Saturday, February 23, 2019
Welcome to Scripture Saturday!
This coming week's memory verse is Micah 6:8...
He has shown you, O man, what is good; And what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God? (NKJV)
But how are we to do this? First we must acknowledge our sins and then be willing to submit to God's mercy. It is only through a humbling of ourselves that we will be allowed to walk with God. "God sets Himself against the proud, but He shows favor to the humble.” (1 Pet. 5:5.)
A person who walks humbly with God understands that everything that she possesses is a gift of God. A person who walks humbly with God will try to determine where God would have her to go rather than trying to set her own direction based on her own wisdom. To be truly humble, we must give up all appearance of self-sufficiency and must instead rely on God as “our help and our shield” (Psalm 33:20).
Have a blessed day and week everyone!
Sunday, October 21, 2018
Week Forty-two...
Welcome! We pray that you have all had a precious time worshipping the Lord this morning! Below you will find some thought provoking questions that will provide you a starting point to your journal writing to complete this week. We hope that you will find this time soul satisfying!
Our reading this week was John 5 - 17...
1. What fears have you allowed to drown out God’s voice lately? We can face our fears with confidence, knowing that God is with us even in the storms. Take your fears to the One who alone can deal with and overcome them.
Soon a gale swept down upon them as they rowed, and the sea grew very rough. They were three or four miles out when suddenly they saw Jesus walking on the water toward the boat. They were terrified, but He called out to them, “I am here! Don’t be afraid.” (John 6:18-20)
2. What in your life can only be explained in terms of the supernatural, that is to say, “God did it”? Make a list of the most significant changes God has made in you. Thank Him for what He has done for you; then look for an opportunity to tell those around you.
“Yes, LORD,” the man said, “I believe!” And he worshiped Jesus. (John 9:38)
3. Describe a time when you were shocked by someone’s act of humble service. What would you feel if Jesus, the LORD of the universe, were washing your feet? Today, how can you serve others with the caring and compassion of Christ? Thank Him for His example of humility and love.
And since I, the LORD and Teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash each other’s feet. I have given you an example to follow. Do as I have done to you. (John 13:14-15)
Sunday, September 30, 2018
Week Thirty-nine
Welcome! We pray that you have all had a precious time worshipping the Lord this morning! Below you will find some thought provoking questions that will provide you a starting point to your journal writing to complete this week. We hope that you will find this time soul satisfying!
Our reading this week was Mark 15 - Luke 8:39...
1. Jesus humbled Himself to become a man. When are you tempted toward pride and self-sufficiency? Ask God to help you humbly focus on Jesus rather then yourself today.
One day when the crowds were being baptized, Jesus Himself was baptized. As He was praying, the heavens opened, and the Holy Spirit descended on Him in the form of a dove. (Luke 3:21-22)
2. When have you witnessed or experienced a display of great compassion? Seek God for direction on how you can show compassion to someone today. Ask Him to help you see people as He does, looking past the ugly crookedness of their natures to see their needs.
You must be compassionate, just as your Father is compassionate. (Luke 6:36)
3. This woman anointed Jesus’ feet with expensive perfume. Think of all the reasons you have to love Jesus. Send your prayer of gratitude heavenward as a sweet-smelling sacrifice of praise.
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. (Luke 7:47)
Saturday, March 31, 2018
This coming week's memory verse is 2 Chronicles 7:14...
"Then if my people who are called by My name will humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and heal their land." (NLT)
Happy Easter! Have a blessed and precious day and week everyone!
 |
| Who is the Greatest {Luke 22} |
By Lisa Moore
I remember a time at a funeral and standing in line to sign the remembrance book. Ahead of me was a family with two small boys each eager to sign his own name. Taking their turns, they stepped up and carefully added their signatures. Immediately after, they began arguing over whose was the best. I couldn't help but chuckle and feel a pang of sympathy for the young Mother as she asked in an exasperated voice, "Do we have to do this now guys?"
We kind of expect that silly competitive behavior from children, and especially between siblings, but not from men who had been walking with Jesus. And certainly not on the last night they would spend with Him before His sacrificial death on the Cross.
It was quite a evening. Jesus had just finished leading the disciples through the Passover meal. He also instituted a new fellowship meal, " "The Lord's Supper". This is to be observed by all disciples of Christ until He returns in remembrance of His great sacrifice. And if that wasn't enough, Jesus also shared the bombshell news that He was about to be betrayed by one of them on that very night.
Now you would think that the disciples would have been shocked, and devastated. Their mood somber and full of sorrow. Instead the twelve began arguing. "And there arose also a dispute among them as to which one of them was regarded to be greatest." (v. 24). Sadly Instead of keeping their eyes on Jesus and relishing the precious little time they had left with Him, their own selfish ambition was first most in their minds.
We are all guilty of the sins of pride, ego, and selfish ambition. Even the humblest of hearts can feel the sting of jealousy or the pride of self importance, and the disciples were no different. How easy it is to get sucked into the never ending, self destructive cycle of comparing and competing. And it doesn't help that the concept of humility goes against everything the world considers important. Society bombards us daily with the message that it's all about who you are, and what you have.
But Jesus makes one thing abundantly clear. The greatest in God's sight are those who humbly serve. He answered them, "...the one who is the greatest, must become like the youngest, and the leader like the servant. For who is greater, the one who reclines at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one who reclines at the table? But I am among you as the one who serves.", (vs. 26-27). He's telling them, "Look at me. I don't sit in a throne above you treating you as servants. I am here among you as equals calling you friends and brothers. It is I who is serving you. Imagine that! The greatest Leader of all came not to be served, but to serve. What a concept!
 |
| Who is the Greatest {Luke 22} |
To be great is to serve God. And serving God means serving others. As believers we are given at least one spiritual gift and are commanded to, "employ it in serving one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.", (1 Pet. 4:10). Each day we need to make ourselves available to Jesus to be used in His service. And whatever it is He asks of us, we are to do it with love, humility, and joy. Not with an attitude of resentment nor with a spirit of a martyr. And especially not for our glory, or for our star to shine, but always for the glory of God. "Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves.", (Phill. 2:3).
Jesus is our perfect example. He is the great Servant. "The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.", (Matt. 20:28). He performed the ultimate service by giving His life as the atonement for our sins so that we might have eternal life. When our hearts and minds are focused on pleasing Him and not ourselves, we can find the deep fulfilling joy that comes with being a humble servant of the Almighty God.
By Lisa Thayer
Sometimes I see on
Facebook the quote, “No matter what life
throws at us, at least we don’t have ugly children!” I have often put my hand over my mouth when I
read that. And I have been convicted of holding
too tightly to my children. Many of you
are aware that this season of empty nesting has been difficult for me – and I
still have two children living at home!
Seriously, just look at the many, and I mean many posts on social media
about our children’s accomplishments.
There are posts about sports achievements, academic achievements, health
achievements, even religious achievements.
We are proud of our children. We
have spent 18-20 years attending every event and watched them grow and reach
huge milestones.
When I first read
this chapter, verse 29 stood out to me.
But why is it included in the parable of the ‘Rich Man’? Personally, it answered a prayer about why
this season of empty nesting was so difficult for me. I believe it is because we place what we hold
dear to us first in our lives. God, our
Heavenly Father, our Creator, must be first.
Job 1:21, “Naked I
came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away,
may the name of the Lord be praised.” Verse
29 is included in the parable of the rich man because we may not always be
attached to money or possessions, but people, especially our children or
parents.
The end of chapter
17 ended with “Whoever tries to keep their life will lose it, and whoever loses
their life will preserve it. I tell you, on that night two people will be in
one bed; one will be taken and the other left.
Two women will be grinding grain together; one will be taken and the
other left.” (17:33-35) Which lead to the beginning of chapter 18 –
persistence in prayer. When we live by
faith, we are not to give up (v. 1). In
the first parable of this chapter, a widow keeps coming before the judge. In my current situation, I realized, I needed
to remove my children from my grasp, and bring them
before the Lord to have Him bless them.
And trust that the blessings He has in store for them may not be the
same blessings I believe they deserve. I learned that I need to humbly lay them
before Him for Him to use them to further His Kingdom. I have had to do this over and over,
sometimes many times in the same day!
This parable is
followed by the humble tax collector.
The people I work with often grumble and complain about a lawyer they
often have to work with on certain cases.
He truly appears to be a scoundrel.
Yet, occasionally I visit a different church, and there he is humbly
wheeling his mother in a wheelchair up to communion. And each time I see him, I see this humble
man, not the unjust lawyer.
I remember a
sermon a few years ago about the blind beggar and it has stuck with me. We encounter Jesus all day long and sometimes
we think because He knows what we ‘need’, He should just grant it to us. I mean after all, we are believers – He knows
the number of hairs on our head, He certainly can see my present situation. Yet there are obstacles in our way,
especially in the world we live in. If
we can be persistent in faith, and come to Jesus with our specific requests,
our eyes will be opened and we will see the way He intends for our lives to be
lived. Jesus asks us, “What do you want
me to do for you?” (v. 41) – He wants us to be specific!
God is loving and
He will respond to us, we have to believe He hears our cries for help. And we receive healing because of our faith. Persistence is not the means to earn
salvation, but the by-product of a truly devoted life. Every time there is a miracle, there is a
conversion. We must humble ourselves over and over.
