The Deacons Corner

10/23/2025

Judah Ministries C.O.G.I.C is excited to honor the Veterans of the Coatesville Area. A special dinner and Fellowship will be held at 840 E. Chestnut St Coatesville PA, 19320 on November 12th 2025 at 6pm. We invite you to help select a Veteran of the Year. Please submit a brief paragraph explaining why you believe your nominated Vetrean deserves this recognition. Please consider the following criteria when making your nomination.
* Must have been honorably discharged and have community involvement, such as volunteering or mentoring. The candidate should support his/her fellow veterans, demonstrate good character and exhibit strong leadership skills. If you know a veteran who meets this criteria please submit his story to [email protected]. The cut off date for submissions will be 10/31/2025

02/04/2025

Burn the Boats

And if it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.

––Joshua 24:15, nkjv

Burn the ships, cut the ties
Send a flare into the night
Say a prayer, turn the tide
Dry your tears and wave goodbye.

––“Burn the Ships” by For King + Country

Legend has it that when Hernán Cortés landed in the New World, he ordered his men to burn their boats. The message was clear: We are conquering this land and there is no looking back. (Sadly, the Conquistadors did conquer the Aztecs, which led to their downfall.) During his invasion of Persia in 363, Roman Emperor Julian the Apostate had his men burn the bridges and pontoons after his legions had crossed the Tigris. And perhaps most famously, the notorious Captain Bly had sailors burn the HMS Bounty after the mutinous crew landed on Pitcairn Island.

There are times in every man’s life when it’s necessary to burn the ships—to walk away from a person or situation and never look back. It could be to end an affair or inappropriate attachment; or when you need to walk away from a job where the boss is asking you to do something unethical.

As in the above cases, sometimes we must burn our ships to get away from something unhealthy or toxic. Many times, however, God’s man will be called to walk toward something that requires his full commitment. And as God would have it, that usually means moving from the familiar to the unfamiliar, from comfortable to uncomfortable, and from safe to dangerous. Consider this:

As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.” At once they left their nets and followed him. ––Matthew 4:18-20

Notice it doesn’t say Peter and Andrew told Jesus they’d sleep on it or get back to him within 48 hours. It says they dropped their nets “at once” to follow Him.

I want that kind of “at once” faith. To not have to think about it when God calls me to do something. And for sure, God is calling us—each and every day—to respond to at-once needs all around us, both big and little ones. The key is reconciling this within yourself, and determining ahead of time how you will respond. What ships do you need to burn that are holding you back? And conversely, what is holding you back when Jesus asks you to burn your ships for Him?

Lord, help me to determine today—right now—that I will not keep playing Christianity with a tentative mindset. Burn whatever ships and bridges You need to in order from me to serve You fully.

09/27/2021

Authority



Commitment has its roots in surrender. The Roman Centurion is a prime example of this. He said to Jesus. “I did not even consider myself worthy to come to you. But say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I myself am a man of authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one ‘Go,’ and he goes; and that one, ‘Come,’ and he comes. I say to my servant ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” (Luke 7:7-8)

This is the man that Jesus commended by saying “I tell you, I have not found such great faith even in all Israel.” The following is what God is looking for in the heart of every God’s man.

I know you are in charge — I know you are capable — I am not in control: you are in control — I am yielded to you — I have no power — You possess all power in my life at this moment — I am dependent on your will being done in my life — you are in authority over me.

Find a great spiritual warrior, and I will show you ruthless submission and surrender to the will of God in that man’s life. Yielding to God’s authority in our life “green lights” the wielding of His authority through your life. Commitment to God’s authority is a sacrifice of our will and Satan’s influence. Satan is using every bit of power he has been given to undermine our under-developed character and integrity. We are God’s men who have our identity in him. Help me Lord to make this real in my life.

Father, Thank you for the choice to surrender to your authority.

05/24/2021

How to Experience His Presence in Your Everyday Life

John 14:23 Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my,
Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.

Life is busy and filled with distractions. It's so easy to get caught up in our cares, errands and worries that we lose sight of what matters most.

There's an interesting little story at the end of Luke chapter two about when Mary and Joseph took Jesus to Jerusalem for Passover when He was twelve years old. After the festival was over, they left to go home, supposing He was with them.

I wonder how many times we suppose God's with us when we've wandered off to do our own thing?

Now here's the interesting part. Mary and Joseph had traveled a day's journey before they realized Jesus wasn't with them and then it took three days to find Him. Three days! The message here is that it's easier to lose that special presence of God than it is to get it back once we've lost it.

We need to be careful to remain in the presence of God. When we do, we make God feel at home in our hearts.

This simply starts with being obedient to His Word. A commitment to turn from behavior that offends God is the number one sign of spiritual maturity. It shows you care about what He thinks.

That means you choose to be generous toward others, you learn to forgive, let go of your offenses and live in peace. When we choose to be intentional with our words, giving thanks to God and lifting up others, we'll feel connected to God all throughout the day.

Father, thank You for making Your home in my heart. I need Your presence today, Lord. Help me to honor You with my thoughts and my words and to be a blessing to those around me. Have a blessed day Fb.

04/23/2021

Elder Kenneth B. Blake is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.
Topic: Men Encouraging Men - " Iron Sharpeneth Iron; So A Man Sharpenth The Countenance Of His Frind"
Time: Apr 23, 2021 08:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/8459006654
Meeting ID: 845 900 6654
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Meeting ID: 845 900 6654
Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kciEXVLQAn

04/14/2021

Elder Kenneth B. Blake is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.
Topic: Men Encouraging Men - " Iron Sharpeneth Iron; So A Man Sharpenth The Countenance Of His Friend"
Time: Apr 23, 2021 08:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/8459006654
Meeting ID: 845 900 6654
One tap mobile
+13126266799,,8459006654 # US (Chicago)
+16465588656,,8459006654 # US (New York)
Dial by your location
+1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)
+1 646 558 8656 US
(New York)
+1 301 715 8592 US (Washington DC)
+1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)
+1 669 900 9128 US
(San Jose)
+1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma)
Meeting ID: 845 900 6654
Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kciEXVLQAn

04/01/2021

02/26/2021

Gm Fb The Men Of Judah would like to invite you to our monthly men's fellowship.
Here is the Zoom link Judah Ministries COGIC Men's Department is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.

Topic: Men Mentoring Men. Being A Man Of Prayer

Time: Feb 26, 2021 07:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)

Join Zoom Meeting

https://us05web.zoom.us/j/88099904870?pwd=RTNpc2d1UDBOZElDOU0wL1BwL1krdz09

Meeting ID: 880 9990 4870

Zoom is the leader in modern enterprise video communications, with an easy, reliable cloud platform for video and audio conferencing, chat, and webinars across mobile, desktop, and room systems. Zoom Rooms is the original software-based conference room solution used around the world in board, confer...

02/14/2021

“Fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” Hebrews 12:2

For three years they had watched Jesus live His life, and never once did He crack or bend. They saw Him break bread with sinner after sinner. Time and again He would break the rules of the religion when love or compassion demanded it; he frustrated His critics when he encountered misplaced spirituality. He was not intimidated by authority figures. He was not swayed by public opinion or pressure from authorities. He would not cave.

As one of my favorite authors, Brennan Manning, puts it, “His doing and his being, like his divinity and humanity, were one,” His identity in His Father was formed in His heart in such a way that the world saw a real man. One who was free to love, help, heal, serve, teach, confront, and connect radically with people. Most important for us males, Jesus Christ modeled how to release oneself fully to God’s purposes in the face of personal suffering — the real test of a man’s heart.

On that dark evening, the most important thing Jesus might have ever shown us was how to completely let go of our hearts to God. And that he did. But He also stiffened His spine. Spine comes from undivided trust in the One who gives us the undivided heart. There is no sadder or more pathetic man than the one with a heart but no spine. It’s one thing to feel something and another to put it into practice.

How easy it is to see the problems of others, we say to ourselves, “the answer is obvious”, just do it! I will say it again, behind every good decision is an undivided heart coupled with the nerve of the spine.

Father, thank you for modeling your heart and spine through Jesus.

02/03/2021

But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him.” Jeremiah 17:7

In a man’s world we call it “walking tall.” God wants every believer walking tall (like David) in the Spirit. The solution is to internalize versus intellectualize the guarantee and confidence the Holy Spirit exists to provide. With that goal in mind, the simplest way to manifest the presence of the Holy Spirit is by speaking the truth of Scripture into the moments that call for courage and confidence. It looks like this: the Word of Truth joins with the Spirit of Truth and faith in God joins with words of God, openly believed and spoken, to produce the power of God. Join your faith with the Holy Spirit and repeat out loud the following.

The creed of the Guaranteed: God has prepared me — The Holy Spirit is in me — nothing can stop me — God is for me — Because HE will redeem me.

God wants us to practice reminding ourselves of spiritual truth on a moment to moment basis. The purpose of this exercise is to connect you with truth. God wants you to be inwardly certain and fully confident of the Holy Spirit’s presence right now. The reason I asked you to recite this creed is because being certain of the Holy Spirit’s presence is not an intellectual exercise, it is a spiritual and experiential reality which produces a real living and emotional validation of truth inside and this is what you just did. He promised he would fill you. Don’t depend on feelings. It’s God and His word. It’s His promise. Believe it.

Father, your Spirit lives within me, I will act on it because you promised.

01/30/2021

Alas! how difficult it is not to betray one’s guilt by one’s looks. — Ovid

Guilt is huge… and heavy. Like a lead anchor strapped to our feet, our sins both big and small from the past can submerge us in the ocean of shame. This has made some of us sincerely believe that our sins are unforgivable by man (which is probably true), and sometimes even by God (which isn’t true!). We can end up with the notion that God doesn’t want to forgive us, or worse yet, that He won’t forgive because what we did was so shameful that we can’t even bear to think about how we failed Him.

And yet, like so many times before, we know from the Bible that God is quite the opposite: forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin (Exodus 34:7).

God the Father forgives the one who truly believes in Him. He forgives everything, and does so completely.

He is forgiving.

You might need to let that soak in for a moment.

The Bible is a description of the forgiving character of God. The New Testament shows you the person that He has chosen: Jesus Christ. It also shows you the method: the crucifixion and resurrection. It’s all because He’s a forgiving Father.

God, I am not worthy of Your love, and much less of Your forgiveness because of my sin. Thank You SO much for having compassion, for being gracious, for being patient with me. You not only look past my sin, but save me from it! Thank You for Your forgiveness. I believe in it. Amen.

My dad is a faithful man. In fact, I know what I’m going to say about him at his funeral one day: “He was faithful to his Savior, to his bride, and to his calling.” We were fortunate to have that kind of human faithfulness in our family. But compared to God, Dad’s faithfulness is miniscule. God never changes, never flounders, never turns His back.

When we believe in His faithfulness, peace and relief descend on our fearful souls. He’s not going anywhere; He’ll keep His promises; and He’ll follow through with His pronouncements. This makes the faith walk possible and logical.

“And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” (Matthew 28:20)

Father, thank You for Your incredible faithfulness, and for being the constant in my life. Help me take to heart the promise of Your presence. Amen.

01/25/2021

GAP (grace and peace) on Meditation Monday!!

We are blessed to have a Father in heaven who we can always approach with confidence, especially when we’re in need of answers to prayer. When you feel like God isn’t hearing your prayers, know that God hasn’t forgotten about you or abandoned you.

The Bible tells us “The LORD Himself goes before you and will be with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged”.
Deuteronomy 31:8

God has also promised to answer every prayer according to His grace, His infinite power, love and faithfulness. Our attitude should be one of confidence that He is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His Will.

Too often, we neglect to ask God for miracles in our lives, and end up settling for less than God’s best for us. The truth is, we can always approach God with confidence if we trust in Jesus.

Don’t hesitate to pray about anything, including the answers you need revealed.

Amen.