Who, Me? How God Can Use You To Save the World

ALICE MATAGORA, as posted on Proverbs 31 Ministries Encouragement for Today daily devotional

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“They said to the woman, ‘We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world.’” John 4:42 (NIV)

If there is anyone who can put to rest any doubts we may have that God could use our lives for His Kingdom, it’s the Samaritan woman. (John 4)

A woman in a patriarchal society, who had a shameful past and was living in sin.
A Samaritan, whose worship differed from that of the Jews.
An individual with very little theological exposure and nonexistent ministry experience.
An everyday, ordinary person.

Yet after a single encounter with Jesus, the Samaritan woman was faithful to share with those who lived around her what little she knew about Him. This all resulted in a radical movement of the gospel throughout Samaria to save the souls of people who other disciples would not reach until after Jesus’ return to heaven.

I can relate with the Samaritan woman. I didn't become a Christian until I was in high school, and even after becoming a Christian, I made poor decisions.

When I really started walking with Jesus, I was also in the midst of a deep fog of depression and anxiety and was recovering from eating disorders. And while those things aren’t sins, they were struggles that, for me, were tied to the life I had been living apart from Jesus. Yet as a dear friend began to faithfully disciple me and share what they knew about walking with Jesus, I began to experience freedom from my sin, shame and struggles.

Jesus gave me strength to walk away from temptations that had previously ensnared me. I learned to let go of shame and embrace God’s grace. My depression and anxiety began to lift. I experienced eating-disorder recovery that I hadn’t experienced through all of the many treatments I had received up until that point. (Though please note that, as a licensed therapist, I am in full support of seeking out mental health services from a licensed professional. Jesus did an incredible work of healing in my life during this season, and He also used later therapy to help me dive deeper into recovery.)

But the craziest thing my discipler shared? That God could use my life to advance His Kingdom right now.

Who, me? I thought. How could God ever use someone like me for His Kingdom?

At the same time, like with the Samaritan woman, God ignited an overwhelming excitement in me to share with others what little I knew about having a relationship with God. I mean, did you know you can really have a relationship with God and He can transform your life? This is what the Samaritans experienced after the woman shared about her encounter with Jesus and they heard His words:

“They said to the woman, ‘We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world’” (John 4:42).

That was just the beginning. Since I first asked Who, me?, God has used that ordinary college student — a baby Christian, a woman with shame in her past and sin in her present — to help her family come to Christ. And not only that — He’s used me to help women all over the world learn how to have a relationship with Jesus and make Him known to those around them in their everyday lives, in their families, in their workplaces, in their classes, in their labs, in their mom groups, in their friendships, in their gaming communities. Next door to everywhere.

God can use you to advance His Kingdom to the ends of the earth.

Who, me? I didn’t grow up in the church.
Who, me? I haven’t even been a Christian for that long.
Who, me? God could never use someone with my past.
Who, me? I haven’t been to Bible college and have no formal ministry training or experience.
Who, me? I’m just a [wife, mother, daughter, sister, kid, grandmother, new Christian, barista, corporate executive, artist, student … the list goes on and on].

What could I do?

Familia of Faith, what could God do through you?

In the same way God could use me, in the same way God could use the Samaritan woman, God can use you to save the world, right where you live, right now. He has what it takes, and what you have is enough for Him to use.

The question is: Are we willing to step out in faith to do so? May it be so.

Heavenly Father, open our eyes to the ways You desire to use us in the lives of those around us. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Personal Note by Elizabeth Ramirez: This devotional resonated with me as a “baby Christian” trying to do my part to let God work through me! As the Director for Children’s Ministry, I urge you to pray about volunteering with the kiddos in our Familia of Faith, as a Wednesday night Bible Study leader, or Sunday School teacher!

Be Holy

1 PETER 1:13-21

“I am the Lord your God, consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I am holy.”

— Leviticus 11:44

This week I wanted to share this devotional that I read a few years ago, about holiness especially because this is the topic we've been sharing in the Spanish group this past couple of weeks. I hope this word can bless you as it has blessed my life. Pastor Luis.

We set apart a lot of things. When we wash our clothes, we set them apart by colors. We set apart our vegetables from our meat. We set apart our refrigerated things from our frozen items.

To be holy means to be “set apart.” We are called to distance ourselves from sin and impurity, even as we live among all kinds of people in this world.

By calling his people to be holy, God wanted them to be a shining light of his blessing to the nations (Genesis 12:2-3). But Israel continually failed to be the holy nation God formed them to be. That is why the prophets kept calling them back to living God’s way—that is, by loving God with all their heart, mind, and strength and by loving their neighbors as themselves.

This is also our job as prophets today. In this Lenten season, we and others are called back to living for God and showing his love, as Jesus did. The world continues to be shaped by Christians who push back the darkness and reclaim this lost world for Christ.

Sometimes it is a fearful thing to be a prophet. It can also be exciting and fulfilling work. The world needs more prophets today.

You and I are prophets. We are anointed to confess the name of Jesus as Lord and Savior. We are called to love God with our whole being and to share his love with everyone.

Lord, may our lives be holy and pleasing to you. May it be clear that we want to honor you and love others, to your glory. Amen.

About the author — Pete Byma

Pete Byma has served as a pastor of congregations in Michigan and in Washington state. Serving now as a pastor in Grand Rapids, Michigan, he is also a consultant/coach for churches experiencing conflict, and he enjoys equipping and establishing people in ministry. He is married to Cheri, and they have four grown children and six grandchildren. Pete is also a registered soccer official and enjoys bicycling.

Unchanging God - Reflections on How Great (Psalm 145)

originally posted on Praisecharts.com by Sovereign Grace Music.

Psalm 145 begins with David expressing his resolve, and likely his habitual practice, to extol, bless, and praise the Lord daily. “Every day I will bless you and praise your name forever and forever” (v. 2). Daily praise is thoroughly appropriate because the Lord is “greatly to be praised.”

David then rejoices in God’s faithfulness to all generations. “One generation shall commend your works to another, and shall declare your mighty acts” (v. 4). It’s almost as if David’s praise commingles with the praise of all God’s works as multiple generations of the faithful join in. “All your works shall give thanks to you, O Lord, and all your saints shall bless you!” (v. 10) Together they magnify the greatness of his deeds, the steadfastness of his love, the faithfulness of his provision, the mercy of his salvation, and the finality of his judgment upon the wicked.

When we ask, “How great is the Lord our God?” we inquire about his infinite greatness. When we declare, “How great is the Lord our God!” we proclaim his immeasurable worth. So, in response to God’s infinite greatness and immeasurable worth, the psalmist calls upon all of creation to give thanks and bless his name.

If you are one of those God has redeemed, saved, delivered, and adopted through Jesus Christ, God has called you to exalt his name. He has called you to do it with your whole being. And he has called you to do it daily. God will re- ceive the praise he deserves, even if it takes the rocks and hills to cry out. How will you respond today to David’s invitation to join your voice with all of God’s works, declaring the greatness of his name?

How Great (Psalm 145) by Sovereign Grace Music, from the album Unchanging God: Songs From The Book Of Psalms Vol 1. Reflections curated by Sovereign Grace Music.

Idolatry

By Heidi Vegh

“They traded the truth about God for a lie. So, they worshiped and served the things God created instead of the creator himself, who is worthy of eternal praise. Amen!” - Romans 1:25

I often find myself in places of discontentment, heavily bombarded with opportunities to compare myself to others and allow the monster of idolatry to sit on the throne of my life. I wish I could be like her, look like her, have a business like her, or even have children like hers. I measure my accomplishments up against unrealistic expectations that the world has placed on me and place the importance of them before God, essentially worshiping the hustle to get where I want to be and much more. This, my friends, is a sin.

The sin of idolatry is nothing new. In Ecclesiastes, we read, “What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.” We fight the sin of idolatry just as the people did in ancient Israel. It may look a bit different or be packaged differently, but the sin of idolatry is alive and well.

When the Israelites became discouraged as they wandered in the desert, they allowed themselves to be distracted by their world and forgot about God and how he had freed them from slavery. They erected a lifeless, golden calf made from the riches they had taken with them from Egypt.

“The idols of the nations are merely things of silver and gold, shaped by human hands. They have mouths but cannot speak and eyes but cannot see. They have ears but cannot hear and mouths but cannot breathe.” - Psalm 135:15-17

They worshipped the golden idol and made sacrifices to it. This was empty and worthless. However, they believed that this idol would help them or save them. They were aiming their worship at the wrong thing, taking matters into their own hands. 

“They have been quick to turn away from what I commanded them and have made themselves an idol cast in the shape of a calf. They have bowed down to it and sacrificed to it…” Exodus 32:8

This may sound ridiculous to some; however, we do the same thing. In our current world, it is so easy to set things before God and forget His faithfulness in our lives. We become overwhelmed by our own needs, desires, and abilities that we are tricked into believing that we are completely self-sufficient. Even the most devout Jesus followers tend to fall into this trap of idolatry. 

We have a jealous God, meaning that He is vigilant and fiercely protective of us. He wants our affections to be aimed at Him and not the world. Not just for His sake but also ours. He knows that the idols of this world will never satisfy. Only God can truly satisfy. 

God will not tolerate idolatry and longs to set us free from this sin. When he created mankind, he created us with a heart that desired worship, and it was intended that we worship Him and Him alone. He wanted to be close to His people and have deep loving relationships with Him. When we are focusing on things other than God to fulfill us, we are tempted to believe that we need something more and that God is not enough. 

Humans longed to be affirmed, and it is so easy to look to other humans to obtain this and not to God. But this is empty and worthless. Humans are flawed, and God is perfect. God's approval is rooted in who Jesus is and what He did, not by what we accomplish or how we perform. 

We tend to idolize our jobs, our families, our marriages, our social media presence, or our wealth. We think that if we have the next best thing, the approval, or the riches, then finally, we will be happy. We strive to make our own happiness and to take control when we should be surrendering. 

But even after all this, God is still the same. He is still the same loving and jealous God that He was in the days of Exodus. He longs for us to reach for Him, worship Him, and love only Him. Remember, only God can truly satisfy. We could search to the ends of the earth to find something to fulfill us like God and we will always come up short.

Intersecting Life and Faith:
Reflect on your priorities. Are there things in your life that you worshipping other than God? How can you shift your life to put God first? It may be taking a break from social media, hiding your credit card, or simply shifting your time to be spent with the Lord first during your day. Spend some time with the Lord asking Him to show you where you have idols in your life and ask for forgiveness. Ask the Lord to show you how to remove the idols and to give you the strength to do so. Relish in the freedom and fulfillment of the Lord when you surrender your idols and put God first in your life.

Happy Learning!

Submitted by Robin Wiley     

[GuidePosts, Aug/Sept 2022 Ed., “Back to School” article by Ty ’Ann Brown, VP Ministries]

RW Comment: I really like what Ty’Ann writes in her article that it’s okay to ask God questions because it’s a way to drawer nearer to Him. I’ve been emphasizing this point during our summer family Bible study with the youth on creating time to pray, reading God’s Word more this summer and taking time to really listen to Him. Like the famous painter Michelangelo said at the age of 87 years old, “I am still learning.”

I look back on my formal education with mostly good feelings. There were so many positive, exciting experiences – from elementary school all the way through grad school. But calculus? I’m glad I don’t have to deal with that anymore.

            Still, I consider myself a lifelong student. In particular, I want to keep myself open to learning from God. Getting older does not automatically mean that we are getting wiser. We have to work at it. A regular practice of reading the Bible, praying, and listening for God’s response are good places to start. But we have to do more than go through the motions. While memorizing Scripture can soothe and inspire us, learning from God requires constant rethinking and refocusing.

            It requires asking questions. God is not intimidated by them; in fact, questioning God can help you build a deeper more intimate relationship with Him. The same way that a science teacher wants to show you two chemicals interacting in a test tube so you can see how chemistry works in real life, God wants you to experiment – with different ways of studying His Word, different teachers, different mediums.

            Learning is central to faith. Jesus knew that – at age 12, he sat in the temple, asking questions as well as listening. So experiment away: Order a new version of the Bible, switch up your prayer practice, question a long-held belief. And do it with an enthusiastic heart. The words of Psalm 25:5 guide us: “Lead me in your truth and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation; for you I wait all the day long.”

Happy Learning!

Prayer:

Father God, we thank you for the blessing of our children. We pray that you watch over them and protect them as they go back to school this month. Give each one a heart to learn, and to seek out who You are through Your holy Word. Thank you for being the God who “is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.” (1John 4:16)

A Prayer for Pastors

By Emma Danzey, as posted on crosscards.com Your Daily Prayer devotional

James 3:1 says, “Not many of you should become teachers, my fellow believers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly.”

The calling of being a pastor is one that should not be taken lightly. Pastors hold a lot of power and responsibility. Because of their leadership roles, they are held to a higher standard. They are accountable for interpreting and teaching His Scriptures correctly, shepherding and loving their people well, and being a servant to all. This is a unique gifting and calling on individuals' lives. It is important that we are praying for our personal pastors, as well as pastors all over the world who lead and represent the body of Christ.

Let's Pray:

Our Good Shepherd, Thank You for giving us pastors who love us so well. Thank You for those who are healthy and whole while they lead and teach. Thank You for convicting them and refining them as they lead us. We pray for a sense of your peace over them as You guide the directions of their churches. We ask that their hearts would be aligned with Your will to proclaim the gospel, teach the church, and send us out into the community and the world on mission. 

You say in 2 Timothy 4:2, “Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction.” We pray this over our pastors. Help them to be prepared to correct, rebuke, and encourage the church with compassion. Give them great patience as we are sinners who are likely to need to hear messages more than once. Help our pastors be able to communicate the gospel of Jesus in every message.

Father, as we pray over our pastors, we pray for their families who equally have been sacrificing for their communities. Give them quality time together, unity, and protection from the work of the enemy. Hold them close and help them to set healthy boundaries with the church and home. We pray that their children would not turn away from You, but that they would see genuine lives of faith lived out at home as well as the church from their parents and be drawn by Your Holy Spirit. So many pastor kids go astray, we pray against this and pray for a mighty generation to come through the family lines of pastors. 

Lord, You tell us in Jeremiah 3:15 that You give us shepherds after Your own heart, who will lead us with knowledge and understanding.” Would You help our pastors to seek Your heart and would You lead them so that they can point us genuinely to Your knowledge and understanding? You are so faithful to place the right people in leadership intentionally. However, we know that the enemy places wolves among the sheep. Would you please reveal any pastors around the world who are false teachers? Remove them from authoritative positions and restore purity and integrity to those who have suffered under their leadership. We ask for healing and wholeness for those who have been spiritually wounded by unhealthy pastors. Please remove the false doctrines and teachings from their minds and hearts and help them to sit under safe and godly pastors in the future. 

Our Great God, Hebrews 13:17 reminds us to have confidence in our leaders and submit to their authority because they keep watch over us as those who must give an account. Help us to do this so that their work will be a joy, not a burden because that would be no benefit to us. Help us to trust in those healthy pastors whom You have placed in leadership roles. Give us strength to trust in them and know that they give an account to You. Provide them joy and help us not to be a burden but a delight for them to serve. Help us to have softened hearts to their sermons and open ears to the messages You lead them to share with us. We pray for healthy churches that are led by healthy pastors who love You with their whole heart, soul, mind, and strength and love others well. Amen.

God will takes us where we need to be.

This week while Sophia and I were driving back from McAllen we were just having small talk, and along the subjects we started the conversation on how positive and blissful the move to Weslaco has been for the both of us, for staters we are spending more time together, something that back in Houston was a rarity because of our hectic schedules, we would barely see each other during the week, but this is not the only positive. We are eating healthier, making better health choices, unlike the ones we were making back home. So, in short making Weslaco home has bless our lives in more than one way, not only physically, but also mentally, spiritual, and being part of this great Familia of faith.

Now I say all this because God always takes us where we need to be, many times we don’t understand why God changes our lives in an instant, but if we are obedient to Him, he will take us by the hand to our destination. It reminds me of the story of the encounter between Phillip and the eunuch in the desert in Acts 8:26-40 where he was taken from Samaria by the Holy Spirit to have this encounter with this man in a deserted place. Phillip could have said God I am ok where I am, there is no need for me to move, but is on those instances when we are most comfortable that God moves us, if it was about comfort we would have never taken the leap of faith to move to Weslaco from Houston, we left everything to come and be witnesses of what God will do with our church, and we look forward to see those wonders, God used this story to remind me that he is inviting us to walk a long side Him in His story, to be witnesses of his great works, and because of this Sophia and I took this leap of faith, to trust God and make the move to Weslaco from Houston, and for someone that moves from a big city to the valley, it may seem like a desert without all the comforts that a big city provides, but if the valley is a desert, I look forward to meet the eunuchs in a figure of speech, to meet those that are seeking God, and as we approach our first year in Weslaco, we can happily say that Weslaco is home until the day comes that decides to move us to see many more of his wonderful works but we pray that day may be far into the future. Even though Houston will always in our hearts, we can say that Weslaco is where the heart is, and this is home. From Sophia and I we just want to say, thank you for showing us love and making us feel at home and part of the Familia of faith of FBC. Let us take God’s hand and let’s see the wonders He will show us as we faithfully walk with Him and for us to trust that he will take us to where we need to be.

My prayer this week is that God takes us to where we need to be in our lives, may it be our family life, our work, or ministry, may God guide us as we walk every day in our life story alongside Him, and may God bless you.

Pastor Luis.

Growth Plan by Pastor Ray and Rosie Sanchez (Ray's Mom)

Growth plans are one way to set some goals for yourself that target changes in behavior. These plans often have to do with setting up routines, but at the root is the ability to identify what things may be keeping you from achieving your goals. With God, a real growth plan begins with submitting to His will for our lives. If we are not letting his word transform us by studying daily, lasting change will probably be harder to come by.

As my mom and I recently discussed growth plans, she sent me a text suggesting I read Psalm 139 and Colossians 3 and then added a few words of wisdom I shared below. Enjoy!

Psalm 139:

O Lord, you have searched me and known me!

You know when I sit down and when I rise up;

    you discern my thoughts from afar.

You search out my path and my lying down

    and are acquainted with all my ways.

Even before a word is on my tongue,

    behold, O Lord, you know it altogether.

You hem me in, behind and before,

    and lay your hand upon me.

Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;

    it is high; I cannot attain it.

Where shall I go from your Spirit?

    Or where shall I flee from your presence?

If I ascend to heaven, you are there!

    If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there!

If I take the wings of the morning

    and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,

even there your hand shall lead me,

    and your right hand shall hold me.

If I say, “Surely the darkness shall cover me,

    and the light about me be night,”

even the darkness is not dark to you;

    the night is bright as the day,

    for darkness is as light with you.

For you formed my inward parts;

    you knitted me together in my mother's womb.

I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.[a]

Wonderful are your works;

    my soul knows it very well.

My frame was not hidden from you,

when I was being made in secret,

    intricately woven in the depths of the earth.

Your eyes saw my unformed substance;

in your book were written, every one of them,

    the days that were formed for me,

    when as yet there was none of them.

How precious to me are your thoughts, O God!

    How vast is the sum of them!

If I would count them, they are more than the sand.

    I awake, and I am still with you.

Oh that you would slay the wicked, O God!

    O men of blood, depart from me!

They speak against you with malicious intent;

    your enemies take your name in vain.[b]

Do I not hate those who hate you, O Lord?

    And do I not loathe those who rise up against you?

I hate them with complete hatred;

    I count them my enemies.

Search me, O God, and know my heart!

    Try me and know my thoughts![c]

And see if there be any grievous way in me,

    and lead me in the way everlasting![d]

Colossians 3:1-17

Put On the New Self

3 If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. 3 For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ who is your[a] life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.

5 Put to death therefore what is earthly in you:[b] sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. 6 On account of these the wrath of God is coming.[c] 7 In these you too once walked, when you were living in them. 8 But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth. 9 Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self[d] with its practices 10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. 11 Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave,[e] free; but Christ is all, and in all.

12 Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, 13 bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. 14 And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. 15 And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. 16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. 17 And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Raymond, wow! I am reading Psalm 139 and Colossians 3 together and how powerful!

Here is the perfect checklist for the  perfect growth plan for all of us. I am embarrassed before God as I read and see how short I fall…were it not for God’s mercy I would be consumed.

May we set our minds on Him …that Christ who is in us may be visible to all around. I dare say too many times I put on my “grave “ clothes. Got to get those out of my closet and dress appropriately for Him.

Love you, Son

I hope we can all create a growth plan that starts with getting those grave clothes out of our closets and dressing appropriately for God! Thanks mom for this reminder, and thank you God for your growth plan that begins by focusing on your grace and mercy!

Choosing to Live in the Spirit

By Laura Bailey

“For this reason, I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name.  I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love,  may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.” - Ephesians 3:14-18 NIV

As Christians, we belong to the family of believers; our faith in Christ unites us as the church body, fueled by the power of the Holy Spirit. While the gift of the Holy Spirit is given to all Christians, we can choose to harness its power by submitting to its authority in our lives, or we can quench the Spirit and rebel against its leading.

Think about the choices you make when dieting. While your diet isn’t entirely ruined by one wrong meal choice, a collection of bad decisions will derail and often lead to complete abandonment. But, if you choose each day, meal by meal, to make the right choice, even when you have not seen the results, you will see the fruit of your labor over time. 

The first month is always the hardest when working to make a change because I don’t see immediate results. But once I start seeing a change, it gives me the power to keep going, sticking with it. I started because it was something that I should do; now, it is something that I want to do because I am experiencing a positive impact on my life.

Paul understood the body of believers would struggle to persevere when they couldn't always see the results of their devotion to God. This is why he prayed fervently for God to strengthen His church and for us to understand the depth of His love. Paul knew that to live lives that glorified God, we would need to understand God's love by knowing His word. The scriptures energize, encourage, and empower us to love others, extend grace, and grant forgiveness. 

Paul reminds us that our power to live Christ-like lives increases when we understand and experience the love of God. But we must decide if we will apply these truths and this power to our lives. We have a choice. Our lives consist of many small, seemingly insignificant choices. We often make them without thinking. However, those small choices compile and transform into habits and routines and eventually the framework by which we live our lives.

Our Christian walk is similar to choices we make, like eating healthier, in that .in that we have to regularly make the right choice to see spiritual fruitfulness in our lives. The choice may be to pick up your phone and check social media or pick up your Bible first thing in the morning. Or maybe your choose between calling a friend to vent about frustration or saying a prayer. Maybe you're choosing between a weekend at the lake or volunteering in the church nursery. 

At the end of Paul’s prayer, he reminds us that God can do more than we can ask or imagine, it is His power that is at work in us, and the church, the body of believers, is His vessel yesterday, today, tomorrow, all for the glory of God ( Ephesians 3:19-20). Ask God to help you to make choices that glorify Him. Pray you would be strengthened by the Spirit to make choices that honor God even when you can’t see the results. Because you know that He is faithful. He works all things for our good and His glory to those who love Him and have been called for a purpose. He has a specific plan for your life; will you choose to follow Him?

Intersecting Faith and Life:
We quickly acknowledge with our words that God is in control, that He alone is worthy of our worship, and that God’s Word is the ultimate authority for our lives. Yet, often, our decisions and actions are in direct opposition to the words we speak. Take a minute and examine your Christian walk. Do your actions reflect a life that is surrendered to Christ?

Mysterious Ways - More Than Coincidence

Mysterious Ways – A story by Matt Vaughan, Roberts Illinois, GuidePosts Magazine, Aug/Sept 2022 Issue.

I sat in the car, tapping the steering wheel as I waited for my wife and our daughter, Raegan. We had a lot of miles to cover, and we needed to get going.

It was the summer before Raegan’s senior year of high school. Time for her to pick a college. She knew she wanted to study social work and stay in the state – much to my wife’s and my relief – but that was about it. So we’d planned a three-day road trip to visit Raegan’s top choices: the University of Illinois Chicago, Northern Illinois University and Illinois State University.

College was a big decision, one that could determine the course of Raegan’s life. I wanted to be sure she made the right choice.

“Please God,” I prayed, “give this worried dad a sign.” I left out a deep breath, then turned on the radio.

God has always spoken to me through music. In high school, there was a girl I had a huge crush on. Driving to school one morning, I prayed for a chance to date her. The next song on the radio was Garth Brooks’ “Unanswered Prayers,” which had the line “She wasn’t quite the angel that I remembered.” Shortly after, I learned my dream girl wasn’t the person I thought she was. Later, when I was leaving home for the first time, bound for college, David Lee Murphy’s “The Road You Leave Behind” came on and reassured me.

Now I hoped the radio would give me an answer once again. I recognized the song that was playing -  “Letting Go by Suzy Bogguss. I listened carefully to the lyrics, about a mom who daughter is leaving for college. The emotion resonated with me, but nothing I heard was about the choice of school. Maybe I was supposed to let go and let God. By the time the song ended, Raegan and my wife were climbing into the car. Off we went.

Raegan liked the first two schools we visited, but her eyes lit up the moment we stepped onto the Illinois State University campus. She loved it! But is this where she’s meant to be? I kept wondering as our tour of the school continued.

Our group was led into an auditorium for a presentation. The first few slides were the usual – the majors and activities offered, the cost of room and board. Then came a slide about famous alumni. There was my answer: Sing-songwriter Suzy Bogguss had graduated from ISU.

RobinWiley Comment: This year we have a large group of seniors in youth graduating next spring, and I can only guess they will be busy with school visits and choices of colleges to attend after graduation. [I bet Pastor Ray is looking for signs for Baylor to be Antonio’s top pick! LOL] This is a great reminder to pray for our seniors and all our kiddos heading back to school in a few weeks. May our loving and generous God light their paths and keep them from harm. In the name of the One Most High – Jesus – Amen!

A race worth winning.

Pastor Luis.

1 Corinthians 9:24-27.

“Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore, I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.”

A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to compete at the national Tae Kown Do tournament, and to be honest I did not like my chances, because the week prior to the tournament I had contracted covid, but I still went and participated, and to my surprise I was able to make my way to the final in which I lost, at the moment we went to the podium to receive the medals, I was a bit disappointed because if I had not contracted covid I might had a chance on winning. As I stood there waiting for my medal, I was reminded of Paul in his letter to the Corinthians, for in Christ we have a crown that has a value greater than any medal I may win, and that is the crown of life we have obtain true Jesus sacrifice. Also alongside the text we see an aspect of training, that the person who competes in the games goes into a strict regimen of training, the same way I trained for hours to compete at the highest level I could, and in times I found myself not following my diet and not training when I should, thinking I had time to make it up, and as Christians many times we don’t take training very seriously in the sense of our spiritual training, and we may find ourselves lacking in our spiritual discipline in the race of life, our spiritual life is one of constant discipline and training, just as I trained for this past tournament we need to train in our spiritual life, and even though there may be the temptation of not keeping with the training or diet, and we may tell ourselves I can make it up or I will be fine the reality is that it will aft us. As we reflect in this text, we must understand this, that the only way to be spiritual fit just as inner physical bodies, is true a life of constant training and eating right, for at the end of that training we may run the race, and at the end of that race awaits us the crown of life.

My prayer this week is for us to continue growing in our daily walk with God, and that we can develop a life of constant training and discipline in our spiritual life.

But the Greatest of These is Love

1 Corinthians 13 (ESV): The Way of Love

13 If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3 If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned,[a] but have not love, I gain nothing.

4 Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant 5 or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful;[b] 6 it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. 7 Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

8 Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. 9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part, 10 but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away. 11 When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways. 12 For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.

13 So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.

1 Corinthians is a letter from Paul to a church that he started in Corinth. The people there are dear to him and it hurts him when he finds out they are quarreling with one another over who they follow, taking one another to court, and poorly handling serious issues that occur in the church. Paul spends the first part of his letter focusing on Jesus, the only one under whom we can truly be united. Then, to start wrapping up his instruction on how to deal with some of these issues, Paul paints the truest picture of Christ-like love found anywhere in history.

These verses are often used in weddings as a romantic kind of love. The church after all is the bride of Christ, and love in a strong marriage is probably the closest we can get to modeling this kind of love. But we must realize that what we see here is completely unattainable outside knowing and understanding the love of God. 1 John 4:8 makes it very clear that the only way to truly know love is to truly know God and most people outside of the church would probably agree that this ideal picture of love would never really occur in reality.

Unfortunately, even in church, we have trouble making this definition a reality. In our culture we toss around the word love in so many un-meaningful ways, “I love pizza! I loved that movie! I love playing football!” The church at Corinth, like us, needs to be reminded about the love to which we have been called. Paul’s words tell us that no matter what you do, how smart you are, how generous you are, or even how much faith you have: if you don’t have love, you are missing the point of following Jesus!

To explain Paul’s final sentence in this chapter, N.T. Wright mentions that when we spend eternity in the presence of God, love will be the only thing left. Our faith and hope will have been fulfilled in Christ and in our resurrection: faith and hope will no longer be needed. But in the presence of God his love for us and ours for him will continue through eternity.

How can we demonstrate that eternal love now?

In what ways could this kind of love strengthen your relationships with others?

Have you ever experienced a problem in church that was handled without love?

How might you use that experience to better demonstrate love in the future?

Dear God,

Help us to live into your eternal love even now in our relationships at home, at work, and most importantly with our familia of faith.

Come join us Sunday as we delve a little deeper into this passage!

The Case for the Ugly Coffee Mugs

By Lynette Kittle

“His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’--Matthew 25:21

Glasses, cups, and mugs pile up pretty fast at our home, so loading up the dishwasher can feel like a forsaken job at times. Although it may sound silly, these piled up dirty dishes can cause someone to start feeling unloved, unappreciated, and uncared for real quick.

Even though dirty dishes are no indicator of being unloved or appreciated, the enemy is relentless in taking opportunities to try and plant those thoughts in our minds, especially if we aren’t aware and alerted to his divisive ways and tactics.

Add to these “poor me” feelings, a husband who insists on bringing home random coffee mugs to add to our mismatched collection. Loading these throw-offs into the dishwasher rack just seems to make it even more of a tiresome chore.

My Plans to Pitch the Mugs
With plans to quietly pitch my husband’s eclectic collection of coffee mugs one at a time, Ephesians 5:24 keeps reminding me, “Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.” But surely "everything" doesn’t include keeping these ugly coffee mugs? Does God really care one way or another? Why would something so insignificant matter to Him?

But in my heart I know God cares about my attitude and how I honor my husband in even the smallest of things, because how I respond to my spouse reflects how I’ll respond to Him. Additionally, Colossians 3:18, is relentless in reminding me, “Wives, submit yourselves to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord.”

God Cares about the Condition of My Heart
In the long run I’m sincerely grateful God is concerned about the condition of my heart, and of my willingness or reluctance to yield to Him. Still it doesn’t seem like ugly coffee mugs would be a test in respecting my husband or in obeying Him (Ephesians 5:33). Yet God calls me to be willing to surrender to His will and to be respectful to my husband, even when it comes to his love of tasteless coffee mugs.

Reluctantly, I recognize my hesitation reveals a deeper issue in my own heart, rather than shining a spotlight on my husband’s insistence on bringing ugly mugs home, a practice he knows I dislike. My reaction reveals an unwillingness within me to obey God in the everyday little issues in life, to justify ignoring them because they just don’t seem like they would even matter to Him. 

Likewise my mind struggles with it seeming unfair that I’m the one who is supposed to change my attitude in the situation. What about my likes and dislikes? Shouldn’t my husband care more about my preferences than his own?

Picking and Choosing Obedience
Seeming like such an unimportant issue, it’s easier for me feel like it’s okay to pick and choose whether or not submission to my husband’s preference is required in this situation. It seems like a non-issue, having no relevance in the big picture of life and faith. But yet isn’t that’s where the devil often gets us at times? Situations where we choose to follow worldly misconceptions that tell us, “Don’t sweat the small stuff in life,” rather than paying attention and yielding to biblical truths. 

I’ve come to the conclusion that it is quite possible God is working through my husband’s persistent determination to collect lost coffee mugs, in order to refine me in ways that wouldn’t come through any other way. Even so, I do believe it’s okay for me to pray God will be at work refining my husband, too. For Him to be at work convincing him to take my thoughts into consideration and leave the coffee mugs where he finds them, rather than bringing them home for me to wash.

However when it comes to obeying God’s Word, Luke 16:10 explains how God does look at the ways we handle the small stuff. He considers how trustworthy we are based on very little things and as indication of whether or not we can be trusted with bigger stuff.

Intersecting Faith and Life:
Are you dealing with any “little” issues where you’re resistant to following God’s Word over your own likes and dislikes? If so, ask God to help you. If not, ask God to reveal any areas in your life, ones maybe you’re missing, where you may be following your own will over His will.

SelfMore or SelfLess?

By Robin Wiley

We are currently studying the book of 1 Corinthians in Youth Sunday School. It’s a great study series by RightNow Media’s Jenni Allen who examines Paul’s first letter to the church in Corinth. The church is a mess and has a problem with selfishness. To prepare the kiddos, our very first discussion was on just defining the word ‘selfishness’ and what that looked like to each person.

I asked the students – to give me an example of when and how they were selfish. No one responded – just blank stares. Not one offered up a story on how they focused only on themselves – funny, how that was hard for them to come up with an example (wink, wink). But not so with the sibs.

On that Sunday, there happened to be three sets of siblings for Sunday School – and when I asked for examples of selfishness within their own family systems – all the siblings were more than happy to bring up specific (and sometimes embarrassing) issues they had witnessed on the other and the conversation escalated into higher arguing voices, which eventually had to be reined in. The true nature of each person was revealed that they all had some sort of selfish behavior which caused disunity with their brother or sister. Let’s just say I heard “I am Mom’s favorite!” coming from more than one kiddo during that exchange. We all can be selfish, (me included!) sometimes.

The same can be seen in the church in Corinth. Paul wrote 1 Corinthians in a response to the church’s questions raised from this community during an internal culture war. Corinth was a hub of knowledge and enlightenment and a patron to many gods. The Corinthian church was unusually diverse with many tensions formed from their differences. They had many distinguishable problems that Paul addresses in 1 Corinthians but the main one was selfishness. They were so focused on themselves that they were causing division in the church. Selfishness has the potential to rip apart God’s people.   

Greeting

1 Paul, called by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus, and our brother Sosthenes,

2 To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours:

3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Thanksgiving

4 I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that was given you in Christ Jesus, 5 that in every way you were enriched in him in all speech and all knowledge— 6 even as the testimony about Christ was confirmed among you— 7 so that you are not lacking in any gift, as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ, 8 who will sustain you to the end, guiltless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Paul reminds the believers in the first nine verses of this chapter on what they have in common: God’s grace, sanctification, faithfulness, etc. – all in the name of Christ Jesus. Paul emphasizes the name of Jesus Christ or Christ Jesus – eight times in these verses to highlight the point that no church is about Paul or other teachers. It’s about Jesus and His gospel. Paul points to the power of the cross of Jesus, who humbled himself before God. He emptied himself in the most selfless act of humility by taking on the sin of the world.

Both, the Christians then and us now, need to set aside our selfishness to focus on what it means to be follow Jesus. We are to love, support, and encourage one another as we are living out our lives to “know Him and make Him known.” We are not always going to get along with our family or the people we work with or even with others in our church, but we ALL have Jesus in common.

We can choose selfishness and boast in ourselves, or we can choose the selfless way, the way that often looks foolish to the world, and boast in God.

What’s one thing you could do this week to be selfless toward another person?

Let’s pray:

Father God – thank you for Jesus and the wonderful example He is on being a selfless person. Empty me of anything that holds me back from being more like Him. Fill me with all the fruit of the Spirit today to be a blessing unto others. In Christ’s name alone – Amen.

On Wailing and Worship

KAREN EHMAN, as posted on Proverbs 31 Ministries Encouragement for Today daily devotional

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“God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in Spirit and in truth.” John 4:24 (CSB)

I stood and worshiped one Sunday morning while burning tears of grief cascaded down my face. My heart was overflowing with fresh sorrow due to several recent losses in my life.

My worship and pain might have seemed a contradiction. Is it possible to express deep worship while simultaneously revealing intense sorrow? Jesus’ personal encounter with a New Testament woman seems to say worship and wailing can coexist.

One day around noon, a Samaritan woman went to draw water from what was known as Jacob’s well. That’s when she met Jesus, and a conversation ensued.

Jesus began to mention certain details about her life — including the fact that she’d had several husbands and was now living with a man to whom she was not married. His keen insight into her life situation — seemingly without having any prior knowledge — caused her to believe she was talking to a prophet. (John 4:16-19) Well, if there’s a prophet standing in front of you, you’re going to seize the opportunity to ask any questions you have, right?

So she asked Jesus about worship, inquiring if she should worship on the mountain, where her ancestors did, or in Jerusalem, where others said was proper. Jesus replied, “God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in Spirit and in truth” (John 4:24).

The Greek word used here for “spirit” is pneúma and means “spirit (Spirit), wind or breath.” While it sometimes indicates human breath, the most frequent translation of pneúma in the New Testament is written with a capital “S” — Spirit — meaning the Holy Spirit.

The Greek word for “truth” is alétheia. This indicates words that are honest, sincere and straightforward. When we take worshiping in Spirit and couple it with being entirely truthful, we can get two actions that — although they seem opposite — intertwine perfectly together …

Wailing and worship.

Wailing and worship can hold hands. We observe this in over 50 of the psalms penned in Scripture that are classified as psalms of lament, in which the authors cry out to God in times of overwhelming distress or deep despair. The psalmists typically ask God for intervention to deliver them from suffering, sorrow or an enemy. Then these petitions often end with expressions of faith and worship as the author places his trust in God.

But it’s not only in the Bible where wailing and worship hold hands. They can in our lives today.

We can worship both in Spirit and in truth. We can worship God through the power of the Holy Spirit, who leads and guides us. We also can worship in truth. This is no candy-coated worship, full of clichéd spiritual phrases. No, we can be honest, candid and straightforward with God, even going so far as to lament and wail, telling the Lord all about that which is causing pain in our lives. We may do this audibly as we pray to God in a secluded place. We might do it through writing out our sentiments in a journal. Or we can listen to some worship songs about crying out to God, echoing the words in our hearts as we do.

Pour out your heart to Jesus, raw emotions and all. He sees your situation. He understands your pain. And — best of all — He loves you with a deep and unconditional love that will never, ever end.

Heavenly Father, I want to worship You both in Spirit and in truth. Empower me to be authentic in my time alone with You. May I pour out my heart to You, praising You in reverential worship as I do. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Missed Exits: Turning Up the Voice of God

SHALA W. GRAHAM, as posted on Proverb 31 Ministries Encouragement for Today

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“And when you turn to the right or when you turn to the left, your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, ‘This is the way; walk in it.’” Isaiah 30:21‬ (NRSV‬‬)‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬

Last summer, a colleague picked me up from the airport to take me to a conference. We had a long stretch of highway to drive, with Google Maps ready to lead the way to the conference location.

We laughed and talked as we rolled down the road … Then something didn’t look quite right.

“We missed the exit!”

No problem. I’d missed exits before, even with Google Maps giving me a play-by-play. But here’s the thing — my colleague had issues connecting her phone to the audio in the car, so we couldn’t hear the lovely voice that gives the directions well in advance. Google Maps was silent! And because we were in a more rural area, the next exit to turn around and get back on track was several miles down the road.

Thankfully, we weren’t in any rush, so the detour was just a minor inconvenience. But how often do we miss the exit or the on-ramp because we either can’t hear the directions or we simply aren’t paying attention?

This is what happens when we don’t hear the voice of God directing us or we’ve turned down the volume to prioritize another voice in our lives.

In Isaiah 30, we see the people of Judah being warned not to rebel against the Lord by depending on Egypt to help them instead of relying on God. Isaiah also spoke a prophetic blessing over them if they would just return to God for help:

“Truly, O people in Zion, inhabitants of Jerusalem, you shall weep no more. He will surely be gracious to you at the sound of your cry; when he hears it, he will answer you. Though the Lord may give you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, yet your Teacher will not hide himself any more, but your eyes shall see your Teacher. And when you turn to the right or when you turn to the left, your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, ‘This is the way; walk in it’” (Isaiah 30:19-21, NRSV).

What a blessing it is to have the Holy Spirit dwelling in our hearts if we trust in Jesus today! Like our personal GPS, He says, “This is the way; walk in it.” But we have to tune in. We have to make sure we are connected to the Spirit of God. We have to intentionally seek out His voice and presence.

One of my favorite ways to seek God is through worship. So many of my favorite worship songs are simply scriptures set to a tune. As I proclaim biblical Truth in those songs, it becomes my prayer, and the Holy Spirit stirs in me to communicate with God and receive what God is saying. In those moments, as I submit my will to His, I can hear God affirm in my spirit what is needed of me. It’s like an internal check in my heart that feels so crystal clear.

It’s like when you look into the eyes of a friend, and though no words emerge from her mouth, you simply know everything she is communicating. You feel her words, and you stand in that truth with her.

As I worship, the peace of God rests over my spirit and guides me to confess, not worry about, the mistakes and wrong turns that plague me, even if I know I’ve "missed an exit" by trying to follow my own route for my life. There is grace for course correcting.

Father, help us cancel out the noise of this world and the enemy. Forgive us for being distracted or neglecting to plug in to hear Your voice. We don’t want to keep missing the exit. We want to get to where You want to take us. We’re tuned in. We’re listening. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

God So Loved the World

For God So Loved the World

16 “For God so loved the world,[i] that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. 19 And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. 20 For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. 21 But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.”

I am currently praying for and talking to a young man who is somewhere between an agnostic and an atheist. He thinks there probably isn’t a “God,” but if there is, “God” doesn’t care very much about this world. This young man points to all the violence in the world, climate change, and human atrocities such as the holocaust as evidence for a God that does not care.

Yet, Jesus gives us a strong argument for just the opposite. “God so loved the world, that he gave his only son.” God gave us an answer and a lens with which we should see the world. As famous as John 3:16 is, John 3:17 points to the condemnation that we all deserve when we do not believe in Jesus. John 3:18 tells us that “people loved darkness rather than the light because their works evil.”

With a biblical world view, we can interpret the problems of this world very differently. People loved the darkness and are evil. They have rejected the light and only through the truth of Jesus Christ will people be redeemed with this world upon Jesus’ return.

My young friend’s view of suffering is real. Every Christian has likely wrestled with the problem of suffering in the world. But as we struggle through the judgement of the darkness of the world, we should remind ourselves, one another, and those in our midst, that even in the midst of suffering, God so loved the world that he gave his only son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

The Power of a Simple Invitation

By Rachael Adams

"Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world" (Matthew 25:34).

As a new mom, I was afraid to go anywhere during the first year of my son’s life. I was nervous Will would cry or get sick, so it seemed safer to just stay home. But, I knew being secluded for such a long time was not healthy, and after a year of isolation, I was longing for relationship. 

Despite my fears, I decided to attend Toddler Tales at the local library. There, a woman greeted me and invited me to join her later that week at a MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) gathering. I accepted her invitation and, while I was at the MOPS meeting, another woman invited me to attend a local church. I accepted her invitation as well, and while at church, another woman invited me to join her for a women's Bible study. This led to my family joining the church, my children being baptized, and me being asked to lead a Bible study. This, in turn, led to my love for writing devotions like the one you are reading right now. Amazingly, I am where I am today because of the power of a simple invitation. 

Jesus knew the power of personal invitations too and often extended them. He invited people...

To rest: "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest" (Matthew 11:28).

To see: “‘Come,’ he replied, ‘and you will see’" (John 1:39).

To drink: "Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink" (John 7:37).

To dine: "Come and have breakfast" (John 21:12).

To take up the cross: "If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me" (Matthew 16:24 ESV).

To renewal: "Come with me by yourself to a quiet place and get some rest" (Mark 6: 31).

To be blessed: "Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world" (Matthew 25:34).

Did you notice the caveat in each of these invitations? Come. Jesus calls us to come. He made this point vividly clear in the parable of the wedding banquet. In Matthew 22, Jesus said, "The kingdom of heaven is like a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son. He sent his servants to those who had been invited to the banquet to tell them to come, but they refused to come" (22:1-10).

In this story, the king invited his guests by sending two invitations. The first asked the guests to attend the banquet; the second announced that it was ready. Each time they rejected his invitation by making excuses—they couldn’t attend because of work duties, family responsibilities, financial needs, etc. So the master told his servant to invite others and make them come in so his house would be full (Luke 14:15-24).”

I love his open invitation, don’t you? We too are invited into a relationship with God, but it is up to us to accept the invitation. Like those in the parable who turned down the invitation to the banquet, we often resist or delay responding to God’s invitation. Are you making excuses to avoid responding to God’s call? Friend, Jesus invites you to be with him forever in eternity. How will you RSVP? Who will be your plus one? 

Intersecting Faith and Life:
Knowing how God can use a little invitation to make a significant impact, think about to whom you can extend an invitation. Who knows where it may lead? 

Prayer:
Jesus, thank you for the opportunity to fellowship and commune with you. May I extend the same invitation to people in my life and trust you with the outcome. Draw us all closer to you. Come. Lord Jesus, Come. Amen (Revelation 22:20). 

Nothing Wrong With Gentleness

[ “Fruit of The Spirit For Students” which is a simple devotional I have sent to the kiddos in the past. This one is on gentleness – as the fruit of the spirit. One of my favorite - so enjoy!]

Philippians 4:5

5 Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand.

When you think of the word gentle, what do you think? Do you think of a lamb or something else? Sometimes we view being gentle as the same as being weak but this is far from the truth. In fact, Jesus was one of the gentlest people to ever live but we would never describe Jesus as weak.

Gentleness is something that is actually quite powerful and it is the thing that can attract the most of people to Jesus. When someone is struggling or hurting what he/she needs is a gentle word.

Gentleness can also make it easier for someone to let his/her guard down in order to have open and honest conversations

Challenge:

• Take a second to think about someone in your life who is kind, loving and gentle.

  • Do you like spending time with that person? Why?

• Now think of someone who can be aggressive, pushy and mean. 

  • Do you tend to avoid that person? Why?

  • How can you be kind and gentle to others in order to show God to them?

Prayer:  Father God, please help me to be gentle & caring towards others. Help me be loving and kind so that people can see Christ in me. Please help me to always strive to be better than I was yesterday, and guide me with any struggles. In Jesus’ Power Name. Amen.

The Repaying God

“A voice! A cry from Babylon! The noise of great destruction from the land of the Chaldeans! For the Lord is laying Babylon waste and stilling her mighty voice. Their waves roar like many waters; the noise of their voice is raised, for a destroyer has come upon her, upon Babylon; her warriors are taken; their bows are broken in pieces, for the Lord is a God of recompense; he will surely repay.

I will make drunk her officials and her wise men, her governors, her commanders, and her warriors; they shall sleep a perpetual sleep and not wake, declares the King, whose name is the Lord of hosts. “Thus says the Lord of hosts: The broad wall of Babylon shall be leveled to the ground, and her high gates shall be burned with fire. The peoples labor for nothing,

and the nations weary themselves only for fire.” (Jeremiah 51:54-58)

The Repaying God

Jeremiah 51:54-58

 Dr. Steven K. Parker

The OT prophet Jeremiah’s ministry was a difficult one; he was called to preach a message of judgment that God’s people was not ready to receive.  The toils of his calling and rejection of his people led Jeremiah to cry out to God with anguishing, tear-filled prayers.  Jeremiah knew that God’s wrath was going to be poured out on Judah through terrible atrocities that would be committed by the Babylonian nation.  Jeremiah also knew that God would eventually forgive and restore His people and turn the tables on their tormentors from Babylon.  Today’s passage looks toward that day when the God of recompense would repay the enemies of God’s people for their injustices.  Babylon’s abuse of God’s people has not gone unseen by God and He will eventually hold this pagan nation accountable.  The Repaying God saw all that they had done and would not leave Babylon unpunished for her cruelty against His people.

If you’ve ever been treated unfairly, slandered, rooked in a business deal, or picked on by a bully, you can appreciate Jeremiah’s message about the Repaying God.  If we live long enough in this broken world, we eventually end up on the yucky end of the man’s inhumanity to man part of sinful human nature and when we are mistreated by others, it’s comforting to think that someday God will repay those who wrong us for their misdeeds.  We tend to polish our worship and whitewash our prayers, but Jeremiah’s example invites us to lay our feelings bare before the God who, in the end, will make things right.  My hunch is that our witness would be a lot more effective and God-honoring if our worship was a lot more authentic and honest like that.  Jesus taught us to “love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us.”  In order to do that, we have to be honest enough to admit that people have indeed hurt us and confess that hurt before God.  Those initial prayers might be something like, “God, shame this person who’s treated me so badly and bring justice upon them for their sins against me.”  If we truly leave the need to repay people in God’s hands, we can follow that prayer with a commitment to direct kindness and compassion toward them.  This seems to be what Paul had in mind when he instructed believers to:

Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. (Romans 12:17-21)

Are you harboring ill feelings toward someone who’s hurt you in some way?  Do we really believe that God will eventually set the record straight?  If so, can we then commit to pray for this person (even if it’s a prayer that God would shake them to repentance)?  Are we willing to take that prayer a Jesus-honoring step forward and commit to direct intentional goodness toward this person like what Paul describes?  If we will do that, God just might lead us past the sting of bitterness and to the freeing place of living into His goodness and grace.