Welcome to this edition of the Weekend Sermon. For me, each Friday is a day to look forward to since that is the day when I will post the sermons. I hope that all of you are doing well, and I want to thank you for taking the time to read the blog.
This week has been so hot where I live that I think it is the hottest few days that I can remember in the last decade. The humidity is so high that I cannot breathe when I go outside for long at all. I am praying for all of the people in my little town who don't have any air conditioning. They've been offered help, but they won't take it. I am grateful for all of the organizations in my area who have been trying to get air conditioners put in for the elderly who can't afford to buy one.
I just wanted to report that after a period of delay, I am making great progress on the book I've been working on. I am now hoping to have it ready by the end of the year if all goes well. More about this in the days to come.
In prayer this week, let us remember those who are injured and those who are in grief because of what happened in Nice, France. Please continue to pray for an end to terrorism in this world, and let us pray for peace. Please focus your prayers for peace this week on Syria and Iraq. There are so many problems in these two nations.
For our prayer focus countries this week, let us pray for Gambia and Turkey. Pray that people in these two nations will respond to the message of the Gospel.
During the course of the last few weeks, we have been alternating back and forth between two series of messages one series focusing on the Ten Commandments and the other series focusing on the lessons I have learned from the animals in my life. Today, we will continue with our lessons from the animals series.
I know that the title of today's message says that this is a lesson from a dog named Colm, but that is only part of the story. It is actually a lesson from Colm, Blue and Toby. It is a lesson about fear and not being afraid.
First of all, let me introduce you to Colm and Blue as I've not written that much about them here on the blog. Colm was a yellow Labrador Retriever that I owned in my early thirties. He was a beautiful dog who loved to play and play rough.
Colm liked to play soccer with me, and if I would bounce the ball to him, he would head it back to me. Colm also liked to play with the little football. If I held on to that football for too long, he would tackle me and jump on me until I let go of it. Football was his favorite game in the world.
When Colm came to live with me, I made him a really nice place outside so that he could get fresh air and not have to be in all the time. I had a high-quality dog house for him to go into if it started to rain while I was away. There was a problem. Colm was afraid to go into his dog house. He would rather sit in the rain and get drenched than go in it. If it started to rain, I had to make sure I got home so I could get him in or he would be soaked. He would look inside that dog house and just back up as if he'd seen a ghost.
Colm wouldn't go in that house until one day something frightened him more than going into the dog house. A huge tractor with many mowers attached to it came by in the field behind my house. Colm bolted into the house to get away from the noise. From that time on, he was never afraid to go in there. He learned not to fear it.
Another dog I know that experienced fear was one of my Dad's coon hounds named Blue. Blue was a very large bluetick coon hound with a deep bark and a sorrowful howl. Blue was afraid of everything, he was afraid to come out and walk around with my Dad or meet any other dogs. It took many weeks of my Dad working with him before the fear started to leave Blue and he could live the ordinary life of a dog.
Now, one dog who wasn't afraid of anything or anyone was my best friend Toby. He would have gone after a herd of elephants if he thought that they were trying to hurt me. He was the toughest and bravest dog that I have ever known.
Fear played a big part in my life. I think it had something to do with the environment in which I was raised. In my world, love seemed very conditional, and as a young person, I was always afraid that I would do the wrong thing and I would be looked down upon. This made me fearful in social situations and led to my avoidance of situations that made me uncomfortable.
Fear can bring a lot of stress to a person's life and limit one's life and one's opportunities. Overcoming fear has been one of my greatest goals in life. I don't want to miss out on things because of fear.
Growing up, I was taught to fear God. This was not a holy awe or respect. Jesus was presented as judgmental, and if you stepped out of line, He would punish you severely.
I was able to overcome this religious type of fear by learning who Jesus really was. As I've stated on the blog previously, I decided to read everything I could about Jesus' life and ministry. I learned about how much Jesus loved me and how much He cared about me. Learning about His perfect love let me cast off my unwarranted fear of the Lord Jesus. The Bible speaks about this in I John 4:18 which says, "There is no fear in love, for perfect love casts out all fear."
Jesus also said that we do not have to be afraid when He is around. Jesus told His followers on a number of occasions such as in Matthew 14:27 that they should not be afraid.
If you have been raised in a religious tradition where Jesus was presented as angry, judgmental and unloving, please read all that Jesus said and read about what He did. If you do this, you will see who Jesus is, and you will not be afraid.
Colm was afraid because he wouldn't go into a place he had not been before. If you have not really studied the life and ministry of Jesus, you cannot know who He really is and how much He really loves you and cares about you. Jesus wants to be your friend, Savior and Lord. He wants to be with you and help you through all of the struggles of this life.
You may be limiting yourself in life because of fear. You don't try to get a better job or you don't step out into the ministry that God has called you to because you are afraid. Don't let fear hold you back. The Lord said in Isaiah 41:10 that we don't need to fear because the Lord is always with us. He will give us the courage and the strength of His presence to meet each challenge in life if we will call upon His name.
Fear can grip our hearts when we see all of the pain and the terrible things that are happening in the world right now. The world is an unpredictable place. Don't let fear grip your heart. As Christians we need to realize that if we are in Christ, ultimately nothing bad can really happen to us. Why? Because even if we forfeit our lives, we will be with Jesus for all of eternity. Those who are in Christ have eternal life, so we need not fear what man can do unto us.
A minister of a large church near where I live often makes the statement that for Christians, "The worst thing is not the last thing." This means that even if the worst in life befalls us, we need not fear because Jesus is on the throne, and we will be with Him for eternity no matter what happens in this earthly life.
Don't let fear hold you back. Trust in the Lord Jesus knowing that He is with you always, and He will be with you forever and forever.
Next week, I will post the verses on Monday. I hope to have a review on Wednesday, but I am not sure right now. I will continue with the series on the Ten Commandments next week. May God bless you all. Amen.
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