A Nation Awaits

The Messenger

Making a case for Christ, God's word tells us, through him all things were
made (John 1: 1- 5)--

As Pastor of Nation Ministry, I ask myself how would Jesus respond if he were to read today's parables about himself. How would he react? Would he say, "Whoa, Armando, you got me all wrong? You have conveyed me to a point where I don't even recognize myself." Or would he nod approvingly and say, "Yep, I'm all that -- and more." Which brings us to the heart of the Lord--

Jesus taught in parables, Matt 13: 3 says, "Behold, The sower went out to sow." Jesus was called the teacher. When he said to the disciples, follow me. He taught them basic instructions. The end result, the Lords instructions for life.
Which brings to memory the works of the legendary John Madden.

The simple instructions to two players in the late 70's-- to eliminate the threat of a wicked pass rusher by the name of Cedric Hardman of the 49ers. In his day, Cedric dominated the NFL. John Madden's instructions to Dave Casper, "take his legs out" and to Art Shell, "pancake him as he gets up." The game of football is simple. Cedric Hardman was no threat to the Raiders. The end result the Super Bowl and footballs most prestigious award-- The Hall of Fame for Madden, Shell and the friendly ghost-- Dave Casper. Not to be mistaken for the Holy Ghost, mind you.

The Lord's simple instructions result in righteous living. The promise, eternal life.

Until Next Week,
Pastor Armando

Spiritual Endurance

Genesis 37:4 -His brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers; and so they hated him and could not speak to him on friendly terms.

As we make a choice of unwrapping the spiritual gifts. The Lord smiles upon us, as He showers us with His favor. As we meditate on His will for our lives you will be strengthened to overcome the nonce that follows when you find favor with God Almighty along with dealing with every obstacle that will come in your direction. In Joseph's life we can learn on how to deal with the nonce of jealousy that take's place, towards individuals that practice the gifts, Paul the Apostle told the Corinthian church to diligently seek the gifts but he pointed out that the most excellent way was love 1Cor 13:13-But now faith, hope, love, abide these three, but the greatest of these is "LOVE! Joseph's expericance in life is similar to the Lords, sadly many of us do not put into practice to endure the many obstacles that come along of being a "Player in Christ! The patience and stamina that one must develop in the course of ones walk with the Lord. It becomes survival of the fittest? The hand of God was upon Joseph, Genesis 37:5, Then Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers, they hated him even more. Joseph had a series of dreams that stirred up jealousy and anger among his family in regards, that one day he would rule over them? To get the full impact of Joseph's resilience to all the difficult situations that occurred in his life, one must read Genesis 37-50, I encourage you Raider Nation to get some homework in. One thing that is apparent, the pain and hurt that occurred with his family, became a blessing in the world, in this case Egypt. When Joseph made a choice to practice the gifts, he found himself interpreting dreams for many, including the Pharaoh, Joseph's success in Egypt eventually put him position as 2nd in command next to the mighty Pharaoh! It's very important for those of you that are undertaking the task of seeking the gifts; that it should always come in confidence and expectation that God will give you His wisdom and discernment, which is the source of "Love! Trusting in "JESUS! 1John 3:3, and everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure. As we reflect on the scriptures, imagine if we could go back in time and "Warn! The individuals first hand that they were about to make a big mistake by sharing a dream to family members that would bring a lot of pain and hurt like in Josephs case. He would probably say, "How in the heck would you Know! "My future? Okay Raider Nation, Your saying to yourself okay Pastor your starting to lose me! The scriptures are already set... they are, but we should learn from them to avoid some of those obstacles that will appear in our walk today.

When we view it from the Lords impending destination it all makes sense. Let's say if Joseph only shared this dream with his Father, maybe not along with the entire family like he did in verse (10) He related it to his father and to his brothers; and his father rebuked him and said to him. "What is this dream you have had? Shall I and your mother and your brothers actually come to bow ourselves down before you to the ground? In verse (11) His brothers were jealous of him, but his father kept the saying in mind. Jacob/Israel," knew God! Yes he got in the flesh but he was quick to bring that saying by Joseph into captivity, it shows us today that he was the only one capable of understanding Josephs dream? Could he have saved himself all that "grief? You be the judge, based on what we have witnessed around the church and among believers in today's world, the revelation the bible gives us is that the adversary comes in all forms! It's a sad state of affairs that the spiritual warfare we encounter starts amongst us "Christians? Are you sharing too much with fellow believers, Jesus said, in Matthew 7: 6 Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before swine, or they will trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces. On this particular passage most of us have always assumed that He was speaking about non-believers.  It's unfortunate but I truly believe many of us have seen those "Dogs in church!  Here's the funny thing some of you have folks around your inner circle that can't speak to you on friendly terms. Here are the cool things about God's plan; He will have the final word!

Joseph dealt kindly with His Brothers-Genesis 45:4-5 Then Joseph said to his brothers, "Please come closer to me" And they came closer. And he said, "I am your brother Joseph, whom you sold into Egypt. (5) "Now do not be grieved or angry with yourselves, because you sold me here, for God sent me before you to preserve life. "Wow! Joseph did the opposite and blessed them...  I hope this   message was a blessing to all the players in Christ. A word to all the Raider veteran players; we have many young talented players coming into the Raider family, that have been gifted by almighty God! Like JaMarcus Russell, Quentin Moses, Michael Bush, Zach Miller and the others that have been drafted by the Silver and Black. "Don't be Player Haters? Show them some of that "Raider Love! It's all about teamwork; Like Joseph showed his brothers that it was always about God's will and family...

Pastor: Mando
"Just keeping it Real!

"Quietstorm"

"And after the earthquake, there was a fire, But the Lord was not in the fire.
And after the fire, there was the sound of a gentle whisper" 1Kings 19:12

The story of Elijah a man that had an awesome testimony of communicating and listing to God's voice, his calling as one of God's prophets can take many turns as we share on the subject of his ministry, It ought to remind us of the Lords ministry which was also filled with such supernatural events according to the Bible. Elijah learned that the Lord cared for him, and that the Lord's power is superior to all the power of man, as Elijah went about the Lord's business, the evidence in the Old Testament in the book of 1Kings chapters 17-19 of the many supernatural encounters. As the Lord led him in his journey at one point he found himself in position of poor health the lack of sleep and that's where he found himself questioning the Lords voice. Today's Christian is so concerned about expressing what we think or believe that we just don't listen closely to others or much less hear God's voice. As believers we should try to develop spiritual common sense so that we can hear God's voice in the midst of the world. How does it all work? Elijah was a man that pretty much "burned out! He isolated himself from fellowship he eventually found himself running from the enemy and God.

Sleep is critically important to not only our physical health, but also our spiritual well being. We become spiritually weak, because our minds are not sharp enough to be set on the things of God, in return poor eating habits follow. Spiritual common sense starts with God's Word! It's very important to stay on top of your daily reading and to fellowship with other believers as we practice these simple instructions, we begin to realize how the Lord works through his word he tugs at our hearts or by thoughts by dreams and visions, here's the cool thing you begin to hear that gentle whisper?

The principle is the same with our beloved Raiders. The team playbook is the key to victory! Coaches are adamant that the players have their instructions memorized well before they hit the practice field. The communication between the Coaching staff and players is very important along with knowing that your teammates responsibility is when it comes to a particular play. All the preparation in practice is played out on game day. It starts with the head coach observing and remembering the playbook and what took place on the practice field, visualization on what was seen on film, he lists to his thoughts? As formations come to mind, As he observes the opponent during warm ups, he starts to get his game face on prowling around like a RAIDER pillaging Looking for any signs of weakness Listing? To his coaching staff in the press box! Listing? To his players! But most important seeking advice from that old fox, the God Father himself Mr. Al Davis! Just joking, coach Kiffin! "Wow I need to chill out! I thought it was Game Day! Okay Raider Nation I hope it all makes sense. I hope and pray you seek God's wisdom and game plan of communication for your life.

Pastor Mando
"Just Keeping Real!

"12th Man!

Judges 6:36-38 Then Gideon said to God, If You will deliver Israel through me, as You have spoken, behold, I will put a fleece of wool on the threshing floor. If there is dew on the fleece only, and it is dry on all the ground, then I will know that You will deliver Israel through me, as You have spoken." And it was so. When he arose early the next morning and squeezed the fleece, he drained the dew from the fleece, a bowl full of water... 

God is looking for a few bold men and women who are determined to take a stand. And to question their call in life? Scripture tells us it's acceptable to question God as we seek His will for our lives. Gideon took it one step further and asked the Lord to reverse the illustration given to him in verse (39-40) Then Gideon said to God, "Do not let Your anger burn against me that I may speak once more; please let me make a test once more with the fleece, let it now be dry only on the fleece, and let there be dew on all the ground." God did so that night; for it was dry only on the fleece, and dew was on the ground. We can truthfully say that Gideon's way of questioning God was unique and creative, did Gideon know he was about to set the stage for future generations to acquire supernatural spiritual discernment? It's God's way of communicating with us as believers, the mysteries of the Gospel are literally at our fingertips, The Godly wisdom that follows as we practice bringing every thought captive Proverbs 3:5 Say's-Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. Unwrapping the spiritual gifts that are promised to the believer in Jesus Christ is impressive tapping into the power of discerning God's will can be overwhelming Gideon's testimony is not just for us to read but to practice in our walk with the Lord.

Okay Raider Nation here's a cool illustration on how it works in today's world,                   
Let's take the banking system for example they have a policy when you open up an account they have you create a password and a pin number. And for some reason that fraud takes place we have the option to change those numbers correct! You're probably saying to yourself Okay Pastor your losing me? In Gideon's quest for 100% discernment and desire to know that it was truly the Lord speaking to him he had the fleece and ground as confirmation, by this illustration he knew it was God giving him instructions to deliver Israel. We as Christians today have the same opportunity to create a spiritual I.D. code with the Lord as thoughts come across when making life-changing decisions. Using your imagination you can create your I.D. code with the Lord it can be just about anything in this world! Here's an awesome illustration your favorite player scoring a touchdown when it's God speaking to you or that same player fumbling the ball when it's Self and Satan?  Get the picture, in the banking system you're asked to keep your password and pin number confidential the same holds true with your spiritual code it's between you and the Holy Spirit. A series of events took place in Gideon's quest to deliver Israel God set the standard to make sure future generations would have no doubt that it was HIS hand at work a numbers game was played out with Gideon. In chapter 7:2 The Lord said to Gideon, "The people who are with you are too many for Me to give Midian into their hands, for Israel would become boastful, saying, My own power has delivered me. God separated the 32,000 troops to 300-troops by laying the cards on the table, by Gideon saying to them those who are afraid let them return and depart 10,000 remained, In verse (5-6) so he brought the people down to the water. And the Lord said to Gideon," You shall separate everyone who laps the water with his tongue as a dog laps, as well as everyone who kneels to drink." Now the number of those who lapped, putting their hand to their mouth, was 300 men; but all the rest of the people kneeled to drink water. In the final conquest God had the 300-men follow some peculiar instructions but humorous, I encourage you to read the rest of Judges (7) it resembles what we see on game day at McAfee Coliseum in Oakland over the years the Raiders have been victorious due to the 12th man! "Crowd Noise! That's how God brought deliverance to Israel He brought confusion on the enemy they self-destructed the results friendly fire! On game day the Raider Nation brings their "A" game it gives the team the edge the results the opponent self- destructs. In Christ it's so important to bring every thought captive constantly alert looking for any movement of the adversary it literally brings out the "DAWG! In you, it gives the Lord an opportunity to guide you to victory.  Your I.D. code is similar to dropping the bomb or the 2-min. offense or like the no huddle offense it brings the element of surprise the opponent has no clue what's coming, now that's a good thing, okay Raider Nation I hope it all made sense to you. Equip yourself with the gifts from the Lord and make a difference in your community take up the shield of faith, always remember that Raiders in Christ come to play...

    Pastor: Mando