Author: janicevance

I love this time of year – Spring is here!  It is a season of renewal, with nature coming back to life after months of barrenness.  This change is a reminder of God’s wisdom and creativity.  In His wisdom, He established seasonal cycles as recurring reminders of His presence and power (Romans 1:19-20).  The beauty of new blooms should not only inspire awe, but also lead us to acknowledge the Creator who made it all.

Our lives also experience seasons.  Some are filled with joy, while others are challenging and test our faith.  Observing nature’s cycles reminds us that we sometimes need spiritual renewal.  Just as winter can leave the landscape bare, life’s trials can leave their marks on us.  We need God’s word to guide us through these challenges and root us firmly in His goodness (Psalm 1:3).

The tree described in Psalm 1 is planted by rivers of water (Psalm 1:3).  Let’s ensure we stay close to our source of spiritual nourishment, renewing our commitment to daily Bible study.  Imagine examining your own annual growth ring, like those of a tree.  What would this year’s ring show – a season of growth or a season of drought?  We have control over our spiritual growth, so let’s commit to being in the word daily.

Our brothers and sisters may be experiencing different seasons.  Some may be sad while others are happy.  If you’re in a joyful season, use your energy to encourage Christian brothers and sisters who may be in a different season.  If you’re in a difficult season, rely on the support God provides through the church.  Reach out to others to strengthen connections, helping each other in daily life.  By doing so, you aren’t burdening others – you are blessing them by giving the church an opportunity to demonstrate its faith in God, even in difficult times (2 Corinthians 12:9-10).

Through all seasons, God remains in control.  In both bright days and dark nights, He is our Maker, Redeemer, Protector, and Father.  Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego in Daniel 3:16-18 exemplified this faith when they faced the fiery furnace.  They did not doubt God’s ability to deliver them, but resolutely stated that even if He chose not to deliver them, they would still serve Him instead of Nebuchadnezzar’s gods.  Similarly, we may face hardships, but God is always God, and our commitment to Him should not depend on circumstances.

If you need spiritual renewal, look to nature’s cues from God.  Embrace this time with joy and refresh your commitment to studying His word, connecting with fellow Christians, seeking opportunities to serve others, and remaining steadfast in your commitment to Him.  Remember, “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning” (Lamentations 3:22-23).

by Chris Elrod

Wednesday night was a special night as we witnessed Denine Jackson become a new creature in Christ Jesus.  As I turned the corner to go greet our new sister, I looked up and saw a group of teens surrounding her, welcoming her into the family of God.  I snapped a picture to capture this heartwarming moment.  I had never seen so many teens greet an adult after they were baptized.  It was such a humbling moment.

In class, I got everyone’s attention by singing, “Create in Me” a beautiful, short song based on Psalm 51.  As the teens began to sing with me, I was blown away by how beautifully they were singing out to the Lord.  It sounded amazing.  Before diving into 1 Kings 18 where we studied Elijah challenging and defeating the prophets of Baal, we sang, “Thank You, Lord.”  We sing this every time someone is baptized.  Once again the teens lifted up their voices in worship to the Lord, loudly and proudly. 

Some of the challenges in youth ministry include how you measure success.  Sure we can look at attendance numbers, count the number of baptisms and responses, or recognize how many our group invites, but how do you measure spiritual growth?  Perhaps, it’s in observing these moments from Wednesday night where we saw our teens sing boldly and greet not one of their classmates who was baptized into Christ, but an adult, many had probably not met before.

Seeing our teens greet sister Denine demonstrates that they understand the significance of what they witnessed.  They understand they were witnessing the powerful working of God, as God raised Denine from spiritual death to life (Colossians 2:12).  Our teens understand the value of a soul, a value set in the life and death of Jesus Christ.  As the teens poured out their hearts to God in song, they demonstrated a desire to give to God what He alone deserves, our praise!  What if these were metrics we used to evaluate ourselves?  Do we rejoice when someone is baptized?  Do we sing out in worship?  If not, start today. 

God is at work in our teens, both to will and to work for His good pleasure (Philippians 2:13).  Certainly, He will bring His work to completion (Philippians 1:6)!  And certainly the same is true for us older Christians as well. 

Parents, thank you for the spiritual work you do with your children!  Your influence is immeasurable, keep up the good work.  Church family, thank you for continuously supporting our teens!  Your support is invaluable!  Keep up the good work!  And may our God and Father in heaven continue to mature these young saints, in Christ Jesus.

by Justin Morton

We are just a few weeks away from our annual Gospel meeting.  In the past, our meeting has taken place in July, but this year we decided to try something a little different by moving it to the spring.  So if you haven’t already done so, please mark your calendars for April 11th-13th and plan to join us for five great lessons from God’s Word.  Brother Gary Hampton will be with us and present a series of lessons on the Providence of God.  Brother Gary is a great scholar of God’s Word and an excellent communicator.  You will be blessed by this series of lessons.

What a great opportunity our Gospel Meeting provides for inviting some of our friends and neighbors to join us.  We’ve got fliers printed in the lobbies for you to take to work or to share with a neighbor.  While we don’t need a special reason to invite someone to learn more about the Good News of Jesus, sometimes having a specific event makes the invitation easier.  Why not reach out to those around you and see if they would like to join you as we study this interesting topic of God’s Providence.

In the Gospel of John we see Andrew issue his own invitation.  After spending some time with Jesus and realizing who He is, Andrew goes and finds his brother and tells him, “We have found the Messiah (which means Christ).  He brought him to Jesus” (John 1:41-42).  Andrew had learned enough about Jesus that he wanted to share this discovery with his brother, so he went and brought him to Jesus.  Here’s what’s interesting about this: the brother he brought to Jesus was Peter, one of the great leaders of the early church.

Inviting someone to hear the Gospel of Jesus may not seem like that big of a deal.  You might think, it’s just a Gospel meeting.  However, you never know what a simple invitation will do.  Someone you invite might have his or her life transformed by the Good News of Jesus Christ and could go on to do great things in service to God.

by Justin Morton

Have you ever gone somewhere, maybe like a restaurant for dinner, and when you got there, you found a large crowd of people waiting for the same thing?  What did you do at that moment?  Some of you may have put your name on the waiting list and stayed.  Others may have asked to see what everyone in your group wanted to do.  However, many of us, probably had the exact same reaction—when we saw the crowd of people waiting to get in, we turned around and went somewhere else for dinner.  We did not want to deal with the crowd.

Zacchaeus, a wee little man, who also happened to be a tax collector, had his life forever changed one day because he was not willing to allow a crowd and all the distractions that probably came with it, to keep him from seeing Jesus (Luke 19:1-10).  The easy thing for Zacchaeus to do would have been to turn around and go home.  Why fight the crowd?  He wouldn’t be able to see Jesus anyway.  Not to mention that when people saw it was Zacchaeus trying to push through the masses, they may not have treated him very kindly.

Can you picture Zacchaeus struggling to get through the large crowd, facing elbows and perhaps insults because of his reputation as a tax collector?  Despite the multitude and potential hostility he might have faced, Zacchaeus didn’t give up in his pursuit of seeing Jesus.  Instead, he ran ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree, refusing to let the crowd keep him away.

Too often we allow others to distract us from getting to Jesus.  We might think if others are not following Jesus, why should we follow Him?  We sometimes allow ourselves to become so concerned with what other people might think about us following Jesus, that we decide it’s not worth facing the crowd.  Zacchaeus sets a great example for us today.  Let’s learn from Zacchaeus and not allow the crowd to keep us from Jesus.

That day Zacchaeus could have been easily discouraged and quit.  After all, getting close to Jesus was difficult.  Instead of turning away, he ran ahead of the crowd, and Jesus found him and went home with Zacchaeus.  Although we do not know what was said during their time together, Zacchaeus proved to be a changed man after meeting Jesus that day (Luke 19:8).

Perhaps it is time you and I stop allowing the crowd to keep us from following Jesus.  If we will come to Jesus and not allow ourselves to be distracted by the crowd, we will have an encounter with Jesus that will change our lives.  Zacchaeus met Jesus with an open heart and look what happened to him.  What might Jesus be able to do in our own lives if we allow ourselves to move beyond the crowd?

On a recent visit to the Cracker Barrel, I noticed one of their decorations had these words “Kind words are like Honey sweet to the soul.”  Just reading this put a smile on my face.  I believe this is taken from Proverbs 16:24.  The New King James Version reads this way, “Pleasant words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the bones.”  There are many scriptures that teach us to be kind or to use kind words.  It is always encouraging when someone says something kind to us.  It brightens our day, puts a smile on our faces and encourages us to be more kind to others.  I appreciate people who seem to always be looking for opportunities to say something or to be kind to others.

Why do we not speak kind words to others more often?  I would guess it is because we get too caught up in our busy day to day activities to slow down and offer words of kindness to others.  Sometimes we find ourselves in circumstances where it is difficult to say kind words.  In these situations, we would do well to remember the famous line from the movie Bambi where Thumper says, “If you can’t say something nice, don’t say nothing at all.”  We can also find ourselves in situations, where we can change a conversation that may be negative towards another person by finding kind words to say about them.  It has been said that kindness has a ripple effect.  If we are kind to others, it encourages them to pass on the kindness.  A few years ago, some people started paying for the food the person behind them had ordered in the drive through line at fast-food restaurants.  The sentiment was to keep this random act of kindness going, encouraging that person to do the same for the next in line.

Matthew 7:12 often referred to as the “Golden Rule” says “Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.”  We take this to mean that if we want others to treat us with kindness, we should be kind to them whether in words or actions.  Paul in his letter to the Ephesians tells us of the greatest kindness ever shown to mankind.  Ephesians 2:4-7 says “But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.”

Let us all be kind to others this week.

by Justin Morton

What do Benedict Arnold, Tiger Woods, Jephthah, Judas, Thomas and Peter all have in common?  Each of these men are remembered for one BIG mistake.  Benedict Arnold had a successful military career but is remembered for his treason.  Tiger Woods is one of the greatest golfers to ever play but is remembered for his repeated acts of adultery.  Jephthah was a great leader in Israel who is mentioned in the Hall of Faith in the book of Hebrews, but he is remembered for the tragic vow he made before God.  Judas was an apostle of Jesus who carried the disciples’ money bag but is remembered for his kiss of betrayal.  History tells us that Thomas went outside the Roman empire and helped convert thousands to Christ but is remembered for his doubting the resurrection.  Peter preached the first Gospel sermon but is remembered for his denial of Jesus.

Despite the fact that each of these men had more successes than failures, they are remembered for one BIG mistake.  People seem to forget all the good they did, and remember only their brief moments of weakness.  What if, no matter how much good we do, others only remember our failures and moments of weaknesses?  What if, after we have passed from this life, all people can say about us centers around our mistakes?

Let’s be careful to live our lives in such a God-honoring way that when others go to speak evil of us, they have nothing to say because we are remembered for the good we did and not for the mistakes we made along the way.  This does not mean we will be perfect and never mess up; it just means the God-honoring life we are striving to live will outweigh our mistakes and failures in the eyes of others.

“For we aim at what is honorable not only in the Lord’s sight but also in the sight of man.” (2 Corinthians 8:21)

“That you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world.”  (Philippians 2:15)