Let us prepare our hearts to worship and to enter His courts with praise! Amen! He is worthy of all praise!
Good Morning! See you soon! We will be wrapping up Matt 24 and some of 25 as we listen to what Jesus taught the disciples about the end. Pray for God to lead us and the Holy Spirit to open our hearts and minds and apply what we learn as we prepare to stand firm and on His Word always and in faith that Christ died to bring us. Amen
Check out Our Daily Bread and the reminder of the accountability we will be evaluated upon and we endure to the end and live life well in Christ . Who are your teammates? Are we repenting and believing and bringing and living the Good News? Are we ready for His return? Who are we helping to know Christ, learn His good ways and to stand firm to the end? Consider these things as you pray and prepare and go live and love like Jesus. he has great plans for you and will be with you always. rejoice and go love well! Amen!
ODB
Accountability Matters
[A person] who wrongs another . . . must confess the sin they have committed. They must make full restitution for the wrong they have done. Numbers 5:6-7
A judge used a unique approach to address shoplifting—sentencing offenders to wash cars in a local store’s parking lot as part of their community service. He hoped it would deter future thefts and serve as a vivid reminder of the consequences of wrongdoing. He emphasized that actions have consequences and accountability matters.
The judge’s sentence reflects the instruction in Numbers 5:6-7: “[One] who wrongs another . . . must confess the sin they have committed. They must make full restitution.” In these verses, we see the importance God places on acknowledging wrongdoing, confessing sin, and seeking restoration. And they underscore a profound truth: Every offense revealed disloyalty to the ideals of Israel’s society and showed that the offender was “unfaithful to the Lord” (v. 6).
Just as washing cars in public serves as a humbling consequence that encourages reflection and responsibility, God called Israel to recognize their sins honestly—confessing them and seeking forgiveness. True freedom came when they confronted their actions, made amends, and embraced His grace.
, let’s take a moment to reflect sincerely on our lives before God. As we seek reconciliation and restitution where necessary (see Matthew 5:23-24; Luke 19:8-10), His mercy and forgiveness will restore us to wholeness.
By Marvin Williams
REFLECT & PRAY
How can you pursue reconciliation with someone you’ve wronged? Why is restitution so important?
Dear God, please show me where I’ve been wrong and help me pursue reconciliation and restitution.
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT
Numbers 5 restates a law first given in Leviticus 6:1-7 that when someone harms a neighbor through deceit, theft, or fraud, they must confess and not only make full repayment but add a fifth of the value to it. They must also sacrifice a ram as a guilt offering. Numbers 5 adds a further stipulation that if restitution can’t be made directly to the person wronged, and if they have no close relative to pay restitution to, then repayment should be given to the priest—returning what they’d wrongly taken back to God (v. 8).
This highlights the truth that harming another also damages someone’s relationship with God (v. 6). Yet this provision of offering a sacrifice and making restitution to a priest also highlights God’s grace. Even when it’s impossible to correct the wrong done to another, because of Christ’s sacrifice, when we confess our sin, God still provides a way to a restored relationship with Him.
: 10-12 Bread Ministry/6-7:30 Dinner Huddle Joy study
10 Worship
***Please note: Due to staffing shortage our brunch scheduled for has been cancelled***
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Good Morning Disciples and Apostles of Jesus! Amen! We are students learning from our Rabbi, Jesus, and empowered and sent by the Holy Spirit to be the bringers of Good News to a world desperately in need of it. We are sent as we are and grow as we go into Christlikeness and our purposes. We grow into the people He made us to be and in doing His purposes for us better and more consistently. Amen! Before He ascended to heaven, Jesus commissioned His disciples (students) to go make reproducing disciples as His apostles (sent ones). We are called to the same as His disciples and apostles. We need Him and each other to go produce good and lasting fruit and as we do we build treasure in heaven. Help us Lord!
Our Daily Bread focuses on the commission to go and make disciples in our area, region and to the ends of the earth. They use Acts 1 which speaks into when the end will come. Jesus said to them don't worry about that. No one knows when. But instead be about His Father's business of expanding His Kingdom by making reproducing disciples. Talk to God about your call to learn and go as you are and how he desires for you to grow as you do. Talk to Him about some teammates. Be one! Ask for wisdom for how to. Ask to have His eyes, ears, and heart and the want to to want to go. We are all created for such a time as this and custom gifted to fulfill our parts in His Good News Delivery Company. He knows us and our potential, calls us masterpieces and by name to go do what we are made to do . Prepare your hearts, team up and fallow His Spirit on this beautiful day to go and make disciples. Who is God leading you to? Ask and pray. Prepare, team up and go make disciples in the way of Jesus and be a harvester for His glory, apostle. Amen!
ODB:
The Ends of the Earth
You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses . . . to the ends of the earth. Acts 1:8
Kiribati, an island country in the Pacific Ocean, is the only nation in the world that exists in all four hemispheres of the globe. The thirty-three islands of Kiribati straddle both the equator and the 180th meridian. It’s also one of the most remote nations in the world.
We serve a God who cares about these remote places. As Jesus prepared His disciples for His return to heaven, He told them, “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8). “To the ends of the earth” is a call to take the message of the gospel to the world’s most isolated spots. But the call wasn’t limited to remote places only. It included their current location of Jerusalem and the nearby regions of Judea and Samaria.
After Jesus gave these parting words to His disciples, “He was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight” (v. 9). Two angels appeared and said, “This same Jesus . . . will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven” (v. 11).
The gospel of Jesus Christ is the most important news anyone can ever hear. The challenge for us as His ambassadors is to share that news. With the Holy Spirit’s help, we can see that everyone—near and far—gets a chance to hear.
By Bill Crowder
REFLECT & PRAY
What does it mean to be Jesus’ witnesses “to the ends of the earth”? How does His command inspire you to share His love with others?
Dear Father, please give me a heart for those who don’t know You.
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT
The plan that Jesus gave His disciples in Acts 1:8 unfolds throughout the book of Acts. In the very next chapter, the power that Christ promised would come to all the disciples who were gathered in the upper room (2:1-12). Immediately after this event, Peter proclaimed to thousands of listening ears in Jerusalem the story of Jesus and the promise of salvation through Him (vv. 14-39). Over the next several chapters, Peter would go to the believing Samaritans who’d heard Philip’s preaching, and they too would receive the power of the Holy Spirit (8:4-17). Finally, the gentile centurion Cornelius and his family would respond to the gospel and, through Peter’s preaching, they and all who heard the message and believed in Christ—both Jews and gentiles—were marked with the Spirit (ch. 10). When we embrace His call and follow His plan, we can carry the message of the gospel wherever we go in the power of the Holy Spirit.
YEs Thank God I'm Forgiven! Coming to Jesus for forgiveness as we open the gift of faith leads to all kinds of promises we can count on like peace beyond understanding, strength for the journey, provision, protection, eternal life in His presence, spiritual gifts to help us grow like Jesus, to encourage each other and to grow His Church, and the ability to choose joy as we face all kinds of trials and tribulations. YES much to praise about! TGIF!
Good Morning Forgiven, Redeemed, Empowered, Peace-Bringers! Amen! God has been speaking to us throughout this week and threading all our studies together as He speaks to our hearts and leads us to His shalom. . evening we began a study on choosing joy in the storms. (Join us next week!). That study has spilled over to our devotionals and and has been applicable to my life this week and probably for some of you as well. Jesus slept on the boat in the storm and invites us to receive that kind of peace beyond understanding too. Have you ever experienced that kind of peace? Are you in a trial or someone you know that can lead to crying out for peace and help? How might God want to use you to be a peace-bringer? God knows, cares, is able, works all things together for good and promises us that we can choose His promised peace as we continue to persevere through life and seek to complete our races well. Amen! Help us Lord! Spend some time meditating on these things. Don't lean on your own understanding. Turn off the noise. Choose joy that flows from faith and receive His shalom. Check out the Upper Room and Our Daily Bread and the connection blogs that speak into and thread through all this and tie it together. Then be still in His presence and thank Him for His ever-present help, grace and mercy and the ability to know His promised peace and to choose joy as you trust, obey and allow Him to shepherd you through whatever you are facing . Redirect your thinking by getting out the gratitude list and reminding Him and yourself all that He has blessed you with and how thankful you are! Thank Him for His sufficient grace! He is the God of all and He is with us always and He promises us peace beyond understanding, the ability to choose it and the strength to endure as we run these races well for His glory! Amen! I'm praying for you to have an awesome encounter with our living and loving Lord ! Shalom shalom! Be still. Turn off the noise. Focus on the Able One! And worship! Amen Then go live and love like Jesus filled with His peace overflowing and maybe even bring His peace to someone who could use some . he has great plans for you! Go!
UR: God of All
Have ye not read that which was spoken unto you by God, saying, I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? - Matthew 22:31-32 (KJV)
Recently, I read Matthew 22 where Jesus quoted Exodus to the Sadducees who were questioning him. In Exodus, many people gain new names. For example, Abram becomes Abraham and Jacob becomes Israel. In the quote in Matthew 22:32, we have Abraham’s new name, Isaac (whose name never changed), and Jacob’s old name. With that in mind, another way I read the scripture is like this: I am the God of who you will be (Abraham), the God of who you are (Isaac), and the God of who you used to be (Jacob).
Have you ever thought of your life’s timeline in terms of your faith — before Christ and after Christ? We try to give grace for and have faith for , but sometimes we allow regret to reign over . We look back and see only our mistakes and failures. It was the heartache in Jacob’s life that led him to wrestle with the angel and receive his new name. But even after his name changed, God called him Jacob when God spoke to Moses out of the burning bush (see Ex. 3:1-6, 13-16), which is what Jesus quotes in Matthew 22. It’s as if God were saying, “I’m not just God of the new you; I’m God of the old you too!”
I’m thankful God is the God of who we are and who we’re becoming — and also the God of who we were.
's Prayer
Dear Lord, you are the God of , , and . Help us to see your grace in every stage of our lives. Amen.
ODB:
Strength to Endure
I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 2 Timothy 4:7
Mark—a marathoner and a dedicated pastor who served two churches over the span of thirty-five years—recently retired. One gift presented to him was a pair of new running shoes. I ran with Mark once over twenty years ago, but throughout his life, he’s run the 26.2-mile race in numerous cities across the country. At his retirement celebration, people from the community and the churches he served also expressed their appreciation for Mark’s faithfulness. Because of God’s power and grace, Mark finished well.
Life’s more like a marathon than a sprint. At times we experience fatigue and we feel like giving up. Yet God’s grace and strength are unending for those who trust Him. As the imprisoned apostle Paul neared the finish line of life (2 Timothy 4:6), he encouraged his protégé Timothy, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith” (v. 7). Life’s paths take us to different places. But regardless of where we are on life’s journey, it’s always good to remember that faith-filled endurance is essential and rewarding (v. 8); that God is the source of our strength (v. 17); and that, by His grace, he “will bring [us] safely to his heavenly kingdom” (v. 18).
By Arthur Jackson
REFLECT & PRAY
When have you experienced God’s strength even as you wanted to give up? How can others’ Spirit-empowered endurance inspire you?
Dear Father, please help me to ever be mindful that those who trust in You are candidates for supernatural strength—“they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint” (Isaiah 40:31).
It’s remarkable to consider how much the apostle Paul suffered in his service for Christ and the gospel (see 2 Corinthians 11:23-28), and yet he stayed true to his calling and “finished the race” that had been set before him (2 Timothy 4:6-8). How was he able to endure such hardship? He answered that question himself in 2 Corinthians 12:9 while discussing one particular season of suffering. He learned that God’s grace was sufficient, and his weakness wasn’t a liability: “[The Lord] said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ ” It was the opening through which God’s mighty power could flow. , when we face trials that cause us to feel like giving up, we can lean into His grace and rest in His power and strength.
Bill Crowder
Connection blogs
- You May Have Peace
“I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33, ESV)
Jesus makes two very serious promises that believers of all generations must comprehend if they are to live in accordance with the words of Jesus. First of all, Jesus promises that in him we may have peace.
Secondly, he promises us that in the world you will have tribulation. Talk about contrasting promises!
Peace and tribulation don’t go together at all in our ordinary way of looking at situations. But Jesus knows how things fit together far better than any of us and we must heed his words.
Looking at the first promise causes us to see that Jesus lived what he promised. In his short 33 years in the flesh on earth, he was surrounded by turmoil and controversy that typically take away peace. Yet, he lived his years here modeling peace. He often was the only one who seemed to be under self-control in any situation. Especially during his arrest and trial, the Prince of Peace demonstrated what it meant to live out peace in the midst of chaos.
The promise of Jesus is that this kind of peace is what we can have. It is because that peace is in him and when believers choose to live in him, his peace becomes possible for us. If you are a Christian and not experiencing his peace, then I want to point out to you the exactness with which Jesus gives this promise. Jesus said, “in me you may have peace.” You have to desire this peace, ask for it in prayer, and commit to live it out.
The second, contrasting promise is what we are much more aware of in our lives. In this world, you will have tribulation. This is not an end-time remark about the Great Tribulation. It is a clear declaration of how we can all expect to face difficulties and tough times as we go through life. These tribulations so often steal peace from us and leave us upset and worried. Those who believe that the Christian life somehow makes everything nice and easy are just not listening carefully to the words of Jesus. The tribulation Jesus speaks of is for all of us.
Fortunately, Jesus gives us a third promise that brings great hope to all of us: “But take heart; I have overcome the world.” Yes, we live in a world that is filled with tribulation. But Jesus firmly declared and then modeled on the cross and in the resurrection that he has indeed overcome the world. Peace is possible in the midst of tribulation because of the presence of the overcoming Christ in our lives. That gives us hope and even great joy, no matter what is happening in our lives.
Regardless of the tribulations we face, the King of Kings is the overcomer. We can walk in peace in a life of stress and difficulty because that peace is in the heart of our Overcoming God. Yes, tribulation is in this world. Yes, we can have peace. And yes, Jesus has overcome the world, which opens the door for his peace to mark our lives.
, commit to asking Jesus for his shalom (peace). Depend on his overcoming the world to provide the peace you need to also overcome whatever tribulation comes your way.
Thank you, Lord, for being our overcoming God! You knew better than any of us how difficult this world would be and how desperately we would need your peace. So you promised that we can have that peace if we would desire it and ask you for it. You overcame the dark powers of this world and provided your peace for us. Thank you, Lord! Pour your peace into me now that I might demonstrate your overcoming power to those around me.
Pray that your pastor will present God’s message courageously, whether it is accepted or not (Ezek. 2:3-7).
Ask God to help all your church’s leaders to consistently follow God’s Word themselves (2:8).
Pray that the children have hearts open to God’s Word from their earliest years.
Ask God to help them the children to keep their ways pure by living according to his Word (Ps. 119:9).
Prayer Points taken from Patterns for Prayer by Alvin VanderGriend. This book is available at prayerleader.com. Use the code CONPSP3 at checkout to receive an additional 10% discount.
Good Morning Faithful Followers of Jesus! Amen! Let's focus on being and doing what is required to be a faithful follower. It all Starts with Jesus. Begin your day with Him and with the Living Word. What's God require of you ? To live justly and love mercy is the Biblical answer. Do you?
Spend some time with our awesome God discussing these things and dwelling in His love, peace and mercy. we discussed being able to choose peace and the promise that Jesus gave to give us His peace. Open that gifty and dwell in His peace beyond understanding as you go focus on Jesus and work at living and loving like Him. Amen and shalom.
Upper Room: Calm in the Storm
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. - John 14:27 (NRSVUE)
After an early morning departure, all I wanted was some much-needed rest on the plane. But as we took off, the pilot announced there would be turbulence. When the first wave hit, it felt like I was jerked out of my seat — a rude awakening. I was determined to sleep but found it incredibly difficult as the plane swayed and jolted.
I thought of the story where Jesus slept through a storm on a boat. I wondered, How did Jesus manage to sleep through such chaos? In that moment, I began to grasp the concept of “peace that passes all understanding.” Despite the plane’s violent movements, when I focused inward I noticed a remarkable sense of peace. I realized that peace doesn’t mean the absence of troubles. Rather, it is a conscious choice to remain calm amid the storm. But we cannot do this alone, and that is why Christ gave us his peace.
When we face storms, saying a prayer or affirmation can be grounding. Philippians 4:6-7 tells us that prayer can bring a peace that transcends understanding. Amid turbulence, let us remember that Christ’s peace has been given to us — a gift we can freely accept.
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Please consider supporting our ministry. Your donation or paid subscription helps ensure that readers around the world continue to receive spiritual encouragement every day.
's Prayer
Dear God, help us to embrace the gift of your peace even in the most difficult times. Amen.
Prayer Points
Praise the God of Israel, who comes in glory to meet with his people.
Thank God for coming to consume the darkness and to make what is purified radiate with his glory (Ezek. 43:1-5).
Confess any wickedness that hinders the brightness of his presence.
Commit to letting God’s glory shine upon you in worship.
Ask God to shine through you to others.
Pray that the Holy Spirit will cause the glory of God to blaze in you, setting your heart on fire for the lost.
Ask that God will send forth his Word, bringing his light to lives swamped in darkness.·
Prayer Points taken from Patterns for Prayer by Alvin VanderGriend. This book is available at prayerleader.com. Use the code CONPSP3 at checkout to receive an additional 10% discount.
: 10-12 Bread Ministry/6-7:30 Dinner Huddle and Joy Study
6:30 Support Team Zoom
. 9-12 Clothing Closet
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Good Morning Agents of the Most High God! Amen! That salutation flows from Our Daily bread devotional for . Meditate on what that means to you and those God is allowing you to cross paths with . Our EC mission statement is to know Christ and make Him known. Did you notice that before you go, you need to know--HIM! And to practice living and loving like Him, you have to understand Him and how He loves. We have to experience and dwell in His love before we are able to incarnate and impart it. How might God have for you to bring to life His love, hope and help ? What will you do about that? he is with you and for you. Are you with and for Him and are people around us experiencing His love, hope and help incarnate (come to life)? practice putting on His love and walking around in it and sharing it as you grow to be more like Jesus and grow at loving God and others as he loves you. Are people seeing you step into your faith and choosing joy no matter what you are facing? Are they seeing you model love incarnate. Put on His love and go live and love like Him. That starts with time with Him. You are His agents of healing, hope and love. Go! Amen! God has great plans for you as you are. And as you go and love you will grow into your fuller potential and be building treasure in heaven for your future that God has for you in eternity. Follow peace as you go and be His loving agent . Amen!
Anna and her husband lived in Argentina with their two children. They kept to themselves and spoke only fluent Spanish. But they weren’t Argentines. They were sleeper agents, spies who’d been born in another country. They’d mastered blending into their host culture, down to how to hold their forks. But a change in their civil registry aroused suspicion, and eventually the couple was caught. As the family was being flown to their true homeland, Anna looked at her eleven-year-old daughter. How would she break the news that they weren’t who her daughter thought?
Believers in Jesus have a citizenship even more vital. We’re agents of a higher king, for “our citizenship is in heaven” (Philippians 3:20). The citizens of Philippi were proud of their Roman citizenship; they loyally served Rome as they lived in Philippi. Paul said their loyalty stretched even further. Their highest allegiance was to Jesus, who ruled Rome and Philippi from heaven.
Unlike Anna and her husband, we’re not working secretly against our “host country.” We’re openly working for its good. Our loyalty to Jesus prompts us to serve our neighbors and pray for “all those in authority, that we may live . . . in all godliness” (1 Timothy 2:2). With God’s help we will “seek the peace and prosperity” of our city. We will “pray to the Lord for it, because if it prospers,” we “too will prosper” (Jeremiah 29:7).
By Mike Wittmer
REFLECT & PRAY
How might your allegiance to Jesus serve your neighbors? How might you show that help ?
Gracious Father, please help me encourage my neighbors.
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT
The church at Philippi, established by Paul on his second missionary journey (Acts 16:6-40), was a faithful church that actively supported his ministry (Philippians 1:5; 4:15-19). The apostle encourages the believers in Jesus to live exemplary lives “in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ” (1:27) even though they lived in a city that opposed and persecuted them (v. 28). Paul tells them to serve the church and the city with much joy in “the same mindset as Christ Jesus” (2:5), imitating His selfless, humble, and sacrificial servanthood (vv. 1-8). As citizens of heaven (3:20), believers are to “work hard to show the results of [their] salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear” (2:12 nlt). Because of our faith in Jesus, we’re to be “blameless and pure, ‘children of God without fault’ ” (v. 15) as we serve our neighbors and pray for those in authority.
Good Morning Loved By God Stewards! Amen! Think about how that is going for you. He always blesses us. Are we thankful for and stewarding those blessings well? Is there some corrective needed? As we steward well His blessings in worship and service, more will be added to us to continue to grow in doing all we are created to do. Check out our devos below. Pray for a revelation of His love and to be filled with and steward His love well and thank Him for that. All he asks is that we try to do what we can with what we've been given according to how we are made, gifted, prepared and sent. Ask to be a faithful steward. And what does it ;look like to be a harvester of blessings as you seek Him, dwell in His presence and work at walking more fully in His ways. What's all that look like for you and how can you steward what he has blessed you with better? Seek first His Kingdom and Love. Dwell in His loving presence. Then go live and love like Jesus. That's His challenge for us all. Thanks Lord! How's that going ? What will you do about it? I'm praying for Him to reveal Himself and lead you to His best and for you to have open hands and a cooperating spirit. Amen!
TWFYT
UR: Faithful Effort
Each person should test their own work and be happy with doing a good job and not compare themselves with others. - Galatians 6:4 (CEB)
Several years ago, I watched a short video from a weight-lifting competition. The two competitors had to deadlift a huge amount of weight — over 200 pounds — as many times as they could within the allotted time. Whoever completed the most repetitions before time ran out won the competition.
Both men showed an outstanding display of strength and endurance. However, when the first man reached his limit, he responded in a way that impressed me. He quickly turned to the competitor who had bested him and cheered for him to keep going! With his amazing performance and his highly respectful sportsmanship, the man who lost the competition showed how big and strong he was — literally and figuratively.
Sometimes in our walk with Jesus Christ, our effort in pursuing a goal doesn’t yield the success we want. Thankfully, in Christ Jesus, our effort is never in vain when we embrace God’s grace and mercy. We have no need to be ashamed when we’ve given our all and done what we can to glorify God.
's devotional is available to you for free because of the generosity of our donors.
Thanks to donor support, anyone can read 's meditation without logging in for up to 7 days.
Please consider supporting our ministry. Your donation or paid subscription helps ensure that readers around the world continue to receive spiritual encouragement every day.
's Prayer
Dear heavenly Father, thank you for loving and caring for us at all times. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
ODB
Alan is a fifth-generation fruit farmer who manages his family’s cherry, peach, and apple orchard. Over the years, his family has perfected growing trees with maximum yield. They’ve carefully planted saplings for the future, put up a deer fence, and invested in special fans that help keep the air warm when frost threatens their crops. Even so, they’re never assured of a good harvest. Factors like weather, pollinators, and disease are beyond their control.
Yet all of nature is under God’s control. He knows we need physical provision like healthy crops, but He encourages us to look even higher to the ultimate good—Himself. The book of Leviticus contains decrees that God gave the Israelites governing everything from sacrifice and worship to relationships and criminal justice. Obeying His direction would lead to blessing, including provision of a bountiful harvest (26:3-4), but disobedience would result in a curse, where their enemies would enjoy the fruit of their labor (v. 16). More than just plentiful crops (v. 10), God’s blessing included a promise to dwell with His people (v. 11) and look on them “with favor” (v. 9).
The Israelites messed up again and again. So will we. But we can repent, submit, and turn back again to enjoy the gift of His presence (vv. 40-42), manifested in Jesus and now expressed through the Holy Spirit.
By Karen Pimpo
REFLECT & PRAY
In what ways are you seeking peace and provision on your own? What does it look like to walk in God’s presence and in His ways?
May I dwell with You as I follow Your pattern for life, dear God.
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT
In Leviticus 26, God promised His people that obedience to His commands would result in their land flourishing with abundant harvest and peace from war. The most significant promise is found in verse 12: “I will walk among you and be your God, and you will be my people.” At the same time, the chapter warns that rejecting God’s ways would result in famine, defeat in war, and eventually exile from God’s land and presence (vv. 14-35). Yet God assured them that, even then, if His people repented, He’d “remember [His] covenant” (v. 42) with them and bring restoration. Because of God’s faithfulness (v. 44), there’d always be a path back to His presence. The same is true for us . When we confess our sins, we can enjoy the gift of His presence.
Monica La Rose
Prayer Points
Praise God that he cares about this world.
Thank Christ that he calls the church “his” and that he has promised to build it (Mt. 16:18).
Confess your own failures in using your time, talents, and tithe as God desires.
Commit yourself to being an energetic, ability-using, enthusiastic part of the body in which Christ has placed you.
Ask that, as a part of the church, you will live the fact that you belong to all the others (Rom. 12:5).
Ask God that your congregation will tirelessly live out the love that it has been given in Jesus Christ. Pray that the character and depth of this love will cause non-Christians in your community to want it for themselves.
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Prayer Points taken from Patterns for Prayer by Alvin VanderGriend. This book is available at prayerleader.com. Use the code CONPSP3 at checkout to receive an additional 10% discount.
It's so cool that God allows us to choose joy always that flows from trust and our intimate knowledge of God and His ways! PTL! No matter what you are facing , God knows, cares, is with you and will help to work all things together for good! So, choose joy and grow in trust as you experience His mighty hand of grace, love and mercy upholding you! Yes rejoice! Be still and know! Amen!
*Someone needs to hear, understand and embrace this . Is it you or someone you know? Talk to God about that and just worship, trust, obey and walk joyfully in the Lord !
Good Morning Persevering in Faith Friends and Friends of God! Amen! The end will come. Are you ready? Are you praying expectantly for Jesus to come back or to enter into your situation? Come Jesus come! I might have to change this to a song for as we continue our study of Matt. 24-25 and Jesus' teaching about the end times. Maybe start your worship and quiet time with this song ? Come Jesus Come: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wh0uvyPvYV4&list=RDwh0uvyPvYV4&start_radio=1
WOW! Amen! Be still and know! Worship and pray expectantly. Our Healer and deliverer is on His way! And until that day he warned us to be ready and to persevere in faith no matter what we are facing. He knows! he has a perfect plan and He is working all things together for good for those who believe and are called by His holy name! That's you, me and us! Rejoice! And be ready. And remember this, we need each other and as times grow increasingly dark and harder as promised we will need to gather, pray, encourage, uphold and help each other and allow God to use us to draw in His end times harvest and help them through the difficulties ahead. Yes Come Jesus come!
God blessed us with drawing and tearing down the strongholds for one we have been praying to come as Patrick joined us. God is pursuing him hard and he is softening to the work of the Holy Spirit in him. Thank you for the love and grace you showed him! Keep praising God for His good works in those around us and trough us and keep praying for Patrick and those like them who think they have no option but eternal punishment to come and see that God is good and to experience His love, mercy and grace overflowing. Amen! Yes streams of Living Water are flowing from us! PTL! Check out Our Daily Bread (below) as it uses Eph 2:1-10. This passage speaks to Patrick and all of us and ends with one of our focus verses Eph 2:10. Pray for many strongholds to be torn down with people who come to bread and clothing ministries and our neighbors. Ask Jesus to have His eyes and heart and willing hands and feet to go live and love more like Him as He has planned for you and for those yet to come! The harvest is ripe! Pray for harvest workers and workers to come from the harvest. God has been answering that prayer. Meditate on this passage as you dwell in His love and grace and allow it to flow through you. And then spend some time with our devotionals as you seek first God and His Kingdom. And remember the promise that as you do so, all we be added that you need to accomplish what God has for you . And with that you will know His peace and joy too! Amen! Shalom shalom!
For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet God, in his grace, freely makes us right in his sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins.
Eph. 2:1-10 Made Alive with Christ
2 Once you were dead because of your disobedience and your many sins.2 You used to live in sin, just like the rest of the world, obeying the devil—the commander of the powers in the unseen world.[a] He is the spirit at work in the hearts of those who refuse to obey God.3 All of us used to live that way, following the passionate desires and inclinations of our sinful nature. By our very nature we were subject to God’s anger, just like everyone else.
4 But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much,5 that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved!)6 For he raised us from the dead along with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ Jesus.7 So God can point to us in all future ages as examples of the incredible wealth of his grace and kindness toward us, as shown in all he has done for us who are united with Christ Jesus.
8 God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God.9 Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it.10 For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.
When Mark was pulled over by an officer for driving while intoxicated, he was afraid his college football career was over. He was sure he was going to jail. But the policeman instead dropped him off at his college. When Mark asked why, he said, “I’m giving you grace.”
Still, the young man was certain his coach would find out, and he’d lose his scholarship. So when his coach asked to see Mark after practice the next day, he was very apprehensive. Surprisingly the coach said, “I know what happened , but I’m giving you grace.” He then suggested that Mark consider attending church the .
He went. And guess what the pastor talked about? The grace of Jesus in offering us salvation when we don’t deserve it. Mark got the message. That day, he trusted Jesus as Savior, and he spent the rest of his life serving Him—starting a ranch for boys who need a second chance—who need grace.
It’s by God’s grace that believers in Jesus “have been saved” (Ephesians 2:8). Grace does what good works can’t do (v. 9; Romans 11:6). It’s a gift provided by Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross.
The burden of our sin doesn’t have to weigh us down. As Mark discovered, God’s grace can free us and give us life “to the full” (John 10:10).
How have you experienced God’s grace in your life? What are some ways you can show it to others?
Dear God, thank You for showering Your grace on me. Please help my life to be marked by grace and mercy.
Visit go.odb.org/041326 to learn about the extent of God’s grace in offering us salvation.
TWFYT
UR: God's Direction
I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you. - Psalm 32:8 (NIV)
One day while traveling to work I had to change buses. When I reached my first stop, my phone navigation indicated that my next stop was across the road and to the left. But I didn’t see a bus stop on the left, so I walked to a stop I could see on the right. It wasn’t the correct stop, though. I decided to trust the navigation, but when I reached my supposed destination I still didn’t see a bus stop. Then I looked up and saw a sign hidden among the trees. Relieved, I caught the bus in time and made it to work.
In Genesis 12:10-20, Abram traveled with Sarai to Canaan, a land that God promised would be blessed. When Canaan experienced famine, Abram chose to go to Egypt instead. However, God remained faithful and protected Abram and Sarai, eventually leading them back to the right path.
Like Abram, when we follow God’s direction, we may encounter difficulties that seem to contradict God’s promises. This doesn’t mean the path is wrong — rather, it is a test of our faith. Even when we face challenges, God is trustworthy. If we have faith and follow God’s guidance, we will eventually reach the right place.
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's Prayer
Heavenly Father, help us to put our trust in your guidance, even among hardships and uncertainty. Sometimes we cannot see the whole picture, but we know you can. Amen.
Good Morning Living and Loving Like Jesus Servants of the Lord! Amen! Yes that is an apt description of us and we are growing in these! God is love and Love lives in us and His Love comes alive through us! PTL. As The Word for You reminds us Pray for a Revelation of God's Love. His love is patient. PTL! And He is slow to anger as Our Daily Bread reminds us! Thank Him for His patient love and for time to repent before His wrath comes. Ask for help to live and love more like Him and to dwell in His Love always! The Upper Room reminds us to live other-worldly. We are journeying to our permanent residence. While here we are God's ambassador representing Him and His love and helping to lead others to Him and to our eternal home in Christ. Ask for His eyes, heart and wisdom to go live, love and bring someone along on the journey! He loves that and will guide and help as you fulfill your purposes and role in His Good News Delivery Co. My prayer and God's will is that we each run our own races well and united as His Body fulfilling our purposes and growing in Christlikeness until that Great Day of the Lord. May we continue to do our parts as we unite and Light up the world and drive back the darkness as we live and love more and more like Jesus! Amen! May His love overflow us like streams of living water. Amen! Go! Live and love well team! He's coming back and day light's burning! Giddy up!
TWFYT
ODB
's Devotion
“Slow television” is the term used to describe marathon coverage of an event, typically shown in real time. The genre gained popularity in 2009 after the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation broadcast a seven-hour train journey. Yes, seven hours, on a train. Sounds . . . boring. But it’s gained an audience that finds the scenic ride mesmerizing.
The concept behind slow TV is to show something at the rate it’s experienced instead of the speed with which a narrative drama is told. It’s built around transition and movement instead of tension and plot. Slow TV is a step toward savoring life’s minutes as opposed to counting them.
The poet Francis Thompson wrote of God’s “unperturbed pace.” Thompson meant that God moves methodically, patiently, with steps measured and intentional. We see this slowness even with God’s emotions. In Scripture, the prophet Joel’s call for the people of Judah to repent is grounded in the reality that our God is “slow to anger” (Joel 2:13). Unlike our dramatic narratives, often fueled by tempers and flying-off-the-handle selfishness, God takes a different approach. His anger arrives slowly. To a people who had rebelled against Him, God says, “Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the Lord your God” (v. 13).
God’s anger isn’t like ours. He’s slow to anger, a reality that allows us to return to Him with all our hearts.
Reflect & Pray
When and how has God seemed to move slowly in your life? Why is He slow to anger and quick to be compassionate?
Dear God, You’re slow to anger, and I’m ever thankful.
's Insights
The prophet Joel warns Judah of the coming “day of the Lord,” a dreadful, fearful time of judgment upon God’s people for their unfaithfulness (Joel 1:15; 2:1, 11, 31; 3:14, 18). But for those who “[call] on the name of the Lord” (2:32), this day will be a day of salvation and deliverance. God invites Judah, “return to me with all your heart” (v. 12). Joel says that sincere repentance may change God’s mind about sending such discipline (v. 14) because He’s “merciful and compassionate, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. He is eager to relent and not punish” (v. 13 nlt). Earlier in their history, against the backdrop of the great sin of idolatry (Exodus 32), God had similarly revealed Himself as “the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness . . . forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin” (34:6-7). God invites everyone to “rend your heart and . . . return to the Lord” (Joel 2:13).
By faith [Abraham] made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country. - Hebrews 11:9 (NIV)
Now retired, my wife, Karin, and I decided to move closer to our daughter in Wisconsin. While loading the rental truck on moving day, I reflected upon the fact that Karin and I have lived in six homes in four different US states over the past 50 years. Though it was difficult moving — sometimes hundreds of miles away — we established ourselves in each of these communities. These moves were prompted by God’s call to ministry and, despite their challenges, resulted in the deepening of our faith and our dependence upon the Lord.
As Christians, we have no permanent home in this world. The patriarch Abraham comes to mind. By faith he responded to God’s call when he did not know how God’s will would be accomplished. He left all that was familiar, including his family and his friends. He dwelled in tents. He lived looking to the future. Likewise, we are sojourners in this world. We can look forward with hope to the future and our heavenly home.
's Prayer
Dear Lord, help us to be filled with faith as Abraham was. Keep us focused not on the temporal but the eternal. Amen.
Good Morning Spirit-Filled, Depending on God, Brothers and Sisters! Amen! No matter what we are facing we know we have God's Spirit in us and guiding us and we can choose to depend on and follow Him. Amen! These thoughts flow from two of our devotionals . Sometimes we get nudges from the Spirit to respond to someone or some situation that requires not only focus on God but dependance on Him and trust that He is with us and wants us to join Him in some way. We need to sometimes die to self and choose to agape love like Jesus. Sometimes, we need to ask for strength and wisdom and even want-to as we seek to honor and follow Him. Sometimes we are more easily able to move through grief, depression or lack of focus on God by raising some praise or working on populating our gratitude lists and then serving and focusing on others is also a way to move forward with God. And usually we need some teammates to walk with as we encourage and pray for and cover each other. invite the Holy Spirit to fill and guide you to what God has for you and then trust Him and do your best to stop leaning on your own understanding. He will come, encourage and help you as He refreshes and leads you to be a blessing to Him and others and in turn to be refreshed and blessed back. Try it and remember this for the promised tough times ahead. God cares, is with you, and is able to do way more than we can fathom! He loves you and is calling you by name and wants to hang out and help you all the time. Rejoice! Receive His love and peace and step into the chaos refreshed, focused and ready! Amen!
we will look at the last few verses of Matt 23 and the beginning of 24. It is Jesus' teaching on the end times and His reaction to the darkness and lostness of Jerusalem and the religious leaders. He longs to gather them like a mother hen gathers her chicks under her wings. They rejected Him and His comforting love, help, and leadership. May that not be us. Run to Him and dwell in His loving presence and ask Him to lead you to His perfect plans for --everyday. Lean on Him and not your own thinking. And find some helpers as you seek to stay focused on God and go live and love more like Jesus. That's His good plans for you and us! Amen! What a beautiful day to get out and be the Light and be refreshed in Him! PTL!
What a God thing as He led us to ODB and the discussion of their dog. Reminds me of Maggie and how she was and God used that to comfort and remind . She will live on in our hearts always. She was a nervous Nellie and needed meds to calm her and she freaked when she thought we were leaving--especially Karen. She always needed to be near us. Are we like that with God? Do we panic and run to Him when we start to stray? Do we draw close and seek to be near Him always? He's there and waiting with open arms to comfort us like a mother hen. And He will comfort us in the hard things and strengthen us for the journey He has for us. We can know His perfect peace as we worship, trust and follow ! Amen! What a great and loving Father we know! PTL! (Pray our other dog Archie moves through his grief and responds to our leaving him alone a few hours and . May he know we will always come back (Lord willing) and know we love him and will never leave him and have shalom shalom (perfect peace). Thanks!)
Upper Room: Feeding Jesus
Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by doing that some have entertained angels without knowing it. - Hebrews 13:2 (NRSVUE)
On the way home from a vacation, my husband and I stopped at a rest area off the interstate. As I walked around, stretching my legs, a man approached me. He asked if I had a biscuit I could give him to eat. I told him that I did not and walked away.
Then I remembered that we had a few small packs of peanut-butter crackers in the car, so I went back and got them. I looked around for the man and found him asking someone else for food. As he walked away from them, I approached him to say that I didn’t have a biscuit, but I had some packs of crackers. When I handed him the food, the look on his face changed from worry to relief.
As I walked back to the car, ’s scripture came to mind. With tears in my eyes, I offered up a prayer of thanks. Often we are so busy and distracted that we overlook those in need. By feeding a stranger, I fed Jesus. What a blessing I received that day!
's Prayer
Dear Father, help us to pay attention to those around us and to opportunities to help others. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
Our Daily Bread
A Portrait of Dependence
I cling to you; your right hand upholds me. Psalm 63:8
As I write these words, our Lhasa Apso dog, Winston, lies curled up at my feet. He’d watched me move from where I had been—the chair next to him—to the dining room table. That extra ten feet had been too far away from me.
I’ve been traveling for work a lot lately, and I think it’s getting to him. If I even hint that I’m leaving, or use the word “go,” he’s right on top of me. Practically clinging to me.
In human relationships, someone being “clingy” isn’t normally a compliment. But I see in my dog’s clinginess a vivid portrait of trusting dependence—one that’s mirrored in Psalm 63.
Here, David paints a picture of loving dependence upon God: “You, God, are my God,” he begins in verse 1. “Earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you.” In verse 3, he adds, “Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you.” Near the end, we read, “I cling to you; your right hand upholds me” (v. 8).
Like David—and maybe even a bit like my dog depends on me—I want to depend on God with my whole being, earnestly seeking Him. Sometimes, I do. Other times, my heart may be cooler, less trusting. But when I repent of my fickle mistrust and return to Him, I remember that He alone fills me. He alone is the one who will leave me “fully satisfied as with the richest of foods” (v. 5).
Reflect & Pray
What helps you experience God’s character as a loving Father most fully? How does trusting Him help us depend on Him?
Dear Father, thank You for Your lavish love. Please help me depend upon You in all that I do.
's Insights
The header for Psalm 63 identifies the author and the situation that inspired the song: “A psalm of David. When he was in the Desert of Judah.” There’s good reason to believe that it was written when he fled from his son Absalom, who sought to overthrow him as king over Israel (2 Samuel 15-19). In a time of personal and national stress, David poetically and intensely expressed his dependence upon God. Uncomfortable physical, emotional, relational, or spiritual conditions have a way of showing us our dependence on God. , weary, wandering people can go to the psalmist’s “wilderness prayer room” for language that helps to give expression to our prayers of dependence. In times of desperation, we can say, “I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you . . . . I cling to you” (Psalm 63:1, 8). When we confess our sins, we see that God alone brings satisfaction to our own wilderness.
Give thanks that “we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us” (1 Jn. 3:16).
Confess those times when you fail to love others.
Commit yourself to laying down your life for your brothers and sisters in Christ (3:16).
Ask God to drive all fear away with perfect love (1 Jn. 4:18).
Ask God to expose the foolishness and treachery of the kingdom of darkness. Pray that the forces of the kingdom of God, in politics, education, science, media, business, entertainment, church, etc., will be united and focused in their efforts.
Prayer Points taken from Patterns for Prayer by Alvin VanderGriend. This book is available at prayerleader.com. Use the code CONPSP3 at checkout to receive an additional 10% discount.
THANK GOD I'M FORGIVEN! PTL! Tell God all you are thankful about for your forgiveness and His great love, mercy and grace. Begin your day with worship. Enter His gates with and His courts with praise. Father, I am thankful for________! I praise You for________!
Thanks all for your prayers for us and Maggie. She is now at peace. I can't imagine not having our dogs jump all over us when we get to heaven! What unconditional love we know from them here. And dog spelled backwards is GOD. He loves us like that too! PTL. Breathe easy girl. You have been a good and faithful friend! (Now Karen and I are bawling)
Good Morning Saved and Thankful Followers of the Way! Amen! Jesus is the Way and He knows, loves and dwells in us! PTL! He shows us unconditional love. We are forgiven. He knows us and calls us by name. He has and will forgive us always when we come with repentant hearts. All of that lead to overflowing praise to Him! That's all I have in me . Check out your devotionals and open your Bibles prayerfully . And worship! he is with us always and comforts when we mourn and gives strength as needed to endure and follow. Thanks Lord! Come lead us in Your good ways . Thanks! Amen!
*BTW we will be studying Jesus' teaching from the end of Matt. 23 and into 24 . Next week we will finish 24 and wrap up with end of 25. Maybe pray through that as you be still and know.
Prayer Points
Adore the merciful God who has given you “new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” (1 Pet. 1:3).
Give thanks that you have “an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade— kept in heaven for you” (1:4).
Seek God’s forgiveness as you confess times when you fail to maintain your hope.
Commit yourself to seeing trials as opportunities in which your faith “may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed” (1:7).
Ask God to fill you “with an inexpressible and glorious joy” (1:8-9).
The Lord says, “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow” (Isa. 1:18). Pray that unsaved persons will understand that God desires to forgive and that they will seek that forgiveness.
Prayer Points taken from Patterns for Prayer by Alvin VanderGriend. This book is available at prayerleader.com. Use the code CONPSP3 at checkout to receive an additional 10% discount.
For some reason many of your emails bounced back as undeliverable. So here's my blog again. Prtay this works!
Happy Late Morning Team! Been a strange day in the Kerns household . First I slept until 7--what? Karen was awoken by our very sick Maggie Mae at 5. Maggie is on hospice with an enlarged heart. She was very lethargic and wouldn't take her meds (lots of meds) and I spent some time on the floor loving on her after I got up. She recently bounced back some (she heard Karen call the vet!) and took her meds. She seems to be holding her own now. PTL! Needless to say, my quiet time was a bit late and different . BUT GOD! He was speaking and He has a word or two for us to meditate upon .
I have been working on 's message (which has been a mess, really) On Matt. 24 and some of 23 and 25. It's Jesus' teaching on the end times. There are so many interpretations by man of the end times and so many false teachings and half truths that it boggles the mind as I endeavor to always bring His Truth and not add to or take away from it as commanded. I'm starting to really appreciate my old Lutheran pastor's take, "The end will come." AMEN! I'm often asked about the end and if we're in it and thought, "Let's see what Jesus says". , Maggie had me thinking about how many will be clueless and helpless with what will happen. God has given me a mandate to prepare all who will listen to listen to Him and be prepared for anything anytime and to be ready to stand firm, persevere and maybe even face death for our faith. Are you ready? I pray I and many are. We are taught that the ones who persevere to the end will receive eternal life. Is that me? Will that be us? Help us Lord! All we know for sure is that we are further along in the end of times from when Jesus and the apostles taught about it. He's coming like a thief in the night. We know that. And we are not to put dates on it. We know there are cycles of revival and deep faith and cycles of falling away and apathy and there is always a remnant. Are we experiencing a cycle of revival? Maybe with what's happening on campuses around the world. And we are a remanent of faithful followers. Thanks Lord! I'm praying about if God really wants me to bring this word on and if so to bring only His Truth and not man's or my interpretations. Prayers appreciated! Thanks!
But no matter what, until we are called home or Jesus comes back, we are called to be faithful followers that obediently live and love and make disciples like Jesus. Let's focus on that and the rest will fall into place. 's devotionals lead us to a facet of loving others that we are and can do. It's an affirmation to me that we are on the right track. God is Love. Love saved us and lives in us and longs to love through us. We are doing that. I heard all kinds of responses to our love from 's visitors and guest at donut day . We are growing and becoming known as the Body that loves like Jesus and cares and helps. Amen! Keep it up team. We are building treasures in heaven! We are becoming a dynamic movement of God! Adam and I discuss this often and how God is growing, uniting, and using both our expressions of worship. He is on the move in and through us and reaching our communities! PTL! He has great plans and new converts for us to discover and teach as we model His love in action! Check out our devos below and how they teach us to live and love and bring hope and help like Jesus. And keep teaming up, putting into practice and praying in revival and new connection points for His love! Amen! Let us be found living and loving well when He returns! And may we bring many more along. Help us and Shepherd us Lord! Amen!
ODB
Prompted by Love
We remember . . . your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope. 1 Thessalonians 1:3
Emily Kenward walked down Lavender Street in Brighton, England. Having recently become a believer in Jesus, she now saw the street differently. She noticed how many homes had their curtains drawn in the daytime, and how few older people were about, despite the area’s high elderly population. It spurred an idea.
Emily found out where Brighton’s elderly lived and invited them to an afternoon tea. Those who came told a similar story. Now living alone, they often went months without seeing anyone. What they longed for, they said, was a visitor.
Believing in Jesus changes how we respond to the world and its needs. We see this happening to the Thessalonians. Having turned to God (1 Thessalonians 1:9), they had become a model of faith to others by their transformed lives (vv. 6-7). The apostle Paul noted their “work produced by faith” and their “labor prompted by love” (v. 3). True faith had moved them to acts of service that brought honor to Jesus.
Emily was so moved by what she heard at that afternoon tea that she started a charity linking Brighton’s elderly with volunteer visitors. She remembers one woman hugging her tightly, sobbing, grateful for finally feeling seen and heard. The work grew, inspiring others to do the same. It makes me wonder what labors prompted by love the Holy Spirit might inspire you and me to do .
By Sheridan Voysey
REFLECT & PRAY
What need do you see in your community? Listening to the Spirit, what would a labor prompted by love look like to help meet it?
Holy Spirit, please fill me afresh to love others well!
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT
Acts 9 introduces us to a believer in Jesus who was prompted by love to serve others. “In Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha [Dorcas] . . . ; she was always doing good and helping the poor” (v. 36). The Greek word at the root of the word translated “helping the poor” means to “have mercy” or “pity.” In Joppa, there was a specific group of people who benefited from Tabitha’s “acts of charity” (v. 36 esv). We read how “all the widows stood around [Peter], crying and showing him the robes and other clothing that Dorcas (Tabitha's Greek name) had made while she was still with them” (v. 39). Her legacy of love for Christ included acts of mercy and kindness for vulnerable people. Her example as well as that of believers in Thessalonica remind those who’ve been “loved by God” (1 Thessalonians 1:4) to allow the Holy Spirit to help us find ways to tangibly show love to others.
Arthur Jackson
UR A Strangers Blessing
The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still. - Exodus 14:14 (NIV)
One Easter at 2:30 in the morning, my husband and I got a call that our 17-year-old son had been arrested. As we walked into the jail, we noticed an older man walking behind us, pulling a cooler. With tears in my eyes and a lump in my throat, I approached the reception window where a woman told us to sit down and wait. The man who had come in behind us told the woman that he was there to deliver treats for an Easter sunrise service. He proceeded inside while my husband and I waited in silence, a range of emotions stirring within us.
Then we saw the man walk out of the jail after delivering the treats. A few minutes later he walked back inside, toward us. With caring eyes, he looked at us and said, “I don’t know if you’re Christians or not, but I’d like to pray with you.” Tears poured forth, but at the same time a peace overcame me. The three of us joined hands in that empty jail waiting room, and this stranger prayed for our family. Immediately, I was filled with love and peace in one of the darkest moments of my life.
God sent this man to love and comfort us when we needed it most. While it didn’t make all of our troubles disappear, it reminded us that God cares for us and is with us through it all.
's devotional is available to you for free because of the generosity of our donors.
Thanks to donor support, anyone can read 's meditation without logging in for up to 7 days.
Please consider supporting our ministry. Your donation or paid subscription helps ensure that readers around the world continue to receive spiritual encouragement every day.
's Prayer
Dear Lord, thank you for your comfort in difficult times. May we be a blessing to others in their time of need. Amen.
TWFYT
Prayer Points
Praise God that he is a provider, meeting “all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 4:19).
Thank God that you do not need to believe in luck, chance, fate or fortune.
Confess any times in which you have believed in yourself as your provider.
Commit yourself to not being “anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with , present your requests to God” (4:6).
Ask that God’s peace, which transcends all understanding, will guard your heart and mind in Christ Jesus (4:7).
Pray that specific non-Christians whom you know will be struck by the futility of living without God and will seek out a relationship with Jesus Christ.
Prayer Points taken from Patterns for Prayer by Alvin VanderGriend. This book is available at prayerleader.com. Use the code CONPSP3 at checkout to receive an additional 10% discount.
Happy Late Morning Team! Been a strange day in the Kerns household . First I slept until 7--what? Karen was awoken by our very sick Maggie Mae at 5. Maggie is on hospice with an enlarged heart. She was very lethargic and wouldn't take her meds (lots of meds) and I spent some time on the floor loving on her after I got up. She recently bounced back some (she heard Karen call the vet!) and took her meds. She seems to be holding her own now. PTL! Needless to say, my quiet time was a bit late and different . BUT GOD! He was speaking and He has a word or two for us to meditate upon .
I have been working on 's message (which has been a mess, really) On Matt. 24 and some of 23 and 25. It's Jesus' teaching on the end times. There are so many interpretations by man of the end times and so many false teachings and half truths that it boggles the mind as I endeavor to always bring His Truth and not add to or take away from it as commanded. I'm starting to really appreciate my old Lutheran pastor's take, "The end will come." AMEN! I'm often asked about the end and if we're in it and thought, "Let's see what Jesus says". , Maggie had me thinking about how many will be clueless and helpless with what will happen. God has given me a mandate to prepare all who will listen to listen to Him and be prepared for anything anytime and to be ready to stand firm, persevere and maybe even face death for our faith. Are you ready? I pray I and many are. We are taught that the ones who persevere to the end will receive eternal life. Is that me? Will that be us? Help us Lord! All we know for sure is that we are further along in the end of times from when Jesus and the apostles taught about it. He's coming like a thief in the night. We know that. And we are not to put dates on it. We know there are cycles of revival and deep faith and cycles of falling away and apathy and there is always a remnant. Are we experiencing a cycle of revival? Maybe with what's happening on campuses around the world. And we are a remanent of faithful followers. Thanks Lord! I'm praying about if God really wants me to bring this word on and if so to bring only His Truth and not man's or my interpretations. Prayers appreciated! Thanks!
But no matter what, until we are called home or Jesus comes back, we are called to be faithful followers that obediently live and love and make disciples like Jesus. Let's focus on that and the rest will fall into place. 's devotionals lead us to a facet of loving others that we are and can do. It's an affirmation to me that we are on the right track. God is Love. Love saved us and lives in us and longs to love through us. We are doing that. I heard all kinds of responses to our love from 's visitors and guest at donut day . We are growing and becoming known as the Body that loves like Jesus and cares and helps. Amen! Keep it up team. We are building treasures in heaven! We are becoming a dynamic movement of God! Adam and I discuss this often and how God is growing, uniting, and using both our expressions of worship. He is on the move in and through us and reaching our communities! PTL! He has great plans and new converts for us to discover and teach as we model His love in action! Check out our devos below and how they teach us to live and love and bring hope and help like Jesus. And keep teaming up, putting into practice and praying in revival and new connection points for His love! Amen! Let us be found living and loving well when He returns! And may we bring many more along. Help us and Shepherd us Lord! Amen!
ODB
Prompted by Love
We remember . . . your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope. 1 Thessalonians 1:3
Emily Kenward walked down Lavender Street in Brighton, England. Having recently become a believer in Jesus, she now saw the street differently. She noticed how many homes had their curtains drawn in the daytime, and how few older people were about, despite the area’s high elderly population. It spurred an idea.
Emily found out where Brighton’s elderly lived and invited them to an afternoon tea. Those who came told a similar story. Now living alone, they often went months without seeing anyone. What they longed for, they said, was a visitor.
Believing in Jesus changes how we respond to the world and its needs. We see this happening to the Thessalonians. Having turned to God (1 Thessalonians 1:9), they had become a model of faith to others by their transformed lives (vv. 6-7). The apostle Paul noted their “work produced by faith” and their “labor prompted by love” (v. 3). True faith had moved them to acts of service that brought honor to Jesus.
Emily was so moved by what she heard at that afternoon tea that she started a charity linking Brighton’s elderly with volunteer visitors. She remembers one woman hugging her tightly, sobbing, grateful for finally feeling seen and heard. The work grew, inspiring others to do the same. It makes me wonder what labors prompted by love the Holy Spirit might inspire you and me to do .
By Sheridan Voysey
REFLECT & PRAY
What need do you see in your community? Listening to the Spirit, what would a labor prompted by love look like to help meet it?
Holy Spirit, please fill me afresh to love others well!
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT
Acts 9 introduces us to a believer in Jesus who was prompted by love to serve others. “In Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha [Dorcas] . . . ; she was always doing good and helping the poor” (v. 36). The Greek word at the root of the word translated “helping the poor” means to “have mercy” or “pity.” In Joppa, there was a specific group of people who benefited from Tabitha’s “acts of charity” (v. 36 esv). We read how “all the widows stood around [Peter], crying and showing him the robes and other clothing that Dorcas (Tabitha's Greek name) had made while she was still with them” (v. 39). Her legacy of love for Christ included acts of mercy and kindness for vulnerable people. Her example as well as that of believers in Thessalonica remind those who’ve been “loved by God” (1 Thessalonians 1:4) to allow the Holy Spirit to help us find ways to tangibly show love to others.
Arthur Jackson
UR:A Stranger's Blessing
The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still. - Exodus 14:14 (NIV)
One Easter at 2:30 in the morning, my husband and I got a call that our 17-year-old son had been arrested. As we walked into the jail, we noticed an older man walking behind us, pulling a cooler. With tears in my eyes and a lump in my throat, I approached the reception window where a woman told us to sit down and wait. The man who had come in behind us told the woman that he was there to deliver treats for an Easter sunrise service. He proceeded inside while my husband and I waited in silence, a range of emotions stirring within us.
Then we saw the man walk out of the jail after delivering the treats. A few minutes later he walked back inside, toward us. With caring eyes, he looked at us and said, “I don’t know if you’re Christians or not, but I’d like to pray with you.” Tears poured forth, but at the same time a peace overcame me. The three of us joined hands in that empty jail waiting room, and this stranger prayed for our family. Immediately, I was filled with love and peace in one of the darkest moments of my life.
God sent this man to love and comfort us when we needed it most. While it didn’t make all of our troubles disappear, it reminded us that God cares for us and is with us through it all.
's Prayer
Dear Lord, thank you for your comfort in difficult times. May we be a blessing to others in their time of need. Amen.
TWFYT
Connection prayer starters
Prayer Points
Praise God that he is a provider, meeting “all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 4:19).
Thank God that you do not need to believe in luck, chance, fate or fortune.
Confess any times in which you have believed in yourself as your provider.
Commit yourself to not being “anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with , present your requests to God” (4:6).
Ask that God’s peace, which transcends all understanding, will guard your heart and mind in Christ Jesus (4:7).
Pray that specific non-Christians whom you know will be struck by the futility of living without God and will seek out a relationship with Jesus Christ.
Prayer Points taken from Patterns for Prayer by Alvin VanderGriend. This book is available at prayerleader.com. Use the code CONPSP3 at checkout to receive an additional 10% discount.
Good Morning Worshiping in Spirit and Truth Followers of THE WAY! Meditate on that. Are you a follower of THE Way, Jesus? Are you doing what He made you to do as you are? That flows from worshiping in Spirit and Truth. So, what's that mean? We pray to do that on Sundays. Well, we should everyday. Worshipping in Spirit and Truth involves the Holy Spirit and God's Word. The Spirit brings His Word alive to us and has gifted us to be doers of it. Are we? Think about that a bit as you dwell in the Truth. Jesus said, "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life." Amen! during our huddle time Adam and I wrapped up briefly discussing what it means to worship in Spirit and Truth. It always amazes me how God weaves things together to teach and guide us. The author of our study starts with this overview of the chapter..."Worshiping in Spirit and Truth (John 4) is essential to life in Christ and spreading His movement. Worship draws worshipers into His Kingdom" He then challenges us to think about movement as stewardship and a relational partnership between you and God that leads us to become disciple making disciples. Amen! May that be us Lord! May we worship in Spirit and Truth and be doers of Your Word and may that lead us to be followers of THE Way, Jesus according to our gifts, abilities and Your good plans for us. Thanks! May we grow as disciple making disciples that bring movement in Your Kingdom in our contexts. Amen!
As God would have it, our devotionals for (below) flow through and weave this all together very nicely for us. Thanks Lord! The Word ffor You begins our journey into His Living Word and our life in Christ lived well with this truth..."The Words IO speak to you are Spirit and they are Life." That's Jesus, the Way, truth and Life speaking. His Word brings life! And as we become doers of His Word that will lead to life, renewed life and growing life in Christ. Our Daily bread reminds us to be doers of the Word and to not lean on our own understanding but to seek God, His Kingdom and His best that flows from His Word and informs our prayers and steps, Amen! And the Upper Room reminds us of our call to allow streams of Living Water to flow from us and when we do that is considered an act of worship. We are sent to refresh and teach and bring new life as streams of Living Water flow from us infused with the Word of God and the Good News of Jesus. Do you? Will you? God is with you and wants to use you to be His springs and to bring his Word alive. To do so well you need to start with time with Him with open Bibles and prayerful hearts. Start there and then process with some friends before heading out on this beautiful day to be doers of His Word that bring life wherever you tread. Amen! Help us Lord! he does have great plans for you to discover and enact ! BE ON THE LOOKOUT AND BE READY TO JOIN HIM AS YOU GO ! aMEN! Shalom shalom=perfect peace you will find as you join Him . Try it! Have a blessed day being filled to overflowing with His Truth and following His Way. Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life and He lives in you and leads us. Let Him! Come as you are and be transformed to His useful and effective prayer warrior and servant that is doing your part as designed by Him. Amen!
On my desk is a memo board of reminders. Pinned on it is a list, “10 Habits for Great Health,” that I cut out of a nutrition magazine years ago. Recently, I was stunned that even though I see this list every day, I could only remember four items. The list was such a familiar part of my daily surroundings that I’d glance at it without really seeing it or following what it said.
James describes something similar in the attitude of many believers toward the Scriptures: “Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror and . . . goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like” (James 1:23-24). Many followers of Christ are aware of what the Bible says. However, we may “merely listen to the word” (v. 22), and the extent to which we submit to it ends there. In this way, we deceive ourselves about the power and authority of Scripture, failing to see it as providing the “perfect law that gives [us] freedom” (v. 25).
James tells us to be “doers of the word” (v. 22 nasb). A “doer” looks “intently into” Scripture and “[continues] in it” (v. 25), consistently doing “what it says” (v. 22). Obeying God should be not just something we do, but something that flows from who we are. By His strength, we can live out His Word in our world.
By Karen Huang
REFLECT & PRAY
Why do we need to be “doers of the word”? What Scriptural teaching could you ask God’s help for in obeying?
Dear God, thank You for the truth of the Scriptures. Please help me let obedience to You be who I am.
Our readiness to “do what [the word] says” (James 1:22) can be influenced by how well prepared we are to receive the truths of the Scriptures. Verse 19 encourages the right kind of reception: “Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry.” The posture described is one of readiness and welcome. The image that comes to mind is that of an eager, restrained, proactive learner. Believers in Jesus in ancient Thessalonica embodied that kind of deportment. Paul said, “We . . . thank God continually because, when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as a human word, but as it actually is, the word of God, which is indeed at work in you who believe” (1 Thessalonians 2:13). Because Scripture is God-breathed (see 2 Timothy 3:16-17), we can respond to its truth with humility and ask God to help us to obey Him and honor Him with our lives.
Arthur Jackson
UR: Living Water
Jesus said, “Those who drink of the water that I will give them will never be thirsty. The water that I will give will become in them a spring of water gushing up to eternal life.” - John 4:14 (NRSVUE)
Because of our identity, culture, or background we often feel separated from other people. The Samaritan woman who spoke with Jesus at the well was different from him because of her heritage and how she viewed traditions. But Jesus chose to speak to her, teaching her about the water that gives eternal life. Not only that, Jesus would also go on to show what being set apart means. Through Jesus, the Living Water, we are set apart to have a new identity and life, to worship him in spirit and in truth, and to tell others about him.
Imagine the surprise among the Samaritans when the woman told them about Jesus. This woman who was on the margins of society was used by Jesus to spread the good news to those around her.
No matter what has separated us from God before, through Jesus we are set apart to worship and serve God. Let us surrender the past and dedicate ourselves to living in a way that brings glory to God as we tell others about God’s mercy and grace.
's Prayer
Dear God, thank you for the Living Water that gives life, allowing us to serve you and tell others about you. Amen.
Sarah Update below. Thanks Sarah for a great teaching on wisdom flowing from knowledge and knowledge of God and His Word! We should absorb wisdom as we dwell in Christ and His Living Word and allow that knowledge to grow to wisdom as we apply it to our lives and situations. She reminded us that God is breathing wisdom into us like He did for the writers of Scriptures as we spend time in His Word and allow it to inform our choices. Wise living is being a doer of His Word! Amen!
Good Morning Scripture-Dwelling, Wise-Living, Surrendered and Obedient, Followers of the Way! AMEN! Yes rejoice! God is all-wise and His wisdom lives in us and flows from us as we bring Him and His Word to life as we go through each day! Amen! Our Daily Bread reminds us to be still and surrendered as we dwell in Christ and absorb His Truth. We are clay in the Potters hands--well we can be--should be as we allow Him to continue to mold and shape us! And never forget as the Upper Room reminds us that we are children of the resurrection! PTL! "We are not a people of hopelessness and despair!" God uses trials to mold and shape and prepare us to be the Potter's vessels, pouring out His love and wisdom and even Living Water through us into the parched and weary land! God is always with us and always working all things together for the good of those who believe and are called by His name...that's us--Christ's Ones! 's challenge is to seek first His Kingdom and His wisdom and righteousness and then to allow His provision to come as we allow Him to shape and prepare us and then send us to bring life, love, truth and justice alive. Amen! SO...Go! Be Christ in the flesh and plant, water, fertilize and maybe even harvest. Good fruit awaits! Amen!
ODB:
Yielded and Still
The potter formed it into another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him. Jeremiah 18:4
Not much is known about Adelaide Pollard, and that’s sort of the point. She was a humble servant of God who wanted no recognition for herself. At the age of forty, she felt a strong calling to be a missionary to Africa, but that door was closed to her, leaving her greatly discouraged. Yet Adelaide was reminded of a verse: “Like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand” (Jeremiah 18:6). Later, she penned a hymn with these lyrics: “Thou art the potter, I am the clay.”
The image in Jeremiah has much to speak into our lives : “The pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands; so the potter formed it into another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him” (18:4). This is a picture of how God reshapes us into His better purpose. Whatever we think we should do and be, God may have another shape for our lives: “Like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand” (v. 6).
Eventually Adelaide did go to Africa, but it may be that God’s shape for her life had more to do with other things—perhaps writing that hymn, “Have Thine Own Way,” which has inspired millions in the years since. When we feel “on hold” in what we want to do, we might think about how God is shaping us in the meantime. We do well to let God have His own way and wait, “yielded and still,” for His greater purpose.
By Kenneth Petersen
REFLECT & PRAY
How do you feel discouraged in your life goals ? How might you let God have His way with your life?
Dear God, please help me yield myself to Your potter’s hand.
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT
Jeremiah 18:6 reminds us that God is “the potter” who shapes and uses us for His purpose. Moses is an example of someone who was used by God. In Acts 7, Stephen says of him, “When Moses was forty years old, he decided to visit his own people, the Israelites. . . . Moses thought that [they] would realize that God was using him to rescue them, but they did not” (vv. 23-25). He overestimated his readiness. His instincts were good, but his timing wasn’t. Eventually, after forty years of “relative” silence, he was ready for God’s assignment and rescued his people: “This is the same Moses they had rejected. . . . He was sent to be their ruler and deliverer by God himself . . . . He led them out of Egypt and performed wonders and signs in Egypt, at the Red Sea and for forty years in the wilderness” (vv. 35-36). , when we yield ourselves to God, He’ll use us for His purpose in His timing.
Arthur Jackson
UR: People of Resurrection
If we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly also be united with him in a resurrection like his. - Romans 6:5 (NIV)
Every year I have a vegetable garden. I start by planting tomato and pepper seeds in pots inside the house months before the ground warms up. That way, when I transfer them out to the garden, they are already quite large. This year, I put the pots in the garage instead of the house. After several weeks, there were no sprouts. I planted more seeds and still no sprouts appeared. I gave up hope; but then when the weather warmed up, I saw sprouts in my pots. The garage had been too cold for the seeds to germinate.
How often do our dreams seem to go nowhere? When it looks like hope has been crushed and everything is bleak, we are tempted to admit defeat. But we are not a people of hopelessness and despair; we are people of resurrection. On Easter morning, the stone was rolled away, and the risen Christ stepped out leaving the grave clothes behind. That is our hope and assurance. Our trials are not the final story. Rather, trials provide a chance for a new start. Because of Jesus we are not defeated; we are people of resurrection.
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's Prayer
Lord Jesus, strengthen us as we weather our trials so that we may live into the promise of resurrection. Amen.
Sarah Update:
Hi all,
Good to worship with you all .....
I just wanted to send off the prayer needs so you can recall them this week, as your spend time talking with our
Father.....
Continued prayers for healing and strength, and endurance for those we know are dealing with cancer, cancer treatments, healing following procedures: Terry, Houstin
Rosa has been having health issues, particularly with her heart. She has been in and out of the hospital recently. She is praising God that she was able to
attend worship . She had two bypasses and is feeling better. She is also grateful for the home health aids that come to help her on a daily basis.
Rosa's Home Health aid attend worship with her. She asked for prayer for her son and grandson.
Sandy Ritter's daughter Tina, has found a new doctor. The new doctor has been very successful in helping with her pain and they are getting some
results. She is finding relief.
Pastor Don is asking prayer for his sister, Connie. Her heart rate is high and they are working to get it back into rhythm. Prayers for the medical team working
with her. Also, Don is asking for prayer that she will come to know Jesus as her Lord and Savior.
Keep our graduates in prayer, Seniors as they decide on colleges vs working, and our college graduates as they pursue employment.
Just a reminder that the Celebration envelope in your offering envelope box will be used for Outreach to help those in need.
Hope you all have a great week!
Have a prayer need, let us know so that we can pray along with you.....
. 10-12 donut day at bread ministry and 6-7:30 Dinner Huddle Pizza Party and Ice cream bar as we refire for spring
. Worship 10 am live in person and on zoom
He has overcome sin, death and the grave! Hallelujah! He has torn the curtain and opened a door for us! We can be forgiven, made new and transformed from our old sin nature to His righteous one! PTL! He has given us the free gift of faith and the freewill to chose how we use that. He has great plans for you that have been activated in Christ through our faith. We get to choose to trust and obey and be blessed. Or not. We are not left as orphans and we have the Holy Spirit to help us and apply the gifts He's given. And when He ascended to heaven, He commissioned to go and make disciples and teach His Word. He is risen. the curtain is torn and we have full access to His armor, Word and help!
So, , start with worship and praise and abiding in His love and wisdom and then go and do as He has revealed for you. Process with some friends and unite in love to keep working at living and loving more and more like Jesus. Die to self, take up cross and follow well. I'm praying for you! God is for you and with you and He will lead you to His best for you . Choose Him and His good ways everyday and your journey to Christlikeness and heaven will be clear. Don't lean on your own understanding. Surrender, trust and obey! Amen!
He is risen! Indeed! Jesus has taken our sin to the cross. Died. Was Buried. And then another miracle that changed the world forever. The stone was rolled away and He stepped from the tomb into His resurrection body overcoming death and the grave! PTL! New life has come! The old is gone! We are forgiven and living out our hope of heaven . He is risen indeed! He has changed you, me and all who will come from our old ways to our new in Christ nature because of the faith He has given us. We are His redeemed children! PTL! Pray for many to come to Him with open hearts and minds and ready to repent, believe and step into their Good News story! we celebrate the greatest event in all of history! INDEED! Let us sing His praise and enter His courts with ! What a loving, mighty God we know and love! Amen!
Happy Resurrection Day! He has risen! And we are His! Amen! Hosana in the name of the Lord!
Worship at 10 with communion. Bring some friends! Pray for Adam Roberts as he brings the Word and for all who join us to see and be drawn to Jesus and new life in Christ! Amen! He is risen--indeed! We will be collecting for Everlasting Life Ministries too.
: Clothing Closet 9-12
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Good Morning Waiting in Faith and Praying Expectantly Friends of God! In AD 33 this was the Sabbath. How could the masses that followed Jesus and especially His disciples and close friends be still and worship on this day? Their world came crashing down. Peter denied Jesus three times and ran crying. The other disciples scattered. Then they gathered and cowered in the Upper Room confused, broken, lost, grieving for their leader and their dashed hopes that he was the Messiah. There are times we can understand their disposition that day. We endure faith-shattering, dark, hopeless things that can cause us to lose faith and enter into grief. What you have done that dark Sabbath? Worship in faith and hope with expectant prayers or walked away-shattered, like the two on the road to Emmaus?
Who do you know that is going through some faith-shattering things? How can you come beside them and assure them that God knows, is with them and has a good plan we can't see yet. How can you pray with them with and expectancy? How can you help them to refocus? How can you refocus and remind yourself--BUT GOD! Remember how the saying rings true--"It is darkest before the dawn."? Be still and know and persevere in faith and continue to pray with and expectancy! God knows! He has a great plan we can't see yet that will require the next step of faith and trust. He knows, cares, is able and will bring about His perfect will and plans. Amen! Pray and plan expectantly that your stone will be rolled away by God and Good News will flood over you and your situation! And the greatest news is that we are forgiven and will know eternity with Jesus in heaven someday. There is no greater hope than this and until then with the help of the Holy Spirit and our friends we can rejoice and persevere in faith. Choose joy and hope . The dawn is coming and the revelation that the stone has been moved aside and resurrection has come! PTL! Worship and persevere in faith my friends! Deliverance is at hand and His kingdom has come and His will is being done! Amen! And know His perfect peace in all your storms. Shalom shalom! Amen! The dawn is at hand! Hosana!
Upper Room: A Moment of Faith
The disciples on the road to Emmaus said, “We had hoped that [Jesus] was the one who was going to redeem Israel.” - Luke 24:21 (NIV)
After months of applying for jobs, I finally had a great offer! Everything seemed to be falling into place. Then suddenly, the company changed their mind. I felt lost, confused, and sad. I wondered where God was in it all.
Slowly, I began to realize that this is how the disciples must have felt after Jesus’ crucifixion. They had believed that Jesus was the one who was going to redeem Israel. The events of his life on earth and the miracles he had performed confirmed their hopes that the long-awaited Messiah was finally here, fulfilling the promises of scripture. Then Jesus was crucified, and all hope seemed to be gone. The disciples must have felt incredibly lost, confused, and sad. It was in this moment that the disciples faced the ultimate test of their faith. Did they truly believe in God’s power and Jesus’ promises?
Although challenging situations may test us and cause us to question God, they can become defining moments of faith, ultimately strengthening our relationship with God. Even when we experience life’s twists and turns, God is faithful to us because of who God is — a promise keeper and a miracle worker.
's Prayer
Dear Father, thank you for your presence with us as we put our hope and trust in you. Help us to notice all the ways your resurrecting power is at work in our lives. Amen.
Our Daily Bread
Serving God Out of Love
Store up for yourselves treasures in heaven. Matthew 6:20
My dad was a hard worker on our farm and in the factory, but he wasn’t a handyman. Sometimes when our tractor or furnace or plumbing failed, a neighbor or friend would fix it. Dad offered to pay even though he knew he couldn’t afford as much as they deserved. But they wouldn’t accept anything; they just loved to help. “Thanks,” he’d say, “until you’re better paid.” I’m still not sure what he meant. Maybe he or someone else did something for them later.
Believers in Jesus who serve others because of their love for Him will one day be rewarded. Perhaps that’s a form of “until you’re better paid.” Jesus told His followers to “store up for yourselves treasures in heaven” (Matthew 6:20). Doing good to others may be one way to store up some of those “treasures.” He said we shouldn’t announce it “with trumpets”; if we do, that’s all the reward we’ll get (v. 2). We can be confident He sees us. The book of Hebrews reinforces this idea: “God . . . will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them” (6:10).
We don’t serve for rewards but rather because Jesus loves us, and in response we express our love and praise for Him. What a blessing it will be to hear God say, “Well done, good and faithful servant!” (Matthew 25:21, 23).
By Anne Cetas
REFLECT & PRAY
What treasures have you stored up? What gifts has God given you to share with others?
Dear Jesus, I long to help others the way You want me to. Please help me point them to You, and lead me to live for Your pleasure.
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT
Helping those in need is one of the ways that we “store up for [ourselves] treasures in heaven” (Matthew 6:20). We take what God has given us and share with those in need. The concepts of loving God and helping the needy come together in 1 John 3:14-18: “We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love each other. . . . This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person? Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.” , as God helps us, we can look for ways to serve others because of our love for Christ.
YES! Thank God I'm Forgiven! That is what is a reminder of for me. The extent of the love of God and obedience of Jesus to make a way for me and all who will come. What Love! Thank You Lord! Forgive and cleanse and prepare me to be Your vessel of Good News ! Amen!
our Clothing Closet will be open 9-12. Pray for God to bless them and through them!
Worship with communion 10 AM. Who ya bringing? We will collect for Everlasting Life ministries too. He is Risen!
Next week Zoom Huddle resumes at 10-11 and it's donut day at Bread Ministry 10-12 and we resume our dinner huddle at 6-8 with a pizza party. Come and see what God is doing! Praise Him for His provision and for using us!
This is the day the Lord has made! Let us rejoice and be glad in it! This is the beginning of the weekend that changed to world forever! It is finished! New life has come! We are now redeemed children of the most high God! Amen! Thank You Jesus!
Take some time to meditate on and worship because of what this day means to you and humankind! The curtain is torn and Jesus mission is completed with His last breath. It is finished. Our debt is paid. Amen!
I'm just posting our devotionals to be used to draw near, meditate and worship our Lord and Savior. he is your Lord and Savior, right? Who do you know that needs Jesus to become their Lord and Savior? Pray for them to repent and believe the Good News and invite them to come and see on . remember we were one way and then the cross...now we are another and Jesus wants many to know this freedom and forgiveness. Go! Make disciples! Amen!
There is no love greater than this: that someone would lay down His life for another! Go love as I have loved you! help us Lord! Use us! Thank You!!!!
TWFYT
ODB
Why Good
This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. 1 John 4:10
What’s so good about Good ? Why isn’t the day called Bad or Sad ? After all, it’s meant to be a day of sorrowful reflection, not a day of celebration. Sometimes, this day takes other names, such as Holy . In Germany, it’s called Karfreitag, or Sorrowful . So where did we get the tradition of calling it “Good”? Some believe it may have originated from the older tradition of calling it “God’s .”
No matter the origin of the name, it’s still appropriate to call the on which Jesus died “good.” Out of Christ’s sacrificial love, He died for our sins. That’s why Good is good. And the great news is that three days later He rose from the grave in victory.
New Testament scholar D.A. Carson wrote, “It was not nails that held Jesus to that wretched cross; it was his unqualified resolution, out of love for his Father, to do his Father’s will—and it was his love for sinners like me.” We read in 1 John 4: “This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins” (v. 10).
The good news of Good is that God loves us and wants to have a relationship with us! Because of that love, we’re called to love others (vv. 7, 11). When we do, we show our love for Him.
By Alyson Kieda
REFLECT & PRAY
What does Good mean to you? How can you honor Jesus on this day?
Dear God, thank You for loving me! Please help me to tell others about You.
Visit go.odb.org/040326 to learn about Jesus and His atoning sacrifice.
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT
John, “the disciple whom Jesus loved” (John 13:23), wrote much about how God loves us. In his gospel, he says that “God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son” to save us from our sins (3:16). In one of John’s letters, he uses similar language: “This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. . . . He loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins” (1 John 4:9-10). Similarly, Paul accentuated that God demonstrated His great love for us by sending Christ to die for us “while we were still sinners” (Romans 5:8). Because of Jesus’ atoning sacrifice for our sins, which we remember on Good , “we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God because our Lord Jesus Christ has made us friends of God” (v. 11 nlt). K.T. Sim
K.T. Sim
UR: Thank God for the Scars
Then [Jesus] said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.” - John 20:27 (NIV)
Eighteen years ago, on Good afternoon, I was on my way to Birmingham, Alabama, for a much-anticipated Easter weekend with my daughter who was in college. The sky was blue, and the earth was alive with the arrival of spring. I felt lighthearted and carefree until my cell phone rang. My doctor delivered the results of my recent biopsy.
My heart sank and my eyes welled with tears. Earlier he had seemed confident that my irregular mammogram was a fluke. Now the word cancer thundered in my ears, devouring all the peace I had felt a few seconds before. In that moment my faith was as shaky as my body. But my faith grew in the weeks following surgery as God supplied my needs moment by moment — for months.
, visible scars are still a painful reminder that I am a cancer survivor. Jesus had visible scars too. I wonder if our risen Savior kept those nail marks out of compassion for us. Scripture says Jesus showed his disciples his scars and that Thomas touched his pierced hands and side. When he took on human form, he did so to understand all that it means to be human. Scars are memories of pain, and Jesus understands as only one who has endured pain can.
's Prayer
Dear Lord, may we never forget that you submitted to undeserved pain out of love for us. Grant us the courage to love others with the same sacrificial spirit. Amen.
Congratulations to our Lay Delegate Kathy Canfield who was elected to also be the Lay Delegate for our Lehigh Valley EC district! Many blessings Kathy and congratulations! May God lead you and use you well! Amen!
Good Morning Trusting, Peace-filled, Caring, Servants of the Lord! AMEN! This salutation flows from our blogs and devotionals for . God took me to still waters and green pastures and deep places as I and worshiped, listened and heard during my quiet time. Have you had your time with God yet? If not, still yourself and allow Him to come fill you and lead you to the still waters and green pastures of His deep love for you. Think about the disciples and what they were experiencing and trying to comprehend this week in AD 33. But how could they fully understand? They didn't have the Holy Spirit yet to open God's Word to them or the experience of Good and Resurrection behind them. Confused? Crushed? Lost? Clueless? Hurt? Disappointed? Struggling? Trusting? Giving up? These and other things come to mind as I think about the push back and unexpected things they had been feeling, seeing and experiencing. And then they gathered in that Upper Room and their Rabi enters, puts on a towel and starts washing their feet. WHAT? No master! Then Jesus said that this was to be an example of how they were to treat others and lead--from humility as a servant and then leader. Huh? Then He started talking about His broken body and spilled blood as He instituted the remembrance of Him and His sacrifice that we call the Lord's Supper or communion. A broken body and spilled blood? Someone from among us will betray You? We will scatter and Peter will deny you 3 times? No way! Well, yes way. And on the night He was betrayed Jesus continued to pray for and pour into and tried to prepare His team. Many trials and struggles lie ahead the next few days. We can sympathize with them. We've often been lost, confused, doubting and felt left out of information needed. Most of us at one time or another have run from Jesus, truth, and trauma. Maybe even denied Jesus and our faith. Thank God Jesus carried through with His mission and we are and can always be forgiven, made new, grow in faith and experience His presence and help. Thank God we are forgiven and made new. Thank God we were one way and then another new way! Thank You Jesus for washing my feet, cleansing my soul and walking with me through everything. Thank You for saving a wretch like me and reviving my faith when needed. Thank You for being our Lord and Savior! Thank You also for Your promised peace that flows from our faith and trust in You and Your Good plans! Thank You Jesus! Amen
Still yourselves and work through the Connection Blog and our devotionals as you remember and worship and as you surrender and repent. God loves you and the cross and resurrection are an example of how far He's willing to go for you! We can know peace beyond understanding and we do have a future and hope because JESUS! Amen! PTL! Be still and know and run to His loving arms with everything. Invite the Holy Spirit to come teach and lead you. And thank the Father that we know that we know that we know that we are loved, saved, forgiven and made new in Christ! Amen! Then ask for help to go love and serve and even lead like Jesus. That's why God saved you and amde you new! Amen and shalom shalom!
Connection Blog
- Let Peace Rule
Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. (Colossians 3:15)
When speaking of peace in Colossians, Paul pulls out all the stops and hits us with the word “rule.” Peace is to rule in our hearts. This is a far cry from an emotion of peacefulness or an attitude we have somehow developed. Ruling is a powerful word that indicates the ability to transform and direct the activities of your life. The peace of Christ has that innate ability to rule.
It is interesting that Paul’s command is that we let peace do its ruling work in our hearts. The peace of Christ, let loose in your life, will rule and direct you in ways that line up with the purposes of Christ. Our job is to let that happen. In a sense, that means that we give permission to the peace of Christ to rule.
You get to choose who or what will rule in your heart. God’s Word tells us that the very best thing we can do is let peace take over.
Sometimes it seems that life throws everything at you, all at once. In the fall of 1998 that happened to Kim (my wife) and me. My father was in the last stages of his five-year battle with lymphoma. My mother, who was his primary caregiver, suffered a massive stroke that paralyzed her right side for the rest of her life. Dad was on one floor of the hospital and Mom on another. My mom’s brother was on yet another floor of the hospital, dying from cancer. In the midst of that, we got a call that Kim’s mom had a TIA (Transient Ischemic Attack—a precursor to a stroke) giving us the fear of another stroke coming in the family.
We ran into the arms of Jesus. There was nowhere else to go. His peace enveloped us and though circumstances did not change, I can say with confidence that his peace began to rule in our hearts. The peace of Christ was in charge, not the circumstances of failing health and fear.
The key is our choice. Regardless of what is happening in or around us that is stealing our peace or creating anxiety, we can still choose to let peace rule in our hearts. This is where faith steps in and takes over. We go to God’s Word which tells us to simply let the peace of Christ rule in our hearts, and though that seems woefully inadequate in the face of our fears, we, by faith, say yes to the Word of God. We pray that truth into our lives and watch and see what God does with an obedient, faithful heart.
Memorize Colossians 3:15: “Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.” Begin each day by affirming that the peace of Christ is ruling in your heart.
Lord, I choose to let Your peace rule in my heart. Regardless of what happens around me, it is Your peace that will rule within. Thank You that we have literally been called to this peace by You. I am grateful!
Jesus said, “You call me Teacher and Lord, and you are right, for that is what I am. So if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet.” - John 13:13-14 (NRSVUE)
When I declare Jesus as my Lord and Savior, I usually focus on the word savior because I feel grateful that Jesus has saved me. But I wonder, when I call him “Lord,” what am I really saying? I researched this, and discovered that the Greek word for lord is kyrios, which can be translated as a man with great power and authority.
In the military every person must answer to someone of higher rank and obey the orders of their commander. In ’s reading from the Gospel of John, Jesus gives his disciples a single command: “Love one another as I have loved you.” And he led by example, first serving the disciples by washing their feet and then demonstrating the greatest possible love — “to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”
So now when I encounter the word Lord in scripture or say it in prayer, I add Commander. This reminds me to obey my Lord’s command — to love others through service and self-sacrifice.
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's Prayer
Jesus, our Lord and Commander, help us to obey your instruction to love and serve one another as you love us. Amen.
Our Daily Bread
Caring and Communion
This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me. 1 Corinthians 11:25
When I broke my upper arm, my friend Rex surprised me by shipping a care box of frozen soups with a beautiful, silver ladle. I was deeply touched and kept the ladle long after consuming the soup. My arm has healed and dear Rex has since passed away, but his gesture of love continues to express God’s love for me. Every time I lift the ladle, I thank God for His love to me through my friend.
Jesus gave us a tangible gift in the celebration of Communion to help us remember His incomparable love for us (Luke 22:19). The apostle Paul reminded the Corinthians how Jesus broke bread, saying, “This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me” (1 Corinthians 11:24). Then Christ “took the cup, saying, ‘The cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me’ ” (v. 25). God’s lavish love is remembered again and again as we take the bread and lift the cup as believers in Christ.
Rex showed his love through the tangible gift of a care box, leaving a ladle to remind me month after month. Jesus loved us in the life-altering gift of His body sacrificed on the cross for our sins. He left us the practice of Communion to remind us of His unchanging love.
By Elisa Morgan
REFLECT & PRAY
When do you celebrate Communion (the Lord’s Supper)? How might your celebration of it become more meaningful as you remember God’s love for you through this practice?
Dear God, thank You for loving me so sacrificially and for leaving the tangible practice of Communion to remind me again and again of Your love.
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT
Paul was “called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God” (1 Corinthians 1:1). As an apostle, he was an eyewitness of the resurrected Jesus (see Acts 1:21-22). But for him, this happened on the road to Damascus (see 9:1-6). He wasn’t present at the Last Supper with the other disciples (see Matthew 26:20-29; Mark 14:22-25; Luke 22:14-20), but Christ may have instructed Paul through the disciples who were present on that occasion. On that Passover night, Jesus “took bread” and said, “This is my body given for you.” Then He instructed them, “Do this in remembrance of me” (Luke 22:19), thus instituting the first Lord’s Supper. Christ demonstrated His love by dying on a cross. Paul reminds us, “The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread” (1 Corinthians 11:23). As we remember Christ’s supreme act of love by partaking of Communion, or the Lord’s Supper, we’re inspired to love Him and to love each other.
FYI: I'm back from Florida and all is well. I appreciate prayers as I transition back to active duty. Hope to see you at Bread Ministry with our piano player!
Good Morning Faithful Friends! We are friends and friends with Christ. PTL! We are united as He and the Father and Spirit are One. PTL! He is Love and so are we and we do our best to live and love like Jesus and Bread Ministry is a great example of that! PTL! We are faithful to God and each other and exercise the faith He has given us well. PTL! May His love and faith overflow us and this week! May many feel His love and be drawn to Him. Remember to invite someone to worship. Who ya bringin'? Gotta fly! and hope to see you soon, faithful friends! God has great plans for you, us and those we will meet ! Come and see! Shalom shalom!
Note this is my last day in Florida. Thanks for praying. I need to be at the airport at 330am . So no blog . I hope to be at the Bread Ministry (Weis Day) . Come join us! Remember no night dinner huddle until next week.
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Good Morning Excited, Praising Followers of the Most High King of kings--Jesus! Hosana! Praise be the Lord! mom, Terry and I finished up watching The Chosen season 5. (Season six episodes 1-6 won't be released until the fall and then episodes 7-8 will be in theaters in followed by season 7 sometime in 2028) How appropriate that we watched season 5's triumphal entry through Jesus' arrest at the start of Holy Week. It got me thinking and worshiping for sure! Would i shout hosanna on an crucify Him on ? I pray not. Jesus was a radical departure from religion and the Jewish faith as observed by devout, yet lost, leaders. There was so much politics at play and backroom scheming that led to His arrest and death. It was not much different than our politics for the country and many denominations too. Forgive us Father and heal our land and revive Your Church! Amen!
Would I find Jesus calling me a white-washed tomb and hypocrite or would I be one of His followers eager to learn and understand and be a part of His new Kingdom? I pray that I would have been a devout, listening, understanding, seeking and following friend. Would I have been able to keep the faith with all I was seeing and feeling or be like Judas? Would I have fallen asleep in the garden or stayed awake and prayed with and for Him? Would I have been able to keep the faith through all the unknowns and chaos of that first Holy Week or would I have doubted? These are hard questions as I examine myself as the Bible teaches to do. Am I a sold out, devout, persevering in faith friend of Jesus? Please Lord, help me to be! Have you examined yourself and faith life lately as commanded? Have you had to repent, correct and get back on track? Have you kept your focus on Jesus and feet following in faith? Contemplate with God and some accountability partners Our Daily Bread and your faith journey. Jesus came and died for you out of deep love and He has given us help to repent and become more and more like Him and the people He made us to be for such a time as this. Are you working on that as you persevere in faith through all the noise and darkness ? Help us Lord!
Take some time the next few days to sit at His feet, bare your souls, explore your faith and pray for help to grow in faith and glorify God always. That is our journey and He is with us and we know He has made a way for us to become all we are made to be and to all all we are made to do for such a time as this. PTL! Are you? Be still and know. Listen and grow. Then go live and love like Jesus and help to change this world to one that is part of His glorious Kingdom! Amen! I often end with shalom shalom which means perfect peace. But I am praying for God to trouble your souls with the things He desires to work on in and through you. What might you need to crucify ? How does He expect you to die to self to be ready to follow. There is a lot to explore and work on this week. Find some partners--you'll need them and stay open to all God has for you! he says to come as we are and to allow Him to mold and shape us. he is the Potter! Are you moldable clay?
To become a lawyer in California, Maxcy Filer had to pass the state’s grueling, three-day bar exam. So he took it not once, not twice, but forty-eight times before passing the tough test. His goal? To advocate for the underprivileged in Compton, his beloved city. Between his first and last attempts at passing the exam—across twenty-five years—Filer and his wife raised seven children, all who went to college. When Filer was sworn in, the judge said, “Three words about Maxcy Filer: perseverance, perseverance, perseverance.”
His story prompts me to think of people in the Bible who persevered. The writer of Hebrews recognized some: Noah, who “by his faith . . . became heir of the righteousness that is in keeping with faith” (11:7). Or Abraham, Isaac, Jacob (vv. 8-21), Moses (vv. 23-28), and others. Such examples inspire us.
The writer then exhorts believers in Christ: “Since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles” (12:1). We then read, “Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us” (v. 1). How will we do this? By “fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith” (v. 2). As we consider Christ’s sacrifice for us, we “will not grow weary and lose heart” (v. 3).
Challenges to our faith give us opportunity to endure in His name. In His power, we persevere.
By Patricia Raybon
REFLECT & PRAY
What faith challenge is testing you? How can you persevere in Jesus?
As I persevere for You, please inspire me, dear Jesus, to keep going.
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT
Because of severe persecution (see Hebrews 10:32-39; 13:3), Jewish believers in Jesus were pressured to abandon their faith and revert to Judaism. The unnamed writer of Hebrews encourages these embattled believers to remain faithful by “keeping [their] eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith” (12:2 nlt). He reminds us of the superiority of Christ, who as God Himself is the final revelation of God (chs. 1-4). Jesus—through His sacrificial work as the superior High Priest and as the once-for-all perfect sacrifice for sin—is the only one who can truly save (chs. 5-10). The writer likens our journey of faith to a long-distance foot race. The lives of faith of the saints who’ve completed their races (see ch. 11) inspire us to persevere to complete our race by keeping our eyes fixed on Christ, our champion who Himself endured challenges and completed the race (12:1-3).
is Palm and Brunch. Bring a friend! Pray for Sarah and Mike as they lead worship and for the 2 Peas in A Pod lunch crew. Thanks! And please continue to pray for me as I minister to mom and Terry and we work on many things down here in Florida. Thanks! (I return very early morning. Pray for favor, good connections and safe travels)
Larry Paul News below
Good Morning Standing on the Word, Trusting and Choosing Joy, People of Peace! Amen! Are there any of these that describe you? Any you need to work on? What is God saying to you as you lift this salutation in praise? These all flow from our devotionals below and from who we really are in Christ. We can choose these and walk with joy and in peace as we trust, stand on His Word and promises, seek and follow--even through the hard times or when on the mountain tops too. Rejoice! Abide! Be still and know and go and thrive in Christ ! Amen!
Begin with the Connection blogs below. Do you know peace? Have you chosen it? You can! God wants you to know His perfect peace--a peace beyond understanding. His promise before He left was His gift of peace. Remind Him and receive it! Terry has been a great reminder of this to me this week. He has great peace and is standing in faith, believing in healing and accepting peace as he journeys through cancer. Mom is trying and we are praying into that. I have already seen God moving in her and am experiencing His shalom myself as we organize and prepare and even plan for a long future ahead. PTL! Keep AT IT Lord! BRING FAITH, HEALING AND PEACE ALIVE TO US ALL! Amen! Where is God showing you His peace? Share that story with someone who needs peace. Help redirect someone from anxiety to peace and help them to cast all their anxiety to God and to be open to receive His peace. Are you stressed about all the crap going on around you, in this nation and world? STOP! Breathe out the junk and give it to God and take a deep breath of His love and peace. He does know all and is with us always. PTL! He has a plan! PTL! he offers us peace and help! Receive it and allow Him to handle things according to His good plans. Amen!
Our devotionals below flow together with all this . Meditate and pray through them. read and meditate on the associated Scriptures and stand firm. You know to do that, you have to open your Bibles. Why not spend some time listening, praying, reminding God and choosing joy as you choose to believe and stand firm on His Word. And remember to memorize some to use against Satan and His ploys like Jesus did. There is power in His Word and he promises that when prayed and used in faith, His Word will be powerful and effective and will accomplish His purposes. Trust is the word from the Upper Room . Our Daily Bread reminds us how we can stand on and remind God of His promises that we know are always true. Sometimes we need to remind ourselves of His promises and let go of our preconceived notions and wrong thinking to be able to stand firm and choose trust and joy. Try it! And don't forget the power in fasting! Try it! be still and know and allow God to deliver, heal, speak and direct as you fast and pray. Look at how The Word for You explains it. It is a solid teaching on fasting. Fasting is very effective too. Turn off the noise and be still and understand. God has a great plan for you to discover and one for our Body as well. Seek first the Kingdom and he will add all we need to accomplish His good plans and to do so with joy and peace. Amen! would be a good day to process some of this with your team and accountability partners. If you don't have any invite some to join you on the journey of growing faith, trusty, peace and joy! It works! It is God's plans for us. Talk to Him and some close others about that, process, maybe fast, and pray then go in faith to live and love a little more like Jesus! Amen and shalom shalom--perfect peace to you! I can't wait to hear your sytories of whaty God is doing in through and around you as you trust and obey and choose peace!
Connection blogs
- Things That Make for Peace
“If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace—but now it is hidden from your eyes.” (Luke 19:42)
It is so easy to miss out on peace. We get so caught up in circumstances and emotions that we forget to stay attached to Jesus and to enjoy the peace that comes from his presence. That, of course, happens to us as individuals all the time, I’m afraid. But it can also happen to a group of people or even a nation.
When Jesus came to Jerusalem during what we call his triumphal entry, he commented that peace was hidden from the city because they just didn’t understand who was coming into their midst, carrying peace with him.
That day long ago could have changed the history of the Jewish people and the city of Jerusalem forever.
But they missed seeing peace that day. It was hidden from their eyes, according to Jesus. Instead of peace, within a generation Jerusalem was destroyed and the Jewish people dispersed around the world.
Missing peace has grave consequences. It still does!
I’m convinced that when civil unrest breaks out in a nation, it is almost always a result of a failure to recognize the presence of Christ, who brings peace to the soul, and which then begins to filter into the culture. In the United States, as we have increasingly moved toward becoming a secular society, we can expect more and more unrest and violence, as the peace of Christ is held in less and less esteem and desire. As Jesus would say, “the things that make for peace are hidden from your eyes.”
You might feel powerless to stop such a powerful secular move in our society, but there’s one thing you and I can do. We can make sure peace is not hidden from us. We can and should embrace the peace that comes from the presence of Christ. Christ followers should be known as a people of peace, both within themselves and outwardly as we interact with those around us. When millions of Christians walk through life in the peace of Christ, a culture and society can be changed.
Prince of Peace, how I desire you in my life and in our nation. I recognize the desperate need for your peace, a peace that comes from my relationship with you. Pour that out upon all your people, please. Give us the boldness to speak and live peace wherever we might be. May your peace begin to bring transformation to our nation as you increasingly are recognized as Lord!
Express your praise to God as the compassionate Father (Ps. 103:13).
Thank him for desiring only good things for his children, including you (Lk. 11:11-13).
Confess those times when you have not wanted what God wanted for you or others.
Commit yourself to seeking first God’s desire—his kingdom and his righteousness (Mt. 6:33).
Ask God to “fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding” (Col. 1:9).
Pray for Christians living in oppressive conditions, that God’s desire for spreading his Word may be so strong in their hearts that they speak the Word boldly, without fear.
Prayer Points taken from Patterns for Prayer by Alvin VanderGriend. This book is available at prayerleader.com. Use the code CONPSP3 at checkout to receive an additional 10% discount.
Do not be afraid, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom. - Luke 12:32 (NRSVUE)
In the weeks leading up to his tonsil surgery, our seven-year-old son was understandably anxious. He had never had surgery before and was afraid of the unknown. He asked about being put to sleep and how his throat would feel afterward. It’s scary to face the unknown and have no control over the outcome. He tried to alleviate his fears by gathering information.
As my husband and I navigated how much to tell him and when, God showed me how often I find myself in this same situation. Just as we told our son we would be by his side during every step of the process, God, our loving Parent, promises never to leave us. It is comforting for me to think about how God can always see the opportunities in our struggles. We sometimes have to pass through the overwhelming and the negative to reach new life on the other side.
Our son’s surgery was successful, and going through that situation strengthened his relationship with God. With God’s help, I will remember this and have faith the next time I face a tough road into the unknown.
's Prayer
Dear God, thank you for reminding us of your constant presence and plans for our lives. May we trust in you always. Amen.
ODB
Praying God’s Promises
Remember your word to your servant, for you have given me hope. Psalm 119:49
“No, you can’t go to the lake,” I said to my daughter with my head tucked under the sink as I fixed a broken pipe. “Dad, you promised that after I had finished my chores, I could go,” she reminded me. I’d forgotten what I had said because I was preoccupied. My problem blinded me to my promise.
As my daughter did with me, the psalmist reminded God of His promises. “Remember your word to your servant,” he wrote, “for you have given me hope” (119:49). Thankfully we don’t have a heavenly Father who’s distracted and forgetful. We can come to Him not only with our hurts, problems, and disappointments but also in confidence knowing He’s a good Father: “My comfort in my suffering is this: Your promise preserves my life” (v. 50).
God invites us to meditate on the Scriptures so we can remind Him of His promises—not because He forgets but because He desires that we know Him well. That’s why the psalmist says, “I remember, Lord, your ancient laws, and I find comfort in them. . . . Your decrees are the theme of my song” (vv. 52, 54).
Because of my distractions, my daughter needed to remind me of my promise. When she did, I gladly let her go to the lake. We can be thankful that our heavenly Father is never preoccupied or too busy. He loves to hear us pray His words back to Him.
By Matt Lucas
REFLECT & PRAY
What’s one of your favorite promises from God? How will you thank Him for faithfully keeping it?
Father in heaven, I easily get overwhelmed with the busyness of life. Please help me to remember Your promises to me.
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT
Psalm 119, the longest psalm in the Bible, is an acrostic poem structured alphabetically as a mnemonic device for aid in memorization. It contains twenty-two stanzas of eight verses each, which correspond to each letter of the Hebrew alphabet. For example, verses 1-8 each begin with aleph, the first letter in the Hebrew alphabet; verses 49-56 each begin with zayin , the seventh letter. The singular focus of all 176 verses is God and the Scriptures. The unnamed psalmist, ridiculed and persecuted for his faith in God, declares his determination to obey and make God’s word his delight and wholehearted devotion. The psalmist asks God to “remember [His] word” to him (v. 49), for it sustains and preserves life (vv. 49-52). God is omniscient; He can’t forget anything. The psalmist is imploring Him to remember His promises to him. God is faithful and is never too busy for us. Praying God’s promises found in Scripture can bring us hope and comfort.
K.T. Sim
TWFYT
Larry Paul News
Hello to all of our family, friends, and partners,
We are living in challenging times right now; the ongoing war in Iran is causing higher fuel prices (In the Philippines the price of diesel more than doubled over the last few weeks to almost $8/gallon) and making it difficult to fly through the Middle East. We are so thankful to know God is in control and everything that is happening is part of His master plan. We'll be travelling to the USA this summer to visit our friends, supporters, and churches as well as visiting colleges with Brayden. We're still working out our schedule, but we hope to see many of you while we're in the USA.
We had a wonderful opportunity to visit two schools managed by Dan and Tori Beaver, former Faith Academy staff members These schools serve disadvantaged students on the island of Boracay, rated as one of the world's best beaches by numerous travel sites. The island has a lot of development to attract foreign tourists but, unfortunately, the local residents, especially the poor, are taken advantage of and marginalized. The Beavers started these schools to give the disadvantaged children a quality Christian education. They just finished a construction project at one school and are planning a construction project at the other school. Larry was able to meet with their engineer to discuss the projects and future plans of the schools. And, since we were in such a beautiful place, we celebrated our 20th wedding anniversary (a few months late) while we were there.
Larry and his team are finishing up the two major campus projects that started in January; adding a 350kw solar panel system and replacing half of the High School building's roof (the other half of the roof was replaced last year). They are now preparing estimates for campus improvement requests that are to be done during Faith Academy's summer break; once we have the estimates we can determine what work can be done with our limited funds. This is in addition to his "normal" tasks of running the maintenance, grounds, transportation, custodian, and security departments.
Richard is enjoying college life at Lehigh University. He's doing well with his classes as he finishes up his freshman year. He plans to return to the Philippines during his summer break and catch up with his friends from high school.
Brayden is doing well at Faith Academy. He was on the varsity basketball team that finished its season by playing in the Asian Christian Schools Conference (ACSC) tournament at Morrison Academy in Taiwan. Larry and Enol were asked to be chaperones and help the coach manage the players. Faith Academy played hard and ended up in 6th place out of eight teams. He's doing OK in school, he's still working hard on his Pre-Calculus and Statistics classes to understand the material. He recently took the exam and is starting to think about where he'd like to go for college.
Praises
Larry's ongoing recovery
Richard making friends and doing well at Lehigh University
Brayden doing well at Faith Academy.
Enol volunteering at Faith Academy
God's continued provision for our needs
Prayer Requests
Larry's complete recovery from his heart condition
Finances for Richard to continue to attend Lehigh University
Enol's sister Zeny, complete recovery from stroke, and her financial needs
Thank you again for your continued prayers and support of our ministry at Faith Academy in the Philippines.
Larry, Enol, Richard, and Brayden
Some of the 500 solar panels we installed at Faith Academy!
Faith Academy Boys basketball team finished second in the Hardeman tournament held on campus.
Brayden with the Faith Academy basketball team at the ASCS tournament.
: Worship at 10 live and on Zoom followed by Brunch at 11:30. Pray for Sarah, Mike and Lori and team to be used by God . Thank God for His love and amazing grace! And thank you all for praying for me. Shalom!
THIS WEEK: Bread day with Weis . 10-12. The Zoom Huddle and evening dinner huddle are still on spring break while I minister in Florida.
is Resurrection Day celebration with communion at 10 and on Zoom. Invite someone along.
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Good Morning Worshipping, Very Loved, Brothers and Sisters in Christ! Amen! What blessings we know as a result of the works of Jesus this Holy Week and God's Spirit making faith in Christ and His finished works irresistible to us! Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life and our faith is a free gift as the Spirit draws us to Him and our salvation and helps us transform from our old to new nature in Christ. PTL! We have so much to praise and worship God for and if we keep silent even the rocks would cry out His praise. May our lives be lived as an act of worship and and may His love, mercy and grace overflow us like Living Water always! Amen!
This week mom, Terry and I are watch season five of the Chosen. It covers from the triumphal entry that we celebrate through the last supper and Jesus' arrest. How appropriate to watch that in preparation for Resurrection 's celebrations and the self-examination of ourselves this Holy Week. Who am I that He is mindful of me? Do I understand all He endured for us and our salvation? Can I work through the confusion and chaos of life with Him and hear His teaching and understand and apply it to my life or am I clueless and scarred like the disciples. Would I still be shouting Hosana on Good or would I have abandoned Him like Judas because of my closed mind and false thinking? Would I cheer to have Him crucified? We know our sin put Him on that cross and that he freely, willingly went to that torture and death for us and all who have sinned (that's everyone). We are blessed to be drawn to faith that saves but who around you has failed to surrender to the Holy Spirit's drawing that you need to ;pray for and help to find salvation and Jesus? Who has wandered away and denied Him like Peter that needs so e restoration? What will you do about these things? Well first, be still and know that he is God and His ways are not ours and then worship and seek first His Kingdom Then ask for help, guidance and His heart and mind and passion to go make disciples of Jesus. God saved and is refining you for such a time as this to go and live and love like Jesus as you are where you are and He has someone just for you to help find the Way. Will you?
May our lives be an act of worship and praise that glorifies and points to Jesus and may our actions fulfill His commands and our commission to go make disciples. That's how we change the world ! Oh yeah and this silly no kings march is really a bunch of atheists reject the King of the Universe. They are the darkness and their Kings is Satan. Many of these have already sealed their fate and are hell bound. Let them be. Justice is coming. However they may be some confused ones under the influence of darkness and evil that are questioning and being drawn from Satan's grip. Pray for them and then ask God how He wants you to do your part to bring salvation, healing and hope to them and do it. We are God's Worshipping, Very Loved, Brothers and Sisters in Christ! And he has gathered us for such a time as this to worship and to do our parts as His Good News Delivery Company. Do it and team up to pray, cover and help each other. Then bring someone along or the following evening to dinner huddle. God has new life, renewed life in Christ and forgiveness, healing and hope on the horizon for someone you know that He is bringing to mind right now! Worship. Pray. Prepare. Unite and GO! I'm praying for you and us! Someone is waiting and being drawn to salvation right now. The harvest is ripe and we are sent to harvest and prepare the harvest too and then to help disciples those who will come! Amen! Come Jesus come! Help us to shout Your praise and to do our part in Your Kingdom plans. Amen!
Thank God I'm Forgiven! How often have you thought or said that or turned that to praise to God? What a blessing yo know we are and can always be forgiven! What a joy that we have been given the Holy Spirit to help us repent and walk in His ways. And we have been given the gifts and help to share this Good News with others! PTL! (Have you?) As we approach the Good cross and the empty tomb ahead, what comes to mind when you remember you are forgiven and the cost of that? Be still at His loving feet AND WORSHIP ! WHAT LOVE! TGIF!
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Don't forget brunch on after our Palm worship and our Easter communion service the week after! Who ya bringin? Pray for someone to invite and bring along. Pray for Sarah and Mike as they lead and preach and thank God for them! Pray for me and wisdom as we have made a little progress in Florida and have some more to go and some meetings to have yet. Thanks!
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Good Morning Children of the King of the Universe! We are His very loved, redeemed heirs and blessed with many blessings, Streams of Living Water overflow us and water this parched and weary land. We are saved and made new, refreshed to refresh. Let us dwell in His love, bathe in the Living Water and go refresh this land one soul at a time! He has great plans for you . Begin with worship and fill up your cisterns with some of His refreshing, Living water and then go water, fertilize, plant and prepare the harvest. I'm praying for you! Plow the soil with prayer and water and fertilize and even harvest with your loving actions. Amen!
A lot has been rattling around in my head this week--well all the time. God has been speaking, comforting, directing and using and growing me. He has answered many prayers and will answer countless more. I've had some great quiet times this week and he is here, there and everywhere we go. Do you see Him at work? Are you joining Him? Are you spending time with Him with an open heart and mind? I need Him always! We all do! And the beginning of our day and the coming of His will to and through us begins with abiding in worship and with listening ears and feet ready to move. Thank God He allows us in His presence and that He wants to transform and help us fulfill our purposes. Amen!
He really spoke to me and what is now and what may be next as I stilled myself in His Love and immersed myself in His Living Water. Our devotionals thread through all this . Check them out below and thank God for using them to speak and direct us. As Our Daily Bread reminds us, He is in ALL the details! PTL! Are you watching to join Him and open and ready to do so? The Upper Room is really comforting and a truth we need to embrace always. he gathers us under His wings and always protects and allows us to rest in Him and to know the joy of being loved. And the The Word for You speaks to His Living Water and our mission to go water and refresh and invite in. What's He saying to you? What will you do about it? I have already prayed for Him to lead and shepherd and use me, you and us and for His Kingdom to come and will to be done and for revival to come to this dry and weary land through us with His ever-present help. Go! Live and love like Jesus , just as you are and thank Him for using you! Amen! And shalom shalom!
ODB:
God in the Details
During the forty years that I led you through the wilderness, your clothes did not wear out, nor did the sandals on your feet. Deuteronomy 29:5
My niece, a college freshman, was busy with schoolwork and adjusting to a new residence. Because of recent security issues, her school required a vehicle pass. Since applying for this would be one more task on her long to-do list, I offered to do it. “Thanks!” she later said, surprised it had taken me only minutes in the campus office.
What she didn’t know was that the otherwise simple task had taken half a day of coordinating with the office, fixing a glitch in her application, and gathering unexpected documents. But I didn’t tell her this. “Anytime!” I said.
Love is in the details. Here, it was in taking care of details my niece was unaware of. Scripture tells us of God’s love as seen in two seemingly small details of the Israelites’ life in the wilderness: their clothes and shoes. Throughout forty years of walking, their “clothes did not wear out, nor did the sandals on [their] feet” (Deuteronomy 29:5). In fact, their feet didn’t even swell! (8:4).
God’s people had been unfaithful, but He showed “great compassion,” not abandoning them (Nehemiah 9:19). “They lacked nothing” (v. 21). God provided the “big” things, such as His presence, the counsel of His Spirit, and food and water (vv. 19-20); and the “smaller” but necessary things, such as clothes and shoes.
God shows His love in ways we may overlook or be unaware of. Such is His love, that He sees every detail of our life.
By Karen Huang
REFLECT & PRAY
What details in your life show God’s love? How do they help you trust Him?
Heavenly Father, thank You for Your enduring love.
Nehemiah 9:5-37 is a prayer of and praise to God by the Levites as the people were assembled. They listened to a reading of “the Book of the Law of the Lord their God” and then confessed their sins and worshiped “the Lord their God” (v. 3). When the Levites prayed, “For forty years you sustained [the Israelites] in the wilderness” (v. 21), we might forget that their time in the wilderness refers to God’s discipline of them. Because of Israel’s constant complaining and faithless lack of gratitude, every adult over the age of twenty had to die so the next generation could inhabit the promised land. And yet, God still cared for His wayward people. Now, as His perpetually wayward people were re-entering the promised land from their exile, He still showed His love for them by faithfully caring for their every need. , God still shows His care for us in the details of our lives.
Tim Gustafson
UR: Under His Wings
[God] will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart. - Psalm 91:4 (NIV)
About a month ago, one of my chickens went missing. I looked for her, but she was nowhere to be found. I was sad about it because she was friendly and a good egg-layer.
Two weeks later as I was leaving for work, there she was — sitting on the front porch. Reaching down to pet her, I gave her a little scolding for scaring me. Just then, a little yellow head popped up out of her feathers. The tiny creature tilted its head and peeped at me. Then another head popped out. Then another. There were five chicks all tucked up warm and safe under the generous cover of the hen’s feathers. I gathered them up and took them to a safe spot and fed them. Over the next few days, I loved watching the attentive and patient mother hen tend to her tiny chicks. When it was time to rest, she would sit down and open her wings for the chicks to rest under.
Every time I watched the hen invite her babies to shelter in her feathers, I was reminded of Psalm 91. We can find peace and rest in the refuge that God offers us. Sometimes we forget that no matter what fear or weariness weighs us down, God is waiting for us to accept the invitation to come and find refuge and peace under his wings.
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Please consider supporting our ministry. Your donation or paid subscription helps ensure that readers around the world continue to receive spiritual encouragement every day.
's Prayer
Dear Lord, fill us with your peace. Shelter us in your presence and protect us. Amen.
Good Morning Team! Go team go! I made it to Florida without a glitch and am getting settled in for a week with mom and Terry. I'm here to help get some work done on the house and to help get things organized. Pray for God to use me and sustain me in this heat for the next week. Pray for wisdom and direction and for God to shepherd us. Thanks! Terry has a to do list and so do I. What's on your to do list for ? Ask God to populate your list with His will according to His plans for you and your abilities. Pray for teammates too. We are better together and one in Christ! Amen! Ask for wisdom to know your limitations and for an open mind to invite in some help as needed. We all have limitations and God made us that way so we can team up and accomplish much more. It works that way at home, on the job and at church. Pray for the bread team and for God to use them to bless many and then to be blessed back too. Ask for help to steward well all His blessings, even your limitations. He will provide and guide in answer to that. Ask for a willingness to seek help and to be help too. God has a plan just for you, for some teammates and for our Body unified. PTL! Seek first His Kingdom and righteousness and He will provide all you need to accomplish His plans and the things that really matter.
OK, time to get weeding before hte heat starts baking the driveway! I'll probably be blogging at least a few days while here. But knoiw this, I am praying for you all daily and for His Kingdom to come, will to be done and for a powerful prayed up and ready team united and focused on His mission! Amen! Shalom shalom until next time! Go, unite, serve and overcome together! Well that's the first thing scratched from my to do list! Many blessings to you all!
ODB
One in Jesus
There is neither Jew nor Gentile . . . for you are all one in Christ Jesus. Galatians 3:28
Watching sporting competitions and meeting athletes was a dream come true for me when I attended a Summer and Winter Olympics as a young reporter. I was enthralled by hearing people from all over the world speaking in different languages and celebrating their various countries.
I’d been fascinated with the Olympics since I was a teen, but it had become an obsession. After I said yes to following God while at the Summer Games, I felt God was asking me to lay down my idol of sports. But I still had a love for the nations. I still enjoy watching the Olympics, but my heart is truly stirred when people of different backgrounds and from different nations come together during a church service or gathering to pray and to worship the King of kings. What a sweet taste of heaven on earth (Revelation 7:9)!
When we remember who we are in Christ, we remember that we belong to God’s family and His family is international.
The apostle Paul declared to the believers in Galatia, “So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith” (Galatians 3:26). “There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (v. 28).
No matter where we’re from or where we live, let’s rejoice that as believers we’re one in Christ with our brothers and sisters around the world.
By Nancy Gavilanes
REFLECT & PRAY
How can you show love to people of different backgrounds? How can you pray for the nations?
Heavenly Father, thank You for making me one in Christ with other believers.
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT
In Galatians 3:28, Paul isn’t abolishing all ethnic, economic, social, or gender distinctions in the church. Rather, in speaking of our salvation, the apostle says that God treats everyone—Jew, gentile, male, female, slave, and free—on the same basis. All have sinned (Romans 3:23) and all need a Savior (Acts 3:19; 17:30). Both Jews and gentiles need to believe in Jesus (Romans 3:22-24; 10:9-12) because everyone is saved in the same way: by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8-9). God gives everyone who believes in Christ a privileged status: “In Christ Jesus [we] are all children of God through faith” (Galatians 3:26). Whether male or female, rich or poor, Jews or gentiles, we’re part of the “great multitude . . . from every nation, tribe, people and language” (Revelation 7:9) who will stand before God’s throne in heaven worshiping and proclaiming, “Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb” (v. 10).
Good Morning Friends! Couldn't resist a quick share ! Check out our devotionals below and the thread through them to what we are doing and what God is leading us to be and do. He is love and so are we! I'm ordering stuff for our night study on community and a study of the Acts 2 Church community. God has made us for community and relationships and we are committed to grow a loving community that welcomes, loves and grow together. God is the master gardener that draws, plows, plants sows and waters, fertilizes and harvest. He does that through us and prunes us too to help our fruit grow and flourish. Our fruit is budding and growing and much good fruit is coming! Amen! And we are doing what we can with what He's blessed us with. We need each other and He has gathered, is growing and also sending us to flourish and bring in the harvest as we continue to team up and do our parts, It's so cool when God affirms and speaks to our hearts and reminds us we are on the right track and great things are budding. PTL! What's God saying to you and what's your part. Talk to Him and your teammates and make His plans and prepare for the harvest ahead! he is blessing us and will use those blessings to bless others and bring in more blessings! I'm so excited I just had to share this to encourage you to keep at it and keep seeking His Kingdom. OK...checking out again. Shalom shalom! Keep seeking, digging, uniting and doing what you can with what He's blessed you and us with. Great fruit is coming! Amen!
When my husband, Alan, and I decided to move across the country to Philadelphia to further his education, I didn’t have a job lined up, and we had no idea how we would afford student housing. On a , shortly before we were to leave, a church acquaintance introduced us to a former student of the university Alan was to attend who knew of an affordable apartment. Then, before we left, a workmate gave me the name of a contact at a Christian ministry. God answered our prayers and gave us opportunities—including an apartment and a job—through His people. Friends and family helped us move and ushered us on with prayer.
The author of Ecclesiastes wrote about the benefits of not going through life alone: “Two are better than one” (4:9). Two get more work done, can help each other through struggles, offer companionship, and ward against danger (vv. 9-11). He went on to say, “A cord of three strands is not quickly broken” (v. 12). A community has even greater benefits. More resources, more support.
Alan and I benefited from the community we left behind. And God helped us build a new community to help us feel at home in the big city. If you feel alone, ask God to help you find a friend, a good church, or a place to serve in a community.
By Alyson Kieda
REFLECT & PRAY
What communities are you a part of? How do you help each other?
Dear God, thank You for surrounding me with friends and family. Please help me to invite others into Your community.
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT
In Ecclesiastes, Solomon—“the Teacher, son of David, king in Jerusalem” (1:1)—examines life as he’s lived it. He discusses human life—achievements, hard work, pleasures, and the pursuit of knowledge—to show that without God our human endeavors won’t give us a meaningful life. In chapter 4, Solomon extols the value of community. A person driven by his selfish, competitive spirit to outdo his neighbors (v. 4) is one who lives a lonely, miserable, and meaningless existence (vv. 7-8). In contrast, Solomon writes of another person, who works in collaboration with others instead of in competition. He commends the advantages of companionship in times of inadequacy and adversity. Cooperation is better because it’s mutually beneficial. As believers in Jesus, we belong to the body of Christ, the church, so that we don’t have to face life’s challenges alone. We can reach out and help each other succeed (see vv. 9-10).
K.T. Sim
UR: Gardening with God
Walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want. - Galatians 5:16-17 (NIV)
This year I have a community garden plot where I can grow vegetables. A few months after planting the seedlings and seeds, I am still enjoying the garden. But I had forgotten just how persistent and stubborn weeds are.
Week after week, it feels like I am pulling the same weeds from the same spots! It is amazing to me how quickly the weeds grow and how fast they can get out of hand if I miss a week of weeding. While the vegetables I have planted are steadily getting stronger and healthier, I am struck by the sheer determination of the weeds to grow despite repeatedly being ripped out.
How often do our lives parallel this scenario? God’s Spirit grows the fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control in us (see Gal. 5:22-23). But there are weeds in our lives too: envy, cruel responses, anger, unforgiveness, or self-defeat. These things can be difficult to remove, but we must deal with them at the root. The good news is that we aren’t tackling the weeds alone. We have a faithful, compassionate Gardener who works in us and with us, helping us uproot the weeds and nurturing the fruit in us.
's devotional is available to you for free because of the generosity of our donors.
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Please consider supporting our ministry. Your donation or paid subscription helps ensure that readers around the world continue to receive spiritual encouragement every day.
's Prayer
Gracious God, thank you for the work of transformation you are doing in us. Amen.
Come and worship at 10 live and on Zoom. Enter His courts with ; His gates with praise for this is the DAY THE LORD HAS MADE AND WE GET to worship in it! Ask that we would worship in Spirit and Truth and be doers of His Word. He sure spoke to me as I prepared to teach on 2 Peter 2 and 3. Prepare your hearts to worship and apply His teachings.
This week: NO Zoom Huddle and NO evening dinner huddle. 10-12 Bread Ministry (with Weis products). 9-12 Clothing Closet.
Good Morning Light of Christ Worshipers--People of Integrity! May that be so Lord! Amen! Jesus is the Light of the World and He has called us to be the Light and to go light up the darkness with His love and help. Amen! Are people drawn to Christ because of your faith, love, hope, help and integrity? Maybe there's somethin g there you may need to work on this year? Talk to God and your teammates about that? What's that you say, you have no teammates? Well why not? God has called us to unified serving and lighting up. We need teammates with permission to speak truth into our lives and help us to choose integrity and with living and loving more like Jesus in an infectious way. Who are you leading to Christ and His love? Many are watching and waiting for us to trip up and point out our failings. Now, thank God we are forgiven. We all fail sometimes. But are others seeing you repent and get back at it. Are they seeing you choose Jesus and His ways over yours? Are they feeling love and help and experiencing our pushing on in faith with integrity as we practice what we preach. God is with you and will help. He is drawing many and He has a team to grow and go with just for you. be still and know. team up and go live and love more like Jesus as you grow in faith and service in His name. Begin with worship and surrender . Pray and abide and listen. Then apply what He reveals and team up to go change your neighborhood. We will change the world and help to bring revival one soul at a time. Who does God have for you? What will you do about it? Worship, pray, receive and go live and love like Jesus and watch how He blesses and uses you and grows you towards your fullest potential in Christ. The harvest is plentiful. Pray to be His harvest worker doing your part and worship! Amen You are very loved! You matter! And God has a special role for you and plans for your team to grow in faith, stand firm in Christy and on His Word and go make disciples that make disciples. PTL and Amen! I've already prayed for you to be the Light and people of integrity that do your part and grow in faith as you offer yourself as an act of worship. Shine baby!
Check out our devos below. What's God saying to you, affirming, correcting and wanting to use. Go! Light it up as His sold out child. Amen!
When schools around the globe sent their students home for health and safety during the coronavirus pandemic, their buildings and stadiums stood empty. While acknowledging many were experiencing greater afflictions from the virus, teachers sought ways to show their students they missed them and to encourage them to press on through a difficult time. Many schools initiated what they called the “Be the Light” challenge, in which they burned the empty stadium’s lights each night.
During His earthly life, Jesus issued His own kind of “be the light” challenge, saying that we who follow Him are to “let [our] light shine before others” (Matthew 5:16). His charge had a loftier goal than encouragement or moral support; instead, our willingness to reveal the light He’s put in us shows the watching world who God is. The way we live our lives, in both word and deed, reveals the hope Jesus gives us, making it visible to all those around us, like a lamp on a stand.
Jesus calls us “the light of the world” and challenges us to illuminate the paths of others with His light radiating through us when they’re walking a dark road. For those who don’t yet know the hope Jesus offers, sharing His light through the way we live can point them toward God as the source of all hope.
By Kirsten Holmberg
REFLECT & PRAY
In whom do you see the light of Jesus? How can you cast His light into the lives of others?
Dear Jesus, thank You for giving me hope. Use me, please, to show Your light in this world through the way I live.
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT
In Matthew 4:16, Jesus quotes from the Old Testament (Isaiah 9:2) to point to Himself as the fulfillment of prophecy: “The people living in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned.” He’s “the true light that gives light to everyone” (John 1:9; see 8:12; 9:5). Now that He’s no longer in the world, those who believe in Him “are the light of the world” (Matthew 5:14). As “children of the light” (1 Thessalonians 5:5), we’re called to shine our light into a dark world that desperately needs hope. We do this through the Holy Spirit, who guides and empowers us to “walk by the Spirit” (Galatians 5:16) instead of in the wicked ways of the world. He grows in us the fruit of the Spirit (vv. 22-23) that draws others to God, the source of our hope.
Alyson Kieda
UR: Refraining from Judgment
Eliphaz said to Job, “Now trouble comes to you, and you are discouraged; it strikes you, and you are dismayed.” - Job 4:5 (NIV)
After a series of failed jobs and a financial crisis, I was filled with anxiety. For over 10 years, I had prayed for a stable job. Every job I started seemed to be from the Lord, yet I ended up either losing or giving each one up because I was unable to cope with the pressure.
I could not understand God’s plan and started expressing my pain openly. But as a believer actively involved in ministry, I was met with sharp criticism. Some people interpreted my situation as God’s judgment and felt that my anxiety undermined my witness to others. However, some were compassionate and offered prayer, moral support, and financial aid.
During this difficult season, the book of Job brought me great comfort, affirming my faith in God in the midst of the difficulties I was experiencing. Unlike Job’s friends who offered lofty insights and judgmental advice, God was pleased with Job — despite his bitter complaints (see Job 42:7-15). This experience taught me a fundamental lesson about empathy and strengthened my resolve to trust in God’s provision. Only God can make an accurate assessment of one’s faith. Our duty is to love and show compassion to those in pain.
's devotional is available to you for free because of the generosity of our donors.
Thanks to donor support, anyone can read 's meditation without logging in for up to 7 days.
Please consider supporting our ministry. Your donation or paid subscription helps ensure that readers around the world continue to receive spiritual encouragement every day.
's Prayer
Dear God, help us refrain from making quick judgments. Instead, help us to be more empathetic and loving toward those in pain. Amen.
Yes Thank God I'm Forgiven! Hallelujah! What a blessing Your love, grace, mercy and forgiveness are to me Lord! Thank You for saving a wretch like me! Thank You for allowing me to come as I am and then transforming me into Your image and growing me in Your righteousness! Please continue Your good work in me! Come! Purify! Prepare and send me! Amen!
Good Morning Saved, Forgiven, Peaceful, Fruitful, Followers of Jesus and His Good Ways! Amen! Life can be hard, stressful and often causes anxiety. BUT GOD! We have an alternative. We get to choose peace as we cast all anxiety and junk in us to God and do our best to let it all in His more than capable hands. PTL! Peace is a fruit of the Spirit. That means the Holy Spirit will help us develop that fruit along with several others. But we need to choose it and receive it and get to work at growing in it. God promises us peace beyond understanding when we need it. The question is will we be still and receive it or stay anxious and dwelling on all the negatives? We get to choose joy that comes from our trusting God and releasing all to His care knowing that he knows, cares and is able to work all things together for good. Amen! DO IT! He is our strength and shield and help in times of trouble! PTL! Maybe start by envisioning balling up all that anxiety, stress and junk and wrong thinking and toss it like a ball to God. And this is not a game of catch. It's one of keep away. He takes it and hides it and delivers you to peace and joy. Try it! It's like my dog Maggie. She does not play fetch, She plays "Mine!" and takes what every you are playing with and hides it. That's how it can work as we choose to cast all anxiety to God and choose joy trusting that he's got this. Amen! How cool is our God! I've have and am walking with some people through really hard stuff--depression, anxiety, terminal conditions and I've experienced two choices: 1. Let go and trust God or 2. keep bound up and anxious. Sometimes things begin with 2 and then move to 1 as we realize the futility and mental stress of holding onto the junk and trying to control things only God can, I've seen people move to a place where they can choose joy and know peace and amazing grace. Sometimes we have to submit and stop wrestling with God and circumstances to really know shalom. And remember, sometimes we need pruning to produce more and better fruit and pruning hurts! Trust God! Receive all he has and keep counting your blessings and worshiping. He loves you!
If you are going through any of this, be still and give your junk to God and reach out to your teammates to help you keep focused on and trusting God. Maybe God is sending you to be His helper, comforter and peace bringer? Allow it! We all need God and each other. and we can really trust that He has our best interests at heart. Pray for His Kingdom to come and will to be done. We are better together! Pray for God's love, peace and joy to overflow you and all of us. May we be bringers of these good gifts from God through His Spirit's help. Good fruit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness and often we need the fruit of self-control and patience with ourselves or circumstances to know these and peace beyond understanding. How is God speaking to you ? What's He want of you? Choose love, peace and joy and prepare your minds for the action of giving it all to God and trusting as you practice self-control with patience. God is with you and your friends are wanting to help. Let them and be one of those friends that are present in love and bring peace and joy. I'm praying for you and us. God has a plan! Trust and follow Him and know His peace! Amen! Check out and meditate through the blogs and devos below prayerfully with a willing heart and open mind. Shalom shalom=perfect peace to you all!
Connection Blogs:
- Peace, a Fruit of the Spirit
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness. (Galatians 5:22)
The fact that peace is a fruit of the Spirit is simply biblical truth. It can become for us a matter-of-fact, intellectual truth that doesn’t impact us until we see it up close and personal.
The week I was working on this devotional, I received a blog from a former teacher and friend, Dr. Eleanor Daniel regarding the work of peace in her life. I share it here. Two days after she wrote this blog, she went home to Jesus.
“’s post has particularly personal meeting. It’s my 77th birthday, celebrated with great joy with my four siblings and other family and friends. But even more significantly, when we began drafting this post a couple of weeks ago, we could talk about PEACE as a fruit of the spirit in academic terms. I have found that peace is a very personal matter right now. Life is undergoing a big change. I have been on dialysis for over three years and had anticipated being on it for some time more. That is not to be. In the progression of things it is important to stop dialysis. My final dialysis treatment was this past . And I have been told I can anticipate a couple of weeks to live. When I returned from the hospital three days ago, I shared the fact that I am no longer on dialysis with one of my close friends in the nursing home. She said to me, “You look different. You look well! You’re at peace, aren’t you.” I AM AT PEACE—the peace that passes understanding. And now, “The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious unto you. The Lord turn his face toward you and give you PEACE” (Numbers 6:24-26, emphasis added). —Dr. Eleanor Daniel
When peace as a fruit of the Spirit has been cultivated and is allowed to grow in our lives, it allows us to deal with absolutely anything that comes our way. Cultivating peace means standing against that which is not peace. When anxiety rears its head, we reject it rather than embrace it. The worries that often come our way are rejected. When we are plagued by “what if?” thoughts, we turn from that, recognizing it as unprofitable thinking. Most of all, we continually come before Jesus in prayer, asking him to grant us his peace.
The fruit of the Spirit that is peace is not about the absence of violence or merely a passive acceptance of things as they are. This peace is never about changing our outward circumstances to make life easy for us. It is always about walking close to the Prince of Peace and allowing him to deal with everything we are facing. In his presence, we dwell in peace. It becomes a permanent way of life…even at its end.
Like virtually everything in the Kingdom of God, peace must be sought and asked for. Would you make the pursuit of the peace of Christ a part of your everyday prayer time?
Thank you, Lord, for giving me your Spirit and allowing the fruit of your Spirit’s presence to be growing and active in my life. I know, Lord, that each of those qualities or characteristics must be cared for and desired. I especially take the peace you have given me through your Spirit and ask you to cause that to grow to the point where your peace overcomes everything that might attempt to steal that peace.
Praise our God, who is unfailing in love and great in compassion (Psalm 51:1-2).
Give thanks for the forgiveness of all your past, present, and future sins through Jesus’ death 2,000 years ago!
Confess that your sin has been against God himself (51:3-5).
Commit to the full integrity of having God’s truth and wisdom in the inner recesses of your heart (51:6).
Ask God for full cleansing, purity, joy, and gladness (51:7-9).
Pray for the integrity and understanding of your church’s leaders. Ask God to give them effectiveness in equipping you to lead people to God’s forgiveness and righteousness (51:13-14).
Prayer Points taken from Patterns for Prayer by Alvin VanderGriend. This book is available at prayerleader.com. Use the code CONPSP3 at checkout to receive an additional 10% discount.
Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord. - Psalm 27:14 (NIV)
When my normally prolific irises didn’t bloom, I consulted a friend who is an accomplished gardener. She advised me to move them to an area with more sunlight. I did so, but alas, only one of the dozen plants flowered the following spring. I learned that many plants don’t bloom the year after they are transplanted. It takes them a while to adjust to their new surroundings. The next year they produced 52 flowers! It was worth the wait.
Transitions can be hard for people too. After earning a degree in education, I got a job teaching history at a junior high school. The first year was unbelievably challenging, and I was tempted to quit. But with no other job options, I went back for a second year. As I grew accustomed to my surroundings, I began to flourish and became an effective teacher.
Three years later, I took a job with a prison ministry. It included a considerable amount of teaching, and I might have felt unqualified had I not persevered in my earlier job. Now I can see that God graciously walked with me during that first year of teaching — a difficult time that nonetheless prepared me for what was to come. Since then I have faced other transitions with more confidence, knowing God can use all those changes to produce fruit in me.
's Prayer
Gracious Father, thank you for transforming us when we are transplanted so that we can bloom even more abundantly. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Our Daily Bread
Sitting with the Suffering
No one said a word to [Job], because they saw how great his suffering was. Job 2:13
“Daddy, my head hurts.” “Daddy, I’m so cold.” “Daddy, can you rub my feet?”
A high fever, chills, and body aches recently descended cruelly upon my teenage daughter. She wanted me to make it better. But mostly she just wanted me near. Eventually we took her to urgent care. “Virus,” we were told. Nothing to do but ride it out.
I with my sick girl for hours that day. Rubbing her feet. Getting her medicine. Desperately wanting her to feel better. Occasionally, my selfish side complained, This is hard. Indeed, it is hard to sit with people’s suffering, to witness their hurt up close.
Job’s friends saw his suffering up close too. These three guys are often—fairly!—criticized for their later poor treatment of Job. But it’s easy to forget that, initially, they simply with him: “They on the ground with him for seven days and seven nights. No one said a word to him, because they saw how great his suffering was” (Job 2:13).
Jobs’ friends remind us that when someone we love is hurting, it’s our presence—our being there, whether we speak or not—that often matters most. Their example reminds us that even though we may not always know what to say, simply sitting with someone in their suffering may be the greatest gift we can give.
By Adam Holz
REFLECT & PRAY
Who do you know who’s struggling? How might you be present for them?
Heavenly Father, thank You for sending Jesus to save our suffering world. Please help me to see those whom You might have me encourage amid their struggles and pain.
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT
Job’s friends were doing very well in their mission of comfort until they started talking. For seven days, they were a silent presence with their suffering friend (Job 2:13). Silence tends to make us uncomfortable, so we may try to fill that void with words. But in times of great suffering (like Job’s), words alone are often inadequate to express the comfort or help that the hurting person truly needs. We can credit Job’s friends for their sacrificial seven days of silent presence, but they caused hurt when they began to offer answers that didn’t ease Job’s hurt, pain, or loss. We can ask God to give us wisdom to know when to speak and when to offer the comfort of a silent presence with those who are hurting.
: Worship at 10 live and on Zoom. Study of 2 Peter 2-3. Prepare your hearts and minds to worship in Spirit and Truth
Note: I begin vacation after worship for the week. I most likely will be unplugged and unreachable most of the week. If you need anything reach out to Sarah. I am then on family leave and heading to Florida until Easter to be with mom and Terry (prayers appreciated!) I will be online most days and probably blogging some of the time.
Zoom Huddle and evening dinner huddle will be on spring break until after Easter.
Good Morning Listening, Waiting-on-the Lord, Preparing Visionaries! Amen! That's you right? That is a good description of your leadership team as we still ourselves in prayer, listen, receive, pray informed, plan and prepare to move with God and follow the dreams and visions He has given us to spur each other on and build His Church. Amen! Help us to seek first Your Kingdom Lord and follow You according to the gifts You've given and plans You have to prosper us and grow Your Church. Amen! We can always work at doing these things better and we need each other and to hear the things God has laid on your hearts and then to work together to make His will come alive in and through and around us. God really does have great plans that include all of us as we are, doing our parts. Then He will grow our faith and actions according to His perfect plans for each of us and as His Body. Thanks Lord! Come! Teach. prepare, grow and use us for Your glory! Your Kingdom come and will be done! Bring revival! Send us in Your perfect time! Amen!
Do you ever get rammey or schusslig? Do ever think you got to jump in and act--NOW! I can be like that and have presumed on God and His timing and ran ahead. We think our urgencies are His. And they may be but maybe as urgent as we deem. (Like Jesus waiting until Lazarus died to go there) He has a perfect plan and time for everything and He's all-knowing. We are not! Check out Our Daily Bread and how cool they use a passage we will study from 2 Peter. God is not, deaf, uncaring or slow! Amen! Sometimes we think we know what God should do or that His promises don't apply to us. They do and if Jesus said it, it's a fact and will happen. His Word is living, active and will achieve what He sent it to do! PTL! Check out the Word for Your . Have you asked Him to open His Word to you or to bring alive a promise or top direct your steps to His plans? He will when approached with faith and willingness and expectation. He will answer in His timing! Count on it! God has a vision for you and for us, His gathered and sent Body. Do you know it and your part? I pray all the time for God top bring dreams, visions and ideas to our Leadership and through all of you. Are you hearing anything you need to apply to yourself or share with us? God does have perfect and exciting plans to work all things together for good and His glory. Amen! And He invites all of us to do our parts and work together to spur each other on as we build His Church and make disciples of Jesus. Our church vision is to live sacrificially and love lavishly like Jesus as we make disciples like He did. The EC vision is to become a dynamic movement of people who have a burning passion for God and missionary zeal to reach the lost. We are moving towards these, by the grace of God, through the help of the Holy Spirit and by our unity and cooperation. We are one and we love well. Let us commit to keep at it and to working together well for His glory. he's waiting for all who will come to come. Our part is to help that along. Then when complete, He'll be back for us! Amen!
I'm looking at some Bible video studies to use nights. One is on Heaven. Heaven is real and will be awesome. It's our destination and hope for when our faith will become sight. Are you ready! Are you preparing? Are you helping others to know Christ and the assurance of heaven with Him? Are you praying for us to do our parts so all who will come, will come and learn to walk in Jesus' ways? Let us keep working at that as we grow in faith and serve and love together! Amen! I believe God has a perfect plan for you and us and I keep seeking and planning and preparing and inviting along. Join me. Let us be His vessel of love, joy and transformation! Amen! God's not being slow. he's waiting on us and all who will come because we live and love like Jesus and do our parts. Let's roll!
ODB:
God’s Timing
With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. 2 Peter 3:8
Until 1967, units of time were scientifically measured by astronomical patterns: the spin of the earth and its revolution around the . But over the centuries, a problem emerged. The earth is actually slowing down in its orbit. Scientists discovered that the unit of the second is longer than it used to be. Gradual though this is, since the days of Christ, the world has “lost” a full three hours of measured time.
Of course, God created the ways we measure time: the astronomy of orbits and revolutions. Scientists’ calculations may be squishier than we’d thought, but we can stand firmly in Peter’s words: “With the Lord a day is like a thousand years” (2 Peter 3:8). He is arguing against doubters who complained that Jesus hadn’t returned yet: “The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness” (v. 9). God works in His own time for His own purposes.
There’s more! God’s “timing” is born out of His love: “He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish” (v. 9). Jesus will return, and God wants everyone to have the opportunity to come to Him. This is an expression of His love. Meanwhile, we’re to “make every effort to be found spotless” (v. 14).
Time, God, and love are linked together: In these last days God’s love is never squishy. It’s the one sure thing.
By Kenneth Petersen
REFLECT & PRAY
How does thinking of God and time affect your own life? How might you live differently in light of this?
Dear God, it’s mind-boggling when we try to figure out the concept of time, but please help me embrace that my times are in Your hands.
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT
The apostle Peter, like other New Testament writers, was a student of the Old Testament. The book of 1 Peter contains several Old Testament quotes (see 1 Peter 1:24-25 [Isaiah 40:6-8]; 1 Peter 2:6-8 [Isaiah 28:16; Psalm 118:22; Isaiah 8:14]; 1 Peter 3:10-12 [Psalm 34:12-16]; 1 Peter 4:18 [Proverbs 11:31]). And even though his second letter doesn’t quote from specific Old Testament passages, 2 Peter 3:8 is a clear allusion to Psalm 90:4: “A thousand years in your sight are like a day that has just gone by, or like a watch in the night.” This psalm contains numerous references to time, contrasting God’s eternal nature with man’s transience. Because God loves us, we can rest securely, knowing that our times are in His hands and His timing is perfect.
Arthur Jackson
TWFYT
UR: A Powerful Vision
Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he. - Proverbs 29:18 (KJV)
In our small rural community, two churches were struggling with declining attendance and aging congregations. Rather than succumb to despair, the leaders of the churches united and crafted a shared vision to uplift Christ in our community.
Our church leaders understood the power of a shared vision. Over the next five years, through diligent prayer, meticulous planning, and unwavering perseverance, we worked to bring their vision to fruition. The journey was riddled with challenges and demanded sacrifices from both congregations. However, our faith and commitment to a unified vision propelled us forward.
, our merged church is thriving. Our new, shared building serves as a place of worship and as a hub for outreach ministries. We host sports programs, support groups, weddings, and wakes, fostering a tighter bond within our community during times of both joy and sorrow.
Throughout this transformative journey, we’ve witnessed Proverbs 29:18 in action. By adhering to our vision and following God’s guidance, we’ve built a church that is flourishing as a beacon of hope and support for our community.
's Prayer
Dear Lord, help us to seek your guidance and remain united in purpose so that we may thrive and serve our communities well. Amen.
CORRECTION!!!! There is NO Clothing Closet this week! It's next week, the . Sorry, got ahead of myself! (One of the hazards for me as I'm already working on stuff for after Easter)
***Don't forget the opportunities ahead to invite someone to church with you. Palm is also Brunch day at 11:30. And Easter celebration of the Resurrection includes communion at 10. Bread this coming . includes Weis products. (Note The Zoom Huddle and evening dinner huddle are on Spring Break until after Easter)
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Good Morning Loving Community/Fellowship of Believers/Christ's Body! That's us!! PTL! We are one as God is One. We love because He loves and is Love. We are learning to live sacrificially and love lavishly like Jesus and unified in love and service like the early church. PTL!
Connection Blogs
- Empower Us to Love One Another
By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another. (John 13:35)
A quick scroll through social media will tell you that, of all the things we Christians portray, loving one another is not at the top of the list. It is often not on any list of our attributes at all! This is heartbreaking to Jesus and devastating to our lives. Jesus knew that only through our unity would his relationship with the Father and the Holy Spirit be truly exhibited. He knew that without unity, we would be weak, fearful and overwhelmed by loneliness. The enemy of our souls also knows that if he can divide us, he can conquer our most powerful evangelistic plans and cause us to fail to live out our most sincere prayers. Loving one another as Christ loved the church, sacrificially, generously and humbly, can never be done on our own. Our fearful and self-centered natures must be overcome and empowered by the strength of the Holy Spirit living in us. When he moves through us, not only can mountains be moved, but stony hearts can be softened and molded to be full of his transforming love. Let’s ask the Holy Spirit to make us living, breathing, and loving agents of change in our communities so many may know and live in his love.
Jesus, Lover of our souls, we are eternally grateful for the way you have loved us! You have given, served and healed our souls. You have called us your very own and have loved us unconditionally in spite of our many failures. We repent of every way we have been ruled by our own selfishness. Forgive us for making our agenda, our opinions and our preferences more important than your call to love one another. Cleanse us of the apathy and self-protectiveness that hinder our love for one another. Give us your heart and allow us to see our brothers and sisters through your eyes of compassion and understanding. Make us one as you and the Father are one. We ask you to make the love we have for one another an irresistible invitation to the world to come into your loving and welcoming family. We cannot do this on our own. We humble ourselves in your presence and ask you to fill us with your Holy Spirit so we may love as you love. Overwhelm us with your compassion and use our lives to share your heart with a hurting world who needs the acceptance and healing that only come through you. We love you, Jesus, and want to love your children. Thank you that you long to answer this prayer and that you are remaking us to be your agents of love.
Give thanks that His grace is sufficient for you in every situation.
Confess any do-it-yourself efforts in which you have rejected God’s grace and tried to go it alone.
Commit yourself to being a channel of that grace to others.
Ask that God will meet your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus (Phil. 4:19) and that His grace will be poured out abundantly.
Lift up the names of the leaders of your nation, state/province, and community, asking that the Lord’s strength and wisdom come to full maturity in each one as they learn to rely on Him.
Prayer Points taken from Patterns for Prayer by Alvin VanderGriend. This book is available at prayerleader.com. Use the code CONPSP3 at checkout to receive an additional 10% discount.
Don't know why that sent before I was done? we had an awesome gathering and fellowship and study and conversation about being God unified, loving community. We discussed the one anothers of the Bible and how we are made for community and how we are gifted and all have a part to play in those communities. We discussed how we are not like most churches. We are really loving and unified and how we need to work to maintain that. People are seeing our love and community and feeling at home and are connecting to us and God through our loving fellowship and service as His Body. We are love! Thank you! What a blessing! Keep working at it and let us commit to nip in the bud and dissension, gossip and division and stay unified in Christ and His love and then go live and love like Him and be welcoming of all who will come. Amen!
Read, pray through and meditate on the Connection Blogs . What's God saying to you. How might He have for you to respond to his nudges? Also check out The Word for You and consider how this applies to you or to someone around you and reach out in love and receive love and help. God loves you. he calls you by name saying, You are Mine" and He has great plans for you to worship Him and love and to go live like Him! Amen! Try it ! I'm praying for you!
: Donut Day at the Bread Ministry 10-12...come join the fun and be used by God and blessed too!
Pizza and Ice Cream party at the dinner huddle and study wrap up 6-8...all welcome! Bring a friend!
. Clothing Closet 9-12
worship 10 am, finish 2 Peter
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Good Morning Students and Practitioners of the Living Word! Amen! I'd say it would be hard to call yourself a sold out follower of Jesus if you rarely open God's Word. We meet God in the Bible. We learn about Him and His ways. We come to understand His expectations and how obey and honor Him. We pray in power when we use Scripture and remind God of His promises. We still ourselves and the Holy Spirit teaches us and highlights God's Word to us and helps us apply it so we can become doers of it. Amen! A love for God and His Word mark a true follower. Is that you? Be still. Open your Bible and pray and meditate with open ears and hearts and willing to follow feet. Then go share the Good News and His Word as the Holy Spirit helps you apply it to your circumstances or for a friend's . His Word is Living and Active and accomplishes what God sends it out to do through us. Amen!
Two devos below speak about our Bibles and our use. The Bible is God-breathed as He inspired and wrote through the prophets and apostles. His Word is useful for teaching, rebuking and training in righteousness. His Word pronounced and prayed does not come back without achieving what God wants it to. Open, meditate and pray through your Bible and then follow the instructions as we become doers and not just hearers. Where to start? Well I usually start with the Scripture highlighted in our devos. I also read and meditate on what God highlights and also what I am preaching on. This week we will study 2 Peter 2 and 3. Maybe start there in preparation for . Some people play "Bible Bingo" asking God to lead them what to study and then randomly opening their Bibles and start reading. The important thing is to use your Bibles daily/often. You can't be a doer of the Word if you aren't reading it. You can't use it against Satan and his tricks if you don't know it or have it memorized. Open and dwell in His Living Word and then follow the Holy Spirit's lead as you emerge from it and follow Jesus and His ways. Amen! There is great power in His Word! Use it! Amen!
Upper Room: Diving Deeper
When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them? - Psalm 8:3-4 (NIV)
One morning I went for my usual swim in a clear pool in the ocean. As I was snorkeling, I suddenly found myself among a large school of tiny fish. Soon I noticed they were forming a circle around me. What a joyous experience, being in the center of a perfect circle of hundreds or maybe thousands of little fish! I wanted to share this joy with someone else and surfaced to see if anyone else noticed this amazing sight, but everyone was just having fun floating, enjoying a wonderful morning in the sea.
I couldn’t help thinking that — just as my goggles enable me to see below the surface and experience the beauty of God’s creation — a relationship with Christ allows me to experience the overwhelming joy of life lived at a deeper spiritual level. Many people seem happy swimming on the surface of life, not realizing that they are missing out on the very best life has to offer: a personal relationship with our Creator. When I put on the goggles of faith and dive into the ocean of God’s word, the Holy Spirit reveals a whole new world to me, and I experience the joy of realizing who I am in Christ!
Loving God, give us a desire to seek you. Bring us ever closer to you as we study your word and do your will. Amen.
Good Morning Friends of God and Me! Amen! What love we know and get to share! What blessings and help we receive and share. We are on our way to being more like Jesus and doing the things He would do...and just as we are! Just think about that for awhile. We are sinners saved by grace because of God's great love and mercy. He allows us to join Him on His rescue mission and we get to go love, help others and point them to Jesus. We get to help make disciples that make disciples. That is our mission from Jesus. And we are well on our way to becoming a dynamic movement of God doing what we can with what and who we've been given! PTL! We are praying in the harvest as we prepare the soil of hearts in prayer and service and love. We are fertilizing, watering and even sowing in love. And God is grow a harvest and raising up harvest workers in us and harvest workers to come from the harvest. It's a blessed thing to watch and be a part of. Come join donut day or dinner huddle prayed up and ready to fellowship, serve and love like Jesus. Then watch what God will do and is doing and lift many praises. may our lives and service be an act of worship that overflows from our time praying and preparing. Amen
Check out Harvest Kim's blog below and meditate and pray through it and for the harvest. Then ask God what you can get to do to do your part. He has a plan just for you that will be your act of worship and obedience. Amen! Revival and the harvest are awaiting our prayers and acts of worship. Let us spur each other on, cover each other in prayer, prepare the soil of hearts with prayer and prayerfully go live and love and do our part to make disciples of Jesus and to teach them to walk in His ways. Amen! Don't forget we leave our active prayers behind when God calls us home. You may not see the fruit of your prayers and loving service , but Gid will continue to use them! Amen!
Kim's Blog
ARE YOUR PRAYERS THE KEY TO THE SALVATION OF OTHERS?
“No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day” (John 6:44).
This verse became very personal for me one winter, shortly after I had given my life to Jesus. Clara, an older woman in my church, revealed that she had been praying for me daily for more than two years. She did not really know me, but she knew that I needed to give my heart to Christ. The significance of that moment did not hit me until I came face to face with John 6:44. Had God been drawing me while I was too busy to hear or pay attention? I could truthfully say that I had never known any other person who was interceding on my behalf. It made me ask, “What if she had not been praying for me?”
I believe that Clara’s prayers allowed my heart to be open to the voice of the Holy Spirit. Because she cried out to God for my soul, I now have everlasting life. God was patiently wooing me, but in my ignorance and pride, I already believed I was going to heaven because I was a “good person.” Clara prayed that I would bow my knee before the King of kings. As she did battle on my behalf, I began to soften my will before God, responding to His call to make His Son my Lord and Savior.
As you interact with the people in your own family, your friends, coworkers, fellow students, business associates, customers, or even the strangers you pass every day, have you ever considered whether or not anyone is praying for them? What if your prayers could make the difference in someone’s eternity? Would this give new significance and urgency to your prayers? Begin to look at your relationships differently. Ask God to draw people to Himself so that they will be able to respond to His plans and purposes for their lives. Can you imagine some new possibilities for prayer in the moments of your every day, ordinary life that will make an extraordinary impact upon each person you come into contact with? Begin to pray for the Father to draw the people you love, interact with or just pass by each day to Himself. We may never know until heaven how many lives have been opened to receive Christ because of our prayers.
Dinner Huddle--Pizza and Ice Cream party and last Jesus Shaped Life Study. (Spring Break after this until April)
*Note: Pastor Don will be on vacation -22. (Probably no blogs this week?) He will then be on family leave in Florida with his mom and Terry until at least (Probably some blogs during his stay)
Worship at 10 Live and on Zoom. We will finish up our study of 2 Peter. (read 2 Peter 2 and 3 in preparation)
Clothing Closet 9-12 (We now have a door person! Thanks Ramon! If anyone else would like to help with the doors let Amber or Sarah know)
Good Morning Faithful Followers of Jesus AND His Ways! Remind yourself of that! Worship God for creating you, calling you to faith in Jesus, saving you, gifting you, growing your faith and using you for such a time as this. We talked about how Peter (2Peter 1) knew his time was short and was thinking about the legacy he would leave behind as he wrote to his church. (and us) He was a humbled servant of God and in his letter he was pouring into his teammates last minute instructions, just like Jesus did before His death and resurrection and before the ascension. We discussed doing what we can with what we have and have been given. We are unique with unique purposes in God's Kingdom and He knows us and His plans for us and our gifts and circumstances. All He expects is for us to do our part and do what we can with what we've been given. That's being the best stewards of all His blessings! He created us for such a time as this with purposes unique to us and gifts to be used to spur each other on and top build His Church. Contemplate that with God as you still yourself, listen, seek and receive His directions just for you and maybe even some insights for how to continue to grow in faith AND GROW HIS CHURCH. We are also good at beating ourselves up por under-selling what God will do in and through us. STOP! You are God's masterpiece. he knows and loves and is with you always working all things together for good and He will give you all you need to accomplish His plans for you. PTL! So, Proverbs 3:5-6 comes to mind --Don't lean on your own understanding...acknowledge and trust God in all you do and He will lead you to His perfect plans. Yoke yourself to Jesus and He will help you plow at His pace as you pray and serve, And allow the Holy Spirit to inform your thinking and prayers and activate your gifts for His purposes and your good. Amen! That's a lot to contemplate and disgust . Be still for a bit, open your Bibles and devotionals (below) as you seek first His Kingdom and righteousness and you will have all you need to go and produce great and lasting fruit for God--just as you are! And remember the growing faith part we discussed . You are always welcome and will be used as you are by God. However, He also wants to grow you and helps and cheers you on in growing faith. Will you let Him? We are all on a faith journey that leads us to grow towards our fuller potential in Christ and to become more like Him and God has gathered us to help each other in that journey and to go produce new disciples in His name. Who are your teammates? Who is God bringing to mind that He might have for you to disciple or share the Good News. Ask Him and follow well. He's given you all you need, faithful followers! Amen!
Our Daily Bread
True Satisfaction in God
Abraham breathed his last and died at a good old age, an old man and full of years. Genesis 25:8
Thirty years ago, I participated in an activity at an unemployment workshop that I still remember . My fellow laid-off coworkers and I were asked to write our retirement speeches. Huh? We were looking for work and far from retirement age. But the facilitator revealed the purpose of the activity by saying, “Your speech will probably have little to do with your work.” She explained to us that a job really isn’t the center of our lives. And while we may be grieving the loss of a job, our lives mean much more than being employed.
The details about the end of Abraham’s life remind me of this lesson. He died at a “ripe old age” and had lived a “long and satisfying life” (Genesis 25:8 nlt). Throughout Scripture, we read about Abraham’s faithfulness in following God’s instructions, but we don’t read much about his work. The faith the patriarch displayed (15:6) reminds me of the Teacher’s conclusion in Ecclesiastes: “To the person who pleases him, God gives wisdom, knowledge and happiness” (2:26). The Teacher said this after considering the meaning of life and how one can find enjoyment in the midst of work or toil (vv. 24-25).
Even during times of loss and anxiety brought by unemployment, it’s helpful to reflect on Abraham’s example and the Teacher’s words—pointing us to true satisfaction found only in God.
By Katara Patton
REFLECT & PRAY
What do you believe you’ll be known for? How does focusing on your legacy help you live ?
Dear God, please remind me to live faithfully as I walk with You—experiencing satisfaction in Your presence.
Abraham’s faith journey began when he was seventy-five years old: “Abram went, as the Lord had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he set out from Harran” (Genesis 12:4). He took his last breath one hundred years later: “Abraham lived for 175 years, and he died at a ripe old age, having lived a long and satisfying life. He breathed his last and joined his ancestors in death” (25:7-8 nlt). What a beautiful end-of-life scene! Yet, while Abraham’s dying “at a ripe old age” or “full of years” (niv) was an accomplishment, he’s most known for being “fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised” (Romans 4:21). One doesn’t have to be full of years to be full of faith. , as we experience times of loss and hardship, our true quality of life and satisfaction comes from faith in the living God, who has revealed Himself in Jesus.
Arthur Jackson
Upper Room: Path's of Faith
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. - Proverbs 3:5-6 (NIV)
As a young cadet at West Point, I struggled with land navigation — using a map and compass to move from one position to another. To make the drills even more challenging, they placed us in heavily wooded areas at nighttime. I couldn’t see where to step or what was around me, and often I ended up bewildered in the brush. To find the right direction, I had to rely on the faint glow of the needle in my glow-in-the-dark compass.
Recently I read Proverbs 3:5-6 and meditated on how often I can’t see the paths to take in life. I used to become frustrated when a path didn’t lead me where I wanted to go. And I was envious of others when I saw that their paths led them toward what I wanted to achieve. However, as my faith continues to evolve, I trust and obey God’s often subtle direction. I wholeheartedly believe that the steps I take with God are leading me precisely where I need to go, and I will enjoy the journey.
Dear God, thank you for your steadfast guidance as we journey through life. May we trust and obey you with confidence that your light will show us the way. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
Did you turn your clocks ahead? Have you sprung ahead? Well we may not have that spring in our steps just yet, but worship starts soon--10 AM live and on Zoom. May we have a spring in our step as we enter into His presence in worship and praise . Then take a nap after church!
Good Morning Peace-filled Servants! Amen! Peace like a River is a song I sing over my dogs before leaving the house. They are nervous Nellie's. Shalom shalom--perfect peace is available to us--a peace beyond understanding. PTL! Check out and meditate upon and pray through the Connection blog and our devos below. What's God saying to you? we will study 2 Peter 1. Prepare your hearts for worship and enter His presence with and an open mind to hear Him speak. Then prepare to be a doer of His Word. I'm praying for you and us and for God top speak through me . Shalom shalom! The Lord is our Shepherd! Still waters and green pastures of rest and peace are all around. Follow Him! He loves you and will care for you! Amen
Connection Blog:
- Be Found at Peace
So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him. (2 Peter 3:14)
I’m convinced that one of the distinguishing marks of the End-Times Church will be peace. In Peter’s second epistle he speaks of those who scoff at biblical prophecy regarding the Lord’s return. Then Peter moves into a harrowing description of what will happen: “But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything done in it will be laid bare” (2 Peter 3:10).
These are all things that should bring great fear to those who read and believe. Yet followers of Jesus should be those who actually “look forward to the day of God” and live in peace even in the midst of chaos and confusion. It is a peace that Jesus provides for us that is not based on circumstances around us or even feelings within us. It is a peace that comes from his presence in our lives. It is a peace that allows us to walk through even extremely difficult circumstances because he is with us.
I remember my dad telling me how the troop ship he was in during World War 2, while on its way to England in a convoy, was attacked by German U-boats. Obviously there was not a thing that soldiers on a troop ship could do to defend against submarine attack. So Dad and some of his friends did the only thing they knew to do . . . they prayed. Down in the bunk rooms of the ship, they gathered on the bunks to pray and ask God’s protection. Dad said that was the only sense of peace they felt on the whole trip. Not a ship was lost and they made it safely to England.
Your fears may not be about the end-times, and likely do not deal with submarine attacks, but we all face fear and anxiety of some sort. It may be relationships in your family, it might be financial problems, or even generalized anxiety over life itself. I want you to know that Jesus is willing and ready to walk with you through your shadows and bring you to his light in peace. It doesn’t always mean that your circumstances change, but it does mean you face them from a whole different perspective. It’s the peaceful presence of Christ that makes all the difference.
Lord, I am so grateful for your presence that brings peace. It is so easy for me to fall back into my own fears, insecurities and anxieties, while all along you were there, waiting for me to turn to you. Forgive me for forgetting your readiness and love. I turn to you now for the peace that I desperately need in my walk through this world.
Reflect on Jn. 8:44. Pray against the influence of Satan—”the father of lies”—as he attempts to subvert the spread of the gospel throughout the earth. Ask that his lies will be exposed in every arena of life.
Praise the Rock—the one whose works are perfect and whose ways are just (Deut. 32:4).
Thank him for being the God of truth. Confess any times that you have believed the lies of Satan and acted accordingly.
Commit yourself to speaking only the truth in every situation (Eph. 4:25).
Ask God to help you be a truthful person in whom he would delight (Ps. 12:2).
Prayer Points taken from Patterns for Prayer by Alvin VanderGriend. This book is available at prayerleader.com. Use the code CONPSP3 at checkout to receive an additional 10% discount.
The Lord is my shepherd. I lack nothing. - Psalm 23:1 (CEB)
My late grandmother endured a difficult life. She married a man who never truly learned how to love. Yet she devoted her life to supporting her family and lived solely for their needs. There were many times when she was abandoned by her husband and needed someone by her side, but no one was there — not even her children.
Still she persevered in faith. In times of hardship she prayed to God, and in times of blessing she gave thanks for the daily bread God provided. She never gave up on her faith, and in the end, her perseverance bore fruit: her husband changed, and one of her children became a pastor. , her descendants number over 30, and we all know God.
When she finally lay at rest in her coffin, a white cloth inscribed with the words The Lord Was My Salvation was draped over her. She triumphed over every hardship, faithfully walking the path to salvation, and at last she was able to see God.
My grandmother’s faith has inspired my own. May all the people around the world persevere in faith to the end and, like my grandmother, meet God at the finish line.
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's Prayer
Faithful God, give us the strength and ability to endure and overcome our challenges as we walk the path of faith. Amen.
ODB:
God’s Loving Deeds
Let the redeemed of the Lord tell their story. Psalm 107:2
They sit side by side on Ball Street in my city—the Grand Ideas Garden and the county jail. My friend Joann loved both places. She loved to sit in the garden, thinking about the goodness of God and her love for Him because of what He’d done in her life. She also loved to share with the women in the jail and tell her story of God redeeming her life after many bad choices and wandering far from Him. Often, she would tell me of her passion: her dream that all the women there would someday understand and experience the love of God for them personally.
The psalmist told his fellow Israelites to “tell their story” of how God redeemed them from their enemies (Psalm 107:2). They had “wandered in desert wastelands,” “they were hungry and thirsty, and their lives ebbed away” (vv. 4-5). At times they rebelled against God, and He disciplined them (vv. 10-12). Yet every time “they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, . . . he delivered them from their distress” (v. 6). They had much to give God thanks for and to talk about with others. As the Israelites learned, and we can learn also, He has a love that will never let us go.
We too can take opportunities to “ponder the loving deeds of the Lord” toward us (v. 43), give thanks to Him, and tell our own story of His rescue.
By Anne Cetas
REFLECT & PRAY
What has God done for you to transform your life? Who can you share your story with?
You are so good, and what You’ve done for me is worth telling others about, dear God. Please give me the words and open my mouth to speak about You.
The book of Psalms is divided into five books or subsections. Psalm 107 is in Book 5 and celebrates Israel’s salvation history. Much of it is a reminder of the ways that God had delivered Israel time and again in her history. Some have speculated that this psalm may have been written after the Babylonian captivity upon Israel’s return to the land of promise they’d received so many years before. As such, it’s fitting to say, “Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for mankind, for he satisfies the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things” (vv. 8-9). But gratitude isn’t reserved for Israel alone, for God has done loving deeds for all people. , as we reflect on His loving deeds to us, we can share our story with others.
Good Morning Bringers of Peace and Joy! Amen! Check out the Connection Blog below about being a peace-living, shalom-bringing, peace-filled follower of the Prince of Peace! That is one of my constant prayers for me and us. The Upper Room is Titled Give Me Strength. Our strength comes from God and His power in us helps us to choose joy and peace and to bring it--incarnate it to others. Amen! And Our Daily Bread reminds us to be the best stewards of all God's blessings--mind, heart, body, wisdom, finances, relationships, time, and even joy and many other blessings. We even steward His Light and Love as we light up and salt all around us! Amen! Focus on these things and receive from God His directions for you and as Her reveals your co-laborers to travel with through this journey to peace, joy and love.
I just wanted to update things. Karen and I just completed a very refreshing and fun week of rest and vacation. PTL! Please pray for Karen as she transitions back to her very hectic and stressful job after a ten days of fun and refreshing. Pray for our dog Maggie as she has an enlarged heart and her days are numbered. Pray she stays healthy until I return before Easter. I am heading out at 4am to head to Fla. on family leave to spend time with mom and Terry and to help get things prepared and to be a blessing. Pray for me and them. Pray for favor with the TSA checkpoints and for connections. Pray for safety. Pray for wisdom and discernment. Pray for God to lead and guide us and for God to heal Terry and mom. Thanks. I hope to be back for Easter but expect a few more trips back to help. (I have 3 weeks of vacation to use before . Guess this is why God had me save them!) Thank God for Sarah and Mike as they preach and lead and for Adam as he helps with Easter. I expect to have some blogs this week as this will be a working vacation. I'm praying for you all and praising God for all our servants and all He is doing in, through and around us! May we be the best stewards of all His blessings as we bless Him, each other and others. It's so cool to watch God at work in and through you and our gathered Body sent to live and love like Jesus! Shalom shalom!
Connection blog:
- Let Your Peace Come
If the home is deserving, let your peace rest on it; if it is not, let your peace return to you. (Matthew 10:13)
Jesus had peace within him. He could not only speak of peace, but could offer it to others. And in a wonderful transference, he gave that ability to his followers. When the peace of Christ becomes a living reality within us, we not only speak of it, but we offer it to others. In practical ways that means we pray God’s peace for others, we model living in peace in front of others, and we offer the good news of the Prince of Peace to those who do not know him. When we do this, we become distributors of the peace of God!
One very practical and historical way of doing this, and of regularly reminding ourselves that we can indeed give peace, is the “passing of peace” during a worship service. I did not grow up in a church tradition where this was practiced, but I find it to be a helpful way of speaking peace into others’ lives and receiving peace from others.
The following excerpt gives some insight into this ancient and modern practice:
“Christian worship is filled with profound actions: heads bowed in prayer, arms raised in praise, standing in reverence during a Scripture reading, coming forward to give an offering. One ancient and significant gesture in worship is the passing of the peace. Passing the peace is a tradition rooted in Scripture that embodies our identity as peacemakers (Matt. 5:9; 2 Cor. 5:20) and trains ours hearts, hands, and tongues in the ways of peace.
From the beginning Christians have exercised this practice. Peace be with you’ is a greeting Jesus himself used with his disciples (Luke 24:36; John 20:19, 26). The apostle Paul opened each of his letters with the words “Grace and peace be with you” (Rom. 1:7; 1 Cor. 1:3; 2 Cor. 1:2).
in many congregations, we may pass the peace during a mutual greeting, after words of assurance, prior to celebrating the Lord’s Supper, or at the conclusion of a worship service. At these times we leave the comfort of our seat, turn to our neighbors, grasp their hands, and speak the words, ‘The peace of the Lord be with you’ and receive the words in turn, ‘And also with you.’
The gesture is simple, but the meaning is profound. When we extend our hand to another, we identify with Jesus, who extended his life to the point of death to make peace with humanity (Col. 1:20-21).
What’s more, in the midst of divisions, we symbolize our unity through handshakes and hugs (Eph. 2:14-21). Likewise, when we regularly pass the peace, we practice God’s call to make every effort to maintain the bond of peace (Eph. 4:3).”
—from ReformedWorship.org, Issue 99,
Whether you choose to “pass the peace” in worship gatherings or not, we all need to accept our role as those who are emissaries of the Prince of Peace. We live out his peace in our lives. We look for ways to give his peace to others. We learn to shout with the angels outside of Bethlehem long ago, “on earth peace, good will toward men” (Luke 2:14).
Choose to whom you will give the peace of Christ. Ask the Lord to open the door for you to do so.
Lord, thank you for giving me your peace. You literally spoke it into being in my life and I am so grateful. Help me to carry your peace with me wherever I go. Forgive me when I have failed and instead brought division and dissension. Show me how I can give your peace to those around me .
Come quickly to help me, my Lord and my Savior. - Psalm 38:22 (NIV)
Sometimes I look at the day ahead of me and ask myself, Where will I get the energy that I need? As I ponder my situation, I think of King David. He often found himself in circumstances where he felt he did not have the strength to carry on. And he turned to God for help, like in ’s quoted scripture. His cry not only expressed his feelings of despair but also his confidence that God would help; he had experienced God’s help many times before.
Isaiah 40:31 reminds us that “those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary.” God knows how we feel. God is with us every day, even though our days may be difficult. Like the air currents that enable eagles to soar, God gives us the strength and inspiration to keep going and not grow weary.
God gives me the wisdom to focus my energy on things that matter and to avoid spending time on meaningless or unhelpful activities, such as endlessly scrolling through social media posts. Not only does God give me the strength to do what I have to do, God helps me to be a better person — to treat others with respect and to have compassion on those who are struggling.
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Please consider supporting our ministry. Your donation or paid subscription helps ensure that readers around the world continue to receive spiritual encouragement every day.
's Prayer
Dear Lord, thank you for hearing us when we cry out to you and for giving us strength and the help we need to make a difference in the world. Amen.
ODB:
Faithful Stewards
It is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful. 1 Corinthians 4:2
In , a US aerospace corporation failed a safety audit conducted by the Federal Aviation Administration. The audit came on the heels of multiple safety incidents, including a flight that had experienced a dangerous drop in cabin pressure when a door-plug panel on the jet had torn away. A spokesman for the company acknowledged that the failures were due to instructions for employees being difficult to understand and altered too often, resulting in them not faithfully adhering to approved procedures.
Paul told the church at Corinth that they should view him and other leaders as faithful and approved “servants of Christ” and declared that he’d been “entrusted” with being a steward for God (1 Corinthians 4:1-2). Stewards in Paul’s day were entrusted with overseeing the management and distribution of household resources. Above everything else, a fundamental requirement for those given these responsibilities was faithfulness. Paul labeled himself as a steward who “[worked] hard with [his] own hands” to live out his responsibilities (v. 12)—carefully using what God had given him, especially the wisdom He’d been given and the mysteries of the gospel (vv. 1-2).
As Jesus provides, let’s strive to be faithful stewards, adhering to His approved and flawless standard in our spiritual practices, work duties, and personal relationships.
By Marvin Williams
REFLECT & PRAY
How can we be faithful to the trust God has given us? What does it mean for you to be a steward for Him?
Heavenly Father, please help me be a faithful steward for You.
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT
Paul wrote 1 Corinthians to address specific problems that had arisen in the Corinthian church: criticism of his ministry (chs. 1-4); sexual immorality (ch. 5); lawsuits (ch. 6); marriage, divorce, and singleness (ch. 7); food offered to idols (chs. 8-10); women in ministry and the Lord’s Supper (ch. 11); use of spiritual gifts (chs. 12-14); resurrection (ch. 15); and offerings (ch. 16).
In chapter 4, he deals with the root cause of these problems. The Corinthians’ arrogance, self-importance, and self-sufficiency (vv. 6-13) had caused division in the church. The apostle deliberately and confidently uses himself as an example of how to be a faithful servant of Christ (vv. 1-2) and to live a Christlike life of simplicity, transparency, integrity, and humility. , we can ask God to help us be faithful stewards of what God has given us.
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