Author: Pavement Ends Ministry

Sweet Sustenance

/ Pavement Ends Ministry / Leave a comment

I love to watch hummingbirds. These little miracles of flight are always entertaining. As I sit and watch, I think about what it is that draws them to my feeder. The feeder is not especially pretty so that is not why they come. It is in a good location, it hangs next to a red rose bush. But I don’t think they come for the view. The contents of the feeder are very colorful, but that is not why they come either.

They don’t come to my feeder to entertain me, they come for sustenance. They don’t care that the water is colorful, they only want the nutrients that give them strength. Here is where they find the nutritional fuel to build a nest and raise families. When the baby birds begin to fly, the parents will bring them to the feeder, where they know they will find sustenance.

Let’s change the topic. Lately, it seems that more and more people are finding no need to go to church. The question is asked, “what can we do to draw more people in?” If we dress up the building will more people come? What about a new location with a better view, is that what people want? Maybe the pastor could preach more colorful sermons and entertain the people.

I believe that most people don’t care what the church looks like or where it is located. They don’t care if the sermons are colorful or entertaining. What people want, what people need is sustenance. A church that provides the Holy nutrients that are needed to live and raise a family will be a growing church.

Jesus said, I Am the Bread of life and if I Am lifted up I will draw all men to Me. People will flock to a church where the sermons and Sunday School lessons are spiritually nutritious. The hummingbirds need the sweet water found in my feeders and people need the Living Water that is Jesus Christ. When He is lifted up people will be drawn to Him.

Douglas & Deborah Huff

Y’all come to see us sometime.

Barnabas, the Son of Encouragement

/ Pavement Ends Ministry / Leave a comment

The Encourager

One of my favorite characters in the Bible was a man named Barnabas. He was not one of the more well-known men in Scripture. As far as I know, he never performed any miracles. He is not credited with writing any of the books of the Bible. However, I am convinced that we are blessed today because God used Barnabas in a mighty way.

Joseph was his real name, but the Apostles nicknamed him Barnabas because Barnabas means, “ Son of Encouragement”. He had the gift of encouragement and used it to inspire people to do their best for God. Even the greatest men in the Bible often needed encouragement. And God used Barnabas to inspire the hearts of at least two of the most important men in the New Testament.

It was Barnabas who encouraged the Apostles to accept Paul when he was a new believer. Later when Paul would disappear for two years, Barnabas would go to Tarsus and inspire him to begin work in Antioch. Later on, when John Mark would fail on a missionary journey, it was Barnabas who believed in him and gave him another chance. For this reason, whenever I read the Gospel of Mark and the Letters of Paul, I am grateful for the Son of Encouragement.

I challenge you to become a Barnabas. In Proverbs, we read that it is a joy to hear the right word for the right occasion and that God is pleased with friendly words. So make it a point to encourage everyone you come in contact with. Put a smile on your face and tell someone that they are doing a good job. Your kind words may be the inspiration someone needs to hear today

The Speed of Yesterday. A podcast

/ Pavement Ends Ministry / Leave a comment

While his children grew, he often attempted the impossible task of being in two places at once. Forty-hour work weeks often required fifty-five hours. Vacations, when they were not postponed, seemed to be something to endure not enjoy. Today, well today it seems like the beginning and end run together. This devotion is an audio podcast. In it I talk about the shortness of life and how much trust we must place in God.

https://podpoint.com/pavement-ends-ministry/the-speed-of-yesterday?fbclid=IwAR0hqSZYQSDyFj0q-B5cQCyY_-wYLnTJJMZACj10NafVzgTFTvnic1KMUok#

Everybody is a Nobody Who can be a Sombody

/ Pavement Ends Ministry / Leave a comment

In Mark Chapter 5, there is a story about a woman who was a nobody. We don’t even know her name. If we had been there on this day, she would not have been in our field of vision. Seeing her would have made us uncomfortable, so we would have chosen not to see her. If we had seen her at all, we would have assumed her problems were her own fault, because that is the way we think.

She was a nobody that most people avoided. She was not supposed to be there. For twelve years she had suffered from an issue of blood. This made her unclean. Because she was unclean, she could not be around others. She could not even worship God. In her shame and grief, she spent everything she had seeking help. She has suffered all sorts of abuse and indignities. Hopeless and helpless, she spends her days and nights lonely and untouched.

She felt like a nobody, but one day she overheard people talking about Jesus. I say “overheard” because since she was a nobody, why would anyone bother to tell her about The Savior? She considers herself a nobody so she cannot even face Jesus. She hopes that maybe if she can just touch his coat she will be healed. To the world and herself, she was a nobody. But to Jesus she is somebody. He stops everything and looks for her. He finds her and calls her His daughter. Her faith in Him has made her well. She was a nobody, but now she is somebody. She is a child of God.

Do you feel like a nobody? Have addictions caused you to spend all you have seeking relief from your demons? Are you broken and abused? Do you stand there weeping? Is your life filled with loneliness and do you spend your days untouched and unloved? Maybe it seems that no one sees you, because no one offers help. It seems that no one cares. To the world you are nobody.

Today I hope you hear about Jesus. I hope you will push through the crowd and reach out for Him. Have faith only in Jesus. He will stop everything to reach out to the ones the world ignores. Everybody is somebody to Him. The Bible tells us that God is rich in mercy. Because of His great love, even when we are nobody and dead in our sins, He makes us somebody alive in Christ.

Douglas & Deborah Huff

Pavement Ends Ministry

Email- pavementendsministry@gmail.com

A Prayer for Restoration

/ Pavement Ends Ministry / Leave a comment

Nehemiah was an Israelite who loved God. He was heartbroken when he heard that his nation and the city of Jerusalem were broken and in distress. He spent many days mourning and fasting for his people. In the Bible, the book of Nehemiah is the story of how God heard and answered Nehemiah’s prayer.

In Nehemiah 1:5-11, we find Nehemiah’s prayer. Today I am going to borrow Nehemiah’s thoughts and adapt his prayer to fit the world we live in. This is my prayer.

Lord God in heaven, the Creator and Sustainer of all things. You are the great and wonderful God who keeps Your gracious promises to those who love You and keep your commands. But you are also a righteous God who allows us to suffer the consequences of disobedience. Please let Your eyes be open and Your ears be attentive to hear my cry as I lift my voice to You and pray for Your children and this hurting nation.

I confess the sins we have committed against You. Lord, we have been faithless and sinned. We have allowed entertainers to become advisors and given sports figures hero status. We have passively watched as many who were elected to serve this nation wrongfully establish themselves as our rulers. We have acted unfaithfully toward You and have not kept the commandments that You gave to us through Your servant Moses. Lord, we are an unholy people. We suffer as a result of our sinfulness.

Lord, I know that if we treasure sin in our hearts You will not hear our prayers. I know that you will not bless the life of the unrighteous man. But You have promised that if we your people, who are called by your name, will humble ourselves and pray, and if we turn from our wicked ways then You will hear from heaven and heal our land. I know Lord, that in this nation Your people indeed are few. However, You are not concerned with numbers but seek to honor the ones who have broken and contrite hearts.

God, we are Your servants and Your people. You have redeemed us by Your great power and strong hand. Please, Lord, let Your ear be attentive to my prayer and to the prayers of all Your servants who delight in Your name. Give Your servants success today, and have compassion on us in the presence of evil men as we attempt to reclaim this land for Your Glory.

In the Power and Authority of the Lord Jesus Christ, I pray. Amen

Douglas Huff

From Down Where the Pavement Ends

Upside Down

/ Pavement Ends Ministry / Leave a comment

In the first century, a handful of believers devoutly followed Christ. With the power of the Holy Spirit, this group of believers turned the world upside down. Their numbers grew, and with miraculous multiplication powers, they overcame all obstacles and infiltrated the world.

With a crescendo of Godly power, Christianity molded and shaped civilization. An honest study of history reveals that hospitals, orphanages, and all forms of charitable organizations are rooted in Christian ideals. You will find also that the legal structure of every civilized nation in the world is solidly based on the laws of God that were fulfilled in Christ.

But now we have come full circle. The influence of Christianity has evaporated. Once the worship of God brought about civility, now individual rights have been idolized and crudity reigns supreme. In the days of Christian influence, personal responsibility was admired, but now things of God are considered old-fashioned. No one is held accountable for their actions and personal irresponsibility is treated as a virtue. In this post-Christian world, the Robin Hood syndrome has become a perverted way of robbing from the hard workers and rewarding the lazy and undeserving.

In this era of social Christianity, we have surrendered our ability to impact the world. Instead of the church influencing the world, the world has infiltrated the church. Once upon a time, Godly men turned the world upside down. Now we are afraid to speak the truth because we might offend someone. For the sake of political correctness, we now call wrong right and accept the unacceptable. Once we bore the marks of Christ and had a preservative effect on the world. Now we have turned our eyes from Jesus and the marks we bear are the footprints of the world. Like salt that has lost its saltiness, we are fit only to be walked on.

What many in this world call progress, is actually the destruction of society. We are going the way of Rome, Greece and Babylon. Like these ancient civilizations we idolize gratuitous sex and we worship personal pleasure. And now we are in danger of disappearing into a haze of lunacy.

But it does not have to be this way. God’s children, the crème of His power and mercy can rise to the top again. We must humble ourselves, and in prayer turn from our wicked ways. If we do this, He has promised that He will hear our prayers. He is God and He keeps His promises. The question is will we humbly turn to Him in prayer? Will we do our part? We have to, for the sake of our grandchildren, we just have to.

Douglas & Deborah Huff

From Down Where The Pavement Ends

The Treasure of the Apostle Paul

/ Pavement Ends Ministry / Leave a comment

Indiana Jones is a popular movie character. He is an archaeologist/professor/adventurer whose life is in constant peril. Going from crisis to crisis he is always seeking some elusive archeological treasure.

The dangers that Jones faces are many. He has escaped from rolling boulders, fires, plane crashes, and booby traps. He has faced Nazis, snakes, rats, and his own fears. He always comes out alive and he never loses his hat.

Indiana Jones is a heroic character, but he is a fictitious character. I want to tell you about a real hero and adventurer. He had a treasure that he lived to share. His name was Paul the Apostle and his treasure was the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Paul also was constantly in danger. He spent much time in jail and escaped from one city in a basket. Five times he was beaten with a whip. Three times he was beaten with rods and once he was stoned and left for dead.

Three times Paul was shipwrecked and once he was snake-bit. As he traveled, he faced dangers from rivers and robbers and friends and enemies. He found trouble in the cities, trouble in the open countryside, and trouble among people who pretended to be his friends. He spent many sleepless nights, hungry, cold, and thirsty. From his letters, we know that he often longed for the warmth of a coat and the companionship of a friend.

Indiana Jones never lost his hat, but Paul never lost his faith. Paul ran a strong race and fought a good fight. He knew that he would be all right. He once said, “For to me to live is Christ and to die is gain.” Jones faced danger for dead treasure. Paul gave his life for incorruptible glory

The Indiana Jones movies are mildly entertaining but the stories of Paul are awe-inspiring. Indiana Jones is make-believe, but Paul is real. May we all be like Paul who said “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes–. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “The just shall live by faith”. (Romans 1:16-17)

Douglas & Deborah Huff

From Down Where the Pavement Ends

email-pavementendsministry@gmail.com

The Bible Is Always Right

/ Pavement Ends Ministry / Leave a comment

The Word of God is always right. It is always right about everything. You may have an incredible IQ or you may be abundantly ignorant, however, if you say, ” I know what the Bible says but this is what I think.” Be assured of this. God does not care what you think. If you disagree with God you are wrong and He is right. Always.

The Word of God is never wrong. Maybe your circumstances have led you to think you can disregard His teaching, but you are wrong. Perhaps your situation causes you to feel as if His commandments don’t apply to your life. If so, you need to know that your feelings are wrong. Understand this. His ways are higher than your ways and His thoughts are higher than your thoughts. If you disagree with the Word of God, you are wrong and He is right.

God is never wrong! Never!

The Word of God is righteous. Some people have issues with the things the Bible teaches. Their perception of God is that He is cold and heartless. But they don’t know that God is omnipotent or that He transcends time. He was in the beginning and He is in the future. God has seen the actions of men in the past and knows the results of these actions in the future.

Do not trust your own understanding, but take joy in the Lord’s instructions. Meditate on His Word day and night and you will find that His Word is always righteous. Always.

Douglas & Deborah Huff

From Down Where The Pavement Ends

Email- pavementendsministry@gmail.com

Bud’s Helper

/ Pavement Ends Ministry / Leave a comment

I want to tell you a story about my neighbor Bud and his great-grandson Logan. Bud is with the Lord now and Logan has grown into a fine young man. This story took place many years ago when Logan was a toddler maybe two or three years old.

Bud had a pasture right across the road from my house. The pasture fence was old, the cedar post were loose and the barbed wire was sagging. One day I sat on my front porch and watched as Bud and little Logan worked on this old fence.

As I watched, Bud would push the dirt around the post and then he and Logan would both take hold of a rod and pack the dirt down. Bud would then stretch the barbed wire as tight as he could and. nail it to the post. After he had driven the staple into the post he would then give the hammer to little Logan and let him “ finish” hammering it in. I would hear Bud say, “ has that got it?”. Logan would answer, “yea got it.” Then they would go to the next post.

From fence post to fence post, they went with Bud allowing Logan to “ help” him work on that pasture fence. Now, you and I both know that Bud did not need Logan’s help. No, he probably could have finished quicker and done a better job by himself. However, Bud was not working on a fence that day, he was working on a little boy. That fence and Bud are both gone now. But the lessons that Logan and I learned that day remain.

Jesus tells us in the Book of Matthew that we should take His yoke upon ourselves. When He says this, He means that He wants us to work by His side as He does the Father’s business. Jesus’ yoke is easy because He is the one carrying the load. When He allows us to walk with Him, it is not because He needs us but because He loves us and wants us by His side. Put your hand in His hand and you will find that He is working on you, making your soul fit for the Kingdom of God.

Douglas & Deborah Huff

From Down Where The Pavement Ends

Email- pavementendsministry@gmail.com

The Apostle Paul and the Kingdom of Heaven

/ Pavement Ends Ministry / Leave a comment

Indiana Jones is a popular movie character. He is an archaeologist/professor/adventurer whose life is in constant peril. Going from crisis to crisis he is always seeking some elusive archeological treasure. Indiana Jones never lost his hat, but Paul never lost his faith. Paul ran a strong race and fought a good fight. He knew that he would be all right. He once said, “For to me to live is Christ and to die is gain.” Jones faced danger for dead treasure. Paul gave his life for incorruptible glory. Cl

This devotion an audio podcast about the Apostle Paul and the treasure that was laid up in heaven for him. Click the link below to listen.

https://podpoint.com/pavement-ends-ministry/the-apostle-paul-and-the-kingdom-of-god?fbclid=IwAR3PYYZOrxqbzmYw-IQZ3-V68xcATLxgmwXzza4yyASk8_eJsgFcKIa375M#