Hope

John 16:33

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

It seems as though everywhere we turn, we are hearing negative things about the world today.  About what is to come and how bad it is.  Brothers and sisters in Christ, Jesus Christ himself warned us of this!  We need to realize that in order to have everlasting joy with our Lord and Savior, we have to first endure the pain and suffering of this world that was predicted.  John 16 talks about how the world will rejoice while us Christians mourn and suffer. 

We all want to get to the point of the perfect ending with Christ, however to get there, the rest of the story must first take place. 

We are instructed to have peace in Christ because he has overcome the world. 

Instead of being worried and anxious about the future, let’s trust the Lord and be hopeful and appreciate that the end will be worth the struggles.

Thurs Devo: The Dragon's War, Part II

Last week we talked about how we are to expect war from Satan (the dragon), but use the full armor God has provided to fight against him! From studying the book of Revelation this year, God seems to warn us that these difficulties and battles will intensify as the end of this world nears. The dragon, Satan, will have the power to wage war against God’s people, but he won’t deceive them. He will deceive the whole rest of the world, though.

Revelation 13:1-10    The dragon stood on the shore of the sea. And I saw a beast coming out of the sea. It had ten horns and seven heads, with ten crowns on its horns, and on each head a blasphemous name. ² The beast I saw resembled a leopard, but had feet like those of a bear and a mouth like that of a lion. The dragon gave the beast his power and his throne and great authority. ³ One of the heads of the beast seemed to have had a fatal wound, but the fatal wound had been healed. The whole world was filled with wonder and followed the beast. ⁴ People worshiped the dragon because he had given authority to the beast, and they also worshiped the beast and asked, “Who is like the beast? Who can wage war against it?”

⁵ The beast was given a mouth to utter proud words and blasphemies and to exercise its authority for forty-two months. ⁶ It opened its mouth to blaspheme God, and to slander his name and his dwelling place and those who live in heaven. ⁷ It was given power to wage war against God’s holy people and to conquer them. And it was given authority over every tribe, people, language and nation.⁸ All inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast—all whose names have not been written in the Lamb’s book of life, the Lamb who was slain from the creation of the world.

⁹ Whoever has ears, let them hear.

¹⁰ “If anyone is to go into captivity,
    into captivity they will go.
If anyone is to be killed with the sword,
    with the sword they will be killed.”

This calls for patient endurance and faithfulness on the part of God’s people.

What’s the difference between Satan, through the beast, conquering and waging war against God’ people versus deceiving them? I think it has to do with physical versus spiritual life and death. Satan is allowed to physically harm and even kill God’s people, but he can’t deceive them into worshiping him over worshiping God. If we truly belong to God, then we won’t be deceived by Satan and won’t give in to his deception. We will patiently endure and remain faithful to God, even to the point of death. We can do that through the strength of the Holy Spirit living in us, knowing we will gain eternal life!

How will you and I prepare now to patiently endure and remain faithful to God, even through the dragon’s war against us?

Alice

The Value of Forgiveness

Then Jesus told him this story: “A man loaned money to two people—500 pieces of silver^[i] to one and 50 pieces to the other.  But neither of them could repay him, so he kindly forgave them both, canceling their debts. Who do you suppose loved him more after that?”

Simon answered, “I suppose the one for whom he canceled the larger debt.”

“That’s right,” Jesus said.   Then he turned to the woman and said to Simon, “Look at this woman kneeling here. When I entered your home, you didn’t offer me water to wash the dust from my feet, but she has washed them with her tears and wiped them with her hair.  You didn’t greet me with a kiss, but from the time I first came in, she has not stopped kissing my feet.  You neglected the courtesy of olive oil to anoint my head, but she has anointed my feet with rare perfume.

“I tell you, her sins—and they are many—have been forgiven, so she has shown me much love. But a person who is forgiven little shows only little love.” Then Jesus said to the woman, “Your sins are forgiven.”  Luke 7:41-48

I went to visit my Dad’s alma mater the other day in Virginia.  My Dad passed away almost nine years ago, and it was a chance to visit the halls that he walked through over seventy years ago.  We stopped for a moment to allow for my daughter to use the rest room.  The building had about eight different doors at the front, and all were locked.  Fortunately at the last door, a lady was kind enough to let her in.  It was at that final door that I would find something beyond special.  Engraved in the glass next to the door was a list of donors who contributed to the building.  One of those names listed was my father.  Although I knew he contributed greatly to the university, I had never knew there was anything noting his contributions.  It was a humbling experience to have seen something he himself had not lived long enough to see.  Others may not have ever known what he did or how great a man he was.  But I do because I know all that he did especially for me, and that made it all the more valuable.

This story brings me to the topic of understanding the value of God's forgiveness for our sins.  One cannot truly love God without acknowledging how valued His sacrifice for us was.  The story in today’s verses has me focused on the woman at Jesus’ feet.  Prior to these verses, it said, “(S)he knelt behind him at his feet, weeping. Her tears fell on his feet, and she wiped them off with her hair. Then she kept kissing his feet and putting perfume on them.” (Luke 7:38)  To truly value what was happening, imagine yourself before Jesus knowing your wrongdoings and being unable to hide from them.  Could you hold yourself together and stand strong, or would you find yourself much like this ‘certain immoral woman’ weeping uncontrollably?  Her tears were so great she had washed Jesus’ feet with them.  That’s some serious crying!  And Jesus, while acknowledging her sins were many, showered her with forgiveness.  We know we fall short of God’s glory, and we are born again through Christ.  But our greatest capacity to love Him falls on acknowledging how flawed we are without Him.  Let me say it another way.  If we cannot understand how flawed we are, we cannot fully love God because we will never value our forgiveness as much as one who sees themselves as tragically flawed.  This is the lesson Jesus is trying to teach.  We may be great followers of Christ in theory.  But for those without hope and love and who God has come and given them a new life through Jesus Christ, the value of His forgiveness is priceless.

We are all valued by God.  Seeing someone’s love for Christ does not make their love better or worse.  It does give us an opportunity to check where we are in our own walk for if we sense our love for God is not as great as it should, then our value system may need restructuring.  If it does, understand God loves us enough to guide and forgive as we forge a stronger and more fulfilling relationship with Him.  How can you reveal yourself to God with all of your flaws?  Will you value His forgiveness now more than ever today?  My prayer is that we seek to gain greater love for God by fully valuing His forgiveness.  Amen.

Tues Devo: Learn and lean

1 Corinthians 16:10-12 “Now if Timothy comes, see that he is with you without cause to be afraid, for he is doing the Lord’s work, as I also am. So let no one despise him. But send him on his way in peace, so that he may come to me; for I expect him with the brethren. But concerning Apollos our brother, I encouraged him greatly to come to you with the brethren; and it was not at all his desire to come now, but he will come when he has opportunity.” (NASB)

Hello,

Lately I have been doing a lot of thinking about the importance of pairing with others. This is from a perspective of both learning and leaning. So many of our brothers & sisters in Christ have gone through learning experiences before us – why not use that learning? We are not good at everything – why not lean on the strength of others? Sure, we have the choice to go at things alone – but that puts us in a position of isolation. When we isolate, not only do we miss out on the opportunity to learn from others and lean on their strengths, but we miss the chance to help others learn and be leaned upon.

So, how are you doing in learning and leaning? Don’t miss the opportunity that comes with it!

Will Hill

The harvest

James 5:7-8

Be patient, then, brothers and sisters, until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop, patiently waiting for the autumn and spring rains. You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near.

I recently planted some seeds to do a little garden this summer.  I was so excited when they started to grow.  Now the waiting really begins as they won’t be ready for harvesting for a month or more.  Waiting for something when you are excited can be so hard and discouraging. 

I can’t speak for you, however I know that I am excited for the Lord’s return.  This world is certainly not my first pick of places to be some days. 

Just as a farmer (or someone just growing a few vegetables), must wait for the harvest, so brothers and sisters, we must wait for the Lord’s return.  It’s not always easy and can often be discouraging, feeling like it’s never going to happen.  However if we care for the garden (ourselves and those around us), the Lord will return for his harvest. 

Stand firm today, the Lord’s return is near.

Thurs Devo: The Dragon's War

Thank you for your prayers! My sister, Mary, did indeed have her baby last Thursday! Jack arrived at 2:53 pm after about 6 hours of natural labor. Jane (my other sister) and I were able to be with Mary via FaceTime for the last few hours of labor and the birth (thanks to Mark and my Mom and Dad for making sure we stayed connected)!
A new baby is so exciting! However, we all know that it won’t be all roses. Even though the labor and delivery pains are over, there are still recovery pains and adjustment struggles.  The blessings of children take a lifetime of reliance on God, discipline, hard work and perseverance on the part of the parents.
The same is true for the woman in Revelation chapter 12…
Revelation 12:13-17  ¹³ When the dragon saw that he had been hurled to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. ¹⁴ The woman was given the two wings of a great eagle, so that she might fly to the place prepared for her in the wilderness, where she would be taken care of for a time, times and half a time, out of the serpent’s reach.¹⁵ Then from his mouth the serpent spewed water like a river, to overtake the woman and sweep her away with the torrent. ¹⁶ But the earth helped the woman by opening its mouth and swallowing the river that the dragon had spewed out of his mouth. ¹⁷ Then the dragon was enraged at the woman and went off to wage war against the rest of her offspring—those who keep God’s commands and hold fast their testimony about Jesus.
War is a strong word. It doesn’t say merely “tempt” or “deceive,” but “wage war against.” If you and I hold to the testimony of Jesus and obey God’s commands, Satan (the dragon) wants to make war against us. Like parenting, we must expect difficulties in our Christian walk but rely on God’s power to remain faithful and persevere.
Ephesians 6:10-13    ¹⁰ Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.¹¹ Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. ¹² For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.¹³ Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.

God has full armor for us to wear to fight in the Dragon’s war! We must choose to put it on!

Alice

Always Loving, Forever Faithful

Then Jacob prayed, “O God of my grandfather Abraham, and God of my father, Isaac—O Lord, you told me, ‘Return to your own land and to your relatives.’ And you promised me, ‘I will treat you kindly.’  I am not worthy of all the unfailing love and faithfulness you have shown to me, your servant. When I left home and crossed the Jordan River, I owned nothing except a walking stick. Now my household fills two large camps!  O Lord, please rescue me from the hand of my brother, Esau. I am afraid that he is coming to attack me, along with my wives and children.  But you promised me, ‘I will surely treat you kindly, and I will multiply your descendants until they become as numerous as the sands along the seashore—too many to count.’”  Genesis 32:9-12

A while ago, I was dealing with an issue at home that would not seem to go away.  Each time I thought it was resolved, I would only find that it had returned.  It got to a point where I believed more drastic measures that could harm relationships with family and friends was needed.  Prayer after prayer and day after day, it seemed that things did not change, but I kept coming back to God.  Looking back, I realized He did not necessarily give me the answer I might have wanted at the time, but He always gave me enough to keep moving forward.  Then one day, the issue went away, and this time it was for good.  I had a moment where I actually said to myself, “Has this really happened?”  My faith in God did not waver although I have to say I did a lot of questioning, and the experience reaffirmed that God is always with me.  It was so humbling that in spite of all my own flaws, God still loved on me and was faithful.

God is always faithful even when we at times are not.  In reading the story of Jacob, I found that there were a lot of things that he did that were not so nice.  He stole a blessing from his older brother, Esau, and denied his family stole idols from a relative even though his wife did.  Granted he did not know of his wife’s doings, but still his family certainly had some issues.  Furthermore, both of his wives were sibling rivals to the nth degree!  So now, here comes Esau with an army of men.  I thought, “Now he’s going to get it!”  However in Jacob’s blessing years previously, God promised that He would protect him (Genesis 28:15).  Fast forward to today’s verses, Jacob goes humbly to God reinforcing (maybe to himself?) of His promise.  In the end, Esau, instead of coming back at him with a vengeance, hugs Jacob, and their relationship is restored!  All was well, and they made peace.  We often encounter situations where we feel all is lost.  Sometimes we wait days, but others times we wait months and even years.  However, we must always remember God’s promises to us are unfailing.  They never change, and He is always faithful.  We are to be both grateful and humbled knowing that in spite of our own flaws, we can always trust in His word.

God is always right and right on time.  We often find ourselves questioning if God is with us because of our own timetable, but we should always remember that whether we are dealing with strife for an extended period of time or like in Jacob’s case doom and gloom comes back from years ago, God will be faithful.  Trust in His word, and humbly present yourself to Him.  He will take care of you.  How can God’s promise reassure you in your troubles today?  What can you both earnestly and humbly pray to God for?  My prayer is that we gain strength knowing that even when underserving, God is always loving and forever faithful.  Amen.

Tues Devo: What is that for anyways?

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

Hello,

Sometimes as believers and followers of Christ we need to remind ourselves of the basics. One of those things are the purposes of Scripture. Sure, we can answer that the Bible is God’s love letter – it is the message of hope and salvation. But there is purpose beyond just introduction to the person of Jesus and how to be saved. Paul addresses that to Timothy. It is here to teach and guide and correct us. Not to crush us – but to build us up to where God is able to use us beyond measure for His eternal kingdom. WOW – think of what we are part of! What a privilege that is. But, we miss opportunity because we don’t align our lives in the way that God needs. Most people don’t go about seeking correction proactively – shoot, we don’t even like it when it comes and finds us! But this is what Scripture is for. It is there to help us maximize our relationship with God and impact to the Kingdom. No wonder it is (and has been) a matter of social controversy. It’s words don’t change to match the swaying desires of culture – they stay true to the character of God.

How are you using Scripture? Hopefully this reminder is helpful to all of us in getting into Scripture and approaching it well.

Have a blessed day,

Will Hill

Faith of a child

Matthew 18:1-5

At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who, then, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”

He called a little child to him, and placed the child among them. And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me.

Have you ever wondered what it mean to become like a child according to these verses?  When I stop and think about it, it makes me think of how children are so trusting and believe everything they are told. 

I saw this in action this week.  A friend of mine has a 13 year old son that was diagnosed with ALL B (Acute lymphocytic leukemia B cell).  Last night I was able to go visit him in the hospital and other than he’s a little on the weak side, you would never guess anything was wrong with him.  He has the best outlook on life and was reminding everyone around us that God has this.  He has a faith that will carry him through. 

The adults around him have all been worried and honestly, not trusting the Lord like we should.  What a testament he is to those around him.

This week I want to encourage you to make sure that you have the faith of a child, that you are trusting the Lord, like a child would trust their parent.    

Thurs Devo - Help for the Pain

My Mom just called from Virginia and said Mary is finally going into labor. Her contractions are now 1 minute apart! They are headed to the hospital now! She is in a lot of pain and throwing up, etc. from it all. She is a healthy and very strong lady, so we are praying she will be able to endure the pain well and that God will help Mom and Mark (her husband) know how to help her through this.

Because of sin, childbirth is quite painful, among many other things in life!

Genesis 3:16-19   ¹⁶ To the woman he said,

“I will make your pains in childbearing very severe;
    with painful labor you will give birth to children.
Your desire will be for your husband,
    and he will rule over you.”

¹⁷ To Adam he said, “Because you listened to your wife and ate fruit from the tree about which I commanded you, ‘You must not eat from it,’

“Cursed is the ground because of you;
    through painful toil you will eat food from it
    all the days of your life.
¹⁸ It will produce thorns and thistles for you,
    and you will eat the plants of the field.
¹⁹ By the sweat of your brow
    you will eat your food
until you return to the ground,
    since from it you were taken;
for dust you are
    and to dust you will return.”

God is there to help us through the pains of this life, though.

Hebrews 4:16     ¹⁶ Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

Psalm 46:7 The Lord Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress.

Even before He helps us through our pains and suffering, we can praise God!

Ephesians 1:3     Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.

How will you and I trust God today for the pains, sufferings, troubles and difficulties we will face? We can praise God now, knowing He is faithful to help us!

Alice