Ordinary People

God chooses the ordinary because that just increases His glory. If 12 ordinary men could turn the world upside down, I have to wonder why we can’t today. Good stuff Becky, thanks.

A Christian Worldview of Fiction

Christians aren’t superstars. God hasn’t gone about picking the brightest and best, the richest or most handsome. He’s not finding out who’s the best speaker or writer or IT guy or teacher or sports star or supermodel. Actually, God enlists ordinary people to be his followers.

We can see this in the Bible. Take King David, for example. He was the youngest of his family. His job when the prophet Samuel anointed him to be king was—shepherd. He hadn’t acquitted himself on the field of battle or proved himself to be an astute leader of men. Those would come as God walked with him through days of exile, through nights of hiding and running. But when God put His finger on David and said, I want him, David was just an ordinary man.

Which is fitting because his great-grandmother was sort of a nobody. She was a widow, probably a…

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Taking Off Your Uniform

 

 

2 Kings 5:9-11

“So Naaman came with his horses and with his chariot, and stood at the door of the house of Elisha.And Elisha sent a messenger unto him, saying, Go and wash in Jordan seven times, and thy flesh shall come again to thee, and thou shalt be clean.But Naaman was wroth, and went away, and said, Behold, I thought, He will surely come out to me, and stand, and call on the name of the LORD his God, and strike his hand over the place, and recover the leper.”

The full story for the background for this article can be found in 2 Kings 5, but we will briefly recap it here. Naaman, the Syrian General, had been afflicted with leprosy and was, of course, desperate for a cure. Word came to Naaman that the great Prophet of the Jews, Elisha, could cure him of his disease. As befitting a great general, Naaman showed up at Elisha’s home complete with Chariot and entourage, like the great man he was back in Syria.

We all know the story. Elisha didn’t even go outside to greet the great general; he simply sent a messenger out and told Naaman basically, “Go wash in the Jordan river, and you will be clean.” That was simple and with no fanfare at all. Needless to say, Naaman was greatly insulted, as he expected some great miracle from the Prophet. Naaman surely thought Elisha would come to the door, make a big greeting and perform some showy ritual for the big General. Elisha did not so Naaman stormed home in a huff basically. Of course, he was still leprous!

It was not until later in the passage, when Naaman’s servants spoke with him, that he changed his thoughts about what had happened. They pointed out to him, basically, that if Elisha had asked him to do some great thing that made him look good he would have done it; yet he had refused to do this simple thing that only glorified God.

Are we like that? Do we make a pretense of seeking what God wants, but what we really seek is the thing that preserves our status in our own eyes? Are we willing to “Take off our uniform?” Are we truly willing to humble ourselves and submit to the will of God, even when it doesn’t make us look good?

Naaman finally did humble himself and submit and was healed of his leprosy. We too might find that if we humble ourselves and submit we would also be healed of the diseases that afflict us: sin, death and lack of joy among them.

SUNDAY MORNING COMING DOWN

A great reminder here of the importance of gathering in God’s house. Thanks for this brother James

The video is my addition

https://youtu.be/ED5s1-Fe9FA

In Spirit and In Truth The Word

William Andrew Dillard
Parson to Person
“On a Sunday morning sidewalk, I’m wishing, Lord, that I was stoned.. ‘Cause there’s something in a Sunday ; That makes a body feel alone. And there’s nothing short a’ dying; That’s half as lonesome as the sound; Of the sleeping city sidewalk; And Sunday morning coming down.”
So goes the mournful lyrics of the late country singer Johnny Cash as he depicted the feelings of a worldly, sinner faced with the loneliness and conviction of “Sunday morning coming down.” It is a well known feeling by too many in our world today, but why?
His lyrics explain that part of it is a terrible hangover from the night before. Another part is the accompanying messy, unkempt lifestyle of dirty clothes and house. Another is the complete absence of the nightlife, and scattering to their own corners of misery those who shared those false…

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TROUBLED WATERS

It’s that time again! More artwork and poetry by Paul and Kathy Boecher. Be blessed and enjoy!

atimetoshare.me

ART & POETRY BY PAUL & KATHY BOECHER©

Waters churning, waves are rising, still the Lamb of God is there,

Swirling winds uncompromising, there is nothing we need fear,

Sails unfurling, mast revising, casting doubt on God’s presence,

Still He holds the wheel advising, He’s always omnipresent,

Times of turmoil and confusion, peace may seem aloof or gone,

Yet the Lord of all creation,  stills the waters and the storm,

His hand will calm the rumbling seas, He can give relief from pain,

He can help you through all trouble, making loss into your gain,

Put your trust in His compassion.  Put your faith in Him alone,

He provides for your salvation and will take you safely home.

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Jesus Paid It All and the Payment Was Permanent (Part Five)

Sin has earthly consequences which are not necessarily handed out by God, but just the natural outflow of our actions. King David is one of the finest examples of actions and consequences we can find anywhere in the Bible. Only a very few people would even try to make a case for David being unsaved; there is almost universal agreement that as we speak, David is in Heaven with The Lord. Yet, we all also know the truly terrible sins David committed at one point in his life. We all know the story of his adultery with Bathsheba and his murder of her husband Uriah. David certainly was forgiven by God for those sins, but if one reads the full story of his Kingdom it is easy to see that the consequences of what David did set the stage for many things.

• The rape of his daughter Tamar by her half-brother Amnon and Amnon’s subsequent murder by Absalom. 2 Samuel 13
• Absalom’s banishment from the house of David and partial restoration. 2 Samuel 14
• Absalom’s later rebellion against David. 2 Samuel 15-19

Just a casual reading of this story and it is easy to draw the conclusion that David’s failure as both a father and husband led ultimately to some very serious consequences. One might even say that his other son Solomon behaved in some of the ways he did due to the example set by his father David.

To sum up the above, eternal security in our salvation is not a license to run out and sin all we want to. I heard a preacher say once, “Since I got saved I sin all I want to;” the audience grew silent and he then stated, “but I don’t want to.” Let’s recap quickly.

• True saving faith and salvation will produce works or fruit
• We will all be judged for the quality of our works.
• God will discipline and chastise us for our actions
• We still face earthly consequences for the things we do

Guest Post-Heather Fry

This is an unofficial guest post by my wife. She had some wise words to say this morning, and they first appeared on her Facebook page. I just copied them here with her okay. Be blessed.

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As another reminder today of just how short life really is, another one of our church family was called home. Just this morning in church as I looked around so many people not there. Why? I have no idea. There are probably a thousand and one excuses. I don’t feel good, no one will miss me this Sunday, I have other things I want to do, this is my only day off, I want to sleep in just a little longer, I had somewhere I wanted to go, and on and on. People just don’t care anymore. Why? Is it something that someone said to them that was taken the wrong way, is it just they don’t want to make time anymore for Jesus? It seems more and more people are just too busy with their own lives and what they want to do than give Jesus his time. Had he not given them their time they wouldn’t have any time. Think about it. We are all here by the grace of God. He can call any of us home at any time, it isn’t up to us and “our plans ” that we may have. God doesn’t operate on our time. He operates on his. It’s very disappointing and discouraging to see people not have time for God anymore. Time is coming to an end. Do we really want to answer to God for not making time for him, when he is the one that gives us the time? We need to be prepared and ready for his return. And yes, there is a difference. We can all be ready, but have we all made preparation for our eternal home either in heaven or hell? That is the only two options. There is no in between. Make time for God and accept his gift of salvation. Be faithful to his house when the doors are open, and spread his gospel.

Take me to church

Great thoughts Caroline. I pray that they will be the thing that encourages a long absent member to come to join with us this morning.

a reasonable faith

Have you ever watched a film you’ve seen multiple times and find yourself hoping it turns out differently? Like maybe Uncle Billy will remember that he put the $8,000 into the newspaper when he handed it to Potter, and George Bailey won’t find himself in a heap of trouble this time. Or the Jets and the Sharks will have their little rumble but no one will get killed and Tony and Maria will marry and live happily ever after. Or Rhett and Scarlett’s daughter won’t fall off the horse, Melanie won’t die, and Tara won’t be burned ‘cause the South gave up their quest for independence and there was no Civil War.

Conversely, in a particularly tense or disturbing moment in a familiar film do you find yourself fearing it will turn out differently…the hero, the good guy, the cause for right will be defeated this time?

Living as a…

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It’s Saturday, Pray for Church on Sunday!

What great advice….start preparing for tomorrow worship today. Thanks, brother Jim for this. Be blessed.

The Domain for Truth

One way to prepare for Church on Sunday is to pray for your time at Church on Sunday!  For some Saturday is busy with preparing sermons, Sunday school lessons and children instruction.  Take that time to pray for your ministry but also consider also praying for the church overall, that God would use you and the rest of the members to build up believers and glorify God through worship on Sunday.

It’s Saturday, Pray for your Church on Sunday!

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Date Night at the Flying Fish(Again)

Really we aren’t that boring, we just really like The Flying Fish. It was where we had our very first date. A blind date no less. We actually got our first table tonight, which was cool

I want this sign at home!

Cocktail sauce must be from scratch

Finally the main course!

Bye! Time to go