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Friday, March 31, 2017

Family Friday: Calm Mornings




 Calm Mornings:  Fact or Fantasy?
          Do you ever see families at church on Sunday morning and think they have it all together?  Then you reflect on your morning and wish it had been like you believe theirs was?  You may be surprised that they have been thinking the same thing about you!  Mornings can be hard for everybody, no matter how you think they must have it all together.  There are a few things you can do, however, that can help your mornings go more smoothly.
  1.  Wake up early enough to spend time with God.
There are times we think we have too much to do to spend much time with God, but the opposite is true.  The days we have more to accomplish or more things to deal with are the days we need to spend even more time with God than usual.
  1. Wake your children up early enough for them to get ready with a few minutes to spare.
Each person takes a different amount of time to get ready, so wake each child accordingly.  If children have morning chores, make sure enough time is allotted for those.  Try to plan for five extra minutes “just in case”.
  1. Get as much ready the night before as possible.
Prepare as much in advance as you can.  Get out all of the clothing or uniform accessories needed, match socks and shoes, pack non-refrigerated snack and lunch items, and set backpacks close to the door.  If you can prevent chaos and stress, then do so!
  1. Plan breakfast.
Maybe have a weekly menu, or just figure out the night before what you will be eating the next day.  Then you don’t have to come up with an idea in the morning.  Coming up with ideas can be hard if you are not a morning person!
  1. Play good Christian music.
This can help create a pleasant atmosphere, especially if the people in your house don’t always have a pleasant attitude when they are woken up.  Some music is more conducive to pleasant atmospheres than others, so be wise in your choices.  The music can continue in the car ride to school as well.
  1. Pray together.
This doesn’t have to be a long, special prayer time together.  Sometimes just a few sentences asking God to bless each person’s day can remind them that God is always with them.
  1. Smile!
It’s hard to get angry and yell at your children for not keeping up with the schedule when you’re smiling.  Purposely use kind words and softer tones.  Sometimes we get loud and stern without even thinking about how we sound.  Think before you talk, especially after just waking up!

These suggestions are no guarantee that your mornings will be perfect or even great.  However, they surely will improve your morning routine!  Try a few or all of them.  May your calm mornings begin soon!

Thursday, March 16, 2017

Thoughtful Thursday: In Christ Alone





In Christ alone, my hope is found.
He is my light, my strength, my song.

I absolutely adore these song lyrics.  It is a beautiful and well-written song.  I’ve gotten on a kick lately where I can’t just listen to it once.  I end up repeating it 2 or 3 times before I move on to a different song. 
Just recently as I was listening to it for the third time in an hour, I began to ponder the above words.  It sounds wonderful, but how many of us can honestly say those words?  I know that most days, when I’m singing along, unfortunately they are just words and are not actually truth in my life at that moment. 
I mean, think about it.  “In Christ alone, my hope is found”.   How many of us truly place ALL of our hope solely in Christ?  Not many, I dare say.  Of course, it is more than likely what we strive for, but failing quite often.  This is much easier to say than it is to do.  Most days we hope in ourselves, in others, in medication, or in the familiarity and comfort of a besetting sin.

Psalms 78:7  “That they might set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments:”

I believe this is the key to place our hope solely in Christ.  Keeping His commandments and not forgetting His works.  If you are honoring and showing your love to Christ by keeping His commandments, your focus and hope will be on Him and not others or other things.  If you are constantly remembering all His good works in your life, you will constantly be reminded of His faithfulness, your hope will likely remain with Him as well.  We are human and far from perfect.  People fail, things fail, but Christ is Faithful and in Him we can hope.

Monday, March 13, 2017

Monday's Message: Wanderer




Psa 107:1  O give thanks unto the LORD, for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.
Psa 107:2  Let the redeemed of the LORD say so, whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy;
Psa 107:3  And gathered them out of the lands, from the east, and from the west, from the north, and from the south.
Psa 107:4  They wandered in the wilderness in a solitary way; they found no city to dwell in.
Psa 107:5  Hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted in them.
Psa 107:6  Then they cried unto the LORD in their trouble, and he delivered them out of their distresses.
Psa 107:7  And he led them forth by the right way, that they might go to a city of habitation.
Psa 107:8  Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!
Psa 107:9  For he satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness.

 
God is AWESOME!  God is POWERFUL!  He is masterfully directing and orchestrating our lives to bring us into a place of blessing and joy. I don’t believe in good events or bad event; I believe in good results or bad results derived from difficult or pleasant circumstances.
Isaiah 55:9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.
We are not able to comprehend all the ways or events God deems necessary to bring about good in our lives! That is where faith proves itself absolutely vital!  We must believe, know, and proclaim: GOD IS GOOD, ALL THE TIME!

David, a 2-year old with leukemia, was taken by his mother, Deborah, to Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, to see Dr. John Truman who specialized in treating children with cancer and various blood diseases. Dr. Truman's prognosis was devastating: "He has a 50-50 chance." The countless clinic visits, the blood tests, the intravenous drugs, the fear and pain--the parent’s ordeal can be almost as bad as the child's because they must stand by, unable to bear the pain for him. David never cried in the waiting room, and although his friends in the clinic had to hurt him and stick needles in him, he hustled in ahead of his mother with a smile, sure of the welcome he always got. When he was three, David had to have a spinal tap--a painful procedure at any age. It was explained to him that, because he was sick, Dr. Truman had to do something to make him better. "If it hurts, remember it's because he loves you," Deborah said. The procedure was horrendous. It took three nurses to hold David still, while he yelled and sobbed and struggled. When it was almost over, the tiny boy, soaked in sweat and tears, looked up at the doctor and gasped, "Thank you, Dr. Tooman, for my hurting." We don’t trust God that much!

We have the misconception that “We are good, and God is like us at times

One night a house caught fire and a young boy was forced to flee to the roof. The father stood on the ground below with outstretched arms, calling to his son, "Jump! I'll catch you." He knew the boy had to jump to save his life. All the boy could see, however, was flame, smoke, and blackness. As can be imagined, he was afraid to leave the roof. His father kept yelling: "Jump! I will catch you." But the boy protested, "Daddy, I can't see you." The father replied, "But I can see you and that's all that matters."

We must TRUST the God in whom our salvation is secure with this life also.
-          It was NOT God’s first choice to use hardship in our lives!
-          Tragedy, Trials, Pain, Horrible Violence: these are all the consequences of sin!
-          The drastic measures that God will at times find necessary should not drive us from Him, but rather highlight the extreme devastation of eternal hell’s torment.

In Psalm 107:1-9 we find the first of several types of people we will discuss.  I use the word type, but that does not mean that any of us will be all of any one type. In fact, the majority of us will probably recognize ourselves repeatedly as we study these passages over the next few weeks.

107:1 Command: “O give thanks unto the Lord
Why? “He is Good” = because of the outcome not the pain!
& “His mercy endureth forever(makes redemption possible)
[Good]: Having moral qualities which God's law requires; virtue; religious; applied to persons, and opposed to bad, vicious, wicked, and evil. 2. Valid; sound; not weak, not false

[Mercy]: Pity; compassion manifested towards a person in distress
107:2-3. “Let the redeemed of the Lord say so” = Claim Him = He claimed you
Who are the “redeemed”?
-          Those who have been “redeemed from the hand of the enemy
-          &gathered out of the lands
·         They have come from all different cultures, religions, and experiencesas well as financial statuses.
107:4-7. “They wandered in the wilderness” = the commonality of us all!
Solitary way” – a life without Christ is very lonely!
[Distresses]: Extreme pain; anguish of body or mind; Suffering; Affliction; calamity; misery
Wanderer  Hungry, thirsty, and fainting
Just as you might expect to find a person who has set out on a journey through the Arab desert without a map or proper guidance and insufficient supplies, they were starving, thirsty, and ready to give up the search

[Delivered]: Freed; released; transferred or transmitted; passed from one to another; committed; yielded; surrendered; rescued; uttered; pronounced
-          Led by the right way” He saved their souls
·         Choose Christ!
§  Just as a man stops searching for Mrs. Right after he is married
§  Accept that God is GOOD and stop WANDERING
It will never get better than God = trust HIM!
·         Follow His leadership
§  Bible [study & preaching]
§  Holy Spirit’s guidance
-         The church is a “City of habitation
·         Cities have structure, leadership, citizens, and laws
·         He leads wanderers through our doors for us to share with them the love of Christ and clearly preach the Gospel of Christ
·          WE HAVE THE ANSWERS THEY HAVE BEEN SEARCHING FOR!!!
107:8-9. Recognize that any event or act of God that brings a person to Him and ultimately to salvation is the GOODness of God! “He satisfieth the longing soul” & “filleth the hungry soul with goodness” He is the answer you are searching for!!
-         There is a perpetual provision in the destination the right way revealed to us!

Family Friday: Prayers for your Wife




Prayers for your Wife
 We know that husbands and wives should pray for each other, and we often do.  However,         sometimes we do not know what to pray, or we do not even have a plan beyond knowing that we                              need to pray.  Here is a suggestion for some specific prayers for husbands to pray for their wives.

1.      Pray for Her Mind
Pray that God would mold her into a capable, intelligent, and virtuous woman and that He would keep her thoughts centered on whatever is true, lovely, right, pure, noble, and worthy of praise. (Proverbs 31:10Philippians 4:8)

2.      Pray for Her Eyes
Ask God to give her eyes of compassion, so she could see others as He sees them. (Matthew 9:361 Samuel 16:7b)
3.      Pray for Her Ears
Pray that she would listen for God’s still, small voice and would remain ever attentive to the promptings of the Holy Spirit. (Matthew 11:151 Thessalonians 5:19)

4.      Pray for Her Mouth
Ask that God would fill her mouth with skillful and godly wisdom, that the law of kindness would remain on her tongue, and that she would only and always speak the truth in love . (Proverbs 31:26Ephesians 4:15)

5.      Pray for Her Heart
Pray that God would fill your wife’s heart with love and respect for you and with tender patience toward your children. (Ephesians 5:331 Thessalonians 2:7)

6.      Pray for Her Arms
Ask God to gird your wife with strength, making her arms strong and firm. Pray that He would bless the work of her hands and that she would do her work cheerfully, as unto Him. (Proverbs 31:1731Colossians 3:23)

7.      Pray for Her Legs
Ask God to strengthen and sustain your wife, so that she can walk and not faint and not tire of doing good. (Isaiah 40:312 Thessalonians 3:13)

8.      Pray for Her Feet
Pray that her feet would be shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace so that she might faithfully pursue righteousness and love. Ask God to lead her in the path of wisdom and truth and to keep her feet from stumbling. (Ephesians 6:15Proverbs 21:21Proverbs 4:11-12)

Praying for each other will strengthen your marriage and make you more aware of each other’s needs.