that His love for us is the ?no matter what? kind, when He sent His Son, Jesus, to earth.

He was given to us by God. As was said in The Nativity Story movie about Jesus: ?He is for all mankind.

From the lowest of men to the highest of kings.? This is displayed in the Scriptures, as both kings and shepherds came to worship Jesus and celebrate His birth. God gave us His Son, knowing that He was born to die to reconcile us unto God. Romans 5:8 (NIV): ?But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.?

See! God st ands wit h you ?no matter what!??No matter what!?He is NOT a fair weather fan: ?For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of

God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord?

(Romans 8:38-39, NIV). God stands with you ?no matter what!?

He?ll never give up on you! In Deuteronomy 31:6 (NIV), it says: ?? he will never leave you nor forsake you.? I have heard the Lord referred to as ?The Never-Forsaking God.?NEVER! God stands with you ?no matter what!?

Spend some time with the Lord.

Ask Him to reveal to you that His love for you is the ?no matter what? kind. Do you remember a time when someone stood with you ?no matter what?? Thank the Lord for that! And tell Him that your answer is ?Yes!? when His will is for you to stand with someone (or something).

And then ?no matter what?? st and!

-Shelly Hess

FOR I AM CONVINCED THAT NEITHER DEATH NOR LIFE, NEITHER ANGELS NOR DEMONS, NEITHER THE PRESENT NOR THE FUTURE, NOR ANY POWERS, NEITHER HEIGHT NOR DEPTH , NOR ANYTHING ELSE IN ALL CREATION , WILL BE ABLE TO SEPARATE US FROM THE LOVE OF GOD THAT IS IN CHRIST JESUS OUR LORD

Called To...

Be Healed A Year of Calling : Devotional Study Series - Part XII Mary Beth Pecora

Have you ever thought you have been called to be ?healed?? I didn?t... that is, until I started writing this article.

I looked up healed in Webster?s Dictionary: To become sound or healthy again. The synonyms listed were get better, get well, be cured, recover, mend and improve. The last definition (my favorite) was to alleviate a person?s distress or anguish.

As you can see, there are many definitions for the word ?healed.?

The truth is that we can be healed physically, emotionally

or both. Simply put, to be healed is to be made whole. That?s how the Bible describes it.

Even in the Old Testament, God declared, ?? I am the Lord, who heals you? If we look at the full passage (Exodus 15:26, NIV), here?s what it says: ?? If you listen carefully to the Lord your God and do what is right in his eyes, if you pay attention to his commands and keep all his decrees, I will not bring on you any of the diseases I brought on the Egyptians, for I am the Lord, who heals you.?

Continued........

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WALKING IN OBEDIENCE TO GOD Walking in obedience to God brings forth a healed life!

As Moses cried out to God for the people, ?? the Lord showed him a piece of wood. He threw it into the water, and the water became fit to drink? ? (Exodus 15:25, NIV) The wood denotes the cross! It is bittersweet. Bitter because of the pain and suffering Jesus went through; sweet because He was resurrected after being crucified. He didn?t stay in the grave:"? by his wounds we are healed? (Isaiah 53:5, NIV).

Prior to that, the Israelites grumbled because Moses: ?? led Israel from the Red Sea and they went into the Desert of Shur? ?

(Exodus 15:22, NIV). Shur means fortress wall. They came through a fortress wall of water, as they miraculously walked through the Red Sea! ?? For three days they traveled in the desert without finding water.

When they came to Marah, they could not drink its water because it was bitter. (That is why the place is called Marah.) So the people grumbled against Moses, saying, ?What are we to drink???

(Exodus 15:22-24, NIV).

Hear me! They had JUST seen the provision of God miraculously opening the Red 18 December 2016 Point of Hope Magazine

Sea ? they marched right through it on dry ground! They even witnessed the entire Egyptian Army being destroyed, as the ?fortress wall? of water flowed back and drowned their enemy. ?And when the Israelites saw the mighty hand of the Lord displayed? the people feared the Lord and put their trust in him and in Moses his servant?

(Exodus 14:31, NIV).

HOW SWIFTLY WE FORGET Moses, Miriam and the Israelites sang and praised God for the victory! Not too long after, they

were grumbling and thirsty, quickly forgetting God?s goodness to them. They also forgot His provision, His deliverance and His healing!

Their shoes didn?t even wear out!

How swiftly we forget His healing hands, extended with unconditional love toward us!

He truly makes a way when there seems to be no way! He is The Way! (Selah) God released the Israelites from the abusive hand of the Egyptians; they were now free to walk through what God had for them!

Was it by chance they walked into a place without any water to drink except for bitter water?

Think about that! They were on a journey with God leading and guiding them. They walked into a dry place; so dry that they couldn?t get refreshed!

There are different stages in each journey.

On your journey, are you feeling dry and needing refreshed? Does God sometimes lead you into a dry place where you wonder what He is doing? If you are on a journey with God, let Him lead you where He wants to ? even if it means going through a dry place when you are thirsty and weary.

SAVE YOUR ENERGY When God led the Israelites through the desert, they were hungry, tired and thirsty.

Grumbling takes a lot of energy!

Save your energy; don?t waste it, especially when you are worn out. When we grumble, we are complaining and protesting in a bad-tempered way. This action requires a healing of our attitude! We are all the same ? not much different than the Israelites! This is why we need a Savior and Deliverer!

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When God said He heals them, He reassured them about His continual healing and provision to meet the need for a lifetime of healing!

The Hebrew word for healing in that verse is Rapha (which is also one of God?s names) ? Jehovah Rapha, the God Who heals! It has several meanings: to heal, make healthful, physician (of men) of hurts, of nations involving restored favor, of individual distresses, of national defects or hurts.

The primary root word Rapha means to mend, to cure, repair thoroughly and make whole! You see, folks, when God says, ?I am the Lord that heals you,? He means much more than our little minds can comprehend!

Interestingly, when God decreed He would not bring any diseases on them if they obeyed Him, He positioned them near water.

When we obey God, He positions us to be refreshed! ?? he leads me beside quiet waters, he

had twelve sons representing twelve tribes; indicating completeness for the nations of Israel.

Jesus called twelve men apostles to His ministry.

as

The number seventy has a sacred meaning, as well. It is made of two perfect numbers: seven (representing perfection) and ten (representing completeness and God?s Law).

With this, it symbolizes perfect spiritual order carried out with all power.

Moses appointed seventy elders (Numbers 11:16). After reading the covenant God gave him to the people, Moses took seventy up to Mt. Sinai to have a special meal with God (Exodus 24:9-11).

refreshes my soul? ? (Psalm 23:2-3, NIV)

IT' S IN THE NUMBERS ?Then they came to , where there were twelve springs and seventy palm trees, and they camped there near the water?

(Exodus 15:27, NIV).

The number twelve is considered a perfect number, symbolizing God?s power and authority with a perfect governmental foundation.

For example, Jacob (Israel)

Shortly after the Israelites camped near the water, ?the Lord said to Moses, ?I will rain down bread from heaven for you??

(Exodus 16:4, NIV). Prior to that, ?The whole Israelite community set out from Elim and came to the Desert of Sin? ? (Exodus 16:1, NIV)

THE CALL FOR HEALING People are in sin and need deliverance in order to be set free.

God?s call for us to be ?healed? is part of His provision! As He heals us, it affects others. Peter, the

Apostle, said this to the paralytic: ?? ?Jesus Christ heals you. Get up and roll up your mat.?Immediately Aeneas got up? [Aeneas was probably a Christian, since Peter was there to encourage believers] (Acts 9:34, NIV).

Here?s part of the ?healing miracle? that we often miss. His healing affected cities: ?All those who lived in Lydda and Sharon saw him and TURNED TO THE LORD? (Acts 9:35, NIV).

What about you? Have you turned to the Lord? Turning to the Lord may affect other people, other cities, maybe other nations!

When God planted the Tree of Life in the Garden of Eden which now stands in Heaven, bearing twelve crops of fruit; He decreed

by His Word, ?? the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations? (Revelation 22:2, NIV).

People make up nations that He wants to affect and heal.

As we celebrate Christmas, let?s remember His birth that brings forth our calling. He still calls forth our birth (our spiritual rebirth) if you are not Born Again; this is our ultimate healing! This is why He was born!

Call upon the name of the Lord and be saved, be healed!

Called To Him and By Him, ~Mary Beth Pecora

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Shepherds & Birt h of Christ

Luke 2: 15-20

15) When

the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, ?Let?s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.?

So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. 17) When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18) and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. 19) But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. 20) The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.

16)

On the eighth day, when it was time to circumcise the child, he was named Jesus, the name the angel had given him before he was conceived.

21)

The shepherds had just had an encounter with an angel sent by God. Now, will they doubt what they had just seen and heard, or would they choose to believe God?

to come in and cause doubt, causing you to question whatever you had just heard or experienced. When this happens, you will need to believe God.

Let?s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about (NIV).

God desires for us to take a step of faith and move forward with Him. Just as the shepherds were used by God to be His messengers, He wants to use you and me to be a voice for Him. God is the God of the miraculous. Our feeble minds will never be able to comprehend just how majestic He really is.

The actions by the shepherds not only impacted their own lives but the lives they came in contact with. Mary pondered what had transpired. Others were amazed at what they had heard. The shepherds had witnessed firsthand the works of God, forever shaping their hearts towards Him. You are I are very much like the shepherds.

Just as God spoke to them, He speaks to us through His Word, revelations, dreams, and/ or encounters. Yet, I would also assume at one point or another, Satan tried 24 December 2016 Point of Hope Magazine

God wants to reveal Himself to you because in the end, you will return to Him, giving Him all the glory and praise.

What has God shared with you lately? Are your trusting and believing Him like the shepherds did? Or are you allowing Satan to fill your mind with doubt and confusion?

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