fix your eyes on Jesus

by Pastor Jim Rovaggi

You wouldn’t walk down the street with your eyes closed, unless you foolishly agreed to a dare. Nor would you drive your car with a blindfold on. Incidentally, putting on make-up while you drive is dangerously similar to that scenario! In short, to get from point A to point B you need to watch where you’re going. Church family, it is in the very same way that we don’t run this marathon of salvation with out fixing our eyes on Jesus.

I believe that the Lord allowed my wife and I have to have a child so that I would have an unending source of illustrations. With that said, here it is.

When little Julian wants something desperately enough he begins to move towards that object, typically an edible object, without pause. So let’s just say he sees a cookie. He will immediately wobble towards said cookie careening off tables, people, small dogs and so forth until the prize is firmly clutched in his pudgy little fist. Samson himself couldn’t pry that cookie out of his hand once he lays hold of it. He may fall down twice, he may get bumped repeatedly, he may even get nibbled at by an indignant pet …. But his enlarged eyes are still fixed on that cookie and like the old song says, he will overcome. For our intents and purposes here today, Jesus is the cookie! Fix your eyes on Him!

As I prepared this devotional thought I was overwhelmed with how good and faithful God is and I was lead to write this prayer. Read it prayerfully and allow the Holy Spirit to guide your thoughts in the direction He desires.

a prayer for renewal

When my grip weakens, with out my realizing it, your grip becomes tighter.

When I think I’m one mistake away from being left the way I am, your plans for me promise life and a future.

When I lose sight of all that you’ve done, and my footsteps waiver, your right hand guides me back to the path.

Even when I begin to stumble and perhaps even fall, I have only to repent to find that you have already caught me. You were simply waiting for me to notice it. Ready to forgive.

If my thoughts stray from my purpose, and my eyes wander towards the peril of greener pastures, your loving rebuke draws me back.

When experience, abilities, and past successes seek to puff up, you reach in to humble me.

When injustice and hurt is committed against me and mine and I’m tempted to lose my focus, your sacrifice looms in my heart and my commission is reestablished.

When solitude and isolation threatens, you shine a light on the crowd of witnesses surrounding me.

Your mercy constantly protects me from myself and your love is eternal.

I will fix my eyes on Jesus and run with perseverance even when obstacles from without and within seek to entangle.

Thank you, Jesus for the grace and mercy that sustains and renews us.

Thank you, that You are the source of all power and wisdom.

Propel us to serve you, our brothers and sister in You, and the ocean of people unknowingly searching for You.

In Jesus Name Amen

Hebrews 12:1-2

1Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. 2Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

God Bless You and may He make us blessable.

Pastor Jimmy E. Rovaggi
Associate Pastor
West Hudson Christian Center
557 Kearny Avenue Kearny, NJ 07032
p 201-997-7762
c-973-600-8544

snow angels in the dirt

by Pastor Jim Rovaggi

I was speaking to a young man this past week that was struggling with discouragement. He is serving God to the best of his ability and there is no lack of gratitude to the Lord for the mess He brought him out of, yet he was discouraged. He allowed circumstances, family and old friends to remind him of the failure he was in the past. It’s funny how sometimes the people closest to us are the ones that harm us the most. Intimacy has a way of giving us license to tear down and wound. Oh it’s not always meant to be mean spirited or intentionally hurtful, none-the-less it causes us to feel devalued. I want to remind you of something today. When God looks at you He sees what He created you to be. He sees your value and your success at all the good works He prepared for you to do before you were even born as it says in Ephesians 2: 10!

God looks at us through the filter of His son Jesus! Have you ever been discouraged? Have you ever been so overwhelmed with the pressures of life that made you truly question your faith?

This past week my wife and I were working in the garden. Our little boy ran around frolicking and squealing joyfully as only a two year old can, while we broke up the dirt, planted seeds, and raked weeds and dead branches that had collected over the winter. In faith, all this effort will produce lots of beautiful vegetables later this summer. I was battling a headache so I called it quits and went in the house. At one point I looked out the window to see my son playing in the dirt by laying flat in the garden flapping his limbs back and forth as if he were making a snow angel! Now my initial response was annoyance. I was annoyed that he was making a mess of the nice neat rows my wife had prepared. I was annoyed that he was covered from head to toe in dirt. I was annoyed that my wife wasn’t reprimanding him. But my feeling of annoyance turned to mushy love when I heard his giggles and saw his beautiful little expression. It made me think, this is what Jesus must feel when he looks down at us. Here we are struggling through our day to day, making mistakes, playing in the dirt as it were, and even though we deserve reprimand, Jesus pulls us up out of the dirt, brushes us off, and steers us in the right direction. Why? Because He feels warm mushy love for us far deeper than what we can feel for our own children. My friends we have every right to walk in joy and in victory today! God is faithful and true and will see us through to the end of this temporary path right into our eternal one. Don’t let misguided words ruin your day. Don’t allow memories of past failures immobilize you! When we walk in repentance and in relationship with the Lord we have the promises of God to depend on!

I leave you with these scriptures.

Romans 4:18-21 18Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as it had been said to him, So shall your offspring be. 19Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead—since he was about a hundred years old—and that Sarah's womb was also dead. 20Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, 21being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised.

Jeremiah 29:11 11 For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

Be encouraged! These scriptures are for every one of us today! Take some time to take out your bible and read these scriptures for yourself. Give God time to speak to your heart today and bring you peace and joy and encouragement.

God Bless You and may He make us blessable.

the grass is always greener but it's not always God

by Pastor Jim Rovaggi

Did you know, it’s been suggested that glass is actually a liquid? If someone had asked me years ago, “Is glass in a solid or a liquid state?” I would have confidently answered; it’s in a solid state. I would have been wrong. Take a look at a really old pane of glass some time. You’ll notice it looks sort of droopy. Have you ever been utterly convinced about something only to find out later you were wrong? When was the last time you asked God, “Am I in the right state? Is my heart and mind in the right condition? Even the Psalmist David had to say “Search my heart and see if there is any wicked way in me”

Let’s talk about obedience briefly. It’s mighty easy to consider myself obedient if I never ask the Lord, “What should I be doing?”

My precious little boy has developed a knack for deflecting blame that would make a politician proud. Here is how the scenario plays out: From a seated position I would say, “Julian, put down the stuffed giraffe and come here, it’s time for breakfast”. His immediate response? “noooo”. “Julian, now!” I’m still sitting, but now my posture has gone rigid. Once again, “noooo”. At this point I’m annoyed that I have to go collect him physically, and it’s written all over my face. Upon reaching the little guy I sternly ask, “Why are you not obeying daddy!?” His reaction? He very sweetly offers up the stuffed giraffe to me accompanied by an adorable smile. Now if I can manage to not break down into a fit of giggles at his diabolical cuteness, it is time to put him in “time out” for being rebellious. At two years of age, these battles with discipline are about fifty-fifty between being strong disciplinarians and smothering the little guy with kisses, but because my wife and I love him and want to see him mature, addressing the rebellion is rapidly climbing. Very much, I imagine, like God does with us.

I’m reminded of the story in 1 Samuel 15:10-25 when Saul gets caught in disobedience and tries to squirm out of it by claiming he was sacrificing for the Lord. Well friends, there’s no squirming out of accountability with God.

1 Samuel 15: 22 But Samuel replied: "Does the LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the voice of the LORD? To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams.

As the children of a loving but disciplinary Father, we need to make a point of examining our hearts to make sure that we find sincere obedience there! I’ve witnessed people who are faithful, and even generous with their tithes and offerings, and use that as license to not get involved in any area of ministry! The reverse is also popular among the faithful. I‘ve heard a brother or sister say, “This is the ministry I sacrifice to the Lord and I’m happy to serve because we’re really in no position to give from our finances.” NEWS FLASH. Neither outlook is acceptable before God. It’s not one or the other. He is looking for obedience.
There is another side to all this of course. The negative side is that we invite discipline of our Father’s love when we are disobedient, but conversely, when we follow the Lord in obedience, we are rewarded with peace and confidence!
I had a conversation last week with a dear sister who shall remain nameless. Let’s call her Ethel. She’s married to an officer, lives a handful of blocks from my wife and I, and works for an attorney, but I digress. So as we chatted, “Ethel” shared how much she had enjoyed a recent trip, and how nice it would be to relocate there but the difficult truth was, that wasn’t in the plan of God at this time. My wife and I experienced a similar situation years ago. We thought perhaps the Lord was moving us to “greener pastures” but as we sought to be obedient we realized it wasn’t to be. I’m not able to say, “Everything has been just perfect!” but I am able to clearly see the many blessings we received for being obedient, including the birth of our precious child. As I spoke with “Ethel”, a thought settled into my spirit. How many followers of Christ have stepped off the path of obedience God had for them in favor of chasing greener grass only to find God putting them in “time out”? Will you take some time today and have a conversation with Jesus? He went to the very cross for you and I. Are you willing to go where He asks? Or for that matter, are you willing to stay put? Are you willing to obey? I pray that you are so that you can experience His great blessing.
Well I have to go folks. A giraffe just came flying by head. It’s time for a father’s love.

God Bless You! ...And may He make us blessable!

Pastor Jimmy E. Rovaggi
Associate Pastor
West Hudson Christian Center
557 Kearny Avenue Kearny, NJ 07032
p 201-997-7762
c-973-600-8544

how loved we are

by Pastor Jim Rovaggi

I hope this e-votional finds you doing well today. What I have to share is for those who may be dispirited or in the doldrums. Perhaps you’re struggling with full fledged depression or maybe you’re just a little “down” for whatever reason. Many times we attend church, pick our favorite seat next to that brother or sister who smiles at us and shakes our hand, and they never know the struggle we may be going through. If that’s you today read on.
My thoughts this morning are on the more somber side. I have a fifty year old aunt, Esterina, who went to be with the Lord last week after undergoing a severe sickness that placed her in a coma. As the family prayed and waited, she did come out of the coma simply to pass away several days later. But it is a testament to the grace and mercy of the Lord that He allowed my father’s sister to be conscious in her last moments to share a tiny message that I will never forget.
Allow me to describe this little Sicilian woman. My earliest memories are of a short stout woman who giggled constantly and was as sweet and loving as they come. She struggled with various handicaps that somewhat hindered her mobility and even her mental abilities and so rendered her the type of individual that would most likely be very forgettable to most people passing by her today. She was loving, often silly, innocent in many ways, and had a child like faith that the pillars in the spiritual community would envy. She struggled a bit to read, but that didn’t stop her from reading the word of God and it certainly didn’t stop her from praying. In fact I can say with confidence, she prayed for her entire family most every night.
It has been years since I had seen her, and quite frankly, weeks since my thoughts turned towards her. Being separated by miles of ocean sometimes tends to distance us from loved ones. When I received the call last week that she had gone on to be with the Lord, my first reaction was resignation. “She’s better off“. I thought to myself. My mother tearfully went on to share that my aunt’s final words were, “I see my mom and dad, they’re calling me home.” I have to admit that I got off the phone very quickly at that point, because I was too choked up to continue. I was struck with the truth that this forgettable little woman was not forgettable at all to the loving Savior she had worked to serve for the majority of her life.
When my father-in-law passed away years ago, he was surrounded by family. Countless friends from church had been in and out of his hospital room to bring comfort and encouragement. I remember in the days preceding his death, he was concerned for those he was leaving behind. Of course we did our best to console him but true consolation could only come from the Holy Spirit. Even as he slipped away, I will never forget a statement he made to my brother-in-law and I. “You guys are like my brothers”. It seemed odd to me at the time. But in retrospect it became evident to me that God was giving him a level of confidence, and peace, that those he was leaving behind would be taken care of; that as he went home to be with a loving God, there was no need for anxiety.
Getting back to my aunt, many of her family members were far away in those final moments, but the presence of the Lord was not. I have no doubt that the arms of Jesus were more than adequate to collect her Spirit to Himself.
I would not describe myself as a mystical sort of person. Although I often feel very clearly, the leading of the Holy Spirit in various ways, I have never heard the audible voice of God. I have seen some wonderful manifestations of the Spirit of God but I don’t see prophecy around every corner, and I admit to a certain degree of skepticism when I hear someone flippantly toss around statements like, “God spoke to me and said this and that…” With that said, I did not take her final words lightly. I fully believe that the Lord was welcoming her into eternal glory and quelling whatever fear she may have faced.
Here is what I need to share with you today. In the same way that Jesus loves a precious soul, living, for all intents and purposes, in the middle of nowhere, He loves you. He desires to sustain, and protect, and nurture you in life and in death. I was reminded in a powerful way with Esterina’s “home going” that we are in the Lord’s thoughts constantly. He never ceases to love you! Are you frustrated today? Are circumstances threatening to drag you under? Finances? Relational problems? Health Issues? God has not forgotten you. He loves you. Let Him comfort you! You are his dear little child! A young lady in a recent home bible study shared that His love was able to manifest itself like arms surrounding her in a warm hug. Can you understand today, how loved you truly are? I pray that you experience God holding you today.

Romans 8:35-39 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? 36 As it is written, "For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered." 37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

God Bless You! ...And may He make us blessable!

Pastor Jimmy E. Rovaggi
Associate Pastor
West Hudson Christian Center
557 Kearny Avenue Kearny, NJ 07032
p 201-997-7762
c-973-600-8544