Don't Like What You're Getting? Think About What You've Been Giving

Each day we make deposits into the memory banks of others. – Charles Swindoll

Though deceased, Jonathan’s past friendship with young David earned his son Mephibosheth a place at the King’s table. Hmm!

Banks deal in one commodity – MONEY. They take it in (deposits) and pay it out (withdrawals). But it’s all they deal in. You can’t go there and buy groceries, gas, etc., only monetary transactions. And just as you can’t get blood from a turnip, generally speaking people only pay back in currency what they received from the individual making the withdrawal. If we’ve been mean, hostile, selfish, and abusive to them we get it in return. Therefore, if we don’t like what others are giving back to us then we should begin to think about the words, deeds, and pictures we’ve deposited into them. If we know we’ll need a healthy withdrawal later now is the time to begin making the deposits, and like any good investment portfolio it’s always good to spread your wealth around.

Until tomorrow…

Pastor Botts

“This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.” – John 15:8

Life In Order

Life is much too complicated not to be orderly. – Anon

Daniel’s life was such that he needed to stop all he was doing to pray at least 3 times a day. It kept him focused!

It’s a debate that has been going on almost since the beginning of time: Did God actually create the heavens and the earth or did they just ‘spring’ forth from chaos (big bang). I think by now all of us are smart enough to know from personal experiences that chaos only creates more chaos, not order or peace. Man can explain how things may work in God’s creation, but he can’t explain why they work. And he knows if they don’t work properly we have chaos and disorder. The bottom line in all of this for us is that unless we put our life in proper order – God first in all things – we too will suffer chaos, disorder, and disappointment in greater proportion than normal.

Until tomorrow…

Pastor Botts

“But everything should be done in a fitting and orderly way.” – I Corinthians 14:40

Fear God

We fear men so much, because we fear God so little. One fear cures another. – W. Gurnall

Saul’s fighting men greatly feared Goliath and allowed him to taunt them 40 days. But along came scrawny little David and his God. AMAZING!

Most of us remember a time when as children, though our parents weren’t around we were well behaved because we feared what would happen if they found out we misbehaved. God, as our Supreme Father commands the same respect. But often the TRUTH of the matter is ‘out of sight, out of mind.’ Because we don’t often see a physical manifestation of God we have no fear of Him. But the REALITY of the matter is God is ever present, - ‘I will not leave you or forsake you;’ – we just refuse to see Him and submit in obedience to Him. The antidote to fear is love – ‘perfect love drives away fear’. God will not force His will upon us at any time, but then again neither will He force HEAVEN upon us later. The choice is always ours.

Until tomorrow…

Pastor Botts

“Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.” – Matthew 10:28

Stay Courageous

He who loses wealth loses much, he who loses a friend loses more, but he who loses his courage loses all. – Miguel de Cervantes

Of all the things Judas lost on that fateful night, his courage to seek a forgiving Christ cost him most. Ouch!

Often we don’t want to face the trials God puts before us, meet the challenges His church requires of us, or step out on faith as His word tells us, but we must. For it is in going through the circumstances of life we grow our faith and our courage for the next battle. We need remember, Satan’s best and most used tool is “discouragement,” and he keeps it at the ready. And he doesn't use it in big 'doses' but little by little, in very subtle ways, so that it begins to wear us down and lead us to apathy. So we must pray that the Spirit will empower us for today, for the challenges, they are a'comin.

Until tomorrow…

Pastor Botts

“Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith, be men of courage; be strong. Do everything in love.” – I Corinthians 16:13-14

Today's A New Day

Don't let yesterday take up too much of today! - Richard Murray

When the Prodigal son came to his senses, he 'rushed' right home. Hmm!

"What's the use? Why should I try? It's never going to get any better!" Statements we've heard or maybe even uttered in our lifetime. What do they have in common? Too much emphasis on what has happened (yesterday) and not enough faith in what can happen (today). The remedy! Take the focus off of you, put it on God. Ask yourself, 'Why did God bless me with this day? Just to suffer more - NO.' He blessed me with today to trust Him more, to lean into Him a little harder, and to be a blessing to someone else. Remember, no matter your state or circumstances, the gift of today is for more than just you. When you learn to GIVE your blessing in part or whole to others, amazingly more blessings flow to you. Go figure, but that's how God works it. And maybe, just maybe, that ONE blessing that you need to show you 'What's the use?' is waiting to come to you to show you God heard you all along.

Until tomorrow...

Pastor Botts

"Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me." - Psalm 51:12

Handling the Small Things

To become reliable in the big things, you have to practice it in the small ones. – J. Budziszewski

Mighty Warrior, Mighty King – David. David ended up this way, but we mustn’t forget he started out as a ruddy little shepherd boy for his father. Hmm!

As long as we live trials and tribulation, temptation and trouble will come, no one is exempt. God will test us to build us up, and Satan will tempt us to try and tear us down. The key to overcoming both is the same; doing the right thing at all times, no matter when, where, or with whom. It’s not the big trials or temptations that often topple us. It’s our failure in the little dull, monotonous, repetitious ones that occur each day. If character is not forged here it is not forged at all. God is looking for faithfulness in all things small and great. Today will be full of opportunities to practice.

Until tomorrow…

Pastor Botts

“Whoever can be trusted with very little can be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much.” – Luke 16:10

A Higher Standard of Honesty

There are no degrees of integrity. Either we are honest or we are not. – Sparks

Eli the priest and his sons. They paid dearly for their cheating ways. God won out! Hmm!

We live in a fallen world and it’s easy to fall in to it’s ways. Everyone is out for themselves, but God has called us to a higher standard – honesty in all things. We don’t act with honesty or integrity to get noticed, or to score points, or even to appease our conscience. We do it because it is right. True, it is sometimes inconvenient, but that does not change the fact that it is the right thing to do. If we would expect people to treat us with honesty and integrity, we must be willing to give the same at all times. And inasmuch as we are always before the eyes of our Heavenly Father, honesty should always be our way of life.

Until Monday……

Pastor Botts

“Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much.” – Luke 16:10

P.S. - Hope you can make it this Sunday at 9am for our Devotional time. We'd love to see you there!

Also, there WILL NOT be Vesper Services as we will be setting up for VBS.

With great Rank comes great Responsibility

Rank does not confer privilege or give power. It imposes responsibility. – Peter Drucker

Though Jesus was God in the flesh, Savior, Redeemer, and Lord – he was a SERVANT! Hmm!

Our government is mired in a power struggle. If you listen to any elected official they’ll tell you they have a ‘responsibility’ to honor the wishes of those who put them in office, and uphold the laws on the books - but we all know it is as it suits them. But Jesus did exactly what His Father asked of him in his earthly ministry, carrying out the complete will of his Father to the point of sacrificing his life on a cross. You and I, as believers have achieved the rank of CHRISTIAN, and have a great responsibility to Our Lord, to wear the name well. So no matter what situation or circumstances may come about today, and regardless of what others may or may not do, we must remember the name we wear and act accordingly.

Until tomorrow…….

Pastor Botts

“From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded, and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.” – Luke 12:48

Face It

He who loses wealth loses much, he who loses a friend loses more, but he who loses his courage loses all. – M. de Cervantes

Of all the things Judas lost on that fateful night, his courage to seek a forgiving Christ cost him most. Ouch!

Often we don’t want to face the trials God puts before us, meet the challenges His church requires of us, or step out on faith as His word tells us, but we must. For it is in going through the circumstances of life we grow our faith and our courage for the next battle. We need remember, Satan’s best and most used tool is “discouragement,” and he keeps it at the ready. So we must pray that the Spirit will empower us for today, for the challenges, they are a'comin.

Until tomorrow……

Pastor Botts

“Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith, be men of courage; be strong. Do everything in love.” – I Corinthians 16:13-14

Learn From It

It’s hard to think much of a man who is not wiser today than he was yesterday. – A. Lincoln

When God said ‘He that has an ear let him hear,’ He actually expected them to do something afterward. Hmm!

Mistakes – we all make them, it’s just a fact of life. The key is to learn from them and not repeat the same ones over and over. And that includes the lessons we can learn from others that have been down a path we need not go. Debt burdens, poor health, stealing, etc. are all avenues to avoid, not get further entangled in. Yes, God did say He can turn any situation around to work it for His glory, but He also said the ‘consequences’ of the sin will follow. It’s true, people do read us more by our actions than our words, so let us preach today loud and clearly by the way we walk.

Until tomorrow…..

Pastor Botts

“A man who loves wisdom brings joy to his father…” – Proverbs 29:3

You get out what you put in

It takes as much stress to be a success as it does to be a failure. – E. Trujillo

After meeting Jesus, the apostle Paul worked just as hard or harder to build up the church as he did beforehand when he tried to destroy it. Hmm!

There is a common saying that “you get out of life what you put into it.” The thought behind it being that you get to determine how far you want to go in life. The common denominator in life is not intelligence, money, race, or chance; its effort and discipline. And no matter one’ s station in life it takes effort and discipline to maintain it. No one fails because they have to, it’s generally because they were not willing to do all necessary to have success. God grants us all we need for an abundant life here and offers us second and third chances that we may be overcomers. The question is what’s holding you back?

Until tomorrow….

Pastor Botts

“Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows.” – Galatians 6:7

Do You Love Him?

We may love God too little, but we can never love Him too much. – R. Murray

How would you answer the question Jesus asked of Peter: “Do you love me?” Hmm!

In truth at times everyone thinks they’re overdoing it for God. With the time at church, involvement in ministry, serving on committee, etc. While these are all well and good, it does not necessarily correlate to a love for God nor a love of God. It goes without saying that love is an action word. It is expressed in our deeds, actions, and way of life as directed by what’s in our heart, moreso than any verbal expression we can muster. Yes, we show it in our tenderness, our dedication, our discipline, our sharing, and our fellowship among other things. But the key is we want to express it in as many ways as we can and as often as we can. God is not limited to being loved only on Sunday, or at meal time, or just before we lay down at night. Just as His love for us is unrestrained and boundless and shows up in so many different ways, so should our love be for Him. And there should be no cause for us to worry for just as sure as we can’t beat God giving, we can’t out love Him either.

Until tomorrow….

Pastor Botts

“….and I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge….” – Ephesians 3:17-19