Living here in the Pacific NW, I’ve grown up loving the mountains. Almost everyone here loves the mountains, from Mt. Hood near Portland, to Mt. Rainier near Seattle, to the mini-mountains of the coastal mountain range to the multi-peaked Cascade Mountain Range — we love seeing our giant mounds of dirt and rock!

]]> http://www.tenthdotministries.com/anything/feed/ 0 http://www.tenthdotministries.com/jesus-joy/ http://www.tenthdotministries.com/jesus-joy/#comments Thu, 19 Jan 2012 04:25:58 +0000 Joe http://www.tenthdotministries.com/?p=9446 We are told a few times in Scripture what makes Jesus joyful. Jude 24 is one of those places:

“To Him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before His glorious presence without fault and with great joy…” — Jude 24

]]> http://www.tenthdotministries.com/jesus-joy/feed/ 0 http://www.tenthdotministries.com/praying-in-the-new-year/ http://www.tenthdotministries.com/praying-in-the-new-year/#comments Tue, 03 Jan 2012 08:00:00 +0000 Danny http://www.tenthdotministries.com/?p=9331 Praying in the New Year

What new prayers will you have this year?

Ephesians 6:18

And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. 

We are called to pray on all occasions with ALL KINDS of prayers and requests. It seems simple but sometimes we end up praying the same kind of prayers. In the New Year make a commitment today to pray new prayers.

]]> http://www.tenthdotministries.com/praying-in-the-new-year/feed/ 0 http://www.tenthdotministries.com/a-friend-like-epaphras/ http://www.tenthdotministries.com/a-friend-like-epaphras/#comments Thu, 15 Dec 2011 08:00:40 +0000 Joe http://www.tenthdotministries.com/?p=9216 In over 16 years of full time Christian ministry I have never heard anyone say, “Man, when I grow up, I want to be just like Epaphras!”

I know what you’re thinking… “Serious Joe, not one?!?!?”

Weird huh?

Then a couple of times He taught about prayer by using the illustration of a judge. In Luke 18 He does the most unusual thing — He uses a judge who is entirely unmerciful and unkind. Check it out:

Do you call on God?

I know the correct answer is yes but do you ever feel like maybe He just isn’t hearing my prayers? Do you ever feel like maybe something I have done stands between you and God. Intellectually you can say, "I am forgiven" but practically you don’t feel like God is even listening. What do you do when God seems to hear other people’s prayers but not your own?

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (The Message)

Be cheerful no matter what; pray all the time; thank God no matter what happens. This is the way God wants you who belong to Christ Jesus to live.

Take time right now to pray.

Pray for God’s healing.

Pray for God to reveal His plans for you.

Pray for family, friends and enemies.

Pray for your country, your church and your world.

As you move on to the next page ask God to speak to you through His Word. It’s not a race to finish—just spend time with God. Try to get lost in His love, His mercy and His grace.

Praying is so interesting to me. God has opened the door of communication from Heaven to Earth. We are able to contact Him all day long with any and everything in our lives. The bible says our prayers are powerful and effective. They can be given in thanks and praise. They can be given in sorrow and death. The bible talks about prayer while walking, while lying in bed, while standing or bowing, some quick and some long—it’s full of different kinds of prayer and different positions of prayer. So here is my question for you: do your prayers reflect the diversity of the prayers found in the scriptures? Let’s look at some prayers today.

Here’s a short powerful, life-changing prayer. Try to add or take away one word and it loses its power.

"Lord, save me.

—Peter (Matthew 14:30)