"Money Changers"

"And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves." Matthew 21:13

Most churches have lots of programs, entertainment, fellowships, social gatherings, music concerts, counseling sessions and so on, but the main thing that Jesus said that His church/house was to be is rarely found in it. The only time He ever defined the purpose of His house He called it a "house of prayer". So I wonder, "Why isn't there prayer in His house?". Some churches have no prayer time and others have very little. A thirty minute prayer meeting once a week or month equates to no prayer at all. Where are the prayer meetings? Where are the all night prayer vigils? Where is the prayer time around the altar? Prayer is the engine that runs it all. Prayer is the communication lines to the Head of the church- Jesus. In prayer is where the will of God and His direction is discovered. A church without prayer becomes a place for the money changers to set up business.

The money changers represent many things: dead religious practice, greed, compromise, insincere worship, fleshy work, etc. When a church does not pray, the "money changers" come in and "set up business". At that point it ceases to be about the One whose House it is and becomes about self and promoting our "business" instead of "His business".

Let me put this on a more personal level. The Bible says that every born again believer becomes the dwelling place of God- His temple, His house. So the result of prayerlessness that we are talking about in the physical church can take place in the "spiritual" church as well. (Just because you pray a quick prayer when you are in trouble, or spend ten minutes in prayer a day, does not constitute a prayer life.) If your life is prayer-less then the money changers will come in and set up "business" in your life. Without prayer you become selfish, greedy, compromising, offering up insincere worship, no praise comes from your lips, the joy is gone, the peace isn't there, confusion enters in and you are reduced to living by the dictates and desires of your own flesh.

When Jesus entered the temple, He drove the money changers out. It is time for you to start driving them out too. He gave us the answer as to how to do that--- "My house shall be called the house of prayer". Start praying again. Start setting aside time for prayer. Set up a prayer altar in your life. Go into your prayer closet. Make your life a "house of prayer" again.

Have a great day. Prayerlessness opens the door for the money changers to set up business.

For further reading:

Matthew 21:12,13; 6:5,6

Mark 11:15-17

1 Corinthians 3:16; 6:19

<>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <><

Coffee Break is a morning devotional written by Lorraine Ezell

and is sent to you free of charge for the asking from

About the Master's Business Ministry, Inc.

Please feel free to

call (601) 833-5278 or

Email: mastersbusiness@bellsouth.net

Visit us on the web: /www.mastersbusiness.org/">http://www.mastersbusiness.org/">www.mastersbusiness.org

You are welcomed to make copies and distribute them free of charge.

You may also forward them via e-mail or post them to your website - leaving the whole message in tact.

Please remember to give credit to

About the Master's Business Ministry

Today's Chuckle

A minister parked his car in a no-parking zone in a large city
because he was short of time and couldn't find a space with a
meter. Then he put a note under the windshield wiper that read:
"I have circled the block 10 times. If I don't park here, I'll miss
my appointment. Forgive us our trespasses."

When he returned, he found a citation from a police officer along
with this note "I've circled this block for 10 years. If I don't give
you a ticket I'll lose my job. "Lead us not into temptation."

The Hidden Costs of Babylonian Practices

Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.
Rom. 13:8

The Babylonian system teaches us to live off debt. We have been so steeped in this practice that we can't see how it's even possible to live any other way. For example, we think that we must get a mortgage and buy a house. We must go into debt, load up the debt, pay interest to the creditors for a long period of time, and pay two or three times the buying price for the house. All the time, our money is in the Babylonian system, going to evil folk to use it for evil purposes.

We can't see that renting a house is a good option, because the Babylonian system tells us that renting is giving away money. Just because you buy a house doesn't mean it will increase in value. It doesn't mean it will keep the same value. Indeed, it may lose its value. We won't save enough to buy a car; we'll buy it on time, paying interest for five years in some cases. The value of the car diminished a third the moment the tires hit the pavement, but when we have been steeped in Babylonianism, our math gets funny.

In other words, the only options we can see are those that necessitate us using the world's system to do them. We go from not counting interest to accepting it as a cost of doing business. That cost could have been in our pockets!

God's best way is for us to live by the seed we have sowed and saved. It may take a little longer to buy something, but it will save a whole lot of money and give us less heartache and less trouble.

Prayer for Today

Father,
Your Word has never failed me yet, and I am so thankful that you speak to every area of my life. Thank you for giving me guidance regarding how I save, how I spend, and how I give the money you've given to me. In Jesus' name, Amen.

Selah: Think on These Things

• Proverbs 3:27-28
• Proverbs 22:7

by Bishop Keith A. Butler

"Celebrate Me"

"Celebrate Me"

"Woe unto you, when all men shall speak well of you!" Luke 6:26a

I have heard a recurring message from ministers of the gospel that encourage you to go where you are "celebrated". They will tell you not to hang around people who don't celebrate who you are and what God is doing in your life. They are saying that you need to be around people who will applaud you and rejoice in you. And if you are around people who aren't doing that then find someone else who will. I need to correct something this morning, it is not about you or me! It is not about you being celebrated. It is not about men speaking well of you. It is not about them acknowledging you, your accomplishments, or who you are. As a matter of fact, the scriptures issue a warning about this very thing. We are warned not to seek the praise, approval or applaud of men.

We are already applauded by God. We are of great value to Him. My pastor always says, "The value of something is determined by the price that someone is willing to pay for it". Well, God was willing to pay the ultimate price for us- the blood and life of His only begotten Son Jesus. You can't get any more valuable than that. So I am not saying that we aren't valuable. I am saying that it is not about others applauding who we are. Instead, it is about our lives being to the praise and honor of Jesus. Every thing we do and say should point to Him. We should be doing all for His glory so that HE will be the One celebrated.

Why did He give us a warning on this subject? Seeking the approval of men can cause us to miss the approval of God. Seeking the applaud of men helps further puff our flesh up and can set us up for a downfall because it is a breeding ground for pride. Desiring to be applauded by men robs the glory from God. How? Because anything that we are, anything that we do that is notable, anything good that we may have become, is all because of the grace and goodness of God, we didn't get there by ourselves or on our own.

Don't misunderstand. A word of encouragement is needed from time to time. Everyone needs a "pat on the back" sometimes. We should let people know when they are doing a "good job", the Bible does say to give honor to whom honor is due. But the focus is never on self and we should not live expecting and seeking applauds. Jesus was not always celebrated or applauded, and often He was rejected and ridiculed instead- we won't be either.

Don't seek the applauds of men, instead seek to please the Father. Seek to glorify Him. Seek to lift Him up so that others will applaud Him. If we seek the applauds of men, then we have our reward- their applauds and that is all. But when we seek to see Jesus alone applauded through of lives, then great will be our reward in heaven- where it really counts.

Have a great day. Our desire should not be to be celebrated by men, but to live in such a way where our lives will cause others to celebrate Jesus.

For further reading:

Matthew 6:1-4

John 15:19-20

Ephesians 1:6,12

Acts 17:28

Psalm 100:3

Romans 13:7

<>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <><

Coffee Break is a morning devotional written by Lorraine Ezell

and is sent to you free of charge for the asking from

About the Master's Business Ministry, Inc.

Please feel free to

call (601) 833-5278 or

Email: mastersbusiness@bellsouth.net

Visit us on the web: /www.mastersbusiness.org/">http://www.mastersbusiness.org/">www.mastersbusiness.org

You are welcomed to make copies and distribute them free of charge.

You may also forward them via e-mail or post them to your website - leaving the whole message in tact.

Please remember to give credit to

About the Master's Business Ministry.

Take time to visit our on-line Christian magazine and blogs.

http://livingstonesmagazine.homestead.com

Your Valentine Loves You

According to the ancient legends, Valentine was a young Christian priest who lived in ancient Rome. His was an age when young Roman men were not overly eager to leave home and hearth to fight in the emperor's unpopular and seemingly unceasing wars.

According to the story, the emperor placed a ban on marriage for all of Rome's young men, for men without a love connection to wife and family would more readily march away to distant lands. Valentine felt sorry for the unhappy Christian men and their sweethearts, so he secretly performed a large number of Christian marriages. Eventually his compassion placed him in prison.

Outside Valentine's cell window was a cluster of violets. Valentine picked some of the heart-shaped leaves and painstakingly spelled "Remember, your Valentine loves you." Then he would drop those leaves carrying the reflected message of Jesus' love to the streets below.

Eventually, Valentine was put to death because of his faith in the Savior. Valentine died knowing that in the Bethlehem manger, God, in the person of His Son, our Savior, had sent humanity, and him, a message saying, "I love you." On the cross of Calvary as His Son carried our sins, God sent a message which said, "I love you." In the open and empty tomb, the Lord gives us the promise that His love cannot be confined to our days on earth, but continues on from this world even into heaven.

Sadly, still today there are many who, in spite of the Savior's life of sacrifice, feel unloved, unappreciated, uncared for, lost, or lonely. If you are among those who believe you are forlorn and friendless, know that God's gracious love is there for all who have faith in Jesus.

With Jesus as your ever-living Savior, you are given a wonderful, lasting friend who will never forget you. And if you are already part of Jesus' family of faith, hold fast to Him, who is proof of God's love. Believe that no matter how others may treat you, in Jesus you have God's unending, all-encompassing love.

Your Valentine loves you!

By Pastor Timothy Satryan.

Here is your copy of firstIMPRESSIONS, Volume 11.06. Live for God, on purpose, remembering on Valentine's Day, God IS Love!

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Some Fun With Hymns

Dentist's Hymn............................Crown Him with Many Crowns
Weatherman's Hymn.....................There Shall Be Showers of Blessings
Contractor's Hymn........................The Church's One Foundation
The Tailor's Hymn.........................Holy, Holy, Holy
The Golfer's Hymn........................There's a Green Hill Far Away
The Politician's Hymn..................Standing on the Promises
Optometrist's Hymn......................Open My Eyes That I Might See
The IRS Agent's Hymn.................I Surrender All
The Gossip's Hymn......................Pass It On
The Electrician's Hymn................Send The Light
The Shopper's Hymn....................Sweet Bye and Bye
The Realtor's Hymn......................I've Got a Mansion, Just Over the Hilltop
The Massage Therapists Hymn....He Touched Me
The Doctor's Hymn......................The Great Physician

AND for those who speed on the highway - a few hymns:
45mph....................God Will Take Care of You
65mph....................Nearer My God To Thee
85mph....................This World Is Not My Home
95mph....................Lord, I'm Coming Home
100mph..................Precious Memories

Give me a sense of humor, Lord,
Give me the grace to see a joke,
To get some humor out of life,
And pass it on to other folk.

Window Through Which We Look

Window Through
Which We Look

A young couple moved into a new neighborhood. The next morning while they were eating breakfast, the young woman watched her neighbor hanging wash outside. "That laundry is not very clean," she said. "She doesn't know how to wash correctly. Perhaps she needs better laundry soap."

Her husband looked on, but remained silent.

Every time her neighbor would hang her wash to dry, the young woman would make the same comments.

About one month later, the woman was surprised to see a nice clean wash on the line and said to her husband,

"Look, she has learned how to wash correctly. I wonder who taught her this."

The husband said, "I got up early this morning and cleaned our windows."

And so it is with life. What we see when watching others may depend on the purity of the window through which we look.