Pray At All Times!

My Friend,

No matter what you face each day, let me encourage you to make prayer a priority. Make it your first response and not an afterthought.

Check out this brief video with a poignant quote:

https://youtube.com/shorts/ypk9wBb6wJ0

Take time to read, study, and take to heart 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, Philippians 4:6, and Ephesians 6:18 for starters. Approaching God in prayer is a blessing, gift, and privilege so don't take it for granted and again, make prayer for yourself and others a priority. You are in my prayers. Please pray for me as well. Your brother and servant in Christ, Randolph Koch

_ Connect with A Shepherd's Heart: https://linktr.ee/ashepherdsheart (Instagram, Facebook, Tik Tok, YouTube, Website, YouVersion, Telegram, and More).

Please help us reach and help people for God's Kingdom and Glory! Any spare change would be a blessing! 🙏🏼 _ Personal Fundraiser: https://www.givesendgo.com/ashepherdsheart Venmo: ashepherdsheart CashApp: $ashepherdsheart

#pray #faith #joy #peace #truth #wisdom #life #Bible #GodsWord #scripture #Godsword #heart #mind #christianblogger #discipleship #growth #encouragement #soulcare #wellness #trustgodbro #praywithme #encouragement #Christian #Christianity #Christfollower #livelifeonpurpose #ashepherdsheart

God Will Use You Despite Your Brokenness!

My Friend,

You may think that God doesn't want to use you or can't use you because of your past or current issues or brokenness.

Let me tell you that this is the furthest thing from the truth!

The Lord is The Great Physician and is more than capable of mending your brokenness while simultaneously continuing to fulfill the purpose, will, and plan He has for you.

Check out this short message featuring a poignant quote:

https://youtube.com/shorts/207n-CMQnQE?si=FT7-ouTyDjjx1OvQ

I pray that you allow Him to heal you according to His power. He has a purpose, will, and plan for you and He wants to use you for His kingdom and glory. Trust Him, follow Him, and serve Him how He directs.

God Will Use You Despite Your Brokenness!

You are in my prayers. Please pray for me as well.

Your brother and servant in Christ,

Randolph Koch

_____________________________________

Connect with A Shepherd's Heart: https://linktr.ee/ashepherdsheart (Instagram, Facebook, Tik Tok, YouTube, Website, YouVersion, Telegram, and More).

Please help us reach and help people for God's Kingdom and Glory! Any spare change would be a blessing!

Personal Fundraiser: https://www.givesendgo.com/ashepherdsheart

Venmo: ashepherdsheart

CashApp: $ashepherdsheart

#purpose #brokeness #faith #joy #peace #truth #wisdom #life #Bible #GodsWord #scripture #Godsword #heart #mind #christianblogger #discipleship #growth #encouragement #soulcare #wellness #trustgodbro #praywithme #encouragement #Christian #Christianity #Christfollower #livelifeonpurpose #ashepherdsheart

Advent 2022!

Hello Friend!

It's Christmas time! 

Let me be one of the first to wish you a Merry Christmas! 

Did you know that incorporating Advent into your Christmas celebration can be a fantastic way to help focus your heart, worship, and celebration on the birth of Christ / His first coming?...which is the reason we celebrate CHRISTmas in the first place!

Advent is a more traditional part of Christmas that is still observed by many as it can be a very meaningful part of your Christmas remembrance. 

This Sunday is the first Sunday of Advent and I wanted to share a free resource with you that I created titled, "Celebrating Advent" 

If you'd like to download your free gift copy in PDF format, please click on the following link:

https://tinyurl.com/yx54znh7

Have a wonderful Christmas as you celebrate the birth of Christ!

Because He is The reason for the season, Your Brother and Servant in Christ,

Randolph Koch

-Founder and Servant-Shepherd of A Shepherd's Heart

Connect with A Shepherd's Heart: https://linktr.ee/ashepherdsheart (Instagram, Facebook, Tik Tok, YouTube, Website, YouVersion, Telegram, and More)

Please subscribe to my YouTube channel and follow me on Facebook and Instagram. 

#christmas #advent #Heisthereasonfortheseason #faith #hope #love #truth #wisdom #life #encourage #encouragement #Jesus #HolySpirit #bible #scripture #trustgodbro #GodsWord #heart #mind #soul #strength #christian #Christianity #christfollower #ashepherdsheart #ReShare #livelifeonpurpose

Thank You God For Another Year!

Hello Friend,

Just a few days ago (The 9th) I was blessed to celebrate Birthday # 52 and I want to simply thank God for the gift of another year to serve Him and His people as I turn another year older and hopefully wiser. :-)

_

Not that I'm worthy but I pray this next year will be a blessing and filled with opportunities to serve and bring Him glory. 

Opportunities to serve His people helping meet spiritual and physical needs as much as possible. Opportunities to live life on purpose together as we strive to seek, serve, and love Him with all that is within us! 

_

I pray this year will be a year of further growth for me and that I'd become more deeply rooted in Him. 

_

I pray that God would somehow use me to help others grow in their relationship with Him and that they'd become more deeply rooted in Christ as well!

_

I pray that He would expand His kingdom and glory through me as I seek to give glory to Him and point people to Him. 

_

I'm truly a nobody who is thankful and blessed to know The Somebody, Jesus Christ. 

_

Many Blessings friend! Thank you for the honor of serving you!

Your brother and servant in Christ, 

Randolph Koch

_

P. S. You're prayers appreciated: https://www.givesendgo.com/ashepherdsheart

_

Connect with A Shepherd's Heart: https://linktr.ee/ashepherdsheart (Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, Website, YouVersion, Telegram, and More). 

_

Please subscribe to my YouTube channel and follow me on Facebook and Instagram.

_

#birthday #thankful #thankyouJesus #Jesus #hope #truth #wisdom #life #Bible #GodsWord #heart #mind #soul #strength #HolySpirit #encourage #encouragement #oldtestament #newtestament #bibletime #trustgodbro #Christian #Christianity #Christfollower #devotional #devotionalwriter #faithblogger #livelifeonpurpose #reshare #ashepherdsheart

Meeting each day with faith, worship, and prayer.

My Friend, 

Life is hard sometimes and we're reminded in 2 Timothy 3:1-7 that difficult times will come. 

We can be brought to places of deep grief, sorrow, and pain. 

As we grow in Christ, we know we can trust Him as we go through each season. 

We can choose to meet our highest and lowest points of life in worship unto The Lord and faith in Him. 

He is The One Who sustains us and He is the healer of our hearts, minds, and souls. 

Read, study, and take to heart 1 Peter 5:7 Psalm 34:1‭-‬4, Romans 8:18, Romans 5:3–4, James 1:12, John 16:33, Isaiah 43:2, Psalm 23:4. 

Then may you consider turning to Him in faith, worship, and prayer no matter what you face each day because you know He is with you! 

You're in my prayers.

Your brother and servant in Christ, 

Randolph Koch 

Connect with A Shepherd's Heart: https://linktr.ee/ashepherdsheart (Instagram, Facebook, Tik Tok, YouTube, Website, YouVersion, Telegram, and More).

Please subscribe to my YouTube channel and follow me on Facebook, Instagram, and Tik Tok.

#trials #faith #hope #truth #wisdom #life #Jesus #Bible #GodsWord #heart #mind #soul #strength #HolySpirit #encourage #trustgodbro #encouragement #Christian #Christianity #Christfollower #ashepherdsheart #ReShare #livelifeonpurpose

The 7 Sayings Of Jesus On The Cross Devotional.

Hello Friend!

As we head toward Palm Sunday this weekend, and Passion Week next week, I wanted to share my YouVersion Devotional with you titled, "The 7 Sayings Of Jesus On The Cross." 

The aim of this 7-Day devotional is to help lead us in a time of meaningful contemplation as we study the seven significant sayings of Jesus on The Cross.

Check out the plan via the link or you can search the title, "The 7 Sayings Of Jesus On The Cross." or by my name, Randolph Koch, in the YouVersion app search option: https://www.bible.com/reading-plans/18966/

Here’s a brief intro video: https://youtu.be/cIQ5eQY_uxo 

Your brother and servant in Christ,

Randolph/Randy  Koch

Connect with A Shepherd's Heart: https://linktr.ee/ashepherdsheart (Instagram, Facebook, Tik Tok, YouTube, Website, YouVersion, Telegram, and More)

Please subscribe to my YouTube channel and follow me on Facebook and Instagram.

You Will Be And Are Accountable To God.

Read and Study: 2 Corinthians 5:1-10

My Friend,

Who or what do you live for and who or what do you embrace and promote?

We live in a broken world, and yet I have to admit that I find it absolutely shocking to see what's going on in our world today at times.

People calling good bad and bad good. People promoting and embracing the most heinous things. Their behavior is horrible and yet they are deemed "good" and "moral" in the eyes of this world.

This is even true sometimes of those who call themselves followers of Christ. They promote some of the most ungodly and vile things and people. Some even claim that Jesus would as well?!

My Pastor recently reminded me that we will be accountable to God for what we embrace or promote.

Let that sink in for a moment.

Then ask yourself:

-Do you embrace that which is unbiblical and ungodly?

--Do you care more about the world than God?

-Do you live more for the world than God?

-Do you love the world more than you love God?

We need to care more about people's eternal well being, their very souls, and eternal destination than that which is momentarily popular.

If you're a follower of Christ then you and I need to stand on biblical principles with Jesus as our foundation. We need to stop playing games. The world is not our foundation but Jesus is.

Furthermore, the world does not and should not dictate our behavior and morals, but God's Word should as it's full of principles for life and godliness.

Friend... I challenge you to seek to live for Him, His kingdom, His glory and your eternal future and not for this world, it's ways, and this little temporal "kingdom".

I challenge you to love people in Jesus name but to not embrace or promote that which goes against God and His Word. If you choose to do so anyway, just remember that you will stand before God one day and you will be accountable.

Your brother and servant in Christ,

Randolph Koch

P.S. Please share this encouragement with others and please also pray and give if possible to our first ever fundraiser. https://www.gofundme.com/f/Please-Help-AShepherdsHeart

Focus On Jesus, Not The Storm.

Hello Friend,

It was during a storm that Peter saw someone walking from the shore over the crashing waves to the boat he was in. 

Once He recognized that it was Jesus, he said, "Lord, if it’s you,” “tell me to come to you on the water.” Then Jesus said. "come." and then Peter stepped out of the boat. 

Note, he was the only one who had faith enough to step out of the boat.

Once he started walking toward Jesus, Peter made one error though, he took his eyes off of Jesus and looked instead on his circumstances. Then he started to sink into the water and of course Jesus saved him.

We're kind of like Peter sometimes because even though we know what we should do, instead of fixing our eyes on Jesus, we fix our eyes on our circumstances and then our troubles get worse in the process. 

My friend, We need to fix our eyes on Jesus as much as possible and not the storms of life.

Read, Study, and pray about Matthew 14:22-33.

Then ask yourself, am I willing to step out in faith, keeping my eyes on Jesus no matter my circumstances?

Let's pray for one another that we will keep our eyes on Jesus.

Your Brother and Servant in Christ, 

Randolph Koch 

P.S. Please prayerfully help me with my first ever fundraiser for my little ministry which I've extended for 1 additional month as I'm trying to raise just enough for some basic resources to serve you with.

Please share this small fundraiser with your church family and friends. Please help A Shepherd's Heart meet the goal of it's first ever fundraiser. 

Here's the link to the main fundraiser site: www.fundly.com/a-shepherd-s-heart-2020-fundraiser

Or here are 3 other options to help in this friends helping a friend fundraiser:

1. You can use Cash App and send your gift to user name $ashepherdsheart or if you haven't used Cash App before, if you use this link https://cash.app/app/GHCJWXG we'll both receive $5! :-)

2. Use PayPal sending to giving@ashepherdsheart.org.

3. Use PayPal's Venmo app by sending to @ashepherdsheart

You're continued prayers and sharing this fundraiser with friends and family would be greatly appreciated!

#faith #hope #truth #wisdom #life #Jesus #Bible #GodsWord #heart #mind #soul #strength #HolySpirit #encourage #encouragement #Christian #Christianity #Christfollower #ashepherdsheart #ReShare #livelifeonpurpose #keepyoureyesonJesus

How Shall We Respond? A Little Q&A About Our Current Times.

Hello! 

From time to time I'll receive questions from those God has blessed me with the opportunity to serve. 

Recently I received another thoughtful question from someone regarding how we as followers of Christ should respond to current events going on in our world. 

My response isn't "profound" by any means and others may have a different perspective on this, but, I thought it might be an encouragement to you in some way and a starting point as you seek The Lord for similar things. So, with the permission of the person who asked the question, and with their name omitted, here is the question and prayerful answer. 

Your Brother and Servant in Christ,

Randolph Koch

Question: 

"Hello brother in Christ. I have an honest question. No underlying motive in asking, just looking for an honest answer on your perspective. As a man who appears to be grounded in Biblical truth as far as I can tell through what you post, what is your stance on America's current state and the church's, the body of Christ, needed response in light of all that is going on? Are we being too "quiet", too fearful, are we speaking up as we should into the myriad of issues?  It seems there is much, "mixed", for lack of a better word, response from the church. Do we need to be a bit more fierce, is there too much fear of man in the church as a whole? Ok more than one question and they are some loaded questions lol."

Answer: 

We're All A Work In Progress.

My Friend, We're all a work in progress.
 
If anything has reminded me of this, it's been taking the accident recovery day by day.
 
Besides the shut down for the Corona Virus, these last two weeks has caused me to slow down.
 
It's caused me to do things differently, (like getting dressed 😂) or caused me to not do certain everyday things, like mowing the lawn, because right now...I can't.
 
It's frustrating at times and riddled with pain, but, at the same time it's making me more and more less self-reliant and more reliant on God and others.

 
This period of time reminds me of life in general as we're all a work in progress... and progress, healing, goals, and progressive sanctification takes time.
 
Life is all a process and really a product of God's grace and provision.
 
Let's be thankful that God isn't finished with us yet. He's still on the throne, He's our provider, The Great Physician and will see us through.
 
Let's pray for one another that we we don't fight being a work in progress.
 
Thank you for your prayers and know that you are in my prayers too!
 
As I continue to recover from the accident, I'll assess when to begin posting again somewhat regularly in the future via social medial and here on my A Shepherd's Heart website. 
 
Your Brother and Servant in Christ, Randolph Koch

#ashepherdsheart #ReShare #livelifeonpurpose #faith #hope #truth #wisdom #life #Jesus #Christian #Christianity #Christfollower

Good Friday Reflection 2020.

Dear Friend,

It's Good Friday and I pray that today will provide you with a time of meaningful reflection as you remember Jesus' sacrifice. 

To help you reflect, here are the following graphics that capture the seven statements Jesus said while on The Cross as recorded in The Gospel accounts. 

I pray you set aside time to seek The Lord in His Word and through prayer. May you take time to worship, adore, and thank Him for His perfect and complete sacrifice for you so that you might have life and salvation in Him. 

He died for our good and may we never forget it or take it for granted. 

Your Brother and Servant in Christ,

Randolph Koch

P.S. Here are two resources that will help you as you contemplate all Jesus did for you.

A Devotional - 'The 7 Sayings of Jesus on The Cross': 
https://www.bible.com/reading-plans/18966-the-7-sayings-of-jesus-on-the-cross

A Good Friday Article / Devotional: 
https://www.ashepherdsheart.org/2016/03/we-call-it-good-fridaybecause-it-was.html

Live By God's Truth.

Read John 8:31‭-‬32 ESV

We live in a day and age where people try to proclaim that they live by "their truth" or that you should live by "your truth". 

To be clear, there is no your truth, my truth, or their truth no matter what anyone today tries to say. 

May we remember that as follower's of Christ, we are to live by God's Truth which is The Truth. 

May we make it our prayer that we would be led by and live by God's Truth always in Jesus name.

Your Brother and Servant in Christ, 

Randolph Koch

P.S. I'm here to serve you. Please reach out if you need prayer or encouragement. 

(Footbridge @ McDowell Creek Falls photo by Randolph Koch) 

Keep Pressing On!

As someone who has battled depression off and on for most of my life, I've always appreciated this statement:

"If you rearrange the letters in the word..."Depression" you'll get..."I Pressed On".

As a follower of Christ, I've learned that it's not just me "Pressing On" but It's The Lord through His Holy Spirit that strengthens and enables me to press on as I cannot do it alone.

It's The Lord Who has brought me through every battle with depression or any other battle. He's The One Who fights for me and has already won the battles. He's The One that has given me the strength and reason to get out of bed or to not stay in isolation during the seasons of battling depression. He's The One Who has kept me alive and not allowed me to make selfish decisions in my youth and early adulthood when I wanted life to end. He is my hope and strength.

He's The One Who has continually encouraged, strengthened, and spurred me on to keep on pressing on! I would not be here without Him and I would not make it through any storm or battle without Him.

I pray that no matter what you are facing, whether you battle depression or not, no matter what you face may you and I stand with Christ and truly know and say...."I Pressed On" because that's exactly what God wants us to do for His Kingdom, Glory, and our good.

May we always remember to thank Him for helping us overcome the battles because we'd be nowhere and defeated without Him.

Keep pressing on my friend!

Your Brother and Servant in Christ,

PS. Keep living life on purpose for Him!

He Is Emmanuel - God Is With You!

Hello Friend,

This time of year can solicit a multitude of thoughts, emotions, and the feeling of being alone. While this may be true, we need to remember that no matter what you and I are facing each day, remember that Jesus is Emmanuel. God is with you/us!

He is Emmanuel my friend and will never leave or forsake you!He will always be with you!

Let me ask you: Are you feeling feeling alone or low? If so, don't be afraid to reach out to Him in prayer and through His Word if you're feeling alone or low and He will lift you up.

And, don't be afraid to reach out to other's after you've met with Him because we're supposed to be in this life together as the body of Christ. 

“Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel” (which means, God with us). Matthew 1:23

May this truth that He is always with you be an encouragement to you and allow you to celebrate Christmas in an even more special and meaningful way.

Merry Christmas!

Your Brother and Servant in Christ,

Randolph Koch

P.S. You're in my prayers! Please reach out if you'd like me to pray for something specific! 

You Were Created And Set Free To Serve!

I recall hearing Pastor Greg Laurie say the following:
"God looks at us and says, “I know what you can be. You don’t know it yet, but I know. I know what I can make you into. You’ll be a mighty man of God. You’ll be a mighty woman of God.” -Greg Laurie

Friend, You are His workmanship and He has uniquely created you with a specific purpose, will, and plan for you in mind. Through His free gift of salvation you've been set free from the bondage of sin and have been given a new life in Christ.

He did this because He loves you with a perfect and eternal love!

Pause for a moment and let these truths sink in.

This speaks volumes to me because He not only saved us but thought exactly what He created us to do according to His purpose, will, and plan! We're unique in Him and made by and for Him! We are set apart by and for Him!

With this in mind, have you considered that you can and should freely serve Him and that you've been called to do so?

We don't serve to somehow "continue to earn our salvation" rather, we serve out of love for Him and thanksgiving for all He's done for us.

Please note that serving isn't just for "The professionals" as in the paid and volunteer pastors and staff...no..serving is for ALL of us!

So, what's holding you back from serving the Lord?

Let's pray for one another that we get off of our seats and really live to be His Hands and Feet for His kingdom and glory!

Please read and study Ephesians 2:10 (ESV),James 2:14-18 (ESV), and 1 Samuel 12:24 (ESV) for encouragement from God's Word and then walk in the work He's call you to do.

Your Brother and Servant In Christ, 

Randolph Koch

Give All The Glory To God!

Influence, platform, followers, celebrity, popularity, and more are some of the many things people strive for in many church and individual circles today.

They are all kind of buzz terms that really don't account for much, (especially if you have the wrong focus.) in the long run in regards to truly building God's kingdom and making sure He's known.

Some who may have began with good intentions trying to point people to Christ, have ended up trying to build their little kingdoms and followings so they are well known instead of turning the focus on The One they are supposedly trying to represent.

Sadly, they convince themselves that it's the same thing... But it's not! They give into popularity and celebrity status which is a far cry from where they first began.

Then you have people like a well known rapper bringing in the numbers by the thousands for his so called "Sunday Service" which essentially is worship of the certain rapper instead of worshiping Jesus and pointing people to Him!

Whether it's "celebrity preachers" or well known music artists, down to common everyday Christians like you and I, we have to guard against seeking after fame for the sake of fame. We also have guard against allowing people to in essence worship us when Jesus is the one Who we all should be worshiping.

My friend, make sure you... Build His kingdom and not your own.
Communicate His platform. (AKA The Great Commission)
Worry about His influence as He works through you and not your own.
Worry about building His followers and not your own.
He must increase and you and I must decrease.

No matter how popular you may become, no matter how many followers you have, no matter what... Don't let people worship you. Instead, point them to Jesus in all you do because it's all about Him and not about you an I!

All glory, honor, and praise belongs to Him! 

Your Brother and Servant in Christ,

Randolph Koch

Live Life On Purpose!

 "And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds"

Hebrews 10:24 (NIV)

Friend,

I wanted to simply take a moment and remind you that you should never underestimate the impact you have in and on the lives of others whether in "big" or "small" ways. You never know how God will use you in someone's life! God does want to use you! 

Wouldn't it be incredible if someone looked at you and said, "Because of your impact on my life, because of God working in and through you, I didn't give up!"...and "Because of your influence in my life, I now want to life on purpose for His Kingdom and Glory too!"!? 

You probably already are helping or have helped people not give up but you don't know it because they haven't told you yet! 

Keep pressing forward! You can inspire others! You can, do, and are making a difference in this world! 

Let's help each other not give up! Let's help each other live life on purpose for His Kingdom and Glory!

Let's be an inspiration to those around us as we just may be the one on a given day that helps them...not give up and helps them live life on purpose!  It only take a spark, and you might just be the spark God wants to use to impact others. 

THANK YOU...to those who have helped me...Not Give Up! 

THANK YOU...to those who have helped me live life on purpose! 

God wants us to live life on purpose/with purpose for Him...so do it day-by-day!

You're Brother and Servant in Christ,

Randolph Koch

Got Hope?

Read Psalm 42:11, Romans 15:13, Romans 5:3-5, 1 Peter 1:3, 1 Peter 3:15

Truth be told, I may be kind of a nerd at times as I enjoy SciFi movies and books from time to time. I also nerd out on new technology and many other things like random facts and more. 

When I was a young kid I recall seeing the original "Star Wars" movie when it first came out in the local movie theater. 

Ok, I may have just dated myself a bit as that was a LONG time ago in sort of a galaxy far far away...but back to my point in sharing this. :-)

There's a scene that has stuck with me over the years and it's the scene where Princess Leia pleads for help from Obe Wan Kenobi and she finishes with the line, "You're our only hope." 

Hope in general and hope of help or deliverance is such a powerful thing. 

Let me ask you, in what or in whom do you put your hope in? 

As followers of Christ since we've experienced salvation in Him, and as we study God's Word, and walk with Jesus daily, we know true hope. In Christ, we know our hope is in Him.

Hope in Jesus will never disappoint. 

No fictitious character, no person, no thing can be our true hope as Jesus is The Only Hope for our lost and broken world. He is our only hope, period. 

If you don't put your hope in Him, you don't have or know true hope. 

Let me encourage you to put your hope in Him friend and no one or nothing else.

In Christ Alone,
Your Brother and Servant,

Randolph Koch