Faith Family Fellowship
"People Building Relationships Through Fellowship"
Our purpose is to build a church family of believers that is equipped, this family is to take its place of ministry and service through relationship and fellowship with God and with one another, and to reach out as an extension of God's love and grace to the people around them.
Pastor's November 2026 Letter
In verse six the end result of the Lord being our Shepherd is “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow us all the days of our lives.” “Goodness” refers to blessings. “Mercy” refers to forgiveness. Finally “we will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”
This last verse is the only one that refers to heaven – our eternal home.
Dear Beloved of Faith Family Fellowship,
Greetings in the Name of the Lord. Beloved, this month I would like to share with you on the subject of the Joy of the Lord. This being the season of thanksgiving joy is a valuable part of the rejoicing of our hearts in giving thanks to God. As we daily give thanks to Him for all He has done and is doing in our lives we will cultivate a thankful heart. A thankful heart is a heart of gratitude expressed in thanksgiving to God.
In Nehemiah 8:10 it says, “…for the joy of the Lord is your strength.” This scripture shows that joy has a purpose and that is to produce strength. Joy has the ability to strengthen the whole man – spirit, soul, and body. Psalm 8:2 and Matthew 21:16 show that praise produces strength. Joy is a form of praise and thanksgiving. When joy is released through praise and rejoicing it produces strength in our lives. Joy is a spiritual weapon that we need to recognize and use in our warfare with the enemy. If Satan can steal your joy he will rob you of your strength and your faith will be unproductive.
In Galatians 5:22 we see that joy is listed as a fruit of the recreated human spirit. Joy is a fruit or product that is produced from our spirit man by the Holy Spirit. Joy is a spiritual force. It is not mental or physical in itself. It is not an emotional feeling even though it will eventually effect you in these realms. Romans 14:17 shows that the Holy Spirit is the One Who imparts joy in our human spirits at the time of the new birth. So one of the main characteristics in the life of the believer is joy. In Romans 15:13-14 and Colossians 1:9-11 joy is developed in us by the Holy Spirit through God’s Word.
In John 16:33 Jesus said, “In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer.” In other words He is saying that because we are in Him and He is in us and His joy is in us, we can rejoice in the midst of the pressures of this world. Joy manifests strength during the trials of life if we will only release it. You may not always be happy in a trial but you can be joyful. We never really lose our joy. We sometimes do not sense it. That is when we do what Philippians 4:4 says: “Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say rejoice.”
James 1:2-4 tells us to “Count it all joy” when we are in the midst of tests and trials. First Peter 1:6-8 says we are to rejoice with joy unspeakable during the times of our faith being tried. (I Peter 4:12-14) First Thessalonians 5:16 shows us how to maintain our joy regardless of trials by “rejoicing evermore” by faith.
tost High” or “In Christ” by the power of the Holy Spir
Joy is a powerful force in our lives as new creations in Christ. It is important that we cultivate joy and let it strengthen us to stand in the hard places of life and proclaim the victory.
Let’s allow the joy of thanksgiving to become a way of life that keeps our hearts grateful and appreciative of all that God has done for us and open to all that He yet will bless our lives with
As we apply these five words in our daily lives we will grow in the assurance of all God is to us and desires to be to us.
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We love you,
Pastor Ron and Betsy
1. A refreshing and renewing of His Spirit and Word.
Through the redemptive work of Jesus Christ He has become our Shepherd—Lord on a personal level. Everything we could ever need or desire has already been provided for us in Him. He is everything we need Him to be to us. Our redemption in Him has made sure of that. That is why it is important that we as His sheep not just try to know the Psalm. We must come to know the Shepherd in the Psalm. For it is in knowing intimately the Shepherd in Psalm 23 that we begin to understand the fullness of our redemption and all that God has made available to us in Christ. As you meditate on Psalm 23 allow the Holy Spirit to bring it alive to you in your heart. Let Him reveal to you all that the Shepherd is to you and all that you are to the Shepherd as His sheep. It will transform your thinking and change your life.