"This is Our Time" - Monday April 20, 2026

Personal Note: Several weeks ago, the completion of book I wrote called, “This is My Story” was mentioned in a devotional and how it could be purchased. In recent days, a number of folks have emailed requesting the website where it can be ordered be listed again. Please know, I did not set the price, nor do I receive anything from the sales, and a bit surprised at the number that have been sold. If interested, click on the link below, check the “black & white” section ($39), scroll down to place your order, confirm book is ready to print, hit continue and go to shipping details and purchase. Several have asked if I’d sign the book and I’m happy to do so. I normally have extras on hand and if this is your desire, contact me and I’ll work out the details with you. Here’s the link for a private purchase: https://www.storyworth.com/book/this-is-my-story---gerry-carnes/order. 

 

“This is Our Time”

As dedicated followers of Christ we believe in a number of things about Him. Like, He makes no mistakes, his ways are better than ours, his thoughts are higher than our thoughts, and that he has a divine plan for our lives.

 

This is being written Sunday afternoon and I’m still on “overload” after teaching a lesson on Esther in my Bible Class at church this morning. If you aren’t familiar with this incredible story in the Bible, I encourage you to read it. It’s like many of the things happening in our world today were played out centuries before us and we’re reading the events of that story. Haman, the right-hand man of King Xerxes and from the line of the Amalekites which was a nomadic warring tribe and persistent enemies of ancient Israel.

 

After learning of Haman’s plan to annihilate all the Jews, Mordecai convinces his cousin, Queen Esther, to set a time to visit the king explaining Haman’s plan. This would be a dangerous move as no one was permitted to meet with the king without being summoned.  In fear of her own life, Esther agrees to meet with the king after praying and fasting to explain Haman’s plot. Mordecai encouraged Esther, “who knows but that you have come to this royal position for such a time as this” (4:14). Esther, a young girl, determined to do the right thing stating, “If I perish, I perish” (4:16).

 

This is a “thumbnail” briefing of an exciting story, but here’s what you need to see. Most agree our nation and world is not only divided, but in crisis. There are evil people in high places, hatred and violence in our streets, and movements across the land opposing God, the Bible, Christianity, and churches where the Bible is taught. Some would say, “We are living in a dark world that’s getting darker.”

 

I believe God has a plan for your life and mine, just like He did Esther. God chose your parents and chose your birthdate knowing you would be alive at this moment in history. We aren’t here by accident or miscalculation. Our time on earth was and is orchestrated by Almighty God “For such a time as this!” He has confidence in and believes in His followers to stand for holiness and do the right things. He expects us to love others, to pray for evildoers, and let our spiritual light shine so as to point an unbeliever to the Savior. This is an exciting time to be alive! “It’s Our Time!” Let’s not be afraid to stand for truth and righteousness. Like Esther, we have the ability to make a difference in the lives of others.

 

Pastor Carnes

 

 

 

"What You Sow in One Season, you will Reap in another season" Pt 5 of 5: Friday April 17, 2026

“What You Sow in One Season, you will Reap in another season” Pt 5 of 5:

1. The Seasons of your life are beyond your control. - 2. They are often confusing. – 3. God has a purpose for every season. – 4. The Seasons of life include both Good and Bad times.

 

5. What You sow in One Season, you will Reap in another season: You don’t plant anything and immediately harvest the next day. You plant in the spring and harvest in the fall. Unfortunately, most of us aren’t good at waiting. We describe this as a “microwave mentality.” With new technology, even the microwave is too slow for some. We definitely are a “I WANT IT NOW,” society.

 

We read in the book of Malachi that if we give the Lord 10% of our earnings, He will open the windows of heaven and pour out his blessings. This sounds great. So, we put our tithe in and expect his blessings before we get home. Blessings for faithful tithing is a promise of God, but the blessing doesn’t always come immediately. This same principle applies to every aspect of our life. God knows what we need and the exact time to meet the need.

 

It’s like planting. You plant a seed one season, and you always harvest in another. A wise person said, “The bad habits you develop in the home and at school will carry on into your life as an adult, your marriage, and career.” Dr. Crawford Loritts said, “When you are born, you look like your parents, when you die you look like your decisions.” Destiny isn’t a mystery; it’s a series of decisions. For better or worse, we look more and more like our decisions every day.

 

The good news is that you are one decision away from a totally different life and lifestyle. My prayer is that God would give you the clarity, the conviction, and the courage to make that decision. The way you respond to things, both good and bad, definitely affects your future. Make a habit of deciding at this moment to DO THE NEXT RIGHT THING, (whether you feel like it or not). It’ll pay great dividends in the future, for you, your family, and friends.

 

“Let us not be weary in doing well for in due season we shall reap if we faint not.” In other words, if we continue to do the right things and don’t give up. As parents, the way we act or respond in certain situations is setting a pattern for our children. Be careful because they are watching, learning  and imitating you’re behavior and reactions.

 

Pastor Carnes

 

"The SEASONS of life include both GOOD and BAD times" Pt 4 of 5 - Thursday April 16, 2026

“The Seasons of life include both GOOD and BAD TIMES” Pt 4 of 5:

1. The Seasons of life are beyond my control – 2. They are often confusing – 3. God has a purpose for every season.

 

4. The Seasons of life include both GOOD and BAD times: Life is full of contrasts. We experience mountains of joy and happiness, but also walk through the valleys of sorrow, and despair. We go through successes and we go through failures. We have winnings and we have losses. In weather there are four seasons, but in your life, there are many different seasons.

 

Solomon listed 28 different life experiences in Ecclesiastes 3:2-8. Here’s a few from the wisest man that ever lived; “There’s a time to be born and a time to die, a time to laugh and a time to cry, a time to find and a time to lose, a time to speak up and a time to be quiet (we often get these two mixed up).” We need the courage to speak up when we should and have the good sense to be silent when necessary.

 

Life is a combination of contrasting seasons. All sunshine and no rain make a desert. If you are truly following God with a desire to live as He wants you to live, every experience (season) in life has meaning and purpose in your life. This doesn’t mean you understand the season and some seasons will be disappointing and even painful. But in our walk of faith, we believe God’s ways are better than our ways. His thoughts are higher than our thoughts. We believe He is our High Tower and can not only see our future, but in navigating our future.

 

There was a popular song by Ray Stevens years ago called, “Everything is Beautiful in it’s Own Way.” It was a great song, but unfortunately, not everything is beautiful. Any type of disease is not beautiful, war is not beautiful, broken relationships are not beautiful, losing a loved is not beautiful.

 

Some of you are going through a season right now and it’s not beautiful. It’s ugly. Your finances, health, marriage, relationship with a friend, job, or something else is everything but beautiful. It’s the pits and you may be screaming, “God – why is this happening to me?” Stand firm with an obedient heart, keep your eyes focused upon Christ and know he knows and understands everything you’re going through. He’s even catching your tears. As the songwriter wrote, “I don’t know about tomorrow – BUT I KNOW WHO HOLDS MY HAND!” (Pt 5 Tomorrow: What you sow in one season, you will reap in another season).

 

Pastor Carnes

"God has a PURPOSE for Every Season of your life" Pt 3 of 5: - Wednesday April 15, 2026

“God has a purpose for Every Season of your life” Pt 3 of 5:

1. The Seasons of my life are beyond my control. 2) The Seasons of life are often confusing.

 

3. God has a PURPOSE for Every Season of your life: Throughout our lifetime we will experience seasons of loneliness, sadness, grief, successes, failure, illness, loss, and others. Romans 8:28 was mentioned yesterday. Here’s the Living Bible version, “We know that all that happens to us is working for our good if we love God and are fitting into his plans.” There are three important words mentioned, “working for” and “if.”

 

This promise is not for everybody. All things DO NOT work together for good for everybody in the world. They only work together for good for those who love God and are fitting into his plans. This means, you’re trusting Him with what you are doing. If you are a believer, nothing comes into your life that hasn’t been filtered by your heavenly father. Your life is not a random series of freak accidents and occurrences and circumstances that just happen.

 

God has an appointed time for everything. He never does things by accident. Does this include the bad, hard, and difficult times?” Yes! Understand this. God doesn’t have to plan all the problems in your life or mine. Nor does he have to plan the bad times. We do pretty well with the problems and bad things ourselves. Things happen because of our bad choices, allowing others to lead us down a wrong path, and ignoring the influence God wants to have on our life.

 

God does have a purpose however and can use every trial, heartache, and difficult situation to draw good out of it. That means every single event, no matter how dark, no matter how shameful, or how bad it is, God can bring good out of it. He doesn’t have to plan bad; but he can bring good out of bad!

 

The Bible doesn’t say all things are good because all things are not good! It says, “ALL THINGS WORK TOGETHER FOR GOOD” for those who give God all the pieces and say, “God, here’s my messed-up life, will you make good out of it?” Remember, God is more interested in your future than your past. He wants you to trust Him with the sins you’ve committed, the pain and suffering you’ve experienced and everything else. It isn’t to late to let Him make something good out of difficult times. (Tomorrow #4: Life’s Seasons Include Good and Bad).

 

Pastor Carnes

 

 

"Understanding the Seasons of Life" Pt 2 of 5 - Tuesday April 14, 2026

“Understanding the Seasons of Life” Pt 2 of 5:

Monday – Pt 1: THE SEASONS OF LIFE ARE BEYOND MY CONTROL.

 

2. The Seasons of Life are often confusing: Some situations you are in cause you to think, “Why is this happening to me? I don’t understand it.” Understanding usually follows an experience rather than precedes it. We tend to understand the seasons we’re in after they’re over, not while we are in them. It’s very normal to be asking questions during difficult times and the things (or outcomes) we cannot control.

 

We’re familiar with Romans 8:28; “All things work for the good to those who love the Lord…,” yet are heard saying, “I sure can’t see anything good coming out of this!” We definitely have a better perspective looking back after experiencing something unexpected, than we do looking ahead. You know the saying, hindsight is twenty-twenty.

 

The reality is, there have been and will be some things that take place throughout your life that you’ll never understand. And the thing is, God doesn’t owe you an explanation. As time passes by, there may be some things you can put together and make some sense out of. But there will be many things you’ll never understand until you get to heaven. The bottom line is, God is teaching us to live by faith, NOT BY SIGHT OR EXPLANATION.

 

In Ecclesiastes 3:11 we find, “He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom ( completely understand) what God has done from beginning to end” (Ecclesiastes 3:11).

 

For as long as I’ve known her, my wife has reminded me, “God doesn’t make sense!” Let’s face it, there are things we’ve experienced that are unexplainable. We wish we had an answer but it’s beyond our understanding. We have no idea why a certain thing happened and at the time it happened. Despite all of that, the Bible is clear, “God’s love for us is everlasting and his faithfulness will endure forever”.

 

Someone has said, “God is too wise to make a mistake, and He is too good to be unkind. When you can’t trace His hand (figure him out), you can always trace His heart”. (Pt 3 tomorrow: God has a purpose for every Season of your life).

 

Pastor Carnes

 

 

"Understanding the Seasons of Life" Pt 1 of 5 - Monday April 13, 2026

“Understanding the Seasons of Life” Pt 1 of 5:

When God created the earth, He set up seasons of weather. In Genesis 8:22 we find, “As long as the earth remains, there will be springtime and harvest, cold and heat, winter and summer, day and night.” We know about seasonal weather patterns, but do you realize God also established seasons of human activity? The “Seasons of Life.”

 

Ecclesiastes 3:1 says, “There is a time for everything and a season for every activity under heaven.” The New Century Version states, “Everything on earth has its special season.” Every gardener and farmer knows that if you don’t have changes in seasons, your plants aren’t going to make it. Seasonal changes are necessary for plants to grow.

 

The same thing in true in life. We have to go through various seasons in order to mature and grow. This week we’ll look at five general facts regarding these seasons.

 

1. THEY ARE BEYOND MY CONTROL: You can’t control when they happen, how long they happen, and you can’t control the location or duration of them. There are times we all face things that “just happen” and in a flash our agenda and expectations vanish. Grief is a season, as is an extended illness. Every one of us is going to lose a loved ones in our lifetime and you can’t control that. It’s frustrating that we know what the seasons of life will be in our life, but we can’t figure out exactly when they are going to happen or which is going to happen next.

 

So, who determines the seasons? God does. Daniel says, “Praise be to the name of God for ever and ever; He changes times and seasons…” (2:20-21). God is Sovereign which means He is the absolute, supreme ruler and sustainer of all creation, possessing ultimate authority and power over every event, person, and detail in the universe. Nothing happens outside of God’s control, permission, or eternal plan, ensuring all things ultimately serve his purpose.

 

We’re often frustrated when things are out of our control. But there is comfort in knowing God will never let us walk through anything alone. He’s with you at this very moment.  (Part 2 tomorrow: The Seasons of Life are often confusing).

 

Pastor Carnes

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"Facing the Unexpected" - Friday April 10, 2026

“Facing the Unexpected”

I don’t ever recall meeting a person, Christian or non-believer, that didn’t believe God has a plan for their life. Some may understand this better than others and are willing to walk with God today, as well as into their future. Leadership in the corporate world, educational field, church, and basically everything else requires a dreamer that isn’t afraid to believe God. Believing in God is one thing, trusting Him in every situation is another.

 

We followers of Christ say, “God always has a plan.” It’s easy to say, but do we truly believe and trust Him enough to let go and allow him to work the plan? We rejoice and celebrate victories but wonder where God is and what He is doing during times of difficulty.

 

Most will admit that there are times when we think God is moving to slow or mysteriously. It’s hard to understand when someone else got the promotion when we’ve been with the company longer and are more qualified. When we aren’t approved for the purchase of a home? When there’s been treatment over a period of time, but the illness is getting worse instead of better. When we call out to God and wonder if He cares and is even listening.

 

Believing in and following Christ doesn’t mean you won’t hit roadblocks along the way. David is a great example. Right after Samuel anointed him, David faced a major roadblock – a literal giant. Before he would ever lead Israel, before he even endured Saul’s harassment, David had to face one of the fiercest warriors of his time. A literal giant!

 

“Where’s God?” No one can truly explain what God chooses to do or not do or his timing. We trust His promises and that he will never fail us. When riddled with insecurity, our hearts can stand on the secure foundation of our hope in Christ. His promises are solid. There will be times unexpected things happen. They are a shock to us, but our God doesn’t waver. Our faith is tested when things are out of our control. Believing God has a plan for your life doesn’t mean there won’t be burdens or trials to bear. But Jesus is the anchor who holds us through every storm!

 

Pastor Carnes