Things are beginning to get really interesting in politics, and we His people need to seriously start praying for the elections in November. Remember what is written in Dan. 2:20 Daniel answered and said:

“Blessed be the name of God forever and ever, For wisdom and might are His.
21 And He changes the times and the seasons; He removes kings and raises up kings; He gives wisdom to the wise And knowledge to those who have understanding.

God removes and raises up kings!

Father, Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. You raise up a President that will do your will for this nation.

Verse 22 tell us that:

” He reveals deep and secret things; He knows what is in the darkness, And light dwells with Him.”

Reveal the hidden things in darkness in all the Candidates so that we your people will know how to vote! We ask for this in Jesus mighty name. Amen.

Eph 4:29 Let no foul or polluting language, nor evil word nor unwholesome or worthless talk [ever] come out of your mouth, but only such [speech] as is good and beneficial to the spiritual progress of others, as is fitting to the need and the occasion, that it may be a blessing and give grace (Gods favor) to those who hear it.

Benefits of Life Giving Words:

Bring wisdom (Pr. 10:31) Whether we realize it or not we are telling people what we know by what we say. What kind of wisdom, or lack of it, are you giving people when you talk to them? Our text Eph. 4:29 tell us that our speech should be a blessing to people. You have learned so much in your walk with God, so why not let the wisdom of your life come out your mouth.

Know what is acceptable (Pr. 10:32) The lips of the righteous know what to say that is acceptable and pleasing to those around them. Your words should be pleasant to those who hear you speak. You know, there is nothing as pleasing as hearing a song that is excellently performed. That is how powerful our speech should be to those we influence everyday.

Deliver from trouble (Pr 12:13) The righteous escape trouble because they have learned wisdom from God not to say everything that just might pop into their heads. The wicked, through anger, conceit, deceit or rashness say things that trap them and many times get them into trouble. Are you finding yourself in trouble because of the things you have said? If so, then you need to do a Bible study on the words of your mouth or come back to this site to read the other parts to Life Giving Words (part 2 & 3).

Use knowledge correctly(Pr. 15:2) Do you know that you can say the right thing and it can be wrong? You can say it to the wrong people or to the right person at the wrong time. The wisdom we can obtain from God (Jam. 1:5) will give us the right words to the right people at the right time.

Refreshes(Pr. 15:3-4) A wholesome or gentle tongue can be like a cool refreshing spring of water on a hot summer day. Not only can life giving words bring refreshing they can also bring healing. I remember an instance when my daughter was just 5 yrs old and she spoke such gentle words that healed my soul. I was 29 years old and my father had just died of a heart attack. The shock of his death was overwhelming, until I looked into my daughters smiling eyes and heard her say “Daddy, it’s going to be okay”. For some reason those gentle, simple, reassuring words poured over me like cool water. Look for opportunities where your words can refresh someone, like my daughter did for me that day.

Disperse knowledge(Pr. 15:7) Did you know that you can’t stop a wise man of God from telling other people about what God has done for him. That is the way we as believers should be so that unbelievers could come to the knowledge of Him. Freely you have received, freely give.

Joy(Pr. 15:23) Life giving words, spoken at the right time to the right person, not only brings joy to the hearer but also brings joy to the deliverer. I am so excited for you to experience this blessing in your life. There is nothing like giving the right answer at the right time to a troubled soul.

Create Life(Pr. 18:21) I dont believe there are more powerful words than these Death and Life are in the power of the tongue. Life and Death, Blessing or Cursing, are in the power of your tongue. As Moses told the children of Israel

“I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live;;

I implore you to watch what you say. I know Moses was talking about choosing to obey God by choosing to keep His covenant of commandments. Even so we should heed the voice of His Word in these passages about the words of our mouths. Please choose to speak words that will bring you a harvest of blessing and life. Not just for only you but your descendants and those who love you.

Be Blessed; Pastor Frank

Ps 9:11 Sing praises to the LORD, who dwells in Zion! Declare His deeds among the people.

What is Zion?((Ps 48:2)

Physical Aspects:

Of all the hills of Jerusalem mount Zion is the tallest. It is separated by a valley from Mount Moriah, the site of Solomon’s temple, which is a 105ft lower (Eastons Revised Bible Dictionary). It was the south-eastern hill of Jerusalem that was occupied by the Jebusites up until the time of David. The tribe of Judah did not drive them out (Jos 15:63 As for the Jebusites, the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the children of Judah could not drive them out; but the Jebusites dwell with the children of Judah at Jerusalem to this day.); but when David came to Jerusalem he conquered them (2Sa 5:7 Nevertheless David took the stronghold of Zion (that is, the City of David).)

It is where David brought back the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem and placed it in the Tabernacle which he had built for it (1Ch 15:1 David built houses for himself in the City of David; and he prepared a place for the ark of God, and pitched a tent for it.). Wherever the Ark of the Covenant was there would be the daily rituals at this tabernacle. It was here that David instituted elaborate and daily praise be offered to the Lord. Many of the songs and psalms sung he had written and arranged. Therefore Zion became known as a place of praise(Isa 35:10 And the ransomed of the LORD shall return, And come to Zion with singing, With everlasting joy on their heads. They shall obtain joy and gladness, And sorrow and sighing shall flee away.). When Solomon removed the Ark from Zion to Mt Moriah (1Ki 8:1 Now Solomon assembled the elders of Israel and all the heads of the tribes, the chief fathers of the children of Israel, to King Solomon in Jerusalem, that they might bring up the ark of the covenant of the LORD from the City of David, which is Zion…cf 2Chr 3:1) it began to be used in later times as referring to Jerusalem. It is also used to refer to Gods people Israel (Ps. 87:5) and in the New Testament the Church (Heb.12:22)

Spiritual Significance:

Since it was known as a place of praise and the Lord dwelled in the praises of His people (Ps 22:3 But thou [art] holy, [O thou] that inhabitest the praises of Israel.) it became a symbol of the presence and praise of God. Zion becomes a picture of the believer and the Church by having the indwelling of the God of all creation inside them. Because it housed the Ark and the daily sacrifices were offered there it signifies the need for our own daily sacrifice to the Lord (Lu 9:23 And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me ) and in the New Testament the Church cf Rm 12:1 Two-Fold Purpose

1.     Sing Praises
2.     Declare His Deeds Among the People

Be Blessed;  Pastor Frank

1Jo 1:6 if we say we are partakers together and enjoy fellowship with Him when we live and move and are walking about in darkness, we are speaking falsely and do not live and practice the Truth . 7 But if we are living and walking in the Light, as He is in the Light, we have

fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses (removes) us from all sin and guilt . (AMP)

Fellowship with God and one another is the basis of being a successful Christian. The Great Commandment ((Mk 12:30-31) of love is what must compel us in our everyday life. This is what John calls walking in the light. (1Jo 2:10 He who loves his brother abides in the light, and there is no cause for stumbling in him.) So walking in the darkness is not loving our brother (1Jo 2:9 He who says he is in the light, and hates his brother, is in darkness until now.) Love, then, must be the ultimate goal of every believer who wants to please God and have continual fellowship with Him. Remember that Jesus said “He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.” John 14:21 It is so important to love the way that God loves and not the way the world loves.

In our society today we have lost the concept of fellowship. The Greek word for fellowship is also translated communion. The word we get community from. Our society needs a restored sense of community. I believe that will only come when the Church starts to display that to one another in their meeting places (ecclesia). As we learn to love and live in community with one another than the spiritual outcome will be that it will be diffused outward to our society((2Cor 2:14-15). To accomplish this we must seriously decide that we must die to our own concept of “Self” Survival.

What I mean by “Self” Survival is seeing every circumstance and situation from the perspective of how it affects “Me”. We must detach ourselves from the infusion of secular philosophy (Individualism and Self Awareness) that has inundated our minds. This concept is the leading cause of the breakdown of community in our churches today. If we can divest our selves from Self Survival and invest in a Sense of Community, then I believe that we can seriously begin to regain our position of influencing our society. Lets let God work a Sense of Community in our lives that will affect our society today.

Be Blessed;  Pastor Frank

2Co 5:14 For the love of Christ compels us, because we judge thus: that if One died for all, then all died;

What is it in your life that compels you? This word compel in the Greek has the meaning of holding things together. The very thing that holds you and makes you who you are. It speaks of the motivating factor in your life. What motivates you? Is it the love of Christ, or the love of this world? There can be no middle ground. Jesus told the church in Ladocea “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth.” (Rev 3:15-16) It is so important that we look at our lives to see what is motivating us today. Remember that Jesus said that our walk with Him was a daily walk. ” Then He said to [them] all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.” (Lu 9:23) We need to examine ourselves on a regular basis to make sure that we are still in the faith.(2Co. 13:5) That means we need to examine our motives.

Paul in 2Co 5:9, the verse that proceeds and helps frame or define verse 14 reads ” Therefore we make it our aim, whether present or absent, to be well pleasing to Him.” The word aim is defined in the “Online Bible” Greek lexicon as:

5389 filotimeomai philotimeomai fil-ot-im-eh’-om-ahee middle voice from a compound of 5384 and 5092; ; v 1) to be fond of honour 1a) to be actuated by love of honour; 1b) from a love of honour to strive to bring something to pass; 2) to be ambitious; 2a) to strive earnestly, make it one’s aim

We see that it is important that we have honor in our lives. That our sole ambition is to be well pleasing to the Lord. There can only be two ambitions, Holy and Unholy. Unholy ambition is self motivated. All sin comes from a place of self motivation. That is why Jesus said we must take up our cross daily and follow Him. We must daily put down our self desires and surrender to His Lordship. To make Him Lord over every ambition comes from an understanding of His love for us. That is why Paul said it was the ‘love of Christ that compels us’. When we abandon ourselves to His love, we are able to do what He has commanded us to do. Oswald Chambers puts it this way:

” This abandonment to the love of Christ is the one thing that bears fruit in the life, and it will always leave the impression of the holiness and of the power of God, never of our personal holiness.” (Oswald Chambers)

Let this Holy Ambition be what motivates you the rest of your days.

Be Blessed; Pastor Frank

What a fantastic year we have experienced in 2006!

Dreams really do come to pass. This year we have seen God answer the prayers that Lynn and I have believed for years to see fulfilled. We have experienced God’s Presence in our services and literally watched as He moved in healings and miracles in the lives of those present. God has added some awesome families that have brought great strength and encouragement to the church. Not only did God move in our services, but we saw Him touch lives in Fountaingate meetings, Ancient Path seminars and in the county jail. Dozens of men have been born again and Spirit filled in the revival that is ongoing at the Pima County Jail.

Thank you for allowing the Spirit of the Lord to move in our city and region by your generous support of this ministry. It has always been the vision at Freedom Fellowship to have the manifest Presence of His Spirit in all that we do and in the daily lives of those who call Freedom home. This year we want you to experience more of His Presence in your life than ever before. So let us press in through prayer and praise to see God move.

2Co 2:14 “Now thanks [be] to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place.”

Lynn and I have heard from God to set as our goal the principle described in Isa 40:3

“A voice of one who cries: Prepare in the wilderness the way of the Lord [clear away the obstacles]; make straight and smooth in the desert a highway for our God!”

We are determined by His Grace to remove any obstacles that may hinder God in 2007 so that He can fulfill His promises in making Freedom Fellowship praise in all the earth, to His Glory! Thank so much for your obedience to the Lord in honoring Him with Tithes and Offerings . Your continued support this year will certainly help remove many obstacles.Let’s dream big and see “Days of Heaven in 2007”!

Your Servants In Christ;
Pastors Frank and Lynn

1 Pe.2:9 But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;

We are a chosen generation a royal priesthood. We have been chosen by God before the foundation of the world. We who we aliens from the covenants and promiese have been accepted and chosen in Christ (Eph.2:11-22)

We are a kingdom or royal priesthood ( Ex.19:6, Rev.1:6)Here is what John Gill Expositor’s says about us being a royal priesthood; “a royal priesthood; referring to #Ex 19:6, where the Israelites are called a “kingdom of priests”; which the Chaldee paraphrase renders, kings, priests; see #Re 1:6 a character which one of the Jewish commentators says {y} shall return to the Jews abl dytel, “in time to come”; and well agrees with all the people of Christ, whether Jews or Gentiles, who are all of them kings, through their relation to Christ; and at the present time have a kingdom which cannot be moved, or taken away from them; being not only brought into the Gospel dispensation, the kingdom of the Messiah, and having a right to all the privileges and immunities of it, but have also the kingdom of grace set up within them, or grace, as a reigning principle, implanted in them; which lies not in anything external, but in righteousness and true holiness, in inward peace, and spiritual joy; and they have the power of kings over sin, Satan, and the world; and the riches of kings, being possessed of the riches of grace now, and entitled to the riches of glory in another world; they live like kings, they wear royal apparel, the robe of Christ’s righteousness; they sit at the king’s table, and feed on royal dainties; and are attended on as kings, angels being their life guards, and ministering spirits to them; and hereafter they shall reign with Christ on earth, and that for the space of a thousand years, and, after that, for ever: being raised up from a low estate, to inherit the crown of glory, to wear the crown of life and righteousness, and possess the kingdom prepared for them from the foundation of the world, of which they are now heirs: and they are “priests,” as well as kings; being made so by Christ, and through his priestly office; are anointed with the Holy Ghost, and sanctified by his grace, and allowed to draw near to God, and offer up by Christ their spiritual sacrifices of prayer and praise; and are enabled and assisted to offer up the sacrifice of a broken heart, and their bodies also, and even their lives when called to it; the allusion is to the kingdom and priesthood being formerly together, and which met in Christ, ( Zec.6:13;) and in his people. As priest we are called on to bring to bare all that God has given us in our service to Him for all of humanity. Let’s remember to pray for others this week

Be Blessed
Pastor Frank

1Cor.10:13 No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.

We are living in a time when God is pouring out His Spirit in a mighty way. A revival is taking place in the church and some people will miss it because it is a personal and intimate move of God. We are at the very beginning of this revival and God has given us a window of opportunity in which we need to allow Him to cleanse us from idolatry. In this passage of Scripture; Paul, speaks of temptation and trial. The word temptation means trials. These trials are meant to purify our faith (1Pe.1:7). Verse 14 reads “Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry”. The trial of our faith is meant to free us from idolatry in our lives; so that the character of Jesus can be established in our lives.( Rom.5:1-5;)To have His character we must allow the temptations and the trials in our lives to rid us of idolatry. Paul in this chapter of his letter to Corinth outlines the failures of the children of Israel and gives us examples of idolatry.(Read 1Cor.10:1-14;) From these passages we can see that idolatry is anything that we that we rely on more than we rely on God.

What we rely on is determined by the circumstances in our lives. What do we rely on for comfort? What do we rely on when we are in pain? What do we rely on when we need something? All of these questions and others like it can give us a clue of what idols we are relying on in our lives. Let God minister to you this week. Let Him convict you of the sin and idolatry in your lives, so that Jesus can be formed in you. You might often find yourself wondering about ‘Why you are here on earth?’. Well I will tell you from the Word of God. God has given all of us the ministry of reconciliation.( 2Cor.5:18-19;)He wants to diffuse His fragrance of life through you to everyone who would believe.( 2Cor.2:14-16;)Let God be diffused through you to those in whom you contact this week.

Be Blessed
Pastor Frank

Last week Shawn Laughlin had to go to the emergency room with what he thought was a heart attack. He went to a heart hospital on Monday and they found out that the valves in his heart were not working properly. The worship teamed prayed with him Thursday night and he felt much better. At a little after 12:00 a.m. Shawn called 911 with heart problems again. Later that afternoon, after a stress test the doctors gave his heart a clean bill of health. Hallelujah!! WHAT A MIRACLE.

Mt 12:34,35 “Brood of vipers! How can you, being evil, speak good things? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. 35 “A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things.

It is so important that we learn the power of the words of our mouths. The bible is filled with verses that tell us about the power of our words (Pr 6:2;13:3;18:21 Mt 12:32,36,37;)The words that we speak can bring life or death as found in Pr.18:21. Life to others and life to ourselves. In Pr.6 we see that we can be snared by our own words. I believe some of us have ensnared ourselves by the words that we have spoken in the past. Not just idle words, even though those are still powerful, but those words we have spoken in reaction to injury or the offense of others. These words can sometimes take the form of an inner vow in the against someone or something. It is these vows that we have made that often frame our behavior because they effect our hearts. If the vows in our hearts are contrary to the Truth, than we will find that it is very difficult for us obey or walk in Truth. That is how our words can ensnare us. Do you know that with your words, right now, you can break the power of those words? You can go to the entry of July 17 and pray the prayers there to break the power of your words.

Our words don’t just effect us, they effect others also. I remember my wife’s father Lew Webb. There was a man who knew the power of a pleasant word. I remember the Thursday that he died. That morning before he went to work I enjoyed having a cup of coffee with him, he was on the porch of our house. He told me that he was so proud of me and how he believed I was the best pastor he had ever known. He even said he believee I was perhaps the best pastor in the world. I will tell you, those words made me feel like I was Superman. They still do to this day seven years later. Proverbs tells us how great good words are.(Pr 15:23, 16:24, 25:11Let’s be like my father-in-law and become masters of speaking good words to one another.

Be Blessed
Pastor Frank