DAILY DEVOTION, 5/11,2021

After we have meditated on the wonderful truth that God is our heavenly Father, we come next to the phrase “hallowed be thy name.” “Hallowed’ is derived from the Greek word for “holy.”  It means to hold the name of God with the highest reverence and awe. Jesus reminds us that when we pray our first thought must not be of our needs or the needs of others. It is a bad habit to barge into the presence of God with a list of requests. Before we begin to speak to God of our needs, we need to pause and remember to whom we are speaking. We are in the presence of a holy God. God our Father’s name must be honored when we pray.

Notice that this petition is not a statement of fact. It does not say, “Your name is holy,” although that is certainly true. We are praying that we who pray will have a proper respect and honor for God, our Father. We are addressing the triune God who spoke the universe into existence. His power and creativity are beyond our comprehension. When we honor the name of God, we regard Him with awe and reverence.  To be casual or flippant when we pray to the Father is utterly inappropriate.

When we pray, “Hallowed be thy name” we have said a mouthful. We are saying that our intention is to honor the name of God, to avoid using His name in any manner that dishonors Him. We pray that in our lives and in our church, the name of God will be given the highest possible honor.

Gracious heavenly Father, I must confess that all to often my prayers begin with my needs and requests. Remind me when I pray to reflect on Your nature. You are a holy God. May I always remember first of all to honor Your name and the name of Your beloved Son. It is in His name I pray, Amen.  

DAILY DEVOTION, May 8, 2021

Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need (Hebrews 4:16 NKJV)).

This verse tells us several things. It tells us to pray boldly. Petition God with confidence. Our boldness lies not in ourselves but in Jesus Christ, our Savior. We draw near to God with boldness because we trust in Jesus, who has forgiven all our sins. If our sins are forgiven, nothing stands between the Father and us. Don’t pray thinking, “I don’t really expect this will change anything.” Anticipate that God is going to act in response to your bold prayer.

The verse encourages us to pray “in time of need.” When we are faced with problems that seem to have no solution, that is the time to pray. God wants us to lay our needs before Him so that He may bless us.

Then we need to remember that we are approaching “the throne of grace.” We don’t ask God to help us because we deserve His help. We desire His help which comes to us from a gracious God. A merciful God will bless us because of who He is, not because of who we are. What we need is for God to pour out upon us His grace and mercy. Take encouragement from this verse and pray boldly.

Gracious and merciful Father, I confess that sometimes my efforts to pray are weak. Please help me to see that because of Jesus, I can come to you with boldness. Thank You for letting me know that You are full of grace and mercy. In the name of my merciful Savior, I pray. 

DAILY DEVOTION, May 7, 2021

And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart (Jeremiah 29:13).  

Jeremiah tells us how we may come to know God. If I seek God with all my heart, I will find Him. I will have a relationship with my Creator. The condition mentioned by the prophet requires some interpretation. What does it mean to seek God with all your heart?

It clearly means to seek Him with sincerity. If we are half-hearted or indifferent about seeking God, we will never come to know Him. The question w must ask is this; do I really want to know God? Those who sincerely want to know Him will find Him.

Of course, we must remember that we are under the New Covenant. Jeremiah spoke under the Old Covenant. For us, to seek God sincerely means to seek Jesus Christ and submit to Him with faith. Once we have faith in Jesus that will never give up, we will know God. We will have a living relationship with our Creator.

It is not difficult to know God. He wants us to seek Him. He desires to have a relationship with us. What about me? Do I want what God wants?

Father, I thank You that You are not hiding from me.  I thank You that You have made clear what I must do to find You. I reaffirm my faith in Jesus, and I thank you that as I trust in Him, I have a relationship with You.  May His Name be blessed forever, Amen.  

DAILY DEVOTION, May 6, 2021

I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing (John 15:5).

We all know the difference between a thermostat and a thermometer. A thermometer tells you the temperature but does nothing to change it. A thermostat changes the temperature. True Christians are like the thermostat. When we become attached to Christ, the Vine, his life and power flow to us and through us, even as the life of a vine flows into the branches. The result is that we are changed. We begin to bear fruit, much fruit.

This verse becomes a test of the reality of our faith. Does our faith in Jesus change us? Are we bearing fruit for the Kingdom of God? We cannot produce spiritual fruit apart from Jesus. As we trust (abide) in Him, spiritual fruit begins to be produced. Various kinds of good works appear in the life of those who trust Jesus.

Paul describes this change as becoming new persons. “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new” (2 Cor. 5:17). Faith is not a thermometer. It is a thermostat that changes things.

Holy Father, I want to be a fruit-bearing Christian. I don’t want to just give verbal assent to my faith with little fruit in evidence. I want to bear a lot of fruit. I know I can’t bear fruit on my own efforts. I need to daily trust in Jesus and allow His life to flow into me. In His name, I pray, Amen.

Although our attendance is down we continue to worship God every Sunday morning. On Sunday we resumed Sunday School! It felt good to resume that activity. Adult Sunday School meets at 9:00 to 9:45 in the sanctuary followed by morning worship at 10:00 AM. While several of our members have had covid we have had no deaths due to the virus, and no one caught the virus at church. God be praised for His goodness and mercy. We hope to see everyone back soon. Financially we continue to do well. I know we are all hoping that life will soon be back to normal.

The men (FCM) meet at 8 AM on Tuesday (May 4th) for our regular monthly breakfast meeting.
The ladies (FCW) meet on Wednesday (May 5th) at 10:30 for their annual spring salad luncheon.

Wednesday Bible study resumes this week. We will begin a DVD study entitled “Church History Made Easy” featuring Timothy Paul Johnson. We will learn why a basic understanding of church history is important. We will see how God had sustained the church through the centuries in times of crisis. The first lesson addresses the first 100 years of the church and the two crises that impacted the church. Of course, all are welcome.

For Mother’s Day Sunday I will continue the series on the Ten Commandments. I will be jumping ahead to the 5th Commandment, “Honor Your father and mother.” Then the following Sunday we will return to the correct order, focusing on the 2nd commandment.

Have a wonderful week!
Pastor Bowman