After the Storm, Part 1
Frank Gali

After the Storm, Part 1

After the storm, whether external or internal, God has a purpose. In the 4th chapter of the book of Mark, Jesus teaches His disciples four parables. Immediately afterwards, He invites them into a boat, right before a storm, to go to the other side of the lake.

Jesus said, “Let us cross over to the other side.” The point is that when Jesus declares or commands something, it is going to happen. The storm only increased the difficulty of the situation; however, this did not change what Jesus had said. They were going to get to the other side!

We face all kinds of storms that increase the difficulties in life; it is here where we need to learn to trust God amid the difficulties. The disciples lost their focus; they focused on the storms instead of Jesus and we do this as well. What can we learn from the storms of life? We can learn to re-focus on the one who is in the boat with us. We can recognize our insufficiencies and lack of power in these situations. We can identify the fears that paralyze us and learn to apply the teachings that He has given us.

MONDAY | Personal

What personal (internal) storms are you facing today? Ask God to help you re-focus on Him. Cast your cares upon Him. Take time to re-read the passage from Sunday and meditate on what God said.

TUESDAY | Finances

Ask God to help you to get through any financial storm. Ask Him to give you direction and place your trust completely in Him.

WEDNESDAY | Family

Today, we continue to pray for our families to make it through any storms that they may be going through (example: financial, health-related, relationships, etc.)

THURSDAY | Church

We continue to pray for the Church. Pray for those who were affected by the storm and have needs: financial, material, or spiritual. We are also praying for the “On your marks, get set, go” activity on October 14. Pray for a huge turnout of people willing to get started in service to the Lord.

FRIDAY | Leaders

Let us pray for the leaders in our church that were affected by the storm, such that God would supply for all their needs.

SATURDAY | Co-workers/Classmates

Pray for any of your co-workers and/or classmates affected by the storm and reach out to help them. Ask God to show you ways that you can help those in need.

SUNDAY | Lost Souls

Finally, we continue to pray for opportunities to assist those in need after the storm- more specifically as believers reaching out to those who do not know Christ.

Overcoming Discouragement and Negativity
Frank Gali

Overcoming Discouragement and Negativity

“This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.” Joshua 1:8

God had given Joshua the command to be strong and courageous as he led the people into the Promised Land. God also told Joshua how to be strong and courageous. He told him to keep the book of the Law (God’s Word) in his mouth and meditate on it day and night. God knew Joshua would have his moments of fear and discouragement and the remedy was to remember His Word and remember that God was with him.

How often do we get negative and discouraged when things don’t’ go the way we want? There are times we fear not having enough or falling short. If we listen to ourselves long enough, we can become very discouraged and anxious. However, if we speak words of encouragement and the Word of God, we can defeat any fear or discouragement.

MONDAY

Personal

Ask God to show you the areas of fear and discouragement in your life, especially as it pertains to serving the Lord. Make a commitment to study and meditate on His Word. It will bring you success.

TUESDAY

Finances

Let us ask God to help us overcome any fears regarding giving to Him. We have doubts and reservations about giving. We often think we won’t have enough afterward. Giving must be done in faith.

WEDNESDAY

Family

We continue to pray that God’s purpose will be fulfilled in the lives of our families.

THURSDAY

Church

Today, we pray for the Church. We are praying for the “On your marks, get set, go” activity on September 09. Pray for a huge turnout of persons willing to get started in their service to the Lord.

FRIDAY

Leaders

Pray for the President who is dealing with a divided country and for the safety of the people affected by the Hurricane in Texas.

SATURDAY

Co-workers/Classmates

Often, we spend more time with our co-workers and/or classmates than we do with our own families. We should use this time to be a light for them. Pray for the salvation of your co-workers and/or classmates.

SUNDAY

Lost Souls

We continue to believe that God will help us fill the Church with new souls. Let’s pray for the lost souls of the city of Doral as we inch closer to having the new Church building.

Deciding With Our Feelings
Frank Gali

Deciding With Our Feelings

According to neuroscientists, our feelings decide for us 95% of the time. You feel before you think, you feel before you act, and that’s how you ultimately make decisions- based on how you feel. When we say “feelings” and “emotions,” we understand from the last couple of weeks that we are talking about the heart, not the physical organ, but rather the soul.

Feelings and emotions can be difficult to stop. We all have feelings and we react differently to events in life. This why change is hard!

Logically, we know what we should do, but our feelings about doing it make our decision for us. Your feelings will make the decision before you even realize what happened.

We know the truth from God’s Word, but doing it becomes difficult.

Essentially, we make excuses or literally talk ourselves out of doing what we know is right. How often do we talk ourselves out of doing what God wants us to do? Even with something as simple as going to Church on Sunday or attending a small group during the week? We make excuses, albeit there are some legitimate excuses- but for the most part we talk ourselves out instead of in.

What is God calling you into with regard to His purpose in your life?

MONDAY

Personal

Ask God to show you the areas in your life where you have been making excuses. God has called you but you may have been avoiding His call because of fear or lack of confidence.

TUESDAY

Finances

God is calling us to give. Let’s pray that we do what is right and we give what belongs to Him.

WEDNESDAY

Family

We continue to pray that God’s purpose for the lives of our family members will be fulfilled.

THURSDAY

Church

Continue to pray for the Church. We pray for that more souls will be saved and that we will all grow in our relationship with God.

FRIDAY

Leaders

Today, we pray for the leaders of our nation, especially the President of the United States. We also continue to pray for the healing and restoration of Venezuela.

SATURDAY

Co-workers/Classmates

One instance where our feelings can align with God’s calling is when we feel compelled to bring salvation to those around us. Therefore, let us pray for the salvation of our co-workers and/or classmates.

SUNDAY

Lost Souls

We continue to believe that God will help us fill the Church with new souls. Let us continue to pray for those lost souls in the city of Doral as we inch closer to having the new Church building.