We don’t have a lot of information about heaven and what it’s going to be like. Our earth offers a small taste of what glory will be in all the blessings that God gives us here. We live in a fallen world where sin has sway. Yet, when we go to the Niagara Falls we are captivated by the power. Standing at the edge of the Grand Canyon, the grandeur takes away our breath. If you have ever had the opportunity to sit on a beach in Hawaii, the ocean, sky, sand, and palm trees makes us think of paradise. Charles Allen has a story in his book Home Fires. It goes, “A little girl was taking an evening walk with her father. Wonderingly, she looked up at the stars and exclaimed; “Oh, Daddy, if the wrong side of heaven is so beautiful, what must the right side be!” I really like that. God has promised us a world where the streets are made of gold and that he has prepared a mansion for us. The wrong side of heaven is beautiful, but heaven must spectacular.
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by tfisk on February 19, 2012
We all have priorities in our lives. Some things are more important than others. We could all easily list them off the top of our heads. Many of us would have Christ at the top of that list. I wonder, “Do I have Christ there because that is truly where he is in my list of priorities, or is he there because I know that is the theologically correct answer?”
The warning of Christ to Laodicea haunts me. He said, “So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth.” (Revelation 3:16). Let’s truly make Christ first in our lives. C.S. Lewis said, “Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and, if true, of infinite importance. The one thing it cannot be is moderately important.”
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What does it mean to give your all when duty calls? I came across this account about Sergeant First Class Paul R. Smith that I think sums it up.
During Operation Iraqi Freedom, on April 4, 2003, near the Baghdad airport, Smith’s unit was attacked by a sizable enemy force. Realizing the threat against them, Smith, even as the unit’s leader, personally entered the fight, organizing the evacuation of his wounded men and putting himself in harm’s way as he fired a damaged vehicle’s guns from an exposed and dangerous position against the oncoming enemy. Smith’s bravery helped repel the attack and allowed for the safe withdrawal of many wounded soldiers, and there was only one casualty from his platoon that day - himself. For his bravery, Smith was posthumously awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor.
Beloved, even unto death, Christ calls His followers to give their all to Him. The standard is high, but by His grace we can day by day move toward the goal of what is assured us. He says to the heirs of the kingdom, “You shall be perfect, as your Father in heaven is perfect” (Matt. 5:48). Onward, Christian soldiers!
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Due to PK’s continuing recovery, there will be no Wednesday evening service. Let’s keep our pastor in prayer!
There will be no AWANA activities on Friday, January 27th. Activities will resume on Friday, February 3rd.
There is a story of Albert Einstein on a train. Everyone is his car recognized him and knew who he was. Prior to the train leaving the station, the conductor made his routine inspection to ensure that each passenger had their tickets. The conductor noticed Einstein fumbling through his things, in his pockets, and papers. When the conductor reached him, Einstein admitted that he had lost his ticket and could not remember his stop! “That’s no problem Mr.Einstein,” the conductor replied, “we know who you are.” Einstein responded, “I know who I am too, but I do not know where I am going!”
Have you forgot where you’re going? God has a plan and purpose for us, a direction to go. When we allow God to direct us, no one can close a door on us or cause us to go through the wrong door. God will lead us!
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Someone once said, “People do not drift toward holiness. Apart from grace-driven effort, people do not gravitate toward godliness, prayer, obedience to Scripture, faith, and delight in the Lord.
We drift toward compromise and call it tolerance; we drift toward disobedience and call it freedom; we drift toward superstition and call it faith. We cherish the indiscipline of lost self-control and call it relaxation; we slouch toward prayerlessness and delude ourselves into thinking we have escaped legalism; we slide toward godlessness and convince ourselves we have been liberated.”
The tendency to drift is overcome through a passion for Christ and life in the Spirit. It’s time to “strengthen the things that remain”(Revelation 3:2)
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If you were asked to define prayer, what would you say? Prayer is communication with God. Many might say that it is presenting our shopping list to Him, but it is really communication with God. There can be many aspects to this - adoration, confession, thanksgiving and supplication to name a few.
It is a healthy part of our relationship with God to verbally express our heart to our Savior. We talk to Him, and He talks back to us through His Word, and through His Spirit. We have in the Psalms 150 prayers, as it were. We see real life in the Psalms - some things we like and some things that may be troubling. Thanks be to God for giving us the hope and encouragement of this true to life book.
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