Notes of Faith September 11, 2024

Notes of Faith September 11, 2024

Laughter Through Tiers

Clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance.

Colossians 3:12-13, NIV

During his speech at the wedding reception, a groom wiped his eyes and said, “Ladies and gentlemen, it’s been a very emotional day. Even the wedding cake is in tiers.”

Most marriages have their share of tears, but we must determine that hardships will only bring us closer to the one we love. It’s a decision we make. When a couple faces emotional times, they can turn to the Lord and lean on one another.

The Bible says marital love is modeled after the love Christ feels for His Bride—the Church (Ephesians 5:25). Christ doesn’t love us because of our merits. He knows we’re sinners. He loves us just because He loves us (Deuteronomy 7:7-8). He gave Himself for us, unworthy as we are. In the same way, the love of Christ within us seeks to serve, not to be served.

Our love in marriage must embrace all the faults and failures we bring to the relationship. Christ loves us as we are. Ask God to enable you to love your spouse as Christ loves you. That’s a love that never ends.

A happy marriage is the union of two good forgivers.

Ruth Graham

Col 3:12-21

12 So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience; 13 bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you. 14 Beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity. 15 Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful. 16 Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God. 17 Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.

18 Wives, be subject to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. 19 Husbands, love your wives and do not be embittered against them. 20 Children, be obedient to your parents in all things, for this is well-pleasing to the Lord. 21 Fathers, do not exasperate your children, so that they will not lose heart.

NASU

During counseling of couples desiring to be married I ask them why they want to be married and the usual answer is, “I love them”. But when I ask them to define that love they stumble and stammer for an answer. Love does carry forgiveness within it. The Scriptures say that God is love and His love displays the greatest of sacrifice, therefore, I have shared with these couples that if they want to have the closest of relationships with one another and with God, it will involve self-sacrifice.

Let us love, willing to forgive and sacrifice ourselves for the needs of others.

Pastor Dale

Notes of Faith September 10, 2024

Notes of Faith September 10, 2024

Spirit Submission

Be filled with the Spirit…submitting to one another in the fear of God.

Ephesians 5:18, 21

Ephesians 5 is the Bible’s definitive passage about being filled with the Holy Spirit. When we’re filled with the Spirit, we find ourselves more willing to be submissive to others. Submission is not an ugly quality but a godly one. Christ submitted to His Father’s will, though both were equally divine.

Paul applied this truth to marriage in Ephesians 5. With women, submission results in respect, for every man needs someone to respect him. With men, submission results in a deep love for their wives. That’s why the last verse of Ephesians 5 says, “Let each one of you in particular so love his own wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband” (verse 33).

When submission is understood from God’s perspective, it’s embraced as evidence of strength and godliness. The truth is, we all need love and respect; that means we must love and respect one another. Ask God to fill you with His Holy Spirit and help you with His great qualities of humility and submission.

I must learn that the purpose of my life belongs to God, not me.

Oswald Chambers

Luke 11:9-13

9 "So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 10 "For everyone who asks, receives; and he who seeks, finds; and to him who knocks, it will be opened. 11 "Now suppose one of you fathers is asked by his son for a fish; he will not give him a snake instead of a fish, will he? 12 "Or if he is asked for an egg, he will not give him a scorpion, will he? 13 "If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?"

NASU

John 14:16-17

16 "I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; 17 that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in

NASU

Acts 1:8

you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth."

NASU

Gal 5:22-26

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. 24 Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

25 If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit. 26 Let us not become boastful, challenging one another, envying one another.

NASU

Being in the Spirit, living a life submitted to the Spirit of God that lives within you, will produce fruit, Holy Spirit fruit. You will produce the love of God. The love of God is sacrificial. We must give ourselves in sacrifice for others. May we be more than willing to sacrifice our desires, our needs daily, for the eternal needs of those without the Holy Spirit, without the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, without God the Father as their all in all. Let us love everyone in our sphere of influence, praying that God would bring them to understand the truth and come to Jesus that they might be saved!

Pastor Dale

Notes of Faith September 9, 2024

Notes of Faith September 9, 2024

Trinity Springs

Both the singers and the players on instruments say, “All my springs are in you.”

Psalm 87:7

Trinity Springs in Idaho claims to have some of the oldest, deepest, freshest water on earth—it’s supposedly the oldest known water from the deepest known source. Perhaps that’s true, but here’s something we know for certain. The Holy Trinity provides us with living waters that can fill us to the brim. Jesus asked the Father, and He sent the Spirit, which is like a river flowing from within us (John 7:38).

We’re called to be filled with the Spirit, meaning we should yield every part of our lives to Jesus Christ so He can live His life through us by His Spirit. In doing so, we find the Spirit begins to develop Christ’s nine basic character traits within us: love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23).

A good prayer to offer today is the stanza in Adelaide Pollard’s hymn, “Have Thine Own Way, Lord.” Pray it aloud and ask God to fulfill it: “Have Thine own way, Lord! Have Thine own way! Hold o’er my being absolute sway. Fill with Thy Spirit till all shall see Christ only, always, living in me!”

Multitudes of Christians are living in a dry and thirsty land, not realizing that God has wells of living water that may be theirs for the asking.

C. R. Wilson

If we look at ourselves and even those that we consider the best of Christian leaders and followers of Christ; there is an intense problem with pride, a feeling that God is keeping that which we think is best from us. Therefore, we seek the things of the world to “make us happy”. We lose relationships because we fight with others even in our heart and mind, wanting to be above them in position, authority, to be first, to have the seats next to Christ in His kingdom. These things are foolish and hurtful to our lives and the influence that we can have for Jesus in our families, communities and the world. Let us STRIVE to yield to the Holy Spirit within us to produce the fruit of the Spirit! We will be happy as we see the glory of God when we submit to Him, humble ourselves, and serve those around us, and stop seeking status, position, money, in order to be above others. This does not build the kingdom of Christ, and that is why we are still here as His followers. Let us love and produce the fruit of the Holy Spirit.

Matt 7:17-21

every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. 18 A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Thus you will recognize them by their fruits.

ESV

John 15:1-5

"I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. 2 Every branch of mine that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. 3 Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. 4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. 5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.

ESV

Pastor Dale

Notes of Faith September 8, 2024

Notes of Faith September 8, 2024

God's Words of Life on Grandchildren

From everlasting to everlasting the Lord’s love is with those who fear Him, and His righteousness with their children’s children — with those who keep His covenant and remember to obey His precepts. — Psalm 103:17-18

May the Lord bless you from Zion; may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem all the days of your life. May you live to see your children’s children. — Psalm 128:5-6

Children’s children are a crown to the aged, and parents are the pride of their children. — Proverbs 17:6

Children are a heritage from the Lord. — Psalm 127:3

Devotional Thought on Grandchildren

I am looking at a picture received yesterday of my latest grandchild — a picture taken the very day of his birth. I have many happy and grateful thoughts as I gaze at it, but beneath them all is a wonderment amounting to awe.

Here he is, this little man, every feature and organ intact and in place, the intricately balanced whole perfectly adapted to his intricately complicated new environment. In the wildest flight of fancy can we conceive of a miracle more miraculous than this? And yet no less amazing and inexplicable, no less wonderful is every common thing in our common life; and we should be able to see it so if we were able to keep this baby’s fresh, new eyes.

God reveals to babes what is hidden from the wise and prudent and that only to the extent we are able to turn, and become like little children, is it given us to see the Kingdom of God.

~ John Knox

God’s Words of Life on Grandparents

The righteous will flourish like a palm tree, they will grow like a cedar of Lebanon; planted in the house of the Lord, they will flourish in the courts of our God They will still bear fruit in old age, they will stay fresh and green.

— Psalm 92:12-14

Whoever fears the Lord has a secure fortress, and for their children it will be a refuge. — Proverbs 14:26

Even when I am old and gray, do not forsake me, my God, till I declare your power to the next generation, Your mighty acts to all who are to come. — Psalm 71:18

I will open my mouth with a parable; I will utter hidden things, things from of old — things we have heard and known, things our ancestors have told us. We will not hide them from their descendants; we will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord, His power, and the wonders He has done. — Psalm 78:2-4

[Older women] can urge the younger women to love their husbands and children. — Titus 2:4

Devotional Thought on Grandparents

Laps open and ready for watching post-nap cartoons. Eyes crinkling in response to cartwheels and somersaults across the backyard. Heads thrown back in laughter during tickle sessions. Checks hidden in birthday cards. Games played on tables still sticky from holiday baking. Walks, hand in hand, through the leaves in the park. Ice cream on cones, stacked scoop upon scoop, licked in unison on an outside bench. Wrinkly hands curled atop piano keys while others gather around to listen.

Grandparents — we all bring offerings that no other can duplicate: An offering of wisdom that comes from living a lifetime. An offering of patience hewn from trial. An offering of laughter learned through making the most of both prosperous and lean times.

Indeed, we “still bear fruit in old age.” We “stay fresh and green” no matter our age (Psalm 92:14)! Let’s thank God for the gift of being a grandparent.

~ Elisa Morgan

Excerpted from God’s Words of Life for Grandmothers, copyright Zondervan.

They don’t have to be my grandkids for me to enjoy them. The miracle of every life is engrained on my heart through the Word of God. I give thanks for spending much of the last three weeks with little ones, some mine, some not, and being blessed by all of them, perhaps because I can give them back and not have to take them home…lol. Traveling today to California and our West Coast home. Already had our gate changed twice this morning. Only God knows the plans that lay ahead. Will see some of you soon. For others, I hope to see you before we meet with Christ in heaven.

Pastor Dale

Notes of Faith September 7, 2024

Notes of Faith September 7, 2024

God of Wonder: A Great God of Wonders

September 7, 2024

You are the God who does wonders; You have declared Your strength among the peoples. Psalm 77:14

One of the greatest “power encounters” in biblical history took place when Elijah faced off against the prophets of Baal (1 Kings 18:16-46). Though Baal was an idol of stone, Elijah wanted to prove the superiority of Israel’s God: Which one would send down fire from heaven to consume a sacrifice on an altar? Baal failed, of course, providing reason for the often-heard refrain in Israel: “Who is so great a God as our God?” (Psalm 77:13)

The wonder-working power of God was the theme of Psalm 77, written during a time of distress and anguish. Israel’s first great power encounter—between Moses and Pharaoh in Egypt—fueled the psalmist’s thoughts (verses 15-20). He declared, “Surely I will remember Your wonders [miracles] of old.... You are the God who does wonders; You have declared Your strength among the peoples” (verses 11, 14). The God who worked wonders in Israel is the same God who can work wonders in our lives today.

Do you need a miracle from God? Remember that He is the God who is not only able but also willing to deliver His people.

The past has not exhausted the possibilities nor the demands for doing great things for God. E. M. Bounds

I believe that God has done many miracles in my life; some that I recognize and some that I remain totally unaware. I remember coming to the understanding of my sin and the judgment that it required, the saving mercy and grace that followed believing faith in Jesus, who paid the penalty for my sin and gave me eternal life with Him. What a miracle! The gift of my wife and children, even the first one that never saw a day outside the womb, are miracles of life. God is life. These are spectacular miracles of God and His gifts to me. My friends who have come to Christ, who endeavor to walk by faith, who lift me up and encourage me on our spiritual journey, are miracles made in the image of God that I praise and thank Him for every day. Maybe today would be a good time for you to take a few moments and reflect on the things of God that He does for you at a given time, some every day that we take for granted, and thank Him for the glory of the miracles that He continues to pour out on us.

Psalm 40:5

Many, Lord my God, are the wonders which You have done, And Your thoughts toward us; There is no one to compare with You. If I would declare and speak of them, They would be too numerous to count.

Psalm 72:18

Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel,

Who alone works wonders. NASB

1 Chronicles 16:9

Sing to Him, sing praises to Him; Speak of all His wonders.

God of Wonders

Song by

Third Day

Lord of all creation

Lord of water, earth and sky

The heavens are your Tabernacle

Glory to the Lord on high

And God of wonders beyond our galaxy

You are holy, holy

The universe declares Your majesty

You are holy, holy

Lord of heaven and earth

Lord of heaven and earth

So early in the morning

I will celebrate the light

As I stumble in the darkness

I will call your name by night

God of wonders beyond our galaxy

You are holy, holy

The universe declares Your majesty

You are holy, holy

Lord of heaven and earth

Lord of heaven and earth

Lord of heaven and earth

Lord of heaven and earth

Hallelujah! To the Lord of heaven and earth

Hallelujah! To the Lord of heaven and earth

Hallelujah! To the Lord of heaven and earth

The God of wonders beyond our galaxy (You)

You are holy, holy

Precious Lord, reveal Your heart to me

Father, holy, holy (Lord God Almighty)

The universe declares Your majesty (You are holy)

You are holy (yes you are), holy (holy You are)

Holy (Jesus saves), holy

Hallelujah! To the Lord of heaven and earth

Hallelujah! To the Lord of heaven and earth

Hallelujah! To the Lord of heaven and earth

Hallelujah! To the Lord of heaven and earth

Hallelujah! To the Lord of heaven and earth

Hallelujah! To the Lord of heaven and earth

Pastor Dale

Notes of Faith September 6, 2024

Notes of Faith September 6, 2024

Walk in Wisdom

See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil.

Ephesians 5:15-16

The first nine chapters of the book of Proverbs are recorded as the words (advice, teachings) of a father to his son on how to live a wise life. The Hebrew idea of wisdom is “skill”—avoiding spiritual and moral danger. Proverbs 2:1-6 describes the acquisition of wisdom as a process not unlike searching for hidden treasure—it takes time and diligence.

Recommended Reading:

Proverbs 2:12-22

Paul continues that idea in Ephesians 5:15-16, exhorting Christians to walk carefully and skillfully. Why is wisdom (skill) so necessary? “Because the days are evil.” This is an idea not unlike the ideas in Proverbs 1–9—that the path through life is filled with traps and snares of all kinds. The person who strolls through life unaware of these dangers will be easily caught by them. Thus the need to walk “circumspectly” (carefully), making the most of the limited time and opportunities we have.

As the example in James 4:13-17 points out, carefulness starts with consulting God on decisions and directions. Over time, our skill in discerning God’s will grows as we benefit from His guidance.

I pray as I walk about, when I lie down and when I rise up. And the answers are always coming.

George Müller

1My son, if you will receive my words

And treasure my commandments within you,

2Make your ear attentive to wisdom,

Incline your heart to understanding;

3For if you cry for discernment,

Lift your voice for understanding;

4If you seek her as silver

And search for her as for hidden treasures;

5Then you will discern the fear of the LORD

And discover the knowledge of God.

6For the LORD gives wisdom;

From His mouth come knowledge and understanding.

7He stores up sound wisdom for the upright;

He is a shield to those who walk in integrity,

8Guarding the paths of justice,

And He preserves the way of His godly ones.

9Then you will discern righteousness and justice

And equity and every good course.

10For wisdom will enter your heart

And knowledge will be pleasant to your soul;

11Discretion will guard you,

Understanding will watch over you,

12To deliver you from the way of evil,

From the man who speaks perverse things;

13From those who leave the paths of uprightness

To walk in the ways of darkness;

14Who delight in doing evil

And rejoice in the perversity of evil;

15Whose paths are crooked,

And who are devious in their ways;

16To deliver you from the strange woman,

From the adulteress who flatters with her words;

17That leaves the companion of her youth

And forgets the covenant of her God;

18For her house sinks down to death

And her tracks lead to the dead;

19None who go to her return again,

Nor do they reach the paths of life.

20So you will walk in the way of good men

And keep to the paths of the righteous.

21For the upright will live in the land

And the blameless will remain in it;

22But the wicked will be cut off from the land

And the treacherous will be uprooted from it.

The books of Proverbs and Ecclesiastes are filled with the wisdom of God. They teach us the truths of good and evil. Being in the Word of God daily will keep your heart and mind focused on the things of God, heaven, eternal things, and not on the temporal things of our life on earth. As you focus on things above, you will think and act more godly, more holy in your daily walk. You will not be sinless but you will sin less. You will yield and submit to the Holy Spirit within you to obey and please God. May we all be filled to the fullest in the wisdom of God!

James 1:5

5 If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and without reproach; and it shall be given him.

Luke 11:13

13 If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”

Pastor Dale

Notes of Faith September 5, 2024

Notes of Faith September 5, 2024

The Saint in Sunshine

And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them.

Ephesians 5:11

The last half of Paul’s letter to the Ephesians revolves around the idea of walking. We’re to walk worthy of the calling with which we are called (4:1), to walk in love (5:2), to walk as wise (5:15), and to walk in light. Ephesians 5:8 says, “For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light.”

Recommended Reading:

Ephesians 5:8-14

That means we’re to avoid doing things that people do in darkness—in moral and spiritual darkness. Our world is a dark place, and loathsome creatures thrive in the darkness—pornography, cheating, profanity, compromise, fearfulness, anxiety, depression, unrestrained anger, and personal bitterness.

We may be in the world, but we are not of the world. We can’t help it that people around us are wrapped up in the things of this world and the darkness. We must love them and minister to them. But we cannot be partakers with them. Visualize yourself today wrapped in a blanket of light! You’ll be a saint in sunshine.

You will walk in sunshine. The Lord will be your everlasting light, and your God your glory.

Rev. James Fleming

God is light and in Him is no darkness at all! Come to the light. Walk in the light. Be flooded with the glory of God for all eternity as you discipline yourself to choose light over darkness.

Pastor Dale

Notes of Faith September 4, 2024

Notes of Faith September 4, 2024

Sunshine on Your Face

Giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light.

Colossians 1:12

The sun never sets in Longyearbyen, Norway, between mid-April to late August. For about four months, the sun never goes down. You can take a sunny walk at 3 a.m., for the sun is still up.

Every believer lives in the spiritual equivalent of Longyearbyen. Even at 3 a.m., we’re bathed with light. The study of light in the Bible is complex, for the term is used both physically and metaphorically. Light can symbolize many things, but chiefly it represents the presence of our holy, truthful, gracious God.

“For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” (2 Corinthians 4:6). We’re to reflect the light of Jesus and walk in the light.

Today, imagine living in a place emotionally and spiritually where the sun never sinks below the horizon. See yourself walking down a sun-splashed trail. Walk in the light of the Lord, and keep the sunshine on your face.

How beautiful to walk in the steps of the Savior, led in paths of light.

Eliza E. Hewitt

Jesus said, “I am the light of the world” and then later said to His followers, “you are the light of the world.”

In the new heaven and earth there is no need for the sun for Jesus will shine in all His glorious light! We are, and will be bathed in the light of Jesus.

Pastor Dale

Notes of Faith September 3, 2024

Notes of Faith September 3, 2024

The Danger of Being Conditioned

Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. Therefore do not be partakers with them.

Ephesians 5:6-7

Though debunked by scientists, the fable of the frog and increasingly heated water makes a valid point. The idea is that a frog put into a pan of tepid water will remain in the pan (and die) as the water is slowly brought to a boil—illustrating the danger of gradual conditioning: what might have once been rejected becomes gradually accepted.

Such conditioning can happen culturally and spiritually. Think about the things that are now considered acceptable in American society that would have been unthinkable when the nation was founded. Paul provides examples from his day in Ephesians 5:3-5: sexual immorality, moral impurity, greed, obscenity, foolish talk, coarse jesting, and the like. Such things have always been around, but they are now practiced in public rather than behind closed doors. It is easy for Christians who live in such a society to become conditioned to such carnality.

The surest way to avoid being “assimilated” is to meditate on the Word of God daily (Psalm 1:1-3).

One reason the church has so little influence over the world is because the world has so much influence over the church.

Charles Spurgeon

1 Corinthians 6:9–11

9 Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, 10 nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God. 11 And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God.

We must know the Word of God by being in it (daily!). After we know it, we must obey it. Obedience is not easy, but the way to glorious blessing.

If we live in this manner, we WILL be an influencer rather than the influenced. Let us endeavor to be obedient and reach the world for Christ!

Pastor Dale

Notes of Faith September 2, 2024

Notes of Faith September 2, 2024

Pray that your celebration of Labor Day is a blessed time!

Be Like God

Therefore be imitators of God as dear children. And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma.

Ephesians 5:1-2

One of the most successful commercials of all time was originally broadcast on August 8, 1991. The product was a sports drink, and the star of the commercial was legendary basketball player Michael Jordan. The commercial showed Jordan playing basketball and consuming the sports drink, ending with “Be like Mike.” And it worked! Sales of the sports drink took off.

Recommended Reading:

Ephesians 4:32

The Irish playwright Oscar Wilde was the first to tell us that “imitation is the sincerest form of flattery”—and that may be true among humans. But flattery is not the reason the apostle Paul tells us to “be imitators of God.” It is because God is love (1 John 4:8) and has demonstrated His love toward us (Romans 5:8). If our goal is to be a good basketball player, we should “be like Mike.” But if our goal is to be like Christ, we should imitate God by walking in love the way Christ did.

Imitation requires intimate knowledge. Spend time with God in His Word daily in order to imitate Him.

Nowhere do we imitate God more than in showing mercy.

Albert Barnes

All humans are at different levels of understanding and intimacy with God. We must be as merciful and loving as God is to have a right relationship with God and mankind made in His image. Let us be loving and merciful to all people and if God allows us to be part of bringing them to Him for salvation, or to help them grow in the knowledge of Jesus and strengthen their faith…what an incredible glory of service for us!

Pastor Dale