Bringing Back God: Pray

 

PASTOR JOHN COLLINS MARIETTA PA and BRISTOL TN, BRINGING BACK GOD has preached in his sermons about bringing your troubles and problems to Jesus and the cross through prayer.  Prayer is what we need to do as Christians when we are happy, when we are sad, when we are scared-pray ALL the time. Paul in 1 Thessalonians 5:17 (KJV) says – “Pray without ceasing.” In other words, pray all the time.  Pray to Jesus for forgiveness, pray for others who pass in your path, pray for your family, pray for thanks for everything God has given you, PRAY. If you need guidance, wisdom, direction, PRAY. It’s how God hears us.  The Holy Bible says”If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all [men] liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him” (James 1:5, KJV). Your salvation relies upon prayer-prayer is asking for forgiveness, repenting your sins, and seeking guidance in how to love thy neighbor.  Praying for others is loving your neighbor.  If you can’t do anything else for them, you can pray.  The power of prayer is awesome, according to PASTOR JOHN COLLINS MARIETTA PA & BRISTOL TN.

Giving thanks is something that God wants us to do all the time.  The Bible says God is a jealous God.  This means he wants our full and undivided attention and that he needs to hear that we love and appreciate him.  He needs to hear that we love and appreciate him in prayer and in action.  Action is by putting on the armor of God and defending Him no matter what. Believing in Him 24 hours a day, no matter what. No exceptions. 1 Thessalonians 5:18 (KJV)- “In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.” Good or bad, give thanks.  In everything bad that happens, there is something good that comes of it.  Tornadoes strike, people are killed, does this draw people to God?  Yes.  Does this draw people to help their neighbor?  Yes.  That is the good side to a disaster. You make a terrible mistake, a lesson is learned and the next time something similar happens, the good side is that you won’t do it again.  Give thanks for the lesson, after you’ve prayed for forgiveness.

God wants to hear our prayers.  Pray to Him through Jesus Christ.  Find your way to the cross, like PASTOR JOHN COLLINS preaches.

God bless you.

 

Bringing Back God: Mistakes

We’ve all made mistakes: we re all sinners.  Some mistakes are worse than others, but we can’t seem to help ourselves-we re human.  There was only one perfect human that ever existed, and his name is Jesus Christ, according to PASTOR JOHN COLLINS BRISTOL TNand MARIETTA PA, BRINGING BACK GOD.  PASTOR JOHN COLLINSsays that he wasn’t always a preacher, and that he was as big a sinner as there was, but since he found his way to the cross though the love of Jesus Christ, that he is saved.

God knows that we make mistakes as humans.  He tried to give the Israelites hope by giving them Moses and the commandments to follow.  They couldn’t follow them even long enough to let Moses get off the mountain with them.  For centuries man tried to save himself through the laws of Moses, but temptation to the idols of other counties won because man just could not obey.  Obeying the Word of God can be simple or it can be complicated.  Ezekiel the prophet was directed by God to eat a scroll so that the Word of God would fill his belly.  To us today, and likely then as well, this would be a difficult task to eat a scroll of paper.  But-he did it and found it to taste like honey.  How much easier it is to obey God’s word in spite of our fears or our ignorance-the outcome is so much better for all of us.

Because we had such a difficult time following the laws of Moses, and so much sin still existed, God sent His Son Jesus Christ to die for us on the cross for our salvation.  Our redemption is because of his sacrifice on the cross.  He died so we could have our mistakes-sins-forgiven.  We need to seek Him for forgiveness so that we can be with God in heaven.  It’s really simple.  Repent, believe, be baptized, obey God, help your neighbor, and do this 100% everyday.

The Holy Bible directs us not to fear God: “Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.” (Isaiah 41:10, KJV).  All we have to do is believe and know that God really is right there beside us, and once we ask for our mistakes to be forgiven, let it go.  It’s done.   Don’t make the same mistake twice, or sin the same sin, though.  God knows when we mean it. Peace be with you.

God bless you.

Bringing Back God: Let it go

Ever hear the phrase “if you love something, let it go, if it comes back, love it forever?” We as a human race have a hard time letting things go, whether it is relationships or our belongings. As Christians, we need to let go of our old selves, to be born again and become a new person, according to PASTOR JOHN COLLINS, MARIETTA PA 

PASTOR JOHN COLLINS, MARIETTA PA and BRISTOL TN, BRINGING BACK GOD,tells us that he used to be so far from the cross that he needed binoculars to see it-we need to find the path to the narrow gate that will let us in to eternal life.  Find our way to Jesus.  Seek forgiveness and repent those old habits and relationships that hold you down and that could drown you in sin.  Ask Jesus to help save you in prayer.  Be baptized in water, love thy neighbor, repent your sins, perform works and deeds that will help keep you on that path to eternal life.  “Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” Matthew 6:19-21.

“No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other.  Ye cannot serve God and mammon.  Therefore I say unto you, take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink, nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on.  Is not the life more than meat and the body more than raiment?” Matthew 6: 24-25.

Don’t hoard things here on Earth, let them go, whether it is a bad relationship or ‘stuff’ that you accumulate.  You can’t take it with you, and it doesn’t do you any good at all to hold onto it.  PASTOR JOHN COLLINS tells us that we all are given hope through the crucifixion of Jesus, that he helps us find eternal life.  We need to let the material go, and seek the hope that Jesus brings us:  Hope is like sunshine, everyone needs a ray of it.

God bless you.

 

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Bringing Back God: Rejection

Everyone has been rejected sometime in their lifetime-as a child by friends one tries to fit in and often gives in to peer pressure.  As an adult, you still try to fit in: to be one of the country club guys, to be one of the party time girls, to fit into sororities and fraternities, to belong.  Rejection comes from friends, family, spouses, employers: rejection comes from all over.  How do you react to it, asks PASTOR JOHN COLLINS, MARIETTA PA and BRISTOL TN, BRINGING BACK GOD. Do you lash out at everyone around you, making others’ lives miserable as well as yours?  Do you sit in a corner and pout or pull a pity party for yourself, still making yourself miserable and likely others around you?  Or do you give it to God?

PASTOR JOHN COLLINS preaches from the Holy Bible 100% and believes every word that is written in it.  He says that Book says that God is with us all the time, no matter what and He knows what it is that we need before we know it to ask for.  We are tried daily for our faith to become strong in God and Jesus, because God wants our souls redeemed.  That is why He sent His son, Jesus to Earth, according to PASTOR JOHN COLLINS, so that we can redeem our sins through Jesus Christ and His death on the cross, his resurrection is our salvation.  So, should we mope about or act out our frustration and anger when we are rejected?  No.  We should turn to Jesus and God: that is what They are there for.  Prayer, redemption, support, relief.  Do you value the opinion of men over God?  That is what the negative feelings related to rejection are-you value what others say over what God wants for you.  The Pharisees were like this. John 12: 42-43: “Nevertheless among the chief rulers also many believed on him; but because of the Pharisees they did not confess him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue: For they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.”(KJV). Let go of those feelings of rejection.  Simply love God.  Don’t push Him away. Give your feelings of rejection and self pity over to Jesus and ask for forgiveness for not trusting in God.  Find your way back to the cross, seek forgiveness, stop feeling sorry for yourself in whatever manner you do it.  Run your race and live each day to its fullest.Don’t dwell, harp, or wonder what if.  Eventually, you will be rewarded.  You just have to trust God.  Fully.

God bless you.

 

 

Bringing Back God: Say God bless you, I love you

Try something new that will bring a smile to someone’s face.  It feels awkward at first, but once you start doing it, some people begin to pause, hear what you say, and react to it.  Say “God bless you”.  And to those who it could matter to, say “God bless you, I love you.” PASTOR JOHN COLLINS, MARIETTA PA,  and BRISTOL TN, BRINGING BACK GOD, encourages the church family to treat each other as Christians, and to try to lift someone’s spirits by saying God bless you, I love you. You could be the only person in someone’s day that said something nice to them, you could lift someone who is wallowing in sorrow out of it for a time, you could actually change someone’s attitude from one of depression/suicide to one of relief that someone actually noticed and cares. It isn’t difficult to say.  Uncomfortable if it is unfamiliar, but really easy once you get used to it.  Say it at the toll booth, at the fast food cashier, in the check out line at the grocery store, the gas station, to someone who holds the door-it doesn’t matter who, just say it.  And watch their expression change when they actually hear it.

Proverbs 16:24 says “Pleasant words are as a honeycomb, sweet to the soul, and health to the bones.” (KJV). Kind words, such as God bless you, I love you, say so many things to other people.  It tells them that you care enough about them for God to bless them.  It says you are acting as a Christian, in the manner that Jesus taught-love thy neighbor.  God wants us to love one another, to make each others lives more bearable. He sent Jesus to us to save us, and when saved, it is our responsibility to help save others, to bring them to the cross.  PASTOR JOHN COLLINSsays he used to be a huge sinner, that he was so far from the cross he needed binoculars to see it, now he is so close he has splinters in his hands.  He says that is what Jesus wants for us, to be so close to the cross that we can feel the love and salvation that comes from his crucifixion.  1 John 4:7 “beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God and knoweth God.” (KJV). True knowledge of God means believing that Jesus Christ died for our sins and brings us the ultimate Love: eternal life.  Saying God bless you, I love you can truly  lift someone’s spirits.  It is the best wish that you can give someone.

God bless you.

 

Bringing Back God: God’s Grace

How many times has something happened to you that could have been bad, but something, somehow saved it from happening at the last minute? Missing the guide wires of a telephone pole by slipping between them and the pole on a motorcycle for some reason. A school bus full of band students that lost hydraulics and drifted out of control, to be stopped for some reason before toppling over a 25 foot embankment. How about something good?  Can you remember that as easily as the bad? The unexpected blessing of a phone call from a friend just when you need them.  A hug from a child when you don’t expect it. Or, the blessing of unexpected cash.  God’s grace is everywhere.  PASTOR JOHN COLLINS, MARIETTA PA and BRISTOL TN, BRINGING BACK GOD has preached about God’s grace and mercy and how we don’t recognize it when it’s right there in front of us!

God has been providing grace to humans ever since Adam and Eve. God kicked them out of the Garden of Eden.  He could have very easily killed them.  He didn’t though, and mankind has been fighting with Satan and the original sin of Eve ever since. Man’s will has changed and redirected God’s plans for us so many times, it can’t be humanly counted. Sodom and Gomorrah were meant to be an example of God’s wrath toward the out of control sin of man, yet chapters later in Genesis, we read about Noah and the ark with God planning on sending a flood for 40 days and nights because man’s will messed up again. The Israelites ended up wandering for 40 years before they got to the Promised Land because they weren’t patient enough waiting for Moses to return and they built a golden calf idol.  God’s will: get them out of Egypt into the Promised Land.  Man’s will: lose faith while Moses is away getting the commandments. Outcome?  No Promised Land for 40 years.

PASTOR JOHN COLLINS has preached that God’s ultimate grace is sending his Son Jesus to live among us and then die on the cross for our salvation by his sacrifice. Jesus knew that was what he was here on Earth for, and He has been the only person who was perfect enough to follow God’s will.  By the grace of God, we are saved.  We are redeemed through the death of Jesus so long as we repent and confess our sins, be baptized with water, love God and Jesus with all your heart, soul, mind, strength, love thy neighbor, help your neighbor-works and deeds.  He doesn’t ask for much in return.  Believe in Him and give Him your soul.  Acknowledge that He holds your life in the palm of His hand.  In a blink, your life can be gone whether you are ready or not.

We, mankind, have slapped God in the face so many times with our lack of faith, using the church as a means to make money at the expense of those who need it, degrading the pulpit through immoral acts that go against the Holy Bible and God’s commandments, taking Him out of the classroom, out of the government that was founded upon the presence of God and the freedom of religion in the first place, taking Him out of our families, and in some cases, taking him out of church and making it a theatrical presentation rather than a spiritual uplifting! We are privileged if God even decides to give us a blessing of His grace at this point! Yet he still does bless us with day to day rewards as well as larger blessings.  We just need to open our heart and understand what he is giving us.

Ephesians 2:8 – For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God.

Faith and grace go hand in hand.  Your faith gives you God’s grace.  Take care of your heart, and earn God’s grace.

God bless you.

Bringing Back God: If you met Jesus today…..

Jesus is coming back.  PASTOR JOHN COLLINS, MARIETTA PA and BRISTOL TN, BRINGING BACK GOD, has preached that Jesus is going to return.  PASTOR JOHN COLLINS fully and 100% believes in the Holy Bible and all that is says. In John 14:3 (KJV) he points out “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you unto myself; that where I am there ye may be also.” In 1 Thessalonians 4:16 (KJV) “For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first.”Matthew 24:42 (KJV) “Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.” Mark 13:35-37 (KJV) “Watch ye therefore: for ye know not when the master of the house cometh, at even, or at midnight, or at the cockcrowing, or in the morning:  Lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping.  And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch.” There are more, and it all says the same thing, Jesus is coming back.

What if he is here, right now, checking things out?  And you happened to come across him in the course of a day….would you know Him?  He could be the guy on the side of the road looking for a ride, the woman who has no food, rooting through a trash can, he could be the Harley rider with tattoos covering his arms like a sleeve, could he be the Middle Eastern guy standing in line at Walmart….what would you do?  Would you just walk or drive on by?  Would you try not to look at Him, not knowing who He was? What should you do?  You won’t know who He is if he is here today, no one would.  Jesus taught us to love thy neighbor, He taught us to do unto others as you would have them do unto you…..would you want someone to just walk by and ignore you as you root through the trash for a bite to eat?  Can you imagine standing on the side of the road in the heat waiting for a ride for two hours because you have no other means to get from here to there?  Would you want someone to judge you because you have tattoos on your body?  Do you want someone to just smile at you and make eye contact because you are the only Middle Eastern person among a whole community of Caucasians?  Jesus would want you to reach out to each and every one of those people, and it doesn’t matter if they are Jesus or not….as Christians, we are to treat everyone as if they are Jesus.  And we don’t.  What a pitiful country we have become.

What can we do?  PASTOR JOHN COLLINS, MARIETTA PA and BRISTOL TN, at BRINGING BACK GOD preaches salvation.  We need to seek salvation from the cross…ask for forgiveness for the treatment of our fellow man, seek repentance, be baptized in water, and take care of your fellow man.  You don’t know when Jesus is coming, and you don’t know if you are actually standing beside him in the grocery store.  Treat Him, and your neighbor, as you should.  With respect and caring.  Give Him the love that He gave us as the ultimate sacrifice so that we have eternal life.

God bless you.

Bringing Back God: Sacrifice

Sacrifice. It means to offer something for a higher purpose. PASTOR JOHN COLLINS preaches about sacrifices in the Holy Bible during his sermons at BRINGING BACK GOD.The Old Testament shows that God gave man specific directions to sacrifice to redeem his sins. Abraham was asked to sacrifice his only son Isaac to show his love and faith and commitment to God.  Because of his faith, God provided a ram caught in a bush to sacrifice (Genesis 22: 1-14).  God’s ultimate sacrifice is His Son, Jesus Christ, who is called the “Lamb of God” because He came to this world for one purpose only-to be sacrificed to die for man’s sins. To redeem us.  In MARIETTA, PAand in BRISTOL, TN, PASTOR JOHN COLLINS preaches of coming to the cross of salvation, to be redeemed by the sacrifice of Jesus.

God loves us and does not want us to suffer in eternal damnation for the sins that we commit everyday.  We are all sinners, we do not obey or listen to the will of God. What does He want in return for His ultimate sacrifice of his Son? “O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?” Micah 6:8. (KJV). He wants us to love our neighbor, be humble, seek forgiveness of our sins and forgive others for their sins. Is that so much to ask of us? He wants us to accept Jesus as our Lord and Saviour, to seek salvation by repenting our sins, being baptized of water, then doing good for others by loving our neighbors, to love God with all our heart, all our mind, all our soul, all our strength. To love God because he offers us eternity in heaven rather than eternity suffering in hell. The sacrifice that he expects in return from us is so much easier than what was expected of man in the Old Testament, and so much love is poured out from God through his Son Jesus.

Find your way to the Cross of salvation.  Seek Jesus.  Listen to PASTOR JOHN COLLINS on blogtalkradio.com/pastorjohncollins. Stop by BRINGING BACK GOD in BRISTOL, TN or in MARIETTA, PAand talk to someone about your questions, your fears, your concerns.  God loves you.

God bless you.

 

 

Bringing Back God: tame the tongue

The Holy Bible talks about how the tongue cannot be tamed: “The tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell.” James 3:6. (KJV). “Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord: but they that deal truly are his delight” Proverbs 12:22.(KJV) “He that speaketh truth sheweth forth righteousness: but the tongue of the wise is health. There is that speaketh like the piercings of a sword: but the tongue of the wise is health.” Proverbs 12:17.(KJV).  PASTOR JOHN COLLINS in MARIETTA PA and BRISTOL TN atBRINGING BACK GOD and on blogtalkradio.com has spoken out about taming the tongue–curbing slander and gossip, about not being busybodies and thinking before you speak.

So many times people cannot leave well enough alone. They see someone who is hurting and instead of being Christian, and giving a hand up, they kick them and continue to kick them while they are down, or behind their back.  There are some people that when a Christian does help them out, instead of being thankful and grateful, they give lip service behind the Christian’s back and stir up all kinds of problems, in addition, they look for more help rather than helping themselves, as if they are owed something. Christians who actually do help people out by giving a hand up, not a hand out, are rare today. Jesus died leaving apostles to spread the news of the Christian way, to love thy neighbor and to help thy neighbor.  This has been lost on the population today.  Rather than accepting help, and being thankful, people who are not Christian do not understand that helping others is helping yourself on the road to salvation, promised by the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus.  Those who are non Christian see Christians as a means to an end, having no faith, taking advantage and sowing discord as they go.  When they don’t get what they want from the Christian, they lash out even more.

This is a slap in God’s face.  Instead of them seeing the Christian as someone who is trying to save their soul, they attack them, they attack the church, and sometimes question God why can’t they have more?  Sooner or later, God will take vengeance on these people.  Jesus says to turn the other cheek, but you can only do that so many times before God sees that an intervention needs to happen.  God’s vengeance is very plain in the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, God’s vengeance is detailed in Acts when Ananias and his wife were killed for lying to the Holy Ghost, in how the Israelites roamed the desert for 40 years until that generation died and none were left of the original peoples who left Egypt.  God only lets it go so far, then his wrath comes forth.

Gossip and slander is equivalent to the sins of murder and adultery. “Speak not evil one of another, brethren, he that speaks evil of his brother and judges his brother speaks evil of the law and judges the law, but if you judge the law you are not a doer of the law but a judge. There is one lawgiver that is able to save and to destroy. Who are you that judges another?” James 4:11-12. Gossip and slander murder reputations.  Reputations take a lifetime to build, and only seconds to destroy has been said by PASTOR JOHN COLLINS both in sermons and on blogtalkradio. Murder is murder, whether it is physical or whether is it verbal.  It is a sin and it is wrong: it is as wrong to murder someone or a church with words as it is to physically kill someone with a gun or a knife.  People just don’t see it as the same thing, but it is very very clear in the Bible.  All through it.

Stop falsely attacking others’ reputation. Stop gaining pride at the expense of others. Become humble, have humility. God saves those who have humility. God will have vengeance on those who maliciously attack Christians who have been wronged by gossip and slander.  PASTOR JOHN COLLINS preaches humbling yourself and making a u-turn in your actions, go back toward the cross and the salvation of Jesus Christ. There is only one way to save yourself, and it is to repent your actions and seek forgiveness.

If you want to talk to someone about gossip and slander, stop by BRINGING BACK GODin BRISTOL, TN and you can talk to PASTOR JOHN COLLINS or one of the others of the church family.

God bless you.

Bringing Back God: Bullying

Do you have any idea what kind of impact your words and actions make upon another person? Imagine being a young child who is facing a group of children alone, and they are telling that child that they are worthless, useless, not wearing the right clothes, the right shoes, wearing their hair the right way. And worse, they tell the child if they cry, then they are really worthless.  If the child runs away, cries, or tries to defend himself, it is worse for him. In telling adults what has happened, the child is told that it is their imagination, that the others are just jealous. If this continues through childhood, the child can become withdrawn, defensive, act out…there are so many ways that the child can react or become. Self confidence and security are important developments in children, and when they are removed from the child, there is no telling what will become of the child: anger, bitterness, become a bully and manipulator himself, turning on others? Jesus says “Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones; for I say unto you, That in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven”: Matthew 18:10. Also, Jesus said “Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.” Matthew 25:40. God and Jesus love children. Abusing one of them, whether verbally or physically, is an abomination, according to the Holy Bible. They need to be nurtured and built up, not brushed aside and left to their own devices.  The child who is not nurtured can grow up to be the worst person that could exist.

Now imagine what bullying is like when it is enhanced with the electronics of today.  So many people can jump on the bandwagon, driving someone to commit suicide, or ruining careers and lives all for the sake of feeling good at someone else’s expense.  It doesn’t matter if you are a child or an adult, bullying is a sin. It causes people to do things they may not otherwise do. Jesus and God don’t want us to feel like we are worthless-God made us to be happy.  Man’s will can destroy that happiness. Hopelessness, fear, anxiety, are all things that Jesus wants to take away from us.  His resurrection gives us hope, according to PASTOR JOHN COLLINS, of BRINGING BACK GOD, BRISTOL, TN. Bullying can be seen as slander and gossip. “Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasteth great things.  Behold, how great a matter a little fire kindleth.  And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell.  For every kind of beasts and of birds, and of serpents, and of thins int he sea, is tamed, and hath been tamed of mankind: But the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil full of deadly poison.” James 3:5-8. God does not like slander and gossip, it is the same as murder in the eyes of the Lord. That group of children effectively murdered the spirit of the one young child that was left to figure it out on his own. Those who bully and slander on the internet murder the spirit of people to the point of suicide: it is a sin the same as murder, which PASTOR JOHN COLLINS preached while at BRINGING BACK GOD, MARIETTA, PA.

As Christians, we need to stand up and help those who are affected by slander: first to stop it then to help heal the person who has suffered the effects. PASTOR JOHN COLLINS preaches fellowship so that we can come to love one another, exhort and support each other through the words of Jesus Christ. Salvation from the cross comes by repenting, then baptism by water.  But for salvation to be complete, a Christian needs to do works and deeds, love thy neighbor, love God completely, and stop and ask if what you do would be pleasing to God.

Don’t buy into the tearing someone down just because it makes you feel good.  The fallout from it is like a smothering blanket-people can’t always come back from it or they become someone no one really likes at all.

If you need someone to talk to, stop by BRINGING BACK GOD at 1505 Broad Street, BRISTOL, TN. You can hear an excellent sermon by PASTOR JOHN COLLINS on the internet at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/pastorjohncollins.

God bless you.