UPDATE YOUR STATUS (WITH JESUS)

The message is called UPDATE YOUR STATUS.

Listen well.

Podcast Powered By Podbean

Rev. Anderson T. Graves II is the pastor of Hall Memorial CME Church

Call/ fax: 334-288-0577
Email us at hallmemorialcme1@aol.com   
Friend Pastor Graves at www.facebook.com/rev.a.t.graves  

If you want to be a blessing to this ministry, contributions may be made by check or money order made  out to: Hall Memorial CME Church

Mail all contributions to :

Hall Memorial CME Church
541 Seibles Rd.,
Montgomery, AL 36116

A WORD TO THE WISE: Proverbs 26: 15

Proverbs 26: 15     The lazy man buries his hand in the bowl; it wearies him to bring it back to his mouth.

Proverbs 26: 15.  When my children were infants, I spoon-fed them.  I’d stir the baby food to make sure the temperature was uniform throughout and pull the little baby spoon through the top layer of mush.  I’d wipe the bottom of the spoon on the lip of the jar and make faces at my baby so she’d/ he’d open wide.  Spoon in. Lift. Slide out. Catch drool. Repeat.

I did this because they were helpless infants.  When my grandfather, the original Anderson Graves, was sick from a series of strokes and unable to take care of himself,  I spoon-fed him, too.

Grandpa’s moved on, and my youngest is 9.   I don’t spoon-feed anymore. 

We’ve gotten home late from a game and my daughter’s been so tired & sleepy that when we sit down to eat, she’s too exhausted to lift her own fork.

I’ll say, “You must wanna sleep more than you wanna eat,” and I’ll let her leave the table and go to bed.

I love my kids, and I set food before them, but if they won’t lift the food to their faces, they don’t’ eat.

I love them, but I don’t spoon-feed them anymore.

The moment you’re in may be new and scary for you, but you’re not a baby anymore. Ask what you need to know.  Listen and learn what you need to do.  Seek the resource, acquire the skills, connect with the people who understand your situation.  But don’t sit around waiting for Jesus to personally ride in on a white horse and rescue you.  (When that happens it’ll be too late to deal with your stuff anyway.)

Your Heavenly Father places opportunities and resources before you, but the season of spoon-feeding is over.

You may be weary, worn, and sad.  You may be genuinely wounded by life.  You may just wanna sit down and do nothing.  I understand, but that means that you wanna sleep more than you wanna succeed.

Your hurt doesn’t make you helpless.  Get support.  Accept help.  Share your burden.  But, you have to do what you need to get done. 

Your Father in Heaven loves you.  He is with you, always there with you.  He  protects you.  He empowers you.  He guides you.  He provides for you. 

But you’re grown now.  Nobody, not even Jesus is gonna spoon-feed you anymore.

----- Anderson T. Graves II

Rev. Anderson T. Graves II is the pastor of Hall Memorial CME Church

Call/ fax: 334-288-0577
Email us at hallmemorialcme1@aol.com
Friend Pastor Graves at www.facebook.com/rev.a.t.graves

If you want to be a blessing to this ministry, contributions may be made by check or money order made out to: Hall Memorial CME Church

Mail all contributions to :

Hall Memorial CME Church
541 Seibles Rd.,
Montgomery, AL 36116

FAMILY & FRIENDS WEEKEND AT HMCME

Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brothers & sisters to dwell together in unity!—Psalm 133: 1

Hall Memorial CME Church (541 Seibles Road, Montgomery) invites all to join us for FAMILY & FRIENDS WEEKEND on Saturday & Sunday, May 26^th & 27th, 2012.

The Weekend kicks off Saturday, May 26^th, with a Community Picnic from 10 A.M. – 4 P.M.  There’ll be free food, music, moonwalks, & more.

Sunday, morning at 11 A.M., guest messenger, Rev. Gloria Longstreet will bring the message. 

At 2:30 P.M.,  Sunday, May 27^th, join us for the Community Worship Service.  Hall Memorial’s  own Pastor Anderson T. Graves II will bring the Word.  Refreshments will be served following the afternoon worship service.

For more information or for directions, call (334)318-3004 or e-mail HallMemorialCME1@aol.com.

If you’ve ever visited Hall Memorial CME Church, come back.  If you’ve never been by to see us, come on over.  You are our family.  We are your friends.

Hall Memorial CME Church:  The Church Where Faith Works!

HOW TO GET BETTER AFTER THE STORM

A county commissioner in a storm ravaged county was interviewed about the aftermath of storms  on April 27, 2011, that left 250 people dead across the state of Alabama.  He said that the despite the cost of the tragedy, that day of storms had actually made the folks of his county become better people.

Is that kind of transformation possible when the storms are psychological, financial, or spiritual? 

Yes, it is.

Open your Bible and your mind.  Learn How to Be Better After the Storm?

Listen well.

Podcast Powered By Podbean

Rev. Anderson T. Graves II is the pastor of Hall Memorial CME Church

Call/ fax: 334-288-0577

Email us at hallmemorialcme1@aol.com  
Friend Pastor Graves at www.facebook.com/rev.a.t.graves 

If you want to be a blessing to this ministry, contributions may be made by check or money order made  out to: Hall Memorial CME Church

Mail all contributions to :

Hall Memorial CME Church
541 Seibles Rd.,
Montgomery, AL 36116

A WORD TO THE WISE: Proverbs 26: 14

Proverbs 26: 14     As a door turns on its hinges, so does the lazy man on his bed.

Proverbs 26: 14. People move doors move all day long, but though the doors move, they never go anywhere.  It’s easy to become that kind of person--- moved by others, directed to open/ close, go/return, move out of the way/ stay there behind me.  It’s as easy as falling asleep to find yourself constantly busy doing stuff but never actually accomplishing anything; constantly in motion but still, still always right where you were before.

Like a stupid door.

So read John chapter 10. 

In the 9^th verse, Jesus called Himself “the door”  but He didn’t stop there.  He also called Himself the Good Shepherd who leads the sheep in and out through the door.

It is good and right to work on behalf of others, to help them make the transition from the old place in their lives to the next position God has for them.  That’s part of our calling, but there’s more.

Jesus didn’t just open the path from Earth to Heaven for others. He travelled the path Himself. 

The solutions you see so clearly are for you to share with others, but those solutions are also for you to apply yourself.   Your gifts, your anointing should open the door to a brighter future for others; but they can also open the door to a brighter future for you. 

Be careful not to neglect or diminish your service to others (That’s the primary purpose & practice of your anointing.).  But add to your schedule the extra waking hours you need to figure out how to walk the path you so naturally guide others along.

Change the world, and change your world, too. 

----- Anderson T. Graves II

Rev. Anderson T. Graves II is the pastor of Hall Memorial CME Church

Call/ fax: 334-288-0577
Email us at hallmemorialcme1@aol.com
Friend Pastor Graves at www.facebook.com/rev.a.t.graves

If you want to be a blessing to this ministry, contributions may be made by check or money order made out to: Hall Memorial CME Church

Mail all contributions to :

Hall Memorial CME Church
541 Seibles Rd.,
Montgomery, AL 36116

ACT LIKE A What, THINK LIKE A Who?

Steve Harvey's "Act Like a Lady, Think Like a Man" was generally applauded when the book came out.  The worst of the criticism was leveled at the movie.  The book is advice, direct, I'm telling you to do this stuff for real advice; and though some folks disagreed, most of those who spoke/ posted about it referred to Mr. Harvey's wisdom. 

The movie on the other hand is point-blank fiction.  It's a made up story presented purely as entertainment.  It wasn’t distributed as a documentary.  "Think Like a Man," the movie no more claims to be true than "Avengers."  

So, why are folks angrier about the fictional movie than the non-fiction book?   Why are we more emotionally invested in entertainment than in truth? 

Now, I’m not saying that Brother Steve’s book is truth.  I bought and read it--- way before the movie.  I thought there was some wisdom in it, some great jumping off points for a discussion between a man and woman about what they expect and need from one another.  But, a lot of what he said was wrong.  Some was wrong as in inaccurately taking his personal stuff and assuming it to be general principles for all men.  Some was wrong as in directly the opposite of what God has said.

My question is:  Why are we more personally and emotionally attentive and invested in fictional entertainment than in actual questions of truth?

An hour-and-a-half movie is really a 2 ½ hour investment of time.  That’s fine, but let church go from 11-1:30 and see how folks act? 

Mid-week concerts sell out all the time, but mid-week Bible study?  Folks gotta get up and go to work the next day.

To find a sale on shoes or suits we’ll search the internet for hours, print coupons, call stores, text and download promotion codes, input coordinates into GPS, create itineraries based on store openings, and scout locations in advance.  But, if we have a question about life and how to save our family and someone responds, “Let’s pray and search the scriptures for an answer,”  we’re likely to say (or think), “That takes too much time.  I need an answer right now.”      Really?

Really?

It’s a twist of the culture.  It’s a sign of the times.  It’s a flaw in human nature.  But most of all, it’s a dangerous way to arrange our lives.     Truth should not take a back seat to entertainment.

Jesus said that He is the Truth.   He also said that He is the Way and the Life.  

Jesus never said that He was the leisure, the distraction, or the entertainer. 

No doubt, worship can and should be engaging, exciting, and passionate.  We can lose ourselves in the experience.  But that’s not all (or mainly) what Jesus calls us to.

He calls us to love like Him (John 15: 9-17).  He calls us to serve like Him (Matthew 20: 26-28).  .  He calls us to learn of Him (Matthew 11:29).  

If you and I are really going to keep calling ourselves Christians and claiming the promises of Christ’s Kingdom, we really need to invest in the Truth of Christ at least as much as we invest in Christian entertainment. 

We need to learn how to Act like a Christian, Think Like Jesus.

And, you’re not going to learn that from the movie.

You’re gonna have to read The Book.

----- Anderson T. Graves II

Rev. Anderson T. Graves II is the pastor of Hall Memorial CME Church

Call/ fax: 334-288-0577
Email us at hallmemorialcme1@aol.com
Friend Pastor Graves at www.facebook.com/rev.a.t.graves

If you want to be a blessing to this ministry, contributions may be made by check or money order made out to: Hall Memorial CME Church

Mail all contributions to :
Hall Memorial CME Church
541 Seibles Rd.,
Montgomery, AL 36116

A WORD TO THE WISE: Proverbs 26: 13

Proverbs 26: 13     The lazy man says, “There is a lion in the road!  A fierce lion is in the streets!”

Proverbs 26:13.  The road leads from your general position to the distant, the long term destinations/ destiny to which God has called you. The streets run right up to and from where you are right now.  The streets are the short term paths that you must negotiate to reach the roads of greatness. 

But you think there’s a lion on the road, and you think there’s a lion prowling the streets.  Before you even take the first step of progression from where you are to where you say you want to be you begin to obsess over the potential problems, the inevitable difficulties, all the reasons why you “know it won’t work,” all the people who “ain’t gone let you do that.”  Long term and short term, you believe there will be some lion enemy standing in the way of you making any real change.

And maybe you’re right.

I mean, in the most basic sense every Christian faces a lion in the road and a fierce lion in the streets.

1 Pet 5:8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. 

The devil does want to steal your joy.  He is looking for a chance to steal your blessings.  He and his agents are actively pursuing an opportunity to destroy your potential for fruitfulness in the Kingdom of God.   The obstacles, the enemies, the traps, the schemes, the lions ---- are real.

So?

So, what?

You still have places to go.  You still have things to do.  Lion or no lion, sitting in the same place doing nothing more and nothing better?  Nah, dude.  That’s not an option.

Sooooo?  What about the lions?

You know what will make a lion shut up and get off the road?   A bigger lion. 

When the biggest lion roars, all the little lion enemies lower their heads and back down---- except those who are part of the biggest lion’s own pride/ family.  They walk behind the biggest lion without fear. 

And guess what? 

The other lions don’t mess with the biggest lion or with the biggest lion’s family, not when they stick close.

Jesus Christ, the lion of the tribe of Judah, is the Biggest of all the lions.  Next to Him, satan’s a kitty-cat.  Oh, satan’s scary compared to you or me, but compared to Jesus?  Pssh! Whatever, man.

If you have somewhere to go in life, just walk with Jesus.

Hosea 11:10 “They shall walk after the Lord. He will roar like a lion. When He roars, Then His sons shall come trembling from the west.

When you line up your walk closely with God then He actually grants you authority to act on His behalf against the lions who stand in your way.

 Consider Samson. 

Judges 14: 5, 6.  So Samson went down to Timnah with his father and mother, and came to the vineyards of Timnah. Now to his surprise, a young lion came roaring against him.

And THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD came mightily upon him, and he tore the lion apart as one would have torn apart a young goat, though he had nothing in his hand. …  (Judges 14: 5, 6)

Don’t fear the lions in the street or the lions in the road.   Don’t let the possible (or actual) problems and opposition keep you from giving new & better service to God.  Don’t let fear (or laziness disguised as fear)  keep you in the same place doing the same little or nothing you’ve been doing. 

Get up, get out, and go handle your Father’s business. Just stick close to Jesus, the lion who roars from Heaven.

----- Anderson T. Graves II

Rev. Anderson T. Graves II is the pastor of Hall Memorial CME Church

Call/ fax: 334-288-0577
Email us at hallmemorialcme1@aol.com   
Friend Pastor Graves at www.facebook.com/rev.a.t.graves  

If you want to be a blessing to this ministry, contributions may be made by check or money order made  out to: Hall Memorial CME Church

Mail all contributions to :
Hall Memorial CME Church
541 Seibles Rd.,
Montgomery, AL 36116