DEVOTION, DECEMBER 9, 2020, Fear or Faith?

Zephaniah 3:15b  (NASB) The King of Israel, the LORD, is in your midst; You will fear disaster no more.

Mark 4:40 (NASB)
⁴⁰  And He said to them, “Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?”

Zephaniah reminds Israel that their King is present with them. Why do they fear disaster? Of course, we know that the true King of Israel is Jesus, and He is indeed present with His people. We should never fear that some disaster will defeat us. Jesus spoke the words from Mark when the disciples feared they would be overwhelmed by a storm. The Lord is asleep on the stern. He calms the storm. He asks them a pointed question, “Why are you afraid?” Jesus arrives at the heart of the problem. They are weak in faith.

These texts call upon us to ask a question of ourselves – – – “Am I afraid?” What do I fear? What can do any permanent damage to me if the King is with me, and I trust Him? Amid life’s trials, we need to remember that King Jesus is with us. As we apply our faith to the storms of life, they will not overwhelm us. If we give in to our human emotions, fear will overtake us.

Suppose you are faced with a life-threatening illness, emotions will cry out, “This is awful! Why has God allowed this to overtake me? This is unfair! I don’t deserve this!” Faith says, “I don’t like this, but I will trust in God. Jesus is with me. I will either be healed or go home to be with the Lord. I can’t lose! I choose faith over

fear.”  Choosing faith is always the right choice.

Father in heaven, I thank you for Your promise to be with me always. When I face the storms of life, I will trust in You. I will not allow fear to cancel out my faith. I thank You for You great promises. In the holy name of Jesus, Amen.

DEVOTION, DECEMBER 8, 2020, Grace is Sufficient

2 Corinthians 12:8-9 (NKJV)
Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me. And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore, most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

After he became a Christian, Paul’s life was filled with pain and problems. In the verses above he refers to one problem, but we are not sure what the issue was. A “messenger of Satan” was causing him all kinds of difficulty. We don’t know if the messenger was a person harassing him or some physical ailment. He prays for the removal of this obstacle. God says in effect, “No,  I am not going to remove the obstacle. However, I will grant you grace that will enable you to endure. My grace is sufficient (more than adequate) to allow you to continue your ministry unhindered.”

I am sure many of us can identify with Paul. We have beseeched the Lord about a matter. The desired answer has not come. Can you affirm with Paul, God’s grace is sufficient? God’s grace has given us the gift of eternal life; the gift of the Holy Spirit; the church; fellowship with Himself; assurances of His love; etc. When we remember what we have received from the grace of God we can surely declare, “it is enough.”

Gracious Father, I thank You for Your abundant grace. You have poured out so many blessings upon my life. When I do not receive an answer to a specific prayer help me to focus on Your grace. In the gracious name of Jesus, I pray, Amen.

Our church board meets on Tuesday (12/8) at 6 PM. The congregational meeting on Sunday approved the 2021 budget and the slate of officers.

The sermon topic next Sunday is “The God who Comforts” as we continue our Advent series.

We will have a candlelight communion service at 7 PM. on Christmas Eve.

Congratulations to the Skyline Girls Basketball team for winning the Warsaw Tournament. Our own Justine Barb had a great tournament.

FCW white elephant donations are accepted until December 15.
Food donations for John Boise Middle School pantry are still needed.

We are continuing our revised “covid” schedule on Sunday. Marie thoroughly disinfects the sanctuary for our 10 AM service. Most wear masks. Masks are required for those seated in the Fellowship Hall. Thankfully no one has gotten sick from being at church—still no Sunday School. We hope to begin the Wednesday Bible Study on January 6th at 3 PM.

Pastor Bowman

• Marie’s Daily Verse: Mercy, peace and love be yours in abundance.Jude 1:2
• DEVOTION, December 7, Self-control Like a city whose walls are broken through is a person who lacks self-control (Proverbs 25:28). A few weeks ago, we had a lesson on self-control in Bible study. Here are a few thoughts from that study. The verse from Proverbs is very thoughtful. In biblical times, if an enemy breached your city’s walls, chaos was the result. Solomon compares that to a person lacking in self-control. If we give in to rash behavior (anger, revenge, gossip etc), we create chaos in our lives. The enemy (Satan) rushes in to create bedlam. Self-control is a fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23). This is a reminder to us that we cannot exercise self-control without help. As we pray and yield to the direction of the Holy Spirit, we learn self-control. There are several verses in Proverbs that warn us against allowing our tongues to have free reign. Here is an example: “Do you see a man who is hasty in his words? There is more hope for a fool than for him” (Proverbs 29:2).  Much of our problem with self-control impacts the tongue. We need to offer a quick prayer for the Holy Spirit will guide us before speaking a hasty response. Here’s another one. “He who guards his mouth and his tongue guards his soul from troubles” (Proverbs 21:23). As we learn to control ourselves with the help of the Holy Spirit, our words, and lives become pleasing to God. Warhorses in ancient society were trained to remain under control when the battle was raging. Life is like a battle, and we need to remain under control, lest our rash and foolish behavior hurts others and offend our heavenly Father.  Self-control is being controlled by the Holy Spirit. Dear Father, I know that sometimes others irritate me, and I react with hasty words, making the situation worse. Please help me to control my words and actions so that my life honors You. Help me to yield my life to the Holy Spirit. In Jesus name, Amen. 

DEVOTION, December 5, 2020, Being “other” centered

Philippians 2:3-5 (NKJV)
³  Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. ⁴  Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.⁵  Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus…

This word from God causes us to ask, “Who am I living for?” Am I motivated by selfish ambition or conceit? Am I living a self-centered life? God is telling us very clearly that we need to regard others with high esteem. We are to look out for the interests and needs of others. Yes, we also have to look out for our own interests but not exclusively.  In short, we are to have the mind of Jesus.

Jesus Christ is the supreme example of humility. Philippians 2 is one of the most remarkable passages ever written about Jesus Christ. We learn that Jesus Christ is God, yet He humbled Himself and became Man. Jesus Christ was God incarnate.  He humbled Himself and came to this corrupt world that knows little else other than selfishness, greed, and death. Just imagine the enormous step down that Jesus Christ had to take to become a man. It is utterly impossible to grasp the humility it took. Yet, this is what He did, and it is what we are to do. The very same mind that existed in Jesus Christ—that led Christ to give up everything He was and had—that very mind is to be in us. I wonder how the world would change if every Christian put these words into practice?

Almighty God, our Father, help me to be sensitive to the needs of others. Deliver me from being self-centered. Jesus was willing to humble Himself for my sake. May I do the same for others. In His name, Amen.

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