Today, as we reflect on the servant sacrifice made by so many on our behalf, i am reminded of what i called the Philadelphia District Church of the Nazarene family of faith, hope, and love to during our end-of-April district gathering…
To be…
1. Urgent for Holiness,
2. Fervent in Prayer, and…
3. All Out for Souls.
So be it, Lord Jesus. Amen. -kww
With gladness.
Pastor Kerry Willis
“Purify me from my sins, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. Oh, give me back my joy again; you have broken me— now let me rejoice. Don’t keep looking at my sins. Remove the stain of my guilt. Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a loyal spirit within me. Do not banish me from your presence, and don’t take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and make me willing to obey you.” Psalms 51:7-12 NLT
With gladness.
Pastor Kerry Willis
i pray this episode 3 of “An Ooen Door” Podcast will fill your life with gladness.
https://anchor.fm/anopendoorpodcast/episodes/An-Open-Door-Podcast-episode-3-e1j6jjj
Thanks for listening.
Pastor Kerry Willis
"God’s not mad at us; He’s mad about us! When the devil said he wanted us, Jesus said ‘Over my dead body!’ That’s what the Cross is all about!" -kww [From my message last night at CrossStyle Conference in Lebanon, Tennessee.]
With gladness.
Pastor Kerry Willis
“So prepare your minds for action and exercise self-control. Put all your hope in the gracious salvation that will come to you when Jesus Christ is revealed to the world. So you must live as God’s obedient children. Don’t slip back into your old ways of living to satisfy your own desires. You didn’t know any better then. But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy. For the Scriptures say, “You must be holy because I am holy.” 1 Peter 1:13-16 NLT
With gladness.
Pastor Kerry Willis
Jesus spoke these words, even prayed these words, about how to have eternal life now and later and forever…
"And this is the way to have eternal life--to know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, the One You sent to earth." John 17:3 NLT
With gladness.
Pastor Kerry Willis
“In those days [when the judges governed] there was no king in Israel; every man did what was right in his own eyes.” Judges 21:25 AMP
Let us pray for leaders who lead.
Pastor Kerry Willis
“It’s a crying shame, in Jesus’ Name. Our world seems to have — all but forgotten — that to choose sin over Him is to choose death over Life, for forever and today. Is it not absolutely heart-wrenching, to watch people ‘glory’ in their rebellion. Let us pray fervently, faithful friends of Jesus, for spiritual sight to return to the spiritual eyes of so many precious — but lost souls — before it’s too late.” -kww
Deo Volente. Amen.
Pastor Kerry Willis
"Christianity is by nature warfare and believers get wounded. Healing happens best in a community of faith, hope, and love." -kww
With gladness.
Pastor Kerry Willis
“Let me tell you why you are here. You’re here to be salt-seasoning that brings out the God-flavors of this earth. If you lose your saltiness, how will people taste godliness? You’ve lost your usefulness and will end up in the garbage. “Here’s another way to put it: You’re here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We’re going public with this, as public as a city on a hill. If I make you light-bearers, you don’t think I’m going to hide you under a bucket, do you? I’m putting you on a light stand. Now that I’ve put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand—shine! Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you’ll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven.” Words of Jesus, Matthew 5:13-16 MSG
With gldness.
Pastor Kerry Willis
"Lord Jesus, unless Your Presence fills me to capacity, i will not be capable of completing the things i am called to. Yet, Your Holy Presence is not limited at all by my human limitations. So, help me to trust You to show off in Your Holy-Spiritual Power wherever i show up to serve You." -kww
Deo Volente.
Pastor Kerry Willis
For my 4th report to the Philadelphia Church of the Nazarene District Assembly as the District Servant, i sensed the Lord inviting me to pray it, rather than just say it. Here were three of the points i prayed over…
That we would be…
1. Urgent for Relational Holiness,
2. Fervent in Real Prayer, and,
3. All-Out for Lost Souls.
So be it, Jesus, for Your glory. Amen.
With gladness.
Pastor Kerry Willis
This will be my text to preach from on Sunday, Mother’s Day, May 8, 2022. Because my Mom, Lady Melba, is first and foremost one who prays, a prayer seems like the perfect preaching passage for her eldest son to hone in on.
“Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life.” Psalms 139:23-24 NLT
Tenderly,
Pastor Kerry Willis
The world has watched "those of us who claim to belong to the Lord" divide over politics and masks and vaccines and race and the sad list goes on and on. Lord forbid. Lord forgive.
Will we now divide once again over babies in the womb -- or will we proclaim together that future generations yet unborn must be told about the Lord?
Let us pray: Lord have mercy. Give us the eyes of Your Holy Spirit in all these essential things. We desperately need wisdom, even beyond Solomon’s.
M. We need the mind of Christ to take over all of our thoughts. Find us as Your Bride weeping, and grieving, and pleading, and turning from all wickedness that You might administer the beautiful balm of Your holy healing 🕊 upon us, even within us, and beyond us. In Your merciful and mighty Name, Jesus, we fervently pray. Amen. -kww
"Our children will also serve Him. Future generations will hear about the wonders of the Lord. His righteous acts will be told to those not yet born. They will hear about everything He has done." Psalms 22:30-31
"Then two women who were prostitutes came to the king and stood before him. And the one woman said, "O my lord, (King Solomon) this woman and I live in the same house; and I gave birth to a child while she was in the house. And on the third day after I gave birth, this woman also gave birth. And we were [alone] together; no one else was with us in the house, just we two. Now this woman’s son died during the night, because she lay on him [and smothered him]. So she got up in the middle of the night and took my son from [his place] beside me while your maidservant was asleep, and laid him on her bosom, and laid her dead son on my bosom. When I got up in the morning to nurse my son, behold, he was dead. But when I examined him carefully in the morning, behold, it was not my son, the one whom I had borne." Then the other woman said, "No! For my son is the one who is living, and your son is the dead one." But the first woman said, "No! For your son is the dead one, and my son is the living one." [This is how] they were speaking before the king. Then the king said, "This woman says, ‘This is my son, the one who is alive, and your son is the dead one’; and the other woman says, ‘No! For your son is the dead one, and my son is the one who is alive.’ " Then the king said, "Bring me a sword." So they brought a sword before the king. Then the king said, "Cut the living child in two, and give half to the one [woman] and half to the other." Then the woman whose child was the living one spoke to the king, for she was deeply moved over her son, "O my Lord, give her the living child, and by no means kill him." But the other said, "He shall be neither mine nor yours; cut him!" Then the king said, "Give the first woman [who is pleading for his life] the living child, and by no means kill him. She is his mother." When all [the people of] Israel heard about the judgment which the king had made, they [were in awe and reverently] feared the king, for they saw that the wisdom of God was within him to administer justice."1 Kings 3:16-28 AMP
"A voice was heard in Ramah, weeping and much grieving. Rachel weeping for her children, and she did not want to be comforted, because they were no more." Matthew 2:18 CEB
"…if my people who belong to me will humbly pray, seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, forgive their sin, and heal their land." 2 Chronicles 7:14 CEB
Final note: My heart hurts mostly for Holy God.
Pastor Kerry Willis
This week our family is spending a few days off the grid. We had such a wonderful weekend with our district family gathering that we sensed we should take some time not only to exhale but also to reflect and saturate in the goodness of the Lord and to speaks a season simply giving thanks.
During these few days God has brought some beautiful things to my mind. One is this song written by Rev. Kim McLean, my friend from Nashville. While the sacred song is a few years old, it is truly up-to-date as a prayer from my own heart: "Sanctify me."
With gladness.
Pastor Kerry Willis
In John 17, Jesus points out as He prays to the Father, that those who belong to Him may be in the world but they are not of the world, anymore than He is.
Recently, i heard a spiritual mentor of mine, Lindell Browning, a lifelong missionary to the Middle East say: “When we are too much like the world, we have much less to offer them.”
With gladness.
Pastor Kerry Willis
Episode 2: “An Open Door” Podcast, April 30, 2022…
https://anchor.fm/anopendoorpodcast/episodes/An-Open-Door-Podcast-episode-2-e1ht20h
Kerry Willis, District Servant, Philadelphia District Church of the Nazarene
Preached today on one of my most treasured topics: "Have You Reached Yet, Yet?"
Here’s the service link:
With gladness.
Pastor Kerry Willis
