Anxious?

We are just one week from our leaving the United States to go to Israel. We have worked for almost 2 years on getting everything ready. We have talked to hundreds of people, taught Bible Studies, and are prepared to experience again the joy of walking in this great place.

And tonight, even though I feel a calmness, I am anxious. I am not worried, but anxious to begin the journey. I am excited because I have experienced this before and all the pictures that I have drawn with words for 21 people will suddenly take on a life all it’s own when they step off the plane in Tel Aviv, Israel.

I love the words of Paul from Philippians 4:4f: “Rejoice in the Lord always, I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

Now I know the way to deal with anxiousness: by prayer, petition, thanksgiving, and giving all requests to God. That is the basis for our walk in the Holy Land, and I pray that it will become the basis for your walk of life every day.
Look at the end results: “…the peace of God guards our hearts and minds” as long as they dwell in the presence of Jesus Christ.

Mid-week Prayer

Loving God, we are truly excited about our future. No matter what we find offered by the world, it only brings worry and concern at times. With You and Your Son, we find a deepness of life that we have never known before. Therefore we say, “Come God and dwell with us today.” Amen


This has been Rev. Jim Massey. Keep us in your prayers as we draw closer to this special time and we will keep you in ours. See you next week as we leave Springfield on March 2nd for Tiberius and the Sea of Galilee.

Small Town and Everyone Knows

Living in a small town in New Mexico called Eunice, can mean several things. It means that there was only one traffic light and it was in the center of the town. That way, you could go to the grocery store and the post office and get across the street safely. If you were to try and beat the light, by the time your car reached the end of the block, everyone in town knew it.

It also meant that if you did something wrong, your parents knew it long before you got home and had time to share your side of the story. It seemed a lot slower in spreading the news when you did something right.

In Israel, there is a small town called Bethsaida, which means – “house of fishermen.” From this town Jesus called Peter and Andrew from their nets. Just a bit later he called James and John. In that little town the reputation of Jesus had just begun to spread, and when he called these four men to follow Him, everyone knew them, their families, and their way of life. Yet when they followed Jesus, these four men were changed and their witness from this small town would change the world forever.

In just two weeks, we will be walking the site of Bethsaida. I was sitting here thinking, “wouldn’t it be wonderful if while we were there, we would hear God call our names and say, ‘follow me…’”

Mid-week Prayer

Dear Heavenly Father, call to us today and bring us from our small towns (no matter if it is just in our way of thinking) to realize that you are sending us to a new life. Let us walk in the light of Your Word and feel the wind on the Sea of Galilee and look at the hills there and realize that Your Spirit is here. Grace us wherever we are, with the abundance of Your love. We pray this in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen


This has been Rev. Jim Massey. Where will you be in two weeks? Are you as excited about the possibility of those days as you are about God’s promise to be there as well? See you next week.

Filled with Expectation

In just 3 weeks we will be standing on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. It is in Northern part of Israel at Tiberius and this will be the morning of our first full day in Israel. This is always a wonderful time. The sun has risen over the Golan Heights and the Sea is waiting for us to come and board a boat to sail out on the waters.

I will never forget the first time when we went. I was filled with such a great expectation that it felt like I could carry the boat out on the water by myself. I was anxious to experience the way it felt to be on the same water that my Jesus told me about in the Bible so many times.

When we pulled away from the dock, I took a moment to look back and on the side of the bank were two fishermen. They had long poles and had just cast their lines into the water. They were talking and getting ready for their first catch of the day. They too were experencing a great expectation.

Then finally just behind the men fishing on the rocks, there were five cats that were all sitting and watching the fishermen. It was as though they too were filled with expectations.

And then I realized that everyone at some time in their life is waiting with great expectation. Waiting to see what God will bring to their life that makes it so wonderful and worth living.

Mid-week Prayer

Loving Father! In our times of expectation, bring to us the very thing we need the most. If is is a calmness of our heart, bring it with the warmth and power of the rising sun. If it is a deep hunger, feed us with the food that nurtures our souls and fills our minds with the joy of others. If it is simply the joy of watching Your creation before us, let it come with the beauty that only the Holy Spirit can paint upon the canvas of our souls. We pray this things in the glorious name of Jesus Christ. Amen

This has been Rev. Jim Massey. Come expecting God to touch you in a special way this day. Next week we will draw even closer to God's Holy land of Faith

A Way to Go

In four weeks, I will be taking another group of “pilgrims” to the Holy Land. It is one of the most inspiring places I have traveled in my years of ministry.

I have always been told to use the term “pilgrim” as we travel there and not the word “tourist.” To the custom agents in Israel, this makes a world of difference in the way they view your entry into Israel. I always wondered about the reason until I thought about various groups of travelers. You can put these into at least four groups:

A fugitive is one who is running from home.

A vagabond is one who has no home.

A stranger is one away from home.

And a PILGRIM is on his way home.

Suddenly, I realized the meaning of that wonderful word "Pilgrim." I was truly on my way home to a land that was holy not only to the Bible, but it has become that way to my heart. But I also realize that it is just a stopping place for a brief visit for a pilgrim. You see, our true home is in heaven, and that is the journey that we are on every day of our life. To the 50 people who have traveled from Wesley, you would get a big “Amen” in agreement.

Mid-week Prayer

O God, there are times when we may have been a fugitive when we first ran away from your love, but when we finally see and accept Christ as our Savior, our journey has a new direction and meaning. Thank You for loving us enough to send Him to keep us in the right way to come home. In His name we pray. Amen.

This has been Rev. Jim Massey. Keep our group of 18 people in your prayers as we prepare. Next week I will share more about this blessing from God.