Enjoy TODAY!

Some people are making such thorough preparation for rainy days that they aren’t enjoying today’s sunshine. – W. Feather

Martha was so busy making preparations for Jesus’ visit to their home, she never really got an opportunity to visit with him when he came. OUCH!

Though the calendar on the wall or in our pocket may show a 7-day weekly period, or 30-day month, today is all we have. All the other days have either disappeared into oblivion or darkness, or not yet emerged from it. It is wise to plan for the future ahead of us but never at the expense of sucking all the joy out of right now. We cannot fully experience or praise God unless we take time out to enjoy Him and His creation right now. The ability to ‘earn our keep’ by the work we do is a grand opportunity to experience God working through us. Rainy days or hardships may come or may already be upon us, but nevertheless, today is still all we have. If we live by the Spirit we will find opportunity to enjoy what God is doing right now and give Him praise.

Until tomorrow…

Pastor Botts

“This is the day that the Lord has made; I will rejoice and be glad in it.” – Psalm 118:24

The Future Happens Everyday

The best thing about the future is that it comes one day at a time. – Abraham Lincoln

Jesus went from manger to cross in just over 33 years, living day by day. It wasn’t supernatural, but He was. Hmm!

Today is the future of yesterday. Tomorrow, if granted will be the future of today. That’s how God has planned it since the beginning for us. We often think of the future as some time ahead - months, years, decades, etc. – and often we make our plans that way. But the future happens every day. True, life may go on hundreds of years after today before Christ returns, but we’re not guaranteed to be here beyond today. And because God knows how much we can bear, His mercies, compassion, kindnesses and other blessings are only given us for the day, so we are not overwhelmed. So if we’re planning on living happily ever after, today would be the day to start.

Until Monday…

Pastor Botts

“The Lord your God will drive out those nations before you, little by little. You will not be allowed to eliminate them all at once….” – Deuteronomy 7:22

P.S. - Don't forget to bring in your Gift Cards for our CA Wildfire Relief contribution.

Closet Time With Jesus

A holy life is not lived in the closet, but it cannot survive without one. - Anon

Paul's letters mention how he 'often' prayed for those who came to faith. I'm sure that's not all he prayed for. Hmm!

We wash them in 'Woolite'! We get them professionally dry-cleaned! We hang them properly, sometimes in plastic bags in the closet. What are they, our clothes or garments. Those pieces we always want to look good in, in public. Whether it be clothes, cars, jewelry, etc., we all have things we give much more attention and protection to, ensuring their presentation always draws attention. That should ever be the case with our faith walk with God. It deserves the utmost of care in terms of preparation (study, prayer, fasting) and presentation (avoiding the appearance of sin). It's true that life has a frenetic pace, but it's equally true that we don't have to participate in everything that makes it that way. If our lives are starting to get frayed around the ends, maybe some closet time with Jesus is just what we need.

Until Monday...

Pastor Botts

"......But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father who is unseen....." - Matthew 6:6

Enjoying Today

Some people are making such thorough preparation for rainy days that they aren’t enjoying today’s sunshine. – W. Feather

Martha was so busy making preparations for Jesus’ visit to their home, she never really got an opportunity to visit with him when he came. OUCH!

Though the calendar on the wall or in our pocket may show a 7-day weekly period, or 30-day month, today is all we have. All the other days have either disappeared into oblivion or darkness, or not yet emerged from it. It is wise to plan for the future ahead of us but never at the expense of sucking all the joy out of right now. We cannot fully experience or praise God unless we take time out to enjoy Him and His creation right now. The ability to ‘earn our keep’ by the work we do is a grand opportunity to experience God working through us. Rainy days or hardships may come or may already be upon us, but nevertheless, today is still all we have. If we live by the Spirit we will find opportunity to enjoy what God is doing right now and give Him praise.

Until tomorrow…

Pastor Botts

“This is the day that the Lord has made; I will rejoice and be glad in it.” – Psalm 118:24

Program, Set, Go!

Do not have your concert first and THEN tune your instrument later! – J. Taylor

David was a victorious warrior king because he often sought God before the battle. -Hmm!

On any given flight, beyond the take-off and landing; most of the flight is controlled by the autopilot. It is pre-programmed with all the flight data; and has many redundant or back-up systems to make sure it stays the course. The important thing to note is that the autopilot is programmed BEFORE the flight takes off. By comparison many of us live our lives on autopilot, doing things by ritual. We try and grab God as we go; or convince ourselves that we’ll take time a little later to get with Him. And then the crisis hits and often we crash –OUCH! If God is truly the pilot of our lives maybe we need to give Him time each morning to program our autopilot feature. After all He knows the weather ahead!

Until tomorrow….

Pastor Botts

“…Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love…..show me the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul.” – Psalm 143:8

Ready, Prep, Go!

Goals are dreams with deadlines! - Anon

The Jews of Jesus’ time were looking for the return of Elijah. Jesus told his disciples Elijah (John the Baptist) had already come. They weren’t ready and ‘missed’ him. WOW!

Many of us look forward to certain dates (payday, birthday, anniversary, vacation, Christmas, etc.) often marking them on our calendars, making detailed plans and telling everyone we can about it. But in the case of our Savior’s return we do little or nothing in terms of planning and preparation. If the Word of God is true and He could return at any moment; shouldn’t our lives be in order, our relationships set right, and our actions motivated purely by love and not selfish gain? This is not to say that we don’t plan to enjoy life, but if Heaven is our goal and we fail to plan, then we plan to fail. Why not began preparing TODAY!

Until tomorrow……

Pastor Botts

“But understand this: if the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into. You also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.” – Luke 12:39-40

Today's scripture reading: Proverbs 14

Today's scripture question: Where might verse 12 apply in your life now?

Sensible Preparation

Yes, men do make counterfeit money, but more often than naught, money makes counterfeit men. - S. Harris

Rehoboam's focus on more taxation made him a lesser man than his father Solomon. OUCH!

The love of money, the attraction, the affectations it brings, the power it yields, the satisfaction and happiness it promises - it's all smoke and mirrors. Yes, we need money to survive in this life, exist in this culture, but no matter how much we have it does not and should not define us, nor should others measure us by it. Jesus told us we should use 'worldly wealth to gain friends' (Luke 16:9) so that one day we 'might be welcomed into eternal dwellings.' So I think the question we should sometimes ask ourselves is: what are we doing with the other 90%, how is that portion showing out in my life? That does bear some thought, doesn't it? Will anybody be in heaven based on my spending patterns? The best use of your dollar$ and ¢ent$ is to be $en$ible in preparation for tomorrow.

Until Monday.....

Pastor Botts

"....for where your treasure in there your heart will be also..." - Matthew 6:22

Note: The Discipleship class will be meeting this Sunday at 9:15AM.

Men's Bible Study will be at 4pm.

Enjoy the Day

Some people are making such thorough preparation for rainy days that they aren’t enjoying today’s sunshine. – W. Feather

Martha was so busy making preparations for Jesus’ visit to their home, she never really got an opportunity to visit with him when he came. OUCH!

Though the calendar on the wall or in our pocket may show a 7-day weekly period, or 30-day month, today is all we have. All the other days have either disappeared into oblivion or darkness, or not yet emerged from it. It is wise to plan for the future ahead of us but never at the expense of sucking all the joy out of right now. We cannot fully experience or praise God unless we take time out to enjoy Him and His creation right now. The ability to ‘earn our keep’ by the work we do is a grand opportunity to experience God working through us. Rainy days or hardships may come or may already be upon us, but nevertheless, today is still all we have. If we live by the Spirit we will find opportunity to enjoy what God is doing and give Him praise.

Until tomorrow……

Pastor Botts

“This is the day that the Lord has made; I will rejoice and be glad in it.” – Psalm 118:24

Rejoicing in Today

Some people are making such thorough preparation for rainy days that they aren’t enjoying today’s sunshine. – W. Feather

Martha was so busy making preparations for Jesus’ visit to their home, she never really got an opportunity to visit with him when he came. OUCH!

Though the calendar on the wall or in our pocket may show a 7-day weekly period, or 30-day month, today is all we have. All the other days have either disappeared into oblivion or darkness, or not yet emerged from it. It is wise to plan for the future ahead of us but never at the expense of sucking all the joy out of right now. We cannot fully experience or praise God unless we take time out to enjoy Him and His creation right now. The ability to ‘earn our keep’ by the work we do is a grand opportunity to experience God working through us. Rainy days or hardships may come or may already be upon us, but nevertheless, today is still all we have. If we live by the Spirit we will find opportunity to enjoy what God is doing and give Him praise.

Until tomorrow……

Pastor Botts

“This is the day that the Lord has made; I will rejoice and be glad in it.” – Psalm 118:24