Author: Pastor Tim Dodson | Menomonie

June 17, 2020 Pastor Tim Dodson | Menomonie

By Pastor Tim Dodson

For those of you that are Covenant Members here at Believers Church, you probably know firsthand about the blessings as well as the burden of committing to a Christ-modeled-love for your brethren. It doesn’t take long to experience both the joy and the pain, both the relief and the weight of that commitment. This is the scriptural Christ-modeled-living within the dynamic of the church which scripture tells us in the “bride of Christ.” Certainly, there is a measure of safety within the church family, for therein the biblical community rules are adhered to, and the dynamics of honesty, transparency, and communion are ‘front and center’ to prevent the behaviors and interactions that are so readily found in the world…things done in back alleys and in the shadows. By practicing that honesty and openness we seek to embrace the warning and truth of Luke 12:3:  “Therefore whatever you have spoken in the dark will be heard in the light, and what you have spoken in the ear in inner rooms will be proclaimed on the housetops.”

However, we understand that many people do not want their secrets to “go public” and thus will stay out of the Covenant Community and that there will be others within the community who will make a break for it when their sins are on the verge of “going public.” The history of the church as well as this church specifically is full of “runners.”  John 3:19-21 “And the judgment is based on this fact: God’s light came into the world, but people loved the darkness more than the light, for their actions were evil. All who do evil hate the light and refuse to go near it for fear their sins will be exposed. But those who do what is right come to the light so others can see that they are doing what God wants.”

In the Covenant Agreement that is signed with the church body and witnessed by God Himself is the following clause:

 “I will make an appointment with two or more church elders and my service position leader(s) prior to departure (from my Covenant Relationship). I understand that emails, texts, or phone calls are not sufficient to fulfill such. I also herein acknowledge the magnitude of this commitment…that it is a promise before this church body and God Himself so that if I should break this covenant in any unrighteous manner I would, therefore, stand in sin against God and my brothers and sisters in this church. Our hope upon departure will be that you seek another church with which you can carry out your biblical responsibilities as a believer.”

Why would such a practice be promised and required?

In the day in which we live, the absence of truth, integrity and faithfulness is starkly absent in the secular world. Lying is so rampant that it is today simply an acceptable social dynamic. But such should not be…must not be so in the church of God. We are called to “be holy, as Christ is holy.” And in the “Things that God Hates” list of Proverbs 6 we clearly find the lowly and quiet practice of lying.

When someone decides to leave the Covenant Community it invariably means they are leaving the church. Now that situation of course would elicit all sorts of questions within those who remain, the greatest of those being… “where does that leave me then in my standing with this individual?” Yes indeed, and that is why the clause was established! You see, we want to continue to have a brother/sister relationship with people whether they go to this church or not. But unless there is honest dialogue and Christ-centered accounting of our lives, how will we know the truth concerning that individual? Certainly, the Bible is full of warnings concerning attempted relationships with people who say they are Christian but are in fact not. So, as a member of the church who is remaining, how do I know where I stand with this person?

Because of this ambiguity, we applied 1 John 3:10 to our Covenant Agreement:   “So now we can tell who are children of God and who are children of the devil. Anyone who does not live righteously and does not love other believers does not belong to God.” Because we know that lying is a sin…a “not-living-righteously”…and loving other believers naturally requires truth and faithfulness, we simply promise to be accountable to our actions and to not act “in the dark.”  If someone refuses to come in and fulfill the promise of accountability and truth, we can easily then see that they are not living righteously…and not loving their brothers. For to not do so is simply lying, and I cannot lie to a brother and honestly BE his brother! Furthermore, the “icing” in this is the purposeful and continual stance on that matter. Meaning they did not just “make a momentary mistake” but are rather holding onto that sin indefinitely. Thus remaining in the practice of sin they prove that they are not of God at all. Therefore “not of God” …then easily “not a brother,” but rather a false confession and a deceitful individual. And not someone I can continue to have a relationship with according to scripture. 

It used to be quite hard to ascertain where we were stood with such individuals and often their deceit caused even greater pain and anguish later. This was a problem until we presented the opportunity for these individuals to prove their righteousness as well as the opportunity for them to effectively “hang themselves.” This we deserve and are righteous in asking. Both the Bible and the Covenant agreement provides for such! No passive judgment call then has to be made on our part, but rather we simply adhere to the manifest that they present.

While such situations are always uncomfortable and often even painful. This is what we are called to when it comes to the care of and the participation in our church community. We are the “bride of Christ.”  We must always remember that God expects the church to be kept pure. The apostle Paul said, “That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing: but that it should be holy and without blemish.” (Eph. 5:27)

January 1, 2020 Pastor Tim Dodson | Menomonie

Ok…so I’m a bit uneasy. Perhaps knowing that fact does little to endear myself in the hearts and minds of my church brothers and sisters. I guess I feel like as the Pastor that I am supposed to be the bastion of enduring strength.

As I look out “across the river” at 2020, I wonder now where we are to go from here. Is it our destiny as a church to plod down that well-paved road of religion in America? It’s not that I am disappointed in how far we have come over the past 30 years as a church. Nor am I saddened by the lack of advancement into the territory of the enemy. It’s really not that at all. In fact, the journey has been extraordinary! Yes, bumpy for sure, but what a ride!

It’s more of a trepid feeling of the future, really. The idea that it would be very easy now to settle into a spiritually comfortable rocker on a porch somewhere and wait for Jesus to come pick us up. But I also have a real sense that there is more to do. MUCH more to do really! Maybe it’s my age and strong desire to finish well, but I don’t want to rest and I still have fight inside me. But is that how my church family feels?

Over the past year it seems on various levels and multiple platforms that God has been questioning us as to our personal and individual lifestyles. We’ve talked a lot recently as a church body about simplicity and priorities, but has His message gotten through? After all, the pull of the world is strong, and our tendency will always be that we deserve our comforts and possessions. So we indulge and we accumulate. And over time…subtly and quietly we start to look just like the world. We dress the same, drive the same cars, listen to the same music, and watch the same movies. We raise our kids the same… (failing at the same rate), our marriages are the same, our vacation time is the same, our houses look the same, our time and priorities are spent the same. Most of all, just who is our model? Because most often the ‘bar’ is set by the next guy in the pew beside us!  2 Corinthians 10:12 (NLT) speaks of such saying “But they are only comparing themselves with each other, using themselves as the standard of measurement. How ignorant!”

Somewhere along the way…if we are under the belief that we are actually still in the game, we have to stop and evaluate. And most of all, be honest with ourselves…

There are many “mirrors” that we can utilize in scripture for this task. One of which is in Luke 7…the story of Jesus’s visit to the house of the Pharisee. Jesus was “in the house” but it wasn’t the Pharisee who was receiving the kudo’s… it was a woman who had every reason to see herself us the last in line for the attention of the Son of God.  Verses 37 and 38 tell us that “she brought an alabaster flask of fragrant oil… and stood at His feet behind Him weeping. She began to wash His feet with her tears, and wiped them with the hair of her head; and she kissed His feet and anointed them with the fragrant oil.”

I wonder how long it has been that each of us have put ourselves in her shoes? No, not philosophically, but in reality! How long has it been since you embraced such a radical manifest of love toward our redeemer? Or maybe…there is no ‘radical’ left in you? Do we remember…like that woman, the magnitude of what we were forgiven of? Have we embraced a soft “suburban-style” faith?

Recently Vice President Mike Pence’s gave the commencement address at Liberty University where he warned his audience they’d leave Liberty to live and work in a country that doesn’t particularly like them:

My message to all of you in the Class of 2019 is — derives of the moment that we’re living in today. You know, throughout most of American history, it’s been pretty easy to call yourself Christian. It didn’t even occur to people that you might be shunned or ridiculed for defending the teachings of the Bible.

But things are different now. Some of the loudest voices for tolerance today have little tolerance for traditional Christian beliefs. So as you go about your daily life, just be ready. Because you’re going to be asked not just to tolerate things that violate your faith; you’re going to be asked to endorse them. You’re going to be asked to bow down to the idols of the popular culture.” [Vice President Pence via The White House]

Sadly, Christianity as a movement has largely already “bowed down to the idols of popular culture.” We have essentially made ourselves comfortable in a world that is ok with your faith as long as you don’t open your mouth about it. Are we ok with simply “fading away?”

“Give me one hundred men who love only God with all their heart and hate only sin with all their heart and we will shake the gates of hell and bring in the kingdom of God in one generation.”

— John Wesley

Pastor TIM

July 1, 2019 Pastor Tim Dodson | Menomonie

Entering the Mind

Maybe a person has to get to a certain age before such words become part of his or her vocabulary. Maybe one has to be closer to the end than to the beginning before such becomes an issue. But somewhere along the way the phrase “finishing well” began to matter.

I wonder when the issue of “finishing” began to roll around in Paul the apostle’s head. Did he see the end? Or did he just finally come to know his own heart? We know when he uttered those now famous words in his 2nd letter to Timothy he was chained up in a prison in Rome no doubt aware of the imminent end of his ministry life:

For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that Day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing.”
2 Timothy 4:6–8

It seemed that through all that occurred in his life, Paul had already considered the matter. Maybe, just maybe, he had already put the matter to bed all the way back on that Damascus road. And maybe, like some of us, he thought about it every day of his ministry.

Throw in the Towel

Sadly, such thoughts do not come naturally in all of us. For just a couple of verses later, Paul remarked “Demas, in love with this present world, has deserted me and gone to Thessalonica” – 2 Timothy 4:10. Demas was a fellow minister…dubbed a “fellow worker” in Philemon 24, who had served alongside Paul, and had apparently “thrown in the towel.”

And while we do not know what eventually happened to Demas, we do know that we never heard from him again. We also know that Demas was surrounded by some real credible people who, like Paul, went on to leave a legacy of ministry. By all measures, Demas had everything he needed to make good on what he started; a good teacher, godly committed friends, and sold-out fellow ministers. But despite things being stacked in his favor, Demas still apparently went down in flames.

We know very little else about Demas. But if he was like the rest of us, he no doubt had other plans as to how his life would play out. We all start this Jesus thing with more than the “best-of-intentions.” We all intend to not only “finish well,” we aim to do it all up in style. With a ribbon and everything. Nobody gets into this with plans to fail. Nobody wants to take a dive. 

“Always Faithful”

I am regularly reminded of the motto of the United States Marine Corps, a phrase we all have heard, the idiom Semper Fi. It is a Latin phrase that means “always faithful” or “always loyal”. I have read of countless stories and accounts of marines risking their own lives for other marines, even to bring home their body if lost in combat. Not to mention that these guys are serious fighters. I mean, what’s a man to think when he hears “excuse me, but there’s a bunch of marines outside…”  Let’s face it, these guys (and ladies) have some serious street cred.

Now my question, at least to me, just has to be asked: Where are the Christians? Don’t get me wrong, I’m soooo glad those marines are out there, and I think when they come home from combat they should get anything they need, and a lot of what they want. And I happen to think America is worth fighting for, not to mention a lot of other righteous battles around the world. But come on, we are fighting for GOD…and the whole of humanity¸ and is that not worth at least the same level of commitment and loyalty?

Now we cannot deny we as Christians have a formidable enemy. He is crafty and powerful, and means to do us great harm. But should that not call us even more so to the loyalty and commitment that is demanded of us? There is more than freedom at stake for us. EVERYTHING is at stake. And it takes so very little to distract us, and get us to run.

In the 2008 book, In a Time of War, involving 600 interviews with soldiers and their families, there is a story about one lieutenant who took over his first platoon just hours before he had to lead them in the invasion of Iraq. He said the following:

 “I don’t know what awaits us on the other side of that berm,” 22-year-old Joe DaSilva told his troops. “But I’ll tell you this. If I have to give my life for any of you I will do it in a heartbeat.”

Like-minded

I have spent my life seeking that kind of loyalty and commitment from fellow “troops.” Those who love their cause and their fellow servicemen with that kind of pledge. It’s not an impossible dream, for the pages of history are full of such “soldiers.” I want to be one, and I want to serve beside others.

One could try to explain it all, or make sense of what makes such a person “tick.” But one thing is for sure. There is nothing more important. Nothing higher. Nothing more imperative. It’s the same thing that takes a couple to their 50th anniversary, takes doctors to the craziest corners of the earth, and causes people to sail oceans alone and climb mount Everest. I guess you could call it passion. I call it love. And nothing drives a person like real and undying love.

Paul, it seems, loved His Lord. Further, he loved his fellowman. He even once said he would give his life…he would be willing to “be accursed,” if he thought it would redeem his brethren. But Demas did not. And he threw in the towel when things got rough.

I’m thankful for guys like Paul. He “finished well.” And for those of you who are willing to “go over that berm” into the unknown with me, well, semper fi…

April 1, 2019 Pastor Tim Dodson | Menomonie

On Television

Well over a year ago, JFB began an ambitious project that involved broadcasting our services on the CW network out of both Eau Claire and LaCrosse Wisconsin at 10:00 am each Sunday morning. When we made that decision, we did so with a missional albeit realistic heart of knowing, or at least understanding, that the likelihood of increasing our attendance was a longshot at best. But for us, that was never the point. We wanted to increase the kingdom attendance. So we stepped out into the crazy world of TV and multiple volunteers have worked diligently each week to make this project a reality. On a fairly regular basis we have heard from those who are out there watching which is wonderful and certainly reinforcing, and then…

Suddenly we started hearing from the dark. Perhaps you are unaware of this unique place we live, one aspect of which is the multiple state correctional facilities within a couple of hours drive time from Menomonie. This caveat may have no specific bearing upon your life, but apparently, it did upon our Tv broadcast. For we have already heard from inmates in 6 of those prisons, and they are watching…take the example below:

One of several recent letters

2 / 21 / 19 – Dear Pastor Tim,

My name is ……………. and I am currently incarcerated at New Lisbon Correctional Institution in New Lisbon, Wisconsin. I’m actually from Menomonie, though. In 2008, I actually visited Jesus Fellowship of Believers a couple times. I had just come home after serving 4 years in the Army and had lived on 9th next to Our Savior’s. I’d call myself a Christian for years, but was clinging tightly to my secret sins. I was very convicted by your preaching, but I wasn’t ready to give up myself for the truth. I found a church that delivered a feel-good message and I continued to live my life trying to be a Christian and chase after strange flesh and indulge in an addiction to pornography. Your words on the days I visited JFB stuck with me for years. You said, “Going to church makes you as much a Christian as going to McDonalds makes you a hamburger.” I was really good at going to church, but I was a terrible Christian, if one at all.

So, why am I writing you? I’ve been in prison for 3½ years and will continue to be until 2031, and will have to serve part of that in Minnesota prison. I finally gave my whole heart to Christ and made Him Lord of my life in 2015 with my knees hard-pressed on a cold concrete floor in a jail cell. I’d hit rock bottom after I turned myself in. I lost my wife, my kids, my home, and my career because I believed the lies of the enemy and molested my step daughter. I’ve spent the past 3½ years growing closer to God and studying Scripture. I even enrolled in Bible college through correspondence courses. We are blessed here with a chaplain who is on fire for prison ministry but, I still often find myself needing to be fed spiritually. I’ve moved past the milk and desire more meat. Understandably, the message preached at the services here are usually along the lines of a “milk” message.

Recently, our institute upgraded our TV antennae and I found your service on the CW on Sunday morning. I have thoroughly enjoyed hearing you preach again, be “fed” by the JFB service, and get a little taste of home. I just wanted to give you my brief testimony and thank you for making the service available on TV. It’s a joy to be a part of the JFB congregation, even if it’s just through the TV. If Menomonie winds up being my home again after my release, I intend to make JFB my permanent church home. Until then, I’ll continue to enjoy the service on TV; at least for the next 3 years while I’m still in Wisconsin. Thanks again and God bless!

For His Glory, 2 Timothy 2:21

Correctional Ministry

Now we might be wonderfully pleased by the letters we are receiving, but since when has “wonderfully pleased” been enough for us? So with 25 years of correctional ministry under our belts, we have lit upon a unique and, we hope, a creative pursuit to answer what we see as a golden opportunity. We are currently praying and moving forward on expanding our TV ministry into the very next 30 minute slot after our current Sunday service. In that ½ hour we are looking to develop a ministry TV broadcast engineered to specifically meet the needs of the believer that is incarcerated in those state facilities. This broadcast would have some footage from our regular Sunday services, and then application commentary from others, mostly our chaplain Ryan O’Gara, and lastly other media material directed toward discipleship and maturation of those who have turned to Christ despite being incarcerated. As far as we know, no one as attempted such an outreach endeavor in this manner. One reason of course, is few have the plethora of “captive” audience that we have within our reach via broadcast TV and at a cost that is affordable. The potential is unlimited, but of course so are the unknowable battles we may come up against. Please pray for this endeavor and wisdom on the part of your community leaders. And of course, if you feel so inclined, more volunteers for this ministry would be welcomed! Thank you for being a part of it…financially, prayerfully, and in unity!

PASTOR TIM

January 1, 2019 Pastor Tim Dodson | Menomonie

Well, that was fast! 2018 was here and gone overnight it seemed. The church, and its pastor, is another year older and a year closer to home. I don’t know that I have gained any wisdom like that of Solomon, but I have garnered some of the same attitudes and cynicism.  Solomon wrote in Ecclesiastes 1:9 that “History merely repeats itself. It has all been done before. Nothing under the sun is truly new.” Yes old king…there really is “nothing new under the sun!”

After nearly 30 years a part of this fellowship, I have noticed that time so often has a way of repeating itself. I often remark from the pulpit that life is so very fast and fleeting…that we all get but “one pass” through it…and we need to make our time count, with zeal and thankfulness. What I usually get back is “blank stares” of seeming “blank understanding.” You know that body pain you felt this year that you never felt before? That’s what I’m talking about.  Ahhh, “tick-tock, tick-tock….”

As Paul sat chained in a Roman prison, waiting for his imminent execution, he wrote to Timothy saying “For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that Day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing.” (2 Timothy 4:6–8)

Paul was confident as he neared the end of his life that he had finished well. Sadly, however, just a few sentences later he had to write concerning one of his coworkers saying “Demas, in love with this present world, has deserted me and gone to Thessalonica” (2 Timothy 4:10).

So two men who had ministered together — Paul and Demas — mentor and mentoree, both finishing very different than the other.  One endured and finished the race and looked forward to the crown of righteousness. The other man peeled off, deserted his mentor, and was never heard from again. Demas was apparently a promising young man with a promising future, yet as far as we know he did not make it to the end. May we note that the stumbling point was that Demas “was in love with this present world.” Yes…that’s the killer punch…that’s the toxic poison that gets us every time.

I do not pretend to have some magic answer on this issue. But I do know that our walk in Christ cannot ever be static… cannot ever be “level.” Unless we are growing, maturing and advancing today in our discipleship and faithfulness, we are most assuredly slipping backward! We are fighting or we are retreating. We must be more and more in love with Jesus, or we will fall more and more in love with this world.

And so very many folks have ignored those warnings until it was too late and are now essentially wandering around Menomonie like spiritual derelicts… no place to go, no place to call home, and nothing to do accept clutch white-knuckled to their pride. It’s a sad thing to watch as their lives melt away and all that is left is a memory of what used to be! But I do not speak of such with any kind of elitist attitude or an incredulous spirit, but rather with a personal “fear and trembling,” as I know I too must continue to “work out my own salvation.” (Philippians 2:12)

What will 2019 hold for you personally? Will you broaden your world? Reaching out beyond your comfort zone and take on new challenges and therefore new blessings? Pastor John Piper says that he has come to the conclusion that there are four fundamental actions that a person can take to help them finish well. They are:

  1. daily time of focused personal communion with God
  2. daily appropriation of the gospel
  3. daily commitment to God as a living sacrifice
  4. daily firm belief in the sovereignty and love of God

Note that the key word here is “daily.” That’s appropriate, because whenever we speak of time, there is no tomorrow, just “today.” 

My desire for JFB as well as all the souls who make up its community is that we boldly step into the next year… excited and zealous to live large for Christ, and always packed and ready to catch that final flight home…

Php 3:13  “No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead…”

Pastor Tim

June 30, 2018 Pastor Tim Dodson | Menomonie

The Dilemma

It seems that many of us have “lost our compass.” Maybe we never had one. For the fact is, many of us have no clue where we are going. Some folks want to be selective in the answer to this question. They say yes, God has a sovereign plan for our lives…a specific “best road” scenario in order to fulfill our purpose for His glory with the time that we have here on this planet. But then those same folks will claim…much to their own fleshly wants, that this item or that issue is not part of the mix. For example, I have had such folks tell me that God has not chosen a specific mate for our lives and decry the idea of “Soul Mate.” The argument is presented thus: what if my spouse dies? Can I not remarry? What if I miss my soul mate, am I therefore relegated to a life of being single? What happens if I marry someone who I now think is not my “soul mate”? Should I…can I, then divorce to marry someone else?

Of course, here and in so many other such situations we are placing a non-linear time based God into a linear time based scenario and expecting to make sense of it. I don’t pretend to know the mind of God or how that exactly works in my world. I however see no “permission” to operate outside of God’s direct and express will and plan for my life in any matter, and I find that scripture only paints a picture that He has a quite specific plan for me. There appears to be no “exempt” issues, and if there are, what are they? If I can “choose my wife off the shelf” then can I do so with my career? What church I go to? …the town I live in? or what friends I hang with? How much of my finances I give to God? And if they answer is “no” to these questions, then what is the criteria for such a godless endeavor on my part? The Bible tells me that God “knows how many hairs are on my head.” Job 23 :10-14 says

“But he knows where I am going. And when he tests me, I will come out as pure as gold. For I have stayed on God’s paths; I have followed his ways and not turned aside. I have not departed from his commands, but have treasured his words more than daily food. But once he has made his decision, who can change his mind? Whatever he wants to do, he does. So he will do to me whatever he has planned. He controls my destiny.”

Well? Is the Word of God true or not? Does He control your destiny? All of it or just part of it?

Psalms 37:23-24 says “The LORD directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives. Though they stumble, they will never fall, for the LORD holds them by the hand.”
Psalms 139: 1-6O LORD, you have examined my heart and know everything about me. You know when I sit down or stand up. You know my thoughts even when I’m far away. You see me when I travel and when I rest at home. You know everything I do. You know what I am going to say even before I say it, LORD. You go before me and follow me. You place your hand of blessing on my head. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too great for me to understand!
Jeremiah 1:5I knew you before I formed you in your mother’s womb.”
Psalms 139:16You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.”

Do I need to continue? Any argument that God is “standing down” in any aspect of the destiny of our lives is based on human reasoning but not scripture. And we all know where human reasoning takes us! It’s just a case of the answer making us uncomfortable so we rewrite scripture to allow us the path we want to take. Such is the same case with the “Family First” doctrine so popular today. No such scriptural directive is found anywhere in the Bible. This is played out throughout Christendom by those who would claim that Christ is in control and that He is “Lord” except for… This path is a slippery slope and many of us eventually find ourselves adrift in a sea of uncertainty and without purpose.

Some of us have chased our own passions and desires for so long, we are miles off course. Perhaps that makes you panic and hyper-ventilate a little. But I assure you that if you are still breathing, it is not too late. You are not “too far out” for God to rescue. Again, let us remember Psalms 37:24; “Though they stumble, they will never fall, for the LORD holds them by the hand.”

Change

The idea that God has a perfect will for our lives can often cause a paralyses in our movement…fear immobilizing us. Yet “perfect love casts out all fear.” God’s intention was that we do not live recklessly, but that we do live boldly. That we take time to “wait on the Lord.” Psalms 27:14Wait patiently for the LORD. (BUT) Be brave and courageous!” (emphasis mine)

But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.” James 1:4

Yes, be patient when God is preparing you and the way before you. But keep moving Christian! Ps 37:34Put your hope in the LORD. Travel steadily along his path.” Keep dreaming and keep praying! God loves to give good gifts to His kids. (Matthew 7:11) and “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him.’’ (1 Cor 2:9.) It is so important to you and those in your immediate circle of influence that you have both dreams and vision for your future. Proverbs 29:18Where there is no vision, the people perish.” The NLT renders that passage thus: “When people do not accept divine guidance, they run wild.” Hmmm. That seems fitting!

What is the plan that God has for your life? Do you know? Are you even looking?

Psalms 37:4Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you your heart’s desires.”

(For more information on seeking Gods will: http://jfbelievers.familyds.org:5000/fsdownload/x4Yurc1Iv/Sermon%20Archives
Follow: Tim Dodson – Topical – “Hearing God’s Voice in a Noisy World”)