This Week:
Wednesday:
10-12 Bread Ministry
Noon-1: Pizza Lunch with Pastor Don (Food, fellowship, conversation and prayer) All welcome.
6 PM: Rita's refreshing hangout outreach. All welcome. Wear your St. Matts shirts!
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Good Morning Persevering Travelers! We are traveling with Jesus through our time here on earth as His representatives and that takes persevering faith. Amen and help us Lord! Yesterday we were reminded of Jesus' command and commission to love as He has loved us and to go make disciples and of our call to Spirit-led relationships as we follow Jesus and His examples. It's a call to agape as Jesus agapes us. That's sacrificial, lavish, radical love. And our call to submit to each other which involves dying to self and perseverance as we keep working at living and loving more like Jesus and doing the things He created, gifted and is empowering us to do. We discussed how we may struggle with that at times as our circumstances overwhelm us or may lead us to feel useless, unqualified, or off on some rabbit trail. It's a call to repentance and changing the way we think as we renew our thinking and turn back to Jesus and His plans for us. It sure is a journey that is often much like a roller coaster ride than a smooth train ride. It's a reminder that we need to keep seeking and following Jesus with an open heart and mind led by the Holy Spirit. That involves traveling with others and through relationships in Spirit-led, God-honoring ways. Help us Lord! You alone are the Way, the Truth, and the Life that we seek, need, and want to follow well. Help! Amen!
If you were present yesterday at worship, you experienced the falling of the Holy Spirit on your weeping pastor as we worshiped through the closing praise song, "The Jesus Way" (click here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ARSGgC9iQb0) Be still and begin your time with worship as you submit yourself to God and His ways. We are seeking Jesus and to earnestly walk in His ways. The Holy Spirit fell upon and convicted your pastor yesterday that there is no way to do that without Jesus and the Holy Spirit and opened my mind to my failure often as I choose my way, my agenda and of my lack of ability to do anything of value without God. It was a reminder how much I want to and yet fail and how great God's love is for me and how that love seeks to refine and mold me and lead me to His Way. I was also sensing this weeping of some of you in your souls and spirits for God's help as you deal with and are wanting to travel with God through some dark valleys and your inability at present to invite Him in, submit to Him and allow him to work. I was sensing Jesus saying, "Be still child and know My Love. I know you. I love you. I am calling you by name and will redeem this. Come!" He was speaking that to my weak heart to me but also to some of you. Be still. Invite Him in. Ask for His help to submit to Him and His ways. He wants to help you, is waiting with open arms that will embrace you with His love and peace beyond understanding. He really does have great plans for you for a future and hope. Will you invite Him in to whatever you are facing today. Begin with praising in the storm and stilling yourself. His new and improved things await.
When Karen came down to my office for our morning kiss, she found me almost two hours into my quiet time and only about halfway through my devotional time. She found me very deep into God's presence and I told her how much He was speaking to me and tried to explain, like I do with you, what He was saying and I was experiencing. Sometimes it's just hard to fully articulate all He is saying or elaborate on what I am sensing until I spend more time in His presence listening. It is always helpful to have someone to process with, especially with us out loud thinkers. Maybe another hour passed and I went up to grab a banana and found Karen in the midst of her quiet time. She asked what I was hearing. I said, "Submit. Die to self." I am hearing that as our take away from yesterday. I asked her what she was hearing and praying and she said, "self control." The word came that it takes self control to submit and surrender and die to self and self control is a fruit of the Spirit that is available for us to put on, step into more fully and learn to exercise and live out. And just like the Spirit-led relationships we discussed, we need the Spirit, who is very willing, to help us in our earnest quest to Christlikeness and his best for us. Come Holy Spirit! Have Your way with me. Cleanse me. Help me to submit, die to self and want to and work on following Jesus and His best ways with self control and earnest focus. I need you! I cannot do this without you! HELP! COME! Thank You! Your will, Your way, for Your glory alone! Father, I surrender all. Help me to and forgive and help me through my unbelief and unwillingness to surrender and submit as I die to self, take up my cross today and follow you. COME! Amen!
I've already started what could be a book today on all God revealed and spoke to my heart. His presence is so real. His desires for me and for us are coming more into focus. He really does have great plans and life abundant for each of us to discover and step more fully into. And He desires deeply to help some of you through some hard stuff. How can I help you? How can you help a friend? How can we pray for each other, encourage each other, hold each other accountable? Help us Lord!
God keeps leading me into this almost indescribable deepness or richness as I earnestly seek Him and ask for His help to sink my roots deep, deep into His living waters and put on Jesus' easy yoke for me. What a blessing and yet how hard it is to put into words. I know He is leading me and us to some amazing fruit and abundant life in Christ. I'm just not sure how, what, when, with whom yet. So I continue to seek. I really need to sit down with a few to discuss and discern and pray before moving forward. Help me Lord to take every thought, word, type, choice and action captive before You. Lead me to my team and those You are sending to disciple too. I need You, others and clarity and accountability. Help!
I'm letting you use whatever devotionals and Bible readings God is leading you to today. He is speaking and it is love He is speaking and singing over you. Listen! Below are some songs to prepare your hearts for a move of the Holy Spirit that will help to renew your thinking and change your heart as the Holy Spirt is invited in to speak to your heart and inform your prayers. Come Lord!
Make Room: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QxubPpU-iIA
Don't forget Jesus is calling you by name and He has said that you are His friend. He is at work redeeming and wanting to help you. Be still and receive His love...
Friend in Jesus: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CwWOWgmdcxY
You are made for more! Jesus is waiting for you to sit at His feet and allow His love to wash over you, transform you and lead you to His perfect plans for you--His greater things--abundant life in Christ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fOhOVl-ZKb4
We are made for so much more than we can imagine. God is with us always and wanting to help us be ready and able to move to His very good plans. We do have a future and hope but it may require us to persevere through some very dark hard times, not alone but with Jesus on our way there. Don't give up on Him. He hasn't given up on you! Amen! Humble yourself before Him. Be still and really know that He is the God who loves you and is with you. He is our Rock! PTL! Stand firm and ask for help to persevere. Look for and reach out to some friends to pray and help. Jesus is looking into your hurting heart right now and saying, "Come to Me all who are weary and find rest for your souls." He is gentle and loving and waiting to put His arm around you, hold you up and walk with you to what's next. Die to self, surrender, submit, invite in and be still and know that He is Your God who is gentle and who is Love and discover the future and hope He has just for you. I am praying for you and me! I am here and so is Sarah and I'm sure some of your friends when you are ready to talk. Come Jesus Come! We need you! You are the Way, the Truth and the Life. I come to You! Help! Bring Your plan for me to life! Thank You! Amen
Plan for Me: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ELwaho1WWI
Come Jesus Come: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UViC6DllCeA
Jesus loves you! believe and receive it today! Come Jesus Come! Abide in His love! Know His peace! Amen
Harvest:
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August 19 - Do You Hear Him?
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Every place in this world God created is proclaiming God, but most do not recognize it as such. And most do not—upon hearing His voice—give Him the glory He deserves. Men call the world around them “nature.” The Bible calls it “God’s Voice.”
Seven times in Psalm 29, David speaks of the "voice of the Lord" speaking through the mighty things he sees and hears happening around him. David heard God's voice in the thunder, lightning, earthquake, and storms.
He heard God's voice in the temple where everything around him was shouting, "Glory!" He heard and saw God as he realized his King was sovereign over everything. Creation showed him that "the Lord sits as King forever."
And He saw God as the One who was "giving strength to His people" and blessing His people with the gift of peace. He recognized the Source behind what He was experiencing personally and what His people were experiencing.
The proper response is seen in the opening lines of this Psalm:
Ascribe to the Lord, O sons of the mighty, ascribe to the Lord glory and strength. Ascribe to the Lord the glory due to His name; worship the Lord in holy array. (Psalm 29:1-2)
To "ascribe" means to recognize who is the rightful Creator and Author of these things. We are to so understand the voice of God in nature that we realize He is the cause behind it all.
And there is but one response: "Worship the Lord in the majesty of holiness." We are to let His voice draw us to bent knees, lifted hands, raised voices, surrendered lives in true worship. And if we are hearing Him all day, we will be worshiping Him every hour!
Glorious Creator God, You alone are King forever! I bow my heart and my life before Your glory and strength! Turn my attention towards Your beautiful face continually, all day long! Help me to step away from anything that threatens to take my thoughts off of You and show me how to worship the majesty of Your holiness in spirit and in truth!
---Adapted from Prayer with No Intermission by Bill Elliff. This book is available at prayershop.org.
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