Tag: Sermon in a minute

A Cannibalized Generation

R. Mangold

Cannibalized

We find a barbaric tale of two starving mothers in the Book of 2 Kings 6:24-30. Things had become so scarce during a siege of the city of Samaria during King Benhadad’s reign that these emaciated mothers had made a sick and twisted league to eat one another’s sons. After evidently boiling and eating the first child as they succumbed to the pangs of hunger, payment came due on the second son at which time the frenzied mother of course vehemently balked and refused to honor their cannibalistic contract. Upon hearing this news, it was almost as if the king had finally come to his senses and realized how horribly impacted his city had become. He then tore his clothes in grief.

Scarcity drove Samaria to do desperate and detestable things in the name of survival and would ultimately lead to their destruction and demise. These starving mothers turned on their children and then turned on each other because the enemy had convinced them there was no alternative. Help was not coming. Death was imminent, and deliverance was no longer an option.

The enemy cut off their supply line of food and supplies long enough for them to surrender their hope for a better future. Life was over as they knew it and in the process, they sabotaged their future heritage. They literally cannibalized the next generation by doing the unthinkable.

How are we equipping the next generation to handle threats like scarcity and enemy invasion in their own lives? Like a bunch of weak-kneed cowards? Give up on God and give up on a better brighter future of hope? Give up on each other? Turn on each other? Devour each other? Or worse, selfishly sacrifice them to better ourselves.

Our enemy today still believes that if he can interrupt the supply chain of grace and restrict the flow of mercy long enough, he’ll deceive us into believing the Love of God is in short supply. As the above story illustrates, a scarcity mindset vs. an abundance mindset can have devastating consequences.

Friends, God will never run out of mercy. It’s everlasting! God will never run out of love because God is love! God will never run out of compassion. Like manna from Heaven, we get a fresh supply every day!

In Lamentations 3:22 – 24 Jeremiah says it best, “It is of the LORD’S mercies that we are not consumed because his compassions fail not. 23 They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness. 24 The LORD is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him.”

Did you get that? God is our portion! That word “portion” means our allotment, our share, our territory, our chosen portion, our award from God!

Our God is not running out of anything my friend – It’s time you stop using this world as a gauge of God’s ability to bless! God’s economy is not reliant on the Dow, the NASDAQ, or the Nikkei Index.

Jesus said, “All power is given to him in heaven and in earth!” (Matt. 28:18) Read that again…ALL!

In another passage, Jesus said, “I came that you might have life and have that life more ABUNDANTLY!” (caps added for emphasis). (John 10:10)

These verses just skim the surface of God’s ownership and abundance in a few key areas of our lives. Consider these passages:

Psalm 50:10-12 For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills. I know all the fowls of the mountains: and the wild beasts of the field are mine. If I were hungry, I would not tell thee: for the world is mine, and the fulness thereof.

Psalm 100:5 For the LORD is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.

II Cor. 12:9 And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness.

Romans 5:20 But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound:

“Serminutes” – Sermon in a Minute.  One Minute Inspirational Sermonettes, Devotionals, and Sermon Ideas for Busy Christians, Pastors, Teachers, and Bible Students!  Visit our ABOUT PAGE  for details on what exactly that is. Thank you for visiting today! May the Lord richly bless you.  ~ RD Mangold

I Got This?

R. Mangold

IGotThis

I’m guilty of saying, “I got this,” even when I’m drowning. No, seriously, not metaphorically drowning, literally drowning. I was in my late twenties when my wife and I went with our church on a canoe trip. I had been a couple of times and seemed to have the whole paddling and steering thing down. I was thinking, “I got this.” I mean it’s not rocket science, and after all, I was the “man of my canoe.”

We decided to break for lunch on a sandbar that was at a turn in the deceptively lazy river. It was a hot day, so we waded out into the water to cool off a bit. I couldn’t help but notice that the sandbar beneath my feet was extremely soft. I stepped forward and again, the sand gave way. This happened several times before I realized that not only was the sand giving way, there was an undercurrent. With each step, I was literally losing ground and falling deeper and deeper under the water. I would pull myself up for a gulp of air thinking the whole time, you guessed it…I got this.

Screaming for help was not an option, but my face must have conveyed a deep sense of urgency as I one more time pulled myself to the surface. It was feeling close to the last time that I could muster the power in my limbs to thrust myself up.

A couple of my friends saw what was happening and sprang into action. While I was still attempting to downplay how much danger I was in, there was no denying, I needed help and quick. Had it not been for the quick thinking and observation of my friends that came to my aid, I would not be alive to share this story.

Had I been prideful and turned down their offers to help, I would have drowned. Played out a bit farther, had I resisted them, and emphatically declared, like we often do, “I got this!” They would have recoiled and remained where they stood, all the while painfully watching me drown.

Even as I write the recollection of this account, I feel the breathlessness, the overwhelming powerful pull beneath of the deep, and the suffocating effects of the water swirling around my nostrils and mouth. I beg you friends who are reading this, PLEASE don’t wait until it’s too late. The sad truth is, not all of those men who helped were great swimmers and I could have potentially put them at risk by waiting as long as I did.

Think about it like this, if you aren’t willing to do it for yourself, be willing to do it for your family, your friends, and those who care deeply for you.

Don’t wait until it’s too late. Please reach out for help, or accept the help that kind and caring friends and family may be offering. There are just times when what you’re facing can cause you to drown; maybe not in water, but in pride, arrogance, and self-pity. It’s not worth it. Saving face, or thinking you’re admitting failure, in the grand scheme of things, pales in comparison to the relief you’ll feel when stepping back onto the safety of the shore.

There will just be times you must be willing to admit…You don’t “got it!”

Two are better than one; because they have a good reward for their labor. 10 For if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow: but woe to him that is alone when he falleth; for he hath not another to help him up. 11 Again, if two lie together, then they have heat: but how can one be warm alone? 12 And if one prevail against him, two shall withstand him; and a threefold cord is not quickly broken. Ecclesiastes 4:9 – 12

“Serminutes” – Sermon in a Minute.  One Minute Inspirational Sermonettes, Devotionals, and Sermon Ideas for Busy Christians, Pastors, Teachers, and Bible Students!  Visit our ABOUT PAGE  for details on what exactly that is. Thank you for visiting today! May the Lord richly bless you.  ~ RD Mangold

To Bee or Not to Be

R. Mangold

ToBeeThey may be an irritant at your local cider mill or picnic, but they’re a very busy creature. A small percentage of us are dangerously allergic to their sting, and when they swarm, they can be a vicious bunch, but the reason honeybees are so busy, is because they’re responsible for the essential pollination of some of our most vital food sources including fruits and vegetables. But, not just food is in danger, plants and flowers are as well.

Recently published reports from the EPA, Science Direct and ABC.net indicate that while there may be improvements in certain aspects of the bee population, we are still not out of the woods, or in our case, plants, yet. This news is staggering as it points to the potential endangerment of our food sources, and those who are responsible for ensuring the longevity of those food sources.

One such reason for the endangerment of bees is a phenomenon called Colony Collapse Disorder, or CCD. This can be explained as a bee colony that has an inability to continue to grow or thrive. The EPA website characterizes CCD as the following:

  • Sudden loss of a colony’s worker bee population with very few dead bees found near the colony.
  • The queen and brood (young) remained, and the colonies had relatively abundant honey and pollen reserves.

And, here’s what really stung as the report continued, “But hives cannot sustain themselves without worker bees and would eventually die. This combination of events resulting in the loss of a bee colony has been called Colony Collapse Disorder.”

Could it be that we are seeing a similar disorder in our modern churches? An inability to sustain themselves without worker bees? These colonies had relatively abundant honey and pollen reserves, yet the colony lacked workers.

Your local Christian Colony, a.k.a. your local church and even our global mission to “Go ye into all the world” could potentially be suffering from not “Colony Collapse Disorder” but “Church Collapse Disorder” because of the lack of laborers, or worker bees. There’s an abundance of God’s anointing, blessings, and power. The Hive, that is the church, is not lacking in love, prayer, and vision, but where she IS lacking is in workers to carry out that vision and mission.

There are a variety of theories “buzzing” around as to why these colonies are in decline as follows:

  • Environmental (adverse culture)
  • Increased use of pesticides (destruction of Christian values and principles).
  • Diminishing habitats (churches being planted, people answering the call, and a post-modern world opposed to godliness)
  • Humanity encroaching on their areas where bees breed (an inability to reproduce)

May we as a church, or colony, never neglect to pray as Christ commanded, “for laborers” i.e. workers to be sent forth into the harvest to pollinate this world with the Gospel of Jesus Christ effectively ending the “sting of Death!” May we be “busy” about our Father’s Business, and, may external influences never encroach on the Church’s ability to grow, thrive, and keep the colony and mission moving forward till Jesus comes!

“Serminutes” – Sermon in a Minute.  One Minute Inspirational Sermonettes, Devotionals, and Sermon Ideas for Busy Christians, Pastors, Teachers, and Bible Students!  Visit our ABOUT PAGE  for details on what exactly that is. Thank you for visiting today! May the Lord richly bless you.  ~ RD Mangold

WANTED! Willing to Risk Death Daily

R. Mangold
Wanted
Stamp Art by Bureau of Engraving and Printing; Imaging by Gwillhickers – U.S. Post Office; Smithsonian National Postal Museum, Public Domain, Link

There were wanted posters everywhere throughout the Civil War Era of the United States. Not the kind in post offices because there weren’t any post offices yet! These “Wanted Posters” read as follows:

“WANTED – YOUNG, SKINNY, WIRY FELLOWS NOT OVER EIGHTEEN. MUST BE EXPERT RIDERS, WILLING TO RISK DEATH DAILY. ORPHANS PREFERRED. WAGE $25.00 PER WEEK.

The need for delivering information over long distances across the great divide of our troubled young nation was becoming more critical with each passing day. The Pony Express, now only in its infant stage was answering that call and was looking for some very special young men; men who were willing to make great sacrifices, spending long hard hours in the saddle. They had to be totally dedicated to the cause, making certain that the mail would reach its destination no matter what.

This was their Pledge of Service:

“I, (name), do hear by swear, before the great and living God, that during my engagement and while I am an employee of the Pony Express, I will, under no circumstances, use profane language; that I will drink no intoxicating liquors; that I will not quarrel or fight with any other employee of the firm, and that in every respect I will conduct myself honestly, be faithful to my duties, and so direct all my acts as to win the confidence of my employer. So help me God!”

In 1860, the newly minted Pony Express mail route would consist of nearly 2,100 miles. The service would start in St. Joseph, Missouri and pass through Kansas, Nebraska, Colorado, Wyoming, Utah, Nevada, and end in San Francisco, California. The service guaranteed the delivery of mail from St. Joseph, Missouri to San Francisco, California in an incredibly short 10-day time span.

In their 1½-year history, the Pony Express encountered just one rider who refused to make his run. These riders were to face every type of natural disaster and danger imaginable, from crossing rivers with wild rapids, to parched desert sands, and every possible weather condition the Wild West could unleash at them. It was through this unpredictable world of nature that the Pony Express riders dared to pass. Steep grades, narrow canyons, howling winds, bone-chilling blizzards, incredibly deep snow drifts all were barriers to the progress of even the most dedicated rider.

Consider this a call to all Christians – We have no excuse for not sharing the Message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We have social media, videos, blogs, and vlogs. What took them 10 days to travel 2100 miles takes us about 3 hours. We’re a generation engorged with opportunity, but so few are willing to take the risk, the plunge, or to dive right in. There needs to be an expediency and urgency to our message! Men and women who are willing to brave the harsh elements of counter-culture and controversy to stand up for the noblest cause there is, “Go ye into all the world…” 

The postman’s creed, which in truth there is no swearing in for, states this, “Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds.”

Our Mission is the Message! Let’s not allow anyone or anything to stand between us and a lost and hurting generation. Their lives depend upon it; their eternity depends upon it.

WANTED! Dedicated and devoted Christians willing to cross racial, social, geographical, and political, boundaries. WAGE: OUT OF THIS WORLD!

“Serminutes” – Sermon in a Minute.  One Minute Spiritual Sermonettes, Devotionals, and Sermon Ideas for Busy Christians, Pastors, Teachers, and Bible Students!  Visit our ABOUT PAGE  for details on what exactly that is. Thank you for visiting today! May the Lord richly bless you.  ~ RD Mangold

PTFD – Post Traumatic Faith Disruption

R. Mangold

PTFDIt’s one of the saddest stories in the life of Christ. He was informed of the imminent passing of his dear friend Lazarus, yet Christ does not run to his sick friend’s rescue. He doesn’t even so much as offer a comforting word, or a “remote” miracle as He had been known to do. In fact, Christ delayed His arrival by 2 days.

When He finally arrived, it wasn’t to a sick bed, it was to a funeral. Lazarus had been dead for three days. Jesus is grimly greeted by Martha who was filled with contention and confusion and stated, “Lord, if you had just been here.” Mary comes out with what must have been disappointment written all over her face. It was then that He could no longer hold back the tears; Jesus wept. This seemingly tragic story in John Chapter 11 vividly demonstrates how many of must feel when we don’t get the answer we expect from God.

I call this PTFD – Post Traumatic Faith Disruption. We’re often hit with it when we face insurmountable odds from a human perspective, or when we’ve been seemingly “let down” by God because we didn’t get the outcome we believed Him for. It can just plain be hard to have faith when we face similar circumstances in our future. We recoil. We brace ourselves for disappointment. We expect the best but prepare for the worst. Thus PTFD.

PTFD or Post Traumatic Faith Disruption is not a formal diagnosis and is not meant to diminish in any way those who suffer from PTSD, but there are times we can spiritually find ourselves reeling from the effects of PTFD especially after our faith seems to have been in vain.

God always has a plan. You may have heard this a time or two during your own personal struggle, but NOTHING surprises God. Not only is IMPOSSIBLE not in God’s vocabulary, the exclamation “OOPS!” isn’t either. Ironically, the very thing the enemy thinks will destroy our faith, ultimately God uses to increase it.

Remember this, God never wastes pain that’s been entrusted to Him. God’s undivided attention during our lowest points of life is the most powerful treatment for PTFD as He’s nearest those of a broken heart. Choose to hang on to your faith even when there’s evidence to the contrary. For we walk by faith, not by sight. 

We all struggle with doubt once in a while, but there’s one thing you must never doubt; God’s crazy love for you. Don’t read into His delay as complete denial. After all, Christ’s delay to come to Lazarus’ aid resulted in one of His greatest earthly miracles ever; a triumphant resurrection which increased the faith of all that were present that day.

“Serminutes” – Sermon in a Minute.  One Minute Spiritual Sermonettes, Devotionals, and Sermon Ideas for Busy Christians, Pastors, Teachers, and Bible Students!  Visit our ABOUT PAGE  for details on what exactly that is. Thank you for visiting today! May the Lord richly bless you. ~ RD Mangold

“Calling” All Bricklayers

R. Mangold

CallingBricklayersThis following fable could be considered a modern-day parable of sorts. I’ve attempted to source it to no avail. Many in modern self-help and inspirational circles have picked it up, and for good reason. Your perspective on what you do, and for that matter, how you view what you do, makes all of the difference as you pursue your purpose in life, and with what, if any passion you pursue that purpose.

I will attempt to tell it as best as possible while maintaining what I believe to be its original intent…

An inquisitive local business owner couldn’t help but take notice of the new grand edifice that was being built across the street from his humble bakery. The building began to take shape, and it was evident that something beautiful was being erected. One day he mustered the courage to visit the job site and asked one of the busy masons what he was doing.

Almost exasperated, he bluntly stated, “I’m a bricklayer.”

In similar fashion, the persistent baker hoping for a little more detail, asked a second mason, “What are you doing?” To which this bricklayer a little more enthusiastically replied, “I’m building a church.”

Lastly, having had most of his curiosity satisfied, the baker asked the third bricklayer nearby, the same question, but was amazed at the answer he received. The mason’s eyes lit up with life, and his tone took on a hushed and humble reverence, “I’m building the house of God.”

It’s been said the first bricklayer considered what he did for a living, a job, the second, a career. While the third viewed what he did as a calling.

You can look at what you do daily as simply a job or a career path, but what if you began to view your work as a tribute to the One who gifted you with that ability or talent?

The ESV (English Standard Version) Bible translates the words of Paul to the Colossians regarding work, “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, 24knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.” (3:23-24)

You may think it’s just a spreadsheet. You may feel like they’re just another annoying customer. You may feel this is just another sick patient. You may think it’s just another meal, service, or construction project. But, what if we started to view what we do as work for the Lord, and for the Glory of God? What if we started to view what we do as less of a job or a career, and more of a calling?

We may feel like because we can’t teach like Christ, preach like Paul, or sing like an angel that we have little to contribute to the Kingdom of God. You’d be wrong my friend. We need more architects to view what they do as a higher calling. We need more attorneys to view what they do with passion. We need more designers, more creatives, more writers, more mechanics, construction workers, IT professionals, and members of the medical community to transition from simply a job to being in hot pursuit of your true calling and purpose.

I challenge you today to begin to take an entirely different view of what you do, and live with intention. Seek to Do what you do as unto God, not unto men, not for accolades, not for a paycheck or a pension. Because you know you were created for more than just to live out the day-to-day grind.

And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. – Colossians 3:17

“Serminutes” – Sermon in a Minute.  One Minute Spiritual Sermonettes, Devotionals, and Sermon Ideas  for Busy Christians, Pastors, Teachers, and Bible Students!  Visit our ABOUT PAGE  for details on what exactly that is. Thank you for visiting today! May the Lord richly bless you.  RD Mangold

Breakthrough in Our Brokeness

R. Mangold

BreatkthroughBrokenessAn incredible thing happened this summer (2018). After years of pain and suffering, my mother went in for complete reconstructive back surgery to correct a poorly performed procedure she had in 2010. Her doctor, Richard Easton, from Troy Beaumont in Rochester Hills, MI was kind enough to take on her case and what he did was nothing short of a miracle. When he came to deliver the news of what a great success her surgery was, even he was noticeably excited about the outcome. When he described the operation, I was fascinated by what I heard.

First, Dr. Easton removed the faulty hardware that caused so much pain to her nearly destroying her nerves and inhibiting her overall ability to stand, walk, and even live.

Some of my medical jargon may be a little off here, but once Dr. Easton removed the hardware, he replaced parts of her destroyed back with a portion of her own pelvic bone. Additionally, he used her stem cells and pieces of her arthritis, coupled with a medical poultice that cost $6000/half-ounce. Using a modern pestle and mortar, he ground it all together (crushed it) and used that mixture to repair her back. This not only would provide immediate healing, but it created the foundation for her back to regenerate.

In any other setting this could have been viewed as a brutal and heartless process:
• Removing the old structure
• Breaking off pieces of her pelvic bone
• Using arthritis, a known enemy of our joints
• And a special compound that was very costly

But, only after the cutting, after the breaking, after the crushing, could the healing and regeneration take place. It’s vitally important to note here that Dr. Easton did this FOR her, not TO her.

There’s are striking similarities between what Dr. Easton did for my mom and what God can do with our brokenness. When God seemingly cuts us down to size, removes our old faulty hardware and structure, we then embark upon what feels like a breaking and a crushing. The old things are passed away…

Using bits of what we had that were good, and even incorporating bits of the old (arthritis), He adds a special and costly compound; the Blood of Christ to heal and regenerate us.

My mom was barely able to function due to the pain she was enduring, it wasn’t until after the breaking and crushing that she found deliverance from that pain.

My question today is, how many of us are so used to debilitating effects of our pain and anguish, believing this is all there is? We have a loving Savior already “scrubbed up” patiently waiting in the wings, ready, willing, and able to turn our pain into power, our sorrow into joy, and our anguish into complete healing.

It may not always feel like it or look like it, but never judge what God is doing in your life, or anyone else’s for that matter, until the process is complete. There’s healing in the crushing, and a breakthrough in our brokenness if we entrust it into the Hands of the Master Surgeon.

The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise. (Psalm 51:17)

 

“Serminutes” – Sermon in a Minute.  One Minute Spiritual Sermonettes, Devotionals, and Sermon Ideas  for Busy Christians, Pastors, Teachers, and Bible Students!  Visit our ABOUT PAGE  for details on what exactly that is. Thank you for visiting today! May the Lord richly bless you.  Rev. RD Mangold

Your Dirty Little Secret

R. Mangold

DLS

I have some startling news about your dirty little secret – Yes, it’s dirty, but it’s not little and it’s not a secret. We can tend to think that just because the masses don’t know about our hidden sin, addiction, or affair, that we’ll never be discovered. What a delusion when we fall for that deception. Our lives may not immediately be an open book to those around us, but there’s ONE who sees our every move and knows our every intent.

Hebrews 4:12 describes the Word of God as, “quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

See, we may think we’re getting away with something, but we’re not because in another portion of Solomon’s own unheeded wisdom, Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil. (Ecc. 8:11)

Our confession will not be new information to God for He knows the secrets of the heart.

Rather than trying to hide from God and foolishly cover our sins like Adam and Eve, Christ’s redemptive work at Calvary has enabled us to run to God with our failures and our sin. While it is far more admirable to resist sin altogether, it is even more vital if we have sinned, not to cover it up. Like King David, we must lay it bear before a merciful and loving Savior. 1 John 1:9 intreats us, If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Our confession will not be new information to God for He knows the secrets of the heart. Our confession is more of a humble admission and a revealing to God that we know nothing can be hidden from Him, and that only He can truly provide us with the overcoming power we require to beat that sin and never fall prey to it again.

Let’s stop fooling ourselves by living in the illusion that God doesn’t see what we’re up against. The sooner we admit our sin is bigger than we can handle on our own, the sooner God’s grace and mercy can come to our rescue.

“Serminutes” – Sermon in a Minute.  One Minute Spiritual Sermonettes, Devotionals, and Sermon Ideas  for Busy Christians, Pastors, Teachers, and Bible Students!  Visit our ABOUT PAGE  for details on what exactly that is. Thank you for visiting today! May the Lord richly bless you.  Rev. RD Mangold

What's a "Serminute?"

R. Mangold

What’s a “Serminute?”

A one minute spiritual pick-me-up for busy Christians!

When I first started preaching I was tasked with the challenge of preaching not sermons, but “sermonettes.” I’m not certain who coined this word, but my understanding of it means a “bite-sized” sermon that doesn’t take a lot of time getting your point across. I’m definitely not a man of few words. Words are my paint, and paper my palette. So, trying to narrow my words yet get something meaningful across has proven to be quite an undertaking. You know the world we’re living in is face-paced and if you can’t get your fastfood meal in under a minute, you’re tapping your foot. I am aware of that so I’ve devised a plan for you to get a small devotion with a big meaning!

The idea isn’t new and has been embraced by several of my Facebook Friends as “sermonettes.” Of course, you’re only allowed 420 characters. I’ve allowed myself 500 characters and dubbed my little snippets “ser-minutes” as a play on the word sermonette or a “sermon in a minute.” It takes me a decent amount of time some days to write these, but it will only take you about a minute to read and hopefully be blessed and encouraged.

Now, for the next little while welcome to the 500 character sermonette I like to call “Ser-minute.” Enjoy the one minute spiritual pick-me-up for busy Christians!   – Rodger