The New Disciples of Love

If what the world needs now is love, who will be the example? - Anon

Paul said he 'became' like those he was with to win them to Christ. AMEN!

It's no secret we live in a fallen society. A world where strife, division, and self-centered rhetoric is the menu of the day. Yes, far from perfect but yet still salvageable. It's why Jesus came, to share that message of hope and salvation for all and then give His life to prove it. Then He asked us to pay it forward, be a disciple. We think it a 'tough' go in today's setting, but maybe we just need to look at how Jesus did it and do likewise. The people accepted Jesus because of how He interacted with them. He 'loved' them as they were. Even in His teaching, He showed them great compassion, empathy, mercy, forgiveness, and often times healings. Though He was the promised 'Messiah' He walked amongst them with 'grace' not authority. He was a living/breathing example of God's great love for us. Like the motto of 'New Balance' every one of us should be saying "we got now!" Welcome to the New Year!

Until tomorrow...

Pastor Botts

"A new command I give you.....As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples...." - John 13:34-35

Change Is Here

The future has a way of arriving unannounced. – G. Will

Shortly before leaving them for good, Jesus told his disciples The Comforter would come and ‘remind’ them of all He taught them. They were never the same afterward. Hmm!

We are impatient people by nature. We don’t deal well with uncertainty or loose ends. We want concrete answers and timetables. We want to know when things will be done. But our asking God ‘when’ He will do a certain work in our life or the lives of others presupposes what He will do, or to put it in other words ‘what we expect Him to do.’ We often expect God to do something miraculous to mark the change we seek so that we may attribute it to Him vs. coincidence. In reality, God is always at His work in our lives, therefore the ‘when’ is up to us, not Him. He gives us everything we need to defeat every sin we encounter and unlimited access to Him for strength to overcome all spiritual wickedness. The real question we have to answer for ourselves is do we believe God has given us what it takes, and do we have the desire to do it?

Until tomorrow…

Pastor Botts

“Dear friends, now we are the children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him….” – I John 3:2

Sacrificing Now for Later

Your new life is going to cost you your old one. – Anon

Paul willingly counted everything he had accomplished as ‘lost’ for the sake of having Jesus. Wow!

Sacrifice! Now that’s a word where we all seem to understand its meaning but have the greatest problem committing ourselves to it. The ability to delay gratification for something greater, the ability to give oneself up to aid in the greater cause. It’s so hard to do, but yet, it is what Jesus did for us, and willingly. Even with all the hardship that He knew He would endure. He still willingly and lovingly sacrificed Himself for us. And admittedly, no matter where we stand in life right now, up or down, thin or flush, we all still want and believe there is something better. That there is more to ‘life’ than where we are right now. The question is are we willing, like Jesus to sacrifice the now for the later.

Until tomorrow…

Pastor Botts

"…No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.” – Luke 9:62

Always Watching Over

God is the true Prodigal Father, His house is always open to hope. - Anon

The Prodigal son's journey just made the light in his father's heart burn brighter. Hmm!

We see them and kind of chuckle. At one time we were just like them. The over-protective parent, hovering over their child's every move, eyes darting every which way to make sure everything and everyone in the surrounding area is safe. We know how tiring that is and feel for them. Do we ever think of God in light of this? We should. In truth He is just like that parent with us, ever present, ever checking on us, making preparations up ahead for us. Always trying to keep us safe, saved, and secure, even in our stubbornness. The great thing is He will never grow weary, tired, or frustrated watching over us. Not only is that good to know, it's also worthy of praise and thanksgiving.

Until Monday...

Pastor Botts

"....indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep......the Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore." - Psalm 121:4,8

Shout Now!

"Don't wait til' the battle is over to shout now....." - song refrain

David put his victory over Goliath in the hands of God before he even picked up a stone to sling. Hmm!

Praising God is ALWAYS in order. There is NEVER a time when it is out of order. However, we often only offer true praise after the battle or victory is won. God had the Israelites shout choruses of praise BEFORE the walls of Jericho came down. He had Gideon and his rag-tag band of 100 cry out "for the Lord and Gideon" prior to engaging the battle. Could there be a lesson here? I think so. NO matter where we are in life - up/down, joyful/sorrow, etc., - God is worthy of praise. And in that praise we never know just how He might respond, but one thing for sure is certain, He WILL respond. Either by bringing victory over the situation or strength/patience to bear with it until He's ready to take us through it. Now that's something worthy of praise.

Until tomorrow...

Pastor Botts

"I do not trust in my bow, my sword does not bring me victory, but you give us victory over our enemies, you put our adversaries to shame." - Psalm 44:6-7

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.

Enduring the Bitter for the Sweetness Ahead

That which is bitter to endure now may be the sweetest to remember later. - T. Fuller

Paul suffered many hardships for Christ (beatings, imprisonments, etc.) and called them all momentary for Christ's glory. AMEN!

Humble Pie! Nobody likes to eat it. But oftentimes we must. Those times we bit off more than we could chew, extended ourselves beyond our means, or let our guards down and got taken advantage of. In the midst of these experiences we find life harsh, unpleasant, and even painful, crying out to God to help us end it. But by the grace of God those times are in our past and serve as great testimonies of His goodness, mercy, and favor to us. So if life is offering a bitter pill right now just know God's got some sweetness on the way!

Until tomorrow.......

Pastor Botts

"let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross......and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."

-Hebews12:2 

Getting Into Practice

None can be fit for the future life who has not practiced it now. – St. Augustine

Upon reflection, it is interesting to note that 2 of the greatest leaders of God’s people (Moses, David) were shepherds of animals before they became shepherds of men. Hmm!

Although we know not what the Lord is preparing us for in our future years, we must go at it with all our heart today. Trials, persecution, and heartaches may come; it is God’s way of giving us practice before the big game. So no matter what may be going on in our lives right now, whether we're right side up or upside down, just know God has even greater plans ahead for us. So we need not look at where we are today as the end result, we're still in training, and that is a reason for great hope.

Until tomorrow…..

Pastor Botts

“Still another said, ‘I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say good by to my family.’ Jesus replied, ‘No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of heaven.’” – Luke 9:61-62

Patience is the Key

The key to everything is patience. You get the chicken by hatching the egg, not by smashing it. -  A. Glasow

God worked 13 years with Joseph, 40 years with Moses, 3+ years with Peter before they were ready for ministry. But oh; what a ministry they had. AMEN!

NOW! That seems to be the watchword of today. Everything has to happen now, we must have everything now, we must do everything now. It’s a great tool of the enemy – rush them into decisions, don’t give them time to think it through or plan it out – force them into actions and decisions that will hinder or impact their development and purposes for God. It’s a rare breed that would slow down, put off selfish desires, or immediate gratification. But it’s what God requests of us with a promise that what He has planned for us will be far better and more enjoyable than anything we could have ever imagined. He’s given us example after example in His word, so we know He keeps His end of the bargain. Today would be a good day to start trusting Him more.

Until Monday……

Pastor Botts

“Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.” – Psalm 27:14

Tune In!

A great deal of what you hear depends on what you’re listening for. – Anon

God called out to him 4 times before the boy Samuel finally realized WHO was calling. It was the beginning of a great relationship. AMEN!

A telephone ring. An emergency siren. A favorite song. There are certain sounds that are very familiar to us. It’s not that we hear them any more often than others but that we’ve tuned or trained ourselves to hear them, and hear them only from certain sources.  Like Samuel, God’s voice is often foreign to us, not because He doesn’t speak but because we’re not tuned in or listening for Him in the various ways He speaks. But He does speak, and in volumes. George Washington Carver said “nature is an unlimited broadcasting system through which God speaks to us every hour, if we would only tune in.”  Just look and listen and you’ll know you’re loved.

Until Monday……

Pastor Botts

“Why do you complain to him that he answers none of man’s words? For God does speak – now one way, now another – though a man may not perceive it.” – Job 33:14

P.S. - Don't forget our HarvestFest is tomorrow afternoon (1 - 5pm). As such there will not be any Vesper services Sunday evening.

Voicing Complaints

The complaint department is NOW OPEN! – God

Every time Moses cried out to God about these “stiff-necked, hard-hearted people” God had a ready and workable solution. WOW!

It’s a truth in life that we are not going to be happy with all that happens, that sometimes we might feel short-changed, or even get angry and upset with those we love, making us want to complain, complain, complain. But rather than complaining to friends who may form a ‘jaded’ opinion of us or even worse, spread our unhappiness to unwanted ears, why not just let our Heavenly Father know all about it. He’s big enough to bear the brunt of our charges, hear us out without making any judgments, and keep it just between us. Not only that, other than we ourself, He’s the only other party that can do anything about it. And judging from what He says in His Word, He’s just waiting for the chance. The next move is ours!

Until tomorrow……

Pastor Botts

“Cast all your anxiety on him, because He cares for you…” – I Peter 5:7