Announcements (Page 59)

Luke 23:34 (NLT) Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing.” And the soldiers gambled for his clothes by throwing dice. This scripture has never been so powerful to me then right now. Jesus in the midst of His crucifixion calls out to God not to save himself but to plea for forgiveness for what the people have done. The most humble thing Jesus could do is ask God to forgive us for sending His…

As we prepare for this Sunday’s Holy Communion,  allow me to share what God reminded me recently. In his book, The Prodigal God on pages 127, 128, and 129, Timothy Keller shared the following. “A meal fuels growth through nourishment. The Lord’s Supper, also called Communion or the Eucharist, represents ongoing growth in God’s grace. In order to survive and grow, individuals must eat and drink regularly. That’s what we must do with the gospel of the grace of God. We…

“Hope deferred makes the heart sick,    but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.”Proverbs 13:12 Sometimes I get lost in the practical needs of a situation or the tangible changes that need to take place. I forget about how vital hope is for making it through difficult times. It’s almost as though, because I can’t see it or touch it, I lose sight of how important it is… at which point, it’s only a matter of time until my heart…

Devotion – May 29, 2020 – John 15:1-11 (Prune to Fruit)“I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. 3 You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you.4 Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit…

Matthew 22:36-39“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.'” Though this was our memory verse from only 6 months ago, it feels like an eternity since we recited it together at church. This verse really has a new meaning for me though…

Psalm 96:1-2 (TPT)“Go ahead—sing your new song to the Lord!Let everyone in every language sing him a new song. Don’t stop! Keep on singing! Make his name famous!Tell everyone every day how wonderful he is.” As we focus on maturity this year, it can easily become a very inward journey. Which makes a lot of sense! How else are we supposed to track maturity other than to pay attention and consider how we have grown? How have we developed and…

Dear LifeSpring, I was saying my evening prayers which included the verses below from Psalm 34. I found it to be very reassuring as Dorothy and I continue to pray for our children and especially, our grandchildren living outside of Canada. While we are far away from them, God is so close to them. When life circumstances do not allow us to be close to our family, take comfort that God is ever-present in all our lives.  Psalm 34:15-22 New International Version (NIV) 15 The…

Dear LifeSpring, I was saying my evening prayers which included the verses below from Psalm 34. I found it to be very reassuring as Dorothy and I continue to pray for our children and especially, our grandchildren living outside of Canada. While we are far away from them, God is so close to them. When life circumstances do not allow us to be close to our family, take comfort that God is ever-present in all our lives.  Psalm 34:15-22 New International Version (NIV) 15 The…

This morning the Lord highlighted to me these verses in Luke 8 (NLT): 11 “This is the meaning of the parable: The seed is God’s word. 12 The seeds that fell on the footpath represent those who hear the message, only to have the devil come and take it away from their hearts and prevent them from believing and being saved. 13 The seeds on the rocky soil represent those who hear the message and receive it with joy. But since they don’t have deep…

2 Corinthians 12:9 (NIV) 9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. CONTEXT – Paul’s claim is that God had given him a “thorn in his flesh” (2 Cor 12:7) in order to prevent him from becoming conceited because of his powerful experiences and revelations from God (verses 1-4).…

It seems like everything demands our attention these days. We do our best and work hard in many areas! We work long hours to grow in our jobs, we push ourselves to be amazing parents, we work hard to keep the house clean… God has given us an amazing ability to accomplish much. But God really wanted to get my attention in this. As hard as we work and push for all the areas in our lives – do we…

We’ve been talking about making our homes into a place of God’s presence, and I thought to share a short testimony for this update. A few days ago I was in the kitchen washing a load of dishes. I sometimes like to play music when I’m in the kitchen, and this time, worship music was playing. In remembering that we talked about prayer and God’s presence a few weeks ago, I felt a tug on my heart to pray, even…