He Is Truly A God Of Compassion

In Psalm 86:15 it says "But You, O Lord, are a God full of compassion, and gracious, longsuffering and abundant in mercy and truth." Our God is overflowing with compassion. The dictionary says that compassion means to display a deep feeling of sympathy and sorrow towards another who has experienced misfortune and to desire to comfort one in suffering. That is exactly how our Lord shows compassion to us. Christ reveals to us an unconditional love and shows mercy without hesitation. He has a rich and deep compassion for each of us and pours it out on us in our time of need.

God has called each of us to be a people that walk in compassion. Not only has He called us to feel that compassion for others, but to have that courage to take action in helping those people in need of that. Christ works through us. We are to be His hands and feet. As we sit at the feet of Jesus and feed upon His word and allow His Spirit to fill us, we can walk in His spirit and flow in God's compassion. We can reach out to others and comfort those in need of compassion.

We all at some point in our life need God's compassion. I encourage and exhort each of you to to desire to allow God's compassion to flow out of you as you call onto God to be a person who walks in God's compassion. You can then comfort others as He has comforted you. That is what the body of Christ is about.

Blessings,

Written by Sandy

John 10; 6-18

This parable spake Jesus unto them: but they understood not what things they were which he spake unto them. Then said Jesus unto them again, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep. All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them.  I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture. The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep. But he that is an hireling, and not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf coming, and leaveth the sheep, and fleeth: and the wolf catcheth them, and scattereth the sheep. The hireling fleeth, because he is an hireling, and careth not for the sheep. I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine.  As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep. And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd. Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father.

John 10; 6-18

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Many who hear the word of Christ, do not understand it, because they will not. But we shall find one scripture expounding another, and the blessed Spirit making known the blessed Jesus. Christ is the Door. And what greater security has the church of God than that the Lord Jesus is between it and all its enemies? He is a door open for passage and communication. Here are plain directions how to come into the fold; we must come in by Jesus Christ as the Door. By faith in him as the great Mediator between God and man. Also, we have precious promises to those that observe this direction. Christ has all that care of his church, and every believer, which a good shepherd has of his flock; and he expects the church, and every believer, to wait on him, and to keep in his pasture.

Christ is a good Shepherd; many who were not thieves, yet were careless in their duty, and by their neglect the flock was much hurt. Bad principles are the root of bad practices. The Lord Jesus knows whom he has chosen, and is sure of them; they also know whom they have trusted, and are sure of Him. See here the grace of Christ; since none could demand his life of him, he laid it down of himself for our redemption. He offered himself to be the Saviour; Lo, I come. And the necessity of our case calling for it, he offered himself for the Sacrifice. He was both the offerer and the offering, so that his laying down his life was his offering up himself. From hence it is plain, that he died in the place and stead of men; to obtain their being set free from the punishment of sin, to obtain the pardon of their sin; and that his death should obtain that pardon. Our Lord laid not his life down for his doctrine, but for his sheep.

submitted by Annie

ONLY WHAT'S DONE FOR CHRIST WILL LAST

Monday, December 13, 2010 Devotional

I happened to peek out the living room window yesterday at about 5:00 P.M. What I saw in the sky drew me out into the front yard. A magnificent sunset displayed itself in the firmament above me. Layers and layers of thick clouds stretched out in long rows. They were lit up in a golden pink hue which seemed to grow more brilliant as I gazed upon this wonder. The sky provided a crisp blue backdrop and peered through the rows of clouds.

As I stood in awe of God's magnificent handiwork, scriptures welled up from within my soul. "For the Lord Himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the call of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God." 1 Thessalonians 4:16 (NLT) "Look! He comes with the clouds of heaven. And everyone will see Him - even those who pierced Him." Revelation 1:7 (NLT) "Yes, dear friends, we are already God's children, and we can't even imagine what we will be like when Christ returns. But we do know that when he comes we will be like Him, for we will see Him as He really is. And all who believe this will keep themselves pure, just as Christ is pure." 1 John 3:2-3 (NLT)

Anxious thoughts of external preparations for the holiday season suddenly fell into perspective. I thanked the Lord for sharing His glorious sunset with me that day, and whispered a prayer. "Please show me what you would have me do in readiness for this Christmas celebration. Help me to see what is important to you and those things which would simply deplete my time, energy, and resources. Let me heed the admonition of the UNKNOWN AUTHOR who wrote":

"Two little lines I heard one day,
Traveling along life's busy way;
Bringing conviction to my heart,
And from my mind would not depart;
Only one life, 'twill soon be past,
Only what's done for Christ will last."

Written by C.F.

LESSONS AND CAROLS

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. Colossians 3:16-17

In this reading, according to my study Bible, "psalms" refers to the old testament psalms, some of which may have been set to music; "hymns" are songs of praise used in a celebration; and "songs" told of and praised God's acts. These all were used to share what the church taught.

Our church choir had it's cantata of lessons and carols this weekend. It was over half an hour of readings from the Bible alternating with Christmas carols played on the organ, sung by the choir and joined by the congregation at key points throughout. It began with the story of creation, through the prophecies of the Christ to the fulfillment of Savior's birth. It is amazing how prophets long before the time of Christ were already telling of his coming to earth to be the Prince of Peace and Savior for all. What an awesome message they were sharing!

As we sing Christmas Carols this season, may we be ever mindful of the words so that we can sing them with greater meaning, with the emotion meant by the authors, so that all who hear them may be brought closer to God and know the story of the Savior. "Do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus." We may not know what the hearers are thinking or how much they comprehend, but we can pray that a seed of faith may be planted in some hearts, and that others have their seed of faith nurtured through the carols they hear.

Here is an outline of what our cantata included; perhaps you can use part of it during some of your Christmas gatherings, if you know them:

O Come, O Come, Emmanuel
Once in Royal David's City
a bidding prayer
The Holly and the Ivy
Fairest Lord Jesus
Reading: Genesis 3:8-15
The Sans Day Carol
Angels We Have Heard on High
Reading: Genesis 22:15-18
Angels From the Realms of Glory
For Unto Us a Son Is Born
Reading: Isaiah 9:2, 6
See Amid the Winter's Snow
Lo, How a Rose E'er Blooming
Break Forth, O Beauteous Heavenly Light
Reading: Isaiah 11:1-3a, 4a, 6
Hark! The Herald Angels Sing
The Angel Gabriel From Heaven Came
Reading: Luke 1:26-35, 38
Good People All, This Christmastime
What Child Is This
O Little Town of Bethlehem
I Saw Three Ships
Reading: Luke 2:1, 3-7
Joseph Dearest, Joseph Mine
Good Christians All, Rejoice!
Sheep May Safely Graze
Reading: Luke 2:8-16
Sing We Now of Christmas
The First Noel
What Star Is This, with Beams So Bright
Reading: John 1:1-14
O Come, All Ye Faithful
Silent Night, Holy Night
Joy to the World

(from A Ceremony of Lessons and Carols, by Anna Laura Page and Jean Anne Shafferman)

Blessings to one and all,

Written by Jan Andersen

Favorite Things of the Christmas Season

Crayon colored wish lists, and peppermint candy twists

New winter fashions, and cinnamon apple crisps

Children preparing to sing “We Three Kings”

These are a few of my favorite things

White paper snowflakes, gazillion fruit pies to make

Keeping the secret of Santa from neighbor Jake

Popcorn and fruit loops are hung on a string

These are a few of my favorite things

Red and green paper chain, sound of a stormy rain

Steamy hot cocoa and bubbly white champagne

Toast our flute glasses, they click a ring

These are a few of my favorite things

Jimmy Stewart

Julie Andrews

Chevy Chase with some blonde

Enjoying a few of my favorite things

Is like waving a magic wand!

Tree with a side that’s flat, dog with a Santa hat

Santa brought baseballs and shiny new bats

Mom gets a stocking that’s full of new bling

These are a few of my favorite things

Grandpa’s old choo choo and sweet Cindy Lu Who

Shaking the presents to find a good clue

Searching the attic for white angel wings

These are a few of my favorite things

Warm Toll House cookies, ivory nativities

Getting together for presents at GG’s

Bundling up to go caroling

These are a few of my favorite things

Bing Crosby

Tim Allen

Will Ferrel in tights

Listing a few of my favorite things

Could take up the rest of the night!

Tinsel filled holes and cinnamon rolls

Charlie Brown Christmas

And the one the Grinch stole

Sneaking around to fill the stockings

These are a few of my favorite things

Deacon Dave’s Christmas lights

Butterball cooked just right

Getting the children tucked in for the night

Dreaming about what Santa will bring

These are a few of my favorite things

The birth of our Lord and how He’s adored

Insisting the reason is never ignored

Let’s not forget, He’s the King of all kings

These are a few of my favorite things

                   Oh Tannenbaum

                                   Oh Holy Night

                                          What Child is this?

                                                       I could not be singing of favorite things

                                                                  If it weren’t for the birth of Jesus!

  Written by Amie Spruiell

Rain, Tears

Devotional for 12/10/10

“For the soil which has drunk the rain that repeatedly falls upon it
 and produces vegetation useful to those for whose benefit it
is cultivated partakes of a blessing from God”

Hebrews 6:7

(amplified bible)

Rain, tears...
a gentle cleansing.
Renewed, refreshed
in the washing of Your Spirit.
Gently scrubbing,
rinsing away...
Revealing the beauty that You've placed there.


Strength, safety, shelter
in Your Trustworthy Hands...
Knowing where to wash
till I'm all shiny and clean.
The joy you must feel
to see Your reflection in me.


Thank You Lord.






I am reminded today that we must allow the Lord to gently wash those places that are inside of us. They may be places of sin, or places of pain. I don’t think that what they are is as important as what they do. If they are allowed to remain inside of our hearts and spirits, they become places that hinder us.



When we allow the Lord to have access to these places, we begin to see and understand how deep His love is for us. We begin to realize that His purpose in our lives is to bring healing, and wholeness. We begin to see and feel that there is hope. As we allow Him to gently “wash” us, we begin to become familiar with His touch and we come to realize that we can trust Him.



“Lord, I can’t even begin to say that I understand all of the wonderful ways that you work in our lives. But what I can say is that I know you do. I want to thank you today for being a personal God. I remember the days when I was afraid to come to you, and how you gently You began to draw me. I remember how I began to trust You, with more and more of myself. I thank you that who I am today is all because of You. I thank you Lord, for all that You have done, and all that You will continue to do. I pray that You will have Your way in all of our lives, today and always. Amen”



Written by Beverley A Napier

What about Money?

Have you ever faced a Christmas without money? “Hah!” You say, “How about every month?” Right you are! What about every month? When money is so tight it squeaks, or so non-existent you can’t sleep at night, what do you do?

Do you reluctantly take out that credit card “Just to get by”? Do you borrow money, confident that next month there will be enough to pay them back? Do you pretend that there is enough to ‘go around’? So you keep going around: to the grocery store, the shoe store, the gas station, the pizza store. Do you delay paying a bill, hoping the next paycheck will miraculously have enough money for everything?

This is not the first Christmas, not even the first year that Americans have faced life with little or no money. What did they do? How did they do it? I want to know.


I remember being annoyed with my grandmother for reusing and saving everything. When I scoffed and complained about how she made me clean and save everything, too, my parents explained that she was a child during the depression of the 30’s. But surely families did more than reuse foil and save containers. So I did a little research via the internet.


First, I have to say I was impressed with some of the well-organized websites and interesting photos that have been posted. I am so appreciative of people who take the time and make the effort to put information on the web. Here’s a little bit of what I discovered about family life and getting by.


Many who had a mortgage lost whatever they had a mortgage on. Family farms that had been handed down for generations - lost. People from all walks of life found themselves walking; working long hours for miniscule pay; and wearing clothes until they could be patched and repaired no more. People ate what they had; they made do with far less than I can even imagine for myself or my child.


Some would take in boarders, housing and feeding them, in an attempt to hold onto their homes. Men were the original migrant workers. They would leave their wife and children for months to go in search of work, hopefully to return with money for their loved ones. I can’t imagine my husband doing that; but then I’ve never seen him that desperate for any work at all. It was happening to almost everybody and people helped each other. People traded and kept a garden, anything to provide the minimum for their families.


I think that’s probably a key point. They would sacrifice every nonessential, including their own dreams and desires, just to provide the bare necessities for their family. I ask myself, what are the bare necessities? A roof over our heads, heat and water, food and clothing and a vehicle are the basics that come to mind. But what about phone service, internet, cable, doctors, dentists and pizza? We might all agree on what the bare essentials include, but the difference is what each of us considers as the minimum. If I can afford my minimum, like ordering take out for dinner, then I’m good to go. If I cannot, I have some choices to make.


Perhaps it’s the thought that everyone else is doing better than me. Thinking no one else holds their breath when they open a bill only makes me feel hopeless and alone. Here is what I know, many of the people around me living in beautiful homes, driving nice cars, wearing nice clothes, are struggling to achieve their minimum. People are renting out rooms, taking second (and third) jobs, changing the way they live just to find a way to make it through. In essence, we are in the same storm, just different boats.


So, what is our anchor in times of trouble? Is there any reason to hope that things will get better? Is there anything or anyone we can trust to keep us safe in these times of uncertainty? Only the Word of God is reliable and unchanging.


Psalm 37:24-25 (NLT)


24 Though they stumble, they will never fall,

for the LORD holds them by the hand.

25 Once I was young, and now I am old.

Yet I have never seen the godly abandoned

or their children begging for bread.


1 John 2:15-17 (AMP)


15Do not love or cherish the world or the things that are in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in him.

16For all that is in the world--the lust of the flesh [craving for sensual gratification] and the lust of the eyes [greedy longings of the mind] and the pride of life [assurance in one's own resources or in the stability of earthly things]--these do not come from the Father but are from the world [itself].

17And the world passes away and disappears, and with it the forbidden cravings (the passionate desires, the lust) of it; but he who does the will of God and carries out His purposes in his life abides (remains) forever.


Hebrews 13:5-7 (AMP)


5Let your character or moral disposition be free from love of money [including greed, avarice, lust, and craving for earthly possessions] and be satisfied with your present [circumstances and with what you have]; for He [God] Himself has said, I will not in any way fail you nor give you up nor leave you without support. [I will] not, [I will] not, [I will] not in any degree leave you helpless nor forsake nor let [you] down (relax My hold on you)! [Assuredly not!]

6So we take comfort and are encouraged and confidently and boldly say, The Lord is my Helper; I will not be seized with alarm [I will not fear or dread or be terrified]. What can man do to me?

7Remember your leaders and superiors in authority [for it was they] who brought to you the Word of God. Observe attentively and consider their manner of living (the outcome of their well-spent lives) and imitate their faith (their conviction that God exists and is the Creator and Ruler of all things, the Provider and Bestower of eternal salvation through Christ, and their leaning of the entire human personality on God in absolute trust and confidence in His power, wisdom, and goodness).

Dear Lord, please help me to keep my eyes on You and remember what the essentials are in this life: to love you, to care for my family, to be content, to love my enemies, and to love others as I love myself. I know I can’t do any of this on my own, please be my strength.  Thank You for watching over me and my loved ones. In Jesus name, amen.

Written by Mary Wilkins