Mary’s Song...Thursday

This Sunday our message was very powerful. It showed us how  Mary accepted the will  of God regardless of the challenges and life interrupting request that was made of her. When she found out that her cousin Elizabeth who had been barren was expecting a child she went to see her and  she said these words to her...

"My soul magnifies the Lord

And my spirit rejoices in God my Savior;

Because He has regarded the lowliness of His handmaid;

For behold, henceforth all generations shall call me blessed;

Because He who is mighty has done 

great things for me, and holy is His name; 

And His mercy is from generation to generation

on those who fear Him.

He has shown might with His arm,

He has scattered the proud in the conceit of their heart.

He has put down the mighty from their thrones,

and has exalted the lowly.

He has filled the hungry with good things,

and the rich He has sent away empty.

He has given help to Israel, his servant, mindful of His mercy

Even as he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham

 and to his posterity forever."

How about you? Does your soul magnify the Lord? We may never be able to approach Him from Mary’s level of sanctity as the Mother of God. Still, we are all called to be saints nonetheless.

Your good example, like our Mary's, can help others in their spiritual growth. Do people see Christ’s love and goodness in you? Are you letting God work within you to accomplish His will? Let Mary help give you the graces you need to follow her Son and His Church in praying the Magnificat.

We are not really aware of the the total ramifIcations of what was required of Mary when she said that she was willing to be the mother of God. If you listen to this song you can see the amazing thing that was required of Mary...the amazing willingness that she showed to be the work of God's hand turning herself into his handmaiden no matter what the personal cost to herself.

Written by 
Corinne Mustafa

"He Is Near To The Broken Hearted"...Wednesday

12/17/14

It gives me great comfort to know that our Lord is near to us when we are broken hearted and experiencing troubles. He will help us in every trouble we ever walk through. He will never abandon us.

Let's take a look at His Promises in Psalms 34:18-19 

"The Lord is near to those
 who have a broken heart, 

And saves such as have a contrite spirit. 

Many are the afflictions of the righteous,
But the Lord delivers him out of them all."

He knew of every hardship and difficulty that we would ever encounter. He has given us great assurance that whatever we endure, that He will deliver us out of everything!

Our Abba Daddy is ever so near to us. He fiercely loves His Children and will never hesitate or pass over us in times of hardships. It is a given that He will reach down and comfort us, give us great peace and bring us up out of our dilemmas in His perfect timing.

We serve a Mighty God that takes the very best of care of His Kids!!

In His Mighty Love,

 Sandy Billingham

Stages of Life...Tuesday

12/16/14

Last night (Monday) our Bible Study group members were involved with a local home for elderly people to have a Christmas party in their home, which is called Quail Gardens. We did it because we wanted to reach out in a personal way to a group. It was amazing to say the least! Since September we have  done two Bible Studies that were written by Priscilla Shirer. The first one was on Gideon, and the second one was on Jonah. In both we learned that God calls on us to do things that we did not think we could do. However, both studies said that, when God calls us we must answer.

The one on Jonah  suggested that we must reach out to others and do something special. For us this was not a difficult task. We took on two tasks for the Christmas holidays. One was to participate in the effort of a woman in our church who has a ministry to the homeless. She provides bags to the homeless filled with things they need to keep clean. The bags include shampoo and other items that are needed. We filled up many bags for her ministry.

The other thing that we did was to reach out to this nursing home and give them a party complete with Christmas presents that we bought that were especially chosen according to their interests and needs.

It was lovely! Usually we have our party as a group and exchange prezzies to each other according to the names we have chosen. This had only a slight twist to it. We chose names, but the prezzies were not for us. Our party this year still happened but it was at this nursing home. The presents were not for us. They were for these amazing elderly residents. The premise that "it is better to give than to receive" stands out loud and clear here. 

I do want to draw some conclusions here about the stages of life. The residents of Quail Gardens include twenty three women and one man. They are at a point in their lives where they have come to various challenging states. All of them need some type of help to live and be safe. Most of them have physical challenges and some of them have mental challenges.  Whatever the reason for their need to live in a place like Quail Gardens, there is a need. What we all saw was that they are in a stage of life that is beyond precious. Their courage and joy is overwhelming. The oldest person is a woman who is 102 years old. Lois ended up sleeping for some of the time during the party. One woman has hip issues where her surgery was not successful. Flo is confined to her wheelchair. Sometimes she is plagued by sadness, but she still carries on. 

One could do well to learn the type of courage that these precious people are called on to live under. It is not always easy for them I guess one could say that they have no choice. However, as we played musical Bingo, they all sang the words to the old songs (and so did we), and we all were had fun. It was the little things that counted. We need to take joy in the little things of life and to be courageous. We are not done until God calls us home. It is how we deal with each phase of our lives, not only the  blessings  but also the challenges, that help us to make our lives be a testimony to  God as He gets ready to call us home. He will meet us at heaven's gate with the words, "Well done, My good and faithful servant." We all were blessed by these wonderful people and the example the showed us last night. When we do what God asks us to do we are as blessed as the people that we are trying to bless, and, best of all, we learn an amazing lesson from God in the bargain.

We all were blessed by these wonderful people and the lesson they taught us last night.

Written by 

Corinne Mustafa

The Thought That Counts.....Monday

12/15/14

Only 10 more shopping days until Christmas the stores declare. In an effort to outshine the North Star, advertisements full of glitz and glam are everywhere. Make your kids happy, make your loved one smile, show them you care...just be sure to shop here where everything is on sale.

In newspapers and emails, on televison and almost every webpage there is news about the latest and greatest things we can buy to make someone happy. But no matter how hard I might try, I cannot buy happiness for myself or anyone else.

As I consider each of my family and friends and try to identify what would show them that I care, I think of time, attention, understanding, love, patience, and compassion. But in a world where everything is for sale or on sale, these things I cannot buy.

Then it looks like the only option is to give of myself. In a season of extra business, for myself and most everyone else, how can I be thoughtful and intentional in my gift-giving?

Have you heard the phrase, "It's the thought that counts"? I used to hear it and say it to excuse another person's ill-suited gift. Nowadays, some have given up that polite quote, and are now saying, "What were they thinking?" That has happened to me with my brother-in-law, I would send a gift that I thought was hysterically funny and reminded me of him, but without my thinking process explained to him, he was at a loss to comprehend my gift.

So, the thought does count in gift-giving after all, and we should take the time to explain our thoughts. It's a hassle? You don't know what to say? Yep, I know, me neither. I feel like some of the humor is gone if I have to explain it. But that's our personal touch which can help make a gift thoughtful and intentional. Everything in life fades away: nothing remains but the memories of  the life we lived.

Three things will last forever

—faith, hope, and love—

and the greatest of these is love.

1 Corinthians 13:13New Living Translation (NLT)

Dear Lord, thank You for reminding me that it truly is the thought that counts, and that it is up to me to communicate the meaning of those thoughts with others. Please help us to be open, kind, and loving to everyone You bring across our paths this Christmas season. May we be willing reminders of You to someone each day. In Jesus name, amen.

 Written by Mary M. Wilkins

Matthew West sings about how God loves us "More" than anything else.

CHRISTMAS LISTS... Sunday

Devotional for 12/14/14

At this time of year many of us have several lists of things to do.  There are lists of cards to send out, lists of parties to attend, lists of gifts to buy and wrap, lists of preparations for travelers. We often ask other people to give us their Christmas wish list to help us know what to buy for them.  But for some people this is a difficult time of year as they struggle with losses.  They may have lost a job, lost a loved one, or lost all hope and desire to live.  What do you think might be on their "lists" at Christmas time?  On some of our lists might be finding ways to help others who are less fortunate.  We may donate more to charities, help at food pantries, or serve meals to the homeless.  

But what do you think might be on God's Christmas wish list?  Does he wish for us to help our fellow man, give our money to charities, pray for others, spend more time at church?  Actually the first and foremost thing God wants is for us to believe in Him and remain faithful so that we can be saved.  Because of His wonderful grace and mercy He sent His only Son to earth as the babe in Bethlehem, a gift to the whole world so that all who believe would receive salvation.  Our grateful response to that precious gift is our love and devotion, those good works for which we were created.  Without faith first, it is impossible to please God.

And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.  Hebrews 11:6 (NIV)

Dear Lord, thank you for the gift of your precious only Son and for the faith given by your Holy Spirit.  Help us to put that faith in action, doing good works to bring you glory on earth.  In Jesus' name, Amen.

written by Jan Andersen

Darius Rucker - What God Wants for Christmas:

GOD'S PLAN...Saturday

12/13/14

"Then the Lord said to Joshua,
 "See, I have delivered Jericho into your hands..."
Joshua 6:1a

     

You will note in the above passage that the Lord was telling Joshua something that was already done, although it was still in the future.  God had His plan, and it was accomplished.

     And what a plan it was.  Walk around the city for 7 days and the walls would simply fall down.  That doesn't sound like a very military move to me.

     Have you ever been moved in your spirit to do something that didn't make sense?  God frequently deals with challenges in our lives which require us to simply move ahead and obey in faith.  The reason is that God alone wants the credit for the accomplishment.

     I've had this happen to me more than once in my life.  The only thing you can say in the end is: " Look what the Lord did for me!" It is amazing.

     So when you are sure of God's plan for some endeavor in your life, simply step out in faith.  He will accomplish His will, and nothing will stand in His way.

Written by

Carol Steficek

He’s On His Way...Friday

December 12, 2014

Luke 1:30-35 

(NIV)

But the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God.  You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus.  He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David,  and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end."  "How will this be," Mary asked the angel, "since I am a virgin?" The angel answered, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.

I get goose bumps reading the words of this passage.  Can you even imagine how Mary felt??  I have read these words and I am committed to treasuring every moment of this Christmas season.  I came into the season this year feeling lonely and sad.  My sons are grown and I don’t have other biological family near me.  I do however have one of the best gifts that Jesus has given me…..the most precious gift of eternal life!!

I also have the gift of faith, which I have been really taking pleasure in having lately.  The way I can turn my worry and anxiety into faith is such a hearty comfort filled with hope.  Hope….that is another gift I have.  I was able to turn my thoughts around this morning with the knowledge that there is hope for all situations.  With the state of this world being so hateful, distrustful and disastrous these days, it can be completely depressing and hard to have the desire to continue on.  But, I have found myself looking for and finding happy situations; strangers helping others.  I cried my eyes out watching a video clip of random people being surprised with gifts.  What a great cry that I had though, watching the hearts of these people show the love for other humans; that incredible love that Christ has given us.

Love….that is another gift that I have.  I know that I have been given so much love from God, because I love to share my love with others.   Much of my life I have felt that I have not been dealt the life I planned and have been bitter about it.  Well, there really are not too many that can honestly say they have lived the life they envisioned for themselves.  I now know, because of the love of Jesus Christ, that I am living my life exactly as planned, and I am the one that can and will see the gifts I truly have in my life.  I am going to continue to celebrate the birth of Jesus by loving and living life as God has planned…..with eternity in mind.  The challenges on earth will always be, but, my heart can always smile with all adversity, as the end result will be paradise.

Written by 

Kelly Dobyns