Praise Christian Fellowship-OC Family

09/04/2022

Breakthrough Starts in Worship

Now when they began to sing and to praise, the LORD set ambushes against the people of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, who had come against Judah; and they were defeated.
2 Chronicles 20:22

In this text, Judah is about to be overwhelmed by a confederation of three opposing armies. Its armies are hopelessly outnumbered and face certain defeat, but God has a plan… Worship!

Worship puts God in His proper place as Creator of the universe, Redeemer of our life and Provider of everything we need. Because we know whom we worship, our worship releases the Lord to perform His purpose within us. Worship is not blissful ignorance or vain superstition in the face of present need. It is confirming God’s desire to work in the lives of His people. Spiritual power is released through praise! Here the enemies of Judah are confused and begin to slaughter each other as the people of God begin to sing and worship. Jehoshaphat, Judah’s king, never sends the army to fight, only the choir! The Lord promises that if we face each challenge with praise, He will confuse and scatter our enemies. Whatever today may bring, no matter how large the obstacle, the beginning point of breakthrough is praise and worship.

05/29/2022

Hearing and Obeying

...and said, “If you diligently heed the voice of the LORD your God and do what is right in His sight, give ear to His commandments and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have brought on the Egyptians. For I am the LORD who heals you.”
Exodus 15:26

God asks us to heed Him. We are to have a hearing ear so we will hear Him. God has always spoken to His people, and He will speak to you today, but you must cultivate a habit of listening for His voice. He speaks in many ways, through His Word, through His anointed servants, and through direct revelation from the Holy Spirit (Eph. 1:17, 18). He is seeking a people who will listen for His voice and not try to run and hide from Him (see Gen. 3:8).

God also asks us to “do what is right in His sight.” He is also seeking people who will not only hear His words, but will take them to heart and act on them. He calls us to be people who will obey His word and not be hearers only (James 1:22–25).

As we obey Him, His goodness is abundantly promised. It awaits those who “(sow) to the Spirit” (Gal. 6:7–9), hear the voice of the Lord, and do what He tells them to do.

03/24/2022

Yes Holy Spirit is God. He is a divine Person, a being with a mind, emotions, and a will.

In a sermon, Dr. Stanley reminds us, “We have a companion in the Holy Spirit who is beyond sufficient for us.” It’s natural to think of what that means in terms of the help the Spirit offers us—Jesus called Him “the Helper,” after all. But we can all too easily fall into the trap of understanding the Holy Spirit in utilitarian, rather than personal, terms—focusing on WHAT HE DOES FOR US, rather than WHO HE IS. We carry on sometimes as if the Spirit were merely a cosmic wellness program director, or the divine equivalent of a wedding planner, making sure everything goes smoothly. Acknowledging that the third person of the Trinity is indeed a person means that His companionship is foremost about having a relationship with Him—of loving and being loved—rather than what we get out of the arrangement. In the Holy Spirit, we have fellowship with God the Father and the Son, right here and now, wherever we go. That means on my loneliest days, wandering deep in the ravine of self-doubt or grief or longing for connection, I’m not actually alone but lovingly welcomed and attended to, supported, nourished. It means that when I’ve lost my way, the most loving of friends stands by, waiting to comfort and guide me home to my Father’s house. No matter who abandons or ignores us in this life, no matter who lets us down, the Holy Spirit is our perfect companion, holding us in Christ’s perfect love. What wouldn’t you give to that kind of friend?

Adapted from “Double Take: Our Divine Companion,” by C. Lawrence

03/06/2022

Kingdom Prayer of Intercession

"Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven."
Matthew 6:10

Kingdom praying has a pivotal place in the affairs of this world. Jesus’ lesson on prayer, which we call the Lord’s Prayer, not only issues a call to our worship and surrender before God’s throne; He also issues an incredible directive and assignment that we accept a decisive role as intercessors. In short, our prayers ushering in “Your kingdom come,” is the action which refuses to surrender this present world to the adversary’s devices and destruction.

Jesus’ assignment is that we pray, “Father, Your kingdom come on earth.” It is our Savior’s way of saying, “Just as you have welcomed the Father’s rule in your hearts, now extend that kingdom rule in prayer.”

Point to earth’s needy places and invite heaven’s forces to break hell’s strongholds and bring hearts, homes, and nations into His freedom.

02/02/2022

Forgiveness

And Joseph said to his brothers, “Please come near to me.” So they came near. Then he said: “I am Joseph your brother, whom you sold into Egypt."
Genesis 45:4

Do you suppose that while Joseph was being sent to misery and an almost certain death in Egypt that he thought God was preparing him to rule a nation? I don’t think so.

Do you suppose that during the long, forced march to Egypt he was thankful to his brothers for acting as the hand of God moving him toward the realization of his destiny? I don’t think so. Do you suppose that while he was imprisoned in darkness and filth that he felt the anticipation of one preparing for a glorious future? I don’t think so.

Yet when Joseph forgave his brothers, he revealed a long-term attitude of heart that allowed his suffering to become his strength. God expects us to forgive because we’re growing in Christ-like love. But more personally, when we forgive, we allow God to take the mistreatment we receive and turn it into the forging of character that allows God to use us to rule in our own Egypt.

Who is God using to shape your character? Are you forgiving?

01/05/2022

Obedience

"Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them.”
John 14:21, NIV

Jesus completely aligned His life and will with the Father’s, indicating His total allegiance to the Father’s Word and commandments. He also disapproved of any attitude that would teach less than full obedience to the entirety of God’s revealed Word.

Thus, in this text, Jesus explicitly links His disciples’ love for Him as Savior with their will to keep His commandments: If we love Him, we will love His Father’s Word, also.

In John 5:39, our Lord declares that the knowledge of the Scriptures is the pathway to knowing Him well. Further, upon His resurrection, He unveiled the fullness of His own Person as revealed in the Old Testament (Luke 24:27). These texts come together to teach us to not only follow Christ, but to know Him, and to grow in insight as we walk with the resurrected Lord.

A basic and continuing requirement to seeing this accomplished is a steadfast commitment to hearing, heeding, and studying the Bible. Step into its wonders today!

08/21/2019

05/31/2019

Mother's Day celebration 2019

01/16/2019

Inviting all family and friends join us..Let us worship the Lord...

12/30/2018

PCF-OC Workers Appreciation Sunday.

Thank you all for a job well done. We look forward for a victorious 2019.