Practice the Faith

Love is an act of faith, therefore whoever is of little faith is also of little love. – E. Fromm

Though she was looked upon with contempt and even called a dog, the Canaanite woman’s faith impressed Jesus. It was motivated by love for her daughter, not herself. Hmm!

It’s a true statement: What the world needs now is love! The scriptures bear it out loud and clear many, many times, “God is love” (I John 4:8), “for God so loved the world” (John 3:16). The point is He’s asked us to show it by our faith. We extend love to others not because we expect love in return, but because it is Christ within us reaching out to man. If we cannot love all men, we cannot truly love God. In our chance encounters and circumstances today we're expected to practice the faith.

Until Monday…

Pastor Botts

“Hear , O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself. There is no commandment greater than these.’” – Mark 12:29-31

True Supporting Cast Members

God evidently does not intend us all to be rich, or powerful, or great, but He does intend us all to be friends. – Ralph Waldo Emerson

Jonathan would not let the kingship nor his father, king Saul, take from him what he cherished most – FRIENDSHIP with David. Hmm!

In any society there are only so many that can be leaders, standouts, or greats if you will. But in reality, they cannot be such without the support of the people, so to be a standout or great is really nothing without friends to support you. One of the key elements God looks for in us down here is our ability to love one another in spite of our different stations, cultures, or preferences, and to prefer one another over ourselves – that’s a picture of true friendship. Remember, it’s easier to be a friend than to find one.

Until tomorrow…

Pastor Botts

“You are my friends if you do what I command.” – John 15:14

Everyday Angels

Just because you can't see something doesn't mean it's not there! - Anon

Biblically, she was only known as the 'servant' girl of Naaman's wife. Hmm!

We often think of angels as those vessels of God who appear out of nowhere at the right moment to assist us when in need and then suddenly, they're gone. We don't get a name or much information about them, just that they appeared, helped, and disappeared. Now it's true this happens often, but let's not overlook the angels we get to see in everyday life. The meaning of angel is 'messenger of God', one who gives God's tidings. And if that is the case, we are all visited quite often, more so than we know. Those who drop by unexpectedly with a bag of groceries or offer to run an errand or two for us in our time of sickness, infirmity, or sorrow. Those who greet us with a 'knowing' smile in our time of struggle to encourage us. In essence, anyone who communicates God's love to us in our time of need is an angel. Yes, they are all around, so look for them and praise God for His goodness.

Until tomorrow...

Pastor Botts

"For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways...." - Psalm 91:11

The Power to Love

God’s right to rule is His desire to love his people. – C. Ringma

Joseph had a right to be angry with his brothers for what they did to him, but love showed up. WOW!

Imagine having not just the authority to do something, but the divine right to do it; and then willingly giving it up in hope that you will not be disappointed. That’s what God did with us. He could condemn us at any time and be justified, but yet He desires not to. His love does the opposite of what we would normally expect. It fills empty rather than full hands. It pursues the worst to make it the best. It makes the weak strong and rules with love rather than force or coercion. And God does so freely, risking rejection. We are so well loved that we ourselves ought to love others well. Time’s a wastin’ friend!

Until tomorrow…

Pastor Botts

"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.” – John 13:35

The Authority to Love

God’s right to rule is His desire to love his people. – C. Ringma

 

Joseph had a right to be angry with his brothers for what they did to him, but love showed up. WOW!

 

Imagine having not just the authority to do something, but the divine right to do it; and then willingly giving it up in hope that you will not be disappointed. That’s what God did with us. He could condemn us at any time and be justified, but yet He desires not to. His love does the opposite of what we would normally expect. It fills empty rather than full hands. It pursues the worst to make it the best. It makes the weak strong and rules with love rather than force or coercion. And God does so freely, risking rejection. We are so well loved, that we ourselves ought to love others well. Time’s a wastin’ friend!

 

Until tomorrow….

 

Pastor Botts

 

“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.” – John 13:35

Practice Love

We can either judge others or we can love others – but we can’t do both. – Anon

When the crowd brought the woman taken in “the very act” of adultery to Jesus, they were shocked by His response – LOVE!

Decisions, decisions, decisions. One of the toughest things in the world for us as Christians is to practice consistent decision making. We often go from one extreme to the other always with ‘OUR OWN’ best interests at hand. But if the word of God tells us to “consider others better than ourselves,” I think God’s calling to us is to practice love, not law. This is not to say that we condone the actions of those who transgress God’s commands, but neither do we become judge, jury, and executioner. Ours is to keep ourselves pure and extend grace to others in hopes of their repentance.  I pray we will be like Him today.

Until tomorrow…..

Pastor Botts

“The second [command] is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself. There is no commandment greater than these’.” – Mark 12:31

Be About It

Your theology is who you are when the talking stops and the action starts. – C. Morris

While facing a death sentence Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego held fast to their God. In the fiery furnace their God held fast to them. Hmm!

There’s an old cliché that says: “when all is said and done, there’s a lot less done than said.” There’s a lot of truth to this in most lives. People are good at talking and making great and grand promises, claiming to have impeccable character or stout-hearted faith. But despite all we claim, our actual life actions will scream who we are so loud others really don’t have to listen to a word we say. The good thing is we serve a God who is patient and forgiving, however He will not always “hold His peace”. Remember, if you don’t live it you don’t believe it.

Until Monday…..

Pastor Botts

“The man who says, ‘I know him,’ but does not do what He commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But if anyone obeys His word, God’s love is truly made complete in him.” – I John 2:4-5

Hope to see you Sunday at 9am for our Bible Reading recap.

Following God's Lead

If you haven’t learned to follow, you can’t lead. – H.C. Mears

What made Jesus such a great leader was that he followed His Father’s will. Hmm!

King, Prince, Monarch, etc. – they are all born to rule or lead. But the fact of the matter is history has shown us being 'born to lead' does not necessarily make one a good leader. Noble leadership is learned, and learned through the model of servitude – God’s model. To trust someone with such great responsibility, he should be tested with small responsibilities first, to prove himself worthy of the honor. The hardest lesson in life to learn- though it is also the simplest lesson- is to follow instructions. Following God’s instructions is submitting our will to His, then we can lead. God has called us to be leaders in our own way, that we should point others to Christ.

Until tomorrow……

Pastor Botts

“But now your kingdom will not endure; the Lord has sought out a man after his own heart and appointed him leader of his people, because you have not kept the Lord’s command.” – I Samuel 13:14

Time: Eternal Love

Time is too slow for the impatient, too swift for the aged; too long for the grieving, too short for those rejoicing; but to those who love, time is eternity. – H. VanDyke

Everyone wanted to know when the end times would be but even Jesus said he didn’t know. He did hint at preparing for eternity. Hmm!

Most of us have heard the saying “only what you do for Christ will last.” There’s great truth there but unfortunately most of us spend a great part of our life and efforts focused on the wrong goal – money. Money is not bad per se, and it is something we need to live, but TIME is actually the currency of life. And God in His wisdom made sure it’s the one thing we each possess in equal measure each day regardless of our station or lot in life. Our goal for God and His kingdom is to invest it wisely that it may pay dividends (treasures in heaven); for though it is spelled TIME, when caringly given to someone else it comes out LOVE. And that is God’s command to us.

Until tomorrow…….

Pastor Botts

“A new command I give you; Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” – John 13:34-35

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

Oh the pets we keep

Pets are creatures that are willingly kept by their owner, so I’ve never understood a pet peeve. - Sparks

No matter what Moses did the people were always finding fault and never satisfied. No wonder God called them ‘stiffnecked.’ OUCH!

If we’re honest about it, there’s probably something in most of us that at the slightest infraction gets our blood boiling; and our enemy knows it. The question is why does it have such a grip on us? It’s true we will be frustrated and upset at times, but we’re to never let our anger linger over anything nor carry it around day to day. This is not only stressful it is sinful for the bible says “let not the sun go down on your wrath.” This means we should not have any anger or malice in our hearts toward anyone. God doesn’t ask us to practice forgiveness He COMMANDS us to do so. And even if we were the one wronged, forgiveness lies within our own heart. Maybe it’s time we let God work it out for us, unless we like keeping useless pets.

Until tomorrow….

Pastor Botts

“Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous fall.” – Psalm 55:22

A Healthy Dose of Rest

Rest has cured more people than all the medicine in the world. – H. J. Reilly

After six days of awe-inspiring work, God; who neither slumbers nor sleeps, did something else miraculous – HE RESTED!

A bygone fitness organization, Bodies In Motion; used the slogan “You can rest when you’re dead!” By the look of things in society it appears the majority of people firmly believe that. Almost everything now can be done 24/7, 365 days a year and we’re busy trying to keep pace with it and becoming worse off. But God COMMANDED, not suggested; that we take time out to rest. He made us and knows our bodies need physical rest and spiritual renewal. To avoid these is a recipe for disaster. No matter how much money we get, or how many ‘toys’ we acquire the best thing for our well-being is rest and spiritual renewal. Make sure you get both this weekend.

Until Monday.....

Pastor Botts

By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. And God blessed the seventh day and made it HOLY, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.” – Genesis 2:1-3“