A daily, Bible-based perspective of hope,
encouragement and exhortation.
Send a message to Stephen & Brooksyne
Thursday, October 24, 2019
Hay wagons always grab my attention.
This load of alfalfa is waiting for transport to the barn.
"Help
In Times Of Weakness"
Message summary: Today some of you are dealing with a period of intense weakness in your life. We pray you may find assurance in today's Scripture promise. The immutable Holy Spirit of God continues to help us in our weakness! And He very well may use another believer to accomplish His purpose in strengthening you.
Listen
to this
message on your audio player.
"I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever" (John 14:16). "In the same way the Spirit helps us in our weakness" (Romans 8:26).
Consider acute times of weakness in your life. We receive a daily prayer request email due to our chaplain associations. Yesterday we received this brief request with which we can empathize. "Request prayer for a pastor friend’s daughter, Michelle, who was in a serious accident. She’s been placed on a ventilator, and they thought she would be life-flighted to Houston, but she cannot be stabilized enough for the flight. The family has been called in. Her father has some heart issues, so please pray for him to have peace as well." We prayed that this family might received an abundance of help in their time of weakness both directly from God and from those he calls to stand with them.
We recall a touching moment in church a number of years ago during a missions service. A young lady was singing "People Need the Lord" as a special solo and was so moved by the words that she began to softly weep. Her weeping hindered her ability to sing and though people understood her heartfelt response to the powerful lyrics it was an awkward moment both for her and the congregation, since the sound track continued to play without her accompanying voice. Perhaps she was deeply burdened for a family member who needed to be saved.
However it became a means by which the Holy Spirit touched our hearts as well. Our pastor did something that we believe illustrates the work of the Holy Spirit in each of our lives during times of weakness or perceived weakness. Pastor Jim stood up and came alongside the young lady to sing the words with her. Sensitive to the Holy Spirit's leading he indeed helped her in her time of need.
Today's first text describes the ministry of the Holy Spirit. "Helper" translates the Greek word "Paracletos" which means "one called alongside to help" which is also translated Comforter, Advocate, Intercessor. In the context of this verse Jesus is speaking of His departure back to heaven after He completed His mission on earth to die for our sins.
Let us consider the wonderful promise in our second daily text, "the Spirit helps us in our weakness". The Holy Spirit is ever faithful to help us in our time of weakness. Of course in a sense we live in a state of weakness and are in absolute dependency upon God all the time.
But there are those special times of intense weakness when we fall to our knees and cry out for divine intervention. So often at this point we experience a special work of the Spirit as He comes alongside us in our time of need. And at times the Spirit uses other believers sensitive to His leading to be His instrument of comfort, strength or guidance.
Today some of you are dealing with a period of intense weakness in your life. We pray you may find assurance in today's Scripture promise. The immutable Holy Spirit of God continues to help us in our weakness! And He very well may use another believer to accomplish His purpose in strengthening you.
Today we are all called to be led of the Holy Spirit. I think of the words to the song, "People Need the Lord" which is provided below. Be sensitive to the Spirit's leading today to hear His voice and also to be His agent in helping another in their time of weakness!
Be encouraged today!
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
Daily
prayer: Father,
we are very grateful for the work of the Holy Spirit
in our lives; thankful especially for the convicting
work of the Spirit that enables us to see our need for
salvation. You provide guidance, comfort, correction,
and strength through the work of the Spirit that
resides within our hearts. Not only are we prompted
and led by Your Spirit, but we consider those who are
sensitive to the Spirit's leading, who have come to us
in our time of need and helped to restore our strength
or helped clarify Your leading in our lives. May we
also be willing messengers of Your Holy Spirit as we
serve You day in and day out. In the name of Jesus we
pray. Amen.
Note from Brooksyne: A similar event that took place about 30 years ago in a church we served in northern Pennsylvania. Once again a young lady was singing a song. As I recall she was going through a difficult time in her personal life which was likely more the source of her emotion than the song itself. She started weeping uncontrollably and the congregation was unable to respond except to quietly pray. The Spirit then moved upon the heart of a woman named Nancy who walked up to the front and merely placed her arm around the singer to provide support as she completed the song and the congregation prayed for this sincere soul.
Message summary: Today some of you are dealing with a period of intense weakness in your life. We pray you may find assurance in today's Scripture promise. The immutable Holy Spirit of God continues to help us in our weakness! And He very well may use another believer to accomplish His purpose in strengthening you.
Listen
to this
message on your audio player."I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever" (John 14:16). "In the same way the Spirit helps us in our weakness" (Romans 8:26).
Consider acute times of weakness in your life. We receive a daily prayer request email due to our chaplain associations. Yesterday we received this brief request with which we can empathize. "Request prayer for a pastor friend’s daughter, Michelle, who was in a serious accident. She’s been placed on a ventilator, and they thought she would be life-flighted to Houston, but she cannot be stabilized enough for the flight. The family has been called in. Her father has some heart issues, so please pray for him to have peace as well." We prayed that this family might received an abundance of help in their time of weakness both directly from God and from those he calls to stand with them.
We recall a touching moment in church a number of years ago during a missions service. A young lady was singing "People Need the Lord" as a special solo and was so moved by the words that she began to softly weep. Her weeping hindered her ability to sing and though people understood her heartfelt response to the powerful lyrics it was an awkward moment both for her and the congregation, since the sound track continued to play without her accompanying voice. Perhaps she was deeply burdened for a family member who needed to be saved.
However it became a means by which the Holy Spirit touched our hearts as well. Our pastor did something that we believe illustrates the work of the Holy Spirit in each of our lives during times of weakness or perceived weakness. Pastor Jim stood up and came alongside the young lady to sing the words with her. Sensitive to the Holy Spirit's leading he indeed helped her in her time of need.
Today's first text describes the ministry of the Holy Spirit. "Helper" translates the Greek word "Paracletos" which means "one called alongside to help" which is also translated Comforter, Advocate, Intercessor. In the context of this verse Jesus is speaking of His departure back to heaven after He completed His mission on earth to die for our sins.
Let us consider the wonderful promise in our second daily text, "the Spirit helps us in our weakness". The Holy Spirit is ever faithful to help us in our time of weakness. Of course in a sense we live in a state of weakness and are in absolute dependency upon God all the time.
But there are those special times of intense weakness when we fall to our knees and cry out for divine intervention. So often at this point we experience a special work of the Spirit as He comes alongside us in our time of need. And at times the Spirit uses other believers sensitive to His leading to be His instrument of comfort, strength or guidance.
Today some of you are dealing with a period of intense weakness in your life. We pray you may find assurance in today's Scripture promise. The immutable Holy Spirit of God continues to help us in our weakness! And He very well may use another believer to accomplish His purpose in strengthening you.
Today we are all called to be led of the Holy Spirit. I think of the words to the song, "People Need the Lord" which is provided below. Be sensitive to the Spirit's leading today to hear His voice and also to be His agent in helping another in their time of weakness!
Ev'ryday they pass me
by, I can see it in their eyes;
Empty people filled with care, headed who knows where.
On they go through private pain, living fear to fear;
Laughter hides the silent cries, only Jesus hears.
We are called to take His light, to a world where wrong seems right.
What could be too great a cost, for sharing life with one who's lost.
Through His love our hearts can feel, all the grief they bear.
They must hear the words of life only we can share.
People need the Lord, people need the Lord.
At the end of broken dreams, He's the open door.
People need the Lord, people need the Lord.
When will we realize people need the Lord.
Empty people filled with care, headed who knows where.
On they go through private pain, living fear to fear;
Laughter hides the silent cries, only Jesus hears.
We are called to take His light, to a world where wrong seems right.
What could be too great a cost, for sharing life with one who's lost.
Through His love our hearts can feel, all the grief they bear.
They must hear the words of life only we can share.
People need the Lord, people need the Lord.
At the end of broken dreams, He's the open door.
People need the Lord, people need the Lord.
When will we realize people need the Lord.
Be encouraged today!
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
Daily
prayer: Father,
we are very grateful for the work of the Holy Spirit
in our lives; thankful especially for the convicting
work of the Spirit that enables us to see our need for
salvation. You provide guidance, comfort, correction,
and strength through the work of the Spirit that
resides within our hearts. Not only are we prompted
and led by Your Spirit, but we consider those who are
sensitive to the Spirit's leading, who have come to us
in our time of need and helped to restore our strength
or helped clarify Your leading in our lives. May we
also be willing messengers of Your Holy Spirit as we
serve You day in and day out. In the name of Jesus we
pray. Amen.Note from Brooksyne: A similar event that took place about 30 years ago in a church we served in northern Pennsylvania. Once again a young lady was singing a song. As I recall she was going through a difficult time in her personal life which was likely more the source of her emotion than the song itself. She started weeping uncontrollably and the congregation was unable to respond except to quietly pray. The Spirit then moved upon the heart of a woman named Nancy who walked up to the front and merely placed her arm around the singer to provide support as she completed the song and the congregation prayed for this sincere soul.
Today's
Suggested Music and
Supplemental Resources
"People Need The
Lord" Video
The Booth Brothers
Monday we mentioned
that it was the 23rd anniversary
of our Daily Encouragement
ministry. We will continue to
post this information all week
long for those who may not read
each message.
Here's
some info about Daily
Encouragement Net
Daily Encouragement Ministry Chronology
October 21, 1996 - First email sent to Nigel and Laifong Lee a married couple and developed into a list (which was merely a group list added to manually one by one.)
1999 - Website developed by Andy Larrimore, a friend in the church we served at the time in New England.
2002 - Began one minute radio spots extracted from Daily Encouragement messages and in recent years original messages written by Brooksyne that may not be featured in one of our DE messages.
2004 - Resigned from full-time job with chaplain agency.
2005 - Developed html email (formatted with photos as opposed to just plain text), began podcasting daily messages, set up blogs/RSS feeds, Brooksyne "officially" joined in the message preparation.
2006 - Received official endorsement as the first "internet chaplain" from chaplaincy endorsement agency. (I already had endorsement for corporate chaplaincy and Civil Air Patrol chaplaincy.)
Each of these messages since the very first one are stored in a single WORD document which currently has over 4,000,000 words and over 6,500 pages (10pt type). However even this total is probably significantly understated since, as many writers know, you tend to type many words that get chopped as you go along or are eliminated in the editing process! Plus we prepare a lot of extra material on the html posts such as photo captions, music descriptions and so forth that aren't even in this archive.
Although we are thonkful for spellchick we still need to poofread carefully to see if we any words out.
Ministry update: For those interested we direct you to a revised ministry update in light of our 23rd ministry anniversary. http://www.dailyencouragement.net/ministryupdate.htm
Survey:
If you would care to do so we
have prepared a short survey (it
takes about five minutes). Since
we know little about many of our
readers and podcast listeners we
find this helpful in having
sense of who you are and how you
are using our materials.https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/27SRDHY
Support:
We are thankful for those who
support our ministry with their
financial offerings. Some give
monthly, others periodically or
one-time. We generally each
spend about 1/2 day preparing
these messages, managing the
technical details and responding
to email feedback (some days
more, some days less). Our
prayer has been that offerings
would be essentially 1/2 of our
family income since we work
together. We also receive income
from our corporate chaplaincy
ministry. If any reader would
like to consider an offering to
our online ministry information
is here: http://www.dailyencouragement.net/support.htm
Make an offering
using PayPal
Future plans:
Essentially we look for strength
to continue to prepare these
messages each weekday and for
the foreseeable future intend a
ministry mix between internet
and chaplaincy. Essentially the
chaplaincy gets us out regularly
to the real world for a fresh
perspective!
Brooksyne's Note: As we share the history of this web ministry I am reminded of our Lord's faithfulness and the diverse giftings He gives to those He has called. It is extremely humbling to us that God's Spirit speaks to the hearts of men and women all around the world through our daily messages. When we got our first computer Stephen and I would never have imagined the medium of computer technology giving us "a voice" to reach people all over the world. Your prayers, feedback, and support spur us on and challenge us to remain faithful in this writing ministry. Join us in continually giving thanks for His abundant blessings that far outnumber the grievous burdens one endures over a lifetime.
Here's the very first daily Encouragement message from Monday, October 21, 1996:
Brooksyne's Note: As we share the history of this web ministry I am reminded of our Lord's faithfulness and the diverse giftings He gives to those He has called. It is extremely humbling to us that God's Spirit speaks to the hearts of men and women all around the world through our daily messages. When we got our first computer Stephen and I would never have imagined the medium of computer technology giving us "a voice" to reach people all over the world. Your prayers, feedback, and support spur us on and challenge us to remain faithful in this writing ministry. Join us in continually giving thanks for His abundant blessings that far outnumber the grievous burdens one endures over a lifetime.
Here's the very first daily Encouragement message from Monday, October 21, 1996:
"Let us not give up
meeting together, as some are
in the habit of doing, but let
us encourage one another--and
all the more as you see the
Day approaching" (Hebrews
10:25).
Hopefully each of you were in church yesterday and received fresh strength from the Lord and His Word. Unfortunately, then, even as now, some had forsaken this important element of growth and discipleship. As we see the Day of Christ's return drawing ever closer may we be encouraged. Whatever you do today remember the main thing: "Thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might" (Deuteronomy 6:5).
Hopefully each of you were in church yesterday and received fresh strength from the Lord and His Word. Unfortunately, then, even as now, some had forsaken this important element of growth and discipleship. As we see the Day of Christ's return drawing ever closer may we be encouraged. Whatever you do today remember the main thing: "Thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might" (Deuteronomy 6:5).
Send a message to Stephen & Brooksyne
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but if the Lord would lead you we surely need
and appreciate the financial support from our
readers and listeners.Our ministry labor is comprised of approximately half our time to Daily Encouragement and the other half to our chaplaincy ministry to companies for which we receive compensation. Each of these ministries essentially is the same as a part-time job (20+ hours weekly) for each of us. Our goal for many years is that each would provide half of our ministry expenses and income.
If you would consider making a donation to our ministry see here for more information.
Donate directly online here. This will open to a page that designates the offering to: WEBER,STEPHEN CHAP, Specialized Chaplaincy Ministry ID: 700001-237376
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convenience, for international supporters, and
for those who may not be concerned regarding
receiving an official tax deductible receipt. Click here
to send an offering using PayPal. This
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Weber"Permissions: Please feel free to pass on, reproduce and distribute any material on Daily Encouragement Net, in part or in whole, in any format, provided that you do not alter the wording in any way or charge a fee beyond the cost of reproduction. It is our desire to spread this material, not protect or restrict it. We do request that you keep the contact, copyright and subscription information intact.
Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. and the King James Version.
Personal Mission Statement: "I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ I have been redeemed and make it my life's goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity."
© Copyright 2019 Stephen
C. & Brooksyne Weber - All Rights Reserved
Daily Encouragement Net - 495 Kraybill Church Road - Mount Joy, PA 17552 USA
Daily Encouragement Net - 495 Kraybill Church Road - Mount Joy, PA 17552 USA