Notes of Faith August 8, 2025

Notes of Faith August 8, 2025

Hallowed be Your name.

Luke 11:2

When vandals painted graffiti on large stones at Gettysburg National Military Park last year, the park superintendent called them, “The heroes of this hallowed ground!”1

The word hallow means “holy, sacred, honored, and revered.” When we pray, “Hallowed be Your name,” we acknowledge the Lord’s sacred and holy presence. And nothing is more hallowed than the presence of the God who hears our prayers.

One of the ways we can increase our appreciation for God’s hallowed name is by looking at the various names and titles given to Him in Scripture. He is the Ancient of Days, the Everlasting Father, the Great King, and the Lord Yahweh. He is the Maker of heaven and earth, our Rock of refuge, and our Hiding Place.

His various names and titles tell us we need Him in different ways at different times. Make a conscious effort today to ponder some aspect of God’s person, purpose, or power.

Each of God’s names means something so significant that it gives you a glimpse of His magnificent character and the way He acts.

Dick Purnell

1“Vandalism Discovered at Gettysburg Battlefield, ” Gettysburg Foundation, August 21, 2024.

Ps 150

Praise the Lord!

Praise God in His sanctuary;

Praise Him in His mighty expanse.

2 Praise Him for His mighty deeds;

Praise Him according to His excellent greatness.

3 Praise Him with trumpet sound;

Praise Him with harp and lyre.

4 Praise Him with timbrel and dancing;

Praise Him with stringed instruments and pipe.

5 Praise Him with loud cymbals;

Praise Him with resounding cymbals.

6 Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.

Praise the Lord!

Everyone has reason to offer worship and praise to God…even the unbeliever who receives each breath and heartbeat at the grace and mercy of the God he does not believe in. It brings awe and wonder to discover the names of God in the Scriptures. They do proclaim who He is and reveal to us His glory.

Take a moment right now to stop and worship, giving thanks to the God of everything you will ever need and more!

Pastor Dale

Notes of Faith August 7, 2025

Notes of Faith August 7, 2025

The Plural Prayer

Our Father…. Give us…. Forgive us…. Deliver us.

Matthew 6:9-13

Two of the best-known passages in the Bible are the Twenty-Third Psalm and the Lord’s (Disciples) Prayer. They are similar in several ways, but there is one major difference between them. Psalm 23 is personal and singular: “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want” (verse 1). The writer didn’t say, “The Lord is our shepherd.” He was writing for himself.

The Lord’s Prayer, on the other hand, is plural throughout. Jesus didn’t tell us to pray, “My Father in heaven” but “Our Father in heaven.” We’re to pray, “Give us…. Forgive us…. Deliver us” (Matthew 6:9-13). We are praying for ourselves and for others.

God is our Heavenly Father; we must remember our brothers and sisters in Christ. We are part of a family, and we need to make sure to take care of those relationships. When you offer the Lord’s Prayer, think not only of yourself but also of others. You can make this a prayer that includes your children, your pastor, your fellow church members, and the family of Christ around the world. Here’s an idea to get started. Offer the Lord’s prayer now, and emphasize with your voice all the plural pronouns. It will be a blessing for you.

The Lord’s Prayer is a family prayer.

Unknown

Romans 8:15-16

15 For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons by whom we cry out, “Abba! Father!” 16 The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God,

I call John chapter 17 “the Lord’s Prayer” and the conventional Lord’s Prayer I call the Disciple’s Prayer. In the Disciple’s Prayer we can see that followers of Jesus, disciples, true believers are part of the family of God. Our prayers are to emphasize the family, to pray for every believer and our relationship together with God.

May we NOT use this prayer as a vain repetition but as a model for prayer as Jesus intended.

Pastor Dale

Notes of Faith August 6, 2025

Notes of Faith August 6, 2025

Abba, Father

And [Jesus] said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible for You.”

Mark 14:36

One of the most obvious differences between the Old Testament and New Testament is how God is referred to. In the Old Testament, God is called the Father of the nation of Israel or of certain individuals 15 times (although father imagery is sometimes used). But in the Gospels, God is referred to as Father some 165 times! And the apostle Paul refers to God as Father some 40 different times in his epistles.

It is thought by scholars that Jesus, and most of His contemporaries, spoke Aramaic, a dialect of Hebrew. The word they would have used for “father” was the Aramaic word abba, a personal and intimate word. When the New Testament was recorded in Greek, most occurrences of abba were translated with the Greek word pater—but abba is preserved in three instances: Mark 14:36, Romans 8:15-16, and Galatians 4:6. Each of these verses reflects a level of personal intimacy which abba conveys. It has been suggested that abba is the equivalent of the modern word “daddy”—the way a child addresses his father.

When you address God as Father in prayer, reflect on the fact that you are His child, adopted into His forever family (Galatians 4:4-7).

A Christian is one who has God as his Father.

J. I. Packer

Too many people do not have an intimate relationship with their earthly father. This comes from a variety of complicated reasons but nevertheless leaves a child without the intimacy and understanding of the father relationship. Even a good earthly father cannot come close to the relationship that God the Father provides for all, even those who do not believe in Him. The provision of breathable air, water to drink, rain for food to grow, is given to all, regardless of faith or unbelief. God the Father seeks intimacy with the only thing created in His image…YOU! May we come to know and pursue a true “father-child” relationship with our heavenly abba!

Pastor Dale

Notes of Faith August 5, 2025

Notes of Faith August 5, 2025

Preparation for Prayer

Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.

Psalm 100:4

The final editors of the book of Psalms appear to have grouped Psalms 93–100 together because of their consistent theme: the greatness of God over all creation (Psalm 95:3). Psalm 100 serves as a summary of the section, instructing the reader to “enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise.”

Why is praise the proper introduction to prayer? Because praise recognizes that God is greater than everything, including what is happening in our life. When we come to God with our petitions and requests, if we have first spent time in praise of Him, we are prepared to receive from Him that which is His will. Praise says, “You are sovereign, O Lord, and You are good. Therefore, I can trust You with the concerns of my life. However You answer my prayers, I know that Your answers will be best for me.” Praise is the perfect way to prepare for prayer—the perfect way to acknowledge that God’s will is our greatest desire.

Practice incorporating praise into your prayer life and anticipate the peace that will result as you make your requests known to God (Philippians 4:6-7).

The best atmosphere for prayer is praise.

Peter Anderson

If we look at the prayer that Jesus shared with His disciples when they asked Him to teach them to pray, we find focus on God. Calling out to His name, proclaiming His character, asking that His sovereign will be done (and that we might submit to His will). This is worship and praise that comes before any request or need that God already knows we need. Praising God when we go to bed and when we wake up prepares the heart and mind for walking with God during the day’s activities. God blesses the heart that is focused on Him in intimate communion!

Pastor Dale

Notes of Faith August 4, 2025

Notes of Faith August 4, 2025

A Penny for Your Prayers

And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites.

Matthew 6:5

Visitors to the 1893 World’s Fair in Chicago saw a machine that took a penny and pressed a design of the Lord’s Prayer into it. The coin would no longer be round but oval-shaped. In the mid-1900s, self-service machines like this showed up at vacation spots and amusement parks. Some machines would also press nickels, dimes, quarters, and half-dollars into Lord’s Prayer tokens. These are collector’s items now, but we all know that a prayer on a smashed coin isn’t the same as a prayer from a sincere heart.

The Lord’s Prayer shows us that we are not to pray like the heathen. While there are many ways to pray—using written prayers, singing hymns addressed to God, using memorized prayers—it’s important that we pray sincerely and thoughtfully. The Lord wants to hear our heartfelt cries of praise and petition. The Lord hears every single sigh and syllable of our heartfelt prayers, and He goes to work providing the answers we need.

Trust Him, and make sure your heart and mind are working together in approaching the throne of grace.

In prayer, it is better to have a heart without words than words without a heart.

John Bunyan

Matthew 6:1-13

“Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.

2“Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. 3But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

5“And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. 6But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

7“And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. 8Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. 9Pray then like this:

“Our Father in heaven,

hallowed be your name.

10Your kingdom come,

your will be done,

on earth as it is in heaven.

11Give us this day our daily bread,

12and forgive us our debts,

as we also have forgiven our debtors.

13And lead us not into temptation,

but deliver us from evil.

10“Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11The Pharisee stood and was praying these things to himself…

13But the tax collector, standing some distance away, was even unwilling to lift up his eyes to heaven, but was beating his chest, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, the sinner!’ 14I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other, for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

The Lord knows our hearts and our needs and still wants the intimacy of prayer with us. Do you think that He listens to a conceited heart as with the Pharisee? Or do you realize that He wants our heart to be aligned with His will for us and the world around us. Our focus should be on God Himself and others first before ourselves. Again, the Lord knows our needs and even the words we will pray before they are thought or spoken! May our prayers come from the heart and not be vain repetitions!

Pastor Dale

Notes of Faith August 3, 2025

Notes of Faith August 3, 2025

Everywhere you go and preach the gospel, most likely the majority will reject it. But there will always be those who will hear, take heed, accept, and follow. And for the sake of those, you need to preach to everyone. You just never know. Go to your office, go to your school, go to your family members. You’re going to preach the gospel to them. Ninety percent may reject it. But for the 10 percent, you’re sent to the whole 100.

Preach the Gospel

Two elementary-school-aged girls were discussing the actions of a bully in their class, and one of them said, “He needs to know Jesus if he wants to go to heaven.” The other girl replied, “What if I don’t want him to go to heaven?” The first girl responded, “Then don’t tell him about Jesus!”

While the motive behind the closing comment may have been wrong, the conclusion was accurate. Without knowing Jesus, you can’t go to heaven.

John 14:6

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”

In light of this truth, we need to recognize that the Gospel is the most important topic of conversation there is. We would do well to take inventory of how frequently it makes its way into the conversations we have with those we encounter daily. It is true that many will respond negatively or even disrespectfully, but this doesn’t lessen the importance of approaching the subject because some will believe and receive Christ as Savior and Lord.

Through the years many have started conversations about salvation with questions like, “Do you know where you’re going after you die?” This is a valid question, but it is not often an effective ice breaker. In light of the times we live in, a more effective approach would be, “Can you believe all the things going on on the world? I am sure thankful the Bible has told us what to expect in the last days!”

People are hungry to know the future, and they seek all sorts of means to discover it. When you start talking about how the Bible has said so many specific things well in advance of their happening, like the regathering of the Jews from countries around the world or the forming of a coalition of nations that will someday invade Israel from the north, you will more often than not have captured an audience and opened the door for that ultimate important conversation about the One who can save the human soul.

The Father wants all to come to repentance and so should we. Let’s not be like the second little girl and withhold from some the all-important information that can save their perishing souls!

Even so, come quickly Lord Jesus,

There was a day when we came to Christ. How many times have we shared the transformation that took place in our lives because of Christ? The gospel is powerful and will change those who believe in and follow Jesus. Let us be more determined than ever to save those headed toward eternal judgment.

Pastor Dale

Notes of Faith August 2, 2025

Notes of Faith August 2, 2025

Rousing Send-Offs: The Great Commission

Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you.

Matthew 28:19-20

According to Nations Outreach, 31 percent of the world identifies as Christian, 23 percent as Muslim, and 16 percent as atheists, agnostics, or people who do not identify with any religion. Forty-two percent of the world’s population has heard the Gospel. But the most unreached nations are still largely in darkness: India, Pakistan, Indonesia, Bangladesh, China, Japan, Iran, and Turkey.1

Turning Point and many other groups are working around the clock to spread the message of Jesus. Sometimes the work is dangerous, especially in restrictive nations. Persecution is widespread. Yet God is moving, the Gospel is spreading, and we’re still taking the Great Commission of Christ seriously. The One who sent off His disciples two thousand years ago is still sending you and me in our day. Let’s take our job seriously!

God forbid that I should travel with anybody a quarter of an hour without speaking of Christ to them.

George Whitefield

1 “2025 Christian Missionary Statistics,” Nations Outreach, February 3, 2025.

Making disciples of Jesus is more than just leading them to understanding who He is and coming to Him with believing faith. “Teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you” is a life-long discipleship process and continued learning from the Word of God. There are many, even in our churches, who do not know God well. They do not know His character and nature nor understand what He desires from a relationship with Him. This is a much deeper life experience than simply sharing the gospel for them to know that they are a sinner in need of a Savior. Jesus spent years with the Apostles and they were a disaster without the Holy Spirit living within them and even after continued to fall into sinful behavior, just as we do. That is why we need daily to be in the Word, to meet and have relationships with other believers, to strengthen our walk with God and our witness before the unbelieving world. My prayer is that the intention of our heart be to bring people to the throne of grace and continue to nurture and lead where God places us, to truly disciple those who come to faith in Christ, “teaching them to observe all things that He commanded.”

Pastor Dale

Notes of Faith August 1, 2025

Notes of Faith August 1, 2025

The Greatest Privilege

Now it came to pass, as He was praying in a certain place, when He ceased, that one of His disciples said to Him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.”

Luke 11:1

There is a general perception among Christians that prayer is a topic for the New Testament rather than the Old. But prayer was not an unknown subject among the Jews as evidenced by the fact that John the Baptist had instructed his disciples how to pray.

That makes Jesus’ disciples’ request to Him a little unusual: “Lord, teach us to pray.” Perhaps they had learned from Jesus that prayer could be a very personal discipline instead of just a religious practice. Their request to Jesus suggests a newfound dimension to an ancient practice: prayer to a personal Father rather than only to the God of the nation (Matthew 6:9; Luke 11:2). And perhaps the disciples had done what we often do—taking conversation with our Heavenly Father for granted rather than entering into it as life’s greatest privilege.

If prayer for you has become more of a formality than an adventure, consider using the prayer Jesus taught His disciples as a model for your own prayers (Matthew 6:9-13).

Prayer is the key of heaven; faith is the hand that turns it.

Thomas Watson

When we realize that we can talk to God (prayer) at any time, for any length of time, literally at all times, it should humble our hearts and minds that God wants intimate personal relationship with each of us! He hears and responds to our prayers. His response is usually not our plan (thank You, Lord!), but He answers for our good and His eternal glory. Learning to pray is learning to commune with God, at all times, even without words, just thoughts…He knows before we pray what we need. Let us seek to commune with God the way Jesus did with His Father!

Pastor Dale

Notes of Faith July 31, 2025

Notes of Faith July 31, 2025

No Coasting

Let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith.

Hebrews 12:1-2

Earlier this year at the Faun-Ardèche Classic bicycle race in France, the leading group of riders went in the wrong direction near the end. Cyclists were sprinting toward victory when they took the wrong turn at a roundabout, allowing Romain Grégoire of France to claim the victory.

Each of us wants to finish the race well. We don’t need any wrong turns near the finish line. Someone called this “long-distance Christianity.”

Leighton Ford wrote, “God has a purpose in and for our aging. That purpose has to do with the hidden life of the Spirit so that, as the body grows older, our spirit may grow deeper and stronger. Our ongoing calling, in later years as in earlier years, is to die daily, perhaps even hourly, with our Lord, and to realize (especially in our later years) the reality and power of his death and of his resurrection.”1

Ask God to help you stay focused on the goal of the Christian experience rather than becoming distracted by the things of the world. Look to Him today!

Live ready to go when Christ comes for you.

J. I. Packer

Hebrews 12:1-3

1Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.

3Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted.

Every day we receive of life is by the grace of God. Babies in the womb, young children, teens, young adults, middle age adult, elderly adult, are all awaiting the same end…death.

Let us pursue Christ, to live pure and holy as Christ, to show the world and speak to the world the truth of Christ that they might live eternally with Him and not be judged and condemned for their sin eternally in the Lake of Fire.

Live every moment with an expectation to do something for Christ. Worship and serve Him with your whole heart. Love others the way He loves you!

Pastor Dale

Notes of Faith July 30, 2025

Notes of Faith July 30, 2025

Rules for Aging

Is not wisdom found among the aged? Does not long life bring understanding?

Job 12:12, NIV

Dr. John Dunlop, a gerontologist, has two rules for staying mentally healthy as we age. “Rule 1: Wake up every morning knowing what you are going to do that day. Rule 2: Go to bed every night knowing that you helped someone.”1 Those rules work for us whatever our age, but a benefit of growing older is developing a richer appreciation for how the Lord can use us every new morning.

The prophet Isaiah wrote, “The Sovereign Lord has given me a well-instructed tongue, to know the word that sustains the weary. He wakens me morning by morning, wakens my ear to listen like one being instructed” (Isaiah 50:4, NIV).

As we enter new chapters in life, we may feel we’re too busy, too weak, too weary, or too old to serve Him. But part of running the race of the Christian life well is serving God throughout our entire lives. Look for ways you can serve Him today, no matter what stage of life you’re in.

Those who trust in God should never view any season of life as unproductive; even the last stage…. God has a purpose for you to fulfill each day of your life.

Dr. John Dunlop

1 John Dunlop, Finishing Well to the Glory of God (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2011), 21.

No matter what age you are Dr. John Dunlop’s rules seem to apply very well…

Rule 1: Wake up every morning knowing what you are going to do that day. Rule 2: Go to bed every night knowing that you helped someone.

It is good to have plans for each day. Idle hands are the devil’s workplace. I think I may have heard that from my mom but have also found it to be true in my life. How about you?

Job 12:7-12

7“But just ask the animals, and have them teach you;

And the birds of the sky, and have them tell you.

8“Or speak to the earth, and have it teach you;

And have the fish of the sea tell you.

9“Who among all these does not know

That the hand of the LORD has done this,

10In whose hand is the life of every living thing,

And the breath of all mankind?

11“Does the ear not put words to the test,

As the palate tastes its food?

12“Wisdom is with the aged,

And with long life comes understanding.

Wisdom only comes as we age if we learn from the decisions we have made. It all starts with a relationship with God, listening to His will for our lives and being obedient to His commands.

Love God! Love others!

Pastor Dale