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1 John 1:8-10 Father, forgive us... ...for we walk in our own ways too often and think that we know better for ourselves than You do. We have ignored parts of Your word, those parts which are more difficult and demanding which require greater sacrifice and humility while congratulating ourselves for keeping other parts which come more easily for us. ...for in too many instances we are poor stewards of the gifts which You have placed at our disposal. We have wasted and mismanaged. We have expended too much time and too many resources on ourselves and not enough on those around us. We have let parts of your work suffer through our selfishness and neglect. ...for we have at times stood distant from those struggling with sin and the onslaughts of the devil and have failed to supply any comfort or support. We have judged them as being weak in faith, when in fact the burdens they bear and the battles they fight may be of such proportions that we would collapse if we were in their shoes. ...for we have at times loved the world more than You, and walked in fear of our enemies and in fear for our lives, afraid of what we might lose if we stood up for the truth and what is right. We have not allowed the gospel of Jesus Christ to shine out of us nor allowed Your Holy Spirit to lead us. We have rather trusted in ourselves than in Your power and grace working in us. ...for we have treated this relationship with You and Your Son Jesus as nothing more than a ritualistic exercise performed in a building rather than a sacred fellowship between Creator and creature, a covenant between Master and servant. We have seen our lives and our re-created selves still as belonging to us rather than seeing ourselves as Your workmanship designed for Your glory. Father, have mercy on us all. In the name of Christ Jesus, Amen.

Revelation 22:17 “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” - John 3:16 “Whoever” means just that - whoever! If you think your life has no meaning, if you are tired of constantly being beat down, if your money no longer buys you happiness, if your body is wracked with pain, if your heart has been broken so often it no longer hurts, if you are worried about the future, if you’ve been drunk too many times to count, if you’ve got needle tracks everywhere, if your conscience won’t let you rest, if your mind is in a constant state of confusion, if you know that your addiction is destroying you, if you don’t want to get out of bed in the morning, if you can’t sleep at night, if you are continually troubled with fears, if you just know there’s more to life, if you are empty inside, if you have only a couple of dollars in your pocket, if you have enough in your wallet to buy a city block, if you’re divorced, if you’ve dabbled in devil worship, if you’re not sure there’s a God, if you think nobody loves you, if you have a thirst which nothing has been able to satisfy, ...”Come.” ...take the water of life without cost.” Jesus is waiting for you with open arms. ><>Jeff

Isaiah 55:8-11 At times we see a bulldozer busy flattening a building or clearing off a piece of ground, and we ask ourselves, “I wonder what’s going in there?” It’s an obvious question. Brother Earl Williams used this illustration when discussing God’s working in a person’s life. He says that we should ask the same type of question when we see a Christian going through great hardship and testing. “I wonder what God is doing in that person’s life?” Or, closer to home: “I wonder what God is doing with me?” Brother Jim McGuiggan uses a similar illustration when we contemplate what God’s purposes might be as He works through events and circumstances. He says to consider a man riding a bicycle. “What’s he doing?” To the casual observer, he is just a man pedaling a bicycle. But depending on the situation, there may be a whole lot more going on. He may be a man who is following the doctor’s orders to get more exercise and lower his heart rate. He might be a man trying to please his wife and shed a few pounds. He might be a person simply riding to enjoy the fresh morning air and be alone with his thoughts. He might be testing out the bicycle which he is fixing up for his grandson. He might be going to the market to get a loaf of bread. He might be trying to get in shape for an up-coming race. Or he might just like to ride a bicycle! Usually, we can only wonder what God is doing. His purposes remain a mystery to us for His ways and thoughts are far superior to ours. Sometimes we have a good idea, but we cannot be sure until months, even years later. Looking back at some point, we can then see what the Lord has been working to accomplish. However, we can be sure that He has a purpose or two in mind, and that He is working to accomplish those purposes. And we know that His purposes are always good even though they might be painful for the time being. We must learn to trust God as we ask the question: “I wonder what God is doing?” ><> Jeff

James 1:27 Last year, many of you in the congregation participated in the Hope for Haiti’s Children Christmas “Joy Boxes” project. We packed ten boxes with toys, hygiene items and various incidentals and sent them on for the orphans and other children attending the HFHC schools. Here is a note from the staff of HFHC about last year: “It was more than we could ask for or imagine! Last year, amidst a pandemic and churches being unable to meet in person everyone STILL packed and sent over 3,000 Joy Boxes! That was enough for every child in all 10 schools to receive one! Participants went the extra mile and the children, who were facing even more hardship than normal in 2020, were reminded that God loves them and that they are not forgotten. Thank you!” Lord willing, this year we are planning to pack and ship twelve (12) Joy Boxes for these children. We already have their names and photographs. Five of the children are under the age of 5, and 7 are teenagers. We have received a list of the suggested items for each age group which will be available on the table in the front of the auditorium by next week along with a sign-up sheet if you wish to select certain items that you will purchase. If you would like to participate in this program this year, but are unable to personally shop for any of the items requested, you may give a donation to Shirley or Elisabeth, and it will be used to purchase items for the boxes. The deadline for bringing in the items is September 26. This is in order to double check that we are in compliance with the directions from the Joy Box Coordinator, to package the boxes, and to send them on so HFHC has sufficient time to get them to Haiti. James reminds us about supporting orphans, and other scriptures speak of helping those in need. Let’s all pitch in this year to help out these kids.

Acts 9:1-9; 22:6-16 That’s what Saul got - a good knock in the head! It was the proverbial wake up call! Saul was on the wrong side, doing the wrong things and believing everything was all right! So Jesus came down and sent this fired-up Pharisee to the ground in a blaze of brilliant light and with a dumbfounding question from out of the blue: “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” Saul was dumfounded. And blind. It was enough to put the fear of God into a person. So, Saul asks two questions of the Voice. “Who are you, Lord?” Good question. Good to know who has the power to appear out of nowhere and strike you blind. “I am Jesus the Nazarene, whom you are persecuting.” How that must have caused a sickening feeling in the pit of Saul’s stomach. It had been his recent passion to oppose this new teaching and persecute these Christians. Now he knows that this Jesus is truly who His disciples have been saying He is - the Son of God. Ouch! Saul asks his next question. “What shall I do, Lord?” Another good question. If you suddenly come face to face with the Son of God Himself and find out you’re doing some things very wrong, it’s really the only question to ask. Jesus told Saul to go on into Damascus where someone would come and tell him what to do. Saul went. Ananias came. Saul’s sight was restored. (This was only after the inner spiritual blindness was corrected.) Then he was told, “Get up and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on His name.” And Saul did. And Saul began to preach Jesus. There are times when we all need a good knock in the head like Saul. We have our Christian lives on cruise control. Church has become a ritual. We aren’t growing in the Lord. We do nothing different. We’re lukewarm. We may even hold to some beliefs and practices which aren’t found in the Scriptures. Look out! The Lord is coming with that good knock in the head. Will you be heart-ready like Saul with this question: “What shall I do Lord?” Hmmm? ><>Jeff

James 1:2-4 “Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.” James 1:2-4 Somebody will always... ...be more attractive than you. ...know more trivia answers than you. ...run faster than you. ...make a tastier casserole than you. ...make more money than you. ...keep a nicer house than you. ...hit a baseball farther than you. ...wear more stylish clothes than you. ...sing more beautifully than you. ...have more “followers” than you. ...win more trophies than you. Nobody should... ...be more honest than you. ...be kinder than you. ...be friendlier than you. ...work harder than you. ...speak more graciously than you. ...be more compassionate than you. ...love more deeply than you. ...be more at peace than you. ...be more forgiving than you. ...be more helpful than you. ...pray more fervently than you. ...honor Jesus more than you. ><> Jeff

Titus 2:11-14 We have all received them. You know, those pesky, irritating phone calls in which the caller wants you to support a candidate or cause of some kind. They always come at the most inconvenient times. Maybe you are sympathetic with the caller and maybe not, but one thing you must give credit for: the caller has a passion for his or her cause. You can tell by the excitement in the voice and by the fact that they won’t let you get off of the phone! I don’t know about the success rate for such calls, but they must prove worthwhile to some extent because they keep making them. Such type of calls remind me that in this area we the church have somewhat lost our way from what God desires. I’m speaking of passion or zeal. Paul wrote to Titus that the Christ gave Himself “to purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds.” Looking at the entire range of good works in the New Testament, we can see that this would include everything from feeding the hungry, visiting the sick, equipping the saints, and encouraging the weak to unceasing prayer and proclaiming the gospel. All of these should be done zealously in the name of Christ. However, have we grown weary in doing good and fallen into a “hum drum” Christianity? A going through the motions? An “I’ll do it if I have to” mentality? Certainly nothing undercuts a Christian’s witness to the world more than a good deed done reluctantly with a sour face or a word of the gospel spoken half-heartedly without joy. From where do zeal and passion arise? At least two primary sources: our faith and our love. Do you really believe that what you believe is really real and true? Do you absolutely love Jesus Christ with all of your heart, soul, mind and strength? If we look here first and do some soul-searching (with repentance), we might find ourselves eagerly offering help and making some “calls” on behalf of our beloved Savior. ><> Jeff

Jeremiah 31:3 Without controversy, the understanding of what love is among people today is varied and often far removed from the love taught in the Bible. Out in the world, love is often nothing more than romance and the feeling of excitement which accompanies it. This idea is reflected in some wedding vows which use an expression like “as long as love shall last.” For some, love is an attraction of two people simply for mutual benefit. For others, love is seen as caring when someone is in need. The re would be nearly as many opinions and views as there are people. We readily acknowledge that love defies any simple definition. Nowhere do the scriptures attempt to define love, but characteristics and examples of love are provided so that we might get a comprehensive view of this vital dimension of life. When the Spirit says that “God is love” (1 John 4:8), we are pointed to the nature and actions of God Himself to unveil the meaning of agape. One of the central characteristics of love (which separates its true meaning from human concepts) is provided for us by the prophet Jeremiah. When Israel was in her final days and many of Jerusalem’s inhabitants had already been carried away to Babylon, God speaks to His people through Jeremiah and affirms that they shall return from captivity and God would build her again. This is because God loves them “with an everlasting love.” Love which is true and real reflects the love of God - it is everlasting. It is a love which perseveres in good times and in bad. It continues when it is hurt and keeps pouring out good on its enemies. It is ever available to provide comfort, encouragement and shelter. It is undeterred by rejection and stands ready to forgive and to welcome back the wayward and the betrayer. It is a love which is faithful in all the storms, celebrations and seasons of life. Father, we pray that our love for You and for one another might become like your love for us - an everlasting love. ><>Jeff

John 12:24-26 My grandfather Shirley (Yes, you read correctly) was an elder in the church and also a song leader. I remember on numerous occasions when we would go to visit him and Grandma that he would be working on a new song to teach the congregation. After we got in the house, he’d pick up his songbook and tuning fork and say something like, “What do you think about this one?” Then he would start to sing and try to work out the melody. Often our Dad would join in. It’s a special memory. One of the songs which I specifically remember Grandpa working on was called None of Self and All of Thee (#565 in our current hymnal). It was one of the first songs through which I realized that the writer was using all of the verses to tell a story. The song encapsulates the conversion of a person to Christ Jesus and his/her subsequent spiritual maturing in the love of God. The first verse finds the individual proudly saying to Jesus, “All of self, and none of Thee.” But a view of the cross and the sacrificial blood of the Lord moves this honest heart to faintly say, “Some of self, and some of Thee.” The love of God is relentless, however, and as there is more and more awareness of the mercies of the Almighty, the heart is brought lower: “Less of self, and more of Thee.” In the last stanza, the singer has been overwhelmed by the love of God, and the song builds to a mighty end with “None of self, and all of Thee.” We should sing it more often. The sentiment in this song is found throughout scripture. It is a foundational theme in the relationship of mankind to its God. The cross of Christ is a powerful demonstration of the love of God. He loved us first, and our response is to return that love by humble submission and obedience; to present our bodies as living sacrifices. Jesus said that those who loved their own lives would lose them, but those who hated their lives would keep them for eternal life. None of self and all of Thee. Easier sung than done. ><> Jeff

Mark 3:35 For some time now in our ministry meeting, we brothers have been discussing (and praying), about what our congregation ministries, Bible studies, etc. should be as we move out of this pandemic. In considering the will of God as revealed in His word, we have agreed that we have done some things well, some things not so well, and some other things hardly at all. It seems like this is a good time to refocus on what the Lord has revealed in scripture for us to be about and how to move further in the direction of becoming the people He wants us to be. We are looking for your feedback, so we’re going to share the scriptures which we have been considering. 1) Matthew 28:18-20 - How have we been doing at proclaiming the gospel and making disciples? How can we do better? 2) Romans 12:1-8 - Are you being given opportunities to use your gifts and talents? Would you like some help in discovering and using your talents? 3) Ephesians 4:11-16 - How have we been doing in training and equipping ourselves to serve and do the work of the Lord? In what areas would you like to be trained to serve? 4) 1 Thessalonians 5:14 - How good a job do we do in supporting our weaker brothers and sisters? How can we improve? 5) 2 Timothy 2:2 - How well are we training our brothers for leadership and teaching roles in the church and family? How can we do better? 6) 2 Peter 3:18 - Do you see yourself growing in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior? What else do you need? Please read and consider these words of the Lord prayerfully. Let one of the elders, deacons or minister know your thoughts. We want to be pleasing to Him in all things as we go forward.

Matthew 23:23 Jesus had a lot to say to the scribes and Pharisees recorded for us in Matthew 23. For the most part, it wasn’t good to say the least. Hypocrisy, lawlessness, oppression, upside down values - the list is grievous. One of the things which He singled out was that they were very meticulous in tithing the herbs from their kitchen gardens but had failed by neglecting the “weightier” (more important) matters or provisions of the law. These were such things as justice, mercy and faithfulness. We scratch our heads and wonder how they could do that! Well, it’s quite easy, because it’s easy! Consider. Which would be easier? To clip about 10% of the mint from your garden and take it with you the next time you went to the temple OR to get up early, go to the city gate, and plead the cause of a widow who was being ripped off by some shyster merchant? It’s so easy to take the easy road - unless we are devoted to God and the things which matter to Him. Then our heart and our conscience will move us to pursue the weightier matters. Let’s take a little survey. Be honest with yourself before God. Which bothers you more? The fact that hundreds of thousands died in the COVID pandemic, or the fact that hundreds of thousands died during the same time without Christ? Which bothers you more? The fact that millions on this earth go without enough food every day, or the fact that millions go without the word of God every day? For whom do you pray more? The sick or the lost? For whom do you pray more? The country or the church? So, how did you answer? We can fool ourselves, but not if we’re honest. Of course, we can never fool God. Jesus said: “...where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:21). Are you focused on the weightier matters? ><>Jeff

Luke 16:13 Jesus is quite plain about it: “No servant can serve two masters...” He says it’s an “either-or” situation. It’s love versus hate; devotion versus despising. No in between. No part time. No straddling the fence. No back and forth. But here is the blessed gift from God: He let’s us choose! We have been given the free will to make these life choices, and He informs us of the blessings and consequences for our choices. So how well have you been choosing? What is it for you? Honor God or favor the world? Seek the truth or accept the lies? Do what’s right or practice what’s wrong? Love others or act selfishly? Pursue righteousness or engage in unrighteousness? Be diligent or act carelessly? Give or take? Follow the Word or listen to your heart? Obey the Lord or follow the devil? Share the gospel or keep it to yourself? Desire the good or crave the evil? Work hard or hardly work? Walk in the Spirit or indulge the flesh? Resist the temptation or give in to the urge? Forgive or hold the grudge? Worship God alone or keep some idols in your heart? Tend to your soul or build bigger barns? Humble yourself or strut your stuff? Speak wisely or just talk a lot? Love the Lord your God with your whole being or not? Serve Jesus or do what you want? Take these exhortations to heart or ignore them? ><> Jeff