Brown's Daily Word: 1/22/12

Friday, January 27, 2012

Brown's Daily Word 1-27-12

Good morning,

Praise the Lord for this last Friday of January. Praise the Lord for the way He brings His all-surpassing and abundant Joy into our lives. Let us plan to gather in His house this weekend with His people to worship the Risen Lord. Let us gather to provoke one anther to love and to serve. When the Church of Jesus Christ gathers to worship and witness Satan trembles. When we gather to celebrate His grace and proclaim and worship His majesty, He fills us with His authority and His joy. Christian Faith is an invitation to experience the Joy of Jesus. It is written: "Rejoice in the Lord always, and again I say rejoice."

      Robert Louis Stevenson once entered in his diary something he considered to be extraordinary. He said, "I have been to Church today, and (Surprisingly) I am not depressed." Christians are called to be joyful in all circumstances. The Joy of the Lord is the result of God’s work in our hearts (Galatians 5:22). Christ didn’t come that you might have sadness, but He came that you might have a full life. (John 10:10)     The book of Nehemiah records a time when Israel came back into their homeland after spending 70 years in exile. The people began to rebuild their home in the ‘land of promise’. Israel was beginning to regain her homeland and return to faith. The book of the law had been discovered, so Nehemiah called together the people and had Ezra conduct a public reading of God’s law. The Israelites had different stages of reaction to the law. First, they fell into repentant sorrow. Second, they began to praise and worship the Lord. Third, they celebrated the “Feast of Booths” as the law commanded. The result was great joy! Nehemiah told them, “The Joy of the Lord is your strength.”
    We must discover our need for repentance! God blesses the penitent heart – Psalm 51:17 "Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me…. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.”
    Repentance does not lead us to depression. Rather, it sets us on the road toward celebration! God forgives, his love causes him to forgive…and we are the beneficiaries of his grace. Romans 2:4 “Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, tolerance and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness leads you toward repentance?”

    When Ezra read the word of the Lord there was both Jubilation (raised hands & Amens!) and Supplication (face down in prayer and reverence).  There is, and rightly should be, a joy (jubilation) in our personal and congregational worship to the Lord. Psalm 16:11 “You have made known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.” James 5:13b, “….Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise.”
    Supplication is also an intrinsic part of worship. James 5:13a, “Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray….” Our times of worship should involve bringing our needs (not a laundry list of wants) to the Father – this implies trust. Hebrews 4:16, “Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”
    Joy can be found in the Word and in the Worship of God.  WE CAN FIND JOY IN THE WILL OF GOD (14-18).  When Israel learned of the feasts that God commanded, they went right to work!  When we are fulfilling the will of God in our lives, we will really find the greatest joy.  Joy can be found today for all Christians. It is found in the Word of the Lord, in the Worship of the Lord, and in the Will of the Lord.  This joy is a strength for us. Let us come to the source that can produce joy in our lives, so that we will have the strength to fight the good fight, to finish our course and keep the faith! Proverbs 17:22, “A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.” Psalm 30:5, “For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime; weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning."

In Christ,

Brown

http://youtu.be/Eiy3_KRKNaQ

Friday January 27.2012

Television Outreach;

Time Warner Cable Ch 4

Time 7.00 PM

Saturday, January 28, 2012
        Praise and Worship Service
        First United Methodist Church, Endicott
        Sponsored by Union Center UMC
        6 PM Gathering - Coffee - Fellowship
        6:30 PM Worship
        Music:  Laureen Naik
        Speaker: Brown Naik

On FEBRUARY 11, 2012 Saturday, at First United Methodist Church, 53 McKinley Ave., Endicott, at 5:30 PM - There will be a Special Banquet prepared by Joe Walker, including a variety of international Cuisine...  It will be a great celebration. At 6:30 PM there will be a Hymn Sing with Aric Phinney at the Grand Piano and Yancey Moore at the Organ. Dave Berry will lead the Hymn Sing.

On FEBRUARY 4 & 5, the Movie, “Courageous” is to be shown. On Saturday, at First United Methodist Church, 53 McKinley Ave, Endicott the Doors will open at 5:30. On Sunday the movie will be shown at Union Center UMC, doors opening at 2:00. As vividly illustrated in COURAGEOUS, the impact of fathers in the lives of their children is immense. This powerful film has been the starting point for a movement of fathers creating a legacy of Godly families. A free will offering will benefit the youth retreat in April.

Thursday, January 26, 2012

Brown's Daily Word 1-26-12

Good morning,

Praise the Lord for this new day. The Lord blessed us with a "Fantastic"( As they say in England) Wednesday Evening gathering. The fellowship was sweet and the study of the Word of the Lord was a great thrill. Alice and I walked for almost 4 miles, between 8:45 and almost 10 PM. Sunita called from Armenia yesterday. The Lord has blessed her time there. She will be flying back to Washington tomorrow.

    One of the hymns of the church our grand daughter Micah loves to sing is, "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing", which, in one verse, states, "Here I raise my Ebenezer".   In 1 Samuel 7:12, we read, “Then Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen. He named it Ebenezer, saying, “Thus far has the LORD helped us.”
    Our President gave his the State of the Union Address earlier this week. He narrated his take on the 'State of the Union'.   Samuel, the great prophet of the nation of Israel, called a meeting of the nation’s leaders. He gave his state of the union address to his people. He told them that if they wanted to experience the blessings of God, they needed to return to their faith in him. Times had been hard and the people were not feeling any particular sense of gratitude to God, but they would never be any better until they turned to God. The entire nation responded positively. At Mizpah, the nation gathered in prayer to seek God’s blessing again. Just at that moment, the Philistine army, the dreaded enemy, saw an opportunity to attack while Israel’s warriors were in prayer. Samuel, however, learned of the treachery. The soldiers formed battle lines and the Philistines were turned back in defeat. It was a great victory for Israel!
    The stone that Samuel called Ebenezer was a memorial to God’s faithfulness. Here we raise our Ebenezer because “Thus far has the Lord helped us.” That’s a reminder we could always use! In contrast, Israel didn’t need a memorial to the tough times they had been through. After all, they had experienced them. We don’t need a memorial to our loss and grief. Some things we never forget. Those ancient Israelites were unlikely to forget the years of discouragement.
    Memory is an amazing thing. Psychologists tell us that we never really forget anything. Every experience, both good and bad, is filed securely in our mental memory banks. Sometimes we "lose the key", or forget where we put it, but it is still there.  We never forget most of the really important things in life. Even when the memories start to grow dim, there are always lots of memorials to bring back our recall. Israel didn’t need a memorial to remind them of what they had been through, but they did need a special reminder of something that can too easily get lost in the darkness. That was the memorial that Samuel raised before them that day. The song says it well, “Here I raise my Ebenezer, Hither by thy help I’ve come.”
    The memories of the hard times remain. So can the memory of God’s faithfulness. That was Samuel’s challenge. He wanted his people to not only remember what they had been through, but he wanted them to never forget the Lord who had seen them through it.

God has helped us. Robert Louis Stevenson, in one of his stories, told of a passenger ship crossing the Atlantic. It encountered a harsh storm that threatened to overwhelm the ship. The captain ordered the passengers below while the crew battled the storm above. At one point, the passengers grew impatient. They hadn’t heard a word from the bridge in a long time. Finally, a volunteer ventured out to see how things were going. A short time later, the man returned to the huddled passengers. “Did you see the captain? What did he say? Are we going to make it?” The messenger responded, ‘I didn’t talk to the captain. But I saw him. He looked at me and smiled. All is well!” And that was enough!
The storm still raged, but your Captain smiled. All is well. Here we raise our Ebenezer. Thus far, the Lord has helped us, and we trust that He will continue to help us.
In Christ,

Brown

http://youtu.be/FG5ZhFN1DXk

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Brown's Daily Word - Jonah part 3 1-25-12

Good morning,

Praise the Lord for this Wednesday. We will gather for our Wednesday Evening fellowship and study this evening at 6 PM, with a full meal prepared with much love and served with much care. In our study this evening we will be looking at John 2. The context of this passage is the wedding reception at Cana of Galilee.

    I received this note from one of my friends on the reflections on Jonah.      " I very much enjoyed your two recent devotionals from Jonah. As always there was an abundance of great material there to engage the mind and spirit with profit for both. "
    This note propelled me to look into the second chapter of Jonah once again. Praise the Lord for His Word, which is so simple and yet so profound. It is so mundane and yet it is so majestic. It is so earthy and yet it is so divine.
    Jonah cried to Lord from of the belly of hell. Jonah’s prayer was not a prayer for deliverance. His prayer was actually one of praise and thanksgiving for having been delivered from certain death. I am convinced that during those three days and nights he endured something that changed him forever. I certainly do not mean that he was perfect when he exited the fish. The remainder of the book stands as evidence that he was still far from perfect, but I believe he was a changed man.
    The words, "the waters encompassed me," would be mere words to everyone else but Jonah, but to him, those words were connected to vivid terrifying memories. There was only a hair's distance between him and death at the time.
The winds of change had moved through Jonah’s life. It was a very tough experience, but it had moved Jonah back into a relationship with God.
    Though Jonah was not hopeless, for the time being he was helpless. The Lord prompted him to faith from the depths of his despair. As Jonah lay in the fish’s belly he must have reflected upon the miracle that he was still alive. His was the prayer of those whose lives have been shipwrecked, who are at the end of their rope, for whom the bottom has dropped out. They may have lost a loved one, a job or experienced the break up of a marriage. As with Jonah, the disaster may even be of their own making.  When we find ourselves in the depths of despair, darkness, distress, and doubt, and at the gate of untimely death, we can cry out to the Lord. We have a God who loves us when we mess things up, who cares about us even though we cause our own problems. That’s the kind of God we serve.
The Bible is is full of stories of God forgiving people who did not deserve another chance.
     Phillip Yancey, in His book "What's So Amazing about Grace", wrote:
"There is a simple cure for people who doubt God’s love and question God’s grace:   Let us to turn to the Bible and examine the kind of people God loves. Jacob, who dared take God on a wrestling match and ever after bore a wound from that struggle, became the eponym for God’s people, the "children of Israel." The Bible tells of a murderer and adulterer who gained a reputation as the greatest king of the Old Testament, a 'man after God’s own heart.' And of a church being led by a disciple who cursed and swore that he had never known Jesus. And of a missionary being recruited from the ranks of the Christian-torturers. I get mailings from Amnesty International, and as I look at their photos of men and women who have been beaten and cattle-prodded and jabbed and spit on and electrocuted, I ask myself, 'What kind of human being could do that to another human being?' Then I read the book of Acts and meet the kind of person who could do such a thing - now an apostle of grace, a servant of Jesus Christ, the greatest missionary history has ever known. If God can love that kind of person, maybe, just maybe, he can love the likes of me. Grace means there is nothing I can do to make God love me more, and nothing I can do to make God love me less. It means that I, even I who deserve the opposite, am invited to take my place at the table in God’s family."
    Jonah reminds us that no matter how far we have strayed from God He is eager to welcome us back home.  There are consequences for rejecting God and His ways. The consequence for Jonah turning away from his assignment was to be thrown into the sea and to spend 3 days and nights in the fish. However, God forgave Jonah. God eagerly waits for us to turn to Him so that He can forgive us also, and give us the fresh start we long for.

In Christ,

Brown

http://youtu.be/-I7PgXteyC8

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Brown's Daily Word 1-24-12

Good morning,

    Praise to the Lord Almighty, the King of Creation. I am reflecting the psalm, that is the song and the prayer, of Jonah as it is recorded in Jonah 2:1.  This verse in Jonah reveals Jonah's prayer. Some of us may prefer being in a nice, quiet place when we pray. Jonah was in a most secluded spot with no distractions and no diversions. Jonah knew his plight was his fault, yet when he “called to the Lord” (vs 1), God responded. Jonah’s brief psalm is an honest prayer. Jonah stated that he found himself in the “depths of Sheol”. Jonah next acknowledged the Providence of God, in verse 3: “You hurled me into the deep…all Your waves and breakers swept over me.” Jonah knew that it wasn’t chance, circumstance, luck, or blind fate that caused his dilemma and Jonah understood that his deliverance had been directed by the Hand of God, Who rules His creation.
    James Montgomery Boice has reflected, “It is better to fall into the hands of God, even in correction, than to be apart from Him.” Jonah began to understand this as he had time to think in the belly of the fish. Though things couldn’t seem worse, Jonah exercised hope in verse 4: “…yet I will look again toward Your holy temple.” Faith dares to approach God, even though we know that we are sinful people, undeserving of mercy. Faith drives us to “look again”. There is life in such a look.
    Jonah spoke of “worthless idols” in verse 8. “Worthless idols” could be translated, “vain, empty vanities”. People throw away any hope of salvation by creating substitutes for God. We may not think of ourselves as idolaters, yet in reality idolatry is any worthless endeavor we take on apart from trust in God. We may be bowing to the idols of ambition, greed, comfort, and pleasure. At this point Jonah mentioned “the grace that could be theirs”, admitting that the Gentiles were savable. Jonah re-enlisted in God’s service, renewing his commitment to his prophetic office in verse 9 with a song of thanks.
    The prophet admitted, according to verse 9, “Salvation comes from the Lord.” The word “comes” could also be translated “belongs”. This is the theme of the entire Bible and the key verse of the book of Jonah. Salvation is a gift, and God is not obligated to limit His gift to those whom we think deserve it. Jonah’s attitude in chapter one was, “I’m not going to be a part of God saving the Ninevites.” God then miraculously saved Jonah from drowning, and he was brought to understand that God is sovereign in salvation.
    It was as if God were saying to Jonah, “Salvation is Mine to give -- I give it to whomever I choose. I gave it to you. If I choose to save the Ninevites, that’s none of your business.” “Salvation is possible only because God makes it possible” (Boice). God chooses to reach out to people who are not reaching back. He accepts and entitles the undeserving. “God loves us not because of who we are and what we have done, but because of who He is” (Phillip Yancy).
    Jonah returned to God, not as someone expecting special privileges, but as a rebel in need of forgiveness. In the depths of the sea he discarded his pride. The highest moment of our life is the moment when we kneel in the dust and turn to God, confessing our sins , our rebellion, and our pride.

In Christ,

Brown

http://youtu.be/2NoV4XrySHs

Saturday, January 28, 2012
        Praise and Worship Service
        First United Methodist Church, Endicott
        Sponsored by Union Center UMC
        6 PM Gathering - Coffee - Fellowship
        6:30 PM Worship
        Music:  Laureen Naik
        Speaker: Brown Naik

On FEBRUARY 11, 2012 Saturday, at First United Methodist Church, 53 McKinley Ave., Endicott, at 5:30 PM - There will be a Special Banquet prepared by Joe Walker, including a variety of international Cuisine...  It will be a great celebration. At 6:30 PM there will be a Hymn Sing with Aric Phinney at the Grand Piano and Yancey Moore at the Organ. Dave Berry will lead the the Hymn Sing.

On FEBRUARY 4 & 5, the Movie, “Courageous” is to be shown. On Saturday, at First United Methodist Church, 53 McKinley Ave, Endicott the Doors will open at 5:30. On Sunday the movie will be shown at Union Center UMC, doors opening at 2:00. As vividly illustrated in COURAGEOUS, the impact of fathers in the lives of their children is immense. This powerful film has been the starting point for a movement of fathers creating a legacy of Godly families. A free will offering will benefit the youth retreat in April.

Monday, January 23, 2012

Brown's Daily Word 1-23-12

Good morning,

The Lord blessed us with a beautiful weekend of worship, work, and witness. It is a thrill to serve the Lord with His people. It was a great blessing to prepare and serve the meal at First UMC, Endicott Saturday noon and to gather for worship in the evening. It was a great blessing to be In His House for worship yesterday.

Sunita is in Armenia with her work. She has called a few times to share with us that the Lord is blessing her as she meets new people and visits new places. Praise the Lord for His Kingdom works around the corner and around the globe.

    The Old Testament reading for yesterday was taken from Jonah 3. One of the things that is clear in the book of Jonah and really throughout the Bible, is that God is a God of 2nd chances. In fact it might be more accurate to suggest He is a God of almost unlimited chances. Jonah received a 2nd chance and so did the people of Nineveh.  Think about how many times in our lives we have messed up. . . and pleaded with God to forgive us and we come to the amazing understanding . . . that God has forgiven us.
    John Ortberg wrote, "Redeeming is what God is into. He is the finder of directionally-challenged sheep, the searcher of missing coins, the embracer of foolish prodigal children. His favorite department is ‘Lost and Found.’ If there is one way that human beings consistently underestimate God’s love, it is perhaps in His loving longing to forgive."
    When Jonah finally arrived at Nineveh, he found a city of about 200,000 people going about their business. Amazingly, God loved these wicked Assyrians even though they worshiped other gods.  Jonah walked into all of this, under the command of God, and proclaimed, “Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!”  It was a one sentence sermon, 8 words in English and only 5 words in Hebrew. Yet, despite the lack of eloquence, in verse 5 it says that the people of Nineveh responded to the God of the universe. The people of Nineveh believed in God.  They called a fast and put on sackcloth, from the greatest to the least. When word reached the king, he arose from his throne, laid aside his robe, and covered himself with sackcloth and sat in ashes.  He issued a proclamation saying, "In Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles: Do not let man, beast, herd, or flock taste a thing. Do not let them eat or drink water. But both man and beast must be covered with sackcloth; and let man call on God earnestly that each may turn from his wicked ways."

God loves everyone. God is not willing that any should perish but that all people would come to repentance so that they would know Him. God is a God of mystery and majesty. We have seen it in our own lives. People we never thought would come to know Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior are now part of His Family.

    Notice that the people immediately began to repent. Everyone in Nineveh accepted this message from Jonah. Even the king took off his robe and put on sackcloth, showing he was serious about repenting. He told the people not only to repent and put on sackcloth, but that they should GIVE UP THEIR EVIL WAYS AND TURN FROM VIOLENCE.
    During the Welsh Revivals of the 19th century, the Holy Spirit convicted many people of their sin and the need to make restitution. However, it created an unexpected problem for the shipyards along the coast of Wales. Over the years workers had stolen items ranging from wheelbarrows to hammers. As people sought to be right with God, they started to return what they had taken, with the result that soon the shipyards of Wales were overwhelmed with returned property. There were such huge piles of returned tools that several of the yards put up signs that read, "If you have been led by God to return what you have stolen, please know that the management forgives you and wishes you to keep what you have taken."
    Jonah was a reluctant, bitter prophet. He wanted to keep God to himself. Many of us also think that we have the right to determine who is worthy to be called to Jesus. Yet, the call of God and the purpose of our lives is to preach and teach Jesus, so that others, even our so- called enemies, turn their lives around and embrace the love, joy, peace, grace, and forgiveness God offers. We are ALL called to be Jonahs, to go into our sphere of influence, proclaiming the good news of Jesus Christ.

In Christ,

Brown

http://youtu.be/d61LamkXfwk

Saturday, January 28, 2012
        Praise and Worship Service
        First United Methodist Church, Endicott
        Sponsored by Union Center UMC
        6 PM Gathering - Coffee - Fellowship
        6:30 PM Worship
        Music:  Laureen Naik
        Speaker: Brown Naik

On FEBRUARY 11, 2012 Saturday, at First United Methodist Church, 53 McKinley Ave., Endicott, at 5:30 PM - There will be a Special Banquet prepared by Joe Walker, including a variety of international Cuisine...  It will be a great celebration. At 6:30 PM there will be a Hymn Sing with Aric Phinney at the Grand Piano and Yancey Moore at the Organ. Dave Berry will lead the the Hymn Sing.

On FEBRUARY 4 & 5, the Movie, “Courageous” is to be shown. On Saturday, at First United Methodist Church, 53 McKinley Ave, Endicott the Doors will open at 5:30. On Sunday the movie will be shown at Union Center UMC, doors opening at 2:00. As vividly illustrated in COURAGEOUS, the impact of fathers in the lives of their children is immense. This powerful film has been the starting point for a movement of fathers creating a legacy of Godly families. A free will offering will benefit the youth retreat in April.