Prevent the Sparks

Prevent the Sparks

Every year, sparks from hot campfires or careless matches start fires which consume millions of trees in beautiful forests. Once begun, these fires move unrelentingly through hills and valleys - nothing is safe from the fury of the flames.

Every year, sparks from hot tempers or careless words start fires which consume millions of lives in beautiful relationships. Once begun, these fires move unrelentingly through self-esteem and trust -- nothing is safe from the fury of the tongue.

James 3:5-6
"Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body…"

Our tongue has incredible power to build up and encourage, as well as tear down and destroy. And though our sins are eternally forgiven when we place our trust in Jesus, the day will come when our careless words are revealed and we see the full extent of the damage we've done; "men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken" (Matthew 12:36).

I confess that I often dread the day when I must account for every careless word. There are indeed many. Perhaps the purpose of that day is to permanently etch in our soul a full appreciation for God's love. Even with all my careless words, He loves me and wants to spend eternity with me in fellowship. Amazing! But how I long for better control.

David prayed that God would "set a guard over my mouth and keep watch over the door of my lips" (Psalms 141:3). While this is a wise prayer, our lips must be seen as an absolute last line of defense - once our words escape they can almost never be fully recovered. We must strive to control the sparks at the true source; "out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks" (Matthew 12:34).

If our heart is filled with the ways of the world, our mouth will naturally speak the world's wisdom which is "foolishness in God's sight" (1 Corinthians 3:19). Rather, we must fill our heart with the ways of God and allow our mouth to overflow with His love; "I have hidden Your word in my heart that I might not sin against You" (Psalms 119:11).

Have we been the cause of some raging fires or smoldering embers? If so, we must pray for healing and believe that "with God all things are possible" (Matthew 19:26). We must fill our heart with the power of His Word and "not let any unwholesome talk come out of our mouths" (Ephesians 4:29). Let's stop the destructive fires. Let's begin today to fill our heart with His Word and prevent the sparks.

Steve Troxel

Jars of Clay

Jars of Clay

2 Corinthians 4:7 - But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. (NIV)

Every time I hear today's Scripture read, I am reminded of a message I heard at a special disability awareness service I attended a few years ago. A special guest, Jeff Steinberg, was invited to share his personal testimony and the challenges of his handicap. Having malformed legs, and no arms or hands, Jeff shared a powerful sermon entitled, "You're A Masterpiece In Progress," a message about the exceptional plan God has designed for each of our lives. As a mother of a disabled child, I listened with special interest; little did I know God would be speaking directly to me and to anyone with or without a disability.

When my son was first diagnosed with autism in the early 1990s, not many people seemed to be familiar with that term. When I mentioned that my son was autistic, some thought I said he was artistic. I remember thinking how much I wished that were the case. I now realize, however, that God has a special plan for my son, despite his disability. We will not always understand why some people have more challenges than others, but I know one thing for sure: if we place our trust in God, He will use anyone for His glory.

Although it has been very difficult raising an autistic child, I really can't imagine that it should have been any other way. If I had a choice, would I still prefer my son to be artistic instead? I can only say that what the Lord has taught me through this experience I would not trade for the world. The prophet Isaiah records this message: "Yet, O Lord, You are our Father. We are the clay, You are the potter; we are all the work of Your hand." (Isaiah 64:8 NIV) We, being earthen vessels, were created so God can display His power through our weakness -- and the apostle Paul reminds us that our treasure is "the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ." (2 Corinthians 4:6c NIV)

Prayer: Lord, like clay in the hands of a potter, help us to be submissive to Your will. Mould and shape us according to the pattern of Your divine plan, and make us each a masterpiece of perfection created for Your glory. Amen.

Lori Ciccanti
Ocean View, Delaware, USA

The Good Thing about Bad Storms

The Good Thing about Bad Storms

When my wife gets her hand on the TV's remote control, which is seldom, she usually chooses something educational. The other night she was watching a feature on what the host called "good things hurricanes do." Well now, having seen some of the bad things hurricanes do, I was intrigued to hear about this. The feature told about these Australian pine trees that had somehow taken root in a place in Florida that hosted attractive plants which, in turn, attracted many beautiful birds and small animals. Well, as those pines grew and got tall (by the way, an experience I have never had personally!), they literally created a canopy over those plants, and they blocked out the sun. What had once been an area thriving with gorgeous plant and animal life became a stretch of sterile underbrush... until the hurricane hit. The storm literally snapped those trees in two. And the sun is back. The area is now a beautiful park with pools, greenery, flowers, herons, and lots of interesting wildlife. But it took a hurricane.

The storm blew in and removed what didn't belong there. I understand that. God has sent or allowed storms to come roaring into my life over the years, often with that same effect. It's true in nature, it's true in our lives - what devastates can also be God's tool to cleanse, improve and beautify!

There's a picture of that in Acts 27, beginning with verse 14, our word for today from the Word of God. The Apostle Paul is being transported to Rome for trial on a large cargo ship that's carrying 276 passengers. They suddenly get hit by a massive storm system that batters them and threatens to destroy them for two weeks.

The Bible says, "A wind of hurricane force... swept down from the island. The ship was caught by the storm... and we were driven along... We took such a violent battering from the storm that the next day they began to throw the cargo overboard. On the third day, they threw the ship's tackle overboard with their own hands."

Eventually, Paul is visited by an angelic messenger. Here's how Paul reported that visit to his fellow passengers: "Keep up your courage, because not one of you will be lost; only the ship will be destroyed. Last night an angel of the God whose I am and whom I serve stood beside me and said, 'Do not be afraid, Paul. You must stand trial before Caesar, and God has graciously given you the lives of all who sail with you.'"

Storms clarify the things that really matter and the things that really don't. In this case, they threw overboard cargo that they thought they needed but they didn't really need. Maybe that's what God is trying to get you to do as the storm's battering you; set some new priorities, get rid of some cargo you've accumulated - even some sin you've taken on – your stuff that just needs to go. Just as God clarified for Paul what really mattered - his life mission and the people on the ship - it could be that God wants to use your personal hurricane to get you to focus on the things that really matter. The ship may not make it, but it's the people who matter anyway! Maybe people you've been neglecting because you've been all about the ship and you've been all about the voyage. And your life's mission is what matters - the things God has given you to do that also may have been marginalized recently. That, too, will survive the storm.

The hurricanes of God seem devastating sometimes and they can hurt. But He also sends them to accomplish things that might not happen any other way... the cleansing that your life needs. The new priorities your life needs. He's removing what's been blocked the sun so something beautiful can grow there.

Ron Hutchcraft

Trust His Vision

Trust His Vision

After entering the promised land, the Israelites were ruled by a series of Judges. This time was characterized by God's discipline when the hearts of His children turned away, and deliverance when they repented and cried out for help. Unfortunately, this cycle was repeated many times! Deborah led the Israelites to forty years of peace, but then; "the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord, and for seven years He gave them into the hands of the Midianites". (Judges 6:1)

After seven years of oppression, "Midian so impoverished the Israelites that they cried out to the Lord for help" (Judges 6:6). The Israelites were living in such fear that when God answered their cry and called Gideon to be the next deliverer of Israel, he was "threshing wheat in a winepress to keep it from the Midianites" (Judges 6:11). Gideon would eventually lead a small army to victory and rule Israel for another forty years; but when God first called, he was fearfully sifting grain for his next loaf of bread.

Judges 6:14-15
"The Lord turned to him and said, 'Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian's hand. Am I not sending you?' 'But Lord,' Gideon asked, 'how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family.'"

Gideon was scared and saw himself as one with little worth, "the least in my family," but God saw the next brave leader of a nation. Gideon saw weakness, but God saw strength. Gideon saw his past failures, but God saw the future victories of a mighty warrior. Gideon's vision required him to fearfully work for his next loaf, but God's vision was calling Gideon to boldly lead many others closer to His side.

God sees each of us much differently than we see ourselves; "Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart" (1 Samuel 16:7). Not only does God see deeper, He sees with an expanded spiritual spectrum which we can scarcely imagine. Our Father is intimately aware of all our failings... and He loves us anyway! He not only sees who we are, but also who we will become as our heart is fully devoted to Him and we learn to walk in step with His Spirit. He sees every opportunity we will ever have to glorify His name.

Let's put aside the baggage of our past which clouds and distorts our view. Let's refuse to look through the filter of our present understanding and perceived limitations; "fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen" (2 Corinthians 4:18). God has called us into His Glorious Kingdom, uniquely equipped us for His service, and given us an assignment to share His love and truth. Our Heavenly Father sees our full potential as we walk in His strength. Let's answer the call and move forward with confidence as we trust His vision.

Steve Troxel

A Virtuous Woman

A Virtuous Woman

Ruth 3:11
"And now, my daughter, do not fear. I will do for you all that you request, for all the people of my town know that you are a virtuous woman."

Blaise Pascal, a 17th-century philosopher and theologian, declared, "The virtue of a man ought to be measured, not by his extraordinary exertions, but by his everyday conduct."

The people of Bethlehem had noticed Ruth's daily conduct, and that earned her the reputation of being a virtuous woman. She lived during the period known as the Judges, an era of Israel's history when "everyone did what was right in his own eyes" (Judg. 17:6). It was a time of loose morals, and, as she approached Boaz in the dark of night, her good intentions might have been misunderstood. But Boaz knew her reputation for virtue, and he had seen her conduct as she gleaned among the reapers. Based on this information, he had no question about her motives and no qualms in agreeing to do all that she requested.

God wants His people to live virtuous lives no matter what the rest of society does. Peter admonished, "But also for this very reason [the corruption of the world], giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue" (2 Pet. 1:5). In the midst of a society that appears to enjoy wallowing in the pigsty of immorality, it is imperative that we live with virtue. Why? Because virtuous living keeps us in close fellowship with God. In addition, it sets us apart as a witness to the cleansing power of Jesus Christ. At a time when once again "every man is doing what is right in his own eyes," you and I need to be distinguished as people of virtue.

Make sure your daily conduct reflects faith and virtue. In every respect, deal honestly with those around you. Keep not only your actions but also your thoughts from impurity. By doing so, you'll build for yourself the best reputation of all -- not of shrewdness or business acumen, but of virtue.

A life without virtue is a life without value.

Woodrow Kroll

The End of the Maze

The End of the Maze

During a break for our hard working Native American team, we took them to an action park. Many of them were attracted to the maze at the park. We love to capture team memories on video, so one of our guys managed to find a spot looking down on the maze to shoot some video. And, it's really pretty funny because everyone is running down these twisting passageways, hoping to be the first person to find the exit. Unfortunately, most of those passageways of course led to dead ends. So people are going full tilt, right into a dead end, hoping - even expecting - that this is the path that will get them where they want to go.

Now, there's a much bigger, much more important maze out there these days - the one that offers all kinds of paths to get to God. If you're an honest seeker, sincerely wanting to experience God for yourself, to know Him here and to be with Him when this life is over, frankly, there's a confusing assortment of roads out there. But the Bible's warning goes like this: "There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death" (Proverbs 14:12). In other words, a lot of seemingly promising paths in the spiritual maze end in an awful dead end.

But maybe you've already experienced the disappointment of some spiritual roads you've traveled. They've left you still without peace - still without fulfillment. So you've gone on searching. The trendy thing to do today is to go to the "buffet" route spiritually - don't fully commit yourself to any one way, just try a little of each. Then there's the "any god is fine" approach that seems so open-minded, so desirable. But we don't believe that about treating disease - any surgery, any medication is fine. We don't believe it about mathematics - either your sum or my sum is fine, even though they contradict one another.

If you want to come to a location where I'm waiting for you, you can't come any way you choose to any location you choose. Only I can tell you how to get where I am. Only God can tell us how to get where He is. And He has. The God of the Bible is unlike any other god in the world. Every other god, every other religion gives us a way to go looking for him. Only the God of the Bible comes looking for us, and dies for the sins that we deserve to pay for, and then comes back from the dead, and lives inside those who belong to Him, and makes it possible for us to know right here and now that we're going to go to heaven when we die.

The God of the Bible is Jesus Christ who says in John 14:6, our word for today from the Word of God, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me." He didn't say Christianity is the way - no religion is. The way that leads out of the maze; the way that leads to God's forgiveness, to personal peace and to heaven is the Man who died for every sin you have ever done and walked out of His grave to prove that He alone can give eternal life.

If you're tired of searching; if you're ready to find, Jesus is one step of faith away. Picture yourself at the foot of the cross where He loved you enough to die for you and tell Him that you want to be His from this day on. If you want a religion, go somewhere else. But if you want the relationship you were made for, well you tell Him today, "Jesus, I'm Yours." And I would encourage you to go check out our website as soon as you can today, simply because a lot of people have found some practical help and encouragement and assurance there about belonging to Jesus Christ. The website is YoursForLife.net. Or if you'd like to just call and get my booklet Yours For Life, I'd be glad to send it to you. The toll free number is 877-741-1200.

You don't have to keep looking for God anymore. He's come looking for you, and His name is Jesus. And He is everything that your heart has been restless for.

Ron Hutchcraft

THE KNOT'S GOT A NAME

THE KNOT'S GOT A NAME

"Call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you will honor me." Psalm 50:15

Down in the Florida Keys there's a bait and tackle shop named Capt. Hook's. It's crammed full of fishing 'stuff'. Small signs are on the walls, like "I've only got one nerve left, and you're on it." For some reason that came to mind as I was dealing with issues regarding my aging father, mainly about his driving the car. If you have an older parent, maybe you can relate to this: we didn't want him driving any longer. His eyesight was not too good and he had some senile dementia. He was determined to keep driving. Only around town, of course. "Just to church, and the cemetery. Maybe the bank or grocery, but only in the daytime."

One afternoon we got a call to come and get him; he'd been driving around for hours with no idea where he was. I don't know who I was more worried about, him or someone in another car he might hit. I did know I was coming to the end of my rope with the driving situation. I prayed a little bit about it, but actually I was trying to figure all of this out on my own.

There's a saying, "When you get to the end of your rope, tie a knot in it." It is best to go to the Lord first when we have problems. But when we don't, and all else fails and we're at the end of our rope, it's good to remember the knot's got a name. Jesus.

We prayed and I turned my dad and the whole situation over to the Lord. Not long after that, he decided to give the car away to someone very much needing transportation.

The plan is to remember to go to the Lord in prayer before I get to the end of my rope, and more importantly, Jesus is definitely the best 'knot' name.

Sally I. Kennedy

Caught Unprepared

Caught Unprepared

Marie was a teenage friend of ours, and Tom was the big guy she really cared about. It was a long-distance romance since she lived in New Jersey and he lived in the Midwest. So, needless to say, his visits were pretty special. And Marie knew he was coming the next Friday. So on Wednesday she attacked her room trying to get it under control. She was at the point where she had everything in piles covering the floor, and she was in her grubby clothes, all hot and sweaty and grungy, and her hair's matted down from the sweat. Suddenly, the phone rang. It was Tom telling her how much he was looking forward to seeing her. No sooner had she hung up than there was the man in her life standing at the door of her room. He had called from just downstairs. "Hi, Marie. Surprise!" She was flabbergasted, she was stunned, and of course, she was embarrassed at her condition and the condition of her room. All she could say was, "I didn't expect you to come this soon."

The Bible tells us that many people are going to respond the same way when Jesus comes back. They won't be ready, and they're going to say, "I didn't expect You to come this soon." Or maybe, "I didn't expect You at all." I hope that won't be you.

After describing what the world would be like just before He came back to earth, Jesus said in Matthew 24:42-44, our word for today from the Word of God: "Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect Him."

Unfortunately, a whole lot of people aren't ready to see Jesus. Many, many Bible scholars believe that the world we're living in today looks more like the kind of world that Jesus said He would return to than it has ever looked: events in the Middle East, in Europe, natural disasters, the move toward one world religion, one currency, one leader, the nation of Israel. The "Left Behind" series of novels about the end times for a long time dominated best-seller lists with each new release. Well, in our kind of world, people can sense almost instinctively that something big is coming, even that Jesus is coming.

And whether or not He returns to earth in three months or 300 years, He is for sure going to come for you and me some day when our life is over. And there's only one way to be ready for Jesus, and that is to have every sin you have ever committed forgiven by God. That's possible only one way: by pinning all your hopes on the One who died to pay for your sin. John 3:36 makes it very clear: "Whoever believes in the Son (that's Jesus, the Son of God) has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God's wrath remains on him." You can reject Jesus simply by doing nothing. And believing in Him means you've told Him that you are placing your total trust in Him to be your Rescuer from your sin.

If you've never done that, you're not ready to see Jesus; you are not ready for eternity. But you could be if you would make this your day to begin your personal relationship with The Lord Jesus Christ - going to sleep tonight saying, "I am ready, I am safe, I belong to Him, I gave myself to Him." If that's what you want, then I would encourage you to go to our website where an awful lot of people have found help and encouragement in beginning a relationship with Jesus and being sure they belong to Him. If you want that, would you go to YoursForLife.net? Or I'll send you my little booklet, "Yours For Life" if you'll call for it toll free at 877-741-1200.

It's important to be ready. Because once He comes, it's too late.

Ron Hutchcraft

Destroy the Ites

Destroy the Ites

Moses had led the people of Israel through the desert for 40 years and was now preparing them to cross the Jordan River into the promised land of Canaan. As part of this preparation, Moses reminded the people how God had provided for all their past needs and reviewed the laws by which God expected them to live; "and if we are careful to obey all this law before the Lord our God, as He has commanded us, that will be our righteousness" (Deuteronomy 6:25).

The people of Israel would be brought into a right relationship with God as they worshipped Him and obeyed His commands. But as they entered the promised land, there were many enemies which had to be removed.

Deuteronomy 7:1-2
"When the Lord your God brings you into the land you are entering to possess and drives out before you many nations - the Hittites, Girgashites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites, seven nations larger and stronger than you - and when the Lord your God has delivered them over to you and you have defeated them, then you must destroy them totally. Make no treaty with them, and show them no mercy."

These enemies posed a serious physical threat, but the longer term danger was to their spiritual survival. God wanted these "Ites" completely destroyed because their worldly gods would continually pull at the heart of His chosen people; "Be careful, or you will be enticed to turn away and worship other gods" (Deuteronomy 11:16).

This can be a difficult message with today's soft view of sin. But there is an important lesson for each of us who desire a close relationship with God. Today, Jesus has provided the path to righteousness; "This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe" (Romans 3:22). But God still desires the entirety of our heart and expects us to turn from anything which pulls us away from an unhindered and unrestrained devotion.

As he leads us into His promised land of rest and peace, there will always be enemies which entice us to turn from God, many temptations which compete for our time and thoughts... and for our worship. These "Ites" will appear stronger than our ability to conquer. But as we follow hard after God, He will grant us victory; "the Lord your God will drive out those nations before you" (Deuteronomy 7:22).

What enemies take us away from the worship of God? What addictions, activities, desires or fears are consuming our heart and keeping us from being focused on Jesus - keeping us from a closer relationship with our Heavenly Father? Let's be determined to possess the land and fully give our heart to God. Let's identify the enemies which hinder our walk and, without mercy, let's completely destroy the Ites.

Steve Troxel

A Vessel of Purity

A Vessel of Purity

When Jesus was asked to identify the greatest commandment, He said it was to "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength" (Mark 12:30). God wants ALL of our love! He has no desire to share our love with any of the little "gods" of this world; "For the Lord your God is a jealous God" (Deuteronomy 4:24).

Giving God the fullness of our love requires that we live a very focused and holy life; "But just as He who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do" (1 Peter 1:15). Our love must be intently focused on the holy things of God rather than the corrupted things of this world. Any time we allow our love for God to mix with our love for the world, the worldly love initially dilutes and eventually completely overtakes any love for God.

James 3:11-12
"Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? My brothers, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water."

Are we trying to walk on both sides of the fence? Do we maintain our "Godly" activities along side our "ungodly" activities? Do we praise God and discuss Biblical issues during certain portions of the week and then lust after the world during the other? If so, beware! The ungodly will soon overtake and totally consume the Godly... and we won't even be aware it's happening. If we're not careful, we will one day look at what consumes our attention and say, "How did I come to this place in my life? When did I leave God's path?"

The good news is we have been given the Holy Spirit as the Great Purifier. If we make the time to carefully listen, He will "guide us into all truth" (John 16:13). If we submit to His leading, He will strain, sift, distill, and refine until all that remains is the fresh and the pure.

Purity does not come by separation from the world, it comes as our heart is wholly separated unto God. We have been planted amongst the weeds of the world and there we will remain until the day of the great harvest (Matthew 13:24-30). But while we must live and minister among the things of this world, and while we can certainly be thankful for some of God's worldly blessings and provisions, we must never give our worship to the things of this world: "Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him" (1 John 2:15).

Jesus has made us into a new vessel and asked that we be filled with what is pure and holy. Let's stop mixing fresh and salty water, Godly and ungodly devotion. Let's commit every area of our life (without compromise!) to our Heavenly Father and glorify Him in all we do by becoming a vessel of purity.

Steve Troxel

Here to Serve

Here to Serve

What if we, God's people, shifted the way we treat people? What if we, God's people, stopped thinking about what people can do for us, God's people, and started thinking about what we, God's people, can do for them?

Oh, I know this is not anything new. Jesus has been telling us from the beginning that He saw people differently and that if we are going to be His people, then we should look at people differently. In fact, it was Jesus who said, "You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." (Mark 10:42-45, NIV)

That's what He said and that's what we know, but what if we started doing it? What if we started living like Him... here to serve, not to be served?

For instance, maybe we, God's people, could adopt the same policy as a popular Chick-fil-A whose employees are trained to say, "It's my pleasure." They take your order and say, "It's my pleasure." You thank them for handing you your sandwich at the drive-thru window and they say, "It's my pleasure." These people really act like it brings them pleasure to serve you. What if we, God's people, greeted people who come to our assemblies like it is our pleasure to have them join us?

Or, maybe we, God's people, should learn to treat strangers who came into our midst like a group of golfers were treated when we arrived at the FarmLinks Golf Club where every person we talked with asked, "Is everything okay?" "Is there anything we can do for you?" "We are really glad you are here?" "Let us know if there is anything we can do to make your stay here more enjoyable. We hope you'll come back to see us." What if we, God's people, made it obvious that we are glad when people visit our assemblies and made a point to tell them that we their time with us to be as enjoyable as possible, that we are really glad they are with us, and that we genuinely hope they come back?

Maybe we can learn something from the waiters and waitresses at one of our favorite restaurants, Maggiano's Little Italy, who work very hard to make sure that our dining experience is as good as it can possibly be. The workers are constantly scanning the patrons for an opportunity to bring more bread, refill a glass, clear away empty dishes, and make sure our meal is perfectly suitable to our tastes. They look for ways to serve. They don't wait to be asked and seldom make you wait for whatever you may need. What if we, God's people, looked for ways serve people? What if we stopped waiting for people to ask and making people ask, before we served them? What if we just served them? Whatever they want? Whatever they may need to make their experience as enjoyable as possible?

What if we, God's people, started trying to make one's encounter with Jesus and with His people an absolutely enjoyable experience? What if it became our goal to make "coming to church" such a positive experience that people would be talking about it days and weeks after? What if we went out of our way to treat people seeking to find Jesus like we really valued them, valued their time, and really wanted to help them find Him?

Maybe it is time we, God's people, imitated the One who came to serve. We too are here to serve.

Tom Norvell

God's Super Glue

God's Super Glue

Antiques and young children - this is not a good combination. It is, in fact, an invitation to disaster. Like that lovely antique teapot my wife had out years ago when the kids were little. And you know what happened: one moment a teapot, the next moment pieces of a teapot. But my wife quickly rallied to remedy the situation. She did not disown one of our children. She sent me out for a tube of some sort of super glue. And amazingly, she put those pieces together and recreated that old teapot, and that glue has held it together to this very day!

There are times when you and I can use a little "super glue" because it's us that's going to pieces. And that spiritual glue is available to you right now, if you know where to get it and you know how to use it.

In fact, our word for today from the Word of God is all about this powerful agent that can hold you together, no matter what. Hebrews 4:16 puts it this way: "Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." I studied that "grace to help us" in the original Greek words of the New Testament and I discovered that the word translated "help us" is used only one other time in the Bible. It's in Acts 27:17. Paul is on a ship that's literally being blown apart by a violent storm. The Bible says "they passed ropes under the ship itself to hold it together." There's that "help" word from Hebrews 4:16 except here it's about literally keeping the ship from coming apart in the storm.

God says that what His grace is able to do for you, He is able to help hold you together when the storm is intense and things seem to be breaking apart. He invites us to "approach the throne of grace with confidence." That word "confidence" means boldness and frankness. So when you start to pray, you go to your Lord boldly, talking, not in fancy "prayer-ese" language, but with straight talk. You tell Him how it really is, how you really feel, and how much you need Him.

The Bible says that when you do that, you can "find grace." I like the deeper meaning of the Greek word that we translate as "find" here. It means to "come upon" or to "discover." There's almost an element of surprise in it: "Wow! Look what I just found! All this grace, lots of grace... to hold me together in this situation right now!" When the verse says "grace to help us in our time of need," the original language is saying help that comes at just the right time, not before you really need it, not after you really need it, but right on time.

So this is one power-packed invitation from the One who rules the galaxies from His "throne of grace." To come into His throne room boldly and honestly, reaching out to put in our hands the exact resources we need for this moment, this challenge, this situation, or this need. He will respond with a flood of grace, just the kind of grace you need right now: suffering grace, waiting grace, deciding grace, grieving grace, single grace, physical grace, emotional or financial grace.

But the grace doesn't just come to you automatically. You have to go for the grace that this moment requires! And so often we don't. We struggle, we worry, we scheme, never going to the Grace Throne for the answers or the resources we need. We could be rich; we live in unnecessary poverty. We need to accept this incredible invitation many times a day and pray aggressively, not passively; boldly, not timidly; specifically, not generally. And it's all available to us because of Jesus. We come there because He died to make it possible for us to get this close to the God of the universe.

There is never any reason you need to go to pieces. The grace glue of your God can hold you together, no matter what hits you!

Ron Hutchcraft

A Lifetime of Transformation

A Lifetime of Transformation

Salvation is a work of the Spirit, a "circumcision of the heart" (Romans 2:29), for those who truly believe in Jesus Christ. This miraculous work of the Spirit will always cause a change and will always produce fruit. However, we must balance this truth with the understanding that spiritual change is a transformation which is sometimes painfully slow. Each new creation in Christ is given the Holy Spirit as a guide, but we will spend the rest of our life learning who we really are in Christ and how to "keep in step with the Spirit" (Galatians 5:25).

Even Paul recognized his spiritual maturity was not complete. He had the unique opportunity to receive truths and understanding directly from God; "this is what we speak, not with words taught by human wisdom, but in words taught by the Spirit" (1 Corinthians 2:13), but Paul still fell short of God's glory and had to strive to reach the place Christ desired.

Philippians 3:10-12
"I want to know Christ and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in His sufferings, becoming like Him in His death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me."

Paul knew the goal of his life was to bring glory and honor to God by living in the fullness and power of the resurrection. He knew he was to live a submitted life as one who was born "into an inheritance that can never perish" (1 Peter 1:3-4). But he also knew he had not fully attained this goal.

At the moment of salvation, Jesus "took hold" of our life. Every single day we are given a new opportunity to pick up the pieces and bring Him glory and honor in ALL we do as we "press on toward the goal" (Philippians 3:14). We only arrive at the goal when we are called Home and see Him face to face, when we are fully "transformed into His likeness" (2 Corinthians 3:18). But until that time, we are to press forward in the obedience of worship, holiness, and eternal priorities.

No matter how difficult our current circumstances, how terrible our past mistakes or how seemingly hopeless our future, the only step under consideration is our very next. We must begin today to live as a new creation in Christ who desires to step in obedience and glorify His name. Then, we must continue to walk through a lifetime of transformation.

Steve Troxel

Onward Christian Soldiers

Onward Christian Soldiers

The true story is told of a young Christian scholar, Sabine Baring-Could, who lived in England. Rev. Sabine enjoyed working with young boys and girls. He started a school attended by young men and women, as well as children, on every winter evening. The education he provided was all that some could afford during that time. Not only did Sabine want to educate those he worked with, but he wanted to help make them Christians through the proclamation of the gospel message which he spoke. He taught the Bible in an upper room, over the school, where these gathered to learn. Sabine wanted the children to hear about Jesus.

In the town where the man lived, when the children made a profession of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, they marched down to the river, in a group, to be baptized. They also marched into towns for a Sunday school rally in a group.

Rev. Sabine searched for a song in all the hymn books, which would make a good marching song for the children on their trips, or to be baptized on Pentecost Sunday. The baptismal candidates marched to the rivers, or founts, wearing robes of white, thus the day came to be called “White Sunday”-- or Whitsunday, by the British people.

Sabine could not find any appropriate song for the day of their long walk to the school or for a baptism. This bothered him, so he began scribbling words on a piece of paper which would be a processional for them. The words he wrote for that happy occasion in 1865 became the song, "Onward Christian Soldiers" which we see in many of our Christian hymnals today:

Onward Christian soldiers
Marching as to war
With the cross of Jesus
Going on before.

Can you imagine this group of children keeping step to the marching beat of Rev. Sabine's song? What joy there must have been in the hearts of the parents as they observed their children carrying flags and singing the hymn of faith.

Although originally written for children, the song became a popular song of the faith. What a wonderful thought that we are soldiers of the Lord Jesus Christ and marching in His army toward Zion, the heavenly Jerusalem of God. We are to pick up our cross and carry it, knowing that our Commander-In-Chief will lead us, as we march on for Him. Our prayer is that souls will not say "no" to the Lord but will join God's army.

We are marching forth each day in the good fight of faith and are made Conquerors through the blood of the Lamb who has already won the war. May we always have a courageous and faithful approach as we go forward. One day we will cross over to heaven's golden shores where there will be peace forevermore. There will be no more pain or suffering and no more earthly battles. The good fight of faith assures us of eternal rest and victory in Jesus. Keep marching forth each new day. The lights of home are just ahead in that land of eternal day.

Jo Ann Kelly

Thinking about the “hereafter”

Thinking about the “hereafter”

Acts 20:21

Michael Guido shares the story of two elderly ladies who were sitting on their front porch. One asked the other, "Sally, I was wondering, do you ever think of the hereafter?"

"All the time," answered Sally. "I go to a room, I look around, and then I say, "What did I come here after?" That may be cute, but we can't forget the next world, while we are living in this world here below.

There are many people who live as if this is the only life they will have, and as if there is no hereafter. We have to apply in person for eternal life, for after we die, it is too late to make reservations.

The Bible tells us "today is the day of salvation". "Tomorrow may never come, and one cannot afford to wait for a more convenient time. The sands of the hourglass never stop and one day time on this earth as we know it, will be over. We must be ready to meet the Lord at every moment, for we know not the day or hour of His appearing or when we shall be called to our final destiny.

There is only one right road that leads to heaven, and the way is straight and narrow. There are many on the broad path which leads to destruction, but the good news is that they can turn to Jesus and be converted.

We give thanks to Jesus for being our living Lord in whom we have salvation, love, joy, and peace. Remember, we are just traveling through this world. What we do each day counts for all eternity. May we always be prayed up, and ready to go up, spiritually.

Jo Ann Kelly