What Are You Seeking Today?

On Sundays I get a weekly notice from my phone about how much time I spent in front of it over the past week and I’m always amazed.  How could I possibly be on my phone that much?  What am I doing?

Our passage this week tells us, “seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness ...” but that’s not what I’m doing on my phone.  What are you seeking today?  How are you spending your time?  Is your heart filled with gladness because you’ve sought the Lord (1 Chronicles 16:10) or is it filled with anxiety and fear because life is not going as you had planned?

I groaned when I realized I was assigned to write a reflection on this section of Matthew.   Anxiety is an acquaintance of mine, one who visits more frequently than I would like. I often let my fear of heights, flying and traffic/crazy drivers turn me into a crazy person.  When I’m in this crazy place I tell myself that God allows trials in this life and this is your trial so deal with it.  But this is a lie.  Yes, we will have trials and troubles but we are to seek Him, not cower in the corner all alone.  One of the amazing things about our Creator is that he doesn’t just create us and set us loose in the wild.  He’s involved in every step, every breath, every moment of our life (Hebrews 1:3, Acts 17:25).    

I can read “seek first the kingdom of God” and nod in agreement and say yes I must do that but until I really hold myself accountable for my time, I won’t always do it.  I have to intentionally seek to be in His Word, in prayer, in worship and praise.  Will you spend time with God today?  Your heart will be full of His love and righteousness and void of fear and anxiousness when you take the time to “seek first the kingdom of God”.

-Brenda Wooff

“I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.”

I read these verses repeatedly, and I keep coming back to one question. How do I know if Jesus knows me? Many times in my faith walk I have wondered, am I doing it right? Most of the time I feel like I am missing the road sign or messing it all up. In Matthew 7:21 Jesus says, “not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter.” If you stop right there, you may end up with some questions. How do I know if I am doing God’s will and not my own? How do I know if I call to the Lord he will let me enter?

We must continue to look at scripture for answers, for scripture backs up scripture. You will know them by their fruits. Just one verse above. We see an example, but it is not a single fruit, it is plural. That tells us multiple fruitful moments throughout our walk with God. Yet, we see in verse 22, Jesus says “Many will say to Me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?” Wait a minute, these sound like they could be fruitful moments, more than one, yet Jesus says in verse 24, He will declare to them, “I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.” My Bible has that last bit in all caps, Jesus just may be yelling, or loudly declaring this! How are these acts not fruitful? In Isaiah 29:13 “God says, people draw near with their mouth and honor with their lips, while their hearts are far from God, and their fear of God is a commandment taught by men.” They appeared to be following God, but their rituals became mechanical, their hearts are not in it. The will of the Father is for us to know Him, to seek His heart!

Have you ever prayed but your heart wasn’t in it? I have, sadly, more times than I would like to admit. Especially right before dinner. I’m starving, and drooling and this yummy food is before me, if I remember to pray before I take a bite, which is not always the case, I find I am more focused on the food than my thankfulness and praise to God for the food. Sometimes it’s the same prayer always ending with “watch over us and keep us in your care, Christ may I ask this, amen.”  Was my heart more into the food than God? I confess, sadly yes.

Jesus also mentions people who practice lawlessness. Walking through the book of Jude, I have learned that Jude too speaks to lawlessness and ungodly people creeping among unnoticed. Jude chapter 1 verse 4 “certain persons have crept in unnoticed, those who were long beforehand marked out for this condemnation, ungodly persons who turn the grace of our God into sensuality and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.” How did they creep in unnoticed? They were leaders, profits, scribes doing the motions with no intention of knowing Christ. All of that can seem a bit discouraging if you stop there but we can’t stop there, for the sermon isn’t over yet!

Verses 24-29 comes in with the resolution. “Everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on a rock.” Facts! I want to build my house on rock because look at the example Jesus gives about building your home on rock. You can weather the rain, the floods, and winds, yet your house will not fall! Life is full of storms, but building yourself in a firm relationship with God means you can weather the storm. Jesus didn’t say act and there will be no rain, flooding, or wind, he said the rain fell, the floods came, and the winds slammed! So we can know that storms will come but act on the desire to know Christ in your heart, not because it’s sound logic but for the love set aside for you. After Jesus came down from the mountain the crowds were amazed for they recognized His teaching as one having authority, and not as their scribes. Their hearts recognized Jesus! Fam, we will find ourselves in machinal rituals, for we fall short. My prayer is that when we do, we recognize our lethargic spirit and seek God’s heart, like David, 1 Sam 13:14. May our hearts recognize Jesus, and we will give Him all authority over us. Amen!

-Nikki Fiedler

Look for the Narrow Gate

Toward the end of the Sermon on the Mount, after teaching the crowds what a godly life looks like, Jesus told them “How narrow is the gate and difficult the road that leads to life, and few find it.” The narrow gate he spoke of is Jesus Himself. He is the way, the truth and the life and no one comes to the Father except through Him.

Being a disciple of Jesus doesn’t mean we merely walk through the gate, stop, and wait until He calls us home. We also must follow Him down the road that leads to life, and it’s a difficult road. Take a few minutes to re-read Matthew chapters 5-7. This is how Jesus is calling us to live. It feels impossible! And apart from Jesus, it is.

“Remain in me, and I in you. Just as a branch is unable to produce fruit by itself unless it remains on the vine, neither can you unless you remain in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. The one who remains in me and I in him produces much fruit because you can do nothing without me.” (John 15:4-5.) As we abide in Jesus, and live by His Spirit, our Father will cut off every branch in our lives that doesn’t produce fruit. Even the fruitful branches He will prune for a greater harvest.

In your life do you see the fruit of the Spirit in ever-increasing measure?

For the one who is in Christ, these words bring comfort. He’s sanctifying us and conforming us to His image. While the road is hard, and the pruning painful, it leads to spiritual abundance.

For the one who is masquerading, Jesus’ words should bring sorrow leading to repentance, and serve as a warning to the rest of us. “Be on your guard against false prophets who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravaging wolves. You’ll recognize them by their fruit…a bad tree produces bad fruit. Every tree that doesn’t produce good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”

A false prophet will tell you what you want to hear and give you a way off the hard path of obedience by presuming upon God’s love and grace. They will lead you right through the wide gate and straight to the broad road that leads to destruction. We must be on our guard against them by knowing the Word of God, letting it dwell richly within us, and by the power of the Holy Spirit, submitting ourselves to it.

Jesus told the crowd that had gathered to hear him that day, “How narrow is the gate and difficult the road that leads to life, and few find it.” Have you found the gate? Will you follow Jesus on even the hardest road? Who will you invite to join you on the path to eternal life? The road isn't easy, but the journey is worth it. 

Natalie

Basic-Information-Before-Leaving-Earth

I was sitting down looking at a blank screen, trying to write this reflection when suddenly I found myself surfing the internet.  I came across the following (edited for the sake of brevity):

“A father was approached by his small son who told him proudly, “I know what the Bible means!” 

 “Okay,” said his father. “What does the Bible mean?”

“That’s easy, Daddy…” the young boy replied excitedly,” It stands for ‘Basic Information Before Leaving Earth.’” [i]

Our passage this week (Matthew 7:1-12) is definitely basic information for every Christian. The topics covered have been the subject of vast amounts of sermons, Sunday school lessons, books, devotionals, posters and bumper stickers and yet, familiarity can breed contempt.  We can take the familiar for granted, we know the concepts, we may even be able to quote the verses, but at times our words and actions don’t align with these familiar teachings. 

It’s been my experience that even seasoned Christians have trouble with their words and actions when it comes to the topic of judging (verses 1-5):

One summer, a young mother was helping prep one of her children’s classrooms. She was assigned to a room with a woman employed by the Christian school.  When they were done for the day the young mother turned to the school employee and said, “Good luck with the school year.”  Hastily with a haughty look on her face the worker replied, “There’s no such thing as luck.  We don’t believe in luck!”  Red-faced with embarrassment and near tears, the lady left without uttering a word. 

It’s easy to get this judging thing wrong. The world often labels Christians as hypocritical, judgmental, and unaccepting, and those inside the church often label other Christians as too accepting of worldly behavior.  Who, how, when are we to judge? I think Jesus addresses the who when he refers to “your brother’s eye”.  He doesn’t refer to a spec in a stranger’s eye, he doesn’t say some person with whom you have no relationship.  A brother is a fellow believer, a person whom you've been commanded to love. 

The how and when is also addressed in our passage when Jesus says, “first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.” Self-examination should be a life-long practice for all Christians. One of my favorite bible verses is Psalms 139:23 which says, “Search me, O God, and know my heart: Try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” The chances of judging inappropriately are greatly reduced when we are continually asking Jesus to show us where our heart has hardened or where sin may have crept in.

I pray the next time you’re tempted to judge someone’s speech, or judge a life by the worst moments, or judge others before considering yourself in the same circumstances you will stop and reflect upon these verses in Matthew.

Brenda Wooff

[i] https://www.jollynotes.com/christian-humor-christian-jokes-clean-jokes-best-christian-jokes/

The Greatest Thing

What’s the greatest thing in all of your life?  The answer you give to that question reveals a lot about where you will direct your attention, energy, and resources as you live.

In our text this week, Jesus says that we should seek the treasure of His Kingdom and His righteousness.  To some Jesus’ words might appear of little value, I mean, why should you care about someone else’s kingdom or someone else’s righteousness.  Well, the greatest treasure that anybody in this world will ever find is in the assurance that God really loves us and has made a way through Jesus for us to be in good standing with Him and thereby become heirs to the eternal riches of His Kingdom.

In my early childhood days, I was fortunate to have a best friend across the street whose dad owned a junk yard close enough to town that we could ride our bikes out to it.  That place had vehicles lined up for as far as I could see.  It was so much fun to explore that debris field with my buddy and his dad’s pack of Dobermans close by like they were our own personal security detail.  We roamed all over, searching for things inside each cab to play with, or for a battery with enough juice that we could operate the CB radios we sometimes came across.  Years later as an adult, I realized just how much value there really was in that salvage yard.  My friend’s dad used its resources as a start-up for his line of auto dealerships in southeastern Illinois that specialized in conversion van sales.  My childhood friend even became an eventual heir to that auto empire.

While I’m thankful for the memories I have of the people and things of that place in time, the ultimate reality is that even those memories are fleeting.  What if I had found my greatest treasure in any of those things?  Every worldly treasure comes and goes with the elements of time.  God has made you and I for so much more!  The greatest treasure that God offers to each of us is imperishable and revealed to us by His word through the good news of Jesus Christ.

When you experience the teachings of Jesus – do you just see more religious junk or do you find your life’s purpose and meaning in it – to know God and glorify-worship-enjoy Him forever!  God’s Word leads us to keep things in proper priority so we can appreciate his gifts rightly.  Our Father in Heaven gives us all we need and so often blesses us with things that are only for a season of this life but His perspective remains focused on our eternal relationship with Him because God knows His covenant with us is the greatest thing in all of our lives.

Where are you storing your treasure today? 

May it be the treasure kept in the storehouse of our one true King, the righteous One – Jesus Christ!

Grateful & Hopeful in Him,

Jon

"Our Father Which Art In Heaven', This 'Be Thy Name."

"Matthew 6:9 says, 'Our Father Which Art In Heaven', This 'Be Thy Name.'"

Would you be able to buzz in with the answer?

This question on the famous TV game show Jeopardy went unanswered last week. I was a bit surprised no one answered it but even more so that it was a question on Jeopardy. Is a Christian prayer common knowledge? I was never taught the Lord’s Prayer in any of my school classes. I also never attended any religious schools or had any religion classes offered to me. I was taught by my family and in Church. (I still try not to get tripped up on debtors and trespass. I tend to interchange the two words.)

So how does a Christian Bible prayer end up as a Jeopardy question?

-Guinness World Records has the Christian Bible, as the best-selling book of all time with 5-7 billion copies sold worldwide.

-The world population is around 8 billion people as of today.  

-Answers.com states there are about 3 Bibles in an American home.

-Lifeway Research surveyed 1,000 Americans and found that 1 in 5 Americans have read the Bible at least once.

With the stats above you'd think, yes, the odds are in the favor of the contestant; best selling book, several in the home…easy!

When I was talking with a friend about it, she said “most don't see God as holy so how would they know the answer is “Hallowed”, when they see him as their Bro?”

Yet another friend was not surprised at all. 

Are you surprised by this? Do you think this was a fair Jeopardy question? And do you honor God as holy or is He just your BFF?

“‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

Let’s hallow His name!

Nikki Fiedler

* https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/best-selling-book-of-non-fiction

https://www.worldometers.info/world-population/

https://www.answers.com/Q/Average_number_of_Bibles_in_American_home

https://research.lifeway.com/2017/04/25/lifeway-research-americans-are-fond-of-the-bible-dont-actually-read-it/

Seen

“Mom, play the song from camp!” I scrolled through my playlist and moments later Mimi was singing “God, you know our hearts…beyond the surface.”

Indeed, He does. In 1 Samuel 16:7, God counseled Samuel not to look at the appearance or size of the future king David and said “Humans do not see what the Lord sees, for humans see what is visible, but the Lord sees the heart.” And now, in Matthew’s gospel, this same God has appeared in the flesh to tell us what kind of heart the Lord is looking for.

In Matthew chapter 6, Jesus addresses how we are to give, to pray and to fast. He presupposes these are acts of devotion regularly practiced by those who follow Yahweh, but as in the rest of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus speaks not only of the action but about the disposition of the heart that precipitates the action. He reminds us that our Heavenly Father sees in secret and so there is no reason to draw attention to our own piety. God sees. God knows. It doesn’t matter if others know.

A recent tik tok trend utilizes a split screen. On one side of the screen, a dramatic video plays. On the other, someone watches the video, recording their emotional response for everyone else to see. Why is this popular?

We are a people fixated on being seen. We’ve put our lives on display through carefully cultivated words and imagery intended to impress the masses. But to what end? Whose glory are we living for?

Jesus warned not to live seeking the applause of people, to be noticed, or to receive gain, because that is what the hypocrites do. For the people of God, even if no human sees or knows what good we’ve done, our Father does, and our reward is with Him.

Sisters and Brothers, you are seen; known by the God who searches every heart and understands the intentions of every thought. May we live to magnify Him alone.

Choose Love

Have you ever been thrown in a pit and left to die? Sold to slaves? Stoned by a mob?  Betrayed by a close friend for profit? I’m going to take a guess that the majority of us have not had these experiences. Yet, I’m sure all of us have had an enemy at one time or another. According to Oxford Languages, an enemy is “any person who is actively opposed or hostile to someone; antagonistic to another”. Have you driven on Interstate 270 in North County with all the road construction? I’m pretty sure some of those drivers could be labeled hostile and antagonistic. I’m also sure that when I’m driving and they are present, I’m not loving them.

Our passage this week (Matthew 5:38-48) centers around the topics of “turning the other check” and loving your enemies.  Matthew isn’t the first or the last to write on this subject. The Bible is consistent in its message:

“Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary bless …” (1 Peter 3:9)

“Bless those who persecute you, bless and do not curse them.” (Romans 12:14)

“Repay no one evil for evil…” (Romans 12:17-20)

“When reviled, we bless, when persecuted, we endure.”  (1 Corinthians 4:12-13)

“Do not say I will repay evil, wait for the Lord and he will deliver you.” (Proverbs 20:22)

 “But love your enemies, and do good…” (Luke 6:35)

“If your enemy is hungry, give him bread to eat, and if he is thirsty, give him water to drink.”  (Proverbs 25:21)

 “…Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.” (Luke 6:27-28)

Years ago I had a boss I didn’t like. He took things away from me that I loved: projects, autonomy and authority. He was my enemy. I did not love him, bless him or pray for him and cursed him behind his back. I handled the situation poorly: I didn’t trust that God was in control of the circumstances and consequently missed the opportunity to display to my co-workers how a follower of Christ handles adversity and enemies. I chose self-pity and misery.

I’ve told you my unflattering story about my boss because it’s situations just like that where Jesus is asking us to apply love when love is not the easiest or most logical choice. The Bible gives us wonderful stories about faithful men of God who forgave their enemies despite the high cost, but the principles taught to us through Joseph and Stephen also apply to the mundane, minute areas of our lives. Maybe it’s your neighbor who lets his dog bark all night or perhaps your cousin who borrowed an expensive power tool and never returned it, or maybe it’s just the drivers on I-270. Jesus wants us to choose love and His Word tells us that we “can do all things through Him who strengthens me.”  (Philippians 4:13) 

Brenda Wooff

The Promise

Ten years ago this month, I committed to be an adult leader in the children’s ministry for our church.  In all that time, I was proud that I had only missed my assignment once with short notice on the morning of my father’s passing.  And then it happened, one Sunday months ago, when it was my turn in the monthly rotation to lead, I missed it.  I wasn’t even gone from the church, I was just sitting in the service and completely forgot that it was my turn to lead that day.  It wasn’t until after the service was over and Natalie Runyon came up to let me know she had covered it in my place that I realized my mistake.  I was embarrassed that I had forgot and had not kept my commitment to the children with other adults also depending on me to remember.  While that was a first for me in that role, it’s really just the tip of the iceberg in so many times that I’ve failed to keep a commitment that I’ve made in my life.  Maybe you can relate.

In the passage this week, Jesus is teaching again about the values of His Kingdom in regard to the Mosaic Law as people had heard it and what was truly meant by it.  He teaches about really heavy issues that impact our lives today in dealing with being faithful to marital and civil commitments.  Jesus raises the bar every time to His standard of perfection so that we will look to Him in all things – even the commitments we make to one another.

Each of us has failures and victories in keeping our promises, but in all these things, we can learn to trust Jesus more.  Because Jesus never fails to keep His word.  All of His promises are secure and will be fulfilled.  Some might read this passage and focus on what it speaks against.  But if you keep this teaching from Jesus in good context, you should see that Jesus is saying these things to emphasize who he is for.  Do you know who Jesus is for?  The Bible tells us, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.  For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him.”  May each of us today, make no mistake in remembering this – Jesus is not against us, He promises to be for us!  The Great King our souls long for is on our side and always keeps His promise to lead His followers to life and that more abundantly!

Grateful & Hopeful in Christ,

Jon

More Than Actions

As I read these verses in Matthew 5:21-30, I hear a battle cry, “It is finished.”

Jesus’ teaching in Matthew is asking us to look deeper; action alone is not the only way we commit sin. Our feelings and thoughts are the root of sin and bring judgment upon us. Therefore, we cannot claim to be sinless merely by lack of sinful action. Christ alone is without sin, and the rest of us are to be judged.

Jesus tells us it is better to cut off an arm or gouge out an eye, if it brings about sin. This language speaks to the laws of ancient Babylonian, Biblical, Roman, and Islamic principles of reciprocal justice: Measure for measure. The measured punishment of sin is for our whole body to be cast into Sheol. Death. 

Death is the just punishment for our sin. But God, rich in mercy, sent His only Son to save us from that death. Jesus cried out “it is finished” on the cross so that we could enter, through him, into a place of peace and love. Not just in heaven above but within the Kingdom on earth, as it is in heaven.

I have had radical change in my life that has felt very much like losing a limb, for the more I walk with Christ the more separated I become from the things of this world, things that feed the flesh and bring about sinful desires. I repent and my heart shifts to desire the holy life that God has for me; fleeing not just outward sinful actions, but for my inner person to be renewed. 

Anger. Murder. Lust. Adultery. When our hearts condemn us, we don’t have to despair. There is no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus! As we battle sin in our own lives, we fight from a position of security. Christ has won the victory! Hosanna in the highest heaven!

-Nikki

I Saw The Lord

There are so many beautiful awe-inspiring things we see every single day.  Sunrises and sunsets, flowers and trees, the sun, moon and stars, rivers and lakes.  It is true - "The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands." (Psalm 19:1).

In the midst of all of this beauty we often go about our days unaware and therefore unmoved by all the majesty surrounding us.  All the while God is whispering and sometimes shouting - "I am here.  I care.  I see you.  Look around and you will see Me."

Isaiah the prophet had such an experience.  Catastrophe hit.  King Uzziah died.  Israel's future was unknown and God's people felt heartache, fear, pain and grief.   Isaiah goes to the temple (he goes to church), but this is not a "normal" church service.  The Lord gives Isaiah eyes to see the King who never dies and always reigns.  It is a beautiful, holy, awe-filled sight.  Angels flying, the doorposts and thresholds shaking, smoke filling the room, the presence of the Holy One leads Isaiah to cry out, "woe is me!  I am ruined!"

I do not know how you feel about God-encounters.  I hear a lot of people say things like, "I am not worthy.  I am not special.  I do not want to waste God's time with my problems."  But God delights in revealing Himself to the people He created - especially when we are "at the end of our rope."  And God meets us at the very place we feel most unworthy.  When Isaiah saw the Lord he said, "I am a man of unclean lips" and an angel comes with a coal from the altar to touch his lips and says "your guilt is taken away and your sin is atoned for."

Then Isaiah HEARS the Lord say, "whom shall I send and who will go for us?"  "God does not call the qualified, but He qualifies the called."  When we have experienced God's forgiveness and grace and mercy and love He enlists us as His witnesses to share with others just how much He loves us.

This coming Sunday we will hear testimonies from our brothers and sisters from First Fruits Christian Discipleship Training Program.  Their stories will be beautiful and awe-inspiring.  The Lord will bring us hope and healing as they share their experiences.  It is my prayer that as we prepare to gather for Sunday worship - that we will not merely "go to church" unaware and therefore unmoved, but that we would see the Lord high and lifted up and that we would hear and answer His call.

See you Sunday,

Steven

Keep Us Salty

Jesus didn’t tell his followers- then or now- “Be salty!” Because we already are.
“You are blessed when they insult you and persecute you.”

“You are the salt of the earth.”

“You are the light of the world.”

Jesus has made it so.

We live in a culture that tells us we can and should work to be the best. Aim high! And higher! Higher still! Perform better! Faster! Keep striving!

That’s not the gospel.

Jesus said “Remain in me, and I in you. Just as a branch is unable to produce fruit by itself unless it remains on the vine, neither can you unless you remain in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. The one who remains in me and I in him produces much fruit, because you can do nothing without me. If anyone does not remain in me, he is thrown aside like a branch and he withers. They gather them, throw them into the fire, and they are burned.”

Remain. Remain. Remain. And once more, in case we missed it, our Savior said “remain”. If we abide in him, his Spirit will produce the fruit in us. Much fruit, in fact: an ever-increasing yield of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness and self-control.

If we don’t remain in Him?

Useless branches thrown in the fire, burned.

Tasteless and impure salt, trampled.

A lamp hidden; our world left in darkness.

Jesus, teach us to abide. By the power of your Spirit, keep us salty so the world may taste and see that you are good, and glorify our Father in heaven. Amen.

-Natalie

The Beatitudes

Our passage this week is the well-known, often quoted Sermon on the Mount in which Jesus outlines the “The Beatitudes”- attributes of the heart and actions of the person who lives as though Jesus is their Lord and Savior.  Do we immediately obtain these attributes after accepting Jesus’ grace?  I didn’t.

The first item in a list is often the most important or the beginning step.  This certainly holds true for the first Beatitude: “Blessed are the poor in spirit…”.  Those who are poor in spirit are those who live like nothing on this earth will satisfy the way Jesus does, they continually acknowledge their need for Him and realize they are unable to live the life the Creator desires for them apart from Him.  Unfortunately, there are days when I behave as if that new, sparkling, “must-have” thing will satisfy me more than Jesus. 

I didn’t become “poor in spirit” or “meek” or “merciful” automatically at conversion.  But, my desire to put Jesus first, to be meek and merciful and hunger for righteousness grows in strength when I stay near Him, when I’m in the Word, when I’m giving him praise for the many blessings and when I’m spending time with the body of Christ.  Conversely, if I’m walking away from His Kingdom, when I’m pursuing things the world claims will bring happiness, my desires for these attributes are weakened.  Are you walking into God’s Kingdom or away from it?  My prayer is for Jesus to produce a poverty of spirit in all of us.

Brenda Wooff 

Each and Every Thing

In my current position with the Fire Department, I am in the office directly next to the Fire Chief.  There are many issues that come before me in the Inspection Office but I’m careful not to bring each and every thing before the Chief as he is a man of authority and in high demand.  But there are some things that are just too weighty and I make sure to go before him with those issues.   

In the passage for this week, we see great crowds forming around Jesus’ ministry.  Jesus was a man in high esteem and in high demand.  Yet I’m struck by the things that people are bringing to Jesus.  Even more, I’m struck by how Jesus ministers to each of their needs no matter how big or small they might seem to others.  To Jesus, they all matter because each of those people in the crowd matter so deeply to Him.  Oh how they must have felt very much loved by Him in their moments of healing!

I’m encouraged by this glimpse into Jesus’ ministry because it reminds me that I also can bring all things to Jesus.  There’s not a thing in my life that He does not care about.  Rather, Jesus cares about each and every thing in my life because He cares so deeply for me.  And it’s the same for you too!  Each and every thing that we bring to Jesus is a chance for Him to prove His love to us and for us to feel His love as He ministers to those needs.

Today, will you come to Jesus with the things on your heart -  He is a miracle worker in every way!

May we trust Him more with everything big or small and may the world praise His name for the things He has done in and through us!

Grateful & Hopeful in Christ,

Jon 

Following Jesus

The sun is setting outside, fiery orange burning through the newly formed green leaves of spring, outlining the trees. Sitting at home, watching the evening unfold from my upstairs window, I’m transported, sitting on a bus that is driving down an extremely bumpy dirt road. Staring out the bus window, I’m watching the same sun burning fiery orange through the green trees of Rwanda, Africa.

Four years later and I still have a hard time believing it was all real. All I had to do was follow.  “Come, follow me, and I will send you out to fish for people” Jesus said in Matthew 4:19.

What does following Jesus look like? It could look like a mission trip to Rwanda, but it could also look like leaving your fiancé who just told you he never was a Christian and never will be. It could look like a life set apart from your biological family, going to church on Sundays and sitting with your church family. It could be as simple as calling the friend that has been on your mind, or as daring as hugging a very agitated stranger in the Schnucks parking lot.

Sometimes following Jesus means you will have enemies; you will take up your cross and lose your worldly life. That last line sounds hard, even painful. So why follow Jesus?  So that you can be healed. So you can be made whole.

Life is hard, moment to moment, even harder still without Jesus. You are already doing the “hard”, yet nothing is working. You’re stressed, full of anxious thoughts, empty and sad at the same time. Scared of what may happen, even angry. Stop what you are doing. Pray. Ask Jesus to help you and follow what comes next.

If you are reading this and you have more questions or would like someone to pray with, email connect@bridgetograce.org today. 

-Nikki Fiedler

O-B-E-D-I-E-N-C-E

“Obedience is the very best way to show that you believe. 

Doing exactly as the Lord commands, doing it happily. 

Action is the key, do it immediately, joy you will receive. “

I loved to belt out this song as a child in church, and all the more when I was chosen to hold the poster boards with lyrics written in different colored markers!

“O-B-E-D-I-E-N-C-E. 

Obedience is the very best way to show that you believe.”

The Lord’s desire for his people is that they would be holy- set apart. When I was a kid, “set apart” meant no drinking, dancing, movie theaters or face cards. Christian liberty means we can have differing convictions about things such as these, but abstaining from them doesn’t make us holy. Positionally, if you are in Christ, you have already been made holy. In Matthew 4, we read about Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness. Here at the beginning of his ministry, if Jesus had given into the temptations of Satan, our story would be quite different. Yet, with each taunt from the enemy, Jesus refuted Satan with the word of God. In every way, Jesus was tempted just as we are, yet he remained without sin. He lived the life we couldn’t, died the death we deserved, took upon himself our sin, clothes us in His righteousness and lives to intercede for us. This is the gospel. We are saved by God’s grace!

Not saved by works, but saved to walk in the good works God has planned for us, we are now called to live lives of holiness in light of our holy standing before Him. What he calls us to, he empowers us to do. With the Holy Spirit in us we can put to death the deeds of the flesh: sexual immorality, impurity, indecent behavior, idolatry, witchcraft, hostilities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these. More and more our lives will be characterized by the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. “If we live by the Spirit, let’s follow the Spirit as well.”

Church, by the power of His Spirit, we can increasingly walk in O-B-E-D-I-E-N-C-E to all he has commanded us to. Have you been saved by his grace? If not, what stands in your way? If you have, what sin is he calling you to put to death? What fruit of the Spirit is he developing in your life?

Satan will continue to tempt us. It’s his way. But the enemy of our souls has nothing to offer us except stones. Jesus offers us a better way. It’s the way of the cross, and it will involve suffering but it leads to an inheritance imperishable, undefiled and unfading, kept in heaven for us until that glorious day.

Until then, rest in the knowledge that the One who began a good work in you is faithful to complete it. He holds you fast.

- Natalie

A Man on a Mission

Could you hang out with John the Baptist?  I think I could as long as it wasn’t dinner time.  Watching someone eat locusts, even if they are 60% protein would not work for me.  I’ve always been a bit envious of individuals like John the Baptist who knew exactly what they were born to do.  John was a goal-driven, laser-focused, self-controlled man whose mission was to prepare the way for Jesus.  Luke tells us his single mission was made clear from the moment of his birth: “And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways, to give knowledge of salvation to his people in the forgiveness of their sins” (Luke 1:76-77).  Our mission today is the same:  point people to Jesus.

Have you ever wondered why John was in the wilderness?  The bible doesn’t tell us how long John lived in the wilderness prior to the beginning of his ministry but based on his eating habits and his attire I’m going to guess he had been there for some time.  Did John need to lead a secluded life away from the temptations of the city in order to focus on his mission? GrowingDisciples.org suggests: “John was calling people away from the system, from their luxury, from their religious hypocrisy and their phony temple worship so they could focus on the qualities of their own sinful hearts.”1  Whatever the reason for John’s location, it’s a great reminder that God can use you right where you are.  God can use you to accomplish his purpose whether you’re in a tree stand in the middle of the woods or a board room in Manhattan.

What do you need to do today to focus on the Lord’s work?  Do you need to retreat to a place of solitude in order to examine your heart?  If we are to reflect the light of Jesus to a dark world we need to do as John instructed and walk in a new direction, away from our sins, away from the things that are keeping us from Jesus. I pray that as a church we can become like John:  goal-driven and laser-focused on the work for which we were created.

Brenda Wooff 

1 https://www.growingdisciples.org/Studies/Mt3QA.htm

You Don't Need My Opinion

You don’t need my opinion, but how about a testimony?

Nowadays it is suggested to use the phrase “in my personal opinion” before or after any extreme statement. In this season of life, I feel like I am asked often to share my opinion on many different issues. With young adults living in my house, I really struggle with how and when to share my personal opinions. As I read our text for this week, I’m reminded of the power of testimony from Jesus’ followers and how the charge of His words has had such powerful effects on my life today. This reminds me of the urgent need to also share my testimony about following Jesus and living by His word. There really is a big difference between spouting opinions versus actually testifying to Jesus’ work in my life.

In our text, the women find Jesus is no longer in the tomb. An angel proclaims to them the amazing message that JESUS HAS RISEN! They are invited to see for themselves the truth of that proclamation. Then these same women are told to go and share the message with others. As they go, Jesus meets them on the way and also tells them to go and share the same message. These women had a powerful testimony to share – one that would transform their world then and now. When the disciples responded to their testimony, they also met Jesus just as He had promised and received His great commission as the Risen Savior and Eternal King.

On the other hand, there were some in our text this week that could not accept the testimony of Jesus’ followers and instead they weighed in heavily with another opinion on what might have happened to Jesus’ body. Over the 2000 years since Jesus’ resurrection and ascension, there have been too many choosing to reject the gospel truth about Jesus and the testimony of His followers in favor of some other opinion about Him and His work. But God who is rich in mercy, has transformed my life through His Spirit’s continuing presence to save me from my sin and work in me to bear good spiritual fruit that leads me to eternal security in His Son. That is my testimony of what God has done for me in Christ Jesus!

The testimony of Jesus’ followers then and the testimony of His followers now can still have a life-changing eternal impact on people like me and you. May we be a people that rejoice in the gospel truth about the Risen Christ! And may we be intentional to share sincere testimony about all that we have experienced in Him and because Jesus lives!

Happy Easter,
Jon

The Giving and Loving Jesus. Hesed.

These past few weeks I have seen people coming together in extraordinary ways. From assisting a man who can no longer speak as dementia takes hold, to caring for a young woman and her children whose husband and father passed away weeks before they broke ground on their dream home. I've watched groups provide for our community’s foster children, support a young woman as she battles breast cancer, and help a woman who was paralyzed in a horrible fire.

Above are just glimpses of ways this Riverbend Community has come together to care for one another. 

Last Sunday we read in Proverbs 3:27 “do not withhold good from those who deserve it, when it is in your power to act. Do not say to your neighbor 'come back later; I’ll give it to you tomorrow'- when you now have it with you.”

In the New Testament, Matthew chapter 21 we see Solomon's advice lived out by a man who gives his donkey and its colt to disciples of Jesus. The man did not ask for them to come back later. For Jesus, there was no later, for at the end of the week he would be crucified on a cross.

We are called by God to freely give what He has blessed us with to those in need, in order to glorify Him who is the giver of all things. Jesus came gentle and loving as he gave his life so that we would be deserving of all that God has for us in Heaven and Earth. May we be givers and receivers of mercy and grace that surpasses all understanding. May we receive Jesus!

-Nikki Fiedler

Great Things in the Past

On March 31, 2013 about 100 people gathered at 504 East 12th Street, Alton, IL to make MAKE MUCH OF JESUS.  It was said that day, “we are here for one reason -- to brag and boast – not about us – but about Jesus Christ who came and rescued us when we were far from God.”  Because HE is FAITHFUL we have been blessed to witness JESUS connect people to God’s indelible grace these last 10 years.

So this coming Sunday we will gather at the same location to do the same thing – brag and boast about Jesus and worship Him in Spirit and Truth and we will experience His indelible grace together.  He can be trusted – He created the earth with wisdom (Proverbs 3:19-20), seeking Him gives life to our souls (Proverbs 3:21-22), walking with Him keeps us from stumbling (Proverbs 3:23), and trusting Him makes our sleep sweet (Proverbs 3:24).

I am in awe when I think about how God has worked in us and through us the past 10 years.  As we look forward to Sunday I want to encourage you to ask the Lord to fill you with His Spirit.  When I pray this way I “lean in” a little more.  I actively look for and listen for the Lord.  I move from being a spectator to a participant.  I pray a little more fervently.  I sing a little louder.   

We believe God planted The Bridge to point to Jesus and that through The Bridge our city would be blessed with the hope that comes from knowing and experiencing God.  And I am convinced of a truth we will sing Sunday in the song The God of this City:

“There is no one like our God.  There is no one like our God. 

Greater things have yet to come and greater things are still to be done in this city.”

So we will look back at God’s faithfulness over the past decade, but we will also look forward to the “greater things” in the future.  And did I mention – we will also EAT lunch together?  We will enjoy good food and conversation as a church family.

And one of the greatest gifts the Lord has given to me is to be a part of The Bridge.  It is an honor and privilege to know you and to experience the Lord together with all of you.  I love you family!

See you Sunday, 

Steven