En estos últimos días del 2023, noticieros de televisión, periódicos y revistas de este país realizaron programas o publicaron ediciones especiales de todos los hechos importantes ocurridos durante este año. A pocas horas de la llegada de 2024, la pregunta que nos puede rondar por la cabeza es ¿cómo será este nuevo año? Durante mi tiempo devocional de esta semana, encontré la siguiente cita acreditada al músico John Lennon y quiero compartirla con todos ustedes. Dice así: “La vida es lo que te sucede mientras planeas hacer otra cosa”. ¡Qué afirmación tan veraz! Mientras haces un “repaso anual” de tu vida, recuerda todas las cosas que te sucedieron mientras planeabas hacer otra cosa.
Sin embargo, recuerde que el tiempo de Dios en nuestra vida es perfecto. Incluso cuando damos la bienvenida al final de un año particularmente difícil, la Biblia enseña que las misericordias de Dios son nuevas cada mañana (Lamentaciones 3:23-24).

     Al terminar este año y comenzar otro, que el Señor te dé suficiente felicidad para mantenerte amable, suficientes pruebas para mantenerte fuerte, suficientes tristezas para mantenerte humano, suficiente esperanza para mantenerte feliz, suficientes fracasos para mantenerte humilde, suficientes éxitos. para mantenerte ansioso por hacer más, suficientes amistades para darte consuelo, suficientes riquezas para cubrir tus necesidades, suficiente entusiasmo para mirar el mañana de manera diferente y suficiente determinación para hacer cada día mejor que el anterior. Pídele a Dios que te ayude a usar las 8,760 horas de este año de la manera más sabia posible para Su Gloria. Romanos 13:11-12 (NVI) nos dice: Además de esto ya sabéis la hora, que ha llegado la hora de despertar del sueño. Porque la salvación está más cerca de nosotros ahora que cuando creímos por primera vez. 12 La noche ya se ha ido; el día está cerca. Desechemos, pues, las obras de las tinieblas y vistámonos las armas de la luz”.

     A todos mis amigos y familiares les deseo un feliz 2024. Que el Señor los colme de ricas y abundantes bendiciones a cada uno de ustedes.

Pastor Dimas

A New Year

    

    In these last days of 2024, television news programs, newspapers, and magazines in this country made programs or published special editions of all the important events that occurred during this year. A few hours before the arrival of 2025, the question that may be on our minds is, what will this new year be like? During my quiet time this week, I found the following quote credited to musician John Lennon and I want to share it with all of you. It goes like this: “Life is what happens to you while you plan to do something else". What a truthful statement! As you do a “year in review” of your life, remember everything that happened to you while planning to do something else. However, remember that God’s timing in our life is perfect. Even when we welcome the end of a particularly trying year, the Bible teaches that God’s mercies are new every morning (Lamentations 3:23-24).

    As this year ends and another begins, may the Lord give you enough happiness to keep you lovable, enough trials to keep you strong, enough sorrows to keep you human, enough hope to keep you happy, enough failures to keep you humble, enough successes to keep you eager to do more, enough friendships to give you comfort, enough riches to cover your needs, enough enthusiasm for you to look at tomorrow differently, and enough determination for you to do each day better than the day before. Ask God to help you use the 8,760 hours of this year in the wisest way we can for His Glory. Romans 13:11-12 (ESV) tells us: Besides this you know the time, that the hour has come for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed. ¹² The night is far gone; the day is at hand. So let us cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light.”  

 May the Lord fill each of you with rich and abundant blessings.

Pastor Dimas

God is our Refuge

 “He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High will dwell under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say to Jehovah; My hope and my fortress (Psalm 91:1-2). During my teenage years in Puerto Rico, I sang a beautiful hymn based on this Psalm. The first verse and the chorus say, "He who lives in the shelter of God. He will dwell under shadows of love. No harm will come upon him. And on the wings of him happy he will live”. The chorus says, “Oh, I want to live in the shelter of God. Only there will I find peace and deep love. My delight is with Him, fellowship enjoys. And forever the name of him praises”. What a beautiful promise we have from our God! Many of us live in challenging times. Sometimes the trials and difficulties in our lives make us feel that there is no hope. Many people seek refuge in drugs, alcohol, and other destructive behaviors. However, God offers a better choice, live under the shadow of the Almighty. God is our refuge during the storms that hit our lives daily. God is that strong fortress that resists the attacks of the enemy. Therefore, when problems and difficulties enter our lives, place them in the hands of the Most High God and rest in the shelter of God because only there "will you find peace and deep love". May the Lord bless you and keep you always.

Pastor Dimas

Dios es Nuestro Refugio

 “El que habita al abrigo del Altísimo, morara bajo la sombra del Omnipotente. Diré yo a Jehová; Esperanza mía y castillo mío” (Salmo 91:1-2). Durante mi tiempo de adolescencia en Puerto Rico, cantaba un hermoso himno basado en este Salmo. La primera estrofa y el coro dicen; “El que habita al abrigo de Dios. Morará bajo sombras de amor. Sobre él no vendrá ningún mal. Y en sus alas feliz vivirá”. El coro dice; “Oh, yo quiero habitar al abrigo de Dios. Solo allí encontraré paz y profundo amor. Mi delicia es con Él, comunión disfrutar. Y por siempre su nombre alabar”. ¡Que hermosa promesa tenemos de parte de nuestro Dios! Muchos de nosotros vivimos en tiempos difíciles. En ocasiones, los problemas y dificultades de nuestras vidas no hacen sentir que no hay esperanza. Muchas personas buscan refugio en las drogas, alcohol, y otros vicios destructivos. Sin embargo, Dios ofrece una mejor alternativa; vivir bajo la sombra del Omnipotente. Dios es nuestro refugio en medio de las tormentas que azotan nuestras vidas diariamente. Dios es ese castillo fuerte que resiste los ataques del enemigo. Por tanto, cuando los problemas y dificultades entran en nuestras vidas, deposítalos en las manos del Dios Altísimo y descansa en el abrigo de Dios porque solo allí “encontraras paz y profundo amor”. Que el Señor te bendiga y te guarde siempre.

Pastor Dimas

Hare Tu Voluntad?

 A menudo, lo último que le damos al Señor es nuestra voluntad. Es posible “cumplir con todos los requisitos del cristianismo” sin entregar completamente nuestra vida a Dios. A menudo nuestra actitud es "Señor, seré miembro de la Iglesia, daré buenas ofrendas, tal vez ayude en la escuela dominical, etc., pero quiero mantener el control de mi vida".

Jesús nos enseñó a entregarle todo a Él. Él nos dio el ejemplo perfecto de esta actitud. Oró en el Huerto de Getsemaní: “Padre, no es mi voluntad, sino la tuya”. Esa debe ser también la meta de todo cristiano. Hasta que no entreguemos todo a Dios, no le hemos dado lo que más desea.

Quiero preguntarte hoy: ¿Quién controla tu vida? ¿Tú o Dios? No puede haber mucha discusión sobre quién debería estar a cargo. Nuestra voluntad egocéntrica puede ponernos en dificultades. El rey Salomón escribió: “Los que confían en sí mismos son necios, pero los que andan en sabiduría están a salvo” (Proverbios 28:26).

No hay razón para temer. Dios no nos engañará ni nos hará daño. Ha hecho tanto para demostrarnos su amor y sus buenas intenciones para con nosotros que no debe haber lugar a dudas. Hay una razón por la que estamos preparados para afrontar las experiencias de la vida, Jesucristo. Nuestra oración hoy y todos los días debe ser “Hágase tu voluntad aquí en la tierra como en el Cielo” (Mateo 6:10).

Que el Senor te bendiga y te guarde siempre.

Your Will be Done

Often the last thing we give to the Lord is our will. It is possible to "fulfill all the requirements of Christianity" without fully surrendering our lives to God. Often our attitude is, "Lord, I'll be a member of the Church, I'll give good offerings, maybe I'll help out in Sunday school, etc., but I want to remain in control of my life."

Jesus taught us to surrender everything to Him. He gave us the perfect example of this attitude. He prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane: "Father, it is not my will, but yours." That should also be the goal of every Christian. Until we give everything to God, we have not given him what he most desires.

I want to ask you today: Who controls your life? You or God? There can't be much discussion about who should be in charge. Our self-centered inclination can get us into trouble. King Solomon wrote: “Those who trust in themselves are fools, but those who walk in wisdom are safe” (Proverbs 28:26).

There is no reason to fear. God will not deceive us or harm us. He has done so much to show us his love and his good intentions for us that there can be no question. There is a reason we are prepared to face life's experiences, Jesus Christ. Our prayer today and every day should be "Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven" (Matthew 6:10).

May the Lord bless you and keep you always.

Pastor Dimas

Why are we in this mess?

 If you have kept up with the latest news, we live in a messy and upside-down world. What was good is now evil, and what was evil, is now good.  Additionally, you may have noticed the world we live in could be a lot better place. Our world is a mess because we sinned against God. However, in the beginning, God created a sinless, spectacular world for us to enjoy. God was specific in his instructions to Adam and Eve. He told Adam; You are free to eat from any tree in the garden, but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, from when you hear from it, you will certainly die (Genesis 2:16-17). Nevertheless, Adam and Eve ignored God's instructions for living, and sin entered the world.  Satan and Eve strike up a conversation. The Bible said that Satan appears as a serpent. What was this serpent-like? I don’t know. We also don’t know if this is the entire conversation or if there was some small talk that existed before this encounter. 

Nonetheless, we can discover and see the two-fold nature of Satan’s attack. First, cast doubt on God’s Word.  Satan begins, “Has God indeed said you shall eat of every tree of the garden?” (Genesis 3:1). He takes God's positive instruction and seeks to paint it as something restrictive. Eve answers correctly. She said, “You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and YOU MUST NOT TOUCH IT, or you will die. This is the opening that Satan needed.

Second, Satan wants us to trust ourselves rather than God. Satan seeks to replace God as the authority with other things. When Eve saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. (v. 6) Do you see what happened? Eve trusted her eyes and desires more than God’s word. And then she trusted her reason “It was desirable for gaining wisdom”. We must not trust even our eyes, our mind, or our desires over the Word of God!

This was not a one-time affair. Satan is still using the same “bag of tricks”. He wants to get us to trust our systems, our traditions, our feelings, our “steps to powerful living”, and our programs. He’ll encourage us to place our trust in our goodness, our bank account, our friendships, our appearance, and our personality. He takes different approaches, but it is always the same goal: trust yourself rather than promise. He may try to keep us from reading and studying the Word or He may seek to distort the Word, but the goal is the same: trust ourselves or something other than God’s Word.

Adam blames Eve. Eve blamed the serpent. Adam even tried to blame God. Adam and Eve played the blame game.  Sin always devastates. Our condition is nobody’s fault but our own. We should point our fingers at ourselves. As we look around our world today, we see an eroding moral standard, a cancerous disregard for human life, and a sad lack of virtue in the people who should be our role models. Things are still “a mess”. Genesis three tells us how we went from “It is good, very good” to “What a mess!” We ruined a perfect relationship with God through our sin. 

However, there is a PROMISE.  Even while the stench of that first sin is fresh, God is beginning the process of redemption. In Genesis 3:15 we read the first promise of the Messiah. God is speaking to Satan and says, “And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.” There is coming a day when a descendant of Eve’s will be attacked by Satan in a powerful way. Satan will succeed in “striking his heel”. However, this descendant will “crush” Satan’s head. This descendant is Jesus. So, even during this initial rebellion, God points to a Redeemer. Even in the Garden, God is pointing to a coming Savior. They were spiritually dead but there was no one who would come who would give them their spiritual life back. Even when man is engaging in rebellion God is planning redemption.

So, how do you start? It takes an act of faith. God must awaken you and you must respond. That response would come in the form of an honest prayer like this: Father, I don’t come with any excuses. I acknowledge that like Adam, and Eve I have often turned from You. I am a sinner and I have made a mess of my life. Today I received the offer of salvation you extend. Today I declare my faith and confidence that Jesus died in my place, for my sin, and that His resurrection opened the door for anyone who would believe, including me. Today I place my trust and confidence in Christ. I want Him to lead and direct my life. Thank you, Father, for your grace. Amen.

Things are a mess, but they don’t have to stay that way. May the Lord bless you and keep you always.

Pastor Dimas.