Becoming wine.

It is good to be back online. I apologize for being away for a few days. I pray God is speaking to you through our devotions together. I know He is me.

One of the main themes I see repeated in our devotions is the idea of holiness among God's people. This is a really important concept for Christians. Our lives are to be lived in total abandonment to God. This means that we sacrifice all that we have, are, and ever want to be to Him and His plans.

God does have plans for us as His children. Nothing happens to us that He doesn't allow or orchestrate. As we are reminded in Romans though, God can bring good out of all situations. Becoming wine for God can be painful but only the crushed grape produces the wine. I pray that as God crushes us to make His wine, may we glorify Him. May God's will be realized in our lives.

I also want to encourage you to pray for each other. It seems there has been a number of deaths here lately and we need to lift these families up. We all face struggles on a daily basis and I believe the enemy will only intensify his attacks. Be on guard, draw near to God and He will draw near to us.

Be blessed.
Pastor Mark

The refiner's fire of a relationship with Jesus

Being in a relationship with Jesus is challenging at times. One of the things our Savior desires to do in our lives is to make us more like the Father. One of the way He does this is through the refining fire of purification. He examines us and tests us in an attempt to purge the dross of sin and stubbornness from our lives. This is often a painful, humbling process. Every believer has dross that must be purged so that we are "perfect as our Father in heaven is."

We are going to be tried and tested but we must not hold grudges. This is forbidden to God's people. But it is so difficult to let go. But it is worthwhile because we will then live in obedience to our Lord. This is what we are called to do. We can't control anyone else's life but our own so let us take responsibility for how we live.

Be blessed.
Pastor Mark

What is our goal?

Goals are important, right? Are you a person that sets goals for your life? What are some goals you have set? Do you want to be a better husband or wife? A more appreciative son or daughter? What to lose some weight or get in shape? Get a better job by the end of the year? What are some of your goals?

I have always thought being useful to God and leading people to Christ should be a goal that every Christian should have. But our devotion kind of challenged that view. In our reading for today, Oswald Chambers gives a different take on the goal a Christian should have: "The goal of the missionary is to do God's will, not to be useful or to win the lost. A missionary is useful and he does win the lost, but that is not his goal. His goal is to do the will of his Lord."

Our goal as Christians should be to do the will of our Father and we should recognize that God has different plans for each of us. But in obeying His will, we will accomplish different tasks that He has for each of us. Bro. Chambers is right, by obeying our Father, we will be useful and we will win the lost for Jesus. I pray that the Lord reveal His will for your life and He give you the strength, courage, and willingness to obey.

Be blessed.
Pastor Mark

Master and Teacher

Who is Jesus? This is a question that has several answers. First and foremost He is the Son of God, the Savior of the world. One of the greatest explanations of who Jesus is was stated by John the Baptist in John 1:29 (NIV) "Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!" This is who Jesus is, the Savior of the world. Jesus came to pay for the sins of mankind so that all who believe by faith will be forgiven of their sins. We can't work our way into heaven, it is only by the grace of God that anyone will be forgiven of their sins. Jesus is our Savior. But there is more.

As Oswald Chambers reminds us in our devotion for today, Jesus must also be Master and Teacher. We must surrender ourselves to Him and be willing to learn from Him so that we begin to look more and more like Him. Too often we want "easy faith" but true faith requires something from us - surrender. We want Jesus to save us but we don't want to give up anything. Too many Christians believe they can live any way they like because they have their "fire insurance." Christianity is not fire insurance. Christianity is not something that we do, it is who we are. We are Christians, we don't do Christianity.

We must learn from Jesus and this comes with us giving up ourselves to Him. It comes by entering into a relationship with the Master and Teacher. Our relationship with Jesus should be the most important thing in our lives. In this relationship we express our love for God through obedience. Obedience is difficult but it is required as followers of Christ. As the Son obeyed the Father, so we ought to obey. Are we learning from the Master?

If you are not reading the Bible and praying on a regular basis I want to encourage you to begin today. You don't have to read it cover to cover in one sitting but why not begin with a chapter or two. The book of John is a good place to start if you are not used to reading the Bible. And don't forget to pray. Prayer is so very important in the life of God's people. God is waiting to speak to us and to hear from us, why not start today.

Be blessed.
Pastor Mark

What to Renounce?

In our devotion, Oswald Chambers reminds us that as believers, we have to make sure our lives are free from hidden sins. We can not harbor hidden or cherished sins in our lives and live our utmost for His highest. What is our utmost for His highest? It is living our best for God. It is our calling to live a life that honors Jesus. We must be a fragrant aroma to God and I believe God will enable us to do this. With His Spirit living in us, we can live a life that honors Him.

How does this happen? By conviction of the Holy Spirit and the renouncing of hidden sins. With God's help, we can be forgiven and cleansed from these sins. What do you do when no one is watching? What thoughts creep into your mind? Are you harboring a grudge against one who hurt you? Is your inner life full of lust - either materially, financially, or physically? Then confess this to God, ask for forgiveness, repent, and be forgiven.

Be blessed.

Pastor Mark

Following Christ's Example

"I have given you an example, that you should do as I have done to you." John 13:15 NIV

In John 13, Jesus gives us the example that we should serve others. On the night He was betrayed, Jesus got on His hands and knees and washed the feet of His disciples. He once again showed His disciples that He came to serve the world. And as His followers, this is how we are to live. This is not an easy thing to do.

We want to be served. We want to push our agendas. We don't want God to tell us what to do in our lives. We know better than God. Isn't this our attitude? But Christians need to be better. We need to be surrendered to Jesus so He may use us to further His kingdom. Every believer is a missionary for God. We are to minister wherever God directs us.

Is serving easy? No and it is going to take God giving you the strength to be able to do this. Do I have to serve people I don't like or that have wronged me? Yes. Jesus reminds us in Luke 6:27 NIV, to "Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you." Christians are to use their giftedness to serve. No task is too menial. If we are "too big" to do the small things for others, then we are "too small" to be used by the Lord to do great things.

Please don't forget to pray for our country. Today marks the 7th anniversary of the cowardly attacks of 9/11. Our country is under attack from many sides and I believe God is calling the church in America to pray. The world is hurting and the church has the answer. The world is lost in darkness and the church is called to be the light. How can you follow the example Christ gave us?

Pastor Mark

Transformation

Transformation. This is a key word in the life of a Christian. When we come to Jesus in faith and are forgiven of our sins, we are transformed. The old is gone and the new has come. The old life that we used to live is gone by the power of God through Jesus. But this is not the end. There is still work to be done.

Paul, in Romans 12, encourages believers to continue the transformation process by having our minds renewed. We need to offer ourselves to God as living sacrifices, rejecting how the world lives and focus on Jesus. We are to be holy and pleasing to the Lord and this will never happen if we choose to live like the world.

This takes discipline on our part. We need to be in God's word, learning more about God. We need to be in prayer, praying for what God prompts us to pray about. One of our most important assignments as Christians is to grow in our faith and understanding of the Lord. As our devotion reminds us, "... a person is not only committed to Jesus Christ for salvation, but is also committed, responsible, and accountable to Jesus Christ's view of God, the world, and of sin and the devil." We need to view things as God views them. This will not happen without transformation. Lord, transform us to be more like Jesus.

Pastor Mark

Rivers of Life

Jesus said that those who have placed their faith and trust in Him would have "rivers of living water" flow from their lives. This is a great promise and a great challenge.

The great promise is that Jesus lives in us and will produce blessings in us that will overflow from our lives in order to bless others. It is very humbling to know that Jesus wants to use flawed and weak vessels to bless others. To think that Jesus wants to even be a part of our lives, to forgive our sins when we confess, repent, and believe, is beyond human understanding. But Jesus came to purchase our place in heaven through His blood. And because of this, believers can have an abundant life, with rivers of living water flowing from within. We will receive great blessings in our lives from the Lord and we must allow Him to use them as He wishes.

The great challenge comes when we allow sin to remain in our lives un-confessed or take our eyes off Jesus. When Christians allow these types of things to come between them and Jesus, the living waters are hindered. Christians must continually be on guard against sin. We must keep our eyes on the Savior. When sin happens, confess it and repent. Seek forgiveness and the restoration of a right relationship with the Lord. We must not allow the water to be hindered. Let us keep our eyes on the Source of the water, Jesus. "Flow river, flow."

Pastor Mark

Watching with Jesus

As we read Matthew 26:36-45, we can read the account of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane just before His betrayal. In the garden, Jesus asks His disciples to "watch and pray." But they fell asleep. Watching with Jesus is a difficult thing to do because we very seldom look at things from His perspective. It is often hard to see the meaning in certain events but if we look with Jesus, I believe we will be able to see deeper. I believe we will be able to see the things that He wants us to see.

Sometimes the things He wants us to see are painful but they can be beneficial for us. Sometimes we gather things in our lives that shouldn't be there and Jesus has to bring it to our attention. It may be painful but it will help us in our relationship with Him. God's purpose for us to become more like Jesus everyday. This is my prayer for all believers.

Pastor Mark

Pouring out to the Lord

Selfishness is a struggle that so many people deal with. It is one of the most basic temptations that we have to face daily. But God calls His people to be selfless. He calls His people to share and not hoard the blessing. I appreciate what Oswald Chambers shares in our devotion today about hoarding the blessings we receive from God. "If you have become bitter and sour, it is because when God gave you a blessing you hoarded it."

There is great danger in hoarding the blessings from the Lord. If we hoard, we will become greatly frustrated in our lives. The way to avoid this is to pour it out to the Lord. How do we do this? With great effort. It will take the Lord's strength, which He gives to His people, to pour out our blessings before the Lord as an offering. Let's give back to God what He has given to us. When we do this others will be blessed too.

God is a good God and He has given us much more than we deserve. I know this may confuse some people who may read this but as sinners, we don't deserve God's blessings. But thanks be to Him because He has offered us grace and forgiveness. Thank you Lord!

Pastor Mark

Holy Sacrifice

In our devotion for today, Oswald Chambers asks a question that every believer needs to answer, "Are we prepared to pour out our lives for Him?" What are we willing to do for the Lord? Are we willing to sacrifice our lives so God will be glorified and others come to a saving knowledge of Jesus? These are tough questions but they are relevant nonetheless. Jesus poured out His life for us, will we do the same for Him?

This calls for sacrifice if it is to happen. What do we have in our lives that shouldn't be there? Are we allowing God to use us for His purposes? Do we have streams of living water flowing out of us? We can if we will let God be God.

The world is in need of the gospel. Our neighbors are in need of God and He has put within us the living water they need to hear about. Will we sacrifice so others will be blessed?

Pastor Mark