Devotions (Page 56)

Acts 20:35 – In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus Himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’” (NIV) Romans 8:32 – He who did not withhold or spare [even] His own Son but gave Him up for us all, will He not also with Him freely and graciously give us all [other] things?(AMPC – Amplified Bible Classic Edition)…

“There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear.”1 John 4:18 There are SO many places in the Bible that God tells his people not to be afraid. When they are being visited by an angel, chances are good the encounter begins with “Fear not!” When they are heading into battle, he reminds them that he is with them and that they don’t need to fear. When they are about to begin following a new way of…

This year God has been pushing us to focus on Maturity. We felt that the Lord will help us to track our growth by the 3 Gs (Give, Go, Grow). Yesterday as we talked about Living Generously – we tackled why Living Generously is important Motivations for Living Generously Experiencing God’s love and generosity in our own livesWhen we experience the love, generosity, grace, compassion, … of God, we can’t help but share that love with others. Something so good…

When it comes to caring for plants, pruning has become one of my favourite things to do! It really used to freak me out… I felt uncertain about what I was doing and, if I’m being totally honest, every time I had to prune my plants, it felt like I had failed them! If I had only just watered more, or in some cases watered less, then the leaves wouldn’t have died and I wouldn’t need to cut them off!…

Gen. 12:1-4:“And YHWH said to Abram,Get yourself up and gofrom your land, and from your kindred, and from your father’s house, to the land that I will show you. And I will make you into a great nation; and I will bless you; and I will make your name great.And be a blessing.And I will bless those who bless you; whereas the one who belittles you, I will curse; and in you will be blessed all kinship groups on the…

2 Corinthians 12: 1-10 (NIV)Paul’s Vision and His Thorn 1I must go on boasting. Although there is nothing to be gained, I will go on to visions and revelations from the Lord. 2 I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven. Whether it was in the body or out of the body I do not know—God knows. 3 And I know that this man—whether in the body or apart from the…

Psalms 23 (NIV) The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.    He makes me lie down in green pastures,He leads me beside quiet waters, He refreshes my soul.He guides me along the right paths for His name’s sake.Even though I walk through the darkest valley,I will fear no evil, for You are with me;Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely Your goodness and love will follow me all the days of…

1 Samuel 17:45 (ESV) “Then David said to the Philistine, “You come to me with a sword and with a spear and with a javelin,but I come to you in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you havedefied.” I know well enough that following our Lord Jesus Christ changes my priorities. That calling myself Christian changes what I value. And as I journey with our Lord Jesus Christ over all these…

When I asked the Lord what today’s devo was about he said, “Persistence.” Not perseverance or faithfulness… persistence. Now, I am no linguist. But I can be very particular when it comes to certain things and even a little bit stubborn… okay fine, maybe a lot stubborn. In Finnish we have a word sisu that describes the grit and determination of a person. It’s not just a thing people experience though, it’s considered to be more of an intrinsic characteristic…

Jeremiah 32:38-41 38 They will be my people, and I will be their God. 39 I will give them singleness of heart and action, so that they will always fear me and that all will then go well for them and for their children after them. 40 I will make an everlasting covenant with them: I will never stop doing good to them, and I will inspire them to fear me, so that they will never turn away from me. 41 I will rejoice in doing them good and will assuredly plant them in this…

1 Corinthians 13:1-31 If I could speak all the languages of earth and of angels, but didn’t love others, I would only be a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I had the gift of prophecy, and if I understood all of God’s secret plans and possessed all knowledge, and if I had such faith that I could move mountains, but didn’t love others, I would be nothing. 3 If I gave everything I have to the poor…

Last week at intercession (prayer and worship, every Wednesday night) the group that was together was doing listening prayer for the church. The prayers that we shared were a great encouragement and reminder of who we are as a church family, and how every person in the church is called to follow God. Here are some of the highlights from the prayers that night: “- Life-Spring should live up to its name to be a spring of life for those…