The sooner you can rejoice in your adversity, the sooner you will be delivered from the bondage of that situation.

Philippians 4:4 Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!

What adversity do you need to overcome through rejoicing?

I apologize for the delay in sending you today’s message. In my devotional on November 26, I committed to share photos and highlights from the November 25 Culpeper Community Thanksgiving Service on Nov 27. However, like many of you, my past few days have been filled with enjoyable moments with family and friends during this special Thanksgiving week.

I remain acutely aware that for many people, including those with estranged families or who have recently lost loved ones, the holiday time can seem quite lonely and even depressing. Please pray for my dear friends Sharon and Jerry Graham. Sharon’s father was in a car accident last week and died on November 24. His memorial service was held on November 28 in Pennsylvania. When I spoke with Jerry on Nov 29, he told me Walter’s funeral was the best one he had ever been to and that it was extremely well attended. Lois Lucas, Walter’s wife who is in very poor health, was able to attend the entire service. Thank You Jesus.

Along with other members and guests of the Culpeper Ministerial Association, I was privileged to attend a luncheon at noon on Tuesday November 25 with Dr. John W. Kinney. That tradition of meeting with the keynote speaker for lunch on the day of the Culpeper Community Thanksgiving service began last year and it’s something I really look forward to.

The actual Culpeper Community Thanksgiving service in the evening on November 25 was awesome. I estimate that about 500-700 people came. What impressed me the most was the level of worship and the UNITY, especially between races and churches. Thank you to all the local government and school officials who came.

While I truly enjoyed every part of the two hour service, these things stood out for me:

1) The love and passion (burning fire for Jesus), manifested by our local pastors such as Mark Jenkins, Dr. Ted Fuson, Jeff Light, Habacuc Diaz Lopez, Charlene Phillips, Michael Gray, Jacob Phillips, and Randy Orndorff.

2) The lyrics and passion in the songs sung by the Culpeper Middle School choir, Immersed (Lee Catherine Clayton and Cammie Shelatz), Laura Nelson, and  Mrs. Janette Smith.

3) The strong support for the Culpeper Food Closet and the new homeless initiative by the Culpeper Ministerial Association. Thank You to Pastor Chad Whaley for launching the latter. Jesus told us to take special care of the downtrodden – the poor, the hungry, the widows, the orphans, the sick, and those in prison. When the Body of Christ does that, people will be attracted to Jesus.

4) Dr. John W. Kinney’s passionate message about rejoicing always. He emphasized that we are to rejoice in the Lord, not necessarily in our circumstances.

5) Pastor Randy Orndorff’s very touching and authentic message about his daughter Kelsey and the significance of the number 33.

Prayer Power
Heavenly Father, thank You for the passion for Jesus You are stirring up among Your people in Culpeper and Virginia. Thank You for the UNITY among pastors and races. May You add many more logs to the spiritual fire until finally a forest fire of revival and awakening breaks out to impact the word for Jesus. Amen and hallelujah!

Link of the Day
Photos from the 2008 Culpeper Community Thanksgiving service:   Flickr   Facebook

Blessings to choose to rejoice in the Lord always, not in your circumstances!