God's Work Pays Off

Proverbs 16:3

Commit your work to the Lord,
and your plans will be established.

Colossians 3:17

And whatever you do, in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.

“Hard Work Pays Off!” That’s a saying I hear often in schools, bands, and sports teams. Those of us with a little bit of life experience know there is truth to that saying, but this Proverb takes a slightly different take on work. It’s not hard work that truly pays off: it is committing your work to the Lord. Colossians similarly echoes the need to do everything in God’s name.

As a musician, I’ve learned the value of hard work and reaching goals - especially as a young musician trying to win competitions. As I grew older and there were less competitions to win, I had to learn to make music at a high level without the driving force and euphoric feelings that winning brought. At some point, I had to learn to make music for music sake.

As a pastor, the lack of a driving force pushing me to work hard for some worldly pay-off has made me re-think my motivations. Since there are no pastor competitions to win, it seems like I must learn to pastor for pastoring sake. Yes, “hard work pays off”, and we can find many ways to motivate ourselves to succeed at different parts of life; but none of it really matters in the end unless we are doing it for God’s kingdom. So perhaps we should all be learning to live Kingdom lives for God’s Kingdom sake!

What are you working hard for? What are your goals? Have you committed them to the Lord? Are you doing it in Jesus’ name, or in yours? Are you living a Kingdom Life? In the end, it’s God’s work that pays off!

Lord, please help us to live our whole lives in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him!

In Christ,

Ray

A Season for Everything

by Ryan Duncan

“He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end.” – Ecclesiastes 3:11

I don’t like winter. At the beginning it can be fun: warm sweaters, fresh snow, Christmas is usually on the horizon, but once January hits, winter can be absolutely brutal. Everything is so cold and dark and bleak. You start counting down the days to spring in your head, and scanning the ground for any sign of green. Despite everything though, winter does have a purpose.

The changing temperatures help prepare the ground for seeds, and clear away dead vegetation to make way for the new growth. Without each season playing its part, it’s likely the environment would collapse. As Christians, it’s tempting to think that if we accept Christ as our savior and follow his commands, we’ll never endure hardship. But life, like nature, moves in seasons. Just look at what the Bible has to say,

“There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven: a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain, a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away, a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak, a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace.” – Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

We live in a sinful world, and because of that, we often have to endure painful seasons in life, but that does not mean our pain is meaningless. Many times throughout the Bible, God took an evil thing and used it for good, and He still does this today. He can take a season of suffering and use it to open our eyes to the suffering of others. He can use a season of death and remind us of the beauty in life. He can take a season of sorrow, and draw us closer to Him as He encourages us, and reminds us all seasons soon come to an end.

No matter what seasons you may be experiencing in your life, remember that God uses all things to the good of those who love Him, and that all winters inevitably give way to a new spring.

Intersecting Faith and Life: Take some time to examine the seasons of your life and how God spoke to you through them. Are there others around you who could use encouragement?

Much Better Commute!

Enjoy this Mysterious Ways story from the latest GuidePosts Magazine (April/May 2022), submitted by Andrea Washington, Piscataway, NJ.

Gas. Brake. Gas. Brake. My foot was starting to cramp from switching between the pedals. Typical for prime rush hour.

            My office was 30 miles from home. Before my first day, I discovered that no matter when I left or which route I took, my commute ended up the same – a total nightmare. Aggressive drivers, bumper-to-bumper traffic, construction delays. Evenings were the worst. After a long day at work, I wanted to relax, not inch along the highway while car horns blared.

            I’d taken to praying during my drive. I asked God for traveling mercies – the tranquility to stay calm and alert on the road, and safe passage both ways. Still, month after month of the horrendous commute was wearing me down. I was stressed, having trouble sleeping and quick to anger. I couldn’t go on like this.

            Traffic was picking up…finally. Seeing signs for the mall, I let out a sigh of relief. The mall meant I was halfway home. It was a high-end mall, with designer boutiques and specialty stores. Though I couldn’t afford to shop there, it had become a landmark I looked forward to.

            As I passed it today, I said another prayer, different from my usual. More specific and fervent. “Please. God,” I whispered, “I want a shorter commute. I don’t want to have to drive farther than this mall ever again.”

            A few days later, my supervisor pulled me aside. The company was dissolving my department. I was being let go, effective immediately. I cleared out my desk, trying not to feel bitter. If this was God’s way of answering my prayer, I didn’t like it. But the horrible commute was over.

            While I looked for a new permanent position, I gave my resume to a temp agency. The recruiter had no idea when there would be an opening for someone with my skill set. “I’ll call you if something comes up,” he said. It felt like a brush-off to me.

            Imagine my surprise when the recruiter called the next Monday. He had a 12-week position. Good pay. Good company. Of course, I accepted. I had just one question. “I don’t know where the company is located,” I said. “Can you give me directions?”

            “It’s easy to find,” he said. “You know the mall? The high-end one right off the highway?”

            “Yes.”

            “The office is just across the street.”

RW Comments: I used to have a long and arduous work-week commute from Weslaco to McAllen – a few years ago before I started at FBCW about six years ago. I had to leave my house by 7:00 am in order to avoid the rush hour traffic which nearly every week would produce an accident of some kind (cringe face here!). It was stop and go traffic for miles – every morning, and every afternoon for the commute which I did for about two years. I would occasionally daydream/pray out loud in the car to God about having a job where my commute would be less than 10 minutes. I have always had horrendous commutes in my life and have never had a job that was just down the street or near my neighborhood – until our good and faithful Lord made it happen for me and answered my prayers. My commute now to FBC is less than 10 minutes – love it!! So I will tell you – pray for it, boldly ask God for what it is you want and see His hand work in your life!

Prayer:

Father God –Thank you for answering my prayers in the way that is best for my life. Your perfect plan and purpose for each of us is played out in where we live, where we go to school, or where we work. Let me see that plan and purpose and how I can be a shining light in your kingdom always. In Christ Alone – Amen!

What Kind of Church Are We Getting Inside of Us: An Open Door of Kingdom Opportunity Revelation 3:7-17

“And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: ‘The words of the holy one, the true one, who has the key of David, who opens and no one will shut, who shuts and no one opens.

“ ‘I know your works. Behold, I have set before you an open door, which no one is able to shut. I know that you have but little power, and yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name. Behold, I will make those of the synagogue of Satan who say that they are Jews and are not, but lie—behold, I will make them come and bow down before your feet, and they will learn that I have loved you. Because you have kept my word about patient endurance, I will keep you from the hour of trial that is coming on the whole world, to try those who dwell on the earth. I am coming soon. Hold fast what you have, so that no one may seize your crown. The one who conquers, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God. Never shall he go out of it, and I will write on him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down from my God out of heaven, and my own new name. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’ (Revelation 3:7-17)

What Kind of Church Are We Getting Inside of Us: An Open Door of Kingdom Opportunity Revelation 3:7-17

            In worship this week we discussed how the synagogue door had been closed for the early Jewish Christians in Philadelphia.  Being excommunicated from the synagogue would have been a devastating blow, creating discouraging emotional, relational, and financial hardships for these believers.  To these downtrodden, faithful Christians, Jesus offers a word of encouragement.  The key to the kingdom was in His hand and He had opened a door of kingdom opportunity for them.  If they would remain faithful to the end, His reward of stability and acceptance would never be taken from them. 

            As we emerge from this global pandemic and the difficulties that have accompanied it and figure out what life looks like in this new world that is emerging, it’s easy to get discouraged.  We can’t always understand why things happen the way they do and, at times, we have doors slammed in our faces.  Following Jesus leads us down a difficult path that can cost us friendships, cause us to be ostracized by people we care about, and limit our ability to pursue certain opportunities.  Jesus’ message to the believers of Philadelphia reminds us that no sacrifice goes unnoticed by Christ.  He opens doors of kingdom opportunity and will reward those who remain faithful and answer His call to go through them.  Will we?

·      What must it have felt like to be excommunicated from the synagogue because of a commitment to Jesus as the Messiah?  What hardships might we face today because of our commitment to Christ?

·      What were Jesus’ promises to the faithful Philadelphian believers if they would stay the course and go through the door He had opened before them?  What do those promises mean for us?

·      What doors is Jesus opening for us today?  How can we respond faithfully and travel through them?

Making disciples

Pastor Luis Rodriguez

Matthew 28:18a-20

“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Last week we journeyed through this text, and the challenge was for us to find our mission field. If we have not yet found it, continue to pray about it. Keep in mind the next challenge for us, is to go and make disciples. I remember being in a leadership conference many years ago, and the following question was asked, “How many disciples do you have right now?” As I sat there thinking, I realized I had none.

We have lived our Christian life without making disciples, we have become experts at making church members, but we have failed in making disciples, we have substituted discipleship with programs. We should all have at least one disciple, someone that can walk with us and learn from us, this step is crucial as we develop followers of Christ. We are called to make disciples, and to go to the nations, but before we head into the nations, let’s make disciples in our community. Let our prayer be that we can be disciple makers, that we can teach others how to be followers of Christ.

Finally, let us make disciples not by what we say, but by the way we live. For others to see our Christian walk, not as a religion but as a lifestyle, and as our walk with Christ reflects that lifestyle, then we won’t have too many struggles to go and make disciples from our community to the ends of the earth.  

May God bless you, and as you pray this week continue praying for our displaced brothers and sisters in Ukraine and continue praying for our mission field, our city of Weslaco and reflect our walk with Christ daily for us to be able to impact others with the powerful gospel message.

Bury the Workman

Revelation 2:10 Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful,even to the point of death, and I will give you life as your victor’s crown.

In this Revelation study, we have learned that Christ’s church was persecuted. This passage encourages the persecuted church at Smyrna: the one church to earn only praise from Jesus. Smyrna stood strong in the face of persecution that even led to imprisonment and death. It is easy for us to get frustrated with a nation that no longer embraces a Christian worldview, but we are still a long way off from experiencing the trials of the early church. Whatever happens around us, we can go forward without fear, standing firm like the great fathers of our faith who persevered before us.

This Sunday we will sing a great song that reminds us of some of these stories. In spite of the sometimes gruesome endings for some of our Biblical heroes, we can celebrate that God’s great story of love and redemption has never be stopped and will never be silenced. Join us this Sunday we get to celebrate together with this great song and enjoy the lyric video below!

Bury The Workman by Unspoken

Steven was a deacon in Jerusalem
They dragged him out those city gates to try and quiet him
When Steven preached, those Pharisees started throwing stones
Before he died, he raised his eyes and saw Jesus on the throne

He said, You can bury the workmen, but the work will go on
You can silence the voices, but you can't stop the song
When the Spirit's moving, His will, will be done
You can bury the workmen, but the work will go on

James was sent to Heaven at the edge of Herod's sword
And Peter he was crucified like his beloved Lord
The Roman Colosseum, the lions and the fires
The gates of hell did not prevail, they fanned those flames higher

'Cause you can bury the workmen, but the work will go on
And you can silence the voices, but you can't stop the song
When the Spirit's moving, His will, will be done
And you can bury the workmen, but the work will go on

And then they lowered Jesus, they laid Him in a grave
They thought that it was over, that His name would fade away
But Jesus wasn't listening, no, He rose to life again
'Cause God is not persuaded by the arrogance of men

Finding Your Mission Right Where You Are

TIM TEBOW , as posted on Encouragement For Today daily devotional

Lee en español

“There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her.” Luke 10:42 (NLT) 

Have you ever wondered what your life’s mission is? What your purpose is? Most of us have wondered that at some point. I learned a lot about mission when I met my friend Jaden.

Twenty-three-year-old Jaden Barr has had Type 1 diabetes since he was 15 years old, as well as recurring cholesteatoma, which has resulted in hearing loss in both ears.

While he admits he has fallen short time and time again, Jaden aspires to live what I call a “mission-possible life”: a life that glorifies God through living out his unique purpose.

I had the opportunity to spend a few days with Jaden in 2015. Part of my mission was to encourage him, but by the end of our time together, he was the one encouraging me! It’s funny how God works that way so often.

In light of the health challenges Jaden has had to endure, he recognizes what it means to live a mission-possible life.

Jaden told me, “God created me with a purpose: to know Him and to make Him known. It’s easy to fall into the temptation of thinking life is about me and my plans, but I’m always reminded that the mission I’ve been given by God is much bigger and better than any worldly pursuit. By giving God control over my plans and following His instead, it makes the work I do have meaning and significance.”

This amazing young man has a heart that desires the greater things, what Jesus called “the good part” (Luke 10:42, NASB) or, as the New Living Translation puts it, the “one thing worth being concerned about.” We find this verse in the story of Mary and Martha. Jesus is speaking to Martha about her sister Mary, who had discovered the one important thing.

“There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her.” (Luke 10:42)

And what is that one thing?

Pursuing God, sitting at His table, being in His presence without worry, fear, anxiety, resumé́-building or winning a title. It’s not that we never think about those things, but we don’t let them dominate our vision. We strive and strain forward in this life with Jesus as our focus, with His will as our goal, and with His rewards as our prize.

Even at his young age, my friend Jaden has the wisdom to point out the dangers of me-centric living. This is tempting for all of us, no matter how young or old, no matter if you’re a parent or a preacher, a student or a teacher, a web creator or a music maker.

I love what Jaden once shared with me: “You’ll end up empty if you make life or your mission about yourself. I feel most fulfilled and in line with my purpose when I’m looking outside of myself and my own desires and putting that energy into pouring into others. When you look outside yourself, that’s where true mission is found.”

This reminds me of the power and passion that come when you are focusing your energy outside of yourself. I want to live each day more alive and more passionate because of what Jesus has done for me. The past — His death and resurrection — keeps me motivated in the present to change the future.

When we determine to live “mission possible,” we won’t look back one day and wrestle with regret, or wonder what we did with our lives. Because we, right now, have a specific role to play in bringing faith, hope and love to a world in need.

Lord, what does “the one thing” look like in my life today? How are You calling me to pursue You, to simply be with You without worry or ambition? I want to know and receive Your calling to me, not out of a desire to perform but because I long to bring Your love to a weary world. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Spring Has Sprung!

By Robin Wiley

"Sing to God a brand-new song, sing his praises all over the world! Let the sea and its fish give a round of applause, with all the far-flung islands joining in. Let the desert and its camps raise a tune, calling the Kedar nomads to join in. Let the villagers in Sela round up a choir and perform from the tops of the mountains. Make God’s glory resound; echo his praises from coast to coast.” Isaiah 42:10 (MSG)

SPRING, SPRING, SPRING! Can you smell the fresh breeze through your open window? Ahhh!

Now is the time to actually have our windows open and enjoy the fresh air before the humid and hot days overpower us! I love the freshness of spring each year. I walk taller, feel healthier, enjoy more color in my face and a boost in my energy. Everything about spring breathes of life and newness. I love seeing the buds on the trees starting to bloom and everything turning green. March is the time I usually plant flowers (in pots) for my back and front yards to brighten the dull ascetics from the past winter months. The world somehow seems lighter in the spring, and I can’t help but lift my face to thank Jesus for the smile He gave me through His wonderful creation of springtime.

I guess that’s why I love Isaiah 42:10, which draws a picture of a world reveling in the joy of praising God. I can almost hear it. It’s amazing how God—the Ancient of Days, the Omega, the One Who Was and Is and Is to Come—is Lord not only of our past, but also of our future. He is Lord of all that will be new as he makes it beautiful in his time. (See Ecclesiastes 3:11.)

Imagine the newness experienced by people whose lives spanned the time before Jesus’ birth until after His death. The handful of His people who believed in Him back then felt not only the longing for the Messiah but also the new joy that He arrived at last!

If springlike praise has faded in your heart, ask Jesus to plant in you fresh seeds of joy.

Prayer:

Father God – thank you for another day in your beautiful creation. Refresh my spirit, sweet Jesus, as you renew this world in this season. Fill me with a desire to do more to make this world a better place where I live. Bless the week before me with your grace and love. In Christ Alone – Amen!

What Kind of Church Are We Getting Inside Us? Sardis: Perception vs. Reality Revelation 3:1-6

“And to the angel of the church in Sardis write: ‘The words of him who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars.

“ ‘I know your works. You have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead. Wake up, and strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your works complete in the sight of my God. Remember, then, what you received and heard. Keep it, and repent. If you will not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come against you. Yet you have still a few names in Sardis, people who have not soiled their garments, and they will walk with me in white, for they are worthy. The one who conquers will be clothed thus in white garments, and I will never blot his name out of the book of life. I will confess his name before my Father and before his angels. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’ (Revelation 3:1-6)

What Kind of Church Are We Getting Inside Us? Sardis: Perception vs. Reality

Revelation 3:1-6

Dr. Steven K. Parker 

            Jesus’ message to the church of Sardis is a harsh one.  This is the first of Christ’s messages to the churches to contain no praise for the congregation mentioned.  He says that they have a reputation for spiritual life but are spiritually dead.  Ouch.  That discrepancy between perception and reality is like a sports team with a storied history that dusts off its trophy cases regularly but hasn’t added any significant accolades to it in a long time.  As a Dallas Cowboy’s fan that’s a painful analogy.  Even more hurtful than that is the thought that we can become so complacent in our life of faith, resting on the laurels of past accomplishments, that we have no faith-life in us, but are something more like the walking dead.  Are we living with distant memories of past spiritual victories with no recent spiritual advances?  Is our hope in a commitment we made that we can scarcely remember or lived out in how we engage the world today, walking with Jesus, living by faith and not by sight?  Let’s pray that God might guide us beyond the Sardis, “has-been” brand of faith, and bring perception and reality together as we celebrate His ongoing story, live into His kingdom, and anticipate His sure and certain return.

Our mission field

Pastor Luis Rodriguez

Matthew 28:18a-20

“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

This passage has been life changing for me. It helped me realize that the call to missions is for all of us as followers of Christ, that Jesus has given us the order to go, all of us, not just the missionaries, but for us to enter our mission field. This reminds me of a church that I visited in Houston a few years ago, in their parking lot, as you drive away from church, was a sign that read “You are now entering your mission field, therefore, go and make disciples”. If we look at our lives, we must ask ourselves, “Am I making disciples?” I know that this is a very personal question, but it is a job that we must do. Maybe your mission field is that restaurant you go to every Sunday after church where you are considered a regular, or maybe the hardware store where everyone knows you. Your mission field is in the middle of those who you are closest to, maybe it is your place of work. Where ever it may be, the task is the same, for us to make disciples. We don’t have to travel across the world, because as soon as we leave the safety of the church we are entering the mission field. If we start to look at our community as our mission field, it will transform our way of doing missions.

My prayer this week is that as we move forward and become a mission driven church, for us to always remember that where ever we are, we are in our mission field, and for us to find our mission field in our community, to not be afraid because the Lord it is with us till the end of the age.

May God bless you, and as you pray this week continue praying for our displaced brothers and sisters in Ukraine and continue praying for our mission field that is our city of Weslaco.

God is Bad at Hide and Seek

Jeremiah's Letter to the Exiles

29 These are the words of the letter that Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem to the surviving elders of the exiles, and to the priests, the prophets, and all the people, whom Nebuchadnezzar had taken into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon. 2 This was after King Jeconiah and the queen mother, the eunuchs, the officials of Judah and Jerusalem, the craftsmen, and the metal workers had departed from Jerusalem. 3 The letter was sent by the hand of Elasah the son of Shaphan and Gemariah the son of Hilkiah, whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent to Babylon to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. It said: 4 “Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: 5 Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat their produce. 6 Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do not decrease. 7 But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.8 For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Do not let your prophets and your diviners who are among you deceive you, and do not listen to the dreams that they dream,[a] 9 for it is a lie that they are prophesying to you in my name; I did not send them, declares the Lord.

10 “For thus says the Lord: When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will visit you, and I will fulfill to you my promise and bring you back to this place. 11 For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare[b] and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. 13 You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you, declares the Lord, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, declares the Lord, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile.

Jeremiah 29:1-13

Jeremiah 29:11 is a very famous Bible verse. I see this verse shared on social media when people are trying to encourage one another through some difficult time. Encouragement is part of the original intent of the passage for God’s people, but knowing the full context helps bring a depth to this verse that is often missed. 

One of the problems with English is that the singular “you” and plural “you” appear exactly the same. This verse is not about a singular you, it is about God’s people:  “For I know the plans I have for ya’ll” would be a better translation (Yes, God loves us southerners).

In this part of God’s redemptive story, God’s people have been exiled from their homeland, their temple has been destroyed, and their old way of life has seemingly disappeared over night; but all of this is a direct result of their own inability to seek God. Because of their failure, they must suffer in exile. Frustrated of their new life in Babylon, the Israelites and were trying to get back to Jerusalem as soon as possible.

Here, God says to the Israelites, “A lot of prophets are claiming to speak for me, but don’t listen to them (v. 8-9). You guys get comfortable in exile because you will be there for a while. Unpack your bags, build houses, plant gardens, get married, have children, and learn to live life in this new situation by praying to God (v. 5-7). But don’t lose heart, I have great plans for y’all. Keep hoping because my plan is to turn you back to me and so you will seek me with all ya’lls hearts. When ya’ll seek me you will find me.”

When our family read this passage the other day, Bella said, “God is bad at hide and seek.” And that is true! God is not hiding from any of us. When we go through difficult times, whether it is because we deserve to be in exile or simply because this fallen world sometimes gives us more than we can handle, it is always an opportunity to turn back and seek God. That is the purpose of this passage in Jeremiah. In spite of the troubles they brought on themselves, God gave his people hope for the sole purpose of leading them back to Him. The same invitation is there for us today: to turn our hearts back toward God so we can live into his great story of hope even in the exile of all that is going on around us.

13 You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. 

How might we feel like we are in exile now?

Are their others struggling through exile who need encouragement?

What are false prophets telling us?

In what ways do we miss the full meaning of Jeremiah 29:11 when we take it out of context?

How can we find God?

Ray Sanchez is the Pastor of Worship and Administration at FBC Weslaco. While he has treasured his years of Seminary study, the simple idea of understanding the context of the Bible has deepened his faith, but also using the wisdom of his children to interpret the scriptures!

A White Bread Faith

By Ryan Duncan, as posted on Crosswalk the Devotional

This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not a child of God; nor is anyone who does not love his brother.- 1 John 3:10

When I was still in high school my mother became a vegetarian. Now, I have nothing but respect for vegetarians, but as a guy who likes his steaks extra-rare, this created a few problems in our household. Suddenly our family was exploring what people called “organic” dishes. Tofu, quiche, we dined on whole-grain pasta sprinkled with nuts, strange cheeses, and enough broccoli to kill an entire fourth-grade class. It wasn’t all that bad actually; my mother was very gracious and still cooked meat for the carnivores in the house, but I suspect a soy-based meat substitute found its way into our meals on more than one occasion.

The worst part though, was the bread. My family went from using your typical sleeve of wheat bread to buying those thick, iron cast loaves so brown they were almost black. I can remember sitting in the cafeteria during lunch, watching my classmates as they flagrantly devoured their delicious, white-bread PB&J’s, while I chewed the same bite of sandwich over and over for almost an hour because chunks of grain were still floating around in it. Back then, I would have given anything for a sandwich made from white, Wonder Bread.

The thing is though, ask any nutritionist and they’ll tell you white bread barely counts as grain at all. It tastes good, but that’s because it’s been almost entirely drained of nutrients. All the beneficial vitamins and minerals have been lost, and in the end, we are left with food that really isn’t as healthy as we’d like to think it is.

How many of us Christians are looking for a “White Bread” relationship with God? We show up at Church on Sunday and pray before each meal, then tell ourselves that should be enough to help us grow in our faith. It’s a sweet deal with all of the benefits and none of the drawbacks. Don’t fool yourself; God wants to be so much more in our lives than our Sunday morning service. He is looking to make us lights of the world, to bring peace where there is strife, hope where there is despair, and grace where there is hate. You won’t be very prepared for that if you just stick to the Sunday Sermons. Don’t deny yourself a good, healthy, relationship with God. Read the Bible, get involved, and above all, be sure to make him a part of your daily life.

Intersecting Faith and Life: Find ways to get involved with your home church. Volunteer for events, or try mentoring some of the younger students. Parents, are your children involved in a youth group? Encourage them to give it a try.

What Prayer Can Do

Submitted by Robin Wiley from: (GuidePosts March 2021, Beth Gormong, “What Prayer Can Do”, pg 51.)

RW Comment: I enjoy reading the GuidePost magazine because it is a quick read filled with encouragement and stories of God’s grace and love poured out through people’s lives. I hope you experience a little of those gifts this week in your own story!

Divine Introduction

As far back as I can remember, I’ve been terribly, paralyzingly shy. As a little girl, I would hide behind my mother’s legs whenever she talked to anyone – even people I knew. But you’re an adult now, I chided myself, looking out the window at the farmhouse across the street. You’re too old to be scared to introduce yourself?

Living in the country, I didn’t have many neighbors. When a couple moved in across the street a few months earlier with their three children, I imagined myself bringing over a pie, the way people do in novels. Maybe we’d even become friends, borrowing sugar from each other and chatting over coffee. But I couldn’t seem to get myself to cross the street. I just knew I’d say something wrong, embarrass myself in some way. It was safer to stay home, even if the sight of their house now made my stomach tighten into a ball of anxiety.

Lord, I want to be a good neighbor, I prayed. But I need your help!

Children’s voices drifted through the window as the mom came outside with the kids. Most folks could go out on the porch and wave. Not me, I turned on my computer and checked my e-mail, instead. 

One message was from my pastor. He was writing about an organization I’d joined, a community group to support church couples who had foster children. We would bring over meals once a week, volunteer for babysitting. Turns out, I’d been named as group leader, the person who would have the most personal contact with the families involved.

Oh, no! I thought. I didn’t ask for that.

Reading further, I got some details about the people I’d been assigned: my new neighbors. Not long after, with the others in my group for support, I finally went over, knocked on the door and introduced myself to Justin and Danielle, who are today my good friends. I might never have gotten across the street on my own, so God found a way to give me a gentle push.

Prayer:

Father God - You are always at work – doing good things in this dark world. Thank you for being the bright light shining through the darkness. Teach me to shine my light brightly, to trust in your perfect will and glorify You in all that I do.  In Jesus’ holy name – Amen!

What Kind of Church Are We Getting Inside Us? Sacred/Secular: Making a Living as a Jesus Follower Revelation 2:18-29

“And to the angel of the church in Thyatira write: ‘The words of the Son of God, who has eyes like a flame of fire, and whose feet are like burnished bronze.

“‘I know your works, your love and faith and service and patient endurance, and that your latter works exceed the first. But I have this against you, that you tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess and is teaching and seducing my servants to practice sexual immorality and to eat food sacrificed to idols. I gave her time to repent, but she refuses to repent of her sexual immorality. Behold, I will throw her onto a sickbed, and those who commit adultery with her I will throw into great tribulation, unless they repent of her works, and I will strike her children dead. And all the churches will know that I am he who searches mind and heart, and I will give to each of you according to your works. But to the rest of you in Thyatira, who do not hold this teaching, who have not learned what some call the deep things of Satan, to you I say, I do not lay on you any other burden. Only hold fast what you have until I come. The one who conquers and who keeps my works until the end, to him I will give authority over the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron, as when earthen pots are broken in pieces, even as I myself have received authority from my Father. And I will give him the morning star. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’ (Revelation 2:18-29)

What Kind of Church Are We Getting Inside Us?

Sacred/Secular: Making a Living as a Jesus Follower

Revelation 2:18-29 

Yesterday we wrestled through the question of how to make a living as Jesus followers in a world that has rebelled against its creator.  The prophetess nicknamed Jezebel was leading the believers of Thyatira astray, promoting an approach to faith that divides sacred from secular, separating work and worship.  From her perspective, believers could function how they needed to in the marketplace on Monday so long as they maintained the right religious rituals on Sunday.  Jesus had the strongest words of condemnation for her teaching and those who fell prey to it.  Unfortunately, her gospel still seems to have a strong foothold in the church.  We can easily fall into this notion that Jesus is good for Sundays, but our workplace needs something more rough-and-tumble, real world than a mamby pamby savior.  That popular heresy might help us justify our less than Christlike behaviors at the office, but it completely loses sight of the flesh and blood Jesus of the gospels who was equally comfortable in the carpenter’s shop of His father and the temple of His Father.  Jesus came to tear down the dividing walls between sacred and secular and to draw us to salvation in His Father’s world.  Following Jesus leads us to worship on Sundays in a way that makes a profound impact on how we live with our family, friends, colleagues, and neighbors the rest of the week.  Faithfulness to Christ leads us to participate in God’s mission of redemption for the whole world.  If we will follow Jesus Christ faithfully, He will give us the morning star; He will give us Himself. 

·      Why do you think the Jezebel heresy has been so popular through the ages?  Why is it so common to completely divorce how we function in the workplace and in worship?

·      What would it look like to live with no divide between sacred and secular?

·      How can we honor God more fully in our workplace?  What impact would that kind of life have on our worship and what impact would worship have on that kind of life?

A Crown of life Revelation 2:8-11

Pastor Luis Rodríguez

This past week we continued with our series in the seven letters to the seven churches in Revelations. As we dwelled in the church of Smyrna, we see the words "I know," and this word seems to be the central theme in this chapter. We were also able to see three weights that the church faced.
1. Their poverty.
2. The blasphemy of the Jews against them.
3. The promise of persecution that was coming to them.
We see their poverty, by claiming to be followers of Christ, many of the brothers in this primitive church, would have been subject to discrimination, and many would not have been able to buy or sell, many of this discrimination was born from these early believers not worshiping the gods of the trade guild in Smyrna. They were a despised minority, and because of this, no one would want to buy from them or be associated with them. In the middle of this, Jesus makes the declaration, "I know your poverty and your tribulation," but he reassures them with the words "but you are rich." Many times, we think that being rich is having all the things this world provides for us, maybe is the big house, the nice car, a big bank account, and we think by having these things we are wealthy, but we see that Jesus reminds these early brothers that they are rich because they possess something more precious than all the riches in this world, and that is Jesus. Just like these brothers, we may not have all the things we want, but we are rich because we have Jesus, the savior of our lives.
The second yoke over them is their tribulation from the false Jews of the synagogue of Satan, and these Jews were trying to expel the Christians from the temple. They used slander as a tool to bear false witness against this group of believers. Some of the accusations were that in their meetings would perform orgies, that during the lord's supper, they would eat the blood and flesh of Christ. Because of this, they were accused of cannibalism, and they called each other brother and sister. Thus they did not believe in the family because the Roman family structure was necessary. They thought these believers did not believe in the family and were selfish. These accusations were a yoke of pressure over them, and they were a despised people in Smyrna. Still, during all these accusations, Jesus reminds them, "I know your tribulation" this yoke was heavy over them, but Jesus prepared them for the yoke that was to come, that of persecution.
Finally, the promise of persecution and death, but this tribulation will only last ten days. We can only imagine what these brothers went through. The prisons of the day were not like the prisons of today, they were horrible places, and to a point, we could say that they were inhumane. There were no human rights, so we could imagine that many died in these places. Also, others were thrown to the beasts to be devoured, as the people cheered by their demise, cheering the death of the saints, that was the kind of tribulation they were facing, many could have been forgiven if they just rejected Christ, and maybe some taught of this because the tribulation was great. But the words of Jesus comfort the brothers, "Be faithful till the end and I shall give you the crown of life" the crown a symbolism because the people used them in festivals, when they won the games, they would get a crown on their heads the emperors used them, the Christians did not partake in this aspect of society. Jesus reminds them, "Be faithful until the end, and I shall give you the crown of life."
Now friends, let us ask ourselves, have we been faithful? Do we have that type of conviction to stay loyal to God even as we face tribulation? Maybe you want to turn back? Please don't do it. Stay faithful, and receive the crown of life. Perhaps we must be like Polycarp, the saint that when the moment came that he was asked to denounce Jesus, he famously said, "I have served my God for eighty-six years, how can I deny him now."
The brothers in Smyrna faced great tribulation, but Jesus reminds them that He knows, just like He knows what you are going through, He knows our hardship. But remember that if you stay faithful till the end, he shall give you the crown of life.
My prayer this week is that we can have faith, trust Jesus' words, that He is in control, and give us the courage to stay faithful till the end, and He shall provide us with the crown of life.

The Great I Am

This Sunday we will be singing a powerful song called “The Great I Am.” Jared Anderson did a beautiful job constructing the lyrics and melody for this song. I get chills when we sing, “The mountains shake before you, the demons run and flee, at the mention of your name, King of Majesty. There is no power in hell, or any who can stand, before the power and the presence of the Great I Am!”

There is one line, though, I got permission to change from the publisher: “So heaven is real and death is a lie.” Even when we rely on the power of the Great I Am, The Alpha and the Omega, Jesus, the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, death is very real. Just ask Smiley and Nelda Garcia who lost their son Nick to cancer. Death is real. I do think that Jared Anderson was using poetic license to mean that death is like a lie because Jesus has conquered it and we have life everlasting. But as many have been touched by death in the past several years, we know for certain that death is one of the truest parts of life.

However, we have hope because Jesus conquered death and rose again. With that in mind, I changed the lyric (with permission) to “death is defied.” I think this paints a stronger picture of our Lord and Savior as he defied death and rose again. In fact, we are called to die to ourselves so that we may then defy death and rise again in Christ. Not only is that the hope we have when we breath our last breath, But we get to live into the hope of defying death and celebrating resurrection each and every day as we live into God’s great kingdom!

I look forward to celebrating the victory we have in the Great I Am with you this Sunday!

Great I Am

I wanna be close
Close to Your side
So Heaven is real
And death is defied (a lie)
I wanna hear voices
Of angels above
Singing as one

Hallelujah
Holy, Holy
God almighty
The great I am
Who is worthy
None beside thee
God almighty
The great I am

I wanna be near
Near to your heart
Loving the world
Hating the dark
I wanna see dry bones
Living again
Singing as one

Hallelujah
Holy, Holy
God almighty
The great I am
Who is worthy
None beside thee
God almighty
The great I am
The great I am

The mountains shake before You
The demons run and flee
At the mention of the name king of majesty
There is no power in hell
Or any who can stand
Before the power and the presence of the Great I am
The Great I am
The Great I am

You Are Chosen and Enough

by Lauren Sanchez as posted on Crosswalk the Devotional

“I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.” (Psalm 139:14)

While watching The Bachelor recently, I was struck by the surprising empathy that one woman chose to display to another woman who’d hurt her. Instead of angrily keeping her distance, Kendall confronted another contestant, Krystal, about her wrong-doing and even took it a step further. She called out the goodness in Krystal and told her that she understood why she did the things she did, but that she didn’t have to act this way. She could be vulnerable. She could be real.

Real. Why does this seem like such a foreign concept?

We have gotten so used to, as a society, living behind facades. We present ourselves a certain way for job interviews. We edit our Instagram accounts to show only the most interesting moments of our lives. We try to appear as the perfect Christian, parent, or leader instead of just being transparent about our brokenness.

This only works but for so long. Eventually, we are found out or become exhausted keeping up the charade. Christian author Shauna Niequist explains this struggle in her book, Present Over Perfect:

“What kept me running? That’s the question I keep returning to, the lock I keep fiddling with. I was highly invested in maintaining my reputation as a very capable person. I thought that how other people felt about me or thought about me could determine my happiness. When I see that on the page now, staring back at me in black and white, I see how deeply flawed this idea is, how silly even.”

Niequist continues, “The crucial journey, then, for me, has been from dependence on external expectations, down into my own self, deeper still into God’s view of me, his love for me that doesn’t change, that will not change, that defines and grounds everything.”

What I’ve learned is that when we choose to let others see us in a polished manner, a version of ourselves that is partly us (or not us at all), we miss out on the true joy of feeling fully known and fully loved. It is only when we take off the mask and let others see us that we can really experience the freedom to be ourselves.

You are enough. There is freedom in letting go of control over others’ perceptions of us. We can breathe. We find the space to relax and rest in God. He will carry our burdens (Matthew 11:28-30). And, He will build us up in Him so that we have a new idea of our worth, one that is based on our identity in Him.

“For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves (Ephesians 1:4-6)."

Intersecting Faith & Life:

I challenge you this week to begin taking off that mask that is insecurity. Take little steps to let others in. Share something with a coworker or friend that they may not know about you. As you let others see the real you, remind yourself what God’s Word says and build your self-confidence on that.

Resisting Temptation

RW Comment: My mother-in-law, Stephany, buys all of her kids’ family a yearly subscription to GuidePost Magazine. I’ve been receiving it for years and find the articles and Christianly witticism to be comforting and encouraging. I often share articles through this devotional slot of mine. I found this article very encouraging for the lent season we are experiencing right now.

Depending on where you are with your sacrifice of fasting to take time to reflect, read God’s word and seek forgiveness for sin – temptation is the looming culprit! We are all tempted, probably every day, with things that distract, entice or resemble our wants rather than our needs. Ty’Ann does a good job with giving us a quick thought to consider on dealing with temptation. We all fall. We all sin.  God offers us grace and forgiveness – every day!

Nothing is too small or too big for our great God to handle.  Lean on Him today.  Have a great week!

-Robin

By Ty’Ann Brown, Keeping the Faith Ministries

(taken from Feb/Mar 2022 GuidePosts Magazine)

 Resisting Temptation

Temptation. It’s tricky. I’m tempted by all sorts of things that are not in my best interest. Doritos? I’d eat them for lunch every day if I could. Netflix? Sometimes I just want to curl up and watch my favorites all day. At times I’ve even succumbed: With two bags of Doritos next to me. I’ve binge-watched away an entire weekend.

As we enter the Lenten season, a time of repentance and forgiveness, I challenge you to think deeply about sacrifice and temptation. Doritos are dang delicious and make me feel great. For a few minutes. But they’re no way to lasting health. It’s the same with spiritual issues. We’re often tempted to turn from God, to focus on our immediate pleasure. But that’s no way to achieve lasting peace and joy.

Jesus showed us how to resist temptation. After 40 days of fasting in the desert, he was famished and exhausted. Satan came to tempt him. First, he prodded Jesus to turn stones into break. Then he goaded Jesus to jump from the top of the temple to prove his miraculous powers. Finally, Satan said he would let Jesus rule all the kingdoms of the world if he would worship him. Jesus’ response? “Away with you, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and him only you shall serve’” (Matthew 4:10).

When you struggle with temptations both big and small, follow the lead of Jesus. Cut out the earthly distractions and rely upon God and his Word to stand strong. It’s not easy, but it’s the ultimate solution to a life well lived. 

Prayer:

Father God, I humbly thank you for the forgiveness you offer us every day. I repent of any sin that draws me away from you. Help me to be strong to resist temptation and worship only You. In Jesus’ powerful name – Amen!

What Kind of Church Are We Getting Inside Us: The Fountain of Youth Is A Myth, But Jesus Conquers Death—Revelation 2:8-11

“And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write: ‘The words of the first and the last, who died and came to life.

“ ‘I know your tribulation and your poverty (but you are rich) and the slander of those who say that they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and for ten days you will have tribulation. Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. The one who conquers will not be hurt by the second death.’ (Revelation 2:8-11)

What Kind of Church Are We Getting Inside Us: The Fountain of Youth Is A Myth, But Jesus Conquers Death—Revelation 2:8-11 

Yesterday we talked about the historic and metaphorical search for the fountain of youth; it seems that every generation of human beings is looking for ways to cheat the aging process and rob death.  What are some ways we do that today?  In the end, each of those efforts ends in vain, because the fountain of youth has always been a myth.  If we live long enough, we will all experience the frailty and decline that accompanies the aging process.  If the Lord tarries, we will all taste death; that’s the one reality that’s even more sure than taxes.  We might search for a path that will avoid suffering, but hardship and trial are part of the human experience in this broken world.  The church of Smyrna was experiencing a particularly difficult kind of suffering: persecution for their faith.  It doesn’t receive much media coverage, but numerous believers today, in other parts of the world endure terrible persecution for their commitment to Christ.  As we reflect on Jesus’ message to the Smyrna church, please join me in praying for believers in Ukraine and throughout the planet who are enduring intense suffering because of their faith in Jesus.  This Smyrna church could stand strong in the face of opposition because Christ promised that His victory was secure.  They would face imprisonment and even death, but they would not be touched by “the second death.”  Though they would taste death, their reward would be the crown of life.  The fountain of youth was and is a myth.  We cannot escape hardship and, in the end, will not cheat death, but Jesus conquers death.  We will, at times, suffer in this life, often because of our faith.  But Christ’s promise is still secure, even more so than death and taxes.  Jesus is the first and the last.  He died and rose again, and so will we, if we follow Him by faith. 

There is a time……..

Pastor Luis Rodriguez

This past week my wife moved down to Weslaco, as I went to Houston to pack the last of our things and get ready to drive “home” together. I looked back as we were driving out of the neighborhood, I could only imagine what wife was thinking of as we were leaving the neighborhood where she grew up, the neighborhood where she had lived until adulthood, her parent’s house, right next door, where she had lived since birth until we got married and moved to our first home together. As my mother in-law, whom I call Momma Gillis, would say “y’all just bought the house next door this past spring and now you’re leaving me?”. I think of the many plans that we made to move back to the neighborhood where my wife lived for most of her life, and how now we must tear down for the new plans God has for us in Weslaco. I can only imagine her sadness. For myself, as I leave the city where I lived for most of my life, a city that will forever be in my heart, because I came to know the lord in that city, I grew in my faith in that city, I came to say yes to the ministry in that city, I went to seminary in that city, I got married to my beautiful wife in that city. All those memories and the ever-changing adventure in our walk with Christ and the places that he has taken us and now we find ourselves in a new place with a new Familia of Faith, but one thing that stayed constant is the never-ending construction on Houston’s highways.

I say all this to bring this word today, there were times of happiness and times of sadness, times to celebrate life and times to mourn, and these words and thoughts made me think of the words in the book of Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 where the teacher reminds us that there is a time for everything.

In our lives there is a season and a time for everything, it reminds us that as we live there is:

1.     A time when we were born and there will be a day when we will die, one day we were born into this world and one day we will depart this world, but we have the security of our eternal salvation in Jesus.

2.     A time to plant and a time to uproot, just ilke the life events of this past week, us uprooting our lives from Houston to come down to Weslaco, there was a time where we planted our lives in Houston. In all of our lives there will be a time when we plant and we think that it will be forever, but we must always be ready to uproot when the Lord tells us that is time to move.

3.     A time to kill and a time to heal, Solomon is not condoning killing but giving a reminder that killing happens. It is true that under certain conditions killing was authorized and considered appropriate as punishment for some crimes under the law. But with killing there will come a time to heal.

4.     A time to tear down and a time to build, there will come a time for us to tear down friendships, relationships, or maybe just even our lives, but with that there will also come a time for us to build up, to build new friendships (which my wife and I look forward to), new relationships, new life. As we take a look at the past to face the future, I look forward to see what we can build together for God’s kingdom in our city of Weslaco and beyond.

5.     A time to weep and a time to laugh, there are times of sadness and a time when we will weep, but is not all grim, for we know that there will be a time when our weeping will be turned in to laughter, and we will be able to laugh again along those who are close to us.

6.     A time to mourn and a time to dance, it feels that we have been mourning in our church for a long time, by the deaths of our beloved brothers and sisters in the faith that have gone ahead to be with the Lord, but we have the hope that we will be reunited when we all can rejoice at the foot of God’s throne, and in time we will be able to dance and rejoice in this life also.

7.     A time to gather stones and a time to cast them away, a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing, a time for us to gather and a time scatter.

8.     A time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away, there is time when we search for things, whether it be our career, our families, or friendships, but there is time when we must give up on things that we may never find, like the remote when it gets lost in the couch. A time when we must save those things that are precious to us, but also a time to throw out those things that we no longer need.

9.     A time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak, there is a time for us to tear things but also a time to mend those things, may it be relationships, or a friendship, but there will also be a time for us to mend those relationships and friendships. Sometimes we get in trouble because we don’t know when to be silent, and many times we must remain silent, but with silence there is a time of reflection and we can better articulate what we want to say, and by this we will be better prepared for when our time to speak comes.

10.  A time to love and a time to hate, we may take these words in this verse as hating a person that we once loved, but I like to see it this way, as to hate the sin that we were part of at one time and especially a sin that we loved. But there is a time for us to love and a time to hate.

11.  A time for war and a time for peace, right now these words ring fresh in our ears because of the war going on in Ukraine, but we trust that there will be a time for peace for the Ukrainians, in the same way there was a time when we were at war with God, but thanks to Jesus becoming our prince of peace, and thus giving us true shalom in our lives.

I love these verses because it reminds us that in our lives we will experience many moments, some happy, some sad and it’s a reminder that it is ok for us to cry, to be sad, to mourn. We may experience these emotions but in time we will heal from them and though we may experience these happy moments, we will only experience the fullness of God wen we are in His presence. On that day, God will turn my sadness into happiness, my weeping into laughter, and my mourning into joy and I will join with the saints in singing “Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord almighty”.

Our move from Houston was bittersweet, we leave behind our family, our church family and friends, but we look forward to making new friends, and we can certainly say that we feel welcomed and a part of the Familia of Faith at FBC Weslaco. Thank you for making us feel at home, and I look forward, now that my better half is with me, to see what we can do together for the growth of the kingdom in our beautiful city of Weslaco.

My prayer this week is that we remember that there is a season for everything, regardless if you are in a happy or sad season, just know that the best is yet to come. God bless you beloved and may you have a great weekend, and I can sincerely say “It is good to be home!”