Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Living by faith”   Our Bible verse for today: “For wherever you go, I will go, and wherever you live, I will live; your people will be my people, and your God will be my God.” Ruth 1:16 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Do the right thing, and trust God for the outcome”   I love the story of Ruth and Naomi in the Old Testament. Naomi was a widow living in a foreign land. Not only did her husband die, but both of her sons died as well. Ruth was one of her daughters-in-law from that foreign land. When Naomi decided to return to her native home in the land of Judah, she instructed both of her daughters-in-law to remain there in their own country and find new husbands. But as we read in Ruth 1:6 (above), Ruth refused to leave her.   So, Ruth and Naomi traveled back to Bethlehem in the land of Judah, not knowing what to expect. They were homeless and with no means of support. But if you read the story, you will discover that it turned out pretty well for both of them.   The question for us here this morning is, “Where did Ruth find the courage to leave her home and travel with Naomi to a strange land?” And the answer is that it was an act of faith on her part. She determined to simply do the right thing and to trust God for the outcome.   In what way was Ruth living by faith? Taking care of widows is a Biblical mandate. Ruth wasn’t a Jew by birth but she did marry into a Jewish family and she lived in that setting for some number of years. So, she had probably converted to Judaism and she had probably learned the basic precepts of the faith. Taking care of widows is taught repeatedly in the Old Testament by Moses and the prophets. Ruth would have known that. Therefore, in addition to her love for Naomi, she knew she had a Biblical responsibility from God to do the right thing in this situation.   So, in faith, and in accordance with Proverbs 3:5-6 (Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.), Ruth went with Naomi, took excellent care of her, provided for her, and in return, God took good care of Ruth.   Ruth is an inspiring example of living by faith. She resolved to just do the right thing and to trust God for the rest. And that’s the lesson for us here this morning: when we resolve to simply do what we know to be right, we can trust the outcome to God.     God bless, Pastor Jim

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Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Living by faith”   Our Bible verse for today: “Go and assemble all the Jews who can be found in Susa and fast for me. Don’t eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my female servants will also fast in the same way. After that, I will go to the king even if it is against the law. If I perish, I perish.” Esther 4:16 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “We don’t have the luxury of doing nothing”   Queen Esther was a beautiful young Hebrew woman who had been forced into an unwanted marriage with the king. No one, not even the king, knew she was a Jew. But then, Haman, the evil aide to the king, conspired to have all the Jews in the empire killed. It was to be a mass extermination, a holocaust. It was brought to Esther’s attention and it was clear she needed to act on behalf of her people.   The problem was twofold. First, it was against the law for anyone, even the queen, to come into the king’s presence without first having been summoned by him. The penalty was immediate death. Second, since Esther herself was a secret Jew, and therefore part of the group that had been marked for mass extermination, by identifying herself as such she was putting her own life in jeopardy. Apparently, in order to make the king sympathetic to the plight of the Jews, it would be necessary for him to understand that his own queen was one of them.   So, Esther ordered that the people of God (the Jews) come together for prayer, fasting, and mutual encouragement, and then she would take the action necessary. It was a bold and risky plan fraught with danger. But in faith, and with great courage, Esther did what needed to be done.     For thousands of years since then the people of God (Jews and Christians alike), have been inspired by Esther’s example of faith and courage. We have often used her example as the inspiration we needed to face our own difficult and dangerous situations when it would be much easier to be quiet and do nothing. Esther could have stayed quiet – safe and secure in her position as queen and as a secret Jew. But doing so would have been a horrible wrong. The situation was such that she needed to act. She didn’t have the luxury of doing nothing.   And neither do we. The days we live in are evil, and they’re getting progressively worse. We don’t have the luxury of doing nothing. We cannot hunker down behind the walls of our little religious forts (church buildings) and shut out the world. We have to be active in the world for the cause of Christ – and even more so as the evil increases and the times become more desperate.   Living by faith means doing the hard stuff. It means doing something when it would be easier (and safer) to do nothing. We simply do not have the luxury of doing nothing any longer.   God bless, Pastor Jim

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Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Living by faith”   Our Bible verse for today: “If the God we serve exists, then he can rescue us from the furnace of blazing fire, and he can rescue us from the power of you, the king. But even if he does not rescue us, we want you as king to know that we will not serve your gods or worship the gold statue you set up.” Daniel 3:17-18 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Living by faith makes us confident, bold, and courageous”   Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were young Hebrew men living in captivity in Babylon. They were administrative assistants to the king. But King Nebuchadnezzar was something of a maniacal narcissist with a god complex, and at one time he ordered a ninety-foot-tall gold statue to be erected, evidently of himself, and before which everyone was required to bow down and worship.   However, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego refused to do it. They were observant Jews who took the first and second commandments seriously (have no other gods, bow down before no idols). When the king found out about their refusal to worship as he commanded, he was furious and threatened to have them burned alive in a blazing furnace. You can read their reply to him in Daniel 3:17-18 above.   Where did they get the courage to defy the king in such a bold and confident way? Simple, they were living by faith. Their faith in God was so strong that it gave them the confidence, boldness, and courage they needed to stand on their convictions, come what may.   We’ve seen other examples of that, both in the Bible and outside of it. Joseph resisted the enticements of Potiphar’s wife; Daniel continued to pray despite the king’s edict; Jesus resisted the temptation of Satan in the wilderness; the apostles defied the pharisees; Christians in Rome were burned at the stake and fed to lions; believers in China and North Korea waste away in prisons rather than deny their faith. And on and on the examples go.  The point is that when a true believer has learned to live by faith the examples of extraordinary courage and boldness are many.   Throughout this month we’ve learned many lessons about what it means to live by faith, and we have learned how to do it. Today we find that a result of learning to live by faith is that we become increasingly confident, bold, and courageous. Those are attributes Christians need in increasing measure as we live in these difficult days.   Living by faith helps us to be confident, bold, and courageous.   God bless, Pastor Jim

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Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Living by faith”   Our Bible verse for today: “I am the vine; you are the branches. The one who remains in me and I in him produces much fruit, because you can do nothing without me.” John 15:5 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Stay close to Jesus”   Jesus was a master of contemporary illustration. He explained deep spiritual truths by using examples from everyday life that His listeners could easily relate to. In the case of the scene in John 15:5, Jesus and His closest disciples were in a vineyard. At the end of chapter 14 they had completed the event we know as “The Last Supper” and they left that place. Now they are walking through a vineyard on the outskirts of Jerusalem, headed to the Garden of Gethsemane where He would be arrested.   As they were walking, Jesus pointed to the vine and the branches growing off of it and essentially said, “See the grapevine? That’s Me. See the branches growing off of the grapevine? That’s you. Just as the vine lives its life through the branches and produces its fruit through the branches, so too I will live my life through you and I will produce my fruit through you. And, just as the branch must stay firmly attached to the vine in order for the life of the vine to flow through it and the fruit of the vine to be produced, so too you must stay firmly attached to Me. I will live in you and I will live through you, and together we will bless the world with my fruit.”   And there, my friends, is the key to living by faith. Stay close to Jesus. Stay attached at the hip. Walk through life with Him. Don’t break the bond and don’t pull away. As long as you are a healthy branch firmly attached to the vine which is Jesus, His life can flow in you and through you, and His fruit will be produced in your life. It’s when we pull away from Him that we begin to wither and die (spiritually if not physically).   Sadly, there are a lot of withering wilting Christians out there. They are professing Christians who have pulled away from or broken the bond with Jesus, and consequently there’s little of the fruit of the Spirit evident in their lives, as described by Paul in Galatians 5:22-23 (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, and self-control). There should also be generosity in giving, acts of service to others, and faithful participation in group worship experiences.   All of that comes from the Spirit of Jesus living in you and through you. Don’t lose that. Don’t forfeit it by breaking the essential bond with Him. He is the vine; you are a branch. If you want a fruitful life you will have to stay connected to Him.   The key to living by faith and doing it well is to stay close to Jesus.   God bless, Pastor Jim

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Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Living by faith”   Our Bible verse for today: “For it was you who created my inward parts; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I will praise you because I have been remarkably and wondrously made.” Psalm 139:13-14 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “God don’t make no junk”   I love the passage above from Psalm 139 because in it, David reminds me that God Himself formed me and knit me together in my mother’s womb. In other words, God made me the way He wanted me.   It’s helpful for me to remember that because if I was designing me, I would have done it differently. If it was up to me, I’d be tall, dark, and handsome. I’d be six-foot-four, drive a Maserati, and have a blackbelt in karate. Also, I’ve always wanted to be able to sing like Sinatra, dance like Michael Jackson, and have the musical talent of Paul McCartney. But I can do none of those things.   Fortunately, long ago, a wise mentor encouraged me to focus on the things I can do, rather than on the things I can’t. Maybe I can’t sing, dance, or play the tuba, but I can preach, teach, and write. So, my mentor encouraged me to leave the singing, dancing, and tuba playing to those who can do those things, and instead, with enthusiasm and gusto, do the things I can do. If that’s the way God created me, then embrace it and run with it. I believe it was the black gospel singer Big Mama Thornton who said, “Honey, God don’t make no junk!”    When it comes to living by faith it’s important to remember that God is sovereign. He’s all-powerful and He is perfect in His ways. He doesn’t make mistakes and He doesn’t make junk. Therefore, with your faith firmly placed in His love, wisdom, and perfect plan, accept who you are, embrace how He has created you, and then run with that.   Resolve to be the best “you” you can be. For me it means I preach, teach, and write rather than singing, dancing and making music. Okay, so be it. I’ll strive to do it well. For you it probably means something different. Whatever. Just be who God made you to be – because, as the lady once said, “God don’t make no junk”.   God bless, Pastor Jim

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Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Living by faith”   Our Bible verse for today: “When the Lord saw that he had turned aside to look, God called to him out of the bush.” Exodus 3:4 (New Jewish Publication Society Translation)   Our thought for today: “It’s your move”   Yesterday we learned what it means to think of God as “Abba, Father” and why doing so is important. It’s because our faith is supposed to consist of more than just a set of beliefs about God. Instead, it should be a warm, deep, trusting relationship with God. It’s much easier to live by faith if your understanding of God is based in a close relationship with Him rather than just on a set of beliefs about Him.   In his commentary on the of the book of Exodus, Dr. Dennis Prager made an interesting and helpful observation about living by faith, and he used the example of Moses in Exodus 3:4 to illustrate it. I’m going to quote Dr. Prager’s entire note:   “God waits to call out to Moses until Moses first notices God. For nearly every human being (Abraham was a rare exception), that is how the divine-human encounter takes place: God communicates to us after, or if, we make the effort to notice His presence … this is our choice to make. If you wait for God to contact you before you lead a God-centered life, you will almost surely never lead a life with God in it.” Prager goes on: “Here’s an almost precise analogy: Shakespeare will speak to you only after you make the effort to read and understand him. And the more effort you make to understand him, the more meaningful he will be in your life. That is the case regarding God: Bringing God into your life takes effort. What worthwhile thing in life doesn’t require effort? Why should God be different?”   Prager’s point, using Moses as his example, is that the ball is in your court. God is here. He is as present to you in your circumstances as He was for Moses in the burning bush. Now the next move is yours. Will you make the effort to notice His presence and to engage with Him?   Going back to yesterday’s devotional: God wants to be your Abba, your Father – in the fullest sense of the term. But you have to want that too and you have to then willingly move into His embrace. Living by faith involves making a decision about God, and then taking the action necessary to have a close and deep relationship with Him. God is there for you and He is waiting. Now it’s your move.   God bless, Pastor Jim

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Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Living by faith”   Our Bible verse for today: “For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear. Instead, you received the Spirit of adoption, by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father!” Romans 8:15 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “It’s more than a set of beliefs, it’s a relationship”   The name “Abba” is an Aramaic word for father but it carries with it implications of both endearment and honor. We often hear it compared to the English “Daddy”, and there is a lot of “Daddy” in “Abba”, but there’s more as well. In Aramaic “Abba” communicates a sense of warmth, intimacy, comfort, trust, and security, but also honor and a commitment of obedience. In the patriarchal world in the times of Jesus an Abba was loved and trusted, and also honored and obeyed.   Jesus used the term “Abba, Father” to address God. By doing so He communicated both His strong and warm bond of love with His Father, as well as His commitment to honor and obey Him. In Romans 8:15 Paul tells us that since we as the followers of Christ have been adopted into the Father’s family, we too now have the privilege of calling Him “Abba”. Likewise, in Galatians 4:6 Paul wrote, “And because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying “Abba” Father!”   All of this serves to highlight the fact that Christian faith is much more than just a set of beliefs we ascribe to, it’s a relationship we are involved in. And not just any relationship, but a warm and trusting bond of love with God that brings a sense of trust, comfort, and security.   But sadly, and unfortunately, for many people having faith is similar to having an opinion. It’s simply something they believe to be true. But God intends for our faith to be much more than that. He wants our faith to be transformed from a mere set of beliefs about Him, to a deep relationship of love and trust with Him.   How does that happen? The same way it happens in any relationship. It happens slowly over time. It happens because we spend time with the person and we make the effort to nurture the relationship. The same is true with God. The more time you spend with Him, the more your faith will transform from a simple set of beliefs into a deep and dynamic relationship.   Let me ask you, is He simply your God, or is He your Abba? You may think of Him as God, but He wants to be Abba.   God bless, Pastor Jim

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Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Living by faith”   Our Bible verse for today: “Two are better than one because they have a good reward for their efforts. For if either falls his companion can lift him up; but pity the one who falls without another to lift him up … And if someone overpowers one person, two can resist him. A cord of three strands is not easily broken.” Ecclesiastes 4:9-10; 12 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “We need each other”   In their great little devotional book “Finding God in the Lord of the Rings”, Kurt Bruner and Jim Ware remind us of the special friendship between the two hobbits Frodo Baggins and Sam Gamgee. Frodo is the main character in this part of the story and he is tasked with accomplishing what appears to be an impossible mission. Fortunately, in addition to his good friend and assistant Sam, Frodo has the assistance of Gandalf the Wizard, Strider the Ranger, and a host of dwarfs and elves. That’s why this volume of the series was named “The Fellowship of the Ring”, with an emphasis on “Fellowship”.   J.R.R. Tolkien was a Christian and he wove Christian themes, concepts, and principles all throughout his fantasy stories. A crucial principle found in The Fellowship of the Ring is how much we need good trusted friends to make our journey with us.     Christian friends and good church family are essential figures in our lives. We need trusted companions to make this journey through life with us. Sometimes we need a helping hand to support us, or an encouraging word to motivate us, or a warm heart to express love toward us, and sometimes we just need a shoulder to cry on.   As Solomon so eloquently expressed it in Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 above, we need good companions. And we see that truth illustrated for us all throughout the Bible. Moses had his brother Aaron; King David had his friend Jonathan; Elijah had Elisha; Jesus had the apostles; and Paul had Barnabas, Timothy, Luke, and Silas. Do you have good Christian friends like that? Are you being that kind of friend to others?   If we’re fortunate, we have not just one trusted companion but many. This is where a good church family comes in. However, to develop these kinds of friendships in a church you have to be active in the church – you have to participate in the regular gatherings and in the special events. That’s how you get to know people and grow close to them. And then, once you have those friendships, you have to put the time and effort into maintaining them.   The truth is, we need each other. As Solomon noted, pity the one who doesn’t have someone to lift him up. Having friends like this is a key element to living by faith.   God bless, Pastor Jim

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Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Living by faith”   Our Bible verse for today: “Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.” 1 Corinthians 13:12 (NIV)   Our thought for today: “There will always be unanswered questions”   You will never have all the answers. Sorry. That’s simply a fact. No matter how much you learn and no matter how spiritually mature you become, there will still be much you don’t know and can’t explain. Are you okay with that?   Yesterday we considered how it is that we become wise in the faith by associating with those who are wise. That’s true. But it’s also true that no matter how wise you become, regardless of how much you mature spiritually, you will still have doubts and questions until the day you cross the thin line between this life and the next and you are in heaven. Wise men and wise women who are strong in the faith have learned to be comfortable with that. They’re okay with not having all the answers.   Hans Kung was a noted Swiss theologian and author. Referring to the fact that the Christian faith requires us to be willing to live without having everything fully explained he wrote, “Here we have, not human truth which men can state and understand, but God’s truth, which goes far beyond any statement or understanding of man’s. Faith never becomes clear. The faith remains obscure. Not until we enter into glory will it be otherwise …   In other words, there will always be things we can’t fully explain and questions that remain unanswered. An important part of living by faith involves simply accepting that fact and learning to be comfortable with it. Too many Christians have a shaky and unstable faith precisely because they are unable to get an answer to every question and to erase all doubts. Wise and mature Christians have learned that by its very nature “faith” involves believing in and accepting things that remain one step beyond human understanding.   There will always be unanswered questions. Accept it. Live with it. Learn to be comfortable with it.   God bless, Pastor Jim

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Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Living by faith” Our Bible verse for today: “The one who walks with the wise will become wise, but a companion of fools will suffer harm.” Proverbs 13:20 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “You become like those you associate with”   I was taught a very important lesson shortly after I came to faith in Christ. It happened at a men’s conference. The speaker read Proverbs 13:20 (above) and he said, “If you want to become a wise godly man, find some wise godly men you can spend time with and learn from them. Because over time we become like those we associate with.”   I had never heard that verse before but it hit me hard and I asked God to help me find some older men I could learn from and spend time with. In the years to come He brought men like Oren Teel, John Baker, and Dick DeGrow into my life, as well as some others. I also discovered that I could learn a lot and be influenced by authors whom I had never met, but who had a big impact on me through their writings. C.S. Lewis, Henry Blackaby, Philip Yancey, Eugene Peterson, and Dallas Willard all filled that role in my life.   Recently I came across a statement about this that caught my attention. It said, “Learning from others is the great talent of the truly wise.” There it is again. Wise people become wise by learning from others. That’s was Solomon’s point in Proverbs 13:20.   I don’t consider myself to be in the category of the truly wise, but I do know that I’m a better man today than I would have been had it not been for my association with and being influenced by men like Oren Teel, Dick DeGrow, Henry Blackaby, Eugene Peterson, and the others.   This same principle applies to learning to live by faith. If you want to learn to live by faith, associate with those who already know how to do it. Surround yourself with people who live by faith and soon you will find yourself living by faith too. Part of the wisdom of the wise is that they have a deep and settled faith that guides them and sustains them, and they learned how to live like that from others. None of us figures this out for ourselves.   If you walk with the wise you will become wise. If you surround yourself with those who know how to live by faith, you will soon learn how to live by faith too. We become like those we associate with.   God bless, Pastor Jim

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