Pastor Curt

Bible Verse of The Day – 12-22-22

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Philippians 4:6 (NKJV) 6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God…

Going through this last week with the loss of my brother, Rob, was very hard.

Thank you all for your prayers and sincere condolences. They were very much appreciated. They truly held me up and I was able to help others.

There were times I felt like I couldn’t breathe. Anxiety was trying to take over. I would remind myself often about God’s word, as I would take a deep breath and let it out, saying, “be anxious for nothing, be anxious for nothing, be anxious for nothing”.

As the day of the funeral came, I didn’t want to think about me and how I felt. I wanted to know how I could help someone that is going through hardship and needed to be encouraged.

There was an opportunity here to reach others.

I shared a story of my brother, and how the liver transplant he had received was a miracle from God. And as I shared it from the pulpit, not a tear fell from my eye, not a a bit of nervousness was in me, nor anxiousness in my voice.

The people listened intently, and afterwards several came up and told me how beautiful it was and that they needed to hear it.

This world is made up of hurting people. There’s no time to waste.

When the opportunity is knocking, we have to decide whether we will take it or let it pass by. We are here to love one another every chance we get.

Let us reach out, in spite of our own painful situation, and bring encouragement to those who may be suffering.

When we are aching deep within our own hearts, and we choose to do something good with it, the ears of the lost and hurting will hear it, feel it and open up to it.

Let God move even in our pain. He is faithful to give us the strength, the sound mind and peace through it all.

Philippians 4:7 (NKJV) 7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
49 N Lamplighters Walk
Hampstead, NC 28443

401-439-3780

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Bible Verse of The Day – 12-21-22

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James 4:8 (NKJV) 8 Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.

As we ended yesterday’s devotional, we were discussing the interpretation of a dream that a reader had shared with us.

To recap quickly, the interpretation of his dream indicated that he wanted to draw close to God, but his fixation on the evil that he is seeing happen in the world was creating a divide between him and God.

Let’s talk about that a bit.

What he is experiencing is an easy problem for any of us to fall into, especially if we are acutely aware of all that is happening and we have a strong desire to see justice.

This can also happen if we immerse ourselves in these types of events, spending a lot of our time watching and reading about it. Social media can be a huge culprit for this.

But we need to turn our eyes toward God and focus on Him, and let go of the things of this world (the weeds that the reader was clinging to in his dream).

We need to trust God enough to put Him first and loosen our grip on the things of the natural world that we wrestle with; those things that will put space between us and Him.

This is not always easy. Sometimes, for some, it can be downright difficult.

But this is why it’s so critically important to diligently seek God daily, praying and spending time in His word. This is where we will find answers, and where we will build our faith and trust in Him.

And it’s where we will see our fears laid to rest as that faith grows.

Consider Joseph; beaten up by his brothers and then sold into slavery. On top of all that, he was ultimately put in prison for crimes he did not commit.

But he stayed faithful to God, using the talents that God had given him to run Potiphar’s household faithfully.

Even in prison, he was exemplary in his behavior, leading to him being placed in charge over all the prisoners.

And God ultimately rewarded him for it.

Also consider Daniel, who was exiled to a foreign land and forced to work for a king in that land.

Daniel submitted to God and served that king well. Again, God rewarded him for it.

Let us seek God diligently and let the Holy Spirit lead our actions, that we may also honor God in them.

We encourage everyone to press into God like you’ve never done before. The times in which we are living demand it.

We love you all.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
49 N Lamplighters Walk
Hampstead, NC 28443

401-439-3780

If you know someone who will enjoy this or be encouraged by it, please feel free to share it with them!

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Bible Verse of The Day – 12-20-22

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Psalm 73:28 (NKJV) 28 But it is good for me to draw near to God; I have put my trust in the Lord God, That I may declare all Your works.

When we left off yesterday, we were discussing the current state of the world and how the things we’re seeing can impact us.

We recently had a reader write to us to share his heart and tell us how he has been struggling with what he’s seeing unfold. He also wanted to ask a question or two.

He has also written to us in the past, expressing his sadness and frustration with what we are witnessing; the rise and the expansion of evil.

Like many of us, he has grown increasingly disheartened with it all.

In his heart, he wants to see something done to correct it.

He can’t fathom that evil at these levels has gone unchecked and unpunished by each nation’s justice systems. This is natural. None of us likes to see evil thrive.

In a recent email to us, he shared a little piece of a dream that he’d had.

He didn’t ask us for an interpretation. He didn’t really even ask if we had any feedback for him about the dream. He just told us about it as part of the email that he had sent.

After reading it, it stayed in the back of my mind. And one day not too long ago, God showed me what it meant.

First, here is the part of the dream that he shared; “I have had a dream in which I just want to hold onto the gate or the weeds outside of heaven”.

Now, here is what God showed me that it meant.

Him holding onto the gate, or the weeds outside of the gates of heaven, shows that he wants to trust God and enter in to His presence. This is indicated in the fact that he is immediately outside of heaven. He is at the “entrance”.

He’s close to where God is, but hesitant to let go of the weeds and enter in.

His heart’s desire is to be close to God, hence being right outside of the gates.

But he has a strong desire to see justice in the natural world. This is represented by him holding onto the weeds.

God is beckoning him to come in, but he struggles with letting go of the natural and entering in to God’s presence.

That strong desire to see justice has trapped him and created a divide between him and God.

So, ultimately, he will need to choose which he will cling to; the weeds (the natural world) or God.

Please join us tomorrow as we wrap this up.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

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Bible Verse of The Day – 12-19-22

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Jeremiah 29:13 (NKJV) 13 And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.

This devotional will be broken up into three parts for the sake of keeping its length reasonable. We hope what we share speaks to you.

As we have discussed many times over the last couple of years, the times in which we live are like nothing any of us have ever seen before.

What we’re seeing is not restricted to any one nation or a single geographical area. Evil is running rampant and on the rise across the entirety of the globe.

Some of the things that are happening might vary from one geographical area to another, but the underlying theme is consistent; one of pure evil intent.

Their end goal is one world government, one world currency system, one world health system and one world religion (not Christianity).

Governments and non-government entities around the world are cooperating with each other in ways and on levels that has not happened at any time in the past. Again, it is something none of us has seen or experienced in our lifetimes.

This is much like what we see in Genesis chapter 11, where the various peoples of that time had united and began building a large tower (Genesis 11:4); the tower of Babel.

If you read the account of it, which we strongly encourage you to do, you will see that God wasn’t pleased with this. And He took extraordinary measures to stop them.

Why? Because in their pride they had turned against God and, in reality, they endeavored to become like gods.

Today, because of the enormity of what we’re witnessing, it can be very easy to become fixated on it and spend a lot of our time trying to make sense of the current events and the state of the world, instead of focusing on our walk with God and what He wants for us.

This can create a divide between us and God if we’re not careful.

Now that we’ve built a foundation to work from, let’s talk more tomorrow.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
49 N Lamplighters Walk
Hampstead, NC 28443

401-439-3780

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Bible Verse of The Day – 12-18-22 – When Change Comes

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Please click to watch the video now.Greetings in the name of Jesus! 

We hope you are walking strong in your faith in God. 

Have you ever been hit by unexpected change? If so, how did you handle it? 

That’s the topic of today’s new video, When Change Comes. 

In this new video we share insights that will help you navigate unexpected change, especially when that change is major. 

We hope you enjoy the video! 

Please click here to watch it on the video now.

We love you all! 

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie 

Seven Seas Ministries
49 N Lamplighters Walk
Hampstead, NC 28443 

401-439-3780 

If you know someone who will enjoy this or be encouraged by it, please feel free to share it with them!

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Bible Verse of The Day – 12-17-22

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Psalm 118:24 (NKJV) 24 This is the day the Lord has made; We will rejoice and be glad in it.

Have you ever been sad but happy at the same time?

Today I can relate to this.

Just last night my little brother left this earth and went to His heavenly home.

He was a gentle person at heart, but yet he was so strong. He was a mason by trade and very good at it.

His life was short here. We just never know how long our journey will last on this earth. But thank the good Lord, it’s not over when this old body gets sick or tired.

I will miss him, and that’s the sad part; his voice, his laughter, his way about him.

But to know where He is will forever bring me joy! My heart is grateful today, for he was a believer!

That’s the happy part. That’s the part that keeps me and holds me together.

God made this possible for all those that believe in His Son, Jesus Christ. We have His Peace even when we go through heavy times and times of mourning.

Isaiah 61:3 (NKJV) 3 To console those who mourn in Zion, To give them beauty for ashes, The oil of joy for mourning, The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; That they may be called trees of righteousness, The planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified.”

Stay close to Him. Rejoice in this day and put on the garment of praise. Glorify Him for He is our Rock! This is the day He has made! Amen

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
49 N Lamplighters Walk
Hampstead, NC 28443

401-439-3780

If you know someone who will enjoy this or be encouraged by it, please feel free to share it with them!

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Bible Verse of The Day – 12-16-22

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Acts 7:34 (NKJV) 34 I have surely seen the oppression of My people who are in Egypt; I have heard their groaning and have come down to deliver them. And now come, I will send you to Egypt.” ’

God knows. He sees the things we go through.

Some may think He isn’t listening; that He is so far away from us and that we have to carry this load all on our own.

That’s not true. But the devil would love for us to fall for it.

God has made a way even before we knew what was going to happen to us. God has already paved the road for us to follow. He will go the extra mile to help His children whom He loves and cares about dearly.

1 Peter 5:7 (NKJV) 7 casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.

Do we think our problem is too big for Him? Do we think He can’t hear us when we cry out? Do we think He will not move mountains to reach us. I think we are forgetting what He is capable of doing.

He surely has seen, He hears and He knows. It’s up to us to trust Him with all our heart, and He will come down and deliver us Himself. Amen.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
49 N Lamplighters Walk
Hampstead, NC 28443

401-439-3780

If you know someone who will enjoy this or be encouraged by it, please feel free to share it with them!

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Bible Verse of The Day – 12-15-22

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Matthew 6:31-32 (NKJV) 31 “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.

We hope you’ve been enjoying this teaching series so far. Let’s get started with the final segment.

In verse 31, above, Jesus once again tells the people not to worry. By now He has made it abundantly clear that worrying is not something good.

Now, take note of something important that will help us bring all of this full circle.

As we wrapped up part 3, yesterday, we made it a point to mention that Jesus wanted them to understand the importance of trusting in God instead of worrying about “these things”.

“These things” is quoted for a reason; to help draw attention to that two-word phrase that Jesus used in verse 36, where He told us that if we seek first the kingdom of God, all of “these things” shall be added to you.

Do you see where we’re going with this?

When Jesus said that “all these things shall be added to you”, He was referring specifically to the things that he had just spoken about seconds earlier; food, drink and clothing.

He wanted them to understand that if they put God first, making a sincere and honest effort seeking Him and His kingdom, instead of spending countless hours worrying about things that were not as important, God would supply their needs.

And He did this by using examples of things they were already familiar with, such as birds, flowers and grass.

So, if we go back to Matthew 6:33, where we started in part 1, and we consider the words of Jesus, “all these things shall be added to you”, what are the things that will be added to us if we seek God’s kingdom and His righteousness first, before everything else?

All our basic needs; food, drink, clothing. All the things that are necessary for our survival and overall wellbeing.

It’s not about riches, material possessions, luxuries or any other such things.

It’s the food we eat, the liquids we need to drink and the clothes we need to cover our bodies.

And what is required of us that we will be supplied with these things by our heavenly Father? That we seek Him and His righteousness first!

We hope you’ve enjoyed and learned from this series.

We love you all!

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
49 N Lamplighters Walk
Hampstead, NC 28443

401-439-3780

If you know someone who will enjoy this or be encouraged by it, please feel free to share it with them!

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Bible Verse of The Day – 12-14-22

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Matthew 6:26 (NKJV) 26 Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?

Welcome back!

As we wrapped up yesterday’s segment, we had mentioned that Jesus was assuring the people they need not worry about what they would eat or drink, in verse 25.

Jesus took it one step further in verse 26 (above), by using birds as an example.

He drew the people’s attention to the fact that birds neither sow nor reap, yet they are fed and adorned by God himself.

If that’s true, and if we are of more value than the birds, then we should not worry about how our own needs will be supplied.

He then went on to ask people what they gain by worrying.

Matthew 6:27 (NKJV) 27 Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?

It’s important to note that although the word, “cubit”, is normally used to measure length, it is also used to measure time.

So, Jesus isn’t really asking if worrying can make a person taller. He’s rhetorically asking if worrying will add any days to your life!

We all know the answer to that question.

Then, in verse 28, He goes on to ask, “why do you worry about clothing?”, stating that, “the lilies of the field neither toil nor spin” and “even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these”.

As with the birds being fed by God, He exclaimed in verse 30 that if the flowers and grass are so adorned, why should we worry about what we will wear.

It was becoming very clear that Jesus wanted them to understand the importance of trusting in God instead of worrying about “these things”.

Let’s wrap this up tomorrow!

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
49 N Lamplighters Walk
Hampstead, NC 28443

401-439-3780

If you know someone who will enjoy this or be encouraged by it, please feel free to share it with them!

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Bible Verse of The Day – 12-13-22

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Matthew 6:24 (NKJV) 24 “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.

Greetings! Thanks for joining us again today for our study on Matthew 6:33.

In order to fully understand Matthew 6:33’s “and all these things shall be added to you” statement, we need to go backwards a bit and look at what Jesus discussed prior to saying that.

That is, after all, what He was referring to.

The things that we’re studying were part of what is frequently referred to as, “The Beatitudes”, a lengthy teaching of Jesus that touched on many different topics that affect everyone’s lives.

As you can see above, Jesus stated that we cannot serve two masters. We cannot serve God and mammon (money, riches, wealth).

Based on this, it should be easily deduced that when Jesus referred to all the things being “added to you”, He wasn’t referring to riches. To assume that putting God first would cause us to become laden with riches is counterintuitive.

Contrary to what some might say, Matthew 6:33 is not telling us that if we seek God, we will become wealthy.

Our relationship with God is not about what we can get from Him, but about what we give to Him; mainly ourselves, in the form of adoration and reverence toward Him.

With that said, what did He mean? What was He really referring to?

Jesus was trying to assure people that God is bigger than all their concerns, fears and problems.

In verse 25 He told them, “Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink“.

You see, these are the things that most people worry and fret about. It is important, after all, to have food to eat, right?

We can all relate to this, especially if we have ever gone through any kind of bad financial situation. Those kinds of things will put us to the test when it comes to our faith and trust in God.

We hope you’ll join us tomorrow for part 3 of the study of Matthew 6:33!

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
49 N Lamplighters Walk
Hampstead, NC 28443

401-439-3780

If you know someone who will enjoy this or be encouraged by it, please feel free to share it with them!

To have the Bible Verse of The Day delivered to your inbox each day, please Click Here and then enter your email address in the box near the upper left corner of the page. 

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Bible Verse of The Day – 12-12-22

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Matthew 6:33 (NKJV) 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.

This is a popular, well-known scripture. For some, it is their favorite verse in the entirety of the Bible. For others, maybe it’s their favorite words of Jesus.

There’s a good reason for this, since it is based on powerful Biblical truths.

But there is so much more to this verse than many of us realize. So, over the next few days, let’s do a little deep dive to give us understanding as to all that it means.

As we begin, my absolute favorite part is the first part, where we are instructed to “seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness”.

This one phrase is really a summation of everything God wants from us; to put Him first in everything.

When He tells us to seek Him first, the word, “first” is literal, not symbolic or metaphoric.

When God says, “seek first the kingdom”, He means first, not second, third or somewhere further down our list of things to do.

This ties into many other things that God tells us about building and growing our relationship with Him.

In Jeremiah 29:13, He tells us that we will find Him when we seek Him with our whole heart.

James 4:8 tells us that if we draw near to God, He will draw near to us.

Many other scriptures will tell us the same thing.

What does this mean? It means that as we put God first, we will strengthen our relationship with Him.

And as we do that (put Him first), He will reward us. As the verse above says, “all these things shall be added to you”.

Tomorrow we will discuss what “these things” are. We hope you’ll join us!

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
49 N Lamplighters Walk
Hampstead, NC 28443

401-439-3780

If you know someone who will enjoy this or be encouraged by it, please feel free to share it with them!

To have the Bible Verse of The Day delivered to your inbox each day, please Click Here and then enter your email address in the box near the upper left corner of the page. 

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Android: http://goo.gl/oQ6qa7 

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