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Tuesday, October 24 2023
Good Morning Blood-Bought, Totally Forgiven, Seen-As-Righteous, Heaven-Bound, Very Loved Child of God! That is your true identity in Christ! Believe it! Receive it! PTL! You are those and many more in Christ. If you don't know these things for sure, you can and you can learn to operate from this true identity. You are God's workmanship and masterpiece. His Word tells you so (Eph. 2:10). And according to this Scripture, when you receive Christ as your Lord and Savior, you step into your new nature and true identity that you were created to be from before you were born and now enabled and empowered to do the things you were created for. God is so good and loving and He even sends a helper, The Holy Spirit to seal the deal and assure you that you are His and that Helper helps you do all you were created to do as you grow into your fuller potential in Christ. What a blessing! What love God has lavished on us and made available to all who will come! Rejoice! Be who you were created to be, made new in Christ and fulfill your created purposes. What an awesome God we know and love! As Solomon says in Ecclesiastes, "Love God and enjoy life."
Now we do know all this, but sometimes life has a way of kicking us in the gut. It can be hard to remember or believe at times that God really loves you, is with you, and these things are true. Don't be fooled by Satan or your own foolish thinking! Jesus warned us to expect hardships, trials, temptations and even hate because we love Him. People often say that the Bible says, "God won't give you more than you can endure." However, they take that out of context. That passage is talking about temptations and that God always provides a way out of sin. God does test us or allow circumstances to take us way past what we think we can endure so we learn to rely on Him. He is always with us, knows us, loves us eternally and wants us to rely on Him as we learn to stand firm in faith and carry on no matter what we face in life. Jesus faced all we will ever face and more and He leads us to overcome as we persevere and grow in faith.
Our salutation above is from TWFYT (below). They are in the midst of several days of teaching about the armor of God. Stand behind that shield of faith! Put on your helmet of salvation and tighten that chin strap and wield the sword of the Spirit, God's Word against our enemy. Check our ODB (below) and their reminder to not loose heart. Life may be debilitating, but God is always with us and some day we will be fully healed in His presence. Persevere in faith. Stand firm in Christ. Keep praying and releasing His power on earth. And read about, as a reminder, of God's loving faithfulness and help for us in the UR (below).
Jesus has experienced all we will and more and promises to be with us always and sent us a Helper to lead us through and even intercede for us when we don't know what to pray. He has given us His Word to memorize and use against Satan and spiritual attacks and shown us how to put on His armor and stand firm in faith. PTL, right? Yet sometimes we still get bogged down in our own pity-parties. Jesus reminds us to hold loosely to our agendas and desires and expectations. If you are reading the Gospel of John with us, we are in John 12. Jesus reminds us in John 12:25, "Those who love their life in this world will lose it. Those who care nothing about their lives in this world will keep it for eternity." Jesus was troubled by His soon coming crucifixion. But He chose to endure it for each of us, His beloved children. He reminds us that sometimes we have to die to our own wants and desires to go and live and love well. He commands us to love like He loved us. That's agape, dying to self love, for the sake of others or to advance God's kingdom, or to grow into our fuller potential and greater purposes we were created for.
Because of Christ and His agape love, we can endure, grow and become the people we were created to be. He promises to be with us always and always be at work working all things together. This world and our life on it are just a breath. We have a whole promised eternity ahead where everything will be made right and our purposes will continue when we step into our best new nature and live fully. Our faith WILL become sight! Amen! Remember who and Whose you are! You are a "Blood-Bought, Totally Forgiven, Seen-As-Righteous, Heaven-Bound, Very Loved Child of God!" Write that down. Memorize this truth and stand on that fact always! You are loved for eternity! Amen!
May we keep standing firm in Christ as we learn to pray, go, serve, live and love like Him no matter what the day brings! For we do know Who brings the day! And He has great plans for you, His beloved!
Check out this link from Harvest Prayer for learning to pray to set people from from whatever has them bound: https://www.onecry.com/blog/uncategorized/prayer-that-sets-people-free?rq=prayer and this link to Kim's Blog for learning how to pray out loud. Spoken and pronounced out loud prayers carry great power! https://www.harvestprayer.com/prayer-faq/how-can-i-learn-to-pray-out-loud/
The Word for You Today:
Our Daily Bread:
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I don’t remember a time when my mom Dorothy was in good health. For many years as a brittle diabetic, her blood sugar was wildly erratic. Complications developed and her damaged kidneys necessitated permanent dialysis. Neuropathy and broken bones resulted in the use of a wheelchair. Her eyesight began to regress toward blindness.
But as her body failed her, Mom’s prayer life grew more vigorous. She spent hours praying for others to know and experience the love of God. Precious words of Scripture grew sweeter to her. Before her eyesight faded, she wrote a letter to her sister Marjorie including words from 2 Corinthians 4: “We do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day” (v. 16).
The apostle Paul knew how easy it is to “lose heart.” He describes his life as one of danger, pain, and deprivation (2 Corinthians 11:23–29). Yet he viewed those “troubles” as temporary. And he encouraged us to think not only about what we see but also about what we can’t see—that which is eternal (4:17–18).
Despite what’s happening to us, our loving Father is continuing our inner renewal every day. His presence with us is sure. Through the gift of prayer, He’s only a breath away. And His promises to strengthen us and give us hope and joy remain true.
By Cindy Hess Kasper
REFLECT & PRAY
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What’s causing you to be discouraged or “lose heart”? Which Scriptures are especially encouraging to you?
Precious Father, thank You for Your faithful love for me and the assurance of Your presence.
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SCRIPTURE INSIGHT
Paul begins 2 Corinthians with heartfelt words of comfort (1:3–7) and returns to that theme in 4:16–18. In tandem with this comfort, however, he relates the difficulties he and his coworkers have endured: “We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself” (1:8). In chapter 4, he says, “We are hard pressed on every side” (v. 8), “persecuted” and “struck down” (v. 9). We “carry around in our body the death of Jesus” (v. 10). But Paul is quick to note that we’re “not abandoned” (v. 9) and adds, “we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us with Jesus and present us with you to himself” (v. 14). That’s why he can bracket this chapter with the theme of hopeful perseverance: “We do not lose heart” (4:1, 16).
Tim Gustafson |
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The Upper Room: Like A Mother and Father
From my birth I have leaned upon you, my protector since my mother’s womb. My praise is continually of you. - Psalm 71:6 (NRSVUE)
Our family is large. I am the youngest of six siblings — three girls and three boys. I lost both my mother and my father when I was very young, and my elder brothers and sisters raised me. Following my mother’s death from cancer, I felt utterly alone. I often cried, thinking, Why should I live? Jesus take me. I have no one to love me the way she did. But I have taken comfort in Psalm 23. My mother often recited these verses when I held her hand and went on walks with her or when I accompanied her to the hospital.
Now I am a grown woman with my own family, a career, and an independent life. Psalm 23, the passage my mother taught me when I was young, still comforts me; it gives me hope when I face sickness, sadness, or other challenges. As I recite that psalm from memory, joy and peace prevail in me. I have learned to look to God when I need my mother’s love and also when I need my father’s love. I know that God loves me and cares for me. God can comfort me like a mother and like a father.
TODAY'S PRAYER
Loving God, thank you for comforting your children. Thank you for your continuous guidance and favor. Amen.
Monday, October 23 2023
Good Morning Partners! Yee Ha! It's another week of blessings and favor as we worship, surrender, and ask Jesus to lead us to be a blessing to Him and others! Rejoice and put on those coveralls under your armor. Our attitudes are affected by our choices and focus. Keep your eyes focused on Jesus and your heart open to His directing. Watch and see that He is with you, at work and always loving! Amen!
Father, thank You for Your love, amazing grace, presence with us always and always lovingly working things together for good. Thank You for allowing us to choose and helping us to choose well. We humble ourselves before you today and ask that You would be the Lord of our lives, choices and week. Your will be done! Show us who to partner with to encourage and be encouraged, to discern, process and put into action Your perfect plans. Expand our territory and Your Kingdom. Father, forgive us for clinging too tightly to our plans and agendas. Forgive us for lagging behind or running ahead. Forgive us for leaning on our own understanding. Forgive our fear and lack of faith. We trust! Forgive our unbelief and help us to hold loosely to our plans and allow You to work yours out through us and in us. Lord we put on Your armor in prayer right now and are determined to stand firm in You and on Your Word, We proclaim Your promises over our lives and situations. Come! We wait on You! Thank You for loving us and working all things together for good. Thank You for equipping and empowering us to go love like Jesus. Show us who, how and when and teach us to make disciples of the harvest you are bringing to us. Prepare the way for Sunday to be a day we bless many and many feel and experience Your love and are drawn to You. use us Lord! We offer ourselves as an act of worship and obedience. Fulfill Your plans for each of us and us together today and this week and for weeks to come. Thank You for all the blessings including creating us for such a time as this! Mat=y we steward well all Your blessings and be about Your business and do so well. Thank You! We ask these things in the name of Jesus. May He become known all around us this year! Amen!
May you all be filled with the joy of your salvation today as you choose to live and love like Jesus and follow His shalom! Amen!
Our Daily Bread:
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God doesn’t help those who help themselves; He helps those who trust in and rely on Him. Jonathan Roumie—the actor who plays Jesus in the successful TV series The Chosen, which is based on the Gospels—realized this in May 2018. Roumie had been living in Los Angeles for eight years, was nearly broke, had enough food just for the day, and had no work in sight. Not knowing how he would make it, the actor poured out his heart and surrendered his career to God. “I literally [prayed] the words, ‘I surrender. I surrender.’ ” Later that day, he found four checks in the mail and three months later, he was cast for the role of Jesus in The Chosen. Roumie found that God will help those who trust in Him.
Rather than being envious of and fretting over those “who are evil” (Psalm 37:1), the psalmist invites us to surrender everything to God. When we center our daily activities on Him, “trust in [Him] and do good,” “take delight in [Him]” (vv. 3–4), and surrender to Him all our desires, problems, anxieties, and the daily events of our lives, God will direct us and give us peace (vv. 5–6). As believers in Jesus, it’s vital for us to let Him determine what our lives should be.
Let’s surrender and trust God. As we do, He’ll take action and do what’s necessary and best.
By Marvin Williams
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What parts of your life are off limits to God these days? What will it mean for you to surrender your life to Him today?
Dear God, please help me to surrender to You freely today and experience Your life and peace.
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SCRIPTURE INSIGHT
Psalm 37 is one of many “wisdom psalms,” so-called because they teach us to cultivate a long-term mindset, fixing our hearts and minds on what’s truly important rather than living for short-term gain. In Psalm 37, David deals with the same perplexity that Asaph struggles with in Psalm 73—the wicked prosper, while the godly suffer unjustly. Psalm 37 is a psalm of promise for those who seek God and a psalm of disaster for those who fail to do so. David tells those who suffer unjustly not to fret, be envious, or be angry, for God will punish the evildoers (vv. 1–2, 7–10, 35–38). Instead, the godly are to patiently trust and rest fully in Him and to continue to live lives set apart for God (vv. 3–8). The assurance is that “the Lord upholds the righteous” (v. 17) and “will not forsake his faithful ones” (v. 28).
K. T. Sim |
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Charles Stanley:
Don 
Sunday, October 22 2023
Good Morning Chosen, Loved, Prudent Disciples and Apostles of Jesus! What love God has lavished on us, His chosen and very loved learners and sent ones! We gather today to worship, praise, pray, receive, and prepare to go forth in His love!
Prepare your hearts to worship as we gather at 10 in person and on Zoom to worship, listen and prepare to go forth in love. Pray that we would worship in Spirit and Truth this morning and for God to send some to join us. Pray for Mike as he leads children's church and for kids and all who come to see and be drawn to Christ. Pray for God to come inhabit our praise.
So God did it again this morning! Did you see the thread between all our devotionals? Check them out below as you still yourself and receive God's Word for you today. He sees and knows you and loves you as you are and sends you to go love like Him. Our journey may be hard and fraught with danger. We may shrink back and hide that we love Jesus or just try to blend in with this world. BUT God! He knows and still loves us and always forgives and keeps preparing us to go love well. Die to self, take up cross daily and allow Jesus to love through you. Be a world changer! Fulfill your created purposes, good and faithful servants! God has great plans for you today! Listen and follow well as we go love like Jesus and make disciples! Amen!
Did you sense the importance of partnering with others on this journey? We need to go forth with others, encourage each other, and help each other to discern well and be accountable to do what Jesus has planned. Pray for us to partner up and go forth in love well! Amen!
May God bless you abundantly today and you bless Him and others as you live out life as an act of worship! Amen! Shalom friends!
Charles Stanley:
Our Daily Bread:
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In 1892, a resident with cholera accidentally transmitted the disease via the Elbe River to Hamburg, Germany’s entire water supply. Within weeks, ten thousand citizens died. Eight years earlier, German microbiologist Robert Koch had made a discovery: cholera was waterborne. Koch’s revelation prodded officials in large European cities to invest in filtration systems to protect their water. Hamburg authorities, however, had done nothing. Citing costs and alleging dubious science, they’d ignored clear warnings while their city careened toward catastrophe.
The book of Proverbs has a lot to say about those of us who see trouble yet refuse to act. “A prudent person foresees danger and takes precautions” (27:12 nlt). When God helps us see danger ahead, it’s common sense to take action to address the danger. We wisely change course. Or we ready ourselves with appropriate precautions that He provides. But we do something. To do nothing is sheer lunacy. We can all fail to miss the warning signs, however, and careen toward disaster. “The simpleton goes blindly on and suffers the consequences” (v. 12 nlt).
In Scripture and in the life of Jesus, God shows us the path to follow and warns us of trouble we’ll surely face. If we’re foolish, we’ll barrel ahead, headlong into danger. Instead, as He leads us by His grace, may we heed His wisdom and change course.
By Winn Collier
REFLECT & PRAY
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When have you refused God’s wisdom? How can you better learn to respond to His warnings?
Dear God, please help me listen to You and turn away from danger.
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SCRIPTURE INSIGHT
In Proverbs 1, Solomon gives the purpose for this book, which includes receiving “instruction in prudent behavior” and giving “prudence to those who are simple [or gullible]” (vv. 3–4). To be prudent is to act with or show care for the future; to be wise in practical affairs. In the Old Testament, the word prudent appears nineteen times (seventeen in the book of Proverbs). The prudent “hold their tongues” (10:19), “overlook an insult” (12:16), “keep their knowledge to themselves” (v. 23), and “act with knowledge” (13:16). By contrast, fools “show their annoyance at once” (12:16) and blurt out (v. 23) and “expose their folly” (13:16). Moreover, the prudent “give thought to their steps” (14:15) and “are crowned with knowledge” (v. 18), while the simple “believe anything” (v. 15) and “inherit folly” (v. 18). Clearly, the path of prudence is the way of wisdom.
Alyson Kieda |
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Upper Room: Deny Me Not
After calling the crowd together with his disciples, Jesus said to them, “All who want to come after me must say no to themselves, take up their cross, and follow me.” - Mark 8:34 (CEB)
Preparing to meet my former boyfriend Mike’s friends for the first time, he advised me to hide my cross tattoo adorned with “Christ is King.” His friends, he warned, were atheists and welcomed opportunities to confront and mock people of faith. While I would love to say that I did not follow Mike’s recommendation, I did. Bundling up in the July heat, I ensured my tattoo was concealed. And when the subject of God came up, not only did I refrain from voicing my conviction and proclaiming how Christ changed my life, I remained silent altogether. Although I didn’t hear a rooster crow as Peter did, I felt sick. Through my embarrassed silence, I denied Christ.
Jesus advised that following him would not be easy, that we must deny ourselves, take up our cross daily, follow him, and be prepared to be criticized, hated, and persecuted because of him.
As we encounter those who may doubt, hate, or criticize us for our beliefs, let us never be ashamed of Jesus. Instead, may we remain steadfast, seizing every opportunity to share our faith and the love and forgiveness of Christ with a world hungry for hope.
TODAY'S PRAYER
Dear Jesus, help us to courageously profess and embody your message of hope, forgiveness, and love. Amen.The Word for You Today:
Saturday, October 21 2023
Good Morning Purposeful, God-Working-Through-You, Joy-Choosing, Lighthouses! So, pronounce that over yourself and our church. We are...(besides Penn State) Purposeful, God-Working-Through-You, Joy-Choosing, Lighthouses! And so much more in Christ! Amen! PTL! Funny, God-like really, how I journaled a prayer for us to be lighthouses and living more fully on purpose just as we are doing what we can with what God has provided before opening my devos! Cool! Thanks God!
It seems that God has been threading together our devotionals for the day again (see below). They have formed the salutation and prophesying over us this morning. I love when God does that! What's He saying to you? Did the Holy Spirit highlight the same thread for you?
God loves you so dearly and Jesus is standing with His arm around your shoulder reminding you of that and inviting you to join Him today on His walk. The Holy Spirit is opening God's Word for you and lighting the path ahead. Rest in the Lord and prepare for some adventures as you walk with Jesus to your purposes today. I think Charles Stanley's opening sentence sums up what I try to choose to remember daily and what God has inspired me to encourage you to: "God is working in you and on you today because He desires to work through you." You were custom made for custom purposes for such a time as this and God wants to help you achieve those as you grow into your fuller potential. His greater things for you are a journey and only He knows the important twists and turns along the way to get you there. So rejoice, relax at His feet a bit and allow Him to move you to where you will find the most joy and satisfaction in knowing you are doing exactly what you were created to do.
Enjoy some time with God as you meditate on these and receive your assignment for today with much faith and thanksgiving. Then just love God, trust and follow Him to a great day ahead. Enjoy! Go live and love like Jesus! Shalom!
Upper Room: Joy Comes in the Morning
Weeping may linger for the night, but joy comes with the morning. - Psalm 30:5 (NRSVUE)
In the bleak midwinter as I look out my window, I long for the joy of a beautiful sunny day. However, I know that one day the singing of the birds will announce the arrival of spring.
I have many dark and dreary days now because of the loss of my daughter and son-in-law, who were in the prime of their lives. As I talk with God I am comforted, and God lets me know that my family and I are not alone. God has given us strength and hope for tomorrow. As the psalmist says, “Weeping may linger for the night, but joy comes with the morning.” I know that God’s “joy in the morning” gives us peace in our lives and the assurance that God loves us and is in control. With God’s love, our bleak days and nights can turn into beautiful, new mornings.
TODAY'S PRAYER
Almighty God, thank you for assuring us that you are with us and will lift us out of our despair. Thank you for giving us joy when we trust in your loving presence. Amen.
Charles Stanley:
Our Daily Bread:
Christ, Our True Light
I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness. John 8:12
READ John 1:1–14
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“Go to the light!” That’s what my husband advised as we struggled to find our way out of a big city hospital on a recent Sunday afternoon. We’d visited a friend, and when we exited an elevator, we couldn’t find anyone during weekend hours to point us to the front doors—and the brilliant Colorado sunlight. Roaming around half-lit hallways, we finally encountered a man who saw our confusion. “These hallways all look the same,” he said. “But the exit’s this way.” With his directions, we found the exit doors—leading, indeed, to the bright sunlight.
Jesus invited confused, lost unbelievers to follow Him out of their spiritual darkness. “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life” (John 8:12). In His light, we can see stumbling blocks, sin, and blind spots, allowing Him to remove such darkness from our lives as He shines His light into our hearts and on our path. Like the pillar of fire that led the Israelites through the wilderness, Christ’s light brings us God’s presence, protection, and guidance.
As John explained, Jesus is “the true light” (John 1:9) and “the darkness has not overcome it” (v. 5). Instead of wandering through life, we can seek Him for direction as He lights the way.
By Patricia Raybon
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What areas in your life need the purifying light of Christ? When you seek His light, what stumbling blocks will you avoid?
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SCRIPTURE INSIGHT
John declares, “In the beginning was the Word” (1:1), which immediately establishes a connection to Genesis 1:1. The apostle tells us this creator of the world is also our very life and light (John 1:4), and in verse 14, he plainly identifies this Word as Jesus. John will return to this theme in his first letter when he says of Christ: “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes . . . and our hands have touched—this we proclaim concerning the Word of life” (1 John 1:1). John recorded what he directly observed. His writings are a firsthand account of God in the flesh.
Tim Gustafson |
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The Word for You Today:
Don
Rev. Don Kerns
Friday, October 20 2023
TGIF=Thank God I'm Forgiven! If you don't know that for sure, you can! Talk to Jesus and some good Christian friends.
We are still collecting the Rally Day offerings which will be used to fund our new "IN" account. This account is being used to purchase teaching materials and decorations, supplies, and food for our "IN" gatherings.
Mark your calendars and RSVP with Lori (610-657-0583) for our brunch next Sun after worship. We will begin with kids trick or treating around tables before food is served at 11:30. There will be other Halloween activities for the kids. Bring some friends! (next one is Nov 26th)
New Event: Thanksgiving Eve Eve meal and worship on Tues Nov. 21st 6pm.
We are reading through the Gospel of John for the rest of the year. This week is John 11 and next week 12. Sunday's message is on John 9. Prepare and read John 9-11. God is speaking to you. What's He saying?
Good Morning Worshipers! Everything we do can be an act of worship when we live our lives surrendered to and focused on God. Trusting and praising in the storms is how we roll. We know God is with us, working ALL things together for the good of those who believe. So, even in the storms we can and should praise as we trust God and take each step with Him! God is omniscient, He knows everything. He's omnipresent, present everywhere all the time. God is in control. He knows you and calls you by name to come to His Love, joy, peace, protection, provision and many more blessings! What a praiseworthy God we know and love! Check out the UR devo below. God directed me to write the above before I found the UR online right before I was ready to send this. I love how God directs like that so often when we seek and allow Him to. Be still and know and then go and know that you are loved, protected, provided for and have a special assignment along the way.
We are learning to allow God to direct our steps towards all the things He created us to do. He has very good plans for you everyday! Your life has custom made purposes just for you. We are learning how to seek and follow God to the paths He has laid out for us. We are custom made masterpieces of our Master! PTL! When we come to Christ in faith as our Lord and Savior, we receive the Holy Spirit and His gifts and God's enablement and empowerment to achieve our created purposes. Watch for God to be at work everyday and determine to join Him in the things He has just for you. Then praise and worship! We should have stories to share weekly of how God used and grew us. Let us celebrate those works of God together! I'm praising God for the servant church he called me to serve. We are a great team with many stepping into their custom made purposes very well. We are using what we have to do what we can, what God has prepared for us, individually and as His church. PTL! You guys are a blessings and share God's love, hope and help well! keep praising for our servants and praying for how God wants to use Y-O-U for such a time as this. Check out the Charles Stanley devo below for more on how to find the best path. God will show you as you continue to surrender and determine to follow daily.
Jesus is our Good Shepherd! PTL! We know His voice and follow Him when He calls. Just enjoy life in Christ today and worship as you travel through this day with Him! Shalom!
Upper Room: God's Loving Hands:
I am the Lord your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you. - Isaiah 41:13 (NIV)
When I was suffering from endometriosis, I would have intense episodes of pain. The only way I could get any relief was to lie flat on my stomach. Praying for help when a wave of severe pain would hit, I would make a fist, squeeze it tight, and imagine that Jesus’ hand was holding mine. Before long I would doze off, and, on waking, the pain would be gone.
The Bible has a lot to say about the power of being held by God’s hands. In Psalm 139, David praises God’s constant presence: “If I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast” (vv. 9-10). The people of Israel were comforted when God told them not to fear and promised, “I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand” (Isa. 41:10). In Acts 2:25, Peter recalls that David said God was always with him: “Because [God] is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.”
We can take heart in the fact that God never lets go of us. We are held always in God’s powerful and loving hands.
TODAY'S PRAYER
Steadfast God, thank you for holding us in your righteous right hand — no matter where we go or what is happening in our life. Amen.
Charles Stanley:
Thursday, October 19 2023
Good Morning Patiently Waiting Kingdom Seekers! Patience, patiently waiting and seeking first God's Kingdom are choices we need to make, maybe hourly. How are you doing with that. I already had the opportunity to choose to be patient and allow God to be the Lord of my day and it's only 7 AM! Old nature me would have been all grumbling, mad, and all jammed up trying to get my urgent agenda done. New me is still here seeking God and listening and writing this blog which is my journal notes for today. We are learning and growing into our new nature. We are getting better at seeking first His Kingdom and righteousness. We are getting better at patiently waiting and better at choosing well from all kinds of other choices that come our way daily, even hourly. PTL! Keep working at choosing better. Ask Jesus to be the Lord of your day as you actively, expectantly, with thanksgiving trust Him and stay active about His Kingdom business assigned you for today. AMEN! So be it! Help us Lord!
Check out our devos for today below and just pray into these and allow them to inform your thinking and choices today. God has great plans for you! Rejoice!
PTL for the amazing journey He has allowed us to choose to enter with Him! Keep your eyes fixed on Him. Keep seeking first His kingdom and righteousness and keep trusting as you actively wait on Him. And know His shalom! Amen
Check out
Upper Room: Amazing Journey
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. - Proverbs 3:5-6 (NIV)
On a September evening in 1967, I was camping out on the side of an extinct volcano on the island of Rishiri, near the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido. The sky was blue-black and the stars brighter than imaginable. As I admired the beauty of God’s handiwork, I began thinking about my life. Soon I would be 21. Where would I be decades from now? What would I be doing?
Now, 54 years have passed. Several years ago, I realized that my questions that evening on Mount Rishiri, and all those questions I had about life in those early adult years, had been answered.
The verses quoted above were written in the front of a small Bible my girlfriend (now my wife of 55 years) gave me as I entered the US Air Force. While those words meant much to me in my early years, they mean even more to me now in the autumn of life.
Looking toward the future, I have only a few simple questions remaining in comparison to those early years. Yet one thing I know for certain: by trusting my Creator, living the way of Christ, and being surrounded by my Christian family and friends, my remaining questions will be answered by a faithful God.
TODAY'S PRAYER
Dear Lord, thank you for your guidance as we make our way through life. We trust you to direct our steps on this remarkable journey. Amen.
Our Daily Bread:
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The morning commenced like a track meet. I practically jumped out of bed, launching into the teeth of the day’s deadlines. Get the kids to school. Check. Get to work. Check. I blasted full throttle into writing my “To Do” list, in which personal and professional tasks tumbled together in an avalanche-like litany:
“ . . . 13. Edit article. 14. Clean office. 15. Strategic team planning. 16. Write tech blog. 17. Clean basement. 18. Pray.”
By the time I got to number eighteen, I’d remembered that I needed God’s help. But I’d gotten that far before it even occurred to me that I was going at it alone, trying to manufacture my own momentum.
Jesus knew. He knew our days would crash one into another, a sea of ceaseless urgency. So He instructs, “Seek first [God’s] kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well” (Matthew 6:33).
It’s natural to hear Jesus’ words as a command. And they are. But there’s more here—an invitation. In Matthew 6, Jesus invites us to exchange the world’s frantic anxiety (vv. 25–32) for a life of trust, day by day. God, by His grace, helps us all of our days—even when we get to number eighteen on our list before we remember to see life from His perspective.
By Adam Holz
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How can we turn to God first each day? On stressful days, what helps you trust Jesus with things demanding your immediate attention?
Father, thank You for your invitation to relinquish my anxiety and to embrace the life of abundant provision You offer me each day.
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SCRIPTURE INSIGHT
Much of God’s kingdom consists of what’s unseen. In Matthew 6:1, Jesus pointed out that the Pharisees were doing their good deeds to be seen by others. In contrast, He instructs us to give to the poor without others noticing (vv. 1–4). He tells us to pray in secret (vv. 5–6) and not to amass treasure in this visible world but in the world to come (vv. 19–20). Yet the life of faith also includes a trust in our heavenly Father because of what can be seen. Here Jesus points to the birds and the lilies as evidence of His care for us (vv. 26–34).
Tim Gustafson |
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Charles Stanley:
The Word for You Today:
Don
Wednesday, October 18 2023
Good Morning Talented, Useful Servants of the Lord! Many wonder how they could be of any use to God. Sometimes this is a result of sinful choices and thinking one is beyond forgiveness. We know better, but that still enters our thinking at times. Some think they are too old, weak, untalented, you can add whatever your excuse is. BUT GOD! You were created with talent and abilities to accomplish God's purposes. Your purposes are not like anyone else's. You are uniquely and custom made for many purposes of God that align with your abilities, knowledge, age, and situations of life. Think about the evangelist (can't remember his name right now) that was born with no arms and legs. He has speaking engagements all over the world where He proclaims God's goodness, mercy and love. We all have purposes from God for today and everyday where we grow into His greater things. We were created with purpose. Our lives have meaning no matter the stage of life we are in. And we all are needed to do our part in God's Body. Again, something everyone can do, and were given the ability to be effective at conversion, is pray! Everything God has for us as individuals and His Church is birthed from prayer. Pray-ers are VITAL in our Good News Delivery Co. Check out this blog from Harvest Prayer Ministries about Prayerfully Growing Our Church: https://www.harvestprayer.com/book-of-acts-praying-best-practice-for-church-growth/ and keep praying and birthing God's will for St. Matts! He has great plans for us awaiting our prayers! Check out the UR devo below too with the reminder that God does hear our prayers. ODB reminds us to use what we have for Christ. That describes St. Matts. and our ministries and why we are a pretty healthy church. We have discovered that if we focus on using what we've been given for God's glory, He uses and blesses and grows. To those who are faithful in little, more will be added. Amen! Stop longing and craving things you don't have. Be content with and use what God has given. He promises to provide where He guides. And He is faithful to do so! PTL! Look at your life and discover what God has given you that He has provided for you use to go love others. We all have purposes that God is leading us too and He gives us what we need to do them. If His provision isn't there, stop banging your head against the closed door. Ask for eyes to see His provision for you (and us for our church) and follow His peace and provision. As we faithfully do and steward well all His blessings, more doors will open and more provisions will come. You are uniquely designed and provided for to fulfill your created purposes for such a time as this. It's Jesus' easy yoke you get to put on when you discover and do them. Let us continue to pray for eyes to see, others to see and encourage each other to God's best. Ask Him to grow us into our fuller potential where we will find much joy and satisfaction in Christ. Amen!
Praying and releasing provisions and direction and using what you have for God's glory is our mission. As we continue to grow at that, we will grow into the dynamic movement of God that He is opening the door for us to step through. PTL! Seek, knock, shed the baggage and maybe even the good and better things for God's best. He is lovingly leading you to your purposes and growing you in preparation for the life to come! Rejoice! Know His shalom and blessings and be filled with great joy! Amen!
Upper Room: God Hears Us
Then those who feared the Lord talked with each other, and the Lord listened and heard. A scroll of remembrance was written in his presence concerning those who feared the Lord and honored his name. - Malachi 3:16 (NIV)
A friend and I meet monthly to pray. We share our worries and answered prayers then spend some time talking to God about these things. We have seen prayers answered over the years and have supported one another through difficult times.
One time, when we met to pray, my friend shared something that was really bothering her. It took her a long time to share her story, and all our time together was used up talking through this one incident. At the end of our time together, my friend was distressed because we had not prayed in our usual way. But throughout her story, I had asked her questions, and we had discussed what we thought Christ’s response would be.
I expressed to her my confidence that God had heard our conversation and was fully aware of the situation. God knew her heart’s desire was to honor God in the situation. Just as God heard the concerns of the Israelites when they were in Egypt, God hears us — before we even speak. Though we had not gone through our usual routine of talking and then praying, I know that God was present with us.
TODAY'S PRAYER
Heavenly Father, we thank you that you hear our words and know what is on our hearts. Amen.
Our Daily Bread:
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Ever heard of The Sewing Hall of Fame? Established in 2001, it recognizes people that have made “a lasting impact on the home sewing industry with unique and innovative contributions through sewing education and product development.” It includes individuals like Martha Pullen, inducted into the hall in 2005, who is described as “a Proverbs 31 woman who . . . never failed to publicly acknowledge the source of her strength, inspiration, and blessings.”
The Sewing Hall of Fame is a twenty-first-century invention, but had it been around during the first century in Israel, a woman named Tabitha might have been a lock for induction. Tabitha was a believer in Jesus and a seamstress who spent time sewing for poor widows in her community (Acts 9:36, 39). After she became ill and died, disciples sent for Peter to see if God would work a miracle through him. When he arrived, weeping widows showed him robes and other clothing that Tabitha had made for them (v. 39). These clothes were evidence of her “always doing good” for the poor in her city (v. 36). By God’s power, Tabitha was restored to life.
God calls and equips us to use our skills to meet needs that are present in our community and world. Let’s release our skills into the service of Jesus and see how He’ll use our acts of love to stitch hearts and lives together (Ephesians 4:16).
By Marvin Williams
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What talents and abilities has God given you? How can you use them to help people in need?
Dear Jesus, please help me to respond with love and compassion to the needs of others.
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SCRIPTURE INSIGHT
Jesus commanded His disciples to be His “witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8). Because of persecution, the believers “were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria” (8:1). Philip went to Samaria to preach the gospel (vv. 4–5) as well as Peter and John (v. 14). Luke highlighted Peter’s ministry in Lydda and Joppa (Acts 9:32–43), commercial towns with large numbers of gentiles. After raising Dorcas from the dead, Peter stayed in Joppa “for some time” (v. 43). While praying, he saw a vision of unclean animals (10:9–16), reiterating that “God has also given the Gentiles the privilege of . . . receiving eternal life” (11:18 nlt). It was from Joppa that Jonah sailed for Tarshish instead of going to Nineveh to tell gentiles about God (Jonah 1:3). It’s significant that from Joppa, God now calls Peter to proclaim the good news to the gentiles (Acts 10:24–48).
K. T. Sim |
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Don
Tuesday, October 17 2023
Good Morning Trusting, Faithful, Hope-Filled Disciples (learners) and Apostles (sent ones) of Jesus! Rise! Shine! Give God all the glory this morning! He has created you for some special purposes and some just for today! PTL! Maybe it's a day to learn something, maybe to go share some hope, maybe a day to be stretched some? No matter what the day may bring, we know who brings the day and He is worthy of all praise, honor, glory and obedience. It is a day to trust and obey! God's got some great plans for you, even if you can't see it yet through the fog or aren't sensing His presence or call. As you go through each day, step by step with the Holy Spirit, God will reveal some mission or purpose just for you, just as you are and just where He has placed you. So, rejoice, be glad and keep your eyes open and hold loosely to your plans and agenda and give them to the Lord of you and this day.
Check out our devotionals for today below. They all thread through this salutation and theme. God has custom made plans for you that require your trust that will grow your faith as you go share His love and your hope. We are learning as we go and growing more like Christ and into our fuller potential and God's greater purposes. PTL! Worship and ask for help to run your race well today--everyday. God promises to be with you each step and working all things together for good. He is trustworthy and faithful and we have much hope and love to share from our experiences. Go! Live and love life Jesus, sent ones, learners, trusting ones!
OK begin your day with some stretching as you praise and pray and prepare for exercising your faith and sharing your hope today...OK reach to the sky and praise the Lord and say, "I love you Lord!" Now open your arms and receive His love and help for today and stretch out your arms and ask Him to help you go love well today. Remember to breathe well too...Breathe out the junk and breathe in the Spirit's freshness..."YH-WH....YH-WH" Now go love well! You're ready! Remember as you breathe God is on your lips and filling your soul---Breathe in: YH and out: WH. (Remember the teaching that scholars believe that God's name (we add the vowels) Yahweh (YHWH) may have been a breath prayer sound "YH (in)-WH (out)" Therefore from first to last breath and everywhere in between we are praying and pronouncing God's name with every breath. We may not know what to pray but the Holy Spirit does and Jesus hears and takes our prayers to the Father. PTL! Right? YH...WH, YH...WH, YH...WH. Come fill us with Your love and words and send us today with willing hands and feet prepared by you. Thank You YHWH, my Lord, Savior, Helper, and Always-Near Friend. Your will be done. Come! Fill me today. YH...WH, YH...WH... Amen
ODB:
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I held up a picture of people sleeping under pieces of cardboard in a dim alley. “What do they need?” I asked my sixth grade Sunday school class. “Food,” someone said. “Money,” said another. “A safe place,” a boy said thoughtfully. Then one girl spoke up: “Hope.”
“Hope is expecting good things to happen,” she explained. I found it interesting that she talked about “expecting” good things when, due to challenges, it can be easy not to expect good things in life. The Bible nevertheless speaks of hope in a way that agrees with my student. If “faith is confidence in what we hope for” (Hebrews 11:1), we who have faith in Jesus can expect good things to happen.
What is this ultimate good that believers in Christ can hope for with confidence?—“the promise of entering his rest” (4:1). For believers, God’s rest includes His peace, confidence of salvation, reliance on His strength, and assurance of a future heavenly home. The guarantee of God and the salvation Jesus offers is why hope can be our anchor, holding us fast in times of need (6:18–20). The world needs hope, indeed: God’s true and certain assurance that throughout good and bad times, He’ll have the final say and won’t fail us. When we trust in Him, we know that He’ll make all things right for us in His time.
By Karen Huang
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How does the Bible encourage and give you hope and confidence? What are some things you can thank God for?
Dear God, my hope in You is firm and secure, not because my faith is strong, but because You’re faithful to do as You’ve promised.
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SCRIPTURE INSIGHT
The author of Hebrews is never identified. Scholars suggest Paul or even Barnabas, Luke, Clement, or Apollos. But no matter, the author clearly understood that his readers needed perseverance to face trials and persecution. Throughout the book, readers are encouraged to endure and hold fast to Christ (2:1–4; 3:7–4:13; 5:11–6:2). And in 10:39, they’re reminded that as believers in Jesus they “do not belong to those who shrink back and are destroyed, but to those who have faith and are saved.” Then in chapter 11, known as the “Hall of Faith,” the author commends the many men and women of the Bible who lived by faith and sometimes died because of it. Because of their witness and example, believers in Jesus are prompted to “run with perseverance the race marked out for [them]” (12:1). And he bolsters them with God’s promise: “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you” (13:5).
Alyson Kieda |
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Charles Stanley:
TWFYT:
Monday, October 16 2023
Good Morning Christlike Burden-Bearers! Jesus' command to love others as He loved us is coming to life in and through each of us and us as His Good News Delivery Co. This year I can see and feel the growth in many of you and through our Fellowship as we continue to work on growing into the people we were created to be, operate better out of our true identity and going and loving like Jesus! Thank you all for your parts and participation. We are God's Family and we are better together and making a difference as God loves and helps through us! PTL! And keep praying and serving and celebrating with much thanksgiving! God is good and His Goodness is alive in and through us!
Yesterday we heard a great word of God brought to us through Mike Laise! Thanks Mike! He was talking about putting on our Sunday best everyday by being who we were created to be and loving others as Christ daily. Some of that entails dying to self and being God's love as you travel through the moments of each day just doing random acts of kindness and allowing God to use these offerings. We may never know for sure if we planted seeds, watered, fertilized and had some small part in another's faith journey, BUT GOD knows! Life in Christ today is all about love and not about strict rule following like the Old Testament days. (Funny, the Leviticus chapters he shared are part of the Chosen episode this week) All the legalistic, forced adherence, guilt and fear is not part of God's plan for us today. Like a dog running to its master with excited-glad-your-home-let me kiss-you attitude is what should be motivating us today to live and love like Jesus. (NOTE: as the church janitor, I am glad I don't have to clean up after all those sacrifices! ) Are you a cat or a dog? Are you happy to be with the master, even after messing up or are you showing up to be served when you feel like it? May we all have Mike's passion to serve and love and lead others to Christ!
How's that song go that describes us??? They will know we are Christians by what??? Our grumbling? Pride? Finger-pointing? Apathy? Begrudgingly doing some things? Laziness? Unmeetable standards? Legalism? You know the answer! What are others seeing in your daily lives? God is Love. Love lives in us and longs to come alive through us. They will know and are beginning to experience God's love through our actions and love! PTL and Thank you all too! Many churches unfoundedly tell of how loving they are. We have THE Foundation-Love coming alive and meeting needs through us! Keep up the loving acts of kindness God is spurring you to do. They are custom made for you by our loving Father who leads you to go love like Him and empowers and equips you to do so. Check out our devotionals for today (below) that thread together loving others well, as we are, with what we got, and where we are in our faith journey. All God expects of us is to love. Love Him, others, ourselves and life in Christ. It's His easy yoke and joy-to-do love that blesses Him and others and ourselves too. Ask God to show you who needs some love today and how He has planned for you to respond. Pray for God to continue to open your eyes and heart and to continue to use you and us well. Thank Him for love, loving us and loving through us. Yes, God is love and others will come to know it as we love like Jesus. Pronounce God's Love over you, our church, your day, and in prayer over those you will encounter this week. Tell others how much God loves them and use words if you have to.
Who are we that You are mindful of us, O Lord? Yet You are and You love us so well! Thank You for Your love. Thank You for filling us to overflowing with Your love! Thank You for loving through us and blessing us as we bless and love others. We are truly blessed to go love like Jesus. Thank You! Love through us well today and everyday. Open our eyes, hearts and hands to love like You. May many see and experience You and Your love through us this week. Draw many to Your Love and bring new life. Thank You! We pronounce Your Love over this week and our church. May Your fame and love spread throughout the area as we love well. Our tails are wagging Lord because of Your love and care for us. May others come to find that joy in Your love this year through us. Here we are Lord. You know us, love us and have prepared us to go love. Thank You! Lead the way! May we live and love like Jesus more fully every day and go lovingly expand Your territory. May Jesus' love come to life as we lovingly ask in His name. Amen
Check out the link in ODB to discovery your God-given calling. Very helpful as we continue on growing into our created purposes! God custom made you with love to go love for such a time as this! Dwell in His love today--all day! Love you all! Shalom! I am pronouncing God's love over you right now in prayer. Do you feel it? Receive it!
Charles Stanley:
Upper Room: Burden-Bearers
Bear one another’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. - Galatians 6:2 (NRSVUE)
I had no idea when we bought our home that there were so many large rocks submerged under the soil. Trying to regrade and landscape the yard to create a rock garden proved quite formidable. I had only a shovel and a wheelbarrow — both inadequate for the heavy rocks I tried to lift by myself.
It was not until I called on my landscaper and his assistant that the biggest rocks could be unearthed and relocated. I was grateful for those who helped me build my rock garden, which is now filled with rocks of assorted shapes and hues.
How often we struggle alone to bear grief, pain, loneliness, anger, or regret. But our Christian faith is not meant to be lived in isolation; we are called to lift one another’s burdens. Only when others have reached out to me or I have sought help have my burdens been made lighter. Today someone may need our help — we may not even be aware of it. But when we choose to make a phone call or send an e-mail, a text, or a handwritten note, we may become a burden-sharer. No matter the method we choose in bearing another’s burdens, we are fulfilling Christ’s command.
TODAY'S PRAYER
O God, help us to follow the example of Christ by helping to bear the burdens of others. Amen.Our Daily Bread:
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Kizombo sat watching the campfire, pondering the great questions of his life. What have I accomplished? he thought. Too quickly the answer came back: Not much, really. He was back in the land of his birth, serving at the school his father had started deep in the rainforest. He was also trying to write his father’s powerful story of surviving two civil wars. Who am I to try to do all this?
Kizombo’s misgivings sound like those of Moses. God had just given Moses a mission: “I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt” (Exodus 3:10). Moses replied, “Who am I?” (v. 11).
After some weak excuses from Moses, God asked him, “What is that in your hand?” It was a staff (4:2). At God’s direction, Moses threw it on the ground. The staff turned into a snake. Against his instincts, Moses picked it up. Again, it became a staff (v. 4). In God’s power, Moses could face Pharaoh. He literally had one of the “gods” of Egypt—a snake—in his hand. Egypt’s gods were no threat to the one true God.
Kizombo thought of Moses, and he sensed God’s answer: You have Me and My Word. He thought too of friends who encouraged him to write his father’s story so others would learn of God’s power in his life. He wasn’t alone.
On our own, our best efforts are inadequate. But we serve the God who says, “I will be with you” (3:12).
By Tim Gustafson
REFLECT & PRAY
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What do you have that God can use? How might it encourage you to consider what He might do with you?
Father, with You I lack nothing, no matter the situation.
Discover your God-given calling.
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SCRIPTURE INSIGHT
Exodus 3:1–4:17 tells how God called Moses to deliver His people from Egyptian bondage. Moses protested, giving various excuses for why he was unfit for the job. He doubted his own identity and ability (3:11) and his lack of authority (v. 13). In chapter 4, Moses gave his third excuse: the lack of legitimacy and credibility (v. 1). Having been rejected by the Israelites forty years earlier (2:11–14), Moses argued that they wouldn’t believe that he was now divinely commissioned (4:1). To authenticate his commission, Moses was to offer three signs: a rod becoming a snake (vv. 2–5), his hands turning leprous (vv. 6–7), and water turning to blood (v. 9). These signs prefigured the realms of the plagues—blood (7:19), animals and insects (8:2–4, 16, 21; 9:3), and diseases (9:9)—that God would bring upon the Egyptians so that they too would know that He was the true God (7:5).
K. T. Sim |
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Sunday, October 15 2023
Rally Day offering will be to fund our new "IN" account that replaces our depleted Sunday School Fund and used for study materials, curriculum, and supplies for our "IN" gatherings.
Good Morning Children of the Son! Basking in the Son-light is awesome and you don't need sun block because you won't get burnt!   Today we get to gather and worship the Son of God and Son of Man, our Savior, Jesus! PTL! We have the opportunity to invite others along to meet Him and gather with us to worship and fellowship and we get to pray others into His and our family. PTL! Who are you praying for and who is God nudging you to invite. Pray into that with expectancy and thanksgiving! (one new person a month =12 new members by next year!) On Tues at 10 on Zoom our huddle will begin discussing and praying into God's provision. Plan to join us at 10 on Zoom!
In a few weeks we will get to the promise Jesus made in John 14:13 that whatever we ask in His name, He will do, "so that the Father will be glorified in the Son." Jesus is in heaven interceding for His righteous children (US!!!). PTL! We get to pray and ask for His will to be done according to His plans, timing and character. (1John 5:14). Check out the Charles Stanley devo below for more on that. What an honor and privilege to partner with Jesus in prayer, releasing His power and will! We are a people of prayer and our Good News Delivery Co. is loaded with prayer warriors! Pray for them to continue the hard work of prayer that births God's will on earth and in and through us. And PTL and thank God for all of our pray-ers! Thank you all! Continue your good work! God is hearing and answering!
Pray for Mike Laise as he brings God's Word alive to us today and pray for Sarah as she takes a rare and needed day off to visit friends and celebrate her birthday. Pray for all to have a wonderful and worshipful day. This is the day the Lord has made and we get to worship, fellowship, pray and bask in and share His love and Light! Amen! See you soon! Shalom!
Who is Jesus to you? What's He wanting to do in and through you? Talk to Him about that and PTL for all His love and good plans for you and us! And continue to praise and pray!
Here's 30 minutes of meditative prayer and praise music to get your day rolling as you connect to and listen and receive today in preparation to gather in worship! PTL! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=us0g-Z_Lfro
CS devo:
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LISTEN ONLINE
