Peace that overcomes weakness and fear.

There’s An APP for That … Series / Peace that overcomes weakness and fear.
 
How strong is God in your life? How powerful is He in your life? How much is He in your life? The truth is if we can’t answer “God is strong in my life” then we probably enjoy little to no peace. When we believe God is working in our lives, we commit to and do big things. Can you honestly say the following words and mean them?

“I can do all this through him who gives me strength.” Philippians 4:13 NIV

The things we do, the way we act is connected to the strength of our God. Most of us have a hard time believing that the all powerful, always strong, and forever loving God is with us. The smaller or lesser view of God we have the more powerful our fears and stress will be. There is no peace if we believe we have a weak God. If God is not our strength, then all the problems and struggles of life fall on us. That’s stressful! Imagine everyday not being determined by the powerful and loving God working in our lives, but rather our confidence and faith being determined by the random events of each day. There is no peace in that. If you feel weak, pushed around, filled with fear; there’s an app for that. It is found in letting God be big and strong in your life.

Small Group Lesson 1: Patience

There’s An APP for That … Series

Life Group Lesson 1: Patience / January 30, 2011

Do you use your mobile phone too much, hardly ever, or just right?

What is the funniest thing you ever saw someone do because they were too busy talking on their phone?

Do you own a smart phone? If so what is your favorite app? Why?

Explain what a smart phone and app is. Smart phones have apps (applications) that can help you with just about anything you do or want to know. The problem is that we have not found apps on our phones that help us be better people. I have not found an app on my phone that will help me live with joy, peace, kindness, or patience. READ Galatians 5:1, 16, 22-25

The Bible is a place you can go to find all the apps you need to live your life.

What are the fruit of the Spirit?

How do the help us be better Christians (better people)?

What do these verses say that the Holy Spirit will do for us?

Have you ever experienced the Spirit guiding you? Explain.

How has being a Christian helped you be more patient?

Why is it easier to be patient with a circumstance rather than with people?

PATIENCE in this verse is the word “Makrothumia”. It means “to be slow to anger with someone, or simply to wait and be patient with someone. To be patient here means, don’t be ready to attack someone when you don’t get your way.

What do you do to be patient when someone repeatedly offends or bothers you?
Read 2 Peter 3:9.
In Scripture we learn that God is “slow to anger and abounding in love.” God is intentionally patient with us. Why?
Possible answers: Because His goal is to save us, to teach us to change our lives, to repent. God is not just waiting around for us, He is working on us, changing us so that we can grow in His love and be more like Him.
How does God’s patience with you inspire you to be more patient with others?

Where plan practice godly patience this week?

Close in prayer.

There’s An App For That

By the way, I love my i phone!!!

The popularity of smart phones are growing each day, it seems like every other person between the age of 5 and 95 have them. Have you heard the phrase “there’s an app for that”? Smart phones have apps (applications) that can help you with just about anything you do or want to know. Do you need to know what the weather in Hong Kong is like, there’s an app for that. Would you like to know the shortest route to the hospital, there’s an app for that as well. My phone has all kinds of apps for all kinds of needs. I’ve got a map app, calculator app, movie listing app, weather app, level and measuring app, Bible apps, news apps, and even a game app called “Angry Birds”. We see people on their phones using their applications everyday everywhere. People risk their lives to be able to use their phones. People die every day trying to drive and use their phones. The other day I saw a man walk out into the street in front of a moving car, he didn’t look, the car threw on it brakes and swerved to miss him. He didn’t even notice, because his head was buried into his phone. It is as if the world has decided it cannot live without the applications that smart phones have to offer. The problem is that I have not found apps on my phone that will help me be a better father or husband. I have not found an app that will help me forgive or not lose my temper. I have not found an app on my phone that will help me live with joy, peace, kindness, or patience. Yet the apostle Peter said “His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life” 2 Peter 1:3 NIV. So if you need joy there is an app for that. If you need patience or mercy, there is an app for that as well. As Peter just said, because of Jesus we have an app for every need. The more we read God’s word the more we learn not only how much God loves us, but how much God can help us. I encourage you to read your Bible more, pick it up and read it; you will be blessed if you do. By the way, if you don’t own a Bible but you may own a smart phone, if so, download a Bible app on it. Wow, now that we have the Bible app on our phones we can truly say we have an app for everything.

A Class V Prayer

I often try to use words to inspire people to pray.  Sometimes events make prayer a natural thing to do.  When you are traveling down the Gauley River in West Virginia, prayer has an amazing way of finding its way out of our lips.  In the above picture is me (Vic Pruett), Randy Brooks, Raleigh Brooks, Don Adkins (my father in law), Kent Burnett, and Josh Shelton (who became a father just yesterday).  It was a fun ONE TIME event. 

When Life Attacks

Have you seen those TV shows on cable called “When Animal’s Attack?” The idea of the show is that you have a person walking near a wild animal. The person probably shouldn’t be around an animal that has the ability to hurt or kill them. There is of course a video camera filming this person as they get closer to the wild animal. Then out of nowhere the animal just jumps and attacks this person. And everyone acts surprised when the wild animal attacks. It’s funny and sad when you hear someone say, “I just didn’t think that lion would hurt anybody”. Can these people not hear what they are saying? It’s a wild animal, that’s what they do. Animals can attack, and if you mess with them, they will attack, and don’t be surprised when they do.
In Matthew 7 Jesus tells the parable of the wise and foolish builders. The part we often forget about in the parable is that Jesus says there was a storm. There is no maybe about the storm; in fact Jesus is saying storms happen. Just as we know that animals can attack you out of nowhere, so can life, sometimes life attacks. The point of the parable is not how to avoid storms, because you can’t, everybody faces struggle and storms. The point of the parable is that the only way to overcome the storms of life is to be connected to Jesus. With Jesus as your rock you will overcome every struggle life throws at you. That is why we must be building our lives each day upon the powerful words and promises of God. May God bless you in both sunny and stormy days.

When Life Attacks Small Group Lesson

Have you ever been attacked by a wild or tame animal? If so, what happened?
How would you define fear & anxiety?

Sometimes life attacks. We all experience pain & struggle. Cars break, accidents happen, we get sick, someone we love gets sick, or we lose something or someone. When life attacks, it hurts. Jesus knows that when life doesn’t go our way, that we have a tendency to be overwhelmed with anxiety, worry, & discontentment. Notice how many times Jesus uses the word worry as we read Matthew 6:25-34.

In v.25, what does Jesus say about food and clothes? What is His point?
Idea: Vic’s opinion, life is more than those things. Your thoughts?
In v.26, Jesus illustrates the lesson by talking about the birds of the air and the storing of resources in barns. What is Jesus’ point here?
Why is it dangerous to live with the idea that we “live to eat”, “live for clothes”, or “live to store up resources”?

When we live that way we make clothing, food, and resources our god. We put our faith in things when we live for them. Why would living for things cause worry?
IDEA: It causes worry because we are afraid we will lose those things.

READ 1 Chronicles 4:9-10
“9 Now Jabez was more honorable than his brothers, and his mother called his name Jabez, saying, “Because I bore him in pain.” 10 And Jabez called on the God of Israel saying, “Oh, that You would bless me indeed, and enlarge my territory, that Your hand would be with me, and that You would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain!” So God granted him what he requested.” 1 Chronicles 4:9-10 NKJV

Why was Jabez given his name?

How would you like it if you were defined by the pain that you caused others?

What struggle do you allow to define you as person?

Notice in the NKJV that Jabez asked God to bless him so that he will longer cause others pain. It is possible that the guilt of causing his mother pain caused him great pain. **Some thoughts here were inspired by Bruce Wilkerson the author of "The Prayer of Jabez".

Why do we allow guilt, fear, and anxiety to define who we are?

Because of his faith and prayer life, Jabez is no longer synonym nous with pain, but with blessing. Prayer has the power to redefine who we are and what we do. If we seek first His Kingdom and righteousness as Jesus said we should in Matthew 6 we will have the power to overcome the storms and struggles that life may throw our way. Close in Prayer.

Surviving Disappointment / Small Group Lesson

Surviving Disappointment / Life Group Lesson
January 16, 2011 / WHCOC

• If you don’t mind, please share a time when things did not go to plan. Go around the group. (Ask everyone to introduce themselves.)

• In life we all face disappointment. How would you define or explain disappointment?
IDEA: We all face spiritual, professional, personal struggle and disappointment in life. The priority is not really to avoid being disappointed but to learn from it and overcome it.

• What has helped you in the past in overcoming disappointment?
Read Romans 8:28-30; 37-39.

• How does knowing that God works for our good help you overcome disappointment?
IDEA: In v.30 it says God has a predestined plan that will help us overcome the struggles of this life; of course the plan is directly connected to Jesus.

• How does following the example of Jesus help you overcome struggle & disappointment?
• Did Jesus ever face disappointment & hardship? (examples I thought of: In Garden He was filled with sorrow, when Lazarus died he wept, he was angry at the money changers at the Temple, He was tempted by Satan, he was crucified)

• What did He do when faced with those struggles?
READ Proverbs 24:16
IDEA: Solomon says sometimes even righteous people fall. The number “7” in the Bible is a number that is indefinite, it means that things can happen over and over. The writer uses the number 7 not to be exact about a number, but to say that all people struggle and fail, unfortunately it happens countless times. But there is also good news, in v.16 Solomon says that even though you at times fall, you can rise again.
• The reason we will rise again is because of God. What examples “rising” or “resurrection” do you know of in the Bible? How does this encourage you?

READ Hebrews 11:1-3
• How is faith in God important especially when we hurt or struggle?
IDEA: The next 35 verses give an account of people who had fallen many times, and yet their faith brought them back to their feet. By faith, these people trusted & followed God, and God was faithful to them.
• How does knowing that God has a purpose for you help you in the most difficult of times?
CONCLUSION: Commit to God that even on your darkest day, in the deepest disappointment, commit to Him saying “I will use this somehow to bring glory to Him.”
Close in prayer.

Hospice or Hospital?

When we are sick and go to the hospital, we go there with the intention of getting well, that we would be healed. To be at the hospital requires humility, an understanding that in order to get well we need help, that we must trust the doctors and nurses who are treating us. When we go the hospital we have a goal in mind, that we would be healed, so that we can go out into the world and live. People leave the hospital with their health changed for the better, ready to change the world.

I have heard people describe the church as a hospital for sinners. As Christians we know we can’t make it on our own, that we need the help of the great physician in order to have life to the full.
Similar to hospitals are hospice care centers. They do an incredible work in these places. They help people who are dying; they make them comfortable in their last days. When one goes into hospice care they are preparing to die.
So when we think of what the church is or what it should be; do we act like a hospital for sinners or do we act like a hospice for sinners? Do we worship God to be challenged and changed or do we worship him to be comfortable in our last days? We are not called to live in spiritual hospice care; we are called to be transformed into His likeness, to experience the comfort, joy, and salvation that can only be found in Him. We are not spiritual hospice care, we are a hospital & rehab center that celebrates the life that God gives us. As the church, we connect with the God who changes us, and who gives us new life. Now that He has transformed and healed us, let us go out and transform the World.

Some of the thoughts on hospice care were inspired by the book Transformational Church, written by Thom Rainer and Ed Stetzer. 

Merry Christmas

Two young boys were spending the night at their grandparents the week before Christmas. At bedtime, the two boys knelt beside their beds to say their prayers when the youngest one began praying at the top of his lungs. "I PRAY FOR A NEW BICYCLE..." "I PRAY FOR A NEW NINTENDO..." "I PRAY FOR A NEW IPOD..." His older brother leaned over and nudged the younger brother and said, "Why are you shouting your prayers? God isn't deaf." To which the little brother replied, "No, but Grandma is!" From: cybersalt.org/cleanlaugh

I hope you have had a wonderful Christmas and warm holiday season. God blesses us each day with both grace and opportunities. His grace is overwhelming in that the gift of salvation is given with such abundance and love. Each day we are reminded of our sin and weakness, and yet if we look to Him we also see His mercy and providence. The opportunities are also abundant, each day we meet people that need to be loved, encouraged, helped, and forgiven. When we meet these people we are given an opportunity to share the love and grace that has been given to us. Take the opportunity and share in the ministry of God’s grace. It is truly a gift to be loved by God. Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!

ps.  I will be in Florida for Christmas enjoying the hollidays the way they were intended; with palm trees and sunny weather!

Think like Toys R US

Martin Luther wrote, “Christ is the kind of person who is not ashamed of sinners—in fact, he even puts them in his family tree! Now if the Lord does that here, so ought we to despise no one … but put ourselves right in the middle of the fight for sinners and help them.”


I think we all agree with Martin Luther’s quote. Jesus came to this earth to save sinners, and He did it by aggressively inserting himself into our world. Jesus knew that the best way to reach sinners was to bring God’s love to them, to reach out to the hopeless and give them hope. The business world understands that if you want to reach people with your products, you can’t wait till they come to you, you must go to them if you want to be successful. Please read the following article from Mae Anderson:

“Toys "R" Us will be reaching out to you soon. Due to the economic downturn and tough competition, the toy chain has started to change their strategy. Specifically, in 2010 Toys "R" Us plans to "invade" shopping malls around the country by opening 600 express stores and hiring 10,000 part-time seasonal employees. Rather than waiting for customers to come to their traditional stores, they are finding ways to reach out. It's all part of their big vision to share their products with the world. According to CEO Gerald Storch, "We've been very aggressive [about reaching people] during the economic downturn, and this is another aggressive action." Spurred on by last year's success, they're not asking, "How can we survive this year?" Instead, they're trying to make an impact by asking, "How big can we make this?" It's an impressive display of creative, visionary thinking about how to reach people where they're at.”

In life, business, and in church we are never successful when we sit and wait for people to come to us. That is why the great commission doesn’t say “Sit and wait for the world to come to you”, instead it says “Go into all the world”. As a new year begins, let us commit to follow the example of Jesus by reaching out to sinners and sharing with them the truth, love, and grace of God. Merry Christmas & Get - R Done!

A Place for Prayer

In Matthew 21 Jesus entered into the Temple, there he witnessed religious people acting like worldly people. In the story Jesus entered the Temple to find the Pharisees filling the court of the Gentiles into a place of money exchange tables and consumerism. Jesus saw all of this and got angry. He kicked over the tables and drove them out with a whip he made. When Jesus did that, he quoted Isaiah 56:7.

“7 these I will bring to my holy mountain and give them joy in my house of prayer. Their burnt offerings and sacrifices will be accepted on my altar; for my house will be called a house of prayer for all nations.” Isaiah 56:7 NIV

That part of the Temple was designed for Gentiles to come and learn about God. It was meant to be a place that they could connect to Him in prayer. Yet there was no room for the outsider, there was no place for prayer, because they were too focused on making money and keeping up with the world. I’m terrified by this story because I can relate to the Pharisees. So much of my life has been about keeping up with the world, that I have not allowed this temple (my life) to be a place of prayer or a place that is welcoming to outsiders. It is time to give the Temple (our lives) back to God. Jesus took the blame for sin, not that we could keep on being worldly and sinful; He took the blame so that we could be restored into a Temple of prayer and holiness.

Babies Change Everything!



Abby & Jack at Lamberts Restaurant in Sikeston, Mo 

 When Abby was born, a friend of mine made a very prophetic and true statement; he said everything in your life has changed. I said “I know”. He said, “no you don’t. Not just your schedule and activities will change, but who you are will continue to change. Your love for that child will change you, and transform you.” My friend was right; every day I am reminded that my life has changed, that things are different now, not because of one but two babies have come into my life. I’m not talking about little changes like stepping on Lego’s, waiting in car rider lines, cleaning weird carpet stains, going to choir concerts, or soccer games. With the arrival of children I have learned patience, forgiveness, love, and responsibility. Children can change us for the better.  Two thousand years ago a baby arrived and did just that for whole world. When Jesus came to this earth, He changed it forever, because of Him our world will never be the same again. He grew into a man, into a healer, a teacher, and a savior. As He walked on this earth, Jesus demanded that we would change our ways and become more like Him and less like the world. When Jesus met people, He changed them forever. In a few weeks, many people will celebrate the birth of Christ. When Jesus came to this earth, He came to connect us back to God. At Christmas & New Years, many people evaluate who they are and where they are going in life. That is not a bad idea. Jesus came to this earth to restore us into holy and blameless people who make room for those who are in need; we should use this time to recommit to the changed life He has called us to.

Jesus Everyday part 1

When do you see Jesus? Do you see Him everyday, once a week, or maybe you have never seen Him at all. My short little thought for the day is this, it revolves around the notion that we all have the ability to see Jesus if we want to. Have you ever seen the movie “A Beautiful Mind”? The story is about a math genius named John Nash who was able to see math equations in every day settings. His work earned him the Nobel Prize in 1994. John was a troubled man who battled Schizophrenia, but no one can argue that this man was capable of seeing things that most of us cannot.
We might not be able to see mathematical equations like John Nash, but I do believe we are all blessed with the ability to see the work of Jesus in everyday life. The Holy Spirit empowers us to see the work of our creator if we allow Him to. The problem is that we are either too busy or too misguided to see what God is doing in right front of us. The prophet Elisha had to comfort his servant who went outside one morning to see the giant Aramean army surrounding them. Elisha prayed for his servant that he might see God at work in that event; and at that moment Elisha’s servant saw an even more powerful army of God surrounding the army that surrounded him. We often panic over things that God has complete control over, and it is out of panic that we make some of the most regrettable decisions we could ever make. So the next time you feel surrounded by trouble, take another look to see that God surrounds that which surrounds you. That way you can react not out of fear but by faith in Him who loves you.

Friendly or Connected

I have over 400 friends on Facebook, and most of them I never talk to, see, or hear from. They are the ideal when it comes to low maintenance friendships. I’m concerned that the modern world has forgotten what friendship really is. In the movie Tombstone, someone asked Doc Holliday why he was always risking his life for Wyatt Earp; Doc Holliday said “because Wyatt Earp is my friend”. The man asking the question then said, “well I have a lot of friends” saying it in a trivial way. Doc Holliday said “I don’t”. Maybe we have trivialized what relationships are? I am a time share owner. Last year I got a letter in the mail saying “thank you for being part of the Interval family”. They call me family, but I don’t know them, they don’t know me. Maybe we have trivialized what family is. When it comes to church, what does it mean to be a member? I know that God adds us to the church when we are baptized, but what does it mean to be part of a congregation, to be part of a church family? If we are not careful, church rolls can look like a Facebook page, where we have lots of friends but no connections. There is not one place in the Bible that tells us that we need to be a friendly church, but there are many places that say we need to be a connected church. That is what I think Paul was talking about in Romans 1:11-12 when he said “ 11 I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong— 12 that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith.” Romans 1:11-12 NIV. Paul is saying here, I want to be with you; I want to be with my family. That kind of passion for each other is hard to find. The question should not be “are we a friendly church?” There answer there is yes, we are friendly. The truth is, I’m friendly at Kroger, at Walmart, and at football games, but friendly doesn’t build relationships. The real question should be, do people need each other here, do they connect here, do they trust, love, and help each other? Paul says I want to build you up, that we can be mutually encouraged. Some scholars say Paul is just being humble, but what if Paul is not just flattering these people, what if he is telling the truth? Paul needed these people just as much as they needed him. Strong spiritual relationships go further than friendliness, they require investment and a mutual level of appreciation and honesty. God is in the saving people and changing lives business, He invites His church to be part of that mission. The way we do that is to go beyond friendliness; so that we can strive for connectedness.

Prayer guide / Relationships

All in the name of Jesus!

Prayer guide / Relationships

Get r Done! Fall 2010

MORNING PRAYER: Think about the talents and gifts God has blessed you with.  Read Romans 12:1-8.  Ask God to help you develop and use those gifts today to bring Him honor & glory.

Prayer: Father I want your will to guide and transform me today.  Help me to love people the way you love them, give me the vision to see the needs of others, and the desire to use my gifts to help them.  I pray that your grace will continue to work powerfully in my life.  Help my family & I to invest our lives in the WHCOC family.  Teach and mold me into the person you want me to be.  AMEN

NOON PRAYER:   “3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, 4 not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. 5 In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus.” Philippians 2:3-5 NIV

Prayer: Father, for the good things that have happened today I praise you, as for the trials and temptations I have encountered I hand them over to you.  Help me to love the people around me, help me to be like Jesus to them. May you be glorified in each moment of my day.  Show me who I need to serve and share the story of Jesus with.  AMEN

EVENING PRAYER: In the evening we reflect on the events of the day.  It is a time we can ask important questions, repent for sins, and praise God for victories.  READ Romans 12:9-21

Prayer: Father, thank you for your guidance, your grace, and your love.  Forgive me when I was selfish or proud.  Transform my heart, help me to be more like your son each day.  Guide my children & spouse to walk with you.  Thank you for the salvation and love that you offer.  Be with my WHCoC family, transform us into a church the loves you and each other.  AMEN

Life Group Discussion: Peace & Unity

“Get -R Done” Sermon Series

Life Group Discussion Questions / November 7, 2010
What kind of things disrupt unity within any group (church included)?

In what ways can each member be responsible for maintaining unity within a group?

How would you describe a leader?
Read Mark 10:35.
James and John asked Jesus for an elevated position, one of distinction. What did Jesus mean when he told them “you do not know what you are asking?”

How is the apostles view of leadership flawed according to Jesus?

Do these verses change the way you view leadership? How?

Notice v.41, how did the pursuit of the wrong kind of leadership cause division within the Apostles?

In v.43, Jesus said that the church doesn’t need supermen leaders, it needs leaders who will serve, lead by example, and will put others first. Why is leadership that is filled humility and led by example a more effective leadership style?

Jesus prayed that the church would be one, bonded like the Father and Son are one. In v.21, Jesus goes from using words like “they” to words like “us” or “we”. As Jesus says here, if we are going to be part of God’s mission to make disciples then we cannot be a church full of “I’s”, “they’s” or “thems”, the church must be a “we”.

Why do we so quickly refer to other church members and church leaders as they, rather than we?

Many football fans refer to their favorite team as “we”. Saying things like “we beat them this week” or “we need a better quarterback.”

Why do we so easily connect with our favorite team as a “we” but often speak of our church as a bunch of “theys”?

What can each of us do personally to change that?

READ Colossians 3:14-16
Notice v.15, when someone sees you coming, do they know that you are bringing peace?

IDEA: When peace rules in our hearts, we are quick to unite in the bonds of Jesus rather than to divide over feelings or opinions. We cannot be so quick to separate ourselves from others, when Jesus said I want you to be united and one. As disciples we are responsible for building each other up, encouraging them to grow closer to God and to others. In a way we are all leaders, living an example of humility and grace. What are some things each of us can do to promote unity within our church?
Close in prayer…

I Come In Peace

“19 On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” 20 After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord. 21 Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” 22 And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive anyone’s sins, their sins are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.” John 20:19-23 NIV

In v.19 we find the disciples behind locked doors living in fear. There was no peace and not much unity. Just a few days earlier one of them had betrayed Jesus, another denied Him, and the rest ran away. They treated their friend like dirt, they abandoned Jesus, they left him to die alone. They were living with shame. Could you imagine how you would have felt if your friends had abandoned you during your most difficult hour? But Jesus came to them and said “Peace be with you!” Jesus did not judge them, yell at them, or even separate himself from them; instead He brought peace to them. Shalom is the Hebrew word for Peace, it is a greeting with a deep meaning. By saying “peace to you” Jesus is saying we are not war, instead everything I do will be done to bring you closer to God and to each other. Jesus took these broken disciples and gave them peace.

A North Korean assassin named Kim Shin Jo in January of 1968 with a team of 31 assassins from North Korean snuck across the border in to South Korea in an attempt to kill the president of South Korea. The team of 31 of North Koreans made it to within a few hundred meters of the president's residence before they were detected. A fierce battle ensued, killing 30 South Koreans. All of the North Korean soldiers were killed, except one who escaped and Kim Shin Jo, who was captured. After months of interrogation, and through a surprising friendship with a South Korean army general, Kim Shin Jo's hard heart started to change. Later he would confess, "I tried to kill the president. I was the enemy. But the South Korean people showed me sympathy and forgiveness. I was touched and moved." The South Korean government eventually released Kim Shin Jo. Over the next three decades he worked for the military, became a citizen, and then married and raised a family. Finally, he became a church minister. He said what changed him, what transformed him from being a killer into becoming a South Korean citizen was that even though he treated South Korean people like the enemy, the South Korean people treated him like a brother. FROM:"South Korean pastor is also a trained killer," CNN Religion blog (8-9-2010)

Can we do that as God’s people? Can we treat people no matter what they have done or who they are like family? Jesus could have called us His enemy, but He chose instead to help us become His family. That is why Jesus said, “Peace be with you!” With Jesus a church can be one loving family rather than angry factions.

Stacyisms "Let it go, but don't let it go on!"

My wife is very quick and witty when it comes to any kind of dialogue.  So every now and then I will start posting these interesting little phrases that she so often comes up with.  The Stacyism for this week is:

 "I know I need to let it go, but I don't have to let it go on". 

You have to admit, that is good and pretty wise, don't tell her I said that.  For those of you who need some context for she said it is this; sometimes we face troubling and frustrating behavior from the same people on a regualer basis.  In order to get along we know that we have to let that frustration go if we are going to continue having a relationship with that individual.  To forgive and yet address bad behaviour in others is no easy task, and the best advise in how to do that is found in words of Jesus in Matthew 18.  In that chapter Jesus says that not only must we forgive, but we need to lovingly confront bad behavior if we are to maintain unity.  Even though Jesus didn't say it the same way, I think He is is the one that inspires us to "let things go, but not let them go on!". 

Prayer Guide

All in the name of Jesus!

WHCOC Prayer guide.
Get r Done! Fall 2010

MORNING PRAYER: We pray each morning to give God our first moments. Before anything else we allow God to focus our goals and plans for the upcoming day. Read Psalm 23.
Prayer: The Lord is my shepherd, that is all I want, that is all that I need. Guide me today, protect me and my family as we go out into the world. Stay with me each moment so that you may be the focus of all that I do . I pray that you would help me invest in things that are eternal, that you would show me how to lead my family & friends closer to you. Help my family & I to invest our lives in the WHCOC family. Teach me and mold into the person you want me to be. AMEN



NOON PRAYER: Consider that what truly defines your day is nothing that the world throws at you. What defines today and your life is your relationship with God. Someone around you needs to be encouraged, they need to see Jesus in your actions. Maybe it is time that you share your faith with that person.
Prayer: Father, even though I am busy in the middle of the day I more than anything want to be with you. Help me to see the people around me the way you see them. May you be glorified in every situation I encounter. Show me who I need to serve and share the story of Jesus with. AMEN



EVENING PRAYER: In the evening we reflect on the events of the day. It is a time we can ask important questions, repent for sins, and praise God for victories. READ Psalm 27
Prayer: Father, more than anything I want to hear your word as I begin my day. Guide me as I consider that you want me to be successful in following your will. I commit to making your will my will. Be with my WHCoC family, guide our church in becoming one that obeys your will each day, help it to be fruitful & pleasing to you. AMEN

A Little Something That I Learned From Acts 16…

Early in his visit to Macedonia Paul converted a rich woman, a poor slave girl who was demon possessed, and a middle class soldier. It didn’t matter what their social standing was, Paul shared the story of Jesus with them. Right before Paul met these people, he was on his way to pray. I don’t think that was a coincidence. Prayer has a way of helping us see where God is working, it also gives us the desire to take on opportunities that God gives us to glorify Him. If we want to get things done for God, we must begin with prayer. Prayer helps us to see God’s activity, it helps us be ready to share the wonderful story of Jesus.
Even though Paul was a successful missionary, he was faced with risk and hardship. He was attacked, beaten, and thrown in jail. God delivered Paul from the jail, but that doesn’t’ change the fact that he was beaten and mistreated. Rather than quit or complain, we see that Paul grew closer to God. To be on a mission for God is not always easy, in fact it requires a commitment to connect with God. It begins with prayer, with us asking for God’s leading and direction.