Be Forgiving

Encouraging Words with Pastor Bruce & Suzi Elman

 I am sure you are familiar with the parable of the unjust servant.  The servant in this story owes the king a lot of money, but when he begs the king for mercy and promises to pay it all back if he will just give him a little more time, the king forgives the debt.  

Then the servant sees another servant who owes him a little bit of money (nowhere near the amount he owed the king!), and he demands that the servant pay him back immediately. When the servant begs for more time, he refuses and has him put into prison until he can pay back the full amount.  

The other servants are horrified at his behavior and tell the king what has happened.  The king calls in the servant and has him turned over to the “tormentors” until he can pay back the full amount.  

Any offense against God is a major offense, and yet God has forgiven us, and forgives us over and over again.  We pray the model Prayer asking God to forgive us AS we forgive others.  I’m not sure we mean it.  

Is there someone we still can’t forgive?  I’m not saying anything about forgetting.  Have we asked God to help us forgive?  The problem here is that a lack of forgiveness does nothing for the person not forgiven, but it can keep us from moving on in life spiritually healthy.  In our families, it can keep brothers and sisters or  parents and children apart, causing problems for generations.  Let us be more like the King and less like the unworthy servant. 

 

PRAYER:

Loving and forgiving God, sometimes there are people in our lives who have hurt us deeply and whom we find it hard to forgive.  Please help us to forgive so that we may have peace in our hearts.  In Yeshua’s Name. Amen. 

With lots of prayers & love,

Pastor Bruce and Suzi Elman

L’Chaim Messianic Congregation

Finishing with Joy

Encouraging Words with Pastor Bruce & Suzi Elman

Beginning something is easy, but finishing takes courage. In the early stages of something new, we get all excited about it, so we have a lot of emotions to support us. But when the emotions wear off and all that’s left is a lot of hard work and the need for patience, that’s when we find out who really has what it takes to reach a goal and truly succeed.

In GOD’s eyes we aren’t successful if we abandon what He’s called us to do. He wants us to finish and do it with joy! If you have been tempted to give up—don’t!

If you don’t finish the thing you are currently involved in, you will face the same challenges with your next endeavor.

GOD doesn’t promise that finishing everything we start will be easy.   Don’t quit! Rely on GOD’S grace and keep moving toward the finish line until you cross it in victory!

Hebrews 6:11-12
“And we desire that every one of you do shew the same diligence to the full assurance of hope unto the end:

“That ye be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises.”                

Is there any unfinished business in your life? Let’s encourage ourselves to set goals for finishing and be diligent to reach them! 

Yes! In Yeshua’s Name. Amen. 

Yom Tov –

Let’s begin this upcoming new year with these precious jewels!

 

Love & Blessings,

Bruce and Suzi Elman

L’Chaim Messianic Congregation

Spiritual Journey

Encouraging Words with Pastor Bruce & Suzi Elman

 

The life of a FOLLOWER of MESSIAH is a journey; it has stages of growth we need to reach on the way to spiritual maturity.

First: Salvation—we all begin our journey in the same place, spiritually dead and uninterested in what matters to GOD (Ephesians 2:1-2). Only through salvation (accepting YESHUA as your Savior and Lord of your life), can we receive the Holy Spirit, who creates in us a desire to know GOD and His Son! 

As we learn more about our triune GOD, our faith deepens and our hearts will swell with thanksgiving!!!!

That leads to the next step of our journey—serving Him! Our hearts will desire to give back to GOD in appreciation for His grace and mercy toward us!  But then we must focus on GOD’S plan for our life and not our plans. 

We’re to listen attentively to the voice of the Holy Spirit as He brings forth fruit in us (Galatians 5:22-23) to draw us into unity of service with fellow believers. Ephesians 4:15 … but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things unto Him who is the head of His body, the BODY OF BELIEVERS.

Growth is a key principle in a believer’s life. Spiritual maturity begins with salvation and follows with a lifetime commitment to be a servant for GOD. 

Are you dedicated to serving Him? It’s such a great, amazing blessing to know and serve Him! Wow!

 

With lots of prayers, love & shalom,

 

Pastor Bruce and Suzi Elman

L’Chaim Messianic Congregation

Lake Worth, Fl

Battling Faith

Encouraging Words with Pastor Bruce & Suzi Elman

Sometimes we may feel like our  life swings back and forth like a pendulum between faith and doubt! This is a common problem when trying situations come our way. Even though we know what GOD’s Word says, our feelings (the flesh) often tell us something totally different!

The question is not if we will experience this but rather how long we will remain on one side or the other. Three factors determine whether we lean toward faith or doubt: 

(1) Strength of our faith at the time of our trial. 

(2) Our knowledge and understanding of GOD and His Word.

(3) Our experience with failure or success in past trials! 

To grow in faith, it’s really necessary to change not only our focus but also our thinking and listening practices. 

We need to set our mind on GOD’s promises, not our feelings! 

Listen to the voice of the Holy Spirit—not Satan’s lies.

And remember GOD’s past faithfulness in trials!

James 1:6
“But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind.”

By choosing to walk by faith, it will be possible to bring feelings of doubt, anxiety, fear and anger into true full submission to what we know is true—GOD’s faithfulness will see us through! 

Yes! “PTL!” 

With lots of prayers, love and blessings,

Pastor Bruce and Suzi Elman

L’Chaim Messianic Congregation

Our Unique Role

Encouraging Words with Pastor Bruce & Suzi Elman

I don’t know how some in today’s congregations got the false idea that the preacher is a servant and we in the pews are just members! No one is to be a bystander in GOD’s kingdom! All believers are in partnership with the LORD (2 Corinthians 6:1). He chose to work through us to accomplish the Gospel mission on the earth. We are the workers harvesting His fields (Matthew 9:37-38).

GOD gives each believer one or more spiritual gifts to aid in the work for His Kingdom. We are each wired by GOD Himself with the ability to carry out our unique role in His Master Plan. He actually knits those spiritual gifts into our personality and in-born talents to create a useful and effective servant for Kingdom work!  Just to be clear, there is no such thing as an ungifted believer!

1 Corinthians 12:4-6
There are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but the same Holy Spirit is the source of them all. There are different kinds of service. But we serve the same Lord. God works in different ways, but it is the same God who does the work in all of us.                     

The RUAH HAKODESH has equipped us with GOD’s awesome power to obey Him in whatever He calls us to do. Especially now in this troubled world, the fields are ripe for harvest, and people are looking for hope. That hope is YESHUA (our Hope of Glory); let’s get busy! Yes! “PTL!” 

In Yeshua’s Name.  Amen.  

With lots of prayers & love,

Pastor Bruce and Suzi Elman

L’Chaim Messianic Congregation