Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “The end of anxiety and despair”   Our Bible verse for today: “Where can I go to escape your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence?” Psalm 139:7 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “You can’t get away from God”   It’s a rhetorical question. The Psalmist wasn’t expecting an answer because the answer is obvious. There isn’t anywhere you can go to get away from God because there isn’t anywhere that God isn’t present. God is everywhere, all the time. Theologians refer to this as the omnipresence of God. He is everywhere, always, all the time.   Is this good or bad? Does the thought comfort me or make me uneasy? I suppose that depends on what I’m up to at any given moment but overall, if I really believe that God is good and that He loves me unconditionally (He is and He does), then His omnipresence is a comforting reality. King David knew this. It’s why he wrote Psalm 139. So, this morning I just want to share more of the Psalm with you and invite you to find comfort in these words:   “Lord, you have searched me and known me. You know when I sit down and when I stand up; you understand my thoughts from far away. You observe my travels and my rest; you are aware of all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue, you know all about it, Lord. You have encircled me; you have placed your hand on me. This wondrous knowledge is beyond me. It is lofty; I am unable to reach it. Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I make my bed in Sheol, you are there. If I live at the eastern horizon or settle at the western limits, even there your hand will lead me; your right hand will hold on to me. If I say, ‘Surely the darkness will hide me, and the light around me will be night – even the darkness is not dark to you. The night shines like day; darkness and light are alike to you.   I hope you find the reality of God’s presence comforting. You should. The fact that God wants to be with you all the time is proof of just how much He loves you and how much He likes you. Would you like more proof of that? Okay, we’ll continue this discussion tomorrow.   God bless, Pastor Jim

Copyright © 2022 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved.

Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “The end of anxiety and despair”   Our Bible verse for today: “Because of the Lord’s faithful love we do not perish, for his mercies never end. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness! I say, “The Lord is my portion, therefore I will put my hope in him.” Lamentations 3:22-24 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Hope never gives up on you”   Do you find the words of Jeremiah in Lamentations 3:22-24 comforting and encouraging? I do. But did you know they were written in the middle of the worst possible circumstances?   Jeremiah was an Old Testament priest and prophet. He spent more than five decades calling the people of Judah to repent of their ways and to return to the Lord. If they didn’t, their bad choices would have terrible consequences. But the people refused to listen and they refused to repent. As a result, the nation continued in a downward spiral.   While all that was happening, over a period of fifty years, Jeremiah endured terrible suffering. The leaders and the people hated him and abused him. Jeremiah is known in history as “the weeping prophet”. Now, in Lamentations, judgement has finally come upon the nation. The armies of the enemy swept in, they conquered the land, Jerusalem was in ruins, the people were in captivity, and there was devastation, hunger, and death all around (think eastern Ukraine in our day).   It was in that setting that Jeremiah spoke the words of Lamentations 3:22-24. It was as he walked the streets of the destroyed city, circled around the rubble, stepped over the dead bodies. Calamity, despair, and destruction was all around him. And yet, he professed unequivocal faith in God. He knew that God still loved His people and that He wanted to bless them. So, Jeremiah’s focus was on the Lord, and he had faith that God would yet show Himself mighty and merciful, compassionate and kind, in the middle of the disaster. “Therefore, I will put my hope in him.”   I doubt that any of us are experiencing anything close to what Jeremiah was experiencing when he wrote those words. But still, our own situations are hard and often painful in their own right. The words of Lamentations 3:22-24 are as true for us today in our circumstances as they were for Jeremiah in his day in his circumstances.   Whatever it is you’re dealing with today, I encourage you to put your hope in God. The worse the situation is the closer you need to be to Him and the more you need to trust Him. God is hope. It’s not just something that’s true about Him, it’s who He is. So, never give up hope, because Hope never gives up on you.   God bless, Pastor Jim

Copyright © 2022 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved.

Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “The end of anxiety and despair”   Our Bible verse for today: “Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.” Matthew 25:40 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “What if it’s you?”   I love the observation Brennan Manning shared in his book “The Ragamuffin Gospel” regarding Matthew 25:31-40. That passage is famous because in it, Jesus teaches a parable about caring for the down-and-out of society, the “least of these”. He speaks of feeding the hungry, giving drink to the thirsty, clothing the naked, taking care of the sick, and visiting the prisoners, as examples of the ways in which His followers should be ministering to those who are suffering and in great need. Those are acts of kindness and compassion which flow from a heart of love, and He says that when we do such things for them, He receives it as if we have done those things directly for Him. That’s how important it is to Him that the neediest of all get cared for.   In reference to that teaching, Brennan Manning wrote this, “What if you discovered that the least of the brethren of Jesus, the one who needs your love the most, the one you can help the most by loving, the one to whom your love will be most meaningful – what if you discovered that this least of the brethren of Jesus … is you?”   Yes, what if it’s you? What if you are the one who needs your love the most? What if you are the one you most need to care for, minister to, and feel compassion for? What if you discovered that that one you need to forgive the most, the one who needs your acceptance the most … is you?   I’m not encouraging a narcissistic self-absorption with your own problems. We’ve already discussed the danger of that in previous devotionals in this series. However, as we’ve also already discussed, we’re often too hard on ourselves. We’re often our own worst enemy. The loudest voices of criticism and accusation sounding in our heads is often our own. What if the one you need to let up on and have some compassion for is you?   For many of us the problem isn’t that we love ourselves too much, but too little. I want to encourage you again this morning to give yourself a break. Cut yourself some slack. Don’t be so hard on yourself.   It’s not just the hungry, thirsty, sick, and prisoners who are near to the heart of Jesus. So are you. It’s not just them who His heart aches for. His heart aches for you too. Yes, take care of them. But take care of yourself too.   God bless, Pastor Jim

Copyright © 2022 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved.

Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “The end of anxiety and despair”   Our Bible verse for today: “You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” John 8:32 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Set yourself free”   The truth that Jesus is urging us to know in John 8:32 is multifaceted. As He said about Himself in John 14:6, He “is” the truth. If we know Him, we will find freedom. First and foremost, we are set free from an eternity in hell. But second, in the context of this passage in John chapter eight, the truth Jesus was referring to was all that He had been teaching about knowing God and living victoriously in this life. If we know these truths – really know them as in accepting, embracing, and living these truths – we will be set free.   A genuinely saved follower of Christ will know and embrace Jesus and all that He taught, and we will then have been set free from an eternity in hell, but also from a lifetime in bondage to Satan now. This is the truth Jesus calls us to truly know, and which will set us free.   What a sad thing it is to watch someone struggling with life and living in bondage to Satan. They have a hole in their heart that they’re desperately trying to fill with things from the world such as possessions, approval, accomplishments, relationships, sex, drugs, or alcohol, but which can only be filled by God.   Jesus is right there ready and waiting to set them free from all that. They only need to accept Him and His teaching, live according to Biblical principles instead of worldly standards, and begin to grow in spiritual maturity. What’s holding them back? The answer is that they’re holding themselves back. Jesus is ready to set them free but they’re not willing to be set free. In essence, they’re not willing to set themselves free. How very sad.   Even sadder is a Christian who has professed faith in Christ but is still not living in the freedom Christ has granted them. They have been set free by Jesus but they aren’t living like it because they haven’t set themselves free. They have faith in Christ, but they’re still allowing Satan to hold them in bondage to the things of the world. And they are allowing that to be the case. It is voluntary. The fact is that as a Christian Satan has no power to hold you in bondage. The only power he has over you is what you allow him to have. Read 1 Corinthians 10:13.   This is a common spiritual problem and it bears further discussion, so we’ll come back to it tomorrow. For today I want to ask you, have you been set free by Jesus? Then live like it by setting yourself free as well. Truly surrender all your issues to Jesus and then live like someone who has been set free.   God bless, Pastor Jim

Copyright © 2022 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved.

Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “The end of anxiety and despair”   Our Bible verse for today: “Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and reaching forward to what is ahead, I pursue as my goal the prize promised by God’s heavenly call in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 3:13-14 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Are you perfect yet?   I’m old enough to remember when the microwave oven first started to become widely available to the average household. It was an amazing thing to see food cooked in minutes when it used to take an hour or more in a conventional oven. I’m also old enough to remember the comedian Joan Rivers and her sketch about microwave ovens and impatient people. In the skit Joan stood in front of a microwave as it was cooking something. She was obviously impatient, tapping her foot and drumming her fingers on the counter. Finally, in great frustration and agitation she peers through the little window on the front of that microwave and yells, “HURRY UP!”   We Christians get like that when it comes to our own spiritual maturity. We get frustrated with ourselves and believe we should be further along in our growth than we are. I mentioned in a previous devotional that we often tend to be our own worst critics and our own worst enemies. In yesterday’s devotional I noted that sometimes the loudest and most critical voice in our head is our own voice. It’s us. Never mind the demons whispering the lies of Satan. Sometimes we do more damage to ourselves than they could ever do to us. That then causes us to have a poor self-image. Our perceived shortcomings cause us stress, anxiety and despair.   In Philippians 3:13-14 Paul was describing the process of his own spiritual growth. His entire life consisted of a slow, steady, progressive process of transformation from the man he once was, into the man God intended for him to be. It was a lifelong process that would only be completed when he finally arrived in heaven.   The theological term for that is “sanctification”. It’s the process of being transformed more and more into the likeness of Christ. But it is a process and it is lifelong. Therefore, we need to give ourselves a break. You aren’t going to become perfect overnight. You can’t stand in front of the spiritual microwave and yell, “HURRY UP!”   It is true there are things you can do that can cause the process to move along faster than it otherwise would have. That’s a function of how serious you are as a disciple of Christ and how much time you dedicate to placing yourself in a position before God whereby the Holy Spirit can mold and shape you, transforming you from the person you were, into the person God wants you to be. You can influence the speed with which that happens, but it is still a lifelong process.   Are you perfect yet? No, no you aren’t. Neither am I, and we won’t be this side of heaven. So, give yourself a break. Stop being so critical of yourself. Do your part as a good disciple of Jesus and then relax and let the Holy Spirit do his part – in His way and in His time.   God bless, Pastor Jim

Copyright © 2022 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved.

Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “The end of anxiety and despair”   Our Bible verse for today: “Finally brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable – if there is any moral excellence and if there is anything praiseworthy – dwell on these things.” Philippians 4:8 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “No nattering nabobs of negativism, please”   The term “Nabob” has been around for hundreds of years. It goes back at least to the early 1600s in England. It was derisively used to describe businessmen and adventurers who went off to colonial India, made fortunes, and then came home to England to live leisurely lives of wealth and affluence, but they were snooty about it. They were way too impressed with themselves and they were arrogant. Therefore, they were called “nabobs” and they were lampooned and laughed at.   In more modern times, the term was used by presidential speech-writer William Safire in a 1970 speech for Vice-President Spiro Agnew. Agnew applied it to news reporters who he felt were unfairly dogging the Nixon administration. He called them “nattering nabobs of negativism”.   We all have to contend with our own nattering nabobs of negativism. They come in two varieties – physical and spiritual – people and demons. On the demonic side, they’re the voices in your head that whisper and shout the lies of Satan. (Also, often, the voices are of our own making. It’s not Satan, it’s us. We’re being tormented by our own voice. Either way, it’s a nattering nabob of negativism and it is harmful).   The other variety of nattering negativism comes from other people. They’re the nitpickers and fault-finders. They’re present in politics, the news media, the workplace, and in neighborhoods. Our world is filled with them. In the Christian world they’re the ones who seem to think fault-finding is a spiritual gift and that they’ve been appointed by God to go into all the world and find fault in the lives of others. They too are nattering nabobs of negativism and they can be annoying, or even harmful.   What to do with them? Well, refuse to put up with them – in your head and in your life. Shut them up and shut them out. For the voices in your head, Paul gives us the answer in Philippians 4:8 – intentionally flood your mind with lots of good positive influences. And for the actual people, David addressed that in yesterday’s devotional in Psalm 122:1 – choose to be with people who are uplifting and positive rather than negative and fault-finding.   Nattering nabobs of negativism are a common source of anxiety and despair in our lives. If you have one in your life, perhaps at work, or even worse, in your church, try to help them see the problems and damage they are causing with their nitpicking, fault-finding, and negativism. If they won’t stop, then distance yourself from them if you can. You don’t need that in your life.     I urge you not to be a nattering nabob of negativism, and I also encourage you not to put up with them either. Life is hard enough without harping negative people making it even harder.   God bless, Pastor Jim

Copyright © 2022 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved.

Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “The end of anxiety and despair”   Our Bible verse for today: “I rejoiced with those who said to me, ‘Let us go to the house of the Lord.” Psalm 122:1 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “It’s the worst thing you can do”   Being alone when you’re struggling with anxiety and despair is the worst thing you can do. When you’re alone the voices in your head have unrestrained access to your thoughts. And if your voices are like my voices, they’re loud, obnoxious, demanding, and wrong.   So, how do you shut them off? You know as well as I do that they will not easily sit down and shut up just because you tell them to. No, something else or someone else has to shut them up and sit them down. You have to fill your mind with other, more positive voices. Prayer, Bible reading, Christian music, a good Christian book, are all wonderful resources and can be very helpful at such times.   But often we need something more. We need to replace the negative with some positive, and we need some help to do it. Immersing yourself in an uplifting, encouraging, spiritually nurturing crowd of people will expose you to lots of good positive influences, and it will crowd out the chattering demons of negativity that have been filling your head and stealing your joy.   In Psalm 122:1 King David paints a picture of a band of brothers and sisters filled with eager and joyful anticipation as they make their way to the gathering of God’s people. They’re looking forward to being immersed in and surrounded by lots of brothers and sisters worshiping God, encouraging each other, and enjoying one another’s company. That’s what it’s like to be with God’s people, and we all need a lot more of it.   Life is hard. Sometimes it’s harder than at other times. And at such times, we need to fill our lives and our heads with as much good stuff as we can. Being alone is the worst thing you can do. You’re giving the demons of negativity unrestricted access to your mind.   Here’s the invitation I extend to you today, “Let us go to the house of the Lord.” Today (Saturday October 22nd) the people of Oak Hill Baptist will be gathered at 3:00 for what we’re calling a Fall Bash. It will be like a Fall Harvest Festival. It will be a time of fellowship and fun. There will be hamburgers and hotdogs, sides and desserts, corn hole, basketball, a cake walk, a candy give-away, and lots more. It will be lively and it will be fun. We would love to have you join us.   Being alone is often the worst thing we can do.   God bless, Pastor Jim

Copyright © 2022 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved.

Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “The end of anxiety and despair”   Our Bible verse for today: “You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.” Isaiah 26:3 (NKJV)   Our thought for today: “Too much of one and not enough of the other”   The church is a gift from God. The fellowship of believers was God’s idea. He created the concept of local churches so that you and I would have a small group of brothers and sisters in Christ to lift us up, to encourage us, and to help us stay focused on God.   One of the most important aspects of church life are the times the church gathers for worship, study, and fellowship. That typically happens on Sundays and Wednesdays, and there’s a good reason the writer of the letter to the Hebrews cautions us not to miss those times (Hebrews 10:24-25). We derive many benefits and blessings from being with our brothers and sisters, but one thing in particular that those times accomplish is they help us to reorient our focus to God.   The fact is that life is busy and it’s filled with responsibilities, pressures, expectations and distractions. Coming together with the church for worship, study, and fellowship helps us to refocus. Isaiah reminds us in 26:3 that when our mind is on God, we get to experience the peace of God. So, it stands to reason that the more focused we stay on God the more of the peace of God we will experience. Anxiety and despair come from too much focus on worldly concerns and not enough focus on God. We have too much of one and not enough of “The Other”.   Gathering with the church shifts our attention back to God, where it belongs. Then, if we take our reoriented focus with us back out into life, we discover that life becomes less pressured. Not only that but when we are less pressured, less anxious, less despairing, we will actually accomplish more and we will do it better because we aren’t wasting our emotional energy on useless anxiety.   “You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is stayed on you …” Peace is the gift that God bestows upon those who keep their minds focused on Him. The gatherings of your church family are designed to help you accomplish exactly that. We all need that time of refocusing and refreshing, and we need it as often as we can get it. I encourage you to gather with the church this Sunday. You need it. We all give too much attention to the world and not enough attention to God. Church gatherings help to restore a better balance.   God bless, Pastor Jim

Copyright © 2022 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved.

Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “The end of anxiety and despair”   Our Bible verse for today: “I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore I have continued to extend faithful love to you.” Jeremiah 31:3 (CSB) Our thought for today: “You are one of God’s favorites”   I love the easy and relaxed atmosphere we have at Oak Hill Baptist Church. We’re a small, multi-generational family church on the edge of town. Go much further past us and you’re into farm land, rural settings, and a wildlife reserve. We’re more country than not. We’re also very comfortable with each other, and that often leads to a lot of joking, kidding, and lighthearted banter.   I remember one such occasion when a few friends were playfully teasing each other and one of the ladies looked at the others and with a little grin and a twinkle in her eye she said, “You’d better be careful. I’m one of God’s favorites.” Then she chuckled and so did everyone else.   But it’s true. She is one of God’s favorites – and she knows it. Not only does God love her (as we discussed yesterday), but He also likes her. And that’s true of you, me, and every other person who belongs to Him as well. Listen to the heart of the Father in Jeremiah 31:3, “I have loved you with an everlasting love.” Those words were spoken first and specifically about the nation of Israel, but I believe they express the Father’s heart towards all of His children. In fact, in my Bible the superscript above the passage reads, “God’s relationship with His people”. “His people” were the Jews back then but it also includes you and I today. God loves you with an everlasting love.   The Apostle John captured this truth in 1 John 3:1 where he reminds us, “See what great love the Father has given us that we should be called God’s children – and we are!” The Apostle Paul stressed the Father/child intimacy of this relationship when he wrote in Romans 8:15, “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!” “Abba” means “Daddy”. It’s a term of endearment and comfortable intimacy between a father and a child. This understanding is so important to God that He had Paul remind us of it again in Galatians 4:6, “And because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba,” Father!   My friend, you need to know that you are one of God’s favorites. You make Him smile. You warm His heart, and that should make you feel pretty good about yourself. You are very special to God. You’re one of His favorites. I hope you find rest and peace in that great truth today.   God bless, Pastor Jim

Copyright © 2022 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved.