He knows our suffering

read and reflect on Psalm 126

He knows our suffering.  Have you noticed that sometimes, in the presence of someone whose suffering seems greater than our own, our suffering seems lighter, less intense?  It is as if the suffering of another can temporarily take us our of ourselves.  The sufferings of Jesus can, indeed, elevate us and take us out of ourselves.

The cross says that life will not be easy.  If Jesus serves, we will serve.  If Jesus suffers, we too will experience hardships.  No servant is greater than the master.  Yet things are not always the way they appear.  Suffering is part of the path that leads to glory and beauty.  "He who goes out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with him" (Psalm 126:6).  Suffering has a purpose.  It is changing us so that we look more and more like Jesus himself and even death is not the end of the story.  When someone has suffered like you, they understand you before you speak.  They can even supply words that describe your suffering.  Jesus suffered; therefore, he knows our suffering.

Edward T. Welch

Forgiveness

How do we forgive someone who has wronged us or hurt someone we love?  How can we forgive when we don't feel forgiveness?

Corrie ten Boom, survivor of a women's Nazi concentration camp, wrote: "Forgiveness is an act of the will, and the will can function regardless of the temperature of the heart."

For every Christian, forgiveness is a choice.  In order to fully receive God's forgiveness we must willingly extend forgiveness to others.

Through an act of her will, Corrie forgave her persecutors and her sister's murderers.  Jesus forgave humankind of even more.  How can we do less?

Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.  Ephesians 4:32

Bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do.  Colossians 3:13

So watch yourselves. If your sisters sins, rebuke him, and if she repents, forgive her.  If she sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times comes back to you and says, "I repent," forgive her.  Luke 17:3-4

Don't repay evil for evil.  Don't retaliate with insults when people insult you.  Instead, pay them back with a blessing.  That is what God has called you to do, and he will bless you for it.  1Peter 3:9

O Lord, you are so good, so ready to forgive; so full of unfailing love for all who ask for your help.  Psalm 86:5

"If the wounds of millions

are to be healed,

what other way is there except

through forgiveness?"

Catherine Marshall

The Bible Promise Book for Women

Everyone Needs Someone

People need people

and friends need friends,

And we all need love

for a full lift depends

Not on vast riches

or great acclaim,

Not on success

or on worldly fame,

But just in knowing

that someone cares

And holds us close

in their thoughts and prayers

For only the knowledge

that we're understood

Makes everyday living

feel wonderfully good,

And we rob ourselves

of life's greatest need

When we lock up our hearts 

and fail to heed

The outstretched hand

reaching to find

A kindred spirit

whose heart and mind

Are lonely and longing

to somehow share

Our joys and sorrows

and to make us aware

That life's completeness

and richness depends

On the things we share

with our love ones and

friends.

Helen Steiner Rice

Alive by Hillsong

Here is an upbeat song to get us all jumping and praising the Lord for the weekend.  Have a blessed Friday and enjoy your weekend.

How Can God Love Me?

In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace.  Ephesians 1:7

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.  John 3:16

One will scarcely die for a righteous person-though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die-but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.  
Romans 5:7-8

The measure of God's Love for us is shown by two things.  One is the degree of his sacrifice in saving us from the penalty of our sin.  The other is the degree of unworthiness that we had when he saved us.
We can hear the measure of his sacrifice in the words, "He gave his only son". (John 3:16)  We also heart in the word "Christ".  This is a name based on the Greek title Christos or "Anointed One," or "Messiah."  It is a term of great dignity.  The Messiah was to be the king of Israel.  He would conquer the Romans and bring peace and security to Israel.  In sum, then, the person that God sent to save sinners was his divine Son, his only Son, and the Anointed king of Israel--indeed the king of the world (Isaiah 9:6-7)
When we add to this consideration the horrific death by crucifixion that Christ endured, it becomes clear that the sacrifice the Father and the Son made was indescribably great--even infinite, when you consider the distance between the divine and the human.  But God chose to make this sacrifice to save us.
The measure of his love for us increases still more when we consider our unworthiness.  "Perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die---but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ dies for us" (Romans 5:7-8).  We deserved divine punishment, not divine sacrifice.
I have heard it said, "God didn't die for frogs. So he was responding to our value as humans."  This turns grace on its head.  We are worse off than frogs.  They have not sinned.  They have not rebelled and treated God with the contempt of being inconsequential in our lives. God did not have to die for frogs.  They aren't bad enough.  We are.  Our debt is so great only divine sacrifice can pay it.
There is only one explanation for God's sacrifice for us.  It is not us.  It is "the riches of his grace"(Ephesians 1:7).  It is all free.  It is not a response to our worth.  It is the overflow of his infinite worth.  In fact, that is what divine love is in the end: a passion to enthrall undeserving sinners, at great cost, with what will make us supremely happy forever, namely, his infinite beauty.
John Piper

If Grace Has a Lap

Many Christians seem to understand the concept of being saved by grace, but they have missed the concept of being sustained by grace.  James D. Mallory, Jr.

Almighty God,

great and majestic,

I know that You encircle the needs 

of your children

with the broad embrace of

eternal solution.

But Abba Father,

do not leave me

struggling and unstroked

upon this earth!

If grace has a lap,

find and hold me there till

all my cries and longing

snuggle at last into the

Arms of Peace.

All my longings lie open before you, O Lord: my sighing is not hidden from you... As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God.  My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.  When can I go and meet with God?  Psalm 38:9; 42:1-2

He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart, he gently leads those that have young Isaiah 40:11

So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God.  I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.  Isaiah 41:10

My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.  2 Cor 12:9

Giving Praises

Psalm 113 (MSG) 1-3

Hallelujah!

You who serve Yahweh, praise Yahweh!

Just to speak his name is praise!

Just to remember Yahweh is a blessing--

now and tomorrow and always.

From the east to the west, from dawn to dusk,

keep lifting all your praises to Yahweh!

Our Treasures

Matthew 6:19-24

Christ warns against living for the physical treasures of here and now.  He warns against investing all of the gifts, talents, time, resources, and energy of your life on the impermanent and unsatisfying treasures of physical earth.  But it is scary how magnetic and powerful these "treasures" are, I never wake up in the morning and say, "I want my joy to be the single, life-organizing treasure of my life," but somehow it becomes that.  I never say, "Today I will get my identity, meaning, and purpose from another human being," yet somehow the affection of a certain person becomes my treasure.  I never say, "I have decided to find all of my personal happiness in the possession of material things", yet more and more I am living to acquire.  Even though I have never made a conscious decision to make these things my treasure, the physical values of earth hook and enslave me.  I never say, "I will make power and control the thing of highest value in my life," but somehow it is.  I never say, "I will make the success of my children the central treasure of my life," yet somehow it happens.

We weren't created to find our satisfaction in the little, earthbound kingdom treasures of the here and now.  We were created to seek a better treasure, and in so doing to be eternally grateful and satisfied.
Paul David Tripp

What is Worship?

Come, let us worship and bow down, let us kneel before the Lord our Maker.  For He is our God, and we are the people of His pasture.  Psalm 95:6-7

Some people talk about being in a great house of worship and sensing God's presence.  The towering spires, stained-glass windows, and deeply carved wooden altar where private confessions are made are elements that can stir your heart with thoughts of his unconditional love, mercy and grace.

Many Times, however, the most sacred place is found in the quietness of your own room and in the stillness of your heart.  This is where God personally meets with you, reveals himself to you through His Word, and teaches you how to live each day with hope and a sense of victory.

The Lord of heaven cannot be confined to a building or a single location.  He is omnipresent--everywhere at all times.  He is awesome in nature, and he is near to you right now.

Let us come before him with thanksgiving and extol him with music and song.  For the Lord is the great God, the great King above all gods.  Psalm 95:2-3

God, I am in awe

and wonder at your

greatness.  Thank you

for extending your

personal love to me and

for the opportunity to

live each day for you.

Amen.

365 moments of peace for a woman's heart (Bethany House)

Lord I need you by Chris Tomlin

Enjoy your weekend.  Always keep looking heavenward.  There are joys and blessings all around you.

He will be gracious

He will wait to be gracious; he will wait till you return to him and seek his face, and then he will be ready to meet you with mercy.  He will wait, that he may do it in the best and fittest time, when it will be most for his glory, when it will come to you with the most pleasing surprise.  He will continually follow you with his favours, and not let slip any opportunity to be gracious to you.  Matthew Henry

I found  this to be so comforting.....
He is always there.  He never leaves us.  He protects us and leads us.  He knows what we need and when we need it.  He knows how to give us his mercy and grace despite all that we do or don't do.

Thankful for Your Book

I glorify You for the bible--that wonderful, written revelation of You and Your plan.  As snow and rain fall from the skies to meet our needs, so You have condensed Your thoughts--which are vastly higher than all human thoughts--into written-down form.  I'm so grateful that You cared enough to communicate with us in this clear, unchanging, always-accessible way, so that Your thoughts are now available at all times to refresh and nourish and teach me...and that You are still a communicating God, speaking these words to me as I am attentive to You, as I read and meditate with a listening heart.  What a privilege it is to store Your Word in my heart, where You can use it at any moment to bless me and guide me...to keep me from sinning against You...and to be a storehouse of inspired words that the Spirit can bring to my mind to help others.

Thank you that in Your word I can see Your face and hear Your voice.  I can discover Your will and Your patterns for living and serving.  I can develop deeper faith and confidence.  Thank You that the Holy Spirit inspired Your Word and uses it to enlighten and guide me, and to change me more and more into Your image, from one degree of glory to another.

All scripture is inspired by God and profitable fro teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.  2 Timothy 3:16-17

By Ruth Myers with Warren Myers (Enjoying God Anew)

You & Me

Thank You that You have me in the place You want me just now....that even if I got here through wrong choices or indifference or even rebellion, yet You knew my mistake and sins before I ever existed, and You worked them into your plan to draw me to Yourself, to mold and bless me, and to bless others through me.  Thank You that, even if I'm here through the ill will or poor judgement of other people, all is well; for in Your sovereign wisdom You are at work to bring about good results from all those past decisions, those past events beyond my control--good results both for me and for others.  Thank you again that You meant for good the terrible things that happened to Joseph, who was sold into slavery, exiled to a distant country, and later sent to prison on false accusations....and that through all this You had him in the right place at the right time, for highly important reasons.  I'm glad, Lord, that You are the same today--well able to work things our for us, to turn evil into good.  i stand amazed at the complexity and mystery of Your wisdom. How safe it is for me to trust Your reasons for acting (or not acting) and Your methods of working!

Thank You that I can safely commit my location and situation to You.  I can "be willing for You to shift me anywhere on life's checkerboard, or buy me anywhere in life's garden, gladly yielding myself for You to please Yourself with, anywhere and anyway You choose" (source unknown).  Thank You that I can trust You wit my future places--ready to go, ready to stay.

Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God!  how unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways!  Romans 11:33

By Ruth Myers Enjoying God Anew

My Skyward Look

My soul is like an eagle.  This is not its home.  It must never lose its skyward look.  I must keep faith, I must keep hope, I must keep courage, I must keep Christ.  It would be better to crawl immediately from the battlefield than to not be brave.  There is no time for my soul to retreat.  Keep your skyward look, my soul; keep your skyward look! (Streams in the desert by L.B. Cowman)

Keep looking up

the waves that roar around your feet,

Jehovah-Jireh will defeat

When looking up.

Keep looking up

Though darkness seems to wrap your soul;

The Light of Light will fill your soul

When looking up.

Keep looking up

When worn, distracted with the fight;

Your Captain gives you conquering might 

When you look up.

We can never see the sunrise by looking toward the west. Japanese Proverb

Your Were in His Prayers

Then Jesus went about a stone's throw away from them.  He kneelded down and prayed.  Luke 22:41

The final prayer of Jesus was about you.  his final pain was for you.  Hi final passion was for you.  Before he went to the cross, Jesus went to the garden and when he spoke with his Father, you were in his prayers...

And God couldn't turn his back on you.  He couldn't because he saw you, and one look at you was all it took to convince him.  Right there in the middle of a world which isn't fair.  he saw you cast into a river of life you didn't request.  He saw you betrayed by those you love.  He saw you with a body which gets sick and a heart which grows weak....

On the eve of the cross, Jesus made his decision.  He would rather go to hell for you than go in heaven without you.

And the Angels Were Silent

Grace For the Moment by Max Lucado

Our Work for You

Let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us, and establish the work of our hands for us; yes, establish the work of our hands.  Psalm 90:17

Lord, I thank you for the abilities You have given me.  Where I am lacking in skill help me to grow and improve so that I do my work well.  Teach me to excel so that the result of what I do will be pleasing to others.  Open doors of opportunity to use my skills and close doors that I am not to go through.  Give me wisdom and direction about that.

I commit my work to You, Lord, knowing You will establish it (Proverb 16:3).  May it always be that I love the work I do and be able to do the work I love.  According to Your Word I pray that I will not lag in diligence in my work, but remain fervent in spirit, serving You in everything I do.  (Romans 12:11)  Establish the work of my hands so that what I do will favor with others and be a blessing for many.  May it always be glorifying to You.

In your name, Amen

Last Friday Night!

Set up movie theater like for the movie "Mom's Night Out"

These three got started with the photo booth before anyone got there!

Always yummy food

College ladies started the food line.

Plenty of time for fellowship

Add caption

Laura's "Nail Salon"

Kim's Fabulous Massages! 

Getting silly with College girls

Of course you gotta get a pedicure 

I think the pictures tell the story......it was a fun night, about 50 beautiful ladies enjoyed the night together!
(More pictures will be posted on Facebook and printed and taken to the church if you'd like a copy from the photo booth)

A New Season

Song of Solomon 2:11-12 ESV 

For behold, the winter is past; the rain is over and gone. The flowers appear on the earth, the time of singing has come, and the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land.

Light of Love

The Lord exists forever;

your word is firmly fixed in heaven.

Your word is a lamp to my feet 

and light to my path.

Psalm 119:89, 105

God! Thou art love!  I build my faith on that...

I know thee, who hast kept my path,

and made

Light for me in darkness, tempering sorrow

So that it reached me like a solemn joy;

It were too strange that I should doubt 

thy love.

--Robert Browning, "Paracelsus"

O Word of God Incarnate, O Wisdom from on high,

O Truth unchanged, unchanging, O Light

of our dark sky:

We praise thee for the radiance

That from the hallowed page,

A lantern to our footsteps,

Shines on from age to age.

--William W. How, "O Word of God Incarnate"

Grace for the Humble

God gives grace to the humble.  James 4:6

Humble hearts seek grace, and therefore they get it.  Humble hearts are grateful for grace and give the Lord the glory of it, and hence it is consistent with His honor to give it to them.

Come, take a lowly place.  Be little in your own esteem, that the Lord may make much of you.  Some are proud of being humble, and this is one of the very worst sorts of pride.

We're needy, helpless, undeserving, creatures; and if we are not bumble, we ought to be.  Let us humble ourselves because of our sins against humility, and then the Lord will give us to taste of His favor.  It is grace that makes us humble, and grace that finds in this humility an opportunity for pouring in more grace.  Let us go down that we may rise.  Let us be poor in spirit that God may make us rich.

Charles H. Spurgeon

Faith's Checkbook

One minute devotions