Pain's Purpose

What is crucial in life is not HOW we get out of pain, but rather, WHAT we get out of it. - A. Christing

After being beaten, flogged, and cast into prison, in the midst of their pain Paul and Silas began to praise God. Wow, what a relief!

Pain, be it physical, emotional, spiritual, financial, etc., no one likes it and the sooner we can get out/rid of it, the better. Truthfully though it serves a purpose, to let us know something is amiss, or out of order in our life. And to try and hurry to the cure or relief point without understanding the cause is like cutting down weeds without pulling up the root - they will grow back. The key is to know why it occurs, then put into practice habits and actions that will keep it from re-occurring. God knows pain and its effects on us, but often He has to leave the burden much longer than necessary because of our slowness to understand why and apply His remedies.

Until Monday...

Pastor Botts

"...Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me..." - II Corinthians 12:9

Don't Waste A Moment

How you spend your time is more important than how you spend your money. Money mistakes can be corrected, but time is gone forever. - D. Norris

Paul wrote to the Ephesians that a wise decision is to 'make the most of every opportunity for good.' Amen!

24 hours in a day! That's true for all of us, no matter our pedigree, wealth, nationality, or age. God gifts each person the same 24 hours per day. And the world we live in goes overboard with opportunity after opportunity on how to spend it. Notice I said spend, not invest. Like money and babies, time also DOES NOT come with instructions but only a warning to use it wisely. It's been said that to 'kill time' is to harm eternity. If left unchecked time stealthily slips away taking with it much more than it brought, often leaving heavy regrets in its wake. I pray today may be a wake-up call for us all.

Until tomorrow...

Pastor Botts

"Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom." - Psalm 90:12

Decisions, Decisions, Decisions

Life is a given, the destination and how is a choice! - Anon

The good thing about the Prodigal Son is that he wound up back at his beginning, his father's house. Hmm!

Rollercoasters! In our prime we loved them. The speed, the jerks and turns, and of course the 'stomach in your throat' downhill runs. It was a somewhat scary thrill but we did it again and again with eager expectations. When considered, daily life is just like that, a rollercoaster ride with all the effects. Truthfully, none of us asked to be here, but we were blessed with life by God, and even told by Him which rollercoaster to choose 'blessing or cursing, life or death....choose - LIFE' for the best results, but He left the final decision to us. So if we're not enjoying life, if it has too many thrills that 'stress us out' or leave us 'broken' God will allow you to change. Remember Jesus' words "I am come that they might have life to the fullest..." I think He expects us to enjoy the ride.

Until tomorrow.....

Pastor Botts

”...anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God." - James 4:4

Fresh Eyes

The greatest challenge of any day is how to bring about a revolution in the heart for God. – Anon

In OT times the enemy that threatened God’s people most was not other nations but the ‘dictatorship’ of the routine! Hmm.

Truthfully sometimes, most of us operate by routine or rote. Each morning we arise and go pretty much through the same motions. We’ve come to the place where everything in our lives can be almost predicted and we really don’t expect or want anything new or unusual from God. Maybe its time for us to look up to the heavens with “fresh” eyes and an open heart today. God is into new things!

I'll be taking some time for rest and relaxation, so until then....

Pastor Botts

“Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up, do you not see perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland.” – Isaiah 43:18-19

Properly Respect Everyone

The true measure of a man is how he treats someone who can do him absolutely no good. – S. Johnson

David set a cripple named Mephibosheth at his table. The Good Samaritan bandaged up, nursed, and paid for the care of his enemy. Ulterior motives? Yes – LOVE. Hmm!

Regrettably, in this work-a-day, do all you can to get ahead world, we tend to focus our efforts only on those who can be of benefit to us somehow. Most of our actions are calculated on a risk/return basis. The homeless, the parking lot attendant, the janitor, tend to become transparent or get the short shrift of our goodness. But if God showers His love on us unconditionally our goal should be to do the same with all men. To be like Jesus we must be willing to give proper respect to everyone we meet. God is expecting us to make an impact on the world TODAY for Him.

Until Monday…….

Pastor Botts

“If you love those who love you; what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that. And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners; expecting to be repaid in full. But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting anything back. Then your reward will be great; and you will be sons of the Most High, because He is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.” – Luke 6:32-36

Faith in the Faithful One

God can handle it even when we don’t see how! – Richard Murray

The Red Sea parting was a physical impossibility in the eyes of the Israelites and Egyptians – but God works outside physical limitations. Hmm!

If we take a minute to think about it, the sun rose this morning like clockwork and we had nothing to do with it. And it will eventually pass through the day and nightfall will come and we can’t prevent it. God has been doing this and many other miraculous things since the beginning of time. And not only is He involved in nature, but He wants to be involved in every detail of our lives as well. We often say “I know who holds tomorrow/future” referring to God, but the proof of our faith is in our ‘casting all of our cares on Him.” God has been in the ‘delivery’ business since He put man on the earth, so though we may not see how our situation can be worked out, it can; we need to just trust Him a bit longer.

Until tomorrow…..

Pastor Botts

“Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.” – Hebrews 10:23

It's up to you

Life is a given, the destination and how is a choice?

The good thing about the Prodigal Son is that he wound up back at his beginning, his father's house. Hmm!

Rollercoasters! In our prime we loved them. The speed, the jerks and turns, and of course the 'stomach in your throat' downhill runs. It was a somewhat scary thrill but we did it again and again with eager expectations. When considered, daily life is just like that, a rollercoaster ride with all the effects. Truthfully, none of us asked to be here, but we were blessed with life by God, and even told by Him which rollercoaster to choose 'blessing or cursing, life or death....choose life' for the best results, but He left the final decision to us. So if we're not enjoying life, if it has too many thrills that 'stress us out' or leave us 'broken' God will allow you to change. Remember Jesus' words "I am come that they might have life to the fullest..." I think He expects us to enjoy the ride.

Until tomorrow.....

Pastor Botts

”...anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God." - James 4:4

Character: What's in you?

How we play the game shows something of our character; how we lose shows all of it. – R. Murray

Saul was happy David had slain the giant Goliath. But when the people praised David ‘more’ than him, all bets were off. Hmm!

Chair throwing, running into the stands after a fan, obscene gestures, etc. We’ve all seen or heard of this behavior in sports and rightly detest it. We make statements like “he should know better,” or “come on, get a grip,” or “it’s not that serious!” But often in our daily living we’re not much better. Minor incidents – we curse or swear like a sailor. Delays or setbacks – we blow our top. Unrequited respect – we burn a hole in them with our glare. As people of the Word, we are not called to always be nice but we are called to be holy and righteous in all we do. The good thing about it is God is a God of second and third chances, so today is another gift.

Until tomorrow…..

Pastor Botts

“Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.” – Matthew 7:20