Living the Slower Pace

Sure, the tortoise is slow, but he is surefooted in his progress. - Anon

Noah took 100+ years to build the ark because that’s what God gave him. Hmm!

It’s no secret that most automobile accidents are caused by someone driving to fast. Likewise, it’s also no secret that most lives are destroyed by fast-living. Life is not meant to be fast. It is meant to be lived, experienced, and savored. Haste truly does make waste. When we take the time to actually live life and savor our experiences, then we can begin to determine what is really important and necessary and what is not. If we were to analyze it we would find that most of our life is just busy work – just look at all of our gadgets. If we read through the scriptures we find there is never a time that God or His Son Jesus was in a hurry. No matter how much we want to speed things up so that we can multi-task and experience it all, we can’t change the laws of nature, that’s God’s business. When we continually move too fast we miss opportunities to stop, gaze, and savor the world through God’s eyes. Care to take a look?

Until tomorrow…

Pastor Botts

“Therefore, my brothers, be all the more eager to make your calling and election sure. For if you do these things you will never fall…” – II Peter 1:10

Moving At the Pace of Together

The journey with others is sometimes slower, but God is never in a hurry. – Anon

Moses spent an additional 40 years in the wilderness with the rebellious Hebrew children, but he got to know God much better. AMEN!

As you travel along any road, street, or highway you’ll notice them. Signs with posted ‘safe’ speed limits. Limits determined to keep us safe and under control. We tend to want to speed through life, set our pace, hit our stride,; and not have anyone interfere with it. It’s as if we have a set time to arrive at a set destination. But God is not confined to our schedules, our pace, nor our end desires. It is we ‘who live and move and have our being in Him,’ and not the other way around. The best way for us to perfect our character is in relationship (with God and man) so God often engineers situations and circumstances for us to work or serve with those in whom we see no benefit, but He does. Ours is to enjoy the journey.

Until tomorrow…

Pastor Botts

“We then who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak, and not to please ourselves. Each of us should please his neighbor for his good, to build him up.” – Romans 15:1-2

Slow Down There Partner

The point of walking with God is not to arrive, but to walk with God. – C. Barnes

The bible tells us Enoch walked so well with God that God took him home. I imagine they still walk today. WOW!

When we were babies we started out crawling, then wobbly walking, to striding, to a full blown run. And it seems that we’ve taken to the thought that all in life is at a running pace. But God is not in a hurry, His glory is much more awesome at the pace He sets. As we walk along, we discover that God is still making a way by providing water in OUR deserts. . .. food from the sky in OUR times of hunger…. companionship by fire in OUR times of loneliness….and direction by His Word in OUR times of confusion. Yes, He’s still the same God. If the wilderness (world) still appears to be a frightening place, then the stream, sky, Spirit, and Word along the way are the symbols of God’s grace that He continues to walk now as He did then. This gives a lot more weight to the saying “slow but steady.”

Until tomorrow…

Pastor Botts

“He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” – Micah 6:8

A Key to Easing Stress

Patience! The windmill never strays in search of the wind! - A. Sklivis

Throughout the whole bible there was never a time God or His Son was in a hurry. Hmm!

Haste makes more than waste; it makes folks tired. There is almost an inverse relationship when you really think about it. The more patient we are, the more accepting we will be of what is, rather than insisting that life be exactly as we would like it to be. Without patience, life is extremely frustrating. We become easily annoyed, bothered, and irritated. Patience adds a degree of ease and acceptance to life, and it’s essential for inner peace. One key to having this patience is learning to look for and see the innocence in the situations that arise that test us. People interrupt us or situations arise not out of conspiracy but because life happens. Our loved ones show up unexpectedly, street lights slow us up, long lines crop up, not because of a vendetta against us; but because life was never supposed to be catered to us but lived by us. To try and hurry it along only brings stress, and I imagine it makes God laugh a bit too!

Until Monday...

Pastor Botts

"....But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience...." - Galatians 5:22

Patience Required

Everything comes at the proper time to him who knows how to wait. – Anon

When God finally freed the Israelites from Egyptian slavery, not a one of them asked Him ‘what took so long!’ – Hmm!

Though our average life span of 60-70 years may seem short, in the calendar of God it is long enough to accomplish every good and perfect work He has ordained for us, in the way He has purposed it for us, at the time He has established for us. Our attempts to speed life and its processes along so we may ‘enjoy’ life to the fullest only frustrates us, for the only true way to enjoy life in the fullest is through the action and activities of God, and He’s never been in a hurry. Patience is built upon a bedrock of trust, and because God transcends time as we know it, we must learn to faithfully trust Him in all things – hence patience is required.

Until tomorrow…

Pastor Botts

“…..the revelation awaits an appointed time…and will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay.” – Habakkuk 2:3

The Waiting is the Hardest Part

Patience is also a form of action. – A. Rodin

God waited 40 years for Moses to become the man he needed him to be to set the Israelites free from Pharaoh and his people. WOW!

Waiting! It’s an issue of life we’re never really comfortable with. To us it seems to be a waste of time, lack of desire or motivation. We live in a hurry-up world, a do it now culture, which we learned from birth. We want and need answers immediately, results soon, and payoffs now to all of life’s ills or circumstances. But if we put our focus back on God’s ways we will clearly see that patience is truly an asset of the wise. God has NEVER been in a hurry. Hurried thoughts, actions, and words often lead to errors that can cause hurt and long term heartache. Being patient is not wasting time waiting; it’s taking action against doing the wrong thing.

Until Monday…..

Pastor Botts

“We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised.” – Hebrews 6:12

P.S. - If you are in need our Food Distribution program is open to you as well. Tomorrow morning 10am-12pm.

The Pain Process

To hurry away pain is to leave a classroom still in session. – Y. Lababidi

Because of his great endurance, Job learned to know and love God in a whole new way. AMEN!

No one likes pain, but it is a reminder of our humanness, our frailties. God has so designed it that pain is often our timekeeper, reminding us of our limitations. It is the heart or body’s mechanism to signal something is wrong, something needs to be addressed – and we can’t go on like this until it is noted and healed. Pain is never without reason and what we need to understand is you can’t rush the healing of a broken heart or spirit, or relationship. The pain is there to remind us we’re just not quite ready, we need more time (to hear God’s calling). So we need not fear to admit we have pain, for it should inspire us to know that God is still working in our lives and we need to seek His understanding in it.

Until tomorrow…..

Pastor Botts

“No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.” – Hebrews 12:11

Perfecting with Others

The journey with others is sometimes slower, but God is never in a hurry. – Anon

Moses spent an additional 40 years in the wilderness with the rebellious Hebrew children, but he got to know God much better. AMEN!

As you travel along any road, street, or highway you’ll notice them. Signs with posted ‘safe’ speed limits. Limits determined to keep us safe and under control. We tend to want to speed through life, set our pace, hit our stride, and not have anyone interfere with it. It’s as if we have a set time to arrive at a set destination. But God is not confined to our schedules, our pace, nor our end desires. It is we ‘who live and move and have our being in Him,’ and not the other way around. The best way for us to perfect our character is in relationship (with God and man) so God often engineers situations and circumstances for us to work or serve with those in whom we see no benefit, but He does. Ours is to enjoy the journey.

Until tomorrow…..

Pastor Botts

“We then who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak, and not to please ourselves. Each of us should please his neighbor for his good, to build him up.” – Romans 15:1-2

In a Hurry? Relax.

Patience! The windmill never strays in search of the wind! - A. Sklivis

Throughout the whole bible there was never a time God or His Son was in a hurry. Hmm!

Haste makes more than waste, it makes folks tired. There is almost an inverse relationship when you really think about it. The more patient we are, the more accepting we will be of what is, rather than insisting that life be exactly as we would like it to be. Without patience, life is extremely frustrating. We become easily annoyed, bothered, and irritated. Patience adds a degree of ease and acceptance to life, and it’s essential for inner peace. One key to having this patience is learning to look for and see the innocence in the situations that arise that test us. People interrupt us or situations arise not out of conspiracy but because life happens. Our loved ones show up unexpectedly, street lights slow us up, long lines crop up, not because of a vendetta against us; but because life was never supposed to be catered to us but lived by us. To try and hurry it along only brings stress, and I imagine it makes God laugh a bit too!

Until Monday......

Pastor Botts

"....But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience...." - Galatians 5:22

Hope you can make it out for our Sunday School Devotional this week at 9am!

Slow, See, and Savor

Sure the tortoise is slow, but he is surefooted in his progress. - Anon

Noah took 100+ years to build the ark because that’s what God gave him. Hmm!

It’s no secret that most automobile accidents are caused by someone driving too fast. Likewise, it’s also no secret that most lives are destroyed by fast-living. Life is not meant to be fast. It is meant to be lived, experienced, and savored. Haste truly does make waste. When we take the time to actually live life and savor our experiences, then we can begin to determine what is really important and necessary and what is not. If we were to analyze it we would find that most of our life is just busy work – just look at all of our gadgets. If we read through the scriptures we find there is never a time that God or His Son Jesus was in a hurry. No matter how much we want to speed things up so that we can multi-task and experience it all, we can’t change the laws of nature, that’s God’s business. When we continually move too fast we miss opportunities to stop, gaze, and savor the world through God’s eyes. Care to take a look?

Until tomorrow……

Pastor Botts

“Therefore, my brothers, be all the more eager to make your calling and election sure. For if you do these things you will never fall…” – II Peter 1:10

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

Patient Actions

Patience is also a form of action. – A. Rodin

God waited 40 years for Moses to become the man he needed him to be to set the Israelites free from Pharaoh and his people. WOW!

Waiting! It’s an issue of life we’re never really comfortable with. To us it seems to be a waste of time, lack of desire or motivation. We live in a hurry-up world, a do it now culture, which we learned from birth. We want and need answers immediately, results soon, and payoffs now to all of life’s ills or circumstances. But if we put our focus back on God’s ways we will clearly see that patience is truly an asset of the wise. God has NEVER been in a hurry. Hurried thoughts, actions, and words often lead to errors that can cause hurt and long term heartache. Being patient is not wasting time waiting; it’s taking action against doing the wrong thing.

Until tomorrow…..

Pastor Botts

“We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised.” – Hebrews 6:12

Hurry Up and Wait

Patience is something you admire in the driver behind you, but not the one ahead of you. – B. McGlasken

Adonijah couldn’t wait for the death of his father David to ascend to the throne, and tried to take it by force. His impatience only cost him his life. OUCH!

“Hurry up!” “They’ll only slow me down.” “I don’t have time for this.” Yes, these are all expressions we’ve heard or quite possibly used ourselves at times. In this micro-speed world we live in nothing is more intolerable than that which does not happen when we expect it to or need it to. We want everything at the speed of light or at our fingertips, and we want it yesterday. Were it really all about us this would be okay. But we must remember God is truly still in control and He will do things in His own way and His own time. Hold on!

Until tomorrow…..

Pastor Botts

“But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day.” – II Peter 3:8

Why Pain?

To hurry away pain is to leave a classroom still in session. – Y. Lababidi

Because of his great endurance, Job learned to know and love God in a whole new way. AMEN!

No one likes pain, but it is a reminder of our humanness, our frailties. God has so designed it that pain is often our timekeeper, reminding us of our limitations. It is the heart or body’s mechanism to signal something is wrong, something needs to be addressed – and we can’t go on like this until it is noted and healed. Pain is never without reason and what we need to understand is you can’t rush the healing of a broken heart or spirit, or relationship. The pain is there to remind us we’re just not quite ready, we need more time (to hear God’s calling). So we need not fear to admit we have pain, for it should inspire us to know that God is still working in our lives and we need to seek His understanding in it.

Until tomorrow…..

Pastor Botts

“No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.” – Hebrews 12:11