Can't wait to see you all ! I am well on the way to full recovery! PTL! And thank you all for your prayers!
***Next week will still be an easing back week with some homebound visits but NO or huddles. Thanks for understanding! I should soon be up to full song and back at it!
Good Morning Filled wit Love Overflowing Servants! That could be one description of our Body! We love and we love well because God first loved us, fills us with love overflowing AND WANTS to love through us! Amen! Check out the flow through our Daily Bread and Upper Room devos below. Every season we are in is know by God and allowed for His purposes. He has plans for our whole life to go and love like Him. And he wants us just as we are and will use us as we are and grow us to what can be in Christ. PTL! How might God want to love through you ? Who will you partner with to do so?
I'm doing a wedding and as id often the case 1 Corinthians 13 will be shared. That's the love chapter of our Bibles. Love is patient. Love is kind...Look it up and meditate on it. Put your name in wherever it says love because Love lives in you and so wants to love through you. We are love and sent to love. Loved deeply and called to agape love deeply. We are the church that overflows love. May it continue to be one of hallmarks as God's servants. Amen! God knows our ability and how they fit into His plans. let us keep watching and joining Him in Love as we go and as we are! That's part of His easy yoke! Put it on and walk around and share the love. I'm praying for you!
ODB
Serving God Each Season
I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. 1 Corinthians 3:6
After years of discipling Caleb by himself, Mark was dismayed to find out that a church leader had assigned another mentor to the young man. The leader remarked, “Finally, Caleb has a mentor.”
What did they think I was doing all these years? Mark wondered. Though he hadn’t expected any reward or recognition, he couldn’t help feeling hurt.
Years later, however, Caleb told Mark that he’d entered Caleb’s life just when he most needed spiritual guidance. On hearing these encouraging words, Mark came to this realization: God gives believers in Jesus specific gifts to serve Him differently—without comparing with others—and He oversees the timing.
In 1 Corinthians 12:4-31, Paul stresses the value of members of the body of Christ, the church, having different gifts, roles, and assignments. And in chapter 3, he reminds us of the one who's the ultimate source of the results: “I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow” (v. 6).
Each of us may be given a unique season and opportunity to do God’s work. Unlike people, God doesn’t compare our work, for He loves us as individuals. May we keep our eyes and hearts focused on doing our best in the season that God has given us—relying completely on His strength and empowerment—and not worry about what others achieve in their own way and time.
By Leslie Koh
REFLECT & PRAY
What opportunities has God given you to use the gifts He’s provided for you? How can you best use these in this time and season?
Gift-giving God, please help me to focus on the work You’ve given me to do.
In 1 Corinthians 3, Paul offers a way of seeing ministry that avoids two dangers: overemphasizing and aligning with individual leaders or, on the opposite side, not recognizing the value of the service of others. Paul describes the community of believers in Jesus as a field (vv. 6-9) and a building under construction (vv. 9-14). In both metaphors, leaders are merely humble laborers called by God to specific tasks (vv. 5-8). Only He gets the credit; only God “[makes] it grow” (v. 6).
Although the focus in 1 Corinthians 3 is on specific leaders with designated authority roles in the community rather than on individual believers, the language of “each” being rewarded (v. 8) anticipates chapter 12, where Paul explains that God gifts “each one” in Christ’s body through the Spirit (v. 7). Believers are called to respond to what God is doing in and around them—using their gifts to honor Him and bless others.
Monica La Rose
UR: Giving from the Heart
Jesus said, “All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.” - Luke 21:4 (NIV)
I observed that some religious education classes at my church needed a guitarist. Without music, the children were less enthusiastic in praising the Lord. I was not gifted in music, but my heart longed to serve God. So I asked my brother who played guitar to teach me. Though I could not master the instrument, my presence as a guitarist helped the children to sing more joyfully to God; my heart was joyful as well.
What I experienced reminds me of the poor widow who found favor in God’s eyes though she offered only two small coins. Perhaps what we give is nothing in the eyes of people, but our willingness makes God glad. Then joy and peace shall fill our hearts. Our lives will be blessed as we put God above all matters.
We do not need to be perfect in order to serve God.
So whenever the Spirit moves us to share our talent or to give what we have for God’s work in the world, we can freely offer it to God. Our longing to please God is what is most important.
's Prayer
Dear God, we often doubt the value of what we have to give. Help us to realize that you pay attention to the sincerity of our hearts more than to the gifts themselves. Amen.
Hey! It's really ! It sure seems like ! Anyway is Thank God I'm Forgiven ! Worship with much praise and for all this means to you.
Good Morning Abiding, Resting, Listening and Receiving Friends of Jesus! (And friends of mine!) Jesus loves me! Sing it loud and clear for all to hear! Spread some Jesus and new Life in Christ cheer ! Amen! Reload. Refresh. Recharge. Receive. Then go live and love like Jesus! Be a sweet aroma to those who God is drawing and share with them why you are thankful for God's forgiveness and share stories of how that has changed your life. Celebrate who God is and all He has, is and will do!
Check out the thread of this through our devos below. Seek the Lord and live is ODB's message. As I read Amos 5 that it is based on, I couldn't help thinking about the USA and the charged political environment. There seems to be no middle road anymore. God says, "Seek Me and live." Start there! Turn off the noise and tune in to Him. Amos speaks of the evil afoot then that sure sounds like . Seek God and overcome the darkness! Seek God and live! Keep knocking! Keep coming to be forgiven and purified. TWFYT reminds us of the importance of trusting God enough to rest and abide in Him and allow Him to work all things together. He is able and wants to. Release His power in prayer and through your obedience! Amen! The UR reminds us God is always listening and wanting to respond and bless us as we go focused on Him and His Ways. Rejoice always, pray continually, and give thanks in all circumstances. God is trustworthy and worthy of all praise, glory and honor. Amen! And the cool part...this King calls you friend and wants to hang with you. Choose to dwell in Him and to go live and love like Him too! Amen!
A family who’d lost touch with their son and brother Tyler received an urn that was said to contain his cremation ashes. Just twenty-two years old, he’d apparently died of a drug overdose. For years, Tyler had dealt with the effects of drug addiction and poor choices. But prior to the reported overdose, he’d been sober after spending time in a transitional housing facility and completing an addiction recovery program. Then authorities made a shocking discovery—Tyler was actually alive! They’d mistaken him for another young man who’d died of an overdose. Later, after being reunited with family and reflecting on the death of the other young man, Tyler said, “That could have been me.”
The Israelites once learned of their death—though they were very much alive. In a song of mourning, the prophet Amos sang these words to God’s rebellious people: “Fallen is Virgin Israel, never to rise again” (Amos 5:2). These words must have gotten their attention—they were dead?! But the prophet also spoke these comforting words from God Himself: “Seek me and live” and “Seek good . . . . Then the Lord God Almighty will be with you” (vv. 4, 14). Though Israel was dead in their sins against God, He invited them to turn to Him and find life.
As we deal with our sin, let’s confess it and bring it to the one who loves us and forgives us. God lovingly leads us from death to life (John 5:24).
By Tom Felten
REFLECT & PRAY
How does going against God lead to death? What do you need to confess to Him?
Loving God, please help me turn from sin and find life in You.
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT
Amos was a prophet from Judah (Amos 7:12) whom God sent to warn Israel of His judgment for their sins. Amos lamented the death of the nation (5:1-3, 16-27) but offered a message of hope for those who repented and returned to God. Though punishment was certain, Amos urged the people to repent, to “hear” the words of God (v. 1), “seek the Lord and live” (v. 6), act justly (vv. 7-10), not oppress the poor (vv. 11-13), and do good and hate evil (vv. 14-15). He provides what we need to turn from sin and find true life in Christ.
K.T. Sim
TWFYT
UR: Always Listening
Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. - 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (NIV)
One evening I was sitting on the church steps with my pastor before a committee meeting. We were chatting when suddenly my pastor exclaimed, “Oh, I haven’t prayed !” This abrupt confession surprised me; I did not understand prayer that way. But my pastor’s frankness highlighted the significance of prayer and inspired me to communicate more frequently and informally with God.
Many years have passed since that experience. I have grown in my faith, and my journey continues. Now my conversations with God are frequent and serene. When I awake in the morning, I express my gratitude for a night’s rest and the new opportunities awaiting me. During my day, I give thanks for both rewarding and challenging encounters. As my day winds down, I can think of my blessings and rest peacefully. And throughout the day,
God is there awaiting our moments together.
As Christians, we are greatly blessed to worship a God who is eager to hear from and commune with us. We are encouraged to share our thoughts, admissions, supplications, desires, and praise! God awaits our prayers.
's Prayer
Thank you, ever-listening God, for being ready and eager to hear our thoughts and prayers. Amen.
Thank God I'm Forgiven! PTL! Lift many thanksgivings and praise for this and all it means to you to be in Christ in preparation to pray and follow .
Sarah Update:
Good evening everyone,
It has been a great day of ministry. Fantastic time at coffee conversation and donuts Bread Ministry was hopping and it was great to see God at work in conversation there.
I want to share a prayer request with you, we have learned that LaRue Schmidt has been placed on hospice care. She is in her home and resting and has nurses taking care of her and her family is surrounding her during this time. Pastor Don was there to visit her this evening. So we are asking for prayer for the family and for LaRue
Hope you all have a great , remember every day with Jesus is sweeter than the day before.
Good Morning Thankful and Faithful Friends of Jesus! Worship! Praise and pray expectantly. God has some great things ahead and this weekend for you and us!
Personally it has been great to ease back into ministry! I feel so good that I have to be extra careful to guard my health. So expect a few more weeks of easing back. We will not be meeting Evenings until Sept. but will probably have a Rita's night or two this summer. Watch for details. I also want to thank our team of servants who are stepping up and in and filling voids as I recover! May God abundantly bless you all for your kindnesses, encouragements, prayers and help! I love you all and am so humbled and bless by you and how you are allowing God to use you!
Check out the Connection prayer blogs below and worship and pray expectantly and with to our miracle working God! His Kingdom will come and His will done. let us prayerfully watch where He is calling us by name to join Him! And do it! Amen!
- Approaching God in Prayer
“Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen” (1 Timothy 1:17).
How can we please God as we approach Him in prayer?
Be simple. Flattery is not effective with God. Our God is the one being who knows us inside and out and insincerity will not work. If you are overwhelmed with love of God or gratitude or a response of praise, by all means extol God. God loves the praises of God’s people. But, faith is not magic, so simplicity is always a good rule.
Be familial. God is our creator, the great Parent who loves us perfectly and has bought us back at a great price. We are precious to God who is our heavenly Father. We are adopted as heirs, so, if you are a believer in Jesus, you can call God your Father, too.
Be respectful. “Lord,” “Sovereign God,” “Almighty One,” terms as these are all appropriate, and addressing God as completer of an action, or the giver of a gift, as Hagar did, has a biblical precedent. So, we can call God our Healer, our Divine Physician, the One who loves us, the One who caretakes us—the list seems endless.
Be biblical. Generational blessing of God as the One who succors the faithful, or even the One who sustains our individual family—especially when we do it by reviewing God’s great actions in Scripture—is a powerful way to honor and invoke God. If you remember the specific place where God called you to salvation, you can even identify God as the God who visited you in that place and speaks to you in all places, while ruling us all from heaven.
In all things, being simple, but sincere, familial but respectful, biblical and personal, loving and grateful are keys when addressing God.
Abba Father, how grateful I am to have been grafted into Your family, and that You desire to have a relationship with me! I will never be able to fully comprehend all that You are, but I am thankful that You love me and bring purpose into my life. It amazes me that I can share my feelings, thoughts, questions, disappointments and joys with You, and that You have sent the Holy Spirit to be my teacher. In You I live and move and have my being! Thank You, Father!
Rejoice with the prophet Isaiah, who wrote, “I delight greatly in the LORD; my soul rejoices in my God. For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of righteousness” (Isa. 61:10).
Thank God for producing such joy in your life.
Confess any lack of Christian joy.
Commit yourself to bearing the fruit of joy through the power of the Holy Spirit (Gal. 5:22).
Ask God to fill you with an inexpressible and glorious joy (1 Pet. 1:8).
Pray for your own expression of joy in the Lord. Do unbelievers recognize it in you? Do they know the source of your joy?
Ask God to make your joy genuinely contagious.
Prayer Points taken from Patterns for Prayer by Alvin VanderGriend. This book is available at prayershop.org. Use the code CONPSP3 at checkout to receive an additional 10% discount.
Good Morning Abiding Encouragers! AMEN! May that be so of me and us Lord! And always abiding 24/7 and Your vessels of love, healing, joy, and encouragement! throughout each day! Amen!
during my time of Abiding in His presence and Word, God encouraged me and spoke to my heart through His Word and some of our devos for . Did you notice the thread through the devos? (Check them out below) Abide, reload and go love and encourage! We are given spiritual gifts to spur on, encourage, and build up His church. Turn off the noise and chaos and focus on to what really matters, God's still small voice speaking love and acceptance into your heart and preparing you to pray and follow each day. He knows you, loves you and is calling you by name to come abide and to follow out the doors . PTL!
God had me thinking about the Become Me in '23 Challenge. Remember that from two years ago? Many of us chose words to work on to help to move toward becoming who we are created to be in Christ. I have a list of your names and words that I pray through many days a week. Are you seeing progress with that? Has God led you to another word to focus on? Has God led you from who you are created to be and led you to the Become More in '24 Challenge where we were working on operating from our true created identity toward applying ourselves to our created purposes. Because of our faith in Christ the door has opened and we have been activated. And as we think of the Come Alive in '25 Challenge that is all about seeking, abiding, discovering and stepping into our purposes and the purposes for our gathered Body. Meditate on that some. Pray into it. Release God's will in and through us and partner with some others to go live and love more like Jesus. Who are you in Christ? He says to come as you are but that does not mean we get to stay as we are. He has custom made plans and purposes for you and our Body that come alive because they have been activated by our faith and led by our focus on what Jesus is doing and putting on Hs easy yoke as we walk with Him to His best and our fuller potential.
We are who we are and doing what we can with what we've been given and as we do we are coming alive in '25! PTL! We all have a part p play that is custom fitted to who we are and God's plans for us. As we discover and step into those we find great joy and peace and even rest for our weary souls! Amen! That all begins and is led as we purposefully abide in the Vine daily and watch for where He wants to produce fruit from us and allowing it. Thank God for these thing! Talk to Him about it , Then find some teammates to walk with towards it and for you to encourage and pray for as well. God really does have some great plans for you and us. let's continue to follow an enjoy this life in Christ and together! Amen!
Shalom shalom (perfect peace)
Abide in the Vine some as you meditate on these devos and listen with open hearts and follow with willing feet!
They were three adrenaline-fueled teenage boys, unleashed in the immense underground system connecting to Mammoth Cave. With them was their Uncle Frank, a veteran caver familiar with these parts. He knew the drop-offs and danger spots and continually called to the three, “Guys, this way!” Still, they ventured ever farther from him.
Dimming his headlamp, Uncle Frank decided to remain silent. Soon, the boys realized they’d lost their guide. Panic-stricken, they yelled his name. No response. Finally, they saw his headlamp flicker to life in the distance. Instant relief and peace! Now they were ready to follow their guide.
This true story makes an apt parable for how we can treat the gift of the Holy Spirit. Detours lure us away from the voice that calls us to follow the one who said, “Follow me” (Matthew 16:24). That voice is the Holy Spirit, who dwells inside each child of God (Acts 2:38-39).
God’s Spirit will never abandon us, but we can ignore Him. The apostle Paul warns, “Do not quench the Spirit” (1 Thessalonians 5:19). Instead, “Rejoice always, pray continually,” and “give thanks in all circumstances” (vv. 16-18). By doing so, we stay close to our guide, “the God of peace,” who can keep us “blameless” (v. 23). It’s not our work that does it. It’s His. As Paul reminds us, “The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it” (v. 24).
By Tim Gustafson
REFLECT & PRAY
In what ways have you ignored the voice of the Holy Spirit? How might you follow Him more closely?
Father, please keep me close and attentive to You .
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT
In this series of exhortations, Paul first urges us to “rejoice always” (1 Thessalonians 5:16). How are we to rejoice when our situation is dire? Paul wasn’t naive; he faced constant difficulties with more challenges than most of us will ever experience. He knew that continual prayer was key (v. 17). This doesn’t mean that we pray literally every moment, but rather that we pray through all our circumstances, for the Spirit will never abandon us. Prayer becomes as natural as breathing. Connected closely to these vital concepts is gratitude (v. 18). When our hearts are inclined toward thankfulness, joy naturally follows. This pattern foreshadows a similar theme the apostle emphasizes in his letter to the Philippians, written several years later: “Rejoice in the Lord always. . . . In every situation, by prayer and petition, with , present your requests to God” (Philippians 4:4-6). The inevitable result is the peace of God ruling in our hearts.
Zoom Huddle cancelled . (DUH! What day is it? I'm still trying to figure that out after my extended hospital vacation. Sorry Huddle mates, I went and scheduled some homebound communion visits for --ones that are hard to change and keep. So we will resume . Thanks for understanding!)
10-12 is donut day at Bread Ministry. Come hang out! Its always a great time and God will use you to bless someone and/or to be blessed!
Good Morning Balanced and Healthy in Christ Servants! Too often we think that we are choosing that and it's always easy to see when others are failing at choosing healthy rhythms. Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you some areas in your life (and even our church life) that needs adjusting and the strength and courage to allow it! I engaged with the reminder of the triangle that represents the balanced life of Jesus--Up-In-Out. By nature and preference we tend towards one or two of these as our call and find pleasure in performing the duties under those. BUT we are called to balance and to a healthy walk with Jesus. Help us choose well Lord and work to bring the deficiencies into alignment. Thanks! May we worship well (UP), Love and serve each other well, and may we intentionally and purposefully love outsiders well and lead them to Christ and His ways. Amen!
The past few days, God has had me contemplating and seeking to move towards more balance and joy as I walk in healthy choices. Well, thinking about it! I have to choose to do something about it! I've been going a little extreme on eating decadently and living for my joy and pleasure since my discharge. And numbers don't lie! It's time to start to actually choose healthy rhythms, eating habits and walk with Christ. I can think about it all I want and know all about the benefits available but I still have to choose and actually work on them. Help me Lord! That is also something we all face as disciples of Jesus. How do we run our race healthy and balanced in mind, soul, body, spirit, health and finances??? Ask for God's heart, mind, spirit and for the desire to choose well and healthy daily and even minute by minute and the courage and boldness to actually try what He has revealed. Amen!
God has custom plans for custom made you and for our gathered fellowship. May we choose well and follow Him to the green pastures, still waters and His overwhelming love. Amen! Take some time abiding in the Vine through meditating on the devos below and the Bible verses pertaining to them. Jesus' easy yoke is awaiting our wanting to put it on and it's pretty cool that it is a custom fitted yoke for you in this season of your life. Release control to God, partner with some prayer and accountability partners and go live and love more and more like Jesus--starting right now! Worship with full abandon and devotion like Jesus (UP). Love on and serve each other with joy (IN) and then go live and love like Jesus (OUT) in a way that draws outsiders to HIM. Amen! Pray into that please!
So, what's God speaking into your heart right now and what will you do about that? Yes Lord, come and be our Vision and Sustainer...our Friend! We love you and long to be at a place we can pour ourselves out for God to lead and control. COME! Amen!
I'm praying for me and you and then us to embrace this and step into our custom easy yokes and seek and follow the Holy Spirit well and always and may we balance our parts like Jesus did. Amen! OK time to return to bed and hopefully sleep well for several more hours. Amen!
ODB:
Prayer of Desperation
Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” John 11:23
In 2011, Karey Packard and her daughter were packing boxes for a move to a new home. Suddenly, Karey collapsed, and her heart stopped. Doctors revived Karey, but her condition worsened through the night. Her husband, Craig, was told to call family to say final goodbyes. They prayed what Craig called “a prayer of desperation.”
How often have we prayed a prayer of desperation in a crisis? Mary and Martha did. They sent a desperate message to Jesus: their brother Lazarus, “the one you love,” was gravely ill (John 11:3). When Christ finally arrived, Lazarus had been dead for four days. Martha, in anguish, said to Jesus: “If you had been here, my brother would not have died” (v. 21). She knew Christ could heal sick people but could not imagine His power to overcome death. Jesus, of course, raised Lazarus, a foreshadowing of His own resurrection weeks later.
Karey had officially flatlined, yet miraculously God brought her back to life. In the stories of both Karey and Lazarus, it’s easy to miss the point: God has purposes that we don’t know. He neither heals everyone nor brings all dead people back to life. But He gives us a transcending assurance: “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die” (v. 25). As believers, whatever happens, we know we’ll be with Jesus. Maybe that makes our desperate prayers a little less desperate.
By Kenneth Petersen
REFLECT & PRAY
What desperate experiences have you had? How have you prayed through them?
Father God, please help me see the bigger picture of Your purposes.
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT
The idea of a future resurrection (see John 11:23) was an ancient Jewish belief. Job was confident that after his death he would “see God” (Job 19:26-27). The prophets proclaimed that people would rise from the dead when the Messiah came (see Isaiah 26:19; Daniel 12:2). Paul warned that “if there is no resurrection . . . , then not even Christ has been raised” and we “are still in [our] sins” (1 Corinthians 15:13, 17). Because Christ has “been raised from the dead” (v. 20), we can look beyond our desperate situation to the day when “the dead will be raised imperishable” (v. 52).
K.T. Sim
UR: Faithful and Just! (AMEN!!!)
The one the Lord doesn’t consider guilty — in whose spirit there is no dishonesty — that one is truly happy! - Psalm 32:2 (CEB)
I have played the piano for over 20 years in a variety of settings, and now I am blessed to be a church pianist and a piano teacher. Playing through a song without making any mistakes is a goal that even the most talented pianists can only hope to achieve. My years of learning and practicing have helped me to make fewer mistakes, and the ones I do make often go unnoticed by those listening. But I am aware of every wrong note I play. I have to be willing to forgive myself for them while pushing myself to try harder next time.
Similarly, God knows about the mistakes we make in our daily lives, including the sins that no one knows about. These mistakes can’t be undone, but they can always be confessed to God — who is “faithful and just to forgive” (1 Jn. 1:9). As someone who is guilty of worse things than playing the wrong notes, I feel grateful when I remember that God sees every wrong I commit but is still willing to forgive me. God always gives me another chance to do things better. This continual forgiveness is the attitude I wish to have and to inspire in others.
's Prayer
Thank you, Lord, for forgiving our sins and giving us a chance to live free from guilt. Help us to show forgiveness to others. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Good Morning Trusting in God friends and Followers of Jesus! He is our Rock, Way and enough--Jireh! Amen! What is God saying to your heart right now. How does He want you to respond? Do you have some partners? What will you do as God leads? How can we use our gifts and abilities to bless God, each other and others? Talk to God about that and process with some who are walking with God!
Below, attached find direction and emotional support through some of our devos for the day. Father, speak to our hearts, direct our steps and open our eyes to see and hearts to follow well. Thank You! Lord, be our master and leader. What thread am I sensing for this day and how well and know, I making time to be still so we receive and follow well to the time and God has prayer time together moving further? Thanks Lord for creating us and prespring us! Amen! Are you ready and willing to follow well ! we all mater and have our unique parts to play. He sees you and created you for "such a time. Since God enters our hearts with , let us worship and invite Him to inhabit our praise, to speak to our hearts and to direct our steps. Yes PTL! Come Jesus come!...Amen ...We are discovering more and seeing God come alive and so PTL with true hearts of worship and seek Him to come lead us, grow us and use us for His glory alone! Amen! I'm praying for you as I seek God for us. Relax, rejoice and choose well .
Sarah Young
I to We
Upper Room: A Note of Thanks
Jesus then took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed to those who were seated as much as they wanted. He did the same with the fish. - John 6:11 (NIV)
My young friend had written me a thank-you note for having our neighbors over for coffee. None of the adult guests wrote, but this boy with dyslexia did. Some letters were backward, and one sentence ran on with no punctuation. He signed his name and then added the names of his two younger brothers.
I read the note with tears in my eyes. I knew how much this young man struggled with his learning disability. Yet he didn’t focus on that. He focused on expressing his gratitude.
In the Bible one boy offered his five loaves and two fish to feed a multitude. Jesus took what the boy had and, after giving thanks, multiplied it to feed five thousand people. (See Jn. 6:1-14.) That boy could have held back, telling himself that what he had was not enough; that people might laugh at him; that Jesus might reject his meager offering; that his mother might scold him for giving away his lunch; that he would go hungry.
I keep that thank-you note to remind me to give what I have to God, trusting that God’s power can make it enough.
's Prayer
Dear God, help us to remember to look to you in faith and give what we have, knowing you will multiply our gifts for the good of the world. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Good Morning Worshippers! May we enter His courts with and praise! May He inhabit our praises. Amen!
Listen to Me. Delight in God's Living Word. Believe (Our mission). We are Gods instruments. We are overcomers and faithful followers of Jesus! There are the first sentences of our devos . What a message to embrace and live well as we learn to live and love more like Jesus--dying to self as an act of worship and obedience and allow God to work in and through and to use us for His glory and purposes. Amen!.
I had a great day home . But I need to sleep and rest and chill at home . I' be praying for you and praising too! What brings you a thankful heart and joyful spirit? Do those things this week as you surrender and grow in Christ, He really does have some great plans and purposes that He is already weaving together, Yes rejoice as you die to self and follow Jesus into this week! Invite Him to use you as you are and to grow you into your fuller potential. Amen! Now for a nap and some abiding in Christ.
Shalom shalom!
Sarah Young
Chuck Swindoll
Joyce Meyer
UR: God's instrument
You are the light of the world. A city on top of a hill can’t be hidden. - Matthew 5:14 (CEB)
The disturbing events in our world challenge us to reflect on our Christian calling and identity. We cannot deny the suffering and injustice around the world and in our own communities. War, gun violence, and other forms of attack are ever-present. People continue to risk their lives to escape harsh conditions in the places they call home. We cannot ignore tensions among family members and friends due to our competing priorities.
All these are reflections of our broken world. And w
ouldn’t our silence in the face of such pain be a betrayal of our calling to be God’s instruments of peace, justice, and healing? God has called us to let Christ’s light shine where darkness prevails, and that doesn’t necessarily mean that we must do something big. Our smallest acts of kindness can bring healing to a broken heart. Our honest prayers can be a source of strength for others. Our simplest acts of courage can bring justice to our communities. Let us discover the ways God is calling us to serve and intentionally strive to walk in the footsteps of Jesus.
's Prayer
Dear heavenly Father, thank you for calling us to be your servants in the world. Help us to live according to Christ’s teachings. Amen.
I'm home and healthy! PTL!!! Thanks for all your prayers! Hope to see you soon as I ease back in. And please note I will be easing back and following Jesus to work His best, as I am and as best as I can, according to His plans for me and for you. Thanks for giving me some time to reset and get more right this time!
Praise God for Sarah, the Board and teams that have covered for me! Pray they refresh too! And pray for Larry Paul who is bringing the Word tomorrow.
Good Morning Imitators of God! We strive for that and like to think we do pretty well. We want to do the things Jesus did and is doing in healthy ways like Jesus chose. Life in Christ lived well and life as residents of the Kingdom on earth lived well is always a balancing act. We have so much nose and pressure from the world to live in the flesh or up to their standards and expectations and even work requirements that take priority. And then we have our own pressures and many pressures of some "church people" pushing us to really live for Christ and forget all the other stuff that "doesn't really matter." Christ alone! OHH RAH! If we don't meet either expectation we feel guilt and shame and like a failure. We have freedom in Christ to choose and often those choices lead to angst and stress. What is the most excellent way? Choosing healthy balance. We are in this world with responsibilities and not of this world with often clashing responsibilities. HELP!!!! Jesus, while He walked the earth, chose to live in a healthy rhythm that honored God and allowed Him to live well and healthy in this world and to complete His mission. We are created for His mission, activated to do so and placed here to be able to do so. For that to happen, healthy choices are paramount! And quite often we need the nudge of an accountability partner to help us to refocus and choose well and healthy as we seek to live and love like Jesus in this world. And sometimes God has to take matters into His hands to get our attention and cooperation. Please help us choose well Lord! Amen!
As always for me, I evaluate why and how God sets me down and in the hospital. It has happened enough times to think I would learn and choose well. HA! Choosing the healthiest life in Christ and rhythms in this world is hard work and truly a balancing act that has life long health, mental, spiritual and even financial implications. Who do you have to help you process, choose well, pray for and with you, walk with you and encourage you? We all need at least one and more are helpful for us to stay on the Jesus track and plans healthily.
So recently I have found myself so driven to push and grow the Kingdom and Church and at pushing you all to more as well and even myself that I lost my focus on Jesus and what His plans are. BUT GOD! He set me down and spoke to my heart through several of you and has led me out of captivity (from the hospital and my foolish ways) to be moving more focused on Him and what He is doing as we move toward the Promised Land. Now the trick is to find and choose the balance to be living right in both worlds and doing what I am created to do. For that, I give you permission to speak correction and/or encouragement when needed. Jesus' easy yoke is not a burden and we should be able to love God and people while we enjoy life. (And not make life a burden or unenjoyable for others) That's the choice I need to work on as I learn to keep focused Jesus and on His pace. may we all choose that and continue to grow as His healthy church--together and with Him! Amen!
I have some devos below. The first one is from someone who is driven as well and I question what he is saying about needing to be more driven and focused on God. Yes, we need earnest focus and walking with Him but never at the sacrifice of health, family and sanity. God knows us. He made us and calls us beloved and His masterpiece and He has activated us to become our best selves while representing Him on earth. Choose well by choosing to be who you are in Christ and walking closely beside Him. He will lead you as you go do your purposes. The UR reminds us to be imitators of God. We are not God and should not strive to do all He does. As we learn to become more like Him and incarnate Him and His love to the world, the healthy choice is to allow Him to use us as we are and for us to use what we have been given for His glory. That is an easy yoke of just being you and working at living and loving like Jesus, as you go. ODB reminds us of the Boy Scout motto: "Be Prepared!" We always need to be prepared to join God at what He has for us and is doing and we need to be ready to face Him without guilt and shame on that Great Day of the Lord. And we can! IF! If we hold more loosely, choose well and healthy and just hang out and walk with Jesus and like-minded friends. That s the good life, my friends, and we get to choose to live it! PTL and choose well. Amen! And shalom shalom--know His perfect peace!
As you move toward the devotionals to ponder and meditate upon, check out this partial list of things to try to learn to become more like Jesus and to act in ways like Him. This part of the list is all about slowing down, savoring Christ and choosing to work from rest and abiding, refreshed! Try some!
Maybe we should stop with that!
The next devo is one I question as one of those "Christian influencers" that push us to more. It's part of what made me more driven! Remember Garbage In--Garbage Out! What's God leading you to, as you are? Choose that!!!
I to WE
UR: Imitators of God
Be imitators of God, as beloved children, and walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. - Ephesians 5:1-2 (NRSVUE)
“
Socks behaves like a dog,” I was told about the resident red fox named Socks at the nature and science museum where I was a wildlife volunteer. The first day I entered his outdoor fenced-in habitat, he came running toward me wagging his fluffy orange tail. The wildlife staff explained that Socks was found and raised by a family who thought he was a puppy. By the time they realized he was a wild animal, Socks had spent too much time around humans and dogs to survive in the wild, so he was brought to the museum. Having been raised around dogs, Socks imitated the behavior he had observed.
Christians are called to be “imitators of God.” We are to live our lives in a way that distinguishes us from the world and not to “imitate what is evil” (3 Jn. 1:11). As a new believer in 1996, I learned that imitating God requires spending time with God in prayer, studying scripture, and spending time with other believers who model Christian living.
Socks didn’t suddenly imitate a dog, nor did I suddenly imitate God. Imitating God is an ongoing process assisted by scripture and the community of Christians.
Today's Prayer
Heavenly Father, thank you for your word and for other Christians who show us how to be more like you. In the name of Christ. Amen.
ODB
Grandma’s Last Night
The wise [virgins] . . . took oil in jars along with their lamps. Matthew 25:4
My grandmother had a routine on Saturday nights. Before she went to bed, she laid out all her clothing, including the shoes she planned to wear to church the next morning. She always attended the early service and wanted to be ready to get up and go the next morning without any delay. One Saturday night, she was suddenly hospitalized. Later, Jesus called her name, and she died. When my grandfather returned home from the hospital, he found her clothes laid out. She’d been prepared to go to church as well as to meet her God.
My grandmother’s ritual reminds me of the wisdom of the bridesmaids in the parable in Matthew 25. In the story, Christ tells His disciples to be ready for His coming: “Keep watch,” He said. No one knows “the day or the hour” He’ll return (v. 13), so it’s wise for us to be prepared. If we wait until the last minute to prepare, we could be like “the foolish ones” (v. 3). They ran out of oil because they hadn’t prepared well, and just after they left their posts to refill their lamps with oil, the bridegroom came.
We may not need to lay out our clothes like my grandmother, but her ritual demonstrated her desire to be ready for church as well as for her Savior. May we use her wisdom to be ready for the most important things in life, serving Jesus as He leads us and being ready for His return.
By Katara Patton
REFLECT & PRAY
How can you prepare for Christ’s coming? What wise choices can you make in serving Him today?
Dear Jesus, please show me how to be wise as I serve You and prepare for Your return.
The scene in Matthew 25:1-13 is of a bridal wedding party. Traditionally, the bride with her bridesmaids would wait at her parents’ home for the groom, who’d typically arrive after dark to begin a celebratory procession to the wedding at his parents’ home. Because the timing could vary significantly, the bridal party needed to be prepared for an indefinite amount of time. In Jesus’ parable, the groom arrives even later than usual, and some bridesmaids didn’t bring enough oil for their lamps. The wise, prepared bridesmaids couldn’t share their oil reserves without risking also running out and ruining the wedding procession. This scene offered an ideal example of the need for believers in Christ to have a posture of constant faithfulness and readiness both to meet Jesus and to serve Him, even in unpredictable times.
Let's start with the usually TGIF Fri. praises...we do really have so much to be thankful about and especially God's mercy and grace and our forgiveness. Just start there and then flow into the tie in to our independence and all the nuances of that. We have freedom in Christ. We have independence from the law, which we could never keep anyway. We are blessed to live in this land f the free because of the brave. Really we could just stop there and allow you to meditate and praise from there. And so we shall!
Except for me there is one more thing! God is so good a answered so many prayers. Thank your praying! I was literally crying out to Him this morning and He delivered me! And so tomorrow I gain my independence from this place! PTL! Now there are lots of restrictions and adjustments to come, BUT GOD! He is so awesome! Our salvation! Our Freedom! Our deliverance! May God continue to bless America and you and may America bless God always! Amen!
Happy Independence Day and TGIF FRI! Enjoy the day that flows from your praise today!
Hi all! I really am loosing track of days with the lovely extended vacation! (or something like that!) There is the sayin that the church should be like a hospital and not a country club. Think about that. All are welcome and all are treated equally in a hospital. I think I've met most of the staff on my floor. They all care and do what they can to help and make us comfortable. It is a lot like our church. We care. We welcome all. And we do what we can to help others. I keep bragging you up here. If I ever get out of here (maybe this weekend???) things won't be the same for me, or a least at first out of necessity. Unless the Bible verse about God giving us new hearts comes true for me. We all have new spiritual hearts but I sure could us a mending of my physical heart. One of my issues is that my heart is very weak ad doesn't pump very well. BUT GOD! He is able to repair and restore and if not He will carry me until He calls me home. PTL! As Job said, "The Lord gives and the Lord takes away. Praise be the Lord!" So that's the brief update on me. Keep praying. I'd love to be home for the 4th. The other update is that God chose to call Karen's dad home today. He was ready and is fully restored now. Just wish I could be there for Karen. Unfortunately I'm grounded right now. Keep her and her family in your prayers. Her brother, Dave was on his way to New Hampshire with the family for vacation when the call came. This sure has been a bizarre few weeks! Praying for any of you suffering flooding and water damage.
I'm going to try to sleep for a bit before the next awakening at 3. But as I prepare I keep thinking about Eph. 2:10. We are God's craftmanship, masterpieces, works of art at our creation. We are created with all this beauty to God and potential to bless Him and many others. Then something miraculous happens when we get saved...that potential becomes activated as the Holy Spirit comes to live in us and with spiritual gifts and other helps. And these are to help us to fulfill our created purposes. How cool. I just keep going there and trying to wrap my head around God's ways and love! And here's one thing I am being reminded of and learning during this hiatus...It's a natural transition from what was, to what is and what can be. It doesn't involve forcing things. Just being who you are created to be doing what you are created to do. That's all God expects. be you doing what you can with what you've been give! COOL! AMEN! So be you. Love God and others and enjoy this masterpiece life in Christ! Amen! I'm praying for you! Maybe process this with some friends. I know I need accountability to stop forcing things and once in awhile to get moving too! God does have great plans just for you! Discover them!
LISTEN ONLINE
