Failure: A step to Success

Been there, done that, got a T-Shirt! - Anon

Realizing one-size didn't fit everyone, Paul said he "became all things to all men to win just one." Hmm!

Plain and simple, life means risks. Getting uncomfortable, feeling a bit uneasy at times, waiting for the end result. But that's what makes life - life. The possibility of failure is always among us, and yes, we should be concerned about it but not paralyzed by it. When we look at things with the proper attitude failure plays a really productive role in success. It provides valuable insight and information, lets us know which roads we no longer have to travel, which mountains we don't have to climb again, and which oceans we no longer need to set sail on, which in turn narrows our focus and increases our chances for succeeding the next time. God gives us many, many opportunities to serve Him, so today is just one more chance to get it right.

Until tomorrow.....

Pastor Botts

"...let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up..." - Galatians 6:9

Changed by the Word

Scripture should more than inform us, it should transform us. – Anon

When King Hezekiah received the threatening letter from Sennacherib, he was moved to prayer. God was moved too! AMEN!

“We like it, we love it, we want some more of it.” That seems to be the cry of most of us as “Christians” today, “I need to know more bible, or more about the bible.” But scripture should be much more than information to us, it is food to nourish our soul and spirit, to power the life we live. The Word of God is “alive and powerful”, and able to change or transform us when given license through the power of the Holy Spirit. As we all face the circumstances and situations of life, we need to remember it’s not how much scripture we know, but will it show in our life.

Until tomorrow……

Pastor Botts

“Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will. – Romans 12:2

Seeing good everyday

It’s just as easy to look for the good things in life as the bad. - Sparks

In all that Joseph went through (abandonment, prison, etc.) his attitude seems to say he never had a bad day. Hmm!

The alarm doesn’t go off and you wake up late. The sun is shining. You spill coffee on your clothes on the way to work. You have a job. The boss doesn’t like your report. You still have a job. You work through lunch to fix the report. You actually have food to eat. It can go on and on like this in work, life, relationships, you name it. The issue is we are so bent on seeing all the ‘wrongs’  or ‘bad things’ that occur to us that we seldom see or think about all the good that happens. We’re not hard-wired that way – for God wants us to see His beauty and splendor – but somewhere along the road of life we seem to have picked up blinders to all that is good and can only focus on what isn’t, and we gladly tell others about it. God never said life would be perfect, but that life would help perfect us, if we see it properly for what it is, a training ground for our character – which is the only thing we can take into eternity. So today, why not try to see all the good God brings your way and praise Him for it – for you need remember, you are a ‘piece of work’!

Until Monday…..

Pastor Botts

“…I will bless the Lord at all times, His praise shall continually be on my lips…..” – Psalm 34:1

Sin. Always out of fashion.

Fallacies do not cease to be fallacies just because they become fashions. – G.K. Chesterton

The idolatry practiced by their neighbors looked like fun and good times to the Israelites, but God thought otherwise. Ouch!

Fads. New wave. Cutting edge. Avant Garde. Lifestyles, etc.  Call it what you will, but we now live in a society where it is fully acceptable to find new ways to lower morality and shun any personal responsibility, or acknowledge Almighty God. Everybody has turned to his own way. Even we as Christians if we’re not careful can get easily tangled up in the worldly offerings (media, leisure, clothing, idols, affirmations, etc.). But no matter what society calls it or how society sells it, before God it is still SIN, period! Don’t just do it, do it righteously.

Until tomorrow…..

Pastor Botts

“Do not put out the Spirit’s fire; do not treat prophecies with contempt. Test everything. Hold on to the good. Avoid every kind of evil.” – I Thessalonians 5:19-22

The Truth Hurts... Sometimes

The truth doesn’t hurt unless it ought to. – B.C. Forbes

Peter was ‘hurt’ when Jesus questioned his love those 3 times after his denials. But he finally got point. OUCH!

Jesus referred to himself as ‘the Truth.’ God never gave us the truth to hurt us, but to set us free. The power of the truth is in its application – love. If we walk in the truth we feel the love and warmth of God. If we walk outside of the truth we feel its painful sharp edges trying to push us back into line. If pain lingers its only because of our refusal to acknowledge and accept God’s plan and purposes over our own. We can get mad and go away but the TRUTH (God’s Word) will never change, for it is His agent to change us. Lets strive for a pain-free day today!

Until tomorrow…..

Pastor Botts

“Sanctify them by the truth, your word is truth.” – John 17:17

Doing the Impossible

Some of the world’s greatest feats were accomplished by people not smart enough to know they were impossible. – D. Larson

Before Peter came to his “senses” and started to sink, his faith had allowed him to walk on water. Wow!

Breaking the sound barrier! Discovering Penicillin! Building the Golden Gate Bridge! All examples of the impossible being done by people not “book smart” enough to know it couldn’t be done, but with faith and determination to go at it until they did. Truthfully, if we all took a few moments to reflect back over our lives I’m sure we’ll see the impossible has been worked quite often there as well. Trials, tribulations, mountains, problems, situations that we thought were impossible to overcome have suddenly become vague items in the rear view mirror of life because of God’s blessing. Life’s situations may seem hard today, but remember, nothing’s impossible.

Until Monday…..

Pastor Botts

“’If you can’?  said Jesus. Everything is possible for him who believes.” – Mark 9:23

Spiritual Maintenance

“You call what you’re doing a living sacrifice?” – God

Jacob had to leave his family, slept alone with a ‘rock’ for a pillow, and still got up and praised God. Hmm!

Often most of us just fall into the rut of life, just doing what we need to do to get by, make ends meet, keep the lights on, etc. And unfortunately the same attitude falls upon our ministry and worship efforts. But if God is a God of life, joy, vibrancy, and one who is ‘doing a new thing’ should not our lives somewhat parallel the one in whose image we were made? The spirit-filled individuals we read about in His word had problems as well, but it seems they went out of their way and normal routines to please God. If God is the same ‘yesterday, today, and forever,’ I think the same type of attitude and effort is still what pleases Him. Hopefully we’re all up for it today.

Until tomorrow…..

Pastor Botts

“{God said} Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil.” – Job 1:8

The Reward of Change

Our reward is what we become, not what we get. – Anon

Paul considered becoming more ‘like Christ’ far greater than anything else he had done in his life. Hmm!

We live in a saturated society of more, more, more. We’re told to chase the ‘American Dream,' to follow 'the money.' We’re told newer is always better, older is passé. We learn to measure others by what they possess, where they live, what they do. It should be easy for us to see that our buy-in to such thinking does nothing but keep us on a treadmill trying to reach the next plateau. And until we realize that life is much more about significance (making an impact on other’s lives) than success (gathering trophies and trinkets), we will never be satisfied. God is about changing our character and heart in preparing us for heaven. The hardest part is ours in realizing we do need to be changed, and asking God for help. He’s the Master at making masterpieces, and He thinks we’re worth the change.

Until tomorrow…..

Pastor Botts

“[And Jesus said]: ‘I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.’” – Matthew 18:3

The most important thing

A Note from God: “My kid saved your honor student.” – Anon

Paul stated he’d rather have Jesus than anything, counting all his other worldly goods as ‘rubbish.’ WOW!

Whether it be honor student, perfect attendance, club awards, etc., we sometimes do tend to get carried away with notoriety for our children, and oftentimes even with titles for ourselves. Awards and titles have their place in our lives, but we must keep the main thing the main thing. None of this would be possible if it had not been for what Jesus did for us, and secondly and of even more import; none of this means anything if Jesus is not our personal savior. Besides, when we get to heaven God is not going to check our credentials for awards or titles, he’s going to check our hearts and bodies for battle scars (the marks of Jesus).

Until tomorrow…..

Pastor Botts

“I felt I had to write and urge you to contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to the saints.” – Jude 3

As we celebrate our Veteran's today let us not forget the ultimate sacrifice made for us!

No big heads here

Angels can fly because they take themselves lightly. – G. K. Chesterton

Though Paul started many churches and had audiences with kings, he never forgot that he was just a servant of Jesus Christ. AMEN!

Fame, titles, positions, possessions – if not careful; these things can tend to give one an attitude of superiority or pride. Success in and of itself is not bad or sinful, but when we allow it to dictate to others how we should be treated, or demand special considerations because of it, we’ve set ourselves up for a fall. Yes, life is a serious matter; but we like the people we deal with on a daily basis are imperfect creatures too. So no matter our success we must remember that it too has been by God’s grace, not so much our own making. Remember, God “sets up and knocks down kings” as He purposes.

Until tomorrow……

Pastor Botts

“For by the grace given to me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you.” – Romans 12:3

Loving God's Will

God’s will is not an itinerary, but an attitude. – A. Dhuse

The Pharisee checked off his to-do-list in his prayer time to God. God was not impressed. OUCH!

True, the bible has a lot of do’s and don’ts in it. But it is not a book of regulations and lists to march by, and pound others with, it is a letter to learn to love God; and live by. Without it, we have no idea of who God is and how to love Him. With it we know not only how to love God, but others and ourselves as well. Love is the greatest attitude.

Until Monday…..

Pastor Botts

“Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God, but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.” – I John 4:11-12

Belief vs Conviction

Beliefs are what you hold, convictions are what hold you. – H.G. Wells

Joseph could not bring himself to sin against his God with Potiphar’s wife. Samuel could not sin against his God by failing to pray for His people. Beliefs no, convictions YES!

There is a common saying we’re all familiar with “talk is cheap,” meaning we are proven by our actions rather than by our words. Many a person has gone down in flames because they got their beliefs confused with their convictions. The enemy will always attack our beliefs - he attacked Jesus in Matthew 4 - just to see our response. For one growing in the faith there comes a crossing over point where we truly realize, feel, and understand the great love God has lavished on us, and we are convicted in our hearts never to cross or sever that bond nor leave its confines. That’s a worldview worth having.

Until tomorrow…..

Pastor Botts

“If we are out of our mind, it is for the sake of God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you. For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.” – II Corinthians 5:13-15

Is it really a failure?

Huge failures are often divine redirections. – D. Harvey

Paul thought he was cut out to be a Pharisee, but 'Oh', what a fisherman he became. Hmm!

We sing a song entitled ‘God Never Fails,’ and firmly know that to be true. The scriptures even bear it out that God cannot fail. But we are often heart broken and ready to give up our faith when something we think we’re doing for God goes awry or flat out fails. While God does not fail, it was never promised that all we strive to do for Him would succeed. He himself knows the purpose for which He created each and every one of us, and He will bring it about in His time. So though we may fail at one thing and suffer a little heartache, it is not final. Life is not defined by one or two events, but the sum total of all we do. And God can and will bring it all together for us if we allow Him some ‘wiggle room.’ If things aren’t the way we want them, maybe we should look to God's design.

Until tomorrow…..

Pastor Botts

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” – Romans 8:28