Music of the Heavens

In the silence behind what can be heard lies the answers we have been searching for for so long. - A. Fransson

The book of Genesis tells us God 'spoke' the heavens into existence; and they haven't been quiet since then. There's a lesson there!

We've all probably witnessed it. Ask a grandmother how are her grandkids, and be prepared to spend some time there. Out come the photos, then come the stories told with much joy and love. It's just a natural response to a beautiful relationship. And so it goes with the 'heavens.' The question I would ask is how much 'airtime' do we earnestly give to God. We live in a world with a video/audio megaport that constantly and loudly promotes anti-biblical themes, values, self-promotion, and ungodly living. But yet, none of these things can really hold a candle to the truth and goodness of God if we would but silence our hearts and listen. We talk about easy listening music - God invented it Himself at creation.

Until tomorrow...

Pastor Botts

"The heavens declare the glories of God......there is no speech or language where their voice is not heard." - Psalm 19:1, 3

In the Stillness of This Hour...

Silence is the sleep that nourishes wisdom - Francis Bacon

King Saul sought the witch of Endor and still got horrible news. Hmm!

Tea leaves! Tarot cards! Horoscopes! Cloud formations! When stretched thin and desperate, folks often resort to all kinds of ways and mediums to try and get a word of wisdom or insight on what the gods or God might be up to in their life. But sometimes silence and stillness is our best option. Sometimes silence is the clearest language possible. "Be still, and know that I am God", carries a lot of weight, power, and oftentimes many of the answers or wisdom we seek. Though we now live in a fast-paced, answer at your fingertips world, we need be reminded - God never set this pace nor is He obligated to operate at our speed. Stillness before Him pays big dividends.

Until tomorrow...

Pastor Botts

"One thing I ask of the Lord, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple." - Psalm 27:4

Golden Moments of Silence

"You have the right to remain silent"...... - Miranda Rights warning

During his illegal trials Jesus said little. The picture of the Cross however speaks LOUDLY. AMEN!

T-Mobile, Cricket, Verizon, Straight-Talk Wireless, Spectrum..... With the advancement to 5G technology (whatever that means) all of these carriers are chasing after us with phones and plans that come with UNLIMITED TALK, TEXT, and DATA! Whatever happened to the axiom 'silence is golden?' The chance to listen unhindered to one's own heartbeat, or the sounds of nature. The opportunity to sit uninterrupted and read, pray, meditate, contemplate, even daydream (life's virtual reality escape)! Staying in touch is very important, for we are social beings in need of connectedness. But we must remember when it comes to hearing from God at times we need to 'be still (silent) and know that He is God...'

Until tomorrow...

Pastor Botts

"Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him...." - Psalm 37:7

Wisdom in Listening

Wisdom is the reward you get for a lifetime of listening when you’d have preferred to talk. – Doug Larson

It’s interesting that God gave king Solomon a ‘wise and discerning heart’ rather than a booming, commanding voice. Hmm!

Silence – it seems like the word is dead and gone. We are now a nation of talkers, not communicators, just talkers. We talk back and forth, often only surface issues, nothing deep seated. And we have to offer our opinion, give our input or the latest update; we want to explain ourselves, tell our side of the story, or just shoot the breeze. The idea of sitting alone thinking things through (meditation) or asking God and actually waiting for Him to answer (secret prayer) have all but vanished and have been replaced with talk or other ‘noise’. We’ve been duped into thinking we must be in contact or in touch with someone at all times. God gave us two ears for more than just stereo sound, that we might listen twice as much as we speak. May we all be discerning and wiser today.

Until tomorrow…

Pastor Botts

"But the Lord is in His holy temple, let all the earth be silent before Him!” – Habakkuk 2:20

Standing During Challenges

It’s better to be a lion for a day than a sheep all your life. – E. Kenny

Little scrawny Gideon was hiding in a winepress threshing wheat when God called him to battle. After finding his courage the rest was easy!

The world today preaches a ‘tainted’ tolerance. We’re to tolerate everyone and their views and desires except when it comes to promoting Christ and his kingdom. This only works to the advantage of the enemy. We took prayer out of schools – look at schools today. We’ve spared the rod on our children – look at children today. This was not the example Jesus gave. Everyday he was challenged by the ‘religious right’ and everyday he stood his ground and told them what his Father said. Jesus had a backbone then and he should have one still today. As Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. once said, “It’s not so much the noise of the bad; it’s the silence of the good.” God is expecting us to be witnesses not observationists.

Until tomorrow…

Pastor Botts

“Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then…..” Ephesians 6:13-14

Easy Listening Music

In the silence behind what can be heard lies the answers we have been searching for for so long. - A. Fransson

The book of Genesis tells us God 'spoke' the heavens into existence; and they haven't been quiet since then. There's a lesson there!

We've all probably witnessed it. Ask a grandmother how her grandkids are and be prepared to spend some time there. Out come the photos, then come the stories told with much joy and love. It's just a natural response to a beautiful relationship. And so it goes with the 'heavens.' The question I would ask is how much 'airtime' do we earnestly give to God. We live in a world with a video/audio mega port that constantly and loudly promotes anti-biblical themes, values, self-promotion, and ungodly living. But yet, none of these things can really hold a candle to the truth and goodness of God if we would but silence our hearts and listen. We talk about easy listening music - God invented it Himself at creation.

Until tomorrow...

Pastor Botts

"The heavens declare the glories of God......there is no speech or language where their voice is not heard." - Psalm 19:1, 3

Stillness Before God

Silence is the sleep that nourishes wisdom - Sir Francis Bacon

King Saul sought the witch of Endor and still got horrible news. Hmm!

Tea leaves! Tarot cards! Horoscopes! Cloud formations! When stretched thin and desperate, folks often resort to all kinds of ways and mediums to try and get a word of wisdom or insight on what the gods or God might be up to in their life. But sometimes silence and stillness is our best option. Sometimes silence is the clearest language possible. "Be still, and know that I am God", carries a lot of weight, power, and oftentimes many of the answers or wisdom we seek. Though we now live in a fast-paced, answer at your fingertips world, we need be reminded - God never set this pace nor is He obligated to operate at our speed. Stillness before Him pays big dividends.

Until tomorrow...

Pastor Botts

"One thing I ask of the Lord, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple." - Psalm 27:4

Connecting with Silence

"You have the right to remain silent"...... - Miranda Rights warning

During his illegal trials Jesus said little. The picture of the Cross however speaks LOUDLY. AMEN!

T-Mobile, Cricket, Verizon, Straight-Talk Wireless, Spectrum..... With the advancement to 5G technology (whatever that means) all of these carriers are chasing after us with phones and plans that come with UNLIMITED TALK, TEXT, and DATA! Whatever happened to the axiom 'silence is golden?' The chance to listen unhindered to one's own heartbeat, or the sounds of nature. The opportunity to sit uninterrupted and read, pray, meditate, contemplate, even day-dream (life's virtual reality escape)! Staying in touch is very important, for we are social beings in need of connectedness. But we must remember when it comes to hearing from God at times we need to 'be still (silent) and know that He is God...'

Until tomorrow....

Pastor Botts

"Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him...." - Psalm 37:7

You Have the Right To Remain Silent

Let your speech be better than silence, or be silent – J. Gibbons

At the transfiguration, it seems Peter just had to have his say. God spoke and put him to SILENCE!

There is an old proverb that says, “it is better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt.” How true. But in this day and age of communication technology silence has gone the way of dinosaurs (extinct). Truth be known often we converse with others just to hear ourselves talk. We need be careful of what we say and how we say it, but moreso we need remember God is a friend of silence, for in the midst of it He often speaks. Are you listening?

Until tomorrow……

Pastor Botts

“But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted; and by your words you will be condemned.” – Matthew 12:36-37 

No Hype Communication

One reason the dog has so many friends, he wags his tail instead of his tongue. – Anon

David put to death the man who lied about killing Saul. Though Saul was David’s enemy, he was still God’s anointed. Hmm!

Years ago TV stations merely reported the news as it happened. Today in our media saturated culture they are out and about chasing and looking for it and then “marketing” the news, giving their own bias or slant to it. Often we fall prey to the same type of communication process. Out and about passing on our views on sights and sounds often without the “full understanding.” And when it backfires we’re often wondering why. Conversation is great, but conjecture on others lives is best left unsaid.  Just as the things we do say a lot about us, the things we say communicate even more. Sometimes silence is golden.

Until Monday……

Pastor Botts

“When words are many, sin is not absent, but he who holds his tongue is wise.” – Proverbs 10:19

God In Silence

To be alone with silence is to be alone with God. - S. Hageman

Even though Jesus was in the desert alone for 40 days, He knew His Father was nearby watching. WOW!

Pop-quizzes, mid-term exams, finals, UGH! We all remember these from our school years. And yet, we survived them. And in all of these settings there was one common denominator - silence. Even the teacher sat by quietly. We often wonder why it seems that God is silent, particularly in those "hard times" of life. Could it be He is testing us? Could it be He is expecting us to show our growth and maturity in the faith. After all, God never gives us a test without preparing us for it beforehand. So if it seems God is distant at this moment in our lives, maybe we should go back and study His Word a bit more to get the faith lift we need to ace our current test. It is an open book test, you know!

Until tomorrow....

Pastor Botts

"But the Lord is in his holy temple; let all the earth be silent before him." - Habakkuk 2:20

Listen Up

Remember, you can't learn if you're always talking. - Henry David Thoreau

Job had much to say on life's matters, but when God spoke he suddenly went....mum. Hmm!

Though we won't openly admit it, most of us love to talk. We love to talk about ourselves and in addition to this it seems we have an opinion on anything and everything. It's almost as if we've achieved a level of all-knowing (omniscience). Somewhere along the line we seemed to have forgotten that life is an everyday experience and education, and that the first step to learning and being taught is the ability to listen. To quiet ourselves, our hearts, open our mind and listen. Even in silence there are great lessons to be learned. God, the Master Teacher will be at work today, here's hoping we all attend class.

Until tomorrow....

Pastor Botts

"He who has an ear, let him hear." - Matthew 11:15, 13:9

Roar!

It’s better to be a lion for a day than a sheep all your life. – E. Kenny

Little scrawny Gideon was hiding in a winepress threshing wheat when God called him to battle. After finding his courage the rest was easy. Amen!

The world today preaches a ‘biased’ view on tolerance. We’re to tolerate everyone and their views and desires and speak 'very softly' in promoting Christ and his kingdom. This only works to the advantage of the enemy. We took prayer out of schools – look at schools today. We’ve spared the rod on our children – look at children today. This was not the example Jesus gave. Everyday he was challenged by the ‘religious right’ and everyday he stood his ground and told them what his Father said. Jesus had a backbone then and he should have one still today. As Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. once said, “It’s not so much the noise of the bad; it’s the silence of the good.” God is expecting us to be witnesses not observationists.

Until tomorrow………

Pastor Botts

“Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then…..” Ephesians 6:13-14

P.S. - Remember all contributions (articles, photos, praise reports, etc.) to the newsletter are due by tomorrow (3/21). 

Sweet Sovereign Silence

See how nature – trees, flowers, grass – all grow in silence. See the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence. God is the friend of silence. – Mother Teresa

John tells us in Revelation that when they opened the ‘seventh seal’ there was complete silence in heaven. For an extended period. WOW!

Blaring horns or alarms, phones, TV, radio, gospel music, etc. – this is what most of us continuously go through the day with, often intentionally. We live in the era of continuous communication or input. We are saturated with noise. We rarely take time to listen to or even see God. There are too many things to be done in the limited time we have available. But we must not allow the clock or the calendar to blind us to the fact that each moment of life is a miracle and mystery, full of God’s presence. Instead of powering up each day maybe we should look at it from the other perspective of ‘opening up’ to God. Silence gives Him a great opportunity to speak, and us a better opportunity to think clearly.

Until tomorrow…..

Pastor Botts

“The Lord is in his holy temple; let all the earth be silent before him.” – Habakkuk 2:20

Wisdom in Silence

Wisdom is the reward you get for a lifetime of listening when you’d have preferred to talk. – D. Larson

It’s interesting that God gave king Solomon a ‘wise and discerning heart’ rather than a booming, commanding voice. Hmm!

Silence – it seems like the word is dead and gone. We are now a nation of talkers, not communicators, just talkers. We talk back and forth, often only surface issues, nothing deep seated. And we have to offer our opinion, give our input or the latest update; we want to explain ourselves, tell our side of the story, or just shoot the breeze. The idea of sitting alone thinking things through (meditation) or asking God and actually waiting for Him to answer (secret prayer) have all but vanished and have been replaced with talk or other ‘noise’. We’ve been duped into thinking we must be in contact or in touch with someone at all times. God gave us two ears for more than just stereo sound, that we might listen twice as much as we speak. May we all be discerning and wiser today.

Until tomorrow…

Pastor Botts

“But the Lord is in His holy temple, let all the earth be silent before Him!” – Habakkuk 2:20

Accounting for the Idle Silence

As we must account for every ‘idle word’, so must we account for every ‘idle silence.’ – Benjamin Franklin

On the day of ‘reckoning’ the bible says we will have to give an account to God. Every second, minute and hour. Hmm!

The Great Commission commands us to go into the world and spread the good news. And with the technological advances we’ve made, instant communication seems to be of paramount importance. And we’re saying a lot. But with God the issue is not so much what we say with our words, but moreso what we say with our actions and the heart behind them. In a world that needs more love, more compassion, more goodness – will we be faithful to supply it no matter the person or cost to us,  or will we sit idly by and watch despair grow. True enough, there will often be nothing tangible in it for us, but as we wonder ‘what would Jesus do,’ the simple answer is whatever it takes to bring God glory. If we’re to ‘love our neighbor as ourself,’ we cannot sit idly by and allow them to suffer without offering whatever means of support we can. God still loves the world which is why He’s sending forth you and me today.

Until tomorrow…..

Pastor Botts

“…. Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn’t do it, sins.” – James 4:17

If you don't have anything nice to say...

To belittle is to be little. – Anon

The Pharisee “snubbed” the tax collector in his prayers to God, but he himself was soon humbled by God. OUCH!

When you get right down to it we were all created the same in God’s image, and we are all saved by accepting God’s wonderful, matchless grace. Our life circumstances to this point may not have been identical, and won’t be in the future, but we are still upheld by God’s gracious hand, not anything of our own doing. True, everyone wants to look good and righteous, but putting others down to achieve it is not God’s way, and He’s the righteous judge. As we venture through today’s activities and “divine moments” may edification or silence be our friend.

Until Monday……

Pastor Botts

“Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.” – Ephesians 4:29

Silent Speech

Let your speech be better than silence, or be silent – J. Gibbons

At the transfiguration, it seems Peter just had to have his say. God spoke and put him to SILENCE!

There is an old proverb that says, “it is better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt.” How true. But in this day and age of communication technology silence has gone the way of dinosaurs (extinct). Truth be known often we converse with others just to hear ourselves talk. We need be careful of what we say and how we say it, but moreso we need remember God is a friend of silence, for in the midst of it He often speaks. Are you listening?

Until tomorrow……

Pastor Botts

“But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted; and by your words you will be condemned.” – Matthew 12:36-37

Lion Like

It’s better to be a lion for a day than a sheep all your life. – E. Kenny

Little scrawny Gideon was hiding in a winepress threshing wheat when God called him to battle. After finding his courage the rest was easy!

The world today preaches a ‘tainted’ tolerance. We’re to tolerate everyone and their views and desires except when it comes to promoting Christ and his kingdom. This only works to the advantage of the enemy. We took prayer out of schools – look at schools today. We’ve spared the rod on our children – look at children today. This was not the example Jesus gave. Everyday he was challenged by the ‘religious right’ and everyday he stood his ground and told them what his Father said. Jesus had a backbone then and he should have one still today. As Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. once said, “It’s not so much the noise of the bad; it’s the silence of the good.” God is expecting us to be witnesses not observationists.

Until tomorrow………

Pastor Botts

“Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then…..” Ephesians 6:13-14

Wisdom in listening

Wisdom is the reward you get for a lifetime of listening when you’d have preferred to talk. – D. Larson

It’s interesting that God gave king Solomon a ‘wise and discerning heart’ rather than a booming, commanding voice. Hmm!

Silence – it seems like the word is dead and gone. We are now a nation of talkers, not communicators, just talkers. We talk back and forth, often only surface issues, nothing deep seated. And we have to offer our opinion, give our input or the latest update; we want to explain ourselves, tell our side of the story, or just shoot the breeze. The idea of sitting alone thinking things through (meditation) or asking God and actually waiting for Him to answer (secret prayer) have all but vanished and have been replaced with talk or other ‘noise’. We’ve been duped into thinking we must be in contact or in touch with someone at all times. God gave us two ears for more than just stereo sound, that we might listen twice as much as we speak. May we all be discerning and wiser today.

Until tomorrow…

Pastor Botts

“But the Lord is in His holy temple, let all the earth be silent before Him!” – Habakkuk 2:20