Month: September 2016

Bible Verse of The Day – 9-19-16

James 3:7-8 (NKJV) 7 For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and creature of the sea, is tamed and has been tamed by mankind. 8 But no man can tame the tongue. It is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison.

Of the many members that comprise the human body, none is as powerful as the tongue.

No matter how small or insignificant it might seem, it has power that most can’t even fathom. Yes, it can hide innocently inside of our mouths, concealed from sight most of the time.

But the devastation and destruction that the tongue can unleash are beyond comprehension. Men and women fall because of it. Nations go to war because of it. Eternal destinies can be altered by it.

We can build incredible structures, travel to planets and orbit the earth in a space station. We can bring many things into submission, and modern technology has taught us to accomplish so much.

Yet we cannot seem to tame the tongue. The number of sins committed with our tongues far outnumbers all other types of sin.

Yes. The tongue is unruly and full of poison.

So, what can teach us to tame our tongue? How can we bridle this seemingly untamable part of our bodies?

By the power of God’s spirit!

Only by God’s power can we begin to bring this member of our body into submission. Without Him, we are powerless to do anything good with it. But with Him, we can learn how to tame it and cause it to become a member that produces fruit, in our lives and the lives of others.

Let’s let God show us and teach us how to tame our tongues, starting right now.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

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

401-315-0902

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Bible Verse of The Day – 9-17-16

1 Thessalonians 5:18 (NKJV) 18 in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

Paul doesn’t say to only give thanks when things are going well. Or give thanks when we are in the mood. He doesn’t say, give thanks only when we are in church or at Bible study. Nope. He said, “in EVERYTHING”!

Why?

Because it is the will of God in Christ Jesus for us. There is no other reason other than it being God’s will.

That is reason enough.

This is a nice little reminder today to not put off our thankfulness for when we FEEL like it, or when we have received our answer from God. But to stop what we are doing and give Him thanks, love on Him and show Him how grateful we are.

There will always be some situation or someone that will try to keep us from being thankful. But that is not going to stop us today. We are going to be thankful anyway. Amen.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

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

401-315-0902

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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Bible Verse of The Day – 9-16-16

Ezekiel 37:4 (NKJV) 4 Again He said to me, “Prophesy to these bones, and say to them, ‘O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord!

The prophet Ezekiel had been taken up in the Spirit. During this time, God showed him a valley full of dry bones. Ezekiel remarked that not only were there many, but there were very many! And not only were the bones dry, but they were very dry!

As God showed him more, He told Ezekiel to prophesy to those bones and speak life back into them! So Ezekiel spoke to them and watched as God restored their muscles, their flesh and their breath. And they lived again, in numbers of an exceedingly great army!

And God showed Ezekiel that these were representatives of the nation of Israel. Israel had become very dry and separated from God. They were spiritually dead.

And God spoke once more to Ezekiel and told him to prophesy again to them, telling them that He would put His spirit in them and they would indeed live and possess the land that He would provide for them. And in these things, they would know that He was God.

And so we speak to you, the body of Christ, today! We speak life into your tired, dry, weary spirits! Breathe again, in the name of Jesus. Let God renew your spirits. Let Him pick you up and re-create you, making you new in Him!

Let Him clean off the dirt and the cares of the world. Let Him show you how to cast off all that would try to weigh you down and dig a hole and bury you. Rise up, church, and live again!

Shake off the burdens of man-made traditions. Leave behind the rituals that would try to bind your hands and rob you of the freedom that Jesus died to give you.

Be still and let God fill you with His mercy and compassion. And receive His joy, for it is His joy that gives you strength!

Live again, bride of Christ! Live in the fullness that Jesus gave us. Amen!

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

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

401-315-0902

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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Bible Verse of The Day – 9-15-16

Jeremiah 29:11 (NKJV) 11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.

It’s important that we know what God thinks of us. People’s opinion of us can sometimes sway us to the left or the right. People’s opinions or words over us can affect the outcome of our lives hugely.

Why do we let what people think and say about us affect us? Why do we let it mess with our minds and emotions, causing us to sometimes be less than who God really wants us to be?

As children, we learn from the beginning that we get different responses and reactions from people based on what we do. If we’ve done something good and mom’s happy with it, we know that what we did was a good thing.

As we grow up, we learn what works and what doesn’t work to get praised or get a good reaction from others. And we carry that throughout our lives, when we go to school or work a job, etc.

Wherever we go, we watch and look for the reactions of others and we then base who we are on their thoughts about us and toward us. Our confidence gets built up on what others think or say about us.

God is saying today to each one of us, personally, that He has thoughts toward us! Our confidence should come from Him and Him alone.

Are we listening to His thoughts toward us today or are we letting everyone else mold us?

He has a future for each one of us. He tells us who we are and who we will become. Amen.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

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

401-315-0902

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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Bible Verse of The Day – 9-14-16

Psalm 46:10 (NKJV) 10 Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!

Being still is one of the hardest things any of us will ever be told to do by God.

You would think that sitting still would be easy. You know; just sit there and don’t move. But that is really hard for most of us to do.

Why? Because our minds like to try to figure things out. We like to know what’s going to happen. We don’t like surprises or the unknown. We like to be in charge.

For some of us, we just have a hard time waiting. We know something is coming. But we don’t know how or when. And it makes us antsy; we can’t sit still. Some of it is due to excitement. Some of it is due to not knowing what else to do. So we just want to move… do something!

But this is where we’re tested. This is what can make or break some of us. This is where we learn how to listen and obey God’s voice, even when it might seem like we’re not hearing anything.

But it’s while we’re sitting still, not moving and not saying anything, that we really start to see God move and Hear Him speak. And it might not happen in the time frame that we’d like it to.

But that’s OK. Because we’re not the ones in charge. He is.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

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

401-315-0902

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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Bible Verse of The Day – 9-13-16

2 Corinthians 12:9 (NKJV) 9 And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.”

His grace is sufficient. There is nothing that His grace can’t handle.

It doesn’t matter if our sins are “little” or “big”, His grace is sufficient.

It’s important for us to know that having something that we struggle with isn’t enough to push God away or cause Him to turn away from us. It’s because of our struggles that we need Him. If we were perfect, we’d have no need for His grace and mercy.

Matthew 9:12 (NKJV) 12 When Jesus heard that, He said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.

And there is no “issue” that we can bring before Him that He can’t handle. His grace is sufficient.

The key to all of this is one word; struggle. For if we’re struggling, it means that we’re trying to do right. We’re trying to obey, but we struggle with getting it right. Underneath the struggle, though, is a sincere effort. A genuine desire to put that sin behind us and move beyond it.

So if you’re trying, don’t give up. Keep seeking God and making an effort to get it right. If we keep trying, sooner or later we will get it.

And in the meantime, God’s grace is sufficient.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

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

401-315-0902

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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Bible Verse of The Day – 9-12-16

Hosea 4:6 (NKJV) 6 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being priest for Me; Because you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children.

Knowledge and understanding are so critical in our walk with God. It isn’t necessarily worldly or natural knowledge that we need. We shouldn’t be ignorant when it comes to the matters of the world, but getting God’s wisdom is the most important thing.

So many times we can cause problematic situations in our lives to be prolonged because we lack God’s knowledge, wisdom and understanding. As we face trials and tough situations, it really helps to know what God’s word says about various things that we encounter.

This helps us to be able to make wise decisions and choices quickly. And not only does it save time, but it keeps us from falling prey to things that will harm us or those around us.

Proverbs 16:16 (NKJV) 16 How much better to get wisdom than gold! And to get understanding is to be chosen rather than silver.

Sharp discernment is also very important, as it will help us know how to judge the things we’re seeing and hearing around us, so we will know whether it’s God speaking to us or not. And once we learn to recognize God’s voice, that will also help us to follow His direction.

John 10:27 (NKJV) 27 My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.

Get knowledge. Get Wisdom. Get understanding.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

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

401-315-0902

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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Bible Verse of The Day – 9-11-16 – You Could Be The Answer to Someone’s Prayer

Have you ever considered that you could be the answer to someone’s prayers? It’s true!!

Click here to watch a message on this topic now.

God uses each and every one of us to bless others, just as He uses others to bless us. We are His tools… His hands and His feet.

Click here to watch a message on this topic now.

Understanding this very important Biblical principle will help us unlock the blessings in our own lives too. So it’s critical that we get God’s wisdom on this topic.

Please take a few minutes to watch this video and then be sure to share it with others.

Click here to watch a message on this topic now.

Be abundantly blessed, in the name of Jesus!

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
PO Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808

401-315-0902

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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Bible Verse of The Day – 9-10-16

Matthew 7:9 (NKJV) 9 Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone?

How many of us have asked God for something at some point in our lives? Everyone has. Right?

But how many of us were disappointed when we got something other than what we asked for? If we’re honest, most of us will admit to being disappointed.

But here’s the thing. If we ask for something that God knows won’t be good for us, would He be a good father if He just went ahead and gave it to us anyway?

You see, sometimes when we ask, God does answer with something different than what we asked for because He doesn’t want us to get hurt.

If our own child asked us for something that we knew would harm them, would we just give it to them for the sake of making them happy? We’d better not!

If we ask for bread, and we’re hoping for rye bread, God just might give us pumpernickel bread because He knows there’s something about rye bread that will harm us.

So if we’re praying and we get something less than or different than what we prayed for, we need to thank Him for it! And we need to be grateful that He takes our well-being into consideration.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

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

401-315-0902

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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Bible Verse of The Day – 9-9-16

Numbers 14:24 But My servant Caleb, because he has a different spirit in him and has followed Me fully, I will bring into the land where he went, and his descendants shall inherit it.

God mentioned above that Caleb had a different spirit. The difference in Caleb’s spirit was that he recognized his own weakness and yet had no problem believing that His God would give them victory over the giants in that land.

He knew that God wanted them to possess the land, and no matter what it took, it would be the way God said it would be.

That’s the difference in spirit.

What were the other men saying? “We can’t, they are too big, it’s not for us.” They were weak, full of doubt and looking for sympathy.

Even though they looked like they were afraid and scared, in reality they were full of pride. They thought, “if we can’t do it, comprehend it or see that it’s possible, then we need to dismiss it”. They thought that if they couldn’t do it by their own strength then it couldn’t be done. They left God completely out of the equation!

That is full-blown pride right there. Because it’s in our weakness that God’s strength is made perfect. Acknowledging our weakness and letting God help us is the different spirit that God was referring to.

So many people miss out on the things God can do because of the different spirit, the spirit of pride that will dismiss the next step; The most important step. The step that involves humility and accepting God’s help.

Are we letting God’s strength be made perfect in our weakness today? Or do we dismiss something because we can’t figure it out intellectually?

It’s the humble, those who admit their weakness and allow God to help them through it, that will reach the promised land! Amen.

James 4:10 (NKJV) 10 Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.

What is God showing us today? Are we admitting we can’t do it without Him? Are we willing to let Him teach us something outside of what we already know?

Let Him help us reach our promised land today by acknowledging that we need Him.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

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

401-315-0902

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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Bible Verse of The Day – 9-8-16

Galatians 2:1 (NKJV) 2 Then after fourteen years I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, and also took Titus with me.

14 years!

In the verse above, Paul is telling about his travels and the works that he did to plant and grow churches in the early New Testament days.

Let’s look at one little part of this verse that has nothing to do with Paul’s topic of discussion; 14 years.

As Paul tells of his discussions with other leaders, he mentions various periods of time for his visits and his travels. Sometimes it’s days. Sometimes it’s months. Other times it’s years.

Most times you and I tend to read right through these numbers and pay little attention to them. But as I read this passage last night, it struck me that Paul specifically mentioned that 14 years had passed between his visits to Jerusalem. That’s a long time!

So what’s the point in this devotional? Why focus on 14 years and not on Paul’s topic of discussion?

Because that 14 years says a lot!

From the day of Paul’s encounter with Jesus and then his subsequent conversion, he spent his life traveling, teaching, overseeing and growing the body of Christ. He traveled for years on end and worked tirelessly, despite being beaten for preaching the gospel, shipwrecked multiple times and even stoned and left for dead. And all of this because of his faith!

But let’s look at ourselves. So many times we ask God for something. And then when a few weeks has passed, we throw our hands up in the air because we don’t have our answer yet. Or, better stated, we didn’t get the answer we were looking for in the time frame that we wanted it in.

But let’s remember Paul. He didn’t give up if he didn’t see the results he was looking for right away. He didn’t rely on his understanding of things based on carnal knowledge, intellect and human logic. He listened to the Holy Spirit and let God lead Him in everything.

So let that 14 years help us to put things into proper perspective. God moves in the timing that He does because He sees the big picture and has infinite understanding. While we have limited vision and finite understanding.

His understanding is always better than ours.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

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

401-315-0902

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

To have the Bible Verse of The Day delivered to your inbox each day, please Click Here and then enter your email address in the box near the upper left corner of the page.

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