Wednesday Thoughts

Pastor's Entry

January 28, 2026

Psalm 46:10 Be still and know that I Am God. I will be exalted among the nations; I will be exalted on the earth.

After a snow there always seems to be a stillness, a quietness, a hush, like the whole world has stopped for a moment. It's interesting that in this scripture the psalmist says to be still and know that God is God!! I have found in the stillness is when God speaks to me, which causes me to wonder is He always speaking to me, but because of the noise and chaos of the world I cannot always hear Him?
If we could learn to "Be Still" in our spirit how different our lives would be! We would be able to let go of anxiety and fear. We would be able to walk in the peace that passes all understanding in the good and the bad times. We would know our God and all that He is capable of! As we sit and be still, we can begin to have confidence in who God is, knowing that He is in control of it all!! Our lives, our families, our church, our world!! That we can rely on Him for everything...for He meets all our needs if we trust in Him...Yes! He does!
In the next sentence of this scripture our Lord says " I WILL BE EXALTED AMONG THE NATIONS; I WILL BE EXALTED ON THE EARTH!! I believe that once we truly know and understand who God is...we will exalt Him! We will know that His name is above all names!! That HE IS THE GOD OF THE UNIVERSE!! That all things are in His mighty hands.
What we are seeing unfold on this earth are signs of the times, they are signs to Christs church to be ready!! How will we hear His voice if we are not still before Him?? How will we know what to do?? How will we know how to pray?? How will we have the courage to exalt Him to the world??
My son got me an elliptical for Christmas, so the last few mornings I have gotten up and exercised for thirty minutes, and I listen for Gods voice, I turn on my praise and worship music and listen...how powerful is the time with my Lord! Oh, how we need powerful time with our Jesus...it is in that time He speaks so clearly that it truly amazes me!! It is like He has been waiting for me to listen!!
Dear church...from the bottom of my heart today I ask you to take time to be still and listen to what your Lord wants to say to you!! He is waiting on you to listen to Him...not just at church on Sunday but every minute of every day! We are witnessing what happens when we do not listen to the powerful voice of God...there is violence, chaos and confusion everywhere!! The body of Christ in this nation have forgotten who they are and Who they represent!! As the body of Christ, we need to be listening!! We need to be exalting the Name of our Lord!! We need to be still, be in prayer and standing strong in the face of this very present evil!
Romans 8:31 tells us, " If our God is for us, who can be against us??" Take this scripture today and be still and think on what it is saying!! Watch and pray dear church but most of all Be Still and Know who your God is and be amazed as the cares of this world grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace!!
May you all have a peaceful day as you listen for the voice of your Savior, Jesus the Christ!
Blessings, Pastor Karen

Past Entry

January 14, 2026

2 Timothy 1: 6-7 For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands., for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and a sound mind.

What kind of spirit are you living in today?? The spirit of fear?? The spirit of hopelessness?? The spirit of anxiety??
How do we overcome these devastating spirits?? How do we walk out of the bondage of fear, hopelessness, anxiety and many other things??
Paul is telling Timothy to fan into flame the gift of God that he has been given...what was Timothy's gift?? As I studied about him, he had a special motivation and empowerment from the Holy Spirit to fulfill his ministry!! Apparently, the flame was burning low and Paul was reminding him to fan into flame again what God had given him!! He was encouraging him in his faith and in his ministry! He was reminding Timothy that God does not give us a spirit of fear!! That God gave him a spirit of Power, of Love and a Sound Mind, and that these gifts must be constantly fanned into a flame!! Time and time again!!
How about us?? Do we fan into flame our gifts?? Our faith?? Do we continue to stay in the Word of God?? Do we continue to be faithful to a bible study or a church and hang close with other believers?? Those who can encourage us, walk with us and help us come up out of the pit??
We have seen that when an animal gets cut off from the herd, the predators move in, they wait for the opportunity to kill. When we cut ourselves off from the body of Christ, satan moves in... he prowls around like a lion waiting, just waiting for us to lag behind and if we are not careful, we will be devoured. That is when our circumstances start to look bigger than our God, when fear overtakes our sound mind and we lose our mind.
Dear church, satan comes to steal, kill and destroy, that is his mission. He is the father of lies and he whispers lies to us everyday, it is up to us whether we believe them or not...it is up to us whether we take the bait or not, it is up to us to choose life!!
Timothy had a calling on his life, so do we. Our Lord has given it to us and satan wants to stop it. Satan's playground is your mind if we allow him to play there.
Take back what the enemy of your soul is trying to steal!! Our Lord has promised to never leave us nor forsake us!! He has given us His Spirit, the Holy Spirit so that we are able to walk in POWER! So that we can LOVE like he does!! So that we have a SOUND. CLEAR MIND...and self control!!
So, when the attacks come think on Gods power in your life, His love that surrounds you and that He has given you clarity of mind!! Call out to Him and He will answer you!!
Dear church, hang on to Jesus who is the author and the finisher of your faith for He is faithful! Fan into flame the gift God has given you and ask Him to show you how to keep the fire burning!!
Blessings, Pastor Karen

Past Entry

January 7, 2026

Matthew 8:23 And when Jesus got into the boat, his disciples followed Him. and behold there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by the waves; but Jesus was asleep. And they went and woke Him, saying, "Save us, Lord; we are perishing." And Jesus said to them, " Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?" Then He rose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. And the men marveled, saying, "what sort of man is this, that even the winds and sea obey Him?"
A great calm...when we follow Jesus, we are promised peace that passes all understanding. Jesus walked in that peace when all around Him swirled lies, betrayal and chaos. When Jesus came on the scene, the whole world changed! Truth and justice, power and authority, amazing love and mercy walked with man. The establishment didn't like it, those who were corrupt in the world and in the church living off the people hated Him because he revealed the deep dark evil that they were living in.
When Jesus disciples followed Him into the boat...they had no idea of the wicked storm that was coming. They had no idea of what following Jesus would cost! If they knew, would they have followed??
As we watch the world and the chaos of it, we are called to walk in peace of Christ! So often we call out to God, "Save us Lord, we are perishing!!"
How long will it take for us to walk by faith and not by sight?? How long will it take for us to know the storms are coming and prepare to walk in peace through them all?? We know that in the end days the love of many will grow cold...yes, there will be great division in the world, there will be those who just cannot see the Truth, they have been blinded by the enemy of their souls.
When the disciples awakened Jesus, He looked at them and asked the question why are you afraid?? Didn't they know their Savior, their Redeemer, their Lord was in the boat with them?? Didn't they know who He was?? Even then??
O you of little faith...is that us?? When the world looks like it's going to fall apart where is our faith??
If Jesus the Christ lives in us, then we have the same power and authority to calm the storm around us...If Jesus the Christ lives in us the winds will cease, the sea will rest and there will be a great calm...If Jesus Christ lives in us the world will look at us and wonder what kind of people we are! Where nothing can shake us, nothing can stir us up, nothing can knock us down and no devil in Hell will keep us from getting into the boat with our Risen Lord and Savior Jesus!!
So, as we see more chaos happening all around us, know that Jesus is in the boat with us...His peace, His strength, His power are with us. Remember these are just signs of the age we are living in and as it says in Ecclesiastes 9 there is nothing new under the sun.
Our Lord is working and moving in our midst, there is nothing that surprises Him, our part in all this is to follow Him, obey Him and carry the peace that people are looking for pointing them to Jesus, the One who sleeps during the storms and tells us to do the same, sleep meaning resting in the knowledge of who our Lord is. He is the Storm calmer, the Way maker, the Miracle worker, Almighty God!!
Dear church, rest easy...our God is with us!
Blessings, Pastor Karen

Past Entry

December31, 2025

Luke 4:16-19 And Jesus came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up. and as was His custom, He went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and He stood up to read. And the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to Him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written, The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because he has anointed Me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering sight to the blind., to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor.

Happy New Year!! We get to begin again!! Did you make your resolutions for this year?? Or did you say just forget it because you never live up to them anyway!!
A new year is a new chance to proclaim the good news!! It's not really about us and our resolutions...it's about Jesus. If we are still on this earth, we still have a purpose, and it is to tell others about our Lord. No matter what is happening in our lives, CHRIST IS STILL KING!! A new year on the calendar doesn't change Him and what He has called us to do. The Word of God is still truth and is still as powerful as it ever was!!
Jesus knew what His purpose was and it was to proclaim the good news!! He came to set us free from sin and death...He came to open our spiritual eyes and to free us from the oppression of satan and his lies. To proclaim that when we belong to Him, we will have His favor upon us!!
This is the good news that gives us hope when another new year comes around!! It's not about the party, it's not about the drinking, it's not about the ball dropping...it is about Jesus and what He came for!! To give us a new beginning every day!! To give us a hope and a future!!
Jesus told His disciples that when He went to His Father that we would do even greater works than what He did if we believed in Him!! That whatever we ask in His name, that He will do it to glorify His Father!! (John 12:12-14)
What a great way to start the New Year!! Knowing that our Lord and Savior Jesus the Christ has commissioned us to preach the gospel!! To take the good news to all we know and to those who are strangers!!
So, what are we doing?? Let's resolve to follow Jesus more closely this year!! Let's resolve to look to Him for all we need!! Let's resolve to be bold and courageous with His word and do what He sent us to do!!
Matthew 28: 18-20 And Jesus came and said to them, " ALL AUTHORITY IN HEAVEN AND EARTH HAS BEEN GIVEN TO ME. GO THEREFORE AND MAKE DISCIPLES OF ALL NATIONS, BAPTIZING THEM IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER AND OF THE SON AND OF THE HOLY SPIRIT, TEACHING THEM TO OBSERVE ALL THAT I HAVE COMMANDED YOU!! AND BEHOLD!! I AM WITH YOU ALWAYS TO THE END OF THE AGE!
So, in this brand-new year let's think about what resolution Jesus would want us to make!! How refreshing that would be because He says He is with us always!! He will help us carry out the mission He has given us!! He is more than able and willing for that is His perfect plan for us!!
Happy New Year church!! And may this year's resolution be one of faith, may it be one that our Lord puts in your heart and may it be life changing as you follow Him and tell the GOOD NEWS!
Blessings, Pastor Karen

Past Entry

December17, 2025

Psalm 116:15 Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints.

This past Saturday we lost one of our beloved brothers, Alfred Freysz, he was ninety-three years old and lived a rich and full life. Alfred was one of a kind and his love and zest for life will forever remind me of how to live my life.
He loved his family, and he loved his Lord. He was feisty, kindhearted, of strong opinions and gentle. He was a mixture of all these character traits and that is what made him so special. He was who he was and did not apologize for that fact.
After every Sunday service his last words to me were "I love you and Jesus loves you!!" He would always encourage me to keep on preaching the Word, he loved to hear it!!
Psalm 116:16-19 O Lord, I am Your servant; I am Your servant, the son of Your maidservant. You have loosed my bonds. I will offer to You the sacrifice of thanksgiving and call on the name of the Lord. I will pay my vows to the Lord in the presence of all His people, in the courts of the house of the Lord, in the midst, O Jerusalem. Praise the Lord!!
Yes, Alfred was a servant of his Lord! He knew the price that had been paid for him, and he never forgot it! He was not ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ, and he proclaimed it and lived it wherever he went!!
In his last hours as he waited for His Lord to take him home, his grandson read him the Psalms' and as he read, Alfred lifted his hand in praise for His risen and faithful Lord...no fear...just trust in the One of Whom he had believed in for most of his life.
Oh, that we should all be that ready to meet Jesus!! To know and realize that what we have believed all our years was TRUE!!
As Alfred opened his eyes for the last time, this peace that passes all understanding came over him and he went home...his real home, to the mansion that had been prepared for him.
Dear church, Jesus is the Prince of Peace, not the worlds peace but His peace. The peace that holds us in the storms of life, the peace that transcends our human understanding, the peace that Alfred had at the end of his earthly days with us.
In this season of Christmas, I ask you to remember your Savior Jesus amidst all the chaos and craziness of this world.
As I pulled up to Ann and Alfred's home that night, it began to snow and this amazing peace when I stepped out of my car surrounded me. My Lord Who cares about us all gave me the same peace and assurance and a knowing that my dear brother Alfred was with Him. What a comfort, what a blessing to know that Alfred knew Jesus.
Do you know Jesus?? Do you truly know why He came?? Do you know the Prince of Peace??? Do you know how much he loves you??
Dear Lord, I ask today that if there are any reading this message that do not know Jesus to turn to Him and ask Him into their hearts, time is short, our days are numbered. So, in this season of giving...give the greatest gift you could ever give to those you love, give your life to Christ!! THE KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS, AMEN!
May the peace of Christ be with you all now and forevermore.
Blessings, Pastor Karen

Past Entry

December10, 2025

Luke 2:6 -7 And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped Him in swaddling clothes and laid Him in a manger because there was no place for them in the inn.

From the beginning, everything that happened to Jesus, every detail had a purpose and was a sign for all those who believe in Him as Savior and Lord!
Mary wrapped Jesus in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger. Mary did you know the significance of this act?? She was just doing what every mother did for their newborn babe...as she wrapped Him in swaddling clothes. However, this represented our Lords full humanity and His identification with those He came to save. It also represented His humble birth as he came into the world. Swaddling cloth were linen strips of cloth wrapped around the baby to keep them warm and to keep their limbs straight...the same material that was used for swaddling was used to prepare the lambs for sacrifice in the Temple. Linking the " Lamb of God" (Jesus) to His eventual sacrifice for all mankind. The same cloth was also used to wrap Jesus after His crucifixion! Isn't that amazing!!
And Mary laid Him in a manger...the Son of God and the Son of man...in a manger?? Usually, a trough made out of stone, cold and hard. The Savior of the world!! In a manger!! Jesus came to serve, He came to love, and He came to die for the sins of all mankind. He didn't come to rule over us; He came to show us a better way...he came to set us free from the captivity of satan and his lies, He came to deliver us from evil, He came so that we might live in eternity with Him as He sits at the right hand of the Father!!
He didn't come in luxury as most kings did, He didn't come with accolades as most kings did...He came as one of us...the shepherds were the first to be alerted to His coming!! The lowliest of all men saw Him first!!
Jesus came to turn the world upside down and he did!! The last shall be first and the first shall be last!! Everyone who humbles himself before God will be raised up!!
There was no place for them in the inn...tell me, is there a place for Jesus in our lives?? In our hearts?? Or are our hearts to full of other things??
Make room today for your risen Lord, He died for you!! He lived for you!! He calls out to you to follow Him!! Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life!!
No matter what we have done, no matter where we have come from, no matter the sins we have committed, He came to cover it all!! He knows our frame, and He knows our hearts, and He came on that dark cold night to set us all free!!

Past Entry

December 3, 2025

Luke 2:7 And she gave birth to her firstborn Son and wrapped Him in swaddling clothes and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

Jesus, His first appearing...His unassuming entrance into the world...how amazing. His mother Mary and His earthly father Joseph thought they were the only ones who knew he was born!! In this dark and lonely stable, unseen, unknown, without even a bed to lie in the Savior of the world was born... I wonder were they thinking that they had heard the Lord wrong, that the angels were just messing with them and none of what they said was true!!
Then suddenly Lord of the universe gave them a sign of hope!! A sign of His promise and that His words were true!! Because all of a sudden, the shepherds show up!! How did they know?? How did they know where to find them?? How did they know that this babe in a manger was the Son of God and the Son of man??? They came and they worshipped!! They came seeking who the angel had told them about!! " Fear not!! For I bring you good tidings of great joy that will be for all people!! For unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Savior who is Christ the Lord!! And this will be a sign for you; you will find Him wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger!!
YES!! There he was, just as the angel had said!!
I believe that Mary and Joseph needed a sign!! Think of their discouragement in not being able to even find a room for them to stay...think of the worry of knowing that soon this baby was going to be born, and the stable was the only place for them...Think of the weariness of what they had just been through and then to have to lay their precious child in a manger wrapping Him in swaddling clothes...trying to keep Him warm through the cold night.
I think the importance of the shepherds is overlooked, they were not only the first to see Christ, but they were also the first of the signs to Joseph and Mary that this was real!! That this little One was truly the Son of God!! That He truly did come to save the world!! That the angels were not messing with them!! That all that had been told to them would come to pass!! That the prophecies of old were in their lifetime being fulfilled!!
JOY TO THE WORLD THE LORD HAS COME!!
Much like Mary and Joseph...we can become discouraged, we can become weary...but our Lord is coming back as a Warrior King this next time and we must be looking for the signs!! So that when he comes, we are ready!!
I would say to you church, do not grow weary, do not be discouraged for Christ is coming again, that the prophecies will be fulfilled, and we will see Jesus!!
JOY TO THE WORLD THE LORD IS COME AND HE IS COMING AGAIN!!! YES!! JOY TO THE WORLD!!
Blessings, Pastor Karen

Past Entry

November 26, 2025

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you!

There are so many of us looking for Gods will in our lives. Looking for purpose.
This afternoon we had a major temperature change, it went from 65 degrees to a windy 50 degrees, just like that!! It just so happened Toccoa was here when it happened...and as I grumbled about the change, I watched Toccoa run and dance in the wind!! She looked at me and said I love the wind!! It didn't matter to her that it was a cold wind and that that cold wind was pushing out that beautiful warm weather!! She just enjoyed what was happening...every moment.
It's no wonder the Lord tells us to come to him as little child!! Just the joy, the exuberance, the whatever comes attitude!! What a way to live!!
Dear church, tomorrow is Thanksgiving Day...a day that is a reminder to us to give thanks...why do we need a reminder??
Can't we as followers of Christ do as the scripture says?? Pray without ceasing...let our life be a prayer, let our thoughts always be on our Lord. Give thanks in all circumstances...ALL!! Not just in the good times but at ALL times!! I believe our Lord perfects our faith in the bad times! We learn to rely on Him, trust in Him, call on Him!
And believe it or not this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for us!! Yes! This is God's will!! This scripture has the answer that so many are looking for!!
This is our purpose!! This is God's perfect plan for us!! When we pray, when we give thanks...our Lord works His perfect will in our lives!! There is a joy that comes in trusting our risen Lord!! There is a freedom that only our Lord can give, so that when the cold wind blows, we can dance in the wind!! We can look with joy and say I love the wind!! We can lift our hands and say, "Thank You Father!" for the wind, the storms, the test and trials, for in all of these we are being refined!! We are being made new!! We are being sanctified!!
So today I thank You Lord for Your perfect will for my life!! Let's all give thanks to our Father who is so, so good!! And may all of our days be full of thanksgiving to our Lord for His perfect will for us.
I pray blessings for you today church, I ask the Lord to bless you with life and life abundant! And may we remember to pray and give thanks and know that we are in God's perfect will.

New Beginnings Covenant Brethren Church