The “Key” To It All

Here is the BMW M6. A beautiful piece of machine designed and engineered to make any driving experience a grand one. From comfort to luxury to performance this machine has it all! 

As eye catching and breath taking it is, it completely useless without one thing. One small thing designed to fit in your pocket, one small, usually inexpensive (even though this certain one can run around $175) thing can keep this car idle. It can keep it stationary, the engine ineffective, the horsepowers dead, the super chargers quiet; it can keep it locked up somewhere not doing what it’s designed to do. What is this powerful, small device? It’s the key.

Now for the whole point of this post. No, I’m not a salesman for BMW or their key fobs. I want to show you what was revealed to me a few months back.

The church is primed to be a soul winning, life impacting, Holy Ghost powered, movement destined to fulfill the Great Commission. But as beautiful as our congregations are, as dynamic our worship services can be, as awe inspiring our sermons can be; if we lack one small, simple thing we can be ineffective.

“But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” – Hebrews 11:6 (NKJV)

Faith is the key to it all. With faith the size of a mustard seed we can move mountains. We have to get back to living, depending, praying, seeking God, worshipping on faith. Faith is the key that activates the whole thing. A lot of times we want to have it all figured out, it all lined out, no surprises; but while planning and being organized is a great thing, there has to be a factor of faith inside the whole thing. Faith helps us through the unknown. It helps us lean on the Lord and not our own understanding. Faith turns our focus on God and not on the problem. 

I pray this has blessed you. Connect with me at one of the following… Twitter – @RevDereck | Instagram – @revdereck | Email – djw2410@gmail.com

Maranatha, 

Dereck J. White

I’ll take the water downed medicine, said no one ever

Imagine with me if you will, you are sick, I mean really sick. The kinda of sick where everything including your hair hurts. It hurts to move, hurts to think, hurt to breathe, it even hurts to blink. So you go to the doctor, he figures out your problem and prescribes you a medicine. Now when you get the medicine from the pharmacy I am pretty sure you can see the illness ending right then and there. You get all happy and just can’t wait to get home to take the medicine and kiss this sickness goodbye. Now we all have been here, we open the bottle, smell it and it turns our stomach. We pour out the correct measurement, hold our nose, take the medicine like a boss, and gag for 5 minutes after. Been there? Can you relate? Have you ever wondered why the medicine that works the best taste so bad?? Who remembers Caster Oil? I (thank the good Lord above) never had to take the stuff but I remember stories of how bad it taste. Now, let me ask you this; did the medicine work? Did it cure your illness? Did it make the problems you had before go away? 8 out 10 times it did. It did exactly what it was created/intended to do. Now lets think about this in a spiritual sense.

For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged 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. -Hebrews 4:12

The word of God is powerful. It cuts, it hurts, but it is the truth. The old saying, “The truth hurts.” is oh so true. Sometimes we wonder why the church and the people in it are in the shape they are in; it is because some pastors have become people pleasers and not God pleasers. They have water downed the Gospel truth to the point where it is to no avail. We do not want to hear the truth because it hurts, so its please me preacher. What would happen if we took water downed medicine? Would it work? NO!!! It is now time to take the word of God seriously, no matter how bad it hurts, no matter how much it makes us change, no matter how much we don’t like the change. Sin is fun and anyone who tells you it is not is a liar, but it is only fun for a season. The word of God states this but there again we don’t like it so we don’t accept it. And the list could go on and on.

Pray with me that preachers in America get a backbone if they are preaching a water down Gospel. Pray with me that Christians in America get a backbone and present the WHOLE Gospel to those who are dying and in need.

15 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. 16 He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned. 17 And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; 18 They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover. -Mark 16:15-18

What more do we need??? This is what Jesus told us to do!!!! No more can we water down the “medicine” this world needs, but we have to PREACH THE GOSPEL to anyone and everyone!!!

Maranatha,

Dereck

Man, that offended me…

How many times have you heard this one?  It is the king daddy of excuses that people use when it comes to hearing something about Jesus that takes them out of their comfort zone.  So as you can tell, this got me thinking (and from my blog timeline, you can tell I don’t do that often) and here is what i felt to write about.

Picture with me if you will, a person walking down the sidewalk listening to their iPod, reading a book, and talking on the phone.  Pretty distracted, eh?  Traffic on the road is moving pretty fast and all of a sudden this person just turns to walk into the road.  Now this person has never looked up from their book to see the traffic, turned off their iPod to hear the traffic, or..well you get my point.  Now they are about to look like really thin pancake, what do you do?  Would you think before yelling…
“Hey self…”
“Oh, hey”
“Do I yell at this person, run over and grab them, and do everything I can to save them?”
“Naw, that will offend them.  We don’t want to do that.”
“Oh ok, well good talking to ya, we should do it again sometime.”

NO, if this was real, you would do everything in your power to save that person!!!  But in the spirit realm we do this everyday!!!  Think of ten people you have at least have acquainted, have a friendship, or just talk to more than once on a daily basis.  How many times just to those ten have you shared the good news with??  What stops us…can I let you in on a little secret; its this “well, I probably offend them.”  The other excuse is, “I don’t want to make it seem like I am judging them.”  I know these things because I have used them.  But I have came to the point, that I am going to share the good news, even it may seem to offend.

Back to my example, that person might look at you funny, yell back at you for grabbing them, or just yell back because you yelled at them; but when they realize what you have just helped saved them from, of course they will be grateful.  Same way spiritually, the people you share the good news with might look at you funny, (don’t grab them, assault is a crime) or they might tell you to shut up.  But one day, after we don’t give up on them, after we stop worrying about are we offending them; they will look back and see what you were trying to do.

Now here are some tips on what I have learned the last year that has helped me share the good news…

1. Pray and ask God for opportunities during the day.
2. Make a list of ten people who you have a relationship built with, because the truth comes easier from a friend than a total stranger, that you know need Jesus Christ.  Start with ten then build to twenty, thirty, and so on.
3. Pray for everyone on that list daily.  Even if they tell you to stop telling them about Jesus, pray for them.
4. Take every open door God gives you and run with it.  If you need more open doors, refer to #1.
5. ACTIONS SPEAK LOUDER THAN ANY WORD EVER WOULD!!!!
6. Pray during the day and ask God to give you the words, and to get those words, you have to read your Bible.
7. Finally, rely on God more than you do yourself…this will make things ten times easier.

Now you be reading this and realize that maybe you are that person who is about to walk into traffic.  Maybe you have just realized that you are in the need of a savior, well if you are realizing that take time and ask God to forgive you.  His salvation is free and open to anyone, all you have to do is ask.  Just open you mouth and mean it from your heart, and ask God to forgive you of all your sins and ask Him to be the Lord of your life.

If you need more help or just want to talk…email me @ djw2410@yahoo.com or if you have my Facebook, msg me there.

Much love,

-dereck

Facebook and Church

I was thinking last night about how many people use Facebook now and how not even 7-8 years ago it was something only a few people knew about.  Then I started to think how can Facebook and Church link up and this is what I came up with.  First let me state that I am not here to tell you that if you Facebook your are going to die and bust hell’s gates wide open; this is just a post that is meant to be humorous but truthful.  Facebook and how we live our Christian lives have more in common than we really think or see; this is what I mean.

You have those who join Facebook to just check on other people and use it a way to connect, meet, and catch up with people.  Then you have those who use Facebook just for the games.  How do we know this because we all have 3,900,234,124,100 requests to water their crops in Farmville.  There are those that are just in it for the drama, who use it to try and get the inside scoop on people and start gossip.  Also, there are those who are Facebook junkies.  These people eat, breathe, live, and sleep Facebook.  They post about every little body function, anytime they have a thought, or everytime their pets have performed a body function.  These people are the ones who have Facebook on their computers, phones, tablets, internet tv’s, and any other place they can.  Then there are those who are on Facebook just to spy on other people.  They hardly ever post anything, but they always comment on your pictures (which is kinda freaky).  Finally, there are those who have an account just to have an account.  Everyone and their momma has a Facebook so it is the thing to have and do, so they don’t want to be left out.

Now, how do this cross-over; well let me show you.  You have those in churches who just come and join small groups to hang out, meet new people, and catch up with old friends.  They love the Lord and they’ll worship every now and then, but to them its more of a social club.  Then there are those who are just in church playing church.  They are there to just play games with God.  Thinking by just putting on a big front they can impress people.  Then there are those who are in for the drama.  They love a juicy piece of gossip and love “roast pastor”, “roast worship leader”, and “roast youth pastor”.  Also there are those who live, breathe, eat, and sleep church.  They are the ones who tell everyone about their church and their savior.  They are the ones who worship unashamed and love to talk about what God has done for them.  (We need more Jesus junkies.)  They have worship music playing on their phone, computers, iPads, and TV’s.  They are just on fire for God!!!  Then there are those who are just to be there.  Not really interested in participating but are quick to comment on how someone worships too loud or too crazy.  Finally, there are those who are in the church just because everyone else is doing it.  They never really put anything into it so they never really get anything out of it.  All of their friends and family go there, so to be apart of things they go.

Now do we see how much Facebook and Church have in common; I told you it was more than you think.  Now this was not to tear anyone in particular down, but it was just something that I started thinking about before I went to bed last night.  I just felt like sharing it with you.  I pray that we are more like the ones who breathe, eat, sleep, and live to serve the Lord and His Kingdom work.

Much love and be blessed brothers and sister in the Lord!!!

much love,

One thing happened today…its kinda scary…

All joking aside about the so-called judgement day thought up by the not-so-brilliant man, Harold Campings, in California.  There is one thing that happened today that in my opinion is pretty scary, we as the Church of America have lost the respect of the lost.  Let me defend myself in this before you stop reading this and call it heresy.  Almost everyone I know who are Christians, including myself, joked about this whole Campings thing; but never once did we do anything to try and shut him down.  And because of this, I fear, when we go to talk about the true rapture of the church (which we all don’t know when it will be; see Matt. 24:36) the lost will just laugh it off and compare us to what has happened this week.

I kicked myself today (which is a hard thing to do…) because I didn’t try to stand up and debunk this man and call him the false prophet that he is.  I chose the easy road, made fun, joked around, and never once did I try and share the truth with anyone until yesterday.  Now I am not the only guilty one, but I can pick on myself.  Why did I wait until yesterday?  Why didn’t I start to share the truth when the billboard went up in my hometown?  The answer is fear, I guess, or is that more of an excuse?

Now we as the church are left with the ones that followed this man who are now, broke (physically and spiritually), disgusted, and angry at God.  We have the ones that are now just going to make light of the situation and state, “Man I have heard that before, is it really gonna happen?”  And finally, the ones that want to listen but are skeptical of the church since they have been burnt one too many times.  So my question to the Church of America today is, “Are we ready to deal with this?”

The Lord is coming and it is very very soon but now we are on damage control because we all know the media isn’t going to let this thing die.  Let me be the first to apologize to the ones that are seeking the real answer and for me keeping it in.  I am sorry for just caring about myself and not you.  I am sorry for caring about my feelings and trying to be popular in your eyes, rather than stand up for the truth and speak it even if it hurts or not.  I am sorry.

Now it is time Church of America, people will have questions, it is time to give the real answer; Jesus

Maranatha,

-dereck

The World Is Ending????

So this is the big topic this week and will be for the next few.  I’m pretty sure as you read you begin to read this and you will begin to think of how I am going to debunk this crazy guy in California (they all come from California) and his doomsday theory that goes totally against the Word of God!  Well my friend you are not correct; however this blog post has to do with something that is going to happen and its closer than we all think.

President Obama (of whom I didn’t vote for, because I didn’t vote; save your hate mail for later) made some pretty bold statements yesterday which in my opinion set of alarm clocks in most of the true believers heads.  They have to do with Israel and the Middle East Peace Treaty.  Obama stated in his address and I quote,

“So while the core issues of the conflict must be negotiated, the basis of those negotiations is clear: a viable Palestine, and a secure Israel. The United States believes that negotiations should result in two states, with permanent Palestinian borders with Israel, Jordan, and Egypt, and permanent Israeli borders with Palestine. The borders of Israel and Palestine should be based on the 1967 lines with mutually agreed swaps, so that secure and recognized borders are established for both states. The Palestinian people must have the right to govern themselves, and reach their potential, in a sovereign and contiguous state.”  

So, I have one question, “Do America just turn their back on God’s chosen people?”  Well, I shouldn’t say America but did the President and his staff turn their backs on Israel.

Now this brings me to the main point of this whole blog post; God is returning!!!  But here is the kicker, you and I don’t know when!  Wow, I hope that wasn’t a big shocker for anyone.  But can I let you in another little secret?  It is closer than you and I really believe.  God could come back tomorrow, in the next five minutes, or in the next five years; but my whole point is we don’t know.  There is one thing that we can do though, be ready.

We need to look at everything going on in the world today; famines, diseases, earthquakes, moral decay, wars and rumors of wars, etc.  All of this points to His coming and my question to you is, “Are You Ready?”  If you can say no or I’m not 100% sure, please make it right with the Lord.

The Bible says in Romans 3:23, “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;”

That means you, me, and everyone that has walked the face of the earth has sinned and is in need of a savior.  The awesome thing about this is, God sent His only Son to be that Savior.  Romans 10:23 states, “For whosoever calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”  Call upon the Lord right where you are and ask Him to forgive you so that you are ready for His coming, whenever it should be.

If you read this, repented, and asked the Lord to become your Savior; please e-mail me at djw2410@live.com.  I want to try and help you in your new walk with the Lord.

God Bless and Maranatha.

-dereck

“Radical” Christians or “Radical” Doubters

Our local news station, KFDM Channel 6, recently posted a story on this (you can read for yourself here) and the comments that I read on Facebook really got me thinking.  These people promote what they believe, they try to back it up with the Word (and the Word also totally kills their belief…there is irony for you) and people use the Word of God and then use profanity in the next sentence to condemn these people.  C’mon people!!!  No, I don’t side with these people and no I don’t condone what they believe but at least they are doing something to promote it!!!  One guy called them a radical Christian and then in around about way, condemn them for being a radical.  Again I am not taking their side because these scriptures right here, Matt. 25:13; Matt. 24:36, shoot their theory right out of the water.  Now, this is what I am getting at.  We condemn these people for promoting this garbage but at least they are promoting.  We as “Christians” condemn anything that goes against the things we believe but we never promote the truth that the world is so longing to see.  When are we going to get “radical” for what we believe and who we believe in.  Again lets look toward the Word for our answers, Mark 8:38 in the Message bible reads like this

³⁸“If any of you are embarrassed over me and the way I’m leading you when you get around your fickle and unfocused friends, know that you’ll be an even greater embarrassment to the Son of Man when he arrives in all the splendor of God, his Father, with an army of the holy angels.”

so…this kinda hits home doesn’t it.  Getting back to the radical comment that sparked this blog writing in the first place, he says that God has given us our own free will which is right because if not we would be a bunch of robots.  But to just hold in the truth and not do anything about it is also wrong.  Call me a radical, call me a fanatic, but I will promote the Word of God.  I will promote the Gospel of Jesus Christ to anyone who wants to or doesn’t want to listen.  I don’t want the Son of Man, Jesus Christ, to be embarrassed of me because I thought to much of my popularity ratings more than I did of Him.  I don’t see people condemning the atheists for the beliefs and their promoting that garbage all over Houston by billboards.  I don’t see people condemning the radical Muslims who want to kill all the Christians, Americans, and the Jews.  Yes, this guy has a little Jim Jones complex, but shame on us for not promoting the real truth like this “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” – Romans 3:23 (ASV) and this “For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, to me every knee shall bow, And every tongue shall confess to God.” – Romans 14:11 and this, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosever believeth in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life.” – John 3:16.  I challenge you to get radical about Jesus, time is short and yes there is a lot of opposition out there, but don’t let God be embarrassed.  I know I won’t.

-dereck

Hello world!

hello world is right. when you think about the world, what comes to mind? is it global warming, riots, protests, or peace and harmony? most of us will think of the negative and not the positive. is this because we are trained to do that by modern day media or is it just in us to respond to negativity? what is the first thing out of everyones mouths these days…gas prices. we can never really find the positive. my wife proved me wrong the other day. I was griping about the current gas prices and in her loving way she reminded me of the summer in 2008 when gas got up to 4.50 to 5.00 dollars a gallon. she said things can get worse but we can be thankful we have money to put gas in our cars. I want to challenge you as my wife challenged me in a round about way to look for the positive in everything and to thank God for giving us the little things that make life awesome…be blessed

-dereck