Praises to the Lord

Psalm 68:4-5

Sing to God, sing in praise of his name, extol him who rides on the clouds; rejoice before him – his name is the Lord.  A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling.

Lately, everything has been crazy for me.  I’ve mentioned a little here about some health issues, I have a 3 year old that doesn’t believe in sleep and we’ve been having our kitchen renovated (wow, that’s more stressful than I expected!).  Some days, I get so frazzled and just want to sit and cry.  Yet this morning, I read this verse and instantly, I felt peace. 

I really don’t have a lot of deep thought to share on it, more just a reflection of how amazing our God is!  In the good times and the rough times, there is always a reason to sign praises to his name!

Have a blessed weekend!

Thurs Devo: Kids - Our New Ministry

With the placement of the 2 foster kids (as I talked about last week), I will be going on parental leave for the summer. Even though we’ve kept the kids several weekends over the past 6 months, it will be quite an adjustment to care for them full-time! We know it won’t always be easy, but God has made it very clear these are the children for us. They are our new daily ministry for a lifetime! Joe and I have been praying for help to faithfully point our children to God and His ways daily. Of course, it will start with our own love for and obedience to God.

Deuteronomy 6:4-9     ⁴ Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. ⁵ Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. ⁶ These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. ⁷ Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. ⁸ Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. ⁹ Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.

Today is my last day in the office and Erin Miller has willingly agreed to write the Thursday devotionals in my absence! (Thank you, Erin!) I plan to follow along via our external blog – Workplace Devotions (http://trdailydevotional.blogspot.com/). Some of you already know this, but when we moved the devotionals to the Hub, this was a way to continue to include former co-workers, friends and family that also wanted to continue to receive the devotionals. So, if you know of others that would appreciate and be encouraged by these devotionals, then please pass the word about our external blogspot.  

May God bless each of you with a deeper understanding of Himself this summer!

Sincerely,

Alice

Married to Christ

For husbands, this means love your wives, just as Christ loved the church. He gave up his life for her to make her holy and clean, washed by the cleansing of God’s word.  He did this to present her to himself as a glorious church without a spot or wrinkle or any other blemish. Instead, she will be holy and without fault.  Ephesians 5:25-27 

Today marks the twentieth anniversary of my marriage.  I have been truly blessed to have Loretta as my wife.  She has been incredibly supportive of me, and brings joy to my life each and every day.  Despite how I can be a challenge to deal with, she continues to love me unconditionally.  In the midst of a world where there is such uncertainty and so much discourse, I can always come back to her and be centered and balanced.  She is truly my better half as I have written before, and when I look for an example of godly living, she is quite simply the best!  Thus, it makes today’s verses both easy and challenging.  Easy because she is indeed easy to love.  Challenging because I have to love her the right way giving to her as Christ did so to us as the church. 

Christ’s love for the church is both a gift and a challenge.  We know Christ loves us, but it is important to note just how He loves us.  He did not just give His life for our sins but He did so to remove all sins such that when we can go before a Holy God in Heaven and become truly blameless.  My daughter got caught in telling a fib the other day, and it was clear she knew what she did was wrong.  My wife and I had to hold her responsible for her actions, but we still love her nonetheless.  As Christians, we will often do things that we know are wrong, but we are given grace nonetheless.  Our challenge is to be the hope that Jesus has for each of us.  We are challenged to represent the church through understanding God’s word and make it as it has always been intended; truly living through our actions and deeds.  

Jesus Christ chose us as His bride, and our accepting Him as Lord of our lives requires our commitment this relationship.  Despite our flaws and imperfections, we are made whole through Him, and He loves us unconditionally.  While we know we are unworthy of such gifts, we have been given new life through Him.  As such, we are called to be something greater than what we were before He came into our lives.  We are to represent His church in a manner than both honors His sacrifice and produces in us “through the power in Jesus Christ, every good thing that is pleasing to Him.”  (Hebrews 13:21b)  What can you place greater focus on your relationship with God?  How can you better represent yourself as “without a spot or wrinkle or any other blemish?”  My prayer is that we are fully representative in our marriage to Christ.  Amen.  

Tues Devo: The pairing of unity and division

Hello,

The last couple weeks I have been thinking about the unique pairing of ideas we are presented with as we follow Jesus. One of those is seeking unity, while knowing that our beliefs naturally bring division.

How can this be? Twice in the gospel of John the words of Jesus brought division in the crowd:

7:43 “So a division occurred in the crowd because of Him.” (NASB)

10:19 “A division occurred again among the Jews because of these words.” (NASB)

But, we are called to unity multiple times. Some examples:

Ephesians 4:3 “being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.”

Colossians 3:14 “Beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity.”

So – what are we to do? Jesus brought division, but we are instructed to work towards unity. If you look at the verses about unity a couple themes will stand out. First is the audience. This is directed to believers. Many times this is also directed at believers towards other followers of Christ – though not always – we are also told in Romans 12:18 “If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men” (NASB)

The second theme that stands out to me about unity is that is executed by love, and that love is driven by our relationship with Jesus.

This is where the division comes. A relationship with Jesus stands for something. He is absolute truth. Whenever you stand for something, there will be those who oppose. Our call to unity is not to be at the cost of our obedience.

Rather, our call to unity to act in love – without compromise towards sin – to all, especially those who are followers of Christ. The commitment to Him and continued displays of love will give us the opportunity to share our source – Jesus Christ as the hope for others.

Have a blessed day,

Will Hill

Unfailing Love and Faithfulness

But you, O Lord,
    are a God of compassion and mercy,
slow to get angry
    and filled with unfailing love and faithfulness.
Look down and have mercy on me.
    Give your strength to your servant;
    save me, the son of your servant.  Psalm 86:15-16

This weekend, we were reminded that the world we live in can be a sad and cruel place.  Some might look at the tragedy over the weekend and have a sense of fear or uncertainty.  Others may be filled with anger, and look to lash out against others who do not share our faith.  A select few may look at words of God, and say this is God’s judgment against those whose lifestyle is sinful.  In thinking of all of these, I asked myself, “Is this what God would want from me?”  My answer is that God would want me to look from what He has put within my heart, and respond outwardly.  As such, my focus is not on condemning or pushing for God’s righteous judgment of others.  It is instead to remind myself that we all are in need of God’s compassion and mercy, and it is me who is underserving of God’s love and mercy.  Yet, I am humbly grateful that He has been merciful on me.  Thus, I need to be an example of this; His example of this.  Not look to blame or spew hatred toward others who may have a different religion or lifestyle than mine.  Instead, it is to be slow to anger and filled with unfailing love and faithfulness toward the victims and others no matter their affiliation or beliefs.

We serve a God that protects us in spite of our flaws and wrongful choices in life.  He encourages us not to be filled with hatred but to share his son’s message, which is one of salvation.  As we look at the tragedy yesterday, we should ask ourselves if the words we speak represent our beliefs or God’s.  Yes, God would want us to speak strongly against the type of violence that befell us, but He would also ask that we both act and speak lovingly with compassion and mercy as examples of Christ himself!  Furthermore, we are not to be fearful for what is to come or worry about things we have no control of.  We are to be reassured of God’s mercy on us and ask for courage and strength to serve Him faithfully in spite of all we see in front of us.

God will take care of us all.  Ours is not to worry, be fearful, lash out, or condemn.  Ours is to be merciful and compassionate filled with a seemingly limitless amount of love.  Lin-Manuel Miranda may have captured the spirit of this best at The Tony Awards ceremony last night saying,

We live through times when hate and fear seem stronger
We rise and fall and light from dying embers
Remembrances that hope and love last longer
And love is love is love is love is love is love is love is love
Cannot be killed or swept aside.

What do you chose to do today?  Would God be pleased with your response?  My prayer is that we do not question.  Instead we respond as God responds to us . . . with compassion and mercy filled with unfailing love and faithfulness.  Amen.

Forgive

Colossians 3:13

Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.

Forgiving someone has times that it’s really easy.  For example, someone accidently steps on your toe.  They apologize and ask for forgiveness.  No problem, easy to forgive.  Other times, it really isn’t that easy.  Sometimes, it’s actually almost impossible, or at least that’s how it feels. 

I want you to think about a time that you did something wrong.  Something you knew you shouldn’t have done.  Maybe you struggled with an addiction, maybe you cheated on someone, you may have even committed a crime of some sort. 

Did you ask forgiveness for what you did?  Did the person you wronged easily forgive you? 

Each and every day, every single one of us sins.  Our sins nail Christ to the cross, over and over and over again. While we might not have been there when Christ was crucified, every single one of us is guilty of murdering him by our sins!

And yet, he has forgiven us!  So then, we are instructed to forgive as the Lord has forgiven us.  If any of you are holding a grievance against someone else, I encourage you today, to reach out to them and truly forgive them.

Thurs Devo: Great and Marvelous!

Last week we saw how God called His people in the last days to endure patiently, even to the point of death. He promised blessings for it. This week, we see God follow through on His promise!

Revelation 15:1-4     I saw in heaven another great and marvelous sign: seven angels with the seven last plagues—last, because with them God’s wrath is completed. ² And I saw what looked like a sea of glass glowing with fire and, standing beside the sea, those who had been victorious over the beast and its image and over the number of its name. They held harps given them by God ³ and sang the song of God’s servant Moses and of the Lamb:

“Great and marvelous are your deeds,
    Lord God Almighty.
Just and true are your ways,
    King of the nations.
⁴ Who will not fear you, Lord,
    and bring glory to your name?
For you alone are holy.
All nations will come
    and worship before you,
for your righteous acts have been revealed.”

Those who endure patiently will be victorious and live a great and marvelous life with God in heaven. They will understand, experience, and worship God for all that He is!

I haven’t patiently endured the last days, but Joe and I have endured (sometimes patiently and sometimes not) infertility for over 8 years (as many of you already know). However, come June 18^th, the 2 foster kids we’ve gotten to know this past year will be placed with us for adoption! They are a sibling pair – 3 ½ year old boy and a 2 year old girl.

We are praising God for His help to endure as we awaited His timing, His plan and His children!!! Victory (both great and small) belongs to the Lord God Almighty! He is Great and Marvelous! 

Alice

Do I Make You Proud?

I am a special messenger from Christ Jesus to you Gentiles. I bring you the Good News so that I might present you as an acceptable offering to God, made holy by the Holy Spirit. So I have reason to be enthusiastic about all Christ Jesus has done through me in my service to God.  Romans 15:16-17

About a year ago, I sat down with my mom just to talk about life in general.  I feel incredibly blessed to have her as my mom, and am so thankful for all that she taught me.  I thanked both her and my Dad for loving me, and thanked God for giving me such wonderful parents.  Then, I asked her a question that probably caught her off guard.  My question was quite simply, “Do I make you proud?”  She happily smiled, and said yes understanding where my heart was in asking.  Like most children, I did not make life easy for my mom, and yes, I certainly took more than I gave her.  So the genesis of my question was that I understood both how challenging I was to raise and what she had sacrificed for me.  As such, the question meant did the man I had become measure up to the hope the hard work and sacrifice both her and my father made when God decided to make me their child. Many might say God blessed them with me, but again, I feel like I got the far better end of the deal.

God gave us so much in grace through Jesus Christ, and through this rebirth, our mission is to dedicate our lives in servitude toward Him.  When we were first forgiven of our sins by God, it was liberating.  Yet, we may lose perspective of the weight our forgiveness carried.  The sacrifice by Jesus Christ was immense, and none of us could ever hope to repay the debt.  This was where the Gentiles were when Paul gave them the Good News.  However in Paul’s mind, it was not just about forgiveness. It was about the hope he had in them having been transformed through Christ.  They would not only know who God was but also joyfully serve Him sharing the Good News to others.  This was the hope instilled in Paul when on the road to Damascus Jesus appeared to Him.  Thus the gift of grace much like the love and sacrifices our parents offered to us are not to be repaid.  They are to be remembered and honored as we to give to others greater than we were once given.

Our lives are to be loving offerings of gratitude to God for all that He has given us.  Deuteronomy 12:28 says, “Be careful to obey all my commands, so that all will go well with you and your children after you, because you will be doing what is good and pleasing to the Lord your God.” This is what we aspire to be as God’s children.  Do not take God’s gift of grace for granted.  Instead, make all that you do as ‘an acceptable offering to God, made holy by the Holy Spirit.’  Do you humbly accept what Jesus Christ’s sacrifice?  Is your life given in servitude for all God has given you?  My prayer is that our lives are reflective such that when we look up to Heaven, God will smile when we ask, “Do I make you proud?”  Amen.

Tues Devo: Same plan

Acts 20:28-20 “Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood. I know that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves men will arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after them. Therefore be on the alert, remembering that night and day for a period of three years I did not cease to admonish each one with tears.” (NASB)

Hello,

Did you know this is the only section in scripture to use the phrase “savage wolves”? OK, not the point of today’s devo…….

As we fight the spiritual battle that we are in, we sometimes miss the predictable patterns of Satan and his allies. The enemy is looking for a quick sequence of two things: 1) Your forward spiritual momentum in some way and then 2) You being momentarily away from the positive influence(s) that brought that spiritual momentum.

Paul knew this – he knew that as soon as he stepped away, Satan would step in and try to destroy what God was doing. Paul knew it in advance – he spent 3 years admonishing them day and night (and you thought your parents/spouse were all over you….) to try and build up their resistance and reinforce what God wanted from their lives on a daily basis.

I know I have seen this in my life too. I see progress or get motivation, then not long after I find discouragement in my life that goes against the forward momentum I was building spiritually. Satan’s plan has not changed. But neither has our defense! We must stay connected to the things that bring us the positive spiritual momentum. This could be people or things we are listening/watching. But it certainly also includes constant prayer and frequent intake of the Bible.

So – Satan has a plan….and he has stuck with it for longer than any of us have been alive. But our plan to be on guard has been around just as long, we just need to follow the plan!

Have a blessed day,

Will Hill

Harsh words

A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.

Proverbs 15:1 NIV

Have you ever tried to reason with a 3 year old?  This verse really reminded me of life in our house lately.  My son is at that stage of wanting everything he sees.  And of course when you tell him no to something, he starts into a temper tantrum.  While it certainly doesn’t always work, we try to give him a gentle no, to prevent stirring up anger. 

While I know it’s not the best way to deal with him, the times that I lose my cool and tell him a bit more harshly that he is not going to get what he wants, anger is certainly stirred up in him. 

Today I encourage you to think about how you speak to others.  Are you turning away wrath by giving a gentle answer or are you stirring up anger with a harsh response?