Month: December 2011

Your Daily Bible Verse – 12-31-11

(Rom 8:31 NKJV)  What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?

Being challenged at work to do beyond our capacity and being under-paid is a hard thing to deal with, especially knowing that there is not much out there for work these days.

We need the job; that’s all there is to it. So we keep on plugging away and doing what we can to help and try to stay somewhat above water. We hope that we don’t get more piled onto us until we catch up with what we have. We just keep on keeping on until something else comes up or changes happen.

Being mistreated and overworked on a job is NOT right, but it happens all the time and people get away with doing it. What can we do to get past it and make our jobs a little less aggravating?

We can start by knowing that if God is for us, who can be against us. God is watching and He knows what is going on and He doesn’t like abuse or people mistreating people. As we tell Him about our concerns and trust Him, He will come through for us. He is faithful!!

God is for us. Be encouraged today if you are working hard and not feeling like you’re getting anywhere, with no raise, no promotion, not even a thank you. It’s time to start praying to God for a change and then let Him go to battle for you!

What we need to do in the meantime is to keep doing what we know we are supposed to do, with a good attitude and let Him lead us.

Trust God!!

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808

401-377-5400

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Your Daily Bible Verse – 12-30-11

(James 5:16 NKJV)  …The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.

For many years I thought that this verse meant that in order to be effective, a prayer had to be fervent… repetitive, prayed many times. It’s how we are all taught.

We’ve all heard that we need to prey fervently. But we are led to believe that praying something fervently means praying something over and over again.

A few months back God showed me that this isn’t the case. I had it all wrong. Fervent prayer doesn’t mean repetitive prayer. Fervent, in the way God uses it here, is referring to the person being fervent (consistent), but not that the prayer itself needs to be repeated over and over again for God to hear it and give you results.

We need to be fervent. We need to be consistent. It’s our consistent effort that God sees as being fervent. Take a look at this scripture below for confirmation:

(Mat 6:7 NKJV)  “And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words.

Repetition of our prayers is not the key. Consistency in our walk with God is the key. When we’re consistent in our walk with Him we will know Him and discern Him better. This puts us in line with His spirit and His will, allowing us to hear His voice better.

Our prayers are our conversations with God… us talking to Him and Him speaking to us! They are not an opportunity for us to show our eloquence of speech and how well we articulate our words!

Let’s be fervent in our walk, which will lead us to a better relationship with God and prayers that will get results!

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808

401-377-5400

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Your Daily Bible Verse – 11-29-11

(1 Cor 13:13 NKJV) And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.

How do we show God’s love on this earth? There are so many ways and so many opportunities that it can be very overwhelming at times. But, the most important thing is that we never stop, and that at every opportunity we get, we should love on people.

We have to be careful not to scare some people away, because we have so much excitement in us about Jesus and what He has done for us, we don’t want to become overbearing or overwhelming. Some people aren’t ready for all that love and joy that we have bottled up inside. Some people like it when we go out of our way for them, but others may not understand it and it can freak them out. So, we have to use wisdom on this and stay balanced. Let God lead.

Love is a beautiful thing and very powerful in reaching others for Christ. People love when they have your attention. Simply just giving someone a shoulder to cry on sometimes is such a nice way to show you care about them and love them enough to listen.

Some people may need a helping hand; taking time to help them with their projects is another way of showing them God’s love. Others may need finances, groceries, or help with their kids. Some may need a visit, they may be lonely… just waiting for someone to come visit them.

Ask God to help you today to show His love, to open doors for you to be able to reach out to those you come in contact with, whether in your home, at work, school, playground, or the grocery store etc.

Enjoy sharing God’s love!!

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808

401-377-5400

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Your Daily Bible Verse – 12-28-11

(1 Cor 10:13 NKJV)  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.

I want to bring a word today that might seem harsh at first glance, but is really not harsh at all. It is truth, spoken from the word of God… Nothing more and nothing less.

I want to share this in love, to bring awareness and an awakening to our spirits, in our pursuit of God and His righteousness.

There is not a single one of us who faces temptation that is unique to us or our situation. None of us has been or is going to go through a test, a trial or a temptation that someone before us hasn’t already gone through.

Every single day we are each tempted with something, whether it’s a temptation to steal, a temptation to lie, a temptation to cheat on our spouse or anything else that is contrary to the Word of God.

And every single day we can choose to fall into this temptation, or we can turn and walk away. It’s really very simple when we get right down to the root of the situation. We can make it seem complicated and we can come up with a lot of excuses as to why we might do something that’s wrong, but in reality we have two choices; 1 – do the right thing 2- do the wrong thing.

Over the past several months we have become more and more aware of the number of people who are committing adultery and putting their marriages and their relationship with God at risk. This is a very sad situation.

It’s happening almost as much among believers as it is among non-believers. And it’s time for it to stop!

I implore you, if you have fallen into any kind of temptation such as those mentioned above or any that was not mentioned, stop right now and get right with God. Turn from your sin and repent. Ask for God’s forgiveness and then ask for forgiveness from the person or people you have hurt.

Take the time to make things right while you have the breath of life in you.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808

401-377-5400

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Your Daily Bible Verse – 12-27-11

(John 4:48-51 NKJV) Then Jesus said to him, “Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will by no means believe.” {49} The nobleman said to Him, “Sir, come down before my child dies!” {50} Jesus said to him, “Go your way; your son lives.” So the man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him, and he went his way. {51} And as he was now going down, his servants met him and told him, saying, “Your son lives!”

The question today is; do we believe in Jesus’ Word that He speaks to us about our situation or our need, or do we have to see Him work it out first in order to believe it?

Faith is not about seeing the results first. The Bible clearly tells us what Faith is (Heb 11:1 KJV) Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

When we believe God to do something for us, we can’t wait until He does it. The faith comes first. We have to get Him ahead of time, get His word on the situation, knowing what the Bible says He will do and hold onto it, trusting that He will work it all out even if we don’t see the evidence at first.

Very recently, my nephew, John, laid in the intensive care unit after being in a terrible car accident. He looked hopeless. He had tubes everywhere. He couldn’t eat, couldn’t breathe on his own, and they COULD NOT let him regain consciousness, because just being awake could harm him badly.

His brain was so swollen it could have killed him if there was any kind of activity at all. But, God gave me a vision in the midst of the storm and in this vision, my nephew was awake, laying in the hospital bed with a football under his arm, smiling. It was God’s word to me. It was His way of showing me that John would be fine.

After this, I got updates on John each day. They were all very disturbing; nothing like I would have thought. But God gave me His word and in my heart His word stayed strong despite what I was hearing, despite the pressure of the family and what they were saying. Of course they were lining up with death and negativity on all ends. But, God’s Word is much more powerful!!

Today John is doing a lot of the normal things that teens do at his age. He’s home, walking, talking, texting, eating! Praise be to God! If John had died he would have gone to hell, he has not accepted Jesus Christ as of yet. My prayer is that he will soon.

Thank you all so much for your prayers. Your faith in God did not only saved his life on this earth, but your prayers and your faith helped save him from going to hell if he had died. He is not burning today because of your faith, your prayers and you standing strong on God’s word!!

Thank you for your faith in God, and remember trust in the WORD and let God bring it to pass! Your situations will change from hopelessness to a MIRACLE!!

God bless you all!

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808

401-377-5400

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Your Daily Bible Verse – 12-26-11

(Job 2:9-10 NKJV)  Then his wife said to him, “Do you still hold fast to your integrity? Curse God and die!” {10} But he said to her, “You speak as one of the foolish women speaks. Shall we indeed accept good from God, and shall we not accept adversity?” In all this Job did not sin with his lips.

Job holds a special place in my heart. He was a man who faced incredible adversity and yet he never gave up on God.

Job’s own wife told him to just curse God and die. Hmm… not very loyal, was she?

But seriously, what did it take for Job to hold fast to God while losing everything he had, including his family, and while everyone in his life who remained was telling him how foolish he was to hold onto his faith?

It took an absolute trust in God. It took a faith that could not be shaken by situations or circumstances. It took a faith in God that went beyond human logic and understanding.

We all need faith like that. We all need to learn to put our circumstances and situations lower on our list of priorities and put God first and let Him work our situations out for us.

Don’t get me wrong… it’s not always easy to do, but it’s something that we need to do. We need to learn to give our situations to God and keep our faith strong, even when the world around us is telling us to curse God and die.

So as I wrap this up, I want to share a little something with you that God showed me many years ago. Many of us have probably heard people talk about the patience of Job, but God showed me that Job had more than patience. He had incredible faith. So in the future, when you think of Job, remember his faith.

We all need faith like Job’s faith.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808

401-377-5400

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Your Daily Bible Verse – 12-24-11

(Luke 8:23-25 NKJV)  But as they sailed He fell asleep. And a windstorm came down on the lake, and they were filling with water, and were in jeopardy. {24} And they came to Him and awoke Him, saying, “Master, Master, we are perishing!” Then He arose and rebuked the wind and the raging of the water. And they ceased, and there was a calm. {25} But He said to them, “Where is your faith?” And they were afraid, and marveled, saying to one another, “Who can this be? For He commands even the winds and water, and they obey Him!”

This is Jesus… our Savior. He is the one who gave His life for us and whom we follow.

He spoke to the winds and they stopped. He spoke to the dead and they lived again. He touched blind eyes and they could see. He rebuked demons and they fled.

What is it that we really have to worry about? Isn’t our trust in the right place if we’re truly trusting God, through our faith in Jesus?

Our minds wander and they blow things out of proportion. We always tend to think the worst.

But if we truly learn to trust God, our worries will fade away and they will be replaced with peace and joy.

Tests and trials will surely come. It’s a fact of life. But worrying doesn’t have to follow right behind the tests and trials.

Let God build your trust and then give Him your worries.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808

401-377-5400

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Your Daily Bible Verse – 12-23-11

(Gen 2:2 NKJV)  And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done.

Oh how I love this verse…how God Almighty Himself took a rest after all His work. Do we understand that we need to rest, that we need to take a break and breathe? It’s OK to do this. It’s important to do this! There’s nothing wrong with us if we take a break once in a while. We’re not lazy, or slothful… we are simply resting, and following God’s example.

To have balance in all we do is wise. We need balance. All work with no play is not good. All play without work is NOT good. So, we say, work the week and play on the weekends.

For some of us there is no time, because on weekend is when we play catch up from the hectic week we had. This leaves us almost no time for rest and play. Not even a little.

Take some time and really pray about this. I know that even in this God can direct us and show us how to make things a little easier for ourselves. Too much work can be very stressful on the body, mind and soul and on our relationships with our spouse, our children, our coworkers etc.

Just a little reminder…get some rest/playtime. Laugh and have fun! God rested and so should we!!

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808

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Your Daily Bible Verse – 12-22-11

(Prov 3:5-6 NKJV)  Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; {6} In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.

Sometimes it can seem very hard to know what choices to make and what direction to take, when it comes time to make important decisions in our lives.

There are so many different things that can influence us or try to sway us. Everyone has their opinions and their point of view, and most of the time they’re more than willing to give it to us, even when we didn’t ask for it.

When we need to make a decision about something, whether it’s a big decision or a little one, we need to get God on it and hear what He has to say.

We may not always understand things… why we’re in a certain situation or why we’re supposed to do something a certain way, but that’s OK. God’s ways don’t always make sense to our carnal minds.

But if we trust in Him and acknowledge Him in everything, He will work it all out, in His timing.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808

401-377-5400

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Your Daily Bible Verse – 12-21-11

(2 Cor 9:6-7 NKJV)  But this I say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. {7} So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver.

I believe that as we give back to God a tenth of what He gives us, we will be blessed! I believe if we go beyond that and give more and do it with a good heart, we will see the things change in our situation.

Sometimes it’s hard to start giving if you have never been taught that this is important and is a key to getting out of debt, getting a job, or just changing your situation wherever you need change. When you sow into God and the work He is doing, you will be blessed.

Some of us are struggling today, even though we might be making good money, because it just goes to bills and other things. It goes as quick as it comes in. Well, God has away of teaching us the importance of sowing and reaping in this verse. It is one of the key things to getting out from under that feeling of never having enough and never catching up.

It’s so important to know where to sow your seed. Take for instance when you invest money in stocks; you are not going to invest in something that is not good. You do a search and you check it out and if you see its fruit, or you see it’s doing well then you invest because you know that you will see a return.

When you invest your seed where God wants you to, get ready. You will see Victory over your situation!

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808

401-377-5400

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Bible Verse of The Day – 12-20-11

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  • Faith

(2 Tim 1:7 NKJV)  For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.

One of our biggest enemies is fear. Fear will try to keep us from doing things that we need to do, simply because we’ve never done them before. Fear will tell us that we can’t be anything more than what we are now.

Fear will cause powerful people, even powerful people of God to run and hide. Check this out:

Elijah was a powerful prophet of God who was used by God in a very mighty way, even to destroy hundreds of false prophets. Elijah prayed and there was no rain for a very long time. He prayed again and the rain came! Elijah prayed for a dead boy and the boy lived again. And there was much more that Elijah did!

Despite all of the things that God did though Elijah, when fear came over him, he ran into the wilderness and hid! God rebuked him for it and Elijah repented, but you can see here what fear can cause us to do.

Faith is the opposite of fear. Faith releases us from bondage and gives us what we need to do great and mighty things for God and in the lives of those around us.

(Heb 11:6 NKJV)  But without faith it is impossible to please Him…

Our relationship with God is based on faith. It is the foundation that our relationship with God is built on.

Fear holds us back, but faith moves us forward. Never let fear hold you back.

Look fear straight in the face and tell it to leave, in the name of Jesus.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808

401-377-5400

If you know someone who will enjoy this or be encouraged by it, please feel free to share it with them!

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