Walk With Him

If a man can have salvation and not know it, he can lose it and not miss it. – A. Rogers

Samson slept hard and not only lost his hair, but lost his strength as well. The LORD had “departed” from him.

It's a truth that 'no one wants to be taken for granted.' People like to feel or believe they can offer something to the relationship - even God. But like Samson, many of us often walk day after day believing our relationship with God is all right, never really taking time to stop and commune with Him. But if we find ourselves committing the same sins over and over and constantly asking forgiveness, it’s a sure sign the LORD has departed from us; for His presence would give us true spiritual power to overcome the enemy or situation, whatever it may be. God is willing to walk with us to get us there, the question is: are we willing to walk with Him? His ways are exacting!

Until tomorrow…

Pastor Botts

“Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth, meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.” – Joshua 1:8

Improving Our Aim

Failure to hit the bullseye is never the fault of the target. - Anon

The Pharisees and religious rulers of the day 'missed' Jesus because they had their minds already made up. Hmm!

Generally, when 'X' marks the spot, 'X' is not mobile or ambulatory. That's the one constant we need to hone in on to make sure we hit the bullseye. Interestingly enough, God and His Word never change, they are both the same 'yesterday, today, and forever' yet we continually seem to miss. Biblically speaking, sin is described as 'missing the mark.' Missing at times is okay, for God is truly gracious, but when we continue to miss in the same area, it should be a strong indicator to us that we need to improve our aim. That may mean learning to control the desires of our flesh and the lust of our eyes, to the point of letting go of certain friends, habits, routines, or conveniences that hinder our ability to concentrate and focus on the bullseye. True God's patience is long, but we never want to be found 'trying it.'

Until Monday...

Pastor Botts

"...You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart...." - Jeremiah 29:13

Slowing Down the Pace

“I’m not tired yet!” – Song refrain

Interestingly, when God led His people out of Egypt He was never in a rush or hurry, He knew they needed a steady pace and more time with Him. Amen!

We all seek it! We even plan for it! That thing that God even told us we needed – REST. Oh we relax, or slow down at times, but it seems we just don’t get it at the heart level that we need it. Just think, here it is a week into the New Year and truth be told many of us are already tired, worn out. Why, because we’ve missed the secret of gaining God’s wisdom for the peace, rest we seek. God told us “in repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength, but you would have none of it.” (Isaiah 30:15). It’s right there for the taking but as is true of so many of us, we want to go our own way and chart our own path. We can continue to chase that ‘fictitious’ utopian dream or enter in and accept the peace, joy, happiness, satisfaction, AND rest God has ordained for us by just living out His Word. It’s not a new resolution, it’s just plain old obedience.

Until tomorrow…

Pastor Botts

“It is not good to have zeal without knowledge, nor to be hasty and miss the way.” – Proverbs 19:2

Don't Miss the Heart

When we detach the Word of God from the heart of God, we miss the point of God. - Richard Murray

Jesus chastised the religious rulers of his day because they 'made the Word of God something it should never be - burdensome. AMEN!

Truth be told, a lot of folks - many of them 'Christians' - just see the Word of God as a lot of commands. Do's and don'ts to live by with little or no relational attachment to Almighty God himself. It's as if He just says "here you go, live by these rules and I'll check in on you every so often." But God is 'Spirit' and His Word is infused with that 'Spirit' which make it alive and very relatable to our current issues and circumstances in life. Unlike our Supreme Court who hasn't a clue what 'democracy' is all about and seems to be changing it decision by decision, God's Word does not change. It is given to us in love, containing His heart's desire for us. The faith God seeks of us was NEVER meant to be burdensome, but joyful, enlightening, and inviting. When we go about our lives living by rote commands or rituals to 'placate' God we're the losers, not Him. And to miss the very heart of God is to really miss everything else in life. Here's hoping you can fall in love with the author a little more.

Until Monday...

Pastor Botts

" People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God - having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people." - II Timothy 3:2-5

The People of Today

If you have one eye on yesterday, and one eye on tomorrow, you’re going to miss today. – Anon

On the road to Emmaus the 2 disciples were so concerned with what had happened and what might’ve been, they almost missed HIM WHO IS!

Last minute shopping, making preparations for the holiday, looking back over the years events, making new calendars and agendas for next year. Does any of this sound familiar? Possibly so for most of us! This time of year we lament on how fast the year has gone by and begin to make plans on how we’ll attack the New Year. It’s enough to wear you out. God knows what’s best for us which is why He only promises one day at a time. We should give the bulk of our resources, the bulk of our attention, and the bulk of our time to those people who cross our path today. This is how we spread the Good News and build the kingdom. At the last day God is not going to ask us if we worried about the needs or cares of life, but if we met the needs of those He sent our way.

I'll be taking some time off so this keyboard will be silent for a few days.

Until then...

Pastor Botts

“Sing to the Lord, all the earth; proclaim his salvation day after day. Declare his glory among all nations, his marvelous deeds among all peoples.” – I Chronicles 16:23-24

No Way Around Love's Intent

Some people miss the message because they are too busy checking the spelling. – M. Carney

Though the Pharisees and religious leaders ‘handled’ God’s word, they completely missed the promise it gave – JESUS!

Loopholes – the legalists best friend. Many practicing attorneys make a great living finding ways to beat the law, scouring it to find a way around its INTENT. Many Christians, though they are not attorneys; live like they are. Scouring the word of God to see what they can get away with, wanting everything they must do spelled out ‘exactly’, and making ambiguous what is clearly seen. But that’s not the intent of a love letter. God’s word was not given to us to parse and define its terms. It was given to us that we may know Him and live our life to its fullest potential and purpose in a way that brings glory to Him. Remember, God looks on the heart, not the head.

Until tomorrow…

Pastor Botts

“You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life.” – John 5:39-40

Don't Lose It

If a man can have salvation and not know it, he can lose it and not miss it. – A. Rogers

Samson slept hard and not only lost his hair, but lost his strength as well. The LORD had “departed” from him.

It's a truth that 'no one wants to be taken for granted.' People like to feel or believe they can offer something to the relationship - even God. But like Samson, many of us often walk day after day believing our relationship with God is all right, never really taking time to stop and commune with Him. But if we find ourselves committing the same sins over and over and constantly asking forgiveness, it’s a sure sign the LORD has departed from us; for His presence would give us true spiritual power to overcome the enemy or situation, whatever it may be. God is willing to walk with us to get us there, the question is: are we willing to walk with Him? His ways are exacting!

Until tomorrow……

Pastor Botts

“Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth, meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.” – Joshua 1:8

Clear to hit the Mark

Failure to hit the bulls-eye is never the fault of the target. - Anon

The Pharisees and religious rulers of the day 'missed' Jesus because they had their minds already made up. Hmm!

Generally when 'X' marks the spot, 'X' is not mobile or ambulatory. That's the one constant we need to hone in on to make sure we hit the bulls-eye. Interestingly enough, God and His Word never change, they are both the same 'yesterday, today, and forever' yet we continually seem to miss. Biblically speaking, sin is described as 'missing the mark.'  Missing at times is okay, for God is truly gracious, but when we continue to miss in the same area, it should be a strong indicator to us that we need to improve our aim. That may mean letting go of certain friends, habits, routines, or conveniences that hinder our ability to concentrate and focus on the bulls-eye. True God's patience is long, but we never want to be found 'trying it.'

Until tomorrow...

Pastor Botts

"...You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart...." - Jeremiah 29:13

Don't miss em!

Too many people miss the ‘silver’ lining because they’re expecting gold. – M. Setter

Pilate and Herod stood face to face with Jesus and missed out on the opportunity because their minds were elsewhere. Wow!

Though things in our life may not be where we want them to be, the question is, are they where God wants them to be? Blessings and opportunity abound all around us but we miss them for we have already predetermined what should happen, what the expected end result should be. It’s often that way even in our prayer life, we give God a set of parameters to work with, and anything less is unacceptable. But in prayer it’s not so much how God answers, for we should be elated that He even hears us, and then when He answers we should jump for joy understanding that God’s answers are always better than we could and should expect. We truly deserve nothing from Him, but the fact that He answers time and again should endear us to Him more and more. A truly understanding person realizes they can get just as rich from a lot of silver as they can from a little gold.

Until tomorrow…..

Pastor Botts

“…I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread….” – Psalm 37:25

It's Right There!

Just because YOU can't see it doesn't mean it isn't there. - Anon

Blind Bartimaeus couldn't actually see Jesus passing, but he knew HEALING was there for the asking. WOW!

We've all done it, and often. Searching for something that was right in front of us, so close in fact, that had it been a snake it would have had us. And when we see it, we're dumbfounded; wondering how or why we missed it to begin with. Could you then imagine how our God feels. He's always there, watching, waiting, offering Himself, but so often we miss seeing or hearing Him, because we've made up in our heart and mind how He should appear. God has said "I will never leave or forsake you" so maybe we should just take Him at His word and trust that if we want Him, He'll stay with us all the day.

Until tomorrow.....

Pastor Botts

"The Lord said, 'Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.......but the Lord was not in the wind.....but the Lord was not in the earthquake.... but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper......Then a voice said to him.....What are YOU doing here, Elijah?'" - II Kings 19:11-13

Don't Miss the Good

Some people miss the silver lining because they’re expecting gold. – M. Setter

Though the ‘agreed upon’ wages were enough to support them and their families, some vineyard workers were upset when the paymaster paid everyone in full. The key is they were paid.

We are truly a blessed people, moreso than we will ever know. We live in a land of plenty with great freedoms, yet we are often upset or angry at life. But everything God allows upon us has a place in His perfect plan – because He’s working it out for our good. So even in the valley of despair we can have hope and joyful expectation that ‘good’ is ours to find for He works ‘all things’ together that way. The key is to see it from God’s point of view and not our own. He never promised our walk would always be easy, but He did promise to walk with us. And besides, all that glitters isn’t gold anyway!

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