Filed under: SOAP
S - 14 “You have said, ‘What’s the use of serving God? What have we gained by obeying his commands or by trying to show the Lord of Heaven’s Armies that we are sorry for our sins? 15 From now on we will call the arrogant blessed. For those who do evil get rich, and those who dare God to punish them suffer no harm.’”16 Then those who feared the Lord spoke with each other, and the Lord listened to what they said. In his presence, a scroll of remembrance was written to record the names of those who feared him and always thought about the honor of his name. 17 “They will be my people,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. “On the day when I act in judgment, they will be my own special treasure. I will spare them as a father spares an obedient child. 18 Then you will again see the difference between the righteous and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not.” (Malachi 3:14-18)
O - The blessings for those who fear and honor God are eternal treasures, not physical wants.
A - We’re living in an unstable time right now. It seems that the best laid plans of the most righteous and honest people are falling apart while the dishonest and immoral are flourishing. We all know people in this situation, I can name three four or five without really even thinking about it. As we look to God to make sense of it, all we get is a story about Him having a list of the righteous and how we will be blessed. On one hand it’s encouraging to know that God has eternal blessings for us, on the other hand, it’s hard to watch others prosper.
P - God, I try to have faith that you’re in control. Help me to keep doing your will. It’s hard, but I know that your way is ultimately the best. Thank you for providing for me, not necessarily all of my wants, but all of my needs.
Filed under: SOAP
S – 22 For the third time he demanded, “Why? What crime has he committed? I have found no reason to sentence him to death. So I will have him flogged, and then I will release him.” 23 But the mob shouted louder and louder, demanding that Jesus be crucified, and their voices prevailed. 24 So Pilate sentenced Jesus to die as they demanded. (Luke 23:22-24)
O- Pilate went against the decision that he knew was right because of the pressure of the crowd.
A – When I think of a sign of a strong leader, I think of someone who makes the decisions no one else wants to make and sticking with the reasons for those convictions. A leader does what they know is right regardless of the view of others. Strong leadership is blessed when it is used, weak leadership is not.
Pilate was put to the test in his life as a leader when Jesus was brought before him. He had the choice whether to stick to his convictions and make the decision no one else wanted to make, or to follow the crowd. Pilate failed and we don’t really hear anything else about him in history.
Jesus on the other hand said the things that no one else wanted to say and his name is forever in history for it. It’s interesting when that strong leadership is remembered it’s for the good decisions, weak leadership is remembered for the bad decisions.
P – God, help me to make the decisions that make me a strong leader. Help me to not follow the crowd, but follow the heart and mind that you gave me.
Filed under: Worship
How He Loves Me
by The David Crowder Band
He is jealous for me,
Loves like a hurricane, I am a tree,
Bending beneath the weight of his wind and mercy.
When all of a sudden,
I am unaware of these afflictions eclipsed by glory,
And I realize just how beautiful You are,
And how great Your affections are for me.
And oh, how He loves us so,
Oh how He loves us,
How He loves us all
Yeah, He loves us,
Oh! how He loves us,
Oh! how He loves us,
Oh! how He loves.
We are His portion and He is our prize,
Drawn to redemption by the grace in His eyes,
If grace is an ocean, we’re all sinking.
And Heaven meets earth like an unforseen kiss,
And my heart turns violently inside of my chest,
I don’t have time to maintain these regrets,
When I think about, the way…
This song has blown me away lately. How amazing the love of Christ is! Too often we look at Christ’s love for us like it’s something that He had to do. The reality of the situation is that Christ has so much grace and love for us that loving us is something that He wants to do.
Christ loves us so much and too often we take advantage of that love. We think that since Christ has to love us, we don’t have to reciprocate that love. The reality is that we don’t experience the true extent of the love of Christ until we love Him back and love others in the process. He love us so much, what’s our response?
Filed under: SOAP
S – “And everyone will hate you because you are my followers. But not a hair of your head will perish! By standing firm, you will win your souls.” (Luke 21:17-19)
O - We live in a culture that is hostile towards Christianity and the Church. God promises us that we will not perish in the midst of it. It’s by standing firm in our faith that we will be delivered.
A - After being a pastor for several years, I realize that it’s hard to stand firm in my faith in Christ, in the midst of our culture. Sometimes it seems easier to fall into our selfish desires and disregard the grace of Christ. It doesn’t even have anything to do with believing in Christ or not, it’s just that following Christ is hard! I then see these words of Christ and am encouraged. No matter what we’re going through we will not perish. Jesus doesn’t say it will be easy, but we won’t perish and in the end when we stand firm, we will be delivered from our desires and be able to embrace our Lord Jesus Christ. Our soul will be saved.
P - God, thank you for your grace. Thank you that I can struggle and be lazy at times, but that you still love me. God your love is amazing. I pray that in the midst of the struggles, laziness and selfish desires that are apparent in my life, that I can stand firm in your grace.
Filed under: Uncategorized
S – I felt encouraged because the gracious hand of the Lord my God was on me. (Ezra 7:28)
O – When we are in the depths of hurt and struggle. We see the gracious hand of God encouraging our lives. A – I’ve been struggling recently to see where God is in my life. It’s been a time of being unsure of my abilities, value and being confused at what God wants for me and my family. As I look at the last couple of weeks I see God’s gracious hand of provision moving in my life. P – Thank you God for the love you have for me. Thank your for your provision and encouragement. You are a gracious God and I love you.Filed under: SOAP
S - Again and again he rescued them, but they chose to rebel against him,and they were finally destroyed by their sin. Even so, he pitied them in their distress and listened to their cries. He remembered his covenant with them relented because of his unfailing love. Psalm 106:43-45
Filed under: Worship
and these songs i have been singing well they’re empty in my throat
and what once was juice and crackers now becomes my only hope
Filed under: SOAP
Filed under: Worship
Your love is extravagant
Your friendship, it is intimate
I feel like moving to the rhythm of Your grace
Your fragrance is intoxicating in our secret place
Your love is extravagant
Spread wide in the arms of Christ is the love that covers sin
No greater love have I ever known You considered me a friend
Capture my heart again
So I was listening to Your Love Is Extravagant by The Almost today and was reminded about the intimacy we have with Christ. I heard this song a few years ago when it was originally done by Casting Crowns and fell in love with it, not only because is a well done song musically, but because it encapsulates the goal of my relationship with Christ. The love that Christ has for me is extravagant and big and over the top. He loves me more than anything and at the same time He is my most intimate friend that I am able to talk to and spend time with. When view my relationship with Christ I view being able to sit the arms of Christ and talk about how I’m feeling right then, knowing that He loves me and won’t judge me. It’s a great feeling. It’s a feeling that many times we forget. We forget that our relationship with God isn’t just a list of rules or a to dos, but it is a love relationship between the Creator and His creation. We just need to sit in His presence and soak in that intimacy.
