Weather the storm

Acts 20:24

However, I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the good news of God’s grace.

Last week I wrote about trusting the Lord even through the storms.  As I was thinking of what I wanted to write this week, I actually saw a post on Facebook from a former co-worker and the person that headed up the work place devotions for many years.  Some of you may remember Naressa Allen.  This is what she wrote (I share with permission):

Four years ago last week, I was diagnosed with Stage IV cholangiocarcinoma, which is more aggressive than pancreatic cancer.  My docs said I couldn’t live with only one hepatic vein and 20% of my liver.  I told them, respectfully, that the Lord has His own plan as He is the Great Physician.  They gave me six months…but some are finally understanding that “my times are in His hands”, (Psalm 31:15) and He is in control of this storm.  My oncologists say that we are in “uncharted waters” because I’m STILL breathing.  I’m not in remission, the tumor has a blood flow to it, yet it hasn’t grown any and I haven’t had chemo in over a year.

As I said from the beginning, I wouldn’t trade this cancer for anything.  It has been and continues to be such a blessing.  I thank the Lord for each day that I can tell others about Him and for allowing me these four years of loving on my family, kids and grandkids!  All ten of us go to church together every Sunday, and three of my five grandkids just got baptized.  All this and heaven too!  God bless and thank you to so many for your prayers and being my prayer warriors. 

Naressa is an amazing women of God.  She truly demonstrates considering her life worth nothing to her, but is living to complete the task the Lord gave her.

Her testimony hit my hard last night as when I wrote last week’s devotion, I had just finished under-going some scanning for ovarian cancer.  Praise the Lord that the scans came back clean this week.  Like Naressa though, I had already decided that if that was what the Lord planned for me, then I was okay with it.  I knew that he would use me through whatever circumstances I faced. 

Today, I ask you to join the force in praying for Naressa.  At the same time, I hope that you pray that God would use you as He has her.

Thurs Devo: Wedding Symbols

Today is our 9^th wedding anniversary! (Happy Anniversary, Joe!)

The other day I decided to look back through our ceremony program and saw the information on wedding symbols that we included on the left-hand side of our program. As Joe and I prepared for our ceremony, we were curious about the various traditional wedding symbols and why we have or do certain things at Christian weddings. We decided to research many of the symbols and then included some of our findings in our program.

So, I thought I would stray from our next passage in Revelation and instead share this section of our program with you today!

Wedding

Many of the symbols that are incorporated into modern weddings have traditional biblical meanings. Some of these symbols are as follows:

Bridesmaids – provide light for the groom who comes at night (Matthew 25:1-13)

White wedding gown – symbol of purity and virginity

Veil – symbolizes a wife’s submission, innocence, and being reserved for her husband

Train of the dress – symbol of honor and majesty (Isaiah 6:1)

Jewelry – symbolizes strength and joy (Isaiah 49:18 and 61:10)

White Runner – associated with God’s presence in the covenant

Groom (standing at the front) – symbolizes that he initiates the covenant

Rings/Unity candle/Kiss – symbolize the covenant becoming final and the two becoming one

Reception – Great celebration once the groom has fulfilled the covenant (Revelation 19:7-9 God acts as both host and Groom at the final celebration)

Appreciation Station

I always thank my God for you and for the gracious gifts he has given you, now that you belong to Christ Jesus.  Through him, God has enriched your church in every way—with all of your eloquent words and all of your knowledge.  This confirms that what I told you about Christ is true.  Now you have every spiritual gift you need as you eagerly wait for the return of our Lord Jesus Christ.  1 Corinthians 1:4-7

The other day, someone asked me how do you stay young?  That’s a pretty loaded question considering that I will soon turn fifty, but nonetheless, I took it as an opportunity to share some of the things that have helped me maintain a youthful attitude.  One of those things focused on the appreciation of others.  Why would that be important to my own youthfulness?  You see, it is very easy to focus on the things that go on in your own life.  However when you focus on the wonderful and brilliance of others, you go beyond affecting your own life.  You directly impact the mood and ambitions of someone else as well.  There is nothing more powerful to say to another person than I love you, and yet, I believe there is nothing more motivating to another person than to say, “I appreciate you.”

God expects us to appreciate the potential of all people through Jesus Christ.  When reading the words of Paul, I love how great an encourager he is.  At the beginning of 1 Corinthians, he displayed an ‘attitude of gratitude’ to the church of Corinth and its people.  Reading his words, you have the feeling of a deep relationship he has with them.  Paul shows genuine love and appreciation for them, and if we were members of that early church, we would feel a great deal of encouragement and strength from him.  Furthermore, Paul himself gained strength from them as well.  Thus, the relationship between Paul and the church was mutually beneficial.  As such, our words of appreciation for others have similar effects.  They can strengthen relationships, inspire others, and break down barriers!  What can be more encouraging to a person struggling with something than to hear they are loved and despite their struggles, they are appreciated for what they have brought in your life.

We are to appreciate others for it is paramount to building God’s Kingdom.  Peter, who correctly identified Jesus as the Messiah, had to feel encouraged as Jesus responded to him in appreciation saying, “You are blessed, Simon son of John, because my Father in heaven has revealed this to you. You did not learn this from any human being.  Now I say to you that you are Peter (which means ‘rock’), and upon this rock I will build my church, and all the powers of hell will not conquer it.” (Matthew 16:17-18)  Appreciating others is necessary for and if we accept and love Christ, our hearts will be transformed such that we will see the greatness of not only others but also within ourselves.  And what can be better than seeing how great we can be through Christ?  Who could you show greater appreciation for?  How can you allow God to help you appreciate others?  My prayer is that we open our hearts where we become an ‘Appreciation Station.’  Amen.

Tues Devo: Foolishness

1 Corinthians 1:20-25 “Where is the wise man? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not come to know God, God was well-pleased through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. For indeed Jews ask for signs and Greeks search for wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block and to Gentiles foolishness, but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.” (NASB)

Hello,

Do you ever wonder why it is that the highest levels of education don’t always yield the most percentage of Christ followers? Why is it that this message of Christ seems so foolish to the world – including those who are considered to be the most intelligent? What are we to make of this passage?

The simplicity of the message and method of Christ is amazing. People want it to be more, or they want it to be dependent more on them, or they want something that manifests itself in a different physical way – but it is none of those things. It is straight forward, it is fully based on Him, and the death and resurrection has already happened.

If we try to make it more, we will struggle with the discussion. It is when we come back to the basics of who He is and what He did for us and the why that we have the most success. Interestingly enough, the harder we try to intellectualize the Gospel message, the more we are making the sharing about us instead of Him….ironic isn’t it, since it fully relies on Him to start with?

Now, don’t get me wrong – I am a big advocate of knowledge and learning. The things we learn about God and His creation can help us answer or ask questions to those we share Christ with. (Let alone, just getting to know Him even deeper). But, we cannot stray from the foundation of the amazing simplicity of the love of God.

Have a blessed day,

Will Hill

Trust the Lord

Psalm 32:10

Many are the woes of the wicked, but the Lord’s unfailing love surrounds the one who trusts in him.


Trusting the Lord is not always the easiest thing to do.  This is something that I have been challenged with even more lately.  I’ve been going through some health issues and at times, I’ve been worried about what could be.  Through it all though, I’m learning to trust God, and know that no matter what happens, he is taking care of me.  While it would be easy to just get down and have a "poor me" type of attitude, it is so much more productive to choose to trust God and believe that he will take care of you no matter what.

What is the hardest thing for you to give to God?  I challenge you today to trust him and give it to him.

Thurs Devo: Call for Wisdom

Last week’s passage ended with a call for patient endurance and faithfulness. This week’s passage ends with a call for wisdom.

Revelation 13:11-18  ¹¹ Then I saw a second beast, coming out of the earth. It had two horns like a lamb, but it spoke like a dragon. ¹² It exercised all the authority of the first beast on its behalf, and made the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose fatal wound had been healed. ¹³ And it performed great signs, even causing fire to come down from heaven to the earth in full view of the people.¹⁴ Because of the signs it was given power to perform on behalf of the first beast, it deceived the inhabitants of the earth. It ordered them to set up an image in honor of the beast who was wounded by the sword and yet lived. ¹⁵ The second beast was given power to give breath to the image of the first beast, so that the image could speak and cause all who refused to worship the image to be killed. ¹⁶ It also forced all people, great and small, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hands or on their foreheads, ¹⁷ so that they could not buy or sell unless they had the mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of its name.

¹⁸ This calls for wisdom. Let the person who has insight calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man. That number is 666.

Where do we get this wisdom? Perfect wisdom comes straight from God Himself! Reading His Word, talking with Him in prayer, and listening for His answers will help us gain wisdom.


Knowing God’s prophecy, like this passage in Revelation, will help us be prepared when these events happen. We will then be able to discern the deception of Satan and remain faithful to God.

Alice 

All About Timing

One day when Jacob was cooking some stew, Esau arrived home from the wilderness exhausted and hungry. Esau said to Jacob, “I’m starved! Give me some of that red stew!” (This is how Esau got his other name, Edom, which means “red.”)

“All right,” Jacob replied, “but trade me your rights as the firstborn son.”

“Look, I’m dying of starvation!” said Esau. “What good is my birthright to me now?”

But Jacob said, “First you must swear that your birthright is mine.” So Esau swore an oath, thereby selling all his rights as the firstborn to his brother, Jacob.

Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and lentil stew. Esau ate the meal, then got up and left. He showed contempt for his rights as the firstborn.  Genesis 25:29-34

There are so many things that we will have the urge to want the moment we see it.  This weekend, I found myself looking at the newest iPad where my immediate impulse was to buy it even though I had another one at home.  “It’s the newest version,” I told myself.  Having realized that it is not within my budget to do so, I resisted, and turned away.  That being said, I looked back to find the genesis of my anxiety; Facebook.  One of my favorite past times found a way to identify my purchasing habits, and through it, inundated me with advertisements and suggestions that often times seem subtle and other times more direct.  Either way, it builds a desire that without its prompting may not have even existed.  Working for a technology company, you realize the benefits of technology.  For a day this past weekend, I also have found that it is not always a good thing.  Much like money is written about in 1 Timothy 6:10 (For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. And some people, craving money, have wandered from the true faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows), use of technology can either be good or bad.

We must be vigilant seeking God’s counsel in all things so that we properly guided spiritually.  Last week’s verses talked about the life of Jacob.  We go a little further back in his life not speaking of him but instead his brother Esau.  Esau’s birthright as the firstborn was to inherit his father’s responsibilities and authority.  However as we see in today’s verses, Esau was consumed with hunger and it is safe to say impatient.  As such, he sells his rights to his younger brother.  We often find ourselves doing similar things trading in future blessings for what we want now.  Speaking from experience, it is not easy to get out from under that habit, but if we learn to seek God’s counsel not only with obvious things like finances but with relationships with family members and friends and situations at work and home, we gain wisdom from the experience.  Furthermore, we keep ourselves available for much greater blessings from God down the road!

God’s time is very different from ours.  We often will want things our way right now.  While sometimes we are given such provisions, we must always ask ourselves if it is truly God’s provision or are we putting our timing ahead of His.  The answer lies in the relationship between God and you, but if we do not pray and seek His counsel, we risk like Esau the possibility of missing something far greater in the future.  What decision is God asking you to exercise more patience?  Do you seek God’s counsel on important decisions?  My prayer is that we exercise wisdom to understand that sometimes God’s blessings are all about timing.  Amen. 

Tues Devo: Wearing the same jersey

1 Peter 4:8-10 “Above all, keep fervent in your love for one another, because love covers a multitude of sins. Be hospitable to one another without complaint. As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. ” (NASB)

Hello,

This section in 1 Peter triggered my mind to sports (yeah, I know…lots of things do that for me….). I can tell of countless times where on my team people would get mad at one another. Someone would make a mistake or not listen correctly – and the frustration would come out and erupt. You see it on TV with team members verbally going after one another. But what does this mean? Does is mean that they have decided they have different goals? No, they both want to win – but sometimes error or preference creeps in and causes tension. So – how does one get past this tension? I believe that answer is to remember that there is a common goal. How is that remembered? Well, Peter gives us that direction here. We are to love, be hospitable and serve each other. The key is the love. I believe when it mentions here that it covers a multitude of sins this is not about being OK with sin, or condoning it – but rather it is what helps us realize we ultimately are going after the same things, and that we must focus on showing love to others who are fighting the same battle we are fighting.

Remember, we as followers of Christ are on the same team and wearing the same jersey – lets keep pushing for the goal and supporting each other in love as we do.

Have a blessed day,

Will Hill

Look to the future

2 We sent Timothy, who is our brother and co-worker in God’s service in spreading the gospel of Christ, to strengthen and encourage you in your faith, 3 so that no one would be unsettled by these trials. For you know quite well that we are destined for them.

There are two things to consider the future, where will Christianity go and will the flock stay?  Here are two videos I found fascinating to illustrate these questions.

Animated map shows how religion spread around the world - YouTube 

The majority of those of you who read this are based in the USA.  Sometimes, we can get blinders on and think that Christians are the only major religion out there.  We think the US is a Christian nation, and it is predominantly Christian, but it is not a national religion.  What I find fascinating in this video is that the other religions started in one location, and spread outwardly from that place.  Christianity, on the other hand, doesn't do that.  Christianity had a focal point with Christ, but then quickly spread out along the coasts of modern day Europe.  It also was the first to reach the Americas during the "Age of Discovery."  I can't tell in the video which religion is first to enter Australia, but Christianity also is the predominant religion there.

We are told that Christ will come again when every nation has heard the gospel.  Some people may think that we're nearing that time due to the Internet and information being readily available, but for some of those nations shown on the illustration, that people legitimately don't know that there is any other religion.  They've never heard of Christ, nor do they even know where to begin looking.  Outsiders to their religion are hunted and killed.  We've had a few missionaries come to our church to speak, and they cannot say their last name, nor what country they mission in, because they must work in secret.  How will we reach those countries?  It is incredibly difficult and risky to drop into the middle of those zones and begin to preach, those people - bless them - are doing so and are doing it carefully.  Mission work isn't everyone's calling, so what can WE do about it?  Spread.  Reach past our boundaries.  You may not need to be the one on the border line, but maybe there's another way for you to volunteer within your church that can relieve someone else's responsibility so that they may pursue that mission work.  Everyone is called to reach, but we must find the way that extends each of us.

The Future of World Religion (in 2050) - YouTube 

My concern here isn't that according to statistics, the Muslim religion will become more prevalent than Christianity.  My concern here is shown at the 1:14 mark.  Look at the number of people that are going into the unaffiliated group of the agnostics, atheists, or non-believers.  That is my concern.  These people are entirely turning their back to Christ.  These are people who have heard Christ's gift to us, accepted it, and later decided that they didn't want it and that they don't believe it.  This is not something that happens on a map with boundary lines, but with isolated individuals.  People that have been hurt and feel utterly alone, that no one on earth or in heaven cares about them.  We must continue to make efforts to reach out to our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, so that we may continue to "strengthen and encourage them in their faith, so that they will not be unsettled by these trials."

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.