Happy with Yours

The gift of Christmas leaves none wanting or wishing if it is truly received. - Anon

The Israelites had God as their loving leader,  instead after looking at their neighbors they wanted a king like everyone else. It really cost them. Hmm!

Admittedly, we are imperfect human beings in nature. We know what God says to us in His Word, but yet we go against it anyway. For instance, we know that envy is sin, but sometimes in our human frailness and particularly in this time of the year where we see the blessings, gifts, and fellowships others are enjoying envy can rear its head. Thus, we must guard ourselves against that natural tendency to feel resentment and jealousy towards others because of their good fortune. As a believer, we have absolutely no right or reason to be envious of anyone, because we ourselves are already possessors of the greatest gift of all creation: God’s Grace through Christ. Nothing matches it, exceeds it, or compares with it, and it abounds more and more each day. So a simple suggestion guaranteed to keep us satisfied and content is to fill our hearts with God’s love, His promises, and His Son, and that will not leave any room for any bitter activity.

We will be taking a few days off until the New Year, so until then …..

Pastor Botts

“…..therefore, laying aside all malice, deceit, hypocrisy, envy……desire the sincere milk of the word, that you may grow thereby.” – I Peter 2:1-2

Witness not Judge

God himself does not propose to judge a man until he is dead. So why should we? – Sparks

Peter judged all Gentiles to be inferior and beneath him. God put him in a situation with Cornelius that changed his ‘vision.’ WOW!

Truth be told we are all often quick to play judge, jury, and executioner; and pass final judgment on those we see and meet as if we have the actual keys to heaven and hell. And we do it with little rhyme or reason (looks, impressions, etc.). But God calls us to be witnesses for him, not lawyers OR judges; but witnesses. And like our Supreme Creator we should hold out hope for all mankind to be redeemed. Regardless of where they stand, God wants to use us to make a difference in their lives today, for tomorrow their change just may come. We should remember that whatever ‘measure’ we use will be used on us.

Until Monday…..

Pastor Botts

“And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment: So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many….” – Hebrews 9:27-28

P.S. - Hope to see you Sunday morning at 9AM.

Unfazed

Attitude: a very little thing that makes a world of difference. - Theodore Roosevelt

Jacob felt no pain or discomfort in the 7 years he had to work for Rachel's hand in marriage. WOW!

NFL/NBA Draft Day. Now if you're one of the top 5 draftees, you wake up that morning with a lot of nervous energy. The day has arrived, all your hard work, discipline, dedication to your craft will be rewarded. Oh you know there will still be more hard work ahead, but right now this is the moment, the day. Nothing much else will bother you today - no bad news. A fender-bender, pshaw. A little spill, forget about it. Nothing will overshadow what is about to take place for you. Well, likewise if we truly believe Christ would come at any moment shouldn't our countenance, attitude, and expectations be as great. TODAY! If Christ could return at any moment shouldn't we not let those small trivial irritations in life get us rattled, upset to the point of 'speaking out of anger' or 'brewing hatred' in our heart, vengeance in our spirit. If the victory is assured, let's act like we're on the winning side!

Until tomorrow......

Pastor Botts

"Rejoice in the Lord always, I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near." - Philippians 4:4-5

That's the Absolute Truth!

Truth is eternal. Knowledge is changeable. It is disastrous to confuse them. – Anon

After fleeing Egypt the Hebrew people thought they knew enough to go on without God’s man Moses. Twenty-three thousand found out they were wrong! OUCH!

Years ago the Temptations had a hit single ‘Ball of Confusion,’ lamenting the state of affairs in the world due to man’s thinking he no longer needed the truth, everyone can just do their own thing. Well we have and look where it’s gotten us - CONFUSED. Ask almost anyone and you’ll find that we seem to live in a world where truth is no longer absolute but relative; you make up your own; and what’s true today doesn’t have to be tomorrow. To deny the truth does not mean it doesn’t exist. Methods (ways of doing things) often change, but principles (why we do them) never change. The problem really is not that absolute truth doesn’t exist, but that most people just can’t handle it. Many ways may seem right but in the end lead to destruction.

Until tomorrow….

Pastor Botts

“They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator – who is forever praised. Amen.” – Romans 1:25

Regular Maintenance

The untended garden will soon be run over with weeds. - A.W. Tozer

When Paul traveled from city to city the first thing he often looked for was the 'gathering' place. If they didn't have one he often started it. Hmm!

Medical research has revealed that though heart attacks are 'silent', the body gives of a host of warning signs in the early preventable stages if we would only pay attention. Be that as it may I know a host of people who have ignored the warnings of a much more serious type of heart trouble. I know you know some as well, or maybe you're one yourself. Who are they: 'Christians' who loosely live by the name. I say loosely because they may have been to the church, even baptized, but have not been seen at the church often since then. They know they should be in attendance but quiet their conscience by saying missing church services is really not a serious matter. Or they fail to tithe/give, convincing themselves that God would want them to have whatever pleasure they spend the money on. They fail to get involved in any study, ministry, or outreach, and then blame the church for being cold or impersonal. Just as doctors would tell us not to ignore the warning signs of heart trouble, so does God's Word. We are told 'not to forsake the assembly' we're told to 'love the fellowship' to 'prefer one another' and on and on. These are truths we should give serious consideration to, for to neglect them has far worse consequences than a heart attack.

Until tomorrow.......

Pastor Botts

"Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell." - Matthew 10:28

Standout or Blend In

Christians are useless if they are fruitless. - H.C. Mears

Jesus told us to let our light "so shine" that others may see it, not have to go looking for it. Hmm!

The whole idea behind 'Where's Waldo' is that he is always deeply concealed within the masses. You have to look long and hard to find him. That was not the case with Jesus. He came to serve and not be served, and you didn't have to look hard to figure it out. You could easily find Him in some of the most menial jobs (foot washing, cooking breakfast, etc.) and there never was a question of  who was really in charge, He stood out like a 'sore thumb.' Though he had no outer beauty of His own, He was truly one who made a lot of heads turn, attracted crowds, and made leaders contemplate their actions and words carefully. Here's the question of  the day: when it comes to our daily living would we be considered more like Jesus or Waldo?
Until tomorrow......

Pastor Botts

"....[Jesus said] I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. I tell you the truth, no servant is greater than his master..." - John 13:13-14

A Setback or a Step Up?

The only difference between a stumbling block and a stepping stone is in the way you use them. – Anon

In the parable of the talents, the first 2 stewards saw it as a great opportunity, the other steward saw it as a liability. Hmm!

Abraham Lincoln. Thomas Edison. Joseph. Paul. Just a few names from history that if you researched you would find overcame many obstacles to be a great benefit to God and contributor to society. We’ve been gifted with the same tools and insight, and God gave and continues to give to everyone generously. We’ll have similar challenges and situations as well. The difference we make will be in our determination and perseverance. Will we allow life’s trials or storms to trip us up, knock us down, or stall our efforts, or will we step up to a higher calling for God.

Until Monday……

Pastor Botts

“Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified; a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God..” – I Corinthians 1:22-

Benefits of Kindness

Kindness is never wasted. If it has no effect on the recipient, at least it benefits the bestower. - S. Simmons

Jesus said there would be a reward for just giving a cup of cold water to someone. Hmm!

You offer them your seat only to hear a brusque "no thanks!" You offer to help only to hear "nope, I've got it!" It's often true our attempts to do a good deed or bless someone gets rebuffed or angrily rejected. However, that should not deter us from the practice. Doing a good deed is its own reward. If there's a "thank you" attached or some other acknowledgement given, that's great. But even if not we should still commit ourselves to the practice for our Heavenly Father sees us. And that is where the greatest reward will be acknowledged. God will never be indebted to us, and He loves to lavish His blessings on us, especially when we live to pass them on or share them with others. Last I've checked, kindness is an outgrowth of being Spirit filled, RIGHT?

Until tomorrow....

Pastor Botts

"...and as for you, brothers, never tire of doing what is right." - II Thessalonians 3:13

Created to Serve God

A man who trims himself to suit everybody will soon whittle himself away. – Sparks

Jethro had to take his son-in-law Moses aside and give him some fatherly advice about leading the people. It worked wonders. WOW!

Conflict. We all somewhat hate it, and try to avoid it at all costs. And that's okay as long as it doesn't cause us to shape ourselves into something we're not, or cause us to take on more than we need to or should be doing. In those cases we need to stand firm, and remember our purpose. Try as we might, but one of the hardest lessons for us to learn is we cannot be everything for everybody. We must remember even God Himself doesn't try to please everyone. Though we serve a God with unlimited power and resources, we must remember we were created to serve Him and Him only. And in the long run when you please Him first, everything else seems to fall right in place.

Until tomorrow…..

Pastor Botts

“Jesus said, ‘Away from me Satan! For it is written; Worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only.’” – Matthew 4:10

Do Doing Done... with Heart

We judge ourselves by what we feel capable of doing; others judge us by what we have done. - Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

God thought more of Abel's offering not for 'what' he gave but 'how' he gave it. AMEN!

From early on we're taught to manage our time wisely. We're taught to prioritize, arrange, rank, from the least to the greatest the opportunities we have and do those that bring the greatest return. And so we do, day in and day out. And then we measure ourselves for effectiveness. We may think our time spent teaching a class was better spent than the time we gave passing out pamphlets. Or the mission trip we took to a distant land is greater than the time we spent serving as an usher last week. Maybe it was, maybe it wasn't. In truth, we have no idea what really ranks as the most important part of our work, for it is not really the work itself but the attitude and heart with which we did it. A phone call to an ailing member could be just as important as the Sunday sermon the minister preaches because God is the ultimate judge of all we do and "His ways and thoughts" are not like ours, they are much higher. So the idea here is not to do the work for work's sake, but do the work for the Lord's glory. And just like in school when our final grade was the cumulative effect of all our efforts, the Lord will be grading our efforts and at the end of the day grades will be posted. May we all receive passing grades.

Until tomorrow.....

Pastor Botts

"...Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men." - Colossians 3:23

The Choice To Love

We make our friends and our enemies, but God makes our neighbor. – Anon

The expert lawyer was looking for a loophole as to who his neighbor was. Jesus cleared it up. Hmm!

Choice – what a great gift God gave us. The ability to make our own choices or decisions. We get to choose where to live, what to eat, what to drive, even who gets to be our friend. But the one choice God did not leave to us is who to love. We’re commanded to love everyone, especially our neighbor. And though we’d like to be the people who live to the right and left of us, God says emphatically our neighbor is anyone we can help regardless of location, color, creed or affiliation. So as the day and weekend unfolds remember God might be bringing ‘new neighbors’ our way.

Until tomorrow…..

Pastor Botts

“….and the second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.” – Mark 12:31

Prayer Work

Remember that nothing will run itself, unless it’s running downhill. – Anon

In the Garden of Gethsemane Jesus exhorted the disciples to “keep watch and pray” and not sleep.  Though they failed on several occasions, they finally got it right later. AMEN!

It’s true the life Jesus promised us is the life we all want, but it’s also true that to have the life we want we must put in the “work” required.  If we were to ever seriously look at the life Jesus lived we would see the first and last order of work is prayer. The reasons our lives are often run down, drained, and without effect is because we don’t do the necessary work in prayer. Prayer is what keeps the life running. It is as vital to the Christian life as food is to the physical life. Without it we cease to exist. I pray yours is effective.

Until Monday…..

Pastor Botts

“Hear, O Lord, when I cry with my voice: have mercy also upon me and answer me. When thou saidst, ‘Seek ye my face; my heart said unto thee, Thy face, Lord, will I seek. Hide not thy face far from me; put not thy servant away in anger, thou hast been my help, leave me not neither forsake me, O God of my salvation.’” – Psalm 27:7-9

Wait for the Perfect Gift

If you will wait, God will work! - R. Foster

Saul's haste in not waiting for the man of God cost him dearly - a lasting kingdom. OUCH!

WAIT! It's a word we hate to hear. Sometimes even moreso than 'NO!' It just does something strange to our psyche, kind of puts us in limbo where we're not in control of the situation. But yet, so many times in God's Word we see and are told God wants us to wait on Him. So often our prayers revolve around us asking God to hurry up and bless what we want to do (marriage, children, job, car, home, etc.) rarely do we ask Him to guide us or even seek His will to see if its the right thing for us. Waiting on God is not time lost, it means patiently looking to Him for what we need. So our prayers should not seek to hurry up God, but to remind ourselves first of all that God is the giver of every perfect gift, and also remind us that our 'right now' moments are not His emergencies. Since He's never late His response will always be not 'right now' but right on time.

Until tomorrow......

Pastor Botts

"In the morning, O Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation." - Psalm 5:3

Superiority Complex

There is nothing noble about being superior to some other man. The true nobility is in being superior to your previous self. – Hindu Proverb

Jesus, though Kings of Kings, was able to connect with the ‘common’ man because he made himself common to man. Hmm!

In sports we want to overpower them. On the job we want to show them up. Even in the church we want to show them we’re holier. From our early upbringing we’re taught competition settles most things, and no one likes a loser. So we pattern our lives this way. Competition is okay in sports. But life itself is neither a competition nor an audition; it is character preparation before God. The noble man knows regardless of his blessings, talent, and surroundings, he is no better than his fellow man and that his overall success is actually somewhat tied to that of his fellow man succeeding as well, which should keep us all honest. After all, I’ve never met anyone who liked eating ‘humble pie.’

Until tomorrow…..

Pastor Botts

“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves.” – Philippians 2:3

Prayer in times of Helplessness

Prayer and helplessness are inseparable. Only those who are helpless can truly pray. - G. Hallesby

When Jonah hit rock bottom the only thing he could do was pray. Hmm!

The truly great thing about prayer is that it requires no special preparation, no precise vocabulary, no appropriate posture (other than a humble heart), and no special time. God is always available and listening. Yes, we're told to 'enter our closets' or 'steal away' for more meaningful time and intimacy, but that doesn't mean we can't pray right where we are now. How about it! If songs and prayers of praise come about when life is good and blessings are flowing, then serious cries, petitions, intercessions and other prayers for supplication and help begin in our times of trouble. And for most of us trouble is always the norm. So pray on friend, pray on, and trust that God's answer will always be wiser than your request.

Until tomorrow.......

Pastor Botts

"As for me, I call to God, and the Lord saves me. Evening, morning and noon I cry out in distress, and he hears my voice." - Psalm 55:16-17

Temple of the Heart

Unless love is written on the heart it is merely just a word. - Anon

The Good Samaritan acted because of a heart condition. Hmm!

In Old Testament times the 'Book of The Law' of God was kept in the temple and read to the people by the priests. Every so often because of war or sinful leadership it was lost or misplaced so there was no reading of it. No keeping of the commands of God. Hence, God's decision under the New Covenant to put His Word in the hearts of the people, therefore we are now the temple of God (our hearts) and the Word of God should reside within us, so it can never be lost or hindered in its power to work. That's why it is imperative for us as Christians to set aside time to study, meditate, pray, and commune with God that His Word will become more ingrained in our hearts. It takes more than just sporadic Sunday church attendance, it's a pining in the heart for connection, which then translates to action. After all, love is a word of action.

Until tomorrow.....

Pastor Botts

"Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you?..........God's temple is sacred, and you are that temple" - I Corinthians 3:16-17

No Fret Life

You can tell the size of your God by looking at the length of your worry list. The longer the list the smaller your God. – Anon

David went before Goliath with no worries, he knew and trusted in the one to 'whom the battle belonged' – God. AMEN!

One of the great spirituals of old is ‘Lord Don’t Move The Mountain,’ indicating the individual knew major obstacles lay in their path. But the song also indicated they knew they could overcome the obstacles with God’s help. Life was meant by God to be lived, not fretted over. If the problems, cares, and trials of life seem like ‘giants’ to us, maybe we need to look away from them and refocus on our Creator. We have everything in us that scrawny little David had, and God still reigns, so today remains to be conquered!

Until Monday…….

Pastor Botts 

[Jeremiah prayed] “Ah, Sovereign Lord, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for you.” – Jeremiah 32:17

P.S. - Hope you can make 'Family & Friends Game Night' tonight starting at 6:30pm.