care for people in our care

How Are You Caring For Those In Your Care?

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God is more interested in how you treat those in your care than in our generosity (with time or money) to a ministry or to any other cause. In Mark 7 Jesus rebuked the Pharisees by quoting one of the ten commandments saying: “Moses said, ‘Honor your father and mother,’ and, ‘Anyone who curses their father or mother is to be put to death.’ But you say that if anyone declares that what might have been used to help their father or mother is Corban (that is, devoted to God) — then you no longer let them do anything for their father or mother. Thus you nullify the word of God by your tradition” (Mark 7:10-13, NIV). We need to be careful to avoid any form of this type of offense. Try to imagine how you would feel if Christ pointed out your failure to love someone in your care, Continue Reading →

Weekly words of encouragement

Joy Comes From Faith – Weekly Words Of Encouragement

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Those who trust the Lord will be joyful. Proverbs 16:20 (NLT) We all want joy, in other words, happiness. The American Declaration of Independence asserts that all people have a right to pursue happiness. We make our decisions based on expected happiness outcomes. Most of the bad decisions people make are based on the hope that it will bring them some kind of happiness or at least help them avoid unhappiness. They make short-term decisions, like taking Methamphetamine, because they want some happiness, and they discount the long-term harm. But where can we find deep, lasting joy? It can only be experienced if the deepest part of ourselves connects to something big enough and good enough that it satisfies our deepest self. And happiness can only be found in relationships; humans have never been fully satisfied without close friendships. So, the only way we can find and grow in joy Continue Reading →

crown kingdom

Seek The Kingdom Of God First

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After inaugurating the kingdom with Jesus’ first coming he would allow sufficient time for us to spread the good news of the kingdom throughout the earth (Acts 1:8). If Jesus had returned in the first century, then his message would not have reached the whole earth. Therefore, God would guide history according to his hidden plan until the time when the Son would come to earth a second time to complete the establishment of God’s kingdom. We describe our present time as the time when the kingdom is already here but not yet fulfilled. We are in the “already/not yet”. Since it is here, we seek the kingdom of God first in all things. Even though the kingdom is not yet fulfilled, we do not wait passively for Jesus’ return. He promoted and equipped his people to spread the lifestyle of the kingdom of God. We can do this because Continue Reading →

Weekly words of encouragement

God Will Bring You To Your Proper End – Weekly Words Of Encouragement

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The Lord works out everything to its proper end —even the wicked for a day of disaster. Proverbs 16:4 (NIV) God will bring everything to a just and good conclusion. He will establish fairness and reward you with blessings for your faithfulness. Since you have pursued him and his goodness God will bring you to your proper end – eternity with him and his goodness. You will live in a perfect community with all the others who pursued God. That is the proper end of all who follow God in Christ. Everything you do matters to God; he will work all things together for good. But this means that those who pursue destructiveness or turn away from God will also be brought to their proper end. Someone who never surrenders their life to God in Christ, but exalts themselves to be god of their own life should not come to Continue Reading →

suffering

Suffering Makes Us Complete

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We are supposed to suffer because suffering makes us complete. Jesus said: “Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me” (Matt. 10:38, NIV). (The idea of taking up our cross is also found in Matthew 16:24, Luke 9:23 and Luke 14:27.) To take up our cross is to suffer. We need the benefits of suffering. Hebrews 2:10 declares that God made our savior “perfect through what he suffered” (NIV). How much suffering will it take to perfect you? You might need more suffering than Jesus to reach completion because you have an old corrupt self, which he did not have. Our suffering only lasts for this life; in the next life God will reward us for it. Since the new covenant of the kingdom fulfilled the old covenant, the followers of God no longer need material or political success in this world in Continue Reading →